Ceasefires and Economic Indicators

Your morning briefing, the business news you need in just 15 minutes.

On today's podcast:

(1) Israel and Hamas agreed to a ceasefire deal that calls for releasing dozens of hostages and bringing a temporary halt to the war in the Gaza Strip that has killed tens of thousands of people in the last 15 months and touched off broader turmoil across the Middle East.

(2) Wall Street breathed a sigh of relief after a surprise slowdown in inflation spurred a stock rally and a plunge in bond yields, reinforcing bets the Federal Reserve is on track to keep cutting rates this year.

(3) Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves has emerged relatively unscathed from a series of high-stakes public tests this week in the UK. Her next challenge will be proving to investors that she can shore up her battered economic agenda.

(4) President Joe Biden warned Americans of a “dangerous concentration of power” in the hands of a “very few ultra-wealthy people” and the impact he feared it would have on the country’s democracy as he delivered a farewell address Wednesday from the Oval Office.

(5) The dry, dangerous winds that have kept fire-scarred Los Angeles on edge for days are finally forecast to end — but a lack of rain and another round of winds forecast next week already has officials worried.

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