CNBC Business News Update - Market Close: Stocks Higer, Harris To Increase Corporate Taxes To Attack US Debt, McDonalds Impresses Some Investors 8/19/24

Episode Date: August 19, 2024

From Wall Street to Main Street, the latest on the markets and what it means for your money. Updated regularly on weekdays, featuring CNBC expert analysis and sound from top business newsmakers. Anchored and reported by CNBC's Jessica Ettinger.

I'm Jessica Ettinger, CNBC. Wall Street opens Tuesday morning after a winning start to the new week on Wall Street. A rally for stocks continues. Intraday highs for the S&P 500 index and the Nasdaq on Monday. Closing numbers, the Dow up 236 points, more than a half percent, approaching 40,900. The S&P 500 index up 54 points, just about 1%, above 5,600. And the NASDAQ was up 245 points. That was almost 1.4%. It's going to be very, very difficult to stop this market from going higher. And the reason is data is being set up to be lukewarm. Good news is good news. Bad news is bad news. But you blend those two together and you get lukewarm data overall. And this market wants to go higher. Bank of America's Chris Heisey on CNBC. No big economic data coming this week. Next week, we do get another read on inflation. Companies who shares at fresh all-time highs on

Monday include Regeneron, drug maker AbbVie, Berkshire Hathaway Class B, Bank of New York Mellon, Aflac, and T-Mobile. Gold at another record high on Monday above $2,541 an ounce. Democratic presidential hopeful Kamala Harris, the first candidate to announce a clear plan to attack the U.S. debt problem and pay for some new proposals. Raising corporate taxes. She's now endorsing a hike in the corporate tax rate to 28%. That is, NBC News reports, her first major proposal to raise revenues. It is something of a reversal for corporate America,

which has been enjoying 21% corporate rates since the Trump tax cuts. And of course, President Trump has said he will keep those in place and perhaps go farther if he can. CNBC's Eamon Javers. McDonald's poised for a comeback for investors. This is according to a note by Evercore ISI. Analysts writing that the company appears poised to recover in the back half of 2024 and 2025, writing, quote, last week's sales success with commemorative cups evidences that the brand is strong and becoming less encumbered by a poor value perception. The franchisees, which operate more than 90 percent of McDonald's locations, they'll be the ones to set the prices. And what's

key here with this national value offer that they've had for more than a month now is that McDonald's is definitely on a pause right now in terms of price hikes. Now they're looking for ways to bring those prices down and bring customers back in. CNBC's Kate Rogers, GM making fresh job cuts. General Motors is laying off more than 1,000 salaried employees globally in its software and services division. That includes roughly 600 job cuts at GM's tech campus near Detroit. In a statement, it said the company is simplifying, quote quote for speed and excellence. CNBC's Kelly Evans. Most people try to avoid involving their insurance company after a minor car accident. About three quarters of U.S. drivers asked say they try to pay cash for repairs rather than call the insurer and risk seeing the premium go up. Almost two-thirds of those who did

file an insurance claim say they regretted it. On Tuesday's watch list, earnings are coming from Lowe's, Cody, and home builder Toll Brothers. Tuesday night, the extended deadline for the Department of Justice to decide on whether to block or approve the proposed merger of Alaska and Hawaiian Airlines. Paramount Plus raises prices Tuesday for new subscribers to the streaming service. $8 a month with a plan that includes showtime going up to $13 a month. Jessica Ettinger, CNBC. September 10th, CNBC and Boardroom

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