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☆ Disney trounces activist shareholders in a major win for Bob Iger
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-03 | by ( Allison Morrow | Hadas Gold | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

New York CNN —Disney won a hard-fought proxy battle against a group of activist investors who sought to secure seats on the company’s board of directors. Disney’s board triumphed by what the company called “a substantial margin” over the nominees put forward by Trian Fund Management and Blackwells Capital at its annual shareholder meeting. Iger didn’t just beat Trian’s Nelson Peltz, but trounced him, according to a person familiar with the vote count. Jay Rasulo, the former Disney finance chief who joined Peltz’s attempt, also lost by a wide margin, the person said. Retail shareholders, which hold roughly 35% of Disney stock, also voted overwhelmingly – 75% – for Disney’s candidates.

Persons: New York CNN — Disney, Bob Iger, Disney’s, —, Trian, didn’t, Trian’s Nelson Peltz, Jay Rasulo, Peltz’s, Peltz, ”, ” Iger, ” Peltz, Iger, CNN’s Oliver Darcy, Samantha Delouya, Oliver Darcy Organizations: New, New York CNN, Trian Fund Management, Blackwells, Disney, Retail, Financial Times, Republicans, Marvel, CNBC, Trian Partners Locations: New York, refocusing, Trian

☆ Disney proxy battle is about a lot more than just two board seats
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-03 | by ( Dan Defrancesco | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

As for the newsletter, in today's big story, we're breaking down Disney's big proxy fight . Activist investor Nelson Peltz's proxy fight against Disney for two seats on the company's board comes to a head at its annual shareholder meeting today. The total amount spent between Disney and its rivals wrangling votes is estimated to be at least $70 million, a record for a proxy fight. The statue of Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse at Cinderella Castle at the Magic Kingdom, at Walt Disney World, in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. 3 things in businessWin McNamee/Getty Images; Chelsea Jia Feng/BIIn other newsAdvertisementWhat's happening todayThe Walt Disney Company's annual meeting will be held today.

Persons: —, Congrats, ya, Bob Iger, Nelson Peltz, Neilson Barnard, David A, Grogan, Nelson, Madeline Berg, BI's Peter Kafka, BI's Grace Eliza Goodwin, Walt Disney, Mickey Mouse, Joe Burbank, Rowe Price, Peltz's Trian, Neuberger Berman, Peltz, It's, Trian, they're, Stocks, Ray Dalio, it's, Quincy Krosby, Jeffrey Buchbinder, Alyssa Powell, Win McNamee, Chelsea Jia Feng, Dan DeFrancesco, Jordan Parker Erb, Hallam Bullock, George Glover Organizations: Business, Service, National, Getty, Disney, Magic, Walt Disney World, Orlando Sentinel, Tribune, Wall, BlackRock, Peltz's Trian Partners, California Public Employees, Financial Times, DuPont, Fed, JPMorgan, Bridgewater Associates, Astera Labs, Arm Holdings, LPL Financial, Apple, Nvidia, BI, Walt Locations: —, Virginia, Lake Buena Vista , Florida, China, Haiti's, New York, London

☆ China has flooded the market with so many solar panels that people are using them as garden fencing
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-03 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Chinese manufacturers are causing a global glut of solar panels. Solar panels have become so cheap that some people are using them to line fences. US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is set to discuss the overcapacity during her trip to China starting Wednesday. Solar panels — 80% of which are made in China — are so cheap that they are now being used to line garden fences in Germany and the Netherlands, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday. Solar panels are typically installed on rooftops, where they can capture the most sunlight — but there's so much excess supply that people in these two countries are now putting them on fences.

Persons: Janet Yellen Organizations: Service, Financial Times, Business Locations: China, Germany, Netherlands

☆ India wants to become the top manufacturing alternative to China. But first it needs to beat Vietnam
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-02 | by ( Charmaine Jacob | In Charmainemariajacob | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

The Biden administration has encouraged American companies to move electronics and technology manufacturing operations out of China and into friendlier countries, particularly Vietnam and India in Asia-Pacific. Vietnam's head startIndia and Vietnam are attractive manufacturing alternatives for foreign investors and companies, due in part to low labor costs. Import taxes remain highOne hurdle for India's manufacturing hub ambitions is the country's 10% import duty for information and communication technologies. India's import taxes were intended to protect domestic manufacturers, but lowering those duties will be part of the government's efforts to attract foreign firms to manufacture goods within the country. For example, India in January lowered import taxes for certain metal and plastic parts used in manufacturing mobile phones from 15% to 10%.

Persons: Biden, Mukesh Aghi, Samir Kapadia, Narendra Modi's, Aghi, Nari Viswanathan, Viswanathan, Tim Cook, Narendra Modi, Andy Ho, Modi, Kapadia, Pankaj Mahindroo, VinaCapital's Ho, Ho Organizations: Hindustan Times, Getty, Republicans, U.S ., India Strategic Partnership, India Index, Vogel Group, U.S, White House, Washington, Financial Times, Apple, Indian, Google, Dixon Technologies, Samsung, Motorola, India Cellular and Electronics Association, CNBC, corporates Locations: Noida, India, Asia, China, Vietnam, The U.S, U.S, United States, Singapore

☆ Disney's fight with Nelson Peltz will come to a head tomorrow. Here's where things stand.
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-02 | by ( Madeline Berg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

A vote for the Disney's slate of board members will show support for Iger's performance as CEO since he returned to lead the company in November 2022. AdvertisementIt's the culmination of months of tussling between Disney and Peltz, who has been waging war against Disney's board since January last year. "When I sold Lucasfilm just over a decade ago, I was delighted to become a Disney shareholder because of my long-time admiration for its iconic brand and Bob Iger's leadership." And proxy advisory firm Institutional Shareholder Service recommended shareholders vote for Peltz, though not Rasulo. Advertisement"We wish the very best to Bob, this management team, and the board," Peltz said on CNBC at the time.

Persons: —, Bob Iger, Nelson Peltz's Trian, that's, Peltz, Jay Rasulo —, Maria Elena Lagomasino, Michael Froman, Gen, Alpha, Jason Schloetzer, BlackRock, Rowe Price, Iger, Roy Disney's, Laurene Powell Jobs, George Lucas, Lucas, Bob Iger's, Donald Duck's, Ludwig Von Drake, Schloetzer, Trian, That's, Neuberger Berman, Ike Perlmutter, he'd Organizations: Service, Disney, Nelson Peltz's Trian Partners, Business, Century Fox, Epic Games, Georgetown University's McDonough School of Business, Vanguard, Street Journal, ValueAct Capital, Walt, Star Wars, Lucasfilm, New York Times, California Public Employees, CNBC, Netflix, ABC, ESPN, Marvel, Financial

☆ Disney's cinematic drought may have opened a door for activist investor Peltz
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-02 | by ( Sarah Whitten | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

DisneyDisney has struggled to return to the lofty box office records of 2019 — and that may have helped open the door for its recent troubles with activist Nelson Peltz. Just four years ago, the studio had seven billion-dollar films, which contributed to a global box office haul of more than $13.2 billion. Sony produced and distributed "Spider-Man: No Way Home," which made $1.9 billion, although Disney's Marvel Studios did serve as a co-producer. "People go to watch a movie or a show to be entertained," Peltz said in recent interview with The Financial Times. Peltz has also taken particular issue with Disney's failed succession plans and what he's described as a disjointed streaming strategy.

Persons: Harrison Ford, Indiana Jones, Nelson Peltz, Disney's, Strange, Peltz, Jay Rasulo, he's, Marvel, Ike Perlmutter Organizations: Disney Disney, Disney, Century Fox, Star, Sony, Disney's Marvel Studios, Guardians, Galaxy, Trian Fund Management, Financial Times, Marvel, U.S . Air Force, Financial, Marvel Entertainment Locations: U.S

☆ Meet the woman who engineered Russia's wartime economy and helped secure another term for Putin
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-02 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

Russian central bank governor Elvira Nabiullina has played a key role in stabilizing Russia's sanctions-hit economy. It's also aimed at the woman behind him: Elvira Nabiullina, the country's central bank governor, who plays a chief role in keeping Russia's wartime economy ticking. At the time, she was the first woman to lead a Group of Eight, or G8, central bank. In 2015, Euromoney, a finance trade publication, named Nabiullina Central Bank Governor of the Year. In December, she issued a warning that Russia's economy was at risk of overheating.

Persons: Elvira Nabiullina, —, Putin, It's, Nabiullina, Daniel McDowell, McDowell, wined, Christine Lagarde, Nabiullina —, Richard Portes, Portes —, Portes, Anders Åslund, Åslund, Leo Tolstoy, Fyodor Dostoevsky, Franz Kafka, Yaroslav Kuzminov, Kuzminov, Nabiullina's, Alan Harvey, Herman Gref —, Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina, Maxim Shemetov, Michel Camdessus, she's, isn't, Sergei Aleksashenko, Alexei Makarkin, Vladimir Pesnya, Nabiulina, let's Organizations: Ukraine, Service, Russian, KGB, Syracuse University, Kremlin, International Monetary Fund, US, London Business School, Moscow Times, Bloomberg, Higher School of Economics, —, Moscow State University, SNS, USSR, Industrial Union Board, Gref, Central Bank Governor, Nabiullina Central Bank Governor, Banker, Central Banker, IMF, Monetary Fund, Financial Times, Government, Political Technologies, Wall Street Journal, RBC, Politico Europe Locations: Russian, Ukraine, Russia, Brussels, Nabiullina, Swedish, Moscow, Ufa, Central Russia, Tatars, Crimea, Euromoney, Europe, steadying

☆ Shein made $2 billion in profits last year. That's a lot of fast fashion.
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-01 | by ( Lloyd Lee | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

That beats the fiscal year of rival fast fashion company H&M. AdvertisementIt appears we consumed quite a bit of fast fashion last year. AdvertisementFor a generation of shoppers who say they like to be environmentally conscious, that's a lot of fast fashion — an industry that relies on cheap labor but comes with a heavy environmental cost. Still, it was a recognition from the fast fashion giant that it knows who its audience is and what they care about. But for now, it's onward and upward for fast fashion.

Persons: Zers, millennials, —, Barron's, It's, Shein, Janus, Jadrian Wooten Organizations: Service, Financial Times, United Nations Environment, New, Virginia Tech, Sheffield Hallam University, & $ Locations: Zara, England, Guangzhou, China

☆ Zoom and Salesforce stand to benefit from Microsoft's unbundling of Teams and Office
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-01 | by ( Jordan Novet | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Microsoft's rivals won a reprieve on Monday, when the software giant said it would split up its Teams and Office bundles following scrutiny from European regulators. Analysts at Mizuho Securities wrote in a note on Monday that "while customers believe Zoom is a superior platform vs. Teams" and other vendors, "the bundling of MS Teams to Office 365 has always been enticing for customers to consider Teams." Last year, Microsoft generated almost $53 billion in revenue from Office, including Teams, up about 14% from 2022. Months later, the European Commission disclosed a probe into Microsoft's Teams and Office bundling.

Persons: Microsoft Corporation Satya Nadella, Slack, Satya Nadella, Salesforce, David Schellhase, Slack's, Stewart Butterfield Organizations: Microsoft Corporation, Economic, Salesforce, European Commission, Mizuho Securities, Mizuho, Microsoft, Financial Times, European Union, Microsoft's, CNBC, European Locations: Davos, Switzerland, Europe

☆ Google's DeepMind CEO says the massive funds flowing into AI bring with it loads of hype and a fair share of grifting
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-01 | by ( Kwan Wei Kevin Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The funding bonanza over AI could add lots of hype and "maybe some grifting," says Demis Hassabis. "In a way, AI's not hyped enough but in some senses it's too hyped," the Google DeepMind chief said. "In a way, AI's not hyped enough but in some senses it's too hyped," Hassabis the Financial Times in a story published Sunday. The fervor amongst investors for AI, Hassabis told the Financial Times, reminded him of "other hyped-up areas" like crypto. "Some of that has now spilled over into AI, which I think is a bit unfortunate," Hassabis told the outlet.

Persons: Demis Hassabis, AI's, —, Hassabis, Fred Havemeyer, Havemeyer, We've, Gary Gensler, Gensler Organizations: Google, Investors, Service, Financial Times, Financial, Amazon, CNBC, Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC, Business Insider

☆ GOP politicians like Ron DeSantis are trying to ban lab-grown meat, comparing it to bugs and claiming threats to ranches
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-01 | by ( Alex Bitter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The bills say that lab-grown meat threatens existing industries, such as cattle ranching. Ron DeSantis has expressed opposition to lab-grown meat. Some of the legislation says that lab-grown meat — also known as cultured meat — threatens states' current agricultural economies. If passed, the legislation would create a civil penalty of up to $25,000 for selling or producing lab-grown meat in Arizona. AdvertisementFor years, lab-grown meat startups have been promising meat without the need to slaughter animals.

Persons: —, Ron DeSantis, it's, DeSantis, Bud Hulsey, Bill Gates, Gates, Jeff Bezos — Organizations: Service, Financial Times, Times, Business, Times ., Foods Locations: Florida, Arizona, Tennessee, San Francisco

☆ Chair Powell says the Fed isn’t more tolerant of higher inflation. Some economists disagree
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-31 | by ( Bryan Mena | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Some economists interpreted that as a sign that the Fed is now more tolerant of higher inflation. Powell pushed back on the perception that the central bank has grown more comfortable with inflation being higher for longer than expected in his post-meeting news conference. and my sense coming out of this month’s meeting was that Fed Chair Powell wants to get this easing cycle going sooner rather than later. What’s allowing the Fed to be patient or more tolerant of higher inflation? They’re willing to essentially look through some of the bumpiness in the inflation data at the beginning of the year.

Persons: Jerome Powell, That’s, Powell, “, ” Powell, “ We’re, Mohamed El, Erian, ”, Bell, Lydia Boussour, they’re, What’s, we’ve, Nathaniel Meyersohn, Read, Levi Strauss, Tupperware Organizations: Washington CNN, Federal Reserve, Financial Times, Fed, Home Depot, Home, P Global, Institute for Supply Management, Maine Foods, Dave, Buster’s Entertainment, US Labor Department, US Commerce Department, Stanford University Locations: EY, Cal

☆ Investor Tribeca presents Glencore with ideas to raise shareholder value – How it may unfold
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-30 | by ( Kenneth Squire | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +10 min

Tribeca has been a shareholder of Glencore for seven years and has been engaging with management for a year. The company has excellent core asset quality in copper, zinc and coal, as well as a world-leading commodity trading business. Notably, Bluebell Capital Partners agitated for a demerger of Glencore's thermal coal business in 2021. However, in 2023, after acquiring a 77% interest in Teck's steelmaking coal business, Glencore stated its intention to demerge its combined coal and carbon steel businesses. The same can be said for the divestment of the trading business.

Persons: Glencore, David Aylward, Gary Nagle, astutely, Berkshire Hathaway, Ivan Glasenberg, Ken Squire Organizations: Glencore, Tribeca Investment Partners, Tribeca, Financial Times, Australian Securities Exchange, London Stock Exchange, BHP, Rio Tinto, Bluebell Capital Partners, LSE, Rio, NYSE, 13D Locations: Switzerland, Australia, Africa, South America, Sydney, Melbourne, Singapore, London, Tribeca, Glencore, Swiss, Rio, Europe, cyclicality, Berkshire

☆ Wirecard tried to destroy its whistleblower. Now, he's founded a startup to protect others who speak out.
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-29 | by ( Riddhi Kanetkar | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Read previewBeing a whistleblower was antithetical to everything Pav Gill had done during his nine-year stint as a corporate lawyer. When Wirecard headhunted the Singaporean native to be its head of legal, Gill took up the position enthusiastically. Despite the fruitful outcome, the experience of being a whistleblower traumatized Gill. AdvertisementThis realization was the driving force behind Gill setting up his startup — Confide — a platform for 'internal whistleblowers' to raise issues within their organizations. AdvertisementGill anticipates that this model will work best for companies with over 50 employees, and ideally above 250 employees.

Persons: —, Pav Gill, Gill, foraying, Wirecard, Gill's, don't, " Gill, they're Organizations: Service, Allen, Business, Financial, Directive, EU Locations: Wirecard, Asia, Singapore, ESG

☆ Sam Altman is trying to convince Hollywood that Sora won't destroy the movie business
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-29 | by ( Ella Hopkins | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Sam Altman's looking to win over movie studios with Sora, OpenAI's new video-generating tool. He recently held a series of meetings with Hollywood executives, the Financial Times reported. NEW LOOK Sign up to get the inside scoop on today’s biggest stories in markets, tech, and business — delivered daily. AdvertisementSam Altman seems to be trying to convince Hollywood executives that his latest AI tool won't destroy the movie business. This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers.

Persons: Sam Altman's, Sora, OpenAI's, —, Sam Altman, Altman's OpenAI Organizations: Hollywood, Financial Times, Service, Business

For Evan Gershkovich, the dozen appearances in Moscow's courts over the past year have fallen into a pattern. Guards take the American journalist from the notorious Lefortovo Prison in a van for the short drive to the courthouse. The periodic court hearings give Gershkovich’s family, friends and U.S. officials a glimpse of him, and for the 32-year-old journalist, it’s a break from his otherwise largely monotonous prison routine. Friends and family say Gershkovich is relying on his sense of humor to get through the days. Every day, Milman said, “I wake up and look at the clock.”“I think about if his lunchtime has passed, and his bedtime," she said.

Persons: Evan Gershkovich, He’s, Gershkovich, it’s, “ It’s, ”, Ella Milman, Milman, Nicholas Daniloff, Emma Tucker, ” Milman, Evan, Francesca Ebel, Josef Stalin's, he’s, Polina Ivanova, He's, Pjotr Sauer, ” Sauer, Mikhail Gershkovich, doesn't, “, Biden, Lynne Tracy, Gershkovich “, Vladimir Putin, Vadim Krasikov, ” Ebel, Journal's Tucker, I’m, Tracy Organizations: Wall, Journal, Federal Security Service, U.S, Associated Press, Russian Foreign Ministry, Moscow Times, Washington Post, Financial Times, Arsenal, British, Guardian, West Locations: Lefortovo, Yekaterinburg, Washington, Russia, Ukraine, “, New Jersey, Moscow, Russian, Germany, Berlin, Georgian

☆ Palmer Luckey says Anduril is working on AI weapons that 'give us the ability to swiftly win any war'
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-28 | by ( Polly Thompson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Palmer Luckey says his defense tech startup is working on weapons that could change warfare. As AI-powered weapons advance, deterrence is key to national security, Luckey told the Financial Times. download the app Email address Sign up By clicking “Sign Up”, you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . AdvertisementA Silicon Valley defense tech startup is working on products that could have as great an impact on warfare as the atomic bomb, its founder Palmer Luckey said. "We want to build the capabilities that give us the ability to swiftly win any war we are forced to enter," he told the Financial Times.

Persons: Palmer Luckey, Anduril, Luckey, — Organizations: Financial Times, Service, Business

NEW YORK (AP) — The Federal Trade Commission is investigating TikTok over its data and security practices, a probe that could lead to a settlement or a lawsuit against the company, according to a person familiar with the matter. In its investigation, the FTC has been looking into whether TikTok violated a portion of federal law that prohibits “unfair and deceptive” business practices by denying that individuals in China had access to U.S. user data, said the person, who is not authorized to discuss the investigation. FTC spokesperson Nicole Drayton and TikTok declined to comment on the investigation, which was first reported by Politico. The agency is nearing the conclusion of its investigation and could settle with TikTok in the coming weeks. Lawmakers and intelligence officials have said they worry the platform could be used by the Chinese government to access U.S. user data or influence Americans through its popular algorithm.

Persons: TikTok, Nicole Drayton, there’s, Mark Warner, Marco Rubio, Lina Khan, ByteDance, hasn’t Organizations: Federal Trade Commission, FTC, Politico, TikTok, Justice Department, Republican, Buzzfeed, Buzzfeed News, The Financial Times, Senate Locations: Washington, U.S, Beijing, China

☆ As Trump blasts NATO allies for not paying for defense, these front-line countries are readying for war
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-26 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

But as Russia's bloody war in Ukraine enters its third year, and the threat to NATO countries, particularly those on Russia's borders, grows, the Baltic states are investing in their defense more than ever. Shawn CooverThe talk came just on the heels of Trump's most recent attack on NATO members who he deems aren't paying their 'fair share." Last week, the former president said that he would keep the US in NATO should European countries pay and "play fair." He said the US "was paying 90% of NATO," and that without the US, NATO "literally doesn't even exist." "We've reinstated conscription, so we're building up our armed forces," an unpopular move that Latvian President Edgars Rinkēvičs is pushing other NATO members to do, too.

Persons: —, Donald Trump, Margus Tsahkna, Vladimir Putin, Tsahkna, Shawn Coover, Trump, ALAIN JOCARD, Olaf Scholz, Emmanuel Macron, isn't, Macron, Krišjānis Kariņš, Kariņš, Thomas Wiegold, We've, Edgars Rinkēvičs, Rinkēvičs Organizations: Service, NATO, Business, Hudson Institute, Washington DC, Estonian, US Marine Corps, Staff, Getty, Latvian, Financial Times Locations: Ukraine, Baltic, Washington, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Russia, Russian, China, Europe, NATO, Poland, estonian, Rakvere, AFP, Baltics, France, Germany, Russia's, Greece, Belarus, Finland, Romania, Hungary

☆ U.S. eyes change to military command in Japan as China threat looms: Reuters
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-26 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

U.S. President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will agree next month to tighter military cooperation, including talks on the biggest potential change to Washington's East Asia command structure in decades, two sources said. Kishida wants to establish the joint command headquarters before the end of March 2025. Tokyo has said it has "serious concern" over China's growing military power and the threat it poses Taiwan, just over 100 km (62 miles) from Japanese territory. A four-star commander — the highest peacetime rank in any of the U.S. service branches — would match the rank of the Japanese counterpart in the new headquarters. A U.S. officer of that rank might lay the groundwork for a future unified Japanese-U.S. command, experts say.

Persons: Joe Biden, Fumio Kishida, Biden, Kishida, Yoshimasa Hayashi, — Organizations: Japanese, East, Japanese Self Defense Forces, Financial Times, U.S, Biden Locations: East Asia, Washington, Japan, South Korea, Tokyo, Taiwan, U.S

☆ Runaway government debt could sink markets and slam the economy, 2 watchdogs warn
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-26 | by ( Theron Mohamed | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The US government's ballooning interest payments are eating a hole in its budget, they said. "We are headed toward record spending levels, record deficit levels, record debt levels, record interest payments — the list goes and on," Maya MacGuineas, the president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, told Fox Business this week. While the US isn't at imminent risk of that kind of chaos, bond markets could "snap back" if the government's interest payments soar to $1 trillion in 2026 as expected, Swagel said. AdvertisementHowever, she noted that some experts on Wall Street were "incredibly worried" about the national debt and interest payments. DoubleLine Capital CEO Jeffrey Gundlach has also sounded the alarm on debt payments.

Persons: —, MacGuineas, Philip Swagel, Liz Truss, Swagel, bitcoin, Jim Rogers, George Soros, He's, Jeffrey Gundlach Organizations: Investors, Service, Federal Budget, Fox Business, Congressional, Office, Financial Times, Bank of, CBO, Wall, DoubleLine

☆ Adam Neumann’s bid to buy back WeWork faces uphill battle due to financing challenges
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-26 | by ( Rohan Goswami | In Rohangoswamicnbc | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Adam Neumann has sent a preliminary offer to buy WeWork out of bankruptcy for more than $500 million, five years after he was ousted by the office-sharing company he founded. CNBC spoke with multiple people familiar with the company and Neumann's offer. Investment firm Rithm Capital, which acquired Daniel Och's Sculptor Capital Management in November, is one of parties interested in financing the bid, sources told CNBC. That's because Neumann has previously named other financing sources in prior communications with WeWork's advisors that haven't come to fruition, the sources say. Baupost Group also was floated as a potential financing source months earlier but didn't join Neumann's latest bid, the people said.

Persons: Adam Neumann, Neumann, Daniel Och's, haven't, Dan Loeb's, Baupost, WeWork, — Organizations: CNBC, Rithm, Capital Management, Baupost, Neumann's, Financial Times

☆ US debt: Is America at risk of a Liz Truss-style market meltdown? The CBO thinks so
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-26 | by ( Hanna Ziady | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

In an interview with the Financial Times, CBO director Phillip Swagel said US government debt — which the Treasury Department puts at nearly $35 trillion — is on an “unprecedented” trajectory. UK government bonds, or gilts, and the pound sold off sharply, partly in response to plans by Truss to issue more debt in order to pay for tax cuts. Mortgage rates and other borrowing costs soared as investors demanded much higher premiums for owning UK debt. He has promised to extend his 2017 tax cuts and has also spoken about reducing the corporate tax rate from the current 21% to 15%. “I will make the Trump tax cuts the largest tax cut in history,” he said last month at the Black Conservative Federation’s Honors Gala in South Carolina.

Persons: Phillip Swagel, Liz, ”, Truss, ” Swagel, Dave Ramsden, Donald Trump’s, Joe Biden, Fitch, “, Trump Organizations: London CNN, Congressional, Financial Times, Treasury Department, CNN, Bank of England, Democrats, Trump, Black Conservative, US Treasury, Federal, CBO Locations: United States, United Kingdom, South Carolina

☆ China's new guidelines will block Intel and AMD chips in government computers: FT
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-25 | by ( Sheila Chiang | In Sheilachiang | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

China has rolled out new guidelines that will phase out U.S. processors in government computers and servers, effectively blocking chips from Intel and AMD , the Financial Times reported on Sunday. The procurement guidelines, unveiled on Dec. 26, are now being enforced and will also impact Microsoft 's Windows operating system and foreign-made database software as they favor Chinese alternatives, the report said. Government agencies higher the township level have been ordered to purchase "safe and reliable" processors and operating systems, FT said. AMD declined to comment on the report while Intel did not immediately respond to CNBC's request for comment. This comes as China has been boosting its domestic semiconductor industry as it seeks to reduce reliance on foreign technology.

Organizations: Intel, AMD, Financial Times, Microsoft, Government, U.S Locations: China

☆ Surge pricing is coming to theme parks
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-25 | by ( Camilo Fonseca | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Theme parks are the latest industry to implement a form of surge pricing. Merlin Entertainments, which owns Legoland and Madame Tussauds, plans to start "dynamic pricing" at its top attractions. Wendy's drew backlash and quickly walked back its announcement about exploring dynamic pricing. Visitors to certain Legoland locations will soon start experiencing surge pricing — or "dynamic pricing," as the CEO of the company that owns the parks calls it — based on fluctuating demand. This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers.

Persons: Madame Tussauds, Wendy's, — Organizations: Merlin Entertainments, Service, Business, Merlin, Financial Times Locations: Legoland

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