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☆ UK strikes set to escalate as nurses prepare for ‘unprecedented’ walkout
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( Anna Cooban | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

“It is pretty unprecedented,” Billy Palmer, senior fellow at Nuffield Trust, a health research firm, told CNN. While small pockets of nursing staff have walked out before, the country’s National Health Service has seen “nothing of this scale until now,” he added. ‘Enough is enough’Earlier this year, the RCN rejected an offer by the government to increase nurses’ pay by a minimum of £1,400 ($1,707) a year. Each additional 1% pay rise for nursing staff would cost the government around £700 million ($854 million), he added. Internationally, it is hard to compare UK nurses’ pay, given health care systems differ significantly between countries, but it falls somewhere in the middle of the range of comparable economies, Palmer said.

☆ Pentagon Reviews Munitions Needs as Ukraine Drains Stocks
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Doug Cameron | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The Pentagon is reassessing the U.S.’s stockpile of missiles, artillery shells and other munitions in light of the huge quantities consumed in fighting in Ukraine this year, and could find the U.S. needs to keep less ammunition in its arsenal because the Russians have fired so much of theirs, defense officials said. The sheer quantity of U.S.-made munitions that Ukrainian forces have shot at the Russians has stretched U.S. stocks and worn out howitzer barrels, military officials and company executives said. It has brought to the fore years of underinvestment in munitions manufacturing and purchasing, which the Pentagon said it aims to reverse.

☆ GameStop reports decline in revenue and sharp decrease in cash
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( Lillian Rizzo | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

A screen displays the logo and trading information for GameStop on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) March 29, 2022. GameStop said Wednesday its fiscal third quarter sales declined and its cash pile sharply dwindled, as the brick-and-mortar retailer has been working to expand its digital presence. The company's cash and cash equivalents fell to nearly $804 million from approximately $1.4 billion a year earlier. GameStop has been working to become profitable and revamp its brick-and-mortar retail business, after what executives have said were years of underinvestment. GameStop said last month that it had ended its partnership with FTX, after the crypto exchange filed for bankruptcy.

Following Monday's trade, Jim Cramer's Charitable Trust will own 2,225 shares of Halliburton, decreasing its weighting in the portfolio to about 3% from 3.38%. Energy stocks are early outperformers Monday, trading slightly higher at the initial open despite broad weakness in equity markets. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude — the U.S. oil benchmark — has climbed more than 5% over the past week, trading at roughly $81 a barrel in midmorning trading Monday. The latter stock in particular has climbed significantly over the past few months, rallying from roughly $25 a share in late September, to $38.45 a share as of Monday morning. Jim waits 45 minutes after sending a trade alert before buying or selling a stock in his charitable trust's portfolio.

☆ Community health groups that played crucial role during Covid-19 pandemic say they’re being left out of government funding
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-28 | by ( Elizabeth Cohen Lauren Mascarenhas | Elizabeth Cohen | Lauren Mascarenhas | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +13 min

“A lot of times, the funding streams have names that say ‘community,’ ‘community-based organizations’ or ‘community health workers,’ but the funding often goes to states and doesn’t end up helping at a grass-roots level,” said Denise Smith, executive director of the National Association of Community Health Workers. “HRSA strongly values the critical role that community health workers play – and can increasingly play – in supporting the health and well-being of communities. “Community health workers are frontline public health workers who are trusted members of the community they serve. The group’s promotores de salud, or community health workers, encouraged vaccination and set up a hotline to distribute accurate information about the virus. “Grantees will be able to hire community health workers, as needed and appropriate,” said Nordlund, the CDC spokesperson.

☆ "We're still early days in this downturn": A portfolio manager at Lazard reveals the 3 asset classes that will provide investors with the steadiest returns as recession fears mount — and shares 3 high
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-28 | by ( Lisa Kailai Han | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

But in a year like 2022 when stocks are down, real assets can suddenly look a lot more attractive to investors. On the other hand, real estate has been a relatively weak performer this year due to its inverse correlation with interest rates. Year-to-date the Lazard Real Assets fund is beating 85% of its peers, down 5.7% versus its category average of a negative 12% return. "It's gone from a second-class in the real estate space to now an integral part of the supply chain," he explained. Finally, in the infrastructure space McGoey highlighted Targa Resources (TRGP) as a key midstream player.

POLITICAL TALKSFollowing oil sanctions on Venezuela in 2019, Chevron received an exemption to trade its Venezuelan crude to recoup pending debts. Chevron's four PDVSA joint ventures produced about 200,000 barrels per day of crude oil and exported the crude around the world prior to the sanctions. It also allows the U.S. company to import supplies to help process the country's crude oil into exportable grades. That limits any wider expansion of Venezuelan oil production. Chevron and other U.S. oil refiners could benefit from supplies of Venezuela's heavy crude flowing to their U.S. Gulf Coast processing plants.

TERMS OF THE LICENSEThe terms readied for approval will prevent Venezuela's state-run oil firm PDVSA from receiving proceeds from Chevron's oil sales. And they will "the use of corrupt shadow firms that control the flow of Venezuela oil to countries like China," said a person familiar with the matter in Washington. The United States this year has kept oil prices from soaring by releasing more than 200 million barrels of the nation's emergency oil reserves. Chevron is a partner with PDVSA in several oil joint ventures that pump and process crude oil for export. Following oil sanctions on Venezuela in 2019, Chevron got an exemption to trade its Venezuelan crude to recoup billions of dollars in pending debt.

☆ Meme-stock billionaire Ryan Cohen explains why he bet on GameStop and dumped Bed Bath & Beyond in a new interview. Here are the 10 best quotes.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( Theron Mohamed | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Ryan Cohen reflected on his GameStop bet and explained his sudden sale of Bed Bath & Beyond stock. Chewy's billionaire cofounder emphasized the impact of higher interest rates on investors. "Higher interest rates are a game changer. "Before, you had 0% interest rates so there really was no discount rate, and there really wasn't much of a difference between long-term cash flows and short-term cash flows. Now you have a real discount rate, you've got the 10-year Treasury north of 4%, so the value of short-term cash flows is much greater than long-term cash flows."

☆ U.S. export restrictions of powerful chips to China hurt now, but should prove bullish long term
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-21 | by ( Zev Fima | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

The advanced chips are what we want to focus on as those represent the big risk to the current world order should they fall into the wrong hands. As a result, it is simply too risky to allow China to continually gain an increasing controlling position over the semiconductor manufacturing process. For this reason, we think that as painful as it may be in the near term, the U.S. isn't wrong to block advancement in China. Lastly, don't forget, thanks to the latest restrictions, U.S. citizens risk losing their citizenship should they choose to help China pursue its advanced chip production goals. Along with these defensive actions, we are pleased to see more domestic support for the semiconductor industry.

☆ A top-performing fund manager who warned of a huge collapse for stocks 6 months ago shares why he changed his tune and became bullish — and where he's investing now
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-18 | by ( James Faris | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Salem Abraham, whose fund is in the top 9% of its category in 2022, is now bullish on stocks. But according to the manager of the Abraham Fortress Fund (FORTX), which is in the top 9% of its category in 2022, those worries are overblown. However, now that inflation is slowing down it would be a mistake for the Fed to raise interest rates too far, Abraham said. That explains why Argentina, which has struggled with hyperinflation for years, has seen its stock market grow instead of collapsing under the weight of higher prices, Abraham said. "The game of interest rates is run by central bankers.

☆ Recession-shy investors can turn to capital cycle
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-10 | by ( Edward Chancellor | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

But another factor is the capital cycle: the amount of investment entering or exiting an industry. Capital spending by energy firms and miners has declined since the investment boom peaked in the middle of the last decade. Capital spending by large European oil companies has fallen from more than twice depreciation in the mid-2010s to less than one times, according to Bernstein. A similar picture emerges in the mining industry, whose capital spending boom also ended around eight years ago. Freeport-McMoRan (FCX.N), one of the world’s largest copper producers, cut capital spending from $7.2 billion in 2014 to $2.1 billion last year.

We are restricted from trading nearly every tech stock in the portfolio Thursday so unfortunately there's not a lot we can do right now for the Club portfolio. Our approach Thursday would be to pick one or two of our tech stocks that are up significantly and only lightly trim. As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade. Jim waits 45 minutes after sending a trade alert before buying or selling a stock in his charitable trust's portfolio. THE ABOVE INVESTING CLUB INFORMATION IS SUBJECT TO OUR TERMS AND CONDITIONS AND PRIVACY POLICY , TOGETHER WITH OUR DISCLAIMER .

How Putin and Friends Stalled Climate Progress A handful of powerful world leaders rallied around Russia and undercut global cooperation. Mr. Putin has gained from this as the increasingly autocratic Mr. Xi finds common cause with the Kremlin. “Much depends on whether authoritarian leaders perceive climate action to be in their self-interest.”Though their actions help Mr. Putin, their track records on climate are mixed. Mr. Xi called Mr. Putin his “best friend.”He was returning the favor from a year earlier, when Mr. Putin hosted Mr. Xi at the Grand Kremlin Palace and awarded him one of Russia’s highest medals for foreign dignitaries. At a news conference with Mr. Putin, Mr. Bolsonaro thanked his “dear friend,” saying that Mr. Putin had offered him support when other world leaders were criticizing his Amazon policy.

☆ Brazil's Petrobras to pay out $8.5 billion dividend amid squabble
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

SAO PAULO, Nov 3 (Reuters) - Brazilian state-run oil company Petrobras (PETR4.SA) will distribute dividends of around 43.68 billion reais ($8.5 billion) on its third quarter results, the firm said on Thursday, amid controversy over its massive payouts. Exxon has said it will pay dividends of $3.7 billion, while the other four firms will pay out a figure between $1.14 billion and $2.7 billion, according to data compiled by Reuters. Nearly all global oil majors have reported blockbuster profits this quarter, helped by surging oil prices. Workers' Party head Gleisi Hoffmann wrote on Twitter before the latest dividend was revealed that the payout policy "deprives the company of its investment capacity and only enriches shareholders." They say that while the company paid roughly 130 billion reais in dividends in the first six months of the year, investments made during the same period total only 17 billion reais.

☆ OPEC raises long-term oil demand view, calls for investment
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-31 | by ( Alex Lawler | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Summary OPEC raises 2030, 2045 oil demand forecastsMaintains view that oil demand will plateau after 2035Sees $12.1 trillion of oil investment needed to 2045ABU DHABI, Oct 31 (Reuters) - OPEC raised its forecasts for world oil demand in the medium-and longer-term in an annual outlook released on Monday and said$12.1 trillion of investment is needed to meet this demand despite the energy transition. Another decade of oil demand growth would be a boost for OPEC, whose 13 members depend on oil income. In the report, OPEC maintained its view that world demand will plateau after 2035.Other predictions from companies and banks see oil demand peaking earlier. ENERGY SECURITY DEMAND BOOSTThe report said world oil demand will reach 103 million barrels per day in 2023, up 2.7 million bpd from 2022. By 2030, OPEC sees world demand averaging 108.3 million bpd, up from 2021, and lifted its 2045 figure to 109.8 million bpd from 108.2 million bpd in 2021.

[1/3] A helmet with logo of Saudi Aramco is pictured at the oil facility in Abqaiq, Saudi Arabia October 12, 2019. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov/FilesRIYADH, Oct 26 (Reuters) - Oil giant Saudi Aramco launched a $1.5 billion fund to support an inclusive global energy transition on Wednesday while Saudi officials said the switch from hydrocarbons could take decades, necessitating continued investment in conventional resources. What we need is an optimal, realistic transition plan," Aramco CEO Amin Nasser told a business forum, where he announced the new fund managed by Aramco Ventures. Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed al-Jadaan told the FII gathering that thinking around the global energy transition has "now became more realistic that actually transition will take... possibly 30 years", and that conventional resources remained important to ensure security of supply. Saudi sovereign wealth fund the Public Investment Fund (PIF) has established five regional investment companies in Jordan, Bahrain, Sudan, Iraq and Oman, PIF said on Wednesday, following a similar move for an investment subsidiary in Egypt.

☆ Saudi Aramco says its energy transition is not delivering and launches a $1.5 billion fund for a more 'realistic' plan
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( Brian Evans | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Saudi Arabia's state-run oil giant is investing $1.5 billion in a new energy transition plan. Saudi Aramco's CEO Amin Nasser said the current framework is "flawed." Saudi Aramco chief executive Amin Nasser told a business conference Wednesday that the current framework in place "is not really delivering," while promoting "an optimal, realistic transition plan." The plan falls in line with the Kingdom's efforts to strengthen its green energy investments, and the Kingdom last year announced a goal of net zero emissions by 2060. Meanwhile Mohammed al-Jadaan, Saudi Arabia's finance minister, told the conference that the thinking around a plan to transition away from fossil fuels has "now became more realistic that actually transition will take... possibly 30 years."

☆ Halliburton's upgrade on the back of its earnings beat highlights our investment case
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( Kevin Stankiewicz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

That's something Wells Fargo also referenced, contending it should result in higher margins at Halliburton and other energy services firms. The turning tide for oil prices has helped support stock prices across the industry. And for the likes of Pioneer, Devon and Coterra, sizable cash returns through dividends and buybacks sweeten the investment case. As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade. Jim waits 45 minutes after sending a trade alert before buying or selling a stock in his charitable trust's portfolio.

☆ Here's how midterm elections could make or break the stock market
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-25 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

All that, plus there's the fast-approaching midterm elections that hold plenty more implications for investors. Historically, stocks shoot higher after midterm elections. Basically, the market usually reacts to midterms well because they are predictable in the sense that politicians can't make radical legislative changes. Attention stock market investors: The Fed could keep rates elevated for up to a year. Goldman Sachs detailed how to invest in each stock-market sector to best protect your portfolio from inflation and higher interest rates.

☆ Halliburton's earnings beat points to more upside for one of our key energy stocks
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-25 | by ( Zev Fima | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Total revenue climbed by 39% year-over-year to $5.36 billion, beating analysts' forecasts of $5.34 billion in sales. Operating margin: 16%, an increase of 393 basis points year-over-year. Operating income for completion and production: $583 million, up more than 80% year-over-year and ahead of a consensus estimate of $555 million, with the operating margin expanding 350 basis points year-on-year and 150 basis points sequentially. Operating income for drilling and evaluation: $325 million, a nearly 75% jump compared to the same period last year, beating analysts' estimates of $304 million, with the operating margin expanding 380 basis points year-over-year and 140 basis points sequentially. Sales from drilling and evaluation are expected to increase by low-to-mid-single digits with margin improvement of 75 to 125 basis points.

☆ Investment has been pouring into technology in the agriculture space. How to play it
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( Carmen Reinicke | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

Even before the coronavirus pandemic hit in 2020, the agriculture industry was dealing with a number of headwinds, from hurricanes and poor planning disrupting crop growth cycles to the impact of retaliatory tariffs slashing exports. These issues have highlighted an immense need for investment in agriculture and specifically technology to improve the efficiency of the industry. Last year, Deere also purchased Bear Flag Robotics, a Silicon Valley agriculture technology startup that develops autonomous farm equipment, for $250 million. AGCO , an agricultural machinery manufacturer, has also made several investments or acquisitions in the last few years in new technology in the space. The agriculture company in September bought Symborg, a Spanish microbiological technologies firm that makes biostimulants and biofertilizers for many kinds of crops and agriculture systems that boost results.

☆ Oil could rise or fall — and these energy stocks are winners either way, portfolio manager says
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( Weizhen Tan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Whether oil prices rise or fall, energy stocks are still worth investing in, according to Foord Asset Management's Brian Arcese. Arcese, a portfolio manager at the firm, said he would be quite comfortable increasing the weight of energy stocks in his portfolio. "I think there are a lot of tailwinds for oil prices going forward," he told CNBC Pro Talks on Thursday. "Oil prices are likely to, at a minimum, stay where they are but they could go higher. Stock picks Arcese says he likes Occidental , a "great company [which] is highly geared to oil prices."

☆ There's still a bull case for the stock market even as inflation runs hot and rates rise
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( Carla Mozée | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Today we're also looking at one firm's view that there's still a bull case to be made for stocks, but its sitting on increasingly shaky ground. The upside case for stocks rests largely on two things: inflation and rates. DataTrek Research co-founder Nicholas Colas told clients this week that investors could propel stocks up heading into 2023. "TIPS and Fed Funds Futures prices do currently support the idea that in six months inflation will be dropping and Fed policy will be moving into neutral," Colas said. Individual investors have reduced net purchases of stocks in recent days following the September inflation shock.

☆ Here's where stocks and inflation could be headed next after the market's stunning reversal
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-14 | by ( Jason Ma | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Analysts at Barclays raised their forecasts on Fed rate hikes in December and February to 75 and 50 basis points, respectively. Any relief rally that takes hold in the stock market could send the S&P 500 to its first big resistance test around 3,914, Stockton added. High inflation reports could become the norm after more than a decade of sub-2% inflation readings, according to Bank of America. That's because underinvestment in energy production, sticky wage inflation, and aging demographics are set to drive structural inflation for years to come. There's reason to believe the stock market is close to its low point, according to RBC.

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