Stock Markets
Gaza ceasefire talks paused with resumption planned next week
By Andrew Mills and Nidal al-Mughrabi
DOHA/CAIRO (Reuters) -Gaza ceasefire talks in Doha were paused on Friday with negotiators to meet again next week seeking an agreement to end fighting between Israel and Hamas and free remaining hostages, as U.S. President Joe Biden said “we’re not there yet”.
In a joint statement, the United States, Qatar and Egypt said Washington had presented a new proposal that built on points of agreement over the past week, closing gaps between the sides in a way that could allow rapid implementation of a deal.
Mediators would continue to work on the proposal in coming days, they said.
“The path is now set for that outcome, saving lives, bringing relief to the people of Gaza, and de-escalating regional tensions,” they said in the statement.
An Israeli official said its delegation in Doha was heading home later on Friday and that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was expected to meet U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday.
The latest round in months of on-off talks to end the war in Gaza, which has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians, began between Israel and mediators on Thursday. The Palestinian militant group Hamas was not directly involved in the talks but was kept briefed on progress.
A senior Hamas official, Izzat al-Rishq, told Reuters that Israel “did not abide by what was agreed upon” in earlier talks, citing what mediators had told them about the result of the talks.
In Washington, Biden said a deal was “much, much closer” than had been the case before the talks began.
“I don’t want to jinx anything … we may have something. But we’re not there yet,” he said.
Sticking points have included Israel’s insistence that peace will only be possible if Hamas is destroyed, and Hamas saying it will only accept a permanent, rather than temporary, ceasefire.
Other difficulties have included the sequencing of a deal, the number and identity of Palestinian prisoners to be released alongside Israeli hostages, control over the border between Gaza and Egypt, and free movement for Palestinians inside Gaza.
Israeli forces pounded targets across tiny, crowded Gaza on Friday and issued new orders for people to leave areas it had previously designated as civilian safe zones, saying Hamas had used them to fire mortars and rockets at Israel.
As hundreds of families fled with salvaged belongings, the United Nations called for a week-long pause in fighting for a polio-vaccination campaign with disease spreading among the displaced.
A senior Western official, speaking anonymously, said there was at least one confirmed case of polio in the enclave, calling Gaza “a contagion time bomb.”
The conflict began on Oct. 7 when Hamas fighters rampaged into Israel, killing around 1,200 people and seizing around 250 hostages according to Israeli tallies.
Israel’s military campaign has reduced much of Gaza to rubble and killed more than 40,000 Palestinians, mostly civilians, according to Palestinian health authorities. Israel says it has eliminated 17,000 Hamas fighters.
REGIONAL FEARS
In a statement late on Thursday, Hamas politburo member Hossam Badran said Israel’s continuing operations were an obstacle to progress on a ceasefire.
The Israeli delegation included spy chief David Barnea, head of the domestic security service Ronen Bar and the military’s hostages chief Nitzan Alon, defence officials said.
The White House sent CIA Director Bill Burns and U.S. Middle East envoy Brett McGurk. Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and Egypt’s intelligence chief Abbas Kamel were also taking part.
The negotiations took place in the shadow of a feared regional escalation, with Iran threatening to retaliate against Israel after the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran on July 31.
With U.S. warships, submarines and warplanes dispatched to the region to defend Israel and deter potential attackers, Washington hopes a ceasefire agreement in Gaza can defuse the risk of a wider war.
Senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri accused the United States of trying to buy time for Israel while having “no real intention of stopping the war”, and that letting the conflict continue “is a recipe for an unprecedented explosion in the region”.
Investing.com — Needham on Friday initiated its coverage on On Holding AG (NYSE:) with a “buy” rating and a target price of $64.
Brokerage said On has shown industry-leading growth, with impressive revenue increases and healthy margin expansion. The company is likely to keep growing as it increases brand awareness and gains space with top sneaker retailers worldwide.
“We believe the company has a continued runway for strong growth, as they increase brand awareness and gain shelf space with the biggest and best sneaker retailers in the world,” analyst Tom Nikic wrote in the note.
Needham analyst noted that Roger Federer-backed On was valued at 5 times its expected 2025 revenues, which make stock may seem expensive but strong fundamentals could support continued stock momentum.
“Although valuation metrics are lofty, we believe the shares can continue to exhibit momentum as long as fundamentals”
ON is the fastest growing company in Needham’s coverage, with expected 32% revenue growth in 2024. Its Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) growing 43% year-to-date, compared to 24% growth for wholesale sales.
Brokerage highlighted despite this growth, the brand’s awareness is still relatively low. In major markets like the U.S., U.K., France, and Australia, awareness was under 10% a year ago. However, it’s increasing rapidly, with U.S. awareness doubling to around 20%, and tripling in France.
Stock Markets
Toll Brothers Announces Final Opportunity at Verona Estates Community in Chatsworth, California
CHATSWORTH, Calif., Nov. 22, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Toll Brothers , Inc. (NYSE:), the nation’s leading builder of luxury homes, today announced the final opportunity to own a new home at Verona Estates, an exclusive gated community in Chatsworth, California. Only a few homes remain available for sale in this prestigious community, including the professionally decorated Siena Modern Farmhouse model home.
The intimate gated enclave of Verona Estates is a rare find showcasing award-winning architecture and innovative home designs. Nestled in an established Chatsworth neighborhood south of the Santa Susana Mountains and adjacent to the Vineyards at Porter Ranch, this exceptional community offers a serene and relaxed atmosphere with the convenience of nearby shopping and easy access to freeways, entertainment, and recreation.
Toll Brothers residents in Verona Estates will enjoy distinctive architecture, quality craftsmanship, luxurious home designs with open floor plans, expansive home sites, and proximity to the future 50-acre Porter Ranch community park. Verona Estates offers generous two-story home designs ranging from 4,700 to 6,000+ square feet, with 5 to 6 bedrooms, 4.5 to 6.5 bathrooms, and 3-car garages. The homes also feature popular floor plan options including prep kitchens, guest suites, floating staircases, indoor and outdoor fireplaces, and more. Move-in ready homes in the community are priced from $1,979,995.
We are thrilled to offer the final opportunity to own a home in the exclusive Verona Estates community, said Nick Norvilas, Division President of Toll Brothers in Los Angeles. The Siena model home is a showcase of luxury and design, and we encourage interested home buyers to visit and experience this exceptional home along with the final few quick move-in homes remaining in the community firsthand.
The Siena Modern Farmhouse model home features designer upgrades throughout, including fully landscaped and furnished interiors, offering an unparalleled living experience. The professionally decorated model home is priced at $2,999,995.
For more information, call 844-700-8655 or visit TollBrothers.com/LA. The Sales Center for Verona Estates is located at 20508 Edgewood Court in Chatsworth and is open by appointment only.
About Toll Brothers
Toll Brothers, Inc., a Fortune 500 Company, is the nation’s leading builder of luxury homes. The Company was founded 57 years ago in 1967 and became a public company in 1986. Its common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol TOL. The Company serves first-time, move-up, empty-nester, active-adult, and second-home buyers, as well as urban and suburban renters. Toll Brothers builds in over 60 markets in 24 states: Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and Washington, as well as in the District of Columbia. The Company operates its own architectural, engineering, mortgage, title, land development, smart home technology, and landscape subsidiaries. The Company also develops master-planned and golf course communities as well as operates its own lumber distribution, house component assembly, and manufacturing operations.
In 2024, Toll Brothers marked 10 years in a row being named to the Fortune World’s Most Admired Companies™ list and the Company’s Chairman and CEO Douglas C. Yearley, Jr. was named one of 25 Top CEOs by Barron’s magazine. Toll Brothers has also been named Builder of the Year by Builder magazine and is the first two-time recipient of Builder of the Year from Professional Builder magazine. For more information visit TollBrothers.com.
From Fortune, ©2024 Fortune Media IP Limited. All rights reserved. Used under license.
Contact: Andrea Meck | Toll Brothers, Director, Public Relations & Social Media | 215-938-8169 | ameck@tollbrothers.com
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/cbb8cf4a-a018-4df0-955e-3cf4ab63edeb
Sent by Toll Brothers via Regional Globe Newswire (TOLL-REG)
Verona Estates by Toll Brothers
Toll Brothers announced the final opportunity to own a new home at Verona Estates, including the designer-decorated Siena model home, in Chatsworth, California.
Source: Toll Brothers, Inc.
By Marie Mannes, Alessandro Parodi and Stine Jacobsen
STOCKHOLM/GDANSK (Reuters) – Northvolt’s financial collapse deals a blow to Europe’s plan to set up its own battery industry to power electric cars, stirring a debate about whether it needs to do more to attract investment as startups struggle to catch up with Chinese rivals.
Europe’s biggest hope for an electric vehicle battery champion filed for U.S. Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Thursday after talks with investors and creditors including Volkswagen (ETR:) and Goldman Sachs for funding failed.
The Swedish company, whose motto is “make oil history”, has received more than $10 billion in equity, debt and public financing since its 2016 start-up. Volkswagen and Goldman Sachs each own about one fifth of its shares.
Northvolt said on Friday it needed $1.0-$1.2 billion in new funds under the restructuring process, which it hopes will end by the end of March.
In recent months, it has shrunk the business and cut jobs in a bid to shore up its finances. But it has struggled to produce sufficient volumes of high-quality batteries, and lost a 2 billion euro ($2.1 billion) contract from BMW (ETR:) in June.
That has left Europe’s ambitions to build its own battery industry looking a distant dream.
In recent years, Northvolt led a wave of European startups investing tens of billions of dollars to serve the continent’s automakers as they switch from internal combustion engines to electric vehicles.
But growth in EV demand is moving at a slower pace than many in the industry projected, and China has taken a huge lead in powering EVs, controlling 85% of global battery cell production, International Energy Agency data shows.
Making batteries and cells, the units that store and convert chemical energy into electricity, is a delicate process and doing so at scale is a challenge for any battery maker.
Northvolt has missed some in-house targets and curtailed production at its battery cells plant in northern Sweden, underscoring the difficulties, Reuters reported on Monday.
“The biggest issue is that batteries are not easy to make and Northvolt haven’t satisfied the supply demands of their customers – that is a management issue,” said Andy Palmer, founder of consultancy Palmer Automotive said.
“The Chinese are technologically 10 years ahead of the West in batteries. That’s a fact,” he said.
At least eight companies have postponed or abandoned EV battery projects in Europe this year, including China’s Svolt and joint venture ACC (NS:), led by Stellantis (NYSE:) and Mercedes-Benz (OTC:).
In 2024, Europe’s battery pipeline capacity out to 2030 has fallen by 176 gigawatt-hours, according to data firm Benchmark Minerals. That’s equivalent to almost all the current installed capacity in Europe, according to Reuters calculations.
RETHINK
Some executives say Europe should do more to attract and support home-grown projects so they can compete with Chinese rivals such as CATL and BYD (SZ:).
“Europe needs to rethink how it supports a nascent sector before China eats up the entire value chain, which is due to smart planning,” said James Frith, European head of Volta Energy Technologies, which specialises in battery and energy storage technology.
Among its $5.8 billion in debts, Northvolt owes the European Investment Bank (EIB) some $313 million.
EIB vice president Thomas Östros said it had been a constructive partner to Northvolt, but it needed to safeguard the EIB and EU’s interests.
“It remains the case that Europe has a strategic interest in a European battery industry for electric cars and we will follow developments very closely. But it is much to early to say what the outcome will be,” he said.
The Swedish government has repeatedly said it does not plan to take a stake in Northvolt.
On Friday, Northvolt’s outgoing CEO and co-founder Peter Carlsson said he was a “little worried” Europe is giving up on its dream of competing with China.
He said Europe would regret it in 20 years time if it retreated.
“It’s not a straight journey and right now, we’re all in a bit of a down in that journey where there’s more hesitations, there’s more questions on the speed of the transition from the carmakers, from policymakers, from the investor community,” he told reporters in a call.
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