Business

Instead of making travelers stay at a centralized quarantine facility for seven days upon arrival in the country, the new rules stipulate a five day quarantine, followed by three days of home observation, according to state media.
The new timeframe also applied to close contacts of Covid infections within China, the report said.
The number of Covid infections nationwide has surged in the last several days to the highest in about half a year.

BEIJING — China reduced the quarantine time for international travelers by two days, state media said Friday.
Instead of making travelers stay at a centralized quarantine facility for seven days upon arrival in the country, the new rules stipulate a five day quarantine, according to state media. That’s followed by three days of home observation, unchanged from prior protocol.

The new timeframe also applied to close contacts of Covid infections within China, the report said.
In contact tracing, China said it will no longer track people beyond close contacts of Covid infections. Previously, people who were connected to those close contacts might face additional Covid restrictions.
The new measures reduced the number of regional risk designations to two from three — just low and high, the report said.
Overall, the new measures emphasized home quarantine instead of centralized quarantine.

The measures also ended a policy that often resulted in the number of international flights, already operating at reduced levels, getting canceled.

The measures called for setting up a bubble for business people or sports teams entering China. People entering the bubble from China need to be vaccinated, and might need to quarantine once the event ends, the report said.
Shortly after the announcement, the Hang Seng index soared and was up 7%, building on an earlier rally that followed U.S. data indicating relief from a recent surge in inflation.
Travel-related stocks saw a boost, with China Eastern Airlines climbing 6% and Cathay Pacific gaining almost 3% in the afternoon session.
Casino operators MGM China, Wynn Macau and Sands China all saw shares gain around 8%.
China has stuck to its stringent zero-Covid policy, while the rest of the world has shifted to a “living with Covid” approach.
Beijing’s emphasis on what it calls “dynamic zero-Covid” has been implemented with significant variation at a local level, causing great uncertainty and dampening travel.
The number of Covid infections nationwide has surged in the last several days to the highest in about half a year.
— CNBC’s Jihye Lee contributed to this report.

WATCH LIVEWATCH IN THE APP More

Dutch and British scientists, in a study published in Lancet Respiratory Medicine, found that 1.8% of healthy infants are hospitalized with RSV before their first birthday.
The scientists found that a majority of the infants hospitalized with RSV were younger than 3 months. About 1 in 18 infants hospitalized with RSV required treatment in the intensive care unit.
Dr. Louis Bont, one of the authors of the study, said the findings highlight the importance of bringing vaccines to market that can significantly lower the disease burden.

Diane Macdonald | Stockbyte | Getty Images

Even healthy infants face a considerable risk of hospitalization from respiratory syncytial virus, according to a large European study published Thursday.
Dutch and British scientists, in a study published in Lancet Respiratory Medicine, found that 1.8% of healthy infants are hospitalized with RSV before their first birthday. This means about 1 in 56 healthy infants are hospitalized with the virus annually.

Dr. Louis Bont, one of the authors of the study, stressed that the incidence of RSV hospitalization in healthy infants was about twice as high as the researchers had expected.
The scientists found that a majority of the infants hospitalized with RSV were younger than 3 months. About 1 in 18 infants hospitalized with RSV required treatment in the intensive care unit.
RSV is a common respiratory virus that normally results in mild symptoms similar to the common cold. But for infants younger than 6 months, it can cause lung infections that result in hospitalization and in some cases require assisted breathing.

The scientists followed more than 9,000 healthy newborns to at least their first birthday across five sites in Spain, Finland, England, Scotland and the Netherlands.
They found that 145 of the healthy babies were hospitalized with RSV, eight of whom required treatment in the intensive care unit, about 5%, and three of whom needed mechanical ventilation, or 2%.

Bont said the findings highlight the importance of bringing vaccines to market that can significantly lower the amount of disease in infants and relieve pressure on pediatric hospitals.
The European Medicines Agency this month approved an antibody called nirsevimab, developed by AstraZeneca and Sanofi, to prevent lower respiratory tract disease from RSV in newborns and infants.
Pfizer is developing a single-dose vaccine given to pregnant mothers to protect their newborns against severe disease from RSV. Clinical trials found the shot was about 81% effective at preventing severe lower respiratory tract illnesses in the first 90 days of the baby’s life.
Pfizer plans to submit an application to the Food and Drug Administration by the end of 2022 for the vaccine’s approval in the U.S.
The U.S. is facing a significant increase in RSV cases among kids in almost every region of the country, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About 77% of pediatric hospital beds are occupied as RSV and the flu surge, according to data from the Health and Human Services Department.
The CDC is encouraging parents to seek immediate medical attention for their children if they show any of the following warning signs: Trouble breathing, blueish lips or face, chest or muscle pain, dehydration (dry mouth, crying without tears, or not urinating for hours), or not being alert or interactive when awake.
RSV symptoms include runny nose, loss of appetite, and a cough that can progress to wheezing. Infants almost always show symptoms, but for babies younger than 6 months these symptoms can be more subtle, according to the CDC. RSV does not always result in a fever.
Irritability, decreased activity and appetite, as well as pausing while breathing, are all signs that an infant might have RSV, according to the CDC.

CNBC Health & Science

Read CNBC’s latest global health coverage:

WATCH LIVEWATCH IN THE APP More

Monday – Friday, 6:00 – 7:00 PM ET

Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon said Thursday that he expects capital markets to recover in the upcoming months.
“I think what we’re going through at the moment is a reset of valuation expectations,” he said in an interview with CNBC’s Jim Cramer.

Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon said Thursday that he expects capital markets to recover in the upcoming months.
“I think what we’re going through at the moment is a reset of valuation expectations,” he said in an interview with CNBC’s Jim Cramer. “In the coming months, we’ll see a little bit of a reopening in the capital markets when people get used to this valuation adjustment.”

While a low-interest rate environment allowed newly-minted companies to thrive and see their valuations swiftly balloon during the pandemic’s early stages, the initial public offerings market nosedived this year. U.S.-listed companies raised $4.8 billion in proceeds during the first half of 2022 compared to $155 billion in 2021, according to EY and Dealogic.
The main culprits include soaring inflation, the Federal Reserve’s interest-rate hikes, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and Covid lockdowns that drove investors out of risky, high growth bets and into safer, defense stocks. 
While those headwinds continue to persist, Solomon says the market is adjusting to its new reality.
“There’s always a backlog of companies that need to go public,” he said. “We’re three quarters into a more difficult capital markets environment. History would tell you, three, four, five, six quarters you get that readjustment.”

Jim Cramer’s Guide to Investing

Click here to download Jim Cramer’s Guide to Investing at no cost to help you build long-term wealth and invest smarter.

WATCH LIVEWATCH IN THE APP More

Mortgage rates fell sharply Thursday after a government report showed that inflation had cooled in October.
The average rate on the 30-year fixed plunged 60 basis points from 7.22% to 6.62%, according to Mortgage News Daily.
The rate, however, is still more than double what it was at the start of this year.

Mortgage rates fell sharply Thursday after a government report showed that inflation had cooled in October, prompting a decline in bond yields.
The average rate on the 30-year fixed plunged 60 basis points from 7.22% to 6.62%, according to Mortgage News Daily. That matches the record drop at the start of the Covid 19 pandemic. The rate, however, is still more than double what it was at the start of this year.

In turn, stocks of homebuilders such as Lennar, DR Horton and Pulte jumped, along with broader market gains. Those stocks have been hammered by the sharp increase in rates over the past six months.
The Consumer Price Index rose in October at a slower pace than expected. As a result, bond yields dropped sharply, and mortgage rates followed, as they follow loosely the yield on the 10-year Treasury.
So what happens next?
“This is the best argument to date that rates are done rising, but confirmation requires next month’s CPI to tell the same story,” said Matthew Graham, chief operating officer of Mortgage News Daily. “This was always about needing two consecutive reports of this nature combined with acknowledgement from the Fed that the inflation narrative is shifting.”

But Graham said rates are not out of the woods yet. They are also unlikely to move dramatically lower, as there is still plenty of economic uncertainty both in U.S. and global financial markets.

WATCH LIVEWATCH IN THE APP More

Monday – Friday, 6:00 – 7:00 PM ET

CNBC’s Jim Cramer on Thursday said that a cool-off in the logistics industry suggests that inflation could finally be cooling off.
“We caught a real break today with a much lower-than-expected consumer price index number, and a huge part of that came down to how much it costs to get goods to the consumer,” he said. 

CNBC’s Jim Cramer on Thursday said that inflation could finally be cooling off as the freight industry’s pandemic boom wanes.
“We caught a real break today with a much lower-than-expected consumer price index number, and a huge part of that came down to how much it costs to get goods to the consumer,” he said. 

“Why would the Fed need to keep tightening ever harder if the root cause of inflation, moving stuff from place to place, is finally going in the right direction?” he added.
Stocks saw their biggest rally since 2020 on Thursday after October’s consumer price index data came in lighter than expected, raising hopes that inflation could be peaking.
“When you look at all the positives that went … into today’s CPI reading, you keep coming back knowing it was just hard to move goods around,” which led to inflated prices for consumers, Cramer said.
FreightWaves reported on Wednesday that logistics giant C.H. Robinson is laying off employees to cut costs and adjust for macroeconomic headwinds. This move comes after CEO Bob Biesterfeld said in the company’s post-earnings conference call on Nov. 2 that the company “got ahead of ourselves in terms of headcount.”
He added that the company is seeing a slowdown in demand for freight along with weakness in retail and housing, and expects freight markets to continue coming down from pandemic highs.

Cramer said that he expects inflation to continue to cool when supply costs for the freight industry such as labor and equipment decline more.
“They needed more trucks, more drivers, more fuel, so the cost of everything went up and they had to pass it on,” Cramer explained. “C.H. Robinson can’t charge as much when these costs go down. That’s where the big deflation gain really kicks in,” he added.

Jim Cramer’s Guide to Investing

Click here to download Jim Cramer’s Guide to Investing at no cost to help you build long-term wealth and invest smarter.

WATCH LIVEWATCH IN THE APP More

Monday – Friday, 6:00 – 7:00 PM ET

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.

Loading chart…

Advanced Micro Devices Inc: “We’ve cut the position back for my Charitable Trust. … We’re happy and content to leave the rest and let it run up $8 today.”

Loading chart…

Medtronic PLC: “I can’t recommend it. … There are many better healthcare stocks out there.”

Loading chart…

Activision Blizzard Inc: “I actually think that Activision Blizzard on its own right, at this point, could be worth what it’s selling for. And therefore, I no longer advocate that you should sell it.”
Disclaimer: Cramer’s Charitable Trust owns shares of AMD.

Jim Cramer’s Guide to Investing

Click here to download Jim Cramer’s Guide to Investing at no cost to help you build long-term wealth and invest smarter.

WATCH LIVEWATCH IN THE APP More

D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine filed a lawsuit against the Washington Commanders and team owner Dan Snyder, as well as the NFL and its commissioner, Roger Goodell.
Racine alleges the team and its owner, the NFL and Goodell colluded to deceive D.C. residents and fans for the team’s financial gain.
“The Commanders and the NFL secretly entered into an agreement about the investigation that the public didn’t know about,” Racine said.

Team co-owners Dan and Tanya Snyder pose for a photo with current team members and alumni during the announcement of the Washington Football Team’s name change to the Washington Commanders at FedExField on February 02, 2022 in Landover, Maryland.
Rob Carr | Getty Images

The attorney general of Washington, D.C., on Thursday sued the Commanders and owner Dan Snyder, as well as the NFL and Commissioner Roger Goodell, for allegedly deceiving D.C. residents about the team’s alleged toxic culture for its own financial gain.
Attorney General Karl Racine alleges the team and its owner lied to the district’s residents about allegations of the team’s toxic culture and sexual harassment, in order to keep the truth from D.C. residents and protect profits.

Racine said Thursday the NFL and Goodell worked with Snyder and the Commanders in misleading the public about a probe into the allegations and the toxic culture the organization maintained over the years.
“The Commanders and the NFL secretly entered into an agreement about the investigation that the public didn’t know about,” Racine said, pointing to evidence gathered by his office during its yearlong investigation.
Snyder, who has owned the team since 1999, and the Commanders have been the subject of recent investigations by both the House Oversight Committee and the NFL for sexual harassment and financial misconduct. 
“Over two years ago, Dan and Tanya Snyder acknowledged that an unacceptable workplace culture had existed within their organization for several years and they have apologized many times for allowing that to happen,” a spokesperson for the Commanders said in a statement. “We agree with AG Racine on one thing: the public needs to know the truth. Although the lawsuit repeats a lot of innuendo, half-truths and lies, we welcome this opportunity to defend the organization — for the first time — in a court of law and to establish, once and for all, what is fact and what is fiction.”
Attorneys on behalf of Racine’s office said part of their concerns regarding the NFL and Goodell’s conduct include when the NFL gave Snyder a debt waiver in 2021 that allowed him to buy out minority owners, giving him full control of the franchise during the time of the investigation.

“We’re bringing this matter as a civil matter in a court of law with a fair process for the defendants so that the public might have a sense of accountability,” Racine said Thursday.
As for the monetary penalties the Commanders, Snyder, NFL and Goodell could face, Racine also noted that under the Consumer Protection Act each violation has a maximum fine of $5,000, and that the total “racks up pretty easy and exponentially,” equating to potentially millions of dollars.
The attorney general is also seeking a court order that would release the findings from the 10-month investigation led by attorney Beth Wilkinson into the Commanders’ workplace culture. News reports of misconduct in 2020 had triggered this investigation.
The NFL responded in a statement Thursday:
“The independent investigation into workplace misconduct at the Washington Commanders was thoroughly and comprehensively conducted by Beth Wilkinson and her law firm. Following the completion of the investigation, the NFL made public a summary of Ms. Wilkinson’s findings and imposed a record-setting fine against the club and its ownership. We reject the legally unsound and factually baseless allegations made today by the D.C. Attorney General against the NFL and Commissioner Goodell and will vigorously defend against those claims.”
The attorney general’s office also alleges Snyder worked to intimidate and pay off potential witnesses during the course of the investigation, according to attorneys.
The NFL’s review is being led by former Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Mary Jo White. The league has said White is still in the midst of her review. On Thursday, Racine said he wasn’t aware of where White’s investigation stood.
The probe into alleged financial improprieties has sparked various other investigations. 
The Commanders and Snyder have previously denied allegations of misconduct.
Shortly after the House Oversight Committee sent a letter to the Federal Trade Commission, the Virginia attorney general and Racine opened up investigations into the team, too. 
ESPN reported last week the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of Virginia opened a criminal investigation into the financial misconduct allegations against the Commanders.
Snyder recently put the team up for sale, hiring Bank of America to help facilitate the potential transaction, CNBC previously reported. The deal could value the Commanders at as much as $7 billion. The NFL has said any deal would have to go through its finance committee and would need to win approval of 24 of the NFL’s 32 teams.
Amazon founder and multibillionaire Jeff Bezos and rapper and music industry giant Jay-Z are reportedly interested in bidding on the team. 

WATCH LIVEWATCH IN THE APP More

Shares of Carvana jumped by more than 30% Thursday.
The increase represents a small, yet notable, rebound after significant declines for the used car retailer.
Despite the double-digit increase, the embattled stock remains off roughly 96% this year.

People try their luck at winning a car from the Carvana vending machine at SXSW festival in Austin, Texas on March 12, 2016.
Michelle Castillo | CNBC

Shares of Carvana on Thursday put up their best day in roughly three months – representing a small, yet notable, rebound after significant declines for the used car retailer.
The stock increased by 31.6% on Thursday to close at $9.99 per share. The move in the heavily shorted stock came as the broader market surged on news of cooling inflation.

Despite the double-digit increase, the embattled stock remains off roughly 96% this year. It’s down roughly 30% since last Thursday, when the company missed Wall Street’s top- and bottom-line expectations for the third quarter.
The missed expectations and a lackluster outlook were in addition to the used car market falling from record demand, pricing and profits during the coronavirus pandemic. Shares of Carvana sunk to $6.50 earlier this week – a record low for the stock.

Loading chart…

Carvana grew exponentially during the coronavirus pandemic, as shoppers shifted to online purchasing rather than visiting a dealership, with the promise of hassle-free selling and purchasing of used vehicles at a customer’s home. But analysts are concerned about the company’s liquidity, increasing debt and growth.
There was no apparent reason for Thursday’s stock increase, however its short-seller investor base may have helped. Carvana is one of Wall Street’s most heavily shorted stocks, with nearly 40% of shares available for trading sold short, according to FactSet.
Stocks with high short interest are likely to pop in market rallies, as investors who have bet against these companies are likely to cover their short positions by buying back borrowed stock. This can lead to what’s known as a short squeeze.

More than 40 million shares of Carvana traded hands during the session. That compares to a 10-day average of 27 million shares.
–CNBC’s Michael Bloom contributed to this report.

WATCH LIVEWATCH IN THE APP More