let's take a look at the markets as we get started with this hour. the s&p 500 basically at the flat line. thdow, which is at a new 52-week high, above the 36,000 mark. up just fractionly. nasdaq is down about onehird of 1%. breakingews this hour. powe. get headlines from chair let's make sure we he those here. jerome powell participating at a fireside chat at spellman college in georgia. o soon to speculate when the fed will cut rates. headlines.two of the big

powell also saying the fed is, quote, prepared to tighten further if appropriate. we'll take you live to the q&a portion of that chat witthe fed chair ent doestart so, sa, we dn'think was going necessarily selout and sait's time to cut res. always preservinsome two-way optionality there. securely positioned.e if we're govern governoraller was saying a good spot. i guess given we have a meeting in a week and a half, they'll come out with a new outlook. it's more about n't get too ahead of yourself. the market has gone on to price of next year. n the first part >> i think it's exactly what you might expect from powell. it's not doing much to move the mark one way or the other because he's saying on one hand, we don't know necessarily we're done, we're stl watching the

data and inflation a little higher. on the other, things are looking good and there's progress. that's the message, committed to bringing inflation down to 2% target is all he can say at this point. looking at the ten-year, looking for reaction in the bond market. below 4.3. they're still buying bonds. he's not disrupting the treasury rally. he's not going out of his way, i think is key, to necessarily be tough on the markets. we've seen him do that in the past. he did it at jackson hole, for instance, when he didn't like how market expectations were getting a little easy for him. so far it sounds like they probably think the market is okay pricing in the cuts. >> it reminded me in september after the fed meeting, he was asked about neutral rate and how is the fed funds rate relative

to the neutral rate? he kept going back to that line of, we don't know what the neutral rate is. we know the new ral rate by how it works. we can look at data how the economy responds. we're not necessarily going to be governed by some textbook of theoretical definition of how restrictive we are. the two-year note yield, it's around 4.65. it has been lower on this trip. we did get a bounce off these comments but nothing dramatic. >> look, they're going to be wary of declaring victory on inflation and saying, we're done. next move is a cut. they're not going to do that. they have to preserve some optionality in case inflation flares back up or doesn't come back down as promised. by them saying, we haven't fully seen the effects of the tightening and the outlook is unusually uncertain, that's also a little dovish. they've done a lot -- >> proceed carefully. >> proceed carefully. i don't think it changes up the script here. for a reaction and a look at the markets heading into 2024, let's bring in bmo wealth management

cio. your first take on the comments we're getting from chair powell? >> great to be here, sara. more or less as expected. we didn't think there would be some pushback on the idea of what the markets are pricing in, now a little more aggressiveness or optimism with cutting rates early and of course the fed is not going to fall in line with that messaging. i do think a lot of -- the fed is fairly optimistic. we want to keep in mind that the fed is going to have the experience of the 1970s really front and center, which chair powell has talked about many times, when the fed really eased up or took their foot off the brakes too soon and inflation made a resurgence. i think the fed is in it for a long game and the market is too optimistic about pricing in rate cuts early next year. >> why do you think the market is too optimistic? >> is that what powell was saying, too soon to speculate on

when to lower rates? >> it's not too soon to speculate, but we think the fed will stick to these levels for quite some time. it's probably 340r of a summer or, perhaps, second half story when rates start getting cut. that said, let's take the big picture in mind. trajectory is probably still more important than the actual timing. whether it happens in the late spring, in the summer, as long as that trajectory is in place, as long as inflation keeps falling and as long as growth stays stable, i think the markets are still in a good place here. >> the debate would seem to be -- if the economy remains resilient, whether they'll be talking about so-called fine tuning or insurance cuts as we get into next year as opposed, we know they'll respond if there's outright weakness or shock or distress in the economy. it's much more about in a steady state economy, what is their reaction to still declining inflation going to look like.

>> i think that's a good point. that's what we're expecting. as mentioned previously, a lot of factors are coming into place for the economy to look relatively stable. perhaps have some softness in the coming months. what does the fed do in the face of a stable economy? i think is probably keeps rates higher for longer to make sure inflation comes down to that 2% level before it starts getting more eager about cutting rates. we do think the elements are in place for a stable economy going forward. we're expecting a soft landing. that is the big question mark of how the fed responds to that. >> so, more comments from powell here. job market has cooled but is still strong. he's obviously welcoming the recent softening in inflation data. we are going to get a jobs report next week. do you continue -- do you expect we'll continue to see the job market cooling and at what pace here? >> i do think there are continued indicators the job market is cooling.

that said, it's cooling to a more balanced level. it's not going from balance to weak. it's going from a relatively strong to more balanced now. and i think the big data point that we're focusing on to sort of tip the scales, if that were to happen, are the weekly initial unemployment claims. if those start to spike up, then i think we could go from a balance to weak. but right now those claims remain on a weekly basis at rock bottom level. we expect the jobs report to, yeah, show some softness but still hang in there, probably create somewhere between 100, 150,000 jobs, which is more or less a steady state for the economy and the labor market. >> here's the obligatory, the fed will raise rates again, says powell. we could have written this script. he's keeping all the options open. he's not leaning one way or the

other. but on cuts, they're not going to talk about that. it seems they're enjoying the luxury of markets in a comfortable spot, around where they think they need to go ultimately and probably disagreement on that committee. as we get into further meetings, there's probably going to be a little push/pull. >> on when to cut? >> on when to cut, when to try to anticipate weakness and whether or not you want to obey whatever rule you think is -- you should based on fed funds neutral rate. >> they want to preserve a soft landing but they want to make sure inflation is going back down to target. when will they know they can cut? >> chairman powell said a few times, it's a good question, obviously, but chairman powell has said a few times that rates are restrictive and that he's also said it makes sense to cut rates before the economy slows too much or before inflation may be all the way back down to target. i think the fed is trying to

anticipate the movements of the economy in the labor market. let's go back to the fed's job description. the fed's job description is a dual mandate of maximum employment and price stability. as long as the fed thinks the maximum employment box is checked and we're not seeing undue weakness in the labor market, it's probably still going to focus on price stability and bringing lagging inflation numbers. not just the leading indicators but the lagging inflation numbers back down to 2% as long as that labor market remains healthy. i think that's what the fed is going to key off of really looking for signs of labor market weakness before it thinks about cutting rates. >> although the market can't be expected to wait and not anticipate. inflation at the moment is lower than the fed thought itself at this point. we know what the shelter components look like they're going to do. that probably explains why, as we lay out the bets according to

probabilities next year, it's not as if everyone is absolutely certain with a 57% probabilities they're going to be cutting rates in march. it's just that if they're done hiking, the next move is a cut, a lot can happen between now and march. >> that's true. we do have a few months between now and march and the data has come in very consistent and very convincing for falling inflation and the indicators -- the forward-looking indicators look for that to continue. the elements are in place, no question about it. i think it might come down to how the fed feels about, one, keeping inflation down and the experience of the 1970s that it's repeatedly referenced and hung up on, and also what happens in the labor market. if the labor market stays strong and creates more jobs than expected as inflation comes down, i think the fed is going to feel a bit more confident that there's less urgency or impetus to cut rates. it's a bit of a balancing act,

no question about it. i think it's less important if we get cuts in march, may, june, versus the trajectory, that looks very favorable right now. >> thank you very much for joining us to help talk us through some of these breaking comments from fed chair powell. i want to give you a quick market check, show you what's happening, which is not a lot. the dow and -- the dow has been swinging from gains and losses. the s&p is showing strength in cyclical areas of the market, which remain higher. energy, industrials, materials, financials and health care all up. that's why the nasdaq is down. if you look at bonds, for instance, maybe a little selling, a tiny bit, though, not much on the fed chair's remarks. the ten-year note yield is still below 4.3 which is where it was. the two-year below 4.7. the dollar had been stronger a little bit.

maybe got a tiny bid off those remarks. again, the takeaway from fed chair powell is it feels like he's good, he's done on raising rates. he didn't say it, obviously, explicitly but he's keeping his options open. he's not doing anything to disrupt the market narrative when cuts come. >> we got through the initial headlines with no real surprises. we will continue to monitor fed chair powell's speech and bring you the latest headlines from it. ahead, is the private credit market in a bubble? marc lipschultz joins after the break with his outlook. his firm has over $150 billion in assets under management and the stock is up 27% this year. ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪ ♪♪

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with unlimited cellular data and up to 4 hours of battery back-up to keep you online. only from xfinity. home of the xfinity 10g network. a big beat for ulta, shares up double digits on strong sales and boost of its guidance. almost category led by skin care saw growth on the call. the ceo also saying the holiday shopping season is off to a good start. stock up more than 20% in just

the last month. with today's move is now back to positive for the year. >> good to be in makeup, i guess. consumers are spending there. let's turn to the private credit markets. our next guest oversees blue owl capital. with aum of $160 billion, it's one of the biggest names in the space that he says is disrupting traditional banking amid tighter lending conditions. with us at post 9 is blue owl co-ceo marc lipschultz. >> good to have you here with national peppermint bark day. >> everybody and their mother is getting into the business. how is the competition affecting the overall landscape? >> the overall market for direct lending is really good today. at the end of the day it's about supply and demand. and while it is true, there have

been new entrants. always will be in the innovative capital markets. at the large end of the market where we focus on, the biggest credits is really the same handful of key providers. in fact, i say key providers, the last couple of years were it not for lenders like blue owl there would almost be no debt capital market. it's a good time. the companies we're seeing are really high quality. most importantly, our portfolio companies are performing really well, which is a reflection of the economy. >> that's what i was going to ask you, what the rporate performance of your underlying companies are showing, positive and negative. >> so overall it's really great. if you look over the last qua quarter, we have 350 companies inur porolio. durae sects, software and grew 10% andbitda %.olio

ose are healy mbers. we're t seeing a meangful chan in forward indicators of problems to come, things like people asking for more amendments or asking to pick, their loans, which who be h necessary things to happen before a meaningful issue the economy or credit market. we don't see that. you've been great at retail distribuon and private debt, but are you exhaustinghose deals? is there room for growth at these kind of levels? >> there is room for growth. i think that's ultimatelthe return of the m&a market. it is true today, direct lenders, it's of a much shrunken market. m&a activity is much more muted. as the market comes back to supply and demand, that's the demand equation. when you consider the trillion equity or family businesses that

used to rely on regional banking systems and come to us instead, there's a lot of structural dema going forward. >> you mentioned the suppl aspect and that maybe the capital markets would need to be functioning properly if not for players like you. that's obviously banks are smaller than they used to ben this area. they're a little more constrained. exactly how can the returns hold up when there are many more people? we talk about ubs saying it's a building bubble in private credit. i think people wonder why those returns should be available, so attractive on paper if you're not taking more risks. >> the key to generating a return is delivering value. at the endf the day, we get pa by the borrower for something that is useful to them. we deliver three things. we deliverredictable financing we deliver privateinancing solutions so ty can think long term.

we have long-tm capital for their long term needs. we tlifr a partnership. they know who their lenders are. go back -- i've been in the alternative investment business for near 30 years, before it was called alternative investments. for all that time, go back 30 years, we used to know who our lenders re. when times changed, for better or worse, th is valuable. we're deliveringhat partnership and that's what we're getting paid f. it isn't just the market. you're going tcare who your lender is. it matters who you're dealin that's how -- at blue owl wee been able to move this market from a dece ago, being the lender of last resort to lender of first choice for some of the biggest and best companies in the country. >> you were talking about the good corporate health of your underlying companies. is it because you positioned more defensively in this environment? if so, if we're done with titening, do you change the type of sectors u lend to? >> we definitely have positied, i would call it

defensive would be one term. the alternative would be durably. at the end of the day in the edit business, it's all about credit. we looked at over 8,000 companies to make the 500 loans we've made. we made $80 billion in loans our running loss rate has been six basis points. in software where we're the market leader, we've had zero losses. it is about durabity. no, i don't see changes in that strategy. all about protecting the capital first and foremost. and generating an attrtive return to go with that. mike, as you said, returns are very cpelling. >> across sectors? >> we certainly prefer those durablsectors. >> what does that mean? >> it means a sector insulated from the economy. insulated from geopotical uncertainty would understate the case. geopolitical volatility. businesses, again, like health care, businesses like software. they don't have at susceptibility to thoschanges and they don't have large capex requirements. you also have a lot of cash flow

that's good as a lenderer. >> you talk about the y powder on the books of private equity players. it's been that way for a while. if you look at small cap index, it would look like a lot of cheap stuff out there. one of the first question you might ask the ir people from some beaten up, smaller tech company, why isn't there more activity? is it just theurdle rate where financing rates are or other factors? >> i think at the end of the day it's this uncertainty in the actity.uppressing ovall it's hard be boldly bulli toy. i liven a world whe it's always good to be cautious. 're in the lending business. do triple net lease real este, very densive stragies. withhat id, woulde hard toonstruct a case for why now would aime be a ashbucinrisk-ter. i think it's tampering interest but that will come.

that marketplace is underserved small cap public companies, even the larger ones, are going private. we've seen the trend out of the public market into the private market. i think it's going to continue. >> mike referenced the kelleher comments from ubsaying private credit is in a bubble. is it? >> look, he's a great executive d we do a lot of business with ubs. private credit is not in a bule. private credit is in a stable place. period, full stop. thatoesn't mean there won't be loans that go bad. of course there will be. here's the beauty of private credit. we have a long-dated capital, we make long-dated loans for people to build their businesses over the long term. and so it's stable. it's not systematic. we're not tied to anybody else. so, let me ask you ts. over the last two years there was essentially no banking or functioning liquid markets. are we better for having a prate market that stepped in ask allowed ople to still build factories and hire people? i'm sure we are. >> does that need to be

gulated? some say it's happening in the shadow banking are >> it doesn't need to be regulated -- first of all, it already is. people like ourselves, we work closely with the fcc. here's the thing, we don't connect to the rest of the system. we use very lile leverage. on average we use one turn of leverage on our books. very, very dill different. we understand why people use pejorative terms. we disclose every loan line item every arter. in fact, if you want to sacrifice your ratings and come back, we can go through every loan we have. >> they're not funded by the low cost consumer deposits, regulators -- >> that's right. we and ournstutional investors, we bear that opportunity.sion and rk and it's good deep dive. like havg you, marc. >> gre being here. >> dividend dollar per share. >> game on. >> i ask you every time. >> marc lipschultz, blue owl

capital. the etf ishares coming off best month in 21 years. can it keep up the momentum into the new year? shares of dell in the red, beating earnings estimate but missing on revenue. on a positive note its a.i. business backlog doubled and pipeline tripled in the past 90 days. we're back in a moment. ♪ the biggest ideas inspire new ones. 30 yearsgo, state street created an etf that inspired the world to invest differently. it still does. what can you do with spy? ♪

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european markets moving higher this morning. stoxx 600 gaining arly 6.5% in november pivoting from three straight monthly losses. posting its best month since january. today's gains coming from bullish manufacturing. european pmi comes in better than expectations but it's in con stra for the -- contraction for the 17th straight month. european investors were encouraged by caixan manufacturing. this is an export-oriented index. it stands in contrast to the broader pmi number from the national bureau oftatistics which saw its seventh contraction in eig months on wednesday night. so, maybe folks are reading into that is a little better signal. maybe they're readg into the fact that china will do more stimulus in thnew year. i do think one of the question marks over the 2024 outlook that is not getting a tonf attentiois what happens to

china growth. it h been sluggish. it hasn't been a b bounce back from covid. they stimulated incrementally buthere'no -- been no big bazooka or anything ke that. what do they do in 2024? >> that's a good point. it doesn't seem like a big swing factor in people's models which comefrom.whe the surise inerms of the european stock market rally, same story as here with yields collapsing quite a bit, the german ten-year is down from 3 to 2.35. it was at 2.65 a week ago. it's almost like they're replaying the script here a little bit. looks like deflationary forces are taking hold there. >> as i mentioned earlier, the cuts are priced in even earlier in april for the ecb versus the fed now in may. and maybe even in march. >> which implicitly means people think inflation is going to bow to the downside. >> and the economy idoing worse. >> exactly. time n for a news update. good morning. the house of representatives

just voted to expel congressman george santos. santos is now the sixth member of the house to be expelled and the third lawmaker since the civil war. he walked off the floor and left the capitol as the vote was under way. his new york district will now hold a special election to replace him. the supreme court is set to consider whether to ahear appeals from people charged with offenses relating to the january 6th assault on the u.s. capitol. the justices are scheduled to consider appeals from three men who are looking to dismiss charges accusing them of obstructing an official proceeding. former president trump has been charged with the same offense, so the supreme court's decision could impact his criminal prosecution. and google began deleting old accounts today. the company is removing accounts that haven't been used or signed into for at least two years. the move is part of an effort to minimize security threats. google says these accounts are less likely to have two-step verification and may be relying

on old passwords that could be compromised. >> thank you. novo nordisk up 50%. cantor fitzgerald initiates the stock at overweight. we'll break down the call after this break.

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want to show you what's happening with the market. we're taking a leg up. the s&p is firmly higher. it was flattish this morning. up a 0.25 of 1%. the nasdaq goes positive for the first time today, mike. it's down for the week, but just barely. the dow is up 2% for the week. look at the ten-year note yield. looked like there was an

indecisive reaction to fed chair powell at first. maybe he was trying to talk tough but he could have been a lot tougher. now it's getting bought. and the ten hifr year note yield goes to 4.25% on the idea that powell didn't do much to walk back market expectations. >> you have to get through it. it's on the calendar. if nothing to disturb the expectations, you're in good shape. the s&p basically bumping against theclosing high from july, just to benchmark things. and bank stocks continue to be very strong on this yield move, too. up 1.30% as a group. johnson & johnson on the move, upgraded to buy, saying the firm has, quote, high conviction in above consensus outlook for the stock. calling it a top tier diversified player in health care. price target there, up to 180. trading saaround 156 at the

moment. apple and paramount talking about bundling their media content. consumers may be able to subscribe to apple tv plus and paramount bundle that would come at a cheaper price than subscribing to the two services separately. paramount reported third quarter earnings saying it added 2.7 miion subscrers while narrowing losses for the segment to $238 million. let's bring in julia boorstin to discuss this. seeing things moving in this direction in terms of the bundling. disney sort of rebundling its own services. now the third-party players are getting together, perhaps. >> this is a trend i've been talking about and anticipating for quite some time. part of it comes down to the fact that there was peak tv and then there was peak streaming, so much content available on these streaming services, but so many different streaming services. there's been this expectation of

consolidation. we're unlikely to see major media companies merge at this point, in part, because of the regulatory landscape. so, something that david zazlov, the ceo of warner bros. talked about. we saw max, the warner discovery streaming platform, do that when verizon started offering a bundle of netflix and max together. so, one way to keep people from churning out, from dropping out of a subscription service, is by locking them into a bigger bundle. you're exactly right, mike, that's what we saw from disney. by bundling together disney plus, hulu and espn plus, or integrating more hulu content into disney plus, is something they're working on, by doing that, you minimize the churn. you give more people to stay and fewer reasons to want to leave. i think it really makes sense here for apple tv plus and paramount to be talking to each other. this is something that paramount

ceo alluded to in the most recent earnings call. something they're looking at. also i want to point out these two companies partnerered on "killers of the flower moon" and paramount districted that movie for apple tv plus. >> good point. what's also interesting to me, we can cut this many different ways, is that in terms of -- both of them have relatively less new content specifically for streaming than some of the other services. obviously like netflix. maybe even max. but they also seem to occupy different spaces in the market in terms of their approach. apple has taken this sort of high production value, high-minded approach, you have paramount plus is really all in on a lot of the taylor sheridan universe and things like that. maybe it's seen complimentary in that way. >> complementary. remember, apple tv plus also doesn't have a library. that's what's so different about it. they're all about these very premium, exclusive original productions, but they don't have

that deep library. the perception in hollywood, the media industry is the idea to use new content to lure people in and then they stick around for the library. you might sign up for apple tv plus to watch "the morning show," but once you've gone through all their other shows, what's going to keep you around? you're absolutely right they're complimentary not just in types of shows but in the library focused on new, exclusive originals. >> anything to read deeper into apple and paramount just working together and maybe that having an impact on paramount stock? would apple ever buy paramount? >> well, look, the question is whether apple would want to buy a media company at all or need to, and the question for paramount, sherri redstone who controls shares of that company, if she's interested in selling. there's a lot of speculation on who might be interested in buying up pieces of paramount. even comcast, cnbc's parent company, has been speculated as a potential buyer for some of those assets on are a potential

buyer for warner discovery. if those conversations were to happen. these are all moving parts in the industry. i think the question is if paramount -- if redstone were to put paramount up for sale, paramount global, how those assets might be split up. there are certainly parts of it that might be more appealing to an apple. maybe the library, maybe the studio. other parts, such as cbs, the broadcast network may not make as much sense for apple. if it were up for sale, how you would divide that. >> appreciate all the color. talk again soon. a buy initiation for notice v novo nordisk from cantor fitzgerald. saying it just is getting started, could grow sales ten-fold thanks in large part to its obesity drug with eli lilly. things aren't as rosy for it the

competition. pfizer announced it would discontinue twice daily weight loss pill due to side effects. louise chen joining us. i guess the big question when it comes to novo and lilly when those stocks have worked in tandem with each other over the last year or so is what's already discounted in their prices, in their valuation in terms of how much these obesity drugs can grow and for how long? >> yeah, thank you for having me. so, look, i think there's still a long runway for obesity. over the next five years. 60% we're looking at how these companies are gring with manufacturing capacity at strength. those will get resolved. i think expectations are still going to be too low d will come in above forecast on the street, for both earningfor these companies on the obesity side. >> in terms of the potential

competition, we talked about this pfizer effort, which is quite a different approach, but obviously this is now a bonanza, what do you think is likely to be facing novo and lilly on new entrants and then pricing? >> yep. so i think that over the longer term, i do see pricing moderate, especially when weave orioles coming to the market. but i dot see that in the near term. and the pfizer today underdiscoveries why that could be the case. not everybody will do well, especially as you get into later trials the other thing, lilly and novo are spending billions of dollars every year, building up their manufacturing facilities. they have a commercial presence. they have an infrastructure. they have a lot of dat novo is the only company that has sect outcome data. that mayo on the label and give them a competitive advantage to both the business and patients. it's going to a a long time for

others to catch up. >> there was a study comparing novo and lilly obesity dgs. lilly's were found to be more effective in terms of how much weight loss you have. do y expect a competitive situation here? will that hurt novo as lilly can boost its own producon? >> yeah. so, i think over the next two years, there is enough for both players just because they can't actually meet the demand of also in terms of selling the product is not just the data. the data is important but the commercial infrastructure, the ability to supply, and also both of these companies have pipelines. next year novo will ve summary data, if that works that will reinvigorate the stock from that perspective. i still feel there's a lot here. the data itself is n the only thing that's going to drive the uptick of these drugs. >> is that something you're talking to clientsbout?

oifs "fast money" and they were talking about a pair trade, long lilly, short novo. is that becong popular? >> that's something clients have talked to me about even in theoryr put into action. i don't like that trade because i feel like both companies are going to benefit from the outside growth. because there aren't any near-term competitors coming to the market, i feel like right now they're the biggest beneficiaries of osity. it seems right now to be unstoppable. >> yeah, it is for the moment, i guess. louise, thanks so much. good to speak to you. after the break, the federal judge blocking montana's tiktok ban. 'ldiusthimicions en we come back.

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877-sell-easy, and sell your policy. a montana law that would have banned tiktok in the state january 1st has been shot down by a federal judge. deirdre bosa has more on the plications in today's

"techcheck." good morningdee. >> good morning, mike. for all the talk amo lawmakers to bant tiktok, it may not be legal. the montana judge said it violates the constitution in more ways than one and oversteps state power. it violated the free speech of users. the analysis and decision cod change, but this has national discussion abt the place of tiktok and chinese apps in ameca. lawmakers and others are concerd about tiktok for a few reasons. they include worries that its algorithm can manipulate american users through subtle propagan and disinformation, and the chinese government can target, suppress or track certain speech here. i asked the former nsa director if an all-out ban could be accomplished here. take a listen. >> we probably need to be a little more nuanced here.

for example, we might say, well, we're not going to allow this technology to be used by a government individual. it's not going to be -- this technology to be used in sensitive or classified areas. on the other hand, there's part of where i would say, look, we ould feel comfort as a society using it for some things. >> something. >> now even at a national level an all-out ban of the app is going to be difficult. the biden administration is trying to knack legislation to restrict or baforeign-owned apps but those efforts have stalled and the contrast couldn't be more stark in china where freedom of speech just doesn't exist. the communist government can design to ban american apps, which it certainly has, there's facebook, instagram, linkedin or x, you can't access unless you use a vpn, which many do. several other chinese apps continue to make inroads here. we've talked about temu and shein. they've captured a significant chunk of the american consumer.

if it turns out lawmakers aren't comfortable with the data they are collecting, it could be just as tough to turn back the ex paengs. temu parent pinduoduo has surpassed alibaba in market cap that is a huge reversal of fortunes showing on one hand how far pdd has come in part thanks to temu and how far alibaba has fallen, there's been such an uphe uph upheaval. we didn't even have chinese apps that american consumers really on a significant scale. now we have three. tiktokpinduoduo and shein. >> for sure. and you mentioned, dee, the biden administration looking perhaps to place some restrictions on tiktok a the approach is national security concerns or privacy, not gting at what ems to be bothering folks, elon musk saying tiktok

is probing his brain this week, but the viralty and the messing, the misinformation, the contt and how it travels. nothing really seems to be targeting that. >> i think that will certainly be a bigger point of discussion and debate especially in the year leading up to the next presidential eleion. the report meta put out that said there's more chinese there are a lot of worries and mike rogers, admiral mike rogersformer director of the nsa, talked about thatjust his concerns about mipulation that wod be so important in an election. >> there is evidence in the israel/hamas war there's been propaganda faving the palestinians as well. ere was this notion at the cfo council from marco rubio, don't

ban it, demonetize tiktok. i wonder if that's to your story here about first amendment, if that's a better way to go at it if you tell advertiss they can't spend there. >> that's a fantastic point. we actually have to go by the law here in america and china thers no freedom of speech. they can ban apps as they wish to do. that is a really interesting point if you demonetize it and remember, tiktok is a company that backed by many american investors d vcs that would be more troubling and more effective. that's an interesting idea. as we're seeing and as this example shows us, byust banning the app all out will be really difficult to do. >> i don't hear a lot of appete besides rubio. i haven't seen anything lately as much from the administration. >> it seems it's decreased agree with you. >> may a punching bag come the 2024lection.

thanks, deirdre. the software etf comg off its best funds in 21 years. is there more opportunity here ead? 'll discuss that right after a break. in the u.s. we see millions of cyberhreats each year. that rate is increasing as more and more busisses move to the cloud. - so, the question is... - cyber attack! as cyber criminals expand their toolkit, weust expand as well. we need to rethink... next level moments need the next level network. [speaker continues in the background] chip? at&t business.

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in order for small businesses to thrive, order they need to beiday gif smart, efficient, savvy.m making the most of every opportunity. that's why comcast business is introducing the small business bonus. for a limited time you can get up to a $1000 prepaid card with qualifying internet. yep, $1000. so switch to business internet from the company with the largest fastest reliable network and that powers more businesses than anyone else. learn how you can get $1000 back for your business today. comcast business. powering possibilities. the software etf closing at a 52-week high yesterday. what names are driving the gains? kristina partsinevelos with the answers. hi, kristina. mike, it doesn't all have to be about nvidia. for the month of november, the igv etf had its best month since 2002 that would be the year kelly clarkson first won "american idol."

the igv beating out chips and the xlk which represents general technology and the constituents driving this software renaissance data dog, several more all up over 30% in the last month or so. so what gives? yes, the biggest drop in the ten-year yield in over ten years has definitely helped, but it's helped all of tech. more driving software. november tends to be historically a better month than december for software spending. certain big names like snowflake, salesforce, are the latest to sound better on the macro picture in the economy. snowflake management, for the last three weeks consumption grew faster than any other period in the past two years. companies that missed or saw cuts saw estimates come down and, lastly, you have to mention ai because optimism still remains high. as for the future, mike, you asked that, barclays points out valuations have come down

creating more upside potential. the pc recovery could bode well for software refreshes. barclays raising price target for service now and workday arguing that we are, quote, in the middle of the year-end software rally, which means there's more room to grow. sara? >> all right. that certainly jives with the price action, thank you, kristina. kristina partsinevos. let's get to "the buzz." panera brands filing for an ipo. it was last publicly traded in 2017 before it was taken private for $7.5 billion. they tried to bring it bacto the public markets i2021 but the deal that would have been a combination with the spac was called off because spacs were already in trouble. >> it might have worked but it wasn't the time. >> theounderi remember very wellhen he took the company

pri private, said there's so much more we can do. >> it's not like traditional private equity. >> they sold to yum. mike, as we go here, lks like we're athe hig of the day. >> we might have to get you a dow 36,000 hat. >> i can't believe kelly clarkson won that many yrs ago. over to scott and "the halftime report." sara, thanks so much. welcome to "the halftime port." i'm scott wapner. front and center this hour, the final stretch of stocks after one of the best months in years, now we debatwith the investment committee what is likely to happen over the remainder of 2023 and beyond. joing us, shannon saccocia, rob sechan, steve weiss and jim lebenthal are here at post 9 at the new york stock exchange. sara said we're at the highs of the day. the fed chair spoke today. the market took a dip but has recovered quite nicely