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☆ Microsoft adds OpenAI technology to Word and Excel
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Jonathan Vanian | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Photographer: Charles Pertwee/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesMicrosoft is bringing generative artificial intelligence technologies like the popular ChatGPT chatting app to its Microsoft 365 suite of business software. features, dubbed Copilot, will be available in some of the company's most popular business apps like Word, PowerPoint and Excel. The Copilot technology is built upon a type of artificial intelligence software known as a large language model, or LLM. Microsoft executives demonstrated some of the capabilities of its Copilot tool on Thursday during an online presentation. In February, Microsoft debuted a new version of its Bing search engine that included a chatbot powered by OpenAI's GPT-4 language technology.

☆ Europe didn't roll back post-2008 banking rules. That was smart
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( Anna Cooban | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

London CNN —Shares in European banks slumped Wednesday as speculation about the health of Credit Suisse (CSGKF) reignited the market turmoil sparked by the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank. Europe’s benchmark Stoxx Europe 600 Banks index, which tracks 42 big EU and UK banks, has fallen 13% since last Wednesday’s close. In 2018, former President Donald Trump watered down key parts of the Dodd-Frank Act, which set stricter rules for the banking sector. But European banks are required to hold capital to cover the risk of a large and sudden change in borrowing costs. “This means that European banks have less exposure to market risk on bonds, despite a similar rise in yields,” Moody’s said in its note.

☆ Talks underway on Black Sea grain deal extension in Geneva
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

GENEVA, March 13 (Reuters) - Negotiations began on Monday between U.N. officials and Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Vershinin on a possible extension to a deal allowing the safe export of grain from Ukraine's Black Sea ports, the Russian diplomatic mission in Geneva said. The deal, which was extended for 120 days in November, is up for renewal on March 18. Two sources involved with the talks said they were initially scheduled to last just one day but could be extended as needed. "Wheat and corn markets are weaker today as the talks start about extending the safe shipping agreement for Ukraine’s exports," said Matt Ammermann, StoneX commodity risk manager. "As such a large wheat and corn exporter, Ukraine’s supplies are vital to world markets."

☆ When everyone around you is quitting, don't wait for your boss to initiate a 'stay interview.' Ask for one yourself.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( Rebecca Knight | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Experts suggest asking your boss for "stay interview." That's where the "stay interview" enters the equation. The stay interview is, essentially, a career conversation usually initiated by managers to understand why high-performing employees stay at an organization and what could cause them to leave. Insider spoke with four HR leaders and career experts and coaches to learn how to make the most of your stay interview. You don't want your manager to think that by asking for a stay interview you're issuing an ultimatum, said Joshua Luna, a leadership and development trainer in Chicago.

☆ Mexican stocks are on fire this year. Here's what's driving the gains
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-12 | by ( Alex Harring | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Closer supply chains to the U.S. are giving Mexican stocks a big boost to start the year. The iShares MSCI Mexico ETF (EWW) , which is made up of Mexican stocks, is performing even better — up 15.2%. EWW YTD mountain EWW in 2023 One key factor driving this early outperformance is "nearshoring," which refers to companies bringing supply chains closer to their home country. In this case, many U.S.-based companies are moving their supply chains to neighboring Mexico, which could lead to even more gains in Mexican stocks. Lippmann said the firm likes stocks directly helped by nearshoring trends, such as the real-estate firm Vesta and airport operator OMA .

☆ Italy's Visco raps ECB colleagues in widening hawk-dove divide
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Gavin Jones | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

ROME, March 8 (Reuters) - European Central Bank governing council member Ignazio Visco on Wednesday criticized some fellow policymakers for comments on future interest rates that diverged from what had been agreed at ECB meetings. "For this reason I don't appreciate comments by my colleagues regarding future and prolonged increases in rates," Visco added, in unusually blunt remarks that highlight a widening rift at the Frankfurt-based ECB. Visco said that while the ECB had managed to stabilise inflation expectations, geopolitical uncertainties meant economic developments were hard to predict. Other governing council members, considered policy hawks who attach overriding importance to curbing inflation even if it means hurting growth and employment, have gone further. The ECB has no policy meeting in April.

☆ GE's investors seek solutions to renewable energy, supply chain challenges
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Rajesh Kumar Singh | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

But renewable energy remains a problem. Analysts have raised questions about whether GE may be forced to alter a plan to spin off GE Vernova into a separate company next year, including a possible delay or changing which assets are included. "I want to kind of understand is there any chance at all that Vernova will not include GE wind," William Blair analyst Nicholas Heymann said. But overall, GE is expected to reiterate its 2023 adjusted earnings outlook of $1.60 to $2.00 per share on Thursday. The aerospace business, which supplies engines to Airbus (AIR.PA) and Boeing (BA.N), is grappling with shortages of labor, parts and raw materials.

☆ As Customer Problems Hit a Record High, More People Seek ‘Revenge’
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Katie Deighton | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +5 min

Some 74% of the 1,000 consumers surveyed said they had experienced a product or service problem in the past year. The rising dissatisfaction is accompanied by more frequent and aggressive complaints, according to the National Customer Rage study. At the same time, more companies have been turning to automation to cut costs and cover staffing shortages in their standard customer service. But that strategy is prone to angering customers further, the rage research found. Customer service technology such as artificial intelligence is less likely to be able to deliver that craving for empathy than human agents, Mr. Broetzmann said.

☆ Sterling slips after BoE's Mann warns of risks for the pound
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Joice Alves | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, March 7 (Reuters) - Sterling slipped against the U.S. dollar on Tuesday, after a Bank of England (BoE) rate-setter warned that the pound could be vulnerable to Federal Reserve and European Central Bank (ECB) outlooks. The pound could depreciate if investors have not yet fully priced in hawkish messages from central bank peers, Catherine Mann told Bloomberg Television in an interview. "The important question for me with regard to the pound is how much of that existing hawkish tone is already priced into the pound," she said. Traders are also attaching a 93% chance of a 25-basis-point rate increase when the central bank meets to decide policy on March 23. There's no probability priced in that the bank could raise rates by more than that.

☆ ECB's Holzmann calls for four more 50 bps rate hikes- Handelsblatt
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BERLIN, March 6 (Reuters) - The European Central Bank should raise interest rates by 50 basis points at each of its next four meetings as inflation is proving to be stubborn, Austrian central bank chief Robert Holzmann told German business daily Handelsblatt. The ECB has raised rates by 3 percentage points since July and flagged a 50 basis point increase for March. Holzmann, an outspoken conservative - or hawk in policy terms - however said that based on current trends, he would favour 50 basis point moves in March, May, June and July. "I expect it to take a very long time for inflation to come down," Holzmann was quoted on Monday as saying. The four steps advocated by Holzmann would take the deposit rate to 4.5%, well above the 4% peak rate priced in by markets, a level no other policymaker has so far advocated in public.

☆ Fears of European industry exodus to U.S. may be overdone
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | by ( Philip Blenkinsop | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

However, the risks are offset not only by the substantial existing European incentives, but also other factors - such as proximity to European consumers - that many companies cite as critical in their decisions. Think tank Bruegel says EU support is already on a par with, or even larger than, IRA money. Moreover, well over half of the IRA support is for renewable energy production, with local content requirements playing a very limited role. Some executives say rather than providing more subsidies, Europe needs to simply improve the way they are given. The United States is not a panacea for European firms, not least due to questions about what approach the next U.S. administration might take.

But EU countries still need to rubber stamp the decision before it can take effect. EU countries' ambassadors on Friday cancelled the vote that had been planned for March 7, the spokesperson for Sweden said. Italy, which has previously said it will vote against the EU cars law, on Friday welcomed the postponement of the vote. Such an outcome, along with some resistance from Italy and some eastern European countries, could throw the whole EU ban into question. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will attend a German cabinet meeting at the Schloss Meseberg palace on Sunday, where the topic is likely to be discussed.

LONDON, March 2 (Reuters) - Drugmaker Viatris Inc (VTRS.O) warned on Thursday that it will stop selling some essential medicines in the UK that are already in short supply unless the British government makes changes to its voluntary medicines pricing agreement. If that level is exceeded, the government recoups the excess from suppliers of branded drugs. His colleague Viatris' Head of Europe Artur Cwiok named Germany and Portugal as countries where governments were weighing changes to drug pricing. If Viatris opted to leave that pricing scheme, it would have to pay a rate in the statutory scheme the government says will rise to 27.5%. Pharma companies AbbVie Inc (ABBV.N) and Eli Lilly and Co (LLY.N) withdrew from the pricing scheme in January.

☆ YouTube child data gathering faces UK scrutiny after complaint
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, March 1 (Reuters) - Britain's information regulator said on Wednesday it would look into an official complaint accusing Alphabet Inc's (GOOGL.O) YouTube of illegally collecting data from millions of children. McCann said in a statement that YouTube should change the design of its platform and delete data it had been gathering. A spokesperson for YouTube said it had taken steps to bolster child privacy with more protective default settings, and made investments to protect children and families by launching a dedicated kids app and introducing new data practices. "We remain committed to continuing our engagement with the ICO on this priority work, and with other key stakeholders including children, parents and child protection experts," the YouTube spokesperson said in a statement. Britain's Children's code requires providers to meet 15 design and privacy standards to protect children, including limiting collection of their location and other personal data.

☆ Bayer sees lower 2023 operating profit on cost inflation
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( Ludwig Burger | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

FRANKFURT, Feb 28 (Reuters) - Agriculture and healthcare company Bayer (BAYGn.DE) said operating earnings would likely decline in 2023, hurt by higher costs and the reversal of last year's price boost for its glyphosate-based weedkillers. In a statement on Tuesday, Bayer said earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA), adjusted for special items, would likely be between 12.5 billion euros ($13.23 billion) and 13 billion euros this year, excluding the effect of currency swings. In his last presentation of the company's quarterly results, Chief Executive Werner Baumann said the company is active in the right areas of business. For 2023, "the company anticipates lower prices for agricultural herbicides as well as for some of its established pharmaceutical products," Bayer said, also citing high inflation-driven cost increases. ($1 = 0.9447 euros)Additional reporting by Patricia Weiss Editing by Friederike Heine, Kirsten DonovanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ The small European nation of Switzerland beat sky-high inflation. Here's how
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( Karen Gilchrist | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

watch nowZURICH — As many countries across the globe battle stubbornly high inflation, the rise in prices has been far less dramatic in Switzerland, a small mountainous nation in western Europe. The stability of the Swiss francAnother reason for Switzerland's relative price stability stems from the strong Swiss franc. While many currencies plunged against an appreciating U.S. dollar, the Swiss franc held steady amid volatility in Europe. The Swiss franc is heavily backed by large reserve of gold, bonds and financial assets, which help the Swiss National Bank ensure the currency's stability during times of volatility. A stronger Swiss franc provides an effective discount on those imports.

☆ Volkswagen to build own US plant for Scout brand - Automobilwoche
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BERLIN, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Volkswagen Group (VOWG_p.DE) will build its own production plant in the United States for its new Scout brand rather than collaborating with a partner, industry publication Automobilwoche reported on Friday, citing company sources. Volkswagen said last May it planned to reintroduce the Scout off-road brand, creating a separate, independent company to build Scout trucks and SUVs starting in 2026 that will be designed, engineered, and manufactured in the United States for U.S. customers. Building its own plant was the least likely option, the publication reported at the time, also citing company sources. Volkswagen is expanding its existing U.S. plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee, to produce the ID. However, the Scout brand will build off-road electric pick-up trucks and SUVs that require a new platform and the Chattanooga plant does not have enough space to do it all, a source told Reuters last May.

☆ Audi CEO: IRA subsidies make prospect of building U.S. plant "highly attractive"
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Chief Executive Markus Duesmann said that a decision had not yet been made but that the IRA made it far more attractive to build electric vehicles (EVs) in the United States. Asked whether Audi would build a plant itself or do so together with other Volkswagen brands, Duesmann said: "Both are possible. But a growing number of firms are now announcing heightened investment in the United States over Europe in light of the IRA, worrying European officials. Volkswagen is also upgrading its Mexican plants in Puebla and Silao to starting building EVs, motors and related components by mid-decade. Volkswagen is due to lay out in March how it will rejig its production network worldwide to scale up EV production.

☆ OECD says global economic outlook 'slightly better' for 2023 but inflation risks linger
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( Sumathi Bala | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

People shop near prices displayed in a supermarket on February 13, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. OECD Secretary-General Mathias Cormann said the global economic outlook is "slightly brighter" this year but inflation challenges remain. Energy prices have fallen significantly because Europe was able to "successfully" diversify its sources of energy, Cormann noted. In addition, a "benign winter" helped to reduce energy demand which kept gas prices low, he said. In November, the OECD said "Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine has provoked a massive energy price shock not seen since the 1970s."

☆ Morning Bid: Blue chips cheered up
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

[1/2] The logo of technology company Nvidia is seen at its headquarters in Santa Clara, California February 11, 2015. Its CEO Jensen Huang said use of its chips to power AI had "gone through the roof in the last 60 days." The Federal Reserve at least seems keen on the higher-for-longer message that's shaken world stock and bond markets this week. And as the minutes pre-date red-hot jobs and retail data for January, the message from Fed officials is probably even sterner now. A Reuters poll of equity analysts showed global stock markets are expected to correct in the next three months.

☆ Nvidia shares up 12% on earnings and bullish outlook on A.I.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( Rohan Goswami | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Nvidia shares opened up more than 12% Thursday morning, a day after the chipmaker reported a beat on the top and bottom line. Nvidia reported $6.05 billion in revenue for the fiscal fourth quarter and adjusted EPS of 88 cents, edging out the Wall Street consensus. Nvidia's AI play is "accelerating in a way that will have disruptive implications" for both its competitors and "the world at large," Rosenblatt Securities' Hans Mosesmann said in a Wednesday note. Caso hiked Nvidia's price target from $210 to $275. And in an about-face, Goldman Sachs' Toshiya Hari upgraded Nvidia to a buy rating and set a $275 price target.

LONDON, Feb 23 (Reuters) - Bank of England interest rate-setter Catherine Mann said on Thursday that it was too soon to say the risks posed by the surge in inflation last year had eased and that the central bank should continue to raise borrowing costs. The BoE raised interest rates to 4% earlier this month but signalled it was close to ending a run of increases which began in December 2021. She has previously argued in favour of raising borrowing costs sharply in the face of an inflation rate that remains above 10%, even though the BoE has forecast that it will fall sharply this year. Two other members of the Monetary Policy Committee - Swati Dhingra and Silvana Tenreyro - voted to pause the rate hikes at this month's meeting. Mann also said that she believed that in normal times, interest rate changes took their full effect faster than the 18-24 months which economists have previously estimated.

☆ 'Unpredictable' election in Africa's largest economy is set to resonate around the world
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Elliot Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

After 24 years of uninterrupted democracy since ending military dictatorship in 1999, Africa's most populous nation and largest economy is conducting its seventh election. Muhammadu Buhari, Nigeria's president, speaks during the U.S.-Africa Business Forum in New York. Leena Koni Hoffmann, associate fellow of the Africa Programme at Chatham House, told CNBC on Monday that the presidential election will be the "most unpredictable" since the transition to civilian rule. Alongside the Covid-19 pandemic and war in Ukraine, Koni Hoffmann noted "missed opportunities" and "self-inflicted crises" under Buhari's regime. Economists panned the decision, which Koni Hoffmann suggested rendered Nigeria and its neighbors more vulnerable to the damage of the pandemic.

In a country of 1.4 billion people, job fairs are one of the most efficient ways for employers and workers to connect. There will be more job seekers battling for offers this year." About 60% cited the "uncertain economic environment" as the main factor affecting their confidence, up from 48.4% in 2022. Policymakers are expected to aim for growth of about 5%, which would still be below the blistering pre-pandemic pace. ($1 = 6.8767 Chinese yuan renminbi)Additional reporting by Xiaoyu Yin Editing by Marius Zaharia and Gerry DoyleOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Meet a Navy officer who just got $323,000 in student loans forgiven and said public service was 'the only way' he could have paid off his debt
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-19 | by ( Ayelet Sheffey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Jared Weegmann, 37, got $323,000 in student loans forgiven through the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program. "I just remember thinking, the only way this is ever gonna get off me is if I immediately start some public service job." Jared Weegmann (left) had $323,000 student loans forgiven through the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. "We determined you have successfully met the requirements of the PSLF Program and your loans listed below have been forgiven. Thanks to changes we've made to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, everyday Americans can reach dreams they put off for far too long.

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