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Skimm for January 8th

Skimm’d wearing a bathrobe

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“‘The Devil Wears Prada’ is a great, great movie” — A Green Bay Packers player. Apparently the whole team loves rom-coms. That’s all.

FORTUNE COOKIE CRUMBLE

THE STORY

Yesterday, China’s stock market called in sick and stopped trading for the second time this week.

GIMME SOME BACKGROUND.

The Chinese stock market was riding high for a while. Then over the summer, it crashed thanks to investor concerns over an economic slowdown in the country. Things got so bad that the gov. decided to devalue China’s currency to make exports cheaper. But it just made things worse. Strike yuan. Then this week, a new measure went into effect that let China halt trading when the market reached a low point. That apparently also made things worse. Strike two. Now, China’s reversing that measure.

WHY DO THINGS KEEP GETTING WORSE?

Because these SOS measures aren’t working, and are instead making investors feel anxious about China’s economy. Cue a major sell-off this week, and a global market freak-out. US markets had their worst four-day start to a year. Ever. Cheers.

theSKIMM

China - the world’s second largest economy - has been going through a bad phase that shows no signs of ending. Not good for global markets’ 2016 resolution to stay afloat.

REPEAT AFTER ME...

WHAT PEOPLE ARE TALKING ABOUT…

Syria. Yesterday, Syria agreed to send humanitarian aid into the town of Madaya, where more than 30,000 people are facing starvation. Reminder: the Syrian civil war - a deadly fight between pro-government forces and rebel forces - has been going on for almost five years. And it doesn’t help that a little thing called ISIS has been popping up across the country. The town of Madaya is held by rebel forces, which is why last year Syrian President Assad sent his people to block it off from resources. In the past few months, videos have surfaced of people starving inside the town, and more than 20 people have reportedly died of starvation. The videos got the attention of the international community, and now humanitarian aid is on the way. But the war is far from over, so the announcement is only a temporary fix.

WHAT TO SAY WHEN YOU HEAR WILL FERRELL IS NOW A CO-OWNER OF A PRO SOCCER TEAM…

Everybody’s doing it. Yesterday, the owner of Saks Fifth Avenue announced that it’s buying Gilt - the flash sale site - for a sale price of $250 million. Which is a big markdown from the company’s valuation of $1 billion a few years go. Flash sale sites were a BF retail D back then, but have since lost some of their mojo. That’s thanks to things like consumers getting tired by the concept, big retailers starting their own flash sales, and the US economy doing better. Meaning you might be less likely to jump at buying that discounted coat. The goal for the owner of Saks is to turn Saks Off Fifth - the company’s discount chain - into an online sales giant. Which Gilt already is. And in exchange, Gilt will get a brick-and-mortar presence. Which Saks already has. Ding, ding, ding.

WHAT TO SAY TO YOUR ROOMMATE WHO’S TRYING TO EAT HEALTHY IN 2016…

You can’t have your cake and eat it too. Yesterday, the Obama administration released an update to the US’s dietary guidelines . You might wanna sit down for this...sugar is bad for you. The new guidelines suggest that less than 10 percent of your daily calories should come from added sugars. Big Gulps need not RSVP. According to the guidelines, Americans also need to stop shaking it like a salt shaker. But it’s not all bad news - a previous rule that limited the number of eggs you should eat is gone, and the guidelines don’t specifically or clearly say you need to eat less red meat. Cancer researchers did not appreciate that. The guidelines are revised every five years, so have your steak and eggs while you can.

WHAT TO SAY WHEN YOUR FRIEND IS COMPLAINING ABOUT HER RENT…

Paging Powerball.

WHAT TO SAY WHEN YOU HEAR BEYONCE’S JOINING COLDPLAY AT THE SUPER BOWL…

But will Chris Martin wear thigh high boots?

SKIMM READS

“The Fever” by Megan Abbott

A mysterious illness hits a high school. Spoiler: the cause isn’t what you’d expect. It’s part “Contagion,” part “The Fault in Our Stars,” part glowing review from “Gone Girl” writer Gillian Flynn. Done, done, and done.

SKIMM WINE

You won’t be able to put down a glass of this red blend. Perfect for a page-turner.

SKIMM SHARE

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