- Important state and national stories, market and business news, sports and entertainment, delivered in quick-hit fashion to start your day informed.
In Mississippi
Ingalls to host “Signing Day” for high school seniors
Ingalls Shipbuilding will host its annual “Signing Day” on May 1 to celebrate high school seniors from across the Gulf Coast who have completed the Ingalls Shipbuilding Academy (ISA) and accepted contingent employment offers with the company.
Modeled after traditional athletic signings, the ceremony will honor students as they take the first step into shipbuilding careers. The Shipbuilder Academy is a key component of Ingalls’ long-term workforce development strategy, supported through partnerships with 13 regional high schools: Biloxi, Gulfport, West Harrison, Long Beach, Pass Christian, Pascagoula, Gautier, Moss Point, East Central, Vancleave, St. Martin, Ocean Springs and Alma Bryant.
Each student will formally sign a contingent offer of employment identifying the craft they will enter upon graduation including roles such as welding, painting, pipefitting, joining and electrical work. Through hands-on training, mentorship and classroom instruction, ISA prepares students with the foundational skills needed to excel in the shipbuilding industry.
Since 2016, more than 450 students have graduated from the program.
National News & Foreign Policy
1. SCOTUS to hear landmark weedkiller case
According to the New York Times, “The Supreme Court is set to hear arguments on Monday in a case that could lead to the dismissal of tens of thousands of lawsuits against Bayer, the pharmaceutical and biotech giant, that claim the weedkiller Roundup caused non-Hodgkin lymphoma.”
“Developed by Monsanto in the 1970s, Roundup is one of the best-selling weedkillers in the world, but it has been dogged by controversy over its effects on human health. The company, which was acquired by the German conglomerate Bayer in 2018, has faced thousands of lawsuits, amounting to one of the largest waves of such litigation in U.S. history,” NYT reported. “Evidence in lab animals, and more limited evidence in humans, has indicated a link between Roundup’s active ingredient, glyphosate, and cancer. The World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer in 2015 classified glyphosate as ‘probably carcinogenic to humans.’”
NYT continued, “The Environmental Protection Agency considers the herbicide to be safe. The E.P.A. is responsible for pesticide labeling nationwide, and Bayer argues that the federal agency’s decision overrides state-level legal claims, effectively insulating it from lawsuits. The federal government faces an Oct. 1 deadline to re-examine the effects of glyphosate.”
2. Virginia Supreme Court to consider redistricting procedure
The Hill reports that the Virginia Supreme Court on Monday “will hear arguments in a Republican challenge to the redrawn congressional map that was approved by voters last week and could net Democrats four additional U.S. House seats.”
“The case contends that the Democratic-led General Assembly violated procedural requirements by placing the constitutional amendment before voters to authorize mid-decade redistricting,” The Hill reported. “If the court agrees that lawmakers broke the rules, it could invalidate the amendment and render last week’s statewide vote meaningless.”
The Hill noted, “Virginia court proceedings mark the latest twist in a national redistricting battle between Republicans and Democrats seeking an advantage in a November election that will determine whether Republicans maintain their narrow majority in the U.S. House.”
Sports
1. Miss. State, Southern Miss gets series wins; Georgia too much for Ole Miss
Mississippi’s Big 3 took on conference opponents over the weekend in their three-game series. Here is a look at how the weekend played out for No. 15 Mississippi State, No. 17 Ole Miss and No. 18 Southern Miss.
- Mississippi State (34-10, 13-8 SEC) swept visiting LSU in Starkville. It was the Bulldogs’ first sweep of the Tigers since 1985. Scores for Friday through Sunday were 10-8, 9-8 and 13-8. State now will play in the annual Governor’s Cup game against rival Ole Miss on Tuesday.
- Ole Miss (31-14, 11-10 SEC) roared back in game one to beat No. 5 Georgia 10-8 but despite their best efforts, the Rebels went on to lose the next two games 9-7 and 5-1. Ole Miss now plays Mississippi State on Tuesday in Pearl.
- Southern Miss (31-13 overall, 13-8 Sun Belt) took the first two games against Sun Belt rival South Alabama, winning 4-3 on Friday and 16-7 on Saturday. USM then dropped the Sunday contest 4-3. The Golden Eagles return to action Tuesday when they travel to Tulane.
2. Ole Miss men’s golf wins SEC Championship for first time in 41 years
For the first time in 41 years, the No. 12 Ole Miss men’s golf team has won the SEC Championship, as the Rebels defeated No. 3 Florida 4-1 in the match play finals.
Ole Miss Athletics said the 2025-26 Rebels become the second team in program history to capture the SEC title, joining the storied 1984 squad led by head coach Ernest Ross.
Ole Miss comes out on top of the SEC field that includes 11 of the top 25 and five of the top 10 teams in the latest rankings.
Markets & Business
1. Futures flat, oil up to open week
After the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite ended last week at fresh all-time highs, CNBC reports that “S&P 500 futures were relatively unchanged on Monday as stalled Iran peace talks and a fresh escalation in the Strait of Hormuz pushed oil prices higher, keeping geopolitical tensions front and center heading into a pivotal week.”
“Tensions escalated near the Strait of Hormuz after Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps boarded two container ships near the vital shipping lane, a key artery for global crude flows,” CNBC reported. “West Texas Intermediate futures rose about 2% to above $96 a barrel, while international benchmark Brent oil futures also gained 2% to top $107 per barrel.”
CNBC added, “Attention will also turn to the Federal Reserve’s policy decision on Wednesday, which could mark Jerome Powell’s final meeting as chair before Kevin Warsh is expected to take over in May.”
2. Car buyers increasingly underwater
As reported by the Wall Street Journal, “More Americans turning in their cars to buy new ones are encountering a difficult reality: Their vehicles aren’t worth what they owe.”
“About 30% of borrowers in the first quarter who traded in a car to buy a new one had negative equity, whereby they owe more on their loan than their car is worth, according to car-shopping website Edmunds. Those borrowers owed about $7,200 on average before getting a new loan, a 42% jump compared with the same period five years prior,” WSJ reported, adding, “About a third of Americans trading in an older car have negative equity, which has been typical in the industry for years. But the average amount Americans are underwater has skyrocketed, Edmunds said, as buyers try to unload cars bought during the pandemic at high prices.”
WSJ went on to report, “To offset those costs, more car buyers are taking on longer loan terms to keep monthly payments digestible. In the first quarter, the average loan was 70 months on new cars, according to Edmunds data. Car payments in excess of $1,000 are no longer uncommon and can stretch out more than eight years.”
Magnolia Tribune
