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af0ce49cdc2f85e6d2eef9d3ba866fa0 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/21/trump-trade-talks-should-address-drug-costs-says-mount-sinai-ceo.html | Drug costs should be a 'prominent issue' in Trump trade talks: Mount Sinai Health CEO | Drug costs should be a 'prominent issue' in Trump trade talks: Mount Sinai Health CEO
VIDEO5:0605:06Health care costs should be part of trade talks: Mt. Sinai CEOPower Lunch
The Trump administration should make the rising cost of medicine a leading issue in trade talks with countries around the world, Mount Sinai Health System CEO Kenneth Davis told CNBC on Friday.
"We marvel at the fact that U.S. drug costs are two to six times higher than they are in the rest of the world," he said on "Power Lunch."
"What I don't understand is why in trade talk don't we make this a prominent issue?" he added. "Why don't we say, 'You guys can't allow the U.S. consumer to be subsidizing all the R&D costs of drug development. You've got to pay your fair share. We want to see you add 20% to the cost of your drugs.'"
Because the United States is a free market, prices are higher. Meanwhile, in other parts of the world, governments pay for the drugs and they set the price, Davis said.
If other countries pick up more of the cost, then American consumers should be able to contribute less. Of course, for the plan to work, the manufacturers also have to agree not to raise U.S. prices, but instead lower them in proportion to the increased pay they are getting from other countries, he noted.
"The U.S. is being unfairly penalized here for the cost of drugs around the world."
Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar listens as U.S. President Donald Trump delivers a speech about lowering prescription drug prices from the Rose Garden at the White House in Washington, U.S., May 11, 2018.Jonathan Ernst | Reuters
Fixing sky-high drug costs is an issue both Republicans and Democrats have rallied around.
For one, Sen. Bernie Sanders, a Vermont independent who is making another run for the White House, has vowed to slash prices in half if he wins the 2020 election.
President Donald Trump has also called out drugmakers and has put forth some proposals.
One calls for an internal pricing index (IPI) that would determine what Medicare pays for certain medicines based on the prices set in a handful of other countries. A proposed version of the rule is expected in August. However, on Thursday, Merck CEO Ken Frazier said if it is implemented, there will be legal challenges.
Also, last month the White House announced pharmaceutical companies will be required to disclose the price of their prescription drugs in TV commercials. Three U.S. drugmakers, including Merck, have sued the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services over the new regulation.
— Reuters contributed to this report.
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456add017196659f825d8bbb3477cd2a | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/21/why-ted-cruz-may-be-blocking-major-retirement-reform-in-the-senate.html | Why Ted Cruz may be holding up major retirement legislation in the Senate | Why Ted Cruz may be holding up major retirement legislation in the Senate
When a bill to improve Americans' retirement security sailed through the House last month, it looked like the country was on the brink of the first major retirement reform since 2006.
Then the bill went to the Senate. Weeks later, it still has not come up for a vote.
Known as the Secure Act, the proposal is aimed at enhancing retirement by making it easier for more individuals to save.
Janhvi Bhojwani | CNBC
Key changes include allowing small employers to band together to offer 401(k) plans, giving part-time workers access to retirement plans, repealing the 70½ age limit for individual retirement account contributions, boosting the age for required minimum distributions to 72 from 70½ and expanding access to annuities in 401(k) plans.
The Secure Act was approved by the House on May 23 by 417-3. Proponents were said to be hoping to push it through the Senate using a process called unanimous consent.
That means that the Senate would vote on the House version without making changes.
That hasn't happened partly due to opposition from Senator Ted Cruz, R-Texas. Proposals he supports to expand the use of 529s to pay for home schooling and therapy for disabilities, among other expenses, were dropped from the House legislation.
Other expansions of the 529 college savings program, including the ability to pay for student loans and apprenticeships, remained.
"The retirement bill that unanimously passed in the House Ways and Means Committee included the expanded 529 savings plan package," a spokesman for Cruz said. "Unfortunately, at the behest of special interest groups, Speaker Pelosi removed the 529 expansion from the bill before sending it to the Senate."
"Senator Cruz believes we should add it back in and pass a retirement bill that includes both the Gold Star tax fix and the 529 expansion," the spokesman said. The Gold Star fix would prevent children and spouses of fallen service members from getting hit with unexpectedly high tax bills following recent tax reform changes.
The Secure Act's delay this week prompted a group of retirement industry advocacy groups to send a letter addressed to all senators, urging them to vote on the current version.
"We're talking to all senators about trying to advance the legislation," said Paul Richman, chief government and political affairs officer at the Insured Retirement Institute, a financial services trade association focused on the retirement income industry and one of the organizations that signed the letter.
For policy watchers, the 529 changes are a surprising sticking point for what's considered some of the biggest changes to retirement legislation since the Pension Protection Act in 2006.
"This is the most active front for 529 legislation at the moment," said Jake Spiegel, senior research analyst on the policy research team at Morningstar. "It does seem kind of odd that it is attached to a piece of legislation that is designed to make retirement saving easier."
Current estimates peg the number of home-schooled students in the U.S at more than 2.3 million, according to the National Home Education Research Institute.
VIDEO1:1101:11Investing in a 529 planStraight Talk
But 529 savings plans are underutilized even under current rules, Spiegel said.
In fact, 67% of Americans do not know what a 529 plan is, according to a recent survey from financial services firm Edward Jones.
What's more, using that savings plan for short-term needs such as home schooling does not necessarily make sense, Spiegel said.
"The big benefit of 529s is that the capital gains and earnings are tax-free," Spiegel said. "It's really beneficial if you open up a 529 for your beneficiary when they're first born and then you have 18 years for that money to grow."
VIDEO2:3002:30Here's how much money you should have savedInvest in You: Ready. Set. Grow.
The National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors, one of the signers on the letter sent to the Senate this week, has recently set up a grassroots effort in Texas to try to sway Cruz to let the bill come up for a vote.
"There isn't really a process right now for the Senate to pick up their whole package and do some sort of reconciliation," said Judi Carsrud, the association's assistant vice president of government relations. "So I think it is the Secure bill, the way it has passed the House, or nothing."
Still, the two groups hope the Secure Act will pass before Congress breaks for its August recess.
"We're pretty optimistic that there are sufficient votes in the Senate to pass this with a large majority," the retirement institute's Richman said.
More from Personal Finance:Retirement bill clears House, moves closer to becoming law This bill could extend Social Security's solvencyYou could soon use your 529 plan on your student loans
The Secure Act would be just scratching the surface with regard to changes that need to be made, said Richard Johnson, a senior fellow in the income and benefits policy center at the Urban Institute.
For example, today's retirees face issues including the depletion of the Social Security trust fund, high health-care costs and less access to retirement savings for low-income individuals.
"This bill is a step in the right direction toward improving retirement security, but it's probably not going to make a lot of difference overall," Johnson said.
VIDEO6:3106:31How to double your money in the marketInvest in You: Ready. Set. Grow.
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c1b2065853cca605bc372384d6dfa7e9 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/24/cnbc-exclusive-cnbc-transcript-home-depot-chairman-and-ceo-craig-menear-speaks-with-cnbcs-courtney-reagan-today.html | CNBC Exclusive: CNBC Transcript: Home Depot Chairman and CEO Craig Menear Speaks with CNBC's Courtney Reagan Today | CNBC Exclusive: CNBC Transcript: Home Depot Chairman and CEO Craig Menear Speaks with CNBC's Courtney Reagan Today
WHEN: Today, Monday, June 24, 2019
WHERE: CNBC's "Squawk on the Street"
The following is the unofficial transcript of a CNBC EXCLUSIVE interview with Home Depot Chairman and CEO Craig Menear and CNBC's Courtney Reagan on "Squawk on the Street" (M-F 9AM – 11AM) today, Monday, June 24th. The following is a link to video of the interview on CNBC.com: https://www.cnbc.com/video/2019/06/24/home-depot-ceo-lowes-a-strong-competitor-new-ceo-doesnt-change-that.html.
All references must be sourced to CNBC.
DAVID FABER: Welcome back to "Squawk on the Street." Home Depot celebrating its 40th anniversary of what was the first store opening for the company, which of course is now the largest home improvement retailer in the world. It went public in 1981. Joining us now exclusively is Home Depot's Chairman and CEO Craig Menear and our own Courtney Reagan, of course, who covers retail very closely. Nice to have you here. Congrats--
CRAIG MENEAR: Thank you.
DAVID FABER: --on 40 years. It was nice to see a number of your founders joined you as well.
CRAIG MENEAR: Yeah, it was a great morning. Thank you.
DAVID FABER: But right back to business, of course. We heard from you about a month or so ago when you reported earnings. At that point lumber prices, obviously, had been down. Some concerns about potential tariffs. The weather was an issue in the first quarter of this year. Do you have any updates for us in terms of your continued 5% comp guidance and whether it's been impacted enough by those things that you need to revise it?
CRAIG MENEAR: Well, we'll take a look at that as we enter our second quarter. Obviously, the lumber situation hasn't changed. Lumber has continued to be pressured in the marketplace, for sure. Weather is improving slightly as it moves forward. And we see great demand when the weather is normalized. So, we're looking forward to a great finish of the year.
DAVID FABER: What's going on with lumber prices? Can you explain to the viewers what is behind the significant decline? Last year it was the opposite.
CRAIG MENEAR: Right. It was. As a matter of fact, it completely flipped. So, what happened is you had a wet early part of the year. There were logs backed up. The mills needed to process the logs. They had some challenges doing that. And then of course with the wet weather, there is not much demand on the building side. It's really the building part of the business, the new construction that drives the lumber prices. It's not our part of the business. So, that's really what's come together to kind of create the perfect storm, if you will, that has lumber prices down about 40% year over year.
DAVID FABER: And continues.
CRAIG MENEAR: And continues.
COURTNEY REAGAN: And that's a problem because lumber is often a project starter, Craig, for a lot of other things. So, that's an issue that Home Depot has to grapple with. I think a $200 million hit in the first quarter. And your CFO Carol Tome said it could be up to $800 million for the year.
CRAIG MENEAR: That's correct.
COURTNEY REAGAN: So that could be a really big deflationary pressure, as you are looking at something like tariffs, which is inflationary. You said about a billion-dollar hit in 2018, potentially another billion dollars if we go forward. Do those two at all balance each other out, or are we looking at two totally different silos?
CRAIG MENEAR: It's really two different things. You know, the deflation of lumber is obviously there. But the unit demand is solid, which is great to see. You just can't offset 40% deflation. And, of course, the good news for Home Depot is about 70% of our goods are domestic. And the balance then comes from offshore. We've-sized it at about 3.5% of U.S. purchases with the current tariffs that are in place.
COURTNEY REAGAN: But even with 30%, I think you are still the third largest in boarder by containers in the country.
CRAIG MENEAR: We sell a lot of bulky, big things, right?
COURTNEY REAGAN: That's right.
CRAIG MENEAR: And so, it takes a lot of containers to move product.
COURTNEY REAGAN: You are about 18 months through a three-year transformation. Lowe's has a relatively new CEO, a former colleague of yours, Marvin Ellison. Comps at Home Depot almost always outperform Lowe's, except for two times under your tenure—and one of those was just last quarter. Lowe's is looking to sign more pros, up about 60% quarter-over-quarter. Is Lowe's a more formable competitor under Mr. Ellison than perhaps they've been previously?
CRAIG MENEAR: Well, look. We have a lot of great competitors out there. And that's the thing that makes you better, is you drive to continue to deliver value for your customer. And the way you do that is to understand how you are operating in the marketplace. So, no. They are -- they have been a good competitor for a number of years and they will continue to be so.
SARA EISEN: What's going on, Craig, with the housing market? You mentioned the signal from lumber prices. I mean, Manhattan real estate prices have gotten crushed lately. Generally, what's happening?
CRAIG MENEAR: So, for us, with the things we look at in the housing market, the indicators are actually really positive for us. We're not in new construction. So, we play more in remodel and maintenance, if you will. So, when you look at home values, they continue to increase. Part of that is due to the fact that there is a shortage of new available new homes on the market. Then you look at housing turnover, running about 3.8%, historical norms about 4% and change. So, a little bit lower than normal but doing okay. And then the new household formations are estimated to be about 1.6 million. And then if you think about 52% of the housing stock in the U.S. is 40 years or older, more maintenance with the age of the housing. A typical customer with a 40-year-old home spends 3x on maintenance then a customer with a 10-year-old home does.
SARA EISEN: Have you seen any impact -- just in the last few weeks or so – just as we've seen Treausry Yields collapse, mortgage rates have gone down substantially. I mean, we did see that spike up in applications. Does that translate into more business for you?
CRAIG MENEAR: Not necessarily in the beginning. Housing turnover ultimately has some play as customers will go in and do projects but it's not an immediate correlation for us.
DAVID FABER: How do you approach the potential increase in tariffs? The 25% of the additional 300 billion, recognizing again, as you just said, that it's relatively, on a relative-basis small, but on an absolute basis still very large. How do you go about your decision-making when it's so uncertain what you are going to do and how you are going to respond to?
CRAIG MENEAR: We are in the project business, first of all. So, the first step is to try to protect the customer and the project. We will do everything we can to try to take other costs out of the business, working with our suppliers, whether that's opportunities in supply chain, other elements of the business and then we'll try to protect the customer on the project. Some of it at that rate, some of it has to get passed through.
DAVID FABER: At 25%, there's no way--
CRAIG MENEAR: Yep. Some of it has to. But we'll try to minimize that impact on the customer.
DAVID FABER: Do you have any sense as to where that might end up? Or is it too difficult?
CRAIG MENEAR: It's too early at this point to know.
DAVID FABER: And in terms of just planning, does it impact your ability to plan given you just don't know?
CRAIG MENEAR: No, not really. I mean, we constantly get thrown curveballs in the retail business all the time. This is just another one that happens. And we have tried to build our business in a way that is nimble and flexible, whether that be in the supply chain or how we deal with those type of things that get thrown at us.
DAVID FABER: Is there that much room amongst your suppliers to potentially have them give up margin or find efficiencies, or is it going to be really difficult?
CRAIG MENEAR: Well, it will be hard work, but we will work together to try to figure out how to do that. And there is always ways when you look at the entire value chain between the supplier all the way through our operations to find ways to be able to take out, to try to offset these costs. That's what we'll do.
COURTNEY REAGAN: In the most recent quarter, you talked about how the pros had this big backlog of business because of the weather. About 90 days. Are they working through that or not? Because it's still been really wet and pretty terrible weather in the Midwest, out here in the Northeast. Are they making progress? And what does that mean for your sales cadence?
CRAIG MENEAR: So, there's -- it depends where you are at in the country, in terms of whether the weather has helped them or not. Where the weather has improved, we are definitely seeing them -- the business demand is there. But they do have a backlog. And when you talk to them anecdotally every week, when we're in our stores talking with our pros, they will tell you that they are busy and they are booked.
COURTNEY REAGAN: So, it's business they can make up. It just takes time to get there. It's not at all lost.
CRAIG MENEAR: Yep. It's extending projects. The length of time is extending on the projects.
COURTNEY REAGAN: There was about $1 billion in products that sort of disappeared during the recession and shortly thereafter. Have you been able to sort of find that billion dollars to make that back up?
CRAIG MENEAR: Actually, we lost $13 billion in top line sales during the recession. And we have been able to get that and then some back. There are still a couple of categories that haven't matched the peak of '06, and we're still working on those.
SARA EISEN: I mean, generally, retail has been a tale of winners and losers, and Home Depot has been a relative winner. I mean, how did you think about some of the challenges that a lot of the other retailers are facing: the Amazon threat, you know, moving into e-commerce, lower traffic, and how have you fought that?
CRAIG MENEAR: So, we look at the retail business with a couple of factors. Number one, consumers are shopping fewer retailers today than what they are five years ago. Number two, we believe that the interconnected environment is the way the retail business is going in the long-term. So, part of our doubling down in investment in the business, we put $11 billion in the business over the next few years, is to truly create that interconnected experience that allows the customer to blend the physical and digital worlds together. And that's really what's happening. The front door of our store is no longer at the front door of our store. It's in the customer's pocket, it's on the job site, it's on their couch. They start in the digital world even if they finish in the physical world.
DAVID FABER: And this the 40th anniversary of your first store opening, obviously your employees are a key part of that. More difficult these days to find the qualified kinds of people that you need?
CRAIG MENEAR: In general, we just hired over 80,000 people for spring. That went really well. There are pockets of the country where it's more pressured than others. But in general, I'd say, we have been table to sell Home Depot and get associates on board.
DAVID FABER: Well, not too bad. 40 years and a $230 billion market value. Congratulations on that.
CRAIG MENEAR: Thank you very much.
DAVID FABER: Craig Menear, the CEO and Chairman of Home Depot. Courtney, thank you as well.
For more information contact:
Jennifer DaubleCNBCt: 201.735.4721m: 201.615.2787e: jennifer.dauble@nbcuni.com
Emma Martin CNBCt: 201.735.4713m: 551.275.6221e: emma.martin@nbcuni.com
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6ee08304759879d408fa13ae5c39a46a | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/24/cramer-luck-is-dangerous-understand-why-your-stock-pick-moves.html | VIDEO1:5201:52Jim Cramer's guide to not getting hurt by luckMad Money with Jim Cramer
CNBC's Jim Cramer urges investors to do their homework when they seemingly get "lucky" and their stock picks rally.
That one step could be the difference between protecting those gains and giving up the ghost.
"It's very helpful to understand why a stock you like is going up or down. When you have a win, don't lazily assume that simply [you] got it right," the "Mad Money" host said. "Think about what it means if you were merely in the right place at the right time, and proceed with caution."
Cramer can often be found pounding the table about the importance of homework, or researching the company and the industry. When a stock makes big gains, investors can take it as a confirmation that their intuition about the name was right.
Cramer, however, suggested you should be skeptical.
"Maybe you're right. People are right about stocks every day, but maybe it's just a coincidence and you should ring the darn register before that coincidence goes away," he said. "If you don't understand why a stock is moving up or down, you're probably going to be very confused when it stops doing that and goes in the opposite direction. And when we're confused, we make really lousy decisions."
That's why it's important to understand rotation, which is when big fund managers sell their holdings in a particular sector to raise and invest the cash into another segment of the economy.
For example, Cramer said, stocks in the consumer packaged goods industry can roar higher even when the fundamentals don't warrant a rise in the share prices. He called Clorox and Procter & Gamble, in particular, "recession stocks," also known as defensive stocks.
Recession stocks' earnings tend to hold up even when the economy slows. Because of this, money managers are attracted to those names when they see bad economic data, he said.
"If you buy these stocks because you believe in the business, but then they go higher as part of a sector rotation, that has nothing to do with the business. Well, you still have a win," Cramer said. "But you don't want to get caught with your pants down because the market suckered you into believing that Clorox was going up based on the fundamentals, when really it was benefiting from rotation into the whole consumer packaged goods sector."
VIDEO3:3403:34Cramer: Luck is dangerous — understand why your stock pick movesMad Money with Jim Cramer
Questions for Cramer? Call Cramer: 1-800-743-CNBCWant to take a deep dive into Cramer's world? Hit him up! Mad Money Twitter - Jim Cramer Twitter - Facebook - InstagramQuestions, comments, suggestions for the "Mad Money" website? madcap@cnbc.com
Disclaimer
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cbb39ede8435c528b39dde4245275955 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/24/how-jim-cramer-spots-a-stocks-peak-look-for-a-counterintuitive-move.html | VIDEO2:1402:14Look for something 'unusual' to foreshadow a stock's direction: Jim CramerMad Money with Jim Cramer
Investors should take a look at a company's fundamentals in order to decipher a "signal" from the "noise" in a particular stock's moves in the market, CNBC's Jim Cramer said.
A signal means that the shares will keep running in the same direction. Noise, on the other hand, is just noise, which could be a one-time occurrence.
"Don't put too much significance on day-to-day gyrations in the share price," the "Mad Money" host said. "Sometimes you can extrapolate a great deal from a big move in an individual stock, but more often it's telling you something you already know or it's just noise that means nothing."
Individual stocks make significant single-day increases and decreases on a regular basis, and often times they rally for no reason before selling off, Cramer said. Both good and bad stocks can make big moves, and chart analysts evaluate whether a name is "overbought" or "oversold," he said.
The former means investors who want to buy a certain stock at a given level have already done so, and the name will get sold off to "digest the gains," Cramer said. The latter is when a stock falls too quickly and rebounds with an oversold bounce.
"This is the sort of rally that doesn't convey much information. It's technical. It's noise," he said. "A stock got oversold, it bounced, and unless something else changes, it can go right back down once it works off that bounce."
While there is no takeaway from noise, a signal carries a message and foreshadows something bigger, Cramer said. In order to spot the message, he suggests that investors look for something that's unusual and counterintuitive.
If a stock goes up after a company reports a blowout quarter, "that's just business as usual," he said.
An unusual scenario, Cramer pointed out, is when a stock rallies after analysts who cover the company issue a downgrade — such as from buy to hold or from hold to sell. That can portend a bottom, and the shares could be ready to roar higher, he said.
Another is when a company holds a bullish conference call delivering great earnings and strong guidance to shareholders, but the stock sells off, he said.
"It means Wall Street believes that this company's looking at its last good quarter," Cramer said. "When your stock falls on positive news, I got to tell you something: That is the definition of a possible top."
VIDEO9:2109:21How Jim Cramer spots a stock's peak: Look for a counterintuitive moveMad Money with Jim Cramer
Questions for Cramer? Call Cramer: 1-800-743-CNBCWant to take a deep dive into Cramer's world? Hit him up! Mad Money Twitter - Jim Cramer Twitter - Facebook - InstagramQuestions, comments, suggestions for the "Mad Money" website? madcap@cnbc.com
Disclaimer
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08284d12f005a431d9368c638ae8d1c3 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/24/us-treasury-yields-lower-amid-tensions-with-iran.html | US Treasury yields lower ahead of US-China trade talks | US Treasury yields lower ahead of US-China trade talks
U.S. government debt yields fell on Monday as investors prepared for a key trade meeting between President Donald Trump and China leader Xi Jinping.
At around 3:58 p.m. ET, the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves inversely to price, was lower at around 2.021%, while the yield on the 30-year Treasury bond was also lower at around 2.551%.
The two are expected to discuss the ongoing trade war between the U.S. and China at the Group of 20 meeting in Osaka, Japan.
Wall Street is hopeful U.S. and Chinese negotiators will return to constructive dialogue and move closer to a deal to end the protracted trade war between the globe's two largest economies. Washington and Beijing have implemented and threatened tariffs on billions of dollars worth of their goods over the past year. Last month, the two countries hiked tariffs targeting some goods.
Market players are following geopolitics, in particular escalating tensions between Iran and the U.S. Over the weekend, President Trump announced that the U.S. will impose "major" additional sanctions on Iran on Monday but Iran dismissed the threat as "just propaganda."
On the data front, the calendar is thin with Dallas Fed manufacturing data due at 10:30 a.m. ET.
Treasurys
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e1cfc5508ddd7e454be3d5d481922ca7 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/25/how-the-amazon-of-africa-came-to-be.html | How Jumia claimed Africa | How Jumia claimed Africa
Jumia, Africa's largest online retailer, was founded in 2012 by Sacha Poignonnec and Jeremy Hodara, who were both former employees of the American worldwide management consulting firm, McKinsey & Company.
Jumia offers customers the ability to buy products online, like phones and shoes, as well as groceries, flights, food delivery, and offers bill paying and cellular data plans. The company sought to build an online shopping experience, among other digital products, that could work well with Africa's sometimes ineffective infrastructure.
According to Chinese state-run news organization China Daily, Alibaba serviced 4.2 million African customers through its AliExpress services since it entered the continent. Jumia serviced 4.3 million users and 81 thousand active sellers in the 14 countries it services since it started. Amazon is available in 11 countries on the African continent, but neither Amazon nor Alibaba have had the benefit of getting their start in African countries. Jumia, for example, offers unique features like allowing customers to pay for items upon delivery.
Jumia's stock price rose 75.6% on April 12 when it went public, giving it a market cap of $3.9 billion. And even though it had about $1 billion in losses at the time, the prospective shareholders were forgiving.
In May of 2019, Jumia came under fire from Citron Research, a stock commentary website run by short seller Andrew Left, for what Citron claimed was securities fraud and discrepancies in its reported key financial metrics. The report released by Citron brought Jumia's stock down over 40% in two days.
Citigroup, one of Jumia's IPO underwriters, released a report debunking most of Citron's allegations, but noted that, "Jumia could do more to provide disclosure on some aspects of its operations, as a matter of transparency and best practice."
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edc11a8f2088ca15bd2ef23bc7fcb87e | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/25/trumps-iran-sanctions-may-leave-no-escalation-room-former-us-envoy.html | Trump's latest sanctions on Iran may be the end of the diplomatic road, says former US official | Trump's latest sanctions on Iran may be the end of the diplomatic road, says former US official
VIDEO3:0503:05Both the US and Iran don't know where they want to go: ExpertStreet Signs Asia
U.S. President Donald Trump's fresh sanctions on Iran are a "symbolic act" and may leave Washington with no room to exert further pressure on the nuclear power, a former U.S. diplomat said Tuesday.
Trump on Monday signed an executive order to impose "hard-hitting" sanctions on Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, whom he said was responsible for the "hostile conduct" of the regime.
While the new sanctions aim to deny top Iranian officials access to important financial resources, "the Ayatollah and most of the people closest to him don't really have bank accounts in their names ... in Europe or outside of Iran" that would be hit by the sanctions, said Amos Hochstein, who served as U.S. special envoy for international energy affairs under the Obama administration.
Washington's new sanctions come on the back of tense U.S.-Iran rhetoric after Tehran downed an American military drone last Thursday. The Trump administration has accused Iran of being responsible for a recent attack on six oil tankers in or near the Strait of Hormuz.
However, Washington may be treading into dangerous waters in its Iran policy, Hochstein told CNBC's "Street Signs Asia."
"When (U.S. Secretary of State Mike) Pompeo says that the United States has sanctioned more than 80% of the (Iranian) economy, that's the good news, but it's also the bad news," he added.
"What else do you have to do that will actually have to affect the Iranians' calculus?" Hochstein asked.
U.S. President Donald Trump signs an executive order imposing new sanctions on Iran, in the Oval Office at the White House on June 24, 2019 in Washington, DC.Mark Wilson | Getty Images
The former U.S. special envoy added that he doesn't know what the Trump administration is trying to achieve by unilaterally withdrawing from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), in which Iran had agreed to certain nuclear restrictions with verification and monitoring.
"If now (the Iranians) go back to enriching and raise those levels outside of what was agreed to in the JCPOA — in the Iran deal — what are they in violation of that the United States has not already ripped up?" Hochstein said.
Currently, the American sanctions have "no articulated goal except for 'come back to the negotiating table.' But at the negotiating table, what is supposed to be achieved?" he added.
"There has to be some articulation of real goals, real lampposts that Iran can achieve or commit to, that would allow us to scale some of these back," Hochstein said.
When asked if a military confrontation is possible, Hochstein said it "really depends on what the Iranians' actions are going to be."
Shortly after Hochstein spoke with CNBC, Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi said on Twitter that the new U.S. sanctions mark the "permanent closure of the path of diplomacy" between Tehran and Washington."
"Trump's desperate administration is destroying the established international mechanisms for maintaining world peace and security," Mousavi tweeted.
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c1a22e934b904496b85bd971d22b695b | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/26/bitcoin-soars-close-to-13000-hitting-a-17-month-high.html | Bitcoin soars close to $13,000, hitting a 17-month high | Bitcoin soars close to $13,000, hitting a 17-month high
A bitcoin logo on a mobile phone.Omar Marques | SOPA Images, LightRocket | Getty Images
Bitcoin skyrocketed close to $13,000 on Wednesday, notching a 17-month high and continuing a stunning turnaround for the cryptocurrency in 2019.
The digital currency surged as high as $12,919 in early morning trade, according to CoinDesk's bitcoin price index, which tracks prices from various exchanges.
That was the highest level the virtual coin had traded at since January 2018. It's now up 230% since the start of this year. Bitcoin last traded about 11% higher on Wednesday to $12,610.
It was the biggest gainer among some of the most popular cryptocurrencies, with ether up nearly 9% at $338 and XRP almost 3% higher at about 48 cents. Bitcoin's dominance of the market now stands at over 60%, according to CoinMarketCap.
Bitcoin has enjoyed a spectacular rally this year as investors look to major companies like Facebook getting involved in the crypto space. The social media giant announced plans for a cryptocurrency called Libra last week. The digital token will be used for payments and is being overseen by a consortium of companies including Visa and Uber.
There are other theories behind bitcoin's move higher, including the idea that it may be viewed as a hedge amid ongoing U.S.-China trade uncertainty. Another reason for the rally, experts say, is that traders are anticipating a so-called "halvening" event next year that cuts the rewards to bitcoin miners in half.
The story in 2019 is in stark contrast with what happened in the market last year. Bitcoin plummeted more than 70% over the course of 2018, with other cryptocurrencies also falling sharply. That was after an almost $20,000 record high hit in late 2017.
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a9760e60f5225de383b387ec9c69dc94 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/26/mnuchin-defends-kushners-50-billion-plan-for-the-midedle-east.html | Mnuchin defends Kushner's $50 billion plan for the Middle East | Mnuchin defends Kushner's $50 billion plan for the Middle East
Steven Mnuchin, U.S. Treasury secretary.Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin defended accusations that a U.S.-drafted economic solution to bring about Israeli-Palestinian peace has little chance of success.
President Donald Trump's son-in-law and White House senior advisor, Jared Kushner, chaired a "peace to prosperity" workshop in Bahrain this week, based on a plan to spend as much as $50 billion on investments in the Palestinian territories as well as neighboring areas such as Jordan and Lebanon.
Ahead of the event, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, claimed that "nobody will live along enough to see this $50 billion," adding: "We are used to this nonsense, let us not listen to endless lies."
Representatives from private investors, the World Bank and Intentional Monetary Fund have gathered in Bahrain but no officials from either the Palestinian or Israeli government are attending the summit.
"My view from that last 18 hours here is really this has gone quite successful," Mnuchin told CNBC's Hadley Gamble in Manama, Bahrain, Wednesday.
VIDEO2:1902:19Mnuchin: Existing sanctions against Iran are workingStreet Signs Europe
"What everybody is echoing at the table here is that really this is a very manageable plan ... This will lead to tremendous economic opportunities for the people of the Palestine region," he added.
One attendee, U.S. businessman Steve Schwarzman, said this week that Palestine could be compared to Dubai and Singapore before the investment dollars poured in. He added that his own investment of $5 billion in the region would represent just one or two deals for his firm.
Mnuchin said that attitude highlighted how quickly investment into Palestine and the wider region could occur.
When questioned if a lack of security as well as an absence of Palestinian trust in Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu would scupper any development in the region, Mnuchin said the issue needed to extend beyond local conflict.
"This isn't about Israel and Palestine, this is really about an international solution and economic support."
Mnuchin said this was a very real plan for economic opportunity and President Donald Trump would "absolutely" take the lead on the project.
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f2adea20aa34dfc20db2b1336116ee9f | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/26/russia-threatens-response-to-nato-over-nuclear-ready-ssc-8-missile.html?recirc=taboolainternal | Russia threatens military response to any NATO action over nuclear-ready missile | Russia threatens military response to any NATO action over nuclear-ready missile
Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov.Alexander Shcherbak | TASS | Getty Images
Moscow has said it will take "countervailing military measures" should NATO fulfil any threat related to Russia's nuclear-ready cruise missile system.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Tuesday that Russia must dismantle the short-range system, or the alliance will be forced to respond, adding that NATO-member defense ministers would now look at next steps "in the event that Russia does not comply."
No detail is yet known over what NATO might do although Stoltenberg said the alliance would not engage in any arms race.
According to the Kremlin-owned news agency TASS, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told reporters Wednesday that NATO's comments "reek of propaganda" and were falsely attempting to portray NATO's threat as a "military and political response to Russia's actions."
The translation of Ryabkov, provided by TASS, added that Russia would respond to any military action from the 29-nation alliance.
"When these threats begin to materialize into real action, we will have to take countervailing military measures," he said.
Earlier this year, the U.S. said it would quit a decades-old missile treaty with Russia if the latter failed to destroy the missile, labeled the SSC-8 by NATO.
Russia's short and medium range missiles are viewed as a particular threat to neighboring countries as they can be quickly launched, leaving the target country or region with almost no response time.
The 1987 INF Treaty between the U.S. and Russia sought to eliminate nuclear and conventional missiles, as well as their launchers, with short ranges (310–620 miles) and intermediate ranges (620–3,420 miles).
NATO has said Russia's SSC-8 violates those terms and that Moscow has been deploying the system at locations which threatens countries across Europe.
Russia has been given until the end of August to just five weeks to scrap the system and save the treaty.
VIDEO1:3001:30Trump unveils new missile defense strategy as the U.S. withdraws from a Cold War-era nuclear treatyNews Videos
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5df72a810980dcb098a784faec98b7af | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/27/boeing-shares-drop-after-faa-recently-found-another-issue-with-737-max.html | Boeing shares fall as company says new 737 Max issue will delay return to flight for months | Boeing shares fall as company says new 737 Max issue will delay return to flight for months
VIDEO1:0601:06Boeing parks dozens of planes on tarmac, parking lots while fixing 737 MaxNews Videos
Boeing shares fell Thursday after an international aviation body added pressure on the company to coordinate 737 Max pilot training for all regulators and airlines around the world, asking for an "alignment on additional training requirements for Boeing 737 MAX flight crew."
Additionally, a Boeing official told CNBC's Phil Lebeau that a new issue identified by the FAA will require several additional months of work on the 737 Max. The person said that the FAA is unlikely to certify the 737 Max and get the plane into service before the middle October, as the fixes include both the previously identified issues with the MCAS software as well as the recently disclosed software issue disclosed on Wednesday.
Boeing shares fell 2.9% in trading Thursday to close at $364.02. The stock had fallen as far as 6.9% in premarket but regained some lost ground.
VIDEO0:5300:53Source: Boeing looking to have 737 Max fix by SeptemberClosing Bell
The statement from the International Air Transport Association came after the Federal Aviation Administration said Wednesday it found another software issue with the company's grounded 737 Max aircraft. While the international aviation body said it trusts the FAA, it said U.S. regulators need to work in step with international regulators, as "aviation cannot function efficiently without this coordinated effort." The IATA's statement followed its summit in Montreal about the 737 Max, with representatives of over 40 airlines, regulators and other companies attending.
"The Boeing 737 MAX tragedies weigh heavily on an industry that holds safety as its top priority," IATA Director General and CEO Alexandre de Juniac said in a statement Thursday. "Aviation is a globally integrated system that relies on global standards, including mutual recognition, trust, and reciprocity among safety regulators."
Pressure on Boeing's stock has mounted since Wednesday afternoon, when the FAA said it had found a new issue with the 737 Max aircraft.
"The FAA's process is designed to discover and highlight potential risks. The FAA recently found a potential risk that Boeing must mitigate," the agency said in a statement.
In a note to investors, Bank of America called the announcement another "software hiccup" for Boeing but "not all that surprising."
"Given that the FAA is reviewing a complex software/hardware system in a thorough manner, we would expect to see some back and forth before a final software/hardware package is determined," Bank of America said.
With the new delay, the best-case scenario for the first certification flight of the 737 Max is the second week of July, according to Reuters. But Bank of America said it expects to see the 737 Max grounded for an additional six to nine months.
Boeing disclosed in a filing with the SEC that this new issue was not covered by the changes it had planned for MCAS, a software system that has been the focus of regulators after two 737 Max airplanes crashed since October, killing 346 people. The new software issue is reportedly separate from the changes Boeing is making to MCAS, according to The Wall Street Journal. The report said this software system is a part of the emergency process that pilots would use to address an MCAS malfunction.
– CNBC's Michael Bloom contributed to this report.
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ae7df0a5c2ea6cbca890402ba5290e03 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/27/cnbcs-vaporized-americas-e-cigarette-addiction-with-carl-quintanilla-premieres-monday-july-15-at-10pm-etpt.html | CNBC'S "VAPORIZED: AMERICA'S E-CIGARETTE ADDICTION" WITH CARL QUINTANILLA PREMIERES MONDAY JULY 15 AT 10PM ET/PT | CNBC'S "VAPORIZED: AMERICA'S E-CIGARETTE ADDICTION" WITH CARL QUINTANILLA PREMIERES MONDAY JULY 15 AT 10PM ET/PT
CNBC'S CARL QUINTANILLA TAKES ON THE HIGHLY-CHARGED VAPING PHENOMENON IN A NEW CNBC ORIGINAL DOCUMENTARY
CNBC EXPLORES THE E-CIGARETTE INDUSTRY WITH UNPRECEDENTED ACCESS TO MARKET LEADER JUUL LABS
ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS, N.J., June 27, 2019 – On Monday, July 15 at 10pm ET/PT, CNBC presents "Vaporized: America's E-Cigarette Addiction," a comprehensive look inside the rapidly growing and highly controversial vaping industry, a market expected to hit $9 billion by the end of 2019. Reported by Carl Quintanilla, the hour-long documentary explores the contentious debate over e-cigarettes. While some believe their sales should be restricted to prevent teens from vaping, others claim stricter regulation could cost the lives of many adult cigarette smokers who use e-cigarettes to help them quit.
CNBC gets unprecedented access to Juul Labs, the upstart e-cigarette company whose innovative product design and marketing have made it the vaping industry leader. Quintanilla speaks with Juul executives about its remarkable growth as well as its reputation for making the most popular vaping products among adolescents.
Among the most pressing concerns over vaping is its overwhelming popularity among teenagers, which critics attribute to the industry's shrewd exploitation of social media marketing, as well as a staggering array of enticing flavors. Quintanilla reports in-depth on the efforts of the government, parents and schools to stop vaping's explosive growth, and also profiles high school-aged vapers from across the country and a young social media influencer who performs vape tricks online and says he earns his living reviewing e-cigarette products.
Quintanilla's reporting takes him into the heart of the vaping epidemic in West Virginia. The state with the unfortunate distinction of having the nation's highest adult smoking rate also has a hard-earned expertise in respiratory illness stemming from its long experience with Black Lung Disease among coal miners. Researchers at West Virginia University are among the first to look holistically at vaping behavior, and offer substantial evidence in the case against e-cigarettes.
Quintanilla also travels to London where the U.K. government openly promotes vaping as a means to stop adult smoking. A prominent researcher tells him that, in the absence of long-term human studies on e-cigarettes, smokers should opt for them to avoid the certain dangers of cigarettes.
"Vaporized: America's e-Cigarette Addiction" provides a timely guide to the vaping phenomenon. In compelling fashion, it explains how and why this highly addictive and controversial habit has become so big so fast.
For additional information and to view early clips from the documentary, visit: cnbc.com/vaporized.
For more information contact:
Jennifer DaubleCNBCt: 201.735.4721m: 201.615.2787e: jennifer.dauble@nbcuni.com
Emma Martin CNBCt: 201.735.4713m: 551.275.6221e: emma.martin@nbcuni.com
About CNBC:
With CNBC in the U.S., CNBC in Asia Pacific, CNBC in Europe, Middle East and Africa, and CNBC World, CNBC is the recognized world leader in business news and provides real-time financial market coverage and business information to 410 million homes worldwide, including more than 90 million households in the United States and Canada. CNBC also provides daily business updates to 400 million households across China. The network's 15 live hours a day of business programming in North America (weekdays from 4:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m. ET) is produced at CNBC's global headquarters in Englewood Cliffs, N.J., and includes reports from CNBC News bureaus worldwide. CNBC at night features a mix of new reality programming, CNBC's highly successful series produced exclusively for CNBC and a number of distinctive in-house documentaries.
CNBC Digital delivers more than 55 million U.S. multi-platform unique visitors each month. CNBC.com provides real-time financial market news and information to CNBC's investor audience. CNBC Make It is a digital destination focused on making you smarter about how you earn, save and spend your money by zeroing in on careers, leadership, entrepreneurship and personal finance.
CNBC has a vast portfolio of digital products, offering CNBC content to a variety of platforms such as: CNBC.com; CNBC PRO, a premium service that provides in-depth access to Wall Street; a suite of CNBC mobile apps for iOS and Android devices; Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant and Apple Siri voice interfaces; and streaming services including Apple TV, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Android TV and Samsung Smart TVs. To learn more, visit https://www.cnbc.com/digital-products/.
Members of the media can receive more information about CNBC and its programming on the NBCUniversal Media Village Web site at http://www.nbcumv.com/programming/cnbc. For more information about NBCUniversal, please visit http://www.NBCUniversal.com.
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4a8c6847ac855bdd0fa7e05882c6ad62 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/27/rent-the-runway-is-bringing-its-drop-boxes-to-nordstrom-stores.html | Rent the Runway is bringing its drop boxes to Nordstrom stores | Rent the Runway is bringing its drop boxes to Nordstrom stores
The inside of Nordstrom Local on Melrose Ave. in Los Angeles, where Rent the Runway has one of its drop-off boxes.Source: Rent the Runway
Clothing subscription company Rent the Runway is opening drop boxes in four Nordstrom locations in Los Angeles on Thursday.
The deal marks Rent the Runway's second tie-up to expand its reach after it started putting drop boxes in certain WeWork locations last fall. And for department store chain Nordstrom, it adds a perk to help draw shoppers into its stores.
The drop boxes will be at three of Nordstrom's small-format neighborhood locations, known as Nordstrom Local: on Melrose Avenue, in the Brentwood neighborhood and downtown. There will also be a drop box added to Nordstrom's full-line store at The Grove in Los Angeles.
Rent the Runway says it's likely it will be growing with Nordstrom beyond California after this initial rollout is complete. It said Los Angeles is its fourth-biggest market.
To acquire more subscribers and attract new ones, rolling out more spaces where users can drop off rented clothes is helping Rent the Runway to scale, said Maureen Sullivan, its chief operating officer.
"We wouldn't be doing this unless we thought we had the potential to scale," Sullivan said, so the company can "really understand what [our] respective customers want."
Since launching in WeWork, for example, the company said it's seen a 180% increase in the number of returns it receives, meaning people are churning through clothes and accessories more frequently.
Rent the Runway shoppers normally return items via a box in the mail, which slows down the turnaround time for new orders under the company's monthly subscription plans. That could take days. Customers for $159 can rent an unlimited number of outfits a month, with any four styles out at any one time. Or they can rent just four pieces a month at $89. And for the items they really like, customers always have the option to purchase pieces at discounted prices.
"Our philosophy is we are only going to do things that are convenient," Sullivan said. Rent the Runway is going where "our customers shop or do spend time," she said.
Rent the Runway only has five bricks-and-mortar locations today: One in New York near Union Square that's about 4,000 square feet, and another recently opened in San Francisco that's about double that size. The latter has a coffee bar, extra dressing rooms and more space for evening events with fashion and design influencers. It also has shops in Los Angeles, Washington, D.C., and Chicago.
As it tries to scale, Rent the Runway recently started offering items in the home-goods category through a partnership with furniture retailer West Elm. And in March it said it had brought in $125 million in its latest fund-raising round, upping its valuation to the unicorn level of $1 billion.
"We believe that Rent the Runway and Nordstrom customers share a lot of the same qualities," said Shea Jensen, senior vice president of customer experience at Nordstrom. "Customers have told us that convenience matters to them."
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ce5c5451a1df6e198f5d4581079e4b3a | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/27/the-money-basics-you-need-in-less-time-than-an-episode-of-the-office.html | Learn money and investing basics in less time than an episode of 'The Office' | Learn money and investing basics in less time than an episode of 'The Office'
You're working as hard as you can, living the only life that seems possible, but that should not mean just keeping afloat. Yet who has time to make budgets and figure out financial planning? Well, if you don't want to work forever, it is a worthwhile investment to spend some time learning some money basics. And it does not require a huge amount of time.
These eight short videos will help educate you on how to make the most of your money and live your best possible life. All you need is 20 minutes to start on a path to financial freedom.
Your credit score impacts almost all expenses in your life, from getting a mobile phone to buying a house. Having a good grasp on how it's determined can help you get the best deal.
VIDEO2:0602:06How a FICO credit score affects your lifeInvest in You: Ready. Set. Grow.
You know you need one, but having a basic framework for the main buckets in your life will help you understand the ins and outs of budgeting.
VIDEO2:2602:26How to make a budgetInvest in You: Ready. Set. Grow.
No budget would be complete or accurate if you do not also have a good understanding of health insurance premiums and deductibles. Staying on top of your insurance will keep both your pocketbook and health in good shape.
VIDEO2:1902:19How insurance premiums and deductibles workInvest in You: Ready. Set. Grow.
If you are accumulating more money in a savings account because you've made a budget and are spending wisely on health care, you should not let the extra cash just sit there. It is making money for the bank when they lend it out to others. You can earn more too when money is deposited in the right kind of interest-bearing bank accounts.
VIDEO2:2002:20How to pick between savings and money market accountsInvest in You: Ready. Set. Grow.
Make reaching these milestones during each decade you're working a goal to make sure you'll have enough saved for a relaxing retirement.
VIDEO2:3002:30Here's how much money you should have savedInvest in You: Ready. Set. Grow.
If you missed any of the retirement goal benchmarks covered in the last video, understanding the most important concept in investing, compound interest, may help put you on a smarter investing path now.
VIDEO2:1502:15How compound interest worksInvest in You: Ready. Set. Grow.
Chances are high you own mutual funds if you have a 401(k) plan. Here's the 411 on one of the most common investing tools.
VIDEO2:1902:19How mutual funds workInvest in You: Ready. Set. Grow.
Filling out your W-4 correctly will help you do your taxes each year with less potential pain.
VIDEO2:0202:02Tax withholding – what it is and how it affects your take-home payInvest in You: Ready. Set. Grow.
Check out What entrepreneurs like Daymond John and Ryan Serhant learned about money from summer jobs via Grow with Acorns+CNBC.
Disclosure: NBCUniversal and Comcast Ventures are investors in Acorns.
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599498bafd8a5090e3b0006ccb81fc0a | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/28/airbus-pushing-ahead-in-tech-as-it-aims-for-single-pilot-planes-cto.html | Airbus is pushing ahead in tech as it aims for single-pilot planes, says CTO | Airbus is pushing ahead in tech as it aims for single-pilot planes, says CTO
A Singapore Airlines A380 passenger plane taking off at Changi International Airport in Singapore.Fyrol Mohn | AFP | Getty Images
European aerospace giant Airbus is working on technologies that will cut the number of pilots needed in the cockpit, a company executive said on Thursday.
"Embedding more and more artificial intelligence into our systems will enable us to start by really relieving the pilots from more mundane tasks, routine tasks — so really to keep the human element in the chain for the strategic thinking and decision-making type of tasks," said Grazia Vittadini, chief technology officer at Airbus.
That will take the company "on the way to possibly one day achieve the single-pilot operation target we are aiming at," she told CNBC at the Innovfest Unbound conference in Singapore.
That change to cockpit staffing will solve problems like the shortage of pilots, particularly when growth in aviation is outpacing economic growth, she added.
Ultimately, artificial intelligence will be the differentiating factor that will make planes autonomous, Vittadini said.
As to concerns stemming from fewer pilots on board, Vittadini said Airbus prioritizes safety above all else and will never go for a lower level of safety that what is currently available.
The scenario of planes going fully autonomous will take time — after all, it took 60 years to go from four to two pilots, she noted.
Passengers will be able to adapt to the new technologies, she projected.
"Our grandparents would have never stepped into an elevator without a lift boy. Today, an elevator ride is nothing exciting or of concern to any of us," said Vittadini.
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b2eaf38fd7d8748ee023f43e281419b4 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/28/despite-the-high-cost-ivf-is-often-an-out-of-pocket-expense.html | Coverage for fertility treatments often comes up short | Coverage for fertility treatments often comes up short
VIDEO5:4405:44Borrowing for babyOn the Money
Cynthia and Alex are parents to a 6-year-old son, Jake. "It was a dream come true," Alex said, of becoming a dad.
But for the high school sweethearts, conceiving a child was only possible with in vitro fertilization, which was covered by Cynthia's insurance through her employer. They have what's called "unexplained infertility."
Cynthia then left her job to become a stay-at-home mom. Of course, they'd like another child. Although Cynthia went back to work as a part-time teacher, she is no longer covered for fertility treatments and Alex's job doesn't provide that coverage, either.
"I work for a large shipping company and our benefits are great," he said. "I was a little shocked we don't have that.
"We do have very good dental, very good medical and prescription plans, but that's the one coverage we don't have."
Cynthia and Alex with their son, Jake.Courtesy of Cynthia Triana
They've since racked up more than $24,000 in debt over the past year paying for treatments out of pocket, which is split between a credit card and a home equity loan. "That's where it gets challenging, because of the huge amount of debt," Cynthia said.
Now in their late 30s, the couple must also weigh their age along with their financial standing.
It's a scenario that's increasingly common.
For the first time ever, women in their 30s are having more children than those in their 20s, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
And because fertility in women is known to decline steadily with age, complications can arise. Not only is it harder to have kids as a 30-something compared to a 20-something, but treatments — such as the increasingly popular IVF — can be prohibitively expensive.
Even as demand for IVF rises, insurance coverage remains limited. With the recent addition of New York, there are only 10 states that have an IVF insurance mandate, meaning that employees in the state must be offered a health insurance option that covers the procedures. In all, there are 16 states that require some type of coverage, but that does not necessarily include IVF.
More from Invest in You:4 questions to ask to get the best deals on health careTwo charges to understand when choosing health coverageUsing pretax health savings keeps more money in your pocket
However, depending on your employer, the state's requirements may not even apply. For example, small employers offering health insurance are often exempt, as are large corporations — such as the one Alex works for — that self-insure their plans.
About 80% of people who underwent IVF fertility treatments in 2018 had hardly any or no coverage, according to FertilityIQ, a digital database for information about fertility benefits and treatments.
That means that much of the expense is covered out of pocket. It's common for patients to spend upwards of $50,000 on IVF treatments, assuming they go through more than one cycle, FertilityIQ said.
"For a lot of people, it's a really rude surprise," said FertilityIQ co-founder Jake Anderson-Bialis. "When you feel like you really want a family and time is slipping away, this is a non-negotiable bill that people feel compelled to pay whether they have the money or not."
Anderson-Bialis and his wife, Deborah, did not do IVF but they did spend $70,000 on fertility treatments in their efforts to have children. "Affordability is a monumental issue," he said.
Affordability is a monumental issue.Jake Anderson-Bialisco-founder of FertilityIQ
"Most people are barely saving to begin with," Anderson-Bialis said. "Forget about a $50,000 bill dropped in your lap."
On the upside, some fertility clinics do offer financing options, including loans, graduated repayments or even outcome-based pricing models.
In other cases, your employer can help. As of 2019, a little more than 500 U.S. employers offer some sort of fertility benefit (including companies such as ExxonMobil, AT&T, Mass Mutual, Geico and Procter & Gamble), a 20% increase from last year, according to FertilityIQ.
J.P. Morgan Chase is expanding benefits to help employees pay for fertility treatments and surrogacy services, according to an internal memo obtained by CNBC. The move is an important one because Wall Street firms tend to follow each other in enhancing benefits amid a constant war for talent.
"While more companies than ever before are offering full or partial IVF coverage in their benefits packages, most still do not, which means the high cost of IVF will fall almost entirely on the person or couple themselves," said Natalie Elisha Gold, an attorney and author of "Money Momma: The Women's Wealth Bible for the Digital Age."
"I see more and more women who have been hyper-focused on their educations and careers coming to me for advice about funding fertility treatments in their 30s and 40s," she said.
More than half of all IVF candidates resort to using their credit cards to pay for treatment, according to a report by StudentLoanHero. Others take out a personal loan or tap their 401(k).
Gold advises clients to start saving in a Roth IRA as soon as possible, even before babies are on the brain. Contributions to a Roth are taxed up front and account holders can withdraw their contributions at any time without taxes or penalties.
"And if you don't end up needing it, that money will have been accruing compound interest which can be used in retirement," Gold said.
If you haven't built up a sufficient nest egg, "start from the top of what's going to be the least expensive financing option," added Carolyn McClanahan, a certified financial planner and founder of Life Planning Partners in Jacksonville, Florida.
There are better and worse ways to borrow. The interest rate on a home equity loan, for example, is 5% to 6% on average. Personal loans are available at a slightly higher rate, and they do not require borrowing against something of value, like a house, which makes them attractive for those without that kind of equity.
Both options are much better than running up a tab on a credit card, which is one of the most expensive ways to access cash.
And McClanahan, along with many other financial advisors, advises against 401(k) loans entirely.
"The problem with borrowing against a 401(k) is, let's say you have a problem with delivery and you need to quit work, or you want to stay at home with the baby, that loan is immediately due."
That's where Cynthia says she'll draw the line. Still, she's not ready to think about giving up, she added. "Since we started, I'm not OK with stopping."
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9ccbec23b12c5124c4e0d44d86777863 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/28/iran-crisis-trump-wants-countries-to-protect-their-own-oil-tankers.html | Trump doesn't want to protect other countries' oil tankers — that could be a big problem | Trump doesn't want to protect other countries' oil tankers — that could be a big problem
VIDEO2:3602:36Trump suggests China and Japan should protect their own ships in Strait of HormuzCapital Connection
A flurry of oil tanker attacks in the world's busiest transit lane for seaborne oil shipments has triggered grave concerns about maritime security, with President Donald Trump suggesting the U.S. could stop providing protection to other ships.
Six oil tankers and a U.S. spy drone have been attacked since May either in, or near, the Strait of Hormuz — a strategically important waterway which separates Iran, Oman and the United Arab Emirates.
Trump has since said the U.S. may lessen its role in the Strait of Hormuz, as domestic oil and gas output soars and U.S. energy imports from the Middle East decline.
The suggestion indicates a weakening of a nearly 40-year-old U.S. policy to defend national interests in the Persian Gulf and appeared to contradict White House officials seeking to reassure allies of the U.S. commitment to safe transport of energy through the narrow waterway.
In response to Trump, Japan's chief cabinet secretary, Yoshihide Suga, reportedly said Tuesday that the safety of shipping in the Strait of Hormuz is "a matter of life and death for our country in terms of energy security and it is extremely important for the peace and prosperity of the international community."
The Strait of Hormuz — located between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman — is seen as one of the most important waterways in the world, linking crude producers in the Middle East with key markets in the rest of the world. It plays a pivotal role for Asian economies that are heavily dependent on oil imports from the Middle East.
Flows through the narrow channel in 2018 made up about one-third of total global seaborne traded oil. More than one-quarter of global liquefied natural gas trade (LNG) also transited the Strait of Hormuz last year.
Daily oil flow in the Strait of Hormuz averaged 21 million barrels per day in 2018, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). That's the equivalent of about 21% of global petroleum liquids consumption.
An oil tanker is seen after it was attacked at the Gulf of Oman, June 13, 2019.ISNA | Reuters
Trump said in a tweet earlier this week that China, Japan and other countries reliant on the world's most important chokepoint "should be protecting their own ships on what has always been a dangerous journey."
The U.S. president also claimed China gets 91% of its oil from the Strait of Hormuz, while Japan imports 62% and many other countries likewise.
"So why are we protecting the shipping lanes for other countries (many years) for zero compensation (?)"
"We don't even need to be there in that the U.S. has just become (by far) the largest producer of energy anywhere in the world," Trump said.
Tweet 1
It was not clear what data Trump based his tweet claiming that China imported 91% of its oil via the Strait of Hormuz.
The world's second-largest economy secured about 44% of its imported crude oil supplies via the Middle East from January through to April, according to China's General Administration of Customs.
Nonetheless, U.S. oil imports of crude from Persian Gulf countries has tumbled to historic lows as U.S. oil output continues to shatter records.
U.S. imports from Middle Eastern countries averaged less than 1.05 million barrels per day (b/d) in March, down from a peak of almost 3.08 million b/d in April 2003, according to the EIA.
Over the same period, oil output in the world's largest economy climbed to almost 12 million b/d, up from 5.73 million b/d.
Trump's tweets also appeared to contradict members of his own administration.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met with Saudi Arabia's King Salman on Monday to discuss regional tensions and the "need to promote maritime security in the Strait of Hormuz."
"Freedom of navigation is paramount," Pompeo said via Twitter on Monday.
Tweet 3
Meanwhile, U.S. special representative to Iran, Brian Hook, told CNBC last week that an "international response" would be required to protect ships traveling through the Strait of Hormuz.
Hook suggested the G-20 forum would be a "good forum" for leaders to discuss maritime security and freedom of navigation.
"That's a very important principle that countries need to support, not only in words but also in deed," he added.
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28c430c1d11a2ec9ec28e0d8785324c7 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/28/porsche-on-navigating-the-technological-changes-for-sports-cars.html | Porsche: Expect sports cars to change more in the next seven years than they did in the last 70 | Porsche: Expect sports cars to change more in the next seven years than they did in the last 70
Oliver Blume, CEO of Porsche AG, presents the name of the company's first electric car as "Taycan", during the event "70 years of the Porsche sports car" at the Porsche Museum.Sebastian Gollnow | picture alliance | Getty Images
The auto industry has seen a significant shake-up in recent years, with the rapid development in areas such as the electrification of vehicles, ride-sharing and autonomous driving technology. Yet, more changes may be on the horizon.
"The (Porsche) sport car just got 70 years old last year ... but what you see is in the next seven years there will be more change than in the last 70," said Anja Hendel, director of innovation management and digital transformation at Porsche.
Speaking with CNBC's Matthew Taylor at the Innovfest Unbound conference in Singapore on Thursday, Hendel said Porsche faces "tremendous changes" in the years ahead.
This year, she said, is "all about" electrification for the storied German automaker. The company is set to launch its first-ever fully electric vehicle, Taycan, in September. Earlier this year, Porsche told CNBC it was doubling production for the Taycan even before its release.
The sports car is expected to give Tesla a run for its money, or at least a run for its customers. Tesla sold 245,240 vehicles last year: 145,846 Model 3 sedans and a combined 99,394 Model S sedans and Model X SUVs.
On the subject of adopting new technology at Porsche, Hendel emphasized the importance of collaboration.
"Porsche is a relatively small automotive company, we are not that big like all the big brands out there," Hendel said. "For us, collaboration is key, we are too small to do it alone."
"We have to to collaborate with industry partners but as well with start-ups," she added. "We love start-ups, we really like to work with them and, as we are small, it's much easier for them to handle us."
Asked how she attempts to understand nascent technologies such as artificial intelligence, Hendel said there is "always a little bit of trial and error."
"What we want to do is we want to be the gateway and the bridge between the science part and our real use cases, which is the biggest challenge in this field at the moment," she said.
— CNBC's Robert Ferris contributed to this report.
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ac988678c4ab04308f3b5266412b65d0 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/01/ahead-of-july-4-california-gas-tax-hike-bumps-up-states-gas-prices.html | After tax hike, gas in California is now a dollar higher than the national average | After tax hike, gas in California is now a dollar higher than the national average
Gas prices over $4.00 a gallon are displayed at a gas station on May 24, 2019 in Mill Valley, California.Justin Sullivan | Getty Images
California's already-high gas prices jumped up again on July 1, with a new 5.6 cents per gallon gasoline tax hike.
The increase brings the average price per gallon in California for regular gasoline to a national high of $3.755 per gallon, according to the American Automobile Association, more than a dollar a gallon more than the national average of $2.717 per gallon.
The hike takes California's total statewide gas tax up to 47.3 cents per gallon, according to the state's Department of Tax and Fee administration.
With the new tax in place, it will cost approximately 78 cents more to fill an average 14-gallon gas tank, according to Marie Montgomery Nordhues, a spokeswoman for the Auto Club of Southern California.
Although it comes just before the July 4 holiday, the tax increase is unlikely to suppress Independence Day travel because most people have already finalized their plans, Nordhues said. AAA is projecting a 4.1% increase in holiday car travel in California from to last year.
VIDEO3:0603:06Russia will continue to be a reluctant member of OPEC, says analystClosing Bell
The increase came as part of a 2017 law, which aimed to raise $5.2 billion annually for road and bridge repairs and expanded mass transit, according to The Los Angeles Times.
Republicans in the state Assembly attempted to delay the July 1 increase two weeks before it took effect, but Democrats blocked the measure, according to The Associated Press.
"With this increase, California will once again have the highest gas taxes in the nation. You'd hope that would at least pay for quality roads, but no, ours are some of the worst in the country," Assembly minority leader Marie Waldron said in a statement. "It's sad that instead of using existing funding efficiently, Democrats, on a party-line vote, supported yet another regressive tax increase on California drivers."
Under the 2017 law, the tax will automatically increase annually based on a Consumer Price Index adjustment, beginning July 1, 2020.
But officials say these tax increases may not be sufficient to fill the state's infrastructure needs, the Times reported.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom has expressed concern about the state's high gas prices. Gas in California is more than 10 cents a gallon more expensive than in the next-highest state, Hawaii, according to AAA.
In April, Newsom called for the state's energy commission to investigate gas prices and blamed "inappropriate industry practices" for the price disparity, the Times said.
The commission said in a May memo that "market manipulation" could potentially explain high gasoline prices in California, and that it would continue to investigate the source of the disparity.
Gasoline prices nationwide were surging in early 2019, but fell in May and June before rising July 1, according to price-tracking firm GasBuddy.
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8f2b0a1dd32a1257fcc66f907725e271 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/01/negroponte-to-trump-improve-iran-nuclear-deal-use-with-north-korea.html | Trump should improve Iran nuclear deal and use it as model for North Korea, ex-US ambassador says | Trump should improve Iran nuclear deal and use it as model for North Korea, ex-US ambassador says
VIDEO8:5408:54Former US ambassador to the UN discusses what might come next in the trade warSquawk Box
The White House could use a stronger nuclear deal with Iran as a way to proceed with North Korea, John Negroponte, former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, told CNBC on Monday.
"We've got to improve the Iran agreement to the point where it's also something that could serve as a model for North Korea. But persuading countries not to go nuclear is hard," said Negroponte, who served in several roles in the George W. Bush administration. In addition to U.N. ambassador, Negroponte was deputy secretary of State and director of National Intelligence under the Republican 43rd president.
"We have to think about triangulating between Iran and North Korea," Negroponte added in a "Squawk Box" interview.
Iran announced last month it was scaling back on its compliance with major world powers its nuclear agreement, one year after Washington announced it was pulling out of the deal. Last week, President Donald Trump imposed new sanctions on Iran after it allegedly shot down an American military drone and attacked oil tankers in the vital Strait of Hormuz shipping route.
On Monday, Iran's foreign minister said the country had breached the limit of its enriched uranium stockpile, which was set in the 2015 multination nuclear deal. On Friday, European officials attempted to persuade Iran to stop development by offering trade incentives, but the assistance was not enough.
Looking to halt Pyongyang's nuclear ambitions, Trump had met back in February with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. However, that summit was cut short after Trump announced a deal could not be reached. The White House was pushing for North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons for an economic boost.
On Sunday, Trump met Kim and became the first sitting U.S. president to visit the North Korean side of the Demilitarized Zone. The two leaders said they would resume negotiations.
The impromptu Trump-Kim meeting may have set up the path for a deal, Negroponte said. "Not much else has worked in the past," he added, while advocating giving Trump's approach a chance. "Over the past 25 years, we've gone one step forward two steps back."
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523bb5fad7a8e949423169067ae70022 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/01/russia-will-make-few-units-of-hypersonic-weapon-putin-bragged-about.html?__source=twitter%7Cmain | Russia will only make a few units of a hypersonic weapon Putin bragged about, US intelligence says | Russia will only make a few units of a hypersonic weapon Putin bragged about, US intelligence says
Russian President Vladimir Putin.Krisztian Bocsi | Bloomberg | Getty Images
WASHINGTON — Russia will produce only a few units of a hypersonic weapon that President Vladimir Putin had bragged was already in serial production, according to people with direct knowledge of a U.S. intelligence report.
The Kremlin is having a hard time finding a source for the critical carbon fiber components needed to produce the weapon, a hypersonic glide vehicle dubbed Avangard.
It was one of the six weapons Putin boasted about in March 2018. At the time, the Russian leader claimed Avangard was capable of reaching targets at a speed of 20 times the speed of sound and that the weapon can strike "like a fireball." He also said that the device had already entered serial production.
In October, CNBC learned that the Kremlin was looking for another carbon fiber source since their current supply was unable to withstand the extreme temperatures of hypersonic flight. According to a U.S. intelligence report curated a month ago, the Kremlin has still not been able to find an alternative carbon fiber material.
"It's expected that they will make no more than 60 of these hypersonic weapons because it's just proving to be too expensive to develop," one person told CNBC on the condition of anonymity.
A display of a flight of the warhead of the Avangard hypersonic boost-glide weapon.Video screen grab | TASS | Getty Images
However, since Moscow has prioritized the Avangard program, the weapon is still slated to achieve initial operational capability by 2020, according to people with direct knowledge of the U.S. intelligence report.
In May 2018, CNBC learned that Russia successfully tested Avangard twice in 2016. The third known test of the system was carried out in October 2017, and resulted in a failure when the platform crashed seconds before striking its target.
The intelligence reports, which were curated in spring of last year, calculate that Russia's hypersonic glide vehicles are likely to achieve initial operational capability by 2020, a significant step that would enable the Kremlin to surpass the U.S. and China in this regard.
WATCH: Russia's defense ministry releases video showing off new weapons
VIDEO0:5200:52Russia releases videos showing off new hypersonic weaponsNews Videos
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ee7ccb669a603799b30fc95668eca359 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/01/stocks-rise-in-trade-rally-but-strategists-warn-of-market-correction.html | Trade ceasefire rally could be short-lived, market strategists warn | Trade ceasefire rally could be short-lived, market strategists warn
VIDEO4:5604:56Stocks surge after Trump-Xi meeting at G-20 — Five experts forecast what it meansTrading Nation
Stocks are surging on the trade truce, but it may be a short-lived rally once investors realize it could take months of tough talks to get to a trade agreement and the risk of more tariffs remains.
Both Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley say a stock market correction could be in the offing this summer, despite the fact the U.S.-China trade war cooled a bit this weekend.
President Donald Trump and China President Xi Jinping agreed in Osaka to hold off on new tariffs and to restart trade negotiations. Trump also said he could partially lift the ban on sales of some U.S. components to China's blacklisted telecom company Huawei, if there is no national security issue.
The Monday rose into record territory in a global equities rally, climbing wall above its previous high of 2,964. The S&P was up more than 1%, but pared gains after weak manufacturing reports
Trade sensitive stocks, like Apple and Caterpillar were higher. Semiconductor stocks also rallied, and those that do business with Huawei, like Micron, saw sharp gains.
"We still expect a 10 percent correction during 3Q as this past weekend's agreement is viewed as a sell the news event," wrote Morgan Stanley chief U.S. equity strategist Mike Wilson.
At Bank of America, analysts were also skeptical.
"The fact that there was no major breakthrough is consistent with our 'no pain, no deal' framework: at the moment the economy and markets are not weak enough to incentivize the US to make compromises," noted Bank of America strategists.
President Donald Trump connects his success with the stock market's performance and, at record highs, the market is currently ignoring trade concerns. But if that changes and stocks weaken, many pros said he might move to complete the agreement. Trump tweeted Monday that the market has had the best first half since 1997, and that America is doing great.
tweet
"We expect a deal with China, but it could take a large market correction to get there," the BofA strategists wrote. They expect a deal could come later this summer, and BofA's chief U.S. equity strategist Savita Subrahim says if there is a "real deal," the S&P could rally to as high as 3,100. However, additional tariffs could wipe 5% or more from the S&P.
Morgan Stanley's Wilson said value and cyclical stocks were rising ahead of the G-20 meeting on hopes for progress in the talks, but he does not favor those groups. He said there is a growing view that the Fed could cut interest rates, and its action, along with a possible trade deal, could stop economic slowing.
"We disagree with this conclusion and see increasing risks to growth and quality that could further accelerate the momentum unwind, but from the long side," he noted. Wilson said an accommodative Fed would cushion the blow, but not prevent a slowing.
In the bond market, the reaction was much more muted than in the stock market, and the 10-year yield was at 2.01% in morning trading, not much above Friday's level and near the low of its intraday range.
"I think it's just the fact that it's pretty similar to what we saw at the last G-20, back in December. While the cease fire is incrementally good news, it really doesn't change anything from a longer term perspective," said BMO rate strategist Ben Jeffrey. Jeffrey said the deal does not remove the economic impact of the 25% tariffs on $250 billion in Chinese goods that are already in place, and the bond market is reflecting skepticism.
"We're reading this as people are apprehensive in seeing this as an inflection point," said Jeffrey.
"The markets are likely to view the summit as a modest positive in the short run. But stepping back, we see several reasons for concern," wrote BofA strategists, pointing to the U.S. tariffs and also the nearly 20% tariffs on $100 billion of U.S. exports to China. "Tariff termites have been eating away at growth in China and its trading partners in Europe and Asia-Pacific, some of whom have very little room for policy easing. In the US, the manufacturing sector has started to weaken."
ISM manufacturing data, released Monday, slipped to 51.7 from 52, but was better than the 51 expected. New orders in the report were at 50, just barely signaling expansion, and down from 52.7 in May.
BofA strategists say they worry that the Fed will act to help the economy but it could just prolong the trade war.
"The Fed is determined to raise inflation by sustaining above-trend growth. To this end it seems willing to offset the negative impact of the trade war on the economy. But the risk is that the 'Fed put' could encourage an even tougher stance on trade, which would trigger even more Fed accommodation, and so on. The end result would be a loss of Fed policy ammunition, with an economy that is still soft," they noted.
Wilson said the market will also face weaker earnings reports, and that corporate guidance could be negative since earnings estimates for the second half and next year remain too high.
"The second half of the year tends to be a seasonally weaker time for earnings revisions and the underperformance of seasonality in revisions seen year to date is not an encouraging sign. If management teams hold out hope for a recovery by linking growth to a resolution on trade, we think it just delays the disappointments and the market likely will not buy it like it did in January," Wilson noted.
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c562eef78ce12bef59d98bd1f562a048 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/02/cramer-tech-stocks-are-overvalued-but-it-is-not-like-weve-gone-crazy.html | VIDEO3:5703:57Tech stocks overvalued, but 'it's not like we've gone crazy,' says Jim CramerMad Money with Jim Cramer
CNBC's Jim Cramer on Tuesday shot down the idea that there is too much bullish sentiment on Wall Street.
While the technology sector, which is fueling those concerns, has some sky-high valuations, the "Mad Money" host said the whole market does not fit the mold. The major averages each rallied more than 0.20% during the session, with the closed at a new all-time high of 2,973.
"After a big run, you always hear that there are just too many bulls, too much excitement, too much optimism, that we've been lulled into a false sense of security," he said. "As far as I'm concerned, there's too much exuberance in one particular subset of expensive tech stocks, but other than that, you're boxing with phantoms."
Cramer counted Amazon, Microsoft, Netflix and Apple as some of the vulnerable tech stocks that could tumble, particularly if U.S.-China trade tensions ratchet back up. Apple is one stock that he does not want to see get caught in the crossfire of the trade war.
"However, I think the deal [President Donald Trump] just made is a major win for these guys," he said. "I wouldn't sell Apple."
Cramer also pointed to the biotech segment as another source of overvaluation, but found solace in the big pharmaceutical names buying up some of those companies.
He considered the financial technology world to be the most overvalued part of the market. That industry includes payments companies like Visa, PayPal, American Express and Mastercard. Still, these companies could continue to thrive because the fintech space has secular growth, the host noted.
"Every time they get hit, buyers come out of the woodwork," Cramer said.
Looking at the software space, Cramer said the group of tech stocks he calls "Cloud Kings" are also vulnerable here. He listed Splunk, ServiceNow, Salesforce, Workday and Adobe among them.
Facebook and Google-parent Alphabet, on the other hand, are at "historically low valuations," Cramer said. Furthermore, investors are still willing to buy other high-valued stocks like Trade Desk and Roku. Those equities bounced back after each caught downgrades from RBC Capital Markets Tuesday morning, he added.
"So where does the argument say that we're too bullish? It comes from tech, where we do have some outrageous valuations," Cramer said. "Still, it's not like we've gone crazy."
VIDEO10:4710:47Cramer: Tech stocks are overvalued, but 'it's not like we've gone crazy'Mad Money with Jim Cramer
Disclosure: Cramer's charitable trust owns shares of Facebook, Alphabet, Salesforce.com, Amazon, Microsoft and Apple.
Questions for Cramer? Call Cramer: 1-800-743-CNBCWant to take a deep dive into Cramer's world? Hit him up! Mad Money Twitter - Jim Cramer Twitter - Facebook - InstagramQuestions, comments, suggestions for the "Mad Money" website? madcap@cnbc.com
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53d0d466cf9aac75e36fd206c87e6925 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/02/one-signal-shows-the-sp-500-and-apple-can-surge-double-digits-cramer.html | VIDEO4:1004:10S&P 500 and Apple can surge more than 11%, says Jim CramerMad Money with Jim Cramer
The market may face some rough waters later this week, but the could be poised to surge more than 11% from current levels, CNBC's Jim Cramer said Tuesday.
The S&P finished the session above 2,973, another all-time high close.
"The charts, as interpreted by Carolyn Boroden, suggest that both Apple and the broader S&P 500 have more room to run, but the next few sessions might get a little dicey," the "Mad Money" host said. "When the averages started pulling back in early May, Boroden told us she expected more pain, even though she was still long-term bullish. She nailed it."
The broad index of 500 large-cap stocks, according to analysis from the chartist Boroden, could soon climb to 3,015 and gain momentum to reach 3,308. That's if the index breaks through a number of hurdles in between, he said.
The market, however, has rallied into a time cycle that may lead into a weak patch for stocks in coming days, according to Boroden, who is a colleague of Cramer's at RealMoney.com who also runs FibonnacciQueen.com. The signal to sell would be a bearish crossover in the S&P's five-day and 13-day moving averages, known as a 5/13 crossover, he added.
"While Boroden likes where we're headed long-term ... right now the chart's telling her to anticipate a little, let's say, possible pullback maybe later this week," Cramer said. "She'd only be a buyer so long as her sell trigger doesn't fire, meaning as long as the S&P's five-day exponential moving average holds above the 13-day."
Taking a look at Apple's chart, Boroden expects the iPhone maker's stock will have a lot more upside if it can push through a $205 target, Cramer said. In that case, the equity could surge to $227 and even as high as $243, he said. Shares of Apple closed higher Tuesday at $203.73.
"Once again, though, if the five-day exponential moving average crosses below the 13-day, all bets are off," Cramer said.
VIDEO9:4209:42One signal shows the S&P 500 and Apple can surge double digits: CramerMad Money with Jim Cramer
Disclosure: Cramer's charitable trust owns shares of Apple.
Questions for Cramer? Call Cramer: 1-800-743-CNBCWant to take a deep dive into Cramer's world? Hit him up! Mad Money Twitter - Jim Cramer Twitter - Facebook - InstagramQuestions, comments, suggestions for the "Mad Money" website? madcap@cnbc.com
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d8ebf4d0fd8436159ddacc036c38634b | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/02/ram-pickups-outsell-rival-chevy-silverado-for-second-straight-quarter.html | Ram pickups outsell rival Chevy Silverado for second straight quarter | Ram pickups outsell rival Chevy Silverado for second straight quarter
Dodge Ram pickup trucksAdam Jeffery | CNBC
Fiat Chrysler's Ram pickup line blew past a longtime competitor and reshuffled the long-established rankings of America's favorite pickup trucks.
Between April and June, Ram easily outsold the Chevy Silverado, General Motor's top-selling model, for a second straight quarter. Ford sales data won't be out until Wednesday.
The Silverado has long held second place behind Ford's F-Series pickup trucks, with Ram often a distant third. But for the second quarter, Fiat Chrysler sold 170,454 Ram pickups compared with 141,436 Chevy Silverados.
"It's all about the product and right now we have a great product," Reid Bigland, CEO of Ram said in an interview. Bigland and executives at Fiat Chrysler are reveling in a huge June for Ram, with sales jumping 56%.
It's the kind of sales pop that turns heads in the auto industry, especially since pickup trucks have some of the largest profit margins. In addition, pickup buyers are among the most brand-loyal customers in the auto industry, so if Ram can win over customers who previously drove a Ford or Chevy truck, the shift in sales is significant.
VIDEO0:5900:59General Motors Q2 auto sales drop 1.5%Squawk on the Street
If GM is worried about the Silverado slipping into third place behind Ram and the Ford F-Series, the company isn't showing it.
"Ram has done things with incentives that we would be insane to follow," said Jim Cain, a spokesperson for the Chevy brand. "We have a disciplined approach that focuses on delivering returns to investors. Ram is different since that company is basically for sale."
Cain added that Chevrolet is in the midst of launching the regular cab version of the light-duty Silverado and production is just starting on the heavy-duty version of the pickup. He says when those models start hitting showrooms, GM will have a fresher model that will appeal to buyers without the need for big incentives.
GM said its second-quarter sales fell 1.5%, with strong sport utility vehicle sales offset by a poor performance for its pickup trucks. The No. 1 U.S. automaker said sales of its trucks would pick up in the third quarter as both its most popular and most affordable versions of the Silverado will hit dealer showrooms.
Ram's 56% jump in June sales helped drive Fiat Chrysler's overall sales 2% higher that month, the company said.
Bigland is quick to admit Ram's June performance got a jolt from the company's discount of 15% to 20% off the manufactured suggested retail price, or MSRP, depending the version of Ram.
"I think people can easily understand the percentage off message," he said. " when consumers see, 'hurry in for $5,000 off or $4,500 off', I think consumers get a little bit desensitized."
Even with the discounts, Ram truck transaction prices are up 10% year-over-year according to Fiat Chrysler.
Given the jump in June sales for Ram, will General Motors and Ford be forced to raise incentives to boost sales the Chevy Silverado and F-Series pickups?
"It definitely seems like an incentive war is on the horizon," said Jeremy Acevedo, manager of industry analysis for Edmunds. How much more money automakers are willing to take off the price of their most profitable models remains to be seen, but Acevedo says GM "has some wiggle room to play with incentives."
WATCH: WSJ columnist suggests merging two of three biggest car companies
VIDEO3:0503:05WSJ columnist discusses idea to merge two biggest auto companiesThe Exchange
Reuters contributed to this article.
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83d67a702abcfbece8f77d3d738f076d | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/02/suspicious-mail-sent-to-facebook-tested-negative-for-sarin.html | Suspicious mail sent to Facebook tested negative for sarin | Suspicious mail sent to Facebook tested negative for sarin
Facebook Headquarters in Menlo Park, California.JasonDoiy | Getty Images
A piece of mail flagged as suspicious at a Facebook mailing facility in Menlo Park, California, on Monday has been determined to be non-hazardous, authorities and the company said Tuesday.
After a machine that can detect dangerous substances alerted employees that the package might contain the chemical nerve agent sarin Monday morning, emergency hazmat crews spent several hours at the facility, NBC reported.
No employees were ever exposed to a substance, according to the fire district, according to NBC.
"The FBI and our law enforcement partners thoroughly tested the items in question and determined them to be non-hazardous," a spokesperson for the Federal Bureau of Investigation told CNBC. "This collaborative effort took time, but ensured a most careful and methodical testing was taking place to protect the public."
Facebook also tweeted about the event Tuesday, saying that the company evacuated nearby buildings and began an investigation with nearby authorities.
"Test results were negative, no dangerous substance was identified and the buildings have returned to normal operation," Facebook's tweet said.
@facebook: Yesterday, mail sent to one of our mailrooms was flagged as potentially dangerous. We evacuated nearby buildings and began an investigation w/ local authorities. Test results were negative, no dangerous substance was identified, and the buildings have returned to normal operation
Sarin is a "human-made chemical warfare agent classified as a nerve agent," according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
WATCH: Facebook's track record is 'horrific,' says Wedbush's Joel Kulina
VIDEO4:1804:18Facebook's track record is 'horrific,' says Wedbush's Joel KulinaSquawk on the Street
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d985c3d00ff648565f93d8ce4ddc2501 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/03/canopy-growth-co-ceo-to-step-down.html | Bruce Linton says he was fired as co-CEO of Canadian pot company Canopy Growth | Bruce Linton says he was fired as co-CEO of Canadian pot company Canopy Growth
VIDEO11:3411:34Canopy Growth's co-CEO speaks out on being terminatedSquawk Box
Bruce Linton, co-CEO of Canopy Growth, said he was fired from the Canadian pot company he founded in 2013 in an interview with CNBC on Wednesday.
Canopy, the world's largest publicly traded cannabis company by market value, earlier Wednesday announced in a press release that Linton was removed as co-chief executive officer and a member of the board, effective immediately. Mark Zekulin, who had been co-CEO with Linton, becomes the sole CEO while the company searches for a replacement.
Linton called into CNBC and said he was fired.
"I think stepping down might not be the right phrase," he said, referring to the language in the company press release. "I was terminated."
Linton built Canopy into a cannabis powerhouse, signing partnerships with celebrities such as Snoop Dogg and Martha Stewart while pursuing deals including an investment from spirits giant Constellation Brands and an acquisition of U.S.-based Acreage Holdings. News of his departure shook investors, initially sending shares down about 5%.
Canopy shares recovered their losses, gaining 2.5% on Wednesday, as analysts called the leadership shake-up the right move to help the company mature and eventually become profitable.
"The magnitude of losses for [Canopy] has expanded far more than we had expected, and while we commend Linton for his vision in establishing the world's leading cannabis company, we believe new leadership will be a welcome change," Cowen analyst Vivien Azer said in a note to investors.
Constellation Brands invested $4 billion in Canopy in November, giving the spirits giant a 38% stake of the company. As part of the deal, Constellation nominated four directors to Canopy's seven-member board.
"About eight months and two days later, I think the board had decided they wanted a different chair and a different co-CEO," he said.
Canopy last month reported a wider-than-expected loss in the fourth quarter. The loss took 20 cents per share — or nearly $39 million — out of Constellation's own earnings. Constellation CEO William Newlands told analysts while the company remains happy with its investment and the long-term potential, it was "not pleased" with Canopy's recent results.
"What we remain excited about is that this is going to be a big long-term business, and we are working with Canopy almost on a daily basis to ensure that we are all focused on the right things," Newlands said.
Linton said he had a feeling his ouster was in the works when the board of directors called a meeting and Linton, then chairman of the board, was not the one calling the meeting. He said Canopy gave him an exit package, though he did not say what that included.
"I really think at the end of the day, sometimes entrepreneurs are entrepreneurs because they're not super employable," he said. "And I would say I probably don't have a resume because I like creating businesses and driving them. You don't always mesh well with everyone in the playpen. I think probably what they're doing will probably be a better decision, it's just not a great day for Bruce."
Canopy said Zekulin will also help the board search for a new leader, considering both internal and external candidates. Zekulin said in the company's press release, "I personally remain committed to a successful transition over the coming year as we begin a process to identify new leadership that will drive our collective vision forward."
A Constellation spokeswoman in a statement said the company fully supports the decision to appoint Zekulin as Canopy's sole CEO.
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16c3e2ba87237daeb1b14cb64335b44e | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/03/goldman-sachs-two-factors-will-keep-the-stock-market-stuck-right-here.html | Goldman Sachs: Two factors will keep the stock market stuck right here through the end of the year | Goldman Sachs: Two factors will keep the stock market stuck right here through the end of the year
At times of market turbulence, investors tend to flee to assets expected to either retain or increase in value — such as gold, the Japanese yen and government bonds.Drew Angerer | Getty Images
Government policy uncertainty and a poor earnings outlook will keep the stock market from rallying any further this year, according to Goldman Sachs.
Low interest rates have boosted U.S. equity valuations this year, bringing the to record highs, and investors are hoping long-term yields dropping even more will lead to even higher stock prices. But the market's growth will stop just a little bit higher from here, Goldman Sachs said in a note to clients.
"Although our rates strategists forecast the 10-year US Treasury yield will fall to 1.75% by year-end, we expect lingering policy uncertainty and negative revisions to 2020 EPS will limit equity upside," said Goldman Sachs' chief U.S. equity strategist David Kostin.
VIDEO7:0707:07Near-future risks to the downside, says strategistSquawk on the Street
The stock market has been on a tear this year with the S&P 500 up more than 18% since January and closing at an all time high on Tuesday. Kostin said more than 90% of the index's rally since January has been driven by valuation expansion as the forward price to earnings multiple climbed from 14 times to 17 times. However, unresolved trade tensions between the U.S and China and uncertainty about whether the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates this year will prevent the market from surging any further, said Kostin.
"Combining the tailwind to valuations from falling interest rates and the headwinds from weak growth and high uncertainty, a macro model indicates that the S&P 500 currently trades near fair value," said Kostin.
Goldman Sachs reaffirmed its 3,000 year end 2019 price target for the S&P 500, which closed at 2,973 on Tuesday.
Kostin said the current 12% earnings growth consensus estimates will need to be revised lower.
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96d6ae623f960389195b6f565a55fbc8 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/03/joe-biden-raised-21point5-million-in-second-quarter-for-presidential-race.html | Joe Biden raised $21.5 million in the second quarter for the 2020 presidential race | Joe Biden raised $21.5 million in the second quarter for the 2020 presidential race
Former Vice President Joe Biden, 2020 Democratic presidential candidate, greets attendees during the South Carolina Democratic Party convention in Columbia, South Carolina, June 22, 2019.Al Drago | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Former Vice President Joe Biden raised $21.5 million in the second quarter of this year for his bid to win the 2020 Democratic nomination for president, his campaign spokesman said Wednesday.
Biden's haul came in just 66 days, as opposed to the three full months of the quarter, since he only formally announced his candidacy on April 25.
Biden's spokesman said 97% of the donations to the campaign were in amounts of less than $200.
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"After just two months in this race, we have seen Americans in every corner of the country chip in to join this battle for the soul of our nation," said Greg Schultz, Biden's campaign manager.
"We are grateful for the immense grassroots support we are seeing. We're continuing to build a campaign that energizes and expands Team Joe and puts us in a strong position to take on [President] Donald Trump," Schultz said.
VIDEO4:3204:32Sen. Kamala Harris and Joe Biden spar over record on raceElections
Another leading Democratic presidential contender, Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, raised $18 million in the second quarter and transferred $6 million to his presidential campaign from his Senate campaign and from at least one other committee.
Sanders had about $30 million on hand.
Pete Buttigieg, the mayor of South Bend, Indiana, raised $24.8 million and had $22.6 million on hand.
Sen. Michael Bennet of Colorado, the only other Democratic contender to put out fundraising tallies so far for the second quarter, has raised $2.8 million and transferred $700,000 to his campaign.
None of the second-quarter tallies among the handful of Democratic candidates to announce their latest fundraising numbers has compared with Trump's.
Trump, along with the Republican National Committee, raked in $105 million during that time period.
Biden came under scrutiny after his lackluster debate performance last week. At least one top bundler of Biden's campaign, from the Bay Area of California, decided to no longer support him.
During the debate, Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., attacked Biden for his past work with and complimentary remarks for segregationists in the U.S. Senate and questioned his record on busing for public school students.
Biden has since seen his double-digit lead in some polls virtually vanish.
— Additional reporting by Jacob Pramuk
This is breaking news. Check back for updates.
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753f09cf14abd57c140ded70f2e2df7e | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/03/medicare-for-all-how-universal-health-care-works-in-canada.html | How Canadian health care compares to America's system | How Canadian health care compares to America's system
Canada's health-care system is playing a larger role in America's political discourse as the 2020 presidential elections heat up.
Progressives on the left love pointing to Canada as an equitable and efficient health care system. Conservatives, on the other hand, use Canada as an example when warning about the dangers of socialized medicine and unchecked bureaucracy.
Canada is a single-payer health-care system, kind of like the "Medicare for All" plans some well-known Democrats have been promoting. It provides basic universal coverage to its citizens, but it also has reports of long waiting times. Many also say it's difficult to navigate.
Despite mixed reports of the system's effectiveness, 94% of Canadians say their version of medicare is an important source of both personal and collective pride for their country.
So how exactly is medicare working in Canada and how does it compare to the United States? Watch the video above to find out.
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169e315043c065d0eb08fe38bc1cb715 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/03/nike-shouldve-done-their-research-on-betsy-ross-flag-motus-one-ceo.html | Nike should've done its research on 'Betsy Ross' flag, says Motus One CEO | Nike should've done its research on 'Betsy Ross' flag, says Motus One CEO
VIDEO3:4303:43Nike made a smart decision by pulling 'Betsy Ross' flag shoes: Motus One CEOThe Exchange
Nike should've anticipated the controversy around the "Betsy Ross" flag that it put on its sneakers, said one marketing executive Wednesday morning on CNBC's "Squawk Box."
"If you talk to any of the young consumers that really are passionate about the Nike brand, they would all tell you that clearly, there's a symbolism here that's been adopted by a group of folks that they don't want to be associated with," said Mike Jackson, CEO of Motus One and founder of 2050 Marketing.
In 2016, students at a high school in Michigan waved the 13-star flag during a football game, causing the head of the NAACP's local chapter at the time to say that the flag had been "co-opted by exclusionary movements," including groups advocating for racial supremacy.
VIDEO1:2801:28Nike pulls 'Betsy Ross flag' sneakers after Colin Kaepernick steps inNews Videos
But Jackson said Nike's decision to pull the shoes was smart and that it should return to the messaging it presented back when it supported Colin Kaepernick's right to protest or when it was encouraging young women to enter the sports field.
"That's consistent with the culture around the Nike brand and positioning," he said. "When you start to stray into using a version of the flag that has different meaning for different people, that's a line you don't want to cross."
Nike found itself embroiled in controversy after releasing sneakers featuring a flag commonly associated with Betsy Ross, but pulled the shoes after Kaepernick, a former NFL football player, said he considered it offensive.
Historians, however, are still not immediately certain of the flag's relationship to white supremacy movements, and many simply see it as a common historical flag.
In a statement to CNBC, Nike said the company decided to stop distributing the shoes "based on concerns that it could unintentionally offend and detract from the nation's patriotic holiday."
VIDEO18:1818:18How Nike remains on topRetail
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e539ab8bd36506bcb4719a168b5e2c55 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/03/the-flag-shirt-youre-buying-for-july-4th-is-technically-illegal.html | The flag clothing you're buying for July 4th is technically illegal | The flag clothing you're buying for July 4th is technically illegal
Four young women wear US flag leggings marking the Independence Day as they walk on Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington, DC on July 4, 2015.Mladen Antonov | AFP | Getty Images
Although Nike has recalled its "Betsy Ross" American flag sneakers, shoppers looking for flag-adorned clothing in stores will have plenty of other options, even though the popular trend is technically illegal.
Nike had intended to release a pair of Air Max 1 Quick Strike sneakers for the Fourth of July that featured a 13-star flag, commonly linked to Philadelphia seamstress Betsy Ross, but said Tuesday it halted distribution "... based on concerns that it could unintentionally offend and detract from the nation's patriotic holiday."
Colin Kaepernick, a former National Football League quarterback turned activist who has appeared in Nike advertising, told the company the symbol was considered to be offensive because of its links to an era of slavery, according to The Wall Street Journal. Kaepernick has been a polarizing figure in sports after he decided to not stand for the national anthem during a 2016 NFL preseason game in protest of racial injustice.
Nike's decision was met with criticism that it was engaging in revisionist history, and the governor of Arizona said he would withdraw financial incentives that had been earmarked for Nike to locate a manufacturing facility in the state.
VIDEO1:2801:28Nike pulls 'Betsy Ross flag' sneakers after Colin Kaepernick steps inNews Videos
But Nike's idea for a flag-adorned shoe is very much on trend with fashion as there has been a growing interest in classic apparel that can be worn for a long time. Consumers are buying fewer items of clothing, and apparel with the flag or its colors fits the description of a timeless look.
In 2019, only 13.4% of consumers bought clothes one to three times a month, down from 15.5% in 2017, while the number of consumers who bought clothes every few months rose one point to 31.9%, according to surveys conducted by Euromonitor.
"There's a moment right now that we think is attributed to a return to classics," said Rachel Bennett, a creative director at The Doneger Group. "The flag itself was pretty popular in the 90s, and that's a moment in time that's being referenced often."
Last week, Gap-owned Old Navy unveiled a collection of purple T-shirts with a flag across the front. The color of the shirts is a blend of blue and red, meant to symbolize unity between the country's political parties. It's also a nod to the flag tees that Old Navy sold when it was first founded 25 years ago, in 1994.
Source: Old Navy
Tommy Hilfiger also said in June that it would relaunch seven pieces from its 90s collection, with items featuring its iconic flag logo and red, white and blue color panels.
Source: Tommy Jeans
But when shopping for their Independence Day outfits, consumers should also remember a little known fact: Under the U.S. Flag Code, any clothes with the flag on it are technically illegal.
"Every item of apparel that they're wearing that has an American flag on it: shirt, shorts, bikini, hat, technically is in violation of the flag code," said Marc Leepson, author of "Flag: An American Biography."
The federal flag code says that "The flag should never be used for advertising purposes in any manner whatsoever." In the District of Columbia, a flag being "printed, painted, attached, or otherwise placed a representation" on any "article of merchandise" for the purposes of advertising is a misdemeanor, can lead to a fine of $100 or imprisonment of less than 30 days.
Basically, Leepson said, the image of the flag shouldn't be used on any commercial items, including apparel.
The code also bans the material of a flag from being converted into clothing of any kind.
But thankfully, you're probably safe.
"You have to look at it as a series of guidelines," he said. "There's no flag police. No one's going to get arrested."
VIDEO18:1818:18How Nike remains on topRetail
Clarification: This story has been updated to specify that one portion of the code is applicable in the District of Columbia, while other portions apply to the U.S.
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19773733544a7152c3f552e008dba7ad | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/03/us-impose-duties-on-steel-from-vietnam-produced-in-south-korea-taiwan.html | US imposes duties on steel from Vietnam originally produced in South Korea, Taiwan | US imposes duties on steel from Vietnam originally produced in South Korea, Taiwan
A man takes iron samples from a blast furnace at a steel factory.Construction Photography/Avalon | Hulton Archive | Getty Images
The U.S. Commerce Department said on Tuesday it would impose duties of up to 456% on certain steel produced in South Korea or Taiwan that are then shipped to Vietnam for minor processing and finally exported to the United States.
The agency said in a statement that it had found corrosion-resistant steel products and cold-rolled steel produced in Vietnam using substrate of South Korean or Taiwanese origin that had circumvented U.S. anti-dumping and anti-subsidy duties.
The duties on South Korean and Taiwanese products were imposed in December 2015 and February 2016. Since those dates through April 2019, shipments of corrosion-resistant steel products and cold-rolled steel from Vietnam to the United States had increased by 332 percent and 916 percent compared with similar periods immediately before, the statement said.
It said the Commerce Department inquiry was initiated at the request of ArcelorMittal SA's U.S. unit, Nucor, United States Steel, Steel Dynamics, California Steel Industries, and AK Steel.
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e7413ec970f64e9078893c249f355fe0 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/03/what-chinese-state-media-are-saying-about-the-hong-kong-protests.html | Here's what Chinese state media are saying about the Hong Kong protests | Here's what Chinese state media are saying about the Hong Kong protests
A protester defaces the Hong Kong emblem after protesters broke into the government headquarters in Hong Kong on July 1, 2019.Philip Fong | AFP | Getty Images
Protests in Hong Kong started gaining momentum since early June and have drawn tens of thousands, but there was no mention of it in any Chinese state media until Tuesday — a day after a group of protesters turned violent and broke into the territory's legislative council building.
China's state broadcaster CCTV said on Tuesday evening that "some extremists" stormed the Hong Kong legislative building and vandalized it.
CCTV, a mouthpiece for the Chinese government, said the "rare scene" was "condemned by people from all walks of life in Hong Kong," according to a CNBC translation.
For nearly three weeks now, political tensions in Hong Kong have risen amid on-and-off protests over an extradition bill that would have allowed anyone arrested in the city to be sent for trial in mainland China. The bill has since been suspended but citizens want it to be withdrawn completely.
"If such atrocities are encouraged and condoned, it will violate the rule of law in Hong Kong and challenge all law-abiding citizens," CCTV reported. The broadcaster cited business and religious communities as speaking against the violence, but there was no mention of the extradition bill and why the protesters were demonstrating.
Hong Kong was a British colony until 1997, when it became a special administrative region of the People's Republic of China under a "one country, two systems" framework with the territory's legal system independent from the rest of China. Citizens of the Asian financial hub are concerned that their civil rights are slowly being eroded under Beijing.
The protests have been largely peaceful. Half a million people were estimated to have marched the streets for democracy on Monday, but Chinese state media reported that 5,000 people gathered at Victoria Park in downtown Hong Kong that morning to celebrate the "return to motherland."
After protests turned violent, the People's Daily, the official newspaper for China's Communist Party, called the violence an "undisguised challenge" to the country's authority.
China Daily, the official English state-owned newspaper, deflected its coverage of the incidents from politics to economics, reminding readers that Hong Kong's prosperity and China's fast pace growth over the last two decades go hand-in-hand.
In a Tuesday editorial, it said the best way to deal with Hong Kong was to push for further economic integration with the mainland.
"The only way for (Hong Kong) to sustain economic growth and maintain stability is for it to further integrate its own development into the nation's overall development," it said.
– Reuters contributed to this report.
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81c2f6d8d2341834304a5581a013322c | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/04/china-accuses-uk-of-intervening-in-its-internal-affairs-in-hong-kong.html | China accuses Britain of intervening in its 'internal affairs' in Hong Kong | China accuses Britain of intervening in its 'internal affairs' in Hong Kong
Liu Xiaoming, China's ambasador to U.K., gestures while speaking during an interview.Chris Ratcliffe | Bloomberg | Getty Images
The diplomatic spat between China and the United Kingdom spilled into the open this week, after Beijing criticized the British government for "gross interference" in the Hong Kong protests.
The Chinese ambassador to the U.K. Liu Xiaoming said Wednesday that the British government had "issued inappropriate statements, intervened in Hong Kong affairs and encouraged violent lawbreakers," according to a CNBC translation.
He said he was "disappointed" with British Foreign Minister Jeremy Hunt whom he said had "expressed support for the lawbreakers."
Beijing firmly opposed the U.K.'s "gross interference" in China's internal affairs, Liu said at a press conference in London. "I think Foreign Secretary Hunt is dead wrong about freedom. This is not a question of freedom."
For nearly three weeks, political tensions in Hong Kong have escalated over a proposed extradition bill that would allow those arrested in the territory to be sent to mainland China for trial. Hong Kong citizens were concerned that their civil rights could be slowly eroded under Beijing.
Responding to violence that broke out in Hong Kong when a group of protesters stormed a government building, Hunt said on Tuesday that the territory's government should "listen to the legitimate concerns of the people of Hong Kong about their freedoms."
Hunt defended himself on Thursday, saying: "I was not supporting the violence in Hong Kong."
"Let me clear what I said. I said that I condemned, and we as the United Kingdom, condemn all violence and that people who supported the pro-democracy demonstrators would have been very dismayed by the scenes they saw," Hunt told BBC radio, according to Reuters.
I tell them: hands off Hong Kong and show respect. This colonial mindset is still haunting the minds of some officials or politiciansLiu XiaomingChinese ambassador to the U.K.
An English editorial published on Wednesday by state newspaper China Daily said: "Britain no longer has any responsibility for the governance of Hong Kong or any supervisory rights."
"Ideologues in Western governments never cease in their efforts to engineer unrest against governments that are not to their liking, even though their actions have caused misery and chaos in country after country in Latin America, Africa, the Middle East and Asia," said the newspaper, a mouthpiece for the Chinese government. "Now they are trying the same trick in China."
Britain's Foreign Minister Jeremy Hunt shakes hands with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi.Andy Wong-Pool | Getty Images
Liu said the latest diplomatic rift between the two countries has damaged their friendship, and pointed out that Hong Kong is no longer part of Britain.
"Hong Kong is still seen by some as a former British colony. But the reality is that Hong Kong has returned to the motherland, and it is a special administrative region of China, not part of the British territory," he added.
"I tell them: hands off Hong Kong and show respect. This colonial mindset is still haunting the minds of some officials or politicians," Liu told reporters.
Reiterating his point that issues related to Hong Kong is a "internal affair," Liu suggested the British government should respect the "one country, two systems" model — where the territory's legal system is independent from the rest of China.
"They should treat Hong Kong as a part of China. We are willing to talk to them," Liu said in Mandarin. "There is no issue with the U.K. and Hong Kong remaining economic, trade and cultural ties, and I hope that Hong Kong can remain as the bridge between China and the U.K."
For his part, Hunt said in a tweet that "the best way to preserve the great relationship between the U.K. and China" is to have "mutual respect" and honor "legally binding agreements between them."
Jeremy Hunt tweet: Message to Chinese govt: good relations between countries are based on mutual respect and honouring the legally binding agreements between them. That is the best way to preserve the great relationship between the UK and China
— Reuters contributed to this report.
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d84dd35573d9723f7325b8754994cd15 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/04/moderately-strong-earthquake-rattles-southern-california.html | Strong earthquake sets off fires, damages desert city east of Los Angeles | Strong earthquake sets off fires, damages desert city east of Los Angeles
A 6.4 magnitude earthquake struck Southern California on July 4th, 2019.NBC News
A powerful earthquake struck Southern California on Thursday, touching off house fires and damaging buildings in a desert town northeast of Los Angeles, but authorities had no early reports of injuries.
The 6.4 magnitude quake, the largest in two decades in the area, struck about 113 miles (182 km) northeast of Los Angeles near the city of Ridgecrest at around 1:30 pm EDT (1730 GMT), according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).
The Kern County Fire Department said on Twitter it was working "nearly 2 dozens incidents ranging from medical assistance to structure fires in and around the city of Ridgecrest, CA."
Ridgecrest Mayor Peggy Breeden said the city was dealing with fires and broken gas lines, as well as falling objects that hit people, as the city endured many aftershocks.
"We are used to earthquakes but we're not used to this significance," she told MSNBC.
The quake is the largest in Southern California since the 1994 magnitude 6.6 Northridge earthquake, USGS geophysicist Paul Caruso said. That quake, which was centered in a heavily populated area of Los Angeles, caused billions of dollars of damage.
Breeden said she had never felt a quake "like this long rolling" temblor, adding she was driving in her car when it happened and immediately pulled up her emergency brake.
She said the city of Ridgecrest had asked residents to look after others, especially the elderly, which form a large part of the city's population.
The USGS said the quake, initially reported as a magnitude 6.6, was very shallow — only 6.7 miles (10.7 km) — which would have amplified its effect.
The temblor, which struck in an area on the edge of Death Valley National Park, was felt throughout Los Angeles, as far north as Fresno, and as far east as Las Vegas, Nevada. It was even felt south of the border in Mexico, where buildings were evacuated in the towns of Tijuana and Mexicali, according to Baja State officials.
Chuck Schlie, who lives in St. Louis and was visiting Los Angeles for the first time with his family, said he was lying in bed at his hotel room in nearby Anaheim when he felt rumbling.
"I thought wow this is really weird. Am I going crazy?" Schlie said outside the historic TCL Chinese Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard. "If you've never experienced it, you think am I out of my mind? Why am I feeling like this?"
According to European quake agency EMSC, the quake was felt in an area inhabited by some 20 million people.
"We were just panicked trying to get out of the house because everything was just falling out of the cabinets, off the shelves, off the walls, pictures ... They were flying like missiles off the shelves," resident April Rodriguez in Trona, California, south of Ridgecrest, said on CNN.
James Wilhorn, the manager of Howard's Mini Mart in Ridgecrest, said his gas station was the only one open in the area because of damage to other gas stations and the Indepence Day holiday, and there was a line of 20 cars waiting to fill their tanks.
"I mopped up over 20 gallons (76 liters) of wine that fell over in addition to the beer, soda and the cooler that fell over. We have several thousand dollars worth of damage," Wilhorn said.
The epicenter was very close to Ridgecrest, a town with a population of more than 27,600 in the high desert. The area has suffered earthquake swarms in the past, including a series of some 2,500 tremors over the course of five weeks in the summer of 1995.
We expect to be seeing a lot of earthquakes today ... Probably at least one more will be damaging" Lucy Jones, a USGS seismologist, told a televised news conference. She said there were at least two seismic faults involved.
According to poweroutage.us, there were some 5,851 customers without power in Kern County.
The Kern County Fire Department said the Ridgecrest Regional hospital was being evacuated in response to the quake. The hospital could not immediately be reached for comment.
Temperatures in the area were expected to climb to nearly 100 degrees Fahrenheit (37.8oC) on Thursday, with extremely low humidity, the Weather Channel said.
President Donald Trump said he had been briefed on the earthquake. "All seems to be very much under control!" Trump tweeted.
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9c5541520509a77704384fb2e41ba687 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/04/russia-reveals-its-fire-hit-mystery-submarine-was-nuclear-powered.html | Russia reveals its fire-hit mystery submarine was nuclear powered | Russia reveals its fire-hit mystery submarine was nuclear powered
Russia's President Vladimir Putin (L) and Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu during a meeting at the Moscow Kremlin on July 4 2019.Mikhail Klimentyev | TASS | Getty Images
A top secret Russian military submarine hit by a fire earlier this week was nuclear powered, Russia has admitted, with the country's defense minister saying the nuclear reactor has been contained.
Russia has been accused of something of a cover-up after it failed to reveal details of a fire on a military submarine that led to the deaths of 14 sailors.
A conversation between President Vladimir Putin and Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, published by the Kremlin website on Thursday, reveals that the submarine was nuclear powered.
Putin asks Shoigu directly in a transcript of the conversation: "What about the nuclear power unit?"
Shoigu replies: "Mr President, the nuclear power unit has been sealed off and all personnel have been removed. Plus, the crew has taken the necessary measures to save the unit, which is in working order. This means we can repair the submersible quickly."
Putin then asks whether the submarine, now in Severomorsk's naval base, can be repaired completely and Shoigu replies "yes, completely." Shoigu noted that the fire started in the battery compartment.
Mystery has surrounded exactly which submersible was involved in the incident. The Kremlin said Tuesday that a "deep-water research submersible in the Barents Sea" (located off the northern coast of Russia and Norway) which was part of Russia's Northern Fleet suffered a fire in which 14 sailors died of smoke inhalation.
The Ministry of Defense said the incident happened Monday but no details were revealed until late on Tuesday. The submarine incident then sparked global interest and speculation it was nuclear powered because of the secrecy surrounding it, with some Russian media also accusing the government of a cover-up.
Russia's defense ministry has not identified the vessel and Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Wednesday that he could not name the vessel because it "belongs to the highest level of classified data, so it is absolutely normal for it not to be disclosed."
An earlier conversation between Putin and Shoigu on Tuesday revealed that the submarine is a deep-water research submersible; Putin also said that it was "an unusual vessel" with a "highly professional crew."
But Russian media, citing sources, believe it to be the almost apocryphal sub called the AS-12 or "Losharik." Not much is known about the vessel but the sub is believed to be capable of diving to extreme depths and used for special military operations. The submarine is also believed to be operated by a "Deep Water Research" unit that reports to Russia's military intelligence unit, the GRU.
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The conversation published by the Kremlin Thursday appears to be designed to address speculation around the sub. It also appears to be an attempt to avoid the type of furor that followed the Kursk submarine disaster in 2000, in which 118 people died. Putin was accused of responding too slowly to the disaster.
On Thursday, Defense Minister Shoigui said that the ministry is working to assist the deceased submariners' families. Putin said the submariners, seven of whom were captains and two decorated with Russia's highest honorary title of "Hero of the Russian Federation," should receive state honors.
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ae1bd94920a771948c386b1e3a4a7af6 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/05/electronic-arts-shares-tumble-after-apex-legends-season-2-launch.html | Electronic Arts shares tumble after Apex Legends season 2 launch | Electronic Arts shares tumble after Apex Legends season 2 launch
Attendees visit the Electronic Arts (EA) Inc. display at the E3 Expo in Los Angeles, California.Patrick Fallon | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Shares of Electronic Arts fell more than 5% Friday morning after initial viewership numbers for a new release failed to reach previous highs.
The video game company released season 2 of the popular game Apex Legends on Tuesday, but the new season didn't capture the audience on Twitch that the game had seen earlier this year. The game had roughly 45,000 viewers on Wednesday, according to Twitch Tracker. Apex Legends had more than 100,000 viewers in a day as recently as March.
Apex Legends is a free to play game, similar to Epic Games' Fortnite. Electronic Arts' stock got a boost earlier this year when Legends first launched and quickly accumulated 10 million players.
Jeff Cohen, an analyst at Stephens who is bullish on EA, said the move is "pretty drastic and definitely feels oversold to me." Stephens named the company a best idea in the console space last month, citing expectations of a strong performance from season 2 of the game.
Cohen said that other measures of engagement with Apex Legends, including Reddit activity and the number of Twitch channels streaming the game, were encouraging.
Two of EA's main competitors were also down on Friday. Activision fell 3.4%, while Take-Two fell 1.9%.
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2f9f08169a40768aff600a1246860532 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/05/how-facebooks-libra-could-lead-you-to-clean-out-your-wallet.html | How Facebook's Libra could lead you to clean out your wallet | How Facebook's Libra could lead you to clean out your wallet
Image Source | Getty Images
Once Facebook's Libra makes it to the cryptocurrency mainstream, there may be a new threat to consumers: Their own bad spending habits.
Libra is a proposed cryptocurrency designed by Facebook and operated with a consortium of partners, including payments providers, credit card companies and consumer companies. It is set to begin in the first half of 2020.
In a Facebook white paper, the company maintains that Libra won't be connected to a user's data for targeted advertisements. Yet the social media giant is planning to incorporate Libra payments into its own products used by billions of people, which leads to other concerns, experts say.
"For a number of users, that ease of access for a tool that can be used for purchases and retail consumer activity could be dangerous, especially for those who already have a difficult time keeping control of their budget," said Bruce McClary, vice president of communications for the National Foundation for Credit Counseling.
Officials at Facebook did not respond to requests for comment.
VIDEO5:4105:41Facebook's Libra will give everyone an electronic wallet, says proSquawk Box
More than a third of Americans reported that their spending is influenced by experiences on social media, according to Charles Schwab's 2019 Modern Wealth Survey.
The survey, conducted in February, analyzed how 1,000 Americans manage their money.
Social media was ranked the top "bad" influence in terms of money management by survey respondents.
Facebook announced its cryptocurrency, called Libra.Chesnot | Getty Images News | Getty Images
Libra could make it easy to overspend because it will be easy to access, said Tyrone Ross Jr., an investment advisor specializing in cryptocurrency in Woodbridge, New Jersey.
"Knowing how humans are, if it is easy to do something, they're going to have at it," he said.
Compared to cryptocurrencies like bitcoin, Libra may be easier to use for everyday exchanges like bill paying or buying groceries, Ross said.
Libra was developed as a currency for exchange, and will be less likely to be used as an investment asset like bitcoin, Ross said. It is intended to be a "stable digital cryptocurrency" and will be "fully backed by a reserve of real assets," including bank deposits and short-term government securities, according to the company's white paper. That means it shouldn't have wild fluctuations in price like other cryptocurrencies.
VIDEO0:5900:59Morgan Stanley CEO dismisses Facebook's digital asset LibraHalftime Report
Bitcoin is not as appealing for exchange purposes because there is little clarity about how it can be used and it requires technical know-how, Ross said.
Efforts to gamify or digitize money will result in an "an increase in spending on mindless purchases", said Priya Malani, a founding partner at Stash Wealth in New York.
She said the convenience and efficiency of payment make it a lot easier to part with your money.
David Marcus, vice president of messaging products for Facebook Inc., speaks during a Bloomberg Television interview on the sidelines of the Wall Street Journal D.Live global technology conference in Laguna Beach, California, U.S., on Wednesday, Oct. 18, 2017.Patrick T. Fallon | Bloomberg | Getty Images
David Marcus, the leader of Facebook's Calibra division, which will develop products around the new cryptocurrency, said the company may offer other financial services, including loans, in the future.
Lending could be become problematic if consumers borrow to maintain an unsustainable lifestyle, Malani said.
"If you aren't careful, 'just this one purchase' can quickly become years of paying back the money you borrowed at damaging, high interest rates," she said.
This year, consumer debt in the U.S. reached an all-time high of $4 trillion, according to the Federal Reserve.
A customer, left, hands over U.S. twenty dollar bills as she pays for her purchases in Frankfurt, Kentucky.Luke Sharrett | Bloomberg | Getty Images
If you want to stay out of debt and not overspend with paper money or its digital cousin, try the following steps:
Make the process less automatic. "The pain of paying is so far removed from the present," said April Benson, a psychologist who specializes in compulsive shopping. "Anything to make it less automatic is preferred." Logging out of your favorite shopping websites on your computer will make it that much harder to spend impulsively.
Change your shopping philosophy. Benson tells her clients to think about shopping in terms of long-term rewards. "Think about shopping in a wider angle lens," she said. "Not just as buying, but shopping for experiences and enjoyment."
Stick to your budget. "It doesn't matter what the currency is, whether you have $100 million or $100, a budget is so important," Ross said. He said it is helpful to follow a budget template to track where and how much you spent your money, even when using Libra in the future.
Learn as much as you can. "The wave is here. If you transact with any other financial services, it's coming. It's here," Ross said. He recommends reading about Libra, asking questions to experts, and understanding what spending Libra will be like.
"I don't have the confidence that larger corporations are going to take time to educate people on how it (Libra) is going to transform their lives," Ross said.
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7b91d24a07ac28f501ba1c1fb6029c5a | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/05/jobs-report-june-2019.html?utm_source=akdart | Strong job growth is back: Payrolls jump in June well above expectations | Strong job growth is back: Payrolls jump in June well above expectations
VIDEO2:1802:18Trump: Fed doesn't know what it's doingSquawk Alley
Payroll growth rebounded sharply in June as the U.S. economy added 224,000 jobs, the best gain since January and running contrary to worries that both the employment picture and overall growth picture were beginning to weaken. The unemployment rate edged up to 3.7% as labor force participation rose, according to the Labor Department.
Economists surveyed by Dow Jones had expected nonfarm payrolls to rise by 165,000 and the unemployment rate to hold steady at 3.6%. May's initially reported growth of 75,000 had raised doubts about the durability of the record-setting expansion that began a decade ago. The May count was revised lower to 72,000.
Federal Reserve policymakers have been watching the jobs numbers closely.
VIDEO2:0102:01US adds 224,000 jobs in June, vs 165,000 expectedSquawk Box
Markets have been widely anticipating that the central bank will cut its benchmark interest rate later this month, regardless of what the June payrolls count showed.
The stock market opened lower as investors contemplated what the report might mean for expectations that the Fed will be cutting interest rates later this month in an effort to stave off a widely expected economic slowdown through the year. Government bond yields surged, with the benchmark 10-year note up nearly 10 basis points to about 2.05%.
The report "would seem to make a mockery of market expectations" for a quarter- or half-point cut at the July 30-31 meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee, said Andrew Hunter, senior U.S. economist at Capital Economics. The level of job growth, he added, "is still much stronger than the levels that have usually prompted the Fed to cut rates in the past and, although we do still expect the weakening economy to prompt the Fed to loosen policy, the first rate cut will probably be delayed until September."
Market reaction shifted abruptly after the Bureau of Labor Statistics release. Traders moved the possibility of a 50-basis point cut to 8% from nearly 30% though 100% expectations for a quarter-point cut remained firmly in place.
President Donald Trump has been sharply critical of the Fed and repeated his previous sentiments later in the morning.
"We don't have a Fed who knows what they're doing," Trump said, adding, as he has in the past, that the economy would take off like a "rocket ship" with lower interest rates.
Professional and business services led the job gains with 51,000, while health care added 35,000 and transportation and warehousing contributed another 24,000. Construction also added 21,000 and manufacturing, despite teetering on contraction recently, saw another 17,000 jobs added, above the 8,000 per month average in 2019 and getting closer to the 22,000 a month in 2018.
VIDEO2:5802:58If the Fed cuts rates, it could extend the economic cycle, says director of global macroSquawk on the Street
The closely watched average hourly earnings number disappointed, rising 0.2% on a monthly basis against expectations for 0.3% growth. Over the past 12 months, wages were up 3.1%, also a notch below market estimates of 3.2% and indicative that significant inflation pressures remain at bay. The average work week was unchanged at 34.4 hours.
As the unemployment rate edged higher, a more encompassing measure that counts discouraged workers as well as the underemployed nudged up to 7.2%, still around its lowest level since early 2001. The labor force participation rate increased one-tenth to 62.9%, its best since March, pushing up the headline and "real" unemployment rates. The total labor force increased by 335,000 to just under 163 million while those counted as not in the labor force fell by 158,000 to 96.1 million.
Overall, the jobs report allayed fears that the labor market was weakening significantly; a release earlier this week from ADP and Moody's Analytics had indicated private payroll growth of just 102,000, which was well below the government's count of 191,000. Government job gains of 33,000 accounted for the balance of June's rise.
Manufacturing activity of late has been showing signs of contracting as corporate executives complain of increased prices due to tariffs the U.S. has imposed against its trading partners.
"Today's jobs report shows the U.S. economy continues to create jobs at a strong pace even as we enter the longest period of economic expansion on record," said Tony Bedikian, head of global markets at Citizens Bank. "The bounce back in the June jobs number may splash cold water on the notion of an imminent Fed rate cut. We will have to see whether the equity markets can shrug that off when balanced against other macroeconomic factors, such as the hope of a China trade truce."
In addition to the downward revision for the May report, April's count fell to 216,000 from 224,000.
A St. Louis Fed economist recently wrote a report suggesting that housing trends are consistent with a looming recession, and the bond market for months has been sending signs of a slowdown ahead. The stock market, though, was encouraged by results from G-20 negotiations last week that ended with the U.S. and China promising no additional tariffs.
Don't miss: From $18,000 to $85,000, this nonprofit is changing people's lives with just a year of training
VIDEO6:2406:24This nonprofit quadruples people's income in a yearInvest in You: Ready. Set. Grow.
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853f8be6ea02831e7b686bf2d13f70fa | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/05/joe-biden-proposes-100-billion-plan-to-fix-horrible-school-infrastructure.html | Joe Biden proposes $100 billion plan to fix 'horrible' school infrastructure | Joe Biden proposes $100 billion plan to fix 'horrible' school infrastructure
Former Vice President and 2020 presidential candidate Joe Biden speaks during a campaign event on July 4, 2019 in Marshalltown, Iowa.Joshua Lott | Getty Images
Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden said Friday that he was committed to an investment of $100 billion to improve school infrastructure across the country.
Speaking at the National Education Association forum in Houston, the former vice president said "the infrastructure of our schools are horrible" – and emphasized that he would focus these investments in lower-income communities.
Biden said he would seek to spend another $100 billion to support teachers in lower-income neighborhoods who act as mentors to their colleagues. Biden said he hoped the investment would allow teachers to solely focus on their teaching, not on working multiple jobs.
"Because folks, we have to have you in the schools, teaching, teaching, teaching," he said. "You shouldn't be doing three jobs or two jobs."
Referencing the education plan he debuted in May, Biden reiterated his intention to equalize teacher's pay, provide professional mental health advisers and sociologists, and to promote a universal pre-K program to equalize the playing field for all students.
"What I don't get is why we're even arguing about this anymore," he said about implementing universal pre-K programs. "All the data is in. There's overwhelming evidence that it enhances every single community if we do it."
In his May education plan, Biden also said he would triple funding to Title I schools from $15 million to $45 million and push gun legislation that would "ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines."
Biden, the Democratic front-runner, has slipped in the polls after rival Sen. Kamala Harris put him on the defensive over his record on racial issues. A recent Quinnipiac poll showed that his support dropped to 22% from 30% the previous month.
WATCH: Biden says he would eliminate Trump's tax cuts for the wealth
VIDEO1:2701:27I would eliminate Donald Trump's tax cuts for the wealthy: Joe BidenElections
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a72113481047e3fb6d85c1cc14e43180 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/05/more-women-ceos-than-usual-are-taking-companies-public-in-ipos.html?__source=OTS%7Cfinance%7Cinline%7Cstory%7C&par=OTS&doc=106835063 | This year's red hot IPO market has seen more women CEOs than usual take companies public | This year's red hot IPO market has seen more women CEOs than usual take companies public
Julie Wainwright (C), CEO of The RealReal Inc. takes part in the company's IPO at the Nasdaq MarketSite in New York, June 28, 2019.Lucas Jackson | Reuters
The boom in initial public offerings this year has also been a boon for women chief executive officers.
In the first half of the year, 13 women CEOs have taken companies public. They include Julie Wainwright of the RealReal, Jennifer Tejada of PagerDuty, and Jenny Zhiya Qian of Luckin Coffee.
Women chief executives represent 15 percent of the total CEOs that underwent IPOs in 2019 — according to data compiled by CNBC — the highest proportion for any year going back to at least 2014.
That proportion is triple the level of female CEOs in the Russell 3000, meaning that if the trend holds, it could help boost the percentage of women running public companies in America.
''It undeniably took extra courage to invest in these talented-though-female leaders a few years back,'' said Lise Buyer, founder of Class V Group, a firm that advises companies on IPOs. ''In 2019, institutional investors have clearly demonstrated their enthusiasm for businesses with attractive growth prospects regardless of whether their CEO is Jim or Julie or Jennifer or John.''
Women CEOs are less likely to take companies public, in part, because they're less likely to receive venture capital. Last year, companies founded solely by women garnered 2.3 percent of the total capital invested in venture-backed startups, according to PitchBook data. Often times — although not always — founders of startups become CEOs that one day take their companies public.
At least in the past, studies have also shown a gender bias during the IPO process that favors male executives.
One study conducted by the University of Utah five years ago found that women CEOs are disadvantaged by the process due to the judgment of professional investors, who are typically men.
"Despite identical personal qualifications and firm financials, firms led by female CEOs may be hamstrung in terms of their ability to take a company public," the study said. "Female CEOs are evaluated more negatively and suffer less potential for growth capital during a liquidity event."
Still, over the last year, there's been a larger movement toward backing women entrepreneurs, and sizable startups like Rent The Runway and Glossier have female CEOs that may one day choose to embark on initial public offerings of their own.
IPOs are doing great this year with the Renaissance IPO ETF, which measures recent stocks that have recently gone public, up 37% this year, compared to a 19% return for the S&P 500. RealReal is the latest example, up more than 27% since its debut a week ago.
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75f0806dff33723d6a16924b228a451c | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/05/stocks-making-the-biggest-moves-premarket-qualcomm-rio-tinto-alexion-more.html | Stocks making the biggest moves premarket: Qualcomm, Rio Tinto, Alexion Pharmaceuticals & more | Stocks making the biggest moves premarket: Qualcomm, Rio Tinto, Alexion Pharmaceuticals & more
VIDEO0:4500:45Stocks set to open lower ahead of the June jobs reportMorning Report
Check out the companies making headlines in the premarket Friday:
Amazon — A U.K. regulator is looking into the e-commerce giant's investment in food-delivery start-up Deliveroo. The Competition and Markets Authority said Friday it has "reasonable grounds" for suspecting the two companies could "cease to be distinct." This would give the regulator the authority to block Amazon's $575 million investment.
Qualcomm, Micron Technology — Chipmakers fell broadly in the premarket after Samsung warned its second-quarter earnings likely plunged more than 50% from the previous year. Samsung cited weak demand for memory chips for the grim guidance.
Alexion Pharmaceuticals — The company announced the European Commission approved marketing for ULTOMIRIS, a drug used to treat paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria in adults. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Alexion's drug in December of last year.
Canopy Growth — The Globe and Mail reported that former co-CEO's Bruce Linton's departure came after clashes with Constellation Brands CEO Bill Newlands. The outlet reported, citing sources, that Constellation Brands tried exerting more control over the cannabis company ever since becoming its largest shareholder. This led to disagreements between the two executives, the paper said.
Karyopharm Therapeutics — Karyopharm announced in a conference call Wednesday afternoon that Xpovio, a drug aimed at treading refractory multiple myeloma, was approved by the Food and Drug Administration. The company also said its wholesale acquisition cost for would be $22,000 per month.
Rio Tinto, BHP Group — The mining companies were under pressure after the China Securities Journal reported that Chinese authorities were concerned about the recent price surge in iron ore.
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8213fc08ebb90117884be628e3f0d4d1 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/05/trump-administration-will-fight-for-census-citizenship-question.html | Trump administration will continue fight to put citizenship question on 2020 census: Court filing | Trump administration will continue fight to put citizenship question on 2020 census: Court filing
President Donald Trump departs for travel to Louisiana from the White House in Washington, U.S., May 14, 2019.Carlos Barria | Reuters
The Trump administration will continue efforts to put ask people in the 2020 census if they are U.S. citizens, Justice Department lawyers told a federal judge in a court filing Friday, two days after President Donald Trump contradicted officials who said the administration was dropping any such bid.
The filing came at the deadline set by a federal judge in Maryland for the government to say whether it would abandon its controversial quest to have the citizenship question in place for the upcoming census, or whether it would continue the legal battle.
The latest twist in the census citizenship question saga came a week after the Supreme Court effectively blocked the query from being asked next year.
While the government said its effort will continue, the filing had a pessmistic tone that underscored how much of a legal longshot the Justice Department is facing in seeking to justify the question in court.
The filing contained no explanation of how the Justice Department believes it can win that fight. But it left open the door that Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross will adopt "a new rationale to include the citizenship question."
"The Department of Justice ... and Commerce have been asked to reevaluate all available options," the Justice Department filing said.
Those departments "have been instructed to examine whether there is a path forward, consistent with the Supreme Court's decision, that would allow for the inclusion of the citizenship question on the census," the filing said.
Neal Katyal, a Washington, D.C., lawyer, scoffed at the development in a Twitter post.
"This is an absurd filing," wrote Katyal, who previously served as acting solictor general of the United States, the attorney who argues for the government in cases before the Supreme Court.
"They don't even explain how their "re-evaluation" of census Q is possible after telling the Supreme Court 5 separate times (inc last week) that everything had to be decided by June 30," wrote Katyal.
Although the Supreme Court last sent the dispute back down to lower courts for possible further argument, the decision left the Trump administration very little time to meet its own deadline for including the citizenship question on printed copies of the census question sheet.
And the Justice Department noted Friday in its filing that if the Commerce Department comes up with "a new rationale" for putting the citizenship question on the census," the plaintiffs who had originally challenged the question "will be fully entitled to challenge that decision at that time."
That in turn would start a new cycle of court hearings that would make it very difficut, if not impossible, for a judge and appeals court to rule on the issue before the census starts being conducted.
The Justice Department told U.S. District Judge George Hazel of Maryland on Friday that "if a viable path forward is found" to legally justify the citizenship question, the department's current plan it to ask the Supreme Court for instructions "to govern further proceedings in order to simply and expedite the remaining litigation and provide clarity to the process going forward."
Government lawyers asked Hazel to postpone setting a schedule for the parties in the case to request and obtain evidence from each other about the origin of the citizenship question pending Commerce chief Ross's "new" decision about a rationale for the question, or whether he even ultimately will continue to seek its inclusion.
Hazel rejected that request.
"Given that time is of the essence ... the prudent course is to proceed with discovery," Hazel said in an order.
A lawyer for plaintiffs in the case did not immediately respond to CNBC's request for comment on the court filing.
On Tuesday, Ross and a Justice Department lawyer had said that that the Census Bureau was in the processs of printing the census questionnaire without the citizenship question.
But Trump threw that plan into confusion Wednesday with a Twitter post that said, "The News Reports about the Department of Commerce dropping its quest to put the Citizenship Question on the Census is incorrect or, to state it differently, FAKE!"
"We are absolutely moving forward, as we must, because of the importance of the answer to this question," Trump wrote.
Hours after that tweet, Justice Department lawyers told Hazel of Maryland that the department was trying to find "a legally available path" under the Supreme Court decision to add the question.
Hazel's court is one of three federal courts where opponents of the citizenship question were challenging the question's inclusion.
Justice lawyer Josh Gardner told Hazel that Trump's tweet contradicted what Gardner had told the judge the previous day about plans to omit the citizenship question from the 2020 census.
"What I told the court yesterday was absolutely my best understanding of the state of affairs," Gardner said. "The tweet this morning was the first I had heard of the president's position on this issue, just like the plaintiffs and Your Honor. "
"I do not have a deeper understanding of what that means at this juncture other than what the president has tweeted. But, obviously, as you can imagine, I am doing my absolute best to figure out what's going on."
Gardner also told the judge on Wednesday that "the Census Bureau is continuing with the process of printing the questionnaire without a citizenship question, and that process has not stopped."
Hazel gave government lawyers until Friday to say whether they planned to pursue a legal fight to put the question on the questionnaire.
VIDEO1:1501:15Wilbur Ross: We're cooperating with the census probe 'in a rational way'Squawk Box
Trump on Friday told reporters that he was considering signing an executive order that would put the citizenship question on the 2020 census questionnaire.
"We're thinking about doing that. It's one of the ways – we have four or five ways we can do it. It's one of the ways that we're thinking about doing it very seriously," Trump said outside the White House before departing for his private resort in Bedminster, New Jersey.
"We can also add an addition on. So we can start the printing now and maybe do an addendum after we get a positive decision," Trump said. "So we're working on a lot of things, including an executive order."
The Trump administration in March 2018 said it would add the citizenship question to the 2020 census, which also would ask respondents how many people live in their residences, and those persons' ages, sexes, Hispanic origin, race, relationship and homeownership status.
Critics of the citizenship question argue it would reduce the census' accuracy and undercount minority and immigrant populations.
An undercount could affect how billions of dollars worth of federal funds are distributed nationally, and also could affect the design of districts for the House of Representatives.
The Trump administration has claimed that adding the citizenship question would help the government better enforce the Voting Rights Act.
Chief Justice John Roberts called that argument "contrived" in his opinion blocking the question — at least for now — from being added to the census questionnaire.
- Additional reporting by Kevin Breuninger
Read the Justice Department's filing here:
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7d30606baec2388f5a26b9991d7f3a22 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/05/trumps-fed-pick-shelton-dont-pull-the-rug-out-from-the-stock-market.html | Trump's Fed pick Shelton says she doesn't want to 'pull the rug out' from under the stock market | Trump's Fed pick Shelton says she doesn't want to 'pull the rug out' from under the stock market
VIDEO2:3402:34Fed nominee Judy Shelton: Don't want Fed to pull rug from under marketSquawk Alley
President Donald Trump's prospective Federal Reserve nominee sees an economy that is booming and thinks the central bank should not be a force standing in its way.
Judy Shelton told CNBC that Friday's strong jobs report is a good example of fiscal policy working, though she has expressed reservations about the Fed's actions.
The June nonfarm payrolls increase of 224,000 was "fantastic," Shelton told CNBC's Rick Santelli. "I think it shows that the pro-growth economic agenda under the administration is working. I think it shows that economies really do respond to positive policies that help create a better environment for businesses to be successful so they can hire people."
In remarks after the report came out, Trump again blasted the Fed, saying "we don't have a Fed that knows what they're doing." Trump repeated his claim that the economy would accelerate like "a rocket ship" with lower rates, and has said in the past that the Dow Jones Industrial Average would be 10,000 points higher with less restrictive monetary policy.
Shelton said keeping the stock market strong is important for Americans and said the Fed shouldn't put the U.S. at a competitive disadvantage with the rest of the world, where zero-interest policy rates are common.
"When you consider that more than half of American households are invested through mutual funds and pension funds in the market, I don't want the Fed to pull the carpet out from under them by taking a position that is not conducive to further providing the liquidity for this growing economy," she said.
The Fed has hiked its benchmark overnight lending rate nine times since December 2015, and reduced the bonds it is holding on its balance sheet by about $600 billion in a program that began nearly two years ago. Though officials had indicated the likelihood of two more rate hikes this year, they have since backed off and now say the increases are over for the time being and the balance sheet reduction will end in September.
But markets are looking for more. There currently is a rate cut fully priced in for the July Fed meeting, and traders see two more cuts likely before the end of the year.
Shelton did not offer a specific view on where she thinks rates should be. She said central banks are creating an environment where good news, like Friday's jobs report, is being treated like bad news in the market, and said she doesn't "want to punish the U.S. economy, which is flourishing, by doing the right thing."
"It would be nice if we didn't have a perverse reaction to good news, but it seems like we do," she said. "The problem is, you reap what you sow. Central bank easing has created this environment. I think markets are wrong in questioning it."
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873cd0b9a4f17c01bf70dd58927bd9ef | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/05/why-the-july-4-earthquake-didnt-trigger-a-shakealert.html | Why the July 4 Earthquake Didn't Trigger a ShakeAlert LA Early Warning Notification | Why the July 4 Earthquake Didn't Trigger a ShakeAlert LA Early Warning Notification
A local resident inspects a crack in the earth after a 6.4 magnitude earthquake struck the area on July 4, 2019 near Ridgecrest, California.Mario Tama | Getty Images
The nation's first publicly available earthquake early warning mobile app was launched earlier this year as part of a pilot program designed to give Los Angeles County residents a few seconds of warning before the shaking.
So, why didn't users receive a notification from the ShakeAlert LA app when a magnitude-6.4 earthquake -- the region's strongest in 20 years -- rattled a widespread part of Southern California on Independence Day?
ShakeAlert warnings are issued for all quakes, including aftershocks, of magnitude-5.0 or greater in Los Angeles County. Thursday's earthquake was centered to the north in the Mojave Desert in Kern County and did not reach the shaking threshold in Los Angeles County.
"There were no glitches," said USGS seismologist Robert Graves.
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Graves said the ShakeAlert system provided 48 seconds of warning to the seismology lab well before the shaking arrived at Caltech in Pasadena, just northeast of Los Angeles.
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said in a tweet, "The #ShakeAlertLA app only sends alerts if shaking is 5.0+ in LA County. Epicenter was 6.4 in Kern County, @USGS confirms LA's shaking was below 4.5. We hear you and will lower the alert threshold with @USGS_ShakeAlert."
Here's how the app works.
Once the app is downloaded, users are asked to enable notifications. ShakeAlert warnings are issued for all quakes, including aftershocks, of magnitude-5.0 or greater. The alert includes a sound and message that indicates the anticipated intensity level.
Seismologist Lucy Jones speaks at a media briefing at the Caltech Seismological Laboratory in Pasadena, California following the 6.4 Searles earthquake near Ridgecrest about 150 miles (241km) north of Los Angeles, July 4, 2019.Robyn Beck | AFP | Getty Images
The early warning function only works in Los Angeles County. The app does not need to be open, but users must set the phone's location services to "Always On."
ShakeAlert LA also has resources to help prepare for an earthquake.
It's part of the early warning system being built for California, Oregon and Washington, which detects that an earthquake is occurring, quickly analyzes the data and sends out alerts that may give warnings of several seconds to a minute before strong shaking arrives at locations away from the epicenter. A few seconds is enough time to scramble for protection, slow trains, halt industrial processes, trigger back-up power generators and pause surgeries at hospitals.
Pilot programs involving select users have been underway for several years.
A new generation of ShakeAlert software was deployed in September, including improvements in reducing false and missed alerts. False alerts typically have occurred when a large quake elsewhere in the world is detected by a sensor and is mistaken for a local earthquake.
There's still work to do. The sensor network is only about 50 percent of the target size. Funding has been secured to complete the network in California in the next two years.
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91ef38f58087f95e6f150cd2d4673d6a | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/06/powerful-southern-california-quake-second-in-two-days-causes-damage-injuries.html | California assessing damage after biggest earthquake in 20 years | California assessing damage after biggest earthquake in 20 years
An employee works at the cash register at Eastridge Market, near broken bottles scattered on the floor, following a 7.1 magnitude earthquake which struck in the area, on July 6, 2019 in Ridgecrest, California.Mario Tama | Getty Images News | Getty Images
Officials in Southern California expressed relief Saturday that damage and injuries weren't worse after the largest earthquake the region has seen in nearly 20 years, while voicing concerns about the possibility of major aftershocks in the days and even months to come.
No fatalities or major injuries were reported after Friday night's 7.1-magnitude earthquake, which jolted an area from Sacramento to Mexico and prompted the evacuation of the Navy's largest single landholding, Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake in the Mojave Desert.
The quake struck at 8:19 p.m. Friday and was centered 11 miles (18 kilometers) from Ridgecrest, the same area of the desert where a 6.4-magnitude temblor hit just a day earlier. It left behind cracked and burning buildings, broken roads, obstructed railroad tracks and leaking water and gas lines.
The light damage was largely due to the remoteness of the area where the earthquake occurred, but Gov. Gavin Newsom cautioned after touring Ridgecrest that "it's deceiving, earthquake damage. You don't notice it at first."
Newsom estimated more than $100 million in economic damages and said President Donald Trump called him to offer federal support in the rebuilding effort.
"He's committed in the long haul, the long run, to help support the rebuilding efforts," Newsom said of Trump.
Only 28,000 people live in the Ridgecrest area, which is sandwiched between more populated areas of Southern California and Las Vegas' Clark County. But seismologists warned that the area could see up to 30,000 aftershocks over the next six months.
April Hamlin said she was "already on edge" when the second quake rattled her Ridgecrest home. She and her three kids initially thought it was another aftershock.
"But it just kept on intensifying," Hamlin said. "The TV went over, hanging by the cord. We heard it break. We heard glass breakage in the other rooms, but all we could do was stay where we were until it stopped."
With the possibility of aftershocks and temperatures forecast to reach 100 degrees (38 Celsius) over the next several days, officials were taking precautions.
The California National Guard was sending 200 troops, logistical support and aircraft, Maj. Gen. David Baldwin said. The Pentagon had been notified, and the entire California Military Department was put on alert, he said.
Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake said in a Facebook post that nonessential workers were evacuated and operations halted. The epicenters of both quakes were on the base, and officials said they are continuing to assess damage. Officials said most employees live off the base and in Ridgecrest, but they authorized the evacuation so those who live on base can be eligible for reimbursements.
The California Office of Emergency Services brought in cots, water and meals and set up cooling centers in the region, Director Mark Ghilarducci said.
State highway officials shut down a 30-mile (48-kilometer) section of State Route 178 between Ridgecrest and the town of Trona southwest of Death Valley because of a rockslide and severe cracking. The move left Trona temporarily cut off. California Department of Transportation spokeswoman Christine Knadler said crews worked through the night to patch the roadway, but it remained rough and uneven.
Ron Mikulaco, 51, and his nephew, 23-year-old Brad Fernandez, stood on 178 on Saturday looking at the cracks. The pair drove from Huntington Beach, about 170 miles (274 kilometers) southwest of Ridgecrest. Mikulaco, an amateur geologist, wanted to show his nephew "the power of Mother Nature," and they had the epicenter's latitude and longitude coordinates ready.
"We put that in the GPS, and we'll get as close as we can," Fernandez said.
In Ridgecrest, local fire and police officials said they were initially swamped by calls for medical and ambulance service. But police Chief Jed McLaughlin said there was "nothing but minor injuries such as cuts and bruises, by the grace of God."
Two building fires -- one involving a mobile home -- were quickly doused, McLaughlin said, and natural gas lines where leaks were reported were shut off.
When asked to describe what he has been going through in the past two days, the chief said: "Grief, shock and then, for me, pride in what I've seen from here, my people. It's been a vast range of emotions, and I think the whole community's going through that."
In Trona, a town of about 2,000 people considered the gateway to Death Valley, fire officials said up to 50 structures were damaged. San Bernardino County Supervisor Robert Lovingood said FEMA delivered a tractor-trailer full of bottled water because of damage to water lines. Newsom declared a state of emergency for the county.
Julia Doss, who maintains the Trona Neighborhood Watch page on Facebook, said the only food store in town is a Family Dollar store that was shuttered Saturday.
"The only way to get food is to drive to Ridgecrest, and with only three gas stations in town I'm worried we may soon run out of fuel," Doss said.
Antoun Abdullatif, 59, owns liquor stores and other businesses in Ridgecrest and Trona.
"I would say 70% of my inventory is on the floor, broken," he said. "Every time you sweep and you put stuff in the dust bin, you're putting $200 in the trash."
But he has stopped cleaning up, believing another earthquake is on the way.
Lucy Jones, a seismologist at the California Institute of Technology and a former science adviser at the U.S. Geological Survey, said the new quake probably ruptured along about 25 miles (40 kilometers) of fault line and was part of a continuing sequence. The seismic activity is unlikely to affect fault lines outside of the area, Jones said, noting that the gigantic San Andreas Fault is far away.
Egill Hauksson, another Caltech seismologist, said later in the day that scientists believe the continuing sequence could produce more than 30,000 quakes of magnitude 1 or greater over six months. He said the probability of a magnitude 7 over the next week is about 3%, but one or two magnitude 6 quakes are expected.
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3e4e421af399a22e97c44a2b9d2a8d6e | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/07/avengers-endgame-is-now-just-15-million-shy-of-avatar-record.html | 'Avengers: Endgame' is now just $15 million shy of 'Avatar' record | 'Avengers: Endgame' is now just $15 million shy of 'Avatar' record
General atmosphere at the 'Avengers: Endgame' Canadian Premiere at Scotiabank Theatre on April 24, 2019 in Toronto, Canada.George Pimentel | Getty Images
Disney's "Avengers: Endgame" is now just $15 million shy of the record for highest-grossing film of all time.
At the end of the July 4 holiday weekend and after 73 days in the theaters, "Endgame" has hauled in $2.772 billion globally, just short of the record $2.787 billion that "Avatar" has earned since its release in 2009.
Last weekend, Marvel Studios began showing a new theatrical release of the film with a special tribute, a deleted scene and a teaser for "Spider-Man: Far From Home" at the end of the credits. The hope was to drive buzz and lure moviegoers back to theaters to see the film again.
While the company was able to garner an estimated $5.5 million in the U.S. and another $2.3 million abroad, it wasn't enough to surpass "Avatar." A week later, however, the gap has continued to narrow.
"Endgame" likely will remain in theaters for most, if not all of summer. Most analysts peg its last weekend in cinemas to be Labor Day weekend. In that time, the film has a chance of beating "Avatar's" record.
After all, "Avatar" ran for 234 days during its first run (the film got a rerelease in 2010). "Endgame" has been in theaters for just over 70 days.
To be sure, "Endgame" still has a number of hurdles to face on its way to the top spot. The summer box office is very competitive, with new releases every weekend. "Endgame" also has a lot of emotional — some would argue gut-wrenching — moments that could make repeat viewings difficult even for the biggest of fans.
And then there is that three-hour run time.
VIDEO1:4601:46'Avengers: Endgame' just shattered multiple box office recordsNews Videos
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69b48f887a87129de6ba572f2d0a7691 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/07/israels-netanyahu-calls-iran-enrichment-move-a-dangerous-step.html | Israel's Netanyahu calls Iran enrichment move a 'very, very dangerous step' | Israel's Netanyahu calls Iran enrichment move a 'very, very dangerous step'
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu looks on during a weekly cabinet meeting on November 4, 2012 in Jerusalem, Israel.Sebastian Scheiner | Getty Images News | Getty Images
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday an announced increase of uranium enrichment by Iran was an extremely dangerous move and he again called on Europe to impose punitive sanctions on Tehran.
Netanyahu made the remarks after Iran said it is fully prepared to enrich uranium at any level and with any amount, in further defiance of U.S. efforts to squeeze it with sanctions and force it to renegotiate a 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.
In a news conference broadcast live, senior Iranian officials said Tehran, which has denied seeking nuclear arms, would keep reducing its commitments every 60 days unless signatories of the pact moved to protect it from U.S. sanctions.
"This is a very, very dangerous step," Netanyahu said in public remarks to his cabinet.
"Iran has violated its solemn promise under the U.N. Security Council not to enrich uranium beyond a certain level," he said.
"I call on my friends, the heads of France, Britain and Germany — you signed this deal and you said that as soon as they take this step, severe sanctions will be imposed — that was the Security Council resolution. Where are you?" Netanyahu said.
If any one of the three European parties to the accord believe Iran has violated the agreement, they can trigger a dispute resolution process that could, within as few as 65 days, end at the U.N. Security Council with a reimposition of U.N. sanctions on Tehran.
The other remaining signatories, Russia and China, are allies of Iran and unlikely to make such a move.
"The enrichment of uranium is made for one reason and one reason only — it's for the creation of atomic bombs," said Netanyahu, a strong opponent of the 2015 agreement.
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81be3570dd7191cdbf1c98ea2f121a6a | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/08/oil-markets-us-jobs-report-in-focus.html | Oil rises 0.3% amid worries over Iran's nuclear program | Oil rises 0.3% amid worries over Iran's nuclear program
Jason Reed | Reuters
Oil prices firmed on Monday on tensions over Iran's nuclear program but gains were capped by concerns about global economic growth and consequently oil demand.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures rose 15 cents, or 0.3%, to settle at $57.66 a barrel.
Iran on Monday threatened to restart deactivated centrifuges and step up its enrichment of uranium to 20% in a move that further threatens the 2015 nuclear agreement that Washington abandoned last year.
Washington has imposed sanctions that eliminate benefits Iran was meant to receive in return for agreeing to curbs on its nuclear program under the 2015 deal with world powers. The confrontation has brought the United States and Iran close to conflict, with U.S. President Donald Trump calling off air strikes last month minutes before impact.
On Sunday, Trump issued another warning over Iran's nuclear activities. "They'd better be careful," he said.
Iran's Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh said on Sunday that he was very hopeful of an improvement in the country's crude exports, state TV reported.
"We see enough possibility of military conflict to cushion renewed price declines that might be driven by mounting expectations for a major slowing in the global economic growth path," Jim Ritterbusch of Ritterbusch and Associates said in a note.
Oil prices remain under pressure from lingering worries about demand as the U.S.-China trade war has dampened prospects for global economic growth.
Japan's core machinery orders fell for the first time in four months in May, the biggest monthly drop in eight months in a worrying sign that global trade tensions are taking a toll on corporate investment.
Goldman Sachs said growth in U.S. shale production is likely to outpace that of global demand at least through 2020 and limit gains in oil prices despite output curbs led by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries.
In a sign of growing concern over demand, investors cut their ICE Brent net long positions by 6,748 contracts to 248,006 in the week to July 2.
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8f3eff56778c793de9302a9b06a47160 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/08/read-deutsche-bank-ceo-christian-sewings-email-to-staff-about-job-cuts.html | Read Deutsche Bank CEO's email to staff about job cuts | Read Deutsche Bank CEO's email to staff about job cuts
Christian Sewing, chief executive officer of Deutsche Bank AG, pauses as Germanys biggest bank announces full year earnings in Frankfurt, Germany, on Friday. Feb. 1, 2019. Deutsche Banks revenue contracted for an eighth straight quarter in the final months of last year, complicating Chief Executive Officer Christian Sewings plan to turn around the lender through cost cutting. Photographer: Krisztian Bocsi/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesKrisztian Bocsi | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Deutsche Bank CEO Christian Sewing, in an email to colleagues, said he "greatly regrets" the impact these job cuts will have on employees, adding that it is in the "long-term interests" of the bank.
Deutsche Bank announced Sunday that it will pull out of global equities sales and trading, scale back investment banking and slash thousands of jobs as part of a sweeping restructuring plan to improve profitability.
Deutsche will cut 18,000 jobs for a global headcount of around 74,000 employees by 2022. The bank aims to reduce adjusted costs by a quarter to 17 billion euros ($19 billion) over the next several years.
Here's the email that Deutsche Bank's CEO Christian Sewing sent to staff on Sunday.
Dear Colleagues,At the Annual General Meeting in May I said that we would speed-up the transformation of our bank significantly, that we would have to take faster and more radical action. Since then, many of you have asked me when we would announce concrete next steps.Today is that day: After further stabilizing our bank last year, we are now entering the next phase – and that means nothing less than a fundamental transformation of our bank.First let me say this: I am very much aware that in rebuilding our bank, we are making deep cuts. I personally greatly regret the impact this will have on some of you. In the long-term interests of our bank, however, we have no choice other than to approach this transformation decisively. Only then can we build on our long-standing history and make Deutsche Bank a leading bank once again. A bank which we can be justifiably proud of.I will not go over all the details that we just published in our media release.I will stress though that what we have announced today is nothing less than a fundamental rebuilding of Deutsche Bank through which we are ushering in a new era for our bank. This is a rebuilding which, in a way, also takes us back to our roots. We are creating a bank that will be more profitable, leaner, more innovative and more resilient. It is about once again putting the needs of our clients at the centre of what we do – and finally delivering returns for our shareholders again.The transformation will bring us closer to our core strength, our DNA. Almost 150 years ago, we were founded as a bank that serves German and European companies worldwide, that provides a global network and that paves the road to Europe for international companies and investors. This is exactly the role that the Corporate Bank which we are forming will play. Going forward, our Corporate Bank will also serve the corporate and commercial clients of Deutsche Bank and Postbank in our home market. This division is focused on midcap clients, family-owned companies and multinational corporates. It will hold deposits of more than 200 billion euros and process financial transactions with a value of one billion euros every day.Alongside our Corporate Bank will be an Investment Bank that connects our corporate clients with capital markets worldwide. In this division, we will concentrate on those areas in which we have a longstanding expertise – credit, fixed income and currencies, as well as strategic advice. Going forward, our Investment Bank will be smaller – but all the more stable and competitive.The strict separation between private and corporate clients also means we will have a much more focused private client business. In our home market, we are already a market leader in many businesses. It is our stated goal also to achieve that position in areas where we are not yet leading but have strong growth potential by offering innovative digital solutions and outstanding advice. The task is to find ways to combine these two propositions, because it is exactly in this combination that our strength lies. In order to achieve this, we need to manage our cost base more efficiently. That is why we will accelerate the integration of Deutsche Bank and Postbank.Our goal is clear: We want to achieve a post-tax Return on Tangible Equity (RoTE) of 8 percent by 2022. It is absolutely vital that we achieve this if we want to be competitive in the long term.We are not too far away from this goal. The RoTE of DWS is already above 10 percent, the Corporate Bank is only slightly below, and we are well on track to reaching that goal in the Private Bank. In the Investment Bank, we are highly profitable and stable in many areas of the business and will improve significantly over the coming years.In those areas where we are not currently competing to win, we are now taking decisive action. Indeed, we have no choice other than to concentrate our strengths and resources where we play to win and where we can make a true difference for our clients.That means we will be fundamentally rebuilding our bank. In total, we will be transferring 74 billion euros of risk weighted assets into the Capital Release Unit (CRU) to be sold over the course of the coming years. The term "bad bank", which is often used in the media, is in this case misleading. Given the high quality and in many cases short duration of the assets, we expect these to be wound down quickly. This will serve to free up significant amounts of capital. As a result, we intend to return 5 billion euros to shareholders from 2022.The rebuilding will, however, only be successful if we fundamentally reshape our infrastructure – all of the cross-divisional functions supporting the businesses. Here, we also have to become more innovative and more efficient whilst simultaneously strengthening our controls.Let us start with innovation: We intend to invest 13 billion euros in technology by 2022. In addition, we will have a Management Board member responsible for digitalisation, data and innovation. With Bernd Leukert, we will be joined by someone who was previously in charge of product development at SAP. In the age of cloud-computing and platform economies, he will ensure that we accelerate our progress still further. In doing so, we can build on the many innovations that our bank has developed over the past couple of years.This, in turn, will give Frank Kuhnke the necessary freedom to concentrate on what he does better than anyone else. He will put the structure and processes of our infrastructure functions to the test and make them leaner and more efficient. For many years, our fixed costs have been way too high, as is demonstrated by our cost-income ratio. We intend to reduce adjusted costs by about 6 billion euros to 17 billion euros by 2022.One thing is certain – we will not make any sacrifices when it comes to our control functions. On the contrary, we can and will further improve them. That is why we are bringing risk management together with the divisions for compliance and anti-financial crime. These areas which are of utmost importance to our integrity and to trust in our bank will therefore be combined in a single division led by Stuart Lewis.That brings us to the people who will execute the transformation: our leadership team. One thing is certain: If we are serious about shaping a new Deutsche Bank, change will need to start right at the top. That is a matter of structure as much as of individual team members.Let me start with the leadership structure that we have also announced today. Going forward, our Management Board – next to our President Karl von Rohr and myself – will only represent the bank's central functions and regions. This includes Christiana Riley, who will be responsible for our business in the Americas, and Stefan Simon, who will be responsible for Legal and Regulatory Affairs. It is intended that both, alongside Bernd Leukert, will become members of the Management Board as soon as regulatory approvals have been obtained.On the other hand, we also have a few goodbyes. I would like to whole heartedly thank Sylvie Matherat, Garth Ritchie and Frank Strauß for their service to Deutsche Bank. Together, we have come a long way – especially over the course of the past year. I personally have greatly appreciated the spirit of cooperation with all three of them. However, I am convinced our new structure is an important step forward for our bank – because it will enable us to become more agile and flexible.We are deliberately separating the business heads from the responsibilities of the Management Board which require a lot of time and attention. Instead, we want to enable those responsible for the business divisions to act as entrepreneurs within our bank – all the while being laser-focused on our clients and what we can offer them. My colleagues and I expect the highest degree of integrity and teamwork. They have to be role models – internally as well as externally. The colleagues that are now joining the newly formed Group Management Committee represent exactly those values.Our Corporate Bank will be led by Stefan Hoops, who will report to me.Mark Fedorcik will be Head of the Investment Bank. Ram Nayak will head the Fixed Income and Currencies Business. Both will also report to me.The Private Bank in Germany will be led by Manfred Knof, former CEO of Allianz Germany. Ashok Aram will lead the international retail business (including international commercial clients) and Fabrizio Campelli will lead the Wealth Management Business. All three will report to my deputy, Karl von Rohr.Asoka Wöhrmann will continue to lead our asset management business DWS and will also report to Karl von Rohr.The newly formed Capital Release Unit will be led by Louise Kitchen and Ashley Wilson, both of whom will report to Frank Kuhnke.The Group Management Committee will be supported by the so-called Senior Leadership Team, the extended management circle. The team will comprise 13 members, representing the relevant infrastructure functions.We were determined to form a team that would represent trust, strength in innovation and an entrepreneurial mindset – and that would enable us to make a credible fresh start.Let me summarise again what we are doing:Going forward, we will have four businesses that will be entirely focused on our clients.We are focusing our Investment Bank, we will be less dependent on Sales & Trading and are shrinking our balance sheet.We are creating a Corporate Bank which will be at the centre of our bank.We aim to reduce our adjusted costs by over a quarter and to simultaneously invest 13 billion euros in technology by 2022.And we are not asking our shareholders to pay for this transformation but instead plan to return capital to them.All of this will create a new, better Deutsche Bank.However, we also have to face the fact that this transformation will require uncomfortable decisions. This is especially true for the sizeable workforce reductions. I can assure you that my colleagues and I appreciate that this impacts people and affects their lives in a profound way. That is why we will do whatever it takes to implement these cuts as responsibly as possible – I consider it our duty to do so. The works councils and employee representatives will be consulted where applicable and statutory participation rights will be safeguarded.Taking this decision has not been easy. It has far-reaching consequences for our bank – the bank that I have been working at for almost thirty years now.But I am determined, and so is my leadership team: This is about thinking radically and thinking differently. It is about a new culture. A culture that enables rather than prevents. A culture that always puts the bank and its clients first, before the interests of the individual. A culture where integrity and teamwork are core values. A culture that takes our responsibility for the economy and for society seriously. A culture that we are all proud of and where extraordinarily talented people want to work.Thank you for your support.Best wishes,Christian Sewing
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decf8f139e91105913f079ff4822a3dd | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/08/republican-scott-taylor-will-challenge-mark-warner-for-virginia-senate.html | Former GOP Rep. Scott Taylor will challenge Virginia Sen. Mark Warner in 2020 | Former GOP Rep. Scott Taylor will challenge Virginia Sen. Mark Warner in 2020
Former Rep. Scott Taylor, R-Va., talks with reporters in the Capitol after a meeting of the House Republican Conference.Tom Williams | CQ-Roll Call Group | Getty Images
Former Republican Rep. Scott Taylor will try to take down Democratic Sen. Mark Warner in Virginia next year.
The ex-congressman and Navy Seal announced his plan to challenge Warner on Monday morning. Taylor faces a difficult task in attempting to unseat the two-term senator in a state that has tilted blue in recent elections.
In an interview Monday on the Fox News program "Fox & Friends," Taylor contended Warner has little to show for nearly a dozen years in the Senate. He also criticized the senator — the top Democrat on the chamber's Intelligence Committee — for his role in the Senate panel's probe into Russian interference in the 2016 election and whether the Trump campaign colluded with Moscow.
"It's going to be tight," Taylor told Fox about the race. "There's no question, we are underdogs."
A handful of 2020 races will help to determine whether Republicans can keep their 53-47 advantage in the Senate. A close contest in Virginia would bode poorly for Democrats, as election forecasters consider Warner safer next year than several of his Democratic colleagues.
Taylor's fate could depend in part on whether President Donald Trump makes Virginia competitive. Democrat Hillary Clinton carried the state by about 5 percentage points in 2016.
In last year's midterms, Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine won by more than 15 percentage points. Meanwhile, Democrats unseated three House Republicans from Virginia — including Taylor — on their way to taking control of the chamber. Rep. Elaine Luria beat the former congressman by about 2 percentage points in Virginia's 2nd District.
In a statement Monday, Warner campaign manager Bruce Sinclair said, "We welcome Scott Taylor to the race and wish him the best of luck in the Republican primary."
Taylor enters the race at a cash disadvantage. The Warner campaign said it raised $1.8 million in the second quarter and ended June with $5.4 million on hand.
The former one-term congressman will likely make Warner's role in the Senate Intelligence Committee's Russia probe a major part of his campaign. Republicans running for Congress during Trump's tenure have stressed their allegiance to the president — particularly in primary races.
Trump has publicly targeted Warner several times as he maintains he did not coordinate with Russia or try to obstruct special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election. In a May tweet, the president argued Warner "is acting and talking like he is in total control of the Senate Intelligence Committee." He claimed there is "nothing bipartisan about [Warner]."
Trump tweet: Democrat Senator Mark Warner is acting and talking like he is in total control of the Senate Intelligence Committee. Their is nothing bipartisan about him. He should not be allowed to take "command" of that Committee. Too important! Remember when he spoke to the Russian jokester?
Warner has advocated for tighter regulations on social media companies, both in the information they disclose about campaign ads and the data they gather about consumers.
A cloud from Taylor's last campaign could hang over him this time. A former 2016 campaign staff member was charged in May with submitting forged petition signatures for an independent candidate who could have taken votes away from Luria.
In a statement at the time, Taylor said he "knew nothing about any illegal actions that transpired."
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3bc71b6bed6d4ece07c8c14267312523 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/08/saudi-airline-switches-to-airbus-as-boeings-max-remains-grounded.html | Saudi airline switches to Airbus as Boeing's Max remains grounded | Saudi airline switches to Airbus as Boeing's Max remains grounded
A British Airlines Airbus A320Nicolas Economou | NurPhoto | Getty Images
Saudi Arabian budget airline Flyadeal will operate an all-Airbus fleet after canceling its $5.9 billion provisional order with Boeing for its troubled 737 Max jets.
The airline has instead ordered 30 Airbus A320neo planes for $5.5 billion, marking one of the first carriers to fully switch to Boeing's French rival as problems with the Max continue.
"This order will result in flyadeal operating an all-Airbus A320 fleet in the future," Flyadeal announced Sunday.
The airline tentatively committed to buying Boeing's 737 Max in December — a deal it reconsidered after two fatal crashes killed 346 people and left the jet grounded across the globe.
"Boeing is proud of its seven-decade long partnership with Saudi Arabia's aviation industry and we wish the flyadeal team well as it builds out its operations. Our team continues to focus on safely returning the 737 Max to service and resuming deliveries of MAX airplanes," Boeing said in an emailed statement.
Boeing has frozen its Max deliveries for months following the crashes, and now hopes to submit a fix to regulators for review in September. That timeline would get the planes back in the air by the end of the year.
Other Middle Eastern airlines have warned of switching to Airbus if the Max isn't fixed soon. Oman Air said last month it would hold talks with Airbus if Boeing didn't provide support and a recovery plan for the Max. Emirati carrier flydubai also said in April it could order A320neos as replacements for the Max jets.
Based in Toulouse, France, Airbus is poised to overtake Boeing this year as the world's largest plane maker as the U.S. company cuts 737 production volume.
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3138094fbde8a7e558754e16bcbd5b38 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/08/verizon-shares-fall-after-citi-downgrades-the-stock-predicting-lower-wireless-pricing-ahead.html | Verizon shares fall after Citi downgrades the stock, predicting lower wireless pricing ahead | Verizon shares fall after Citi downgrades the stock, predicting lower wireless pricing ahead
A customer stands at a counter inside a Verizon Wireless retail store in Washington, D.C.Andrew Harrer | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Shares of Verizon fell on Monday following a downgrade from Citi citing potential lower wireless pricing in the future.
Citi downgraded the stock to neutral from buy and maintained its $62 price target. Verizon shares fell more than 1% in premarket trading Monday and closed the day down 0.7%.
"Verizon's consistently strong operating performance in the wireless category may not be enough to drive further multiple expansion at a time when investors are more likely to question the competitive environment and long-term risks to pricing and margins," Citi's Michael Rollins wrote in a note to clients.
The wireless carrier space is narrowing with a potential merger between T-Mobile and Sprint on the horizon. As new competitors come into the space without legacy pricing and with different margin goals, opportunities to expand margins are shrinking for Verizon, said Rollins.
A merger between T-Mobile and Sprint "creates a potentially disruptive fourth competitor [that] could be dilutive to long-term pricing and margins for the wireless industry," said Rollins.
Rollins said that Verizon, which is the second-largest U.S. wireless carrier, should consider and is well positioned to purchase DISH, which "holds a disruptive amount of spectrum that can be used to build a scale network."
Further, Verizon is at risk because the evolution of technology in the wireless carrier space is reducing costs, which is lowering the barrier to enter into the category, said Rollins.
Despite the downgrade, Citi said it is not concerned about Verizon's upcoming quarterly results.
Shares of Verizon are only up 2.9% since the start of the year, while T-Mobile, Sprint and AT&T are all up about 20% year to date.
— With reporting from CNBC's Michael Bloom
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056e6099d4ca6ec6abec34fddcace408 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/09/boeing-again-reports-no-new-orders-for-737-max-as-planes-remain-grounded.html | Boeing again reports no new orders for 737 Max as planes stay grounded after crashes | Boeing again reports no new orders for 737 Max as planes stay grounded after crashes
Boeing 737 MAX airplanes are stored in an area adjacent to Boeing Field, on June 27, 2019 in Seattle, Washington. After a pair of crashes, the 737 MAX has been grounded by the FAA and other aviation agencies since March, 13, 2019. The FAA has reportedly found a new potential flaw in the Boeing 737 Max software update that was designed to improve safety.Stephen Brashear | Getty Images News | Getty Images
Boeing on Tuesday again reported no new orders for its 737 Max, as the worldwide grounding of its best-selling plane is about to enter its fifth month, dragging down aircraft deliveries.
Boeing delivered 239 commercial airplanes in the first half of the year, down 37% from the first six months of 2018. Deliveries are key for the company since that is generally when the manufacturer is paid for the aircraft.
The dearth of Max orders in June marked the third straight month without any new orders for the planes. The issues could give European manufacturer Airbus, which reported 389 commercial plane deliveries in the first six months of the year, the crown as the world's biggest airplane maker. Airbus' popular A320 planes compete with Boeing's 737s in the single-aisle segment, which comprise most aircraft orders.
The Boeing 737 Max planes have been grounded since mid-March after two fatal crashes that claimed a total of 346 lives. Investigators found similarities between the two crashes and implicated an anti-stall system in both deadly incidents. Boeing has prepared software fixes for the planes but regulators have not said when they will permit the planes to fly again, prompting carriers to cancel thousands of flights. Both airlines and Boeing have been force to park the grounded jets.
Boeing cut production of the 737 Max by about a fifth to 42 jetliners a month in April. It had originally expected to ramp up production to 57 a month. The Chicago-based company has a backlog of about 4,600 737 jets.
Last month, Boeing won a vote of confidence in the troubled 737 Max when British Airways' parent International Consolidated Airlines Group, said it plans to buy 200 of the jets. Boeing didn't include the orders in its monthly tally because the order isn't finalized. Over the weekend, flyadeal, a budget airline based in Saudi Arabia, canceled a provisional order for 30 Boeing 737 Max planes, and said it would take delivery of A320 jets from Airbus instead.
Boeing's shares initially fell after the manufacturer reported its quarterly orders and deliveries, but closed up 0.6% at $353.09.
VIDEO1:1401:14Boeing sees third straight month with no 737 Max ordersSquawk Alley
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b57632b7fdaabe7619162559dd7beea6 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/09/cramer-four-stocks-are-putting-up-a-fight-against-amazon-in-retail.html | VIDEO4:3804:38Four stocks are putting up a fight against Amazon in retail: CramerMad Money with Jim Cramer
Amazon, the most dominant name in shopping and retail, is facing increasing competition from a new breed of niche players in the industry, CNBC's Jim Cramer said Tuesday.
While names like Costco, Target and Walmart have their own grip on the industry, the "Mad Money" host pointed out Etsy, LuluLemon, Pinterest and Stitch Fix as companies that are carving their own lane.
Cramer took a look at chart analysis by technician Tim Collins, one of his colleagues at RealMoney.com, to see what's in store for the group of four companies.
"In a retail environment dominated by a handful of players that we all know ... there are smaller operators that we have found ways to like and win with," Cramer said. "The charts, as interpreted by Tim Collins, suggest that all four could have more room to run."
Etsy launched a new free shipping program, and the stock rose 4.45% during Tuesday's session. The chart shows that the stock has spent the past four months digesting its 40% gains this year, which was powered by a big move in February.
"And a stock that's spent four months consolidating ... [is like] a coiled spring, which is how you get the kind of magnificent rally we had today on really very little news," Cramer said.
Etsy is caught in an ascending triangle formation, which is a trend line that traders monitor for breakouts. In that pattern, the stock has a floor of support at $61 and a ceiling of resistance at $70, Cramer noted. It may take a number of attempts to push past $70, but Collins thinks the stock has more upside, the host said.
"You know I hate to chase stocks that have run, but when you zoom in on this chart, Collins really likes what he sees ..." he said. "When it comes to Etsy, the stochastics just made what we call a bullish crossover, and that's where the black line goes above the red one, and that is a very bullish signal that we have learned time and again in a great way to try to predict moves."
Collins thinks Lululemon, which posted 14% same-store sales growth in its most recent earnings report, is also digesting the gains it made after trading above $190 last month, Cramer said. The athletic apparel maker's stock recently showed a bullish crossover indicator, which the chartist says has helped the stock run higher in the past, the host continued.
"LULU's at $186. Collins thinks it can pole vault over $200," he said. "However, if LULU pulls back below its floor of support at around $175 to $180, he thinks maybe you should throw in the towel, as this chart could quickly morph into a bearish head and shoulders pattern."
While Pinterest is not a retailer, Cramer said the vision board platform where users browse things to buy has potential to compete with Amazon in the future. The social media company went public in April and has traded within a tight range in recent weeks, he said. Shares closed Tuesday's session more than 12% higher than its first trade on the market of $23.75 almost three months ago.
"If Pinterest can climb above $28.50, Collins believes it will be smooth sailing to the $30s," Cramer said. However, if the stock drops below $25.50, "it might sink to $23.50. But get this: It bottomed in May. Collins says he'd be a buyer if that happens."
Stitch Fix, an online personal styling subscription service, has been a difficult stock to own, but the company in June reported a strong quarter that sent the stock up $4 to $27 in one session, Cramer said. Shares continued to rally before cooling off two weeks later, which produced a bullish flag pattern where a stock runs before trading sideways, he highlighted. The pattern indicates that an equity will continue its prior move.
Stitch Fix dropped 4% during Tuesday's session, but Collins says the stock has a floor of support at $29, Cramer said. Collins thinks shares can run as high as $40 if they break through a ceiling of resistance of $32, he said.
"That's why Collins recommends buying it right here, although bear in mind, [shares of] Stitch Fix could keep bouncing around in this flag pattern for another few weeks," Cramer said. "He suggests buying half your position now, and then putting on the other half after a breakout above $32. I get where he's coming from."
VIDEO11:3711:37Cramer: Four stocks are putting up a fight against Amazon in retailMad Money with Jim Cramer
Disclosure: Cramer's charitable trust owns shares of Amazon.
Questions for Cramer? Call Cramer: 1-800-743-CNBCWant to take a deep dive into Cramer's world? Hit him up! Mad Money Twitter - Jim Cramer Twitter - Facebook - InstagramQuestions, comments, suggestions for the "Mad Money" website? madcap@cnbc.com
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c985dc8a5fb908a5339c404376d928d0 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/09/oil-insurance-rates-have-soared-since-tanker-attacks-near-iran.html | Insurance rates have 'increased 10-fold' after attacks in the Strait of Hormuz, shipping CEO says | Insurance rates have 'increased 10-fold' after attacks in the Strait of Hormuz, shipping CEO says
Iranian soldiers take part in the "National Persian Gulf day" in the Strait of Hormuz, on April 30, 2019.ATTA KENARE | AFP | Getty Images
Insurance rates for tankers transiting through the world's most important oil choke point have skyrocketed in recent weeks, according to the CEO of a U.S.-listed shipping company.
Six oil tankers and a U.S. spy drone have been attacked since May either in, or near, the Strait of Hormuz — a strategically important waterway which separates Iran, Oman and the United Arab Emirates.
"As a shipping company and part of the global shipping industry, we are taking the threat to our crew and ships very seriously," Anthony Gurnee, CEO of Ardmore Shipping, told CNBC's "Squawk Box Europe" on Tuesday.
Ardmore Shipping is a U.S.-listed company based in Ireland, with a business of owning and operating a fleet of tankers that move refined oil products.
"At the moment, it is business as usual (but) insurance to transit the Strait of Hormuz has actually increased 10-fold in the last two months as a consequence of the attacks," Gurnee said.
The attacks brought the U.S. and Iran close to conflict last month. President Donald Trump called off air strikes at the last minute in retaliation for Iran shooting down a U.S. drone over the Gulf, which followed attacks on two oil product tankers in the nearby Gulf of Oman by unidentified assailants.
Washington has blamed Iran for the attacks on four oil tankers in the same area on May 12. Tehran has denied the allegations.
"Whoever is doing this has demonstrated that they have the ability to be very destructive," Gurnee said.
Every ship needs various forms of insurance, including annual war-risk cover as well as an additional 'breach' premium when entering high-risk areas. These separate premiums are calculated according to the value of the ship, or hull, for a seven-day period, Reuters reported.
Last month, a Nikkei Asian Review report citing Japanese industry sources said additional insurance for tankers sailing through the Strait of Hormuz now cost 10 times what it did before two ships were attacked earlier in June.
CNBC has not been able to independently verify these sources.
VIDEO3:0303:03Shipping industry 'as ready as it needs to be' for new rules, CEO saysSquawk Box Europe
The Nikkei Asia Review report said insurers began imposing an additional charge of 0.025% of ship value on tankers transiting through the Strait of Hormuz after four tankers were attacked off the coast of the United Arab Emirates in late May. This extra charge has since jumped up to 0.25% since the June 13 attacks, the report added.
The Strait of Hormuz — located between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman — is seen as one of the most important waterways in the world, linking crude producers in the Middle East with key markets in the rest of the world.
It plays a pivotal role for Asian economies that are heavily dependent on oil imports from the Middle East.
Flows through the narrow channel in 2018 made up about one-third of total global seaborne traded oil. More than one-quarter of global liquefied natural gas trade (LNG) also transited the Strait of Hormuz last year.
Daily oil flow in the Strait of Hormuz averaged 21 million barrels per day in 2018, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). That's the equivalent of about 21% of global petroleum liquids consumption.
An oil tanker is seen after it was attacked at the Gulf of Oman, June 13, 2019.ISNA | Reuters
Last month, Trump suggested the U.S. could stop providing protection to other ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
The prospect of the U.S. lessening its role in the strategically important waterway indicated a weakening of a nearly 40-year-old U.S. policy to defend national interests in the Persian Gulf.
In response to Trump, Japan's chief cabinet secretary, Yoshihide Suga, reportedly said late last month that the safety of shipping in the Strait of Hormuz was "a matter of life and death for our country in terms of energy security."
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28d429210392d3a9cd7cf72a4058df56 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/09/oil-markets-trade-global-economy-in-focus.html | Oil edges up on supply cuts; trade worries limit gains | Oil edges up on supply cuts; trade worries limit gains
A truck used to carry sand for fracking is washed in a truck stop in Odessa, Texas.Getty Images
Oil futures edged up on Tuesday as OPEC supply cuts and Middle East tensions kept global benchmark Brent crude above $64 a barrel, while gains were limited by the U.S.-China trade dispute that has dragged on the global economy and crimped oil demand.
OPEC and allied producers led by Russia agreed last week to extend their supply-cutting deal until March 2020. Brent has risen almost 20% in 2019, supported by the pact and tensions in the Middle East, especially the row over Iran's nuclear program.
Brent crude, the global benchmark, rose 16 cents to $64.27 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was up 5 cents to $57.71.
"Tightened supplies have provided an undercurrent of support," said Gene McGillian, vice president of market research at Tradition Energy in Stamford, Connecticut. "The market is showing signs of stabilizing."
Also supporting prices was an Iranian military official's comments that Britain's seizure last week of an Iranian oil tanker off the coast of Gibraltar will not be "unanswered," according to the semi-official Tasnim news agency.
"Iranian military talking about payback for the Gibraltar situation has put a little bid in the market here," said Robert Yawger, director of energy futures at Mizuho in New York.
Rising tensions have brought Iran and the United States close to conflict. The European Union on Tuesday urged Iran to reverse its scaled up uranium enrichment that breaches a nuclear deal it agreed in 2015 with world powers. Washington withdrew from the accord last year and re-imposed sanctions.
Oil also gained support from forecasts that U.S. data would show U.S. crude stockpiles fell 3.6 million barrels in the latest week. The first supply report is due at 4:30 p.m. EDT (2030 GMT) from the American Petroleum Institute, an industry group. The U.S. Energy Information Agency reports on Wednesday morning.
Russian oil output fell close to a three-year low in early July, industry sources told Reuters. This follows discovery of contaminated Urals crude that affected the Druzhba pipeline to Europe.
"The Russian story definitely supports prices today. ... lower Russian output together with elevated compliance from OPEC nations should rebalance the oil market faster," said Giovanni Staunovo, oil analyst for UBS.
Price gains were capped by the U.S.-China trade war that has dampened prospects for global economic growth.
The world's two largest oil consumers are set to relaunch trade talks this week, although there are few signs their differences have narrowed.
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4927de52332e12efb65cdb39dbea4043 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/09/ping-an-tech-ceo-says-ai-can-improve-health-care-in-china.html | A.I. can improve health care in China, says Ping An Technology CEO | A.I. can improve health care in China, says Ping An Technology CEO
Ericson Chan, chief executive officer of Ping An Technology. S3studio | Getty Images
Artificial intelligence is still a relatively new technology but one business leader said its applications are already generating real value.
For AI to become more mainstream, start-ups and tech giants have to understand the bottlenecks that businesses face, which can be solved by that technology, according to Ericson Chan, CEO of China's Ping An Technology.
"Look at China, for example — only 8% of the hospitals are triple-A grade," he told CNBC's Arjun Kharpal on Tuesday at the RISE Conference in Hong Kong. "But that 8% of the hospitals are taking care of more than 50% of the patients of the whole nation."
As a result, resources are unevenly distributed, which, in turn, sours the patients' experiences at those hospitals, he said.
"You need to wait for more than three hours before you can see a doctor, and the consultations are no more than 7 or 8 minutes," Chan said, adding that the doctors, meanwhile, "need to work for more than 12 hours a day."
That's where AI can help ease the friction experienced by patients and health-care providers.
Ping An Technology is a wholly owned subsidiary of a major conglomerate in China, Ping An Group. The company's focus is on applying various technologies, including artificial intelligence, in areas such as health care, finance and smart cities.
It has developed AI systems that it says can predict the likelihood of a patient suffering from a specific chronic illness even before physical symptoms are present, or identify infectious diseases in advance with high accuracy. Its programs claim to be able to spot abnormalities in medical image scans that would normally take doctors a much longer time to do manually.
"We can take it down to like five minutes, so it's a lot more efficient, a lot more accurate, also," Chan said. "Afterwards, we can even have AI technologies do follow up with the patients."
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5d0b341c717e7c7c7eceb84c63af53ab | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/10/5-states-with-the-best-infrastructure-in-america-in-2019.html | Trump and Dems agree America's infrastructure needs a $2 trillion fix. These 5 states are in the best shape in 2019 | Trump and Dems agree America's infrastructure needs a $2 trillion fix. These 5 states are in the best shape in 2019
Getty Images
It is one of the few things that Republicans and Democrats seem to agree on, yet they cannot seem to bring themselves to talk about it: America's infrastructure needs a major overhaul to ensure our country is built for the future. President Donald Trump, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer have even agreed on a price tag of $2 trillion — although the American Society of Civil Engineers puts it closer to $4.5 trillion. Nevertheless, talks have stalled.
Assuming a federal package is eventually passed, policymakers may want to look at a handful of states that have managed to keep their infrastructures relatively intact despite Washington's inaction. These states know that a solid infrastructure is a competitive advantage when it comes to attracting business and jobs.
VIDEO1:5901:59Here are America's Top States for Business 2019 category winnersSquawk Box
In fact, infrastructure is one of the 10 categories of competitiveness in CNBC's annual America's Top States for Business rankings. We use government data from the U.S. Department of Transportation, the Census Bureau and the Environmental Protection Agency to evaluate each state's roads, bridges, railways, waterways, ports, airports and utilities, as well as the size of the population within a day's drive.
The rankings show that some states are in dire straits. But the five states listed below are managing to stay on solid ground.
Memphis, Tennessee, USA downtown skyline at dusk.Sean Pavone | iStock | Getty Images
The Volunteer State is home to the nation's premier public-private partnership, the Tennessee Valley Authority, which provides electricity to most of Tennessee and parts of six other states. Established in 1933 under the New Deal and owned by the federal government, the TVA is now self-sufficient, funded entirely through electricity sales, and bonds sold to investors. The arrangement allows planners in Tennessee to focus on other infrastructure issues. The state's roads and bridges are well maintained, and its central location provides easy access to a large swath of population.
2019 Infrastructure score: 221 out of 350 points (Top States grade: A-)US population within 500 miles: 105,322,087Average commute to work: 24.8 minutes (U.S. average: 26.4 minutes)Bridges in poor condition: 4.3%Roads in unacceptable condition: 12%20-year water-system needs: $8.8 billion
Cargo ships sit docked at the Port of Savannah in GeorgiaTy Wright | Bloomberg | Getty Images
The Peach State is home to America's busiest airport — Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International. But Georgia's infrastructure prowess only begins there. Deepwater ports in Savannah and Brunswick, along with inland barge operations in Bainbridge and Columbus, transport Georgia goods around the world. Congested highways make for long commutes, but roads and bridges are in remarkably good shape, especially considering the volume they carry.
2019 Infrastructure score: 221 out of 350 points (Top States grade: A-)US population within 500 miles: 76,325,931Average commute to work: 28 minutesBridges in poor condition: 3.3%Roads in unacceptable condition: 8.2%20-year water-system needs: $12.5 billion
Rail yard in Oregon, OhioMike Kline | Moment Open | Getty Images
In infrastructure as in real estate, three of the most important things are location, location and location. The Buckeye State certainly has all three, with easy access to the entire Midwest and the Eastern Seaboard. Major ports on the Great Lakes and Ohio River make the state a leader in the value of goods shipped. Ohio's robust rail network carried some 289 million tons of freight in 2017, among the busiest in the nation.
2019 Infrastructure score: 228 out of 350 points (Top States grade: A)US population within 500 miles: 136,974,897Average commute to work: 23.4 minutesBridges in poor condition: 5.6%Roads in unacceptable condition: 15.3%20-year water-system needs: $13.4 billion
On the road in KansasGetty Images
Getting around in the Sunflower State is a breeze, with some of the nation's best maintained highways. That helps Kansas take advantage of its prime location in the geographical center of the country. Highway maintenance had been on the chopping block for several years in order to pay for deep tax cuts. The cuts have since been repealed.
2019 Infrastructure score: 229 out of 350 points (Top States grade: A)US population within 500 miles: 41,775,422Average commute to work: 19.2 minutesBridges in poor condition: 5.2%Roads in unacceptable condition: 4.1%20-year water-system needs: $5.3 billion
A paddlewheel riverboat on the Ohio River in KentuckyGetty Images
With seven key ports on the Mississippi and Ohio rivers, the Bluegrass State is an important shipping gateway to the nation and beyond. By land the state ranks fifth in the nation in terms of population within a day's drive. Highways are well maintained, and the rail network is robust. Some 227 million tons of freight passed through Kentucky in 2017, the 12th highest total in the nation.
2019 Infrastructure score: 231 out of 350 points (Top States grade: A)US population within 500 miles: 114,706,970Average commute to work: 23.1 minutesBridges in poor condition: 7.1%Roads in unacceptable condition: 6.8%20-year water-system needs: $8.2 billion
William Andrew | Photographer's Choice RF | Getty Images
The Crossroads of America lives up to its nickname, and not just because of the four major interstate highways that meet in Indianapolis. Indiana is a key access point, with roughly one-third of the nation's population located within a day's drive. The state is looking to protect that advantage by spending $1 billion on a variety of road projects under a plan unveiled last year by Gov. Eric Holcomb. And Indiana's byways are not only on land. Its three ports are strategically located, with one on the Great Lakes and two on the Ohio River. Put it all together and Indiana ranks 11th nationally in the value of goods shipped from the state.
2019 Infrastructure score: 241 out of 350 points (Top States grade: A+)US population within 500 miles: 109,073,615Average commute to work: 23.4 minutesBridges in poor condition: 6.2%Roads in unacceptable condition: 9.4%20-year water-system needs: $7.5 billion
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966ba152ac27b3cbed58769b09eab533 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/10/americas-10-cheapest-states-to-live-2019.html | These states are the cheapest places to live in America in 2019 | These states are the cheapest places to live in America in 2019
Beth Hall | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Living the American dream means being financially comfortable and living in a place you love — and can afford.
In this turbocharged economy, more people are looking to relocate nationwide in search of better job opportunities, lower tax havens and places that offer their families a better quality of life.
To help you determine which states are currently the most affordable — based on cost of living, the price of housing, energy, food prices and other prices of goods and services — one can turn to CNBC's exclusive annual America's Top States for Business study.
The cost of living in the U.S. varies widely from state to state. In urban areas, especially, the cost of housing, food, taxes and other expenses can be exorbitant. In other areas your dollar can go a long way. A state with a low cost of living can be a great draw for companies looking to attract workers. That is why Cost of Living is one of the 10 categories of competitiveness in our rankings.
We score all 50 states based on an index of items ranging from groceries to housing. These are the 10 states where your money goes the furthest, along with average prices for some basic items in each state's most expensive area. Price data is based on the 2018 Annual Average Cost of Living Index by the Council for Community and Economic Research.
Here are the 10 cheapest states, along with average prices for some items in the most expensive metro areas.
Wyoming, Shell, The Hideout Guest Ranch, cow-boy, TomSylvain CORDIER | Gamma-Rapho | Getty Images
You may feel more at home on the range than indoors here in the Cowboy State, but you can rent a two-bedroom apartment in Laramie for just $861 per month. That is about one-third the cost in Seattle. Heck, at these prices, you might as well buy your homestead. Housing prices are dirt cheap. Expect to pay a little more than $1,000 a month in principal and interest on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage on a mid-priced home, compared to more than $7,000 per month in New York City.
2019 Cost of Living score: 41 out of 50 points (Top States Grade: A-)Most expensive area: LaramieAverage home price: $271,475Half gallon of milk: $2.49Ribeye steak: $12.61Monthly energy bill: $130.86Doctor visit: $106.00
Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Indiana.Robert Laberge | Getty Images
Getting around is a breeze here in the Crossroads of America, and it's a bargain as well. Gas prices are about 25% less in Indianapolis than in Bellingham, Washington. Servicing your ride is cheap as well. You will pay just $38.87 to balance a set of four tires, compared to nearly $52 in Ames, Iowa. And once you get to where you are going, you are sure to like the prices. A movie ticket will cost you about $11, compared to more than $14 in Chicago.
2019 Cost of Living score: 42 out of 50 points (Top States Grade: A-)Most expensive area: IndianapolisAverage home price: $250,625Half gallon of milk: $1.51Ribeye steak: $11.80Monthly energy bill: $184.40Doctor visit: $93.91
Josh Smith, 6, of Wellsville, opens his mouth for a rinse as dental assistant Kim Gabriel, top, cleans his teeth during a regular scheduled check-upShane Keyser | MCT via Getty Images
A Manhattan apartment for $800 per month? Sure, if it's Manhattan, Kansas. Here in the Sunflower State, you can afford to bloom and grow. At $3.79 per pound, ground beef will cost you nearly 45 percent less than in that other Manhattan in New York. A trip to the dentist in Manhattan, Kansas, will cost you about $88, compared to about $125 in the Big Apple.
2019 Cost of Living score: 43 out of 50 points (Top States Grade: A-)Most expensive area: ManhattanAverage home price: $311,911Half gallon of milk: $1.39Ribeye steak: $11.04Monthly energy bill: $179.18Doctor visit: $89.50
Prince's Hot Chicken served X-tra hot with mashed potatoes and cole slaw.Alan Poizner | The Washington Post | Getty Images
Here in the Volunteer State, you won't feel like you need to work two paying jobs just to get by. Want some southern fried chicken? That whole fryer will cost you just $1.16 per pound. That compares to $2.76 in Augusta, Georgia. The oil to fry it in will cost you just $3.98 a bottle, compared to $7.40 in Brooklyn, New York.
2019 Cost of Living score: 45 out of 50 points (Top States Grade: A)Most expensive area: Nashville-MurfreesboroAverage home price: $318,571Half gallon of milk: $1.78Ribeye steak: $12.08Monthly energy bill: $157.08Doctor visit: $94.52
Funnel cakes are available in many flavors at the Mardi Gras celebration in Mobile, AlabamaCarol M. Highsmith | Getty Images
A five-pound sack of sugar in the Heart of Dixie will cost you under $2 in much of the state, compared to more than $3 in Glenwood Springs, Colorado. No wonder it's Sweet Home, Alabama. And if all that sugar sends you to the dentist in Montgomery, it will only cost you about $66 for the visit, or less than half the cost in San Francisco.
2019 Cost of Living score: 45 out of 50 points (Top States Grade: A)Most expensive area: MobileAverage home price: $241,783Half gallon of milk: $2.32Ribeye steak: $9.96Monthly energy bill: $192.98Doctor visit: $116.24
Kayaking in Lake Superior, Isle Royale National ParkNetaDegany | Getty Images
The Great Lakes State is an outdoor paradise, so let's tally up some of the costs of a family picnic in Grand Rapids. You probably want to grill some burgers. Ground beef will cost you just $3.78 per pound. That compares to $5.17 in Reno, Nevada. A ten-ounce bag of potato chips costs around $3, or about 30 percent less than in New Haven, Connecticut. A six-pack of beer will cost you about $8, compared to more than $12 in Rochester, New York.
2019 Cost of Living score: 46 out of 50 points (Top States Grade: A)Most expensive area: Grand RapidsAverage home price: $288,912Half gallon of milk: $1.77Ribeye steak: $10.45Monthly energy bill: $165.99Doctor visit: $96.94
Jason Fields, Urban Farm Guy, Lykins neighborhood of Kansas City, Missouri, transformed properties, real estate, gardens and a community.Jill Toyoshiba | MCT via Getty Images
If you are planning a visit to the Show Me State, you may want to ask a real estate agent to show you some houses while you are there. Joplin is home to the lowest real estate prices in the country—a four-bedroom home will cost you a little over $200,000. Even in more expensive parts of the state, prices are extremely affordable. Show me where else you can find grocery prices like these. Eggs are about $1.32 a dozen in Joplin. You will pay nearly twice that in Miami, at $2.61.
2019 Cost of Living score: 47 out of 50 points (Top States Grade: A+)Most expensive area: Kansas CityAverage home price: $276,197Half gallon of milk: $2.10Ribeye steak: $11.76Monthly energy bill: $160.33Doctor visit: $94.24
Produce at an Arkansas farmer's marketdlewis33 | iStock | Getty Images
You can afford to eat some healthy food here in the Natural State. Bananas are just 49 cents a pound in Jonesboro, Arkansas. A head of lettuce is about one dollar, or half the cost in Stockton, California. Okay, enough with the healthy stuff. A McDonald's Quarter Pounder with Cheese will cost you just $3.90 in Little Rock, versus $5.58 in San Francisco.
2019 Cost of Living score: 48 out of 50 points (Top States Grade: A+)Most expensive area: Little RockAverage home price: $339,778Half gallon of milk: $2.16Ribeye steak: $9.69Monthly energy bill: $149.97Doctor visit: $114.28
Big house on the prairiedisorderly | iStock | Getty Images
People have been coming to Oklahoma to find bargains since before it was a state. Oklahoma earned its nickname—the Sooner State—during the Land Rush of 1889. That is when President Benjamin Harrison opened unassigned lands to settlers, who scrambled to get here sooner than the next guy. Today, you will have to pay for your Oklahoma home, but it is still a bargain. Ponca City is home to the lowest apartment rents in the country at $500 for a two-bedroom unit.
2019 Cost of Living score: 49 out of 50 points (Top States Grade: A+)Most expensive area: EnidAverage home price: $317,039Half gallon of milk: $2.03Ribeye steak: $10.42Monthly energy bill: $163.78Doctor visit: $125.00
Young friends on summer holidays drinking wine and looking at view at rustic countryside housewundervisuals | E+ | Getty Images
This state is so frugal, it can afford two nicknames — the Magnolia State and the Hospitality State. You will be able to offer true Southern hospitality with some of the most affordable housing in the nation. Throw some steaks on the grill. They will cost about 50% less in Jackson than they would in New York. Open up a bottle of wine for your guests. It will cost less than $10, compared to nearly $14 in Manchester, New Hampshire.2019 Cost of Living score: 50 out of 50 points (Top States Score: A+)Most expensive area:JacksonAverage home price: $275,509Half gallon of milk: $2.90Ribeye steak: $9.73Monthly energy bill: $127.10Doctor visit: $91.27
VIDEO1:5901:59Here are America's Top States for Business 2019 category winnersSquawk Box
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4c36b6ec9af190ed0cc631df79dd7340 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/10/att-robocall-blocking-service-coming-soon.html | AT&T will soon automatically block annoying robocalls | AT&T will soon automatically block annoying robocalls
PhonlamaiPhoto | Getty Images
AT&T said this week that it will soon block spam calls or alert customers of suspected spammers. The blocking will first activate for new lines and will then be applied to all existing accounts, the carrier said on Tuesday.
The feature will be on by default but can be turned off by users who don't want it, per rules set by the Federal Communications Commission that require carriers to let customers opt out.
The FCC mandated in February that U.S. carriers need to help stop spam calls. Hiya, a spam-blocking app, estimates that 25.3 billion unwanted robocalls were received by U.S. wireless customers in the first half of this year alone, even to people who are registered on the Do Not Call list.
AT&T's service is the first that will be on by default, instead of requiring users to opt in or download a separate app.
T-Mobile already offers customers two free tools, Scam Block and Scam ID, but Scam Block needs to be turned on first. Sprint charges a $2.99 fee for Premium Caller ID, and Verizon alerts customers if a call is from a suspected spammer. Google and Apple have worked to add spam blocking into Android and iOS too.
The Google Pixel 3 and Pixel 3a can automatically screen calls for you, while iOS 13, which will roll out this fall, uses Siri to automatically silence calls from unknown numbers.
Correction: A previous version of this story included an incorrect number of unwanted robocalls.
VIDEO1:5001:50Robocalls are getting out of hand and here's how to stop themDigital Original
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6fd65d84a02d7f3aa25e037f24a183cf | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/10/powell-crosscurrents-are-weighing-on-the-economic-outlook-so-fed-will-act-as-appropriate.html | Powell: 'Crosscurrents' are weighing on the economy, so Fed will 'act as appropriate' | Powell: 'Crosscurrents' are weighing on the economy, so Fed will 'act as appropriate'
VIDEO9:1909:19Fed chairman Jerome Powell testifies before CongressSquawk on the Street
Business investments across the U.S. have slowed recently as uncertainties over the economic outlook linger, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Wednesday in prepared testimony to the House Financial Services Committee.
"Inflation has been running below the Federal Open Market Committee's (FOMC) symmetric 2 percent objective, and crosscurrents, such as trade tensions and concerns about global growth, have been weighing on economic activity and the outlook," Powell said in his testimony, reiterating the central bank will "act as appropriate" to sustain the current economic expansion.
The Fed chief also noted that business investment has slowed down "notably," adding the outlook has not improved in recent weeks. Powell will deliver his testimony at 10 a.m. ET and answer questions from lawmakers.
VIDEO1:2501:25Powell: Since June, uncertainty has continued to weigh on the outlookSquawk Box
Powell's prepared testimony appeared to confirm the market's rate-cut expectations. Stock futures turned positive after the remarks were released. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was headed for a gain of more than 100 points at the open.
"There is a risk that weak inflation will be even more persistent than we currently anticipate," Powell added, further bolstering the case for a rate cut.
"Overall growth in the second quarter appears to have moderated," Powell said in the prepared remarks. "Many FOMC participants saw that the case for a somewhat more accommodative monetary policy had strengthened. Since then, based on incoming data and other developments, it appears that uncertainties around trade tensions and concerns about the strength of the global economy continue to weigh on the U.S. economic outlook."
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks as Jerome Powell, governor of the U.S. Federal Reserve and Trumps nominee as chairman of the Federal Reserve, left, listens during a nomination announcement in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Thursday, Nov. 2, 2017.Andrew Harrer| Bloomberg | Getty Images
The U.S. and China have been engaged in a trade war for more than a year. Late last month, the two countries agreed to restart trade negotiations in an effort to end the spat. Meanwhile, data from overseas — especially in Europe — are showing weakening economic activity.
Powell noted the economy "performed reasonably well" in the first half of 2019, with consumer spending rebounding in the second quarter after being weak in the first quarter.
Powell's testimony comes after the Fed opened the door to cutting rates at its previous monetary policy meeting in June.
Markets cheered the central bank's remarks, with stock indexes reaching all-time highs last week. Traders are also pricing in a 100% probability of a rate cut before the end of July, according to the CME Group's FedWatch tool.
— CNBC's Jeff Cox and Patti Domm contributed to this report.
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f73f790f9048082eebf79e302b560f35 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/10/rabies-warning-issued-near-disneys-epcot-theme-park.html | Rabies warning issued near Disney's Epcot theme park after employees scratched by feral cat | Rabies warning issued near Disney's Epcot theme park after employees scratched by feral cat
Cat sitting still while a Veterinarian administers his vaccines.aabejon | iStock | Getty Images
Vacationers visiting Walt Disney World's Epcot theme park may want to keep an eye out for feral felines after the Florida Department of Health in Orange County issued a rabies warning in the area following the discovery of an infected cat.
The health officials issued the alert Tuesday after an undomesticated cat that tested positive for the virus was located near the intersection of Interstate 4 and Epcot Center Drive in southwest Orange County. The alert is for a two-mile radius around the intersection and is set to last 60 days.
According to Disney spokeswoman, two employees were scratched by the cat near an office building roughly two miles from Epcot. Both employees have since returned to work.
Portions of Epcot, which according to the Themed Entertainment Association welcomed about 12.4 million guests last year, are within the affected area. Epcot is the only Disney park within the two-mile radius.
Disney's Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom, which is home to a number of wild animals, are roughly four and five miles from Epcot, respectively.
Visitors and residents in the area have been advised to avoid feral animals because they could have been infected with the disease. Rabies is a potentially deadly virus that attacks the central nervous system and is typically spread to humans through the saliva of infected animals.
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Animals with rabies can display symptoms of aggression, fever, loss of appetite and paralysis. Orange County officials warned anyone who may have been bitten or scratched by a rabid animal to immediately wash the wound and seek medical attention.
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0a853eb63104d5e0474d6c798c726b62 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/10/trump-has-reportedly-tasked-aides-to-find-a-way-to-weaken-the-us-dollar.html?__source=fincont&par=fincont | Trump has reportedly asked aides to find a way to weaken the US dollar | Trump has reportedly asked aides to find a way to weaken the US dollar
President Donald Trump during a bilateral meeting with Taoiseach Leo Varadkar at Shannon airport on June 5, 2019 in Shannon, Ireland. President Trump will use his Trump International golf resort in nearby Doonbeg as a base for his three day stay in Ireland. The resort employs over 300 local people in the area and the village will roll out a warm welcome for the 45th President of the United States.Pool | Getty Images News | Getty Images
President Donald Trump has reportedly asked aides to find a way to weaken the U.S. dollar in an effort to boost the economy ahead of the 2020 presidential election.
The president also asked about the greenback while interviewing Federal Reserve Board nominees Judy Shelton and Christopher Waller, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg News.
Those individuals also told Bloomberg that Trump's chief economic advisor, Larry Kudlow, and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin disapprove of the idea of government tampering to weaken the dollar. Traditionally, past administrations have always maintained publicly they were for a strong dollar because dollar assets like Treasurys are so widely held around the globe.
VIDEO4:5704:57Cramer: Powell is reacting to Trump's trade war, not his criticismSquawk on the Street
Trump has often bemoaned the relative strength of the U.S. dollar in foreign exchange markets, blaming other nations for devaluing their currencies and thereby inflating the American trade deficit. Last week, the president said in a tweet that the U.S. should match China and Europe's "currency manipulation game."
"China and Europe playing big currency manipulation game and pumping money into their system in order to compete with USA," Trump said on Twitter. "We should MATCH, or continue being the dummies who sit back and politely watch as other countries continue to play their games - as they have for many years!"
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A strong dollar tends to give American consumers an advantage when purchasing foreign goods but can hurt domestic exporters as other nations are forced to shell out larger sums for goods produced in the U.S. That's proven a headache for Trump, who's made reducing the U.S. trade deficit a priority.
His questioning of Shelton and Waller come after months of White House attacks on the Fed and its hesitation to cut borrowing costs, a move that would reduce the value of the dollar as investors look for higher interest rates elsewhere.
Waller, executive vice president at the St. Louis Federal Reserve bank, reiterated to the president that central bankers don't factor the strength or weakness of the dollar when setting interest rates and instead monitor inflation and employment, Bloomberg reported. The value of the dollar is not part of the Fed's dual mandate given to the central bank by Congress.
Click here for the original Bloomberg News report.
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03e707dd0fd21f2f294b2a1fa322938d | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/10/turkey-tayyip-erdogan-on-why-central-bank-needs-to-be-overhauled.html | Erdogan reportedly said Turkey may face 'serious problems' if the central bank is not overhauled | Erdogan reportedly said Turkey may face 'serious problems' if the central bank is not overhauled
Turkish President Recep Tayyip ErdoganArif Akdogan | Bloomberg | Getty Images
President Tayyip Erdogan said Turkey could face serious problems if its central bank is not completely overhauled after the dismissal of governor Murat Cetinkaya, the Haberturk news website reported on Wednesday.
A presidential decree on Saturday showed Cetinkaya, whose four-year term was due to run until 2020, had been replaced by his deputy Murat Uysal, reigniting concerns about political interference in monetary policy.
Erdogan told reporters on his airplane returning from a trip to Bosnia that Cetinkaya had made decisions for which a high price was paid and he had not inspired confidence or communicated well with the market, Haberturk said.
"The central bank is the most important element in the economy's financial pillar," Erdogan said. "If we do not revise it completely, if we don't put it on solid foundations, we may face living with serious problems."
"Most importantly, he did not inspire confidence in markets. His communication with markets was not good," he added.
Erdogan, a frequent critic of high interest rates, has often called for lower rates to kickstart the now recession-hit economy. The lira, which weakened after Saturday's move, was unchanged at 5.73 against the dollar after Erdogan's latest comments.
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d9408c10ec84fb5ab8b9a0b4bf032924 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/11/cancer-survivors-average-1000-of-out-of-pocket-spending-each-year.html?&qsearchterm=cancercare | Medical bills are a growing concern for cancer patients | Medical bills are a growing concern for cancer patients
VIDEO14:5814:58How American health care got so expensiveFixed Income Strategies
Cancer can take a significant toll on your health, your work, your family – and, increasingly, your wallet.
There are currently an estimated 16.9 million people in the U.S. who have received a cancer diagnosis. For them, the disease comes with many disproportionate hardships, from the physical and the emotional to the financial.
Not only is cancer one of the most expensive medical conditions to treat, but even those with good medical insurance face an added burden from other aspects of treatment, such as travel expenses and increased time off from work.
What is a problem is when the cost of care is a shock.Janet de Moorprogram director at the National Cancer Institute
Further, many people have high-deductible insurance plans, which means those patients have to pay out-of-pocket before their insurance even kicks in.
Already, a quarter of all cancer survivors have struggled to pay medical bills and about a third have worried about medical costs, according to a recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
In the long run, cancer survivors have much higher out-of-pocket expenses than those who have not had cancer, the CDC also found.
For cancer survivors, the average out-of-pocket spending each year was about $1,000, compared with $622 for people without a cancer history, the report said.
VIDEO3:4203:42President Trump pushes to end surprise medical billsHealth Insurance
"The costs can be long lasting once patients finish the acute treatment," said Janet de Moor, a program director at the National Cancer Institute and one of the authors of the CDC report.
"Over time, your ability to absorb those expenses is going to go down," she added.
As more people are diagnosed with cancer, the financial burden will only worsen. A report from the National Cancer Institute found that, as the population ages, the number of people treated for cancer will grow even if cancer occurrence rates remain the same.
Costs are also likely to increase as new, more advanced and more expensive treatments are adopted.To manage the financial impact, having conversations about a prescribed course of treatment earlier on can help, de Moor said.
"That gives you the chance to plan proactively, whether that's identifying pharmaceutical discounts or financial assistance," she added. "What is a problem is when the cost of care is a shock."
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Lawmakers have also introduced legislation to stop patients from getting hit with surprise medical bills, and the White House promised to make the issue a priority going forward.In addition, there are a number of different community organizations, including the American Cancer Society and CancerCare, that provide some direct assistance to patients.
The American Cancer Society, for example, has tips for paying medical bills and navigating health insurance.
CancerCare offers face-to-face counseling and financial assistance for cancer-related costs, such as transportation and childcare, as well as insurance co-pays.
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b7b04ff4066b1b3065466c6c2c6fd605 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/11/stranger-things-had-record-viewership-in-first-four-days.html | Nielsen says new 'Stranger Things' season had record 26.4 million US viewers in first four days | Nielsen says new 'Stranger Things' season had record 26.4 million US viewers in first four days
"Stranger Things" season three picks up in the summer of 1985. The Hawkins crew are on the cusp of adulthood and faced with enemies old and new.Netflix
A record 26.4 million U.S. viewers watched the third season of Netflix's hit show "Stranger Things" over the July 4 holiday weekend, about 17% higher than the debut of season two, according to Nielsen.
"Compared to the second season, 'Stranger Things 3' was an even bigger hit," Nielsen said in a press release. "Not only did its viewership increase compared to the previous season, it's also the most watched Netflix original series we've ever analyzed. The season's release on the long holiday weekend proved fruitful, as viewers were able to leverage their time off from work and dive back into the newest episodes of the cultural phenomenon."
The data and measurement firm said around 824,000 U.S. viewers had finished all eight episodes in the series when it was released on July 4.
Nielsen launched it's Subscription Video on Demand Content Ratings in 2017 in order to better measure subscription-based streaming content. The company leverages proprietary demographic and household data from its National TV Panel to identify viewing for streaming programs. As more companies like Disney, NBCUniversal and Warner Media launch their own streaming services, this data will likely become the way analysts compare different platforms.
Earlier this week, Netflix revealed its own streaming data about the series, saying that more than 40.7 million global household accounts had watched the show during the weekend, the most of any film or TV series on the site during its first four days. Additionally, 18.2 million globally had already completed the entire third season during that time.
Netflix has nearly 150 million subscribers, which means that around a fourth of that global audience decided to watch "Stranger Things" in its first four days on the platform. That seems like a large number, but how does that compare to other programs on the streaming service?
In December, Nielsen revealed the top 20 most watched shows on Netflix. Six were Netflix Originals, but only one of those are actually owned by the company. "Stranger Things" was not on that list.
Netflix has always been tight-lipped about its viewership numbers. When the company does offer up data, it's usually to boast about a particular show or movie. However, with such a limited collection of information, it's hard to make comparisons to other programs on it's platform and with rivals.
For example, the final episode of HBO's "Game of Thrones" brought in a series record of 19.3 million viewers in a single night. That includes the 13.6 million people who watched it live on television during its first airing. The rest are those who watched the encore presentation later that night or viewed the episode through one of HBO's streaming platforms instead of on TV.
It's difficult to compare HBO, which discloses information about a single evening of viewership and doles out episodes weekly, to Netflix, which releases all of its episodes at once and shares viewership over a period of time.
Still, the high viewership for season three of "Stranger Things," would have guaranteed a fourth season, if one hadn't already been green lit by Netflix. Executive producer Shawn Levy has said that there will definitely be a fourth season, with the possibility of a fifth.
Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal and CNBC.
WATCH: BTIG's Greenfield says content is only a piece of the streaming wars
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e9e6c40e4df12beef5c856157455f936 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/11/the-fed-chairman-says-the-relationship-between-inflation-and-unemployment-is-gone.html | The Fed chairman says the relationship between inflation and unemployment is gone | The Fed chairman says the relationship between inflation and unemployment is gone
VIDEO2:3002:30Powell: The relationship between inflation and unemployment is goneSquawk on the Street
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said the relationship between unemployment and inflation has collapsed.
"The relationship between the slack in the economy or unemployment and inflation was a strong one 50 years ago ... and has gone away," Powell said Thursday during his testimony before the Senate Banking Committee. He added the strong tie between unemployment and inflation was broken at least 20 years ago and the relationship "has become weaker and weaker and weaker."
"In additional to that, we are learning that the neutral interest rate is lower than we had thought and ... the natural rate of unemployment rate is lower than we thought. So monetary policy hasn't been as accommodative as we had thought," Powell said.
Under the Fed's dual mandate of full employment and price stability, the jobless rate has been historically low, inching up to 3.7% in June from 3.6% in May, which was the lowest since 1969. Inflation, however, has been tame in recent years and consistently below the Fed's 2% target.
The so-called Phillips curve, which the Fed relies on in guiding its policy direction, argues that as unemployment declines, inflation should rise, a phenomenon that has not occurred during this economic expansion.
"At the end of the day, there has to be a connection because low employment will drive wages up and ultimately higher wages will drive inflation, but we haven't reached that point. In many cases, that connection between the two is quite small these days," the Fed chief said.
U.S. underlying consumer prices rose by the most in nearly 1½ years in June, but the jump didn't change markets' expectation for a rate cut later this month.
Traders are pricing in a 100% chance of a rate cut in July in part because inflation has remained so low, according to CME FedWatch tool. Powell's testimony also fueled the hope for an easier policy.
Powell said Wednesday that the Fed will "act as appropriate" to sustain expansion as "crosscurrents" are weighing on the economic outlook. He noted business investments across the U.S. have slowed "notably" recently.
The Fed lowered its inflation target for 2019 at its June policy meeting, seeing headline inflation growing at a slower pace of 1.5%, versus the 1.8% predicted in March.
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5dd97b04d2d8c10440cac05f63c54f46 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/11/watch-feds-randal-quarles-speak-from-the-bipartisan-policy-center-in-washington.html | Watch Fed's Randal Quarles speak from the Bipartisan Policy Center in Washington | Watch Fed's Randal Quarles speak from the Bipartisan Policy Center in Washington
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Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision Randal Quarles speaks at the Bipartisan Policy Center in Washington, D.C. on Thursday.
Quarles' remarks come after Fed Chair Jerome Powell testified that "crosscurrents" from lingering trade fears and weaker economic data overseas are dampening the U.S. economy's outlook moving forward. Powell's testimony increased expectations that the Fed will cut rates later this month.
Stocks rose to record highs on the prospects of easier monetary policy, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average breaking above 27,000 for the first time ever on Thursday.
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6633b89f521f1ae83b88488c2065ff05 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/12/ftc-fines-facebook-5-billion-for-privacy-lapses.html?__source=facebook%7Cmain | Facebook to be slapped with $5 billion fine for privacy lapses, say reports | Facebook to be slapped with $5 billion fine for privacy lapses, say reports
Facebook co-founder, Chairman and CEO Mark Zuckerberg testifies before the House Energy and Commerce Committee in the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill April 11, 2018 in Washington, DC.Yasin Ozturk | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images
The Federal Trade Commission approved an approximately $5 billion settlement with Facebook over the company's 2018 Cambridge Analytica scandal, a person familiar with the matter told The Wall Street Journal. Several other news outlets separately reported the approval.
The fine represents the largest ever imposed by the FTC against a tech company. Previously, the agency's largest fine against a tech company came in 2012 when Google agreed to pay a $22.5 million penalty due to its privacy practices. The fine would represent approximately 9% of Facebook's 2018 revenue.
The settlement drew criticism from a number of senators and Congress members, including Democratic Sen. Mark Warner.
"Given Facebook's repeated privacy violations, it is clear that fundamental structural reforms are required," Warner said in a statement on Friday. "With the FTC either unable or unwilling to put in place reasonable guardrails to ensure that user privacy and data are protected, it's time for Congress to act."
VIDEO3:0003:00Facebook's $5 billion fine a record for the FTC, says WSJ reporterClosing Bell
Republican Congressman David Cicilline called the settlement "a slap on the wrist."
"This fine is a fraction of Facebook's annual revenue," he said in a statement on Friday. "It won't make them think twice about their responsibility to protect user data."
Facebook took a one-time charge of $3 billion in anticipation of the FTC fine in April in the company's first-quarter results.
The FTC approved the settlement by a 3-2 vote along party lines with Republicans in favor and Democrats against, and will now be reviewed Department of Justice, the report said.
The FTC and Facebook declined to comment to CNBC.
The FTC began probing Facebook in March 2018 following reports that political consulting firm Cambridge Analytica had accessed the data of 87 million Facebook users. The agency was concerned that Facebook had violated the terms of a 2011 agreement, which required Facebook to give users very clear notifications when their data was being shared with third parties.
WATCH: Here's how to see which apps have access to your Facebook data — and cut them off
VIDEO1:1001:10Here's how to see which apps have access to your Facebook data — and cut them offDigital Original
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a4382ce3d0ef7f4ea6f927f96528f3ac | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/12/if-on-medicare-and-planning-to-travel-verify-coverage-at-destination.html?__source=sharebar%7Ctwitter&par=sharebar | Planning to travel while on Medicare? Make sure you have coverage at your destination | Planning to travel while on Medicare? Make sure you have coverage at your destination
For many older Americans, retirement means freedom to explore beyond your backyard. Before you take off, however, check whether your health insurance travel with you.
Assuming you're on Medicare — most adults age 65 or older are — coverage away from home depends partly on where you travel to, along with whether you're on basic Medicare or get your benefits through an Advantage Plan. It also can depend on whether the care you get is routine or due to an emergency.
And while travel medical insurance can be the solution to plugging holes in coverage, it's worthwhile first determining whether you need it.
Original Medicare consists of Part A (hospital coverage) and Part B (outpatient care). Retirees who choose to stick with that coverage — instead of going with an Advantage Plan — typically pair their coverage with a stand-alone prescription-drug plan (Part D).
Julia Davila-Lampe | Moment Open | Getty Images
If this is your situation, coverage while traveling in the U.S. and its territories is fairly straightforward: You can go to any doctor or hospital that accepts Medicare (most do), whether for routine care or an emergency. It's when you venture beyond U.S. borders that things get trickier.
Generally speaking, Medicare does not provide any coverage when you're not in the U.S. There are a few exceptions, such as when you're on a ship within the territorial waters adjoining the country — within six hours of a U.S. port — or you're traveling from state to state but the closest hospital to treat you is in a foreign country (i.e., you're in Canada while heading to Alaska from the 48 contiguous states).
About a third of retirees on original Medicare also purchase supplemental coverage through a Medigap policy (you cannot pair Medigap with an Advantage Plan). Those policies — which are standardized from state to state but vary in price — offer coverage for the cost-sharing parts of Medicare, such as copays and co-insurance.
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Some Medigap policies — Plans C, D, F, G, M and N — offer coverage for travel. You pay a $250 annual deductible and then 20% of costs up to a lifetime maximum of $50,000.
But, that amount may not go very far, depending on the type of medical services you need.
"I tell our clients that a supplement is not designed for you to get a $50,000 surgery in France. It's designed to get you healthy enough to get you back on U.S. soil to have the surgery," said Roger Luchene, a Medicare agent with Hammer Financial Group in Schererville, Indiana.
Also be aware that there is no overseas coverage through a Part D prescription drug plan. And, Medigap policies do not cover any costs related to Part D, whether you're in the U.S. or elsewhere.
I tell our clients that a supplement is not designed for you to get a $50,000 surgery in France. It's designed to get you healthy enough to get you back on U.S. soil to have the surgery.Roger LucheneMedicare agent with Hammer Financial Group
For retirees who get their Medicare benefits — Parts A, B and typically D — through an Advantage Plan, it's important to check your coverage even if you're not leaving U.S. soil.
While these plans are required to cover your emergency care anywhere in the U.S., you may be on the hook for routine care outside of their service area. Or, other plans may let you visit out-of-network providers, but require you to pay more.
"Check to see if your plan has some sort of U.S. coverage outside of your area," said Elizabeth Gavino, founder of Lewin & Gavino in New York and an independent broker and general agent for Medicare plans. "The big carriers generally do, and depending on where you're traveling, you could find in-network providers there."
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Some Advantage Plans might also offer coverage for emergencies overseas, so it's important to know whether your plan does and to what extent.
Whether you have an Advantage Plan or original Medicare, travel medical insurance might be appropriate if you think your existing coverage is insufficient.
"That type of insurance is not too expensive — maybe $90 for two weeks — and you can get a pretty substantial policy," Gavino said.
Such options are priced based on your age, the length of the coverage and the amount of it. On top of providing coverage for necessary health services, a policy typically includes extras such as non-medical required evacuation, lost luggage and even dental care required due to an injury.
The plans typically come with a deductible — say, $250 or more — and coverage could range from about $50,000 in maximum benefits to upwards of $1 million or more. However, if you're age 70 or older, you might face a lower lifetime maximum.
You can get coverage for a single trip of a couple weeks or several months, or get a multi-trip policy, which could cover a longer period.
"The multi-trip policy is for when you think you'll be traveling on and off throughout the year," Gavino said.
She also said it's also important to know whether your policy covers pre-existing conditions, because some don't.
"In that case, say you have diabetes and you're in Rome when you go into a diabetic coma," said Gavino. "That wouldn't be covered.
"But if you had a heart attack, or something else wrong unrelated to the diabetes, it would be covered."
Also be aware that some Advantage Plans might disenroll you if you remain outside of their service area for a certain time — typically six months. In that situation, you'd be switched to original Medicare.
"If you get disenrolled, you'd have to wait for a special enrollment period to get another Advantage Plan," Gavino said.
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abefb9cfafd0ff355f7d494092645d4a | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/12/us-bonds-traders-await-fresh-data.html | Treasury yields continue comeback on the week after another report shows rising inflation | Treasury yields continue comeback on the week after another report shows rising inflation
The yield on 10-year Treasury note hit a one-month high on Friday, on pace to post its biggest weekly gain since April after recent data showed hotter-than-expected inflation.
The rate on the benchmark Treasury note, which moves inversely to price, rose to 2.1310%, the highest since June 11. The yield on the 30-year Treasury bond was also higher at around 2.6535%.
The U.S. consumer price index — a widely followed measure of inflation — rose more than expected last month, with the core CPI posting its biggest gain in one and a half years.
The Labor Department said on Friday its producer price index for final demand edged up 0.1% last month after a similar gain in May. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast the PPI unchanged in June.
"Another core inflation surprise... PPI drives in-range down trade," Ian Lyngen, head of U.S. rates strategy at BMO, said in a note. The inflation number is "marginally bearish for the Treasury market and as yields come off this morning's lows."
The yield on the benchmark 10-year note had fallen below 2% this month on expectations global central banks would respond to a slowing global economy with more monetary stimulus. The rate started coming back after a blowout June jobs report boosted the confidence on the U.S. economy.
Wall Street rallied to a record high on Thursday, after testimony by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell this week that signaled easier monetary policy could be implemented later this month.
Treasurys
In testimony to the House Financial Services Committee on Wednesday, Powell said business investments across the U.S. have slowed "notably" recently as uncertainties over the economic outlook linger. He repeated the same line of thought during the second day of his testimony on Thursday.
Meanwhile, Trump said in a tweet on Thursday that China was not living up to promises it made on buying agriculture products from American farmers. His comments threatened to revive worries about trade, with the world's two largest economies locked in a protracted dispute.
Elsewhere, Chicago Fed President Charles Evans is due to speak Friday at 11:00 a.m. ET.
— CNBC's Silvia Amaro contributed reporting
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7154f47157c79a623f096a210533bf86 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/12/us-will-ask-new-delhi-to-roll-back-some-tariffs-indian-official-says.html | The US will ask New Delhi to roll back some tariffs, Indian official says | The US will ask New Delhi to roll back some tariffs, Indian official says
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi (R) and US President Donald Trump during a meeting in the sidelines of the G20 Leaders' Summit in Buenos Aires, on November 30, 2018.Saul Loeb | AFP | Getty Images
The United States will seek rollback of Indian tariffs imposed on some agricultural products such as almonds when the two sides meet on Friday, a senior Indian government source told Reuters.
A delegation led by Assistant U.S. Trade Representative for South and Central Asia, Christopher Wilson, will meet Indian officials to try to re-start negotiations on the tariffs, which were response to the U.S. removing some trade privileges from Indian products.
U.S. President Donald Trump has been putting pressure on India to do more to open its markets, saying this week on Twitter that its high tariffs were "unacceptable".
The United States would seek a rollback of some of those tariffs, and India would in return seek better access to the U.S. market for Indian farm products, said the Indian official who is aware of the agenda for discussions. He declined to be named.
India was unlikely to immediately commit to any changes to foreign investment rules for foreign e-commerce firms such as Walmart's Flipkart and Amazon, the official said. The rules have forced the two American companies to rework their business strategies for India.
Walmart told the U.S. government privately in January that India's new investment rules for e-commerce were regressive and had the potential to hurt trade ties, Reuters reported on Thursday.
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d3e61086470ae4857fe3c9bc4d104d93 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/12/your-first-trade-for-friday-july-12.html | VIDEO1:3301:33Final Trades: DAL, GOOGL, and moreFast Money
The "Fast Money" traders shared their first moves for the market open.
Pete Najarian was a buyer of Delta Air Lines.
Tim Seymour was a buyer of Alphabet.
Karen Finerman was a buyer of JPMorgan.
Dan Nathan was a buyer of UnitedHealth.
Guy Adami was a buyer of Square.
Disclosure
Trader disclosure: Pete is long calls ALLY, AMD, ASHR, BABA, BOX, DBX, DOCU, DVN, FB, FCX, FL, GDX, GDXJ, GLD, IQ, KNX, KTOS, KWEB, LEN, MGM, MMM, MSFT, MU, NIO, OIH, PAAS, PAYX, QEP, RIG, SPY, SSRM, T, TGT, TSLA, WDC, XME. Pete is long stock AAPL, BAC, BZH, C, CASY, CYRX, DIS, FB, FUL, GOOS, IBM, INTC, KMI, KO, LULU, LUV, LVS, MPC, MRK, MSFT, NFLX, PEP, PFE, QSR, RVLV, TGT, TPX, UAL, UPS, UPWK, USB, XOM. Tim Seymour is long AMZN, AAPL, ACBFF, ACRGF, AMZA, ACB, APC, APH, BA, BABA, BAC, BIDU, BX, C, CCJ, CGC, CLF, CMG, CNTTF, CRLBF, CRON, CSCO, CWEB, CURLF, DAL, DIS, DPZ, DVYE, DYME, EEM, EUFN, EWM, FB, FDX, FXI, GE, GILD, GM, GOOGL, GTBIF,GTII, GWPH, HAL, HEXO, HK.APH, HRVOF, HVT, HYYDF, INTC, ITHUF, JD, KHRNF, KRO, KSHB, LEAF, LNTH, MAT, MCD, MJNE, MO, MOS, MPEL, MPX, MRMD, NKE, OGI, ORGMF, OTC, PAK, PHM, PYPL, RH, RL, SBUX, SQ, STZ, T, TER, TIF, TGOD, TNYBF, TRSSF, TRST, TWTR, UA, UAL, VALE, VIAB, VOD, X, XRT, YNDX, 700. Tim is short IWM, RACE, SPY, TSLA. Tim's firm is long CGC, HEXO, CRON, APH.Tim is on the advisory board of Green Organic Dutchman, Heaven, Kushco, Dionymed, Tikun Olam, CCTV, and Canndescent. Karen Finerman's firm is long ANTM, C, CBS, CPRI, FB, FDX, FL, FNAC, GOOG, GOOGL, GLNG, GMLP, HD, JPM, LYV, RRGB, SPY puts, SPY put spreads, TBT, URI, WIFI. Her firm is short HYG, IWM. Karen Finerman is long AAL, BAC, BOT Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, C, CAT, CBS, CPRI, DAL, DVYE, DXJ, EEM, EPI, EWW, EWZ, DVYE, FB, FL, GM, GMLP, GLNG, GOOG, GOOGL, JPM, LOW, LYV, KFL, MA, MTW, PRCP, REAL, SEDG, TACO, TGT, WIFI, WFM. Karen Finerman is long FB spread calls. Karen Finerman is short GOOG, GOOGL calls. Karen Finerman is long SPY puts. Bitcoin and Ethereum are in her kids' Trust. Dan is Long EA July / Sept call calendar. DIS July / Sept call calendar. XHB Sept put spread. TLT Sept call spread. MSFT, SBUX & PG August put spreads. Guy Adami is long CELG, EXAS, GDX, INTC. Guy Adami's wife, Linda Snow, works at Merck.
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09dfae30e2bd4b97813c936f8c58d3ef | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/13/market-bull-warns-earnings-could-knock-stocks-off-all-time-highs.html | Market bull warns earnings could knock stocks off all-time highs | Market bull warns earnings could knock stocks off all-time highs
VIDEO1:1001:10'Earnings could be volatile,' long-term market bull warnsTrading Nation
An earnings season that delivers will play an integral role in whether the market can maintain all-time highs, according to Crossmark Global Investments' Victoria Fernandez.
The chief market strategist believes Wall Street is completely discounting second earnings expectations right now, and that leaves little room for disappointments when the season kicks off this Monday.
"Earnings could be volatile," she said Friday on CNBC's "Trading Nation."
But according to Fernandez, a long-term bull, a setback would likely be short-lived.
"We do think that the trend will be higher in the markets," she said. "[Investors] feel like the Fed has their back, and so the markets are continuing to run on that."
On Friday, the major indexes saw all-time intraday highs and fresh record closes. Since the beginning of June, the Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq have jumped 10%.
Fernandez, who's responsible for $5 billion in assets, acknowledges risks remain — including the Federal Reserve surprising Wall Street by deciding not to cut rates later this month. She's also closely watching developments tied to the U.S.-China trade war and potential new tariffs on Europe.
Yet, Fernandez is fully invested.
"We take a longer-term outlook, so we're not trading on the headlines that come out each day," she added. "We have not taken an extremely cautious approach by keeping funds in cash."
But Fernandez isn't buying stocks in one broad stroke. She's being selective and is particularly partial to core value names in order to brace for near-term market volatility. She gives McDonald's and Intel as examples.
"We're continuing to find companies that we feel like have maybe been a little beaten down and have quite a bit of upside potential going forward over the next two, three, four quarters," Fernandez said.
Disclosure: Crossmark Global Investments owns shares of McDonald's and Intel. Victoria Fernandez owns McDonald's in her personal portfolio.
VIDEO4:0904:09Market bull warns earnings could knock stocks off all-time highsTrading Nation
Disclaimer
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f20ee497ad16b2d57122e6992f575cb4 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/14/nba-and-nfl-commissioners-talks-technology-and-sports-at-sun-valley.html?sf216460529=1 | NBA and NFL commissioners tell how they're turning to technology to draw in fans | NBA and NFL commissioners tell how they're turning to technology to draw in fans
VIDEO6:5206:52CNBC talks to NBA commissioner at Sun ValleySports
As more video-streaming services flood the market, professional sports leagues are finding themselves in an increasingly precarious situations, because they're not included in the packages. At this week's Allen & Co. conference in Sun Valley, Idaho, some of the top sports executives gathered to discuss the future of sports.
We spoke to the commissioners of the NBA and NFL to discuss what they're doing to keep fans engaged and add new ones.
"We recognize that we're competing against every other possible form of entertainment and nice weather or anything else we could be doing and watching our games," NBA Commissioner Adam Silver told CNBC. "What can we do to make those games more of a lean-in experience? Providing statistics during the games, providing more information about the players, providing new camera angles, new ways to predict to produce them, augmented reality. And we're experimenting in virtual reality."
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell says technology can be crucial for getting fans into stadiums — starting with managing ticket sales — and ensuring they like the experience. Some of that technology is as simple as giving fans the same access to media as they'd have at home.
"Simply having Wi-Fi so that they can access their own devices when they come into the stadium," is key, Goodell said. "They can use that technology to buy a jersey, to buy concessions, to find out the best way to enter into the stadium, or exit the stadium, what the traffic patterns are, what's going on around the league."
Roger GoodellGetty Images
And for fans who can't make it to the stadium, Goodell said the league is working on augmented reality to provide fans that experience at home.
"To see what it's like to stand behind Tom Brady as he's looking downfield, to be able to see what it's like as a running back runs through the line or defender tries to defend a play," said Goodell. "It's going to be a new experience that I think is just another great potential for the growth of our league."
Silver says there's technology coming that will enable the league to tap into newly legalized sports betting in eight states.
"We're working from a digital standpoint to develop a better app to make those kinds of opportunities available," Silver said. "You've got to keep people entertained and engaged."
Fans won't just be betting on who will win or lose a game, but also scores at the end of a quarter, rebounds and other niche stats. That means there's additional incentive to tune in, and "that's going to also lead to additional engagement," Silver said.
The NFL is using its hit video game — EA's "Madden" — to continue to engage with fans. Now the league is taking a close look at eSports, which is primarily for first-person shooter games. Goodell says he's curious to understand if there's a way to tweak their games to make them more compelling for fans of eSports.
WATCH: CNBC's full interview with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell
VIDEO5:4205:42Watch CNBC's full interview with NFL Commissioner Roger GoodellThe Exchange
Follow @CNBCtech on Twitter for the latest tech industry news.
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a79700546af65f78a12ac3226444c88b | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/15/formula-e-battery-electric-motor-sports-series-wraps-up-5th-season.html | Formula E, the first major battery-electric motor sports series, wraps up its 5th season | Formula E, the first major battery-electric motor sports series, wraps up its 5th season
Sebastien Buemi of Nissan team won 1st place on podium during trophy presentation after New York City E-Prix 2019 Formula E Round 12 at Red Hook.Lev Radin | Pacific Press | LightRocket | Getty Images
It came down to the wire, something appropriate for the first major battery-electric motorsports series.
Formula E wrapped up its fifth season over the weekend. Of 11 teams competing this year, five still had a shot at winning the season's twin weekend races on a temporary track along the waterfront in Brooklyn's Red Hook neighborhood.
Under a scorching sun, Sebastien Buemi crossed the finish line first for team Nissan e.dams on Saturday, while Robin Frijns of Envision Virgin Racing took the checkered flag the next day. But thanks to Formula E's complicated point system, Jean-Eric Vergne nabbed his second consecutive title for team DS Techeetah. Points are awarded for earlier races during the season and for factors including pole position and fastest lap.
Yet one could argue it really was Formula E itself that came out on top after the season clincher, with program founder and organizer Alejandro Agag declaring the series more "sexy," "relevant" and "mainstream."
Conceived in 2011, it was far from certain Formula E would ever get off the ground — right up to the moment the green flag dropped at its first race in Beijing three years later. Within more traditional motor sports, the betting was that the upstart series wouldn't make it to year two. Support was tepid, even among manufacturers investing in battery-electric technology.
But Formula E slogged on, and with season six on the horizon, it's seeing interest pick up, both among manufacturers and fans. The twin bill had been sold out for weeks, seats in the bleachers commending $155 apiece.
Season five also had drawn new participants down in the pits. Notably Nissan, which launched the world's first mainstream battery-electric vehicle, the Leaf, a decade ago.
"It really validates the (EV) space … seeing the growth in motor sports," Brian Maragno, the Japanese automaker's head of electric marketing, told CNBC at the track. Despite falling short of a title win, Maragno said the automaker is "ecstatic" with its first-season results and committed to stay on for at least two more seasons.
It will face more entries, however. For 2019-2020, Mercedes-Benz is signing in as lead sponsor for an early team, with the 12th and final slot taken by Porsche, which not so coincidentally, will launch its first all-electric vehicle, the Taycan, around the start of the new season.
The just-finished run was important in a number of ways. Among other things, it saw the debut of Formula E's second-generation cars. While the original models looked a fair bit like Formula 1 clones, the new ones are more distinctive. Among other things, they don't feature the massive rear wings seen in most other open-wheel race series.
It's what's under their skin marking the most dramatic advance. For the first four years, the cars carried 24 kilowatt-hour battery packs meaning the two drivers on each team would have to take a pit stop during a race, clamber out and strap into a second car to finish. This year, the pack grew to 54 kWh, enough to finish a race — with careful planning.
Meanwhile, each team now designs and builds its own drivetrain. None will discuss plans, but it can give them a critical advantage.
Ironically, the original cars reinforced the concept of range anxiety, "something that has limited public acceptance of battery-electric vehicles," said Kim McCullough, North American marketing chief for Jaguar Land Rover, which not only fields a Formula E team but runs the E-Trophy support race featuring its own I-Pace electric SUV. "Now, that's taken off the table."
Manufacturers have long subscribed to the mantra, "Win on Sunday, Sell on Monday." For now, Formula E serves as an education tool for EVs, said McCullough. But among the throng that gathered in Red Hook, there was plenty of interest in the technology.
"I like the fact that it's helping save the environment," said Bronx resident Donisha Lloyd. "I'd buy one."
While Formula E's complicated point system can confuse fans, organizers aim to appeal to the next generation of car buyers with rules clearly influenced by social media and videogaming. Twice during each race, drivers must swerve through "Activation Zones" triggering a four-minute power boost. And the five drivers scoring the most likes online get an additional 45-second boost.
Drivers have to balance those boosts against the energy they will suck down. Some have been left with batteries drained before the end of a race running 45 minutes plus one additional lap.
With Formula E on a roll, organizer Agag confidently told an audience during a Friday seminar on the motor sports technology, "I think (all auto racing series) will have to go electric or they will have no relevance."
How accurate that might prove is a matter of debate, but hybrid technology is now a norm at both Formula One and the 24 Hours of Le Mans. For now, Formula E's backers are simply hoping the series' growing popularity will translate into increased interest among car buyers around the world.
Disclosure: Paul Eisenstein is a freelancer for CNBC. His travel and accommodations to the Formula E competition were paid for by Nissan.
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e36bff542a1e7a9a10194a5a53bce814 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/15/how-to-use-amazon-echo-prime-day-sale.html | Amazon Echo is half off on Prime Day: Here's what you can do with it | Amazon Echo is half off on Prime Day: Here's what you can do with it
The new Amazon.com Inc. Echo Spot, from left, Echo, Echo Plus, and Fire TV devices sit on display during the company's product reveal launch event in downtown Seattle, Washington, U.S., on Wednesday, Sept. 27, 2017.Daniel Berman | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Amazon is heavily discounting its Amazon Echo products for Prime Day, which runs through 2:59 a.m. Wednesday ET. The cheapest model, the Echo Dot, is only $22 (it's usually $50), while the full-sized model is only $50 (it's usually $100).
If you're on the fence, realize that you can do a lot more with the Echo than just asking Alexa the weather. You can use an Echo for many things, including calling people, booking an Uber, ordering stuff from Amazon and even setting it up to double as an in-home intercom if you own several devices.
Before we get started, make sure you have the Amazon Alexa app for iPhone or Android. You'll be using that app to take advantage of some of the tricks in this guide.
Here is a bunch of fun things you can do with the Echo.
You can use the Amazon Echo to call phone numbers or anyone with an Amazon Echo. To call a phone number, you'll first want to make sure that person is in your Alexa address book. To check:
Open the Amazon appTap the menu button then tap "Contacts."
Once you've confirmed someone is in your address book, you can call them by asking Alexa to call a specific person's phone or Echo. Here are the commands to try. (I put my own name in, but swap it out for the person you're trying to call):
"Call Todd Haselton's Mobile."Or you can call your contact's Echo by saying "Call Todd Haselton's Echo."
You can send voice messages to friends or family with an Echo, too. It's kind of like leaving a voicemail, but your friends will get an alert on their Echo that they have a new voice message. Then, when they see the alert, they can ask their Echo to play it. To send a voice message:
Say "Alexa, send a voice message to Todd Haselton."Speak your message.Alexa will confirm you want to send the message.Say "Yes."If you've received a message, say "Alexa, listen to my messages."
Source: Amazon
If you have multiple Echos around your house, you can use them as an in-home intercom system. You might want to do this to call the kids down to dinner, for example. Here's how to do that:
Say "Alexa make an announcement."Speak your announcement by saying something like "Hey everyone, dinner's ready!"Alexa will make an announcement to all of the Echos in your house with the message you spoke.
If you're at home and want to get a ride somewhere, you can ask Alexa to get you an Uber or a Lyft. You need to install either the Uber or Lyft skill first. Here's how to book a ride with Echo.
Open the Alexa app on your phone.Tap the menu button on the top left of the app.Tap "Skills & Games."Search for Uber or Lyft.Tap Enable Skill and link your Lyft or Uber account.Now ask Lyft or Uber for a ride by speaking "Alexa, ask Lyft for a ride" or "Alexa, ask Uber to request a ride."Alexa will tell you how far the nearest Lyft driver or Uber driver is. You can then confirm you'd like a ride.
You can use your Echo to order goods from Amazon. Sometimes, like during Black Friday, Amazon even offers exclusive deals through the Echo. To order stuff from Alexa:
Say something like, "Alexa order soap."Alexa will begin to list items that you might be interested in, including products from previous orders, and the price. Say "yes" to confirm you'd like to buy that item, or "no" to hear another item Alexa recommends. Tell Alexa to stop if you don't want to hear more recommendations.You can also order specific goods by speaking something like "Alexa, order me an Amazon Echo Plus." Alexa will confirm the price before you decide to buy it or not.
You can get a flash briefing from certain news sites you follow, including CNBC, the AP and BBC. Customize your Flash Briefing by doing this:
Open the Alexa app on your phone.Tap the menu button on the top left of the screen.Choose "Settings."Tap "Flash Briefing."Toggle the news sites you want to hear news from and tap "+" to add new sources.Now, say, "Alexa play my flash briefing."Alexa will give you the highlight news from the sources you've picked.
The Amazon Fire TV Cube in a living roomAmazon
If you own a Fire TV, you can connect your Echo to the Fire TV so that you can ask Alexa to play specific shows or movies. You don't even have to touch the remote.
Open the Alexa app on your phone.Tap the menu button on the top left of the page.Tap "Settings."Choose "TV & Video."Tap the + button next to Fire TV.Tap "Manage Devices."Choose "Link another device."Choose the Fire TV in your house you'd like to link your Echo with.Tap "Continue."Choose the Alexa devices to link the Fire TV with. You can select multiple Echos.Tap "Link Devices."Now speak a command like, "Play Man in the High Castle on Fire TV."
Set an Alexa routine to perform functions after your alarm is dismissed.Todd Haselton | CNBC
Amazon recently launched a new Alexa featured called "Routines." When you speak a certain preset command, like "Alexa, good morning," you can set Alexa to perform certain actions, like read you the weather, start playing music and tell you how long it will take you to get to work. Here's how to create a custom morning routine, but you can change any of these steps to make something else, too.
Open the Alexa app on your phone.Tap the menu button on the top left of the app.Tap "Routines."Tap the top button that says "When this happens."Choose "Voice."Enter the phrase "Good morning."Tap "Save."Now choose "Add action."Tap "Weather."Tap "Add."Now tap "Add action"Tap "Traffic."Now tap "Add action" again.Tap "Music."Enter in an artist, like Bruce Springsteen.Choose your music provider, such as Spotify.Tap Next.Tap "Create."
Now, when you say "Alexa, good morning." Alexa will tell you the local weather, how long it will take to get to work on your commute, and will then start playing Bruce Springsteen. (Note: if you haven't set up your commute in the Alexa app yet, you can do this by going to settings > traffic.)
Alexa can give you a quick briefing on your favorite teams. First, you need to tell it the teams you follow. To do this:
Open the Alexa app on your phone.Tap the menu button on the top left.Tap Settings.Select "Sports."Tap Add a Team. "Search for your favorite team.Tap "Save."Repeat until you've added all of the teams you follow.Now, speak "Alexa, what's my sports update?"
Alexa will read off the latest scores and upcoming games for each of the teams you follow.
You can ask Alexa to remind you to do things, too.
Say "Alexa, remind me to get candied yams," or whatever you need a reminder for.Alexa will ask when it should remind you. Say something like "Today at 3 p.m."Alexa will confirm that it will remind you at the preset time.You can view, edit or add reminders in the Alexa app by tapping the menu button and selecting "Reminders & Alarms."
Alexa can be really useful in the kitchen, particularly if you want to set multiple timers at once. Maybe you need to set the oven to one timer and then create a second timer for something you have cooling in the fridge. To set multiple timers:
Say, Alexa set an oven timer for 30 minutes.Then speak another timer, like, "Set a fridge timer for 1 hour."You can check in a timer by saying "Alexa, what's the oven timer?" Or "Alexa, what's the fridge timer?"Alexa will alert you when the specific timer has ended.
In order: The Echo, the Echo Plus and the original EchoTodd Haselton | CNBC
If you have multiple Echos around the house, you can link them up to play music at the same time in different rooms. I have a "downstairs" group for my Echos, for example, where I have my living room, dining room and kitchen all play the same music. To do this:
Open the Alexa app on your phone.
Tap Devices icon on the bottom right. It looks like a little house.Tap the + button on the top right.Tap "Add Multi-Room Music speakers."Create a group name, such as "Downstairs."Choose the Echos you want to include in the group, then tap "Save."
Now, you can speak something like "Alexa, play Beethoven downstairs," and Alexa will play music on the speakers in that group.
A list of the recordings I've spoken to Alexa.Todd Haselton | CNBC
Amazon keeps a recording of everything you ask Alexa. For privacy's sake, you may want to delete those recordings regularly. You can do that two ways. To delete things you said recently, just say "Alexa, delete everything I said today," or "Alexa, delete what I just said." To delete everything at once, do this:
Visit Amazon's Device pageSelect the menu button to the left of the Echo device you'd like to manage. (The menu button looks like three little dots stacked on top of one another.Tap "Manage Voice Recordings"Tap "Delete."
VIDEO20:1920:19How Amazon's one-day shipping worksTech
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170d35b1d4a2592ebfd64047c336395e | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/15/iran-ready-to-talk-to-us-if-sanctions-lifted-president-hassan-rouhani.html | Iran is ready to talk if the US lifts sanctions, says President Rouhani | Iran is ready to talk if the US lifts sanctions, says President Rouhani
President of Iran Hassan Rouhani addresses the crowd during his visit in Semnan, Iran on December 4, 2018.IRANIAN PRESIDENCY / HANDOUT | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images
Iran is ready to hold talks with the United States if Washington lifts sanctions and returns to the 2015 nuclear deal it quit last year, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said in a televised speech on Sunday.
U.S. President Donald Trump's administration says it is open to negotiations with Iran on a more far-reaching agreement on nuclear and security issues.
But Iran has made any talks conditional on first being able to export as much oil as it did before the United States withdrew from the nuclear pact with world powers in May 2018.
"We have always believed in talks ... if they lift sanctions, end the imposed economic pressure and return to the deal, we are ready to hold talks with America today, right now and anywhere," Rouhani said in his Sunday speech.
Confrontations between Washington and Tehran have escalated, culminating in an aborted plan for U.S. air strikes on Iran last month after Tehran downed a U.S. drone. Trump called off the retaliatory U.S. air strike at the last minute.
Calling for dialogue among all to resume, France, Britain and Germany — parties to the 2015 pact — said on Sunday they were preoccupied by the escalation of tensions in the Gulf region and the risk the nuclear deal might fall apart.
"We believe that the time has come to act responsibly and to look for ways to stop the escalation of tension and resume dialogue," they said in a joint statement that was released by the French president's office.
Despite calling for talks with Iranian leaders, Trump said on Wednesday that U.S. sanctions on Iran would soon be increased "substantially".
Existing U.S. sanctions have targeted Iran's main foreign revenue stream from crude oil exports, which Trump in May moved to try to eliminate entirely.
In reaction, Tehran said it would scale back its commitments under the deal, under which it had agreed to curb its nuclear program in return for relief from U.S. and other economic sanctions that had crippled its economy.
Defying a warning by the European parties to the pact to continue its full compliance, Tehran has amassed more low-enriched uranium than permitted and has started to enrich uranium above the 3.67% permitted by the agreement.
"The risks are such that it is necessary for all stakeholders to pause, and consider the possible consequences of their actions," France, Britain and Germany, which have been trying to salvage the pact by shielding Tehran's economy from sanctions, said in their statement.
Iranian clerical rulers have said that Tehran will further decrease its commitments if Europeans fail to fulfill their promises to guarantee Iran's interests under the deal.
The nuclear deal aimed to extend the amount of time it would theoretically take Iran to produce enough fissile material for an atomic bomb — so-called breakout time — from several months to a minimum of one year until 2025.
Iran denies ever having considered developing atomic weapons.
There have been two signs in the past week that the United States may be signaling greater openness to diplomacy.
U.S. officials told Reuters on Thursday that Washington had decided for now not to sanction Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif despite Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin's June 24 statement he would be blacklisted that week.
On Sunday, U.S. officials said they had given Zarif a U.S. visa to attend a U.N. meeting this week. Iran's mission to the United Nations said he had arrived in New York.
The State Department did not respond to a request for comment on why Zarif had not been blacklisted, why he had been granted a visa and whether U.S. officials might use his New York visit to have direct or indirect contacts.
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d25f02bd17ef3cb4fff29c62c2bbb6d1 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/16/beto-orourke-campaign-for-president-raised-3point6-million-in-q2.html | Beto O'Rourke's presidential campaign raised only $3.6 million in the second quarter | Beto O'Rourke's presidential campaign raised only $3.6 million in the second quarter
Democratic presidential candidate, Beto O'Rourke speaks with CNBC's John Harwood.Mary Catherine Wellons | CNBC
Former Texas Rep. Beto O'Rourke's presidential campaign announced that it raised $3.6 million in the second quarter of 2019.
The haul puts O'Rourke in the lower tier of 2020 contenders who have struggled to raise campaign cash to keep pace with the primary leaders, including former Vice President Joe Biden, Sen. Bernie Sanders, Sen. Kamala Harris and Mayor Pete Buttigieg.
In an email to supporters, O'Rourke's campaign manager, Jen O'Malley Dillon, called for calm but noted they're still building their campaign.
"We're building our team in El Paso slowly but surely. Our National Finance Director started this week. Our Digital Director started a month ago. We're going to grow, and our ability to fundraise is going to grow with it," she said.
For O'Rourke, the drop in fundraising is the latest sign of an organization that has struggled to find its footing after almost taking down Sen. Ted Cruz during a run for his seat in the Lone Star State last year. While the three-term congressman ended up losing that race, his fundraising prowess set up high expectations if he made a run for president. He finished the senate contest raising just under $80 million.
O'Rourke's 2020 campaign began in the first quarter of 2019, and in that period he brought in an initial underwhelming $9.3 million.
The second quarter fundraising announcement comes on the heels of a widely criticized debate performance. O'Rourke was at times taken on directly by a few candidates that night, including former HUD secretary Julian Castro. Some pundits later called on O'Rourke to drop out of the race.
The next day, donors and grassroots activists spoke with O'Rourke about his performance, with some giving him tips on how to improve in the next round.
On Tuesday, donors are expected to hold another conference call with O'Rourke, according to people familiar with the matter, and they will likely be discussing his overall fundraising performance, these people added.
His campaign noted that he has officially met the Democratic National Committee's donor requirement for the fall primary debates.
Still, he continues to lag in the polls. He's currently ranked sixth in a Real Clear Politics polling average with 2.6 percent of the vote.
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c6cfc1b4252e936d84b51f6c2a411c2c | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/16/how-to-see-what-youll-look-like-when-youre-old-with-faceapp.html | Everybody's suddenly posting pictures of what they'll look like when they're old — here's how | Everybody's suddenly posting pictures of what they'll look like when they're old — here's how
VIDEO2:3302:33FaceApp gives new warning as politicians call for federal investigationNews Videos
Everyone's suddenly posting pictures of what they might look like when they're old. People are posting results on Twitter, and it's provided a few good laughs in our work chat. If you're wondering how they're doing this, it's by using an an app called FaceApp, which is now the top trending free app in the iTunes App Store. You can download and use for free for three days.
The app's privacy policy said it collects the pictures you upload to its service, so keep in mind that it's keeping the selfies you take. Also be warned that one developer, Joshua Nozzi, said in a deleted tweet that it appears the app may try to upload other pictures from your library. If you're concerned about this, don't give it access to your photos when it asks, just access to the camera.
There have also been concerns that the app was made by a Russian developer, sparking fears that the data shared with the app could be sent to the government there. However, the app's developer said this week that the app deletes the data after a couple days.
Here's how to try the filter if you want to get in on the fun:
Use the free trial.Todd Haselton | CNBC
Don't give it access to your photo library, just your photos.Todd Haselton | CNBC
Take a picture and choose a filter at the bottom.Todd Haselton | CNBC
A filter that makes me look older.Todd Haselton | CNBC
I didn't look like this when I was young.Todd Haselton | CNBC
I'm a hipster.Todd Haselton | CNBC
VIDEO3:3703:37Snapchat dysmorphia: Increase in patients seeking Snapchat filter lookClosing Bell
Subscribe to CNBC on YouTube.
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5b81294add7fdad8a0cf06ec9f3ce92d | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/16/perhaps-money-can-buy-you-happiness-at-least-at-work.html | Perhaps money can buy you happiness — at least, at work | Perhaps money can buy you happiness — at least, at work
NBC | NBCUniversal | Getty Images
The modern notion of a happy workplace is usually littered with foosball tables, futuristic napping pods, and lunch-break puppies. However, the key to a happier workplace might be much simpler than this — just pay employees more.
The latest CNBC/SurveyMonkey Workplace Happiness Index shows higher-income earners across the board are more satisfied with their jobs, find more meaning in their work and are less likely to consider quitting than those in lower income brackets. While all age groups surveyed say "feeling that your work is meaningful" is the most important component of workplace happiness, sweetening the pot with a higher paycheck still goes a long way in keeping employee morale high.
Andrew Challenger, vice presdent at Challenger, Gray & Christmas, the oldest staffing firm in the U.S., said workers often answer the question about work satisfaction by weighing whether or not the value they contribute to the workforce is reflected in the size of the paycheck they receive.
"It tends to be whether you feel that you're being paid a fair market value," Challenger said. "So if you have two master's degrees and you're a programmer and you have a really high value in the [labor] market and you're being paid $100,000 when you think you should be paid $120,000, you're not going to be particularly satisfied."
The biggest survey disparity related to pay is in overall job satisfaction. Sixty-eight percent of workers making more than $150,000 per year reported being "very satisfied" with their current job, while only 40% of people making under $50,000 per year said the same. Both intermediate-income groups followed the same trend.
The CNBC/SurveyMonkey Workplace Happiness Index was conducted from June 21–30, 2019, among a national sample of 7,940 workers in the U.S., with a margin of error +/-1.5 percentage points.
About a quarter of Americans do not consider themselves well paid for their work, according to the survey, revealing that employers may still have some work to do in balancing this equation.
Jake Grabowski, an assistant brand manager at Procter & Gamble, views the relationship between income and workplace happiness as being more complex. Grabowski spends his workweek helping grow well-known brands like Ivory, Olay and soon Old Spice. He admits making more money affects his happiness outside of work, giving him the flexibility to visit friends out of state and buy better food. However, at the office, he cares more about feeling valued than simply getting a bigger paycheck.
"I feel happier at work knowing I'm valued, and getting a raise is a great way to show that, but it has less to do with my actual income," Grabowski said in an email.
Grabowski says a strong work/life balance and feeling challenged at work consistently have far more influence on his happiness than salary alone.
I think that's an interesting thing that your total income level gives you some sense of how valuable society rates your contribution.Andrew Challengerv.p. at Challenger, Gray & Christmas
The survey data shows that navigating the trade-off between meaning and pay is important for employers, and it is manageable. As income increased, survey results showed modest yet consistent increases in the likelihood workers find their work very meaningful, with 60% of the lowest income bracket and 69% of the highest income bracket reporting this. Challenger said this may be because employees often interpret making more money as a sign that society appreciates their work more.
"You feel valued in the world," Challenger said. "I think a teacher that gets paid a higher salary will have that innate sense of the work they do matters because it's valued by society by getting a higher paycheck. I think that's an interesting thing that your total income level gives you some sense of how valuable society rates your contribution."
Pawel Jakubowicz, a department head at a Chicago-area Dick's Sporting Goods, agreed that receiving a bump in his paycheck did usually lead him to be a happier, more engaged employee.
"Overall, I was more satisfied with the increases," Jakubowicz said. "It created more motivation for me to come into work, which in turn helped [me] provide a better environment in the stores."
Jakubowicz has been promoted three times within the company and said each new role he has taken on inspired him to set new goals for himself as an employee. However, he said that while getting a raise often made his work feel more meaningful in the short term, this feeling rarely lasted long when not paired with added responsibility in the store.
"It wasn't even because of the pay but because it lacked new learning and challenges," Jakubowicz said. "When I got promoted, [the happy feeling] lasted longer because new responsibility and new opportunities presented themselves. ... Once it became too easy or too routine, the pay wasn't as much on my mind anymore."
Employees in the lowest income bracket also were 13% more likely than those in the highest income group to consider quitting, which is unsurprising given that lower-paid employees are statistically less satisfied with their job.
Jon Cohen, chief research officer at SurveyMonkey, said this may have more to do with the greater number of openings available at lower pay grades than it does with actual job satisfaction. With unemployment hovering at just under 4%, Cohen said there is more pressure on employees to quit their current position knowing they will have other employment options.
"At lower income levels, there's a lot more opportunities," Challenger said. "When you're at the VP level in a certain industry, there's a lot fewer positions that are paying that much at other organizations out there. So maybe that position is a little bit more coveted. You feel like you want to hang on to it because there aren't that many other opportunities out there that will pay the same amount."
Wherever the line is drawn, though, the conclusion is the same: Finding meaningful work may statistically be the most important factor contributing to workplace happiness, but adding a few extras zeroes to the end of a paycheck certainly doesn't hurt.
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c97029902304b0ca396199c38e4e0b5b | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/16/r-kelly-denied-bail-in-sex-crimes-case.html | R. Kelly denied bail in sex crimes case | R. Kelly denied bail in sex crimes case
R&B singer R. Kelly arrives at the 1st District-Central police station on February 22, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois.Scott Olson | Getty Images News | Getty Images
A federal judge on Tuesday ordered the R&B artist R. Kelly to jail without bond, delivering a blow to the performer as he faces mounting legal trouble related to accusations of sexual misconduct with minors.
The singer faces charges stemming from two federal criminal cases, brought in New York and Chicago. He was arrested on Thursday in Chicago, and has been held at the Metropolitan Correctional Center since then. On Tuesday, Kelly pleaded not guilty to the Chicago charges, which include enticing a minor and obstructing justice.
Before his arrest, Kelly was free on $1 million bond on related state charges. Kelly has pleaded not guilty to those charges as well. Kelly was acquitted of state child pornography charges more than a decade ago.
The ruling Tuesday was issued by U.S. District Judge Harry Leinenweber. It came after Kelly's attorneys had argued that the singer was not a danger to the public, saying the offenses were alleged to have taken place more than a decade ago.
Kelly was wearing an orange jumpsuit and was shackled at the ankles at the time the decision was announced, according to the Associated Press.
According to the New York indictment, Kelly recruited women and girls to participate in sexual activity.
Kelly and his employees, including managers and bodyguards, set restrictive rules for the women and girls, including when they could go to the restroom, prosecutors allege. The indictment accuses Kelly of abusing five women between the late 1990s and 2018 in violation of a federal law that bars transporting women across state lines for any "immoral purpose."
Prosecutors in Illinois brought separate charges, alleging that Kelly conspired to cover-up the existence of tapes featuring minors engaging in sexual activity. The 13-count indictment alleges that Kelly filmed himself having sex with at least four minors, as early as 1998, and later paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to recover the tapes after they disappeared from his "collection."
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5f0ec9da3e3e61eceadf3c12ea63211b | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/16/spotify-falls-on-report-apple-will-start-funding-original-podcasts.html | Spotify falls on report Apple will start funding original podcasts | Spotify falls on report Apple will start funding original podcasts
Drew Angerer / Getty Images
Spotify stock dropped over 1% on a Bloomberg report that Apple plans to fund its own original podcasts.
Apple declined to comment.
Apple executives have reached out to media companies to buy exclusive rights to podcasts, according to the report.
Spotify has invested heavily in original podcasts. CEO Daniel Ek said it planned to spend $400 million to $500 million on original podcasts this year, including purchases of Gimlet Media and Anchor, two podcast startups.
Gimlet Media produced a variety of original fiction and non-fiction podcasts, including "Reply All," "Startup" and "Homecoming." Spotify bought it for $230 million, according to Neiman Lab.
Apple's Podcasts app is installed on iPhones by default and is the most used podcast app by far according to most estimates. However, Apple doesn't host or bankroll podcasts. Instead, it hosts a directory of links that enables users to download podcasts from other servers.
"This makes a lot of sense from a strategic perspective," Chartable CEO Dave Zohrob told CNBC. Chartable is a podcast analytics company.
"Spotify has been investing heavily, and has quickly grown to be a very strong 2nd-place listening platform," he continued. "Podcast listeners on Spotify tend to spend more time in-app — meaning they listen to more music and audio overall, deepening engagement with Spotify."
Apple's Podcasts app is still the number one app, he said, but Spotify is catching up fast.
Apple was down less than 1% on Tuesday.
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99c01c3945f7a72630d151e5fc4d7706 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/16/watch-chicago-fed-president-charles-evanss-cnbc-interview-live.html | Watch Chicago Fed President Charles Evans's CNBC interview live | Watch Chicago Fed President Charles Evans's CNBC interview live
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Chicago Federal Reserve President Charles Evans sat down for an interview with CNBC's Steve Liesman at the network's @Work Human Capital + Finance Conference. The central bank is widely expected to cut interest rates at its next meeting July 30-31.
Subscribe to CNBC on YouTube.
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d373e54676f573cba722cd367e984e59 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/17/asia-stocks-us-china-trade-oil-currencies-in-focus.html | Asia stocks slip amid renewed US-China trade uncertainty; Singapore exports tumble | Asia stocks slip amid renewed US-China trade uncertainty; Singapore exports tumble
Stocks in Asia mostly slipped on Wednesday following overnight developments on the US-China trade front.
In mainland China, the Shanghai composite closed 0.2% lower at 2,931.69, while the Shenzhen component added 0.2% to finish its trading day at 9,302.00 . The Shenzhen composite also rose 0.162% to close at 1,574.35. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index slipped 0.18%, as of its final hour of trading.
Shares of Chinese live-streaming platform DouYu International Holdings were priced at the low end ahead of their public debut on the Nasdaq stateside later on Wednesday. The firm is backed by Chinese tech behemoth Tencent, which saw its own Hong Kong-listed stock rise more than 0.1%.
The Nikkei 225 in Japan fell 0.31% to close at 21,469.18, with shares of index heavyweight and conglomerate Softbank Group dropping 2.35%, while the Topix ended its trading day slightly lower at 1,567.41.
Over in South Korea, the Kospi declined 0.91% to close at 2,072.92, as chipmaker SK Hynix saw its stock fall 1.97%, while Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.49% to finish its trading day at 6,673.30.
Overall, the MSCI Asia-ex Japan index slipped 0.26%.
Singapore's exports dropped much more than expected in June, with data on Wednesday showing non-oil domestic exports in June plunging 17.3% year-on-year, widely missing the expected 9.9% contraction by economists in a Reuters poll.
It was also the largest decline since February 2013, when exports dropped 33.2% as compared to the year before, according to Refinitiv Eikon data.
The Straits Times index was flat in afternoon trade, while the Singapore dollar weakened 0.21% against the greenback to 1.3610, following levels below 1.356 seen yesterday.
That comes on the back of a decline in Singapore's gross domestic product for the second quarter, which was also well below forecasts. Economists now widely expect Singapore's central bank to ease monetary policy, as its export-reliant economy slows amid the U.S.-China trade war.
Economists at ING wrote in a note that the latest data could result in an "imminent" easing of monetary policy by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) in adjusting its exchange rate between the Singapore dollar and a basket of currencies of the country's major trading partners.
U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday that Washington and Beijing have a long way to go on trade, adding that America could place tariffs on an additional $325 billion worth of Chinese goods "if we want."
Trump's comments come after China and the U.S. agreed not to ratchet up trade tensions in an effort to restart negotiations, with the two countries already having slapped billions of dollars worth of tariffs on each other's goods. The protracted trade fight between the two economic powerhouses has raised concerns over its potential impact on economic growth as well as business confidence.
Overnight stateside, the Dow Jones Industrial Average ended its four-day winning streak as it slipped 23.53 points to 27,335.63. The S&P 500 closed 0.3% lower at 3,004.04 and snapped a five-day winning streak, while the Nasdaq Composite shed 0.4% to finish its trading day at 8,222.80.
Meanwhile, U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell on Tuesday reiterated his pledge to "act as appropriate" to keep the economic expansion going. His comments come amid expectations that the central bank could cut interest rates at its monetary policy meeting later in July.
However, data on Tuesday showed U.S. retail sales increased more than expected in June, pointing to strong consumer spending, which could help to blunt some of the hit on the economy from weak business investment.
Retail sales advanced 0.4% last month, higher than expectations of a 0.1% increase in June by economists in a Reuters poll.
Oil prices saw sharp declines on Tuesday after U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Iran was ready to negotiate regarding its missile program. Tensions between the United States and Iran over Tehran's nuclear program have previously lent support to oil futures, given the potential for a price spike should the situation deteriorate.
In the afternoon of Asian trading hours on Wednesday, oil prices were mixed. International benchmark Brent crude futures added 0.45% to $64.64 per barrel, while U.S. crude futures were 0.23% higher at $57.75 per barrel.
The U.S. dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of its peers, was at 97.421, following its rise from levels below 96.9 seen earlier this week.
The Japanese yen traded at 108.17 against the dollar, weakening from levels below 108 touched yesterday. The Australian dollar was at $0.7009 after trading in a range between $0.700 and $0.705 for much of the week.
— Reuters and CNBC's Fred Imbert contributed to this report.
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b4196639410ac9eb93da64fcdfababed | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/17/netflix-earnings-q2-2019.html | Netflix tanks after whiffing on global paid subscribers | Netflix tanks after whiffing on global paid subscribers
VIDEO6:4606:46Netflix fell far short of new subscriber expectations—What's next?Trading Nation
Shares of Netflix were down 10% in extended trading Wednesday after the company released its earnings report for the second quarter. The results showed a rare loss in U.S. subscribers and a large miss on international subscriber adds.
Here are the key numbers:
Earnings per share: 60 cents, vs. 56 cents expected, per Refinitiv consensus estimateRevenue: $4.92 billion vs. $4.93 billion expected, per Refinitiv (Up 26% year over year.)Domestic paid subscriber additions: A loss of 126,000 vs. a gain of 352,000, forecast by FactSetInternational paid subscriber additions: 2.83 million vs. 4.81 million, forecast by FactSetGlobal streaming paid memberships: 151.56 million, up 21.9% year over year.
In addition to blaming its content slate for the quarter for weak subscriber growth, Netflix said its first-quarter subscriber growth was so strong that "there may have been more pull-forward effect than we realized." The company also said in its letter to shareholders that the missed forecast was most pronounced in regions that saw price increases.
However, Netflix is projecting a stronger third quarter on the heels of heavy viewership of the third season of "Stranger Things." Netflix forecast 7 million global paid net adds for the next quarter and provided revenue guidance of $5.25 billion. The company expects subscriber numbers will be boosted by its strong content slate in the third quarter, including the final season of "Orange is the New Black" and a new season of "The Crown."
Before the report, shares of Netflix were up more than 35% in 2019. The stock is now set to open Thursday at its lowest price since January, shaving $20 billion from its market cap and bringing it to about $138 billion.
Netflix acknowledged it will soon lose two of its most-watched shows, "The Office" and "Friends." NBCUniversal announced in June that it plans to remove "The Office" from Netflix in 2021 and move it to its own streaming service. Earlier this month, AT&T's WarnerMedia announced its new streaming service, HBO Max, will include exclusive rights to stream "Friends" when it launches publicly in the spring of 2020. Netflix previously spent $80 million to keep "Friends" just through the end of this year, according to Vulture. Netflix said the loss of these shows is "freeing up budget for more original content."
VIDEO2:1102:11Netflix reports 2.7 million paid subscriptions, less than 5 million forecastedClosing Bell
In an earnings interview released on Netflix's investor relations site, Chief Content Officer Ted Sarandos addressed the shift in spending from licensed to original content.
"We grow through that we believe by making these early investments in original programming and getting our consumers and our members much more attuned to the expectation that we're going to create their next favorite show, not that we're going to be the place where you can get anything every time," Sarandos said. "And we think there's more value in that proposition than there would be in the kind of low price aggregator."
Sarandos said the company will eventually share more viewership data with content creators and the public.
Even with the announcement of several new rival streaming services, Netflix told shareholders, "We don't believe competition was a factor since there wasn't a material change in the competitive landscape during Q2, and competitive intensity and our penetration varied across regions (while our over-forecast was in every region)."
In the earnings interview, CEO Reed Hastings said the "streaming wars" are not "a zero sum competition."
"I'd wager that most Netflix employees are HBO subscribers," Hastings said. "We love the content they do, and that spurs us on to want to be even better."
The buzz around streaming has benefited the space, Hastings said.
"The advantage of having something catchy like the streaming wars is it draws more attention and because of that, consumers shift more quickly from linear TV to the streaming TV."
Netflix said that its advertising-free model gives it an edge over several of the newer streaming entrants.
"We, like HBO, are advertising free," the company wrote in its letter to shareholders. "That remains a deep part of our brand proposition; when you read speculation that we are moving into selling advertising, be confident that this is false. We believe we will have a more valuable business in the long term by staying out of competing for ad revenue and instead entirely focusing on competing for viewer satisfaction."
While industry executives anticipate Netflix will someday have ads, a recent study found that 23% of respondents would definitely or probably drop their subscription if it began running ads at its current price or a dollar cheaper.
Netflix has delved into some marketing with other brands through product partnerships with Coke and Nike, among others, to promote the latest season of "Stranger Things." Hastings said on the earnings call that the primary purpose of these partnerships is to get people to sign up for Netflix, rather than serve as another revenue stream.
"What we want to do is … keep that subscriber engine going and not get distracted with alternative revenue sources that just don't add up when you're growing $5 billion a year," Hastings said.
The company maintained its free cash flow forecast for full-year 2019 of negative $3.5 billion and expects "improvement in 2020." Beyond 2020, Netflix expects to reduce its free cash flow deficit as it grows its member base, revenue and operating margins. Netflix previously said 2019 would be its peak year for cash burn. It later revised that statement to say its cash flow would be consistent with the negative $3 billion of the prior year.
Netflix plans to continue using high-yield debt to fund content investment in the meantime, according to the shareholder letter. The company has twice offered $2 billion in debt since October. Netflix said it raised 10.5 year senior notes of 1.2 billion euros ($1.3 billion), 3.875% coupon, and $900 million, 5.375% coupon, in its latest round.
Disclosure: Comcast owns NBCUniversal, the parent company of CNBC and NBC.
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WATCH: Netflix's DVD business is still alive and profitable — here's what it looks like
VIDEO1:0901:09Netflix’s DVD business is still alive and profitableDigital Original
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37678d2eddd21fae09529d09ac62f69e | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/17/no-relief-in-sight-from-earnings-recession-hitting-small-caps-bofa.html | VIDEO1:4901:49Small caps won't break out of its earnings slump anytime soon, BofA warnsFutures Now
With second-quarter earnings season underway, Bank of America-Merrill Lynch's Jill Carey Hall has a warning about a market group that has been struggling all year.
According to Hall, investors shouldn't expect small cap stocks to break out of an earnings slump.
"Consensus is still expecting small caps to remain in an earnings recession," the firm's senior U.S. equity strategist told CNBC's "Futures Now" on Tuesday. "You're really still seeing those negative revisions down the cap spectrum."
Hall, the firm's small cap expert, has been cautious on the group relative to large caps all year.
"Valuations for small caps do look relatively attractive," she said. "But at this point, we think investors should stick with larger, higher quality stocks over small."
Hall contends the decline in the ISM Manufacturing Index, which is tied closely to small caps' performance, bodes poorly for the group. She also blames the ongoing U.S.-China trade war for its struggles.
"This is one where a lot of the smaller stocks are impacted by trade and by tariffs — even if they don't have a lot of foreign exposure," she said. "Their suppliers to these big multinationals can't be as nimble to shift their supply chains."
The Russell 2000, which is composed of small caps, has been in correction territory since hitting an all-time high last August.
However, Hall sees a couple of exceptions within the troubled group.
"Two of the sectors that rank well in our small cap framework right now are real estate and utilities," Hall said. "We're still at the point where some of the more domestic or defensive sectors have tended to see better revision trends."
Disclaimer
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b9f5c59d5e2400bfe685d060ce09d60c | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/17/tyler-clifford-cnbc-digital-news-associate.html | "Hi, I'm Tyler Clifford, and I want to tell you a little about my experiences here at CNBC. I joined CNBC digital as a news associate, writing about stock market news and commentary that airs on our news programs.
Before CNBC, I was a breaking news reporter at Crain's Detroit Business. The news associate role helped me transition from covering small and large businesses in the Detroit area to writing about public corporations and financial institutions across the United States.
I met CNBC staff at a National Association of Black Journalists conference where I participated in CNBC's Business Journalism Workshop with other up-and-coming journalists from across the country.
It was a great experience networking with CNBC professionals and learning the skills needed to work for a national network.
Within 6 months of joining the company, I became the digital writer for Mad Money with Jim Cramer.
If I can do it, you can too."
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52c9afaf290168a386e77f84fefb01e1 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/18/appeals-court-upholds-conviction-of-martin-shkreli.html | Fraud conviction of 'pharma bro' Martin Shkreli upheld by federal appeals court | Fraud conviction of 'pharma bro' Martin Shkreli upheld by federal appeals court
Martin Shkreli, former chief executive officer of Turing Pharmaceuticals AG, arrives at federal court in the Brooklyn borough of New York, on Monday, July 31, 2017.Peter Foley | Bloomberg | Getty Images
A federal appeals court on Thursday upheld the criminal conviction of notorious "pharma bro" Martin Shkreli.
The three-judge panel in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circut also upheld the more than $6.4 million in foreiture that a judge imposed on Shkreli last year when she sentenced him for his conviction on two counts of securities fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud.
Shkreli, 36, is serving a seven-year sentence in a federal prison in Pennsylvania.
In its ruling, the appeals panel disagreed with Shkreli's claim that his trial judge's instructions to the jury at his trial were incorrect and confusing to jurors.
"The instruction given here correctly stated the law," the appeals panel said in its decision. " As such, we disagree with Shkreli that exclusion of additional language describing an element not required for the charged crime constituted a prejudicial error."
The panel likewise dismissed Shkreli's argument that the forfeiture amount was inappropriate because not all of the investors in his hedge funds testified, that they amount should be reduced to account for losses he incurred by making trades for the funds, and that the large returns seen by investors should reduce the forefeiture to zero.
Shkreli's appeals lawyer, Mark Baker, told CNBC, "We're obviously disappointed, and we will consider and weigh whatever remedies are available."
Baker said he did not think he would ask the entire Second Circuit to review the panel's decision, because "I don't think we have a good faith basis" for such a request.
But he will consider whether to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to hear an appeal of the ruling, he said.
VIDEO0:5600:56Pharma bro Martin Shkreli is denied minimum security camp and sent to federal prison in New JerseyNews Videos
Shkreli was convicted after a 2017 trial in Brooklyn federal court where prosecutors introduced evidence that he had repeatedly lied to investors about the financial performance of two hedge funds he ran, and then used money invested in those funds to help start the pharmaceuticals company Retrophin.
Shkreli was later ousted from Retrophin.
He gained widespread notoriety in 2015 when another drug company he founded, Turing Pharmaceuticals, hiked the price of an anti-parasite medication used to treat pregnant women, newborns, and patients with HIV by more than 5,500%.
Shkreli revelled in trolling people on social media, and in insolently responding to questions from members of Congress outraged by his price increase.
On the heels of his trial, Judge Kiyo Matsumoto revoked his $5 million release bond after she found he was a danger to the public for his offer of a cash bounty for strands of hair from Hillary Clinton's head that his Facebook followers were able to grab.
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60bd706b5812b1c36016e905bcf5d150 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/18/jeffrey-epstein-bail-hearing-in-child-sex-traffic-case.html?__source=sharebar%7Ctwitter&par=sharebar | Jeffrey Epstein's lust for young girls appears 'uncontrollable,' judge says in denying bail to accused sex trafficker | Jeffrey Epstein's lust for young girls appears 'uncontrollable,' judge says in denying bail to accused sex trafficker
Courtroom sketch showing Jeffrey Epstein at his bail hearing in New York on July 15th, 2019.Artist: Christine Cornell
A federal judge on Thursday denied bail to wealthy investor Jeffrey Epstein, citing the potential danger to "new victims" from his apparently "uncontrollable" sexual fixation on young girls, and the risk that Epstein would flee to avoid prosecution for child sex trafficking charges.
The decision by Judge Richard Berman means that the 66-year-old Epstein will remain in jail pending trial in the case, where he faces up to 45 years in prison if convicted.
Berman, in a damning written order released hours after a hearing in U.S. District Court in Manhattan where he verbally announced his bail ruling, said that lewd photos of young women found in Epstein's mansion are troubling, as is evidence that he tried to influence the potential testimony of accusers and people who allegedly abetted his conduct.
"This newly discovered evidence also suggests that Mr. Epstein poses 'ongoing and forward-looking danger,'" the judge wrote. "Mr. Epstein's dangerousness is considerable and includes sex crimes with minor girls and tampering with potential witnesses."
In the order, Berman said, "Mr. Epstein's alleged excessive attraction to sexual conduct with or in the presence of minor girls — which is said to include his soliciting and receiving massages from young girls and young women perhaps as many as four times a day — appears likely to be uncontrollable."
"I doubt any bail package could overcome dangerousness ... to community," Berman said during the hearing, agreeing with the recommendation by prosecutors to keep Epstein locked up.
Berman said that risk was "the heart of this decision" to deny the financier release on bond.
He noted that two women who claim they were abused by Epstein gave "compelling testimony" at a court hearing Monday, where they had expressed "fear for their safety."
"The Court is also concerned for new victims," Berman added in his written order.
The judge also called Epstein's proposal for bail "irretrievably inadequate."
Epstein, a former friend of presidents Donald Trump and Bill Clinton, had asked Berman to release him on a bond as much as $100 million or more.
Epstein had also suggested strict bail conditions, which could include requiring him to remain in his New York City mansion, round-the-clock security monitoring, and an electronic tracking device.
Berman, countered, however, that prosecutors had established that Epstein could be dangerous by "clear and convincing evidence," and had shown by a "preponderance" of evidence that he could flee.
The judge noted Epstein's "great wealth and his vast resources," which include private planes and a residence in Paris.
Berman also said Epstein's possession of a passport issued by Austria worried him.
That expired passport has Epstein's photo but a different name on it, as well as a stated residence in Saudi Arabia. It was used in the 1980s for travel, according to prosecutors.
In a letter Thursday, Epstein's lawyers said he was given the passport by a friend at a time when "some Jewish-Americans were informally advised at the time to carry identification bearing a non-Jewish name when traveling internationally in case of hijacking."
"He never used the document to travel internationally and never presented it to any immigration or customs authority. The passport stamps, predating his receipt of the document, do not reflect Mr. Epstein's entries or exits," the lawyers wrote.
Berman's decision denying bail additionally noted that Epstein recently made payments to potential witnesses against him, that there have been allegations that Epstein failed to comply with requirements for registered sex offenders, and that agents of his intimidated witnesses in a prior investigation.
VIDEO0:5800:58NBC archive footage shows Trump partying with Jeffrey Epstein in 1992News Videos
Berman also cited other "items seized" from Epstein's Manhattan mansion the day he was arrested beyond the suspicious passport, which included a trove of "sexually explicit photos," $70,000 in cash, and dozens of diamonds.
At least one of the women in the photos has been identified as someone who was underage at the time the pictures were taken, according to prosecutors.
"The Government's evidence against Mr. Epstein appears strong," Berman wrote in his order.
"The evidence includes testimony of victims, some of whom were minor girls when they were allegedly sexually abused by Mr. Epstein; other witnesses, including potential co-conspirators; physical evidence, including passports reflecting extensive foreign travel; sexually suggestive photographs of nude underage girls; plea discussions; and police reports describing witness tampering and intimidation."
Sigrid McCawley, a lawyer for some of Epstein's alleged victims, said outside the courthouse that she was "thrilled with the judge's decision."
"Only by taking away Jeffrey Epstein's freedom can we ensure the freedom of these victims," McCawley said.
It's "a wonderful day for the victims," she added. "It was the right thing to do and I'm happy that he did it."
U.S. financier Jeffrey Epstein appears in a photograph taken for the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services' sex offender registry March 28, 2017 and obtained by Reuters July 10, 2019.New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services | Handout | Reuters
Since Epstein's arrest, prosecutors have wanted to keep him locked up without bail, calling him a serious flight risk and a danger to the public.
They also have said that in recent months Epstein, who is worth as much as $500 million, had made payments to "co-conspirators who might provide information against him."
Epstein was arrested July 6 at a New Jersey airport after a federal grand jury in Manhattan indicted him on a charge of sex trafficking, and conspiring to commit sex trafficking.
The indictment alleges Epstein sexually abused dozens of underage girls at his Upper East Side, Manhattan, townhouse, and his Palm Beach, Florida, mansion from 2002 through 2005.
Berman on Thursday scheduled a conference for prosecutors and Epstein's lawyers on July 31.
Last week, Trump's Labor secretary, Alex Acosta, resigned after heavy criticism for cutting a deal with Epstein in 2007 —when Acosta was the top federal prosecutor in Miami — that allowed Epstein to escape federal criminal charges related to his alleged abuse of girls.
In exchange for that deal, Epstein agreed to plead guilty to prostitution-related charges filed by Florida state prosecutors, and to register as a sex offender.
He was jailed for 13 months in that case, but spent most of his time on work release. A lawyer for a number of Epstein's accusers said this week that while on work release in his office, Epstein had sexual contact with at least one woman.
—Additional reporting by CNBC's Sunny Kim.
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e6fea84bf47a9bbbf78d390de391f413 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/18/more-than-50-companies-reportedly-pull-production-out-of-china-due-to-trade-war.html | More than 50 companies reportedly pull production out of China due to trade war | More than 50 companies reportedly pull production out of China due to trade war
VIDEO1:5501:55President Trump says US-China trade talks have a long way to goHalftime Report
The pace of companies moving production out of China is accelerating as more than 50 multinationals from Apple to Nintendo to Dell are rushing to escape the punitive tariffs placed by the U.S., according to the Nikkei Asian review.
The trade war between the U.S. and China has dragged on for more than a year with 25% tariffs placed on $200 billion of Chinese goods. President Donald Trump is still threatening to slap duties on another $325 billion of goods. In wake of the intensifying battle, more and more companies announced plans or are considering shifting manufacturing from China.
American personal computer makers HP and Dell could move up to 30% of their notebook production in China to Southeast Asia, Nikkei reported. Apple has asked its major suppliers to assess the cost implications of moving 15% to 30% of their production capacity from China to India, according to an earlier report from the Nikkei.
Japan's Nintendo is also going to pull a portion of its video game console production from China to Vietnam, according to Nikkei.
Not only are foreign companies rethinking its production location, a handful of Chinese companies are also leaving China. Chinese multinational electronics company TCL is moving its TV production to Vietnam, while Chinese tire maker Sailun Tire is transitioning its manufacturing line to Thailand, Nikkei reported.
The prolonged trade battle seems to be taking a toll on the Chinese economy. Data on Monday showed its economic growth slowed to 6.2% in the second quarter — the weakest rate in at least 27 years.
Trump claimed the slower growth is evidence that China is losing the trade war as the country faces an exodus of companies.
"The United States Tariffs are having a major effect on companies wanting to leave China for non-tariffed countries. Thousands of companies are leaving. This is why China wants to make a deal," Trump said in a twitter post on Monday.
—Click here to read the original story from the Nikkei Asian Review.
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4a845cf1ae1ac2285de0bc895eea66f9 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/18/netflix-red-flags-mean-it-might-be-time-to-take-profits-analyst.html | Netflix raised several red flags in its earnings that mean it might be time to take profits: Analyst | Netflix raised several red flags in its earnings that mean it might be time to take profits: Analyst
VIDEO4:3304:33Analysts debate whether investors should ditch NetflixClosing Bell
Netflix's quarterly earnings report raised "several red flags" that will likely keep the stock range-bound over the next few quarters, a tech analyst told CNBC on Thursday.
Victor Anthony, managing director and internet analyst at Aegis Capital, said that the loss of paid domestic subscribers due in part to the streaming giant's "aggressive" regional price increases was a concern. Netflix's original content slate and looming competition from new streaming platforms could cause investors to pause, he said.
"What happens when competition does become a factor?" Anthony said in an interview with "Closing Bell." "That could be a meaningful challenge for Netflix and their ability to grow [subscribers.]"
Anthony said it might be time for investors to consider taking profits in Netflix.
Shares of Netflix closed down more than 10% on Thursday, a day after its second-quarter earnings report showed a loss in U.S. subscribers and a large miss on international adds. The company blamed price increases, a weak slate of original content and a "pull-forward effect" from a particularly strong first quarter.
It expects the third quarter will be strong as consumers rush to watch the third season of hit show "Stranger Things."
The report comes at an uncertain time for Netflix. It will lose two of it's most most-watched shows, "The Office" and "Friends." It also faces the threat of new streaming content from competitors such as Disney.
Anthont said it's possible these new platforms could be "complementary" to Netflix but it's still unknown.
"Can consumers pay for multiple different streaming options? ... we haven't really tested that in the market yet," he said.
Michael Graham, senior internet analyst at Canaccord Genuity, said he isn't as concerned about new competition, telling CNBC that Netflix could do very well "in that content battle."
"There's no single show on Netflix that accounts for 2 or 3% of its streaming hours, so it's hard for me to see a scenario where consumers are sort of anticipating the loss of 'Friends,'" he said in the same "Closing Bell" segment.
Disclaimer
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6ea224027f14e73669c9ed97a5a2ad9f | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/18/us-house-rejects-saudi-weapons-sales-trump-to-veto.html | US House rejects Saudi weapons sales, Trump to veto | US House rejects Saudi weapons sales, Trump to veto
U.S. President Donald Trump (2nd L) and Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (C) at the the Arabic Islamic American Summit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on May 21, 2017.Bandar Algaloud | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images
The U.S. House of Representatives backed resolutions on Wednesday to block the sale of precision-guided munitions to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, sending them to the White House, where President Donald Trump has promised a veto.
Nearly a month after the Senate supported 22 resolutions disapproving of Trump's plan for billions of dollars in weapons sales despite Congress' objections, the House passed three of the 22, two on a vote of 238-190 and the third by a 237-190 margin, largely along party lines.
The three resolutions would block the sale of Raytheon Co precision-guided munitions and related equipment to the two countries. The House's Democratic leaders opted to take up those three before the others because the PGMs could be delivered quickly, aides said. Some lawmakers also suspect that the PGMs have been used against civilians in Yemen's civil war.
Many members of Congress, including some of Trump's fellow Republicans as well as Democrats, have been frustrated by what they see as Trump's embrace of Saudi Arabia.
The Senate's backing of the resolutions of disapproval was one of the few times the Republican-led chamber has opposed his foreign policy.
Lawmakers want Washington to push the kingdom to improve its human rights record and do more to avoid civilian casualties in the four-year-long war in Yemen, where the Saudis and UAE are leading an air campaign against Iran-backed Houthi rebels.
Frustration grew after the murder at a Saudi consulate in Turkey last year of Saudi journalist and Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi, a U.S. resident.
"This is a strong message, I think, that our values must guide our foreign policy," said Representative Eliot Engel, the Democratic chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, urging support for the resolutions before the vote.
Trump wants to retain close ties to Riyadh, which he considers an important partner in the Middle East and counterweight to the influence of Iran.
Trump also views foreign military sales as a way to generate U.S. jobs. Officials from his administration had been unhappy with Democrats in Congress who blocked the planned sales, in some cases for more than a year, over civilian casualties in Yemen.
Trump announced in May that he would sidestep congressional review of the military deals, worth more than $8 billion, by declaring that the threat from Iran constituted an emergency.
Tensions with Iran have decreased since then, and administration officials have acknowledged that the military equipment has not been delivered.
Several Republicans joined Democrats in condemning that decision and voting for the resolutions. However, they would have to attract far more support in both the Republican-led Senate and House to garner the two-thirds majorities needed to override Trump's vetoes.
But lawmakers from both parties are not dropping the matter.
Several pieces of legislation making their way through Congress include Saudi-related provisions.
And the Senate Foreign Relations Committee is due to vote on two Saudi-related bills on Tuesday. One, sponsored by seven Republican and Democratic senators, includes sanctions to support a peaceful resolution of the Yemen war, address the humanitarian crisis and hold perpetrators responsible for murdering Khashoggi.
The other would mandate an in-depth review of U.S.-Saudi policy and bar travel to the United States by many members of the Saudi royal family.
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d8cb58f5ea99d70d8105d057e29ff214 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/18/us-sen-schumer-asks-fbi-ftc-to-probe-russias-faceapp-over-security-concerns.html | US Sen. Schumer asks FBI, FTC to probe Russia's FaceApp over security concerns | US Sen. Schumer asks FBI, FTC to probe Russia's FaceApp over security concerns
Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-NY) speaks after the weekly Democratic policy luncheon at the U.S. Capitol March 26, 2019 in Washington, DC.Mark Wilson | Getty Images
U.S. Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer called on the FBI and the Federal Trade Commission to conduct a national security and privacy investigation into Russia-based FaceApp, whose mobile software application alters users' photos, in a letter sent on Wednesday.
FaceApp's artificial intelligence application for editing photos requires users to provide it with "full and irrevocable access to their personal photos and data," which could pose "national security and privacy risks for millions of U.S. citizens," Schumer said in his letter to FBI Director Christopher Wray and FTC Chairman Joe Simons.
Schumer posted the letter on his Twitter account.
Users' photos can be edited to make a user look older or younger or to change their gender, he said.
VIDEO4:3604:36Everyone is using FaceApp, but here are some privacy concerns you should be aware ofThe Exchange
"FaceApp's location in Russia raises questions regarding how and when the company provides access to the data of U.S. citizens to third parties, including potentially foreign governments, " Schumer said in the letter.
It is not clear how the artificial intelligence application retains the data of users or how users may ensure the deletion of their data after usage, Schumer said.
Schumer said the photo editing app's location in Russia raises questions about how FaceApp lets third parties, including foreign governments, have access to the data of American citizens.
In a statement cited by media outlets, FaceApp has denied selling or sharing user data with third parties.
"99% of users don't log in; therefore, we don't have access to any data that could identify a person", the company said in a statement cited by TechCrunch, adding that most images are deleted from its servers within 48 hours of the upload date.
While the company's research and development team is located in Russia, the user data is not transferred to Russia, according to the statement.
FaceApp's website says it has over 80 million active users. FaceApp's website promotes the app by saying: "Transform your face using Artificial Intelligence with just one tap," showing photos with changes in users' appearances.
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7ae5f0537b281a05e2f91340d3e1cf1b | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/19/cramers-rundown-of-earnings-chipotle-whirlpool-alphabet-and-more.html | VIDEO3:1103:11Cramer's rundown of earnings next week: Buy Chipotle, steer clear of AlphabetMad Money with Jim Cramer
Wall Street is preparing for a big week of earnings that will offer a better read of the apparent economic slowdown, CNBC's Jim Cramer said Friday.
During Friday's session, the Dow Jones Industrial Average slid nearly 69 points. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite also slipped 0.62% and 0.74%, respectively, as the market digested a full week of the latest quarterly results. The two latter indexes posted their worst weeks since May.
"You need to understand that we're about to embark on the busiest week of the year for industrial earnings," the "Mad Money" host said. "We'll be flooded with new information, and if you can't handle it or handle all the noise ... this might be the perfect week to take your summer vacation."
Here is Cramer's game plan for the trading week of July 22:
Halliburton: The oil service company reports earnings before the market opens. Cramer thinks the results will be suboptimal.
Halliburton could signal a stronger second half of the year, Cramer said, "but this market is not the least but sanguine about oil."
Whirlpool: Whirlpool's results come after the bell. Cramer also thinks the report will be subpar, but says the company could offer key details about the consumer.
"The banks have told us that the consumer is flush," he said. "Whirlpool's washer and dryer sales are going to tell a better tale."
United Technologies: United Technologies has an earnings call before trading starts. Cramer said he expects to hear a good story from management, but some on Wall Street are skeptical of the plan to merge with Raytheon.
"I think it's a good move for United Technologies, but [CEO Greg] Hayes has got to come out on this call and flesh out why he thinks this deal is worth doing," he said.
Coca-Cola: The iconic drink maker reports earnings in the morning. Cramer is bullish on the stock.
"This is not an exciting stock. It's just a stock that kind of goes up over time," he said.
Chipotle: Chipotle will hold a conference call after the market closes.
"I'd recommend buying some before the quarter and some after, just in case it pulls back," Cramer said.
Visa: Visa reports earnings after the market closes.
"This stock is an erratic trader. It often sells off on even the best of reports, giving you the single finest moment to pick some up into weakness," Cramer said.
Boeing: The airplane manufacturer, which has weathered months of controversy, reports earnings in the morning. Boeing said Thursday it would take a $4.9 billion charge for its 737 Max plane challenges.
"It is hard to quantify the money that's involved with this kind of problem, but this charge, I think, gives you some certainty," Cramer said. "That makes Boeing's quarter a lot less risky, as far as I'm concerned."
Caterpillar: The heavy-machinery manufacturer delivers its latest results prior to the bell.
"I think CAT's a buy ahead of the report. And then I'd double down more after we see the numbers," Cramer said.
Tesla: Tesla reports earnings after the bell. Investors are wondering if the company is making money, Cramer said.
"People get mad at me because I won't take a stand on Tesla, but I simply think it's a cult stock and cult stocks are hard to game," he said.
Facebook: The internet conglomerate reports results when markets close.
"Remember, a year ago, it was really the darkest time for Facebook," Cramer said. "But, in the end, I don't think Facebook's business has been hurt at all … because the advertisers still love it."
PayPal: PayPal, which Cramer called the "king of payments," has an earnings call after the bell.
"PayPal's stock tends to stall out after earnings, especially when it's had a big run going into the quarter," Cramer said. "If you're going to buy PayPal, I have to suggest … that you wait until after it reports."
Xilinx: Xilinx reports earnings after stocks stop trading.
"Listen closely to this one," Cramer said. "They may know more than anyone else about what the Chinese are thinking."
ServiceNow: ServiceNow also reports after the market close.
3M: 3M has a conference call scheduled before the bell. The company has been plagued by water pollution issues.
Amazon: The retail giant reports earnings after the market closes.
"I'll be paying more attention to Amazon Web Services … to see if it can match the strength of Microsoft's competing Azure platform, which was extraordinary," Cramer said.
Alphabet: The Google-parent also delivers results after the closing bell.
"It's been a bummer to own going into almost every quarter that I can recall these times," the host said.
Starbucks: The seemingly ubiquitous coffee chain reports earnings after the close. It's one of six stocks that Cramer says investors can't get enough of.
"I want to emphasize that when this stock runs into earnings, and it has really run into earnings, it tends to be a disappointment," he said.
McDonald's: Shareholders will hear the latest results from McDonald's in the morning.
"I recommend buying it into any dip next week," Cramer said.
VIDEO12:3912:39Cramer's rundown of earnings next week: Buy Chipotle, steer clear of AlphabetMad Money with Jim Cramer
Disclosure: Cramer's charitable trust owns shares of Alphabet, Amazon, Microsoft, Facebook, Schlumberger and Caterpillar.
Questions for Cramer? Call Cramer: 1-800-743-CNBCWant to take a deep dive into Cramer's world? Hit him up! Mad Money Twitter - Jim Cramer Twitter - Facebook - InstagramQuestions, comments, suggestions for the "Mad Money" website? madcap@cnbc.com
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e4d4b1f5bb005dbe13a4257e9bc4ecca | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/19/icahn-launches-a-boardroom-battle-after-stalled-talks-with-occidental-petroleum-ceo.html | Icahn launches a boardroom battle after stalled talks with Occidental Petroleum CEO | Icahn launches a boardroom battle after stalled talks with Occidental Petroleum CEO
Carl Icahn speaking at Delivering Alpha in New York on Sept. 13, 2016.David A. Grogan | CNBC
Activist investor Carl Icahn formally launched on Thursday a proxy fight against Occidental Petroleum to win control of four board seats, a regulatory filing showed, after talks with the oil company's CEO failed to reach an agreement.
Icahn, who owns 4.4% of Occidental shares, said last month he planned to launch a proxy fight to oust and replace four Occidental directors. Icahn has blasted the Houston-based oil and gas producer for failing to give owners a say on its proposed $38 billion acquisition of Anadarko Petroleum, which he has called "misguided and hugely overpriced."
"Occidental refused to craft a compromise and so we'll happily take our case to stockholders which the company should have done with this bet-the-company transaction," Icahn told Reuters on Thursday.
"We prefer to have peace and have a great record in reaching settlements," Icahn added.
Icahn's use of a consent solicitation to elect directors would require a majority of shares outstanding to be voted in favor, a greater hurdle than a special meeting of shareholders, according to an Occidental spokesman. Occidental has urged shareholders to reject the activist's proxy, calling the request "not in the best interests of Occidental or its shareholders".
If Icahn's solicitation is successful, the record date for a vote on the Icahn candidates could be scheduled as soon as September or October.
In the filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Icahn identified his four candidates for the board: John Hofmeister, the former president of Shell Oil Company; Alan LeFevre, the former finance chief of consumer goods firm Jarden Corp; and Nicholas Graziano and Andrew Langham, two executives with Icahn's own investment company.
Icahn spoke with Occidental CEO Vicki Hollub on July 10 in an 11th-hour effort to reach a compromise and avert a proxy fight. His associates also spoke with Occidental executives twice earlier this month, according to the filing.
The investor expects to schedule meetings with Occidental shareholders in the next four weeks to press the case for board seats. The proxy fight is unlikely to stop the Anadarko deal, but would influence the pace and direction of billions of dollars of asset sales that will result after the acquisition closes.
Occidental has proposed selling Anadarko's Africa assets, including a proposed Mozambique liquefied natural gas project estimated to cost $20 billion. Anadarko also owns significant offshore wells and production platforms in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico.
Freeport-McMoRan, which in 2016 sold some of those same offshore assets to Anadarko, did so while under pressure from Icahn's investment fund, which held seats on the mining firm's board.
Anadarko shareholders are expected vote in favor of the Occidental deal on Aug. 8.
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6b4f516c06a17929cc66a65aa23df034 | https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/19/kamala-harris-and-joe-biden-set-to-face-off-again-in-democratic-debate.html | Kamala Harris and Joe Biden set to face off again in second round of Democratic debates | Kamala Harris and Joe Biden set to face off again in second round of Democratic debates
Sen. Kamala Harris (R) (D-CA) attacks former Vice President Joe Biden (L) speak as Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) looks on during the second night of the first Democratic presidential debate on June 27, 2019 in Miami, Florida.Drew Angerer | Getty Images
Former Vice President Joe Biden and California Sen. Kamala Harris are set to face off again in the second round of Democratic presidential primary debates on July 31.
The rematch comes on the second of two nights of debates, when groups of 10 Democrats vying to unseat President Donald Trump will take the stage in Detroit to lay out their agendas for 2020. The events will be broadcast on CNN.
Harris landed what many considered the most forceful blow of the first debates last month, when she tore into Biden over his comments on the campaign trail about working with segregationist senators.
But the marquee matchup between Biden, who has maintained a steady lead in the polls, and Harris, who made gains after her first debate performance, is hardly the only one to watch.
VIDEO9:4909:49How much is Kamala Harris worthMarkets and Politics Digital Original Video
Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren will be among the debaters on July 30.
Here's who made the debates and which night they're scheduled for:
Sen. Bernie SandersSen. Elizabeth WarrenMayor Pete ButtigiegSen. Amy KlobucharFormer Rep. Beto O'RourkeGov. Steve BullockFormer Rep. John DelaneyFormer Gov. John HickenlooperRep. Tim RyanAuthor Marianne Williamson
Former Vice President Joe BidenSen. Kamala HarrisSen. Cory BookerFormer HUD Secretary Julian CastroEntrepreneur Andrew YangRep. Tulsi GabbardMayor Bill de BlasioSen. Michael BennetSen. Kirsten GillibrandGov. Jay Inslee
VIDEO5:3705:37Joe Biden's tax returns reveal how he became a millionaireMarkets and Politics Digital Original Video
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