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Quest Means Business

Trump Administration Defends Venezuela Oil Agreement; European Natural Gas Prices Rise to Highest Level Since 2023; 10K-plus Migrants Remain in Spanish Territory After Massive Influx; Investment Advice from Billionaire David Booth; Chipotle Opens Its First Restaurant in East Asia; Ethiopia's Ambitions to Become a Leading Gold Producer; Living in Password Purgatory. Aired 4-5p ET

Aired September 02, 2026 - 16:00   ET

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

[16:00:16]

RICHARD QUEST, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST, "QUEST MEANS BUSINESS": Closing bell is ringing on Wall Street and a strong session, which will tell you how the

Dow has done. It has been up all day, which after yesterday -- and it is interesting the way the markets are bouncing around, bringing us out of the

day sir, and a one, and a two and one, two, three, four. He tried to break the gavel and he failed to do so.

I don't know why he is holding it above his head like that. The market is over, 53,000. If you've got the triple stack there, it might be worth just

showing what has happened. Indeed we do.

Everything is pretty much round about the same sort of numbers. It gives you an idea of the way the day has gone. Those are the markets and these

are the main events that you and I are chewing over. The U.S. energy Secretary is in Caracas. It is a controversial deal that's being signed. It

gives Washington control of part of Venezuela's vast oil reserves.

President Trump has just said he is happy Harry and Meghan have left the United States.

And keeping calm in times of financial upheaval. You're going to hear from investing advisor from one of the world's most successful financiers, David

Booth.

All of that in the program you and I, I am live in New York. It is midweek, Wednesday, September the 2nd. I am Richard Quest and I mean business.

Good evening.

We begin tonight with the United States finalizing and signing what it is calling the biggest oil deal in world history. The U.S. Energy Secretary

Chris Right there, has been working on the deal with Venezuela, putting the final touches. They have been in Caracas.

Oil prices slightly rose, because essentially this deal long term has almost no effect on what is happening in the markets today.

The arrangement the deal -- it will give the U.S. access to a fifth of Venezuela's oil reserves and it will bring in billions of dollars in new

oil investment to Venezuela. So it is a plus -- you know, a plus for both sides at one level and the question is, the terms of the deal.

Secretary Wright says the deal will bring more opportunities for Venezuelans.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRIS WRIGHT, U.S. SECRETARY OF ENERGY: The mission is to bring peace freedom, opportunity and prosperity to the people of Venezuela.

I believe the deals that are signed today, tens of billions of dollars of investment, ultimately, many thousands of jobs -- these are critical and

starting this ball rolling of peace, opportunity and prosperity for everyone in Venezuela.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

QUEST: Now, chevron is one of the companies that signed their own agreements at today's meeting in front of Secretary Wright and chevron is

pledging to double its oil production in the country over the next few years.

Chevron is investing $7 billion, and that should take production for them to around 600,000 barrels a day.

Kevin Liptak is at The White House.

It is a complicated deal, as you would expect, Kevin, and I've been looking into the minutiae.

The way it is being portrayed by the U.S. is they get control and they do get control over a certain element of it. They don't get ownership per se.

They get control, which I will explain in a moment.

The critics say it is plunder.

KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Yes, I mean, I think it was clear when the President went into Venezuela in January to oust the leader,

Nicolas Maduro, that oil was very much at the front of his mind. You know, I was at Mar-a-Lago when he was announcing that capture and oil came up

again and again.

And it was very evident that that was one of his main priorities when he said that the U.S. was going to take over that country. And now, you know,

seven months later, we are seeing exactly what that means in practice. And I think the President's hope is that this will show him taking steps to try

and bring down gas prices for Americans.

Now, even he admits that that is not a realistic outcome, not just over the next few months, but over the next few years. You know, the oil

infrastructure in Venezuela has been neglected. It has been completely dilapidated, and almost everyone agrees that it is going to take a lot of

time and a lot of money on the part of these companies to get it into a place where it is extracting the billions of barrels that the President

thinks will come and be part of the United States.

[16:05:04]

So, there are a lot of questions, as you said, about how this would work. But this, I think, is something that the President has clearly been

signaling has been his intent for quite a long time.

QUEST: You know, when I first heard of this deal, my kneejerk was the U.S. is sort of going in there and taking everything out. And, you know, look at

it. But the more I've looked at the deal and I am going to go into the details in a second, you know, there is a lot of reasonable -- I mean, it

gets 20 percent of this -- first of all, this 65 billion, Kevin, is a fifth. It is only a -- it is a fifth of Venezuela's reserves, and it only

gets 20 percent at cost. It has to get an option.

So I mean, it is hard to really know with this deal.

LIPTAK: Right, and I think, you know, in the fine print, it does say the U.S. has right of first refusal for the rest of that, for the remainder of

the oil. But it is, I think, you know, in the telling of Chris Wright and President Trump and Delcy Rodrguez, this is a deal that's going to benefit

all parties.

But I think if you look at Venezuela and you look at the way that the country has been run, you know, for the last 20 years, there is no evidence

that the oil industry was benefiting average Venezuelans and the regime that was in charge then is still, at the end of the day, the regime that is

in charge now.

Delcy Rodriguez was the Vice President under Nicolas Maduro. There is no evidence that the country is nearing a free and fair elections, and

actually, President Trump just said today in the Oval Office that he doesn't think Venezuela is ready to hold an election. And so that is going

to be a disappointment to Venezuelans who saw the leader, Nicolas Maduro, ousted, who heard President Trump and Marco Rubio talk about bringing

democracy to Venezuela.

Now, there is really no evidence that that is, in fact, their objective, and so even though all sides of this say that, they will see some benefit,

I don't know that you can take that at face value, just given how that regime has operated over the last many years.

QUEST: I am grateful, Kevin. We will now get into the details of that deal. Thank you.

Now, Venezuela has more than -- assuming all of this is going to work. If you take the totality. Venezuela has more than 300 billion barrels of it.

Now, the U.S. is getting roughly a fifth of that. Let's just say that, roughly a fifth, 65 billion barrels of oil. But it is doing so through a

particular investment equity stake, the company.

The Company is called the North American Blue Energy Company, or Partners and the U.S., and here is the point, the U.S. has 35 percent of that

company.

Now, bearing in mind that the 35 percent is only of the fifth of the reserves, you get that, and it gets even more complicated because now we've

got the U.S. of this, it only gets 20 percent at cost, at the production cost. It has a rights over the rest. But where I think this is most

crucial, choosing my final color, the U.S. gets veto power over directors, and it has three directors of its own.

So this idea that somehow the U.S. is getting full control over Venezuela's oil reserves is simply not true. You have the 65 billion of which it has 35

percent equity and 20 percent at cost. So that's the complicated deal. And of course, as I say, you have this veto power, which arguably is the big

talking point.

Venezuela's acting president, Delcy Rodriguez, has said it is for the mutual benefit of both countries.

Ricardo Hausmann is a former Venezuelan Minister of Oil, and he joins planning and former Board member. He is professor of Harvard -- Professor

at Harvard Kennedy.

So, look, I've given the gist of the deal, yes, probably Venezuela is having to give more than it would have liked. But then the U.S. is going to

be companies bearing the brunt of rebuilding the industry. What do you make of it?

RICARDO HAUSMANN, FORMER VENEZUELAN MINISTER OF OIL: I think this is a scandal. I think this is criminal. I think this is abusive. I think this is

the most imperialistic thing the U.S. has ever done in its history.

I think it will not stand. Venezuelans will not stand for it. This is -- this is an unexplainable.

Let me start by the things you said. Venezuela doesn't have 300 billion barrels of oil. That's a super inflated number. They took the best parts of

Venezuelan assets, the ones they thought were the most attractive, and they gave it for nothing in exchange.

[16:10:10]

No open bidding process, no due diligence. They gave it to a criminal, to a criminal who has been making money for the last 15 years through directly

assigned contracts with the government, that he has underperformed on, okay, so this guy, Alejandro Betancourt, he gets everything, that's NABEP

this North American Blue Energy Partners, that company is getting all these things. They're not a major -- they're not a major oil company. They're

nobody. Right?

They're getting that as a private company and they're giving away 35 percent of those shares for free to the U.S. government. Now, the U.S.

government isn't putting any money there. So, if this company wants to raise capital, raise equity, they have to tell other people two things they

have to say, by the way, 35 percent of the profits are not going to you. They're going to a partner who didn't put any money up.

And secondly, 20 percent of what you're going to produce is not going to generate any money. Actually, it is probably going to lose money because

Venezuela is going to charge a royalty on it, it is going to charge the royalty at international prices, not at cost. So the company is going to

lose money. So they have to raise money in order to subsidize the U.S. government.

And I think that means that raising capital to develop Venezuelan resources will be less attractive because Venezuela -- because the U.S. government

tried to get all the resources out in an exploitative deal that has never happened.

You know, the U.S. --

QUEST: So why did she go there? So why -- so why -- I mean, do you think, in effect, do you think, in effect, that the acting president, President

Rodriguez, had basically gun to the head, sign it or don't?

HAUSMANN: No, no, no, no, this is a great deal for her. She gives away the oil and she gets to stay in power illegitimately, unconstitutionally,

completely outside of the Venezuelan Constitution. She has no right to be in power.

She has no right to be in power. So why is she in power? Why haven't they called elections? It has been nine months since they took Maduro out, and

they haven't moved a finger to start organizing elections.

The Constitution demanded elections in 30 days. They extended it to 180 days, it has now been past 180 days. This is an abusive crime, unacceptable

by -- Venezuelans are not going to stand by this.

And this baloney about it is going to generate jobs and so on. This is a violation of everything that has to do with Venezuelan sovereignty.

Venezuelan interest -- there is nothing of Venezuelan interest in giving away its oil, subsidizing the U.S.

QUEST: I hear you, sir. All right --

HAUSMANN: This has never happened in Venezuelan history.

QUEST: Right. But, sir, surely the biggest risk putting aside the political -- putting aside -- let's stick with hard business stuff, surely the

biggest risk for companies and which is why they may be hesitant to go in, would be a change of government and policy in Venezuela that would reverse

this, unless those companies have also received ironclad guarantees from the United States.

So, the difficulty here is anybody putting money in needs to make sure that they're actually going to -- the Venezuelans are going to hold true to it.

HAUSMANN: The Venezuelans are not going to hold true to this crime that is being committed. What you want Venezuela is to go back to Venezuela before

Chavez and Venezuela before Chavez was a democracy that had -- was producing 3.4 million barrels of oil a day. The moment Chavez got into

power, it had major investments from major companies. We know how to do that. We have done it in the past, and we have started to produce oil in

1917. We became the largest world exporter of oil in 1929.

We know the industry. We know the business. We are running BP, we are running many of the majors, we have our people in the global oil industry.

They have all been sidelined in exchange, and they've given this to somebody who has a company set up in 2024 in Barbados, and they gave all of

these assets to that company in Barbados, who is a criminal, part of the crooks that are in the kleptocracy in Caracas.

And I want you to ask the following question, next time you talk to Marco Rubio or any of them, ask is Mauricio Claver-Carone, his friend, his client

who has been playing official roles in Venezuela, ask if he is making some money out of this deal.

QUEST: The notice -- we've made the notice. All right, thank you for joining us, sir. I am grateful. We will talk again. Thank you.

[16:15:10]

As we continue, President Trump says the renewed U.S. campaign against Iran would not continue for too long. It comes after the largest exchange of

fire between the two countries since July. The conflict is driving up natural gas prices in Europe.

Anna Cooban has been looking at the whole thing, and here is the gist.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANNA COOBAN, CNN BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS REPORTER: European natural gas prices are marching higher, hitting their highest level since the U.S.-Iran

War broke out in February, and the highest level in three years as the U.S. and Iran are again engaged in tit-for-tat strikes.

It is not just oil that comes out of the Strait of Hormuz, about one-fifth of the worlds liquefied natural gas does, too, and it is this fuel source

which millions of homes and businesses across Europe rely on for heating during winter, which we are now approaching.

Normally, the summer months are a period of time when European countries are taking advantage of relatively low gas prices to fill up their

stockpiles ahead of the winter, but this summer is different because of the war, less gas is exiting the Middle East, meaning fewer cargoes over which

more countries are competing. Stores are currently about 65 percent full across Europe, which is lower than where they normally are for this time of

year.

Last month, I was speaking to analysts who said that many of these cargoes are going to Asia over Europe, where buyers are paying higher prices. But

analysts told me that, rest assured, we are not in a gas crisis comparable to 2022. Remember after Russia invaded Ukraine, Europe has simply learned

to live with less gas. Demand is down, and analysts aren't worried about material shortages or blackouts, just price rises.

Because if European buyers are consistently paying more for gas, you can bet that consumers down the line will be paying more, too.

Anna Cooban, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

QUEST: One of only two border crossings between Africa and the E.U. was overrun this summer by migrants. There were thousands of them who are still

there and that's got security concerns for everybody involved.

A live report from Ceuta, Spain coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

QUEST: People across Spain are holding rallies as you can see, in solidarity with the North African enclave of Ceuta.

More than 70,000 migrants entered this tiny Spanish territory over the last two days of July. You remember the pictures. They are dramatic and --

The authorities estimate more than 10,000 people still remain in various makeshift camps.

[16:20:07]

Spain's prime minister, Pedro Sanchez, blames the influx on Russian and Israeli disinformation. The Prime Minister says there is evidence that

networks inside those two wanted to retaliate against Madrid for its position on the wars in Ukraine and Gaza. Both Russia and Israel are

denying any involvement.

Clarissa is with us. Clarissa Ward.

Now, Clarissa, this is really interesting because it is detailed. It is humanistic. It has got all sorts of elements to it. But at the end of the

day, you have thousands of people displaced.

CLARISSA WARD, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Richard. I mean, literally 20 minutes ago, this entire plaza and all the streets leading up

to it were engorged with this swell of humanity. The people of Ceuta taking to the streets to say, enough is enough! They are fed up. They view this

situation as an absolutely untenable crisis.

And they feel that the SPANISH government, or I should say many of them, feel that the Spanish government is not doing enough to resolve this

situation. There is a sense that this is completely unsustainable. As you mentioned, local authorities saying as many as 9,000 of those migrants are

still here. Theres only 84,000 people who actually live in Ceuta.

So trying to find a way to house and feed and look after those 9,000 people is proving incredibly difficult. You have many of them sleeping rough, as

you have said. And of course, you now have this backlash from vigilante groups who have gone and attacked some of these sort of makeshift camps,

setting fire just last week to one on a beach.

And the government has just not been able to build new camps fast enough, process people fast enough, and come up with a broader plan for what to do

here, because when you talk to locals, they'll say, Morocco has all the cards. They turn the tap on and off whenever they want. This is their

perspective, I should add. And what can Spain do? How is Spain countering that power? That leverage?

QUEST: Now, you put your finger on it just at the last bit there, because whatever -- however we got here, we are where we are. And the issue is how

to resolve that. Either sending back, which is probably not an option, or entering Spain or arguably the worst option, some sort of camps that you

know better than anybody else, you know are meant to be there for six months and 20 years later, people are still living in them.

WARD: You know, based on the conversations I've had in the few hours since I've been here, that there will be anarchy on the streets if permanent

camps are established. The people of Ceuta just simply will not accept that. And I want to underscore because obviously this whole issue has been

hijacked by different political parties, particularly on the far-right, but the people that we saw out on the streets tonight were very diverse, were

not politically motivated, but were motivated from a sense of feeling completely overwhelmed, under-supported and in many cases, literally

frightened because this is a tiny enclave on the very tip of North Africa.

And the idea that at any given time, the floodgates can potentially open and 72,000 people can just come across to them is understandably not a

sustainable situation. Now, Spain has previously said they're not going to bring them to the Mainland because that gets really problematic. Ceuta is

not technically in the Schengen Zone, so people who are here at the moment cannot travel throughout the rest of Europe, but it is hard to see how the

government is going to be able to process and house and look after these migrants, who I want to underscore Richard, are in a desperate situation

themselves, who are incredibly vulnerable, who are not here from any fault of their own, okay.

This was a massive social media misinformation campaign, twisting the ruling of the Spanish Supreme Court, and now they are here and they are not

getting fed properly. NGO workers who are supporting them are getting death threats. Two groups actually evacuated in order to avoid being here tonight

because of these protests, because they fear that tensions would be so high.

[16:25:00]

QUEST: Can I just ask you very briefly, quickly, because I know, obviously the conditions are very difficult and bad, but the temperatures and the

climate and at the moment, as Europe is enduring this very hot summer must be getting pretty much up there as well, where you are.

WARD: It is actually, mercifully a little bit cooler here, I have to say. I would say it is about 23 to 24 degrees right now. It is humid obviously,

but if you are sleeping on a beach and a tent made improvised out of garbage and debris, clearly there is a complete lack of dignity in that

situation. And so everybody here is a loser and it is a crisis on a humanitarian level, on a geopolitical level, and on a domestic political

level within Spain.

QUEST: Clarissa, I am grateful. Thank you. Clarissa Ward in Spain -- in Ceuta, Spain for us tonight. Thank you.

Britain's King Charles and Queen Camilla have been hosting the French President, Emmanuel Macron, and his wife Brigitte, at a private well, I

say, private viewing of the Bayeux Tapestry. There was a lot of other people there as well.

Nearly 1,000 years, the Bayeux Tapestry, I mean, the artwork was returned to England in July. It is a special loan from France, controversial in some

quarters because of the delicacy and fragility of the tapestry. It shows the fateful battle between the two countries that brought an end to Anglo-

Saxon rule in England.

President Macron's trip, aimed at strengthening ties, including the first sit down meeting with the new British prime minister, Andy Burnham.

Max Foster is in London.

Max, first of all, by the way, one of my producers here, Jake, pointed out that William the Conqueror is the great grandfather times 28 of King

Charles. I am sure you knew that.

But the point is that this whole thing was wrapped up with so much history, so much commonality of purpose.

MAX FOSTER, CNN ROYAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Two countries, very close frenemies, you could probably describe them as, you know, and this picture

depicted in the tapestry, which in fact is an embroidery really speaks to the heart of it and it was a very sort of poignant moment, really speaking

to that history today, speaking exactly to your point, which is this depicts the Battle of Hastings, which was when a French Duke, William the

Conqueror, came over and won this battle. It depicts that battle and then took the throne and that is, Charles' direct descendant. This is, he

created the British Royal family as we know it now.

So for him to be looking at this moment with the French President, the French obviously got rid of their Royals, but they did create this Royal

over the water, I have to say, there was, you know, speaking to that sort of tenseness in the relationship. It was all about, you know, camaraderie

today.

But in the speeches, it was quite interesting. You had the King saying, you know, it was probably created in the U.K. There are lots of historical

debate about that and saying the Bayeux Tapestry or perhaps the Canterbury Embroidery, as we could call it, and then we had Macron's speech where he

said, we still don't know where it was made. So, you know, this tension is always there.

QUEST: Right? Now, let's talk about tension. I resisted doing this. Meghan and Harry, but I can't resist it anymore. Donald Trump was asked about it

in The White House.

Donald Trump was asked about Meghan and Harry returning to Britain. Have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: I am happy about it. No, I was not a fan. I thought, look, I had a very good

relationship with the Queen. Really good. I got to know her very well, a really good relationship with King Charles. I knew him as Prince Charles

and King Charles. I've known him for a long time. He is great -- a great guy.

And I thought they treated the Royal family with great disrespect. I didn't like it. I didn't like the way she acted. I thought she was terribly

disrespectful to the Queen, to King Charles. And, I don't know, maybe I am different. I wouldn't have taken them back, frankly, if I were the Royal

family, I would -- I would not have taken them back.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

QUEST: Let's ignore the fact that he didn't have any -- the Royal Family didn't have any choice, but nothing like pouring petrol on the flames.

FOSTER: It is interesting. I mean, it is a debate. I think it is resonating here because there are a lot of people in the U.K. who feel he articulated

how they feel as well, that they weren't respectful to the family, but this is a family affair.

As you say, the Royal Family have no control over whether they can come back. Well, you know, it is what it is. He said it. They are no longer

there. They are here. We are waiting to find out where they are, but we are not able to report where they are. They're asking us not to report where

they are. But you know, it certainly caused a lot of debate here. And I think he does represent one side of the debate here as much as there.

QUEST: Max, I am grateful, sir. Thank you very much.

It is QUEST MEANS BUSINESS from New York.

The renowned investor, David Booth will be coming up next. His new book, "Stay Calm" offers a guide to the markets and life. He is in the C-suite

with me after the break.

[16:30:47]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

QUEST: Hello. There's a lot more QUEST MEANS BUSINESS in a moment. Chipotle's chief executive tells us why the time is right to open new

restaurants in Asia. And we've all been there. Password purgatory. Logging on has never been more difficult, and the reasons why. We'll get to sort of

talk about it and maybe even get to find out some solutions.

Only after the headlines, because this is CNN and here on this network, the news always comes first.

U.S. is finalizing its deal to get access to Venezuela's oil reserves. The energy secretary -- U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright is in Caracas and

meeting Venezuela's acting president, Delcy Rodriguez. He's calling the deal that was announced earlier this week a major win for both countries.

Critics are questioning the legality of the agreement that so closely ties the U.S. government with private companies.

Officials now say more than 4,000 people remain missing after last week's devastating floods in Nepal and China.

[16:35:04]

China says the road leading to the border crossing has largely been reopened. The restored route could help rescue personnel and relief

supplies to reach the affected areas more easily. Major road and bridge damage will take weeks or months to repair.

The jury in the murder trial of Lindsay Clancy has told the judge it is once again deadlocked. Clancy is the Massachusetts woman charged in the

deaths of her three young children in 2023. Her attorney says she cannot be held criminally liable because she was suffering from postpartum psychosis.

Today, the judge told the jury for the second time that it must continue deliberating.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

QUEST: If you can keep your head when markets all around you are losing and you can't see a way through, if you can trade and not make money your

master, meeting triumph and disaster in equal measure.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

QUEST: Now you'll be well familiar with that spot of investing advice. Of course, in the long run, it's held up in times of financial turbulence. So

take Black Monday, for example. October 19th, 1987. That, by the way, was my first major financial crisis that I covered as a young financial

reporter. The Dow fell more than 22 percent in one day, which would be the equivalent of 12,000 points dropped today. And it took two years to

recover.

The situation seemed even more dire in 2008. That was the financial crisis. Housing and banking markets collapsed, and once the dust settled, one of

the strongest bull markets in history then succeeded it and took hold.

So what do you make of it in today's market where we're at frothy levels and where really we don't know exactly, is there an A.I. bubble that's

about to burst?

David Booth is the founder of Dimensional Fund Advisors and has seen it all. His new book is called "Stay Calm: Navigating Uncertainty in the

Markets." He joined me in the C-suite in the sky, and I wanted to know why write them up the book in the first place.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID BOOTH, FOUNDER AND CHAIRMAN, DIMENSIONAL FUND ADVISORS: Well, you know, there's a lot of kind of anxiety these days around the world,

particularly when it comes to investing. Anxiety bordering on being depressed.

QUEST: Can I suggest for good reason, that anxiety is because the environment is so complex that the ordinary man and woman, and even the

quasi expert, just doesn't know what to do at the moment?

BOOTH: Well, you know, but that's kind of the history of investing. I mean, a lot of anxiety now. But go back, say, to the Great Depression, or World

War II.

QUEST: Right. Yes, no, I take your point, but I think what I'm trying to suggest is that the necessity of the book.

BOOTH: Yes.

QUEST: Is relative because the anxiety is there.

BOOTH: It is really.

QUEST: And it is justifiable anxiety.

BOOTH: And justifiable. And -- but if kind of the premise is if people understood better how public markets work, stock and bond markets, they

would be more optimistic about investing and be more confident that they can have a good long term experience.

QUEST: What would you say is the core of this book?

BOOTH: It would be stay calm and stay invested and let markets work for you.

QUEST: It does require a certain amount of discipline and willingness to learn, and my experience has been that people aren't prepared to put that

effort in. A certain number of people are. But --

BOOTH: No. I think you're absolutely right.

QUEST: And that's the real problem. I mean, you know, the information is there, but people, how many times do people say to you, oh, I don't

understand all that business?

BOOTH: Yes, yes, yes. Right. Well, it's getting better all the time. But 50 years ago, when it started with these messages about, look, it doesn't look

like professional managers can beat the market. People would go, what? Are you kidding me? Of course they can. I mean, they work hard and they're

smart. And, you know. And now I find people, because we try to beat the market, we just don't try to outguess it. People go, oh, no, no, you can't

beat the market.

QUEST: But the core dislocation now between the markets, which seem to be on a tear of their own because of the Mag Seven and A.I. and the underlying

economy, which is good but doesn't justify these prices.

BOOTH: Well, the earnings have been truly exceptional. I don't know how many quarters in a row we've had increased earnings. So, yes, we think for

most investors these are all serious issues you raise.

[16:40:08]

But in some sense the markets already set a price on those things. Those are reflected in. That's why prices are where they are. The question is

going forward. And unless you think you know more than the market, you better -- the evidence is you're better off accepting.

QUEST: What does that mean? Hang on. What does that mean? Because what is the market telling you at the moment?

BOOTH: The market is setting prices.

QUEST: Right.

BOOTH: And, and so you can either think those prices are fair and reasonable, or you can say they should be something else.

QUEST: Right.

BOOTH: We're just saying if they're fair and reasonable.

QUEST: But the fear is that the market has a crack, a fissure. Not a collapse, but a very nasty fall.

BOOTH: Well, go back to March of 2020. The markets down 20 percent or 30 percent. Pandemic hit. People go, oh, my gosh, what are we supposed to do?

And of course, our view is, look, the consensus is this pandemic thing appears to be a two or three-year horizon problem. So down 20 percent or 30

percent seems about right, given the severity of the problem. So there's no reason to expect going forward that you would have a bad return.

But that's the -- and people that got out then because they were feared, you know, it's nice to be fearful. I mean, you raise good issues, but

getting out of the market when it goes up, the market was up like 50 percent the rest of the year. I mean, it's -- and you don't get a redo.

QUEST: But the irrationality of those two things, the 30 percent down, the 50 percent up. It makes it just almost impossible for the ordinary person

to understand.

BOOTH: Well, it's -- I can appreciate that.

QUEST: I suppose that's where you come in.

BOOTH: That's what we're trying -- so you asked me, why did I write the book?

QUEST: Right.

BOOTH: It's for those people. Let's try to say, look, the markets doing its job. It's always trying to set prices so you have a positive outlook going

forward. Otherwise people wouldn't invest.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

QUEST: As we continue tonight, the U.S. restaurant chain Chipotle is opening up its first restaurant in Asia. We went along to the grand opening

in Seoul in South Korea. You'll see that after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

QUEST: Chipotle has opened its doors for the first time in East Asia. The burrito maker has set up shop in Seoul, where it's joining a bustling food

scene.

CNN's Gage Goulding reports.

[16:45:07]

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Two, one, open.

GAGE GOULDING, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Asia is getting their first taste of Chipotle. And the American company built on

burritos is betting a big appetite is here and it might just pay off.

ANDREW CHUNG, SOCIAL MEDIA INFLUENCER: This is the best food in the world.

GOULDING (voice-over): Outside of Chipotle's new restaurant in Seoul, the line stretches for city blocks for Wednesday's opening day. Andrew Chung, a

social media influencer, is first in line.

CHUNG: I got here at 11:00 at night.

GOULDING: You got here 11:00 last night.

CHUNG: At night. Yes.

SCOTT BOATWRIGHT, CEO, CHIPOTLE: It's a free Chipotle for a year.

GOULDING (voice-over): It's a welcome sight for Chipotle's CEO Scott Boatright, who's doing something that's been done time and time again,

bringing a U.S. restaurant to South Korea. You can't go far here without spotting an American brand that's set up shop in Seoul, an already crowded

cuisine scene.

KO NA-YOUNG, CUSTOMER (through translator): There's Shake Shack and Five Guys nearby. And when they first opened, people lined up and went there a

lot. But now their popularity has definitely dropped compared to when they first opened. I think that's natural.

GOULDING: How is Chipotle going to stand out in an already diluted domestic market here in Korea?

BOATWRIGHT: We stand out pretty well in North America already. I think about our brand is more fast casual as we prove to the world that eating

high quality, great tasting food, not an elitist pursuit.

GOULDING (voice-over): But is it really affordable? Let's say you get a chicken bowl or burrito. Add in some guacamole, chips and a drink. It would

cost 21,900 South Korean won, or just over $16, which is a little more than the typical traditional Korean lunch.

Do you think that Koreans will ante up that extra money to come here and buy this?

BOATWRIGHT: I think so, and what really drives that purchase intent is the flavors that are very unique.

GOULDING: Opening day obviously wildly successful here. And it comes on the heels of a successful second quarter for Chipotle. The company posting

billions in total revenue. But the real question is, is whether or not this continued international expansion, specifically here in Asia, will drive

the revenue that the company needs whenever there's inflation, rising labor and food costs back in the United States.

BOATWRIGHT: It's a good question. I think there's inflation every year in our business, and we risk mitigate that inflation by supplier

diversification, country of origin diversification. And so we have a really balanced supply chain. And we're really building Chipotle into a global

iconic brand. Now that doesn't allow us to take our foot off the gas pedal in North America. We're still going to build 350 new locations in North

America this year, with eye toward that similar -- eyes toward that similar growth in 2027.

GOULDING (voice-over): Chipotle CEO is keeping future locations in Asia under wraps, but the company said more spots in South Korea and adding

Singapore is already in the works. For now, though, Seoul gets Asia's first bite.

Gage Goulding, CNN, Seoul.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

QUEST: As we continue, Ethiopia has produced gold for centuries through small scale artisanal mining. Now, the first largescale commercial

operation. Our "CONNECTING AFRICA" correspondent Victoria Rubadiri looks at the country's ambitions to become a leading gold producer.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VICTORIA RUBADIRI, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): High above the rolling green hills of western Ethiopia, a new industry is emerging. Deep inside

these peaks lies billions in untapped gold deposits. On the ground, thousands of construction workers and explorers are working away to launch

Ethiopia's first largescale gold mine, according to its owners, Canada's Allied Gold Corporation.

BROX WORKU, GENERAL MANAGER, KURMUK GOLD MINE: We are at Kurmuk processing plant area where we bring in all the ore from different parts of two parts

of two pieces.

RUBADIRI (voice-over): Lead geologist Mehiret Abebe is overseeing a team that's hunting for gold. Each drilled rock sample is carefully probed and

given a unique identification number. The samples are either stored in a library or pulverized and tested to see how much gold they contain.

MEHIRET ABEBE, SENIOR GEOLOGIST, KURMUK GOLD MINE: As you can see, the color is a bit cocky.

RUBADIRI: Yes.

ABEBE: A different color. And you have all the shiny minerals in it. And you have a lot of what we call quartz.

RUBADIRI: OK.

ABEBE: So if you have the quartz and those shiny minerals and this color, usually it means there's a gold.

RUBADIRI (voice-over): What also makes this mine different is that instead of exporting deposits abroad to extract the gold, a plant is being built on

site to process it.

MERED AMARE, DEPUTY GENERAL MANAGER, KURMUK GOLD MINE: On a yearly basis we'll produce 290,000 ounces, which is equivalent to nine tons of gold. So

with the current gold price, the revenue we'll get is nearly 1.2 billion USD.

[16:50:01]

RUBADIRI (voice-over): Gold is said to be a major revenue generator for the country. Last year, it overtook coffee for the first time as the largest

export earner. In the fourth and final quarter of Ethiopia's 2024 2025 fiscal year, coffee exports amounted to over $1.1 billion, while gold

exports were almost $1.3 billion.

ABEBE: I promise you, there's like 30, 40, 50 more years to come because this area has not been studied at this scale before, and we're doing that

job, and we kind of understand where to go and what to look for next.

RUBADIRI (voice-over): From exploration to production, in just a few weeks this site will come online, a symbol of Ethiopia's industrial ambitions.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

QUEST: "CONNECTING AFRICA."

It seems like logging into a computer or Web sites just downright difficult with passwords. After the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

QUEST: Password purgatory. You know it too well. We're all familiar with the cycle. So it goes like this. You go to log on to your computer and of

course you realize you've forgotten your password. So you reset. The new one has to meet requirements. Certain length, characters, uppercase, two-

factor authentication, actually, and then and then, and then. It just keeps repeating itself.

My next guest says logging in has never been more difficult, and it's going to get worse. Will Oremus is a staff writer at "The Atlantic."

Sir, and so here's the problem. Your article beautifully encapsulates the issue. But what's the solution?

WILL OREMUS, STAFF WRITER, THE ATLANTIC: Yes, that's the hard part, isn't it? And the problem is not just the sheer number of things that we have to

log in. And the fact that all of them now seem to want two-factor authentication where they send you the text message or the e-mail or the

secret code. It's the pile up of solutions to that problem.

So all your different, your browser, your phone, your computer's operating system are all offering to help out and store that stuff. But that just

makes it harder to keep track of where everything is stored. And as far as the solution, I think maybe the simplest rule you could have is just to

pick one thing and try to stick to it as hard as that may be.

[16:55:00]

QUEST: Right. Now, I have resigned myself to the fact that I'm going to be hacked in just about -- over the last 10 years, every part of my life in

some shape or form has been hacked, and I sort of work on the basis that the worst effects will be staved off with whatever. But it's this

inconvenience of suddenly not having the phone that has the two-factor authentication, and you can't remember that e-mail address that you set up

thinking you were going to be so clever when you set it up.

And I think, by the way, this is my opinion, only my opinion. And Google has to be one of the worst. I mean, I don't know how many Google accounts

I've got that I've lost names for, but I don't know what to do.

OREMUS: Yes. You're not alone. That's what I would say to anybody who's in this situation. When I wrote this story, I got so much feedback from people

saying, oh, my god, yes, this is me. I'm in password hell. And I thought I was the only one. You know, you think that you're an idiot because you

can't keep track of all this stuff. But almost no one can. It's become unmanageable.

QUEST: I think. Isn't really the answer not just to have a complicated system, whether it's optional or whatever, but to have a plan? I mean, from

the company's point of view, to have a plan A, B, C, D, if -- so there's always a way that somebody can eventually get to where they need to go. My

experience has been you just hit brick walls.

OREMUS: Yes. So all of this complexity started because if you -- if people were around and remember logging into things about 15 years ago, you know,

you would just write down your passwords on a sheet of paper or maybe a little notes file on your computer and -- or you would have something that

you remembered, you know, something very memorable. And you could just put that in.

But what happened was hackers, professional hackers started finding out that they could get into systems, get these massive troves of credentials.

And then because people use the same password for one thing after another, they would steal your, say, your LinkedIn password, and then they would go

try every other service with those same credentials and break into all your stuff instead of just one thing.

So sites started requiring you to have unique passwords. They would have arbitrary requirements. It must be more than 12 characters. You know, you

need three exclamation points and an asterisk. And it became impossible to remember. And so that's how we landed in this situation in the first place,

was trying to cut down on the hacking. But the problem is that all the solutions to the hacking problem have made it so that just getting into the

things you need to get by on a daily basis is become a huge time suck.

QUEST: All right. Well, so, do you mean to say your passwords aren't A-B-C- D-E-1-2-3-4-5? Gosh. Good to see you, sir. I'm grateful. Thank you for joining us tonight.

We will take a "Profitable Moment" after the break.

QUEST MEANS BUSINESS. Good evening.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

QUEST: Tonight's "Profitable Moment."

Password purgatory. Who knows what it's all about? All I know is that when the final day of judgment comes and it's heaven or hell, I won't get into

either unless I've octet first. And then who knows where I'll end up.

And that's QUEST MEANS BUSINESS for tonight. I'm Richard Quest, whatever you're up to in the hours ahead, I hope it's profitable. You and I will be

here together tomorrow. I hope.

END