Get Amazing News Free

Finnair recently announced a new code-sharing partnership with one of China's largest airlines, helping the European carrier boost its presence in the growing Chinese aviation market, the company's CEO Topi Manner said Thursday.

Partnerships, like the one announced with China Southern last week, will allow the Finnish flag carrier to scale up in size to meet demand, according to Manner.

The agreement allows Finnair to fly between Guangzhou and the Finnish capital of Helsinki, as well as selected China Southern destinations in the world's second-largest economy. As a result, Finnair passengers can travel from Guangzhou to Chinese cities such as Changsha, Chongqing, Hangzhou, Nanjing, Xiamen and other destinations using China Southern. The agreement starts on June 1.

"The code-share agreements that we have now recently released with China Southern, as well as Juneyao (Air), are important building blocks for our presence on the Chinese market, improving connectivity for our customers," Manner told CNBC's "Squawk Box " on Thursday.

Earlier this month, Finnair agreed on a new code-share agreement with Shanghai-based Juneyao Air that added eight new destinations to the company's network in China.

"These partnerships provide the additional connections for our customers and smooth travel experience," Manner added.

The International Air Transport Association said in its 2016 forecast report that China would replace the U.S. as the world's largest aviation market around 2024 — defined by air traffic to, from and within the country. The report was the trade association's most recent 20-year air passenger forecast.

Looking at Europe, Manner said Finnair had been increasing its frequencies to London this year despite lingering uncertainties over the U.K.'s decision to leave the European Union.

"We see a lot of underlying demand on the U.K. market, especially in us connecting to Asia," he said. "Destinations like Hong Kong, Singapore (are) very much growing from London. "

In the event of a hard Brexit, where the U.K. leaves the EU without a formal deal in place, Manner said it's unlikely that Finnair's business strategy in the country will change much since the air traffic from London would "more or less be secure."

U.S. President Donald Trump plans to tell the British government in person that Washington may limit intelligence sharing with the U.K. if it allows Huawei to build part of its 5G high-speed mobile network, the Financial Times reported.

Trump is set to embark on a three-day state visit to the U.K. in June, days before British Prime Minister Theresa May is set to resign from her post.

According to American and British officials, Trump decided to raise the issue about Huawei after his aides had repeatedly failed to convince the U.K. government to restrict the involvement of the Chinese company, the newspaper said.

A person involved in planning the trip told the FT that Trump was ready to make his objections known both in public and in private: "The president is preparing to repeat the message that Chinese involvement in 5G could pose significant challenges for US-UK intelligence co-operation."

The White House did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment sent outside regular office hours.

Last month, reports said the British government will allow Huawei to build out parts of its 5G wireless networks, which would defy U.S. demands for a blanket ban on the Chinese tech giant's involvement in the latest digital infrastructure technology. 5G is set to bring faster internet speeds and lower lag times — it has tremendous potential to change the way people interact with new technologies.

Britain's National Security Council was said to have agreed to let Huawei provide "non-core" technology, like antennas, to the country's mobile operators for the next-generation networks. The U.K., however, will not allow the Chinese firm to provide so-called "core" technology that includes software and other equipment linking primary internet connections, according to reports.

Still, White House national security advisor John Bolton said on Thursday that the U.K. may not have made a final decision on Huawei yet, Reuters reported.

Elon Musk's second-most famous business may soon top his first.

The value of SpaceX has risen to $33.3 billion, people familiar with the company's recent fundraising told CNBC. In an amendment of its April fundraising effort, a filing last week from SpaceX showed the company's latest round brought in $536 million at a price of $204 a share. SpaceX has raised just over $1 billion this year, as the company accelerates fundraising to develop its plan to beam high-speed internet to anywhere on Earth.

Additionally, Musk's space company is now more valuable than his electric vehicle company. Tesla shares closed down on Friday giving the company a market value of $32.8 billion – just below SpaceX's valuation.

SpaceX's valuation has risen steadily as the company has raised funding for rockets, spacecraft and more over the past decade. Most recently, SpaceX was reportedly valued at $30.5 billion. The company has been able to draw investment from private markets with ease, as a person familiar with SpaceX's fundraising this year said both its equity raises were oversubscribed. In the most recent round, investor demand meant SpaceX could have raised between $300 million to $400 million more than it did, the person said.

Tesla, on the other hand, has lost more than half its value since August. Shares of Tesla are down more than 43% this year, steadily dropping. The electric automaker faces slowing demand, increasing costs from the U.S. trade war with China and doubt from Wall Street about its financial health. Only a week after Musk deferred on questions about the company raising capital, Tesla raised $2.7 billion in a stock and bond offering. While he has said Tesla will end 2019 with a record number of vehicles delivered, analysts warn that deliveries will be lower than he forecast, especially in key markets such as China.

The space company has undertaken two ambitious and capital intensive projects: The building of a network of nearly 12,000 internet satellites, called Starlink, and the development of a rocket big enough to send 100 people to Mars, called Starship. Earlier this year, Musk said SpaceX "has to be incredibly spartan with expenditures" due to the projects. But the company's financial standing appears stable.

Musk told reporters this month that SpaceX has "sufficient capital" to get its Starlink satellite network "to an operational level." Musk believes SpaceX will be the key to funding his vision of colonizing Mars, as he estimates Starlink could generate at least 10 times the revenue that the company's business of launching rockets could. While SpaceX's annual launch revenue is estimated at about $2 billion, Musk sees that topping out at $3 billion in the coming years. But Starlink he said could bring in revenue of "more like $30 billion a year."

"Total internet connectivity revenue in the world is about $1 trillion and we think maybe we can access about 3%" with Starlink, Musk said.

A Chinese official tabloid editor followed by Wall Street for insight took a shot at President Donald Trump's latest threat to impose tariffs on all Mexican imports.

"Some day, the White House will be named 'tariff museum' by history," said Hu Xijin, editor-in-chief of the Global Times, a tabloid under the People's Daily which is the official newspaper of the Communist Party of China. He has been a prolific commentator on the ongoing U.S.-China trade war, followed by many Wall Street traders and market participants.

Hu called the U.S. "so imaginative" in using tariffs on Mexico to curb illegal immigration. Trump once called himself a "tariff man" to toughen his rhetoric amid intensifying tensions with China.

His comment came after the U.S. announced to slap a 5% tariff on all Mexican imports from June 10 and more duties will be added if Mexico does not take action to "reduce or eliminate the number of illegal aliens" crossing into the U.S., the White House said Thursday.

Trump's trade advisor Peter Navarro told CNBC on Friday that Trump's threat tied to the president's declaration of a national emergency at the southern border.

Many policy analysts believe Trump's Mexican tariffs could hurt the chance of a China trade deal as he lost reliability to honor an agreement.

China said Friday it will establish a list of unreliable entities of foreign companies and people that "seriously damage" the interests of domestic firms. It also reportedly stopped purchases of U.S. soybeans and threatened to cut off rare earth supply to the U.S.

The global cruise industry is booming. Now the fastest-growing category in the leisure travel market — estimated at $45.6 billion in 2018 — cruise vacations attracted more than 26 million travelers last year, up 3% over 2017. By the end of 2019, that number is expected to hit 30 million, according to Statista. 

One likely explanation for the surge is millennials' increased interest in cruise travel. To keep pace, the industry plans to pour about $65 billion into building more ships over the next 10 years.

Despite incidents of crime and reports of illnesses and outbreaks on vessels, cruise ships are operating at near 100% capacity and claim it's been almost impossible to keep up with demand. Many vacationers opt for cruises because of they offer an all-in-one experience, several entertainment and dining options and the ability for families to stay together while enjoying separate vacations. 

But by 2019 millennials will surpass boomers in population size (73 million vs. 72 million), and these young, savvy travelers will soon become the newest cruiser demographic. That means cruise lines will need to start making some serious changes, from offering creative food options and unique onboard activities to authentic experiences and more exotic destinations.

Norwegian Cruise Line CEO Frank Del Rio says he is prepared to meet the challenge. With a combined fleet of 26 ships with approximately 54,400 berths across its Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises brands, Norwegian offers itineraries to more than 450 destinations worldwide and plans to introduce 11 additional ships through 2027.

Del Rio says the company is also pouring millions into its existing fleet. "Back in 2015 we said we would spend in the neighborhood of $500 to $600 million on the Norwegian brand. Another $100 million plus was spent on the Region brand, and we just recently announced a $100 million refurbishment program for the Oceania brand," he said. He added that by the end of February 2020, the 1998 Norwegian Spirit will have "a $150 million head-to-toe refurbishment."

On May 9 Norwegian reported its Q1 earnings: a jump in revenue of 8.5%, to $1.4 billion. Today it is the third-largest cruise line in the world, controlling approximately 9% of the total worldwide share of the cruise market by passengers as of 2018. (Carnival controls the largest market share, at 45%, followed by Royal Caribbean, at 25%).

Yet while growth is strong, Del Rio says he's always aware of the competition — and the fact that customers are more demanding today. "How do you make your product different? How do you motivate the consumer to choose your brand, which is higher-priced than a competitive brand?

"When you come on board as a guest, we want you to think you are on that ship's maiden voyage. It's got to have that new car smell. The carpets have to be clean, that ... the art is relevant. Everything is new, and people are willing to pay for that kind of quality, for that kind of value. [The customer] is more demanding. I mean, the competition is fierce."

Norwegian, and the industry as a whole, is responding to the wishes of its guests and embracing innovation to develop new destinations, new and diverse onboard amenities and additional activities at port destinations. That's when social media, Del Rio says, can play a powerful role in marketing their brand.

"There's no question that the power of Instagram and similar apps out there are alive and well and very, very relevant. Today people communicate through photos and experiences, and we want to make sure that our guests — on any given day, there's over 50,000 guests on board our ships — we want to make sure that they get to experience and share those experiences with their friends."

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Thursday said the company is working on a number of different projects that could benefit from having an AI voice assistant.

"I imagine there are going to be more products that we build where voice is going to be an important interface over the coming years," Zuckerberg said, speaking at the company's annual shareholder meeting. "We're working on a lot of different things around this."

The question comes after an April CNBC report that said Facebook was building a voice assistant to rival the likes of Amazon's Alexa, Apple's Siri and the Google Voice Assistant. Facebook confirmed the report.

Facebook already sells two Portal video chat devices that make use of the Amazon Alexa assistant. Facebook is the only major tech company that doesn't have its own voice assistant. It did have an assistant called M that launched in 2015 and used human helpers to perform requests from users, but Facebook shut the project down in early 2018.

Now it sounds like Facebook is working on products that use a new AI assistant that responds to voice.

"You can look at where the product roadmap is likely to go on this and see why this would be a very useful and an important way where people are going to want to interact with more technology that way," Zuckerberg said.

WATCH: Here's how to see which apps have access to your Facebook data — and cut them off

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Thursday said the company is working on a number of different projects that could benefit from having an AI voice assistant.

"I imagine there are going to be more products that we build where voice is going to be an important interface over the coming years," Zuckerberg said, speaking at the company's annual shareholder meeting. "We're working on a lot of different things around this."

The question comes after an April CNBC report that said Facebook was building a voice assistant to rival the likes of Amazon's Alexa, Apple's Siri and the Google Voice Assistant. Facebook confirmed the report.

Facebook already sells two Portal video chat devices that make use of the Amazon Alexa assistant. Facebook is the only major tech company that doesn't have its own voice assistant. It did have an assistant called M that launched in 2015 and used human helpers to perform requests from users, but Facebook shut the project down in early 2018.

Now it sounds like Facebook is working on products that use a new AI assistant that responds to voice.

"You can look at where the product roadmap is likely to go on this and see why this would be a very useful and an important way where people are going to want to interact with more technology that way," Zuckerberg said.

WATCH: Here's how to see which apps have access to your Facebook data — and cut them off

The biggest U.S. gasoline price surge in years is running out of steam just in time for the start of the summer driving season.

Heading into Memorial Day, the national average gasoline price is coming off the year's high and sitting just above $2.80 per gallon.

The national average climbed 67 cents a gallon between New Year's Day and May 4, when pump prices peaked, according to price-tracking firm GasBuddy. That's the second biggest rise on record for the start of a year, trailing only the 93 cents per gallon surge in 2011.

It's a similar setup to last year's holiday weekend. Gas prices surged at the start of the year, but didn't climb high enough to keep many Americans off the road. Still, they're well above levels in 2016 and 2017, when a depressed oil market gave motorists a big break at the pump.

"While the rise in prices has been steep this spring, perhaps the most important factor is that in many places, gas prices are still well below their all-time highs and perhaps even more importantly, over 50% of the nation's gas stations are selling at $2.99 per gallon or less," Patrick DeHaan, head of petroleum analysis GasBuddy, said in a press release.

Nearly 75% of Americans plan to take a road trip this summer, marking an increase from last year, according to a survey by GasBuddy. However, 38% of survey respondents — roughly the same as last year — said current gas prices will impact their travel decisions.

The cost of gasoline shot up this year as oil prices rallied roughly 40% through last month, bolstered by tighter supply and better-than-expected demand. Oil accounts for 50% to 60% of the price at the pump.

Drivers also found themselves paying more due to disruptions at the nation's refineries, where crude oil is processed into gasoline, diesel and other products.

"Part of the run-up was due to the very high prices on the West Coast due to an extraordinary number of refinery outages," said Andrew Lipow, president of Lipow Oil Associates. "As those refiners have come back into service, we've seen prices dropping."

Oil prices have plunged nearly 8% this week as the ongoing U.S.-China trade war raises concerns about economic growth and demand for fuel. But with Middle East tensions still simmering and threatening to push up crude costs, the national average gasoline price is likely to stay stuck near $2.80 per gallon, Lipow says.

DeHaan expects gas price relief to continue at least through the first week of June, with the national average settling in a summertime range between $2.65 and $2.90 a gallon.

Gas prices by location, source: GasBuddy

The regions likely to see the biggest declines are those with the highest gas prices: the West and East coasts and the Rockies.

Rising gasoline prices have been especially painful in California and other Western states. Refinery outages have helped push pump prices above $4 a gallon in California and above $3 a gallon in other states in the region.

"I think we end up cheaper as a nation, but that's not much consolation for people in California that are going to be paying considerably more," said Tom Kloza, global head of energy analysis at Oil Price Information Service.

U.S. stockpiles of gasoline are at the lowest levels for this time of year since 2015, but analysts say there's enough fuel in storage to keep the country well supplied through the summer.

Barring a string of refinery outages or significantly higher oil prices, the onset of hurricane season is the next major threat to U.S. gasoline prices. The annual storm season poses risks to the U.S. refinery hub on the Gulf Coast in particular.

On Thursday, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association predicted a near-normal Atlantic hurricane season this year. NOAA forecasts there will be nine to 15 named storms during the June to November period, with four to eight hurricanes and two to four major hurricanes.

Bain Capital, the 35-year-old private equity firm known for takeovers of companies like Varsity Brands and the now bankrupt Toys R Us, is raising $1 billion for a new technology fund that will be used for buyouts and late-stage minority investments, according to people familiar with the matter.

The new fund — Bain Capital Tech Opportunities — will target $50 million to $200 million equity investments, primarily in enterprise software and cybersecurity, said the people, who asked not to be named because the plans are private. The fund will also look to acquire smaller companies, the people said.

Private equity firms have become a major part of the technology M&A market in recent years, with firms like Thoma Bravo and Vista Equity raising large funds to swipe up subscription software companies with stock prices that are lagging behind their peers. The strategy paid off last year for Vista, which sold marketing automation company Marketo to Adobe for $4.75 billion, two years after buying the business for $1.8 billion.

Bain sees a gap in the software market where there's less capital available. The firm is looking for companies with annual recurring revenue of $30 million to $100 million and valuations of less than $500 million. For companies at this stage, Bain plans to tout its expertise in finding international opportunities and forging partnerships with other portfolio companies, the people said. Other firms that compete on that end of the market include HGGC and Francisco Partners.

As Bain has researched industry verticals in tech over the past year, it has discovered several investment opportunities that are too small for its private equity funds, which in recent years have acquired companies such as Blue Coat, a $2.4 billion deal in 2015 (sold about a year later for $4.65 billion) and BMC Software as part of a $6.9 billion consortium transaction. They also haven't fit as investments for Bain Capital Ventures, which is focused on seed and earlier-stage investing.

On the venture side, there's a record amount of cash pouring into tech start-ups from the $100 billion SoftBank Vision Fund, hedge funds, mutual fund companies and multibillion-dollar growth funds from Sequoia, Insight Venture Partners and others. But rather than pursuing high-flying start-ups, Bain is going after companies that may have hit some roadblocks and are in need of operational improvements, the people said.

The new fund will be co-managed by Darren Abrahamson, private equity managing director, and Dewey Awad, public equity managing director, and will add about 15 people internally and externally, the sources said. In addition to software and cybersecurity, it may look to invest in financial technology, health tech and digital media.

A Bain spokesperson declined to comment.

WATCH: 'Proceed with caution' in this global macro environment

On Thursday, McDonald's will open a new flagship store in Times Square, expected to be its busiest in the U.S.

The location showcases the modern updates that McDonald's has been bringing to its U.S. stores. It boasts digital menu boards, 18 self-order kiosks and wireless mobile charging stations at tables.

The high-tech upgrades are part of its strategy to drive sales by bringing customers back to its stores. The renovations are meant to improve convenience for the customer and modernize the look of the restaurants.

McDonald's originally scheduled all U.S. store renovations to be complete in 2020 but pushed the deadline back to 2022. In 2018, McDonald's spent $1.4 billion to remodel around 4,500 restaurants. This year, spending is expected to drop to about $1 billion to upgrade 2,000 locations.

On its first-quarter earnings call, executives said that it is finally seeing a "net positive impact" from store renovations that made up for the necessary store closures.

Here's a look at the new flagship store:

When customers enter the location, the sight of self-order kiosks greet them. Employees are also available to take orders and payment.

Times Square sees about 50 million visitors annually. In anticipation of such high demand, McDonald's has three floors — and plenty of seating.

On the second floor, self-order kiosks are also available to order any forgotten items.

The interior's modern, simple look is meant to contrast with the flashing billboards and bustle outside in Times Square, according to Max Carmona, McDonald's senior director of U.S. restaurant design. Its glass exterior gives customers a great view of that activity.

ABOARD A US MILITARY AIRCRAFT — There is no aircraft quite like the U.S. Air Force's E-4B.

Affectionately known as the "doomsday plane," the modified Boeing 747 is used to transport the secretary of Defense and is born and bred for battle. It stands nearly six stories tall, is equipped with four colossal engines, and is capable of enduring the immediate aftermath of a nuclear detonation.

"It's like a backup Pentagon," a U.S. Air Force crew member told CNBC aboard one of the aircraft. "There's always one plane on alert and ready to go 24 hours, seven days a week."

On Tuesday morning, acting Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan boarded the E-4B at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland for a week-long trip to Asia. It was his second time taking the plane on an international trip since ascending to the highest office in the Pentagon. The aircraft, also known as the National Airborne Operations Center, will ferry Shanahan and his staff to Hawaii, Indonesia, Singapore, South Korea and Japan.

Air crew aboard the plane said that the aircraft would clock a total of 22,538 nautical miles with the help of three aerial refuelings and six tankers during the eight-day trip.

"It's great, but they keep giving me more work," Shanahan joked when asked about working and traveling on the E-4B. "The work never stops," he added, noting that he has a pulse on U.S. military operations across the globe while aboard the aircraft.

"Think of it as this, the plane is basically a flying command center,” a Pentagon spokesman said aboard the aircraft. The spokesman added that the secretary has access to both unclassified and the highest form of classified communication systems on the plane. "So, he's never out of the loop," another Pentagon spokesman added.

Much like Air Force One, its sister aircraft with the same recognizable paint job, most of the E-4B's capabilities are classified.

Currently, there are four of these unique aircraft in the Air Force's fleet. The identical planes, which are based at Offutt Air Force Base in Nebraska, have been in operation since 1980.

The noticeable hump on top of the plane is called a "ray dome" and houses some of the nearly 67 different satellite dishes and antennas. The dome is one element in the E-4B's communication portfolio that gives those aboard the ability to contact ships, submarines, aircraft and landlines anywhere in the world.

What's more, thanks to aerial refueling and the E-4B's massive fuel tanks, the plane can stay aloft for several days. The three-deck aircraft can support a crew of up to 112 people. It has 18 bunks, six bathrooms, a galley, briefing room, conference room, battle staff work area and executive quarters.

Unlike Air Force One, the E-4B is built for utility, and its interior is dated and nearly windowless. With a few exceptions, the plane's electronics and flight instruments are also antiquated.

"It's a common misconception, but this plane doesn't have digital touch screens in the cockpit or elsewhere," explained another crew member. "The conditions that this plane is meant to fly in call for analog, since digital tech would fry during a nuclear war," he added.

In other words, the E-4B's analog technology is less susceptible to the electromagnetic pulse that follows a nuclear blast. The aircraft are slated to have reached their service life by 2039.