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A sign is posted in front of a home for sale on August 07, 2024 in San Rafael, California.Justin Sullivan | Getty ImagesMortgage interest rates rose last week for the third straight week, hitting the highest level since August. That caused demand from both current homeowners and potential homebuyers to take a big step back. Total mortgage application volume fell 17% last week compared with the previous week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's seasonally adjusted index.The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($766,550 or less) increased to 6.52% from 6.36%, with points increasing to 0.65 from 0.62 (including the origination fee) for loans with a 20% down payment.Refinance demand, which is most sensitive to weekly rate mo...

Don't overlook the artificial intelligence potential of Cisco Systems , Citi said. Analyst Atif Malik upgraded shares of the networking company to buy from neutral, citing a shrinking valuation gap relative to peers and a growing AI ethernet total addressable market poised to hit $10 billion by 2025. "While AI is currently a small piece of the biz (~2% of revs), we see the potential for a stronger contribution," he wrote. "With more AI coming, we are incrementally more constructive on the group and expect continued investor rotation out of semis/hardware into networking equipment to benefit group valuation." Shares added 1.7% before the bell and looked poised to build on their 7% year-to-date gain. Malik lifted the firm's price target to $62 from $52 a share, reflecting about 15% upside fr...

The CEO of the United Arab Emirates’ premier AI firm stressed that the Gulf country is a reliable partner to the U.S. when it comes to keeping sensitive technology safe, as Washington reportedly mulls curbs on chip sales to certain countries — particularly those in the Middle East.The UAE has shown it can “guarantee the safety and the security” of chips “if and when they are being deployed and used here,” Peng Xiao, CEO of UAE AI firm G42, told CNBC at a conference in Dubai on Tuesday.His comments come as the administration of President Joe Biden continues to weigh limits on chip sales from Nvidia and AMD to the Middle East, according to Bloomberg, over fears that American technology and intellectual property could end up in the hands of China.“I cannot read the mind of the U.S. policymake...

Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu delivers his annual policy address at the Legislative Council on October 16, 2024 in Hong Kong, China.China News Service | China News Service | Getty ImagesHong Kong chief executive John Lee announced moves aimed at addressing the city's housing affordability crisis, calling it "an issue of great public concern" in an annual policy address on Wednesday. One keynote policy announced in his speech will look to provide an easier path to subsidized housing for citizens under the age of 40 amid mounting concerns about their ability to get a foothold in the city's crowded housing market.Under the plan, the Hong Kong Housing Authority will allocate an extra ballot number to applicants aged below 40 — a move that will increase their chances of being selec...

The Canary Wharf business district is seen in the distance behind autumnal leaves on October 09, 2024 in London, United Kingdom.Dan Kitwood | Getty Images News | Getty ImagesLONDON — Inflation in the U.K. dropped sharply to 1.7% in September, the Office for National Statistics said Wednesday.Economists polled by Reuters had expected the headline rate to come in at a higher 1.9% for the month, in the first dip of the print below the Bank of England's 2% target since April 2021.Inflation has been hovering around that level for the last four months, and came in at 2.2% in August.Core inflation, which excludes energy, food, alcohol and tobacco, came in at 3.2% for the month, down from 3.6% in August and below the 3.4% forecast of a Reuters poll.Price rises in the services sector, the dominant ...