WSJ What’s News - The Manhunt Continues for Charlie Kirk’s Shooter

Starting point is 00:00:00 The search continues for the person who shot Charlie Kirk. Plus, inflation and jobs data pull the Fed in opposing directions. The numbers really show the dilemma that the Fed is up against because on the one hand, inflation's well above the Fed's 2% target. On the other hand, the labor market's weakening at the same time. And a mining mega deal is banking on a craze for copper. It's Thursday, September 11th. I'm Alex Oslov for the Wall Street Journal.

Starting point is 00:00:30 This is the PM edition of What's News, the top headlines and business stories that move the world today. A manhunt is underway for the person who shot conservative activist Charlie Kirk. This afternoon, the Utah Department of Public Safety postponed a scheduled news briefing, quote, due to the rapid developments in our investigation. The Federal Bureau of Investigation has shared images of a person of interest in connection to yesterday's fatal shooting. A spokesman for the Utah Department of Public Safety said this afternoon that no one was currently in custody related to the shooting. Authorities believe the suspect is of college age, and the FBI is offering a reward of up to $100,000 for information related to the shooting. In a press conference earlier today, FBI Special Agent in Charge Robert Bowles said that investigators have recovered a high-powered rifle they suspect was used in the shooting.

Starting point is 00:01:24 That rifle was recovered in a wooded area where the shooter had fled. The FBI laboratory will be analyzing this weapon. Investigators have also collected footwear impression, a palm print, and forearm imprints for analysis. According to an internal law enforcement bulletin and a person familiar with the investigation, the authorities also found ammunition inside the rifle engraved with transgender and anti-fascist ideology. Wall Street Journal reporter Jim Carlton is on the ground in Orem, Utah, and joins me now. Jim, what's the latest on the search for the shooter? The man hunt is on. It is exhaustive. They are looking everywhere.

Starting point is 00:02:04 And I've got to say, it's a pretty big search. You can see the size of this place. I'm right across the street from Utah Valley University now. And you can see police, FBI, you name it. Every law enforcement agency you can think of or there. But you look at the work at the killer of gone. I'm looking at the Rocky Mountains. They could disappear in the mountains. There's freeways. So who knows? It's like a needle in the haystack. What's the mood and the vibe around there? I'm going to call it surreal. I mean, that's the word I keep hearing, just surreal. I'm here to McDonald, and I ask the manager, oh, so how's the mood here after these shootings? And there was a young couple looked at me and said, your reporter says, yeah. And the woman started bawling. She says, we witnessed the shooting and it's terrible. We're trying to distract ourselves, and we're trying to go back to normal, but it's just impossible. She actually saw Charlie Kirk get killed and kind of die in front of her, she thinks. And I keep hearing that time and time again.

Starting point is 00:02:54 And among the students of the university itself, I see that classes are canceled until Monday. Even for students who weren't actually at the event, how are they feeling? It's just shaking this place like an earthquake. Orum, Utah, it's like 90,000 people, very low crime rate, manicured lawn. There's American flags in commemoration on 9-11. It's a very Americana community. It's a very, very peaceful town. They come from California, and maybe it's a bit more expected, something like that there, but I mean, not here.

Starting point is 00:03:22 That was WSJ reporter Jim Carleton. Thanks so much, Jim. You about. For more on this developing story, check out our live blog on WSJ.com. We'll leave a link in the show notes. Meanwhile, President Trump's team has begun putting tighter security measures in place following Kirk's killing. Trump blamed the radical left for political violence and promised action against those responsible. Democrats have condemned the blunt language used by the president. The Labor Department said today that consumer prices were up 2.9% in August from a year earlier,

Starting point is 00:03:59 returning inflation to its highest level since the start of the year. But in line with expectations from forecasters, prices excluding food and energy categories, the so-called core measure economists watch in an effort to better capture inflation's underlying trend, rose 3.1% over the past 12 months, also matching forecasts. Meanwhile, the number of Americans who filed for initial unemployment benefits jumped last week, hitting the highest level since October 2021. In the week through September 6, jobless claims filings rose to 263,000. That's up from 236,000 a week earlier, and higher than economists were expecting. I'm joined now by Matt Grossman, who covers economics for the journal.

Starting point is 00:04:40 Matt, I want to talk about those joblessness claims because they did surprise economists. Why are we seeing this shift higher? This is a trend that economists had been hoping they wouldn't see pretty much all summer. The labor market was showing some concerning signs, mostly in the sense that hiring had been pretty slow. On the other hand, the good news was that it seemed like most people weren't losing their jobs. Since mid-July, this jobless claims number, which really reflects people getting laid off and therefore being eligible for unemployment benefits, has been steadily rising. And this past week, we saw one of the biggest jumps in quite a while that, as you said, took the total to the highest level in about four years.

Starting point is 00:05:19 Last week, we had the non-farm payrolls report. Now we're seeing these numbers for inflation and jobless claims. What does all of this put together mean for the Fed in their meeting next week? Yeah, that's exactly right. The jobless claims data bounces around a lot, so one bad week on its own might not be that concerning. As you said, this comes in the context of now two monthly jobs reports in a row that have both showed much slower hiring than we'd seen earlier in the year. The numbers really show the dilemma that the Fed is up against, because on the one hand, inflation's well above the Fed's 2% target. On the other hand, the labor market's weakening at the same time.

Starting point is 00:05:56 It seems like the balance of risks is pushing the Fed toward a September rate cut. At the moment, it seems like the consensus is going to be that things aren't quite so serious to suggest they should cut by a larger half point, as opposed to the quarter points that they usually move in. On the other hand, there are a few Fed officials who've been really adamant that the labor market is the main concern at this point. And so you might see some dissents in favor of the Fed moving a little bit faster. That was WSJ reporter, Matt Grossman. Thank you, Matt. Thank you. That final inflation reading before next week's Fed meeting reinforced sentiment that a rate cut is all but certain, pushing U.S. stocks to new records.

Starting point is 00:06:41 The Dow added about 1.4%, ending the day above 46,000 for the first time on record. The S&P 500 and the NASDAQ also closed at all-time highs, rising about 0.9% and 0.7% respectively. We're exclusively reporting that Paramount Skydance is preparing a majority cash bid for Warner Brothers Discovery that is backed by the Ellison family. That's according to people familiar with this situation. They added that the bid would be for the entire company, including its cable networks and movie studio. The scale of the potential combination could bring antitrust and regulatory scrutiny. Coming up, are the lowest mortgage rates in nearly a year enough to save the beleaguered U.S. housing market that's after the break? U.S. mortgage rates have hit.

Starting point is 00:07:39 an 11-month low. The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate fell to 6.35% this week. That's the lowest level since October and a notable drop from January when, according to Freddie Mac, rates were above 7%. That seems to be good news for the beleaguered housing market. But is it enough to turn it around? WSJ reporter Nicole Friedman is here now with more. Nicole, how good is this news? Does it change the situation in the market? Any news is good news when it comes to lower mortgage. rates because it just means that buyers can afford more home price for the same monthly payment. But that doesn't mean affordability is good. It's still a very unaffordable time to buy a home. Home prices have climbed more than 50% since 2019. And so in recent years, what's considered

Starting point is 00:08:29 a normal home cost in any market in the U.S. has soared compared to what it was just a few years ago. I'm interested in how this fits in with some other data out today, inflation and jobless claims. What does all of this mean for potential buyers? Home buyers are dealing with a lot of uncertainty right now. The cost of goods and services has risen a lot in recent years, along with the cost of homes. Everything is more expensive. And then there's a lot of uncertainty about the job market right now. And people generally don't make the huge investment if they're worried about losing their job. Taken altogether, does this look like it's going to be the rebound the housing market was hoping for?

Starting point is 00:09:11 So mortgage rates aren't at an 11-month low, but that means they were even lower than this a year ago. And the housing market did not notably rebound. Many real estate agents and bankers say we would need to see rates below six to really change the picture for a lot of buyers and make it more compelling for them to jump in. That was WSJ reporter, Nicole Friedman. Thank you, Nicole. Thank you for having me. In Brazil, a majority of Supreme Court justices found former President Jaya Bolsonaro guilty of plotting a coup to overturn the country's 2022 election.

Starting point is 00:09:48 Sending the 70-year-old Bolsonaro to jail would defy Trump's efforts to derail a case that has electrified Latin America's largest country and thrust Brazil into the center of the U.S. administration's trade war. This week's Anglo-American and Tech Resources Agreement to Merge, a $53 billion tie-up that is the mining sector's biggest deal in a decade, is a bet on the future demand for copper. Mining giant BHP, which itself tried to buy Anglo-American last year, forecasts a 70% increase in demand for the metal by 2050. Ed Ballard covers the energy transition for the journal and joins me now to discuss what's driving this demand. So, Ed, we know copper has been talked about for years for its key role in the transition to green energy. Why are we seeing this surge now in demand? Well, it's partly

Starting point is 00:10:39 artificial intelligence. That's a new driver of additional demand for copper that people weren't really thinking about just a few years ago. So each AI data center that's being built by meta, open AI, all of these companies, uses hundreds, perhaps thousands of tons of copper in some cases, and that all has to be dug out of the ground. Another relatively recent shift is the increase in defense spending around the world, thanks in part to President Trump's efforts to get other NATO countries to increase their defense budgets. And of course, America's own military spending is also rising to new record, but also countries like China and Russia, spending more money on missiles, rocket systems, bullet casings, everything needs copper. I'm curious,

Starting point is 00:11:27 what this tie up between Anglo and tech means for the sector? Definitely analysts think that there will be more M&A activity in this sector, particularly around copper. And it could even be that either tech itself or the combined company Anglo-Tech that would be created by this deal become targets for other mining companies. And that's partly because there just aren't that many really high-quality copper mines like the ones. both of these companies own in places like Chile. That was WSJ newsletter editor, Ed Ballard. Thanks, Ed Ballard. Thanks, Alex. And that's what's news for this Thursday afternoon.

Starting point is 00:12:07 Today's show is produced by Pierre Bienname and Rodney Davis, with supervising producer Michael Cosmites. I'm Alex O'Solov for The Wall Street Journal. We'll be back with the new show tomorrow morning. Thanks for listening. Thank you.

WSJ What’s News - The Manhunt Continues for Charlie Kirk’s Shooter

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