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☆ Vertical farming: This GigaFarm in Dubai’s desert could produce 3 million kilograms of food
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-14 | by ( Rebecca Cairns | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

CNN —In 2022, Dubai unveiled the world’s largest vertical farm. Intelligent Growth Solutions (IGS)“Not just another vertical farm”GigaFarm’s vertical farming solution is supplied by IGS, a Scottish company founded in 2013. “This is not just another vertical farm, this is something completely different,” says Lloyd, adding that the recycling model could be applied to any urban area. And it’s not just the UAE that’s interested in vertical farming: Qatar is investing heavily in smart farming, and agritech companies are expanding into Saudi Arabia. However, it will take another decade before we see widespread adoption of vertical farming, and more research is required to increase the number of crops that can be grown, Sharma adds.

Persons: Dubai’s Al, it’s, Oliver Christof, “, Andrew Lloyd, you’ve, ”, Lloyd, AeroFarms, Lloyd —, It’s, ReFarm, Rohit Sharma, Sharma Organizations: CNN, Dubai’s Al Maktoum International Airport, UAE, UN, IGS, University of Wollongong Locations: Dubai, Dubai’s, Dubai’s Al Maktoum, Tech, Scottish, Abu Dhabi, UAE, Ukraine, Russia, Carrefour, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, East, Africa

☆ India banned TikTok overnight but 200 million people learned to live without it
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-14 | by ( Diksha Madhok | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

On Wednesday, the US House of Representatives passed a bill that could lead to a nationwide TikTok ban. While the Chinese-owned app is not disappearing from Americans’ phones anytime soon, many of its 170 million users in the country are deeply rattled. “[Former] US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had welcomed the ban, saying it ‘will boost India’s sovereignty.’”While India’s abrupt decision shocked the country’s 200 million TikTok users, in the four years since, many have found other suitable alternatives. Within a week of the ban, Meta-owned Instagram cashed in by launching its TikTok copycat, Instagram Reels, in India. According to Ray, Indian content creators swiftly moved all the old content they had shot for TikTok to Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts.

Persons: TikTok, ”, Nikhil Pahwa, Mike Pompeo, TikTokkers, Saptarshi Ray, Instagram, Moj, Ray, Clyde Fernandes, Vivan Sharan, ” Sharan, “ Organizations: New, New Delhi CNN, India, Google, YouTube, Oxford, Advisory Locations: New Delhi, United States, India, China, Delhi, American, Bengaluru, Opraahfx, Beijing

☆ Wholesale inflation rose 0.6% in February, much more than expected
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-14 | by ( Jeff Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Wholesale prices accelerated at a faster-than-expected pace in February, another reminder that inflation remains a troublesome issue for the U.S. economy. The producer price index, which measures pipeline costs for raw, intermediate and finished goods, jumped 0.6% on the month, the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Thursday. That was higher than the 0.3% forecast from Dow Jones and comes after a 0.3% increase in January. Another measure that also excludes trade services rose 0.4%, compared with the 0.6% gain in January, and was above the estimate for a 0.2% advance. The PPI is considered a leading indicator for inflation as it indicates costs early in the supply chain.

Persons: Dow Jones Organizations: Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics, Dow, Futures, Commerce Department, Labor Department, PPI, BLS, CPI Locations: U.S

☆ Oil prices up on strong U.S. demand, Fed signals in focus
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-13 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Oil prices rose on Wednesday on expectations of strong global demand, including in the world's top consumer the United States, and as even somewhat sticky U.S. inflation did not dent expectations the Fed might start cutting rates soon. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, or OPEC, stuck to its forecast of a strong oil demand growth globally of 2.25 million barrels per day (bpd) in 2024 and by 1.85 million bpd in 2025 and raised its economic growth forecast for this year. In another indication of healthy demand, U.S. crude oil inventories and fuel inventories fell last week, according to market sources citing American Petroleum Institute figures. Lower rates support oil demand. Oil prices were under pressure in the previous session after the U.S. Energy Information Administration raised domestic oil output forecast but declines were limited on expectations that OPEC+ output cuts will still slow global oil growth and on the recent wave of drone attacks on Russia, including refineries.

Persons: Brent Organizations: West Texas, of, Petroleum, American Petroleum Institute, Reserve, U.S . Energy, Administration Locations: Taft, Kern County , California, United States, Russia

☆ ‘Two sessions’: China’s key political gathering gets underway as leaders try to repair broken economic confidence
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-04 | by ( Simone Mccarthy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Xi is under the spotlight as economic pain has sparked growing frustration within China. Xi has also overseen a political shakeup in his own ranks, further marring the start of the new term. Those challenges may not pose a threat to Xi, who is China’s most powerful and authoritative leader in decades. But the two sessions provide an important platform for China’s notoriously opaque government to broadcast its strategy for economic, social and foreign policies and announce key indicators including China’s economic growth target, its budget deficit limit and military spending for the coming year. Analysts widely expect Li to reveal a relatively ambitious growth target of “around 5%,” showing that policymakers are still focused on economic growth, even as challenges pile up.

Persons: —, Xi Jinping, Xi, ”, Chen Gang, Li Qiang, It’s, Xuezhi Guo, Guo, Wang Yi, Qin Gang, Li Shangfu, Li, Qin, Pedro Pardo, Neil Thomas, Premier Li, Asia Society’s Thomas, “ Organizations: Beijing CNN —, Communist, National University of Singapore’s East Asian Institute, Getty, of, National People’s, Guilford College, Observers, Washington, Asia Society, Center for Locations: China, Beijing, Chongqing, AFP, Taiwan, China's, Henan, Center for China, Asia

☆ Woman Could Have Prevented Great Recession; Ignored by Wall Street Men
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-04 | by ( Josie Cox | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +21 min

The story of Brooksley Born is not only the tale of a remarkable regulator whose Cassandra-like warnings — if heeded — could've prevented the great financial crisis from exploding into raging, ruinous enormity. Not long after she assumed chairmanship of the CFTC, Born started to feel a lingering unease with the rapidly expanding derivatives market. So to Rubin, Born was more of an inconvenience than anything, and she certainly wasn't in his club. Not long after, Treasury officials lobbied Congress to pass legislation preventing the CFTC from being able to regulate the OTC derivatives market. In the months and years that followed, it became increasingly hard to deny that the multi-trillion-dollar OTC derivatives market was the root cause of the great financial crisis.

Persons: Lehman Brothers, jolting, — could've, It's, Potter Stewart, Henry Edgerton, Porter, she'd, Bill Clinton, Clinton, Janet Reno, Brooksley, Michael Greenberger, Born, Gibson, weren't, Robert Rubin, Goldman Sachs, Rubin, Michael Hirsh, Alan Greenspan, Greenspan, Ayn Rand, Hirsh ., Hirsh, Greenspan didn't, braggadocian machismo, lauding Rubin, Lawrence Summers, Arthur Levitt, Josie Cox, Levitt, Summers, Jim Leach, Richard Lugar, —, Bethany McLean, Joe Nocera, Bob Rubin, Born's Cassandra, George W, Bush, Lauren Rivera, Christine Lagarde, Lehman, ABRAMS Organizations: Stanford University, Stanford Law School, Stanford, Appeals, District of Columbia Circuit, Arnold, Futures Trading Commission, American, CFTC, Bankers Trust, Procter, Gamble, Sumitomo, Federal Reserve, Fed, Securities and Exchange Commission, Financial Markets, Abrams, Term Capital Management, Enron, SEC, Born, Northwestern's Kellogg School of Management, Financial, International Monetary Fund, Lehman Brothers, Reuters, Street, The Washington Post, Guardian, Abrams Press Locations: California, Vietnam, United States, Washington, America, ABRAMS , New York

More questions for OpenAISam Altman has been back as OpenAI’s C.E.O. for three months, running one of the world’s most important tech companies at the forefront of the artificial intelligence boom. But a report by The Wall Street Journal that the S.E.C. is investigating whether Altman misled investors is a reminder that OpenAI and its hyper-ambitious chief face a level of scrutiny that could dent their global plans. isn’t the only regulator looking at the Altman drama: Federal prosecutors in Manhattan have also been asking questions, according to The Journal.

Persons: OpenAI Sam Altman, Altman, Altman’s Organizations: Wall Street Journal Locations: Manhattan

☆ Stock futures fall as Wall Street awaits the Fed's preferred inflation gauge: Live updates
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-28 | by ( Samantha Subin | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Stock futures fell as Wall Street weighed the latest earnings results and looked ahead to the Federal Reserve's favored inflation gauge. Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 80 points, or 0.2%. The S&P 500 futures and Nasdaq 100 futures edged down 0.2% and 0.25%, respectively. The 30-stock Dow lost 0.06% and fell for a third consecutive session, while the S&P 500 inched down 0.17%. The S&P 500 has jumped 4.6%, while the Dow has added 2.1%.

Persons: Salesforce, Okta, Joe Mazzola, Charles Schwab's, Dow, John Williams Organizations: New York Stock Exchange, Stock, Federal, Dow Jones, Nasdaq, Dow, Hewlett Packard Enterprises, Bath, Body, New York Federal Reserve Bank Locations: Snowflake, Chicago

☆ What you're probably doing wrong if you work from home
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-28 | by ( Tim Paradis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Alan Hedge, an ergonomics expert, recommends a mix of sitting, standing, and moving. AdvertisementYou might think you're sitting pretty if you get to work from home. "It's critical that you don't just think in terms of time here — that you think in terms of working in a healthy posture," Hedge said. Critically, he said, the regimen results in 16 transitions when people go from sitting to standing and standing to sitting. You need the right products that you're going to work with, and you need the right postures to work in," he said.

Persons: Alan Hedge, —, wasn't, Hedge Organizations: Service, Department, Cornell University, NASA, Workers Locations: MyBioSource

☆ Alphabet's Gemini AI misstep is the latest reason Cramer is getting fed up with the stock
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-28 | by ( Paulina Likos | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Jim thinks Google has lost focus as it struggles to shake off the narrative that it's lagging in the AI race. With all these things lining up against Google, Jim has been becoming increasingly wary of the stock. Even though Alphabet stock keeps getting dinged for AI misses, Bernstein analysts "don't subscribe to the generative AI risk to Google Search" for now. At the Club, we believe Google's AI chatbot Gemini could be competitive in attracting users, but the advertising opportunity may not be the same. As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade.

Persons: Jim Cramer, Sundar Pichai, Pichai, Jim, Google, Bard, Gemini —, —, Axel Springer, they're, Bernstein, playbook, Meta, haven't, Jim Cramer's Organizations: Google, Apple, Microsoft, Nvidia, Tesla, The Club, Politico, U.S, Club, NFL, YouTube, National Football League, Management, Sunday, Meta, Walmart, CNBC, Future Publishing, Getty Locations: U.S

☆ China's latest market crackdown shows it hasn't learned any lessons
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-26 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

China has curbed short selling and quant trading activities to support its flailing stock markets. AdvertisementBeijing is now trying to support the flailing Chinese stock markets by pulling a familiar move — cracking down on private sector activities. Remember — China's recent private sector enterprise crackdown wiped out over a trillion dollars from its tech sector alone and spooked entrepreneurs. China isn't the first to curb stock market activities — the US also cracked down on short-selling during the 2008 financial crisis. China's securities regulator said on Thursday it wasn't trying to interfere with trading activities, but will crackdown on "illegal activities" that disrupt market order.

Persons: —, They're, George Boubouras, isn't, Eswar Prasad Organizations: Service, Bloomberg, Asset Management, China isn't, Cornell University, International Monetary Fund, Nikkei Locations: China, Beijing, Hong, Melbourne

☆ Some Gen Z workers are turning to AI for career advice and it's actually not a bad idea
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-23 | by ( Tim Paradis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

In a survey, about half of Gen Zers said AI and social media gave better career advice than a boss. Bosses shouldn't rely on tech to give career advice to their teams, a business professor told BI. Almost half of GenZers said in a recent survey that chatbots and social media offered better career advice than their managers. In the survey, 62% of Gen Z workers said they'd like to talk more about their career path but that their boss was often too busy. "People could kind of say, 'Well, I get better skill-building from a YouTube tutorial than from my manager,'" Myers said.

Persons: Gen Zers, —, it's, Gen, GenZers, inspo, Christopher G, Myers, they'd, Daniel Jolles Organizations: Service, an Academy of Management, Johns Hopkins University, London School of Economics, Political

☆ Goldman Sachs bought Joe Duran's wealth business and sold it 3 years later. The ex-partner spills on leaving, his new venture, and 'not living up to everything possible.'
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-22 | by ( Hayley Cuccinello | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Three years prior, he had sold United Capital, a registered investment advisor, to Goldman Sachs for $750 million. Duran's mandate was to run United Capital as well as Ayco, the bank's workplace financial planning unit. Finding his next mountain to climbDuran described his time with Goldman Sachs as "a fantastic experience in almost every way." In working for nine months on that strategy, he realized how much the industry had changed since he sold United Capital in 2019. "He has been a good partner at Goldman Sachs, and we're excited to cross paths with him again soon."

Persons: —, Joe Duran, Goldman Sachs, David Solomon's, Duran, wasn't, Julian Salisbury, Dina Powell, McCormick, Goldman, it's, I've, United Capital Duran, Joe, Tucker, There's Organizations: Service, United Capital, Business, Goldman, Growth Partners, Ritz, Carlton, Westin, General Electric

☆ Opinion: Alexey Navalny, one man who stood up to a dictatorship
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-18 | by ( Richard Galant | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +18 min

We’re looking back at the strongest, smartest opinion takes of the week from CNN and other outlets. “In his courageous and too short life,” wrote Russia scholar Daniel Treisman, “Navalny became a symbol of hope for the younger generations of his compatriots. “He never gave up on the prospect of what he called ‘the beautiful Russia of the future,’” Treisman noted. “For a ‘beautiful Russia of the future’ to emerge in coming years, Putin must lose the war he started. Navalny understood this.”“Navalny’s death represents the extinguishing of all hope for Russia’s turnaround,” wrote Sasha Vasilyuk.

Persons: Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, Joseph Stalin “, “, ”, you’ve, Alexey Navalny, Vladimir Putin’s, Navalny, fearlessly, Putin, Daniel Treisman, “ Navalny, Navalny’s, ’ ” Treisman, Sasha Vasilyuk, Alexey Navalny’s, Peter Bergen, Andrei Sakharov, ” Putin, Bergen, Nick Anderson, Joe Biden, Donald Trump, Trump, authoritarians, Bill Bramhall, James Mattis, ” Peter Bergen, Frida Ghitis, Fidel Castro’s playbook, Patrick Mahomes, Andy “, Amy Bass, New York Democrat Tom Suozzi, George Santos, ” Suozzi, CNN Suozzi didn’t, Biden, isn’t, Long, Max Burns, ” “, Alejandro Mayorkas, ” “ Suozzi, Burns, Robert Hur’s, Norm Eisen, Richard Painter, Joshua Kolb, Hur, ” Joel Pett, Lawrence C, Levy, Julian Zelizer, Dean Obeidallah, Mark Dent, Dent, Saw, Clay Jones, David Orentlicher, ” Orentlicher, Will Cooper, Fani, Willis, Nathan, Wade, ” “ Willis, Antony Blinken, Batniji, Blinken, Fatah, Hussein, Don’t, David Horsey, Agency Jill Filipovic, Lynda Gorov, Taylor Swift, Jim Parrott, Mark Zandi, Brigid Schulte, Yuliya, Kara Alaimo, Frankie de la, Jackie Robinson’s, Jon Stewart’s, Jon Stewart, Matt Wilson, Jon Stewart skewered Trump, Bill Carter, Stewart, ” “ Stewart Organizations: CNN, IK, Moscow Times, Kremlin, Twitter, Facebook, Soviet, Tribune, Agency, Republican, Senate, Agency Former US Defense, Trump, , Kansas City Chiefs, Chiefs, nab, New, New York Democrat, Democratic, GOP, Joel Osteen’s Lakewood Church, Super Bowl, Kansas, West Bank Locations: Soviet, Germany, Ukraine, Russia, New York, Washington, Georgia, ,, York, Glen Cove, Joel Osteen’s, Houston, Kansas City, America, ”, Kansas, Gaza, San Francisco, Israel, Iran

☆ After 35 years, he got $119,500 in student debt forgiven. Then the government refunded him $56,801
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-16 | by ( Annie Nova | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Under the U.S. Department of Education's income-driven repayment plans, student loan borrowers are entitled to get any of their remaining debt forgiven after 20 years or 25 years. Scott Buchanan, executive director of the Student Loan Servicing Alliance, a trade group for federal student loan servicers, refuted that the companies benefit by veering from the government's orders. Shortly after Fox heard that his student loans were forgiven, he received a payment from the government for $56,801. When he told people he was still paying off his student debt, they scratched their heads. Over the decades, based on Fox's records which CNBC reviewed, he paid around $200,000 to his federal student loans.

Persons: Marlon, George, servicers, Nadine Chabrier, Fox, he'd, Scott Buchanan, Buchanan, I've, Marlon Fox, overpayments, Biden, Debbie Organizations: Biden, U.S . Department, Center for, Lending, The Education, Student Loan, Alliance, Palmer College of Chiropractic, CNBC Locations: forbearances

☆ Nvidia earnings, Fed minutes on deck next week as Wall Street assesses interest rate outlook
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-16 | by ( Sarah Min | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

The Dow Jones Industrial Average, S & P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite each snapped a five-week advance. On average, market strategists on Wall Street anticipate the S & P 500 will end the year at 4,936, according to a CNBC survey . The equal-weighted S & P 500 index is up just 1.7% in 2024, trailing far behind the market-cap weighted benchmark. Initial Claims (02/17) 9:45 a.m. PMI Composite preliminary (February) 9:45 a.m. S & P PMI Manufacturing preliminary (February) 9:45 a.m. S & P PMI Services preliminary (February) 10 a.m. Existing Homes Sales (January) Earnings: Booking Holdings , Live Nation Entertainment , Intuit , Edison International , Dominion Energy , Moderna , PG & E , Keurig Dr. Pepper Friday, February 23, 2024 Earnings: Warner Bros.

Persons: chipmaker, Ayako Yoshioka, Yoshioka, Jerome Powell, Josh Emanuel, everybody's, Emanuel, Russell, They're, Chris Chen, Chen, Dr, Pepper, Nick Wells, Kif Leswing Organizations: Nvidia, CNBC, Dow Jones, Nasdaq, Federal Reserve, Investor, Treasury, Wilshire Associates, American Association of, Insight Financial, Walmart, Home, Alto Networks, Diamondback Energy, Caesars Entertainment, Marathon, Devices, Chicago, PMI, Holdings, Nation Entertainment, Intuit, Edison International, Dominion Energy, Moderna, Warner Bros Locations: U.S, Santa Monica, Calif

☆ I got Botox because I hated my forehead lines. I regretted it, and was glad when the effects wore off.
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-15 | by ( Julia Pugachevsky | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

I got Botox because I hated my forehead lines. I was excited when my Botox started wearing offAfter about a month, the Botox started to gently lose its grip. While the lines didn’t stick, I could move my face as freely as I did before. I lost a part of my face I didn’t know I lovedNow, I’m at the end point of my Botox treatment. I’m relieved that I didn’t love Botox, and that I will always feel ambivalent about it.

Persons: —, “, Um, Nathan Fielder, I’ve, Julia Pugachevsky, Alison Mei, I’m, I’ll Organizations: Service Locations: New York

☆ What Ozempic Taught Me About Shame — and Willpower
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-15 | by ( Albert Fox Cahn | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +16 min

It will mean fundamentally reevaluating our conception of free will and human agency — and reckoning with our tortured relationship with shame. Many health plans have refused to cover GLP-1s for weight loss , citing limited approval from the Food and Drug Administration. I don't know when I first became overweight, but I remember the moment I was taught to be ashamed of it. They can stop the vicious feedback loop where our food choices and weight drive the shame that drives our food choices and weight. But no matter how heavy that burden was, one thing made it easier to bear: I wasn't weighed down by my shame.

Persons: I'd, They're, —, dieters, I've, Wayne LaPierre, David Vades Joseph, Mounjaro, …, you'd, would've, Kit Kat, they've, untangling, Stephen Spielberg's Organizations: National Rifle Association, NRA, Food and Drug Administration, New York City Marathon, Harvard Law School, GLP, BI Locations: York, Greenwich Village, darting, GLP

☆ Russia and Ukraine exchange missile attacks after sinking of Russian warship
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-15 | by ( Rob Picheta | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Russia and Ukraine exchanged air attacks on Thursday, with Moscow targeting cities across Ukraine and Kyiv striking the Russian border city of Belgorod, one day after Kyiv said it sank another Russian warship off the coast of Crimea. Hours later, Russian authorities said five people were killed and 18 injured, in a missile strike on the Russian city of Belgorod. Ukraine’s strikes on Belgorod on Thursday are the latest in a series of attacks on the city, which has been dragged into Moscow’s conflict. Ukrainian attacks on Russian regions near the border have continued almost daily for over a year, sometimes resulting in civilian casualties. At the end of last year Russia claimed Ukraine killed 24 people in shelling on Belgorod.

Persons: Vyacheselv Gladkov, Caesar Kunikov, Belgorod Region Vyacheslav, Anatolii Kurtiev, ”, Maksym Kozytskyi, Valerii Zaluzhnyi, Volodymyr Zelensky, ” Zaluzhnyi Organizations: CNN, Reuters, Zaporizhzhia, Russian Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Moscow, Kyiv, Russian, Belgorod, Crimea, Lviv, Zaporizhzhia, Belgorod Region

Thousands of ride-hailing and delivery workers in the U.S. and the U.K. went on strike on Valentine's Day, calling for higher pay and other changes to their working conditions. In the U.S., Uber and Lyft drivers planned daylong strikes in Chicago; Philadelphia; Pittsburgh; Miami; Orlando and Tampa, Florida; Hartford, Connecticut; Newark, New Jersey; Austin, Texas; and Providence, Rhode Island. Drivers were also holding midday demonstrations at airports in those cities, according to Justice for App Workers, the group organizing the effort. Meanwhile, U.K. delivery drivers for Uber Eats, Deliveroo, Just Eat and Stuart said they would turn off their apps and refuse deliveries between 5 p.m. and 10 p.m. Justice for App Workers, which says it represents 130,000 ride-hailing and delivery workers, is seeking higher wages, access to health care and an appeals process so companies can’t deactivate drivers without warning.

Persons: Uber, Stuart, ”, Evadur Rahman, Rahman, “, ” Rahman, “ It’s, ” Uber, Deliveroo, Rachel Gumpert, Lyft, ” Lyft, Jill Lawless, Brian Melley Organizations: App Workers, Associated Press, deactivations, U.S, ___ Associated Press Locations: U.S, Chicago, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Miami, Orlando, Tampa , Florida, Hartford , Connecticut, Newark , New Jersey, Austin , Texas, Providence , Rhode Island, London, ___

☆ Valentine's Day chocolate prices highest in years amid cocoa shortage
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-14 | by ( Lee Ying Shan | In Ying-Shan-Lee | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

But lovers may experience sticker shock this year due to higher cocoa and sugar prices. "Chocolate prices are the highest we've seen in years," said a representative of NielsenIQ. He noted that in spite of higher prices, the chocolate market is robust in mature markets like Europe and North America. Now, chocolate and Valentine's Day are synonymous, even if critics say the affiliation is perpetuated by marketing gimmicks. That being said, chocolates are not the only Valentines' Day treats that will dent the wallet this year.

Persons: Scott Olson, Sergey Chetvertakov, David Branch, there's, Kim, Mintec, It's, Andrew Francis Wallace Organizations: Valentine's, Getty, P, El Nino, Food Institute, Branch, CNBC, Bloomberg, National Confectioners Association, Toronto Star Locations: Chicago , Illinois, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Wells, Asia, India, Africa, Azaguie, Europe, North America, Western Europe, Singapore, Toronto

☆ Inconclusive Gaza Truce Talks Dent Hopes of Palestinians in Rafah
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-14 | by ( Feb. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +6 min

By Nidal al-MughrabiCAIRO (Reuters) - Palestinians jammed into their last refuge in Gaza voiced growing fear on Wednesday that Israel will soon launch a planned assault on the southern city of Rafah after truce talks in Cairo ended inconclusively. Said Jaber, a Gaza businessman who is sheltering in Rafah with his family, told Reuters via a chat app. We've had enough of this war, and we will need decades to rebuild Gaza and regain our lives. Rafah residents said on Tuesday that dozens of displaced people had begun to leave Rafah after Israeli shelling and air strikes in recent days. At least 28,576 Palestinians have been killed and 68,291 injured in Israeli strikes on Gaza since Oct.7, the health ministry in Gaza said on Wednesday.

Persons: Nidal, Israel, Said Jaber, We've, Annalena Baerbock, Benjamin Netanyahu, Khan Younis, Nasser, Dr Haitham Ahmed, William Burns, Nidal al, Dan Williams, Emily Rose, Timothy Heritage, Ros Russell Organizations: Reuters, Israeli, Nasser Hospital Locations: CAIRO, Gaza, Rafah, Cairo, inconclusively, United States, Israel, Egypt, Qatar, hideouts, Berlin, Rafa, Hamas, Khan, Jeruslame

The city's annual series of parades began more than a week ago and will close out on Tuesday — Mardi Gras — a final day of revelry before Lent. Aside from recycling, there's a small but growing movement to find something else for parade riders to lob. Grounds Krewe, Davis's nonprofit, is now marketing more than two dozen types of nonplastic, sustainable items for parade riders to pitch. "These efforts will help green Mardi Gras," said Christy Leavitt, of the group Oceana, in an email. Enck, who visited New Orleans last year and attended Mardi Gras celebrations, hopes parade organizers will adopt the biodegradable alternatives.

Persons: —, it's, ”, Judith Enck, Enck, Brett Davis, headbands, ” Davis, Christy Leavitt, Jennifer McDermott Organizations: ORLEANS, Environmental Protection Agency, Beyond, New Orleans & Co, Oceana, New, Mardi, Associated Locations: New Orleans, revelry, Lake Pontchartrain, Mexico, Mardi, Providence , Rhode Island

☆ PepsiCo earnings top estimates, but quarterly revenue slides for the first time in nearly four years
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-09 | by ( Amelia Lucas | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

PepsiCo on Friday reported mixed quarterly results as North American demand for its food and drinks weakened. Pepsi's organic revenue, which excludes acquisitions and divestitures, rose 4.5% in the quarter, helped by higher prices. For 2024, Pepsi now anticipates organic revenue growth of at least 4% and core constant currency earnings per share growth of at least 8%. The company previously forecast organic revenue growth on the high end of 4% to 6% and core constant currency earnings per share growth in the high single digits. Executives are expecting international organic revenue growth to top that of North America for the full year.

Organizations: Pepsi, PepsiCo, Refinitiv, Quaker Foods, Lay, Quaker Oats Locations: Las Vegas, United States, North America, America

☆ Why millennials' retirement outlook may be worse than older generations
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-09 | by ( Greg Iacurci | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

'Deteriorating' retirement outlookAbout 38% of early millennials (those born in the 1980s) will have "inadequate" retirement income at age 70, according to projections from a 2022 Urban Institute study. watch now"We do see the retirement outlook deteriorating for future generations," including millennials, said Richard Johnson, director of Urban's retirement policy program and co-author of the report. Millennials' student loans dent their net worthA 2021 paper by the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College had similar findings. Meanwhile, the last major Social Security overhaul, in 1983, gradually raised the program's "full retirement age" to 67 years old. That will make it easier to save for retirement, according to a Brookings Institution report.

Persons: Jamie Grill, Craig Copeland, Gen X, Xers, Richard Johnson, Johnson, aren't, Millennials, Gen Xers, CRR, X, EBRI, Anqi Chen, Copeland, millennials, they're, William Gale, Hilary Gelfond, Jason Fichtner, there's, Sean Deviney, Deviney Organizations: Social Security, Research Institute, Urban, Center for Retirement Research, Boston College, Research, Transamerica Center, Retirement Studies, Finance, IRA, Pensions, Social, Center, Budget, Brookings Institution, Vanguard Group Locations: U.S, Fort Lauderdale , Florida

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