US markets rise as shutdown resolution nears

Good morning. Here's what happened overnight and what you need to know today.

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1.

Shutdown hopes: US markets rose amid hopes the US government could reopen by the end of the week, after the Senate advanced a bipartisan funding bill in a 60-40 vote late Sunday local time (Monday AEDT). The measure would fund the government through 30 January, restore pay for furloughed workers, resume food aid and payments to states, and recall laid-off employees. A final Senate vote is expected within days. House Speaker Mike Johnson said lawmakers will get 36 hours’ notice to return for a vote once the Senate passes the bill. Meanwhile, White House officials said US President Donald Trump supports the deal and would sign it once approved. The bill excludes an extension of Affordable Care Act subsidies, promising only a December vote, a key Democratic demand that has provoked internal backlash. It comes amid ongoing air travel disruptions and staff shortages, with Trump threatening to dock pay from air traffic controllers who missed work and proposing USD10,000 bonuses for those who stayed, although such payments would require congressional approval. The S&P 500 was 1% higher on afternoon trading. (Reuters)(Bloomberg)(WSJ)

2.

At pace: If ANZ’s CEO Nuno Matos is taking the sometimes unhinged online commentary and criticism about him personally, he isn't showing it. “I can't do anything about it. It's just what it is,” Matos told Capital Brief in one of just a handful of interviews he has accepted since he took over the $100 billion bank in May. “I manage what I can manage. And what I can manage is our customers, our processes, our propositions, our products.” Jarden analyst Matt Wilson described Monday's numbers as a “nothing result”, which is not as cutting as it might sound. Matos only joined the lender in May, and the result has been overshadowed by his restructuring program and new ANZ 2030 strategy. As Capital Brief revealed in September, the program is headlined by swinging cuts to 4,500 permanent and contractor roles at the business. Asked about discontent in parts of the bank’s workforce, Matos said transformational change is “always difficult for those that are involved.” (Capital Brief)

3.

Takeover tipped: Pfizer secured a deal to buy Metsera for up to USD10 billion ($15.3 billion) after the US Federal Trade Commission warned the biotech it would look unfavourably upon the structure of Novo Nordisk’s rival offer, Bloomberg reported citing people familiar with the matter. Metsera’s board voted unanimously late Friday to accept Pfizer’s revised offer, after a call from the FTC earlier that day cautioning the company about legal risks in Novo’s deal structure. That came after a letter earlier in the week outlined the regulator’s concerns. Metsera cited legal and regulatory issues in its decision and said Pfizer’s offer was most likely to close without antitrust risk, according to a company statement. Novo had matched Pfizer’s bid but effectively withdrew from the contest on Saturday. Its CEO Mike Doustdar had publicly challenged Pfizer to raise its offer during a White House event alongside President Trump. Pfizer submitted its final bid shortly after the FTC’s call, Bloomberg said. The acquisition gives Pfizer access to Metsera’s experimental obesity treatments, including GLP-1 and amylin-based therapies. Metsera shares fell about 15% Monday due to the structure of the offer, which includes a contingent value right. (Metsera)(Bloomberg)(BI)(Reuters)

4.

Panorama edit: Donald Trump threatened to sue the BBC for USD1 billion ($1.5 billion) over what his lawyers called a “false, defamatory” edit of his 6 January 2021 speech in a Panorama documentary aired in October 2024. In a letter confirmed by the BBC, Trump’s legal team demanded a retraction, apology and compensation by 14 November or said legal action would follow. The letter accuses the BBC of causing “overwhelming financial and reputational harm” and trying to interfere in the 2024 US election. BBC chair Samir Shah apologised in a letter to MPs, calling the edit an “error of judgement” and admitting it gave the wrong impression. The programme combined speech segments delivered 50 minutes apart, followed by footage of the Proud Boys filmed before Trump spoke. The BBC said it aimed to condense the hour-long speech and did not remove the word “peacefully” from the clips. It comes after director general Tim Davie and BBC News CEO Deborah Turness resigned after a leaked memo emerged last week criticising the Panorama edit for making Trump appear to call for violence. (Capital Brief)(NYT)(BBC)(The Guardian)

5.

Messy collapse: A key witness in legal proceedings over the collapse of medtech startup StrongRoom AI repeatedly invoked privilege in court as ATO tax debts and urgent messages were discussed. “Hey mate, we really need to pay this. Don't think MBA has the funds." That message from former StrongRoom AI director and Member Benefits Australia (MBA) founder Divesh Sanghvi to StrongRoom's co-founder Max Mito was among evidence discussed in the Federal Court on Monday, as liquidators HLB Mann Judd kicked off their public examination into the collapse of the medtech startup. The exchange was sent in late 2024, after Sanghvi and his father had both received Director Penalty Notices from the Australian Taxation Office for unpaid company tax, but before StrongRoom AI had closed its acquisition of MBA for $8.8 million. "Dad's stressing, so please, let's make sure," Sanghvi wrote in a follow-up message, according to evidence read in court. Both men repeatedly invoked privilege throughout the hearing. (Capital Brief)

6.

Cybertruck exit: Tesla lost two senior leaders from its Cybertruck and Model Y programs as its China sales slump to a three-year low and the Cybertruck remains mired in repeated safety recalls in the United States. Siddhant Awasthi, who oversaw the Cybertruck ramp-up and recently moved back to the Model 3 program, announced his departure after eight years. Emmanuel Lamacchia, Model Y program manager, also said he was leaving after eight years. Both exits were confirmed via LinkedIn posts. The departures follow a string of executive exits this year. They also come after Tesla recalled more than 63,000 Cybertrucks last month due to excessively bright headlights, marking the vehicle’s 10th recall in less than two years, including a March recall over a defect that could cause an exterior panel to detach while driving. Shares in Tesla, which has also been struggling with falling demand, anti-Musk boycotts, and expiring US EV subsidies, were over 4% higher. (LinkedIn)(Reuters)(Bloomberg)(Capital Brief)

7.

Presidential pardon: Donald Trump pardoned 77 people for their support or involvement in alleged plans to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. The US Department of Justice’s Pardon Attorney, Ed Martin, made the announcement via X late on Sunday night US time (8pm AEDT). The undated statement shared by Martin says that “full, complete and unconditional” pardons have been granted for the former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani, who had helped to pressure state legislatures to reject Joe Biden’s victories in key swing states, Trump’s former chief of staff in 2020, Mark Meadows and lawyers John Eastman and Kenneth Chesebro who helped design a strategy to pressure then-Vice President Mike Pence to overturn the election on 6 January 2021. Other individuals who were pardoned include those involved in investigations into alleged “fake electors” plots for Trump in 2020. Presidential pardons only apply to federal charges, not state or local charges. (Ed Martin X)(Capital Brief)(Politico)

8.

Star-studded round: Anduril Industries founder Palmer Luckey, Lockheed Martin, Palantir’s Shyam Sankar and other investors are investing USD130 million ($200 million) into Valar Atomics, Bloomberg reports, a nuclear startup that’s aiming to build thousands of advanced nuclear fission reactors within a decade. In September the California-based startup began constructing its first reactor in Utah and said it’s on track to demonstrate it can produce 100 kilowatts of thermal energy by early July. The company plans to mass manufacture small modular reactors and cluster them to help power AI data centres and industrial manufacturers. VC firm Snowpoint Ventures led the deal which included USD25 million in debt. The startup declined to disclose its valuation. Valar is part of the US Energy Department’s Nuclear Reactor Pilot Program, which is backing companies that can achieve a self-sustaining nuclear reaction by this summer. (Bloomberg)