Market Beats | Trump Nominates Kevin Warsh as Next Fed Chair; Gold and Silver Plummet as Warsh Nomination Boosts Dollar; Apple Delivers Record Q1 Revenue as iPhone 17 Drives Surprise China Rebound; American Express Boosts Dividend 16% as Transaction Volume Beats Estimates; US Investigates Claims of Unfettered Meta Access to Encrypted WhatsApp Messages; AstraZeneca Signs $4.7B Deal with China’s CSPC to Bolster Weight-Loss Pipeline; Judge Bars Federal Death Penalty for Luigi Mangione as Murder Charge is Dismissed

—— Trump Nominates Kevin Warsh as Next Fed Chair; Gold and Silver Plummet as Warsh Nomination Boosts Dollar; Apple Delivers Record Q1 Revenue as iPhone 17 Drives Surprise China Rebound; American Express Boosts Dividend 16% as Transaction Volume Beats Estimates; US Investigates Claims of Unfettered Meta Access to Encrypted WhatsApp Messages; AstraZeneca Signs $4.7B Deal with China’s CSPC to Bolster Weight-Loss Pipeline; Judge Bars Federal Death Penalty for Luigi Mangione as Murder Charge is Dismissed

1. Trump Nominates Kevin Warsh as Next Fed Chair

President Donald Trump officially announced his intent to nominate former Fed Governor Kevin Warsh as the next Chairman of the Federal Reserve on Friday, January 30. In a Truth Social post, Trump praised the 55-year-old as “central casting” and predicted he would be “one of the GREAT Fed Chairmen.” Warsh, who served on the Fed Board from 2006 to 2011 and acted as a key liaison to Wall Street during the global financial crisis, is set to succeed Jerome Powell when his term expires in May. This marks a high-profile comeback for Warsh, who was passed over by Trump for the top spot in 2017.

The nomination has immediately reverberated through financial markets, with the U.S. dollar strengthening while gold prices plunged 4% to $5,168 per ounce. Although historically known as a “monetary hawk,” Warsh has recently aligned himself with the administration’s calls for significantly lower interest rates, arguing that AI-driven efficiency gains and regulatory easing will keep price pressures at bay. While some economists view Warsh as a “relatively safe choice” due to his deep institutional experience, critics warn that his ideological pivot toward the White House could undermine the central bank’s longstanding independence.

As the Senate prepares for what is expected to be a contentious confirmation process, the spotlight remains on whether Warsh will prioritize the President’s growth agenda over the Fed’s traditional inflation-fighting mandate.

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2. Gold and Silver Plummet as Warsh Nomination Boosts Dollar

American Express Co. reported a strong finish to 2025 on Friday, January 30, driven by resilient spending from its premium cardmember base. Total billed business for the fourth quarter rose 9% year-over-year to $445.1 billion, edging past the $441.4 billion consensus among Wall Street analysts. On the back of this volume growth, Amex announced a 16% hike in its quarterly dividend to $0.95 per share, effective in the first quarter of 2026.

Despite the top-line momentum, Amex’s bottom line missed the mark slightly, with earnings per share coming in at $3.53—just below the $3.56 projected by analysts. The shortfall was attributed to a spike in operating expenses linked to the recent “refresh” of its iconic U.S. Consumer Platinum Card. The overhaul, which raised the annual fee to $895 while adding enhanced perks across dining (Resy), wellness (Lululemon/Oura), and travel, led to higher-than-anticipated customer engagement and marketing costs.

Looking ahead, CEO Stephen Squeri signaled confidence in the company’s high-income demographic, issuing 2026 revenue growth guidance of 9% to 10% and projected EPS between $17.30 and $17.90.

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3. Apple Delivers Record Q1 Revenue as iPhone 17 Drives Surprise China Rebound

Apple Inc. posted a blowout fiscal first-quarter earnings report on Thursday, January 29, recording an all-time high revenue of $143.8 billion, a 16% year-over-year increase. The tech giant’s results were primarily fueled by “staggering” demand for the iPhone 17 lineup, which saw sales surge 23.3% to $85.3 billion, and a pivotal 38% revenue rebound in Greater China. Despite a 7% dip in Mac sales and supply constraints that hampered AirPods Pro 3 growth, Apple’s Services division reached a significant $30 billion milestone. Earnings per share hit a record $2.84, outperforming the $2.67 analyst consensus.

However, management struck a cautious tone regarding the current quarter. CEO Tim Cook warned that rising memory chip prices and a “supply chase” for 3-nanometer processors will pressure gross margins through March. While Apple issued a bullish revenue forecast of 13% to 16% growth for the second quarter, the looming component crunch caused shares to fluctuate, as investors weighed record holiday sales against rising operational headwinds.

Cook also used the call to highlight Apple’s deepening AI pivot, confirming a partnership with Google to integrate advanced foundational models into Siri, further leveraging an active installed base that has now surpassed 2.5 billion devices worldwide.

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4. American Express Boosts Dividend 16% as Transaction Volume Beats Estimates

Birkenstock Holding Plc presented its first major strategic roadmap since going public during an investor event in New York on Wednesday, January 28. The German sandal maker aims to generate double-digit growth in both revenue and adjusted earnings per share (EPS) through 2028, targeting an incremental €1 billion ($1.2 billion) in sales over the next three fiscal years. Central to this plan is an ambitious push to double its business in the Asia-Pacific region, while maintaining double-digit growth in its core Americas and EMEA markets through a constant-currency revenue CAGR of 13% to 15%.

CEO Oliver Reichert reiterated the company’s “engineered scarcity” model, which keeps demand consistently ahead of supply to preserve pricing power. In fiscal 2025, this strategy resulted in 38 million pairs sold with a 90% full-price sell-through rate. Despite facing a 200-basis-point headwind from U.S. tariffs and unfavorable exchange rates, Birkenstock expects to maintain an EBITDA margin of 30.0% to 30.5% in 2026.

The company is leaning on its vertically integrated “Made in Germany” supply chain and its new Pasewalk facility to scale production toward 60 million pairs by 2027, while expanding its global retail footprint to 150 owned stores to further boost high-margin direct-to-consumer sales.

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5. US Investigates Claims of Unfettered Meta Access to Encrypted WhatsApp Messages

A Bloomberg News report on Friday, January 30, revealed that U.S. law enforcement agents have been examining explosive allegations that Meta personnel can bypass WhatsApp’s end-to-end encryption. According to internal Department of Commerce records, former contractors claimed that they and certain Meta staff possessed “unfettered” access to private communications—a stark contradiction to Meta’s primary marketing promise that “not even WhatsApp” can read user messages. The inquiry, reportedly handled by the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) under the code name “Operation Sourced Encryption,” involves interviews with former content moderators who allege that internal “tasking” systems allowed engineers to retrieve message content in real-time or historically without additional decryption.

The allegations tie into a 2024 whistleblower complaint filed with the SEC, which argued that Meta has misled billions of users about the true nature of its data architecture. Meta has unequivocally denied the claims, with spokesperson Andy Stone labeling them “categorically false and absurd,” reiterating that the platform’s use of the Signal protocol ensures encryption keys are stored exclusively on user devices. Following the report, a BIS spokesperson clarified that while an agent had looked into the matter, the assertions remain “unsubstantiated and outside the scope” of export enforcement authority.

Nevertheless, the news added fuel to a massive class-action lawsuit filed in San Francisco on January 23 by plaintiffs from five countries, who describe the encryption claims as a “sham.” Shares of Meta fluctuated, closing down 1% as investors weighed the potential for renewed federal oversight.

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6. AstraZeneca Signs $4.7B Deal with China’s CSPC to Bolster Weight-Loss Pipeline

AstraZeneca announced on Friday, January 30, that it has entered into a licensing agreement worth up to $4.7 billion with the Chinese group CSPC Pharmaceuticals to develop next-generation treatments for obesity and diabetes. The UK-based pharmaceutical giant will pay an upfront fee of $1.2 billion, with an additional $3.5 billion contingent on meeting specific regulatory and clinical milestones. The deal centers on SYH2082, a once-monthly injectable GLP-1 candidate currently entering early-stage trials, along with three other weight-management assets.

Under the terms of the agreement, AstraZeneca will hold exclusive global rights to these drugs excluding mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan. This strategic move aims to close the gap with market leaders Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly in a weight-loss sector projected to reach $100 billion by 2030. Sharon Barr, AstraZeneca’s head of biopharmaceuticals R&D, noted that the collaboration will deliver novel assets that complement the company’s existing portfolio of three obesity treatments.

AstraZeneca’s shares remained largely flat in London following the announcement.

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7. Judge Bars Federal Death Penalty for Luigi Mangione as Murder Charge is Dismissed

In a major legal victory for Luigi Mangione, U.S. District Judge Margaret Garnett ruled on Friday, January 30, that federal prosecutors cannot seek the death penalty in the killing of UnitedHealth Group CEO Brian Thompson. Garnett dismissed the federal murder charge against Mangione, citing “technical flaws” in the government’s filing. This ruling effectively foils the Trump administration’s high-profile bid—led by Attorney General Pam Bondi—to secure the first federal execution of the president’s second term. While the primary murder count was tossed, Garnett upheld two federal stalking charges that carry a maximum sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Mangione, a 27-year-old Ivy League graduate who has gained a complex online following due to frustrations with the healthcare industry, still faces parallel state-level charges. Although a New York state judge recently dismissed the “terrorism-related” first-degree murder counts against him, a second-degree murder charge remains in place in Manhattan. Because New York does not permit capital punishment, life imprisonment is the severest penalty he now faces across both jurisdictions. Federal jury selection is currently scheduled for September 8, while the Manhattan District Attorney’s office is pushing for an earlier July 1 trial date for the state case.

Mangione has pleaded not guilty to all counts, while federal prosecutors are widely expected to appeal today’s decision to reinstate the capital charge.

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