The daily business briefing: May 7, 2018

1. Avengers: Infinity War reaches $1 billion in record time

Avengers: Infinity War dominated the box office for the second straight week, bringing in $112.5 million domestically in 4,474 theaters. That marked the second-biggest second weekend in box office history. The haul also pushed Disney and Marvel Studios' superhero mashup above the $1 billion mark worldwide on its 11th day in release, the fastest any movie has reached the landmark. The film's total stood at $1.16 billion worldwide thanks to another $162.6 million over the weekend overseas. Star Wars: The Force Awakens, which crossed the $1 billion mark in 12 days, still holds the record for best second weekend ever, with $149.2 million in North America.

The Hollywood Reporter

2. Nestle teams up with Starbucks

Nestle SA has agreed to pay Starbucks Corp. $7.2 billion for the right to sell Starbucks coffee products in its supermarkets, restaurants, and catering operations globally, the two companies announced Monday. Nestle also will use Starbucks coffee in its Nespresso and Dolce Gusto capsule coffee-making systems starting next year. Nestle, the Swiss maker of Nescafe, is aiming to capture more upscale U.S. coffee drinkers as it battles JAB Holding Co., which has spent more than $30 billion building a coffee powerhouse with such purchases as Keurig Green Mountain and Peet's.

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Bloomberg

3. French government warns it won't rescue Air France from wage dispute

French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire on Sunday urged Air France to work out a stand-off with unions over wages, warning that the government, a minority stakeholder, would not rescue the carrier in the face of a planned Monday strike. Staff on Friday rejected a proposed deal, prompting the CEO of Air France-KLM's French arm to resign. The dispute has cast doubt on the airline's ability to cut costs and restore its financial health. "If Air France does not make efforts to become more competitive ... Air France will disappear," Le Maire said. The company said it expected to be able to operate 85 percent of its flights on Monday despite the strike.

Reuters

4. Stock futures rise ahead of more earnings, Fed speeches

U.S. stock futures edged higher early Monday, poised to start the week on an up note thanks to an increase in oil prices and cautious optimism ahead of a fresh flurry of earnings reports. Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 index futures were up by 0.3 percent, and Nasdaq-100 futures gained 0.6 percent. Tyson Foods, AMC Entertainment, and Hertz Global are among the companies expected to release financial results. Several Federal Reserve leaders also are scheduled to speak on Monday.

CNBC Investing.com

5. Oil prices rise to highest level since 2014

The price of West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose above $70 per barrel for the first time since 2014 on Monday. The 0.9 percent jump to $70.37 a barrel came after investors pushed up the U.S. benchmark's price by 2.4 percent last week, due to the perceived possibility that President Trump could scrap the Iran nuclear deal. Trump is due to decide by May 12 whether to reimpose sanctions that could bring down Iran's oil exports, reducing global supply. ACLS Global chief strategist Marshall Gittler said in a note to clients, however, that it was risky to bet that Trump will scrap the Iran deal because he often threatens drastic action "but at the end of the day settles for a normal compromise."

MarketWatch