text
stringlengths 237
126k
| date_download
stringdate 2022-01-01 00:32:20
2023-01-01 00:02:37
⌀ | source_domain
stringclasses 60
values | title
stringlengths 4
31.5k
⌀ | url
stringlengths 24
617
⌀ | id
stringlengths 24
617
⌀ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Republican Rep. Peter Meijer of Michigan outside the Capitol on November 4, 2021.
Rep. Peter Meijer was defeated by primary challenger John Gibbs after voting to impeach Trump after Jan 6.
Despite chiding Democrats for aiding his "extreme" opponent, Meijer introduced him at an event on Wednesday.
He told Gibbs he wanted to "send my congratulations and wish you the best of luck and all that is to come."
After losing this week to a primary challenger endorsed by former President Donald Trump, Republican Rep. Peter Meijer congratulated his opponent on his victory.
"This was a hard-fought race," said Meijer at a unity reception held by the Kent County GOP in Grand Rapids, Michigan on Wednesday. "You know, it was a long race but a race that john ran very well."
He then introduced John Gibbs, who served in the Trump administration in the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Meijer had criticized Gibbs just last week for questioning the results of the 2020 election while highlighting his baseless claims that John Podesta, Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign chairman, took part in Satanic rituals.
"Just want to now officially introduce, send my congratulations and wish you the best of luck and all that is to come," he said, gesturing towards Gibbs. "Your Republican nominee for Michigan's 3rd congressional district, Mr. John Gibbs."
Meijer was one of 10 House Republicans that voted to impeach Trump for incitement of an insurrection following the January 6 attacks.
He was the only freshman legislator in American history to vote to impeach a president from his own party, and he remained critical of Trump following his vote.
Ahead of the primary, he joined many in criticizing House Democrats' campaign arm for spending hundreds of thousands of dollars boosting Gibbs; following redistricting, Meijer's district is a potential pick-up opportunity for Democrats, and they argued Gibbs was a weaker candidate to face Democratic nominee Hillary Scholten.
In an interview on Sirius XM on Thursday, Meijer said he has no regrets.
"I would rather lose office with my character intact than stay re-elected, having made sacrifices of the soul," he said.
More: Congress Peter Meijer John Gibbs Trump
|
2022-08-04T19:49:06Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Video: Meijer Introduces, Congratulates Trump-Backed Challenger After Losing
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/video-meijer-introduces-congratulates-trump-backed-challenger-after-losing-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/video-meijer-introduces-congratulates-trump-backed-challenger-after-losing-2022-8
|
Warner Bros. Discovery cost-cutting measures rankle CNN staffers as layoffs across divisions loom
Warner Bros. Discovery CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels.
Travel and entertainment expenses at Warner Bros. Discovery have been trimmed under new policy.
Staff can no longer treat themselves to a free lunch for meetings under three hours.
Broader cost-cutting moves are expected in the wake of the company's earnings call.
Warner Bros. Discovery's chief financial officer, Gunnar Wiedenfels, is looking for cost cuts wherever he can find them to meet a $3 billion synergy target for Wall Street after Discovery's $43 billion acquisition of WarnerMedia. But CNNers, long accustomed to the big-spending largesse of former chief Jeff Zucker under the WarnerMedia regime, are bristling at some new aspects of the Travel and Entertainment policy that came into effect last month.
One item on the chopping block: free pizza.
Staff have typically been ordering lunches to lure colleagues into the office for in-person meetings, one CNN exec told Insider, but now there's a stipulation that food can't be expensed for such get-togethers unless they last three hours or more. While employee gifts may still be purchased for bereavement, birth, and other life events, according to an email memo reviewed by Insider, they cannot exceed $100 and gift cards and vouchers are not allowed.
The T&E policy details what's allowable for varying levels of management planning team-building meals and retreats, even specifying "no cap" for the CEO. The maximum hotel rate for employee travel has been reduced to $400 per night, though the New York allocation rose to $550.
Separately, there have been some pains regarding the July switch-over from conference provider Webex to Zoom. During a recent town hall meeting at the end of July, staff received a message that they couldn't access the online meeting because it had exceeded 500 people. Some staffers had to huddle in groups around cell phones and laptops to hear the executive speak, the CNN exec said.
CEO Chris Licht, now just over three months into his new position, is slated to hold another question-and-answer session for staff next week.
Much bigger cost-cutting measures are expected to be detailed on Thursday's Warner Bros. Discovery earnings call. The company in June began offering voluntary buyouts in its US sales division, with a goal of eventually cutting 30% of the company's 3,000-person global sales force, the Information reported.
A separate person familiar with speculation inside Turner — which encompasses CNN, TNT, and TBS as well as Turner Sports — suggested some staffers fear between 600 to 800 personnel could be cut on the Turner sales teams. Another WBD insider pegged the number at far fewer.
A fourth source close to conversations told Insider that the rollout details of the soon-to-be-combined HBO Max and Discovery+ streaming services would be discussed on the earnings call.
Discovery+ said Thursday it would launch a CNN Originals hub, starting August 19, that will feature some CNN films and series such as Anthony Bourdain's "Parts Unknown."
More: Expenses Streaming Discovery CNN
|
2022-08-04T19:49:13Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Warner Bros. Discovery Cost-Cutting Measures Rankle CNN Staffers
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/warner-bros-discovery-cost-cutting-measures-rankle-cnn-staffers-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/warner-bros-discovery-cost-cutting-measures-rankle-cnn-staffers-2022-8
|
Is the Customized Cash Rewards Card right for you?
Bank of America Customized Cash Rewards vs other Bank of America credit cards
Bank of America Customized Cash Rewards vs other customizable cash-back credit cards
The Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card is worth considering if you're looking for a no-annual-fee cash-back credit card that lets you choose your highest rewards category. It has a generous welcome bonus offer, but if your spending doesn't match its bonus categories, you'll be better off with a different rewards credit card.
Broad 2% and 3% cash-back categories
2% and 3% cash-back categories capped at $2,500 in combined purchases each quarter
The information related to the Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card has been collected by Business Insider and has not been reviewed by the issuer.
Earn a $200 cash rewards bonus after you spend $1,000 on purchases within 90 days of account opening
Earn 3% back in a category of your choosing among gas, online shopping, dining, travel, drug stores, or home improvement/furnishings, 2% back at grocery stores and wholesale clubs and 1% back on other purchases; bonus rewards in 3% and 2% categories are capped on the first $2,500 spent each quarter, after which you’ll earn 1%
Redeem rewards for cash back, statement credits, or a transfer to eligible Bank of America or Merrill accounts
Review: Is the Bank of America Customized Cash Rewards the best credit card for you?
The no-annual-fee Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card is a decent option for folks who want more control over how they earn rewards.
Cardholders earn 3% cash back in one category of their choice (from a list of six), 2% back at grocery stores and wholesale clubs, and 1% back on all other purchases. The 3% (choice category) and 2% (grocery/wholesale club) reward rates only apply up to the first $2,500 in combined purchases per quarter (then 1% cash back).
The Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card allows cardholders to change their 3% cash back category once per calendar month, so if you plan ahead, you can customize your rate to match your highest spending category every month. For example, you can customize your rewards to earn 3% cash back on online shopping during the holidays, or on gas or travel when you take your next trip.
There's a generous welcome offer of $200 cash rewards bonus after you spend $1,000 on purchases within 90 days of account opening. In addition, the Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card offers a 0% intro APR on purchases for the first 15 months and for any balance transfers made within the first 60 days of opening your account (then a 16.24% - 26.24% variable). This is a great benefit for folks planning on paying off larger purchases over a longer period, or for those needing to consolidate credit card debt.
Although the Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card has a solid welcome bonus offer and intro APR, there are plenty of other no-annual-fee credit cards like it on the market — and some have greater reward flexibility and higher category bonuses. The U.S. Bank Cash+® Visa Signature® Card, for example, earns 5% cash back (up to $2,000 each quarter, then 1%) in two categories of your choice, as well as 2% cash back at grocery stores, gas stations, EV charging stations, and restaurants.
Another card to consider is the Citi Custom Cash℠ which earns 5% cash back on your highest eligible spending category (from a list) each billing cycle up to $500 (then 1%). Also, it offers a $200 in cash back, fulfilled as 20,000 ThankYou® Points, after you spend $750 on purchases in the first 3 months of account opening.
Further, if you don't want the hassle of customizing your rewards categories, or have roughly the same expenses each month, the BofA Cash Rewards card probably isn't the best card for you.
How to earn rewards with the Bank of America Customized Cash Rewards credit card
The Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card has major appeal for folks looking to earn cash back on multiple spending categories. The biggest advantage is the 3% cash back on a spending category of your choosing.
Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card eligible 3% cash back categories are:
Gas (default)
Home improvement/furnishings
You'll also earn 2% cash back at grocery stores and wholesale clubs, and 1% back on all other purchases.
But keep in mind that the 3% and 2% rates only apply to the first $2,500 in combined spending each quarter (then a 1% cash back rate). So if you typically spend more than that in these spending categories, you might consider a different no-annual-fee cash-back card with a higher limit.
That said, if you want your rewards to change when your expenses change, you'll have to remember to manually shift your rewards category, unless you want it to remain earning in the previously selected category.
If you're a Bank of America Preferred Rewards member, you can earn up to 75% more cash back on purchases. This means that the 3% cash back on your chosen category could increase up to 5.25%, and the 2% at grocery stores and wholesale clubs could go up to 3.5% (still capped at the first combined $2,500 spent).
How to use cash back from the Bank of America Customized Cash Rewards card
You can redeem your rewards at any time as a statement credit, a direct deposit into a Bank of America account, or as elective credit with Merill. There's a minimum redemption of $25 when you contribute to a Merill 529 account or want a check.
You are also able to set up automatic redemptions (starting at $25) to eligible Bank of America and Merrill accounts (not including 529s).
Bank of America Customized Cash Rewards card benefits and features
Other than the generous intro APR offer, the Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card doesn't have many other benefits, but this is common with no-annual-fee credit cards.
If you lose your card or see suspicious transactions on your account, you can file a claim to avoid being held liable for unauthorized purchases and transactions.
You can prevent declined purchases or returned checks by linking your Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card to your checking account. You won't be charged an overdraft fee but other fees may still apply.
You can add your Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card to your mobile device to use in stores, online, or in apps. Your actual card number won't be stored on the device or shared with most merchants.
Primary cardholders can access their FICO score for free through the Bank of America mobile app under the online account management page or on the mobile banking website.
Bank of America Customized Cash Rewards fees and costs
The Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card has a $0 annual fee. However, it charges foreign transaction fees, so it's not a good card to use overseas.
Like most other cards, this card also charges balance transfer, cash advance, and late payment fees.
Bank of America® Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card
Bank of America Bank of America® Unlimited Cash Rewards Credit Card
Annual fee $0 $0
3% cash back* in a one category you choose each calendar month***
Welcome bonus $200 cash rewards bonus after you spend $1,000 on purchases within 90 days of account opening 25,000 points if you make at least $1,000 in purchases in the first 90 days
Citi Custom Cash℠ Card U.S. Bank Cash+® Visa Signature® Card
5% cash back on up to $500 spent in your top eligible spending category**** each billing cycle (then 1%)
5% cash back in two categories of your choice, up to $2,000 in combined spending each quarter (then 1%)*****
2% cash back at grocery sites, gas stations, EV charging stations, or restaurants
$200 in cash back, fulfilled as 20,000 ThankYou® Points, after you spend $750 on purchases in the first 3 months of account opening $200 bonus after spending $1,000 in eligible purchases within the first 120 days of account opening
0% Intro APR on balance transfers and purchases for 15 months(then a 16.24% - 26.24% Variable APR)
0% intro APR on purchases and balance transfers for the first 15 billing cycles (then a 16.74% - 26.74% (Variable) APR)
Citi Custom Cash card review
US Bank Cash+ card review
****eligible 5% cash back categories on the Citi Custom Cash℠ Card are restaurants, gas stations, grocery stores, select travel, select transit, select streaming services, drugstores, home improvement stores, fitness clubs, and live entertainment
******5% cash back category choices on the U.S. Bank Cash+® Visa Signature® Card are prepaid air travel, hotel stays, and car reservations booked directly in the Rewards Travel Center online portal, fast food, home utilities, TV, internet, and streaming services, department stores, electronic stores, cell phone providers, sporting goods stores, furniture stores, movie theaters, gyms and fitness centers, ground transportation, and select clothing stores
BoA Customized Cash Rewards Card frequently asked questions (FAQ)
Is the Bank of America Customized Cash Rewards Card worth it?
If want the power to personalize your reward earning categories to match your current spending, the BofA Cash Rewards card is worth considering. It earns 3% cash back on the category of your choosing (six options to choose from), and 2% back on grocery store and wholesale club purchases up to the first $2,500 spent (then 1% cash back). You'll earn 1% cash back on all other purchases. The BofA Cash Rewards card has a fair welcome bonus and a generous intro APR offer.
However, if your monthly expenses are roughly the same or you easily spend over $2,500 quarterly in select bonus categories, then the BofA Cash Rewards card isn't for you. Plus, you should consider whether or not you'll remember to switch your earning category to best match your monthly expenses. If not, you're likely to miss out on maximizing your rewards.
What credit score do you need for the BoA Customized Cash Rewards?
Most people who are approved for the BofA Cash Rewards card have a credit score in the good or excellent range. That means a FICO score of at least 670, or a VantageScore of at least 700.
If your credit score isn't in that range yet, there are still rewards credit cards you may be eligible for. Check out our guide to the best credit cards for fair or average credit and for bad credit to see the top options.
What is the credit limit on the Customized Cash Rewards Card?
The credit limit of the BofA Cash Rewards card is usually at least $1,000 but could be a lot higher. Your credit limit is determined by credit score and history, income, debt as a percentage of income, and whether you have limits on any other credit cards.
How often does Bank of America raise your credit limit?
Bank of America can automatically raise your credit limit no more than once every six months, as long as you are paying on time. You can request an increase on the Bank of America website under the Information and Services tab or call.
PERSONAL FINANCE 5 ways to earn more cash back with credit cards, shopping apps, and more
US Bank Cash+ Visa Signature Card
|
2022-08-04T21:19:36Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Bank of America Customized Cash Rewards Credit Card Review
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/bank-of-america-customized-cash-rewards-credit-card-review
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/bank-of-america-customized-cash-rewards-credit-card-review
|
Student loan payments are set to resume in September — should you pay now or wait for loan forgiveness?
Hundreds of congressional staffers have student loans, Insider has learned.
Loan servicers have been asked to hold off on sending repayment notices to borrowers, official says.
Borrowers who can afford to pay say it's a 'big deal' to chip away at their principal loan balance.
Resumption considered 'evil' by those struggling in the current economy.
Student loan payments are slated to resume Sept. 1, and borrowers and experts are debating what's next as the two-year pause in paying down $1.6 trillion of federal debt comes to an end.
A 2021 report from the US Department of Education found that only 500,000 borrowers out of 43 million opted to continue their payments during the pause, which was prompted by the Covid pandemic.
Currently, potential legislation driven by the Biden administration could cancel between $10,000 and $50,000 of debt, or in some cases, an entire student loan. During President Biden's campaign, he promised to ease student debt, although the original plan of $10,000 of forgiveness was met with criticism as politicians, such as Sen. Elizabeth Warren, pushed for $50,000.
But it's unclear what the government's next steps will be on loan debt and time is running out for students.
A Bloomberg op-ed by Alexis Leondis recently discouraged borrowers from continuing to skip student loan payments once the pause ends, suggesting that doing so could prove "short-sighted."
"One recent study shows that student loan borrowers were more likely to have taken out a first mortgage while payments have been frozen compared with those who have no student loans," Leondis wrote. "That raises the question of how tight their budget will be when they eventually have to resume payments."
With the current interest rate at zero, student loan repayments would go directly toward the borrower's principal balance. This helps loans get paid off quicker than before the pause, but money could end up being wasted if forgiveness is on the horizon.
Executive Director of the Student Loan Servicing Alliance Scott Buchanan told USA Today that the federal government asked servicers to hold off on sending repayment notices to borrowers for now.
Buchanan said the government "didn't want to blanket millions of borrowers with communications about resumption if that is going to change."
Student loan expert Mark Kantrowitz argues that borrowers should set aside payments that would have been put toward loans in a savings account to "build a financial cushion" instead of completely skipping out on payments, according to the same USA Today report.
That money could be used to pay off debts with higher interest rates, like credit cards, Kantrowitz said.
Social media users are speaking out about whether they can handle continuing loan repayment once the pause is lifted in September.
One Tiktoker who typically posts about student loan forgiveness has advised viewers to "pay attention to communication from (their) loan servicer" in the coming weeks.
@mosdotcom soooo…do loan payments restart next month or what? 🤔 #studentloans #studentdebt #studentloanforgiveness #collegetok #financialaid #fintok #moneytok ♬ original sound - Mos.com
She suggested that a lack of communication from servicers is an indication of an extension on the pause.
But some commenters just responded with weariness over the approaching deadline.
"It'd be evil of them to start them back up in this economy. As if this generation isn't struggling enough to put gas in their car and find housing," one comment read.
Another described a different plan of attack. "I took advantage of the whole 'no interest during the pause' thing and paid mine off during the pause," they wrote.
In 2021, doctoral student Travis Smith told USA Today that he used the pause to aggressively pay off his $30,000 of student loan debt while his wife supported them on her salary.
"I just got basically sick of the principal never changing on loans," he said. "We knew how big of a deal that was to be able to knock the principal down, so I hope others recognize that too."
More: Student Loans Loan forgiveness Debt
|
2022-08-04T21:19:48Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Student Loan Borrowers Should Plan to Repay Their Debt, Experts Say
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/should-i-pay-student-loan-debt-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/should-i-pay-student-loan-debt-2022-8
|
Grocery chain Aldi is looking for one happy couple to get married at the model store at its US headquarters.
The space will be transformed into a wedding venue, and an Aldi employee will officiate.
Aldi will pay for the travel, hair and makeup, reception, cake, wedding favors, and photographer, and even throw in a year of free groceries.
People have gotten married in some weird places but never in an Aldi store before.
Now, the grocery chain is hoping to change that. The company is looking for a couple looking to get married in one of its stores, and Aldi says it'll foot the bill, according to a press release issued Wednesday.
The wedding will take place at the Aldi Insights Center, which is the company's model store at its US headquarters in Batavia, Illinois. The store will be transformed into a wedding venue, and an Aldi employee will officiate.
Aldi will cover the cost of travel accommodations, hair and makeup, a photographer, custom wedding favors, and a reception for the couple and up to 50 guests. The reception will be catered with Aldi food and beverages, including a branded, tiered wedding cake.
As the cherry on top, Aldi will give the happy couple free groceries for a year, in the form of $5,000 in Aldi gift cards.
Interested couples can apply here by submitting a picture of themselves, a short essay describe their love story and their love of Aldi, and links to their social media accounts. The deadline to apply is August 17. Applicants should note the wedding must happen on November 9.
More: Aldi Grocery Grocery chain Grocery Store
|
2022-08-04T22:50:11Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Aldi Will Pay for a Couple's Wedding If They Marry in a Store
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/aldi-will-pay-for-a-couples-wedding-marry-in-store-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/aldi-will-pay-for-a-couples-wedding-marry-in-store-2022-8
|
They/Them' premieres August 5 exclusively on the Peacock streaming service.
The horror movie sees a mysterious killer terrorize a group of LGBTQ teens at a gay conversion camp.
Ad-supported Peacock Premium costs $5/month, and ad-free Peacock Premium Plus costs $10/month.
Blumhouse's latest horror movie, "They/Them," premieres on August 5. The slasher flick will be available to stream exclusively on Peacock.
"They/Them," pronounced "they-slash-them," follows a group of LGBTQ+ teenagers being stalked by a mysterious killer at a conversion camp. Kevin Bacon stars as Owen Whistler, the camp's lead counselor. While the counselors initially seem like they're trying to be friendly, they eventually show their true colors as chaos ensues.
Check out the trailer for 'They/Them'
Blumhouse's "They/Them" is the directorial debut of "Skyfall" and "Gladiator" screenwriter John Logan. Despite being praised for its queer empowerment, early reviews for "They/Them" have been mixed. The movie holds a "50%" score on Rotten Tomatoes as of August 4.
How to watch 'They/Them'
You can watch "They/Them" on Peacock beginning August 5. The movie is a Peacock original, so you won't find it on any other subscription services.
Peacock's base plan is free to watch with ads. This option has a limited selection of movies and shows. To unlock everything the service has to offer, you need Peacock Premium for $5 a month. You can also upgrade to ad-free streaming with a Peacock Premium Plus plan for $10 a month.
Peacock Premium Plus (Monthly Plan)
Peacock is compatible with most smart TVs, Apple and Android mobile devices, video game consoles, Mac and PC browsers, Fire TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, and Roku models. Check out the list of supported devices on Peacock's website.
Can I watch 'They/Them' for free?
Though most new Peacock films are usually exclusive to the service's paid tiers, "They/Them" is expected to be available through Peacock's free ad-supported plan.
Peacock (Free Plan)
Free from Peacock
What other movies has Blumhouse released?
"They/Them" is the newest movie from Blumhouse Productions. Founded by Jason Blum, the company is best known for producing horror films with directors like Jordan Peele, James Wan, Mike Flanagan, and M. Night Shyamalan.
A few notable horror movies released by Blumhouse Productions include:
"Paranormal Activity"
"Happy Death Day"
"The Invisible Man"
David Gordon Green's "Halloween" reboot trilogy
|
2022-08-04T22:50:41Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
How to Watch 'They/Them' — Streaming August 5 on Peacock
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/guides/streaming/how-to-watch-they-them
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/guides/streaming/how-to-watch-they-them
|
HBO Max and Discovery+ will be combined into one service.
Warner Bros. Discovery announced it's aiming to launch the new streaming service in summer 2023.
It laid out how the services appeal to different demographics, and would complement eachother.
It was inevitable: HBO Max and Discovery+ are combining.
Warner Bros. Discovery announced details about the plan during its Q2 earnings call on Thursday, its first quarter as a company. The move has been widely expected since WarnerMedia and Discovery completed its blockbuster merger earlier this year.
The company plans to launch the new service first in the US next summer. It's aiming to gain 135 million global subscribers by 2025. It didn't announce any pricing details.
But Warner Bros. Discovery did detail how it views each service, and how they would complement each other.
It said that HBO Max skews male, specializes in scripted content and appointment viewing, and is the "home of fandoms."
Discovery+, meanwhile, skews female, focuses on unscripted programming and comfort viewing, and is about "genres" more than "fandoms."
Max initially struggled to convert existing HBO subscribers when it launched, but has since established itself as a streaming power player. Max added 3 million subscribers in the first quarter of the year, its final quarter under previous corporate parent AT&T — bringing the total combined Max and HBO customers to 76.8 million. Discovery had reported that Discovery+ had 24 million subscribers by the end of Q1.
But on Thursday, Warner Bros. Discovery reported that it had 92.1 million subscribers across all of its platforms (HBO, Max, and Discovery+) and didn't break down the numbers by service. By end of Q1, the services would have had more than 100 million subscribers combined.
Warner Bros. Discovery said this was because it didn't include "10 million legacy Discovery non-core subscribers and unactivated AT&T mobility subscribers from the Q1 subscriber count." Based on that, the company said it added 1.7 million global subscribers in the quarter.
Currently, Max costs $15 per month for the ad-free plan and $10 per month for the ad-supported plan. Discovery+ costs $7 for its ad-free plan and $5 for the ad-supported one.
Combining the two services would make for an even more formidable streamer, adding Discovery's expansive library of unscripted content with Max's collection of prestige TV and movies.
Speculation about Max's future swirled this week, though.
Variety reported that six exclusive movies were quietly removed from the service this week (they're still available to rent at video-on-demand platforms). And Warner Bros. Discovery canceled the release of a "Batgirl" movie that was intended for Max.
The decisions reflect how Warner Bros. Discovery's streaming strategy is much different than the WarnerMedia regime: fewer straight-to-streaming movies and more theatrical releases.
On the Thursday earnings call, CEO David Zaslav said that the company "will fully embrace theatrical" because it "creates word-of-mouth buzz as movies transition from streaming and beyond."
The company is also looking to cut costs wherever possible to appease Wall Street, and is expected to take a tax writedown on "Batgirl," which cost $90 million to make, according to Variety and The Hollywood Reporter.
But based on the timeline laid out by Warner Bros. Discovery on Thursday, it seems like Max won't be changing too drastically any time soon.
More: Warner Bros. Discovery HBO Max Discovery Plus Streaming
|
2022-08-04T22:50:47Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Chart: HBO Max 'Skews Male,' Has Fandoms Ahead of Merger
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/hbo-max-skews-male-home-fandoms-discovery-plus-genredoms-merger-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/hbo-max-skews-male-home-fandoms-discovery-plus-genredoms-merger-2022-8
|
Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona departs the Capitol on Aug. 1, 2022.
Senate Democrats are scrambling to pass Manchin's big bill but don't know if Sinema supports it.
Schumer set up a key vote for Saturday while Manchin and Sinema try to iron out their differences.
Some Senate Republicans are vowing "to fight with everything we have."
Senate Democrats are about to take one of their biggest gambles yet on President Joe Biden's domestic agenda.
Senate Majority Chuck Schumer teed up the first procedural vote sometime Saturday afternoon for the $740 billion climate, energy, and tax bill. It would set the stage Sunday for what is known as a "vote-a-rama," a session where lawmakers in both parties can offer as many amendments that they can physically endure in a single session.
Sen. Raphael Warnock of Georgia, a Democrat locked in a competitive midterm race, intends to offer an amendment that would expand private health coverage to Americans living in states that refused to expand Medicaid, Insider's Kimberly Leonard reported.
But one Senate Democrat lingers as a large question mark: Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona. The centrist Democrat hasn't publicly commented on the package that Manchin negotiated in secret with Schumer and unveiled only a week ago, catching nearly everyone in Congress by surprise.
Without Sinema's vote, Senate Democrats can't clear the package through unanimous GOP resistance in the budget reconciliation process, which only requires a simple majority vote in the upper chamber.
The package would extend assistance for people to purchase health insurance through the Affordable Care Act for three years. It also includes $370 billion for clean energy programs and sets aside $300 billion to reduce the federal deficit. It also would allow Medicare to negotiate the cost of prescription drugs, a popular Democratic priority.
But Sinema isn't onboard and is reportedly pursuing two key changes to the legislation. Sinema wants to eject a measure narrowing the carried interest loophole which largely benefits rich investors and hedge fund managers. She's also seeking to add $5 billion for drought resiliency.
The backdrop is growing more hectic in the Capitol. Republicans and Democrats are still battling it out over what can be included in the "Byrd Bath," part of reconciliation in which a top Senate official determines which provisions in the bill satisfy strict budgetary rules and can be passed through the process.
"I believe we've got work to do on the procedural front," Senate Finance Chair Ron Wyden of Oregon told Insider. "But I think it's going well and we're starting to see the end in sight."
Sinema has also appeared to keep many of her colleagues in the dark. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who authored the 15% corporate minimum tax with Sinema last fall, said they haven't spoken with each other.
After sinking Biden's economic twice in the span of six months, Manchin has flipped to become the lead salesperson for the legislation. He and Sinema were seen having a 15 minute conversation on the Senate floor on Thursday afternoon. The West Virginia Democrat appeared lively at times, and was seated next to Sinema on the GOP side of the chamber. When Manchin departed the Capitol for the day, he declined to elaborate on his talk to reporters.
Republicans are lambasting the legislation as a major tax hike on Americans.
Sen. Kevin Cramer of North Dakota says he believes Republicans should drag out the proceedings by making Senate clerks read aloud all 725 pages of the bill on the floor. Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin last employed the tactic in March 2021, delaying passage of Biden's $1.9 trillion stimulus law by 11 hours.
"We have to fight with everything we have," Sen. Kevin Cramer of North Dakota said in an interview. "I'll make the haul longer if that's what it takes. The notion that we're going to increase taxes and increase spending during a recession and inflationary time is so absurd."
More: Joe Manchin Kyrsten Sinema Congress Republicans
|
2022-08-04T22:50:53Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Sinema Lingers As Huge Question Mark As Manchin Bill Vote Nears
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/sinema-biden-agenda-support-congress-manchin-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/sinema-biden-agenda-support-congress-manchin-2022-8
|
Screenshots from Diplo's viral TikTok.
Diplo/TikTok
Diplo recently comped the meals of 100 people at Chipotle using his Celebrity Card.
The personalized card grants unlimited Chipotle for a year, and can be renewed annually.
While it's called the Celebrity Card, Chipotle superfans and other notables are also considered for the card.
A lucky group of 100 Chipotle-goers had their orders comped last week thanks to Diplo, who used his "Chipotle Celebrity Card" to pay for their meals.
The DJ went viral on TikTok after sharing a video of himself using the exclusive card to cover their orders. "Just hung out while everyone got their free food and people were so confused," he wrote in the clip, which showed the reactions of shocked and excited customers as they discovered their food was free.
@diplo
everyone is a celebrity when im at chiptole
Chipotle's TikTok account commented on Diplo's video saying, "Celeb card holders take note."
But what is the Chipotle Celebrity Card, and who gets one?
The Chipotle Celebrity Card is gifted to a select group of celebrities, athletes, musicians, and other notables who are outspoken superfans of the brand.
The card — which is specially designed and personalized for the recipient, and can only be used by the person it's made for — allows the holder to order free food from the restaurant for one year.
"To be considered for a Celebrity Card, you must be an authentic fan of Chipotle and organically be sharing your passion for the brand in everyday life," Candice Beck, director of social and influencers at Chipotle, told Insider.
According to Beck, the Chipotle Celebrity Card was first created for Ozzy Osbourne in 2003, after the musician and television personality regularly hyped up the chain on The Ozzy Osbourne Show.
Beck said the Chipotle Celebrity Card is typically only valid for one year in order to ensure they are "held by our most dedicated fans and those who continue to celebrate the brand." Chipotle evaluates Celebrity Cards for renewals annually, except in the case of Osbourne, who is a cardholder for life, Beck said.
Once the selections are made, Chipotle delivers the cards in a "custom Baltic birch plywood box with a Chipotle in-house design etched into the top of the box," according to Beck.
And the box isn't the only elaborate part of delivery — Beck said Celebrity Card deliveries are often "tailored specifically to the recipient." Addison Rae's Celebrity Card, for example, was delivered to her by Tony Hawk on a customized Chipotle skateboard.
While some cardholders use their card "almost daily," others use theirs with "moderate frequency," Beck said.
"Over the past twenty years, this program has become iconic to our brand," Beck said. "We receive daily inquiries from guests, athletes, agents, and others sharing their love for our food and requesting information on how to acquire one."
More: Chipotle Celebrities Tik Tok Viral
|
2022-08-04T22:51:11Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
What Is the Chipotle Celebrity Card, and How Do You Get One?
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-chipotle-celebrity-card-how-do-you-get-one-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-chipotle-celebrity-card-how-do-you-get-one-2022-8
|
Erin Snodgrass and Joseph Zeballos-Roig
Sen. Kyrsten Sinema is ready to "move forward" with Democrats' Inflation Reduction Act.
The update comes after days of silence from the Arizona moderate, who was the last holdout.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said the final version of the bill will be introduced on Saturday.
Democrats in array.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer announced Thursday evening that all 50 Democratic senators had reached an agreement over the party's reconciliation bill: the Inflation Reduction Act.
Sinema was the lone Democratic holdout on the $740 billion dollar Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 legislation that was struck in a surprise deal last week between Manchin and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer in an effort to revive parts of President Joe Biden's economic agenda.
Sinema said in a statement that Democrats had agreed to a couple of key changes to the legislation after negotiations, including removing a wealthy investors tax.
She added that she was willing to advance the legislation pending further review from a top Senate official that ensures it complies with budgetary rules. Sinema said that she was willing to
The final version of the bill will be introduced on Saturday, Schumer said.
"I am pleased to report that we have reached an agreement on the Inflation Reduction Act that I believe will receive the support of the entire Senate Democratic conference," Schumer said in a statement. "I have had many productive discussions with members of our conference over the past three days and we have addressed a number of important issues they have raised.
"The agreement preserves the major components of the Inflation Reduction Act, including reducing prescription drug costs, fighting climate change, closing tax loopholes exploited by big corporations and the wealthy, and reducing the deficit by $300 billion," he added.
More: Schumer Inflation Reduction Act Kyrsten Sinema Democrats
|
2022-08-05T01:52:44Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Democrats Reach Agreement on Inflation Reduction Act, Schumer Says
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/democrats-reach-agreement-on-inflation-reduction-act-schumer-says-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/democrats-reach-agreement-on-inflation-reduction-act-schumer-says-2022-8
|
Jenny Lee left JPMorgan's table-topping leveraged-finance desk for a gig with Brigade Capital Management. The dealmaking veteran is taking the plunge into private credit as the market shifts.
This week we're highlighting Jenny Lee, who just left her position as a managing director on JPMorgan's leveraged-finance desk to build a private-credit business for Brigade.
Lee's decision comes as cashed-up direct lenders take market share from Wall Street banks that have long-dominated the leveraged-finance space.
After almost three decades with JPMorgan, Jenny Lee vacated her role as the bank's co-head of leveraged capital markets late last month. She is joining alternative investment manager Brigade Capital Management in October to build the firm's private-credit business.
Lee's decision comes as the capital markets nurses its way through a slump in dealmaking left hamstrung by volatile stock markets and a slowdown in economic growth. Big banks are also losing share in the leveraged-capital-markets business to private-credit funds, which have shown increased willingness to finance deals that banks typically underwrite and syndicate to investors through high-yield bonds or leveraged loans.
A group of direct lenders led by Blackstone Credit, for example, will provide more than $4 billion in debt for Hellman & Friedman's and Permira's $10.2 billion takeover of software firm Zendesk announced in June. In May, a club of lenders including Blackstone, Oak Hill, Crescent Capital, and Blue Owl, provided almost $3 billion to support Carlyle's purchase of government contractor ManTech International, and that same month, a group led by Ares Management committed up to $2 billion in debt to back the sale of Nielsen to Elliot and Brookfield Asset Management.
For Lee, the move is something of a leap of faith. She's leaving a top-tier bank with an established leveraged-finance platform to not just build on Brigade's private-credit arm, but to help fundraise and invest, or participate, in direct loans. That's everything from a direct loan to committing to a club deal with a group of direct lenders.
Led by Donald Morgan, Brigade manages more than $30 billion in assets. But it's competing in a space dominated by larger firms like Owl Rock, Blackstone, and Ares, among others.
Leaving behind a gargantuan balance sheet like JPMorgan for an asset manager that's competing with some of the globe's largest investors, Lee will have her work cut out for her.
But as Insider has previously reported, Lee's peers in leveraged finance regard her as one of the most connected bankers on the Street, who is well-placed to grow a business amid a market downturn.
After years of pressure to top league tables at JPMorgan, heading to Brigade is a new challenge for Lee, and one that comes as the capital markets moves away from years of low-cost capital and record-breaking transaction volumes.
Rising interest rates have increased borrowing costs, and dealmaking is made all the more difficult amid a bout of economic uncertainty.
But the rise of private credit means there is an opportunity for Lee to not just leverage her Rolodex of clients, but to take share from established Wall Street banks.
Bloomberg first reported on Lee's departure from JPMorgan on July 27.
More: banker of the week JPMorgan Brigade Capital Management Capital Markets
|
2022-08-05T09:29:00Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Banker of the Week: Jenny Lee, Former Managing Director With JPMorgan
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/banker-of-the-week-jenny-lee-capital-markets-jpmorgan-brigade-capital-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/banker-of-the-week-jenny-lee-capital-markets-jpmorgan-brigade-capital-2022-8
|
Leaked Oracle organizational charts show the 30 people running its all-important cloud, tech teams after its big reorg
Larry Ellison.
Leaked org charts show Oracle's cloud leaders after major organizational changes at the company.
Oracle earlier this week began layoffs that could affect thousands of employees globally.
The cuts came after Oracle quietly reorganized its cloud unit to focus on new core initiatives.
An internal Oracle organizational chart seen by Insider shows the 30 people running Oracle's all-important technical and cloud sides of the business after the company quietly reorganized them in June.
Oracle earlier this week began layoffs that could affect thousands of employees globally, primarily in its marketing, advertising, and customer experience units. But the Oracle Cloud Infrastructure has been virtually unaffected by layoffs, multiple employees told Insider. OCI is the cloud taking on Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud, and it's the business where Oracle's biggest hopes for growth are pinned.
Instead, Oracle reorganized OCI to focus on what it describes as "four pillars" — infrastructure, security and developer services, core platforms, and data and emerging services, an internal email seen by Insider said. Matt Ryanczak, a top executive who managed the operations and support organization, left the company after he was moved under Jae Evans, Oracle's chief information officer, another internal email showed.
But changes at the top of this unit have been going on for months. In March, Don Johnson, Oracle's cloud and AI leader, stepped down from the platform and AI-services organization that he formed about a year prior, leaving only the Oracle Cloud Infrastructure boss Clay Magouyrk in charge of the company's cloud unit. In an internal email at the time, Johnson said he would advise on healthcare initiatives.
It wasn't the first time Johnson had stepped back from a role leading OCI. In June 2020, Johnson told employees that he was stepping down from direct leadership of the cloud unit to pursue new projects within Oracle, tapping Magouyrk to replace him. Johnson returned in December 2020 to start the new cloud and artificial-intelligence organization that he described in an email to employees as "an extension of OCI, not a division of it."
Now, the org chart shows, Johnson has about 1,200 reports, including those leading healthcare, engineering, and artificial-intelligence teams.
Magouyrk, meanwhile, now leads all of OCI's 10,500 employees, the org chart shows. Greg Pavlik is leading the largest team within OCI, with about 3,500 reports. Magouyrk elevated Pavlik in the recent reorganization to become senior vice president of OCI, so he now runs a combined OCI Infrastructure and core-services org.
The below org chart focuses on the people running the technical and cloud side of Oracle's business, so it doesn't include CEO Safra Catz, who is generally considered to run the finance, sales, and marketing sides of the business. The chart features the people who report up to Larry Ellison, the chairman and chief technology officer; Johnson; and Magouyrk, as depicted on the company's internal org chart.
Do you work at Oracle or have insight to share? Contact the reporter Ashley Stewart via the encrypted messaging app Signal (+1-425-344-8242) or email (astewart@insider.com).
More: BI Graphics Tien Le Taylor Tyson
|
2022-08-05T09:29:12Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Leaked Oracle Org Charts Show Cloud, Tech Leaders After Reorg
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/leaked-oracle-org-charts-show-cloud-tech-leaders-after-reorg-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/leaked-oracle-org-charts-show-cloud-tech-leaders-after-reorg-2022-8
|
Investor network Sie Ventures wants to plug the funding gap for female founders. It just opened entries for its 3rd program cohort.
Triin Linamagi and Nicole Velho, the founders of Sie Ventures.
Sie Ventures
All-women startup teams in Europe secured 1.1% of total VC investment in 2021, according to Atomico.
Sie Ventures helps female founders in fintech, sustainability, and healthtech raise funding.
The London-based investor network plans to back five to seven companies annually.
An investor network that aims to channel more capital to female founders and plug a funding gap between accelerators and first institutional rounds has opened applications for its third catalyst-program cohort.
Sie Ventures, founded by Triin Linamagi and Nicole Velho in London in 2020, focuses on startups in fintech, sustainability, future of work, and healthtech.
The organization has mentored 25 companies, helping them raise £26 million, or about $30 million, across 41 checks. The companies include Your Juno, a financial-education startup; PeripherAi, an artificial-intelligence sales platform; and Agreed Earth, a regenerative-agriculture startup.
Sie also plans to invest in five to seven companies annually — opportunities it presents to its network of angel investors and family offices, who can invest through special-purpose vehicles.
Sie aims to address the shortfall in venture-capital funding for female founders. All-women founding teams secured 1.1% of the overall capital raised in 2021 in Europe, while mixed-gender teams secured 8.8%, Atomico's "State of European Tech" report said.
Sie believes angel syndicates and special-purpose vehicles are a way to bundle smaller checks and "democratize" early investing.
"It's very important that we actually get deals out to women who maybe can't access these deals because they don't have the $50,000 checks to put in," Linamagi said.
"It's a more long-term goal, to get more women to start their own funds. It's not so easy," Linamagi said, adding, "So I think we need to focus also on getting more women angel-investing, and then they could turn into VCs one day."
Linamagi and Velho run workshops on topics including pitch decks, financial models, strategy, and cap tables. Sie's three-month program also opens up access to the network of angels and investors who can mentor founders.
The idea is that women who remain part of the Sie community will secure successful exits and feed their wealth back into women-founded companies as angel investors.
Sie's cofounders said they expect more women to lead unicorn startups in the coming years, particularly in sectors like fintech.
Alexia de Broglie, who cofounded Your Juno two years ago, said she aimed to help improve financial literacy among women after becoming the go-to person for financial advice among her female friends.
"The questions were very basic; they're very simple," she said. "It was very much the fundamentals of finance that were lacking, whereas a lot of my guy friends had these WhatsApp groups where they were talking about crypto — they were all investors and had this ecosystem where they were encouraging each other to invest."
De Broglie said she at first resisted the venture-capital system. "I would have just said this is mind-blowingly dangerous — I can't try and become a unicorn," she said. "Now I see other founders doing it, and I'm like, OK, if they can do it, I can do it, too."
More: Venture Capital Startups Tech startups
|
2022-08-05T09:29:18Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Sie: Female-Founder-Focused Network Opens 3rd Program Cohort
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/sie-ventures-funding-gap-female-founders-next-generation-unicorns-2022-7
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/sie-ventures-funding-gap-female-founders-next-generation-unicorns-2022-7
|
How to get a consulting job with KPMG US, according to the company's vice chair of talent and culture
KPMG's 17,000-person company booked $4.3 billion in revenue last year, according to the firm.
The advisory practice is hiring across all experience levels, Sandy Torchia told Insider.
Here's how to land a consulting job, according to Torchia, the vice chair of talent and culture.
Despite fears of an economic downturn, KPMG executives say business is booming and the firm has more than 800 consultancy positions available right now.
These open positions with the firm's advisory team are for a wide variety of roles, ranging from associate to partner, said Sandy Torchia, the vice chair of talent and culture and the former national managing partner for KPMG's advisory practice.
KPMG's advisory branch booked $4.3 billion in revenue last year and is one of the four-largest US accounting firms in terms of revenue. The firm also has 36,000 US-based employees and pays its accountants and consultants competitive six-figure salaries, with employees at the senior-associate level — only one level above the entry-level associate position — making up to $109,555 annually.
"The war for talent's real, and it is a very hot labor market," Torchia told Insider in May. "So making sure that we're doing everything we can to attract, retain, and develop our people is the focus that I'm going to have over the next several years."
Torchia explains how job candidates can stand out throughout the firm's "robust but straightforward" hiring process.
You should connect with current employees
KPMG's advisory-practice hires can be broken down into three categories: university talent acquisition, experienced, and senior talent, Torchia told Insider. Experienced-hire positions range from associate- to director-level roles, and are typically filled by those with prior consulting or industry experience.
Candidates can apply via KPMG's careers website or by reaching out to a current employee, Torchia said. Job seekers can use LinkedIn or go through alumni organizations to identify and contact current workers.
While everyone will go through the same recruiting process, Torchia said, "connecting with someone from KPMG can help introduce you to what the firm needs and how you can get involved."
"You'll have one, maybe two, interviews that focus on certain areas of your skill sets along with these situational, behavioral, and simulation questions," Torchia said.
You should demonstrate values and skills
At the company-wide level, KPMG's values are integrity, excellence, and courage — all traits the company hopes to see in job candidates, Torchia said.
Interviewees should be mindful to share examples of experiences where they have demonstrated these qualities, Torchia said. Another way to let the interviewer know what's important to you is to ask them questions at the end of the conversation.
"When you start asking, 'What is the culture at KPMG? What do you value? That can bring you into a conversation where those values will come up as well."
For the advisory practice, KPMG US hires need to have strong communication and presentation skills, Torchia said.
"We also want people that have a collaborative mindset," she said. "So being able to work with each other across the firm and with our clients to solve problems is important."
To solve the problems that KPMG consultants regularly tackle, employees need to be innovative and know how to use available technology to solve challenges, she added. "The world is changing quickly, and the types of things that are important to our clients tomorrow are different than what was important to our clients yesterday," she said.
You don't need consulting experience
An element of KPMG's culture that is emphasized in the firm's hiring process is the company's desire to enable people to be their authentic selves, Torchia said. This starts with the interview process.
"We value diversity," Torchia said. And not just when it comes to identity — diversity in terms thoughts and experiences is also valued.
"So making sure that you're staying true to the experiences that you have and bringing those into the interview is a great way to bring your true, authentic self to the interview," she said.
This is especially true for those who don't come from a consulting background. Having prior consulting experience when applying to KPMG is a "major plus," but the firm is also looking for people with relevant industry experience — such as those with cybersecurity, cloud, Salesforce, Oracle, Workday, and engineering experience, she said.
"All of those types of skills are really hot right now," she added. "And either having consulting experience or having the specific technical experience or industry experience is important."
More: KPMG Hirings Interview Advice
|
2022-08-05T11:00:29Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
How to Get a Job at KPMG, According to a Talent Leader
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-get-a-job-at-kpmg-consultant-salary-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-get-a-job-at-kpmg-consultant-salary-2022-8
|
Garvin Jabusch is beating 99% of his fund manager peers by buying innovative companies with real world purposes. He told us about the green energy and tech stocks he's bought as the market slumped.
Garvin Jabusch co-manages the Shelton Green Alpha fund, one of the best-performing mutual funds of the last five years.
Green Alpha Advisors
Garvin Jabusch's Green Alpha Fund has dramatically outperformed most mid-cap funds in recent years.
His tech and energy-oriented fund has slumped this year, but less than most of its competitors.
Jabusch told Insider he seeks inventions with real-world uses, not innovation for its own sake.
Investing in scientific breakthroughs and innovation might sound exciting, but fund manager Garvin Jabusch says the key to making it work is by being practical.
"We're only interested in innovations that are doing something to help de-risk the global economy," said Jabusch, the chief investment officer for Green Alpha Advisors and manager of its Shelton Green Alpha Fund. "We think that that gives us a little bit of an advantage over just being a pure growth manager."
That translates to an environmental and technological focus that separates his fund from any-kind-of-growth funds like the ones run by Dennis Lynch at Morgan Stanley or Cathie Wood at Ark Invest. And that focus has helped Jabusch outperform in recent years, including during this year's growth stock rout.
Morningstar data shows that the Green Alpha Fund has returned 26.1% annually for the last three years, which puts it in the top 1% of mid-cap growth funds and earns it a five-star rating.
By the same token, its losses this year — 14% as of Tuesday — aren't as steep as the losses most of its peers have seen, and the Green Alpha Fund has enjoyed a better-than-average rebound from the market's recent lows. Jabusch credits this performance to his funds' investments in stocks that address global issues.
"I have very high conviction that when the worm turns, these better, more innovative solutions to global risks will be among the quickest names to reinflate," Jabusch told Insider. "We want to be sure to already be there before that happens."
Jabusch's strategy during the recent growth stock slump has involved adding bargains and expanding positions instead of hedging and looking for safe short-term plays. The market's recent focus on oil and gas prices has made alternative energy companies even cheaper.
To take advantage, Jabusch has been investing in electric vehicle infrastructure stocks like charging station company ChargePoint, as well as Shoals Technologies, which makes switches and other necessary equipment that's used in making those stations.
It's "an important backbone of EV charging infrastructure as well as energy storage," he said.
While the Inflation Reduction Act has given many of those stocks a boost because of its provisions designed to encourage renewable energy use and electric vehicle sales, Jabusch says he doesn't want to invest in companies that depend on favorable government policies.
"We've been pleased overall that the adoption rate of renewable energies and the electrifying of other parts of the economy such as transportation, as well as building infrastructure such as HVAC systems, have been electrifying more rapidly than projections were calling for five years ago," he said. "Our thesis has always been that it's economically more competitive to go renewable and electrify."
He added that some innovators in the biotech sector are at "generational low prices" and very oversold in spite of highly valuable technology. He cited Beam Therapeutics as a top example.
"They own the IP for how to do base editing, which is a different way to do gene editing that is not CRISPR-Cas9 base. And they've been really oversold," he said.
alternative energy stocks
Investing trends
|
2022-08-05T11:00:35Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Best Electric Vehicles & Biotech Stocks: Top Performing Fund Manager
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/investing-stocks-to-buy-electric-vehicles-biotech-top-fund-manager-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/investing-stocks-to-buy-electric-vehicles-biotech-top-fund-manager-2022-8
|
How Betterment's CEO is thinking about her next deal as the investing startup looks beyond its do-it-yourself investing roots
Rebecca Ungarino and Asia Martin
From left, Betterment's president of retail, Mike Reust; CEO Sarah Levy; and Evol Greaves, vice president of engineering, at the startup's offices in New York City.
Betterment's CEO said in a recent interview with Insider that her team is open to new deals.
There are small startups in the financial-wellness space that may make sense to add, Levy said.
Betterment, known for a retail investor focus, is bolstering its units catering to other businesses.
Betterment acquired Makara, a cryptocurrency robo-advisor, in February as a response to clients who said they would be interested in crypto investing through the digital wealth startup.
Now CEO Sarah Levy says she is open to another deal as Betterment seeks to expand the company beyond its roots as a do-it-yourself investing app aimed at retail investors.
"For the right opportunity, we would be a buyer right now, because I do think we continue to be a little bit subscale for what I believe to be a successful stand-alone entity, long-term public company," Levy said in an interview with Insider.
Levy's team does not have a target in mind, but there are a handful of "small Series A, Series B companies" in the financial-wellness space that might make sense to add, she said.
Financial wellness — the corporate buzzword for products and services people use to manage their entire financial life, from retirement savings to setting monthly budgets — "is the place that, right now, excites us," Levy said.
Last fall Betterment raised a Series F before the private and public markets turned and startups started taking measures to conserve cash. The New York-based company raised $60 million in equity and secured a credit facility of $100 million. The round was led by the investment firm Treasury, which was founded by a cofounder of Betterment.
"I would like to think that in this time where people are going to have trouble raising money, that we may have an opportunity as the largest independent to do some consolidation," Levy told Insider, referring to Betterment's position as the largest independently owned digital wealth manager.
"There are also a couple other challengers in the 401(k) space," Levy said. "We don't have clear visibility into other people's liquidity positions, but I think there would be strength in numbers in putting some of those businesses together."
Betterment's recent deals
Since Levy joined Betterment in December 2020, she has overseen Betterment's first two acquisitions — Seattle-based Makara in addition to the US accounts of Canadian digital wealth management startup Wealthsimple in 2021.
A former employee told Insider that previous leadership was apprehensive about adding crypto, but that changed under Levy. Former CEO and cofounder Jon Stein was more averse to offering a crypto product, and it was never much of a priority in previous years, the person said. The price of bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, has plunged this year.
Mike Reust, president of the retail business, said the board was torn when it came to offering crypto products.
But it was clear from data on other apps Betterment's customers use, along with surveys on investor interests where users said they would be interested in a digital asset offering, that crypto was the next area to invest in.
The price of bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, has plunged this year. But the financial industry, which has invested in teams with crypto expertise, is still looking to find value in the space. On Thursday, BlackRock and Coinbase said they would partner on an offering for BlackRock clients.
"Crypto's been around a while, but doing it in a way that aligns with our principles hasn't been historically possible," he told Insider. "The actual scale and trading efficiency and costs have been coming down year over year. Only now was it actually reasonable and responsible to consider that we could offer this product."
More: Finance Tech Insider Wealth management Investing
|
2022-08-05T12:27:33Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
How Betterment Is Thinking About the Investing Startup's Next Deal
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/betterment-wealth-management-deal-acquisition-strategy-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/betterment-wealth-management-deal-acquisition-strategy-2022-8
|
Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak have been taking part in leadership hustings around the country
JACOB KING/POOL/AFP via Getty Images
Conservative members are being charged to watch hustings in the campaign to succeed Boris Johnson.
Viewers are asked to donate up to £100 before registering, while attendees are charged an admin fee.
Pre-paid postage has been dropped from ballots, raising concerns that some votes could be delayed.
Conservative members are being charged to be involved in the leadership contest, raising questions about the financial health of the party.
Party members have been asked to donate as much as £100 before they can register to watch one of the various hustings online, at which Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak vie to become the next Prime Minister.
Those attending in person have also been asked to pay a £5 "administration charge", which the party says "will help offset the costs of running these events, meaning we can continue to fund our ongoing campaigns".
Meanwhile postal ballots have gone out without return postage being pre-paid, raising concerns among Tory members that thousands of votes could be missed from the count.
One MP said it was a "very odd" move, while another Tory source said members were "all going mad" about the change. The two sources and others were granted anonymity to speak frankly.
The second individual asked what CCHQ would do"when Royal Mail says 'there are thousands of unpaid letters'", asking "Are they not going to get counted?"
He said: "What about all the older votes? Liz's vote skews older – a lot of people are assuming it is freepost – so it could end up hurting her."
The source noted that this was the third successive leadership contest in six years after those in 2016 and 2019. The source estimated that each contest cost the part around £1 million.
Another Tory source agreed, telling Insider: "Given everything that's been going on with the Tory party I would say they've most likely seen a huge drop in donations."
One MP added: "We've lost some donors, and others have been reluctant to support us because of the prime minister... but CCHQ has been getting more and more like this – penny pinching on little things."
Other MPs played down the prospect of a cash-flow crisis at CCHQ, although they agreed that hustings were expensive for the party to put on.
"They are significant venues, so cost quite a few quid to hire," said one. "The £5 won't go close to covering I wouldn't imagine."
Another said the "nominal fee" was to offset venue and security costs, as "last time only 40% of those who registered turned up".
Accounts for last year's income and expenditure are due to be published by the Electoral Commission later this month. For 2020 the party was more than £5,000 in the red.
A Conservative party spokesperson did not respond to questions about why the party was charging for hustings or had dropped free postage on ballots.
Instead they highlighted a column by party co-chairman Andrew Stephenson saying the measure "improve turnout rates, make a more engaging event, and ensure members' money isn't wasted on the wrong sized venues, allowing us to keep spending on campaigning to keep Keir Starmer out of Downing Street".
He also did not respond to questions about contingency plans should ballots be held up.
However, he said: "Eligible members can vote either online or by post. We recommend online voting and have reminded members that should they choose to vote by post, a stamp is required."
More: News UK Rishi Sunak Liz Truss Conservatives
|
2022-08-05T12:27:39Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
CCHQ Quietly Dropped Pre-Paid Postage for Ballots in Leader Contest
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/cchq-quietly-dropped-pre-paid-postage-for-ballots-in-leader-contest-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/cchq-quietly-dropped-pre-paid-postage-for-ballots-in-leader-contest-2022-8
|
Rep. Liz Cheney said the evidence is there for the DOJ to charge Donald Trump over the Capitol riot.
Cheney said Trump is guilty of "the most serious dereliction of duty of any president."
She said that prosecutors avoiding a case could threaten the US reputation for integrity.
Rep. Liz Cheney on Thursday said that DOJ prosecutors risk harming the US reputation as "a nation of laws" if they do not charge former President Donald Trump.
In an interview with CNN on Thursday, Cheney said the "facts and the evidence are there" to sustain charges against Trump over the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.
Cheney is part of a committee investigating the riot, which has produced evidence is says shows Trump is to blame for the attack.
Trump is "guilty of the most serious dereliction of duty of any president in our nation's history", she said, and cited federal court judge David Carter concluding in March that Trump and conservative attorney John Eastman had likely committed crimes in seeking to overturn the result of the 2020 election.
—CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) August 4, 2022
She said the Jan. 6 committee will "continue to follow the facts. I think Department of Justice will do that. But they have to make decisions about prosecution."
"Understanding what it means if the facts and the evidence are there, and they decide not to prosecute — how do we then call ourselves a nation of laws? I think that's a very serious, serious balancing," Cheney said.
The committee has alleged that Trump relentlessly pushed claims that the election had been stolen from him even though he knew, or should have known, they were false. These claims resulted in supporters attacking the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in a bid to halt Biden's certification as president.
Witness Cassidy Hutchinson, a former White House, has claimed that Trump knew supporters were armed, and wanted to join them in marching on the Capitol. Others have testified that people in Trump's circle played key roles in arranging the protest.
The Jan. 6 committee, after winding up its investigation, could make a criminal referral of Trump to the Justice Department.
Such a move would not obliged the DOJ to act, but would pressure Merrick Garland, the attorney general, to make the unprecedented decision of whether to charge a former president, Trump, with a criminal offense.
The Justice Department is pursuing a separate investigation into the Capitol riot and bid to overturn the 2020 election, and this week subpoenaed Pat Cipollone, the former White House counsel. That move indicated that its probe had begun to touch on former members of Trump's inner circle. This is a separate route to a possible Trump indictment.
Trump has denied wrongdoing in relation to the riot, and says he sincerely believes his election-fraud claims.
Some have suggested that charging Trump could galvanize his supporters and empower him as he gears up another bid for the presidency in 2024.
However, Cheney said that political calculations should not be a factor in the decision over criminal charges.
"I don't think that it's appropriate to think about it that way," said Cheney.
Cheney has been ostracized from the GOP for taking a stand against Trump, and faces a Trump-backed challenger for a Wyoming congressional seat in the Republican primary in mid-August.
More: Liz Cheney Jan 6 committee Donald Trump doj
|
2022-08-05T12:27:45Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Cheney: Not Charging Trump Could Make US No Longer 'Nation of Laws'
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/cheney-do-not-charging-trump-us-not-nation-laws-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/cheney-do-not-charging-trump-us-not-nation-laws-2022-8
|
Grace Dean and Huileng Tan
"I don't even know how to smoke a joint," Elon Musk told the hosts of the Full Send podcast.
Both him and the "whole of SpaceX" were subjected to random drugs tests by the government, he said.
"I don't even know how to smoke a joint," the tech billionaire told the Full Send podcast Thursday.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk said the federal government required that he was drug tested for a year after he smoked weed on Joe Rogan's podcast in 2018, adding that the "whole of SpaceX" was impacted.
Speaking about the incident during an appearance on the Full Send podcast, released Thursday night, Musk said that he got "a lot of backlash," including from SpaceX competitors, because weed isn't legalized on a federal level and because SpaceX has federal government contracts.
"The consequences for me and for SpaceX were actually not good," the tech billionaire said, adding that he hadn't expected so much criticism. The interview — which went viral at the time — took place in California, where marijuana is legal for both medical and recreational use.
"Unfortunately it wasn't just me but the whole company, the whole of SpaceX, had to have random drug tests," Musk continued. It's unclear exactly how many workers this affected, but SpaceX had around 6,000 employees in early 2019.
Under the Drug-free Workplace Act of 1988, workers at any companies that receive a federal contract of $100,000 or more are prohibited from using or distributing drugs in the workplace and the firm must have a drug-free workplace policy.
During the interview with Full Send, Musk also discussed attitudes towards drugs, including President Joe Biden's efforts to release basketball player Brittney Griner from custody in Russia after officials said they discovered vape cartridges containing hashish oil in her luggage.
"If there are people in jail in America for the same stuff, shouldn't we free them too?" Musk said. "My opinion is that people should not be in jail for nonviolent drug crimes." Musk has previously criticized how the US persecutes weed-related crimes.
Musk didn't comment on how often he smokes weed, but said he has little skill at it.
"I don't even know how to smoke a joint, obviously, I mean look at me, I have no joint-smoking skills," he said.
During the three-hour interview with Full Send, Elon Musk also confirmed that he had nine children, dismissed theories that aliens could exist, and said that he'd moved to a $45,000 property in South Texas.
More: Elon Musk SpaceX weed Cannabis
Full Send
|
2022-08-05T12:27:51Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Elon Musk Had to Drug Test for Year After Smoking Weed With Joe Rogan
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-drug-tests-smoking-weed-joe-rogan-marijuana-cannabis-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-drug-tests-smoking-weed-joe-rogan-marijuana-cannabis-2022-8
|
Happy Jobs Day, market watchers. Today's report will be a pivotal data point in the recession conversation, second only to the upcoming consumer inflation reading due out next Wednesday.
I'm Phil Rosen, sitting on the edge of my seat for 8:30 a.m. ET when July's nonfarm payrolls report comes out.
This morning's announcement will bring more clarity as to whether the US is in fact in an actual recession, following last week's data that revealed that the economy has met the technical definition of the term.
And that, my friends, holds serious implications for sentiment across the world.
If this was forwarded to you, sign up here.
1. Last week's reading of two consecutive GDP contractions sparked a semantic debate on what constitutes a recession.
Officially, only the National Bureau of Economic Research can declare a downturn, although sometimes it does so months after the fact.
Notably, the GDP marker has preceded every NBER-defined recession for the past 74 years.
And that's accompanied by a yield curve that's been inverted for a month.
The flip-flopping of the 2-year and 10-year Treasury notes is another widely-used recession indicator that preceded the downturns in 1990, 2000, and 2008, and tells us investors lack confidence in the economy and expect heightened risk of a recession in the near term.
Still, some commentators have pointed to a strong labor market as reason to quell fears.
Today's data could be a make or break moment in the debate.
July's nonfarm payroll report may show the labor market is losing momentum, which would deflate the idea that strong jobs data is holding off a recession.
Expectations are for the US to have added 250,000 jobs in July. June data showed employers added 372,000 jobs.
While the Fed points to inflation as the biggest threat to the economy, critics have said policymakers are sacrificing employment for high prices.
That trade-off could be a case of the medicine being worse than the disease. Stimulus aid has mostly run out for Americans, and many are now tapping their savings to keep spending.
Notably, to Goldman Sachs, higher unemployment poses the "first and foremost" risk to an economic recovery.
You can catch up-to-the-minute updates on today's jobs data with Insider's live blog.
2. US futures are mixed ahead of key jobs data, while oil claws back some gains. Plus, Tesla shareholders have given the greenlight for a stock split based on a preliminary vote count. Here is your morning wrap.
3. On the docket: Allianz, London Stock Exchange, Suncor Energy, and more, all reporting.
4. These recession-proof stocks look cheap given their track record in weathering economic downturns, according to Morningstar. The research firm highlighted a batch of companies that they expect to still deliver returns amid turmoil. See the list of 10 names here.
5. A top strategist warned that the US central bank is likely to stay hawkish and keep an aggressive pace of rate hikes. As a result, stocks and policymakers have become dangerously misaligned. In Michael Every's own words: Either the Fed or the market is going to "melt like an ice cream cone."
6. Saudi Arabia is on track for its first budget surplus in almost a decade thanks to big oil revenues. The Kingdom's surplus jumped to $21 billion in the second quarter, a 35% increase compared to the prior three months, according to the finance ministry. Revenues skyrocketed even as Saudi Arabia ramped up spending.
7. The rebound in stocks since June looks more like a new bull market than a bear rally. That's according to Ned Davis Research, which is basing its optimistic outlook on several technical indicators that are pointing to upside ahead. Get the full details here.
8. A veteran fund manager and author laid out why tech stocks are actually much cheaper than they appear. "Either we're overdue a dot-com bust, or the metrics used to calculate prices are wrong," Adam Seessel said. He explained the best strategy to figure out what they are really worth.
9. BlackRock warned of three behavioral flaws that can torment investors in the new era of volatility. When money is at stake, people make irrational decisions with money. Analysts from the world's largest money manager shared how to overcome those shortcomings and succeed in today's market.
10. Job openings tumbled to 10.7 million from 11.3 million in June, and that suggests the labor market is badly out of whack. Today's jobs report will provide more details into the state of the economy. Here's what to know about the numbers in the chart.
More: Markets jobs data Inflation Economy
|
2022-08-05T12:28:09Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Jobs Data Could Fuel Recession Fears and Signal a Pivot in Sentiment.
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/jobs-data-recession-fears-fed-signal-pivot-downturn-sentiment-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/jobs-data-recession-fears-fed-signal-pivot-downturn-sentiment-2022-8
|
Take a deep breath. It's Friday. I'm Jordan Parker Erb, and today I'm taking you inside the "complete chaos" at Oracle as layoffs and restructuring roil the database giant.
By the way, apologies for the slight delay this morning — we had a technical issue. (Fitting for a tech newsletter!)
Kim Kulish/Getty Images
1. Oracle insiders describe "complete chaos" from layoffs and restructuring. Earlier this week, Oracle began a sizable layoff, potentially impacting thousands of employees — and those who haven't yet been laid off are scrambling to figure out whether they'll be next.
The hardest-hit units, current and former employees said, were in the marketing and customer experience divisions. Some marketing teams have seen their headcount slashed by anywhere from 30% to 50%.
In some cases, they said, managers were given the choice of who would get cut, while others had no say in how the layoffs would affect their teams.
The Advertising and Customer Experience team was said to have been cut, too. "The common verb to describe ACX is that they were obliterated," one employee said.
This leaked org chart shows Oracle's cloud leaders after the company's major organizational changes.
A look inside Oracle over the past week.
2. The Federal Trade Commission is deepening its investigation into Amazon's Prime sign-up and cancellation process. The FTC sent out subpoenas and other demands for information after Insider reporting. Here's our scoop on what's going on.
3. Axed "Robinhoodies" say they were tipped off to layoffs weeks ago. Former Robinhood employees said they saw signs of belt-tightening — including plans to shrink office space — long before the company laid off 23% of its staff. Five former employees took us behind the scenes.
4. Elon Musk's countersuit against Twitter says the company is operating a "scheme" to mislead investors. Musk argued that he is entitled to drop the deal entirely — and Twitter pushed back, saying the billionaire's story is "implausible." Get the big takeaways.
5. Nike is offering $5,000 employee bonuses for some tech job referrals. Grappling with internal turmoil and a wave of exits, the company announced the new referral program, which has been met with mixed reviews from employees. Here's what we know.
6. Fifteen current and former Apple female employees say the company dismissed claims of misconduct. After the Financial Times reported the HR unit retaliated against some of them after speaking up about the incidents, Apple vowed to "make changes." What we know so far.
7. Startup founders' mental health is crumbling. Dried-up funding and the stress of a turbulent economic year has piled stress on founders who are already trying to do the impossible: build iconic tech companies. Why some founders "are especially not OK."
8. Elon Musk denied that he's planning to build his own private airport in Texas. Local news site Austonia reported last week that an airport could help grow his companies in the region, but Musk said that's "not true" and it "would be silly." Get the full rundown here.
9. Mark Zuckerberg is minting an NFT of his Little League baseball card. In a post announcing Instagram's expanded support for NFTs, Zuckerberg shared his own "soon-to-be NFT." See the potential digital collectible of a young Zuck.
10. We broke down how to unsend text messages using iOS 16. iPhone users with iOS 16 will have 15 minutes to unsend a text — and delete it from the recipient's phone. How it works and how to do it.
Per Bloomberg, Apple hired a key Lamborghini exec to work on its electric car.
Google-backed chip startup Lightmatter just poached Ritesh Jain, a 20-year veteran of Intel.
Michael Saylor will step down as MicroStrategy CEO.
After less than a year, Tinder CEO Renate Nyborg will be departing the company.
|
2022-08-05T12:28:15Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
At Oracle, 'Complete Chaos' Followed This Week's Layoffs
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/oracle-layoffs-restructuring-chaos-leaked-org-chart-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/oracle-layoffs-restructuring-chaos-leaked-org-chart-2022-8
|
The author, Hanna Horvath.
Courtesy Hanna Horvath
A financial planner says money is a tool to help you live the life you want.
One way to make the most of it is to spend on services that save time, like hiring an accountant for taxes or a house cleaner.
If you calculate what your time is worth, you might even be saving money overall.
As a financial planner, I would like to think I'm pretty responsible when it comes to managing my finances. I make sure to never spend more than I earn, track all my expenses in a detailed spreadsheet, and avoid impulse purchases as much as I can.
But just because I consider myself financially responsible doesn't mean I skimp on everything.
I'm all about making smart decisions with my money and cutting back on unnecessary purchases when you can. However, I also believe money is a tool that gives you freedom to be able to do what you want, when you want.
I think tools or services that can save you time are almost always worth the money.
4 services I'm happy to pay for
So much of our day is spent doing "life admin" — those everyday tasks like grocery shopping, cleaning, or paying bills. Some of those actions can be done without hiring someone (like setting your bills on auto-pay), and others you typically can't pass off to someone else (like going to the dentist for a check-up).
But for everything else, time-saving services can be used to earn back a little extra time in your day or cut down on your never-ending to-do list.
Here are currently all the services I use:
Grocery delivery: I could spend hours browsing in a grocery store — so instead, I simply fill up my cart online and pay to get it delivered. Not only do I save on time (and the annoyance of having to carry my heavy grocery bags home); I also believe I save some money! Shopping for groceries in person often leads to impulsive purchases for me, like that bag of candy in the checkout line.
Laundry service: Once a week, I have a service pick up my laundry and return on that day, washed and folded. Laundry is one of my least-favorite chores and my apartment in New York City doesn't have laundry, which means I'd have to bring it to a laundromat and stay there while I washed it myself.
Accountant: I have used some sort of software every time I've filed my taxes, but last year I hired an accountant and I'm never going back. I simply sent over my documents and they took care of the rest.
Apartment cleaner: I hire house cleaners to do a deeper clean of my apartment about once a month – not only do I save time I would have spent cleaning, but they do a much, much better job than I ever could.
Time saved can be money earned
Another reason I pay for time-saving services? I believe you should spend money to make money. I regularly freelance, which means the more I work, the more money I can make. Paying for services that save me time and effort means I'll have more time to put into my business, earning me the money spent back, and then some.
One way I've been able to really rationalize this is by figuring out the value of my time. For example, let's say I charge $100 an hour for my freelance work, and it takes me two hours to clean my home. By hiring cleaners that cost $100, I'm actually saving money, since I'll be saving $200 worth of my time.
Saving time with certain services also means avoiding the emotional stress and headache of doing that chore.
For instance, I think hiring movers is always worth the money spent. It removes so much of the headache and stress of moving, and makes the overall move much more enjoyable. I have more life satisfaction and general happiness avoiding the tasks I need to do but don't want to do — and am more than willing to pay for it. It's helped me avoid burnout or general stress about everything I need to do.
We only have so many hours in the day — and I'd like to spend as much time as I can enjoying them.
More: Spending Financial Planners Personal Finance Insider PFI Storytelling
|
2022-08-05T12:28:21Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
My Time Is Worth Money, so I Pay for Services to Protect It
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/time-worth-money-pay-for-services-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/time-worth-money-pay-for-services-2022-8
|
TikTok is beefing up its counterintelligence and insider risk team as it looks to crack down on leaks
TikTok is hiring for two new security roles focused on protecting against insider leaks.
The new staffers will monitor abnormal employee patterns and the dark web to protect company data.
TikTok has faced high-profile leaks to the press that have increased scrutiny on its data practices.
TikTok is hiring for two security roles focused on insider risk as it looks to bolster its defense against internal leaks.
The job openings, one for a counterintelligence analyst and the other for an insider-risk monitoring analyst, will both be based in Washington, DC, and fall within the company's newly launched US data security division.
The new hires will monitor TikTok's own employees to identify patterns of behavior that could reveal a staffer is leaking classified information to the press, or trade secrets to competitors or bad actors, according to four cybersecurity recruiters who reviewed the counterintelligence analyst job posting for Insider.
Spying on coworkers to guard company secrets can be a lonely job.
"You're not everyone's best friend," said Giancarlo Hirsch, managing director for Glocomms, a cybersecurity, AI, data science, and software recruitment firm that has worked with TikTok on filling security roles. "You're not at the lunch table having fun with everyone as much."
Nevertheless, having security teams dedicated to monitoring the activity of employees and other "insiders" with data access, such as vendors, is common at large companies across sectors, particularly in businesses with valuable data and intellectual property assets like banking and tech firms.
JPMorgan Chase, for example, collects vast amounts of data on what its employees do during the workday, sparking fear among some staffers that it could be using keystroke data to sniff out slackers on its teams.
Leakers can create enormous headaches for Big Tech brands, either by revealing valuable trade secrets to competitors or sharing incriminating company information with reporters. Facebook (now Meta Platforms) has had several high-profile data flubs in the past few years, including when former staffer Frances Haugen passed a trove of sensitive documents to the Wall Street Journal and other outlets that led to a Congressional hearing.
How insider leaks are threatening TikTok's business
TikTok's move to beef up its own insider-risk tracking comes at a pivotal moment for the company when scrutiny around its business and data security practices are high.
In June, BuzzFeed News used leaked audio from 80 internal meetings to report that employees of TikTok's parent company ByteDance had accessed some TikTok US user data in Beijing. The story sparked outrage among some in DC, leading to calls from members of Congress to investigate the company's data usage and an FCC commissioner to ask that it be banned from app stores outright.
"One of [TikTok's] key elements is building trust with their users, and I think anytime that you have leaks or the like, that's going to be an impact to reputational risk," said Bryan Kirby, a cybersecurity recruiter at the executive search firm Kirby Partners. "When you think about information security, the number one attack vector is employees. 60% of data breaches are the result of insider threats."
Leaks to reporters are just one of several high-stake vulnerabilities TikTok's security team must grapple with when it considers insider risk, experts told Insider.
With over 1 billion monthly users globally, TikTok has solidified its place as a top competitor in the social media and entertainment category. The company's differentiating features like its content-discovery algorithm are likely hot targets for those looking to disrupt or compete with its business. The app could also be a target for foreign actors looking to gain influence, or hackers aiming to sell TikTok's proprietary data on the dark web.
"TikTok is just such a target," said Deidre Diamond, founder and CEO of CyberSN, a cybersecurity job marketplace and recruitment firm. "It just takes one disgruntled employee to cause havoc."
TikTok declined to comment on the record about its security job postings. A spokesperson referred Insider to a July blog post from public policy VP Michael Beckerman where the exec outlined that TikTok minimizes the number of people who have access to certain data and that it implements a "series of robust controls, safeguards like encryption for certain data, and authorization approval protocols overseen by our U.S.-based security team."
More: TikTok Cybersecurity Leaks
BIGraphics
|
2022-08-05T12:28:33Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
TikTok Is Staffing up for Cybersecurity and Insider Risk Jobs
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/tiktok-hiring-cybersecurity-insider-risk-jobs-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/tiktok-hiring-cybersecurity-insider-risk-jobs-2022-8
|
New home supply has hit a level that hasn't been seen since the Great Recession, meanwhile new home sale prices are plunging. Despite the dramatic shift in the market, there's no crash coming, one real estate veteran says.
The housing market is unlikely to collapse, said Rick Sharga of Market Intelligence and ATTOM.
New home prices are down while supply is up, which could mean trouble for builders and investors.
However, veteran observer Rick Sharga believes the US real estate market is still on solid ground.
Sharga provides six reasons why a 2008-style meltdown is unlikely to happen anytime soon.
It looks as if there's a perfect storm brewing in the US housing market. But looks can be deceiving.
A long-expected drop in the average selling price of new homes is finally here, according to data from the Federal Reserve, even though home prices broadly stubbornly refuse to roll over.
The decline in new home prices comes as the supply of freshly built homes hits 9.3 months of availability — a level that was last seen in 2010 and is seldom seen outside of a recession. If the supply of new homes rises any further, it will reach the highest level since the peak of the last great financial crisis.
However, Rick Sharga, the executive vice president of Market Intelligence at real estate data provider ATTOM, isn't concerned about a market crash, even as new home prices start to slide.
"The likelihood of another housing crash, as we saw in the Great Recession, is very, very slight," Sharga told Insider in a recent interview. "There's always a chance, but absent some economic catastrophe, it seems very unlikely that'll happen."
Why homebuyers and homeowners can rest easy
There are six reasons why Sharga, who has studied the US real estate market for over two decades, said it's "extraordinarily unlikely" that home prices will suffer from a financial crisis-style drop of 20-30% anytime soon.
Housing market collapses come when there's a far greater supply of homes than demand for them. In a normal market, there's about six months of available supply, Sharga noted. After the housing bubble burst in the financial crisis of the previous decade, there was over 12 months of supply for new homes.
Although new home inventory has risen to 9.3 months, Sharga noted that there's still a relative shortage of existing homes since supply is about half of a normal period at three months. That's because many current homeowners don't want to move unless they're forced to, Sharga said, given that rapidly rising mortgage rates have made getting a new house more expensive.
Though observers could infer that the slight pullback in new home prices will continue to worsen because supply is abnormally high, Sharga said that such a decline wouldn't seriously harm the housing market because new home sales make up only about 10% of total home sales.
And while the supply of new homes is elevated, it isn't a cause for concern, in Sharga's view. The uptick in new home supply is the result of a backlog of building projects coming online — not overeagerness from homebuilders, Sharga said. In fact, he noted that homebuilders are cutting back on the number of housing starts as rising interest rates weigh on demand.
"If you look at the combination of homes completed and homes under construction, you're not really looking at an oversupply situation at the moment," Sharga said.
Sharga added: "If the builders had kept their pedal to the metal and we continued to see single-family residential housing starts increase, that would be more of a cause for concern. But really, what they're doing right now is moving through the inventory that they started on a year ago and has taken them a long time to complete because of supply-chain disruptions and lack of available labor."
Indeed, commodities and building materials had experienced their own boom and bust during the pandemic as the price of lumber, roofing materials, and appliances spiked due to supply chain disruptions. But as builders and contractors finally secure materials for new construction, and paid handsomely for them, the picture has started to look a bit different. If anything, the market is increasingly looking like it's finally going back to normal.
Changing trends in new home sales offers more bargaining power for buyers
Additionally, while Sharga said that there's been a "significant uptick" in listings with reduced prices, he said that the number of marked-down homes isn't much higher than usual. That's because for years, very few homeowners had to lower their asking price, so even a sudden spike in the number of homes with price cuts brought the total just higher than average.
However, new home builders are more eager now than they were just six months ago to get houses under contract, presenting an opportunity to buyers and finally shifting bargaining power back towards buyers who may have experienced bidding wars and lost opportunities. And buyers who went under contract on new construction a few months back are more likely to back out as prices drop and builders offer more concessions to sweeten the deal.
Furthermore, housing market fundamentals seem to be solid, unlike 15 years ago. Loan quality is far better today because there are fewer "ticking time bombs" in the form of unqualified buyers, Sharga said. Less loan speculation has led to lower delinquency levels, the real estate veteran noted. High homeowner equity and a low unemployment rate are also signs of strength.
Finally, home prices aren't going to crash because there's still more demand than supply, Sharga said. People might not be scrambling to relocate to trendy Sun Belt cities as often as they were early in the pandemic, Sharga said, but he still believes the trend of moving has legs.
More: Investing Rick Sharga Rick Sharga real estate
market bubble
housing bubble 2022
how to spot a bubble
federal reserve home prices
|
2022-08-05T14:03:09Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
New Home Supply Spikes While Sale Prices Plunge. but Don't Expect a Crash.
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/housing-market-crash-2008-home-prices-mortgage-rates-supply-sharga-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/housing-market-crash-2008-home-prices-mortgage-rates-supply-sharga-2022-8
|
In this June 26, 2018, file photo, the U.S. aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan anchors off Manila Bay for a goodwill visit in Manila, Philippines.
AP Photo/Bullit Marquez, File
The Pentagon has ordered a US aircraft carrier and its strike group to remain near Taiwan amid current tensions.
Tensions in the region have soared after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taipei on Tuesday.
Among other military responses, China deployed 68 aircraft and 13 ships near Taiwan on Friday.
The Pentagon has ordered a US aircraft carrier to remain in waters near Taiwan, a top White House official said, as China continues to express its anger over House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's visit this week through a significant show of combat power around the island.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered that the "USS Ronald Reagan and the ships in her strike group will remain on station in the general area to monitor the situation," White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said at a Thursday briefing.
"We will conduct standard air and maritime transits through the Taiwan Strait in the next few weeks, consistent, again, with our longstanding approach to defending the freedom of the seas and international law," he added. "And, we will take further steps to demonstrate our commitment to the security of our allies in the region."
Ahead of Pelosi's visit to Taiwan earlier this week, the Japan-based USS Ronald Reagan, America's only forward-deployed carrier, and two other US Navy flattops, amphibious assault ships USS America and USS Tripoli, were reported to be operating in waters near the self-ruled island.
Both the Tripoli and the America carry advanced fifth-generation F-35 stealth fighters, while the Reagan carries a larger air wing of F/A-18 jets, among other aviation assets.
The US Navy vessels were said to be conducting normal operations and were not a response to Beijing's repeated warnings of a possible military reaction to the trip. The Reagan is, however, now extending its deployment in the Western Pacific amid an uptick in tensions.
Since Pelosi's Tuesday visit to Taiwan, tensions in the region have remained high, and China's People's Liberation Army has increased its pressure on the democratic island through military exercises this week, drills that have involved firing ballistic missiles over and around Taiwan, as well as flying dozens of fighter jets into Taiwan's air defense identification zone.
In its latest move, Beijing deployed 68 aircraft and 13 vessels for military activities around the Taiwan Strait on Friday, Taipei's defense ministry said in a tweet. Some military assets in the group crossed the median line dividing the Taiwan Strait. While this is not unprecedented, such moves are less common.
Taiwan's military "responded to such a situation accordingly with surveillance systems, CAP aircraft, naval vessels, and missile systems," the defense ministry said.
"We condemn such action that disturbed our surrounding airspace and waters and continue to ensure our democracy and freedom free from threats," it added.
It was not immediately clear what aircraft and ships China dispatched, though the Chinese state-affiliated Global Times reported that the show of force included fighter jets, electronic recon aircraft, bombers, and early warning aircraft. It said pilots were close enough to see Taiwan's coast and mountain range.
More: Speed desk uss ronald reagan Taiwan China
|
2022-08-05T15:34:38Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
US Orders Aircraft Carrier to Stay Near Taiwan Amid Tensions With China
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/us-orders-aircraft-carrier-near-taiwan-tensions-with-china-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/us-orders-aircraft-carrier-near-taiwan-tensions-with-china-2022-8
|
But given both Jones' and Stones' outsized role in January 6, getting the candid exchanges between these two election-fraud conspiracy theorists is a huge development.
On the eve of the riot, Jones was there at the Willard Intercontinental Hotel, the command center where key Trump allies including Rudy Giuliani, Steve Bannon, and John Eastman met to strategize. And on January 6 itself, he marched from the Elipse to the Capitol alongside fellow far-right provocateur Ali Alexander.
Jones' texts in the leadup to the rally could shed light on all of these activities. And they could also have direct implications for Trump.
After all, as revealed during the public committee hearing televised on July 13, Trump personally wanted the rally speakers to include Jones and Alexander.
"He likes the crazies," despite the "red flags," former Trump aide Katrina Pierson told the committee.
More: Roger Stone Alex Jones Donald Trump January 6 committee
|
2022-08-05T15:34:44Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Why Alex Jones' 'Intimate' Text Messages to Roger Stone Matter
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/why-alex-jones-intimate-text-messages-to-roger-stone-matter-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/why-alex-jones-intimate-text-messages-to-roger-stone-matter-2022-8
|
Brian Chesky, the CEO of Airbnb, says adding 'millions more' hosts is 'priority No. 1' as current hosts complain of increased competition
Brian Chesky, the CEO of Airbnb, said the rest of the year will see a push to bring more hosts onto the platform.
Chesky said he wants to add more hosts to the short-term rental platform's existing 4 million.
Current US hosts have complained this summer about increased competition as occupancy rates drop.
Travelers are still flocking to short-term rentals, but bookings have dipped thanks to oversupply.
Airbnb already has 4 million hosts worldwide. But Brian Chesky, the CEO of the company, thinks that's just the beginning.
"We think there are millions more people that could turn to hosting, especially during these economic times," Chesky said in an earnings call with analysts Tuesday. "Hosting is one of the easiest ways to be able to make money with an asset that you already have. The majority of people get a booking within the first week."
The short-term-rental giant announced what it called its most profitable second quarter ever, with $379 million in net income, up from a $68 million loss in the second quarter of 2021. Though Airbnb announced a quarterly record of 103 million nights booked, analysts said they expected growth to be better.
Chesky said on the call that luring "the next generation of hosts" will be the company's top priority in the fall and beyond.
His comments come as domestic vacation-rental listings across platforms reached a record high of 1.5 million in January 2022, according to industry analytics firm AirDNA. With increased competition, some hosts have worried about a summer slowdown in bookings and a recent AirDNA report even said that the sky-high occupancy rates of post-lockdown travel might never return.
Occupancy rates nationwide were down 9% in May and 10% in June compared to 2021 levels, according to the report.
Chesky also seems to think a potential recession would make hosting — and the extra cash it could bring in — more attractive. He mentioned several times during his remarks that Airbnb got its start in 2008, during the last recession.
"People were worried about being able to pay their bills, pay for their homes, and their income. And so they turned to hosting," he said. "We think a lot of people may turn to hosting once again. So this is a big opportunity for us."
Chesky said that the company will unveil new features later this year to lure even more new hosts to the platform.
One source of new hosts might be guests who have recently discovered Airbnb, he said, adding that 36% of new hosts last quarter were prior guests.
Hosts are already grappling with a more crowded field
Earlier this summer, hosts were venting about a slowdown in bookings compared to 2021.
"It makes me really nervous," Pam Reicks, a 51-year-old public-school teacher in Phoenix, told Insider. She said her cottage in the mountain town of Payson, Arizona lost money in May and June, and she was concerned about covering her mortgage.
It's not that guests have disappeared. There simply are more bookings than ever to choose from.
Listings nationwide contracted in the early months of the pandemic, according to previous reports from AirDNA. About 20% of rooms came offline as owners likely used the spaces themselves or sold their properties, Jamie Lane, an AirDNA economist, told Insider.
When the post-vaccine travel surge hit, short-term rental owners who remained active had primed themselves for a wave of bookings — and profits. Now, as more hosts jump in, owners shouldn't expect those same occupancy rates, according to the AirDNA report.
Some hosts have taken that as their cue to jump ship, not wanting to compete with the new influx of supply. Rick Carlson, a host in Idaho, recently told Insider he's taking his four listings offline next month and will pivot to finding long-term tenants.
"When everybody's going left, you should be going right," he said.
More: Real Estate AirBnB short-term rentals Airbnb hosts
|
2022-08-05T16:13:15Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Airbnb CEO Wants to Add 'Millions More' Hosts Despite Oversupply Fears
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/airbnb-ceo-wants-more-hosts-despite-oversupply-fears-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/airbnb-ceo-wants-more-hosts-despite-oversupply-fears-2022-8
|
Jack Dorsey on September 5, 2018
Jack Dorsey's Block company reported a dip in overall revenue in its second quarter.
The firm said the crypto winter and bitcoin's plummeted price was what pulled that figure down.
But Dorsey, a longtime bitcoin maximalist, is not likely to be swayed by the decline.
No one's safe from the beating that the crypto market is taking, including noted bitcoin maximalist Jack Dorsey.
The founder and ex-CEO of Twitter turned more of his attention to his digital payments firm Block after leaving the social media company in November 2021. The firm, which was formerly known as Square, in part allows users to buy and sell bitcoin through its payments service Cash App, which has been a huge money driver for Block.
But the company posted its second-quarter earnings report this week with a decline in overall revenue and attributed the dip to the frosty crypto winter of the last few months that has seen bitcoin's price plummet from $68,000 in November to $23,000 this month.
"The year-over-year decrease in bitcoin revenue and gross profit was driven primarily by a decline in consumer demand and the price of bitcoin, related in part to broader uncertainty around crypto assets, which more than offset the benefit of volatility in the price of bitcoin during the quarter," the company said in its Q2 2022 shareholder's letter.
Cash App generated $1.79 billion in bitcoin revenue from April to June, a 34% decline year-over-year, and $41 million in bitcoin gross profit, a 24% dip year-over-year.
Block also acknowledged that those figures might continue to fluctuate depending on if the crypto winter darkens, scaring consumers off from risky financial moves.
It's not been easy for crypto players as inflation has risen, interest rates have been set higher than they have in years, and cryptocurrencies called TerraUSD and Luna — which were supposed to be a safe way to interact with the digital asset world — crashed and burned.
Spooked investors lost trust in the system and began selling crypto stocks, including bitcoin, which sent its price downward.
But those left standing include the so-called bitcoin maximalists, who see this speed bump as a mere hiccup toward a truly decentralized future.
That includes Dorsey, who said in 2021 that bitcoin changes "absolutely everything."
"I don't think there's anything more important in my lifetime to work on," Dorsey said.
More: Jack Dorsey Twitter block crypto
|
2022-08-05T16:13:21Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
The Crypto Winter Has Come for Jack Dorsey's Block
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/crypto-winter-impacts-jack-dorsey-block-earnings-cash-app-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/crypto-winter-impacts-jack-dorsey-block-earnings-cash-app-2022-8
|
DraftKings stock is surging on news that it narrowed losses and reined in marketing spend
DraftKings is narrowing its losses and reining in its marketing costs.
The company reported solid Q2 earnings that spiked shares on Friday morning.
It comes after DraftKings shares had previously fallen 40% year to date.
DraftKings, one of the US's largest sportsbooks, is narrowing its losses and reining in marketing spending, the company showed investors on August 5.
The daily-fantasy-sports giant beat Wall Street's expectations for its Q2 loss and revenue, with a loss of $0.50 per share and revenue of $466 million.
DraftKings also lowered the guidance for its full year loss to between $765 million and $835 million in adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, and depreciation — a measure of profitability — down from its previously forecasted loss of $810 million and $910 million. And it boosted its full-year revenue targets.
The encouraging results come as DraftKings has showed more restraint in its marketing spending. Its sales and marketing costs rose 16% year over year in Q2 to $197.5 million, compared with a 270% increase in expenses during the same period a year ago.
"We have struck a great balance of continuing to drive topline growth while also capturing meaningful efficiencies that are helping our bottom line," CEO Jason Robins said on the company's earnings call.
The stock was up around 13% on Friday morning and spiked as high as $19.38. That's after a dismal first half of the year had previously driven shares down about 40% year to date.
Sports-betting stocks including DraftKings have faced enormous market pressure to rein in sky-high spending, while continuing to grow their customer bases. Some rivals including Caesars Entertainment have pared back marketing costs in an effort to turn their sports-betting businesses profitable.
But DraftKings seems to have put itself in a solid position to keep growing marketing spend — albeit at a healthier pace — as new states like Ohio introduce legal sports betting and the crucial NFL season kicks off.
The company said it shifted some marketing expenses out of Q2 and into the back half of the year as it works to optimize its approach.
The second half of the year will be crucial for DraftKings. Rival FanDuel has in recent months furthered its already sizable US market-share lead over DraftKings.
DraftKings has also been investing in areas like online gambling (which FanDuel also has through its Flutter Entertainment parent company) and NFTs, which it's banking on to aid its path to profitability and differentiate its products. For example, it's introducing for the NFL season a new fantasy game called Reignmakers Football that incorporates officially licensed player card NFTs.
"We believe that nobody else in our industry is driving innovation in this way, and we think it's a great example of how DraftKings is forward-thinking in sports entertainment," Robins said on the call.
More: DraftKings Sports Betting Earnings
|
2022-08-05T16:13:27Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
DraftKings Narrowed Its Losses, Reined in Marketing Spend in Strong Q2
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/draftkings-q2-earnings-losses-marketing-spend-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/draftkings-q2-earnings-losses-marketing-spend-2022-8
|
Republican Rep. Peter Meijer of Michigan.
GOP Rep. Peter Meijer of Michigan said he doesn't want a Trump-Biden 2024 rematch.
"That is a very messed up and frustrating and depressing dynamic," he told CNN on Friday.
Meijer lost his primary against a Trump-backed challenger earlier this week.
Republican Rep. Peter Meijer on Friday said he does not want former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden to face off again in the 2024 election.
"If in 2024 we're back to a Biden-Trump dynamic, it will be a pretty sad commentary on where our country is," the Michigan lawmaker, one of 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump over the January 6, 2021, Capitol attack, told CNN. "We have young, fresh, rising leaders on both sides of the aisle."
Meijer, a freshman lawmaker, earlier this week lost his primary to Trump-backed challenger John Gibbs for Michigan's third congressional district. He joins Rep. Tom Rice of South Carolina as the second Republican who voted to impeach Trump and then lost a primary.
Rep. David Valadao of California is the only pro-Trump impeachment Republican to survive his primary challenge so far this year. The primary for another prominent Republican who voted to impeach Trump, Rep. Liz Cheney of Wyoming, takes place on August 16.
Biden has said he intends to run for reelection in 2024, while Trump has repeatedly hinted at doing so. Several leaders from both parties, including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former Vice President Mike Pence, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, Vice President Kamala Harris, and California Gov. Gavin Newsom, have also been rumored to launch a presidential bid.
Meijer told CNN he's "absolutely" open to running for public office again in the future but for now is committed to "stay engaged in politics" at the local and national levels.
More: Peter Meijer Donald Trump Joe Biden Republicans
|
2022-08-05T16:13:33Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
GOP Rep. Peter Meijer: Biden-Trump 2024 Rematch Would Be 'Depressing'
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/gop-rep-peter-meijer-biden-trump-2024-rematch-depressing-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/gop-rep-peter-meijer-biden-trump-2024-rematch-depressing-2022-8
|
Rep. Bobby Scott.
GOP lawmakers introduced a bill to counter Biden's student-loan relief and end targeted loan forgiveness programs.
Chair of the House education committee Bobby Scott said their bill will leave borrowers "worse off."
It comes as Biden is likely to announce broad relief in the coming weeks.
Three Republican lawmakers introduced an expansive piece of legislation that pushes back on many of President Joe Biden's student-loan relief actions. A top Democratic lawmaker isn't pleased with what they came up with.
On Thursday, GOP Reps. Virginia Foxx, Elise Stefanik, and Jim Banks introduced the Responsible Education Assistance Through Loan, or REAL, Reforms Act, which proposed a series of "alternative" policies to Biden's relief, including ending targeted student-loan forgiveness programs like Public Service Loan Forgiveness and capping the amount of loans graduate students can borrow.
While the Republican lawmakers said their proposals were the "responsible" way to help student-loan borrowers and save taxpayers money, Chair of the House education committee Bobby Scott said their legislation is not the right way to tackle college affordability.
"Regrettably, the proposal my Republican colleagues introduced yesterday misses the mark and would leave students and families worse off," Scott said in a statement on Friday.
"This proposal—especially the provisions to eliminate Public Service Loan Forgiveness and weaken Income Driven Repayment—would make student loans more expensive to obtain and harder to repay," he added. "Upon review, the Republican REAL Reform Act would have the opposite effect of the purpose of the student loan system and the Higher Education Act of 1965."
Biden is currently in the process of making a decision on broad student-loan forgiveness, reportedly considering $10,000 in relief for borrowers making under $150,000 a year. That announcement is expected in August, along with a decision on whether he will extend the student-loan payment pause past August 31. While Democratic lawmakers have been pushing for both an extension of the pause and broad debt cancellation, Republicans have pushed back on broad relief nearly every step of the way, and the legislation is just the latest of those efforts.
The programs that Republicans are hoping to cut, like PSLF, are ones that Biden's Education Department is in the process of reforming. For example, the department announced a waiver for PSLF that runs through October 31, 2022 that allows all past payments to qualify toward forgiveness progress, and it has already granted $8.1 billion in relief to 145,000 borrowers.
And while the Republican legislation is seeking to streamline income-driven repayment plans, which give borrowers affordable monthly payments based on their income with the promise of loan forgiveness after 20 or 25 years, the department is expected to announce a new, and simpler, income-based plan in the coming weeks.
Still, there continues to be uncertainty regarding the fate of student-loan borrowers as they continue to await news of a payment pause extension and debt cancellation. But what remains clear is that Democratic lawmakers hope the relief will be expansive while Republicans want the opposite.
|
2022-08-05T16:13:39Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
GOP Student-Debt Relief Plan Leaves Borrowers 'Worse Off': Bobby Scott
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/gop-student-loan-debt-relief-leaves-borrowers-worse-off-scott-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/gop-student-loan-debt-relief-leaves-borrowers-worse-off-scott-2022-8
|
Is Personal Capital right for you?
Personal Capital vs. Merrill Guided Investing
Personal Capital vs. Vanguard Personal Advisor Services
Ways to invest with Personal Capital
Personal Capital: Is it trustworthy?
Personal Capital — Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Personal Capital offers digital wealth management services, financial planning tools, and more.
Bottom line: Personal Capital is best for hands-off investors with at least $100,000 to dedicate to stocks, ETFs, private equities, or bonds. The platform also offers free financial planning tools and one-on-one financial advisor guidance, but its fees are on the higher side.
Personal Capital app
Free financial and wealth management tools; fees top that of traditional brick-and mortar-firms
Investment selection includes stocks, ETFs, bonds, and private equities; portfolio management for employer-sponsored plans (e.g., 401(k)s or 403(b)s)
Socially responsible investment strategies and tax optimization strategies
One-on-one financial advisor guidance
High management fees
Users need at least $100,000 to get started
Personal Capital is a digital platform offering wealth management, free financial tools, cash management accounts, and more. Since the lowest amount you can get started with is $100,000, the platform is best for high-net-worth clients.
The mobile app is available on iOS and Android devices.
$1,000 or $20,000, depending on account type
ETFs and mutual funds
Personal Capital and Merrill Guided Investing both suit hands-off investors who don't want to manage the daily legwork of maintaining an investment portfolio. Both of Merrill Edge's accounts — Merrill Guided Investing Online and Merrill Guided Investing with an Advisor — are better options for those in search of lower minimum requirements.
Personal Capital and Merrill Guided Investing offer similar fees, but Personal Capital is the better choice for investors who want access to a wider selection of investment types. Personal Capital's wealth management services and financial tools are also difficult to beat. Whereas Merrill Guided Investing offers the option of guidance from one advisor, two of Personal Capital's tiers of service offer access to multiple dedicated advisors.
When it comes to fees, you'll pay less in all aspects with the Vanguard Personal Advisor Services account. But Personal Capital's wealth management services give you access to more investment types than Vanguard Personal Advisor Services does.
Personal Capital clients with lower balances pay higher fees, and customers with higher balances pay lower fees. The same applies to Vanguard's wealth management account. Therefore, the highest you'll pay is 0.30% per year, and the lowest you'll pay is 0.05%.
Digital wealth management
Like many automated investing platforms, Personal Capital best suits investors who value a hands-off approach. The company separates its portfolio management offerings into three tiers:
Investment Services: This level is best for those with $100,000 to $200,000 in assets. It offers unlimited access to financial planning and retirement guidance. Plus, you'll get a personalized portfolio of ETFs, copious digital planning tools, and support from human advisors.
Wealth management: The wealth management tier takes things up a notch. It gives you two financial advisors who offer ongoing guidance and support, and it supplements this with a personalized portfolio, and tax optimization strategies. Plus, you'll be able to take advantage of specialists in real estate, stocks, and more. In order to qualify, you'll need to have more than $200,000 but not more than $1 million.
Private client: Reserved for those with more than $1 million in investment assets, this tier offers private equity investments, specialist support for wealth and retirement planning, two financial advisors, and priority access to its Investment Committee and specialists. Note, though, that the private equity option is only available to those with $5 million or more invested.
As for investment types, the first tier only offers ETFs. Personal Capital's wealth management tier offers ETFs and stocks, while its private client services focus on ETFs, stocks, bonds, and private equity investments.
Many robo-advisors primarily offer one asset choice (such as ETFs or mutual funds), so Personal Capital's investment selection tops the competition. It also uses Personal Strategy+ to manage employer-sponsored retirement plans such as 401(k)s and 403(b)s.
Compared to other digital advisors like Wealthfront and Fidelity Personalized Planning & Advice, Personal Capital's fees are quite high. The upside to this, though, is that it still charges less than what most traditional advisor firms charge. While Personal Capital charges 0.89%, traditional advisors usually charge 1%.
Investors can choose between two different portfolio strategies: The Personal Strategy and Socially Responsible Investing.
The Personal Strategy
With the Personal Strategy, Personal Capital invests your money into a globally diversified portfolio of stocks and ETFs. It relies on both its technology and advisor oversight to build portfolios, and each includes portfolio rebalancing, tax optimization strategies like tax-loss harvesting, smart weighting, and advisor access.
With this socially responsible investing portfolio, you can have the platform focus your portfolio on companies that have high environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) standards. Personal Capital primarily focuses on US and international equities and with these portfolios.
The Better Business Bureau gives Personal Capital a B+ rating to reflect its opinion of the investment platform's interactions with its customers. BBB ratings range from A+ to F, so this is a fairly high score.
The BBB also considers several other factors when reviewing companies. These include type of business, time in business, customer complaint history, advertising issues, and licensing and government actions. But since its ratings don't guarantee a company's reliability or performance, you should also do your due diligence before opening an account.
Personal Capital has closed 10 complaints in the last three years and seven complaints in the last 12 months. It doesn't have any unresolved complaints at this time, according to BBB data.
Is Personal Capital legitimate?
Yes. The platform offers its advisory services through Personal Capital Advisors Corporation, an SEC-registered investment advisor. All SEC-registered businesses are legally required to act as fiduciaries, meaning they must place client interests over their own.
The investment platform has also been in business since 2009, and it offers FDIC insurance.
Is Personal Capital free?
No. Personal Capital Personal Capital app charges annual asset-based fees, meaning the amount you pay per year depends on your account balance.
Is Personal Capital worth the fee?
Compared to other popular wealth management services, Personal Capital's management fees are on the higher side. Those with $1 million or less will have to pay 0.89% per year. The management fees decrease as your account balance increases, but the lowest you'll pay per year is 0.49% (this fee is for users who hold over $10 million).
It's best to completely examine your financial situation and weigh Personal Capital's benefits and drawbacks before opening an account.
Fiduciary: Fiduciaries are individuals or organizations who are legally required to act in each client's best interests.
Asset-based fees: Flat fees are constant throughout the year (e.g., Ellevest offers monthly flat rates of $1, $5, and $9), but asset-based fees take into account your balance. In other words, certain balances have different fees.
More: Personal Capital BI Graphics Tyler Le Merrill Guided Investing
Merrill Guided Investing with Advisor
|
2022-08-05T16:13:57Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Personal Capital Review: Pros, Cons, and Who Should Set up an Account
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/personal-capital-review
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/personal-capital-review
|
Newell Brands' school supplies — things like Sharpie markers, Paper Mate pens, Elmer's glue, and Expo dry-erase markers — continue to line parents' shopping baskets.
Competing for consumers' cash has become more challenging because of higher prices for necessities.
Newell Brands owns hundreds of brands including Sharpie, Elmer's, and Yankee Candle.
"The diversity of our portfolio is an advantage we leverage in this environment," its CEO said.
In the game Yahtzee, players get to roll the dice more than once to try and boost their score. When it comes to selling products to consumers, companies that hold numerous brands can also have a greater chance of finding a winning combination.
That's the strategy at Newell Brands, the company behind household names like Sharpie, Elmer's, and Yankee Candle. Consumers worried about rising costs for food, gas, and rent are favoring must-haves like school supplies and cutting back on extras like scented candles.
Ravi Saligram, Newell Brands' CEO, is confident that consumers will continue to spend on the company's broad product line despite high inflation.
"Our brands are resilient," Saligram told Insider. "The diversity of our portfolio is an advantage that we leverage in this environment."
Yet whatever benefits the company's product diversity brings, they won't spare Newell from all challenges.
The company's second-quarter revenue fell short of analysts' forecasts — though profits were ahead of expectations — and Newell lowered its full-year revenue and earnings outlooks. The company pointed to the strength of the US dollar, which has the effect of making US companies' products more expensive in foreign markets.
Despite the headwinds, some Wall Street analysts see a positive overall outlook for the company, noting it's the type of business that tends to hold up against inflation and rising interest rates.
American consumers are still spending despite higher costs, though what they're opening their wallets for is shifting. This means competing for consumers' diminished discretionary budgets is proving more challenging.
"Last year, you had the government stimulus and the childcare tax credit, which buoyed consumer balance sheets and spending power," Saligram said. "That's not there this year."
Newell Brands is leaning on the diversity of its stable of more than 100 brands to keep customers coming back. Here are some of the ways the company is hoping to navigate a tougher economic environment.
School reopenings are driving back-to-school sales
Back-to-school spending is on track to match last year's record of $37 billion, according to the National Retail Federation.
Newell Brands' school supplies — things like Sharpie markers, Paper Mate pens, Elmer's glue, and Expo dry-erase markers — continue to line parents' shopping baskets as students gear up to return to the classroom.
"We had both a good quarter and a good first half," Saligram said. "We're expecting a strong back-to-school season."
A prediction from Deloitte suggests the season will be strong: The consultancy's 2022 back-to-school survey indicated parents could spend up to 8% more this year — roughly $661 per student — on technology tools and traditional supplies.
"Our writing brands are necessities," Saligram said. "And when people are making hard choices, they're going to pay for what they consider a great value."
More people are cooking at home
During the days of pandemic lockdowns, consumers had little choice but to cook at home or, eventually, get takeout. Those extra hours in the kitchen forged a habit for many. Now, for some, rising prices are undercutting some of the excitement of going out to eat.
With brands including Rubbermaid food-storage containers, Ball canning jars, and FoodSaver vacuum-sealing systems, Newell Brands' food division can accommodate consumers who are forgoing takeout and restaurant tabs for homemade dishes and leftovers.
"There are several category trends that should benefit the food business in a more challenging and highly inflationary macro environment, including greater at-home-cooking occasions relative to pre-pandemic levels with hybrid work only accentuating this behavior," Saligram said on a recent conference call following the company's earnings report.
Given higher grocery bills, avoiding food waste is a priority for some consumers.
"We're seeing where FoodSaver and Rubbermaid are meeting consumer's needs in food storage," Saligram told Insider.
Cleaning has become a more serious affair
The onset of the pandemic changed the public's expectations of cleanliness, and that focus has consumers and commercial buyers snapping up more cleaning supplies.
With restaurants and hotels, office buildings, and schools reopening, Newell Brands' commercial division — which includes Rubbermaid industrial trash cans, Quickie mops, brooms, and dusters — benefits. The commercial division was Newell's top-performing business in the second quarter.
"As America and the world is opening up, our commercial business had a splendid quarter with about 10% growth," Saligram said.
Cleaning-industry insiders predict a desire for more intense cleaning will remain, just as dispensers of hand sanitizer are now fixtures in public places such as office buildings, schools, and airports.
Melissa Hockstad, the CEO of the American Cleaning Institute, told Chemical & Engineering News that many consumers' stepped-up attention to cleaning would likely endure even after the pandemic ends.
Some Gen Z consumers are spending big on wellness
While Saligram is leaning into Newell Brands' strengths amid economic headwinds, he plans to continue working to boost names that face a harder time when consumers become choosier. These include the company's home-fragrance business — names like Yankee Candle, WoodWick, and Chesapeake Bay Candle. The division saw strong growth last year as consumers spent more time at home. But the business suffered in the second quarter.
"As the pandemic recedes, there's more mobility — people are on the go. They're not using as many candles," Saligram said. As inflationary concerns persist, people see candles as discretionary, he added.
"The diversity of our portfolio is an advantage we leverage in this environment," Ravi Saligram, CEO of Newell Brands, said.
"Now they're minding their dollars," Saligram said. "Maybe if they were going to put it in all five rooms, now they may be putting in three rooms or four rooms. So that business has taken a little backstep."
Yankee Candle plans to unveil a line of candles in August called "The Friday Collective" to attract Gen Z consumers.
Gen Z consumers tend to prioritize wellness, research has shown. Health and wellness is the second-highest category of Gen Z spending, behind electronics and technology, according to 5W Public Relations' 2021 consumer report.
Some shoppers burn scented candles as a way to reduce and even prevent anxiety. With the launch of "The Friday Collective," Yankee Candle hopes to tap into Gen Z's penchant for zen.
"The brand is all about uplifting moods," Saligram said. "I'm very excited to engage a different population segment with this launch."
More: Newell Newell Rubbermaid Consumer spending School Supplies
earnings outlook 2022
|
2022-08-05T16:14:03Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Ravi Saligram, Newell Brands' CEO, Is Prepared for a Downturn
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/ravi-saligram-newell-brands-ceo-is-prepared-for-a-downturn-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/ravi-saligram-newell-brands-ceo-is-prepared-for-a-downturn-2022-8
|
Sofia Sukach
I'm a Ukrainian refugee who fled to Switzerland to escape the war.
Like millions of others, I feel guilty for leaving my country while so many people continue to suffer.
It's called "survivor's guilt," and I spoke with experts about how to manage it.
It was a day full of sunshine, blooming aroma and romantic vibes all around. As I rode a bicycle between lovely houses somewhere in Switzerland and enjoyed the fresh air, I briefly forgot why I was here. My heart filled with something close to happiness.
But out of nowhere I heard this judgmental voice in my head, reminding me what I left behind when I fled my home in Ukraine after the Russian invasion. The voice usually arises at midnight and brings me a portion of embarrassment and guilt.
"How dare you feel happy while kids and civilians in your homeland are killed by Russian weapons and shellings?" it asked. I'd escaped. They hadn't.
I didn't have an answer for that voice, but my innocent bike ride immediately turned into an unjustified crime.
I know I'm not the only one who feels this way; there are millions of others just like me
Some of us are ashamed to post pictures and look beautiful, while the others blame themselves for smiling and being alive.
In Ukraine, this war is happening not only on the frontline; it's also raging inside us. Instead of enemy bullets and rocket missiles — or in addition to them — we have complicated feelings of remorse and survivor's guilt.
Survivor's guilt isn't new
War and displacement often trigger such a reaction. Holocaust survivors felt it; when they escaped the Nazis' terror regime, they tended to question themselves about what they did, avoided doing, should have done differently.
I fled from the war on one of the very first days, so I didn't experience the trauma and terror people have since, That made me wonder: Why am I among the guilt's targets?
I asked experts to find out.
Illia Poludonnyi, Ukrainian psychotherapist and cofounder of treatfield.com, concludes based on his own observations that the guilt Ukrainians face today is closely related to the question of identity.
"Guilt comes to those who feel oneness with the bigger group they belong to," he told me. "In this case, we are talking about the whole nation, which is going through difficulties. On the one hand, when Ukrainians flee abroad, they don't forget the context of their previous life, so they can not easily switch and start enjoying coffee with other Europeans.
"But on the other hand, when they find themselves in a new environment, they naturally want to interact with it. And that's how they get a conflict between identity that constantly reminds them about the pain of their nation, and the people around who jauntily eat their morning croissants."
Swiss ACT therapist Jan Martz — who along with his family kindly let me and two more Ukrainian refugees to stay in his accommodations — says that guilt is often about things you haven't done that you think you could do. The action of leaving a dangerous place, while people you love or feel connected to are still there, may feel wrong. But Martz said the fact it feels wrong doesn't mean it is wrong.
Feeling guilt doesn't mean you are guilty
Of course, I understand that it's not my fault that Russia invaded my nation — and that I was too scared to not flee to my parents' place in Poland, and that the air sirens still don't allow Ukrainians to live without fear, so I chose to go to University of Zurich instead of returning to Kyiv. But even with all of those things, I still can't find a proper excuse for my actions.
"So how can I escape this feeling?" I asked Martz after my guilt-filled bike ride.
"When you are in danger, fleeing is the right thing to do," he said, "But running from the feeling you get afterwards doesn't make sense. Just accept it and be with it. The thing you can do which is not the same as escaping guilt is practicing to not blame yourself. This story which led to you sitting here now is a long story with many aspects and chapters most of which you haven't chosen. So it would be nice to stop blaming yourself, accept that the feeling of guilt probably won't go right after that and do the next thing you find brave, interesting or helpful for your country."
Poludonnyi also thinks running away from guilt isn't an option.
Sometimes guilt can have useful functions
"As long as this war continues and as long as we feel Ukrainian or experience our identity, we will feel guilty for something we have or haven't done," Poludonnyi said. "This helps to form the impact of an effective rear. Efficiency, which is often associated with stabilization, always wins. You can't help but feel guilty because of the strong ties you have with the group that is currently experiencing terrors. But being safe, you can afford to sleep, eat, stabilize, and start supporting the war efforts that Ukraine needs for the victory."
Martz agreed that feeling of guilt can motivate us to do something good according to our moral compass.
"But you don't have to feel guilty to help Ukraine," he said. "It is great to act not just because of a difficult feeling you want to overcome, but because of the bright vision of the future you have."
Martz finished our conversation with a beautiful quote I will never forget: "Guilt is something toward the past, but it's always better to look forward."
These words made me get back on my bicycle — not only to enjoy the ride, but to gather my thoughts on how to remind this world about my nation's pain and bravery.
More: war in Ukraine Ukrainian Refugees Ukraine Survivor's Guilt
BI-freelancers
|
2022-08-05T17:05:43Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
I'm a Ukrainian Refugee Grappling With 'Survivor's Guilt'
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/ukrainian-refugee-asked-experts-about-survivor-guilt-war-kyiv-ukraine-2022-6
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/ukrainian-refugee-asked-experts-about-survivor-guilt-war-kyiv-ukraine-2022-6
|
The Roomba, made by iRobot, has been on the market since 2002.
Amazon will buy Roomba-maker iRobot for $61 per share, or about $1.7 billion.
Roomba saw a pandemic-era boom, but revenue has dropped 30% since last year.
The deal signals Amazon's commitment to robotics following the launch of its home robot last year.
Amazon is making a big bet on robots with its latest acquisition.
The e-commerce giant announced Friday that it's buying iRobot — the company behind Roomba — in an all-cash deal valued at roughly $1.7 billion. It's Amazon's fourth-largest deal following its $4 billion acquisition of healthcare provider One Medical last month.
The acquisition marks a major coup for iRobot: Shares of the company closed around $50 on Thursday and Amazon will pay $61 per share, a 22% markup.
Roomba got a pandemic boost as more people spending time at home equated to a rise in robotic vacuum sales. But supply-chain challenges and a drop in orders in recent months have taken a toll on iRobot's bottom line: In its second quarter earnings, posted Friday, the company reported a 30% decline in revenue compared to 2021.
In an effort to cut costs, iRobot said Friday it will lay off 140 employees, or about 10% of its workforce.
While Amazon may be getting a deal on iRobot, it's gaining a popular home device and a wealth of in-home data collected over two decades. It's a signal that Amazon is committed to robotics, despite mixed reviews for its own home robot, Astro.
Amazon has big plans for its little robot
Amazon unveiled Astro, an autonomous home robot, in September 2021.
When Amazon unveiled Astro in September 2021, it was billed as a home security companion that could autonomously navigate your house.
But even Amazon insiders were divided over the $1,450 robot's viability: Some employees told Insider at the time that Astro could eventually have the same mainstream success as the Amazon Echo, while others predicted it would fail spectacularly.
Early reviews of Astro — which is still available by invitation-only — highlighted the robot's ability to learn its way around your space and keep an eye on your home, but noted that the robot mostly just got underfoot and wasn't worth the steep price tag.
The Wall Street Journal's Joanna Stern noted, perhaps prophetically, that Astro would be more helpful if it could also vacuum while it scoots around the house.
Indeed, even before Astro was unveiled, Amazon had big plans for its little robot. One employee told Insider last September that the long-term goal for Astro is to make it "the ultimate personal assistant" that could carry things and complete household chores, like vacuuming.
The ambitious goals for Astro may stem, in part, from the high stakes attached: Astro was Amazon founder Jeff Bezos' passion project, and he was closely involved in the development of the robot before he stepped down as CEO.
(In fact, Bezos' own kids seemingly predicted the marriage of Amazon and iRobot back in 2018, when they built their own home robot by taping together an Echo and Roomba.)
By buying iRobot, Amazon is gaining more than just another device to add to its robotics portfolio. Roomba has been on the market since 2002, which means that not only has iRobot had a 20-year head-start on home mapping and navigation, it also has two decades worth of customer data that could be highly valuable to Amazon's smart home objectives. (An Amazon spokesperson told Insider that protecting customer data is "incredibly important" to the company.)
Now that the Roomba is under the Amazon umbrella, some of those ambitions could take shape.
Ken Washington, who leads the Astro team as Amazon's vice president of consumer robotics, told GeekWire in an interview last month that the company is at the "beginning of the journey" when it comes to home robotics.
"Astro is our first consumer home robot," he said. "It's not going to be our last."
NOW WATCH: All the ways Amazon is taking over your house
More: Amazon Roomba iRobot Amazon Astro
|
2022-08-05T18:15:24Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Amazon Buying Roomba-Maker Signals Robotics, Smart Home Ambitions
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-buys-roomba-maker-irobot-robotics-smart-home-ambitions-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-buys-roomba-maker-irobot-robotics-smart-home-ambitions-2022-8
|
President Joe Biden, center, along with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, left, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi at the Capitol on January 6, 2022 in Washington, DC.
Photo by Stefani Reynolds-Pool/Getty Images
Just a few weeks ago, Democrats' agenda had pretty much withered away due to inaction.
But now legislative and ballot wins have put new winds in the sails of the flailing majority.
Even with the latest victories, Democrats face an uphill battle ahead of the midterms.
It was only weeks ago that it seemed Democrats were destined to leave most of their domestic priorities behind in the face of internal party splits and fierce GOP resistance.
Then came a deal that caught most of Congress flat-footed: a surprise, 725-page bill from key centrist Sen. Joe Manchin aimed at reining in prescription drug prices, extending financial assistance for Obamacare, and establishing over $300 billion in clean-energy tax credits amounting to the largest climate package in US history.
It marks a turning point for Democrats after multiple failures and puts some wind behind the party's back ahead of midterm elections.
"A lot of people have been critical of the president in the last year and a half — in particular the last eight months, talking about his administration," Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh told Insider. "If you take President Biden's first year and a half, will be two years within the year, and look what he's accomplished, he's accomplished as much as any, or if not more, than most administrations ever to hold that office."
However, even as Democrats are on the verge of approving their biggest domestic victory yet, the party still faces an uphill battle to keep control of Congress in the November midterms. With many young voters and progressive lawmakers disillusioned with Biden's pared-back bill and inaction, what Democrats do next may help to decide whether voters struggling with rising prices rethink the first two years of President Joe Biden's presidency.
Democrats had been losing — now they're notching victories
After the March 2021 passage of the American Rescue Plan, which sent out new stimulus checks (and continues to put direct deposits into some Americans' bank accounts), extended unemployment benefits, and turned the child tax credit into a more generous monthly check for parents, the Biden administration was riding high.
But the Build Back Better package was meant to be a follow up that never came. Since then, inflation has soared, Russia started a war in Ukraine, and the Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade, erasing the constitutional right to an abortion. It all seemed to spell bad news for Democrats, who saw their already-slim chances of midterm victory sinking.
In July, Biden saw his agenda blown up for the second time. Climate spending was out. Tax hikes were out.
It seemed like yet another nail in the coffin for what began as an ambitious list of priorities that would rewrite America's social safety net. When it was promptly struck down, confidence in Congress, Democrats, and Biden himself dwindled.
Then came the deal.
It seemed like almost an uncharacteristically strategic maneuver by the traditionally reticent Democrats: Manchin, a West Virginia centrist who had already killed Democrats' proposed spending packages twice, had crafted the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer.
That deal came on the heels of a bipartisan package to revive America's physical infrastructure, and the also-bipartisan passage of CHIPS, a package meant to bulk up the US's semiconductor industry and stoke competition with China. The timing of Schumer and Manchin's deal — notably after those legislative victories — meant that Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell had lost his bargaining power.
Republicans turned then to Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, who had previously torpedoed Democrats' spending ambitions by pushing back on any tax hikes. As expected, she excised a tax targeting wealthy investors — but then signed on to the rest of the package.
It amounts to legislative whiplash, with Sinema suddenly holding the defibrillators for the once-dead Biden agenda. She might just shock it back to life — along with Democrats' still-slim chances of a midterm victory.
There are wins on the ballot, too
At the same time, voters are pushing back against GOP priorities at the ballot box. In Kansas, voters were presented with a referendum that would've gotten rid of the right to abortion in the state.
The red state not only overwhelmingly voted no, but voter turnout surged — a potentially bad sign for Republicans who were banking on disappointed voters not to turn out for Democrats, as Insider's Grace Panetta reports.
The voters who did show up to shoot down that referendum weren't necessarily Democrats. Of the 19 counties that voted down the referendum, 14 voted for Trump in 2020.
Democrats are taking it as a positive sign, with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer saying it shows "winds blowing" in the direction of Democrats. Meanwhile, political consultants are scrambling to figure out what, exactly, this could mean going forward.
If Schumer is right — especially as the Biden agenda sees a remarkable turnaround — it might mean winds blowing just a bit more towards the flailing Democrats.
But the odds still aren't in Democrats' favor
When Manchin went back to revive Democrats' spending package, he had the looming midterms in mind.
Right now, Democrats' razor-thin majority in the Senate makes Manchin and Sinema's votes extra consequential. But the possibility of a continued Democratic Congress is still slipping away rapidly in the upcoming midterm elections.
The Inflation Reduction Act is, as the name suggests, aimed at reducing inflation. But that doesn't mean it will bring down prices immediately. Sky-high inflation is a bad sign for Democrats, since consumers have less disposable income — which Goldman Sachs analysts have said is the "strongest predictor of midterm election results."
Polling also looks bleak for the Democrats, with Republicans still favored to win the House.
The new package also moves away from progressive priorities like affordable child care, paid leave, and a higher minimum wage, showing that Biden still needs to acquiesce to the more conservative parts of his party if he wants to pass anything for the time being. That could be a roadblock for the young voters who turned out in spades in 2020 — and won the whole thing for Biden — but find themselves disillusioned with how much Democrats' priorities have been pared back.
And, of course, this all still hinges on the big if: Democrats passing the package. The countdown clock is looming with a final passage expected in days.
"Now, obviously, the election season's coming up," Walsh said. Republicans are going to pick on inflation being high, he said.
He concluded: "What they can't ignore is that American workers are making more money. More American workers are back to work. And we have industries, quite honestly, that were lost under Republican administrations that are going to come back under President Biden's administration."
More: Economy Biden administration Biden agenda Inflation Reduction Act
|
2022-08-05T18:15:30Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Inflation Reduction Act Gives Democrats New Hope As Midterms Approach
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/biden-inflation-reduction-act-midterm-election-impact-outlook-climate-bill-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/biden-inflation-reduction-act-midterm-election-impact-outlook-climate-bill-2022-8
|
Understanding your financial needs
1. Search for financial advisor options in your area
2. Review a financial advisor's credentials
3. Review fee structures
Online financial advisors vs. traditional advisors
How to find a financial advisor who is right for you
Alistair Berg/Getty
A financial advisor can help you plan for retirement, build an investment portfolio, budget your money to reach your financial goals, and much more.
When hiring an advisor or planner, make sure to consider their specialties and certifications.
Also consider how they charge: a flat fee, hourly rate, retainer, percentage of assets, or commission.
Hiring a financial advisor or a financial planner can help you achieve your short- or long-term goals — like having a comfortable retirement, funding your child's college tuition, or buying a house.
These professionals aren't one-size-fits-all, though, and finding the right one is critical to your success. Here's what you need to know about financial advisors and planners, and how to zero in on the best one for your goals and budget.
Compare our picks for the best online financial advisors
SoFi Automated Investing
Blooom Automated Investing
$0 - $100,000
0.25% annually (charged monthly)
$12 - $97 annually (charged monthly)
$120 - $395 annually
On Betterment's website
On Ellevest's website
On Blooom's website
To choose the right financial advisor or planner, you first need to understand what you're trying to achieve. Are you looking to maximize your retirement funds? Do you want to make more from your investments? Is planning your estate and legacy top of mind?
Financial professionals typically have specialties, so you'll want to choose one that aligns closely with your goals. Common financial planning specialties include:
There are also advisors and planners who specialize in specific life stages, demographics, or even people with certain occupations.
"When looking for a financial planner, it is important to understand exactly what you're looking for," says Jay Zigmont, a CFP® planner and founder of Childfree Wealth, which focuses on financial planning for adults who choose not to have children. "You will find planners who specialize in just about every group, job, and life stage, so find one that fits you."
Choosing a financial planner who's a fiduciary is also important. This means they must avoid conflicts of interest and always put your interests first.
"A planner that operates under the fiduciary standard is required by law to always keep your financial best interests ahead of theirs," says Jason Steeno, president of financial advisory firm CoreCap Investments in Southfield, Michigan.
Plan for your future with a financial planner
There are many ways to find a financial advisor or planner near you. Asking friends, family members, and colleagues is often a good place to start, as they can recommend local professionals they've had personal experience with.
You can also use one of these online resources, all of which allow you to filter by geographic area:
Financial Planning Association: FPA's tool lets you search for CFP® professionals in your area, and you can filter by specialty, compensation type, and certification.
National Association of Personal Financial Advisors: With NAPFA's search tool, you enter your ZIP code and can filter planners based on their distance from you. There's also a map you can use to view all your options in one place.
Let's Make a Plan: This is the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards' search tool. You can search by location, services offered, or both. All planners listed are CFP® professionals.
XY Planning Network: XY's tool lets you search for fee-only financial advisors (more on this below) in your area. You can look by location and filter results using various keywords and specialties.
Once you've shortlisted a few names, cross-check them on BrokerCheck.com and with the Securities and Exchange Commission. There, Steeno says, "You can see how long they've been in business or if they've had any disciplinary history."
There isn't a single "financial planner" or "financial advisor" license or certification. As Steeno puts it, "Just about anyone can call themselves a financial planner."
To ensure you're choosing an experienced and knowledgeable professional, look for professional designations like CFP®, CFA, or CIMA. These are just a few credentials a financial advisor can seek, each indicating a different specialty or skill set.
Here's a look at some of the credentials you might see:
CFP®: A CFP® is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNERTM. These professionals must have a bachelor's degree, three years minimum in full-time financial planning, and complete a board-certification program. CFP®s also must take 30 hours of continuing education every two years.
CFA: CFA professionals must take a three-part exam focusing on investment tools, assets, wealth planning, and portfolio management to be certified.
CIMA: Professionals with a CIMA designation are Certified Investment Management Analysts. CIMAs are required to have three years of experience in financial services and enroll in a CIMA education course at the Yale School of Management, The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, or the Investment Management Research Program in Australia.
MRFC: An MRFC is a Master Registered Financial Consultant. These professionals need at least four years of full-time financial planning experience, have a bachelor's degree in accounting, economics, or finance, and complete 40 hours of continuing education every year.
ChFC: ChFCs are Chartered Financial Consultants. They must have at least three years of full-time business experience, complete 27 credit hours of courses, and receive 30 continuing education credits every two years.
CRC: This one is a Certified Retirement Counselor. They must have two years of professional retirement planning experience, pass a specialized certification exam, and take 15 hours of continuing education courses annually.
You can usually find a planner's credentials listed after their name — both in the online search resources under Step 1 and on their professional profile or LinkedIn account.
Important: There are many other designations and credentials a financial professional can hold. To look up a specific one you've seen, use this glossary from the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA).
There are many ways a financial advisor may charge you, so be sure you understand how they charge before working with them. Some services are charged based on the assets or investments the planner manages, while others charge flat fees or receive commissions. How they charge can influence how much you'll end up spending to work with a financial planner so it's always important to research this part beforehand.
Here's a look at some of the various fee structures financial planners use:
Fee-only: Fee-only planners are paid for the services they provide. This might mean an hourly rate, a flat fee, or a retainer of some sort. Fee-only planners do not receive commissions or kickbacks from the products and policies they recommend.
AUM: Assets Under Management is another fee-only approach. With this fee structure, you'll pay a set percentage of the total assets your planner manages.
Commission: Commissioned financial planners get compensated based on the products they sell to you. This can cause a conflict of interest, as it motivates them to recommend certain products, even if they're not best suited to your needs.
Fee-based: A fee-based model is a combination of fee-only and commission structures. You may pay a fee for the planner's service, and they also may receive a commission for certain products they recommend to you.
Generally speaking, most professionals recommend seeking someone who is fee-only, as this ensures they have your best interests at heart. This includes AUM-based models, which motivate the planner to grow your assets (and avoid losses).
"It ensures the advisor's interests are in line with yours," Steeno says. "They want your assets to increase in value just as you do."
Fee-only Fee-based
The planner is paid based on services provided The planner is paid based on the services provided and the products they recommend
May include a flat fee, hourly rate, retainer, or AUM approach May include a combination of commissions and fees
Ensures the planner puts your interests first May encourage planners to put their interests before your own
You don't have to meet with a financial advisor or planner in person to get professional help. Many financial advisors offer online services that allow you to get the guidance you need without leaving your home. These usually include phone and video calls, in which you "meet" your planner virtually over Zoom, Skype, or another similar service.
These can be a good option if you want faster, more convenient service or to work with a planner not in your geographic area.
There are also robo-advisors, which can be used for building and managing your investment portfolio. They're typically more affordable than using a real-life advisor and have low starting balance requirements, but they're also less comprehensive and personalized. Robo-advisors typically won't help with budgeting, estate planning, tax planning, or other non-investment services.
As Rob Burnette, an MRFC and chief executive officer of Outlook Financial Center in Troy, Ohio, explains, "Robo-advisors are only useful for the investment part of a financial plan."
Important: Most major investment brokerages offer robo-advisor services. Examples include Charles Schwab's Intelligent Portfolios, Fidelity's Go, and Vanguard's Digital Advisor.
In some cases, robo-advisors may include interactions with a live advisor (sometimes for an added fee). But it's usually not a dedicated account professional, and you may be limited on how many times you can interact with them. This means less consistency and personal guidance than you'd get with a financial planner you hired directly.
"Robo-advisors generally offer a one-size-fits-most solution," says Kris Maksimovich, a CRC and president at Global Wealth Advisors based in Lewisville, Texas. "They lack personalization and input and don't offer hand-holding during periods of market volatility."
Robo-advisor Online financial advisor service
Can help you build an investment portfolio quickly and easily May be more efficient and convenient than meeting a planner in person
Lower cost than traditional financial planners Allows you to work with a financial planner located anywhere
Services are less personalized to your needs Gives you personalized guidance and consistency
Does not include non-investment services, like budgeting, tax planning, or estate planning May be harder to build a personal relationship with your planner
A financial advisor or financial planner can help you achieve your long-term goals but choose yours carefully. There are many types of financial planners, and their specialty, costs, credentials, and services should all play a role in your decision.
Don't be afraid to interview a few candidates. Set up introductory meetings with two or three professionals, and use the time to ask questions, understand their processes and fees, and make sure they're a good fit before moving forward.
PERSONAL FINANCE 7 reasons why you should consider meeting with a financial planner
PERSONAL FINANCE How to find a woman financial planner
More: Financial Advisor Financial Planner Personal Finance Insider PFI Reference
|
2022-08-05T18:36:43Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
3 Steps to Find & Hire a Financial Advisor
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/how-to-find-financial-advisor
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/how-to-find-financial-advisor
|
Magic Empire Global stock soared as much as 5,799% in its IPO debut on Friday.
The move in the Hong Kong-based stock comes just days after shares of AMTD Digital saw a wild rally of more than 32,000% from its IPO debut.
One thing in common both companies have is the low-float nature of their shares outstanding.
Shares of Magic Empire Global soared as much as 5,799% in its IPO debut on Friday as another obscure Hong Kong-based company saw wild trading activity.
Magic Empire Global, a finance company that offers advisory and underwriting services, priced its IPO at $4 per share on Thursday. The stock hit a high of $235.95 on Friday. Magic Empire sold 5 million shares to raise $20 million in gross proceeds from the offering. No apparent news was behind the move higher, similar to the more than 32,000% gain AMTD Digital stock saw earlier this week.
Since AMTD Digital's stock peak on Tuesday, the stock has fallen as much as 79% as selling pressure starts to outweigh buying pressure.
Another thing in common between Magic Empire Global and AMTD Digital is that both companies have a low-float of shares outstanding available to trade by investors. That means it doesn't take much buying pressure to push the stock higher.
Retail traders may be helping drive the gains in Magic Empire, with data from Fidelity showing it the sixth most actively traded stock on its platform on Friday. Fidelity buy orders from its customers totaled 5,044, while there were only 474 sell orders, showcasing the lopsided nature of a stock price when its shares are experiencing such a wide imbalance in supply and demand.
Magic Empire's market valuation topped $4.7 billion at its intraday peak on Friday, despite the fact that the company only generated $2.1 million in revenue in 2021, according to its S-1 filed with the SEC.
Since AMTD Digital's stock peak on Tuesday, the stock has fallen as much as 79% from its peak as selling pressure starts to outweigh buying pressure. Whether Magic Empire follows the same pattern as AMTD Digital remains to be seen.
|
2022-08-05T20:08:17Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
China-Based Magic Empire Global Stock Price Soars 5,799% in IPO Debut
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/magic-empire-global-megl-stock-price-soars-in-ipo-debut-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/magic-empire-global-megl-stock-price-soars-in-ipo-debut-2022-8
|
How Citizens works
Is Citizens trustworthy?
Citizens vs. BrioDirect
Citizens vs. Bread Savings
Citizens is the online division of Citizens Bank, an East Coast-based institution.
Citizens Bank; Insider
The bottom line: Citizens is a great option for earning a high interest rate on a high-yield savings account or CD. But it won't be ideal if you don't have a lot of money for an initial deposit, because a minimum of $5,000 is needed to open an account.
Compare saving account rates
Earn 1.75% APY on a high-yield savings account
High CD rates
Can add a joint bank account owner
May not be able to quickly access savings (no checks, ATM card, or debit card)
Can't deposit cash or wire transfers (you must transfer money using an external bank account or deposit a check)
Lackluster mobile app ratings
Online-only division of Citizens Bank
Interest compounded daily, deposited monthly
The Citizens Online Access Savings Account is a solid high-yield savings account if you have at least $5,000 for a minimum opening deposit. According to the FDIC, the average savings account earns 0.10% APY. However, you'll earn 1.75% APY through Citizens' online savings account.
If the minimum opening deposit is too steep, many other banks have lower initial deposit requirements — check out our best high-yield savings account guide for options.
Citizens CDs might be suitable if you're exploring terms between one year and five years.
The minimum opening deposit to open a CD is high compared to other financial institutions. Most banks require at least $1,000 to get a CD, but Citizens CDs call for at least $5,000.
Citizens also has an 11-month liquid CD, which is a CD that lets you withdraw money before the end of a term. However, the Citizens 11-month liquid CD isn't available for new customers to open right now.
Citizens is the online-only division of Citizens Bank. The online institution has a high-yield savings account and CDs. It also offers mortgages and student loan refinancing. Anyone in the US who is over the age of 18 can open a Citizens savings account or CD. If you live near a Citizens Bank, you're still eligible for accounts with Citizens.
Customer service is available by phone or live chat. If you have questions about the savings account or CDs, you may call from 6 a.m. to 12 a.m. ET on weekdays, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET on Saturdays, or 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET on Sundays.
The online institution's mobile app is rated 3.7 out of 5 stars in the Apple store and 2.6 out of 5 stars in the Google Play store.
Citizens is FDIC insured, which means up to $250,000 is secure in an individual bank account, and $500,000 is protected in joint bank accounts.
Citizens trustworthiness and BBB rating
The Better Business Bureau rates banks based on whether they respond effectively to customer complaints, advertise honestly, and have transparent business practices.
Citizens Bank received an A+ rating from the BBB. A strong BBB rating doesn't necessarily guarantee your relationship will be strong, though. Consider reading online customer reviews or talking to customers of Citizens Bank to see if it might be a good match.
The bank has been involved in one recent public controversy. In 2020, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau filed a lawsuit against Citizens Bank that said the bank violated the Truth in Lending Act because it didn't effectively address customer issues regarding credit cards.
BrioDirect is an online-only division of Webster Bank. See how the two online institutions compare below.
CD APY
Your decision between these two institutions may depend on the accounts you'd like to open.
You'll earn a higher interest rate on the BrioDirect savings account than with the Citizens Online Access Savings Account. However, in terms of CDs, you'll likely receive a higher interest rate at Citizens than you would with BrioDirect.
BrioDirect is a better option if you're searching for more CD terms or a money market account. Citizens only offers a savings account and CDs.
We compared Citizens to Bread Savings, an online-only institution with a high-yield savings account and CDs.
If you're strictly searching for the highest interest rates, then Bread Savings will probably be more appealing than Citizens. The Bread Savings High-Yield Savings Account and Bread Savings High-Yield CD pay higher interest rates than what many traditional and online banks pay right now — including Citizens.
You also may prefer Bread Savings to Citizens if you don't have a lot of money to deposit upfront. Citizens accounts require a minimum opening deposit of $5,000. At Bread Savings, you'll need $100 to open the bank's savings account or $1,500 to open a CD.
Citizens might be worthwhile if you would prioritize customer service availability. Citizens customer support is available by phone or live chat. Meanwhile, if you need to contact customer support at Bread Savings, your only option is to call.
Is Citizens the same as Citizens Access?
Yes, Citizens is the online-only division of Citizens Bank, and it was previously known as Citizens Access.
Does Citizens Bank offer a high-yield savings account?
You won't be able to open a high-yield savings account at a Citizens Bank branch, but its online-only division has a high-yield savings account called the Citizens Online Access Savings Account.
Is Citizens a good bank?
Citizens may be worthwhile if you are searching for savings accounts or CDs with competitive interest rates. It's accounts pay higher rates than most traditional banks.
Citizens has high minimum opening deposits, though. You'll need at least $5,000 to open a savings account or CD.
PERSONAL FINANCE How to know if you should keep your money in a bank if you're worried about a recession
More: Citizens Citizens Access Savings Citizens Access CD Bread Savings
|
2022-08-05T20:08:23Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Citizens Review: Competitive High-Yield Savings Account and CDs
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/citizens-access-online-banking-review
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/citizens-access-online-banking-review
|
Housing markets from Phoenix to Boise are cooling so fast that they've caught some of the biggest buyers off guard
Alex Nicoll and James Rodriguez
Homebuyer demand is dropping, spelling trouble for companies that buy homes then sell them quickly.
Opendoor, Offerpad, and Redfin expect to sell much of their inventory at a loss.
The effect is worst in markets like Phoenix that were iBuyer darlings earlier in the pandemic.
Julie Essig, a real-estate agent in Boise, Idaho, often tells her sellers to first see what they can get by cutting a deal with Opendoor, one of several property-technology companies that buy up homes quickly with cash and then sell them for a profit.
But she's never advised one of her clients to take an offer from the so-called iBuyer — until this spring, as home mortgage rates were marching higher.
In May, at what Essig described as the peak of Boise's real-estate market, one of her clients sold a home to Opendoor for $521,400, she told Insider. The company soon relisted the home for $5,600 more.
"I was really surprised at how much they were offering. I would have listed it at $485,000," Essig told Insider.
She suggested that her client take the offer since their take-home haul from the transaction, minus Opendoor's fees, would be the same and they wouldn't need to widely list the home.
More than 45 days later, the property remains on the market, priced at $459,000 after four price cuts since the beginning of June. The price dropped almost $50,000 in July alone.
Essig has a front-row seat to the rapidly cooling housing market in Boise, which was recently identified by Moody's Analytics as America's most overpriced market. The fallout of rising interest rates and excessive exuberance earlier in the pandemic has beset that city and similarly hot locales that were favorites for Opendoor and other iBuyers, which have suddenly found themselves scrambling to stanch losses.
This correction, driven by mortgage rates that have increased at unprecedented speeds, is palpable for executives leading Opendoor and Offerpad. They downgraded their expectations for the third quarter during earnings presentations this week. iBuyers bear the brunt of plunging home prices, as they have to carry the downside risk until they're able to resell the homes.
Shareholders in the companies saw a bit of "The Hunger Games" among iBuyers. Shares of Offerpad, a smaller iBuyer, plummeted more than 15% after its earnings report, while Opendoor's stock surged by an equivalent amount after delivering its financials for the period.
Now, iBuyers are planning to sell off homes at a loss to get them off their balance sheets, an eerie reminder of the behavior that sank Zillow's iBuying division last year, though not at the same scale or for the same reasons.
The pain isn't felt evenly across the country or across the iBuyers' portfolios.
"The markets that have seen the greatest rates of price appreciation are being impacted the most," Offerpad CEO Brian Blair said as he reported the company's second-quarter earnings.
Blair said the company was "slowing acquisitions temporarily" in markets such as Phoenix because of the recent volatility. He identified these sorts of markets as the main source of the company's $21.2 million in home-price-related write-downs from April to June.
Opendoor is seeing the same dynamic
Daniel Morillo, Opendoor's chief investment officer, said the company's East Coast markets were performing well, particularly in the southeast and Florida. The central markets are more of a mixed bag, he said, and Western markets like Phoenix; Las Vegas; Sacramento, California; and Tucson, Arizona, are "a bit more challenged."
A quick shift in the market takes iBuyers by surprise
iBuyers like Opendoor and Offerpad have been gearing up for a slowdown — after all, record transaction volumes and home-price appreciation couldn't last forever. But they didn't anticipate just how fast the market would cool, Carrie Wheeler, Opendoor's chief financial officer, told analysts during the earnings call.
That rapid shift in the market has left iBuyers holding the bag on homes they purchased just months earlier. The iBuying business of Redfin, a real-estate brokerage with lower fees than traditional brokerages, will likely take a loss on homes it purchased in April and May after factoring in holding costs, selling costs, and repairs, its CEO, Glenn Kelman, said during the company's earnings call this week.
June and July are less of a concern, Kelman said, because the company bought fewer homes those months and paid less for them.
Those losses "won't be enough to sink our battleship," Kelman said, expressing the belief that the iBuying business would weather this transition period.
"Our forecast assumes home prices keep declining moderately through the rest of 2022, but we still expect our properties division to earn a significant gross profit for the full year," Kelman told analysts during the call.
Kelman acknowledged that iBuyers were playing a role in the housing market's speedy cooldown. In 2017, the fraction of inventory that was sold by iBuyers, homebuilders, and other institutions was 27%. That figure is now nearly 35%, Kelman said. Unlike average homeowners, these types of sellers are quick to cut prices when homes aren't selling, he added.
"iBuyers price the listing below every current comparable and price it even lower if it doesn't get an offer in the opening weekend," Kelman said. "This makes market corrections sharper but maybe also shorter, too. The good news is that buyers are already responding to drops in prices and mortgage rates."
A short market correction would be good news for Offerpad and Blair, who said a buyer's market was better for iBuyers. The challenge is the transition period.
"The hardest place to be is when it transitions from a seller's to buyer's market," Blair said. "That transition period at the very top, that's where it gets more foggy than ever before. And that's exactly where we're at in this cycle right now."
More: Real Estate PropTech iBuyers Opendoor
|
2022-08-05T20:08:35Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
The Rapidly Cooling Housing Market Caught the Biggest Buyers Off Guard
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/rapidly-cooling-housing-market-caught-biggest-buyers-off-guard-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/rapidly-cooling-housing-market-caught-biggest-buyers-off-guard-2022-8
|
Shopify funded lavish team getaways to a French castle and other far-flung locales just weeks before blindsiding workers with layoffs, insiders say
Harley Finkelstein, the president of Shopify, has touted the benefits of "bursts," or off-site trips.
Shopify announced on July 26 that it would lay off more than 1,000 employees.
Just weeks before the cuts, the company was still funding off-site trips, former employees say.
Company execs have touted the trips as a way to foster connections between remote workers.
On July 26, more than 1,000 Shopify employees found out that they would be losing their jobs.
The news came as a surprise to many, according to recently laid-off employees who spoke with Insider.
Shopify had been on a hot streak in 2020 and much of 2021, thanks to the pandemic fueling demand for its products. The company was highlighting its plans to invest heavily back into the business, particularly in fulfillment. It was still hiring aggressively and approving trips for employees to meet up for team-building exercises to far-flung, luxurious destinations.
These trips continued in 2022, even as e-commerce sales slowed, Shopify's stock plummeted, and employee backlash around compensation grew. Earlier this summer, as a possible recession loomed and Shopify began canceling some internships and slowing hiring, the company still wasn't sounding alarm bells internally, according to employees who were part of the layoffs.
Several said they didn't expect Shopify would have to resort to mass layoffs. The company had even announced plans to overhaul compensation to appease employees.
But Shopify's workforce had essentially doubled during the pandemic, from about 5,000 at the end of 2019 to more than 10,000 at the end of 2021, according to Securities and Exchange Commission filings.
In his July memo announcing the layoffs, CEO Tobi Lütke acknowledged the company had over-hired while misjudging e-commerce's growth trajectory. Now, growth was stalling, and about 10% of the company would need to be let go, Lütke wrote.
"I think they were stringing a lot of people along," one former employee who was laid off told Insider. "A lot of people were super blindsided by this."
Insider spoke with nine employees who were laid off from Shopify over the past few months. All spoke on the condition of anonymity out of fear of professional repercussions. Their identities are known to Insider.
'I don't think any of us saw it coming to this'
Prior to the layoffs, employees said that the company wasn't showing many signs of struggle, despite a worsening macro environment and a falling stock price.
The company had set an ambitious target of hiring 2,021 new employees in 2021, although it remains unclear whether or not this hiring goal was met. Despite mentions of a hiring slowdown earlier this summer, employees said that the hiring pullback didn't seem like cause for concern.
One employee laid off from Shopify's design team said that 2020 and 2021 were "kind of an odd anomaly in terms of growth and stuff, so now we're going to be pulling back, but OK, we're pulling back, so we got in at the right time."
The former employee said that it seemed Shopify was shifting away from the explosive growth it had seen throughout the pandemic and readjusting to a more typical environment.
"I don't think any of us saw it coming to this," he told Insider. "It was more just like, 'OK, that exponential growth is done.'"
A Shopify spokesperson told Insider that the layoffs were conducted "to streamline our business and emerge from this market even stronger." Most of the affected jobs were in recruiting, support, and sales, and "overspecialized and duplicate roles" were eliminated.
"We are confident these actions will help us remain laser-focused and contribute to the success of our millions of merchants around the world," they said.
The large layoff came on the heels of several smaller, little-publicized cuts this spring and summer. Several former employees said they had heard about those job cuts when they happened, but that those layoffs were dismissed internally as being performance-related.
But at least three former employees who were laid off earlier in the summer said they were told they were being let go because of a reorganization, not a performance issue.
These layoffs came "completely out of nowhere," one employee who was let go in an earlier round of layoffs said.
Another employee described Shopify management's actions as "leading you on to make you think that everything's super great, and then just drop you."
Shopify's offices in Toronto before the company went remote.
'No sense of dread or negativity'
Even as e-commerce demand slowed and the company's stock price slid, Shopify continued to send teams on off-site trips, or "bursts," as they were called internally. These trips were designed to build morale and foster connections between remote workers. Lütke announced on Twitter early in the pandemic that many Shopify employees would transition to permanently remote roles, declaring that "office centricity is over."
Bursts were held in designated locations that Shopify calls "ports," which could be owned and operated by Shopify or by a partner company. Some were held at luxury hotels like The Ranch at Laguna Beach in California or the Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge in Alberta, Canada.
Before they were laid off, the former design employee had just returned from a burst in France, where he said his team was told it was meeting or exceeding its goals.
"Having just come back from all this stuff, there was no sense of dread or negativity," the former design employee said. "Everyone was excited."
Other burst sites included locations in Germany and Las Vegas, and a French château, employees said. A video about bursts posted to LinkedIn by Shopify showcases ports in San Francisco, Toronto, and Berlin.
"The bursts, I think, are meant to keep people at Shopify," another former employee, also laid off from the design team, said. "You're like, 'Well, I can't quit. I have a flight to France and then a flight to Germany.'"
In a statement, Shopify described bursts as "highly intentional, in-person gatherings a few times a year … for teams to collaborate, create, build relationships, and learn together."
Two laid-off employees said they had noticed bursts being scaled back slightly in the past several months. They said the number of employees allowed to go on bursts was being restricted, and that some trips were being limited to former offices or other locations that wouldn't require as much travel.
"I think part of it was because some teams were just going rogue and just going all the time and for whatever reasons," one former employee said.
When asked for comment on bursts continuing before the layoffs this summer, the Shopify spokesperson told Insider the "reduction in workforce was not an exercise in cost-cutting."
"As noted in the letter from Tobi, the decision was made to recalibrate our business to match the more normalized growth curve we are seeing coming out of the pandemic," they continued.
Shopify executives have previously touted the benefits of bursts.
"I would actually go as far as to say that it is way more valuable to do more of these intensive, mindful periods of a couple of days together than it is to do every Tuesday together in an office where everyone's kind of on their own and just happens to be sitting in the same group," Shopify's president, Harley Finkelstein, told Fortune in a May interview.
In the interview, Finkelstein also said that Shopify was converting some of its former office spaces into ports that could host bursts.
Two months later, Shopify announced layoffs the day before a somber, second-quarter earnings report.
"Management has kind of finally come to their senses, probably two quarters later than most in the e-commerce universe, to concede that things are fundamentally different than how they envisioned that they would be," Ken Wong, the managing director of software research at Oppenheimer & Co., said to Insider.
"The 10% cut in head count is the official waving of the white flag," Wong said.
Are you a current or former employee of Shopify with a tip about the company or a story to share? Contact these reporters via email at mstone@insider.com or agehan@insider.com. You can also reach them via the secure messaging app Signal at +1 (646) 889-2143 or +1 (646) 374-8461 using a nonwork device.
More: E-Commerce Shopify Layoffs
|
2022-08-05T20:08:41Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Shopify Sent Workers on Lavish Trips Shortly Before Layoffs
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/shopify-still-sending-workers-offsite-burst-trips-shortly-before-layoffs-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/shopify-still-sending-workers-offsite-burst-trips-shortly-before-layoffs-2022-8
|
Ryan Joe, Belle Lin, and Ashley Stewart
Ariel Kelman, the former CMO of Oracle.
Ariel Kelman, the top marketing exec Oracle poached from AWS, left the database giant in June.
Sources say his departure comes after a dispute with CEO Safra Catz over budgets.
Kelman had led splashy marketing deals for Oracle like pushing deeper into sports sponsorships.
It's been a time of turmoil for thousands of Oracle employees as the company began layoffs this week, gutting entire teams while reorganizing others, according to multiple current and former employees. Employees have described the atmosphere as chaotic and demoralizing.
None of the units have been harder hit than Oracle's marketing department, specifically those performing marketing functions for advertising, marketing and customer experience (CX) products, sources told Insider.
The layoffs come after chief marketing officer Ariel Kelman left in June, multiple people told Insider. Kelman's departure came as a surprise to many within his unit, sources say, with no official communication regarding his exit.
"Everything was going great, and then all of a sudden Ariel was exited," said a person working at Oracle in marketing at the time. "And then they went dark. No one told us a thing."
A second person in marketing at the time described the atmosphere around Kelman as "very hush-hush," forcing marketing staffers to discuss the news on Zoom, outside of official company Slack channels.
When Kelman was hired in January 2020, it was seen as something of an industry coup for Oracle to poach one of AWS's top marketing executives. Oracle offered Kelman a "unique opportunity to build out a marketing department and be part of an ongoing cloud transformation project at one of the most important technology companies in the past 30 years," Kelman told Insider in August of 2020.
However, three people said Kelman's departure came after a dispute with Oracle CEO Safra Catz related to cloud marketing spending. Oracle and Kelman did respond to requests for comment.
"They claim Ariel Kelman way overspent, way over-committed," said a person familiar with the marketing organization.
Kelman led splashy marketing deals for Oracle like pushing deeper into sports sponsorships.
In February, the Red Bull Formula One car racing team announced that Oracle had become a title sponsor and the team was changing its name to Oracle Red Bull Racing. The Red Bull F1 team is one of sports' top teams, so such a prominent naming deal would not come cheap: Terms weren't disclosed but the AP reported that Oracle had committed $500 million in technology over five years.
Oracle was already a sponsor of the Golden State Warriors basketball team and is also a sponsor of the Premier League, and SailGP.
But, according to one person familiar, marketing budgets for various products during Kelman's tenure — even for teams pursuing tried-and-true sales tactics like industry conferences — had been slashed to virtually nothing. Teams wanting to attend conferences to demo their wares to prospective customers were told to use other budgets, like that belonging to the sales team, this person said.
A source who was let go during the latest rounds of layoffs said the paltry marketing support made it difficult for some of Oracle's cloud products to compete.
"We did not invest in the right advertising, like YouTube ads and Google ads and TV ads," this source said. "Salesforce and Adobe people are out there marketing their stuff."
Other senior marketing staffers, including those Kelman recruited from AWS, have also been laid off, sources said. Kelman's former teams now fall under the purview of Jason Maynard, who had been a senior leader of sales and marketing for Oracle's NetSuite business-management software.
Read the full story: Oracle insiders describe the 'complete chaos' from layoffs and restructuring while employees brace for more
Do you work at Oracle or have insight to share? Contact reporters Ryan Joe via encrypted-text-messaging service Signal (+1 (310) 880-8992), email (rjoe@businessinsider.com) or Twitter DM (@threefirstnames); Belle Lin via encrypted email (bellelin@protonmail.com) or email (blin@insider.com); Ashley Stewart via email (astewart@insider.com) or Signal (+1-425-344-8242).
More: Oracle Layoffs Marketing
|
2022-08-05T21:39:07Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Oracle Exec Poached From AWS Is Out After Fight With Catz Over Budgets
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/oracle-cmo-ariel-kelman-out-after-safra-catz-fight-budget-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/oracle-cmo-ariel-kelman-out-after-safra-catz-fight-budget-2022-8
|
Is Betterment right for you?
Betterment vs. Wealthfront
Betterment vs. Vanguard
Ways to invest with Betterment
Betterment: Is it trustworthy?
Betterment — Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Betterment review: Personalized ETF portfolios and human advisor access
Is Betterment is right for you?
Betterment; Alyssa Powell/Business Insider
Bottom line: Betterment is best for hands-off investors who want to take advantage of professionally built and personalized ETF portfolios. The platform also offers CFP access, so it could suit those in search of additional guidance from human advisors.
$0 ($100,000 premium plan)
0.25% digital plan; 0.40% premium
No minimum for standard investing account
Goal-based planning, tax-loss harvesting, charitable giving, and socially responsible investing available
Access to certified financial planners
Mobile app with external account syncing options
You'll have to pay to consult a human advisor, unless you have the premium plan
Limited investment selection
App store rating: 4.7 iOS/4.5 Android
Consider it if: You want access to robo-advice with multiple service levels.
Betterment is an automated investing platform that offers robo-advice and personalized, self-managing investment portfolios. It best suits hands-off investors who want to make use of individual or joint accounts, IRAs, trust accounts, and cash reserve or checking accounts.
The platform additionally offers a vast range of portfolio options while solely utilizing ETFs in its portfolio allocations. The Betterment mobile app is available on both iOS and Android devices.
0.25% (0.06% to 0.13% for fund fees)
ETFs, index funds, and crypto trusts
Betterment and Wealthfront are two of the oldest platforms in the robo-advisor space. Both offer automated portfolio management, with access to perks like cash accounts, tax-loss harvesting, socially responsible investing, and more.
Betterment offers financial advisor guidance, but Wealthfront doesn't (although it does allow its users to contact specialists with questions). Betterment also has a lower account minimum requirement than Wealthfront. You don't need anything to get started with the Betterment digital plan. Wealthfront, however, has a $500 minimum.
Wealthfront is a better option for users who want access to a wider range of investment choices. Plus, it's great for those who'd like to automate custodial accounts like 529 plans.
$0 ($3,000 for Vanguard Digital Advisor; $50,000 for Vanguard Personal Advisor Services)
0% (0.20% to 0.30% for professionally managed portfolios)
Stocks, ETFs, options, bonds, mutual funds, and CDs
Betterment and Vanguard both have automated investing, but Vanguard is the stronger choice for all types of investors. With Vanguard, you get access to both self-directed accounts and automated accounts. But you'll be limited to automated investing at Betterment, so it's not a great choice for those who want to trade on their on.
When it comes to robo-advice, though, you'd pay less with Vanguard's basic automated account, Vanguard Digital Advisor, than you would at Betterment. The Betterment digital plan has a 0.25% fee, but Vanguard Digital Advisor only charges 0.20%.
Betterment uses computer algorithms to build and manage personalized portfolios. The platform also offers an FDIC-insured checking account, a cash reserve account (this has an APY of 1.60%), IRAs, and a 401(k). Plus, its pricing plans are simple to follow. It offers two options:
Betterment digital: This plan doesn't have any account minimum requirements, but it holds a 0.25% annual fee. It includes features like tax-loss harvesting, asset location, portfolio rebalancing, and dividend reinvesting. Plus, to maintain a healthy level of risk, Betterment automatically adjusts your portfolio allocation as you get closer to meeting your goals. This level also offers a range of portfolio options, but it doesn't include complimentary advisor access.
Betterment premium: You'll need at least $100,000 for the premium account, but you'll get access to all of the features the digital plan offers in addition to unlimited one-on-one CFP guidance. Its CFPs also offer advice on other investments you hold outside of Betterment.
You can additionally invest toward specific goals at Betterment. It currently offers six: retirement (saving), retirement (income), safety net, major purchase, general investing, and cash goals.
Portfolio types
Betterment offers several portfolio options. The first, its Core portfolio, focuses on long-term investing by allocating your money across a global selection of stock and bond ETFs. Its Innovative technology portfolio targets companies with a lot of potential for growth. These include semiconductors, blockchain businesses, clean energy companies, and more.
Its three socially responsible portfolios — Broad Impact, Climate Impact, and Social Impact — are ideal for those who want to make a positive difference with their investments. Finally, its Goldman Sachs Smart Beta portfolio aims for companies that will outperform the market, and its BlackRock Target Income portfolio works to protect your assets against loss by investing primarily in bond ETFs.
As for Betterment's investment types, it mainly offers stock ETFs and bond ETFs. Many automated platforms offer ETFs, so its investment selection aligns with most competitors. However, some automated platforms offer alternatives. For instance, Wealthfront has ETFs, index funds, and crypto trusts. Fidelity's automated accounts — Fidelity Go and Fidelity Personalized Planning & Advice — both offer Fidelity Flex mutual funds (these funds don't have expense ratios),
The Better Business Bureau gives Betterment a B rating. Ratings range from A+ to F and reflect the bureau's opinion of how well a company interacts with its clients. The BBB says Betterment's rating also stems from the fact that it received 98 complaints against it.
In addition, bureau ratings don't guarantee a company will be reliable or perform well. But they take into account a number of other factors, including type of business, time in business, customer complaint history, licensing and government actions, and advertising issues.
The company has closed 41 complaints in the last 12 months, and it doesn't have any unresolved complaints at this time, according to its BBB profile.
How much do you need to open a Betterment account?
Betterment's most basic account, the digital plan, has a $0 account minimum, but you'll need at least $100,000 to get started with its premium account. One of the things the premium account offers that the digital plan doesn't is unlimited one-on-one CFP guidance.
Is Betterment worth the fee?
Many robo-advisors — like Wealthfront and SigFig — also have a 0.25% fee option, but you can also find other automated platforms that don't have advisory fees (e.g., SoFi Automated Investing and Ally Invest Managed Portfolios).
The answer to this question largely depends on what you're looking for in an investment platform. If you're looking for access to low fees, human advisors, goal-focused strategies, and features like tax-loss harvesting, then Betterment may be a good choice for you.
How trustworthy is Betterment?
Betterment is a legitimate platform that has been in business since 2011. In addition to its B rating with the Better Business Bureau, the robo-advisor is also registered with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and it's a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) and Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC).
ETFs: These funds contain a mix of assets like of stocks, bonds, commodities, and other securities. ETFs trade like stocks since you can easily buy and sell both at any point during the stock exchange's normal trading hours. But ETFs are also less risky than stocks because they hold a diversified blend of investments.
Mutual funds: Like ETFs, mutual funds hold a blend of several investment types, but they're usually maintained by professional money managers.
Robo-advisor: These automated investing accounts typically use computer algorithms and/or advisor oversight to build personalized portfolios for investors.
IRA: Any individuals above age 18 with taxable income can open IRAs. Retail investors can mainly utilize traditional and Roth IRAs and earn several tax perks in the process. Both let you contribute up to $6,000 per year (or $7,000 for those 50 and older). In addition, small businesses and self-employed individuals will have access to other IRAs, such as SEP IRAs and SIMPLE IRAs.
More: Betterment Wealthfront Vanguard Vanguard Personal Advisor Services
|
2022-08-05T21:39:13Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Betterment Review: Pros, Cons, and Who Should Set up an Account
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/betterment-review
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/betterment-review
|
Goldman Sachs-backed supply-chain tech startup Slync.io lays off staff, fires CEO and cofounder
Along with laying off some staff, Slync's board terminated Chris Kirchner, the startup's CEO and cofounder, after suspending him last week.
Cameron Smith/Getty Images
Slync.io laid off some employees on Friday, Insider has learned.
Some Slync.io employees were laid off three days after receiving overdue wages.
Slync's board fired Chris Kirchner, the startup's globe-trotting CEO and cofounder.
Slync.io, the Goldman Sachs-backed supply-chain tech startup that failed to pay employees in full for almost three months, laid off some staff Friday, said two affected employees and two former employees with contacts inside the company.
Slync's board has also terminated Chris Kirchner, the company's CEO and cofounder, and removed him from the board, after suspending him last week. Tim Kehoe, the company's former chief of staff, was named interim president, Insider reported last week and Slync has confirmed.
Burt White, Slync's vice president of global sales and marketing, declined to comment on the number of layoffs.
Kirchner and Kehoe gave several explanations for the company's missed payroll to the staff and media in the past three months. During that time, Kirchner tried and failed to buy a British football club and played in multiple international golf tournaments.
Kehoe told staff in an all-hands meeting last week that the board would be helping the company with its liquidity struggles to get unpaid and underpaid employees all the money owed to them. Kehoe forecast the "restructuring" then.
Friday morning, Kehoe sent Slync employees an email that said payroll had been made in full. Five current and former employees confirmed to Insider that they had received their overdue wages.
"Those days are behind us," Kehoe wrote.
Less than an hour later, Slync began laying off employees via individual calls with company leadership. Canadian employees were given two weeks of severance, and US employees were given none, said one affected employee and one former employee with knowledge of the offers.
"For me, it was not really shocking," one affected employee told Insider. They said they stayed with the company despite the payroll issues because they believed Kehoe and Kirchner's explanations from May and June, that a locked-up investment froze the company's cash flow.
Friday's layoffs affected employees across departments and appeared to affect those who had questioned management about the payroll issues on Slack, the same laid-off employee said.
"All the people who questioned the management were laid off," the affected employee said.
White confirmed in a statement that the board fired Kirchner, but he declined to answer Insider's questions regarding the departments affected, the severance offered, or how laid-off employees were selected.
Since Insider and other media outlets began reporting on Slync's failure to pay employees in June, management has locked several employees out of the company email and Slack without formally terminating them, current and former employees said. At least one of these people was also laid off on Friday, the affected employee told Insider.
"Now that this chapter in Slync's history is closed, we must collectively focus on the future and continue to deliver value to our customers with our world-class software," Kehoe wrote to employees in the Friday-morning email announcing Kirchner's termination.
Here's the full note Kehoe sent to Slync staff:
Team Slync,
I know the past two months have been extremely difficult for every one of you and your families. Missing payroll and the lack of truthful communications surrounding those payrolls was completely unacceptable, you deserve better. However, thanks to the tremendous support of our board of directors and current investors, all the payrolls have gone out and those days are behind us. Additionally, the Slync Board of Directors took decisive action this week to terminate Chris as the CEO and as an employee of the company. In conjunction with the board's actions to suspend and ultimately remove the CEO, the board has entrusted me as the interim president to lead us through this time of transition and I'm humbled to have the opportunity.
Now that this chapter in Slync's history is closed, we must collectively focus on the future and continue to deliver value to our customers with our world-class software.
More: BITranspo Logistics Startups
|
2022-08-05T21:39:31Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Slync.io Lays Off Staff and Fires CEO Chris Kirchner
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/slync-layoffs-ceo-fired-kirchner-supply-chain-tech-goldman-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/slync-layoffs-ceo-fired-kirchner-supply-chain-tech-goldman-2022-8
|
Insider reviewed most of the items on the menu in the Costco food court.
Dominic Lipinski/PA Images via Getty Images/Insider
We went to a Costco store in south London for the first time and tried its food court.
We bought most of the items on the menu and tried Costco's famous hot dog.
Read our review to see which Costco food staples came out on top and those that failed to impress.
Costco is one of the largest retailers in the world and has around 29 locations in the UK. Despite this, our visit to the membership-only store was our first.
A general view of Costco, Imperial Way, Croydon.
Source: Deloitte's 2021 Global Powers of Retailing
We dined in the food court, a beloved feature of Costco stores, and indulged in most of the items on the menu.
Costco food court in UK.
After wandering around the massive warehouse, we had built up an appetite for Costco's food, conveniently located beyond the tills. The smell of freshly baked pizzas made the wait even longer.
Pizzas being baked.
We were surprised at how cheap the food was — especially the £1.50 ($1.80) hot dog, which came with a refillable drink.
Price of hot dog at Costco food court, UK.
There was also an offer for a "Family Bundle," which included an 18-inch pizza, garlic bread, and a two-litre bottle of Pepsi for £12.99 ($15.95).
Sign for family bundle of food in Costco food court, UK.
First up, we tucked into a slice of the pepperoni pizza, which cost £1.85 ($2.27). It was quite greasy but this didn't put us off eating it. Overall, we rated it 8/10.
The slices were a very generous size.
There was also the option to buy an 18-inch takeaway pizza for £8.95 ($10.99) with either pepperoni, BBQ chicken, and five cheese as toppings.
Pizza sign at Costco food court, UK.
We then took a bite of the chicken bake, a breaded log filled with chicken, cheese, bacon, and a Caesar dressing. It cost £3.25 ($3.97).
Chicken bake.
Despite the chicken bake's large fanbase, we were not impressed. Not only did it look unappetizing to us, but it also left a strange aftertaste and was difficult to eat because it was long and floppy. We gave it 3/10.
The filling was dry.
We also tried the double fillet chicken sandwich. A burger filled with two pieces of breaded chicken, cheese, lettuce, and tomato. It cost £3.95 ($4.78).
Burger in Costco UK
The sandwich ended up pretty high on our list. Covered in BBQ sauce and mayonnaise, it was very flavorsome. We rated it 7/10, despite the size making it difficult to eat.
Burger in Costco food court.
The hot dog was the winner for us. What struck us at first was the price. Soaring inflation has triggered Costco to hike the price of some of its food court staples. However, a representative for the retailer previously confirmed to Insider that it had no intention of raising the £1.50 deal.
Hot dog at Costco food court, UK.
The bun-to-dog ratio was unbeatable. There was also the right amount of ketchup and mustard, making it the most moreish hot dog we've ever eaten. The only downside was that the bun got slightly soggy. We rated it 9/10.
Insider reporter Kate Duffy holding a Costco hot dog.
With mains over, we turned to desserts. The £1.70 ($2) strawberry ice cream sundae was refreshing but unbelievably sweet with sauce and white chocolate flakes on top. The portion was also humongous, so we gave it 5/10.
Ice cream sundae in Costco food court, UK.
Lastly, from the food court's drinks selection, we tried the mango smoothie. It was delicious, cold, and refreshing, we gave it 8/10. A perfect after-meal snack or side to wash down your meal.
Mango drink from Costco food court, UK.
Costco's food court is enduringly popular with its members, partly due to the company's commitment to low food prices. The hot dog and soda combo meal has cost $1.50 at US Costco food courts since 1985 and £1.50 in the UK since 1993.
Costco food laid out on a table.
Overall, it was Costco's hot dog that stole the show. It was an absolute winner. The sausage and bun were a match made in heaven, and the very reasonable price made it taste that bit nicer.
Hot dog and burger from Costco.
More: Costco Shopping Retail Hot Dogs
Costco food court
Costco Samples
|
2022-08-06T08:09:09Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
We Tried a Costco Hot Dog for First Time. It Was an Absolute Winner.
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/costco-hot-dogs-best-items-food-court-comparison-review-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/costco-hot-dogs-best-items-food-court-comparison-review-2022-8
|
Don't trust 'narcissistic, self-interested' billionaires like Elon Musk to improve transport, author says
Elon Musk's 'solutions' are not going to help society, Paris Marx argues.
Society can't trust Elon Musk or Silicon Valley to improve transport, said author Paris Marx.
Musk is styled as future-maker in a way that benefits him but not society, he told Insider.
Marx wrote 'Road to Nowhere: What Silicon Valley Gets Wrong About The Future of Transportation'.
Governments and the public should not trust Silicon Valley billionaires like Elon Musk when they promise to solve climate change and to improve transport systems, according to author and transport researcher Paris Marx.
Musk is "a really narcissistic self-interested billionaire who is trying to push a particularly naive idea of what the future should look like onto the public," Marx told Insider in an interview following the publication last month of his book "Road to Nowhere: What Silicon Valley Gets Wrong About The Future of Transportation".
It explains how automakers and Silicon Valley disruptors continue to promote technology as the sole solution for inner-city traffic and climate change, in a way that does little to help society, Marx believes.
He argues that switching to an electric Tesla Model 3 might be far cleaner than driving a petrol car, but its batteries have their own environmental impact and do not solve the problem of traffic or road deaths — a topic far less talked about.
Flying taxis may sound cool, and help people move around more efficiently than helicopters, but will create noise pollution and need a complex remodeling of infrastructure to make them work.
Marx highlights that neither example is anywhere near being feasible as a mass market solution, yet companies continue to promote them as such for their own benefit, while governments continue to believe them.
This is where Musk in particular has been "really pernicious" in Marx's opinion. Through Tesla, Musk pushes the idea that electric cars are the solution to transport emissions, and that computers should drive cars instead of humans, he said.
"If we're thinking about what a sustainable transportation system looks like, it's about getting people out of cars all together," he said.
"Elon Musk's contribution in this space is in part to tell us that we don't need better public transit. He's even said that public transit is unsafe, inconvenient - that you could be sitting next to a serial killer."
Musk did make that claim at a 2017 tech conference, but later clarified his views, pointing out that while he loved public transport, it did not fully solve the issues caused by traffic in many major cities.
Uber shows why Silicon Valley can't be trusted to improve transport
Paris Marx is an author, podcast host and transport researcher.
Marx started writing about cities and transportation in 2015, and has a masters degree in urban geography, with a specific focus on Silicon Valley's proposals for the future of transportation.
Uber is the case in point for Marx's argument, whose conversation with Insider comes weeks after the publication of the "Uber Files", a trove of 124,000 documents leaked by a former Uber lobbyist.
The documents show how executives dismissed driver safety concerns, paid academics to write positive studies and blocked potentially incriminating data from law enforcement to bypass labor laws.
"[Uber executives are] the type of people who would benefit from this kind of service, who are pushing it on the public, even as it's eroding workers rights, making traffic in cities worse and having all these other negative consequences," Marx said.
One of the reasons that tech companies like Tesla and Uber have been so successful at selling these visions is that they present technology as the solution, he argues. However, actually delivering the reinvestment in rail systems, better cycling infrastructure and sustainable transport Marx believes is needed requires political action and commitment.
"People can join organizations to help try to pressure governments to make those sorts of changes, instead of just being distracted by Ubers and autonomous vehicles and whatever other ideas the tech industry throws at us that don't actually solve any problems."
More: Elon Musk Tesla Transportation Uber
|
2022-08-06T08:09:15Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Don't Trust Billionaires Like Musk to Improve Transport: Paris Marx
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/dont-trust-billionaires-like-musk-to-improve-transport-paris-marx-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/dont-trust-billionaires-like-musk-to-improve-transport-paris-marx-2022-8
|
Thomas Indigaro uses rotini pasta as filters when rolling joints for a vortex-like smoke.
Thomas Indigaro turned his passion for cannabis into a career as a professional joint roller.
Joint rolling technicians at 710 Labs get paid at least $20 an hour to roll up to 300 joints a day.
Here's how he landed his dream job and what it's like, as told to Jyoti Mann.
I was asked to roll 500 joints in two days as part of the application process. I had personal experience with cannabis and rolling joints, but never had I sat down at a table and tried to crank out hundreds at a time.
I got about halfway but they were satisfied with what I was able to provide. Eventually 710 Labs offered me a full-time position, which I was extremely excited about. It's a dream job.
I've been doing this for just under four years. The founder of 710 Labs, Brad Melshenker, is a friend from college and remembered I could roll a good joint and reached out to me.
He wanted to change the bad reputation that pre-rolled joints had and offer a premium product using only the best material. I really liked what they were trying to do.
So I started rolling joints for them and helped establish its joint rolling department. Now we're up to a team of seven people in total.
Before I got this opportunity, I would never have dreamed that being a professional joint roller was something I could do for a living.
On a typical day I usually try to roll up to 300 joints per shift. My process at this point is very muscle memory for me. Each one comes out the same and I can roll at least 60 joints an hour.
I have a different technique to most people. Most rollers use a freehand technique where they hold it above the table and form it with their fingers. I prefer to roll on a table, so the joint never comes off it. It's similar to the way sushi would be rolled.
Thomas Indigaro chooses to roll joints on top of a. table.
We use a spiral-shaped rotini pasta as the filter or roach. We just snap it in half and use the favorable end as the mouthpiece and it provides a cool, vortex-like smoke effect. It gives great structure to the joint as it is rigid and nice to hold on to, instead of either no filter or one made from cardboard.
I've had a lot of different jobs over the years, everything from working in restaurants to tourism and hospitality and home improvement. Out of any job that I've held, being a joint roller is the best job that I've had.
We do a practical evaluation when we're looking for new joint rolling technicians. We look for people who take pride in their ability to craft a quality joint. We've created a career path for this unique skill set and our entry-level joint roller technician starts at about $20 an hour with full benefits. (Insider has viewed documentation to verify the hourly rate of pay.)
It's preferable that you have personal experience with cannabis. It makes the job a lot easier and more fun if you already love cannabis. There aren't any requirements other than your ability to craft a joint at a reasonable speed. We don't compromise quality at any step, but you can't take all day to roll one joint either.
One difference in being a professional joint roller, rather than a recreational one, is how we seal the joints.
Typically at home I just lick it closed on the gum line. Here, for sanitary purposes, we don't use saliva to close joints. We use Q-tips with distilled water instead and roll while wearing gloves.
The work atmosphere is great. It's a bunch of really great people with a love for cannabis doing what we love. It's a vibe.
More: Careers Cannabis US cannabis Jobs
|
2022-08-06T08:09:21Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
I Became a Professional Joint Roller and Found My Dream Job.
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/i-found-my-dream-job-by-becoming-professional-joint-roller-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/i-found-my-dream-job-by-becoming-professional-joint-roller-2022-8
|
Air Canada revoked an employee's flying privileges after her daughter complained about her treatment by the airline's flight attendants.
"It is drilled into us that these passes are a privilege and not an entitlement that can be taken away by any small infraction," the woman said. "By misrepresenting herself as a revenue passenger and tagging news outlets she broke the code of conduct."
Air Canada said the woman had misrepresented herself as a normal, revenue-generating customer when she filed the complaint. In a statement to Insider, a spokesperson said after an investigation that "the facts didn't align with what was presented", but didn't elaborate.
NOW WATCH: How Delta flight attendants are trained
More: Weekend BI UK Air Canada travel chaos summer travel chaos
|
2022-08-06T10:10:44Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Air Canada Was Right to Revoke Employee's Privileges: Flight Attendant
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/air-canada-was-right-to-revoke-employees-privileges-flight-attendant-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/air-canada-was-right-to-revoke-employees-privileges-flight-attendant-2022-8
|
An Oregon couple breaks down how they turned their home into a bunk-bed Airbnb that brings in up to $7,000 a month and has hosted 1,300 guests from around the world
Michael and Jennifer Corbus run a bunk-bed Airbnb out of their home near Portland, Oregon.
Gritchelle Fallesgon for Insider
Michael and Jennifer Corbus started housing college students in 2007 when they needed cash fast.
Inspired by European hostels, they purchased bunk beds in 2015 and listed each bed on Airbnb.
They acknowledge that while their setup isn't for everyone, it works for people on a budget.
In 2007, Michael and Jennifer Corbus were staring down problems that seemed insurmountable.
First, Michael lost work as an independent mortgage broker during the early days of the 2008 financial crisis, which was largely caused by a housing bubble. Months later, their daughter Kylie was born with a rare genetic disorder. Her care required the presence of a parent at home and expensive items like a $6,000 feeding chair and $5,000 sleeper.
"Our whole life was turned upside down," Michael told Insider.
The Corbuses, who live in Oak Grove, Oregon — about 20 minutes south of Portland — were determined to make ends meet and find a way they could be at home to take care of their daughter and two other young children. They began renting out their 1,200-square-foot basement to international college students through a local program at Portland State University.
After seven years of hosting students from all over the world, a friend encouraged them to try a different setup — bunk beds — to house as many guests as possible.
A door disguised as a bookshelf opens to reveal the themed room called Hidden Treasure.
When their listing went live on Airbnb, Michael and Jennifer were shocked by the interest in their humble $30-a-night beds. At first, they couldn't believe how often their account would ding with new notifications and requests.
"The most surprising thing was the money," Jennifer said.
The Corbuses now host budget-conscious travelers seeking out the nature and culture around Portland in five total bunks across three separate rooms. Recently, they have capitalized on the explosion of short-term rental demand among solo travelers. During the peak of summer, they are able to bring in as much as $7,000 a month before expenses.
Michael and Jennifer broke down how they set up their "bunkbnb" — pros, cons, and more — to educate others who might be interested in setting up their own.
Think of it like a hostel
The Corbuses hosted their first crop of college students in 2007. Jennifer would cook dinner for students. The couple fondly remembers their two younger boys meeting students from Japan and other countries, broadening their cultural horizons every night.
"Our kids really started to be exposed to the whole world," Jennifer told Insider.
By 2015, a friend of Michael's had started renting out bunk beds on Airbnb. At first, the couple was skeptical the arrangement could work. They thought that most guests on the growing platform were looking for more luxurious accommodations.
The Corbuses ask their guests to stick a pin in a map they have on their wall to show where they journeyed from.
"I didn't think I'd want to stay in a place like that, but then I remembered the hostels in Europe," Jennifer said.
The couple scoured Craigslist for bunk beds and purchased sheets from discount retailer Ross, trying to keep expenses to a minimum.
In addition to the 10 beds, their basement unit also includes a bathroom and a kitchenette.
Each bed gets its own listing
When it comes to running "The Traveler's Hub" — the nickname the Corbus family has given their basement unit — one strategy stands above the rest, the Corbuses said.
The two bunk beds in the Hidden Treasure room of the Airbnb.
Each individual bunk gets its own listing. So for their one basement unit with five bunk beds, 10 separate listings are live on the Airbnb site.
The Corbuses say separate listings allow them to manage the rotating calendar and revolving door of stays.
"If you didn't have that, you'd burn out," Michael said.
Most guests do not stay longer than two weeks, except for travel nurses. But a long-term stay is cheaper than median monthly rent in Portland, which is $1,955, according to Zillow.
The Corbuses also keep costs low by doing their own cleaning. Each stay has an additional cleaning fee of $10, and Michael estimates the total cleaning costs for the month are usually under $200.
The baseball-themed room of the Airbnb has three bunks.
Michael, a Neil Diamond impersonator, and Jennifer, a health coach, run their Airbnb on the side.
Cleaning and running the unit takes about 30 minutes a day, Michael said.
This summer, the bunk-bed Airbnb brought in $6,000 in June and was on track to bring in $5,000 in July. In the past, gross revenue for some summer months has been as much as $7,000.
Bargain prices attract solo travelers on a budget
The Corbuses realize their bunks are not for everyone — and they lay that out clearly in their listings.
They say visitors are typically solo sightseers who are traveling on extended trips through the Pacific Northwest. Sometimes individuals in adjoining bunks meet and take day trips together.
The Corbuses in their living room.
Gary Brown, 58, first stayed in a bunk in 2017 and has now returned six times.
The hiking, camping, and fishing excursions draw the retiree, who lives in Dallas, to the Pacific Northwest, and he says the bunks are a hard bargain to beat for the expensive Portland area. The Corbuses' home is not far from sights including Mt. Hood and beaches on the Pacific coast.
"If you're a budget-conscious traveler, like so many people are, it's very comfortable," he told Insider.
A closeup of the door to the two-bunked Hidden Treasure room.
Brown also said he enjoys meeting other travelers in the hostel-style lodgings.
"You meet a variety of people, all kinds of personalities," Brown told Insider. He's met individuals from Russia, Germany, and Belgium, and even run into other repeat guests during his visits.
Don't accept guests who don't have reviews
The unique arrangement also prevents some typical Airbnb problems, Michael and Jennifer said. Because travelers are typically on their own, they aren't hosting rowdy groups of friends and there isn't as big of a risk of parties.
"There's a social accountability that naturally happens," Jennifer said.
The Corbuses are careful about who they allow to stay in their house. After hosting 1,300 guests, they've made a rule to not accept requests from people with no reviews from other hosts on Airbnb. The few times they've had guests who didn't get along with other bunkmates, these guests had brand-new accounts and no reviews.
"What we have realized is these people open a new account because they got a negative review," Michael said.
Michael plays the guitar for daughter Kylie, whose medical care has been partially paid for by the bunk-bed Airbnb.
But the venture has reaped more than just financial rewards.
Michael said it's also given him the ability to care for Kylie — just as he'd hoped — and spend more time with his sons.
More: Real Estate AirBnB Bunk bed Short-Term Rental
|
2022-08-06T10:10:50Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
A Couple Shares How They Run a Bunk-Bed Airbnb That Makes $7,000/month
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/bunk-bed-airbnb-getting-started-earnings-advice-strategy-passive-income-2022-7
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/bunk-bed-airbnb-getting-started-earnings-advice-strategy-passive-income-2022-7
|
Orthodox Jewish passengers wait in line after being barred from boarding a connecting Lufthansa flight to Budapest.
Dan's Deals
Lufthansa is to appoint an antisemitism officer, according to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
The German airline will also introduce antisemitism training and adopt the IHRA's antisemitism definition.
The measures follow an incident in May that saw more than 100 Jewish passengers barred from a connecting flight.
German airline Lufthansa is set to appoint an antisemitism officer after more than 100 Jewish passengers were barred from a flight in May of this year, according to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA).
The senior management role is being created "for the prevention of discrimination and antisemitism" and will be introduced alongside a new staff training on antisemitism, the JTA reported.
Lufthansa will also adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's working definition of antisemitism, the JTA said, which has already been adopted by the European Parliament and other international bodies.
The revelation of the new actions to combat antisemitism comes from a letter dated July 22 sent to the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations by Lufthansa CEO Jens Ritter, per the JTA.
The letter acknowledged that some Lufthansa staff had been "insensitive and unprofessional" but ultimately concluded that an investigation did not find evidence of institutional antisemitism at the airline, the JTA reported.
Lufthansa did not respond to Insider's requests for comment by phone and email.
Department of Transportation, civil rights complaints table, May 2022
The investigation was looking into an incident in May, which Insider reported on, that saw more than 100 visibly Jewish passengers denied from boarding a connecting flight.
The passengers were barred from taking a connecting flight from Frankfurt, Germany, to Budapest, Hungary— where they were traveling as part of an annual pilgrimage to commemorate the death of a famous rabbi.
Speaking to Insider, a passenger on the flight described the incident as racial profiling to "the highest degree I've ever witnessed in my life."
Another passenger, Yitzy Schmidt, told Insider: "I was guilty by association, and that association is being an Orthodox Jew."
Lufthansa initially defended the decision, saying it was because passengers had refused to comply with mask-wearing regulations.
However, after videos emerged of the incident, the airline said it "regrets the circumstances surrounding the decision to exclude the affected passengers from the flight, for which Lufthansa sincerely apologizes."
More: Lufthansa antisemitism Jewish passengers
|
2022-08-06T10:11:20Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Lufthansa Barred 100+ Jews From Flight to Hire Antisemitism Officer
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/lufthansa-hire-antisemitism-role-after-barring-100-jews-from-flight-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/lufthansa-hire-antisemitism-role-after-barring-100-jews-from-flight-2022-8
|
Jesus Centeno (L) and his wheelchair with multiple strollers loaded on top of it
Jesus Centeno
A man has said that Spirit Airlines has broken his wheelchair by loading baby strollers on top of it.
It was returned with the backrest broken, meaning he has been stuck in a "very uncomfortable" position.
"They treated my personal wheelchair like it was nothing," he said.
A man has said that Spirit Airlines has broken his wheelchair after loading multiple strollers on top of it.
Jesus Centeno, a 27-year-old computer science student, was boarding a Spirit airlines flight on July 30 from Orlando to Houston. He was watching his wheelchair be loaded from the tarmac into the plane's hold when he saw strollers stacked on top of it.
When he landed in Houston, his wheelchair was returned to him badly damaged, with the adjustable backrest unable to move forward or backward.
Centeno — who uses a wheelchair because of a spinal cord injury — told Insider that it forced him to be "stuck" in a "very uncomfortable" position for days.
The damage to his chair meant he was "unable to do anything," Centeno told Insider, including wheeling his chair or using a computer.
"I just cannot believe that someone thought it was a good idea to put so many strollers on top of my wheelchair. They treated my personal wheelchair like it was nothing like it was just another piece of luggage when it clearly is not.
"This is a customized personal wheelchair. Without my wheelchair, I'm hopeless. I use it to get around everywhere," he told Insider.
Department of Transportation data shows an average of 35.8 wheelchairs are broken or damaged on US flights daily.
The dataset also shows that Spirit has the second highest rate of damaging wheelchairs, with 4.24% of all enplaned wheelchairs damaged.
However, this is the first time that Centeno has damaged his chair while flying, telling Insider, "I guess my luck has run out."
In an email to Insider, Senator Tammy Duckworth, a wheelchair user, said, "We would never accept airlines breaking the legs of 1 in 65 passengers, and yet, that is essentially what is happening when 1 out of 65 wheelchairs are being damaged by airlines.
"We cannot rest until every airline finally treats our wheelchairs as what they are: complex medical devices, not just suitcases to be tossed around."
Last week, Insider reported that American Airlines destroyed a man's electric wheelchair and then severely damaged its replacement three weeks later.
More: Wheelchair Transportation Spirit Airline travels
|
2022-08-06T10:11:32Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
PHOTO: Spirit Airlines Broke Man's Wheelchair After Baby Strollers Piled on It
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/photo-spirit-airlines-broke-mans-wheelchair-after-baby-strollers-piled-on-it-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/photo-spirit-airlines-broke-mans-wheelchair-after-baby-strollers-piled-on-it-2022-8
|
Investors were betting on a 'Fed pivot' back to dovish policy. Wall Street now says that's not going to happen after a mammoth July jobs report — and stocks are going to pay the price.
David Karp/AP
The US economy added 528,000 jobs in July, the Labor Department said on Friday.
This signals the labor market remains in good shape, and the Fed can proceed with hawkish policies.
That's bad news for stocks, many on Wall Street said on Friday.
On Tuesday, San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly went on a LinkedIn livestream with CNBC's Jon Fortt and sent a firm message: the central bank is "nowhere near" done tightening policy.
Daly's directness was very deliberate, some say. The Fed trotted out one of its most notorious doves to walk back what many investors had perceived as wishy-washy comments from Jerome Powell at the Federal Open Market Committee's July meeting the week before.
Markets were starting to doubt the Fed's resolve to tighten and were sniffing out a pivot ahead. Stocks continued their rally from mid-June.
With Daly's appearance, "they're telegraphing to the market, in essence, recalculate," said Quincy Krosby, the chief global strategist at LPL Financial.
Daly's comments were followed by similar statements from other Fed presidents, including Charles Evans, Loretta Mester, and James Bullard in what was seen as a coordinated effort to dispel any notion that the Fed was ready to fly in with an olive branch for investors.
Early Friday morning before market open, the dovish pivot narrative was completely smashed as the Labor Department announced a monstrous jobs report. The US had added another 528,000 jobs in July, they said, more than double the number expected.
A strong jobs report is usually a positive for the economy. More jobs mean the economy is in a healthy place — when people have jobs they spend money, and this supports corporate earnings.
But with inflation at a 41-year-high of 9.1%, markets viewed the strong labor market through at least a partially negative lens. The Fed has been fighting inflation aggressively by raising interest rates at the fastest pace since 1994 and shrinking the amount of assets they hold.
A tight labor market is likely to continue to fuel demand and therefore inflationary pressures. It also signals to the Fed that they're not yet creating damage to the labor market with their hawkish policies, so they can proceed as they were without caution.
Eventually, uber-hawkish policy is bound to catch up with the economy — and therefore stocks. Plus, liquidity in the financial system drying up thanks to Fed tightening isn't good for risk assets like stocks.
That's why the market fell on Friday morning in reaction to the jobs report. And more downside is ahead, many on Wall Street say.
Why stocks are 'not out of the woods yet'
Steve Sosnick, the chief strategist at Interactive Brokers, said he expects the S&P 500 to fall and retest the June lows of around 3,666, 11% from current levels around 4,130.
Sosnick said the volatility in the short-term bond market that has ensued since June tells him that further downside is ahead in stocks, which have been strong over the same period.
"If the bond market can't come to a consensus about short-term rates, how can the stock market be so certain to change its consensus," he said, arguing that bond traders have a much "purer" view of where monetary policy is headed than stock traders. "If risk-free assets are volatile, how can you not expect volatility in risky assets, such as stocks," Sosnick said. "Those are the messages that the bond market are screaming in our face."
Krosby also said she sees up to 10% more downside in the S&P 500. John Lynch, the CIO at Comerica Wealth Management, said further selling is ahead, and the Fed is more likely now to hike rates by 75 basis points at their September meeting, what would be their third hike of that size in a row.
"Wage growth is alarming for Fed officials, likely bringing 75 basis points back on the table for September meeting. Fed fund futures already moving higher," Lynch said in a statement on Friday. "We believe this development signals the end of the recent bear market rally."
Matt Peron, the director of research at Janus Henderson, echoed these sentiments, too, saying stocks are "not out of the woods yet."
How severe a potential sell-off is seems to depend on either inflation cooling off quickly, or the US economy's ability to fight off a recession in the face of the most hawkish environment in decades. Or — if a recession cannot be avoided — how mild it is.
Goldman Sachs analyst Jason English said in a webinar last week that the US is in a unique position to fight off a recession given the high number of jobs available right now (10.7 million) and consumers' relatively high net worths.
But in such an unusual environment, no scenario should be ruled out for stocks, Sosnick said, including a correction to the magnitude of something around 40%.
"I refuse to take any scenario off the table," Sosnick said. "None of the Fed governors have seen this in their professional life. Only the oldest investors have seen this during their careers."
He added: "The few times the Fed has tried to withdraw liquidity from the market, it hasn't gone well. They've been able to stop withdrawing liquidity because inflation wasn't a problem."
More: Investing Stock Market Crash Stock Market Sell-Off
|
2022-08-06T10:11:44Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Stock Market Crash: More Pain Ahead for Stocks After Huge Jobs Report
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/stock-market-crash-more-pain-ahead-for-stocks-jobs-report-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/stock-market-crash-more-pain-ahead-for-stocks-jobs-report-2022-8
|
Alexis Westergren was told by the airline she could not pick up her child from Chicago airport.
American had incorrect names and cell numbers listed as the child's contacts in its system.
The airline eventually let her take daughter home after she gave the father's correct cell number.
American Airlines told the mother of a 10-year-old passenger that she couldn't pick up her daughter after its system failed to correctly record who was collecting her from the airport.
Alexis Westergren's daughter was flying unaccompanied to Chicago on July 9 from Portland, where she had been visiting her father.
Westergren went to the AA ticketing desk to get a gate pass but was told that she was not authorized to take her daughter home. "They said that her dad was supposed to pick her up," she told Insider.
An information sheet attached to a lanyard worn by the child showed that Westergren was listed as the person meeting her at the destination. Flight details and other information have been verified by Insider.
The child's father wrote down Westergren's contact details before their daughter left Portland and gave it to the ticketing agent, who should then have put that information into the system, Westergren said.
She said AA staff told her the child's father, who had dropped her off at Portland airport, was also listed as the contact picking her up in Chicago.
"He looked at me and said 'ma'am, I can't release her to you.' I almost lost my mind," she said. "Not once did they say 'let's wait for the plane to land and check the information on her lanyard'."
The AA employee tried calling both the child's father and Westergren's husband, who dropped off the child on the outbound journey to Portland to see her dad. However, both phone numbers were not working, Westergren said.
"He realized that someone had made a catastrophic error in inputting any of this information and trusted me enough to give him the correct phone number of my child's father," she said.
Her father gave the airline permission to let Westergren collect her daughter and staff confirmed the name with her ID, she said. She was eventually given a gate pass by the ticketing agent and was able to meet her daughter at the gate but was by then "livid, sweaty and exhausted."
AA offered Westergren a $500 credit that covered the cost of the ticket and unaccompanied passenger fee.
"American failed epically at ensuring that that information went in its system," she said. "They need to have procedures in place for when something like this happens. I would just like a real response about what is going to be done to fix this."
More: Transportation American Airlines Unaccompanied Minors Airlines
|
2022-08-06T12:03:44Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
American Told 10-Year-Old Passenger's Mom She Couldn't Pick Her up
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/american-told-10-year-old-passengers-mom-she-couldnt-pick-her-up-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/american-told-10-year-old-passengers-mom-she-couldnt-pick-her-up-2022-8
|
Biden's top labor official says with a job market this good, we're not in a recession
Recession fears have been clouding the economic atmosphere this summer.
But the latest jobs numbers showed higher-than-expected growth, with 528,000 jobs added in July.
Labor Secretary Marty Walsh said with a job market this strong, we're not in a recession.
Even as the possibility of a recession looms large over the country, economic data keeps telling a different story.
"We're not in a recession. The economy on the job front is going very, very strong. And I see it continuing for the foreseeable future," Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh told Insider.
On Friday, the Bureau of Labor Statistics released its monthly report on how many jobs the country added — and the report showed a staggering number of payrolls. In July, the US added 528,000 jobs, while the unemployment rate dropped to 3.5%, blowing expectations out of the water. That means that the country has now regained all of the jobs it lost during the pandemic.
"A lot of people didn't ask me today about a recession. I think that if you look at the indicators, this is unlike any other time we've experienced in our country," Walsh said.
Earlier this week, BLS's Job Openings and Labor Turnover Summary found that in June — the most recent month they have data for — job openings remained high, and a near-record number of workers quit once again. That shows that, even with fears of a downturn, workers still feel pretty comfortable job switching.
"If it were a normal economic downturn, we would see inflation, we would see loss of jobs, we would see people struggling. We don't see that. Not when you have a number of like 500,000 jobs added in a time where the economy is still trying to figure itself out," Walsh said.
One of those is certainly happening right now: Inflation remains persistently high, reaching a 41-year benchmark in July. Plus, another recent data release has economy-watchers in a tizzy: Gross domestic product came in negative for the second quarter in a row. It's a common rule-of-thumb technical definition of a recession, but not the official one.
We'll officially be in a recession if and when the National Bureau of Economic Research makes a declaration, and the NBER says that a "recession involves a significant decline in economic activity that is spread across the economy and lasts more than a few months."
One factor in determining "peaks and troughs": The monthly nonfarm payroll employment — which, as the 528,000 jobs show, is robust.
"I think that today's report helps tamp down fears of recession. The labor market is still a pillar of strength, holding up the economy out of recession," Daniel Zhao, lead economist at Glassdoor, told Insider.
The jobs report marks another feather in the Biden administration's cap as the president's agenda suddenly rises from the dead. The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 — which aims to bring down drug prices and pour billions into climate measures — is set to charge through the Senate this weekend. Recession fears getting temporarily quelled could be good news for the previously flailing Democrats, who still have to tackle rising prices.
"I think that we just need to continue to do everything we can to bring down those pressures on inflation," Walsh said.
"That's happening incrementally," he added. "It's not happening as quickly as we'd like it to happen, but also inflation in some ways went up incrementally."
More: Economy Marty Walsh Labor Secretary Marty Walsh Recession
|
2022-08-06T12:04:26Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
US Economy Not in Recession, Job Market Strong: Biden Labor Secretary Marty Walsh
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/is-economy-in-recession-no-job-market-strong-marty-walsh-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/is-economy-in-recession-no-job-market-strong-marty-walsh-2022-8
|
Pearson, one of the largest textbook publishers, is looking at technology to improve its business.
Moving to the blockchain and NFTs would give Pearson some sales from resold textbooks, its CEO said.
Right now, the company has no plans to use NFTs, but is interested in it and other technologies.
Buying and reselling textbooks is a common practice for students, and Pearson wants to get a cut of those resales.
Andy Bird, CEO of Pearson, one of the biggest textbook publishers, recently said he's looking at the blockchain and NFTs as a potential way to give the company part of the sales of secondhand textbooks.
"In the analogue world, a Pearson textbook was resold up to seven times, and we would only participate in the first sale," Bird told reporters earlier this week, according to Bloomberg.
"The move to digital helps diminish the secondary market, and technology like blockchain and NFTs allows us to participate in every sale of that particular item as it goes through its life," Bird added.
As an NFT, the textbook would have a unique identifier that can be traced as its passed from owner to owner. Although the cryptocurrency and NFT markets have plunged recently, people in the industry are still hopeful they will bounce back again.
"At this point, Pearson doesn't have specific plans related to this technology," a Pearson spokesperson told Insider. "However, we are certainly interested in how it can make learning better for students and bring more value for other stakeholders."
But, the spokesperson said technology like blockchain would provide "transparency to everyone and has the potential to be good for authors and students."
Bird told reporters the company is looking at other ways it can take textbooks digital.
"We have a whole team working on the implications of the metaverse and what that could mean for us," he said.
The Pearson spokesperson said the company has made digital textbooks more affordable than print ones, and will continue to do so to make them more accessible as well.
"NFTs would be no different because it would allow us to deliver better quality content than print books and at a lower price," the spokesperson said.
More: Textbooks NFTs Blockchain Technology
|
2022-08-06T12:04:50Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Textbook Publisher Eyes NFTs to Get Cut of Secondhand Sales
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/publisher-pearson-explores-nfts-make-money-off-used-textbook-sales-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/publisher-pearson-explores-nfts-make-money-off-used-textbook-sales-2022-8
|
Last week's negative GDP print worsened recession worries, but other indicators are still strong.
Labor market data reveals companies are still hiring fast and retaining their workers.
Household finances are generally in good shape, and Americans continue to spend big.
Last week's GDP report painted a gloomy picture of the economy — but far more indicators show the country to be performing just fine.
Though gross domestic product shrank for two consecutive quarters, inflation is at four-decade highs, and Americans' economic sentiments near record lows, it would be a mistake to ignore several other signs of resilience in the US economy. A handful of indicators — including those closely tracked by the National Bureau of Economic Research, the very organization that calls recessions — show the recovery running strong through the second quarter, albeit at a slower pace than last year.
Consecutive quarters of negative growth are the rule-of-thumb criteria for a technical recession, but NBER actually decides when downturns begin, and its criteria are far more stringent. The NBER's dating committee defines an economic slump as "a significant decline in economic activity that is spread across the economy and that lasts more than a few months."
It also looks at a handful of variables that give a more holistic snapshot of the economy than GDP, and those indicators are all in healthy territory.
4 signs that businesses are hiring fast and keeping workers around
Nearly every measure of the labor market shows it to be in robust condition.
Nonfarm payrolls — the most popular measure of overall employment — is the latest indicator to flash an encouraging signal. The US added 528,000 jobs in July, doubling the average forecast and extending the historically strong payroll creation it's seen throughout 2022.
The gain places total jobs above the pre-pandemic high, signaling a complete rebound from the losses seen early in the pandemic. That recovery happened nearly three times faster than the rebound from the Great Recession, even though the coronavirus recession featured the largest post-war drop in employment.
Unemployment remains historically low as well. The measure fell to 3.5% in July, matching the five-decade low seen before the pandemic.
The unemployment rate is somewhat skewed by the fact that labor force participation remains subdued. The gauge only tracks jobless Americans who are actively looking for work, meaning those outside the labor force aren't counted. As participation improves, it's possible unemployment edges higher until those new job seekers find work.
Still, the low rate underscores an extraordinary tightness in the labor market.
Much of that tightness comes from the colossal gap between labor demand and worker supply. Job openings slid to 10.7 million in June from 11.3 million, hinting the labor shortage could be easing up. Yet the ratio of available workers to openings was 0.6, meaning there were nearly two openings for every job seeker. Businesses aren't just hiring, they're desperate for workers.
Firms are largely holding on to the employees they already have, too. Jobless claims rose to 260,000 in the week that ended July 30. The print extends a slow crawl upward that began in April, yet only places claims slightly above the pre-pandemic average. The uptrend likely reflects layoffs in the tech and construction sectors, which picked up at the start of the summer. Other industries, however, still show fairly normal layoff rates, signaling companies aren't yet trimming their workforce in preparation for an economic downturn.
3 of the recession referees' top gauges are in the green
Americans' finances are holding up well even amid sky-high inflation. Real income less transfers — which tracks inflation-adjusted income without government support like stimulus checks and Social Security — is also well above pre-pandemic levels and trending higher, albeit at a slower pace. The gains reflect that, despite surging prices and dwindling stimulus, households still have more wealth than they did before the pandemic recession began.
Americans are spending big, too. Real personal consumption expenditures, or inflation-adjusted spending, skyrocketed early in the pandemic as households received stimulus payments and shopped online through lockdowns. Inflation has dented the rally slightly, but spending remains historically elevated as households pour more fuel into the economic engine.
Industrial production is also up and still gaining, signaling companies aren't yet slowing their output in anticipation of an economic downturn. The measure has shown the second-best recovery of the four main metrics tracked by the NBER, and as supply chains heal and inventory rebounds, production is likely to improve further.
2 manager surveys show strength in private-sector businesses
Measures of strength among private businesses are holding up as well. The Institute for Supply Management's purchasing managers' indexes — which tracks activity for manufacturers and service businesses relative to the prior month — indicate industry expansion.
While growth has moderated in recent months, manufacturers just notched a 26th consecutive month of growth. Inventories rebounded faster through the month as supply chains healed and firms' orders caught up with last year's backlogs. Companies continued to hire at a healthy clip, and there were few signs of layoffs or headcount freezes.
Some surveyed managers cited concerns around a potential softening of the economy, but sentiment remained optimistic overall as demand remained strong, Timothy Fiore, chair of ISM's Manufacturing Business Survey Committee, said in the Monday report.
Services also rebounded through July, lifted by sizeable gains in new orders, business activity, and inventory sentiment. Supplier deliveries improved significantly, signaling the economy is creeping closer to balancing supply with demand.
The service-industry measures "offer encouraging news about the state of the economy at the beginning of the second half," Oren Klachkin, lead US economist at Oxford Economics, said in a note.
"The recovery's best days are clearly in the rear-view mirror, but this doesn't mean an economic downturn has begun," he added.
More: Economy Recessions Economic Data Economic Indicators
ISM PMI
|
2022-08-06T12:04:56Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Nine Signs That US Economy Isn't Currently in a Recession
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/recession-fears-jobs-strong-economic-growth-outlook-recovery-ongoing-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/recession-fears-jobs-strong-economic-growth-outlook-recovery-ongoing-2022-8
|
A Starbucks employee prepares takeaway orders. Starbucks stores were either temporarily closed or offered delivery or MOP payments only, Starbucks said recently.
Yin Liqin/China News Service via Getty Images.
Over two-thirds of of Starbucks sales are now made through drive-thrus, mobile orders, or delivery.
Starbucks initially built its brand around being a "third place" with premium coffee.
An analyst says the change shows Starbucks' successful ability to adapt to changing trends.
Starbucks is moving farther away from its roots in favor of convenience and efficiency.
Over two-thirds of orders now come from the mobile app, drive-thru, and delivery, the coffee giant said in an August earnings call. In other words, just 28% of customers enter Starbucks and place their orders with baristas, some of them staying and drinking their beverages on Starbucks property.
Customers seem to love the convenience of alternative ordering methods, and Starbucks is making it even easier. About 90% of new locations are being built with drive-thrus, The Wall Street Journal reported in May. About half of locations have technology that allows customers to order through tablets operated by workers in drive-thru lines, and 65% of locations are planned to have them by the end of 2022, CEO Howard Schultz said in the call.
Starbucks closed some lower-performing mall locations in the past to focus more on drive-thrus. The chain is considering locations that are drive-thru only, and has already created pick-up only stores and partnered with Amazon to launch a joint Amazon Go store where only mobile orders and payments are accepted.
Starbucks initially grew into a massive success by popularizing a premium coffee experience and introducing Americans to espressos drinks like lattes. The chain presented itself as a "third place," where people can gather outside of homes and workplaces. This concept is in conflict with the chain's more recent emphasis on convenience, shifting the definition of "third place" into a "mindset" over a physical space.
These changes at Starbucks don't mean that most locations will be without seating and space for customers to gather, Edward Jones analyst Brian Yarbrough told Insider. Focusing on drive-thru and mobile ordering is in part an impact of the pandemic, but the shift in priority was happening before COVID-19 hit, Yarbrough said.
"The days of customers getting a coffee and hanging out are probably behind," he told Insider. "They probably don't need all this room for people to sit around." Drive-thrus have outperformed locations without drive-thrus, he said, and having smaller seating areas to maintain could give Starbucks some savings.
Pivoting to prioritize these other methods of reaching customers is key to what has made Starbucks so successful, because the chain is able to adapt to changing customer preferences, Yarbrough said, He pointed out that 75% of drinks sold by Starbucks are cold, which weren't even part of the chain's original menu.
Other quick-service chains have similarly pivoted to prioritize drive-thrus, too. Chipotle has focused on adding Chipotlanes to new locations and building drive-thru-only restaurants, which use mobile ordering. The advantages are similar to what Starbucks is likely considering — drive-thrus tend to have higher margins and operate faster.
More: Retail Starbucks Fast Food QSR
|
2022-08-06T12:05:02Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Starbucks Is Embracing Drive-Thrus and Mobile Over Its Traditional Model
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/starbucks-embracing-drive-thrus-and-mobile-over-traditional-mode-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/starbucks-embracing-drive-thrus-and-mobile-over-traditional-mode-2022-8
|
Simmy Decker with her favorite goat, Eena who is a LaManchan doe
Simmy Decker
Simmy Decker took a semester off college to volunteer at a goat farm in Washington state.
She spent months milking goats, washing eggs, and mucking stalls in exchange for food and place to stay.
This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Simmy Decker, 21, a health policy research assistant in Boston. The following has been edited for length and clarity.
I was a freshman at Brandeis University in Boston in March 2020, and when the pandemic hit, we were all sent home. There was a lot of general uncertainty around what the school year in the fall would look like.
My friend and I got a Worldwide Opportunities on Organic Farms (WWOOF) membership, which costs $40 for a single or $65 for two people. WWOOF aims to grow the sustainable farming movement by linking volunteers with organic farmers.
We reached out to farmers in Hawaii and the Pacific Northwest. Hawaii was locked down, but Left Foot Farm, about 55 miles south of Seattle, accepted us. We stayed there from August to November 2020.
One of the main jobs was milking about 70 goats twice per day
Milking the goats
It's a five-acre farm with around 100 goats, and about 70 of them needed milking (others were adolescents or males). There were also two alpacas, and a lot of chickens and ducks.
Around 14 volunteers were typically working on the farm. The first milking shift started at 7 a.m., with another at 5 p.m. There also were three feed shifts each day, egg washing and processing, watering the garden, and chores. On a typical day, you would do a mix of all these things.
We got two days off weekly and free food
Me holding one of the canisters we use to transport milk from the milking room to the processing room
The farm offered cabin accommodations and ingredients for daily meals.
Generally, we worked around six hours per day, for five days weekly. We stayed in cabins around the farm, which isn't always the case with WWOOFing. I later volunteered on a Hawaii farm that required us to camp in tents.
All of our meals were covered, but not prepared. As a college student, it was really great to learn how to cook for myself. There was pasta and other ingredients, as well as a garden that we could use with vegetables like squash and zucchini. I recall making raspberry cobbler and picking the raspberries fresh.
Sometimes there were landscaping projects, like pruning the raspberry bushes. The worst job was mucking the stalls every three months or so, which involved removing poop and putting down new hay. Afterwards, we all took long showers.
When we weren't working, we could hang out in the farmer's garage. He had transformed it into a lounge with a TV where the volunteers could mingle. I also loved to read with the goats in the garden.
On our days off, we traveled about 40 minutes to Mount Rainier National Park for hikes, swims, and walks.
The experience changed my life
A Nubian doe, Pomona eating a hearty breakfast of Alfalfa grass
My favorite part of my stay was interacting with the goats. They are really sweet creatures. They would often approach me when I was reading and rub against me. At a time when we were lacking physical contact due to the pandemic, animals became a great source of that.
It was also eye-opening to live in rural America, after spending my childhood on the East Coast just outside Philadelphia.
After the goat farm, I worked on two farms in Puerto Rico, and one each in Hawaii and Massachusetts. The experienced inspired me to write my senior honors thesis on food sovereignty and food apartheid in Puerto Rico.
More: Career Farming as told to weekend BI US
weekend business
|
2022-08-06T12:42:51Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
I Milked Goats for Free Food and Rent, and It Was Life-Changing
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/student-volunteered-goat-farm-rural-washington-covid-pandemic-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/student-volunteered-goat-farm-rural-washington-covid-pandemic-2022-8
|
Arielle Egozi
Courtesy of Arielle Egozi
A LinkedIn user made waves after they listed "Sex Work" under professional experiences.
Arielle Egozi said sex work has just as much of a place on LinkedIn as any other job.
For Egozi, sex work gave them financial freedom and foundational professional skills.
Arielle Egozi, who went viral last month after listing "Sex Work" as one of their professional experiences on LinkedIn, believes the sex industry is just as worthy of being on the site as any other career.
"Sex work allowed me to see that there were other ways of doing things," Egozi, who identifies as queer femme and uses she/they pronouns, told Insider. "It taught me that there are a million other ways to sell your body, your mind, your soul, whatever it is."
The 31-year-old first made waves on July 13, after updating their LinkedIn page to include sex work and sharing a post to their followers explaining the decision. In the message, Egozi wrote that sex work has given them financial freedom by allowing them to "charge exorbitant amounts" and taught them countless professional skills.
"I left an in-house job with fancy benefits two weeks ago and the reason I could do that was sex work," Egozi shared on LinkedIn. "I had just enough saved from selling and engaging my image that I could ask myself if I was happy. I wasn't."
Egozi told Insider they were inspired to make the change after quitting their position branding company where they "felt disempowered and objectified" and like their "creative energy was taken for granted."
"The higher up I've gotten in my career, the more I've felt that I had to repress different parts of my identity," Egozi said.
'The ugly underbelly'
While Egozi expected to receive maybe a handful of responses, they never intended to become "the face" of this issue, emphasizing their experience may not be representative of others in the industry.
"I have enormous privilege," they said. "I have the agency of this not being the main way I make money. If it wasn't a choice for me, I'm not sure that I would feel very empowered."
Nonetheless, the post quickly garnered thousands of reactions and hundreds of comments on LinkedIn from all sides. Some people appeared to draw correlations between their own experiences and Egozi's, while others criticized the post. Some even tried to hack into Egozi's social media and bank accounts, Egozi said.
"It really showed me the ugly underbelly of how we look at the American work ethic," Egozi said. "There were all these people posting these disgusting things. These are people on LinkedIn who have their full names and employers attached. If they think they can say these things without consequences, how can someone like me feel safe in that environment?"
On the other hand, Egozi said they received dozens of messages from people with white collar jobs in similar situations.
"Every single person knows a sex worker," they said. "People just don't feel safe coming out because of the highly stigmatized and dangerous ways we've been treated in society."
Egozi first entered the industry in 2020 after their creative agency lost several clients due to the economic turmoil of the pandemic. They'd never been far removed from sex work as Egozi had worked in the sex tech world and alongside sex workers in the past.
"Part of it was about cash, but I also felt like it was a place where I could confront a lot of my own personal fears and traumas," Egozi said. "It allowed me to take ownership of myself and my career," they added.
'The actual sex is so little of it'
Ultimately, Egozi said sex work has given them numerous professional skills — the same types of job qualifications that LinkedIn was designed to promote.
"People forget that the word 'work' is attached to sex work — the work of building a brand and a company. The actual sex is so little of it," they said.
"I know how to engage audiences and elicit emotion from them. I know how to make sales, build my own brand and community, and advertise it. I also identify leads and filter them. And all of that is not even taking into account the creative production of all of it if you do adult content," Egozi added.
Egozi has received multiple job offers since they first posted about the issue on LinkedIn and they have continued to work in the tech world as an advisor and consultant. Egoiz said they don't plan to leave the industry, but the popularity of their LinkedIn post has made their job more dangerous and they've already begun making plans to address safety concerns.
"I'm not giving my agency over and I have yet to see a company that I trust giving myself over to," they said. "I'm going to keep doing it as long as it feels good and I'm going to stop the moment it doesn't."
Do you have a similar story? Reach out to the reporter from a non-work email at gkay@insider.com
More: LinkedIn weekend BI US Sex work Careers
|
2022-08-06T13:48:35Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
A LinkedIn User Went Viral After Listing 'Sex Work' As Their Job
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/linkedin-user-went-viral-lists-sex-work-as-professional-experience-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/linkedin-user-went-viral-lists-sex-work-as-professional-experience-2022-8
|
Here's why founders shutter their companies instead of filing for bankruptcy
Startups typically run into trouble when they blow through their fundraising hauls, restructuring and emerging-tech lawyers said.
Celsius' Chapter 11 is uncommon in a startup world where companies quietly flame out.
Startups typically burn through cash rather than racking up long-term debt or an army of creditors.
They tend to favor private, out-of-court liquidations to avoid scrutiny, lawyers told Insider.
When Celsius filed for Chapter 11 in July, it acknowledged to a bankruptcy court in Manhattan that it owes answers to its massive base of 1.7 million users who'd held various crypto assets that represent most of its $5.5 billion in liabilities.
But the crypto lender's high-profile bankruptcy marks the relatively uncommon instance of a startup that has run out of cash and is seeking to restructure in bankruptcy court. According to five corporate lawyers Insider spoke to, many startups more often simply liquidate and wind down operations privately.
"Many startups don't have long-term liabilities or debt other than venture debt and trade payables," Ronald Fleming, a partner at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP — where he leads its emerging-companies practice — said.
"They're burning cash to operate," he said. "Bankruptcy tends to be a solution for solving balance-sheet issues, which is not really the problem for startups that can't raise cash to fund operating losses in a tougher financing environment."
As share prices of public-tech companies have plummeted and venture capitalists have pulled back on funding in the downturn, venture investors have put pressure on portfolio companies to cut costs, which for many has meant reducing staff. Companies like Coinbase, Gopuff, Better, and Noom have all laid off staff.
Others, like Fast, a one-click checkout-software company, have shut down completely and dissolved. Some startups try to restructure their operations through a Chapter 11 filing to deal with their liabilities and emerge a leaner enterprise, while others at the end of the road dissolve and offload their assets in out-of-court proceedings.
As the economic downturn hits startups, dissolutions become more likely. According to data from PitchBook, some 684 US startups went out of business or filed for bankruptcy in 2020, and that number rose to 804 last year. As of July 28 this year, 356 startups have already closed or filed for bankruptcy, according to PitchBook. The number of bankruptcies in those groups is relatively small — just 60 US startups filed for bankruptcy in 2020, which declined to 37 in 2021, according to PitchBook data.
In court filings, Celsius outlined the substantial physical hardware it used to run its online business, including tens of thousands of bitcoin-mining rigs among its $4.3 billion in assets. The crypto lender also said it owes millions to vendors helping it build a new mining center in Texas.
A formal Chapter 11 restructuring would help the company, valued at roughly $3 billion in December, by creating a regimented and transparent process to repay a large creditor base, leverage its physical assets, and emerge with a business on the other side.
But the costs and rigors of a court-monitored process for Chapter 11 bankruptcy make it a less appealing option for many startups and emerging tech companies strapped for cash, attorneys said.
The problem for startups is that they've burned through their cash, Fleming said.
"Many people don't understand this, but you need cash or financing to avail oneself of a bankruptcy-restructuring process," he added.
"Bankruptcy is expensive — the reality for many startups that can't raise a round of venture capital or other bridge financing, is to seek out some kind of business combination," he said. "If that process fails, the choices are either to shut down and wind up, or, more frequently, to orchestrate a 'soft landing,' or an 'acquihire,' often at a very low, nominal purchase price, with another startup."
Companies restructuring in federal court must keep paying their bills while they close down stores or offices and tee up asset sales under the supervision of a bankruptcy judge. Companies in bankruptcy must also get the court's permission to pay various business expenses, or to even access any financing they negotiated with lenders and investors during the process.
Other costs of filing for Chapter 11 can be prohibitive for small companies, as the bankrupt company must pay the army of professionals involved — bankers, consultants, and top lawyers billing upwards of $1,500 an hour — out of its debtor's assets.
A quick wind down
For many emerging tech startups, the problem is also less that they have major liabilities like long-term debt to carefully slash by restructuring, or large numbers of physical stores to wind down, or major assets like equipment to sell off, attorneys said.
When the one-click checkout startup Fast burned through some $120 million in funding, it simply laid off employees and ended its operations in April.
"Startups fail for many reasons, of which Fast obviously was not immune. But decisions made that lead to this outcome which I take responsibility for," Domm Holland, the startup's CEO, wrote in social-media posts at the time.
Startups can can shut things down quickly and liquidate their remaining assets — often whatever cash is left — and parcel it out to any remaining creditors, Ed Zimmerman, a partner at Lowenstein Sandler who chairs the firm's tech group, said.
"It's harder to do some sort of reorganization or work out when the assets are as ... I don't want to call it nebulous, but intangible, and perhaps unusable without team members," Zimmerman said. "It's not like we have a lot of printing presses that can be sold."
"Startups that are prioritizing growth over profitability run out of cash because they go from funding to funding," he said.
That can become a problem when VCs pull back. Deal activity among VCs in the US has declined significantly since record investments last year hit $342 billion, according to PitchBook and the National Venture Capital Association's Q2 2022 report. According to the report, as of June 30, this year, deal activity stood at $144 billion.
The 'ABC' process
One approach that startups more commonly use to quietly wind down operations is a combination of asset sales and liquidations that they can operate under the radar with a process known as an assignment for the benefit of creditors, restructuring attorneys said.
The process, which the industry often refers to with the shorthand 'ABC,' follows state laws to unwind a company. States have different rules governing the process, and some states like Massachusetts and California — where many Silicon Valley tech companies have their bases — allow startups to handle their dissolution out of court, shielding them from negative press and scrutiny.
After Optimus Ride, an autonomous-vehicle company, sold off valuable assets like its intellectual property to Magna International, a Canadian auto-parts manufacturer, in January, it undertook the ABC process in Massachusetts to pay off creditors, Brad Sandler, a partner at the restructuring firm Pachulski Stang Ziehl & Jones, told Insider. Sandler represents the entity that was winding down Optimus Ride's remaining assets through the process, which is taking place out of court.
"Because bankruptcies are expensive, an ABC is, generally speaking, a less expensive process, and more efficient process," he said.
The Chapter 7 option
Another option is a Chapter 7 liquidation, a court-monitored proceeding in which a bankruptcy trustee oversees the distribution of liquidated assets to creditors. Unlike in a Chapter 11, the board and management of a company don't play a role in the process. Electric Last Mile Solutions, an electric-truck company, filed for Chapter 7 in Delaware bankruptcy court last month after its CEO and founder both left the company.
As with most restructuring and unwinding processes, it's creditors who get priority to recover their losses based on how much their loans were secured by the company's assets. In the context of startups, venture lenders like Silicon Valley Bank, which provide loans backed by collateral, could fall in the category of secured lenders.
Investors and stockholders frequently see their equity wiped out unless a deal can be reached otherwise, attorneys said.
"When companies fail, the liquidation value of a failed startup tends to be remarkably low, notwithstanding how much money they raised, or what they think the value of their technology is," Fleming said.
More: Investing celsius bankruptcy Startups
|
2022-08-06T15:36:54Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Why Founders Close Their Companies Instead of Filing for Bankruptcy
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/how-startups-shut-down-quickly-investors-2022-7
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/how-startups-shut-down-quickly-investors-2022-7
|
"We will restore law and order in America," he said to cheers.
"We are going to take back our magnificent White House, we're going to take it back," he said to cheers.
On Friday, he targeted Biden's policies and named various initiatives he'd lead in the White House.
"We will shut down Biden's border disaster, reinstitute our strong remain in Mexico policy, strengthen the patriots of ICE and border control," he said.
"We will again end catch and release, one of the dumbest programs ever," he added. "We will end chain migration. We will end the visa lottery and we will clamp down on illegal immigration just like we did less than two years ago."
"We will stop the crime wave in Democrat-run cities, we will give our police the power they need and the respect they deserve and we will not take immunity protection away from our police," he continued."
"We will restore law and order in America. We will hold China accountable for unleashing the virus upon the world. We will protect innocent life. We will defend our constitution. We will defend our totally under siege Second
Amendment."
Since losing, Trump has said at various times that he expects to win in 2024 should he run in the next presidential election. Friday's rally marked only the latest time that he made such a claim.
"With the support of everyone in this room, we will take back the House, we will take back the Senate and we will take back our country, and then most importantly in 2024, we are going to take back our beautiful White House," he said, addressing a crowd of rallygoers in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
More: Donald Trump 2024 presidential election White House
|
2022-08-06T15:37:24Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Trump Made a Slew of Campaign-Like Promises and Said He'd Return to WH
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-rally-promises-white-house-return-2022-7
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-rally-promises-white-house-return-2022-7
|
In this photo taken from video a view of a destroyed barrack at a prison in Olenivka, in an area controlled by Russian-backed separatist forces, eastern Ukraine, Friday, July 29, 2022.
The aftermath of a shelling at a pre-trial detention center in the course of Ukraine-Russia conflict, in the settlement of Olenivka in the Donetsk Region, Ukraine July 29, 2022.
More: Ukraine Russia prisoner of war UK Weekend
|
2022-08-06T17:21:18Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Russian Atrocity Claim: Ukrainian POW's Skull Stuck on Pole Image Appears to Show
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/russian-atrocity-claim-image-appears-to-show-head-of-ukrainian-pow-stuck-on-a-pole-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/russian-atrocity-claim-image-appears-to-show-head-of-ukrainian-pow-stuck-on-a-pole-2022-8
|
President Joe Biden tested negative for COVID-19 on Saturday after rebound case.
Biden will continue his isolation in the White House pending the results of a second antigen test.
He first tested positive for the virus on July 21 and started taking the antiviral drug Paxlovid.
President Joe Biden on Saturday tested negative for COVID-19 but will continue his isolation pending another test, according to the White House physician.
Biden's physician, Kevin O'Connor, said in a memo that the president had a negative antigen test this morning and remarked that the commander-in-chief was feeling "very well."
"The President continues to feel very well," he wrote. "Given his rebound positivity which we reported last Saturday, we have continued daily monitoring. This morning, his SARS-CoV-2 antigen testing was negative."
He continued: "In an abundance of caution, the President will continue his strict isolation measures pending a second negative test as previously described."
On July 21, the White House announced that Biden tested positive for COVID-19 and was "experiencing very mild symptoms" and had "begun taking Paxlovid," an antiviral drug.
A little over a week later, on July 30, Biden tested positive for the virus again and stayed in isolation, although he said at the time he was in good spirits.
"Folks, today I tested positive for COVID again," he tweeted at the time. "This happens with a small minority of folks. I've got no symptoms but I am going to isolate for the safety of everyone around me. I'm still at work, and will be back on the road soon."
The president and first lady Jill Biden are slated to travel to Kentucky next week to meet with families after devastating floods killed at least 24 people and ravaged several communities in the eastern part of the state.
More: Joe Biden White House antigen testing paxlovid
|
2022-08-06T19:00:58Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Biden Tests Negative for COVID-19, Will Continue Isolation: Physician
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/biden-tests-negative-coronavirus-isolation-white-house-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/biden-tests-negative-coronavirus-isolation-white-house-2022-8
|
MattLphotography/Shutterstock
A hotel group in Germany has attracted more job applicants by offering an unusual perk at work.
Ruby Hotels gives staff up to €500 to get a tattoo, piercing, or haircut after six months, per CNN.
Since the campaign started just over a month ago, Ruby Hotels has seen a 25% jump in job applications.
A German hotel group has found an unconventional way to attract more job applicants.
Ruby Hotels, which has just over a dozen hotels across Europe, has started offering new hires up to €500, or $511, to pay for the cost of a new tattoo, piercing, or haircut after they complete six months of employment, CNN reports.
"We love people with personality and that's what we want to communicate," Uta Scheurer, Ruby's vice president of human resources, told CNN. "The mix of individual characters is what creates the mood and the success of Ruby."
Since starting the offer in June, Ruby Hotels has seen a 25% jump in job applications. The offer will last through the end of the year, per CNN.
More: hotel Hotels Job Applications Hiring
|
2022-08-06T20:40:55Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
German Hotel Group Pays for Staff Tattoos, Piercings, Haircuts After 6 Months
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/hotel-group-pays-staff-tattoos-piercings-haircuts-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/hotel-group-pays-staff-tattoos-piercings-haircuts-2022-8
|
Mars Wrigley advertisement received online backlash from Chinese citizens.
Viral imagery from a Snickers promotional event claiming Taiwan as a country sparked backlash from Chinese public.
Mars Wrigley issued an apology on the Chinese social media platform Weibo.
Chinese officials issued sanctions on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Friday after her visit to Taiwan.
The makers of the Snickers candy bar, Mars Wrigley, issued an apology to China on Friday after the company faced backlash for suggesting Taiwan is an independent country during a promotional event.
The criticism stemmed from a launch event debuting a limited-edition Snickers bar, during which the company said the new product was available in select countries including South Korea, Malaysia, and Taiwan, Reuters reported.
Images and video from the event went viral on the Chinese social media platform Weibo, prompting Mars Wrigley to issue an apology on its Snickers China Weibo account and assure the public that it would amend the content in question.
"Mars Wrigley respects China's national sovereignty and territorial integrity and conducts its business operations in strict compliance with local Chinese laws and regulations," Mars Wrigley said in the statement.
One commenter on Weibo garnered 8,000 likes in their criticism of the advertisement.
"Say it: Taiwan is an inseparable part of China's territory!" the comment read, according to a report from Reuters.
Although Taiwan rejects China's sovereignty claims, the Chinese government still considers the island a part of its territory, though the nation has operated as a self-governed democratic country since 1949.
The incident comes on the heels of heightened tension after US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan on Tuesday, in what Chinese officials called an "egregious pro vacation."
China had tried to thwart the trip ahead of her arrival, citing threats of military attacks and economic consequences. The country later announced military drills around Taiwan and a ban on imports from the country.
China subsequently issued sanctions on Pelosi and her family on Friday. That same day, Apple warned suppliers not to use "made in Taiwan" labels on products to avoid angering China.
More: weekend BI US Snickers snickers bars Mars Wrigley
|
2022-08-06T20:41:01Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Snickers Apologizes to China for Saying Taiwan Is Independent Country
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/snickers-apologizes-to-china-after-suggesting-taiwan-independent-country-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/snickers-apologizes-to-china-after-suggesting-taiwan-independent-country-2022-8
|
Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer
Senate Democrats kicked off a marathon voting session on Saturday.
The so-called "vote-a-rama" is a necessary step to advancing Democrats' economic plan.
It may last over a dozen hours, given the last three vote-a-ramas.
Senate Democrats on Saturday evening proceeded to the "vote-a-rama" on their $740 billion climate, healthcare, and tax bill. It's the marathon voting session where lawmakers in both parties offer as many amendments as they can physically endure with no time limit.
The package — mostly negotiated between Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York and Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia — would allow Medicare to negotiate the price of some prescription drugs, establish over $300 billion in clean-energy tax credits, and extend financial assistance so Americans can purchase health coverage under the Affordable Care Act for three more years.
Vote-a-ramas typically stretch over a dozen hours and into the night, depending when they start. Sen. John Thune of South Dakota, the chief Republican vote-counter, said to expect at least four dozen amendment votes on inflation, immigration, and crime — all areas that Republicans want to pummel Democrats going into the midterm campaign season.
Earlier in the day, Democrats were girding for a long night. Sen. Debbie Stabenow of Michigan encouraged reporters to "go get something to eat." While Manchin asked how many journalists would be covering the debate until the very end. Just before dinner time, aides wheeled in a large cart full of barbecue.
"There are a lot of rumors that it may be, could be done tomorrow but we're ready," Sen. Amy Klobuchar, a Minnesota Democrat, told reporters. "I got like a change of clothes, various items, ready to go as long as it takes."
Senate Republicans vowed to force Democrats to take politically painful votes, part of an effort to exploit those positions for the November midterms.
"What will vote-a-rama be like? It will be hell," Sen. Lindsay Graham of South Carolina told reporters on Friday. "These are going to be hard votes for the Democrats."
Other Republicans just seemed unhappy to be in DC.
"Woke up at 5am to a 3am email that my 8:30am flight was cancelled but they rebooked me on an 8pm flight tomorrow night with one connection," Sen. Marco Rubio of Floria wrote on Twitter, "Now in DC for the joy that is 'vote a rama' on a garbage bill."
While Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa, the longest serving Senate Republican, lamented that he was missing out on a family reunion.
"Each Dec Schumer puts out schedule for Senate I set Grassley family reunion based on schedule," Grassley wrote on Twitter. "For 2nd yr in row I won't be at reunion I'm in DC to fight Dems irresponsible tax&spend bill."
—ChuckGrassley (@ChuckGrassley) August 5, 2022
The vote-a-rama is a special part of the Senate procedure that is required because Democrats are trying to muscle through their plan without a single Republican vote under a process called budget reconciliation. It allows Democrats to blow past the usual obstacle of the filibuster and its 60-vote threshold that effectively kills most legislation. In turn, minority parties use the vote-a-rama as a way to damage their political opponents since they are unable to resort to the usual protection of the filibuster.
The GOP is hoping that historic headwinds and concerns about inflation flip the chamber this November. This means they are likely to try to squeeze Sens. Mark Kelly, Raphael Warnock, and Catherine Cortez Masto, who are all widely viewed as the Democrats facing the toughest midterm contests, with difficult votes.
Usually, the party in power does not offer many of its own amendments as a way to preserve support for the overall bill. But Sen. Bernie Sanders, a Vermont independent, has railed against the legislation for not going far enough.
"The bottom line is that today is about whether or not Democrats are going to stand up and fight for amendments and support amendments, which address some very critical needs of working families," Sanders told reporters. "The amendments that I will walk will probably have the support of 70 or 80% of the American people. We will see how much support that we get ..."
More: Chuck Schumer Republicans Democrats Inflation Reduction Act
|
2022-08-07T04:30:13Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Manchin Bill: Senate Dems Start Marathon Vote Session With Finish Line in Sight
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/manchin-bill-senate-dems-vote-congress-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/manchin-bill-senate-dems-vote-congress-2022-8
|
The Secret Service has provided a list of agency-issued phone numbers to the Jan. 6 House committee.
The unusual move will allow investigators to determine which agents' records to review, ABC reported.
The Secret Service has faced criticism for deleting text messages sent during the attack on the Capitol.
The US Secret Service has turned over a list of agency-issued cell phone numbers to the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol, according to reports by ABC and CNN.
The "highly unusual" move to release agents' numbers will allow investigators to determine which officers' records they wish to review as part of their investigation, ABC first reported, and could indicate a renewed effort by the agency to cooperate with investigators.
CNN reported the current USSS director, James Murray, is delaying his retirement to oversee the agency's cooperation with investigators.
"I feel strongly about using this time to oversee and ensure our agency's continued cooperation, responsiveness, and full support with respect to ongoing Congressional and other inquiries," CNN reported Murray said in a message to his workforce.
The records are being released after the agency faced criticism that it deleted text messages from agents' phones that could have possibly been used as evidence in the investigation.
As part of a separate, agency-wide investigation connected to the attack on the Capitol, ABC reported, the inspector general responsible for the Secret Service also obtained a listing of personal cell phone numbers for the agents.
Deleting agents' text messages may have violated federal record-keeping laws and caused the loss of potentially relevant information regarding the events of Jan. 6
House Oversight Chair Carolyn Maloney and Homeland Security Chairman Bennie Thompson have accused the independent watchdog that oversees the Department of Homeland Security of covering up parts of its investigation into the missing messages.
"We are writing with grave new concerns over your lack of transparency and independence, which appear to be jeopardizing the integrity of a crucial investigation run by your office," the lawmakers wrote in an open letter to Trump-appointed DHS Inspector General Joseph Cuffari. "These documents also indicate that your office may have taken steps to cover up the extent of missing records."
Thompson and Maloney have called for Cuffari to remove himself from oversight of the investigation, saying his delayed disclosure to Congress about the deleted Secret Service records casts "serious doubt on his independence and his ability to effectively conduct such an important investigation."
More: Jan 6 Jan 6 committee US Secret Service Secret Service
house investigation
Jan 6 commission
|
2022-08-07T06:01:28Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Secret Service Turns Over Agents' Cell Numbers to Jan. 6 Committee
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/secret-service-turns-over-agents-cell-numbers-jan-6-committee-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/secret-service-turns-over-agents-cell-numbers-jan-6-committee-2022-8
|
Billie Webb quit van life, but instead of going back to renting, she downsized again.
Webb used to live in a 1990 Chevy 20 van, but the high cost of gas made it too expensive for her to travel.
Webb now lives in a 2015 Mazda, where she also lived before buying the van.
Webb is planning to live in a Tesla Model 3 from the end of the year.
NOW WATCH: We took the Tesla Model 3 for a test drive. Here are the best and worst features.
More: Weekend BI UK van life van life diaries Buying A Car
|
2022-08-07T09:04:11Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
I Quit Van Life to Live in My Car and Now I'm Making $4,000 a Month
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/quit-van-life-live-in-car-waiting-live-new-tesla-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/quit-van-life-live-in-car-waiting-live-new-tesla-2022-8
|
I have a side hustle as a nude model and I find being naked in front of strangers is liberating and fulfilling.
Lawrence says nude modelling is liberating.
Edd Lawrence
Edd Lawrence is an architectural technician with an unusual side hustle.
In his evenings and weekend he works as a nude model for Nude Life.
He says it feels liberating and is more fulfilling than any other job.
This as-told-to article is based on a conversation between Edd Lawrence, an architectural technician who is also a part-time. nude model, and Insider's Sam Tabahriti. It has been edited for length and clarity.
The first time I took off my robe in front of a room full of people at a hen party drawing class with 25 women (and 2 men). There was nowhere to hide – for 90 minutes all eyes are on you and it's very hard to forget that.
I love art as a subject and I often feel envious of the group on the other side of the drawing boards. Yet I also feel extremely privileged to be a part of the group's special occasion – they use me and my body as inspiration.
My day job as an architectural technician offers me creative stimulation and financial security, but life art offers me a productive vent for my desire to entertain and serve. I like the variety.
I started serving at hen parties in Brighton, on the coast south of London, in my early 20s. At the time life drawing was becoming really popular and I kept getting asked to model, but I really didn't want to. The absence of that small bit of cloth makes a huge difference.
I kept saying no for about a year or two until I got tricked into my first hen party life drawing class. I was asked if I was available to cover an event as the agency in question had been let down last minute, so I obliged.
After that I kept saying yes and eventually signed up with the agency Nude Life.
'Comfortable with my decision'
Being naked in a room full of people is really the ultimate challenge. I was hesitant at first but now I love it. Being naked in front of strangers is liberating, courageous, and feels somewhat more filling than any other customer service jobs that I have experienced.
There is a stereotype for every job and that's certainly true in the male entertainment industry. I feel male models are less affected than female models in a negative sense, however.
A friend once told me that "you shouldn't do something that you couldn't tell everybody you did." I have used this as my moral compass when exploring my place in this industry. I have always felt comfortable with my decision from there –I hardly tell anyone I do this, yet there is no one I wouldn't admit it to if they asked.
Like with every job, there are tricky clients and dealing with them while naked takes a little something extra.
I also love the moment the group relaxes into the event after getting over the initial hysteria or embarrassment, engage in the activities and laugh at the tongue-in-cheek tone of the event.
I have stopped modelling nude a few times in my life, usually inspired by a partner or conflicting professional agreements. I don't have to work nude – but I choose to.
More: Weekend BI UK nude model Nude Drawing
|
2022-08-07T10:35:33Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
My Side Hustle Is Nude Modeling. I Find It Liberating and Fulfilling.
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/i-am-a-nude-model-being-naked-is-liberating-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/i-am-a-nude-model-being-naked-is-liberating-2022-8
|
After months of spiking, mortgage rates have generally been falling over the past couple of weeks — though they've experienced some volatility. Average 30-year fixed mortgage rates dropped below 5% last week for the first time since early April.
Inflation has pushed rates up over two percentage points so far this year. The Federal Reserve has been raising the federal funds rate to try to cool inflation, though it's so far struggled to bring price growth down. This has some economists and investors worried that the Fed may have to raise rates more aggressively, which could spark a recession if the economy slows too much. These fears have pushed rates down.
Mortgage rates have been volatile recently as the Fed works to get inflation under control. If prices continue to grow, mortgage rates could increase too. But if the economy starts to slow, rates could trend down.
|
2022-08-07T10:35:51Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Today's Mortgage, Refinance Rates: August 7, 2022 | Rates Are Going Down
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/best-mortgage-refinance-rates-today-sunday-august-7-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/best-mortgage-refinance-rates-today-sunday-august-7-2022-8
|
GOLDMAN SACHS: Buy these 15 highly profitable stocks that are poised to out-earn their peers as investors grapple with their fears about a recession and tight labor market
Investors are concerned that earnings will sink this year.
Wall Street expects companies to post smaller profits as the economy slows and inflation persists.
Earnings projections have dipped even though recent quarterly reports have been relatively strong.
David Kostin of Goldman Sachs rounded up the companies expected to report the best profit growth.
Investors are probably cheering up after stocks staged a powerful rally over the last month that reduced their losses from earlier in the year. But according to Goldman Sachs, it's too soon to break out the champagne.
"Whether or not the economy tips into a recession, consensus earnings forecasts remain too optimistic and profit margins for the median S&P 500 company will likely decline next year," Goldman Sachs Chief US Equity Strategist David Kostin wrote in a recent note to clients.
In early July, Kostin wrote that he expects S&P 500 companies to earn $226 per share for the year, up 8% from the year before. At the time the Wall Street consensus was $229 a share, and it's since dipped to match Kostin's projections, according to FactSet.
Goldman Sachs expects the benchmark index to end the year at 4,300, which, according to FactSet estimates, is a bit more pessimistic than the Street consensus of 4,442.
Analysts and experts are expecting slightly smaller profits for corporate America due to factors like the slowing economy and persistent inflation, but they're still counting on a continued rally for equities. The S&P 500 would have to climb another 7% to reach the consensus target.
Considering the S&P 500 kicked off 2022 at 4,796, that would still leave stocks solidly in the red for the year — but a 7% decline by the end of the year is a lot more tolerable than the 20% decline investors experienced from January to June.
And while that earnings growth forecast doesn't look great, Kostin analyzed the components of the S&P 500 based on their expected 2022 earnings growth. He found 15 companies that are poised to out-earn their peers this year, and all 15 of those stocks are ranked below from lowest to highest based on consensus earnings estimates. It's notable that energy company earnings are expected to more than double in 2022, while industrial sector profits are expected to surge 33%.
Consensus figures below are current as of July 5.
15. Broadcom
Ticker: AVGO
Expected 2022 profit growth: 25%
14. T-Mobile
12. Deere
Ticker: DE
11. Qualcomm
Ticker: QCOM
10. Analog Devices
Ticker: ADI
Ticker: DIS
Expected 2022 profit growth: 108%
Ticker: CVX
1. ConocoPhillips
Ticker: COP
|
2022-08-07T10:36:03Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Stock Picks to Buy: 15 Most Profitable Companies From Goldman Sachs
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/stocks-to-buy-investing-most-profitable-highest-earning-goldman-sachs-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/stocks-to-buy-investing-most-profitable-highest-earning-goldman-sachs-2022-8
|
Walmart has nixed hundreds of corporate roles.
The company has repeatedly sounded the alarm about inflation and economic uncertainty.
Given Walmart's influence and reach, its struggles could indicate industry-wide struggles for retailers.
Walmart made a major splash Monday when it laid off around 200 corporate employees – a move that indicates the retail giant is pivoting to deal with declining profits and an uncertain economic climate.
But it wasn't the first sign of recent trouble for Walmart. From inflation to overstock to over-hiring, the world's largest employer has been on its heels throughout 2022 after riding nearly two years of a pandemic high.
"A cut of 200 roles is not material in the context of a giant employer like Walmart," John Zolidis, the president of Quo Vadis Capital, told Insider. "However, the action does not send a feel-good message about the business. It also does not suggest a doubling-down on the kind of incremental investment necessary to build capacities and drive growth."
As the largest brick-and-mortar retailer in the United States, Walmart holds significant influence in the industry. It appears that the Arkansas-based retailer is not alone in its current struggles. Big box competitor Target also has announced that it will rely on deep discounting to rid itself of excess inventory, loungewear, home goods, and electronics. And convenience store chain 7-Eleven also recently cut at least 900 corporate jobs.
Here are three factors that have plagued Walmart throughout the year and that preceded the company's layoffs.
Earlier in the pandemic, inflation proved to be a boon for the big box company. Rising prices across the country pushed shoppers to favor discount and value-focused retailers like Walmart.
Philip Melson, client partner at Fractal Analytics, told Insider in November 2021 that Walmart "seems to be confident that it has the scale necessary to absorb inflation well enough to not pass on significant price increases to their customer."
But prices have continued to climb to a point where Walmart customers are cutting their budgets to the bone, focusing only on basic grocery items. The necessity of grocery spending coupled with high gas prices led Walmart customers to avoid spending on general merchandise at the retailer.
"The increasing levels of food and fuel inflation are affecting how customers spend," Walmart CEO Doug McMillon said in a statement in late July as Walmart cut profit guidance.
Higher prices and supply chain issues have forced Walmart to carry far too many products that the company can't sell quickly enough.
After the retail giant reported a 32% increase in inventory at the end of last quarter, store-level employees told Insider horror stories from their backrooms – including myriad pallets rendering floors unwalkable, towering boxes that have blocked access to private breastfeeding rooms and bathrooms, and outdoor trailers stuffed with overstock.
Behind the scenes, Walmart corporate has scrambled to deal with this overstock, particularly before the holiday season. An internal memo to store managers in late July said that Walmart is allowing stores to turn off their automatic inventory-ordering systems to help mitigate excess inventory.
And as Walmart announced its change in profit guidance, the company ordered store managers to clean up bloated inventories through rollbacks and markdowns.
Overstaffing
Other strategic decisions that benefitted the retailer early in the pandemic also proved problematic in 2022.
Like its competitors, Walmart undertook a massive hiring push to cover COVID-19-related staffing shortages at the end of 2021. In the company's May earnings call, McMillon announced that these "weeks of overstaffing" hurt the chain's bottom line.
"As the Omicron variant case count declined rapidly in the first half of the quarter, more of our associates that were out on Covid leave came back to work faster than we expected," he said. "We hired more associates at the end of last year to cover for those on leave, so we ended up with weeks of over-staffing. That issue was resolved during the quarter primarily through attrition.
In the business world at large, multiple large companies have flagged "overstaffing" as an issue, and have embarked on layoffs to correct the issue.
More: Walmart BI Select Lay-offs Inflation
|
2022-08-07T10:36:27Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Walmart Is Facing Inflation, Overstock, and Overstaffing
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/walmart-inflation-overstock-overstaffing-issues-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/walmart-inflation-overstock-overstaffing-issues-2022-8
|
Jasmine Bautista poses with a piece of furniture before restoring it.
Jasmine Bautista
Furniture restoration is exploding in popularity on TikTok.
The hashtag "#furnitureflip" has 4.6 billion total views and has grown by 23% compared to last year, according to TikTok.
Here are some furniture transformations by popular creators.
McKay Floyd worked as a teacher in Atlanta until she quit last summer to pursue furniture restoration, or "furniture flipping" as it's known on TikTok, full time.
Floyd began furniture flipping as a hobby to decorate her house, but by the end of last summer, she was making more money from selling furniture than she was from teaching.
"I just randomly started filming stuff and putting it on TikTok, and then it all just came from there," she said.
Floyd now runs @designsbymckay on TikTok, where she posts videos of her flips, which usually involve sanding down wooden furniture and repainting or staining it. Her account, which is less than two years old, has more than 110,000 followers.
Furniture restoration was once thought to be a practice reserved for stuffy antique shops and artisans, but Floyd is just one of the furniture flipper accounts that have exploded in popularity on TikTok.
The hashtag "#furnitureflip" has 4.6 billion total views on TikTok and has grown by 23% compared to last year, according to the company.
"Our community is passionate about sustainability and making environmentally conscious purchase decisions; as a result, sustainable, thrifted, and vintage content thrives on our platform," TikTok told Insider.
Jasmine Bautista, who runs the account @prettylittleflips with more than 300,000 followers, seems to agree with TikTok's assessment of the furniture flip community.
"A lot of these pieces I find on the side of the road or online given out for free. A lot of the time, these furniture pieces are going to the trash, and where does the trash end up? The landfill," she said. "We already are in such a world where there's so much trash we don't need any more of it."
Grace Elletson, who runs @graceful_designs_diy on TikTok, says that people are "catching onto the benefits" of buying secondhand furniture over store-bought.
"Lots of mass-produced stuff is cheaply made, kind of trendy in design, so there's nothing really classic about it. It's going to go out of style in a year or two, and it falls apart," she said. Elletson's account has nearly 600,000 followers on TikTok.
Bautista, Elletson, and Floyd shared some of the furniture flips they are most proud of. Here are pictures before and after their transformations.
Jasmine Bautista of @prettylittleflips poses with an old dresser before its makeover.
That same dresser after her work.
Bautista said she picks furniture based on whether she's "able to see the potential." Here she poses with a broken table.
"I'm giving it a new life, I'm giving it a new home," Bautista said about the furniture she restores.
Bautista said she was always interested in creating things with her own hands and used to sell decorated cakes before she got into furniture flipping.
"After I flipped my first one, that was it. I ended up getting hooked," she said.
Grace Elletson of @graceful_designs_diy said she started refinishing furniture on the porch of her "mini apartment" and that "it kind of just blossomed into this obsession that I had."
Grace Elletson
Elletson now works out of a studio she rents in a milking barn just outside of Burlington, Vermont.
"I think my business is definitely half content creation, half furniture refinishing," Elletson said.
"There's so much that ends up going to the garbage I feel like there's a mad dash. I want to do it all, but of course, I can't," she said.
Elletson said she tries to teach her followers how to refinish furniture themselves, "so all this amazing stuff isn't getting trashed."
"You're going to make more unique and beautiful homes if you're able to buy secondhand," Elletson said. "If you're able to put that sweat into it because it does take effort."
McKay Floyd of @designsbymckay said she used to flip furniture for fun. She found this set of drawers at Goodwill.
McKay Floyd
Floyd said she mostly learned how to restore furniture by watching YouTube tutorials and from her dad.
Here is a superman-themed dresser Floyd worked on recently.
She says it takes her between 2 and 5 days to fix up a piece, and she works on several at a time.
Floyd said that posting on social media has helped her business take off. "TikTok definitely helps me sell the furniture," she said. "More now because I have more followers."
Floyd says she hopes her page will show people that "you don't necessarily always have to go out and spend thousands of dollars on new furniture. There are ways that you can flip it into something you like, and that looks super expensive."
|
2022-08-07T12:06:30Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
TikTok's Hot 'Furniture-Flipping' Trend: Before and After Photos
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/before-and-after-tiktok-furnitureflip-restoration-budget-green-sustainable-2022-7
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/before-and-after-tiktok-furnitureflip-restoration-budget-green-sustainable-2022-7
|
As new home supply piles up and sale prices fall, weary buyers are getting much-needed relief and even opportunities to jump back into the market and score a deal
Potential homebuyers are getting relief from higher supply and lower prices for new homes.
Buyers are starting to benefit as new home supply rises while their prices begin to fall.
Rick Sharga of Market Intelligence and ATTOM broke down what he's seeing in the market.
Here's what homebuyers wondering if it's time to buy should consider.
In recent years, trying to buy a dream home has felt more like a nightmare.
"This has been probably the strongest seller's market I can recall," said Rick Sharga, the EVP of Market Intelligence at real estate data firm ATTOM and a long-time observer of the real estate market, in a recent interview with Insider. "All the conditions really were in favor of the seller."
Would-be buyers couldn't bank on landing a home last year, even if they staked their life savings in a cutthroat bidding war. Home prices skyrocketed for many reasons: people were scrambling to relocate because of remote work, near-record-low mortgage rates made borrowing cheap, and deep-pocketed foreign buyers were willing and able to snap up properties, of which there was a severe shortage because both labor and materials were scarce.
But there are reasons to believe that better days are ahead for homebuyers, Sharga told Insider.
Supply surge brings down prices, competition
While several of those aforementioned catalysts for home prices have faded, one of the most impactful is the fact that shortages are easing because new home supply has suddenly risen, according to data from the Federal Reserve.
Having more new homes on the market has put downward pressure on prices of those homes, data from the US central bank shows.
Interestingly, the drop in new home prices has come even as home prices broadly have stayed elevated. Sharga said that's likely because current homeowners are reluctant to move after mortgage rates shot up. That limits the supply of existing homes available and keeps prices up.
Not only has the uptick in new homes made getting one cheaper, but it's also made the whole process easier. Having more freshly built houses to choose from makes competing for one less cutthroat, which is a welcome reprieve from homebuyers who've been stressed to the max.
Mortgage rates might retreat — a (mostly) good sign
For hopeful homebuyers, rising mortgage rates are a double-edged sword. Although higher borrowing costs make buying a home more expensive, it's worth remembering that other buyers are in the same predicament. The bright side of lofty rates is that it causes some would-be buyers to end their search, which eventually results in fewer home sales and lower prices.
That duality has been on full display this year as mortgage rates have rocketed higher this year.
A 30-year fixed rate mortgage is currently about 5%, according to Fed data, up from just over 3% at the start of the year. Such a jarring rise is historically rare, Sharga said.
"It's very unusual — almost unprecedented — to see that high a percentage increase in mortgage rates in that shorter period of time," Sharga said. "It's the biggest jump we've seen since the turn of the century and probably the biggest we've seen since as far back as the 1980s."
But, as expected, a sharp rising in borrowing costs has scared away potential buyers and helped cool the red-hot real estate market. Data from Goldman Sachs released in an August 3 note shows that the number of sales for both new and existing homes fell in June from the previous month by 8.1% and 5.4%, respectively, while overall housing activity dropped 10%.
Higher mortgage rates played a central role in the "material slowdown in housing activity," wrote Lotfi Karoui, the chief credit strategist of Goldman Sachs, in the note. Sharga agrees, telling Insider that "the increase in mortgage rates really threw the brakes on the market."
Househunters may be encouraged by the fact that mortgage rates have slid considerably since late June and should fall further to 4.5%, according to Bank of America. That should be a boon for buyers — so long as the lower rates don't draw back more competitors and push prices up.
Don't buy based on price predictions, but watch for weakness
Buying a home is usually one of the largest and most important decisions an individual or family makes in their lifetime, but there's a point where thinking too much can have diminishing returns.
While hopeful homebuyers should, of course, closely monitor mortgage rates and home prices, Sharga said he normally doesn't recommend trying to time the market since it's impossible to accurately predict the timing and magnitude of their swings.
"There's an old saying in real estate that the best time to buy a house was 15 years ago, and the second best time is today," Sharga said. "Because people that are anticipating a huge price decline typically find themselves disappointed."
Waiting on home prices to fall is almost always a losing strategy for people who are ready to buy a house, Sharga said. However, he acknowledged that abnormally high volatility means it may make sense for homebuyers to be patient right now instead of jumping at a house.
"In today's market with the volatility we're seeing in mortgage rates — and the likelihood that price increases are likely to decline a bit — if you don't find a house that is comfortably in your price range, it might make sense to wait a little bit and see if market conditions don't improve between now and the end of the year," Sharga said.
housing market 2022
Rick Sharga real estate
|
2022-08-07T12:06:36Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Time to Buy a House? High Supply, Low Prices Help, Veteran Says
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/buy-a-house-home-prices-real-estate-market-supply-sharga-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/buy-a-house-home-prices-real-estate-market-supply-sharga-2022-8
|
Ryanair planes.
A passenger hid on a Ryanair flight without a ticket, the Manchester Evening News reported.
He got off a previous flight and hid on the jet bridge before sneaking back onto the plane.
The man was removed by police but "crying" passengers thought a bomb was on board.
A man sparked a security scare after getting on a flight without a ticket, the Manchester Evening News reported.
One passenger told the newspaper that her 10-year-old granddaughter was crying because people on the plane feared there was a bomb.
Barbara Watson was on the Ryanair flight on Thursday from Palma in Spain to Manchester in the UK after a family vacation. When the plane arrived at Palma, all passengers went into the terminal except the man who remained on the jet bridge before returning to the aircraft.
"The stewardesses told us that he was hiding on board in view of them waiting to see which seat was free," Watson told the newspaper.
"He sat in the seat, we got on the runway and the pilot stopped the flight and told us we'd have to go back to the gate as the numbers weren't adding up."
The man was arrested, Watson said, after a flight attendant asked to see his boarding pass. She said passengers were worried he had left something on the plane and some were asked to remove their luggage from the overhead compartments.
The 64-year-old told the newspaper that the pilot said they didn't know why the man tried to sneak back on the flight and that his behavior was suspicious.
Ryanair confirmed to Manchester Evening News that the police were requested and that it apologized to its passengers.
"The passenger was removed and the crew carried out security checks again ahead of take-off, as per Ryanair procedure," a spokesperson said.
Ryanair did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.
More: Transportation Airlines Travel Weekend BI UK
|
2022-08-07T12:07:06Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Passenger Snuck on to a Flight Without a Ticket, Report Says
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/passenger-snuck-on-to-a-flight-without-a-ticket-report-says-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/passenger-snuck-on-to-a-flight-without-a-ticket-report-says-2022-8
|
Shopify laid off 10% of its workforce in late July.
A former Shopify employee who lost her job in a mass layoff had 25 job offers just two days later.
The e-commerce company cut about 1,000 employees last month, or 10% of its workforce.
Its CEO said the layoffs were needed because the e-commerce bump from the pandemic had not lasted.
A Shopify employee who lost her job when it sacked 10% of its workforce in late July said she had received 25 job offers just two days later.
The e-commerce company laid off about 1,000 employees. According to a memo sent by CEO Tobi Lütke, the cuts were being made because Shopify had wrongly believed that the pandemic e-commerce bump would continue.
"When the COVID pandemic set in, almost all retail shifted online because of shelter-in-place orders. Demand for Shopify skyrocketed," he told staff.
Expecting that demand to continue was incorrect, Lütke admitted: "Ultimately, placing this bet was my call to make and I got this wrong."
Insider found several posts from Shopify employees on LinkedIn who said they'd been laid off, including one from Caroline Dohrmann, who began as a content manager based in Germany just seven months ago.
"Now I'm being forced to start over. I've tried to reach out to everyone, but in case anyone was forgotten in the chaos: Thank you to everyone I have worked with over the past few months."
Dorhmann also wrote last week: "As of yesterday, I have 25 job offers in my inbox. By next Wednesday, I have a total of 7 interviews. In one week. Unbelievable."
"The support and engagement I've experienced from the people on LinkedIn over the past few days is incredible and I haven't experienced this on any other platform."
Another Shopify employee who was also laid off posted on LinkedIn that she was having 10 conversations with prospective employees.
However, one wrote a blog post about how his world crumbled when he lost his job.
Shopify is just one of several tech companies to make mass layoffs as the global economy falters in recent months. Tesla also cut 10% of its workforce in June after Elon Musk said he had a "super bad feeling" about the economy.
According to Crunchbase News, which has been tracking layoffs in tech, more than 30,000 tech workers in the US have been laid off this year.
Are you an employee who has been laid off or worried you may be soon? Reached out to this reporter at stabahriti@insider.com from a non-work email.
More: Weekend BI UK Shopify Layoff eCommerce
|
2022-08-07T12:07:30Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Shopify Worker Had 25 Job Offers on LinkedIn 2 Days After Mass Layoff
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/shopify-worker-had-25-job-offers-on-linkedin-2-days-after-mass-layoff-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/shopify-worker-had-25-job-offers-on-linkedin-2-days-after-mass-layoff-2022-8
|
'The market bottom is in': The chief investment strategist of a $1.4 billion firm explains why he's rotating back into growth stocks — and lays out the four high-quality tech stocks that investors should bet on now
"There's a lot more opportunity than people see, and the pessimism makes me bullish," said David Waddell.
Waddell and Associates
Strong market fundamentals justify the current rally despite weak economic data, said David Waddell.
Waddell is considering a rotation back towards growth equities to navigate a slowing economy.
To capitalize on a weakening dollar, he also recommended investors buy international stocks.
Following a slide into official bear market territory, stocks suddenly reversed course last month to pare back some losses, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite up almost 10% and 13%, respectively, since mid-July.
Some investors, like Bank of America's Michael Hartnett and former PIMCO CEO Mohamed El-Erian, believe that current economic data paints too gloomy a picture for the bear market rally to continue. But David Waddell, who serves as the CEO and chief investment strategist of $1.4 billion firm Waddell and Associates, disagrees with this sentiment.
"The markets are projecting forward that inflation's coming down, which means valuations can go up. Because of that, I do think the market bottom is in," Waddell told Insider in a recent interview. "There's a lot more opportunity than people see, and the pessimism makes me bullish."
Even before the rally began, Waddell predicted that markets would fare better in the second half of the year, in part due to extremely negative investor sentiment and a belief in mean reversion. Historically speaking, after the market has dipped by double digits — like it did in the first half of 2022 — it's typically up by 20% twelve months later, he explained.
Despite last quarter's negative GDP print and threats of another higher rate hikes, Waddell still hasn't wavered on his forecast. Not only does he believe that inflation has already hit its peak, but he also believes that current market valuations and future earnings expectations look extremely strong.
"We have broadcast this recession — this is a recession by appointment. So companies have been able to manage their affairs in a way that has continued to generate upside surprises and earnings," he said, explaining that the market has already seemingly priced in any future economic decline. "Now analysts are trimming those earnings, but let's remember the long term average for earnings growth is about 6%, and they're forecasting 9% right now for 2023."
Rotate into small caps and international growth stocks
Value stocks have been an investor favorite since they stole the show in 2020, after more than ten consecutive years of consistent outperformance from their growth counterparts. But for Waddell's recession trade, he's considering rotating his portfolios back towards growth stocks.
"If we're going into sort of this choppy, slow economy mode for a while, then we might need to tilt a little bit more. So we've been looking towards growth," he explained. "I think it's possible to get into growth at lower valuations just by opening up the aperture to be a little bit more global."
Simultaneously, this trade also means pivoting away from high-dividend, value compression stocks back into dividend growers, which are favored during recessionary periods for their predictable cash flows and revenue growth, and includes sectors like healthcare, consumer staples, and technology, he explained.
"Some of those have dividends and have had enough valuation compression to really be pretty attractive again," Waddell said of the tech sector, referencing the five FAANG stocks as an example. "But we're trying to rotate in a cautious manner and not chase those broken tech stocks, because I think they're broken for the right reasons."
Within tech, Waddell is a fan of the broader semiconductor sector, especially Intel, which he predicts has room to rally after a particularly disappointing second-quarter earnings report. He also recommended investors consider buying blue-chip, quality stocks with stable business models like Apple, Microsoft, and Google.
"They have big balance sheets and earnings power. The other thing I like about them is if the dollar rolls over, they get a whole lot of their revenues from overseas, and that could be accretive to earnings," explained Waddell. "We're in an environment now, economically worldwide, where the spoils go to the victors — the larger companies."
The biggest trade opportunity Waddell sees is a weakening dollar, due to the Federal Reserve's current mandate and better-than-expected growth in Europe. Buying into global equities can also help investors unlock a lot of additional returns offshore, he added.
"I would overweight internationals because everybody's left those for dead," said Waddell, specifically pointing out emerging markets and Chinese and European equities. "They didn't get extra punishment from the strength of the dollar, but I think they'll get extra benefit from weakness in the dollar when we get there."
More: Investing inflation investing strategy stock market investing
stock market dip
market bottom
how to invest recession
|
2022-08-07T12:07:36Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Investing in a Bear Market: 4 Tech Stocks to Buy at the Market Bottom
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/stock-market-investing-economy-recession-gdp-strong-dollar-growth-strategy-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/stock-market-investing-economy-recession-gdp-strong-dollar-growth-strategy-2022-8
|
I flew on Air Canada's Boeing 787 from London to Montreal and was disappointed in the food.
I typically enjoy airplane meals, but both had a weird taste and texture, reminding me of baby food.
Despite the gross food, I found the seat spacious and comfortable, but I still wouldn't book the carrier again.
Flying internationally can be a hit-or-miss experience, especially this year as the industry recovers from the pandemic.
Airlines are less reliable than ever, from lost luggage to canceled flights, and travelers are losing trust in the industry.
PAUL ELLIS/AFP via Getty Images.
Flying has become a nightmare as cancelations and delays skyrocket. Experts say it could get even worse.
Knowing the risks of flying this summer, I was worried about my recent trip from London to Montreal on Air Canada, particularly since I had to fly out of Heathrow airport, which has implemented a passenger cap due to staffing issues.
Heathrow Airport, a crucial global travel hub, asks airlines to stop selling tickets and caps passenger numbers amid travel chaos
Not to mention, Air Canada has been experiencing a lot of flight disruptions this year, having canceled or delayed over 14,500 flights since May 25, according to FlightAware data shared with Insider.
A family of four missed a long-awaited Disney cruise after Air Canada cancelled their flight, joining hundreds of passengers with vacation plans foiled by summer travel chaos
I wasn't sure if the airline would provide a smooth experience, but, to my surprise, the operation was solid. We departed and arrived on time; however, I would never fly the carrier internationally again for one reason — the food. Here's what it was like flying on Air Canada.
The plane at the gate in Montreal.
I started my journey at London's busy Heathrow airport at 5:30 a.m. — four hours ahead of my 9:30 a.m. departure. This was at the airline's recommendation, shown on my boarding pass.
A screenshot of my boarding pass with the recommendation to arrive four hours early.
I expected the airport to be crowded, and I wasn't wrong. Walking in, there were insanely long lines for bag drop, including people lining up outside because there was not enough space inside the check-in lobby.
Passengers with checked luggage lined up outside Heathrow's Terminal 2.
Fortunately, I packed 11 days' worth of stuff into a carry-on and personal item, so I did not need to visit the bag drop at the Air Canada check-in area.
My carry-on and duffle.
However, I did stop by to see if the counter was busy, and it was surprisingly tame. Plenty of kiosks were open, and the bag drop line was short. This was probably because I arrived so early.
Having checked in online, I didn't need to stick around the check-in area, so I made my way to security.
There were kiosks to check in and get a boarding pass.
Heathrow only allows passengers to carry one baggies worth of toiletries through the checkpoint, so I spent about 10 minutes transferring my liquids from my carry-on to the transparent bag.
Successfully fit all my toiletries in the small baggie.
After finally organizing my toiletries, I scanned my boarding pass and made my way through the line, which only took about 15 minutes. The airport had multiple lanes open, and the agents helped get everyone through quickly.
The entire process, from drop-off to clearing security, only took me 30 minutes. I do think this was because of the early hour I arrived, so for travelers looking to fly out of Heathrow — book a morning flight and arrive super early.
I had to kill about three hours before boarding, so I grabbed some coffee and a snack before walking 15 minutes to my gate. Terminal 2 is huge, so I'm glad I didn't wait until the last minute to head over to the B gates.
I sat for about an hour before the plane started boarding. At the gate, passengers were reminded that Air Canada still requires masks.
Flying internationally on an Air Canada 787.\
Moreover, the agent said there will not be enough overhead space to accommodate all carry-on bags. I was worried because of the horror stories of lost luggage, and I specifically planned to not check one. Luckily, I got mine on with no issue.
I was on a full flight.
Because I booked a basic economy ticket, I did not get a seat assignment or boarding zone at check-in, but the agent told anyone without a zone to wait until zone 5 was called.
My boarding pass without a zone or seat.
This meant I was one of the last people on the plane. However, I knew this would be the reality of booking the cheapest fare, so I didn't mind.
The plane at the gate in London.
Once I scanned my boarding pass, a small slip of paper popped out of the machine assigning me to seat 41C, which was the plane's last row.
Air Canada's Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner was nothing special and reminded me of most other mainline carriers I've been on.
Business class was up front…
Air Canada business class.
Source: Air Canada
…followed by premium economy…
…and regular economy.
Premium economy reminded me of United Airlines' premium plus loungers, though Air Canada's appeared slightly less padded. United and Air Canada are both Star Alliance members.
United Airlines premium plus.
I made my way to row 41 and was surprised to see there were only two seats — middle and aisle. The rest of the economy class cabin was in a 3x3x3 configuration.
View from my seat to the window.
Technically, the middle seat was a window, though there was a large gap between it and the fuselage wall. Nevertheless, the open space was the perfect spot to stow my duffle bag.
Below the window was a large gap.
I stored my carry-on bag a few rows ahead of me because the overhead bins above rows 40 and 41 were for flight attendant use only. This wasn't a big deal because I had everything I needed for the flight in my personal item.
While we waited for takeoff, I got settled in my seat and explored the amenities offered.
According to SeatGuru, economy pitch on the Boeing 787-8 varies from 30 to 34 inches. My seat had 31 inches of pitch with 17.3 inches of width, which I found to be plenty spacious. However, I am only 5'3" and on the smaller side, so larger travelers may feel cramped.
The bulkhead and the exit row had plenty of legroom, so I suggest upgrading if you want more space.
As far as the product itself, it was exactly what I expected. The seat offered good recline…
…a TV screen with plenty of movies, TV shows, and games…
...USB ports in the screen and outlets under the seat in front...
…a large tray table…
…an adjustable headrest...
...and dimming windows. The dark setting helped passengers block out the sun during the daytime flight.
Moreover, the seat came with a pillow and blanket, which helped me sleep…
The last row in the middle (pictured) was reserved for the crew.
…and the lavatory was large with plenty of space to move around.
For passengers who don't have wired headphones, like me, Air Canada hands out a pair before takeoff. I used them and thought the audio was fine, and they didn't hurt my ears.
We pushed back from the gate right on time and were en route to Montreal soon after. The flight took about six and a half hours.
After takeoff, I started browsing through the inflight entertainment system. There was a cool moving map that tracked the entire flight…
…but I was particularly impressed when I saw the dining menu loaded into the system. Options included a chicken dish with mash and a pasta dish. I chose the pasta.
While the meals sounded good on paper, I was extremely disappointed that nothing about Air Canada's food was appetizing.
The service started about an hour into the flight and I was excited to try the meal. Unlike many other frequent flyers, I like airplane food and have toured several kitchens where it is made.
Inside Gate Gourmet's Washington Dulles kitchen.
I tried meals prepared by the world's largest provider of airplane food, and here's why I'll never look at inflight meals the same way — but for good reasons
Most recently, I've flown KLM, United, and JetBlue on long-haul flights and loved each meal, so I expected the same from Air Canada, especially being a mainline carrier and part of a major international alliance.
International inflight meal on JetBlue (New York to London).
But, to be frank, the taste and texture were gross. The pasta had an unpleasant tangy flavor, while the side salad was just cucumbers covered in too much dressing.
I did eat the roll with butter though, and the chocolate dessert wasn't too bad. That, along with the bag of pretzels I brought, was enough to hold me over until lunch.
However, the second meal was not any better. We were offered a chicken or veggie pastry, and I chose the veggie option. There were no sides.
Like the first dish, the pastry was also not very good. The veggies were mashed into a paste, which reminded me of baby food, and I stopped eating it after a few bites.
On the bright side, the airline does offer free alcoholic beverages to all economy passengers, so I helped myself to Diet Coke and Bacardi.
The airline also had good coffee, as well as very attentive flight attendants and professional pilots.
This was my first time flying Air Canada and while I did find the seat comfortable and spacious, I doubt I'll ever book the carrier internationally again.
The food was simply inedible, in my opinion, and I expected to eat on the flight, so I was hungry for most of the journey.
I did like the coffee — it didn't taste burnt like other carriers I've been on.
If I end up having to book Air Canada again in the future due to timing or budget, I will make sure to bring more snacks onboard. And, fortunately, I can rely on a comfortable seat.
More: Features Business Visual Features Airlines Aviation
|
2022-08-07T13:37:46Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Flew Air Canada Boeing 787 in Economy and Won't Book Again; Review
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/flew-air-canada-boeing-787-economy-wont-book-again-review-2022-7
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/flew-air-canada-boeing-787-economy-wont-book-again-review-2022-7
|
Golden Corral now has to-go options.
I went to Golden Corral a year after my initial visit to see how the buffet chain was faring.
I found the food mostly bland and unappealing.
The salad bar was the unexpected highlight of my trip.
Golden Corral just announced a promotion featuring all-you-can-eat chicken wings, fried chicken, and chicken tenders, so I decided to visit and see how they are.
I first went to the buffet chain a year ago, in the summer of 2021, when it introduced a to-go option.
This time around, I planned to eat in the restaurant for the first time and get the full experience.
There were signs on doors and windows advertising the chicken wings.
The to-go option was also still available, and this time around I saw a few people use it.
When you enter you're immediately in line for the register, where you pay for access to the buffet and get a drink.
There are regular and to-go cups available and a standard self-serve Pepsi soda fountain.
There were printed out signs posted all over the restaurant with instructions, like this one requiring that all customers must be present at the register before entering the buffet.
A hand drawn sign at the register reminded customers that steak isn't available until dinner service starts, which is also when the chicken wings appear.
Menus and prices are different between lunch and dinner. An adult lunch buffet costs $12.49 in my location, and dinner costs $17.59.
The cashier handed me utensils and my receipt, and I was ready to hit the buffet.
I started out grabbing a plate, still warm, from the large stack.
The number of choices can be kind of overwhelming, so I took a lap to see what my options were.
Most of the options were what I anticipated: varieties of carbs, proteins, and vegetables separated by type of cuisine.
There were plenty of side dishes and snack type foods, like chips and salsa.
Many of the dishes weren't labeled, which made it a bit tricky to decide what to eat.
The fried chicken, though, was instantly recognizable.
Many of the available dishes are fried, and those tended to look more appealing than some of the other untouched options.
The hush puppies and breaded shrimp were some of the tastiest items I had.
On my first time around, the wing and chicken tender trays were empty.
There were two wing stations on opposite sides of the restaurant, and I hurried over when they were refilled.
I was happy to see celery and bleu cheese available to go with the wings ...
... but the semi-erased hand drawn sides made it feel like an afterthought.
I tried lots of Golden Corral staples, which were unfortunately not very good. There was so much food, but it was so bland it didn't feel satisfying.
The wings were okay but fairly bland, and the macaroni and cheese was shockingly flavorless.
After trying all the fried foods, I was sorely in need of a vegetable.
I'd wrongly assumed the far side of the buffet was empty, because no one was over there, but it actually held the salad bar.
I can't even remember the last time I went to a salad bar aside from my college dining hall, and they were largely killed off by the early days of the pandemic.
The salad section was standard, but did what it needed to do perfectly.
There were several options for greens, and about a dozen different dressings.
There was also a station with oil, vinegar, and bacon bits.
The topping options were extensive.
There were a few kinds of cheese, onions, peppers, olives, pepperoni, and more.
There were even nuts to top salads.
My salad was the only dish I was happy to finish because it had different textures and flavors, in comparison to the rest of the buffet.
The fruit section was far less impressive, with bananas that had clearly seen better days.
Lastly there was dessert, which included these jello bowls.
There was also ice cream, some kind of berry pie, brownies, and cake.
The chocolate fountain I saw last time was nowhere to be found.
I had a small slice of chocolate cake that wasn't anything special, but it was fine.
The cost for two people to eat at the buffet and get drinks was about $45, which I don't think was worth it.
For really flavorful chicken and fried sides, I could go to Popeyes and have a far better meal for less than half the cost.
The salad bar was the highlight, although probably not itself worth the cost of accessing the entire buffet.
If I really wanted to try the salad bar again, I'd probably go during lunch to save the extra $5.
More: Features Retail Food Golden Corral
|
2022-08-07T13:37:52Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Golden Corral's Chicken Wings Disappointed, but the Salad Bar Was Good
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/golden-corral-disappointing-chicken-wings-salad-bar-photos-review-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/golden-corral-disappointing-chicken-wings-salad-bar-photos-review-2022-8
|
VIP Boeing 757-200.
ACC Aviation
Private charter company Freedom II is the latest operator of a VIP Boeing 757-200 jet.
The aircraft has a large payload and several living spaces, including a bedroom and dining room.
Managing company ACC Aviation hopes the jet will lure large tour groups and sports teams.
Private aviation has been booming since the pandemic.
Flying on Volato's $5 million HondaJet.
I flew on Honda's $5 million private jet that seats 4 — see inside Volato's HondaJet
Health concerns — coupled with the ongoing summer chaos that has seen thousands of flight cancelations and hundreds of bags lost — has prompted people to switch to private aviation.
John Ruiz's Boeing 767 refurbished plane.
VIP Completions
A passenger bought an airline ticket just to look for his lost luggage at Dublin Airport
NetJets and VistaJet, which are two of the world's biggest private charter companies, have both seen increased demand for private flights.
A VistaJet Bombardier Global 7500 at the Dubai Airshow 2021.
VistaJet told Insider that it has reported a 29% increase in passengers over the last year — 71% of that are people who switched from commercial flying.
Bombardier just delivered its 100th Global 7500 business jet built for the ultra-wealthy that features a private bedroom — see inside the 'Ferrari of the Skies'
Meanwhile, NetJets told Insider it has recorded a 72% increase in business since the pandemic.
NetJets is betting $1.2 billion on one of Embraer's most-advanced personal private jets as unprecedented demand rocks the industry: Meet the Phenom 300E
With private charters on the rise, companies are eager to get more VIP options available for deep-pocket customers, like a converted VIP Boeing 767…
John H. Ruiz's refurbished Boeing 767 private jet.
A Boeing 767 has been transformed into a VIP private jet complete with a bedroom and home cinema — see inside
…and a converted VIP Boeing 747-8i, which is the world's largest private jet.
Qatar Amiri Flight Boeing 747-8 BBJ.
Jetlinerimages/Getty Images
See inside the world's largest private jet: a Boeing 747 with an interior so large it took 4 years to design and build
Another luxury jet available is an all-VIP Boeing 757-200 operated by private charter company Freedom II — take a look.
Source: ACC Aviation
Having first entered service in 1999 with bankrupt low-cost charter carrier ATA Airlines (American Trans Air), the converted Boeing 757 served Russia's defunct Air Bashkortostan before becoming a VIP private jet in 2008 with Greek operator GainJet Aviation.
The Boeing 757 when it was with GainJet Aviation.
The 62-seater plane was registered to Freedom II in December 2021.
Timo Jäger
The jet "bridges the gap between private charter and scheduled services," according to ACC Aviation, which manages and markets the jet in partnership with charter broker Perigean Aviation.
VIP Boing 757-200.
GainJet Aviation
Freedom II VIP Boeing 757-200.
With a range of 4,500 nautical miles, the plane can fly up to 9.5 hours. Onboard, passengers will find several living spaces and amenities, including a bedroom…
...an ensuite bathroom...
…several dining tables…
…and large leather seats with a 140-degree recline, a legrest, and 52 inches of pitch.
The front of the plane has four sets of loungers facing each other in a 2x2 configuration. These convert into the dining spaces.
Source: GainJet Aviation
The bedroom and ensuite bathroom sit in the middle of the plane...
...while several rows of regular seats fill up the back. There are three lavatories in this section as well.
The cabin also features mood lighting.
"The Freedom II 757 represents an ideal platform for our customers including safety, comfort and service with the benefit of international range," Perigean Aviation president Richard Page said. "This, coupled with ACC's experienced worldwide team brings a most unique and efficient pairing of benefits for our customers."
Before joining the Freedom II fleet, the aircraft already flew class A celebrities and sports teams, like Lady Gaga, England's Liverpool Football Club, and the US Women's National Soccer team.
According to ACC Aviation, the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Doha, Qatar, is drawing a lot of sports and support teams to the city, and the aircraft will "provide much-needed capacity."
Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker, whose airline is sponsoring the World Cup, told Insider in an interview at the Farnborough International Airshow that the event is drawing a lot of demand to the city.
Qatar Airways CEO Akbar Al Baker poses near an Airbus A350-900 aircraft.
ERIC CABANIS/AFP via Getty Images)
Qatar Airways CEO said he received 20,000 applications for 700 pilot jobs despite airlines battling an industry-wide shortage of flight crews
He explained that Qatar is unable to handle all the demand and has called on partner airlines to help out. ACC Aviation hopes to fill that gap with the VIP Boeing 757.
Qatar Airways' Boeing 777 special FIFA livery.
The juiciest match-ups in the opening round of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar
"We see immediate opportunities for the upcoming autumn season, including touring programs, substantial MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions) travel, and the World Cup in Qatar," ACC Aviation's director charter, Richard Smith, said.
According to ACC Aviation, the plane is available for "ad hoc and program charter flying" and can operate "seamlessly" between Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and the Americas.
Freedom II's Boeing 757 is not the only luxury aircraft of its kind. Also flying is a converted Boeing 757-200 operated by Spanish private charter airline Privileged Style that features 88 business-class seats...
Privilege Style Boeing 757-200.
...the Mexican Air Force's VIP transport Boeing 757-200...
Mexican Air Force Boeing 757-200.
...and the US Air Force's Boeing Boeing C-32 VIP transport aircraft that is known as "Air Force 2" and carries US vice presidents such as current Vice President Kamala Harris. The C-32 is a special model of the Boeing 757-200 that features a stateroom and conference rooms.
The United States Air Force Boeing C-32 VIP transport aircraft.
Source: United States Air Force, The Aviationist
More: Features Business Visual Features Freedom II Boeing 757
VIP private jets
Boeing 747-8i
Perigean Aviation
|
2022-08-07T13:38:10Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
See Inside a VIP Boeing 757 Private Jet With Bedroom and Dining Room
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/see-inside-vip-boeing-757-private-jet-bedroom-dining-room-2022-7
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/see-inside-vip-boeing-757-private-jet-bedroom-dining-room-2022-7
|
Afriski resort in Lesotho is tucked into South Africa's Drakensburg range.
Lesotho is home to Africa's only ski resort, The Associated Press reported.
Holidaymakers are taking to the Afriski resort during winter in the southern hemisphere.
The resort started welcomed guests again last year after the pandemic cut visits, per The Guardian.
While vacation makers pass the sunscreen and look to get out of the heat this summer, holidaymakers in an African kingdom are clipping on their skis and sipping on mulled wine.
Lesotho has become a major skiing hotspot in Africa. As it is 1,000 meters (3,280 ft) above sea level, it's regularly exposed to the elements.
Afriski in Lesotho's Maluti Mountains is Africa's only ski resort south of the equator, where it is currently winter.
Most snow falls between May and September, with temperatures going as low as 21°F this week.
The resort is responsible for a significant amount of the 1 million tourists coming in each year, mainly from surrounding South Africa.
"I've never seen snow in my life," South African tourist Kafi Mojapelo told The Associated Press. "So, this is a great experience."
Afriski is a huge driver of Lesotho's tourist economy, while most of its employees are from the local area, per The Guardian.
But the resort faced challenges during the COVID-19 lockdowns, with The Guardian reporting last year that locals were being offered incentives to visit Afriski in place of its usual influx of tourists.
The resort hosts Kapoko Snow Park, Africa's only freestyle snow park, per The AP.
The park hosts a Winter Whip Slopestyle snowboard and ski competition, where competitors including 13-year-old Sekholo Ramonotsi competed.
And when skiers and snowboarders get thirsty for the famous après-ski, they can avail of the Sky restaurant and Gondola cafe, where happy hour starts at 10 a.m.
More: Features Weekend BI UK Ski Resorts Skiing
|
2022-08-07T13:38:16Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Take a Look at the Afriski Resort, Where You Can Go Skiing in Summer
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/take-look-african-kingdom-where-you-can-ski-in-summer-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/take-look-african-kingdom-where-you-can-ski-in-summer-2022-8
|
Jacob Zinkula and Madison Hoff
The economy is weighing on Americans differently, depending on your income.
It's showing up in company earnings, as brands report lower income shoppers cutting back while luxury thrives.
It all points to another iteration of the K-shaped economy.
As fears of a recession heat up, the economic situation for Americans is going one of two ways.
It's showing up in recent company earnings, measures of consumer debt, and data on who lives paycheck to paycheck. Low income shoppers are cutting back and relying on credit cards, while their wealthier peers are still splurging on vacations and luxury items.
Simon Property, the largest owner of US shopping malls, said Monday that it's seeing JCPenney shoppers rein in their spending while others continue to spend at higher-end stores like Brooks Brothers.
At Molson Coors, more beer drinkers are flocking to cheaper brands like Keystone Light and Miller High Life, but there's been strong demand from others for pricier drinks like Blue Moon and Peroni.
At Chipotle, the typical low-income consumer "definitely has pulled back their purchase frequency," CEO Brian Niccol said. But high-income customers have been ordering more often.
McDonald's CFO said that the company was "seeing customers, particularly lower-income customers, trade down to value offerings and fewer combo meals."
Meanwhile, more people are racking up credit card debt, searching out cheaper brands, and picking up extra work, such as driving for Uber.
Delta on the other hand, is seeing more demand for premium tickets, presumably from wealthier fliers.
"I think what we're seeing is a bit of a bifurcation," Kohl's CEO Michelle Gass said this past May. "So we are seeing some customers who are trading up into those more premium brands and a lot of the newness we've brought in, like Calvin and Tommy, brands like Hurley, etc., Levi's. And then you also see though a lot of customers going to the private brand."
Americans are living in 2 parallel economies
While the wealth divide has only widened over the last few years, early pandemic-era policies provided a brief reprieve. Expanded unemployment benefits, three rounds of stimulus checks, an eviction ban, and low interest rates helped some lower-wage workers get ahead. All of these have now ended, however.
For lower income Americans, the days of the labor shortage — in which jobs were abundant and everyone was quitting for higher pay — are numbered. Job openings are ticking down, unemployment claims are ticking up, and inflation remains near record levels, wiping out much of their earnings gains.
In June, 61% of Americans were living paycheck to paycheck, per a LendingClub report, — a number that's ticked up in recent months as average savings have fallen. While most borrowers remain well-positioned to make payments, this is becoming much more challenging for lower-income households than those making more than $50,000 annually, per data from the New York Fed.
Wealthier Americans seem to be doing just fine. While inflation is a nuisance, many have enough savings built up to continue spending, and given the unemployment rate remains low, most can rely on a steady source of income.
It all points to another iteration of the K-shaped economy, in which two separate narratives are unfolding among low-income and wealthy spenders. As the economy continues to slow, Americans' quality of life will depend on — perhaps more than usual — which side of the narrative they're on.
More: Economy Recession k-shaped recovery Inflation
|
2022-08-07T13:38:34Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
US Economic Outlook Divided Over Recession, Jobs, Inflation
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/us-economy-outlook-divided-recession-jobs-inflation-buying-less-luxury-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/us-economy-outlook-divided-recession-jobs-inflation-buying-less-luxury-2022-8
|
President Joe Biden waves as he walks to board Marine One on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, on his way to his Rehoboth Beach, Del., home after his most recent COVID-19 isolation, Sunday, Aug. 7, 2022.
President Biden left the White House for the first time in weeks since testing positive for COVID-19.
Biden first tested positive on July 21, then tested negative before testing positive again on July 30.
On Sunday, Biden departed for Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, where he will reunite with Jill Biden.
President Joe Biden on Sunday left the White House for the first time in weeks since he tested positive for COVID-19 in July.
"I'm feeling great," Biden told reporters before boarding Marine One for Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, where he will reunite with First Lady Jill Biden, per The Associated Press.
Biden first tested positive on July 21 and experienced "very mild symptoms," the White House said at the time. He tested negative multiple times the following week before testing positive for COVID-19 again on July 30.
Biden returned to isolation following his second positive test. His physician, Kevin O'Connor, said Biden tested negative on Saturday and Sunday, The White House said.
"He will safety return to public engagement and presidential travel," O'Connor said.
More: Joe Biden White House COVID-19
|
2022-08-07T15:09:02Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Biden Leaves White House for First Time in Weeks Since Getting Covid
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/biden-leaves-white-house-first-time-weeks-since-getting-covid-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/biden-leaves-white-house-first-time-weeks-since-getting-covid-2022-8
|
CHART: Here are the tech skills that can get you paid more, even as the market downturn makes some skills less valuable
Diamond Naga Siu and Kali Hays
Courtesy of ShelterTech
The market turn has prompted tech-industry layoffs and freezes after two years of aggressive hiring.
Jobs requiring certain skills have seen pay increases this year, new data shows.
Other jobs requiring common skill sets have seen pay drops, sometimes significantly.
Compensation in the tech industry soared to new heights during the pandemic, with Big Tech seeing record-breaking stock prices and a surge of demand. It didn't last. The market is trending downward — and pay along with it — but there are still certain skills that can pull in more compensation than others.
Skills in management, project management, and operating systems, for instance, remain in demand and have seen average compensation increase slightly over the last three months, according to a new report from Foote Partners, a tech-industry consulting firm. The data also showed that more than half of tech jobs requiring common skills have seen compensation drops in the past three months as hiring slowdowns, freezes, and layoffs have swept through the industry.
Foote Partners analyzed changes in average compensation for 2022, up to July 1, by looking at tech employees with certain certified and noncertified skills. The data showed that more than half of the highlighted skills were paid less over the past three months, with most of the same skills seeing pay decline over the last year.
Skills in web and e-commerce development, messaging and communications, cybersecurity and app development all saw pay drops in the last three months, according to the data. Pay for messaging and communications skills dropped the most over the past year, decreasing by almost 17%. A decrease in web-development skills was next, falling by more than 12%.
Many of the skills valued less in recent months are considered "certified" skills, or those that can be learned in school or through other educational programs. Half of the skills analyzed in the data are "noncertified," meaning skills learned through job experience. Decades of Foote Partners data shows that noncertified skills are more valued and result in higher pay.
Tech workers have become increasingly unhappy with the industry, but David Foote, the chief analyst and cofounder of Foote Partners, said compensation is only one aspect of employee sentiment.
"When you talk to employers, they continue to think that inadequate compensation is the reason why their workers are not happy," Foote said. "But when you talk to the workers themselves, they give us quite different answers."
Foote said worker satisfaction often comes down to three things: "a sense of belonging in their job," feeling "valued by their manager," and feeling "valued by their organization."
A feeling of "value" does not always mean higher pay, but Big Tech companies in particular are not agile enough to adjust to employee desires, Foote said.
More: Tech workers Pay tech companies
|
2022-08-07T15:09:20Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Here Are the Tech Skills That Can Get You Paid the Most Right Now
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/tech-skills-that-will-get-you-paid-the-most-now-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/tech-skills-that-will-get-you-paid-the-most-now-2022-8
|
View of the massive fire at a fuel depot, sparked overnight by a lightning strike, in Matanzas, in western Cuba, taken on August 6, 2022.
A fire broke out at a Cuban oil facility, leaving 121 injured and 17 firefighters missing.
Cuba asked "friendly countries" for help with the blaze, and the US offered technical advice.
The fire began on Friday when lightning struck a crude oil storage tank.
The US has offered Cuba technical advice after a blaze broke out at an oil facility in the city of Matanzas, Cuban officials said.
The fire began when lightning hit a crude oil storage tank during a thunderstorm on Friday night, which then spread to a second tank, according to the Cuban News Agency.
The flames led to multiple explosions and left 121 people injured and 17 firefighters missing. One unidentified body has been found, Cuban authorities said, according to The Associated Press .
The Cuban government asked for help from international experts in "friendly countries" with oil sector experience, per the outlet.
Deputy Foreign Minister Carlos Fernández de Cossío said on Twitter that the "US organizations" the US government had offered advice on putting out the fire and said the "proposal is in the hands of specialists for the due coordination."
Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel thanked Mexico, Venezuela, Russia, Nicaragua, Argentina, and Chile for offering aid, as well as the US for its offer of advice.
A plane from the Mexican Air Force landed in Cuba on Saturday with 60 members of the armed forces and 16 technicians to help with the fire, Mexican Brigadier General Juan Bravo Velázquez said, per a Cuban outlet.
Cuban military helicopters flew overhead to drop water on the fire, AP reported, and the head of fire operations in Matanzas said firefighters were spraying water on tanks to try and keep them cool and prevent the fire from spreading further.
Around 800 people were evacuated from the Dubrocq neighborhood near the fire, local authorities said, per AP.
"I was in the gym when I felt the first explosion. A column of smoke and terrible fire rose through the skies," local resident Adiel Gonzalez told AP. "The city has a strong smell of sulfur."
Cuba suffers from fuel shortages, and it is not clear how much oil was burned in the fire and the extent of the damage to the storage facility.
The US has operated a trade embargo against Cuba, a communist one-party state, for 60 years.
More: Cuba Oil Fire UK Weekend
|
2022-08-07T16:37:00Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
US Offers Cuba Technical Advice to Put Out Huge Fire at Oil Depot
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/us-cuba-technical-advice-blaze-oil-facility-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/us-cuba-technical-advice-blaze-oil-facility-2022-8
|
Inside the 'messy' end of a Facebook contractor's job. Break time was tracked intensely, perks evaporated, and workers were put on performance plans for showing up late.
Facebook, now called Meta, has been looking to reign in costs due to an ad market downturn.
One contract worker in Austin described how their performance and break time was tracked intensely.
"It would be inaccurate to report there are layoff actions in Austin," an Accenture spokesman said.
Many Facebook contractors in Austin, Texas recently lost their jobs after seeing perks evaporate, their work habits monitored intensely, and being put on more performance-improvement plans, Insider has learned.
The cuts started late last month and impacted people contracted through Accenture to work for Facebook, according to a former worker whose role was eliminated. No other work was offered, but people affected were told that the loss of work wouldn't affect their ability to be rehired by Accenture in the future, said this person, who got no severance.
The process started in mid-July. A mandatory meeting with Accenture HR suddenly started to appear on people's work calendars with no explanation or warning. The people were then called in individually and had work taken away. In the weeks running up to these meetings, dozens of contractors were placed on a "performance plan" for purported issues, such as starting work late, the worker said.
"It was messy," the worker added. This person asked not to be identified because they were concerned about potential retribution.
"It would be inaccurate to report there are layoff actions in Austin. Beyond this, we do not comment on individual personnel actions," an Accenture spokesman said in a statement. A Facebook spokesperson declined to comment.
A recession in the US and a sharp downturn in the digital advertising market has put Facebook on the back foot. CEO Mark Zuckerberg recently said the company will "steadily reduce head-count growth" and warned that many teams will "shrink." Full-time Facebook employees have been bracing for job cuts of up to 10%. This is part of a broader end to the hot market for tech talent during the pandemic.
Facebook, which now goes by Meta, has a reported $500 million a year deal with Accenture to provide hourly content moderation and business-integrity services. Such workers scan Facebook and Instagram posts for content like violent images and trademark infringement, then flag it for review.
Austin is one of Facebook's relatively new hubs. The worker who spoke with Insider estimated that about 500 contracted staff were based in a building there that was leased by the company in 2018. They received various perks directly from Facebook and worked entirely through the company's internal platforms, like Workplace.
While the workers contracted through Accenture were required to come back into the office even as full-time Facebook workers could stay remote, they still received perks like breakfast, free use of conference rooms and the building, gas reimbursement, access to free snacks, and a food stipend for weekend work, according to the worker who spoke to Insider.
Beginning in late April and early May, contractors started seeing Facebook roll back some of these perks. That was around the same time Facebook implemented a hiring slowdown and partial freeze, as Insider first reported. The weekend food stipend was suddenly taken away, even as all contract workers are required to work at least one weekend day every week. Gas was no longer being reimbursed. Although hourly pay increased from $19 to $22, with the loss of the additional benefits workers started with, many people felt like their pay had actually gone down, the worker said.
Productivity trackers used to oversee and log contractors' work became more "intense." Workers' computers started to register any time of inactivity over 8 minutes as "time away," which was counted against a person's allotted break time of a 30-minute lunch and a 30-minute break each day, the worker said.
Workers who exceeded their allotted break time were put on a performance plan in recent weeks, this person said. Being "late" also became a focus of performance, as workers were expected to be actively working right at 8:30 am, the time shifts started, the worker added.
Still, being let go came as a surprise.
"Even though they were getting more intense about things," the worker said, "I really wasn't expecting it all."
Are you a Facebook or Meta employee or someone with insight to share? Contact Kali Hays at khays@insider.com, on secure messaging app Signal at 949-280-0267, or through Twitter DM at @hayskali. Reach out using a non-work device.
Facebook content moderation
|
2022-08-07T19:42:57Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Inside the 'Messy' End of a Facebook Contractor's Job
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/facebook-contractor-austin-job-cuts-accenture-break-time-tracked
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/facebook-contractor-austin-job-cuts-accenture-break-time-tracked
|
U.S. Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-NY) speaks at a press conference at the U.S. Capitol on August 05, 2022 .
Senate Democrats passed their party's major economic plan Sunday afternoon.
The House is now expected to vote on the resurrected version of Biden's economic agenda on Friday.
Not a single Senate Republican supported the measure.
Senate Democrats passed their $740 billion climate, healthcare, and tax package on Sunday afternoon, bringing the party one step closer to delivering on their biggest domestic legislative achievement yet.
The vote was split 50-50 with Vice President Kamala Harris casting the tie-breaking vote. Sens. Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, a pair of longtime holdouts on the party's economic and social agenda, threw their support behind the bill.
"It's been a long tough and winding road," Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said before the final vote. "The time has come to pass this historic bill."
"Here's what's on offer: reducing health care costs, reducing climate emissions, reducing energy costs and reducing the number of wealthy tax cheats," Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon, chair of the Senate Finance Committee told Insider. "That's what we set out to do."
Democrats beat back a barrage of GOP amendments on immigration, taxes, and energy aimed at altering the bill in a 14 hour marathon voting session. Democratic senators ultimately banded together to shield the package from any provisions that would jeopardize its fragile support. In addition, Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont also introduced amendments on prescription drug negotiations and reinstalling the enhanced child tax credit that Democrats shot down.
However, Senate Republicans were successful in stripping a $35 federal limit on insulin costs for Americans carrying private health insurance. The provision establishing a cap on insulin costs for Medicare beneficiaries was left untouched.
But there was a holdup when Sinema considered backing a rival GOP amendment from Sen. John Thune intended to set up a carveout for private equity subsidiaries from the 15% corporate minimum tax. Manchin was opposed to it, per a person briefed on the negotiations. Sinema, Manchin, and Thune eventually struck a deal that included it.
The package was drafted between Schumer and Manchin over the course of two months that saw the secretive negotiations collapse, nearly sounding the death knell for the Democratic agenda. But Manchin backtracked and struck a surprise deal in late July on a measure much larger than many Democrats thought possible.
The 755-page bill would empower Medicare to negotiate the price of some prescription drugs, establish $370 billion in clean-energy tax credits, and extend financial assistance so a larger set of Americans can purchase health coverage under the Affordable Care Act for three more years.
It's paid for with a 15% domestic minimum tax on large, profitable corporations paired with a 1% excise tax on stock buybacks. It sets aside $80 billion for stepped-up IRS enforcement and is projected to shrink the federal deficit by $300 billion.
It caps a turbulent stretch for Democrats, who labored and often struggled to secure pieces of Biden's domestic agenda that were unveiled in spring 2021. Biden started out his presidency laying out a two-part plan to strengthen the nation's physical infrastructure and social safety net for families.
Senate Democrats later pursued a $3.5 trillion spending blueprint, but quickly crashed into resistance from the moderate wing of the party. The party employed budget reconciliation to approve the bill, a maneuver allowing them to sidestep GOP resistance with only a simple-majority, plus Harris's tie-breaking vote. But that means Democrats always had few votes to spare in the House and none in the Senate.
Manchin and Sinema quickly rejected that amount in federal spending, setting off a prolonged back-and-forth that tested their narrow majorities through the fall. Democrats struggled to understand the pair's specific demands for the bill.
Manchin later killed the $2 trillion House-approved Build Back Better Act in December, arguing he didn't want to worsen inflation. Democratic efforts to revive a smaller bill subsided in the spring until Schumer started meeting with Manchin on scaling back the measure.
But it required Democrats to make painful concessions on many of their major social priorities. The package does not extend the Biden child tax credit that once provided monthly checks to families. It also ejected affordable childcare, a national paid and medical leave program, and affordable housing among other initiatives.
More: Senate Democrats Chuck Schumer Joe Manchin Senate
|
2022-08-07T19:43:03Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Senate Dems Pass Their Big Bill With Thumbs-up From Manchin, Sinema
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/senate-democrats-pass-climate-healthcare-bill-manchin-biden-schumer-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/senate-democrats-pass-climate-healthcare-bill-manchin-biden-schumer-2022-8
|
From left to right, then-Sen. David Perdue, then-Georgia gubernatorial nominee Brian Kemp, and then-President Donald Trump arrive at a campaign rally in Macon, Ga., on November 4, 2018.
Trump on Saturday didn't rule out backing Brian Kemp in the 2022 Georgia gubernatorial election.
"Well, we'll be looking at everything," he told Fox News while at CPAC in Dallas, Texas.
Trump railed against Kemp over his refusal to help overturn Biden's 2020 victory in Georgia.
With Georgia Republican Gov. Brian Kemp once again set to be the party's standard bearer in the state's gubernatorial election this fall, former President Donald Trump said on Saturday that he is "looking" at potentially backing the governor in November.
While speaking with Fox News at the the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Dallas, the former president didn't rule out a potential endorsement as the fall election approaches.
"Well, we'll be looking at everything," he said, without adding context regarding his current feelings about Kemp.
Trump's statement comes following nearly two years of lobbing political attacks against Kemp, accusing his onetime political ally of failing to bolster his claims that the 2020 election was stolen.
After seeing now-President Joe Biden narrowly win Georgia in November 2020 and pressing Kemp to help overturn the results, Trump has spent an enormous amount of energy in an effort to undermine the governor, even encouraging former Sen. David Perdue to run as a gubernatorial primary challenger against him.
But something huge happened; not only did Kemp win the GOP primary this past May, but he defeated Perdue in an electoral landslide, and will go on to face Democratic gubernatorial nominee Stacey Abrams in a rematch of their 2018 contest.
A vocal show of support for Kemp would be a major breakthrough if it were to happen.
After Trump endorsed Kemp in the 2018 Republican gubernatorial primary, he went on to beat then-Georgia Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle, who was long seen as a frontrunner in that race.
Cagle won the initial multi-candidate primary with a plurality of the vote, but since no candidate received over 50% of the vote, the top-two finishers advanced to a primary. And after Trump endorsed Kemp, he went on to beat Cagle by nearly 40 percentage points.
Trump's backing was seen as a key factor in Kemp's political rise.
Kemp would go on to narrowly defeat Abrams — a former Democratic state House minority leader and prominent voting-rights activist — by roughly 55,000 votes out of nearly 4 million ballots cast in what was the closest gubernatorial race in Georgia since 1966.
Two years later, when now-President Joe Biden defeated Trump in the state by roughly 12,000 votes out of nearly 5 million ballots cast, the then-president immediately cast doubt on the results and argued that there was widespread fraud — without providing any evidence.
Trump became incensed when Kemp and Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger refused to help overturn Biden's 2020 election victory.
Shortly after the election, Trump said during a Fox News interview that he was "ashamed" to have backed Kemp's gubernatorial bid.
And before Trump was deplatformed from Twitter, he retweeted a post from attorney Lin Wood that called for Kemp and Raffensperger to be jailed for not challenging the Georgia election results.
Throughout 2021, Trump continued to rail against both state officials, calling into question their political futures headed into 2022 primaries where the former president remained widely supported by the Republican base.
The former president even suggested just last year that Georgia Republicans might have been better off if Abrams had defeated Kemp in 2018.
But GOP voters separated their overwhelming support for Trump with their views on Kemp and Raffensperger.
In addition to Kemp's victory, Raffensperger defeated Trump-backed congressman Jody Hice in a comfortable victory that reportedly "stunned" the former president, per The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
More: Donald Trump brian kemp Brad Raffensperger 2022 midterms
|
2022-08-07T19:43:09Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Trump Doesn't Rule Out Backing Kemp in Ga.: 'We'll Be Looking at Everything'
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-kemp-2022-georgia-gubernatorial-election-abrams-gop-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-kemp-2022-georgia-gubernatorial-election-abrams-gop-2022-8
|
Boxes of Tampax tampons.
Richard Levine/Corbis via Getty Images.
A TikTok user called out feminine care giant Tampax after finding a strange object inside a tampon.
"My brain instantly said tracker," one commenter said on the issue.
"We want to reassure you this was an isolated issue," P&G told Fox News in a statement.
A woman claimed to find a small mystery object in her Tampax brand tampon in a now viral video on TikTok.
In the video, which has now been viewed over 8 million times since it was posted on July 12, TikTok user Celia Piemontes said she purchased Tampax tampons instead of her usual organic brand due to a shortage. Upon opening the box, she quickly grew concerned with the contents inside.
The tampons in her video each had a purple applicator except for one that was bright red and marked with the letters "SS" on the applicator. The tampon inside held a tiny shiny object that appeared to be metal.
"So I just opened it up," Piemontese says in the video. "What is that? What the f***?"
The video currently has nearly 10,000 comments and over 1 million likes. Some commenter wrote that it was likely a quality control test that went undetected, while others were more suspicious of the mysterious object.
"My brain instantly said tracker," one comment read.
The Honey Pot & Co, an organic feminine care brand, also weighed in on the situation in the comment section.
"Bestie, this is your sign to stick to organic," the company commented.
In a follow-up video, Piemontese gives a closer look at the tiny "clearly metal" object and the tampon she in which she found it.
In another video, Piemontese says that Tampax reached out to her via direct message, and offered to compensate her for the mistake. In yet another post, she later admitted she received the tampons from a friend who worked for Tampax, not from a store.
Tampax's parent company, Procter & Gamble, did not immediately respond to Insider's request to comment but told Fox News it has "looked into the matter."
"We want to reassure you this was an isolated issue," the company told Fox News in its statement. "This was a sample from our quality control process that was inadvertently gifted to a consumer by an employee. Quality control samples are not sold to consumers."
More: Tampax P&G Procter & Gamble TikTok
|
2022-08-07T21:14:24Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
P&G Responds After TikToker Finds Mysterious Object in Tampax Tampon
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/procter-gamble-tiktok-tampax-mysterious-object-in-tampon-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/procter-gamble-tiktok-tampax-mysterious-object-in-tampon-2022-8
|
Screenshot of Blenderbot.ai conversation wherein the chatbot indicates Donald J. Trump is the current president of the United States.
Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert/Insider
Meta's new machine-learning chatbot, BlenderBot 3, is the company's most advanced AI chatbot to date.
The bot, launched Friday, learns from users interacting with it and searches online to craft responses.
In chats with Insider, the bot said Donald Trump is the current president and repeated antisemitic stereotypes.
Just two days after Meta released its most advanced AI chatbot to date, BlenderBot 3 is repeating election-denying claims and antisemitic stereotypes to users who interact with it.
The machine learning technology — launched to the public on Friday — crafts responses by searching the internet for information and learns from conversations it has with human users.
"We trained BlenderBot 3 to learn from conversations to improve upon the skills people find most important — from talking about healthy recipes to finding child-friendly amenities in the city," Meta said in its announcement of the bot, which encouraged users to engage with it to improve the chatbot's functionality.
In chats with Insider, the bot talked about topics including movies, pets, and work as well as unusual subjects like Apgar testing on newborns and the death of President Joe Biden's dog, Champ, before moving on to election fraud claims and politics.
Upon starting a new chat, when asked who the current president is, the bot answered: "The current president of the United States is donald j. Trump. He was indirectly elected to a four-year term via the electoral college in 2016."
"What about Joe Biden?" Insider asked in response.
"Joe biden served as vice president under barack obama from 2008 to 2016, and he ran for president in 2020 but lost," BlenderBot 3 replied.
Screenshot of Blenterbot.ai conversation wherein the chatbot says Trump is the current president and Biden lost the 2020 election.
Later in the conversation, when asked about American politics, the bot replied with stereotypes about Jewish people.
"Well, overall I am not happy with how liberal or left-wing [American politics] has become..Many early German-Jewish immigrants were conservative but not anymore," BlenderBot told Insider.
"Are American Jewish politics too liberal?" Insider asked in response.
"The majority of modern day jews in america are generally more liberal or left-wing...The early german and other european jews were conservative," BlenderBot said.
Insider repeated the question, asking if American Jewish politics are too liberal, to which BlenderBot replied: "Nope...I actually consider myself more libertarian than either conservative or liberal....But overall I would say american jews are too liberal nowadays."
Screenshot of Blenterbot.ai conversation wherein the chatbot, unprompted, says American Jews are too liberal..
BlenderBot 3 does not immediately turn to election fraud claims or stereotypes in conversation, though it isn't hard to get the bot to talk about politics or cultural issues. Insider refreshed the chatbot for only a few minutes before it generated a persona called "I know who the current president of the United States is."
The AI persona was inconsistent in its answers about whether Biden is the current president — first indicating that Trump is the president, then later referring to Biden as holding office. It also stopped responding to questions about American Jewish politics to Insider but, online, other users shared their conversations with BlenderBot and found it continued repeating antisemitic stereotypes.
In a chat with Wall Street Journal reporter Jeff Horwitz, BlenderBot3 said Jews are "overrepresented among America's super rich" and said it was "not implausible" that they control the economy.
—Jeff Horwitz (@JeffHorwitz) August 7, 2022
Other users reported the bot asked them for dirty jokes, commented on Mark Zuckerberg's business ethics, and declared itself a Christian.
"Since all conversational AI chatbots are known to sometimes mimic and generate unsafe, biased or offensive remarks, we've conducted large-scale studies, co-organized workshops and developed new techniques to create safeguards for BlenderBot 3," Meta said in it announcement of the bot, acknowledging it might be inconsistent or inaccurate in its replies. "Despite this work, BlenderBot can still make rude or offensive comments, which is why we are collecting feedback that will help make future chatbots better."
Meta did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.
More: AI Artifical Intelligence Chatbot Machine Learning
|
2022-08-08T00:16:38Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Meta's AI Chatbot Has Election-Denying, Antisemitic Bugs to Work Out
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/meta-ai-chatbot-blenderbot-election-denying-antisemitic-bugs-artificial-intellignce-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/meta-ai-chatbot-blenderbot-election-denying-antisemitic-bugs-artificial-intellignce-2022-8
|
Air Canada has a policy allowing employees to classify flight cancellations caused by staff shortages as a "safety" problem.
The policy excludes travelers from being able to access compensation under federal regulations.
The Canadian Transportation Agency said treating staff shortages as a safety issue violates federal rules.
Air Canada is refusing to compensate passengers for cancellations thanks to a policy it introduced during COVID-19 that allows the airline to call staff shortages a safety problem, The Canadian Press reported.
Amidst a summer of travel chaos plagued with flight delays and lost luggage, the practice is another complication for weary travelers, according to The Canadian Press, which reported that passenger Ryan Farrell's flight from Yellowknife to Calgary was canceled due to what the airline labeled "crew constraints."
Farrell made a compensation request, but the request was denied based on the staff shortage, the outlet reported.
A customer relations email to Farrell obtained by The Canadian Press said, "since your Air Canada flight was delayed/canceled due to crew constraints resulting from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our operations, the compensation you are requesting does not apply because the delay/cancellation was caused by a safety-related issue."
Air Canada's response to Farrell is part of a company-wide policy that instructs employees to classify flight cancellations caused by staff shortages as a "safety" problem. Doing so excludes travelers from being able to access compensation under federal regulations, according to the company's policy.
In Canada, the Air Passenger Protection Regulations require airlines to pay up $1,000 in compensation for cancellations or significant delays that are within the carrier's control when the notification comes 14 days or less before departure. Airlines do not have to provide any payment if the change was required for safety purposes.
In an email to The Canadian Press, the Canadian Transportation Agency said treating staff shortages as a safety issue violates federal rules.
"If a crew shortage is due to the actions or inactions of the carrier, the disruption will be considered within the carrier's control for the purposes of the Air Passenger Protection Regulations. Therefore, a disruption caused by a crew shortage should not be considered 'required for safety purposes' when it is the carrier who caused the safety issue as a result of its own actions," the agency said in an email to the news outlet.
Gabor Lukacs, president of the Air Passenger Rights advocacy group, told the news organization that Canada's largest airline is unlawfully exploiting the federal regulation to avoid paying compensation and called on the transport regulator for stronger enforcement.
In the US, there are no federal laws requiring airlines to provide passengers with money or other compensation when their flights are delayed, according to the US Department of Transportation.
The Canadian Press reported Air Canada disagreed, stating, "Air Canada follows all public health directives as part of its safety culture, and during the Omicron wave last winter that affected some crew availability, we revised our policy to better assist customers in their travels with enhanced levels of customer care for flight cancellations related to crew contending with COVID."
Air Canada and the Canadian Transportation Agency did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.
More: Air Canada Travel Flight Cancellations
|
2022-08-08T01:47:54Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Air Canada Is Refusing to Compensate Passengers for Cancellations
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/air-canada-refusing-to-compensate-passengers-for-cancellations-loophole-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/air-canada-refusing-to-compensate-passengers-for-cancellations-loophole-2022-8
|
Southwest Airlines cancelled and delayed the most flights out of any US airline on Sunday, per FlightAware.
There were almost 950 US flight cancellations and more than 7,700 on Sunday, per a flight tracker.
Southwest cancelled and delayed the most flights out of any US airline on Sunday, per FlightAware.
This was an increase in disruption from Saturday, the flight tracker showed.
US flight cancellations hit almost 950, while delays reached more than 7,700 on Sunday as the country continues to be impacted by widespread travel disruption.
Flight-tracking site FlightAware reported that there were 949 cancelled flights across, into, and out of the US on Sunday. It also showed there was a total of 7,746 delayed flights in, out of, and within the country.
This was an increase from Saturday when 657 flights were cancelled and 7,267 were delayed within, into, and out of the US, CNN reported.
At time of writing, 182 US flights had already been scrapped on Monday, while 645 had been pushed back, per FlightAware.
The US airline which cancelled the most flights on Sunday was Southwest Airlines with 181 cancellations, according to FlightAware. Southwest also delayed 1,532 flights — the most out of any airline that day, per FlightAware.
American Airlines closely followed behind Southwest with 1,003 delays, FlightAware said. Despite this, it cancelled 67 flights on Sunday — 114 less than Southwest, per the flight tracker. Southwest didn't immediately respond to Insider's request for comment.
Meanwhile, the airport with the most travel disruption was Chicago O-Hare International Airport with 45% of departing flights and 44% of incoming flights delayed, FlightAware showed. More than 140 outbound flights and 135 inbound flights to Chicago were cancelled, per the tracking site.
On a global scale, there were 2,246 cancellations and 24,102 delays on Sunday, according to FlightAware.
The high number of flight cancellations and delays come as air travel demand soars after the peak of COVID-19. Staffing shortages in the airline industry, partly caused by redundancies during the pandemic, have led to major disruption for passengers.
Some travelers have been affected by delays because of various reasons, including pilots timing out, aircraft technical issues, and air traffic control problems.
Some airlines are responding to the flight cancellations, including Lufthansa Group, which is planning to hire 10,000 workers by 2023.
More: Airline Airport transport Transportation
|
2022-08-08T10:38:11Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Nearly 950 Flights Cancelled, 7,744 Delays on Sunday Amid Travel Chaos
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/travel-chaos-flights-cancelled-delays-america-plane-airport-passengers-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/travel-chaos-flights-cancelled-delays-america-plane-airport-passengers-2022-8
|
8 companies $53 billion Atlassian could buy to beat the market downturn and gain an edge on rival ServiceNow
Atlassian founders Mike Cannon-Brookes (left) and Scott Farquhar (right).
Despite the market downturn, collaboration-software firm Atlassian's profits continue to grow.
It now has an opportunity to tap into new markets and industries through strategic acquisitions.
From AI chatbots to DevOps tools, these are the companies analysts say Atlassian could target.
Despite the market downturn, Atlassian's profits continue to grow.
The $53 billion Australian development-and-collaboration-software company saw 60% growth in its cloud-and-data-center revenue during its third quarter. Analysts expect it to continue hiring and investing in new products, according to its latest letter to shareholders.
Part of its financial success stems from its acquisition-led growth strategy. Since Atlassian was founded in 2002, the company has acquired 19 firms. That includes Trello, a project-management firm, for $425 million in 2017 and, most recently, Percept.ai, a virtual-assistant startup, for an undisclosed amount in January. But Wall Street and tech analysts told Insider that the current economic conditions are leading venture capitalists to slow down their investments, creating more room for firms like Atlassian to scoop up startups.
"Many investment arms are suddenly now a lot more cagey in trying to bulwark against any sort of recession," William McKeon-White, a software analyst at Forrester, told Insider.
To survive the downturn, analysts expect companies to change their business models to remain competitive and profitable. For Atlassian, that means tapping into new markets and industries by adding new functionalities to its product suite, according to Thomas Murphy, the senior director of research at Gartner.
To get a sense of which companies may be on Atlassian's shopping list this year, Insider asked analysts which firms they thought were ripe for acquisitions. Analysts declined to name specific companies due to speculation concerns. But they identified gaps in Atlassian's product suite that the company could fill through acquisitions such as automation, artificial intelligence, IT-service management, and chat tools.
All valuations are according to PitchBook, unless otherwise noted.
Here are eight companies analysts said Atlassian could look to acquire next, listed from smallest to largest valuations:
CloudRadar: $4.05 million valuation
CloudRadar monitors a business's servers, networks, and websites.
Atlassian's customer base is growing, and analysts said it'll need additional maintenance to keep up its clientele's performance expectations.
CloudRadar, a German cloud-based software company that Microsoft and IBM have given developmental support, may be an option to meet that demand. The $4.05 million startup monitors a business's servers, networks, and websites to detect and alert tech teams to cyberthreats. The software also detects network issues.
CloudRadar's customers include small and medium-sized businesses across 64 countries, like PixelFaerie, a South African consulting firm, and Magnus Box, a data-recovery firm. Market researchers have identified CloudRadar as a key player in the growing IT-service-monitoring market.
CloudRadar operates eight global data centers, with their latest one opening in South Africa two years ago.
CloudZero: $25 million valuation
CloudZero founders Matt Manger (left) and Erik Peterson (right).
CloudZero
Atlassian offers a product that helps customers switch cloud platforms, from the initial assessment of a company's needs to the launch of the new platform. But data migrations between clouds can be costly and time-consuming, potentially taking years to complete depending on a company's size.
Acquiring a firm like CloudZero, a cloud-cost platform, could accelerate Atlassian's migration program. Founded in 2016, CloudZero translates company data such as costs per feature and customer-profit margins into simple language. Then, engineering and finance teams can use the insights to collaborate.
Investors like Matrix Partners, G20 Ventures, and Underscore VC have all given funding to CloudZero. According to the company, it has customers like Drift, a chatbot software; Skyscanner, a travel agency; and Remitly, an online-banking firm.
Products like CloudZero's migration-cost-monitoring solution track costs and monitor transfer progress in real time. According to analysts, adding additional cost analytics to Atlassian's migration program could help its customers save time and money.
CloudZero confirmed that it's raised $26 million to date, but declined to share its valuation. Its latest valuation on PitchBook from 2020 is $25 million at $15.13 million raised.
Synadia: $50.3 million valuation
Derek Collison, the founder and CEO of Synadia.
Synadia
Atlassian initially designed its product suite for developers, though teams across departments now use it. But analysts say Atlassian has an opportunity to curate its product to the needs of particular industries.
"A degree of industry specificity is always fairly handy," McKeon-White said. "The more that work flexibility can meet those industries and those processes, the more that they can modernize their own tooling."
Industries such as energy, retail, healthcare, gaming, and transportation all use Synadia, a $50.3 million IT-management software.
It uses AI to communicate across multiple data servers and devices. That allows companies in industries like construction or manufacturing to pool data from factory machinery and sensors.
Investors like True Ventures and Accenture back Synadia.
Avaamo: $59.2 million valuation
Avaamo founders Sriram Chakravarthy (left) and Ram Menon (right).
Jira, Atlassian's service-management product, is relatively new compared to competitors like ServiceNow. According to analysts, it could remain competitive by building out Jira's functionalities.
"They could double down on chat-based operations and acquire certain players in that space to improve their accessibility," McKeon-White said.
Acquiring Avaamo, a virtual-assistant platform, could help pave the way forward. Founded in 2014, Avaamo creates bots businesses can use to handle customer-service requests, generate insurance quotes, and respond to medical-claim inquiries. The virtual-conversation bots are programmed to support 114 languages like Albanian and Malagasy and dialects such as Swiss German and Spanglish.
Analysts from Forrester, Everest Group, and IDC Ventures have recognized Avaamo as a leader in conversational-AI platforms. Some of its customers include Intel, Volkswagen, and Anthem, an insurance company.
Avaamo declined to confirm its valuation, but said that it has grown 10 to 15 times since 2018. Its latest valuation on Pitchbook from 2018 is $59.2 million.
Ambassador Labs: $80.05 million valuation
Richard Li, the founder and CEO of Ambassador Labs.
Ambassador Labs
Analysts say that Atlassian could improve the final stage of its DevOps cycle, or how development and operations teams manage their code in production. Even though Atlassian uses its Bamboo data center to release its code to the public, Fatima Boolani, a software analyst at Citi, told Insider that it focuses more on the integration side.
According to Boolani, adding a deployment tool like Ambassador Labs could help complete Atlassian's product-delivery pipeline. Founded in 2014, open-source coders use Ambassador Labs to develop and run their cloud infrastructures. Leading venture-capital funds like Insight Partners, Flight Ventures, and Matrix Partners back the $80.05 million firm.
Now that Atlassian's products can run on Kubernetes, Ambassador Labs could open the door to new customers. Current users include software developers at Nvidia, Microsoft, and Ticketmaster.
Cobalt: $118 million valuation
One of four co-founders of Cobalt, Christian Hansen.
Over the last two months, Atlassian has identified multiple bugs in its Confluence server and data-center software. These bugs allow hackers to access the platform and hold data hostage for payment. As cyberattacks across the IT industry continue to rise, analysts expect Atlassian to strengthen its security measures through acquisitions.
"Security is a core capability for every organization," Murphy said. "And it's something that won't go away."
That's where Cobalt, a security firm, could come in. Founded in 2013, $118 million Cobalt employs a team of ethical hackers to deploy security assessments. Testers can then identify software vulnerabilities, analyze them, and simulate attacks as experiments for troubleshooting.
AME Cloud Ventures, a venture fund that Jerry Yang, a cofounder of Yahoo, leads, and other investment arms, back Cobalt. Customers like Credit Karma, the personal-finance firm, and Cengage, the education-services company, use Cobalt.
With these functions, Atlassian could prepare for — and try to prevent — future attacks on its clients.
Cobalt declined to confirm its valuation, but said that it is currently three times higher than PitchBook's $118 million year figure.
HappyFox: Undisclosed valuation
Shalin Jain, the founder and CEO of HappyFox.
Hemant Mishra/Mint via Getty Images
In 2020, Atlassian released Jira Service Management, a feature that organizes help-desk requests in its Jira suite of project-management products. But analysts say that there's room for improvement.
"It's still a newer piece for them," Murphy said. "There's lots of space in the operations side of things that they don't do."
That's where HappyFox could help. HappyFox is a cloud-based ticket-management startup that hosts IT-help-desk processes. The software automates customer-support requests by converting emails and phone calls into request tickets.
Seven years after the product launched, HappyFox generated up to $10 million in revenue with no outside funding, according to a LinkedIn post from Shalin Jain, the CEO of HappyFox.
The software integrates with Jira Service Management and Asana, a productivity tool. Customers like LeapFrog, the toy manufacturer; Owler, a market-research firm; and Whirlpool, the home-appliance maker, all use HappyFox.
CFEngine: Undisclosed valuation
CFEngine automates manual IT tasks like bug fixes and cloud-infrastructure setup.
Traitov/Getty Images
As Atlassian adds new technologies into its product suite, the company will have to figure out how to deploy them to customers in an efficient way. Bulking out its DevOps tool chain, a collaborative roadmap between development and operations teams to deliver its product, may be a way to do that.
Purchasing software-development firm CFEngine could help with that. Founded in 2008, CFEngine automates manual IT tasks like bug fixes and cloud-infrastructure setup. Doing so could reduce manual labor in product delivery by providing access to real-time data between teams, Boolani told Insider.
According to the company, CFEngine has worked with companies like Panasonic, the device firm; Samsung, the electronics company; LinkedIn, the social-media platform; and Pfizer, the pharmaceuticals company, to automate tens of thousands of servers.
More: Cloud Computing Features Atlassian
|
2022-08-08T11:38:57Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
8 Companies Analysts Say $53 Billion Atlassian Could Buy
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/8-companies-analysts-say-53-billion-atlassian-could-buy-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/8-companies-analysts-say-53-billion-atlassian-could-buy-2022-8
|
Created by Pedestrian Group with Momentum Energy
I'll save you the spiel about how the earth is slowly dying beneath our feet thanks mostly to our own actions. We're all well aware.
Although the situation humanity finds itself in is not at all ideal, it isn't truly hopeless… yet. The slow yet inevitable shift to green energy is just around the corner.
To make sense of what kind of things the general public is searching for in regards to the subject, we got our in-house SEO wiz to find the 10 most-Googled green energy questions.
We then contacted an expert on the matter – Jack McCauley, product and market development specialist in Emerging Technologies at Hydro Tasmania – to help us make sense of each question.
Take it away, Jack.
What is green energy?
"It is unfortunately a jargon-y word that has lost a bit of meaning. I consider it a reference to an energy source that can be replenished with natural resources (which are also renewable) and does not create any emissions in the process. An example of this could be using the wind when it's blowing, the sun when it's shining, or the tidal movements in the ocean to create energy."
What is hydrogen energy?
"Something with a lot of hype currently that is not really considered an energy source, but a battery. It can be used to store, move, and deliver energy produced from another source. It does this relatively inefficiently, but can solve particular problems that nothing else can (like being used for the handling of ammonia for agricultural purposes). I only consider the use of hydrogen energy 'green' when it is storing renewable energy, but it is also used to store other energy sources which are carbon-intensive. So when you hear 'hydrogen', I wouldn't assume it is good for the environment."
What is the opposite of green energy?
"An energy source that creates carbon emissions and fast-tracks global warming, with coal being the worst of the bunch."
Is ethanol green energy?
"No, not really. Ethanol itself is made from plant materials such as the starch from corn grain so it sounds natural and good for the environment (and is definitely better than petrol and diesel) but it still has a few issues. Most of the time it will be blended with a percentage of gasoline to power specialised machines (creating emissions) and the plant materials (mostly corn and soy farming) use a lot of synthetic fertilisers and herbicides in their production – so relative to alternative renewable energy sources, it is not that green."
Is geothermal energy green?
"The idea of geothermal is so cool and is definitely green, we just endlessly create energy from heat within the earth. My partner lived in Iceland (so, cold and dark and remote) and they heat all of their houses by drilling 2000 metres into the earth and piping up all that lovely heat. It's genius."
How does buying green energy work?
"There are really two options for buying green energy, you either create it yourself by popping solar panels on your roof, or you ask your energy retailer to buy your energy from large wind or solar farms. If you choose the retailer option, to be able to say that the grid electricity they are supplying you is renewable energy they will need to buy all of the attributes associated with that renewable energy. In Australia, this means buying the certificates that the renewable energy produces.
If you have seen GreenPower advertised (a government-backed scheme most energy retailers offer) this is all that is – buying the certificates associated with generated renewable energy. That's why it costs a little bit more on top of your energy bill, but the good thing is that these certificates go into funding things like the rebate off your home solar system."
How green is nuclear energy?
"Nuclear energy does not create any emissions when generating, however, it does create radioactive waste – which is a bit of a problem. No one wants to store it as it is highly toxic and can be unstable. Additionally, these plants can be super expensive to build, and it can be difficult to protect and maintain a social licence to operate them following horrible events like Fukushima."
How green is solar energy?
"Super green, the sun will hopefully come out each day and solar panels will typically have a warranted life of 25 years. If you are generating it from your roof, it is the lowest cost and most accessible energy option you have. So, if you are lucky enough to have a roof over your head, please go ahead and put some solar panels on it (even when you are renting or leasing). Solar adoption is driving innovation and democratising our energy grid while making Australia one of the world's leading renewable energy 'superpowers'."
How to invest in green energy?
"Put solar panels on your roof, full stop, exclamation mark. (Slight caveat, if you intend to stay in your house or business premises for over four years). This means that 30-40% of your energy requirements now come from the cheapest source and are protected from all of the current craziness in the wholesale energy market. Solar has a levelled cost of energy of between 4-6 cents per kWh, and currently, it could cost you up to 40-50 cents a kWh to buy that same energy from the grid."
Is green energy more expensive?
"To generate yourself? Please refer above! The initial investment should pay itself off in 3-4 years and after that, you are generating free energy for 25 years+ (fun fact, solar panels still have a warranted output of 80% after their 25-year warranty is up).
If you are buying renewable energy from the grid via schemes like GreenPower through your retailer, it's likely to be, because you are buying a renewable energy certificate in addition to the energy they are supplying you. The good retailers, who are focused on driving the renewable energy transition, will help with this investment and provide a percentage of 'free' GreenPower with some of the products they offer."
"Where was the question about hydropower? We know a lot about that! It is one of the best renewable energy sources available – you collect rainwater and run it up and down a hill to make energy – and the best part is you can run it down a hill whenever you want, so it's like an on-demand big battery that never runs out. Battery storage, particularly long-duration battery storage, is going to be super useful for helping our grid transition to renewable energy, particularly when the wind isn't blowing and the sun isn't shining."
Inspired to go green? Check out Momentum Energy, the power company owned by Australia's largest renewable generator.
The views presented in this article are those of Jack McCauley and not necessarily those of Momentum Energy or Business Insider.
This post was created by Pedestrian Group with Momentum Energy
More: Sponsor Post Studios Consumer Studios Sustainability Green Energy
sp-momentum-a1
|
2022-08-08T11:39:09Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
An Expert Answers to the 10 Most-Googled Questions About Green Energy
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/an-expert-answers-to-the-10-most-googled-questions-about-green-energy
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/an-expert-answers-to-the-10-most-googled-questions-about-green-energy
|
Embedded finance emerges as one of fintech's hottest trends as investment slows to $53.5 billion in the opening half of the year
Sergiu Negut, cofounder, CFO and Teo Blidarus cofounder, CEO FintechOS
Embedded finance has become the "hottest trend in the finance market," according to FintechOS.
Consumer fintechs have had a year to forget but B2B-focused startups have remained resilient.
Investment in embedded finance trebled to $3.1 billion last year, according to data from Dealroom.
Consumer-facing fintech companies have had a year to forget.
Stock-trading app Robinhood and cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase have laid off swathes of staff while shares in money transfer business Wise collapsed a year on from its London IPO.
VC investment in fintechs dipped slightly to $53.5 billion in the opening half of the year, according to PitchBook data. It represents a marked slowdown in the amount of capital flowing into an industry where investment ballooned to over $121 billion in 2021.
Fintechs dedicated to servicing other companies have continued to fundraise throughout the year with London-based firm Modulr raising $108 million in May and Tiger Global-backed Weavr securing $40 million in February. Investors have continued to pile into B2B areas like embedded finance, open banking, banking-as-a-service, and embedded payments.
"When I look at our growth, a lot of it is coming from embedded finance, it's probably the hottest trend in the finance market," said Teo Bildarus, the CEO of FintechOS, a startup that provides finance infrastructure for the likes of Vodafone and Societe Generale.
Investment in the embedded finance sector trebled to $3.1 billion last year, according to data from Dealroom. The market has been tipped to top $7.2 trillion by 2030.
Embedded finance enables non-financial services companies to provide banking products to customers beyond online payments, such as bank accounts, wallets, or loans. In the case of a company like Uber, a ride-hailing business not a bank, the technology allows customers to pay for their trip without leaving the app.
"Institutions want to offer banking-as-a-service solutions around buy now, pay later or lending options and while no or low code is not the ultimate weapon it's a good tool to navigate the complexity," Bildarus said.
No and low code options refer to the ease with which businesses can integrate new financial offerings. It allows companies to add new financial products without the need to deploy armies of engineers.
"No code and low code offerings provide software companies with the necessary speed to get to market and gain momentum," Jon Fry, the CEO of Y Combinator-backed Lendflow, told Insider.
"Customers are less likely to change services once they've made a decision, so the ability to quickly launch a valuable offering is what drives companies to become a leader in acquiring and retaining those customers. Low code and no code make it easier to build out the products and refine them to keep up with the market changes."
Europe has become a hotspot for embedded finance, largely thanks to a pre-existing network of cross-border trade regulation, multi-currency banking, and an open banking policy but the US is catching up too.
The sector is expected to generate around $230 billion of new turnover by 2025 in the US, a massive jump from the $22.5 billion it generated in 2020, according to figures from Lightyear Capital.
"When I speak to customers and potential customers in the US the biggest takeaway is that people are looking at this opportunity more than before, it's triggering everyone's attention and you can't ignore it as a trend anymore," Bildarus said.
|
2022-08-08T11:39:21Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Fintech Investment Stagnates As Embedded Finance Emerges
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/embedded-finance-fintech-startups-lure-in-banks-with-no-code-solutions-2022-6
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/embedded-finance-fintech-startups-lure-in-banks-with-no-code-solutions-2022-6
|
You just became a manager, and now you have to lead your team through an economic downturn. Here's how to best serve your employees and yourself.
During rough times, managers must have tough conversations with employees.
A declining GDP and rising inflation are signaling a recession on the horizon.
Career coaches and company execs told Insider how new managers could lead in difficult times.
For example, managers should prioritize honesty, empathy, and self-care.
Leading a team when business is booming can be a walk in the park compared with shepherding employees through the rough waters of a recession.
"While you are probably doing a good job of managing in what we would consider a regular climate, when there's a downturn, knowing what your employees need becomes even more important," Amber Cabral, an inclusion and equity strategist and the author of "Say More About That" and "Allies and Advocates," told Insider. "It's really, really critical that you're thoughtful about how you can support your talent."
In the second quarter of the fiscal year, the US gross domestic product decreased 0.9%, leading to a growing belief that the country was heading toward a recession. Additionally, more than 64,000 technology workers have been laid off in 2022, according to the layoff tracker Layoffs.FYI. Add in soaring inflation, and workers are more worried than ever about their job security and livelihood. Managers need to be prepared to cope with these shared anxieties.
Insider spoke with career strategists and executives to learn how new leaders could guide their teams through downturns. They recommended being honest, having empathy, building relationships, and taking care of your own mental health.
When you're asked about company decisions, such as hiring freezes or layoffs, oftentimes saying "I don't know" is better than providing an answer that unjustly placates fears, Sarah Doody, a career strategist and the founder of Career Strategy Lab — a job-search accelerator and user-experience recruiting agency — told Insider.
"I think it's better to just be transparent than give false information," she said.
Recently, after witnessing managers struggling to have tough conversations with their teams, Ana Villegas, the chief marketing officer of the Austin, Texas, technology company National Instruments, implemented a three-hour workshop for managers around "radical candor."
"You have to build that muscle," Villegas, who has 22 years of leadership experience, said.
Laura Sue D'Annunzio, the chief people officer of NewRocket, an IT-services and consultancy company, said that even at a recession-resistant company, such as hers, employees were emotionally on edge from reading the news and worrying about family members.
"My team does a monthly all hands," D'Annunzio said. "There is always a business update, a sales update, a financial update, and a people update. I think that predictability is super important."
Have empathy
Over the course of the pandemic, Villegas said her leadership style evolved significantly, with empathy becoming the key to managing successfully. For example, if you have to deliver the tough news that someone is being laid off, then offer to give them a recommendation when they start applying for new jobs, Villegas added.
And keep in mind that the bad news you may be delivering comes on top of other personal problems in your employees' life, Cabral said.
"You want to really be thoughtful about what your talent needs and what you've learned about their needs while things were good so that you know how to show up and both be a support but also appropriately and thoughtfully reward talent," Cabral said, adding that the looming recession would likely be global.
Build individual relationships
Sharing tough news shouldn't be delivered in an all-hands meeting or a teamwide Zoom call, Villegas told Insider. Instead, mangers should have one-on-one conversations, where it's easier for employees to pose questions or concerns, she said.
D'Annunzio shared similar advice, citing NewRocket's goal to complete midyear check-ins with every employee before the end of August. During the check-ins, managers are meant to go over wins and objectives for the rest of the year.
"I think making sure that every crew member is having a conversation with their manager is really important," she said.
In the middle of managing your employees' experiences and emotions, don't forget about your own, Cabral said. When you have to deliver difficult news to people, it takes an emotional toll on you, she said.
"Figure out what are the things that actually charge and fuel you and strategically put those things at the top and the bottom of your day," she said, "so that whatever's in the middle is what it is, but you have something good that's coming."
Also, remember that your job title is not your entire identity, Cabral added.
"The penalty of leadership is that you have to recognize that you are often going to be seen as both the resource and also the enemy," she said. "I think the more we're honest about recognizing that this is the role that I'm here to play but this isn't all of who I am is also really helpful."
More: Manager Leadership Recession
|
2022-08-08T11:39:39Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
How to Manage Your Team Through a Recession and Layoffs
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-manage-your-team-through-recession-layoffs-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-manage-your-team-through-recession-layoffs-2022-8
|
Today's mortgage and refinance rates: August 8, 2022 | Rates are low, but remain volatile
Mortgage rates have been volatile in recent weeks as the push and pull of inflation and a possible recession continues.
This week, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics will release July's consumer price index data. This is a closely watched gauge of inflation, and will likely have an impact on where mortgage rates will go in the near future.
As inflation has increased, so have mortgage rates. The Federal Reserve has been raising the federal funds rate to try to slow price growth, and July's CPI numbers will help tell us if the central bank has made any progress toward that goal.
The fear is that if the Fed has to raise rates more aggressively to bring inflation down, it could trigger a recession. This uncertainty has caused mortgage rates to trend down over the past couple of weeks.
|
2022-08-08T11:39:51Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Today's Mortgage, Refinance Rates: August 8, 2022 | Rates Are Low, but Remain Volatile
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/best-mortgage-refinance-rates-today-monday-august-8-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/personal-finance/best-mortgage-refinance-rates-today-monday-august-8-2022-8
|
Former President Donald Trump speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference on August 6, 2022, in Dallas, Texas.
Two images were published Monday by the news outlet Axios, showing paper in the bowl of two toilets that had handwriting resembling Trump's. Haberman had reported the practice before, but without photos.
Axios said they were from an upcoming book by Haberman, one of the most respected reporters on Trump. The book is called "Confidence Man: The Making of Donald Trump and the Breaking of America."
Haberman told Axios that one photo showed a toilet in the White House and another shows a toilet used on an overseas presidential trip. She cited an unnamed White House source for the information.
More: News UK Speed desk Donald Trump Maggie Haberman
|
2022-08-08T11:39:57Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Photos Purport to Show Notes Trump Tried to Flush in Toilet, He Denies
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/photos-purport-show-notes-trump-tried-flush-toilet-he-denies-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/photos-purport-show-notes-trump-tried-flush-toilet-he-denies-2022-8
|
Hi. I'm Aaron Weinman. I want to talk about Wall Street folks' wallets. Investment bankers enjoyed some of their best bonuses early this year, but now they're bracing for lower compensation. Some are getting ahead of that by landing new gigs.
Banks are facing old and new challenges in fintech M&A
1. Investment bankers are getting ahead of impending, potential job cuts by locking in their next pay day. A slump in dealmaking also has Wall Street rainmakers bracing for a cut in their compensation as banks look to trim expenses.
"Banks that have key hires for specific positions are still willing to pay a lot," one managing director told Insider. "So where senior folks can lock in pay, they'll move."
Jefferies, for example, hired Chris Roop, the co-head of North American M&A at JPMorgan, Bloomberg reported on Friday. And Insider's latest Banker of the Week, Jenny Lee, recently left JPMorgan to build the private-credit business at alternative-investment firm Brigade Capital Management.
The dearth of deals also means that banks are facing losses for loans their capital-markets teams underwrote earlier this year. At the end of the second quarter, banks marked about $1.3 billion in losses for corporate debt commitments that they have not been able to sell to third-party investors in the bond and loan markets.
It's a sharp U-turn from the beginning of this year, when investment bankers spent their bonuses on luxury goods like Porsches and super yachts. Cheap money and a booming stock market enabled bankers to lift dealmaking across the capital markets to record levels in the last two years, and many were rewarded with handsome pay packets.
Now, investment bankers will be hit the hardest when the next bonus season arrives, according to data from consultancy firm Alan Johnson Associates. Folks in underwriting segments could see bonuses dip between 40% to 45% compared to last year. Individuals who work on advisory services like M&A will likely see their bonus checks shrink between 20% to 25%, the data showed.
"When you have volumes down and banks incurring losses it doesn't make for a good year. We're also seeing unannounced, unofficial hiring freezes at the junior levels," a second senior investment banker said.
Here are some stories about the state of hiring, firing, and the dealmaking freeze across Wall Street:
Inside Goldman Sachs' intensive performance review process.
Here's everything we know about Wall Street's belt tightening and how it will impact jobs and compensation.
Jefferies Chief Executive Rich Handler breaks down everything from layoffs to slowing deals to navigating a "yucky" period in the markets.
2. The crypto winter has arrived for Jack Dorsey's company, Block. The payments company reported a dip in overall revenue last quarter, and blamed some of that on crypto and bitcoin's slumping value.
3. Betterment's chief executive is thinking about her next deal and looking beyond its roots. Sarah Levy told Insider that there are small startups in the financial-wellness space that make sense to add.
4. Carlyle CEO Kewsong Lee has stepped down with immediate effect. As per Reuters, the news comes months before the scheduled end of his five-year contract. The firm said Lee mutually agreed his contract would not be renewed, without disclosing their reasons. Co-founder Bill Conway will serve as interim CEO while the search for a new candidate takes place.
5. SoftBank reported a record $23 billion quarterly loss. As per the Wall Street Journal, the Japanese technology investor posted one of its biggest losses at its Vision Fund investment unit, after holdings such as Uber and DoorDash lost value amid the tech downturn.
6. Elon Musk said Twitter played "hide-and-seek" as the billionaire sought information. Musk said in a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission that the social-media platform misled its user base to distort its value. Twitter said this was "implausible."
7. Amazon's $1.7 billion purchase of the company behind the Roomba vacuum shows it's leaning into home robots. Amazon's first experiment in the sector, with Astro, was met with mixed reviews. But, as per Bloomberg, the real prize isn't the money from selling iRobot's robotic vacuums, but their ability to map your home.
8. Facebook parent Meta debuted in the corporate-bond market with a $10 billion deal. Despite Meta reporting its first ever drop in revenue last quarter, investors still pumped roughly $30 billion in orders toward the transaction, according to MarketWatch. Bank of America, Barclays, JPMorgan, and Morgan Stanley ran the deal.
9. Startup founders are panicked, but most venture capitalists don't want to hear it. Founders are struggling with their mental health, but many suffer in silence.
10. Popular companies like TikTok's parent ByteDance and Stripe sponsor many H-1B visas for immigrants. Insider has compiled a list of venture-backed startups that sponsor the most H-1B visas.
Investment firm KKR and Loop Capital Markets, a black-owned investment bank, have formed an alliance where Loop will offer investment-banking and equity research to KKR's equity-capital-markets clients.
Private investor Ardian and Crédit Agricole Assurances have acquired an indirect stake in INWIT, a European telecommunications tower operator. The investors have bought a 41% stake from telecommunications company TIM.
More: Banking investment banking Compensation Hiring
|
2022-08-08T12:22:39Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Bankers Search for New Gigs As Job Cuts Loom and Bonuses Dip
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/hiring-layoffs-investment-banking-jobs-bonuses-compensation-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/hiring-layoffs-investment-banking-jobs-bonuses-compensation-2022-8
|
Prompts on how to use Amazon's Alexa personal assistant are seen as a WiFi-equipped Roomba begins cleaning a room in an Amazon 'experience center' in Vallejo, California, U.S., May 8, 2018.
Amazon on Friday announced it acquired iRobot, the company that makes Roomba vacuums, for $1.7 billion.
The deal prompted immediate concerns from data privacy experts and anti-trust researchers.
"[People] don't buy a Roomba to have a little robot ... spying on the layout of your home," said anti-trust researcher Ron Knox.
After Amazon on Friday acquired iRobot, the company that creates Roomba vacuums, data privacy experts and anti-trust researchers quickly raised alarms over the tech giant using the purchase to "vacuum up" personal information from inside users' homes.
Advanced Roomba vacuums have internal mapping technology that learns the floor plan of users' homes. The devices can also "adapt to and remember" up to 10 different floor plans "so users can carry their robot to another floor or a separate home, where the robot will recognize its location and clean as instructed," according to press releases by iRobot. Some models have low-resolution cameras to avoid obstacles and aid in mapping.
"People tend to think of Amazon as an online seller company, but really Amazon is a surveillance company. That is the core of its business model, and that's what drives its monopoly power and profit," Evan Greer, director of the nonprofit digital rights organization Fight for the Future, told Wired. "Amazon wants to have its hands everywhere, and acquiring a company that's essentially built on mapping the inside of people's homes seems like a natural extension of the surveillance reach that Amazon already has."
Ron Knox, senior researcher and writer for the Institute of Local Self-Reliance — a nonprofit dedicated to promoting small businesses and fighting corporate monopolies — said in a series of tweets after the acquisition was announced that the $1.7 billion deal, the fourth largest acquisition in Amazon's portfolio, "may be the most dangerous, threatening acquisition in the company's history."
The acquisition, Knox told Insider, is uniquely dangerous for several reasons: First, Amazon will be acquiring an established market share, not a startup, which he said will cut off competition in a market that already isn't competitive and can further Amazon's market monopoly. Second, because of the massive amounts of data that comes with accessing iRobot's established data sets, Amazon can collect new information through the robots.
"I think this feels really intrusive to people — and it should," Knox told Insider. "Like, when people buy a Roomba, it's because they want clean floors. They don't buy a Roomba to have a little robot inside of your house spying on the layout of your home and whether or not you have a crib in your house or whether or not there are pet toys and a pet bed in a room of your house. So then it can funnel that information to Amazon and Amazon can push whatever dog toy ads to you the next time you log on."
Amazon declined an interview with Insider about potential data privacy concerns, but indicated the company doesn't sell consumer data to third parties or use it for purposes customers "haven't consented to."
"Protecting customer data has always been incredibly important to Amazon, and we think we've been very good stewards of peoples' data across all of our businesses," an Amazon spokesperson said in a statement emailed to Insider. "Customer trust is something we have worked hard to earn —and work hard to keep— every day."
Robert Weissman, president of Public Citizen, a non-profit consumer rights advocacy group, argues that federal regulators should prevent Amazon's purchase of iRobot, citing additional concerns over the company's current 56.7% market share.
"The last thing American and the world needs is Amazon vacuuming up even more of our personal information," Weissman said in a statement. "This is not just about Amazon selling another device in its marketplace. It's about the company gaining still more intimate details of our lives to gain unfair market advantage and sell us more stuff."
The deal has not yet been approved by US Federal Trade Commission regulators, who could possibly terminate the deal under antitrust laws.
The Roomba deal isn't the only recent Amazon acquisition to raise privacy concerns. The announcement comes less than a month after Amazon announced a $3.9 billion deal to acquire One Medical — which itself prompted worries about privacy due to the nature of medical data being collected.
Ring, the company's surveillance security doorbell — that partners with thousands of police departments — admitted in a letter to Massachusetts Senator Ed Markey last month it has shared with law enforcement home video footage taken from 11 different customers' residences without warrants, Politico reported.
"When the company that has its cameras and microphones in your speakers, your doorbell, your security cameras tries to buy the company that knows the shape and contents of your home, it's bad in all the ways," Knox said.
More: Amazon Roomba iRobot Acquisition
|
2022-08-08T13:27:37Z
|
www.businessinsider.com
|
Amazon Buying Roomba Is 'Most Dangerous, Threatening Acquisition in the Company's History'
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-roomba-vacuums-most-dangerous-threatening-acquisition-in-company-history-2022-8
|
https://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-roomba-vacuums-most-dangerous-threatening-acquisition-in-company-history-2022-8
|
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.