Testy Biz Copy Editor: Which paper clip do you mean, Bloomberg?

Just report its size with numbers. The story text narrows it down to “one-third the size of an AAA battery.” But you’d still have to get out a ruler. (Bloomberg) (The AAA battery measurement is apparently standard. It comes from a Medtronic news release.)

–––

While it’s unimaginable that Congress wouldn’t authorize a borrowing increase, markets don’t want a delay on that decision, said Mnuchin. (Bloomberg)

While markets feel fairly confident that Theresa May will win on Thursday, any upset from this election could have a major impact on financial markets. (City Index)

This indicates that markets think the Fed is not tightening policy as much as it is paring back superfluous accommodation. (Financial Times)

The financial press likes to confer life on the markets, which are places, virtual and physical, where things are bought and sold. They are not alive. So, they don’t think, want or feel anything. They also don’t behave or misbehave.

To imply that markets are human is to debase humanity.

Is it too much to hope that this annoying habit might end? Guess.

–––

The person most likely to be Federal Reserve chair when Janet Yellen’s term expires in February is — Janet Yellen, according to a Bloomberg poll of Fed watchers. Her nomination comes with two big caveats, however: It’s seen as possible, not probable, and the competition is close behind. (Bloomberg)

Business reporting is full of speculation. Will the Standard and Poor’s 500-stock index go up? Will Best Buy finally go out of business? No one knows, or can know. Speculation is worthless. It’s worse for hapless investors who buy and sell based on such guesswork. (You might say that all stock transactions require guesswork, except for inside trades, but there are ways to approach such decisions other than taking the word of “analysts” who might have ulterior motives.)

Forget for the moment how much it matters who is nominated to be Federal Reserve board chairman. It’s a hopeless and pointless exercise to name the “winner,” especially given the unpredictability of the president. It’s certainly not worth the time and effort of a news organization to poll “Fed watchers” for their predictions.

A good, widely ignored example of such futility is the election of a pope.

–––
A French pharmaceutical company developing a Zika vaccine funded with millions of dollars in research grants has rejected a request from the U.S. Army to set an affordable price for the drug once it becomes available. (Miami Herald)

After you pay your taxes, the money is no longer yours. It’s the government’s. The government pays for things with its money, not taxpayers’. The term “taxpayer money” is used to bolster a sense of outrage. Change “from American taxpayers” to “from the U.S. government.”

–––
Empty quote of the week: “We take issues of this nature extremely seriously and have a zero-tolerance policy for any professional misconduct,” a Fox Business Network representative said in a statement. “This matter is being thoroughly investigated and we are taking all of the appropriate steps to reach a resolution in a timely manner.” (Los Angeles Times)

–––

Phillip Blanchard is a former business editor at the Washington Post. Previously he worked at the Chicago Sun-Times and newspapers in upstate New York. He is founder of Testy Copy Editors. Email: blanp@testycopyeditors.org