Latest Developments

North America
CNBC Finance

Why airfare could rise even more, but airline profits won't

Volatile fuel prices and resilient travel demand are threatening to keep airfare high this year. Airline profits will be harder to come by. The Iran war that began at the end of February sent fuel prices to multi-year if not record highs, including for diesel, gasoline and jet fuel, airlines' biggest expense after labor. Supply scares with the Strait of Hormuz disruptions lasting most of this year and high demand have sent jet fuel prices and other distilled products up more than crude oil. Airline executives aren't expecting much relief in fuel costs anytime soon, or a drop in travel demand. "You can't run the business on the hope that the Strait of Hormuz is going to open at a certain time," Qantas Airways CEO Vanessa Hudson told CNBC in an interview late last month. The Australian airline operates some of the world's longest flights and is planning even longer ones for next year and 2028, starting routes between London and Sydney and New York and Sydney. "There's a backdrop of resilient demand in in this environment. We're making sure that we've got our capacity settings right," she said. Airlines have been passing higher fuel costs along to consumers by raising fares, adding fuel surcharges or increasing their checked baggage fees. The United States' on-again-off-again truce talks with Iran since the spring have kept fuel prices volatile, but airlines are holding onto those fare gains as customers continue to book. Carriers have also raced to add more luxurious seats on board to capitalize on demand for pricier and roomier offerings, sometimes taking down the number of standard coach seats to do so. Slightly fewer people are flying this year compared with last, but demand overall remains strong, even with higher ticket prices. Security screenings at U.S. airports were down 1% this year through Sept. 20 compared with the same period of 2025, according to a Sept. 23 Bernstein note. Still, the latest U.S. inflation read showed airfare rose 23.4% in August from a year earlier. Holiday travel could be up even more. As of Sept. 24, fare-tracking platform Hopper said domestic, round-trip tickets were going for $402 over Thanksgiving, up 31% from last year. U.S. Christmas fares, meanwhile, are up 23% at $452 a round-trip. Those holiday visits are essential to many families, said Hopper economist Hayley Berg, so a lot of flyers might not like the fare but book it anyway. Berg said many customers have been locking in their Thanksgiving and Christmas flights earlier than usual. While business travel demand has been strong in recent months and off-peak trips are no longer a savvy traveler's secret, customers' focus on those key holiday trips this year could mean there are deals in the interim, Berg said. "To me, that signals that they're already thinking about end of year travel and not thinking about any of those filler trips, fall shoulder-season trips," she said.

Why airfare could rise even more, but airline profits won't
North America
Yahoo Finance

The hidden warning beneath record stock market highs

Investors would be wise to pay attention to what markets may be signalling. Photo by Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesArticle contentOne of the most dangerous signals in investing is when market indexes tell a very different story from the underlying data. Today, the S&P 500 sits near record highs, suggesting investors remain optimistic about economic growth, corporate profits and the future. Yet beneath the surface, the average stock is struggling. Market leadership has narrowed dramatically, participation is deteriorating and an increasing number of companies are already in bear market territory. Roughly 60 per cent of S&P 500 constituents are down more than 20 per cent from their individual highs. Market breadth has been this weak only twice before: during the 1973–74 bear market and at the peak of the technology bubble in 1999–2000. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The same divergence is evident when comparing the equal-weighted S&P 500 with its traditional capitalization-weighted counterpart. The ratio between the two has fallen to one of its lowest levels since 2003. Driven almost entirely by the growing concentration of mega-cap technology and artificial intelligence stocks, the ratio is on track for a fourth consecutive annual decline, a pattern not seen since the final stages of the dot-com boom. In many ways, this is no longer a broad-based bull market. It is a market being carried by a remarkably small group of companies tied to a single narrative: artificial intelligence. The problem is that the sector carrying the market is also one of the largest consumers of capital. Building the AI infrastructure of the future requires enormous investment in data centres, semiconductor manufacturing, power generation and transmission networks. According to a recent Brookings Institution study, financing the AI buildout could exceed US$10 trillion between 2025 and 2032. The challenge is that this spending does not occur in isolation. The same pool of capital required to finance AI infrastructure must also absorb massive amounts of new U.S. Treasury issuance as Washington continues to run large fiscal deficits.

The hidden warning beneath record stock market highs
North America
Yahoo Finance

Here Are Tuesday’s Top Wall Street Analyst Research Calls: Borg Warner, Boyd Gaming, JetBlue, Lattice Semiconductor, Lockheed Martin, Nike, Northrop Grumman, Procter & Gamble, SPX Technologies, and More

Pre-Market Stock Futures:Futures are trading higher after we started off the first full trading week of the 4th quarter in solid style, as all major indices finished the day higher despite interest rates continuing to tick higher. Technology led the… This post may contain links from our sponsors and affiliates, and Flywheel Publishing may receive compensation for actions taken through them. Futures are trading higher after we started off the first full trading week of the 4th quarter in solid style, as all major indices finished the day higher despite interest rates continuing to tick higher. Technology led the way, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq responded, closing at 27,477, up 1.05% to a new record high, while the small-cap Russell 2000 also had a strong Monday, closing up 0.70% at 2,852. The S&P 500 ended the session at 7,774, up 0.66%, and the legacy Dow Jones Industrial closed at 51,268, up 0.18%. Third-quarter earnings will start to explode next week, and as in every quarter, the major money center banks will kick things off next Tuesday. Traders and investors will watch initial and continuing jobless claims on Thursday after last Friday’s September non-farm payrolls report. For the second trading session in a row, yields were mixed across the Treasury curve, with rates higher on the short end and the long end and buyers across the belly of the curve, and again jobless claims and Friday’s consumer sentiment reading will play a hand in how sovereign U.S. debt trades this week. The 30-year bond closed the day at 5.67% while the 10-year benchmark note was last seen at 5.31%. One big positive for stocks Monday was oil prices dropping again, with both major benchmarks ending the session lower. Oil prices fell on Monday on a sharp increase in global supply, driven by recovering Middle Eastern exports and the emergency stock release by the Group of Seven (G7) nations announced late last week. Brent Crude closed the day at $99.94, down 2.26%, while West Texas Intermediate was last seen at $88.96, down2.36%. Natural gas posted a solid day, closing up 0.96% at $3.06. After gaining momentum last week, the precious metals complex was mixed on Monday as traders and analysts revisited expectations for the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policy after Friday’s shocking non-farm payroll report. Most now feel that another hike this month is off the table. Gold finished the session at $4,139, down 0.02 %, while Silver finished higher by 1.09% at $61.17. The cryptocurrency market experienced highly volatile, two-sided trading on Monday, with major assets staging an aggressive rally before pulling back sharply later in the session. Traders cited short-covering as a major driver of the early move higher, and afternoon selling began as Bitcoin ran into serious resistance around $87,000. At 8 AM EDT, Bitcoin was trading at $86,200, while Ethereum was quoted at $2,714. 24/7 Wall St. reviews dozens of analyst research reports every day to identify fresh investment ideas for investors and traders alike. These daily analyst notes include recommendations on stocks to buy, sell, or avoid, as well as new coverage initiations. Important reminder: No single analyst report should ever be the sole basis for buying or selling a stock. Here are some of the top Wall Street analyst upgrades, downgrades, and initiations from Tuesday, October 6, 2026. Lee Jackson has covered Wall Street analysts' equity and debt research and equity strategy daily for 24/7 Wall St. since 2012. His broad, diverse career, including a stint as creative services director at an NBC affiliate in Austin, Texas, gives him unique insight into the financial industry. Lee Jackson's journey in the financial industry spans more than 30 years, including nearly two decades as an institutional equity salesperson at Bear Stearns, Lehman Brothers, and Morgan Stanley. His career spanned pivotal sell-side Wall Street events, from the dot-com rise and bubble to the Long-Term Capital Management debacle, 9/11, and the Great Recession of 2008. This reflects his resilience and adaptability amid market volatility.

Here Are Tuesday’s Top Wall Street Analyst Research Calls: Borg Warner, Boyd Gaming, JetBlue, Lattice Semiconductor, Lockheed Martin, Nike, Northrop Grumman, Procter & Gamble, SPX Technologies, and More
North America
CNBC Finance

Lucid's Q3 deliveries fall 6.7% as EV maker cuts production to align with demand

Lucid Group reported a 6.7% decrease in year-over-year vehicle deliveries during the third quarter, after the embattled all-electric vehicle maker cut production to better align with slower customer demand. The U.S. automaker, which is heavily backed by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, on Monday said it delivered 3,806 EVs and produced 2,954 vehicles from July through September. Those results compare with deliveries of 4,078 EVs on production of 3,891 vehicles in the year-ago quarter. Deliveries of Lucid vehicles are 3.4% higher through the third quarter than a year earlier. Production has climbed 33%, as Lucid ramped up vehicle production through early this year. Lucid's highest quarterly production of nearly 7,900 units occurred during the fourth quarter of last year, followed by 5,500 during the first quarter of this year. Shares of Lucid closed up less than 1% on Monday at $4.17 and were little changed in extended trading following the delivery data. The stock is off more than 60% this year. The third quarter of this year was the first since Lucid cut production at its plant in Arizona from two shifts to one amid an "operational reset" under new CEO Silvio Napoli, who started leading the automaker in June. The turnaround plan includes identifying $1.4 billion in cash flow improvement opportunities this year. They include approximately $600 million to $800 million in vehicle inventory, $500 million in capital expenditures, and $200 million in operating expenses, the company said when reporting its second-quarter results in August. Lucid said Monday it would report its third-quarter results on Nov. 9 after markets close. Get this delivered to your inbox, and more info about our products and services. Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes, and Market Data and Analysis.

Lucid's Q3 deliveries fall 6.7% as EV maker cuts production to align with demand
Europe
The Guardian

Microsoft suspended from applying for green cards for H-1B workers, JD Vance says

Microsoft signage at an office building in New York on 27 April 2026. Photograph: Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesView image in fullscreenMicrosoft signage at an office building in New York on 27 April 2026. Photograph: Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesMicrosoftMicrosoft suspended from applying for green cards for H-1B workers, JD Vance saysVice-president also says Adobe is barred from visa program that allows high-skilled workers to apply for US residency Microsoft is suspended from applying for permanent residency for workers employed through a US visa program for high-skilled workers, JD Vance announced on Thursday. The US vice-president accused the tech company of abusing the H-1B system, which allows those on the visa to work while they apply for and are in the process of obtaining a green card. “Our message to Microsoft is, you’re a great American company, but you’ve got to hire great American workers,” Vance said at a press conference announcing the suspension. “You cannot lay off American workers and then replace them with foreign indentured servants.” Microsoft said the vast majority of its workers were American and 80% of the H-1B applications it filed in the last year were for extensions or status changes for people who already worked for the company. “Microsoft only files H-1B petitions for those who meet the rigorous standards of this visa category,” the company wrote in a statement. “We pay our employees some of the highest compensation in the tech sector, and our wages are among the highest of all H-1B filings. We pay our H-1B employees the same as any other employees doing comparable work.” “We will not accept any new or process any pending permanent labor certification applications involving these companies,” said Keith Sonderling, the US labor secretary, in a statement. Microsoft applied for H-1B visas for nearly 3,700 workers in 2026, making it the fifth largest employer of workers on the visa. Tech companies are the biggest employers of H-1B workers across the industry. Amazon topped the list with more than 9,300 petitions this year. Sonderling said since 2009, Microsoft and Adobe had received about 230,000 approvals for H-1B visas and 100,000 “permanent labor certifications”, a step towards an employment-based green card. “If you do the math, for every worker that Microsoft laid off, they replaced that worker with one and a half foreign indentured servants,” Vance said. The Trump administration has set its sights on the H-1B program for some time, arguing that it is rife with abuse. Vance said that, on average, workers hired through the H-1B program were making $20,000 less than US workers in the same position. “So I’m sure that everybody here understands the game that is being played,” Vance said. “You bring in indentured servants from outside the country, you lay off American workers and, if you’re a corporation, you make a ton of money by undercutting the wages of American workers, replacing them with people who, frankly, shouldn’t be in the United States of America to begin with.” Immigration advocacy groups have long called for reforms for the H-1B program, though for different reasons. Those in the program are often beholden to their employer because their visas are tied to the company that applied for them, making it difficult to switch jobs if things aren’t going well or if they want to find a job with a higher salary.

Microsoft suspended from applying for green cards for H-1B workers, JD Vance says
Europe
The Guardian

Top bosses at Goldman Sachs to share bonus pot worth up to $500m

The bank’s chief executive, David Solomon, is due to take about $100m (£75,595) of the reward. Photograph: Aaron Schwartz/ReutersView image in fullscreenThe bank’s chief executive, David Solomon, is due to take about $100m (£75,595) of the reward. Photograph: Aaron Schwartz/ReutersGoldman SachsTop bosses at Goldman Sachs to share bonus pot worth up to $500mEye-watering sum, to be split between 20 bankers, is one of the biggest payouts in the bank’s history Top bosses at Goldman Sachs are in line to share a bonus pot worth up to $500m (£378m) this year, marking one of the biggest payouts in the Wall Street bank’s history. The eye-watering sum will be shared between 20 bankers, with its chief executive, David Solomon, due to take about $100m (£75.6m) of the reward, which is made up of Goldman Sachs stock. That is more than double the value of the record $47m (£35.5m) annual pay packet he was granted last year. The $500m bonus pot is the culmination of a long-term investment plan first crafted by the bank in 2021. The final sum, which is due to be confirmed later this month, is tied to how high Goldman’s share price has climbed over the past five years, as well as how its stock price has performed compared with peers such as JP Morgan and Bank of America over that period. Goldman Sachs said the bonuses were meant to persuade bosses to stay at the bank “in an increasingly competitive market”. The bank’s president, John Waldron, who is widely expected to succeed Solomon as chief executive, is also in line for a payout, alongside other top bosses such as the co-heads of global banking and markets, Ashok Varadhan and Dan Dees. News of the bumper bonus, which was first reported by Bloomberg, comes days before Goldman is due to report third-quarter earnings on 13 October. The bonuses reflect the value of Goldman Sachs stock, which has surged roughly 146% over the past five years, and climbed about 300% since Solomon took the helm as chief executive. A spokesperson for the bank said: “The board created these awards to achieve three principal objectives: align compensation with rigorous performance thresholds, ensure leadership continuity and enhance retention of our top talent in an increasingly competitive market. It’s no secret our firm has performed exceptionally well in the years since.” The payouts are the latest in a string of large payouts for executives in the US, particularly on Wall Street.

Top bosses at Goldman Sachs to share bonus pot worth up to $500m
North America
CNBC Economy

The 2029 tipping point: Western populations are about to start shrinking, piling pressure on public finances

As Western populations age, fewer workers and higher costs will strain public finances, credit rating agency Moody's has warned. Europe is at the sharp end of the demographic shift. The European Union's population is projected to peak as soon as 2029, "after which a sustained long-term decline will begin," according to the European Commission. The U.S. Census Bureau does not expect the American population to peak until 2080 under its main projection, or until 2043 under its low-immigration scenario. Excluding immigration impact, the population decline has already started. But Moody's says the fiscal pressures from aging emerge long before populations actually start shrinking. Today, G7 economies have about three working-age people for every person over 65. That ratio is expected to fall to around two by 2050, putting further pressure on growth and public finances, including healthcare systems, according to Moody's. Aging populations affect economies through slower economic growth, greater pressure on public finances from pension and care costs, changing consumer demand, and shifts in real interest rates and sovereign yields, Olivier Chemla, vice president of credit strategy and standards at Moody's, told CNBC's "Squawk Box Europe" on Friday. In a report published last week, Moody's forecasts that the world's aging populations will have fundamental impacts on the global economy and lead to difficult policy decisions. While population growth has long been a tailwind for growth and creditworthiness, falling fertility rates and unprecedented speed of changing age structures are now changing that picture, Moody's writes. "Fewer workers will limit productive capacity, while fewer households and consumers will weaken demand. As a result, countries will have to rely more on productivity to sustain growth," the report states. AI and increased productivity can only partially offset the long-term challenge of an aging workforce, Chemla said. "This is a partial mitigant because you can certainly replace and enhance the supply side of the economy in factories and in services, but at the same time, robots do not consume – at least not yet – and so on the demand side, you will still be having that gap, which will slow growth," he added. And it's not only Europe and the U.S., but emerging economies are aging rapidly, too. China's share of people aged 65 and over has doubled from 7% to 14% over the past two decades, with Brazil, Thailand and Turkiye on similar trajectories.

The 2029 tipping point: Western populations are about to start shrinking, piling pressure on public finances
North America
CNBC Finance

These are the cheapest and most expensive U.S. flights this November

How much is domestic airfare this fall? It depends where you're flying and when. Thanksgiving fares are up more than 30% this year over last as airlines pass more of this year's surge in jet fuel prices along to customers, according to a tally of "good deal" fares from flight-tracking site Hopper. But there are some bargains outside of that period for certain routes, while others are sky-high. The cheapest flights in November include routes between Atlanta, the world's busiest airport, and various Midwest and Southeastern cities. Others are short trips, like intra-island Hawaii flying or within Florida. But the length of the flight alone doesn't dictate the price. Routes from Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard off the coast of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, to New York and Washington, D.C., are among the priciest. Trips originating in remote Alaska bound for the East Coast take the cake for most expensive flights. While it's an oil-producing state, it imports a significant amount of jet fuel and other refined products. Get this delivered to your inbox, and more info about our products and services. Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes, and Market Data and Analysis.

These are the cheapest and most expensive U.S. flights this November
North America
Yahoo Finance

Dow, S&P 500, Nasdaq Futures Rise After Soft Jobs Report As Markets Await Fed Minutes: IBRX, SMCI, VST, SOFI Stocks In Focus

U.S. stock futures traded higher in the overnight session late Sunday, as weaker-than-expected jobs data last week lowered expectations for another benchmark interest rate hike from the Federal Reserve this month. Meanwhile, markets will watch for the U.S. Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting minutes, scheduled for release on Wednesday. As of 10:40 p.m. EDT, Dow futures were up 0.01%, the S&P 500 futures had gained 0.08%, while Nasdaq-100 futures rose 0.27%. On Friday, all three benchmark indexes closed higher. The Nasdaq Composite led the climb, hitting an all-time high during trading hours and ending the session 1.19% higher. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.49% at close, while the S&P 500 gained 0.73%. Last week, U.S. benchmark indexes posted mixed returns, with the Nasdaq closing higher while the S&P 500 and Dow closed lower. U.S. markets closed last week higher after being pressured by rising long-dated Treasury yields and inflation concerns. However, the September jobs report, which came in below expectations, eased rate-hike concerns. The September 2026 U.S. jobs report showed nonfarm payrolls increasing by a lower-than-expected 29,000 jobs, while the unemployment rate ticked up to 4.2%. U.S. Treasury yields surged to multiyear highs last week before pulling back on Thursday. At the time of writing, the 10-year U.S. Treasury yield was trading at 5.26%, down from 5.3% earlier. The 30-year Treasury bond yield was trading at 5.609% at the time of writing. Meanwhile, expectations for a Fed rate hike in October have plummeted to 22.1% from 64.2% a week earlier, according to data from the CME FedWatch tool. Charlie Bilello, Chief Market Strategist at Creative Planning, said in a post on X last week that despite the weaker-than-expected payroll report, “another Fed rate hike is still likely before year-end” during the December FOMC meeting. Markets are also closely watching the minutes from September’s FOMC meeting, scheduled for release Wednesday afternoon. The minutes will provide insight into the Fed’s decision to hike interest rates and will likely provide cues for its upcoming policy decisions. After last week’s rally in technology stocks, with Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) hitting an all-time high of $237.88 in intraday trading, markets will also watch whether the momentum carries into the following week.

Dow, S&P 500, Nasdaq Futures Rise After Soft Jobs Report As Markets Await Fed Minutes: IBRX, SMCI, VST, SOFI Stocks In Focus