Raphael Stevens

His comments coincided with parliamentary discussions over Covid passes.
A bill preventing the unvaccinated from entering most public spaces and transport was meant to be approved this week.
The latest discussion over vaccine mandates also comes just months before a key presidential election in France.

Emmanuel Macron, France’s president, removes his face mask during a news conference.
Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images

French President Emmanuel Macron has sparked new criticism from his political opponents after saying he will make life difficult for those citizens who refuse a Covid-19 vaccine.
“I am not for bothering the French. I rant all day at the administration when it blocks them. Well, there, the unvaccinated, I really want to hassle them. And so, we will continue to do it, until the end,” the French leader said in an interview with Le Parisien, published Tuesday night, according to a CNBC translation.

Macron used the French word “emmerder” in his interview with Le Parisien, which can be roughly translated as “hassle” or “annoy,” or would be close to the phrase “piss off.”
His comments coincided with parliamentary discussions over Covid passes — documents that state whether someone has been vaccinated — which are used to attend certain events. A bill preventing the unvaccinated from entering most public spaces and transport was meant to be approved this week, but has been postponed after death threats on some lawmakers.

Macron’s words led different political leaders to criticize the incumbent president, with elections due in the spring.
Marine Le Pen, head of the anti-immigration Rassemblement National, said via Twitter: “This vulgarity and this violence of the President of the Republic prove that he never considered himself the president of all French people.”
Fabien Roussel, the leader of the French Communist Party, called Macron’s remarks “unworthy and irresponsible.”

Stephan Troussel, a member of the Socialist Party, said that Macron is playing with fire.

CNBC Health & Science

In the same interview with Le Parisien, Macron also said that he would not vaccinate people by force. However, he added that he would encourage people to get their Covid shots by restricting the access that unvaccinated people have to social activities by as much as possible.
Around 73% of the French population is fully vaccinated, according to data from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. 34.3% of the population has received a third dose.
The latest discussion over vaccine mandates comes just months before a key presidential election in France. Voters will be heading to the polls in late April. Macron has not yet said whether he will be seeking a second mandate, but the expectation is that he will be running again.

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Walmart announced Wednesday that it will expand the availability of its InHome delivery service to 30 million households.
InHome allows employees wearing cameras to enter a customer’s home to deliver groceries and other purchases or to pick up returns, even when the customer is not there.
Walmart also said it will hire 3,000 employees to support the service’s expansion.

Walmart is making a big bet on customers’ desire for increased convenience, announcing Wednesday that its InHome delivery service will expand availability from 6 million to 30 million households, including in cities such as in Los Angeles and Chicago, by the end of this year.
InHome allows Walmart employees wearing cameras to enter a customer’s home to deliver groceries and other purchases or to pick up returns, even when the customer is not there.

“Now you’ve got this ultimate convenience where you get home, the refrigerator is restocked and other items like video games, clothing, toiletries and other nonperishables are on the countertop,” said Tom Ward, senior vice president of last mile delivery at Walmart, in an interview. “We will also pick up your return if you start that process on the app we will grab the item the next day and will process that return for you.”
CNBC was given access to a demonstration of the InHome service in Glendale, Arizona. The process began with the delivery driver attaching a wearable camera. Every delivery can be viewed live or as a recording on the Walmart app. Then, the employee used a smart lock at the front door from Walmart to enter the home. Outfitted with protective coverings over their shoes, the delivery person carried the order inside in plastic bins, and placed items in the refrigerator or on the counter, as requested. Before leaving, all surfaces touched by the worker were wiped down and sanitized.
“I’ve used it for the last month and a half and have been very satisfied,” said Erin Amini, a customer in Glendale. “We no longer have to go to the store. We feel safe with Covid. They wear masks, they sanitize and they are also always recording so we know what is happening while they are in our home.”
Walmart is expanding InHome as the lines are blurring between delivery of groceries and services that bring a wide range of goods to homes on-demand. Insider Intelligence estimates the grocery delivery market is a $93 billion opportunity, while Coresight Research projects quick-commerce could represent $25 billion in sales. This segment includes the likes of DoorDash as well as a growing number of start-ups.
Walmart’s InHome service costs $19.95 per month with no additional fees, and it’s part of a growing trend of “delivery as a service.” Other companies in the space include:

Amazon Fresh grocery delivery, which is included in a $12.99 per month Prime membership.
Instacart Express, which costs $9.99 a month and offers free delivery for orders over $35 with lower service fees.
DoorDash, which offers a DashPass subscription for $9.99 a month. Subscribers must have a minimum of $12 for restaurant orders. DoorDash also makes deliveries from retailers like 7-Eleven and CVS.

Walmart said it will hire 3,000 employees to support its InHome expansion, giving them real world and virtual reality training. They will be paid about 9% more than Walmart’s average wage of $16.40 an hour. Walmart’s 3,700 stores will be used as fulfillment centers and InHome delivery drivers will drive electric vehicles as part of the company’s goal of a zero emissions logistics fleet by 2040.
“They’ll also deliver Walmart packages, they’ll deliver Walmart GoLocal client packages, and they’ll do InHome delivery. It’s making the best of all these assets that we’re putting together in a way that’s really sustainable,” Ward said.
Walmart initially launched InHome in 2019 as a pilot in Kansas City, Pittsburgh and Vero Beach, Florida, and it’s since expanded in Northwest Arkansas, Atlanta, Phoenix and Washington, D.C. The company declined to say how many customers the service now has.
“What we’ve learned in the years we’ve been testing our InHome proposition is that customers love the convenience of having the items that they’ve ordered put in their fridge, their freezer, or left on their countertop, or in the garage when they come home. And they can just set and forget, and really do the things they want to spend their time doing,” Ward added.
Walmart is the nation’s largest grocer by revenue. It has used the category to drive frequent use of its stores, website and services by focusing on convenience and encouraging customers to buy other items, such as apparel, electronics and more, when replenishing the fridge with a gallon of milk or getting ingredients for dinner.
The big-box retailer is also the nation’s leader in click and collect, a service that allows shoppers to place online orders and pick up purchases in the store or parking lot. One in every four dollars that Americans spent on click and collect in 2021 went to Walmart, according to a recent estimate by Insider Intelligence.
“We think there is no one right answer in the last mile equation,” Ward said. “We want to experiment and then when we see those things that really resonate with our customers we want to scale out to as many people as we possibly can as fast as we can.”

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The California-headquartered firm, which competes with Tesla, announced the expansion on Tuesday after a Twitter user enquired about the U.K.
Lucid’s first vehicle is called the Air sedan. 
It started delivering a $169,000 “Dream Edition” of the flagship car to customers in late October.
The car has an industry-leading range of 520 miles.
Founded in 2007, Lucid went public through a SPAC deal in July.
That month, it told investors that it expects to produce 20,000 Lucid Air sedans in 2022, generating more than $2.2 billion in revenue.

People test drive Dream Edition P and Dream Edition R electric vehicles at the Lucid Motors plant in Casa Grande, Arizona, September 28, 2021.
Caitlin O’Hara | Reuters

Electric vehicle maker Lucid plans to start selling its cars in Europe this year.
The California-headquartered firm, which competes with Tesla, announced the expansion on Tuesday after a Twitter user asked if an image of some new Lucid owners were based in the U.K.

“Expansion to European markets will begin this year. Stay tuned for country-specific delivery information,” the company tweeted in response.
Lucid did not immediately respond to a CNBC request for more information.
Lucid’s first vehicle is called the Air sedan. It started delivering a $169,000 “Dream Edition” of the flagship car to customers in late October, following commercial production beginning a month earlier at a new factory in Casa Grande, Arizona. The car has an industry-leading range of 520 miles.
Like Tesla, Lucid is trying to develop autonomous driving technology that enables its cars to safely drive themselves.
Axel Schmidt, who heads up the automotive sector at consultancy firm Accenture, told CNBC Wednesday that tech companies have “underestimated all the challenges” when it comes to getting autonomous vehicles on the road.

He added that 60% to 70% of new cars will have “Level 2” autonomous driving capabilities by 2030. That means the cars will assist with steering, staying in the right lane and controlling speed but they won’t be able to safely drive themselves until they reach “Level 5.”

European reservations

In January 2020, Lucid started taking online reservations in 15 European countries for its flagship Lucid Air sedan but the firm has not specified when the vehicles will be delivered.
Locations included Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Italy, Monaco, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.
The company, founded in 2007 and led by former Tesla executive Peter Rawlinson, went public through a SPAC deal in July that valued it at around $24 billion.
That month, it told investors that it expects to produce 20,000 Lucid Air sedans in 2022, generating more than $2.2 billion in revenue.

Overtaking Ford

Four months later, Lucid’s market value blew past Ford to $89.9 billion after executives told investors that reservations for its first vehicles had jumped and that its production plans for 2022 were still on track. At the time, it said it has more than 17,000 reservations for its Air sedan, up from 13,000 through the third quarter.
However, shares tanked around 20% last month when Lucid disclosed a probe by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission likely into the company’s SPAC deal to go public.
Lucid said although there is “no assurance as to the scope or outcome of this matter, the investigation appears to concern the business combination” between the automaker and blank-check company Churchill Capital Corp. IV.
Today, Lucid is valued at around $65 billion and its market cap is still far below Tesla, which surged to more than $1 trillion last year. Rivian, an EV start-up that went public in November, has a market cap of about $91 billion.
— Additional reporting by CNBC’s Michael Wayland and Lora Kolodny. More

Once-prominent Chrysler plans to reinvent itself as an all-electric vehicle brand by 2028, the company announced Wednesday.
Those plans begin with Chrysler Airflow, a crossover concept unveiled online for the CES consumer technology show in Las Vegas.
The concept is a preview of an upcoming production vehicle slated for 2025.

Chrysler Airflow concept

Once-prominent Chrysler plans to reinvent itself as an all-electric auto brand by 2028, the company announced Wednesday.
Those plans begin with a new crossover concept called the Chrysler Airflow that was unveiled online for the CES consumer technology show in Las Vegas. The tech-savvy concept car is “a nod” to a vehicle that the company plans to launch in 2025, according to Chrysler CEO Christine Feuell.

She said the unnamed production crossover will be the first of at least two or three new all-electric vehicles, including a minivan, planned by 2028. Chrysler will be at the forefront of parent company Stellantis’ $35.5 billion electric vehicle plans, Feuell said.
“When we sought to redefine and revitalize the Chrysler brand, we needed to make sure that we were creating differentiation within the Stellantis portfolio as well as compared to competition,” she told CNBC during an online interview. “We will be adding one new product per year once we launch our first new product … and expanding that lineup between then and 2028.”

Chrysler Airflow concept

Stellantis was formed in January by the merger of Italian-American automaker Fiat Chrysler and France’s PSA. It has 14 brands, including Chrysler, Jeep, Fiat and Peugeot – all of which have historical significance in their respective countries.

Revitalizing Chrysler

Stellantis’ plans for Chrysler to become an EV brand in the U.S. are the latest in an attempt to revitalize the nearly century-old automaker, which has failed to achieve much notice since its namesake parent company went bankrupt in 2009.
The brand has only offered a minivan and large sedan since discontinuing a midsize car in 2016, and has missed out on the growth of crossovers, SUVs and pickups in recent years. It also has been slow to adopt EVs aside from a plug-in hybrid electric version of its Pacifica minivan.

Feuell said the new transformation plan focuses on EVs as well as new technologies, advanced design and user customization, areas that automakers are focusing on to attract tech-savvy buyers.

Chrysler Airflow concept

“[Technology] is so important with what consumers are looking for in terms of that seamless connectivity and integrating their personal digital life with their mobile digital life,” Feuell said. The idea is to make “that easy and intuitive with the ability to personalize every space within the vehicle regardless of whether it’s a driver or a passenger.”

‘STLA Brain’ software

The Chrysler Airflow concept features large screens that span the interior, almost door to door. It’s also the first vehicle to use Stellantis’ new “STLA Brain” software suite and “STLA SmartCockpit.”
Some characteristics of the vehicle, notably the large screens, appear similar to some of Stellantis’ newest products such as the Jeep Grand Wagoneer SUV.

Chrysler Airflow concept

The exterior of the crossover features a new design direction for Chrysler, including an updated “Chrysler Wing” logo tied into a cross-car grille and LED light blade. An LED taillight runs the full width of the vehicle as well.
“The design theme from its elegance and dynamic stance is a nod to the design direction that we want to take Chrysler in and really harmonize that theme across the entire portfolio,” Feuell said.
The Airflow, as well as the forthcoming production vehicle, are expected to deliver 350 to 400 miles of range on a single charge, according to Chrysler.
The company declined to comment on potential pricing for the Airflow-based vehicle planned for 2025, but Feuell mentioned a “sweet spot for EVs overall being between $35,000 and $60,000.

Chrysler Airflow concept

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It’s that time again! “Mad Money” host Jim Cramer rings the lightning round bell, which means he’s giving his answers to callers’ stock questions at rapid speed.

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Teladoc Health: “Too much competition in that business. Don’t want to own it.”

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Qualtrics International: “This company had a major upside surprise. It’s doing incredibly well, but the valuation is such that people don’t want to own it until they start making money.”

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Oppenheimer Holdings: “That is one cheap stock, and it has not participated yet in the financial rally. I think it should.”

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APA Corp.: “[CEO John Christmann] stuck it out, and he’s doing a good job. Now, the stock has had a bit of a rough [period], but I think Apache actually works. I was quite premature when I owned it for the charitable trust many years ago.”

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Mosaic: “Mosaic is really about the only game in town for the [fertilizers]. I think the [fertilizers] can go still higher. … I like Mosaic. I know it’s an up-and-down stock, but I do like it.”

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Icahn Enterprises: “See, the problem is I don’t know what’s in that company. I’ve watched it go down, down, down. If there was total transparency I could recommend it, but I just can’t.”

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Vertex Pharmaceuticals: “It had a stumble with cystic fibrosis, but it really is the only real hope for people. I like the company. I think it’s a very interesting drug stock that sells at a very low multiple.”

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Ebix Inc.: “E-commerce for the insurance industry, there are so many that want to do that. I don’t want to be there anymore. Too many companies chasing too few customers.”
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The omicron variant now represents nearly every Covid case sequenced by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Omicron has displaced the once-dominant delta variant in a matter of weeks.
The U.S. reported a pandemic record of more than 1 million new infections on Monday, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

At the Covid testing site on Broadway in Santa Monica, the wait was at least 45 minutes long even with an appointment on Monday, Jan. 3, 2021.
Carolyn Cole | Los Angeles Times | Getty Images

The Covid-19 omicron variant now makes up nearly all sequenced cases in the U.S., driving a massive increase of infections across the nation that threatens to strain hospitals and disrupt daily life.
Omicron represented 95% of sequenced Covid cases in the U.S. during the week ended New Year’s Day, while the once-dominant delta variant is now only 4.6% of sequenced cases, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The CDC regularly collects specimens of the virus that causes Covid and analyzes genetic sequences to identify new variants and determine which strains of the virus are circulating in the U.S.
The highly contagious omicron variant has overtaken delta in just a matter of weeks. At the beginning of December, omicron represented less than 1% of sequenced cases while delta made up 99% of them.
The U.S. reported a pandemic record of more than 1 million new infections on Monday, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. The nation is now reporting a seven-day average of more than 480,000 new infections, nearly double the previous week, according to a CNBC analysis of Hopkins data.
Omicron is driving up cases, at least in part, due to its ability to partially evade the immunity generated by vaccines and cause breakthrough infections in large numbers.
President Joe Biden on Tuesday said people who are fully vaccinated, particularly those who have received boosters, are highly protected against severe illness from omicron even if they are infected.

“You can still get Covid, but it’s highly unlikely, very unlikely, that you’ll become seriously ill,” Biden said about people who have taken such precautions. “We’re seeing Covid-19 cases among vaccinated workplaces across America, including here at the White House, but if you’re vaccinated and boosted, you are highly protected.”

CNBC Health & Science

A study published by the U.K. Health Security Agency last week found that Pfizer and Moderna’s two-dose vaccines are only about 10% effective at preventing symptomatic infection from omicron 20 weeks after the second dose. However, two doses still provide good protection against severe illness, according to the study.
Booster doses, on the other hand, provide the best protection and are up to 75% effective at preventing symptomatic infection, the U.K. Health Security Agency found. Public health officials in the U.S. have been closely observing data out of the U.K. because the omicron wave began in Britain a few weeks before it hit the U.S.
Biden said people who are unvaccinated should be alarmed by omicron’s rapid spread in the U.S., warning many of them will get infected and develop severe illness.
“Some will die — needlessly die,” Biden said. “Unvaccinated are taking up hospital beds and crowding emergency rooms and intensive care units. That’s displaced other people who need access to those hospitals.”
Scientists and public health officials are still trying to determine the severity of illness caused by omicron compared with delta. The U.K. Health Security Agency, in its study, found that people infected with omicron are less likely to require hospital treatment compared with those who were sickened by the delta variant.
A study from the University of Hong Kong’s Faculty of Medicine found that lung infection from omicron is significantly lower than the original strain of the virus, which might suggest less severe disease. However, omicron replicates much faster in human airways, which may explain why it spreads faster, the study found.
The U.K. Health Security agency’s chief medical advisor, Susan Hopkins, cautioned that it’s still too early to draw definitive conclusions about severity, because the variant is just starting to reach more vulnerable groups such as the elderly. The World Health Organization also has warned against treating omicron as a mild variant because the people infected so far are in younger age groups that generally have better clinical outcomes.
In the United States, hospitalizations are rising. About 98,000 Americans are hospitalized with Covid-19, according to a seven-day average of data from the Department of Health and Human Services as of Jan. 3, up 32% from the previous week.
A small study out of South Africa, which first alerted the world about omicron in November, found that people infected with the variant may have increased immune protection against delta. This could result in omicron displacing delta in countries where they are co-circulating, according to the study.
The team of South Africa scientists noted that if omicron displaces delta and proves more mild, “the incidence of Covid-19 severe disease would be reduced and the infection may shift to become less disruptive to individuals and society.”
— CNBC’s Nate Rattner contributed to this report.

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The updated guidance comes after the CDC faced criticism last week for shortening its recommended isolation period without asking for people to get tested.
The CDC said people are most contagious two days prior to symptom onset and about three days afterward.
Dr. Rochelle Walensky, the CDC’s director, said during a White House Covid update last week that up to 90% of transmission happens during that period.

People wait in line for COVID-19 testing at Kedren Community Health Center on Wednesday, Dec. 29, 2021 in Los Angeles, CA.
Gary Coronado | Los Angeles Times | Getty Images

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention amended its controversial Covid-19 isolation guidance on Tuesday, declining to add a testing requirement as public health officials expected after the agency cut its recommended quarantine time in half.
In its updated guidance, the CDC said people who have recovered from the virus and have isolated for at least five days can take a rapid test if they want, but they don’t have to — falling far short of making an outright recommendation to get a negative Covid test before ending isolation.

“I do not think that the clarification helped at all and I actually think that it made things worse,” emergency physician Dr. Leanna Wen, the former health commissioner of Baltimore, said in an interview with CNN. “I think they should be upfront and say they can’t do this because they don’t have enough tests.”
The updated guidance comes after the CDC faced a barrage of criticism last week for shortening its recommended isolation period from 10 days without asking for people to get tested.
“If an individual has access to a test and wants to test, the best approach is to use an antigen test towards the end of the 5-day isolation period,” the agency said in updated guidance on its website.

Many Americans do not have access to tests right now. Pharmacies are frequently sold out of at-home tests both online and in stores amid a dramatic spike in demand, and lines at testing sites are often hourslong.
The CDC, in its guidance, recommended that people with Covid isolate for five days if they are asymptomatic or if their symptoms are resolving. They should then wear a mask for five days after coming out of isolation.

The CDC said people are most contagious two days prior to symptom onset and about three days afterward. CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said last week that up to 90% of transmission happens during that period.
Walensky said the CDC did not distinguish between people who are unvaccinated and vaccinated in its isolation guidance because transmission peaks at about the same time regardless of immunization status.

CNBC Health & Science

White House chief medical advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci, in an interview with CNN, said isolation guidelines were updated in part to address the sheer number of people forced to stay home from work due to infections from the highly contagious omicron variant.
The U.S. reported a pandemic record of more than 1 million new infections on Monday, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. The nation is now reporting a seven-day average of more than 480,000 new infections, nearly double the week prior, according to a CNBC analysis of Hopkins data.
Walensky separately told CNN the new guidelines also reflect what the public is willing to tolerate. She noted that some data indicates less than a third of people are adhering to guidelines on isolation.
“We really want to make sure that we had guidance in this moment where we were going to have a lot of disease that could be adhered to, that people were willing to adhere to,” Walensky told CNN.
Walensky, during the White House briefing last week, said the CDC did not ask people to get tested before leaving isolation because they can remain positive for up to 12 weeks after infection on a PCR test, long after they are no longer contagious. She said it’s also not yet clear how effective antigen tests are at detecting transmissibility at day five.
The CDC also shortened its quarantine period for people who are exposed to Covid. People who have not received a booster should quarantine for five days if it has been longer than six months from their second Moderna or Pfizer shots, or longer than two months from their Johnson & Johnson dose. They should then wear a mask for five days after leaving quarantine. The unvaccinated should follow these same guidelines.
People who have received a booster do not need to quarantine, but should wear a mask for 10 days after exposure, according to the guidance.

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