Nicole Scherzinger Signs With Range Media Partners

Grammy-nominated singer and Masked Singer judge Nicole Scherzinger has signed with Range Media Partners. Under the partnership, Scherzinger will continue to expand her career into the unscripted film and television space, theater, and global brand partnerships.

Scherzinger is best known as the lead singer of The Pussycat Dolls. She has many number one singles and has performed with Andrea Bocelli, She also earned an Olivier Award nomination for her role in the revival of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Cats in London’s West End.

“Nicole is the quintessential multi-hyphenate. She can bring people to tears with her moving vocals and dry sense of humor alike,” said Range Music Partner Melissa Ruderman: “She’s at the top of her game when entertaining on stage whether its acting or singing. The team assembled at Range is uniquely positioned to help maximize her myriad talents. We look forward to continuing to help her build her global brand.”

Scherzinger is set to lead the Pussycat Dolls reunion world tour post-Covid. Scherzinger’s TV credits include X-Factor in the UK and Australia’s Got Talent. She is about to begin the fifth season Fox’s The Masked Singer. On the feature side, Scherzinger voiced the role of Sina in Disney’s Moana and has recently completed a scripted project for Netflix. She works closely with Special Olympics, UNICEF and CAST LA as a Global Ambassador of their international relief efforts.

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Gold Futures Settle Modestly Higher; Silver Sparkles

Gold futures ended higher on Monday, riding on Silver’s splendid rally.

Silver prices rose sharply on frenzied buying, buoyed by a report on Reddit last week about a short squeeze on the precious and industrial metal.

However, the dollar’s rise limited gold’s uptick. The dollar index rose to 91.02, gaining nearly 0.5%. The dollar rose amid doubts surrounding the imminent debate around extra fiscal stimulus by U.S. policymakers and the potential impact on growth prospects of the slow vaccine rollout. Volatile stock markets too contributed to the increased demand for the U.S. dollar.

Gold futures for April ended up $13.60 or about 0.7% at $1,863.90 an ounce.

Silver futures ended stronger by $2.50 or about 9.3% at $29.418 an ounce.

On the economic front, a report from the Institute for Supply Management showed the pace of growth in U.S. manufacturing activity slowed more than expected in January.

The ISM said its manufacturing PMI declined to 58.7 in January from a downwardly revised 60.5 in December. Economists had expected the index to show a more modest drop to 60.0.

Oil Futures Settle Higher As OPEC, Saudi Arabia’s Production Cuts Take Effect

Crude oil futures ended sharply higher on Monday amid optimism about vaccination rollout picking up pace and as the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies’ production cut agreement became effective.

Saudi Arabia’s unilateral move to cut crude output by 1 million barrels per day contributed as well to the jump in oil prices.

West Texas Intermediate Crude oil futures for March ended stronger by $1.35 or about 2.6% at $53.55 a barrel.

Brent crude futures were up $1.43 or 2.6% at $56.45 a barrel a little while ago.

OPEC’s joint technical committee will meet on Tuesday. A day later, the agency’s Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee that includes delegates from Russia, Kaxakhstan and others, is scheduled to meet.

Robinhood raises another $2.4B from investors

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Robinhood raised another $2.4 billion from shareholders, just days after existing investors pumped in $1 billion in funding, the online brokerage said in a blog post on Monday.

The round was led by Ribbit Capital, with participation from existing investors including ICONIQ, Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia, Index Ventures and NEA. 

The funding comes after Robinhood was strained by high volumes of trading last week, when it also faced the anger of customers, celebrities and politicians for curbing the purchase of some hot stocks.

The brokerage, which has become popular with young investors for its easy-to-use interface, is at the heart of a mania that kicked off last week following calls by Reddit thread WallStreetBets to trade certain stocks that were being heavily shorted by hedge funds.

Sequoia Capital and Ribbit Capital came together last week to offer the $1 billion funding, according to a New York Times report.

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See Nike's new 'hands-free' shoe

New York (CNN Business)Nike’s newest shoe is “easy on, easy off” for those who cannot be bothered with the most minor inconveniences, like putting on shoes.

Called the Go Flyease, it’s Nike’s first pair of lace-less sneakers that can easily be put on and taken off without using your hands. The casual shoe arrives at a time when people are touching fewer things during the pandemic and a revival of comfier counterparts that take minimal effort to take on and off, such as Crocs.
The Go Flyease has unique features, including a tension band that secures the shoe in place of laces. Putting them on involves just stepping into the shoe so that it will snap into place. Taking them off is done by stepping on the heel.

The shoes go on sale February 15 for $120 for subscribers of the free membership program on Nike’s website. Broader availability is planned for later this year.
Nike’s new shoes are coming at a time when home-bound consumers are craving comfort. That’s evident from Crocs (CROX)‘ most recent earnings, which revealed a 55% jump in revenue. The company said it expects 2020 to have been its biggest year of sales ever.

Launching the new shoes on its website first also fits into Nike’s (NKE) strategy of selling directly to consumers rather through third-party retailers. The company reported in December that its online sales soared 84% in its most recent quarter as people snapped up fitness and casual shoes.