President Biden’s trip to the Middle East included a meeting with Saudi Arabia’s highest officials, including Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The agenda ranged from China’s influence in the region and oil prices to 5G and global climate policy, but one exchange captured more headlines than any other. A U.S. official on the trip alongside the President shares details about the MBS meeting, Biden’s confrontation about Jamal Khashoggi’s murder, and global energy security. Special Presidential Coordinator for International Energy Affairs Amos Hochstein even addresses the infamous fist bump. According to a new report from Claire Atkinson at Insider, sources within Disney say former CEO Bob Iger regrets his decision to hand the House of Mouse over to his successor, Bob Chapek. She and Puck’s founding partner Matt Belloni discuss the Bob vs. Bob Hollywood drama and the stock’s lagging performance. Plus, areas of China brace for yet another lockdown, and the team has an update from the Scottish putting green.
The U.S. Congress is set to go on August recess, but Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger has a tough message for them before they go: pass the CHIPS Act, ASAP. America’s manufacturing industry has been waiting on government funding to produce tech’s all-important semiconductors for over a year, and Gelsinger says, it’s a matter of national security. We track the holdup in DC, the impact it’s having on job creation in America’s heartland, and the global chips supply chain. Plus, the USD is nearly at parity with the Euro, and President Biden is halfway through his Middle East travels. In this episode: Pat Gelsinger, @PGelsinger Becky Quick, @BeckyQuick Joe Kernen, @JoeSquawk Cameron Costa, @CameronCostaNY
Description: Hot summer weather, hot inflation data, gloomy Americans? Pollster and political strategist Frank Luntz says higher prices are frustrating both American consumers and CEOs. The first round of earnings is out, but the big banks have so far delivered lackluster reports. JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon is warning of a troubled road ahead for the American economy, and CNBC’s Dom Chu considers whether these results set a gloomy financial precedent for those still to come. Plus, Netflix and Microsoft have teamed up to deliver a lower-cost, ad-supported subscription to streamers. Axios reporter Sara Fischer says that Netflix is keeping up with the media Joneses.
Inflation jumped 9.1% to a new 40-year high in June. CNBC’s Steve Liesman, Rick Santelli, and Mike Santoli unpack what today’s Consumer Price Index data means for the Federal Reserve and for consumer wallets. As a crypto winter puts serious pressure on the industry, some crypto lenders are collapsing. BlockFi found a lifeboat in crypto exchange FTX; in a CNBC-exclusive interview, BlockFi CEO Zac Prince explains why he discounted his company 95% to strike a credit and possible acquisition deal with FTX. Plus, Twitter is suing Elon Musk in hopes that he’ll keep his $44 billion word to buy the company, and Tulane law professor Ann Lipton lays out the possible legal moves from here–as well as any tricks Musk might have up his sleeve. In this episode: Zac Prince, @BlockFiZac Ann Lipton, @AnnMLipton Joe Kernen, @JoeSquawk Andrew Ross Sorkin, @Andrewrsorkin Katie Kramer, @Kramer_Katie
It’s YOLO summer! Travelers are on the move, but airline and airport shortages are causing speedbumps. London’s Heathrow Airport is managing a staffing shortage by capping the number of passengers traveling per day and requesting that airlines stop selling tickets. Still, with so many people on the move, retail watcher Jan Kniffen wonders how many consumers will be around to take advantage of retailer sales like Amazon Prime Day. CNBC’s Courtney Reagan shares retail’s biggest sales and hurdles for the second half of the year, and Cleo Capital’s Sarah Kunst discusses the stickiest purchases for Amazon. In other retailer news, Gap CEO Sonia Syngal is stepping down. Plus, the Saudi Arabia-funded LIV Golf series has upended the sport; multi-million dollar payday offers for athletes have prompted backlash for pro-golfers and an investigation from the Department of Justice. On the Elon Musk front, his Twitter drama continues, and his latest SpaceX launch was “actually not good.” In this episode: Jan Kniffen, @JRogersK Sarah Kunst, @sarahkunst Courtney Reagan, @CourtReagan Joe Kernen, @JoeSquawk Andrew Ross Sorkin, @Andrewrsorkin Katie Kramer, @Kramer_Katie
Elon Musk is over Twitter. He’s aiming to terminate the $44 billion dollar deal, and Twitter’s ready to take him to court over it, but Musk is seemingly unbothered by the drama. Former SEC Chair Jay Clayton maps out the various outcomes at this stage in Twitter-Musk saga. Covid cases are ticking up as we head into the end of the summer, and while most of us have readjusted our individual risk calculus to allow for normal life, former FDA Commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb suggests keeping our masks on. Leaked documents from Uber’s past are raising questions about the company’s ethical foundation, and Starbucks is rolling back a new, potentially questionable offering. Plus, President Biden is gearing up for his first in-office trip to Saudi Arabia. In this episode: Dr. Scott Gottlieb, @ScottGottliebMD Joe Kernen, @JoeSquawk Andrew Ross Sorkin, @Andrewrsorkin Cameron Costa, @CameronCostaNY
Some recession we’re having, huh? A surprisingly positive jobs report for the month of June may defy fears of a looming economic slowdown. Payrolls increased by 372,000 jobs, above expectations. CNBC’s Steve Liesman and SoFi Head of Investment Strategy Liz Young discuss the robust labor market with Joe Kernen and Melissa Lee. Elon Musk and Twitter are still dancing around a possible deal; The Washington Post reports that Musk’s proposed $44B bid to buy the social media platform could be in jeopardy. Axios’ Sara Fischer and Cowan merger strategist Aaron Glick say that Twitter’s board is the one that could be flexing its power – Musk faces a billion-dollar break-up fee if he walks away. And, the latest from the mother of meme stocks: GameStop’s latest move to reinvent the brick and mortar video game retailer puts its CFO and other corporate employees out of jobs. In this episode: Sara Fischer, @SaraFischer Steve Liesman, @SteveLiesman Liz Young, @LizYoungStrat Joe Kernen, @JoeSquawk Melissa Lee @MelissaLeeCNBC Katie Kramer, @Kramer_Katie
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson is resigning, following a torrent of resignations from ministers in his government in the past 24 hours. CNBC Europe’s Steve Sedgwick reports on the scandals that have caught up with Johnson and the quick sea changes of UK conservative politics. As Wall Street parses through the market’s recession signals and portfolio managers brace for a deeper downturn, the luxury art market soars. The first half of 2022 broke records for the industry, marking the most ever paid for an American artist at auction ($195 million), and the most ever paid for a single collection (a cool $922 million). CEO of Masterworks Scott Lynn offers investors fractional ownership–equity shares–of blue chip works by the likes of Basquiat and Banksy, and he says, it’s an alternative asset worth the hedge. Plus, the market is working its way through the Federal Reserve’s reasoning behind its 75 basis point rate hike decision last month. In this episode: Scott Lynn, @Scottlynn Steve Sedgwick @Steve_Sedgwick Joe Kernen, @JoeSquawk Melissa Lee @MelissaLeeCNBC Katie Kramer, @Kramer_Katie
A bevy of market signals have alarmed investors: oil prices slipping, a surprise Nasdaq rally, a yield curve inversion. As inflation remains elevated and recession fears loom over the markets, the Federal Reserve and the Biden administration balance their respective toolsets to mitigate pressure on the American economy. Austan Goolsbee, former CEA chairman and Booth School of Business professor, and fellow economist Michael Strain, director of economic policy at AEI, discuss whether their strategies are enough to avoid a deep recession. In other headlines, the FDA has temporarily paused the ban on Juul e-cigarettes, and senators are urging the Federal Trade Commission to investigate TikTok. Plus, many employees are willing to take a pay cut to work at companies that align with their own values; CNBC’s Sharon Epperson reports on how the pandemic has shifted purpose, well-being, and values to the forefront of employee-employer relationships. In this episode: Austan Goolsbee, @Austan_Goolsbee Michael Strain, @MichaelRStrain Joe Kernen, @JoeSquawk Melissa Lee @MelissaLeeCNBC Sharon Epperson, @Sharon_Epperson Katie Kramer, @Kramer_Katie
Meta is down 52% in 2022, and Mark Zuckerberg is bracing his shareholders for more tougher times ahead. He’s shuttering the company’s digital wallet project and announced a slash to engineer hiring; Cleo Capital’s Sarah Kunst says Zuckerberg’s revamped approach to employees could be what investors need. Plus, President Biden might be rolling back Trump-era China tariffs, Germany’s economic data has global investors on edge, July Fourth travelers had little to celebrate at airports this weekend, and Tesla’s EV competition could be catching up to Elon. In this episode: Sarah Kunst, @sarahkunst Joe Kernen, @JoeSquawk Melissa Lee @MelissaLeeCNBC Phil LeBeau, @Lebeaucarnews Eunice Yoon, @onlyyoontv Katie Kramer, @Kramer_Katie