Despite ongoing unrest in the Middle East, Saudi Arabia’s tourism chief said the kingdom is “very safe” and he doesn’t see the disorder impacting tourist arrivals. “I’m not worried at all because Saudi Arabia is very safe,” Ahmad Al-Khatib, chairman of the Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage, told CNBC’s Hadley Gamble on Tuesday. “If we look at the 1.6 billion travelers, I don’t believe more than 10 percent would feel that Saudi Arabia is not safe.” He also said he hasn’t heard of

Chinese ride-hailing giant Didi is looking to enter the Russian market, according to the CEO of the country’s sovereign wealth fund which is one of the investors in the firm. The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) is an investor in Didi. RDIF’s CEO Kirill Dmitriev told CNBC on Wednesday that Didi is now looking to enter Russia. “Didi is thinking about entering the Russian market and we are looking at the Russian market with them,” Dmitriev said. An entry into the Russian market would pit Didi

Spain is the latest European country to have a new coalition government after a period of political stalemate and uncertainty and the left-wing government will aim to focus on growth policies and addressing inequalities, the country’s vice president told CNBC. “I’m extremely happy that we finally have a government, it took quite some time, it was not an easy time but we finally have a coalition government in Spain,” Nadia Calviño, one of four vice presidents in Spain, told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Eur

The signing of a “phase one” trade deal between the U.S. and China offers a “pathway to peace” which improves the outlook for the global economy, according to International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva. The IMF this week revised down its forecast for global economic growth in 2020 to 3.3% from the 3.4% projected in October 2019. However, Georgieva told a CNBC panel at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, that the trade truce had “reduced by 0.3% what woul

An argument is brewing between the U.K. and U.S. over whether the British government should press ahead with plans to introduce a digital sales tax in April. The U.K. has argued that current tax rules do not fairly match where digital profits are taxed, to the region where the income is derived. Speaking during the World Economic in Davos, Switzerland, U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin warned that countries who introduced a digital tax could “find themselves faced with President Trump’s tar

The potential for governments to deploy fiscal stimulus policies in 2020 is creating greater optimism at this year’s World Economic Forum in Davos than a year ago, according to Barclays CEO Jes Staley. With the European Central Bank (ECB) cutting interest rates to a record low -0.5% last year, new ECB President Christine Lagarde has joined her predecessor Mario Draghi’s calls for governments with fiscal headroom, such as Germany and the Netherlands, to start fiscal spending programs in order to

DAVOS, Switzerland — Xiaomi, one of the largest smartphone players in the world, is still hopeful of entering the U.S. market, despite the ongoing trade war between Washington and Beijing, a top executive told CNBC. But it has yet to enter the U.S., a market dominated by Apple and Samsung. In 2018, a senior executive at Xiaomi told CNBC that the firm was building its “resources” to enter the U.S. When asked if Xiaomi was still looking at the American market despite the ant-China sentiment and do

U.S. President Donald Trump wants to make a deal in the Middle East and that could become a reality if he is reelected, according to a Dubai property magnate. “I think there is a good chance of peace happening, a deal happening in the second term of Trump if he gets elected.” “I genuinely think he wants to make a deal,” Sajwani said at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. “I think if Trump gets elected for a second term, he will make a deal.” I think Iran is going to take a long time

DAVOS, Switzerland –The Patriotic Millionaires, a group of wealthy people who support hiking taxes on the rich, are taking their message global at the World Economic Forum. In a letter the group plans to release Wednesday, the Patriotic Millionaires will urge international tax reform. The Patriotic Millionaires was founded in 2010 and is chaired by former BlackRock executive Morris Pearl. The global corporate tax has essentially halved in the past 35 years. While Shalchi said he’s supportive of

The European Union has “no choice” but to negotiate a new trade deal with the U.S., President Donald Trump told CNBC on Wednesday. Amid ongoing informal discussions, Trump has threatened to slap tariffs on European cars in a bid to strong-arm EU leaders. In yesterday’s meeting, he claimed to have told von der Leyen that absent a trade deal, he would need to “take action” in the form of “very high tariffs on their cars and other things.” President Donald Trump speaks during a CNBC Exclusive inter

BP CEO Bob Dudley on stepping down as CEO, sustainable investing and moreBob Dudley, CEO of BP, joins “Squawk Box” at the World Economic Forum in Davos to discuss the the energy market, sustainable investing, his decision to step down as CEO and more.

The chemicals, resistant to breaking down in the environment, are known as perfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS. The contamination of U.S. drinking water with man-made “forever chemicals” is far worse than previously estimated with some of the highest levels found in Miami, Philadelphia and New Orleans, said a report on Wednesday by an environmental watchdog group. “It’s nearly impossible to avoid contaminated drinking water from these chemicals,” said David Andrews, a senior scientist at EWG and

President Donald Trump, in a CNBC interview Wednesday, stepped up his pressure over Apple’s refusal to unlock iPhones for authorities in criminal cases. And I’m very strong on it,” Trump told “Squawk Box” co-host Joe Kernen from the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. Trump told CNBC he’s helped Apple a lot. Trump told CNBC on Wednesday: “They could have given us that information. “You’re dealing with drug lords and you’re dealing with terrorists, and if you’re dealing with murderers, I

President Donald Trump told CNBC on Wednesday that Elon Musk is one of the world’s “great geniuses,” he likened the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX to Thomas Edison. Musk is “one of our great geniuses, and we have to protect our genius,” Trump said in an interview with “Squawk Box” co-host Joe Kernen from the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. In a 2008 interview, Musk said Edison and Nikola Tesla, for whom he named his electric auto company, were both role models, but he preferred Edison. Tesl

Johnson & Johnson’s fiscal fourth-quarter profit beat Wall Street’s expectations but missed slightly on revenue, the company said Wednesday. J&J’s pharmaceutical business posted revenue of $10.54 billion, a 3.5% increase year over year. The company’s consumer unit, which makes beauty products such as Neutrogena, increased 0.9% to $3.5 billion. J&J’s medical device unit reported revenue of $6.63 billion, down half a percent from last year. The company sees 2020 earnings between $8.95 per share an

U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin rejected warnings that the U.S.-China trade war could create a “digital Berlin Wall” on Wednesday, speaking at a CNBC panel during the World Economic in Davos, Switzerland. Asked about the risk — first flagged last year by International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva, also speaking on the panel — Mnuchin replied, “No, I discard that. He added that “it’s not a Berlin Wall at all — it’s we want other people to take down the Berlin walls.

President Donald Trump told CNBC on Wednesday that he trusts the information coming out of China on the coronavirus as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirms the first case of it in the United States. “We have it totally under control,” Trump told “Squawk Box” co-host Joe Kernen in an interview from the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. “It’s one person coming in from China. We have it under control. The CDC on Tuesday said a Snohomish County, Washington state, residen

Total application volume fell 1.2% last week from the previous week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s seasonally adjusted index. Applications to refinance a home loan fell 2% for the week, but were 116% higher than a year ago. Last year, the average rate on the 30-year fixed was 88 basis points higher. “Refinance applications remained near the highest level since October 2019, as the 30-year fixed rate was unchanged at 3.87 percent, while the 15-year fixed rate decreased to its lo

President Donald Trump on Wednesday said that the U.S. economy’s GDP growth would have been closer to 4% if it weren’t for the lingering effect of Federal Reserve rate hikes. We had things happen that are very unusual to happen,” Trump told CNBC’s Joe Kernen in an interview from the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. “Now, with all of that, had we not done the big raise on interest, I think we would have been close to 4%,” Trump said. “And I – I could see 5,000 to 10,000 points more on

President Donald Trump on Wednesday called Boeing a “big disappointment” after the manufacturer pushed back when it expects its beleaguered 737 Max to return to service after two fatal crashes. “Very disappointing company,” Trump told CNBC’s Joe Kernen in an interview when asked about Boeing’s new timeline. The crisis over the planes, which regulators grounded in March after two nearly new Boeing 737 Max jetliners crashed within five months, has already cost thousands of jobs. Boeing reiterated