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  • Trump threatens to sue JPMorgan Chase for ‘debanking’ him

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    Jamie Dimon, Chairman and CEO, JPMorganChase, speaks during the Reagan National Defense Forum at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California, U.S. December 6, 2025.

    Jonathan Alcorn | Reuters

    President Donald Trump on Saturday threatened to sue JPMorgan Chase over allegedly “debanking” him following the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol.

    “I’ll be suing JPMorgan Chase over the next two weeks for incorrectly and inappropriately DEBANKING me after the January 6th Protest, a protest that turned out to be correct for those doing the protesting,” Trump said in a social media post. “The Election was RIGGED!”

    “While we won’t get specific about a client, we don’t close accounts because of political beliefs,” said JPMorgan spokesperson Trish Wexler. “We appreciate that this Administration has moved to address political debanking and we support those efforts.”

    In August, Trump signed an executive order requiring banks to ensure they are not refusing financial services to clients based on religious or political beliefs, a practice known as “debanking.”

    Trump claimed without evidence in an August CNBC interview that he was personally discriminated against by banks. He said JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America refused to take his deposits following his first term in office.

    At the time, JPMorgan said it does not close accounts for political reasons, while Bank of America said it doesn’t comment on client matters. BofA also said it would welcome clearer rules from regulators on how to conduct its activities.

    Trump and his family have a history of railing against financial institutions for allegedly refusing to work with them on the basis of their political orientation.

    Last year, Donald Trump Jr. said his family had difficulty accessing big bank services — a situation that allegedly prompted the Trumps to enter the cryptocurrency industry.

    “So, [my family] got into crypto, not because it was like, ‘hey, this is the next cool thing,’ we got into it out of necessity,” Trump Jr. told CNBC in an interview last June.

    JPMorgan shares are down about 5% over the past week, even after the bank on Tuesday topped expectations for its fourth-quarter earnings and revenue. The shares, and others in the banking sector, fell in response to Trump’s demand to cap credit card rates at 10%, giving financial firms until Jan. 20 to comply.

    Trump’s legal threat against JPMorgan comes as the president, in the same Truth Social post, denied a Journal report on Wednesday that said the president had offered JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon the position of Federal Reserve chairman months ago during a meeting at the White House.

    Dimon took the proposition as a joke, according to the Journal report.

    In his post, Trump denied the report, underscoring his reservations about Dimon and JPMorgan.

    “This statement is totally untrue, there was never such an offer,” he wrote. “Why wouldn’t The Wall Street Journal call me to ask whether or not such an offer was made? I would have very quickly told them, “NO,” and that would have been the end of the story.”

    JPMorgan’s Wexler said the “offer” reported by the Journal was a miscommunication. “I should have been more vigilant in correcting that word while attempting to dispute the WSJ’s anonymous sources,” she said.

    The Journal did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent outside of normal business hours.

    Current Fed Chairman Jerome Powell’s term ends on May 15.

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  • What’s behind the retreat in responsible investing? – MoneySense

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    The decline in RI usage was driven by fewer new advisors offering RI to clients, the 2025 Advisor RI Insights Study said. The proportion of clients using a responsible methodology was roughly steady at 18%, however, compared to 19% recorded two years ago. Increasingly, it is clients initiating conversations about responsible strategies (41%) over advisors (28%). Still, nearly half of advisors (46%) agree that questions about RI should be included in Know Your Client forms used with new clients.

    “While adoption has steadied, investor demand for RI remains strong and advisors remain open to closing the service gap,” Patricia Fletcher, CEO of the RIA, said in a release. “Mobilizing wholesalers and equipping advisors with tools and training, we can empower advisors to align portfolios with their clients’ values.”

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    The reasons for the RI pullback could be related to economic headwinds, the backlash against environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria in the U.S., or the maturation of the RI niche, with fewer new investment products coming on the market, the study’s authors speculated. 

    This reversal is consistent with public attitudes reflected in President Donald Trump’s recent dismissal of climate change as a “con job” and Canada’s withdrawal of carbon taxes and electric vehicle subsidies.

    But it may also be rooted in the relatively poor performance of RI investments in recent years. 

    In the early years of what was then called “ethical investing”—in the 1990s and early 2000s—many RI funds could boast superior returns to broad index funds. RI advocates pointed to the way ESG criteria served as a force for risk mitigation, steering clients away from potentially unsustainable industries (tobacco, coal) and companies at greater risk of lawsuits and increased regulation.

    The last decade, by contrast, has been marked by strong performance of major indices like the S&P 500 and underperformance by sectors commonly overweighted in RI portfolios, such as renewable energy. In the RIA survey, “Concerns about returns” ranked as the second most common reason advisors cited for not including RI in client portfolios (47%), after “Lack of client interest/demand” (61%).

    Other factors possibly contributing to the RI pause include the rising market share of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) over mutual funds—76% of advisors offering RI said they predominantly use mutual funds, compared to just 8% using ETFs—and skepticism fed by so-called “greenwashing.” Thirty-five percent of advisors polled by RIA cited “Concerns about the validity of ESG benefits” among their reasons for not offering RI portfolios.

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    About Jessica Barrett


    About Jessica Barrett

    Jessica Barrett is the editor-in-chief of MoneySense. She has extensive experience in the fintech industry and personal finance journalism.

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  • CPI inflation report will be released by Labor Department, while other data is delayed by shutdown

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    A large US flag is seen on the facade of the Department of Labor headquarters building in Washington DC, United States on September 8, 2025.

    Celal Gunes | Anadolu | Getty Images

    The Labor Department will bring back staff to work on a key consumer inflation report despite the ongoing federal government shutdown, CNBC has learned.

    The department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics will “promptly resume” work on September’s consumer price index data, a White House official said. The report will come out at 8:30 a.m. ET on Oct. 24, nine days after it was originally scheduled, according to the BLS.

    The department had originally paused work on the CPI report – which tracks a broad basket of goods and services for price changes over time — because of its shutdown plan, the official said. But the Social Security Administration needs third-quarter CPI data for calculating and publishing annual cost-of-living adjustments before Nov. 1.

    Other BLS data releases including the nonfarm payroll report haven’t been published as originally intended since the federal government shutdown due to a lapse in funding. The Senate on Thursday failed to pass funding bills for the seventh time that would have ended the closure, which began last week.

    Bloomberg News first reported that the BLS was calling employees back to work on the CPI data.

    — CNBC’s Steve Liesman contributed to this report.

    Correction: The Social Security Administration needs third-quarter CPI data for calculating and publishing annual cost-of-living adjustments before Nov. 1. An earlier version misstated the organization’s name.

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  • Gold, Bitcoin, and Stocks Are All Booming — Here’s Why That’s Not a Good Sign

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    us dollar, bitcoin all time high, gold rally, silver, inflation, fed rate cut,. Photo by BeInCrypto

    Markets are witnessing extraordinary rallies across both risk and safe-haven assets. The S&P 500, gold, silver, and Bitcoin (BTC) are all trending higher.

    Experts argue that the economy appears to be doing well, but this prosperity is deceptive. It’s not driven by productivity or innovation but by a loss of confidence in fiat currencies, especially the US dollar.

    In a detailed thread on X (formerly Twitter), The Kobeissi Letter, highlighted a notable financial moment — where everything is going up at once, from risky assets like stocks to traditional safe havens like gold and Bitcoin.

    BeInCrypto reported yesterday that Bitcoin broke $125,000 amid its Uptober rally. The coin has appreciated 10.6% over the past week, marking a strong start to Q4. At the same time, silver and gold have also gained strongly. The former’s value has increased by more than 60% in 2025.

    “Gold has hit 40 record highs in 2025 and is now worth a whopping $26.3 trillion. That’s more than 10 times the value of Bitcoin. Gold, Silver, and Bitcoin are now all in the top 10 largest assets in the world,” the post read.

    Historically, safe-haven assets tend to perform best when investors are seeking protection from falling stock markets or economic instability. However, this cycle is defying that pattern. Risk assets and safe havens are now rising together, suggesting a deeper shift in global investor behavior.

    The S&P 500 has jumped over 39% in six months, adding trillions in market value. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq 100 has gained for six consecutive months — a rare streak seen only six times since 1986.

    “And, the Magnificent 7 companies are investing a record $100B+ per quarter in CapEx to fuel the AI Revolution,” The Kobeissi Letter mentioned.

    The post pointed out that the correlation between gold and the S&P 500 reached a record 0.91 in 2024.

    “This means that Gold and the S&P 500 were moving in TANDEM 91% of the time,” the analysis revealed.

    This raises a critical question: Are markets genuinely strong, or is something else behind the broader rally?

    Market analysts argue this does not reflect real economic expansion but rather a weakening trust in the US dollar.  Notably, this year has been quite harsh for the greenback. According to The Kobeissi Letter, the US dollar is heading toward its worst annual performance since 1973.

    For historical context, in 1973, the dollar experienced a sharp decline, one of the most dramatic in modern history, due to the collapse of the Bretton Woods system and the end of the gold standard.

    So far, this year, the dollar has dipped 10%. Moreover, since 2020, the dollar has also lost roughly 40% of its purchasing power.

    Furthermore, things could turn for the worse for the currency. According to the CME FedWatch Tool, markets are pricing in a 95.7% probability that the Fed will cut rates again at its October meeting, following a recent reduction in September. Such easing could accelerate the dollar’s downtrend.

    “The Fed is cutting rates into 4.0% annualized inflation since 2020. And, the Fed is cutting rates into 2.9%+ Core PCE inflation for the first time since the 1990s. What’s really happening here is assets are pricing in a new era of monetary policy. When safe haven assets, risky assets, real estate, and inflation are all rising together, it’s a macro-based shift. The Fed has zero control of long-term yields,” The Kobeissi Letter noted.

    Market commentator Shanaka Anslem Perera described the phenomenon as an ‘illusion of prosperity,’ with rising asset prices driven by investors moving away from fiat currencies.

    “The Fed is cutting rates into inflation, printing credibility while calling it policy. When gold, Bitcoin, equities, and real estate all rise together, it’s not a bull market … it’s monetary panic in slow motion,” Perera explained.

    He stressed that the simultaneous surge across asset classes suggests that wealth is not being created, but the dollar’s purchasing power is collapsing. In this view, the denominator — the currency itself — is dying.

    “This is not a boom. It’s the endgame of a system priced in paper and powered by illusion,” Perera remarked.

    Thus, as markets surge and the dollar weakens, the rally reflects more than optimism. Rather than signaling economic strength, it underlines a shift in what investors trust. Markets aren’t celebrating growth — they’re bracing for change.

    Read original story Gold, Bitcoin, and Stocks Are All Booming — Here’s Why That’s Not a Good Sign by Kamina Bashir at beincrypto.com

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  • Berkshire Hathaway’s cash fortress tops $300 billion as Buffett sells more stock, freezes buybacks

    Berkshire Hathaway’s cash fortress tops $300 billion as Buffett sells more stock, freezes buybacks

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    Warren Buffett walks the floor ahead of the Berkshire Hathaway Annual Shareholders Meeting in Omaha, Nebraska, on May 3, 2024.

    David A. Grogen | CNBC

    Berkshire Hathaway‘s monstrous cash pile topped $300 billion in the third quarter as Warren Buffett continued his stock-selling spree and held back from repurchasing shares.

    The Omaha-based conglomerate saw its cash fortress swell to a record $325.2 billion by the end of September, up from $276.9 billion in the second quarter, according to its earnings report released Saturday morning.

    The mountain of cash kept growing as the Oracle of Omaha sold significant portions of his biggest equity holdings, namely Apple and Bank of America. Berkshire dumped about a quarter of its gigantic Apple stake in the third quarter, making the fourth consecutive quarter that it has downsized this bet. Meanwhile, since mid-July, Berkshire has reaped more than $10 billion from offloading its longtime Bank of America investment.

    Overall, the 94-year-old investor continued to be in a selling mood as Berkshire shed $36.1 billion worth of stock in the third quarter.

    No buybacks

    Berkshire didn’t repurchase any company shares during the period amid the selling spree. Repurchase activity had already slowed down earlier in the year as Berkshire shares outperformed the broader market to hit record highs.

    The conglomerate had bought back just $345 million worth of its own stock in the second quarter, significantly lower than the $2 billion repurchased in each of the prior two quarters. The company states that it will buy back stock when Chairman Buffett “believes that the repurchase price is below Berkshire’s intrinsic value, conservatively determined.”

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    Berkshire Hathaway

    Class A shares of Berkshire have gained 25% this year, outpacing the S&P 500’s 20.1% year-to-date return. The conglomerate crossed a $1 trillion market cap milestone in the third quarter when it hit an all-time high.

    For the third quarter, Berkshire’s operating earnings, which encompass profits from the conglomerate’s fully-owned businesses, totaled $10.1 billion, down about 6% from a year prior due to weak insurance underwriting. The figure was a bit less than analysts estimated, according to the FactSet consensus.

    Buffett’s conservative posture comes as the stock market has roared higher this year on expectations for a smooth landing for the economy as inflation comes down and the Federal Reserve keeps cutting interest rates. Interest rates have not quite complied lately, however, with the 10-year Treasury yield climbing back above 4% last month.

    Notable investors such as Paul Tudor Jones have become worried about the ballooning fiscal deficit and that neither of the two presidential candidates squaring off next week in the election will cut spending to address it. Buffett has hinted this year he was selling some stock holdings on the notion that tax rates on capital gains would have to be raised at some point to plug the growing deficit.

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  • Making sense of the markets this week: November 3, 2024 – MoneySense

    Making sense of the markets this week: November 3, 2024 – MoneySense

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    Amazon earnings highlights

    Share prices were up 5% in after-hours trading on Thursday after the strong earnings beat.

    • Amazon (AMZN/NASDAQ): Earnings per share of $1.43 (versus $0.14 predicted) and revenues of $134.4 billion (versus $131.5 billion predicted).

    Amazon Web Services (AWS) remains the golden goose, even though very few of Amazon’s retail customers know it exists. Revenues climbed 19% during the quarter, and totalled $27.4 billion. Amazon’s advertising revenues were another highlighted area of the report, as they were up 19%. Overall operating profits grew 56% year over year to $17.4 billion, mostly credited to the 27,000 jobs cut by the company since 2022.

    Founder, executive chairman and former president and CEO of Amazon, Jeff Bezos was in the headlines this week in his role as owner of the Washington Post. He refused to allow the Post’s editorial team to print their endorsement of Kamala Harris for president, and it was met with widespread outrage from Post readers. As of Tuesday, more than 250,000 subscriptions were cancelled as a result. 

    Source: The Sporting News

    Fortunately for Bezos, he purchased the Washington Post (one of the world’s premier news brands) for “chump change”—$250 million (roughly a mere 1.2% of his net worth). So, if he drives it into the ground, I don’t think he’ll shed tears.

    No doubt co-founder and CEO of Tesla, Elon Musk, is making similar calculations with his luxury purchase two years ago of Twitter (which he rebranded as X). Critics say he has turned the social platform into an echo chamber for Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. What are the billions for, if a person can’t even enjoy themselves by buying a little media, am I right? (That’s sarcasm.)

    So far we’ve yet to see analysis to show Bezos’ editorial decision affecting Amazon’s share price or revenue numbers. Apparently Republicans buy Amazon Prime, too.

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    Microsoft, Meta and Google: Predictably incredible earnings

    While not having quite as large a market cap as Nvidia and Apple, other mega tech stocks in the U.S. are no slouches. For example, Microsoft is also as valuable as the entirety of Canada’s stock exchanges at $3.2 trillion. Alphabet and Meta clock in at $2.1 trillion and $1.5 trillion respectively. (All figures in this section are in U.S. dollars.)

    Other Big Tech stock news highlights

    Here’s what these companies announced this week.

    • Alphabet (GOOGL/NASDAQ): Earnings per share came in at $2.12 (versus $1.51 predicted) on revenues of $88.27 billion (versus $86.30 billion predicted).
    • Microsoft (MSFT/NASDAQ): Earnings per share of $3.30 (versus $3.10 predicted), and revenues of $65.59 billion (versus $64.51 predicted).
    • Meta (META/NASDAQ): Earnings per share coming in at $6.03 (versus $5.25 predicted) and revenues of $40.59 billion (versus $40.29 predicted).

    All three companies crushed earning estimates across the board. However, shareholders’ reactions to these earnings beats were still muted. Meta shares were down 2.5% in after-hours trading on Wednesday, and it was a similar situation for Microsoft. Alphabet fared better as its shares were up 3%.

    It’s hard to put these numbers into the massive context into which they belong, because the world has never seen anything like these companies before. Here are highlights from the earnings calls. (Scroll the chart left to right with your fingers or press shift, as you use scroll wheel on your mouse to read.)

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  • Making sense of the markets this week: October 27, 2024 – MoneySense

    Making sense of the markets this week: October 27, 2024 – MoneySense

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    Despite these setbacks, CPKC posted an income gain of 7% year over year. The four categories that made the most impact were grain, energy, plastics and chemicals, and they grew revenues by 11%. CPKC says the shipment of wheat to Mexico from the Canadian and American Prairies over the past 12 months was exactly the type of “synergy win” that it was hoping for when the former Canadian Pacific acquired Kansas City Southern back in 2021. This railway remains the only one to span Canada, the United States and Mexico.

    CNR CEO Tracy Robinson commented on the railway’s operational challenges. “Our scheduled operating plan demonstrated its resilience in the third quarter, allowing us to adapt our operations to challenges posed by wildfires and prolonged labor issues,” she said. “Our operations recovered quickly and the railroad is running well. As we close 2024, we will continue to focus on recovering volumes, growth, and ensuring our resources are aligned to demand.”

    CNR’s revenues were up 3% year over year; however, increased expenses meant the company’s operating ratio rose 1.1% to 63.1% (indicating that expenses are growing as a share of revenue). The railway announced it was  raising its quarterly dividend from $0.79 to $0.845. This raise of nearly 7% is right in line with CNR’s mission to conservatively raise its dividend payouts each year.

    For more information on these railroads, check out my article on Canadian railway stocks at MillionDollarJourney.ca.

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    Rough day for Rogers 

    Thursday’s revenue miss left some Rogers shareholders shaking their heads. 

    Rogers earnings highlights

    Here’s what the large mobile company reported this week:

    • Rogers Communications (RCI/TSX): Earnings per share of $1.42 (versus $1.34 predicted) and revenues of $5.13 billion (versus $5.17 predicted).

    While solid earnings numbers did take away some of the sting, Rogers’ share price was down 3% on Thursday. Lower-than-expected numbers for new wireless customers were at the root of low revenue growth. The oligopolistic Canadian wireless market remains uncharacteristically competitive as Rogers, Telus and Bell all continue to fight for market share. That competition is hurting profit margins for all three telecommunications giants at the moment. (Unlike in past years, when the three telcos all enjoyed charging some of the highest wireless plan fees in the world.)

    One highlight for Rogers was its sports revenue vertical, which was up 11% from last quarter. Rogers has really doubled down on its sports media strategy over the last few years and now owns a controlling share of the: 

    • Toronto Blue Jays in the Major League Baseball league (MLB)
    • Toronto Maple Leafs in the National Hockey League (NHL)
    • Toronto Raptors in the National Basketball Association (NBA)
    • Toronto FC in Major League Soccer (MLS)
    • Toronto Argonauts in the Canadian Football League (CFL)
    • SportsNet, a major Canadian sports network
    • Toronto’s Rogers Centre and Scotiabank Arena venues
    • Naming rights of sports venues in Edmonton, Toronto and Vancouver
    • National NHL media rights in Canada
    • Local media rights to the NHL’s Vancouver Canucks, Calgary Flames and Edmonton Oilers
    • Partial local media rights to the Maple Leafs and Raptors
    • Several minor-league franchises and esports (gaming) teams

    Despite owning all those household-name sports assets, it’s worth noting that Rogers’ wireless and cable divisions were responsible for close to 90% of revenues, with sports and media making up the rest.

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  • What’s wrong with the Nasdaq? One troubling thing for the bulls’ case

    What’s wrong with the Nasdaq? One troubling thing for the bulls’ case

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  • After a well-received quarter, Cramer explains why he thinks Netflix can ‘rock on higher’

    After a well-received quarter, Cramer explains why he thinks Netflix can ‘rock on higher’

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    After a siding with the bulls in the run-up to Netflix‘s latest earnings report, CNBC’s Jim Cramer explained why the quarter made him more optimistic about the company’s future, saying he was impressed by management’s outlook and commentary about content.

    “If you were worried about Netflix not having enough levers to pull in order to generate growth going forward, or at least enough growth to justify the stock’s price-to-earnings multiple, I think those concerns have been put to bed by last night’s earnings report,” he said. “Near-term, the Netflix bears will hibernate, but just remember all these positives when they inevitably come out of their den and try to maul this best-of-breed company with a stock that I think can rock on higher for a long time.”

    Netflix beat Wall Street’s expectations for earnings, revenue and paid membership growth when it posted its report Thursday evening. The streaming giant’s shares popped 11% Friday morning and maintained those gains through close.

    Cramer was encouraged by management’s guidance for the current quarter and 2025, as the company expects to keep up double-digit revenue growth some investors feared would be hard to maintain. He also appreciated co-CEO Ted Sarandos’ explanation about Netflix’s vast library and engagement, including his assertion that members on average watch two hours of content per day. Cramer pointed out that Sarandos also said that the streamer is focused on adding “more value to this package,” instead of bundling content with other streaming services, as some competitors are doing.

    This breadth of content makes Cramer optimistic about Netflix’s ability to scale its ad-tier, pointing to popular offerings like “Emily in Paris,” “Selling Sunset” and “Squid Game,” as well as two National Football League games set to stream on Christmas. He also liked Sarandos’ positive read on how AI will impact business.

    “I’m not saying that Netflix has become an AI play, not at all, I’m just saying that between the expanding library, clear customer interest in the ad tier model, and their ability to harness the power of artificial intelligence, we have a lot of positives here, and it’s gong to translate into a lot of money,” Cramer said.

    Jim Cramer digs into Netflix Q3 results

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  • Making sense of the markets this week: October 20, 2024 – MoneySense

    Making sense of the markets this week: October 20, 2024 – MoneySense

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    Netflix shows a steady stream of profits

    Netflix (NFLX/NASDAQ) shareholders were happy on Thursday, as they saw share prices rise 5% in after-hours trading on the back of another excellent earnings announcement. (All figures in U.S. dollars.) Earnings per share came in at $5.40 (versus $5.12 predicted) and revenues were $9.83 billion (versus $9.77 billion predicted).

    Paid memberships also topped expectations, at 282.7 million, compared to the 282.15 million predicted by analysts. Netflix chalked up the increase in viewers to new hit shows such as The Perfect Couple, Nobody Wants This and Tokyo Swindlers, as well as new seasons of favourites Emily in Paris and Cobra Kai. Looking ahead to the next quarter, Netflix is banking on the new season of Squid Game and its foray into the world of live sports. Two National Football League (NFL) games and a massively anticipated boxing bout between Jake Paul and Mike Tyson represent new attractions for the streaming giant.

    Photo courtesy of United Airlines

    United Airlines shares take to the sky

    Tuesday was a massive earnings day for United Airlines (UAL/NASDAQ) as earnings per share came in at $3.33, well outpacing the $3.17 that analysts were predicting. (All figures in U.S. dollars.) Revenues were $14.84 billion (versus $14.78 billion predicted). Shares were up more than 13% on the outperformance and the news that the airline was starting a $1.5-billion share buyback program.

    Corporate revenue was up more than 13% year over year, while basic economy seat sales clocked an even more impressive 20% increase. Last week, the company announced new international routes headed to Mongolia, Senegal, Spain, Greenland and more.

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    The inflation dragon has been slain

    It doesn’t seem that long ago that annualized inflation rates were topping 8%, and there appeared to be no end in sight. Well, the end has arrived. Statistics Canada announced this week that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) annualized inflation rate for September had dropped all the way down to 1.6%. That’s substantially lower than the Bank of Canada’s 2% target.

    Led by deflation in clothing and footwear, as well as transportation, the downward trend appears to be widespread. Gasoline was also down 10.7% from this time last year.

    List of items contributing to decrease in CPI, September 2024

    Source: Statistics Canada

    Of course, increased shelter costs remain the major concern for many Canadians. Rent increases were up 8.2% year-over-year; while that’s down from August’s figure of 8.9%, it’s still a bitter pill to swallow for many.

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  • These 5 portfolio stocks outperformed the market’s incredible run since our September Monthly Meeting

    These 5 portfolio stocks outperformed the market’s incredible run since our September Monthly Meeting

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    Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange.

    Angela Weiss | AFP | Getty Images

    It’s been a stellar month for the U.S. stock market, driven largely by easing monetary policy.

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  • Wells Fargo CEO calls consumers ‘extremely resilient’

    Wells Fargo CEO calls consumers ‘extremely resilient’

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    Wells Fargo CEO Charlie Scharf gave CNBC’s Jim Cramer a positive read on the consumer landscape.

    “The consumer’s been extremely resilient,” he said. “We don’t sit here and say risks don’t exist — But what we see looks pretty, pretty strong.”

    According to Scharf, consumer spend is going up “at a very measured pace” in both debit and credit cards. Deposit balances, he added, remain strong and credit quality is “still performing extremely well.” He praised the Federal Reserve, saying the central bank managed the economy well under difficult circumstances.

    Wells Fargo’s most recent quarter topped Wall Street’s expectations, and shares surged more than 4% last Friday just after the report. The company managed a substantial earnings beat, even as its net interest income — a measure of banks’ lending revenue — declined. By Tuesday’s close, Wells Fargo was up 1.40%.

    While Scharf said Wells Fargo does care about its quarterly results, he suggested the market can obsess over reports more than management does. He pointed out that the stock fell after last quarter but jumped after the most recent one — even though trends are “not dramatically different,” and strategies, as well as progress on building business hasn’t changed significantly.

    Scharf also remained neutral when asked about what results of the upcoming presidential election could mean for business.

    “We’re going to work with both sides,” he said. “I’m encouraged by what both candidates are saying about the way they want to interact with business.”

    Wells Fargo CEO Charles Scharf talks credit cards

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  • Watch CNBC’s full interview with Gabelli Funds’ Macrae Sykes

    Watch CNBC’s full interview with Gabelli Funds’ Macrae Sykes

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    CNBC’s Leslie Picker and Gabelli Funds’ Macrae Sykes, joins ‘Power Lunch’ to discuss Big Bank earnings and their outlook for the sector.

    06:39

    Tue, Oct 15 20242:46 PM EDT

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  • Chinese finance minister hints at increasing the deficit at highly anticipated briefing

    Chinese finance minister hints at increasing the deficit at highly anticipated briefing

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    Lan Fo’an, China’s finance minister, center, speaks as Zheng Shanjie, chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), left, and Pan Gongsheng, governor of the People’s Bank of China (PBOC), listen during a news conference on the sidelines of the National People’s Congress in Beijing, China, on Wednesday, March 6, 2024.

    Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images

    BEIJING — China’s Minister of Finance Lan Fo’an told reporters Saturday during a highly anticipated press briefing that the central government has room to increase debt and the deficit.

    He emphasized that the space for a deficit increase is “rather large,” but noted such policies are still under discussion, according to CNBC’s translation of the Chinese.

    Economists have insisted that China needs additional fiscal support, but Beijing has yet to announce any. In the days leading up to the briefing, many investors and analysts had hoped that China was gearing up to unveil a major new stimulus package.

    Lan signaled that the weekend briefing was not the end, that more stimulus is on the way and that the debt or deficit changes markets have been waiting for could come in the near future. It remains unclear whether the size of any such stimulus would meet market expectations, or how much would go directly towards consumption or real estate.

    The finance ministry on Saturday also outlined policy measures focused on addressing local government debt problems, stabilizing real estate and supporting employment.

    On real estate, the finance ministry will allow local governments to use special bonds for land purchases and allow affordable housing subsidies to be used for existing housing inventory, instead of only new construction, Vice Minister of Finance Liao Min said at the same press conference, according to CNBC’s translation of the Chinese.

    He added that authorities were considering plans to reduce real estate-related taxes. He did not name specific figures and noted supporting real estate required multiple policies.

    “These policies are in the right direction,” Zhiwei Zhang, president and chief economist at Pinpoint Asset Management, said in a note Saturday. He added that more details are needed to evaluate the impact of such policies on the macro outlook, and “this will be the focus of the market in [the] coming months.”

    In a meeting in late September, led by Chinese President Xi Jinping, authorities had called for strengthening monetary and fiscal policy support. But they did not lay out the details.

    Analyst projections for how much fiscal stimulus is needed range from around 2 trillion yuan ($283.1 billion) to more than 10 trillion yuan.

    Ting Lu, chief China economist at Nomura, had cautioned in a note Thursday that any such stimulus would typically need approval by China’s parliament, expected to hold a meeting later this month. He added that how any funds are used is just as important as the amount that’s delivered — whether they only go to shoring up struggling local government finances or focus on boosting consumption.

    China’s retail sales grew only modestly over the last few months, and the country’s real estate slump has shown few signs of turning around.

    GDP rose by 5% in the first half of the year, sparking concerns that China could miss its full-year target of around 5%. All eyes are now on Oct. 18, when the National Bureau of Statistics is scheduled to release third-quarter GDP.

    Bruce Pang, chief economist and head of research for Greater China at JLL, said he is watching for more details to be announced at a parliamentary meeting later this month. He added “it would be reasonable and practical” to keep some dry powder in the event of unexpected shocks.

    After markets reopened Tuesday following a weeklong holiday, mainland Chinese stocks became volatile throughout the week, as a stimulus-fueled rally lost stream. The declines took major indexes back to levels seen in late September.

    Stocks had climbed then — the CSI 300 saw its best week since 2008 — as major policy announcements signaled that the Chinese government was finally stepping in to stimulate slowing growth.

    Just days after the Federal Reserve began its easing cycle, the People’s Bank of China cut a few of its interest rates and extended existing real estate support measures by two years. The PBOC also launched a roughly $71 billion program allowing institutional investors to borrow funds for stock investing.

    The National Development and Reform Commission, the top economic planning agency, pledged in a rare press conference Tuesday to speed up use of 200 billion yuan originally allocated for next year, mostly for investment projects. The NDRC did not announce additional stimulus.

    Saturday is a working day in China, but markets are closed.

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  • Making sense of the markets this week: October 13, 2024 – MoneySense

    Making sense of the markets this week: October 13, 2024 – MoneySense

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    Canadian Natural Resources doubles down on Canada

    For a decade now, big acquisitions by Canadian oil-and-gas producers have mostly been met with distaste by investors. So we’ll take it as a heartening sign how well the markets received Canadian Natural Resources’ (CNQ/TSX) decision to buy the Alberta upstream assets of Chevron Corp. (CVX/NYSE) for USD$6.5 billion in cash. CNQ stock rose 3.7% Monday in the wake of the announcement. Chevron was up 0.7% on a day when oil prices increased.

    The assets in question comprise a 20% stake in the Athabasca Oil Sands Project, along with 70% of the Kaybob Duvernay shale play. That should add 122,500 barrels of oil equivalent per day to Canadian Natural Resource’s 2025 output, the company said. It also announced a 7% bump to its quarterly dividend, to 56.25 Canadian cents a share, beginning in January.

    Chevron explained the asset sale in terms of freeing up cash for U.S. shale acquisitions as well as targeted positions abroad, such as in Kazakhstan, which it considers to hold better long-term profit potential.

    Canada’s best dividend stocks

    Nvidia moves up to number 2 in market cap

    Reports of the death of the Magnificent 7 tech stocks’ decade-long run are greatly exaggerated, Nvidia (NVDA/Nasdaq) seemed to say this week as its shares rose past $130. (All figures in U.S. dollars.) That pushed its market capitalization ahead of Microsoft Corp. to $3.19 trillion. That leaves only Apple, with a market cap of $3.4 trillion, worth more than the AI-focused chip-maker.

    Nvidia’s stock is up 26% in the past month, compared to a 6% advance for the S&P 500. Nvidia has grown tenfold in just two years. The price movement this week appeared to come from a positive report from Super Micro Computer, a provider of advanced server products and services. It found that sales of its liquid cooling products, deployed alongside Nvidia’s graphics processing units (GPUs), would be even stronger than expected this quarter. Analyst estimates of Nvidia’s adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) for the three-month period ended this month is $21.9 billion.

    The best online brokers in Canada

    Pepsi earnings leave a sour taste

    Posting its second straight disappointing set of quarterly results on Tuesday, beverage-and-snack maker PepsiCo lowered its full-year guidance for organic revenue unrelated to acquisitions. 

    Results were hampered by recalls of the company’s Quaker Foods products, related to potential salmonella contamination. PepsiCo also experienced weak demand in the U.S. and business disruptions in some overseas markets, such as the Middle East. Pepsi’s North American beverage volumes fell 3% year-over-year, mostly due to declines in energy drink sales. Meanwhile, its Frito-Lay division suffered a 1.5% decline.

    “After outperforming packaged food categories in previous years, salty and savory snacks have underperformed year-to-date,” executives said in a prepared statement. Overall, PepsiCo revised its 2024 sales growth outlook from the previous 4% to low single digits.

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    Michael McCullough

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  • Watch CNBC’s full interview with Capital Area Planning Group’s Malcolm Ethridge, American Century Investments’ Mike Rode and Obermeyer’s Ali Flynn Phillips

    Watch CNBC’s full interview with Capital Area Planning Group’s Malcolm Ethridge, American Century Investments’ Mike Rode and Obermeyer’s Ali Flynn Phillips

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    Capital Area Planning Group’s Malcolm Ethridge, American Century Investments’ Mike Rode and Obermeyer’s Ali Flynn Phillips, join ‘Closing Bell’ to discuss their market outlooks and mega cap stocks.

    16:21

    Wed, Oct 9 20243:40 PM EDT

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  • Generac CEO says pressure on the power grid ‘is only going to get worse’ from weather and technology

    Generac CEO says pressure on the power grid ‘is only going to get worse’ from weather and technology

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    In a Tuesday interview with CNBC’s Jim Cramer, Aaron Jagdfeld, CEO of generator company Generac, warned that the pressure on the power grid is only going to increase, burdened by a massive crop of new data centers and more severe weather.

    “This has become a massively critical discussion point,” Jagdfeld said. “This is only going to get worse.”

    Jagdfeld described how outages affect homeowners, businesses and other institutions, and said during the first nine months of 2024, 1.2 billion hours were lost to outages in the U.S. Commercial and industrial-type products make up 40% of Generac’s business, he continued, such as backup for manufacturing plants, distribution centers, hospitals and data centers.

    Although the U.S. is adding more solar and wind power, Jagdfeld noted that these sources are “intermittent by their nature,” and the increased demand for technology like artificial intelligence and electric vehicles will continue to weigh on the grid.

    This year’s hurricane season has brought several major storms so far, including Hurricane Helene, which devastated parts of the southeast two weeks ago. Another deadly storm, Milton, hit Category 5 status on Tuesday and is predicted to ravage Florida’s Tampa Bay region on Wednesday. It could be the most powerful hurricane to hit the area in 100 years, and some analysts say Milton has the potential to cost $175 billion in damages.

    “I think the science is clear, right. I mean, the air temperatures are warming, the water temperatures are warming,” Jagdfeld said. “We can debate what caused it, but I think the reality of it is the, the outcome is more extreme weather.”

    Generac CEO Aaron Jagdfeld goes one-on-one with Jim Cramer

    Jim Cramer’s Guide to Investing

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  • Fed cuts could turn the tide for commercial real estate. Where to find opportunity

    Fed cuts could turn the tide for commercial real estate. Where to find opportunity

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  • An analyst upgraded Morgan Stanley to a buy. Why we’re not ready to follow suit

    An analyst upgraded Morgan Stanley to a buy. Why we’re not ready to follow suit

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    Bing Guan | Bloomberg | Getty Images

    Newfound optimism on Morgan Stanley helped its stock close Friday’s session at its highest level of the year. Jim Cramer is still unsure what the Club’s next move should be.

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  • Making sense of the markets this week: October 6, 2024 – MoneySense

    Making sense of the markets this week: October 6, 2024 – MoneySense

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    Some experts speculate the real sticking point in negotiations isn’t about wages but protection from automation. The ILA refused to allow its members to work on automated vessels docking at U.S. ports. As a result, American ports are getting more and more inefficient, ranking not only behind ports in China, but also Colombo, Sri Lanka. (The Container Port Performance Index is put together annually by The World Bank and S&P Global Market Intelligence.)

    For reference, the highest-rated port in Canada is Halifax, listed at 108th in the world. Halifax’s port efficiency was well behind not only Sri Lanka, but also economic powerhouses like Tripoli, Lebanon. To give further Canadian context, Montreal is 348th, and Vancouver is 356th, which is just ahead of Benghazi, Libya.

    Something tells me that negotiating for USD$300,000-per-year dockworkers is not going to help these North American efficiency numbers. The higher salaries get, the more attractive automation strategies will quickly become. Clearly there will be an eventual reckoning. In the meantime, for at least one more important presidential news cycle, dockworkers will be able to extract large wage gains as they hold the broader economy hostage.

    Why utilities aren’t “boring”—any more

    As income-oriented Canadian investors start to grow less enamoured of high-interest savings accounts and guaranteed investment certificates (GICs), the dividend yields of dependable North American utility stocks should begin to look more attractive. Given how quickly interest rates are likely to fall, it’s clear that there is a stampede of investors heading for the stocks of utility companies. 

    The iShares U.S. Utilities ETF (IDU/NYSE) is up more than 30% year to date, and the iShares S&P/TSX Capped Utilities Index ETF (XUT/TSX) is up about 15% year to date. (Check out MoneySense’s ETF screener for Canadian investors.)

    Most of the time utilities (especially those in sectors regulated by federal and local governments) are perceived as “boring.” Sure, the profits are dependable, but if the government is going to determine how much is paid for electricity or natural gas, then a company’s profit margins are tough to change. The dividend income is dependable. But that’s really the whole sales job in a nutshell.

    Lately, however, due to AI’s electricity needs and possible AI-fuelled efficiency increases, utilities have been getting some glowing press. Falling interest rates mean that annual interest costs will drop (utilities often have to borrow a lot of money to complete big projects). Meanwhile, Canadian investors looking for safe cash flow are pouring in. Utility stocks make up about 4% of the S&P/TSX Composite Index. The largest utility companies—such as Fortis, Emera, Hydro-One and Brookfield Infrastructure—are some of Canada’s largest companies.

    Some of the same income-oriented investors who like utility stocks may also be interested in two new exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that J.P. Morgan Asset Management Canada just launched. The JPMorgan US Equity Premium Income Active ETF (JEPI/TSX) and the JPMorgan Nasdaq Equity Premium Income Active ETF (JEPQ) use options strategies to “juice” the income already provided by higher-dividend-yielding stocks. 

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    Kyle Prevost

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