Good morning. Happy Holi, Happy International Women's Day, and Happy (belated) Purim. Whoever you run into today, just give them a thumbs up and a smile—odds are they're celebrating something. —Max Knoblauch, Sam Klebanov, Matty Merritt, Neal Freyman | | | |  | Nasdaq | 11,530.33 | | | | | S&P | 3,986.37 | | | | | Dow | 32,856.46 | | |  | 10-Year | 3.970% | | | | | Bitcoin | $22,058.47 | | | | | Apple | $151.60 | | | | *Stock data as of market close, cryptocurrency data as of 3:00am ET. Here's what these numbers mean. | - Markets: Fed Chair Jerome Powell dropped Mentos into the market's Diet Coke yesterday. In testimony on Capitol Hill, he said that interest rates were probably going to go "higher than previously anticipated" in light of stronger economic data. After those comments, stocks sold off and the 2-year Treasury yield spiked to above 5% for the first time since 2007.
| | | | Photo Illustration: Dianna "Mick" McDougall, Source: Getty Images The Biden administration is continuing its full-court press against airline consolidation. Yesterday, the Justice Department sued to block JetBlue's planned $3.8 billion takeover of Spirit Airlines, claiming that the acquisition would raise fares for consumers and decrease options in an industry already known for only offering pretzels or peanuts. Spirit, with its no snacks, 28 inches of legroom, and no-recline seats, isn't exactly anyone's top choice for travel, but it is the nation's largest ultra-low-cost airline. And, according to the DOJ, Spirit getting scooped up would eliminate about half of all ultra-low-cost seats in the industry, sending ticket prices (which are already skyrocketing) up even further. For the Biden administration's DOJ, with its hardline attitude against mergers it considers anti-competitive, that's unacceptable. Why would prices go up? According to internal company documents that the DOJ cites in its complaint, when Spirit starts flying a given route, average fares fall by 17%. Meanwhile, JetBlue estimates that when Spirit stops flying a route, average fares shoot up by 30%. JetBlue has claimed that by increasing its size with the purchase of Spirit, it could better compete with the "big four" airlines: United, Delta, American, and Southwest. But according to the DOJ, JetBlue isn't the disruptive force it once was and has evolved into an "ally of the big four." In response to the lawsuit, JetBlue CEO Robin Hayes argued that the merger was not like Pepsi buying Coke and instead would make his company a "distant fifth-largest airline"—a Dr Pepper, you might say. Zoom out: The last big merger in the airline industry happened in 2016 when Alaska Airlines acquired Virgin America. According to airlines.org, there have been 21 completed US airline mergers since 2001. That consolidation has made it hard for new competition to enter. Between 2007 and 2021, not a single new airline startup was formed in the country.—MK | | | Life should be a balance of adventure and relaxation—without spending too much time worrying about finances. Which is why SmartAsset raised $161m to help people plan for retirement. Their no-cost tool makes it easy to find vetted financial advisors who serve your area. And it may be worth your while, since research suggests people who work with a financial advisor could end up with 15% more money to spend in retirement.¹ SmartAsset can help you kick-start your retirement plans today. Try their free quiz to get matched with up to 3 financial advisors serving your area, each legally bound to work in your best interest. It's never too late to work toward financial freedom. | | STR/AFP via Getty Images   Two Americans found dead in Mexico kidnapping. Of the four Americans who had been kidnapped in Mexico last week, two were found dead and two were found alive, Mexican officials said. The Americans had traveled to Mexico because one of them was getting cosmetic surgery, and while driving in the city of Matamoros on Friday they were fired upon by gunmen and loaded into a pickup truck. US investigators suspect that a Mexican cartel mistook the Americans for drug smugglers, according to CNN.
 GOP senators slam Tucker Carlson segment. Republican Senate leaders, including Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, criticized the Fox News host for characterizing the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol as "mostly peaceful chaos." On Monday night, Carlson aired footage from that day after House Speaker Kevin McCarthy gave him access to 40,000+ hours of internal security footage. McConnell and others said that Fox News's depiction of the riot was misleading and at odds with the Capitol Police chief's assessment.
 New nuclear reactor turns on. For the first time since 2016, a new nuclear reactor in the US has reached the stage where it's begun splitting atoms. The Vogtle Unit 3 reactor in Georgia hit the milestone on Monday, which puts it on track to become fully operational this summer. Including the Vogtle reactor, there are currently 93 nuclear reactors operating in the US that together generate 20% of the nation's electricity, per CNBC. New nuclear projects have slowed down dramatically since the accident at Pennsylvania's Three Mile Island in 1979.
| | Simone Giertz Productivity win: Slack has finally found a way to automate a unique, personal birthday message to your coworker. The Salesforce-owned messaging app said yesterday it's introducing AI tools based on ChatGPT that will help you draft replies, find answers to questions, and summarize long threads or channels. There's currently a waitlist to pilot the program. How it works: In a world with an AI Slack assist, a five-part question from your boss at 4:59pm could become a piece of cake to tackle. The app would create a reply in seconds that you could edit and send. Salesforce touts the app's potential to make workers more productive, but just how productive is up for debate as the AI-generated messages may take longer to edit and fact check than just writing them yourself. Tools like Google's AI chatbot have made headlines for giving users incorrect information. Big picture: Slack's new toy joins a flood of other AI apps and assistants that companies such as Microsoft, Meta, and Google are unleashing on the American workforce. ChatGPT generating an unhinged poem was funny, but to commercialize the tech meaningfully, companies will need to make it worthwhile for the average marketing associate to use in their job.—MM | | TOGETHER WITH CURIOSITY STREAM | | Settle in, documentary devotees. Do you love learning? Enjoy being entertained? Curiosity Stream brings both to your screen. Their exclusive collection of documentaries is deeper than that of any other streaming service out there. Grab some  and cultivate your learning mindset with 25% off your subscription. | | Francis Scialabba A recent study published in Nature Medicine found that the sugar alternative erythritol is associated with an increased risk of heart issues and strokes. Our bodies naturally produce small amounts of the compound, but it's also increasingly found in many processed foods, especially "sugar-free" products and even some toothpastes. What did the study find? Scientists explored the link between levels of different chemicals in the blood and the risk of heart disease. - Patients with more erythritol in their system had a higher chance of having a stroke, suffering a heart attack, or dying within three years.
- Erythritol was also tied to an increased risk of blood clots in mice and human blood samples.
While erythritol is linked to health issues, it does not necessarily cause them. It's also unclear how worried folks without medical conditions should be, as the study mostly followed a population already prone to heart disease (due to conditions like diabetes or high blood pressure). Zoom out: The researchers recommend further investigation to better understand whether erythritol ought to be proclaimed unsafe. In the meantime, one of the study's authors, Dr. Stanley Hazen, is telling his patients to skip the sweetener and opt for a couple of drops of honey or a pinch of sugar instead.—SK | | Clash of Clans/Supercell via Giphy Stat: Americans who've had a bad experience with a product or service are increasingly airing their grievances like Frank Costanza. According to the National Customer Rage Survey, 9% of consumers who had a bone to pick with a company took "revenge" by publicly shaming them (on social media or IRL). That's up from 3% in 2020 but significantly lower than the 17% average during the revenge-seeking golden age of 2003–2017. Quote: "We love Florida, we're growing in Florida left and right." According to Jamie Dimon, the Financial District is no longer in Lower Manhattan—it's in the Lower United States. In an interview with Bloomberg TV this week, the JPMorgan CEO hyped both Florida and Texas as major growth regions for the finance industry because those states "like business, they want you to come." Dimon revealed that JPMorgan now has more employees in Texas than New York: "It shouldn't have been that way but Texas loves you being there," he said. Read: Why the recession is always six months away. (Wall Street Journal) | | - The National Transportation Safety Board has opened a special investigation into the organization and safety culture at Norfolk Southern over its recent derailments.
- President Biden will release a budget tomorrow that will reportedly propose a tax hike on Americans earning more than $400,000/year to help keep Medicare flush with cash.
- Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz will testify in a Senate hearing looking into the company's tactics against unionization efforts. A showdown between Schultz and Sen. Bernie Sanders is likely.
- Everything is awesome for Lego, which is further distancing itself from rivals with a 17% rise in revenue in Q4 2022.
- NYC Mayor Eric Adams urged retail store workers to make customers lower face masks upon entering in order to reduce robberies.
| | Back to the Future/Universal Pictures via Giphy Y2K meltdown: never materialized Tarot readings: too vague March Madness brackets: always end in heartbreak It's time to give false predictions the boot. That's why the brainiacs at Morning Brew Learning created the Financial Forecasting course, a one-week sprint that gives you the tools to transform qualitative business goals into actionable metrics. Learn how to create an annual business budget that delivers, beginning on March 20. Reserve your seat now. | | Word Search: If you enjoy looking at classic car models (and can maybe even identify them), today's Word Search is for you. Play it here. Architecture trivia Sir David Chipperfield was named the winner of the coveted Pritzker Architecture Prize yesterday. Below is a picture of one of his buildings—the headquarters of beauty giant Amorepacific. In what world capital city is this building located?  Noshe/The Pritzker Architecture Prize | |  The Brief is coming back to NYC. At this one-day summit, marketing leaders will share their experience in the industry and offer advice to ambitious professionals. Get your ticket today.
 Has trying to learn Excel left you defeated? Not to worry—we have an on-demand course that will teach you Excel shortcuts. Reserve your spot.
 Want in on how to keep others out? Tech Brew has you covered. Join us for a free virtual event with cybersecurity experts on March 23.
| | | ✢ A Note From SmartAsset 1. "Journal of Retirement Study Winter" (2020). The projections or other information regarding the likelihood of various investment outcomes are hypothetical in nature, do not reflect actual investment results, and are not guarantees of your future results. Please follow the link to see the methodologies employed in the Journal of Retirement study. | | |
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Reading list: In honor of International Women's Day, here are author Elena Ferrante's picks for the .gif)
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