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First Move with Julia Chatterley

From Asia to Africa, COVID Cases Rise Sharply; U.S. Regulators Clash with Pfizer over the Need for a Third Jab; Richard Branson Readies for This Weekend's Space Launch. Aired 9-10a ET

Aired July 09, 2021 - 09:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[09:00:18]

JULIA CHATTERLEY, CNN BUSINESS ANCHOR, FIRST MOVE: Live from New York, I'm Julia Chatterley. This is FIRST MOVE and here is your need-to-know.

Delta disruption. From Asia to Africa, COVID cases rise sharply.

Booster bewildered. U.S. regulators clash with Pfizer over the need for a third jab.

And billionaire blast off. Richard Branson readies for this weekend's space launch.

It's Friday. Let's make a move.

Welcome once again to Friday's FIRST MOVE. We made it through another busy week. You remember DiDi stocks were dumped amid a Chinese crackdown on

cybersecurity throwing U.S.-based IPOs into uncertainty and boosting market volatility.

This weekend Richard Branson aims for space shot viability, and England pleasing presses with your football agility.

Yes, okay, okay and good luck at team Italy, too, I just think England need it more. Go England.

And global markets. The U.S. and Europe taking back a chunk in fact of yesterday's delta variant driven losses. Bond yields are also firming up,

too, after yesterday's flight into the safety of bonds helping sentiment along the way as well.

The Chinese Central Bank loosening lending requirements to help battle weaker growth, China won a few countries in fact to begin pulling back

stimulus in recent months and as we've been saying all this week and for longer, do not expect policymakers to withdraw substantial support anytime

soon with so much variant uncertainty.

We'll discuss the hard decisions ahead with the Central Bank Governor Amir Yaron, the Governor of the Bank of Israel later on in the program.

And staying with Asia for now, South Korean shares fell one percent as officials there tighten COVID restrictions. The Hang Seng rose in fact for

the first time in eight sessions, after the market entered that 10 percent correction territory on Chinese tech regulatory fears.

Today though, the headline headache for tech stocks is down to President Biden. He is set to announce a wide ranging executive order intended to

limit the powers of big business in sectors like banking, pharmaceutical, shipping, as well as Big Tech. His goal: aiming to increase competition.

Lots to discuss, as always, let's get to the drivers.

Asia on high alert. The delta variant of COVID-19 surging across the region prompting tough new restrictions. Kristie Lu Stout reports from Hong Kong.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Across Asia, the delta variant is fueling a growing wave of new COVID-19 cases.

In Thailand, coronavirus deaths are climbing. The country has ordered new restrictions in the capital of Bangkok and surrounding provinces starting

on Monday, including mall closures, as well as limits on travel and social gatherings.

Cases are also spiking in Vietnam, both the capital Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City have tightened restrictions to contain the virus. Indonesia has

reported a record number of deaths fueled by the delta variant. Save the Children is warning that many more children will die there.

Its humanitarian chief in Indonesia says this quote, "The health system is on the verge of collapse. Hospitals are already being overwhelmed. Oxygen

supplies are running out and health services in Java and Bali are woefully ill-equipped to handle this surge in critically ill patients."

South Korea is raising its pandemic restrictions to the highest level in and around the capital, Seoul, from Monday. A Health Ministry officials

said that the country is in a quote, "dire situation" with the delta variant detected at an increasingly fast pace in the greater Seoul area.

Only 11 percent of the country's population is fully vaccinated.

Japan has also been hit with a sharp rise in infection following a new state of emergency in Tokyo. Olympic organizers on Thursday said that they

would ban all spectators from Olympic venues in and around the city. Just over 15 percent of Japan's population is fully vaccinated.

China has reported its highest daily tally of infection since January, with all local cases from Ruili, the city in the Yunnan Province, which borders

Myanmar. Parts of the city are in full lockdown. According to local officials, some patients were infected with the delta variant.

In Australia, the state of New South Wales on Thursday reported its biggest daily rise in locally acquired cases this year. The outbreak began with an

unvaccinated driver catching the delta variant from a flight crew member. Just over nine percent of the population in New South Wales has been fully

vaccinated.

The delta variant is also ravaging the Pacific Island nation of Fiji. The mortuary in Fiji's Main Hospital is already filled to capacity.

[09:05:10]

STOUT: Earlier on, countries across Asia have managed the coronavirus with some success, but the highly contagious delta strain along with the slow

pace of vaccination in countries like South Korea, Australia, and Indonesia have given rise to a devastating new wave of the pandemic.

Kristie Lu stout CNN, Hong Kong.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHATTERLEY: Okay, let's move on. Not so fast, the C.D.C. and the F.D.A. say if you're fully vaccinated, you don't need a COVID booster shot yet.

This comes shortly after Pfizer said it plans to seek authorization for a third dose, saying immunity from its vaccine weakens over time.

CNN senior medical correspondent, Elizabeth Cohen joins me now. Elizabeth, what do we need to know and what are we learning?

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: All right, I'm going to give you the bottom line first and then explain. The bottom line is that if

you've gotten two shots of Pfizer or two shots of Moderna, you do not need to get more shots. The only possible thing that would contradict that is if

you are immune compromised, as millions of people are, because they take certain drugs. A third shot might actually help you.

But if you are not immune compromised, and you would know if you are, you'd be an organ transplant recipient, et cetera, you should not be getting --

you do not need any more shots. It is unclear why Pfizer is deciding to announce this now that they are going to apply for emergency use

authorization next month for this third shot as a booster to the two shots that are already out there.

There's two reasons that this is confusing. First of all, there's lots of data showing that these two shots work really, really well even with this

delta variant.

So, let's take a look at some Israeli data. Pfizer did not give any new data. They didn't say, oh, this is why we're doing it. They just pointed to

this. They said look at this Israeli Ministry of Health data. The shot is - - or the two shots, rather, are 64 percent effective at preventing infection, and 93 percent effective at preventing severe disease or

hospitalization. Let's keep those numbers up for a minute because this doesn't completely make sense.

Why would you need a third shot if the first two are 93 percent effective at preventing severe disease and hospitalization, which doctors will tell

you is the more important of these two numbers? Look how well these two shots work. Why would you need a third one and there have been plenty of

studies showing that the immunity that you get from these two shots really does last a long time and really does work well against the variants.

Julia, another reason why there's a lot of questions about what Pfizer is doing here is apparently Pfizer is having trouble reading the room. One-

third of Americans don't want to get the first two shots, they have so many questions, so many doubts. They don't want to get the first two shots, one-

third of Americans.

So, now we're going to tell them, oh, we were just kidding about those first two shots being protective, we think you need a third. That is not a

way to get those folks to roll up their sleeves.

So, the F.D.A., the CDC, amidst all of this said we're going to put out a statement which by the way, those two agencies hardly ever put out a

statement together. Let's take a look at what it says.

It was incredibly blunt, straightforward, and to the point, "Americans who have been fully vaccinated do not need a booster shot at this time." Also,

Julia, I know you're a business person. I think you'd agree that it's very unusual for the Food and Drug Administration to say anything that even in

any vague way contradicts what a drug company is saying or doing. Having that happen is really unusual.

CHATTERLEY: Yes, the balance here is so important. I think you raised the point as well. The last thing you want to do is discourage people that are

already saying, I'm not sure whether I want to get this vaccine or not, and just to illustrate this point and underscore this point further, there has

been other evidence that suggests that immunity can be longer lasting, Elizabeth?

COHEN: Right. So, there have been studies that looked at people who have been vaccinated for a while because the first Pfizer -- the first person in

the Pfizer clinical trials got her shot almost a year ago. So, they can really look at people and see how they've been doing over this past year,

and those numbers have been looking very good.

And particularly when you look at B cells, which are part of our immune system, and they sort of hold our immune memory as it were, that's looking

really good. So you know, maybe we need boosters at some point. Sure. Do we need them right now? The F.D.A. and the C.D.C., based on the data that I

just mentioned, and other data say no.

CHATTERLEY: No. And if you've got one shot, get the second.

COHEN: Yes. You need two. You probably don't need three, but you need two.

CHATTERLEY: Bingo. Elizabeth Cohen, thank you for that.

Okay, as the U.S. debates this necessity and timing of a third booster shot as you were just hearing discussed there, take a look at this chart. It

shows vaccine doses administered per 100 people. As you can see, every continent lags North America's rate, but the gap is particularly stark for

the continent of Africa. Currently, just four doses per hundred people.

[09:10:03]

CHATTERLEY: To make matters worse, the highly infectious delta variant is spreading fast. Last week was the worst so far in terms of new cases in

Africa, more than a quarter of a million.

David McKenzie joins us now from Johannesburg. David, just explain further what the situation is there. And as we've discussed many times on this

show, what efforts are being made to ramp up accessibility and to get vaccines into people's arms?

DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Julia, let's deal with the situation first. I think, it's a very bad situation across many

parts of the continent, especially here in Southern Africa and the epicenter of the wave in Southern Africa is right here where I'm sitting,

in Johannesburg, the country's biggest city.

Just a few moments ago, the city announced that tragically, the Mayor of Johannesburg has died from COVID-related complications. And over the past

few days, and in fact, weeks, we've been speaking to many doctors and nurses battling this wave of COVID. It's been much worse than the first two

waves.

The presumption is this is because of the delta variant that really took over cases in South Africa to dominate previous variants in just a matter

of a few weeks. This country is another strict lockdown that will run out in a few days, it's still unclear whether they'll extend it.

But you know, hospitals are full. Sometimes paramedics wait up to nine hours to get people into beds, if they can at all. Many people across the

city in all parts, and all walks of life are being treated at home by doctors as best they can on oxygenators. And sometimes, you know, it gets

so bad that they have to go to makeshift hospitals and field clinics that we have been reporting out.

So, the situation is bad, and the only thing really other than wearing a mask and social distancing and this kind of lockdowns that disrupt

economies badly is vaccination -- Julia.

CHATTERLEY: And how is that going, David?

MCKENZIE: Well, it is already ramping up in South Africa, after a slow start that was criticized for not -- in South Africa, at least for not

making those bilateral deals with vaccine companies quickly enough, it must be said that it is increasing significantly in the last few days. It may

not have an impact on this wave, but it should have an impact on future variants and other surges of this virus.

We have a vaccine site which can take about 4,000 people a day at a maximum. Overall, the numbers are growing, and the good news is, the

categories are expanding in just a few days to include everyone over the age of 35.

So, as particularly vaccine, Pfizer doses get brought in by the government, it does seem that this is ramping up. So, that's a bit of a chink in this

very dark situation, a chink of light.

In many countries though on the continent, those vaccines are not coming, though, again, the COVAX facility, which is especially important for the

poorest countries to get vaccines does appear to be creaking up again into action to get vaccine doses after the situation in India really stopped the

export of vaccines from the Serum Institute earlier this year -- Julia.

CHATTERLEY: Yes, we heard about that on the show earlier this week as well. Fingers crossed they can continue to ramp up supplies and

manufacturing.

David McKenzie, thank you so much for that.

Okay, let me bring you up to speed now with some of the other stories making headlines around the world.

Authorities say the people who assassinated Haiti's President Jovenel Moise early Wednesday morning were quote, "professional killers." The group of 28

suspects includes two American citizens and retired members of the Colombian military.

CNN has been told three suspects have been killed. Joining us now from Port-au-Prince, Haiti is CNN correspondent, Matt Rivers.

Matt, great to have you, and just explain where you are at this moment, and what more we know about the plot to assassinate the President? It gets

thicker, it seems every hour.

MATT RIVERS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I mean, what we know, Julia, is that this is a very ongoing situation. We just arrived in Port-

au-Prince last night, and so this morning, we're really getting our first glimpse into some of the aftermath of what's happened since that

assassination.

So, before I get into the investigation, I just want to show you where we are and what has happened here. You can see some of the bullet holes here

behind me where the building -- where what government officials say is that this is where a shootout took place between some of the suspects involved

in this and government forces, and you can see it is building here, the glass is blown out.

There was some fire that took place in here, more bullet holes along the walls here, and you can see this car here that's since been burnt out.

There's a couple bullet holes in and around this car as well.

And what officials are saying is that they managed to make contact with some of the suspects involved in all of this in this location. The suspects

fired from these vehicles. After it was all over, they caught fire and that's what's left of it where we are at this moment.

[09:15:08]

RIVERS: Now in terms of the investigation, ongoing, like you said, however, what we know, the majority of which comes from a government press

conference given last night, we know that there's at least 28 suspects so far, 17 have been detained; at least three people have been killed,

suspects have been killed, and eight, according to the latest figures remain at large at this point.

Of all the suspects, 26 are believed to be Colombian nationals, including six of those Colombians, according to the Colombian Defense Ministry,

having been former members of that country's military, the remaining two are Haitian-Americans, Julia, and that's where we stand right now. That's

what we know.

What we don't know is a motive. Why did these, at least more than two dozen foreign nationals (AUDIO GAP) allegedly, according to government officials,

who financed them? Who is the mastermind behind all this?

The motive remains the big outstanding question, and it is something government officials have not yet addressed in their statements to the

press. You know, and the other thing in all of this is, how did they get past the normally very robust security that exists at the presidential

residence, which is not far from here, maybe five or 10 minutes' drive without traffic.

These are questions that we don't have an answer to right now. Those are the questions that we are continuing to ask the government, but it just

goes to the fact that this is a mystery in a lot of ways at this moment.

CHATTERLEY: It is. Keep asking those questions, Matt. Great to have you there. Thank you for being there, Matt Rivers.

All right, still to come on FIRST MOVE, don't dismiss delta. Israel says the variant could derail progress even in one of the most vaccinated

countries in the world.

And later in the show, Bitcoin may have a challenging image at times, but in El Salvador, they want to use it to alleviate extreme poverty. We will

discuss. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHATTERLEY: Welcome back to FIRST MOVE live from New York where we're heading for a stronger finish for the week for the Dow and the S&P 500.

Reflation names in the bank and energy sectors trying to re-inflate after sharp losses on Thursday.

The NASDAQ though underperforming, as President Biden readies an executive order limiting Big Tech powers among others.

[09:20:03]

CHATTERLEY: Mr. Biden attempting to among other things, better protect our personal data online, too. That could impact Big Tech profits.

And speaking of profits, expect a bank earnings bazooka next week with major financial firms set to report second quarter results. Banks set to

release more of the reserves they put in place for bad loans. The trading revenues, perhaps, could be less robust. Concerned, too, that if profits

will fall if bond yields remain under pressure amid global growth fears.

China's Central Bank today also easing bank loan reserve requirements to help boost lending and jumpstart slowing growth.

In the meantime, Israel led the global COVID-19 vaccine drive and is now one of the most vaccinated nations in the world. Sixty six percent of

citizens have had at least one dose, but in Israel, too, the COVID-19 delta variant threatens to derail progress. Last week, its Health Ministry warned

that the Pfizer vaccine appears less effective against the new strain.

Israel Central Bank downgraded its growth forecasts on the risk. However, the Central Bank remains confident of a near full recovery by the end of

2022.

Joining us now is Amir Yaron, he is the Governor of the Bank of Israel. Governor, fantastic to have you on the show. I have to say that is an

impressively swift recovery, if indeed your forecasts prove true. Are you that confident by the end of 2022?

AMIR YARON, GOVERNOR, BANK OF ISRAEL: Thank you, Julia, for having me. Our recovery is expected to go through 2021 by about five and a half percent

and another six percent in 2022, which we assume we will pretty much close the gap that we had prior to the crisis.

But of course, this depends on many factors, and one of them is that there is no significant drawback coming from the delta variant. Right now,

although we see more morbidity, these are not large numbers and they have most importantly -- that's the key issue -- they haven't transformed into

various very seriously ill and hospitalized people. And that is the crucial point whether those numbers will go up and that will obviously, if it does,

that will affect lockdowns potentially and more limitations.

But we don't -- right now, our baseline case is it will not go to the extent of lockdowns that we had before. The economy pretty much knows and

adopted to work even under some limitations. So, our baseline is pretty optimistic that in spite of this, we will be able to go through an exit.

As you said, we've had large vaccinations, and so basically, we are seeing the economy recovering pretty much all along except hospitality, still some

restaurants and tourism.

CHATTERLEY: The whole world was talking about the Israeli Health Ministry's comments about the efficacy of the vaccine, of course, and as

you've said, the fact that by and large, it seems to be preventing at this stage, hospitalizations.

Have you actually seen the underlying data for that in order to be able to incorporate it into your revised forecast?

YARON: We haven't really been completely exposed to this data, as we've done the forecast about two weeks ago, and this is really incoming data.

And as I mentioned, there are two issues. One is the sort of memory of the antibodies and the resistance the vaccine provides.

But even if one does become positive, the question is whether basically, the antibodies provide enough protection such that you do not become

seriously ill and therefore, strain the hospital system, which is the crucial point.

CHATTERLEY: What about other risks? Because as you've said, this is one of the big uncertainties. You know, around the world, a lot of people talking

about inflation data. I look at your inflation data, and while it's somewhat elevated relative to pre-pandemic, that for me doesn't seem to be

one of the most pressing risks for Israel.

Is it jobs, perhaps that's the higher priority for you getting those that arise? You've mentioned in the services sector, in hospitality, back into

the workplace, the over 40s, according to your data, too.

YARON: Julia, you hit the nail on its head. We've always, at the Bank of Israel, throughout this crisis looked at two main issues. One is the job

market. The other one is SMEs.

SMEs, while we see a little bit of an uptick in those who cannot survive, it's not the numbers that we were fearing initially. The job market is

improving, but slightly slower than we anticipated, and that's why we lowered our forecast for 2021.

[09:25:13]

YARON: And really, the issue is sort of structural unemployment, how much of it will be left labor re-allocation; and another point is polarization.

We see that jobs on the very low end, one still needs them very much on the high tech sector in Israel. There is huge demand for workers. It is the

middle segment, and here, you might have a convolution of the technological advancement that we've seen through the crisis, and some of these jobs are

more exposed, and might be more difficult through time to come back.

And this issue of polarization in the job market. It is something that's not new, but perhaps now, it is meeting us and that will slow down a little

bit the recovery in the job market. This is one risk. You mentioned inflation. Israel's inflation has been low, it's still low relative to

other countries. But it is a new level, it's above the target range now. It is about 1.5.

Market rates are basically for one year and onward, are looking at two percent, which is exactly the middle of our target range, which is between

one percent and three percent, and I think like all Central Banks around the world, everybody is trying to analyze: are we in a regime of transitory

inflation, which is due to disruption in supply chains, pent up demand, which is still there due to the fiscal support during the crisis, or other

forces that we -- or basically inflation is going to get anchored, wages are going to go up and this is going to go on for longer.

On the other hand, you have what was essentially some kind of a problem prior to the COVID crisis, which is very low inflation. Central Banks

dealing with zero lower bound, due to the fact that we've seen a lot of technological factors, globalization, pushing prices down.

Which one of these forces will ultimately be the eminent forces here is really hard to determine, and like all Central Banks, we are trying to --

we monitor it. We're trying to look at it, and data will tell, but right now, again, the baseline scenario is that the uptick in inflation is mostly

transitory. And we are not seeing, at least in Israel, a risk of some kind of a major inflation eruption.

CHATTERLEY: I mean, you've just laid out the challenge that so many Central Bank governors around the world are trying to deal with, the impact

of technology. There's deflationary impact of that. The short term inflationary challenges, the supply chain challenges as well.

While we operate in this world where there's so much liquidity sloshing around, we have seen certain, perhaps risks in the financial sector. Meme

stocks, as they're known, rallying. A hedge fund blow up, Archegos that had impact on banks in Europe and the United States.

What does your experience tell you about perhaps financial stability risks, while governors around the world try and buy time for economies to recover

from the pandemic? Are there risks -- significant risks brewing in your mind?

YARON: I think, Israel's financial system is very stable. But obviously, if you look around the world, in some segments, it looks like perhaps some

risks, if not, I would say, prices may seem like they've not perhaps fully incorporated all risks.

And I think, again, if I look at Israel, part of our very fortunate contraction during the COVID crisis is due to our high tech sector. And

obviously, we have now a very large exposure to the funding that comes from the world to NASDAQ, and this is obviously -- I don't see financial risks

in the sense of 2008 here, but we have a lot of our growth depends in this indirect way through the global funding of the world and any correction

that might happen there could affect us through that.

CHATTERLEY: Yes, it's good. It's good to hear and it's good to hear and to see a nation that's vaccinating swiftly and recovering. Fingers crossed.

Sir, fantastic to have you on the show. I had planned to talk to you about Central Bank digital coins, but you've escaped because I've run out of

time. So please, please come back soon and talk to me and you may or may not wish to get those questions, but I'll ask you again.

Thank you for your time today, sir. The Governor of the Bank of Israel.

YARON: Thank you very much for having me.

CHATTERLEY: Thank you. All right, the market opens next. Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:33:14]

CHATTERLEY: Welcome back to FIRST MOVE. U.S. stocks are up and running on the last day of a holiday shortened and pretty volatile trading week. A

nice bounce though across the board after Thursday's losses, but the White House is a wild card for investors today as President Biden readies new

measures to limit the powers of big business including some of the biggest tech firms.

In the meantime deflated, DiDi shareholder seeing a little bit of relief after this week's Beijing driven drop, as you can see higher by some 3.6

percent in the session so far, but DiDi's dilemma not over yet.

U.S. senators want an S.E.C. probe into DiDi's IPO launch, and whether the firm in any way misled investors. Shares of the Chinese ride-hailing app

are down more than 30 percent in the past five sessions, still significantly below as you can see its IPO price.

Elsewhere, Bitcoin firmer and holding above the $33,000.00 Bitcoin level, but still off around two percent this week as China announces further

crypto crackdowns. Beijing issuing further warnings to financial firms not to provide crypto services.

In the meantime, cryptos ability to speed up remittances and potentially provide financial tools to the unbanked are at the heart of El Salvador's

plans to make Bitcoin legal tender. The President of the Central American nation passed a new law last month that makes Bitcoin national legal tender

alongside the U.S. dollar. This means Salvadorans can pay their taxes in Bitcoin and use it for any debt or purchase. Approximately 70 percent of

the nation's citizens lack access to a bank account.

The Central American Bank for Economic Integration, which promotes financial inclusion is helping regulate the move and bringing together a

team of experts, and Dante Mossi is the bank's Executive President. He joins us from the capital, San Salvador.

Dante, fantastic to have you on the show and I know that you've literally just been speaking to the President of El Salvador, and I can't wait to

hear how that conversation went. But first, I want to start. I can only imagine what happened at the bank when the phone call came in to say, "Can

you help us"?

What your expertise to help in crypto currencies? You can be honest.

DANTE MOSSI, EXECUTIVE PRESIDENT, CENTRAL AMERICAN BANK FOR ECONOMIC INTEGRATION: Julia, thank you. And I'm really honest. We know nothing, and

so we know that the government of El Salvador, what we'll do is provide resources to hire the best minds in cryptocurrencies and regulation. And I

mean, he said, fantastic.

And I said, look, I'm open to work with other big banks that want to join in, and so let's wait for the answer from the World Bank or the I.D.B. And

as you know, at the end, we were left alone, but we are happy to provide assistance to El Salvador in this regard.

CHATTERLEY: You make an interesting point there, you're saying that El Salvador reached out to everybody -- the World Bank, the I.M.F. and said,

look, guys, let's help and you're the guys that said, okay, we're going to come in here. We're going to talk to you and see what we can do.

How can you help? Because I guess it comes down to things like regulation. I know, you're spoken to the U.S. Treasury as well. No one wants to fall

foul of the U.S. Treasury when your currency of choice is the U.S. dollar, and that is the case for El Salvador.

How does that work? And what did the U.S. Treasury say to you?

MOSSI: Yes, so I mean, naturally we reached out to the U.S. Treasury, as they are the ones that issue U.S. dollars. And so, you know, basically we

want to play the game for El Salvador's sake. I mean, at the end, I mean, I think this is an innovation, this is an economy who suffered heavily from

COVID, because it was closed down for several months.

So, the President has indicated is that they want to adopt innovation as a way to change and, you know, shorten the times to get where they were, and

in even in better places. So, in that sense, I mean, the government of El Salvador wants to actually make a quality jump into financial inclusion,

digital innovation, and at the same time, I mean, follow the rules of money laundering and anti-corruption, which, as you know these are heavy issues

for this region of the world.

So, we want to ensure that the cyber does it right. And so we did chat with the U.S. Treasury, and you know, reach out how do we do it? And they said,

look, do it, right. I mean, this is financial innovation, which is fantastic. Just ensure that whoever you engage with has the proper permits,

licenses, and it's very transparent, and everyone is aware of the risks.

And so you don't go into a transaction, and then you find out that you sent the equivalent to $100.00, and you got $50.00. So what happened to the

other $50.00? It might be, you know, because Bitcoin fluctuated. So, you need to have a lot of financial sector education.

CHATTERLEY: Knowledge.

MOSSI: Right, exactly. So, that's what we are providing. And we are actually -- you know, we told the government, you should listen, because

there's a lot of opinions going back and forth.

And if I told you, Julia, how many e-mails we got from people who is willing to help, so we are hiring top notch guys to help us assemble the

team. I mean, I am in El Salvador and we met with the Minister of Finance with the President.

So, they already have their own team and we have our lead, especially talking to him to understand what exactly we should do in the short term,

because there's only, you know, a couple of months before this goes fully online.

CHATTERLEY: And that's my question, I'm going to interrupt you there, because you're getting to the really exciting thing, which is the fact that

you've met the President of El Salvador. I think we have a picture of you actually, from the meeting yesterday. Yes, that's pretty cool.

Dante, do they understand that there may be better options? That if the case is that we want to facilitate greater efficiency, lower transaction

costs for remittances, which is just shy of a quarter of the GDP of El Salvador, let's be clear, that there may be better options. Is he open to

that?

And is he also open to the idea that maybe it's going to take a bit more time than the three months he initially said?

MOSSI: Yes, he is fully aware. I mentioned for example that I had several contracts with several companies and private companies and let me -- I

don't know -- I'm not under any nondisclosure agreement, so I can tell you this. I chatted with Visa and Visa has services for electronic wallets with

Bitcoin and they said they will be delighted to come to El Salvador.

[09:40:12]

MOSSI: I mentioned this to President Bukele and he said, oh, tell them to come to me and let's chat. And so he is fully aware. This is, you know, an

arena in which there are a lot of startups, and there might be a lot of good ideas.

But you know, also we have reached out to MoneyGram for example, another big remittance company, and they are more than willing to come. And, you

know, we consulted on the way forward. So yes, they are open.

I mean, the legal framework that the President has enacted is really accurate to provide fallback to these companies that come to El Salvador,

because, I mean, I was listening to show and you were just mentioning that in some countries now, it is being banned or outlawed, so what he wants to

provide is a legal framework in which you can come and use this cryptocurrency, but you will be also liable to pay taxes, to have the usual

relations that you have with other currencies.

So, I think he is thinking it through right. And so the regulation has to come briefly, and he is aware that if more time is needed, well, more time

will be requested to the Assembly to enact all the, you know, regulations that will protect the Salvadoran that he wants to benefit from this reform.

CHATTERLEY: Yes, I mean, the statistic that leaves out to me, I mentioned it, 22 percent of El Salvador's gross domestic product is made up of

remittances and around 80 percent of those use for day-to-day living expenses in El Salvador.

So, tackling something like this is vital, and I know that's what you passionately feel about this, too. Dante, great to have you with us.

Congratulations on meeting the President. Can't wait to speak to him at some point in the future, too, about all of this. And keep us updated on

your progress.

Dante Mossi there, Executive President --

MOSSI: Julia, thank you very much.

CHATTERLEY: Thank you.

MOSSI: Bye, thank you. Greetings from El Salvador.

CHATTERLEY: Of the Central American Bank for Economic Integration. Bye. Have a good weekend.

Okay, up next, the race to be the first billionaire in space heats up. Richard Branson prepares for his Sunday liftoff. We will discuss, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:45:58]

CHATTERLEY: Welcome back to FIRST MOVE. Virgin Galactic's Richard Branson is preparing to blast off to the edge of space on Sunday, a full nine days

before fellow billionaire space rival, Jeff Bezos plans to do the same. That would launch him not just into space, but also into the record books.

Rachel Crane joins us now from the launch site. Rachel, I'm envious of you once again. You've actually been speaking to Richard Branson, what did he

have to say ahead of the weekend?

RACHEL CRANE, CNN BUSINESS INNOVATIONS AND SPACE CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Julia. Well, you know, this is a hotly anticipated spaceflight and

nobody is more excited than Sir Richard Branson himself. That's because this spaceflight, nearly two decades in the making.

Richard Branson bought the technology to Spaceship One, which won the Ansari XPRIZE back in 2004. Now, that technology was developed as a

challenge for a non-government entity to develop a crewed spacecraft that was reusable and could fly back and forth to space twice in two weeks. So,

Branson bought that technology, and hundreds of engineers have iterated on Spaceship One to create Spaceship Two.

You see a model of it over my shoulder, right here, and Branson has spent over a billion dollars on this program, and he says he is ready to fly and

very excited. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CRANE: Okay, Richard, you are finally going to space in a matter of days. Tell me, how do you feel?

RICHARD BRANSON, FOUNDER, VIRGIN GALACTIC: Well, I've managed to avoid getting excited for 17 years since we started building spaceships and

motherships and spaceports and all these things, and we had to get through the test programs. And, and then yesterday, I finally got the call from our

Chief Engineer saying that every single box have been ticked on the safety aspect. And that I was -- would I like to go to space?

And I hit -- I hit the roof. I was so excited. And obviously, yes, never been more excited in my life and the wonderful team who are coming up with

me are equally set.

CRANE: You talk about excitement, but tell me, are you nervous at all?

BRANSON: I'm not nervous. Obviously, you're always nervous of letting the rest of the team down. And I'm going up, you know, as someone there to test

the customer experience, and I'm just going to enjoy every single minute of it. It's something that you know, I think millions and millions of people

out there would want to take my seat and I'm going to enjoy every second from the beginning to the end.

And so excited that this is the start for thousands of people who can become astronauts in the future years and yes, looking forward to seeing a

lot of those people off in future years to come.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CRANE: Julia, as you heard Richard Branson's objective on this mission is not just enjoying, but also to test the customer experience and a large

part of that is the training. That's what Richard Branson has been doing here at Spaceport America the last few days, preparing for this spaceflight

that will be happening on Sunday.

And the whole thing, Julia, will be live streamed. So, unfortunately, you know, you and I and the rest of us, we won't be in that cabin, but it seems

like we'll get some good eyes in there.

CHATTERLEY: Yes, some good visuals. We'll be watching, Rachel. I know you and I will. And none of this of course has to do with beating Bezos into

space. Nope. Time for the lucky socks.

Rachel Crane, thank you very much for that.

All right, there is more tech after the break. Those dancing dogs are back. Tech of all shapes and sizes on show in England and our Anna Stewart faces

her biggest challenge yet. Stay with us. That's coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:50:51]

CHATTERLEY: Goodwood Festival of Speed celebrates motorsport and car culture, but the salient event in England also has plenty of tech on

display, with big and small firm showing off everything that's new and improved.

Our Anna Stewart also tried on a gravity industry jet suit. That's an outrage of monumental proportions. You may remember it's something we

highlighted on the show in May. And you can see the results in "Marketplace Europe." She clearly survived as Anna joins me now.

Anna, I'm not sure I will ever forgive you for getting to try that out before me. But let's talk about Girdwood as well. It is the coolest car

park in the world.

ANNA STEWART, CNN REPORTER: I mean, it really is. This is the annual event for petrol heads, and of course they missed out on going last year, the

pandemic canceled it. I'm not sure if you'll ever hear much of me.

The cars going past me are very fast. They're very noisy. Motor bikes, too. And also some beautiful old vintage cars.

But quite aside from that, there's another side to Goodwood Festival of Speed, and that is the Future Lab, which is where you really get a glimpse

of what's going to happen in the future in terms of mobility. And we have been trying out flying, Robo taxis, cars that can transform into a

motorbike when you get into traffic, and you need to weave your way through.

Absolutely extraordinary innovation with huge amounts of financing, of course, big limitations when it comes to regulations. So, you do wonder if

any of these innovations will ever actually become a reality on the roads. It is such a fantastic event to be at. And obviously due to COVID, this is

still a pilot event from the government with restrictions having completely lifted here. It isn't filled to capacity. That is hard to believe looking

at the crowds here today.

But it is a day that is certainly being enjoyed by many, particularly all the motorsport enthusiasts, and perhaps, I am a new one, Julia, and after

that jetpack experience, did I take to the skies? How far did I go? Well, I'm going to leave that to your imagination.

You will get to see, of course, the full experience in "Marketplace Europe." That's on Saturday, July 24th. Put it in your diary -- Julia.

CHATTERLEY: Can you give us a clue? Did your feet take off the ground?

STEWART: I think it was less Iron Man and more little sort of bunny hops, if I am honest.

CHATTERLEY: It was all controlled and I know it was very elegant, as always. Anna, great job. Looking forward to seeing that. Thank you very

much and have fun today. It looks great.

All right, tensions are high, meanwhile, in England and Italy right now as both countries have national pride on the line ahead of Sunday's Euro 2020

football final. You know, I would never want to be accused of bias in anything. Although, let's face it, you all know where I come from.

So obviously, but of undoing that and representing Italy, our Paul La Monica, whose family hails from the South.

Paul, great to have you with us. I have to say, in terms of my specialist subjects, football is certainly not up there. And you call it soccer, so

that's not an auspicious start.

How much do you know about football -- soccer, by the way?

PAUL LA MONICA, CNN BUSINESS REPORTER: Yes, I mean, I am rooting for Italy. You know, my family mostly from Calabria and Sicily. We've got this

that I bought a couple of years ago to remind you that, yes, Italy has won some major titles, a little bit more recently than your beloved Three

Lions. I think it's a 55-year drought, unfortunately.

But you know, what's interesting Goldman Sachs is predicting that you will be happy on Sunday and I'll be crying in my vino because they are saying

that England will defeat Italy, two to one in extra time. But to put all that in perspective, you have to keep in mind that originally, Goldman

Sachs when this tournament began, they thought that Belgium was going to win. Italy beat Belgium. Italy also beat Spain despite being an underdog

there.

So my Azzurri, I'm happy that they're the underdogs on Sunday. More comfortable.

CHATTERLEY: I know. At least Goldman Sachs actually had to go. I went back to how well they did in the World Cup and they were saying it was going to

be a Belgium-England final and actually ended up France-Croatia. So, I'm not sure whether we trust Goldman Sachs.

Perhaps we're better off trusting some of the meerkat, the mystic meerkat that we've discussed this week on the show or rabbits, I believe, also

predicting an England win.

[09:55:07]

CHATTERLEY: I'm not sure about this, I think -- I think Italy -- do you it? I'm not sure about our mystic mammals or animals of any kind. But I do

believe Italy has gone 33 games without losing an international fixture, Paul. I think Italy may have form on its side.

LA MONICA: Impressive streak, but you guys do have Harry Kane and he is quite good.

CHATTERLEY: Oh, good grief. Now, you're mentioning players. Now, I'm in real trouble. Paul La Monica, thank you so much. We will reconvene on

Monday, yes, and I'll sharpen up on some more football details. Great to have you with us and good luck.

Paul La Monica, and thank you, too. Hi to your family by the way in the South.

That's all for the show. If you've missed any of our interviews today, they will be on my Twitter and Instagram pages. Search for @jchatterleyCNN.

In the meantime, stay safe. "Connect The World" is next.

Have a good weekend. We'll see you next week.

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[10:00:00]

END