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[1/2] A sign of Microsoft Corp's Bing search engine is seen at the World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC) in Shanghai, China September 21, 2018. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsBRUSSELS, Oct 9 (Reuters) - EU antitrust regulators are asking Microsoft's (MSFT.O) users and rivals whether Bing should comply with new tough tech rules and also whether that should be the case for Apple's (AAPL.O) iMessage, people familiar with the matter said on Monday. The European Commission in September opened investigations to assess whether Microsoft's Bing, Edge and Microsoft Advertising as well as Apple's iMessage should be subject to the Digital Markets Act (DMA). The probes came after the companies contested the EU competition regulator labelling these services as core platform services under the DMA. The Commission sent out questionnaires earlier this month, asking rivals and users to rate the importance of Microsoft's three services and Apple's iMessage versus competing services.

Persons: Stringer, Microsoft's, Bing, Microsoft's Bing, Foo Yun Chee, Deborah Kyvrikosaios, Angus MacSwan Organizations: Microsoft, Artificial Intelligence, REUTERS, Rights, European Commission, Edge, Microsoft Advertising, Digital Markets, EU, Apple, Google, Thomson Locations: Shanghai, China, Rights BRUSSELS

☆ Bill Nygren says times like these show why investors need to own some energy stocks — His top picks
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-09 | by ( Yun Li | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Oakmark Funds' Bill Nygren thinks energy stocks deserve a place in the portfolio, especially when the market experiences heightened volatility like right now. "It highlights the value in a portfolio of energy exposure," Nygren said on CNBC's " Squawk on the Street. " He has managed the Oakmark Select Fund since 1996 and the Oakmark Fund since 2000. The investor said energy stocks are relatively inexpensive and they are well-positioned for more gains ahead as oil prices are expected to stay elevated. Oil prices jumped Monday following the latest Middle East violence, with West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures climbing 3.7%, trading above $85 a barrel.

Persons: Bill Nygren, Nygren, Morningstar Organizations: Oakmark Fund, West Texas, Phillips, ConocoPhillips Locations: Israel

☆ German antitrust head warns AI may boost Big Tech's dominance
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-09 | by ( Hakan Ersen | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Alphabet's (GOOGL.O) Google and Microsoft (MSFT.O) have recently become rivals in artificial intelligence (AI), with the latter investing heavily in OpenAI and the former building the Bard AI chatbot among other investments. The surge in AI popularity has prompted governments around the world to try to impose rules on the use of the technology, with the European Union in a race to adopt its landmark AI rules by the end of the year. "The danger is very great because you need two things above all for AI, powerful servers and vast amounts of data. Mundt said the field was still open to competition but regulators need to ensure it remains so. "Both developments are possible, and as an authority we have to be careful that any competitive potential is not buried from the outset."

Persons: Andreas Mundt, Wolfgang Rattay, Mundt, Foo Yun, Mark Potter Organizations: Federal, Office, REUTERS, Alpha, Big, Google, Microsoft, European Union, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Bonn, Germany, FRANKFURT, OpenAI

☆ Warren Buffett on what to do during price swings — 'Volatility is a huge plus to the real investor'
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-07 | by ( Yun Li | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

A blowout September jobs report , surging bond yields and expectations for higher interest rates that last a while stoked big price swings in the stock market lately, leaving investors on edge. But in the stock market you get it," Buffett said at Berkshire's shareholder meeting in 1997 . "If you're an investor, you love the idea of wild swings because it means more things are going to get mispriced...Volatility is a huge plus to the real investor." 'Gambling mentality' Buffett's recent purchase of a big chunk of Occidental Petroleum is an example of taking advantage of market volatility. "We'd make a lot more money if volatility was higher, because it would create more mistakes in the market," Buffett once said.

Persons: Warren Buffett, Berkshire Hathaway, Buffett, Benjamin Graham, Graham, Charlie, we've Organizations: Berkshire, CNBC, Oracle, Columbia University, Occidental Petroleum Locations: Omaha, Berkshire, America

☆ Stocks making the biggest moves midday: Pioneer Natural Resources, MGM Resorts, Levi Strauss and more
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-06 | by ( Alex Harring | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Levi Strauss — Shares slid 0.8% after the denim apparel maker cut its full-year sales forecast. Late Thursday, Levi posted fiscal third-quarter revenue that missed expectations, and it cut its full-year sales guidance again. MGM Resorts — The resort and casino operator rose 4.9% after offering an update on a cybersecurity issue experienced last month. Liberty Media Formula One — Shares of the motorsports stock advanced 3.6% following an upgrade to buy from neutral by Citi. Frontdoor — The home repair company's shares climbed 4.4% on the back of a Truist upgrade to buy from hold.

Persons: Tesla, Levi Strauss —, Levi, Aehr, FactSet, Truist, — CNBC's Pia Singh, Yun Li, Michelle Fox, Samantha Subin Organizations: Resources, Street Journal, Exxon Mobil, Exxon, stoke, MGM Resorts, MGM, CNBC, Securities and Exchange Commission, Philips —, U.S . Food, Drug Administration, Philips, FDA, Pharmaceuticals, JPMorgan, Jefferies, Liberty Media, Citi, Las Vegas, UBS, AES Locations: Virginia, U.S

☆ Volatility is back—Here's what hedge funds are doing during the market's wild swings
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-06 | by ( Yun Li | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Volatility has made a comeback, and that's typically when hedge funds outperform and offer downside protection. Amid the elevated volatility, hedge funds increased their short activity, while focusing on quality stocks, according to Goldman Sachs' prime brokerage data. Specifically, hedge funds have been shorting exchange-traded funds in large cap equity, sectors and credit categories for three sessions in a row this week, Goldman said. Quality trade Meanwhile, hedge funds are pivoting to stocks with high-quality fundamentals. The real estate sector, for example, saw a net short position of 2% among hedge funds, DeSanctis said.

Persons: Goldman Sachs, Goldman, David Kostin, Steven DeSanctis, DeSanctis, — CNBC's Michael Bloom Organizations: Treasury, Federal Reserve, Costco, Cisco, Cadence Design Systems Locations: U.S

Ofcom said it had identified features that made it more difficult for UK businesses to use multiple cloud suppliers. Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft had a combined 70-80% share of Britain's public cloud infrastructure services market in 2022, Ofcom said. Microsoft said it was committed to ensuring the UK cloud industry remained innovative and highly competitive. The CMA welcomed the move, saying effective competition in the 7.5 billion pound ($9.1 billion) UK market was essential. Google Vice President Amit Zavery said Ofcom's referral demonstrated the need to create an open cloud market with no vendor lock-in.

Persons: Dan Ridsdale, Edison, Dado Ruvic, Fergal Farragher, Amit Zavery, Yadarisa, Paul Sandle, Foo Yun Chee, Mark Potter, Jan Harvey, Jacqueline Wong, Jane Merriman Organizations: CMA, Microsoft, Ofcom, Amazon Web Services, Google, U.S . Federal Trade Commission, Markets, REUTERS, Cloud Infrastructure Services, Amazon, MICROSOFT, Activision Blizzard, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Britain, France, Japan, The Netherlands, South Korea, China, EU, Europe, Bengaluru, London, Brussels

☆ Google changes user data practices to end German antitrust probe
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-05 | by ( Friederike Heine | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsBERLIN, Oct 5 (Reuters) - Alphabet (GOOGL.O) unit Google has agreed to change its user data practices to end a German antitrust investigation aimed at curbing its data-driven market power, the German cartel office said on Thursday. The German regulator said Google's commitments would give users more choice on how their data is used across the company's platforms. "This not only protects the users' right to determine the use of their data, but also curbs Google's data-driven market power," he said. Google's commitment covers more than 25 other services including Gmail, Google News, Assistant, Contacts and Google TV. It does not apply to Google Shopping, Google Play, Google Maps, Google Search, YouTube, Google Android, Google Chrome and Google's online advertising services, all of which are subject to a new EU legislation called the Digital Markets Act which has similar obligations.

Persons: Arnd, Andreas Mundt, Matthias Williams, Foo Yun Chee, Friederike Heine, Mark Potter Organizations: European Engineering, REUTERS, Rights, Google, Tech, Gmail, Google News, Big Tech, Apple, Thomson Locations: Zurich, Switzerland

☆ Ken Griffin’s hedge fund Citadel bucks the downtrend in September, up nearly 13% this year
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-05 | by ( Yun Li | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Billionaire investor Ken Griffin's flagship hedge fund rallied last month when the broader market was rattled by tight monetary policy as well as rising recession fears, according to a person familiar with the returns. Citadel's multistrategy flagship Wellington fund gained 1.7% in September, bringing its 2023 performance to 12.6%, the person said. The S&P 500 pulled back 4.9% last month, suffering its worst month of the year. Griffin, founder and CEO of Citadel, told CNBC last month he was skeptical that this year's rally, powered mostly by artificial intelligence-related stocks, can be sustainable. The Wellington fund soared 38% in 2022 for its best year ever.

Persons: Ken Griffin's, Citadel's multistrategy, Stocks, Pershing, Bill Ackman, Griffin Organizations: Treasury, Citadel, CNBC, Big Tech Locations: Wellington

BRUSSELS, Oct 4 (Reuters) - European Union antitrust regulators have commissioned a study into mobile ecosystems to help them counter any pushback from Apple (AAPL.O) and Alphabet's (GOOGL.O) Google in complying with new tech rules. They will also have to let users install apps from outside their app stores, a move which Apple said would make phones the target of malware or hijacking by cybercriminals. A tender for the study, worth 300,000 euros ($315,200), will run until Oct. 17, according to an announcement on the European Commission website. "The aim of the study is to support the supervision and enforcement of the DMA vis-a-vis the gatekeepers," the tender document said. ($1 = 0.9517 euros)Reporting by Foo Yun Chee; Editing by Kirsten DonovanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Apple, Foo Yun Chee, Kirsten Donovan Organizations: Union, Apple, Google, Markets, cybercriminals, European Commission, Thomson Locations: BRUSSELS

Traders work the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on July 25, 2023, in New York City. Treasury yields fell from multiyear highs on Wednesday after new jobs data showed some signs of a weakening labor market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury dropped 5 basis points to 4.763% following the data release. The 30-year Treasury yield slid 6 basis points lower to 4.878%. The 2-year Treasury was last down by 5 basis points at 5.104%.

Persons: Dow Jones Organizations: New York Stock Exchange, Treasury Locations: New York City

☆ Bill Gross is down on both stocks and bonds, says these are the best opportunities now
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-04 | by ( Yun Li | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Bill Gross , a widely followed investor once known as the bond king, said he's negative about both stocks and bonds, only seeing very limited opportunities in the market. "I'd pass on stocks and bonds in terms of future total returns," Gross, the former chief investment officer and co-founder of Pimco, wrote in his new investment outlook blog. Gross believes the Federal Reserve is unlikely to lower interest rates in a significant way in the face of inflation, so bond prices may not go higher anytime soon. "Unless Chair [Jerome] Powell and company can significantly lower real 10-year Treasury rates from 2.25%, investors may eventually realize that bonds are a better deal than clearly overvalued stocks headed into an economic slowdown/recession," Gross said. "Personally, I don't believe Powell will be willing or able to lower short rates significantly in the face of a 3% inflation future."

Persons: Bill Gross, Gross, Pimco, Jerome, Powell, CNBC's Organizations: Federal, CNBC, Activision

☆ Tim Cook dumps a chunk of Apple shares this week in his biggest scheduled sale in 2 years
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-04 | by ( Yun Li | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Apple CEO Tim Cook shed a chunk of shares in his tech giant during this week's market turmoil, making his biggest scheduled sale in two years. Cook dumped about 511,000 Apple shares in separate sales in the past three days through a 10b5-1 plan, which allows insiders to sell shares under a prearranged structure, according to a regulatory filing . Cook's action happens to fall in a week where the stock market was rattled by surging bond yields. AAPL YTD mountain Apple Shares of Apple fell 0.8% on Tuesday, but they are still positive for the week. The company also reduced the number of restricted stock units Cook would receive if he retires before 2026.

Persons: Tim Cook, Cook Organizations: Apple, Treasury Locations: InsiderScore

☆ Stock futures tick lower on Wednesday night after Dow snaps 3-day string of losses: Live updates
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-04 | by ( Lisa Kailai Han | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 57 points, or 0.2%. Stocks were aided by a retreat in Treasury yields. The rate on the 10-year Treasury note slipped from highs last seen in 2007 after payroll processing firm ADP said that private job growth totaled 89,000 for September. The spread between the 2-year and 10-year Treasury yields ended Wednesday at about 31 basis points. The 2- and 10-year yield curve has been inverted since March 2022 – meaning short-term Treasury rates are higher than long-term rates.

Persons: Clorox, FactSet, I've, Liz Young, Stocks, Dow Jones, Young, Yun Li Organizations: New York Stock Exchange, Dow Jones, Nasdaq, Dow Locations: New York City . U.S

☆ People are extending their leases and adding to the rental demand, says NAR's Lawrence Yun
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-04 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailPeople are extending their leases and adding to the rental demand, says NAR's Lawrence YunLawrence Yun, National Association of Realtors chief economist, joins 'Squawk Box' to discuss the impact of rising Treasury yields on mortgage rates, the impact of skyrocketing mortgage rates on the housing sector, and more.

Persons: NAR's Lawrence Yun Lawrence Yun Organizations: National Association of Realtors

[1/2] 3D printed clouds and figurines are seen in front of the Microsoft Azure cloud service logo in this illustration taken February 8, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration Acquire Licensing RightsLONDON, Oct 3 (Reuters) - British media regulator Ofcom will this week push for an antitrust investigation into Amazon (AMZN.O) and Microsoft's (MSFT.O) dominance of the UK's cloud computing market, according to two sources familiar with the matter. Between them, Amazon and Microsoft enjoy a combined market share of 60-70%. Ofcom warned the current state of Britain's cloud computing market made it difficult for some existing customers to bargain for a good deal with their provider. Amazon, Microsoft, the CMA, and Ofcom did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Martin Coulter, Foo Yun Chee, Matthew Scuffham Organizations: Microsoft, REUTERS, Ofcom, Google, CMA, Thomson Locations: British

☆ What the bond market is telling us about recession chances right now
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-03 | by ( Yun Li | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The 2-year and 10-year Treasury yield curve initially inverted in March 2022, a phenomenon that has historically been a reliable recession predictor. The spread between the 2-year and 10-year Treasury yields tightened to 40 basis points on Tuesday, marking the smallest gap since May 5. "I always talk about the yield curve being inverted as a warning signal if you will... but it doesn't happen imminently. The notable bond investor said when the yield curve de-inverts, it's a strong signal of a recession and that it was very close to happening. EvercoreISI historical work found that the yield curve turns positively sloped just before a recession begins.

Persons: Jeffrey Gundlach, Gundlach, it's, Pershing, Bill Ackman, Ackman Organizations: Treasury, DoubleLine, CNBC, Federal Reserve

☆ Ray Dalio says the 10-year Treasury yield could rise to 5% — and there's risk it goes even higher
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-03 | by ( Yun Li | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Billionaire investor Ray Dalio believes the surging 10-year Treasury yield could rise even higher to the 5% threshold as he sees hotter inflation for longer. "It would seem that something like a 5% rate, and there's nothing precise about that, but in that neighborhood, you know, would be maybe about right ... with the risk higher," Dalio said Tuesday at the Greenwich Economic Forum in Greenwich CT. The 10-year Treasury yield, which serves as a benchmark for mortgage rates, jumped to 4.76% on Tuesday, i ts highest level since 2007. Deficit risk Then Dalio said the imbalance of government debt's supply and demand picture also caused yields to go higher. "When you look at the expected returns for this moment, cash is a relatively attractive asset class at this moment," Dalio said.

Persons: Ray Dalio, Dalio, That's Organizations: Greenwich Economic, Treasury, Federal Reserve, Bridgewater Locations: Greenwich, Greenwich CT

☆ Bill Gross says the surging 10-year Treasury yield could test 5% in the short term
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-03 | by ( Yun Li | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Widely followed investor Bill Gross believes Treasury yields have the potential to shoot even higher in the short run. "I think we're gonna go to five [percent]," Gross said on CNBC's "Last Call" Tuesday, referring to the 10-year Treasury yield . "The market certainly is oversold at the moment in anticipation of Treasury supplies, in anticipation of higher for longer in terms of the Fed." The S&P 500 dropped 1.4%, touching its lowest level since June during the day as the 10-year Treasury yield reached its highest point in 16 years. The 30-year Treasury yield hit 4.9% Tuesday, also the highest since 2007.

Persons: Bill Gross, Gross Organizations: Treasury, Federal Reserve

Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway carried on its selling streak for HP , dumping shares of the printer and PC maker for nine straight days and reducing its stake to 10.2%. The conglomerate sold more than 5.1 million shares for over $132 million on Thursday through Monday, according to a regulatory filing released Monday night. Over the nine straight days of selling, Berkshire has shed 14.5 million shares for almost $381 million. Adding in other days of sales in mid-September, Berkshire has dropped a total of 20.0 million shares for $539.5 million, an average selling price of $26.93. Berkshire still holds 100.9 million shares, valued at $2.6 billion at Monday's close of $25.67.

Persons: Warren, Berkshire Hathaway, hasn't, Buffett, That's Organizations: HP, Berkshire, Vanguard Locations: Berkshire, Omaha

BRUSSELS, Oct 3 (Reuters) - EU lawmakers on Tuesday voted for draft rules targeting Alphabet's Google (GOOGL.O), Meta Platforms (META.O) and other large online platforms' content moderation restrictions after some media outlets complained about arbitrary decisions removing their content. The draft rules require online platforms to carry news content for 24 hours before taking it down if this breaches their content moderation rules. Known as Article 17 of the Media Freedom Act the European Commission proposed last year to ensure media plurality and safeguard editorial independence, the clause has raised alarm bells among online platforms. Media should "be notified of the platform's intention to delete or restrict their content alongside a 24-hour window for the media to respond", lawmakers said in a statement. Lawmakers voted to ban using spyware against journalists unless it can be justified as a last resort measure and also require media to be transparent about their ownership.

Persons: CCIA, Mathilde Adjutor, Foo Yun Chee, Josie Kao Organizations: Google, Media, European Commission, Tech, European, Thomson Locations: BRUSSELS, Europe, Poland

[1/2] 3D printed clouds and figurines are seen in front of the Microsoft Azure cloud service logo in this illustration taken February 8, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration Acquire Licensing RightsLONDON, Oct 3 (Reuters) - British media regulator Ofcom will this week push for an antitrust investigation into Amazon (AMZN.O) and Microsoft's (MSFT.O) dominance of the UK's cloud computing market, according to two sources familiar with the matter. Between them, Amazon and Microsoft enjoy a combined market share of 60-70% of Britain's cloud computing industry. Ofcom warned the current state of Britain's cloud computing market made it difficult for some existing customers to bargain for a good deal with their provider. Both Amazon and Microsoft previously said they would continue working with Ofcom ahead of the publication of its final report.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Martin Coulter, Foo Yun Chee, Matthew Scuffham, Susan Fenton Organizations: Microsoft, REUTERS, Ofcom, Google, CMA, Thomson Locations: British, EU, U.S, China

☆ Stocks making the biggest moves midday: Sphere Entertainment, Riot, Instacart, Insulet and more
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-02 | by ( Alex Harring | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Check out the companies making headlines in midday trading. Sphere Entertainment — Shares of the media and entertainment company climbed 11.1% in midday trading after a U2 show debuted its Las Vegas Sphere venue Friday night. Bitcoin stocks — Stocks tied to digital currency trading advanced in lockstep with a rally in crypto prices. Instacart — Maplebear, the food delivery company doing business as Instacart, fell 9.2% in midday trading. The Wall Street bank said investors should buy the dip after the stock's underperformance in the first half of 2023.

Persons: — Stocks, MicroStrategy, —, — Maplebear, Gordon Haskett, Insulet, Jefferies, Goldman Sachs, Goldman, Truist, Yun Li, Lisa Kailai Han, Pia Singh, Michelle Fox, Sarah Min, Scott Schnipper Organizations: Madison Square Garden, —, Riot, Marathon, Discover Financial, U.S . Securities, Exchange, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Coeur Mining, Hecla Mining, Harmony, Mining, Gold Resource, Barclays, Norfolk Southern, Bank of America, Nvidia —, Nvidia, Apple, JPMorgan, UBS Locations: Las Vegas, lockstep, Coeur, Wall

☆ Bill Ackman says the economy is starting to slow and the Fed is likely done hiking
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-02 | by ( Yun Li | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Pershing Square's Bill Ackman on Monday sounded alarms on the economy, which he believes has begun to decelerate on the back of aggressive rate hikes. I think the economy is starting to slow," Ackman said on CNBC's "Squawk Box." "I think the level of real interest rates is high enough to slow things down." "High mortgage rates ... high credit card rates, they're starting to really have an impact on the economy," Ackman said. "The 30 year Treasury is likely to go higher," Ackman said.

Persons: Pershing, Bill Ackman, Ackman Organizations: Federal Reserve, Treasury, Securities, Exchange Commission

BRUSSELS, Oct 2 (Reuters) - The European Commission will assess the risks of four critical technologies, including semiconductors and artificial intelligence, being weaponised by countries not aligned with its values and will take measures next year to tackle the issue, an EU official said on Monday. The other two critical technologies on the EU list are quantum technologies and biotechnologies such as vaccines and genome sequencing. "The Commission will do risk assessments of these four technologies with member states. The next step is to mitigate the risks next year," the official told Reuters on condition of anonymity. Commission Vice President Vera Jourova and EU industry chief Thierry Breton will hold a press conference on the issue at 1330 GMT on Tuesday.

Persons: Vera Jourova, Thierry Breton, Foo Yun Chee, Richard Chang Organizations: European, EU, Reuters, Thomson Locations: BRUSSELS, United States, Australia, China, Ukraine

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