Daybreak Weekend: Neflix Earnings, Hungary Election, Spain Prime Minister Visits China

So there's a lot of noise about AI, but time's too tight for more promises. So let's talk about results. At IBM, we work with our employees to integrate technology right into the systems they need. Now, a global workforce of 300,000 can use AI to fill their HR questions, resolving 94% of common questions. Not noise. Proof of how we can help companies get smarter by putting AI where it actually pays off, deep in the work that moves the business.

Let's create smarter business. When you own your own business, you own every decision. Now own the card that rewards you for it. Chase Sapphire Reserve for Business is a pay-in-full card that elevates your travel experience and offers premium benefits that will take your business to the next level. Sapphire Reserve for Business offers 8x points on all purchases through Chase Travel, 3x points on social media and search engine advertising, airport lounge access, and more. Chase Sapphire Reserve for Business.

It's the card that gives back all you put in. Learn more at chase.com forward slash reserve business. Chase for business, make more of what's yours. Accounts subject to credit approval. Restrictions and limitations apply. Cards are issued by JPMorgan Chase Bank NA, member FDIC. As industries evolve faster than ever, companies need an environment that accelerates strategic growth, and Michigan delivers on that promise.

From emerging startups to global enterprises, Michigan offers what executives value most, a resilient, innovative ecosystem, diverse communities that attract top talent and a quality of life that supports work-life balance. With our unified T-Michigan approach, businesses scale faster and compete at the highest level. Michigan, pure

opportunity. Sees your opportunity at Michiganbusiness.org. Bloomberg Audio Studios, Podcasts, radio, news.

This is Bloomberg Daybreak Week weekend, our global look at the top stories in the coming week from our daybreak anchors all around the world. Straight ahead on the program, we look to earnings from streaming giant Netflix and three of Wall Street's biggest banks. I'm Nathan Hager in Washington. I'm Carolyn Hepka in London where we discuss the Hungarian election. I'm Doug Krisner looking at the visit to China by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez. That's all straight ahead on Bloomberg Daybreak Weekend. Bloomberg 1130, New York, Bloomberg 991, Washington, D.C., Bloomberg 929, Boston, DAB Digital Radio, London, Sirius XM-21, and Around the World on Bloomberg Radio.com and the Bloomberg Business App.

Good day to you. I'm Nathan Hager. We begin today's program with earnings from Netflix. The streaming giant reports its latest quarterly results after the market. close on Thursday. For more, we're joined by Bloomberg Intelligence, senior media analyst, Gita Ranganathan. Great to have you with us, Gita. Of course, this was supposed to be the quarter when Netflix celebrated locking in its deal to buy Warner Brothers Discovery, but Paramount Skydance pulled the rug out from under that. What's that mean for what we could hear from Netflix when it comes to the results this week? Yeah, thank you so much, Nathan. This is actually a good news for Netflix, right? This is about. to business as usual, Netflix without Warner Brothers is a much cleaner, higher visibility business,

lower volatility business. They have much better financial standing now. They have a lot more flexibility. And, you know, this is really now us just focusing on their fundamentals, both their short term as well as their long-term fundamentals, as they kind of really focus on content, as they focus on engagement. And really the big numbers that investors are looking for are the revenue growth numbers as well as operating margins. So they just hiked prices in the U.S., and we're expecting to see that somehow flow through in their guidance.

What they're guiding to right now for revenue growth for the entire year is 12 to 14%. We expect them to revise that guidance upwards and then also kind of revise their guidance for operating margin. And so those are really the two most critical metrics for Netflix when they report. Yeah, I got to admit, I remember that price hike announcement coming and feeling a little bit of dread there, just for myself. But are we expecting that that's going to lead to greater churn for Netflix?

Is that something the company itself is concerned about? I don't think so. So what we've seen historically, this is actually its second price hike in just over a year. So last January, when they hiked prices, we didn't see any big. spike in churn, you know, it's kind of been business as usual. People generally absorb these price hikes pretty nicely, pretty smoothly. We haven't really seen too much of a disruption in the past. And so we don't expect that to be the case, especially as you kind of look across the board, Nathan. So, you know, we've seen Apple TV, for instance. We've seen Disney. We've seen all of these

other rival services hike their prices and hike their prices pretty dramatically. So just to provide some context over the past four years, Netflix has definitely increased prices, but it's been about a 30% increase over the past four years. You compare that to Disney Plus where prices have gone up 75% or Apple TV where prices have gone up about 80 to 85%. So, you know, yes, you know, prices have gone up, but it seems to be much more digestible and definitely much more justifiable in the case of Netflix just kind of given the depth and the breadth of their content. Well, now that Netflix isn't getting that slate of Warner Brothers IP like the DC Comics and Harry Potter and all that, where is it positioned when it comes to the content race?

Was it important for Netflix to have all that Warner Brothers IP as part of its longer term strategy? It was definitely a nice to have, Nathan, but we don't think it was a must have. I mean, they have been able to build up this tremendous pace of 325 million subscribers with a lot of original content, with a lot of licensed content, but without having to pay, you know, $100 billion for a studio. And so we think that they can, you know, continue to hold that dominance. And they are diversifying their content strategy. So first, it was a lot of focus on scripted content, on local language content. You know, they've played this game really well in terms of going after pieces of content in different.

whether it's Korean series or you know a Japanese series or all across the world really. But their latest foray is really into live events. So we're seeing them kind of now make a push for more NFL games. They already had Christmas Day NFL games. Looks like they're going for a slightly bigger package. And then we're seeing them do a lot of other different things in terms of live content. You know, whether you have the WWE Raw on Monday nights, whether you had the BTS, you know, first live concert in three years.

We had the New York Yankees versus San Francisco Giants on MLB opening night. We have the upcoming Ronda Rousey versus Gina Carrano in May. You have Mayweather Pacchio. You know, so there's just a whole lot of different things that they're doing. And I think that will help them

with their subscriber acquisition and retention strategy. A lot of live content, but we don't have K-pop demon hunters. We don't have another C. and of stranger things in terms of the scripted content. What's out there for consumers to look forward to? Yeah, that's an excellent point. So it's interesting.

They had some of their biggest pieces of content in 2025, and obviously that helped. But, you know, Netflix has said over and over again that no single piece of content contributes to, you know, more than 1% of total engagement. And if you just kind of look at engagement on the platform, you know, it's approaching almost 200 billion hours here. So really they have a whole breadth and a great pipeline in terms of content.

And as we just look out to 2026, I mean, we have some of there, they still have a lot of things that, you know, we can get excited about, you know, whether it is all of that live content or, you know, you have beef season two. You have the last airbender. You have Lupin, which is a French series. And then, of course, you have Narnia coming out in, in December, which people are really excited about, Outer Bank, Season 5, you know, Enola Homes, season 3. So there's just a lot of different things. And again, we think that they will

continue to, you know, build their business with all of these diverse pieces of content. Of course, investors are going to get some content from the company itself in the call after the close when Netflix reports on Thursday. Thank you for this, Gita, as always. That's Gita Ranganathan, and senior U.S. media analyst for Bloomberg Intelligence. Let's take a look now at some stocks making news in the week ahead. I'm Nathan Hager, joined by Bloomberg Intelligence Senior U.S. banks analyst, Herman Chan, and it is all about the banks this week with three heavyweights kicking off earnings season on Tuesday, J.P. Morgan Chase, Wells Fargo, and Citigroup.

Herman, let's start with the big guy. What are you watching for from Jamie Diamond and company? Yeah, it's going to be a great. an interesting quarter for Jamie Diamond, JPMorgan, and the rest of the banks. We're in an interesting setup heading into earnings with heightened geopolitical concerns, stackulation potential, private credit worries. That's all been weighing on the group. On the other hand, one cue earnings is looking to be pretty solid with J.P. Morgan expecting 15% growth in trading revenues and also investment banking could be up that same level as well.

we're also seeing a pickup in commercial lending activity, which is helpful across the group, and some margin stability and really good performance across the credit quality as well. So macro concerns, but the underlying fundamentals still look really strong. What has you thinking those underlying fundamentals still look strong, given so much of the concern we have in the market right now around all the uncertainties and the economic impact from the warner-on? That's right. I would characterize the economy right now as really resilient. So we're seeing that resiliency flow through into the bank's earnings and profitability. On the other hand, really what we're focused on going forward is what's going to happen next and guidance will be key for across the banks that we cover. Are we seeing any sort of cracks in credit due to higher energy costs that consumers are. are facing today? Are we seeing any cracks in credit on the commercial side as well? And is the

market volatility affecting some of the backlogs for areas like investment banking and IPOs? So those are questions that bank managers teams will need to answer on the first quarter earnings calls. And when it comes to Wells Fargo, Herman, how are they doing now that they're not under that asset cap restriction anymore? That's right. So that's going to be one of the the growth stories for the banking group in the first quarter reporting where another quarter of outside of the asset cap we're going to see some strong balance sheet growth for for Wells Fargo continuation of what they were reporting in the fourth quarter that's really going to be reflected in areas like trading assets within the investment bank and also in areas like

like lending in the markets business, lending to these non-bank financial institutions that I alluded to earlier. So another thing that we're looking for is maybe a rebound in the capital markets results relative to its peers. I would mention in the fourth quarter, they lagged a little bit. So hoping for a rebound there in the first quarter. And when it comes to Citigroup, we had some recent reporting from Bloomberg news that they might be thinking about buying a regional bank to grow their business further. How real is that?

Do you expect that to come up in the call? I do. I think analysts will probe on that. I think in the near term, probably Jane Frazier, their CEO, pauses that potential in the near term. I think that's really reflected due to the fact that their valuation is relatively weaker than peers. And they're going to need to improve in order to make an M&A deal work, financially. That being said, they have a investor day coming up in May. So we'll hear more about that in the first quarter reporting. And we think first quarter results really lays

the groundwork for some positive news heading into the investor day. Yeah, really interesting kickoff to earning season, particularly around what we've seen around the war with Iran. Of course, thank you for this, Herman. Great having you with us. Herman Chan, senior U.S. Banks analyst for Bloomberg Intelligence. And coming up on Bloomberg Daybreak weekend, we'll look ahead to the election in Hungary. Is it Viktor Orban's last stand? I'm Nathan Hager, and this is Bloomberg.

Support for the show comes from public.com. If you're actively involved in your portfolio, you probably catch yourself repeating the same actions, buying the dip, manually sweeping idle cash, putting on a hedge. On public, you can now create AI agents that handle all these tasks on your behalf. Just describe what you want to do in plain English, like if the VIX hits 25, buy a put option on the S&P 500, or if my cash balance goes above $20,000, move the excess into my direct index. You approve the workflow and your agent handles the risk. monitoring the market, watching for your conditions, and executing your strategies exactly as defined,

an investing platform driven by your intent, not just your clicks. You can also get full read and write access to your account via the public API. Go to public.com slash market and fund your account in five minutes or less. That's public.com slash market. Paid for by Public Investing. Bracred services by Open to the Public Investing Inc. member FINRA and SIPC. by Public Advisors LLC, SEC registered advisor. Complete disclosures available at public.com slash disclosures. So there's a lot of noise about AI,

but times too tight for more promises. So let's talk about results. At IBM, we work with our employees to integrate technology right into the systems they need. Now, a global workforce of 300,000 can use AI to fill their HR questions, resolving 94% of common questions. Not noise.

Proof of how we can help companies get smarter by putting AI where it actually pays off. Deep in the work that moves the business. Let's create smarter business. IBM. When you own your own business, you own every decision. Now own the card that rewards you for it. The Chase Sapphire Reserve for Business Card

brings the best Sapphire Reserve benefits to business owners who expect hardworking rewards. Designed to meet the needs of business owners at scale, this pay-in-full card elevates your travel experience and offers premium benefits and value toward business services that will take your business to the next level. Fuel your business and maximize rewards with 8x points on all purchases through Chase Travel, 3x points on social media and search engine advertising,

annual partnership credits, and more. Make every journey more rewarding with a $300 annual travel credit and access to a network of airport lounges, whether you're looking for pre-flight productivity or time to rest and recharge. Chase Sapphire Reserve for Business. It's the card that gives back all you put in. Learn more at chase.com forward slash reserve business. Chase for business, make more of what's yours.

Accounts subject to credit approval. Restrictions and limitations apply. Cards are issued by J.P. Morgan Chase Bank, N.A. Member FDIC. This is Bloomberg Daybreak weekend. Our global look ahead at the top stories for investors in the coming week. I'm Nathan Hager in Washington. Up later in the program, we'll look to Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's upcoming visit to China.

Here's Bloomberg's Oliver Crook. We should say that this was an issue, this 90 billion euro loan, that was settled back in December. And as a consequence, with Viktor Orban pulling out of this, it has upset very greatly all the other European leaders, not just on the principle of not supporting Ukraine, but on the fact that it reduces the credibility of the European Union. Bloomberg's Chief Europe correspondent Oliver Crook there,

who went on to say that Viktor Orban has been tough on Ukraine in order to bolster support among his own voter base. But could the focus on foreign affairs be a short-sighted strategy with the electorate at home increasingly preoccupied by domestic concerns and the cost of living? Joining me now is Zoltan-Simon, Bloomberg's East. Eastern Europe editor and formerly our Budapest Bureau Chief and Bloomberg's Brussels Bureau Chief Suzanne Lynch. Welcome to both of you. Thanks for your time. Zoltan, can I start with you just to focus

in on Hungary? Firstly, I want to ask about the opposition party, Péter Magyar, emerging as a serious contender in the election. What do we make of his chances in this vote? Well, yes, Péter Magyar founded his party two years ago and really came out of nowhere. Actually, he came out of inside Prime Minister of Viktor Orban's ruling elite to essentially call out corruption and mismanagement in Hungary. And he has found that his message has resonated incredibly over the past two years. Pro-government pollsters, as well as some skeptics, say, Viktor Orban, who has been in power for 16 years, still has what they tend to call the quiet majority on his side. We'll find out soon enough. Yeah, indeed. What do you think are the issues then facing Viktor Orban?

If you see and agree with the polls that favour the opposition leader, what would you see as Viktor Orban's main failings? Well, Modjar has really tried to focus on Viktor Orban's domestic failings, which included the economy, which has been in bouts of recession over the past four years. The economy has barely grown. There's been a cost of living crisis. During the pandemic, inflation was the highest in the European Union. There's also rampant corruption with transparency international, now ranking Hungary in last place in the European Union for graft.

The European Union has in response suspended. What we estimate is still about 20 billion, euros worth of funds due to the erosion of the rule of law and graft. So that's been basically major's focus, as well as sort of the effects of all this, which is seen in social services, in healthcare, in education, in public transportation, especially dilapidated rail network. So he's saying essentially to Hungarians, please look around you, see if you think we can do better. What has been the focus of Viktor Orban's campaign then?

Viktor Orban has really campaigned more on foreign policy. Since his return to power, he has essentially held up a sort of nemesis, a rotating cast of characters, really, which he suggested posed threats to Hungary and to their lives. going back to 2010 when he returned to power, from the International Monetary Fund to the European Union, to multinational companies, to George Soros, the Hungarian-born U.S. financier and philanthropist in the past several years. But most recently, he sailed Ukraine, interestingly,

up as the biggest threat to Hungary. He's saying Ukraine wants to drag Hungary, into its war with Russia. Now obviously, Viktor Orban has allied himself quite significantly with Moscow over the past several years, doubling down on energy contracts with Russia, even since, or especially since Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Well, Hungary, of course, is a member of the European Union and a NATO member too. So let's bring in now, Suzanne Lynch, who is Bloomberg's Brussels Bureau chief of a perspective

on this. I mean, Viktor Orban has been a thorn in the side of the EU. For many years, it's got to be said. So what do you think is going to be the response or what do you think is the thinking within the EU about the possibility of a change in leadership in this election? We don't know yet. But what do you think the EU is thinking?

Well, look, I mean, as you say there, I mean, Viktor Orban has been a presence here in Europe for such a long time. He's been 16 years in power this time. He's the longest serving EU leader. the table. And I think it's fair to say there is an argument that the European Union has chosen to a large extent over the years maybe to look away to kind of hope or ban will one day be voted out of office and that Hungary will step back into line and become a good member of the European Union. Now that policy has not really worked until now because he has managed

to survive politically this long and it's an extraordinary term. Even in the last few weeks, there, Zoltan has alluded to, we've seen an even more kind of brazen attempt by Hungary to undermine Brussels. At the end of March there, we saw an extraordinary phone call was leaked. Other media outlets in Hungary reported this,

and it alleged that Sergei Lavrov, the foreign minister, spoke to the Hungarian foreign minister, asking for individuals to be removed from a proposed EU sanctions list. So, you know, we now have the situation where the Hungarian government is talking to

Russia about the EU sanction list and it has worked at various points since the start of the Russian war against Ukraine. It has worked against the EU on a number of levels. So it has again and again blocked sanctions packages. We're now at the 20th sanctions package from the EU against Russia and Hungary is blocking that. And also it's currently, for example, blocking a 90 billion loan to Ukraine. So it's quite obvious that the European Union and the European Commission in particular has become a lightning rod for Viktor Orban. He's obviously campaigning heavily against this, against what he sees as overly, you know, an intrusive European commission. He's obviously campaigning heavily against continued support for Ukraine. That is part of the election playbook.

Yeah. In terms of then the opposition parties in Hungary seem to be, you know, thinking about Hungary's place within Europe and maybe accessing more funding. That seems to be part of their drive. How much do you think, though, if there were a change of leadership in Hungary, that that might change the level in terms of the big support package for Ukraine? Yeah, it's interesting. I mean, Péter Magyar, who has emerged as this serious threat now to Viktor Orban, is a member of the European Parliament. He's here. That's his full-time role, if you like. So he's already a known figure in Brussels. He was, as Alton explained, part of the Fides fold.

He was married to Tudad Varga, former Hungarian Justice Minister, who, for example, was very well known here in Brussels too. So, you know, I think there is a weariness here that it might not just be as simple as a more pro-EU person taking over if his party is successful. So let's see.

And I suppose it is true to say to Viktor Orban, yes, he is using the European Union as a foil in this election, but, you know, there is some sympathy for his view, particularly when it comes to among people in Hungary about support for Ukraine. So it may not be as simple as that. Yeah, it's very interesting

isn't it, Joltan, in terms of Viktor Orban's brand of populist illiberalism and Christian nationalism. I mean, there is already across Europe, this is being examined, you know, the rise of more right wing parties, maybe

across different European countries. Is it really waning in terms of appeal? And And what do you expect the opposition parties might do if they come into office? What kind of voice would they bring to Hungary? I mean, Tisa is a conservative party. Yes. Now, when it comes to the opposition, because of Viktor Orban's sort of what he calls the sovereignist,

very nationalist, you know, rhetoric, if Péter Magyar were to come to power, it's not like he would switch that off from one day to the next. he very much wants to say and very much says that Hungary will remain or will be truly, he says truly independent. He always says that Hungarian's history is not going to be written in Brussels or in Washington, nor in Moscow, he tends to say at rallies, it will be written here in Hungary. So he says he will stand up for the interests of Hungary, even if it were to go against, for example, the EU mainstream.

But more broadly, though, he says he would bring back Hungary to the European fold and especially away from Russia's orbit. Yeah, I think that's very interesting, isn't it? I mean, Suzanne, is it going to be a free and fair election? There are worries, always persistent worries around Russian interference or influence in the election process in Europe, and that has become more acute since the war in Ukraine? Yes, the European Parliament.

actually has been a big voice on this about issues like rule of law, about free and fair elections and of course about media freedom in Hungary. There have been countless reports about the real challenges for independent media in Hungary

and how that is driving the political conversation in a certain way in Hungary. But I think there will be a strong interest in this election, how it's monitored when those results come in. Suzanne, thank you so much.

Bloomberg's Brussels Bureau Chief Suzanne Lynch and Zoltan Shimon, Bloomberg's Eastern Europe editor. We will bring you all the latest on the story from Hungary as it develops. I'm Caroline Hepka here in London. You can catch us every weekday morning for Bloomberg Daybreak Europe, beginning at 6 a.m. in London. That's 1 a.m. on Wall Street, Nathan. Thanks, Caroline. And coming up on Bloomberg Daybreak weekend, we'll look at what to expect when Spain's Prime Minister visits China. I'm Nathan Hager and this.

is Bloomberg. Support for the show comes from public.com. If you're actively involved in your portfolio, you probably catch yourself repeating the same actions, buying the dip, manually sweeping idle cash, putting on a hedge. On public, you can now create AI agents that handle all these tasks on your behalf.

Just describe what you want to do in plain English, like if the VIX hits 25, buy a put option on the S&P 500. Or if my cash balance goes above $20,000, move the excess into my direct index. You approve the workflow and your agent handles the rest. Monitoring the market, watching for your conditions, and executing your strategies exactly as defined. An investing platform driven by your intent, not just your clicks. You can also get full read and write access to your account via the public API. Go to public.com slash market and fund your account in five minutes or less.

That's public.com slash market. Paid for by Public Investing. Brokred services by Open to the Public Investing Inc. Member Finra and SIPC. Advisory services by Public Advisors LLC, SEC registered advisor. Complete disclosures available at public.com slash disclosures. So there's a lot of noise about AI, but time's too tight for more promises. So let's talk about results.

At IBM, we work with our employees. to integrate technology right into the systems they need. Now, a global workforce of 300,000 can use AI to fill their HR questions, resolving 94% of common questions. Not noise. Proof of how we can help companies get smarter by putting AI where it actually pays off. Deep in the work that moves the business. Let's create smarter business.

IBM. When you own your own business, you own every decision. Now own the card that rewards you for it. The Chase Sapphire Reserve for Business Card brings the best Sapphire Reserve benefits to business owners who expect hardworking rewards. Designed to meet the needs of business owners at scale, this pay-in-full card elevates your travel experience and offers premium benefits and value toward business services that will take your business to the next level. Fuel your business and maximize rewards with 8x points on all purchases through Chase Travel, 3x points on social media and search engine advertising, annual partnership credits, and more. Make every journey more rewarding with a $300 annual travel credit and access to a network of airport lounges, whether you're looking for pre-flight productivity or time to rest and recharge.

Chase Sapphire Reserve for Business. It's the card that gives back all you put in. Learn more at chase.com forward slash reserve business. Chase for business. Make more of what's yours. Accounts subject to credit approval. Restrictions and limitations apply. Cards are issued by JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. Member FDIC.

This is Bloomberg Daybreak Weekend, our global look ahead at the top stories for investors in the coming week. I'm Nathan Hager in Washington. This week, Spain's Prime Minister, Pedro Sanchez, heads to China. For more, we bring in Doug Krzner, host of the Daybreak Asia podcast. Thanks, Nathan. This will be Sanchez's fourth trip to China since 2023, and it follows a visit by King Philippe the 6th back in November. Incidentally, that was the first visit to China by a Spanish. monarch in 18 years. Now, we're being told that Sanchez will travel with a group of business leaders and to help us understand some of the dynamics. I'm joined by Bloomberg's Raz Matheson. Roz is our chief Asia correspondent and she joins from our studios in Singapore. Thank you for being here. It seems like there is a strengthening of economic ties right now between Spain and China. It certainly has been the case in recent years. I'm wondering if you're getting the sense of this move becoming even closer right now? Well, certainly there's been a warming of the relationship between Spain and China for a while.

And, you know, Sanchez, as you say, is making his fourth trip since 23. And he's been slightly to the side of many other members of the EU in a way on China. He's repeatedly said that Europe needs to set its own terms for its relationship with China and not just follow what the US is doing. And he's been a little less willing to sort of talk about some of the frustrations that other member states have about Chinese dumping of goods in Europe, for example, or keeping control of technology in all of that. And the trade relationship has been growing between China and Spain,

although it's very asymmetric because China exports a lot more to Spain than it buys from Spain. So they tend to sell cars, electronics, green energy to Spain because Spain's very big on renewables and Spain sells things like machinery. They're a big exporter of pork actually also to China. But this trip seems to be less about that trade dynamic and more about attracting investment because Spain is really keen to get more significant Chinese investment. So Sanchez is taking a business group with him, as you say, he'll be looking to get some deals on the table. Mabel as part of this trip. So it's interesting that you point out that Sanchez has essentially differentiated himself among a number of European leaders who have been very strongly critical, especially when it comes

to war in Iran between Iran and the U.S. and Israel. Does that necessarily strengthen his connection with Beijing? Well, certainly he's been very vocal about his views on the war in the Middle East, and he barred American forces from using two military bases. and he's put himself in the crosshairs again with Donald Trump directly. They're ready sparring over things like Spain's contribution to NATO. Defense spending, for example, collective spending. You know, Sanchez has been critical of the US administration for its policies on immigration

and critical of the move to pick up the then Venezuelan leader, Nicolas Maduro. So there's been those strong tension points between the US and Spain already. And Sanchez has certainly been quite vocal. views about the war. He just says their position is no to war. And so perhaps there'll be some conversations between China and Spain about that while he's there, because China does like to exploit fishes. They like to find gaps and they like stirring the pot a bit, including with the US. So it's handy to have a leader coming who's been very critical of the US over the war. But the interesting thing would be how much he moves, if any, out of alignment again

with the EU on China, because obviously that's a relationship that everyone's watching closely. Particularly when you think of the automotive industry and where Germany is in that. I'm wondering because Sanchez is a member of the Spanish socialist workers party, whether that intersects with the politics that Beijing has in a very, very friendly way. It does. Well, China likes to talk about it. I mean, they cast it as a very stable relationship. They like to talk up the leader-to-leader rapport that they see there. And they do cast Sanchez as a leader on the left and therefore somewhat like-minded,

although in reality they're probably not that light-minded. They do note him also as one of the few outspoken voices against what they call US policies harming European interests. And they talk about Sanchez being a good example of the need to divers. your relationships, your trade relationships, particularly around the world. But it's not just Sanchez who's kind of looking at this now more in the European perspective. I mean, we've had a parade of European leaders through China in recent months. Keir Starmer from the UK, the German Chancellor and others.

And there is this recognition in Europe too that you need to diversify your trade relationships, particularly given the tensions the EU has with the US. They're just more cautious than Sanchez about how to go about it and how far to go with it. So is he inviting a little bit of risk here if he's trying to strengthen the relationship with the Chinese? Well, he'll probably get another call out from Donald Trump potentially on it. And interesting, not everyone within Spain is happy about this. I mean, last October when the Spanish foreign minister was in China, they met with some Spanish business CEOs who said,

Hang on, please be careful in terms of, you know, we need more stringent demands for companies to hire local workers rather than parachuting in Chinese staff to Spain, for example. Let's make sure we're in alignment with the EU on trying to stop China dumping low-quality goods into our markets. And let's watch how we're handling the issues of key technological secrets when you're operating inside the EU. So there is that element in the Spanish business community who's slightly concerned about sort of being all in in a way with China. So there is that that risk as well. But Sanchez

has kind of planted the flag when it comes to Donald Trump. I think he's pretty clear about how he sees that relationship and he doesn't necessarily mind having a bit of sparring with the US because it also helps him domestically in terms of his own standing because, you know, he does have an election in the wind and, you know, it does help his narrative that he's standing up to a big power like the US. But China is offering Spain a great deal in terms of investment dollars, and I think that cuts to the other side of the story, right? Spain would be a big beneficiary.

Well, that's right. And that's certainly how Sanchez is casting it. He's saying this is very good for Spain in terms of having direct investment from China, particularly again in the automotive sector, which is a big one for Europe as a whole, and also in the renewable sector, because China's got a lot of expertise, as well. we know on green energy and is keen to utilize that around the world, of course, to China's own benefit. But that's something that Spain can certainly benefit from as well. So he's talking up direct investment. He's also talking up the potential to have even more tourists come

from China to Spain. They're keen to have the tourist dollars come their way. I mean, China in turn, has been issuing visa waivers for Spanish tourists to come, so it's a two-way street there. So Sanchez is trying to basically find all these ways to maximize the relationship, particularly again when it comes to money. So, Roz, I'm wondering if there are any announcements that follow this meeting, they would cover automotive, renewable energy, and I'm going to include battery technology. Is that fair? Well, that's right. And China's got increasing expertise in battery storage, in fuel cells. I mean, these are fairly nascent industries in a lot of countries and still quite expensive for companies. companies if they're looking at purchasing these to secure their own electricity supply. I mean, Spain has had a significant power outage that's still probably in the minds a bit and some questions over how good renewable energy is as a result. But you could see some new technologies

emerging from these conversations for sure. So you mentioned a moment ago that not everyone in Spain favors deepening this relationship. And I'm wondering whether Sanchez at some point could face a little bit of political blowback domestically? He could, although right now there's a bit of a rally around the flag moment going on in Spain into that national election next year. I mean, he's under pressure at home. He's been the head of a quite fragile coalition government. His party was hit by corruption scandals, so support was going down in the polls.

But people in Spain also remember the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003. And Spain kind of went all in with the US in that in terms of supporting it. They were quite a strong ally of President Bush at the time. And that triggered a big backlash in Spain. That was sort of protests across Spain. The slogan, No to War, which Sanchez has now kind of adopted. That's what he's reviving. And so he's really tapping into that very long-running.

anti-war sentiment in Spain and those memories of 2003. And so that's something that he can probably find, you know, a good support based on going into that election. Roz, we'll leave it there. Thank you so very much for helping us look at the visit of Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez to China. Ross Matheson is our chief Asia correspondent joining from Singapore. We go to New Zealand next, where in the last week, the central bank held its benchmark interest rate steady at two and a quarter percent. The RBNZ said inflation is likely to accelerate in the second quarter, and that's where we begin our conversation with Anna Bremen. Anna is the governor of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand. She spoke with Bloomberg's Heidi Stroud Watts. I can't sort of begin to really fully appreciate

the complexities of making a policy decision in this sort of global macroeconomic and geopolitical environment. Can you talk us through some of those challenges, particularly as changes to the outlook with the ceasefire was happening almost in real time? Of course, we are seeing and expecting higher near-term inflation and somewhat weaker growth in the New Zealand economy. And then what we are really focused on is the medium-term inflation and ensuring that medium-term inflation is at target. And of course, in this environment, it's very hard to do forecasting. We had the meeting at 9 a.m. in the morning.

It was announced at 2 p.m. there was a lot of information in between. But we knew that that could happen. So we had taken that into consideration, of course, at the time of the meeting. If, in fact, we see global energy supplies restored, some of the risks to global supply chains minimized in the coming days or weeks or months, and we accept that the risk to inflation is a near term and a temporary one. Do you foresee a scenario where easing is back on the table?

Well, we are more focused on ensuring that medium-term inflation does not increase. We see that the balance of risks have shifted in terms of inflation and more risk on the upside because already right now in New Zealand, fuel prices are gone out considerably, both petrol, but in particular diesel, and that's important input into transport in general, but also into the agricultural sector that is big here. And that risk getting passed on then into food prices and other kinds of prices. So we are expecting somewhat weaker growth, but we are concerned that medium term inflation pressures could be higher.

And if we start seeing inflation expectations moving up, if we see the core inflation is moving up, if we see wage growth picking up, then we said that we will act decisively to ensure that medium term inflation goes back to target. That's Anna Bremen, Governor of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand, speaking with Bloomberg's Heidi Stroud Wads. I'm Doug Krisner. You can catch us weekdays for the Daybreak Asia podcast. It's available wherever you get your podcast.

Nathan? Thanks, Doug. And that does it for this edition of Bloomberg Daybreak Weekend. Join us again Monday morning at 5 a.m. Wall Street Time for the latest on markets overseas and the news you need to start your day. I'm Nathan Hager. Stay with us. Top stories and global business headlines are coming up right now.

When you're running a business, the best days are the ones where priorities stay on track. For midsize and large companies, risk can affect multiple parts of the organization at once, from property and liability to cyber and regulatory challenges. At that level, managing risk becomes an ongoing discipline. At the Hartford, the focus is on helping businesses manage risk. risk before it turns into something more disruptive. And when losses do happen, that work is paired with insurance coverage shaped by years of underwriting, risk engineering, and claims experience. Learn more at thehartford.com slash risk mitigation. Policy is provided by Hartford Fire Insurance Company

and its property and casualty affiliates, Hartford, Connecticut. At Venture Global, we think about what can be done, not what's usually done. Through innovation, Venture Global is not only building some of the largest energy facilities in the world right here in the United States, but delivering American energy at a fraction of the cost and a fraction of the time.

So while others are busy talking, we're busy building. That's Venture Global. That's Unstoppable Energy. These days, it seems like AI agents are just about everywhere you turn, every field and every function. But without identity, you can't trust,

they'll serve your business instead of jeopardizing it. Fortunately, Octa helps you get identity right by securing your AI agent's identities, giving you a single layer of control, a single standard of trust. So whether an AI agent supports a single user or your entire enterprise, with Octa, you'll turn risk into opportunity. Secure every agent. Secure any agent. Octa secures AI.