The daily business briefing: November 13, 2023

1. Emirates announces $52 billion Boeing order

Emirates opened the Dubai Air Show by announcing that it would buy $52 billion worth of Boeing jets, including 90 777s, in a sign of the airline industry's recovery after groundings during the coronavirus pandemic. Emirates' low-cost sister airline FlyDubai also placed a big order, spending $11 billion for 30 Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners that will be its first wide-body aircraft. Analysts expect more billion-dollar deals this year. The five-day air show is being held as the Israel-Hamas war and Russia's war on Ukraine loom. Commercial aviation dominates the show, but arms manufacturers also have exhibitions. The Associated Press

2. Canadian fashion mogul Peter Nygard convicted of sexual assault

A Toronto jury on Sunday found former Canadian fashion mogul Peter Nygard guilty of four counts of sexual assault. Jurors found Nygard not guilty of a fifth count of sexual assault and one count of forcible confinement. Nygard, 82, showed no signs of emotion as the verdict was announced, according to the CBC. Prosecutors said during the six-week trial that Nygard used his "status" to pressure and assault the women, luring the 16- to 28-year-old women into a private luxury bedroom with "a giant bed" and "automatic locks" he controlled in his firm's Toronto headquarters. Nygard denied the charges. His lawyers claimed his accusers were "gold digging," and said prosecutors based their case on "revisionist history." CBC, BBC News

3. Alibaba reports record Singles Day sales growth

Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba on Sunday reported record year-on-year sales growth during its Singles Day sales event, which ended at midnight Saturday. Rival site JD.com also said sales volume hit an all-time high. But data provider Syntun estimated that cumulative sales across all major e-commerce platforms increased by just 2.08% to $156.4 billion, slightly down from last year's 2.9% growth. The Singles Day festival, originally a one-day event on Nov. 11, has expanded into weeks of promotions for China's online and brick-and-mortar retailers. Singles Day has been seen as a barometer for China's economy, but it has provided fewer clues since Alibaba and other online retailers stopped providing precise sales data during the tumultuous Covid era. Reuters, Bloomberg

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4. Stock futures struggle after Moody's US outlook downgrade

U.S. stock futures fell slightly early Monday after Moody's Investors Service dropped its U.S. credit rating outlook from stable to negative. Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 were down 0.1% and 0.2%, respectively, at 7 a.m. ET. Nasdaq futures were down 0.3%. Moody's said Friday that its downgrade stemmed from the federal government's "very large" fiscal deficits and partisan gridlock in Washington. Despite the outlook change, Moody's kept the U.S. credit rating at AAA, its highest level. Three months ago, Fitch lowered its U.S. long-term foreign currency issuer default rating to AA+ from AAA, also citing the federal debt and political standoffs on fiscal and debt issues, CNBC reported. CNBC

5. 'The Marvels' flops in box office debut

"The Marvels" brought in just $47 million in domestic ticket sales in its debut, the worst opening weekend yet for a film in Disney's Marvel Cinematic Universe. Initially, the movie was expected to open with $75 million to $80 million. The projections were cut to $60 million to $65 million in recent weeks. But lukewarm buzz and the inability of stars like Brie Larson to promote the film due to the actors' union strike (which ended Friday) contributed to its failure to meet even watered-down expectations. The only two other Marvel films to fall short of $60 million in their opening weekends were "The Incredible Hulk," which debuted with $55.4 million in 2008, and "Ant-Man," with $57.2 million in 2015. Variety