Although the senior indices posted gains once again, the action on Thursday may have been the weakest we have seen so far in 2017. In view of the one-way nature of the action, the bar is set very low, but it was one of those days where the underlying action raised some concerns.

Department store operator J.C. Penney said on Friday it would close about 130-140 stores over the next few months, and reported a 0.7 percent drop in same-store sales for the holiday quarter. The company will also initiate a voluntary early retirement program for about 6,000 eligible employees and close two distribution facilities.

The past year in travel has been marked by consolidation: Marriott created the world’s largest hotel company with its acquisition of Starwood Hotels; Paris-based AccorHotels took over the luxury portfolio of Fairmont, Raffles, and Swissôtel; and China’s ambitious Ctrip booking platform announced its global ambitions by taking over the U.K.-based travel search engine Skyscanner. But even as the dominant players grow stronger and bolder, new ideas are bubbling up all over that promise to change the way we experience the world.

About a week ago, I had a market discussion with someone whom we would consider a professional in the business. He challenged me, saying the market was hunky-dory.

China has appointed financial-sector expert Guo Shuqing as the new head of the nation’s banking regulator, according to people familiar with the matter. Guo is replacing Shang Fulin, who is retiring, said the people, asking not to be identified as the matter is private.

In an interview with Reuters, he also said China could easily resolve tensions with North Korea if it wanted to. China has been trying to control the rate of its currency’s depreciation since 2014, and it has had a harder time keeping it stable in trade-weighted terms since mid-2016.

RBS posted a larger-than-expected full year loss of 6.95 billion after massive litigation and writedown costs hammered the bottom line of the taxpayer owned bank. Royal Bank of Scotland Plc posted a larger-than-expected full year loss of just under A 7 billion, the bank said Friday, after massive litigation and writedown costs hammered the bottom line of the taxpayer owned bank.

China has appointed Guo Shuqing as the new head of the banking regulator, according to people familiar with the matter. Having spent much of his life working on transforming the nation’s financial system, Guo, 60, faces daunting tasks ahead as he takes on oversight of the world’s largest banking industry by assets.

China Rapid Finance, a Shanghai-based peer-to-peer lender, is planning to raise at least $100 million in an initial public offering in the U.S., people familiar with the matter said. The company, which raised $20 million at a pre-money valuation of $1 billion in November, could hold the IPO as soon as this year, the people said, asking not to be identified because the information is private.

ANA Holdings Inc.’s board will meet Friday to consider increasing its stake to a majority holding in Peach Aviation Ltd., a move that would give Japan’s largest airline a bigger foothold in the budget travel market. ANA plans to spend about 100 billion yen to boost its stake to more than 50 percent from about 39 percent, making budget airline Peach a subsidiary, people familiar with the matter said, asking not to be identified because the talks are private.

China has appointed financial-sector expert Guo Shuqing as the new head of the nation’s banking regulator, according to people familiar with the matter. Guo is replacing Shang Fulin, who is retiring, said the people, asking not to be identified as the matter is private.

Uber insiders have made an avalanche of revelations about the company’s allegedly dysfunctional culture in recent weeks, culminating with former engineer Susan Fowler’s shocking tell-all of alleged sexual harassment. Uber has publicly acknowledged Fowler’s statements and vowed to investigate, although Uber investors, Mitch and Freada Kapor, are not satisfied with that.