Huawei CFO seeks bail on health concerns; Canada wants her in jail

TORONTO/BEIJING (Reuters) - The CFO of China's Huawei Technologies Co Ltd [HWT.UL] argued that she should be released on bail while awaiting an extradition hearing, citing her longstanding ties to Canada, properties she owns in Vancouver and fears for her health while incarcerated, court documents showed on Sunday. Huawei Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou is fighting to be released on bail after she was arrested on Dec. 1 in Vancouver at the request of the United States.

• 
  The Latest: British Columbia cancels China trade trip

  Associated Press
• 
  China urges Canada to free Huawei CFO or face consequences

  Reuters

These Lowe’s stores are closing in the next three months

Lowe’s Companies said Monday that it will close 51 underperforming stores and other locations, including 20 stores in the U.S., as part of its plan to focus on its most profitable stores. The stores being closed in the U.S. are located across 13 states

Here’s what smart rich people really do with their nest egg

Most people think they’re above average in intelligence, relationship status and professional achievement. Social scientists call this “illusory superiority.” My business partner Scott Puritz, has found the one area where even above-average people, objectively smart, rich, successful professionals, seem to wave the white flag and admit to not understanding — money and investing. “One of the most shocking things is the low-level financial literacy throughout our culture,” Puritz told the Washington Post.

Kevin O’Leary is right about cars, and his logic can save your retirement

I’m a big fan of “Shark Tank,” the CNBC show where successful entrepreneurs listen to young hopefuls pitch the next big thing — and maybe buy a piece of the action. Of course I would be. As an entrepreneur myself I totally get where they’re coming from

White House's Peter Navarro on John Kelly, stock market drop

White House National Trade Council director speaks out on 'Sunday Morning Futures' on the chief of staff shakeup and trade fears rattling U.S. stock market.

• 
  New setback for Trump as Pence aide Nick Ayers turns down chief of staff role

  The Guardian
• 
  Trump Seeks New Chief After Ayers Roils Kelly Succession Plan

  Bloomberg

Suze Orman has a killer question for your retirement

Suze Orman is one of those singular personalities in the financial business who seems to be right on the pulse of everyone she meets. She’s written books, starred in her own television show and made innumerable appearances in person. Like Oprah

Stocks may be tanking but don't leave them in the doghouse

None in the smart money camp Yahoo Finance have chatted with have a definitive reason for why stocks have gotten pounded in the often seasonally strong month of December. All the prognosticators have are a drumbeat of themes rather than catalysts, which

How the rich get richer in every type of stock market

Nine years in, the bloom is decidedly off the rose for U.S. stock investors While experts disagree whether we’re in a bear market, volatility is definitely back in a big way. Stock indexes have fallen by hundreds of points, recovered, then fallen

The Real Implications Of The New Permian Estimates

This week the United States Geological Survey (USGS) announced a groundbreaking oil and gas discovery in West Texas’ Permian Basin. According to the organization’s recent press release, a whopping 46.3 billion barrels of oil, 281 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, and 20 billion barrels of natural gas liquids are now believed to lie untapped in the Wolfcamp Shale and overlying Bone Spring Formation area of Texas and New Mexico’s Permian Basin. Major players in the energy industry already have a significant presence in Wolfcamp and Bone Spring, including Occidental Petroleum Corp. and Pioneer Natural Resources Co. It was already well known and well documented that these fields were remarkably fertile grounds for oil extraction, but the jaw-dropping extent of the new figures released this week by the USGS has made the massive crude and shale reserves of the Permian Basin freshly headline-worthy.

Elon Musk Blasts SEC, United Auto Workers in ‘60 Minutes’ Interview

Musk, 47, told anchor Lesley Stahl that none of his tweets have been censored since he reached a settlement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in October. Musk added that he’s abiding by the SEC’s terms because he respects the justice system.

• 
  The Name 'Tesla' Was Taken. Elon Musk and His Co-Founders Bought It for $75,000

  Fortune
• 
  Elon Musk says Tesla would consider buying idled GM plants, takes swing at the SEC on '60 Minutes'

  CNBC

Investors in ‘Get-Me-Out-of-Here Mood’ as Asian Stocks Spiral

The sell-off in global equities deepened in Asia hours after Chinese economic data released over the weekend signaled a further weakening of both domestic and international demand in November. Adding insult to injury, tensions have ratcheted up after the arrest of Huawei Technologies Co. Chief Financial Officer, with China’s Vice Foreign Minister having summoned the U.S. Ambassador to China in a protest over her capture on Saturday. Australia was the worst performer in the region with Japan’s, whose economy shrank more than forecast, while China’s stocks dropped with the offshore yuan weakening for a fourth day.

Why Are Home Sales Slowing?

Brian Bernard says there's more to housing demand than just rising prices and higher mortgage rates, but we are bullish on our long-term housing outlook.

7 year-end tax tips to boost your refund

The new tax law has put a whole new spin on year-end tax planning, though it hasn't eliminated the need to do it altogether. "The tricks we had in our back pocket have been taken away in the name of simplification," said Nathan Smith, a director in the national tax office of CBIZ MHM in Tampa. Now, an individual will need total itemized deductions to exceed $12,000, the new standard deduction for individual taxpayers, up from $6,350.

Huawei CFO Cites $12 Million Home and Health Troubles in Bail Bid

In court filings, her attorneys paint a picture of a cancer survivor who’s undergone multiple surgeries and needs daily medication to cope with a plethora of health issues, while outlining how her entire family has deep roots in Vancouver, where she’s being held. The CFO’s bail hearing resumes Monday in the Canadian city after Friday’s proceedings yielded no result. The 46-year-old mother of four, accused of guiding a global effort to mask violations of sanctions on sales to Iran, has languished in jail since her arrest.

• 
  China urges Canada to free Huawei CFO or face consequences

  Reuters
• 
  China summons US envoy to protest detention of Huawei exec

  Associated Press

Mark Cuban says the best investing advice he got when young was to be as poor as possible first

Mark Cuban once drove around a real hunk of junk — seriously. The billionaire Dallas Mavericks owner says the best pieces of investing advice he got when young was to be as poor as possible first. The “Shark Tank” star these days doles out a lot of advice to young entrepreneurs on CNBC but he says it doesn’t take a million-dollar idea to become rich.

These numbers show Suze Orman is right about needing $5 million to retire

Suze Orman broke the internet earlier this month when she told the “Afford Anything” podcast that those buying into the FIRE movement (financial independence, retire early) better save at least $5 million to achieve that goal. “Her views ruffled a lot of feathers, but after crunching the numbers, I have to agree — $5 million sounds about right if you want to retire before the age of 60,” the Financial Samurai blog’s Sam Dogen said. Dogen says 40 is the absolute earliest he’d recommend anybody retire, although even then, that’s asking a lot out of your investments.

• 
  ‘Radical savers’ shred trader for backing Suze Orman on needing $5 million to retire

  MarketWatch
• 
  Retire early? You need ‘at least $5 million,’ according to Suze Orman

  MarketWatch

3 charts suggest housing ‘bubble trouble’ with a tech meltdown ‘yet to come’

In fact, according to data provided by the National Association of Realtors, he points out inventory has more than doubled from a year ago. Richter says the red bars signal “bubble trouble” in the housing market. “They see the prices and they do the math with higher mortgage rates, and they walk,” Richter said.

This chart is scarier than the Dow plunging 1,150 points last week

Close that Yahoo Finance Dow Jones Industrial Average chart (^DJI) for a second and pull up one of the financials if you want a good scare on the economy. The Dow plunged 1,150 points last week amid concerns over an inverted yield curve (it usually predicts a recession), mixed messages on President Donald Trump’s trade deal at the G20, an expected Fed rate increase, and ongoing fears on Apple’s outlook. Financials (XLF) were the worst-performing sector in the S&P 500 (^GSPC) last week, and some major bank stocks got crushed.

In your 50s and nothing saved for retirement? You're not alone

Sidelined by illness, the economy or job loss, people in their 50s, 60s and even 70s often find themselves struggling to plan for retirement. Some declare they will just keep working forever, while others are taking steps to plan a retirement that may look different from the traditional one they’d envisioned decades earlier. A serious illness, not being prepared for a big stock market downturn or a sudden job loss can quickly jettison dreams of a sunny retirement.

3 last-minute tax deductions you can still squeeze in this year

How Americans feel about the Trump administration’s tax overhaul continue to be mixed. In a recent Gallup Poll, nearly half (46%) of Americans approve of the changes that rolled out with the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which isn’t surprising considering only 64% said they haven’t seen an increase in their take-home pay. “I’m not sure everyone took the initiative to do that so your paycheck would’ve stayed the same,” Geltrude told Yahoo Finance.