Return to Transcripts main page
Quest Means Business
JFK Ground Stop Ends As Staff Shortage Causes Delays; One In Eight Americans Depend On Food Stamps; Downing Street: Fully Support King's Decision; Franklin Templeton CEO On Investments In Saudi Arabia; Hurricane Melissa Turns Black River, Jamaica Into "Hell On Earth"; Martel: Our Global 8000 Will Be Fastest Place Since Concorde; Standard Bank CEO: 21st Century Is The African Century; Egypt's Vast $1 Billion Museum Opens After Two Decades. Aired 4-5p ET
Aired October 31, 2025 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[16:00:22]
JESSICA DEAN, CNN HOST: Markets managed to make small gains to end the week after a busy couple of days of earnings announcements. You see the Dow up
about 55 points there. Those are the markets. These are the main events.
One of the busiest airports in the U.S. coming to a halt as it faces a critical staffing shortage due to the government shutdown.
Also, Buckingham Palace, facing the aftermath of Andrew being stripped of his titles.
And Bombardier CEO says there is a growing number of high net worth individuals, and that's good news for his private jet business.
Live from New York, it is Friday, October 31st. I am Jessica Dean in for Richard Quest today and this is QUEST MEANS BUSINESS.
And a very good evening to you, we are glad to have you here. We begin here in New York in this ground stop that happened at JFK. It has just been
lifted following critical staffing shortages at air traffic control centers.
The Federal Aviation Administration has been reporting hundreds of staffing issues for air traffic control everywhere from Atlanta to Albuquerque and
controllers are essential staff who have to work during the ongoing government shutdown without pay. Some are calling in sick to protest,
others working other jobs.
The shutdown also impacts tens of millions of Americans who are about to lose food stamp benefits from Saturday. The President speaking in the past
couple of hours, saying funds could still be found for the benefits, but he believes, the ball is in the Democrats' court.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: I am always willing to meet. All they have to do is open up the country, let them open
up the country and we will meet. We will meet very quickly, but they have to open up the country.
It is their fault. Everything is their fault. It is so easily solved. You know, we have a number of Democrats that have already voted for this, but
the Republicans are very unified. They are very strong, and they want to do what is right for the country.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DEAN: Of course, the Democrats would argue it is the Republicans fault that if they would have this conversation and agree to extending those ACA
Obamacare subsidies, that they would agree to reopen the government. In the meantime, we are at a standstill.
Let us bring in Dan Elwell, the FAA Deputy Administrator during the first Trump administration. He is now an aviation consultant. Thanks so much for
being here with us.
Dan, I first just want to ask you, what do you think -- it is great to have you -- the breaking point is for these air traffic controllers.
DAN ELWELL, FORMER FAA DEPUTY ADMINISTRATOR: It is really an individual story, right? I mean, the breaking point is going to be different for
everybody. It depends on how you live. If you live paycheck to paycheck, the breaking point is already there. If you've got some reserve funds that
you can keep on working without pay and you can be comfortable in doing it, then you're breaking point might be further down the road.
But of course, with each passing day, we get closer to the point, that critical point where there just aren't going to be enough controllers to
adequately serve the system.
DEAN: And that in the past, when we've had government shutdowns and again, we are on the verge of this being the longest one ever, we are not quite
there yet, but it is when the air traffic controllers and the air traffic system here in the U.S. has really hit a breaking point, that that has
tended to tip things into reopening the government. Do you anticipate it will have that same effect this time?
ELWELL: Yes. Well, I was the acting administrator of the FAA in 2019 during the longest shutdown. So I am --
DEAN: You know.
ELWELL: I remember it quite well back in 2019, and I remember because I was meeting with the President in the Oval Office on my birthday, January 15th,
when the strains first started. And, by the 25th, those strains of January, those strains were strong enough to end the shutdown and most people will
tell you it was the pain of air travel. How many delays, how many cancellations that ultimately drove politicians to figure out a way to end
the shutdown.
And I think the exact same thing is going to happen here. It is just a question of when.
DEAN: And we have been seeing fissures. We have been seeing problems, delays over the last -- you know, since this has been going on, they do
seem to be increasing, as you note, and as you just said. It is going to get to the point where it cannot just -- they're not going to be able to go
on in the same way.
[16:05:05]
How long would you say before we really get to that point where it is incredibly noticeable for not just the air traffic controllers, who
certainly have felt it since day one with not getting a paycheck, but for other Americans who are just trying to fly and get where they need to go.
ELWELL: Well, I think we are probably at that pain point already. We've seen delays at many of the major airports and cancellations, but I think it
is important to note, I know Secretary Duffy has said this as well, that safety is not going to be impacted.
I would tell travelers, get to the airport early, use the apps that you have and what you have at your disposal to find out if your flight is even
taking off before you go to the airport, find out if it is going to be delayed and how long it is going to be delayed.
You know, just be smart about your travel. Don't worry about the safety of your flight, the safety of aviation is not going to be impacted and that's
why you see all the delays and cancellations, because FAA will slow things down when they have a staffing situation. They will slow things down to
keep it safe.
But slowing down means your travel plans will definitely be disrupted.
DEAN: Yes, and I think that is a key takeaway that you are safe in the air, you believe, but that it is going to have an impact. It is going to slow
people down.
The Vice President, the Secretary of Transportation, recently warned that if this drags on until Thanksgiving, in their words, it could be a disaster
for everyone.
Do you agree?
ELWELL: Oh yes, I agree. I mean, by Thanksgiving, oh goodness, it will have shattered the record for how long we have had a shutdown, and by then
everybody will reach that breaking point we talked about earlier. I can't conceive of it going that long, because you do reach a tipping point with
the number of controllers who are able to come to work, where you would see catastrophic delays, catastrophic economic impact.
So I hope -- I really hope it doesn't get that far. I am hoping that in the next couple of days, well, there will be a resolution.
DEAN: Yes, all right, Dan Elwell, good to have your context around this. Thank you very much.
ELWELL: My pleasure. Thank you.
DEAN: Another possible consequence of the shutdown is the loss of food assistance for millions of Americans. Two federal judges now say the Trump
administration must tap into a rainy day fund to pay for that program. A top White House economic adviser saying the administration will comply with
the courts. Now that money is set to run out November 1st, that's tomorrow.
About one in eight Americans rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Its known as SNAP. It is roughly 42 million people across the
country.
Let's bring in Annie Grayer, who is live from Capitol Hill, with more on this shutdown and its impact. Annie, when you start talking about these
SNAP benefits that affects people in red states and blue states, Republicans, Democrats, it is some 40 million Americans.
What are you hearing? Obviously, not a lot of lawmakers there trying to figure out a solution on the Hill today, on a Friday. But what are you
hearing?
ANNIE GRAYER, CNN CAPITOL HILL REPORTER: That's right, Jess. Well, the Senate is not even in session today. Senators have gone home for the
weekend. The House has been out since September 19th. So the pressure to make an impact here is continuing to grow, but the stalemate is really
continuing.
And the pain that real Americans are feeling in the process is only worsening. With 42 million Americans set to lose food assistance tomorrow,
and now, with the ruling from the two federal judges forcing the Trump administration to tap into billions of aid, there is a question of when
that money can go out and how many people can help and for how long they can sustain it? Because that has been a real question as the shutdown has
dragged on, as both parties say that neither want anyone to go hungry during this time.
But Democrats have been pushing The White House to send out billions of aid. Republicans say the easiest way to ensure no one goes hungry is for
Democrats to join with them in fully reopening the government. But the President threw a wrench into potential negotiations late last night,
calling on Senate Republicans to abolish the filibuster, but even top Republicans in the Senate and House dismissed that idea, saying that it is
a long standing practice that they want to maintain.
So, again, we are still at square one, but there are so many people who, as the shutdown is dragging on, is feeling real pain. And tomorrow will be a
major test to see how people navigate their food and their hunger with the government unable to supply them with the assistance that they are
typically getting.
DEAN: Yes, and Annie, as often happens, it is once they start getting pressure from their constituents that even kind of the most earnest
supporter of keeping the government shutdown might start to wobble just a little bit. Do you get the sense from lawmakers that when this November
1st, even with this funding, that when November 1st happens, obviously premiums are going to go up as well for those subsidies, that they are
going to start getting pushback on both sides from their constituents?
[16:10:10]
GRAYER: Well, that's the key question is what will be the pressure point that leads for this dam to break, but what you mentioned about the
Affordable Care Act subsidies is also going to be a huge moment tomorrow, where people who are on those Obamacare subsidies are going to be logging
in for open enrollment for the first time tomorrow and seeing how much their health care prices are going to go up.
Without those Obamacare subsidies that are set to expire at the end of this year, Democrats have made their entire shutdown strategy around that. So
while millions of people are hurting in the process, federal workers are going without pay and people are at risk of losing their food assistance,
there is also millions of Americans whose health care prices are going to go up.
So that's why there is not one pressure point that we've seen that's sort of led to the end of this shutdown. This stalemate has gone on for 31 days.
It is the second longest shutdown in history and counting, but tomorrow is going to be sort of a confluence of so many issues coming to a head and we
are not going to really know until next week if any of these behind the scenes negotiations are making any progress.
DEAN: I know. All right, Annie Grayer for us, the latest from Capitol Hill. Thank you so much for that.
In other news, a brother banished and stripped of his title. So what's next for the British Royal family? Downing Street says it is fully supporting
King Charles' decision to remove his brother Andrew's Royal titles and evict him from the Royal Estate in Windsor. A Royal source says that may
not happen until after the Christmas break.
Andrew's name has already been taken off the official Peerage Roll and we expect directives, known as Royal warrants, to be issued in the coming
days.
It follows the publication of a posthumous memoir written by Virginia Giuffre, who accused Andrew of sexually assaulting her as a teenager.
Andrew has denied all the allegations against him.
Let's bring in our Royal correspondent, Max Foster, who has been speaking to the Giuffre family, who now say they want an audience, Max, with King
Charles. How likely is that?
MAX FOSTER, CNN ROYAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I've spoken to the Palace today and they said no comment. So it wasn't a no. And I think it will be logical
for many of Giuffre supporters because you know, the King needs to understand their point of view if he really wants to sort of help them
through this process. It is like fully understanding it and perhaps holding a meeting with Virginia Giuffre's siblings.
So they are asking for a meeting with King Charles, and they also want King Charles to help them in relation to their own president, President Trump.
So have a listen to what they said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
AMANDA ROBERTS, SISTER-IN-LAW OF VIRGINIA GIUFFRE: It is a really big opportunity for him to paint the way forward and use his status and
influence to call on global leaders, especially our President, with whom, you know, the U.K. has a relationship with the United States.
And so I would say that this is the time, this is the opportunity because our President has not shown the same courage, the same respect and
acknowledgment that these survivors deserve, and I think if the King can even remotely acknowledge and put his brother in that position, then our
President should be able to do the same thing.
And not only that, but I also feel the issue of President Trump, not even ruling out a pardon for Ghislaine Maxwell is atrocious, and if he can't
step forward and do that now, after the King has stripped his brother of the prince title, what are we doing here?
You are falling short in your leadership right now because Ghislaine Maxwell was convicted and so I think we would lean on the U.K. and help us
put that pressure on our very own government because, again, we hold the key to that door to justice and it is right there.
FOSTER: So you would sit with the King and you would explain the story, so he fully understood it, say what you wanted and then ask him effectively to
speak to Donald Trump about it. Is that what you're suggesting?
ROBERTS: One hundred percent. I think that would be what we are asking for next. I really do. I think he has his influence. He has that relationship
with Donald Trump. Donald Trump is in the position to do the right thing here, and we are looking for that collaboration.
I think it is really important that global leaders begin to collaborate because, again, this is not just a small instance of sexual abuse. We are
talking about a global sex trafficking ring that was allowed to operate for decades because of the abuse of powers are systematic -- our systematic
justice systems have failed these survivors and it is time to take a look underneath of what we need to do to change that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[16:15:00]
FOSTER: The couple were actually very positive about what King Charles did, very appreciative. They do think there is lots more that he can do,
Jessica. But they really now are going to use this as a case study to expose the rest of the Epstein scandal and all the men that were involved
in it.
DEAN: And going back to the Royal family for a moment, Max, in terms of Buckingham Palace and the Royal family writ large, how -- will they be
able, do you think, to distance themselves enough from this in the way that they want to at this point?
FOSTER: Well, we see how it plays out. Certainly, what the King did was very dramatic. You know, at the end of the day, this is his brother. He is
throwing him out of his house. He is throwing him out of any sort of relationship with the monarchy. Now, he has offered him another house and
some income.
It was a very big move by King Charles, but already questions about could he be doing more, particularly the fact that Andrew remains in the line of
succession. So the government is saying, it is a very complicated thing to change, but actually the whole idea that he could potentially be King is
quite unsettling, obviously, to the Giuffre family, but also to a lot of the U.K.
I've been told by sources that he is not expected to move out from his mansion until the New Year, effectively, it may take that long. And the
Giuffre family is saying he should be out tomorrow and he could choose to leave tomorrow. You know, there's lots of things that could still bubble up
here. There is a real appetite for, you know, Andrew to fully pay for what he has done, not necessarily in terms of criminal cases, but all his, you
know, his lies and his deceits and the way he has handled all of this and has never really showed real thought, really, for the people that should be
at the forefront of everyone's minds, and that's the survivors.
DEAN: Certainly. All right, Max Foster, thank you so much for that reporting. We really appreciate it.
It has been a big week for tech earnings. We are going to look at how investors are reacting to the latest results from Amazon, Alphabet and Meta
and the massive bets these companies are placing on A.I.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DEAN: This just in: The ground stop at New York's JFK Airport is back in effect after being lifted just a short time ago. The current ground stop
just impacting arrivals there. U.S. airports across the country now facing delays due to a major staffing shortage. Air traffic controllers are
essential staff who have to work during this ongoing government shutdown, but they are working without pay.
Because they are not being paid, many are calling out sick or working other jobs. We will continue to keep an eye on that.
[16:20:10]
It has been a mixed bag this week for tech giants. Amazon shares are soaring on the strong growth of its cloud revenue, fueled by A.I. demand.
Alphabet shares also higher this week. It, too, reported strong A.I. demand, and says it will spend even more to build out capacity.
Investors, however, have been pushing Meta for its A.I. strategy. Let's bring in Clare Duffy.
Clare, walk us through what all of this means for Wall Street's patience when it comes to these companies and what they are promising with A.I.
CLARE DUFFY, CNN BUSINESS WRITER: Yes, Jessica, it is funny because these concerns around the astronomical spending that these big tech companies are
investing into A.I. infrastructure, and when we are going to see a return on that investment, have been around for a while. I actually looked back
and in August of 2024, I wrote a story with the headline: Has the A.I. Bubble Burst? Wall Street wonders if artificial intelligence will ever make
money.
So these concerns have been around for a while, and investors may be getting more antsy as time goes on, especially when we look at a company
like Meta, which this week reported that its expenses are now growing faster than its earnings, and an analyst asked tough questions of all of
these companies about their A.I. strategies this week.
But I think the takeaway from this earnings season is that these companies are not slowing down their A.I. spending. In fact, many of them are
speeding up. And if we take a look at the CapEx for just these four major companies -- Amazon, Meta, Microsoft and Google -- they spent a combined
$111 billion on CapEx, much of that on A.I. chips and data centers just this quarter alone and many of them are raising their expectations for how
much CapEx they will spend this year.
So this spending is not slowing down. And to be fair, many of these companies have exceeded analysts' expectations when it comes to their year-
on-year revenue growth. So they are continuing to earn money, but we will see how long it lasts in terms of waiving off investor concerns about the
technology at the heart of all of this, generative A.I., which doesn't yet really have a clear business model -- Jessica.
DEAN: Yes and it is just a tremendous amount of money going into the infrastructure to support that. You also did some reporting on the layoffs
at Amazon. What did you learn about that?
DUFFY: Yes, Amazon this week announcing that it will lay off 14,000 employees. And CEO, Andy Jassy was asked about that during the company's
earnings call last night. There had been concerns that those layoffs were driven by A.I. taking on human work, and he said that it is not a financial
decision. It wasn't even really an A.I. related decision, but instead said it was related to culture.
He said, you end up with a lot more people than you had before, and you end up with a lot more layers, sometimes without realizing it, you can weaken
the ownership of the people that you have who are doing the actual work.
But Jessica, I can't imagine how it would feel to be one of those 14,000 people who has lost their job this week, at least some of whom presumably
thought they were doing actual work. So interesting to hear this company who is growing growth revenue by 13 percent year-on-year and yet said
needed to shrink down because it wants to be more flexible as it anticipates A.I. is going to be taking on more human work.
DEAN: All right, Clare Duffy, thank you so much for that.
And it is not just tech giants seeing a mixed bag this week. Companies like Chipotle, Crocs and Coke also reported earnings and their results, a
further point to the so-called K-shaped economy, with strong demand for high end brands like Topo Chico and Smartwater as lower income consumers
cut back.
Anna Cooban is joining us now. Anna, who is winning in this? Who is losing? What did you see as we got all of these reports?
ANNA COOBAN, CNN BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS REPORTER: Yes. Well, you've mentioned this K-shaped economy, which is an interesting sort of
development when you've had years of rocketing inflation. It has come down a long way, but still lower income consumers are feeling the pinch. And
you're seeing this in the humble burrito.
This is a burrito from Chipotle store here in London. But you know the CEO of the company was saying that yes, there were some disappointing earnings
results. And the reason is that their core customer group, these are lower income people, people who are younger, they are pulling back on spending to
the point where Chipotle's main competitors now are not rival restaurants, but grocery stores. It is people deciding to eat at home.
And so yes, you then get this K-shaped growth where you've got higher income people at the top spending more and more and more, and then lower
income people spending less and less and less. And so you get this big gap, this big delta between them, which explains this sort of mixed picture for
the U.S. economy at the moment.
DEAN: It is a really fascinating thing to see kind of unfold. And so when you're talking about that, what does that mean for the economy more broadly
when you're starting to see this big gulf between the higher income earners and the lower income?
COOBAN: Well, you get widening inequality, and so this is always a sobering thing to learn, but it is particularly sobering when it comes after a few
years of things for a time anyway, getting slightly better in that regard. So what I am referring to here is the pandemic years when people -- many
people got stimulus checks and lower income Americans found themselves with higher spending power.
[16:25:10]
And their wages were keeping in line with inflation, those days are gone. And so now you get the situation where people on lower incomes are not able
to afford small luxuries, like going to their local Chipotle, whereas higher income Americans are, as you've mentioned, as the executives from
Coca-Cola, from Crocs have mentioned are spending more, but on premium products.
DEAN: And so what does this mean for the companies as they try to position themselves moving forward? Do they just start to cater to these higher
income individuals, leaving the lower income to kind of, you know, fend for themselves? Do they put more emphasis on things like Topo Chico and
Smartwater?
COOBAN: Well, that's interesting that you've mentioned these strategies. Coca-Cola has said that it is wanting to -- it is going to be focusing on
its higher end brands, but it is also looking at price cuts towards its lower end too, because as a huge, massive global brand, you can't sort of
ignore the majority of people who aren't on these higher incomes.
But what is interesting is what might happen going forward. You know, you've got this booming stock market. A lot of it is based on this
excitement around A.I. Wealthy Americans tend to be invested more in stocks than lower income Americans.
And so because the stock market is booming, are we just going to see a continuation of this K-shaped graph? Is that gap going to get wider and
wider, or will we see some kind of redress?
DEAN: Good big questions. Anna Cooban, thank you so much. We appreciate it.
Straight ahead here, Richard Quest sits down with the CEO of Franklin Templeton. Her predictions on tariffs and the economy. That's after the
break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DEAN: Hi there! I am Jessica Dean. There is more QUEST MEANS BUSINESS in a moment when the Bombardier CEO says its new Global 8000 will be the fastest
plane since the Concorde. The Grand Egyptian Museum next to the pyramids, is finally opening its doors to visitors, and we are going to take a look
at the treasures inside.
[16:30:02]
But before that, the headlines this hour --
The FBI says it has thwarted a potential terror attack in the United States 0-- in the U.S. state of Michigan. Director Kash Patel says agents arrested
multiple suspects. They are accused of planning a violent attack over the Halloween weekend. Sources telling CNN, the plot was inspired by ISIS and
discovered through an online chat room.
Virginia Giuffre's family has been telling CNN they want an audience with Britain's King Charles over the scandal involving his disgraced brother,
Andrew. The King has stripped Andrew of all of his titles, honors and rent free mansion in Windsor, near London.
The family of the woman who accused Andrew of sexual assault also thinks the King should take their concerns directly to U.S. President Donald
Trump.
The government says at least 13 people have died due to heavy flooding in Vietnam. Record levels of rain have left parts of Central Vietnam
underwater. Cleanup has begun in some areas, despite houses still being submerged up to their roofs.
And brace yourself, the CEO Franklin Templeton says consumers will start feeling the heat from Trump's tariffs next year. Richard Quest spoke to
Jenny Johnson at the future investment initiative in Riyadh, and she said companies will start passing along the higher cost of doing business.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JENNY JOHNSON, CEO, FRANKLIN TEMPLETON: I think that the economy is still strong. I think you -- you know, and the other thing is, I do think in 2026
the tariffs that companies have so far absorbed will have to start being passed on to the consumer, right?
And so, the consumer is going to feel an increase, which is why inflation is going to be incredibly difficult to get lower than it is, and may
actually edge up.
And then, I think that, you know, you look at just earnings, so, so far, earnings to this quarter, there's only been a five percent revision down,
right. Last two quarters, 14 percent revision down. That means companies are continuing to meet their numbers or exceed their numbers.
RICHARD QUEST, CNN HOST: So, you're being realistic. And you say you do not necessarily -- forget whether there's going to be a correction. We can
never know whether that's --
JOHNSON: Fair enough.
QUEST: But forget corrections. But you're saying that you don't see any fundamental issue in the market?
JOHNSON: In 2026, right? I mean, look, I always go back to --
QUEST: Never mind debt in 10 years time.
JOHNSON: Right, exactly. So, who knows, debt is not a problem until it's a problem, right?
QUEST: And by the time it's a problem, it's too late.
JOHNSON: That is a concern. So, therefore, so we're going to put that aside.
You know, look, take tariffs, right? So, you see market corrections every time there's another kind of, I'm going to add 10 percent to Canada, or
whatever it is. But the reality is President Trump, we know is a deal maker, right?
So, he throws these things out. That's his gauntlet on kind of his first bid, but he always seems to come to a place that works.
And so, honestly, every time I've looked at those, those become buying opportunities in the market.
QUEST: The traditional view is people come here, FII, whatever, to see what they can get out of the Saudis. But that's changed. The Saudis are now
saying, look, we've got plenty of money, but it's all allocated. It's all spent. We want to know what you can do for us. Can you feel that
difference?
JOHNSON: For sure. And fortunately, for Franklin Templeton, we actually have local asset management. We bought a company in 2011, so we're one of
the largest GCC bond managers as well as equity managers.
In fact, we have almost $3 million invested in Saudi Arabia across our funds.
So, and it is astonishing. I'm sure you saw it as you're driving from the airport to your hotel. The number of cranes. Have you ever seen that many
cranes?
And so, I think people look at it and say, look, it's our job. Capital goes where capital is treated well.
And so, as a global manager, it's our job to make sure we're finding those opportunities. In any growth economy, they're going to be investment
opportunities.
And so, I think Saudi is a perfect example of where you can find where you have a vision, a clear vision, laid out, where you have the will and there
will clear through regulation to ensure that you're going to be able to do well in your investment. That's a top down. And when you find that in an
economy, it's really powerful.
QUEST: Do you find it fascinating? Here they talk about vision 2040. When did you last hear -- and I'll put my own country, I'm both U.S. and U.K.
citizen. U.K., E.U., talk about 2040, 2050.
JOHNSON: Well, this is actually one of the things that I do worry about, which is, you know, if you think about how China approaches, where they're
looking at a hundred years, right? Saudi Arabia, where they're laying out a plan for decades, you know, you look at the U.S. situation, the rare earth,
right, that China has now when we come in and say, well, we're going to -- we're going to put 100 percent tariff, and they say, well, we're not going
to then sell you these rare earths that are critical to your technology, right? That's -- that is a mismatch in time, and it is a concern.
[16:35:03]
I have to say, that the U.S. has got to start -- I mean, people sort of laughed when President Trump said, I'm going to -- I want to buy Greenland,
right? He was I think the third president to say that.
Well, why? It's more about thinking we need to have access to these rare earths, like it wasn't as crazy as it sounded, saying we're going to buy
it, maybe, but, but tying it up and getting access to critical.
QUEST: To full circle that, to your point, we may have all got incredibly agitated, or Greenland or Denmark did.
But to your point, ultimately, there's a deal somewhere. There's no -- there's not -- there's method in the madness. It's not foolishness, per se.
JOHNSON: Well, it's funny, because I think we all get a little astonished by the approach, but it's been very effective.
I mean, I was -- I was at a place where I had kind of gotten wind of what was going to maybe come out in the Middle East, and I was with a bunch of
people who was incredibly skeptical, and sure enough, two days later, you've got this Netanyahu, who, many people said no way. He was there
saying, I'm not going to -- you know, we're not going to settle that. Two weeks later, he's got a deal. You've got to give the president credit for
his ability to somehow figure out how to get a deal done.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DEAN: Let's go now to the Caribbean, where rescue efforts are underway as Hurricane Melissa loses strength and moves north of Bermuda. In its wake, a
trail of devastation across Jamaica, Cuba and Haiti, killing dozens of people.
Southwestern Jamaica bore the hurricane's brunt as a Category 5, slamming the island nation with 185 mile an hour winds and torrential rains earlier
this week, wiping out roads, homes and entire villages.
Cuba suffered extensive damage from flooding and mudslides, especially in the East, where hundreds of tiny communities were left isolated.
And even though Melissa didn't hit Haiti directly, officials report the storm's wrath claimed the lives of 23 people there, 10 of them children.
Black River is one of the worst hit communities in Jamaica. Residents are searching for food, water and any news about their loved ones in the
aftermath of a 15 foot storm surge from Melissa.
Meteorologist Derek Van Dam describes the utter chaos as the desperation settles in, Derek.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST: We are approaching the Black River area, a bridge that we were concerned that had too much damage to drive across,
but it looks like cars are traveling at least in. We've got to watch out for some of this damage that's just strewn about. Look at -- people have
their personal belongings on the back of mopeds trying to desperately get out of this area, carrying whatever they can, food, supplies, clothing.
It's utter chaos here.
And the heat is adding a new level of dimension to this humanitarian disaster that is unfolding. It's very loud, and I just want to show you the
bridge here, as this massive queue of cars, people carrying food, all the supplies they can to get out of Black River, because this area was hit
extremely, extremely hard. Desperation what once was paradise has now turned into hell on earth. This is ground zero.
What's happened to your home?
BRITNEY SAMMS, BLACK RIVER RESIDENT: The storm. Everything gone (INAUDIBLE), so everything right down, right down.
VAN DAM: Was it the wind or was it the sea?
SAMMS: Everything, sir, everything.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're surrounded by water.
SAMMS: We're surrounded by water.
VAN DAM: What do you need most at this time?
SAMMS: A roof over our head, sir. Me and my mother and my grandmother, don't know what they're going to do.
VAN DAM: There's a supermarket in town that we were told that people are taking supplies off of the shelf. This is a matter of life and death for
people that one individual saying that, hey, this isn't looting. This is a matter of survival. People carrying whatever they can to get out of this
region.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's paradise, but it's hell and Earth as well right now. Six hours, it's frightening. I've never seen anything like this in my
life. It was devastating.
VAN DAM: The bridge in Black River has become a makeshift shelter. You can see helicopter and the Jamaican Defense Forces flying and surveying the
area. This area has become almost a makeshift refugee camp because the people behind me have nowhere to sleep. Their homes were completely
decimated by the fury of Hurricane Melissa.
They are desperate for water, food, any kind of medical provisions, and they need international aid desperately.
I am CNN Meteorologist Derek Van Dam in Black River, Jamaica. Back to you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
DEAN: Derek, thank you for that. We have more QUEST MEANS BUSINESS for you next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:42:51]
DEAN: The CEO of Bombardier says there are a growing number of wealthy people, and that's helping his private jet business. Richard Quest sat down
with the head of the Canadian plane manufacturer in Riyadh. Eric Martel, spoke about the new Global 8000, he says the model will be the fastest
plane since the Concorde.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ERIC MARTEL, CEO, BOMBARDIER: The 8000 does three things you know, more than our 30 7500 more range, 8,000 nautical miles. So, you can basically
fly 18 hours. That's a long flight. You have -- you have more speed. You know, 0.95 Mach is the maximum. So almost supersonic, fastest plane, as I
said, since the Concorde.
And the cabin pressure, which is a very important piece, is the cab -- the pressure you have in the cabin. You know, when you fly commercial, it's
about 7,000 feet. You arrive, you feel tired all the time. On this one, it's like sleeping in your own bed, because you're at 2800.
QUEST: What's the -- and the maximum number of people on board?
MARTEL: 18 to 19. You can put 19, but 18 is a maximum. Pretty much.
QUEST: Wow, but you really wouldn't?
MARTEL: No.
QUEST: And the cost if I'm going to buy one?
MARTEL: 80 million, but maybe we can do a deal together.
QUEST: 80 million.
MARTEL: 80 some million. They're globally, thousand. Yes, 80 plus.
QUEST: Who's buying them, or, you know, who's interested in them? Is it just wealthy people? Is it companies? Is it the leasing company? Is it the
Flexjets? The NetJets?
MARTEL: Leasing the Flexjet of the world, the NetJet of the world, they fly. NetJet flies 18 of them right now, global 75. VistaJet flies 18 of
them, and they're flying like crazy, because people are willing to pay the dollar per hours to fly it.
QUEST: Wow.
MARTEL: Because they need to fly further. As I said, you know the well, the high network individual -- wealthy individual would increase by another 31
percent since between 2009-2030, estimate.
QUEST: Although your aircraft are exempt from the tariffs because of USMCA, you are not exempt from the bad relations, the bad blood, in a sense that
exists now between the U.S. and Canada, and it's very difficult to get over that.
[16:45:01]
MARTEL: I think it's true, you know, and we recognize, and we're very proud to be our head office and our operating base, most of our operation in
Canada. But the reality is that we are a global player.
You know, we sell our product everywhere, but we also have 2,800 supplier in the United States. So, which is a very significant number of job also
we're creating V.R. business, you know, working with the big house, you know, as General Electric, Honeywell, or RTX, all these guys.
So, Aerospace has been free of trade for a long time. And of course, you know, we have a global supply chain in every country.
QUEST: If we look at the Bombardier that was in the Bombardier now, the difference is massive.
MARTEL: It is.
QUEST: I mean, the trains are gone. The scooters have gone, the power plant, the commercial aircraft have gone. It's -- you are essentially
private jets, and which are now also used for military purposes.
To the extent that many of us thought, why are you doing this? Isn't it good to have diversification? Isn't it good to have different strands?
MARTEL: So, within the private jet business, we've created some diversification, you know. So, we serve our customer in our region of the
world, and that's a good business. We doubled the size of that business in the last five years, and now we're going -- we're using our platform to
develop a defense business also.
QUEST: But do you have goals, ambitions, plans to move into other areas?
MARTEL: Not at all. Right now, the focus will be defense. The focus will be service of the plane we are building and the one that exists in the install
base.
And today we're a $10 billion -- almost $10 billion U.S. dollar business, and with the potential to grow even further.
QUEST: The market loves what you did.
MARTEL: Absolutely. The market reacted pretty well over the last five years. You know, the stock price went up like quite significantly.
So, the market love the story of focus and performance.
QUEST: Right. But the market will also now want growth. Where does that come from?
MARTEL: The growth will basically come still from services. OK. We believe we can have another billion and a bit, you know, of growth, and also the
defense business.
We just started our defense business a few years ago, which was about 250. It's not going to be close to a billion dollar in a year from now, and
growing even more.
QUEST: But I always think when it comes to general aviation or private aviation, there's only a limited number of people who can afford these
jets, and it is growing, I'll grant -- but it's, you know, very few people can buy.
MARTEL: If you look at high net worth, individual, the number of high network individual people that exist today, it's around 675,000 in the
world. You know that we consider -- can have the possibility to buy the jet.
This is going to grow in our evaluation by another 30 to 32 percent in the next five years. So, making more people that have the wealth to buy an
airplane of that type.
And you know, people, when they use it, they enjoy it, because it makes them more efficient. You know, you show up at the airport 10 minutes
before, you're on your flight, you're up in the air, you can do a lot more in one week than you could usually.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DEAN: The CEO of Standard Bank says Africa can expect growth of more than four percent in the medium to long term. He sat down also with Richard
Quest at the future investment initiative in Riyadh, to explain his vision for growth across that continent.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SIM TSHABALALA, CEO, STANDARD BANK: The 21st Century is the African century, where Africa has to say, yes, our comparative advantage -- our
competitive advantage is the minerals. We are very good in the case of South Africa in mining. Our engineering schools are fantastic.
Let us mine these goods. Let us mine the platinum, the cobalt, the copper, the manganese. But let's also beneficiate. Let's build some manufacturing
capacity on the continent.
Let's argue, as we are, as I hereby do with you, that let's build data centers in Africa, because the copper is easy to access. Let's do it maybe
in East Africa, because there's geothermal, the engineering is pretty simple. The copper is easily available, and the human capacity in East
Africa is there. Why not?
QUEST: I hear what you say. My challenge to you is that you're right, but it never happens. You're right, but somewhere along the line, that second
crucial part of the equation doesn't take place, or doesn't take place properly.
TSHABALALA: That proposition is not supported by the facts. In the case of Ethiopia, manufacturing of cars and E.V.s happening in Ethiopia on the
basis of them having changed the legislation related to internal combustion engines by way of example, there are manufacturing companies, car
manufacturers moving into Ethiopia, Chinese, European, Japanese, building vehicles in Ethiopia.
That story, Richard, is a story that ought to be followed and built upon. And I'm saying to you that it is. That is why Africa will be growing at
about four percent in the medium to long term. Africans are getting healthier, wealthier, more productive. Demographic dividend is fantastic.
We are building the infrastructure on our own terms, and that is why we will be growing at faster than four percent in the medium to long term.
We'll be the fastest growing region in the world.
[16:50:05]
QUEST: The economies of Africa, at the moment have been sideswiped to a larger extent than many places by the tariffs from the Trump
administration.
In some cases, in some very unusual ways, but in other cases, like South Africa, absolutely clobbered.
TSHABALALA: Not a true statement of fact, some have indeed been side swapped, but some have actually come out pretty positively from it.
I think at the end of the day, Richard, one has to look at the economics of it. At 15 percent on average, in global tariffs, it'll have an impact of
0.2 percent on African GDP, less than what you would have expected it to be.
And in the case of South Africa, it'll be not 0.1. There are sectors, and indeed some countries which are going to be hard hit, but there are others
that won't. People have found new ways of having access to value chains. They've changed their relationships. They're selling their goods to other
parts of the world.
In the case of South Africa, some manufacture, car manufacturers, have been hard hit, but others have found other destinations for their products.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DEAN: Coming up, a long awaited unveiling for the Grand Egyptian Museum. We're going to take a look inside after this break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DEAN: More than two decades in the making and countless delays later, Egypt is unveiling its new billion-dollar museum next to the famed Pyramids. It's
one of the biggest museums in the world and the largest dedicated to a single civilization, Ancient Egypt.
CNN's Salma Abdelaziz takes a look at the artifacts on display.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): A building worthy of the pharaohs that has been the vision for the Grand Egyptian Museum from the
start, and two decades and a billion dollars later, the largest archeological museum in the world is finally opening its doors.
HASSAN ALLAM, CEO, HASSAN ALLAM HOLDING: The world has been waiting for this museum to open up for a few years. Everyone is excited.
ABDELAZIZ (voice over): Visitors will be welcomed by the more than 3000- year-old statue of Ramses II but that's just one of the highlights. There are over 50,000 restored artifacts, detailing life in ancient Egypt to
explore with the collection of King Tutankhamun as the main attraction.
I visited as part of a CNN team in 2018 and saw firsthand how conservationists worked around the clock to restore objects thousands of
years old, including King Tut's very degraded sandals.
[16:55:11]
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We create new technique by using some special adhesive as you saw its condition, it was very bad, and here, I think it's come to
life again.
ABDELAZIZ (voice over): Construction started in 2005 but was delayed several times over the years, first because of the Arab Spring, and later
the COVID-19 pandemic. But now, the museum is finally opening.
The building is part of a wider infrastructure development in the Giza area, with millions being poured into roads, parks, even an airport, in the
hope of boosting tourism.
AHMED GHONEIM, CEO, GRAND EGYPTIAN MUSEM: A museum with this size is expected to increase the number of tourists to Egypt. We're anticipating
that this will increase, definitely, the numbers of tourists coming to Egypt by at least 10 percent or 20 percent.
ABDELAZIZ (voice over): In a land where history and culture are counted, not in centuries, but in millennia. The hope is that the Grand Egyptian
Museum will become a unique part of that heritage.
Salma Abdelaziz, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
DEAN: And we have a final look at the markets to end your week. Wall Street posted modest gains for the last session of the month. The Dow picked up 40
points after climbing out of the red. All three indexes posted gains in October.
Let's look at the Dow components now. Amazon shares soaring to an all-time high on its latest sales forecast. Chevron rose 2.6 percent on its latest
earnings. Its oil production is at record highs after buying Hess. Microsoft fell, fell 1.5 percent as A.I. investments cut into its profits.
And finally, tonight, lots of monkeying around on this Halloween at one department store where a pet monkey escaped from its owner at a Spirit
Halloween in Texas, the monkey could be seen swinging from the store ceilings as workers spent a half hour trying to get it down.
Apparently, one of the spooky displays scared the monkey away from its owner. Police say the monkey is now safe. No word though on what costume
the monkey purchased.
That is QUEST MEANS BUSINESS, I'm Jessica Dean in. "THE LEAD" with Jake Tapper starts now.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
END
