Business & Politics News and Discussions

User avatar
caltrek
Posts: 6509
Joined: Mon May 17, 2021 1:17 pm

Re: Business & Politics News and Discussions

Post by caltrek »



I will repost something I first posted in the Afghanistan thread:

So many write about the U.S. "defeat" in Afghanistan. In turn, this is treated by some as a sign of the collapse of the liberal order. Yet, what is it exactly that we are so supposed to wish for in terms of a succession to this liberal order?

A theocracy?

Totalitarian dictatorships?

Tyrannies in which dictators move toward totalitarian dictatorships?

I suppose I should have added to the list nationalism in its aggressively expansionist form?

Also, I should have included nationalism in its isolationist form?

Afghanistan should make us pause to consider these questions.
Don't mourn, organize.

-Joe Hill
User avatar
wjfox
Site Admin
Posts: 8730
Joined: Sat May 15, 2021 6:09 pm
Location: London, UK
Contact:

Re: Business & Politics News and Discussions

Post by wjfox »

weatheriscool
Posts: 12946
Joined: Sun May 16, 2021 6:16 pm

Re: Business & Politics News and Discussions

Post by weatheriscool »

How Bank of America achieved a massive comeback from the brink of collapse
Published Tue, Dec 27 20228:15 AM EST
in 2009 and net income dropped from a high of $21 billion in 2006, to just $4 billion in 2008.

“Bank of America was one reason why much of the investing public and consumers and government lost faith and trust in banking,” recalled Mike Mayo, a bank analyst at Wells Fargo. “If the government did not intervene for Bank of America and the other banks, Bank of America would have failed.”

Fast forward to today, BofA is thriving despite concerns over inflation and threats of a possible recession. The bank reported net income of $31.9 billion in 2021, compared with just $4 billion in 2008.
https://www.cnbc.com/2022/12/27/how-bof ... lapse.html
User avatar
wjfox
Site Admin
Posts: 8730
Joined: Sat May 15, 2021 6:09 pm
Location: London, UK
Contact:

Re: Business & Politics News and Discussions

Post by wjfox »

UK could face ‘banking crisis worse than 2008’ if City fails to prepare for fossil fuel collapse

Thu 12 Jan 2023 06.00 GMT

The UK could suffer 500,000 job losses and be forced to spend £674bn of taxpayer cash to rescue its banks, unless the City prepares for the value of fossil fuels to collapse as a result of climate crisis regulations, research shows.

The report, published by a collective of climate activist groups known as the One to One campaign, suggests those financial repercussions could eclipse those linked to the 2008 banking crisis, which forced the government to bail out major lenders including Royal Bank of Scotland and Lloyds Banking Group, and cost the UK roughly £560bn.

It illustrates the risks that are likely to emerge if banks and insurers fail to hold enough capital to cover the potential losses they are likely to face as a result of climate regulations meant to achieve net zero emissions targets over the coming years.

Those prospective regulations will probably make it harder for carbon-intensive companies to sell their products like oil and gas to customers, so they will instead be forced to buy greener sources of energy. This will reduce the value of carbon-heavy assets including shares or loans for fossil fuel projects or their related companies, which will in turn harm the institutional investors like bank, insurers and fund managers that hold them.

Globally, the report estimates that banks would probably need a total of $4.9tn in international bailouts if fossil fuel assets collapsed in 2030, putting 13.6 million jobs at risk worldwide.

https://www.theguardian.com/business/20 ... -than-2008
weatheriscool
Posts: 12946
Joined: Sun May 16, 2021 6:16 pm

Re: Business & Politics News and Discussions

Post by weatheriscool »

Walmart raises minimum wage as retail labor market remains tight
Source: CNBC
Walmart said Tuesday that it is raising its minimum wage for store employees to $14 an hour, representing a roughly 17% jump for the workers who stock shelves and cater to customers. Starting in early March, store employees will make between $14 and $19 an hour. They currently earn between $12 and $18 an hour, according to Walmart spokeswoman Anne Hatfield.

With the move, the retailer’s U.S. average wage is expected to be more than $17.50, Walmart U.S. CEO John Furner said in an employee-wide memo on Tuesday. About 340,000 store employees will get a raise because of the move, Hatfield said. That amounts to a pay increase for roughly 21% of Walmart’s 1.6 million employees.

The retail giant, which is the country’s largest private employer, is hiking pay at an interesting moment. Some economists are calling for a recession. Prominent tech companies, media organizations and banks, including Google, Amazon and Goldman Sachs, have laid off thousands of employees and set off alarm bells. And weaker sales trends have prompted retailers, including Macy’s and Lululemon, to recently warn investors about a tougher year ahead.

But so far, retailers have largely avoided job cuts. Instead, they are still grappling with a tight labor market. Retail, compared with other industries, tends to have higher churn than other industries — which allows employers to manage their headcount by slowing the backfilling of jobs said Gregory Daco, chief economist for EY Parthenon, the global strategy consulting arm of Ernst & Young.
Read more: https://www.cnbc.com/2023/01/24/walmart ... tight.html
weatheriscool
Posts: 12946
Joined: Sun May 16, 2021 6:16 pm

Re: Business & Politics News and Discussions

Post by weatheriscool »

South Dakota Gov. Noem threatens charges for abortion pills
Source: Associated Press
South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, along with the state’s Republican attorney general, said Tuesday the state will prosecute pharmacists who dispense abortion-inducing pills following a recent Food and Drug Administration rule change that broadens access to the pills.

The Republican governor and South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley released a letter to South Dakota pharmacists saying they are “subject to felony prosecution” if they procure or dispense abortion-inducing drugs. The state bans all abortions except to save the life of the pregnant person.

“South Dakota will continue to enforce all laws including those that respect and protect the lives of the unborn,” Noem and Jackley said in the letter.

The FDA earlier this month formally updated labeling for abortion pills to allow many more retail pharmacies to dispense them, so long as they complete a certification process.
Read more: https://apnews.com/article/abortion-hea ... cfe64e84d3
weatheriscool
Posts: 12946
Joined: Sun May 16, 2021 6:16 pm

Re: Business & Politics News and Discussions

Post by weatheriscool »

Exxon smashes Western oil majors' earnings record with $56 billion profit for 2022
Source: Reuters
Exxon Mobil Corp posted a $56 billion profit for 2022, the company said on Tuesday, taking home about $6.3 million per hour last year, and setting not only a company record but a historic high for the Western oil industry.

Oil majors are expected to break their own annual records on high prices and soaring demand, pushing their combined take to near $200 billion. The scale has renewed criticism of the oil industry and sparked calls for more countries to levy windfall profit taxes on the companies.

Exxon’s results far exceeded the then-record $45.2 billion net profit it reported in 2008, when oil hit $142 per barrel, 30% above last year’s average price. Deep cost cuts during the pandemic helped supercharge last year’s earnings.

“Overall earnings and cashflow were up pretty significantly year on year,” Exxon Chief Financial Officer Kathryn Mikells told Reuters. “So that came really from a combination of strong markets, strong throughput, strong production, and really good cost control.”
Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/exxon-m ... AKBN2UA0ZJ
weatheriscool
Posts: 12946
Joined: Sun May 16, 2021 6:16 pm

Re: Business & Politics News and Discussions

Post by weatheriscool »

Apple sales drop 5% in largest quarterly revenue decline since 2016
Published Thu, Feb 2 2023 12:10 PM EST
https://www.cnbc.com/amp/2023/02/02/app ... -2023.html
Apple missed expectations for revenue, profit, and sales for many of its lines of business on Thursday, sending the stock lower in extended trading. Apple's overall sales for the holiday quarter were about 5% lower than last year's, the first year-over-year sales decline since 2019.

Apple CEO Tim Cook said three factors hurt the results: a strong dollar, production issues in China affecting the iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 14 Pro Max, and the overall macroeconomic environment.

"On the third factor, I would say was just the challenging macroeconomic environment, and you're hearing that from, I would think, everybody," Cook told CNBC's Steve Kovach.
weatheriscool
Posts: 12946
Joined: Sun May 16, 2021 6:16 pm

Re: Business & Politics News and Discussions

Post by weatheriscool »

Disney to cut 7,000 jobs as it slashes costs and reorganizes
Source: CNBC
Disney said Wednesday it is planning to reorganize into three segments. The media and entertainment giant said it would now be made up of three divisions:

Disney Entertainment, which includes most of its streaming and media operations
An ESPN division that includes the TV network and streaming service
A Parks, Experiences and Products unit



The move marks the most significant action Bob Iger has taken since returning to the company as CEO in November. Disney announced the changes minutes after it posted its most recent quarterly earnings. On Wednesday during its quarterly earnings call with investors, Disney also announced it would be cutting $5.5 billion costs, which will be made up of $3 billion from content, excluding sports, and the remaining $2.5 billion from non-content cuts.

Disney also said it would be eliminating 7,000 jobs from its workforce. That would be about 3% of the roughly 220,0000 people it employed as of Oct. 1, according to an SEC filing, with roughly 166,000 in the U.S. and about 54,000 internationally.


This is breaking news. Check back for updates.
Read more: https://www.cnbc.com/2023/02/08/disney- ... ation.html
User avatar
wjfox
Site Admin
Posts: 8730
Joined: Sat May 15, 2021 6:09 pm
Location: London, UK
Contact:

Re: Business & Politics News and Discussions

Post by wjfox »

Post Reply