Chinese President Xi Jinping (R) and US President Donald Trump at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on November 9, 2017. By sharply accelerating in recent months its trade adjustment with the U.S., China has finally done what it should have initiated more than two years ago. Beijing is on the way to seriously dismantling Washington’s economic and political leverage over China’s economy. During 11 months of last year, China stepped up the rate of decline of its trade surplus with the U.S. t

Janice Lao, director of group corporate responsibility and sustainability at Hong Kong and Shanghai Hotels, has called for a consolidation of sustainability standards. There are “too many” sustainability metrics out there and they are overwhelming the public and hindering progress, Lao told CNBC’s “Street Signs” on Monday. Sustainability standards have grown at a rapid rate in recent decades as environmental issues gain increasing prominence. Lao, a Forbes Sustainability Leader, said she is alre

OPEC is likely to continue with its oil supply cuts for the rest of 2020, a research director said Monday. “We expect OPEC to continue cutting production for 2020,” he said. Gupta argued that the additional cuts indicate OPEC is aware of oversupply in the oil market for at least the first half of this year. He added that Wood Mackenzie expects oil supply to outpace demand for “the whole of 2020.” “It’s more pronounced in the first half 2020 than the second half … but we expect (OPEC) to rollov

The founders of Four Pillars Gin: (from left) Stu Gregor, Cam MacKenzie and Matt Jones. Four Pillars Gin range. Four Pillars gin is available throughout Australia, as well as in the U.S., Canada, Europe and Asia. Eighteen months ago, Little Lon’s founder Brad Wilson and his team moved into a small location in the heart of Melbourne. Courtesy of Little Lon Distilling”The story and history of this place was a big thing.

The Swiss franc, which has been in a steep incline against the dollar of late, may be being used as a proxy for gold, according to Goldman Sachs. But where gold has gone, the Swiss franc has followed, Goldman Sachs Co-Head of Global Foreign Exchange Zach Pandl highlighted in a note Sunday. The franc was trading at around $1.03 by mid-morning on Monday. Gold recently soared to six and a half-year highs, and spot gold prices were hovering just below $1,560 per troy ounce on Monday. “While the driv

FABRICE COFFRINIThe annual World Economic Forum (WEF) is about to kick off in Davos and with heads of state and global business leaders gathering at the event, keeping attendants safe is a top priority. In previous years, the army has incurred costs of around 32 million Swiss francs per annual meeting. “Overall, the cost of deploying troops at the WEF Annual Meeting is much the same as that incurred by the same battalions when on regular training. In previous years, the deployment of the armed f

The world’s 2,153 billionaires have more wealth between them than a combined 4.6 billion people, new research has claimed. In a study published Monday, international charity Oxfam called on governments to implement policies that may help to reduce wealth inequality. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos is currently the richest person in the world, according to Forbes, with a net worth of around $116.4 billion. The second wealthiest person on the planet is Bernard Arnault, a French billionaire who owns luxu

European markets traded slightly lower on Monday as policymakers and business leaders gather in Davos, Switzerland for the annual World Economic Forum (WEF) conference . The pan-European Stoxx 600 was down 0.1% during afternoon trade, with household goods falling 0.9% to lead losses while insurance stocks added 0.5%. Climate change and sustainable business will be a key focus for delegates at this year’s WEF summit, but other political risks such as international trade and geopolitical instabili

Health authorities in China on Monday confirmed nearly 140 new cases of a mysterious pneumonia-like virus, which has killed three people so far. It comes as the country’s peak holiday travel season kicks off ahead of the Lunar New Year, sparking concerns over the spread of the viral strain and its possible impact on economic growth. “Looking further on, I think we’re likely to have cases around China and also there will likely be cases in other countries as people travel,” Phelan told CNBC on Mo

Former White House chief economic advisor Gary Cohn said Sunday that President Donald Trump’s tariffs hurt the U.S. economy and undermined the stimulative impact of the administration’s massive tax cut passed in 2017. Cohn, in an interview with CBS’ Face The Nation, said Trump’s steel and aluminum tariffs “collided” with his tax policy by undermining a provision that allowed companies to write off their capital expenditures. “I think it’s totally hurt the United States,” Cohn said, referencing t

“We’re kind of sitting at a trend-like outlook where growth is around 2% this year,” he told CNBC’s “Trading Nation” on Friday. I kind of think a boring U.S. outlook is actually pretty good for risk assets.” “With the Fed committed to being on the sideline, I think that’s what’s helping equity markets move higher.” So far this year, the Dow has seen seven all-time highs while the S&P has seen nine. Overall, Gapen predicts the market will hold on to record gains and have another winning year.

Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), a co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus and one of the most prominent women of color in Congress, is endorsing Sen. Bernie Sanders for president. Jayapal, the lead sponsor of the House “Medicare for All” bill, has been courted by both candidates for an endorsement. “Bernie has the bold passion, authenticity & clarity that working people across this country desperately need,” Jayapal wrote on Twitter. “We are building the progressive movement that will b

Famed defense attorney Alan Dershowitz, who recently signed on to assist President Donald Trump’s impeachment legal team, said Sunday that Trump should not be removed from office even if he is guilty of everything the House has accused him of in the articles of impeachment. In response, the White House said the two articles of impeachment against Trump are a “dangerous attack on the right of the American people to freely choose their President.” And on CBS’s “Face the Nation,” House Judiciary Co

mixmagic | iStock | Getty ImagesThe European Union’s overhaul of data privacy regulation is estimated to have generated 114 million euros ($126 million) in fines since it was introduced almost two years ago. Since its implementation in May 2018, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) led to over 160,000 data breach notifications across Europe, according to research from multinational law firm DLA Piper. Ross McKean, a partner at DLA Piper specializing in cyber and data protection, said hi

Lufthansa is partnering with Google’s cloud unit in an effort to minimize the impact of flight delays and other irregularities on its passengers. The aim is to optimize Lufthansa’s operations, especially during flight disruptions caused by extreme weather or congestion. The company’s staff will use an operations platform powered by Google’s cloud tech to come up with suggestions for putting its flight plan back on track. “This will enable us to identify possible flight irregularities even earlie

The Detroit automaker will air a new ad during the NFC championship football game on Sunday that features the industry-first carbon fiber pickup box against a hurricane research lab in Miami. DETROIT – General Motors is once again taking shots at its competitors’ pickup trucks in a new ad campaign for its GMC Sierra, highlighting the strength and toughness of its all-new carbon fiber pickup box. Without naming what brands, the video shows the competitors’ beds being damaged by the items, includi

France is bringing in new rules on employee stock options to lure in talent and compete with the U.S.’ top tech hub. President Emmanuel Macron will on Monday announce the government’s plans, which look to expand its stock options scheme to include foreign companies with staff in France, among other rule changes. The package of reforms comes after 500 European start-up founders called on EU member states to update and align their rules on employee stock options, which give employees the chance to

Will Smith and Martin Lawrence star in “Bad Boys For Life.” “Bad Boys For Life,” the third installment in the “Bad Boys” film franchise nabbed $59.1 million during its domestic debut, the highest opening of any new release in the month of January. For the full holiday weekend, Sony expects “Bad Boys for Life” to garner $68.1 million in North America. “Dolittle” is expected to sell another $7.5 million in ticket sales Monday and “1917” is expected to sell another $5 million. As of Sunday, the 202

Cube founded the Big3 summer basketball league with entertainment executive Jeff Kwatinetz in 2017. He’s tirelessly promoting the young league, which aims to give NBA fans something different during the normal off-season. Cube announced some other significant rule changes this week as the league prepares to kick off its fourth season this summer. Q: The league has changed a few things as it prepares for the 2020 season. Q: You have any desires to own an NFL or NBA team?

Of the hundreds of big companies set to report earnings next week, there are five key names that investors should be focused on as these companies almost always top expectations. CNBC crunched the numbers using data from Bespoke Investment Group and found five stocks that nearly always beat Wall Street’s earnings forecasts. Plus, these companies normally trade positive after their surefire earnings beat.