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☆ U.S. banks sink on concerns about office real estate loans
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-31 | by ( Sinéad Carew | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Investors worried about potential losses among banks from office real estate loans after comments from executives, including Wells Fargo & Co's (WFC.N) Chief Executive Officer Charlie Scharf and Blackstone President Jonathan Gray at a Sanford C Bernstein investor conference. Meanwhile, Blackstone's Gray talked about "unprecedented weakness" in older office buildings while noting that this segment currently makes up less than 2% of company's equity portfolio in real estate. Rick Meckler, partner, Cherry Lane Investments, a family investment office in New Vernon, New Jersey said "continued concern over loans made to the office market," was hurting bank stocks broadly on Wednesday, citing the Wells Fargo comments. "The implication is that there are those that will suffer even if Wells Fargo is diversified enough," Meckler said. KeyCorp, down 5.5%, was the biggest decliner in the S&P bank index, and Zions was next, down 4.9%.

Persons: Andrew Kelly, Wells, Charlie Scharf, Blackstone, Jonathan Gray, Sanford C, Wells Fargo's Scharf, Blackstone's Gray, Gray, Bernstein, Rick Meckler, Meckler, Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, Zions, Sinéad Carew, Mehnaz Yasmin, Nick Zieminski Organizations: Citibank, New York Stock Exchange, REUTERS, Banks, Investors, Buyers, Cherry Lane Investments, Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase &, Bank of America, Citizens Financial, Western Alliance Bancorp, PacWest Bancorp, Comerica, PNC Financial Services, Fifth Third Bancorp, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Thomson Locations: Manhattan , New York City, U.S, New Vernon , New Jersey, New York, Bengaluru

☆ Stephen Schwarzman says Blackstone has dumped office investments. Another corner of the firm kept lending billions.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-30 | by ( Daniel Geiger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Blackstone Mortgage Trust's $8.2 billion portfolio of office loans leaves it exposed to the sector. The Blackstone-managed firm issued about $3.3 billion of US office loans since the pandemic began. Even as clouds began to gather, Blackstone Mortgage Trust continued to lend to the office sector. In addition to managing the mortgage trust, Blackstone is among its largest shareholders. A Washington office complex shows how far values have fallenThere are ongoing issues, however, in Blackstone Mortgage Trust's portfolio.

☆ Trinidad and Tobago nears awards for onshore oil and gas exploration
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( Curtis Williams | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

May 29 (Reuters) - The Trinidad and Tobago government accepted bid recommendations for six of eight onshore oil and gas exploration blocks, people close to the matter said on Sunday, setting the stage for awards to be disclosed as soon as this week. The Caribbean nation has pushed to expand exploration to counter declines in its oil and gas production. A decision to award licenses was taken by the country's cabinet on Thursday on the recommendation of Trinidad and Tobago Energy Minister Stuart Young, the people said. Trinidad and Tobago's A&V Oil and Gas Ltd was recommended for the St. Mary’s block. The Aripero Block will go to Nabi Construction (Trinidad and Tobago) Ltd, while the Buenos Aires block is to be awarded to Trinity Exploration & Production Plc, the people said.

☆ Blackstone, the massive private-equity firm, just wants to be your friendly, neighborhood lender
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-25 | by ( Dan Defrancesco | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Your friendly neighborhood lender, BlackstoneWhat's the first thing that pops into your head when you think of a regional bank? Nouriel Roubini, the famed economist known as "Dr. Doom" isn't too optimistic about the future of regional banks. Never one to miss a chance to make money, Blackstone CEO Stephen Schwarzman said his firm can "fill the void" left by regional banks tightening up their lending activity. Regional banks happen to be one of the biggest lenders in commercial real estate. Doom' is feeling bearish on regional banks.

☆ Take a look at this sleek $3.7 million yacht that has 3 bedrooms and is perfect for Ibiza parties
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-21 | by ( Sam Tabahriti | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Yachting has long been a favorite pursuit of the rich and famous. Take a look inside the Princess Yachts S62, one of the vessels that was on display. From top business leaders and royals, to sports stars and Hollywood celebrities, yachting has long been a favorite pastime of the rich and famous. Whether it's Amazon founder Jeff Bezos' $500 million megayacht or Walmart heiress Nancy Walton Laurie's $300 million aquarium-equipped superyacht, the boats are bigger and flashier than ever. Take a look inside one of the yachts that was on display.

May 17 (Reuters) - Federal appeals court judges appeared to express support on Wednesday for opponents of the abortion pill mifepristone to pursue their challenge to its U.S. approval, which has potentially far-reaching consequences for abortion access across the country. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans to overturn last month's unprecedented ruling by U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk in Amarillo, Texas suspending mifepristone's approval. [1/2] A patient prepares to take Mifepristone, the first medication in a medical abortion, at Alamo Women's Clinic in Carbondale, Illinois, U.S., April 20, 2023. Circuit Judges James Ho and Wilson were appointed by Donald Trump. SAFE AND EFFECTIVEMifepristone remains available for now, following an emergency order from the U.S. Supreme Court putting Kacsmaryk's order on hold during the appeal.

[1/2] A patient prepares to take Mifepristone, the first medication in a medical abortion, at Alamo Women's Clinic in Carbondale, Illinois, U.S., April 20, 2023. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein/File PhotoMay 17 (Reuters) - U.S. appeals court judges began hearing arguments on Wednesday in a legal battle over the availability of the abortion pill mifepristone, with potentially far-reaching consequences for abortion access across the United States. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans to overturn last month's unprecedented ruling by U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk in Amarillo, Texas suspending mifepristone's approval. Danco Laboratories, which sells the drug under the brand name Mifeprex, is also expected to argue before the court. The emergency room doctors said they were being forced to complete surgical abortions, which was against their conscience, for women who took the pill and failed to complete a medical abortion.

[1/2] A patient prepares to take Mifepristone, the first medication in a medical abortion, at Alamo Women's Clinic in Carbondale, Illinois, U.S., April 20, 2023. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein/File PhotoMay 17 (Reuters) - A federal appeals court in New Orleans will hear arguments on Wednesday in a closely watched case brought by anti-abortion activists seeking to ban the abortion pill mifepristone, with potentially far-reaching impact on abortion access across the United States. Circuit Court of Appeals to overturn last month's unprecedented ruling by U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk in Amarillo, Texas suspending mifepristone's FDA approval. Mifepristone remains available for now, following an emergency order from the U.S. Supreme Court putting Kacsmaryk's order on hold during the appeal. Whichever way the 5th Circuit panel rules, the decision is sure to be appealed, first to the full court and then to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Circuit Court of Appeals panel that will hear the Biden administration's appeal to keep the abortion pill mifepristone on the market are staunchly conservative, with a record of opposing abortion rights. - In 2019, she co-authored a majority opinion for the full 5th Circuit that upheld a Texas law that effectively banned the most common abortion procedure for terminating second-trimester pregnancies. - Also in 2019, she wrote a majority panel 5th Circuit opinion invalidating the Affordable Care Act's mandate requiring individuals to purchase health insurance. - In 2019, he was part of a 5th Circuit panel that rejected Mississippi's 15-week abortion ban, but in a concurring opinion argued against the constitutional right to abortion. - In 2018, he voted to uphold a Texas law requiring burial or cremation of fetal remains.

☆ Watch CNBC's full interview with Northern Gritstone's Jim O'Neill on China's post-Covid rebound
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | 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 EmailWatch CNBC's full interview with Northern Gritstone's Jim O'Neill on China's post-Covid reboundJim O’Neill, former Goldman Sachs Asset Management chairman and chief economist and Northern Gritstone chairman, joins 'Squawk on the Street' to discuss the loss of momentum in China, if China's still long-term investible and more.

☆ 'The Time Traveller's Wife' musical to open in London
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Marie-Louise Gumuchian | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Evelyn HocksteinLONDON, May 15 (Reuters) - A musical based on hit novel “The Time Traveller's Wife” is coming to London’s West End this autumn in a new theatrical adaptation featuring music and lyrics by Grammy Award winners Dave Stewart and Joss Stone. “The Time Traveller's Wife: The Musical,” about the relationship between artist Clare and her husband Henry who has a genetic disorder causing him to travel through time, will open at the Apollo Theatre in November after premiering last year in the British city of Chester for a short run. The musical is based on U.S. author Audrey Niffenegger’s 2003 debut novel, which has previously been turned into a film and television series. Stewart, 70, and Stone, 36, have long collaborated together, but writing songs for a musical brought new challenges. While Stewart previously worked on a musical adaptation of the film "Ghost," "The Time Traveller's Wife" was Stone's first foray into writing songs for a musical.

☆ BlackRock is wrestling with who could succeed Larry Fink. Here's who's now in the running.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-12 | by ( Rebecca Ungarino | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Investment giant BlackRock has been planning for CEO Larry Fink's succession for years. Leadership has discussed BlackRock cofounder Susan Wagner as someone who could succeed Fink if the board does not have a clear candidate. For years, BlackRock has been planning for Chief Executive Larry Fink's succession, a torch-passing the industry has long speculated over. BlackRock has become shorthand for the intense backlash from primarily Republican lawmakers over sustainable investment strategies that Fink has championed as CEO. Goldstein, 49, is a BlackRock lifer and has been chief operating officer for nearly a decade.

May 8 (Reuters) - A case brought by anti-abortion groups seeking to ban the abortion pill mifepristone nationwide will be heard next week by a panel of three deeply conservative judges hostile to abortion rights, a federal appeals court revealed on Monday. Circuit Court of Appeals panel in New Orleans on May 17 to overturn a court order that suspended the federal government's approval of mifepristone. The U.S. Supreme Court put that order on hold, meaning that mifepristone remains available while the case is appealed. In 2021, Ho was in the majority in a 2-1 ruling refusing to block Texas's six-week abortion ban. Wilson, another Trump appointee, as a state legislator voted to ban abortion once fetal cardiac activity is detected, around six weeks.

REUTERS/Niharika Kulkarni/File PhotoBENGALURU/SINGAPORE, May 6 (Reuters) - Singapore state investor Temasek Holdings (TEM.UL) is considering investing $100 million in Indian jeweller BlueStone for a stake of about 20%, two sources with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters. The potential deal could boost BlueStone's plans to expand aggressively in India, the second-largest jewellery consuming nation behind China, as demand surges after the pandemic. BlueStone operates in a market that is dominated by thousands of small and large local independent jewellery stores, but also branded outlets like Titan Company-owned (TITN.NS) Tanishq and CaratLane, and Kalyan Jewellers (KALN.NS). While Temasek's interest in investing in Bluestone has been previously reported, Reuters is first to report details of an investment amount, the potential valuation and other financial details of the potential deal. BlueStone CEO Gaurav Kushwaha did not immediately respond to Reuters' request for comment, while Temasek declined to comment.

☆ Oliver Stone says you should be more worried about the climate crisis than the risks of using nuclear power
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Catherine Boudreau | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Oscar-wining director Oliver Stone released a documentary calling for more use of nuclear power. And nuclear power kills far fewer people than fossil fuels — the main cause of the climate crisis — in terms of air pollution and accidents. These events distorted the safety risks of nuclear energy, Stone argues, noting that beyond the 1986 Chernobyl disaster, few people have died from nuclear accidents. Stone told Insider he didn't know that Ralph Nader, who famously campaigned against nuclear power plants, described the documentary as a "propaganda boomerang." "I'd rather not," Stone told Insider.

☆ 'People would rather give up their left arm than their iPhone', says Guidestone's Spika on Apple
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

In this videoShare Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via Email'People would rather give up their left arm than their iPhone', says Guidestone's Spika on AppleDavid Spika, Guidestone Capital Management, joins 'Power Lunch' to talk his three stock picks for the day: JPMorgan, Apple, and Tesla.

☆ Wall Street's most important workers you've never thought of
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-02 | by ( Dan Defrancesco | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

And on Wall Street, where the volume of information continues to rise, application design and user interface is taking center stage. User interface and user experience have long been underappreciated in finance, which is ironic considering the public nature of the work. Read more about Citadel X, the $57 billion hedge fund's user experience and interface team. If you're still trying to understand the collapse of yet another regional bank, we've got you covered. The German bank is building out its investment bank as it eyes a potential return of M&A, the Financial Times reports.

☆ Oliver Stone's new movie makes the case nuclear power is the obvious solution to climate change
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-01 | by ( Catherine Clifford | In Catclifford | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Oliver Stone's new movie, "Nuclear Now," makes an impassioned case that nuclear energy is a necessary and obvious solution to climate change. People ought to be more afraid of climate change than nuclear energy, the movie argues. He started reading about climate change, including a review of the book "A Bright Future: How Some Countries Have Solved Climate Change and the Rest Can Follow" by Joshua S. Goldstein and Staffan A. Qvist. "This is a simple, practical, understandable argument for how to solve climate change from nuclear energy," Stone told CNBC on Friday. In the movie, Stone presents a case that the beneficial potential of nuclear energy has not been reached because society conflated its collective fear of nuclear bombs with nuclear energy.

☆ Historic Stone of Scone reaches London for King Charles' coronation
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/3] The Stone of Destiny is pictured inside Westminster Abbey during a welcome ceremony, in central London, Britain, April 29, 2023. Susannah Ireland/Pool via REUTERSLONDON, April 29 (Reuters) - The Stone of Scone, the coronation stone upon which monarchs in Britain have been crowned for centuries, reached London on Saturday after a journey from Scotland in a special carrier made from Scottish oak, ahead of King Charles' coronation next week. Westminster Abbey held a service on Saturday evening to mark its arrival there, the church said in a statement. "(The stone) now comes again to this place by command of King Charles III as an act of unity and a symbol of friendship," Joseph Morrow, the heraldic authority for Scotland, said at the service. However, it was officially moved to Scotland on a permanent basis in 1996 and will return there after Charles' coronation.

☆ Historic Stone of Scone moved to London for King Charles' coronation
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] The Stone of Destiny lies in Edinburgh Castle before onward transportation to Westminster Abbey for the Coronation of King Charles III, in Edinburgh, Scotland, Britain April 27, 2023. REUTERS/Russell Cheyne/PoolLONDON, April 28 (Reuters) - The historic Stone of Scone, the ancient coronation stone upon which monarchs in Britain have been crowned for centuries, has left Scotland for London under tight security ahead of next week's coronation of King Charles III, officials said on Friday. England's King Edward I seized the stone from the Scots in 1296, and it was incorporated into the Coronation Chair he ordered in 1308 for London's Westminster Abbey. That chair has since been used in the coronation ceremonies of English and British monarchs since Henry IV in 1399. However, it was officially moved to Scotland on a permanent basis in 1996 and will return there after Charles' coronation.

Circuit Court of Appeals, called the April 7 order by U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk "abrupt and profoundly disruptive." The 5th Circuit is preparing to hear May 17 arguments on the matter after the U.S. Supreme Court last week put on hold Kacsmaryk's order. Danco Laboratories, which manufactures the brand-name version of the drug, was due to make a separate filing with the 5th Circuit. A panel of three 5th Circuit judges is scheduled to hear arguments on whether to uphold Kacsmaryk's order. The 5th Circuit has a conservative reputation, with 12 of its 16 active judges appointed by Republican presidents.

☆ Wolves earn vital points in battle against drop
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Victory put Wolves nine points clear of the bottom three places, joining Palace on 37 points and ended Hodgson’s run of three wins and a draw since returning to Palace in the wake of Patrick Vieira’s sacking last month. But it was largely a nervy night for the fans as Palace threatened to fight their way back into the game and dominated many of the exchanges. But Lokonga was firmly on his feet when he struck a point-blank shot on target five minutes before halftime, only to see the effort saved by diving Wolves keeper Jose Sa. Neves hit the resultant spot kick into the corner of the net to wrap up the win. Writing by Mark Gleeson in Cape Town; Editing by Clare FallonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Remote work is 'bullshit,' says real-estate billionaire Sam Zell, to cheers from fellow execs who profit from offices
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-23 | by ( Alex Nicoll | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Sam Zell said at a conference last week that remote work is "a bunch of bullshit." Office doomers abound, but real estate professionals t hink they just don't get it. Sam Zell, the notorious "Grave Dancer" of commercial real estate known for his salty tongue, is always happy to have a platform. He was in a cheeky mood, at least when the conversation turned to today's third-rail of commercial real estate: office properties abandoned by remote workers. The trend and dire outlook had real estate giant Brookfield defaulting on a loan tied to offices this month for the second time this year.

However the 5th Circuit rules, the case will likely continue for months or years. HOW DID THE CASE GET TO THE 5TH CIRCUIT? WHAT COULD THE 5TH CIRCUIT DO? No matter what the court does, the losing party will have a chance to appeal to the full 5th Circuit and then to the U.S. Supreme Court. Once it does come, the losing side will again have the chance to appeal to the 5th Circuit and, eventually, the Supreme Court.

HOW DID THE CASE GET TO THE SUPREME COURT? The Biden administration and Danco immediately asked the Supreme Court to overrule the 5th Circuit and impose an emergency stay. WHAT DID THE SUPREME COURT DO? The injunction was not at issue before the Supreme Court, and remains in effect. Once it does come, the losing side will again have the chance to appeal to the 5th Circuit and, eventually, the Supreme Court.

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