mark zuckerberg pledged this week. it's friday, december 13th, friday the 13th, 2024 and "squawk box" begins now. ♪ good morning, everybody. welcome to "squawk box" here on cnbc. we are live from the nasdaq market site in times square. i'm becky quick along with joe kernen and andrew ross sorkin. >> and you can't laugh. >> i can't laugh. i can't smile. getting there. getting there. surgery earlier this week. >> have you ever aid that before? >> andrew walked in and said how's your mouth? >> how's the mouth? >> it is totally appropriate. it does sound a little funny. >> how's the mouth? happy friday the 13th. >> how about you? how's the mouth?

>> it's an appropriate question. >> given the stitches and it makes you laugh. >> which is what you have been doing since yesterday. trying to get me to split the stitches. you do. you do. let's take a look at u.s. equity futures. dow futures indicated up triple digits and nasdaq indicated up 1 1050. the s&p up 52. the long of the losing streak since back to april. it snuck up on us on the week. the dow down 1.6%. you are still talking about the dow only 2.5% below it's all-time high. the s&p for the week is indicated down by .6% for the week. again, it's only down, i think, by .7% away from the all-time high. the nasdaq holding on to the .2% gain as we head into the end of

the trading session. the nasdaq is away from the all-time high. all three of the major averages within all-time highs. you are still talking about incredibly high levels. the trend we have seen for this whole year. right now, let's check what is happening in the treasury markets. 4.33 is the last for the ten-year. it was steady after the higher than anticipated inflation data at 8:30. the two-year sitting at 4.20. you have the price of bitcoin at $100,000. $100,440. shares of broadcom are sharply higher. beating estimates. revenue falling. investors are focusing on

forecast. products expected to jump 65% for the current quarter. that is far, far faster than the semiconductor growth of 10%. on the call, the ceo saying broadcom was one of two hyper scalers and that stock is flying this morning up close to 50%. >> 60% on what basis, i wonder, you know what i mean? >> sure. if you think you can be growing at that rate, it changes the dynamic. in the meantime, shares of costco reported earnings of $4.04 per share. it beat estimates of 3.$3.79. the call, the cfo said the investors remained selective with purchases, but shown they are willing to spend. jewelry, luggage and furniture strong during the quarter.

that stock up just marginally. >> i think the transactions were flat. up on inflation or people buying more stuff. >> the santa claus rally is a specific time. it's after christmas. we think of december as a very seasonally strong period. i don't know why. it seems like a time when stocks go up. if you were going to begin a little bit of a pullback, you might start it like this -- what we're saying is we're right near highs. it's been down four days in a row and a crappy week. that's how you do it. you do it so you don't think it's the beginning of anything. maybe it is. >> maybe it sneaks up on us. >> i think it's neaking up on us.

>> i will say -- >> the drone. >> i am worried. the governor saying we don't know what it is, but don't worry. >> we think they are competent. they didn't with the spy balloon. that made it all the way across before -- >> very unsatisfactory with every answer. don't worry about it. these are our military drones or this is a big problem here. >> hopefully that's what it is and they don't want to tell us it is top secret stuff. >> if it is not that. >> they are saying it is not dangerous. one of the politicians said he talked to somebody who had a helicopter that was looking down at one of these things the size of a car and decided i'm going to land because i don't feel safe up here. how can you say unee quivocally saying it. why can't you follow one and see

where it goes? >> when people send the drones up, it immediately drains their batteries and they drop. >> the industrial drones. >> these are military style. >> got it. >> you need military style drones. >> we everyone it does -- >> send one up and follow it. >> tell us what is going on. if it is our's, okay. all of them saying we don't know what it is. it doesn't look like it's dangerous. >> how about the guy yesterday, kirby, saying people aren't seeing what they think they're seeing. that's total bs. most of these are just small planes. people are mistaken. people know -- maybe he's in on it and just lying. he's really good at that. >> they are not telling us the truth. >> okay. let's talk about this. we'll have arthur brooks on a

little bit later. weird unity going on in the country. suddenly, jeff bezos planning to visit president-elect trump at mar-a-lago next week. ahead of that, wall street reports that amazon, like meta, planning a $1 million donation to the trump inaugural fund. jeff bezos made the decision earlier this week. amazon plans to stream the inauguration through prime. earlier this week, mark zuckerberg directed his company to make a $1 million donation to the fund. i think it is the calm before the storm for all this. on january 20th and deportations and all this hard work that is very controversy and we'll be back. >> you'll have arguments on both sides of the political aisle. my guess is you may not hear

business leaders. >> my son sees things are twitter and everywhere else. people are cancelling the washington post subscription and livid this is happening. all of the other weird stuff happening. u.s. senators saying, well, people reach a point. what do you expect? things are to be expected. you can only push people so far with healthcare. then they deserve to be killed. that's implying -- >> i know. i know. i know. >> it's staggering to me. staggering. >> started with tim wu. >> and others. elizabeth warren should know better, should she not? >> i think everybody. the whole conversation makes me uneasy. >> you are worried that it's going to spiral. >> political leaders. >> that's insane. that can't happen. that's insane, don't you think? did you see all of the posters

up around here? >> hello. hello. >> one has an x in it. we already got him. >> yes, that's why, that's why having all of these conversations. it is not to say we shouldn't have an important conversation about healthcare. to do it inspired by this is very dangerous. it creates the incentive system to create more violence. >> we should condemn what we are seeing. >> 100%. left, right and center. >> okay. president-elect trump's economic advisors are considering doubling the state and local tax deduction known as s.a.l.t. according to comments from steven moore who serves on the transition team. raising the s.a.l.t. cap would deliver tax savings to new york, new jersey and california. moore told bloomberg that the advisers are opposed to making the deduction unlimited because

that would be the biggest tax cut for millionaires and billionaires ever. moving it o $20,000 would solve it for middle class families in blue states. the lawmakers elected french hill to the congress. he was considered an underdog in all this in the race against congress member andy barr of kentucky. hill has been a leading voice in washington on cryptocurrency. another ally to that space. we'll talk to him. he'll be with us this morning live at 7:10 a.m. we'll get a rundown of his priorities in this new role. when we come back, a lot more on squawk. we get you ready for the final trading day of the week and look ahead to next week's fed meeting, plus we check out the big jump yet for servicetitan. ceos sitting at this table. that stock on the back of the ipo rising 42% here at nasdaq.

providing software for cloud contractors. priced at $71 and opened and closed at exactly $1 p are.01er we're coming right back. >> announcer: this cnbc program is sponsored by baird. visit bairddifference.com.

i can't believe you corporate types are still calling each other rock stars. you're a rock star. we're all rock stars. oooo look look at my data driven insights, i'm a rock star. great job putting finance and hr on one platform with workday. thank you! guys, can you keep it down. i'm working. you people are (guitar noises). hand over the air guitar. i've got another one. at t. rowe price, we help advisors move forward by building agile etfs designed to outperform the index. that's the power of curiosity. better questions can lead to better solutions. t. rowe price. invest with confidence.

shares of rh are sharply higher.

the company known as restoration hardware said the company raised outlook for the quarter and year. the ceo said rh will launch a brand extension next fall with details to come. the company addressed the threat of tariffs saying it does not expect a hit to the profit margins from potential tariff increases. it has been pro-actively sourcing away from china the last several years and products made in mexico. that stock is up 18 % this morning. take a look at futures right now. we have green on the screen. dow up 150 points. for more on the markets as investors gear up for the fed meeting next week, let's bring in hank smith. >> good morning, andrew. happy holidays. >> happy holidays. we were calling it a anta claus

rally. it doesn't happen until later? >> strictly speaking, it happens after christmas. seasonally. >> one of the best months of the year. >> is the fed going to help that or hurt that? is the grinch coming or is it going to be great? >> unless you get an article from the wall street journal this week indicating change of plans, i think you will get a quarter-point cut. >> you don't believe the numbers we have seen which have been a little bit hotter? >> it will change in 2025. it has been this way for quite a while. you will not see five or six quarter-point rate cuts. you will see two or three. it will go very slow because really the economy is in good shape. i don't think the fed needs to worry about that. they need to worry about, um,

perhaps an uptick in inflation and the stickiness of where we are right now. but the good news is the stock market really doesn't care about a 2% target for inflation. only the fed's reputation is at risk. the stock market is fine. >> given how much this market has run already, the question is what does 25 really portend in your mind? >> i think it would be fanciful to think we'll get another 20% year in '25. look, s&p 500 earnings growth estimates are around 14% to 15%. you could easily have a 10% to 12% return in the market with no pe expansion and that is really our expectation. >> so, what are you doing in terms of industry by industry? >> well, look, it's been a very, very challenging market up until the beginning of the summer

because of the concentration in the mag seven for what we refer to as the top ten stocks of the s&p 500. you did start seeing a broadening out in the beginning of the summer. that has kind of stalled in the last couple weeks as the mag seven has taken back over. >> right. >> we expect that broadening out to continue in '25 for a couple of reasons. fundamentally, the other 490 companies are seeing an acceleration in eps growth. the so-called top ten or mag seven or actually going to see a little deceleration in earnings growth. there's a fundamental reason. plus, the laws of math dictate. >> does that mean you like the russell or small caps? where do you go? >> we're primarily a large cap dividend paying. >> that's what i thought. >> dividend paying manager. look, there are plenty of opportunities for dividends out there, but it is mostly in the

out of favor and more value oriented. >> give us names. >> and in the healthcare sector. >> can you give us names? >> sure. you go down the healthcare sector. johnson & johnson and merck have growth. modest dividend growth and very attractive valuations. yes, i know the charts look horrible. >> the charts are tough. look at that chart. >> no, it's not fun chart. this is the most out of favor sector. hated. in fact, it is at one of the lowest points of weighting in the s&p 500 in recent memory. >> you think it's better? one of the arguments is depending what happens with the government over the next four years that they actually do take a look at healthcare. >> the cloud of government regulation has been on this industry for two decades now

going way back to hillary-care and obamacare and now the attention with the death of the unitedhealthcare executive. all of this negative attention. let's not forget one thing. the most powerful secular trend that cannot change -- the aging of the baby boom generation and followed by the next wave is so beneficial to this industry. >> hank, i want to thank you and wish you a happy, happy holidays. see if we get a santa claus rally. >> and happy and prosperous new year. >> thank you. when we come back, wine is a good gift for the holidays. stay tuned. the executive of "food and wine"

magazine will be here. and later this hour, harvard as arthur brooks will address the public anger at the hethrealca industry and executives in america. "squawk box" will be right back. growing old is part of the journey, even when you have heart failure. but when he had shortness of breath, carpal tunnel syndrome, and lower back pain, we wondered, could these be warning signs of something bigger? thank goodness we called his cardiologist because these were signs of attr-cm, a rare and serious disease...

...that gets worse over time. if you see any of the warning signs, don't wait, ask your cardiologist about attr-cm today. store closes in five. we just need to grab a few more gifts. okay, let's go. j.j. watt. hey. i made my family disappear. wooo! ♪♪

sorry, guys. i was just in there having the best night of my life. oh. what's this? it's a beaut', jage. it's a beaut'. get in the car, boys! ♪ (agent) we've always said never sell a house in the winter. well, that's not exactly true. with opendoor, you can skip the showings and get a real cash offer. and if you close before the holidays, you don't have to move till after new years. you are disguising my voice here, right? (director) ahhh, of course. (agent with altered voice) foof, just checking. like i was saying... (vo) it's true. opendoor makes selling easy, in any season. ♪ in any business, you ride the line between numbers and people. what's right for the business and what's best for everyone who depends on it. solving today's challenges while creating future opportunities.

it takes balance. cla - cpas, consultants, and wealth advisors. we'll get you there. welcome back, everybody. it's been a rough year for the wine business with sales through august down 8%. joining us right now with the bright spots is ray who is executive at "food and wine." ray, it's great to see you. >> good to be back. >> we do this every year. you you bring us lots of things to

try. i was surprised to hear wine sales are down. >> it is interesting. volume is down less than sales are down. people are both not buying as much and trading down a little bit. it is true for spirits as well. true for beer. the only upsides are kind of ready to drink cocktails which are up and bubbles up. people love bubbles. it's been a tough year. >> are we just drinking less as a nation? >> drinking a little less as a nation. there's a big prohibitionist. dry january. and also, i think there is a little bit of the pandemic where everybody was drinking like crazy. got out of the pandemic and everybody said yeah, let's keep drinking. 2023 hit and people said i'm hungover from all that drinking.

additionally, there was overstock in the supply chain. >> okay. are sales back to levels of 2019? >> that's what is happening effectively. it looks the down side looks bad, but if you look back to 2019, it's not in that far off. we're normalizing. >> we overindulged. >> wine is cyclical. 8,000 years of cyclical? >> you watch these cycles? >> since i've been in the business. it is true. ongoing and true for it. you know, it's fascinating. it's tough if you're in the business and it goes down, but it usually comes back up. there is readjustment to the point with plans where they incentivize farmers to pull vines if there is oversupply. i don't think it is that extreme. there are some great wines. >> you brought one that is non alcoholic one. >> if we have to drink wine this

early in the morning, we may as well try non alcoholic wine. it's safer. this is the leitz ein zwei. it's a clever name. >> cheers. >> cheers, everybody. >> here we go on a friday morning. >> friday morning. >> zero alcohol. because i'm a bad person, i blind tasted my mother on this at thanksgiving because she is a chardonnay to the brim. >> no alcohol? >> zero alcohol. >> that is impressive. >> she likes club pours? >> i poured it for her. she's like -- i didn't tell her this is alcohol free. >> i like it. >> this is what -- non alcoholic wine has been tough because a lot of them have been really terrible. they finally cracked the code a little bit. this is one of the first ones that tastes like athletic brew.

we wrote about it a few years back. >> i like this a lot. it's actually pretty good. how many calories? >> a lot less. alcohol is the primary. 50 calories. >> okay. winner, winner so far. >> we will not taste it. >> the reisling. >> the prosecco. people are drinking it and it is up. that's a nice bottle. it has the tiny region and if you look for that, you start to get some of the champagne level quality for half the price which is pretty cool. then i brought a couple expensive wines. >> the red? >> the red is cabernet. napa valley. and this vintage is on the

shelves now. it is super high quality. the wines are great. this is from brion. the sleeping lady vineyard in napa valley. it is $250 a bottle. if you are out to splurge and want to celebrate or propose on christmas eve -- >> this is it? >> this is your kind of thing. it's a brilliant bottle of red wine. >> that's very smooth. i don't drink red wine. that's smooth. >> lastly, champagne. i have an online story next week for top champagnes for gifting. this is bollinger grand annee. the james bond favorite. this is their top wine. i thought it would be a good end of year toast to you guys. >> cheers. >> cheers. >> this is 250? >> 250. >> hold on one second. >> i can't tell with champagne.

>> i'm not a big champagne drinker. i think i like the red wine and the white wine better. >> it's your choice. high-end red. >> non-alcoholic one. that's actually pretty good. >> for 20 bucks. >> it blew me away the first time i tried it. i tried so many bad non-alcoholic wines. they got it. they figured it out finally. pretty cool. >> ray, we always love seeing you, first of all, and celebrating the end of the year and the choices you bring us. we appreciate it. >> i'm glad you enjoy it. >> how long? >> we have been doing it a long time. 15 years. >> i thought you said 8,000. >> i have been in the wine business 8,000 years. i will say wine ages you well. >> soft reserve. >> if you put orange juice in this, will alarms go off? >> a red light flashes in champagne. they send in guys with masks to take it away.

>> thank you. happy holidays. coming up, after a tough year, starbucks baristas will reportedly receive smaller raises now. details next. as we head to break, here say is a look at yesterday's s&p 500 winners and losers. tax smart investing today, helps to build a stronger tomorrow. at pgim custom harvest, our unique direct indexing approach

seeks to help investors achieve better after-tax outcomes. pgim investments. shaping tomorrow, today

good morning. welcome back to "squawk box" live from the nasdaq market site in times square. checking the futures this morning. we have the green especially on the nasdaq up 157 points. pay increases for many starbucks baristas will shrink this year. bloomberg reports raises from 2% to 3% depending on seniority. that is down from a year ago. the smaller pay reflects a rough year marked by lower traffic and falling sales. new ceo brian niccol has a plan to revive revenue.

and the largest u.s. distribute or of wine and spiri which favored large chains over mom and pops. the ftc said they deprived smaller businesses from discounts and rebates. southern glaser is the tenth large of the privately held company in the united states. $26 billion in sales in 2023 to retail customers. ftc ina khan bringing the claims under that act in 30 years. the 1936 law was meant to prevent price scrimination. two voted against the law, one being andrew ferguson. now in a dissenting statement,

he said it is likely to succeed on a cost justification defense. he said he had not send sufficient evidence to show more than a slight harm to competition. of course, the big issue in this case as in most cases like this, you know, if you're a big retail outlet like walmart or costco, you are able to get much greater discounts from wholewholesalers. it is interesting to see how this case moves forward. in the meantime, elon musk posting a letter on x from his long-time lawyers saying the s.e.c. has pressured musk to agree to a settlement or face charges on numerous counts. that letter addressed to out going chair gary gensler did not explain the charges the s.e.c. was focused on, but the s.e.c. reopened the investigation into neuro link this week. the agency is investigating if musk was involved in securities

fraud. the s.e.c. charged cantor fitzgerald with laws violating to regulatory disclosures for blank check companies before raising money from the public. at issue, the s.e.c. found cantor funded two spac companies before discussions with the potential merger targets before the initial public offer. cantor agreed to settle by paying $6.75 million civil penalty and not to violate the securities laws at issue. the firm did not admit or deny the charges. the spokesperson said no investor was ever harmed by the issues described in that order. cantor ceo howard lutnick is the co-chair of the transition team and his pick to be the next commerce secretary. coming up, harvard's arthur

brooks will weigh in on many issues, including the backlash against healthcare companies and anger in america following the murder of the unitedhealthcare executive last week. "squawk box" will be right back.

the murder of unitedhealthcare executive brian thompson has highlighted the public anger directed at the healthcare industry in the u.s. joining us is harvard university's arthur brooks. he is a columnist for the and particular atlantic. thanks for joining us. >> good morning. >> we all had experiences, i think, with insurance companies, not just health insurance. one of the things i have thought insurance companies do when you finally use them for something you have been paying for for

years, sometimes they cancel you. you finally put in a claim. we know it's a tough business to some extent. we understand that. when it comes to your health, that, that ratchets up the anger and what happens. normally, something like this isn't the outcome. my question, arthur, is if it was just a person that apparently had some serious pain and maybe there are drugs involved and obviously, unbalanced -- an unbalanced individual, it's the response to it that is so discouraging, disappointing and infuriating. is that just another example of social media or do we suck now as a society? >> i appreciate that. it was disheartening to see you

all drink wine at 6:30 in the morning. >> becky was guzzling wine that wasn't wine. >> non-alcoholic. >> that's good. >> crazy since then. >> it didn't start with that. >> the schedules you keep, it is already 3:00 in the afternoon. >> that's right. >> to answer your question, this is the internetization of all of the things we have. americans are capable of keeping two ideas in their minds. number one, healthcare is a disaster for most people and the experience they have of it in the country. we don't have a free market system. we don't have price transparency. we have crazy regulations. this is an expensive and frustrating experience for the needs of most americans. we know that. the second thing is an innocent guy was gunned down in broad daylight in the biggest city in america. a man was assassinated in broad

daylight in new york city and he was completely innocent. most persons can hold these things apart from each other. the problem is the social media wants to conflate helps things because the pathology of social media says as elizabeth warren said it's a warning. it's not a warning. it's a murder is what it is. the fact that i am frustrated by my healthcare insurance potentially, has nothing to do with the fact this innocent guy got killed. >> that's just one of the things that's happened, arthur. after the election and president-elect trump is not president yet, we're in kind of other than this mess, we're in kind of a sweet spot in terms of the possibility, maybe, for the country coming together. i think it's efemoral and transitory. after january 20th, some of the tough things happening after

that, we'll just go right back to the bickering. i wish we wouldn't. >> yeah. >> it seems we passed the rubicon with large parts of the country. >> the problem here is we have too many market incentives to drive people apart in the country. too much of the political establishment and media establishment. especially social media is monetized to have us fighting with each other constantly. finding any wedge. that's the problem. you know what -- what's that? >> it is social media. i wonder whether society has changed for the worst or -- you don't think so? >> i don't think so. the reason is because when you talk to people and they're not glued to their devices don't live this way. recall the tiny percentage of the population weighing in and making outrageous statements on social media. it can affect the broader discourse because what gets the eyeballs is the outrageous

stuff. what is happening around the kitchen table in most people's homes is not this and people can maintain the distinction between healthcare frustrations and the murder of an innocent guy. that's the really important thing to keep in mind. all of us need to work hard, however, who have a public position. all of us, we have a public opportunity to say that's wrong and this is ridiculous and use the weight we've got to make these distinctions and not fall prey to the artificial outrage going to get clicks and eyeballs and followers and frankly dollars. we are being product tiezed by out rage and people should know better. >> jimmy kimmel should not talk about baking cookies for the guy. grousing on social media and stupid memes. horrific things that happen on social media.

it's qualitatively different and quantum leap to gun someone down in cold blood. >> totally. the interesting thing about this, it's important to keep in mind that in reality, social media doesn't exist. when you turn it sideways, you can't see it. when you turn it off, it goes away. this is something that the human brain is not tomed to perceive. we see something in front of us and assume it is real as an actual human being in bodily form. it's not the case. >> arthur, let me ask you this, i've been preaching, joe and becky and we all agree very much that this sort of inspired by conversation is deeply troubling. that's not to say there shouldn't be a conversation about healthcare and all that world. the context, it seems like a terrible incentive system, if you will. having said that and we can decide whether social media is fake or not. a lot of response that i've

gotten over the past week to sort of this kind of message is andrew, you are missing the boat. you don't see it which is to say that actually, and i've heard this over and over, violence and protests and all of this and they put the violence and protests together, they say is what creates change. what i deeply worry about is that actually two or three or four years from now, we may actually look back at this moment and if there is change in the healthcare industry, people will point to this and that will be a terrible lesson in some regard. >> yeah. i suppose that's what senator warren meant when she said that's a warning. i don't think that's what we will take from this. i think this is a signal not of something to come about how much we hate the healthcare industry in the united states. i think it is an example of the radicalism that has crept into the fringe of american politics

and how much we hate it. we will look back at this and assassination of a law abiding citizen who ran a legal company. that's an example of how bad things got. this could be the beginning of something better, not the beginning of something worse to come. it is in our hands. we have to interpret it in the right way and be ompletely morally clear about what this is. >> we are not getting help from college presidents. there's not much of a leap from marching with a palestinian gear on your head and saying deaths to the jews or from river to the sea. not much of a difference or leap from that to actually hurting someone. >> what i'm hoping, joe, is this. there's a lot of radicalism on the internet on college campuses, look wherever you want. that's not the mainstream of american politics or american public opinion. >> arthur, it's -- it's a problem. there are thousands of people,

there were. it's quieted down. >> when you see a murder -- this is the tipping point. violence is always the tipping point. what we need to rebell against is activist radicalism. that's what we need to rebell against. activist is destroying this country. i think that things like this which defy the morality of the vast majority of americans can actually start to instigate change. let's use this moment to reflect on what is happening and how we're being twisted and manipulated by social media. go ahead. >> late night comics or people that, you know, for some reason think it's okay to sort of normalize what happened are really part -- it lowers the bar for everyone. it's totally unacceptable. >> they're absolutely part of the problem because that's a cheap laugh.

that's an applause line that you can actually get from your studio audience or whatever it happens to be. we have the responsibility to guide the culture to something better. let us tip to something better. more ony and get on with the business of raising our families and having a great country. >> you think trump can unite this country? >> i'm sure hoping so. i don't think it is just trump. the enemy is not within. we have a lot of enemies in the world, but not our fellow americans. >> i wish you could break even. i don't think you can break even. i think it will stay as bad as it is and no hope for uniting. i hope it doesn't get worse after january 20th. >> i hope so, too. when things have gotten worst, never count us out. america always has a better future ahead. that's why everybody still wants to come to this country because the best is always in our

future. >> that's one of our problems. too many people want to come here and we're going to be dealing with it on juaanry 20th. thanks, arthur. >> thanks. >> "squawk box" will be right back.

welcome back to "squawk." alphabet raising the price of the streaming plan. that's a 14% hike. forubscribers, it kicks in on january 13th. the company citing rising content costs. it aligns with the cost of youtube tv.

let me just say, i'm a homer, it's 100% worth it. 100% worth it. >> you can get a bundle with that. >> it's awesome. coming up, shares of tesla up nearly 70% since donald trump was elected as president. we will talk that move with an analyst. you don't want to miss it right after this. >> announcer: executive edge is sponsored by at&t business. next level moments need the next level network. deadline in fi! finished and sent. [sending swoosh] we have tight turnarounds. at&t business helps us deliver. okay! client wants his head bigger. wow, fast response. sent! okay, oop! even bigger. sent. [sending swoosh, notification alert] still bigger. okay, yeah i'm not doing that— [typing noises, sending swoosh] i think it still looks good! [notification alert] oh — even bigger.

♪ (animatronic santa) ho, ho, ho! (vo) time to move? make it easy with opendoor. sell your home in any season, for any reason. (animatronic santa) look at me! i am festive! (vo) start your move at opendoor.com (holiday music) a puppy! everyone loves to find surprising presents

under the tree. i love him! and weathertech gifts are always special too. vehicles are protected with laser measured floorliners for the front and middle... plus a cargo liner for the rear... and seat protector for furry messes. and with the pet feeding system he'll eat safely his entire life. add a cupfone to make sure the phone is secure while driving. find these american made gifts or get a gift card instantly at wt.com. the global injectable drug market, including high demand glp-1 weight loss drugs,

is projected to hit $800 billion by 2025. lexaria bioscience is breaking down barriers with a patented technology that enhances bloodstream absorption. and the best part? it's an oral delivery platform. as an innovator in drug delivery, lexaria bioscience has partnered with a global pharmaceutical company. invest in the future with lexaria bioscience. welcome back to "squawk." it's just before 7:00 on the east coast. i'm andrew ross sorkin along with joe kernen and becky quick. it is exactly 6:59 keeping score

at home. amazon founder jeff bezos plans to visit president-elect trump at marmg. ahead the "wall street journal" reporting amount planning a $1 million donation that matches a commitment from mark zuckerberg this week and imagine we're going to see more of this over the next several weeks. meantime a warehouse club costco rorpgtsed earnings of $4.04, revenue beat expectations and on the call costco's cfo saying customers that remain selective with purchases shown they are willing to spend some of the areas they're willing to spend on, jewelry, luggage and furniture, especially strong in the quarter. the whole thing was kind of flat. check out shares of servicetitan. this after its 42% pop yesterday after its ipo was the first major vc-backed ipo since april. shares closed at $101 per share giving it a market cap of just

under $9 billion. it's a service app for contractors. to new survey data how americans are feeling about some of the policies from president-elect trump's campaign. steve liesman joins us right now and he's got the results of the all american economic survey. >> good morning, becky. americans say they're ready to support president-elect trump in a second term and majorities giving a grain light to some of his promises on the campaign trail. on some parts of the trump agenda the public seems less sure. 54% are prepared to support president-elect trump, while 41% say they are not up 5 points. a bit less support on net but still a majority at the outset. 60% say sending the million to the border to stop drug and human trafficking should be a priority for the administration. for total support folks add the yellow and blue line together, i'm talking about what people think should be a priority here.

59% want cutting individual taxes at the top of the agenda. 50% support cutting government spending as a priority with 41% for increased oil and drilling. you get somewhat less support on the other set of issues here. cutting business taxes only 35% say it should be a priority. reducing business regulations, 35%. raising tariffs close to not having a majority anymore. tariffs not polling well. compared to the other issues. pardoning january 6th people convicted 26% say it's a priority and that goes below 50% on the majority you don't have a majority on that at all. the most polarizing issues. hope you understand it, basically the blue folks are the democrats on the left and what they think about it, the red folks the republicans on the right, the yellow dots the independents and in the middle the biggest gap between

democrats and republicans, increasing deportations. 67% spread between dems and the gop. sending the military to the border 59% spread, drilling for oil another spread, cutting government spending. you know, look at where you are on that, becky, andrew. are you a yellow dot, blue dot or red dot? >> i'm not sure i understand this. it's taking me time. >> the support of either democrats, republicans, or independents. >> less than 20% -- less than a 15% of democrats support that. but close to 50% of independents. >> right. >> close to 80% of republicans. >> exactly. >> support it. >> the increasing deportations looks like the most polarizing but looks like it has the most support if you go back to your first chart, which you didn't mention that one. i think it was something you overlooked. something that was received 45% of people saying it was a priority increasing deportations. if we go back to that first

chart. >> i don't know if they can go back to it on the wall. go back to in a second. americans overall are more upbeat about the economic outlook for the second term presidency than they were the first one. 51% expect their personal financial situation to improve. 10 points higher than when he was elected in 2016. 51% say they expect the u.s. economy to improve up 5 points from 2016. at the same time the percentage thinking they're going to be worse off went up. it's a little more polarizing here. people know what they think about donald trump as he comes into office. >> they've had one term to check him out, eight years of knowing him in public office, so -- and you also have a very polarized political situation at this point where people are set in their views. but a majority of people looking to kind of support some of the big initiatives he campaigned on. >> it is -- it's pretty interesting. the democrat opposition to all of this is a little bit less than you would think. >> yeah. >> for example, now remember we asked a narrow question about

the military -- >> they lost so -- >> but the military to the border to stop human and drug trafficking. we didn't say military to go round up undocumented immigrants. that might have been more controversial. i think it was only 50% of democrats oppose that. >> yeah. >> so it's pretty interesting. he's got to get congress for a lot of this stuff talking about this morning the bank dederegulation stuff that's congress. we'll see where congress stands. some he needs congress for some he doesn't. starts off with pretty good support for the intended he campaigned on. >> thank you. meantime take a look at shares of tesla because they are now trading near an all-time high. they're up nearly 70% since the november election. it makes elon musk not just the richest man in the world but maybe becoming a trillionaire at some point. dan flat, senior research analyst with us this morning. does the move in your mind make sense and if so, how do you

explain it? >> good morning, andrew. i think the market clearly has an impact from elon musk's close relationship and growing relationship with donald trump. i think what the market will focus on, though, over the next year is really their ability to drive better unit sales in the core auto business, bring out a lower priced car. if you can bring out a lower priced automobile, that helps to drive demand in that price -- in that segment of the market. so what we'll have to see how this evolves. i think what will matter most to the stock is a growth of units. i think trump -- excuse me musk will play an important role, but it's going to come down to the performance of the business more than anything else in my view. >> you know, we were talking just earlier this week about the fact that gm is effectively shuttered the cruz project is not what it was supposed to be, and so now you have tesla and you have waymo. does that -- i mean do you say they're the winners of this

whole game and everybody else falls to the wayside? >> i think it's a much bigger story than that. i think what you have here is really this transformation of the automobile industry, new business models. i think waymo having taken rides in waymos, i think it's a very compelling experience. i think uber has a very important role here to play. their network lining up supply and demand i think remains valuable. i think you'll see partnerships between them and other players. i think tesla, with their capabilities around full self-driving, those will get better and better. ultimately, though, it's about creating value or customers. it's about creating new profit pools. gm will, obviously, continue to focus on its core business. they have an important role to play in the business, but when i look out i see opportunities for several players. >> but at these kind of valuations for tesla, what has to go -- i mean everything hases

to go right, but what has to happen in your imagination? because it requires to some degree a real vision to look out to make these numbers even, you know, to justify what's happened with this price >> i think you need to see very strong growth in the auto business. i think you need to see a new low-cost car, ultimately a lower cost platform. you need to see growth in a lot of other geographies. when i looked for opportunities across the broader tech space, i think, for example, alphabet stands out as an interesting buy right here at current levels, given the health of core search and their cloud business. i think amazon is very attractive here given the performance of e-commerce. so we see other opportunities besides tesla which i think we'll have to see how that one plays out. >> dan, we'll leave it there. thank you, sir. happy holidays. >> thank you. up next, the battle for

financial services committee chair is over, and we're going to hear from the winner incoming congressman french hill, wow, joining us next. kind of a dark horse when we had him on last week. must have been whipping some people like they do, like they say, in a good way. "squawk box" will be right back. at t. rowe price, we help advisors move forward by building agile etfs designed to outperform the index. that's the power of curiosity. better questions can lead to better solutions. t. rowe price. invest with confidence. ♪♪ [children playing] easy guys. easy.

hey guys, come on, time to eat. time to eat. ♪♪ i don't want this. i want corndogs! [children chanting] corndogs! corndogs! corndogs! ♪♪ i need another corndog! hive digital technologies is a first mover in the crypto space. combining sustainable bitcoin mining, strong asset holdings

and a focus on ai and high performance computing data centers join hive in driving digital innovation. hive digital technologies. where can nfl fans get a great deal that turns christmas day computing data centers join into game day?g x marks the spot. the nfl is streaming christmas day games exclusively on netflix, and you don't want to miss a moment. gather round the game because nothing says holidays like family and football. now xfinity customers can add streamsaver

including netflix, peacock, and apple tv+ for just $15 a month. stuff your stockings with tons of entertainment and tons of savings. bring on the good stuff. xfinity. welcome back to "squawk box." the race to elect a new chairman is over, after speculation our next guest is going to be the

leader, wealds the most influence over bank and bank regulators. joining us is congressman french hill. good morning to you, congressman. congratulations on this new rule. i want to understand, if you were to lay out top three priorities from your perspective now that you're in the top spot, what are they? >> andrew, great to be with you and joe. i think first, we want to look back at the trouble it is that started a bank or maintain a high quality return on equity and attract capital into the commercial banking business and the dearth of companies that have gone public. a couple weeks ago in baron's, i read the wilshire 5,000 our broadest index in the american publicly traded companies only has 3,700 companies in it because it's become so hard and so expensive to become public, companies are staying private longer and becoming much, much

larger before they decide to go public. i think that discriminates against small entrepreneurs and makes it harder for families and 401(k) and union pension plans to have more investment options. issue one, let's make community banking and commercial banking competitive again, removing some of the calcification and regulatory system that's made it so hard to be profitable, serve customers and be safe and sound and remove the barnacles on the ship of state when it comes to capital formation and make it easier to go public and stay public in a more affordable way, to make returns for your shareholders. >> where does that priority lie relative to your support, for example, for crypto? >> yeah. well i'd say the third one, you asked for three, i wanted to stop and give you a chance to talk -- >> thank you. >> the third one is digital assets. we need a market structure for digital assets. we don't have rules of the road. under chairman gensler we had regulation by enforcement.

this is not helping america succeed, not helping technological advance, innovation for web 3, use of blockchain in publicly traded companies and financial services. that is the top priority for us. our majority leader steve scalise has it on his first 100 days of the house is to move a regulatory structure bill for digital assets, and i also believe a dollar back payment stable coin for under u.s. law as well. >> do you believe in a bitcoin reserve? >> you know, i don't really -- i have to say i was -- i know cynthia loomis from wyoming heard her give her speech at the bitcoin conference in nashville. i understand why some people are attracted to that. i'd have to think long and hard about what value of that is to the united states or the treasury, but i am certain of this, that we need a fair-minded, fit for purpose regulatory structure for digital assets in this country. >> so you mentioned your top

priority or maybe we were going through the list of three, but i think we might have skipped over number two. >> well, i said capital formation on the publicly traded space under the sec. that's two. yeah. the banking issue is for banks of all sizes. the biden/harris administration got away from tailoring, which is to say, had the right regulatory approach for the right risk and institution based on complexity and they've gone to much more one-size-fits-all. >> broadly speaking, do you believe we have too many banks in america? it's almost sacrilegious to say because we care deeply about community banks and the relationship between the banking system and communities and small business, but there's also an argument to be made that, you know, on a relative basis to most countries we have more banks than just about anybody. >> well, i don't believe we have too many banks. i think the market ought to determine how many banks we need

across the country. we have counties that have no physical banking practice and while on the east and west coast people can bank on their phone and get a commercial loan on their phone, i have counties in my state where there's no cell service. there's no broadband. the idea that you're going to bank on your phone and get a loan for your start-up small business on a phone is ridiculous. we need physical distribution of financial services capabilities in many, many places in the country where we don't have them, but as i say, i think the market ought to set the financial structure of how many banks we need out there, and that's based on that return. i believe we would have a more competitive banking market if we didn't have the regulatory structure that actually pushes consolidation in the banking industry to the largest banks because nobody can cope with the regulatory burden sfwloon . >> what do you make of fin teches? if you were to spend sometimes with the ceos of the big banks it's crazy, we're being over regulated and the fintechs under regulated and they're trying to

basically do the same thing we're doing without all of the regulations that come with being a bank. you know, who is right? which should it be? >> well, i think there's -- i think in my examples, if you look at public companies why are there more private companies? because it's too expensive and painful to be a public company. if you say why are there so many big banks? because it's too expensive and painful to grow a small bank. that's all at the heart of too much overregulation and misdirected regulation that goes beyond simple safety and soundness. fin technology should be able to partner with banks in a safe and sound way and allow their knowledge of ai or fin tech applications to find new customers or serve customers better or do compliance in a more effective way. that ought to be available to small and medium sized and regional banks because that will make them more competitive, give them more options to compete with the largest banks in the country that have their own i.t. and ai departments.

>> i don't know if you saw, there was an interview that went viral in the past week and a half or so, mark andresen one of the legendary venture capitalists in silicon valley was on the joe rogan podcast and talked about what he believes is a troubling practice of what he calls debanking for certain types of people he believes along political lines or industry lines or other things like that. we've had other guests who suggested that this may not be as prevalent as, perhaps, you suggested but then there's, obviously, a real pervasive view that there's a debanking evident that we don't now about. what do you know about it and how concerned are you about it if you believe there's something happening that is -- >> right. >> -- unfair not based on credit or the idea that people will not get their money back? i think a lot of efforts that have been made rationalized or

justified have been based on aml and other issues like that >> well, for sure banks -- i was a bank ceo once, so i believe this sincerely -- banks ought to be able to do business with whoever they want to that's in the best interest of the strang and risk profile of their company. with that said it's also true we've seen evidence of government directed debanking during the obama administration. congressman blayne luke from missouri discovered that in his work on the house financial services. we found e-mails and documented evidence including legal gun sales companies and this is a fact in america if you want -- if you have a legal business under the laws of america or one of our states you ought to be able to get financial services without discrimination imposed by the government and i think that's a mistake. so we have now uncovered

evidence that once again, the bank regulators in the biden/harris administration were encouraging banks to no way, shape, or form do business with someone in the crypto space, the digital asset space. whether they were an amlbsa risk or not it was a blanket, you don't want to be doing business with these companies. you have reputational risks. mark was right to point it out. i have seen evidence and we've taken testimony in congress from the digital asset space that have said they were told to leave the bank and that that was at the urging of regulators. >> congressman, want to thank you for joining us. hope we can continue this conversation. >> you bet. great to be with you. >> this new role you're in. congratulate you on it and look forward to talking again soon. happy holidays. >> all the best. when we come back, we've got some stocks to watch ahead of the opening bell. plus, egg prices are no yoke. we've got the details after the

break. that was a dad joke. told by a mom. let's take a look at the futures this morning. you'll see the dow futures are up by 55. s&p futures up by 22. nasdaq up by 172. it's still a down week so far for both the s&p 500 and dow. we wl seile what today brings. "squawk box" will be right back.

(♪♪) (♪♪) (♪♪) everyone has goals and dreams. and everyone deserves a way to get there. wherever you're going, getting there starts here. state street invest in your future with dia, the only etf that tracks the dow. (♪♪)

egg prices are approaching record highs. there's two big reasons why this is happening. we've seen this movie before. bird flu introduced egg supply and there is a strong consumer demand right now as we get into the thick of the holiday season. christmas. i don't know. are you dyeing eggs? >> eggnog and baking. >> must be an alcohol shortage too. >> baking. lots of things. >> true. but it's not easter. >> not easter. >> one supplier says it's likely we'll soon see prices near the record highs set in january of 2023 of $4.82 a dozen for grade a eggs. i will say they're so amazing as

just nutrition and protein and everything, 4.82, even at 4.82 it's one of the best. >> from what i've told our kids when they went off to college if you're starving and don't have money always make eggs. it's protein and it's cheap. you can get those. you should figure out -- >> if you're on a dessert the island except for not being able to hard boil or cook them. >> if you have a fire you can cook them. >> the one thing. if you can have one thing, one thing. >> it's not that cheap -- >> can't be -- >> organic ones then it gets into another level. >> one food on and on. can't be krispy kreme. >> blueberries are the one thing you're supposed to eat for your brain. >> diarrhea nonstop. you need -- okay. >> presented without comment, coming up -- >> you can't eat just a bunch of fruit. >> market movers and then the ceo of logistics giants ch robbins join us after their

investor day and proposed ai and impact shipping from china. do not go anhe. quawk box" coming right back after this. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ (vo) whether your phone's broken or old, we've got you. with verizon, trade in any phone, any condition. it's your last chance to get iphone 16 pro with apple intelligence. get four, on us. on any unlimited plan. only on verizon.

♪ all right. let's get to pippa stevens. she's got a look at this morning's premarket movers. what are you seeing today? >> good morning. shares of broadcom are surging 18% making it by far the biggest premarket leader in the s&p 500. now it was a mixed q4 but the company said its ai revenue jumped around 220% on the year. ceo hock tan said broadcom is developing custom ai chips with three large cloud customers which comes after a report from the information that broadcom is partnering with apple. those shares are up about 90% on the year. uber is in the green after being named a top pick at both goldman and ever core isi heading into to 25. goldman sees 50% upside for the stock despite the looming threat of autonomous vehicles the risk-reward is compelling for companies that have lagged a

robust market environment while evercore noted an attractive valuation. riot platform building on gains after activist investors starboard value reportedly took a stake in the bitcoin miner. starboard is pushing to convert its powerful mining computers into capacity for ai data centers. the report said. despite the surge in bitcoin prices, ride stock is still down in the last month as well as down about 20% on the year. andrew? >> okay. pippa, thank you for that when we come back the ceo of logistics giant c.h. robinson joins us to talk ai and president-elect trump's tariff proposals and later vice chair robert kaplan on the fed ahead of next week's big fomc meeting. all that and more as "squawk box" comes right back after this.

freight and logistics giant c.h. robinson holding its investor day and updating investors for its outlook on what business will be like under president-elect trump. frank good morning. >> good morning, becky, joe, and andrew. >> c.h. robinson top freight mover from china finished 4.5%

higher yesterday after the giant held its investor day and released fiscal targets for 2026 well above street expectations and guiding for margin expansion and market share gains. robinson is the number one care remember in the transspecific lane that includes china, vietnam and other parts of southeast asia where many companies are shifting production. robinson moves 10% of freight from mexico to the u.s. for multinationals like microsoft, ab inbev and kimberly clark and the largest freight broker in the u.s. with 12% market share making it a key player for companies trying to work through expected or unexpected supply chain disruptions like an increase in tariffs or a strike at the east and gulfports. becky. >> thank you. stay right with us. we want to bring in someone to talk about this and more dave bozeman the president and ceo of c.h. robinson and it's really great to see you here. thanks for joining us. >> thanks for having me. >> this was your first investor day. you are somebody who comes with a lot of experience from other big companies, top executive at

companies like amazon, at ford, at caterpillar. you know logistics. you know ai and you've been doing a lot of that too. i think the street definitely liked what it heard from you yesterday. i guess my first question is how are you so confident about these higher than expected numbers across the board raising expectations on things like margin, things like profits for the year when there's so much uncertainty about what to think in your arena? what gives you that confidence? >> first of all, thanks for having me. there is a lot of uncertainty, becky, but we it feel confident. we feel confident because leaning into technology and ai, it's been a game changer for us, and we are revolutionizing our company but we're also trying to be a leader in the industry within ai and technology. if you look at our large language models and what our engineers are doing, it is making a game-changing change for our people. we say our strategy is our

people powered by technology. and when we take that and look out, it gives us that confidence that we will hit those numbers that we laid out yesterday. >> how much of ai is automating things for you? because that sounds like it's -- it's almost doing in spite of what your people do. this is some pretty big numbers. explain what you can do with ai. >> with ai, in our industry, if you look at life of an order it's allowing us to really take away all of those manual tasks that our people do on a day-to-day basis and they're at scale which we do 35 million shipments a year, 55,000 shipments a day. our people are doing a lot of manual processing and touching. ai has allowed us to take that, take it out of their hands and allow them to focus on solutioning, focusing on customers and getting back to

the things we're known for and opened up capacity to do that. that's why it's such a game changer. >> does it mean you need less people? how does it improve your margins? >> we need less people in certain areas where we're doing the manual tasks. we've actually gone out and invested in people when it comes to customer facing and thing like that. we've increased it. or in areas such as small and medium business segment we're investing in and feel good about. >> becky mentioned uncertainty. yesterday we saw the president-elect post something on truth social weighing in on the dispute between the dock workers and port operators in the eastern gulfports siding with the union. raising the potential of a possible strike at the east and gulf coast ports. i want to get your take, how do you view the president siding with the dock workers? i'm sure you're hearing about this dice dispute and worried it won't get resolved by january 15th? >> for us we're ocusing on our customers.

that's what we're going to do. port strikes, tariffs not the first time we've seen this. in fact, periods of kind of volatile disruption really play into the value proposition of c.h. robinson, and we certainly don't want a strike to happen for the sake of global trade, but it's something that we've been in the trenches preparing for, working with our customers for, so we don't want a strike but if it happens, we're right there to help our customers. >> what about tariffs? you seem calm and collected. the china-u.s. lane is a key part of your business and generates a lot of your revenue and margin. what about 60% tariffs on chinese goods? >> first of all we don't know what will happen with tariffs, but if they happen we are a company that moves freight, and that freight may decide to originate into a different country. if it does we're going to move the freight one way or the other and those goods will move around the world and we're prepared to do that. >> what about right now?

have you seen a pull forward? people trying to get goods in ahead of the tariffs, possibly goods ahead of a strike potentially at the east and gulf coast ports? >> we've seen that. we work with over 95,000 customers and if you recall in the first potential port strike in june, we were working with customers and driving and making their supply chains much more resilient and some of this we've seen and already prepared for. we again are preparing for that. we've seen some pull ahead, but frank, i'll tell you it's not been a really material pull ahead for customers. >> are you truly agnostic to tariffs? you could be. you're moving it one way are the other. but would you make less money if it was all on-shored? >> joe, that's the thing about it. working with the amount of customers that we're working with, you're right, the conversation has to be are goods going to stop flowing and we don't think goods are ever going to stop flowing.

>> unless we stop consuming. >> exactly. >> we don't think that's going to happen. when goods flow that's where c.h. robinson is in the mix to do that. >> how much of your stuff, how much of your revenue, i would say, comes from moving stuff from china? >> well, it's a portion of our -- of our revenue. it's going to be, you know, less than 20%. it's part of our global forwarding arm as well. a bulk of our revenues come from our freight forwarding, actually our freight brokerage here domestically. >> so stuff is moving. >> stuff is going to move. >> is it production moving to other places like vietnam? are you seeing that happen actively or india? where are you seeing the shift in production go for companies trying to mitigate the impact? >> we've seen a shift to south asia, but china is still the factory to the world and it is -- it is very large. it supplies the world. we continue to be the dominant place of shipping from china to the u.s., which as you know we

play extremely strong in that particular lane. >> dave, want to thank you so much for being here up with us today and frank, thank you. great to see you both. coming up the author of the bitcoin standard, we've talked about it so many times. >> he's here. >> not satoshi. not satoshi. he didn't author that. who knows. we don't know what that is. we'll talk about the rise in the crypto currency and the price and the economic impact. we'll be right back. etfs designed to outperform the index. that's the power of curiosity. better questions can lead to better solutions. t. rowe price. invest with confidence. the all new godaddy airo helps you get your business online in minutes with the power of ai... ...with a perfect name, a great logo, and a beautiful website. just start with a domain, a few clicks, and you're in business. make now the future at godaddy.com/airo

jen b asks, "how can i get fast download speeds while out and about?" jen, we've engineered xfinity mobile with wifi speeds up to a gig, so you can download and do much more all at once. it's an idea that's quite attractive. or... another word... -fashionable? i was gonna say- "popular! you're gonna be pop-uuuu-larrr!" can you do defying gravity?! yeah, get my harness. buy one line of unlimited, get one free for a year with xfinity mobile. and see “wicked,” in theaters now.

♪ ♪ president-elect trump did run a pro crypto campaign and his promises have helped boost digital assets. joinings now the man who wrote the bitcoin standard saifedean ammous, author of the

aforementioned book and the fiat standard, the gold standard, and the principle of economics. i owe you a lot. i got to say that. it was a kind of a revelation that i had i guess going on almost five or six years, and i know you remember almost right at the very beginning, talking about in ancient times maybe shells could be used, maybe, you know -- we didn't know how to -- how to use money. we had no idea. and eventually they figured outed a distributed ledger, if everybody on that island just kept track of what they did and everybody had access to it, you could basically create a form of money, and that's -- i think distributed ledger, when you think of it in the context of bitcoin it's that simple. blockchain. >> yes. thanks for having me, joe. yeah. i think bitcoin is continuously proving its value to more and more people. more people realize it.

as more people realize how revolutionary and important this is as a monetary technology, more people buy it and the price keeps going up. it's been going on for quite a while, and i think it's going to continue. ultimately bitcoin is a money that cannot be inflated. nobody can make more of it. there's only going to be 21 million, that's it. it's a simple fact, but it is so unique because no other form of money can credibly claim such a property, and that means that eventually everything could decline next to bitcoin because you keep making more and more of everything. >> and it gets a little bit far into the weeds, but i was looking at some of your comments here, i'm just fascinated by it, and we want to get back to the real world and what it means for people with regulatory issues and where we are in the genesis of bitcoin, but you point out that fiat, fiat money, and the monetization of debt, which

every time the government does something, it basically almost is like mining gold, except in this case, we just increase the supply of the existing money to pay for what we're doing and that's never going to work. even when you're off the gold standard, gold has a stock to flow. we can only make so much per year, produce so much per year same with bitcoin, until we hit 21 million and then there's no more produced and at that point that will be the stake in the ground to value all other currency, right? >> yeah. and i think that's really ultimately what it comes down to. the thing that made gold money, why gold became money -- >> it wasn't jewelry. everybody thinks -- that's the misunderstanding of what money is. not because you can make a nice ring out of it. there's characteristics why gold for 4,000 years has been used to represent value. >> yes. >> but it has nothing to do with what it's used for. >> it stores value well because

it's difficult to increase the supply of gold, every year the supply of gold goes up around 1.5 to 2%, so that means that people who hold it as money do well for themselves and people who hold other things don't do well. that is true for gold and that's what made gold money for the whole world practically at the beginning of the 20th century. then governments come about and they use their debt as money and since then, the average over the last 60 years or so between 1960 and 2020, for 60 years, the average fiat currency grew in supply around 14% per year or overall fiat currencies grew in supply around 14% per year. we went from 1.5% to 14%, about ten fold increase in the supply growth rate and 14% per year means that on average you lose half of the value that's stored in money over five years. >> right. >> so you lose half of the value of your money over five years. that's the average fiat experience. some currencies are better than the others.

some currencies are a lot worse and increase at 20, 50, maybe hundred sometimes percent per year. on average it's continuously increasing in supply so its value declines. because its value declines that incentivizes everybody to, a, not save, and, b, take on a lot of debt. that's why everybody is in debt and that's what bitcoin fixes. if we go back to having a hard money where money is no longer debt we no longer need to be monetizing debt, we no longer need to get everybody to become a debt slave to a v a form of money we have a form of money that is a commodity that doesn't require anybody to get into debt for it. >> stock to flow, you talked about it. we have to have you back because this could be, obviously, it could be a semester long course, but so stock to flow on gold is -- what did you say? how much is produced a year? 1 to 2% increase, right? what is bitcoin -- >> 1.5 to 2%. >> bitcoin, the stock to flow, but it halves, so that changes,

but where it is right now, what value -- >> it's a -- >> would you put on bitcoin? >> it's a 0.8% annual supply growth rate. every year for this four-year period we're going to have a 0.8% growth half of the supply rate of gold. four years after that it's going to drop to 0.4% and four years after that also drop by a half, so it's effectively heading to zero practically very soon, and the supply is not really increasing anymore. in now on anybody who wants to get bitcoin they need to ork for it. there's no way for anybody to mine it. or, you know, there's no significant mining it. that's a good thing. good thing about money that isn't easy to make is that people have to work and to do productive things in order to make it so everybody gets busy doing productive things. with easy money where governments can print money, then you don't have to work. you don't have to provide society with value. you just got to provide government with an excuse to run the money printer and give you money and who needs to work. so that's why i think we see a

lot of economic problems in the world because governments can just print money and hand it out to people who are not productive. >> what regulation, what type of regime would make sense for you and is that going to happen in this new administration? for bitcoin? >> it's difficult to tell. they seem to be very -- very positive about bitcoin. it's difficult to say how much of their agenda they're going to be getting through. i think in general, i would say if i were in a policy position the best thing policy could do about bitcoin is take a hands off approach. bitcoin is just software. it doesn't require the legal framework that is required for government money because government money is inextricably linked to government institutions and linked to the central bank and government policy and requires an entire regulatory framework. bitcoin is not like that. bitcoin is software. it regulates itself because it's voluntary software that anybody can choose to run on their computer and they can just edit

it in any way they want and choose to propose legislation -- propose changes to the software so anybody who wants to use it, so i don't think it requires the same kind of regulatory approach that fiat money requires and i think it's pretty much regulating itself through the power of software and algorithms. >> good. great to have you on finally and meet you and see you in person, and i recommend -- you don't have to even read the whole darn thing, but i finally did, but it -- the light went off early on for me, and it -- it's been a -- quite a ride for anyone that got involved. appreciate it very much. thank you. >> thank you so much for having me, joe. >> okay. coming up, u.s. president-elect donald trump inviting the chinese president to his inauguration. will the move help relations between washington and beijing? that is the question we're going to try to answer in just a bit.

as we head to a break, a look of shares of apple. morgan stanley naming the tech giant a top pick for 2025 saying apple intelligence will accelerate replacement cycles. "squawk box" is coming right back. the global injectable drug market, including high demand glp-1 weight loss drugs, is projected to hit $800 billion by 2025. lexaria bioscience is breaking down barriers with a patented technology that enhances bloodstream absorption. and the best part? it's an oral delivery platform. as an innovator in drug delivery, lexaria bioscience has partnered with a global pharmaceutical company. invest in the future with lexaria bioscience.

(intercom) flight deck we are go for launch! (ethan) is that the one? (janet) so much space! that open kitchen! (tanya) ...is that a walk in closet? (ethan) i want those tiles! (intercom) boosters engaged. (ethan) wait! we've got a problem!

(janet) problem?! (ethan) how can you sell your house when we're stuck on a space station for months???!!! (tanya) no, no! bad timing, janet!!! (janet) but that was the one!!!! (brian) no, no, no... opendoor!! (tanya) don't open the door. (brian) opendoor gives you the flexibility to sell and buy on your timeline. (all) really? (brian) yea!!! (intercom) we have liftoff. (janet) nice! (janet) houston we have a playroom! with dexcom g7, managing your diabetes just got easier. so, what's your glucose number right now? good thing you don't need to fingerstick. how's all that food affect your glucose? oh, the answers on your phone. what if you're heading low at night? [phone beeps] wow, it can alert you?! and you can even track your goals. manage your diabetes with confidence with dexcom g7. the most accurate cgm. ♪♪ learn more at dexcom.com

president-elect donald trump inviting xi jinping to his inauguration according to a transition spokesperson signaling potentially we'll see a thawing of relations between washington and beijing. the question of the morning. eunice is here in studio at the table no less to tell us about what is going on and what it all pourteneds. what do you think -- portends. what do you think? >> the state media is not reporting that there's been any invitation. i think it's difficult to see president xi coming here for the inauguration because it's not a situation that he can control. he would risk potentially being humiliated, looking like he's number two, looking as though he's not -- not infallible, that he's fallible, which is something that the communist party now does not like to portray. at the same time, the chinese i

think wouldn't want to be seen as not cooperating. so likely there would be a senior official who would come, and that they would want to send that message of cooperation not only to the trump administration but to the people back home to show that china is acting like this -- >> do you think that president-elect donald trump, if he invited him knowing that he wouldn't come but hoping that he gets credit for the invitation anyway? have you ever invited somebody it a dinner party hoping they don't come, but hoping they're happy that you invited them anyway? >> so he could mark it. >> so he could mark it and more importantly so they could go back later and say we're pals, i invited you to my dinner party. >> right. >> i know you couldn't make it. you live across the world, but you know, we're -- you know -- >> i think it's possible. but this is the issue now when it comes to china policy. in china circles people are confused about what trump's actual china policy is going to

be. so on the one hand he nominates china hawks like representative mike waltz as nsa. >> or marco rubio. >> right. or marco rubio. you look at marco rubio, he's sanctioned by china. he's the pick for secretary of state. at the same time then you have an inhavation for -- invitation for president xi to come. >> and purdue being named as ambassador to china. >> right. he has -- >> dealings and understands china from all the imports that he's done. >> absolutely. and then you could throw in elon musk. he has a sizable business. it all adds up to a lot of unpredictability. from what i understand, the trump administration sees unpredictability in their favor for the negotiations. >> china doesn't particularly care for unpredictability, right? >> yes, exactly. they don't like unpredictability. but you know, so they see it as favor. at the same time, it could be also leading to miscalculation depending on what happens. >> but generally speaking, do

you think that the chinese -- i'm curious what the press said after the election, they were happier that trump was the president or they were happier -- they were pushing for biden? >> there's -- >> kamala harris -- >> there's a lot of uncertainty. i was asked many times bytivity government officials what is going to happen over the next several months. >> right. >> people just don't really know. and the -- they see that on maybe on the trade side that there are going to be tariffs coming in. in terms of policy, trump has messaged before that he is willing to negotiate on taiwan, for example. >> right. >> but is he really? because he has mike waltz or a marco rubio who are very hard line. so people just don't know what's going to happen. and that leads to -- >> do you think taiwan's on the table? >> i'm not -- >> is that a view inside that if the chinese want to take taiwan they can? >> there's a hard-line belief that if trump is amenable to it

that maybe the chinese should go in, that xi jinping hould go for that. at the same time it would be so -- disruptive to the economy, to china. because of the economic situation, china doesn't need that level of disruption. >> another negotiating question which has to do with the idea that all of these tariffs and everything is a grand negotiation. >> right. >> how much leverage do you have -- how much leverage does president trump have if everybody knows that it's a negotiation? do you see what i'm saying? >> i do. >> if you thought he was going to do these things and wanted to do them, that's a different posture than it's a negotiation because the negotiation suggests that in a perfect world you prefer not to do any of these things. >> my question has been what is a negotiation for, what's in the grand bargain? do you want the chinese to stop violating intellectual property rights, stop stealing corporate secrets, stop with hacking, stop with subsidies?

because when it comes -- i feel that since the first term has become more evident the chinese government wants to make sure they have dominance and they are -- have national security in place. more than growth, so then what are you negotiating? >> final question, tiktok. >> yes. >> has that become a chess piece in this story which is to -- which is to say that it actually is supposed to stop -- i shouldn't say stop working, stop being updated through the app stores, literally the day before i believe the inauguration. >> yeah. >> do you believe that is something significant and material to president xi? >> well, jeff yass is seen as somebody who is much more amenable to having tiktok survive. so i think there is a hope that because of the influence that he would have on president trump that the chinese would be able to have tiktok survive here.

>> thank you. appreciate it. >> before you go, i'd like to invite you to a dinner party tonight at my house. i know it's not china, but new jersey might as well be, right? >> she knows we can't make it. she gets credit for the invitation. >> i can make it. >> now i'm in trouble. >> you know what, i'll take my drum over to your yard. >> we can go out and take pictures in the backyard. >> i'd ride it over. >> thank you. great to see you. all right. it is just after 8:00 a.m. on the east coast. and you are watching "squawk box" here on cnbc. i'm becky quick with -- >> i want alcoholic wine. >> i've got a bottle of nonalcoholic right here. literally grabbed it. that's when i'm taking home. >> like an oxymoron. >> tasted pretty good. among top stories, shares of service titan popped 42% yesterday in the first major vc-backed ipo since april. service titan raised about $625

million in its nasdaq debut, selling shares at $71 apiece. that was well above the expected range. shares actually closed the day at $101 a share. that gives the company a market cap of just under $9 billion. you saw the two gentlemen here ahead of that ipo yesterday. they got a pretty compelling story, and the street seems to think so, too. alphabet's youtube tv is raising the price of its streaming plan by $10 a month to $82.99 a month, a 14% hike. for new subscribers, the change takes effect immediately. it kicks in for existing subscribers on january 13th. the company citing rising content cost for the change in price. and amazon er jeff bezos is planning to visit president-elect donald trump next week at mar-a-lago. ahead of the visit the "wall street journal" reports that amazon is planning a $1 million donation to trump's inaugural fund. amazon also plans to stream the inauguration through its prime

video service. we'll have more on that. united health group ceo andrew witty has an essay in "the new york times" published this morning. and he says the company is struggling to make sense of the unconscionable murder of executive brian thompson, as well as the vitriol directed at united health colleagues who have been barraged by threats. he says in his words, we know the health system does not work as well as it should, we understand eople's frustrations with it. and he reflects on brian thompson's legacy, sharing that when colleagues propose new ideas to him, he would always ask would you want this for your own family. if not, he says that was the end of the discussion. witty ends by saying that thompson advocated ideas to make health care more affordable, more transparent, more intuitive, more compassionate, and more human, and that's the legacy that the company will

carry forward for him. i think it's good that he wrote this. i think people need to probably hear that and think about -- you know who you are. think about some of the responses that we've seen. >> brian thompson, he laid out a lot more details, personal details, about how he was raised in the same iowa farmhouse as his mom. his dad spent 40 years unloading trucks at grain elevators. and brian thompson worked farm jobs as a kid and fished in the gravel pit with his brother. bringing that kind of human -- >> it's unconscionable for anyone to -- other than absolutely condemn it for what it is -- it is unconscionable. and maybe you need take a good look at what it looks like when that happens to someone. and then the effects on his family. >> he was a father of two children. >> gunned down at -- walking in -- in the back, in the back. didn't even get to turn around

and see the guy. guy should -- he's never getting out hopefully. and i honestly wish the death penalty was still around. meantime, want to get down to new york stock exchange. mike santoli is at the new york stock exchange on a friday, friday the 13th, sir. let's hope it's maybe a little luckier than unlucky. >> yeah. and of course it's the time of year when people look for superstitions and tendencies and seasonal forces. you know, what the textbook says actually is the first half, first couple of weeks of december often is a little bit of a soft patch for a fourth-quarter rally. that's really been the case. we flattened out in the s&p 500. we got above 6,000, november 11th, we were about flat month to date. little bit down week to date. no big deal. the s&p is only down.8% from the highs of 28% or so. 27% year to date. actually tracking for an extremely rare two years in a row of 25% or more returns.

so not a lot of forward kind of pattern in terms of what happens the following year, but it's worth kind of noting that down, it's been a great two years. take a look at within the market there has been weakness. the equal weighted s&p on a month-to-date basis is down 2.5%. almost 3% off of its record high. the nasdaq 100, the old favorites, mega cap check, the winners of the first half of the year, have managed to support the index over the course of the last couple of weeks. today it looks like the market is going to try to firm up under the service. you're going to get a bounce in semis. we'll see how that proceeds from here. now, take a look at on a three-year basis -- you guys were talking about the move in tesla today. i think somebody made uber their top pick for next year. this is on a three-year base how they've come -- basis how they've come together, not quite, but of course you see how tesla was really working off this really climactic high from a few years ago and just the dramatic move here.

it's not all that's going on, but it's a lot of what's going on in terms of people figuring out how the future of mobility is going to work and who's got the edge in all different respects between these two companies, guys. >> mike, are you losing your voice? >> little bit. it's -- nothing to be concerned about. it's trying to speak over loud restaurants two nights in a row. >> all right. now you're humble bragging that you have a social life and we don't. >> i'm sort of noting that it's so unusual for me to be out two nights in a row that my voice can't handle it anymore. >> i'm glad that you're not sick. i'm glad that you have a life. >> thank you. >> amazing -- >> have a big mac both nights? >> yeah. the loudest mcdonald you ever -- mcdonald's, you were ever in. festive at times square, as you know. >> i'm having a dinner party tonight in new jersey. >> i heard. >> if you'd like to come. >> yes. >> you're invited, too, mike. >> i'll leave early. >> nonalcoholic wine, mike. stay home. >> nonalcoholic wine, and you

have to cross the bridge. i'm getting a t of takers. coming up robert caplan joins us to talk the fed's rate path. his reaction to recent inflation data and much more. later bank of america's savita subramanian says she says not 10% but 11% upside in the -- maybe it's to an actual target and they need do the math. >> by the way, i have to give credit where credit is due. dave evans helped me with my joke to invite everyone to my dinner party. very clever. >> he does that. i think he's -- sort of maybe done something differently, you know? maybe write for "daily show" or something. >> or be in front of the camera. >> or be in front of the camera. anybody can do that.

big news for mahomes! i'm switching to iphone 16 pro at t-mobile! it's built for apple intelligence. that's like peanut butter on jelly... on gold. get four iphone 16 pro on us, plus four lines for $25 bucks. what a deal. ya'll giving it away too fast t-mobile, slow down.

♪ (alarm sound) ♪ amelia, turn off alarm. amelia, weather. 70 degrees and sunny today. amelia, unlock the door. i'm afraid i can't do that, jen. ♪ (suspenseful music) ♪ why not? did you forget something? ♪ (suspenseful music) ♪ my protein shake. the future isn't scary. not investing in it is. you're so dramatic amelia. bye jen. nasdaq-100 innovators. one etf. before investing, carefully read and consider fund investment objectives, risks, charges, expenses and more in prospectus at invesco.com.

the fed meets next week and is expected to cut rates once again. but could the recent inflation

data that we've seen impact that next move? joining us now is former dallas fed president rob kaplan, now vice chairman at goldman sachs. rob, when we look at the inflation data that we got this week, i don't understand why there's 100% chance being fed into the markets on the idea that the fed's going to cut rates. why should they cut rates at this point? >> yeah, i don't think it's an easy decision. i've felt that there would be two phases in the rate cutting, and this is the end of the first phase meaning that if inflation is sticky, which i think it is, around the mid twos, the fed can probably get the fed funds rate to 4.25, 4.5. that would mean one more move this next week. inflation i think looks stuck here. there's some things better like on services. there's some things worse like on food and vehicles. so i don't think this is a no brainer at all. and i'd actually -- in many

meetings i go into with a strong point of view, if you were in my former seat i'd be going into the meeting open-minded and looking to have a debate. i think on the margin they'll probably cut -- probably go along with it. but i think we need to see demonstrable improvement in inflation from here to cut below 4.25, 4.5. so my sep would probably be in the neighborhood of two, not higher, because i want to be very cautious and deliberate after this meeting. >> i guess if you look at inflation, there's a lot of questions and a very clear argument for not cutting rates. if you look at the broader economy, it still doesn't seem like there's a great reason for cutting rates. the job market looks okay. if you look at a numbers from restoration hardware, which were out just last night, up 18% for november for orders, up 13% for the quarter that ended early december plus 30% and expecting

the full month up 20% to 22%. that shows a consumer that is building confidence in a job market that looks pretty good. >> yeah. and i think one of the factors which is going to change i think in 2025 -- and i've been saying this for last couple of years -- we've got an extraordinary level of fiscal spending going on right now. we're just finishing spending the american rescue act money which was $2 trillion over the last few years. we've got "inflation reduction act" projects, ship back projects, infrastructure projects, and i think some of this strength i think on the margin is a little bit artificial. i think one of the key things i'm going to be looking for into the ew administration is will some of these big problems, spending programs -- big programs, spending programs be stood down, will we get fiscal spending better under control, not as stimulative. i think that's why you're seeing this year hyphen strength. having -- year-end strength.

having said that there's employment on the margin, and so again -- this is not a no brainer. the market ies as high as they are i think probably people at the fed are scratching their heads on that, too. i think they'll have a real debate. >> so i mean, that's -- that's what i mean, a real debate. you've lined up a whole lot of reasons not to cut. what are the reasons to cut? >> the main reason for me is -- and i look more at levels rather than direction of cuts. at 4.25, 4.5 and its headline inflation is 2.5 or 2.6, we've got a real fed funds rate of 175, 200 basis points. i think that hire rate is necessary -- higher rate is necessary with this amount of government spending. i think if government spending and stimulus is more normalized which is being discussed, i

think we're still -- the fed is still restrictive, it's still fighting inflation even at 4.25, 4.5. but again, a lot of what has to happen in this -- not just the rate cut, i think the sep will matter, that's why i want to reduce the outlook in the sep. and in the press conference, it's very critical that jay powell cautions that we're now going to slow the pace, this is going to be more deliberate, and we need to see more improvement if we're going to act further. that press conference will matter just as much as whether they cut or not. >> is there a risk that the fed would have to do an aboutface at some point? i realize 25 basis points doesn't seem like a whole lot, but if you're running a risk of having to change your direction at some point, 25 basis points out of, you know, so far we've only seen 75 basis points cut. it's a significant portion of what would be the total 1%, 100

basis points. is there a risk to adding that extra 25 basis points that would make it so you would have to do something else down the road? some sort of an aboutface? >> yes. that's the best argument for not moving. because having to back up i think is unacceptable. if i'm at the fed, that's a mistake i cannot make. my own view on the margin is we're probably safe at 4.25, 4.5. again, i don't want to go any further. and then i want to turn my attention to seeing more progress, and i also want to turn my attention to analyzing regulatory review, government spending changes, changes in the energy ecosystem that are coming. and i want to better understand what's going to happen on tariffs, particularly if we have tough tariffs with china, i want to see an open corridor in north

america to reshoring the mexico as well as the united states. i'm going to watch that very carefully. i'd be very concerned if there were high tariffs also on mexico because that would limit -- that would limit reshoring. and i want to look at how the job market is going to be affected and work force growth is going to be affected by these deporting criminals great, sealing the border, great. i want to be careful that we don't inadvertently shrink the work force. we need work force growth. work force growth is disinflationary, one of the reasons why the fed has been able to do the cuts they've done. >> you just argued me into a point where i don't understand why they would do it at this point, except for the idea that the market's expecting it and they don't want a surprise. you know, telegraph something ahead of time that gets the market ready for the idea that it may not be a slam-dunk. >> well, so the -- let's get more granular.

we saw improvement in the service sector. i've been worried about service sector inflation. we saw a little improvement. we saw a little back up in food and vehicles, as i said. but i think they may look through that, and you do see on the margin a little bit more weakness in supply/demand versus open jobs, prime age employment. again, i would say -- you know, there's two phases this week and next week. thursday and friday is when jay powell will talk to every fomc member. if i were having that conversation with him today, i would say to him, listen, i'm concerned. i'm open-minded, i think i can go along with one more cut, but i'd be happy if we didn't move. and then we'd have a discussion, and i would go into the meeting next week with an open mind and prepared to listen. there's some meetings, again, i go into with a strong point of view. this is one where i'm torn. i don't think it's a no brainer. i think on the margin i would

expect we're probably going to cut. but i want to have a real discussion and debate. >> rob, thank you very much. robert kaplan. >> good to talk to you, becky. coming up, in the wake of the kill of the united healthcare ceo, social media has been buzzing with memes and even what looks like support for his killer. john fort joins us next to weigh in on the phenomenon. "squawk box" will be right back. with the l'or barista system. enjoy richer, bolder flavors complete with velvet smooth crema. for a satisfying moment unlike any other. business. it's not a nine-to-five proposition.

it's all day and into the night. it's all the things that keep this world turning. it's the go-tos that keep us going. the places we cheer. trust. hang out. and check in. they all choose the advanced network solutions and round the clock partnership from comcast business. powering more businesses than anyone. powering possibilities. mike santoli. ♪ because we stay agile... actively managing investments to uncover opportunities... and build etfs designed to outperform the index. that's the power of curiosity. ♪♪ better questions can lead to better solutions. t. rowe price. invest with confidence.

(woman) did i read this? t. rowe price. did i get eggs? where are my keys? (vo) don't wait while memory and thinking issues pile up. these issues may seem like normal aging but could be due to a buildup of amyloid plaques in the brain. amyloid can build up over time. the sooner you talk to your doctor, the more options you may have. visit amyloid.com for additional information.

welcome back to "squawk." the man who is a suspect in the murder of united health ceo brian thompson, united healthcare ceo brian thompson, has unmasked defenders and fans on made some channels adding to what has become a bizarre twist to this tragedy. there's a question this morning, and it is -- is this a new

cultural low, or has this been happening forever? john ford is here to weigh in. >> yeah. andrew, this is a new cultural low. the world was shocked last wednesday when a masked man shot and killed united healthcare's ceo brian thompson ten blocks north of here outside the new york hilton midtown. the game fled on an e-bike. instead of widespread condemnation of an act of wanton violence on the streets of an american city, a significant online population celebrated the killer and his looks. the health insurance industry in this country is unpopular. at times companies have denied coverage or sought to limit cost, but some at comedy central's "the daily show" on the 9th audibly booed when jon stewart announced the suspect was in custody. you get the sense that some have lost sight of the difference between watching a video game on netflix drama and real life. you can disagree with the way our health insurance system functions if you believe some of the decisions health insurance executives make are awful. this reaction to an

assassination even if just from the fringe puts society's moral compass at risk. was it socially acceptable to cheer for murder? no individual life is sacred, including your own. >> okay. but the reaction, i would argue, has been shocking. truly shocking. but is that in a way different than what we've seen before? >> well -- >> andrew? >> on the other hand, this isn't a new cultural low at all. it's a familiar moral mud hole we visit when people feel stimulated and when -- exploited and when it has a face. when o.j. simpson was acquitted, people celebrated not because he was innocent but because they were rooting against a system they thought was out to get him and them too. or further back, july 14th, 1881, a new mexico sheriff kills a fugitive and convicted murderer, but you only know sheriff pat garrett's name because you know billy the kid.

the reason why there's a legend at all, he was outlawed during the beginning of the gilded age where coal barons and cat ranchers seemed to get whatever they wanted. people enjoyed read being this gun-toting outlaw who managed to eadvantage the authorities. -- evade the authority. i'm not suggesting the united healthcare suspect is any kind of folk hero. the fact that some are trying to make him one isn't new at all. it's a familiar sign we need to get our institutions in check when america starts rooting for criminals. >> you did it. you did it. >> that was really well done. >> well done. >> truly -- >> didn't do it the way -- >> truly well done. >> thank you. >> kudos, honestly. i didn't know how it was going to go. >> when you came out, i told you there aren't two side to this. you mean, is this a new cultural low, or do we even have lower to go? that's the depressing part about it. it's hard to think -- we may have matched how low it is in the past. that's what you pointed out. >> right. >> i don't think it's possible

to go any lower. do you? >> well, if we -- >> depraved. a good word. >> if we keep getting to this low point over and over again, without addressing what it is in our institutions, what's getting us here, it's going to be a very bad thing. >> good. >> thank you, sir. >> well, thank you. and if you want to revisit both of these arguments, check out the "on the other happen" newsletter. there's the qr code or type in cnbc.com and get the full text. >> interesting stuff. we are awaiting november import price data. this has been a week of a lot of data. important data that we've gotten, too, over the course of the week. we've gotten ppi, cpi. those inflation numbers were a little hotter than the market had been anticipating especially question's ppi numbers. you're looking this morning at the futures with the dow futures right now up by about 56 points. s&p futures up by just over 25 points. the nasdaq up by almost 200 points.

and this is all coming on a week that we have seen lower moves for -- for stocks overall. if we look at the dow, it's been down six out of the last trading sessions in a row, the longest losing streak we've seen back to april. but that's still not saying a lot because we're about 2.5% from the all-time high for the dow, less than 1% for the s&p and the nasdaq. rick santelli is standing by at the cme and has the latest data. rick? >> reporter: yes. these are import prices for the month of november, also export prices. let's start out with the month o'er month import -- month-over-month import. up.1, a solid number. it follows at least up to this point anup.3, the best number going all the way back to april. if we stirrup out petroleum, it moves higher, up.2. that's back-to- back.2. solid number, as well. those are month to month. let's look at import prices year

over year. expected up 1%, they're up 1.3%. up 1.3%. that's the biggest pop on a year-over-year basis going back to up 1.7 in july. now if we look at export prices month over month, they're unchanged. we're expecting down.3. so unchanged, and export prices year over year expected to be up.3, almost triple that, up opinion.8. that's the -- .8. that's the hottest since july. it's easy to summarize. we see for the most part that these are all higher with respect to pricing both import and export. now i'm going to throw a curve ball out there. the curve ball is from the beginning of october through the end of november, and this is a november number, the dollar index went from 101 to 107.5. that is a huge move. we've had years maybe where you haven't covered 6.5-cent moves in the dollar index. that affects both import and export prices, creates more

demand because our dollar buys more. but it makes other countries a bit reluctant to sell because their currency's weak. on the other hand, on export, strong dollar means our stuff ---or exports are more expensive. so much of this actually makes sense. and finally we want to point out a couple other things very quick. becky's absolutely right, we haven't had this type of six-session drop in the equity indices since april. remember this, since last friday, one week ago, every maturity on a treasury curve has closed with a higher yield every session. and if you look at tens, 20s and 30s, longer dated, they've had a higher high yield every day since friday of last week. the shorter maturities are one day less. they're not -- a record of five, they're at four. it really makes sense that the higher interest rates are capturing investors' attention, but there may be hope, becky and joe. gdp also comes out on a month-over-month basis in the uk. they have back-to-back

negative.1, that hasn't happened since the beginning of covid. and of course we know that france has a lot of political issues. they picked a new prime minister today. but what i'm getting at is overseas especially european activity is going to be slower and most likely more rate cuts. that's going to give us a big plus on the capital flow side. back to you. >> very good, rick. thank you. savita subramanian as b of a securities joins us now. so i think what we've seen this week and you heard rick, savita, it's based on whether we've got inflation really back in the bottle. do we? >> right. >> is it? do we have it under control? >> i don't think so. >> should we be cutting? >> you know, i -- i'm not the fed, but i think that what -- where we are now is an environment where we have a real high probability of seeing a reflationary environment next year.

we just had three pro-cyclical things happen over the course of the last couple of quarters. one, profits troughed and are accelerating again. that's pro-cyclical. we've got demand recovering. we've got the market broadening. two, the fed is cutting interest rates into an accelerating growth environment which is very unusual. typically the fed is accommodative when things are slowing. this time profits picking up demonstrably. on top of that a red sweep, trump 2.0. sure there's tariff risk and aspects that are uncertain, but we have an administration in place that is pro business, anti- anti-regulation, pro-cyclical. i mean, i think it's hard to argue that we're not going to see a little bit of a reflationary cycle next year. >> i would think the only reason that the fed would be so dead set on lowering rates is that maybe there's something that

they see in the underlying economy -- >> maybe. >> like what? >> i don't know what it is. maybe a little bit of fraying in the -- >> a dual mandate. >> yeah, yeah. right. >> i don't think that the slowing economy side of that or the unemployment side of that is as much of a risk right now as the inflation side. i don't know why they do it. why am i -- why are they disagreeing with what i think? >> we are seeing a slowdown in some of the really hot measures. >> where? >> if you look at delinquencies, they're slowly risesing from super low levels. the consumer looked ultra healthy, and now they look slightly less healthy. but still great, right? so i think that a lot of these factors when you look at them just over the last couple of years, you can point to a number of macro indicators that are slowing. but they're slowing from really, really healthy kind of aggressively healthy levels. you know, again, when i look at the world i think you got to be

prepared for anything, especially a resurgence in inflation. my favorite part of the u.s. equity market -- i have one trade for you, and it is the large cap value benchmark. >> okay. >> it's very unsexy. >> high there -- >> nobody talks about it. what's that? >> can i hide there? >> it's not even a hide. this having go to be a great performer over the next cycle. if you think about it, these were companies that were deprived of capital for the last 10 to 15 years. it's energy, big financials, regulated financial companies that weren't allowed to grow. energy companies that were forced to, you know, pivot from production to cash return. so they're now healthy. they're -- i'm a -- i look at the numbers. if you look at the earnings volatility of the value benchmark versus the growth benchmark, usually growth stocks are safer and you get safer, more predictable earnings

growth. today growth stocks are riskier, and value stocks are safer. and i think it's because value did the opposite of growth. they shored up capital, cleaned up their balance sheets, these companies were basically kind of schooled by investors to cut capacity and consolidate. and today we've got this super healthy, high-quality cyclical sector with three pro-cyclical things that just happened that we mentioned earlier. i kind of feel like this is the perfect setup for large value to just really crush -- >> alashback because you wrote -- you switched to this thesis how long ago? >> six months ago. i was really excited. i mean, so far, so good. i have to say. >> is it working -- >> except for the last month. >> it's working but there's more left. >> there's a lot to go. if you look at value versus growth we've had mostly outperformance from value stocks. it pace -- pays to buy cheap

stocks. the only time it didn't work is when rates were zero and cash was worthless. who cares if i'm making free cash flow. i can just buy anything with a zero hurdle rate, borrow money for free, do a lot of crazy things. >> that is an excellent point. so if we're not going back to zero rates -- >> unless we're going to zero again, i say this is -- this ends now. yeah. >> the fed's about to stop cutting rates. maybe it makes it -- pulls it forward in terms of the thinking on it. >> yeah. >> if i were the fed and if i -- you know -- it's still being like pilleried for staying at zero for too long. and for letting inflation out of the bag. and you look at the results of the election and what it did to the biden administration, everything that they say was great that happened, but when you throw inflation in it, it like cancels almost everything out because the average wages are still down. if i knew how insidious it was to the average american, that would be front and center for me all the time.

>> controlling inflation -- >> where we are right now would not give me the confidence to cut. >> yeah, yeah. >> that would be job one. job one. not letting that come back. >> come back with a vengeance. i mean, i think that there are enough maybe counterbalances to really kind of keep inflation at bay. >> you think it's equal risk, the dual mandate? >> one could argue that we're still in that, you know, kind of environment where there's tech which is dis-inflationary, there's a.i. which is potentially going to push down wages in certain pockets of the market. >> productivity. >> productivity. >> cures our -- >> that's the theory, right? i think there are parts of the economic spectrum that could really replate quickly, especially because we've got this massive reshoring initiative and manufacturing is now happening here -- >> tax cuts and -- >> i don't know if tax cuts -- >> deportation -- >> i think tax cuts are actually dis-inflationary. >> you do?

>> yeah. because when you look at what happened -- >> the deficit widens -- >> the deficit widens, but then theoretically there's better growth. then also the last time we got -- >> the supply side or when did this happen? >> hey, i don't know. i mean, i've been doing this -- >> who did you vote for? >> long enough. we can't talk about who we voted for, joe. come on. >> you like tax cuts. >> look, i mean, last time we got tax cuts. companies basically passed that on to consumers through lower prices. it was dis-inflationary. for everything that's inflationary there's a dis-inflationary counterbalance. if we start producing lng like exporting lng again, that's dis- dis-inflationary. i don't know if we see a massive upsurge in inflation. i don't think we get stagflation. i think things are going to be okay. we're going to have a good economy, reasonable inflation, real rates are going to be positive and not too high. i mean, this is goldie blocks,

but nobody want to ad -- goldilocks, but nobody wants to admit it. >> savita subramanian. "squawk box." >> don't make me laugh -- >> how's the mouth? >> it hurts. >> laughing again. >> she didn't really -- >> thank you. >> you didn't really complain when i called you that. >> i didn't. i mean, i actually didn't hear what you said which is probably better. >> always better that way. >> that's how i usually try to operate. i try to -- >> try to fake it. >> on that note we're doing to move along. when we come back, drone sightings continue to be seen in new york and new jersey. the lastn whte oat the fbi is saying next. "squawk box" will be right back.

the fbi and department of homeland security said yesterday that they had seen no evidence that mysterious drone sightings over new jersey and adjacent areas pose a national security or public safety threat. the agencies also said they had no evidence of a foreign nexus to the drones. they said that upon review of available imagery, it appears many of the reported sightings are actually manned aircraft operating lawfully. during a hearing on wednesday, new jersey congressman jeff van drew suggested that iran was

involved in the drone flights. the pentagon denied that assertion, and yesterday the congressman accused of pentagon of lying. so no answers still to come on this. what we keep hearing from officials is we don't know what it is, but it's safe. don't worry about it. >> so strange. >> even if a couple of them are regular airplanes -- >> i'm sure some of them are -- >> we know for sure that some aren't. >> very peculiar. >> very weird. the only -- i mean, taking the optimistic viewpoint, we know what they are, we're doing this, we got some really incredible stuff happening. high-tech, top-secret stuff. and hopefully they -- that if they told us they'd have to kill us. >> that would be the own thing that would make it sense for -- >> they're clueless. like the china balloon. >> we don't know what this is, then you can't tell us if it's safe. if we know but we can't tell you what it is is a different answer. >> why can't we be riding around

on drones like that instead of sitting in traffic? that's the next thing. >> not that big. >> you could sit on top of one of those. >> not without grounding it. you could throw a couple hundred pound on it -- >> a little bit bigger. get in here quicker. >> i would like to see you riding it. coming up, the cfpb hit with a new lawsuit from the consumer bankers association. this time over its $5 overdraft fee cap. we're going to talk to cba head lindsey josohnn for the latest, that's next. (♪♪) in life, i'm reminded that it's not about the destination. it is truly about the journey. (cheering) (♪♪)

(♪♪) (♪♪) (♪♪) (♪♪)

we put our heart and spirit into the holiday season. behind every table you set, every gift you give, are local florists, farmers, bakers and makers. who grow and create with a passion. share the joy with 1-800 flowers. y'all see this, patrick mahomes is saying goodbye! patrick! patrick! people was tripping. where are you going!? he was actually saying goodbye to his old phone. i'm switching to the amazing new iphone 16 pro at t-mobile! it's the first iphone built for apple intelligence. that's like peanut butter on jelly...on gold. get four iphone 16 pro on us, ploulines for $25 bucks. and save on every plan versus the other big guys. what a deal. that's a lot if you ask me. ya'll giving away too fast t-mobile, slow down.

welcome back to "squawk box." the consumer bankers association filing a lawsuit against the consumer financial protection bureau following a ruling on limiting bank overdraft fees. follows the announcement of the lawsuit. the cfpb saying americans are, quote, sick of paying billions in junk fees. this rule is common sense and long overdue, and, quote, it's unclear why big banks are scared

to be transparent with their customers. joining us now, consumer bankers association president and ceo lindsey johnson. maybe the argument. >> thanks for having me. and i just -- you know, one, i want to say this is one of those services that is offered by banks to their customers as a courtesy. really help millions and millions of consumers meet their funding needs. if they've got an emergency funding need, if they've got a shortfall, if they just have more months at the end of their paycheck, banks are standing in the gap for them. before this administration ever took office, well before they took office, banks were innovating and competing like crazy to make the service more available and more cost friendly for consumers. since before the pandemic, starting around 2019, overdraft revenue has fallen by about 50% because banks, especially the biggest banks in the country,

are offering things like 24-hour grace periods, diminished amounts on overdraft up to $50 in some cases, which really have brought the overall number of instances where overdraft is occurring down significantly. all to the benefit of consumers, all without rules, all without regulation. so this just seemed like another political messaging talking point. >> here's the question -- do you think -- and maybe it doesn't require regulation but requires some self-regulation which is where i think you're going with this to some degree. but there still is an issue which is that there's -- in some cases, as you said, there's grace periods and the like. but there's also almost in some cases a lack of disclosure or could be made super apparent to the customer in ways that it -- there are some banks that notify you immediately. some banks won't notify you immediately. the question is whether there need to be rules of the road that are in place that everybody needs to follow. >> so one, i would just say that

banks are the most highly -- one of the most highly regulated industries in the world. and disclosures are made up front when you sign up for your bank account. you are given disclosures right then about what the fees are. oftentimes especially for debit card transactions where you're transacting for an atm or merchant, consumers required to opt in to incurring an overdraft fee if they are overcharging on their account. and they're also able to opt out any time. so having this disclosures to your point -- >> i get that -- >> is really important. >> there's some institutions which will text you and send you a note, you're in overdraft land and you have 24-hour grace period. those banks, great, right? that's very, very helpful and very clear. there are other banks that don't do that. and the question is whether they should. and yes -- >> i don't think you -- >> there's lots of language that everybody agrees to when they get a bank account these days, but most people do not read the entirety of it. i think we'd agree on thatthere

banks and 4,900 credit unions and fin tech that's compete. i think it's going to force banks as more and more of these banks follow what a lot of the leading banks have been doing. more of that competition is going to force other banks to do similar things. what this rule did not do, it didn't have anything to do with that. it was the cpb coming in, overreaching and overstepping their authority, and instituting government-set price caps on products that are offered to consumers. really not taking into account the harm that's going to come to consumers if they lose access to that important liquidity. >> so what do you think -- i know what you think right answer is. but is there an upper limit, and if there's not an upper limit, should there then be some disclosure requirement or other kind of thing that would try to help the customer, and does there need to be a framework for that? >> look, again, i think that one

of the most important things -- >> one other point which is this -- the problem is, yes, hopefully competition forces the banks to do these types of things because you'd think, okay, customers would try to go to institutions where they serve the customer better. but that doesn't really help the customer that is -- it gets in this sort of negative feedback loop and then all of a sudden his massive fees they have to pay that they didn't realize or didn't understand or didn't expect even though, yes, they signed the piece of paper. >> so i do think that consumers understand. you know, look, 76% of frequent overdrafters have said that they were denied a credit card. so then and maybe currently they don't have access to credit. we know that 26 million americans don't have access to credit. so for a lot of those individuals these banks are standing in the gap for them and offering this service, and

they're looking at their portfolio customers and trying to understand how can we offer this across the board to our broad base of customers in a way that we can still manage our risk, in a way that still is very cost, you know, hopefully cost friendly to the consumer, and again i think that this is one of these issues where the cfpb has a pretty short sound bite talking point that they can say we capped overdraft at $5. but in the end, a lot of consumers may lose access to this really important safety net. >> okay. lindsey, thank you. wish you happy holidays. talk to you soon. >> thank you very much. thank you. coming up, the final check on the markets ahead of the opening bell on wall street. plus, breaking news on buy now-pay later company affirm, and wel ge'lt that from leslie picker. that's next. we'll be right back.

good morning. two trendy areas of finance coming together in a new multibillion-dollar joint

venture. a firm just announcing its largest ever capital commitment with a new partnership with private credit firm 6 street which is investing in $4 billion worth of loans over the course of three years. sixth street will commit capital upfront for a firm to underwrite short-term installment loans. this is between 4-6 month time frames. when paid back, the capital rolls into a pot to make more loans which amount to more than $20 billion that a firm credit could extend over the life of the deal. i'm told by people familiar with the matter that there is a ramp period. they won't start selling loans until 2025. as private credit has exploded in recent years, asset managers are increasingly looking at non-bank companies that invest the capital. and these firms are opting for what they see as more efficient and diversified sources of funding that they can scale up or down based on demand from end users. paypal for example, recently announcing a similar deal this summer with kk broke up for

loans they originate in europe. the firm funding capacity has grown 130% to nearly 17 billion over the last three years and the gross merchandise volume growth for the first nine months of the year was 34% higher than last year. but still below 2022 levels. >> happy weekend, leslie and to everyone. it is friday the 13th. join us next week, squawk on the street is next! . >> when president reagan was here, he talked about putting the bear into hibernation and letting the bull run free. how does that sound? >> that is what we are going to do. >> president-elect trump with jim yesterday at the stock exchange as markets try to