What's up, Market Movers! Welcome to the podcast where we serve up a curated, snackable summary of the latest news, trends and financial models, giving you all the intel you need to make better decisions when it comes to thinking about your money, protecting your money, and building wealth. For more, visit us at MarketMoversDaily.com And now for today's update, Thursday, February 9th, 2023. Microsoft officially adds ChatGPT to Bing.
The tech giant announced they will integrate OpenAI's software into the Bing search engine, promising a new era of natural language search. Bing users can join the wait list and will soon be able to pose questions and receive direct answers in a seamless and intuitive manner. US multinationals brace for impact of a strong dollar. S&P 500 companies with more than half of their revenue coming in abroad are projected to see an 8.7% drop in Q4 earnings.
The surging dollar is taking its toll on companies that sell overseas, reducing the value of sales booked and non-dollar currencies. Warner Brothers Discovery gears up for new streaming service. In a strategic shift, Warner Brothers Discovery has decided to keep Discovery+. With increased competition and an uncertain economic environment, the company aims to retain its 20 million subscribers who might not wanna pay more for access to content.
Big Oil enjoys record breaking profits of nearly $200 billion dollars. The five big oil companies reported combined profits of $196.3 billion last year, surpassing the economic output of many nations. The energy giants are using their wealth to reward shareholders with higher dividends and share buybacks, drawing criticism from President Biden for not investing more to keep gas prices down. Uber surges on strong takeout and rides demand.
Uber reported Q4 revenue of $8.6 billion, beating analyst projections of $8.5 billion, reflecting growing consumer demand for takeout and rides despite rising inflation. Gross bookings increased 19% to $30.7 billion meeting expectations. What to watch this week... Microsoft's $69 billion Activision deal raises antitrust concerns.
The UK Competition and Markets Authority (or CMA) has voiced initial concerns that the Microsoft Activision deal could result in less competition, higher prices, fewer choices, or less innovation for UK gamers. The CMA may force the selloff of the flagship Call of Duty franchise. CVS acquires Oak Street Health for more than $10 billion. CVS is acquiring Chicago based Oak Street Health for $39 per share in cash, valued at $9.47 billion in equity.
The deal will be funded through available resources and existing financing capacity and is expected to close this year. Zoom, getting hit with a double whammy. Zoom is facing a double challenge these days. First, adjusting to the post pandemic world, and second, dealing with the impact of the uncertain global economy on some of its customers. The recent massive layoff suggests that management is not confident in a return to meaningful growth anytime soon.
The housing shortage ends in the next decade? Very few are talking about the fact that the demographics of the US were sharply positive in the 80s and 90s, and then plateaued in the 2000s and has now tanked in the 2010s and 2020s. Demographics take a long time to affect the market, so there's no visible impact today, but it'll certainly surface in the next decade. The shrinking population will eventually catch up with the supply of housing.
Maersk foresees plunge in profits as container shipping boom fades. Maersk predicts a significant drop in profits this year and a possible contraction in global trade as the pandemic driven container shipping boom comes to an end. The world's leading trade indicator expects underlying operating profits of $2 to $5 billion down from last year's record of $31 billion. And that caps off your snackable new summary for the day. But now what? What can you do with this new found intel?
How can you wield this information to protect and grow your money? The first thing you can do is head over to MarketMoversDaily.com and subscribe. Subscribing is free and it's the one thing that keeps us working for you, plus gives you the inside scoop, because let's face it, email's really where we share our best stuff. Think micro content for macro returns. Subscribe today. After that, we work for you.
Me, my partners, our board of advisors, all focused on delivering the best content to make you a better business person and a better investor. Become a Market Mover today. It's fast, easy. Just head over to MarketMoversDaily.com, drop in your email and let me and my crew go to work for you.