Trump’s pick for defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, was accused of sexual assault. Trump himself has faced various sexual misconduct allegations, which he has denied, though he was found liable last year for sexual abuse in a civil trial over an alleged incident in the 1990s that he also denies. Now, after having won the presidency again, he’s spending early political capital to confirm appointees who have faced sexual misconduct allegations of their own. The allegations against Trump’s picksGaetz’s years of controversies have been thrust back into the spotlight now that he’s up for a Cabinet post. “It’s a very scary time for young men in America when you can be guilty of something that you may not be guilty of,” Trump told reporters.

But artist Maurizio Cattelan’s viral creation, titled “Comedian,” has proven a sound investment for one collector: One of the artwork’s three “editions” smashed estimates to sell for $6.24 million at a Sotheby’s auction in New York on Wednesday. The auction house had estimated the work to go for between $1 million to $1.5 million; bidding began at $800,000. Prior to the sale, Sotheby’s confirmed to CNN that neither the tape nor, thankfully, the banana are the originals. The Miami installation was eventually removed amid public safety concerns, but all three editions were sold at the fair. In interviews given since the Miami installation, Cattelan has described “Comedian” as a work of commentary.

Signage of Adani Group at Adani Defence and Aerospace booth during the Aero India 2023 at Air Force Station Yelahanka in Bengaluru, India, on Monday, Feb. 13, 2023. India's Adani Group saw shares of its companies plunge Thursday after its billionaire chairman Gautam Adani was indicted in a New York federal court over his alleged involvement in an extensive bribery and fraud operation. The Indian group's flagship firm Adani Enterprises fell 10%, while the company in the eye of the storm Adani Green Energy tanked 17.28%. Adani Energy fell 20%. Adani Power lost 13.81%, Adani Port's share price dropped 10%, while the group's retail arm Adani Wilmar shed 7.87%.

After stalling for three sessions, the greenback was back on the march higher, with investors lifting the dollar index measure against its key rivals closer to a one-year high of 107.07 hit last week. The dollar has rallied more than 2% since the Nov. 5 U.S. presidential election on bets Trump's policies could reignite inflation and temper the Fed's future rate cuts. The dollar index held steady at 106.56, up from a one-week nadir hit in the previous session. "The Russia-Ukraine conflict is heating up, which is further denting sentiment towards the euro alongside the prospects of trade tariffs," another "bullish cue" for the dollar index given the euro's heavy weighting, City Index's Simpson said. The dollar gave up some gains against the yen, down 0.33% at 154.91 yen , although the Japanese currency remained under pressure.

Meituan HSBC is bullish on Meituan and has a target price of 220 Hong Kong dollars ($28.30) on the stock, giving it 25.8% upside potential. "Despite the macro challenges, Meituan's growth profile remains resilient," said Charlene Liu, HSBC Global Research's head of internet and gaming research for Asia-Pacific. Calling it a "best-in-class small-cap" idea, HSBC Global Research's India health-care analyst Damayanti Kerai believes it is "well positioned to sustain healthy growth." Kia's shares have been on an uptrend, gaining around 8% in the last five days. HSBC has a target price of 160,000 Korean Won ($114.80) on the stock, implying nearly 63.1% upside potential.

The officials said Wednesday that they have not made any determination as to who exactly is responsible, and the investigation is ongoing. The report did not identify Mahomes, but the address listed matches public records for Super Bowl-winning the quarterback. Travis Kelce and Patrick Mahomes of the Kansas City Chiefs on Dec. 17, 2023, in Foxborough, Mass. Twenty-thousand dollars was taken, according to a police report obtained by NBC affiliate KSHB of Kansas City. “We are aware of some of the other athletes in different states that have had their homes burglarized," the statement said.

AdvertisementSebastian Stan plays a young Donald Trump in "The Apprentice," a movie about his life in the 1970s. Stan said other actors wouldn't discuss Trump, and the film, with him for Variety's "Actors on Actors." You won't see Sebastian Stan doing an "Actors on Actors" interview about his new Donald Trump movie "The Apprentice," because, according to the actor, no one would talk to him about it. "We couldn't get past the publicists or the people representing them, because it was too afraid to talk about this movie." "We invited him to participate in 'Actors on Actors,' the biggest franchise of awards season, but other actors didn't want to pair with him because they didn't want to talk about Donald Trump," Setoodeh said.

A banana duct-taped to a white wall — or an acclaimed piece of art, depending how you look at it — sold at a Sotheby's auction for $6.24 million on Wednesday. The artwork debuted at Art Basel Miami Beach in December 2019 and was initially estimated to sell around $1.5 million, according to Sotheby's. At one point, someone even took the banana off the wall and ate it. According to Sotheby's, Cattelan "single-handedly prompted the world to reconsider how we define art, and the value we seek in it." As Galperin put it, "There is no better forum to adjudicate the value of art and a single object than the platform of auction."

Akio Kon | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesThis report is from today's CNBC Daily Open, our international markets newsletter. CNBC Daily Open brings investors up to speed on everything they need to know, no matter where they are. Investors are likely zooming in on the rate at which Nvidia is growing its numbers, compared with its past performance, not just whether it's surpassing expectations. The same goes for Nvidia's forward guidance: A growth of around 70% for current-quarter sales, compared with a year earlier. It appears that investors have enjoyed Nvidia's astounding performance for so long they've become desensitized to it.

A pump jack at an oil lot connected to the Petroleos del Peru SA Talara refinery in Piura, Peru, on Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2023. Oil prices edged higher on Thursday due to supply concerns triggered by escalating geopolitical tensions amid the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine. Gasoline inventories last week rose more than forecast, while distillate stockpiles posted a larger-than-expected draw. Adding to supply, Norway's Equinor said it had restored full output capacity at the Johan Sverdrup oilfield in the North Sea following a power outage. However, a slowdown in Chinese and global demand, coupled with rising output outside the group, have potentially thwarted this plan.

In this article MAR Follow your favorite stocks CREATE FREE ACCOUNTMarriott International's business operations and growth are solid, CEO Anthony Capuano told CNBC Monday, amid layoffs of more than 800 corporate employees and continued sluggishness in China's tourism market. Marriott International reported net room growth of 6% year-on-year and room rate growth of 2.5%, driven by a strong return of group travel, which Capuano called the "bright, shining star" for the business today. The company raised its year-end guidance for net room growth, and added 9 million new Bonvoy members in the third quarter. That measure turned out to be corporate layoffs, first reported by the travel media company Skift on Nov. 14, which later linked to a notice of "mass layoffs" of 833 Marriott employees posted on a Maryland government labor website. watch nowCapuano denied that the company — which doubled in size during the past decade — grew too big, too fast, at least in terms of corporate employees, instead calling the move a much-needed "reorganization" of its global corporate structure.

AdvertisementGrimes shared new details about her custody dispute with her former partner, Elon Musk. Grimes said she was "going bankrupt" during the dispute and had a "fraction" of Musk's resources. Grimes says she was "going bankrupt" during her custody dispute with Tesla CEO and billionaire Elon Musk, with whom she shares three children. Grimes, whose real name is Claire Elise Boucher, became embroiled in a custody dispute with Musk in 2023 over X Æ A-Xii , Exa Dark Sideræl, and Techno Mechanicus. Related VideoGrimes and Musk have largely been quiet about the custody dispute, however Grimes on Wednesday shared some details about how going to court against her billionaire ex impacted her.

Its CEO, however, was paid a relatively modest five figures at OpenAI in 2023, filings show. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman was paid $76,001 in compensation in 2023 to lead what's now one of the most valuable startups in the world, the company's tax filings for the year showed. During a hearing before a senate judiciary subcommittee in May 2023, Altman said he gets "paid enough for health insurance" and that he receives no equity in OpenAI. Bloomberg estimated in March 2024 that the CEO is worth at least $2 billion, not including any stake he may have in OpenAI. Altman denied during an all-hands meeting with employees that there were plans for him to receive a "giant euqity stake," CNBC reported.

AdvertisementA small town in Italy is offering homes for 1 euro to attract Americans amid the recent election cycle. Ollolai's initiative is part of Italy's broader "Case a 1 euro" program started in the 2010s. There is also an option for digital nomads to work there for a month for only 1 euro. Ollolai started offering 1-euro homes in 2018, but other towns, like Sicilian commune Gangi, started giving away vacant houses in 2015. But if you don't want to commit fully to moving across the ocean, a redirect from the Ollolai website luring potential buyers offers an option for digital nomads.

Asia-Pacific markets are mostly set to fall on Thursday, with investors watching tech shares in the region after chipmaker Nvidia reported better-than-expected results. Nvidia reported a 94% year-on-year surge in revenue for the third quarter to $35.08 billion. However, that is still a consecutive slowdown from the previous three quarters, when sales rose 122%, 262%, and 265%, respectively. Net income during the quarter rose to $19.3 billion, versus $9.24 billion in the same period a year ago. All eyes are on Indian stocks related to billionaire Gautam Adani, after the chair of India's Adani Group was indicted with others in New York federal court on charges related to a massive bribery and fraud scheme.

The University of Mobile is mourning the sudden death of freshman basketball player Kaiden Francis this week. Francis, of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, collapsed on campus Tuesday morning and died, university President Charles Smith said in a letter to students and faculty. "Yesterday morning Kaiden Francis, freshman point guard from Fort Lauderdale unexpectedly passed away after doing what he loved to do, working on his craft in the gym," Archey wrote. Classes at the university of almost 2,000 students were canceled Wednesday, and a vigil was held on campus Wednesday morning. "He was profoundly gifted and clearly loved by his teammates," Smith wrote.

Copilot's indexing of internal data led to oversharing of sensitive company information. Some corporate customers delayed Copilot deployment due to security and oversharing concerns. On Tuesday, Microsoft released new tools and a guide to help customers mitigate a Copilot security issue that inadvertently let employees access sensitive information, such as CEO emails and HR documents. These updates are designed "to identify and mitigate oversharing and ongoing governance concerns," the company explained in a new blueprint for Microsoft's 365 productivity software suite. AdvertisementAs a result, some customers have deployed Copilot, only to discover that it can enable employees to read an executive's inbox or access sensitive HR documents.

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailTrump 2.0 could lead to a fragmented EU, says Eurasia Group presidentIan Bremmer, president and founder of Eurasia Group, discusses what President-elect Donald Trump's return to the White House could mean for U.S. relations with the European Union.

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailGoldman Sachs: staggered tariffs on China likely, but don’t discount broader levy expansion on AsiaGoldman Sachs' Andrew Tilton talks about the 4.5% growth projection for China in 2025 and discusses the implication of tariffs on the country and the broader Asia economy.

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailHong Kong is "on the ascendancy" in entertainment, says events CEOMichael Denmark of Great Entertainment Group talks about the recovery of Hong Kong's events economy and its status as a destination of choice for live entertainment.

In this videoShare Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailMarket breadth has improved beyond 'Magnificent 7,' says analystAnwiti Bahuguna, chief investment officer of global asset allocation for Northern Trust Asset Management, discusses Nvidia earnings and what they mean for the broader market.