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A customer exits the lobby of JPMorgan Chase & Co. headquarters in New York May 14, 2012. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz/File PhotoRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comAug 3 (Reuters) - L'ATTITUDE Ventures on Wednesday closed its first institutional fund raising over $100 million with an anchor investment from Wall Street giant JPMorgan Chase (JPM.N) and initial investments from Trujillo Group and Bank of America (BAC.N).The fund which intends to invest in early-stage U.S. companies that are either founded or run by Latino entrepreneurs also had investments from Barclays (BARC.L), Royal Bank of Canada (RY.TO) and Cisco, among others."Latino-led businesses are critical to the U.S. economy but often lack access to capital and resources for growth," said Jamie Dimon, chief executive officer, JPMorgan.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comThe investment is intended to build on the largest U.S. bank's broader commitment to supporting Latino entrepreneurs and small businesses in the country, Dimon added.High-growth companies, particularly in the technology and healthcare sector have boomed since the start of the pandemic, with several large venture capital and private equity firms betting on the potential of the startups.Several large financial firms have looked to increase their diversity footprint and support minority communities since 2021 as impact investing gains momentum. Companies are becoming more conscious of backing businesses and startups from traditionally underrepresented socio-cultural backgrounds."(The investment) reinforces our ongoing efforts to address the persistent gap in access to growth capital and open more doors for emerging companies led by diverse entrepreneurs," said Bank of America's Chief Executive Brian Moynihan.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Manya Saini in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra EluriOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

JPMorgan, Bank of America invest in L'ATTITUDE Ventures' first fund.

A Commerzbank logo is pictured before the bank's annual news conference in Frankfurt, Germany, February 9, 2017. REUTERS/Ralph Orlowski/File PhotoRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comSummaryCompaniesBanks from Spain to Britain get a liftFollows years of ultra-low interest ratesGermany's Commerzbank benefiting from higher ratesFRANKFURT/MADRID/LONDON, Aug 3 (Reuters) - European banks are hoping the boost to their businesses from higher interest rates will be long-lasting as they navigate the economic fallout of war, soaring inflation, and a looming energy crisis.The German lender Commerzbank (CBKG.DE) on Wednesday reported a bigger-than-expected second-quarter net profit that it said was especially helped by higher interest rates. read more Exhibiting a trend seen across Europe, Commerzbank's net interest income jumped 26% in the period from a year earlier as longer-term interest rates rose in Germany and as the central bank in Poland, where it has a big presence, hiked official borrowing costs.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comManfred Knof, the bank's chief executive, described "considerable" risks on the horizon, but singled out interest rates as a "bright spot".For years, bank executives on the continent have bemoaned the European Central Bank's ultra-low monetary policy and charging of fees to park their cash as a drag on their bottom lines.But now, central bank efforts to arrest runaway inflation rates across Europe are proving a change of fortune. Banks from Spain to Britain are only just starting to benefit from the increased gap between what they charge borrowers and what they pay savers."Higher interest rates will strongly benefit all European banks' net interest margins and overall profitability, but the effect will be gradual and will vary between countries," Moody's said in a recent report.Moody's pointed to banks in Spain, Italy and Portugal as among those that will in particular profit from higher rates because more bank loans there are variable rate, giving lenders a "more pronounced increase in bank revenues".The higher income is bolstering executives' confidence about revenue, even as European officials cut growth forecasts amid soaring inflation and business activity contracts. read more In Spain, Bankinter (BKT.MC) raised its guidance for net interest income from a low single-digit to a mid-to-high single-digit percentage growth for 2022, and Banco Sabadell (SABE.MC) made a similar upgrade. read more Big British lenders including HSBC , Lloyds Banking Group and NatWest (NWG.L) raised their forecasts for 2022 when reporting first half earnings over the last week, citing rising interest rates which are boosting lending margins. read more Higher rates drove profits at Italy's top two banks Intesa Sanpaolo (ISP.MI) and UniCredit (CRDI.MI) above market expectations in the second quarter.Even banks in Germany, where stiff competition has depressed profits for the industry for years, are set to benefit with 11 billion euros in increased revenues in 2023 as a result of higher interest rates, according to a recent study by PricewaterhouseCoopers.That's a significant figure, representing more than five times last year's annual profit of Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE), the country's largest lender.Reuters GraphicsCommerzbank reckons on earning at least 300 million euros more in additional interest income this year compared with 2021, rising to 800 million more in 2024. That compares with analyst expectations of total revenues of 9 billion for this year.But the ultimate benefit is still unclear."We don't yet know how customers will react after many years of ultra-low rates," Commerzbank Chief Financial Officer told journalists.In the case of Commerzbank, as with other banks, the tailwind will only partly counteract hits from potential writedowns for corporate loans that turn sour if energy sources dry up.The bank sees provisions and writedowns of 700 million euros this year, up from 570 million last year.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comAdditional reporting by Marta Orosz in Frankfurt and Valentina Za in Milan;Editing by Elaine HardcastleOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.Tom SimsThomson ReutersCovers German finance with a focus on big banks, insurance companies, regulation and financial crime, previous experience at the Wall Street Journal and New York Times in Europe and Asia.

Higher interest rates a 'bright spot' for Europe's banks.

A customer walks towards the entrance of a CVS Health Corp. store in downtown Los Angeles, California, U.S., on Friday, Oct. 27, 2017.Christopher Lee | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesCheck out the companies making headlines in midday trading Wednesday.Gilead Sciences — Shares of the biopharma company rose 6.6% after quarterly revenue of $6.26 billion smashed a FactSet estimate of $5.86 billion. Full-year revenue guidance of $24.5 billion also came in better than expected.CVS Health — The pharmacy giant's shares rose 5.7% after the company beat Wall Street's expectations for the second-quarter earnings. It also posted a same-store sales increase of 8% compared with the same period a year ago, citing customer purchases of at-home Covid test kits and cough, cold and flu medications.Electronic Arts — The video game company rose 4% after it reported adjusted earnings of 47 cents per share, beating a Refinitv forecast of 28 cents per share for its most recent quarter. Net bookings of $1.30 billion also beat estimates of $1.26 billion, thanks in part to strength in the EA's FIFA franchise.Charles River Laboratories — Shares dropped 9.2% after the pharmaceutical company reduced full-year guidance, citing a stronger dollar and rising interest rates.Starbucks — The coffee chain saw shares edge higher by more than 3% after it reported better-than-expected quarterly results, despite lockdowns in China weighing on its performance. Within the U.S., however, net sales rose 9% to $8.15 billion and same-store sales grew 3%.Moderna — Shares of the vaccine stock jumped 16.7% after Moderna's second-quarter results easily topped Wall Street estimates. The company reported $5.24 in earnings per share on $4.75 billion of revenue. Analysts surveyed by Refinitiv were expecting $4.55 in earnings per share and $4.07 billion of revenue. Moderna also announced a $3 billion share buyback program.SoFi Technologies — Shares soared more than 27% after the personal finance company posted a beat on the top and bottom lines, issued strong full-year revenue guidance and reported a 91% jump in personal loan origination volume.Match Group —  Shares of the dating app operator tumbled 17% after the company reported revenue of $795 million for the second quarter, compared with a StreetAccount estimate of $803.9 million. Match also issued weak guidance and announced the departure of Renate Nyborg, CEO of its Tinder unit.Airbnb — Shares of Airbnb slipped about 3% after the vacation home rental company posted weaker-than-expected revenue for the second quarter. The company also reported more than 103 million booked nights and experiences, the largest quarterly number ever for the company but short of StreetAccount estimates of 106.4 million.PayPal — The payments giant's shares soared 9.4% following stronger-than-expected second-quarter results and an increase in its forecast. PayPal also revealed it has entered into an information-sharing agreement with Elliott Management and announced a $15 billion share buyback program. — CNBC's Jesse Pound and Sarah Min contributed reporting

Stocks making the biggest moves midday: Gilead Sciences, CVS, Electronic Arts and more.

Alex Jones walks into the courtroom in front of Scarlett Lewis and Neil Heslin, the parents of 6-year-old Sand Hook shooting victim Jesse Lewis, at the Travis County Courthouse in Austin, Texas, U.S. July 28, 2022. Briana Sanchez/Pool via REUTERSRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comAug 3 (Reuters) - An attorney for the parents of a child killed in the Sandy Hook massacre showed a jury video on Wednesday of U.S. conspiracy theorist Alex Jones telling his Infowars viewers that the jury in his defamation case was full of people who "don't know what planet they're on."Jones, founder of the Infowars radio show and webcast, is on trial in Texas to determine how much he must pay for spreading falsehoods about the killing of 20 children and six staff at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, on Dec. 14, 2012.Neil Heslin and Scarlett Lewis, the parents of slain 6-year-old Jesse Lewis, are seeking as much as $150 million from Jones and his company, Free Speech Systems LLC.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comMark Bankston, the lawyer for the parents, accused Jones on Thursday of approaching the trial in bad faith, citing broadcasts where he said the trial is rigged against him.Bankston showed video of Jones saying on air Friday that the jury pool was full of people who "don't know what planet they're on."He also showed jurors an image from Jones's show that Bankston said depicted Judge Maya Guerra Gamble, who is overseeing the case, on fire. Jones responded that the image shows Lady Justice on fire, not Gamble.Jones has already been found liable for defamation by Gamble, who issued a rare default judgment against him in 2021.Jones on Wednesday attempted to distance himself from previous falsehoods that the shooting was a hoax, saying it was “crazy” of him to repeatedly make this claim.Jones told jurors that the shooting was “100 percent real.”Heslin told jurors on Tuesday that the falsehoods Jones spread to his millions of listeners made his life “hell” and resulted in a campaign of harassment and death threats against him by people who believed he lied about his son’s death.Lewis said she believes that Jones knew that the hoax claims were false but spread them anyway because they attracted listeners and helped him market his supplements and other products.Free Speech Systems declared bankruptcy last week. Jones said during a Monday broadcast that the filing will help the company stay on the air while it appeals.The Sandy Hook gunman, Adam Lanza, 20, used a Remington Bushmaster rifle to carry out the massacre. It ended when Lanza killed himself with the approaching sound of police sirens.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Jack Queen; Editing by Amy Stevens, Noeleen Walder and Mark PorterOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Alex Jones claims defamation trial rigged, jurors don't know what "planet they're on".

CBS Evening News August 2, 2022 / 7:11 PM / CBS News Slava Medvedenko played alongside Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant, winning back-to-back championships with the Los Angeles Lakers in the early 2000s. He's got the bling to show for it. But he's putting his two championship rings up for auction this week "because I want to help my country," the Ukraine native told CBS News. Medvedenko said 100% of the money from the auction will go to his Fly High Foundation, "to help kids, to send them from the east of Ukraine, to move them in a safe place."  Some of the most intense fighting during the war in Ukraine has taken place in the Donbas, a region in eastern Ukraine. Once the war is over, Medvedenko said his foundation will "rebuild and fix sport gyms in schools because 100 schools [have been] totally destroyed."  "Sport is mental rehabilitation," he said. While Medvedenko does not have any military experience, he is one of the many people who volunteered to fight to defend Ukraine as he dreams of better days to come. "I just recognized I can die in an instant," Medvedenko said of why he decided to part with his rings. "These rings will just sit in a safe, it cannot help me. I have to do something positive."  FILE -- Kobe Bryant talks to Slava Medvedenko of the Los Angeles Lakers during the NBA season opener against the San Antonio Spurs at Staples Center on October 29, 2002, in Los Angeles, California.  Getty Images In: Los Angeles Lakers Ukraine NBA Russia Jamie Yuccas Jamie Yuccas is a CBS News correspondent based in Los Angeles. Twitter

Ex-Laker Slava Medvedenko puts NBA championship rings up for auction to help his native Ukraine.

A man checks his mobile phone as he stands on a busy road in Kolkata, India January 6, 2017. REUTERS/Rupak De ChowdhuriRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comNEW DELHI, Aug 3 (Reuters) - India's government on Wednesday withdrew a data protection and privacy bill which was first proposed in 2019 and had alarmed big technology companies such as Facebook and Google, announcing it was working on a new comprehensive law.The 2019 law had proposed stringent regulations on cross-border data flows and proposed giving the Indian government powers to seek user data from companies, seen as part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's stricter regulation of tech giants.A government notice said the decision came as a parliamentary panel's review of the 2019 bill suggested many amendments, leading to the need for a new "comprehensive legal framework". The government will now "present a new bill", the notice added.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comIT minister Ashwini Vaishnaw told Reuters the government has started drafting the new bill, "which is in good advanced stages", with a public release "very close".The government aims to get the new bill approved and made into law by early 2023 in the parliament's budget session which typically runs January-February, he said.The 2019 privacy bill was designed to protect Indian citizens and establish a so-called data protection authority, but it had raised concerns among Big Tech giants that it could increase their compliance burden and data storage requirements. (https://reut.rs/3JyJGld)"It is good that there will be a redraft from scratch," said Prasanto Roy, a New Delhi-based consultant who closely tracks India's technology policy."However, India still has no privacy law in sight. That's leaving data regulation open to a wide variety of sectoral regulations, something a common privacy law could have harmonised."Asked about consultation with stakeholders on the new bill, Vaishnaw said the process "won’t be that long" because the parliamentary panel that reviewed the old bill had already gathered industry feedback.CONCERN OVER DATA MISUSEIndia says such regulations are needed to safeguard the data and privacy of citizens. Lawmakers have said that concerns about misuse of sensitive personal data have risen exponentially in India.Companies including Facebook (META.O), Twitter (TWTR.N) and Google (GOOGL.O) have for years been concerned with many other separate regulations India has proposed for the technology sector, often straining relations between New Delhi and Washington.After India's privacy law plan of 2019, it also floated new proposals to regulate "non-personal data", a term for data viewed as a critical resource by companies that analyse it to build their businesses. The parliamentary panel had said such non-personal data should be included in the purview of the privacy bill.The bill also exempted government agencies from the law "in the interest of sovereignty" of India", a provision privacy advocates at the time said would allow agencies to abuse access."There were multiple, large concerns earlier. One has to wait and watch whether the new bill is any better," said Apar Gupta, the executive director at advocacy Internet Freedom Foundation.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Aditya Kalra and Aftab Ahmed in New Delhi; Editing by Bernadette BaumOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

India nixes privacy bill that alarmed big tech companies, works on new law.

Democrats and Republicans alike are heading out to the ritzy Hamptons, New York's summer playground, to fill their campaign war chests in the final months of the 2022 midterm elections and, in some cases, to test presidential aspirations for 2024.With just under 100 days until the November elections, more than a dozen congressional and state lawmakers are heading to the Hamptons for fundraisers in August alone. Wall Street executives, media titans, top lawyers and other corporate leaders are hosting numerous pricey fundraising dinners at their beach town estates, according to interviews with GOP and Democratic fundraisers, donors and political consultants. Many of the people in this story declined to be named to discuss private gatherings featuring candidates and other financiers."They are all here," said a Democratic fundraiser hosting multiple upcoming events in the Hamptons.Donors from Suffolk County on Long Island, where the Hamptons are located, have contributed over $17 million to candidates during the 2022 election cycle, according to data from non-partisan campaign finance watchdog OpenSecrets. Suffolk County donors gave more than $45 million to campaigns during the 2020 election.Democrats who've scheduled fundraisers in the Hamptons include, author and Maryland Democratic gubernatorial nominee Wes Moore, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, Georgia gubernatorial nominee Stacey Abrams and California House Rep. Karen Bass according to invitations reviewed by CNBC and people familiar with the matter. Hochul is running for reelection against Rep. Lee Zeldin, R-N.Y., while Bass is campaigning to be the next mayor of Los Angeles.A Hochul campaign spokeswoman declined to comment. Representatives for Moore, Abrams and Bass did not return requests for comment.Republicans who recently scheduled or have allies trying to organize meetings in the Hamptons with top donors include Nebraska Sen. Ben Sasse, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy of California, former Vice President Mike Pence and Marc Molinaro, a county official in New York state, according to invitations and people familiar with the matter.Representatives for Sasse, DeSantis, Cotton, McCarthy and Molinaro did not return requests for comment.Sasse isn't up for reelection until 2026 so his fundraiser could fuel speculation that he's considering running for president in 2024. Mark Gerson and Rabbi Erica Gerson are hosting a fundraiser for Sasse at their Sag Harbor, N.Y., home on Friday, according to an invitation. Seats are going for between $1,000 to $10,800 per person, which will go to Sasse's leadership committee. Gerson, who is the co-founder of financial advisory firm Gerson Lehrman Group, did not return requests for comment.Molinaro is running for a New York House seat in November, and McCarthy is up for reelection this year. Republican kingmaker and metal mogul Andy Sabin is cohosting a fundraiser on Thursday at his seven-acre compound in Amagansett near East Hampton for Molinaro with McCarthy as a featured guest, according to the businessman.Tickets for the event go from $1,000 to $5,000 in support of Malinaro's campaign. He noted that Zeldin and Rep. Andrew Garbarino, R-N.Y., are also attending the event. Stephen Louro, the CEO of employee benefit and insurance company Professional Group Plans is hosting a fundraiser at his Nissequogue estate for Zeldin on Aug. 24. The dinner, which is backing his gubernatorial campaign, will feature a jet suit flight demonstration, a performance by vocalist Christopher Macchio and a fireworks show, according to an invitation. Louro's massive waterfront home includes a pool and direct access to the beach, according to Virtual Globetrotting, a website that tracks the homes of the rich and famous.Louro did not return requests for comment.Sabin said he was invited to a Hamptons fundraiser that took place at the end of July for DeSantis' gubernatorial campaign which was hosted by an investor named Doug Douglas, the Republican fundraiser explained. Another GOP fundraiser said DeSantis is expected to come back to the Hamptons by the end of the month.Sabin, who contributed just over $220,000 to Trump Victory, a joint fundraising committee for former President Donald Trump's campaign and the Republican National Committee during his two runs for president, said he won't back Trump in a GOP primary for president in 2024 — but he would support him in the general election if he gets the nomination in 2024. Sabin said he's met with multiple potential 2024 contenders, and, while he wouldn't say who he's met with, he noted he hasn't spoken to Trump since his 2020 defeat. He recently helped DeSantis raise over $1 million at a fundraiser at the Ocean Reef Club in Key Largo, Fla., Sabin said.Sabin said one of the reasons he soured on Trump is the former president's reluctance to move on from the 2020 presidential election. "I think a lot of people like myself wanted him to get past 2020," Sabin explained. "He could be such a huge help to the party if he could get over the fact that he lost," he added.Trump told New York Magazine in a recent interview that he has already decided to run for president again, and that he only needs to settle whether he launches a campaign before or after the 2022 midterm elections.DeSantis is fighting for reelection in Florida, but he too has been meeting with powerful out-of-state donors and has not publicly ruled out running for president either. Cotton also isn't up for reelection for another four years, but he's reportedly huddled with donors to discuss a 2024 run for president. Pence, who was Trump's vice president, has also been privately huddling with donors and not ruling out a 2024 White House run.As for the other hosts of these events in August, it's a who's who of affluent business leaders that could help raise millions of dollars for candidates. Moore is set to be hosted at the Water Mill, N.Y. home of Brian Eizenstat, a managing partner at hedge fund Dilation Capital, according to an invitation. The event is set to take place Aug. 21, with tickets starting at $500 and going to $6,000. Other cohosts listed include Jon Henes, the CEO of corporate advisory firm C-Street Advisory Group.Eizenstat did not return a request for comment.Wall Street veteran Richard Perry and his wife, Lisa are hosting a fundraiser at their Hamptons home for Abrams on Thursday, according to an email to donors. The invitation, which doesn't say who's hosting the event, asks for $1,000 to $10,000 per ticket. The gathering is in support of One Georgia, Abrams' leadership committee, according to the invitation.Perry's Hamptons beach-front estate in Sag Harbor has a pool and tennis court, according to Virtual Globetrotting. Perry once ran the now closed Perry Capital and is the nephew to the late Jimmy Cayne, the former CEO of Bear Stearns.Abrams this week will also be at the Hamptons home of Emily Giske, a senior partner at lobbying giant Bolton-St.Johns, one political consultant said. Gisk did not respond to a request for comment. Perry and his wife did not return repeated requests for comment.Businessman Dennis Mehiel is scheduled to cohost an evening reception for Hochul at his Water Mill mansion on Aug. 13, according to an invitation. Tickets for that gathering run up to $25,000, with other cohosts including public relations executive Mike Kempner and Bruce Mosler, a leader of the law firm Cushman and Wakefield.Charles Philips, the former CEO of software company Infor, is cohosting with veteran attorney Melissa Prober a $1,500-a-plate fundraiser at his East Hampton home for Bass. Phillips said he's also hosting a fundraiser for New York Mayor Eric Adams at the end of August."For moderate common sense Democrats, the donors seem supportive and interested," he added, when asked the type of reception he's receiving for the Bass event.

New York's ritzy Hamptons plays host to over a dozen political fundraisers this month as midterms approach.

A mourner holds a sign advocating for gun control while visiting a memorial for victims of a mass shooting at a Fourth of July parade in the Chicago suburb of Highland Park, Illinois, U.S. July 7, 2022. REUTERS/Cheney OrrRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comAug 3 (Reuters) - An Illinois man accused of opening fire on spectators watching an Independence Day parade in a Chicago suburb last month pleaded not guilty on Wednesday to 117 counts connected to the attack, including 21 charges of first-degree murder, local media reported.The suspect, Robert Crimo made his plea on a grand jury indictment during an arraignment hearing in a circuit court in Lake County Circuit Court, the Chicago Sun Times reported.He has been held without bail since he was arrested after the shooting at the July 4th celebration in Highland Park, Illinois, which left seven people dead and more than three dozen injured. If convicted on the murder charges, he would face a mandatory sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comThe bloodshed was part of a recent flare-up of mass shootings in the United States, fueling a long-running debate between advocates of tighter controls over gun ownership and those who oppose any restrictions on the constitutional right of Americans to bear arms.Two of the most prominent of those attacks took place at a school in Uvalde, Texas, where a gunmen shot and killed 19 children and two teachers, and at a supermarket in a predominately Black neighborhood of Buffalo, New York, where a shooting rampage left 10 people dead.The Highland Park suspect had planned the attack for weeks, prosecutors said. On the morning of the parade he climbed to a rooftop along the parade route and fired more than 70 rounds at spectators lining the street below, according to court documents. He then made his getaway dressed in women's clothing and makeup to cover his facial tattoos.A Smith & Wesson semiautomatic rifle, similar to an AR-15, was found at the scene, and a similar weapon was in a car driven by the suspect when he was arrested, according to prosecutors.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Brendan O'Brien in Chicago; Editing by Frank McGurty and Mark PorterOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Suspect in July 4 mass shooting near Chicago pleads not guilty.

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comSummaryOPEC to raise output target by 100,000 bpd from SeptOPEC faces output problems to meet existing targetsU.S. seeking higher OPEC production to counter RussiaBiden trip, U.S arms sales failed to persuadeNUR-SULTAN/LONDON, Aug 3 (Reuters) - OPEC+ is set to raise its oil output goal by 100,000 barrels per day, an amount analysts said was an insult to U.S. President Joe Biden after his trip to Saudi Arabia to ask the producer group's leader to pump more to help the United States and the global economy.The increase, equivalent to 86 seconds of daily global oil demand, follows weeks of speculation that Biden's trip to the Middle East and Washington's clearance of missile defence system sales to Riyadh and the United Arab Emirates will bring more oil to the world market."That is so little as to be meaningless. From a physical standpoint, it is a marginal blip. As a political gesture, it is almost insulting," said Raad Alkadiri, managing director for energy, climate, and sustainability at Eurasia Group.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comThe increase of 100,000 bpd will be one of the smallest since OPEC quotas were introduced in 1982, OPEC data shows.The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies, led by Russia, a group known as OPEC+ that formed in 2017, had been increasing production by about 430,000-650,000 bpd a month, as they unwound record supply cuts introduced when pandemic lockdowns choked off demand.They had, however, struggled to meet full targets as most members have exhausted their output potential following years of under-investment in new capacity.Combined with disruption linked to Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February, the lack of spare supply has driven up energy markets and spurred inflation.REPAIRING TIESWith U.S. inflation around 40-year highs and Biden's approval ratings under threat unless gasoline prices fall, the president travelled to Riyadh last month to mend ties with Saudi Arabia, which collapsed after the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi four years ago.Saudi de-facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, whom Western intelligence accused of being behind the Kashoggi murder - which he denies - also travelled to France last month as part of efforts to rebuild ties with the West.A 3D-printed oil pump jack is seen in front of the OPEC logo in this illustration picture, April 14, 2020. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/File PhotoOn Tuesday, Washington approved $5.3 billion worth of defensive missile system sales to the UAE and Saudi Arabia but it has yet to roll back its ban on offensive weapon sales to Riyadh.OPEC+, which will next meet on Sept. 5, said in a statement that limited spare capacity requires it to be used with great caution in response to severe supply disruptions.It also said a chronic lack of investment in the oil sector will impact adequate supply to meet growing demand beyond 2023.Sources within OPEC+, speaking on condition of anonymity, also cited a need for cooperation with Russia as part of the wider OPEC+ group."(This decision) is to calm down the United States. And not too big that it upsets Russia," said an OPEC+ source.Benchmark Brent oil futures jumped by around $2 per barrel after OPEC's decision to trade close to $101 per barrel.Shortly after Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which Moscow terms a "special military operation", oil prices rose to their highest in 14 years.By September, OPEC+ was meant to have wound down all of the record production cuts it implemented in 2020 in response to the impact of the pandemic.But by June, OPEC+ production was almost 3 million barrels per day below its quotas as sanctions on some members and low investment by others crippled its ability to boost output.Only Saudi Arabia and the UAE are believed to have some spare capacity.French President Emmanuel Macron has said he had been told that Saudi Arabia and the UAE had very limited ability to increase oil production.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comAdditional reporting by Alex Lawler, Rowena Edwards, Tamara Vaal and Mariya Gordeyeva; editing by Jason Neely, Emelia Sithole-Matarise and Barbara LewisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

OPEC+ approves tiny oil output rise in rebuff to Biden.

Traders on the floor of the NYSE, August 1, 2022.Source: NYSEThe SPAC boom is officially a thing of the past.Not a single special purpose acquisition company was issued in July as the market slowdown turned into a screeching halt, according to CNBC calculations of SPAC Research data. Sponsors who once took advantage of a hot market were forced to pause as investor interest waned and regulatory pressure ramped up.SPAC investors have turned their backs on speculative high-growth equities with unproven track records after many of these firms failed to meet inflated forecasts. Meanwhile, regulators started to look into deals that entice investors with forward-looking statements after a boom in 2020 and 2021 created more than 600 SPACs hunting for targets before time runs out."I think that was a once-in-a-lifetime experience just like during the internet bubble," said Jay Ritter, University of Florida finance professor. "A year ago, the whole market was overpaying and now we have a reset. Giving a valuation of $500 million on a zero revenue company ... those days are gone."A recent acquisition highlighted just how absurd SPAC valuations were during the mania. Nikola recently announced it will buy Romeo Power in a $144 million all-stock transaction. That's just about 10% of Romeo Power's valuation when it merged with a SPAC less than two years ago.Along with issuance drying up, liquidations are rising amid difficulties in finding suitable targets. Three deals were tabled last month, including Bill Ackman's record $4 billion Pershing Square Tontine, pushing the number of liquidations this year to 10 deals. In all of 2021, only one SPAC was liquidated, according to the calculations."We expect the acquisition landscape to remain highly competitive, and caution that many SPACs are likely to be pressured on time to find suitable targets," Venu Krishna, deputy head of U.S. equity research at Barclays, said in a note.— CNBC's Gina Francolla contributed reporting.

SPAC market hits a wall as issuance dries up and valuation bubble bursts.

World August 3, 2022 / 11:54 AM / CBS/AP Undated family handout photo of Archie Battersbee, whose parents have submitted an application to the European Court of Human Rights in a bid to postpone the withdrawal of his life support. Hollie Dance / AP The family of a comatose British boy at the center of a life-support battle said Wednesday that it has appealed to the European Court of Human Rights in a last-ditch bid to stop a hospital from ending his treatment. Archie Battersbee, 12, was found unconscious at home with a ligature over his head on April 7. His parents believe he may have been taking part in an online challenge that went wrong.Doctors treating him have said they believe it is "highly likely" he is brain-stem dead and argued it is in his best interest for life-support to end, BBC News reported.His parents, Paul Battersbee and Hollie Dance, have fought unsuccessfully to get British courts to block the Royal London Hospital turning off the boy's ventilator and stopping other interventions that are keeping him alive. Dance said the family's lawyers submitted an application to the Strasbourg, France-based European human rights court hours before the hospital planned to begin withdrawing Archie's life support on Wednesday morning.She said the family was awaiting a response from the court. "We now hope and pray that the ECHR will look favorably on the application," she said. "We will not give up on Archie until the end."She also said the family was considering offers from Japan and Italy to treat Archie."There's other countries that want to treat him and I think that he should be allowed to go," Dance said.Speaking outside the hospital, Dance said the family was "up against the whole system." "I promised Arch, same with his dad, that we will fight till the bitter end, and that's exactly what we're going to do," she said. "We're going to fight for the right for my son to live."A previous High Court ruling heard Archie's "every bodily function is now maintained by artificial means", while another heard the boy had not "regained awareness at any time," BBC News reported. The parents of Archie Battersbee, Paul Battersbee and Hollie Dance, leave the Royal Courts Of Justice in London on July 22, 2022. Victoria Jones/PA Images via Getty Images The case is the latest in the U.K. that has pitted the judgment of doctors against the wishes of families. In several cases, including this one, the families have been backed by a religious pressure group, Christian Concern.Under British law, it is common for courts to intervene when parents and doctors disagree on the treatment of a child. In such cases, the rights of the child take primacy over the parents' right to decide what's best for their offspring.The U.K. Supreme Court said Tuesday that Archie had "no prospect of any meaningful recovery," and even with continued treatment would die in the next few weeks from organ and heart failure. The judges agreed with a lower court that continuing treatment "serves only to protract his death."Alistair Chesser, chief medical officer for Barts Health NHS Trust, which runs the hospital treating Archie, said life-support treatment would continue for now."As directed by the courts, we will work with the family to prepare for the withdrawal of treatment, but we will make no changes to Archie's care until the outstanding legal issues are resolved," he said. In: United Kingdom Thanks for reading CBS NEWS. Create your free account or log in for more features. Please enter email address to continue Please enter valid email address to continue

Archie Battersbee case: Parents fighting to keep boy on life support go to European Court of Human Rights.

A vial labelled "Novavax COVID-19 Vaccine" is seen in this illustration taken January 16, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/IllustrationRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comSummaryCompaniesEMA requests more data from U.S. vaccine maker NovavaxFDA previously flagged risk of heart inflammationHeart inflammation a rare side effect of mRNA shotsLONDON, Aug 3 (Reuters) - The European Medicines Agency (EMA) is recommending Novavax's COVID-19 vaccine carry a warning of the possibility of two types of heart inflammation, an added burden for a shot that has so far failed to win wide uptake.The heart conditions - myocarditis and pericarditis - should be listed as new side effects in the product information for the vaccine, Nuvaxovid, based on a small number of reported cases, the EMA said on Wednesday.Novavax (NVAX.O) said no concerns about heart inflammations were raised during the clinical trials of Nuvaxovid and that more data would be gathered, adding that the most common cause of myocarditis is viral infections.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com"We will work with the relevant regulators to assure our product information is consistent with our common interpretation of the incoming data," U.S. vaccine developer Novavax added.In June, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration flagged a risk of heart inflammation from the Novavax vaccine. read more Myocarditis and pericarditis were previously identified as rare side effects, mostly seen in young men, from groundbreaking messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccines made by Moderna (MRNA.O) and the Pfizer and BioNTech(22UAy.DE) alliance, with the vast majority of those affected recovering fully.The EMA said on Wednesday it had asked Novavax to provide additional data on the risk of these side effects.Last month, the EU agency identified severe allergic reactions as potential side effects of the vaccine. read more Novavax was hoping that people who have opted not to take Pfizer and Moderna's vaccines would favour its shot because it relies on technology that has been used for decades to combat diseases including hepatitis B and influenza.However, only around 250,000 doses of Nuvaxovid have been administered in Europe since its launch in December, according to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Natalie Grover in London and Ludwig Burger in Frankfurt, additional reporting by Michael Erman in New York; editing by Jason Neely, Emelia Sithole-Matarise and Alexander SmithOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

EU says Novavax COVID shot must carry heart side-effect warning.

Syringes with needles are seen in front of a displayed Moderna logo in this illustration taken November 27, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File PhotoRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comAug 3 (Reuters) - Moderna Inc (MRNA.O) on Wednesday maintained its full-year COVID-19 vaccine sales forecast of $21 billion as canceled orders from low- and middle-income nations through the COVAX program offset gains from new booster dose orders.Moderna shares jumped nearly 17% in morning trading after the company also announced a $3 billion share buyback plan.Moderna has begun producing a redesigned booster shot targeting both the original coronavirus as well as the BA.4 and BA.5 Omicron subvariants.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comIt signed a $1.74 billion deal with the U.S. government last week for 66 million doses to be available this fall and winter, if cleared by health regulators.Despite the contract, Moderna kept its sales forecast unchanged as doses earmarked for the COVAX vaccine sharing program remain unallocated due to low demand."It's because of COVAX," Chief Executive Stephane Bancel said in an interview. "COVAX does not want the doses that they have ordered."Moderna and rival Pfizer Inc have been banking on recurring booster doses, including an Omicron-tailored version, to garner more vaccine contracts with higher-income countries."We do believe the majority of the market demand is captured in this $21 billion. That being said, we continue to work with countries around the world on potential additional orders," said Chief Commercial Officer Arpa Garay.Other countries are considering an earlier version of the booster shot designed to target the BA.1 Omicron variant that led to a record surge in infections last winter, rather than the currently dominant BA.5 or related BA.4.Those shots had been in production already and would be available sooner, Bancel said."There are plenty of countries around the world that would rather start early - as early as August," he added."Some of those countries have said they would rather start with the BA.1 now and then go to BA.4 later versus just waiting and hoping."Some countries could authorize the retooled BA.1 boosters within the next few weeks, the CEO said.Moderna reported $4.5 billion in COVID vaccine sales in the second quarter. It took a $499 million charge related to vaccines that have expired.Moderna shares were up 16.7% at $187.60 but are off about 30% for the year to date.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Manas Mishra in Bengaluru and Michael Erman in New Jersey; Editing by Arun Koyyur and Bill BerkrotOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Moderna COVID vaccine sales forecast unchanged even as COVAX program cuts orders.

It has been a rough month for the crypto sector, and it's only the third day of August.From cross-chain bridge hacks draining hundreds of millions of dollars in customer funds to the Securities and Exchange Commission coming after crypto Ponzi schemes, this corner of the market can't catch a break.The developments add to an already torrid year for the crypto market, which has seen huge declines as fears around tightening monetary policy and a lack of liquidity set in.The flood of news is difficult for even insiders to track, so here's a rundown of what you've missed since Monday.MondayThe U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission headquarters in Washington on Feb. 23, 2022.Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesThe Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday filed a civil complaint charging 11 people in the creation and promotion of an allegedly fraudulent crypto-focused pyramid scheme that raised more than $300 million from investors.The scheme, called Forsage, claimed to be a decentralized smart contract platform, allowing millions of retail investors to enter into transactions via smart contracts that operated on the ethereum, tron and binance blockchains. The SEC alleges that for more than two years, the setup functioned like a standard pyramid scheme, in which investors earned profits by recruiting others into the operation. In the SEC's formal complaint, Wall Street's top watchdog calls Forsage a "textbook pyramid and Ponzi scheme," in which Forsage aggressively promoted its smart contracts through online promotions and new investment platforms, all while not selling "any actual, consumable product." The complaint adds that "the primary way for investors to make money from Forsage was to recruit others into the scheme."The SEC said Forsage operated a typical Ponzi structure, wherein it allegedly used assets from new investors to pay earlier ones."As the complaint alleges, Forsage is a fraudulent pyramid scheme launched on a massive scale and aggressively marketed to investors," Carolyn Welshhans, acting chief of the SEC's Crypto Assets and Cyber Unit, wrote in a news release."Fraudsters cannot circumvent the federal securities laws by focusing their schemes on smart contracts and blockchains."Forsage, through its support platform, declined to provide a method for contacting the company and did not offer comment.Four of the 11 people charged by the SEC are founders of Forsage. Their current whereabouts are unknown, but they were last known to be living in Russia, the Republic of Georgia and Indonesia.The SEC has also charged three U.S.-based promoters who endorsed Forsage on their social media platforms. They were not named in the commission's release.Forsage was launched in January 2020. Regulators around the world have tried a couple of times to shut it down. Cease-and-desist actions were brought against Forsage first in September 2020 by the Securities and Exchange Commission of the Philippines. In March 2021, the Montana commissioner of securities and insurance tried the same. Despite this, the defendants allegedly continued to promote the scheme while denying the claims in several YouTube videos and by other means.Two of the defendants, both of whom did not admit or deny the allegations, agreed to settle the charges, subject to court approval.TuesdaySo-called blockchain bridges have become a prime target for hackers seeking to exploit vulnerabilities in the world of decentralized finance.Jakub Porzycki | NurPhoto | Getty ImagesCrypto startup Nomad lost almost $200 million in a devastating security exploit. Nomad is known as a "bridge," where users can transfer tokens from one blockchain to another. Hackers exploited a security flaw that let users enter any value into the system and siphon off the funds, even if there weren't enough assets available in Nomad's deposit base.The nature of the bug meant that users didn't need any programming skills to exploit it. Others caught on and deployed armies of bots to carry out copycat attacks."Without prior programming experience, any user could simply copy the original attackers' transaction call data and substitute the address with theirs to exploit the protocol," said Victor Young, founder and chief architect of crypto startup Analog."Unlike previous attacks, the Nomad hack became a free-for-all where multiple users started to drain the network by simply replaying the original attackers' transaction call data."Blockchain bridges are a popular way of moving tokens off of networks like Ethereum, which has gained a reputation for slow transaction times and high fees, into cheaper, more efficient blockchains. But sloppy programming choices have made them a prime target for hackers seeking to swindle investors out of millions. More than $1 billion worth of crypto has been lost to bridge exploits so far in 2022, according to blockchain analysis firm Elliptic."I can only hope that developers and projects will learn that they are running a critical piece of software," said Adrian Hetman, tech lead at Web3 security firm Immunefi, told CNBC."They need to keep the security first be security first at every business decision because they are dealing with people's money a lot of that money is locked in those contracts."Nomad said it's working with crypto security firm TRM Labs and law enforcement to trace the movement of funds, identify the perpetrators behind the attack and return stolen tokens to users."Nomad is committed to keeping its community updated as it learns more in the coming hours and days and appreciates all those who acted quickly to protect funds," the company said in the statement.Michael Saylor, chairman and chief executive officer of MicroStrategy, first got into bitcoin in 2020, when he decided to start adding the cryptocurrency to MicroStrategy's balance sheet as part of an unorthodox treasury management strategy.Eva Marie Uzcategui | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesLater on Tuesday, MicroStrategy announced CEO Michael Saylor is leaving his role to become Executive Chairman of the company. The company's president, Phong Le, will take the reins from Saylor.Saylor has been the CEO since he launched the company in 1989. MicroStrategy went public in 1998.MicroStrategy's stock is down over 48% this year. Bitcoin is down over 51% during that same time period."I believe that splitting the roles of Chairman and CEO will enable us to better pursue our two corporate strategies of acquiring and holding bitcoin and growing our enterprise analytics software business. As Executive Chairman I will be able to focus more on our bitcoin acquisition strategy and related bitcoin advocacy initiatives, while Phong will be empowered as CEO to manage overall corporate operations," Saylor said in the release.The announcement comes as the company announces its second quarter earnings, in which its total revenues dropped by 2.6% compared to a year ago. The company also reported an impairment charge of $918 million on the value of its digital assets, presumably primarily bitcoin.MicroStrategy may technically be in the business of enterprise software and cloud-based services, but Saylor has said the publicly traded company doubles as the first and only bitcoin spot exchange-traded fund in the U.S."We're kind of like your nonexistent spot ETF," Saylor told CNBC on the sidelines of the Bitcoin 2022 conference in Miami in April.Late Tuesday, early WednesdaySolana logo displayed on a phone screen and representation of cryptocurrencies are seen in this illustration photo taken in Krakow, Poland on August 21, 2021.Jakub Porzycki | NurPhoto | Getty ImagesAnd then on Tuesday night, unknown attackers came after hot wallets connected to solana's blockchain.Nearly 8,000 digital wallets have been drained of just over $5.2 million in digital coins including solana's sol token and USD Coin (USDC), according to blockchain analytics firm Elliptic. The Twitter account Solana Status confirmed the attack, noting that as of Wednesday morning, approximately 7,767 wallets have been affected by the exploit. Elliptic's estimate is slightly higher at 7,936 wallets.Solana's sol token, one of the largest cryptocurrencies after bitcoin and ether, fell about 8% in the first two hours after the hack was initially detected, according to data from CoinMarketCap. It's currently down about 1%, while trading volume is up about 105% in the last 24 hours.Starting Tuesday evening, multiple users began reporting that assets held in "hot" wallets — that is, internet-connected addresses, including Phantom, Slope and Trust Wallet — had been emptied of funds.Phantom said on Twitter that it's investigating the "reported vulnerability in the solana ecosystem" and doesn't believe it's a Phantom-specific issue. Blockchain audit firm OtterSec tweeted that the hack has affected multiple wallets "across a wide variety of platforms."Elliptic chief scientist Tom Robinson told CNBC the root cause of the breach is still unclear, but "it appears to be due to a flaw in certain wallet software, rather than in the solana blockchain itself." OtterSec added that the transactions were being signed by the actual owners, "suggesting some sort of private key compromise." A private key is a secure code that grants the owner access to their crypto holdings.The identity of the attacker is still unknown, as is the root cause of the exploit. The breach is ongoing."Engineers from multiple ecosystems, with the help of several security firms, are investigating drained wallets on solana," according to Solana Status, a Twitter account that shares updates for the entire solana network.The solana network is strongly encouraging users to use hardware wallets, since there's no evidence those have been impacted."Do not reuse your seed phrase on a hardware wallet - create a new seed phrase. Wallets drained should be treated as compromised, and abandoned," reads one tweet. Seed phrases are a collection of random words generated by a crypto wallet when it is first set up, and it grants access to the wallet.A private key is unique and links a user to their blockchain address. A seed phrase is a fingerprint of all of a user's blockchain assets that is used as a backup if a crypto wallet is lost.The Solana network was viewed as one of the most promising newcomers in the crypto market, with backers like Chamath Palihapitiya and Andreessen Horowitz touting it as a challenger to ethereum with faster transaction processing times and enhanced security. But it's been faced with a spate of issues lately, including downtime in periods of activity and a perception of being more centralized than ethereum.

It has been a miserable August for crypto — and it's only the third day of the month.

Aug 2 (Reuters) - Republican voters on Tuesday chose a raft of candidates supporting Donald Trump's 2020 election falsehoods in multiple party primaries for the November general election - a stark display of the former president's grip on his party.In Kansas, abortion rights activists celebrated a major victory when voters overwhelmingly rejected a ballot initiative that would have endangered abortion access in the first statewide electoral test since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. read more The Kansas result suggested that anger over the Supreme Court's June decision could help Democrats to galvanize voters at a time when many Americans are blaming Democratic President Joe Biden's administration for soaring gasoline and food prices.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comBut Tuesday, one of the biggest midterm primary nights of the year, underscored the continued dominance of Trump among Republicans and widespread support for his false claims that the 2020 election was rigged. It was also a warning for any would-be Republican challengers should he seek the White House again in 2024.In the key battleground state of Arizona, state Representative Mark Finchem won the Republican nomination for secretary of state, a position that would give him enormous sway over the conduct of elections should he prevail against his Democratic opponent in November.Finchem was present at Trump's Jan. 6, 2021, speech in Washington that preceded the attack on the U.S. Capitol by Trump supporters and has continued to assert that the former president won the 2020 election.In Michigan, Tudor Dixon, a conservative commentator who has echoed Trump's election claims, won the Republican nomination for governor and will face Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer in one of the most high-profile races this November, which will also revolve around abortion rights.Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt, endorsed by Trump, secured the Republican nomination for governor. He will face Democratic Governor Laura Kelly in November in what is expected to be a highly competitive race.Blake Masters, a former tech executive who has backed Trump's false fraud claims, secured the Republican nomination in the Senate race, the Associated Press said, and will face Senator Mark Kelly, seen as one of the most vulnerable Democratic incumbents. Masters has Trump's endorsement and the backing of tech billionaire Peter Thiel.One of only 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump following the U.S. Capitol attack, U.S. Representative Peter Meijer of Michigan, lost to far-right challenger John Gibbs.Gibbs, backed by Trump, was the beneficiary of Democratic advertising during the Republican primary, part of a risky and highly controversial strategy to try to elevate more vulnerable Republican candidates in swing districts even as party leaders warn they pose a danger to democracy. read more Another Republican who voted to impeach Trump, Jamie Herrera Beutler of Washington, also faced a Trump-endorsed primary challenger. The results of that race were not expected to be known until later on Wednesday or Thursday.KANSAS VOTEPolitical analysts saw the rejection of the abortion limits ballot initiative as having wider implications for the coming general election.With 95% of the estimated vote counted, just under 60% of Kansas voters had cast ballots in support of the state constitution's abortion protections. Unlike the Republican gubernatorial primaries, Kansas' abortion initiative reflected the choices of voters of both major political parties, as well as independents. read more "When a total ban looks like a possibility, then you're going to get a lot of people to turn out and you're going to lose a lot of the more moderate supporters of abortion restrictions," said Neal Allen, a political science professor at Wichita State University.With Biden's unpopularity weighing on Democrats heading into November's election, party leaders were likely heartened by the Kansas result. Democratic candidates are increasingly coalescing around the abortion issue in some swing districts to fend off challenges by Republicans, who are favored to win control of the House of Representatives and perhaps the Senate.Control of either chamber would give Republicans the power to stymie Biden's legislative agenda while launching politically damaging hearings.TRUMP ENDORSEMENTSAs he flirts publicly with the possibility of running for president again, Trump has endorsed more than 200 candidates. Most are safe bets - incumbent Republicans in conservative districts - but even in competitive races many of his candidates have prevailed."Trump remains really popular with Republican primary voters. I don't think you can underestimate how he has remade the party in his image," said Alex Conant, a Republican strategist. "Republicans who run against Trump tend to get trampled."On Tuesday, Arizona voters were picking between Trump-backed gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake and Karrin Taylor Robson, who has the backing of Trump's former vice president, Mike Pence.Lake, a former news anchor, echoes Trump's election falsehoods and has said she would not have certified Biden's statewide victory in 2020. At a recent campaign stop, Lake claimed without evidence that fraud has already occurred during early voting, suggesting she may not accept a defeat on Tuesday.Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs, who built a national profile by vociferously denying Trump's allegations, easily won the Democratic gubernatorial nomination, Edison Research projected.In Missouri, Attorney General Eric Schmitt won the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate, boosting his party's chances of holding the seat after scandal-hit former Governor Eric Greitens finished well behind.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Joseph Ax in Princeton, New Jersey, additional reporting by Richard Cowan, Kanishka Singh, Eric Beech and Moira Warburton in Washington and Nathan Layne in Troy, Michigan; Writing by Joseph Ax and Ross Colvin, Editing by Scott Malone, Alistair Bell, and Kim CoghillOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Trump-backed candidates prevail in U.S. midterm primaries.

It has been a rough month for the crypto sector, and it's only the third day of August.From cross-chain bridge hacks draining hundreds of millions of dollars in customer funds to the Securities and Exchange Commission coming after crypto Ponzi schemes, this corner of the market can't catch a break.The developments add to an already torrid year for the crypto market, which has seen huge declines as fears around tightening monetary policy and a lack of liquidity set in.The flood of news is difficult for even insiders to track, so here's a rundown of what you've missed since Monday.MondayThe U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission headquarters in Washington on Feb. 23, 2022.Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesThe Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday filed a civil complaint charging 11 people in the creation and promotion of an allegedly fraudulent crypto-focused pyramid scheme that raised more than $300 million from investors.The scheme, called Forsage, claimed to be a decentralized smart contract platform, allowing millions of retail investors to enter into transactions via smart contracts that operated on the ethereum, tron and binance blockchains. The SEC alleges that for more than two years, the setup functioned like a standard pyramid scheme, in which investors earned profits by recruiting others into the operation. In the SEC's formal complaint, Wall Street's top watchdog calls Forsage a "textbook pyramid and Ponzi scheme," in which Forsage aggressively promoted its smart contracts through online promotions and new investment platforms, all while not selling "any actual, consumable product." The complaint adds that "the primary way for investors to make money from Forsage was to recruit others into the scheme."The SEC said Forsage operated a typical Ponzi structure, wherein it allegedly used assets from new investors to pay earlier ones."As the complaint alleges, Forsage is a fraudulent pyramid scheme launched on a massive scale and aggressively marketed to investors," Carolyn Welshhans, acting chief of the SEC's Crypto Assets and Cyber Unit, wrote in a news release."Fraudsters cannot circumvent the federal securities laws by focusing their schemes on smart contracts and blockchains."Forsage, through its support platform, declined to provide a method for contacting the company and did not offer comment.Four of the 11 people charged by the SEC are founders of Forsage. Their current whereabouts are unknown, but they were last known to be living in Russia, the Republic of Georgia and Indonesia.The SEC has also charged three U.S.-based promoters who endorsed Forsage on their social media platforms. They were not named in the commission's release.Forsage was launched in January 2020. Regulators around the world have tried a couple of times to shut it down. Cease-and-desist actions were brought against Forsage first in September 2020 by the Securities and Exchange Commission of the Philippines. In March 2021, the Montana commissioner of securities and insurance tried the same. Despite this, the defendants allegedly continued to promote the scheme while denying the claims in several YouTube videos and by other means.Two of the defendants, both of whom did not admit or deny the allegations, agreed to settle the charges, subject to court approval.TuesdaySo-called blockchain bridges have become a prime target for hackers seeking to exploit vulnerabilities in the world of decentralized finance.Jakub Porzycki | NurPhoto | Getty ImagesCrypto startup Nomad lost almost $200 million in a devastating security exploit. Nomad is known as a "bridge," where users can transfer tokens from one blockchain to another. Hackers exploited a security flaw that let users enter any value into the system and siphon off the funds, even if there weren't enough assets available in Nomad's deposit base.The nature of the bug meant that users didn't need any programming skills to exploit it. Others caught on and deployed armies of bots to carry out copycat attacks."Without prior programming experience, any user could simply copy the original attackers' transaction call data and substitute the address with theirs to exploit the protocol," said Victor Young, founder and chief architect of crypto startup Analog."Unlike previous attacks, the Nomad hack became a free-for-all where multiple users started to drain the network by simply replaying the original attackers' transaction call data."Blockchain bridges are a popular way of moving tokens off of networks like Ethereum, which has gained a reputation for slow transaction times and high fees, into cheaper, more efficient blockchains. But sloppy programming choices have made them a prime target for hackers seeking to swindle investors out of millions. More than $1 billion worth of crypto has been lost to bridge exploits so far in 2022, according to blockchain analysis firm Elliptic."I can only hope that developers and projects will learn that they are running a critical piece of software," said Adrian Hetman, tech lead at Web3 security firm Immunefi, told CNBC."They need to keep the security first be security first at every business decision because they are dealing with people's money a lot of that money is locked in those contracts."Nomad said it's working with crypto security firm TRM Labs and law enforcement to trace the movement of funds, identify the perpetrators behind the attack and return stolen tokens to users."Nomad is committed to keeping its community updated as it learns more in the coming hours and days and appreciates all those who acted quickly to protect funds," the company said in the statement.Michael Saylor, chairman and chief executive officer of MicroStrategy, first got into bitcoin in 2020, when he decided to start adding the cryptocurrency to MicroStrategy's balance sheet as part of an unorthodox treasury management strategy.Eva Marie Uzcategui | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesLater on Tuesday, MicroStrategy announced CEO Michael Saylor is leaving his role to become Executive Chairman of the company. The company's president, Phong Le, will take the reins from Saylor.Saylor has been the CEO since he launched the company in 1989. MicroStrategy went public in 1998.MicroStrategy's stock is down over 48% this year. Bitcoin is down over 51% during that same time period."I believe that splitting the roles of Chairman and CEO will enable us to better pursue our two corporate strategies of acquiring and holding bitcoin and growing our enterprise analytics software business. As Executive Chairman I will be able to focus more on our bitcoin acquisition strategy and related bitcoin advocacy initiatives, while Phong will be empowered as CEO to manage overall corporate operations," Saylor said in the release.The announcement comes as the company announces its second quarter earnings, in which its total revenues dropped by 2.6% compared to a year ago. The company also reported an impairment charge of $918 million on the value of its digital assets, presumably primarily bitcoin.MicroStrategy may technically be in the business of enterprise software and cloud-based services, but Saylor has said the publicly traded company doubles as the first and only bitcoin spot exchange-traded fund in the U.S."We're kind of like your nonexistent spot ETF," Saylor told CNBC on the sidelines of the Bitcoin 2022 conference in Miami in April.Late Tuesday, early WednesdaySolana logo displayed on a phone screen and representation of cryptocurrencies are seen in this illustration photo taken in Krakow, Poland on August 21, 2021.Jakub Porzycki | NurPhoto | Getty ImagesAnd then on Tuesday night, unknown attackers came after hot wallets connected to solana's blockchain.Nearly 8,000 digital wallets have been drained of just over $5.2 million in digital coins including solana's sol token and USD Coin (USDC), according to blockchain analytics firm Elliptic. The Twitter account Solana Status confirmed the attack, noting that as of Wednesday morning, approximately 7,767 wallets have been affected by the exploit. Elliptic's estimate is slightly higher at 7,936 wallets.Solana's sol token, one of the largest cryptocurrencies after bitcoin and ether, fell about 8% in the first two hours after the hack was initially detected, according to data from CoinMarketCap. It's currently down about 1%, while trading volume is up about 105% in the last 24 hours.Starting Tuesday evening, multiple users began reporting that assets held in "hot" wallets — that is, internet-connected addresses, including Phantom, Slope and Trust Wallet — had been emptied of funds.Phantom said on Twitter that it's investigating the "reported vulnerability in the solana ecosystem" and doesn't believe it's a Phantom-specific issue. Blockchain audit firm OtterSec tweeted that the hack has affected multiple wallets "across a wide variety of platforms."Elliptic chief scientist Tom Robinson told CNBC the root cause of the breach is still unclear, but "it appears to be due to a flaw in certain wallet software, rather than in the solana blockchain itself." OtterSec added that the transactions were being signed by the actual owners, "suggesting some sort of private key compromise." A private key is a secure code that grants the owner access to their crypto holdings.The identity of the attacker is still unknown, as is the root cause of the exploit. The breach is ongoing."Engineers from multiple ecosystems, with the help of several security firms, are investigating drained wallets on solana," according to Solana Status, a Twitter account that shares updates for the entire solana network.The solana network is strongly encouraging users to use hardware wallets, since there's no evidence those have been impacted."Do not reuse your seed phrase on a hardware wallet - create a new seed phrase. Wallets drained should be treated as compromised, and abandoned," reads one tweet. Seed phrases are a collection of random words generated by a crypto wallet when it is first set up, and it grants access to the wallet.A private key is unique and links a user to their blockchain address. A seed phrase is a fingerprint of all of a user's blockchain assets that is used as a backup if a crypto wallet is lost.The Solana network was viewed as one of the most promising newcomers in the crypto market, with backers like Chamath Palihapitiya and Andreessen Horowitz touting it as a challenger to ethereum with faster transaction processing times and enhanced security. But it's been faced with a spate of issues lately, including downtime in periods of activity and a perception of being more centralized than ethereum.

It has been a miserable August for crypto — and it's only the third day of the month.

The latest labor market forecasts are confusing at best: amidst fears of a looming recession and layoffs at high-profile companies, the number of new hires and people who quit their jobs in June remained incredibly high, according to the latest JOLTS report. Still, it's not a bad time to find your dream job. "Hiring has slowed a bit, but the good news is that it's still a job-seeker's market, and there are still a ton of opportunities out there," LinkedIn career expert Blair Heitmann tells CNBC Make It, adding that hiring has been especially strong in health care, media, construction and financial services industries as of late. Even if the economy takes a turn for the worse, the typical recession lasts less than 18 months — so, ultimately, "there's a light at the end of a tunnel, and you'll be able to find a job … it might just take a little longer," career coach Emily Liou says. Building your confidence in the job search and knowing exactly what hiring managers are looking for can help speed up the process of landing your dream job, regardless of the state of the economy. Here are three tips from career experts to maximize your search: Be first and fast With millions of open jobs on the market — and the Great Resignation showing no signs of slowing down — hiring managers are increasingly under pressure to fill roles "as quickly as possible," Evan Sohn, the CEO of Recruiter.com, says. "You never want to be the last person to apply for a job because by then, chances are high that they're already close to giving another candidate an offer," he adds. The best way to get ahead of the competition? Be first in line to apply for a job opening. LinkedIn research has shown that you're four times more likely to hear back about a position if you apply within the first 10 minutes of the job being posted online. In addition to setting up job alerts on LinkedIn that will remind you of new postings, Heitmann recommends checking a company's website and social media accounts on a frequent basis for openings. Show off your skills Skills-based hiring has been on the rise for years. Between 2017 and 2019, employers reduced the degree requirements for 46% of middle-skill positions and 31% of high-skill positions, according to research from Harvard Business Review and Emsi Burning Glass, a labor market data firm — and even more companies are embracing this approach as a result of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, Sohn notes.Instead, companies are adding more detailed soft-skills requirements in their job postings and testing hard skills through certifications, evaluations and other methods.To stand out in the job search, you'll want to identify the top five skills that are most relevant for the job you want, based on job descriptions and conversations with people in similar roles, then evaluate if you're comfortable with those skills. "Hiring managers, especially right now, want to accelerate the process and hire someone that will make their job easier," Heitmann says. "It's one of the first things they look for on your resume and application."Once you've identified the top skills you need to succeed at your dream job and are comfortable performing them, Heitmann recommends putting them in a bolded skills section on your resume as well as your LinkedIn profile summary so hiring managers can easily spot them. Look for this keyword on job boards A reliable bellwether of who's hiring and who's not can often come down to one word: "recruiter."Instead of looking for job titles you're interested in on LinkedIn, Indeed, Monster and other search platforms, type in "recruiter" or "human resource manager," Liou says. "Nine times out of 10, a company that's hiring or going through a growth spurt is looking for recruiters, or extra support on their human resources team," she explains. "Recruiters are never hired to lay people off — they're there to do the opposite, which is to find talent." Once you have a solid list of which organizations are hiring, then you can cross-reference the job postings on a company's website to see if there are open roles that excite you, she adds. If you don't see your dream job yet, be patient, because as Sohn points out, there's a strong chance it will be posted soon. "More than 4 million people quit their jobs in June," he adds. "And I highly doubt that all of these newly open roles have made it to the job boards yet."Check out:This recruiter got laid off and landed a new job two weeks later—her best job-search tipsThe 10 best states to look for a remote job in right now, according to new researchThese are 10 best U.S. jobs of 2022, according to new research—many pay over $100,000Sign up now: Get smarter about your money and career with our weekly newsletter

These 3 hacks can help you land your dream job right now, according to career experts.

Iran's chief nuclear negotiator Ali Bagheri Kani arrives at Palais Coburg where closed-door nuclear talks with Iran take place in Vienna, Austria, February 28, 2022. REUTERS/Leonhard FoegerRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comDUBAI, Aug 3 (Reuters) - Top Iranian and U.S. officials will resume talks in Vienna this week on reviving the 2015 nuclear pact, officials from both countries said on Wednesday, though they played down any expectations of a breakthrough.The ball is in Washington's court to save the pact, Iran's chief negotiator Ali Bagheri Kani tweeted before heading to Vienna, calling on Washington to "show maturity & act responsibly"."Heading to Vienna to advance the negotiations. The onus is on those who breached the deal & have failed to distance from ominous legacy," tweeted Bagheri Kani.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comIran's foreign ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanaani said Tehran was ready to reach a deal that guarantees its rights, according to state media.An Iranian official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the talks would resume on Thursday.U.S. Special Envoy for Iran Rob Malley said he was preparing to fly to Vienna but suggested he did not expect major progress."Our expectations are in check, but the United States welcomes EU efforts and is prepared for a good faith attempt to reach a deal. It will shortly be clear if Iran is prepared for the same," he wrote on Twitter.Malley said the talks would proceed on the basis of a text recently proposed by European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell to revive the 2015 accord under which Iran curbed its nuclear programme in return for an easing of economic sanctions.Eurasia Group analyst Henry Rome said he thought it unlikely the deal - called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) - would be resurrected this year, putting the odds at 35 percent and saying neither side wanted the blame for its death."Both the US and Iran have a strong interest in keeping the prospect of a deal alive even though both governments appear resigned to its eventual demise," Rome wrote in an analysis."For the US, the continued focus on the JCPOA postpones a messy and costly pivot to increasing diplomatic and economic pressure on Tehran," he added. "For Iran, continued diplomacy, even if unproductive, supports domestic markets, forestalls greater international pressure, and gives it cover for its continued nuclear advancements."In 2018, then-President Donald Trump abandoned the deal, calling it too soft on Iran, and reimposed harsh U.S. sanctions, spurring Tehran to begin breaching its nuclear limits.The deal seemed near revival in March after 11 months of indirect talks between Tehran and U.S. President Joe Biden's administration in Vienna.But talks then broke down over obstacles including Tehran's demand that Washington provide guarantees that no U.S. president would abandon the deal as Trump did.Biden cannot promise this because the nuclear deal is a non-binding political understanding, not a legally binding treaty.Another sticking point was Tehran's demand that Washington remove Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps from the U.S. Foreign Terrorist Organization list, something Biden has ruled out.In June, the EU-mediated, indirect talks between Bagheri Kani and Malley on salvaging the pact ended in Qatar without progress and a senior U.S. official told Reuters afterwards the odds of a revival had diminished. read more An Iranian official told Reuters the talks in Vienna will be "in the format of the Doha meeting", where EU envoy Enrique Mora shuttled between Bagheri Kani and Malley because Tehran refused to hold direct talks with Washington.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Parisa Hafezi in Dubai and by Arshad Mohammed in Saint Paul, Minnesota; Writing by Parisa Hafezi and Arshad Mohammed; Editing by Toby Chopra, Howard Goller and Alistair BellOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Iran, U.S. negotiators to travel to Vienna for nuclear pact talks.

MoneyWatch August 3, 2022 / 11:23 AM / CBS/AP What to do with your 401(k) in bear market Amid recession fears in bear market, experts say 401(k) investors should think long term 04:58 Prices for gas, food and rent are soaring. The Federal Reserve has raised interest rates to the highest level since 2018. The U.S. economy has shrunk for two straight quarters. Economists are divided over whether a recession is coming. What's clear is that economic uncertainty isn't going away anytime soon. But there are steps you can take now to be ready for whatever is ahead.Yiming Ma, an assistant professor at Columbia University, says it's not a question of if but when a recession will happen. People should prepare but not panic, she said. "Historically the economy has always been going up and down," said Ma. "It's something that just happens, it's a bit like catching a cold." But, she notes, some people's immune systems are better able to recover than others. It's the same with finances. If you think a recession could destabilize yours, here are some things you can do to prepare. Know your expenses and make a budgetKnowing how much you spend every month is key. Ma recommends sitting down and writing how much you spend day-to-day. This will help you see what's coming in, what's going out, and which unnecessary expenses you might be able to cut."By understanding what money you are getting and what you are spending, you may be able to make changes to help you through tough times," advises the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation's Money Smart, a financial education program.Budgets often reveal expenses that can be eliminated entirely or impulsive spending that can be avoided with planning. Family budgets strained by soaring child care costs 02:02 For guidance creating a budget, free courses such as "Creating a budget  (and sticking to it)" by CT Dollars and Sense, a partnership of Connecticut state agencies, and Nerd Wallet's Budget Calculator can be good places to start. Save as much you canThe more nonessential expenses you can cut, the more you can save.It's not possible for everyone, but Gene Natali, co-founder of Troutwood, an app that helps people create financial plans, says it's ideal to budget to save enough to cover basic necessities for three to six months.Programs such as America Saves , a nonprofit campaign by the Consumer Federation of America, can help create a roadmap. How to manage your investments, retirement plan in a bear market 05:01 And if you do have a savings account, it's important to check whether your bank gives you a good interest rate and shop around if it doesn't, Columbia's Ma said. Her advice is to keep an eye on the monthly fees or service charges that might eat into your savings. But don't limit your options. Online banks sometimes offer better rates than traditional ones.Consolidate your loans, and don't take out any moreAs interest rates rise, experts recommend that you consolidate your loans to have just one fixed-rate loan and, if you can, pay down as much of your debt as possible.Credit card debt is getting pricier. Here's how to pay if off."Job security tends to be worse when a recession comes, it's not a great time to accumulate debt," said Ma. But paying off your existing debt is easier said than done. The Federal Trade Commission's Consumer Advice guide for Getting Out of Debt can help you make a plan.With interest rates high, it's also not a great time to take out new loans for big expenses like cars, though experts do recommend that if you need durable goods such as vacuum cleaners, stoves or dishwashers, you buy them as soon as possible to avoid future price increases. Check out second-hand stores and yard salesAllen Galeon, an in-home caregiver in California, has been affected for months by the rising prices of household staples like groceries, paper towels, and gas for his commute. His son's favorite Hi-C orange-flavored drink, which was $1.99 for a six-pack, is now $2.50.Since the start of the pandemic, when Galeon cut down from caring for multiple families to a single client to reduce his health risks, his household has dealt with financial instability.One choice he's made is to buy items like clothes or electronics second-hand whenever possible, whether from Goodwill, pawn shops, or Craigslist. But be careful when making transactions with strangers through classified ads on Craigslist, and read up on safety tips before using the online marketplace.Negotiate your monthly billsSince the pandemic, many companies have updated their relief policies and have become more flexible with users, according to Kia McCallister-Young, director of America Saves. Calling providers of monthly services to negotiate bills — whether it's utilities, phone service, cable, internet or auto insurance — can lead to meaningful savings, said McCallister-Young. Individuals can ask for the best rate, any available discounts, rebates, or coupons that can lead to a lowered monthly fee. If a provider is competitive with other companies, there's an even better chance of getting a discount, she added."If you tell them, 'I'm thinking of changing' or that you're shopping around, that helps — if they know you're considering leaving, they'll give you the best rate, and the goal right now is to find as much cashflow as possible," she said.Check out federal programs such as the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, which helps cover bills, and Lifeline, which can assist with phone bills. If you are unsure if you qualify for any federal or state program, you can call 211, which will connect you with a local specialist who can assist you.Switch up your groceriesGrocery shopping with a meal plan, buying generic rather than brand-name products or purchasing in bulk are some of the recommendations from the Consumer Federation of America. "A lot of stores have price-matching, so if you show them that a competitor is selling the same product at a lower rate, they'll match that," said McCallister-Young. "You also want to be looking at the stores that are closest to you, so you're not spending the extra money you'd save on gas." Food banks under pressure amid high inflation and rising costs 05:22 An alternative way to save money on groceries is to check out food sharing apps such as Olio, which connects people around their community to share extra grocery items, and Too Good to Go, where customers can buy businesses' surplus food at a discount.Look at government assistance programsEven with these saving and spending practices, a month's wages aren't always enough to cover important expenses. If this is your situation, programs around the country are available to assist you. "Sometimes there just isn't enough 'end of the month' at the end of the month," said Michael Best, an attorney at the National Consumer Law Center who works on financial services issues.To make use of these resources, check if you qualify for the Emergency Rental Assistance Program, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Farmers Market Nutrition Program, or the Homeowner Assistance Fund. All of these are federal programs coordinated by state governments. Some states offer additional local programs for their residents.Explore community assistanceIf you are experiencing food or housing insecurity, look for nonprofit or community organizations around you. From housing support and food banks to utility assistance, nonprofit organizations around the country can help. National organizations such as Feeding America host food banks in all 50 states. Combating the U.S. military's silent epidemic 06:25 "We're already seeing the community reaching out to us in overwhelming numbers because of what's happening in the country in terms of economic stability," said Kavita Mehra of Sakhi for South Asian Women, an organization that helps domestic violence survivors in New York City.Her organization provides housing, food, and cash emergency assistance for people in the community. She said that between January and June, her group distributed over $150,000 in emergency cash assistance to survivors who were having a harder time keeping the lights on and putting food on the table. That's more than all of last year.Food assistance organizations such as Ample Harvest, Hunger Free America and Food Rescue US offer maps that allow users to search a nearby food bank by typing their zip code.Get some exercise and take care of your mental healthBetween worrying about the bills and not knowing what your financial future might look like, your stress levels can go through the roof. "It's a hectic existence," Galeon said. "You have to do a lot of managing, and you have to keep a cool head, for the sake of your mental health." New study suggests depression is not caused by low levels of serotonin 04:17 Debra Kissen, a clinical director of Light On Anxiety CBT Treatment Center, recommends first recognizing when your body is stressed. Then she advises mindfulness exercises such as breathing, touching a wall to calm yourself, and completing the "five senses for anxiety relief"exercise.Brief workouts are also known to improve both physical and mental health. Research by Iowa State University also finds that a little bit of exercise can improve your mood provide short-term relief for people with depression.Most health insurance covers some type of mental health assistance. If you don't have health insurance, you can look for sliding-scale therapists around the country, including through FindTreatment.gov and the Anxiety and Depression Association of America directory. In: Economy Monkeypox Mental Health Thanks for reading CBS NEWS. Create your free account or log in for more features. Please enter email address to continue Please enter valid email address to continue

How to recession-proof your budget so that you're ready for whatever lies ahead.

San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank President Mary Daly poses at the bank’s headquarters in San Francisco, California, U.S., July 16, 2019. REUTERS/Ann Saphir/File PhotoRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comAug 3 (Reuters) - It would be 'reasonable' for the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates by 50 basis points next month if the economy evolves as expected, San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly said on Wednesday, as she cautioned once again that policymakers are resolute in reducing decades-high inflation."I start from the idea that 50 would be a reasonable thing to do in September because I believe I'm seeing evidence in my contact conversations, and in the observations of the world I see, that there are some bright spots for me," Daly said in an interview with Reuters.That said, "if we just see inflation roaring ahead undauntedly, the labor market showing no signs of slowing, then we'll be in a different position where a 75-basis-point increase might be more appropriate. But I go in with the 50 in mind as I look at the data coming in," Daly added.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comMarkets have responded to the Fed's monetary policy tightening, but other evidence of the U.S. central bank's actions affecting the economy are yet to be seen, the San Francisco Fed chief noted."We have a lot in the pipeline of tightening, but we have yet to see the slowdown fully reveal itself," she said.After Daly's remarks investors in futures contracts tied to the Fed's benchmark overnight interest rate pared back the probability that the U.S. central bank would raise its policy rate by 75 basis points at its Sept. 20-21 meeting.Fed Chair Jerome Powell said last week the central bank may consider another "unusually large" rate hike at next month's meeting, with officials guided in their decision making by more than a dozen critical data points covering inflation, employment, consumer spending and economic growth between now and then.Several policymakers, including Daly, have shown stiffening resolve this week to continue the aggressive policy tightening, with nearly all of them uniformly flagging that the central bank remains determined to press ahead with rate hikes until it sees strong and long-lasting evidence that inflation is on track back down to the Fed's 2% goal.Inflation has for months confounded expectations that it would ease and is now, by the Fed's preferred measure, running at more than three times the 2% target.Daly also said raising the Fed's policy rate to 3.4% by the end of this year "is a reasonable place to think about us getting to," adding that she does not believe the central bank has yet reached the threshold for that rate to be considered restrictive. Daly said she sees it being restrictive at around the 3% level.The median estimate among Fed policymakers of the so-called neutral rate, the level that neither stimulates nor curbs economic growth, is 2.5%.The central bank raised its benchmark overnight lending rate by another three-quarters of a percentage point last week to a target range between 2.25% and 2.50%. It has hiked that rate by 225 basis points since March as officials have been increasingly aggressive to try and quash the high inflation even as recession fears grow.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Lindsay Dunsmuir and Dan Burns; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Paul SimaoOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Fed's Daly says 50-basis-point rate hike next month is 'reasonable'.

Former U.S. President Donald Trump departs following remarks at the America First Policy Institute America First Agenda Summit in Washington, July 26, 2022.Sarah Silbiger | ReutersElection results in a slate of key primary races Tuesday night underscored former President Donald Trump's enduring influence over the Republican Party, despite signals that his status as its de facto leader may be eroding.In Arizona, multiple candidates up and down the ballot who modeled themselves as true Trump loyalists — who embraced his election conspiracy theories and Make America Great Again agenda — either won or appeared to be nearing victory in races that were still too close to call by Wednesday morning.And in Michigan, a House Republican incumbent who earned Trump's scorn by voting for his impeachment after the Jan. 6 Capitol riot lost his primary to a Trump-endorsed challenger.Trump took a victory lap on social media early Wednesday, suggesting the results demonstrated the power of his endorsement as a deciding factor in each race where he had weighed in. In fact, some of those candidates were already frontrunners by the time they received Trump's endorsement -- and in one GOP primary in Missouri, Trump hedged his bet by endorsing "Eric" in a race where multiple contenders shared that first name.In Washington, meanwhile, results were too early to call Wednesday morning in races involving two other House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump for inciting the Jan. 6 insurrection.The election outcomes, nevertheless, highlight how currying Trump's favor and emulating his brand of hard-right populism — including by parroting his doubts about the integrity of elections — has become a widespread tactic among candidates looking to secure primary wins by appealing to Trump's base.The Arizona results in particular yielded numerous victories for backers of Trump's false claim that his 2020 election loss to President Joe Biden was "rigged" by widespread fraud.Among those primary winners is Republican secretary of state nominee Mark Finchem, who denies Biden's victory and attended Trump's Jan. 6, 2021, rally that shortly preceded the Capitol riot. If he wins the general, Finchem will become the top elections official in the state.Five other Republican candidates labeled election deniers have won state primaries secretary of state, according to nonpartisan election watchdog States United Action.Also in Arizona, Trump-backed Senate candidate Blake Masters won the Republican primary, advancing him to the general election against incumbent Democratic Sen. Mark Kelly.And Rusty Bowers, the Republican speaker of the Arizona House of Representatives who testified in a public hearing on the Jan. 6 Capitol riot about how Trump and his allies pressured him to challenge 2020 election results, lost his primary bid for a state Senate seat.Trump had endorsed Bowers' Republican opponent, former state Sen. David Farnsworth, for the seat. Trump in that endorsement called Bowers a "weak and pathetic [Republican In Name Only] who has blocked Election Integrity."Meanwhile, the winner of Arizona's Republican gubernatorial primary was too close to call on Wednesday morning, according to NBC News' tally of the race. But Kari Lake, the Trump-endorsed former local news anchor who has repeatedly claimed the 2020 race was stolen, appeared to be leading her nearest GOP challenger Karrin Taylor Robson, who is backed by former Vice President Mike Pence.Trump has also pushed for the ouster of the 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach him after the riot, and much of the Republican Party has followed suit. Four of those pro-impeachment Republicans — Reps. Adam Kinzinger of Illinois, Anthony Gonzalez of Ohio, John Katko of New York and Fred Upton of Michigan — will retire at the end of their current terms.Another, Rep. Tom Rice, R-S.C., lost his primary race in June. David Valadao, R-Calif., survived his primary challenge.But Rep. Peter Meijer, R-Mich., lost his primary election Tuesday, after weathering attacks from both Trump and Democrats, who reportedly boosted his far-right opponent, John Gibbs.The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee cut an ad touting Gibbs' ties to Trump, a move that drew accusations from Meijer's campaign and others that Democrats were meddling in the race to boost a potentially weaker general-election candidate."I'm disgusted that hard-earned money intended to support Democrats is being used to boost Trump-endorsed candidates," said U.S. Rep. Dean Phillips, D-Minn.Democrats in Arizona reportedly attempted a similar move in the state's Republican gubernatorial primary, a tactic that was seen as an effort to undermine Robson and help the far-right Lake."This was a hard-fought primary campaign, and I want to thank everyone in West Michigan for their support," Meijer said in a concession statement sent early Wednesday morning.

Trump still holds sway in GOP as MAGA candidates win in key primary races.

Macklemore plays a shot at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am at Pebble Beach Golf Links on February 02, 2022 in Pebble Beach, California.Orlando Ramirez | Getty Images Sport | Getty ImagesThe popularity of golf has surged in recent years and during the pandemic, with new golfers and the further spread of non-traditional ways to play like TopGolf helping to start to shed the sport's stodgy reputation.Grammy award-winning rapper Macklemore, best known for his hit song "Thrift Shop," recently fell in love with golf, but found that the clothes marketed to players didn't appeal to him."On vacation, I got dragged out onto the golf course and didn't want to go – I definitely hit a couple of houses," Macklemore told CNBC's Dominic Chu at the CNBC Small Business Playbook virtual summit on Wednesday. "Finally, I pure a five iron out of a fairway bunker, and I was enthralled. Like, what was that feeling? I need that again."Macklemore, whose real name is Ben Haggerty, said that shortly thereafter he went to a sporting goods store, but realized that "the pickings in terms of golf fashion were very slim, and that's being generous.""Golf clothes have one archetype of a male, white dude in mind," he said. "Golf is much bigger than that."Golf struggled to shed that perception, even during Tiger Woods' ascendance to becoming one of the greatest players in the history of the sport.But there is hope that an influx of new players will help shift that archetype. An estimated 3.2 million people played on a golf course for the first time in 2021, up 33% from 2019 and well exceeding the number of people who flocked to the game following Woods' early successes in 1999 and 2000, according to The National Golf Foundation. More rounds were played last year than ever before in history, according to NGF.While some of that momentum has slowed — rounds played in 2022 are down roughly 6% compared to last year — that influx of new, younger players has helped to energize the game, Macklemore said."There's a whole generation of young people that got into golf in the last one to three years that don't want to look like they sell real estate, and I think that's great," he said.A fan of 1970s- and 1980s-era golf fashion even before becoming a golfer, the desire to fill the clothing need for golfers such as himself led Macklemore to start the Bogey Boys apparel brand.The brand, which features items like Cheetah print knit vests, pinstriped sweaters, and colorful polos, is designed to appeal to both golfers and high-fashion lovers alike, Macklemore said, something that many of the typical brands in the golf-wear space do not consider."I think for so many other brands, it's contingent upon people playing golf, or else you're not going to wear these clothes," he said. "Something I think that has happened with the pandemic and golf skyrocketing is that you're seeing a shred of golf fashion in the streetwear space – you can go to [fashion website] Hypebeast and see articles on golf, that's something very new."Macklemore is not the first golf-enthusiast entertainer to try to shake up the sport's look. In 2011, Justin Timberlake was named the creative director of Callaway Golf, working on the club and apparel maker's "visual representation." Bill Murray, famous for his role in "Caddyshack," started William Murray Golf in 2016. NBA star Steph Curry started creating golf apparel with Under Armour in 2019, leading to the launch of his golf line under his Curry Brand offshoot.That uptick in new players as well as new products has been a boon for golf apparel, typically led by companies like Adidas, Nike, Callaway, and Acushnet-owned Footjoy. More than $150 million of golf apparel was sold in April, with 21 of the last 22 months seeing sales increases month-over-month, according to golf product industry tracker Golf Datatech.But even if the growth of golf tapers off, Macklemore said the focus on fashion unlike other golf-focused apparel will still benefit Bogey Boys."Any sport waxes and wanes, that's ok," he said. "The clothes are still going to be top-notch, the quality is going to be great, and people are going to feel great and look great in the garments."

Why Grammy award-winning rapper Macklemore is making clothes for the golf course.

U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi gestures next to Legislative Yuan Vice President Tsai Chi-chang as she leaves the parliament in Taipei, Taiwan August 3, 2022. REUTERS/Ann WangRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comSummaryPelosi trip should not be excuse for escalation - officialNo plan for Blinken to meet Russia, China counterpartsU.S. hopes for sustained and increased pressure on Myanmar27 countries to meet this week at ASEAN forumTOKYO, Aug 3 (Reuters) - The prospect of U.S. house speaker Nancy Pelosi visiting Taiwan was raised with the Chinese government's top diplomat recently and there are no plans for the U.S. and Chinese foreign ministers to meet this week in Cambodia, a senior U.S. official said on Wednesday.U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken discussed the potential for Pelosi's visit with counterpart Wang Yi during a G20 meeting in Bali that lasted more than five hours, and said any such trip would be entirely Pelosi's decision and independent of the Biden administration."The question is whether Beijing will try to use the trip as some kind of excuse to take steps that could be escalatory or that could somehow produce conflict," the senior State Department official told reporters in Tokyo, adding that Beijing should not overreact to a trip that was neither unusual nor unprecedented.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com"China should not use this as a pretext to continue what it's been doing, which is seeking to change the status quo with regard to Taiwan," the official said."And if any escalation or crisis were to somehow follow her visit, it would be on Beijing."The Chinese foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.China vented its fury on Wednesday over what was the highest-level U.S. visit to Taiwan in a quarter of a century, stepping up military activity in surrounding waters and suspending imports of some products from Taiwan. read more China considers Taiwan part of its territory and has never renounced using force to bring it under its control.Blinken was en route to Cambodia for a series of meetings that will culminate in Friday's ASEAN Regional Forum, a security-focused gathering of 27 countries including China, Japan, Russia, Britain and Australia.The official said he would not meet Wang Yi and also that there would be no direct meeting in Phnom Penh with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. Russian-U.S. relations have been severely strained by Russia's invasion of Ukraine."If we actually saw any kind of meaningful diplomatic opening to help end the aggression, we would, of course, engage, but we've not seen that," the official said.The 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which is hosting this week's gathering, on Wednesday expressed concern about the Taiwan situation adding, "we hope that all sides will try their best to de-escalate tensions".ASEAN members also sharply criticised Myanmar's ruling junta on Wednesday for failure to advance a peace plan agreed last year. The generals are barred from ASEAN meetings. read more The official said United States hoped it can discuss in Cambodia how to "both sustain and increase pressure" on the military in Myanmar to stop its crackdown on opponents.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by David Brunnstrom; Writing by Martin Petty; Editing by Kanupriya Kapoor and Philippa FletcherOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

China minister told of possible Pelosi Taiwan trip in July, U.S. official says.

Celsius Network, once a titan of the crypto lending world, is in bankruptcy proceedings and facing down claims that it was running a Ponzi scheme by paying early depositors with the money it got from new users. Some of the 1.7 million customers ensnared by the alleged fraud are now directly pleading with the Southern District of New York to help them get their money back.Christian Ostheimer, a 37-year-old living in Connecticut, wrote in a letter included in court exhibits that he trusted Celsius with his retirement savings and has lost more than $30,000, which has brought him into "unsurmountable tax complications.""It is in your hands, honorable judge to make this a different case were not the lawyers, the attorneys, the big corporations and managers get paid out first but the little man, the mom and pop, the college grad, the granny and grandpa — all those many small unsecured creditors — so that they are not like usual at the end of the chain where they lose everything," wrote Ostheimer.The question of who gets repaid first — should that day ever come — looms heavy over the bankruptcy proceedings.At its peak in October 2021, CEO Alex Mashinsky said the crypto lender had $25 billion in assets under management. Now, Celsius is down to $167 million "in cash on hand," which it says will provide "ample liquidity" to support operations during the restructuring process. Celsius owes its users around $4.7 billion, according to its bankruptcy filing.That filing also shows that Celsius has more than 100,000 creditors, some of whom lent the platform cash without any collateral to back up the arrangement. The list of its top 50 unsecured creditors includes Sam Bankman-Fried's trading firm Alameda Research, as well as an investment firm based in the Cayman Islands. Those creditors are likely first in line to get their money back, leaving smaller retail investors holding the bag.Unlike the traditional banking system, which typically insures customer deposits, there aren't formal consumer protections in place to safeguard user funds when things go wrong. Celsius spells out in its terms and conditions that any digital asset transferred to the platform constitutes a loan from the user to Celsius. Because there was no collateral put up by Celsius, customer funds were essentially just unsecured loans to the platform.Also in the fine print of Celsius' terms and conditions is a warning that in the event of bankruptcy, "any Eligible Digital Assets used in the Earn Service or as collateral under the Borrow Service may not be recoverable" and that customers "may not have any legal remedies or rights in connection with Celsius' obligations." The disclosure reads like an attempt at blanket immunity from legal wrongdoing, should things ever go south.On July 19, Celsius published a document detailing next steps for customers. In it, the platform said its Chapter 11 bankruptcy plan will "provide customers with the option, at the customers' election, to recover either cash at a discount or remain 'long' crypto," but it is unclear whether customers will ever see their money again.The entire process lays bare just how much of crypto regulation in the U.S. happens by enforcement.The Securities and Exchange Commission has effectively become one of the industry's top regulators in the country, including by weeding out Ponzi and pyramid schemes, and it appears that some precedent will be set in U.S. bankruptcy courts in coming months as lawmakers deliberate over formal legislation on Capitol Hill.Pleas from investorsIn the hundreds of letters officially submitted to the court, retail investors beg to be put at the front of the line to get their money back.Flori Ohm, a single mother of two college-bound daughters, said her family has been "severely impacted both in financial and mental health" by the bankruptcy, which has left her funds stranded on the platform. Ohm, who also supports her parents, said she can't sleep or focus on work."I am struggling hard [to make a] living," she wrote.Jeanne Y Savelle, who described herself as a "little retired old lady" living on a fixed income, said she turned to Celsius in search of a way to supplement her monthly Social Security check to stretch her dollar amid record levels of inflation."I purchased my small amount of crypto hoping just to earn enough to help me weather a few years, kind of a safety net," said Savelle. "Yes, I know, buyer beware but I agree that there has been way too much deception."Others have lost everything.California resident Stephen Bralver said he has less than $1,000 left in his Wells Fargo checking account — now his only source of funds to provide for his family since Celsius suspended all withdrawals."There is absolutely no way that I can continue to provide without access to my assets at Celsius," he wrote to Judge Martin Glenn, who is overseeing the Celsius bankruptcy proceedings in New York."This is an EMERGENCY situation, simply to keep a roof over my family and food on their table," Bralver wrote.Sean Moran of Dublin wrote that he lost the family farm in Ireland and his family is homeless."Can't believe that they lied to us on the weekly AMA [ask-me-anything events] about not trusting banks whilst all along they we're wolfs in sheep clothing false promises and misleading information," Moran wrote. "I'm mentally unstable. Family are distraught with my decisions of trusting Celsius and promising them a better future."Beyond the financial devastation described in each of these letters, one recurring theme centers around a sense of betrayal over the breach of trust between Celsius CEO Alex Mashinsky and his customers.Three weeks after Celsius halted all withdrawals due to "extreme market conditions" — and a few days before the crypto lender ultimately filed for bankruptcy protection — the platform was still advertising in big bold text on its website annual returns of nearly 19%, which paid out weekly."Transfer your crypto to Celsius and you could be earning up to 18.63% APY in minutes," the website read July 3.Ralphael DiCicco, who disclosed holdings of roughly $15,557 in crypto assets on Celsius, said he was fooled by the marketing."I believed in all the commercials, social media and advertising that showed Celsius was a high yield, low risk savings account. We were ensured that our funds are safer at Celsius than in a bank," wrote DiCicco."This money is pretty much my life savings ... I hope you can find it the best interest of all parties involved to pay back the smaller investors first ... before any restructuring occurs," DiCicco continued.Travis Rodgers of Phoenix said that he was told on numerous phone calls to Celsius Network, as recently as two days before it locked depositors' accounts, that there was no danger to client assets and zero probability of bankruptcy. Rodgers said he recorded several of those calls. He said his Celsius holdings total $40,000 across 11 cryptocurrencies.The weekly ask-me-anything events hosted by Mashinsky on YouTube were mentioned in multiple letters, including one sent in by Stephen Richardson, who itemized the many ways in which he feels Mashinsky deceived the public in order to lure new customers into the scheme.Richardson said he watched every single Friday AMA since signing up."Alex would talk about how Celsius is safer than banks because they supposedly don't rehypothecate and use fractional reserve lending like the banks do," wrote Richardson. "I currently have six figures worth of crypto locked in my Celsius account unable to be withdrawn, despite Alex's claims mere hours before withdrawals were closed that nobody has any issue withdrawing from Celsius and that everything you hear to the contrary is simply 'fud' [fear, uncertainty and doubt]."Some said they have even contemplated suicide if they can't retrieve their funds.Katie Davis of Australia pleaded with the judge for the return of the $138,000 she and her husband have stranded on the Celsius platform."The thought of losing that amount of money is horrifying," Davis wrote."If I do not get that back, I will end my life as the loss will impact my family and I significantly," she wrote.Mashinsky did not immediately respond to CNBC's request for comment.If you or someone you know is in crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255.

Homeless, suicidal, down to last $1,000: Celsius investors beg bankruptcy judge for help.

(Click here to subscribe to the Delivering Alpha newsletter.)The market has seen tremendous price swings this year - whether it comes to equities, fixed income, currencies, or commodities — but volatility expert Paul Britton doesn't think it ends there. Britton is the founder and CEO of the $9.5 billion derivatives firm, Capstone Investment Advisors. He sat down with CNBC's Leslie Picker to explain why he thinks investors should expect an uptick in the amount of concerning headlines, contagion worries, and volatility in the second half of the year. (The below has been edited for length and clarity. See above for full video.)Leslie Picker: Let's start out — if you could just give us a read on how all of this market volatility is factoring into the real economy. Because it seems like there is somewhat of a difference right now.Paul Britton: I think you're absolutely right. I think the first half of this year has really been a story of the market trying to reprice growth and understand what it means to have a 3.25, 3.5 handle on the Fed funds rate. So really, it's been a math exercise of the market determining what it's willing to pay for and a future cash flow position once you input a 3.5 handle when to stock valuations. So, it's been kind of a story, what we say is of two halves. The first half has been the market determining the multiples. And it hasn't really been an enormous amount of panic or fear within the market, obviously, outside of the events that we see in Ukraine. Picker: There really hasn't been this kind of cataclysmic fallout this year, so far. Do you expect to see one as the Fed continues to raise interest rates?Britton: If we'd had this interview at the beginning of the year, remember, when we last spoke? If you'd said to me, "Well, Paul, where would you predict the volatility markets to be based upon the broader base markets being down 15%, 17%, as much as 20%-25%?' I would have given you a much higher level as to where they currently stand right now. So, I think that's an interesting dynamic that's occurred. And there's a whole variety of reasons which are way too boring to go into great detail. But ultimately, it's really been an exercise for the market to determine and get the equilibrium as to what it's willing to pay, based around this extraordinary move and interest rates. And now what the market is willing to pay from a future cash flow standpoint. I think the second half of the year is a lot more interesting. I think the second half of the year is ultimately - comes to roost around balance sheets trying to determine and factor in a real, extraordinary move in interest rates. And what does that do to balance sheets? So, Capstone, we believe that that means that CFOs and ultimately, corporate balance sheets are going to determine how they're going to fare based around a certainly a new level of interest rates that we haven't seen for the last 10 years. And most importantly, we haven't seen the speed of these rising interest rates for the last 40 years. So, I struggle — and I've been doing this for so long now — I struggle to believe that that's not going to catch out certain operators that haven't turned out their balance sheet, that haven't turned out the debt. And so, whether that's in a levered loan space, whether that's in high yield, I don't think it's going to impact the large, multi-cap, IG credit companies. I think that you'll see some surprises, and that's what we're getting ready for. That's what we're preparing for because I think that's phase two. Phase two could see a credit cycle, where you get these idiosyncratic moves and these idiosyncratic events, that for the likes of CNBC and the viewers of CNBC, perhaps will be surprised by some of these surprises, and that could cause a change of behavior, at least from the volatility market standpoint.Picker: And that's what I was referring to when I said we haven't really seen a cataclysmic event. We've seen volatility for sure, but we haven't seen massive amounts of stress in the banking system. We haven't seen waves of bankruptcies, we haven't seen a full blown recession — some debate the definition of a recession. Are those things coming? Or is just this time fundamentally different?Britton: Ultimately, I don't think that we're going to see — when the dust settles, and when we meet, and you are talking in two years' time - I don't think that we'll see a remarkable uptick in the amount of bankruptcies and defaults etc. What I think that you will see, in every cycle, that you will see headlines hit on CNBC, etc, that will cause the investor to question whether there's contagion within the system. Meaning that if one company's releases something which, really spooks investors, whether that's the inability to be able to raise finance, raise debt, or whether it's the ability that they're having some issues with cash, then investors like me, and you are going to then say, "Well hang on a second. If they're having problems, then does that mean that other people within that sector, that space, that industry is having similar problems? And should I readjust my position, my portfolio to make sure that there isn't a contagion?" So, ultimately, I don't think you're going to see a huge uptick in the amount of defaults, when the dust has settled. What I do think is that you're going to see a period of time where you start to see numerous amounts of headlines, just simply because it's an extraordinary move in interest rates. And I struggle to see how that's not going to impact every person, every CFO, every U.S. corporate. And I don't buy this notion that every U.S. corporate and every global corporate has got their balance sheet in such perfect condition that they can sustain an interest rate hike that we've [been] experiencing right now.Picker: What does the Fed have in terms of a recourse here? If the scenario you outlined does play out, does the Fed have tools in its tool kit right now to be able to get the economy back on track?Britton: I think it's an incredibly difficult job that they're faced with right now. They've made it very clear that they're willing to sacrifice growth at the expense to ensure that they want to extinguish the flames of inflation. So, it's a very large aircraft that they're managing and from our standpoint, it is a very narrow and very short runway strip. So, to be able to do that successfully, that is definitely a possibility. We just think that it's [an] unlikely possibility that they nail the landing perfectly, where they can dampen inflation, make sure that they get the supply chain criteria and dynamics back on track without ultimately creating too much demand destruction. What I find more interesting - at least that we debate internally at Capstone - is what does this mean from a future standpoint of what the Fed is going to be doing from a medium-term and a long-term standpoint? From our standpoint, the market has now changed its behavior and that from our standpoint makes a structural change…I don't think that their intervention is going to be as aggressive as it once was these past 10, 12 years post-GFC. And most importantly for us is that we look at it and say, "What is the actual size of their response?" So, many investors, many institutional investors, talk about the Fed put, and they've had a great deal of comfort over the years, that if the market is faced with a catalyst that needs calming, needs stability injected into the market. I will make a strong case that I don't think that that put was - what's described as obviously the Fed put — I think it's a lot further out of the money and more importantly, I think the size of that intervention — so, in essence, the size of the Fed put — is going to be significantly smaller than what it has been historically, just simply because I don't think any central banker wants to be back in this situation with arguably runaway inflation. So, that means, I believe that this boom bust cycle that we've been in these past 12-13 years, I think that ultimately that behavior has changed, and the central banks are going to be much more in a position to let markets determine their equilibrium and markets ultimately be more freer.Picker: And so, given this whole backdrop — and I appreciate you laying out a possible scenario that we could see — how should investors be positioning their portfolio? Because there's a lot of factors at play, a lot of uncertainty as well.Britton: It's a question that we ask ourselves at Capstone. We run a large complex portfolio of many different strategies and when we look at the analysis and we determine what we think some possible outcomes are, we all draw the same conclusion that if the Fed isn't going to intervene as quickly as once they used to. And if the intervention and size of those programs are going to be smaller than what they were historically, then you can draw a couple of conclusions, which ultimately tells you that, if we do get an event and we do get a catalyst, then the level of volatility that you're going to be exposed to is just simply going to be higher, because that put, an intervention is going to be further away. So, that means that you're going to have to sustain volatility for longer. And ultimately, we worry that when you do get the intervention, it will be smaller than what the market was hoping for, and so that will cause a greater degree of volatility as well. So, what can investors do about it? Obviously, I'm biased. I'm an options trader, I'm a derivatives trader, and I'm a volatility expert. So [from] my standpoint I look at ways to try and build in downside protection - options, strategies, volatility strategies - within my portfolio. And ultimately, if you don't have access to those types of strategies, then it's thinking about running your scenarios to determine, "If we do get a sell off, and we do get a higher level of volatility than perhaps what we've experienced before, how can I position my portfolio?" Whether that is with using strategies such as minimum volatility, or more defensive stocks within your portfolio, I think they're all good options. But the most important thing is to do the work to be able to ensure that when you're running your portfolio through different types of cycles and scenarios, that you're comfortable with the end result.

Paul Britton, CEO of $9.5 billion derivatives firm, says the market hasn't seen the worst of it.

Moderna, PayPal lead Nasdaq higher A broad rally on Wall Street is being led by the Nasdaq Composite, which has jumped 2.6% today.The top mover among major Nasdaq stocks is Moderna, which surged 16% on the back of a blowout earnings report. That move appears to be boosting other biotech stocks, with Gilead and Regeneron rising 6.1% and 5.8%, respectively.Elsewhere, PayPal has gained more than 8% after the payments company reported strong earnings and a new information-sharing agreement with activist firm Elliott Management.— Jesse PoundS&P 500 now up 13% from June low as Wall Street's rebound gets back on trackThe July rally for Wall Street appears to have resumed, as the S&P 500 is now up more than 13% from its recent low on June 16.At its June low, the S&P 500 was down more than 23% from its record high, putting it firmly in bear market territory.Now, the index is down about 13.4% from its high watermark.The rally for stocks has also been accompanied by a rebound for bonds. The benchmark 10-year Treasury was trading near 2.77% on Wednesday, down from nearly 3.5% in mid-June.— Jesse PoundS&P 500 erases losses from earlier in the week The S&P 500 rallied up 1.61% Wednesday, hitting its highest level since June. The gains also erased all losses from the average's two-day slide earlier in the week. —Carmen ReinickeFord rises on solid July sales figuresFord's Chief Financial Officer (CFO), John Lawler and Linda Zhang, Chief Engineer for the company's All Electric F-150 Lightning participate in the opening bell ceremony at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, New York, U.S., April 28, 2022. Brendan Mcdermid | ReutersShares of Ford gained more than 3% in intraday trading Wednesday after the automaker released its July sales figures. The report showed new vehicle sales increased 36.3% on the year, where industry-wide estimates anticipated a slowdown.—Carmen ReinickeOil falls on surprise U.S. supply increase, drop in gasoline demandJohn Kilduff of Again Capital called gasoline demand "depressed," even though prices have been falling.Kilduff said some traders had expected OPEC plus to add more oil to the market, but OPEC leader Saudi Arabia is near capacity. "The Saudis are actually pumping at the highest level since March, 2020. Over 11 million barrels a day," Kilduff said.—Patti DommStocks near session highs at middayAll three major averages were near session highs midday Wednesday, shaking off a two-day slide. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 336 points, or 1.04%. The S&P 500 gained 1.25% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite increased 2.11%. —Carmen ReinickeStocks could retest June lows, Evercore ISI's Julian Emanuel saysEvercore ISI's Julian Emanuel doesn't think we've seen the bottom yet in the bear market, and will once again challenge June lows, even as investors remain 'complacent' after last month's rally.The strategist believes investors are overly optimistic, pointing to elevated options and meme stock trading, given slowing growth and troubling signs in bond yields that indicate more trouble ahead for equity markets."The falling yield story has likely run its course and that too, is a headwind for stocks, but the options market is telling you that people just aren't really concerned about too much," Emanuel said on CNBC's "Squawk on the Street.""And that to us is much more typical of sort of late cycle August coming into September, which tends to be a dangerous month, type of behavior," he added.— Sarah MinRobinhood stock jumps after analysts say layoffs will improve profitability Vlad Tenev, CEO and co-founder Robinhood Markets, Inc., is displayed on a screen during his company’s IPO at the Nasdaq Market site in Times Square in New York City, U.S., July 29, 2021.Brendan McDermid | ReutersShares of Robinhood surged more than 13% Wednesday, just a day after the company announced it would lay off about 23% of its workforce. It is the second time the company has said in recent months it will trim staff - it also cut 9% of its workforce in April.But those job cuts will help the company going forward, boosting profitability and shares, analysts argued in notes following the news.Read more on CNBC PRO.—Carmen ReinickeTechnicals point to June low marking the start of a new bull market, Ned Davis data showsChances of the June low being the start of a new bull market are increasing, data compiled by Ned Davis Research shows.The firm noted that several breadth indicators show that the market's performance since hitting an intraday low on June 17 is more indicative of a new bull starting — rather than another bear market rally. The S&P 500 is up more than 12% in that time frame.Check out the full story on CNBC Pro.—Fred ImbertBond yields continue big move higher on hawkish Fed, better services dataTreasury yields are continuing a rapid march higher, on hawkish comments from multiple Federal Reserve officials and after stronger-than-expected data on the services sector.The benchmark 10-year yield was at a high of 2.81%, continuing the bounce started right after it touched a low of 2.52% Tuesday morning. That yield was ended last week at 2.65%. The 2-year yield, which most closely follows Fed policy, was at 3.14%, up sharply from Friday's close of 2.89%."I think really the story here is markets were really embracing the idea that we're going to have an imminent recession," said Jan Nevruzi, NatWest Markets rate strategist. "That is just not showing up."ISM Services, released at 10 a.m. ET, came in above estimates at 56.7 from 55.3 in June.Fed officials continued their hawkish comments Wednesday, after a parade of speakers drove rates sharply higher Tuesday. St. Louis Fed President James Bullard told CNBC Wednesday that he wants rates to get to 3.75%-4.00% this year.  That would be higher than the current Fed forecast for 3.25%-3.5%. The futures market had been pricing for a Fed pause in hiking but Fed officials have made clear their work is not done and inflation is still high. Bullard also said he does not currently see a recession. Some bond strategists said they believe yields may have set a near-term low Tuesday.—Patti DommStocks hit session highs after strong ISM reportThe major averages built on their earlier gains after the release of stronger-than-expected U.S. services data. The Dow Jones Industrial Average traded more than 200 points higher, or 0.8%. The S&P 500 gained 1%, and the Nasdaq Composite rallied 1.8%. —Fred ImbertServices data shows surprise reboundInvestors received some positive economic news on Wednesday morning. The ISM non-manufacturing purchasing managers index showed a surprise rebound in July. The reading came in at 56.7, above 55.3 in June. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones were expecting 54. June factory orders also came in better than expected, rising 2%. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones were expecting a gain of 1.2%.— Jesse PoundMeme stock mania makes a comeback?Wild trading in an obscure Hong Kong-based fintech firm is turning heads on Wall Street and sparking conversations about meme stock mania again.AMTD Digital saw its shares skyrocket 126% Tuesday alone after experiencing a series of trading halts. It's a subsidiary of investment holding firm AMTD Idea Group, went public in mid-July with its American depositary receipts trading on the NYSE. Two weeks later, the stock is up 21,400% to $1,679 apiece from its IPO price of $7.80."As we've learned over the past two years, events like this cause what I would say is opportunities for profit but great risk for loss particularly for our retail investors," Jay Clayton, former SEC chairman, said on CNBC's "Squawk Box" Wednesday.— Yun LiStocks rise at market open Stocks were higher at Wednesday's open, rebounding after two days of losses. The S&P 500 gained 0.73%, the Nasdaq Composite rose 1.19% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 221.31 points, or 0.68%. — Carmen ReinickeOPEC+ set to increase oil production by tiny amount OPEC and its allies on Wednesday agreed to raise oil production by a small amount, 100,000 barrels per day, in response to President Joe Biden's trip to Saudi Arabia last month. During the visit, Biden had aimed to persuade the group's leader to pump more oil to help the U.S. economy and global supply. The miniscule raise is seen as a rebuff. — Carmen ReinickeStarbucks shares tick up after earnings release Starbucks barista Brick Zurek, standing in front of the downtown Starbucks on Wabash Avenue, on May 11, 2022, has been organizing for union representation with Starbucks Workers United. The Wabash Avenue location was the first Starbucks in Chicago to file for union representation with the National Labor Relations Board. (Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)Chris Sweda | Tribune News Service | Getty ImagesShares of Starbucks gained nearly 2% in premarket trading after the coffee chain posted quarterly earnings Tuesday after the bell. The company beat expectations on earnings and revenue, boosted by U.S. demand for cold drinks even amid high inflation."We had actually record customer counts and record average weekly sales," during the last quarter, Rachel Ruggeri, Starbucks chief financial officer, said on CNBC's "Squawk Box."— Carmen ReinickeModerna rises after beating earnings expectationsShares of Moderna rose nearly 4% in premarket trading after the covid-19 vaccine maker posted quarterly results that beat Wall Street's expectations for both profit and revenue. In addition, the company announced $3 billion in share buybacks, and maintained its full-year outlook.— Carmen ReinickePotential earnings revisions are a risk for second half, RBC's Calvasina says This earnings season, results have generally come in higher than Wall Street's expectations, showing that companies are faring current economic conditions better than analysts hoped, RBC head of U.S. equity strategy Lori Calvasina wrote in a Wednesday note. "The good news for the US equity market is that evidence of resilience continues to be seen in corporate earnings," Calvasina said. "The bad news for the US equity market is that the possibility of further downward earnings revisions remains a risk as we get deeper into the 2 nd half of the year."So far, estimates for earnings and revenue in the second half of 2022 and for the full-year 2023 have come down. Still, the strength of corporate earnings this quarter may suggest that any upcoming economic downturn will be short and shallow, according to Calvasina. That's good for stocks now, but could set them up for further volatility. "That's been supportive of stock prices over the past few weeks, but going forward it also tells us that the rally in stocks is fragile given the possibility of further downward earnings revisions as 2023 comes into view," she said. — Carmen ReinickeCVS gains on earnings beatShares of CVS Health rose more than 3% in premarket trading after the company reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings before the opening bell. The company also lifted its earnings outlook for the year, saying health services is helping boost sales. — Carmen ReinickePelosi leaves TaiwanHouse Speaker Nancy Pelosi left Taiwan on Wednesday after a visit that increased tensions with China and rattled financial markets a bit.Pelosi met with Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen on Wednesday. China, which considers the disputed island part of its territory, increased military drills in the Taiwan strait amid her visit. The S&P 500 is down about 1% this week as traders worried about the ramifications of Pelosi's trip for China relations. But the market was set for a bit of a relief rally on Wednesday following her departure.—John MelloyAMD shares fall on weak revenue guidanceShares of AMD traded 5% lower in the premarket after the chipmaker issued third-quarter revenue guidance that was below analyst expectations. AMD said it expects $6.7 billion in revenue for the third quarter, below a Refinitiv forecast of $6.82 billion.The disappointing guidance overshadowed better-than-expected earnings and revenue for the second quarter. —Fred ImbertEuropean markets mixed as cautious sentiment persists; Avast up 42%European stocks were mixed on Wednesday, continuing the cautious regional trend this week.The pan-European Stoxx 600 slipped 0.2% in early trade, with autos falling 1.5% while tech stocks gained 1.2%.It's a busy day for earnings in Europe, with Commerzbank, SocGen, BMW, Banco BPM, Siemens Healthineers, Veolia and Wolters Kluwer among the companies reporting before the bell.Shares of Czech cybersecurity firm Avast soared 42% after the U.K.'s competition regulator provisionally cleared its $8.6 billion sale to U.S. peer NortonLifeLock.— Elliot SmithFocus on data, not what Fed speakers are saying, Art Hogan saysDespite the "parade of Fed speakers," that's not what investors should focus on, according to Art Hogan, chief market strategist at B. Riley Financial."I think that investors have to pay more attention to what the data is telling us than what every individual Fed speaker, whether they're a voter or not, has to say about what our expectations should be," Hogan told CNBC's "Squawk Box Asia."Still, he said Fed officials have been able to shift expectations for where Fed policy is heading.St. Louis Federal Reserve President James Bullard on Tuesday said the central bank will need to keep hiking rates, and the Fed funds rate likely will have to go to 3.75%-4% by the end of 2022. San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly said "our work is far from done" in fighting inflation, while Chicago Fed President Charles Evans said another large rate hike is possible, though he hopes it can be avoided.After last week's meeting, some expected the Fed would continue hiking to reach 3.25%-3.5% before pivoting in 2023, Hogan said."I think the parade of Fed speakers this week has done a pretty good job of pulling that back, tamping down those expectations," he said.— Abigail NgThese stocks are poised for a comeback if inflation peaks, Jefferies saysA slowdown could be on the horizon, and more earnings downgrades ahead have been predicted. If inflation also peaks, as some analysts expect it to, that mix of factors will favor one class of stocks, Jefferies says.Jefferies produced a screen of such stocks that investors can buy, based on a list of metrics which include high profitability, reasonable valuations and good cashflows. Pro subscribers can read the story here.— Weizhen TanPayPal rises on earnings, share buyback announcementPayPal shares soared by more than 11% after hours. The payments company beat analysts' earnings and revenue estimates for the second quarter and issued upbeat full-year guidance. PayPal also announced a $15 billion share repurchasing program.Stock buybacks provide a way for companies to boost their per-share earnings and enhance the value of their stock, particularly while the market across the board suffers steep price declines this year. The company kicked off a $10 billion program four years ago.Elliott Management said it has a $2 billion stake in the payments giant. PayPal announced that it entered an information-sharing agreement on value creation with the activist investor.— Tanaya MacheelDespite Fedspeak about fighting inflation, an ‘easing cycle’ is emerging says Leuthold’s Jim PaulsenLeuthold Group chief investment strategist Jim Paulsen said that despite the Federal Reserve's "ongoing lip service toward fighting inflation" by tightening monetary policy, there are several factors that suggest the market may be entering an "emerging easing cycle."Bond yields have achieved a sizable rate cut, the dollar is finally rolling over and junk spreads have pulled back, he said in a note to investors late Tuesday. "The media, policy officials, and investors focus primarily on the war against inflation and how aggressively the Fed will need to keep hiking rates," Paulsen said. "Yet, with real economic growth already reduced to a crawl and evidence building that inflation is easing, the case for further Fed tightening at its September meeting is rapidly falling apart.""Investors should place appropriate weight on the leading nature of economic policies," he added. "Tightening today means lower real and nominal growth tomorrow."— Tanaya MacheelMatchGroup shares tumble after hoursShares of the dating app operator Match Group tumbled as much as 23% after the company reported revenue of $795 million for the second quarter, compared with FactSet estimates of $803.9 million. Match also issued weak guidance around adjusted operating income and revenue for the current quarter.— Tanaya Macheel

Dow rallies 400 points as investors cheer strong U.S. economic data, earnings.

A child looks back at a banner for Roblox, displayed to celebrate the company's IPO, on the front facade of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, U.S., March 10, 2021. REUTERS/Brendan McDermidRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comLaw firmsRelated documents(Reuters) - A line of dolls based on Roblox Corp's online gaming avatars violates its copyrights and trademarks, the company said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday in San Francisco federal court.WowWee Group Ltd's "My Avastars" dolls unlawfully copy the distinctive blocky designs of player avatars in Roblox's popular game platform, and were not authorized despite WowWee's partnership with an in-game designer, Roblox said.Roblox declined to comment on the lawsuit. WowWee did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comRoblox is one of the world's most popular online gaming sites and one of the first companies to focus on the metaverse. Its platform allows users to build "experiences" like games, events, and virtual places, which they visit with character avatars.Roblox's Monday lawsuit said Hong Kong-based WowWee teamed with one of the most popular experience developers, Gamefam, to create a line of personalized dolls that match player avatars in a role-playing experience called "My Avastars: RP."Gamefam is not a defendant in the case, and did not immediately respond to a request for comment."Observing the centrality of Roblox's avatars to its success, WowWee saw a chance for a quick buck," the lawsuit said, and "chose to exploit Roblox's success — its brand, its reputation, its goodwill, and its intellectual property — without ever involving Roblox."Roblox also said it already has a deal with another company, Jazwares LLC, to make avatar dolls, and that WowWee never asked for a similar license.The lawsuit accused WowWee of infringing Roblox's copyrights and trademark rights, breaching its terms of use, and falsely advertising that the dolls were affiliated with Roblox. It asked the court to block sales of the dolls and requested an unspecified amount of money damages.The case is Roblox Corp v. WowWee Group Ltd, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, No. 3:22-cv-04476.For Roblox: Andrew Gass and Sarah Ray of Latham & WatkinsFor WowWee: not availableRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.Blake BrittainThomson ReutersBlake Brittain reports on intellectual property law, including patents, trademarks, copyrights and trade secrets. Reach him at [email protected]

Roblox sues tech toymaker WowWee over avatar figurines.

U.S. August 3, 2022 / 12:39 PM / AP The husband of U.S. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi pleaded not guilty Wednesday to misdemeanor driving under the influence charges related to a May car crash in Northern California wine country. Paul Pelosi, 82, did not appear in person at Napa County Superior Court Wednesday. His attorney Amanda Bevins entered not guilty pleas for him on charges of driving under the influence of alcohol causing injury and driving with a .08% blood alcohol level or higher causing injury.State law allows for DUI misdemeanor defendants to appear through their attorney unless ordered otherwise by the court. He was arrested following a May 28 crash in Napa County, north of San Francisco, after a DUI test showed he had a blood alcohol content level of .082%. The blood sample was taken about two hours after the collision occurred at 10:17 p.m., the Napa County District Attorney's Office said in a statement.Pelosi was driving a 2021 Porsche into an intersection near the wine country town of Yountville that was hit by a 2014 Jeep, according to the California Highway Patrol. Prosecutors filed the case as a misdemeanor because of the injuries sustained by the 48-year-old driver of the Jeep. They have not described the injuries or provided more information about the other driver, saying the person has requested privacy. Pelosi was released on $5,000 bail after his arrest.If convicted, Pelosi faces up to a minimum of five days in jail and up to five years of probation. He would also be required to complete a drinking driver class and install an ignition interlock device in his vehicle — a breathalyzer that requires the driver to blow into it before operating the vehicle, prosecutors said. Pelosi has been married to the powerful Democratic speaker since 1963. She is traveling in Asia this week. In: Monkeypox Nancy Pelosi California Crime San Francisco Napa

Paul Pelosi, Nancy Pelosi's husband, pleads not guilty to DUI misdemeanor charges.

The Amil Participacoes SA's headquarters is pictured in Rio de Janeiro on October 8, 2012 just before UnitedHealth Group Inc bought it. REUTERS/Ricardo Moraes/File PhotoRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comSAO PAULO, Aug 3 (Reuters) - UnitedHealth Group Inc (UNH.N), the top U.S. healthcare company by market capitalization, is struggling to sell Brazilian unit Amil due to antitrust issues and growing losses from individual health plans, according to four people with knowledge of the matter.After studying ways to divest Amil 10 years after acquiring it, UnitedHealth decided last month to suspend the sale process, the sources said, asking for anonymity because the discussions were private.UnitedHealth had agreed to pay acquirers for Amil's loss-making units and lose money on the sale of the whole company, but did not receive an attractive proposal, the sources added.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comThe latest talks involved Brazilian medical labs company Diagnosticos de America SA, or Dasa (DASA3.SA), and the insurance unit of Banco Bradesco SA (BBDC4.SA). As Dasa shares fell 44% this year, the idea of a deal paid partially in shares became much less viable, the people added.UnitedHealth declined to comment on details of its Brazilian operations or negotiations."UHG is a long term investor in Brazil, first entering the market in 2012, and UHG intends to continue to serve the Brazilian health care market," UnitedHealth spokesman Matthew Stearns said in an e-mailed statement.Private equity funds also looked at the deal, but decided not to bid due to its complexity, a fifth source said.Dasa and Bradesco proposed delayed payment while keeping UnitedHealth as minority shareholder, which the U.S. company rejected, the sources added.Dasa and Bradesco declined to comment. BTG Pactual, which is handling the mandate, did not reply to a request for comment.UnitedHealth had accepted to lose money on the sale, as it had become clear that it would not fetch the $5 billion it paid for the company 10 years ago, according to the people. The value of the Brazil business is now estimated at $1 billion, said two of the sources.UnitedHealth has not booked any loss related to Amil. In January, the company changed how it reports international businesses. Amil is now part of the employer & individual health plan division, which includes operations in the United States.Some of Amil's largest rivals, such as hospital chain Rede D'Or Sao Luiz SA (RDOR3.SA), had looked into a potential acquisition in January, sources said, but closed other deals after that, creating potential antitrust restrictions.Rede D'Or announced in February acquisition of insurer SulAmerica SA (SULA11.SA)..Rede D'Or did not immediately respond to requests for comment.REGULATORY HEADACHESUnitedHealth Group CEO Andrew Witty took the decision to sell Amil soon after taking the helm last year, one of the sources said.UnitedHealth has 3.4 million health insurance beneficiaries in Brazil, 2.2 million clients of dental benefits, and owns and manages 31 hospitals and 82 clinics. The Brazilian hospitals and part of the insurance portfolio are profitable, sources said.Gaps in the public healthcare system have led a growing number of Brazilians to rely on private health insurance, which now serves around 49 million people.However, decisions by Brazilian healthcare regulator ANS have created headaches for the segment since UnitedHealth acquired Amil. Its portfolio of 340,000 individual healthcare plans is subject to the regulator's strict pricing caps, while coverage has expanded due to rulings by courts and regulators.Many insurers in Brazil stopped selling individual health plans due to mounting losses, but Amil cannot cancel its existing portfolio.Under one proposal, UnitedHealth offered to pay an investment firm $550 million to take over the individual insurance portfolio, but regulators blocked the deal. read more Meanwhile, UnitedHealth has almost tripled its global revenue since acquiring Amil in 2012, to $290 billion last year, dwarfing its investment in Brazil. In addition to health plans, UnitedHealth runs pharmacy services, data analytics and medical practices.($1 = 5.4039 reais)Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Tatiana Bautzer; Editing by Caroline Humer, Brad Haynes, Sandra Maler and David HolmesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

EXCLUSIVE UnitedHealth struggling to sell Brazilian unit Amil - sources.

Ford F-150 Lightning at the 2022 New York Auto Show.Scott Mlyn | CNBCDETROIT – Ford Motor's U.S. vehicle sales last month showed notable improvements in volumes and truck availability, following a fire at a supplier's plant in Japan that hurt its year-ago sales.The Detroit automaker said Wednesday its new vehicle sales rose 36.6% in July from a year ago, compared to industry sales that were estimated to have declined by 10.5%. Ford's July sales of 163,942 vehicles were up 7.7% from June.A year ago, Ford's vehicle production and sales were down more than other automakers due to a fire at one of its chip suppliers in Japan that forced production cuts during the first half of 2021.Ford's stock was up by as much as 6.5% during trading Wednesday morning to $16.15 a share. Despite having its best performance last month since the Great Recession, the stock remains down about 24% in 2022.Sales of Ford's profitable F-Series pickups hit 63,341 in July – marking the first time units have topped 60,000 this year. The sales were up 21.1% compared to a year ago and up roughly 10% from the previous month.Ford said its share of the U.S. electric vehicle market last month hit a record 10.9%, as the company increases production and availability of the F-150 Lightning pickup, Mustang Mach-E crossover and E-Transit van.Ford said electric vehicle sales totaled 30,648 units through July. That included sales of about 7,700 vehicles in July, which was 169% increase from a year ago.Sales of all Ford's vehicles, including its luxury Lincoln brand, totaled more than 1 million units through July, a 3.3% decrease from a year ago. At the end of last month, the automaker's U.S. vehicle inventory was about 245,000 units, up from 160,000 in July 2021.Cox Automotive expects total U.S. vehicle sales to be 14.4 million units in 2022, down from a previous forecast of 15.3 million, due to greater than expected supply chain issues. At current sales rates, new-vehicle sales this year would finish below 2020, when the coronavirus pandemic forced dealers and factories to temporarily shutter.

Ford reports big jump in July sales, including for trucks and electric vehicles.

Team Hy Flyers Phil Mickelson of the U.S. speaks to the media after the first round of the inaugural LIV Golf Invitational, June 9, 2022.Paul Childs | Action Images via ReutersEleven professional golfers filed an antitrust lawsuit against the PGA Tour Wednesday after being suspended from playing in the tour over their involvement with the Saudi-backed LIV league. The complaint, filed with the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, ratchets up an ongoing battle between LIV Golf and the PGA Tour.Phil Mickelson, Bryson DeChambeau, Ian Poulter and Talor Gooch, among others, allege in the filing that the PGA's restrictive policies are an attempt to choke off the supply of professional golfers to LIV, thus limiting LIV's ability to compete with the tour.The golfers are asking that their suspensions be lifted and for unspecified monetary damages. Three of the plaintiffs — Gooch, Hudson Swafford and Matt Jones — are further requesting a temporary restraining order against the Tour allowing them to participate in the FedEx Cup Playoffs for which they qualified and which start next week.The PGA Tour didn't immediately return request for comment Wednesday. The tour suspended 17 players in June for playing in the LIV Golf Tournament without getting the proper media clearances.The lawsuit highlights what it describes as restrictive media rights and conflicting event regulations in calling the PGA Tour "an entrenched monopolist with a vice-grip on professional golf" executing a "carefully orchestrated plan to defeat competition."The complaint alleges that, beyond suspensions and regulations, the PGA Tour threatened sponsors, vendors and agents to coerce players into leaving LIV Golf."The players are right to have brought this action to challenge the PGA's anti-competitive rules and to vindicate their rights as independent contractors to play where and when they choose," LIV Golf said in a statement. "Despite the PGA Tour's effort to stifle competition, we think golfers should be allowed to play golf."Last month, the PGA Tour confirmed the Justice Department is also investigating potential antitrust violations tied to LIV Golf.Meanwhile, the PGA Tour has been lobbying lawmakers and White House officials, pushing for opposition to the Saudi league.—CNBC's Jessica Golden, Dan Mangan and Kevin Breuninger contributed to this report.

Mickelson, DeChambeau and other LIV golfers file antitrust lawsuit against PGA Tour over suspensions.

A barista makes coffee for a customer in Houston, Texas, U.S., March 10, 2021. REUTERS/Callaghan O'Hare/File PhotoRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comSummaryServices sector PMI increases 1.4 points to 56.7 in JulyNew orders up solidly; prices post biggest drop since 2017Employment measure improves; worker shortages persistWASHINGTON, Aug 3 (Reuters) - The U.S. services industry unexpectedly picked up in July as new orders grew solidly, supporting views that the economy was not in recession despite output slumping in the first half.The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) survey on Wednesday also showed supply bottlenecks were easing while a measure of prices paid by businesses dropped by the most since 2017, benefiting in part from declining commodity prices. But shortages of labor, especially truck drivers, persisted."The recovery's best days are clearly in the rear-view mirror, but this doesn't mean a downturn has begun," said Oren Klachkin, lead U.S. economist at Oxford Economics in New York. "Fundamentals are strong enough to prevent a recession this year, though the window to achieving a softish landing is narrowing."Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comThe ISM's non-manufacturing PMI rebounded to a reading of 56.7 last month from 55.3 in June, ending three straight monthly declines. Thirteen industries, including mining, public administration and wholesale trade reported growth. But agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting, as well as retail trade and finance and insurance contracted.Economists polled by Reuters had forecast the non-manufacturing PMI decreasing to 53.5. A reading above 50 indicates expansion in the services sector, which accounts for more than two-thirds of U.S. economic activity.The surprise rebound followed the ISM's manufacturing survey on Monday showing factory activity slowing moderately last month. It was in stark contrast with the S&P Global survey showing the services sector shrinking in July.The government reported last week that the economy contracted 1.3% in the January-June period.Wild swings in inventories and the trade deficit tied to snarled global supply chains have been largely to blame. Overall economic momentum has, however, cooled as the Federal Reserve aggressively tightens monetary policy to fight inflation."The ISM activity is consistent with GDP growth of close to 2% annualized, rather than the outright declines seen over the first half of the year," said Michael Pearce, senior U.S. economist at Capital Economics in New York. "With borrowing costs down from their June peak, and falling gasoline prices likely to feed through to rising real disposable incomes, the immediate outlook for services is looking a little brighter."National average gasoline prices have dropped from above $5 per gallon in July to $4.16 on Wednesday, according to AAA.Stocks on Wall Street were trading higher. The dollar rose against a basket of currencies. Most U.S. Treasury yields climbed to two-week highs.WEAK SPOTS EMERGINGThe ISM's measure of new orders received by services businesses shot up to 59.9 from 55.6 in June. Businesses reported a rise in exports.Services activity is being supported by a shift in spending from goods. But signs of weakness are mounting.Accommodation and food services businesses reported that "restaurant sales have softened the past few weeks." Businesses in the management of companies and support services sector said they "can feel the economy weakening," and that "clients are making appropriate moves in anticipation of a recession."Retailers said they were "in inventory reduction mode, attempting to match inventory levels to current lower sales trends." In the public administration sector, there was "pressure of a job market shortage for qualified workers to increase wages and other benefits."The ISM's services industry employment gauge improved to 49.1 from 47.4 in June, which was the lowest reading since July 2020. Though demand for workers in industries like construction, wholesale and retail trade is easing, labor remains in short supply. According to the survey, companies reported "employee turnover, backfills taking longer to locate and onboard."Businesses also said they were experiencing "difficulties hiring new candidates as we lose more people who retire or leave the company for new opportunities."The government reported on Tuesday that there were 10.7 million job openings at the end of June, with 1.8 openings for every unemployed person. read more The survey's measure of supplier deliveries fell to 58.3 from 61.9 in June, helping to slow the pace of increase in services inflation. A reading above 50 indicates slower deliveries. Backlog orders were also reduced.Goods like appliances, computer hardware, electrical components, paper products as well as needles and syringes remained in short supply.A gauge of prices paid by services industries for inputs declined to 72.3, the lowest reading since February 2021, from 80.1 in June. The 7.8 percentage points drop was largest since May 2017. This, together with a moderation in prices at the factory gate in July, suggests that inflation has probably peaked. read more "The recent easing in prices may in part be due to the move lower in commodity prices, but nonetheless this broad easing of price pressure will be welcome news for policymakers tasked with quelling inflation," said Shannon Seery, an economist at Wells Fargo in New York.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting By Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Chizu NomiyamaOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

U.S. services sector surprises with momentum; supply, price pressures easing.

If you don't have rich parents, the difference between riding in coach and taking private jets might depend on where you grow up.That's according to a study published in the scientific journal Nature in two parts on Monday. Researchers who studied 21 billion Facebook friendships found that children have a higher chance of eventually climbing social and professional ladders if they're friends with kids in higher-income families. And such socioeconomic mingling is more common in some parts of the country than others, the study noted.The study's authors measured the "social connectedness" — or meaningful interaction between rich and poor residents — in counties across America, and determined that "if children with low-income parents were to grow up in counties with economic connectedness comparable to that of the average child with high-income parents, their incomes in adulthood would increase by 20% on average."The study also noted that the value of social connectedness "is equivalent to the difference in average outcomes between a child who grows up in a family that makes $47,000 a year instead of $27,000 a year."Out of the country's 200 largest counties, these are the study's top 11 cities where such social connectedness thrives:San FranciscoUtah County, UtahLoudoun, VirginiaSnohomish, WashingtonNorfolk, MassachusettsFairfax County, VirginiaSan Mateo, CaliforniaWaukesha, WisconsinSanta Clara, CaliforniaDavis, UtahHonoluluSan Francisco leads the pack: Residents have roughly an 80% chance of being exposed to high-income peers, and poorer people are about 6% more likely to befriend someone in a higher income household, the study said.The reason has nothing to do with admiring your friends' fancy cars or designer bags. Rather, wealthy parents often pour resources into teaching their children how to network, apply for jobs and acquire a bevy of professional skills — and the children tend to share their learnings with the people around them, according to the study.Matthew Jackson, an economics professor at Stanford and one of the study's authors, says several factors could explain why the phenomenon is more common in some cities than others, ranging from the size of local high schools to the particular attitudes of specific communities.One of the largest factors is the average income of a city's residents, Jackson says: The median household income in San Francisco is $119,000 per year, according to the U.S. Census. By comparison, Cameron County, Texas — one of the country's worst cities for social connectedness, the study said — has a median household income of $41,200 per year."Often, the areas that are really [socially connected] are mostly rich people," Jackson tells CNBC Make It. "I think that's one of the challenges: How do you build these connections in areas where you're predominately dealing with poor people?"Jackson also says the financial segregation of richer and poorer communities comes into play. If people of varying levels of income don't live in the same neighborhoods, they'll interact less.This research isn't a closed book. For example, Jackson says he's still trying to figure out why Minneapolis appears to be much more socially connected than Indianapolis, despite similar demographics across the two Midwestern cities."It's hard to know what exactly is responsible for [that difference] and how much of it is dependent on culture," Jackson says. "I think there's a lot more we'd like to know about what exactly can foster these cross-class ties."Jackson says he hopes that more data can help bring more people out of poverty."This data can help school administrators and community leaders understand why people aren't connecting, and hopefully it will influence policies," he says. "But this is an ongoing project. Now that the scale of this data and the richness of it is available to lots of researchers, we hopefully can start answering all kinds of questions."Sign up now: Get smarter about your money and career with our weekly newsletterDon't miss:Here’s how much money it takes to be considered wealthy in 12 major U.S. citiesBye bye, San Francisco: The top 7 U.S. cities homebuyers are seeking to leave

These 11 U.S. cities give you the best chance to earn more money than your parents—and none are New York or LA.

Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly arrives for a two day NATO foreign ministers meeting in Berlin, Germany May 14, 2022. REUTERS/Michele TantussiRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comMontreal, Aug 3 (Reuters) - Canada is extremely concerned with heightened tensions after U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's Taiwan visit this week, Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said on Wednesday, calling on China to de-escalate the situation."We think that legislators do visits around the world and clearly the visit cannot be used as a justification for heightened tensions or a pretext," Joly, speaking alongside her German counterpart Annalena Baerbock, told reporters in Montreal."So, in that sense we call on China to de-escalate because we think that there may be risks of not only heightened tensions, but also destabilizing the region," Joly said.(This story corrects spelling of China in headline)Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Allison Lampert in Montreal and Ismail Shakil in OttawaOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Canada minister calls on China to de-escalate tensions after Pelosi's Taiwan visit.

Crime Updated on: August 3, 2022 / 1:42 PM / CBS/AP Therapy dog helps Highland Park heal after shooting Therapy dog helps Highland Park heal after shooting 01:41 The man accused of killing seven people and wounding dozens more in a mass shooting at a Fourth of July parade in Highland Park, Illinois, pleaded not guilty on Wednesday. An attorney representing Robert Crimo III, the 21-year-old suspect, submitted the plea one week after prosecutors announced that a grand jury had indicted him on 117 felony counts for the attack.The suspect appeared for a brief hearing Wednesday in Lake County's circuit court to enter a formal plea to the charges — 21 counts of first-degree murder, 48 counts of attempted murder and 48 counts of aggravated battery representing those killed and wounded during the parade in Highland Park, a suburb north of Chicago.The suspect wore a COVID-19 face mask throughout the 10-minute arraignment and repeatedly told Judge Victoria Rossetti that he understood the charges and potential penalties he faces, including life imprisonment. People lay flowers and cards near a spot where a mass shooting took place during the 4th of July parade in Highland Park, Illinois, on July 10, 2022. Jacek Boczarski/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images Lake County prosecutors in late July announced that a grand jury had indicted the suspect on the charges. The prosecutors had previously filed seven murder charges against the 21-year-old in the days following the shooting. The multiple first-degree murder charges allege the suspect intended to kill, caused death or great bodily harm, and took action with a strong probability of causing death or great bodily harm to the seven people who died. A representative for the county public defenders office, which is representing the suspect, has said the office does not comment publicly on any cases. An attorney with the office entered his not guilty plea during Wednesday's court appearance. Prosecutors have said the suspect admitted to the shooting once police arrested him following an extended search for the gunman who opened fire from the rooftop of a building along the parade route. Highland Park Mayor addresses Senate Judiciary Committee about gun violence and banning assault-style weapons 04:32 Authorities have reported that the ages of those wounded ranged from eight to more than 80 years old. An 8-year-old boy, Cooper Roberts, was one of the youngest victims and among the 38 people injured. He was paralyzed from the waist down when his spine was severed during the shooting. Cooper is now in a rehab-focused hospital.A motive for the attack has yet to be determined.In comments delivered after the hearing, Lake County State's Attorney Eric Rinehart declined to say whether the suspect could face additional charges and said he would not comment on whether his parents could be charged. Some in the community have questioned why the suspect's parents apparently supported his interest in guns only months after he reportedly threatened suicide and violence.George Gomez, an attorney representing the suspect's parents, said Wednesday that they are not concerned that criminal charges could be filed against them. Both attended Wednesday's hearing where they sat quietly behind their son.Speaking with reporters afterward, Gomez described his clients as "devastated" and "heartbroken" for Highland Park and he said they are cooperating with authorities.If convicted of killing at least two people, the suspect will face a mandatory life sentence, according to CBS Chicago. Meanwhile, the attempted murder charges carry a maximum sentence of life in prison, and the aggravated battery charges each carry up to 30 years in prison.The suspect is being held without bond and is expected back in court on Nov. 1, CBS Chicago reports. In: Highland Park Illinois Gun Violence Mass Shooting Thanks for reading CBS NEWS. Create your free account or log in for more features. Please enter email address to continue Please enter valid email address to continue

Highland Park shooting suspect pleads not guilty to over 100 felony counts, including murder and attempted murder.

Politics August 3, 2022 / 12:17 PM / CBS News Washington — President Biden is set to sign an executive order Wednesday aimed at making it easier to travel to obtain an abortion and enforcing federal non-discrimination laws for those seeking the procedure, his latest unilateral effort to secure abortion rights in the wake of the Supreme Court's decision to strike down Roe v. Wade.The order directs the secretary of health and human services to consider actions to support patients traveling out of state for abortions, including through the use of waivers that would allow states where abortion is legal to cover the cost of the procedure under Medicaid for out-of-state residents. The order also directs the secretary to make sure health care providers comply with federal non-discrimination laws, and asks him to evaluate and improve research and analysis on maternal health outcomes. "Today I'll sign a second executive order to address the reproductive health care crisis since Roe was overturned," the president tweeted Wednesday. "It will support women traveling for abortion care, ensure providers comply with the law when women require medical care, and advance maternal health research." The president is signing the executive action Wednesday during a virtual appearance at the first meeting of his newly created Task Force on Reproductive Healthcare Access. Mr. Biden is still recovering from a "rebound" case of COVID-19 and isolating at the White House.The White House has said it continues to look for actions the president can take on his own to protect access to abortions in light of Roe's reversal, but the steps the president has taken so far shed light on just how limited his powers are without congressional action. The president has alluded to his limitations without the legislative branch before, and consistently encourages Congress to enshrine abortion protections into federal law.  "The only way we can secure a woman's right to choose and the balance that existed is for Congress to restore the protections of Roe v. Wade as federal law," the president said in remarks after the Supreme Court overturned the decision in Roe v. Wade. "No executive action from the president can do that."At the task force meeting, Cabinet heads will report on progress they've made on executing a July 8 directive the president issued to preserve abortion access. That executive order asked the Justice Department to do everything in its power to protect women seeking an abortion, including protecting their right to travel to another state and access approved abortion drugs. It also sought to ensure all women and girls experiencing the loss of a pregnancy can receive the medical care they need, no matter their state.The Justice Department filed suit against the state of Idaho on Tuesday, claiming a law that bans virtually all abortions runs afoul of a federal law guaranteeing treatment, including abortion, to women facing medical emergencies. The suit is the first legal challenge the Biden administration has mounted to a state law since Roe was reversed.Some Democrats were underwhelmed by Mr. Biden's initial response to the Supreme Court's decision, arguing the White House should have been more prepared. The president, while taking all actions the administrative believes it can do at a given point in time, has suggested the ball is in Congress' court. The House has approved legislation to protect abortion rights, but the Senate lacks the votes to follow suit. Meanwhile, both those who support abortion rights and those who oppose them have begun to take matters into their own hands at the state level. On Tuesday night, voters in deep-red Kansas overwhelmingly rejected a measure that would have nixed abortion access protections from the Kansas Constitution."Kansans stood up for fundamental rights today," tweeted Kansas' Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly. "We rejected divisive legislation that jeopardized our economic future & put women's health care access at risk. Together, we'll continue to make incredible strides to make KS the best state in the nation to live freely & do business."Sean Conlon contributed reporting. Kathryn Watson Kathryn Watson is a politics reporter for CBS News Digital based in Washington, D.C.

Biden to sign executive order to support travel for abortions in latest move aimed at protecting access.

JetBlue Airways passengers in a crowded terminal on April 7, 2022 in the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.Robert Nickelsberg | Getty Images News | Getty ImagesIt wasn't long ago that Amazon, Shopify and Peloton doubled their workforces to manage through the pandemic surge, while Morgan Stanley staffed up to handle a record level of IPOs and mortgage lenders added headcount as rock-bottom rates led to a refinancing boom.On the flipside, Delta Air Lines, Hilton Worldwide and legions of restaurants slashed headcount because of lockdowns that rolled through much of the country and other parts of the world.Now, they're scrambling to reverse course.Companies that hired like crazy in 2020 and 2021 to meet customer demand are being forced to make sweeping cuts or impose hiring freezes with a possible recession on the horizon. In a matter of months, CEOs have gone from hyper-growth mode to concerns over "macroeconomic uncertainty," a phrase investors have heard many times on second-quarter earnings calls. Stock trading app Robinhood and crypto exchange Coinbase both recently slashed more than 1,000 jobs after their splashy market debuts in 2021.Meanwhile, airlines, hotels and eateries face the opposite problem as their businesses continue to pick up following the era of Covid-induced shutdowns. After instituting mass layoffs early in the pandemic, they can't hire quickly enough to satisfy demand, and are dealing with a radically different labor market than the one they experienced over two years ago, before the cutbacks."The pandemic created very unique, once-in-a-lifetime conditions in many different industries that caused a dramatic reallocation of capital," said Julia Pollak, chief economist at job recruiting site ZipRecruiter. "Many of those conditions no longer apply so you're seeing a reallocation of capital back to more normal patterns."For employers, those patterns are particularly challenging to navigate, because inflation levels have jumped to a 40-year high, and the Fed has lifted its benchmark rate by 0.75 percentage point on consecutive occasions for the first time since the early 1990s.The central bank's efforts to tamp down inflation have raised concerns that the U.S. economy is headed for recession. Gross domestic product has fallen for two straight quarters, hitting a widely accepted rule of thumb for recession, though the National Bureau of Economic Research hasn't yet made that declaration.The downward trend was bound to happen eventually, and market experts lamented the frothiness in stock prices and absurdity of valuations as late as the fourth quarter of last year, when the major indexes hit record highs led by the riskiest assets.That was never more evident than in November, when electric vehicle maker Rivian went public on almost no revenue and quickly reached a market cap of over $150 billion. Bitcoin hit a record the same day, touching close to $69,000.Since then, bitcoin is off by two-thirds, and Rivian has lost about 80% of its value. In July, the car company started layoffs of about 6% of its workforce. Rivian's headcount almost quintupled to around 14,000 between late 2020 and mid-2022.Tech layoffs and an air of cautionJob cuts and hiring slowdowns were big talking points on tech earnings calls last week.Amazon reduced its headcount by 99,000 people to 1.52 million employees at the end of the second quarter after almost doubling in size during the pandemic, when it needed to beef up its warehouse capabilities. Shopify, whose cloud technology helps retailers build and manage online stores, cut roughly 1,000 workers, or around 10% of its global workforce. The company doubled its headcount over a two-year period starting at the beginning of 2020, as the business boomed from the number or stores and restaurants that had to suddenly go digital.Shopify CEO Tobias Lutke said in a memo to employees that the company had wagered that the pandemic surge would cause the transition from physical retail to ecommerce to "permanently leap ahead by 5 or even 10 years.""It's now clear that bet didn't pay off," Lutke wrote, adding that the picture was starting to look more like it did before Covid. "Ultimately, placing this bet was my call to make and I got this wrong. Now, we have to adjust." After Facebook parent Meta missed on its results and forecast a second straight quarter of declining revenue, CEO Mark Zuckerberg said the company will be reducing job growth over the next year. Headcount expanded by about 60% during the pandemic."This is a period that demands more intensity and I expect us to get more done with fewer resources," Zuckerberg said.Google parent Alphabet, which grew its workforce by over 30% during the two Covid years, recently told employees that they needed to focus and improve productivity. The company asked for suggestions on how to be more efficient at work. "It's clear we are facing a challenging macro environment with more uncertainty ahead," CEO Sundar Pichai said in a meeting with employees. "We should think about how we can minimize distractions and really raise the bar on both product excellence and productivity."Few U.S. companies have been hit as hard as Peloton, which became an instant gym replacement during lockdowns and has since suffered from massive oversupply issues and out-of-control costs. After doubling headcount in the 12 months ended June 30, 2021, the company in February announced plans to cut 20% of corporate positions as it named a new CEO.Banks and Wall Street bracing for a 'hurricane'Some of the Pelotons that were flying off the shelves in the pandemic were being offered as perks for overworked junior bankers, who were sorely needed to help manage a boom in IPOs, mergers and stock issuance. Activity picked up with such ferocity that junior bankers were complaining about 100-hour workweeks, and banks started scouring for talent in unusual places like consulting and accounting firms.That helps explain why the six biggest U.S. banks added a combined 59,757 employees from the start of 2020 through the middle of 2022, the equivalent of the industry picking up the full population of a Morgan Stanley or a Goldman Sachs in a little over two years.It wasn't just investment banking. The government unleashed trillions of dollars in stimulus payments and small business loans designed to keep the economy moving amid the widespread shutdowns. A feared wave of loan defaults never arrived, and banks instead took in an unprecedented flood of deposits. Their Main Street lending operations had better repayment rates than before the pandemic.Among top banks, Morgan Stanley saw the biggest jump in headcount, with its employee levels expanding 29% to 78,386 from early 2020 to the middle of this year. The growth was fueled in part by CEO James Gorman’s acquisitions of money management firms E-Trade and Eaton Vance.At rival investment bank Goldman Sachs, staffing levels jumped 22% to 47,000 in the same timeframe, as CEO David Solomon broke into consumer finance and bolstered wealth management operations, including through the acquisition of fintech lender GreenSky.Citigroup saw a 15% boost in headcount during the pandemic, while JPMorgan Chase added 8.5% to its workforce, becoming the industry's largest employer.But the good times on Wall Street didn’t last. The stock market had its worst first half in 50 years and IPOs dried up. Investment banking revenue at the major players declined sharply in the second quarter.Goldman Sachs responded by slowing hiring and is considering a return to year-end job reductions, according to a person with knowledge of the bank’s plans. Employees typically make up the single biggest line item when it comes to expenses in banking, so when markets crater, layoffs are usually on the horizon. JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon warned investors in June that an economic "hurricane" was on its way, and said the bank was bracing itself for volatile markets.Jamie Dimon, chief executive officer of JPMorgan Chase & Co., during a Bloomberg Television interview in London, U.K., on Wednesday, May 4, 2022.Chris Ratcliffe | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesZipRecruiter's Pollak said one area in finance where there will likely be a hemorrhaging of workers is in mortgage lending. She said 60% more people went into real estate in 2020 and 2021 because of record low mortgage rates and rising home prices. JPMorgan and Wells Fargo have reportedly trimmed hundreds of mortgage staffers as volumes collapsed."Nobody is refinancing anymore, and sales are slowing," Pollak said. "You're going to have to see employment levels and hiring slow down. That growth was all about that moment."The intersection of Silicon Valley and Wall Street is a particularly gloomy place at the moment as rising rates and crumbling stock multiples converge. Crypto trading platform Coinbase in June announced plans to lay off 18% of its workforce in preparation for a "crypto winter" and even rescinded job offers to people it had hired. Headcount tripled in 2021 to 3,730 employees.Stock trading app Robinhood said Tuesday it's cutting about 23% of its workforce, a little over three months after eliminating 9% of its full-time staff, which had ballooned from 2,100 to 3,800 in the last nine months of 2021."We are at the tail end of that pandemic-era distortion," said Aaron Terrazas, chief economist at job search and review site Glassdoor. "Obviously, it's not going away, but it is changing to a more normalized period, and companies are adapting to this new reality."Retail is whipsawing back and forthIn the retail industry, the story is more nuanced. At the onset of the pandemic, a stark divide quickly emerged between businesses deemed to be essential versus those that were not.Retailers like Target and Walmart that sold groceries and other household goods were allowed to keep their lights on, while malls filled with apparel shops and department store chains were forced to shut down temporarily. Macy's, Kohl's and Gap had to furlough the majority of their retail employees as sales screeched to a halt.But as these businesses reopened and millions of consumers received their stimulus checks, demand roared back to shopping malls and retailers' websites. Companies hired people back or added to their workforce as quickly as they could.Last August, Walmart began paying special bonuses to warehouse workers and covering 100% of college tuition and textbook costs for employees. Target rolled out a debt-free college education for full- or part-time employees, and boosted staff by 22% from early 2020 to the start of 2022. Macy's promised better hourly wages.They hardly could have predicted how quickly the dynamic would shift, as rapid and soaring inflation forced Americans to tighten their belts. Retailers have already started to warn of waning demand, leaving them with bloated inventories. Gap said higher promotions will hurt gross margins in its fiscal second quarter. Kohl's cut its guidance for the second quarter, citing softened consumer spending. Walmart last week slashed its profit forecast and said surging prices for food and gas are squeezing consumers.That pain is filtering into the ad market. Online bulletin board Pinterest on Monday cited "lower than expected demand from U.S. big box retailers and mid-market advertisers" as one reason why it missed Wall Street estimates for second-quarter earnings and revenue.Retail giants have so far avoided big layoff announcements, but smaller players are in cut mode. Stitch Fix, 7-Eleven and Game Stop have said they'll be eliminating jobs, and outdoor grill maker Weber warned it's considering layoffs as sales slow.The travel industry can't hire fast enoughWith all of the downsizing taking place across wide swaths of the U.S. economy, the applicant pool should be wide open for airlines, restaurants and hospitality companies, which are trying to repopulate their ranks after undergoing mass layoffs when Covid-19 hit.It's not so easy. Even though Amazon has reduced headcount of late, it's still got far more people working in its warehouses than it did two years ago. Last year the company lifted average starting pay to $18 an hour, a level that's difficult to meet for much of the services industry.Hilton CEO Christopher Nassetta said on the quarterly earnings call in May that he wasn't satisfied with customer service and that the company needs more workers. At the end of last year, even as travel was rebounding sharply, headcount at Hilton's managed, owned and leased properties as well as corporate locations was down by over 30,000 from two years earlier.It's easy to see why customer service is a challenge. According to a report last week from McKinsey on summer 2022 travel trends, revenue per available room in the U.S. "is outstripping not just 2020 and 2021 levels, but increasingly 2019 levels too."Delta Airlines passenger jets are pictured outside the newly completed 1.3 million-square foot $4 billion Delta Airlines Terminal C at LaGuardia Airport in New York, June 1, 2022.Mike Segar | ReutersAt airlines, headcount fell as low as 364,471 in November 2020, even though that wasn't supposed to happen. U.S. carriers accepted $54 billion in taxpayer aid to keep staff on their payroll. But while layoffs were prohibited, voluntary buyouts were not, and airlines including Delta and Southwest shed thousands of workers. Delta last month said it has added 18,000 employees since the start of 2021, a similar number to what it let go during the pandemic in order to slash costs.The industry is struggling to hire and train enough workers, particularly pilots, a process that takes several weeks to meet federal standards. Delta, American Airlines and Spirit Airlines recently trimmed schedules to allow for more wiggle room in handling operational challenges."The chief issue we're working through is not hiring but a training and experience bubble," Delta CEO Ed Bastian said on the quarterly earnings call last month. "Coupling this with the lingering effects of Covid and we've seen a reduction in crew availability and higher overtime. By ensuring capacity does not outstrip our resources and working through our training pipeline, we'll continue to further improve our operational integrity."Travelers have been less than pleased. Over the Fourth of July holiday weekend, more than 12,000 flights were delayed due to bad weather and not enough staff. Pilots who took early retirement during the pandemic don't appear terribly inclined to change their mind now that their services are once again in high demand."When we look at labor shortages related to travel, you can't just flip a switch and suddenly have more baggage handlers that have passed security checks, or pilots," said Joseph Fuller, professor of management practice at Harvard Business School. "We're still seeing people not opt in to come back because they don't like what their employers are dictating in terms of working conditions in a post-lethal pandemic world."— CNBC's Ashley Capoot and Lily Yang contributed to this report.WATCH: Big Tech reports earnings, most guide higher despite macro headwinds

The confusing job market: Tech and finance brace for the worst, retail is mixed, travel can't hire fast enough.

"I truthfully didn't even know the word entrepreneur. I was in my late thirties, and I didn't know the word 'brand,' I didn't know the word 'entrepreneur,'" Bethenny Frankel, founder of SkinnyGirl, told Sharon Epperson at the CNBC Small Business Playbook virtual summit on Wednesday.Now, just over a decade later, Frankel is a widely successful and self-made entrepreneur, who sold her pre-packaged low-calorie margarita, Skinnygirl Cocktails, for a reported $120 million, and continues to delve into a series of ambitious business ventures with her Skinnygirl lifestyle brand, ranging from specialty food items to branded apparel. While she may not have always envisioned a life in business, she always envisioned her next big idea, and what it would take to turn it into reality, she told Epperson."I just always was an ideas person. I could not help but to execute on crazy ideas that I had," Frankel said. The Skinnygirl brand was one of those ideas — the simple vision of having her own signature cocktail. "I think very simply, I wanted to have a cocktail for myself, that I wanted to drink, and that could be a signature cocktail that I always went for," she explained.That personal need was not an idea she immediately knew would catch on with millions of others."I had no idea that I was creating the first-ever low-calorie margarita or creating a category in ready-to-drink cocktails," she said. But once she realized how popular the concept was, she knew that she had the opportunity to turn it into a successful business. That transition to business building is where Frankel stresses that having a good entrepreneurial idea isn't what made her story exceptional. "When you're young, and you think you're smart, everybody thinks they're smart. You think you have a good idea — everyone has a good idea," she said.A good idea may have been the start in setting her apart, but drive and motivation are more important in business. "I've really realized it's those people that have that drive and that determination and that passion, that unstoppable nature — that's really the true ingredient for success," Frankel said. "Because so many people have good ideas. And the world and technology and what's popular is changing all of the time, so if you have that constant — of being a hard, old-school worker, you'll be successful. People around you will see how valuable that is, because it's very, very rare," she added.Frankel says in addition to a strong work ethic, personal investment and authenticity are essential pieces in a successful entrepreneurial venture.  "Business is lonely, you are alone," she said. "You sign that dotted line alone, it's your reputation, it's all about you alone. … No one cares as much as you about your business," she told Epperson.  She also rejects the idea that business and personal life should — or can — be kept separate.The line between business life and personal life has become increasingly blurred, especially since the onset of the pandemic, as many workers began to work from home, and the decisions made in one sphere have held new significance in the other. And in a time characterized by inflation and rising interest rates, and in which business owners are increasingly concerned with supply chain issues and labor shortages, business choices have proven to be unavoidably personal choices, too. "Business is very, very personal. How I spend my money in my personal life could affect the money that I would or wouldn't have to invest in business ideas. How I operate in my business life could affect the types of schools my daughter would have gone to, or how I treat my business affects how I spend my time — which is so personal," Frankel said.New business formation numbers have been high since the pandemic began, and Frankel said uncertain times also provide opportunity.  "I think that people keep looking at the equation one way and keep trying the same key in the door, but now is the time when you have to fumble around and try a bunch of different keys and figure out what fits for you. Because when you have times of disarray, when you have times of crazy chaos, there is also a silver lining. There are other opportunities," she said. Frankel, who has bought and sold real estate over the years, pivoted to suburban real estate at the beginning of the pandemic, which proved to be a savvy business move. Still, even amid business evolution, staying grounded in your core mission is essential, according to Frankel. "You have to be able to pivot and shift, but also stay true to the base and core of what your business is," she said. For any entrepreneur who is facing stagnation, Frankel advises focusing on their own needs and interests, rather than worrying about what others are doing. "Think about what you react to. What are you consuming, what are you digesting, what are you interested in, what are you attracted to, what do you like, what do you not like? And put that forward in your work," she said. Frankel's personal wish for a low-calorie, ready-to-drink cocktail turned into a multimillion-dollar enterprise. It is this turning within, before expanding out into the market, that makes business, at its core, quintessentially personal."It has to come from within. What really speaks to you, it's likely something that speaks to many people" she said.

Self-made millionaire Bethenny Frankel on why good ideas are not enough to be successful in business.

A Wall Street sign is pictured outside the New York Stock Exchange in New York, October 28, 2013. REUTERS/Carlo Allegri/File PhotoRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comAug 3 (Reuters) - Private equity firm Thoma Bravo is buying Ping Identity (PING.N) for $2.4 billion, deepening a bet on the cybersecurity sector that has been one of the big winners of the pandemic.The deal announced on Wednesday values each share of Ping Identity at $28.50, a premium of 63% to the last closing price of the company whose authentication and security services are used by businesses from Chevron Corp (CVX.N) to HP Inc (HPQ.N).Thoma Bravo has been on a shopping spree for cybersecurity firms in recent years, with its acquisitions including Sophos, Proofpoint and Sailpoint Technologies (SAIL.N).Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comAnalysts said the latest purchase - which has an equity value of $2.4 billion, according to a Reuters calculation - could work well with Thoma Bravo's other acquisitions because of similar areas of focus."We could foresee them all being stitched together as an all-in-one identity platform at some point," D.A. Davidson analyst Rudy Kessinger said, adding the deal was "one of the least surprising acquisitions" he has ever seen.Thoma Bravo, whose assets under management total more than $114 billion, has also bought software firms such as Anaplan Inc in the past few years.Ping Identity's shares surged over 60% on Wednesday. The company's biggest shareholder is Vista Equity Partners with a stake of nearly 10%, according to Refinitiv data.Vista had bought Ping Identity in 2016 and then taken it public three years later in an initial public offering that valued the company at $1.16 billion.Vista has agreed to vote in favor of the deal, which has an enterprise value of $2.8 billion, Ping Identity said.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Nivedita Balu and Akash Sriram in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber and Aditya SoniOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Thoma Bravo deepens cybersecurity bet with $2.4 bln deal for Ping Identity.

Tourists wait to depart from Cancun's international airport in Mexico's state of Quintana Roo, October 7, 2020 REUTERS/Henry Romero/File PhotoRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comMEXICO CITY, Aug 3 (Reuters) - Mexico's COVID-battered aviation sector has benefitted from a robust reactivation of travel, but analysts fear its takeoff could be soon shaken by recession in the United States.Profits of air terminal operators in Mexico's most important tourist destinations grew strongly last quarter, thanks to solid traffic numbers for both domestic and international passengers."Aviation has had a surprising recovery," said Pablo Casas, director of the National Institute of Aeronautical Legal Research (INIJA). "The long (pandemic) confinement led to this build up of travellers," he said.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comAsur (ASURB.MX), which manages the airport for the Caribbean coastal city of Cancun, doubled its earnings during the second quarter from the year-ago-period.Meanwhile, GAP (GAPB.MX), which operates the air facility serving the booming resort area of Los Cabos, saw its second-quarter net profit soar 64%.Terminal operator OMA (OMAB.MX), more focused on business travellers with its main airfield in the industrial city of Monterrey, was not far behind, with net profit jumping 49% in the quarter.In 2020, when most travel was suspended due to COVID, some 48.4 million travellers took flights in Mexico. But after just the first five months of this year, tourism officials have recorded 41.6 million air passengers already.Still, the recovery could be stifled.Of the more than eight million international visitors arriving in Mexico by air in the January-May period, 67% were residents of the United States, where a recent fall in gross domestic product has raised fears of recession. read more "Our market is in the United States," said Fernando Gomez, an independent airline industry analyst. "A possible recession would obviously impact everyone, but it would hit Mexico directly."For now, there remain reasons for optimism. Some 57% of Mexicans are planning vacation travel this summer, up from 36% in the year-ago-period, according to a survey by market research consultancy PQR Planning Quant - a level which could help keep domestic passenger traffic steady.The dynamism in the sector has helped domestic airlines deal with adverse conditions, including the U.S. Federal Aviation Agency's downgrade of Mexico's aviation safety rating in 2021, which has yet to be restored. read more Grupo Aeromexico (AEROMEX.MX), the country's main airline, recently emerged from bankruptcy and has been struggling with losses since before the pandemic. Nonetheless, its second-quarter revenue almost doubled.Competitor Volaris (VOLARA.MX) also saw its quarterly revenue grow, by a more modest 20%. But the surge was overshadowed by higher costs from aviation fuel price increases.That phenomenon is affecting most airlines across Latin America.Citing frequent jet fuel price increases, Brazil's Gol (GOLL4.SA) recently cut some of its financial goals for this year after reporting a steep net loss in the second quarter - even though its net sales tripled in the period. read more Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Noe Torres; Writing by Valentine Hilaire; Editing by Kenneth MaxwellOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Mexican aviation's takeoff could hit turbulence amid U.S. recession fears.

zimmytws | iStock | Getty ImagesThere are just 13 years before Social Security may not be able to pay full benefits, according to a recent annual report from the program's trustees.In 2035, just 80% of benefits will be payable if Congress doesn't fix the program sooner.Shoring up the program will generally mean raising taxes, cutting benefits or a combination of both. Democrats have floated several proposals to increase benefits and raise taxes, including one House bill they hope to bring up for a vote this year. Republicans have expressed their opposition to their plans.Despite the Washington gridlock, the University of Maryland's Program for Public Consultation found there are a host of changes public voters who lean either Republican or Democrat may be able to stomach.The program conducted a public consultation survey of 2,545 registered voters between April 11 and May 15.More from Personal Finance:How taxes on Social Security benefits may changeWhy the Social Security retirement age may move past 6710.5% Social Security cost-of-living adjustment seen for 2023The questions were presented as a policy-making simulation, according to Steven Kull, director at the Program for Public Consultation at the University of Maryland.The options were presented one at a time, with pro and con arguments that have been vetted by experts on both sides of the aisle. Each choice included gradations and the potential impact on the program's shortfall.Respondents tended to spread their choices to include some revenue increases and some budget cuts, according to Kull. Most didn't max out one side or the other.Here are seven fixes Americans say they are are willing to make, starting with the most popular:1. Raising the Social Security payroll tax capShare in support: 81%Democrats in support: 88%Republicans in support: 79%Raising the payroll tax cap is the one proposal that got "overwhelming bipartisan support," according to Kull.In 2022, Social Security payroll taxes are applied on up to $147,000 in income, a level that is adjusted each year. That means high earners may pay Social Security payroll taxes for just part of the year.However, one Democratic proposal — Social Security 2100: A Sacred Trust put forward by Rep. John Larson, D-Conn. — calls for reapplying those payroll taxes for wages of $400,000 and up. Another bill proposed by Sens. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., calls for a $250,000 threshold, plus additional taxes on capital gains, and net investment and business income.Increasing the level of income at which Social Security payroll taxes are reapplied to income of more than $400,000 would eliminate 61% of the shortfall, researchers estimate. The proposal is popular with the public, having earned its own slogan, "Scrap the Cap."2. Reducing benefits for high earnersShare in support: 81%Democrats in support: 86%Republicans in support: 78%Wealthier retirees generally receive more generous benefits, even though they likely have more ways to fund their retirements, such as through pensions and savings. Means testing benefits for those with certain wealth or income could be another way to help reduce the program's shortfall.This would reduce the amount of benefits the top 20% of earners receive, and would reduce the shortfall by 11%.3. Gradually raising the retirement ageShare in support: 75%Democrats in support: 76%Republicans in support: 75%Your retirement age is when you stand to get the full benefits you earned based on your work record. Increases to the retirement age that were enacted in 1983 are still getting phased in today. For people born in 1960 or later, the full retirement age is 67.As many people work and live longer, some argue that the retirement age should be raised again. However, advocates for expanding Social Security are firmly against this benefit cut. Washington Democrats' proposals largely exclude this change.Such a move would reduce an estimated 14% of the shortfall.4. Increasing the payroll taxShare in support: 73%Democrats in support: 78%Republicans in support: 70%Currently, employers and employees each pay a tax of 6.2% of wages, and raising those rates could have a big impact on the program's solvency. The simulation called for raising that to 6.5%, which would help eliminate 16% of the shortfall.A previous version of the Social Security 2100 Act put forward by Rep. John Larson, D-Conn., proposed raising payroll tax rates for both workers and employers up to 7.4% each from its current 6.2%. That change would have been phased in gradually over more than 20 years. This would cost just 50 cents more per week for the average worker who earns $50,000, according to the proposal.While Larson compared it to the cost of a cup of coffee, Republicans bristled at the prospect of passing down higher tax rates to younger generations. The new Social Security 2100 Act no longer increases the payroll tax rate.5. Raising the minimum benefitShare in support: 64%Democrats in support: 71%Republicans in support: 59%For people who rely solely on Social Security benefits for income in retirement, surviving on the minimum benefit can be difficult. Sanders and Warren have proposed a bill that calls for making the minimum benefit indexed to 125% of the federal poverty line. Likewise, Larson's bill also seeks to raise the minimum benefit.That change would bring the minimum benefit for someone who has worked for 30 years up to $1,341 from $951, thereby increasing the shortfall by 7%.Congressional Democrats' Social Security proposals call for replacing the price index currently used to determine annual cost-of-living adjustments with the Consumer Price Index for the Elderly, or CPI-E.Sollina Images | Tetra Images | Getty Images6. Changing cost-of-living adjustment calculationsShare in support: 55%Democrats in support: 59%Republicans in support: 55%Social Security benefits are currently adjusted every year based on a subset of the Consumer Price Index, which measures changes in the prices consumers pay over time. Beneficiaries saw a record 5.9% increase in 2022, and are poised to see an even bigger boost to benefits in 2023.Yet many argue the measure used, the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers, or CPI-W, is not the best gauge of the costs retirees pay. Democratic proposals all call for replacing that measure with the Consumer Price Index for the Elderly, or CPI-E.That change would increase the shortfall by 12%.7. Increasing benefits for beneficiaries over age 80Share in support: 53%Democrats in support: 56%Republicans in support: 53%Increasing benefits for beneficiaries over age 80 by 5% would increase the shortfall by 5%. To be sure, benefit increases would not help the program's funding woes. But they may help ensure retirees can cover their costs for the duration of their retirement.The goal of the survey is not to take a partisan side, according to Kull."We don't take a position except the position that the public should be heard," Kull said."The public very strongly wants this," he said of the results.

7 changes Americans are willing to make to fix Social Security — including one with 'overwhelming bipartisan support'.

Petar Chernaev | E+ | Getty ImagesThe traditional 60/40 diversified portfolio may have investors in the red so far in 2022, but reports of its death have been "greatly exaggerated," Wells Fargo analyst Douglas Beath said. In fact, it could be headed for double-digit returns, he wrote in a note Tuesday.The investment strategy, which puts 60% of assets in stocks and 40% in bonds, has had a rough year. A hypothetical balanced portfolio using the S&P 500 index and the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index dropped 16.1% in the first half of the year, Beath pointed out.Bonds are supposed to be a hedge during times of stock market volatility, providing positive returns when stocks go down. Except that this year, both bonds and stocks have declined in tandem. At the same time, inflation is at 40-year highs, rising 9.1% annually in June.To be sure, there are doubters. Jeffrey Gundlach, CEO of DoubleLine Capital, is among those who are against the 60/40 portfolio. He told CNBC's Bob Pisani earlier this year that he has been advising against the model for the past two years and instead recommends 25% in commodities, 25% toward cash, 25% in stocks and 25% long-term Treasury bonds.Last September, Michael Rosen, chief investment officer of Angeles Investments and Angeles Wealth, wrote in an op-ed for CNBC that the 60/40 portfolio has "reached its expiration date."However, the steep declines in the diversified portfolio are not unprecedented, Beath said.History shows that years when the hypothetical 60/40 portfolio gave negative returns exceeding 1% were usually followed by double-digit annualized returns over the following three years, he noted."In the rebound phase following calendar years of negative 60/40 performance, stocks outperformed bonds by a significant margin, averaging 19.2% versus 4.5% respectively," Beath said.In addition, recent stock and bond market losses have improved valuations for the diversified portfolio, he wrote. When looking at capital market assumptions, which include hypothetical return expectations over 10 to 15 years, the portfolio also has higher projected risk-adjusted returns, he said.As inflation peaks and gradually declines, as expected, the correlation of stocks and bonds should return to negative or close to zero, Beath wrote."The historical returns of stocks and bonds, combined with more attractive valuations after the recent downturn plus long-term CMA projections, indicate to us that the 60/40 portfolio is alive and well and that it should continue to serve as a solid foundation for long-term investors," Beath added, referring to capital market assumptions.

Don't give up on the 60/40 strategy — it could be headed for double-digit returns, Wells Fargo says.

The logo of Danish multinational pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk is pictured on the facade of a production plant in Chartres, north-central France, April 21, 2016. REUTERS/Guillaume Souvant/File PhotoRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comCOPENHAGEN, Aug 3 (Reuters) - Shares in Danish drugmaker Novo Nordisk (NOVOb.CO) fell on Wednesday as news about its new obesity drug disappointed investors, even though the firm lifted its sales and operating profit forecasts for the year on strong first half results.Novo Nordisk, whose main business is to develop diabetes and obesity drugs, now expects sales growth of 12-16% at constant exchange rates, up from a previous estimate of 10-14%. It sees operating profit up 11-15%, versus an earlier estimate of 9-13%.Shares in Novo ended down 9.4% at the market close.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com"It could be lower than expected sales of Wegovy, which disappointed," Sydbank analyst Soren Lontoft Hansen told Reuters, referring to Novo's new obesity drug, which has faced supply issues since its launch in the United States last year.Sales of Wegovy declined to 1.2 billion Danish crowns ($163.27 million) in the second quarter from 1.4 billion in the first quarter. Overall, sales of obesity drugs grew 83% in the second quarter compared to the same period last year.The company also said it expected to make all dose strengths of Wegovy available in the United States "towards the end of 2022"."That is perhaps a tightening of the rhetoric compared to Q1, where they said 'in the second half of the year'," Hansen said.That was likely due to "lower output as scale-up is slightly slower than planned," Jefferies analysts said in a note.Investors had also hoped for more positive news from Novo's SELECT trial, which investigates cardiovascular benefits from its Wegovy drug, Hansen said. Novo said on Wednesday the trial would continue "in accordance with the trial protocol"."There was talk that the study could be stopped earlier if a really large reduction in the risk of cardiovascular events was shown," said Hansen, who viewed the overall quarterly results from Novo as "really strong".Novo reported second-quarter operating profit of 18.4 billion Danish crowns, just above the 18.3 billion forecast by analysts, according to Refinitiv data. The company had initially planned to announce results on Thursday."We are very pleased with the sales growth in the first half of 2022. The growth is driven by increasing demand for GLP-1 based diabetes treatments, especially Ozempic," Chief Executive Lars Fruergaard Jorgensen said in a statement.An investor conference call will be held at 1730 GMT on Wednesday.($1 = 7.3474 Danish crowns)Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Nikolaj Skydsgaard Editing by David Goodman, Mark Potter and David EvansOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Novo Nordisk shares fall on Wegovy news despite outlook lift.

Politics August 3, 2022 / 12:17 PM / CBS News Washington — President Biden signed an executive order Wednesday aimed at making it easier to travel to obtain an abortion and enforcing federal non-discrimination laws for those seeking the procedure, his latest unilateral effort to secure abortion rights in the wake of the Supreme Court's decision to strike down Roe v. Wade.The order directs Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra to consider actions to support patients traveling out of state for abortions, including through the use of waivers that would allow states where abortion is legal to cover the cost of the procedure under Medicaid for out-of-state residents. It also directs the secretary to make sure health care providers comply with federal non-discrimination laws, and asks him to evaluate and improve research and analysis on maternal health outcomes. "Secretary Becerra is going to work with states through Medicaid to allow them to provide reproductive health care for women who live in states where abortions are being banned in that state," Mr. Biden said Wednesday. "The executive order makes sure health care providers comply with federal law so women don't face delays or denials of medically necessary care. And this executive order advances research and data collection to evaluate the impact that this reproductive health crisis is having on maternal health and other health conditions and health outcomes." The president signed the executive action during a virtual appearance at the first meeting of his newly created Task Force on Reproductive Healthcare Access. Mr. Biden is still recovering from a "rebound" case of COVID-19 and in isolation at the White House. After signing the order, Mr. Biden said much work remains to ensure abortion access, but he's confident Vice President Kamala Harris can get it done.  Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas listens as President Biden delivers remarks virtually on Aug. 3, 2022. MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images The White House has said it continues to look for actions the president can take on his own to protect abortion rights in light of Roe's reversal, but the steps the president has taken so far shed light on just how limited his powers are without congressional action. The president has alluded to his limitations without the legislative branch before, and consistently encourages Congress to enshrine abortion protections into federal law.  "The only way we can secure a woman's right to choose and the balance that existed is for Congress to restore the protections of Roe v. Wade as federal law," the president said in remarks after the Supreme Court overturned the decision in Roe v. Wade. "No executive action from the president can do that."At the task force meeting, Cabinet heads reported on progress they've made on executing a July 8 directive the president issued to preserve abortion access. That executive order asked the Justice Department to do everything in its power to protect women seeking an abortion, including protecting their right to travel to another state and access approved abortion drugs. It also sought to ensure all women and girls experiencing the loss of a pregnancy can receive the medical care they need, no matter their state.The Justice Department filed suit against the state of Idaho on Tuesday, claiming a law that bans virtually all abortions runs afoul of a federal law guaranteeing treatment, including abortion, to women facing medical emergencies. The suit is the first legal challenge the Biden administration has mounted to a state law since Roe was reversed.Some Democrats were underwhelmed by Mr. Biden's initial response to the Supreme Court's decision, arguing the White House should have been more prepared. The president, while taking all actions the administrative believes it can do at a given point in time, has suggested the ball is in Congress' court. The House has approved legislation to protect abortion rights, but the Senate lacks the votes to follow suit. Meanwhile, both those who support abortion rights and those who oppose them have begun to take matters into their own hands at the state level. On Tuesday night, voters in deep-red Kansas overwhelmingly rejected a measure that would have nixed abortion access protections from the Kansas Constitution. Mr. Biden addressed that victory in Kansas Wednesday."The court practically dared women in this country to go to the ballot box and restore the right to choose that the court had just ripped away after 50 years," Mr. Biden said Wednesday. "They don't have a clue about the power of American women. Last night in Kansas, they found out."Sean Conlon contributed reporting. Kathryn Watson Kathryn Watson is a politics reporter for CBS News Digital based in Washington, D.C.

Biden signs executive order to support travel for abortions in latest move aimed at protecting access.

Space August 3, 2022 / 1:18 PM / CBS News SpaceX, Axiom Space launch joint mission SpaceX and Axiom Space launch first all-private joint mission 05:38 NASA is not trusting private citizens to travel to the International Space Station on their own — instead, it wants them to be chaperoned by experienced professionals. New requirements from the agency would mandate that future space tourist journeys should be led by a former NASA astronaut as the mission commander.NASA says the new proposals are "lessons learned" from the first private astronaut mission (PAM) to the ISS last April — a complicated expedition put together by Axiom Space. The crew included Michael López-Alegría, a former NASA astronaut and current Axiom Space employee, and three civilian crewmembers, who reportedly paid $55 million per ticket.  The new requirements have not yet been finalized, but NASA says having an actual former astronaut aboard "provides experienced guidance for the private astronauts during pre-flight preparation through mission execution." In addition to any safety concerns, NASA said that a former astronaut would provide a "link" between astronauts working aboard the ISS and their ultra-rich visitors — with the goal of "reducing risk" to ISS operations.  Prior to the release of the new guidelines, Axiom had already announced its plans for a second private mission to the ISS for 2023, with former NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson as mission commander. However, Michael Suffredini, president and CEO of Axiom, said during an April news conference that the company has considered sending future missions with four paying customers instead of three, leaving no room for a professional astronaut.   The space station's seven long-duration crew members welcomed the four Ax-1 commercial astronauts aboard the lab complex with a traditional post-docking ceremony. NASA TV Lessons learnedThe Ax-1 crew spent two weeks in space, which included conducting scientific research aboard the space station. Upon their return to Earth, they admitted that they worked harder than they expected to during their stay."With the value of hindsight, we were way too aggressive on our schedule, in particular the first couple days," said Larry Connor. "It has been fast-paced," López-Alegría said in a space-to-ground interview with CBS News while aboard the ISS. "I think that's probably the biggest surprise, just how incredibly quick time goes by."  Their presence on the ISS also affected the existing crew's schedule. "In essence, the arrival of the PAM personnel seemed to have a larger than expected impact on the daily workload for the professional space station crew," Susan Helms, a former NASA astronaut and member of the Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel, said during a panel meeting in May. "There were some opportunity costs in the form of overly stressing the workload of the onboard ISS crewmembers and the mission controllers who support them." The Ax-1 crew also acknowledged after their mission that they found the adjustment to microgravity difficult, something NASA hopes to further address in the future. "I think we underestimated just how hard the adaptation would be and sort of how long it would take," López-Alegría told CBS News. "You know, we have this phenomenon that astronauts call 'space brain,' when you get up here, things just take about 33 to 50% longer than they normally do. And that's even more true for people who've never been exposed to this environment before." Other requirements include:Clarifications to the code of conduct that private astronauts must adhere to while aboard the ISS. "Private astronauts are not U.S. government employees; therefore, they do not have the same restrictions levied on government astronauts," NASA said. Research requests to the ISS National Laboratory must be submitted at least 12 months before the expected launch date to confirm their feasibility, certify payloads and go through ethical review. "Significant research activities were not originally envisioned as a primary objective for private astronaut missions," the agency said.Updated vehicle requirements for sleep accommodation and hygiene location The addition of private astronaut medical requirementsAdditional time in private astronauts' schedules to allow them to adapt better to microgravityAdditional requirements associated with return cargo packing to ensure smoother undocking and splashdown processes The delivery of a mission-specific communications plan for all media and commercial activities, including crew announcements, training, commercial partnerships, prelaunch, launch, mission operations, return and stakeholders' roles.   SpaceX launches Axiom-1 crew to International Space Station 15:55 In: International Space Station NASA SpaceX Astronaut Sophie Lewis Sophie Lewis is a social media producer and trending writer for CBS News, focusing on space and climate change. Thanks for reading CBS NEWS. 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Want to go to space? NASA says you have to get a former astronaut to chaperone you to the ISS.

The logo of cryptocurrency platform Solana.Jakub Porzycki | NurPhoto via | Getty ImagesNearly 8,000 digital wallets have been drained of just over $5.2 million in digital coins including solana's sol token and USD Coin (USDC), according to blockchain analytics firm Elliptic. The Twitter account Solana Status confirmed the attack, noting that as of Wednesday morning, approximately 7,767 wallets have been affected by the exploit. Elliptic's estimate is slightly higher at 7,936 wallets.Solana's sol token, one of the largest cryptocurrencies after bitcoin and ether, fell about 8% in the first two hours after the hack was initially detected, according to data from CoinMarketCap. It's currently down about 1%, while trading volume is up about 105% in the last 24 hours.Starting Tuesday evening, multiple users began reporting that assets held in "hot" wallets — that is, internet-connected addresses, including Phantom, Slope and Trust Wallet — had been emptied of funds.Phantom said on Twitter that it's investigating the "reported vulnerability in the solana ecosystem" and doesn't believe it's a Phantom-specific issue. Blockchain audit firm OtterSec tweeted that the hack has affected multiple wallets "across a wide variety of platforms."Elliptic chief scientist Tom Robinson told CNBC the root cause of the breach is still unclear, but "it appears to be due to a flaw in certain wallet software, rather than in the solana blockchain itself." OtterSec added that the transactions were being signed by the actual owners, "suggesting some sort of private key compromise." A private key is a secure code that grants the owner access to their crypto holdings.The identity of the attacker is still unknown, as is the root cause of the exploit. The breach is ongoing."Engineers from multiple ecosystems, with the help of several security firms, are investigating drained wallets on solana," according to Solana Status, a Twitter account that shares updates for the entire solana network.The solana network is strongly encouraging users to use hardware wallets, since there's no evidence those have been impacted."Do not reuse your seed phrase on a hardware wallet - create a new seed phrase. Wallets drained should be treated as compromised, and abandoned," reads one tweet. Seed phrases are a collection of random words generated by a crypto wallet when it is first set up, and it grants access to the wallet.A private key is unique and links a user to their blockchain address. A seed phrase is a fingerprint of all of a user's blockchain assets that is used as a backup if a crypto wallet is lost.The incident comes one day after the $200 million hack of the Nomad blockchain bridge. It's the latest crisis to grip the crypto market in recent weeks."Four addresses are currently linked to the hacker, a far cry from yesterday's 'decentralized looting,' which involved over 120 individual users," said crypto investor and analyst Miles Deutscher. "This implies that it was a singular party who conducted the SOL exploit, although the specific details remain ambiguous."The Solana network was viewed as one of the most promising newcomers in the crypto market, with backers like Chamath Palihapitiya and Andreessen Horowitz touting it as a challenger to ethereum with faster transaction processing times and enhanced security. But it's been faced with a spate of issues lately, including downtime in periods of activity and a perception of being more centralized than ethereum. A major outage in June knocked the Solana platform offline for several hours.Ether, the native token of the ethereum blockchain, climbed 6% in 24 hours.

Ongoing solana attack targets thousands of crypto wallets, costing users more than $5 million so far.

Jul 26, 2022; Chicago, IL, USA; Las Vegas Aces head coach Becky Hammon directs the team during the first half of the Commissioners Cup-Championships against the Chicago Sky at Wintrust Arena. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-USA TODAY Sports/File PhotoRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comWASHINGTON, Aug 3 (Reuters) - A top coach for U.S. women's pro basketball who once represented Russia at the Olympics has made a plea for Russian President Vladimir Putin to "do the right thing" and quickly release American star player Brittney Griner.Las Vegas Aces head coach Becky Hammon, who as a player spent years in Russia and won Olympic bronze for her adopted country, said it was upsetting to see a fellow member of the tight-knit women’s basketball community locked up for nearly six months. Washington says Griner is wrongfully detained in Russia.“It’s something that obviously hits super close to home for me and so I just ask the Russian government to do the right thing. It’s never too late to do the right thing,” Hammon told Reuters in an interview on Tuesday in an appeal that was joined by other figures in global women's basketball. “We're asking for leniency. We're asking for grace. And we're asking to bring home BG.”Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comGriner, a two-time Olympic gold medalist and center for WNBA team Phoenix Mercury, is expected to return to a Russian court on Thursday for closing arguments in her trial. She faces up to 10 years in prison on drugs charges after she was detained at Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport on Feb. 17 with vape cartridges containing cannabis oil in her luggage. read more Her arrest as she headed to join her Russian team in the American off-season came days before Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, plunging relations between Moscow and Washington to their lowest point in decades and thrusting Griner into the center of a geopolitical tussle.U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said last week the United States has made a "substantial offer" to Russia to release Griner and former Marine Paul Whelan, who the United States also considers to be wrongfully detained in Russia. A source said that Washington was willing to exchange convicted arms trafficker Viktor Bout, known as the "Merchant of Death.” read more Moscow has said no deal has yet been done. A swap is unlikely to take place before a verdict in Griner’s trial, but that could take place in the coming days. read more 'ONE OF THE GREATEST'Hammon, a six-time WNBA all-star player, played during the off-season for several Russian teams, a common move for WNBA players seeking to supplement incomes that are lower than their male counterparts'. She became a naturalized citizen and won a bronze Olympic medal for Russia in 2008 and competed again in 2012, but said her Russian citizenship had since expired.Hammon - reportedly the first WNBA coach to be paid more than $1 million – described Griner as “one of the greatest players to ever play,” and said it was possible the detention of a male athlete at the same level would have drawn a greater response.“It's hard to imagine, though, that if this was, you know, LeBron James, that he'd still be sitting over there in jail,” said Hammon. “It’s hard not to let your mind go there.”Hammon said she had always supported the campaign to free Griner, but was speaking out as Griner’s trial draws to a close and Russia has an opportunity to send her home.Several others who played in Russia also called for Griner's release. Seattle Storm forward Breanna Stewart, Spanish shooting guard Marta Xargay and Griner's Phoenix Mercury teammate Diana Taurasi, who played in Russia for over 10 years, recorded video appeals that were shared with Reuters on Wednesday."We called Russia our second home for many years. I ask, for the sanctity of sport, to have mercy and understanding for our beloved Brittney Griner," said Taurasi.Hammon said as an athlete she was not political, but appealed to Putin and Russian authorities to show "mercy" and let Griner return to her wife in the United States.“If that was your daughter or your sister or your wife or whoever, you can imagine the agony that you'd been going through waiting,” she said. “Enough is enough.”She also warned that Russian athletes would suffer repercussions from the detention of a top athlete traveling to compete.“I think Mr. Putin is a pretty big sports fan - to jeopardize all these athletes, I mean would just be really unfortunate,” said Hammon.Russian sports teams and athletes have been excluded from some international events over the invasion of Ukraine, and Olympic officials have said Russia could be banned from the 2024 games in Paris. Russia has not faced sporting sanctions for Griner's detention. read more “If (Griner) were to have to serve a (prison) sentence, I think there would have to be bad implications internationally on the sports world,” Hammon said. “There's certain ways to put pressure on Russia. Hopefully it doesn't come to that.”Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Simon Lewis; Editing by Mary Milliken and Nick ZieminskiOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

EXCLUSIVE Coach Hammon, once a star in Russia, urges Putin to free Brittney Griner.

Soccer Football - UEFA Executive Committee News Conference - Nyon, Switzerland - April 7, 2022 A UEFA logo is displayed in this illustration during the news conference REUTERS/Denis Balibouse/Illustration/File PhotoRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comAug 3 (Reuters) - Semi-automated offside technology (SAOT) will be used in the Champions League this season after being introduced for next week's UEFA Super Cup match between Real Madrid and Eintracht Frankfurt, European soccer's governing body said on Wednesday.The system, which uses special cameras that will track body points on players, will be used for the Super Cup in Helsinki and then from the Champions League group stage."UEFA is constantly looking for new technological solutions to improve the game and support the work of the referees," UEFA Chief Refereeing Officer Roberto Rosetti said in a statement.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com"This innovative system will allow Video Assistant Referee (VAR) teams to determine offside situations quickly and more accurately, enhancing the flow of the game and the consistency of the decisions."UEFA said the new system will operate with special cameras that track 29 different body points per player, with a total of 188 tests performed since 2020, including all games from last season's Champions League, the knockout stage of the Women's Champions League and the women's Euros."The system is ready to be used in official matches and implemented at each Champions League venue," Rosetti said.The Super Cup game takes place on Aug. 10, with English referee Michael Oliver appointed as the on-field official.Soccer's global body FIFA said last month that SAOT would be used at this year's World Cup in Qatar, promising decisions that are more accurate and a lot quicker. read more Using cameras strategically positioned around the stadiums, and a chip in the match ball, FIFA said the technology will go a long way to cutting down on VAR decisions on marginal offside calls and reduce the time needed to check.Spectators will also be able to see some of the 3D animation when VAR decisions are explained on a stadium's screen.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Bengaluru Editing by Toby DavisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Semi-automated offside technology to be used in Champions League, UEFA Super Cup.

Just 9% of tech workers are feeling confident in their their job security, according to a June survey from Blind, the anonymous professional networking site.No doubt, job-market fears are being fueled by months of headlines about hiring freezes, job offers being rescinded and mass layoffs from burgeoning upstarts and tech giants alike, including Robinhood and Oracle just this week.More than 32,000 people have been laid off from the U.S. tech sector in 2022, according to Crunchbase data.Today's lack of confidence in the job market marks a 180-degree shift from just months ago, says Rick Chen, head of PR for Blind. Back in March, some 80% of tech workers were confident in the job market and were considering looking for a new job.Layoff news is making tech workers across several industries feel skittish, especially those in e-commerce, real estate and businesses tied closely to the stock market, which saw a boom during Covid recovery in 2021 but massive volatility in today's economy.Workers' job stability worries have skyrocketed at companies that announced layoffs in recent months. As of of the Blind survey, conducted on June 20 and 21, companies with the highest shares of concerned workers included Compass, where 95% felt  less confident about their job security, as well as Twitter (91%), Robinhood (90%), Instacart (90%) and Coinbase (83%).Workers are taking their concerns online, Chen says: Discussions of hiring freezes and layoffs doubled in the first quarter of 2022 compared with 2021, while discussions including the term "recession" have increased 15-fold.Despite layoffs, tech workers are 'being snapped up in weeks'Broad pessimism stands in contrast with a still-hot labor market, economists say. Hiring and quits remain near record highs while June layoffs remained just under 1% of the workforce.Workers may not have as much bargaining power as early 2022, but Chen says tech workers are still well-positioned to look for a new job or land on their feet if they're laid off."We're finding companies are still hiring, and the people we're placing are being snapped up in weeks," Chen says, referring to activity on Blind's recruiting marketplace. And as of June, 64% of tech leaders say it's getting harder or significantly harder to find skilled workers for their open job positions, according to a CNBC survey.Alister Shirazi, 34, works as an engineering project manager with Apple on a contract basis. Though his contract is up in November, he's "not at all" concerned about continuing to work for the tech giant or lining up a new job afterward.For one, he's noticed his boss continues to discuss how hard it is to hire and retain employees to keep her team appropriately staffed. Shirazi expects his contract will be extended, or he could be brought on as a full-time employee.He also sees recent layoffs as temporary: "We just came off of a huge boom in hiring in the tech sector," Shirazi says. "Booms are usually followed by busts, but then busts are followed again by booms."Shirazi expects established companies will win out by scooping up tech workers leaving riskier startups: "I don't see these layoffs as a time where people are going to spend a lot of time sitting at home," he says.How to future-proof your new jobIf you're considering a move, Chen recommends you take this time to reflect on what you want most out of your career. "During good times, people were leaving every 12 to 18 months on average and searching for roles with higher pay and compensation," he says. "Now is a good time to take stock of what matters most to you, whether that's work-life balance, remote work, a flexible work schedule or opportunities to level up in your skills or career."You might also ask more questions to gauge a prospective company's stability: "Be wary of descriptions like 'hyper-growth' in the job description and dig deeper," says Ginny Cheng, a coach with Career Contessa. "Learn more about the steps they are doing to support employee retention or how they are growing responsibly."As for the future of tech jobs, "every company is a tech company," Chen adds, "and they need programmers and data scientists and product folks to create digital products and services. There is security in tech roles."Check out:4.2 million people quit in June despite recession worries: 'A paradox in our economy'What's a good salary or raise to ask for right now? How to find your number in this wild job market3 reasons your recruiter ghosted you, according to a hiring proSign up now: Get smarter about your money and career with our weekly newsletter

Mass layoffs and hiring freezes: Just 9% of tech workers feel secure about their jobs right now.

World August 3, 2022 / 1:52 PM / AP Volcano erupts in Iceland Volcano in Iceland attracts thousands of visitors 08:55 A volcano in southwest Iceland began erupting Wednesday, the country's meteorological authorities said — just eight months after its last eruption officially ended.The Icelandic Meteorological Office urged people not to go near the Fagradalsfjall volcano, which is located some 32 kilometers (20 miles) southwest of the capital, Reykjavik.The eruption in an uninhabited valley is not far from Keflavik Airport, Iceland's international air traffic hub. The airport remained open and no flights were disrupted. A live video feed from the site showed magma spewing from a narrow fissure about 100 to 200 meters long over a field of lava from last year's eruption, the first on the Reykjanes Peninsula in almost 800 years. Live Fagradalsfjall, Iceland. by RÚV on YouTube Scientists had anticipated an eruption somewhere on the peninsula after a series of earthquakes over the past week indicated volcanic activity close to the crust. Volcanologist Magnus Tumi Gudmundsson told The Associated Press that the eruption appeared to be small."But we don't know where in the process things are at," he said as he boarded a helicopter for a first look. A aerial shot of activity from the Fagradalsfjall volcano in Iceland on Wednesday Aug. 3, 2022, which is located 20 miles southwest of the capital of Reykjavik and close to the international Keflavik Airport.  Ernir Snaer / AP The 2021 eruption in the same area produced spectacular lava flows for several months. Hundreds of thousands people flocked to see the spectacular sight.Iceland, located above a volcanic hotspot in the North Atlantic, averages an eruption every four to five years. The most disruptive in recent times was the 2010 eruption of the Eyjafjallajokull volcano, which sent clouds of ash and dust into the atmosphere, interrupting air travel for days between Europe and North America because of concerns the ash could damage jet engines. More than 100,000 flights were grounded, stranding millions of passengers.Shares in Iceland's flagship airline, Icelandair, rose 6% when news of the eruption broke Wednesday. Investors and residents alike had been spooked by the possibility of a much more disruptive eruption in a populated area of the peninsula. In: Volcano Thanks for reading CBS NEWS. Create your free account or log in for more features. Please enter email address to continue Please enter valid email address to continue

Volcano near Iceland's main airport erupts again after series of earthquakes.

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comJOHANNESBURG, Aug 3 (Reuters) - South African power utility Eskom said it would escalate scheduled power cuts to "Stage 4" from 4 p.m. until midnight local time (1400 to 2200 GMT) on Thursday due to a shortage of generation capacity.The utility had earlier announced "Stage 2" power cuts during the evening peak hours for Wednesday and Thursday, which would have required up to 2,000 megawatts to be shed from the national grid.Eskom said in a statement that there had been a delay in returning several generation units to service, while others had broken down.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comLocals walk past electricity pylons during frequent power outages from South African utility Eskom, caused by its aging coal-fired plants, in Soweto, South Africa, July 3, 2022. REUTERS/Siphiwe SibekoIt will also implement "Stage 2" power cuts on Thursday between 5 a.m. and 4 p.m., Eskom said, adding that it expects to repeat the same on Friday from 5 a.m. until midnight.The struggling state-owned company suspended scheduled electricity outages 11 days ago, following several weeks of regular power cuts that prompted public anger and hampered businesses.Eskom has an ageing power station fleet comprised mainly of coal plants that are highly prone to faults.Government efforts to add additional capacity have been slow, and this year a record amount of electricity is set to be cut from the grid. read more Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Alexander Winning and Bhargav Acharya Editing by Olivia Kumwenda-Mtambo, Kirsten DonovanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

S.Africa's Eskom to escalate power cuts after 11-day pause.

Erin Woods for the Vote No on the Constitutional Amendment on Abortion canvases a neighborhood on August 01, 2022 in Lenexa, Kansas.Kyle Rivas | Getty ImagesSenate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and other leading Democrats on Wednesday said an unexpectedly strong vote to uphold the right to an abortion in "red" Kansas gives their party a boost over Republicans going into the fall midterm elections."Last night in the American heartland, the people of Kansas sent an unmistakable message to MAGA Republican extremists -- back off women's fundamental rights," said Schumer, D-N.Y. referring to the "Make America Great Again" battle cry of former President Donald Trump and his supporters.With an extremely high turnout, Kansans on Tuesday voted 59% to 41% against a proposed constitutional amendment that would let the state's Republican-controlled legislature either ban or severely restrict abortion."What happened in red Kansas last night is a reflection of what is happening across the country and what will continue to occur through the November elections," Schumer said on the Senate floor. "If it's going to happen in Kansas, it's going to happen in a whole lot of states." The strong pro-choice vote in Kansas, he said, will continue into the November elections," he said. "And Republicans who side with these extremist MAGA policies that attack women's rights do so at their own political risk," he said.The vote was the crucial first test of how voters could react to the Supreme Court's decision in June overturning the federal constitutional right to abortion, which had existed since the same court's 1973 ruling in the Roe v. Wade case.The latest Supreme Court ruling effectively leaves it up to individual states to decide how strictly to regulate or outright ban abortion.Nearly half of the states are expected to impose total or near-total bans on the procedure, despite the fact that opinion polls consistently show that a solid majority of Americans believe abortion should be legal. On Tuesday, the Justice Department filed a lawsuit seeking to block the enforcement of Idaho's new abortion law, which beginning later this month would make it a criminal offense to perform abortion in nearly all cases.Tuesday's loss by anti-abortion advocates in Kansas was stunning because the state reliably supports Republicans, whose party opposes abortion, in national elections. The Democratic Party, in contrast, is a staunch supporter of abortion rights.In the 2016 presidential election, the then-Republican candidate Trump defeated Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton by more than 20 percentage points in Kansas, helping cement his victory in the national election for the White House.Trump also defeated President Joe Biden in Kansas by nearly 15 percentage points in 2020.Anti-abortion groups spent millions of dollars promoting the Kansas amendment,But as of Wednesday morning, the "no" vote on Kansas's anti-abortion amendment was outpacing "yes" voters by about 18 percentage points with 99% of the vote counted.Ever since Biden's national victory in 2020, Democrats were expected to face tough odds in the November elections to retain their majorities in both chambers of Congress. The incumbent party of a sitting president typically performs poorly in midterm races and the individual Senate seats up for reelection aren't sure things for the Democrats. But top Democrats on Wednesday were heartened by the results on the Kansas amendment, even if all of them were not predicting it meant they will keep their majorities.The results came as a new national poll by Monmouth University showed that there has been a significant increase in support for Democrats on a generic ballot since June, when the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.Monmouth's latest poll showed that 50% of Americans now prefer Democrats controlling Congress, compared with 43% who prefer Republicans taking the majority. That same poll, which has a margin of error of 3.5 percentage points, showed Biden with just a 38% approval rating.A Monmouth poll in June had shown the parties dead even, 47% to 47% in voter preferences. And in May, Republicans held a 4 percentage point edge over Democrats when people were asked in the poll which party should control Congress."I think the message is out there that the reaction across America to this Supreme Court decision is powerful," Sen. Dick Durbin, an Illinois Democrat, told reporters Wednesday. "People are not staying home. They're showing up at the polls, I think it'll have an impact in November."Asked if that impact would be enough to save his party's majorities, Durbin said, "I wouldn't say that,  wouldn't go that far, but I will tell you this. It has created a new factor in this off-year election in that Republicans are in a difficult position."He said reports of extreme situations where women have been in danger because they are being denied access to abortion have been making the news. "And it isn't one that's very popular with voters," he said.Another Democrat, Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, told reporters, "the American people are fed up with politicians trying to tell them what to do with their lives and their bodies." Abortion will be a ballot issue this November, he said."The anger, angst, anxiety that it was expressed in Kansas is so widespread in this country that I think that November is going to be a key indication," Blumenthal said.But Republican Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri said that "I just doubt it" when asked if the issue of abortion rights would lead to Democrats holding their majorities.""I think we will take them both back," Hawley said, referring to the Senate and House of Representatives.The abortion rights group NARAL Pro-Choice America suggested that Hawley's confidence is not warranted."At a time when reproductive freedom is under unprecedented threat across the country, Kansans said loud and clear at the ballot box: 'We've had enough,'" said NARAL President Mini Timmaraju in a statement."In the heartland of the United States, protecting abortion access is galvanizing voters like never before, and that mobilization is only just beginning. Reproductive freedom is a winning issue, now and in November," Timmaraju said.

Overwhelming abortion right win in in 'red' Kansas gives Democrats boost for fall midterms over 'MAGA' GOP, Schumer says.

Chesapeake Energy logo is seen on smartphone in front of displayed stock graph in this illustration taken January 25, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/IllustrationRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comAug 3 (Reuters) - U.S. shale producer Chesapeake Energy (CHK.O) is eyeing a sale of its Eagle Ford shale assets in south Texas, as it shifts its business focus to natural gas production.The company, which has faced pressure from private equity firm Kimmeridge Energy Management for changes, said it would drop three rigs in the Eagle Ford by the end of the year, exiting the basin with two rigs running.It will add two rigs in the gassy Haynesville shale, finishing the year with seven in operation there.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comExiting the Eagle Ford assets would likely take time and could be done in multiple transactions, Chief Executive Nick Dell'Osso said during an earnings call on Wednesday.Chesapeake said it anticipates increased production in the Haynesville shale, which spans east Texas and into Louisiana, by 5% to 7% between 2022 and 2023. It plans to increase its capital investment program by 15% to $1.75 billion to $1.95 billion due to inflation and the rig additions.Chesapeake this week disclosed it had entered into an agreement to supply natural gas to the Golden Pass LNG export facility near Sabine Pass, Texas.The U.S. Gulf Coast plant, a joint venture between Qatar Energy and Exxon Mobil Corp.(XOM.N), is expected to begin commercial operations in 2024.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Liz Hampton in Denver, editing by Deepa BabingtonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Chesapeake eyes sale of south Texas shale oil assets, focuses on gas.

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comABUJA, Aug 3 (Reuters) - Nigeria's military will use maximum firepower to uproot the armed groups that are behind mounting insecurity in the country, the airforce said on Wednesday, amid concerns that the situation, if unchecked, could impact a general election in February.Attacks by Islamist insurgents in the northeast and kidnappings for ransom and killings of villagers in the northwest have become an almost daily occurrence in Nigeria.But the militants have carried a number of attacks outside their northeastern enclave, raising fears that their networks may be spreading to other parts of the country.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comNigerian Air Force (NAF) head Air Marshal Oladayo Amao told commanders during a Tuesday meeting that the security situation "remains fluid and uncertain" with armed groups moving between northern states, a statement released by NAF on Wednesday said.Amao said operational commanders should "show no mercy and ensure they employ maximum firepower against terrorists posing security threats in the country."Soldiers stand in a parade at the military arcade during a ceremony marking the army Remembrance Day in Lagos, Nigeria January 15, 2017.REUTERS/Akintunde Akinleye/File PhotoThe government early this year designated bandits as terrorists but the military's response has been sporadic, in part because its resources are concentrated against insurgents. That has left the bandits to roam largely freely.President Muhammadu Buhari said late on Tuesday the Nigerian government had given security forces "full freedom to deal with, and bring to end this madness."Buhari spoke after a spate of attacks last weekend by gunmen in three northern states, which left scores of people dead.On Tuesday, the Nigerian police said it deployed additional manpower around Abuja to bolster security, days after local reports of an attack at a checkpoint near the capital. read more Security will be a major issue when Nigerians vote for a new president in February to succeed Buhari, who cannot stand again after serving the two terms permitted by the constitution.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Camillus Eboh, Editing by MacDonald Dzirutwe and Bernadette BaumOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Nigeria's military to use 'maximum firepower' against armed groups.

A Beyond Meat Burger is seen on display at a store in Port Washington, New York, U.S., June 3, 2019. Picture taken June 3, 2019. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton/File PhotoRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comAug 3 (Reuters) - Beyond Meat Inc (BYND.O) is headed for an unappetizing second quarter as the plant-based food craze withers in the face of several weak product tests at restaurants and mediocre reviews.Analysts have slashed forecasts for Beyond Meat's sales on supply-chain concerns and waning demand that pulled down shares of the plant-based meat maker and peer Oatly Group AB (OTLY.O) from their lofty market debut levels."Part of the issue with the adoption of the category for new consumers is that you're not going to change cultural tastes overnight," Mizuho analyst John Baumgartner said. "Recruiting your next phase of consumers requires more innovation and better tasting products."Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comEstimates for Beyond Meat's second-quarter revenue have fallen by 10% over the last three months, according to Refinitiv IBES data.CONTEXTMcDonald's Corp last week became the latest chain to not go through with an immediate broader launch of Beyond Meat products, after concluding its U.S. test of a burger made with the plant-based meat without confirming future plans.Tests at Panda Express and Yum Brands Inc's KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell have also yet to lead to a permanent or U.S.-wide launch, while Dunkin, Hardee's and A&W have discontinued products after launching, according to brokerage Piper Sandler.Reviews for Beyond Meat's plant-based jerky also indicate skepticism about the taste of the product, stoking concerns about the sustainability of its sales momentum, Piper Sandler analyst Michael Lavery wrote in a note on Friday.The company has had to discount more to encourage inflation-hit consumers to pick up its products over those of competitors at grocers, leading analysts to say its expectation for average revenue growth of 27% for 2022 now appears steep.FUNDAMENTALS* Beyond Meat is expected to post a marginal increase in revenue for the second quarter, when it reports on Thursday, with loss per share widening to $1.18.* Wall Street expects Beyond Meat to lose $4.48 per share for 2022, much bigger than the $2.88 it expected on April 27, when the company reported results for the first quarter.Plant-based foo maker's sharesRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Praveen Paramasivam in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika SyamnathOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Beyond Meat sales under threat as plant-based boom withers.

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comSummaryCompaniesPelosi tells President Tsai "we will not abandon Taiwan"China steps up military activity around TaiwanTaiwan's military increases alertness levelChina summoned U.S. ambassador in BeijingTAIPEI, Aug 3 (Reuters) - U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi left Taiwan on Wednesday after touting its democracy and pledging American solidarity during her brief visit, adding that Chinese anger cannot stop world leaders from travelling to the self-ruled island claimed by Beijing.China demonstrated its outrage over the highest-level U.S. visit to the island in 25 years with a burst of military activity in surrounding waters, summoning the U.S. ambassador in Beijing and halting several agricultural imports from Taiwan.Some of China's planned military exercises were to take place within Taiwan's 12 nautical mile sea and air territory, according to Taiwan's defence ministry, an unprecedented move that a senior defence official described to reporters as "amounting to a sea and air blockade of Taiwan".Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comTaiwan scrambled jets on Wednesday to warn away 27 Chinese aircraft in its air defence zone, the island's defence ministry said, adding that 22 of them crossed the median line separating the island from China. read more Pelosi arrived with a congressional delegation on her unannounced but closely watched visit late on Tuesday, defying China's repeated warnings, on a trip that she said demonstrated unwavering U.S. commitment to Taiwan's democracy. read more "Our delegation came to Taiwan to make unequivocally clear that we will not abandon Taiwan," Pelosi told Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen, who Beijing suspects of pushing for formal independence - a red line for China. read more "Now, more than ever, America's solidarity with Taiwan is crucial, and that's the message we are bringing here today," Pelosi said during her roughly 19-hour visit.A long-time China critic, especially on human rights, and a political ally of U.S. President Joe Biden, Pelosi met with a former Tiananmen activist, a Hong Kong bookseller who had been detained by China and a Taiwanese activist recently released by China.The last U.S. House speaker to go to Taiwan was Newt Gingrich in 1997. Pelosi's visit comes amid sharply deteriorating U.S.-Chinese relations. During the past quarter century, China has become a far more powerful economic, military and geopolitical force.China considers Taiwan part of its territory and has never renounced using force to bring it under its control. The United States and the foreign ministers of the Group of Seven nations warned China against using the visit as a pretext for military action against Taiwan."Sadly, Taiwan has been prevented from participating in global meetings, most recently the World Health Organization, because of objections by the Chinese Communist Party," Pelosi said in statement issued after her departure."While they may prevent Taiwan from sending its leaders to global forums, they cannot prevent world leaders or anyone from travelling to Taiwan to pay respect to its flourishing democracy, to highlight its many successes and to reaffirm our commitment to continued collaboration," Pelosi added. read more U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi talks with Taiwan Foreign Minister Joseph Wu before boarding a plane at Taipei Songshan Airport in Taipei, Taiwan August 3, 2022. Taiwan Ministry of Foreign Affairs/Handout via REUTERS She later arrived in South Korea, according to local media.China's customs department announced a suspension of imports of citrus fruits and certain fish - chilled white striped hairtail and frozen horse mackerel - from Taiwan, while its commerce ministry banned export of natural sand to Taiwan.Fury on the mainland over Pelosi's defiance of Beijing was evident in Chinese social media, with one blogger railing: "this old she-devil, she actually dares to come!" Pelosi is 82. read more MILITARY DRILLSChina's military announced joint air and sea drills near Taiwan and test launches of conventional missiles in the sea east of the island, with Chinese state news agency Xinhua describing live-fire drills and other exercises around Taiwan from Thursday to Sunday.China's foreign ministry said Pelosi's visit damages peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, harms the political foundation of U.S.-Chinese relations and infringes upon China's sovereignty and territorial integrity.U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken discussed the potential for Pelosi's visit with counterpart Wang Yi during a G20 meeting in Bali last month, and said any such trip would be entirely Pelosi's decision and independent of the Biden administration, a senior U.S. official said on Wednesday. read more The State Department confirmed that China delivered a formal protest to U.S. Ambassador Nicholas Burns in Beijing, and that Burns reiterated U.S. readiness to work with China to prevent escalation and keep lines of communication open.The United States has no official diplomatic relations with Taiwan but is bound by American law to provide it with the means to defend itself. China views visits by U.S. officials to Taiwan as sending an encouraging signal to the pro-independence camp on the island. Taiwan rejects China's sovereignty claims, saying only the Taiwanese people can decide the island's future.Taiwan's military increased its alertness level. Its defence ministry said China was attempting to threaten key ports and cities with drills in the surrounding waters."We can see China's ambition: to make the Taiwan Strait non-international waters, as well as making the entire area west of the first island chain in the western pacific its sphere of influence," a senior Taiwan official familiar with its security planning told Reuters.Foreign ministers of the G7 - Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Britain and the United States, as well as the European Union – in a statement urged China to resolve the Taiwan matter peacefully and expressed concern over China's "threatening actions," particularly live-fire exercises and "economic coercion." They added that it is "normal and routine" for legislators to travel internationally. read more Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Yimou Lee and Sarah Wu; Additional reporting by Simon Lewis in Washington; Writing by Tony Munroe and Michael Martina; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore, Stephen Coates and Will DunhamOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Pelosi lauds Taiwan, says China's fury cannot stop visits by world leaders.

It has been a rough month for the crypto sector, and it's only the third day of August.From cross-chain bridge hacks draining hundreds of millions of dollars in customer funds to the Securities and Exchange Commission coming after crypto Ponzi schemes, this corner of the market can't catch a break.The developments add to an already torrid year for the crypto market, which has seen huge declines as fears around tightening monetary policy and a lack of liquidity set in.The flood of news is difficult for even insiders to track, so here's a rundown of what you've missed since Monday.MondayThe U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission headquarters in Washington on Feb. 23, 2022.Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesThe Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday filed a civil complaint charging 11 people in the creation and promotion of an allegedly fraudulent crypto-focused pyramid scheme that raised more than $300 million from investors.The scheme, called Forsage, claimed to be a decentralized smart contract platform, allowing millions of retail investors to enter into transactions via smart contracts that operated on the ethereum, tron and binance blockchains. The SEC alleges that for more than two years, the setup functioned like a standard pyramid scheme, in which investors earned profits by recruiting others into the operation. In the SEC's formal complaint, Wall Street's top watchdog calls Forsage a "textbook pyramid and Ponzi scheme," in which Forsage aggressively promoted its smart contracts through online promotions and new investment platforms, all while not selling "any actual, consumable product." The complaint adds that "the primary way for investors to make money from Forsage was to recruit others into the scheme."The SEC said Forsage operated a typical Ponzi structure, wherein it allegedly used assets from new investors to pay earlier ones."As the complaint alleges, Forsage is a fraudulent pyramid scheme launched on a massive scale and aggressively marketed to investors," Carolyn Welshhans, acting chief of the SEC's Crypto Assets and Cyber Unit, wrote in a news release."Fraudsters cannot circumvent the federal securities laws by focusing their schemes on smart contracts and blockchains."Forsage, through its support platform, declined to provide a method for contacting the company and did not offer comment.Four of the 11 people charged by the SEC are founders of Forsage. Their current whereabouts are unknown, but they were last known to be living in Russia, the Republic of Georgia and Indonesia.Three of the 11 people are U.S.-based individuals charged as promoters who endorsed Forsage on their social media platforms: Samuel D. Ellis, of Louisville, Kentucky, Mark F. Hamlin, of Henrico, Virginia, and Sarah L. Theissen, of Hartford, Wisconsin. Ellis and Theissen, neither of whom admitted nor denied the allegations, agreed to settle the charges, subject to court approval.Forsage was launched in January 2020. Regulators around the world have tried a couple of times to shut it down. Cease-and-desist actions were brought against Forsage first in September 2020 by the Securities and Exchange Commission of the Philippines. In March 2021, Montana's commissioner of securities and insurance tried the same. Despite this, the defendants allegedly continued to promote the scheme while denying the claims in several YouTube videos and by other means.TuesdaySo-called blockchain bridges have become a prime target for hackers seeking to exploit vulnerabilities in the world of decentralized finance.Jakub Porzycki | NurPhoto | Getty ImagesCrypto startup Nomad lost almost $200 million in a devastating security exploit. Nomad is known as a "bridge," where users can transfer tokens from one blockchain to another. Hackers exploited a security flaw that let users enter any value into the system and siphon off the funds, even if there weren't enough assets available in Nomad's deposit base.The nature of the bug meant that users didn't need any programming skills to exploit it. Others caught on and deployed armies of bots to carry out copycat attacks."Without prior programming experience, any user could simply copy the original attackers' transaction call data and substitute the address with theirs to exploit the protocol," said Victor Young, founder and chief architect of crypto startup Analog."Unlike previous attacks, the Nomad hack became a free-for-all where multiple users started to drain the network by simply replaying the original attackers' transaction call data."Blockchain bridges are a popular way of moving tokens off networks such as ethereum, which has gained a reputation for slow transaction times and high fees, into cheaper, more efficient blockchains. But sloppy programming choices have made them a prime target for hackers seeking to swindle investors out of millions. More than $1 billion worth of crypto has been lost to bridge exploits so far in 2022, according to blockchain analysis firm Elliptic."I can only hope that developers and projects will learn that they are running a critical piece of software," Adrian Hetman, tech lead at Web3 security firm Immunefi, told CNBC."They need to keep the security first, be security first at every business decision because they are dealing with people's money; a lot of that money is locked in those contracts."Nomad said it's working with crypto security firm TRM Labs and law enforcement to trace the movement of funds, identify the perpetrators behind the attack and return stolen tokens to users."Nomad is committed to keeping its community updated as it learns more in the coming hours and days and appreciates all those who acted quickly to protect funds," the company said in the statement.Michael Saylor, chairman and chief executive officer of MicroStrategy, first got into bitcoin in 2020, when he decided to start adding the cryptocurrency to MicroStrategy's balance sheet as part of an unorthodox treasury management strategy.Eva Marie Uzcategui | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesLater Tuesday, MicroStrategy announced CEO Michael Saylor is leaving his role to become executive chairman of the company. The company's president, Phong Le, will take the reins from Saylor.Saylor has been the CEO since he launched the company in 1989. MicroStrategy went public in 1998.MicroStrategy's stock is down over 48% this year. Bitcoin is down over 51% during that same time period."I believe that splitting the roles of Chairman and CEO will enable us to better pursue our two corporate strategies of acquiring and holding bitcoin and growing our enterprise analytics software business," Saylor said in a news release. "As Executive Chairman I will be able to focus more on our bitcoin acquisition strategy and related bitcoin advocacy initiatives, while Phong will be empowered as CEO to manage overall corporate operations." The news came as the company announced its second-quarter earnings, in which its total revenues dropped by 2.6% compared with a year ago. The company also reported an impairment charge of $918 million on the value of its digital assets, presumably primarily bitcoin.MicroStrategy may technically be in the business of enterprise software and cloud-based services, but Saylor has said the publicly traded company doubles as the first and only bitcoin spot exchange-traded fund in the U.S."We're kind of like your nonexistent spot ETF," Saylor told CNBC on the sidelines of the Bitcoin 2022 conference in Miami in April.Late Tuesday, early WednesdaySolana logo displayed on a phone screen and representation of cryptocurrencies are seen in this illustration photo taken in Krakow, Poland on August 21, 2021.Jakub Porzycki | NurPhoto | Getty ImagesAnd then on Tuesday night, unknown attackers came after hot wallets connected to the solana blockchain.Nearly 8,000 digital wallets have been drained of just over $5.2 million in digital coins, including solana's sol token and USD coin, according to blockchain analytics firm Elliptic. The Twitter account Solana Status confirmed the attack, noting that as of Wednesday morning, approximately 7,767 wallets have been affected by the exploit. Elliptic's estimate is slightly higher at 7,936 wallets.Solana's sol token, one of the largest cryptocurrencies after bitcoin and ether, fell about 8% in the first two hours after the hack was initially detected, according to data from CoinMarketCap. It's currently down about 1%, while trading volume is up about 105% in the last 24 hours.Starting Tuesday evening, multiple users began reporting that assets held in "hot" wallets — that is, internet-connected addresses, including Phantom, Slope and Trust Wallet — had been emptied of funds.Phantom said on Twitter that it's investigating the "reported vulnerability in the solana ecosystem" and doesn't believe it's a Phantom-specific issue. Blockchain audit firm OtterSec tweeted that the hack has affected multiple wallets "across a wide variety of platforms."Elliptic chief scientist Tom Robinson told CNBC the root cause of the breach is still unclear, but "it appears to be due to a flaw in certain wallet software, rather than in the solana blockchain itself." OtterSec added that the transactions were being signed by the actual owners, "suggesting some sort of private key compromise." A private key is a secure code that grants the owner access to their crypto holdings.The identity of the attacker is still unknown, as is the root cause of the exploit. The breach is ongoing."Engineers from multiple ecosystems, with the help of several security firms, are investigating drained wallets on solana," according to Solana Status, a Twitter account that shares updates for the entire solana network.The solana network is strongly encouraging users to use hardware wallets, since there's no evidence those have been impacted."Do not reuse your seed phrase on a hardware wallet — create a new seed phrase. Wallets drained should be treated as compromised, and abandoned," reads one tweet. Seed phrases are a collection of random words generated by a crypto wallet when it is first set up, and it grants access to the wallet.A private key is unique and links a user to their blockchain address. A seed phrase is a fingerprint of all of a user's blockchain assets that is used as a backup if a crypto wallet is lost.The solana network was viewed as one of the most promising newcomers in the crypto market, with backers such as Chamath Palihapitiya and Andreessen Horowitz touting it as a challenger to ethereum with faster transaction processing times and enhanced security. But it's been faced with a spate of issues lately, including downtime in periods of activity and a perception of being more centralized than ethereum.Correction: This story has been updated to name the three defendants the SEC is charging as U.S.-based promoters who endorsed Forsage on their social media platforms. A previous version incorrectly said these defendants were not named in the SEC's press release that announced the charges.

It has been a miserable August for crypto — and it's only the third day of the month.

Representations of the Ripple, Bitcoin, Etherum and Litecoin virtual currencies are seen on a PC motherboard in this illustration picture, February 14, 2018. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File PhotoRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comNEW YORK, Aug 3 (Reuters) - A former Coinbase Global Inc (COIN.O) product manager and his brother pleaded not guilty on Wednesday to wire fraud charges in what U.S. prosecutors called the first insider trading case involving cryptocurrency.Ishan Wahi, 32, the former product manager, was arrested last month in Seattle on charges he shared confidential information with his brother Nikhil and their friend Sameer Ramani about forthcoming announcements of new digital assets that Coinbase would allow users to trade.Nikhil Wahi also pleaded not guilty during an arraignment on Wednesday in Manhattan federal court before U.S. District Judge Loretta Preska. Ramani, who was also charged, is at large.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comProsecutors said Nikhil Wahi and Ramani used ethereum blockchain wallets to acquire the assets and traded at least 14 times before Coinbase announcements in June 2021 and April 2022. The announcements typically caused the assets to rise in value and generated at least $1.5 million in illicit gains, prosecutors said. read more Coinbase is one of the world's largest cryptocurrency exchanges.David Miller, a lawyer for Ishan Wahi, said the charges should be dismissed because insider trading needs to involve securities or commodities and this case did not.Miller also said Coinbase tested new tokens before it publicly listed them, meaning the information his client was accused of sharing was not confidential.Noah Solowiejczyk, a prosecutor, countered that the information was nonpublic and the prosecution was consistent with previous wire fraud cases.U.S. regulators are weighing how to oversee cryptocurrency trading.Coinbase did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Last month, the company said it had shared with prosecutors its findings from an internal probe into the trading.Bail for the Wahi brothers was set at $1 million each. Their next court appearance is scheduled for March 22. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has filed related civil charges against them.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Luc Cohen in New York Editing by Bernadette BaumOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Coinbase ex-manager pleads not guilty to insider trading charges.

MoneyWatch August 3, 2022 / 2:58 PM / AP Warner Bros. has axed the $90 million "Batgirl" film planned for HBO Max, according to a person connected with the film who was not authorized to speak publicly about it. The decision was highly unusual for such a high-priced movie in the final stages of completion. But the studio ultimately decided "Batgirl" didn't merit either a streaming debut or a theatrical release, and has instead opted to entirely write off the film starring "In the Heights" star Leslie Grace as Batgirl and co-starring Michael Keaton (returning as Batman), J.K. Simmons and Brendan Fraser. It was directed by Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah. Production wrapped in April. Warner Bros.' decision, one without any obvious parallel in Hollywood history, sent shockwaves through the industry. When a big-budget movie doesn't meet a studio's expectations, it's typically sold off or dumped quietly with little fanfare. "Batgirl," greenlit before WarnerMedia's merger with Discovery Inc., will instead simply not see the light of day after reportedly poor test screenings. "We are saddened and shocked by the news. We still can't believe it," El Arbi and Fallah said in a statement Wednesday. "As directors, it is critical that our work be shown to audiences, and while the film was far from finished, we wish that fans all over the world would have had the opportunity to see and embrace the final film themselves. Maybe one day they will insha'Allah (if God wills)." The directors signed their statement, posted on Instagram, "Batgirl For Life." Warner strategy shiftUnder new Warner Bros. Discovery chief executive David Zaslav, Warner Bros. is shifting its strategy on film releases and trimming costs. Under previous chief executive Jason Kilar and partly as a pandemic response, the studio implemented day-and-date releases in 2021, opening films simultaneously in theaters and on HBO Max. Other films, like "Batgirl," were produced solely for HBO Max. This year, Warner Bros. has returned to exclusive theatrical windows for at least 45 days before sending movies to HBO Max. While "Batgirl" isn't as pricey as many superhero films, which typically cost $150-200 million to make, it's a bigger budget movie for an HBO Max title. Zaslav has maintained larger budgeted movies are best served by a theatrical rollout. But marketing a movie like "Batgirl" for that kind of release would require tens of millions more. Warner Bros. Discovery is set to report second-quarter earnings Thursday. Representatives for Warner Bros. and Warner Bros. Discovery declined to comment. The "Batgirl" plans were first reported by the New York Post. Warner Bros. also shelved "Scoob!: Holiday Haunt," an almost-completed sequel to 2020's "Scoob!" Producer and writer Tony Cervone confirmed in an Instagram post Tuesday that the "Scoob!" film was canned. "Yes I am afraid this is true," wrote Cervone. "The movie is practically finished and turned out beautifully. I am beyond heartbroken."The "Batgirl" cancellation comes as Warner Bros. is trying to revamp its DC Films operations. While "The Batman" earlier this year performed well with $770.8 million in ticket sales, Warners' DC releases have been erratic and plagued by controversy. "The Flash," scheduled for release next June, stars Ezra Miller who has been arrested twice this year in Hawaii, in a disorderly conduct case and on suspicion of assault.Warner Bros. is hoping to reorganize and reset its DC pipeline — going bigger, not smaller with its rival Marvel. Ultimately, "Batgirl" didn't suit those plans. Thanks for reading CBS NEWS. Create your free account or log in for more features. Please enter email address to continue Please enter valid email address to continue

Warner Bros. axes "Batgirl," won't release $90 million HBO Max film.

Anti-abortion activists demonstrate outside the Supreme Court of the United States in Washington, June 13, 2022.Evelyn Hockstein | ReutersResidents of Georgia may now claim embryos as dependents on their state income tax returns.Any "unborn child with a detectable human heartbeat," may qualify for a $3,000 state income tax deduction for 2022, effective July 20, according to guidance released by the state's Department of Revenue.The announcement follows the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, ending the federal right to abortion, triggering bans in Georgia and elsewhere.More from Personal Finance:Roe v. Wade decision will financially hurt the ‘most marginalized’ womenHow Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade decision could affect health insuranceCalculators can help measure how Social Security cuts may affect youWhile it's unclear whether other states will follow, jurisdictions do tend to copy one another, said Richard Auxier, senior policy associate at the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center. "It is an anti-abortion piece of legislation," he said, explaining how the tax break won't support most lower-income families.Typically, tax deductions are less valuable than tax credits because they are more difficult to claim, and many filers take the standard deduction rather than itemizing, Auxier said. "For most low-income families, there is no benefit at all," he said. "And for the rest of them, we're talking tens of dollars."Deduction intricacies are a 'tax person's nightmare'With limited details, the announcement also leaves many unanswered questions among tax professionals. "This is a situation where we may have to have some really, really uncomfortable conversations, particularly if things didn't go well," said Adam Markowitz, an enrolled agent and vice president at Howard L Markowitz PA, CPA. Financial experts have asked which parent may claim the deduction, what happens with multiple births or the if pregnancy ends in a miscarriage."It's a tax person's nightmare," Markowitz added.The policy also raises questions about how tax policy defines "dependents" since the tax code doesn't reflect what many families actually look like, Auxier said.With unmarried parents living in separate households, it may be complicated to figure out who receives the benefit, he said.How to provide 'supporting documentation'The guidance says "relevant medical records" or other "supporting documentation" must be provided if requested by the Department of Revenue. But it's unclear exactly what may be required."High-income families have the resources to go ask their primary care physician for the supporting documents," Auxier said. "But most families aren't going to have the time or money to schedule yet another appointment."The Georgia Department of Revenue said more information, including tax return instructions for claiming the tax break for an "unborn child with a detectable heartbeat" will come later this year.

Embryos can count as dependents on Georgia state tax returns: For many families 'there is no benefit at all,' says analyst.

U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, U.S. August 2, 2022. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/File PhotoRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comWASHINGTON, Aug 3 (Reuters) - The U.S. Senate was due to vote on Wednesday on Finland and Sweden's accession to NATO, the most significant expansion of the 30-member alliance since the 1990s as it faces the fallout from Russia's invasion of Ukraine.The 100-member Senate was expected to easily surpass the two-thirds majority of 67 votes required to support ratification of the two countries' accession documents.Most Democrats and Republicans have expressed strong support for the expansion. Last month, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee backed ratification by voice vote, with just one of the panel's 22 members opting to vote present. read more Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comSenate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer invited the ambassadors and other diplomats from the two countries to Washington to watch the debate and vote."The NATO vote is a very important vote for American security around the world. Finland's and Sweden's membership will strengthen NATO even further, and is all the more urgent given Russian aggression," Schumer said in remarks opening the Senate on Wednesday.Finland and Sweden applied for NATO membership in response to the invasion of Ukraine by Russia, which has repeatedly warned both against joining the alliance.NATO's 30 allies signed the accession protocol for them last month, allowing them to join the nuclear-armed alliance once its members ratify the decision. read more At that point, Helsinki and Stockholm were able to participate in NATO meetings and have greater access to intelligence, but were not protected by Article Five, the NATO defense clause stating that an attack on one ally is an attack against all.The accession needs to be ratified by the parliaments of all 30 North Atlantic Treaty Organization members before Finland and Sweden can be protected by the defense clause. Ratification could take up to a year.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Patricia Zengerle Editing by Bernadette BaumOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

U.S. Senate expected to approve Finland and Sweden joining NATO.

A woman wearing a hijab walks at Trocadero square near the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France, May 2, 2021. REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes/FilesRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comPARIS, Aug 3 (Reuters) - A United Nations committee ruled that France discriminated against a Muslim woman who was prevented from attending vocational training in a public school while wearing her Islamic head scarf, according to a U.N. document.In 2010, Naima Mezhoud, now aged 45, was due to train as a management assistant at a course held in a state high school, where teenagers are prohibited by law from wearing the hijab. When she arrived, the head teacher of the school in the northern outskirts of Paris barred her from entering, according to the document which was seen by Reuters.Six years earlier, in 2004, France had banned the wearing of hijabs and other visible religious symbols in state schools by school children. Mezhoud argued that as a higher-education student, she should not have been targetted by the law.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com"The committee concludes that the refusal to allow (Mezhoud) to participate in the training while wearing her headscarf constitutes a gender and religious-based act of discrimination," the U.N Human Rights Committee determined, according to the document.A U.N. source confirmed the authenticity of the document.The interior ministry and foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.The possible ramifications of the U.N.'s ruling were not immediately clear. Freedom law expert Nicolas Hervieu of the Paris Institute of Political Studies said that according to legal precedent, it was unlikely that France would comply with the committee's decision.France is home to one of Europe’s largest Muslim minorities. For years, the country has implemented laws designed to protect its strict form of secularism, known as “laicité,” which President Emmanuel Macron has said is under threat from Islamism.Some Muslim associations and human-rights groups allege those laws have targeted Muslims and chipped away at democratic protections and left them vulnerable to abuse.Mezhoud approached the U.N. Human Rights Committee after she lost a series of appeals in French courts.The committee said France had breached articles 18 and 26 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights on religious freedom.Mezhoud's lawyer, Sefen Guez Guez, told Reuters the decision showed that international human-rights institutions were critical of France's policies regarding Islam."French institutions will have to comply with the U.N. decision," he added.In theory, following the U.N. committee's ruling, France now has six months to financially compensate Mezhoud and offer the opportunity to take the vocational course if she still wishes. The country also must take steps to ensure similar violations of international law will not happen again.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Juliette Jabkhiro in Paris Editing by Richard Lough and Matthew LewisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

France discriminated against hijab-wearing vocational trainee -U.N. document.

Multiple trends point to no recession in the first halfThe economy may be showing a classic recession sign, but it doesn't feel that way for the jobs market.Multiple data points regarding employment in the first half of the year don't mesh with what usually happens during recessions, according to research that CNBC's Steve Liesman gathered.For one, payrolls usually decline during downturns, when they actually rose in the first of the year. Personal consumption also grew at a solid pace in the first six months, in contras with historical recession trends.Still, GDP fell 1.6% in the first quarter and 0.9% in the second quarter, meeting a common definition of a recession.—Jeff CoxStocks near session highs in last hour of trading All three major averages continued their rallies, aiming to erase losses from a two-day slide earlier in the week, as stocks started their final hour of trading Wednesday. The Nasdaq Composite led gains, up 2.69%. The S&P 500 rose 1.75% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 478 points, or 1.48% —Carmen ReinickeDisney, Apple lead Dow gainsThe top stocks in the Dow Jones Industrial Average on Wednesday are two household names: Disney and Apple. Shares of Disney rose more than 4%, making it the Dow's top performer. It was followed closely by Apple, which ticked up nearly 4% during Wednesday's session. It appeared both stocks were lifted by positive market sentiment and an overall earnings season that has not been as bad as analysts feared. Apple reported quarterly results last week that beat expectations on profit and revenue. Disney is scheduled to report its quarter next week. —Carmen ReinickeModerna, PayPal lead Nasdaq higher A broad rally on Wall Street is being led by the Nasdaq Composite, which has jumped 2.6% today.The top mover among major Nasdaq stocks is Moderna, which surged 16% on the back of a blowout earnings report. That move appears to be boosting other biotech stocks, with Gilead and Regeneron rising 6.1% and 5.8%, respectively.Elsewhere, PayPal has gained more than 8% after the payments company reported strong earnings and a new information-sharing agreement with activist firm Elliott Management.— Jesse PoundS&P 500 now up 13% from June low as Wall Street's rebound gets back on trackThe July rally for Wall Street appears to have resumed, as the S&P 500 is now up more than 13% from its recent low on June 16.At its June low, the S&P 500 was down more than 23% from its record high, putting it firmly in bear market territory.Now, the index is down about 13.4% from its high watermark.The rally for stocks has also been accompanied by a rebound for bonds. The benchmark 10-year Treasury was trading near 2.77% on Wednesday, down from nearly 3.5% in mid-June.— Jesse PoundS&P 500 erases losses from earlier in the week The S&P 500 rallied up 1.61% Wednesday, hitting its highest level since June. The gains also erased all losses from the average's two-day slide earlier in the week. —Carmen ReinickeFord rises on solid July sales figuresFord's Chief Financial Officer (CFO), John Lawler and Linda Zhang, Chief Engineer for the company's All Electric F-150 Lightning participate in the opening bell ceremony at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, New York, U.S., April 28, 2022. Brendan Mcdermid | ReutersShares of Ford gained more than 3% in intraday trading Wednesday after the automaker released its July sales figures. The report showed new vehicle sales increased 36.3% on the year, where industry-wide estimates anticipated a slowdown.—Carmen ReinickeOil falls on surprise U.S. supply increase, drop in gasoline demandJohn Kilduff of Again Capital called gasoline demand "depressed," even though prices have been falling.Kilduff said some traders had expected OPEC plus to add more oil to the market, but OPEC leader Saudi Arabia is near capacity. "The Saudis are actually pumping at the highest level since March, 2020. Over 11 million barrels a day," Kilduff said.—Patti DommStocks near session highs at middayAll three major averages were near session highs midday Wednesday, shaking off a two-day slide. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 336 points, or 1.04%. The S&P 500 gained 1.25% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite increased 2.11%. —Carmen ReinickeStocks could retest June lows, Evercore ISI's Julian Emanuel saysEvercore ISI's Julian Emanuel doesn't think we've seen the bottom yet in the bear market, and will once again challenge June lows, even as investors remain 'complacent' after last month's rally.The strategist believes investors are overly optimistic, pointing to elevated options and meme stock trading, given slowing growth and troubling signs in bond yields that indicate more trouble ahead for equity markets."The falling yield story has likely run its course and that too, is a headwind for stocks, but the options market is telling you that people just aren't really concerned about too much," Emanuel said on CNBC's "Squawk on the Street.""And that to us is much more typical of sort of late cycle August coming into September, which tends to be a dangerous month, type of behavior," he added.— Sarah MinRobinhood stock jumps after analysts say layoffs will improve profitability Vlad Tenev, CEO and co-founder Robinhood Markets, Inc., is displayed on a screen during his company’s IPO at the Nasdaq Market site in Times Square in New York City, U.S., July 29, 2021.Brendan McDermid | ReutersShares of Robinhood surged more than 13% Wednesday, just a day after the company announced it would lay off about 23% of its workforce. It is the second time the company has said in recent months it will trim staff - it also cut 9% of its workforce in April.But those job cuts will help the company going forward, boosting profitability and shares, analysts argued in notes following the news.Read more on CNBC PRO.—Carmen ReinickeTechnicals point to June low marking the start of a new bull market, Ned Davis data showsChances of the June low being the start of a new bull market are increasing, data compiled by Ned Davis Research shows.The firm noted that several breadth indicators show that the market's performance since hitting an intraday low on June 17 is more indicative of a new bull starting — rather than another bear market rally. The S&P 500 is up more than 12% in that time frame.Check out the full story on CNBC Pro.—Fred ImbertBond yields continue big move higher on hawkish Fed, better services dataTreasury yields are continuing a rapid march higher, on hawkish comments from multiple Federal Reserve officials and after stronger-than-expected data on the services sector.The benchmark 10-year yield was at a high of 2.81%, continuing the bounce started right after it touched a low of 2.52% Tuesday morning. That yield was ended last week at 2.65%. The 2-year yield, which most closely follows Fed policy, was at 3.14%, up sharply from Friday's close of 2.89%."I think really the story here is markets were really embracing the idea that we're going to have an imminent recession," said Jan Nevruzi, NatWest Markets rate strategist. "That is just not showing up."ISM Services, released at 10 a.m. ET, came in above estimates at 56.7 from 55.3 in June.Fed officials continued their hawkish comments Wednesday, after a parade of speakers drove rates sharply higher Tuesday. St. Louis Fed President James Bullard told CNBC Wednesday that he wants rates to get to 3.75%-4.00% this year.  That would be higher than the current Fed forecast for 3.25%-3.5%. The futures market had been pricing for a Fed pause in hiking but Fed officials have made clear their work is not done and inflation is still high. Bullard also said he does not currently see a recession. Some bond strategists said they believe yields may have set a near-term low Tuesday.—Patti DommStocks hit session highs after strong ISM reportThe major averages built on their earlier gains after the release of stronger-than-expected U.S. services data. The Dow Jones Industrial Average traded more than 200 points higher, or 0.8%. The S&P 500 gained 1%, and the Nasdaq Composite rallied 1.8%. —Fred ImbertServices data shows surprise reboundInvestors received some positive economic news on Wednesday morning. The ISM non-manufacturing purchasing managers index showed a surprise rebound in July. The reading came in at 56.7, above 55.3 in June. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones were expecting 54. June factory orders also came in better than expected, rising 2%. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones were expecting a gain of 1.2%.— Jesse PoundMeme stock mania makes a comeback?Wild trading in an obscure Hong Kong-based fintech firm is turning heads on Wall Street and sparking conversations about meme stock mania again.AMTD Digital saw its shares skyrocket 126% Tuesday alone after experiencing a series of trading halts. It's a subsidiary of investment holding firm AMTD Idea Group, went public in mid-July with its American depositary receipts trading on the NYSE. Two weeks later, the stock is up 21,400% to $1,679 apiece from its IPO price of $7.80."As we've learned over the past two years, events like this cause what I would say is opportunities for profit but great risk for loss particularly for our retail investors," Jay Clayton, former SEC chairman, said on CNBC's "Squawk Box" Wednesday.— Yun LiStocks rise at market open Stocks were higher at Wednesday's open, rebounding after two days of losses. The S&P 500 gained 0.73%, the Nasdaq Composite rose 1.19% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 221.31 points, or 0.68%. — Carmen ReinickeOPEC+ set to increase oil production by tiny amount OPEC and its allies on Wednesday agreed to raise oil production by a small amount, 100,000 barrels per day, in response to President Joe Biden's trip to Saudi Arabia last month. During the visit, Biden had aimed to persuade the group's leader to pump more oil to help the U.S. economy and global supply. The miniscule raise is seen as a rebuff. — Carmen ReinickeStarbucks shares tick up after earnings release Starbucks barista Brick Zurek, standing in front of the downtown Starbucks on Wabash Avenue, on May 11, 2022, has been organizing for union representation with Starbucks Workers United. The Wabash Avenue location was the first Starbucks in Chicago to file for union representation with the National Labor Relations Board. (Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)Chris Sweda | Tribune News Service | Getty ImagesShares of Starbucks gained nearly 2% in premarket trading after the coffee chain posted quarterly earnings Tuesday after the bell. The company beat expectations on earnings and revenue, boosted by U.S. demand for cold drinks even amid high inflation."We had actually record customer counts and record average weekly sales," during the last quarter, Rachel Ruggeri, Starbucks chief financial officer, said on CNBC's "Squawk Box."— Carmen ReinickeModerna rises after beating earnings expectationsShares of Moderna rose nearly 4% in premarket trading after the covid-19 vaccine maker posted quarterly results that beat Wall Street's expectations for both profit and revenue. In addition, the company announced $3 billion in share buybacks, and maintained its full-year outlook.— Carmen ReinickePotential earnings revisions are a risk for second half, RBC's Calvasina says This earnings season, results have generally come in higher than Wall Street's expectations, showing that companies are faring current economic conditions better than analysts hoped, RBC head of U.S. equity strategy Lori Calvasina wrote in a Wednesday note. "The good news for the US equity market is that evidence of resilience continues to be seen in corporate earnings," Calvasina said. "The bad news for the US equity market is that the possibility of further downward earnings revisions remains a risk as we get deeper into the 2 nd half of the year."So far, estimates for earnings and revenue in the second half of 2022 and for the full-year 2023 have come down. Still, the strength of corporate earnings this quarter may suggest that any upcoming economic downturn will be short and shallow, according to Calvasina. That's good for stocks now, but could set them up for further volatility. "That's been supportive of stock prices over the past few weeks, but going forward it also tells us that the rally in stocks is fragile given the possibility of further downward earnings revisions as 2023 comes into view," she said. — Carmen ReinickeCVS gains on earnings beatShares of CVS Health rose more than 3% in premarket trading after the company reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings before the opening bell. The company also lifted its earnings outlook for the year, saying health services is helping boost sales. — Carmen ReinickePelosi leaves TaiwanHouse Speaker Nancy Pelosi left Taiwan on Wednesday after a visit that increased tensions with China and rattled financial markets a bit.Pelosi met with Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen on Wednesday. China, which considers the disputed island part of its territory, increased military drills in the Taiwan strait amid her visit. The S&P 500 is down about 1% this week as traders worried about the ramifications of Pelosi's trip for China relations. But the market was set for a bit of a relief rally on Wednesday following her departure.—John MelloyAMD shares fall on weak revenue guidanceShares of AMD traded 5% lower in the premarket after the chipmaker issued third-quarter revenue guidance that was below analyst expectations. AMD said it expects $6.7 billion in revenue for the third quarter, below a Refinitiv forecast of $6.82 billion.The disappointing guidance overshadowed better-than-expected earnings and revenue for the second quarter. —Fred ImbertEuropean markets mixed as cautious sentiment persists; Avast up 42%European stocks were mixed on Wednesday, continuing the cautious regional trend this week.The pan-European Stoxx 600 slipped 0.2% in early trade, with autos falling 1.5% while tech stocks gained 1.2%.It's a busy day for earnings in Europe, with Commerzbank, SocGen, BMW, Banco BPM, Siemens Healthineers, Veolia and Wolters Kluwer among the companies reporting before the bell.Shares of Czech cybersecurity firm Avast soared 42% after the U.K.'s competition regulator provisionally cleared its $8.6 billion sale to U.S. peer NortonLifeLock.— Elliot SmithFocus on data, not what Fed speakers are saying, Art Hogan saysDespite the "parade of Fed speakers," that's not what investors should focus on, according to Art Hogan, chief market strategist at B. Riley Financial."I think that investors have to pay more attention to what the data is telling us than what every individual Fed speaker, whether they're a voter or not, has to say about what our expectations should be," Hogan told CNBC's "Squawk Box Asia."Still, he said Fed officials have been able to shift expectations for where Fed policy is heading.St. Louis Federal Reserve President James Bullard on Tuesday said the central bank will need to keep hiking rates, and the Fed funds rate likely will have to go to 3.75%-4% by the end of 2022. San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly said "our work is far from done" in fighting inflation, while Chicago Fed President Charles Evans said another large rate hike is possible, though he hopes it can be avoided.After last week's meeting, some expected the Fed would continue hiking to reach 3.25%-3.5% before pivoting in 2023, Hogan said."I think the parade of Fed speakers this week has done a pretty good job of pulling that back, tamping down those expectations," he said.— Abigail NgThese stocks are poised for a comeback if inflation peaks, Jefferies saysA slowdown could be on the horizon, and more earnings downgrades ahead have been predicted. If inflation also peaks, as some analysts expect it to, that mix of factors will favor one class of stocks, Jefferies says.Jefferies produced a screen of such stocks that investors can buy, based on a list of metrics which include high profitability, reasonable valuations and good cashflows. Pro subscribers can read the story here.— Weizhen TanPayPal rises on earnings, share buyback announcementPayPal shares soared by more than 11% after hours. The payments company beat analysts' earnings and revenue estimates for the second quarter and issued upbeat full-year guidance. PayPal also announced a $15 billion share repurchasing program.Stock buybacks provide a way for companies to boost their per-share earnings and enhance the value of their stock, particularly while the market across the board suffers steep price declines this year. The company kicked off a $10 billion program four years ago.Elliott Management said it has a $2 billion stake in the payments giant. PayPal announced that it entered an information-sharing agreement on value creation with the activist investor.— Tanaya MacheelDespite Fedspeak about fighting inflation, an ‘easing cycle’ is emerging says Leuthold’s Jim PaulsenLeuthold Group chief investment strategist Jim Paulsen said that despite the Federal Reserve's "ongoing lip service toward fighting inflation" by tightening monetary policy, there are several factors that suggest the market may be entering an "emerging easing cycle."Bond yields have achieved a sizable rate cut, the dollar is finally rolling over and junk spreads have pulled back, he said in a note to investors late Tuesday. "The media, policy officials, and investors focus primarily on the war against inflation and how aggressively the Fed will need to keep hiking rates," Paulsen said. "Yet, with real economic growth already reduced to a crawl and evidence building that inflation is easing, the case for further Fed tightening at its September meeting is rapidly falling apart.""Investors should place appropriate weight on the leading nature of economic policies," he added. "Tightening today means lower real and nominal growth tomorrow."— Tanaya MacheelMatchGroup shares tumble after hoursShares of the dating app operator Match Group tumbled as much as 23% after the company reported revenue of $795 million for the second quarter, compared with FactSet estimates of $803.9 million. Match also issued weak guidance around adjusted operating income and revenue for the current quarter.— Tanaya Macheel

Stocks rally to reverse two-day slide, surging on rosy earnings results and economic data.

A 3D printed natural gas pipeline is placed in front of displayed Gazprom logo and Russian flag in this illustration taken February 8, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File PhotoRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comAug 3 (Reuters) - Canadian, EU and UK sanctions make delivery of a Siemens (SIEGn.DE) turbine to the Nord Stream 1 pipeline's Portovaya compressor station impossible, Russia's Gazprom (GAZP.MM) said on Wednesday.German Chancellor Olaf Scholz had earlier said the Siemens 073 turbine, which has been cited as being at the heart of reduced Russian gas supplies via the Nord Stream 1 pipeline, remains in Germany after maintenance."The sanctions regimes of Canada, the EU, the UK and a mismatch of the current situation with the existing contractual obligations by the Siemens side make delivery of the 073 engine to the Portovaya compressor station impossible," Gazprom said.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comThe Russian energy giant has cut the flows to only a fifth of the pipeline's capacity, citing technical issues and a need for repair of the pipeline turbines.Chancellor Scholz on Wednesday said Russia had no reason to hold up return of the Nord Stream 1 turbine that had been serviced in Canada but has since been stranded in Germany in an escalating energy standoff.Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov pushed back against Scholz's remarks on Wednesday, blaming a lack of documentation for holding up the turbine's return to Russia. read more Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Reuters Editing by Guy Faulconbridge and David GoodmanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Russia's Gazprom: sanctions make delivery of Nord Stream turbine impossible.

Lucid Motors CEO Peter Rawlinson poses at the Nasdaq MarketSite as Lucid Motors (Nasdaq: LCID) begins trading on the Nasdaq stock exchange after completing its business combination with Churchill Capital Corp IV in New York City, New York, July 26, 2021.Andrew Kelly | ReutersElectric vehicle maker Lucid Group again cut its production targets Wednesday as supply chain and logistics challenges mean demand for the company's EVs far outpaces its output.The company said it now has over 37,000 reservations for its Air electric luxury sedan, up from more than 30,000 in May – but it delivered just 679 cars in the second quarter. In February, it said that it expected to build between 12,000 and 14,000 vehicles in 2022, down from an original forecast of 20,000.It cut its full-year deliveries guidance for a second time, saying that it now expects to deliver just 6,000 to 7,000 vehicles in 2022, and announced a new senior executive to lead operations.Lucid's shares fell about 12% in after-hours trading following the news.The announcements came as Lucid reported its second-quarter results. Here are the key numbers:Revenue: $97.3 millionLoss per share: 33 centsVehicles delivered: 679"Our revised production guidance reflects the extraordinary supply chain and logistics challenges we encountered," CEO Peter Rawlinson said in a statement. "We've identified the primary bottlenecks, and we are taking appropriate measures – bringing our logistics operations in-house, adding key hires to the executive team, and restructuring our logistics and manufacturing organization."Earlier this year, Lucid cited supply chain issues around semiconductor chips as well as basic components like glass and carpet as reasons for the reduction.Rawlinson told CNBC in an interview that the process of working through the supply-chain issues forced the company to confront another set of bottlenecks."It really unveiled the next level of challenges, the immaturity of our logistics systems," Rawlinson said, explaining that Lucid is in the process of bringing shipping and other services in-house.To help address the issues, Lucid announced Wednesday it's hired Stellantis veteran Steven David to serve as its senior vice president of operations, taking charge of the company's manufacturing, logistics and quality-control efforts.CFO Sherry House told CNBC that the company's reservation total of 37,000 does not include any reservations for its upcoming Gravity SUV or any of the vehicles ordered by the government of Saudi Arabia.Lucid said in April that Saudi Arabia's government had agreed to buy up to 100,000 of its vehicles over the next 10 years. The country's public wealth fund is a major investor in Lucid, holding roughly 62% of the company's shares.Lucid had $4.6 billion in cash and equivalents as of the end of the second quarter, down from $5.4 billion at the end of March but enough to fund operations "well into 2023," House said.This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

EV maker Lucid again cuts production targets as logistics challenges cripple output.

U.S. August 3, 2022 / 3:56 PM / CBS News Weather extremes strike across U.S. Weather extremes strike across U.S. 01:16 Cities across the U.S. could be an average of eight degrees hotter by 2100. In about 78 years, 247 U.S. cities could feel like an entire part of the country – or world – found researchers at Climate Central, a nonprofit that researches climate change.The independent group of scientists and communicators analyzed the changing climate and how it will affect people's lives. They found 16 U.S. cities could see summer temperatures equivalent to the Middle East by 2100. Other cities could see temperatures that reflect locations 437 miles to their south. Chicago is projected to warm by 9.1 degrees Fahrenheit, feeling more like Montgomery, Alabama. New York is projected to warm by 7.6 degrees, with summers expected to feel more like Columbia, South Carolina.Houston is projected to warm by 6.4 degrees, feeling like Lahore, Pakistan, while Phoenix could rise 7.2 degrees, feeling like Al Mubarraz, Saudi Arabia. Mitchell, South Dakota, is projected to warm the most – by 11.1 degrees – and it is expected to feel more like Wichita Falls, Texas.The hottest average temperatures of summer days were analyzed. The researchers didn't incorporate humidity, which contributes to how uncomfortable summer heat can feel. "The Earth is warming because the greenhouse gasses we've emitted, mainly by burning fossil fuels, collect in our atmosphere and act like a blanket, trapping heat," Climate Central spokesperson Peter Girard told CBS News via email. "The blanket gets denser and traps more heat as we add more pollution to it, which is why summer temperatures in cities around the U.S. have been climbing. And they'll keep climbing until we stop contributing more pollution to that heat-trapping blanket."Extreme heat and longer heat waves can lead to illness or death, Climate Central says. With less cooling at night due to climate change, vulnerable individuals, the elderly, outdoor workers and people with chronic diseases, can experience more heat stress. "Summer heat will impact health. Working outside, playing sports and exercising, or living without air conditioning won't just be uncomfortable, they'll be dangerous," Girard said. "Millions of Americans are already adapting their lives to avoid midday heat, and millions more are struggling to stay safely cool. Those realities will become more and more common as summer temperatures rise."Extreme heat can lead to higher risks of heat stroke, extreme heat makes air quality worse – especially in cities, Girard addedBut climate change doesn't just affect health. It can make air quality and pollution worse, lead to more wildfires, floods and rising seas, and worsen allergies, among other things, Climate Central says. It can also have an impact on mental health as the warming climate can lead to more catastrophic weather events, which are physically and mentally difficult to recover from.Climate change solutions can also positively affect human health. Climate Central suggests planting trees, which lower carbon dioxide and purify air, driving an electric car, which reduces emissions and improves air quality; and composting, which also lowers carbon dioxide and improves soil and crop health.Girard says as long as pollution builds up in our atmosphere, temperatures will keep rising. But climate change is more than just excess heat."This analysis didn't explore other impacts of climate change, but more intense rainfall is another impact that American cities are already seeing," he said. "Because a warming atmosphere can hold more moisture, many places experience heavier rain – and higher risks of flash flooding – than they used to even 50 years ago."And for most Americans, winter warming as well. "That hurts winter sports and local economies, but warming winters also disrupt growing season and stress some crops – especially fruit trees – and expand ranges for common allergens, and pests like mosquitoes and ticks," he said.  Cities across the U.S. and Europe have experienced several heat waves this summer. In July, some U.S. cities saw triple-digit temperatures and warnings about elevated fire conditions and heat illnesses. That same month, Britain recorded its first temperature over the 40 degrees Celsius mark (104 degrees Fahrenheit).On Wednesday, CBS Boston meteorologist and executive weather producer Terry Eliasen said more extreme heat was expected in the area, just a little over a week after it experienced a seven-day heat wave. Caitlin O'Kane Caitlin O'Kane is a digital content producer covering trending stories for CBS News and its good news brand, The Uplift. Thanks for reading CBS NEWS. Create your free account or log in for more features. Please enter email address to continue Please enter valid email address to continue

Summer in the U.S. could be 8 degrees hotter in 2100 – with some cities feeling more like the Middle East.

Alex Jones walks into the courtroom in front of Scarlett Lewis and Neil Heslin, the parents of 6-year-old Sand Hook shooting victim Jesse Lewis, at the Travis County Courthouse in Austin, Texas, U.S. July 28, 2022. Briana Sanchez/Pool via REUTERSRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comAug 3 (Reuters) - An attorney for the parents of a child killed in the Sandy Hook mass shooting showed a video to jurors in the defamation trial of Alex Jones on Wednesday in which the U.S. conspiracy theorist tells his Infowars viewers the jury pool is full of people who "don't know what planet they're on."Jones, founder of the Infowars radio show and webcast, is on trial in Texas to determine how much he must pay for spreading falsehoods about the killing of 20 children and six staff at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, on Dec. 14, 2012.Mark Bankston, lawyer for the parents of slain 6-year-old Jesse Lewis, accused Jones of approaching the trial in bad faith, citing broadcasts where he said the trial was rigged against him.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comBankston showed a video of Jones saying in his broadcast on Friday that the jury pool was full of people who "don't know what planet they're on."He also showed jurors an image from Jones's show that Bankston said depicted Judge Maya Guerra Gamble, who is overseeing the case, on fire. Jones responded that the image shows Lady Justice on fire, not Gamble.The parents, Neil Heslin and Scarlett Lewis, are seeking as much as $150 million from Jones and his company, Free Speech Systems LLC. Closing arguments were under way on Wednesday afternoon.Judge Gamble admonished Jones on Tuesday for not telling the truth under oath after he falsely told the jury he was bankrupt and had complied with discovery in the case."It seems absurd to instruct you again that you must tell the truth while you testify," she said. "Yet here I am."Jones has already been found liable for defamation by Gamble, who issued a rare default judgment against him in 2021.Jones on Wednesday sought to distance himself from previous falsehoods that the shooting was a hoax, saying it was “crazy” of him to repeatedly make this claim.Jones, who has previously acknowledged the shooting took place, told jurors that the shooting was “100% real.”Heslin testified on Tuesday that the falsehoods Jones spread to his millions of listeners made his life “hell” and resulted in a campaign of harassment and death threats against him by people who believed he lied about his son’s death.Lewis said she believes that Jones knew that the hoax claims were false but spread them anyway because they attracted listeners and helped him market his supplements and other products.Free Speech Systems declared bankruptcy last week. Jones said during a Monday broadcast that the filing will help the company stay on the air while it appeals.The Sandy Hook gunman, Adam Lanza, 20, used a Remington Bushmaster rifle to carry out the massacre. It ended when Lanza killed himself with the approaching sound of police sirens.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Jack Queen; Editing by Amy Stevens, Noeleen Walder, Mark Porter and Howard GollerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Alex Jones says jurors 'don't know what planet they're on'.

Rep. Jackie Walorski (R-IN) speaks as U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar testifies to the House Select Subcommittee on the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) crisis, on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., October 2, 2020. J. Scott Applewhite/Pool via REUTERSRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comAug 3 (Reuters) - Congresswoman Jackie Walorski of Indiana died in a car accident on Wednesday, U.S. House of Representatives Republican leader Kevin McCarthy said.Three other people were killed in the crash, a collision of two vehicles near the Indiana town of Nappanee, north of Indianapolis, ABC57 TV reported, citing a police statement.The TV station and other local media said the others killed included Walorski's communications director Emma Thomson and Zachery Potts, a local Republican county chair.Walorski's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.Walorski, 58, a Republican, was a lifelong resident of Indiana, according to her official biography. Representing Indiana's 2nd congressional district, She served on the House Ways and Means Committee and as the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Worker and Family Support.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Rami Ayyub; Editing by Leslie AdlerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Congresswoman Jackie Walorski dies in car crash, Republican leader says.

U.S. President Joe Biden gestures as he delivers remarks on the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 at the White House in Washington, U.S., July 28, 2022. REUTERS/Elizabeth Frantz/File PhotoRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comWASHINGTON, Aug 3 (Reuters) - President Joe Biden remains focused on keeping fuel prices down for Americans, the White House said on Wednesday after OPEC+ decided to raise oil output by a modest 100,000 barrels per day, which analysts called an insult after Biden visited Saudi Arabia last month."What we're focused on is keeping those prices down," White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said at a news briefing when asked about the OPEC+ decision.OPEC and allied producers including Russia, a group known as OPEC+, were set to raise output by 100,000 bpd from September. Two sources told Reuters the decision was effectively approved in a closed-door meeting. read more Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comAnalysts said the increase was equal to only 86 seconds of global oil demand."That is so little as to be meaningless. From a physical standpoint it is a marginal blip. As a political gesture it is almost insulting," said Raad Alkadiri, managing director for energy, climate, and sustainability at Eurasia Group.Biden's visit to Saudi Arabia in July was aimed at persuading OPEC's leader to pump more oil to help alleviate high prices in the United States and the global economy. For weeks, experts have speculated that OPEC+ would pump more oil after the trip and Washington's clearance of missile defense system sales to Riyadh and the United Arab Emirates.The Saudi trip was scheduled only after OPEC+ announced in early June that it would increase output each month by 50 percent in July and August, Jean-Pierre said."We wanted to see some increases in the production before we announced the trip and we actually saw that in that first week of June," she said.Pressed on whether the relatively small increase was an insult to Biden, Jean-Pierre repeatedly said "prices are coming down."Amos Hochstein, a top administration energy security adviser, called the increase "a step in the right direction" in an interview on CNN on Wednesday.He acknowledged the move would not have a significant impact on fuel costs for Americans."Our main focus is not about the numbers of barrels. Our main focus is on bringing prices down," he said.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Alexandra Alper; Writing by Katharine Jackson; Editing by David GregorioOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Biden focused on controlling U.S. oil prices after OPEC+ output increase.

MoneyWatch August 3, 2022 / 4:08 PM / CBS/AP PGA ups winnings to compete with LIV series PGA increases winnings to compete with LIV series 00:37 Hall-of-fame golfer Phil Mickelson, Bryson DeChambeau and nine other players who defected to Saudi-funded LIV Golf tour filed an antitrust lawsuit Wednesday against the PGA Tour over their suspensions, marking the first step in a legal fight that could define the rules of competition across professional sports circuits.Three of the plaintiffs, Talor Gooch, Hudson Swafford and Matt Jones, also filed an application for a temporary restraining order to compete in the FedEx Cup playoffs, according to the lawsuit, obtained by CBS MoneyWatch.The lawsuit stems from the PGA Tour suspending some of the top names in golf from participating in its events after they competed in tournaments hosted by rival tour LIV Golf, which offered record prize money. Six players who have competed in LIV Golf events are among the top 125 in the FedEx Cup standings and would be eligible for the start of the PGA Tour's postseason, which begins next week. But the PGA Tour's player regulations include a "Conflicting Events" clause that prohibits its members from competing in any golf event in North America held the same week as a PGA Tour event or tournament. The lawsuit notes that the PGA Tour hosts an event nearly every week, effectively preventing players from competing in any non-PGA Tour event in North America.  Conflicting events regulation"The Conflicting Events Regulation thus invests the leader of the incumbent monopolist with unbridled discretion to foreclose players from participating in any competing events," the lawsuit states. The last two LIV Golf events — with $25 million in prize money for 54 holes with no cut — took place in Oregon and New Jersey.The PGA Tour, for its part, issued a statement saying that the players in question "walked away from the tour and now want back in. With the Saudi Golf League on hiatus, they're trying to use lawyers to force their way into competition alongside our members in good standing."The PGA Tour also told its current members that the group of 11 defecting golfers are trying to use their "platform to promote themselves and to freeride on your benefits." The PGA Tour suspended Mickelson in March for allegedly recruiting players to LIV Golf, the lawsuit claims. The PGA tour denied his application for reinstatement in June, because he had played in the first Saudi event held outside of London.Mickelson and the other golfers' lawsuit called the PGA Tour a monopolistic enterprise with a "vice-grip on professional golf." It alleges the PGA Tour wants to harm the careers of the plaintiffs because it is "threatened" by the entry of LIV Golf into the arena.  Thanks for reading CBS NEWS. Create your free account or log in for more features. Please enter email address to continue Please enter valid email address to continue

Phil Mickelson and other LIV golfers accuse PGA Tour of illegal monopoly in lawsuit.

Henrik Fisker stands with the Fisker Ocean electric vehicle after it was unveiled at the Manhattan Beach Pier ahead of the Los Angeles Auto Show and AutoMobilityLA on November 16, 2021 in Manhattan Beach, California.Patrick T. Fallon | AFP | Getty ImagesCalifornia-based EV startup Fisker said Wednesday it now has more than 56,000 reservations for its Ocean electric SUV, and confirmed that it's still on track to start production in mid-November. The announcements were part of Fisker's second-quarter earnings report. Here are the key numbers:Loss per share: 36 cents vs. 41 expected by Refinitiv consensus estimatesNet loss: $106 million vs. $122.1 million reported in the first quarter of 2022.Reservations: More than 56,000, up from more than 45,000 when it reported its first-quarter results in May.CEO Henrik Fisker confirmed the company and its manufacturing partner, global auto supplier Magna International, are on track to begin production of the Ocean at a Magna-owned factory in Austria later this year. Fisker also confirmed that its second vehicle, a lower-cost model called the PEAR, will be built by Taiwan's Foxconn Technology Group in the former Lordstown Motors factory in Ohio starting in 2024.Fisker plans to launch a third model, a sports car called Ronin, in late 2024.This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

Fisker on track to start production of its electric Ocean SUV this year, now has 56,000 reservations.

Crime August 3, 2022 / 4:00 PM / AP Nicki Minaj fans chase vehicle in London Nicki Minaj fans chase vehicle in London after canceled "meet and greet" event 00:32 The driver in a hit-and-run crash that killed the father of rapper Nicki Minaj last year was sentenced Wednesday to a year in jail, in keeping with a promise the judge made when the man pleaded guilty in May.Charles Polevich, who pleaded guilty to leaving the scene and tampering with evidence in the crash on New York's Long Island that killed Robert Maraj, was also ordered to pay a $5,000 fine and had his driver's license suspended for six months.Polevich's lawyer, Marc Gann, suggested his client may have had a medical issue at the time of the crash and that he wasn't fully aware of what had happened when he fled. Polevich, 72, said in court that he's "been heartsick since realizing the extent of the tragedy" and that there was "no excuse" for his behavior.Maraj's widow, Carol Maraj, said in court that Polevich had left her husband "like a dog on the street" and that sparing him a longer jail sentence was a "slap in the face for the family," Newsday reported. Polevich struck Maraj, 64, while Maraj was walking along Roslyn Road in Mineola in February 2021. Polevich stopped briefly to ask Maraj if he was OK, but didn't call for help, prosecutors said.Instead, Polevich went home, parked the car — a white, 1992 Volvo station wagon — in his garage and covered it with a tarp, prosecutors said. Maraj was taken to a hospital and pronounced dead the next day.Prosecutors sought a sentence of one to three years behind bars, but Nassau County Judge Howard Sturim said in May, when Polevich pleaded guilty, that he would get "no more than one year in jail."Brendan Brosh, a spokesperson for the Nassau County district attorney's office, said that "given the severity of the defendant's conduct," prosecutors felt a stiffer sentence was warranted. "We continue to express our condolences to the family of Robert Maraj," Brosh said.Gann asked for a 90-day jail sentence, arguing that other factors outside of Polevich's control were partially to blame for the crash, including road construction, street lights that weren't working and Maraj's physical condition.Maraj's widow, Carol Maraj, is suing Polevich over the crash.Polevich, who had been splitting time between Long Island and Guam, where he runs a drilling and water purification business, surrendered to police a few days after the crash.Detectives said they used pieces of surveillance video to track the Volvo involved in the crash to Polevich's Mineola home.Nicki Minaj, the platinum-selling, Grammy-nominated rapper of "Anaconda," "Super Bass" and other hits, was born Onika Tanya Maraj in Trinidad and was raised in Queens.In a post on her website, Minaj, 39, called her father's death "the most devastating loss of my life." In: Nicki Minaj Homicide Music Crime Hit-and-Run New York Thanks for reading CBS NEWS. Create your free account or log in for more features. Please enter email address to continue Please enter valid email address to continue

Driver who pleaded guilty in hit-and-run death of Nicki Minaj's father gets 1 year in jail.

A staff member removes the Iranian flag from the stage after a group picture with foreign ministers and representatives of United States, Iran, China, Russia, Britain, Germany, France and the European Union during the Iran nuclear talks at the Vienna International Center in Vienna, Austria, July 14, 2015. REUTERS/Carlos Barria/FilesRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comDUBAI, Aug 3 (Reuters) - Top Iranian and U.S. officials will resume talks in Vienna this week on reviving the 2015 nuclear pact, officials from both countries said on Wednesday, though they played down any expectations of a breakthrough.The ball is in Washington's court to save the pact, Iran's chief negotiator Ali Bagheri Kani tweeted before heading to Vienna, calling on Washington to "show maturity & act responsibly". read more "Heading to Vienna to advance the negotiations. The onus is on those who breached the deal & have failed to distance from ominous legacy," tweeted Bagheri Kani.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comIran's foreign ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanaani said Tehran was ready to reach a deal that guarantees its rights, according to state media.An Iranian official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the talks would resume on Thursday.U.S. Special Envoy for Iran Rob Malley said he was preparing to fly to Vienna but suggested he did not expect major progress."Our expectations are in check, but the United States welcomes EU efforts and is prepared for a good faith attempt to reach a deal. It will shortly be clear if Iran is prepared for the same," he wrote on Twitter.Malley said the talks would proceed on the basis of a text recently proposed by European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell to revive the 2015 accord under which Iran curbed its nuclear programme in return for an easing of economic sanctions.Eurasia Group analyst Henry Rome said he thought it unlikely the deal - called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) - would be resurrected this year, putting the odds at 35 percent and saying neither side wanted the blame for its death."Both the US and Iran have a strong interest in keeping the prospect of a deal alive even though both governments appear resigned to its eventual demise," Rome wrote in an analysis."For the US, the continued focus on the JCPOA postpones a messy and costly pivot to increasing diplomatic and economic pressure on Tehran," he added. "For Iran, continued diplomacy, even if unproductive, supports domestic markets, forestalls greater international pressure, and gives it cover for its continued nuclear advancements."In 2018, then-President Donald Trump abandoned the deal, calling it too soft on Iran, and reimposed harsh U.S. sanctions, spurring Tehran to begin breaching its nuclear limits.In the latest sign Iran's nuclear program is advancing, an International Atomic Energy Agency report seen by Reuters said Tehran had completed installing three advanced IR-6 centrifuge cascades at its Natanz fuel enrichment plant. read more The 2015 deal seemed near revival in March after 11 months of indirect talks between Tehran and U.S. President Joe Biden's administration in Vienna.But talks then broke down over obstacles including Tehran's demand that Washington provide guarantees that no U.S. president would abandon the deal as Trump did.Biden cannot promise this because the nuclear deal is a non-binding political understanding, not a legally binding treaty.Another sticking point was Tehran's demand that Washington remove Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps from the U.S. Foreign Terrorist Organization list, something Biden has ruled out.In June, the EU-mediated, indirect talks between Bagheri Kani and Malley on salvaging the pact ended in Qatar without progress and a senior U.S. official told Reuters afterwards the odds of a revival had diminished. read more An Iranian official told Reuters the talks in Vienna will be "in the format of the Doha meeting", where EU envoy Enrique Mora shuttled between Bagheri Kani and Malley because Tehran refused to hold direct talks with Washington.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Parisa Hafezi in Dubai and by Arshad Mohammed in Saint Paul, Minnesota; Writing by Parisa Hafezi and Arshad Mohammed; Editing by Toby Chopra, Howard Goller and Alistair BellOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

U.S., Iran to resume indirect talks on nuclear deal.

The 2022 job market is still flush with opportunities – and a growing number of companies are offering remote positions to accommodate people's desire for flexibility at work.Last year FlexJobs, a membership service for jobseekers, saw a 12% increase in the number of remote job listings on their site, as well as a wider range of remote opportunities across industries and experience levels. FlexJobs looked at over 13,000 job listings from 5,800 companies on the site's database over the last month to determine which remote jobs are the most in-demand right now and are expected to become more popular in the coming months. Roles like "recruiter" and "accountant" are at the top of list. The growth of such roles reflects larger shifts happening in the work landscape, FlexJobs career coach Toni Frana tells CNBC Make It. "The rise in recruiting roles signals the need to hire talent, especially on the heels of the Great Resignation," she says. "While the spike in accounting positions may be somewhat seasonally driven, the demand for it [and other jobs] may be a result of so many of these top roles moving into the remote work space." Here are the most in-demand remote jobs according to FlexJobs and their average salaries. 1. Customer service representativeCustomer service representatives help customers resolve questions and problems regarding products or services. They act as a liaison between customers and companies, helping attract new customers and suggesting information about other products/services. Average salary: $40, 223 2. Recruiter Recruiters are in charge of researching and screening job candidates for open roles at companies. They also coordinate interviews, job offers and the onboarding process. Average salary: $53,3273. Accountant Accountants help businesses collect, monitor and correct their finances. Responsibilities include filing taxes, updating financial records and managing income and expenditure accounts. Average salary: $52,442 4. Executive assistant Executive assistants support business leaders by answering their correspondence, managing their calendars, organizing meetings and other administrative duties. Average salary: $58,338 5. Project manager

The 5 most in-demand remote jobs right now—and how much they pay.

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comUNITED NATIONS, Aug 3 (Reuters) - United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday slammed the "grotesque greed" of oil and gas companies and their financial backers and urged governments globally to "tax these excessive profits" to support the most vulnerable people."It is immoral for oil and gas companies to be making record profits from this energy crisis on the backs of the poorest people and communities, at a massive cost to the climate," Guterres told reporters.The two largest U.S. oil companies, Exxon Mobil Corp XOM.N and Chevron Corp CVX.N, British-based Shell (SHEL.L) and France's TotalEnergies (TTEF.PA) combined earned nearly $51 billion in the most recent quarter, almost double what the group brought in for the year-ago period. read more Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com"I urge all governments to tax these excessive profits, and use the funds to support the most vulnerable people through these difficult times," Guterres said.United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres addresses the media prior to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty review conference in New York City, New York, U.S., August 1, 2022. REUTERS/David 'Dee' Delgado"And I urge people everywhere to send a clear message to the fossil fuel industry and their financiers: that this grotesque greed is punishing the poorest and most vulnerable people, while destroying our only common home," he said.Politicians and consumer advocates have criticised the oil companies for capitalizing on a global supply shortage to fatten profits and gouge consumers. U.S. President Joe Biden said in June that Exxon and others were making "more money than God" at a time when consumer fuel prices surged to records. read more Last month, Britain passed a 25% windfall tax on oil and gas producers in the North Sea. U.S. lawmakers have discussed a similar idea, though it faces long odds in Congress.Guterres said Russia's war in Ukraine and the climate breakdown was stoking a global food, energy and finance crisis."Many developing countries – drowning in debt, without access to finance, and struggling to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic – could go over the brink," he said. "We are already seeing the warning signs of a wave of economic, social and political upheaval that would leave no country untouched."Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Michelle Nichols Editing by Rami Ayyub and Chizu NomiyamaOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

U.N. chief urges tax on 'grotesque greed' of oil, gas companies.

World August 3, 2022 / 3:53 PM / CBS News Scientists warn of risks of "climate endgame" Scientists warn world needs to prepare for risks of "climate endgame" 01:13 A team of international scientists says the world needs to start preparing for the possibility of a "climate endgame" as extreme weather events keep ravaging the planet.From raging wildfires to catastrophic flooding, the effects of climate change can be seen all around. So far, the conversation has been primarily about how to prevent it from getting worse. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres issued a dire warning at last month's Petersberg Climate Dialogue conference in Berlin, Germany: "Half of humanity is in the danger zone from floods, droughts, extreme storms and wildfires. No nation is immune," he said.Now a team of international experts led by Cambridge University in England says that even as nations set goals to reduce emissions, we should be prepared for failure.  "Right now, I think we're being naive. We're not looking at the worst-case scenarios at all, really," says Luke Kemp, Ph.D., with Cambridge's Centre for the Study of Existential Risk.The report by Kemp and his colleagues warns about what they call the "four horsemen" of the climate endgame: famine, extreme weather, conflict, and infectious diseases. Scientists are urging world leaders to investigate possible outcomes ranging from a loss of 10% of the global population to eventual human extinction.  "The ultimate purpose of this area of study ... it's not supposed to be any kind of disaster voyeurism, it's supposed to be about better understanding, which prevents the worst case," Kemp says.But the worst-case scenario is something he believes we need to prepare for, if all else fails.In their research, published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the scientists note that with current emissions and population trends, within 50 years, 2 billion people could live in places with an annual average temperature of more than 84 degrees Fahrenheit — extreme heat that is now found in less than 1% of Earth's land surface area. In: Climate Change Thanks for reading CBS NEWS. Create your free account or log in for more features. Please enter email address to continue Please enter valid email address to continue

Scientists say the world needs to think about a worst-case "climate endgame".

The building of the European Court of Human Rights is seen in Strasbourg, France, September 11, 2019. REUTERS/Vincent Kessler/File PhotoRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comLONDON, Aug 3 (Reuters) - Europe's human rights court on Wednesday refused a request from the parents of a 12-year-old British boy with brain damage to intervene in a decision to remove life support.The verdict from the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) follows unsuccessful appeals by 12-year-old Archie Battersbee's parents Hollie Dance and Paul Battersbee at Britain's highest courts for the child to continue receiving treatment.Battersbee was found unconscious at his Essex home in early April. Doctors treating him have said continued life support would not be in his best interests.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com"The Court ... today decided not to issue the interim measure sought. It also decided to declare the applicants' complaints inadmissible," the ECHR said in a statement following an application on Wednesday, just hours before doctors were scheduled to pull life support."Therefore the Court will not interfere with the decisions of the national courts to allow the withdrawal of life-sustaining treatment from A.B. to proceed."After the decision, Battersbee's mother said she was "absolutely deflated"."That was our last option," a tearful Dance told reporters outside the hospital. "I would like him out of here as quick as possible really and in a peaceful hospice to say goodbye."Britain's High Court ruled in June doctors could withdraw life support for Battersbee, with a judge finding that the child had died at the end of May and citing a "total lack of a prospect of recovery".His parents appealed that ruling but it was upheld by a new judge. The Supreme Court last week refused permission for another appeal.The Barts Health NHS Trust, which oversees the London hospital where Battersbee is receiving treatment, had said it would make no changes to his care until outstanding legal issues were resolved.Dance has said there are other countries where her son could be treated and that he should be allowed to seek treatment elsewhere rather than have his life support withdrawn."They are killing an innocent child that could have the potential to recover. It is shameful, it is disgusting," Dance said. "I promised him I would fight until the end and that is exactly what I have done."Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Sachin Ravikumar and Kylie MacLellan, Editing by Angus MacSwanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

European court refuses to intervene in case of British boy on life support.

The Federal Reserve building is pictured in Washington, D.C., U.S., August 22, 2018. REUTERS/Chris Wattie/File PhotoRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comAug 3 (Reuters) - Federal Reserve officials voiced their determination again on Wednesday to rein in high inflation, although one noted a half-percentage-point hike in the U.S. central bank's key interest rate next month might be enough to march toward that goal."I start from the idea that 50 (basis points) would be a reasonable thing to do in September because I believe I'm seeing evidence in my contact conversations, and in the observations of the world I see, that there are some bright spots for me," San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly said in an interview with Reuters.However, "if we just see inflation roaring ahead undauntedly, the labor market showing no signs of slowing, then we'll be in a different position where a 75-basis-point increase might be more appropriate. But I go in with the 50 in mind as I look at the data coming in," Daly added. read more Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comWhether the Fed will go ahead with a third straight 75-basis-point rate hike at its Sept. 20-21 policy meeting - a pace unmatched in more than a generation - or dial back a bit is of central interest to investors, businesses and consumers who are increasingly fearful that the central bank's inflation fight may trigger a recession.After Daly's remarks, investors in futures contracts tied to the Fed's benchmark overnight interest rate pared back the probability that the central bank would raise the policy rate by 75 basis points next month.Fed Chair Jerome Powell said last week the central bank may consider another "unusually large" rate hike at the September meeting, with officials guided in their decision making by more than a dozen critical data points covering inflation, employment, consumer spending and economic growth between now and then. read more Several policymakers, including Daly, have shown stiffening resolve this week to continue the aggressive monetary tightening, with nearly all of them uniformly flagging that the central bank remains determined to press ahead with rate hikes until it sees strong and long-lasting evidence that inflation is on track back down to the Fed's 2% goal.Inflation has for months confounded expectations that it would ease and is now, by the Fed's preferred measure, running at more than three times the target.'A VERY UNLIKELY SCENARIO'In a separate appearance, Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari echoed comments by Daly this week that it is extremely unlikely that the central bank will pivot to cutting interest rates in 2023."Some financial markets are indicating they expect us to cut interest rates next year," Kashkari said at an event held as part of a financial regulation conference in New York."I don't want to say it's impossible, but it seems like that's a very unlikely scenario right now given what I know about the underlying inflation dynamics. The more likely scenario is we would continue raising (interest rates) and then we would sit there until we have a lot of confidence that inflation is well on its way back down to 2%," Kashkari added.St. Louis Fed President James Bullard also said the central bank will be steadfast in raising rates to bring inflation back down."We are going to be tough and get that to happen," Bullard said in an interview with CNBC. "I think we can take robust action and get back to 2%." read more That will probably involve having to keep rates "higher for longer" in order to gather enough evidence that inflation is coming down in a sustainable way, Bullard said, noting that policymakers will have to see evidence that headline and core measures of inflation are "coming down convincingly" before any let-up.Bullard has previously said he wants the Fed's policy rate to rise to between 3.75% and 4.00% this year to help quash inflation.Speaking in Virginia, Richmond Fed President Thomas Barkin said the central bank has made clear it will "do what it takes" as he warned that inflation will recede but "not immediately, not suddenly and not predictably." read more For her part, Daly told Reuters that raising the policy rate to 3.4% by the end of this year "is a reasonable place to think about us getting to" and rebuffed the assertion that the Fed's rate hikes from here - which would take it beyond policymakers' collective judgment of the long-run "neutral rate" of interest - ought to be considered "restrictive.""Not in my judgment," Daly said, arguing that the interest rate level at which the Fed is actively impeding growth and activity is closer to 3%."When you think of 2.5%, that's the longer-run neutral rate of interest, but right now, inflation is high," Daly added. "And there's a lot of demand chasing limited supply, and so of course the neutral rate is elevated. So my own estimate of where that would be right now is around or a little bit over 3%, maybe 3.1%.""So in my judgment, we're not even up to neutral right now," Daly said.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Lindsay Dunsmuir and Dan Burns; Editing by Paul Simao and Will DunhamOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Fed officials beat inflation drum; 50-basis-point rate hike 'reasonable' next month.

Every year, millions of tons of plastic waste pour into the ocean, much of coming from about 1,000 hyper-polluting rivers. And with overall waste generation poised to increase over 75% by 2050, the problem is only set to worsen.Companies around the world have turned their attention to the problem of river waste, building various barriers, fences, and wheels that help to contain and remove trash as it flows downstream.The approaches range from trash-scooping solar-powered barges to stainless steel fences, and different rivers will necessitate different methods.Here's how three companies, Clearwater Mills, The Ocean Cleanup, and AlphaMERS are approaching the problem.Clearwater Mills' Trash WheelsBaltimore's googly-eyed trash wheels, the first of which debuted in 2014, are one of the original efforts to address river waste. Built by Clearwater Mills, the company's founder John Kellett was inspired to design the wheels after years of seeing trash pouring into the Baltimore Harbor after big storms."We have Mr. Trash Wheel, Captain Trash Wheel, Professor Trash Wheel and Gwynnda the Good Wheel of the West here in Baltimore," Kellett said, citing the names of the anthropomorphized wheels which have become minor social media celebrities in the city.Baltimore's Mr. Trash Wheel gobbles up waste and debris after a big storm.Waterfront Partnership of BaltimoreHere's how they work: Containment booms are set up in a V-shape across the river, with rubber skirts that extend about two feet below the water's surface. This catches trash floating downriver and funnels it towards the "mouth" of the rotating water wheel, which is powered by the river's current and attached solar panels. The wheel's rotation powers a conveyor belt that lifts trash and debris out of the river and deposits it into a dumpster. Attached cameras allow the team to monitor how full the dumpsters are."And when that dumpster's full, we have another floating barge that we bring with an empty dumpster. Take the full one out, slide the empty one in and keep picking up the trash," Kellett said.The four wheels have picked up a total of about 2,000 tons of trash and debris. Sticks and leaves make up the bulk of this weight since plastic is so light, but the haul overall includes about 1.5 million plastic bottles, 1.4 million foam containers and 12.6 million cigarette butts. Everything is then incinerated in a waste-to-energy facility.Additional trash wheels are planned for Texas, California, and even Panama, where local nonprofit Marea Verde has partnered with Clearwater Mills to build the fifth wheel in the family, named Wanda Díaz. The project is funded by the Benioff Ocean Initiative and the Coca-Cola Foundation, which together are supporting a portfolio of river cleanup projects around the world.The Ocean CleanupThe Ocean Cleanup is probably best known for its efforts to clean the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, an endeavor the company's young founder Boyan Slat started pursuing in 2013 after a TED talk he gave on the topic went viral. The company is now pursuing a dual focus since it's also built a series of river cleanup technologies."Our goal is to rid the oceans of plastic, and the reason why we look at rivers is because we believe it's the fastest and most cost effective way to prevent further plastic from being emitted to the ocean," said Slat.The company's first river cleanup device, called the Interceptor Original, was released in 2019. It's a fully solar-powered barge that operates much like Baltimore's trash wheels, just on a larger scale. Sitting at the mouth of a river, it funnels trash onto a conveyor belt and automatically distributes the waste across six giant dumpsters.The Ocean Cleanup's Interceptor Original working on the Rio Ozama in the Dominican Republic in summer 2020.The Ocean CleanupBut since this giant interceptor doesn't fit in smaller rivers, the team developed another solution, a standalone floating barrier to capture the waste, and a small, mobile conveyer belt that scoops up the trash and transports it to a dumpster onshore. This system is currently deployed in Kingston Harbour, Jamaica, where Slat says the rivers are too narrow for the Interceptor Original.And for the most severely trash-choked rivers, there's the Trashfence. The concept is simple. A 26-foot high steel fence is anchored to the bed of the river and stops the flow of trash during a big storm. Once the water level recedes, excavators remove the waste. But the onslaught of trash in one of the world's most polluted rivers in Guatemala proved too intense for version 1.0. "The force of the trash was so high that the trash fence failed, unfortunately," Slat said. "So we're now working on a version two that will hopefully be ready for the next rainy season."Eight Ocean Cleanup interceptors are currently installed in Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, the Dominican Republic and Jamaica. Slat expects about 20 will be installed by next year, including one in Los Angeles.AlphaMERSIndia-based AlphaMERS makes another version of a simple river barrier and has 34 installations in eight different cities across the country. It's much smaller than the Ocean Cleanup's Trashfence, and not designed for the same extreme trash flow, but it's still pretty heavy duty. Made of stainless steel mesh, the AlphaMERS fence floats a couple of feet above the water and dips about 16 inches below. "The hydrodynamics and the hydrostatic of this is very simple but excellent for the job," said AlphaMERS Founder D.C. Sekhar. "And it's made very rugged, very heavy duty with steel chains holding it on both sides. So it's able to withstand the monsoon flows immediately after the rain."Sekhar says his floating fence excels at stopping trash in rivers with fast currents, whereas designs that rely on a boom and a skirt might fail when currents pick up, since the water will instead run over the barrier, bringing trash with it.The AlphaMERS floating barrier captures trash as it flows downriverAlphaMERSEight floating barriers were deployed at various points along the Cooum River in Chennai in 2017. Sekhar says they captured about 2,400 tons of plastic in their first year of operation.The barriers are angled to direct trash toward the riverbank, where excavators have traditionally plucked the trash from rivers. AlphaMERS has been using conveyor belts instead, just like Clearwater Mills and The Ocean Cleanup."One end is floating, one end is on the land," Sekhar said of the conveyor belts. "And now it's run with electrical power, with portable generators. But very soon we will run it with the flow of river water."The future of wasteThese organizations share the same goal of removing as much waste from our lives as possible, but they also all understand river cleanup systems aren't the ultimate solution. "One of the things we're looking forward to is when trash wheels are no longer needed," Kellett said. "When we're addressing the problem upstream to the extent where no trash is entering our waterway and we don't need to have a trash wheel."Getting there will be tough and will depend on some combination of better waste infrastructure, more sustainable packaging, less consumption, and public awareness around proper disposal.Middle-income countries like the Philippines, India and Malaysia contribute the most to oceanic waste. The population has enough money to buy lots of packaged goods, but waste collection infrastructure is lagging.Sandy Watemberg, executive director of the nonprofit Marea Verde, is excited that her organization has brought the Wanda Díaz trash wheel to Panama and is optimistic about its future performance."So we are very hopeful that this will be a very big success for our country," Watemberg said. However, she knows that real change will take much longer."Having these technologies and these types of projects is not the solution. We need to change our habits. We need to look for long-term solutions that allow us to have a cleaner and healthier environment because these types of projects help us create awareness and help us to mitigate in the short and mid-term. But at the end of the day, this is not something sustainable. We cannot have thousands of projects like this running forever."

How three companies are cleaning up the world's plastic-choked rivers.

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comWASHINGTON, Aug 3 (Reuters) - A top coach for U.S. women's pro basketball who once represented Russia at the Olympics has made a plea for Russian President Vladimir Putin to "do the right thing" and quickly release American star player Brittney Griner.Las Vegas Aces head coach Becky Hammon, who as a player spent years in Russia and won Olympic bronze for her adopted country, said it was upsetting to see a fellow member of the tight-knit women’s basketball community locked up for nearly six months. Washington says Griner is wrongfully detained in Russia.“It’s something that obviously hits super close to home for me and so I just ask the Russian government to do the right thing. It’s never too late to do the right thing,” Hammon told Reuters in an interview on Tuesday in an appeal that was joined by other figures in global women's basketball. “We're asking for leniency. We're asking for grace. And we're asking to bring home BG.”Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comGriner, a two-time Olympic gold medalist and center for WNBA team Phoenix Mercury, is expected to return to a Russian court on Thursday for closing arguments in her trial. She faces up to 10 years in prison on drugs charges after she was detained at Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport on Feb. 17 with vape cartridges containing cannabis oil in her luggage. read more Her arrest as she headed to join her Russian team in the American off-season came days before Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, plunging relations between Moscow and Washington to their lowest point in decades and thrusting Griner into the center of a geopolitical tussle.U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said last week the United States has made a "substantial offer" to Russia to release Griner and former Marine Paul Whelan, who the United States also considers to be wrongfully detained in Russia. A source said that Washington was willing to exchange convicted arms trafficker Viktor Bout, known as the "Merchant of Death.” read more Moscow has said no deal has yet been done. A swap is unlikely to take place before a verdict in Griner’s trial, but that could take place in the coming days. read more 'ONE OF THE GREATEST'Hammon, a six-time WNBA all-star player, played during the off-season for several Russian teams, a common move for WNBA players seeking to supplement incomes that are lower than their male counterparts'. She became a naturalized citizen and won a bronze Olympic medal for Russia in 2008 and competed again in 2012, but said her Russian citizenship had since expired.Hammon - reportedly the first WNBA coach to be paid more than $1 million – described Griner as “one of the greatest players to ever play,” and said it was possible the detention of a male athlete at the same level would have drawn a greater response.Jul 26, 2022; Chicago, IL, USA; Las Vegas Aces head coach Becky Hammon directs the team during the first half of the Commissioners Cup-Championships against the Chicago Sky at Wintrust Arena. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-USA TODAY Sports/File Photo“It's hard to imagine, though, that if this was, you know, LeBron James, that he'd still be sitting over there in jail,” said Hammon. “It’s hard not to let your mind go there.”Hammon said she had always supported the campaign to free Griner, but was speaking out as Griner’s trial draws to a close and Russia has an opportunity to send her home.Several others who played in Russia also called for Griner's release. Seattle Storm forward Breanna Stewart, Spanish shooting guard Marta Xargay and Griner's Phoenix Mercury teammate Diana Taurasi, who played in Russia for over 10 years, recorded video appeals that were shared with Reuters on Wednesday."We called Russia our second home for many years. I ask, for the sanctity of sport, to have mercy and understanding for our beloved Brittney Griner," said Taurasi.Hammon said as an athlete she was not political, but appealed to Putin and Russian authorities to show "mercy" and let Griner return to her wife in the United States.“If that was your daughter or your sister or your wife or whoever, you can imagine the agony that you'd been going through waiting,” she said. “Enough is enough.”She also warned that Russian athletes would suffer repercussions from the detention of a top athlete traveling to compete.“I think Mr. Putin is a pretty big sports fan - to jeopardize all these athletes, I mean would just be really unfortunate,” said Hammon.Russian sports teams and athletes have been excluded from some international events over the invasion of Ukraine, and Olympic officials have said Russia could be banned from the 2024 games in Paris. Russia has not faced sporting sanctions for Griner's detention. read more “If (Griner) were to have to serve a (prison) sentence, I think there would have to be bad implications internationally on the sports world,” Hammon said. “There's certain ways to put pressure on Russia. Hopefully it doesn't come to that.”Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Simon Lewis; Editing by Mary Milliken and Nick ZieminskiOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Exclusive: Coach Hammon, once a star in Russia, urges Putin to free Brittney Griner.

Passengers stand at the Delta Air Lines check-in counters at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport ahead of the Fourth of July holiday in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S., July 1, 2022. REUTERS/Elijah Nouvelage Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comWASHINGTON, Aug 3 (Reuters) - The U.S. Transportation Department on Wednesday proposed new rules to strengthen airline passenger protection and require airlines to provide vouchers that do not expire when passengers are unable to fly for certain pandemic-related reasons.The rules would codify the Transportation Department’s longstanding interpretation that failing to provide refunds when an airline cancels or significantly changes a U.S. flight constitutes an unfair practice.Those requirements would include offering refunds if airlines made changes that impact departure or arrival times by three hours or more for a domestic flight or six hours or more for an international flight if passengers did not accept alternative arrangements.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com"This new proposed rule would protect the rights of travelers and help ensure they get the timely refunds they deserve from the airlines," said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.The proposed rules come amid a growing push by lawmakers who have urged Buttigieg to take a tougher stance after airlines this summer have canceled tens of thousands of flights.Last month, Democratic senators Elizabeth Warren and Alex Padilla asked Buttigieg to fine airlines that delay or cancel flights because of staffing or operational issues.Airlines for America, a trade group representing Delta Air Lines (DAL.N), United Airlines (UAL.O), American Airlines (AAL.O), Southwest Airlines (LUV.N) and others, declined to comment on the proposal on Wednesday but noted U.S. airlines have trimmed capacity by 16% and are "ramping up hiring initiatives and increasing communication with travelers" while addressing "a range of challenges, outside carrier control, such as inclement weather."They also noted that since the onset of the pandemic, U.S. airlines have issued $21 billion in cash refunds.Buttigieg, who met virtually with airline CEOs in June to demand better performance, said recently that airlines have improved their performance.The department is also proposing to require U.S. and foreign air carriers and ticket agents to provide refunds for pandemic- related travel cancellations instead of non-expiring travel vouchers or credits "if the carrier or ticket agent received significant financial assistance from the government as a result of a public health emergency."Taxpayers awarded U.S. airlines $54 billion in COVID-19 government assistance for payroll costs. American and Delta each got around $12 billion, while United received about $11 billion, with 30% repayable to taxpayers.Those provisions would apply only to airlines receiving new assistance after the rules are finalized.USDOT has concluded investigations of 10 airlines "and is pursuing enforcement action against them for extreme delays in providing refunds for flights the airlines canceled or significantly changed" and is actively investigating refund practices of more than 10 additional airlines flying to, from, or within the United States, the department said on Wednesday.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by David Shepardson in Washington Editing by Matthew LewisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

U.S. proposes new consumer protection rules for airline passengers.

Politics August 3, 2022 / 2:23 PM / CBS/AP Washington — The Senate was set Wednesday to ratify NATO membership for Finland and Sweden, with overwhelming bipartisan support expected for quickly expanding the Western military alliance in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who visited Kyiv and the region earlier this year, urged a unanimous show of approval. Speaking from the Senate floor, McConnell cited the two Nordic nations' well-funded, modernizing militaries and their experience working with U.S. forces and weapons systems, calling it a "slam-dunk for national security" of the United States."Their accession will make NATO stronger and America more secure. If any senator is looking for a defensible excuse to vote no, I wish them good luck," the Senate Republican leader said. Sen. Josh Hawley, a Missouri Republican who often aligns his positions with those of the most ardent supporters of former President Donald Trump, has said he plans to vote against the two nations' NATO membership. Hawley argues the United States should focus on Asia, not Europe.Senators have invited the ambassadors of the countries to witness the debate and vote, which would open a new era for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. President Biden has sought quick entry for the two previously non-militarily aligned northern European allies, and approval of the ratification resolution has vast bipartisan support in Congress. "Our NATO alliance is the bedrock that has guaranteed democracy in the Western world since the end of World War II," said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York.Schumer said he and McConnell had committed to the country's leaders that the Senate would approve the ratification resolution "as fast as we could" to bolster the alliance "in light of recent Russian aggression."A late-afternoon vote was expected after debate on the measure and amendments. One amendment from GOP Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky would ensure that NATO's guarantee to defend its members does not replace a formal role for Congress in authorizing the use of military force. Another from Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan of Alaska would declare that all NATO members should spend a minimum of 2% of their gross domestic product on defense and 20 percent of their defense budgets on "major equipment, including research and development."NATO's 30 member countries are in the process of considering the addition after Sweden and Finland set aside their longstanding stance of military nonalignment. It was a major shift of security arrangements for the two countries after neighboring Russia launched its war on Ukraine earlier this year. The U.S. and its European allies have rallied with newfound partnership in the face of Russian President Vladimir Putin's aggression, strengthening the NATO alliance first formed after World War II. Mr. Biden sent the protocols to the Senate for review in July, launching a notably speedy process in the typically divided and slower-moving chamber.Each member country in NATO needs to approve the accession of new members. The process ran into trouble when Turkey raised concerns over adding Sweden and Finland, in part because it views the two countries as soft on banned Turkish Kurdish exile groups. But the process has continued to move forward despite those early reservations. In: United States Congress Rand Paul Finland Josh Hawley United States Senate Joe Biden Ukraine Donald Trump Russia United States Military sweden Vladimir Putin NATO Kyiv mitch mcconnell

Senate set to vote to ratify NATO membership for Sweden and Finland.

A child looks back at a banner for Roblox, displayed to celebrate the company's IPO, on the front facade of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, U.S., March 10, 2021. REUTERS/Brendan McDermidRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comLaw firmsRelated documents(Reuters) - A line of dolls based on Roblox Corp's online gaming avatars violates its copyrights and trademarks, the company said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday in San Francisco federal court.WowWee Group Ltd's "My Avastars" dolls unlawfully copy the distinctive blocky designs of player avatars in Roblox's popular game platform, and were not authorized despite WowWee's partnership with an in-game designer, Roblox said.WowWee said in a statement Wednesday that Roblox's allegations are "completely meritless" and that it "looks forward to vigorously defending its position, product, and brand." The company also said it spent several weeks trying to resolve the dispute without litigation and had "voluntarily disassociated" the dolls from Roblox.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comRoblox declined to comment on the lawsuit.Roblox is one of the world's most popular online gaming sites and one of the first companies to focus on the metaverse. Its platform allows users to build "experiences" like games, events, and virtual places, which they visit with character avatars.Roblox's Monday lawsuit said Hong Kong-based WowWee teamed with one of the most popular experience developers, Gamefam, to create a line of personalized dolls that match player avatars in a role-playing experience called "My Avastars: RP."Gamefam is not a defendant in the case, and did not immediately respond to a request for comment."Observing the centrality of Roblox's avatars to its success, WowWee saw a chance for a quick buck," the lawsuit said, and "chose to exploit Roblox's success — its brand, its reputation, its goodwill, and its intellectual property — without ever involving Roblox."Roblox also said it already has a deal with another company, Jazwares LLC, to make avatar dolls, and that WowWee never asked for a similar license.The lawsuit accused WowWee of infringing Roblox's copyrights and trademark rights, breaching its terms of use, and falsely advertising that the dolls were affiliated with Roblox. It asked the court to block sales of the dolls and requested an unspecified amount of money damages.The case is Roblox Corp v. WowWee Group Ltd, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, No. 3:22-cv-04476.For Roblox: Andrew Gass and Sarah Ray of Latham & WatkinsFor WowWee: not available (NOTE: This story has been updated with comment from WowWee.)Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.Blake BrittainThomson ReutersBlake Brittain reports on intellectual property law, including patents, trademarks, copyrights and trade secrets. Reach him at [email protected]

Roblox sues tech toymaker WowWee over avatar figurines.

George Washington is seen with printed medical mask on the one Dollar banknotes in this illustration taken, March 31, 2020. REUTERS/Dado RuvicRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comSummaryLaw firmsD.C.-based firm represented ViaClean on IP, regulatory mattersCrowell, client agreed to alternative fee arrangement -complaint(Reuters) - Law firm Crowell & Moring has sued former biotech client ViaClean Technologies LLC to recover more than $2.2 million in legal fees, in a lawsuit that alleged the company fell behind last year amid cashflow problems tied to the COVID-19 pandemic.Crowell represented Philadelphia-based ViaClean on regulatory issues and intellectual property disputes from 2020 until earlier this year, according to the firm's complaint filed on July 29 in District of Columbia Superior Court.A judge on Monday set an initial hearing for October.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comIn one matter, according to the complaint, a team from Washington, D.C.-based Crowell argued for ViaClean, developer of antimicrobial products, in a patent infringement lawsuit in Texas federal court against a competitor.The firm said ViaClean approved a proposed $3.8 million budget to take the dispute through trial. The case was resolved in the pretrial stages earlier this year but the terms were not disclosed publicly.ViaClean did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment. An attorney had not yet entered an appearance in the case.In its lawsuit, Crowell said it "complied with all of its obligations" to ViaClean, and that it "achieved very favorable resolutions of four significant litigations for ViaClean and successfully completed all other engagements."Crowell attorneys Clifton Elgarten and George Ruttinger, the firm's deputy general counsel, did not immediately return a message on Wednesday seeking comment.The firm's work for ViaClean also included helping the company respond to inquiries from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency about pesticide products.ViaClean, according to Crowell, had made timely payments for legal services up until early 2021.Crowell's complaint said the firm entered into an "alternative fee arrangement" after ViaClean indicated in February 2021 it was experiencing financial issues stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic.The agreement included a 30% discount from standard hourly rates, and a $25,000 minimum monthly payment to the law firm."ViaClean fell behind on its minimum monthly payments to Crowell & Moring, and eventually stopped making payments entirely," the firm's lawsuit said.The case is Crowell & Moring v. ViaClean Technologies Inc, D.C. Superior Court, Case No. 2022-CA-003345-B.For plaintiff: George Ruttinger and Clifton Elgarten of CrowellFor defendant: No appearance yetRead more:Netflix is owed attorneys' fees from court-hopping patent plaintiff, U.S. court affirmsLaw firm Bartlit Beck wins $50 mln fee in appeal against Japanese billionaireEx-client wants $22 mln from Brown Rudnick, saying lawyers overbilledRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Law firm Crowell sues for $2.2 mln in fees after biotech client's COVID shortfall.

A worker assembles the Lucid Air prototype electric vehicle, manufactured by Lucid Motors Inc., at the company's headquarters in Newark, California, on Monday, Aug. 3, 2020.David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesCheck out the companies making headlines in extended trading.Lucid Group — Shares of the EV maker tumbled about 12% after hours. Lucid cut its full-year production targets for a second time to 6,000. The original forecast was 20,000. The company also reported a quarterly loss of 33 cents per share.Qorvo — Shares of the semiconductor company jumped 7% following strong quarterly results. Earnings and revenue beat estimates for the fiscal first quarter, according to Refinitiv.Booking Holdings — The travel booking site's shares fell more than 3% after the company reported mixed quarterly results. Adjusted earnings of $19.08 per share topped estimates by $1.51, but its revenue came in at $4.29 billion, which missed expectations of $4.32 billion, according to Refinitiv.Ebay — Shares of the e-commerce giant climbed as much as 3% after the company posted top- and bottom-line beats for its most recent quarter. Gross merchandise volume came in at $18.55 billion, which was slightly higher than the StreetAccount estimate.MGM Resorts — The casino stock advanced nearly 2% after the company reported quarterly revenue of $3.26 billion, which was higher than estimates of $3.04 billion. It also set a record for Las Vegas Strip adjusted property EBITDA of $125 million. Clorox — Clorox shares fell 6% after the maker of cleaning products said it expects fiscal year 2023 revenue to be in a range of down 4% to up 2% from fiscal year 2022. Analysts were predicting a 2% gain, according to Refinitiv. It also sees adjusted earnings per share of between $3.85 and $4.22, compared with estimates of $5.26 per share.

Stocks making the biggest moves after hours: Lucid, Booking Holdings, MGM, eBay and more.

Aug 2 (Reuters) - Republican voters on Tuesday chose a raft of candidates supporting Donald Trump's 2020 election falsehoods in multiple party primaries for the November general election - a stark display of the former president's grip on his party.In Kansas, abortion rights activists celebrated a major victory when voters overwhelmingly rejected a ballot initiative that would have endangered abortion access in the first statewide electoral test since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. read more The Kansas result suggested that anger over the Supreme Court's June decision could help Democrats to galvanize voters at a time when many Americans are blaming Democratic President Joe Biden's administration for soaring gasoline and food prices.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comBut Tuesday, one of the biggest midterm primary nights of the year, underscored the continued dominance of Trump among Republicans and widespread support for his false claims that the 2020 election was rigged. It was also a warning for any would-be Republican challengers should he seek the White House again in 2024.In the key battleground state of Arizona, state Representative Mark Finchem won the Republican nomination for secretary of state, a position that would give him enormous sway over the conduct of elections should he prevail against his Democratic opponent in November.Finchem was present at Trump's Jan. 6, 2021, speech in Washington that preceded the attack on the U.S. Capitol by Trump supporters and has continued to assert that the former president won the 2020 election.In Michigan, Tudor Dixon, a conservative commentator who has echoed Trump's election claims, won the Republican nomination for governor and will face Democratic Governor Gretchen Whitmer in one of the most high-profile races this November, which will also revolve around abortion rights.Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt, endorsed by Trump, secured the Republican nomination for governor. He will face Democratic Governor Laura Kelly in November in what is expected to be a highly competitive race.Blake Masters, a former tech executive who has backed Trump's false fraud claims, secured the Republican nomination in the Senate race, the Associated Press said, and will face Senator Mark Kelly, seen as one of the most vulnerable Democratic incumbents. Masters has Trump's endorsement and the backing of tech billionaire Peter Thiel.One of only 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump following the U.S. Capitol attack, U.S. Representative Peter Meijer of Michigan, lost to far-right challenger John Gibbs.Gibbs, backed by Trump, was the beneficiary of Democratic advertising during the Republican primary, part of a risky and highly controversial strategy to try to elevate more vulnerable Republican candidates in swing districts even as party leaders warn they pose a danger to democracy. read more Another Republican who voted to impeach Trump, Jamie Herrera Beutler of Washington, also faced a Trump-endorsed primary challenger. The results of that race were not expected to be known until later on Wednesday or Thursday.Voter mark their ballots during the primary election and abortion referendum at a Wyandotte County polling station in Kansas City, Kansas, U.S. August 2, 2022. REUTERS/Eric CoxKANSAS VOTEPolitical analysts saw the rejection of the abortion limits ballot initiative as having wider implications for the coming general election.With 95% of the estimated vote counted, just under 60% of Kansas voters had cast ballots in support of the state constitution's abortion protections. Unlike the Republican gubernatorial primaries, Kansas' abortion initiative reflected the choices of voters of both major political parties, as well as independents. read more "When a total ban looks like a possibility, then you're going to get a lot of people to turn out and you're going to lose a lot of the more moderate supporters of abortion restrictions," said Neal Allen, a political science professor at Wichita State University.With Biden's unpopularity weighing on Democrats heading into November's election, party leaders were likely heartened by the Kansas result. Democratic candidates are increasingly coalescing around the abortion issue in some swing districts to fend off challenges by Republicans, who are favored to win control of the House of Representatives and perhaps the Senate.Control of either chamber would give Republicans the power to stymie Biden's legislative agenda while launching politically damaging hearings.TRUMP ENDORSEMENTSAs he flirts publicly with the possibility of running for president again, Trump has endorsed more than 200 candidates. Most are safe bets - incumbent Republicans in conservative districts - but even in competitive races many of his candidates have prevailed."Trump remains really popular with Republican primary voters. I don't think you can underestimate how he has remade the party in his image," said Alex Conant, a Republican strategist. "Republicans who run against Trump tend to get trampled."On Tuesday, Arizona voters were picking between Trump-backed gubernatorial candidate Kari Lake and Karrin Taylor Robson, who has the backing of Trump's former vice president, Mike Pence.Lake, a former news anchor, echoes Trump's election falsehoods and has said she would not have certified Biden's statewide victory in 2020. At a recent campaign stop, Lake claimed without evidence that fraud has already occurred during early voting, suggesting she may not accept a defeat on Tuesday.Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs, who built a national profile by vociferously denying Trump's allegations, easily won the Democratic gubernatorial nomination, Edison Research projected.In Missouri, Attorney General Eric Schmitt won the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate, boosting his party's chances of holding the seat after scandal-hit former Governor Eric Greitens finished well behind.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Joseph Ax in Princeton, New Jersey, additional reporting by Richard Cowan, Kanishka Singh, Eric Beech and Moira Warburton in Washington and Nathan Layne in Troy, Michigan; Writing by Joseph Ax and Ross Colvin, Editing by Scott Malone, Alistair Bell, and Kim CoghillOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Trump-backed candidates prevail in U.S. midterm primaries.

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comAug 3 (Reuters) - Moderna Inc (MRNA.O) on Wednesday maintained its full-year COVID-19 vaccine sales forecast of $21 billion as canceled orders from low- and middle-income nations through the COVAX program offset gains from new booster dose orders.Moderna shares jumped nearly 17% in morning trading after the company also announced a $3 billion share buyback plan.Moderna has begun producing a redesigned booster shot targeting both the original coronavirus as well as the BA.4 and BA.5 Omicron subvariants.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comIt signed a $1.74 billion deal with the U.S. government last week for 66 million doses to be available this fall and winter, if cleared by health regulators.Despite the contract, Moderna kept its sales forecast unchanged as doses earmarked for the COVAX vaccine sharing program remain unallocated due to low demand."It's because of COVAX," Chief Executive Stephane Bancel said in an interview. "COVAX does not want the doses that they have ordered."Moderna and rival Pfizer Inc have been banking on recurring booster doses, including an Omicron-tailored version, to garner more vaccine contracts with higher-income countries.Empty glass vials of Pfizer Inc's Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine ModernaTX, Inc's Moderna COVID vaccine are seen after being donated by Northwell Health to the collection of the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History in Washington, U.S. March 4, 2021. Jaclyn Nash/National Museum of American History/Handout via REUTERS"We do believe the majority of the market demand is captured in this $21 billion. That being said, we continue to work with countries around the world on potential additional orders," said Chief Commercial Officer Arpa Garay.Other countries are considering an earlier version of the booster shot designed to target the BA.1 Omicron variant that led to a record surge in infections last winter, rather than the currently dominant BA.5 or related BA.4.Those shots had been in production already and would be available sooner, Bancel said."There are plenty of countries around the world that would rather start early - as early as August," he added."Some of those countries have said they would rather start with the BA.1 now and then go to BA.4 later versus just waiting and hoping."Some countries could authorize the retooled BA.1 boosters within the next few weeks, the CEO said.Moderna reported $4.5 billion in COVID vaccine sales in the second quarter. It took a $499 million charge related to vaccines that have expired.Moderna shares were up 16.7% at $187.60 but are off about 30% for the year to date.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Manas Mishra in Bengaluru and Michael Erman in New Jersey; Editing by Arun Koyyur and Bill BerkrotOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Moderna COVID vaccine sales forecast unchanged even as COVAX program cuts orders.

The Boeing logo is seen at their headquarters in Chicago, in this April 24, 2013 photo. REUTERS/Jim Young/File PhotoRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comWASHINGTON, Aug 3 (Reuters) - The Federal Aviation Administration's acting chief will meet with FAA safety inspectors in South Carolina on Thursday before determining whether Boeing (BA.N)can resume deliveries of its 787 Dreamliner after production issues prompted the planemaker to stop deliveries in May 2021, an FAA spokesman said.The purpose of acting Administrator Billy Nolen's visit "is to ensure that the FAA is satisfied that Boeing has taken the appropriate steps to improve manufacturing quality and to guarantee the autonomy of workers who ensure regulatory compliance on the company’s assembly lines," the FAA said.On Friday, Reuters reported that the FAA had approved Boeing's inspection and modification plan to resume deliveries of 787 Dreamliners, citing two people briefed on the matter. Deliveries could resume as soon as this month, sources told Reuters. read more The sources, who asked to remain anonymous because it was not yet public, said the FAA had approved Boeing's proposal that requires specific inspections to verify the airplane meets requirements and that all work has been completed.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comBoeing suspended deliveries of the 787 after the FAA raised concerns about its proposed inspection method. On July 17, Boeing told reporters it was "very close" to restarting 787 deliveries. But before it can resume deliveries, the FAA must still sign off on an airworthiness certification eligibility document.The FAA noted that even when deliveries resume, it "will inspect each aircraft before issuing an airworthiness certificate. This additional measure of oversight will remain in place until the agency has sufficient data that demonstrates this function can be delegated back to Boeing."The FAA said Nolen has asked that Boeing officials on Thursday "provide an update on these programs, as well as the performance of the company's Safety Management System to identify and mitigate risks throughout the manufacturing process."Boeing said Wednesday it "will continue to work transparently with the FAA and our customers towards resuming 787 deliveries.” The planemaker has faced production issues with the 787 for more than two years. In September 2020, the FAA said it was "investigating manufacturing flaws" in some 787 jetliners.In the aftermath of two fatal 737 MAX crashes in 2018 and 2019, the FAA pledged to more closely scrutinize Boeing and delegate fewer responsibilities to Boeing for aircraft certification.For the 787 Dreamliner, the FAA had issued two airworthiness directives to address production issues for in-service airplanes and identified a new issue in July 2021.The planemaker had only resumed deliveries in March 2021 after a five-month hiatus before halting them again. Friday's approval came after lengthy discussions with the FAA.A plane built for American Airlines (AAL.O) is likely to be the first 787 airplane delivered by Boeing since May 2021, sources said. That could come as soon as next week. American Airlines said last month on an earnings call it expects to receive nine 787s this year, including two in early August.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Leslie Adler and David GregorioOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

FAA acting chief to meet inspectors before final Boeing 787 signoff.

The Reddit logo is seen on a smartphone in front of a displayed Wall Street Bets logo in this illustration taken January 28, 2021.Dado Ruvic | ReutersThink the meme stock mania is so 2021? Just take a look at AMTD Digital.The little-known Hong Kong-based fintech company saw its shares skyrocket 126% on Tuesday alone after experiencing a series of trading halts. AMTD Digital, a subsidiary of investment holding company AMTD Idea Group, went public in mid-July with its American depositary receipts trading on the NYSE. Two weeks later, the stock is up 21,400% to $1,679 apiece from its IPO price of $7.80.The monstrous move pushed its market cap above $310 billion as of Tuesday, making it bigger than Coca-Cola and Bank of America, according to FactSet. AMTD Digital generates revenue primarily from fees and commissions from its digital financial services business, and it only made $25 million in revenue in 2021, according to a regulatory filing.The wild trading is reminiscent of the GameStop mania of 2021 where a band of Reddit-obsessed retail investors managed to push up shares of the video game retailer and squeeze out short selling hedge funds. Indeed, the ticker HKD became the most popular mention on Reddit's WallStreetBets chat room Tuesday, according to alternative data provider Quiver Quantitative.AMTD Idea Group's ADR was also the single-most actively traded stock on the Fidelity platform Tuesday. The stock has popped nearly 300% this week.The intense speculative behavior among retail investors is unnerving many on Wall Street yet again."As we've learned over the past two years, events like this cause what I would say is opportunities for profit but great risk for loss particularly for our retail investors," Jay Clayton, former SEC chairman, said Wednesday on CNBC's "Squawk Box."Famed short seller Jim Chanos took it to Twitter and expressed frustration about the mania."So we're all just going to ignore the $400B meme stock in the room?" Chanos said in a tweet. "We literally had Congressional hearings over the $30B runs of $GME and $AMC, but just [crickets] today.The crazy moves, based on no material news, also shocked the company itself. AMTD Digital issued a "thank you note" to investors Tuesday, adding it's monitoring the market closely for any trading abnormalities. "To our knowledge, there are no material circumstances, events nor other matters relating to our Company's business and operating activities since the IPO date," AMTD Digital said in the statement.

The $300 billion meme stock that makes GameStop look like child's play.

FILE PHOTO - The logo of Argentine online marketplace MercadoLibre is seen in this undated handout illustration distributed to Reuters on July 27, 2022. Mercado Libre/Handout via REUTERS Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comSAO PAULO, Aug 3 (Reuters) - South American e-commerce giant MercadoLibre Inc (MELI.O) reported on Wednesday that its second-quarter net income rose 79.8% year-on-year, beating earnings forecasts.The company's net income for the three-month period was $123 million, beating a Refinitiv forecast of $98.9 million.The company's net revenue rose 56.5% in constant currency and 52.5% in dollars to $2.6 billion as it registered growth in revenues from its commerce and fintech sectors.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comThe group's financial arm, Mercado Pago, saw net revenue soar 112.5% ​​in dollars year-on-year to $1.2 billion, as it expanded its lines of business, such as insurance and investment tools.Mercado Pago reported a 83.9% jump in total payment volume in constant currency to $30.2 billion. Its credit portfolio reached $2.7 billion in the quarter, a 12.5% increase in comparison to the previous quarter.The company, present in 18 countries including Brazil, Mexico and Colombia, said unique active users rose 11% versus last year to a total of 84.3 million.Its gross merchandise volume (GMV), a widely watched figure for the e-commerce industry's performance, rose 21.8% in dollars and 26.2% in constant currency from a year earlier to $8.6 billion.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Aluisio Alves; Writing by Carolina Pulice; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and Cynthia OstermanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Latam's MercadoLibre profits soars, boosted by fintech division.

Crime August 3, 2022 / 5:34 PM / CBS/AP A judge dismissed state gun charges Wednesday after new federal charges were filed against two men who local police previously alleged planned a Fourth of July mass shooting in Virginia's capital of Richmond. Neither man has been charged specifically with planning a mass shooting, however.Julio Alvarado-Dubon and Rolman Balcarcel-Bavagas, both Guatemalan immigrants, were charged in state court last month with possession of a firearm by a non-U.S. citizen. Richmond police held a news conference at the time to announce that they had thwarted a July Fourth mass shooting planned by the men. The news conference was held just two days after a deadly mass shooting on the holiday in a Chicago suburb. Richmond Police Chief Gerald Smith said then that a "hero citizen" contacted police after overhearing a conversation indicating there was an attack being planned on an Independence Day celebration in Richmond. The caller said the attack was planned for the Dogwood Dell Amphitheater, where an annual fireworks show is held, Smith said.Richmond Commonwealth's Attorney Colette McEachin said Wednesday that her office asked federal authorities to take over the case. "These are two illegal aliens with guns so we wanted them prosecuted at the highest level possible," McEachin said.Alvarado-Dubon was charged Tuesday in federal court with possession of a firearm by a non-U.S. citizen. An affidavit filed in support of the criminal complaint against Alvarado-Dubon said he last entered the U.S. in 2014 and had overstayed his visa by more than seven years. His attorney, Jose Aponte, said he is scheduled to be arraigned Friday in U.S. District Court. Aponte declined to comment on the case.Balcarcel-Bavagas was charged in a federal criminal complaint with entering the U.S. illegally. His attorney, Samuel Simpson V, did not immediately respond to a call seeking comment. An affidavit written by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent said Balcarcel-Bavagas was deported twice previously — in 2013 and 2014 — and re-entered the U.S. illegally.During a hearing in Richmond General District Court Wednesday, Judge David Hicks asked a state prosecutor if there was any evidence that the mass shooting was planned for Dogwood Dell, the location Smith had cited. Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Clint Seal said there was evidence of a planned shooting, but not at a specific location.Hicks said he raised the issue because two of his sons were at Dogwood Dell on July Fourth. He said if there was evidence the shooting was planned for that location, he would have a conflict of interest and would need to recuse himself from the case.No details about the alleged shooting plot have been included in documents filed in state or federal court, and police have not revealed any motive.Richmond police issued a statement Wednesday saying Smith "stands behind the investigative work done by Richmond Police Detectives to stop a mass shooting planned for July 4th."A search warrant affidavit filed in state court said that after police received the tip, they contacted Homeland Security, then went to a home in Richmond, where police said both men lived. Officers seized two assault rifles, a handgun and hundreds of rounds of ammunition. In: Immigration Crime Richmond Virginia Shootings Thanks for reading CBS NEWS. Create your free account or log in for more features. Please enter email address to continue Please enter valid email address to continue

Feds file charges against 2 men previously accused of planning July 4 mass shooting.

Former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder is pictured during an interview with Reuters in his office in Berlin, Germany, November 15, 2018. Picture taken November 15, 2018. REUTERS/Fabrizio Bensch/File PhotoRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comKYIV, Aug 3 (Reuters) - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Wednesday branded as "disgusting" the behaviour of ex-German chancellor Gerhard Schroeder,who said Russia wanted a "negotiated solution" to the war.Schroeder, who is a friend of President Vladimir Putin, said he met the Kremlin leader last week, adding there was even the possibility of slowly reaching a cease-fire. read more "It is simply disgusting when former leaders of major states with European values work for Russia, which is at war against these values," Zelenskiy said in a late-night video address.Presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak earlier dismissed Schroeder as a "voice of the Russian royal court" and said any negotiated peace settlement with Moscow would be contingent on a ceasefire and the withdrawal of Russian troops.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Max Hunder and David Ljunggren; editing by David Evans and Chris ReeseOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Ukraine's Zelenskiy says Schroeder's actions are 'disgusting'.

Commonwealth Games - Athletics - Women's 10,000m - Final - Alexander Stadium, Birmingham, Britain - August 3, 2022 Scotland's Eilish Mccolgan celebrates after winning the Women's 10,000m REUTERS/John SibleyRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comBIRMINGHAM, England, Aug 3 (Reuters) - Scotland's Eilish McColgan followed in her mother’s footsteps when she won the Commonwealth Games 10,000m title in gritty style on Wednesday, battling past Kenyan Irene Cheptai for an emotional victory in a Games record time.Liz McColgan won the same title in 1986 and 1990 – as well as the world title in 1991 – and Eilish has now written her own script after a series of big-event near-misses.She set a strong early pace on Wednesday and was eventually left alone with Cheptai for the final four laps before gritting her teeth to surge clear over the last 150 metres and win in 30 minutes 48.60 seconds.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comKenya’s Sheila Kiprotich took a brave bronze after appearing to suffer an injury with more than a mile to go but limping on to finish clear of Uganda’s defending champion Stella Chesang.McColgan struggled in last month’s world championships following a bout of illness but arrived in Birmingham finally fully fit."It's just been such an up and down year with COVID, another illness and a couple of other niggles,” she said.“Having my family here was great and the crowd on the last 200m it was vibrating through my body. I have never sprinted like that in my life and without the crowd I could never have done that."This is my third Commonwealth Games and my fourth (different) event so I finally found an event. I came sixth every time so to win it tonight was so special. You could see I wanted gold."Mother Liz added: “To witness your daughter win in the same event is incredible - she just ran the race I knew she was capable of running."Hot favourite Katarina Johnson-Thompson of England retained the heptathlon title ahead Northern Ireland's Kate O'Connor and England's Jane O'Dowda.The women's and men's 100 metres finals are being held later on Wednesday.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Mitch Phillips, editing by Pritha SarkarOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

McColgan takes 10,000m gold to complete family hat-trick.

21 July 2022, Bavaria, Essenbach: Water vapor rises behind sunflowers from the cooling system of the nuclear power plant (NPP) Isar 2.Picture Alliance | Picture Alliance | Getty ImagesNuclear energy is at an inflection point. Early exuberance about its potential was undercut by a series of devastating and dangerous accidents at Three Mile Island in in Pennsylvania in 1979, Chornobyl in Ukraine in 1986 and Fukushima Daiichi in Japan in 2011. But now, thanks to new nuclear technology and the increasingly urgent need to fight climate change, nuclear energy is getting a second shot at becoming a prominent part of the global energy grid. That's because nuclear energy generation does not create any of the dangerous greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change.In a panel discussion at the United Nations on Tuesday, a collection of nuclear energy leaders from around the world gathered to discuss the scope of that renaissance and why it's so critical that the industry work together to ensure gold-standard safety measures are adopted everywhere.A nuclear accident anywhere has the potential to upset the most major momentum the nuclear industry has had in decades. $1 trillion in expected global demandU.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm said that nuclear energy represents 20% of the United States' baseload power, and 50% of its no-carbon-emissions power. "And that's just from the fleet that we have today without the other additions that we are hoping to see."Future nuclear reactors and plants will almost certainly use different technology from the current standard, as both U.S. labs and private companies are funding research into more efficient reactors that are cheaper to build and generate less waste. Granholm mentioned, as an example, the advanced nuclear reactor Bill Gates' nuclear innovation company TerraPower is installing in a former coal town in Wyoming.Demand for advanced nuclear reactors will be worth about $1 trillion globally, Granholm said, according to an estimate from the Department of Energy. That includes jobs building those reactors and all the associated supply chains that will need to ramp up to support that industry, Granholm said. "Bottom line is spreading advanced nuclear energy is a priority for us," Granholm said. "Of course, these technologies all have to begin and end with nuclear safety and security."The change in sentiment surrounding nuclear energy has happed quite quickly, said Rafael Grossi, the director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency.A photograph shows dogs passing by a Ferris wheel in background in the ghost town of Pripyat near the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant on May 29, 2022, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine.Dimitar Dilkoff | AFP | Getty Images"Until just a few years ago, nuclear would not be present, and perhaps not even welcome" at the annual COP conferences, which stands for "Conference of the Parties" and is an opportunity for country leaders to meet and discuss climate change. "The IAEA has moved quite fast from almost an intruder into a very welcomed participant in this dialogue where nuclear has a place."The next COP conference will be in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, in November, and the one after that will be in Dubai Expo City in the United Arab Emirates. The IAEA is planning to be part of both of these coming conferences. "The mere fact that we are talking about COPs with nuclear in Egypt, and in the Gulf, in and by itself is telling you a lot of what is happening and how we are changing and the possibilities that we have and that could have been almost unforeseeable just a few years ago."Safety firstBut if nuclear is to continue to be a part of these climate change conferences and conversations, the entire international community has to work together to adhere to strict safety and non-proliferation standards."Nobody's buying a car today if it gets into an accident every day. So safety and security that an application is the foundation for successful deployment of nuclear energy," said Hamad Al Kaabi, the United Arab Emirates' representative to the IAEA, on Tuesday."The issue how nuclear industry works and is perceived globally, any accident anywhere is an accident everywhere," Al Kaabi said. The UAE has three nuclear reactors in operation and a fourth reactor in the final stages of commissioning, Al Kaabi said. But building nuclear plants takes time, and the process in the UAE started approximately 13 years ago.Vietnam has been considering nuclear power for decades now, according to the World Nuclear Association, an international trade group. The country announced a plan to build a nuclear power plant back in 2006, but put those plans on hold in 2016, partly because of the expense. Then, in March of this year, Vietnam published an official draft energy proposal that includes small modular nuclear reactors.The United States and the IAEA have both helped guide Vietnam in its efforts to include nuclear energy in its national energy plan, Ha Kim Ngoc, Vietnam's Deputy Foreign Minister, said in Tuesday's event. For a country like Vietnam, which has relatively small amount of land, the small footprint that nuclear energy reactors take compared with the amount of energy they produce make it an appealing option, Ngoc said.South Africa has two reactors, according to the World Nuclear Association, and now other countries in Africa are interested in deploying nuclear energy. "Most of the countries where I come from in Africa have very small grids," Collins Juma, the Republic of Kenya's Nuclear Power and Energy Agency chief executive officer, said on Tuesday. Advanced nuclear reactor designs, especially small modular reactors are interesting to African countries, though Juma did also hint that paying for nuclear reactors might be hard for some African countries. "I'm not sure about the cost, but we shall be discussing that in other forums," Juma said.As Africa works to decarbonize, nuclear is a critical baseload corollary to wind, solar and geothermal in the continent. But bringing nuclear energy to Africa will require independent and strong regulation to convince people it is safe. "Nuclear is a very emotive topic," Juma said. And it's one where "everyone is an expert" and thinks they know it is dangerous. "We have to be very careful when we are developing a nuclear power plan. And the public, especially the public, have to have confidence" that the nuclear energy plant is safe, Juma said.So Juma asked for guidance from leading nuclear powers and organizations. "When you copy, you only copy from the best, you don't copy from the worst," Juma said.For countries that are interested in building nuclear power reactors, IAEA has written an actual guidebook, "Milestones in the Development of a National Infrastructure for Nuclear Power," and that's a good place for countries to start, Grossi recommended."The moment is serious, and we know it is red alert for Planet Earth," Grossi said. "We have been saying this, but nuclear is not for a few, nuclear can be for the many."

Nuclear power is on the brink of a $1 trillion resurgence, but one accident anywhere would stop that momentum.

An American flag waves outside the U.S. Department of Justice Building in Washington, U.S., December 2, 2020. REUTERS/Tom Brenner/File PhotoRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comWASHINGTON, Aug 3 (Reuters) - The U.S. Justice Department plans to file a motion to dismiss a Texas lawsuit challenging guidance from the U.S. Health and Human Services Department on an emergency care law know as EMTALA, U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said on Wednesday.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Alexandra Alper; Editing by Leslie AdlerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

U.S. Justice to seek to dismiss Texas lawsuit against guidance on emergency care law.

U.S. August 3, 2022 / 6:11 PM / CBS News Beyoncé drops new album Beyoncé drops seventh solo album, "Renaissance" 04:14 Shortly after the release of Beyoncé's highly-anticipated seventh studio album "Renaissance," the singer agreed to change one of the lyrics in the song "Heated," after fans called out the word "spaz" for being ableist and offensive to those in the disabled community with cerebral palsy.Now, activist and TV personality Monica Lewinsky is requesting the Grammy-winning superstar adjust another lyric from a 2013 song.In a tweet Monday, which cited the "Heated" lyric change, Lewsinky wrote: "uhmm, while we're at it… #Partition." — Monica Lewinsky (she/her) (@MonicaLewinsky) August 1, 2022 Lewinsky had an affair in the 1990s with then-President Bill Clinton while she was a White House intern. The sex scandal captivated the media, exploded in the cultural zeitgeist, and eventually lead to Clinton being impeached in the House.  In Beyoncé's 2013 song "Partition," from her self-titled fifth studio album, she sings: "He bucked all my buttons, he ripped my blouse. He Monica Lewinski'd all on my gown." Lewinsky has referenced the Beyoncé lyric before, in both her Twitter bio, referring to herself as a "rap song muse," and in a 2014 interview with Vanity Fair, in which she wrote about the affair for the first time in a decade, saying, "Thanks, Beyoncé, but if we're verbing, I think you meant 'Bill Clinton'd all on my gown,' not 'Monica Lewinsky'd.'" When one Twitter user asked Lewinsky why she maintains the reference to a "rap song muse" in her bio, Lewinsky responded: "because learning to laugh about things which hurt or humiliated me is how i survived." because learning to laugh about things which hurt or humiliated me is how i survived.— Monica Lewinsky (she/her) (@MonicaLewinsky) August 3, 2022 Lewinsky said she has not officially reached out to Beyoncé, and the singer's representatives have not made any statements so far about the lyric.  no, i haven’t. i did mention it in the first vanity fair article i wrote in 2014… which was the first public thing i’d done in 10 years. but you make an interesting/fair point…— Monica Lewinsky (she/her) (@MonicaLewinsky) August 2, 2022 In: Bill Clinton Helen Ray Helen Ray is a social media manager for CBS News. She is also a digital reporter focusing on culture and technology. Thanks for reading CBS NEWS. Create your free account or log in for more features. Please enter email address to continue Please enter valid email address to continue

Monica Lewinsky wants Beyoncé lyric about her changed in "Partition".

A general view of the sky above the United States Capitol dome in Washington, U.S., June 21, 2022. REUTERS/Mary F. CalvertRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comWASHINGTON, Aug 3 (Reuters) - A $430 billion drug pricing, energy and tax bill that Democrats hope to fast-track through the U.S. Senate would decrease the federal deficit by a net $101.5 billion over the next decade, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said on Wednesday.The official CBO forecast is only about one-third of the $300 billion in deficit reduction predicted by Senate Democrats. The CBO estimate did not include a $204 billion tax revenue gain expected from increased Internal Revenue Service enforcement, due to congressional guidelines.The bill known as the Inflation Reduction Act, introduced last week by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Democratic Senator Joe Manchin, represents a key priority for Democrats and President Joe Biden ahead of November's election battle for control of the U.S. Congress.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comWith the 100-seat Senate split 50-50, Democrats plan to pass the bill without Republican support through a parliamentary process known as reconciliation.But they cannot afford to lose support from a single lawmaker and one Democrat, Senator Kyrsten Sinema, has not voiced her position on the bill.Lawmakers are also waiting to hear whether a legislative referee known as the Senate parliamentarian will accept the entire bill as part of the reconciliation process.With Democrats facing headwinds over inflation and Biden's low job approval numbers, Senate Democrats insist that the bill's deficit reduction effect will help ease inflationary pressures while reducing carbon emissions, lowering prescription drug prices and hiking taxes on wealthy corporations."America is on our side. They want us to pass this bill," Schumer said on the Senate floor ahead of the CBO report, citing polling data showing strong public support for the bill and backing from a bipartisan group of former U.S. Treasury secretaries.The former Treasury secretaries said the bill was "financed by prudent tax policy that will collect more from top earners and large corporations," echoing comments from current Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen read more Republicans have rejected Democratic claims that the bill would reduce inflation."The only things their 'Inflation Reduction Plan' will reduce is American jobs, wages, after-tax incomes, energy affordability and new life-saving medicines," Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell said this week.The CBO said the bill would cut the deficit by $17.9 billion in fiscal 2023, but would increase deficits somewhat from fiscal 2024 though 2027, while cutting deficits again from 2028, with a $42.6 billion deficit reduction in 2031.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by David Morgan, David Lawder and Eric Beech in Washington; Editing by Cynthia Osterman, Matthew Lewis and Sam HolmesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

U.S. Senate climate, drug bill estimated to cut 10-year deficit by $101.5 bln.

A person polishes a hood of a Porsche Taycan turbo S during the Munich Auto Show, IAA Mobility 2021 in Munich, Germany, September 8, 2021. REUTERS/Michaela Rehle/File PhotoRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comAug 3 (Reuters) - The shortages of computer chips that forced global automakers to scrap production plans for millions of cars over the past two years are easing - at a new and permanent cost to the car companies.What had been “war room operations” to manage chip shortages are becoming embedded features of vehicle development, say executives in both industries. That has shifted the risks and some of the costs to automakers.Newly created teams at the likes of General Motors Co (GM.N), Volkswagen AG (VOWG_p.DE) and Ford Motor Co (F.N) are negotiating directly with chipmakers. Automakers like Nissan Motor Co Ltd (7201.T) and others are accepting longer order commitments and higher inventories. Key suppliers including Robert Bosch (ROBG.UL) and Denso (6902.T) are investing in chip production. GM and Stellantis (STLA.MI) have said they will work with chip designers to design components.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comTaken together, the changes represent a fundamental shift for the auto industry: higher costs, more hands-on work in chip development and more capital commitment in exchange for better visibility in their chip supplies, executives and analysts say.It is a U-turn for automakers who had previously relied on suppliers – or their suppliers – to source semiconductors.For chip makers, the still-developing partnership with automakers is a welcome - and overdue reset. Many semiconductor executives point the finger at automakers’ lack of understanding of how the chip supply chain works – and an unwillingness to share cost and risk - for a large part of the recent crisis.The costly changes are coming together just as the auto industry appears to be moving past the worst of an even more costly crisis that by one estimate has cut 13 million vehicles from global production since the start of 2021.THEY NEVER CALLEDC.C. Wei, chief executive of the world’s biggest chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (2330.TW), said he had never had an auto industry executive call him - until the shortage was desperate.“In the past two years they call me and behave like my best friend,” he told a laughing crowd of TSMC partners and customers in Silicon Valley recently. One automaker called to urgently request 25 wafers, said Wei, who is used to fielding orders for 25,000 wafers. “No wonder you cannot get the support.”Thomas Caulfield, GlobalFoundries Inc (GFS.O) chief executive, said the auto industry understands it can no longer leave the risk of building multibillion-dollar chip factories to chipmakers.“You can't have one element of the industry carry the water for the rest of the industry,” he told Reuters. “We will not put capacity on unless that customer is committed to it, and they have a state of ownership in that capacity.”Ford has announced it will work with GlobalFoundries to secure its supply of chips. Mike Hogan, who heads GlobalFoundries’ automotive business, said more deals like that are in the pipeline with other car makers.SkyWater Technology Inc (SKYT.O), a chip manufacturer in Minnesota, is talking to automakers about putting “skin in the game” by buying equipment or paying for research and development, Chief Executive Thomas Sonderman told Reuters.Working closer with carmakers and their suppliers has brought onsemi (ON.O) $4 billion in long-term agreements for power management chips made from silicon carbide, a new material gaining popularity, said Chief Executive Hassane El-Khoury. “We're making billions of dollars of investment every year in order to scale that operation,” he told Reuters. “We're not going to build factories on hope.”Michael Hurlston, the CEO of Synaptics Inc (SYNA.O), whose chips drive touch screens, which had held up some auto production, said the recent, more direct collaboration with automakers could create new business opportunities as well as managing risks.Hurlston said the automotive industry has warmed up to using OLED screens, which are less durable than the LCD screens, a factor that many perceived would limit their use in cars despite better contrast and lower power consumption.“But that perception has changed pretty dramatically over the last two years. And that perception has changed as a direct result of us being able to talk to (the auto industry),” he said. “The paradigm has really, really shifted for us.”Chief executives of Japan’s Renesas Electronics Corp (6723.T) and Dutch NXP Semiconductors N.V. (NXPI.O) have both told Reuters they are co-locating engineers to help automakers design a new architecture where one computer would centrally control all functions.“They have woken up,” said NXP CEO Kurt Sievers. “They have understood what it takes. They try to find the right talent. It’s a big shift.”‘WE HAVE UNDERSTOOD’The average semiconductor content per vehicle will exceed $1,000 by 2026, doubling from the first year of the pandemic, according to Gartner. One example: the battery-powered Porsche Taycan has over 8,000 chips. That will double or triple by the end of the decade, according to Volkswagen.“We have understood that we are a part of the semiconductor industry,” said Volkswagen Group’s Berthold Hellenthal, a senior manager for semiconductor management. “We have now people dedicated just to strategic semiconductor management.”Securing – and keeping – chip engineers will be a challenge for automakers, which will have to compete against the likes of Alphabet Inc's (GOOGL.O) Google, Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) and Apple Inc (AAPL.O), said Evangelos Simoudis, a Silicon Valley venture capital investor and adviser who works with both established automakers and startups. “I think that that would lead to acquisitions,” he said.Unlike Tesla Inc (TSLA.O), which designs its own core chips, Simoudis said traditional automakers will have to juggle production of legacy auto models as they make new investments.AutoForecast Solutions (AFS) estimates that microchip shortages have forced automakers around the world to cut over 13 million vehicles from production plans since the start of 2021."It's an arrogant industry," said Sam Fiorani, vice president of global vehicle forecasting at AFS. “Sometimes it just bites them in the rear.”Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Jane Lanhee Lee in Oakland, Calif., Sarah Wu in Taipei and Kevin Krolicki in Detroit Additional reporting by Tim Kelly in Tokyo and Victoria Waldersee in Berlin Editing by Kevin Krolicki and Matthew LewisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Chip makers have a message for car makers: Your turn to pay.

Vlad Tenev, CEO and co-founder Robinhood Markets, Inc., is displayed on a screen during his company’s IPO at the Nasdaq Market site in Times Square in New York City, U.S., July 29, 2021.Brendan McDermid | ReutersRobinhood CEO Vlad Tenev said Wednesday that the retail brokerage is not looking to be acquired despite announcing major layoffs after another quarter of shrinking active users. "In one word: No," Tenev said on an investor call when asked about potentially being bought by another firm. "I think we're in a great position as a stand-alone company. I love us as a stand-alone company." In May, FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried revealed a stake in Robinhood, spurring speculation about a potential takeover bid from the crypto-focused brokerage. Bankman-Fried has since said FTX is not looking to buy Robinhood outright. Tenev did say that Robinhood was on the lookout for potential acquisitions of its own. The company reported $6 billion in cash on its balance sheet at the end of the quarter. "We actually see opportunities, particularly in this market environment, to leverage the balance sheet that we have ... to acquire companies that accelerate our roadmap," Tenev said. The Robinhood investor call came a day after the company announced it was laying off 23% of its workforce. The company also reported a smaller-than-expected loss for the second quarter, but monthly active users declined and revenue was down more than 40% year over year. Shares of Robinhood rose 11.7% on Wednesday following the layoff announcement. Several Wall Street analysts said the company's cost-cutting efforts could be a boost to the stock. Robinhood cut its full-year expense guidance by roughly $290 million, which includes about $70 million decline in expected share-based compensation. Tenev said that the company plans to have positive adjusted EBITDA — a measure of profitability that excludes certain costs such as interest and taxes — by the end of the year. The company pointed to rate hikes from the Federal Reserve as a source of revenue growth in the form of interest. CFO Jason Warnick estimated that every one-quarter of a percentage point rate hike translates into about $40 million of annualized revenue for Robinhood. "The precise benefit of rate hikes will depend on how balances and customer rates vary over time," Warnick said. The CFO also said Robinhood's assets under custody rose back above $70 billion in July after declining in the second quarter.Despite Wednesday's rally, Robinhood's stock is still down nearly 42% for the year and more than 70% from where its IPO was priced last year.

Robinhood's Tenev says the retail brokerage firm is not interested in selling itself despite struggles.

An image of Elon Musk is seen on smartphone placed on printed Twitter logos in this picture illustration taken April 28, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File PhotoRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comAug 3 (Reuters) - Twitter Inc (TWTR.N) and Elon Musk, who are suing each other over the world's richest person's effort to exit their $44 billion merger, couldn't even agree on how much to tell the public about their dispute.The presiding judge, Chancellor Kathleen McCormick of Delaware Chancery Court, ruled on Wednesday that Musk's countersuit shall be made public by the afternoon of Aug. 5, two days later than Musk wanted.Musk's countersuit may be released as soon as Thursday, according to a person familiar with but not authorized to discuss the case.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comMcCormick ruled after San Francisco-based Twitter accused Musk of trying to release his 163-page countersuit on Wednesday without giving it a chance to redact, or black out, confidential information about the company.Hours later, Musk's lawyers shot back, accusing Twitter of trying to bury "the side of the story it does not want publicly disclosed" and undermine the public's First Amendment constitutional right to know what both sides are arguing about.Twitter had received a copy of the countersuit on July 29, and said court rules allowed it five business days to work on redactions. Musk said three business days were enough.The dispute highlights the acrimony between Twitter and Musk, who is also chief executive of the electric car company Tesla Inc (TSLA.O).Musk agreed to buy Twitter on April 25, but sought to back out on July 8 without paying a $1 billion breakup fee, citing Twitter's failure to provide details about the prevalence of bot and spam accounts.Twitter sued him four days later, accusing him of sabotaging the merger because it no longer served his interests, and demanding he complete the merger.An Oct. 17 trial is scheduled. Twitter has this week issued dozens of subpoenas to banks, investors and law firms that backed Musk's bid, while Musk issued subpoenas to Twitter's advisers at Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan.Musk had offered to buy Twitter for $54.20 per share, saying he believed it could be a global platform for free speech.Twitter shares closed up 2 cents at $41.00 on Wednesday.Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comReporting by Tom Hals in Wilmington, Delaware and Greg Roumeliotis and Jonathan Stempel in New York Editing by Marguerita ChoyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Elon Musk's Twitter countersuit due by Friday as acrimony grows.