市场声音：WBD-派拉蒙、特朗普的委内瑞拉封锁、美联储的沃勒

Seeking Alpha's roundup of statements, announcements, and remarks that could impact markets, sectors, or individual stocks.

• Warner Bros. Discovery's (WBD) board is urging shareholders to reject a hostile takeover bid by Paramount Skydance (PSKY), stating that it has unanimously determined the offer to be inferior to one it has already agreed to with Netflix (NFLX). 

"Following a careful evaluation of Paramount's recently launched tender offer, the Board concluded that the offer's value is inadequate, with significant risks and costs imposed on our shareholders," said WBD Chairman Samuel Di Piazza Jr., in a statement. 

"This offer once again fails to address key concerns that we have consistently communicated to Paramount throughout our extensive engagement and review of their six previous proposals. We are confident that our merger with Netflix represents superior, more certain value for our shareholders, and we look forward to delivering on the compelling benefits of our combination," Piazza added.

Paramount most recently offered to buy all of WBD for $30 a share in cash. Netflix (NFLIX) has offered $23.25 in cash, plus $4.50 in Netflix common stock and shares in a planned spinout of WBD's cable network assets.

Comcast (CMCSA) had also expressed interest in acquiring WBD, but has since moved to the sidelines. 

• Meanwhile, Paramount Skydance (PSKY) CEO David Ellison reaffirmed his company's commitment to its WBD bid.

"Our proposal clearly offers WBD shareholders superior value and certainty, a clear path to close, and does not leave them with a heavily indebted, sub-scale linear business," said Ellison in a statement Wednesday.

"I have been encouraged by the feedback we have received from WBD shareholders who clearly understand the benefits of our offer. We will continue to move forward to deliver this transaction, which is in the best interest of WBD shareholders, consumers, and the creative industries," Ellison added.

• President Trump announced a blockade of all sanctioned oil tankers leaving and entering Venezuela, along with designating the country's current administration a "foreign terrorist organization".

"Venezuela is completely surrounded by the largest Armada ever assembled in the History of South America. It will only get bigger, and the shock to them will be like nothing they have ever seen before—until such time as they return to the United States of America all of the Oil, Land, and other Assets that they previously stole from us," Trump said in a long post on Truth Social.

• Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller, who is in the running to succeed Jerome Powell as Federal Reserve chair, said he will emphasize the importance of the central bank's independence when he interviews with Trump for the position on Wednesday. 

“Absolutely,” Waller said when asked about the matter by CNBC on Wednesday at the Yale CEO Summit.

“I spent 20 years of my life working on central bank independence and why it was important,” Waller added. “I have a long paper trail on this.”