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CNBC Daily Open: Moody’s downgrade won’t dent the Treasury market

Published

2 years ago

November 14, 2023

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Visitors outside the US Treasury building in Washington, DC, US, on Tuesday, Aug. 15, 2023.

Nathan Howard | Bloomberg | Getty Images

This report is from today’s CNBC Daily Open, our new, international markets newsletter. CNBC Daily Open brings investors up to speed on everything they need to know, no matter where they are. Like what you see? You can subscribe here.

What you need to know today

Mixed markets
U.S. stocks traded mixed Monday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average the only major index to rise. Asia-Pacific markets mostly rose Tuesday as investors await Biden’s meeting with Xi. South Korea’s Kosdaq index rose around 2.2%, snapping a five-day losing streak. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 climbed 0.8% even as a survey showed the country’s consumer confidence slipping in November.

Biden-Xi meeting
U.S. President Joe Biden is set to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday. That’ll be the second time both leaders have met in person since Biden took office. Relations between the world’s largest and second-largest economies have been rocky since an alleged Chinese spy balloon flew into U.S. airspace February. Hence, Biden and Xi will likely focus on “prevent[ing] a crisis,” according to a political commentator.

Consumer spending fell
U.S. October retail sales, excluding autos and gas, fell 0.08% month on month, while core retail, which excludes restaurants, declined 0.03%, according to the new CNBC/NRF Retail Monitor. The data differs from the Census Bureau’s retail sales report as it’s the result of actual consumer purchases — analyzing over 9 billion anonymized credit and debit card transactions — while the Census relies on survey responses.

Exxon invests in green tech
Exxon Mobil, one of the world’s largest oil and gas companies, said it aims to become a leading producer of lithium for electric vehicle batteries. The company will kick off this plan through a drilling operation it’s launching at a geological site it purchased earlier this year in southern Arkansas. Exxon said it will produce battery-grade lithium at the site as soon as 2027.

[PRO] One index’s 11% jump
U.S. stocks have long outpaced global indexes. But Morgan Stanley thinks one major Asian stock index — which has already popped about 25% thus far this year, more than two times the 10.5% of the S&P 500 — will continue its blitz, soaring 11% in 2024. The country’s currency will strengthen next year, boosting stocks exposed to international trade, said the bank.

The bottom line

This week will be a significant one for markets. October’s consumer price index comes out later today, while on Wednesday, U.S. President Joe Biden will meet his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in person for the first time since last November. Investors, focused on the week ahead, are already shrugging off bad news from last week.

On Friday, Moody’s Investors Service cut its ratings outlook on the U.S. government from stable to negative. The ratings agency pointed to the country’s large fiscal deficits and the political polarization within Congress as risk factors for Treasurys.

Moody’s move wasn’t entirely new. (Standard & Poor’s and Fitch have issued similar cautions.) And even if it were, it’s hard to imagine investors spontaneously pivoting from U.S. Treasurys — the world’s largest and most liquid market.

“If we go from triple-A to double-A, what does that practically mean? … There’s still going to be demand for U.S. Treasurys en masse,” as Michael Reynolds, vice president of investment strategy at Glenmede Investment Management, put it.

Indeed, Treasury yields hardly budged Monday despite Moody’s warning. The yield on the 10-year note ticked up 1 basis point to 4.638%, while that of the 2-year shed around 3 basis points to end at 5.033%.

Stocks didn’t experience major turmoil, either. In fact, the S&P 500 was mostly flat, the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.16% and the Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.22%. Trading volume, based on the SPDR S&P 500, was below the 30-day average.

Today’s CPI report is likely to cause more gyrations for stocks. Economists expect October’s prices to rise 0.1% from September, and 3.3% from a year earlier.

If numbers come in close to or lower than the estimate, that’ll please investors because it means the Federal Reserve might be done with rate hikes for the year — or for the whole cycle, the optimistic will say.

As Goldman Sachs strategist Peter Oppenheimer said, the “good news is that inflation and interest rates now appear to have peaked and our economists continue to expect a soft landing. This backdrop is benign for equity markets, reducing the downside risks for investors.”

Of course, reduced headwinds don’t mean a smooth journey ahead. With the Israel-Hamas war still developing and economic data in the U.S weakening, risks persist.

— CNBC’s Jeff Cox contributed to this report.

Environment

Tesla vs. Bezos, Slate, Windrose, Lucid, and Paul ‘Muad’Dib’ Atreides

Published

10 hours ago

July 31, 2025

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Tesla vs. Bezos, Slate, Windrose, Lucid, and Paul 'Muad'Dib' Atreides

On today’s battle-ready episode of Quick Charge, it’s Elon Musk vs. the world as big players position themselves for control of enough lithium to build 600 million electric cars and the rest of the industry squares up to Tesla in the battle for market leadership.

While Windrose is making sales and expanding into new markets, the Tesla Semi is still in limited tests, Robotaxi launches as a “ride hailing service” in California with randos in the drivers’ seat and Academy Award nominated actor/noted college football analyst Timothée Chalamet teams up with Lucid to steal (even more) sales from the embattled Model S and X lines.

Today’s episode is brought to you by Retrospec, the makers of sleek, powerful e-bikes and outdoor gear built for everyday adventure. Quick Charge listeners can get 10% off their next e-bike ride through August 14 with the exclusive code ELECTREK10 only at retrospec.com.

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Prefer listening to your podcasts? Audio-only versions of Quick Charge are now available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, TuneIn, and our RSS feed for Overcast and other podcast players.

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New episodes of Quick Charge are recorded, usually, Monday through Thursday (most weeks, anyway). We’ll be posting bonus audio content from time to time as well, so be sure to follow and subscribe so you don’t miss a minute of Electrek’s high-voltage daily news.

Got news? Let us know!
Drop us a line at tips@electrek.co. You can also rate us on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, or recommend us in Overcast to help more people discover the show.

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Environment

Driivz and ezVOLTz pair up to supercharge EV charging reliability

Published

10 hours ago

July 31, 2025

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Driivz and ezVOLTz pair up to supercharge EV charging reliability

EV charging company ezVOLTz has partnered with Driivz, the EV software arm of Vontier, to make its “Charging as a Service” platform even smarter and more reliable for fleets, businesses, and state and local governments across the US.

If you’re not familiar with ezVOLTz, it’s a full-service EV charging provider. It handles everything, from installing hardware-agnostic chargers to managing the backend with its software platform, ezCONNECT. Now, ezVOLTz is plugging into Driivz’s charging and energy management tech to help run things even more smoothly.

With Driivz’s help, ezVOLTz plans to keep its network humming with 24/7 monitoring and real-time issue detection. Driivz’s Alert Management System can auto-fix up to 80% of charger hiccups remotely without sending a tech on-site. That means more uptime and fewer headaches for drivers and site owners.

“EV adoption is surging, and drivers and the companies and entities that serve them need smart, connected, and reliable charging options,” said ezVOLTz CEO Sam Malhotra. “The Driivz team and their smart charging and energy management solutions are a natural fit in bolstering our services.”

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The partnership also gives ezVOLTz new tools to grow its network. Driivz’s software tracks usage patterns and charger performance, helping pinpoint the best spots for new installations. Driivz will also support the ezVOLTz app, letting users plan road trips and find chargers nationwide.

“Reliability and ease-of-use are two of the most important considerations for EV drivers,” said Andrew Bennett, CEO of Driivz. “We’re proud to partner with ezVOLTz in delivering seamless and reliable charging to their customers.”

As more businesses, fleets, and municipalities plug into EVs, partnerships like this one aim to make sure the charging experience keeps up.

The 30% federal solar tax credit is ending this year. If you’ve ever considered going solar, now’s the time to act. To make sure you find a trusted, reliable solar installer near you that offers competitive pricing, check out EnergySage, a free service that makes it easy for you to go solar. It has hundreds of pre-vetted solar installers competing for your business, ensuring you get high-quality solutions and save 20-30% compared to going it alone. Plus, it’s free to use, and you won’t get sales calls until you select an installer and share your phone number with them.

Your personalized solar quotes are easy to compare online and you’ll get access to unbiased Energy Advisors to help you every step of the way. Get started here.

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Environment

An electric Subaru BRZ? Don’t rule out an EV version just yet

Published

11 hours ago

July 31, 2025

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An electric Subaru BRZ? Don't rule out an EV version just yet

The Subaru BRZ may live on as an EV after all. Subaru wants its share of the sports car market, and an electric BRZ could hit the sweet spot.

Is Subaru launching an electric BRZ?

Subaru discontinued the BRZ in Europe in 2020 after the first generation. Although its twin, the Toyota GR86, was sold until the 2024 model year, the BRZ was released as a US-only model.

In its third generation, it could return as an EV. Speaking with Autocar, Subaru’s European head, David Dello Stritto, said, “Our options are open,” hinting that the BRZ could make a comeback in electric form.

Subaru’s global EV product boss, Inoue Masahiko, confirmed an electric version of the sports car “was under consideration.” He added that Subaru has extensively looked into an EV version of the BRZ with its partner, Toyota.

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Masahiko explained that “We did consider electrifying the BRZ and GR86, but the win-win relationship is more important.” So far, “We can’t get the kind of benefits from both sides,” he added.

Subaru is already launching several new electric vehicles in Europe, including the new Uncharted, E-Outback (known as Trailseeker in the US), and an updated Solterra SUV.

Stritto said that an electric sports car will depend on the success of these models first, especially the Uncharted. According to Subaru’s European boss, the Japanese automaker feels “very positively about Subaru enthusiasts, but we need to see how Uncharted does first.”

Subaru-new-EVs — 2026 Subaru Solterra EV (Source: Subaru)

As for an “electrified” powertrain, or hybrid, Masahiko said the vehicle’s packaging “would make it difficult,” adding an EV version would be “easier” to create.

The comments come after Stritto told Autocar last week that a new entry-level EV could also be in the works. However, that will also depend on how well the Uncharted sells.

For those in the US, don’t worry – Subaru is not planning to discontinue the BRZ. If it did launch as an EV, would you consider one? It would go up against the new Hyundai IONIQ 6 N and Tesla Model 3 Performance.

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