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First Move with Julia Chatterley
Trump and Musk Watch SpaceX Starship Launch; SpaceX's Starship Splashes Down in Indian Ocean; U.S. Officials Say Kyiv Hit Weapons Storage Facility in Russia; Trump Not Reconsidering Gaetz as A.G. pick; Trump Picks Dr. Mehmet Oz to Head Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services; D.A. Agrees to Postpones Trump's Hush Money Sentencing; 45 Pro-Democracy Figures Sentences to Prison in Hong Kong; Jimmy Lai to Take Stand in National Security Law Trial; DBS: Higher U.S. Tariffs Could Boost Profits; Rafael Nadal Plays for the Last Time. Aired 6-7p ET
Aired November 19, 2024 - 18:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[18:00:00]
JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR: -- with none other than Will Ferrell, a whole lot more online, more than a hundred items and experiences. Check them out at
ebay.com/hfot. ebay.com/hfot. That's Homes For Our Troops. The auction is open for two more days until Thursday at noon Eastern. The news continues
now on CNN with Wolf Blitzer in The situation. And I'll see you tomorrow.
JULIA CHATTERLEY, CNN ANCHOR, FIRST MOVE: It's 7:00 a.m. in Hong Kong, 5:00 p.m. in Texas and 6:00 p.m. here in New York. I'm Julia Chatterley.
And wherever you are in the world, this is your "First Move."
And a warm welcome to "First Move." And here's today's need to know. Starship success. Donald Trump joins Elon Musk for a SpaceX rocket launch,
though no catching of the booster this time around. Missile move. Ukraine striking inside Russia with America-made longer-range weaponry, according
to U.S. officials. Democracy denied. Forty-five convicted activists will serve prison time in Hong Kong. And tears and tributes. It's the end of an
era as tennis legend Rafa Nadal plays for the last time for a home crowd. All that and plenty more coming up.
But first, you are watching the return of the SpaceX Starship on its sixth test flight. It's due to splashdown in the next few minutes. And Elon Musk
hopes one day it will be used, of course, to send humans to Mars. You are looking at live pictures that we see at this moment of re-entry.
Now, there's SpaceX has warned that they're using older sunshields. So, we could see these screens go black at any moment if we do see some form of
breakup of the Starship on re-entry, but for now, watching those images and seeing those images is good news as we await splashdown.
About an hour ago though, the Starship launched on top of a super heavy booster, making it the world's most powerful rocket. The booster is
designed to be caught in the launch tower's chopstick arms. But as I mentioned, that didn't happen this time around. We'll investigate why, and
we'll hope to hear more answers. Instead, it splashed down in the Gulf of Mexico.
Now, also in Texas, the launch was watched by both President-Elect Trump and Elon Musk, who's playing a key role in the incoming administration.
Tariq Malik is the editor-in-chief of Space.com, and he joins me now.
Tariq, fantastic to have you with us. You were just tearing me in my Amateur way described, I think, what we were seeing. Just talk to the
pictures that our viewers are seeing now as we await the starship to re- enter and splash down in the Indian Ocean.
TARIQ MALIK, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, SPACE.COM: No, I think you hit the nail on the head. This is a very exciting mission. It's the sixth test flight. What
we're seeing now is live video via SpaceX's Starlink internet service from their Starship ship vehicle itself showing, you know, what looked like, you
know, nice puffy clouds and mountains and stuff over the -- you know, it's kind of Indian Ocean target zone. It's going to be offshore there. SpaceX
usually has a buoy waiting to try to catch it. And this is going to be their first daytime re-entry landing attempt for this vehicle itself. So,
hopefully, they're going to get some good views.
So, far, we've seen the vehicle looks like perform pretty well, including a crazy banana riding on board.
CHATTERLEY: OK. We'll talk about that in a second, but I just want to describe where we are at this moment because my understanding is we've
passed that peak re-entry, which is the most dangerous point if we're going to see some kind of breakup of Starship on the way in. And again, I'll
reiterate the star -- SpaceX had been warning that that, at least, was a possibility.
So, you can correct me again if I'm wrong, but this is good news. And I believe we're waiting for splashdown now within the next two minutes.
MALIK: That's right. This is really good news. In fact, SpaceX removed a lot of heat shielding off of -- its heat tiles off of this vehicle just to
put it through that much tougher re-entry. And it looks like it was great. And the flaps too, which had seen burn through in the past seemed to have
performed great.
CHATTERLEY: Just describe what it's probably like in the control tower at this moment over the next sort of one and a half minutes now, one minute as
we await splashdown, because -- go on. You're laughing. I know -- I'm excited myself and I'm not there.
MALIK: Yes. You know, I'm watching these live views from it. First of all, it's spectacular that we can even see live camera views from this vehicle,
something that we haven't seen of this type anywhere in the past in a test flight.
But, you know, there's teams of people on pins and needles, hoping that this is going to do it another pinpoint landing. Of course, this is the
sixth test flight, but each one is different. And each one has been getting progressively better and better, much more accurate and precise.
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Now, I think that there's a lot of excitement because this is going to be the first time they're going to see this vehicle come back down and try to
land in the ocean in the daytime. It's a really dynamic period. The spacecraft is kind of coming down like a pancake and then does this crazy
swing on the way down. We can see it moving and tipping down now as it's getting ready for that. And it's going to be a really fast motion. Then it
has to relight its engines, which they have to come back on if they're going to land successfully.
CHATTERLEY: I just -- as we watch it go through the clouds, I just want to listen in briefly to Mission Control and see what they're saying at this
moment.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: More severe flip, given the orientation. The engines will shut down prior to the water making impact and prior to the vehicle
making impact with the water.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Our ship is doing great so far. There's our engines relighting.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What a great reorientation by Starship. Wow.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All three, down to two. Into the water.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Wow. And we have ship splashed down in the Indian Ocean.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Some awesome buoy cam action here. Daylight use.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Incredible. We really pushed the limits on shipping and made it all the way back down to Earth.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I am shocked, to be honest. I think many folks are, the fact that it survived all the way through while flying. A lesser gen
heat shield is just absolutely incredible.
CHATTERLEY: I mean, I think the elation, Tariq, in their voices says absolutely everything. And I think what struck me, and it goes to the point
you were making, about the pinpoint accuracy of bringing the Starship down, and I think it applies to the super booster as well, despite the fact that
we didn't see a catch this time around again is the controlled nature of the landing that we saw there. Can you just talk to that and the excitement
clearly that we had in that room?
MALIK: Yes. You know, it is -- I mean, it is really amazing. SpaceX has had nearly a decade now of experience returning different types of rockets
back to the Earth. Their Workhorse Falcon 9 Rocket, you know, it's kind of routine now when it comes back, whether it makes a landing on an ocean
platform or a landing back on a pad in Florida or California.
And so, they've gotten a lot of experience and really refined that process. And it's clear that they've been able to scale that up to this rocket
Starship, the world's tallest, most powerful and largest rocket very built, and they have now successfully returned two of them back to Earth. They
didn't catch one, the booster, as you mentioned, they said they had an out of family or a commit criteria that wasn't really correct. They want to
prevent any damage to it.
But you could imagine in the future SpaceX putting a landing platform out there in the ocean as like a backup to catch these. And I think that may be
the next step coming up for these vehicles to try to actually catch both the Starship and its super heavy booster at one time.
CHATTERLEY: OK. Can I take you back to what you were saying about the super heavy booster? Last time, as you mentioned, we saw those chopstick
arms catch the booster like something out of the sci-fi movie. This time around, a decision was made to allow it to fall into the water, even though
it looked pretty controlled. But obviously, that -- the hope is that this will be a reusable super booster, a super heavy booster in the future. This
time around. I'm sure sea water isn't good for it, and it's now lost.
How much time did they have to make that decision to decide not to catch it in the chopsticks? And can you explain in sort of Pigeon English what led
to that decision?
MALIK: Yes. So, SpaceX has a lot of complicated systems on their launch pad called Mechazilla that has these chopstick arms to catch and kind of
squeeze the rocket as it comes back to the Earth. Similarly, the rocket itself has to have everything in really good health, all of its systems
online, all of its navigation systems connected to SpaceX's mission control and making sure that it's healthy enough to come back.
Again, this is a giant rocket. You know, they don't want it coming back, veering off course. There's towns nearby SpaceX's starbase, they want to
make sure that all of those neighborhoods, those communities are safe. And so, if any one criteria is not exactly right, then they will have to abort
and divert the spacecraft like they did today in the ocean.
They don't have a lot of time like you mentioned. It's -- in fact, they cleared the rocket to come back, and it almost immediately said no. They've
got a signal from the rocket that says something isn't right. We're going to just divert back, and they had to do that.
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It is fairly automated. SpaceX has a lot of experience with that, so that the rockets can control themselves once they make that decision. And so,
they were able to just say, you know, divert, they push the button, it goes off to where it needs to go.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, because in the aftermath of this, and we were mentioning this in the introduction, the president-elect is there, there's a lot of
high-level officials. The whole world is watching for excitement, perhaps purposes for the rocket, but also, I think, for political reasons with the
president-elect and the transition and the relationship with Elon Musk as well. And perhaps a decision was made to not, if there was a slightest
chance that this wasn't going to go well, the better option would be to land it in the water and call the whole thing a success.
Do you think, Tariq, that politics came into it, or to your point, it was fairly automated?
MALIK: I think optics -- yes, it is fairly automated. But while, you know, it is good optics to not have your rocket crash into the pad, it's also a
safety issue. That's kind of the number one thing that SpaceX is looking for because they want to launch more of these. In fact, we heard during
this this launch, they want to launch up to something -- they want to build something like a 20 of these rockets a month, which just sounds crazy, you
know, launching eight of them a week. So -- or a month.
So, it just seems like they are going to massively scale this up. This is the rocket that NASA has picked to land astronauts on the moon for the
first time in the 21st century to do that. SpaceX has to launch on the order of at least a dozen or more of these flights just to get to the moon,
to refuel the rockets in space, they have to fly a lot of these.
They only have two launch pads right now at this Starbase facility where we saw the launch today. They want to make sure that those are safeguarded,
too, because if you lose one, then that does also limit what you can do testing wise in the future. So, there's a lot of options in play, but
really, it's safety of the vehicle, safety of the communities around SpaceX, and safety of their own hardware to make sure they can keep flying
again.
CHATTERLEY: Yes. I mean, it's just astonishing to see these images in daylight. That's the beauty of what we saw today is that we saw the
splashdown in daylight and glorious technicolor there. Tariq, very quickly, do you have a guesstimate of what today cost, particularly in light of the
fact that the super heavy booster wasn't captured in those chopstick arms and obviously, now has been discarded because it's at the bottom of the
Indian Ocean? What did today cost and what's it going to take? Yes.
MALIK: The price tag of these flights is really hard to parse that. Now, we do know that there have been estimates in like the billions, if not
more, and like the tens of billions for the whole starship program overall. Now, that was at a time when SpaceX was very nascent with this program.
They didn't have a lot of hardware. They hadn't done a lot of test flights.
Since then, they have done several things. First of all, they sold a couple of flights already, tourist flights, for the vehicle. People that are --
have to put down some down payments to help fund this program development. They've also got the NASA contract too, to land astronauts on the moon.
So, you know, I would expect, you know, an average SpaceX Falcon 9 launch is on the average of $55 to $60 million. This is likely in order of
magnitude beyond that over time. But they have built these at scale and they have figured out a way to mass produce these rockets.
I've been to that Starbase facility. There are towering buildings. There are many of these boosters and spaceships just sitting there waiting for
the return, and it would not surprise me if SpaceX came back after this flight with a very quick turnaround for their flight, seven test flight.
CHATTERLEY: Yes. I mean, the public sector and the NASA program would be nowhere without the private sector, and that includes SpaceX and Elon Musk.
But I'm sure he's slightly less worried about future government contracts today than perhaps he was six months ago. Tariq, great to chat to you.
MALIK: No, they are the only glue in town to beat right now.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, of course.
MALIK: In terms of crewed flight crew.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, they're trailblazing. Tariq, great to chat to you, sir. Thank you. Tariq Malik, editor-in-chief of Space.com. Thank you, sir.
Now, Ukraine has fired longer-range U.S. missiles into Russia just two days after President Biden lifted restrictions on their use. Moscow says Ukraine
fired the missiles into the Bryansk region. U.S. officials say Kyiv used them to strike a weapons arsenal. In apparent response, Vladimir Putin
updated Russia's nuclear doctrine. The Kremlin says Russia now has the right to use nuclear weapons in response to conventional attacks. This all
comes 1,000 days after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Retired U.S. Air Force Colonel Cedric Leighton joins us now. Sir, great to have you on the show. Can I just get your sense of what this means in the
scale of the war? And I know we're calling them longer-range missiles, but I know in your world they're still shorter-range. They're just longer than
perhaps Ukraine has been used up to now. What was being targeted and how much does this change what we've seen in the war up to now?
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COL. CEDRIC LEIGHTON (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST, U.S. AIR FORCE (RET.) AND FOUNDER MEMBER, CYFORIX: Yes, Julia. So, this is a very interesting
aspect of this whole move by the Biden administration to actually have these weapons, these ATACMS missiles be used in a way that would attack
Russian targets. They've used them before, the Ukrainians have used them before against Crimean targets. And that was basically it. Anything that
was occupied in Ukrainian territory, that was fair game, but now they've changed the rules and allowed them to -- in addition to that, to use these
ATACMS missiles in Russia itself.
So, what that does is it puts at risk a whole bunch of different military installations that the Russians have along the border with Ukraine. It also
puts at risk those North Koreans that are in the Kursk region poised to join the Russians and go against the Ukrainian forces that are occupying
the courts, of course, territory.
And then, the strategic implications of this, Julia, are that, in essence, what's going to happen is if these are used in concert with other weapon
systems, as the Ukrainians have indicated, then it puts at risk all of these different installations that are along the border and potentially
makes it much harder for the Russians to move their forces forward.
So, this could, in essence, stall out a potential Russian counteroffensive and potentially it could, in essence, freeze the territories that the
Ukrainians have and that the Russians have. And so, this could pave the way for negotiations at the current level right now. Now, of course, what the
Ukrainians really want to do is they want to roll back the Russians. They don't want to allow the Russians to keep the territory that they've taken,
but at least gives them an opening in a military sense and, of course, in a diplomatic sense as well.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, we've been here before with the Ukrainians trying to take back as much territory as they can to give themselves a stronger leverage
position in any future negotiation. Two days after Biden greenlighted the decision to allow the Ukrainians to use U.S. weaponry to attack inside
Russian territory, we saw Putin update his nuclear doctrine that says that any non-nuclear power in conjunction with a nuclear power, in this case,
the United States, using weaponry to attack inside Russia will be considered an act of aggression.
I mean, one can call it a bluff, but it leaves not only their president- elect in a difficult situation, but also Putin himself. Does he want to respond in kind two months before a leadership change in the United States?
Where does this decision by the current administration leave both the Russians and the next U.S. administration, never mind the Ukrainians?
LEIGHTON: Right. It certainly puts the Putin regime and the incoming Trump administration in a bit of a bind. They're both basically boxed in by this.
And the reason for that is that it limits their options. Now, there's a move -- a potential for a move forward by the Ukrainians, and it also
serves to damage the fighting capability of the Russians because of the accuracy of the ATACMS comes missiles as well as other missiles, the Storm
Shadow, the Neptune missiles and others.
So, these are the kinds of things that the Biden administration is basically doing, they're potentially forcing the hand of the Trump
administration, the incoming Trump administration, to make decisions that are more favorable to Ukraine, thus preserving the strategic balance that
the Biden administration has achieved so far. And it also helps protect the eastern flank of NATO. So, from a strategic standpoint, this is a good
thing, even though politically the Trump administration probably will not see it that way. And certainly, the Russians will find themselves at a
disadvantage in this case.
But from a NATO standpoint and from a strategic standpoint, for that alliance, it makes much more sense to put the Russians at as much risk as
possible.
CHATTERLEY: Colonel Cedric Leighton, sir, great to have you on. Thank you.
LEIGHTON: Thank you.
CHATTERLEY: Now, moments ago, we heard from Donald Trump about his controversial pick for attorney general, Matt Gaetz, telling reporters he's
not reconsidering the choice. It comes ahead of a meeting of the House Ethics Panel on Wednesday. It's set to discuss what to do with a report
expected to detail allegations of sexual misconduct against Gaetz, which he denies.
Kristen Holmes joins us now. Kristen, it comes down to What is released and how much it matters to the decisionmakers, be it senators that have to
confirm this decision or perhaps even the president-elect once he hears the details.
KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Right. I mean, I'm talking to a number of sources close to the former president, now
president-elect, to say it's very unlikely that anything in the ethics report is going to change his mind, that he has doubled down on Matt Gaetz.
He has said that this is the most important person that he believes is going to serve in his cabinet. And that, really, they could put almost
everyone else aside because they want to put all their political capital behind Matt Gaetz at this time.
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Now, this is not that surprising given the fact that for months, even before he was elected, we were reporting that Donald Trump viewed the idea
of an attorney general as the single most important job in his cabinet. Now, the fact that he has handpicked Matt Gaetz, he is 100 percent still
behind that.
Now, again, we have to see what's actually in this ethics report because Donald Trump is aware that, at this point, he does not have the votes to
get Matt Gaetz confirmed in the Senate, and that's why we have heard that he has personally been calling a number of these Republican senators trying
to lobby for Matt Gaetz, trying to get him get -- show their support for him.
But the one thing to pay attention to is that it's not just Democrats who are asking for release of this ethics report. Actually, some of these
Republican senators that Donald Trump is trying to court to get are some of the same people who are also asking to see this ethics report and saying
that it's very, very important to them to make their decision. So, again, it could come down to that.
Now, one thing just to note is that our colleagues are reporting that Vice President-Elect J. D. Vance is going to be up on the Hill meeting with some
of these Republican senators with Matt Gaetz and some of the other controversial cabinet picks, including Pete Hegseth. So, we'll see how
these in-person meetings go.
One really interesting factor here is that we were also told that Gaetz himself has been calling some of these Republicans, trying to essentially
get them to say, take a chance on me. I promise I won't let you down. Now, again, all of this is posturing how it all ends up remains to be seen. But
clearly, right now, there's a full court press on Matt Gaetz getting him confirmed and that is coupled with the fact that Donald Trump is aware
that, right now, he doesn't have the vote.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, but we should also reiterate at this stage is accusations against Gaetz as well. He's not been tried. He's not been found guilty of
anything. So, we should reiterate that at this moment as well. In the meantime, other appointments flying thick and fast. Commerce secretary,
Howard Lutnick. So, as we were saying yesterday, wasn't going to get the treasury position and we've got an education secretary potentially as well.
HOLMES: Yes. Linda McMahon, who is the other transition co-chair. So, it was Howard Lutnick, Linda McMahon, both the transition co-chairs. Now, what
was interesting is that Linda McMahon had actually been jockeying for commerce. So, there's been an entire trickledown effect from Howard Lutnick
putting his name into the ring for treasury secretary, which ended up with him at commerce. And now, Linda McMahon, we are told, is expected to be
nominated for education secretary.
They are really ticking through this and ticking through these names fast. They want to get this cabinet together. We were actually told some of these
big announcements were going to come last week, but there was such a holdup over secretary -- treasury secretary because of Howard Lutnick inserting
his name into the field that now I am told things are going to move at a faster clip again, since he is effectively out of the way at commerce.
We'll see.
But, you know, look, this transition period so far, we are only two weeks from the election and he has almost an entire cabinet named. He clearly
wants to have everything in place and have a completely different experience than what he had when he came to Washington in 2017 this time
around.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, they really want to hit the ground running. Kristen Holmes, great to have you on. Thank you.
HOLMES: Thanks.
CHATTERLEY: Now, Donald Trump is also getting a temporary reprieve in the hush money judgment against him. The Manhattan District Attorney's Office
has agreed to postpone sentencing in the case, which had been rescheduled for next week.
In a letter to the judge, the D.A.'s office said the felony conviction against the now president-elect should stand, but acknowledged that he was
unlikely to face punishment until after the end of his upcoming presidential term.
Now, straight ahead, pro-democracy publisher Jimmy Lai is expected to take the stand at his national security trial in Hong Kong. And dozens of pro-
democracy figures received multiyear prison terms. We'll report on both trials, next.
Plus, tennis tributes and tears. Rafa Nadal is defeated in what could be his last ever professional match. I look back at the King of Clay's career.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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CHATTERLEY: Welcome back to "First Move." Dozens of democracy activists in Hong Kong have been sentenced to prison. It's the largest single
prosecution to date under the Chinese Special Administrative Region's national security law. The United States condemning the ruling saying it
will restrict visas for multiple Hong Kong officials. Ivan Watson has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Judges in Hong Kong handed down a combined prison sentence of more than two centuries behind
bars. In fact, more than 245 years to 45 defendants who have been convicted of the crime of conspiracy to commit subversion. The defendants, the judges
ruled, if their scheme had been carried out to the end, the adverse consequences would have been no less serious than, quote, "overthrowing the
government."
Now, the defendants, they organized an unofficial primary election back in 2020 to prepare candidates to compete in elections for the city
legislature. And that is essentially their crime, their plot that they were convicted of. This has all but killed off the once vibrant pro-democracy
movement that thrived in this city until a crackdown that began four to five years ago with the imposition of a controversial national security
law, part of a broader crackdown that has killed off independent newspapers in this city and the protests and demonstrations that were once tolerated
and in fact allowed to participate in the streets of the city.
Outside the courtroom on Tuesday, a single woman tried to hold up a protest sign and she was quickly carried away by police to a police van. That is
symbolic of how dramatic the shift in political culture has been over the last four to five years. Critics of the crackdown and of this sentencing
include human rights groups, as well as the U.S. consulate here, which has condemned the sentencing and added the statement, quote, "We call on China
and the Hong Kong authorities to cease politically motivated prosecutions of Hong Kong citizens and to immediately release all political prisoners."
The Hong Kong government and the Chinese national government have rejected this kind of criticism, arguing that this is meddling in Hong Kong's
internal affairs. They contest that this court case has helped bring back stability to Hong Kong, which went through nearly a year of anti-government
protests in 2019 that had grown increasingly violent.
Ivan Watson, CNN, Hong Kong.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHATTERLEY: Thanks to Ivan there. Meanwhile, Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai is expected to give evidence on Wednesday for the first time since his
landmark trial began late last year. The 77-year-old faces life in prison if he's found guilty of multiple charges under the sweeping national
security legislation imposed by Beijing back in 2020. Lai's testimony could take several days. Kristie Lu Stout reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): As a father figure to Hong Kong's pro-democracy movement, Jimmy Lai has been on a collision
course with the Chinese authorities for years, but he never let that faze him.
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JIMMY LAI, APPLE DAILY FOUNDER: I think it's a good idea anytime, any situation that you are in to fight for your freedom, because without
freedom you have nothing left.
STOUT (voice-over): Last year, China's ministry of foreign affairs called him, quote, "one of the most notorious anti-China elements bent on
destabilizing Hong Kong." The former media mogul finally getting his day in court on Wednesday, taking the stand in his high-profile trial, which began
nearly a year ago. He faces a possible life sentence for multiple counts of colluding with foreign forces to endanger national security along with a
separate charge of sedition.
And for 77-year-old lie, life would most likely mean life. He has already been in custody for nearly four years. His arrest after sweeping national
security laws imposed by Beijing, which China said restored stability to Hong Kong after months of antigovernment protests in 2019.
At that time, Lai had lobbied foreign governments to apply pressure on China. But as lawyers deny that happened after the new laws came into
effect. In 2020, Lai was marched out of the offices of Apple Daily, the pro-democracy newspaper, which he founded. Today, most of Hong Kong's
political opposition have either fled the territory or are in prison like Lai who after a lifetime of speaking up for democratic freedoms may be
getting his final chance to speak publicly before spending the rest of his days behind bars.
Kristie Lu Stout, CNN, Hong Kong.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHATTERLEY: Thanks to Kristie there. Now, still ahead, no stress, DBS, Singapore's biggest bank, out with robust third quarter results, and it
sees a silver lining potentially from higher Trump tariffs. We'll hear from the bank's CEO next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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CHATTERLEY: Welcome back to a tension filled Tuesday on Wall Street. Topping today's Money Move. U.S. Stocks ending the day mixed with solid
gains. However, for tech, the NASDAQ and S&P clawing back early session losses tied to news of Ukraine's longer-range missile launch.
The largest U.S. retailer, meanwhile, Walmart was a winner. Shares up 3 percent on strong earnings and guidance. Walmart's, however, warning it
might be forced to raise prices on some products if new Trump tariffs take effect. Home improvement retailer Lowe's also warning on tariffs during the
session. Of course, that's what they're going to be asked about a lot over the coming months.
Green in Asia. Stocks getting a boost after China's vice premier delivered investor friendly comments at a Hong Kong Financial Summit. He said he's in
favor of strengthening Hong Kong's Financial competitiveness.
Meanwhile, Asian bank giants are trying to figure out how their business will fare in the next Trump administration. Less restrictive U.S.
regulation could lead to more U.S. banking deals with Asians firms, but the threat of higher tariffs remains a wild card. Now, despite the uncertainty,
Southeast Asia's biggest bank, DBS, believes there's an upside potentially to Trump's return. It says Trump's policies could stoke U.S. inflation and
lead to fewer fed rate cuts, which could ultimately end up boosting profits.
DBS, which is based in Singapore, recently posted record net earnings for the third quarter, but it did warn 2025 results could take a hit due to a
change in corporate tax rates. Much to discuss. And I'm very excited to say DBS CEO Piyush Gupta joins us from Singapore. Welcome to the show, sir. An
early good morning. I appreciate your time. Congrats on solid results for the third quarter. Tell me what you're seeing from the broader region and
what your expectations are as we push into 2025.
PIYUSH GUPTA, CEO, DBA BANK: Well, you know, the future is always hard to predict like (INAUDIBLE). There are two sources of uncertainty. One is
China and the impact of that in the broader region. I think the recent stimulus policies have put the floor, which is helpful. But the turnaround,
i.e., strong growth in China remains to be seen.
And therefore, for much of Asia, a lot will depend on the U.S. and Europe, but U.S. In particular, because Asia, the export engines, continue to be
heavily reliant on western demand. And therefore, the real question is what happens with the new administration and the impact of the new policies. I
think, you know, there's some positives in the short-term, deregulation and cutting of tariffs might stoke the U.S. economy that might be beneficial
all around. But the picture is a little bit more uncertain as you look further out.
CHATTERLEY: I mean, those two things ultimately are tied too, Piyush, if we do see, and there is a general consensus building here that we will see
further tariffs on China by the United States, we may see some kind of reciprocal measures. How worried are you by, firstly, what you're already
seeing in China in terms of the economy, because, certainly, we seem to be underwhelmed by the level of support that both the monetary and the fiscal
authorities are suggesting they're going to provide in China.
GUPTA: So, I guess there are two parts to that question. The first is the tariffs directly. And I think it's instructive that the tariffs are not
new. The tariffs have been in place since the Trump first administration, so it's eight years. And if you really look under the hood, the trade
balances haven't changed all that much. China's state services continue to increase.
And so, unless, you know, you wind up 60 percent across the board nuclear, I think the region will find a way to navigate through that. In fact, for
the rest of Southeast Asia, tariffs on China have been helpful in the last four or five years, the supply chains have shifted into Indonesia,
Thailand, Malaysia et cetera, et cetera. So, that's, you know, uncertain, but could be somewhat beneficial to the region.
The other question is the extent of the stimulus in China and, you know, without a shadow of doubt, it's not enough to turn the economy around in
the short-term. But I'm contrary and I'm in the camp that I think they should be measured about the steps they take. In 2010, when they, you know,
shot a bazooka and threw the everything at it, the downside effect of that lasted several years. So, I do think they're somewhat sensible in being
measured to the steps that they take.
CHATTERLEY: Yes. So, history can perhaps help guide future policy and should always be considered in terms of the impact as well. I do want to
talk to you about the fact that you announced earlier this year, and this is the first time we've had a chance to talk about it, that you're going to
step down next year as CEO and pave the way for the bank's first female CEO to take the helm. It's sort of a huge moment for you personally, because,
you know, I know you well, and you're just getting warmed up, quite frankly, so I'm excited to see what you do next.
[18:40:00]
But you have had many achievements, I think, at the bank over the years, including the sort of digital transformation that you've also led. Why does
now feel like the right time to hand over the reins?
GUPTA: Well, you know, you can always question when is the right time? But for me, you've got to have a plan for your life. And I wanted to make sure
I left enough time for the other things that I enjoy, nature, wildlife, education. And so, some of the appointments that I have taken will give me
hopefully a chance to get into all that.
But equally, within the bank, I think we've come a long way. Sushant's been with me for 15 plus years. She's done everything, every part of the bank.
The bank has got a culture and a way of working, which I think is fairly stable. So, I think this is a good time to pass the baton on to the next
generation. And I'm fairly confident that the team we have in place will take us to even better heights.
We talked about our digital transformation. That's obviously been well acknowledged. In recent years, our forays into artificial intelligence have
been extremely, extremely beneficial to the bank. And we've got a number of things, focused in the fire in areas like tokenization and digitalization
of asset. So, I do think that we have enough tailwind. And so, this is a good time to be able to make this move.
CHATTERLEY: Yes. And you have five more months as well. So, we're going to speak to you again before you go. But very quickly, any wisdom, leadership
wisdom to others that inspire to achieve what you've achieved in leading an organization like this, whether it's small or large, a leadership advice?
GUPTA: The fundamentals of leadership don't change, Julia. It's about, you know, strategy and so on. But I have learned the wisdom of Peter Drucker's
famous saying, culture eats strategy for breakfast. And create the right culture, you can create the right way of working. That's what is going to
give you competitive advantage in the years to come.
You know, the pace of change is so much that you can't really make a call on what to do, but you can certainly make a call on how you want to be
adaptive and nimble, and that's what we should focus on.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, culture gives you longevity. Piyush, we'll speak again soon. Thank you so much and congrats again on a great quarter. The CEO of
PBS Bank.
GUPTA: Thanks.
CHATTERLEY: Thank you, sir. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHATTERLEY: We Brits do love talking about our weather. And in today's Weather Move, parts of the U.S. West Coast are preparing for a once in a
decade bomb cyclone.
[18:45:00]
The extreme storm system is expected to bring hurricane like winds as well as a month's worth of rain. Forecasters warn some areas of California will
be at high risk of flooding. Chad Myers is at the World's Weather Center for us. Chad, I just wish we could talk about sunshine, not too extreme
sunshine one day, but no, you're going to talk to me about rain. Tell us what's coming.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: We never get to talk about San Diego either because the weather's always like perfect. We can't talk about that. Have
to be something else. Literally the equivalent of a Category 3 hurricane in the Pacific Ocean here west of Seattle. Good news is it's not going to make
landfall. But I wouldn't want to be a mariner on a cargo ship that just left Seattle on the way to Shanghai. That would not be any fun because the
waves are 60 feet, almost. 20 meters.
Bombogenesis. No, it's not some social media thing. It's been around since the '80s. And in fact, there's even talk that it's been around since like
World War II, talking about how the big storms kind of generated there across parts of the northern coast of Normandy and how the forecasters were
watching those during World War II.
Rapidly intensifying storms, 24 millibars in 24 hours. This has gone way beyond that, like 50 millibars in 24 hours. And it's attached to an
atmospheric river, a Category 4 out of 5 atmospheric river, which means all of the moisture from the subtropical pacific is coming on shore in
California and also into Oregon, Washington, and even some rain up into British Columbia as well.
But there will be places that will pick up 20 inches of rainfall, half a meter of rain along the coast of California. Now, the good news is it
hasn't been wet. It's been, in fact, very dry. So, maybe some of this will actually soak in and not run off like sometimes you can see what happens
with 20 inches of rain.
We still have a high risk on Thursday of that flood, and that flash flood watch now already in effect for Northern California. Not only that, but
it's going to snow, likely two meters, six feet or so, and blizzard warnings where it is going to blow. The good news is, at least for now,
this storm system is going to make wind and it's going to make rain, it's going to make snow, but it's not going to come on shore as a Category 3
hurricane. It's going to stay offshore and literally die.
So, yes, we get all the things, we get all the wind and all the rain, but landfall. See how they're just spinning around each other. It's called
Fujiwara effect. But anyway, I digress. That is the area that's still going to see wind, but not the intense wind, not the intense tree destruction if
that storm just came right on shore and barreled right on land, because that's just going to spin out there and eventually kind of go downhill,
kind of lose some power by the weekend. Julia.
CHATTERLEY: Fujiwara. I'm just taking notes.
MYERS: Fujiwara. Did.
CHATTERLEY: Bombogenesis. I learn things every day. Chad, if you're watching from San Diego, congrats.
MYERS: Storm out there for you
CHATTERLEY: You really are. Chad Myers, thank you, sir.
Next, a maestro takes his curtain call. Rafael Nadal takes part in the final tournament of his astonishing career. That's next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[18:50:00]
CHATTERLEY: Welcome back to "First Move," where we're bidding farewell to a legend. Rafael Nadal's tennis career is officially over. After Spain's
elimination from the Davis Cup, they lost to the Netherlands 2-1. Nadal, a winner of 22 Grand Slam titles, said this would be his last tournament.
Don Riddell has more on an emotional night. And that is what it is. It's the end of an era, Don. Truly.
DON RIDDELL, CNN WORLD SPORT: Yes, for sure. I mean, an emotional night for his fans, his friends, his family, and of course for Rafa Nadal
himself, Julia. Even though, I mean, he knew it was coming to an end this week and he said he had no regrets about it. He's 38 years of age. He
hasn't played competitively for some three months. He knows that his body just cannot do it anymore.
We knew that he was going to retire this week, but we just didn't know upon which night because if Spain had kept going in the Davis Cup, if they'd
beaten the Netherlands and gone through to the semifinals, then we wouldn't have been doing all of this tonight. But in the end, it was just too much
for Nadal and for his team. He played in the first match today and he lost that in straight sets. His teammate, Carlos Alcaraz, then did his best to
keep the thing going. Alcaraz won his singles match. It meant it went to a doubles match.
And of course, by this point, Nadal is just a helpless spectator on the sidelines, hoping that the young men that he inspired to play the game
could keep his country and his team in it and prolong his career Just for a couple more days, but in the end, that wasn't possible. Spain lost the
decisive doubles match. So, they are out.
And we've just been watching a really emotional powerful retirement ceremony. Of course, Nadal has been reflecting on his career. He's been
shown a video of all his incredible career highlights. Some of the all-time greats, of which he is one, have been speaking to him on that video. We've
heard from Roger Federer, Serena Williams, Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray, football stars Andre Iniesta and David Beckham as well.
And he's been watching back on everything that he's achieved, of course. The remarkable and a record never to be beaten, I'm sure, 14 French Open
titles. He won Wimbledon twice, the Australian Open twice, the U.S. Open four times. He won a couple of gold medals at the Olympics. He was at the
top of his game pretty much for 20 years. It is absolutely remarkable. And he was very, very much a member of the big three, the three players who
dominated men's tennis for the best part of two decades.
Now, two of them have retired. Of course, Federer retired a couple of years ago. He retired with Nadal by his side. They played together in the Levis
Cup. They cried together on the side of the court. Federer retired, now no doubt retired. Only Djokovic is left standing. It is the end of an era, but
all good things have to come to an end. But it is very sad and emotional for so many people.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, I love the Nike advert that they released ahead of this debut, it only takes everything. I think they would all agree with that.
RIDDELL: He gave everything, yes.
CHATTERLEY: Yes. Don, great to have you. Thank you. Don Riddell there. All right. Turning now to the artwork that fans and critics can all agree is
utterly bananas. Just take a look at this. Sotheby's is set to auction off this conceptual, we'll call it something, art piece called Comedian on
Wednesday night. It is, no joke, expected to fetch as much as $1.5 million. It's one of more than 1,600 lot set to be auctioned off this week, I love
this week, in what is being called a crucial test of investor demand. Vanessa Yurkevich has more.
VANESSA YURKEVICH, CNN BUSINESS AND POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Julia. $1 billion worth of artwork is going to hit the auctions this week,
right here in New York City. And the industry is hoping for some big money after a lackluster 2023. And they're hoping that Trump's election win will
help boost sales.
Last year, sales for high-end art dropped by 27 percent from the year before. And art experts say the average amount spent on that art dropped by
32 percent year over year. So, this year's sales at the auctions could also be a test for how the wealthy are feeling about the economy, both present
and the future. And analysts say that Trump's win could spur sales because, one, Trump's policies in his first term helped the wealthy get wealthier.
And those are the same people that are shopping at these auctions. Also, lower interest rates means financing becomes easier and tax breaks for the
wealthy means more money to spend.
So, coming to the art auction this week, comedian also referred to as the duct-taped banana, which originally sold for $120,000 in 2019, could fetch
up to $1.5 million. Disclaimer, unlimited bananas are not included. Empire of Light by Rene Magritte is expected to sell for $95 million. That's a new
record for artist.
[18:55:00]
And Andy Warhol's Skyscraper is estimated to sell for at least $500,000. Interesting tidbit there. It was originally commissioned by President-Elect
Donald Trump who ended up not liking it. So, maybe that'll go for a little more money, if people want to buy a piece of the drama too. And if last
night's sales indicate what is to come, it could be a big week. One of Monet's Water Lilies went for $65.5 million, $5.5 million above estimates,
and Le Grand Dam, the Catwoman sold for $11.4 million. Julia, twice what people were expecting. Julia.
CHATTERLEY: I know who's having the last laugh with that comedian piece and it's most definitely the artist and not the buyer. That just about
wraps up the show. Thank you for joining us. I'll see you tomorrow.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:00:00]
END
