The daily business briefing: October 22, 2018

1. Calsonic Kansei to buy Magneti Marelli for $7.1 billion

Japan's Calsonic Kansei Corp. has agreed to buy high-tech auto-parts business Magneti Marelli from Fiat Chrysler for $7.1 billion, the companies said Monday. Calsonic Kansei is owned by U.S. private-equity firm KKR & Co., which bought it last year from Nissan. Once the deal closes, probably in the first half of 2019, Calsonic Kansei will be renamed Magneti Marelli Holdings. Calsonic Kansei CEO Beda Bolzenius will lead the company. Magneti Marelli CEO Ermanno Ferrari will join the board. The combined company will be the world's seventh largest auto parts supplier, Fiat Chrysler said. The sale is the first major deal for Fiat Chrysler since CEO Mike Manley took over in July after longtime leader Sergio Marchionne fell ill and later died.

Reuters MarketWatch

2. Halloween debuts at No. 1

Halloween led the weekend box office, with the latest installment in the slasher film franchise bringing in $77.5 million in North America in its debut, Universal Pictures said Sunday. It was the second biggest horror film opening in history, behind last year's It. The film also posted the second highest October opening ever behind Venom, which brought in $80.3 million earlier this month. Venom fell from No. 1 to No. 3, while A Star is Born held firm at No. 2. Jim Orr, Universal's president of domestic distribution, said Halloween benefited from the "ridiculously potent combination" of nostalgia for the 1978 original Halloween, the return of the original star Jamie Lee Curtis, and the production prowess of Blumhouse Productions, which was behind the wildly successful Get Out.

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The Associated Press The New York Times

3. CBS interim chairman Richard Parsons resigns due to illness

CBS interim chairman Richard Parsons has resigned due to ill health, the company announced on Sunday. Parsons joined the board just a month ago. He said he was dealing with complications from a form of cancer. He will be replaced by Strauss Zelnick, founder of the media-focused private equity firm Zelnick Media Capital. Zelnick also joined the board in September, when CBS announced it had reached a deal to end litigation over control of the media company against controlling shareholder Shari Redstone and National Amusements Inc. In that shakeup, six board members stepped down, with new directors, including Parsons and Zelnick, replacing them.

Reuters

4. Chinese stocks soar for 2nd session despite disappointing growth

Chinese stocks jumped on Monday in the second day of strong gains fueled by reassuring comments from Chinese leaders about the government's support for the private sector. The Shanghai Composite surged by 4.1 percent and the smaller Shenzhen Composite rose by 5.2 percent. Their strength helped cool early selling in other Asian markets. The rally came despite a report last week that showed weaker-than-expected economic growth. Over the weekend, President Xi Jinping stressed that the government was committed to bolstering businesses. Beijing also provided details on proposed personal income tax cuts. China's rally helped lift U.S. stock-index futures, pointing to a higher open on Wall Street.

MarketWatch The Street

5. Saudi energy minister says no desire to use oil to counter Khashoggi backlash

Saudi Arabia's oil minister reportedly said Monday that the OPEC leader has no plan to impose a 1973-style oil embargo on Western nations over the crisis sparked by the killing of dissident Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi. The kingdom is facing intensifying criticism, including mounting calls in Washington for sanctions, for its changing stories about what happened to Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist Saudi Arabia now admits was killed when he went to pick up a document at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2. Turkish authorities say they have evidence that Khashoggi was murdered by Saudi agents, some of whom news outlets say have ties to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The crown prince denies any involvement.

CNBC