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The last inflation report before the general election showed price increases cooling nearly to the Federal Reserve's goal of a 2% annual rate.The cost of living as measured by Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) rose 2.1% year-over-year in September, down from a 2.3% increase in August, the Bureau of Economic Analysis said Thursday. That was a fresh low since February 2021 and nearly down to the Federal Reserve's target of a 2% annual rate.

The inflation rate was in line with the expectations of forecasters according to a survey of economists by and .

The report was a last official report ahead of Tuesday's election on inflation, an issue that voters have said is one of their biggest concerns, according to polls. Both candidates have emphasized their plans to subdue inflation that surged in 2021 and 2022.The report was also the final one ahead of the Federal Reserve's next meeting in November. At that meeting, the central bank will decide whether to once again reduce its key fed funds rate, putting downward pressure on borrowing costs. The Fed made the first cut since 2020 in its last meeting, lowering the high interest rates it had maintained to subdue inflation.Thursday's report showed the prices for most of the things people buy are increasing at rates similar to pre-pandemic levels. Although the inflation rate has fallen, the prices are still higher than they were before the pandemic.

Core inflation, which excludes volatile prices for food and energy, remained stubbornly high, running at 2.7% over the year, the same as in August, largely because of high housing costs.

The Fed pays more attention to core inflation when evaluating whether it's hitting its inflation target because food and energy prices can fluctuate for reasons unrelated to broader economic trends. The central bank prefers to measure inflation using PCE rather than other measures such as the Consumer Price Index.Inflation picked up when measured on a month-over-month basis, rising 0.2% in September from August, up from a 0.1% increase the month before. Core prices rose 0.3% monthly, up from 0.2% in August.The report also showed household finances improving, with income rising 0.3%, up from a 0.2% increase in August, and spending surging 0.5%, up from 0.3% the previous month. Resilient consumer spending has been a bright spot for the economy, powering economic growth over the past two years despite high borrowing costs for all kinds of loans.Overall, the report did little to change financial markets' expectations that the Fed will cut its benchmark interest rate by 0.25 percentage points in November."The consumer is an unstoppable force, armed with solid labor and asset income, and a spendthrift attitude," Ali Jaffery, an economist at CIBC, wrote in a commentary. "The Fed is going to want to preserve the strength in the economy and today’s data, as well as yesterday’s strong GDP report, (which) still supports gradual rate reductions."

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Stellantis (STLA) on Thursday reported a 27% plunge in third-quarter revenue but also noted progress in running down the excess inventory buildup in the U.S. that has plagued the Big Three automaker.

“While Q3 2024 performance is below our potential, I’m pleased with our progress addressing operational issues, in particular U.S. inventories, which have been reduced meaningfully and are on track for year-end targets, as well as stabilization of U.S. market share,” Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Doug Ostermann said in a statement.

The company,which is home to such brands as Jeep and Chrysler, said that third-quarter net revenues were 33 billion euros ($35.8 billion) and that it was on track to deliver around 20 new models this year.

The figures come just weeks after the automaker issued a profit warning, citing "deterioration in global industry dynamics" and competition from Chinese rivals. It had also said a couple of weeks ago that high dealer inventory levels had contributed to a 36% decline in North American shipments.

It said the third-quarter net revenues had fallen during a “transitional period of product upgrades and inventory reduction” and attributed the drop to “lower shipments and unfavorable mix, as well as pricing and foreign exchange impacts.”

Stellantis shares are rising 3.5% in premarket trading but have lost 43% of their value since the start of the year.

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President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has said that Nigeria is positioning itself to become a major exporter of fish as part of its strategic blue economy push.

Speaking at the 39th Annual National Conference and General Meeting of the Fisheries Society of Nigeria, the president said Nigeria is moving towards becoming a major exporter of fish products while also working to achieve self-sufficiency.

Tinubu, who was represented at the event by the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, said: “The establishment of this ministry marks the beginning of a new era for the fisheries and aquaculture sub-sector.

In line with Mr President’s vision, the ministry is committed to achieving self-sufficiency in fish production and positioning Nigeria as a leading exporter of fish and fisheries products.

Fisheries and aquaculture are central to the broader vision for Nigeria’s Blue Economy sector. The Ministry’s strategic focus is to upscale fish production sustainably, tapping into the full spectrum of our marine resources.

This sub-sector has the potential to unlock long-term resources, increase food production, provide job opportunities, and drive sustainable development across our coastal and inland waters. This, in turn, offers long-term prosperity and security for future generations.”

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Meta Platforms (META) CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in Wednesday's earnings call that more spending on artificial intelligence (AI) products and infrastructure "is maybe not what investors want to hear in the near term," but that he feels it's necessary for the tech giant to seize opportunities in the industry.

The earnings call followed an estimate-topping third quarter from Meta, with net income coming in more than $2 billion higher than expected. Advertising revenue, the bulk of Meta's revenue, beat projections as the company has said its AI efforts have had a positive impact on the effectiveness of its ads.

Meta also lifted the lower range of its projected capital expenditures to $38 billion to $40 billion, from $37 billion to $40 billion previously, as the tech giant and many of its peers ramp up investments in the development of AI products.

While Zuckerberg and CFO Susan Li didn't offer numeric projections for Meta's expenditures in 2025, Li said they expect spending will grow next year, including a "significant acceleration in infrastructure expense growth" to support Meta's AI products.

Zuckerberg said Meta is "making a lot of progress" with the products it has released so far, like the Meta AI chatbot and AI features for its Ray-Ban smart glasses. Zuckerberg also said he expects there will be further opportunities to use advances in the technology to "accelerate our core business" and provide a "strong" return on investment (ROI) in the coming years.

Zuckerberg said Meta AI is still on track to be the most-used AI assistant on the market by the end of the year, noting it crossed the 500 million monthly active user (MAU) threshold in the quarter.

Zuckerberg also said Llama 4, the newest generation of Meta's large language model (LLM), is "well into its development," with the smaller models of Llama 4 set for launch "sometime early next year." The upgraded model will have better reasoning ability, faster response times, and other new capabilities, the Meta CEO said.

Meta shares slipped 3.3% in extended trading following the earnings call. They were up 67% for the year through Wednesday's close.

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Meta Platforms (META) reported third-quarter earnings that topped analysts' estimates with a boost from artificial intelligence (AI) demand, and lifted its estimates for how much money it plans to spend this year as it invests in the emerging tech.

The Facebook and Instagram parent reported $40.59 billion in revenue, up from $34.15 billion the same time last year and above the $40.27 billion analysts had expected, according to estimates compiled by Visible Alpha. Meta posted $15.69 billion in net income, up from $11.58 billion and better than the $13.58 billion analysts had projected.

Advertising revenue, the bulk of Meta's revenue, climbed 18.6% to $39.89 billion, just above estimates of $39.56 billion, benefitting from the tech giant's advances with AI.

"We had a good quarter driven by AI progress across our apps and business," said CEO Mark Zuckerberg in a release, adding the company has also seen "strong momentum with Meta AI, Llama adoption, and AI-powered glasses."

The results come as several big tech companies, including Meta, face intense pressure to show the billions of dollars they are spending on AI will boost results. The company raised the bottom range of its outlook for full-year capital expenditures to $38 billion to $40 billion, from $37 billion to $40 billion previously as Meta invests in AI.

Meta said it expects revenue in the fourth quarter of between $45 billion and $48 billion, with analysts expecting about $46.34 billion.

Shares of Meta edged 0.8% lower in extended trading following the release. They were up 67% for 2024 through Wednesday's close.

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