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The Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq were little changed at midday Wednesday as chip stocks rebounded and a report showed job openings fell more than expected in July. 

Dollar Tree (DLTR) was the worst-performing stock in the S&P 500 after the discount store chain missed sales estimates and cut its forecast as inflation drove its customers to pull back on spending.

Shares of Hormel Foods (HRL) shares also dropped after the maker of Spam and other foods reported lower-than-expected sales and it reduced its outlook on lower prices and factory disruptions.

Centene (CNC) shares slid as the health insurer projected the number of Medicaid recipients covered this year would be lower than it previously estimated.

Shares of GitLab (GTLB) took off after the software development provider reported better-than-expected results and lifted its guidance on soaring demand for artificial intelligence (AI) products.

Sweetgreen (SG) shares jumped after an upgrade from TD Cowen, which pointed to the advantages of the restaurant chain’s use of automated kitchens.

Oil futures fell and gold prices rose. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell. The U.S. dollar lost ground to the euro, pound, and yen. Most major cryptocurrencies traded lower.

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Nigeria has become the third-largest debtor to the World Bank’s International Development Association as of June 30, 2024, surpassing its previous position as the fourth-largest borrower.

According to the World Bank, Nigeria’s loan exposure from the IDA rose to $16.5 billion as of June.

This was published in a financial statement dated June 30 2024, recently released by the World Bank.

The IDA, a key arm of the World Bank, provides concessional loans and grants to the world’s poorest countries.

These loans, characterised by low interest rates and extended repayment periods, are designed to promote economic growth, reduce inequalities, and improve living conditions in developing nations.

The loans to Nigeria increased by $2.2 billion compared to the $14.3 billion recorded at the end of 2023.

Ahead of Nigeria on the IDA debt list are Bangladesh, with $20.5 billion, followed by Pakistan with $17.5 billion exposure.

India occupies the fourth spot with $15.9 billion, while Ethiopia, Kenya and Vietnam followed with $12.2 billion, $12.0 billion, and $12.0 billion, respectively.

The three countries at the bottom of the list are Tanzania ($11.7 billion), Ghana ($6.7 billion) and Uganda ($4.8 billion).

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The U.K.'s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said Wednesday it determined Microsoft's (MSFT) hiring of former Inflection AI employees and related agreements with the AI startup do not pose a threat to competition.

The CMA had opened an investigation into the partnership to examine its impact on competition in the AI market and whether it effectively created a merger after Microsoft reportedly paid $650 million to license Inflection's tech and hired senior members of the Inflection team.

The antitrust regulator said that while it found the transaction could be considered a "relevant merger situation," that it "does not give rise to a realistic prospect of a substantial lessening of competition."

The investigation's closure could be good news for big tech companies amid regulatory scrutiny with a particular focus on AI partnerships.

Microsoft's partnership with Inflection AI is also reportedly under investigation in the U.S., with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) examining possible violations of antitrust rules for mergers and acquisitions (M&A).

Microsoft shares were little changed in intraday trading Wednesday following the news, and have gained about 9% from the start of the year.

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Nigeria and China have agreed to enhance their cooperation on financial intelligence to combat money laundering and other financial crimes in the West African country.

A joint statement issued by the two countries said the agreement was aimed at supporting Nigeria’s efforts to safeguard the order of its financial and foreign exchange markets and crack down on financial crimes.

The statement followed a meeting by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and President Xi Jinping of the People’s Republic of China, on Tuesday, September 3.

According to the statement, “Both countries agreed to support Nigeria’s geographical and development advantage in West Africa to establish Africa’s flagship projects on cross-national and cross-regional cooperation.

They also agreed to deepen cooperation on the infrastructure connectivity between the two countries. China proactively supports Nigeria in developing its domestic infrastructure construction, including transportation, ports and free trade zones, towards achieving integrated development and connectivity for industries.

The two sides encourage flexible and diverse regional and monetary and financial cooperation such as local currency swaps, to facilitate trade between China and Nigeria and make contributions to global financial stability.

The two countries agree to carry out international cooperation on financial intelligence on anti-monetary laundering/ countering the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) and support Nigeria’s efforts to safeguard the order of its financial and foreign exchange markets and to crack down on financial crimes, including money laundering.”

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American billionaire businessman and co-founder of Microsoft, Bill Gates, has said tax collection in Nigeria is ‘pretty low.’

The co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation stated this at an event in Abuja, on Tuesday, September 3.

According to him, “Over time, there are plans for Nigeria to fund the government more than it does today. The actual tax collection in Nigeria is actually pretty low.

If citizens want the education and the health things, as they develop the confidence that these programmes can be very well run, and our foundation is involved with a lot of the exemplars that are showing the way in terms of making sure the money is spent really well, running a very efficient primary health care system where the employees are doing great work, the centres are where they should be, you don’t have underloaded centres or overloaded centres.

It’s exciting that we are driving the credibility of those health programmes and so that the citizens will feel like primary health care is amongst the priorities that should be very funded as you get some fiscal flexibility.”

Gates’ remarks comes hours after Taiwo Oyedele, Chairman Presidential Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms Committee, said his committee is proposing a law to the National Assembly to increase value added tax from the current 7.5% to 10%. [Swipe]

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Dollar Tree (DLTR) shares tumbled in premarket trading Wednesday after the discount retailer reported another earnings miss and said it is facing "immense pressures from a challenging macro environment."

The retailer posted $132.4 million in net income for the second quarter of fiscal 2024, down from $200.4 million last year and well below analysts' estimates compiled by Visible Alpha. Revenue rose slightly to $7.38 billion but was still below expectations.

The retailer also lowered sales and profit projections for fiscal 2024, expecting revenue from $30.6 billion to $30.9 billion, down from $31.0 billion to $32.0 billion previously. Adjusted earnings per share (EPS) are now expected to be within a range of $5.20 to $5.60, compared with $6.50 to $7.00 previously.

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Rick Dreiling said the company is making progress despite "immense pressures from a challenging macro environment," while Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Jeff Davis said earnings were negatively impacted by the "increasing effect of macro pressures on the purchasing behavior of Dollar Tree's middle- and higher-income customers."

Their comments echo those made last week by executives at rival Dollar General (DG), who said they see "financially constrained" consumers who are "less confident" in their financial position and spends less on discretionary products as a result.

Wednesday's results are another disappointment for Dollar Tree, which reported earnings below estimates in the two previous quarters. In its Q1 report, the company said it was exploring "strategic alternatives" including selling or spinning off the Family Dollar brand roughly a decade after acquiring it, while in the prior quarter Dollar Tree said it planned to close about 1,000 stores.

Dollar Tree shares sank almost 10% to $73.72 about 45 minutes before the opening bell Wednesday. They are down more than 40% year-to-date.

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