JPMorgan Strategists Raise S&P 500 Target as AI Capex Pays Off

 JPMorgan Chase & Co. strategists raised their S&P 500 Index forecast for a second time in two months, citing strong corporate earnings and the payoff from massive artificial intelligence spending

The team led by Dubravko Lakos-Bujas now sees the US benchmark rising to 8,000 points, implying gains of about 3% from Friday's close. They had bumped their target to 7,800 from 7,600 in June. The latest forecast is slightly above the average of 20 strategists polled by Bloomberg.

The second-quarter earnings season has produced evidence that capital expenditure by the so-called AI hyperscalers is being monetized through customer demand, the JPMorgan team said. They cited stronger cloud growth and increased backlogs at Alphabet Inc., Amazon.com Inc. and Microsoft Corp. that should reduce worries over return on their invested capital.

"As elevated backlogs convert into recognized revenue, cloud growth should remain well supported, helping validate rising AI capex," they said. "Across hyperscalers, demand indicators remain high and rising."

The S&P 500 has reclaimed record highs as corporate earnings surged 32% in one of the best increases on record. There's been intense focus on Big Tech's spending on AI and the impact that's having on their cash flow.

The JPMorgan strategists expect AI spending to keep climbing, with the technology projected to account for well over half of total capex of $1.5 trillion across the S&P 500 this year, a proportion that's tipped to grow.

Strategists at banks including Citigroup Inc., Deutsche Bank AG and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. are also among the most bullish voices on US stocks this year. On average, the S&P 500 is seen rising to 7,845 points by the year end, about 1% above current levels.

https://finance.yahoo.com/markets/stocks/articles/jpmorgan-strategists-raise-p-500-092820794.html

IRS To Propose Retirement Regulations Impacting Millions Of Taxpayers

 by Naveen Athrappully via The Epoch Times,

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the Department of the Treasury plan to propose regulations for a federal retirement savings incentive program, including eligibility criteria and income thresholds for qualifying for such benefits.

IRS Chief Executive Officer Frank J. Bisignano (L) speaks as President Donald Trump looks on prior to signing a presidential proclamation honoring the 90th anniversary of the Social Security Act in the Oval Office on Aug. 14, 2025. Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images

Aimed at low- and moderate-income taxpayers, the IRS Saver's Match is a new federal program that seeks to promote retirement savings. In general, Saver's Match will replace the existing Saver's Credit program for taxable years beginning in 2027.

Under the program, the government will provide eligible taxpayers up to 50 percent of the first $2,000 in retirement savings contributions made to an employer-sponsored retirement plan or IRA.

The amount caps at $1,000 annually and will be paid to eligible individuals beginning in 2028 based on the retirement contributions they made in the 2027 tax year, the IRS said in an Aug. 7 statement.

In a notice issued on Friday, the IRS and the Treasury described regulations that they expect to be in the forthcoming proposed rules.

Four types of retirement savings contributions would qualify for Saver's Match: contributions to a Roth or traditional IRA; contributions made to a section 501(c)(18) plan; certain voluntary, after-tax employee contributions to a qualified retirement plan; and elective deferrals, such as those made to a section 401(k) plan.

"Millions of low- and moderate-income Americans will have the opportunity to strengthen their retirement savings through the Saver's Match program," IRS Chief Executive Officer Frank J. Bisignano said in the statement.

"The Saver's Match makes saving easier and more rewarding by providing a direct federal contribution to an eligible taxpayer's retirement account. The notice is an important first step in implementing President [Donald] Trump's Executive Order with respect to the Saver's Match program," Bisignano said.

Bisignano was referring to the "Promoting Retirement-Savings Access for American Workers by Establishing TrumpIRA.gov" executive order signed by Trump on April 30.

In the order, Trump said that tens of millions of Americans lack access to employer-sponsored retirement plans, with small-business workers, independent contractors, the self-employed, and part-time workers facing "unnecessary barriers to saving for retirement."

The administration intends to ensure these people can obtain up to $1,000 in matching savings they make, Trump wrote, while calling for increased public awareness of the Saver's Match program.

The order directed the Treasury Secretary to establish the TrumpIRA.gov website by Jan. 1, 2027, to provide individuals with information on low-cost, high-quality IRAs.

In its latest statement, the IRS said that the agency and the Treasury anticipate TrumpIRA.gov will list financial institutions that offer IRAs and accept Saver's Match contributions.

According to the TrumpIRA.gov website, roughly 41 million American workers aged 18-65 lack access to employer-provided retirement plans.

"A 25-year-old worker who saves about $165 per month and qualifies for a $1,000 annual Saver's Match could retire with roughly $465,000 at age 65," the website said.

Out of the $465,000, almost $155,000 is expected to come directly from the Saver's Match contributions. The calculations assume an annual return of 6 percent.

Income Thresholds, Saver's Credit

To qualify for the Saver's Match, an individual must be at least 18 years old during the taxable year, according to the IRS and Treasury notice.

For 2027, single filers with a modified adjusted gross income of $35,500 or more do not qualify for the Saver's Match. The same limit applies to married people who file separately.

For married couples who file jointly, the threshold is $71,000, and for the household head, the maximum limit is $53,250.

For taxable years after 2027, these thresholds will be adjusted based on inflation. The Saver's Match claim must be made through a separate Form 8880-A.

While Saver's Match will replace the existing Saver's Credit program, for certain contributions made to Achieving a Better Life Experience accounts, Saver's Credit will continue to be available.

Unlike Saver's Match, which is an amount directly paid to a person's retirement account, Saver's Credit offers a nonrefundable tax credit as an incentive.

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/irs-propose-retirement-regulations-impacting-millions-taxpayers

Florida names Mamdani 'Economic Developer of the Year' in Times Square campaign

 In the heart of Manhattan, at the corner of Broadway and West 43rd Street, a massive new billboard is sending a provocative message to New York leadership: "Thanks for the jobs!"

As America faces what business leaders call a historic choice between free enterprise and expanding government control, Florida is taking the ideological fight directly to the doorstep of Democratic socialism. 

Armed with a $1.8 trillion economy and record-breaking wealth migration, the Florida Chamber of Commerce has officially launched a Times Square campaign naming New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani Florida's "Economic Developer of the Year" — a reminder, according to the Chamber, of how progressive taxes and socialist policies are driving wealth, businesses and families to the Sunshine State.

"We wanted to thank him for the jobs, the companies, the people that they're pushing out of New York — and a lot of them are coming to Florida," Chamber CEO Mark Wilson first told Fox News Digital on Monday.

"America is at a crossroads right now. I think everyone that's paying attention knows that our country was built on freedom and free enterprise and people having the liberty to make their dreams come true," he said. "And there's a push in our country right now to take those liberties away and to attack free enterprise. And that's never worked anywhere, and it won't work in America."

"What Mayor Mamdani is doing is dangerous for the country, right? It's bad for New Yorkers. It's bad for New York. It's very harmful for the country," Wilson continued. "We can choose free enterprise, which is what America was built on, or we can choose to destroy that, which is what the social[ist] policies do… And so, what we're hoping happens from this campaign is that we refocus America on free enterprise."

The Florida Chamber's digital billboard can be found at 1500 Broadway and W. 43rd St. in Times Square. (Nikolas Lanum/Fox News Digital / FOXBusiness)

In addition to putting the onus on Mamdani, the Chamber’s campaign highlights its argument that lower tax rates yield higher total state revenues by incentivizing growth, while blue-state tax hikes trigger a tax-based exodus. According to the Chamber, citing IRS migration data, Florida gains approximately $2.4 million in net taxable income every hour, while New York loses approximately $1.1 million per hour. The Chamber also says Florida gains a net 551 residents daily, compared to New York losing 115 residents daily.

According to the Chamber's press release, New York’s state budget is more than double Florida’s, and New York City’s municipal budget alone is more than $8 billion higher than the entire Florida state budget.

"What do people like Mayor Mamdani do? They want to then increase taxes on the people who are left, which just further accelerates people leaving places like New York," Wilson explained.

"Florida's lowered taxes over 50 times in the last 15 years. And we have record revenues coming in because people want to be here. And when the economy grows, tax revenues grow. That's how free enterprise works," Wilson said.

"The socialist agenda sounds crazy because it is crazy, right? ‘Free Enterprise Florida’ is a way to highlight what happens in states like Florida — when we focus on less tax, less government, more freedom, more liberty — and what happens in places like New York when they increase taxes and regulation," the CEO added. "So this is an opportunity for people in New York and people across the country to say, ‘Hey, we have a choice to make here.’"

"What we're really trying to do here is remind people that America is an experiment. It's 50 states competing for where do we take America going forward? And I think if you look at the scorecard of how Florida is doing compared to how New York is doing, we want to help New York follow in Florida's footsteps."

According to Wilson, Florida is not seeking to tear down New York or "spike the football," but rather wants every state to succeed by embracing free-market principles to boost overall U.S. GDP growth.

"Even though Florida is winning right now, we're not looking for New York to lose. We're hoping that these other states will say ‘no’ to this move towards socialism and say ‘yes’ to the very policies that our country was founded on," he said. "This isn't about spiking a football or looking at the scoreboard about Florida versus New York. This is really about trying to save our country from crazy."

"We're in a big competition with every other state, but it's a competition for ideas. And we're trying to highlight to the country that free enterprise wins every single time. It's what's best for customers, it's what’s best for job creators. And if we focus on it in America, we can get back to that three-plus percent GDP growth, which is what our country really needs," Wilson noted.

Mayor Mamdani’s office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

Wilson also outlined future targets for the "Free Enterprise Florida" campaign beyond Manhattan while highlighting decades of bipartisan and conservative governance that built Florida's modern economic engine.

"We had to start in New York City because the mayor of New York City, obviously, is pushing that community into a direction that it's not good for the people who live there," the CEO said. "But there's several runner-ups for this. When you look at Chicago, when you look at California, Minneapolis, there's places all over the country that come in a close second to the movement in New York City. So we're gonna continue to highlight what works."

"Our country is celebrating 250 years this year, and it has a lot to do with our freedom, our faith and our free enterprise," Wilson said. "And I think if we can focus on free enterprise for the next few years and make that what we base our decisions on, then this country can grow at 3% GDP, and we'll once again get back on the track that we need to be."

https://www.foxbusiness.com/economy/florida-names-nyc-mayor-zohran-mamdani-economic-developer-year-times-square-campaign

Sobi adds rare lymphoma drug with $580m Innate tie-up

 Sobi chief executive Guido Oelkers is preparing to depart the company, but the deals keep coming under his watch, with the latest an alliance with Innate Pharma for a lymphoma drug.

The Sweden-headquartered group is paying $75 million upfront to France's Innate in order to partner lacutamab, which is vying to become a first-in-class anti-KIR3DL2 antibody for cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL), a group of rare non-Hodgkin lymphomas.

The deal – which includes another $505 million in development milestones, regulatory, and commercial milestones – will allow Innate to start a phase 3 trial of lacutamab in Sézary syndrome, one of the most difficult-to-treat forms of CTCL that causes skin reddening and a rash that can often be mistaken for eczema or psoriasis.

Although Sézary syndrome impacts a small patient population – estimated at one per million people in the US – more than 90% of patients express KIR3DL2, a coinhibitory receptor found on the malignant T-cells in the disorder that promotes resistance to activation-induced cell death.

There is currently only one treatment specifically approved for this form of CTCL – Kyowa Kirin's Poteligeo (mogamulizumab) – but other drugs like HDAC inhibitors and retinoids, which are cleared for other forms of CTCL, are used off-label.

"Sobi is the ideal partner to help unlock the full potential of lacutamab," commented Jonathan Dickinson, Innate's CEO. "Their expertise in rare diseases, proven commercial capabilities and global reach perfectly complement Innate's expertise in CTCL clinical development."

The planned TELLOMAK-3 trial of lacutamab is designed as a confirmatory study that will be used to back up a planned accelerated filing for the antibody in Sézary syndrome, based on the phase 2 TELLOMAK-2 study.

Completed in 2024, that trial involved heavily pre-treated patients with the disease and achieved an overall response rate (ORR) of 42.9%, with a median duration of response of 25.6 months, along with a manageable safety profile and improvements in patients' quality of life.

It also showed efficacy for lacutamab in mycosis fungoides, another form of CTCL, which will be a follow-up indication for the antibody.

Running TELLOMAK-3 – which will include a mycosis fungoides arm – will be the responsibility of Innate's just-appointed new chief medical officer, Markus Jensen, who will replace Sonia Quaratino on 1st September.

Sobi will receive exclusive global rights to commercialise lacutamab upon potential accelerated approval and will be eligible to assume full global development rights if the phase 3 trial delivers as hoped.

"This agreement is an important step in strengthening our portfolio and reflects our strategy of partnering with leading innovators to bring differentiated therapies to patients with rare diseases," said Oelkers, who is leaving Sobi to take up the leadership of German mRNA company BioNTech early next year.

https://pharmaphorum.com/news/sobi-adds-rare-lymphoma-drug-580m-innate-tie

Novo Nordisk partners Amazon on London AI hub

 Novo Nordisk has joined forces with Amazon Web Services (AWS) on a project that will lead to the creation of an AI co-innovation hub in London, boosting the UK's standing as a hub for AI-powered drug discovery.

The alliance – which makes AWS Novo Nordisk's primary cloud provider and strategic AI partner – will bring together AWS engineers, AI specialists, and applied scientists alongside Novo Nordisk's R&D teams to "compress the path from drug target to first human dose."

The new hub will be set up using AWS' recently launched Forward Deployed Engineering organisation, a $1 billion drive to embed engineers, scientists, and strategists in the tech giant's customers to co-develop agentic AI solutions and slash deployment times from months to days.

The announcement is a fillip to the UK's aspirations in this area, coming after changes at Google DeepMind – namely, the decision by Nobel Prize-winning chief executive Demis Hassabis to step down and become chair and chief scientist at parent Alphabet – could signal a shift in the company's focus towards the US under new leader Koray Kavukcuoglu, who is based in Silicon Valley.

Under the terms of the partnership with AWS, Novo Nordisk will use AI tools such as Amazon Bio Discovery and Amazon Bedrock to identify drug targets, design new medicines, and connect genomic, imaging, and clinical data. The hope is that this will translate to discoveries in early research that can directly inform the design of clinical trials and improve the chances of success.

Novo Nordisk has had a longstanding working relationship with AWS, which it says has already resulted in successful AI deployments that have reduced clinical documentation time and boosted productivity, but this strategic-level agreement takes their partnership to a higher level.

The announcement comes as Novo Nordisk is trying to rejuvenate its pipeline and diversify its focus further beyond its main focus on diabetes and obesity, where it has been losing ground to Eli Lilly. In the last couple of weeks, those efforts have been undermined by disappointing clinical results with weight-loss candidate monlunabant and ziltivekimab for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) and chronic kidney disease (CKD).

"Partnering with AWS is about making AI a driver of innovation across Novo Nordisk," said Mike Doustdar, Novo Nordisk's chief executive.

"By combining our scientific expertise with AWS' tools and purpose-built services for the life sciences industry, while also creating a dedicated co-innovation hub within our existing facility in London, we are accelerating discovery and developing responsible AI solutions that will create real progress for people living with serious chronic diseases."

https://pharmaphorum.com/news/novo-nordisk-partners-amazon-london-ai-hub

Alzheimer's patients 'not changing brain health behaviours'

 Researchers in the US have found that most people with early Alzheimer's disease are not following guidelines for promoting brain health, even if they are being prescribed anti-amyloid therapies.

The team at the Mass General Brigham Neuroscience Institute found that fewer than 3% of 267 people with Alzheimer's assessed in their study were following recommendations like exercising, getting adequate sleep, preventing hypertension, and eating a heart-healthy diet.

There was no significant difference between those taking Eisai and Biogen's anti-amyloid therapy Leqembi (lecanemab) and those not taking the drug, which was a surprising result.

"Because patients pursuing anti-amyloid therapy were willing to receive lecanemab infusions every two weeks and tolerate the risks associated with this medication, we thought this highly motivated group might be pursuing every avenue available to protect their brain health," said MassGen neurologist Kirk Daffner, the lead author of the study, which has been published in The Journal of Prevention of Alzheimer's Disease.

"The results show there is much more work to be done," he added.

Anti-amyloid drugs like Leqembi have shown modest benefits on Alzheimer's disease progression in clinical trials, which as a rule did not require enrolled subjects to adhere to any lifestyle changes.

Despite that, a real-world study of Leqembi reported at this year's Alzheimer’s Association International Conference (AAIC) found that 77% of in the early stages of the disease who started the drug remained at the same stage of disease after an average of 17 months of treatment.

One potential implication of the new research is that patients diagnosed with early Alzheimer's may be able to see even more benefit from anti-amyloid therapy if they make lifestyle changes.

The researchers developed a panel of 15 lifestyle changes – what they call Brain Health Vital Signs – that also included factors like social and cognitive engagement, controlled blood sugar, good vision and hearing, and low levels of alcohol consumption, to score patients in the study.

Among patients pursuing anti-amyloid therapy, more than 25% were not optimally adhering to 11 of the 15 studied brain health recommendations, and more than 50% were not optimally adhering to four of the recommendations, which was much the same as the untreated group.

Patients most commonly fell short of the recommendation to get at least 25 minutes of physical activity per day on most days of the week.

"There is a fairly robust, accepted evidence base that a certain set of behaviours and medical factors support brain health, but effective implementation in clinical care is still mostly missing,” said Seth Gale, another MassGen neurologist and a senior author of the study.

“While tools such as Brain Health Vital Signs can help patients and their providers better understand what they are doing well and where they can improve, it’s clear that structured, sustainable interventions are also necessary."

Daffner and Gale et al are also running the large-scale Brain Health Champion Study, which is testing a coaching system – backed by mobile technology – in people with mild cognitive impairment or risk factors for dementia. Preliminary results suggest the approach can improve adherence to recommended brain health behaviours.

https://pharmaphorum.com/news/alzheimers-patients-not-changing-brain-health-behaviours

'The strange power of Iran’s absent supreme leader'

 Mojtaba Khamenei’s continued absence from public view has created an unusual system of authority in Tehran, where decisions are made and justified through written messages attributed to him while responsibility appears dispersed across a core establishment network.

With no public appearance or clear final word from Khamenei, competing figures can interpret his intentions differently, and those with the greatest institutional and military power are best placed to turn their interpretation into policy.

Khamenei has been absent from major political and personal events since becoming supreme leader, including the funeral of his wife and the extensive ceremonies marking his father’s death.

His disappearance has produced contradictory accounts about his condition, ranging from claims that he is in good health to reports of injuries or even the loss of a limb.

Officials and media close to the establishment have meanwhile cited extraordinary security precautions to explain why neither his image nor his voice has been released.

‘In principle’

Whatever the security rationale, Iranians have little means of assessing the new leader’s condition, capabilities or views for themselves. Instead, they encounter him largely through written statements and officials explaining what he means.

The clearest example came in a message attributed to Khamenei concerning negotiations and the memorandum of understanding with the United States.

He allowed President Masoud Pezeshkian to take responsibility for negotiations and effectively permitted the agreement to be signed, while saying that “in principle” he had held a different view.

Those two words immediately became a matter of political interpretation.

The IRGC’s political deputy rejected suggestions that they meant Khamenei fundamentally opposed negotiations. “This interpretation is incorrect and does not correspond with the existing realities,” he said.

But a military adviser to Khamenei offered a different reading: “When the Leader says, ‘in principle, I held a different view,’ it means the path that Agha had in mind was better than the path taken by the Supreme National Security Council.”

The same message could therefore be presented as permission for diplomacy or evidence of reservations about it, with figures claiming proximity to Khamenei effectively speaking on his behalf.

Speaking for the leader

The same process is helping construct Khamenei’s image as a wartime leader.

Ebrahim Jabbari, an adviser to the IRGC commander, has spoken of Khamenei’s “command and mastery” of military affairs and his management of expert meetings of the armed forces.

Supporters have also promoted the slogan “Khamenei has become young again,” presenting the succession as a renewal of leadership during war.

Such accounts give the military and security establishment an important role not merely in implementing the supreme leader’s decisions but in explaining his character, capabilities and intentions to the public.

Foreign leaders have inadvertently reinforced his position. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has publicly said Khamenei is alive, while US President Donald Trump has described him as “definitely and 100 percent” involved in negotiations between Tehran and Washington and even raised the possibility of meeting him.

Khamenei is thus presented by his subordinates as directing military affairs and confronting Iran’s enemies, while those same enemies publicly treat him as the ultimate decision-maker — even as he remains absent from public view.

Who decides?

That absence becomes more consequential as Iran confronts the choice between continued confrontation and diplomacy.

Khamenei has apparently authorized negotiations and the signing of an agreement, but messages attributed to him have also promised vengeance. Officials advocating different courses can therefore claim to be acting in accordance with the same leader.

Iran’s military and security institutions possess both the organizational power to act during wartime and an extensive presence in the state’s decision-making and media structures.

When Khamenei’s wishes are unclear, those institutions are better positioned than advocates of compromise to determine how they are translated into policy.

Majid Mousavi, commander of the IRGC Aerospace Force, has called on others to follow the supreme leader’s wishes as his forces carry much of the burden of the current war. Yet precisely what those wishes are remains unclear.

Policy instead emerges through written messages, competing interpretations and repeated invocations of the leader’s authority. Successes can be attributed to his leadership, while responsibility for costly decisions and their consequences is spread across a wider network.

The less Iranians see or hear from Mojtaba Khamenei, the more they must rely on others to tell them what he thinks. As the country weighs war against diplomacy, the question is increasingly not simply what Iran’s supreme leader wants, but who gets to decide what his wishes mean.

https://www.iranintl.com/en/202608090309