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Fed Official Hint at Smaller Rate Hikes Soon; Thanksgiving Set to Put US Consumer to the Test; First Time US Weekly Jobless Claims Jump; 2022 World Cup; "Avatar" Sequel; Dash to the Bell. Aired 3-4p ET

Aired November 23, 2022 - 15:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[15:00:26]

RAHEL SOLOMON, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Investors apparently have something to be grateful for ahead of the Thanksgiving Holiday. Taking a

look at US stocks, you can see, the Dow is up about three-tenths of a percent, the S&P half a percent, and the NASDAQ the big winner up 1.02

percent.

US stocks there getting a late session lift. That's thanks to the latest Fed Minutes.

Those are the markets and these are the main events: The era of supersized rate hikes may be ending. That is the main takeaway from the minutes of the

Fed's November policy meeting.

Violence breaks out at a major iPhone manufacturing hub in China as workers clash with police.

And as other media giants tighten their belts, James Cameron is making a $2 billion box off his bet at his new movie to light up the silver screen. An

expensive bet.

Live from New York, it is Wednesday, November 23rd. I'm Rahel Solomon, in for Richard Quest and I too, mean business.

Tonight, the era of supersized rate hikes could be over with Federal Reserve officials favoring slowing rate rises soon. That was the prevailing

view presented in the Minutes from the latest Fed meeting, the Dow surging on its release, you can see it's up about a hundred points, or three-tenths

of a percent. The S&P 500 and the NASDAQ also given an immediate boost.

So, after four straight hikes of 75 basis points, the markets expect the Fed to slow to a half percentage point rise next month. Just how big an

impact its fight against inflation has had is now being put to the test.

And the countdown to Thanksgiving, today is the biggest travel day of the year and the biggest shopping day of the year is on Friday. We are heading

into the Holiday season, apparently in a bad mood, not me, but apparently others in a bad mood.

Consumer Sentiment falling to a four-month low amid higher cost of living. We'll get to that.

Catherine Rampell is a columnist at "The Washington Post," and she joins me now from Palm Beach, Florida.

Catherine, always good to have you. Thanks for being with us.

So this news from the Fed meetings essentially slowing rate hike, maybe half a percent the next time they meet, it seems as if the Fed is finally

starting to feel like maybe we should take our foot off the brake a bit and sort of see how these interest rate hikes are really playing out in the

real economy. What are they going to be looking for?

CATHERINE RAMPELL, CNN ECONOMICS AND POLITICS COMMENTATOR: Well, I think they've already seen some encouraging news in moderation of prices, price

growth, rather, in recent months. So that is encouraging. I'm sure they'd love to see more of it, wouldn't we all? And they're trying to keep their

eye on the sort of lagged effects of decisions that they've already made in the past.

And in fact, if you look at the Fed Minutes today, you know, they're sort of opaque, but they indicate that some of the members are concerned that we

haven't yet seen the full consequence in terms of labor market effects and financial stability, and other things of the rate hikes that they've

already put into effect.

So, I think we're going to see them watching price growth going forward, as well as what happens in the labor market, what happens in financial

markets, and they will have some very difficult choices to make.

SOLOMON: And Catherine speaking of watching, you know, the next time the Fed meets, we're going to get that summary of economic projections, which

tends to get a lot of attention, right, so we'll learn sort of what Fed officials expect for the unemployment rate and for the Federal Funds Rate.

So to put this in perspective, the last time we got the summary of economic projections, the projection was for unemployment to rise to 4.4 percent in

2023, and the benchmark rate to hit 4.6 percent. Where do you think we're going to see likely the biggest revision the next time?

RAMPELL: Well, based on comments that Fed Chair Powell has made recently in public, it does seem like the so-called terminal rate, so the final rate

that they will land at, the Fed will land at after they've completed all of their hikes, maybe a little bit higher, and in part because inflation has

persisted for much longer than the Fed has believed or many of us, in fact, had projected.

So, I think we'll see some revisions there almost every recent time that these new projections have come out, they have revised their forecasts for

unemployment upward. They have revised their forecasts for inflation upward and they have revised their forecast for GDP downward, so I will be

watching a course for what all of those measures look like at their next meeting and in particular, if they have become a little bit more

pessimistic about how high unemployment needs to go, how much joblessness we need to see, where we will see, in fact, as a result of these tightening

financial conditions.

[15:05:19]

And you know, sort of the medicine that the Fed has been administering to hopefully help the patient and not kill the patient.

SOLOMON: Hopefully. And Catherine, we know one group growing more pessimistic as Americans. Consumer Sentiment souring even as investors

start to feel like apparently the light might be at the end of the tunnel.

I mean, why do you think we're seeing consumer sentiment sour again?

RAMPELL: I think it's because inflation has persisted. It's not -- you know, in in terms of year-over-year numbers, it's not quite as bad as it

had been, but we are still seeing prices go up quite a bit month after month, even if not at, you know, as big of a jump each month, as we have

seen in the past.

So consumers are just exhausted, they're financially strapped. They are coming into the Holiday season, knowing that they need to make a lot of

purchases, as they always do this time of year, and everything has gotten more expensive.

Hopefully, there will be some discounts, but they don't know it for sure that that will be the case. And you know, there is also this sort of

darkening of the global economic outlook that we may have a recession next year and the Fed obviously wants to avoid that. They've said that they can

engineer a so-called soft landing, but it does look pretty likely, or at least there is a high likelihood that there will be a recession, which

means those Americans who have been struggling with paying their bills with, you know, with higher cost of groceries, may have less income coming

and may lose their jobs altogether, and that may make people concerned, understandably.

You know, hopefully those bad scenarios don't come to pass, but I think it's reasonable for a lot of Americans to be concerned about the sort of

multiple storms heading their way.

SOLOMON: Absolutely. And certainly with these warnings from all of these executives. Catherine, I don't have much time left, but if you had to

describe this economy in just one word, how would you describe it? This economy is --

RAMPELL: Weird.

SOLOMON: Agreed.

RAMPELL: I would describe -- I mean, we get all of these conflicting signals. Is the economy good or bad? I mean, unemployment is still very,

very low, and yet people are so pessimistic. So it's a weird confusing economy.

SOLOMON: Catherine Rampell, agreed. Have a Happy Thanksgiving. Good to have you.

Catherine Rampell there.

And Thanksgiving is set to put US airlines to the test during what is expected to be the busiest Holiday travel season in years. Forty-eight

thousand flights were scheduled for Tuesday alone and up to two and a half million people are set to pass through TSA checkpoints today.

The CEO of low-cost carrier, Frontier Airlines told Julia Chatterley what he is expecting.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARRY BIFFLE, CEO, FRONTIER AIRLINES: There's going to be more people traveling this season than ever, and I think a lot of that is due to the

work-from-home kind of creating more flexibility, which enables it to be less peak-ish.

So, you know, in prior years, you know, Wednesday before and Sunday after were the peak days, and now we're seeing the outbound last almost a week in

advance and the returns as well. So, it's kind of -- it is enabling more people to travel during the Holiday season. So, lots of folks traveling.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOLOMON: And people hosting Thanksgiving feast have their own set of challenges. The turkey this year costs 25 percent more, and whether it's

pecan or pumpkin, pie ingredients are up as much as 75 percent. That is hard to even believe.

And from spending time with loved ones to spending hard-earned cash this Black Friday, many Americans traditionally turn to retail therapy at this

time of year, but with inflation up and consumer confidence down, what can we expect the retail landscape to look like this Holiday season?

Vanessa Yurkevich has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VANESSA YURKEVICH, CNN BUSINESS AND POLITICS CORRESPONDENT (voice over): On this year's Holiday shopping menu, more sales, but with a healthy side of inflation.

YURKEVICH (on camera): Cutting off your circulation.

DENISE SALLETTE, HOLIDAY SHOPPER: It is going crazy.

YURKEVICH (voice over): Denise Sallette is in the middle of her Holiday shopping at Willowbrook Mall in Wayne, New Jersey.

SALLETTE: This is for my mom, and then I got stuff for my kids and my niece and oh, my God.

YURKEVICH (voice over): But this year, the wish list is looking a little different.

Last month inflation cooled, but was still running hot at 7.7 percent year- over-year.

SALLETTE: So I've had a cut back on shopping because things are too expensive. I mean, I do have three girls, they do understand that you know

times are hard right now and it's just me being a single mom.

YURKEVICH (on camera): Despite high inflation, the National Retail Federation estimates that nearly eight million more people will shop

between Black Friday and Cyber Monday and spend up to eight percent more this year than they did last year.

MATTHEW SHAY, PRESIDENT AND CEO, NATIONAL RETAIL FEDERATION: We're looking at records in all categories. It is remarkable in the face of the cost and

the price pressures that consumers are still finding a way to increase their spending power, the economy drive economic activity.

YURKEVICH (voice over): Last month, retail sales beat expectations, up 1.3 percent in October, but this month, consumer sentiment fell. Still higher

prices haven't stopped some people from shopping.

[15:10:11]

(on camera): How has that impacted the way you're going to spend this Holiday season?

CYNTHIA PENDELTON, SHOPPER: For me? Not really because I try not to overspend anyways, so even before this is going on, I try not to exceed

what I can do.

YURKEVICH (voice over): And according to the National Retail Federation, while online sales are expected to increase this year, a return to in-store

shopping will make up a larger portion of all Holiday sales.

PENDELTON: I kind of like in person.

YURKEVICH (on camera): You do? Why is that?

PENDELTON: I don't know. It's just more of the feel of being able to touch it, being able to see it, being able to try it on for the stores that

you're allowed to, and then being amongst everybody else.

YURKEVICH (voice over): It's that Holiday nostalgia that Willowbrook Mall says will help this your shopping season return to pre-pandemic

expectations.

(on camera): Do you anticipate that inflation will play a role in how people shop? People coming to the mall?

RYAN HIDALGO, SENIOR GENERAL MANAGER, WILLOWBROOK MALL: I think people are planning better in terms of what their spend is going to be. I think

they've budgeted.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't cut back at Christmas.

YURKEVICH (on camera): How many more stores you're going to?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, maybe five more.

YURKEVICH: Five more?

YURKEVICH (voice over): Vanessa Yurkevich, CNN, Wayne, New Jersey.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SOLOMON: In the US, first time weekly jobless claims soaring to the highest level since mid-August amid signs that a tight labor market may be easing

and these tech layoffs continue. Jobless claims jumped to 240,000 in the week ending November 19th. That's up 17,000 from the week before and higher

than the 225,000 expected by economists.

Olu Sonola is the head of US Regional Economics at Fitch Ratings, and he joins me from New York.

Olu, thanks for being with us today.

So, you know, we look at the weekly jobless claims as a more real-time snapshot of what's happening in the labor market. Do you think that this

job report shows a clear sign of weakening? Or is it just noise which a lot of people say these reports sometimes can be?

OLU SONOLA, HEAD OF US REGIONAL ECONOMICS, FITCH RATINGS: Yes, they can be noise. And this is just a week -- this is just for one week. One week

really does not make a trend.

I think longer term, we have to see what the job market does. The Job Report comes out again next week. And over the next coming months, we have

to see what the data shows.

We think that the labor market will weaken from here on out and we think that you'll start to see contraction in the labor market from next year.

SOLOMON: I'm curious. Do you think that weakness will come from less demand from workers or we will actually see people start to lose their jobs?

Because as you know, Chairman Powell from the Federal Reserve has continued to say that he expects to be able to pull from the demand of workers, I

think there's about 1.9 open jobs for every American working, rather than actually create significant job loss. What do you expect?

SONOLA: We expect both to happen. We expect vacancies or job openings to come down. We also expect the unemployment rate to increase. And if you go

back in time to the 1950s, those two things always happen simultaneously.

So empirical analysis clearly shows that anytime you see job openings come down, you also see the employment rate increase as a result of slowing

demand.

SOLOMON: I think that's interesting. And so when you say you expect both, and you expect the unemployment rate to rise, for our viewers at home, we

are currently at 3.7 percent here in the US, which is still pretty low. I mean, it's still pretty low unemployment. Where do you expect that to go?

SONOLA: We see the unemployment rate ending 2023 at about 4.7 percent and peaking in 2024 at around 5.3 percent. But it's also important to put that

in context. When you look back, the recessions that we've had, we've had about 13 recessions going back to the 1950s.

The unemployment rate typically increases by about four percent, so this time around, we're looking at a one-and-a-half percent rate increase, which

is relatively mild once you put it in that historical context.

SOLOMON: It is mild, and that's actually one of the more optimistic forecasts that I've actually seen when I look at the different bank

forecasts.

Olu, one thing that has been so puzzling about this labor market is the lack of supply of workers. I mean, I think we're still off about four

million workers compared to before the pandemic. When do you see that improving? And how does that improve? Where do we get the workers from?

SONOLA: This supply factor is a long standing issue. We've seen -- you know, going back ten, fifteen years, it's been a structural decline in the

participation rate, in the labor force participation rate, and that was the pandemic came in and basically led to a lot of excess retirements, so there

were many more people that left the workforce as a result and you've also seen much lower immigration over time.

So what we've seen is the pandemic act excess retirements. So, there were many more people that left the workforce as a result, and you've also seen

much lower immigration over time.

[15:15:07]

So, what we've seen is the pandemic accelerated a trend that was already entrenched, and in terms of looking forward as to where the workers would

come from, supply is going to be very tight. We have an ageing workforce, baby boomers are aging and they are retiring en masse, and so what you're

likely to see is going forward, supply will remain generally tight.

So from a Fed standpoint, the tool that they have cannot affect supply. It can really only affect demand.

SOLOMON: It certainly can't, but I'm sure Powell would certainly like some help on the supply side, and it doesn't seem like he is going to get it at

least not in the near term.

Olu Sonola, good to have you. I'm sorry, go on.

SONOLA: Thank you very much.

No, I just wanted to agree with you that it's very, very unlikely we'll see supply get better over the near term.

SOLOMON: Olu Sonola, thanks for being with us. Have a Happy Thanksgiving.

Coming up, sorry doesn't seem to be the hardest word for FTX's founder as he apologizes for the firm's collapse. But what about the massive amounts

of missing money? The latest on the stunning crypto collapse ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SOLOMON: The UN Security Council is set to meet in the next hour in response to a massive wave of Russian airstrikes across Ukraine. Take a

look.

This was the scene in Kyiv after a deadly strike on a home. Officials say at least seven people were killed in and around the capital. Russian

missiles also destroyed a maternity hospital in the Zaporizhzhia region.

Ukraine's emergency services say that that attack killed a newborn baby. The country's Energy Ministry says that the latest strikes have left a vast

majority of Ukrainians without power and it warns that heat and water might also be affected.

CNN's Matthew Chance is standing by in Odesa. Matthew, good to have you.

So you know, I can't help but notice how dark it is behind you there in Odesa. It just feels like with every wave of missile strikes, it is

becoming more and more of a national crisis for Ukraine.

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It is. I mean it's total blackout here in Odesa, which is one of Ukraine's biggest cities, of

course. People have generators so they can turn them on whenever they want, diesel-powered ones to provide whatever they can for their houses, but

nationwide, I mean, this is a massive problem.

Public transport is on and off. There is no real electricity supply. These permanent power cuts that are becoming increasingly common and on a daily

basis, just at the time when demand for energy is at its highest, because it's just -- you probably got made this out, it's just starting to snow

here. Much of the rest of the country is already covered by its first blanket of snow for the winter.

[15:20:20]

And temperatures, of course, are plunging, potentially below freezing as well, and so that's when people, of course, need to stay warm and you know,

need more lights, of course. And it's at this time within that context that Russia is apparently stepping up its bombardment of energy infrastructure

facilities, really making it difficult for the Ukrainian authorities to keep that power flowing, although they say they're doing what they can.

There have been some terrible incidents over the course of the past 24 hours of strikes in the Kyiv region around the capital as well, killing or

injuring dozens of people. An apartment block was struck with a Russian missile. So there were scenes of chaos in that area as well.

Also in Zaporizhzhia, you mentioned this already, a maternity ward was struck by a Russian missile as well were very tragic consequences. A doctor

and a mother were pulled from the rubble alive, but the two-day-old baby inside died, unfortunately, and so that's yet another sort of catastrophe

in the ongoing disaster in terms of the human cost of this conflict -- Rahel.

SOLOMON: Absolutely tragic, as you say there, Matthew. You know, the last time you and I spoke, we talked about the warnings for people in Kherson

who are still without power to leave if they can to go to other parts of Ukraine where there is power. And yet it seems like with each passing day,

as these missile strikes continue that their options and options for Ukrainians are becoming more and more limited.

CHANCE: Well, there is nowhere really people can go to escape power cuts altogether, but in places like Kherson, which have been very severely

affected, and power is much more intermittent than it is in other places. And so, people in that city, which was recently liberated, of course, by

the Ukrainian military, are being encouraged to move to different areas just to alleviate the situation specifically on that city even though the

other areas that they're being told to go to like places like Odesa, they are not, as I said, necessarily have got full power.

You know, some officials have gone even further than that. A senior energy official in the country yesterday saying that people who've got the option

of moving outside of Ukraine, people with the means to do that should do that, because that would decrease the burden of the energy providers in the

country as well, particularly during these very difficult dark cold winter months -- Rahel.

SOLOMON: Matthew Chance, live for us tonight in Odesa. Matthew, thank you.

An update on a story from last night's QUEST MEANS BUSINESS.

The German government disputes with Prime Minister -- former Prime Minister Boris Johnson told CNN about the build up to the war in Ukraine. In an

exclusive interview with our Richard Quest, the former UK Prime Minister said the German view was that it would be better for Ukraine to fold rather

than become embroiled in a long war.

Well, a spokesperson for the German government rejected that claim outright, he said: "We know that the very entertaining former Prime

Minister always has a unique relationship with the truth. This case is no exception."

Meanwhile, in China, violence has erupted at the world's largest iPhone assembly factory in Central China. You are looking at social media videos

of workers protesting at the Foxconn plant in Zhengzhou seem confronting police in hazmat suits.

Foxconn has been of course wrestling with major disruptions at its plants for weeks amid China's strict Zero COVID Policy. Selina Wang has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SELINA WANG, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The chaos at Apple's largest iPhone assembly factory in Central China is getting worse. Videos show

hundreds of workers streaming out of their factory dorms, protesting and clashing with police. Many of the law enforcement workers are wearing white

hazmat suits.

The footage which has now been censored from Chinese social media shows some of the protesters complaining about their pay and poor sanitary

conditions.

This follows weeks of turmoil at this factory in Zhengzhou, China. After a COVID outbreak at the factory in mid-October, workers have been complaining

about subpar food and living conditions.

Viral videos have shown masses of workers fleeing the factory, walking miles along highways to escape COVID restrictions. But Foxconn desperately

needs workers especially ahead of this critical Holiday season.

So Foxconn said it would give a one-time bonus equivalent to $69.00 if workers who left chose to return. It also said it would offer new workers a

salary of $4.00 per hour.

Just last week, Foxconn said more than 100,000 people signed up for its massive recruitment drive, but in this recent footage, workers are heard

saying that Foxconn failed to keep their promise of a better bonus and pay package after they arrived to work at the plant accusing Foxconn of

changing the salary packages.

[15:25:10]

Workers in the videos are also heard saying that those who tested positive for COVID were not being separated from the rest of the workforce.

In a statement in English, Foxconn denied all of those allegations, and said the dorms that factory workers live in undergo standard procedures for

disinfection.

But all of this has been a big blow for Apple. The company warned earlier this month that shipments of its latest products will be temporarily

impacted and delayed because of China's COVID restrictions. It is another reminder of the risks that Apple faces in relying on China for its

production.

China is still stuck in this unpredictable cycle of lockdowns. It is completely upending people's lives, China's economy, and global business.

Selina Wang, CNN, Beijing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SOLOMON: Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of the FTX crypto exchange has reportedly apologized to workers for its bankruptcy. He is saying that

there were "irrational decisions made" and that he "froze up in the face of pressure." But for some former staffers, it is simply too little too late.

And then there is the missing money. An FTX bankruptcy lawyer says that the exchange is missing a substantial amount of its assets. The lawyer also

described the company as Bankman-Fried's "personal fiefdom."

Paul La Monica is with me now.

Paul, where to start? I mean, in this letter obtained by Bloomberg from SBF to employees there at FTX. He said, SBF said that he apologized. He said he

wishes that he didn't file for bankruptcy because apparently, just minutes after, just eight minutes after filing, he secured billions in funding. But

did he say anything about those explosive reports of commingling funds between FTX and Alameda? I mean, that's a pretty explosive allegation.

PAUL LA MONICA, CNN BUSINESS REPORTER: These are extremely explosive allegations and he has been pretty mum so far, Rahel, about where that

money has gone? Why they were able to take from one entity within FTX to another, and there are obviously very significant concerns about the

legality of these money transfers, particularly in light of the fact that there are many reports about hacking that has taken place at FTX since the

bankruptcy, that is raising concerns about customer funds, missing funds, you know, up to potentially a billion dollars that we still don't know

where it is.

It is very, very troubling right now, and I think that many crypto investors have learned the hard way that when you are invested in crypto as

opposed to cash in a bank, there is no crypto FDIC per se. There is not a government agency that is there to protect your money and ensure it in the

event of a catastrophic loss at a firm like FTX going under.

So, this is a big problem for people who trusted the company and are now wondering whether or not they will get their cash back.

SOLOMON: Paul, it seems like the new management at FTX certainly hasn't minced words about how they feel FTX was run, but these more recent

comments about this being a personal fiefdom of SBF, seems to be the strongest comments.

Yet to me, it sounds as if the more they uncover, the more dysfunctional they realize this company was run. I mean, what's your perspective?

LA MONICA: Yes, exactly. I mean, when you look at the new steward of FTX, CEO who is leading it, someone who was at Enron in the wake of its

bankruptcy many, many years ago. So, these are clearly professional restructuring experts, not crypto bros, if you will, that are coming in to

try and really put a brave face on things and say, oh, don't worry, everything's going to be fine.

They realize that this is a colossal mess that needs to be cleaned up, and it behooves them to be as straightforward and honest and frank as possible

with the difficult task that is ahead of them.

SOLOMON: And apparently becoming more and more difficult as we learn more about this process.

Paul La Monica, thank you. Have a Happy Thanksgiving.

LA MONICA: Same to you. Thank you.

SOLOMON: A $2 Billion Gamble: How legendary filmmaker, James Cameron is going against the odds and betting big on his upcoming release.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:30:00]

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SOLOMON: Shares of Manchester United soaring today, up more than a fifth, adding to the gains of nearly 50 percent on Tuesday. The major moves coming

as the U.S. owners of the iconic Premier League club say they are open to selling.

(SPORTS)

[15:35:00]

SOLOMON: As major media companies tighten their pursestrings preparing for a recession, filmmaker James Cameron is making a $2 billion dollar bet at

the box office. He just revealed that "Avatar: The Way of Water," will need to make a whopping $2 billion and that's just to break even.

It's a feat only a few films that history have ever achieved. Cameron's films "Avatar," " Titanic," "Star Wars: The Force Awakens," "Avengers: End

Game" and "Avengers: Infinity War."

That target could be a challenge. Box office numbers down about a third year. Paul Dergarabedian is a senior media analyst.

Some would argue, certainly his fans, that if anyone could do it, it would be him. But explain to me how different this environment and this economy

is for movies right now.

PAUL DERGARABEDIAN, SENIOR MEDIA ANALYST, COMSCORE: It's a very different environment Rahel. But I would never bet against James Cameron. Great news

for Cameron, Disney and "Avatar: The Way of Water" came last night, with the announcement that the film will be shown in China.

That's huge for this film, because most of the theaters there show movies in 3D. So the majority of the box office in China, for any 3D movie is

going to be the 3D box office. China, obviously a major player on the global stage in terms of box office. But this is big news for the movie.

But still, 2 billion is a big number.

[15:40:00]

The first film is the highest grossing film of all-time, unadjusted for inflation, worldwide, with $2.9 billion for 2009's original "Avatar."

SOLOMON: I think Cameron said to CNN, you have to be the third or fourth highest grossing film in history, that's your threshold, that's your break-

even.

I want to circle back to China. You point out it could work in their favor that they'll be showing in China. But of course, as you know, China is

still dealing with the unpredictability of zero COVID.

Is that a net positive?

If anything it seems like a wildcard.

DERGARABEDIAN: Well, it is a bit of a wild card because of all those external forces coming into play here. But look, every dollar counts. And

to have this movie available in more territories, more countries around the world, is really important.

I think it is a blockbuster that is needed right now. This is coming in the wake of "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever," which is up to about $552

million worldwide and has only been out 2.5 weeks now.

We have in the domestic market as well as other countries around the world, we have a big holiday period coming up. So that will be really important

and I think having movies like "Avatar" are going to set the stage for 2023, which we are hoping to be a much bigger year at the box office in

2022.

But it's amazing how strong the box office has come up over the past couple of years, given the challenges facing this theatrical landscape.

SOLOMON: Well, Paul, unfortunately we have to leave it here. We've run out of. Time we will have to get you back on the show because I have a lot more

questions for you, including, what cost this much to make a movie?

But we'll get to that another time. Paul Dergarabedian, thank you.

And that is QUEST MEANS BUSINESS. I will be back at the top of the hour as we make a dash for the closing bell. Up next, "MARKETPLACE EUROPE."

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(MARKETPLACE EUROPE)

[15:59:35]

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SOLOMON: It is the dash to the closing bell. We are just a two minutes away from the last Federal Reserve meeting suggesting slower rate increases by

the central bank. The Dow spiked on that news. It's now up about 94 points heading into the holiday.

Other U.S. averages are even higher. The S&P is up around six tenths of a percent and the Nasdaq almost 1 percent.

Let's take a look at today's notable stocks. LGBTQ dating app Grindr has slipped almost 20 percent, about 19 percent there. I spoke to the CEO on

its first day of trading.

END