Axios

Time Warner is laying off around 50 CNN digital staffers later this week, according to Vanity Fair’s Joe Pompeo, who reports that the move will affect employees who work on the CNN Money, video, product, tech and social publishing teams.

What’s happening: Axios reported last month that CNN will end some of its digital initiatives this year as part of an effort to stay stay nimble. Pompeo reports that the network is ending several high-profile digital initiatives, including CNN’s virtual reality productions and efforts with Snapchat.

• “In order to innovate, grow and experiment, we've added more than 200 jobs in the past 18 months. Not every new project has paid off so we will stop some activities in order to reallocate those resources and enable future experimentation," Matt Dornic, a CNN representative, told Pompeo.

The stock market is picking up after a rocky week, with the Dow up 410 points at market close Monday.

The backdrop: February has proven to be one of the most volatile months for the stock market in years, pummeled by investor fears about inflation and higher interest rates. As Barron's pointed out over the weekend, "trading is expected to be choppier, and investors more nervous than they have been for two years." [Go deeper: Global markets could have "a much bigger shakeout coming"].

The IPO markets have entered their annual dead zone, as companies finalize 2017 financials and avoid launching road shows into Presidents Day/school vacation week. And it's probably fortunate for those with weak stomachs, given the recent market volatility.

The real question, therefore, is what happens in March.

Companies that have been critically short of skilled workers must themselves move to establish training programs to fill the jobs, says Jay Timmons, head of the National Association of Manufacturers.

Quick take: With unemployment at a decades-long low of 4.1% and drifting lower, American manufacturers currently have some 364,000 vacancies, and will need to fill some 3.5 million jobs by 2025, Timmons tells Axios. But 2 million of them may go unfilled because of the country's chronic skills shortage.

"The world’s biggest hedge fund ... warned that global markets are entering a new era of volatility as the world adjusts to higher interest rates after a decade of ultra-loose monetary policy," the Financial Times reports on the front page.

Why it matters: After Wall Street's worst week in six years, the FT pointed over the weekend to "The end of an era of tranquility" and the beginning of "The age of instability."

OMB Director Mick Mulvaney told Fox News' Chris Wallace Sunday that President Trump and chief of staff John Kelly gave former White House Staff Secretary Rob Porter the “benefit of the doubt” regarding allegations of his domestic abuse — until photos came out out showing Porter's ex-wife Colbie Holderness with a black eye. Mulvaney said that is "a very normal and human reaction."

Why it matters: This directly contradicts Kelly’s version of events. A member of Congress who has discussed the matter directly with Kelly and Trump told Axios' Jonathan Swan and Mike Allen that when the Daily Mail story detailing the allegations came out, Kelly said he immediately took action: he confronted Porter and told him he had to resign.

Once a month, Axios checks in with the world's most interesting and consequential people on their passions, quirks and life hacks. This week our breakfast conversation features NBC Nightly News anchor Lester Holt, who's currently in Pyeongchang covering the Winter Olympic Games.