- Important state and national stories, market and business news, sports and entertainment, delivered in quick-hit fashion to start your day informed.
In Mississippi
1. Treasurer’s Office announces America 250 scholarships
Now through July 3, Mississippi students can enter for a chance to win one of ten $250 Mississippi Affordable College Savings (MACS) scholarships through the State Treasurer’s Office.
Student can apply here. If multiple entries are submitted for one student, only one entry will count.
The Treasurer’s Office said America is a nation built on the idea that every person should have the opportunity to build a better future. The State Treasury hopes that these scholarships help ensure tomorrow’s Americans have even greater opportunities.
2. Tropical system brings heavy rain, potential flooding to Mississippi
What was Tropical Storm Arthur, the first named storm this season, is moving across Mississippi, bringing heavy rains and potential flooding for much of the state.
Emergency officials urge residents to stay weather aware and remember to turn around, don’t drown.
As of 7 a.m. Thursday morning, tornado warning alerts were posting from Harrison, Hancock and Stone counties, per MEMA.
National News & Foreign Policy
1. U.S., Iran sign MOU to end conflict
As reported by The Hill, “The tentative memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the U.S. and Iran went into ‘immediate effect’ after President Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian signed it on Wednesday, according to Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.”
“Sharif, who served as the top mediator between both countries, said signing the 14-point MOU demonstrated ‘the commitment of both sides to a diplomatic resolution of the conflict,'” The Hill reported. “The MOU ‘shall enter into force with immediate effect and as a first step, Islamic Republic of Iran will instantly reopen the Strait of Hormuz and the United States of America will immediately lift the naval blockade,’ the prime minister wrote on the social platform X.”
The Hill continued, “The deal also gives both parties 60 days to negotiate the outcome of Iran’s nuclear program. The MOU states that the U.S. and Iran will ‘resolve the disposition of stockpiled, enriched material,’ as Iran ‘reaffirms that it shall not procure or develop nuclear weapons.’”
2. California’s billionaire tax heads to ballot
Politico reports that “a proposed tax on California billionaires’ assets has officially qualified for the November ballot, igniting the next phase of a brawl that has consumed the deeply Democratic state.”
“The secretary of state’s announcement Wednesday that a health care union had collected enough signatures to put a one-time, 5 percent levy on the ultrarich before voters intensifies a fight that has already upended California politics. Even as Gov. Gavin Newsom and deep-pocketed Silicon Valley foes galvanized to fight the tax, some opponents had held out hope it would fail to qualify,” Politico reported. “But now the measure is headed to a public vote, pitting populist fury at billionaires and anti-Trump sentiment against warnings, both from Democrats like Newsom and from allied business titans, that it will backfire.”
Politico added, “Proponents, including Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, argue the measure is a vital corrective to federal spending cuts that will otherwise lead to shuttered hospitals and massive job losses. Its foes, including Silicon Valley giants like Google co-founder Sergey Brin, warn the tax will undermine California’s business climate and hurt the state’s budget by driving critical tax dollars out of state.”
Sports
Oklahoma, North Carolina advance to CWS championship
No. 5 North Carolina and Oklahoma advanced to the College World Series championship after winning their elimination games on Wednesday.
Game one is set for Saturday at 7 p.m., with games two and, if necessary, game three to follow on Saturday and Sunday.
Markets & Business
1. Fed leaves rate steady, for now
The Wall Street Journal reports that “Federal Reserve officials signaled Wednesday that their next move might be to raise interest rates, not cut them, a striking reversal at Kevin Warsh’s first meeting as chairman and a sign of how sharply the inflation outlook has turned.”
“The Fed held its benchmark rate steady, in a range of 3.5% to 3.75%, in a unanimous vote,” WSJ reported. “But officials’ quarterly economic projections told the story of the shift: Nine of 19 officials penciled in at least one rate increase by year’s end, up from none in March. Just one foresaw a cut, down from 12.”
WSJ further reported, “The Fed released a much-sparser statement summarizing recent economic developments that avoided any hint on its next move. The projections included only 18 submissions from the 19 participants. Warsh said he had declined to submit a projection.”
2. Futures rebound after Fed news
CNBC reports “U.S. stock futures rose on Thursday, with traders looking to recover after the Federal Reserve indicated the possibility of a rate hike this year — sparking a sell-off in equities during the previous session.”
“S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 futures climbed 0.7% and 1.4%, respectively. Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 93 points, or 0.2%,” CNBC reported.
“The Fed held rates steady but spoiled the mood with a much more hawkish dot plot. Elevated inflation makes that understandable, but the committee is far from united, with only about half still penciling in rate hikes later this year,” said Sonu Varghese, chief macro strategist at Carson Group, per CNBC. “The bigger point is that policy still looks loose for an economy where inflation remains a problem and the labor market is stabilizing.”
Magnolia Tribune
