Check out the companies making headlines in midday trading. Affirm — The buy now, pay later company saw shares tumble 10% after CNBC reported that Swedish fintech firm Klarna will replace Affirm as the exclusive provider of such loans for Walmart . Klarna, which just disclosed its intention to go public in the U.S., will provide loans to Walmart customers in stores and online through the retailer’s majority-owned fintech startup OnePay. Incyte — The pharmaceutical stock dropped 9% after the release of phase three trial data for a skin condition treatment. Incyte said that the trials of its drug met the primary endpoints. However, the drug was effective for less than half of the participants who took it in the trials. Norwegian Cruise Line — The cruise operator gained 4% following an upgrade to overweight from neutral at JPMorgan. Analyst Matthew Boss said that Norwegian Cruise Line’s management indicated that a more volatile macro backdrop has not contributed to any detectable change in demand behavior to date. Netflix — The streaming titan popped nearly 4% on the back of MoffettNathanson’s upgrade to buy from neutral. MoffettNathanson said Netflix can monetize more than previously anticipated, which can help grow profit. Sprouts Farmers Market — Shares added 3% after Deutsche Bank upgraded the organic food retailer to a buy rating from hold. The bank said that the franchise’s same-store sales momentum is sustainable and sees margin expansion opportunities, while the stock’s recent pullback — shares are down 20% in the past month — offers investors an attractive entry point. Blackstone — The alternative asset manager popped 3% following an upgrade to buy from neutral at UBS. Analyst Brennan Hawken said that the stock has an “attractive long term growth profile” and that investors have a chance to invest in a “premier alts platform” at a reasonable valuation. SL Green Realty — Shares climbed 2% after Evercore ISI upgraded the real estate investment trust to outperform from in line. The firm cited better leasing activity across core Midtown Manhattan submarkets, a potential casino license and a recent sell-off as catalysts for the upgrade. Monday.com — The stock popped almost 3% after D.A. Davidson upgraded the cloud-based project management software firm to a buy rating. Analysts pointed to a recent pullback as providing a “lucky” entry point, while reiterating their confidence in the company’s cash flow durability going forward. Intel — The beleaguered semiconductor manufacturer climbed nearly 8% after a regulatory filing from Friday revealed that incoming CEO Lip-Bu Tan will purchase $25 million worth of company shares within 30 days of his appointment. Tesla — The electric vehicle stock slipped 6% following a price target cut from Mizuho . Analysts expressed their caution on weaker EV sales ahead, but they still stood by their outperform rating. Mizuho’s new price forecast of $430, down from $515, still represents 72% upside from where shares of Tesla ended Friday. Robinhood — Shares of the stock trading platform moved 4% higher. Robinhood announced a new prediction markets hub in its app. Traders can use these event contracts to bet on the outcome of upcoming events, from sports tournaments to the Federal Reserve’s upcoming interest rate decisions. — CNBC’s Alex Harring, Yun Li, Jesse Pound and Nick Wells contributed reporting.
A student is playing chess with an intelligent robot in Xuzhou City, Jiangsu Province, China on May 13, 2025.
Cfoto | Future Publishing | Getty Images
BEIJING — China’s latest education policies for the year restrict the extent to which children can use generative artificial intelligence in the classroom, according to a local government report on Thursday.
The guidelines cited in the report, which weren’t publicly available, covered AI education and generative AI use in primary and secondary schools during 2025.
China’s Ministry of Education did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Primary school students are prohibited from using unrestricted generative AI tools on their own, although an instructor may use the tech to assist with teaching, according to the local government report.
It added that middle schoolers can explore how generative AI reasons and analyzes information, while high schoolers are allowed to use the tech more broadly.
The report said the policies banned students from directly copying AI-generated content into homework and called on schools to establish a list of approved generative AI tools that can be used on school grounds.
But the national state media report did not discuss specific limits on AI use, and instead focused on how the policies aimed to promote “scientific” and “standardized” promotion of AI education suited to various stages of education, according to a CNBC translation.
Use of generative AI in China has increased significantly after DeepSeek, a homegrown rival to OpenAI, in late January released a chatbot app. Tencent, ByteDance and other companies have released similar chatbots that have surged in popularity in China.
Steve Cohen said Wednesday he sees the possibility that stocks could retest their lows from April following the market’s dramatic comeback. “I don’t expect, you know, a significant decline. I think this is possible we can go back toward the lows which is 10%, 15% [from here] so it’s not a calamity,” the founder of Point72 said at the Sohn Investment Conference in New York. “What Trump did recently actually raises the floor and eliminates perhaps the dire scenario.” Cohen’s comments came after the U.S. and China suspended reciprocal tariffs pending a 90-day negotiating period, which sparked a sharp rally in stocks. The S & P 500 has jumped 4% this week, fully recovering from the April sell-off and turning green on the year. Stocks started to mount their comeback from their tariffs lows last month as Trump paused the most severe tariffs on most countries. .SPX YTD mountain S & P 500 The billionaire investor, also owner of the New York Mets of Major League Baseball, said the market feels “toppy” right now. He believes there is still a modest risk the U.S. could tip into a recession even though tariffs on China have been slashed. “We’re not a recession yet…. We think it would probably be like a 45% chance of recession,” Cohen said. “So that’s not insignificant, even if it’s not the definition of recession, it’s definitely slow growth. And so I think it’s almost unavoidable when you add up the tariffs, you add up the 10% rate, sectorial tariffs, and whatever happens with China.”
“I didn’t really start getting old, for some strange reason, until I was about 90,” he told the Journal in a phone interview. “But when you start getting old, it does become—it’s irreversible.”
The Oracle of Omaha, who turns 95 in August, revealed to the paper that he started to lose his balance occasionally, while experiencing issues remembering someone’s name sometimes. His vision also turned less clear when reading newspapers.
It marked an end of an era at Berkshire, which was a failing New England textile mill six decades ago and was transformed into a one-of-a-kind conglomerate with businesses ranging from Geico insurance to BNSF Railway. Buffett is handing over his reins on a high note as Berkshire shares are near a record high, giving the conglomerate a market cap of nearly $1.2 trillion.
Berkshire’s board voted unanimously to make Greg Abel, now vice chairman of noninsurance operations, president and CEO on Jan. 1, 2026, and for Buffett to remain as chairman.
Still, Buffett said he remains mentally sharp to make investment decisions when opportunities arise. The value investing icon is known to take advantage of market turmoil and depressed prices to make big purchases.
“I don’t have any trouble making decisions about something that I was making decisions on 20 years ago or 40 years ago or 60 years,” he told the Journal. “I will be useful here if there’s a panic in the market because I don’t get fearful when things go down in price or everybody else gets scared….And that really isn’t a function of age.”