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1. German stocks rise in light of election
Friedrich Merz will likely be the next chancellor of Germany after the Christian Democratic Union received the most votes in the country's election this weekend. Reuters reports that Germany's DAX stock index rose 0.57% and the euro increased to a one-month high after the election results.
"In the end [it was] a result that was close to the latest exit polls and should be a very market-friendly outcome," said Peter Schaffrik, global macro strategist at RBC Capital Markets.
Business sentiment in Germany remained weak in the month of February, likely due to companies taking a wait-and-see approach with the election and potential trade tariffs from the U.S., the Wall Street Journal reports.
2. Palazzo Versace Dubai back on the market
The Palazzo Versace Dubai is up for auction until Feb. 26 with a base price of 1.1 billion Emirati dirhams ($299.5 million), Gulf News reports. This is higher than the base price of the most recent time it was up for auction at 700 million dirhams, but less than the initial starting price of 1.34 billion dirhams last year.
According to Gulf News, the auction will not affect the current management of the 215-room property. The auction does not include the residences attached to the development.
3. Pebblebrook CEO on renovations, repositionings
In an interview with HNN's Bryan Wroten, Pebblebrook Hotel Trust Chairman and CEO Jon Bortz discussed how the hotel-focused real estate investment trust is ramping up its portfolio after investing $523 million into renovations and repositionings since 2018.
“We're getting the exposure. We need the visibility. We need to show people what we did, right?” he said. “You can have a renovation, but if you don't tell anybody and you don't get anyone there, it's like, does the tree make any sound?”
4. Roosevelt Hotel to close as migrant shelter
New York City Mayor Eric Adams said the asylum-seeker center at the Roosevelt Hotel is set to close, CBS News reports. While an official date of closure hasn't been announced, the local WABC outlet reports it is expected to stop taking in migrants by June.
"Now, thanks to the sound policy decisions of our team, we are able to announce the closure of this site and help even more asylum seekers take the next steps in their journeys as they envision an even brighter future, while simultaneously saving taxpayers millions of dollars," Adams said in a statement.
The hotel opened in May 2023 to serve as a new arrivals center and shelter for asylum seekers, CBS reports. More than 173,000 migrants were registered at the property since it opened.
5. US economy increasingly relies on wealthy people
According to an analysis by Moody's Analytics, the top 10% of earners — categorized as households making about $250,000 a year or more — account for 49.7% of all spending in the United States, a new record high in the data that dates back to 1989.
Between September 2023 and September 2024, the high earners increased their spending by 12% while working-class and middle-class households decreased their spending over the same period, the Wall Street Journal reports.
“The finances of the well-to-do have never been better, their spending never stronger and the economy never more dependent on that group,” said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics.