Bounce: It's back-to-back green months for US stocks

12/1/22 7:00PM

With inflation cooling more than expected, and Fed chair Powell hinting at smaller rate hikes in the near future, Wall Street started getting into the joyful festive spirit. This week the S&P 500 rallied again — bringing gains for the flagship index to a little over 5% in November. That move follows on from October, which was also a great month for stock markets as the Dow soared nearly 14%, posting its best month since 1976.

‍Sweet greens

‍Even with two green bars in a row on this chart — the first back-to-back monthly gains since August 2021, when Meta was still Facebook and inflation was not an acceptable conversation topic — it’s nevertheless not been enough to undo the damage done from earlier this year. Indeed, the S&P 500 is still down ~14% in 2022, remaining on track for its worst year since 2008.

Max Knoblauch7h

Paramount reportedly receives $24 billion from Gulf funds to back its Warner Bros. takeover

Three Middle East sovereign wealth funds have agreed to back Paramount’s takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery to the tune of roughly $24 billion, according to Wall Street Journal reporting.

The company’s triumph over Netflix in the bidding war came thanks in part to financial backing from Oracle cofounder Larry Ellison, billionaire father of Paramount CEO David Ellison.

Saudi Arabia’s PIF, which last year led the $55 billion deal to take Electronic Arts private, will provide about $10 billion in the deal. The Qatar Investment Authority and Abu Dhabi’s L’imad Holding Co. is also involved.

According to the WSJ, the funds will not receive voting rights in the combined Paramount-Warner company. Those working on the deal don’t expect the Gulf funds’ involvement to spark any additional regulatory reviews.

Exclusive | Gulf Funds Agree to Back Paramount’s $81 Billion Takeover of Warner

The company’s triumph over Netflix in the bidding war came thanks in part to financial backing from Oracle cofounder Larry Ellison, billionaire father of Paramount CEO David Ellison.

Hyunsoo Rim

appy birthday

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Apple is turning 50 today and it doesn’t look a thing like its younger self

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The entrance of Allbirds seen from Hayes St. in San Francisco, Calif.

Allbirds, the once buzzy multibillion-dollar sneaker startup, is selling up for $39 million

That’s less than 1% of its peak market cap about four years ago.

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JetBlue is raising its bag fees as fuel costs squeeze airlines

JetBlue will reportedly hike its bag fees, as the cost of jet fuel continues to climb amid the war in Iran. It’s the latest example of carriers finding ways to push rising costs onto travelers.

Last week, United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby said that if fuel prices remain elevated, fares would need to rise another 20% for his airline to break even this year.

As CNBC reported, when one airline raises fees, others tend to follow.

Earlier this month, JetBlue hiked its first-quarter outlook for operating revenue per seat mile to between 5% and 7%, saying that strong Q1 demand helped “partially offset additional expenses realized from operational disruptions and rising fuel costs.” Now, the carrier appears to be making moves to further boost revenue to offset those costs.

Earlier on Monday, JetBlue rival Alaska Air lowered its Q1 profit forecast. The refining margins for the carrier’s cheapest fuel option — sourced from Singapore and representing about 20% of Alaska’s overall supply — have spiked 400% since February.

JetBlue did not immediately respond to a request for comment.