US January jobs figures are released. The job market likely got off to a good start this year, with faster wage growth and unemployment continuing to nudge downward. Hourly pay could also increase as a number of states adopted minimum wage at the start of 2018.

The 52nd Super Bowl kicks off. The Philadelphia Eagles will take on reigning NFL champs the New England Patriots at the US Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Justin Timberlake will perform at the half-time show.

Fidel Castro’s eldest son committed suicide. Fidel Ángel Castro Díaz-Balart, 68, died in Havana after a struggle with depression. A nuclear scientist, he was known as “Fidelito” because of his close resemblance to his late father.

China and the Vatican are close to a deal. The Catholic Church doesn’t currently have diplomatic relations with China (and instead recognizes Taiwan), but the two sides are reportedly moving closer to an agreement on the appointment of bishops that could pave the way for a full rapprochement eventually.

China commended Theresa May for not bringing up human rights. As the British prime minister wraps up her China visit, state media called May “pragmatic” as she “sidestepped” human rights in pursuit of cooperation with Beijing. May had been under pressure to raise the issue of democratic rights in Hong Kong with the Chinese leadership.

Over 900 trapped South African miners were rescued. After electricity was restored to a gold mine in Welkom, southwest of Johannesburg, the majority of miners who had been underground since Wednesday have been brought to the surface.

The number of US residents choosing to live in far-flung New Zealand has risen sharply since the election of Donald Trump, according to new migration figures. Net migration to New Zealand by US residents rose 65 per cent in 2017, with a 2,127 net gain of permanent and long-term migrants in the year following the presidential election in November 2016.

Google Docs are the latest weapon in workplace activism. Traditional sources for job and salary data like Glassdoor and LinkedIn are failing to deliver the information most critical to job seekers.

Crypto

At the time of writing, the Bitcoin price is sitting at $8,514 representing a loss of 15% in the last 24 hours. More than $2.4B worth of BTC were exchanged in the BTC/USD market representing a 33.3% share of daily volume. The BTC/JPY pair represents a 43% share.

The Ethereum price has dropped by 20% over the past 24 hours and is currently sitting at $884, with over $1.2B worth of Ether exchanged in the past 24 hours on the ETH/USD pair which has a 36.7% market share of the daily trading volume.

San Francisco-based cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has issued 1099-K tax forms for a certain segment of its clientsin the US on January 31. The company explains that it files 1099-K for customers who have received cash above the required reporting threshold, which is more than 200 receipt transactions or greater than $20,000 during the year. This also includes “business use” accounts, as well as GDAX accounts in which sales of cryptocurrency for cash have occurred that exceed the thresholds.

Friday Vibes

Thinking Corner

Question

Are ads are the source of the internet’s evil?

They transform attention into money, incentivizing companies to capitalize on our most private desires. However, the 21st Century has unlocked a treasure trove of information catering to your every need, what was that Alexa ?

Give your thoughts in the comments below...

Meme Time

Peace Out, See You Tomorrow