Curbing chip sales

Good morning. The US may limit sales of AI chips. Oil slumps as supply concerns ease. And it was a good day to be a baseball fan in New York—and a panda fan in DC. Listen to the day’s top stories.

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US officials are weighing a cap on AI chip sales from Nvidia and AMD to certain countries, in the interest of national security, people familiar said. The focus is on Persian Gulf countries that have a growing appetite for data centers. Brush up on your AI terminology here.

Oil slumped after the Washington Post reported that Israel agreed to limit retaliation against Iran to military targets. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said Israel is listening to US misgivings but will act based on its own assessment. The prospects for peace in the Middle East are dim, said Richard Haass, president emeritus of the Council on Foreign Relations.

With 71 days until Christmas, the Grinch is here already. Americans plan to spend about 3% less this holiday season than a year before, a survey of more than 4,000 respondents by Deloitte showed. At least there are NFL games on Netflix to look forward to.

The US pension system slid further down the rankings of the world's best for adequacy, sustainability and integrity. America ranked 29th out of 48 countries, lagging both Canada and Mexico. The top spot went to the Netherlands for a second year. US retirees will get just a 2.5% increase in Social Security checks in 2025 as inflation slows.

Electric cars have a “Republican problem,” GOP strategist Mike Murphy said, with eco-friendly vehicles seen as the domain of Democrats. Even high-profile appearances for Donald Trump by Tesla founder Elon Musk aren’t helping to bridge the divide that much.

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell will not deserve a place in the annals of history as the greatest central banker of all time, Allison Schrager writes. The mistakes the Fed made in 2021 will haunt the US economy for years to come.

Monday’s trifecta of New York sports delivered mixed results. Aaron Rodgers’ 52-yard Hail Mary touchdown pass to close the first half wasn’t enough for the Jets to overcome the Bills. The Mets evened the NLCS after a grand slam from Mark Vientos. And the Yankees won the ALCS opener 5-2 over the Guardians.

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