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☆ Saudi Arabia is struggling to boost oil prices, raising possibility of supply war with U.S.
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-01 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

OPEC is facing growing challenges in its efforts to boost oil prices amid record output outside the alliance, particularly in the U.S., raising questions about how long the alliance can maintain its deep production cuts. The outcome is a "bittersweet victory" for OPEC kingpin Saudi Arabia, wrote Jorge Leon, senior vice president of Rystad Energy, in a note Thursday. With oil prices down more than 14% since September highs, traders were hoping that OPEC could provide a boost. In the end, Saudi Arabia may have only one option — launch a supply war by flooding the market with oil. The 2.2 million bpd in voluntary cuts from the coalition of the willing is somewhat deceiving.

Persons: Jorge Leon, bode, Leon, Brent, Natasha Kaneva, Paul Sankey, John Kilduff, Kilduff, it's, Sankey, Kaneva, Goldman Sachs, Goldman, Daan Struyven, Struyven Organizations: Rystad Energy, Traders, Sankey Research, U.S . Oil, U.S, OPEC, United Arab, Goldman Locations: U.S, OPEC, Saudi Arabia, Riyadh, Saudi, China, Russia, Iraq, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Algeria, Oman

☆ JPMorgan is out with its global commodities outlook. Here's where it sees opportunity
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-01 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Investors will need to be tactical to harvest returns from commodities next year but there is an area where J.P. Morgan is making a broadly bullish call — precious metals. The firm expects a breakout rally the middle of 2024 with gold prices hitting a targeted peak of $2,300 an ounce, according to the investment bank's commodities outlook. Silver, meanwhile, will push above $30 per ounce on the rate cutting cycle, according to J.P. Morgan. The global economy is expected to slow, but will avoid a recession from 2024 to 2025, making it difficult to provide an overarching bullish or bearish call on commodities, according to the bank. There is value in oil and gas but how investors time their entry and exits will be critical, according to J.P. Morgan.

Persons: Morgan, Gold, Brent, J.P Organizations: Federal, Bloomberg, Precious Metals, Commodities, Morgan, New York Mercantile Exchange, Livestock Locations: Agriculture, China

Even including the sale of Heathrow, this year is the slowest for airport transactions in the past decade, totalling $5.9 billion globally to date, according to Dealogic data. They have hired Mediobanca (MDBI.MI) and Credit Agricole (CAGR.PA) to find a buyer for a sale of their 49% stake in the company, the people said. Heathrow's sale valued the airport at 14.3 times EBITDA, according to JP Morgan analysis published on Wednesday. UK's Esken (ESKN.L), owner of regional Southend Airport, said in June it had started a process for the sale of the airport. On Thursday, Hungary's state-owned Corvinus and Vinci Airports notified the European Commission of a proposed joint takeover of Budapest's airport, according to a document posted on the EU website.

Persons: Andras Kranicz, GIP, Australia's Macquarie, Spain's, Ferrovial, Agata Lyznik, Mediobanca, Gianni, Origoni, Nico Torrisi, Morgan, UK's, France's Vinci, Vinci, Corvinus, Emma, Victoria Farr, Andres Gonzalez, Elisa Anzolin, Joanna Plucinska, Mathieu Rosemain, Anousha Sakoui, Elaine Hardcastle Organizations: LONDON, Heathrow, BNP, Global Infrastructure Partners, AGS Airports, Southampton, Australia's, International, ACI, Airports, Macquarie, Credit Agricole Assurance, 2i, Credit, SAC, Gatwick, Southend Airport, Global Infrastructure Fund, Vinci Airports, European Commission, EU, Thomson Locations: Edinburgh, Italy, FRANKFURT, Spanish, Europe, Aberdeen, Glasgow, Heathrow, France, Hungary's, Budapest's

☆ Market vulnerabilities and a possible U.S. recession: Strategists give their cautious predictions for 2024
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-29 | by ( Elliot Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

The market is now largely pricing a peak at the current Fed funds target range of 5.25-5.5%, with interest rate cuts to come next year. watch now"At the outer edges of the economy there is obvious stress that is likely to spread in 2024 with rates at these levels. So it's easy to see how bad levered investments could have been made that would be vulnerable to this higher rate regime." Recession risk 'delayed rather than diminished' In a roundtable event on Tuesday, JPMorgan Asset Management strategists echoed this note of caution, claiming that the risk of a U.S. recession was "delayed rather than diminished" as the impact of higher rates feeds through into the economy. "I think the the key conclusion here is that interest rates do still bite, it's just taking longer this time around," she said.

Persons: Victor J, Jim Reid, David Folkerts, Landau, Reid, Folkerts, GSAM, Karen Ward, it's Organizations: New York Stock Exchange, Blue, Bloomberg, Getty, Monetary, Federal Reserve, Deutsche Bank, Global Economics, Research, Silicon Valley Bank, Goldman Sachs Asset Management, European Central Bank, Fed, ECB, JPMorgan, Management Locations: New York, Washington, U.S, Canada, Brazil, Chile, Hungary, Mexico, Peru, Poland

☆ Meghan and Prince Harry's biographer Omid Scobie says he was harassed and called a 'terrorist' for publicly supporting the couple
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( Mikhaila Friel | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

AdvertisementIt's the day after Thanksgiving and Omid Scobie has been awake since 5 a.m. at his home in California. Scobie can relate to Meghan Markle's experiencesAfter a while, some British publications started referring to Scobie as Meghan and Harry's "mouthpiece" and "cheerleader," he wrote in the book. Despite having her own tormentors to deal with, Meghan reportedly called Scobie in the summer of 2018 to check if he was OK. AdvertisementRepresentatives for the royal family are yet to publicly comment on the book. Speaking to Oprah Winfrey in 2021, Prince Harry said the royals have an "invisible contract" with the tabloids, where they wine and dine certain reporters in exchange for better coverage.

Persons: Omid Scobie, Scobie, —, Queen Elizabeth II's, Prince Harry, Meghan Markle, Prince William, Kate Middleton, Luke Fontana, Harry, Meghan, Meghan Markle's, It's, I've, Duchess, Doria Ragland, Sara Latham, Carolyn Durand, Duke, Duchess of, Harper Collins, King Charles, Prince William's, King Charles and Prince William, Chris Jackson, William, Rebecca English, Oprah Winfrey, you've, Anita Singh, Piers Morgan, Morgan, Queen Camilla Organizations: Service, ABC, Daily Mail, Mail, New York Times, Getty Images, REUTERS, Daily, Sun Locations: California, Harper's, London, British, Iranian, Sussex, Duchess of Sussex, Buckingham, Kensington

☆ 401(k) balances are down, and 'last resort' hardship withdrawals are up
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( Jessica Dickler | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

watch now'Last resort' 401(k) hardship withdrawals riseIn extreme circumstances, savers can take a hardship distribution without incurring a 10% early withdrawal fee if there is evidence the money is being used to cover a qualified hardship, such as medical expenses, loss due to natural disasters or to buy a primary residence or prevent eviction or foreclosure. The share of participants who tap such hardship withdrawals is on the rise, according to reports by Fidelity Investments and Bank of America — largely to avoid a foreclosure or eviction or to cover medical expenses, Fidelity found. Bank of America's recent participant pulse report showed that the number of 401(k) plan participants taking hardship withdrawals was up 13% from the second quarter and 27% compared to the first quarter of the year — with the average withdrawal amount just over $5,000. Still, hardship withdrawals should be "your choice of last resort," cautioned Joe Buhrmann, senior financial planning consultant at eMoney Advisor. "'Leakage' from plan accounts through 401(k) loans and withdrawals can have outsized effects on retirement readiness," said Sharon Carson, retirement strategist at J.P. Morgan Asset Management.

Persons: Mike Shamrell, Joe Buhrmann, you'll, Sharon Carson Organizations: Fidelity Investments, Bank of America, Fidelity, Bank of, Morgan Asset Management

These deals help banks meet capital requirements more efficiently, allowing them to keep lucrative businesses that would otherwise become unprofitable. Investors in these deals include lightly-regulated entities like hedge funds, shifting risk to the shadow banking sector. Credit risk transfer is another tool for them to pursue after the Fed’s clarification on what is allowed, said Cory Wishengrad, head of fixed income at Guggenheim Securities. That means Merchants sold the riskiest tranche of the loan portfolio, maximizing the capital relief it could get on it. Whether U.S. regulators will allow such insurance deals to qualify for capital relief is still untested, Staudinger said.

Persons: Morgan Stanley, Blackstone, Jill Cetina, Jon, Claude Zucconi, Zucconi, Michael Barr, Barr, Banks, Missy Dolski, Sam Graziano, Graziano, Cory Wishengrad, Jed Miller, Taft, Morgan Stanley's, Morgan, Deborah Staudinger, Hogan Lovells, Staudinger, Shankar Ramakrishnan, Paritosh Bansal, Nick Zieminski Organizations: Blackstone Group, JPMorgan Chase, Merchants Bank of Indiana, US Bancorp, Investors, JPMorgan, Merchants Bank, Federal Reserve, Varde Partners, Financial, Guggenheim Securities, U.S . Bank, Fed, Reuters, Merchants, Thomson Locations: U.S, Wickersham, Europe, Indiana

☆ Shein files for U.S. IPO as fast-fashion giant looks to expand its global reach
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-27 | by ( Gabrielle Fonrouge | In Gabrielle-Fonrouge | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Shein has confidentially filed to go public in the U.S. as the Chinese-founded fast-fashion juggernaut looks to expand its global reach with a long-rumored initial public offering, CNBC has learned. Over the next few months, Shein will likely make tweaks to its paperwork and answer numerous questions from the agency. The filing will be made public once the company is ready to move forward with its IPO. He said, "there's no such thing as forced labor" in the Shein factories that he has visited. As Shein grew from an obscure Chinese retailer into a global behemoth with headquarters in Singapore, it largely stayed in the shadows.

Persons: Shein, it's, Marcelo Claure, Sky Xu, Donald Tang, influencers, Xu, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley Organizations: CNBC, U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, SEC, Chinese Communist Party, Bear, Sparc Group, Authentic Brands Group, Simon, Group, JPMorgan, CNBC PRO Locations: U.S, Beijing, Singapore, Bear Stearns

☆ More Americans can buy investments earmarked for the rich. Why doing so may be risky, say experts
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-25 | by ( Greg Iacurci | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Anyone can generally buy the stock of public companies on a stock exchange, or buy pools of stocks or bonds via publicly available mutual funds and exchange-traded funds. By comparison, private investments let people invest in companies that aren't listed on a public exchange. Julio Estela, 41, who lives in Wantagh, New York, made his largest private investment in 2021, in Green Coffee Company. Why private markets are 'two-tiered'Hxyume | E+ | Getty ImagesSome of the largest U.S. investors, such as pension funds, often have some exposure to private investments, proponents say. As with public stock, betting on one private investment instead of pooling risk in a fund of many private companies is an even riskier strategy, experts said.

Persons: Micah Hauptman, Charles Failla, Cassandra Borchers, Thompson Hine, Borchers, it's, Michael Cembalest, Mike Curtis, Shaka Tea, Julio Estela, he's, Curtis, Estela, Hauptman, Failla Organizations: SEC, Consumer Federation of America, Sovereign Financial Group, Sovereign Financial, Morgan, Wealth Management, Shaka, Green Coffee Company, rehabbing, American Investment Council, Pensions, Cambridge Associates Locations: Honolulu , Hawaii, Wantagh , New York, Hawaii

☆ What to expect from OPEC meeting as traders digest recent price 'carnage'
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-24 | by ( Spencer Kimball | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

"The oil suite remains rather stunned after the cancellation of Saudi Sunday," wrote John Evans of PVM Oil Associates in a note Friday. U.S. crude recovered most of Wednesday's intraday losses and trading has been relatively muted amid the Thanksgiving holiday with investors trying to digest the recent volatility. Europe demand headache for OPEC With the meeting delayed, investors are left with more bearish news on the demand side. "The likelihood of new demand coming from the continent is tantamount to zero giving more reason to be wary for oil investors and another layer of headache for OPEC," Evans wrote. "It's undermining the Saudi efforts to get the price really back to $100 a barrel plus," Kilduff told CNBC's " Power Lunch " on Wednesday.

Persons: John Evans, Brent, Evans, John Kilduff, PVM's Evans, Kilduff, CNBC's, PVM, Goldman Sachs, Michael Hsueh, Russia's Organizations: Organization of Petroleum, —, PVM Oil Associates, West Texas Intermediate, JPMorgan, Deutsche Bank, Bank of America Locations: China, Europe, Angola, Nigeria, Saudi, Riyadh, U.S, Russia, Moscow, Saudi Arabia

☆ Euro zone business activity fell again in November
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-23 | by ( Jonathan Cable | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

LONDON, Nov 23 (Reuters) - The downturn in euro zone business activity eased in November but remained broadbased, suggesting the bloc's economy will contract again this quarter as consumers continue to rein in spending, a survey showed. "Ongoing weakness in the euro zone business surveys suggests a recession is on the horizon. The new business index rose to 46.7 from 45.6. Manufacturing activity, which has contracted every month since July 2022, fell again in November. Its PMI rose to 43.8 from 43.1, beating the poll expectation for 43.4 but resolutely below breakeven.

Persons: Mike Bell, Stephane Mahe, Bert Colijn, Jonathan Cable, Christina Fincher Organizations: PMI, P Global, Reuters, Morgan Asset Management, REUTERS, European Union, ING, Thomson Locations: October's, J.P, France, Nantes, Britain

☆ Fidelity raises $700 mln in its first bond mutual fund in China
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

SHANGHAI/SINGAPORE, Nov 23 (Reuters) - Fidelity International has garnered 5 billion yuan ($700 million) from investors for its first fixed income mutual fund in China, deepening the asset manager's involvement in the $3.8 trillion mutual fund market. The bond fund - Fidelity's second mutual fund product in China - raised the sum mainly from institutional investors in a three-week, shortened subscription period, the money manager said. China's mutual fund industry is crowded with over 150 players, including foreign ones such as BlackRock (BLK.N), Schroders (SDR.L) and JPMorgan Asset Management. "The fundraising size is rather encouraging," due to tough competition in the local market and Fidelity's limited track record in China, said Huang, who heads Fidelity International's two-year-old China mutual fund unit. Fidelity International was formerly the international investment arm of Boston-based Fidelity Investments before being spun off.

Persons: Helen Huang, Huang, Neuberger Berman, ASIFMA, Li Gu, Samuel Shen, Tom Westbrook, Muralikumar Organizations: Fidelity International, Reuters, Fidelity, JPMorgan Asset Management, Fidelity Investments, Regulators, China Securities Regulatory Commission, Thomson Locations: SHANGHAI, SINGAPORE, China, BlackRock, Boston, Beijing, Shanghai, Singapore

☆ Want to pick a winning retail stock this holiday season? Watch for discounts and deflation
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-22 | by ( Christina Cheddar Berk | In | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

However, he added, they remain more upbeat compared with last holiday season and should spend more on gifts this year. According to FactSet, analysts anticipate there could be upside of more than 20% ahead, based on average price targets. The e-commerce giant is JPMorgan analyst Doug Anmuth's top pick for the holiday season. "We project US e-comm penetration at 23.4% of adj retail sales this holiday season, +90bps above the 22.5% in 2022," he said. "We think beauty has the potential to be a relevant gifting solution for cash-strapped consumers during the upcoming Holiday season," he said.

Persons: Chad Lusk, Alvarez, Lusk, Martis, LSEG, Inna Kuznetsova, Doug Anmuth's, Doug McMillon, Krisztina Katai, Katai, Michael Lasser, Ulta, Lasser, ToolsGroup's Kuznetsova, Marsal's Lusk, Michael Bloom Organizations: Shoppers, CNBC, Walmart, Target, Retailers, Centric Market Intelligence, Amazon, LSEG, JPMorgan, Deutsche Bank, Costco, UBS, Fed, Black Locations: Lusk, Ulta, Wayfair, Williams, Sonoma

☆ Goldman, JPMorgan and others crank up Nvidia price targets in wake of latest earnings
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-22 | by ( Alex Harring | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

Several analysts hiked their price targets for the stock to show they expect greater upside ahead after the latest financials. Below, CNBC Pro compiled a list of major investment firms that raised their price targets following the Nvidia report, along with their key conclusions: Goldman Sachs Analyst Toshiya Hari raised the price target by $20 to $625. Morgan Stanley Analyst Joseph Moore added $3 to his price target, bringing it to $603. BMO Capital Markets Like JPMorgan, BMO analyst Ambrish Srivastava hiked his target price by $50 to $650. Bernstein Analyst Stacy Rasgon increased his target price by $25 to $700, equating to 40% upside over the coming year.

Persons: Jensen Huang, chalked, Goldman Sachs, Toshiya Hari, Harlan Sur, Morgan Stanley, Joseph Moore, Aaron Rakers, Vivek Arya, Timothy Arcuri, NVDA, Ambrish Srivastava, Grace Hopper, Ruben Roy, Bernstein, Stacy Rasgon, Vijay Rakesh yanked, 2024E, INTC's, William Stein, Michael Bloom Organizations: Nvidia, CNBC Pro, Center, Foundry Service, JPMorgan, NVIDIA, " Bank of America, NVDA, UBS, BMO, Markets, AMD Locations: China, Tuesday's, CY24, CY25

☆ Exclusive: OPEC hears bearish message on oil from top swap dealer's presentation
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-22 | by ( Ahmad Ghaddar | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsLONDON, Nov 21 (Reuters) - An OPEC technical panel invited a top financial market dealer to give a presentation this week which painted a bearish outlook for the oil market, according to materials from the presentation seen by Reuters. OPEC - the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries - did not immediately reply to a request for comment. London-based Onyx Capital Group is the world's biggest market maker by volume across oil swaps, trading more than 25 billion barrels equivalent a year. The second sell-off, which happened in November, moved the oil market to a collective neutral-to-bearish sentiment, with commercial participants like oil producers and airlines joining financial speculators in seeing a weak outlook. Ministers from OPEC and allies led by Russia, a group known as OPEC+, are due to meet on Sunday to decide on output policy.

Persons: Dado, Greg Newman, Brent, Prince Abdelaziz bin Salman, OPEC's, Onyx, Goldman Sachs, Dmitry Zhdannikov, Jan Harvey Organizations: REUTERS, Reuters ., Onyx Capital, OPEC, Organization of, Petroleum, Onyx, Twitter, Reuters, Saudi Energy, Economic Commission Board, ECB, JPMorgan, BNP, Thomson Locations: OPEC, London, Russia, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Iraq, Kuwait

☆ Here are the stocks — led by Microsoft — that matter most to hedge fund managers
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-22 | by ( Yun Li | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Many hedge funds have been skillfully navigating this year's market volatility. For investors seeking to follow the smart money, here are the stocks that mattered the most to these managers. VerityData analyzed 565 "fundamental" hedge funds that own between 10 and 300 positions each. The research firm then created a list of stocks that most frequently appear among the 10 largest holdings of those hedge funds. Other than Microsoft, the majority of the so-called " Magnificent Seven " mega-cap tech stocks — Amazon, Meta, Apple, Nvidia and Google's Alphabet — also made the list, VerityData said.

Persons: VerityData, Philippe Laffont's Coatue, Chase, Meta, Berkshire Hathaway Organizations: Microsoft, Philippe Laffont's Coatue Management, Tiger Global, Apple, Nvidia, JPMorgan, Berkshire

☆ The money you are saving at the pump this holiday season is probably only temporary
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-21 | by ( Cork Gaines | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Goldman Sachs researchers are projecting oil prices to jump nearly 20% next year. AdvertisementAs the holiday season approaches, drivers are experiencing a welcome respite at gas stations, but those savings will likely go away in the new year. Last week, West Texas Intermediate crude, a benchmark for oil prices, dipped to approximately $73 per barrel, a significant 20% drop from its late September peak of $94. "The big surprise of 2023 is stronger than expected non-OPEC supply growth, which we think will slow heading into 2024," Struyven said. And what the US economy doesn't need in the near future is Americans tightening their budgets after their summer of fun and the holiday spending season.

Persons: Goldman Sachs, —, GasBuddy, Daan Struyven, CNBC's, Dado Ruvic, Struyven, David Kelly, We're, Kelly Organizations: Service, West, AAA, OPEC, Reuters, US Strategic Petroleum Reserve, Biden, Strategic Petroleum Reserve Energy Department, Strategic Petroleum Reserve, Morgan Asset Management Locations: West Texas, OPEC, Ukraine, Russia, Saudi Arabia

☆ Buy the dip in Alibaba? Here’s what the analysts say, after the stock tanked
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Ganesh Rao | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

While investors have largely reacted negatively to the news, which was announced alongside quarterly earnings Thursday, Wall Street's analysts are split. Although the Wall Street bank reiterated its overweight – or buy – rating on the stock, it lowered its price target to $110 from $125. "Cancellation of the Cloud spin-off came out of the blue, and puts paid to the last big 'initiative' supposed to improve shareholder returns. JPMorgan JPMorgan analysts noted the Alibaba's cloud business missing growth estimates and a modest decline at its core business will worry investors. While applauding the newly announced dividend, JPMorgan said it won't be enough to offset investor disappointment over the aborted cloud spinoff plan.

Persons: Wall, Morgan Stanley, Alibaba, BABA, Morgan Stanley Morgan Stanley, Morgan Stanley's, Gary Yu, Bernstein Bernstein, Bernstein, Jiong Shao Organizations: Barclays, Alibaba's, JPMorgan JPMorgan, JPMorgan

[1/2] Former U.S. President Donald Trump shakes hands with Texas Governor Greg Abbott at a briefing on security at the U.S. southern border with Mexico in Weslaco, Texas, U.S. June 30, 2021. We need a president who's going to secure the border," Abbott said. "You're not going to have to worry about the border anymore, governor ... you're not going to have to worry about the border in Texas or Arizona or anywhere else." Since Biden took office in 2021, U.S. border agents have made more than 5 million arrests of migrants making irregular crossings - not through a controlled border station - over the U.S.-Mexico border. But he has struggled with record levels of migrants caught crossing the U.S.-Mexico border illegally.

Persons: Donald Trump, Greg Abbott, Brandon Bell, Republican Donald Trump, Trump, Joe Biden, Abbott, who's, Biden, David Morgan, Jasper Ward, Scott Malone, Bill Berkrot, Chris Reese Organizations: U.S, Texas, Republican, Democratic, Texas National Guard, Texas Department of Public Safety, Trump, Lone Star, Thomson Locations: U.S, Mexico, Weslaco , Texas, Edinburg , Texas, Biden's, United States, America, Texas, Arizona, Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, Venezuela, Mexican, Washington

WASHINGTON, Nov 19 (Reuters) - A deal to secure the release of some of the hostages held in Gaza by Hamas militants is closer than ever in the Islamist group's war with Israel, a White House official said on Sunday. "What I can say at this point is that some of the outstanding areas of disagreement, in a very complicated, very sensitive negotiation, have been narrowed," Finer told NBC's "Meet the Press" program. "I believe we are closer than we have been in quite some time, maybe closer than we have been since the beginning of this process, to getting this deal done," he added. "We're talking about considerably more than 12 (hostages)," Finer told NBC. On Saturday, Israel warned civilians in parts of southern Gaza to relocate as it girds for an offensive from the north.

Persons: Jon, United States Michael Herzog, Israel, David Morgan, Jasper Ward, Leah Douglas, Scott Malone, Bill Berkrot Organizations: White, White House, Washington Post, Press, NBC, Hamas, CBS, Gaza's Health, Thomson Locations: Gaza, Israel, United States, That's

☆ Gaza Hostage Deal Closer Than Ever, US Official Says
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-19 | by ( Nov. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +3 min

By David Morgan and Jasper WardWASHINGTON (Reuters) -A deal to secure the release of some of the hostages held in Gaza by Hamas militants is closer than ever in the Islamist group's war with Israel, a White House official said on Sunday. "What I can say at this point is that some of the outstanding areas of disagreement, in a very complicated, very sensitive negotiation, have been narrowed," Finer told NBC's "Meet the Press" program. "I believe we are closer than we have been in quite some time, maybe closer than we have been since the beginning of this process, to getting this deal done," he added. "We're talking about considerably more than 12 (hostages)," Finer told NBC. On Saturday, Israel warned civilians in parts of southern Gaza to relocate as it girds for an offensive from the north.

Persons: David Morgan, Jasper Ward, Jon, United States Michael Herzog, Israel, Leah Douglas, Scott Malone, Bill Berkrot Organizations: Jasper Ward WASHINGTON, White, White House, Washington Post, Press, NBC, Hamas, CBS, Gaza's Health Locations: Gaza, Israel, United States, That's

Electric power transmission pylon miniatures and Iberdrola logo are seen in this illustration taken, December 9, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration Acquire Licensing RightsLONDON, Nov 17 (Reuters) - Spanish utility Iberdrola is planning to make an offer for Electricity North West (ENWL) that could value the British power distribution network at a maximum of 3.5 billion pounds ($4.34 billion), two sources familiar with the matter said. Iberdrola (IBE.MC) declined to comment on any involvement in the ENWL sale process, which one of the people, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said is expected to start in December. Iberdrola is ramping up its investments in electricity networks, aiming to deploy 27 billion euros until 2025, with the goal of achieving 30% growth in core earnings of its networks unit to up to 8.5 billion euros. Iberdrola expects to receive around 6 billion euros from partnerships and asset sales by the end of the year that will help it close 2023 with a net debt of around 43 billion euros, roughly in line with 2022.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Jefferies, KKR spokespeople, JP Morgan, Andres Gonzalez, Pietro Lombardi, Anousha Sakoui, Alexander Smith Organizations: REUTERS, Electricity, Reuters, Japan's Kansai Electric Power Co, Macquarie, KKR, ENWL, Scottish Power, Colonial First State, Iberdrola, Thomson Locations: Manchester , Lancashire, Cumbria, Iberdrola, ENWL, Merseyside , Cheshire, North Wales, North Shropshire, England, Central, Southern Scotland

☆ Blackstone, Macquarie deny ASPI sale report, pledge commitment
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Signage is seen outside the Blackstone Group headquarters in New York City, U.S., January 18, 2023. REUTERS/Jeenah Moon/File Photo/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsMILAN, Nov 17 (Reuters) - Blackstone and Macquarie on Friday dismissed as "completely false" an Italian newspaper report about possible ownership changes at Autostrade per l'Italia (ASPI), pledging their commitment as investors in the motorway operator. Following the 2022 deal, ASPI is controlled by state-lender CDP with funds Blackstone (BX.N) and Australia's Macquarie (MQG.AX). Under JPMorgan's plan ASTM would transfer its assets to ASPI whose shareholders would be CDP, Gavio group and Blackstone. In denying the report, Macquarie said it was committed to the "ongoing delivery of ASPI's multi-billion euro investment programme".

Persons: JP Morgan, Italy's, ASPI, Australia's Macquarie, Macquarie, Blackstone, Matteo Salvini, Elisa Anzolin, Giuseppe Fonte, Valentina Za Organizations: Blackstone Group, REUTERS, Blackstone, La Stampa, ASTM, Benetton, Shareholders, Reuters, Thomson Locations: New York City, U.S, Macquarie, Ardian, Milan, Rome

An electric vehicle charge station by ChargePoint, Inc. is seen in Manhattan, New York, U.S., December 8, 2021. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly Acquire Licensing RightsNEW YORK, Nov 17 (Reuters) - ChargePoint Holdings' (CHPT.N) stock slumped by nearly 38% to a record low on Friday after the electric vehicle (EV) charging network slashed its third quarter revenue forecast and replaced key executives. California-based ChargePoint also announced that longtime Chief Executive Pasquale Romano will be replaced by Rick Wilmer, its chief operating officer, effective immediately. The shares of other major EV charging network providers besides ChargePoint were also trading lower. But they downgraded the company to "perform" from "outperform" citing the executive departures, choppy demand, and "potential for further organizational changes."

Persons: Andrew Kelly, ChargePoint, Pasquale Romano, Rick Wilmer, Rex Jackson, Mansi Khetani, Cowen, Oppenheimer, Needham, ChargePoint F3Q, Bill Peterson, bode, Colin Rusch, Chibuike Oguh, Lance Tupper, David Evans Organizations: ChargePoint, REUTERS, ChargePoint Holdings, Reuters Graphics, JPMorgan, EV, EVgo, Thomson Locations: Manhattan , New York, U.S, North America, Europe, California, New York

☆ Here's when market experts think inflation will get back to normal
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-16 | by ( Madison Hoff | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

While many experts don't see inflation getting back to normal just yet, it could in a year or two. Consumer price inflation has been mostly slowing this year. Some experts see inflation as measured by the Consumer Price Index being around 2% — the Fed's target year-over-year rate of price growth — by some time in 2024. Advertisement"We foresee headline and core CPI inflation around 2.2% y/y in Q4 2024," Daco said in his commentary. Goldman Sachs forecasts that measure is expected to cool off and see a 2.4% year-over-year increase in December 2024.

Persons: J.P, David Kelly, —, Gregory Daco, Daco, Kelly, ING's James Knightley, Sarah Foster's, Goldman Sachs, Jerome Powell, Powell, Mark Hamrick, Hamrick Organizations: Morgan, Service, Consumer, CPI, Morgan Asset Management, Bankrate, Federal Reserve, Federal, Business

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