The “hacktivist” group, known as Anonymous, says the “cyber war” against Russia has a new goal – Western businesses that are still doing business there.

A post from March 21 A Twitter account called ourYourAnonTV said: “We call on all organizations operating in Russia to pay taxes on the Kremlin’s criminal regime budget: get out of Russia!”

The tweet, which has been liked more than 23,000 times, gave companies 48 hours to comply.

Threats, after that Echoed on other anonymous-affiliated Twitter accountsIncludes a photo with the logos of about 40 companies, including family names such as Burger King, Subway and General Mill.

The account later tagged more companies in the post, apparently putting them on notice that they too could be targeted soon.

CNBC has contacted the companies mentioned in this story for comment. Most of the responses reflect the company’s published press releases, which are linked throughout the story, followed by posts.

Tire firms Bridgestone and Dunkin said that by the time they were targeted by the anonymous, they had already publicly announced that they were removing business from Russia.

Both companies responded directly to Anonymous on Twitter. Bridgestone’s answer is a link Press release, and Dunkin ‘link Media broadcasting Its a decision, both of which preceded the anonymous’ post.

Twitter users also noted that other companies, such as Citrix, have already announced similar measures. A blog post on Citrix’s website states: “Unfortunately, we see a lot of misreporting on social and traditional media about the Citrix operation in Russia.”

Three target oil sector services companies – Halliburton, Baker Hughes and Schlumberger – have already announced their Russian business activities. The statements follow an article in the Washington Post urging readers to stop investing in companies considered “Putin’s war financing.”

Cyber ​​attacks are “dangerous in the fog of war,” said Marian Bailey, a cybersecurity partner at the consulting firm Guidehouse and a former cybersecurity executive at the US National Security Agency.

“The return of a cyber strike may be directed to the wrong place,” he said.

However, it is also possible that Anonymous was not affected by some of the company’s commitments. Some companies, including Halliburton, Baker Hughes and Schlumberger – failed to score well. A business listing compiled by the Yale School of Management. The list lists about 500 companies that have stopped or continued operating in Russia, given their school-style letter grades.

Many of the companies that got “Fs” on Yale’s list have appeared in one The second anonymous Twitter post published March 24. This post targets a list of new – and seemingly updated – companies, including Emirates Airlines, French garden retailer Leroy Merlin, and essential oil company Young Living.

Several companies caught up in the anonymous crosshairs soon announced that they were severing ties with Russia, including hashtags for anonymous and Yale in a Twitter announcement by Canadian oil field services company Calfrack Well Services and sanitary products maker Gabriet Group.

French sports goods company Decathlon announced this week that it is also closing stores in Russia. But Anonymous has already claimed credit for shutting down the Russian website, along with the sites of Leroy Merlin and the French supermarket company Auchan.

Jeremiah Fowler, co-founder of cybersecurity company Security Discovery, said his research showed that Anonymous had successfully hacked a database of Leroy Merlin.

“I am just sure [Anonymous] It has been found, “he said, adding that the message and the reference were collectively left inside the information.

Anonymous also claimed it last week Swiss Food and Beverage Corporation Nestle hacks another targeted company’s database. However, Nestl told CNBC that the allegations were “baseless.” Design and tech website Gizmodo reported that Nestl জানিয়ে reported that it had accidentally leaked its own information in February.

Nestl announces it is reducing its activities in Russia, but rejects measures as inadequate At least one online anonymous account.

It is unknown at this time what he will do after leaving the post.

Indeed, other forces were also at play, including online calls to boycott some target corporations in recent weeks.

After being targeted by French carmaker Anonymous Renault has announced that it is suspending operations at a manufacturing plant in Moscow. However, during a televised address to European governments and citizens, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky publicly announced Renault as well as Nestl.

CNBC’s Jim Kramer broke down on Thursday about why Alto Ingredients made a risky purchase when Gladstone Land was completely missed.

“I have your blessing for guessing at Alto Ingredients, but Gladstone Land is getting very hot,” said the “Mad Money” host.

Alto Ingredients stock fell 0.15% to $ 6.82 on Thursday, hitting a 52-week high of আগের 7.27. The company, which produces special alcohols and other ingredients derived from grains, has recently been able to assemble with a focus on ethanol, Kramer said, adding that ethanol is more competitive these days due to higher oil prices.

“While I’m wary of anything over 40% for the year, Alto … a $ 500 million enterprise with light analytics coverage,” Kramer said. “It can be a great tool for guessing in the right environment,” he added.

However, he warned that this does not mean that he is recommending that investors start buying stocks sincerely.

“Ultimately, this is a pure guess. If you believe that oil prices could rise, I think it would be wise to bet on Alto Ingredients, but I recommend buying it in small increments and only with money you can lose.” He says

Gladstone, an agricultural land real estate company, says its stock price is too high to buy at present. The company’s stock fell 2.72% to $ 36.42 on Thursday.

“In the long run, I believe this is a good business, and I will be a buyer at the right price. But I don’t think this price is the right price,” Kramer said.

“I can’t see the face of buying Gladstone here. Sometimes, you just have to admit that you missed it,” he added.

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Disclaimer

Brandon Sanderson demanded $ 1 million from Kickstarter fans for self-publishing four novels he wrote during the epidemic. Thirty days later, his campaign has topped 41.7 million from more than 185,000 supporters and is the most funded kickstarter in the history of the crowdfunding site.

Sanderson’s campaign surpassed the previous record holder in just three days, topping the তৈরি 20.3 million fund raised by smartwatch company Pebble Technology in 2015.

With successful project financing, Kickstarter will charge a fee of 5% or more than $ 2 million from the funds raised.

A well-known figure in the field of sci-fi and fantasy novels, Sanderson has published more than 50 books since 2005. But he is best known for creating the fictional universe of Kasam, where most of his novels are set.

This is the second time Sanderson has returned to Kickstarter to publish his work. In 2020, he raised $ 6.7 million from nearly 30,000 supporters to create the 10th anniversary edition of his novel “The Way of the Kings”.

The campaign serves as a pre-ordering platform, allowing Sanderson to better measure how many people are interested in buying his work so that the right amount can be printed.

Those who support the campaign will have access to these new titles as a digital e-book, audio book or physical copy in January 2023, depending on their level of donations. Those who have spent more than a certain threshold will also receive eight monthly subscription boxes of related items for Sanderson’s work the following year.

“We’re a general bookstore,” he wrote in his promotions. “We could easily sell a book or a piece of swag that is already in stock or will be in stock soon. But the whole ‘Year of Sanderson’ needs to be set up to plan and we are not able to track Dragonsteel Books.”

CNBC’s Jim Kramer said Thursday that investors who value continuity should buy the dollar general and risk takers should buy the dollar tree.

“If you want a consistent operator who doesn’t have to go crazy to lose estimates, that’s Dollar General. Even though they’ve lowered the price, I think it’s a long-term strategy to win the hearts of customers,” said ‘Mad Money’ host.

“The Dollar Tree is a high-risk, high-reward turnaround game, where stocks can turn much higher if they stop executions. But if they screw up, you can say goodbye to your profits,” he added.

Kramer says the two companies’ reverse pricing strategies have helped Dollar General to the top. Dollar Tree announced late last year that it had raised the price of most of its products by 1.25 to help offset epidemic-driven costs.

In contrast, Dollar General said in an analyst call on March 17 that the retailer was “leaning” towards its $ 1 product, with plans to set up more in-store displays of items at that price point.

“While Dollar General is pitching this as a move to help their customers, who often struggle to finish, especially if they are on a fixed income, it has the added benefit of enticing dissatisfied Dollar Tree customers who prefer to pay. No. An extra quarter, “Kramer said.

The dollar’s general stock fell 2.13% to $ 222.63 on Thursday. The company reported quarterly earnings in line with forecasts and missed revenue earlier this month. Dollar General also forecast better-than-expected full-year sales and increased its dividend by 31%.

Kramer recently highlighted Dollar General as a dividend stock.

Dollar Tree stock fell 0.11% to $ 160.15 on Thursday, marking a new 52-week high of 2 162.13 at the start of the day. The company missed Wall Street expectations on revenue in its most recent quarterly earnings.

Host said Dollar Tree stock has risen overall in recent months and highlighted changes to the company’s executive board in Dollar Tree as a reason. The retailer named Richard Dreiling, a former dollar general executive, earlier this month as executive chairman of Dollar Tree due to an active investor campaign.

Piper Sandler and Loop Capital Markets have upgraded their position in the dollar tree following the move. “Activist stress can work wonders, especially if it’s a smart worker,” Kramer said.

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CNBC’s Jim Kramer predicted on Thursday that Wall Street would soon fall in price and the market would be set for an “unprecedented rally”.

“Suddenly, conventional wisdom says that everything is too much, so prices are going down. Stock prices are expecting it. And that’s why oil was the only sector to hold rally in the first quarter, because they have fallen. And utilities, which work really well.” Only when there is going to be a severe recession, “said the host of” Mad Money “

“We value this negativity much faster than you think. Maybe it will take a month, maybe a few weeks. But it will happen and once it happens, we will be ready for an incredible, great gathering,” he added. Done.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.56% on Thursday, the last trading day in March. The S&P 500 is down 1.57% while the Nasdaq Composite is down 1.54%. The Dow ended the quarter down 4.6%, the S&P 500 lost 4.9% and the Nasdaq fell 9%.

“Even though we still have an inflation problem, today’s move predicts a crash in sales for almost everything.… I say, for now, let it go down. There will be a lot more inventory in Lenner’s home, a lot of home depots, “Kramer said, listing some of the companies that lost stock in Thursday’s session.

“The [Federal Reserve] Interest rates must rise, perhaps many times, the fall will be accelerated and inflation must be controlled. Most importantly, the market is expected to do well in all of this and will be well ahead of what I have described, “he added.

Disclosure: Owner of shares of Kramers Charitable Trust AMD.

Stock futures rose early Thursday as investors assessed a new quarter of trading and a troubled bond market bearish index.

Investors were also waiting for the March official jobs report, which the Labor Department will release at 8:30 a.m. Friday.

Dow Futures rose 85 points, or 0.2%. The S&P 500 futures rose 0.2% and the Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.3% to start the first trading session of the second quarter.

Dow Jones Industrial Average fell on Thursday, the first negative quarter in two years for the stock, losses accelerated in the last hour of trading. The Dow fell 550.46 points, or 1.56%, to 34,678.35. The S&P 500 was down 1.57% at 4,530.41 and the Nasdaq Composite was down 1.54% at 14,220.52.

The three major averages posted their worst quarterly since March 2020. The Dow and S&P 500 are down 4.6% and 4.9%, respectively, and the Nasdaq is down more than 9%. Stocks made a late-quarter return in March, but only after rising interest rates and inflation fell sharply in the first half of the year.

So far the stocks have shaken a bearish signal from the bond market that started just after the closing hour on Thursday. The 2-year and 10-year Treasury yields have reversed for the first time since 2019. For some investors, this is a sign that the economy is heading for a potential recession, although the reversal yield curve shows exactly when this will happen and history does not predict it could be more than a year or so.

Shannon Sacosia, chief investment officer at Boston Private Wealth, told CNBC’s “Closing Bell”, “I think everyone needs to acknowledge the fact that we are clearly moving into a slower economic environment.”

“You need to get income growth from somewhere, and if it’s not a secular tailwind, such as revenue spending and loosening of fiscal policy, then you need to look for growth elsewhere. I think we’re going to see some real fine trading. The next three months or so.” Over time, people have looked to growth in the face of this increasingly challenging economic context. “

A strong jobs report on Friday could give the Fed more confidence to maintain its aggressive rate-hiking plan this year so that inflation can be contained without fear of slowing the economy too much. Economists expect that about 490,000 jobs were added in March, according to Dow Jones consensus estimates, after 678,000 pay-offs in February. According to the Dow Jones, the unemployment rate is expected to fall to 3.7% from 3.8%.

Gamestop has rallied more than 10% in extended trading since announcing its intent to split video game retailer and meme stock.

The White House said on Thursday that it had released an unprecedented amount of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve as energy prices fell. There will be 1 million barrels of oil per day for the next six months.

Other key indicators include the ISM Production Index and the Construction Expenditure Report, both of which will be released at 10 a.m. Friday.

The mission is done – or close enough, anyway.

Scientists sent this message to the world in 2003 when they announced that the human genome had been sequenced, assembled and essentially complete – with a few seemingly small gaps.

In fact, the effort to quantify and identify the genetic code that makes us all human, for which the US government has spent billions of dollars, remains a rough draft and at least 8 percent less than the end.

Some of the largest, most repetitive and complex parts of the DNA puzzle remain in the dark – so far.

Inspired by powerful new sequencing technology, a loose collaborator of about 100 scientists announced Thursday that they would fill in the blanks, complete a single human genome from one end to the other, and open up new, promising lines of research in areas where scientists are roaming. Around in the dark.

Genome sequencing was shared more than a year ago, but the results of a full accounting, which is now being tested and used by researchers around the world, were first published in a peer-reviewed journal on Thursday. Six new articles in the journal Science describe a complete sequencing effort and additional analysis of its effects..

Adam Philippi, a computational biologist at the National Human Genome Research Institute and a leader in recent endeavors, said, “It’s done, and it’s done right, and it’s done through all those levels of verification.” “We can have the key to the evolution of optimistic people and that is what makes us uniquely human.”

This legwork could one day help researchers identify the genetic cause of the disorder, unravel the mystery of turning some cells into cancer, and explain how different groups of people have developed different traits over time, such as the ability to improve at higher altitudes.

“It’s a breakthrough,” said Steve Henikoff, a molecular biologist and professor at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and the University of Washington, who was not involved in the project.

Assembling a genome is like “taking a book, slicing it back into pieces,” says Megan Dennis, an assistant professor who studies human genetics and genomics at UC Davis Health, who contributed to the sequencing effort.

First, researchers need to cut DNA into smaller pieces. Then, it is processed and read bit by bit.

Fragmented, it’s hard to know where each strand came from, so scientists must “stitch that DNA together in a mathematical way,” Dennis said.

In the 2000s, DNA sequencing technology could only create small pieces of genetic code – about 500 base pairs, or characters, at a time.

But some areas of the human genome are highly repetitive, repeating words almost like the pages of a book.

“Repetitive elements exist in different places. It’s hard to know where they are,” Dennis said. Over the years, scientists have had to leave only those pages – and their understanding of the genome – blank.

In recent years, new technology that creates long readings of DNA has completely changed the game. The new machines can make several thousand base pairs in a single piece.

Progress has allowed researchers to fill in missing parts of the genome.

“Having this technology is unimaginable 20 years ago,” Philippe said. Suddenly, researchers could order and place those iterative parts of the genome in context.

“These sequences have genes … these regions have very important functions.”

The idea of ​​ending the genome has grown biologically.

A perfectionist at heart, it always engulfed Philippi that the human genome remained incomplete.

About five years ago, he teamed up with Karen Meager, an assistant professor in the Department of Biomolecular Engineering at the University of California, to finish the job.

When they get stuck they come forward for help. The project began to snowball, gathering over a few hundred scientific contributors and using a term describing the end caps of the chromosome, now called the telomere-to-telomere project.

When the epidemic hits, the pace of research is only accelerated, with researchers communicating from the cloudy basement via communication platform slack and zoom calls.

“2020 has been a crazy year for many reasons. It has given us something to focus on,” Filipi said.

Finally, researchers have compiled the entire genetic code for a single version of a genome. That genome – which originated decades ago from cell tissue that contains the genetic information of a single sperm – does not represent a human being who has ever lived because it has only one set of ancestral chromosomes.

The complete code will now form the backbone of new genomic research and become a new, finished reference for comparison.

The whole genome opens up new avenues for research.

For decades, scientists have been piercing over 92 percent of the available genomes, testing it to find genetic variations that could cause disease.

“We have a good idea of ​​the diversity in the region, but we have no idea about the other 8 percent,” Philippi said.

Now, researchers are re-analyzing their old data against the new reference genome, trying to find new clues from what was missing.

“We’ve identified many more, thousands, if not thousands, of new forms,” ​​Dennis said. “Some of them fall into genes that encode proteins, and some of those genes are medically important, clinically important, and contribute to disease.”

The new genome reference enables further study of how centromeres work.

Centromeres are the middle structures of chromosomes that are filled by repetitive sequences of code and are an integral part of the cell division process. They are historically among the least understandable parts of the genome because they contain so much tedious, dense coding.

“We do not understand the underlying process of centromere evolution,” Henikoff said. “As such information is suddenly coming out in the last one year, we are learning a lot more about centromeres.”

Using the new genome, researchers can better study how centromere proteins combine and what happens when they change or lose function.

“Sentomer’s dysfunction can be a serious driver of cancer,” Henikoff said. So far, “we were interrupted because we did not have a reference order.”

Further study of new-hierarchical parts of the genome may help scientists better understand how humans evolved special traits, such as the larger brain that sent their great ape offspring in a genetically distinct path.

“Our frontal cortex-enlarging genes come from the genes that map these repetitive regions,” said Evan Eichler, a professor in the Department of Genome Sciences at the University of Washington School of Medicine and part of the research team.

Advances in genomic sequencing technology could lead to a resurgence of medical breakthroughs, researchers say.

“I’m excited about what we don’t know and the opportunity to discover,” Mega said.

Philippi says his next goal is to streamline the sequencing process to make it cheaper, more efficient and widely available. He plans to sequence the genetic code with both father and mother chromosomes. Sequencing broadly among people from many backgrounds, he said, would help describe the world’s genetic diversity and important genetic diversity.

He envisions a world where everyone has access to their genetic data, which can help doctors provide unique information about which diseases to monitor or which drugs to prescribe.

“In 10 years, finding a complete, perfectly accurate human genome will be part of the healthcare routine and it will be cheap enough that it will not be a second concern – a lab test for less than $ 1,000,” Filipi said. “You will have the complete genome in your pocket.”

President Joe Biden will call for the Defense Production Act to encourage the domestic production of minerals needed to make batteries for electric vehicles and long-term energy storage. This will help the United States reduce its dependence on foreign supply chains.

The president’s order could help companies receive government funding to study the feasibility of projects to extract materials for EV production, including lithium, nickel, cobalt, graphite and manganese.

The Defense Production Act, enacted by President Harry Truman during the Cold War, allowed the president to use emergency powers to prioritize the development of specific materials for national production.

The president will issue a directive approving the use of the Defense Production Act on Thursday to protect American production of vital materials to strengthen our clean energy economy by reducing our dependence on China and other countries for minerals and materials that would strengthen the future of our clean energy. The White House said in a statement.

The White House said the Department of Defense would “exercise authority using strong environmental, labor, community and tribal advice standards.” The administration also said it was “reviewing further uses of the law to secure a safer, cleaner and more resilient power for the United States.”

The transportation sector is the largest contributor to U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, representing about one-third of emissions each year. The transition from gas vehicles to EVs is crucial in tackling man-made climate change.

Demand for lithium has also increased as more auto companies compete for EVs. According to the benchmark Mineral Intelligence firm, the number and size of EVs batteries could increase by more than 90% of lithium demand by 2030. And according to the consulting firm AlixPartners, about 24% of new cars sold worldwide will probably be fully electric by 2030.

“We look forward to seeing the specifics of the President’s announcement, but the Biden administration should be commended for their efforts in securing the production of important minerals such as lithium at home,” said Lithium Americas, a resource organization focused on lithium development.

The administration unveiled a plan in February to allocate $ 5 billion to the states to fund EV chargers over five years as part of a bipartisan infrastructure package. The United States is the third largest Ivy market in the world after China and Europe.

Ramon Cruz, president of the Sierra Club, said in a statement that the organization “commends President Biden for taking steps to invest in clean energy and for further leadership in the transition to the world.”

“However, it is essential to do it properly,” Cruz added. “We must ensure that labor and environmental standards are not neglected, or important consultations with tribal countries and communities that will be directly affected.”

The White House on Thursday also announced a new release of oil from its strategic reserves to help reduce gas prices and help curb inflation across the United States.

– CNBC’s Cat Clifford Contributing Reporting.

Glenn Fogel, CEO of Booking Holdings, told CNBC on Thursday that a sharp rise in inflation has so far not reduced travel demand in the spring and summer months.

“Not yet. Not yet,” said Fogel, whose company offers online travel services, including flight bookings. He mentioned the obstruction of the Kovid epidemic in his travel routine.

“When you have two-year-olds who don’t travel the way people want to travel and you make a lot of savings in that time, the prices can be really high and people are saying, ‘I don’t care. I just want to travel. I want to go somewhere.’ Chai, the CEO said in an interview with Closing Bell.

The Federal Reserve and other central banks around the world have raised interest rates and are expected to rise further in the future. This is the main lever in the monetary policy toolbox to reduce inflation.

But in the near future, Fogel says he expects the price situation to worsen for travel-related services. One reason for this may be fuel prices, which have risen in response to the Russia-Ukraine war.

“If you’re planning a summer trip, the price is going up right now. I don’t think it’s going to turn around at all,” Fogel said.

Premium travelers are generally seen as less sensitive to higher prices because they are in a position to carry premium benefits in the first place. Airlines want to cater to that group of travelers, especially on international routes when cross-border travel begins. International travel has been slower to recover from an epidemic-related collapse than domestic travel.

Fogel said Booking Holdings is “optimistic” there will be strong international travel this summer, but noted that there will be regional differences.

“Asia [is] Not coming back so fast, say, Western Europe, which we’ve been seeing for quite some time. Also, of course, the tragedy of the Ukraine war, which certainly affected Eastern Europe somewhat, “Fogel said.

Senate Republicans and Democrats have reached a tentative deal worth 10 10 billion in additional Covid funds, less than half of what President Joe Biden called for to boost the country’s epidemic response before another possible transmission wave.

Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, told reporters he had reached an agreement with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-NY, to cover costs by redirecting funds from the American Rescue Plan passed last year. The funding the White House sought from Congress was much less than the 22.5 billion.

Biden warned yesterday that if Congress fails to act, there will not be enough covid vaccine doses in the United States for all Americans this fall. The White House has also warned that insurers will no longer have coverage for Covid tests, treatment and vaccinations. The United States will face a lack of monoclonal antibody treatment, antiviral pills and covid tests, according to administration officials.

It’s not clear what the package will cover, as senators have not yet released details. The text of the agreement, when completed, will go to the Congressional Budget Office to show that the funds are balanced by the offset.

The House Democrats originally wanted to pass কো 15 billion in Covid money earlier this month as part of a larger government funding package. However, after Republicans and Democrats failed to agree on how to pay for it, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi Cowid pulled out the funds.

The GOP called for state and local governments to cover any new expenditures by returning money already allocated, but Democrats rejected that claim.

Amicron, a more contagious form of BA.2, is spreading in the United States, now accounting for more than half of all genetically sequenced infections, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. BA.2 has created new covid epidemics in Europe and China, raising concerns that the submarine could do the same thing in the United States.

White House Chief Medical Adviser. Anthony Fawcett said earlier this month that BA.2 would likely lead to an increase in infections in the United States, although he did not expect another increase. Epidemiologists say the United States could face another wave in the fall, as vaccines weaken immunity and people move indoors because of the cold weather.