Stocks gain back some ground as investors assess the trade war’s impact

Stocks had their best trading day in a while on Tuesday as investors took a break from selling to assess the actual effects of the trade war with China.

Both the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 gained back some of their losses with the DJIA climbing 207.06 points to close at 25,532.05 and the S&P hitting 2,834.41, up 0.8%. The Nasdaq Composite Index wrapped its trading day at 7,734.49.

Tech stocks like Cisco Systems and Microsoft both rose to lead the way for a sector that could be hit hard by any prolonged trade war between the U.S. and China. Even Apple was up 1.6% on the day after taking a bit of a pummeling as both the U.S. and China announced new rounds of tariffs and import duties.

While some investors are calling the rally more of a dead cat bounce than something that markets can sustain, other investors point out that the fundamentals behind U.S. investing haven’t changed, even as costs are set to rise.

Indeed, economists cited by The New York Times think the tariffs’ gross domestic product in the U.S. will only decline by 0.3 percentage points at most over the long term.

Still, that assessment doesn’t take into account the impact on consumer wallets and consumer confidence should a prolonged trade war and rising prices force everyday Americans to rethink their spending habits.

Even the modest gains from today’s trading don’t recoup all of the losses the markets have suffered since the new round of tit for tat tariffs began when the U.S. walked away from negotiations and imposed new duties on goods.

Tech stocks tumble as China retaliates in latest salvo of the trade war

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Apple, Google and Microsoft release patches for ZombieLoad chip flaws

Big tech is stepping in to patch newly disclosed security flaws affecting almost every Intel chip since 2011.

Researchers on Tuesday released details of the vulnerability, known as ZombieLoad — or microarchitectural data sampling as its technical name — which can leaked sensitive data stored in the processor, such as passwords, secret keys and account tokens and private messages.

You can read our coverage here. In short, don’t panic — but you should patch your systems. Here’s how.

Apple released macOS fixes

Apple has fixes out for every Mac and MacBook released during and after 2011.

The tech giant said in an advisory that any system running macOS Mojave 10.14.5, released Monday, is patched. This will prevent an attack from being run through Safari and other apps. Most users won’t experience any decline in performance. But some Macs could face up to a 40 percent performance hit for those who opt-in to the full set of mitigations.

The security update will also be pushed to Sierra and High Sierra versions. iPhones, iPads and Apple Watch devices aren’t affected by the bugs.

Google patches Android, will update Chrome

The search and browser maker also confirmed it has released patches to mitigate against ZombieLoad.

Google said the “vast majority” of Android devices aren’t affected but Intel-only devices will need to be patched once device makers make updates available

Chrome OS devices, such as Chromebooks, are already protected in the latest version and permanent mitigations will be pushed to devices in the next version.

And, the company’s Chrome team has a technical advisory out but said users should rely on patches for their computer. “Operating system vendors may release updates to improve isolation, so users should ensure they install any updates and follow any additional guidance from their operating system vendor,” said Google. In other words, make sure your Windows PC or your Mac is patched.

Google also rolled out patches to its datacenters, so cloud customers are already patched but should be aware of the company’s guidance.

Microsoft rolls out Windows updates

Microsoft has released patches for its operating system and cloud.

Jeff Jones, a senior director at Microsoft, said the software and cloud giant has been “working closely with affected chip manufacturers to develop and test mitigations” for its customers. “We are working to deploy mitigations to cloud services and release security updates to protect Windows customers against vulnerabilities affecting supported hardware chips,” he said.

In a TechNet article, the company said customers may need to obtain microcode updates for their processor directly from their device maker. Microsoft is pushing many of the microcode updates itself through Windows Update, but are also available from its website.

Software updates will be released Tuesday also through Windows Update. Microsoft also has a page with guidance for how to protect against the new attacks.

Microsoft Azure customers are already protected, the company said.

Amazon and Mozilla did not return a request for comment. We’ll update if we hear back.

Read more:

• New secret-spilling flaws affect almost every Intel chip since 2011
• Intel announces hardware fixes for Spectre and Meltdown on upcoming chips
• Apple issues Meltdown fix for Macs running Sierra and El Capitan
• Google claims its Spectre and Meltdown mitigation results in no performance degradation
• Intel tried desperately to change the subject from Spectre and Meltdown at CES
• Intel CEO: Meltdown and Spectre patches will come to 90%+ of chips in the next week

from Apple – TechCrunch https://tcrn.ch/2Ea0Rcn

New secret-spilling flaw affects almost every Intel chip since 2011

The Statue of Liberty gets an AR app to celebrate its new museum

This week, the new $100 million Statue of Liberty Museum opens in the shadow of one of America’s most iconic landmarks. The 26,000 square foot space offers insights into the statue’s storied history, along with context for that majority of visitors who ultimately can’t make it inside the structure.

For those who can’t don’t make it to Liberty Island at all, meanwhile, there’s the brand new Statue of Liberty app, which hits the iOS App Store today. Led by fashion designer Diane von Furstenberg, the Yap Studios-developed app offers myriad methods for bringing New York Harbor’s landmark to life.

“I told Apple I would love people who go to the Statue of Liberty to have an Apple experience,” von Furstenberg said in an event ahead of launch. “They invited me to spend two days with full immersion at Apple. The I realized that wasn’t just giving the people who visited an Apple experience, but it was also to Apple a Statue of Liberty experience. And that meant doing an app.”

Augmented reality provides the most fundamental underlying experience. There are a handful of distinct AR experiences in the app designed to offer some insights into the size, scope and history of Lady Liberty for those who aren’t able to experience it first hand.

There’s a torch panorama view, which showcases the the status view of lower Manhattan. Users can also plop a life-size AR reproduction of the statue’s foot directly in front of them or witness a recreating of the making of the statue, glimpsing inside to its struts ad watch its copper material develop the familiar green patina.

There’s an audio component, as well, including a three-part podcast mini-series narrated by von Furstenberg that explores some of the statue’s secret history. For those who end up visiting the island, there’s also a location-based audio tour in the app. Interestingly, Yap opted not to provide an in-person visual AR experience, though one could be coming down the road.

Meantime, the Statue of Liberty app is available now, only to iOS users.

from Apple – TechCrunch https://tcrn.ch/2HmUy7v

Tech stocks tumble as China retaliates in latest salvo of the trade war

Shares of technology companies were hit hard as China retaliated against the U.S. in the latest salvo of the ongoing trade war between the two countries.

The S&P 500 Index shed roughly $1.1 trillion of value while the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Nasdaq Composite Index fell 2.38 percent and 3.41percent, respectively.

On Monday, China responded in equal measure to the U.S. raising tariffs on imports to 25%, by imposing 25% duties on some $60 billion of U.S. exports to the country.

On June 1, Beijing will impose 25% tariffs on more than 5,000 products. Several more exports to the country will see their duties rise to 20%. That’s up from 10% and 5% previously. The highest tariffs seem to be on products designed to cause pain among President Donald Trump’s political base of support — animal products, fruits and vegetables that come from the Midwest.

But tech companies are particularly expose in the trade war. Indeed, the news sent technology shares spiraling in what venture capitalist (and former TechCrunch co-editor-in-chief) Alexia Bonatsos called the “Tech Red Wedding”.

Tech Red Wedding https://t.co/me8C5B3Abp

— Alexia Bonatsos (@alexia) May 13, 2019

Rising tariffs will make the tech products from Apple and other American tech companies more expensive to manufacture, which will likely cause hardware manufacturers to raise prices at home, while duties on the finished goods coming to China could make them prohibitively expensive for local buyers in the country.

More expensive consumer products also mean less money to spend on non-essential items, which could mean more frugal behavior from consumers and less spending in the on-demand economy. It could also cause a pull-back in advertising as companies retrench and cut spending in areas that are considered to be non-core.

All of that could leave tech stocks exposed — beyond algorithms just dumping holdings and taking profits in what looks to be a prolonged market downturn.

The trade war, which already took a toll on Uber’s initial public offering, took another bite out of the company’s (short term) stock market performance today.

Uber had an abysmal second day of trading

Uber was far from the only tech stock seeing red. Shares of Amazon were down 3.56 percent, Alphabet was down 2.66 percent, and Apple fell 5.81 percent. Meanwhile Facebook shares fell 3.61 percent; Netflix tumbled over 4 percent on the day.

Things may look up for some tech companies again, but they’re unlikely to receive the kind of bailouts or subsidies that the President is offering to American farmers hit by the economic battle with China. Unless Congress can get stalled negotiations around an infrastructure package back on track (something that seems less and less likely as the 2020 elections start to cast their shadow over the business of governing), there’s little hope for any government assistance that could cushion the blow.

“Our view is this could escalate for at least a matter of weeks, if not months, and it’s really to get the two back to the negotiating table and finish the deal, is probably going to require more pain in the markets…Really the only question is if we need a 5%, 10% or bigger market correction,” Ethan Harris, head of global economics at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, told CNBC.

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Updated Apple TV app arrives ahead of Apple TV+’s fall launch

Here’s a big Apple TV update. Not THE big Apple TV update. The whole Apple TV+ thing is still forthcoming, but this major update to the app should go a ways toward setting the stage for its arrival in the fall.

The new version of the app arrives today across a slew of different platforms, including iPhone, iPad, Apple TV and all of Samsung’s 2019 Smart TVs (and select 2018 models) — per the announcement the company made earlier this year at the big TV+ event.

That event also offered previews of a lot of what’s new here. The whole thing breaks down into three key categories: Apple TV channels, a new recommendation system for iTunes movies and TV shows and a new dedicated kids section.

Channels are the biggest change here — it’s essentially Apple’s push to transform Apple TV into its cable provider. Available channels include HBO, Starz, Showtime, Smithsonian Channel, EPIX and Tastemade, with CBS All-Access and MTV Hits coming in the future.

A big piece of the offering is the ability to download and watch shows offline, so users can, say, download episodes of Game of Thrones for a long flight. This is, notably, the first time HBO has offered that ability to a third party. Apple won’t say what the download limit is, but it’s likely large enough that most users won’t hit.

Once subscribed, channels will be available through Family Sharing, with up to six accounts using their Apple ID. Speaking of families, the update also includes a devoted kids section, which includes, curated family friendly TVs and movies.

Apple’s apply editorial curation across the board here, similar to what it’s done with other apps like Books and Music. The app uses a combination algorithms and editorial curation, designed to help users figure out what to watch next before scrolling to the end of the page.

In addition to the above, select Samsung, Vizio, LG and Sony sets will be able to access it using app mirroring.

from Apple – TechCrunch https://tcrn.ch/2Q41TLN

Supreme Court rules against Apple allowing an App Store antitrust case to proceed

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 5-4 against Apple on Monday on a case involving whether or not a group of iPhone users will be allowed to bring an antitrust lawsuit against the company regarding its App Store practices. The iPhone owners allege that Apple’s 30 percent commission on App Store sales is passed along to users, representing an unlawful and unfair use of Apple’s monopoly power.

Apple had moved to have the case dismissed, arguing that consumers were buying their apps from the developers — not from Apple. And it was the developers who were setting the prices. The court disagreed, saying that Apple contracts with the third-party developers to sell the 2 million apps that are live today on its App Store, keeping its 30 percent commission on every sale along the way.

In addition, the court ruled in favor of the iPhone owners’ lawsuit proceeding for several other reasons. It said that any person injured by an antitrust violation may sue to recover damages, and that ruling in favor of Apple would have prevented consumers from suing monopolistic retailers who took commissions on sales — not just those who marked up the price it paid a supplier or manufacturer for a good or service. This would have created a hole where retailers could restructure their practices to avoid antitrust claims, the court said.

“Apple’s line-drawing does not make a lot of sense, other than as a way to gerrymander Apple out of this and similar lawsuits,” the opinion, authored by Justice Kavanaugh, read.

“If a retailer has engaged in unlawful monopolistic conduct that has caused consumers to pay higher-than-competitive prices, it does not matter how the retailer structured its relationship with an upstream manufacturer
or supplier—whether, for example, the retailer employed a markup or kept a commission,” stated the court.

The iPhone owners also said that Apple’s monopoly on the aftermarket for apps means they’re forced to pay higher prices than if the environment was more competitive. In a different environment, they could have chosen between paying Apple’s higher price and other less costly alternatives.

Instead, iPhone owners say that developers are forced to mark up their prices in order to cover Apple’s “demanded profit.”

We’ve seen this in action already, of course. One recent example is Spotify, whose music app was $9.99 per month if you subscribed on the web, but was $12.99 per month if you subscribed on iOS — a move it made to recoup the commission, but also to make a point about Apple’s monopoly power. And following a complaint in March from Spotify, the EU is preparing to investigate Apple for anti-competitive behavior.

Other large app developers have also ditched selling through Apple. Amazon, for example, redirects many purchases to the browser — like those for books, music, movies, and TV shows, for example. Netflix just dropped in-app subscriptions on iOS in December because of this so-called “Apple tax.” And Fornite maker Epic Games, which also bypassed the Google Play Store at launch, upcharges for in-app purchases on iOS.

Apple’s stock is down by more than 5 percent as of the time of writing.

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