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☆ Zelenskyy completes a tricky charm offensive in Europe as Ukraine prepares for next phase of war
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( Silvia Amaro | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Ukraine's president, visited the European headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, on Thursday, Feb. 9, 2023. Weapons, weapons, weaponsZelenskyy was direct in his message to European leaders asking for long-range artillery and ammunition, air defense systems, missiles, fighter jets and battle tanks. He pressured EU leaders to start the process this year. He has a sharp focus and is committed to the Ukrainian cause — he is a very sensible man," one EU official said regarding the Ukrainian president. The official working for a Nordic nation said: "Seeing him in person made [an] impact after a year of video addresses."

☆ Russian forces are closing in on the strategic city of Bakhmut, giving Ukraine a tough choice to make
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Ukrainian military vehicles drive along a road outside of the strategic city of Bakhmut on January 18, 2023 in Bakhmut, Ukraine. Ukrainian soldiers outside the strategic city of Bakhmut on Jan. 18, 2023, in Bakhmut, Ukraine. Ukrainian servicemen of the artillery unit of the 80th Air Assault Brigade talk near Bakhmut, Ukraine, on Feb. 7, 2023. On Wednesday, Russian media reported comments from a Russian special forces commander, who claimed Russian units were advancing into Bakhmut. Ukrainian security forces talk to an elder woman while the first anniversary of Russia-Ukraine war approaches in Bakhmut, Ukraine on January 25, 2023.

☆ Investors rush into A.I. stocks — Most of their top buys have already doubled this year
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Michelle Fox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Retail investors are pilling into artificial intelligence stocks, the latest craze to hit Wall Street, according to Vanda Research. Overall, aggregate inflows from retail investors over the past five trading days (ending Wednesday) have reached levels not seen since 2020-2021, the firm said. "We believe FOMO and momentum remain the main drivers of flows, meaning that retail investors remain susceptible to negative catalysts. However, interest in AI remains high as retail investors rotate into other AI-related small-cap stocks, he noted. Microsoft and Nvidia, already seeing a growing interest from retail investors, may also see investments pick up, according to Vanda.

☆ Billionaire investor and Tesla bull Ron Baron poured $100 million into Elon Musk's Twitter takeover
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( Morgan Chittum | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Billionaire investor Ron Baron has poured $100 million into Elon Musk's Twitter deal. The Tesla bull was promised to make "two to three times" his money, he told CNBC. Baron said the bet on Twitter was predicated by his faith in Musk's leadership abilities. "He's the best-known man in the world, I guess," Baron told CNBC. "We have made a lot of money with [Elon]," Baron told CNBC in early November, adding that Tesla holdings make up 40% of his Baron's Partners fund.

☆ Mark Mobius: Adani had 'big problems' that put me off, but India still looks appealing
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( Jenni Reid | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Investor Mark Mobius was put off Adani's massive planned share sale because of concerns about the group's debt pile and exposure to political risk, he told CNBC Tuesday. So that's one of the big problems that I had," Mobius said. His firm, Mobius Capital Partners, focuses on emerging markets and India is one of its top allocations. Companies including Adani Enterprises, Adani Transmission, Adani Green Energy, Adani Power and Adani Total Gas have plummeted in value since then, with the group shedding more than $113 billion from its market value. On Feb. 1, Adani called off a fully subscribed $2.5 billion sale of Adani Enterprises shares, citing the stock price movements.

☆ Britain sets out plans to regulate crypto industry in wake of FTX collapse
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-01 | by ( Ryan Browne | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

In a widely-anticipated industry consultation launched Tuesday, the government proposed a number of measures aimed at bringing regulation of crypto asset businesses in line with that of traditional financial firms. A big theme that emerged in 2022 was the rise of risky loans made between multiple crypto firms and a lack of due diligence done on the counterparties involved in those transactions. The collapse of FTX has added urgency to global regulators' attempts to govern the regulation-averse crypto space. The regulatory move comes as crypto firms in both the U.K. and beyond are feeling the chill of a deep downturn known as "crypto winter." Global crypto hub ambitionsThe U.K. wants to become a leader in crypto and blockchain technology on the global stage.

☆ Russia, South Africa and a 'redesigned global order': The Kremlin's hearts and minds machine is steaming ahead
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Elliot Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov visited Pretoria as part of an African tour, his second since the invasion, which will also reportedly take him to Botswana, Angola and Eswatini. On Feb. 24 2022, shortly after the Ukraine invasion, South Africa urged Russia to immediately withdraw its forces from Ukraine. South Africa was one of 15 African nations to abstain from the subsequent U.N. vote in March to condemn Russia's war of aggression. watch nowShe emphasized the multilateral responsibilities of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) bloc of leading emerging economies in a changing global landscape. White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Monday that "the United States has concerns about any country … exercising with Russia as Russia wages a brutal war against Ukraine."

Walmart said Tuesday it would raise the average hourly wage of its associates to more than $17.50 an hour — up from about $17 an hour. A Walmart representative also told CNBC Tuesday that its overall minimum wage would climb to $14 an hour, a roughly 17% jump for workers who stock shelves and serve customers. The range of salaries for store employees will also climb to between $14 and $19 an hour, from $12 and $18 an hour. About 340,000 store employees will get a raise, representing 21% of Walmart’s 1.6 million U.S. employees. "The labor market for most workers cooled somewhat over 2022, but it’s still hot," he said.

☆ Walmart will increase minimum wage for all employees to $14 per hour
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( Ben Tobin | Dominick Reuter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Walmart will raise the minimum wage for store employees to $14 an hour in March, a source tells Insider. The Bentonville, Arkansas-based retailer's current minimum wage is $12 per hour, set in 2021. The current minimum wage is $12 an hour. The company posted a memo Tuesday saying that wages would increase and the average US employee's pay would be $17.50 per hour. A company spokesperson confirmed to the Wall Street Journal and CNBC Tuesday that the minimum wage would increase, and that store employees will make between $14 an hour and $19 an hour starting in March.

☆ ECB's Centeno projects 'a few' more rate hikes in the next couple of meetings 'at least'
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( Silvia Amaro | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

DAVOS, Switzerland — There will be "at least" a few more rate hikes in the next couple of meetings, an ECB member told CNBC Tuesday. December inflation came in at 9.2% in the euro zone, according to preliminary numbers. "We have and can expect a few more rate hikes in the next couple of meetings at least," Mario Centeno, Governor of the Bank of Portugal, said in Davos. The latest ECB projections suggest a growth rate of 0.5% for the euro zone in 2023, followed by 1.9% in 2024. Economists have become more positive on the euro zone outlook in recent weeks.

☆ IMF chief: Growth will bottom out in 2023 and bounce back next year
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( Hannah Ward-Glenton | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Managing Director of International Monetary Fund IMF Kristalina Georgieva attends a session during the World Economic Forum WEF 2022 Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland, May 25, 2022. The International Monetary Fund's Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva told CNBC Tuesday that the days of her institution giving regular global growth downgrades are nearly over. "I don't see a downgrade now, but growth in 2023 will slow down," Georgieva said at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. The International Monetary Fund has downgraded its growth forecast three times since October 2021. "The China growth rates are not going to return to the days when China delivered about 40% of global growth, this is not going to happen," Georgieva said, with the country having experienced below-average growth for the first time in 40 years in 2022.

☆ Amazon’s Buy with Prime is a positive step, but the stock is still expensive
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( Paulina Likos | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

However, the Club holding's stock is still expensive, a high multiple compared to the broader stock market. The service allows Amazon Prime members the ability to shop directly on other retailers' websites , in turn helping those outlets to tap into Prime's roughly 200 million members. The company said it expects Buy with Prime to increase shopper conversion from browsing to buying by around 25%. Buy with Prime "allows merchants to build customer relationships and brand loyalty while offering conversion-driving benefits," Amazon said in a statement. While this is a move in the right direction, it's not enough to make Amazon stock look cheaper.

☆ Wall Street is bullish on this chip giant, with Morgan Stanley giving it 55% upside
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-04 | by ( Weizhen Tan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The once-hot chip sector was hit hard in 2022, with the PHLX Semiconductor Sector Index falling around 37% over the year. And one name keeps coming up as a top pick: Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC). But analysts overall remain positive, with 90% of those covering the stock giving it a buy rating, according to FactSet, and average price target upside of 37%. Morgan Stanley also named TSMC as a top pick in a December note, giving it a price target of $700, or upside of 55%. It explained that the semiconductor industry must continue to invest at a high level in order to achieve future growth, however "investment efficiency" has deteriorated.

☆ Moderna says personalized mRNA cancer vaccine is effective for advanced melanoma
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-13 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

The company said a possible melanoma vaccine it is studying with pharmaceutical giant Merck fared well in a small study of patients who had the cancer surgically removed. The drugmakers said a combination of the vaccine and Merck’s immunotherapy Keytruda led to a statistically significant improvement in survival before the cancer returned in patients with advanced melanoma. “We are very excited, we are moving very quickly with Merck onto phase 3 for this study,” Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel told CNBC Tuesday morning. Like Spikevax, the potential skin cancer vaccine uses mRNA technology. The patient group that took the potential vaccine and Keytruda saw a 44% reduction in the risk of death or the cancer returning, the companies said.

☆ Some crypto backers are purposely taking a 'very dangerous path,' EU regulator says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( Silvia Amaro | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

BRUSSELS — Some market players are purposely avoiding regulation in the crypto space, the EU's top regulator told CNBC as she called for a global approach to protect retail investors. The European Union agreed in June on the Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation. However, she added that some crypto players are choosing to, and are fundamentally against, stricter rules. "Some of those who were involved in crypto, from the very outset, were doing it because they didn't want to be part of the regulated, managed system. Recent crises in the crypto world have clearly exposed the risks for consumers.

☆ Jamie Dimon sounds off on the economy, Fed, and crypto
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

There are few top executives who draw as much attention and speak as freely as Jamie Dimon, the CEO of JPMorgan. "Inflation is eroding everything…and that $1.5 trillion will run out sometime mid-year next year," Dimon said. Never one to mince words, Dimon then blasted the cryptocurrency sector when asked what he thought of the FTX collapse. Meanwhile, days after the EU's $60 per barrel price cap kicked in, oil prices slumped to levels not seen since before the invasion of Ukraine. There's been much debate about how the measure will alter oil prices moving forward — but PIMCO commodities strategist Greg Sharenow said it's going to come down to three factors.

☆ United CEO says business travel has 'plateaued' but revenue is still rising
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Leslie Josephs | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Business travel demand has "plateaued" but revenue continues to rise thanks to strong demand and capacity constraints, United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby told CNBC Tuesday. Major companies, many in tech, have announced plans to cut back on spending, like business travel, or even lay off workers. San Francisco is one of United's major hubs, along with Newark, New Jersey, Houston, Washington D.C. and its home base of Chicago. "It feels like business travel, and this probably is indicative of pre-recessionary kind of behavior, has plateaued even though our total revenues are still going up," Kirby said in an interview with CNBC's "Squawk Box."

☆ GM continues to evaluate Twitter advertising suspension following Musk takeover
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Michael Wayland | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

General Motors continues to monitor Twitter and evaluate its decision to suspend advertising on the social media platform following Elon Musk's takeover of the company, CEO Mary Barra told CNBC Tuesday. Barra said that the automaker's decision to suspend advertising in October was in part an effort to protect its brands but was also influenced by the fact that Musk's electric vehicle company, Tesla , is a competitor to GM. So, we want to make sure our advertising strategies are kept confidential." Under Barra, GM has announced billions of dollars in spending to better compete against Tesla in the battery electric vehicle segment. Automakers such as GM have worked with Twitter and other social media platforms on advertising campaigns as well as new vehicle unveilings and launches.

☆ The S&P 500 could drop 24% within months as earnings gloom reaches a crescendo, Morgan Stanley's top stock picker warns
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-30 | by ( George Glover | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The S&P 500 could fall 24% from current levels in early 2023, Morgan Stanley's Mike Wilson predicted. Companies will downgrade their earnings targets and that will drive a selloff in US stocks, he said. The S&P 500 has plunged 17% plunge year-to-date as concerns about recession, the Federal Reserve's aggressive interest rate hikes and Russia's invasion of Ukraine have rattled investors' confidence. Lower earnings could cause major pain for larger-cap stocks, Wilson said. Read more: The S&P 500 is likely to bottom out early next year in a 'terrific buying opportunity' for investors, Morgan Stanley says

☆ Energy markets are facing 'one or two years of extreme volatility,' Enel CEO says
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( Anmar Frangoul | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Europe's energy markets have experienced turbulence in recent months. The CEO of Italian power firm Enel told CNBC Tuesday that turbulence in energy markets was likely to persist for some time. "The turbulence we're going to have will remain — it might change a little bit, the pattern, but we're looking at one or two years of extreme volatility in the energy markets," he added. Russia was the biggest supplier of both natural gas and petroleum oils to the EU in 2021, but gas exports from Russia to the European Union have slid this year. "In the current context, the complete shutdown of Russian pipeline gas supplies to the European Union cannot be excluded ahead of the 2022/23 heating season — when the European gas market is at its most vulnerable."

☆ Euro zone predicted to have a deep recession and a difficult, slow recovery
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Silvia Amaro | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The euro zone economy is heading towards a recession, according to several economists. Daniel Roland | Afp | Getty ImagesThe euro zone is expected to plunge into recession in the coming months with economists warning "it will not be shallow." The 19-member zone that shares the euro currency has been under significant pressure since Russia's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine in February. Speaking earlier this month, ECB President Christine Lagarde highlighted that "the risk of recession has increased." Gas storageEven if the euro zone emerges out of recession in the first quarter of next year, economists say the subsequent months will still be hard.

☆ EU could impose sanctions on Iran in a few days over alleged drone supplies to Russia, sources say
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( Silvia Amaro | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Ukraine has blamed Iran for providing Russia with drones, which have been used to attack Kyiv in recent days. The European Union could impose new sanctions on Iran "in a matter of days" following further investigations into whether it helped Russia in its war in Ukraine, two sources told CNBC Tuesday. Ukraine has blamed Tehran for providing Russia with drones, which have been used to attack Kyiv in recent days. According to the Kyiv City State Administration, 28 drones have been used to attack the Ukrainian capital, with five of them contributing to explosions in the city on Monday. The U.S. has also said that Iranian drones were used in attacks in Kyiv on that same day.

☆ What recession? JPMorgan is growing headcount and standing firm on its plans to spend big on tech despite its own CEO's recession warnings.
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-14 | by ( Carter Johnson | Emmalyse Brownstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon sounded the recession alarm earlier this week, saying he sees one in 6 to 9 months. But on Friday, the bank said it's growing headcount and moving forward with aggressive spending plans. But notable among JPMorgan's financial figures was headcount growth. This quarter, headcount overall at the bank was 9% higher than the same time last year, at roughly 288,000 employees worldwide. The growth in employees at JPMorgan came in contrast to Wells Fargo, which also reported earnings Friday.

☆ Bitcoin holds steady at $19,000 amid growing signs of institutional adoption
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-11 | by ( Tanaya Macheel | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Bitcoin on Tuesday floated at the $19,000 level, where it has remained for about a month with some momentary breaks. The largest cryptocurrency by market cap, whose volatility has been uncharacteristically low in recent weeks, was last lower by 0.7% at $19,074.31, according to Coin Metrics. Crypto prices remain depressed, with bitcoin off its all-time high from nearly a year ago by more than 70%. Though recent bitcoin volatility is low compared with stocks, the correlation between the two is still high. Prices held steady even after two big announcements signaling that institutional acceptance and adoption of crypto continues to build in spite of the bear market.

☆ Reverse Currency War: Why central banks are trying to play catch-up with a record dollar and a hawkish Fed
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-28 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

A reverse currency war is underway, with central banks around the world struggling to keep pace with an aggressive Fed and a soaring dollar that's climbing like it's got somewhere better to be. Rather than trying to devalue currencies like in traditional "currency wars," policymakers are doing the reverse in trying to engineer gains. The thinking behind a reverse currency war goes something like this: Central banks want to make their currencies stronger — via monetary policy tightening — so that the US dollar doesn't leave them in the dust. And with central banks focused on monetary tightening, these reverse currency wars raise the odds of a widespread economic downturn. Last week's rate-hike blitz showed that central banks will trigger a downturn, the asset manager said.

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