As restaurant chains pull back in California amid rising labor costs and the state’s $20 fast-food minimum wage, Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers CEO Chris Dull is betting bigger on the Golden State, arguing it gets a “bad rap” as a place to do business.

“I feel like California gets a bad rap. It’s hard to find markets that offer you the same level of densities that you see in and around the state of California,” Dull told Fox News Digital.

“It’s a state that has historically been a good state for restaurant brands. Volume is there to be had and lots of guests for you to speak to and turn into raving fans,” he added.

BILL MAHER, WOODY HARRELSON SOUND OFF ON CALIFORNIA BUSINESS CLIMATE, SAY STATE DESERVES TO BE ‘S— ON’

The CEO’s comments come as one of Carl’s Jr.’s largest franchisees plans to close 10 locations and sell 49 others — affecting 59 restaurants total — after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection earlier this year.

Separately, longtime California restaurateur Mike Georgopoulos recently warned that the Golden State’s business dream has become a math problem that no longer adds up, previously telling Fox News Digital that businesses are “working for peanuts.”

“They own a business, they’re in a lease, they have no other place to go. So they’re just in a vicious cycle, and there’s just nothing coming out on the other end in terms of profit,” Georgopoulos said. “It’s sticker shock, it really is.”

Dull, who became CEO in 2021, dismissed concerns about California’s business climate, defending the state and arguing that the challenges facing competitors can create opportunities for expanding brands like Freddy’s.

FUDDRUCKERS BECAME THE ‘BLOCKBUSTER’ OF BURGERS, AND NOW IT’S NEARLY GONE

“Sometimes when you see units that are moving out of markets or shuttering doors, that can actually be a great opportunity for folks like us who are growing. We can go in,” Dull told Fox News Digital.

The Kansas-based burger chain, which operates more than 500 restaurants nationwide, is aggressively recruiting new franchisees and plans to open 60 new locations this year, with a particular emphasis on Northern California.

“California is such a big state. You can focus on regions and still experience pretty tremendous growth, whereas in some of the smaller states, you need the whole state to really make it pan out for you,” Dull said.

Freddy’s already operates a handful of California locations, but the expansion is intended to build “density,” the CEO said, as it looks to win over customers in a state dominated by In-N-Out Burger.

IN-N-OUT PRESIDENT SAYS ‘HEART IS BROKEN’ AFTER EMPLOYEE, CUSTOMERS KILLED IN IDAHO SHOOTING

“We have been making our way further and further west and have restaurants operating in California today. And California offers densities that are hard to find in other parts of the country,” he told Fox News Digital.

Dull explained how Freddy’s adjusts its pricing based on local labor, real estate and operating costs as it expands into new markets.

“Markets where you experience higher real estate costs and higher labor costs, you will also have a higher ticket for your products. It all rolls up,” said the CEO.

Freddy’s is expanding in California, which has a $20 fast-food minimum wage, while also opening locations in Florida, where the statewide minimum wage is $14.

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“If a business is being charged more in rent and more in labor, they simply have to charge more for their product, or they will not be profitable,” Dull said.

“It’s about pricing your product at a value where your operator can still generate a profit given the cost structure that they’re looking at in any given market, which means that you will have variation in your pricing across the United States,” he added.

Overall, the German firm plans to invest approximately €17bn (£14.5bn; $19.6bn) in the US over the next six years “to grow its generation capacity”.

Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said in a statement posted on X that Americans deserve an energy system built on common sense and not one dependent on “costly subsidies”.

“We welcome RWE’s agreement and voluntary investment in projects that strengthen our nation’s energy security,” he added.

The deal is the latest the Trump administration has reached this year as Trump, a vocal supporter of the fossil fuel industry, continues his push to halt offshore wind projects.

Trump has sought to boost government support for fossil fuels after campaigning for the presidency under the slogan “drill, baby, drill”.

Days after his return to office, he said “we’re not going to do the wind thing” and called them “big, ugly windmills” that were dangerous to wildlife.

In March 2026, the DoI reached a deal with TotalEnergies putting an end to the French company’s offshore wind projects in the US.

Instead, the firm agreed to reroute investment to build a LNG plant in Texas and to develop “upstream conventional oil” in the Gulf of Mexico.

The administration signed a similar $129bn (£96bn) agreement with Charlotte-based Duke Energy last month in exchange for the termination of the company’s offshore wind lease in the Carolina Long Bay area.

The Indian stock market opened in the red on Friday as oil prices inched higher amid concerns over the potential closure of the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has suggested banning vessels deemed hostile from the strait and imposing heavy fines on those that violate the proposed rules.

Sensex fell over 200 points to slip below the 78,700 level, while Nifty50 traded near 24,600. Broader markets also slipped into the red, with Nifty Midcap 100 and Nifty Smallcap 100 indices being down with marginal losses.

Bajaj Finance shares dropped around 5% to lead losses on the Sensex, while Bajaj Finserv shares fell over 3% to follow. ICICI Bank shares dropped nearly 2% while Trent shares fell more than 1%. Bharti Airtel, Eternal and Maruti Suzuki shares meanwhile fell around 1% each. Bucking the trend, IT stocks TCS and Tech Mahindra gained 1-2%.

Nearly all sectoral indices opened in the red, with Nifty Financial Services falling nearly 1%. The overall market breadth was still slightly positive, with NSE seeing 1,297 advances against 1,042 declines, while 154 stocks remained unchanged.

Concerns around Strait of Hormuz reopening plans mount

Iran reviewed ⁠a bill ⁠to ban US and Israeli vessels from the Strait of Hormuz, where nearly a fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas is transmitted before the war began at the end of February. As a result, oil prices inched higher. Brent crude futures were trading above $83 per barrel, while WTI Crude futures were up near $78 per barrel.
Iran is seeking fees of ‌ between 5% and 7% of the price of cargoes from ships using the strait, according to the senior Iranian official cited by Reuters. Oman is discussing fees of around 3%, while US wants no fees at all. These developments are further clouding hopes for a peace agreement between the parties, spooking investors.
What lies ahead for Dalal Street?
The market is consolidating and slowly inching up, said VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments, adding that this trend is likely to continue in the near-term, preparing for an eventual breakout on the upside.

There are some key takeaways from the Q1 results that investors should keep in mind, according to the analyst. One, most companies in sectors like financials, automobiles, pharmaceuticals, and telecom have delivered double-digit revenue and profit growth rates. This has imparted resilience to their stock prices. Two, IT continued to face headwinds from sluggish growth and concerns surrounding the AI impact on the sector. Three, in commodities like metals and oil, it has been a mixed bag.

“Going forward, financials, automobiles, telecom and capital goods are likely to maintain the growth momentum. The broader market has delivered superior growth, but the elevated valuations will constrain their upward momentum,” Vijayakumar further said.

Technical view on Nifty
Despite a supportive bullish continuation pattern, yesterday’s lacklustre trades have put the prospects of Nifty’s anticipated breakout move under doubt, said Anand James, Chief Market Strategist at Geojit Investments. “We will wait for a breach of 24,775 to play directional upsides, while brief spikes are expected to be challenged near 24,650-24,690-24,730,” he added.

Meanwhile, Nifty’s inability to clear these hurdles, or to float above 24,570, could expose 24,400, according to the analyst.

(With inputs from agencies)
(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)

NEW YORK — The Dow Jones Industrial Average traded at a fresh record high Thursday morning, changing hands at 54,488.23, up roughly 0.20%, as the blue-chip index extended a remarkable win streak even as a busy stretch of corporate earnings produced sharply divergent reactions across individual stocks and sectors.

Thursday’s gain built on Wednesday’s session, when the Dow closed at a record high for a fifth straight positive session, even as the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite both finished lower, weighed down by weakness in technology shares following the prior day’s rally to record levels. Kyle Rodda, senior financial market analyst at Capital.com, described Wednesday’s pullback in tech shares as reflecting a lack of fresh catalysts for the market to work with, leading some investors to lock in profits following the sharp gains of recent sessions.

A Market Driven by Iran Diplomacy and Corporate Earnings

Much of this week’s overall market momentum has continued to track developments in ongoing talks aimed at reopening the Strait of Hormuz to commercial shipping. Rodda noted that a breakthrough in U.S.-Iran negotiations could provide the next catalyst for markets, with reports suggesting an agreement may be close at hand. That optimism has helped support broader risk appetite even as individual sectors have shown notable divergence in their reaction to the latest round of corporate earnings.

Thursday’s trading session arrived amid a particularly dense stretch of earnings reports, prospects for an imminent Hormuz deal, and freshly released labor market data, all of which investors were working to digest in early trading. Futures on the Dow rose 0.2% ahead of the opening bell, extending the index’s record-setting run, while S&P 500 futures ticked up a more modest 0.1% and Nasdaq-100 futures slipped 0.6%, reflecting continued softness concentrated specifically in technology and semiconductor shares.

Chip and Memory Stocks Under Pressure

The divergence between the Dow’s continued strength and weakness elsewhere in the market was driven largely by a sharp selloff in memory chip and storage companies following earnings releases from SanDisk and Western Digital late Wednesday. Both companies posted quarterly results that beat expectations but issued forward guidance that fell short of Wall Street’s elevated forecasts, triggering steep declines in their shares. SanDisk shares were down more than 13% in early Thursday trading, while AMD, which had also reported earnings this week, fell more than 2%. A broader gauge of chipmaker stocks fell 1.4% in overnight trading, even as Nvidia shares managed to climb against that broader sector weakness.

Investors have remained intensely focused on questions surrounding artificial intelligence capital spending and monetization throughout this earnings season, a dynamic that analysts say has contributed to unusually punishing stock reactions whenever a high-profile AI-linked company’s results or guidance fall even modestly short of expectations, regardless of how strong the underlying quarterly performance may otherwise be.

SpaceX Faces a Major Test

Among the companies facing particular scrutiny Thursday was SpaceX, whose stock tumbled 14% Wednesday despite reporting strong second-quarter earnings, as roughly $101 billion worth of shares became eligible for trading following the expiration of a post-IPO lockup period. SpaceX shares remained near their all-time lows heading into Thursday’s session, as investors weighed the potential for a wave of new selling pressure tied to the lockup expiration against the company’s underlying revenue growth and continued heavy investment in artificial intelligence infrastructure.

A Warning From Wall Street’s Biggest Bank

Amid the market’s continued run to record territory, JPMorgan Chief Executive Jamie Dimon offered a note of caution this week, warning that leverage across financial markets remains historically elevated. In an interview with CNBC, Dimon said margin debt, the amount investors borrow against their portfolios to purchase additional securities, is currently the highest it has ever been, and cautioned that such hidden borrowing could amplify the impact of any future market disruption. Dimon’s comments add to a broader set of concerns some strategists have raised about the sustainability of markets’ rapid climb to record levels in recent weeks, even as the underlying macro backdrop, including cooling oil prices and continued corporate earnings strength, has remained broadly supportive.

A Strong Start to the Week

Thursday’s record extends a pattern that has held for much of the past week. The Dow closed at an all-time high Monday, settling at 53,178.41 after advancing 693.38 points, or 1.32%, in a session driven by broad market strength following President Donald Trump’s decision to call off planned strikes against Iran, a move that sent oil prices sharply lower. That rally continued into Tuesday, when the Dow surged a further 907.47 points, or 1.71%, to close at 54,085.88, alongside similarly strong gains for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite, with the latter boosted in part by a 29% rally in Palantir Technologies shares. Monday’s session also saw Amazon briefly surpass a $3 trillion market capitalization for the first time, before the stock pulled back roughly 2% Tuesday after founder Jeff Bezos filed to sell approximately $4 billion worth of shares.

Global Markets React to the Same Currents

The themes driving U.S. markets this week have echoed across global exchanges as well. Asia-Pacific markets broadly rose Wednesday, with South Korea’s KOSPI climbing 3.8% to close at 6,598.26 amid strong regional risk appetite, though sentiment shifted considerably by Thursday, when memory chip weakness tied to the SanDisk and Western Digital guidance miss triggered a sharp reversal across South Korean and Japanese technology shares specifically.

With Thursday’s session continuing to balance the Dow’s steady climb to new records against pronounced weakness in technology and chip-related names, investors are likely to remain focused on two parallel storylines in the days ahead: further developments in the effort to finalize a deal reopening the Strait of Hormuz, and the continued flow of corporate earnings reports, which have produced some of the most divergent stock reactions of the year so far, rewarding companies that clear elevated expectations while punishing even modest guidance shortfalls among high-profile AI and technology names.

The new Welsh Government could take the lead on this by establishing a national young founder’s fellowship to identify exceptional talent in schools, colleges, universities and local communities

The story of James Dacombe should be compulsory reading for everyone involved in economic development in Wales.

James left sixth form after only a few days, taught himself to code and established his first technology business while still a teenager. Now aged just 25, he is the founder of Olix, a British company developing specialist computer chips to make artificial intelligence faster, cheaper and more energy efficient.

Founded in 2024, the company has reportedly raised more than £200m at a valuation of approximately £2.5bn. It already employs more than 140 people and has attracted backing from major global technology companies and investors. It is a remarkable story, but for anyone who cares about the future of the Welsh economy, it should raise one obvious question – why not Wales?

South Wales has one of Europe’s most significant concentrations of semiconductor expertise, and the cluster around Cardiff and Newport brings together advanced manufacturing, specialist skills, world-class research, and companies developing technologies for artificial intelligence, communications, transport, energy and medical devices.

The problem is not that Wales lacks the science, engineering capability or industrial foundations from which businesses such as Olix could emerge, but that we have failed to create a system capable of identifying, nurturing and backing young people with the ambition to build them.

For many years, entrepreneurship support in Wales has focused on encouraging self-employment and conventional small businesses. There is nothing wrong with that, and such firms make an important contribution to local economies but helping someone become self-employed is not the same as creating a genuinely entrepreneurial economy.

A support system centred on business plans, workshops and small grants is not necessarily equipped to support a teenager who wants to design the next generation of artificial intelligence chips. Too much of our approach to young entrepreneurship remains rooted in employability rather than innovation, and starting a business is often treated as another route into work rather than as a means of creating new industries, commercialising knowledge, and building internationally competitive companies.

An ambitious technology founder needs something different, including specialist knowledge, access to laboratories and equipment, experienced mentors, and early customers and investors who understand that breakthrough technology is expensive, uncertain and time-consuming. Yet much of the support available remains generic, fragmented and cautious, and there is rarely a clear route for a founder who needs to move rapidly from an idea to a prototype and then to a business. We measure how many people attend events or complete programmes but are less effective at measuring whether the businesses created survive, scale, export, attract investment or generate highly productive employment. In other words, we have built a system that can process young entrepreneurs without necessarily developing them.

The real test is simple – what would happen if a 16-year-old from Newport, Swansea, Wrexham or the Valleys approached the existing support system to say they wanted to build a billion-pound artificial intelligence or semiconductor company?

Would they be taken seriously? Would they be connected with Wales’s leading engineers, researchers and technology entrepreneurs, given access to facilities and introduced to investors who understood the opportunity? Or would they be directed towards a generic business-planning course and told to return when they had more qualifications, experience or trading history?

That is the uncomfortable question we need to answer, as exceptional entrepreneurial talent rarely arrives in a conventional form. It may emerge from a university laboratory, but it may equally come from an apprentice, a school-leaver, a self-taught programmer, or someone who has never fitted comfortably within formal education.

A genuinely entrepreneurial economy must recognise potential even when it does not come with the right qualifications or networks. This matters in Wales, where many talented young people grow up without connections to business, technology or investment. They may have the ability and imagination, but not the contacts or financial security needed to turn an idea into a company.

The education system also has a role to play, as entrepreneurship is still too often presented through occasional competitions rather than sustained exposure to how ambitious companies are created. Young people should learn about coding, product development, intellectual property, finance and investment, meet founders, and understand that entrepreneurship can be a serious career. Indeed, the fact that Cardiff University alone has 32,000 students but produced only 55 student startups in 2024-25 speaks volumes about the lost potential within our university system.

The new Welsh Government could take the lead on this by establishing a national young founder’s fellowship to identify exceptional talent in schools, colleges, universities and local communities. Those selected should receive a living allowance, intensive mentoring, access to facilities, help in assembling a team and introductions to customers and investors with selection should be based on potential rather than qualifications or connections.

More importantly, those young founders should be able to enter the Welsh support system through one door and be connected rapidly to the people, knowledge and facilities needed to develop an idea. Instead, too many are left to navigate a maze of organisations and programmes, none of which takes responsibility for the founder’s complete journey.

The success of Olix is not simply the story of one unusually talented young person but demonstrates what can happen when ambition is met by technical expertise, experienced supporters and investors prepared to take a risk. As we all know, Wales does not lack intelligent, creative or determined young people and nor do we lack technologies with the potential to create the industries of the future. What we lack is a coherent system designed to bring the two together.

However, for too long, our business support system has failed to encourage exceptional young people to think globally, take risks and build companies capable of transforming industries. Unless that changes, Wales will continue to possess the talent, technology and ideas from which the businesses of the future could emerge, while watching those businesses being created somewhere else.

Shares of Kalyan Jewellers India rallied as much as 5% to their day’s high of Rs 629 on the BSE on Friday after Jefferies initiated coverage on the stock with a Buy call and a target price of Rs 830, forecasting an upside of 39% from current levels. With today’s surge, the stock is up over 60% in a month.

The foreign brokerage said the company has built a differentiated growth engine by combining neighbourhood relevance with the scale of an organised retailer, a strategy that should continue to drive market share gains in the coming years.

It also highlighted Kalyan’s franchisee-led expansion model, which supports capital-efficient growth, particularly beyond South India. While the company has an international presence, Jefferies said India remains its core market. The brokerage also noted that Kalyan has a net cash balance sheet, backed by rising free cash flow and strong return ratios.

“Weddings contribute 60% of jewellery demand in India, and Kalyan is well-aligned to tap this opportunity. The company has a dedicated Muhurat brand and also participates in an integrated wedding ecosystem through initiatives that support customer targeting, acquisition, & retention,” However, its presence extends beyond, with a portfolio of product brands catering to different needs & occasions,” the brokerage said in a note. “The company has also recently unveiled a new regional brand, with plans to expand into more identified states to strengthen local connect and compete more effectively with regional players,” it added.

Over FY26-29, Jefferies forecasts Kalyan to deliver 21-23% CAGR in revenue & earnings, driven by continued expansion in non-South alongside steady growth in the South. International ops, led by the Middle East, should remain stable, with LT upside potential from newer markets, and brands such as Candere & regional retail brands.

Also read: Stocks to buy in 2026 for long term: DLF, BSE among 5 stocks that could give 10-40% return

Kalyan Jewellers stock on charts

Ruchit Jain, Vice President of Technical Research at Motilal Oswal, said the stock has recently seen an uptick supported by good volumes. The pullback move towards the 20 DEMA has witnessed buying interest and thus the near-term trend remains positive. The immediate support is placed around Rs 560 which remains a crucial level for the short term. On the higher side, a move above Rs 650 should lead to a momentum towards Rs 700-720.Virat Jagad, Technical Research Analyst at Bonanza, recommended traders buy around Rs 615-620 with a stop loss at Rs 560 and a target of over Rs 700. The stock has bounced from its short-term EMA support and resumed its uptrend while sustaining above all major EMAs. RSI remains above 65, indicating strong momentum, and improving volumes support the ongoing bullish price action, suggesting further upside potential.

Kalyan Jewellers FY27 outlook

Looking ahead, the company said it is targeting mid to high single-digit same-store sales growth. It also expects its capital-efficient franchise-led expansion strategy to further improve return on capital employed from the current level of around 30.3%, based on the last 12 months’ performance.

Kalyan Jewellers said it will continue to focus on a capital-efficient franchise-led expansion strategy to further improve return on capital employed from the current level of around 30.3%, based on the last 12 months’ performance.

Read more: Kalyan Jewellers among 5 F&O stocks with a sharp rise in futures open interest

On the expansion front, Kalyan plans to increase the share of revenue from non-South Indian markets, with most new showroom additions planned outside the southern region. The company said future store openings will largely follow its asset-light franchise model.

It also plans to accelerate the rollout of Candere showrooms, which focus on lightweight lifestyle jewellery, and launch new regional jewellery brands offering localized designs, with the first such brand expected to debut in FY27.

The jewellery retailer reported a strong set of June quarter earnings, with consolidated net profit rising 32% year-on-year to Rs 348.7 crore on the back of robust sales. The company’s revenue from operations rose 45.7% year-on-year to Rs 10,588.9 crore from Rs 7,268.5 crore, according to the unaudited financial results approved by the board on August 4.

Operating performance remained healthy, with EBITDA, or earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation, increasing 24.5% to Rs 632.5 crore from Rs 508 crore in the year-ago quarter.

(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)