Good Morning

 

• At a large rally in Georgia on Thursday, Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris called for early voting, supported by celebrities such as Barack Obama, Bruce Springsteen and Tyler Perry. Harris criticized her Republican opponent Donald Trump and emphasized the opportunity to overcome “the fear and division”. Obama described Trump as self-centered and mentioned Harris' work experience at McDonald's. Around 20,000 people attended, and Harris is planning more celebrity appearances to mobilize voters in the final days before the election.
  
• At least three journalists sleeping in a guest house in Hasbaya were killed in an Israeli attack in southern Lebanon on Friday morning. The victims were employees of the pro-Iranian broadcasters Al-Mayadeen and Al-Manar, which has close ties to Hezbollah. According to Al-Mayadeen, the attack was targeted at the building. Amid the escalation, the US is calling for Israel to avoid civilian casualties while talks on a ceasefire and exchange of hostages between Israel, the US and Qatar continue.
  
• At the BRICS summit in Kazan, Russian President Vladimir Putin warned of the threat of a major war in the Middle East due to tensions between Israel and Iran. At the same time, he was called upon to end the war in Ukraine. China's President Xi Jinping called for a political solution in Ukraine and a ceasefire in Gaza. The BRICS states called for the establishment of a Palestinian state. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres emphasized the need for peace in Gaza, Lebanon, Sudan and Ukraine.
  
• At the Commonwealth Summit in Samoa, King Charles called for the “painful” history of the Commonwealth, including the slave trade, to be acknowledged. While representatives of African and Caribbean nations discuss demands for reparations, Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer rejects an apology. In addition, topics such as climate protection are discussed, including the “Commonwealth Ocean Declaration”, which aims to protect marine areas and fix maritime borders in order to support particularly threatened island states.
  
• Following an E. coli outbreak at McDonald's outlets that sickened 49 people and killed one, major US fast food chains including McDonald's, Burger King and Yum Brands are removing fresh onions from their menus. The onions are from Taylor Farms, which has recalled affected batches. The FDA confirmed that Taylor Farms is the supplier of the affected onions and continues to investigate possible contamination. Some McDonald's stores in the western U.S. have temporarily removed the Quarter Pounder from their menu because it is served with raw onions.
  
  
• Finance Minister Christian Lindner is calling for a clear decision from the coalition government on economic and financial policy and criticizes Chancellor Scholz and Economics Minister Habeck for their uncoordinated proposals. While Scholz is planning an industrial policy offensive, Lindner rejects Habeck's debt-financed investment fund and is focusing on savings, including in the Citizen's Income. Scholz calls on the coalition to work together until the end of the legislative period, and Lindner emphasizes that he does not want to break up the coalition.
  
• The German government sees a growing threat to customs from organized drug crime in ports and airports. Cocaine smuggling, especially in the ports of Hamburg and Bremerhaven, is on the rise. Customs officials are calling for better armament and protective equipment, which has not yet been fully promised. Finance Minister Lindner has announced more funding for customs, but concrete measures such as machine guns remain unclear. Gangs are increasingly trying to reclaim confiscated drugs, which further increases the frustration at customs due to a lack of equipment.
  
• The International Criminal Court (ICC) has criticized Mongolia for ignoring the arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin during his visit to the country at the beginning of September. Despite the ICC decision holding Putin responsible for the abduction of Ukrainian children, he was not arrested. The case will now be presented to the Assembly of Member States. Mongolia, which is economically heavily dependent on Russia and China, finds itself in a difficult position between geopolitical interests and its obligation to cooperate with the ICC.
  
• The operator and owner of the cargo ship “Dali” want to pay 102 million dollars in compensation following the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore. The ship rammed into a bridge pier in March, killing six workers. The US Department of Justice had sued the companies for allegedly deliberately ignoring technical defects. The sum covers the removal costs, but not the reconstruction, for which the state of Maryland has filed a separate lawsuit.
  
• The latest UN report shows that global greenhouse gas emissions in 2023 have once again risen to a record level and that the measures taken so far to curb climate change are not enough. The emissions of 57.1 gigatons of CO₂ equivalent represent an increase of 1.3 percent compared to the previous year. The UN is calling on the major industrialized countries in particular to significantly reduce CO₂ emissions in order to achieve the target of maximum global warming of 1.5 degrees Celsius.
  
• According to UNEP, countries are currently on course for 3.1 degrees of warming, which could have irreversible consequences such as melting ice caps and rising sea levels. UNEP is calling on the G20 countries, which are responsible for 77 percent of global emissions, to take urgent action. The report places a particular focus on reducing the use of fossil fuels and meeting global climate finance commitments.
  
  
  
  
  
• 28 million: That's how many bottles Coca-Cola is currently recalling in Austria. This is the largest recall in the country for 25 years. The reason: metal parts could be floating in the bottles. We ask: Is it a coincidence that drinks hype brand “Liquid Death” recently hired an ex-Coca-Cola manager as Chief Retail Officer?
  
  
• What happened: Yesterday it became official - after the construction stop for the planned Intel chip factory in Magdeburg, the chip factory planned by US chip manufacturer Wolfspeed in Saarland is now also on the brink of collapse. Wolfspeed, together with supplier group ZF Friedrichshafen, wanted to build “the world's largest factory for silicon carbide semiconductors” in Ensdorf, Saarland, for a total of €2.75 billion, according to Wolfspeed CEO Gregg Lowe at the beginning of 2023.
  
  
• In the end, it wasn't enough - after the end of state support, air cab developer Lilium announced yesterday that its two most important subsidiaries will file for insolvency. Lilium shares plummeted by more than 50% yesterday after the Munich-based company announced its move in a mandatory filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). In the announcement, Lilium states that it is unable to raise sufficient additional funds to continue the operations of Lilium GmbH and Lilium eAircraft GmbH.
  
  
• €12.7 billion less: tax estimators expect lower revenue The German economy is weakening. The state is calculating €58.1 billion less revenue than expected by 2028, €12.7 billion of which will come in the coming year alone. This is likely to further fuel the coalition dispute over the federal budget.
  
  
• Siemens: Considering purchase of US software company Altair Siemens CEO Roland Busch appears to be toying with the idea of taking over Altair Engineering. The software company is currently worth almost $9 billion on the stock market. However, Siemens will probably not be the only bidder. (BBG)
  
• Siemens: Considering purchase of US software company Altair
• KKR: PE firm with record figures
• Northvolt: Will probably get a small cash injection
• Habeck's “Germany Fund”: Little applause and a lot of headwind (TAG) 
• Economy: Trade war with Trump could cost Germany €180 billion (MM) 
• Allianz: Seeks partner for asset management subsidiary Allianz Global Investors (HB) 
• Beiersdorf: Growth at Nivea manufacturer weakens (NTV) 
• Young people: Have difficulty understanding economic topics, that's why everyone needs morningcrunch (NTV)
• US stock markets: Nasdaq strengthened by Tesla share (MM) 
• IMF: Says US debt is sustainable - but time for consolidation has come (RT) 
• Investors: Flocking to emerging market funds - outside China (FT) 
• PE Bridgewater: Says Fed independence is biggest concern for potential Trump presidency (RT) 
• Intesa Sanpaolo: Italy's biggest bank lays off 10% of staff (FT)
• OpenAI: Ex-employee claims AI startup consistently broke copyright law (NYT)
• Wayve: Automous driving startup launches AI test drives in San Francisco (BBG)
• PE firm KKR: AI drives huge demand in Asia (BBG)
• License dispute: Arm revokes Qualcomm's chip design license (FT)
• TSMC: Stops shipments to an APAC customer after unauthorized transfer of chips to Huawei (BBG)
• Nvidia: Forges partnerships to strengthen AI infrastructure in India
• Qualcomm CEO predicts: AI smartphones for all in five years
• US government: Pushing ahead with AI use for military and intelligence agencies
• Problems in the USA: Volkswagen slides into the next crisis