Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
The UK stands apart as a place to do business, not because of one advantage, but many working together. Over Ā£10 trillion in capital, four of the world's top universities, a 10-year industrial strategy in action, its stability with dynamism, global reach with local depth. It all adds up to greater growth. Find out more at business.gov.uk slash growth.
News when you want it with Bloomberg News Now. I'm Monica Ricks. There could be a second bidding war for Warner Brothers Discovery. Its board is reportedly weighing Paramount's new offer, which includes a breakup fee if Warner ends its deal with Netflix and a backstop on Warner's debt refinancing. Bloomberg's Tony Zsuzska says Netflix could get the short end of the stick here.
One of Paramount's strategies also has been to try to portray itself as better place to get through the antitrust process, which involves Washington, the Department of Justice, and sort of how to remove the Trump administration, although Trump himself has said that he won't intervene.
Bloomberg's Tony Zizka says Warner Brothers still has concerns about Paramount's offer, but this is the first time the board has considered it could lead to a better deal. U.S. markets are closed today for President's Day, but stocks are still trading overseas.
The FTSE in London is up about two-tenths percent, the CAC in Paris up about three-tenths, the DAX in Germany is also up about a tenth of a percent. The Nikkei in Japan is down 0.2%, the Hang Seng in Hong Kong is up about a half percentage point, and China's CSI 300 is down about 1.25%. U.S. natural gas tumbled to a four-month low as warmer weather forecasts weigh on heating demands.
Futures for March delivery slumped as much as 7.4% in early Asian trading. And Bitcoin's looking for a little direction now after four straight weeks of losses. The cryptocurrency's weekend rally fizzled Sunday, dropping another 2.6% for the week. Right now it's trading around $69,000.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has proposed terms to President Trump for a de-escalation deal with Iran ahead of its nuclear talks tomorrow in Switzerland. Israel says Iran shouldn't possess enriched material or nuclear enrichment capabilities. Netanyahu also suggested limiting Iran's range of ballistic missiles. Trump's threatened to strike without an agreement.
Meantime, President Trump's newly created Board of Peace is expected to meet in Washington this week to talk about rebuilding Gaza. Trump says members will discuss $5 billion in commitments, even though some reports estimate construction there could cost up to $70 billion. The Pentagon confirms the U.S.
military boarded another Venezuelan oil tanker this weekend, this time in the Indian Ocean after tracking it from the Caribbean. Officials didn't say whether it was seized, but posted on X that the vessel tried to defy President Trump's quarantine.
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Chapter 2: What are the latest developments in Warner Bros takeover talks?
It comes as Energy Secretary Chris Wright spent the weekend in Venezuela discussing oil investments, meeting with the country's acting president, and talking about future elections. An election before next year ends is a real possibility. Wright says Chevron's on the ground right now, growing production over the next month or so.
Other American oil companies will be entering Venezuela later this year. Savannah Guthrie's made another plea to get her mom back home.
And I wanted to say to whoever has her or knows where she is that It's never too late.
Nancy Guthrie's been missing for two weeks now, and the FBI says it's testing DNA found on a glove they say could have been worn by a masked person at her door the day she disappeared. Hundreds of flights have been delayed or canceled today as a partial government shutdown continues affecting Homeland Security, which covers TSA and agencies like FEMA and ICE.
Democrats are demanding reforms for ICE, but Republican Senator Mark Wayne Mullen of Oklahoma calls it political theater.
ICE and the Border Patrol is funded through the one big beautiful bill up until 2028. And so the only thing they have to shut down is the federal agencies that I named like FEMA and the Coast Guard and TSA. So they're shutting down thousands of workers for nothing but a talking point.
Mullen on CNN. White House Borders are Tom Homan removed about a thousand ICE agents from Minnesota yesterday. Hundreds more will be leaving today. With home prices stubbornly high, traders will be keeping a close eye this week on the pace of home construction. Here's Bloomberg's Andrew O'Day.
The market expects the quarterly report from luxury homebuilder Toll Brothers to report the first drop in its pace of completed home projects since 2023. It is happening amid heightened government scrutiny of larger homebuilders, specifically the industry practice of purchase commitments which lock in future home projects at predetermined prices.
The Federal Housing Finance Agency argues that without that practice, home prices could drop 10%. Andrew O'Day, Bloomberg Radio.
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