Israel & Hamas Reach Gaza Deal; China Unveils New Rare Earth Curbs

0:28The news doesn't stop on the weekends. We put the past week's events into context, examining what happened in the markets and the world. Then on Sundays, we speak with journalists, columnists, and key political figures to prepare you for the week ahead. Join us as soon as you wake up and bring us with you wherever your weekend plans take you. Watch us on Bloomberg Television, listen on Bloomberg Radio, stream the show live on the Bloomberg Business app, or listen to the podcast. That's Bloomberg this weekend, Saturdays and Sundays starting at 7 a.m. Eastern on February 28th. Make us part of your weekend routine on Bloomberg Television, Radio, and wherever you get your podcasts.

1:09Bloomberg Audio Studios. Podcasts. Radio. News. Good morning. I'm Nathan Hager. And I'm Karen Moscow. Here are the stories we're following today. Karen, we begin with breaking developments in the Middle East. Israel and Hamas have reached a deal for the release of all hostages held in Gaza. It is a major step toward ending the two-year war. Bloomberg Middle East correspondent Jumana Bersetchi is here with the very latest. A major breakthrough that we walked into this morning, as ever President Trump took to Truth Social to announce it, he said that both sides, Israel and Hamas, had agreed to the first phase of the peace deal, which would entail the release of the outstanding hostages.

1:51There are 20 thought to still be alive, 28 deceased, in exchange for Palestinian prisoners alongside a withdrawal of the IDF to a pre-agreed line. So still a lot of questions, but a major diplomatic breakthrough and indeed an emotional moment as well. For many in the region, the families of hostages have been celebrating in Tel Aviv and many Palestinians also very keen to see the end of two years of destruction with huge humanitarian loss. Bloomberg's Jumana Berset, she says as part of the deal, Israel will release jailed Palestinians and allow a ramp up of aid supplies to Gaza. Let's head to France now, Nathan, where President Emmanuel Macron says he will name a new Prime Minister by tomorrow evening.

2:31And we get the very latest in Paris with Bloomberg Daybreak Europe anchor Stephen Carroll. Stephen, good morning. Good morning, Karen and Nathan. So another political deadline looms in France. After two days of intense talks with political leaders, the outgoing Premier, Sébastien Lecornu, said last night there was a path to passing a budget. And crucially, he said there was a majority in Parliament who don't want an election. So that leaves President Macron searching for his sixth Prime Minister in two years. That person will have to get parties from the centre-left to the centre-right to agree one key issue, suspending controversial pension reforms which were passed two years ago.

3:09That's the main task, facing the next Prime Minister, who will then have to try again to shepherd a budget agreement through a fractured National Assembly. In Paris, Stephen Carroll, Bloomberg Radio. Stephen, thank you. Now to the latest on the U.S. government shutdown. It's now into its ninth day. Both Republicans and Democrats remain dug in on their demands for a clean stopgap spending bill on the GOP side and extended health care subsidies for Democrats. House Speaker Mike Johnson tells Bloomberg's Balance of Power the debate over health care can wait. That's a December 31 policy issue. We were always going to negotiate that and debate it and deliberate over it in October, November.

3:46That always has been on the schedule, and they know that, but they're trying to pretend that's the issue of the day. It's not. It's a red herring. It's a distraction. And as the shutdown continues, the White House is considering a plan to withhold back pay for some furloughed federal workers after the government reopens. Johnson says he has not studied that plan. It has always been my understanding that the law requires furloughed workers to receive back pay. And of course, that's been the tradition. And I'm not sure exactly what the president is referring to there. I haven't had a chance to talk to him about that specific issue yet, but we will.

4:16That was House Speaker Mike Johnson on Bloomberg's balance of power. And stay with Bloomberg. We'll hear from the other side of the aisle later this morning when House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries joins us on Bloomberg's surveillance. That's coming up in the 8 a.m. hour Wall Street time on Bloomberg Radio and Television and the Bloomberg podcast page on YouTube. Well, Nathan, we have new developments this morning on the global trade war. China has unveiled new curbs on its rare earth exports, citing national security grounds. The curbs mirror Washington's own export regime, which bans Chinese companies from accessing cutting-edge chips and the tools to make them.

4:50The provocative move comes as the U.S. and Chinese presidents prepare to sit down at a summit in South Korea to hammer out a trade deal between the world's biggest economies. Turning to markets now, Karen. Both stocks and gold are both coming off a session of record highs. Let's get the very latest with Bloomberg's John Tucker. I've heard this before, John. Yeah, if you're taking notes, this is the 33rd record this year with the S &P 500 surpassing 6750. Now, since the April lows, Nathan, the S &P 500 is up 31 percent. The Nasdaq has gained 45 percent. And as momentum chasing traders pile into stocks, some worry this is a bubble.

5:28Ron Temple is the chief market strategist at Lazard. Now, I do worry that we're seeing signs of what looks like a bit of a speculative melt-up. I mean, maybe that's an overstatement of what we see so far, but it does, when I look across asset classes, it's very hard to find any asset class that looks cheap right now. The current bull market run will mark three years on Sunday. The bull run isn't limited to stocks. Gold holding above$4 ,000 an ounce this morning, just short of Wednesday's all-time peak. In New York, I'm John Tucker, Bloomberg Radio. All right, John, thank you. In company news, the U.S.

6:03has approved several billion dollars worth of NVIDIA chip exports to the United Arab Emirates. A U.S. official says the approval came after the UAE made concrete plans for a reciprocal amount of investment on American soil. The licenses mark the first permits for NVIDIA AI chip sales to the UAE since President Trump took office. In Europe, Karen, shares of HSBC are down nearly 7 percent. the London-based lender plans to take Hang Seng Bank private in a major bet on the future of Hong Kong. HSBC is spending$14 billion to buy the third of Hang Seng it doesn't already own. In a Bloomberg interview, CEO Giorgio Hedri said it will deliver shareholder value.

6:42This is an investment for growth. This is an investment in Hong Kong, one of our home markets and one of our key markets. Hang Seng is an iconic bank in Hong Kong. It's a leading local bank. It has a fantastic customer franchise. have a very strong financial position. And the idea here is to effectively take private Hang Seng. And to keep its capital ratio within range, HSBC CEO George El-Hedry says the bank will refrain from buybacks for the next three quarters. Entertainment news now. Nathan, in an exclusive interview with Bloomberg, comedian Jimmy Kimmel thought his late night show was over following comments he made over the assassination of Charlie Kirk.

7:24And Bloomberg's Lisa Mateo joins us with more. Lisa, good morning. Good morning, Karen. Yeah, it was his first long-form interview since returning to the air at Bloomberg's screen time event. Kimmel, he pointed the finger at right-wing media networks who he said, quote, intentionally and maliciously mischaracterized his comments about the killing of political activist Charlie Kirk. Now, Kimmel reflected on the show being suspended and then returning to the air. I hope that we drew a really, really bold red line as Americans about what we will and will not accept. I mean, I really hope that that's what comes out of all of this.

8:00Now, aside from that, Kimmel also talked about the state of late night TV and its viewership. We'll still have five, six million people watching the show every night. That's a lot of people. I mean, that's more than most of the primetime shows. Now, the big question of the night, that was whether the talk show host would have FCC chairman Brendan Carr or President Donald Trump as guests on Jimmy Kimmel Live. Well, Kimmel said he probably would pass on Carr, but he would love to have the president on the show. Kimmel's contract up in May, he did not say whether he will continue hosting the show after that.

8:32Lisa Mateo, Bloomberg Radio.

8:37Time now for a look at some of the other stories making news in New York and around the world. And for that, we're joined by Bloomberg's Michael Barr. Michael, good morning. Good morning, Karen. in the second and final debate took place last night between the two candidates running to be New Jersey's governor, Democrat Mikey Sherrill and Republican Jack Cittarelli. During the debate aired on ABC7, a pointed exchange came after Sherrill said Cittarelli made millions by working with some of the worst offenders and saying that opioids were safe. As these opioid companies made billions, tens of thousands of New Jerseyans died.

9:14Mr. Chitorelli, first of all, shame on you. Second of all, shame on you, sir. Same on you. During the Biden administration, she had no problem whatsoever with tens of thousands of people crashing our border each and every day, not knowing what impact they had in our communities with regard to fentanyl crisis, fentanyl abuse, fentanyl distribution, vaccination rates and the like. They also sparred on how to make living in New Jersey more affordable. Authorities have charged a 29-year-old man with starting the January fire that destroyed Los Angeles' Pacific Palisades neighborhood. Officials say Jonathan Rindernacht was arrested in Florida.

9:54He faces charges including malicious destruction in a New Year's Day fire that burned down much of the Pacific Palisades a week later. U.S. Attorney Bill Asaley said the suspect was working as an Uber driver when he set the blaze. It smoldered underground for about a week until on January 7th, heavy winds caused this underground fire to surface and spread above ground. U.S. Attorney Bill Asaley, the Palisades fire killed 12 people and destroyed more than 6 ,800 structures. Former FBI Director James Comey has pleaded not guilty to federal charges. He lied to Congress. Comey's lawyer said they will seek a dismissal on the grounds of selective and vindictive prosecution, saying this case is being brought at the direction of President Trump.

10:42Global News, 24 hours a day and whenever you want it with Bloomberg News Now. I'm Michael Barr, and this is Bloomberg. Karen. Thanks, Michael. Time now for our Bloomberg Sports Update. And for that, we bring in John Stashauer. Thanks, Karen. The Toronto Blue Jays, the first team to advance to the league championship series. They beat the Yankees in New York 5-2. They won the series three games to one. Three other teams stayed alive. Detroit with a 9-3 win over Seattle. They'll have a decisive game five tomorrow. The Phillies beat the Dodgers 8-2. The Cubs beat the Brewers 4-3. The Dodgers and Brewers still have two games to one series leads.

11:16WNBA Finals, Las Vegas got a shot from Asia Wilson with less than a second to go and won 90-88 at Phoenix. The Aces lead the series 3-0. That's your Bloomberg Sports Update. Stay with us. More from Bloomberg Daybreak coming up after this.

11:58the European Union right now. And from London, I'm looking at what all that means for markets, money and the wider economy. We've got reporters across Europe and around the globe feeding in as stories break. So whether it's geopolitics, energy, tech or markets, you're hearing it while it happens. It's smart, calm and to the point. And it fits into your morning. You can find new episodes of the Bloomberg Daybreak Europe podcast by 7am in Dublin or 8am in Brussels, Berlin and Paris. on Apple, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts.

12:35Coast to coast on Bloomberg Radio, nationwide on Sirius XM, and around the world on Bloomberg.com and the Bloomberg Business App. This is Bloomberg Daybreak. Good morning, I'm Nathan Hager, and if October 7th is remembered in Israel as a day of terror, October 8th could be marked as a day of relief. Israel and Hamas have reached a deal to release all remaining hostages two years and a day after the attack that sparked all-out war in Gaza. President Trump is celebrating this moment. The whole world came together, to be honest. So many countries that you wouldn't have even thought of it. They came together.

13:09The world has come together around this deal. That was President Trump in an interview on Fox's Hannity last night. This morning, we're joined by Bloomberg Horizons anchor Jumana Bersetchi in Dubai. Jumana, good morning. We have seen the scenes of celebration in Tel Aviv. Walk us through exactly what has been agreed to in at least this first part of the deal. Yeah. Beyond the diplomatic breakthrough, also a hugely human and sentimental moment as well for those, the families of the hostages who've been waiting for two years now for the release of their family members. That brings hopefully an end to a devastating war in the region.

13:48But what we know is that only phase one of the peace deal has been agreed to by Israel, by Hamas. And this was confirmed subsequently by comments put out by Israel, Hamas and the mediators, including Qatar, too. It's been welcomed by Arab states in the region. And it entails a release of the hostages who are still being held in captivity. There are 20 still thought to be alive, alongside the remains of others who died in captivity, thought to be 28. That would happen in exchange for Palestinian prisoners, around 2 ,000 in total. And one of the topics that has been under negotiation the last couple of days is exactly agreeing to who on the Palestinian side, which prisoners would be acceptable for the release and for this exchange.

14:38It also entails the withdrawal of Israeli forces to predefined lines. and just a short while ago, IDF had said that they had begun operationally to prepare for the withdrawal to a pre-agreed line. We don't know what that line is. But some of the bigger questions regarding Hamas disarmament, regarding future governance and regarding future reconstruction of the Gaza Strip remain unanswered, but definitely a very positive first step in the right direction. And still an unanswered question, isn't there, as to whether the Israeli cabinet will agree to this deal as well. That still remains to be seen, doesn't it?

15:12It does remain to be seen. They're going to be voting on it later this afternoon, around 4 or 5 p.m. local time. And the expectation is that it will pass. So already we're hearing that the finance minister, Smacik, will vote against it. But I think there is a lot of pressure also domestically, internally, to bring about an end to this. Not least because it is the biggest opportunity yet since the war to secure the release of all of the hostages in one go. and earlier you were referencing the celebrations that were taking place at hostage square in tel aviv the view there is that this really is the opportunity to bring about the the the release of those who have been held in captivity for the last two years i should say also that technically the ceasefire is likely to go into effect right now right around now they had cited around 12 p.m local as the time that it would go into effect waiting for confirmation of that.

16:08But that would be one signal in the right direction and that both sides preparing for the implementation of the ceasefire and those exchange of hostages for prisoners. In our last minute, Jumana, what comes next? As we say, this is a first phase toward a hopeful end to the war in Gaza. What more needs to be done? Well, President Trump says that he is coming to the region over the course of the weekend. He is likely to go to Egypt. President Sisi offered an invitation to him to come for the signing. He's also expected to go to Israel, perhaps even deliver a speech to the Knesset. And that should be around the time that the hostages are released.

16:49He said in an interview over Fox News that that should happen on Monday by the latest. So that is the first stage. And of course, after that, then it becomes a question of full Hamas disarmament and the enforcement of that disarmament. And only once that has taken place can then Israel be comfortable talking about the withdrawal of IDF forces to some of those pre-agreed lines. So that's the sequencing. Once that is done, then you can talk about the future of Gaza and some of those bigger questions. This is Bloomberg Daybreak, your morning podcast on the stories making news from Wall Street to Washington and beyond.

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18:04I'm Karen Moscow. And I'm Nathan Hager. Join us again tomorrow morning for all the news you need to start your day right here on Bloomberg Daybreak.

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