Billionaire investor Peter Thiel is leaving Silicon Valley and maybe even the board of Facebook. Thiel, a vocal supporter of President Trump, is reportedly growing frustrated over the intolerance of conservatism in Silicon Valley. He is moving his home and investment firms from San Francisco to Los Angeles. The investor will take a step back from the tech industry and is considering leaving the Facebook board. He's been a member since 2005.
Amazon officially surpassed Microsoft in market valuation. After the market closed on Wednesday evening, Amazon's market value increased to $702 billion, outpacing Microsoft which stands at $699.2 billion. Apple and Alphabet are still ahead of Amazon in being the most valuable companies.
Microsoft is now the fourth most valuable company.
Congressman Darren Soto (D-FL) joins us from Capitol Hill to share his thoughts on the deadly high school shooting in Parkland, Florida. Unfortunately, Rep. Soto has dealt with a similar tragedy before as he represents Florida's 9th district. That district includes Orlando, the site of the deadly Pulse nightclub shooting in the summer of 2016. Soto is frustrated that Congress has been unable to pass meaningful gun reform in the wake of these mass shootings. He notes how powerful the NRA's influence is over certain members of Congress.
Plus, we speak to the CEO of Celebrity Cruises and others for our Business of Travel show. Lisa Lutoff-Perlo discusses Celebrity's partnership with the Malala Fund. The new "Celebrity Edge" ship will debut later this year, and Malala Yousafzai has been named the ship's Godmother. Perlo also talks about Celebrity's diversity initiatives. She's made it her mission to hire more women. Under her watch, Celebrity named its first-ever American woman as captain.
Chris Williamson, Chief Business Economist at S&P Global, breaks down September’s CPI print and inflation trends, explaining what it means for markets.
A big-screen adaptation of the anime “Chainsaw Man” has topped the North American box office, beating a Springsteen biopic and “Black Phone 2.” The movie earned $17.25 million in the U.S. and Canada this weekend. “Black Phone 2” fell to second place with $13 million. Two new releases, the rom-com “Regretting You” and “Springsteen — Deliver Me From Nowhere,” earned $12.85 million and $9.1 million, respectively. “Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc” is based on the manga series about a demon hunter. It's another win for Sony-owned Crunchyroll, which also released a “Demon Slayer” film last month that debuted to a record $70 million.
The Federal Aviation Administration says flights departing for Los Angeles International Airport were halted briefly due to a staffing shortage at a Southern California air traffic facility. The FAA issued a temporary ground stop at one of the world’s busiest airports on Sunday morning soon after U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy predicted that travelers would see more flights delayed as the nation’s air traffic controllers work without pay during the federal government shutdown. The hold on planes taking off for LAX lasted an hour and 45 minutes and didn't appear to cause continued problems. The FAA said staffing shortages also delayed planes headed to Washington, Chicago and Newark, New Jersey on Sunday.
Boeing workers at three Midwest plants where military aircraft and weapons are developed have voted to reject the company’s latest contract offer and to continue a strike that started almost three months ago. The strike by about 3,200 machinists at the plants in the Missouri cities of St. Louis and St. Charles, and in Mascoutah, Illinois, is smaller in scale than a walkout last year by 33,000 Boeing workers who assemble commercial jetliners. The president of the International Association of Machinists says Sunday's outcome shows Boeing hasn't adequately addressed wages and retirement benefits. Boeing says Sunday's vote was close with 51% of union members opposing the revised offer.
The stunning indictment that led to the arrest of more than 30 people — including Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and other NBA figures — has drawn new scrutiny of the booming business of sports betting in the U.S. The multibillion-dollar industry has made it easy for sports fans — and even some players — to wager on everything from the outcome of games to that of a single play with just a few taps of a cellphone. But regulating the rapidly-growing industry has proven to be a challenge. Professional sports leagues’ own role in promoting gambling has also raised eyebrows.
Tesla, the car company run by Elon Musk, reported Wednesday that it sold more vehicles in the past three months after boycotts hit hard earlier this year, but profits still fell sharply. Third-quarter earnings fell to $1.4 billion, from $2.2 billion a year earlier. Excluding charges, per share profit of 50 cents came in below analysts' estimate. Tesla shares fell 3.5% in after-hours trading. Musk said the company's robotaxi service, which is available in Austin, Texas, and San Francisco, will roll out to as many as 10 other metro areas by the end of the year.
