title,url,timestamp,content,source,clean_date,clean_content,arti_score,pos_sent,neg_sent,rnn_arti_score,rnn_pos_sent,rnn_neg_sent,date_extracted
Nigeria building collapses: Why Lagos constructions keep crashing down,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cx2ed9y3049o,2024-08-31T23:30:11.577Z,"A building has collapsed in Nigeria’s megacity, Lagos, once every two weeks on average so far this year. Whereas the commercial cost can be calculated, a figure can never be put on the value of the lives lost underneath the rubble. The gaps among the buildings, replaced by piles of debris, represent a failure of governance as well as giving rise to allegations of contractors trying to cut corners to save money. There are regulations, there are maintenance schedules, there are inspectors – but the system does not work. Those responsible are never held to account, and so nothing ever changes.  Lagos, dubbed by one expert who spoke to the BBC as "" the building-collapse capital of Nigeria"", has seen at least 90 buildings falling down in the last 12 years, leaving more than 350 people dead, according to the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria. One of the most notorious incidents was in 2021. Sunday Femi was just metres away, in the upmarket suburb of Ikoyi, when a 21-storey block of luxury flats under construction collapsed, killing 42 people. After the loud crashing sound, he was engulfed in dust. “Like many, I rushed inside trying to see if I could help some of the people trapped. Sadly I knew some of those who died and I think about it every day,” he says, reflecting on what happened nearly three years ago. The drinks seller had been speaking to some of the construction workers moments before they entered the building site. He still works nearby and the chatter among the locals often turns to those events and the possible cause. Metal sheeting protects the site from prying eyes but mounds of broken concrete can still be seen through the gaps in the gate. Knocking on the entrance to the ill-fated compound, two fierce-looking security guards opened up and said they had instructions not to allow anybody into the premises except state government officials. Just as the place is sealed to the public so is the official investigation into the collapse – it has been sitting with the state governor since he received it in 2022. A list of recommendations has reportedly been drawn up by a panel of experts following the investigation but that also has not been made public. The BBC has repeatedly asked the Lagos state authorities to see the recommendations, and the report into the Ikoyi building collapse, but neither has been made available. The coroner, however, has had her say and in 2022 she did not hold back. In a damning judgment on the deaths, Chief Magistrate Oyetade Komolafe, attributed the building collapse to the irresponsibility and negligence of the government agencies that were supposed to approve and supervise the plans and construction. Lagos’s population is booming and is now estimated to stand at more than 20 million. As the city grows so does the demand for housing and commercial property, and it can sometimes feel like a giant building site with construction going on everywhere. Before work can begin, plans need to be approved by Lagos state’s Physical Planning Permit Agency. Then inspectors from the Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA) are supposed to look at the site as well as check the progress at every stage of construction. And the Standards Organisation of Nigeria should make sure that only suitable building material gets to the market. But on many occasions the procedures are not followed. Inside the LASBCA’s offices everything appears calm - there is no sense of the urgency of the problems or challenges it faces. Spokesperson Olusegun Olaoye acknowledges the criticism but dismisses allegations that officials have been bribed to issue fake certificates and rather blames a lack of resources. “At the moment we have about 300 building inspectors and supervisors but we are looking to add to that,” he says. Experts agree that more supervisors are needed. Muhammad Danmarya, architect and construction expert, says they should number in their thousands. “Three hundred is just not right for a state like Lagos. Each local government area should have at least 100 inspectors and supervisors and Lagos has 57 of those areas,” he argues. “There’s always construction going on everywhere you look, so it’s important that inspection and supervision is going on all the time.” In the absence of that regime across the state, some less scrupulous companies are getting away with violating building codes, using sub-standard materials and employing poorly trained workers – three of the reasons cited for the high frequency of collapses. “They just come here to pick us up any time they have a job for us and pay us after we are done,” says labourer Habu Isah, who has worked on construction sites for years. “I have never undergone any training, I just learned everything on the job.” But even if violations are identified in the wake of a collapse, the state’s building agency does not take any legal action. “To my knowledge there haven’t been any prosecutions in the past as far as building collapses in Lagos are concerned,” LASBCA’s Mr Olaoye admits. “I know the statistics are worrying but there are ongoing efforts to halt the trend.” Alleged political influence is a barrier to pursuing prosecutions. “If you are connected to people in power, even if you are the culprit in a building collapse case nothing will happen to you,” says a Lagos state politician, who talked to the BBC on the condition of anonymity. “We’ve seen it so many times, some of the high-profile cases have to do with structures of highly placed people and they are still roaming around freely. “In Nigeria when you are rich and connected you can avoid problems easily.” With 19 building collapses already recorded so far this year by the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, the final total is likely to be the highest in the past decade. But lessons may still go unlearnt. The head of the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria recently said that the country lacked the capacity to properly investigate what is going on. “We don’t have the expertise, the equipment, and the resources to do so,” said Prof  Sadiq Abubakar. In the meantime, construction workers and others will carry on paying with their lives. Additional reporting by Andrew Gift Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.  Follow us on Twitter @BBCAfrica, on Facebook at BBC Africa or on Instagram at bbcafrica ",BBC,31/08/2024,"['A building has collapsed in Nigeria’s megacity, Lagos, once every two weeks on average so far this year.', 'Whereas the commercial cost can be calculated, a figure can never be put on the value of the lives lost underneath the rubble.', 'The gaps among the buildings, replaced by piles of debris, represent a failure of governance as well as giving rise to allegations of contractors trying to cut corners to save money.', 'There are regulations, there are maintenance schedules, there are inspectors – but the system does not work.', 'Those responsible are never held to account, and so nothing ever changes.', 'Lagos, dubbed by one expert who spoke to the BBC as "" the building-collapse capital of Nigeria"", has seen at least 90 buildings falling down in the last 12 years, leaving more than 350 people dead, according to the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria.', 'One of the most notorious incidents was in 2021.', 'Sunday Femi was just metres away, in the upmarket suburb of Ikoyi, when a 21-storey block of luxury flats under construction collapsed, killing 42 people.', 'After the loud crashing sound, he was engulfed in dust. “', 'Like many, I rushed inside trying to see if I could help some of the people trapped.', 'Sadly I knew some of those who died and I think about it every day,” he says, reflecting on what happened nearly three years ago.', 'The drinks seller had been speaking to some of the construction workers moments before they entered the building site.', 'He still works nearby and the chatter among the locals often turns to those events and the possible cause.', 'Metal sheeting protects the site from prying eyes but mounds of broken concrete can still be seen through the gaps in the gate.', 'Knocking on the entrance to the ill-fated compound, two fierce-looking security guards opened up and said they had instructions not to allow anybody into the premises except state government officials.', 'Just as the place is sealed to the public so is the official investigation into the collapse – it has been sitting with the state governor since he received it in 2022.', 'A list of recommendations has reportedly been drawn up by a panel of experts following the investigation but that also has not been made public.', 'The BBC has repeatedly asked the Lagos state authorities to see the recommendations, and the report into the Ikoyi building collapse, but neither has been made available.', 'The coroner, however, has had her say and in 2022 she did not hold back.', 'In a damning judgment on the deaths, Chief Magistrate Oyetade Komolafe, attributed the building collapse to the irresponsibility and negligence of the government agencies that were supposed to approve and supervise the plans and construction.', 'Lagos’s population is booming and is now estimated to stand at more than 20 million.', 'As the city grows so does the demand for housing and commercial property, and it can sometimes feel like a giant building site with construction going on everywhere.', 'Before work can begin, plans need to be approved by Lagos state’s Physical Planning Permit Agency.', 'Then inspectors from the Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA) are supposed to look at the site as well as check the progress at every stage of construction.', 'And the Standards Organisation of Nigeria should make sure that only suitable building material gets to the market.', 'But on many occasions the procedures are not followed.', 'Inside the LASBCA’s offices everything appears calm - there is no sense of the urgency of the problems or challenges it faces.', 'Spokesperson Olusegun Olaoye acknowledges the criticism but dismisses allegations that officials have been bribed to issue fake certificates and rather blames a lack of resources. “', 'At the moment we have about 300 building inspectors and supervisors but we are looking to add to that,” he says.', 'Experts agree that more supervisors are needed.', 'Muhammad Danmarya, architect and construction expert, says they should number in their thousands. “', 'Three hundred is just not right for a state like Lagos.', 'Each local government area should have at least 100 inspectors and supervisors and Lagos has 57 of those areas,” he argues. “', 'There’s always construction going on everywhere you look, so it’s important that inspection and supervision is going on all the time.”', 'In the absence of that regime across the state, some less scrupulous companies are getting away with violating building codes, using sub-standard materials and employing poorly trained workers – three of the reasons cited for the high frequency of collapses. “', 'They just come here to pick us up any time they have a job for us and pay us after we are done,” says labourer Habu Isah, who has worked on construction sites for years. “', 'I have never undergone any training, I just learned everything on the job.”', 'But even if violations are identified in the wake of a collapse, the state’s building agency does not take any legal action. “', 'To my knowledge there haven’t been any prosecutions in the past as far as building collapses in Lagos are concerned,” LASBCA’s Mr Olaoye admits. “', 'I know the statistics are worrying but there are ongoing efforts to halt the trend.”', 'Alleged political influence is a barrier to pursuing prosecutions. “', 'If you are connected to people in power, even if you are the culprit in a building collapse case nothing will happen to you,” says a Lagos state politician, who talked to the BBC on the condition of anonymity. “', 'We’ve seen it so many times, some of the high-profile cases have to do with structures of highly placed people and they are still roaming around freely. “', 'In Nigeria when you are rich and connected you can avoid problems easily.”', 'With 19 building collapses already recorded so far this year by the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, the final total is likely to be the highest in the past decade.', 'But lessons may still go unlearnt.', 'The head of the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria recently said that the country lacked the capacity to properly investigate what is going on. “', 'We don’t have the expertise, the equipment, and the resources to do so,” said Prof Sadiq Abubakar.', 'In the meantime, construction workers and others will carry on paying with their lives.', 'Additional reporting by Andrew Gift Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.', 'Follow us on Twitter @BBCAfrica, on Facebook at BBC Africa or on Instagram at bbcafrica']",-0.1086587861876567,Then inspectors from the Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA) are supposed to look at the site as well as check the progress at every stage of construction.,Spokesperson Olusegun Olaoye acknowledges the criticism but dismisses allegations that officials have been bribed to issue fake certificates and rather blames a lack of resources. “,-0.8077580057657682,Lagos’s population is booming and is now estimated to stand at more than 20 million.,"The gaps among the buildings, replaced by piles of debris, represent a failure of governance as well as giving rise to allegations of contractors trying to cut corners to save money.",2024-08-31
Oasis superfans angry after Airbnb booking declined,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cevj77rdp89o,2024-08-31T06:12:45.611Z,"Oasis superfans who have been to see the band 55 times have spoken of their disappointment after an Airbnb host declined their booking, before it was relisted at ""twice the price"". Liz Greenwood and Ian Wood, who live outside Ripon, were hoping to see the Gallagher brothers perform in Edinburgh during their reunion tour next summer. They hoped to secure an Airbnb property, but their booking was declined - only for the accommodation to reappear the following day at a higher price. Airbnb said a host could choose to accept or decline a booking, as the guest ""never had a confirmed booking"" or a paid reservation with them. Mrs Greenwood told the BBC: ""I went onto Airbnb to look for somewhere and found a fantastic little place in the centre of Edinburgh. ""I was on it straight away, booked it and sent the lady a message saying ‘fingers crossed we'll get the tickets for the Oasis gig on Saturday’. ""Obviously, this then alerted her to decline my booking and then the following day, the same accommodation was back online on Airbnb at twice the price."" Mrs Greenwood explained that the Airbnb host had it set so a booking could be declined within 24 hours. She said: ""I've used Airbnb for years, I’ve got full positive feedback and amazing reviews from all the properties I've stayed at. ""I actually messaged the lady directly and said, ‘shame on you for cancelling this and doubling your prices'. ""You were going to have a lovely couple staying at your accommodation and now you might end up with some group of beery blokes, who might not look after it."" Mrs Greenwood blamed the cancellation on there being ""a lot of greed"".  Prices for budget hotels were reaching nearly £500 a night, according to the fan, with the added cost of tickets and drinks taking total expenditure to about £1,000. Taking the chance on another Airbnb, Mrs Greenwood said: ""If this one doesn't go through then I'm going to give up. ""We will have an Oasis weekend instead, playing the old DVDs and having a few beers at home."" Hotel chain Maldron was this week accused of trying to cash in on Oasis shows by cancelling bookings customers had made before the reunion tour was announced. A spokesman said there was ""an overbooking issue"" at two of its locations and it was not an attempt to ""resell rooms at inflated prices"". Meanwhile, tickets for the Oasis tour shows started to sell out for some dates after fans scrambled to secure places on Saturday. Listen to highlights from North Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North or tell us a story you think we should be covering here. ",BBC,31/08/2024,"['Oasis superfans who have been to see the band 55 times have spoken of their disappointment after an Airbnb host declined their booking, before it was relisted at ""twice the price"".', 'Liz Greenwood and Ian Wood, who live outside Ripon, were hoping to see the Gallagher brothers perform in Edinburgh during their reunion tour next summer.', 'They hoped to secure an Airbnb property, but their booking was declined - only for the accommodation to reappear the following day at a higher price.', 'Airbnb said a host could choose to accept or decline a booking, as the guest ""never had a confirmed booking"" or a paid reservation with them.', 'Mrs Greenwood told the BBC: ""I went onto Airbnb to look for somewhere and found a fantastic little place in the centre of Edinburgh. ""', 'I was on it straight away, booked it and sent the lady a message saying ‘fingers crossed we\'ll get the tickets for the Oasis gig on Saturday’. ""', 'Obviously, this then alerted her to decline my booking and then the following day, the same accommodation was back online on Airbnb at twice the price.""', 'Mrs Greenwood explained that the Airbnb host had it set so a booking could be declined within 24 hours.', 'She said: ""I\'ve used Airbnb for years, I’ve got full positive feedback and amazing reviews from all the properties I\'ve stayed at. ""', 'I actually messaged the lady directly and said, ‘shame on you for cancelling this and doubling your prices\'. ""', 'You were going to have a lovely couple staying at your accommodation and now you might end up with some group of beery blokes, who might not look after it.""', 'Mrs Greenwood blamed the cancellation on there being ""a lot of greed"".', 'Prices for budget hotels were reaching nearly £500 a night, according to the fan, with the added cost of tickets and drinks taking total expenditure to about £1,000.', 'Taking the chance on another Airbnb, Mrs Greenwood said: ""If this one doesn\'t go through then I\'m going to give up. ""', 'We will have an Oasis weekend instead, playing the old DVDs and having a few beers at home.""', 'Hotel chain Maldron was this week accused of trying to cash in on Oasis shows by cancelling bookings customers had made before the reunion tour was announced.', 'A spokesman said there was ""an overbooking issue"" at two of its locations and it was not an attempt to ""resell rooms at inflated prices"".', 'Meanwhile, tickets for the Oasis tour shows started to sell out for some dates after fans scrambled to secure places on Saturday.', 'Listen to highlights from North Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North or tell us a story you think we should be covering here.']",0.1234937025859764,"She said: ""I've used Airbnb for years, I’ve got full positive feedback and amazing reviews from all the properties I've stayed at. ""","Mrs Greenwood blamed the cancellation on there being ""a lot of greed"".",-0.6807812026568821,"She said: ""I've used Airbnb for years, I’ve got full positive feedback and amazing reviews from all the properties I've stayed at. ""","They hoped to secure an Airbnb property, but their booking was declined - only for the accommodation to reappear the following day at a higher price.",2024-08-31
Oasis: The multi-million economics of band reunions,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c9wjnl9w51yo,2024-08-31T23:32:53.401Z,"The first sign that the sibling warfare between Noel and Liam Gallagher was beginning to calm came during an interview last month. Reflecting on the band's sound, Noel told journalist John Robb: ""It’s difficult to explain - when I would sing a song it would sound good, when [Liam] would sing it, it would sound great."" Hearing Noel compliment his brother publicly after 16 years of insults certainly turned a few heads. But few people expected that just days later, the band - who broke up on the same week in 2009 - would dramatically reform. A blizzard of headlines and a social media frenzy followed, cutting through the national psyche like the band’s two era-defining nights at Knebworth in 1996. And now, we have a reunion. Tickets for the Oasis comeback tour went on sale on Friday for the pre-sale, and Saturday for the general sale, with fans racing to beat each other the booking queue. But why reunite now?  There are several reasons - but the financial incentive is surely on the list.  ""A deal would've been struck early by promoters, and I’ve heard numbers bandied around of the Gallagher brothers earning £50m each,"" says Jonathan Dean of the Sunday Times, who first reported the reunion tour. That £50m estimate was made by Birmingham City University about the initial 14 dates. ""I think that is probably true, ticket prices are higher than they used to be."" But, he notes, figures are difficult to estimate until the full extent of the live shows is known.  ""This is being called a world tour, but currently it’s not going further than England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland,"" he notes. ""It doesn’t go to the rest of Europe, to America, so I think any earnings are completely up in the air until we know how far this tour is going to spread."" Birmingham City University estimated that the initial dates could, potentially, bring in roughly £400m in ticket sales and other add-ons. For comparison, Take That's Progress Live tour in 2011 brought in an estimated $185m (£140m). The Spice Girls – minus Victoria Beckham – caused Ticketmaster to crash for their 13-date tour in 2019, which earned an estimated $78m (£60m). Abba were able to launch a hugely successful comeback without even performing live themselves, with the digital avatars used in Abba: Voyage said to be making $2m (£1.5m) in London per week. But bands - including Oasis - are also presumably attracted to the idea of building their legacy as well as their bank balances.  When Blur played two nights at Wembley last year, critics' reviews were breathless in their praise. To some, the Gallaghers’ sudden claims of a truce after years of ferocious barbs might cynically echo the Sex Pistols’ 1996 reunion. Frontman John Lydon admitted at the time that although the band still hated each other they had “found a common cause, and that’s your money”. But although ""money is king here"", says Robin Murray, music editor of Clash magazine, the timing is also arguably “quite natural”. He notes both Gallagher brothers have just completed their most recent solo musical commitments. ""There's definitely an element of truth to this simply being two people, with a particular bond, being in the right place at the right time."" Dean notes the Gallaghers are ""very rich men anyway"", so there will have been other motivations. ""I think the family thing is key, I just think they’re older, and their ages has made them come together,"" he says. And their long rivalry, with its familial ties and shared legacy, has equally helped bring the band back together, suggests music psychotherapist Katerina Georgiou.  Both Gallaghers have had solo career success. But it's Liam's star that has risen the most in recent years. ""The brothers spark off each other marvellously and there's always been that edge of competition,"" says Dr Georgiou. ""Of course seeing Liam sell out Knebworth and carry a Definitely Maybe tour on his own will have risen the stakes for Noel and vice versa, as Noel's movement away from Liam pushed Liam to prove himself to his brother."" The pair will no doubt benefit from changes to the wider industry landscape. Streaming wasn't around during Oasis's heyday, but it has helped them reach new audiences in the intervening years.  Carl Smith, editor at the Official Charts Company, says ""the timelessness of Oasis’s material transcends generations and holds up so well in the streaming era"". It's echoed by Dean, from the Sunday Times, who says their music is accessible. ""What Oasis do is simple, and I don’t mean that in a bad way, it's songs of escapism and going off and doing your own thing and being free of the drudgery of daily life and work, but done in a simple, slightly raucous, singalong way."" Before the reunion had even been announced, Spotify said Oasis streams increased by more than 160% globally just on the strength of the rumours.  Another surge following the announcement led to three of the band's albums going back into the top five on Friday's official chart, with their greatest hits album increasing by 332%. Many new Oasis fans are young women - capturing younger fans is crucial for future-proofing the band financially. Liam's popularity, in particular, is helping to carry the band's music for a new generation. Just last week, aged 51, he headlined Reading Festival, a favourite of GCSE and A-Level students. For all the heady temptations reunions bring artists, they can easily go wrong. Jennifer Lopez this summer cancelled her greatest hits tour midway through its run over poor ticket sales. Music journalist Michael Cragg, author of 90s and noughties pop book Reach for the Stars, says she had already ""flooded the market"" with several Netflix projects, making her music feel like ""almost like the last thought"".  And the unexpected return of Oasis's iconic Mancunian contemporaries The Stone Roses in 2011, after a 20-year absence, highlighted the danger of overpromising and underdelivering. Their initial comeback dates were rapturously received, but new singles fell flat and a new album never materialised.  Oasis's return has, so far, avoided this pitfall, says the Independent's music editor Roisin O'Connor. For now, the band haven't promised the world - they're gauging reaction to the tour first, a tour which itself was a surprise. ""There’s no indication that they plan on releasing any new music, meaning there isn’t that risk of fans feeling let down if the material didn't match those earlier albums,"" O'Connor says. But this doesn't mean the tour isn't without risk.  There's a potential threat to Oasis's working-class credentials, for example. If this tour becomes financially and logistically inaccessible, it could undermine this image. Standing tickets for the Oasis tour are priced around £150, but premium packages cost up to £506. Some unofficial re-sale tickets are going for £6,000, though the band has warned these could be cancelled. During Saturday's sale, “dynamic pricing” on Ticketmaster, where prices rise in line with demand, set some remaining tickets to around £355 plus fees - up from £135 when the sale began. Tickets to see the band at Knebworth in 1996 cost about £22 - but that doesn't account for inflation and the new era of tiered pricing. The pricing concern and clamour for tickets has also led to discussions around gatekeeping. Some older fans feel they shouldn't be in competition for tickets with fans who weren't even alive the first time around. But many counter that music does not belong to anyone, it's there for all to enjoy.  The cultural impact of the 2025 shows is likely to be huge, suggesting Oasis ""have already stamped their foot over next summer"", Dean says. The fact the band have ruled out playing Glastonbury next year is likely to boost demand of their own tour: fans have been told the only way to see them live is to buy a ticket. The appeal of the Oasis live shows is further underlined by the prospect of it being the last chance for fans to see them. ""I think this will be viewed as the latest - possibly final - chapter in the Oasis story,""  says the Independent's O'Connor.  ""A moment of catharsis for fans who wanted that closure or a chance to see the band for a final time, and hopefully a mending of fences for Noel and Liam after all these years. ""After that, who knows."" Additional reporting by Steven McIntosh ",BBC,31/08/2024,"['The first sign that the sibling warfare between Noel and Liam Gallagher was beginning to calm came during an interview last month.', 'Reflecting on the band\'s sound, Noel told journalist John Robb: ""It’s difficult to explain - when I would sing a song it would sound good, when [Liam] would sing it, it would sound great.""', 'Hearing Noel compliment his brother publicly after 16 years of insults certainly turned a few heads.', 'But few people expected that just days later, the band - who broke up on the same week in 2009 - would dramatically reform.', 'A blizzard of headlines and a social media frenzy followed, cutting through the national psyche like the band’s two era-defining nights at Knebworth in 1996.', 'And now, we have a reunion.', 'Tickets for the Oasis comeback tour went on sale on Friday for the pre-sale, and Saturday for the general sale, with fans racing to beat each other the booking queue.', 'But why reunite now?', 'There are several reasons - but the financial incentive is surely on the list. ""', 'A deal would\'ve been struck early by promoters, and I’ve heard numbers bandied around of the Gallagher brothers earning £50m each,"" says Jonathan Dean of the Sunday Times, who first reported the reunion tour.', 'That £50m estimate was made by Birmingham City University about the initial 14 dates. ""', 'I think that is probably true, ticket prices are higher than they used to be.""', 'But, he notes, figures are difficult to estimate until the full extent of the live shows is known. ""', 'This is being called a world tour, but currently it’s not going further than England, Wales, Scotland, and Ireland,"" he notes. ""', 'It doesn’t go to the rest of Europe, to America, so I think any earnings are completely up in the air until we know how far this tour is going to spread.""', 'Birmingham City University estimated that the initial dates could, potentially, bring in roughly £400m in ticket sales and other add-ons.', ""For comparison, Take That's Progress Live tour in 2011 brought in an estimated $185m (£140m)."", 'The Spice Girls – minus Victoria Beckham – caused Ticketmaster to crash for their 13-date tour in 2019, which earned an estimated $78m (£60m).', 'Abba were able to launch a hugely successful comeback without even performing live themselves, with the digital avatars used in Abba: Voyage said to be making $2m (£1.5m) in London per week.', 'But bands - including Oasis - are also presumably attracted to the idea of building their legacy as well as their bank balances.', ""When Blur played two nights at Wembley last year, critics' reviews were breathless in their praise."", 'To some, the Gallaghers’ sudden claims of a truce after years of ferocious barbs might cynically echo the Sex Pistols’ 1996 reunion.', 'Frontman John Lydon admitted at the time that although the band still hated each other they had “found a common cause, and that’s your money”.', 'But although ""money is king here"", says Robin Murray, music editor of Clash magazine, the timing is also arguably “quite natural”.', 'He notes both Gallagher brothers have just completed their most recent solo musical commitments. ""', 'There\'s definitely an element of truth to this simply being two people, with a particular bond, being in the right place at the right time.""', 'Dean notes the Gallaghers are ""very rich men anyway"", so there will have been other motivations. ""', 'I think the family thing is key, I just think they’re older, and their ages has made them come together,"" he says.', 'And their long rivalry, with its familial ties and shared legacy, has equally helped bring the band back together, suggests music psychotherapist Katerina Georgiou.', 'Both Gallaghers have had solo career success.', 'But it\'s Liam\'s star that has risen the most in recent years. ""', 'The brothers spark off each other marvellously and there\'s always been that edge of competition,"" says Dr Georgiou. ""', 'Of course seeing Liam sell out Knebworth and carry a Definitely Maybe tour on his own will have risen the stakes for Noel and vice versa, as Noel\'s movement away from Liam pushed Liam to prove himself to his brother.""', 'The pair will no doubt benefit from changes to the wider industry landscape.', ""Streaming wasn't around during Oasis's heyday, but it has helped them reach new audiences in the intervening years."", 'Carl Smith, editor at the Official Charts Company, says ""the timelessness of Oasis’s material transcends generations and holds up so well in the streaming era"".', 'It\'s echoed by Dean, from the Sunday Times, who says their music is accessible. ""', 'What Oasis do is simple, and I don’t mean that in a bad way, it\'s songs of escapism and going off and doing your own thing and being free of the drudgery of daily life and work, but done in a simple, slightly raucous, singalong way.""', 'Before the reunion had even been announced, Spotify said Oasis streams increased by more than 160% globally just on the strength of the rumours.', ""Another surge following the announcement led to three of the band's albums going back into the top five on Friday's official chart, with their greatest hits album increasing by 332%."", 'Many new Oasis fans are young women - capturing younger fans is crucial for future-proofing the band financially.', ""Liam's popularity, in particular, is helping to carry the band's music for a new generation."", 'Just last week, aged 51, he headlined Reading Festival, a favourite of GCSE and A-Level students.', 'For all the heady temptations reunions bring artists, they can easily go wrong.', 'Jennifer Lopez this summer cancelled her greatest hits tour midway through its run over poor ticket sales.', 'Music journalist Michael Cragg, author of 90s and noughties pop book Reach for the Stars, says she had already ""flooded the market"" with several Netflix projects, making her music feel like ""almost like the last thought"".', ""And the unexpected return of Oasis's iconic Mancunian contemporaries The Stone Roses in 2011, after a 20-year absence, highlighted the danger of overpromising and underdelivering."", 'Their initial comeback dates were rapturously received, but new singles fell flat and a new album never materialised.', ""Oasis's return has, so far, avoided this pitfall, says the Independent's music editor Roisin O'Connor."", 'For now, the band haven\'t promised the world - they\'re gauging reaction to the tour first, a tour which itself was a surprise. ""', 'There’s no indication that they plan on releasing any new music, meaning there isn’t that risk of fans feeling let down if the material didn\'t match those earlier albums,"" O\'Connor says.', ""But this doesn't mean the tour isn't without risk."", ""There's a potential threat to Oasis's working-class credentials, for example."", 'If this tour becomes financially and logistically inaccessible, it could undermine this image.', 'Standing tickets for the Oasis tour are priced around £150, but premium packages cost up to £506.', 'Some unofficial re-sale tickets are going for £6,000, though the band has warned these could be cancelled.', ""During Saturday's sale, “dynamic pricing” on Ticketmaster, where prices rise in line with demand, set some remaining tickets to around £355 plus fees - up from £135 when the sale began."", ""Tickets to see the band at Knebworth in 1996 cost about £22 - but that doesn't account for inflation and the new era of tiered pricing."", 'The pricing concern and clamour for tickets has also led to discussions around gatekeeping.', ""Some older fans feel they shouldn't be in competition for tickets with fans who weren't even alive the first time around."", ""But many counter that music does not belong to anyone, it's there for all to enjoy."", 'The cultural impact of the 2025 shows is likely to be huge, suggesting Oasis ""have already stamped their foot over next summer"", Dean says.', 'The fact the band have ruled out playing Glastonbury next year is likely to boost demand of their own tour: fans have been told the only way to see them live is to buy a ticket.', 'The appeal of the Oasis live shows is further underlined by the prospect of it being the last chance for fans to see them. ""', 'I think this will be viewed as the latest - possibly final - chapter in the Oasis story,"" says the Independent\'s O\'Connor. ""', 'A moment of catharsis for fans who wanted that closure or a chance to see the band for a final time, and hopefully a mending of fences for Noel and Liam after all these years. ""', 'After that, who knows.""', 'Additional reporting by Steven McIntosh']",0.1405240841480125,"There are several reasons - but the financial incentive is surely on the list. ""","Frontman John Lydon admitted at the time that although the band still hated each other they had “found a common cause, and that’s your money”.",0.4596126743725368,"Another surge following the announcement led to three of the band's albums going back into the top five on Friday's official chart, with their greatest hits album increasing by 332%.","Their initial comeback dates were rapturously received, but new singles fell flat and a new album never materialised.",2024-08-31
"Bitcoin rally helps create more than 84,000 new crypto millionaires in a year",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/27/bitcoin-rally-new-crypto-billionaires.html,2024-08-27T12:40:08+0000,"The population of crypto millionaires in the world soared 95% over the past year, as bitcoin ETFs and other crypto assets climbed, according to a new report.There are now 172,300 individuals worldwide holding over $1 million in crypto assets, up from 88,200 last year, according to a report from New World Wealth and Henley & Partners. The number of pure bitcoin millionaires more than doubled, to 85,400.The ranks of the crypto rich have grown all the way up the wealth ladder. There are now 325 crypto centi-millionaires (those with $100 million or more in crypto holdings), and 28 crypto billionaires, according to the report.The surge reflects the rapid growth of bitcoin ETFs, which now have over $50 billion in assets since their launch in January and have touched off a wave of institutional participation.The Inside Wealth newsletter by Robert Frank is your weekly guide to high-net-worth investors and the industries that serve them.Subscribe here to get access today. The price of bitcoin has jumped 45% this year to about 64,000. As other coins have increased in value, the market cap of crypto assets has increased to $2.3 trillion, according to Henley, up from $1.2 trillion last summer.Of the six new crypto billionaires created over the past year, five can attribute their newfound wealth to bitcoin, ""underscoring its dominant position when it comes to attracting long-term investors who buy large holdings,"" according to Andrew Amoils, head of research for New World Wealth.According to Forbes, the richest crypto billionaire (for the third year in a row) is Changpeng Zhao, the founder and former CEO of crypto exchange Binance, who's worth an estimated $33 billion. Zhao pled guilty to U.S. money laundering charges in November and agreed to pay a $50 million fine. His wealth has soared by more than $10.5 billion over the past year.Ranking second is Brian Armstrong, the co-founder of Coinbase, worth an estimated $11 billion, according to Forbes. He's followed by Giancarlo Devasini, the chief financial officer of Tether; and Michael Saylor, the cofounder of MicroStrategy, according to the list.Granted, many crypto assets are still below their 2021 highs, and bitcoin's recent rise essentially marks a three-year round-trip to those levels. Crypto assets reached a market cap of $3 trillion in November of 2021.Yet the growing acceptance of crypto assets among big asset managers like BlackRock and Fidelity, with help from Morgan Stanley's salesforce of 15,000 brokers, could fuel further wealth creation among large crypto holders.Crypto will not only create more millionaires and billionaires, but it will also change where the rich live and work. According to Henley, many of the newly crypto rich are looking to move to tax-friendly and crypto-friendly jurisdictions.""We've seen a significant uptick in crypto-wealthy clients seeking alternative residence and citizenship options,"" said Dominic Volek, head of private clients at Henley & Partners.To better advise the new crypto nomads, Henley created a ""Crypto Adoption Index,"" ranking countries according to their tax and regulatory approach to crypto. Singapore ranks first on the index, due to its ""supportive banking system, significant investment, comprehensive regulations such as the Payment Services Act, regulatory sandboxes, and alignment with global standards,"" according to Henley.Hong Kong ranked second, followed by the United Arab Emirates and the United States. In the U.S., according to the report, 15% of the population owns cryptocurrencies: ""This is supported by strong infrastructure, with a high density of crypto ATMs, crypto-friendly banks, and an increasing number of businesses accepting cryptocurrency,"" the report said.Correction: This story has been updated to correct a headline that misstated the number of crypto millionaires created by the bitcoin rally.",CNBC,27/08/2024,"['The population of crypto millionaires in the world soared 95% over the past year, as bitcoin ETFs and other crypto assets climbed, according to a new report.', 'There are now 172,300 individuals worldwide holding over $1 million in crypto assets, up from 88,200 last year, according to a report from New World Wealth and Henley & Partners.', 'The number of pure bitcoin millionaires more than doubled, to 85,400.The ranks of the crypto rich have grown all the way up the wealth ladder.', 'There are now 325 crypto centi-millionaires (those with $100 million or more in crypto holdings), and 28 crypto billionaires, according to the report.', 'The surge reflects the rapid growth of bitcoin ETFs, which now have over $50 billion in assets since their launch in January and have touched off a wave of institutional participation.', 'The Inside Wealth newsletter by Robert Frank is your weekly guide to high-net-worth investors and the industries that serve them.', 'Subscribe here to get access today.', 'The price of bitcoin has jumped 45% this year to about 64,000.', 'As other coins have increased in value, the market cap of crypto assets has increased to $2.3 trillion, according to Henley, up from $1.2 trillion last summer.', 'Of the six new crypto billionaires created over the past year, five can attribute their newfound wealth to bitcoin, ""underscoring its dominant position when it comes to attracting long-term investors who buy large holdings,"" according to Andrew Amoils, head of research for New World Wealth.', ""According to Forbes, the richest crypto billionaire (for the third year in a row) is Changpeng Zhao, the founder and former CEO of crypto exchange Binance, who's worth an estimated $33 billion."", 'Zhao pled guilty to U.S. money laundering charges in November and agreed to pay a $50 million fine.', 'His wealth has soared by more than $10.5 billion over the past year.', 'Ranking second is Brian Armstrong, the co-founder of Coinbase, worth an estimated $11 billion, according to Forbes.', ""He's followed by Giancarlo Devasini, the chief financial officer of Tether; and Michael Saylor, the cofounder of MicroStrategy, according to the list."", ""Granted, many crypto assets are still below their 2021 highs, and bitcoin's recent rise essentially marks a three-year round-trip to those levels."", ""Crypto assets reached a market cap of $3 trillion in November of 2021.Yet the growing acceptance of crypto assets among big asset managers like BlackRock and Fidelity, with help from Morgan Stanley's salesforce of 15,000 brokers, could fuel further wealth creation among large crypto holders."", 'Crypto will not only create more millionaires and billionaires, but it will also change where the rich live and work.', 'According to Henley, many of the newly crypto rich are looking to move to tax-friendly and crypto-friendly jurisdictions.', '""We\'ve seen a significant uptick in crypto-wealthy clients seeking alternative residence and citizenship options,"" said Dominic Volek, head of private clients at Henley & Partners.', 'To better advise the new crypto nomads, Henley created a ""Crypto Adoption Index,"" ranking countries according to their tax and regulatory approach to crypto.', 'Singapore ranks first on the index, due to its ""supportive banking system, significant investment, comprehensive regulations such as the Payment Services Act, regulatory sandboxes, and alignment with global standards,"" according to Henley.', 'Hong Kong ranked second, followed by the United Arab Emirates and the United States.', 'In the U.S., according to the report, 15% of the population owns cryptocurrencies: ""This is supported by strong infrastructure, with a high density of crypto ATMs, crypto-friendly banks, and an increasing number of businesses accepting cryptocurrency,"" the report said.', 'Correction: This story has been updated to correct a headline that misstated the number of crypto millionaires created by the bitcoin rally.']",0.4754463428446764,"Crypto assets reached a market cap of $3 trillion in November of 2021.Yet the growing acceptance of crypto assets among big asset managers like BlackRock and Fidelity, with help from Morgan Stanley's salesforce of 15,000 brokers, could fuel further wealth creation among large crypto holders.",Zhao pled guilty to U.S. money laundering charges in November and agreed to pay a $50 million fine.,0.935733050107956,"The population of crypto millionaires in the world soared 95% over the past year, as bitcoin ETFs and other crypto assets climbed, according to a new report.",,2024-08-31
"Peloton shares soar 35% as turnaround plan takes hold, losses shrink",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/22/peloton-pton-earnings-q4-2024.html,2024-08-22T20:07:22+0000,"In this articlePeloton said Thursday it is digging itself out of the red and eked out a slight sales increase for the first time in nine quarters as it slashed its overall losses. The company's shares spiked 35% on Thursday.The beleaguered connected fitness company, which two board members have run since former CEO Barry McCarthy resigned earlier this year, saw sales grow by 0.2% during its fiscal fourth quarter. While only a modest uptick, it's the first time Peloton posted year-over-year revenue growth since its 2021 holiday quarter. The company also indicated it's ready to focus on profitability over growth with significant cuts to its marketing and sales spending and meaningful increases to free cash flow and adjusted EBITDA. Those cuts helped Peloton narrow its quarterly losses to $30.5 million from $241.1 million in the year-ago period.Here's how the Bike and Tread maker performed compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:For the three-month period that ended June 30, Peloton significantly narrowed its losses. The company posted a loss of $30.5 million, or 8 cents per share, compared with a loss of $241.8 million, or 68 cents per share, a year earlier. Sales rose to $643.6 million, up about 0.2% from $642.1 million a year earlier. That's only a $1.5 million increase, but Peloton did it at a time when sales are typically a bit slower for the company, because the quarter bleeds into the summer when people are more focused on going out and traveling than working out. The last time Peloton delivered year-over-year sales growth was during its holiday season in 2021, which is typically the company's strongest quarter.During the quarter, sales for Peloton's pricy connected fitness hardware fell about 4%, continuing a trend for the company. But subscription revenue rose by 2.3%, and the segment's gross margin increased by 1 percentage point.Though hardware sales were down, Peloton is growing its subscription revenue through the secondary market where people can buy used stationary bikes for a fraction of the cost of a new one. During the quarter, subscription revenue from hardware purchased on the secondary market grew 16% year over year.""We believe a meaningful share of these subscribers are incremental, and they exhibit lower net churn rates than rental subscribers,"" the company said in a letter to shareholders.While hardware sales have hurt Peloton's overall performance, sales for its Tread are growing after it overcame a costly recall. During the quarter, sales from Peloton's treadmill portfolio grew 42% year over year.The company is also seeing some positive signs in its Bike rental program, which allowed it to clear through a glut of inventory. During the quarter, average net monthly paid subscription churn for rentals was down 1.1 percentage points. Demand has been so steady, it no longer has the refurbished inventory levels necessary to supply that side of the program. The company ceased offering its original Bike rental program on Aug. 1 and since then, has seen demand grow for its Bike+ rental, refurbished original Bike sales and financed new Bike sales.""These alternative programs have stronger unit economics than original Bike rental, with more cash paid upfront and a stronger retention profile,"" the company said in its shareholder letter.Ever since Peloton's pandemic heyday came to an end, the company has struggled to generate free cash flow and ensure it has enough assets on its balance sheet to cover its many liabilities. Earlier this year, it announced a sprawling restructuring plan that included cutting 15% of the company's global workforce to achieve $200 million in annualized cost savings by the end of fiscal 2025.Those efforts are starting to bear fruit.During the quarter, Peloton delivered adjusted EBITDA and free cash flow for the second consecutive quarter – a feat it had not pulled off since the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. It posted $70 million of adjusted EBITDA, far more than the $53 million that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount. That metric was up $105 million compared with the year-ago period and $64 million quarter over quarter.Peloton also generated $26 million in free cash flow, compared with negative $74 million in the year-ago period and $8 million in the prior quarter.Improvements to Peloton's balance sheet come after the company completed massive refinancing of its debt that staved off a looming liquidity crunch and pushed out its debt maturities by several years.As far as who will be Peloton's next leader, interim co-CEO Karen Boone said the search is ""well underway"" and they've seen ""no shortage of interest.""""We are far along in the process. We've done a lot of vetting, a lot of conversations, and we've narrowed it down to some very highly qualified candidates,"" Boone said. ""We have some very specific folks in mind at this point.""In her opening remarks, Boone said the company can't speculate on when its next CEO will start. But just before ending the call, she said the new hire will be in place by the time the company next reports earnings, which is expected to be sometime in the fall.""I should probably under-promise here, but I am excited to say that I do believe you will be speaking to and hearing from the new CEO of Peloton on this call next quarter,"" said Boone.For the year ahead, Peloton is planning to invest in its hardware and software to deliver a better user experience, among other initiatives. However, its guidance assumes that investments in these new initiatives ""will not deliver subscriber growth within the fiscal year,"" indicating Peloton may finally be shifting its focus away from growth in favor of profitability and free cash flow generation.""Chris, and I, in partnership with Peloton's strong leadership team, are continuing to make progress on several key strategic priorities, which include aligning our cost structure to the current size of our business to improve profitability, and deliver meaningful free cash flow without requiring growth to get there,"" Boone said on a call with analysts.""We're enthusiastic about our innovative roadmap, but we'll be judicious about deploying marketing dollars until we demonstrate product market fit, and continue to be cautious about marketing spend given the uncertain consumer backdrop, and ongoing macro environment,"" she said.That shift shows in its reductions to sales and marketing spending — an expense that has long dragged down Peloton's balance sheet and has been criticized as being too high for the company's size.During the quarter, Peloton cut sales and marketing spending by $25.5 million, or 19% year over year. It said it expects to continue to make reductions to its marketing budget throughout fiscal 2025.For the current quarter, Peloton is projecting sales to be worse than Wall Street expected but is guiding to higher-than-forecast adjusted EBITDA. The company said it anticipates sales to be between $560 million and $580 million, compared with estimates of $609 million, according to LSEG. It's expecting to post adjusted EBITDA of $50 million to $60 million, compared with estimates of $45 million, according to StreetAccount.StreetAccount analysts had expected the number of connected fitness subscribers to be 2.96 million during the current quarter, but Peloton projects a range of 2.88 million to 2.89 million instead.For the full year, Peloton expects sales to be between $2.4 billion and $2.5 billion, compared with estimates of $2.7 billion, according to LSEG.",CNBC,22/08/2024,"['In this articlePeloton said Thursday it is digging itself out of the red and eked out a slight sales increase for the first time in nine quarters as it slashed its overall losses.', ""The company's shares spiked 35% on Thursday."", 'The beleaguered connected fitness company, which two board members have run since former CEO Barry McCarthy resigned earlier this year, saw sales grow by 0.2% during its fiscal fourth quarter.', ""While only a modest uptick, it's the first time Peloton posted year-over-year revenue growth since its 2021 holiday quarter."", ""The company also indicated it's ready to focus on profitability over growth with significant cuts to its marketing and sales spending and meaningful increases to free cash flow and adjusted EBITDA."", 'Those cuts helped Peloton narrow its quarterly losses to $30.5 million from $241.1 million in the year-ago period.', ""Here's how the Bike and Tread maker performed compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:For the three-month period that ended June 30, Peloton significantly narrowed its losses."", 'The company posted a loss of $30.5 million, or 8 cents per share, compared with a loss of $241.8 million, or 68 cents per share, a year earlier.', 'Sales rose to $643.6 million, up about 0.2% from $642.1 million a year earlier.', ""That's only a $1.5 million increase, but Peloton did it at a time when sales are typically a bit slower for the company, because the quarter bleeds into the summer when people are more focused on going out and traveling than working out."", ""The last time Peloton delivered year-over-year sales growth was during its holiday season in 2021, which is typically the company's strongest quarter."", ""During the quarter, sales for Peloton's pricy connected fitness hardware fell about 4%, continuing a trend for the company."", ""But subscription revenue rose by 2.3%, and the segment's gross margin increased by 1 percentage point."", 'Though hardware sales were down, Peloton is growing its subscription revenue through the secondary market where people can buy used stationary bikes for a fraction of the cost of a new one.', 'During the quarter, subscription revenue from hardware purchased on the secondary market grew 16% year over year.', '""We believe a meaningful share of these subscribers are incremental, and they exhibit lower net churn rates than rental subscribers,"" the company said in a letter to shareholders.', ""While hardware sales have hurt Peloton's overall performance, sales for its Tread are growing after it overcame a costly recall."", ""During the quarter, sales from Peloton's treadmill portfolio grew 42% year over year."", 'The company is also seeing some positive signs in its Bike rental program, which allowed it to clear through a glut of inventory.', 'During the quarter, average net monthly paid subscription churn for rentals was down 1.1 percentage points.', 'Demand has been so steady, it no longer has the refurbished inventory levels necessary to supply that side of the program.', 'The company ceased offering its original Bike rental program on Aug. 1 and since then, has seen demand grow for its Bike+ rental, refurbished original Bike sales and financed new Bike sales.', '""These alternative programs have stronger unit economics than original Bike rental, with more cash paid upfront and a stronger retention profile,"" the company said in its shareholder letter.', ""Ever since Peloton's pandemic heyday came to an end, the company has struggled to generate free cash flow and ensure it has enough assets on its balance sheet to cover its many liabilities."", ""Earlier this year, it announced a sprawling restructuring plan that included cutting 15% of the company's global workforce to achieve $200 million in annualized cost savings by the end of fiscal 2025.Those efforts are starting to bear fruit."", 'During the quarter, Peloton delivered adjusted EBITDA and free cash flow for the second consecutive quarter – a feat it had not pulled off since the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.', 'It posted $70 million of adjusted EBITDA, far more than the $53 million that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount.', 'That metric was up $105 million compared with the year-ago period and $64 million quarter over quarter.', 'Peloton also generated $26 million in free cash flow, compared with negative $74 million in the year-ago period and $8 million in the prior quarter.', ""Improvements to Peloton's balance sheet come after the company completed massive refinancing of its debt that staved off a looming liquidity crunch and pushed out its debt maturities by several years."", 'As far as who will be Peloton\'s next leader, interim co-CEO Karen Boone said the search is ""well underway"" and they\'ve seen ""no shortage of interest.', '""""We are far along in the process.', 'We\'ve done a lot of vetting, a lot of conversations, and we\'ve narrowed it down to some very highly qualified candidates,"" Boone said. ""', 'We have some very specific folks in mind at this point.', '""In her opening remarks, Boone said the company can\'t speculate on when its next CEO will start.', 'But just before ending the call, she said the new hire will be in place by the time the company next reports earnings, which is expected to be sometime in the fall.', '""I should probably under-promise here, but I am excited to say that I do believe you will be speaking to and hearing from the new CEO of Peloton on this call next quarter,"" said Boone.', 'For the year ahead, Peloton is planning to invest in its hardware and software to deliver a better user experience, among other initiatives.', 'However, its guidance assumes that investments in these new initiatives ""will not deliver subscriber growth within the fiscal year,"" indicating Peloton may finally be shifting its focus away from growth in favor of profitability and free cash flow generation.', '""Chris, and I, in partnership with Peloton\'s strong leadership team, are continuing to make progress on several key strategic priorities, which include aligning our cost structure to the current size of our business to improve profitability, and deliver meaningful free cash flow without requiring growth to get there,"" Boone said on a call with analysts.', '""We\'re enthusiastic about our innovative roadmap, but we\'ll be judicious about deploying marketing dollars until we demonstrate product market fit, and continue to be cautious about marketing spend given the uncertain consumer backdrop, and ongoing macro environment,"" she said.', ""That shift shows in its reductions to sales and marketing spending — an expense that has long dragged down Peloton's balance sheet and has been criticized as being too high for the company's size."", 'During the quarter, Peloton cut sales and marketing spending by $25.5 million, or 19% year over year.', 'It said it expects to continue to make reductions to its marketing budget throughout fiscal 2025.For the current quarter, Peloton is projecting sales to be worse than Wall Street expected but is guiding to higher-than-forecast adjusted EBITDA.', 'The company said it anticipates sales to be between $560 million and $580 million, compared with estimates of $609 million, according to LSEG.', ""It's expecting to post adjusted EBITDA of $50 million to $60 million, compared with estimates of $45 million, according to StreetAccount."", 'StreetAccount analysts had expected the number of connected fitness subscribers to be 2.96 million during the current quarter, but Peloton projects a range of 2.88 million to 2.89 million instead.', 'For the full year, Peloton expects sales to be between $2.4 billion and $2.5 billion, compared with estimates of $2.7 billion, according to LSEG.']",0.1329421236166253,"""Chris, and I, in partnership with Peloton's strong leadership team, are continuing to make progress on several key strategic priorities, which include aligning our cost structure to the current size of our business to improve profitability, and deliver meaningful free cash flow without requiring growth to get there,"" Boone said on a call with analysts.",Those cuts helped Peloton narrow its quarterly losses to $30.5 million from $241.1 million in the year-ago period.,0.5970576956868172,"During the quarter, sales from Peloton's treadmill portfolio grew 42% year over year.","It said it expects to continue to make reductions to its marketing budget throughout fiscal 2025.For the current quarter, Peloton is projecting sales to be worse than Wall Street expected but is guiding to higher-than-forecast adjusted EBITDA.",2024-08-31
Cava earnings beat estimates as restaurant traffic climbs nearly 10%,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/22/cava-group-cava-earnings-q2-2024.html,2024-08-23T11:28:50+0000,"In this articleCava on Thursday raised its full-year outlook as its restaurants reported strong traffic, fueling better-than-expected quarterly earnings and revenue.Shares of the company rose 9% in extended trading. The stock has more than doubled its value this year, bringing Cava's market cap up to about $11.6 billion, as of Thursday's close.Here is what the company reported for the quarter that ended July 14 compared to what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:The Mediterranean restaurant chain reported fiscal second-quarter net income of $19.7 million, or 17 cents per share, up from $6.5 million, or 21 cents per share, a year earlier.Net sales climbed 35% to $233 million. The company's same-store sales rose 14.4%, topping StreetAccount estimates of 7.9%.While many other restaurant companies have reported declines in visits as consumers pull back their spending, Cava said its traffic grew 9.5% in the quarter. Cava CEO and co-founder Brett Schulman credited the chain's new grilled steak option as one reason customers kept coming to its restaurants during the quarter.Cava opened 18 net new locations during the quarter, bringing its total footprint up to 341 restaurants.For fiscal 2024, Cava now expects same-store sales growth of 8.5% to 9.5%, up from its prior range of 4.5% to 6.5%. The company is also projecting that it will open 54 to 57 new locations this year, up from its previous forecast of 50 to 54 restaurants.Cava also expects to report adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of $109 million to $114 million. Previously, it was projecting adjusted EBITDA of $100 million to $105 million for the fiscal year.",CNBC,23/08/2024,"['In this articleCava on Thursday raised its full-year outlook as its restaurants reported strong traffic, fueling better-than-expected quarterly earnings and revenue.', 'Shares of the company rose 9% in extended trading.', ""The stock has more than doubled its value this year, bringing Cava's market cap up to about $11.6 billion, as of Thursday's close."", 'Here is what the company reported for the quarter that ended July 14 compared to what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:The Mediterranean restaurant chain reported fiscal second-quarter net income of $19.7 million, or 17 cents per share, up from $6.5 million, or 21 cents per share, a year earlier.', 'Net salesclimbed 35% to $233 million.', ""The company's same-store sales rose 14.4%, topping StreetAccount estimates of 7.9%.While many other restaurant companies have reported declines in visits as consumers pull back their spending, Cava said its traffic grew 9.5% in the quarter."", ""Cava CEO and co-founder Brett Schulman credited the chain's new grilled steak option as one reason customers kept coming to its restaurants during the quarter."", 'Cava opened 18 net new locations during the quarter, bringing its total footprint up to 341 restaurants.', 'For fiscal 2024, Cava now expects same-store sales growth of 8.5% to 9.5%, up from its prior range of 4.5% to 6.5%.', 'The company is also projecting that it will open 54 to 57 new locations this year, up from its previous forecast of 50 to 54 restaurants.', 'Cava also expects to report adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of $109 million to $114 million.', 'Previously, it was projecting adjusted EBITDA of $100 million to $105 million for the fiscal year.']",0.2665119947167048,"In this articleCava on Thursday raised its full-year outlook as its restaurants reported strong traffic, fueling better-than-expected quarterly earnings and revenue.",,0.9992665383550856,Shares of the company rose 9% in extended trading.,,2024-08-31
Mineral Resources' boss opposes staff leaving office for coffee,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cdey4zzl529o,2024-08-29T22:07:43.000Z,"Workers who leave the head office to buy a cup of coffee are costing an Australian mining firm too much money, according to its boss. Managing director of Mineral Resources Chris Ellison said during a financial results presentation on Wednesday he wants to ""hold staff captive all day long"". ""I don't want them leaving the building,"" he said. The head office in Perth has a restaurant, nine staff psychologists, a gym, and other facilities designed to encourage staff to stay in the office. ""We have a lot of different benefits that we have brought on,"" said Mr Ellison, whose company has a strict ""no work from home policy"". ""Why have I done that? Because when I get them first thing in the morning, I want to hold them captive all day long. I don't want them leaving the building. ""I don't want them walking down the road for a cup of coffee. We kind of figured out a few years ago how much that costs."" He said the rest of the mining industry should ""get on board"" with his thinking on the benefits of working in the office rather than at home. ""The industry cannot afford it. We can't have people working three days a week and picking up five days a week pay - or four days."" The company culture at Mining Resources also extends to Mr Ellison's views on parents, with the company building a day-care centre on site big enough for 105 children. ""Another reason for them to come in and enjoy work,"" he said.  ""Drop their little tykes off next door. We have doctors on board and nurses who are going to feed them, but mum and dad will be working in our office."" Mr Ellison is not the only boss to enforce a no work from home policy.  Last week, the head of London-based smartphone maker Nothing sent an all-staff email to announce the end of hybrid working and a move to fully office-based work. ""I know this is a controversial decision that may not be a fit for everyone, and there are definitely companies out there that thrive in remote or hybrid setups,"" he wrote in the email. ""But that’s not right for our type of business, and won’t help us fully realize our potential as a company."" ",BBC,29/08/2024,"['Workers who leave the head office to buy a cup of coffee are costing an Australian mining firm too much money, according to its boss.', 'Managing director of Mineral Resources Chris Ellison said during a financial results presentation on Wednesday he wants to ""hold staff captive all day long"". ""', 'I don\'t want them leaving the building,"" he said.', 'The head office in Perth has a restaurant, nine staff psychologists, a gym, and other facilities designed to encourage staff to stay in the office. ""', 'We have a lot of different benefits that we have brought on,"" said Mr Ellison, whose company has a strict ""no work from home policy"". ""', 'Why have I done that?', 'Because when I get them first thing in the morning, I want to hold them captive all day long.', 'I don\'t want them leaving the building. ""', ""I don't want them walking down the road for a cup of coffee."", 'We kind of figured out a few years ago how much that costs.""', 'He said the rest of the mining industry should ""get on board"" with his thinking on the benefits of working in the office rather than at home. ""', 'The industry cannot afford it.', 'We can\'t have people working three days a week and picking up five days a week pay - or four days.""', 'The company culture at Mining Resources also extends to Mr Ellison\'s views on parents, with the company building a day-care centre on site big enough for 105 children. ""', 'Another reason for them to come in and enjoy work,"" he said. ""', 'Drop their little tykes off next door.', 'We have doctors on board and nurses who are going to feed them, but mum and dad will be working in our office.""', 'Mr Ellison is not the only boss to enforce a no work from home policy.', 'Last week, the head of London-based smartphone maker Nothing sent an all-staff email to announce the end of hybrid working and a move to fully office-based work. ""', 'I know this is a controversial decision that may not be a fit for everyone, and there are definitely companies out there that thrive in remote or hybrid setups,"" he wrote in the email. ""', 'But that’s not right for our type of business, and won’t help us fully realize our potential as a company.""']",0.1270910239503675,"The company culture at Mining Resources also extends to Mr Ellison's views on parents, with the company building a day-care centre on site big enough for 105 children. """,Mr Ellison is not the only boss to enforce a no work from home policy.,-0.991248220205307,,"But that’s not right for our type of business, and won’t help us fully realize our potential as a company.""",2024-08-31
AI chip giant Nvidia's shares sink despite record sales of $30bn,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c984jrj24wyo,2024-08-29T00:13:57.887Z,"Shares in Nvidia have fallen despite the artificial intelligence (AI) chip giant comfortably beating expectations after more than doubling its sales. Nvidia announced record revenues of $30bn (£24.7bn) over a three-month period.  The company has been one of the biggest beneficiaries of the AI boom, with its stock market value soaring to more than $3 trillion. But while analysts have grown used to Nvidia producing ""spectacular"" sales growth, the latest results indicate ""that rate of growth was starting to slow,"" said Simon French, head of research at Panmure Liberum. Analysts had forecast sales growth of $28.7bn for the three months to 28 July. Nvidia surpassed this with revenues increasing by 122% compared to the same period last year.  But following the release of the results, Nvidia's share price fell by 6% in after-hours trading in New York on Wednesday.  On Thursday, its shares were down about 2% in early trading, but its stock remains about 150% up so far in 2024, making it one of the big winners in the US market. ""It’s less about just beating estimates now,"" said Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown. ""Markets expect them to be shattered and it’s the scale of the beat today that looks to have disappointed a touch.""  Announcing the latest results, Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang said: ""Generative AI will revolutionise every industry."" But Mr French told the BBC: ""If you’re going to raise expectations that high then you’ve got to keep growing at spectacular rates."" He added that while its current AI chip - called Hopper - is selling well, the next generation Blackwell chip ""has faced some production delays and that perhaps is one of the reasons why Wall Street after hours sold off the stock"". Nvidia's results have become a quarterly event which sends Wall Street into a frenzy of buying and selling shares. A ""watch party"" had been planned in Manhattan, according to the Wall Street Journal, while Mr Huang, famed for his signature leather jacket, has been dubbed the ""Taylor Swift of tech"". Alvin Nguyen, senior analyst at Forrester, told the BBC both Nvidia and Mr Huang have become the ""face of AI"". This has helped the company so far, but it could also hurt its valuation if AI fails to deliver after firms have invested billions of dollars in the technology, Mr Nguyen said. ""A thousand use cases for AI is not enough. You need a million."" Mr Nguyen also said Nvidia's first-mover advantage means it has market-leading products, which its customers have spent decades using and has a ""software ecosystem"". He said that rivals, such as Intel, could ""chip away"" at Nvidia's market share if they developed a better product, though he said this would take time. ",BBC,29/08/2024,"['Shares in Nvidia have fallen despite the artificial intelligence (AI) chip giant comfortably beating expectations after more than doubling its sales.', 'Nvidia announced record revenues of $30bn (£24.7bn) over a three-month period.', 'The company has been one of the biggest beneficiaries of the AI boom, with its stock market value soaring to more than $3 trillion.', 'But while analysts have grown used to Nvidia producing ""spectacular"" sales growth, the latest results indicate ""that rate of growth was starting to slow,"" said Simon French, head of research at Panmure Liberum.', 'Analysts had forecast sales growth of $28.7bn for the three months to 28 July.', 'Nvidia surpassed this with revenues increasing by 122% compared to the same period last year.', ""But following the release of the results, Nvidia's share price fell by 6% in after-hours trading in New York on Wednesday."", 'On Thursday, its shares were down about 2% in early trading, but its stock remains about 150% up so far in 2024, making it one of the big winners in the US market. ""', 'It’s less about just beating estimates now,"" said Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown. ""', 'Markets expect them to be shattered and it’s the scale of the beat today that looks to have disappointed a touch.""', 'Announcing the latest results, Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang said: ""Generative AI will revolutionise every industry.""', 'But Mr French told the BBC: ""If you’re going to raise expectations that high then you’ve got to keep growing at spectacular rates.""', 'He added that while its current AI chip - called Hopper - is selling well, the next generation Blackwell chip ""has faced some production delays and that perhaps is one of the reasons why Wall Street after hours sold off the stock"".', ""Nvidia's results have become a quarterly event which sends Wall Street into a frenzy of buying and selling shares."", 'A ""watch party"" had been planned in Manhattan, according to the Wall Street Journal, while Mr Huang, famed for his signature leather jacket, has been dubbed the ""Taylor Swift of tech"".', 'Alvin Nguyen, senior analyst at Forrester, told the BBC both Nvidia and Mr Huang have become the ""face of AI"".', 'This has helped the company so far, but it could also hurt its valuation if AI fails to deliver after firms have invested billions of dollars in the technology, Mr Nguyen said. ""', 'A thousand use cases for AI is not enough.', 'You need a million.""', 'Mr Nguyen also said Nvidia\'s first-mover advantage means it has market-leading products, which its customers have spent decades using and has a ""software ecosystem"".', 'He said that rivals, such as Intel, could ""chip away"" at Nvidia\'s market share if they developed a better product, though he said this would take time.']",0.1131297485865743,"But while analysts have grown used to Nvidia producing ""spectacular"" sales growth, the latest results indicate ""that rate of growth was starting to slow,"" said Simon French, head of research at Panmure Liberum.","This has helped the company so far, but it could also hurt its valuation if AI fails to deliver after firms have invested billions of dollars in the technology, Mr Nguyen said. """,0.0963081081708272,Nvidia surpassed this with revenues increasing by 122% compared to the same period last year.,"But following the release of the results, Nvidia's share price fell by 6% in after-hours trading in New York on Wednesday.",2024-08-31
What taxes might be raised in the Budget?,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cv2gxkln5elo,2024-07-31T23:01:05.897Z,"The government has said it will have to increase taxes to plug what it claims is a £22bn ""hole"" in the public finances.  Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has warned the first Budget under his new administration on 30 October is ""going to be painful"". But Labour has ruled out raising taxes on ""working people"", including VAT (value added tax), income tax and National Insurance.   So which taxes might go up? One option would be to introduce a so-called stealth tax - a means of raising revenue which is not explicitly labelled or intended as a tax. Paul Johnson, director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), believes the most obvious solution would be to focus on tax thresholds - the amount of money you can earn before any tax starts to be paid. Currently the thresholds on income tax and National Insurance are frozen until 2028, a policy brought in by the previous government. But Labour could extend them beyond this date.  The policy amounts to a tax rise because of a process called ""fiscal drag"", which sees more people ""dragged"" into paying higher rates of tax as their wages rise. The Resolution Foundation, a think tank that aims to improve living standards for low-to-middle income families, calculates the current freeze will generate about £40bn of revenue by 2028.  Its director James Smith told the BBC that may be enough to address the ""shortfall"" in the public finances, meaning Ms Reeves would not have to raise any other taxes.  Another route Ms Reeves could take is to put up capital gains tax (CGT). This is charged on the profit made from the sale of an asset that has increased in value, with some examples including stocks that are not held in ISAs or second homes.   CGT is payable by individuals, but also self-employed sole traders, partners in business partnerships and company owners, among others. It starts at a rate of 10% (or 18% on residential property) on profits above £3,000. It then rises to 20% on any amount above the basic tax rate, or 24% on residential property. Critics point out that CGT rates are substantially lower than income tax. They say this can benefit wealthier people and Ms Reeves could opt to level the playing field or cut some CGT tax breaks for businesses. However, industry groups have warned that increasing CGT could hit those at the centre of Labour's plans to grow the economy. ""No government at all serious about growth would hike CGT on entrepreneurs selling a small business,"" Tina McKenzie from the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) told the BBC. “Investing in a small business is already one of the least tax-efficient things anyone can do with their money,"" she said, adding that she hoped the party would continue to work ""in partnership"" with business. Fuel duty is a tax that is levied on purchases of petrol, diesel and other fuels - the level it is set at should have an impact on what drivers pay at the pumps. The levy is a ""significant source"" of revenue for government, according to Office for Budget Responsibility, with £24.7bn expected to have been raised in 2023-24. But fuel duty has not been raised in more than a decade. Between 2012 and 2022 it was frozen at the same level.  Then in March 2022 the then Conservative chancellor Rishi Sunak cut it by 5p a litre after Russia's invasion of Ukraine led to record pump prices. However, some motoring groups have argued this cut - which is due to end in March next year - has not been passed on to drivers. This has prompted the RAC to suggest the cut should be scrapped by Ms Reeves in the Budget. Simon Williams, head of policy at the RAC, said the motoring group had reached the conclusion the chancellor ""has no option but to put fuel duty back up"". Ms Reeves ""knows the 5p discount is losing the Treasury £2bn a year,"" he said. When people or their employers pay into private pension pots, they receive tax relief on these contributions, up to set limits. The relief allows some of a person's earnings that may have been taken by government in tax to go into their savings for retirement instead. Under the current system, savers receive tax relief at the same rate as their income tax - meaning basic rate taxpayers receive relief at 20% and higher rate taxpayers at 40% or 45%. In the run-up to big political events like the Budget, Tom Selby, director of public policy at AJ Bell, says that there is often speculation that a flat rate of pension tax relief could be introduced.  This would mean the system is less generous for higher earners, but the IFS has suggested this could raise ""billions"" for the government. Some opponents have said, however, this could dissuade people from saving for the future and might be difficult to implement. Inheritance tax, currently paid at a rate of 40%, is charged on the part of a deceased person's estate above a threshold of £325,000. But it only applies to fewer than one in 20 estates.  No tax is paid if the estate is valued at less than £325,000, or if anything above this threshold is left to a husband or wife, civil partner, charity, or a community amateur sports club. And if a home is part of the estate and a person's children and grandchildren stand to inherit it, the threshold can go up to £500,000. Ms Reeves could raise the rate of inheritance tax, or curb the relief available on certain inherited assets.  These include agricultural land and pension savings, which can both be inherited tax-free.  There are also allowances for unquoted shares, which are shares in a business not listed on the stock exchange. James Smith of the Resolution Foundation believes inheritance tax should be reformed because there are ""all sorts of reliefs within the system that allow you to move your assets in a way that allows you to avoid paying inheritance tax"". However, Paul Johnson from the IFS says Ms Reeves will have to go further than simply curbing allowances, saying: ""You won't raise a lot by doing that - maybe a billion or two."" Calls to cut or abolish inheritance tax come often as the tax is so unpopular, the Resolution Foundation says. ",BBC,31/07/2024,"['The government has said it will have to increase taxes to plug what it claims is a £22bn ""hole"" in the public finances.', 'Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has warned the first Budget under his new administration on 30 October is ""going to be painful"".', 'But Labour has ruled out raising taxes on ""working people"", including VAT (value added tax), income tax and National Insurance.', 'So which taxes might go up?', 'One option would be to introduce a so-called stealth tax - a means of raising revenue which is not explicitly labelled or intended as a tax.', 'Paul Johnson, director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), believes the most obvious solution would be to focus on tax thresholds - the amount of money you can earn before any tax starts to be paid.', 'Currently the thresholds on income tax and National Insurance are frozen until 2028, a policy brought in by the previous government.', 'But Labour could extend them beyond this date.', 'The policy amounts to a tax rise because of a process called ""fiscal drag"", which sees more people ""dragged"" into paying higher rates of tax as their wages rise.', 'The Resolution Foundation, a think tank that aims to improve living standards for low-to-middle income families, calculates the current freeze will generate about £40bn of revenue by 2028.', 'Its director James Smith told the BBC that may be enough to address the ""shortfall"" in the public finances, meaning Ms Reeves would not have to raise any other taxes.', 'Another route Ms Reeves could take is to put up capital gains tax (CGT).', 'This is charged on the profit made from the sale of an asset that has increased in value, with some examples including stocks that are not held in ISAs or second homes.', 'CGT is payable by individuals, but also self-employed sole traders, partners in business partnerships and company owners, among others.', 'It starts at a rate of 10% (or 18% on residential property) on profits above £3,000.', 'It then rises to 20% on any amount above the basic tax rate, or 24% on residential property.', 'Critics point out that CGT rates are substantially lower than income tax.', 'They say this can benefit wealthier people and Ms Reeves could opt to level the playing field or cut some CGT tax breaks for businesses.', 'However, industry groups have warned that increasing CGT could hit those at the centre of Labour\'s plans to grow the economy. ""', 'No government at all serious about growth would hike CGT on entrepreneurs selling a small business,"" Tina McKenzie from the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) told the BBC. “', 'Investing in a small business is already one of the least tax-efficient things anyone can do with their money,"" she said, adding that she hoped the party would continue to work ""in partnership"" with business.', 'Fuel duty is a tax that is levied on purchases of petrol, diesel and other fuels - the level it is set at should have an impact on what drivers pay at the pumps.', 'The levy is a ""significant source"" of revenue for government, according to Office for Budget Responsibility, with £24.7bn expected to have been raised in 2023-24.', 'But fuel duty has not been raised in more than a decade.', 'Between 2012 and 2022 it was frozen at the same level.', ""Then in March 2022 the then Conservative chancellor Rishi Sunak cut it by 5p a litre after Russia's invasion of Ukraine led to record pump prices."", 'However, some motoring groups have argued this cut - which is due to end in March next year - has not been passed on to drivers.', 'This has prompted the RAC to suggest the cut should be scrapped by Ms Reeves in the Budget.', 'Simon Williams, head of policy at the RAC, said the motoring group had reached the conclusion the chancellor ""has no option but to put fuel duty back up"".', 'Ms Reeves ""knows the 5p discount is losing the Treasury £2bn a year,"" he said.', 'When people or their employers pay into private pension pots, they receive tax relief on these contributions, up to set limits.', ""The relief allows some of a person's earnings that may have been taken by government in tax to go into their savings for retirement instead."", 'Under the current system, savers receive tax relief at the same rate as their income tax - meaning basic rate taxpayers receive relief at 20% and higher rate taxpayers at 40% or 45%.', 'In the run-up to big political events like the Budget, Tom Selby, director of public policy at AJ Bell, says that there is often speculation that a flat rate of pension tax relief could be introduced.', 'This would mean the system is less generous for higher earners, but the IFS has suggested this could raise ""billions"" for the government.', 'Some opponents have said, however, this could dissuade people from saving for the future and might be difficult to implement.', ""Inheritance tax, currently paid at a rate of 40%, is charged on the part of a deceased person's estate above a threshold of £325,000."", 'But it only applies to fewer than one in 20 estates.', 'No tax is paid if the estate is valued at less than £325,000, or if anything above this threshold is left to a husband or wife, civil partner, charity, or a community amateur sports club.', ""And if a home is part of the estate and a person's children and grandchildren stand to inherit it, the threshold can go up to £500,000."", 'Ms Reeves could raise the rate of inheritance tax, or curb the relief available on certain inherited assets.', 'These include agricultural land and pension savings, which can both be inherited tax-free.', 'There are also allowances for unquoted shares, which are shares in a business not listed on the stock exchange.', 'James Smith of the Resolution Foundation believes inheritance tax should be reformed because there are ""all sorts of reliefs within the system that allow you to move your assets in a way that allows you to avoid paying inheritance tax"".', 'However, Paul Johnson from the IFS says Ms Reeves will have to go further than simply curbing allowances, saying: ""You won\'t raise a lot by doing that - maybe a billion or two.""', 'Calls to cut or abolish inheritance tax come often as the tax is so unpopular, the Resolution Foundation says.']",0.1293575285738439,"This is charged on the profit made from the sale of an asset that has increased in value, with some examples including stocks that are not held in ISAs or second homes.","Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has warned the first Budget under his new administration on 30 October is ""going to be painful"".",-0.3856328340137706,They say this can benefit wealthier people and Ms Reeves could opt to level the playing field or cut some CGT tax breaks for businesses.,Then in March 2022 the then Conservative chancellor Rishi Sunak cut it by 5p a litre after Russia's invasion of Ukraine led to record pump prices.,2024-08-31
NFL wants a cut of private equity investment profits,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/27/nfl-wants-to-take-percentage-of-private-equity-investment-profits.html,2024-08-28T13:54:30+0000,"The National Football League has informed owners and investment firms that it intends to take a percentage of private equity profits on any future sales of ownership stakes, according to people familiar with the matter.NFL owners voted Tuesday to allow private equity firms to take a maximum 10% stake in teams.The league has never allowed private equity investment before. Major League Baseball, the National Basketball Association and the National Hockey League already allow up to 30% of teams to be owned by investment firms, though the cap for individual funds is between 15% and 20%.No other league takes a percentage of the so-called carry — the percentage of a fund's investment profits that managers typically receive as compensation — for all private equity firms. It was unclear heading into the owners' meeting if the NFL plan would apply to all or only some firms, or what percentage of the profits the league wanted to take.The NFL has informally told investment firms that if they make a return on an investment, it wants a portion of the profits to be returned to the league.""Each of us are privileged to own an asset that we're custodians of the local community and we don't want ownership that's putting making money first,"" New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft told CNBC's ""Squawk Box"" on Wednesday. ""If you do your job and you present a good product, the community gets behind it.""It was unclear if the NFL's plans to take a piece of profits would deter future investment from private equity. The initial approved firms include Ares Management, Sixth Street Partners and Arctos Partners, and a consortium of investors including Dynasty Equity, Blackstone, Carlyle Group, CVC Capital Partners and Ludis, a platform founded by investor and former NFL running back Curtis Martin.The NFL declined to comment.Over the past 20 years, the league's total value has risen from $23.46 billion to $190 billion, a 710% gain, according to Sportico. The S&P 500 index has risen about 660% during the same time span.— CNBC's Jake Piazza contributed to this report.",CNBC,28/08/2024,"['The National Football League has informed owners and investment firms that it intends to take a percentage of private equity profits on any future sales of ownership stakes, according to people familiar with the matter.', 'NFL owners voted Tuesday to allow private equity firms to take a maximum 10% stake in teams.', 'The league has never allowed private equity investment before.', ""Major League Baseball, the National Basketball Association and the National Hockey League already allow up to 30% of teams to be owned by investment firms, though the cap for individual funds is between 15% and 20%.No other league takes a percentage of the so-called carry — the percentage of a fund's investment profits that managers typically receive as compensation — for all private equity firms."", ""It was unclear heading into the owners' meeting if the NFL plan would apply to all or only some firms, or what percentage of the profits the league wanted to take."", 'The NFL has informally told investment firms that if they make a return on an investment, it wants a portion of the profits to be returned to the league.', '""Each of us are privileged to own an asset that we\'re custodians of the local community and we don\'t want ownership that\'s putting making money first,"" New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft told CNBC\'s ""Squawk Box"" on Wednesday. ""', 'If you do your job and you present a good product, the community gets behind it.', '""It was unclear if the NFL\'s plans to take a piece of profits would deter future investment from private equity.', 'The initial approved firms includeAres Management,Sixth Street Partners and Arctos Partners, and a consortium of investors including Dynasty Equity,Blackstone,Carlyle Group,CVC Capital Partnersand Ludis, a platform founded by investor and former NFL running back Curtis Martin.', 'The NFL declined to comment.', ""Over the past 20 years, the league's total value has risen from $23.46 billion to $190 billion, a 710% gain, according to Sportico."", 'The S&P 500 index has risen about 660% during the same time span.—', ""CNBC's Jake Piazza contributed to this report.""]",0.3173730239255343,"Over the past 20 years, the league's total value has risen from $23.46 billion to $190 billion, a 710% gain, according to Sportico.",,0.3556423584620158,"Over the past 20 years, the league's total value has risen from $23.46 billion to $190 billion, a 710% gain, according to Sportico.","""It was unclear if the NFL's plans to take a piece of profits would deter future investment from private equity.",2024-08-31
"YES Network, MSG Networks to launch combined New York regional sports app",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/28/yes-network-msg-networks-to-launch-bundled-new-york-sports-app.html,2024-08-28T22:09:35+0000,"Gotham Advanced Media and Entertainment, the joint venture between MSG Networks and the YES Network, is launching a new app in the fall that will air local games for seven New York area teams.The package announced Wednesday is believed to be the first time that two regional sports networks have combined their apps into a bundled option. The Gotham Sports app will launch ahead of the NBA and NHL seasons. Locals will be able to watch the New York Knicks, New York Rangers, New Jersey Devils, New York Islanders, Buffalo Sabres, Brooklyn Nets and New York Yankees with a subscription.The Gotham Package that gives access to all of those teams will cost $359.99 annually and $41.99 monthly, almost identical to the monthly price of Fox, Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery's joint Venu streaming service that was blocked with a temporary injunction earlier this month. Customers who watch only some of those teams can also purchase access to just MSG+ or the YES App services for $29.99 and $24.99 monthly, respectively. If they already have MSG Networks and YES Network via their pay-TV subscription, they will get Gotham Sports App's services for no extra fee.""With the increased fragmentation of outlets carrying fan favorite sports programming, The Gotham Sports App allows fans of our teams one easy access point for New York area sporting events from MSG Networks and the YES Network,"" MSG Networks President and CEO Andrea Greenberg said in a press release.Notably, SportsNet New York — the regional sports network that airs the New York Mets — is not included in this joint venture. It is only available via FuboTV, DirecTV stream and online login for people who pay for cable. Sterling Entertainment Enterprises, Comcast and Charter co-own SportsNet New York.The regional sports networks business has undergone dramatic changes in recent years. Boston's local cable network that aired Red Sox and Bruins games launched the first stand-alone regional streaming service in 2022, and other markets have followed. Diamond Sports Group, the biggest owner of regional sports networks, filed for bankruptcy in March 2023, leading many professional teams across leagues to change the way they air their games.A handful of NBA, WNBA and NHL teams have turned to local broadcasters, most recently the NBA's New Orleans Pelicans and Dallas Mavericks.Some MLB teams have opted to have their games produced by the league. The Gotham Sports App is not the first regional sports streaming option residents of the greater New York area have had. YES Network and MSG Networks both launched separate streaming services last year, and customers who only want one of the networks' services and not the combined package can still pay a cheaper rate.Not all the new regional sports streaming services follow the subscription model. The NHL's Dallas Stars and Anaheim Ducks both announced their games would be locally aired on Victory+, a free, ad-supported streaming service owned by A Parent Media Co. Both teams previously had their local games carried by a regional sports network owned by Diamond Sports. Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of CNBC.",CNBC,28/08/2024,"['Gotham Advanced Media and Entertainment, the joint venture between MSG Networks and the YES Network, is launching a new app in the fall that will air local games for seven New York area teams.', 'The package announced Wednesday is believed to be the first time that two regional sports networks have combined their apps into a bundled option.', 'The Gotham Sports app will launch ahead of the NBA and NHL seasons.', 'Locals will be able to watch the New York Knicks, New York Rangers, New Jersey Devils, New York Islanders, Buffalo Sabres, Brooklyn Nets and New York Yankees with a subscription.', ""The Gotham Package that gives access to all of those teams will cost $359.99 annually and $41.99 monthly, almost identical to the monthly price of Fox, Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery's joint Venu streaming service that was blocked with a temporary injunction earlier this month."", 'Customers who watch only some of those teams can also purchase access to just MSG+ or the YES App services for $29.99 and $24.99 monthly, respectively.', ""If they already have MSG Networks and YES Network via their pay-TV subscription, they will get Gotham Sports App's services for no extra fee."", '""With the increased fragmentation of outlets carrying fan favorite sports programming, The Gotham Sports App allows fans of our teams one easy access point for New York area sporting events from MSG Networks and the YES Network,"" MSG Networks President and CEO Andrea Greenberg said in a press release.', 'Notably, SportsNet New York — the regional sports network that airs the New York Mets — is not included in this joint venture.', 'It is only available via FuboTV, DirecTV stream and online login for people who pay for cable.', 'Sterling Entertainment Enterprises, Comcast and Charter co-own SportsNet New York.', 'The regional sports networks business has undergone dramatic changes in recent years.', ""Boston's local cable network that aired Red Sox and Bruins games launched the first stand-alone regional streaming service in 2022, and other markets have followed."", 'Diamond Sports Group, the biggest owner of regional sports networks, filed for bankruptcy in March 2023, leading many professional teams across leagues to change the way they air their games.', ""A handful of NBA, WNBA and NHL teams have turned to local broadcasters, most recently the NBA's New Orleans Pelicans and Dallas Mavericks."", 'Some MLB teams have opted to have their games produced by the league.', 'The Gotham Sports App is not the first regional sports streaming option residents of the greater New York area have had.', ""YES Network and MSG Networks both launched separate streaming services last year, and customers who only want one of the networks' services and not the combined package can still pay a cheaper rate."", 'Not all the new regional sports streaming services follow the subscription model.', ""The NHL's Dallas Stars and Anaheim Ducks both announced their games would be locally aired on Victory+, a free, ad-supported streaming service owned by A Parent Media Co.Both teams previously had their local games carried by a regional sports network owned by Diamond Sports."", 'Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of CNBC.']",0.1932998874991772,"""With the increased fragmentation of outlets carrying fan favorite sports programming, The Gotham Sports App allows fans of our teams one easy access point for New York area sporting events from MSG Networks and the YES Network,"" MSG Networks President and CEO Andrea Greenberg said in a press release.","Locals will be able to watch the New York Knicks, New York Rangers, New Jersey Devils, New York Islanders, Buffalo Sabres, Brooklyn Nets and New York Yankees with a subscription.",0.4888350814580917,"YES Network and MSG Networks both launched separate streaming services last year, and customers who only want one of the networks' services and not the combined package can still pay a cheaper rate.","Diamond Sports Group, the biggest owner of regional sports networks, filed for bankruptcy in March 2023, leading many professional teams across leagues to change the way they air their games.",2024-08-31
Delta chief operations officer departing for another company after just over a year on the job,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/23/delta-chief-operations-officer-coo-mike-spanos.html,2024-08-23T16:25:57+0000,"In this articleDelta Air Lines' chief operating officer is leaving at the end of the month, the company said in a securities filing Friday.CEO Ed Bastian said in an employee memo that Chief Operating Officer Mike Spanos is taking a job at another company.His departure, after just over a year on the job, comes weeks after Delta suffered a meltdown in the wake of the massive CrowdStrike outage in July. Delta estimates those disruptions cost the airline some $500 million and said it will seek compensation from CrowdStrike and Microsoft.However, Bastian said in the memo Friday that Spanos told him earlier in the summer that he was ""considering opportunities outside of Delta.""Delta doesn't plan to replace Spanos, Bastian said. Instead, John Laughter, chief of operations and president of Delta's TechOps maintenance and overhaul unit, and Allison Ausband, chief customer experience officer, will report to Bastian. Spanos joined Delta in May 2023 and previously held the role of CEO at Six Flags Entertainment and executive positions at PepsiCo.",CNBC,23/08/2024,"[""In this articleDelta Air Lines' chief operating officer is leaving at the end of the month, the company said in a securities filing Friday."", 'CEO Ed Bastian said in an employee memo that Chief Operating Officer Mike Spanos is taking a job at another company.', 'His departure, after just over a year on the job, comes weeks after Delta suffered a meltdown in the wake of the massive CrowdStrike outage in July.', 'Delta estimates those disruptions cost the airline some $500 million and said it will seek compensation from CrowdStrike and Microsoft.', 'However, Bastian said in the memo Friday that Spanos told him earlier in the summer that he was ""considering opportunities outside of Delta.', '""Delta doesn\'t plan to replace Spanos, Bastian said.', ""Instead, John Laughter, chief of operations and president of Delta's TechOps maintenance and overhaul unit, and Allison Ausband, chief customer experience officer, will report to Bastian."", 'Spanos joined Delta in May 2023 and previously held the role of CEO at Six Flags Entertainment and executive positions at PepsiCo.']",0.094911363188699,"Instead, John Laughter, chief of operations and president of Delta's TechOps maintenance and overhaul unit, and Allison Ausband, chief customer experience officer, will report to Bastian.","His departure, after just over a year on the job, comes weeks after Delta suffered a meltdown in the wake of the massive CrowdStrike outage in July.",-0.9799729585647584,,"His departure, after just over a year on the job, comes weeks after Delta suffered a meltdown in the wake of the massive CrowdStrike outage in July.",2024-08-31
"Stephen Curry signs $62.6 million, one-year contract extension with Warriors",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/29/stephen-curry-signs-62point6-million-extension-with-warriors.html,2024-08-29T18:31:42+0000,"NBA superstar Stephen Curry has agreed to sign a one-year, $62.6 million extension with the Golden State Warriors, his agent confirmed to CNBC.The extension keeps Curry in a Warriors uniform through the 2026-2027 season, and will make him the first NBA player to make $60 million in a season, according to Spotrac. As of now, several NBA players who have signed long-term extensions are set to eclipse Curry's $62.6 million salary the following year.Curry is a four-time NBA champion and most recently won a gold medal with the Team USA basketball team at the 2024 Olympics. In the championship game against France, Curry led the team with 24 points, all of which were three-pointers.Curry is no stranger to setting records. He was the first NBA player to hit both the $40 million and $50 million annual base salary marks and has been the highest paid player in the league since the 2017-2018 season, according to Spotrac.Curry, among other stars, is one of the reasons why the NBA was able to negotiate an 11-year, $77 billion media rights contract in its most recent deal with Disney, NBCUniversal and Amazon, which takes effect after the upcoming season. The booming value of media rights is driving player salaries up with it.Younger players like Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum have signed contracts worth more than $300 million over five years, as the league keeps growing more popular and sports continue to be one of the only types of television that people will tune in for live.Curry, 36, has played his entire NBA career with the Warriors. He has won two league MVP awards and is the all-time leader in three-pointers made.Programming note: Curry will appear on CNBC's ""Squawk on the Street"" at 10:30 a.m. ET on Tuesday.Disclosure: Comcast NBCUniversal is the parent company of CNBC.",CNBC,29/08/2024,"['NBA superstar Stephen Curry has agreed to sign a one-year, $62.6 million extension with the Golden State Warriors, his agent confirmed to CNBC.The extension keeps Curry in a Warriors uniform through the 2026-2027 season, and will make him the first NBA player to make $60 million in a season, according to Spotrac.', ""As of now, several NBA players who have signed long-term extensions are set to eclipse Curry's $62.6 million salary the following year."", 'Curry is a four-time NBA champion and most recently won a gold medal with the Team USA basketball team at the 2024 Olympics.', 'In the championship game against France, Curry led the team with 24 points, all of which were three-pointers.', 'Curry is no stranger to setting records.', 'He was the first NBA player to hit both the $40 million and $50 million annual base salary marks and has been the highest paid player in the league since the 2017-2018 season, according to Spotrac.', 'Curry, among other stars, is one of the reasons why the NBA was able to negotiate an 11-year, $77 billion media rights contract in its most recent deal with Disney, NBCUniversal and Amazon, which takes effect after the upcoming season.', 'The booming value of media rights is driving player salaries up with it.', 'Younger players like Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum have signed contracts worth more than $300 million over five years, as the league keeps growing more popular and sports continue to be one of the only types of television that people will tune in for live.', 'Curry, 36, has played his entire NBA career with the Warriors.', 'He has won two league MVP awards and is the all-time leader in three-pointers made.', 'Programming note: Curry will appear on CNBC\'s ""Squawk on the Street"" at 10:30 a.m. ET on Tuesday.', 'Disclosure: Comcast NBCUniversal is the parent company of CNBC.']",0.2883384119498057,Curry is a four-time NBA champion and most recently won a gold medal with the Team USA basketball team at the 2024 Olympics.,Curry is no stranger to setting records.,0.9991334676742554,"Younger players like Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum have signed contracts worth more than $300 million over five years, as the league keeps growing more popular and sports continue to be one of the only types of television that people will tune in for live.",,2024-08-31
Train penalty fare overhaul urged: 'We were fined £50 each over £3 extra fare',https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c0l841xeyklo,2024-08-29T23:02:08.607Z,"Train ticket inspectors should treat deliberate fare dodgers differently to people who make genuine mistakes, the passenger watchdog has said. Transport Focus said there was ""an overwhelming need for reform"" but the Rail Delivery Group, which represents train firms, said staff have discretion over individual circumstances. Scores of people have contacted BBC News to say they felt ticket inspectors had been over-zealous in giving them penalty fares. Alexandra Petri and her partner Ross Jones bought advance train tickets but ended up on the wrong train. When they tried to pay the difference in fares of £3 they each had to pay a penalty fare of £50. ""We felt like there was no understanding for small errors. We just paid the fine because I am not from the UK and didn't want to risk anything potentially going on my record that could cause trouble in the future,"" she added. They got in touch with the BBC after it reported that thousands of prosecutions for alleged rail fare evasion were to be quashed. Transport Focus said it accepted the need for a penalty-fare system but called for more discretion to be used in the case of passengers who make an honest mistake. ""We accept that some cases are very clear cut,"" said Mike Hewitson, the watchdog's head of policy. ""But there are grey areas, cases where perhaps more discretion should be used."" Railway companies lose £240 million every year from ticketless travel – but there are certain cases where a passenger making a mistake with their fare doesn't cost the train company money, he added. ""It's about trying to strip out the mistake from the deliberate,"" Mr Hewitson said.  ""It can be easy to get it wrong... people should know what their ticket entitles them to, but the train operators also have to make this clear to them"". Last year the then Conservative government announced a trial of scrapping return train tickets. It said there were 55 million fares available in Britain, which made it difficult for travellers to decide which is best for them. This month a landmark ruling found as many as 74,000 prosecutions for alleged rail fare evasion in England and Wales were set to be quashed as a certain legal procedure should not have been used. Following the BBC's reporting of this story passengers who had not been prosecuted but had received penalty fares got in touch.  Many we spoke to said they had mistakenly believed they could buy tickets on board a train.  In the UK, you must have a valid ticket to travel on a train, unless no ticket purchasing facilities exist. A penalty fare is charged if you do not comply with ticket purchasing rules and the maximum is £1,000.   The penalty is £100 plus the price of the full single fare applicable for your intended journey.  However, if it is paid within 21 days, the penalty is reduced to £50 plus the price of the single fare applicable.  A fine for rail ticket evasion can arise if the penalty fare is not paid and court proceedings follow. Holly, 29, was among those who told the BBC she thought she could buy a ticket on board a train.  ""I found the guard and said: 'Can I buy a ticket, please?' And he said: 'No you can't, you're fare dodging.' I was a bit shocked,"" she said. After Holly unsuccessfully tried to appeal her penalty fare, she was sent a magistrates court summons. ""Eventually, I got through to the train company's phone line and paid £55,"" she said. Rob McDowall, 41, told the BBC he also tried to buy a ticket on board when there were no working ticket machines at Leatherhead station in Surrey due to building works. He decided to buy a ticket when he got off, two stops later at Epsom.  ""The ticket inspector told me I was lying, as if I had refused to buy a ticket,"" he said. ""He was very forceful - he prodded me in the chest twice. ""I reported it to BTP [British Transport Police] but nothing came of it."" Rob received a court summons and pleaded guilty after receiving legal advice and was fined more than £300.  ""The way the whole system is set up you basically can’t explain yourself,"" Rob said. A spokesperson for the Rail Delivery Group told the BBC: “Fare dodging is unfair because it means less money to invest in improving services and increases the burden on fare-paying passengers and taxpayers. “We would always advise customers to purchase a ticket before they travel. All staff involved in the issuing of penalty fares have discretion over the individual circumstances of the customer.  ""There is a robust statutory appeals process for every penalty issued, which includes an independent final appeal stage to consider wider circumstances.” ",BBC,29/08/2024,"['Train ticket inspectors should treat deliberate fare dodgers differently to people who make genuine mistakes, the passenger watchdog has said.', 'Transport Focus said there was ""an overwhelming need for reform"" but the Rail Delivery Group, which represents train firms, said staff have discretion over individual circumstances.', 'Scores of people have contacted BBC News to say they felt ticket inspectors had been over-zealous in giving them penalty fares.', 'Alexandra Petri and her partner Ross Jones bought advance train tickets but ended up on the wrong train.', 'When they tried to pay the difference in fares of £3 they each had to pay a penalty fare of £50. ""', 'We felt like there was no understanding for small errors.', 'We just paid the fine because I am not from the UK and didn\'t want to risk anything potentially going on my record that could cause trouble in the future,"" she added.', 'They got in touch with the BBC after it reported that thousands of prosecutions for alleged rail fare evasion were to be quashed.', 'Transport Focus said it accepted the need for a penalty-fare system but called for more discretion to be used in the case of passengers who make an honest mistake. ""', 'We accept that some cases are very clear cut,"" said Mike Hewitson, the watchdog\'s head of policy. ""', 'But there are grey areas, cases where perhaps more discretion should be used.""', 'Railway companies lose £240 million every year from ticketless travel – but there are certain cases where a passenger making a mistake with their fare doesn\'t cost the train company money, he added. ""', 'It\'s about trying to strip out the mistake from the deliberate,"" Mr Hewitson said. ""', 'It can be easy to get it wrong... people should know what their ticket entitles them to, but the train operators also have to make this clear to them"".', 'Last year the then Conservative government announced a trial of scrapping return train tickets.', 'It said there were 55 million fares available in Britain, which made it difficult for travellers to decide which is best for them.', 'This month a landmark ruling found as many as 74,000 prosecutions for alleged rail fare evasion in England and Wales were set to be quashed as a certain legal procedure should not have been used.', ""Following the BBC's reporting of this story passengers who had not been prosecuted but had received penalty fares got in touch."", 'Many we spoke to said they had mistakenly believed they could buy tickets on board a train.', 'In the UK, you must have a valid ticket to travel on a train, unless no ticket purchasing facilities exist.', 'A penalty fare is charged if you do not comply with ticket purchasing rules and the maximum is £1,000.', 'The penalty is £100 plus the price of the full single fare applicable for your intended journey.', 'However, if it is paid within 21 days, the penalty is reduced to £50 plus the price of the single fare applicable.', 'A fine for rail ticket evasion can arise if the penalty fare is not paid and court proceedings follow.', 'Holly, 29, was among those who told the BBC she thought she could buy a ticket on board a train. ""', ""I found the guard and said: 'Can I buy a ticket, please?'"", ""And he said: 'No you can't, you're fare dodging.'"", 'I was a bit shocked,"" she said.', 'After Holly unsuccessfully tried to appeal her penalty fare, she was sent a magistrates court summons. ""', 'Eventually, I got through to the train company\'s phone line and paid £55,"" she said.', 'Rob McDowall, 41, told the BBC he also tried to buy a ticket on board when there were no working ticket machines at Leatherhead station in Surrey due to building works.', 'He decided to buy a ticket when he got off, two stops later at Epsom. ""', 'The ticket inspector told me I was lying, as if I had refused to buy a ticket,"" he said. ""', 'He was very forceful - he prodded me in the chest twice. ""', 'I reported it to BTP [British Transport Police] but nothing came of it.""', 'Rob received a court summons and pleaded guilty after receiving legal advice and was fined more than £300. ""', 'The way the whole system is set up you basically can’t explain yourself,"" Rob said.', 'A spokesperson for the Rail Delivery Group told the BBC: “Fare dodging is unfair because it means less money to invest in improving services and increases the burden on fare-paying passengers and taxpayers. “', 'We would always advise customers to purchase a ticket before they travel.', 'All staff involved in the issuing of penalty fares have discretion over the individual circumstances of the customer. ""', 'There is a robust statutory appeals process for every penalty issued, which includes an independent final appeal stage to consider wider circumstances.”']",-0.203686551319477,"It can be easy to get it wrong... people should know what their ticket entitles them to, but the train operators also have to make this clear to them"".","Rob received a court summons and pleaded guilty after receiving legal advice and was fined more than £300. """,-0.5650351941585541,"We just paid the fine because I am not from the UK and didn't want to risk anything potentially going on my record that could cause trouble in the future,"" she added.",A spokesperson for the Rail Delivery Group told the BBC: “Fare dodging is unfair because it means less money to invest in improving services and increases the burden on fare-paying passengers and taxpayers. “,2024-08-31
Elsa Majimbo rant reignites debate on 'black tax',https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvg509dp9mjo,2024-08-31T00:01:15.306Z,"""Sending money back home or to your extended family is such a common African practice that I absolutely hate,"" said Kenyan influencer Elsa Majimbo earlier this month in a now-deleted TikTok rant that sparked a furious debate on social media. The 23-year-old, who shot to fame during the covid pandemic with her comedic videos, touched a nerve when it came to discussing with her 1.8 million followers what is known as “black tax”. This is when black Africans who achieve a modicum of success, whether at home or abroad, find themselves having to support less well-off family members. Giving back is seen as an intrinsic part of the African philosophy of ubuntu, which stresses the importance of the family and community, rather than the individual. The question for many is whether this is an unnecessary and unwelcome burden or part of a community obligation to help pull others up. But Ms Majimbo, now based in the US, is pushing back against the practice. In the video she said her father had supported members of the extended family for years and now they were looking to her for help. She turned her anger on one particular unnamed relative. ""You’ve been asking my dad for money since before I was born. I was born, I was raised, I grew up, now you’re asking me for money - you lazy [expletive]. I’m not feeding your habits."" While some have agreed, others have taken issue with her position. It is not clear why the video was removed from TikTok and Ms Majimbo's management team did not respond to a BBC request for comment. But for many, regardless of what they might personally think, it is just not possible to refuse to help relatives because of the sense of community in which they were raised. There can be a sense of pride in helping take care of the family although it can become too much. A former teacher in Zimbabwe in her 50s, who asked to remain anonymous, told the BBC that 30 years ago almost her entire first pay cheque of 380 Zimbabwe dollars went straight to her nine siblings. ""After I finished buying [school] uniforms, clothes and groceries, I had $20 left,"" she told the BBC in a voice that suggested both honour and annoyance. Although this meant she had to buy food on credit, she said that as the eldest child it was expected she would hand over cash the moment she began to start earning. Her salary did not belong to her alone but to her family as well. When she got married, her responsibilities extended even further. At one point, she had to take out a loan to pay her brother-in-law’s tuition fees after she was pickpocketed on her way to deposit a cheque at the bank. It took her two years to pay off. Sandra Ajalo, a 28-year-old hairstylist in Uganda, is grateful for the help that relatives extended to her family when she was growing up. Ms Ajalo and her three siblings were raised by a single mother and relatives assisted her with various things, from paying school fees, to groceries and even medical expenses. ""It's not a burden, it's a communal helping,"" she told the BBC. But when she saw Ms Majimbo's video she understood where the social media star was coming from, especially as the Ugandan was now in a position to help other family members. ""It can be straining, it can be frustrating, but we need it. No man is an island. We have to help each other however we can."" Dr Chipo Dendere, an assistant professor in Africana studies at Wellesley College in the US, argues that the necessity of ""black tax"" is rooted in colonialism. The system of oppression that concentrated resources in the hands of the colonial power or a tiny minority of settlers made it impossible for the majority to accumulate assets. This “left many black families with no generational wealth"", Prof Dendere said. In many cases, after independence, rather than being upended, the inequalities were replicated. Dr Dendere added that the payment of ""black tax"" can often become a “never-ending cycle” as the money sent to family members often only temporarily plugs a hole which will later re-open. Another factor is that, unlike in richer countries, many African states are unable to pay for healthcare beyond the basics, provide a decent pension or cover tuition fees. As a result it falls on the most well-off in a family to fork out for these expenses, Dr Dendere said. ""There is no pension fund from the state - we are the pension. Families are stepping in to do the job of the government. ""We give because of ubuntu. We are forced to take care of each other."" In 2023, funds sent home by African migrants amounted to about $95bn (£72bn), according to the International Fund for Agricultural Development, which is almost the size of the Kenyan economy. For Africans abroad the strain can be even greater as people expect more due to a belief that those overseas make a lot of money. Gabe Mutseyekwa, 35, is a Zimbabwean man who has lived in Germany for over five years. He put his foot down and told his family he would stop sending monthly payments because it was preventing him from saving up for his own future. His family did not react well - but they eventually came around. ""They realised that I was all alone and I needed to make something of myself,"" he said. At one point he sent home about €2,000 ($2,200; £1,700) for a family emergency when he was still a student doing part-time jobs. ""There needs to be a balance between bearing this financial responsibility and your personal financial health,"" he told the BBC. Many people have noted that family members can feel a sense of entitlement to your money especially when the person is rich. This particularly irked former Nigerian footballer Mikel John Obi. Last year, he spoke about ""black tax"" during his appearance on the Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast.  “When you come from Africa, when you make money, it’s not your money. It’s not just your money. You have all these relatives, cousins, whatever you call it,” he said. He added that relatives kept having so many kids and expected him to take care of them. While not everyone agreed with Elsa Majimbo's rant, it seems to have touched a nerve, especially among the younger generation.  But Dr Dendere argues that unless Africa can truly develop, ""black tax will be here in perpetuity"". Additional reporting by Tony Vinyoh Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.  Follow us on Twitter @BBCAfrica, on Facebook at BBC Africa or on Instagram at bbcafrica ",BBC,31/08/2024,"['""Sending money back home or to your extended family is such a common African practice that I absolutely hate,"" said Kenyan influencer Elsa Majimbo earlier this month in a now-deleted TikTok rant that sparked a furious debate on social media.', 'The 23-year-old, who shot to fame during the covid pandemic with her comedic videos, touched a nerve when it came to discussing with her 1.8 million followers what is known as “black tax”.', 'This is when black Africans who achieve a modicum of success, whether at home or abroad, find themselves having to support less well-off family members.', 'Giving back is seen as an intrinsic part of the African philosophy of ubuntu, which stresses the importance of the family and community, rather than the individual.', 'The question for many is whether this is an unnecessary and unwelcome burden or part of a community obligation to help pull others up.', 'But Ms Majimbo, now based in the US, is pushing back against the practice.', 'In the video she said her father had supported members of the extended family for years and now they were looking to her for help.', 'She turned her anger on one particular unnamed relative. ""', 'You’ve been asking my dad for money since before I was born.', 'I was born, I was raised, I grew up, now you’re asking me for money - you lazy [expletive].', 'I’m not feeding your habits.""', 'While some have agreed, others have taken issue with her position.', ""It is not clear why the video was removed from TikTok and Ms Majimbo's management team did not respond to a BBC request for comment."", 'But for many, regardless of what they might personally think, it is just not possible to refuse to help relatives because of the sense of community in which they were raised.', 'There can be a sense of pride in helping take care of the family although it can become too much.', 'A former teacher in Zimbabwe in her 50s, who asked to remain anonymous, told the BBC that 30 years ago almost her entire first pay cheque of 380 Zimbabwe dollars went straight to her nine siblings. ""', 'After I finished buying [school] uniforms, clothes and groceries, I had $20 left,"" she told the BBC in a voice that suggested both honour and annoyance.', 'Although this meant she had to buy food on credit, she said that as the eldest child it was expected she would hand over cash the moment she began to start earning.', 'Her salary did not belong to her alone but to her family as well.', 'When she got married, her responsibilities extended even further.', 'At one point, she had to take out a loan to pay her brother-in-law’s tuition fees after she was pickpocketed on her way to deposit a cheque at the bank.', 'It took her two years to pay off.', 'Sandra Ajalo, a 28-year-old hairstylist in Uganda, is grateful for the help that relatives extended to her family when she was growing up.', 'Ms Ajalo and her three siblings were raised by a single mother and relatives assisted her with various things, from paying school fees, to groceries and even medical expenses. ""', 'It\'s not a burden, it\'s a communal helping,"" she told the BBC.', 'But when she saw Ms Majimbo\'s video she understood where the social media star was coming from, especially as the Ugandan was now in a position to help other family members. ""', 'It can be straining, it can be frustrating, but we need it.', 'No man is an island.', 'We have to help each other however we can.""', 'Dr Chipo Dendere, an assistant professor in Africana studies at Wellesley College in the US, argues that the necessity of ""black tax"" is rooted in colonialism.', 'The system of oppression that concentrated resources in the hands of the colonial power or a tiny minority of settlers made it impossible for the majority to accumulate assets.', 'This “left many black families with no generational wealth"", Prof Dendere said.', 'In many cases, after independence, rather than being upended, the inequalities were replicated.', 'Dr Dendere added that the payment of ""black tax"" can often become a “never-ending cycle” as the money sent to family members often only temporarily plugs a hole which will later re-open.', 'Another factor is that, unlike in richer countries, many African states are unable to pay for healthcare beyond the basics, provide a decent pension or cover tuition fees.', 'As a result it falls on the most well-off in a family to fork out for these expenses, Dr Dendere said. ""', 'There is no pension fund from the state - we are the pension.', 'Families are stepping in to do the job of the government. ""', 'We give because of ubuntu.', 'We are forced to take care of each other.""', 'In 2023, funds sent home by African migrants amounted to about $95bn (£72bn), according to the International Fund for Agricultural Development, which is almost the size of the Kenyan economy.', 'For Africans abroad the strain can be even greater as people expect more due to a belief that those overseas make a lot of money.', 'Gabe Mutseyekwa, 35, is a Zimbabwean man who has lived in Germany for over five years.', 'He put his foot down and told his family he would stop sending monthly payments because it was preventing him from saving up for his own future.', 'His family did not react well - but they eventually came around. ""', 'They realised that I was all alone and I needed to make something of myself,"" he said.', 'At one point he sent home about €2,000 ($2,200; £1,700) for a family emergency when he was still a student doing part-time jobs. ""', 'There needs to be a balance between bearing this financial responsibility and your personal financial health,"" he told the BBC.', 'Many people have noted that family members can feel a sense of entitlement to your money especially when the person is rich.', 'This particularly irked former Nigerian footballer Mikel John Obi.', 'Last year, he spoke about ""black tax"" during his appearance on the Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast. “', 'When you come from Africa, when you make money, it’s not your money.', 'It’s not just your money.', 'You have all these relatives, cousins, whatever you call it,” he said.', 'He added that relatives kept having so many kids and expected him to take care of them.', ""While not everyone agreed with Elsa Majimbo's rant, it seems to have touched a nerve, especially among the younger generation."", 'But Dr Dendere argues that unless Africa can truly develop, ""black tax will be here in perpetuity"".', 'Additional reporting by Tony Vinyoh Go to BBCAfrica.com for more news from the African continent.', 'Follow us on Twitter @BBCAfrica, on Facebook at BBC Africa or on Instagram at bbcafrica']",0.0830725542755452,"This is when black Africans who achieve a modicum of success, whether at home or abroad, find themselves having to support less well-off family members.","""Sending money back home or to your extended family is such a common African practice that I absolutely hate,"" said Kenyan influencer Elsa Majimbo earlier this month in a now-deleted TikTok rant that sparked a furious debate on social media.",-0.1789530894973061,"While not everyone agreed with Elsa Majimbo's rant, it seems to have touched a nerve, especially among the younger generation.",For Africans abroad the strain can be even greater as people expect more due to a belief that those overseas make a lot of money.,2024-08-31
"Gap beats earnings and revenue estimates, hikes profit margin outlook as results are posted early",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/29/gap-q2-earnings-shares-halted-after-apparent-early-release.html,2024-08-29T22:55:10+0000,"In this articleGap raised its full-year profit outlook on Thursday after seeing better-than-expected results at its largest brand, Old Navy.The apparel company's fiscal second quarter results were released earlier than planned after the company ""inadvertently"" posted them to its website and then removed them, a Gap spokesperson told CNBC.""As soon as the error was caught, we notified the NYSE and trading of our stock was halted temporarily,"" the spokesperson said, adding the results were posted ""as a result of administrative error.""Gap's stock was halted just before 10 a.m. ET. The company then released its quarterly results at 11:12 a.m. ET. Following the release, shares rose more than 2% after being halted for much of the morning.Here's what the company reported, compared with what Wall Street expected, according to analysts surveyed by LSEG:The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended Aug. 3 nearly doubled from the year-ago period. Gap posted earnings of $206 million, or 54 cents per share, compared with $117 million, or 32 cents per share, a year earlier.Sales rose to $3.72 billion, up about 5% from $3.55 billion in the prior-year period.For the full year, Gap now expects its gross margin to be 2 percentage points higher than the uptick of at least 1.5 percentage points it had previously forecast. It also expects its operating income to grow by about 50%. It previously anticipated it would increase by slightly more than 40%.Over the last year, Gap has been working to turn around its business, reverse a sales slump and reclaim cultural relevance under the direction of CEO Richard Dickson — the former Mattel executive credited with reviving the Barbie empire.Since Dickson took over, sales have started to turn around at the company's four brands — Banana Republic, Old Navy, Athleta and its namesake banner — and the company is finding its voice again among its peers. Beyond sales and relevance, Gap's profits and balance sheet have also improved significantly under Dickson. The company ended the quarter with $2.1 billion in cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments, an increase of 59% compared to last year.The company's second-quarter results didn't blow away expectations, but are solid improvements from where the company was a year ago.""We really concentrated on our strategic priorities, and the first priority has been about maintaining financial and operational rigor that is becoming, to the extent that we can define it, the fabric of how we work, and it's reinforcing better processes and cultural accountability,"" Dickson told CNBC in an interview.""Reinvigorating our brands is enabled by financial and operational rigor, and you see it. You see it in the results, you see it in our stores. You see it on our sites,"" he added.""We're building stronger brand identities. They're supported by trend right products,"" Dickson said. ""We're amplifying those through better storytelling. Our media mix has gotten much more innovative, and generally speaking, I'm proud of the brand's portfolio work in the context of cultural relevance.""During the quarter, comparable sales were up 3%, in line with the 3.1% growth that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount. Its gross margin came in better than forecast at 42.6%, ahead of the 40.8% that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount.Here's a closer look at how each brand performed:Sales rose 8% to $2.1 billion, with comparable sales up 5%, better than the 4.3% growth analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount. The company has been working to improve its assortment and ensure that its value offering isn't just low cost but also fashionable.""We've been dialing up, if you will, our fashion quotient,"" said Dickson. ""Besides really driving a much more disciplined approach with financial and operational rigor, we're now dialing up and seeing the results of our reinvigoration strategy.""As consumers feel the brunt of inflation and high interest rates, many have traded down to cheaper options, and Dickson said Old Navy is seeing ""growth across all income cohorts.""""With a presumed flight to value, Old Navy is there with a welcome mat,"" said Dickson. ""We become the style authority and the brand in the value space, and so again, we're concentrating on our strategic approach, our strategic priorities. I think we're seeing the success of that.""Revenue at Gap's namesake banner rose 1% to $766 million during the quarter, with comparable sales up 3%, just shy of the 3.4% uptick analysts had expected. As Dickson looks to bring cultural relevancy back to the company, it has helped the company's namesake banner grow sales, he said.Gap's elevated work-wear line has dragged on the company's overall performance. Both revenue and comparable sales were flat in the second quarter compared to last year, versus StreetAccount estimates of up 0.5%. The company said it is working to ""improve its pricing and assortment"" to turn around the brand's performance.""In some cases, we got too ahead of ourselves, and in other cases, we could add more value orientation to drive more scale,"" Dickson said when asked what work the company is doing to improve pricing.""Some of our new merchandising strategies include depth of product in store, finding that right mix, if you will. And last but not least, really improving fit, which is an important part of any brand, but in particular, has been a challenge in the women's space in Banana Republic, where we're really concentrating,"" he said.Sales at Gap's athleisure brand Athleta slid 1% to $388 million, with comparable sales down 4%. The results were not comparable to analyst estimates.One of Gap's strongest brands during the pandemic, Athleta had been on a downward trajectory and weighed heavily on the company's performance until it appointed former Alo Yoga president Chris Blakeslee as its CEO last summer. Since then, Blakeslee has worked to improve Athleta's assortment and has also worked to generate more excitement at the line with product drops and collaborations with athletes.In a press release, the company said it expects Athleta to return to positive comparable sales growth for the remainder of the year.",CNBC,29/08/2024,"['In this articleGap raised its full-year profit outlook on Thursday after seeing better-than-expected results at its largest brand, Old Navy.', 'The apparel company\'s fiscal second quarter results were released earlier than planned after the company ""inadvertently"" posted them to its website and then removed them, a Gap spokesperson told CNBC.""As soon as the error was caught,we notified the NYSE and trading of our stock was halted temporarily,"" the spokesperson said, adding the results were posted ""as a result of administrative error.', '""Gap\'s stock was halted just before 10 a.m. ET.', 'The company then released its quarterly results at 11:12 a.m. ET.', 'Following the release, shares rose more than 2% after being halted for much of the morning.', ""Here's what the company reported, compared with what Wall Street expected, according to analysts surveyed by LSEG:The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended Aug. 3 nearly doubled from the year-ago period."", 'Gap posted earnings of $206 million, or 54 cents per share, compared with $117 million, or 32 cents per share, a year earlier.', 'Sales rose to $3.72 billion, up about 5% from $3.55 billion in the prior-year period.', 'For the full year, Gap now expects its gross margin to be 2 percentage points higher than the uptick of at least 1.5 percentage points it had previously forecast.', 'It also expects its operating income to grow by about 50%.', 'It previously anticipated it would increase by slightly more than 40%.Over the last year, Gap has been working to turn around its business, reverse a sales slump and reclaim cultural relevance under the direction of CEO Richard Dickson — the former Mattel executive credited with reviving the Barbie empire.', ""Since Dickson took over, sales have started to turn around at the company's four brands — Banana Republic, Old Navy, Athleta and its namesake banner — and the company is finding its voice again among its peers."", ""Beyond sales and relevance, Gap's profits and balance sheet have also improved significantly under Dickson."", 'The company ended the quarter with $2.1 billion in cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments, an increase of 59% compared to last year.', ""The company's second-quarter results didn't blow away expectations, but are solid improvements from where the company was a year ago."", '""We really concentrated on our strategic priorities, and the first priority has been about maintaining financial and operational rigor that is becoming, to the extent that we can define it, the fabric of how we work, and it\'s reinforcing better processes and cultural accountability,"" Dickson told CNBC in an interview.', '""Reinvigorating our brands is enabled by financial and operational rigor, and you see it.', 'You see it in the results, you see it in our stores.', 'You see it on our sites,"" he added.', '""We\'re building stronger brand identities.', 'They\'re supported by trend right products,"" Dickson said. ""', ""We're amplifying those through better storytelling."", ""Our media mix has gotten much more innovative, and generally speaking, I'm proud of the brand's portfolio work in the context of cultural relevance."", '""During the quarter, comparable sales were up 3%, in line with the 3.1% growth that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount.', 'Its gross margin came in better than forecast at 42.6%, ahead of the 40.8% that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount.', ""Here's a closer look at how each brand performed:Sales rose 8% to $2.1 billion, with comparable sales up 5%, better than the 4.3% growth analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount."", ""The company has been working to improve its assortment and ensure that its value offering isn't just low cost but also fashionable."", '""We\'ve been dialing up, if you will, our fashion quotient,"" said Dickson. ""', ""Besides really driving a much more disciplined approach with financial and operational rigor, we're now dialing up and seeing the results of our reinvigoration strategy."", '""As consumers feel the brunt of inflation and high interest rates, many have traded down to cheaper options, and Dickson said Old Navy is seeing ""growth across all income cohorts.', '""""With a presumed flight to value, Old Navy is there with a welcome mat,"" said Dickson. ""', ""We become the style authority and the brand in the value space, and so again, we're concentrating on our strategic approach, our strategic priorities."", ""I think we're seeing the success of that."", '""Revenue at Gap\'s namesake banner rose 1% to $766 million during the quarter, with comparable sales up 3%, just shy of the 3.4% uptick analysts had expected.', ""As Dickson looks to bring cultural relevancy back to the company, it has helped the company's namesake banner grow sales, he said."", ""Gap's elevated work-wear line has dragged on the company's overall performance."", 'Both revenue and comparable sales were flat in the second quarter compared to last year, versus StreetAccount estimates of up 0.5%.', 'The company said it is working to ""improve its pricing and assortment"" to turn around the brand\'s performance.', '""In some cases, we got too ahead of ourselves, and in other cases, we could add more value orientation to drive more scale,"" Dickson said when asked what work the company is doing to improve pricing.', '""Some of our new merchandising strategies include depth of product in store, finding that right mix, if you will.', 'And last but not least, really improving fit, which is an important part of any brand, but in particular, has been a challenge in the women\'s space in Banana Republic, where we\'re really concentrating,"" he said.', ""Sales at Gap's athleisure brand Athleta slid 1% to $388 million, with comparable sales down 4%."", 'The results were not comparable to analyst estimates.', ""One of Gap's strongest brands during the pandemic, Athleta had been on a downward trajectory and weighed heavily on the company's performance until it appointed former Alo Yoga president Chris Blakeslee as its CEO last summer."", ""Since then, Blakeslee has worked to improve Athleta's assortment and has also worked to generate more excitement at the line with product drops and collaborations with athletes."", 'In a press release, the company said it expects Athleta to return to positive comparable sales growth for the remainder of the year.']",0.2871461857237231,"And last but not least, really improving fit, which is an important part of any brand, but in particular, has been a challenge in the women's space in Banana Republic, where we're really concentrating,"" he said.","The apparel company's fiscal second quarter results were released earlier than planned after the company ""inadvertently"" posted them to its website and then removed them, a Gap spokesperson told CNBC.""As soon as the error was caught,we notified the NYSE and trading of our stock was halted temporarily,"" the spokesperson said, adding the results were posted ""as a result of administrative error.",0.762261722017737,"Here's a closer look at how each brand performed:Sales rose 8% to $2.1 billion, with comparable sales up 5%, better than the 4.3% growth analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount.","Sales at Gap's athleisure brand Athleta slid 1% to $388 million, with comparable sales down 4%.",2024-08-31
"Eli Lilly releases new form of weight loss drug Zepbound for half the price to boost access, supply",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/27/zepbound-eli-lilly-releases-new-cheaper-form-of-weight-loss-drug.html,2024-08-27T21:57:40+0000,"In this articleEli Lilly on Tuesday released a new form of its weight loss drug Zepbound for roughly half its usual monthly list price to reach millions of patients without insurance coverage for the popular injection, such as those with Medicare. The move also aims to expand the supply of Zepbound in the U.S. as demand skyrockets, and to ensure eligible patients are safely accessing the real treatment as cheaper copycat versions gain traction. The company is now offering 2.5-milligram and 5-milligram single-dose vials of Zepbound for $399 per month and $549 per month, respectively, through its direct-to-consumer website. Patients typically start treatment with a 2.5-milligram dose, gradually increase the amount and later take so-called maintenance doses to keep the weight off.The list prices of Zepbound and other popular weight loss drugs, such as Novo Nordisk's Wegovy, are around $1,000 per month before insurance and other rebates. Those treatments are part of a blockbuster class of medications called GLP-1s, which mimic certain gut hormones to tamp down a person's appetite and regulate blood sugar. Patients need to use a syringe and needle to draw up the medicine from a single-dose vial — the version of Zepbound Eli Lilly is releasing Tuesday — and inject themselves. That differs from single-dose autoinjector pens, the currently available form of all Zepbound doses, which patients can directly inject under their skin with the click of a button.Eli Lilly has said the vials will create additional supply capacity because they are easier to manufacture than autoinjector pens.The lower price points will benefit patients who are willing to pay for Zepbound themselves and are enrolled in Medicare or employer-sponsored health plans that do not currently cover obesity treatments, said Patrik Jonsson, president of Eli Lilly diabetes and obesity, in an interview. He noted that Medicare beneficiaries are also not eligible for Eli Lilly's savings card programs for Zepbound. One program allows people with insurance coverage for Zepbound to pay as little as $25 out of pocket.The company offers another to patients whose commercial insurance does not cover the drug. Patients currently enrolled in that program can continue to pay as low as $550 per month for Zepbound through the end of the year.But as of Tuesday, the lowest cost of the drug for new patients who join that program will increase to $650 per month, according to an update on the company's website. That price hike will ""help maintain the sustainability of the program as coverage for Zepbound improves,"" a spokesperson for Eli Lilly said in a statement Tuesday.Having patients directly pay for single-dose vials of Zepbound also ""enables a transparent price by removing third-party supply chain entities,"" the company added in a release. There ""will be no markups, and we believe that's super important … that consumers have this predictability in terms of pricing,"" Jonsson said. Patients with a valid prescription can purchase the single-dose vials from a new ""self-pay pharmacy"" section on the company's direct-to-consumer site, LillyDirect. Eli Lilly is partnering with a third-party digital pharmacy, Gifthealth, which will process prescriptions electronically as well as package and send vials to eligible patients.People can also choose to purchase syringes and needles from Eli Lilly's website and will have access to materials on how to correctly administer Zepbound from a vial. LillyDirect, which launched in January, connects people with an independent telehealth company that can prescribe certain drugs if the patients are eligible. The site also offers a home-delivery option if the prescribed treatment is Eli Lilly's, tapping a third-party online pharmacy to fill prescriptions and send them directly to patients. Eli Lilly said in a release that distributing the vials through the site will ensure patients and health-care providers are receiving ""genuine"" Zepbound. It builds on the company's efforts to ""help protect the public from the dangers posed by the proliferation of counterfeit, fake, unsafe or untested knock-offs of Lilly's medications,"" according to the release.During shortages, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration allows compounding pharmacies to make versions of drugs that are essentially a copy of brand-name medicines. Compounded medications are custom-made alternatives to branded drugs designed to meet a specific patient's needs. But both Zepbound and Eli Lilly's diabetes drug, Mounjaro, are under patent protection in the U.S. The company also does not supply the active ingredient of those two drugs, tirzepatide, to outside groups. Eli Lilly has said that raises questions about what some compounding pharmacies and other clinics are selling and marketing to consumers. The company and its rival Novo Nordisk have both stepped in to address illicit versions of their weight loss and diabetes treatments, suing wellness clinics, medical spas and compounding pharmacies across the U.S. over the past year. All doses of Zepbound are now listed as available on the FDA's drug shortage database. Still, thousands of online platforms offering compounded versions of weight loss drugs from Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly have cropped up over the past six months, according to Jonsson. ""We believe that the U.S. population is actually a target for … untested, unapproved, unregulated anti-obesity medications that we know is far from always containing the drug it's supposed to,"" he said. ""This is also an opportunity to make sure that there is access to FDA-approved, quality-approved tirzepatide for consumers in need.""",CNBC,27/08/2024,"['In this articleEli Lilly on Tuesday released a new form of its weight loss drug Zepbound for roughly half its usual monthly list price to reach millions of patients without insurance coverage for the popular injection, such as those with Medicare.', 'The move also aims to expand the supply of Zepbound in the U.S. as demand skyrockets, and to ensure eligible patients are safely accessing the real treatment as cheaper copycat versions gain traction.', 'The company is now offering 2.5-milligram and 5-milligram single-dose vials of Zepbound for $399 per month and $549 per month, respectively, through its direct-to-consumer website.', 'Patients typically start treatment with a 2.5-milligram dose, gradually increase the amount and later take so-called maintenance doses to keep the weight off.', ""The list prices of Zepbound and other popular weight loss drugs, such as Novo Nordisk's Wegovy, are around $1,000 per month before insurance and other rebates."", ""Those treatments are part of a blockbuster class of medications called GLP-1s, which mimic certain gut hormones to tamp down a person's appetite and regulate blood sugar."", 'Patients need to use a syringe and needle to draw up the medicine from a single-dose vial — the version of Zepbound Eli Lilly is releasing Tuesday — and inject themselves.', 'That differs from single-dose autoinjector pens, the currently available form of all Zepbound doses, which patients can directly inject under their skin with the click of a button.', 'Eli Lilly has said the vials willcreate additional supply capacitybecause they are easier to manufacture than autoinjector pens.', 'The lower price points will benefit patients who are willing to pay for Zepbound themselves and are enrolled in Medicare or employer-sponsored health plans that do not currently cover obesity treatments, said Patrik Jonsson, president of Eli Lilly diabetes and obesity, in an interview.', ""He noted that Medicare beneficiaries are also not eligible for Eli Lilly's savings card programs for Zepbound."", 'One program allows people with insurance coverage for Zepbound to pay as little as $25 out of pocket.', 'The company offers another to patients whose commercial insurance does not cover the drug.', 'Patients currently enrolled in that program can continue to pay as low as $550 per month for Zepbound through the end of the year.', ""But as of Tuesday, the lowest cost of the drug for new patients who join that program will increase to $650 per month, according to an update on the company's website."", 'That price hike will ""help maintain the sustainability of the program as coverage for Zepbound improves,"" a spokesperson for Eli Lilly said in a statement Tuesday.', 'Having patients directly pay for single-dose vials of Zepbound also ""enables a transparent price by removing third-party supply chain entities,"" the company added in a release.', 'There ""will be no markups, and we believe that\'s super important … that consumers have this predictability in terms of pricing,"" Jonsson said.', 'Patients with a valid prescription can purchase the single-dose vials from a new ""self-pay pharmacy"" section on the company\'s direct-to-consumer site, LillyDirect.', 'Eli Lilly is partnering with a third-party digital pharmacy, Gifthealth, which will process prescriptions electronically as well as package and send vials to eligible patients.', ""People can also choose to purchase syringes and needles from Eli Lilly's website and will have access to materials on how to correctly administer Zepbound from a vial."", 'LillyDirect, which launched in January, connects people with an independent telehealth company that can prescribe certain drugs if the patients are eligible.', ""The site also offers a home-delivery option if the prescribed treatment is Eli Lilly's, tapping a third-party online pharmacy to fill prescriptions and send them directly to patients."", 'Eli Lilly said in a release that distributing the vials through the site will ensure patients and health-care providers are receiving ""genuine"" Zepbound.', 'It builds on the company\'s efforts to ""help protect the public from the dangers posed by the proliferation of counterfeit, fake, unsafe or untested knock-offs of Lilly\'s medications,"" according to the release.', 'During shortages, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration allows compounding pharmacies to make versions of drugs that are essentially a copy of brand-name medicines.', ""Compounded medications are custom-made alternatives to branded drugs designed to meet a specific patient's needs."", ""But both Zepbound and Eli Lilly's diabetes drug, Mounjaro, are under patent protection in the U.S. The company also does not supply the active ingredient of those two drugs, tirzepatide, to outside groups."", 'Eli Lilly has said that raises questions about what some compounding pharmacies and other clinics are selling and marketing to consumers.', 'The company and its rival Novo Nordisk have both stepped in to address illicit versions of their weight loss and diabetes treatments, suing wellness clinics, medical spas and compounding pharmacies across the U.S. over the past year.', ""All doses of Zepbound are now listed as available on the FDA's drug shortage database."", 'Still, thousands of online platforms offering compounded versions of weight loss drugs from Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly have cropped up over the past six months, according to Jonsson.', '""We believe that the U.S. population is actually a target for … untested, unapproved, unregulated anti-obesity medications that we know is far from always containing the drug it\'s supposed to,"" he said. ""', 'This is also an opportunity to make sure that there is access to FDA-approved, quality-approved tirzepatide for consumers in need.""']",0.1646593759491673,"The move also aims to expand the supply of Zepbound in the U.S. as demand skyrockets, and to ensure eligible patients are safely accessing the real treatment as cheaper copycat versions gain traction.","""We believe that the U.S. population is actually a target for … untested, unapproved, unregulated anti-obesity medications that we know is far from always containing the drug it's supposed to,"" he said. """,0.5932532012462616,"The move also aims to expand the supply of Zepbound in the U.S. as demand skyrockets, and to ensure eligible patients are safely accessing the real treatment as cheaper copycat versions gain traction.",Patients currently enrolled in that program can continue to pay as low as $550 per month for Zepbound through the end of the year.,2024-08-31
Washington Commanders strike stadium naming rights deal with Northwest Federal Credit Union,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/27/washington-commanders-stadium-northwest-federal-credit-union.html,2024-08-27T19:46:50+0000,"The home of the Washington Commanders just got a new name.The team's stadium will be renamed Northwest Stadium, per a new agreement with Northwest Federal Credit Union that runs through the 2030-31 season, according to a person familiar with the matter. The deal is worth an average annual value in the low $8 million range, according to the person.The home of the Washington, D.C., NFL team has been without a naming rights partner since FedEx ended its deal with the Commanders in February, two years early. The shipping giant had a deal with the football team that ran from 1999 through the 2025 season.""As we continue to work toward our goal of building the Commanders into an elite franchise that consistently competes for championships, we are excited to welcome our team and fans to Northwest Stadium and look forward to creating incredible memories together on the field and in the communities we serve,"" said Washington Commanders Managing Partner Josh Harris in a statement.The new agreement with the Northwest Federal Credit Union adds to an existing stadium sponsorship deal that came in at around $2 million per year, according to the person familiar with the matter. That deal did not include naming rights.The expanded partnership includes Northwest branding across the stadium, including a new stadium logo. Northwest will also serve as the team's jersey patch partner for off-season and in-season practices. The partnership will also extend new benefits to Commanders fans who are members of Northwest Federal Credit Union, including discounts on tickets and merchandise.Last year,  Northwest Federal Credit Union became the Commanders' official credit union partner.The Commanders are looking to build a new stadium in either Washington, D.C., or Virginia. Should the team move into a new stadium before the 2030-31 season ends, the Commanders have the right under the new agreement to seek a new naming rights partner for the new stadium, the person familiar with the matter said. The credit union does not have the rights to the new stadium or right of first refusal for those rights, the person added.The Los Angeles Rams currently have the most valuable stadium naming rights deal in the NFL. That deal, with SoFi, is for $625 million over 20 years, according to a person familiar with that agreement. SoFi Stadium is also home to the NFL's Chargers, but Rams owner Stanley Kroenke owns the stadium, so the Rams collect 85% of stadium sponsorship revenue.",CNBC,27/08/2024,"['The home of the Washington Commanders just got a new name.', ""The team's stadium will be renamed Northwest Stadium, per a new agreement with Northwest Federal Credit Union that runs through the 2030-31 season, according to a person familiar with the matter."", 'The deal is worth an average annual value in the low $8 million range,according to the person.', 'The home of the Washington, D.C., NFL team has been without a naming rights partner since FedEx ended its deal with the Commanders in February, two years early.', 'The shipping giant had a deal with the football team that ran from 1999 throughthe 2025 season.', '""As we continue to work toward our goal of building the Commanders into an elite franchise that consistently competes for championships, we are excited to welcome our team and fans to Northwest Stadium and look forward to creating incredible memories together on the field and in the communities we serve,"" said Washington Commanders Managing Partner Josh Harris in a statement.', 'The new agreement with the Northwest Federal Credit Union adds to an existing stadium sponsorship deal that came in at around $2 million per year, according to the person familiar with the matter.', 'That deal did not include naming rights.', 'The expanded partnership includes Northwest branding across the stadium, including a new stadium logo.', ""Northwest will also serve as the team's jersey patch partner for off-season and in-season practices."", 'The partnership will also extend new benefits to Commanders fans who are members of Northwest Federal Credit Union, including discounts on tickets and merchandise.', ""Last year, Northwest Federal Credit Union became the Commanders' official credit union partner."", 'The Commanders are looking to build a new stadium in either Washington, D.C., or Virginia.', 'Should the team move into a new stadium before the 2030-31 season ends, the Commanders have the right under the new agreement to seek a new naming rights partner for the new stadium, the person familiar with the matter said.', 'The credit union does not have the rights to the new stadium or right of first refusal for those rights, the person added.', 'The Los Angeles Rams currently have the most valuable stadium naming rights deal in the NFL.', 'That deal, with SoFi, is for $625 million over 20 years, according to a person familiar with that agreement.', ""SoFi Stadium is also home to the NFL's Chargers, but Rams owner Stanley Kroenke owns the stadium, so the Rams collect 85% of stadium sponsorship revenue.""]",0.3245834831982503,"""As we continue to work toward our goal of building the Commanders into an elite franchise that consistently competes for championships, we are excited to welcome our team and fans to Northwest Stadium and look forward to creating incredible memories together on the field and in the communities we serve,"" said Washington Commanders Managing Partner Josh Harris in a statement.",,0.949747696518898,"The partnership will also extend new benefits to Commanders fans who are members of Northwest Federal Credit Union, including discounts on tickets and merchandise.",,2024-08-31
"FDA approves updated Pfizer, Moderna Covid vaccines as virus surges; shots to be available within days",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/22/covid-vaccines-fda-approves-pfizer-moderna-updated-kppoint2-shots.html,2024-08-22T20:30:31+0000,"In this articleThe Food and Drug Administration on Thursday approved updated Covid vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna, putting the new shots on track to reach most Americans in the coming days amid a summer surge of the virus. The jabs target a strain called KP.2, a descendant of the highly contagious omicron subvariant JN.1 that began circulating widely in the U.S. earlier this year. KP.2 was the dominant Covid strain in May, but now only accounts for roughly 3% of all U.S. cases as of Saturday, according to the latest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data.Still, Pfizer and Moderna have said their KP.2 vaccines can produce stronger immune responses against other circulating subvariants of JN.1, such as KP.3 and LB.1, than last year's round of shots targeting the omicron strain XBB.1.5 can.""Given waning immunity of the population from previous exposure to the virus and from prior vaccination, we strongly encourage those who are eligible to consider receiving an updated COVID-19 vaccine to provide better protection against currently circulating variants,"" Dr. Peter Marks, director of the FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, said in a statement.In June, the CDC recommended that everyone over 6 months old receive an updated Covid vaccine and flu jab this year. The new shots from Pfizer and Moderna are specifically approved for people ages 12 and older and are authorized under emergency use for children 6 months through 11 years old.  Pfizer will begin shipping its new shot immediately and expects it to be available in pharmacies, hospitals and clinics across the U.S. ""beginning in the coming days,"" the company said in a statement. Moderna also expects its shot to be available in a similar time frame, according to a statement.""Staying up to date with your COVID-19 vaccine remains one of the best ways for people to be protected and prevent severe illness,"" Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel said in a statement. ""We appreciate the U.S. FDA's timely review and encourage individuals to speak to their healthcare providers about receiving their updated COVID-19 vaccine alongside their flu shot this fall.""The FDA's approval comes a few weeks ahead of last year's round of shots, which the agency cleared on Sept. 11.The earlier arrival of updated vaccines could offer some reassurance to Americans as the nation sees a relatively large spike in the virus this summer. A ""high"" or ""very high"" level of Covid is being detected in wastewater in almost every state, according to CDC data. Wastewater monitoring provides a glimpse of how widespread the virus is in the U.S. as other forms of testing have fallen off.Other measures of the virus are rising but remain far below where they were at the peak of the pandemic. Covid test positivity rates rose to 18.3% for the week ended Aug. 10, from 17.9% the week before, according to the CDC.Meanwhile, the CDC said about four people are being hospitalized for Covid for every 100,000 people in a given area. That's up from about one Covid hospitalization for every 100,000 people in May, which was the lowest level since the pandemic began. The summer Covid wave may decline by the time the shots reach patients' arms and kick in an immune response against the virus, which typically takes two weeks after vaccination. Still, federal health officials have long told Americans to expect annual updates to Covid shots as the virus churns out new strains that can dodge the immunity people have from previous vaccinations or infections — protection that wanes over time. It's similar to how the U.S. rolls out new flu vaccines every year. It's unclear how many Americans will actually roll up their sleeves to get another shot in the coming months.Only around 22.5% of U.S. adults received the latest round of shots that came out last fall, according to CDC data through early May. Many Americans who got previous rounds of Covid shots cited a lack of worry about the virus as a reason they didn't get the latest booster, according to a November survey from health policy research organization KFF. Others said they had been too busy to get their shot, the survey said.In June, the FDA asked vaccine makers to manufacture shots against JN.1 before telling them to target KP.2 instead ""if feasible.""That shift appeared to put Novavax, which filed for authorization of a new JN.1 shot that same month, at a disadvantage. The FDA has not cleared the biotech company's jab. In a statement, Novavax said it is working ""productively"" with the FDA as the agency completes its review. Novavax expects its shot to receive authorization in time for peak vaccination season in the U.S.The company noted that its shot provides protection against descendants of JN.1, including KP.2.3, KP.3, KP.3.1.1 and LB.1.Novavax manufactures protein-based vaccines, which cannot be quickly updated to target another strain of the virus. Protein-based technology is a decades-old method used in routine vaccinations against hepatitis B and shingles. Meanwhile, Pfizer's and Moderna's shots use messenger RNA technology, which teaches cells how to make proteins that trigger an immune response against Covid. The mRNA vaccines are much easier to develop and update than protein shots.",CNBC,22/08/2024,"['In this articleThe Food and Drug Administration on Thursday approved updated Covid vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna, putting the new shots on track to reach most Americans in the coming days amid a summer surge of the virus.', 'The jabs target a strain called KP.2, a descendant of the highly contagious omicron subvariant JN.1 that began circulating widely in the U.S. earlier this year.', 'KP.2 was the dominant Covid strain in May, but now only accounts for roughly 3% of all U.S. cases as of Saturday, according to the latest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data.', ""Still, Pfizer and Moderna have said their KP.2 vaccines can produce stronger immune responses against other circulating subvariants of JN.1, such as KP.3 and LB.1, than last year's round of shots targeting the omicron strain XBB.1.5 can."", '""Given waning immunity of the population from previous exposure to the virus and from prior vaccination, we strongly encourage those who are eligible to consider receiving an updated COVID-19 vaccine to provide better protection against currently circulating variants,"" Dr. Peter Marks, director of the FDA\'s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, said in a statement.', 'In June, the CDC recommended that everyone over 6 months old receive an updated Covid vaccine and flu jab this year.', 'The new shots from Pfizer and Moderna are specifically approved for people ages 12 and older and are authorized under emergency use for children 6 months through 11 years old.', 'Pfizer will begin shipping its new shot immediately and expects it to be available in pharmacies, hospitals and clinics across the U.S. ""beginning in the coming days,"" the company said in a statement.', 'Moderna also expectsitsshotto be available in a similar time frame, according to a statement.', '""Staying up to date with your COVID-19 vaccine remains one of the best ways for people to be protected and prevent severe illness,"" Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel said in a statement. ""', ""We appreciate the U.S. FDA's timely review and encourage individuals to speak to their healthcare providers about receiving their updated COVID-19 vaccine alongside their flu shot this fall."", '""The FDA\'s approval comes a few weeks ahead of last year\'s round of shots, which the agency cleared on Sept. 11.The earlier arrival of updated vaccines could offer some reassurance to Americans as the nation sees a relatively large spike in the virus this summer.', 'A ""high"" or ""very high"" level of Covid is being detected in wastewater in almost every state, according to CDC data.', 'Wastewater monitoring provides a glimpse of how widespread the virus is in the U.S. as other forms of testing have fallen off.', 'Other measures of the virus are rising but remain far below where they were at the peak of the pandemic.', 'Covid test positivity rates rose to 18.3% for the week ended Aug. 10, from 17.9% the week before, according to the CDC.Meanwhile, the CDC said about four people are being hospitalized for Covid for every 100,000 people in a given area.', ""That's up from about one Covid hospitalization for every 100,000 people in May, which was the lowest level since the pandemic began."", ""The summer Covid wave may decline by the time the shots reach patients' arms and kick in an immune response against the virus, which typically takes two weeks after vaccination."", 'Still, federal health officials have long told Americans to expect annual updates to Covid shots as the virus churns out new strains that can dodge the immunity people have from previous vaccinations or infections — protection that wanes over time.', ""It's similar to how the U.S. rolls out new flu vaccines every year."", ""It's unclear how many Americans will actually roll up their sleeves to get another shot in the coming months."", 'Only around 22.5% of U.S. adults received the latest round of shots that came out last fall, according to CDC data through early May.', ""Many Americans who got previous rounds of Covid shots cited a lack of worry about the virus as a reason they didn't get the latest booster, according to a November survey from health policy research organization KFF."", 'Others said they had been too busy to get their shot, the survey said.', 'In June, the FDA asked vaccine makers to manufacture shots against JN.1 before telling them to target KP.2 instead ""if feasible.', '""That shift appeared to put Novavax, which filed for authorization of a new JN.1 shot that same month, at a disadvantage.', ""The FDA has not cleared the biotech company's jab."", 'In a statement, Novavax said it is working ""productively"" with the FDA as the agency completes its review.', 'Novavax expects its shot to receive authorization in time for peak vaccination season in the U.S.The company noted that its shot provides protection against descendants of JN.1, including KP.2.3, KP.3, KP.3.1.1 and LB.1.Novavax manufactures protein-based vaccines, which cannot be quickly updated to target another strain of the virus.', 'Protein-based technology is a decades-old method used in routine vaccinations against hepatitis B and shingles.', ""Meanwhile, Pfizer's and Moderna's shots use messenger RNA technology, which teaches cells how to make proteins that trigger an immune response against Covid."", 'The mRNA vaccines are much easier to develop and update than protein shots.']",0.0488887973547498,"""Given waning immunity of the population from previous exposure to the virus and from prior vaccination, we strongly encourage those who are eligible to consider receiving an updated COVID-19 vaccine to provide better protection against currently circulating variants,"" Dr. Peter Marks, director of the FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, said in a statement.","Many Americans who got previous rounds of Covid shots cited a lack of worry about the virus as a reason they didn't get the latest booster, according to a November survey from health policy research organization KFF.",0.0050598631302515,"Covid test positivity rates rose to 18.3% for the week ended Aug. 10, from 17.9% the week before, according to the CDC.Meanwhile, the CDC said about four people are being hospitalized for Covid for every 100,000 people in a given area.","""That shift appeared to put Novavax, which filed for authorization of a new JN.1 shot that same month, at a disadvantage.",2024-08-31
"Lululemon cuts guidance, misses sales estimates after botched product launch",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/29/lululemon-lulu-earnings-q2-2024.html,2024-08-30T11:42:15+0000,"In this articleLululemon lowered its guidance and posted its first revenue miss in more than two years on Thursday after it botched a highly anticipated product launch and growth slowed in the Americas. The company now expects full-year net revenue to be between $10.38 billion and $10.48 billion, down from a previous range of between $10.7 billion and $10.8 billion. Lululemon anticipates earnings per share will be in a range of $13.95 to $14.15, down from previous guidance of $14.27 to $14.47.Here's how company did in its fiscal second quarter compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG, formerly known as Refinitiv:Lululemon shares rose more than 2% in extended trading after initially falling.The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended July 28 was $393 million, or $3.15 per share, compared with $342 million, or $2.68 per share, a year earlier. Sales rose to $2.37 billion, up about 7% from $2.21 billion a year earlier. Beyond total sales, Lululemon also missed expectations on comparable sales, which grew 2%, well behind estimates of 5.9%, according to StreetAccount. Comparable sales in the Americas fell 3%.The trend doesn't appear poised to improve in the current quarter. Lululemon said it expects sales to grow 6% to 7%, worse than the 9.2% growth that analysts had expected, according to LSEG.However, Lululemon's profit guidance is roughly in line with what Wall Street anticipated. The company said it expects third-quarter earnings per share to be between $2.68 and $2.73, compared with estimates of $2.70, according to LSEG.During the quarter, Lululemon pulled its Breezethrough leggings, launched in early July, after it received a wave of complaints about the product's unflattering fit.On a call with analysts, CEO Calvin McDonald addressed the Breezethrough launch and said it was an opportunity for the company to ""test and learn."" He added Lululemon bought a small amount of product for the launch.""While guests were excited by the fabric, the design didn't meet their expectations. Listening to our guests is central to who we are and how we grow our brand, and we took the right step of pausing on sales and look forward to reintroducing the fabric in the future,"" said McDonald. ""This decision had a negligible impact on our performance in this quarter.""The botched launch came after the company struggled with other self-inflicted issues with its assortment, including not having the colors and sizes that its core customers desired, which has had an impact on sales in the U.S. During the quarter, sales grew only 1% in the Americas, the company's largest region.On the call with analysts, McDonald acknowledged Lululemon's women's business has slowed down in the U.S. He said the company has determined the ""most significant factor"" affecting the segment is a lack of new styles, which has hurt sales of bottoms and the company's online business.""The newness that we had performed well. We simply did not have enough to inspire her to purchase,"" he said.McDonald insisted the Lululemon brand ""remains strong in the U.S. market"" and said its men's business continues to grow.""Guests are looking for our product, coming into our stores and visiting our e-commerce sites,"" said McDonald.Lululemon's product challenges follow the departure of its longtime chief product officer, Sun Choe, who resigned in May to pursue another opportunity. At the time, the decision weighed on Lululemon's stock over concerns that Choe's department would hurt the company's ability to innovate and keep winning over customers with trendy new fits.McDonald said Lululemon had a succession plan in place at the time of Choe's departure, and said the company's global creative director, Jonathan Cheung, would report directly to McDonald and oversee product design and innovation.The company also appointed Nikki Neuburger as its new chief brand and product activation officer, overseeing merchandising, footwear and product operations. On Thursday, McDonald said he and Neuberger are ""pleased"" with the new structure, which puts design and merchandising on ""equal footing"" and ""reestablishes the healthy balance that must exist within a product organization.""""The teams are working well together and already in action,"" said McDonald.Like other retailers that are seeing demand slow, Lululemon appears focused on what's within its control: operations and efficiency. While the sales picture during the quarter was rougher than expected, Lululemon's profits came in higher than anticipated.Gross profit grew 9% to $1.4 billion, while its gross margin increase 0.8 percentage point to 59.6% — better than the 57.7% that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount. Its operating margin and operating income also increased.Sales jumped 29% in Lululemon's international markets as the company looks to China for growth.",CNBC,30/08/2024,"['In this articleLululemon lowered its guidance and posted its first revenue miss in more than two years on Thursday after it botched a highly anticipated product launch and growth slowed in the Americas.', 'The company now expects full-year net revenue to be between $10.38 billion and $10.48 billion, down from a previous range of between $10.7 billion and $10.8 billion.', ""Lululemon anticipates earnings per share will be in a range of $13.95 to $14.15, down from previous guidance of $14.27 to $14.47.Here's how company did in its fiscal second quarter compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG, formerly known as Refinitiv:Lululemon shares rose more than 2% in extended trading after initially falling."", ""The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended July 28 was $393 million, or $3.15 per share, compared with $342 million, or $2.68 per share, a year earlier."", 'Sales rose to $2.37 billion, up about 7% from $2.21 billion a year earlier.', 'Beyond total sales, Lululemon also missed expectations on comparable sales, which grew 2%, well behind estimates of 5.9%, according to StreetAccount.', ""Comparable sales in the Americas fell 3%.The trend doesn't appear poised to improve in the current quarter."", ""Lululemon said it expects sales to grow 6% to 7%, worse than the 9.2% growth that analysts had expected, according to LSEG.However, Lululemon's profit guidance is roughly in line with what Wall Street anticipated."", ""The company said it expects third-quarter earnings per share to be between $2.68 and $2.73, compared with estimates of $2.70, according to LSEG.During the quarter, Lululemon pulled its Breezethrough leggings, launched in early July, after it received a wave of complaints about the product's unflattering fit."", 'On a call with analysts, CEO Calvin McDonald addressed the Breezethrough launch and said it was an opportunity for the company to ""test and learn.""', 'He added Lululemon bought a small amount of product for the launch.', '""While guests were excited by the fabric, the design didn\'t meet their expectations.', 'Listening to our guests is central to who we are and how we grow our brand, and we took the right step of pausing on sales and look forward to reintroducing the fabric in the future,"" said McDonald. ""', 'This decision had a negligible impact on our performance in this quarter.', '""The botched launch came after the company struggled with other self-inflicted issues with its assortment, including not having the colors and sizes that its core customers desired, which has had an impact on sales in the U.S. During the quarter, sales grew only 1% in the Americas, the company\'s largest region.', 'On the call with analysts, McDonald acknowledged Lululemon\'s women\'s business has slowed down in the U.S. He said the company has determined the ""most significant factor"" affecting the segment is a lack of new styles, which has hurt sales of bottoms and the company\'s online business.', '""The newness that we had performed well.', 'We simply did not have enough to inspire her to purchase,"" he said.', 'McDonald insisted the Lululemon brand ""remains strong in the U.S. market"" and said its men\'s business continues to grow.', '""Guests are looking for our product, coming into our stores and visiting our e-commerce sites,"" said McDonald.', ""Lululemon's product challenges follow the departure of its longtime chief product officer, Sun Choe, who resigned in May to pursue another opportunity."", ""At the time, the decision weighed on Lululemon's stock over concerns that Choe's department would hurt the company's ability to innovate and keep winning over customers with trendy new fits."", ""McDonald said Lululemon had a succession plan in place at the time of Choe's departure, and said the company's global creative director, Jonathan Cheung, would report directly to McDonald and oversee product design and innovation."", 'The company also appointed Nikki Neuburger as its new chief brand and product activation officer, overseeing merchandising, footwear and product operations.', 'On Thursday, McDonald said he and Neuberger are ""pleased"" with the new structure, which puts design and merchandising on ""equal footing"" and ""reestablishes the healthy balance that must exist within a product organization.', '""""The teams are working well together and already in action,"" said McDonald.', ""Like other retailers that are seeing demand slow, Lululemon appears focused on what's within its control: operations and efficiency."", ""While the sales picture during the quarter was rougher than expected, Lululemon's profits came in higher than anticipated."", 'Gross profit grew 9% to $1.4 billion, while its gross margin increase 0.8 percentage point to 59.6% — better than the 57.7% that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount.', 'Its operating margin and operating income also increased.', ""Sales jumped 29% in Lululemon's international markets as the company looks to China for growth.""]",0.2833159185811433,"McDonald said Lululemon had a succession plan in place at the time of Choe's departure, and said the company's global creative director, Jonathan Cheung, would report directly to McDonald and oversee product design and innovation.","On the call with analysts, McDonald acknowledged Lululemon's women's business has slowed down in the U.S. He said the company has determined the ""most significant factor"" affecting the segment is a lack of new styles, which has hurt sales of bottoms and the company's online business.",-0.0151658083001772,"Gross profit grew 9% to $1.4 billion, while its gross margin increase 0.8 percentage point to 59.6% — better than the 57.7% that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount.",In this articleLululemon lowered its guidance and posted its first revenue miss in more than two years on Thursday after it botched a highly anticipated product launch and growth slowed in the Americas.,2024-08-31
"Why Ford believes its $1.9 billion shift in EV strategy is the right choice for the company, investors",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/23/ford-ev-strategy-smaller-cars.html,2024-08-23T13:56:54+0000,"In this articleDETROIT – Ford Motor's profit engine for decades has been large trucks and SUVs in the U.S. So it might surprise investors that the automaker believes its new path to profitability for electric vehicles will first be led by smaller, more affordable vehicles.The new plan is an ""insurance policy"" for the automaker to be able to expand its growingly popular hybrid models and create more affordable EVs that it believes will deliver a more capital-efficient, profitable electric vehicle business for the company and investors, according to Marin Gjaja, Ford's chief operating officer for its Model e EV unit.""We're quite convinced that the highest adoption rates for electric vehicles will be in the affordable segment on the lower size-end of the range,"" he told CNBC on Thursday. ""We have to play there in order to compete with the entrants that are coming.""Those expected newcomers are largely Chinese automakers, such as Warren Buffett-backed BYD, that have been rapidly growing from their home market to Europe and other countries.Gjaja's comments came a day after the automaker announced updates to its EV strategy that will cost up to $1.9 billion. That includes about $400 million for the write-down of manufacturing assets, as well as additional expenses and cash expenditures of up to $1.5 billion.Ford's new plans for North America include canceling a large, electric three-row SUV that was already far in development, delaying production of its next-generation ""T3"" electric full-size pickup truck by about 18 months until late 2027, and refocusing battery production and sourcing to the U.S.Instead of the three-row SUV or large pickup, the company's first new EV is expected to be a commercial van in 2026, followed the next year by a midsized pickup and then the T3 full-size pickup.Gjaja said the decision wasn't taken lightly, especially the cancellation of the upcoming three-row vehicle, which Ford CEO Jim Farley and other executives had been touting as a game changer for several years.The commercial van comes as Ford's ""Pro"" commercial vehicle and fleet business, which includes vans and large Super Duty trucks, has been a standout for the company and offset billions of dollars in EV losses.And the midsize pickup is scheduled to be the first vehicle from a specialized ""skunkworks"" team in California, The company had tasked the team two years ago with developing a new small EV platform.""We believe smaller, more affordable vehicles are the way to go for EV in volume. Why? Because the math is completely different than [internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles],"" Farley told investors last month. ""In ICE, a business we've been in for 120 years, the bigger the vehicle, the higher the margin. But it's exactly the opposite for EVs.""Farley has said the weight and cost of battery packs needed for large vehicles such as a three-row SUV, which many families buy for road trips, towing and hauling, are a limitation for EVs due to current ranges and charging networks.Ford's current EVs — the Mustang Mach-E crossover, F-150 Lightning and a commercial van in the U.S. – are not profitable overall. The Model e operations have lost nearly $2.5 billion during the first half of this year and lost $4.7 billion in 2023.The losses, as well as changing market conditions and business plans, caused Ford earlier this year to withdraw an ambitious 8% profit margin for its EV unit by 2026.Investors and Wall Street analysts have largely supported the EV changes, most recently sending the company's shares up about 2.3% since the announcement earlier this week, despite the expected costs.""Overall, these changes will position Ford to benefit from growing demand for EVs, while also focusing on areas in which it has a Core competitive advantage,"" BofA's John Murphy wrote Wednesday in an investor note. ""Given the size of the charge, this is clearly a tough decision in the short-term, but we think makes sense in the medium to long-term given what will likely be subpar economics in the three-row CUV/SUV segment.""The updates are the latest for Ford's electrification plans, which now include a heavy focus on hybrid and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, or PHEVs, to assist in meeting tightening fuel economy regulations in addition to all-electric vehicles.Ford CFO John Lawler said Wednesday that the company's future capital expenditure plans will shift from spending about 40% on all-electric vehicles to spending 30%. He did not give a timeline for the change, but it's a massive swing from when the company announced plans in 2021 to spend more than $30 billion on EVs through 2025.The hybrid plans include offering such options across its entire North American lineup by 2030, including three-row SUVs, to assist in meeting tightening emissions and fuel economy requirements. Lawler said that to improve profitability, Ford is also accelerating the mix of battery production in the U.S. that will qualify for tax incentives and credits.The shift in Ford's plans is consistent with the overall auto industry, which is facing growing, but slower-than-expected adoption of EVs, as well as automakers not being able to achieve expected profitability on the vehicles.""What we saw in '21 and '22 was a temporary market spike where the demand for EVs really took off,"" Gjaja told CNBC during an interview earlier this year. ""It's still growing but not nearly at the rate we thought it might have in '21, '22.""There's also an industrywide fear that Chinese automakers could be able to flood markets with cheaper, more profitable EVs. Chinese automakers such as BYD are quickly growing exports of vehicles to Europe and other countries.Lawler pushed back Wednesday on the idea that the Chinese have outgunned American automakers. He said the Ford, in part, developed the skunkworks team to prove that Ford can compete against the Chinese automakers.""As we've watched in the last 18 to 24 months, the emergence of incredible products and formidable competitors in China has really been, I think, the story for us,"" Gjaja said. ""And so now, when we look at the competitive landscape, we have to chin ourselves against the most competitive companies in China.""Ford's new plans are polar opposite of its closest rival, General Motors.America's largest automaker has pulled back spending and delayed many of its EVs, but it has several large all-electric vehicles on sale coming soon.GM was among the first to go ""all in"" on EVs, including by creating a vertically integrated, dedicated electric vehicle platform and supporting technologies such as batteries and motors.Aside from Tesla, GM was the first automaker to begin U.S. battery cell manufacturing through a joint venture at scale, which the company has continued to tout as a cost advantageGM's current lineup includes three all-electric large pickup trucks, a Hummer SUV, two recently launched Chevrolet crossovers, a luxury Cadillac crossover and $300,000 Celestiq car. Several more crossover models and an all-electric Escalade SUV are expected to join the lineup this year as well.As recently as last month, GM reconfirmed expectations for its EVs to be profitable on a production, or contribution-margin basis, once it reaches output of 200,000 units by the fourth quarter.A GM spokesman Thursday said the automaker continues ""to work to reach variable profit positive during the fourth quarter.""Gjaja declined to comment on GM's target or operations but said Ford is doing what's best for the company.""We're focusing on what we think are the right technologies to serve our customers that can also be affordable for them and profitable for us,"" he said.",CNBC,23/08/2024,"[""In this articleDETROIT – Ford Motor's profit engine for decades has been large trucks and SUVs in the U.S. So it might surprise investors that the automaker believes its new path to profitability for electric vehicles will first be led by smaller, more affordable vehicles."", 'The new plan is an ""insurance policy"" for the automaker to be able to expand its growingly popular hybrid models and create more affordable EVs that it believes will deliver a more capital-efficient, profitable electric vehicle business for the company and investors, according to Marin Gjaja, Ford\'s chief operating officer for its Model e EV unit.', '""We\'re quite convinced that the highest adoption rates for electric vehicles will be in the affordable segment on the lower size-end of the range,"" he told CNBC on Thursday. ""', 'We have to play there in order to compete with the entrants that are coming.', '""Those expected newcomers are largely Chinese automakers, such as Warren Buffett-backed BYD, that have been rapidly growing from their home market to Europe and other countries.', ""Gjaja's comments came a day after the automaker announced updates to its EV strategy that will cost up to $1.9 billion."", 'That includes about $400 million for the write-down of manufacturing assets, as well as additional expenses and cash expenditures of up to $1.5 billion.', 'Ford\'s new plans for North America include canceling a large, electric three-row SUV that was already far in development, delaying production of its next-generation ""T3"" electric full-size pickup truck by about 18 months until late 2027, and refocusing battery production and sourcing to the U.S.Instead of the three-row SUV or large pickup, the company\'s first new EV is expected to be a commercial van in 2026, followed the next year by a midsized pickup and then the T3 full-size pickup.', ""Gjaja said the decision wasn't taken lightly, especially the cancellation of the upcoming three-row vehicle, which Ford CEO Jim Farley and other executives had been touting as a game changer for several years."", 'The commercial van comes as Ford\'s ""Pro"" commercial vehicle and fleet business, which includes vans and large Super Duty trucks, has been a standout for the company and offset billions of dollars in EV losses.', 'And the midsize pickup is scheduled to be the first vehicle from a specialized ""skunkworks"" team in California, The company had tasked the team two years ago with developing a new small EV platform.', '""We believe smaller, more affordable vehicles are the way to go for EV in volume.', 'Why?', 'Because the math is completely different than [internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles],"" Farley told investors last month. ""', ""In ICE, a business we've been in for 120 years, the bigger the vehicle, the higher the margin."", ""But it's exactly the opposite for EVs."", '""Farley has said the weight and cost of battery packs needed for large vehicles such as a three-row SUV, which many families buy for road trips, towing and hauling, are a limitation for EVs due to current ranges and charging networks.', ""Ford's current EVs — the Mustang Mach-E crossover, F-150 Lightning and a commercial van in the U.S. – are not profitable overall."", ""The Model e operations have lost nearly $2.5 billion during the first half of this year and lost $4.7 billion in 2023.The losses, as well as changing market conditions and business plans, caused Ford earlier this year to withdraw an ambitious 8% profit margin for its EV unit by 2026.Investors and Wall Street analysts have largely supported the EV changes, most recently sending the company's shares up about 2.3% since the announcement earlier this week, despite the expected costs."", '""Overall, these changes will position Ford to benefit from growing demand for EVs, while also focusing on areas in which it has a Core competitive advantage,"" BofA\'s John Murphy wrote Wednesday in an investor note. ""', 'Given the size of the charge, this is clearly a tough decision in the short-term, but we think makes sense in the medium to long-term given what will likely be subpar economics in the three-row CUV/SUV segment.', '""The updates are the latest for Ford\'s electrification plans, which now include a heavy focus on hybrid and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, or PHEVs, to assist in meeting tightening fuel economy regulations in addition to all-electric vehicles.', ""Ford CFO John Lawler said Wednesday that the company's future capital expenditure plans will shift from spending about 40% on all-electric vehicles to spending 30%."", ""He did not give a timeline for the change, but it's a massive swing from when the company announced plans in 2021 to spend more than $30 billion on EVs through 2025.The hybrid plans include offering such options across its entire North American lineup by 2030, including three-row SUVs, to assist in meeting tightening emissions and fuel economy requirements."", 'Lawler said that to improve profitability, Ford is also accelerating the mix of battery production in the U.S. that will qualify for tax incentives and credits.', ""The shift in Ford's plans is consistent with the overall auto industry, which is facing growing, but slower-than-expected adoption of EVs, as well as automakers not being able to achieve expected profitability on the vehicles."", '""What we saw in \'21 and \'22 was a temporary market spike where the demand for EVs really took off,"" Gjaja told CNBC during an interview earlier this year. ""', 'It\'s still growing but not nearly at the rate we thought it might have in \'21, \'22.""There\'s also an industrywide fear that Chinese automakers could be able to flood markets with cheaper, more profitable EVs.', 'Chinese automakers such as BYD are quickly growing exports of vehicles to Europe and other countries.', 'Lawler pushed back Wednesday on the idea that the Chinese have outgunned American automakers.', 'He said the Ford, in part, developed the skunkworks team to prove that Ford can compete against the Chinese automakers.', '""As we\'ve watched in the last 18 to 24 months, the emergence of incredible products and formidable competitors in China has really been, I think, the story for us,"" Gjaja said. ""', 'And so now, when we look at the competitive landscape, we have to chin ourselves against the most competitive companies in China.', '""Ford\'s new plans are polar opposite of its closest rival, General Motors.', ""America's largest automaker has pulled back spending and delayed many of its EVs, but it has several large all-electric vehicles on sale coming soon."", 'GM was among the first to go ""all in"" on EVs, including by creating a vertically integrated, dedicated electric vehicle platform and supporting technologies such as batteries and motors.', ""Aside from Tesla, GM was the first automaker to begin U.S. battery cell manufacturing through a joint venture at scale, which the company has continued to tout as a cost advantageGM's current lineup includes three all-electric large pickup trucks, a Hummer SUV, two recently launched Chevrolet crossovers, a luxury Cadillac crossover and $300,000 Celestiq car."", 'Several more crossover models and an all-electric Escalade SUV are expected to join the lineup this year as well.', 'As recently as last month, GM reconfirmed expectations for its EVs to be profitable on a production, or contribution-margin basis, once it reaches output of 200,000 units by the fourth quarter.', 'A GM spokesman Thursday said the automaker continues ""to work to reach variable profit positive during the fourth quarter.', '""Gjaja declined to comment on GM\'s target or operations but said Ford is doing what\'s best for the company.', '""We\'re focusing on what we think are the right technologies to serve our customers that can also be affordable for them and profitable for us,"" he said.']",0.2265440827974339,"The new plan is an ""insurance policy"" for the automaker to be able to expand its growingly popular hybrid models and create more affordable EVs that it believes will deliver a more capital-efficient, profitable electric vehicle business for the company and investors, according to Marin Gjaja, Ford's chief operating officer for its Model e EV unit.","Ford's current EVs — the Mustang Mach-E crossover, F-150 Lightning and a commercial van in the U.S. – are not profitable overall.",0.4859956295593925,"""Overall, these changes will position Ford to benefit from growing demand for EVs, while also focusing on areas in which it has a Core competitive advantage,"" BofA's John Murphy wrote Wednesday in an investor note. ""","The Model e operations have lost nearly $2.5 billion during the first half of this year and lost $4.7 billion in 2023.The losses, as well as changing market conditions and business plans, caused Ford earlier this year to withdraw an ambitious 8% profit margin for its EV unit by 2026.Investors and Wall Street analysts have largely supported the EV changes, most recently sending the company's shares up about 2.3% since the announcement earlier this week, despite the expected costs.",2024-08-31
Trump: 'IVF should be paid for by insurance or government',https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/clyg1rlnywyo,2024-08-30T01:02:13.341Z,"Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has said that in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) treatments will be paid for by insurance companies or the government if he returns to the White House.  “I was always for IVF. Right from the beginning, as soon as we heard about it,"" he told NBC News on Thursday. The new campaign pledge comes after his Democratic rival, Vice-President Kamala Harris, and other members of her party have alleged that Republican-led abortion restrictions in some states could further threaten access to fertility treatments. Trump's announcement could put him at odds with some conservative anti-abortion activists who want to ban IVF for discarding unused human embryos. But he committed to the new position on Thursday in the interview with NBC. ""Under the Trump administration, we are going to be paying for that treatment,"" Trump told the news outlet. ""Or we're going to be mandating that the insurance company pay."" IVF treatments can be very expensive - often around $20,000 (£15,000) per round - and are rarely covered by insurance in the US. Trump did not explain how this new policy would work or be put into effect.  The Harris-Walz campaign was quick to respond to the former president's new policy position, blaming him for the US Supreme Court's decision to overturn the landmark 1973 abortion case - Roe v Wade - which eliminated the national right to abortion. State governments can now decide Americans' access to abortion, and at least 14 have banned or put severe restrictions on the procedure.  ""Because Trump overturned Roe v. Wade, IVF is already under attack and women’s freedoms have been ripped away in states across the country,"" said Harris campaign spokeswoman Sarafina Chitika in response to Trump's comments on Thursday.  Trump has previously bragged about appointing three of the six conservatives on the Supreme Court who backed overturning the abortion access law.  ""I was able to kill Roe v Wade,"" the former president posted online in May 2023. But Trump has attempted to distance himself from his record on abortion, as Harris capitalises on voter concerns about how Republicans could affect reproductive rights. In his interview, Trump - a Florida resident - also said he planned to vote against a Florida state ballot measure that would prohibit abortion after six weeks, with some exceptions. ""I think the six-week [ban] is too short. There has to be more time,"" he said. ""I am going to be voting that we need more than six weeks."" IVF became a new political lightning rod in America's debate over abortion access in February.  That's when the Republican-controlled Alabama Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos created through IVF are considered children under state law. At the time, Trump called on Alabama lawmakers to ""quickly find an immediate solution to preserve the availability of IVF in Alabama"". They passed a law protecting IVF in March. The ruling was a political headache for Republicans, forcing several leaders to put out statements objecting to the Alabama ruling that had the possibility of damaging their prospects in an election year.  Forty-two percent of Americans have either used IVF treatments or known someone who did, according to a Pew Survey last year. That percentage rises with increased earnings - 45% among middle-income Americans and 59% for those with high-incomes. Those individuals are more likely to be white Americans who vote Republican, and many are ones whom Trump hopes to bring back into the political fold after losing their support in 2020. Trump told supporter about his new position at a rally in Michigan on Thursday.  ""Your government will pay for, or your insurance company will be mandated to pay for, all costs associated with IVF treatment,"" he said. But Democrats continued to reject that a Trump administration would adopt such a policy on Thursday night.  ""Americans have seen with their own eyes how Donald Trump overturned Roe v Wade and paved the way for extreme Maga Republicans to restrict IVF and pass cruel abortion bans across the country, hurting women and families,"" Democratic National Committee Spokesperson Aida Ross said in a statement.  ""When voters head to the ballot box this November, they will vote for the Harris-Walz ticket to protect our freedoms - not Trump and Vance’s all-out assault on our basic rights.” ",BBC,30/08/2024,"['Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has said that in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) treatments will be paid for by insurance companies or the government if he returns to the White House. “', 'I was always for IVF.', 'Right from the beginning, as soon as we heard about it,"" he told NBC News on Thursday.', 'The new campaign pledge comes after his Democratic rival, Vice-President Kamala Harris, and other members of her party have alleged that Republican-led abortion restrictions in some states could further threaten access to fertility treatments.', ""Trump's announcement could put him at odds with some conservative anti-abortion activists who want to ban IVF for discarding unused human embryos."", 'But he committed to the new position on Thursday in the interview with NBC. ""', 'Under the Trump administration, we are going to be paying for that treatment,"" Trump told the news outlet. ""', 'Or we\'re going to be mandating that the insurance company pay.""', 'IVF treatments can be very expensive - often around $20,000 (£15,000) per round - and are rarely covered by insurance in the US.', 'Trump did not explain how this new policy would work or be put into effect.', ""The Harris-Walz campaign was quick to respond to the former president's new policy position, blaming him for the US Supreme Court's decision to overturn the landmark 1973 abortion case - Roe v Wade - which eliminated the national right to abortion."", 'State governments can now decide Americans\' access to abortion, and at least 14 have banned or put severe restrictions on the procedure. ""', 'Because Trump overturned Roe v. Wade, IVF is already under attack and women’s freedoms have been ripped away in states across the country,"" said Harris campaign spokeswoman Sarafina Chitika in response to Trump\'s comments on Thursday.', 'Trump has previously bragged about appointing three of the six conservatives on the Supreme Court who backed overturning the abortion access law. ""', 'I was able to kill Roe v Wade,"" the former president posted online in May 2023.', 'But Trump has attempted to distance himself from his record on abortion, as Harris capitalises on voter concerns about how Republicans could affect reproductive rights.', 'In his interview, Trump - a Florida resident - also said he planned to vote against a Florida state ballot measure that would prohibit abortion after six weeks, with some exceptions. ""', 'I think the six-week [ban] is too short.', 'There has to be more time,"" he said. ""', 'I am going to be voting that we need more than six weeks.""', ""IVF became a new political lightning rod in America's debate over abortion access in February."", ""That's when the Republican-controlled Alabama Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos created through IVF are considered children under state law."", 'At the time, Trump called on Alabama lawmakers to ""quickly find an immediate solution to preserve the availability of IVF in Alabama"".', 'They passed a law protecting IVF in March.', 'The ruling was a political headache for Republicans, forcing several leaders to put out statements objecting to the Alabama ruling that had the possibility of damaging their prospects in an election year.', 'Forty-two percent of Americans have either used IVF treatments or known someone who did, according to a Pew Survey last year.', 'That percentage rises with increased earnings - 45% among middle-income Americans and 59% for those with high-incomes.', 'Those individuals are more likely to be white Americans who vote Republican, and many are ones whom Trump hopes to bring back into the political fold after losing their support in 2020.', 'Trump told supporter about his new position at a rally in Michigan on Thursday. ""', 'Your government will pay for, or your insurance company will be mandated to pay for, all costs associated with IVF treatment,"" he said.', 'But Democrats continued to reject that a Trump administration would adopt such a policy on Thursday night. ""', 'Americans have seen with their own eyes how Donald Trump overturned Roe v Wade and paved the way for extreme Maga Republicans to restrict IVF and pass cruel abortion bans across the country, hurting women and families,"" Democratic National Committee Spokesperson Aida Ross said in a statement. ""', 'When voters head to the ballot box this November, they will vote for the Harris-Walz ticket to protect our freedoms - not Trump and Vance’s all-out assault on our basic rights.”']",-0.0463203650593945,That's when the Republican-controlled Alabama Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos created through IVF are considered children under state law.,"Americans have seen with their own eyes how Donald Trump overturned Roe v Wade and paved the way for extreme Maga Republicans to restrict IVF and pass cruel abortion bans across the country, hurting women and families,"" Democratic National Committee Spokesperson Aida Ross said in a statement. """,-0.6501393417517344,That percentage rises with increased earnings - 45% among middle-income Americans and 59% for those with high-incomes.,"The ruling was a political headache for Republicans, forcing several leaders to put out statements objecting to the Alabama ruling that had the possibility of damaging their prospects in an election year.",2024-08-31
"Mavericks, Pelicans games are leaving their local sports networks ahead of NBA season",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/26/mavericks-pelicans-games-leave-local-networks-amid-diamond-bankruptcy.html,2024-08-26T20:44:33+0000,"Dallas Mavericks and New Orleans Pelicans fans are waiting for a new way to watch local games in the upcoming National Basketball Association season.Both teams are exiting their regional sports networks owned by Diamond Sports, according to a Friday bankruptcy court filing.The NBA season is set to begin Oct. 22. While neither franchise has publicly announced where its local games will be aired, both teams have a history of televising their games with local broadcasters.The Pelicans have reached an agreement in principle with Gray Television to air games this season, a person close to the team told CNBC, confirming earlier media reports. Representatives for Gray and the Pelicans declined to comment on the matter.Last season, the Pelicans aired 10 of their matchups on Gray's local stations, and the Mavericks, who appeared in last season's NBA Finals, entered a 13-game agreement with Tegna's Dallas-Fort Worth stations.Representatives for the Mavericks and Tegna did not immediately respond to CNBC's requests asking who would broadcast their local games.The Mavericks and Pelicans are the latest teams to move the bulk of their regular-season games from their Diamond-owned regional sports networks, which are under the Bally Sports brand.Diamond Sports has spent the past 18 months trying to navigate its way out of bankruptcy, and along the way, several NBA, WNBA and National Hockey League teams have ditched regional sports networks in favor of local broadcasters. Some Major League Baseball teams that have left these networks will now have their games produced by the league.Diamond Sports will receive $1.3 million and more than $297,000 in repayments from the Mavericks and Pelicans, respectively, as part of the terminations, according to the court filing.The split with the Mavericks and Pelicans comes as Diamond enters into broadcast and streaming rights agreements with the NBA and NHL for the upcoming season as part of its bankruptcy process. The deals are subject to court approval.""We are appreciative of the ongoing collaboration and long-term partnerships with the NBA and NHL,"" Diamond Sports CEO David Preschlack said in a statement, adding the deals with the leagues ""are another major milestone"" toward exiting bankruptcy protection.Diamond Sports has been one of many companies crushed by the decline of cable. Though it launched a sports-only streaming service for some of its teams in 2022, the company's $8 billion debt load was too staggering to stop it from filing for bankruptcy protection.As the NBA and NHL seasons near, Diamond has also faced more pressure in recent months to form a viable business plan and prove it can make the necessary rights payments.Diamond marked another milestone this summer when it reached a deal to return its networks to Comcast's cable TV customers. The Bally Sports networks went dark on Comcast — Diamond's third largest distributor — in early May.Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal and CNBC.",CNBC,26/08/2024,"['Dallas Mavericks and New Orleans Pelicans fans are waiting for a new way to watch local games in the upcoming National Basketball Association season.', 'Both teams are exiting their regional sports networks owned by Diamond Sports, according to a Friday bankruptcy court filing.', 'The NBA season is set to begin Oct. 22.', 'While neither franchise has publicly announced where its local games will be aired, both teams have a history of televising their games with local broadcasters.', 'The Pelicans have reached an agreement in principle with Gray Television to air games this season,a personclose to the team told CNBC, confirming earlier media reports.', 'Representatives for Gray and the Pelicans declined to comment on the matter.', ""Last season, the Pelicans aired 10 of their matchups on Gray's local stations, and the Mavericks, who appeared in last season's NBA Finals, entered a 13-game agreement with Tegna's Dallas-Fort Worth stations."", ""Representatives for the Mavericks and Tegna did not immediately respond to CNBC's requests asking who would broadcast their local games."", 'The Mavericks and Pelicans are the latest teams to move the bulk of their regular-season games from their Diamond-owned regional sports networks, which are under the Bally Sports brand.', 'Diamond Sports has spent the past 18 months trying to navigate its way out of bankruptcy, and along the way, several NBA, WNBA and National Hockey League teams have ditched regional sports networks in favor of local broadcasters.', 'Some Major League Baseball teams that have left these networks will now have their games produced by the league.', 'Diamond Sports will receive $1.3 million and more than $297,000 in repayments from the Mavericks and Pelicans, respectively, as part of the terminations, according to the court filing.', 'The split with the Mavericks and Pelicans comes as Diamond enters into broadcast and streaming rights agreements with the NBA and NHL for the upcoming season as part of its bankruptcy process.', 'The deals are subject to court approval.', '""We are appreciative of the ongoing collaboration and long-term partnerships with the NBA and NHL,"" Diamond Sports CEO David Preschlack said in a statement, adding the deals with the leagues ""are another major milestone"" toward exiting bankruptcy protection.', 'Diamond Sports has been one of many companies crushed by the decline of cable.', ""Though it launched a sports-only streaming service for some of its teams in 2022, the company's $8 billion debt load was too staggering to stop it from filing for bankruptcy protection."", 'As the NBA and NHL seasons near, Diamond has also faced more pressure in recent months to form a viable business plan and prove it can make the necessary rights payments.', ""Diamond marked another milestone this summer when it reached a deal to return its networks to Comcast's cable TV customers."", ""The Bally Sports networks went dark on Comcast — Diamond's third largest distributor — in early May."", 'Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal and CNBC.']",0.2369959799857742,"""We are appreciative of the ongoing collaboration and long-term partnerships with the NBA and NHL,"" Diamond Sports CEO David Preschlack said in a statement, adding the deals with the leagues ""are another major milestone"" toward exiting bankruptcy protection.","Though it launched a sports-only streaming service for some of its teams in 2022, the company's $8 billion debt load was too staggering to stop it from filing for bankruptcy protection.",-0.2300930470228195,Diamond marked another milestone this summer when it reached a deal to return its networks to Comcast's cable TV customers.,Diamond Sports has been one of many companies crushed by the decline of cable.,2024-08-31
"Fuel duty cut could be scrapped, says RAC",https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cm2nrneym82o,2024-08-29T08:15:35.559Z,"A 5p cut in fuel duty is expected to be scrapped in the upcoming Budget, according to the RAC motoring organisation, because drivers are not gaining any benefit. The RAC has claimed that retailers have failed to pass on lower petrol and diesel prices to motorists and instead have boosted their own profits.   On Wednesday, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer refused to rule out a rise in fuel duty in the forthcoming Budget.  Chancellor Rachel Reeves will set out Labour's first Budget on 30 October, which Sir Keir has warned ""will be painful"". Fuel duty has been frozen for more than a decade under the Conservative government. In 2022, the then chancellor Rishi Sunak cut it by 5p per litre. That was extended until March next year. Simon Williams, head of policy at the RAC, said Ms Reeves ""knows the 5p discount is losing the Treasury £2bn a year"". The UK's competition watchdog recently found that drivers were still paying too much for fuel, costing them £1.6bn in 2023. Consequently, the RAC said it had reached the conclusion that Ms Reeves ""has no option but to put fuel duty back up"". “We’d normally be against any increase in duty,"" said Mr Williams. ""But we’ve long been saying drivers haven’t been benefitting from the current discount due to much higher-than-average retailer margins."" Sir Keir has refused to rule out any changes to fuel duty. During the election, Labour pledged to protect ""working people"" by not raising income tax, VAT or national insurance. In response to whether an increase in fuel duty would be a tax increase for working people, Sir Keir said on Wednesday that Labour would stick to its past promises on tax. ""Beyond that, I'm not going to speculate about the Budget,"" he said. Ms Reeves has also refused to comment on speculation that she may increase inheritance tax, capital gains tax or reform tax relief on pensions. A Treasury spokesperson said: “The chancellor will set out decisions on tax policy at the Budget on 30 October.” The chancellor has already set out plans to scrap winter fuel payments for pensioners in England and Wales who are not on benefits.  Within weeks of taking over, Labour claimed that it had uncovered a major shortfall in public finances - which former chancellor Jeremy Hunt has denied. The AA is opposed to the 5p cut being scrapped. The motoring group said the government already takes 52.95p per litre in fuel duty as well as 20% in VAT. The Office for Budget Responsibility, the independent fiscal watchdog, forecasts that duties on petrol, diesel and other fuels will raise £24.7bn for 2023-24.  The AA said an increase in fuel duty ""could backfire by fuelling inflation and hitting those in rural areas who have no alternative to the car, disabled drivers, and low-income shift workers"". According to the latest figures from the RAC, the average price for a litre of unleaded petrol is 142.17p across the UK and 147.02p for diesel.  Last month, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) found that supermarkets' profit margins - the difference between the price they pay to buy fuel and what they charge motorists - had doubled since 2019. The CMA's chief executive, Sarah Cardell, said she would work with the new government to introduce a ""real-time fuel finder scheme"" to show motorists where the cheapest petrol and diesel prices are in their area.   ",BBC,29/08/2024,"['A 5p cut in fuel duty is expected to be scrapped in the upcoming Budget, according to the RAC motoring organisation, because drivers are not gaining any benefit.', 'The RAC has claimed that retailers have failed to pass on lower petrol and diesel prices to motorists and instead have boosted their own profits.', 'On Wednesday, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer refused to rule out a rise in fuel duty in the forthcoming Budget.', 'Chancellor Rachel Reeves will set out Labour\'s first Budget on 30 October, which Sir Keir has warned ""will be painful"".', 'Fuel duty has been frozen for more than a decade under the Conservative government.', 'In 2022, the then chancellor Rishi Sunak cut it by 5p per litre.', 'That was extended until March next year.', 'Simon Williams, head of policy at the RAC, said Ms Reeves ""knows the 5p discount is losing the Treasury £2bn a year"".', ""The UK's competition watchdog recently found that drivers were still paying too much for fuel, costing them £1.6bn in 2023."", 'Consequently, the RAC said it had reached the conclusion that Ms Reeves ""has no option but to put fuel duty back up"". “', 'We’d normally be against any increase in duty,"" said Mr Williams. ""', 'But we’ve long been saying drivers haven’t been benefitting from the current discount due to much higher-than-average retailer margins.""', 'Sir Keir has refused to rule out any changes to fuel duty.', 'During the election, Labour pledged to protect ""working people"" by not raising income tax, VAT or national insurance.', 'In response to whether an increase in fuel duty would be a tax increase for working people, Sir Keir said on Wednesday that Labour would stick to its past promises on tax. ""', 'Beyond that, I\'m not going to speculate about the Budget,"" he said.', 'Ms Reeves has also refused to comment on speculation that she may increase inheritance tax, capital gains tax or reform tax relief on pensions.', 'A Treasury spokesperson said: “The chancellor will set out decisions on tax policy at the Budget on 30 October.”', 'The chancellor has already set out plans to scrap winter fuel payments for pensioners in England and Wales who are not on benefits.', 'Within weeks of taking over, Labour claimed that it had uncovered a major shortfall in public finances - which former chancellor Jeremy Hunt has denied.', 'The AA is opposed to the 5p cut being scrapped.', 'The motoring group said the government already takes 52.95p per litre in fuel duty as well as 20% in VAT.', 'The Office for Budget Responsibility, the independent fiscal watchdog, forecasts that duties on petrol, diesel and other fuels will raise £24.7bn for 2023-24.', 'The AA said an increase in fuel duty ""could backfire by fuelling inflation and hitting those in rural areas who have no alternative to the car, disabled drivers, and low-income shift workers"".', 'According to the latest figures from the RAC, the average price for a litre of unleaded petrol is 142.17p across the UK and 147.02p for diesel.', ""Last month, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) found that supermarkets' profit margins - the difference between the price they pay to buy fuel and what they charge motorists - had doubled since 2019."", 'The CMA\'s chief executive, Sarah Cardell, said she would work with the new government to introduce a ""real-time fuel finder scheme"" to show motorists where the cheapest petrol and diesel prices are in their area.']",-0.0062710962480952,"In response to whether an increase in fuel duty would be a tax increase for working people, Sir Keir said on Wednesday that Labour would stick to its past promises on tax. ""","A 5p cut in fuel duty is expected to be scrapped in the upcoming Budget, according to the RAC motoring organisation, because drivers are not gaining any benefit.",-0.3151469975709915,"Last month, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) found that supermarkets' profit margins - the difference between the price they pay to buy fuel and what they charge motorists - had doubled since 2019.","Within weeks of taking over, Labour claimed that it had uncovered a major shortfall in public finances - which former chancellor Jeremy Hunt has denied.",2024-08-31
"Lego revenue jumps 13% in first half of 2024, boosted by Lego Fortnite and diverse brick sets",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/28/lego-revenue-first-half-2024.html,2024-08-28T15:07:41+0000,"An inflation-fueled sales slump hit the toy industry in the first half of 2024, but one company is gaining market share brick by brick.On Wednesday, Lego said revenue during the first six months of the year jumped 13%, reaching 31 billion Danish kroner, or about $4.65 billion.Niels Christiansen, CEO of the privately held Danish toymaker, told CNBC that the company is seeing strength across its portfolio, especially with Lego Icons and Lego Creator, and through its partnership with Epic Games' Fortnite.Last year, Lego saw a trend of consumers ""trading down"" or opting for lower-priced sets, while still buying the same volume as the year before. This year, volume is up, Christiansen said.""To the extent they traded down last year, they're not trading further down,"" he said. ""So that has stabilized. And we see almost all of the growth is actually growth in volume.""Meanwhile, publicly traded rival Mattel saw net sales fall 1% in the first six months of 2024 and Hasbro reported that its net revenue fell 21% between January and the end of June. Mattel is facing tough comparisons from toy sales fueled by ""Barbie"" in 2023, and Hasbro is still reeling from its divestment of eOne.Lego has continued to build on pandemic-era growth with a diverse slate of products that cater to kids and adults alike. In addition to sets tied to popular franchises such as Harry Potter and Star Wars, Lego also has innovative design options for consumers to build flowers and succulents, famous works of art and animals.Sales in the U.S. and Europe remain strong, Christiansen noted, while China sales are flat. He said consumers in the region are spending less on bigger-ticket items, and their frequency of purchasing is down.However, Lego is not giving up on expansion in China. Christiansen said there is still ""long-term potential"" in the area.Of the 40 Lego stores that opened in the first quarter, 20 were in China. Similarly, of the 60 planned openings in the second half of the year, 20 are set for China.Christiansen also touted Lego's sustainability efforts. So far this year, the company has nearly doubled the amount of renewable and recyclable materials it uses in its bricks compared to full-year 2023.""That's a good milestone,"" he said. ""That's a good step forward. [We are] spending quite significantly on that in a couple of ways, primarily in buying material that is more expensive, because mass balance material is more expensive than just standard.""Christiansen noted that Lego is not passing that cost on to consumers.""By actually being willing to pay a premium to get to this product, we also created an incentive for [suppliers] to actually develop the kind of products and to establish more production capacity for these type of products. We are working really as an industry need to try to put more speed on that entire process.""Over the next few years, Lego hopes to source half its raw materials from sustainable sources.",CNBC,28/08/2024,"['An inflation-fueled sales slump hit the toy industry in the first half of 2024, but one company is gaining market share brick by brick.', 'On Wednesday, Lego said revenue during the first six months of the year jumped 13%, reaching 31 billion Danish kroner, or about $4.65 billion.', ""Niels Christiansen, CEO of the privately held Danish toymaker, told CNBC that the company is seeing strength across its portfolio, especially with Lego Icons and Lego Creator, and through its partnership with Epic Games' Fortnite."", 'Last year, Lego saw a trend of consumers ""trading down"" or opting for lower-priced sets, while still buying the same volume as the year before.', 'This year, volume is up, Christiansen said.', '""To the extent they traded down last year, they\'re not trading further down,"" he said. ""', 'So that has stabilized.', 'And we see almost all of the growth is actually growth in volume.', '""Meanwhile, publicly traded rivalMattel saw net sales fall 1% in the first six months of 2024 and Hasbroreported that its net revenue fell 21% between January and the end of June.', 'Mattel is facing tough comparisons from toy sales fueled by ""Barbie"" in 2023, and Hasbro is still reeling from its divestment of eOne.', 'Lego has continued to build on pandemic-era growth with a diverse slate of products that cater to kids and adults alike.', 'In addition to sets tied to popular franchises such as Harry Potter and Star Wars, Lego also has innovative design options for consumers to build flowers and succulents, famous works of art and animals.', 'Sales in the U.S. and Europe remain strong, Christiansen noted, while China sales are flat.', 'He said consumers in the region are spending less on bigger-ticket items, and their frequency of purchasing is down.', 'However, Lego is not giving up on expansion in China.', 'Christiansen said there is still ""long-term potential"" in the area.', 'Of the 40 Lego stores that opened in the first quarter, 20 were in China.', 'Similarly, of the 60 planned openings in the second half of the year, 20 are set for China.', ""Christiansen also touted Lego's sustainability efforts."", 'So far this year, the company has nearly doubled the amount of renewable and recyclable materials it uses in its bricks compared to full-year 2023.""That\'s a good milestone,"" he said. ""', ""That's a good step forward. ["", 'We are] spending quite significantly on that in a couple of ways, primarily in buying material that is more expensive, because mass balance material is more expensive than just standard.', '""Christiansen noted that Lego is not passing that cost on to consumers.', '""By actually being willing to pay a premium to get to this product, we also created an incentive for [suppliers] to actually develop the kind of products and to establish more production capacity for these type of products.', 'We are working really as an industry need to try to put more speed on that entire process.', '""Over the next few years, Lego hopes to source half its raw materials from sustainable sources.']",0.176270062906085,"An inflation-fueled sales slump hit the toy industry in the first half of 2024, but one company is gaining market share brick by brick.","Last year, Lego saw a trend of consumers ""trading down"" or opting for lower-priced sets, while still buying the same volume as the year before.",0.4372433854473961,"On Wednesday, Lego said revenue during the first six months of the year jumped 13%, reaching 31 billion Danish kroner, or about $4.65 billion.","""Meanwhile, publicly traded rivalMattel saw net sales fall 1% in the first six months of 2024 and Hasbroreported that its net revenue fell 21% between January and the end of June.",2024-08-31
X braced for Brazil ban as judge's deadline passes,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvg41n533zno,2024-08-30T00:44:25.125Z,"X, formerly known as Twitter, has said it expects to be blocked in Brazil after failing to meet a deadline to name a new legal representative for the company. The social media network closed its office in the country earlier this month, saying its representative had been threatened with arrest if she did not comply with orders it described as ""censorship"". The months-long row began with Supreme Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes in April ordering the suspension of dozens of X accounts for allegedly spreading disinformation. X owner Elon Musk has threatened to reactivate the accounts, and has described Justice Moraes as a ""tyrant"" and a ""dictator"".  Justice Moraes gave X 24 hours to name a new legal representative or face suspension, with the deadline coming just after 20:00 local time (23:00 GMT) on Thursday.  The order said a ban would remain in effect until X names a legal representative in the country and pays fines for alleged violations of Brazilian law.  But in a post from one of its official accounts shortly after the deadline expired, X made clear that it had not complied with the order. ""Soon, we expect Judge Alexandre de Moraes will order X to be shut down in Brazil – simply because we would not comply with his illegal orders to censor his political opponents,"" the post said. ""The fundamental issue at stake here is that Judge de Moraes demands we break Brazil’s own laws. We simply won’t do that."" X said it would not comply ""in secret with illegal orders"", adding that it would publish the judge's demands in the coming days ""in the interests of transparency"". Justice Moraes had ordered that X accounts accused of spreading disinformation - many supporters of the former right-wing president Jair Bolsonaro - must be blocked while they are under investigation. He said the company's legal representatives would be held liable if any accounts were reactivated. Meanwhile, the bank accounts of Mr Musk's satellite internet firm Starlink have been frozen in Brazil following an order by the country's Supreme Court. Starlink responded with a post on X which said the ""order is based on an unfounded determination that Starlink should be responsible for the fines levied - unconstitutionally - against X."" Mr Musk also said on X that ""SpaceX and X are two completely different companies with different shareholders.""   Starlink is a subsidiary of Mr Musk's rocket firm SpaceX. In 2022, the government of then-President Bolsonaro gave Starlink the green light to operate in Brazil. As South America's largest country, Brazil and its remote regions in the Amazon have huge potential for Starlink, which specialises in providing internet services to isolated areas. Justice Moraes gained prominence after his decisions to restrict social media platforms in the country. He is also investigating Mr Bolsonaro and his supporters for their roles in an alleged attempted coup on 8 January last year. X is not the first social media company to come under pressure from authorities in Brazil. Last year, Telegram was temporarily banned over its failure to cooperate with requests to block certain profiles. Meta's messaging service Whatsapp also faced temporary bans in 2015 and 2016 for refusing to comply with police requests for user data. ",BBC,30/08/2024,"['X, formerly known as Twitter, has said it expects to be blocked in Brazil after failing to meet a deadline to name a new legal representative for the company.', 'The social media network closed its office in the country earlier this month, saying its representative had been threatened with arrest if she did not comply with orders it described as ""censorship"".', 'The months-long row began with Supreme Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes in April ordering the suspension of dozens of X accounts for allegedly spreading disinformation.', 'X owner Elon Musk has threatened to reactivate the accounts, and has described Justice Moraes as a ""tyrant"" and a ""dictator"".', 'Justice Moraes gave X 24 hours to name a new legal representative or face suspension, with the deadline coming just after 20:00 local time (23:00 GMT) on Thursday.', 'The order said a ban would remain in effect until X names a legal representative in the country and pays fines for alleged violations of Brazilian law.', 'But in a post from one of its official accounts shortly after the deadline expired, X made clear that it had not complied with the order. ""', 'Soon, we expect Judge Alexandre de Moraes will order X to be shut down in Brazil – simply because we would not comply with his illegal orders to censor his political opponents,"" the post said. ""', 'The fundamental issue at stake here is that Judge de Moraes demands we break Brazil’s own laws.', 'We simply won’t do that.""', 'X said it would not comply ""in secret with illegal orders"", adding that it would publish the judge\'s demands in the coming days ""in the interests of transparency"".', 'Justice Moraes had ordered that X accounts accused of spreading disinformation - many supporters of the former right-wing president Jair Bolsonaro - must be blocked while they are under investigation.', ""He said the company's legal representatives would be held liable if any accounts were reactivated."", ""Meanwhile, the bank accounts of Mr Musk's satellite internet firm Starlink have been frozen in Brazil following an order by the country's Supreme Court."", 'Starlink responded with a post on X which said the ""order is based on an unfounded determination that Starlink should be responsible for the fines levied - unconstitutionally - against X."" Mr Musk also said on X that ""SpaceX and X are two completely different companies with different shareholders.""', ""Starlink is a subsidiary of Mr Musk's rocket firm SpaceX. In 2022, the government of then-President Bolsonaro gave Starlink the green light to operate in Brazil."", ""As South America's largest country, Brazil and its remote regions in the Amazon have huge potential for Starlink, which specialises in providing internet services to isolated areas."", 'Justice Moraes gained prominence after his decisions to restrict social media platforms in the country.', 'He is also investigating Mr Bolsonaro and his supporters for their roles in an alleged attempted coup on 8 January last year.', 'X is not the first social media company to come under pressure from authorities in Brazil.', 'Last year, Telegram was temporarily banned over its failure to cooperate with requests to block certain profiles.', ""Meta's messaging service Whatsapp also faced temporary bans in 2015 and 2016 for refusing to comply with police requests for user data.""]",0.001352970790069,"Starlink responded with a post on X which said the ""order is based on an unfounded determination that Starlink should be responsible for the fines levied - unconstitutionally - against X."" Mr Musk also said on X that ""SpaceX and X are two completely different companies with different shareholders.""","Last year, Telegram was temporarily banned over its failure to cooperate with requests to block certain profiles.",-0.2563237879011366,Justice Moraes gained prominence after his decisions to restrict social media platforms in the country.,Meta's messaging service Whatsapp also faced temporary bans in 2015 and 2016 for refusing to comply with police requests for user data.,2024-08-31
U.S. will again offer free at-home Covid tests starting in late September,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/23/covid-tests-us-will-offer-free-at-home-kits-starting-late-september.html,2024-08-23T16:52:24+0000,"The Biden administration on Friday said it will resume offering free at-home Covid-19 tests to American households in late September as the virus has gained a stronger foothold in the U.S. this summer.Americans will soon be able to use COVIDtests.gov to request four free tests, administration officials told reporters during a briefing. The tests will be able to detect the Covid variants that are currently circulating, most of which are descendants of the highly contagious omicron variant JN.1. ""These tests will help keep families and their loved ones safe this fall and winter season,"" Dawn O'Connell, an assistant secretary for preparedness and response at the Health and Human Services Department, said during the briefing. ""This is the seventh time over the last three years that the Biden-Harris administration has given families the opportunity to order the over-the-counter Covid-19 tests for free"" through the government's website.The government's program has provided more than 1.8 billion free over-the-counter Covid tests to Americans since it started in 2021, according to O'Connell.The government is relaunching the program amid a relatively large spike in Covid cases this summer, and ahead of the fall and winter, when the virus typically spreads at higher levels each year. There is a ""high"" or ""very high"" level of Covid being detected in wastewater in almost every U.S. state, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But the government decided to reopen the program in late September because it's when more Americans begin to travel and gather indoors with loved ones. ""As people start to travel, as they start to get together with friends and family through the holidays, we want them to have those four tests available to them at that time,"" David Boucher, director of infectious disease preparedness and response at HHS, told reporters during the briefing.By then, the latest round of Covid shots from Pfizer and Moderna will be available to most Americans in pharmacies, health clinics and other locations nationwide. The Food and Drug Administration approved those shots, which target a JN.1 offshoot called KP.2, on Thursday.Testing is a critical tool for protection as Covid infections climb again. But lab PCR tests — the traditional method of detecting Covid — have become more expensive and less accessible for some Americans since the U.S. government ended the public health emergency in May last year. Still, certain local health clinics and community sites offer at-home tests to the public at no cost.",CNBC,23/08/2024,"['The Biden administration on Friday said it will resume offering free at-home Covid-19 tests to American households in late September as the virus has gained a stronger foothold in the U.S. this summer.', 'Americans will soon be able to use COVIDtests.gov to request four free tests, administration officials told reporters during a briefing.', 'The tests will be able to detect the Covid variants that are currently circulating, most of which are descendants of the highly contagious omicron variant JN.1.""These tests will help keep families and their loved ones safe this fall and winter season,"" Dawn O\'Connell, an assistant secretary for preparedness and response at the Health and Human Services Department, said during the briefing. ""', 'This is the seventh time over the last three years that the Biden-Harris administration has given families the opportunity to order the over-the-counter Covid-19 tests for free"" through the government\'s website.', ""The government's program has provided more than 1.8 billion free over-the-counter Covid tests to Americans since it started in 2021, according to O'Connell."", 'The government is relaunching the program amid a relatively large spike in Covid cases this summer, and ahead of the fall and winter, when the virus typically spreads at higher levels each year.', 'There is a ""high"" or ""very high"" level of Covid being detected in wastewater in almost every U.S. state, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.', ""But the government decided to reopen the program in late September because it's when more Americans begin to travel and gather indoors with loved ones."", '""As people start to travel, as they start to get together with friends and family through the holidays, we want them to have those four tests available to them at that time,"" David Boucher, director of infectious disease preparedness and response at HHS, told reporters during the briefing.', 'By then, the latest round of Covid shots from Pfizer and Moderna will be available to most Americans in pharmacies, health clinics and other locations nationwide.', 'The Food and Drug Administration approved those shots, which target a JN.1 offshoot called KP.2, on Thursday.', 'Testing is a critical tool for protection as Covid infections climb again.', 'But lab PCR tests — the traditional method of detecting Covid — have become more expensive and less accessible for some Americans since the U.S. government ended the public health emergency in May last year.', 'Still, certain local health clinics and community sites offer at-home tests to the public at no cost.']",0.3114625193288947,The Biden administration on Friday said it will resume offering free at-home Covid-19 tests to American households in late September as the virus has gained a stronger foothold in the U.S. this summer.,But lab PCR tests — the traditional method of detecting Covid — have become more expensive and less accessible for some Americans since the U.S. government ended the public health emergency in May last year.,0.2481389999389648,The Biden administration on Friday said it will resume offering free at-home Covid-19 tests to American households in late September as the virus has gained a stronger foothold in the U.S. this summer.,But lab PCR tests — the traditional method of detecting Covid — have become more expensive and less accessible for some Americans since the U.S. government ended the public health emergency in May last year.,2024-08-31
Norwich Toys R Us to return to city six years after closing,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c3039re93rqo,2024-08-30T13:17:59.088Z,"Toys R Us is set to return to a city six years after the brand closed its UK branches. The retailer has lodged plans to open a concession store again in Norwich as part of its relaunch across the UK. Toys R Us went into administration in February 2018, closing all of its 100 shops with the loss of more than 2,000 jobs - including its store in Norwich's Cathedral Retail Park. It now hopes to open inside WH Smith on Gentleman's Walk in the city. The retailer announced plans for a relaunch in October 2022, before striking an exclusive deal with WH Smith for concessions across the UK, reports the Local Democracy Reporting Service. The plans lodged with Norwich City Council will see the Toys R Us branding displayed across half of the existing WH Smith in Gentleman’s Walk. Norwich was not named in the most recent list of Toys R Us shop-in-shops due to open over the summer - which included locations in Herefordshire and Essex - and it is not clear when the concession will be opened. In April 2018, Toys R Us launched closing down sales across all of its UK stores after it failed to find a buyer following more than 30 years in the country. The Norwich branch was opened by the shop’s Geoffrey the Giraffe mascot in 1999, with children able to test drive ride-on vehicles in the store’s central aisle. Shortly after the shop’s closure, a report from the council declared that the loss of its ""significant"" floor space had negatively impacted the city’s retail landscape. The store has remained empty ever since but a new Home Bargains store is now due to take its place. Work is under way to transform the units at Cathedral Retail Park in Westwick Street, six years after Toys R Us closed its doors. Norwich City Council will determine whether the retailer can display its branding in Gentleman’s Walk in due course. Follow Norfolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X. ",BBC,30/08/2024,"['Toys R Us is set to return to a city six years after the brand closed its UK branches.', 'The retailer has lodged plans to open a concession store again in Norwich as part of its relaunch across the UK.', ""Toys R Us went into administration in February 2018, closing all of its 100 shops with the loss of more than 2,000 jobs - including its store in Norwich's Cathedral Retail Park."", ""It now hopes to open inside WH Smith on Gentleman's Walk in the city."", 'The retailer announced plans for a relaunch in October 2022, before striking an exclusive deal with WH Smith for concessions across the UK, reports the Local Democracy Reporting Service.', 'The plans lodged with Norwich City Council will see the Toys R Us branding displayed across half of the existing WH Smith in Gentleman’s Walk.', 'Norwich was not named in the most recent list of Toys R Us shop-in-shops due to open over the summer - which included locations inHerefordshire and Essex - and it is not clear when the concession will be opened.', 'In April 2018, Toys R Uslaunched closing down sales across all of its UK stores after it failed to find a buyer following more than 30 years in the country.', 'The Norwich branch wasopened by the shop’sGeoffrey the Giraffe mascot in 1999, with children able to test drive ride-on vehicles in the store’s central aisle.', 'Shortly after the shop’s closure, a report from the council declared that theloss of its ""significant"" floor space had negatively impacted the city’s retail landscape.', 'The store has remained empty ever since but a new Home Bargains store is now due to take its place.', 'Work is under way to transform the units at Cathedral Retail Park in Westwick Street, six years after Toys R Us closed its doors.', 'Norwich City Council will determine whether the retailer can display its branding in Gentleman’s Walk in due course.', 'Follow Norfolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.']",-0.0337223843533595,It now hopes to open inside WH Smith on Gentleman's Walk in the city.,"In April 2018, Toys R Uslaunched closing down sales across all of its UK stores after it failed to find a buyer following more than 30 years in the country.",-0.9940051436424256,,"Shortly after the shop’s closure, a report from the council declared that theloss of its ""significant"" floor space had negatively impacted the city’s retail landscape.",2024-08-31
Will things will get worse like Keir Starmer says?,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c8rx1jjg35ko,2024-08-30T21:25:24.244Z,"Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has warned that ""things will get worse before they get better"". He has been hammering home the argument that the Labour Party has taken over from the Conservatives at a time when the government is short of money, and public services such as health and prisons are in a mess. He is claiming things are worse than he and his party knew before they won the election – so they will have to do things to fix them which they didn’t warn about before people voted.  The Conservatives say that Labour has planned to raise taxes all along. The PM's speech didn’t spell out exactly what bad news could be coming, but it did warn of a ""painful"" budget on 30 October. This is when the government will announce its plans for taxation and spending over the coming year. The government is definitely short of money. This is partly the result of weak economic growth in recent years, which has meant companies are making lower profits, and people’s earnings are growing more slowly. That means the taxes the government collects on wages, profits and purchases have also been growing more slowly. At the same time, an ageing society has placed a greater burden on public services such as the NHS. The government’s spending watchdog, the Office for Budget Responsibility, has also said that the decision to leave the European Union has slowed economic growth. But Labour argues that things are even worse than they seemed before the election. The prime minister has warned of a so-called ""black hole"" in the public finances. All of the above rhetoric on the state of the economy might be used in attempts to justify any decisions to raise taxes or other measures which were not set out during the election campaign. In his speech on Tuesday, Sir Keir set out a number of areas where he says the country is not working well such as NHS waiting lists, a lack of capacity in prisons and sewage discharges by water companies. He is warning that these problems will not be resolved quickly. But he is also warning that fixing those and other problems will cost money. That could mean a combination of tax rises and spending cuts. In the prime minister's words, it will be ""painful"". However, it is not inevitable that the next Budget has to be, or will be, painful.  Labour's decision to settle industrial action by giving public sector workers pay rises, and to limit the amount of money the government borrows, has increased the pressure on the public finances. There is also a clear political strategy at work here, with Labour looking to heap as much blame as possible for unpopular decisions on the previous government while they are new in power.   The phrase ""black hole"" often appears in discussions about government and money, and it means different things. In this case, Chancellor Rachel Reeves and the prime minister are talking about a gap between what government departments, such as health and education, expected to spend this year versus what they will actually end up spending. This gap was first mentioned by Ms Reeves in July, when she said the government was overspending by £22bn - and claimed it had been ""covered up"" by the Conservatives before the election. Shadow chancellor Jeremy Hunt has meanwhile accused Ms Reeves of an ""utterly bogus attempt to hoodwink the public"". There is a debate about how much of a surprise this was. About £9bn of the £22bn is the cost of increasing public sector pay above the 2% which had been budgeted for - a choice which has been made by this new government. Paul Johnson, the director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies thinktank, has argued that the need to give higher public sector pay rises could easily have been foreseen. But other items which make up the £22bn were more genuine surprises, he says, including that it was not clear that reserve money seemingly expected to cover higher spending on the asylum system had already been, in effect, spent elsewhere. He and other experts have argued that neither Tories nor Labour were straightforward with the public during the election campaign about how bad the public finances were, and what unpopular measures are required to fix it. Governments faced with a gap between what they plan to spend and what they expect to raise in taxes face a choice.  They could cut spending, raise taxes, or cover the gap by borrowing money, however, the new Labour government has chosen to impose a limit on how much it can continue borrowing. It says that the total size of the national debt (relative to the size of the economy) has to be projected to fall in five years’ time. This is the same limit as the previous Conservative government set itself under what are known as ""fiscal rules"". Fiscal rules are self-imposed by governments in most rich countries to maintain credibility with financial markets. The government is very close to breaking this rule. Latest figures suggest it is within £9bn of that limit - which is next to nothing given the scale of government spending. Ms Reeves has very little scope to raise borrowing and stick within this target. So it is likely that she will raise taxes and announce some spending cuts in the forthcoming Budget. The chancellor has said more about what taxes will not be going up – that includes the four taxes which raise the most: income tax, National Insurance, VAT, and corporation tax, which are charged on company profits. Labour promised not to raise taxes on ""working people"", and that those with the ""broadest shoulders"" (i.e. wealthy people) should bear the burden. In ruling out raising the biggest taxes, Labour has limited its room to manoeuvre when it comes to raising more money.  Some tax rises have been announced – such as a decision to charge VAT on private school fees. But the amounts raised would fall short of what will be needed to cover the gap. Some options which have not been ruled out include increasing taxation of pensions, capital gains (a tax on profits made when a person sells an asset), or inheritance tax. A number of independent experts have argued that the fiscal rules are not the best way to set out a path for government spending, and that the measures the government has to do to meet them are not necessarily the best decisions. ",BBC,30/08/2024,"['Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has warned that ""things will get worse before they get better"".', 'He has been hammering home the argument that the Labour Party has taken over from the Conservatives at a time when the government is short of money, and public services such as health and prisons are in a mess.', 'He is claiming things are worse than he and his party knew before they won the election – so they will have to do things to fix them which they didn’t warn about before people voted.', 'The Conservatives say that Labour has planned to raise taxes all along.', 'The PM\'s speech didn’t spell out exactly what bad news could be coming, but it did warn of a ""painful"" budget on 30 October.', 'This is when the government will announce its plans for taxation and spending over the coming year.', 'The government is definitely short of money.', 'This is partly the result of weak economic growth in recent years, which has meant companies are making lower profits, and people’s earnings are growing more slowly.', 'That means the taxes the government collects on wages, profits and purchases have also been growing more slowly.', 'At the same time, an ageing society has placed a greater burden on public services such as the NHS.', 'The government’s spending watchdog, the Office for Budget Responsibility, has also said that the decision to leave the European Union has slowed economic growth.', 'But Labour argues that things are even worse than they seemed before the election.', 'The prime minister has warned of a so-called ""black hole"" in the public finances.', 'All of the above rhetoric on the state of the economy might be used in attempts to justify any decisions to raise taxes or other measures which were not set out during the election campaign.', 'In his speech on Tuesday, Sir Keir set out a number of areas where he says the country is not working well such as NHS waiting lists, a lack of capacity in prisons and sewage discharges by water companies.', 'He is warning that these problems will not be resolved quickly.', 'But he is also warning that fixing those and other problems will cost money.', 'That could mean a combination of tax rises and spending cuts.', 'In the prime minister\'s words, it will be ""painful"".', 'However, it is not inevitable that the next Budget has to be, or will be, painful.', ""Labour's decision to settle industrial action by giving public sector workers pay rises, and to limit the amount of money the government borrows, has increased the pressure on the public finances."", 'There is also a clear political strategy at work here, with Labour looking to heap as much blame as possible for unpopular decisions on the previous government while they are new in power.', 'The phrase ""black hole"" often appears in discussions about government and money, and it means different things.', 'In this case, Chancellor Rachel Reeves and the prime minister are talking about a gap between what government departments, such as health and education, expected to spend this year versus what they will actually end up spending.', 'This gap was first mentioned by Ms Reeves in July, when she said the government was overspending by £22bn - and claimed it had been ""covered up"" by the Conservatives before the election.', 'Shadow chancellor Jeremy Hunt has meanwhile accused Ms Reeves of an ""utterly bogus attempt to hoodwink the public"".', 'There is a debate about how much of a surprise this was.', 'About £9bn of the £22bn is the cost of increasing public sector pay above the 2% which had been budgeted for - a choice which has been made by this new government.', 'Paul Johnson, the director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies thinktank, has argued that the need to give higher public sector pay rises could easily have been foreseen.', 'But other items which make up the £22bn were more genuine surprises, he says, including that it was not clear that reserve money seemingly expected to cover higher spending on the asylum system had already been, in effect, spent elsewhere.', 'He and other experts have argued that neither Tories nor Labour were straightforward with the public during the election campaign about how bad the public finances were, and what unpopular measures are required to fix it.', 'Governments faced with a gap between what they plan to spend and what they expect to raise in taxes face a choice.', 'They could cut spending, raise taxes, or cover the gap by borrowing money, however, the new Labour government has chosen to impose a limit on how much it can continue borrowing.', 'It says that the total size of the national debt (relative to the size of the economy) has to be projected to fall in five years’ time.', 'This is the same limit as the previous Conservative government set itself under what are known as ""fiscal rules"".', 'Fiscal rules are self-imposed by governments in most rich countries to maintain credibility with financial markets.', 'The government is very close to breaking this rule.', 'Latest figures suggest it is within £9bn of that limit - which is next to nothing given the scale of government spending.', 'Ms Reeves has very little scope to raise borrowing and stick within this target.', 'So it is likely that she will raise taxes and announce some spending cuts in the forthcoming Budget.', 'The chancellor has said more about what taxes will not be going up – that includes the four taxes which raise the most: income tax, National Insurance, VAT, and corporation tax, which are charged on company profits.', 'Labour promised not to raise taxes on ""working people"", and that those with the ""broadest shoulders"" (i.e. wealthy people) should bear the burden.', 'In ruling out raising the biggest taxes, Labour has limited its room to manoeuvre when it comes to raising more money.', 'Some tax rises have been announced – such as a decision to charge VAT on private school fees.', 'But the amounts raised would fall short of what will be needed to cover the gap.', 'Some options which have not been ruled out include increasing taxation of pensions, capital gains (a tax on profits made when a person sells an asset), or inheritance tax.', 'A number of independent experts have argued that the fiscal rules are not the best way to set out a path for government spending, and that the measures the government has to do to meet them are not necessarily the best decisions.']",-0.0997883236790001,"Some options which have not been ruled out include increasing taxation of pensions, capital gains (a tax on profits made when a person sells an asset), or inheritance tax.","A number of independent experts have argued that the fiscal rules are not the best way to set out a path for government spending, and that the measures the government has to do to meet them are not necessarily the best decisions.",-0.7228503362698988,"That means the taxes the government collects on wages, profits and purchases have also been growing more slowly.","The government’s spending watchdog, the Office for Budget Responsibility, has also said that the decision to leave the European Union has slowed economic growth.",2024-08-31
"Nordstrom shares climb 5% as earnings top estimates, but retailer issues cautious guidance",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/27/nordstrom-jwn-earnings-q2-2024.html,2024-08-27T23:18:11+0000,"In this articleNordstrom on Tuesday posted earnings that blew past Wall Street's expectations, indicating the department store is making strides in its efforts to cut costs and boost efficiencies. Though the Seattle-based retailer posted earnings per share that were 25 cents higher than expected, it issued tepid guidance for the full year. Nordstrom now expects adjusted earnings per share to be between $1.75 and $2.05, compared to a previous range of $1.65 to $2.05. It anticipates sales will be in a range of a 1% decline to 1% growth from the prior year, compared to previous guidance of down 2% to up 1%. In a news release, Nordstrom CEO Erik Nordstrom said the company is optimistic about the second half of the year despite the cautious guidance.""Our second quarter results were solid, and we're encouraged by the continued topline strength in both banners and the progress we're making to expand gross margin and increase profitability,"" said Nordstrom. ""We're confident in our outlook for the remainder of the year and look forward to sustaining the momentum we've built.""Shares rose about 5% in extended trading.Here is how the department store did in its second fiscal quarter compared to what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended Aug. 3 was $122 million, or 72 cents per share, compared to $137 million, or 84 cents per share, a year earlier. Excluding one-time items related to supply chain impairments, the retailer posted adjusted earnings of 96 cents per share. Sales rose to $3.89 billion, up about 3.4% from $3.77 billion a year earlier. Revenue came in just shy of analysts' expectations.  Across the company, comparable sales increased 1.9%, while gross merchandise value jumped 3.5%. It is unclear how much of that GMV uptick was related to price increases versus volume.As consumers continue to pull back on discretionary spending in the face of persistent inflation and high interest rates, retailers have been working to improve operations and cut costs to protect profits against softening demand. During the quarter, Nordstrom's profits fell compared to the same period a year ago, but earnings grew over the past six months. Last year, Nordstrom reported a net loss of $67 million in the six months that ended July 29, 2023, but during the same period this year, it posted a profit of $83 million. Nordstrom has said it is working to improve its supply chain. Last quarter, it said the time it takes for online orders to arrive was more than 5% faster. It has also improved the way merchandise is making its way to customers and stores, which it said has helped drive higher conversion and lower return rates. Another key focus area for the company has been growing its off-price banner, Nordstrom Rack. Over the past couple of quarters, momentum has been growing at Nordstrom Rack and has helped prop up the company's overall results. During the quarter, sales at Nordstrom Rack were up 8.8%, while comparable sales increased 4.1% compared to the same period a year ago.That compares to Nordstrom's mainline banner, which saw net sales and comparable sales each increase just 0.9%. Nordstrom has been working to build more Rack locations and has opened 11 new locations so far this fiscal year, with a goal of opening at least 22 by the end of the year. The focus on Rack has been critical for Nordstrom's ability to compete with off-price giant TJX Cos., the owner of TJ Maxx and Marshall's, and capture consumers who are still spending but eager for cheaper options and deals.The off-price sector has seen explosive growth for more than a year, but Rack missed out on the beginning of that trend. To reverse the slump, the company has focused on opening more locations, hiring off-price veterans and sharpening its focus on well-known brands.",CNBC,27/08/2024,"[""In this articleNordstrom on Tuesday posted earnings that blew past Wall Street's expectations, indicating the department store is making strides in its efforts to cut costs and boost efficiencies."", 'Though the Seattle-based retailer posted earnings per share that were 25 cents higher than expected, it issued tepid guidance for the full year.', 'Nordstrom now expects adjusted earnings per share to be between $1.75 and $2.05, compared to a previous range of $1.65 to $2.05.', 'It anticipates sales will be in a range of a 1% decline to 1% growth from the prior year, compared to previous guidance of down 2% to up 1%.In a news release, Nordstrom CEO Erik Nordstrom said the company is optimistic about the second half of the year despite the cautious guidance.', '""Our second quarter results were solid, and we\'re encouraged by the continued topline strength in both banners and the progress we\'re making to expand gross margin and increase profitability,"" said Nordstrom. ""', ""We're confident in our outlook for the remainder of the year and look forward to sustaining the momentum we've built."", '""Shares rose about 5% in extended trading.', ""Here is how the department store did in its second fiscal quarter compared to what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended Aug. 3 was $122 million, or 72 cents per share, compared to $137 million, or 84 cents per share, a year earlier."", 'Excluding one-time items related to supply chain impairments, the retailer posted adjusted earnings of 96 cents per share.', 'Sales rose to $3.89 billion, up about 3.4% from $3.77 billion a year earlier.', ""Revenue came in just shy of analysts' expectations."", 'Across the company, comparable sales increased 1.9%, while gross merchandise value jumped 3.5%.', 'It is unclear how much of that GMV uptick was related to price increases versus volume.', 'As consumers continue to pull back on discretionary spending in the face of persistent inflation and high interest rates, retailers have been working to improve operations and cut costs to protect profits against softening demand.', ""During the quarter, Nordstrom's profits fell compared to the same period a year ago, but earnings grew over the past six months."", 'Last year, Nordstrom reported a net loss of $67 million in the six months that ended July 29, 2023, but during the same period this year, it posted a profit of $83 million.', 'Nordstrom has said it is working to improve its supply chain.', 'Last quarter, it said the time it takes for online orders to arrive was more than 5% faster.', 'It has also improved the way merchandise is making its way to customers and stores, which it said has helped drive higher conversion and lower return rates.', 'Another key focus area for the company has been growing its off-price banner, Nordstrom Rack.', ""Over the past couple of quarters, momentum has been growing at Nordstrom Rack and has helped prop up the company's overall results."", 'During the quarter, sales at Nordstrom Rack were up 8.8%, while comparable sales increased 4.1% compared to the same period a year ago.', ""That compares to Nordstrom's mainline banner, which saw net sales and comparable sales each increase just 0.9%.Nordstrom has been working to build more Rack locations and has opened 11 new locations so far this fiscal year, with a goal of opening at least 22 by the end of the year."", ""The focus on Rack has been critical for Nordstrom's ability to compete with off-price giant TJX Cos.,"", ""the owner of TJ Maxx and Marshall's, and capture consumers who are still spending but eager for cheaper options and deals."", 'The off-price sector has seen explosive growth for more than a year, but Rack missed out on the beginning of that trend.', 'To reverse the slump, the company has focused on opening more locations, hiring off-price veterans and sharpening its focus on well-known brands.']",0.2901067069296191,"""Our second quarter results were solid, and we're encouraged by the continued topline strength in both banners and the progress we're making to expand gross margin and increase profitability,"" said Nordstrom. """,Revenue came in just shy of analysts' expectations.,0.6823056225593274,"""Shares rose about 5% in extended trading.","It anticipates sales will be in a range of a 1% decline to 1% growth from the prior year, compared to previous guidance of down 2% to up 1%.In a news release, Nordstrom CEO Erik Nordstrom said the company is optimistic about the second half of the year despite the cautious guidance.",2024-08-31
NFL owners vote in favor of private equity investment; select firms commit $12 billion,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/27/nfl-private-equity-ownership-vote.html,2024-08-28T13:55:22+0000,"The NFL's most exclusive club just let in new members.At a special league meeting in Eagan, Minnesota, on Tuesday, National Football League owners voted in favor of allowing select private equity firms to buy up to a 10% stake of a team. Each fund or consortium will be able to do deals with up to six teams.The vote passed with support from 31 of the 32 franchise owners. Cincinnati Bengals owner Mike Brown voted against the measure, according to a person familiar with the vote.Kansas City Chiefs owner Clark Hunt led the special committee on ownership policy. He told CNBC's Jim Cramer after the vote that the NFL has been considering such a move for upwards of 5 years and felt it was the right time for the league — though he acknowledged the 10% cap amounted to ""baby steps.""""The capital will be very helpful to teams as they look to grow their business and improve the fan experience,"" Hunt said.The initial approved firms include Ares Management, Sixth Street Partners and Arctos Partners, in addition to a consortium nicknamed ""The Avengers"" that includes Dynasty Equity, Blackstone, Carlyle Group, CVC Capital Partners and Ludis, a platform founded by investor and former NFL running back Curtis Martin.The firms collectively have $2 trillion in assets and intend to commit $12 billion of capital to be raised (inclusive of leverage) over time, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified to speak about terms that were not public. With at least four investor groups able to invest in up to six teams each, that works out to $500 million of added capital on average for each team that receives an investment.According to the terms of the proposal, the minimum hold period for these funds will be six years.""We thought it's an opportunity for us to really change how some of the ownership groups have real problems with the illiquidity, they have big families and have to solve a lot of problems that are not usual,"" New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft told CNBC's ""Squawk Box"" on Wednesday. ""And so we thought this was a great source of capital and could be done in a way that was very functional and wouldn't affect the operation.""Pending final approval, Arctos, one of the approved firms, would be the only firm approved to invest in equity across each of the five most popular major North American sports leagues.""We are honored to be among the first private investment firms being considered by the National Football League as potential partners for their clubs and owners,"" Arctos said in a statement. ""[We] look forward to contributing to the League's continued success.""Ares said in a statement it was honored to be able to invest in ""iconic football franchises.""""The NFL has long engendered deeply loyal fanbases, innovative approaches to media and some of the most viewed and highest valued sports franchises in the world. We are excited for the opportunity to support the continued growth of NFL teams through Ares' extensive investment experience and strong relationship networks in the sports, media and entertainment sector,"" the firm said.The investing consortium of Blackstone, Carlyle, CVC, Dynasty Equity and Ludis said in a statement: ""We are pleased to have secured this provisional approval following the NFL's thoughtful and robust process, and welcome the potential opportunity to partner with the league.""The approval Tuesday comes after years of discussion.NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell told CNBC in July that the league had seen tremendous interest from private equity.The league created a committee last September to look at the possibility of welcoming private equity funding and has been meeting with the selected firms more recently.The NFL is the last major sports league to allow private equity investment, and it's still treading lightly on the issue by allowing only a select group to participate and at a lower rate than the other professional sports leagues.The National Basketball Association, Major League Baseball, the National Hockey League and Major League Soccer all allow private equity ownership of up to 30%.Goodell told CNBC in July that he believes the 10% is a complement to the existing ownership structure and that the percentage could be raised at some point in the future.As NFL team valuations rise, it's meant a smaller pool of owners have the money to foot the price tag when teams become available.That dynamic was on display during the sale of the Washington Commanders last year. The franchise sold for a record $6.05 billion to an ownership group that included Apollo co-founder Josh Harris and 20 other investors.Harris said in June that the process ""created a little bit of a wake-up call at the NFL.""""Unless you're one of the wealthiest 50 people [in the world], writing a $5 billion equity check is pretty hard for anyone,"" Harris told CNBC at the CNBC CEO Council Summit at the time.As the NFL opens its doors to fresh capital, the money will also free up funding for new stadiums and related projects.""It will give teams who are considering new or renovated stadiums access to a capital pool they haven't had access to in the past,"" Hunt said.The Buffalo Bills and Tennessee Titans are both currently in the process of building new stadiums, while the Cleveland Browns, Chicago Bears and Washington Commanders are actively pursuing new stadiums in the future.— CNBC's Jake Piazza contributed to this report.",CNBC,28/08/2024,"[""The NFL's most exclusive club just let in new members."", 'At a special league meeting in Eagan, Minnesota, on Tuesday, National Football League owners voted in favor of allowing select private equity firms to buy up to a 10% stake of a team.', 'Each fund or consortium will be able to do deals with up to six teams.', 'The vote passed with support from 31 of the 32 franchise owners.', 'Cincinnati Bengals owner Mike Brown voted against the measure, according to a person familiar with the vote.', 'Kansas City Chiefs owner Clark Hunt led the special committee on ownership policy.', 'He told CNBC\'s Jim Cramer after the vote that the NFL has been considering such a move for upwards of 5 years and felt it was the right time for the league — though he acknowledged the 10% cap amounted to ""baby steps.', '""""The capital will be very helpful to teams as they look to grow their business and improve the fan experience,"" Hunt said.', 'The initial approved firms include Ares Management, Sixth Street Partners and Arctos Partners, in addition to a consortium nicknamed ""The Avengers"" that includes Dynasty Equity, Blackstone, Carlyle Group, CVC Capital Partners and Ludis, a platform founded by investor and former NFL running back Curtis Martin.', 'The firms collectively have $2 trillion in assets and intend to commit $12 billion of capital to be raised (inclusive of leverage) over time, according to people familiar with the matter,who asked not to be identified to speak about terms that were not public.', 'With at least four investor groups able to invest in up to six teams each, that works out to $500 million of added capital on average for each team that receives an investment.', 'According to the terms of the proposal, the minimum hold period for these funds will be six years.', '""We thought it\'s an opportunity for us to really change how some of the ownership groups have real problems with the illiquidity, they have big families and have to solve a lot of problems that are not usual,"" New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft told CNBC\'s ""Squawk Box"" on Wednesday. ""', ""And so we thought this was a great source of capital and could be done in a way that was very functional and wouldn't affect the operation."", '""Pending final approval, Arctos, one of the approved firms, would be the only firm approved to invest in equity across each of the five most popular major North American sports leagues.', '""We are honored to be among the first private investment firms being considered by the National Football League as potential partners for their clubs and owners,"" Arctos said in a statement. ""[', ""We] look forward to contributing to the League's continued success."", '""Ares said in a statement it was honored to be able to invest in ""iconic football franchises.', '""""The NFL has long engendered deeply loyal fanbases, innovative approaches to media and some of the most viewed and highest valued sports franchises in the world.', 'We are excited for the opportunity to support the continued growth of NFL teams through Ares\' extensive investment experience and strong relationship networks in the sports, media and entertainment sector,"" the firm said.', 'The investing consortium of Blackstone, Carlyle, CVC, Dynasty Equity and Ludis said in a statement: ""We are pleased to have secured this provisional approval following the NFL\'s thoughtful and robust process, and welcome the potential opportunity to partner with the league.', '""The approval Tuesday comes after years of discussion.', 'NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell told CNBC in July that the league had seen tremendous interest from private equity.', 'The league created a committee last September to look at the possibility of welcoming private equity funding and has been meeting with the selected firms more recently.', ""The NFL is the last major sports league to allow private equity investment, and it's still treading lightly on the issue by allowing only a select group to participate and at a lower rate than the other professional sports leagues."", 'The National Basketball Association, Major League Baseball, the National Hockey League and Major League Soccer all allow private equity ownership of up to 30%.Goodell told CNBC in July that he believes the 10% is a complement to the existing ownership structure and that the percentage could be raised at some point in the future.', ""As NFL team valuations rise, it's meant a smaller pool of owners have the money to foot the price tag when teams become available."", 'That dynamic was on display during the sale of the Washington Commanders last year.', 'The franchise sold for a record $6.05 billion to an ownership group that included Apollo co-founder Josh Harris and 20 other investors.', 'Harris said in June that the process ""created a little bit of a wake-up call at the NFL.""""Unless you\'re one of the wealthiest 50 people [in the world], writing a $5 billion equity check is pretty hard for anyone,"" Harris told CNBC at the CNBC CEO Council Summit at the time.', 'As the NFL opens its doors to fresh capital, the money will also free up funding for new stadiums and related projects.', '""It will give teams who are considering new or renovated stadiums access to a capital pool they haven\'t had access to in the past,"" Hunt said.', 'The Buffalo Bills and Tennessee Titans are both currently in the process of building new stadiums, while the Cleveland Browns, Chicago Bears and Washington Commanders are actively pursuing new stadiums in the future.—', ""CNBC's Jake Piazza contributed to this report.""]",0.3841646113134327,"The investing consortium of Blackstone, Carlyle, CVC, Dynasty Equity and Ludis said in a statement: ""We are pleased to have secured this provisional approval following the NFL's thoughtful and robust process, and welcome the potential opportunity to partner with the league.","""We thought it's an opportunity for us to really change how some of the ownership groups have real problems with the illiquidity, they have big families and have to solve a lot of problems that are not usual,"" New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft told CNBC's ""Squawk Box"" on Wednesday. """,0.8392235094850714,"We are excited for the opportunity to support the continued growth of NFL teams through Ares' extensive investment experience and strong relationship networks in the sports, media and entertainment sector,"" the firm said.","Harris said in June that the process ""created a little bit of a wake-up call at the NFL.""""Unless you're one of the wealthiest 50 people [in the world], writing a $5 billion equity check is pretty hard for anyone,"" Harris told CNBC at the CNBC CEO Council Summit at the time.",2024-08-31
'A tech firm stole our voices - then cloned and sold them',https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c3d9zv50955o,2024-08-31T23:15:34.753Z,"The notion that artificial intelligence could one day take our jobs is a message many of us will have heard in recent years. But, for Paul Skye Lehrman, that warning has been particularly personal, chilling and unexpected: he heard his own voice deliver it. In June 2023, Paul and his partner Linnea Sage were driving near their home in New York City, listening to a podcast about the ongoing strikes in Hollywood and how artificial intelligence (AI) could affect the industry. The episode was of interest because the couple are voice-over performers and - like many other creatives - fear that human-sounding voice generators could soon be used to replace them. This particular podcast had a unique hook – they interviewed an AI-powered chat bot, equipped with text-to-speech software, to ask how it thought the use of AI would affect jobs in Hollywood. But, when it spoke, it sounded just like Mr Lehrman. ""We needed to pull the car over,"" he said. ""The irony that AI is coming for the entertainment industry, and here is my voice talking about the potential destruction of the industry, was really quite shocking."" That night they spent hours online, searching for clues until they came across the site of text-to-speech platform Lovo. Once there, Ms Sage said she found a copy of her voice as well. ""I was stunned,"" she said. ""I couldn't believe it."" ""A tech company stole our voices, made AI clones of them, and sold them possibly hundreds of thousands of times."" They have now filed a lawsuit against Lovo. The firm has not yet responded to that or the BBC's requests for comment. But how was Lovo able to recreate their voices? The couple alleges it was done under false pretences. Lovo co-founder Tom Lee has previously said its voice-cloning software only needs a user to read about 50 sentences to create a faithful clone. ""We can capture the tone, the character, the style, the phonemes, and even if you have an accent, we can capture that as well,"" he told the Future Visionaries podcast in 2021. In their lawsuit, the couple set out how they say Lovo obtained just such a recording from them. They allege anonymous Lovo employees contacted them to record audio assets on Fiverr, the popular freelance talent website, where they were selling their services to provide audio for television, radio, video games, and other media. First, in 2019, Ms Sage says a user reached out asking for her to record dozens of generic sounding test radio scripts.  Test recordings are often used in film and television for focus groups, internal meetings, or as placeholders for works in progress. Because they won’t be shared broadly, these recordings cost much less than audio meant for broadcast.  Ms Sage says she completed the job, delivered the files, and was paid $400 (£303). About six months later, Mr Lehrman says he got a similar request to record dozens of generic sounding radio ads. In messages the couple have shared with the BBC, the anonymous Fiverr user says the audio will be used for research into ""speech synthesis"". After asking the user to guarantee that the scripts will not be used outside their specific research project, Mr Lehrman asks what the goal of the project is.  ""The scripts will not be used for anything else,"" the user says, ""and I can't yet tell you the goal, as it's a confidential work in process sorry haha"". Mr Lehrman asked if the finished files would be repurposed or used in a different order. The user says the files will be used for research purposes only. Mr Lehrman says he delivered the files and was paid $1200. The link between the anonymous user and Lovo came, they say, from Lovo itself. They shared the evidence they had found of their voices being cloned with Lovo - who replied they had done nothing wrong, pointing to the communications between them the anonymous user as evidence they engaged with the couple legally.  “In our careers, we've delivered over 100,000 audio assets,” Mr Lehrman said, of their work on Fiverr over the better part of a decade.  “We were able to find this needle in a haystack - they gave us this needle in a haystack.” In both cases, both Mr Lehrman and Ms Sage say they did not have a written contract, just these conversations. The BBC has not been able to verify the entirety of their conversations. The couple say the user they spoke with also appears to have deleted some messages. The BBC contacted Lovo on several occasions to request an interview with Mr Lee and to seek a response to the couple’s claims. They did not respond to any of our messages. The lawsuit the couple filed in May alleges that Lovo used recordings of their voices to create copies that illegally compete with Ms Sage and Mr Lehrman’s real voices. The couple say the company did so without permission or proper compensation. It is a class action lawsuit - meaning they are hoping other claimants will join it, though none have so far. Professor Kristelia Garcia, an expert in intellectual property law at Georgetown University in Washington DC says the case is likely to centre on an area of US law called rights of publicity. Sometimes referred to as personality rights, violations of one’s publicity often come from misuse or misrepresentation of someone’s image or voice. She also says there could likely be a breach of contract regarding the licences Ms Sage and Mr Lehrman granted the user who commissioned the recordings. ""Licences are permission for a very specific and narrow use. I might give you a licence to use my swimming pool one afternoon, but that doesn’t mean you can come whenever you want and have a party in my swimming pool,"" she told the BBC. ""That would exceed the terms of the licence."" Whatever the outcome of the case, it is another in a long list of lawsuits brought by artists, authors, illustrators, and musicians who don't want to lose control of their work and livelihood. And they are likely to just be the tip of the iceberg. This week the financial firm Klarna said it planned to use AI to halve its workforce. Some experts predict 40% of all jobs will eventually be impacted by AI For Mr Lehrman and Ms Sage though that worrying future is playing out now. ""This whole experience has felt so surreal,"" Ms Sage said. ""When we thought about artificial intelligence, we were thinking of AI folding our laundry and making us dinner, not pursuing human being’s creative endeavours."" You can hear more on this story on Tech Life, on BBC Sounds. ",BBC,31/08/2024,"['The notion that artificial intelligence could one day take our jobs is a message many of us will have heard in recent years.', 'But, for Paul Skye Lehrman, that warning has been particularly personal, chilling and unexpected: he heard his own voice deliver it.', 'In June 2023, Paul and his partner Linnea Sage were driving near their home in New York City, listening to a podcast about the ongoing strikes in Hollywood and how artificial intelligence (AI) could affect the industry.', 'The episode was of interest because the couple are voice-over performers and - like many other creatives - fear that human-sounding voice generators could soon be used to replace them.', 'This particular podcast had a unique hook – they interviewed an AI-powered chat bot, equipped with text-to-speech software, to ask how it thought the use of AI would affect jobs in Hollywood.', 'But, when it spoke, it sounded just like Mr Lehrman. ""', 'We needed to pull the car over,"" he said. ""', 'The irony that AI is coming for the entertainment industry, and here is my voice talking about the potential destruction of the industry, was really quite shocking.""', 'That night they spent hours online, searching for clues until they came across the site of text-to-speech platform Lovo.', 'Once there, Ms Sage said she found a copy of her voice as well. ""', 'I was stunned,"" she said. ""', 'I couldn\'t believe it."" ""', 'A tech company stole our voices, made AI clones of them, and sold them possibly hundreds of thousands of times.""', 'They have now filed a lawsuit against Lovo.', ""The firm has not yet responded to that or the BBC's requests for comment."", 'But how was Lovo able to recreate their voices?', 'The couple alleges it was done under false pretences.', 'Lovo co-founder Tom Lee has previously said its voice-cloning software only needs a user to read about 50 sentences to create a faithful clone. ""', 'We can capture the tone, the character, the style, the phonemes, and even if you have an accent, we can capture that as well,"" he told the Future Visionaries podcast in 2021.', 'In their lawsuit, the couple set out how they say Lovo obtained just such a recording from them.', 'They allege anonymous Lovo employees contacted them to record audio assets on Fiverr, the popular freelance talent website, where they were selling their services to provide audio for television, radio, video games, and other media.', 'First, in 2019, Ms Sage says a user reached out asking for her to record dozens of generic sounding test radio scripts.', 'Test recordings are often used in film and television for focus groups, internal meetings, or as placeholders for works in progress.', 'Because they won’t be shared broadly, these recordings cost much less than audio meant for broadcast.', 'Ms Sage says she completed the job, delivered the files, and was paid $400 (£303).', 'About six months later, Mr Lehrman says he got a similar request to record dozens of generic sounding radio ads.', 'In messages the couple have shared with the BBC, the anonymous Fiverr user says the audio will be used for research into ""speech synthesis"".', 'After asking the user to guarantee that the scripts will not be used outside their specific research project, Mr Lehrman asks what the goal of the project is. ""', 'The scripts will not be used for anything else,"" the user says, ""and I can\'t yet tell you the goal, as it\'s a confidential work in process sorry haha"".', 'Mr Lehrman asked if the finished files would be repurposed or used in a different order.', 'The user says the files will be used for research purposes only.', 'Mr Lehrman says he delivered the files and was paid $1200.', 'The link between the anonymous user and Lovo came, they say, from Lovo itself.', 'They shared the evidence they had found of their voices being cloned with Lovo - who replied they had done nothing wrong, pointing to the communications between them the anonymous user as evidence they engaged with the couple legally. “', ""In our careers, we've delivered over 100,000 audio assets,” Mr Lehrman said, of their work on Fiverr over the better part of a decade. “"", 'We were able to find this needle in a haystack - they gave us this needle in a haystack.”', 'In both cases, both Mr Lehrman and Ms Sage say they did not have a written contract, just these conversations.', 'The BBC has not been able to verify the entirety of their conversations.', 'The couple say the user they spoke with also appears to have deleted some messages.', 'The BBC contacted Lovo on several occasions to request an interview with Mr Lee and to seek a response to the couple’s claims.', 'They did not respond to any of our messages.', 'The lawsuit the couple filed in May alleges that Lovo used recordings of their voices to create copies that illegally compete with Ms Sage and Mr Lehrman’s real voices.', 'The couple say the company did so without permission or proper compensation.', 'It is a class action lawsuit - meaning they are hoping other claimants will join it, though none have so far.', 'Professor Kristelia Garcia, an expert in intellectual property law at Georgetown University in Washington DC says the case is likely to centre on an area of US law called rights of publicity.', 'Sometimes referred to as personality rights, violations of one’s publicity often come from misuse or misrepresentation of someone’s image or voice.', 'She also says there could likely be a breach of contract regarding the licences Ms Sage and Mr Lehrman granted the user who commissioned the recordings. ""', 'Licences are permission for a very specific and narrow use.', 'I might give you a licence to use my swimming pool one afternoon, but that doesn’t mean you can come whenever you want and have a party in my swimming pool,"" she told the BBC. ""', 'That would exceed the terms of the licence.""', ""Whatever the outcome of the case, it is another in a long list of lawsuits brought by artists, authors, illustrators, and musicians who don't want to lose control of their work and livelihood."", 'And they are likely to just be the tip of the iceberg.', 'This week the financial firm Klarna said it planned to use AI to halve its workforce.', 'Some experts predict 40% of all jobs will eventually be impacted by AI For Mr Lehrman and Ms Sage though that worrying future is playing out now. ""', 'This whole experience has felt so surreal,"" Ms Sage said. ""', 'When we thought about artificial intelligence, we were thinking of AI folding our laundry and making us dinner, not pursuing human being’s creative endeavours.""', 'You can hear more on this story on Tech Life, on BBC Sounds.']",0.1105670706387928,"They allege anonymous Lovo employees contacted them to record audio assets on Fiverr, the popular freelance talent website, where they were selling their services to provide audio for television, radio, video games, and other media.","Sometimes referred to as personality rights, violations of one’s publicity often come from misuse or misrepresentation of someone’s image or voice.",-0.3543783624966939,"Because they won’t be shared broadly, these recordings cost much less than audio meant for broadcast.","She also says there could likely be a breach of contract regarding the licences Ms Sage and Mr Lehrman granted the user who commissioned the recordings. """,2024-08-31
"FDA authorizes Novavax’s updated Covid vaccine, paving way for fall rollout",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/30/fda-authorizes-novavax-protein-covid-vaccine.html,2024-08-30T19:50:23+0000,"In this articleThe Food and Drug Administration authorized Novavax's updated protein-based Covid vaccine for emergency use in people ages 12 and up on Friday, paving the way for the shot to compete with Pfizer and Moderna's jabs this fall and winter. Novavax's vaccine targets the highly contagious omicron subvariant JN.1, which began circulating widely in the U.S. earlier this year. JN.1 only accounted for 0.2% of cases circulating nationwide as of this week, according to the latest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data. Novavax manufactures protein-based vaccines, which cannot be quickly updated to target another strain of the virus.Despite that, the biotech company has noted that its shot provides protection against descendants of JN.1 that are currently dominant in the U.S., including KP.2.3, KP.3, KP.3.1.1 and LB.1.""Our updated vaccine targets JN.1, the 'parent strain' of currently circulating variants, and has shown robust cross-reactivity against JN.1 lineage viruses,"" Novavax CEO John Jacobs said in a statement.Novavax said it expects its shot to be ""broadly available"" in thousands of locations across the U.S., including retail and independent pharmacies and regional grocers.Shares of Novavax rose more than 8% on Friday following the announcement. The FDA's decision comes only a week after it approved a new round of messenger RNA shots from Pfizer and Moderna, which both target another offshoot of JN.1 called KP.2. Last year, the agency authorized Novavax's shot nearly a month after clearing vaccines from its rivals, putting the company at a disadvantage. Public health officials see Novavax's vaccine as a valuable alternative for people who don't want to take mRNA shots from Pfizer and Moderna, which use a newer vaccine method to teach cells how to make proteins that trigger an immune response against Covid. Novavax's shot, meanwhile, fends off the virus with protein-based technology, a decades-old method used in routine vaccinations against hepatitis B and shingles.It's unclear how many people will get a new Covid shot this fall and winter. Only around 22.5% of U.S. adults received the latest round of shots that came out last fall, according to CDC data through early May.",CNBC,30/08/2024,"[""In this articleThe Food and Drug Administration authorized Novavax's updated protein-based Covid vaccine for emergency use in people ages 12 and up on Friday, paving the way for the shot to compete with Pfizer and Moderna's jabs this fall and winter."", ""Novavax's vaccine targets the highly contagious omicron subvariant JN.1, which began circulating widely in the U.S. earlier this year."", 'JN.1 only accounted for 0.2% of cases circulating nationwide as of this week, according to the latest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data.', 'Novavax manufactures protein-based vaccines, which cannot be quickly updated to target another strain of the virus.', 'Despite that, the biotech company has noted that its shot provides protection against descendants of JN.1 that are currently dominant in the U.S., including KP.2.3, KP.3, KP.3.1.1 and LB.1.""Our updated vaccine targets JN.1, the \'parent strain\' of currently circulating variants, and has shown robust cross-reactivity against JN.1 lineage viruses,"" Novavax CEO John Jacobs said in a statement.', 'Novavax said it expects its shot to be ""broadly available"" in thousands of locations across the U.S., including retail and independent pharmacies and regional grocers.', 'Shares of Novavax rose more than 8% on Friday following the announcement.', ""The FDA's decision comes only a week after it approved a new round of messenger RNA shots from Pfizer and Moderna, which both target another offshoot of JN.1 called KP.2."", ""Last year, the agency authorized Novavax's shot nearly a month after clearing vaccines from its rivals, putting the company at a disadvantage."", ""Public health officials see Novavax's vaccine as a valuable alternative for people who don't want to take mRNA shots from Pfizer and Moderna, which use a newer vaccine method to teach cells how to make proteins that trigger an immune response against Covid."", ""Novavax's shot, meanwhile, fends off the virus with protein-based technology, a decades-old method used in routine vaccinations against hepatitis B and shingles."", ""It's unclear how many people will get a new Covid shot this fall and winter."", 'Only around 22.5% of U.S. adults received the latest round of shots that came out last fall, according to CDC data through early May.']",0.0145241411095258,"Public health officials see Novavax's vaccine as a valuable alternative for people who don't want to take mRNA shots from Pfizer and Moderna, which use a newer vaccine method to teach cells how to make proteins that trigger an immune response against Covid.","Last year, the agency authorized Novavax's shot nearly a month after clearing vaccines from its rivals, putting the company at a disadvantage.",0.5800193548202515,Shares of Novavax rose more than 8% on Friday following the announcement.,"Last year, the agency authorized Novavax's shot nearly a month after clearing vaccines from its rivals, putting the company at a disadvantage.",2024-08-31
Oasis gigs sell out after scramble for tickets,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c5y8wer58x6o,2024-08-31T07:50:44.054Z,"The Oasis comeback tour has sold out for all the dates the band announced it would play across the UK and Ireland next summer. The band wrote on X (formerly Twitter) that tickets for all 17 gigs had been scooped up as of 19:00 BST - but many fans criticised the sales process and prices. Throughout the day, hundreds of thousands of fans sat in online queues in the hope of being able to buy a first-hand view of a tour that comes 15 years after the group disbanded in an acrimonious split. “Dynamic pricing” on Ticketmaster, where prices rise in line with demand, set some remaining tickets at more than £350 - up from £135 when the sale began. Earlier this week, standing price tickets for Cardiff, London and Edinburgh were advertised as £135 plus fees. But angry fans online said they noted ""in demand"" pricing on Ticketmaster had increased prices to £355 plus fees. Ticketmaster say they do not set ticket prices. A link on the ticketing website stated: ""Promoters and artists set ticket prices. Prices can be either fixed or market-based. Market-based tickets are labelled as 'Platinum' or 'In Demand'."" Ticketmaster confirmed that fans did not get anything else for the price increase. Oasis and the band's promoter were not commenting on the issue on Saturday evening. Dynamic pricing is not new and is allowed under consumer protection laws. The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) told the BBC it could not pass comment on Ticketmaster's pricing in this instance. “We encourage anyone with concerns to get in touch with us and we’d carefully assess whether there were any grounds for action,” an ASA spokesperson said. But they added: “Our rules (the Advertising Codes) are clear – quoted prices must not mislead.” Within minutes of Saturday's morning sale, some people looking for tickets for gigs at London's Wembley Stadium next July and August found more than one million people ahead of them in the queue. Others were put into a ""queue for the queue"" with all three ticket sellers redirecting people to a page saying their sites were experiencing high demand. Tickets were on sale from 09:00 BST and an hour earlier for Ireland, where issues accessing the Ticketmaster website were also reported. Some hopefuls also said they had been ""suspended"" by Ticketmaster after it accused them of being bots - automatic computer programmes that can snap up tickets quicker than humans. Jamie Moore, 50, from East Kilbride, was hoping to get tickets to see Oasis and “re-live the good times” but was kicked out when he reached the front of the online queue after being mistaken for a bot. Mr Moore says he has “never been so let down by a website” in his life. Many others have expressed frustration and anger at how the website handled demand. Ticketmaster's website called for patience from fans, saying that “as expected Oasis is incredibly popular” and encouraged people to keep their places, “clear cookies”, and avoid using VPN software on their device. Noel and Liam Gallagher announced on Tuesday that they had put their differences behind them, confirming the band's long-awaited reunion. The group disbanded 15 years ago following a backstage brawl between the brothers at the Rock en Seine festival in Paris. On Friday, shortly after a three-hour pre-sale for a limited number of fans began, tickets for the UK gigs were being listed on resale websites like StubHub and Viagogo for more than £6,000 - around 40 times the face value of a standing ticket. They included: Standing tickets for the shows were expected to cost about £150, while standard seated tickets range from £73 to about £205. Prices for official premium packages go up to £506. About 1.4 million tickets are expected to be available for the 17 outdoor concerts. Oasis urged people not to resell tickets at higher prices on websites not linked to their promoter, and said those tickets would be ""cancelled"". It added that they could only be resold at face value on the websites Ticketmaster and Twickets. ""Tickets sold in breach of the terms and conditions will be cancelled by the promoters,"" the band said. Meanwhile, Viagogo issued a statement in which it said ""resale is legal in the UK"".  Cris Miller, Viagogo global managing director, said ""demand will be at its peak when tickets hit the on-sale but it's not a normal reflection of what tickets can and will go for."" A consultation into ticket resale prices and “rip off” touts will be launched in the Autumn, the government has said. There was joy for some fans who managed to get tickets.  Nayat Karakose, 41, from Istanbul got two tickets to see the band in Wembley in the pre-sale on Friday. She told the BBC that when she found out she got the tickets, she said she felt ""supersonic"". “My heart was beating, I was super, super excited, I couldn’t believe it for the moment. I thought I’d have to pay a couple of thousands pounds,"" she said. Ms Karakose has been a fan since she was 13 and this will be her third time seeing the band live.  Six years ago she met Liam Gallagher in Istanbul and got a photograph with him as he was about to leave a hotel, but added ""it would be a dream to meet Noel Gallagher"". Rachael Board, 51, from Devon, got two tickets to see Oasis at Wembley - but paid more than £900 after failing to get cheaper tickets. A longstanding fan, she told the BBC that ""we got caught up in the vibe,"" adding that she ""would never think I was that person who would spend so much on a concert ticket"". Oasis were formed in Manchester in 1991 - their original line-up comprised of Liam and Noel Gallagher, guitarist Paul ""Bonehead"" Arthurs, bassist Paul ""Guigsy"" McGuigan and drummer Tony McCarroll. As hype for the gigs builds, sales and streams of the band's back catalogue have surged, putting three albums into the top five of the UK charts on Friday. Greatest hits collection Time Flies is at number three, 1995's What's The Story Morning Glory is at four, and debut Definitely Maybe - released on 29 August 1994 - is in fifth place, at the time of writing. A 30th anniversary edition of Definitely Maybe was released on Friday. ",BBC,31/08/2024,"['The Oasis comeback tour has sold out for all the dates the band announced it would play across the UK and Ireland next summer.', 'The band wrote on X (formerly Twitter) that tickets for all 17 gigs had been scooped up as of 19:00 BST - but many fans criticised the sales process and prices.', 'Throughout the day, hundreds of thousands of fans sat in online queues in the hope of being able to buy a first-hand view of a tour that comes 15 years after the group disbanded in an acrimonious split. “', 'Dynamic pricing” on Ticketmaster, where prices rise in line with demand, set some remaining tickets at more than £350 - up from £135 when the sale began.', 'Earlier this week, standing price tickets for Cardiff, London and Edinburgh were advertised as £135 plus fees.', 'But angry fans online said they noted ""in demand"" pricing on Ticketmaster had increased prices to £355 plus fees.', 'Ticketmaster say they do not set ticket prices.', 'A link on the ticketing website stated: ""Promoters and artists set ticket prices.', 'Prices can be either fixed or market-based.', 'Market-based tickets are labelled as \'Platinum\' or \'In Demand\'.""', 'Ticketmaster confirmed that fans did not get anything else for the price increase.', ""Oasis and the band's promoter were not commenting on the issue on Saturday evening."", 'Dynamic pricing is not new and is allowed under consumer protection laws.', ""The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) told the BBC it could not pass comment on Ticketmaster's pricing in this instance. “"", 'We encourage anyone with concerns to get in touch with us and we’d carefully assess whether there were any grounds for action,” an ASA spokesperson said.', 'But they added: “Our rules (the Advertising Codes) are clear – quoted prices must not mislead.”', ""Within minutes of Saturday's morning sale, some people looking for tickets for gigs at London's Wembley Stadium next July and August found more than one million people ahead of them in the queue."", 'Others were put into a ""queue for the queue"" with all three ticket sellers redirecting people to a page saying their sites were experiencing high demand.', 'Tickets were on sale from 09:00 BST and an hour earlier for Ireland, where issues accessing the Ticketmaster website were also reported.', 'Some hopefuls also said they had been ""suspended"" by Ticketmaster after it accused them of being bots - automatic computer programmes that can snap up tickets quicker than humans.', 'Jamie Moore, 50, from East Kilbride, was hoping to get tickets to see Oasis and “re-live the good times” but was kicked out when he reached the front of the online queue after being mistaken for a bot.', 'Mr Moore says he has “never been so let down by a website” in his life.', 'Many others have expressed frustration and anger at how the website handled demand.', ""Ticketmaster's website called for patience from fans, saying that “as expected Oasis is incredibly popular” and encouraged people to keep their places, “clear cookies”, and avoid using VPN software on their device."", ""Noel and Liam Gallagher announced on Tuesday that they had put their differences behind them, confirming the band's long-awaited reunion."", 'The group disbanded 15 years ago following a backstage brawl between the brothers at the Rock en Seine festival in Paris.', 'On Friday, shortly after a three-hour pre-sale for a limited number of fans began, tickets for the UK gigs were being listed on resale websites like StubHub and Viagogo for more than £6,000 - around 40 times the face value of a standing ticket.', 'They included: Standing tickets for the shows were expected to cost about £150, while standard seated tickets range from £73 to about £205.', 'Prices for official premium packages go up to £506.', 'About 1.4 million tickets are expected to be available for the 17 outdoor concerts.', 'Oasis urged people not to resell tickets at higher prices on websites not linked to their promoter, and said those tickets would be ""cancelled"".', 'It added that they could only be resold at face value on the websites Ticketmaster and Twickets. ""', 'Tickets sold in breach of the terms and conditions will be cancelled by the promoters,"" the band said.', 'Meanwhile, Viagogo issued a statement in which it said ""resale is legal in the UK"".', 'Cris Miller, Viagogo global managing director, said ""demand will be at its peak when tickets hit the on-sale but it\'s not a normal reflection of what tickets can and will go for.""', 'A consultation into ticket resale prices and “rip off” touts will be launched in the Autumn, the government has said.', 'There was joy for some fans who managed to get tickets.', 'Nayat Karakose, 41, from Istanbul got two tickets to see the band in Wembley in the pre-sale on Friday.', 'She told the BBC that when she found out she got the tickets, she said she felt ""supersonic"". “', 'My heart was beating, I was super, super excited, I couldn’t believe it for the moment.', 'I thought I’d have to pay a couple of thousands pounds,"" she said.', 'Ms Karakose has been a fan since she was 13 and this will be her third time seeing the band live.', 'Six years ago she met Liam Gallagher in Istanbul and got a photograph with him as he was about to leave a hotel, but added ""it would be a dream to meet Noel Gallagher"".', 'Rachael Board, 51, from Devon, got two tickets to see Oasis at Wembley - but paid more than £900 after failing to get cheaper tickets.', 'A longstanding fan, she told the BBC that ""we got caught up in the vibe,"" adding that she ""would never think I was that person who would spend so much on a concert ticket"".', 'Oasis were formed in Manchester in 1991 - their original line-up comprised of Liam and Noel Gallagher, guitarist Paul ""Bonehead"" Arthurs, bassist Paul ""Guigsy"" McGuigan and drummer Tony McCarroll.', ""As hype for the gigs builds, sales and streams of the band's back catalogue have surged, putting three albums into the top five of the UK charts on Friday."", ""Greatest hits collection Time Flies is at number three, 1995's What's The Story Morning Glory is at four, and debut Definitely Maybe - released on 29 August 1994 - is in fifth place, at the time of writing."", 'A 30th anniversary edition of Definitely Maybe was released on Friday.']",0.1094387462898259,"Greatest hits collection Time Flies is at number three, 1995's What's The Story Morning Glory is at four, and debut Definitely Maybe - released on 29 August 1994 - is in fifth place, at the time of writing.",Many others have expressed frustration and anger at how the website handled demand.,0.1178367458857022,"Dynamic pricing” on Ticketmaster, where prices rise in line with demand, set some remaining tickets at more than £350 - up from £135 when the sale began.","Some hopefuls also said they had been ""suspended"" by Ticketmaster after it accused them of being bots - automatic computer programmes that can snap up tickets quicker than humans.",2024-08-31
UK government will not fight Rosebank oil field legal challenge,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c30393m4z50o,2024-08-29T07:45:36.285Z,"The UK government will not fight a legal challenge against the decision to grant consent to drill in untapped oil and gas fields off Shetland and Aberdeen.  Greenpeace and Uplift jointly brought judicial reviews to stop the development of the Rosebank and Jackdaw fields. It comes after the Supreme Court ruled that a UK council should have considered the climate impact of new oil wells – setting a precedent for all regulators. The government's decision does not mean the licences for Jackdaw and Rosebank have been withdrawn. But if the judicial review backs the environmental groups, operators would need to resubmit environmental assessments.   This would create more delay and additional costs for Rosebank's owners, Equinor and Ithaca Energy, and Jackdaw's owner, Shell. The UK government has pledged that oil and gas would play an important role in the economy ""for decades to come"" as the UK transitions to clean energy. It is planning to consult later this year on its manifesto position not to issue new oil and gas licences to explore new fields. Energy Minister Michael Shanks said: “We will consult at pace on new guidance that takes into account the Supreme Court’s ruling on environmental impact assessments, to enable the industry to plan, secure jobs, and invest in our economy.” Environmental groups welcomed the government’s decision.  Greenpeace said the licences should not have been granted without being ""properly assessed"" for their climate impact. Mel Evans, Greenpeace UK climate team leader, said: “The two new fields combined would generate a vast amount of emissions while doing nothing to lower energy bills.  ""The only real winners from giving them the greenlight would be multi-billion-pound oil giants.” Tessa Khan, executive director of Uplift, said it was a “common sense” decision. She told BBC Radio Scotland: ""Rosebank is a terrible proposition economically, from an energy-security perspective and environmentally for the UK public.  ""No government should be prepared to approve a project like that."" The government's decision comes after the Supreme Court ruled in June that the way fossil fuels are used by consumers – known as Scope 3 emissions – have to be considered when environmental impact assessments are being carried out. The decision could still be challenged by oil companies. Industry body Offshore Energies UK urged the government to conduct its consultation “at pace”, warning that uncertainty “further impacts investor confidence”. A spokesperson added: “We remain absolutely committed to operations in the North Sea that meet the UK's net zero ambitions and support energy security.” Rosebank off Shetland, owned by Norwegian energy giant Equinor and British firm Ithaca Energy, is the UK's largest untapped oil field. Consent for drilling there was granted in September last year. Scotland’s then first minister Humza Yousaf said he was ""disappointed"" at the decision and accused Downing Street of ""climate denial"". Shell’s proposals to develop Jackdaw, east of Aberdeen, were approved in 2022 after initially being rejected on environmental grounds. Both Equinor and Shell said they would carefully consider the implications of the government’s announcement. An Equinor spokesperson said: “Rosebank is a vital project for the UK and is bringing benefits in terms of investment, job creation and energy security."" A Shell spokesperson said: “We believe the Jackdaw field remains an important development for the UK, providing fuel to heat 1.4 million homes and supporting energy security, as other older gas fields reach the end of production.” First things first, this does not mean the end for either Jackdaw or Rosebank, but it is another significant victory for environmental groups.   They key is whether the emissions from consuming the oil and gas produced is considered in environmental impact assessments. Historically, those Scope 3 emissions were disregarded, but July's Supreme Court ruling changed that.  Now, if the judicial review at two of the most prominent North Sea developments rules in favour of the green lobby, operators will have to resubmit environmental impact assessments to be considered afresh. The regulators could then stick to their guns and approve it again.  But this creates more delay and significant additional costs - which environmentalists hope will make fossil fuels less appealing to investors. In its draft energy strategy, published last year, the Scottish government confirmed a ""presumption against"" any new oil and gas exploration. But First Minister John Swinney said in June that North Sea oil and gas would still be needed ""for a period of time"" to help the country meet its net-zero emissions target by 2045. Scotland's acting Energy Secrertary, Gillian Martin, said ministers would carefully consider the UK government announcement.  She noted that offshore oil and gas licensing is reserved to Westminster, but said decisions should be made on a “case by case basis and include rigorous assessments of both climate compatibility and energy security”. Following the Supreme Court ruling, the government also walked away from a legal challenge against a new coal mine in Cumbria approved under the previous Conservative administration. ",BBC,29/08/2024,"['The UK government will not fight a legal challenge against the decision to grant consent to drill in untapped oil and gas fields off Shetland and Aberdeen.', 'Greenpeace and Uplift jointly brought judicial reviews to stop the development of the Rosebank and Jackdaw fields.', 'It comes after the Supreme Court ruled that a UK council should have considered the climate impact of new oil wells – setting a precedent for all regulators.', ""The government's decision does not mean the licences for Jackdaw and Rosebank have been withdrawn."", 'But if the judicial review backs the environmental groups, operators would need to resubmit environmental assessments.', ""This would create more delay and additional costs for Rosebank's owners, Equinor and Ithaca Energy, and Jackdaw's owner, Shell."", 'The UK government has pledged that oil and gas would play an important role in the economy ""for decades to come"" as the UK transitions to clean energy.', 'It is planning to consult later this year on its manifesto position not to issue new oil and gas licences to explore new fields.', 'Energy Minister Michael Shanks said: “We will consult at pace on new guidance that takes into account the Supreme Court’s ruling on environmental impact assessments, to enable the industry to plan, secure jobs, and invest in our economy.”', 'Environmental groups welcomed the government’s decision.', 'Greenpeace said the licences should not have been granted without being ""properly assessed"" for their climate impact.', 'Mel Evans, Greenpeace UK climate team leader, said: “The two new fields combined would generate a vast amount of emissions while doing nothing to lower energy bills. ""', 'The only real winners from giving them the greenlight would be multi-billion-pound oil giants.”', 'Tessa Khan, executive director of Uplift, said it was a “common sense” decision.', 'She told BBC Radio Scotland: ""Rosebank is a terrible proposition economically, from an energy-security perspective and environmentally for the UK public. ""', 'No government should be prepared to approve a project like that.""', ""The government's decision comes after the Supreme Court ruled in June that the way fossil fuels are used by consumers – known as Scope 3 emissions – have to be considered when environmental impact assessments are being carried out."", 'The decision could still be challenged by oil companies.', 'Industry body Offshore Energies UK urged the government to conduct its consultation “at pace”, warning that uncertainty “further impacts investor confidence”.', ""A spokesperson added: “We remain absolutely committed to operations in the North Sea that meet the UK's net zero ambitions and support energy security.”"", ""Rosebank off Shetland, owned by Norwegian energy giant Equinor and British firm Ithaca Energy, is the UK's largest untapped oil field."", 'Consent for drilling there was granted in September last year.', 'Scotland’s then first minister Humza Yousaf said he was ""disappointed"" at the decision and accused Downing Street of ""climate denial"".', 'Shell’s proposals to develop Jackdaw, east of Aberdeen, were approved in 2022 after initially being rejected on environmental grounds.', 'Both Equinor and Shell said they would carefully consider the implications of the government’s announcement.', 'An Equinor spokesperson said: “Rosebank is a vital project for the UK and is bringing benefits in terms of investment, job creation and energy security.""', 'A Shell spokesperson said: “We believe the Jackdaw field remains an important development for the UK, providing fuel to heat 1.4 million homes and supporting energy security, as other older gas fields reach the end of production.”', 'First things first, this does not mean the end for either Jackdaw or Rosebank, but it is another significant victory for environmental groups.', 'They key is whether the emissions from consuming the oil and gas produced is considered in environmental impact assessments.', ""Historically, those Scope 3 emissions were disregarded, but July's Supreme Court ruling changed that."", 'Now, if the judicial review at two of the most prominent North Sea developments rules in favour of the green lobby, operators will have to resubmit environmental impact assessments to be considered afresh.', 'The regulators could then stick to their guns and approve it again.', 'But this creates more delay and significant additional costs - which environmentalists hope will make fossil fuels less appealing to investors.', 'In its draft energy strategy, published last year, the Scottish government confirmed a ""presumption against"" any new oil and gas exploration.', 'But First Minister John Swinney said in June that North Sea oil and gas would still be needed ""for a period of time"" to help the country meet its net-zero emissions target by 2045.', ""Scotland's acting Energy Secrertary, Gillian Martin, said ministers would carefully consider the UK government announcement."", 'She noted that offshore oil and gas licensing is reserved to Westminster, but said decisions should be made on a “case by case basis and include rigorous assessments of both climate compatibility and energy security”.', 'Following the Supreme Court ruling, the government also walked away from a legal challenge against a new coal mine in Cumbria approved under the previous Conservative administration.']",0.3224134278207528,"An Equinor spokesperson said: “Rosebank is a vital project for the UK and is bringing benefits in terms of investment, job creation and energy security.""","Scotland’s then first minister Humza Yousaf said he was ""disappointed"" at the decision and accused Downing Street of ""climate denial"".",-0.2363549023866653,"An Equinor spokesperson said: “Rosebank is a vital project for the UK and is bringing benefits in terms of investment, job creation and energy security.""","Industry body Offshore Energies UK urged the government to conduct its consultation “at pace”, warning that uncertainty “further impacts investor confidence”.",2024-08-31
Will sustainable aviation fuels take off?,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cg64pwxzln4o,2024-08-30T01:14:43.247Z,"In a building on the edge of a business park outside Sheffield, researcher Ihab Ahmed is preparing to fire up a small jet engine. Originally used as an auxiliary power unit for a commercial airliner, it has been turned into a testbed for new fuels developed in a laboratory next door. The arrangement is a centrepiece of Sheffield University’s Sustainable Fuels Innovation Centre (SAF-IC), a research facility set up to allow synthetic fuels to be prepared and evaluated on a small scale, before being put into large scale production. On a bank of computer screens in a nearby control room, Ihab can monitor the engine as it starts with a burst of flame and powers up. Sensors tell him what the engine is doing in real time – and allow the exhaust gases to be continually analysed. Sustainable fuels are synthetic alternatives to fossil fuels, made from renewable sources. These can include waste cooking oils, vegetable fats and agricultural waste, as well as captured carbon dioxide. The advantage of burning fuels like these is that it does not add to the overall load of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. The carbon emitted has only recently been removed, either by plants or by chemical processes. By contrast, burning fossil fuels releases carbon that has been stored in the earth for millions of years. “From an environmental perspective, it’s day and night,"" Mr Ahmed explains. “In principle, the CO2 should be a net zero, so there is no more carbon dioxide added to the atmosphere, but another benefit is the non-CO2 part of things. “For example, it reduces the particulates or smoke that comes out of the engine, which can affect your lungs, as well as contributing to the creation of contrails."" For the aviation industry, this is potentially a game-changer. According to forecasts from both Airbus and Boeing, the global airliner fleet is expected to more than double over the next two decades, as the middle classes in countries like India and China expand, and demand for air travel increases. At the same time, members of the International Air Transport Association, which represents airlines, have committed to reaching net zero by 2050. Some gains will be made by replacing older planes with new ones. The most modern aircraft are between 15 and 30% more fuel efficient than their predecessors. Yet if the industry is to continue expanding, much more will be needed. In the longer term, new technologies such as hydrogen power and electrification are likely to play a role, at least on shorter routes. But there are steep challenges to overcome. Hydrogen, for example, is bulky and difficult to store in large quantities. It either needs to be kept as a highly compressed gas or as a very cold liquid. To be sustainable, it has to be made in a ""clean"" way, from renewable sources – and supplies now are very limited. “We believe we could bring a small hydrogen fuel cell aircraft to the market between 2035 and 2045, technically,” says Arjen Meijer, chief executive of the Brazilian jet maker Embraer. “But the question that needs to be answered is: will there be sufficient hydrogen to feed those aircraft? These things need to come together. They can’t happen separately."" Batteries, meanwhile, are currently very heavy in relation to the energy they contain. This makes them unsuitable for powering large planes, or being used over long distances. This means that hydrogen and hybrid, or fully electric, planes remain years away. Sustainable aviation fuels, by contrast, can be made in the lab to have the same characteristics as conventional ones derived from crude oil, so they can be used in today’s aircraft. There are restrictions. Airlines must currently use a blend of SAF with ordinary fuel, with the SAF component not exceeding 50%. However, modern planes are capable of burning 100% SAF. In a specially approved test flight last year, Virgin Atlantic flew a Boeing 787 from London to New York using fuel exclusively produced from waste fats and plant sugars. “The technologies are already available and certified for use in aircraft,"" explains Julie Kitcher, chief sustainability officer at Airbus. “The challenge with sustainable fuels is really about getting it produced at scale, across the globe, because this is a global industry, at an affordable price.” And that is very clearly the catch. Supplies of SAF are currently minimal. According to the European regulator EASA, they make up just 0.05% of the fuel used in the EU. They also cost between three and five times as much as ""regular"" jet fuel. Governments want to change this. In the UK a ""SAF mandate"" has been introduced, which stipulates that from next year, 2% of all jet fuel supplied must be SAF, increasing to 10% in 2030 and 22% in 2040. The EU has a similar mandate, although it extends to 2050 – when the target for SAF use will be 63%. The US does not have minimum requirements but offers subsidies to bring down the price of sustainable fuels. But if SAF usage is to increase, production will also need to be ramped up dramatically. There are many different methods, or pathways for making sustainable fuels. They can be made from biomass, such as waste cooking oil, energy crops, wood, agricultural residues and even human waste. However, there are concerns that this will not provide all the fuel the market will ultimately need. Some feedstocks may need to be avoided, either to prevent environmental degradation such as deforestation, or to prevent land needed for growing food from being turned over to energy production. An alternative is to use a method called power to liquid, in which water and carbon dioxide are broken down, with the resulting carbon and hydrogen combined to create liquid fuel. This could produce potentially limitless supplies of fuel, but in order to be sustainable would require large quantities of renewable electricity, as well as a substantial increase in carbon capture and storage. Both processes – using biomass or power to liquid - are currently very expensive. As a result, the aviation industry is demanding action to increase production, and bring prices down through economies of scale. However, environmentalists question whether this is actually viable. ""There are good SAFs, and there are bad SAFs, but the brutal truth is that right now there is not much of either,” says Matt Finch, UK head of campaign group Transport & Environment. “Conversely, right now there are thousands of new planes on order from airlines, and all of them will burn fossil fuels for at least 20 years. ""Actions speak louder than words, and it's clear that the aviation sector has no plans to wean itself off its addiction to pollution."" Nonetheless, at the recent Farnborough Airshow, there were several significant announcements relating to SAF. A consortium including Airbus, AirFrance-KLM, Associated Energy Group, BNP Paribas and Qantas among others announced plans to invest $200m (£151m) in a new fund which will invest in “technologically mature SAF-producing projects using for instance waste-based feedstocks”. Meanwhile Boeing said it had set up a partnership with the investment company Clear Sky to promote a method of producing SAF pioneered by the British company Firefly. That method involves taking human waste and using heat and high pressure to turn it into a substance which can then be used to make SAF. In other words, it allows planes to be powered by poo. Sign up for our Future Earth newsletter to get exclusive insight on the latest climate and environment news from the BBC's Climate Editor Justin Rowlatt, delivered to your inbox every week. Outside the UK? Sign up to our international newsletter here. ",BBC,30/08/2024,"['In a building on the edge of a business park outside Sheffield, researcher Ihab Ahmed is preparing to fire up a small jet engine.', 'Originally used as an auxiliary power unit for a commercial airliner, it has been turned into a testbed for new fuels developed in a laboratory next door.', 'The arrangement is a centrepiece of Sheffield University’s Sustainable Fuels Innovation Centre (SAF-IC), a research facility set up to allow synthetic fuels to be prepared and evaluated on a small scale, before being put into large scale production.', 'On a bank of computer screens in a nearby control room, Ihab can monitor the engine as it starts with a burst of flame and powers up.', 'Sensors tell him what the engine is doing in real time – and allow the exhaust gases to be continually analysed.', 'Sustainable fuels are synthetic alternatives to fossil fuels, made from renewable sources.', 'These can include waste cooking oils, vegetable fats and agricultural waste, as well as captured carbon dioxide.', 'The advantage of burning fuels like these is that it does not add to the overall load of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.', 'The carbon emitted has only recently been removed, either by plants or by chemical processes.', 'By contrast, burning fossil fuels releases carbon that has been stored in the earth for millions of years. “', 'From an environmental perspective, it’s day and night,"" Mr Ahmed explains. “', 'In principle, the CO2 should be a net zero, so there is no more carbon dioxide added to the atmosphere, but another benefit is the non-CO2 part of things. “', 'For example, it reduces the particulates or smoke that comes out of the engine, which can affect your lungs, as well as contributing to the creation of contrails.""', 'For the aviation industry, this is potentially a game-changer.', 'According to forecasts from both Airbus and Boeing, the global airliner fleet is expected to more than double over the next two decades, as the middle classes in countries like India and China expand, and demand for air travel increases.', 'At the same time, members of the International Air Transport Association, which represents airlines, have committed to reaching net zero by 2050.', 'Some gains will be made by replacing older planes with new ones.', 'The most modern aircraft are between 15 and 30% more fuel efficient than their predecessors.', 'Yet if the industry is to continue expanding, much more will be needed.', 'In the longer term, new technologies such as hydrogen power and electrification are likely to play a role, at least on shorter routes.', 'But there are steep challenges to overcome.', 'Hydrogen, for example, is bulky and difficult to store in large quantities.', 'It either needs to be kept as a highly compressed gas or as a very cold liquid.', 'To be sustainable, it has to be made in a ""clean"" way, from renewable sources – and supplies now are very limited. “', 'We believe we could bring a small hydrogen fuel cell aircraft to the market between 2035 and 2045, technically,” says Arjen Meijer, chief executive of the Brazilian jet maker Embraer. “', 'But the question that needs to be answered is: will there be sufficient hydrogen to feed those aircraft?', 'These things need to come together.', 'They can’t happen separately.""', 'Batteries, meanwhile, are currently very heavy in relation to the energy they contain.', 'This makes them unsuitable for powering large planes, or being used over long distances.', 'This means that hydrogen and hybrid, or fully electric, planes remain years away.', 'Sustainable aviation fuels, by contrast, can be made in the lab to have the same characteristics as conventional ones derived from crude oil, so they can be used in today’s aircraft.', 'There are restrictions.', 'Airlines must currently use a blend of SAF with ordinary fuel, with the SAF component not exceeding 50%.', 'However, modern planes are capable of burning 100% SAF.', 'In a specially approved test flight last year, Virgin Atlantic flew a Boeing 787 from London to New York using fuel exclusively produced from waste fats and plant sugars. “', 'The technologies are already available and certified for use in aircraft,"" explains Julie Kitcher, chief sustainability officer at Airbus. “', 'The challenge with sustainable fuels is really about getting it produced at scale, across the globe, because this is a global industry, at an affordable price.”', 'And that is very clearly the catch.', 'Supplies of SAF are currently minimal.', 'According to the European regulator EASA, they make up just 0.05% of the fuel used in the EU.', 'They also cost between three and five times as much as ""regular"" jet fuel.', 'Governments want to change this.', 'In the UK a ""SAF mandate"" has been introduced, which stipulates that from next year, 2% of all jet fuel supplied must be SAF, increasing to 10% in 2030 and 22% in 2040.', 'The EU has a similar mandate, although it extends to 2050 – when the target for SAF use will be 63%.', 'The US does not have minimum requirements but offers subsidies to bring down the price of sustainable fuels.', 'But if SAF usage is to increase, production will also need to be ramped up dramatically.', 'There are many different methods, or pathways for making sustainable fuels.', 'They can be made from biomass, such as waste cooking oil, energy crops, wood, agricultural residues and even human waste.', 'However, there are concerns that this will not provide all the fuel the market will ultimately need.', 'Some feedstocks may need to be avoided, either to prevent environmental degradation such as deforestation, or to prevent land needed for growing food from being turned over to energy production.', 'An alternative is to use a method called power to liquid, in which water and carbon dioxide are broken down, with the resulting carbon and hydrogen combined to create liquid fuel.', 'This could produce potentially limitless supplies of fuel, but in order to be sustainable would require large quantities of renewable electricity, as well as a substantial increase in carbon capture and storage.', 'Both processes – using biomass or power to liquid - are currently very expensive.', 'As a result, the aviation industry is demanding action to increase production, and bring prices down through economies of scale.', 'However, environmentalists question whether this is actually viable. ""', 'There are good SAFs, and there are bad SAFs, but the brutal truth is that right now there is not much of either,” says Matt Finch, UK head of campaign group Transport & Environment. “', 'Conversely, right now there are thousands of new planes on order from airlines, and all of them will burn fossil fuels for at least 20 years. ""', 'Actions speak louder than words, and it\'s clear that the aviation sector has no plans to wean itself off its addiction to pollution.""', 'Nonetheless, at the recent Farnborough Airshow, there were several significant announcements relating to SAF.', 'A consortium including Airbus, AirFrance-KLM, Associated Energy Group, BNP Paribas and Qantas among others announced plans to invest $200m (£151m) in a new fund which will invest in “technologically mature SAF-producing projects using for instance waste-based feedstocks”.', 'Meanwhile Boeing said it had set up a partnership with the investment company Clear Sky to promote a method of producing SAF pioneered by the British company Firefly.', 'That method involves taking human waste and using heat and high pressure to turn it into a substance which can then be used to make SAF.', 'In other words, it allows planes to be powered by poo.', ""Sign up for our Future Earth newsletter to get exclusive insight on the latest climate and environment news from the BBC's Climate Editor Justin Rowlatt, delivered to your inbox every week."", 'Outside the UK?', 'Sign up to our international newsletter here.']",0.0640035522416933,"This could produce potentially limitless supplies of fuel, but in order to be sustainable would require large quantities of renewable electricity, as well as a substantial increase in carbon capture and storage.","There are good SAFs, and there are bad SAFs, but the brutal truth is that right now there is not much of either,” says Matt Finch, UK head of campaign group Transport & Environment. “",0.796401688685784,"According to forecasts from both Airbus and Boeing, the global airliner fleet is expected to more than double over the next two decades, as the middle classes in countries like India and China expand, and demand for air travel increases.","This makes them unsuitable for powering large planes, or being used over long distances.",2024-08-31
Best Buy shares surge on profit beat and guidance hike,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/29/best-buy-bby-earnings-q2-2025.html,2024-08-29T15:30:58+0000,"In this articleBest Buy raised its fiscal-year profit guidance Thursday after exceeding earnings and revenue expectations for the most recent quarter.Shares of Best Buy jumped more than 15% in morning trading Thursday.The retailer now expects to see full-year adjusted earnings per share in the range of $6.10 to $6.35, up from a prior range of $5.75 to $6.20. The company, however, lowered the top end of its guidance ranges for both full-year revenue and comparable sales.""As we look to the back half of the year, we expect our industry to continue to show increasing stabilization,"" Best Buy CFO Matt Bilunas said in the company's press release.Here's how the consumer electronics retailer did for the period ended Aug. 3 compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:The company reported net income for the quarter of $291 million, or $1.34 per share, compared with $274 million, or $1.25 per share, a year earlier. Net sales in the quarter dropped to $9.29 billion from $9.58 billion during the same period a year earlier.Comparable sales declined 2.3% during the quarter, compared with a 6.2% fall a year earlier.That drop in comparable sales was the company's best result for the metric since the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022, CEO Corie Barry said on the company's earnings call.Barry said the industry is returning to growth, adding that Best Buy's positioning within the sector is helping the retailer ""to capture that growth trajectory.""Best Buy has been in the midst of an attempted turnaround in response to a two-year sales slump. Discretionary merchandise retailers across the board have struggled with softer consumer demand in the wake of unusually high sales throughout the Covid pandemic and as consumers pull back due to elevated inflation.As the much-awaited replacement cycle of pandemic-era tech purchases starts trickling in, the retailer is hoping to cash in through marketing and operational initiatives. Best Buy said in July that it would add trained sales teams to three key parts of its stores — computing, appliance and home theater — and kick off a marketing campaign that includes YouTube videos to draw consumer interest.The company was also betting on a wave of new tech gadget debuts, such as a collection of new iPads launched by Apple in May and artificial intelligence-enabled laptops touted by Microsoft, to drive sales.The company on Thursday posted comparable sales growth of 6% in the domestic tablet and computing categories. However, that was ""more than offset"" by declines in appliances, home theater and gaming, executives said.Barry added that AI could continue to boost sales across categories over the next few years.""We believe we are just at the beginning of the impact of AI on tech innovation and customer demand,"" she said.Best Buy has seen a doubling in the number of consumers choosing to trade in old electronics for new ones, which Barry said is ""another indicator that people are wanting to renew and refresh"" their current tech gadgets.""We capitalized on demand driven by our customers' desire to replace or upgrade their products, combined with new innovation,"" Barry said during the company's earnings call. ""We see a consumer who is seeking value in sales events and one who is also willing to spend on high-price-point products when they need to or when there is new, compelling technology.""Still, the consumer environment continues to be ""unpredictable and uneven,"" Barry said, citing the upcoming election and the holiday season.""There's probably an even greater risk that the consumer is a little bit unsettled"" in the back half of the year, she said.",CNBC,29/08/2024,"['In this articleBest Buy raised its fiscal-year profit guidance Thursday after exceeding earnings and revenue expectations for the most recent quarter.', 'Shares of Best Buy jumped more than 15% in morning trading Thursday.', 'The retailer now expects to see full-year adjusted earnings per share in the range of $6.10 to $6.35, up from a prior range of $5.75 to $6.20.', 'The company, however, lowered the top end of its guidance ranges for both full-year revenue and comparable sales.', '""As we look to the back half of the year, we expect our industry to continue to show increasing stabilization,"" Best Buy CFO Matt Bilunas said in the company\'s press release.', ""Here's how the consumer electronics retailer did for the period ended Aug. 3 compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:The company reported net income for the quarter of $291 million, or $1.34 per share, compared with $274 million, or $1.25 per share, a year earlier."", 'Net sales in the quarter dropped to $9.29 billion from $9.58 billion during the same period a year earlier.', 'Comparable sales declined 2.3% during the quarter, compared with a 6.2% fall a year earlier.', ""That drop in comparable sales was the company's best result for the metric since the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022, CEO Corie Barry said on the company's earnings call."", 'Barry said the industry is returning to growth, adding that Best Buy\'s positioning within the sector is helping the retailer ""to capture that growth trajectory.', '""Best Buy has been in the midst of an attempted turnaround in response to a two-year sales slump.', 'Discretionary merchandise retailers across the board have struggled with softer consumer demand in the wake of unusually high sales throughout the Covid pandemic and as consumers pull back due to elevated inflation.', 'As the much-awaited replacement cycle of pandemic-era tech purchases starts trickling in, the retailer is hoping to cash in through marketing and operational initiatives.', 'Best Buy said in July that it would add trained sales teams to three key parts of its stores — computing, appliance and home theater — and kick off a marketing campaign that includes YouTube videos to draw consumer interest.', 'The company was also betting on a wave of new tech gadget debuts, such as a collection of new iPads launched by Apple in May and artificial intelligence-enabled laptops touted by Microsoft, to drive sales.', 'The company on Thursday posted comparable sales growth of 6% in the domestic tablet and computing categories.', 'However, that was ""more than offset"" by declines in appliances, home theater and gaming, executives said.', 'Barry added that AI could continue to boost sales across categories over the next few years.', '""We believe we are just at the beginning of the impact of AI on tech innovation and customer demand,"" she said.', 'Best Buy has seen a doubling in the number of consumers choosing to trade in old electronics for new ones, which Barry said is ""another indicator that people are wanting to renew and refresh"" their current tech gadgets.', '""We capitalized on demand driven by our customers\' desire to replace or upgrade their products, combined with new innovation,"" Barry said during the company\'s earnings call. ""', 'We see a consumer who is seeking value in sales events and one who is also willing to spend on high-price-point products when they need to or when there is new, compelling technology.', '""Still, the consumer environment continues to be ""unpredictable and uneven,"" Barry said, citing the upcoming election and the holiday season.', '""There\'s probably an even greater risk that the consumer is a little bit unsettled"" in the back half of the year, she said.']",0.3770564662732343,"Barry said the industry is returning to growth, adding that Best Buy's positioning within the sector is helping the retailer ""to capture that growth trajectory.",Discretionary merchandise retailers across the board have struggled with softer consumer demand in the wake of unusually high sales throughout the Covid pandemic and as consumers pull back due to elevated inflation.,0.2777897663738417,"The retailer now expects to see full-year adjusted earnings per share in the range of $6.10 to $6.35, up from a prior range of $5.75 to $6.20.",Net sales in the quarter dropped to $9.29 billion from $9.58 billion during the same period a year earlier.,2024-08-31
Weekend strikes by LNER train drivers called off,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cy4lwde3l73o,2024-08-29T17:52:53.929Z,"Train driver strikes at London North Eastern Railway (LNER) have been called off following last-ditch talks between union and company officials. Some 450 drivers at the company had planned to walk out every weekend until mid-November over what the union said were broken agreements. However, Aslef told the BBC late on Thursday a ""resolution"" had been reached and confirmed drivers would ""now report for duty as normal"". LNER said it would look to ""strengthen"" its timetable for this weekend having planned fewer services. LNER, which operates services between Edinburgh and London on the East Coast Mainline, had warned that trains would be ""extremely busy"" due to the reduced timetable. It advised passengers to still check bookings before travelling. The company, which is run by the government, operates trains to and from London King's Cross station and also through major cities including Newcastle, York and Durham. Aslef originally announced the strikes earlier this month, with the first action scheduled to take place from this weekend, and every following one until 10 November. The dispute between LNER and Aslef was separate to the long-running row over pay between drivers and all 16 train companies in England, which could soon be resolved following a new pay offer. The union accused LNER of ""breaking agreements"" on working practices, which officials said included driver managers driving trains and ""improper use"" of overtime working. Mick Whelan, general secretary of Aslef, said the union was ""pleased to have finally resolved this long-standing issue with LNER’s abuse of our agreements"". He said the union would ""continue to campaign for a fully-staffed railway that does not rely on excessive use of driver overtime"". An LNER spokesperson described the talks as ""constructive"" and said it was pleased the strikes had been called off. Transport Secretary Louise Haigh welcomed the resolution, which she said had come at ""no extra cost to the taxpayer"". Various railway strikes have led to cancelled services and disruption for passengers for more than two years. But a breakthrough between the parties was made earlier this month when Aslef revealed its members will vote on a fresh pay deal. The new offer is for a 5% backdated pay rise for 2022/23, a 4.75% rise for 23/24, and 4.5% increase for 24/25. ",BBC,29/08/2024,"['Train driver strikes at London North Eastern Railway (LNER) have been called off following last-ditch talks between union and company officials.', 'Some 450 drivers at the company had planned to walk out every weekend until mid-November over what the union said were broken agreements.', 'However, Aslef told the BBC late on Thursday a ""resolution"" had been reached and confirmed drivers would ""now report for duty as normal"".', 'LNER said it would look to ""strengthen"" its timetable for this weekend having planned fewer services.', 'LNER, which operates services between Edinburgh and London on the East Coast Mainline, had warned that trains would be ""extremely busy"" due to the reduced timetable.', 'It advised passengers to still check bookings before travelling.', ""The company, which is run by the government, operates trains to and from London King's Cross station and also through major cities including Newcastle, York and Durham."", 'Aslef originally announced the strikes earlier this month, with the first action scheduled to take place from this weekend, and every following one until 10 November.', 'The dispute between LNER and Aslef was separate to the long-running row over pay between drivers and all 16 train companies in England, which could soon be resolved following a new pay offer.', 'The union accused LNER of ""breaking agreements"" on working practices, which officials said included driver managers driving trains and ""improper use"" of overtime working.', 'Mick Whelan, general secretary of Aslef, said the union was ""pleased to have finally resolved this long-standing issue with LNER’s abuse of our agreements"".', 'He said the union would ""continue to campaign for a fully-staffed railway that does not rely on excessive use of driver overtime"".', 'An LNER spokesperson described the talks as ""constructive"" and said it was pleased the strikes had been called off.', 'Transport Secretary Louise Haigh welcomed the resolution, which she said had come at ""no extra cost to the taxpayer"".', 'Various railway strikes have led to cancelled services and disruption for passengers for more than two years.', 'But a breakthrough between the parties was made earlier this month when Aslef revealed its members will vote on a fresh pay deal.', 'The new offer is for a 5% backdated pay rise for 2022/23, a 4.75% rise for 23/24, and 4.5% increase for 24/25.']",-0.0454135780190486,But a breakthrough between the parties was made earlier this month when Aslef revealed its members will vote on a fresh pay deal.,Various railway strikes have led to cancelled services and disruption for passengers for more than two years.,-0.0556250864809209,"The new offer is for a 5% backdated pay rise for 2022/23, a 4.75% rise for 23/24, and 4.5% increase for 24/25.","The union accused LNER of ""breaking agreements"" on working practices, which officials said included driver managers driving trains and ""improper use"" of overtime working.",2024-08-31
Boeing Starliner returning empty as NASA turns to SpaceX to bring astronauts back from ISS,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/24/nasa-boeing-starliner-decision-return-empty-spacex-astronauts-iss.html,2024-08-29T13:13:56+0000,"In this articleBoeing will return its Starliner capsule from the International Space Station without the NASA astronauts that it delivered to orbit in early June, the agency announced on Saturday.With Starliner coming back to Earth empty, NASA will now have astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams return via SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft, which is expected to launch its ninth regular mission to the ISS for the agency on Sept. 24.Ultimately, Wilmore and Williams will stay at the ISS for about six more months before flying home in February on SpaceX's Crew-9 vehicle. The test flight was originally intended to last about nine days.The decision to bring Starliner back from the ISS empty marks a dramatic about-face for NASA and Boeing, as the organizations were previously adamant that the capsule was the primary choice for returning the crew.But Starliner's crew flight test, which had been seen as the final major milestone in the spacecraft's development, faced problems — most notably with its propulsion system.""Boeing has worked very hard with NASA to get the necessary data to make this decision,"" NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said during a press conference with top NASA officials at Johnson Space Center in Houston on Saturday. ""We want to further understand the root causes and understand the design improvements so that the Boeing Starliner will serve as an important part of our assured crew access to the ISS.""He reiterated that test flights are ""neither safe, nor routine,"" and that the decision was the ""result of a commitment to safety.""NASA will now conduct another phase of its Flight Readiness Review to determine when to bring the empty Starliner home.Boeing officials had been adamant in press briefings that Starliner was safe for the astronauts to fly home in the event of an emergency, despite delaying the return multiple times. NASA said there was a ""technical disagreement"" between the agency and the aerospace company, and said it evaluated risk differently than Boeing for returning its crew.Nonetheless, NASA officials repeatedly expressed support for Boeing, and Nelson said he was ""100% certain"" that Starliner would be able to launch with a crew again someday.""We continue to focus, first and foremost, on the safety of the crew and spacecraft,"" Boeing said in a statement posted on X on Saturday. ""We are executing the mission as determined by NASA, and we are preparing the spacecraft for a safe and successful uncrewed return.""Ken Bowersox, NASA associate administrator, said NASA officials were unanimous in their decision to choose SpaceX to bring the crew home.Meanwhile, SpaceX will bring two astronauts along on its Crew-9 vehicle — instead of four who were originally planned to go — to make room for Wilmore and Williams.""SpaceX stands ready to support @NASA however we can,"" President and COO Gwynne Shotwell responded in a social media post on X.Boeing's Starliner capsule ""Calypso"" has been at the International Space Station since early June on a mission that NASA extended indefinitely as the agency and company tried to identify why multiple of the spacecraft's thrusters failed during docking.Those thrusters, part of the spacecraft's propulsion system, are key to Starliner's safe return from the ISS. NASA cited the thrusters on Saturday as an ongoing problem.The Starliner crew flight test was supposed to be a final box checked for Boeing and a key asset gained for NASA. The agency was hoping to fulfill its dream of having two competing companies — Boeing and Elon Musk's SpaceX — flying alternating missions to the ISS.Instead, the flight test is further setting back Boeing's progress in NASA's Commercial Crew program and, with over $1.5 billion in losses absorbed already, threatens the company's future involvement with it.",CNBC,29/08/2024,"['In this articleBoeing will return its Starliner capsule from the International Space Station without the NASA astronauts that it delivered to orbit in early June, the agency announced on Saturday.', ""With Starliner coming back to Earth empty, NASA will now have astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams return via SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft, which is expected to launch its ninth regular mission to the ISS for the agency on Sept. 24.Ultimately, Wilmore and Williams will stay at the ISS for about six more months before flying home in February on SpaceX's Crew-9 vehicle."", 'The test flight was originally intended to last about nine days.', 'The decision to bring Starliner back from the ISS empty marks a dramatic about-face for NASA and Boeing, as the organizations were previously adamant that the capsule was the primary choice for returning the crew.', ""But Starliner's crew flight test, which had been seen as the final major milestone in the spacecraft's development, faced problems — most notably with its propulsion system."", '""Boeing has worked very hard with NASA to get the necessary data to make this decision,"" NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said during a press conference with top NASA officials at Johnson Space Center in Houston on Saturday. ""', 'We want to further understand the root causes and understand the design improvements so that the Boeing Starliner will serve as an important part of our assured crew access to the ISS.""He reiterated that test flights are ""neither safe, nor routine,"" and that the decision was the ""result of a commitment to safety.', '""NASA will now conduct another phase of its Flight Readiness Review to determine when to bring the empty Starliner home.', 'Boeing officials had been adamant in press briefings that Starliner was safe for the astronauts to fly home in the event of an emergency, despite delaying the return multiple times.', 'NASA said there was a ""technical disagreement"" between the agency and the aerospace company, and said it evaluated risk differently than Boeing for returning its crew.', 'Nonetheless, NASA officials repeatedly expressed support for Boeing, and Nelson said he was ""100% certain"" that Starliner would be able to launch with a crew again someday.', '""We continue to focus, first and foremost, on the safety of the crew and spacecraft,"" Boeing said in a statement posted on X on Saturday. ""', 'We are executing the mission as determined by NASA, and we are preparing the spacecraft for a safe and successful uncrewed return.', '""Ken Bowersox, NASA associate administrator, said NASA officials were unanimous in their decision to choose SpaceX to bring the crew home.', 'Meanwhile, SpaceX will bring two astronauts along on its Crew-9 vehicle — instead of four who were originally planned to go — to make room for Wilmore and Williams.', '""SpaceX stands ready to support@NASAhowever we can,"" President and COO Gwynne Shotwell responded in a social media post on X.Boeing\'s Starliner capsule ""Calypso"" has been at the International Space Station since early June on a mission that NASA extended indefinitely as the agency and company tried to identify why multiple of the spacecraft\'sthrusters failed during docking.', ""Those thrusters, part of the spacecraft's propulsion system, are key to Starliner's safe return from the ISS."", 'NASA cited the thrusters on Saturday as an ongoing problem.', 'The Starliner crew flight test was supposed to be a final box checked for Boeing and a key asset gained for NASA.', ""The agency was hoping to fulfill its dream of having two competing companies — Boeing and Elon Musk's SpaceX — flying alternating missions to the ISS.Instead, the flight test is further setting back Boeing's progress in NASA's Commercial Crew program and, withover $1.5 billion in lossesabsorbed already, threatens the company's future involvement with it.""]",0.1288737369317408,"We are executing the mission as determined by NASA, and we are preparing the spacecraft for a safe and successful uncrewed return.","NASA said there was a ""technical disagreement"" between the agency and the aerospace company, and said it evaluated risk differently than Boeing for returning its crew.",0.1006312668323516,"Nonetheless, NASA officials repeatedly expressed support for Boeing, and Nelson said he was ""100% certain"" that Starliner would be able to launch with a crew again someday.","But Starliner's crew flight test, which had been seen as the final major milestone in the spacecraft's development, faced problems — most notably with its propulsion system.",2024-08-31
Four-day week: Workers' rights could be strengthened,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c4gl5w83z7do,2024-08-30T03:54:03.608Z,"Full-time workers' rights to ask for a four-day working week could be strengthened under government plans to increase flexible working. Employees would still have to work their full hours to receive their full pay but could request to compress their contracted hours into a shorter working week, as first reported by the Daily Telegraph.  Since April, workers have already had the right to ask for flexible working as soon as they start a job but firms do not have to agree. The government says it will not impose changes on staff or businesses, but the Conservatives say businesses are ""petrified"" about the plans.  A spokesperson at the Department for Business and Trade said: ""Any changes to employment legislation will be consulted on, working in partnership with business.""  Education Minister Baroness Jacqui Smith told LBC that ""flexible working is actually good for productivity"". She said the four-day week being discussed would allow someone to work 10 hours a day for four days instead of working eight hours a day for five days. ""You're still doing the same amount of work, but perhaps you're doing it in a way that enables you, for example, to need less childcare, to spend more time with your family, to do other things, that encourages more people into the workplace,"" she added. Employees already have  the right to request flexible working Employers must deal with requests in a ""reasonable manner"" but can turn them down ""if they have a good business reason for doing so"". Charlie Thompson, employment partner at law firm Stewarts, said: ""It’s not yet clear what this “new” law will entail. ""One possibility is for the government to make it more difficult for employers to refuse such requests, because at present it is quite easy for them to do so.” Earlier this year, Morrisons scrapped four-day working weeks for its head office staff following feedback. In order to make the four-day week work, staff had to work some Saturdays, which resulted in complaints and dissatisfaction. In July, Asda shelved a four-day week trial after staff complained that their longer shifts were too demanding. Ben Willmott, head of public policy at HR body the Chartered Institute for Personnel and Development, said flexible working arrangements such as compressed hours ""can help people balance their work and home life commitments, while also supporting employer efforts to recruit and retain staff"".  ""However flexible working has to work for both the business and workers if it’s to be sustainable."" He added that it would make sense for the government to assess the impact of changes introduced in April, which allow people to request flexible working from day one of employment, before making further changes. Kelly Burton is a mental health nurse from Crewe who asked to condense her hours into a four day working week to get a better work-life balance. She was granted permission from her employer once she could prove it was possible to do her five-day job in the space of four days. “Since July I have started working Monday to Thursday 8-6pm instead of Monday to Friday 9-5pm. ""I’m happier at work, can spend the extra day looking after elderly parents and still have my weekend. Perfect work-life balance,"" Ms Burton said. She thinks she would have had to change jobs or move to part-time if flexible working hadn't been an option. ""My employer has a happy worker and a happy worker always goes over and above for them,"" she said. Details of any changes are expected in the autumn when a law to create a new package of workers' rights is expected to begin its journey through Parliament. Labour has pledged to repeal some anti-trade union laws, restrict the use of zero-hours contracts and expand flexible working arrangements.  Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer calls the proposals ""the biggest upgrade to workers' rights in a generation"". But the Conservative opposition claims the approach would damage business and lead to reduced productivity. In 2022, several UK companies took place in a six-month trial to test a four-day working week, which saw workers receive full pay for working fewer hours. Tyler Grange, an environmental consultancy, took part in the trial and in 2023 told the BBC it was sticking with the working pattern. Simon Ursell, its managing director, said the first month of the trial had been ""a bit white knuckle"". But the firm said it found the extra day off boosted staff happiness and even resulted in more people applying to work there. However, the experiment did not work for Mark Roderick’s engineering and industrial supplies company Allcap. “As opposed to 10 normal workdays, we found that employees would have nine extreme ones – once they got to their scheduled day off they were exhausted,"" he said last year. ""Once we factored in holidays, sickness and caring responsibilities, we also struggled to find cover for an employee on their rest day,"" he said. ",BBC,30/08/2024,"[""Full-time workers' rights to ask for a four-day working week could be strengthened under government plans to increase flexible working."", 'Employees would still have to work their full hours to receive their full pay but could request to compress their contracted hours into a shorter working week, as first reported by the Daily Telegraph.', 'Since April, workers have already had the right to ask for flexible working as soon as they start a job but firms do not have to agree.', 'The government says it will not impose changes on staff or businesses, but the Conservatives say businesses are ""petrified"" about the plans.', 'A spokesperson at the Department for Business and Trade said: ""Any changes to employment legislation will be consulted on, working in partnership with business.""', 'Education Minister Baroness Jacqui Smith told LBC that ""flexible working is actually good for productivity"".', 'She said the four-day week being discussed would allow someone to work 10 hours a day for four days instead of working eight hours a day for five days. ""', 'You\'re still doing the same amount of work, but perhaps you\'re doing it in a way that enables you, for example, to need less childcare, to spend more time with your family, to do other things, that encourages more people into the workplace,"" she added.', 'Employees already have the right to request flexible working Employers must deal with requests in a ""reasonable manner"" but can turn them down ""if they have a good business reason for doing so"".', 'Charlie Thompson, employment partner at law firm Stewarts, said: ""It’s not yet clear what this “new” law will entail. ""', 'One possibility is for the government to make it more difficult for employers to refuse such requests, because at present it is quite easy for them to do so.”', 'Earlier this year, Morrisons scrapped four-day working weeks for its head office staff following feedback.', 'In order to make the four-day week work, staff had to work some Saturdays, which resulted in complaints and dissatisfaction.', 'In July, Asda shelved a four-day week trial after staff complained that their longer shifts were too demanding.', 'Ben Willmott, head of public policy at HR body the Chartered Institute for Personnel and Development, said flexible working arrangements such as compressed hours ""can help people balance their work and home life commitments, while also supporting employer efforts to recruit and retain staff"". ""', 'However flexible working has to work for both the business and workers if it’s to be sustainable.""', 'He added that it would make sense for the government to assess the impact of changes introduced in April, which allow people to request flexible working from day one of employment, before making further changes.', 'Kelly Burton is a mental health nurse from Crewe who asked to condense her hours into a four day working week to get a better work-life balance.', 'She was granted permission from her employer once she could prove it was possible to do her five-day job in the space of four days. “', 'Since July I have started working Monday to Thursday 8-6pm instead of Monday to Friday 9-5pm. ""', 'I’m happier at work, can spend the extra day looking after elderly parents and still have my weekend.', 'Perfect work-life balance,"" Ms Burton said.', 'She thinks she would have had to change jobs or move to part-time if flexible working hadn\'t been an option. ""', 'My employer has a happy worker and a happy worker always goes over and above for them,"" she said.', ""Details of any changes are expected in the autumn when a law to create a new package of workers' rights is expected to begin its journey through Parliament."", 'Labour has pledged to repeal some anti-trade union laws, restrict the use of zero-hours contracts and expand flexible working arrangements.', 'Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer calls the proposals ""the biggest upgrade to workers\' rights in a generation"".', 'But the Conservative opposition claims the approach would damage business and lead to reduced productivity.', 'In 2022, several UK companies took place in a six-month trial to test a four-day working week, which saw workers receive full pay for working fewer hours.', 'Tyler Grange, an environmental consultancy, took part in the trial and in 2023 told the BBC it was sticking with the working pattern.', 'Simon Ursell, its managing director, said the first month of the trial had been ""a bit white knuckle"".', 'But the firm said it found the extra day off boosted staff happiness and even resulted in more people applying to work there.', 'However, the experiment did not work for Mark Roderick’s engineering and industrial supplies company Allcap. “', 'As opposed to 10 normal workdays, we found that employees would have nine extreme ones – once they got to their scheduled day off they were exhausted,"" he said last year. ""', 'Once we factored in holidays, sickness and caring responsibilities, we also struggled to find cover for an employee on their rest day,"" he said.']",0.1323547792131192,But the firm said it found the extra day off boosted staff happiness and even resulted in more people applying to work there.,"In order to make the four-day week work, staff had to work some Saturdays, which resulted in complaints and dissatisfaction.",0.2448939569294452,But the firm said it found the extra day off boosted staff happiness and even resulted in more people applying to work there.,But the Conservative opposition claims the approach would damage business and lead to reduced productivity.,2024-08-31
Homelessness: Councils spent £1bn housing families in England,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cj9l8njg2rzo,2024-08-29T16:06:31.985Z,"Councils in England spent a record £1bn on temporary accommodation for homeless families in the past year. This is more than 50% higher than the year before, driven by record numbers of families living in short-term housing, including over 150,000 children. Councils spent £417m accommodating families in hostels and bed and breakfasts, a 63% increase on the year before. The Labour government has said it inherited a housing crisis which has ""left families stuck living in temporary accommodation"". In a statement, a housing ministry spokesperson said the government would deliver on its target of 1.5 million homes and ""prevent homelessness before it occurs"" by banning no-fault evictions.  Experts say soaring private rents, a lack of housebuilding and increased eviction rates have made homelessness a chronic problem. Romel Peters, 37, has been stuck in temporary accommodation in London with her two young sons for over a year after being served a no-fault eviction by her private landlord. The family all sleep in one room, while the “filthy” cooking and washing facilities are shared with other tenants. “I can’t even describe how dirty the place is. I don’t cook here, my family cook and bring us food or I will cook at my mum’s house.  ""I’ve gone into the kitchen to cook food and there have been cockroaches around the microwave,” she said. She worries about the impact on her children, who have little space to play or do their homework, while most of their toys are in storage. Romel had been on her local council’s housing list for almost a decade when she was evicted – only to be told she was no longer eligible because she had previously been renting privately. “I’m devastated, I’ve been trying to contact the council for 18 months and no case worker has ever contacted me [back].  ""I tried to find something myself and join housing associations, but they need a referral from the council and for weeks they got no reply."" The council now want the family to move to temporary accommodation three hours away in West Bromwich.  As she doesn’t want to leave her family network or the children’s school behind, she refused – and the council says it no longer has a duty to help her. The family now face being homeless again as she cannot afford the increased cost of renting privately. Latest figures from the Office for National Statistics show average rent increases across the UK ranged from 8.6% in England through to 8.2% in Scotland and 7.9% in Wales. Northern Ireland's data lags behind the rest of the UK, with figures currently available up to the end of last year. The ONS reported a 10% increase in the country for the year to May 2024. High inflation - in part caused by the Covid pandemic and high energy prices after Russia invaded Ukraine - has kept rent prices high. Polly Neate, chief executive of Shelter, said: “It’s absurd that we keep throwing good money after bad into grim homeless accommodation instead of investing in solutions that would help families into a safe and secure home. “Decades of failure to build enough social homes combined with runaway rents and rising evictions has caused homelessness to spiral.  ""Too many children are being forced to grow up homeless in grotty, cramped hostels and B&Bs, sharing beds with their siblings, with no place to play or do their homework. “Rather than sinking billions into temporary solutions every year, the government must invest in genuinely affordable social homes and support councils so they can start building them.""  Shelter is calling on the government to build 90,000 social homes over the next decade. They and other housing charities point out the real cost of homelessness to the public is even higher.   They say the figures, published by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, show £2.3bn was spent paying for households in temporary accommodation once housing benefit, which is paid by the government, was included. Housing is not just a problem in England - the devolved nations are equally under pressure. In Scotland, the government has declared a national housing emergency. It is offering targeted funding of £2 million in 2023 to 2024 to the local authorities facing the most significant temporary accommodation pressures. The latest data on spending on temporary accommodation in Wales has risen from £5.6m in 2018, to £42.9m in 2022 - a seven-fold increase - based on data from 20 out of 22 councils. There are also problems in Northern Ireland - the country's Housing Executive chief executive Grainia Long says there are 11,000 placements in temporary accommodation, compared to 3,000 before the Covid pandemic. ",BBC,29/08/2024,"['Councils in England spent a record £1bn on temporary accommodation for homeless families in the past year.', 'This is more than 50% higher than the year before, driven by record numbers of families living in short-term housing, including over 150,000 children.', 'Councils spent £417m accommodating families in hostels and bed and breakfasts, a 63% increase on the year before.', 'The Labour government has said it inherited a housing crisis which has ""left families stuck living in temporary accommodation"".', 'In a statement, a housing ministry spokesperson said the government would deliver on its target of 1.5 million homes and ""prevent homelessness before it occurs"" by banning no-fault evictions.', 'Experts say soaring private rents, a lack of housebuilding and increased eviction rates have made homelessness a chronic problem.', 'Romel Peters, 37, has been stuck in temporary accommodation in London with her two young sons for over a year after being served a no-fault eviction by her private landlord.', 'The family all sleep in one room, while the “filthy” cooking and washing facilities are shared with other tenants. “', 'I can’t even describe how dirty the place is.', 'I don’t cook here, my family cook and bring us food or I will cook at my mum’s house. ""', 'I’ve gone into the kitchen to cook food and there have been cockroaches around the microwave,” she said.', 'She worries about the impact on her children, who have little space to play or do their homework, while most of their toys are in storage.', 'Romel had been on her local council’s housing list for almost a decade when she was evicted – only to be told she was no longer eligible because she had previously been renting privately. “', 'I’m devastated, I’ve been trying to contact the council for 18 months and no case worker has ever contacted me [back]. ""', 'I tried to find something myself and join housing associations, but they need a referral from the council and for weeks they got no reply.""', 'The council now want the family to move to temporary accommodation three hours away in West Bromwich.', 'As she doesn’t want to leave her family network or the children’s school behind, she refused – and the council says it no longer has a duty to help her.', 'The family now face being homeless again as she cannot afford the increased cost of renting privately.', 'Latest figures from the Office for National Statistics show average rent increases across the UK ranged from 8.6% in England through to 8.2% in Scotland and 7.9% in Wales.', ""Northern Ireland's data lags behind the rest of the UK, with figures currently available up to the end of last year."", 'The ONS reported a 10% increase in the country for the year to May 2024.', 'High inflation - in part caused by the Covid pandemic and high energy prices after Russia invaded Ukraine - has kept rent prices high.', 'Polly Neate, chief executive of Shelter, said: “It’s absurd that we keep throwing good money after bad into grim homeless accommodation instead of investing in solutions that would help families into a safe and secure home. “', 'Decades of failure to build enough social homes combined with runaway rents and rising evictions has caused homelessness to spiral. ""', 'Too many children are being forced to grow up homeless in grotty, cramped hostels and B&Bs, sharing beds with their siblings, with no place to play or do their homework. “', 'Rather than sinking billions into temporary solutions every year, the government must invest in genuinely affordable social homes and support councils so they can start building them.""', 'Shelter is calling on the government to build 90,000 social homes over the next decade.', 'They and other housing charities point out the real cost of homelessness to the public is even higher.', 'They say the figures, published by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, show £2.3bn was spent paying for households in temporary accommodation once housing benefit, which is paid by the government, was included.', 'Housing is not just a problem in England - the devolved nations are equally under pressure.', 'In Scotland, the government has declared a national housing emergency.', 'It is offering targeted funding of £2 million in 2023 to 2024 to the local authorities facing the most significant temporary accommodation pressures.', 'The latest data on spending on temporary accommodation in Wales has risen from £5.6m in 2018, to £42.9m in 2022 - a seven-fold increase - based on data from 20 out of 22 councils.', ""There are also problems in Northern Ireland - the country's Housing Executive chief executive Grainia Long says there are 11,000 placements in temporary accommodation, compared to 3,000 before the Covid pandemic.""]",-0.0940055810183249,"Rather than sinking billions into temporary solutions every year, the government must invest in genuinely affordable social homes and support councils so they can start building them.""","Romel Peters, 37, has been stuck in temporary accommodation in London with her two young sons for over a year after being served a no-fault eviction by her private landlord.",-0.1623226158759173,The ONS reported a 10% increase in the country for the year to May 2024.,"Decades of failure to build enough social homes combined with runaway rents and rising evictions has caused homelessness to spiral. """,2024-08-31
Musk's X suspended in Brazil after disinformation row,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c5y3rnl5qv3o,2024-08-30T20:15:44.071Z,"X, formerly Twitter, has been banned in Brazil after failing to meet a deadline set by a Supreme Court judge to name a new legal representative in the country. Alexandre de Moraes ordered the ""immediate and complete suspension"" of the social media platform until it complies with all court orders and pays existing fines. The row began in April, with the judge ordering the suspension of dozens of X accounts for allegedly spreading disinformation. Reacting to the decision, X owner Elon Musk said: ""Free speech is the bedrock of democracy and an unelected pseudo-judge in Brazil is destroying it for political purposes."" The social media network is said to be used by at least a 10th of the nation's 200 million inhabitants.  By Saturday morning some users had reported access to the platform was no longer possible.   It closed its office in Brazil earlier this month, saying its representative had been threatened with arrest if she did not comply with orders it described as ""censorship"" -  as well as illegal under Brazilian law. Justice Moraes had ordered that X accounts accused of spreading disinformation - many supporters of the former right-wing president Jair Bolsonaro - must be blocked while they are under investigation. He said the company's legal representatives would be held liable if any accounts were reactivated. X has been threatened with fines for refusing to comply with this order, with the company and Mr Musk joining critics in Brazil in accusing the judge as being left-wing. It is the latest in a series of rows involving the tech billionaire - who has clashed with the EU over the regulation of X and earlier this month became embroiled in a war of words with UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer. The head of Brazil's telecommunications agency, which has been tasked with suspending the platform, said he is ""proceeding with the compliance"" to do so, according to Reuters news agency. Justice Moraes has given companies such as Apple and Google a five-day deadline to remove X from its application stores and block its use on iOS and Android systems. He added that people or businesses using means such as VPNs (virtual private network) to access the platform could be fined R$50,000 (£6,700). According to the judge's order, a ban will be in effect until X names a new legal representative in the country and pays fines for violating Brazilian law. In a previous post from one of its official accounts, X had said it would not comply with the demands. ""Soon, we expect Judge Alexandre de Moraes will order X to be shut down in Brazil – simply because we would not comply with his illegal orders to censor his political opponents,"" the post said. ""The fundamental issue at stake here is that Judge de Moraes demands we break Brazil’s own laws. We simply won’t do that."" Meanwhile, the bank accounts of Mr Musk's satellite internet firm Starlink have been frozen in Brazil following an earlier order by the country's Supreme Court. Starlink responded with a post on X which said the ""order is based on an unfounded determination that Starlink should be responsible for the fines levied - unconstitutionally - against X."" Justice Moraes gained prominence after his decisions to restrict social media platforms in the country. He is also investigating Mr Bolsonaro and his supporters for their roles in an alleged attempted coup on 8 January last year. X is not the first social media company to come under pressure from authorities in Brazil. Last year, Telegram was temporarily banned over its failure to cooperate with requests to block certain profiles. Meta's messaging service Whatsapp also faced temporary bans in 2015 and 2016 for refusing to comply with police requests for user data. ",BBC,30/08/2024,"['X, formerly Twitter, has been banned in Brazil after failing to meet a deadline set by a Supreme Court judge to name a new legal representative in the country.', 'Alexandre de Moraes ordered the ""immediate and complete suspension"" of the social media platform until it complies with all court orders and pays existing fines.', 'The row began in April, with the judge ordering the suspension of dozens of X accounts for allegedly spreading disinformation.', 'Reacting to the decision, X owner Elon Musk said: ""Free speech is the bedrock of democracy and an unelected pseudo-judge in Brazil is destroying it for political purposes.""', ""The social media network is said to be used by at least a 10th of the nation's 200 million inhabitants."", 'By Saturday morning some users had reported access to the platform was no longer possible.', 'It closed its office in Brazil earlier this month, saying its representative had been threatened with arrest if she did not comply with orders it described as ""censorship"" - as well as illegal under Brazilian law.', 'Justice Moraes had ordered that X accounts accused of spreading disinformation - many supporters of the former right-wing president Jair Bolsonaro - must be blocked while they are under investigation.', ""He said the company's legal representatives would be held liable if any accounts were reactivated."", 'X has been threatened with fines for refusing to comply with this order, with the company and Mr Musk joining critics in Brazil in accusing the judge as being left-wing.', 'It is the latest in a series of rows involving the tech billionaire - who has clashed with the EU over the regulation of X and earlier this month became embroiled in a war of words with UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.', 'The head of Brazil\'s telecommunications agency, which has been tasked with suspending the platform, said he is ""proceeding with the compliance"" to do so, according to Reuters news agency.', 'Justice Moraes has given companies such as Apple and Google a five-day deadline to remove X from its application stores and block its use on iOS and Android systems.', 'He added that people or businesses using means such as VPNs (virtual private network) to access the platform could be fined R$50,000 (£6,700).', ""According to the judge's order, a ban will be in effect until X names a new legal representative in the country and pays fines for violating Brazilian law."", 'In a previous post from one of its official accounts, X had said it would not comply with the demands. ""', 'Soon, we expect Judge Alexandre de Moraes will order X to be shut down in Brazil – simply because we would not comply with his illegal orders to censor his political opponents,"" the post said. ""', 'The fundamental issue at stake here is that Judge de Moraes demands we break Brazil’s own laws.', 'We simply won’t do that.""', ""Meanwhile, the bank accounts of Mr Musk's satellite internet firm Starlink have been frozen in Brazil following an earlier order by the country's Supreme Court."", 'Starlink responded with a post on X which said the ""order is based on an unfounded determination that Starlink should be responsible for the fines levied - unconstitutionally - against X."" Justice Moraes gained prominence after his decisions to restrict social media platforms in the country.', 'He is also investigating Mr Bolsonaro and his supporters for their roles in an alleged attempted coup on 8 January last year.', 'X is not the first social media company to come under pressure from authorities in Brazil.', 'Last year, Telegram was temporarily banned over its failure to cooperate with requests to block certain profiles.', ""Meta's messaging service Whatsapp also faced temporary bans in 2015 and 2016 for refusing to comply with police requests for user data.""]",-0.1349761085530334,"Starlink responded with a post on X which said the ""order is based on an unfounded determination that Starlink should be responsible for the fines levied - unconstitutionally - against X."" Justice Moraes gained prominence after his decisions to restrict social media platforms in the country.","X has been threatened with fines for refusing to comply with this order, with the company and Mr Musk joining critics in Brazil in accusing the judge as being left-wing.",-0.8348274694548713,,Meta's messaging service Whatsapp also faced temporary bans in 2015 and 2016 for refusing to comply with police requests for user data.,2024-08-31
Shares of Abercrombie & Fitch plunge 15% after CEO warns of 'increasingly uncertain environment',https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/28/abercrombie-fitch-anf-earnings-q2-2024.html,2024-08-28T14:03:16+0000,"In this articleAbercrombie & Fitch's revenue grew 21% during its fiscal second quarter as the apparel company builds on its torrid growth. The sales gain, which follows 16% growth in the year-ago period, led the company to issue bullish guidance for the current quarter. Still, its full-year outlook was largely in line with estimates as it prepares for one fewer week this year than last. CEO Fran Horowitz – who often says good companies win in any economic environment – may be bracing for a turbulent second half of the year because for the first time in four quarters, she referenced the uncertain state of the economy in the company's earnings release.""We delivered a strong first half of the year, and we are increasing our full-year outlook. Although we continue to operate in an increasingly uncertain environment, we remain steadfast in executing our global playbook and maintaining discipline over inventory and expenses,"" said Horowitz. ""We are on track and confident in our goal to deliver sustainable, profitable growth this year, while making strategic long-term investments across marketing, digital and technology and stores to enable future growth.""The company's shares — which were up nearly 89% this year as of Tuesday's close — fell about 15% in early trading. Here's how Abercrombie did compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG, formerly known as Refinitiv:The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended Aug. 3 was $133 million, or $2.50 per share, compared with $57 million, or $1.10 per share, a year earlier.  Sales rose to $1.13 billion, up about 21% from $935 million a year earlier. During the quarter, same-store sales jumped 18%, driven by better-than-expected summer and back-to-school selling. For the current quarter, Abercrombie expects sales to rise by a low double-digit percentage, better than the 8.9% growth that LSEG analysts had expected. Abercrombie raised its full-year sales guidance from 10% growth to a 12% to 13% increase, which is roughly in line with the 12% rise that LSEG analysts had expected. The company's fiscal 2024 will have one fewer week than fiscal 2023, which is likely weighing on its full-year guidance. Abercrombie expects the loss of one selling week will have an $80 million impact on its holiday quarter, or 5.5 percentage points. For the full year, the company expects it to hit sales by $50 million, or 1.2 percentage points. Over the last year, Abercrombie has become known as retail's biggest comeback story, and investors have been watching to see if the company can keep up its growth. Horowitz has looked to international markets and the company's Hollister and Abercrombie Kids brands as growth vectors, which are already boosting sales. During the quarter, sales at Hollister jumped 17% while comparable sales rose 15%. In the company's Europe, Middle East and Africa division, sales climbed 16%. Costly international expansion was one of the missteps that weighed on Abercrombie's performance in the past, but the company is taking a different approach this time around.Earlier this month, it announced a partnership with Haddad Brands – a licensor of children's wear – to create new distribution channels for Abercrombie Kids and grow the product line to include infant and toddler categories. ""As we work to diversify A&F Co.'s channel mix and drive sustainable, profitable growth, we are thrilled to partner with Haddad Brands to build on our success and create an opportunity to grow the brand in the years ahead by engaging with new customers globally,"" Horowitz said in a statement at the time. Products from Abercrombie Kids are set to be available in Haddad Brands' showrooms globally next month.",CNBC,28/08/2024,"[""In this articleAbercrombie & Fitch's revenue grew 21% during its fiscal second quarter as the apparel company builds on its torrid growth."", 'The sales gain, which follows 16% growth in the year-ago period, led the company to issue bullish guidance for the current quarter.', 'Still, its full-year outlook was largely in line with estimates as it prepares for one fewer week this year than last.', ""CEO Fran Horowitz – who often says good companies win in any economic environment – may be bracing for a turbulent second half of the year because for the first time in four quarters, she referenced the uncertain state of the economy in the company's earnings release."", '""We delivered a strong first half of the year, and we are increasing our full-year outlook.', 'Although we continue to operate in an increasingly uncertain environment, we remain steadfast in executing our global playbook and maintaining discipline over inventory and expenses,"" said Horowitz. ""', 'We are on track and confident in our goal to deliver sustainable, profitable growth this year, while making strategic long-term investments across marketing, digital and technology and stores to enable future growth.', '""The company\'s shares — which were up nearly 89% this year as of Tuesday\'s close — fell about 15% in early trading.', ""Here's how Abercrombie did compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG, formerly known as Refinitiv:The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended Aug. 3 was $133 million, or $2.50 per share, compared with $57 million, or $1.10 per share, a year earlier."", 'Sales rose to $1.13 billion, up about 21% from $935 million a year earlier.', 'During the quarter, same-store sales jumped 18%, driven by better-than-expected summer and back-to-school selling.', 'For the current quarter, Abercrombie expects sales to rise by a low double-digit percentage, better than the 8.9% growth that LSEG analysts had expected.', 'Abercrombie raised its full-year sales guidance from 10% growth to a 12% to 13% increase, which is roughly in line with the 12% rise that LSEG analysts had expected.', ""The company's fiscal 2024 will have one fewer week than fiscal 2023, which is likely weighing on its full-year guidance."", 'Abercrombie expects the loss of one selling week will have an $80 million impact on its holiday quarter, or 5.5 percentage points.', 'For the full year, the company expects it to hit sales by $50 million, or 1.2 percentage points.', ""Over the last year, Abercrombie has become known as retail's biggest comeback story, and investors have been watching to see if the company can keep up its growth."", ""Horowitz has looked to international markets and the company's Hollister and Abercrombie Kids brands as growth vectors, which are already boosting sales."", 'During the quarter, sales at Hollister jumped 17% while comparable sales rose 15%.', ""In the company's Europe, Middle East and Africa division, sales climbed 16%.Costly international expansion was one of the missteps that weighed on Abercrombie's performance in the past, but the company is taking a different approach this time around."", ""Earlier this month, it announced a partnership with Haddad Brands – a licensor of children's wear – to create new distribution channels for Abercrombie Kids and grow the product line to include infant and toddler categories."", '""As we work to diversify A&F Co.\'s channel mix and drive sustainable, profitable growth, we are thrilled to partner with Haddad Brands to build on our success and create an opportunity to grow the brand in the years ahead by engaging with new customers globally,"" Horowitz said in a statement at the time.', ""Products from Abercrombie Kids are set to be available in Haddad Brands' showrooms globally next month.""]",0.3403059944775122,"""As we work to diversify A&F Co.'s channel mix and drive sustainable, profitable growth, we are thrilled to partner with Haddad Brands to build on our success and create an opportunity to grow the brand in the years ahead by engaging with new customers globally,"" Horowitz said in a statement at the time.",,0.6236073403131395,"During the quarter, same-store sales jumped 18%, driven by better-than-expected summer and back-to-school selling.","""The company's shares — which were up nearly 89% this year as of Tuesday's close — fell about 15% in early trading.",2024-08-31
Telegram: 'The dark web in your pocket',https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cdey4prn3e1o,2024-08-30T23:01:41.758Z,"About nine months ago while researching a story, I found myself added to a large Telegram channel which was focused on selling drugs.  I was then added to one about hacking and then one about stolen credit cards. I realised my Telegram settings had made it possible for people to add me to their channels without me doing anything. I kept the settings the same to see what would happen. Within a few months, I had been added to 82 different groups. I changed my settings to stop it, but now every time I log on I am treated to thousands of new messages across dozens of extremely active illegal groups. The arrest of Telegram’s billionaire chief executive in France has ignited a debate about moderation on his app. Pavel Durov has been charged for suspected complicity in allowing illicit transactions, drug trafficking, fraud and the spread of child sex abuse images to flourish on his site. There is no doubt that criminality is happening on other social networks too, but my experiment hints at a broader problem that many in law enforcement have been concerned about for years. Here is a flavour of some of the groups to which I have found myself added.  All the images were posted to the groups, and we have altered the names of the channels so as not to advertise them. It is no wonder some people, like cyber-security podcaster Patrick Gray, have been describing Telegram for months as “the dark web in your pocket”. The dark web is a part of the internet that can only be accessed using specialist software and knowledge. Ever since the launch of the Silk Road marketplace in 2011, there has been a steady conveyor belt of websites selling illegal goods and services. Speaking about the shock arrest of Mr Durov, Mr Gray said on his podcast Risky Business that Telegram has been a haven for crime for a long time. “We are talking about child sexual abuse material, we’re talking about drug sales, we’re talking about absolutely dark web levels of criminality that they’re just doing nothing about,” he said. Criminals like the dark web because of the anonymity it provides - internet traffic is bounced around the world, obscuring people's locations. Pinpointing who is behind certain usernames is extremely challenging. Researchers at cyber-security company Intel471 say that “pre-Telegram this activity was predominantly done in online markets hosted using hidden dark web services” but for lower-level, lesser-skilled cyber-criminals, “Telegram has become one of the most popular online destinations”. The hacker group Qilin, which held NHS hospitals to ransom earlier this summer, notably chose to publish stolen blood test data on its Telegram channel before its dark web website. The deepfake service used to create fake nudes of schoolgirls in Spain and South Korea also runs its full service, including payment, on Telegram. Some of the Telegram criminal channels I was added to seem to have a presence on Snapchat and drug dealers can be found on Instagram too, where deals are no doubt being made in private chats. But drug dealers can often be seen advertising their Telegram channels on those other sites to funnel people to that platform. In January, state police in Latvia set up a separate unit specialising in monitoring chat apps for drug trafficking and communication, and officials have named Telegram as a particular concern. Telegram says that its moderation is “within industry standards”, but this week we have seen evidence to the contrary related to an area of criminality far less visible (and one I did not search for) - child sexual abuse material. On Wednesday, the BBC learned that while Telegram does respond to some takedown requests from police and charities, it is not participating in programmes aimed to proactively prevent the spread of images and videos of child sexual abuse. Not doing enough to police child sexual abuse material (CSAM) is one of the chief allegations from French prosecutors. “At the heart of this case is the lack of moderation and co-operation of the platform, in particular in the fight against crimes against children,” said Jean-Michel Bernigaud, the secretary general of French child protection agency Ofmin, on LinkedIn. Telegram told the BBC it does proactively search for illegal activity, including child sexual abuse, on its site. It said undisclosed action was taken against 45,000 groups in August alone.  The press office did not respond to follow-up questions about this or anything else in this article. Moderation is only part of the problem for Telegram. Its approach to police requests to remove illegal content and pass on evidence is another criticism. As Brian Fishman, a co-founder of Cinder, a software platform for trust and safety, posted: “Telegram is another level: it has been the key hub for Isis for a decade. It tolerates CSAM. It's ignored reasonable law enforcement engagement for years. It’s not 'light' content moderation; it’s a different approach entirely.” Some might argue that Telegram’s privacy features mean that the company does not have much data about this activity to report to police. This is the case with ultra-private apps like Signal and WhatsApp. Telegram offers users similar levels of privacy if they opt to create a “Secret Chat” which uses the same end-to-end encryption that those apps do. It means the activity inside a conversation is completely private and not even Telegram itself can view the contents. However, this function is not set as default on Telegram, and it seems that most of the activity on the app - including on those illicit channels I was added to - are not set as ""secret"". Telegram could read all content and pass it on to police if it wanted to, but it states in its terms and conditions that it does not. “All Telegram chats and group chats are private amongst their participants. We do not process any requests related to them,” the company’s terms and condition read. In June Pavel Durov told journalist Tucker Carlson that he only employs “about 30 engineers” to run his platform. Telegram’s cold approach to law enforcement is something that I have been told about on the fringes of press events by frustrated police officers. French authorities noted in their statements about Mr Durov’s charges that police there and in Belgium had historically an “almost total lack of response from Telegram to legal requests”. In spite of all the criticism against Telegram’s approach to moderation, there are some who are concerned that Mr Durov’s arrest is a troubling time. Digital rights organisation Access Now says it is watching developments with great concern.  In a statement, the campaigners for an open internet said that Telegram is ""no model for corporate responsibility"" and that the group had criticised the app many times in the past.  Access Now warns, however, that ""detaining the staff of platforms that people use to exercise their rights to free expression and peaceful assembly, without demonstrable alignment with human rights principles, may result in over-censorship, and could further shrink civic spaces"". Telegram itself has repeatedly said that “it is absurd to claim that a platform or its owner is responsible for the abuse of that platform”. Elon Musk, fellow billionaire and owner of X (formerly Twitter), has condemned the arrest and described it as an attack on freedom of speech. He is calling for Mr Durov to be released. So too are some of the criminals on the Telegram groups I am now a member of, with FreeDurov imagery being shared in English and Russian widely. ",BBC,30/08/2024,"['About nine months ago while researching a story, I found myself added to a large Telegram channel which was focused on selling drugs.', 'I was then added to one about hacking and then one about stolen credit cards.', 'I realised my Telegram settings had made it possible for people to add me to their channels without me doing anything.', 'I kept the settings the same to see what would happen.', 'Within a few months, I had been added to 82 different groups.', 'I changed my settings to stop it, but now every time I log on I am treated to thousands of new messages across dozens of extremely active illegal groups.', 'The arrest of Telegram’s billionaire chief executive in France has ignited a debate about moderation on his app.', 'Pavel Durov has been charged for suspected complicity in allowing illicit transactions, drug trafficking, fraud and the spread of child sex abuse images to flourish on his site.', 'There is no doubt that criminality is happening on other social networks too, but my experiment hints at a broader problem that many in law enforcement have been concerned about for years.', 'Here is a flavour of some of the groups to which I have found myself added.', 'All the images were posted to the groups, and we have altered the names of the channels so as not to advertise them.', 'It is no wonder some people, like cyber-security podcaster Patrick Gray, have been describing Telegram for months as “the dark web in your pocket”.', 'The dark web is a part of the internet that can only be accessed using specialist software and knowledge.', 'Ever since the launch of the Silk Road marketplace in 2011, there has been a steady conveyor belt of websites selling illegal goods and services.', 'Speaking about the shock arrest of Mr Durov, Mr Gray said on his podcast Risky Business that Telegram has been a haven for crime for a long time. “', 'We are talking about child sexual abuse material, we’re talking about drug sales, we’re talking about absolutely dark web levels of criminality that they’re just doing nothing about,” he said.', ""Criminals like the dark web because of the anonymity it provides - internet traffic is bounced around the world, obscuring people's locations."", 'Pinpointing who is behind certain usernames is extremely challenging.', 'Researchers at cyber-security company Intel471 say that “pre-Telegram this activity was predominantly done in online markets hosted using hidden dark web services” but for lower-level, lesser-skilled cyber-criminals, “Telegram has become one of the most popular online destinations”.', 'The hacker group Qilin, which held NHS hospitals to ransom earlier this summer, notably chose to publish stolen blood test data on its Telegram channel before its dark web website.', 'The deepfake service used to create fake nudes of schoolgirls in Spain and South Korea also runs its full service, including payment, on Telegram.', 'Some of the Telegram criminal channels I was added to seem to have a presence on Snapchat and drug dealers can be found on Instagram too, where deals are no doubt being made in private chats.', 'But drug dealers can often be seen advertising their Telegram channels on those other sites to funnel people to that platform.', 'In January, state police in Latvia set up a separate unit specialising in monitoring chat apps for drug trafficking and communication, and officials have named Telegram as a particular concern.', 'Telegram says that its moderation is “within industry standards”, but this week we have seen evidence to the contrary related to an area of criminality far less visible (and one I did not search for) - child sexual abuse material.', 'On Wednesday, the BBC learned that while Telegram does respond to some takedown requests from police and charities, it is not participating in programmes aimed to proactively prevent the spread of images and videos of child sexual abuse.', 'Not doing enough to police child sexual abuse material (CSAM) is one of the chief allegations from French prosecutors. “', 'At the heart of this case is the lack of moderation and co-operation of the platform, in particular in the fight against crimes against children,” said Jean-Michel Bernigaud, the secretary general of French child protection agency Ofmin, on LinkedIn.', 'Telegram told the BBC it does proactively search for illegal activity, including child sexual abuse, on its site.', 'It said undisclosed action was taken against 45,000 groups in August alone.', 'The press office did not respond to follow-up questions about this or anything else in this article.', 'Moderation is only part of the problem for Telegram.', 'Its approach to police requests to remove illegal content and pass on evidence is another criticism.', 'As Brian Fishman, a co-founder of Cinder, a software platform for trust and safety, posted: “Telegram is another level: it has been the key hub for Isis for a decade.', 'It tolerates CSAM.', ""It's ignored reasonable law enforcement engagement for years."", ""It’s not 'light' content moderation; it’s a different approach entirely.”"", 'Some might argue that Telegram’s privacy features mean that the company does not have much data about this activity to report to police.', 'This is the case with ultra-private apps like Signal and WhatsApp.', 'Telegram offers users similar levels of privacy if they opt to create a “Secret Chat” which uses the same end-to-end encryption that those apps do.', 'It means the activity inside a conversation is completely private and not even Telegram itself can view the contents.', 'However, this function is not set as default on Telegram, and it seems that most of the activity on the app - including on those illicit channels I was added to - are not set as ""secret"".', 'Telegram could read all content and pass it on to police if it wanted to, but it states in its terms and conditions that it does not. “', 'All Telegram chats and group chats are private amongst their participants.', 'We do not process any requests related to them,” the company’s terms and condition read.', 'In June Pavel Durov told journalist Tucker Carlson that he only employs “about 30 engineers” to run his platform.', 'Telegram’s cold approach to law enforcement is something that I have been told about on the fringes of press events by frustrated police officers.', 'French authorities noted in their statements about Mr Durov’s charges that police there and in Belgium had historically an “almost total lack of response from Telegram to legal requests”.', 'In spite of all the criticism against Telegram’s approach to moderation, there are some who are concerned that Mr Durov’s arrest is a troubling time.', 'Digital rights organisation Access Now says it is watching developments with great concern.', 'In a statement, the campaigners for an open internet said that Telegram is ""no model for corporate responsibility"" and that the group had criticised the app many times in the past.', 'Access Now warns, however, that ""detaining the staff of platforms that people use to exercise their rights to free expression and peaceful assembly, without demonstrable alignment with human rights principles, may result in over-censorship, and could further shrink civic spaces"".', 'Telegram itself has repeatedly said that “it is absurd to claim that a platform or its owner is responsible for the abuse of that platform”.', 'Elon Musk, fellow billionaire and owner of X (formerly Twitter), has condemned the arrest and described it as an attack on freedom of speech.', 'He is calling for Mr Durov to be released.', 'So too are some of the criminals on the Telegram groups I am now a member of, with FreeDurov imagery being shared in English and Russian widely.']",-0.2013431965222914,"As Brian Fishman, a co-founder of Cinder, a software platform for trust and safety, posted: “Telegram is another level: it has been the key hub for Isis for a decade.","In spite of all the criticism against Telegram’s approach to moderation, there are some who are concerned that Mr Durov’s arrest is a troubling time.",-0.6627092106001717,I realised my Telegram settings had made it possible for people to add me to their channels without me doing anything.,"Access Now warns, however, that ""detaining the staff of platforms that people use to exercise their rights to free expression and peaceful assembly, without demonstrable alignment with human rights principles, may result in over-censorship, and could further shrink civic spaces"".",2024-08-31
Home prices hit record high in June on S&P Case-Shiller Index,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/27/home-prices-hit-record-high-in-june-on-sp-case-shiller-index.html,2024-08-27T17:55:03+0000,"Even as mortgage interest rates were rising, home prices reached the highest level ever on the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index.On a three-month running average ended in June, prices nationally were 5.4% higher than they were in June 2023, according to data released Tuesday. Despite being a record high for the index, the annual gain was smaller than May's 5.9% reading.The index's 10-city composite rose 7.4% annually, down from 7.8% in the previous month. The 20-city composite was 6.5% higher year over year, down from a 6.9% increase in May.""While both housing and inflation have slowed, the gap between the two is larger than historical norms, with our National Index averaging 2.8% more than the Consumer Price Index,"" noted Brian Luke, head of commodities, real and digital assets at S&P Dow Jones Indices, in a release. ""That is a full percentage point above the 50-year average. Before accounting for inflation, home prices have risen over 1,100% since 1974, but have slightly more than doubled (111%) after accounting for inflation.""New York saw the highest annual gain among the 20 cities, with prices climbing 9% in June, followed by San Diego and Las Vegas with annual increases of 8.7% and 8.5%, respectively. Portland, Oregon, saw just a 0.8% annual rise in June, the smallest gain of the top cities.Since housing affordability has been a major talking point in this election cycle, this month's report also broke out home values by price tier, dividing each city's market into three tiers. Looking just at large markets over the past five years, it found that 75% of the markets covered show low-price tiers rising faster than the overall market.""For example, the lower tier of the Atlanta market has risen 18% faster than the middle- and higher-tiered homes,"" Luke wrote in the release.""New York's low tier has the largest five-year outperformance, rising nearly 20% above the overall New York region,"" he continued. ""New York also has the largest divergence between low- and high-tier prices. Conversely, San Diego has seen the largest appreciation in higher-tier homes over the past five years.""Prices in the overall San Diego market are up 72% in the past five years, but the high tier is up 79% versus 63% for the lower tier.The increase in prices came even as mortgage rates rose sharply from April through June, which is the period averaged on the index. Usually when rates rise, prices cool.The average rate on the 30-year fixed started April just below 7% and then shot up to 7.5% by the end of the month, according to Mortgage News Daily. Rates stayed over 7% before falling back under that level in July. The 30-year fixed is now right around 6.5%.""Mortgage rates have fallen since June, but there is evidence that even the decline in rates has not been enough to bring buyers back into the market,"" said Lisa Sturtevant, chief economist at Bright MLS. ""Some buyers are waiting for home prices — and not just interest rates — to come down,""While home prices should ease month to month going into the fall, due to seasonal factors and more inventory on the market, they are unlikely to drop significantly, and are expected to still be higher than they were last fall.",CNBC,27/08/2024,"['Even as mortgage interest rates were rising, home prices reached the highest level ever on the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index.', 'On a three-month running average ended in June, prices nationally were 5.4% higher than they were in June 2023, according to data released Tuesday.', ""Despite being a record high for the index, the annual gain was smaller than May's 5.9% reading."", ""The index's 10-city composite rose 7.4% annually, down from 7.8% in the previous month."", 'The 20-city composite was 6.5% higher year over year, down from a 6.9% increase in May.', '""While both housing and inflation have slowed, the gap between the two is larger than historical norms, with our National Index averaging 2.8% more than the Consumer Price Index,"" noted Brian Luke, head of commodities, real and digital assets at S&P Dow Jones Indices, in a release. ""', 'That is a full percentage point above the 50-year average.', 'Before accounting for inflation, home prices have risen over 1,100% since 1974, but have slightly more than doubled (111%) after accounting for inflation.', '""New York saw the highest annual gain among the 20 cities, with prices climbing 9% in June, followed by San Diego and Las Vegas with annual increases of 8.7% and 8.5%, respectively.', 'Portland, Oregon, saw just a 0.8% annual rise in June, the smallest gain of the top cities.', ""Since housing affordability has been a major talking point in this election cycle, this month's report also broke out home values by price tier, dividing each city's market into three tiers."", 'Looking just at large markets over the past five years, it found that 75% of the markets covered show low-price tiers rising faster than the overall market.', '""For example, the lower tier of the Atlanta market has risen 18% faster than the middle- and higher-tiered homes,"" Luke wrote in the release.', '""New York\'s low tier has the largest five-year outperformance, rising nearly 20% above the overall New York region,"" he continued. ""', 'New York also has the largest divergence between low- and high-tier prices.', 'Conversely, San Diego has seen the largest appreciation in higher-tier homes over the past five years.', '""Prices in the overall San Diego market are up 72% in the past five years, but the high tier is up 79% versus 63% for the lower tier.', 'The increase in prices came even as mortgage rates rose sharply from April through June, which is the period averaged on the index.', 'Usually when rates rise, prices cool.', 'The average rate on the 30-year fixed started April just below 7% and then shot up to 7.5% by the end of the month, according to Mortgage News Daily.', 'Rates stayed over 7% before falling back under that level in July.', 'The 30-year fixed is now right around 6.5%.""Mortgage rates have fallen since June, but there is evidence that even the decline in rates has not been enough to bring buyers back into the market,"" said Lisa Sturtevant, chief economist at Bright MLS. ""', 'Some buyers are waiting for home prices — and not just interest rates — to come down,""While home prices should ease month to month going into the fall, due to seasonal factors and more inventory on the market, they are unlikely to drop significantly, and are expected to still be higher than they were last fall.']",0.1217034221770017,"""New York saw the highest annual gain among the 20 cities, with prices climbing 9% in June, followed by San Diego and Las Vegas with annual increases of 8.7% and 8.5%, respectively.","""Prices in the overall San Diego market are up 72% in the past five years, but the high tier is up 79% versus 63% for the lower tier.",0.347285787264506,"""Prices in the overall San Diego market are up 72% in the past five years, but the high tier is up 79% versus 63% for the lower tier.","The 20-city composite was 6.5% higher year over year, down from a 6.9% increase in May.",2024-08-31
American Eagle saw profits grow nearly 60% as costs come down,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/29/american-eagle-aeo-earnings-q2-2024.html,2024-08-29T16:30:21+0000,"In this articleAmerican Eagle missed Wall Street's sales targets for a second quarter in a row on Thursday, but profit grew by nearly 60% thanks in part to lower product costs. The company's shares fell roughly 3% in early trading Thursday.Here's how the apparel company did in its fiscal second quarter compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended Aug. 3 was $77.3 million, or 39 cents per share, compared with $48.6 million, or 25 cents per share, a year earlier. Sales rose to $1.29 billion, up about 8% from $1.2 billion a year earlier. That sales gain would have been slimmer had it not been for a calendar shift, which positively impacted second-quarter sales by $55 million.During the quarter, American Eagle's intimates line Aerie saw revenue grow 9% while its namesake brand grew by 8%. American Eagle's gross margin came in at 38.6% — 0.9 percentage point higher than the prior year and in line with what analysts had expected. The gross margin expansion was led by ""favorable product costs,"" indicating American Eagle spent less to make its assortment during the quarter. It's unclear if it lowered prices as a result.The longtime mall brand issued a better-than-expected outlook for the current quarter but its forecast was lower than anticipated for the full year, indicating the company is still bracing for a turbulent second half. For the current quarter, American Eagle expects comparable sales to grow between 3% and 4%, which is better than the 2.8% growth that analysts had expected the company to forecast, according to StreetAccount. The retailer is expecting total revenue to be flat to up slightly for the third quarter — in line with expectations, according to LSEG.For the year, the company expects comparable sales to increase approximately 4%, with total revenue up 2% to 3%, shy of what analysts had expected. Wall Street was expecting its full-year comparable sales forecast to be up 4.2% and overall sales to be up 3.5%, according to StreetAccount and LSEG.In May, Finance Chief Mike Mathias told CNBC that American Eagle is maintaining a ""cautious"" view for the back half of the year as it awaits interest rate decisions from the Federal Reserve and prepares for ""noise"" around the upcoming presidential election. Like other retailers contending with slowing demand for discretionary items, American Eagle has looked to cut costs and boost efficiencies so it can protect profits, even if sales are sluggish. Earlier this year, it unveiled a new strategy to grow profits and is working to boost sales by 3% to 5% each year over the next three years and get its operating margin to about 10%.""In all the years I've been in this business, I probably see the greatest opportunity in the history of the company,"" CEO Jay Schottenstein said on the company's earnings call on Thursday. ""From our standpoint, today, we're a $5 billion business. We think the next few years we could be a $10 billion business. And I would emphasize this: We are committed to making the investment to become that business.""During the quarter, American Eagle made some strides in achieving that goal. It posted operating income of $101 million, an increase of 55%, while its operating margin grew 2.4 percentage points to 7.8%. Operating income would have been lower had it not been for the calendar shift, which positively impacted the metric by $20 million. Although back-to-school season has already started with a ""strong performance"" for the company, executives expect it to last into September and get a second wind after Labor Day, a trend that Matthias said the company has observed in recent years, especially in the Northeast.President and Executive Creative Officer Jennifer Foyle added that while the American Eagle brand is leaning into women's and denim categories, the brand's mainstay segment, it is also looking to expand into new trends going forward.Foyle also said the menswear business is starting to turn around.""We are not just a one-fit brand anymore … We're making sure that we're leaning in as we go into the back half of Q3 and Q4 and we're ready to play,"" Foyle said.",CNBC,29/08/2024,"[""In this articleAmerican Eagle missed Wall Street's sales targets for a second quarter in a row on Thursday, but profit grew by nearly 60% thanks in part to lower product costs."", ""The company's shares fell roughly 3% in early trading Thursday."", ""Here's how the apparel company did in its fiscal second quarter compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended Aug. 3 was $77.3 million, or 39 cents per share, compared with $48.6 million, or 25 cents per share, a year earlier."", 'Sales rose to $1.29 billion, up about 8% from $1.2 billion a year earlier.', 'That sales gain would have been slimmer had it not been for a calendar shift, which positively impacted second-quarter sales by $55 million.', ""During the quarter, American Eagle's intimates line Aerie saw revenue grow 9% while its namesake brand grew by 8%.American Eagle's gross margin came in at 38.6% — 0.9 percentage point higher than the prior year and in line with what analysts had expected."", 'The gross margin expansion was led by ""favorable product costs,"" indicating American Eagle spent less to make its assortment during the quarter.', ""It's unclear if it lowered prices as a result."", 'The longtime mall brand issued a better-than-expected outlook for the current quarter but its forecast was lower than anticipated for the full year, indicating the company is still bracing for a turbulent second half.', 'For the current quarter, American Eagle expects comparable sales to grow between 3% and 4%, which is better than the 2.8% growth that analysts had expected the company to forecast, according to StreetAccount.', 'The retailer is expecting total revenue to be flat to up slightly for the third quarter — in line with expectations, according to LSEG.For the year, the company expects comparable sales to increase approximately 4%, with total revenue up 2% to 3%, shy of what analysts had expected.', 'Wall Street was expecting its full-year comparable sales forecast to be up 4.2% and overall sales to be up 3.5%, according to StreetAccount and LSEG.In May, Finance Chief Mike Mathias told CNBC that American Eagle is maintaining a ""cautious"" view for the back half of the year as it awaits interest rate decisions from the Federal Reserve and prepares for ""noise"" around the upcoming presidential election.', 'Like other retailers contending with slowing demand for discretionary items, American Eagle has looked to cut costs and boost efficiencies so it can protect profits, even if sales are sluggish.', 'Earlier this year, it unveiled a new strategy to grow profits and is working to boost sales by 3% to 5% each year over the next three years and get its operating margin to about 10%.""In all the years I\'ve been in this business, I probably see the greatest opportunity in the history of the company,"" CEO Jay Schottenstein said on the company\'s earnings call on Thursday. ""', ""From our standpoint, today, we're a $5 billion business."", 'We think the next few years we could be a $10 billion business.', 'And I would emphasize this: We are committed to making the investment to become that business.', '""During the quarter, American Eagle made some strides in achieving that goal.', 'It posted operating income of $101 million, an increase of 55%, while its operating margin grew 2.4 percentage points to 7.8%.', 'Operating income would have been lower had it not been for the calendar shift, which positively impacted the metric by $20 million.', 'Although back-to-school season has already started with a ""strong performance"" for the company, executives expect it to last into September and get a second wind after Labor Day, a trend that Matthias said the company has observed in recent years, especially in the Northeast.', ""President and Executive Creative Officer Jennifer Foyle added that while the American Eagle brand is leaning into women's and denim categories, the brand's mainstay segment, it is also looking to expand into new trends going forward."", 'Foyle also said the menswear business is starting to turn around.', '""We are not just a one-fit brand anymore … We\'re making sure that we\'re leaning in as we go into the back half of Q3 and Q4 and we\'re ready to play,"" Foyle said.']",0.2901999922407762,"Earlier this year, it unveiled a new strategy to grow profits and is working to boost sales by 3% to 5% each year over the next three years and get its operating margin to about 10%.""In all the years I've been in this business, I probably see the greatest opportunity in the history of the company,"" CEO Jay Schottenstein said on the company's earnings call on Thursday. ""","During the quarter, American Eagle's intimates line Aerie saw revenue grow 9% while its namesake brand grew by 8%.American Eagle's gross margin came in at 38.6% — 0.9 percentage point higher than the prior year and in line with what analysts had expected.",0.6825194045117027,"Wall Street was expecting its full-year comparable sales forecast to be up 4.2% and overall sales to be up 3.5%, according to StreetAccount and LSEG.In May, Finance Chief Mike Mathias told CNBC that American Eagle is maintaining a ""cautious"" view for the back half of the year as it awaits interest rate decisions from the Federal Reserve and prepares for ""noise"" around the upcoming presidential election.","Operating income would have been lower had it not been for the calendar shift, which positively impacted the metric by $20 million.",2024-08-31
"Ulta misses Wall Street expectations first time in 4 years, trims guidance after quarterly sales decline",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/29/ulta-earnings-q2-2024.html,2024-08-29T22:08:33+0000,"In this articleUlta Beauty shares sank 7% in extended trading Thursday as the company fell short of second-quarter expectations and trimmed its full-year guidance after a decline in same-store sales during the most recent period.It was the company's first earnings per share miss since May 2020 and first revenue miss since December 2020.Comparable sales for the second quarter fell 1.2%, compared with an 8% increase a year earlier and well below the 1.2% growth that Wall Street analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount.""While we are encouraged by many positive indicators across our business, our second quarter performance did not meet our expectations, driven primarily by a decline in comparable store sales. We are clear about the factors that adversely impacted our store performance, and we have actions underway to address the trends,"" CEO Dave Kimbell said a press release.During the company's earnings call, Kimbell attributed the declining sales performance to four key factors, including an ""unanticipated operational disruption"" due to a change in store systems as well as disappointing impact from promotions. The company also suffered from what Kimbell described as consumers who are increasingly cautious with their spending and from heightened competition in the beauty industry. Kimbell conceded that Ulta's market share is being challenged and said although the company maintained its share in mass beauty during the most quarter, it lost share in the prestige beauty sector driven by makeup and hair categories, according to Circana data, cited by Kimbell. It's not uncommon for stores to experience a short-term negative sales impact due to competitors' openings or cannibalization by new Ulta beauty stores, but Kimbell said the scale and pace of change now has been unusual, adding that 80% of stores have been impacted.""We know we're still in the midst of this...these competitive pressures will likely continue into the near term, but the positive signals...in our broader business, the guest engagement, the impact of newness, the impact of our new stores, the success of our salon business, the loyalty growth, all of those factors suggest to us and give us a lot of confidence that our business continues to have underlying strength and health,"" Kimbell said.The company now forecasts full-year same-store sales in a range of flat to 2% down, compared with prior guidance of 2% to 3% growth.""Our updated outlook for sales assumes it will take more time for our actions to change the top line trajectory and that stores impacted by multiple competitive openings will continue to be pressured,"" CFO Paula Oyibo said.Ulta also now expects full-year revenue of $11 billion to $11.2 billion, down from previous guidance of $11.5 billion to $11.6 billion, and full-year earnings per share of $22.60 to $23.50, down from a previous forecast of $25.20 to $26.Here's how the beauty retailer performed in the period ended August 3 compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:The company reported net income of $252.6 million, or $5.30 per share, compared with $300.1 million, or $6.02 per share, during the same quarter a year earlier. Revenue rose to $2.55 billion, up from $2.53 billion a year earlier.Earlier this month, Warren Buffet's Berkshire Hathaway disclosed a $266 million stake in the beauty retailer, sending Ulta shares surging. For some analysts, it was validation that the stock was oversold after falling 32% in 2024 up to that point, tumbling 26% in the second quarter alone.Shares of Ulta have been suffering since CEO Dave Kimbell warned of cooling beauty demand at an investor conference back in April. Kimbell said although a pullback was expected, it had hit the company ""a bit earlier and bit bigger"" than anticipated.During the company's first-quarter earnings call in May, Kimbell outlined plans to boost sales that spanned five key areas: product assortment, brand social relevance, enhancing the consumer digital experience, boosting the loyalty program and evolving the company's promotional levers.In the same call, Kimbell also said the beauty retailer later this year would be expanding its partnership with delivery service DoorDash, would start testing new gamification platforms and would activate new marketing technology to personalize customer shopping experience.This time around, Kimbell said that executives has identified further opportunities within the attempted turnaround plan, such as relaunching Ulta's own beauty collection and introducing new personalized product recommendations for consumers online. The company is also focusing on increasing rewards program value through member-only events and exclusive member-tiered offers.Clarification: This story has been updated to clarify that Ulta Beauty forecast full-year earnings per share of $22.60 to $23.50, down from a previous forecast of $25.20 to $26.",CNBC,29/08/2024,"['In this articleUlta Beauty shares sank 7% in extended trading Thursday as the company fell short of second-quarter expectations and trimmed its full-year guidance after a decline in same-store sales during the most recent period.', ""It was the company's first earnings per share miss since May 2020 and first revenue miss since December 2020.Comparable sales for the second quarter fell 1.2%, compared with an 8% increase a year earlier and well below the 1.2% growth that Wall Street analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount."", '""While we are encouraged by many positive indicators across our business, our second quarter performance did not meet our expectations, driven primarily by a decline in comparable store sales.', 'We are clear about the factors that adversely impacted our store performance, and we have actions underway to address the trends,"" CEO Dave Kimbell said a press release.', 'During the company\'s earnings call, Kimbell attributed the declining sales performance to four key factors, including an ""unanticipated operational disruption"" due to a change in store systems as well as disappointing impact from promotions.', 'The company also suffered from what Kimbell described as consumers who are increasingly cautious with their spending and from heightened competition in the beauty industry.', ""Kimbell conceded that Ulta's market share is being challenged and said although the company maintained its share in mass beauty during the most quarter, it lost share in the prestige beauty sector driven by makeup and hair categories, according to Circana data, cited by Kimbell."", ""It's not uncommon for stores to experience a short-term negative sales impact due to competitors' openings or cannibalization by new Ulta beauty stores, but Kimbell said the scale and pace of change now has been unusual, adding that 80% of stores have been impacted."", '""We know we\'re still in the midst of this...these competitive pressures will likely continue into the near term, but the positive signals...in our broader business, the guest engagement, the impact of newness, the impact of our new stores, the success of our salon business, the loyalty growth, all of those factors suggest to us and give us a lot of confidence that our business continues to have underlying strength and health,"" Kimbell said.', 'The company now forecasts full-year same-store sales in a range of flat to 2% down, compared with prior guidance of 2% to 3% growth.', '""Our updated outlook for sales assumes it will take more time for our actions to change the top line trajectory and that stores impacted by multiple competitive openings will continue to be pressured,"" CFO Paula Oyibo said.', ""Ulta also now expects full-year revenue of $11 billion to $11.2 billion, down from previous guidance of $11.5 billion to $11.6 billion, and full-year earnings per share of $22.60 to $23.50, down from a previous forecast of $25.20 to $26.Here's how the beauty retailer performed in the period ended August 3 compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:The company reported net income of $252.6 million, or $5.30 per share, compared with $300.1 million, or $6.02 per share, during the same quarter a year earlier."", 'Revenue rose to $2.55 billion, up from $2.53 billion a year earlier.', ""Earlier this month, Warren Buffet's Berkshire Hathaway disclosed a$266 million stake in the beauty retailer, sending Ulta shares surging."", 'For some analysts, it was validation that the stock was oversold after falling 32% in 2024 up to that point, tumbling 26% in the second quarter alone.', 'Shares of Ulta have been suffering since CEO Dave Kimbell warned of cooling beauty demand at an investor conference back in April.', 'Kimbell said although a pullback was expected, it had hit the company ""a bit earlier and bit bigger"" than anticipated.', ""During the company's first-quarter earnings call in May, Kimbell outlined plans to boost sales that spanned five key areas: product assortment, brand social relevance, enhancing the consumer digital experience, boosting the loyalty program and evolving the company's promotional levers."", 'In the same call, Kimbell also said the beauty retailer later this year would be expanding its partnership with delivery service DoorDash, would start testing new gamification platforms and would activate new marketing technology to personalize customer shopping experience.', ""This time around, Kimbell said that executives has identified further opportunities within the attempted turnaround plan, such as relaunching Ulta's own beauty collection and introducing new personalized product recommendations for consumers online."", 'The company is also focusing on increasing rewards program value through member-only events and exclusive member-tiered offers.', 'Clarification: This story has been updated to clarify that Ulta Beauty forecast full-year earnings per share of $22.60 to $23.50, down from a previous forecast of $25.20 to $26.']",0.4158434741378043,"""We know we're still in the midst of this...these competitive pressures will likely continue into the near term, but the positive signals...in our broader business, the guest engagement, the impact of newness, the impact of our new stores, the success of our salon business, the loyalty growth, all of those factors suggest to us and give us a lot of confidence that our business continues to have underlying strength and health,"" Kimbell said.","During the company's earnings call, Kimbell attributed the declining sales performance to four key factors, including an ""unanticipated operational disruption"" due to a change in store systems as well as disappointing impact from promotions.",-0.3607965436848727,"During the company's first-quarter earnings call in May, Kimbell outlined plans to boost sales that spanned five key areas: product assortment, brand social relevance, enhancing the consumer digital experience, boosting the loyalty program and evolving the company's promotional levers.",In this articleUlta Beauty shares sank 7% in extended trading Thursday as the company fell short of second-quarter expectations and trimmed its full-year guidance after a decline in same-store sales during the most recent period.,2024-08-31
Bronfman's Paramount bid could keep Shari Redstone involved at the company,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/23/bronfman-paramount-bid-shari-redstone.html,2024-08-23T20:42:26+0000,"In this articleEdgar Bronfman Jr.'s offer for a controlling stake in Paramount Global could keep Shari Redstone close to the company, if his bid is successful.Bronfman is open to having Redstone, currently non-executive chairman at Paramount, remain involved with the company if the Paramount special committee accepts his consortium's bid for National Amusements, the controlling shareholder, according to a person familiar with the matter.Bronfman has raised $6 billion to challenge Skydance Media for ownership of National Amusements, the holding company founded by Sumner Redstone, according to people familiar with the matter. Both Bronfman's bid and Skydance's bid would also include money to buy out a percentage of Paramount Global common shareholders.At $6 billion, Bronfman's bid would give cash to about 20% of Class B holders at $16 per share. Skydance would pay out about 50% of current Paramount common investors at $15 per share as part of its bid, according to the people familiar.It's not clear if Redstone prefers one offer over the other. The Paramount Global special committee will determine if Bronfman's offer is a superior proposal for shareholders by Aug. 28. If the committee decides Bronfman's offer is better, Skydance will then have four business days to match. The deadline for the entire process to be concluded is Sept. 5.Bronfman still has a few more days to raise more money for a competing bid to counter Skydance, which agreed to an $8 billion deal to merge with Paramount Global last month. The special committee earlier this week extended the so-called ""go-shop"" period — during which it could entertain competing offers — by 15 days to review Bronfman's initial bid.One of the individuals who is part of Bronfman's bid is former AOL CEO Jon Miller, suggesting Redstone could potentially have more control over a future Paramount Global than she'd get with Skydance. Miller, a close ally of Redstone, has been connecting Bronfman with potential capital and would likely take a role with the company if it came under Bronfman's stewardship — perhaps a board seat and an operational job — according to people familiar with the matter. Bronfman would be CEO of the company if his deal were to be accepted and go through, said the people.Miller, Redstone and Redstone's son-in-law, Jason Ostheimer, together run Advancit Capital, a small venture capital firm that invests in media and technology. The trio are the only three people that appear on the firm's website. Miller has also operated as a de facto strategic advisor to Redstone for many years, according to people familiar with the matter.Redstone has not spoken with Miller about the bid, according to people familiar with the matter.While the Redstone family and Bronfman family have run in similar circles, including donating heavily to Jewish foundations, Edgar Bronfman Jr. and Shari Redstone haven't met many times and don't have a close preexisting relationship, two of the people said.Skydance CEO David Ellison and Redstone have had several discussions about the potential for Redstone to stay in as a shareholder of a combined Skydance-Paramount Global, according to people familiar with the matter.Redstone is taking a wait-and-see approach to any future involvement she may want to have in Paramount Global moving forward regardless of its ownership, according to a person familiar with her thinking.Spokespeople for Redstone, Bronfman, the Paramount Global special committee and Skydance all declined to comment.Bronfman has spent the last few weeks aggregating individuals with interest in owning a piece of Paramount Global, including film producer Steven Paul and Patron cofounder John Paul DeJoria, who had previously considered a bid of their own, according to a person familiar with the process, as well as Fortress Investment Group, the credit arm of private equity firm BC Partners, and former Turner Broadcasting CEO John Martin.Bronfman's financing comes from many different sources, which may potentially trigger regulatory concerns if too much of the money is from foreign entities. Having so many different financers may also make Bronfman's offer riskier than Skydance's bid, which is backed by private equity firm RedBird Capital and multibillionaire Larry Ellison, the father of David Ellison.Bronfman is the chairman of Fubo, a sports streaming service, and the former head of Universal and Warner Music.Skydance's lawyers sent a letter to the Paramount Global special committee demanding the company stop negotiating with Bronfman, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday. Skydance said Paramount Global breached the terms of the go-shop agreement by not alerting Skydance that it planned to extend the window, the report said.Skydance also argued the special committee didn't have the right to extend the go-shop because a bid had to ""reasonably be expected to lead to a superior proposal."" Skydance argued the Bronfman bid didn't meet the criteria.WATCH: Media power struggle: Paramount deal in jeopardy?",CNBC,23/08/2024,"[""In this articleEdgar Bronfman Jr.'s offer for a controlling stake in Paramount Global could keep Shari Redstone close to the company, if his bid is successful."", ""Bronfman is open to having Redstone, currently non-executive chairman at Paramount, remain involved with the company if the Paramount special committee accepts his consortium's bid for National Amusements, the controlling shareholder, according to a person familiar with the matter."", 'Bronfman has raised $6 billion to challenge Skydance Media for ownership of National Amusements, the holding company founded by Sumner Redstone, according to people familiar with the matter.', ""Both Bronfman's bid and Skydance's bid would also include money to buy out a percentage of Paramount Global common shareholders."", ""At $6 billion, Bronfman's bid would give cash to about 20% of Class B holders at $16 per share."", 'Skydance would pay out about 50% of current Paramount common investors at $15 per share as part of its bid, according to the people familiar.', ""It's not clear if Redstone prefers one offer over the other."", ""The Paramount Global special committee will determine if Bronfman's offer is a superior proposal for shareholders by Aug. 28."", ""If the committee decides Bronfman's offer is better, Skydance will then have four business days to match."", 'The deadline for the entire process to be concluded is Sept. 5.Bronfman still has a few more days to raise more money for a competing bid to counter Skydance, which agreed to an $8 billion deal to merge with Paramount Global last month.', 'The special committee earlier this week extended the so-called ""go-shop"" period — during which it could entertain competing offers — by 15 days to review Bronfman\'s initial bid.', ""One of the individuals who is part of Bronfman's bid is former AOL CEO Jon Miller, suggesting Redstone could potentially have more control over a future Paramount Global than she'd get with Skydance."", ""Miller, a close ally of Redstone, has been connecting Bronfman with potential capital and would likely take a role with the company if it came under Bronfman's stewardship — perhaps a board seat and an operational job — according to people familiar with the matter."", 'Bronfman would be CEO of the company if his deal were to be accepted and go through, said the people.', ""Miller, Redstone and Redstone's son-in-law, Jason Ostheimer, together run Advancit Capital, a small venture capital firm that invests in media and technology."", ""The trio are the only three people that appear on the firm's website."", 'Miller has also operated as a de facto strategic advisor to Redstone for many years, according to people familiar with the matter.', 'Redstone has not spoken with Miller about the bid, according to people familiar with the matter.', ""While the Redstone family and Bronfman family have run in similar circles, including donating heavily to Jewish foundations, Edgar Bronfman Jr. and Shari Redstone haven't met many times and don't have a close preexisting relationship, two of the people said."", 'Skydance CEO David Ellison and Redstone have had several discussions about the potential for Redstone to stay in as a shareholder of a combined Skydance-Paramount Global, according to people familiar with the matter.', 'Redstone is taking a wait-and-see approach to any future involvement she may want to have in Paramount Global moving forward regardless of its ownership, according to a person familiar with her thinking.', 'Spokespeople for Redstone, Bronfman, the Paramount Global special committee and Skydance all declined to comment.', 'Bronfman has spent the last few weeks aggregating individuals with interest in owning a piece of Paramount Global, including film producer Steven Paul and Patron cofounder John Paul DeJoria, who had previously considered a bid of their own, according to a person familiar with the process, as well as Fortress Investment Group, the credit arm of private equity firm BC Partners, and former Turner Broadcasting CEO John Martin.', ""Bronfman's financing comes from many different sources, which may potentially trigger regulatory concerns if too much of the money is from foreign entities."", ""Having so many different financers may also make Bronfman's offer riskier than Skydance's bid, which is backed by private equity firm RedBird Capital and multibillionaire Larry Ellison, the father of David Ellison."", 'Bronfman is the chairman of Fubo, a sports streaming service, and the former head of Universal and Warner Music.', ""Skydance's lawyers sent a letter to the Paramount Global special committee demanding the company stop negotiating with Bronfman, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday."", 'Skydance said Paramount Global breached the terms of the go-shop agreement by not alerting Skydance that it planned to extend the window, the report said.', 'Skydance also argued the special committee didn\'t have the right to extend the go-shop because a bid had to ""reasonably be expected to lead to a superior proposal.""', ""Skydance argued the Bronfman bid didn't meet the criteria."", 'WATCH: Media power struggle: Paramount deal in jeopardy?']",0.1775149756430325,"Bronfman has spent the last few weeks aggregating individuals with interest in owning a piece of Paramount Global, including film producer Steven Paul and Patron cofounder John Paul DeJoria, who had previously considered a bid of their own, according to a person familiar with the process, as well as Fortress Investment Group, the credit arm of private equity firm BC Partners, and former Turner Broadcasting CEO John Martin.",WATCH: Media power struggle: Paramount deal in jeopardy?,-0.8429049104452133,,"Skydance said Paramount Global breached the terms of the go-shop agreement by not alerting Skydance that it planned to extend the window, the report said.",2024-08-31
Foot Locker shares drop 10% despite first comparable sales growth in six quarters,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/28/foot-locker-fl-earnings-q2-2024.html,2024-08-28T20:14:18+0000,"In this articleFoot Locker on Wednesday said comparable sales grew for the first time in six quarters as its efforts to refresh its stores and improve the customer experience continue to bear fruit. The beleaguered sneaker company's same-store sales grew 2.6% during its fiscal second quarter, far better than the 0.7% uptick that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount. Its gross margin also expanded for the first time in more than two years. Despite the positive trends, the company's shares closed more than 10% lower. ""The Lace Up Plan is working,"" CEO Mary Dillon said in a press release, referencing the company's turnaround strategy. ""Our top line trends strengthened as we moved through the quarter, including a solid start to Back-to-School. We were also particularly pleased to deliver stabilization in our Champs Sports banner."" Here's how Foot Locker did compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:In the three-month period that ended Aug. 3, Foot Locker had a loss of $12 million, or 13 cents per share, compared with a loss of $5 million, or 5 cents per share, a year earlier. Excluding one-time items, Foot Locker posted a loss of 5 cents per share. Sales rose to $1.90 billion, up about 2% from $1.86 billion a year earlier. For the current fiscal year, Foot Locker largely maintained its guidance and continues to expect sales to be in a range of a 1% decline to 1% growth from the prior year – better than the 0.4% decline that analysts had expected, according to LSEG. Foot Locker also stood by its adjusted earnings per share guidance. It expects earnings to be between $1.50 and $1.70 – much of that range ahead of the $1.54 that analysts had expected, according to LSEG. Since former Ulta Beauty boss Mary Dillon took the helm of Foot Locker about two years ago, she has worked to transform the company and ensure that it stays relevant in a world where brands aren't as reliant on multibrand retailers as they were in the past. Dillon has worked to repair the company's relationship with its biggest brand partner, Nike, and has also taken a hard look at its sprawling, but aging, store fleet, where the company does about 80% of its sales. The company plans to spend $275 million upgrading its stores this year, and it expects to have two-thirds of its fleet remodeled by the end of fiscal 2025.In an interview with CNBC, Dillon said the store investments are leading to increased conversion, basket size and profitability, and better performance for Foot Locker's women's business.""The reason that we're doing it is that it is working for us, both in terms of enhancing a customer experience and a striper [store employee] experience, but also the financial returns,"" said Dillon. ""The performance is ahead of what we thought.""In a series of new megastores Foot Locker is building in hotspots like New York City and Paris, the retailer is working hand in hand with Nike to develop some portions of the shops.""With Nike, this has been since Day One, a high priority for me, and really building a partnership that isn't just about like, what number of shoes are we going to sell, but how do we think about using consumer insights to mutually grow our businesses together,"" said Dillon. ""For us and Nike, it's about the places that we really connect.""Dillon has also worked to streamline costs at Foot Locker. On Wednesday, the company said it was closing its stores and e-commerce operations in South Korea, Denmark, Norway and Sweden, and will rely on a third party for operations in Greece and Romania, where it plans to expand its reach, according to Dillon. In all, 30 of Foot Locker's 140 stores in the Asia-Pacific region and 629 in Europe will be closed or go under a new operator as part of the changes. Foot Locker's Champs banner, which has been dragging down the company's overall performance, is also showing some signs of improvement. During the quarter, comparable sales were down 3.9%, which is an improvement from the 25.3% decline it saw in the year-ago period.Foot Locker is also planning to move its global headquarters from New York City to St. Petersburg, Florida, in late 2025 and plans to maintain only a limited presence in the Big Apple moving forward. ""The intent of the relocation is to further build on the Company's meaningful presence in St. Petersburg and to enable increased collaboration among teams across banners and functions, while also reducing costs,"" Foot Locker said in a news release. Dillon told CNBC the move will increase margins by 0.2 percentage point by 2027, but the decision wasn't just based on saving money.""We've got a big center of gravity already in St. Pete ... many of our executives are there. A lot of our commercial teams,"" said Dillon. ""We think actually bringing more people together for collaboration is going to matter and that's also part of this. It's not just about saving money. It's about, how do we really continue to build on this momentum?""The company isn't planning to make employees relocate and Dillon, who is based in Chicago, won't be forced to become a super commuter, either.""I am traveling, I would say, 90% of the time, to our teams around the world, and to our brand partners, and to investor meetings and to events,"" said Dillon. ""I spend a good chunk of time in New York, I spend a lot of time in St. Pete, I spend a lot of time in Amsterdam where we have our headquarters, and visiting our brand partners. So I'm planning to keep my primary residence in Chicago, but the way that this has been working is really, I think, working pretty well so we're going to continue to do that.""As it improves stores, products, and the customer experience online and in stores, Foot Locker is managing to drive sales even as its core consumer continues to feel the pressure of consistent inflation and high interest rates – indicating that Dillon's efforts are working. ""We're not expecting our customer to get, like, less pressured or more pressured. We're just trying to say this is a category they care about,"" said Dillon. ""How can Foot Locker be the best to serve their needs? And I think our results are showing that that's working.""As of Tuesday's close, shares of the company are up more than 5% this year, compared with Nike's stock, which has fallen more than 21% in the same time period.Demand has undoubtedly slowed across the retail industry, but consumers are still spending. They're just being far choosier on who they're spending with — which has made execution that much more important. ""Our strategies are building momentum as we look to the remainder of the year,"" said Dillon in a statement. ""I remain confident that we are taking the right actions to position the Company for its next 50 years of profitable growth and create long-term shareholder value.""",CNBC,28/08/2024,"['In this articleFoot Locker on Wednesday said comparable sales grew for the first time in six quarters as its efforts to refresh its stores and improve the customer experience continue to bear fruit.', ""The beleaguered sneaker company's same-store sales grew 2.6% during its fiscal second quarter, far better than the 0.7% uptick that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount."", 'Its gross margin also expanded for the first time in more than two years.', 'Despite the positive trends, the company\'s shares closed more than 10% lower. ""', 'The Lace Up Plan is working,"" CEO Mary Dillon said in a press release, referencing the company\'s turnaround strategy. ""', 'Our top line trends strengthened as we moved through the quarter, including a solid start to Back-to-School.', 'We were also particularly pleased to deliver stabilization in our Champs Sports banner.', '""Here\'s how Foot Locker did compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:In the three-month period that ended Aug. 3, Foot Locker had a loss of $12 million, or 13 cents per share, compared with a loss of $5 million, or 5 cents per share, a year earlier.', 'Excluding one-time items, Foot Locker posted a loss of 5 cents per share.', 'Sales rose to $1.90 billion, up about 2% from $1.86 billion a year earlier.', 'For the current fiscal year, Foot Locker largely maintained its guidance and continues to expect sales to be in a range of a 1% decline to 1% growth from the prior year – better than the 0.4% decline that analysts had expected, according to LSEG.Foot Locker also stood by its adjusted earnings per share guidance.', ""It expects earnings to be between $1.50 and $1.70 – much of that range ahead of the $1.54 that analysts had expected, according to LSEG.Since former Ulta Beauty boss Mary Dillon took the helm of Foot Locker about two years ago, she has worked to transform the company and ensure that it stays relevant in a world where brands aren't as reliant on multibrand retailers as they were in the past."", ""Dillon has worked to repair the company's relationship with its biggest brand partner, Nike, and has also taken a hard look at its sprawling, but aging, store fleet, where the company does about 80% of its sales."", ""The company plans to spend $275 million upgrading its stores this year, and it expects to have two-thirds of its fleet remodeled by the end of fiscal 2025.In an interview with CNBC, Dillon said the store investments are leading to increased conversion, basket size and profitability, and better performance for Foot Locker's women's business."", '""The reason that we\'re doing it is that it is working for us, both in terms of enhancing a customer experience and a striper [store employee] experience, but also the financial returns,"" said Dillon. ""', 'The performance is ahead of what we thought.', '""In a series of new megastores Foot Locker is building in hotspots like New York City and Paris, the retailer is working hand in hand with Nike to develop some portions of the shops.', '""With Nike, this has been since Day One, a high priority for me, and really building a partnership that isn\'t just about like, what number of shoes are we going to sell, but how do we think about using consumer insights to mutually grow our businesses together,"" said Dillon. ""', ""For us and Nike, it's about the places that we really connect."", '""Dillon has also worked to streamline costs at Foot Locker.', 'On Wednesday, the company said it was closing its stores and e-commerce operations in South Korea, Denmark, Norway and Sweden, and will rely on a third party for operations in Greece and Romania, where it plans to expand its reach, according to Dillon.', ""In all, 30 of Foot Locker's 140 stores in the Asia-Pacific region and 629 in Europe will be closed or go under a new operator as part of the changes."", ""Foot Locker's Champs banner, which has been dragging down the company's overall performance, is also showing some signs of improvement."", 'During the quarter, comparable sales were down 3.9%, which is an improvement from the 25.3% decline it saw in the year-ago period.', 'Foot Locker is also planning to move its global headquarters from New York City to St. Petersburg, Florida, in late 2025 and plans to maintain only a limited presence in the Big Apple moving forward.', '""The intent of the relocation is to further build on the Company\'s meaningful presence in St. Petersburg and to enable increased collaboration among teams across banners and functions, while also reducing costs,"" Foot Locker said in a news release.', ""Dillon told CNBC the move will increase margins by 0.2 percentage point by 2027, but the decision wasn't just based on saving money."", '""We\'ve got a big center of gravity already in St. Pete ... many of our executives are there.', 'A lot of our commercial teams,"" said Dillon. ""', ""We think actually bringing more people together for collaboration is going to matter and that's also part of this."", ""It's not just about saving money."", 'It\'s about, how do we really continue to build on this momentum?""The company isn\'t planning to make employees relocate and Dillon, who is based in Chicago, won\'t be forced to become a super commuter, either.', '""I am traveling, I would say, 90% of the time, to our teams around the world, and to our brand partners, and to investor meetings and to events,"" said Dillon. ""', 'I spend a good chunk of time in New York, I spend a lot of time in St. Pete, I spend a lot of time in Amsterdam where we have our headquarters, and visiting our brand partners.', ""So I'm planning to keep my primary residence in Chicago, but the way that this has been working is really, I think, working pretty well so we're going to continue to do that."", '""As it improves stores, products, and the customer experience online and in stores, Foot Locker is managing to drive sales even as its core consumer continues to feel the pressure of consistent inflation and high interest rates – indicating that Dillon\'s efforts are working.', '""We\'re not expecting our customer to get, like, less pressured or more pressured.', 'We\'re just trying to say this is a category they care about,"" said Dillon. ""', 'How can Foot Locker be the best to serve their needs?', ""And I think our results are showing that that's working."", '""As of Tuesday\'s close, shares of the company are up more than 5% this year, compared with Nike\'s stock, which has fallen more than 21% in the same time period.', 'Demand has undoubtedly slowed across the retail industry, but consumers are still spending.', ""They're just being far choosier on who they're spending with — which has made execution that much more important."", '""Our strategies are building momentum as we look to the remainder of the year,"" said Dillon in a statement. ""', 'I remain confident that we are taking the right actions to position the Company for its next 50 years of profitable growth and create long-term shareholder value.""']",0.242355211483859,"I remain confident that we are taking the right actions to position the Company for its next 50 years of profitable growth and create long-term shareholder value.""",Its gross margin also expanded for the first time in more than two years.,0.5484147248444734,Its gross margin also expanded for the first time in more than two years.,"Despite the positive trends, the company's shares closed more than 10% lower. """,2024-08-31
Ford joins list of companies walking back DEI policies,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/28/ford-joins-list-of-companies-walking-back-dei-policies.html,2024-08-29T12:48:39+0000,"In this articleFord Motor is the latest company to walk back some of its commitments to diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.The automaker has taken ""a fresh look"" at its DEI policies and practices over the past year to take in to account the evolving ""external and legal environment related to political and social issues,"" according to an internal communication that was shared with global Ford employees and posted Wednesday on X by an anti-DEI activist. Ford confirmed the letter was authentic and said it had no additional comment on the matter.Ford's move follows retailer Tractor Supply, which one of the first major companies to stop its DEI efforts, as it severed ties earlier this summer with the Human Rights Campaign, an LGBTQ+ advocacy group, and retired DEI targets like boosting the number of employees of color at the manager level. Harley-Davidson, whose board of directors includes Ford CEO Jim Farley, also decided last week to stop consulting the HRC's metric for treatment of LGBTQ+ employees and affirmed that it does not have a DEI function.Home improvement retailer Lowe's joined the efforts earlier this week, and noted that it might also make additional changes to the policies over time.The companies have cited conservative backlash or changing social and political environments in their announcements. Tractor Supply and Harley-Davidson also noted a desire to appeal to their more rural or conservative-leaning customers.""I think you will start to see this move towards more politically neutral companies, which is to say that most of these companies didn't really want to be doing this stuff in the first place,"" Liz Hoffman, Semafor's business and finance editor, said on CNBC's ""Squawk Box"" earlier Wednesday, before the Ford memo was posted. In the memo Wednesday, Farley said the company will not use quotas for minority dealerships or suppliers, adding that it does not have hiring quotas.The automaker will also stop participating in the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index, as well as various other ""best places to work"" lists.The Human Rights Campaign scores over 1,300 companies annually based on their corporate equality measures for LGBTQ+ individuals, including practices like offering spousal medical benefits regardless of sex and having distinct LGBTQ+ community outreach efforts. Ford, in previous years, had received a perfect score on the index.""Ford Motor Company's shortsighted decisions will have long-term consequences,"" Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson said in a statement. ""Hastily abandoning efforts that ensure fair, safe, and inclusive work environments is bad for business and leaves Ford's employees and millions of LGBTQ+-allied consumers behind.""The organization also added that it evaluates every Fortune 500 company on its equality index, regardless of whether or not the company submits additional information about its priorities, which means Ford will continue to be scored on the list.""As a global company, we will continue to put our effort and resources into taking care of our customers, our team, and our communities versus publicly commenting on the many polarizing issues of the day,"" Ford said in the statement sent to employees. ""There will of course be times when we will speak out on core issues if we believe our voice can make a positive difference.""Many companies, including automakers such as Ford, amped up their DEI commitments in the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd and Black Lives Matter protests of the summer of 2020 — and Ford spoke up about that at the time.""We are not interested in superficial actions. This is our moment to lead from the front and fully commit to creating the fair, just and inclusive culture that our employees deserve,"" the company said in 2020 in a letter reaffirming its DEI commitment. ""We cannot turn a blind eye to it or accept some sense of 'order' that's based on oppression.""But, in the wake of the Supreme Court decision to overturn affirmative action in colleges, a growing number of conservative activists on social media have called on companies to stop investing in DEI.""There is an old saying: If you give an inch, people take a mile, and that is essentially what we have seen when the Supreme Court made a ruling that was very specific to institutions of higher education,"" industrial and organizational psychologist Derek Avery told CNBC. ""Conservative state attorney generals sent letters to corporations warning them that they could expect to be sued if they continue to advocate and promote DEI practices within their organizations that could be construed as counter to the Supreme Court ruling, even though the Supreme Court ruling had no bearing on those corporate initiatives.""",CNBC,29/08/2024,"['In this articleFord Motor is the latest company to walk back some of its commitments to diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.', 'The automaker has taken ""a fresh look"" at its DEI policies and practices over the past year to take in to account the evolving ""external and legal environment related to political and social issues,"" according to an internal communication that was shared with global Ford employees and posted Wednesday on X by an anti-DEI activist.', 'Ford confirmed the letter was authentic and said it had no additional comment on the matter.', ""Ford's move follows retailer Tractor Supply, which one of the first major companies to stop its DEI efforts, as it severed ties earlier this summer with the Human Rights Campaign, an LGBTQ+ advocacy group, and retired DEI targets like boosting the number of employees of color at the manager level."", ""Harley-Davidson, whose board of directors includes Ford CEO Jim Farley, also decided last week to stop consulting the HRC's metric for treatment of LGBTQ+ employees and affirmed that it does not have a DEI function."", ""Home improvement retailer Lowe's joined the efforts earlier this week, and noted that it might also make additional changes to the policies over time."", 'The companies have cited conservative backlash or changing social and political environments in their announcements.', 'Tractor Supply and Harley-Davidson also noted a desire to appeal to their more rural or conservative-leaning customers.', '""I think you will start to see this move towards more politically neutral companies, which is to say that most of these companies didn\'t really want to be doing this stuff in the first place,"" Liz Hoffman, Semafor\'s business and finance editor, said on CNBC\'s ""Squawk Box"" earlier Wednesday, before the Ford memo was posted.', 'In the memo Wednesday, Farley said the company will not use quotas for minority dealerships or suppliers, adding that it does not have hiring quotas.', 'The automaker will also stop participating in the Human Rights Campaign\'s Corporate Equality Index, as well as various other ""best places to work"" lists.', 'The Human Rights Campaign scores over 1,300 companies annually based on their corporate equality measures for LGBTQ+ individuals, including practices like offering spousal medical benefits regardless of sex and having distinct LGBTQ+ community outreach efforts.', 'Ford, in previous years, had received a perfect score on the index.', '""Ford Motor Company\'s shortsighted decisions will have long-term consequences,"" Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson said in a statement. ""', ""Hastily abandoning efforts that ensure fair, safe, and inclusive work environments is bad for business and leaves Ford's employees and millions of LGBTQ+-allied consumers behind."", '""The organization also added that it evaluates every Fortune 500 company on its equality index, regardless of whether or not the company submits additional information about its priorities, which means Ford will continue to be scored on the list.', '""As a global company, we will continue to put our effort and resources into taking care of our customers, our team, and our communities versus publicly commenting on the many polarizing issues of the day,"" Ford said in the statement sent to employees. ""', 'There will of course be times when we will speak out on core issues if we believe our voice can make a positive difference.', '""Many companies, including automakers such as Ford, amped up their DEI commitments in the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd and Black Lives Matter protests of the summer of 2020 — and Ford spoke up about that at the time.', '""We are not interested in superficial actions.', 'This is our moment to lead from the front and fully commit to creating the fair, just and inclusive culture that our employees deserve,""the company said in 2020 in a letter reaffirming its DEI commitment. ""', ""We cannot turn a blind eye to it or accept some sense of 'order' that's based on oppression."", '""But, in the wake of the Supreme Court decision to overturn affirmative action in colleges, a growing number of conservative activists on social media have called on companies to stop investing in DEI.""There is an old saying: If you give an inch, people take a mile, and that is essentially what we have seen when the Supreme Court made a ruling that was very specific to institutions of higher education,"" industrial and organizational psychologist Derek Avery told CNBC.""Conservative state attorney generals sent letters to corporations warning them that they could expect to be sued if they continue to advocate and promote DEI practices within their organizations that could be construed as counter to the Supreme Court ruling, even though the Supreme Court ruling had no bearing on those corporate initiatives.""']",0.246965207230626,"""But, in the wake of the Supreme Court decision to overturn affirmative action in colleges, a growing number of conservative activists on social media have called on companies to stop investing in DEI.""There is an old saying: If you give an inch, people take a mile, and that is essentially what we have seen when the Supreme Court made a ruling that was very specific to institutions of higher education,"" industrial and organizational psychologist Derek Avery told CNBC.""Conservative state attorney generals sent letters to corporations warning them that they could expect to be sued if they continue to advocate and promote DEI practices within their organizations that could be construed as counter to the Supreme Court ruling, even though the Supreme Court ruling had no bearing on those corporate initiatives.""","""Many companies, including automakers such as Ford, amped up their DEI commitments in the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd and Black Lives Matter protests of the summer of 2020 — and Ford spoke up about that at the time.",0.001978059609731,"""Many companies, including automakers such as Ford, amped up their DEI commitments in the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd and Black Lives Matter protests of the summer of 2020 — and Ford spoke up about that at the time.","Hastily abandoning efforts that ensure fair, safe, and inclusive work environments is bad for business and leaves Ford's employees and millions of LGBTQ+-allied consumers behind.",2024-08-31
Mineral Resources' boss opposes staff leaving office for coffee,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cdey4zzl529o,2024-08-29T22:07:43.000Z,"Workers who leave the head office to buy a cup of coffee are costing an Australian mining firm too much money, according to its boss. Managing director of Mineral Resources Chris Ellison said during a financial results presentation on Wednesday he wants to ""hold staff captive all day long"". ""I don't want them leaving the building,"" he said. The head office in Perth has a restaurant, nine staff psychologists, a gym, and other facilities designed to encourage staff to stay in the office. ""We have a lot of different benefits that we have brought on,"" said Mr Ellison, whose company has a strict ""no work from home policy"". ""Why have I done that? Because when I get them first thing in the morning, I want to hold them captive all day long. I don't want them leaving the building. ""I don't want them walking down the road for a cup of coffee. We kind of figured out a few years ago how much that costs."" He said the rest of the mining industry should ""get on board"" with his thinking on the benefits of working in the office rather than at home. ""The industry cannot afford it. We can't have people working three days a week and picking up five days a week pay - or four days."" The company culture at Mining Resources also extends to Mr Ellison's views on parents, with the company building a day-care centre on site big enough for 105 children. ""Another reason for them to come in and enjoy work,"" he said.  ""Drop their little tykes off next door. We have doctors on board and nurses who are going to feed them, but mum and dad will be working in our office."" Mr Ellison is not the only boss to enforce a no work from home policy.  Last week, the head of London-based smartphone maker Nothing sent an all-staff email to announce the end of hybrid working and a move to fully office-based work. ""I know this is a controversial decision that may not be a fit for everyone, and there are definitely companies out there that thrive in remote or hybrid setups,"" he wrote in the email. ""But that’s not right for our type of business, and won’t help us fully realize our potential as a company."" ",BBC,29/08/2024,"['Workers who leave the head office to buy a cup of coffee are costing an Australian mining firm too much money, according to its boss.', 'Managing director of Mineral Resources Chris Ellison said during a financial results presentation on Wednesday he wants to ""hold staff captive all day long"". ""', 'I don\'t want them leaving the building,"" he said.', 'The head office in Perth has a restaurant, nine staff psychologists, a gym, and other facilities designed to encourage staff to stay in the office. ""', 'We have a lot of different benefits that we have brought on,"" said Mr Ellison, whose company has a strict ""no work from home policy"". ""', 'Why have I done that?', 'Because when I get them first thing in the morning, I want to hold them captive all day long.', 'I don\'t want them leaving the building. ""', ""I don't want them walking down the road for a cup of coffee."", 'We kind of figured out a few years ago how much that costs.""', 'He said the rest of the mining industry should ""get on board"" with his thinking on the benefits of working in the office rather than at home. ""', 'The industry cannot afford it.', 'We can\'t have people working three days a week and picking up five days a week pay - or four days.""', 'The company culture at Mining Resources also extends to Mr Ellison\'s views on parents, with the company building a day-care centre on site big enough for 105 children. ""', 'Another reason for them to come in and enjoy work,"" he said. ""', 'Drop their little tykes off next door.', 'We have doctors on board and nurses who are going to feed them, but mum and dad will be working in our office.""', 'Mr Ellison is not the only boss to enforce a no work from home policy.', 'Last week, the head of London-based smartphone maker Nothing sent an all-staff email to announce the end of hybrid working and a move to fully office-based work. ""', 'I know this is a controversial decision that may not be a fit for everyone, and there are definitely companies out there that thrive in remote or hybrid setups,"" he wrote in the email. ""', 'But that’s not right for our type of business, and won’t help us fully realize our potential as a company.""']",0.1270910239503675,"The company culture at Mining Resources also extends to Mr Ellison's views on parents, with the company building a day-care centre on site big enough for 105 children. """,Mr Ellison is not the only boss to enforce a no work from home policy.,-0.991248220205307,,"But that’s not right for our type of business, and won’t help us fully realize our potential as a company.""",2024-08-30
"Fuel duty cut could be scrapped, says RAC",https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cm2nrneym82o,2024-08-29T08:15:35.559Z,"A 5p cut in fuel duty is expected to be scrapped in the upcoming Budget, according to the RAC motoring organisation, because drivers are not gaining any benefit. The RAC has claimed that retailers have failed to pass on lower petrol and diesel prices to motorists and instead have boosted their own profits.   On Wednesday, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer refused to rule out a rise in fuel duty in the forthcoming Budget.  Chancellor Rachel Reeves will set out Labour's first Budget on 30 October, which Sir Keir has warned ""will be painful"". Fuel duty has been frozen for more than a decade under the Conservative government. In 2022, the then chancellor Rishi Sunak cut it by 5p per litre. That was extended until March next year. Simon Williams, head of policy at the RAC, said Ms Reeves ""knows the 5p discount is losing the Treasury £2bn a year"". The UK's competition watchdog recently found that drivers were still paying too much for fuel, costing them £1.6bn in 2023. Consequently, the RAC said it had reached the conclusion that Ms Reeves ""has no option but to put fuel duty back up"". “We’d normally be against any increase in duty,"" said Mr Williams. ""But we’ve long been saying drivers haven’t been benefitting from the current discount due to much higher-than-average retailer margins."" Sir Keir has refused to rule out any changes to fuel duty. During the election, Labour pledged to protect ""working people"" by not raising income tax, VAT or national insurance. In response to whether an increase in fuel duty would be a tax increase for working people, Sir Keir said on Wednesday that Labour would stick to its past promises on tax. ""Beyond that, I'm not going to speculate about the Budget,"" he said. Ms Reeves has also refused to comment on speculation that she may increase inheritance tax, capital gains tax or reform tax relief on pensions. A Treasury spokesperson said: “The chancellor will set out decisions on tax policy at the Budget on 30 October.” The chancellor has already set out plans to scrap winter fuel payments for pensioners in England and Wales who are not on benefits.  Within weeks of taking over, Labour claimed that it had uncovered a major shortfall in public finances - which former chancellor Jeremy Hunt has denied. The AA is opposed to the 5p cut being scrapped. The motoring group said the government already takes 52.95p per litre in fuel duty as well as 20% in VAT. The Office for Budget Responsibility, the independent fiscal watchdog, forecasts that duties on petrol, diesel and other fuels will raise £24.7bn for 2023-24.  The AA said an increase in fuel duty ""could backfire by fuelling inflation and hitting those in rural areas who have no alternative to the car, disabled drivers, and low-income shift workers"". According to the latest figures from the RAC, the average price for a litre of unleaded petrol is 142.17p across the UK and 147.02p for diesel.  Last month, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) found that supermarkets' profit margins - the difference between the price they pay to buy fuel and what they charge motorists - had doubled since 2019. The CMA's chief executive, Sarah Cardell, said she would work with the new government to introduce a ""real-time fuel finder scheme"" to show motorists where the cheapest petrol and diesel prices are in their area.   ",BBC,29/08/2024,"['A 5p cut in fuel duty is expected to be scrapped in the upcoming Budget, according to the RAC motoring organisation, because drivers are not gaining any benefit.', 'The RAC has claimed that retailers have failed to pass on lower petrol and diesel prices to motorists and instead have boosted their own profits.', 'On Wednesday, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer refused to rule out a rise in fuel duty in the forthcoming Budget.', 'Chancellor Rachel Reeves will set out Labour\'s first Budget on 30 October, which Sir Keir has warned ""will be painful"".', 'Fuel duty has been frozen for more than a decade under the Conservative government.', 'In 2022, the then chancellor Rishi Sunak cut it by 5p per litre.', 'That was extended until March next year.', 'Simon Williams, head of policy at the RAC, said Ms Reeves ""knows the 5p discount is losing the Treasury £2bn a year"".', ""The UK's competition watchdog recently found that drivers were still paying too much for fuel, costing them £1.6bn in 2023."", 'Consequently, the RAC said it had reached the conclusion that Ms Reeves ""has no option but to put fuel duty back up"". “', 'We’d normally be against any increase in duty,"" said Mr Williams. ""', 'But we’ve long been saying drivers haven’t been benefitting from the current discount due to much higher-than-average retailer margins.""', 'Sir Keir has refused to rule out any changes to fuel duty.', 'During the election, Labour pledged to protect ""working people"" by not raising income tax, VAT or national insurance.', 'In response to whether an increase in fuel duty would be a tax increase for working people, Sir Keir said on Wednesday that Labour would stick to its past promises on tax. ""', 'Beyond that, I\'m not going to speculate about the Budget,"" he said.', 'Ms Reeves has also refused to comment on speculation that she may increase inheritance tax, capital gains tax or reform tax relief on pensions.', 'A Treasury spokesperson said: “The chancellor will set out decisions on tax policy at the Budget on 30 October.”', 'The chancellor has already set out plans to scrap winter fuel payments for pensioners in England and Wales who are not on benefits.', 'Within weeks of taking over, Labour claimed that it had uncovered a major shortfall in public finances - which former chancellor Jeremy Hunt has denied.', 'The AA is opposed to the 5p cut being scrapped.', 'The motoring group said the government already takes 52.95p per litre in fuel duty as well as 20% in VAT.', 'The Office for Budget Responsibility, the independent fiscal watchdog, forecasts that duties on petrol, diesel and other fuels will raise £24.7bn for 2023-24.', 'The AA said an increase in fuel duty ""could backfire by fuelling inflation and hitting those in rural areas who have no alternative to the car, disabled drivers, and low-income shift workers"".', 'According to the latest figures from the RAC, the average price for a litre of unleaded petrol is 142.17p across the UK and 147.02p for diesel.', ""Last month, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) found that supermarkets' profit margins - the difference between the price they pay to buy fuel and what they charge motorists - had doubled since 2019."", 'The CMA\'s chief executive, Sarah Cardell, said she would work with the new government to introduce a ""real-time fuel finder scheme"" to show motorists where the cheapest petrol and diesel prices are in their area.']",-0.0062710962480952,"In response to whether an increase in fuel duty would be a tax increase for working people, Sir Keir said on Wednesday that Labour would stick to its past promises on tax. ""","A 5p cut in fuel duty is expected to be scrapped in the upcoming Budget, according to the RAC motoring organisation, because drivers are not gaining any benefit.",-0.3151469975709915,"Last month, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) found that supermarkets' profit margins - the difference between the price they pay to buy fuel and what they charge motorists - had doubled since 2019.","Within weeks of taking over, Labour claimed that it had uncovered a major shortfall in public finances - which former chancellor Jeremy Hunt has denied.",2024-08-30
Norwich Toys R Us to return to city six years after closing,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c3039re93rqo,2024-08-30T13:17:59.088Z,"Toys R Us is set to return to a city six years after the brand closed its UK branches. The retailer has lodged plans to open a concession store again in Norwich as part of its relaunch across the UK. Toys R Us went into administration in February 2018, closing all of its 100 shops with the loss of more than 2,000 jobs - including its store in Norwich's Cathedral Retail Park. It now hopes to open inside WH Smith on Gentleman's Walk in the city. The retailer announced plans for a relaunch in October 2022, before striking an exclusive deal with WH Smith for concessions across the UK, reports the Local Democracy Reporting Service. The plans lodged with Norwich City Council will see the Toys R Us branding displayed across half of the existing WH Smith in Gentleman’s Walk. Norwich was not named in the most recent list of Toys R Us shop-in-shops due to open over the summer - which included locations in Herefordshire and Essex - and it is not clear when the concession will be opened. In April 2018, Toys R Us launched closing down sales across all of its UK stores after it failed to find a buyer following more than 30 years in the country. The Norwich branch was opened by the shop’s Geoffrey the Giraffe mascot in 1999, with children able to test drive ride-on vehicles in the store’s central aisle. Shortly after the shop’s closure, a report from the council declared that the loss of its ""significant"" floor space had negatively impacted the city’s retail landscape. The store has remained empty ever since but a new Home Bargains store is now due to take its place. Work is under way to transform the units at Cathedral Retail Park in Westwick Street, six years after Toys R Us closed its doors. Norwich City Council will determine whether the retailer can display its branding in Gentleman’s Walk in due course. Follow Norfolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X. ",BBC,30/08/2024,"['Toys R Us is set to return to a city six years after the brand closed its UK branches.', 'The retailer has lodged plans to open a concession store again in Norwich as part of its relaunch across the UK.', ""Toys R Us went into administration in February 2018, closing all of its 100 shops with the loss of more than 2,000 jobs - including its store in Norwich's Cathedral Retail Park."", ""It now hopes to open inside WH Smith on Gentleman's Walk in the city."", 'The retailer announced plans for a relaunch in October 2022, before striking an exclusive deal with WH Smith for concessions across the UK, reports the Local Democracy Reporting Service.', 'The plans lodged with Norwich City Council will see the Toys R Us branding displayed across half of the existing WH Smith in Gentleman’s Walk.', 'Norwich was not named in the most recent list of Toys R Us shop-in-shops due to open over the summer - which included locations inHerefordshire and Essex - and it is not clear when the concession will be opened.', 'In April 2018, Toys R Uslaunched closing down sales across all of its UK stores after it failed to find a buyer following more than 30 years in the country.', 'The Norwich branch wasopened by the shop’sGeoffrey the Giraffe mascot in 1999, with children able to test drive ride-on vehicles in the store’s central aisle.', 'Shortly after the shop’s closure, a report from the council declared that theloss of its ""significant"" floor space had negatively impacted the city’s retail landscape.', 'The store has remained empty ever since but a new Home Bargains store is now due to take its place.', 'Work is under way to transform the units at Cathedral Retail Park in Westwick Street, six years after Toys R Us closed its doors.', 'Norwich City Council will determine whether the retailer can display its branding in Gentleman’s Walk in due course.', 'Follow Norfolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.']",-0.0337223843533595,It now hopes to open inside WH Smith on Gentleman's Walk in the city.,"In April 2018, Toys R Uslaunched closing down sales across all of its UK stores after it failed to find a buyer following more than 30 years in the country.",-0.9940051436424256,,"Shortly after the shop’s closure, a report from the council declared that theloss of its ""significant"" floor space had negatively impacted the city’s retail landscape.",2024-08-30
X braced for Brazil ban as judge's deadline passes,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvg41n533zno,2024-08-30T00:44:25.125Z,"X, formerly known as Twitter, has said it expects to be blocked in Brazil after failing to meet a deadline to name a new legal representative for the company. The social media network closed its office in the country earlier this month, saying its representative had been threatened with arrest if she did not comply with orders it described as ""censorship"". The months-long row began with Supreme Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes in April ordering the suspension of dozens of X accounts for allegedly spreading disinformation. X owner Elon Musk has threatened to reactivate the accounts, and has described Justice Moraes as a ""tyrant"" and a ""dictator"".  Justice Moraes gave X 24 hours to name a new legal representative or face suspension, with the deadline coming just after 20:00 local time (23:00 GMT) on Thursday.  The order said a ban would remain in effect until X names a legal representative in the country and pays fines for alleged violations of Brazilian law.  But in a post from one of its official accounts shortly after the deadline expired, X made clear that it had not complied with the order. ""Soon, we expect Judge Alexandre de Moraes will order X to be shut down in Brazil – simply because we would not comply with his illegal orders to censor his political opponents,"" the post said. ""The fundamental issue at stake here is that Judge de Moraes demands we break Brazil’s own laws. We simply won’t do that."" X said it would not comply ""in secret with illegal orders"", adding that it would publish the judge's demands in the coming days ""in the interests of transparency"". Justice Moraes had ordered that X accounts accused of spreading disinformation - many supporters of the former right-wing president Jair Bolsonaro - must be blocked while they are under investigation. He said the company's legal representatives would be held liable if any accounts were reactivated. Meanwhile, the bank accounts of Mr Musk's satellite internet firm Starlink have been frozen in Brazil following an order by the country's Supreme Court. Starlink responded with a post on X which said the ""order is based on an unfounded determination that Starlink should be responsible for the fines levied - unconstitutionally - against X."" Mr Musk also said on X that ""SpaceX and X are two completely different companies with different shareholders.""   Starlink is a subsidiary of Mr Musk's rocket firm SpaceX. In 2022, the government of then-President Bolsonaro gave Starlink the green light to operate in Brazil. As South America's largest country, Brazil and its remote regions in the Amazon have huge potential for Starlink, which specialises in providing internet services to isolated areas. Justice Moraes gained prominence after his decisions to restrict social media platforms in the country. He is also investigating Mr Bolsonaro and his supporters for their roles in an alleged attempted coup on 8 January last year. X is not the first social media company to come under pressure from authorities in Brazil. Last year, Telegram was temporarily banned over its failure to cooperate with requests to block certain profiles. Meta's messaging service Whatsapp also faced temporary bans in 2015 and 2016 for refusing to comply with police requests for user data. ",BBC,30/08/2024,"['X, formerly known as Twitter, has said it expects to be blocked in Brazil after failing to meet a deadline to name a new legal representative for the company.', 'The social media network closed its office in the country earlier this month, saying its representative had been threatened with arrest if she did not comply with orders it described as ""censorship"".', 'The months-long row began with Supreme Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes in April ordering the suspension of dozens of X accounts for allegedly spreading disinformation.', 'X owner Elon Musk has threatened to reactivate the accounts, and has described Justice Moraes as a ""tyrant"" and a ""dictator"".', 'Justice Moraes gave X 24 hours to name a new legal representative or face suspension, with the deadline coming just after 20:00 local time (23:00 GMT) on Thursday.', 'The order said a ban would remain in effect until X names a legal representative in the country and pays fines for alleged violations of Brazilian law.', 'But in a post from one of its official accounts shortly after the deadline expired, X made clear that it had not complied with the order. ""', 'Soon, we expect Judge Alexandre de Moraes will order X to be shut down in Brazil – simply because we would not comply with his illegal orders to censor his political opponents,"" the post said. ""', 'The fundamental issue at stake here is that Judge de Moraes demands we break Brazil’s own laws.', 'We simply won’t do that.""', 'X said it would not comply ""in secret with illegal orders"", adding that it would publish the judge\'s demands in the coming days ""in the interests of transparency"".', 'Justice Moraes had ordered that X accounts accused of spreading disinformation - many supporters of the former right-wing president Jair Bolsonaro - must be blocked while they are under investigation.', ""He said the company's legal representatives would be held liable if any accounts were reactivated."", ""Meanwhile, the bank accounts of Mr Musk's satellite internet firm Starlink have been frozen in Brazil following an order by the country's Supreme Court."", 'Starlink responded with a post on X which said the ""order is based on an unfounded determination that Starlink should be responsible for the fines levied - unconstitutionally - against X."" Mr Musk also said on X that ""SpaceX and X are two completely different companies with different shareholders.""', ""Starlink is a subsidiary of Mr Musk's rocket firm SpaceX. In 2022, the government of then-President Bolsonaro gave Starlink the green light to operate in Brazil."", ""As South America's largest country, Brazil and its remote regions in the Amazon have huge potential for Starlink, which specialises in providing internet services to isolated areas."", 'Justice Moraes gained prominence after his decisions to restrict social media platforms in the country.', 'He is also investigating Mr Bolsonaro and his supporters for their roles in an alleged attempted coup on 8 January last year.', 'X is not the first social media company to come under pressure from authorities in Brazil.', 'Last year, Telegram was temporarily banned over its failure to cooperate with requests to block certain profiles.', ""Meta's messaging service Whatsapp also faced temporary bans in 2015 and 2016 for refusing to comply with police requests for user data.""]",0.001352970790069,"Starlink responded with a post on X which said the ""order is based on an unfounded determination that Starlink should be responsible for the fines levied - unconstitutionally - against X."" Mr Musk also said on X that ""SpaceX and X are two completely different companies with different shareholders.""","Last year, Telegram was temporarily banned over its failure to cooperate with requests to block certain profiles.",-0.2563237879011366,Justice Moraes gained prominence after his decisions to restrict social media platforms in the country.,Meta's messaging service Whatsapp also faced temporary bans in 2015 and 2016 for refusing to comply with police requests for user data.,2024-08-30
"Eli Lilly releases new form of weight loss drug Zepbound for half the price to boost access, supply",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/27/zepbound-eli-lilly-releases-new-cheaper-form-of-weight-loss-drug.html,2024-08-27T21:57:40+0000,"In this articleEli Lilly on Tuesday released a new form of its weight loss drug Zepbound for roughly half its usual monthly list price to reach millions of patients without insurance coverage for the popular injection, such as those with Medicare. The move also aims to expand the supply of Zepbound in the U.S. as demand skyrockets, and to ensure eligible patients are safely accessing the real treatment as cheaper copycat versions gain traction. The company is now offering 2.5-milligram and 5-milligram single-dose vials of Zepbound for $399 per month and $549 per month, respectively, through its direct-to-consumer website. Patients typically start treatment with a 2.5-milligram dose, gradually increase the amount and later take so-called maintenance doses to keep the weight off.The list prices of Zepbound and other popular weight loss drugs, such as Novo Nordisk's Wegovy, are around $1,000 per month before insurance and other rebates. Those treatments are part of a blockbuster class of medications called GLP-1s, which mimic certain gut hormones to tamp down a person's appetite and regulate blood sugar. Patients need to use a syringe and needle to draw up the medicine from a single-dose vial — the version of Zepbound Eli Lilly is releasing Tuesday — and inject themselves. That differs from single-dose autoinjector pens, the currently available form of all Zepbound doses, which patients can directly inject under their skin with the click of a button.Eli Lilly has said the vials will create additional supply capacity because they are easier to manufacture than autoinjector pens.The lower price points will benefit patients who are willing to pay for Zepbound themselves and are enrolled in Medicare or employer-sponsored health plans that do not currently cover obesity treatments, said Patrik Jonsson, president of Eli Lilly diabetes and obesity, in an interview. He noted that Medicare beneficiaries are also not eligible for Eli Lilly's savings card programs for Zepbound. One program allows people with insurance coverage for Zepbound to pay as little as $25 out of pocket.The company offers another to patients whose commercial insurance does not cover the drug. Patients currently enrolled in that program can continue to pay as low as $550 per month for Zepbound through the end of the year.But as of Tuesday, the lowest cost of the drug for new patients who join that program will increase to $650 per month, according to an update on the company's website. That price hike will ""help maintain the sustainability of the program as coverage for Zepbound improves,"" a spokesperson for Eli Lilly said in a statement Tuesday.Having patients directly pay for single-dose vials of Zepbound also ""enables a transparent price by removing third-party supply chain entities,"" the company added in a release. There ""will be no markups, and we believe that's super important … that consumers have this predictability in terms of pricing,"" Jonsson said. Patients with a valid prescription can purchase the single-dose vials from a new ""self-pay pharmacy"" section on the company's direct-to-consumer site, LillyDirect. Eli Lilly is partnering with a third-party digital pharmacy, Gifthealth, which will process prescriptions electronically as well as package and send vials to eligible patients.People can also choose to purchase syringes and needles from Eli Lilly's website and will have access to materials on how to correctly administer Zepbound from a vial. LillyDirect, which launched in January, connects people with an independent telehealth company that can prescribe certain drugs if the patients are eligible. The site also offers a home-delivery option if the prescribed treatment is Eli Lilly's, tapping a third-party online pharmacy to fill prescriptions and send them directly to patients. Eli Lilly said in a release that distributing the vials through the site will ensure patients and health-care providers are receiving ""genuine"" Zepbound. It builds on the company's efforts to ""help protect the public from the dangers posed by the proliferation of counterfeit, fake, unsafe or untested knock-offs of Lilly's medications,"" according to the release.During shortages, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration allows compounding pharmacies to make versions of drugs that are essentially a copy of brand-name medicines. Compounded medications are custom-made alternatives to branded drugs designed to meet a specific patient's needs. But both Zepbound and Eli Lilly's diabetes drug, Mounjaro, are under patent protection in the U.S. The company also does not supply the active ingredient of those two drugs, tirzepatide, to outside groups. Eli Lilly has said that raises questions about what some compounding pharmacies and other clinics are selling and marketing to consumers. The company and its rival Novo Nordisk have both stepped in to address illicit versions of their weight loss and diabetes treatments, suing wellness clinics, medical spas and compounding pharmacies across the U.S. over the past year. All doses of Zepbound are now listed as available on the FDA's drug shortage database. Still, thousands of online platforms offering compounded versions of weight loss drugs from Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly have cropped up over the past six months, according to Jonsson. ""We believe that the U.S. population is actually a target for … untested, unapproved, unregulated anti-obesity medications that we know is far from always containing the drug it's supposed to,"" he said. ""This is also an opportunity to make sure that there is access to FDA-approved, quality-approved tirzepatide for consumers in need.""",CNBC,27/08/2024,"['In this articleEli Lilly on Tuesday released a new form of its weight loss drug Zepbound for roughly half its usual monthly list price to reach millions of patients without insurance coverage for the popular injection, such as those with Medicare.', 'The move also aims to expand the supply of Zepbound in the U.S. as demand skyrockets, and to ensure eligible patients are safely accessing the real treatment as cheaper copycat versions gain traction.', 'The company is now offering 2.5-milligram and 5-milligram single-dose vials of Zepbound for $399 per month and $549 per month, respectively, through its direct-to-consumer website.', 'Patients typically start treatment with a 2.5-milligram dose, gradually increase the amount and later take so-called maintenance doses to keep the weight off.', ""The list prices of Zepbound and other popular weight loss drugs, such as Novo Nordisk's Wegovy, are around $1,000 per month before insurance and other rebates."", ""Those treatments are part of a blockbuster class of medications called GLP-1s, which mimic certain gut hormones to tamp down a person's appetite and regulate blood sugar."", 'Patients need to use a syringe and needle to draw up the medicine from a single-dose vial — the version of Zepbound Eli Lilly is releasing Tuesday — and inject themselves.', 'That differs from single-dose autoinjector pens, the currently available form of all Zepbound doses, which patients can directly inject under their skin with the click of a button.', 'Eli Lilly has said the vials willcreate additional supply capacitybecause they are easier to manufacture than autoinjector pens.', 'The lower price points will benefit patients who are willing to pay for Zepbound themselves and are enrolled in Medicare or employer-sponsored health plans that do not currently cover obesity treatments, said Patrik Jonsson, president of Eli Lilly diabetes and obesity, in an interview.', ""He noted that Medicare beneficiaries are also not eligible for Eli Lilly's savings card programs for Zepbound."", 'One program allows people with insurance coverage for Zepbound to pay as little as $25 out of pocket.', 'The company offers another to patients whose commercial insurance does not cover the drug.', 'Patients currently enrolled in that program can continue to pay as low as $550 per month for Zepbound through the end of the year.', ""But as of Tuesday, the lowest cost of the drug for new patients who join that program will increase to $650 per month, according to an update on the company's website."", 'That price hike will ""help maintain the sustainability of the program as coverage for Zepbound improves,"" a spokesperson for Eli Lilly said in a statement Tuesday.', 'Having patients directly pay for single-dose vials of Zepbound also ""enables a transparent price by removing third-party supply chain entities,"" the company added in a release.', 'There ""will be no markups, and we believe that\'s super important … that consumers have this predictability in terms of pricing,"" Jonsson said.', 'Patients with a valid prescription can purchase the single-dose vials from a new ""self-pay pharmacy"" section on the company\'s direct-to-consumer site, LillyDirect.', 'Eli Lilly is partnering with a third-party digital pharmacy, Gifthealth, which will process prescriptions electronically as well as package and send vials to eligible patients.', ""People can also choose to purchase syringes and needles from Eli Lilly's website and will have access to materials on how to correctly administer Zepbound from a vial."", 'LillyDirect, which launched in January, connects people with an independent telehealth company that can prescribe certain drugs if the patients are eligible.', ""The site also offers a home-delivery option if the prescribed treatment is Eli Lilly's, tapping a third-party online pharmacy to fill prescriptions and send them directly to patients."", 'Eli Lilly said in a release that distributing the vials through the site will ensure patients and health-care providers are receiving ""genuine"" Zepbound.', 'It builds on the company\'s efforts to ""help protect the public from the dangers posed by the proliferation of counterfeit, fake, unsafe or untested knock-offs of Lilly\'s medications,"" according to the release.', 'During shortages, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration allows compounding pharmacies to make versions of drugs that are essentially a copy of brand-name medicines.', ""Compounded medications are custom-made alternatives to branded drugs designed to meet a specific patient's needs."", ""But both Zepbound and Eli Lilly's diabetes drug, Mounjaro, are under patent protection in the U.S. The company also does not supply the active ingredient of those two drugs, tirzepatide, to outside groups."", 'Eli Lilly has said that raises questions about what some compounding pharmacies and other clinics are selling and marketing to consumers.', 'The company and its rival Novo Nordisk have both stepped in to address illicit versions of their weight loss and diabetes treatments, suing wellness clinics, medical spas and compounding pharmacies across the U.S. over the past year.', ""All doses of Zepbound are now listed as available on the FDA's drug shortage database."", 'Still, thousands of online platforms offering compounded versions of weight loss drugs from Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly have cropped up over the past six months, according to Jonsson.', '""We believe that the U.S. population is actually a target for … untested, unapproved, unregulated anti-obesity medications that we know is far from always containing the drug it\'s supposed to,"" he said. ""', 'This is also an opportunity to make sure that there is access to FDA-approved, quality-approved tirzepatide for consumers in need.""']",0.1646593759491673,"The move also aims to expand the supply of Zepbound in the U.S. as demand skyrockets, and to ensure eligible patients are safely accessing the real treatment as cheaper copycat versions gain traction.","""We believe that the U.S. population is actually a target for … untested, unapproved, unregulated anti-obesity medications that we know is far from always containing the drug it's supposed to,"" he said. """,0.5932532012462616,"The move also aims to expand the supply of Zepbound in the U.S. as demand skyrockets, and to ensure eligible patients are safely accessing the real treatment as cheaper copycat versions gain traction.",Patients currently enrolled in that program can continue to pay as low as $550 per month for Zepbound through the end of the year.,2024-08-30
Home prices hit record high in June on S&P Case-Shiller Index,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/27/home-prices-hit-record-high-in-june-on-sp-case-shiller-index.html,2024-08-27T17:55:03+0000,"Even as mortgage interest rates were rising, home prices reached the highest level ever on the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index.On a three-month running average ended in June, prices nationally were 5.4% higher than they were in June 2023, according to data released Tuesday. Despite being a record high for the index, the annual gain was smaller than May's 5.9% reading.The index's 10-city composite rose 7.4% annually, down from 7.8% in the previous month. The 20-city composite was 6.5% higher year over year, down from a 6.9% increase in May.""While both housing and inflation have slowed, the gap between the two is larger than historical norms, with our National Index averaging 2.8% more than the Consumer Price Index,"" noted Brian Luke, head of commodities, real and digital assets at S&P Dow Jones Indices, in a release. ""That is a full percentage point above the 50-year average. Before accounting for inflation, home prices have risen over 1,100% since 1974, but have slightly more than doubled (111%) after accounting for inflation.""New York saw the highest annual gain among the 20 cities, with prices climbing 9% in June, followed by San Diego and Las Vegas with annual increases of 8.7% and 8.5%, respectively. Portland, Oregon, saw just a 0.8% annual rise in June, the smallest gain of the top cities.Since housing affordability has been a major talking point in this election cycle, this month's report also broke out home values by price tier, dividing each city's market into three tiers. Looking just at large markets over the past five years, it found that 75% of the markets covered show low-price tiers rising faster than the overall market.""For example, the lower tier of the Atlanta market has risen 18% faster than the middle- and higher-tiered homes,"" Luke wrote in the release.""New York's low tier has the largest five-year outperformance, rising nearly 20% above the overall New York region,"" he continued. ""New York also has the largest divergence between low- and high-tier prices. Conversely, San Diego has seen the largest appreciation in higher-tier homes over the past five years.""Prices in the overall San Diego market are up 72% in the past five years, but the high tier is up 79% versus 63% for the lower tier.The increase in prices came even as mortgage rates rose sharply from April through June, which is the period averaged on the index. Usually when rates rise, prices cool.The average rate on the 30-year fixed started April just below 7% and then shot up to 7.5% by the end of the month, according to Mortgage News Daily. Rates stayed over 7% before falling back under that level in July. The 30-year fixed is now right around 6.5%.""Mortgage rates have fallen since June, but there is evidence that even the decline in rates has not been enough to bring buyers back into the market,"" said Lisa Sturtevant, chief economist at Bright MLS. ""Some buyers are waiting for home prices — and not just interest rates — to come down,""While home prices should ease month to month going into the fall, due to seasonal factors and more inventory on the market, they are unlikely to drop significantly, and are expected to still be higher than they were last fall.",CNBC,27/08/2024,"['Even as mortgage interest rates were rising, home prices reached the highest level ever on the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index.', 'On a three-month running average ended in June, prices nationally were 5.4% higher than they were in June 2023, according to data released Tuesday.', ""Despite being a record high for the index, the annual gain was smaller than May's 5.9% reading."", ""The index's 10-city composite rose 7.4% annually, down from 7.8% in the previous month."", 'The 20-city composite was 6.5% higher year over year, down from a 6.9% increase in May.', '""While both housing and inflation have slowed, the gap between the two is larger than historical norms, with our National Index averaging 2.8% more than the Consumer Price Index,"" noted Brian Luke, head of commodities, real and digital assets at S&P Dow Jones Indices, in a release. ""', 'That is a full percentage point above the 50-year average.', 'Before accounting for inflation, home prices have risen over 1,100% since 1974, but have slightly more than doubled (111%) after accounting for inflation.', '""New York saw the highest annual gain among the 20 cities, with prices climbing 9% in June, followed by San Diego and Las Vegas with annual increases of 8.7% and 8.5%, respectively.', 'Portland, Oregon, saw just a 0.8% annual rise in June, the smallest gain of the top cities.', ""Since housing affordability has been a major talking point in this election cycle, this month's report also broke out home values by price tier, dividing each city's market into three tiers."", 'Looking just at large markets over the past five years, it found that 75% of the markets covered show low-price tiers rising faster than the overall market.', '""For example, the lower tier of the Atlanta market has risen 18% faster than the middle- and higher-tiered homes,"" Luke wrote in the release.', '""New York\'s low tier has the largest five-year outperformance, rising nearly 20% above the overall New York region,"" he continued. ""', 'New York also has the largest divergence between low- and high-tier prices.', 'Conversely, San Diego has seen the largest appreciation in higher-tier homes over the past five years.', '""Prices in the overall San Diego market are up 72% in the past five years, but the high tier is up 79% versus 63% for the lower tier.', 'The increase in prices came even as mortgage rates rose sharply from April through June, which is the period averaged on the index.', 'Usually when rates rise, prices cool.', 'The average rate on the 30-year fixed started April just below 7% and then shot up to 7.5% by the end of the month, according to Mortgage News Daily.', 'Rates stayed over 7% before falling back under that level in July.', 'The 30-year fixed is now right around 6.5%.""Mortgage rates have fallen since June, but there is evidence that even the decline in rates has not been enough to bring buyers back into the market,"" said Lisa Sturtevant, chief economist at Bright MLS. ""', 'Some buyers are waiting for home prices — and not just interest rates — to come down,""While home prices should ease month to month going into the fall, due to seasonal factors and more inventory on the market, they are unlikely to drop significantly, and are expected to still be higher than they were last fall.']",0.1217034221770017,"""New York saw the highest annual gain among the 20 cities, with prices climbing 9% in June, followed by San Diego and Las Vegas with annual increases of 8.7% and 8.5%, respectively.","""Prices in the overall San Diego market are up 72% in the past five years, but the high tier is up 79% versus 63% for the lower tier.",0.347285787264506,"""Prices in the overall San Diego market are up 72% in the past five years, but the high tier is up 79% versus 63% for the lower tier.","The 20-city composite was 6.5% higher year over year, down from a 6.9% increase in May.",2024-08-30
"FDA approves updated Pfizer, Moderna Covid vaccines as virus surges; shots to be available within days",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/22/covid-vaccines-fda-approves-pfizer-moderna-updated-kppoint2-shots.html,2024-08-22T20:30:31+0000,"In this articleThe Food and Drug Administration on Thursday approved updated Covid vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna, putting the new shots on track to reach most Americans in the coming days amid a summer surge of the virus. The jabs target a strain called KP.2, a descendant of the highly contagious omicron subvariant JN.1 that began circulating widely in the U.S. earlier this year. KP.2 was the dominant Covid strain in May, but now only accounts for roughly 3% of all U.S. cases as of Saturday, according to the latest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data.Still, Pfizer and Moderna have said their KP.2 vaccines can produce stronger immune responses against other circulating subvariants of JN.1, such as KP.3 and LB.1, than last year's round of shots targeting the omicron strain XBB.1.5 can.""Given waning immunity of the population from previous exposure to the virus and from prior vaccination, we strongly encourage those who are eligible to consider receiving an updated COVID-19 vaccine to provide better protection against currently circulating variants,"" Dr. Peter Marks, director of the FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, said in a statement.In June, the CDC recommended that everyone over 6 months old receive an updated Covid vaccine and flu jab this year. The new shots from Pfizer and Moderna are specifically approved for people ages 12 and older and are authorized under emergency use for children 6 months through 11 years old.  Pfizer will begin shipping its new shot immediately and expects it to be available in pharmacies, hospitals and clinics across the U.S. ""beginning in the coming days,"" the company said in a statement. Moderna also expects its shot to be available in a similar time frame, according to a statement.""Staying up to date with your COVID-19 vaccine remains one of the best ways for people to be protected and prevent severe illness,"" Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel said in a statement. ""We appreciate the U.S. FDA's timely review and encourage individuals to speak to their healthcare providers about receiving their updated COVID-19 vaccine alongside their flu shot this fall.""The FDA's approval comes a few weeks ahead of last year's round of shots, which the agency cleared on Sept. 11.The earlier arrival of updated vaccines could offer some reassurance to Americans as the nation sees a relatively large spike in the virus this summer. A ""high"" or ""very high"" level of Covid is being detected in wastewater in almost every state, according to CDC data. Wastewater monitoring provides a glimpse of how widespread the virus is in the U.S. as other forms of testing have fallen off.Other measures of the virus are rising but remain far below where they were at the peak of the pandemic. Covid test positivity rates rose to 18.3% for the week ended Aug. 10, from 17.9% the week before, according to the CDC.Meanwhile, the CDC said about four people are being hospitalized for Covid for every 100,000 people in a given area. That's up from about one Covid hospitalization for every 100,000 people in May, which was the lowest level since the pandemic began. The summer Covid wave may decline by the time the shots reach patients' arms and kick in an immune response against the virus, which typically takes two weeks after vaccination. Still, federal health officials have long told Americans to expect annual updates to Covid shots as the virus churns out new strains that can dodge the immunity people have from previous vaccinations or infections — protection that wanes over time. It's similar to how the U.S. rolls out new flu vaccines every year. It's unclear how many Americans will actually roll up their sleeves to get another shot in the coming months.Only around 22.5% of U.S. adults received the latest round of shots that came out last fall, according to CDC data through early May. Many Americans who got previous rounds of Covid shots cited a lack of worry about the virus as a reason they didn't get the latest booster, according to a November survey from health policy research organization KFF. Others said they had been too busy to get their shot, the survey said.In June, the FDA asked vaccine makers to manufacture shots against JN.1 before telling them to target KP.2 instead ""if feasible.""That shift appeared to put Novavax, which filed for authorization of a new JN.1 shot that same month, at a disadvantage. The FDA has not cleared the biotech company's jab. In a statement, Novavax said it is working ""productively"" with the FDA as the agency completes its review. Novavax expects its shot to receive authorization in time for peak vaccination season in the U.S.The company noted that its shot provides protection against descendants of JN.1, including KP.2.3, KP.3, KP.3.1.1 and LB.1.Novavax manufactures protein-based vaccines, which cannot be quickly updated to target another strain of the virus. Protein-based technology is a decades-old method used in routine vaccinations against hepatitis B and shingles. Meanwhile, Pfizer's and Moderna's shots use messenger RNA technology, which teaches cells how to make proteins that trigger an immune response against Covid. The mRNA vaccines are much easier to develop and update than protein shots.",CNBC,22/08/2024,"['In this articleThe Food and Drug Administration on Thursday approved updated Covid vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna, putting the new shots on track to reach most Americans in the coming days amid a summer surge of the virus.', 'The jabs target a strain called KP.2, a descendant of the highly contagious omicron subvariant JN.1 that began circulating widely in the U.S. earlier this year.', 'KP.2 was the dominant Covid strain in May, but now only accounts for roughly 3% of all U.S. cases as of Saturday, according to the latest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data.', ""Still, Pfizer and Moderna have said their KP.2 vaccines can produce stronger immune responses against other circulating subvariants of JN.1, such as KP.3 and LB.1, than last year's round of shots targeting the omicron strain XBB.1.5 can."", '""Given waning immunity of the population from previous exposure to the virus and from prior vaccination, we strongly encourage those who are eligible to consider receiving an updated COVID-19 vaccine to provide better protection against currently circulating variants,"" Dr. Peter Marks, director of the FDA\'s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, said in a statement.', 'In June, the CDC recommended that everyone over 6 months old receive an updated Covid vaccine and flu jab this year.', 'The new shots from Pfizer and Moderna are specifically approved for people ages 12 and older and are authorized under emergency use for children 6 months through 11 years old.', 'Pfizer will begin shipping its new shot immediately and expects it to be available in pharmacies, hospitals and clinics across the U.S. ""beginning in the coming days,"" the company said in a statement.', 'Moderna also expectsitsshotto be available in a similar time frame, according to a statement.', '""Staying up to date with your COVID-19 vaccine remains one of the best ways for people to be protected and prevent severe illness,"" Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel said in a statement. ""', ""We appreciate the U.S. FDA's timely review and encourage individuals to speak to their healthcare providers about receiving their updated COVID-19 vaccine alongside their flu shot this fall."", '""The FDA\'s approval comes a few weeks ahead of last year\'s round of shots, which the agency cleared on Sept. 11.The earlier arrival of updated vaccines could offer some reassurance to Americans as the nation sees a relatively large spike in the virus this summer.', 'A ""high"" or ""very high"" level of Covid is being detected in wastewater in almost every state, according to CDC data.', 'Wastewater monitoring provides a glimpse of how widespread the virus is in the U.S. as other forms of testing have fallen off.', 'Other measures of the virus are rising but remain far below where they were at the peak of the pandemic.', 'Covid test positivity rates rose to 18.3% for the week ended Aug. 10, from 17.9% the week before, according to the CDC.Meanwhile, the CDC said about four people are being hospitalized for Covid for every 100,000 people in a given area.', ""That's up from about one Covid hospitalization for every 100,000 people in May, which was the lowest level since the pandemic began."", ""The summer Covid wave may decline by the time the shots reach patients' arms and kick in an immune response against the virus, which typically takes two weeks after vaccination."", 'Still, federal health officials have long told Americans to expect annual updates to Covid shots as the virus churns out new strains that can dodge the immunity people have from previous vaccinations or infections — protection that wanes over time.', ""It's similar to how the U.S. rolls out new flu vaccines every year."", ""It's unclear how many Americans will actually roll up their sleeves to get another shot in the coming months."", 'Only around 22.5% of U.S. adults received the latest round of shots that came out last fall, according to CDC data through early May.', ""Many Americans who got previous rounds of Covid shots cited a lack of worry about the virus as a reason they didn't get the latest booster, according to a November survey from health policy research organization KFF."", 'Others said they had been too busy to get their shot, the survey said.', 'In June, the FDA asked vaccine makers to manufacture shots against JN.1 before telling them to target KP.2 instead ""if feasible.', '""That shift appeared to put Novavax, which filed for authorization of a new JN.1 shot that same month, at a disadvantage.', ""The FDA has not cleared the biotech company's jab."", 'In a statement, Novavax said it is working ""productively"" with the FDA as the agency completes its review.', 'Novavax expects its shot to receive authorization in time for peak vaccination season in the U.S.The company noted that its shot provides protection against descendants of JN.1, including KP.2.3, KP.3, KP.3.1.1 and LB.1.Novavax manufactures protein-based vaccines, which cannot be quickly updated to target another strain of the virus.', 'Protein-based technology is a decades-old method used in routine vaccinations against hepatitis B and shingles.', ""Meanwhile, Pfizer's and Moderna's shots use messenger RNA technology, which teaches cells how to make proteins that trigger an immune response against Covid."", 'The mRNA vaccines are much easier to develop and update than protein shots.']",0.0488887973547498,"""Given waning immunity of the population from previous exposure to the virus and from prior vaccination, we strongly encourage those who are eligible to consider receiving an updated COVID-19 vaccine to provide better protection against currently circulating variants,"" Dr. Peter Marks, director of the FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, said in a statement.","Many Americans who got previous rounds of Covid shots cited a lack of worry about the virus as a reason they didn't get the latest booster, according to a November survey from health policy research organization KFF.",0.0050598631302515,"Covid test positivity rates rose to 18.3% for the week ended Aug. 10, from 17.9% the week before, according to the CDC.Meanwhile, the CDC said about four people are being hospitalized for Covid for every 100,000 people in a given area.","""That shift appeared to put Novavax, which filed for authorization of a new JN.1 shot that same month, at a disadvantage.",2024-08-30
Energy bills: Help urged for struggling pensioners,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/clyg3nk8kjno,2024-08-28T03:28:48.925Z,"Pensioners with the highest needs and lowest incomes should receive better targeted support with energy bills, says Citizens' Advice. From next month, those not on pension credit or other means-tested benefits will no longer get the annual winter fuel payments, worth between £100 and £300. But Citizens' Advice boss Dame Clare Moriarty, who attended a government meeting with energy firms to discuss the issue on Wednesday, called for a ""social tariff"" - discounted bills for those least able to afford them. The prime minister has defended the decision to scrap universal winter fuel payments, saying it was needed to repair what he claims is a £22bn ""hole"" in the public finances. In a speech on Tuesday, Sir Keir Starmer said he had to be honest that ""things [would] get worse before they [got] better"" when it came to public spending. The meeting to discuss how to help those struggling with energy bills was called last week by Energy Consumers Minister Miatta Fahnbulleh after it was announced the energy price cap would rise from October. Regulator Ofgem has said gas and electricity prices will rise by 10% in England, Scotland and Wales under the new energy price cap, with the typical annual dual-fuel bill paid by direct debit to be £1,717 per year. Ofgem, trade association Energy UK and Citizens Advice all attended the meeting.  Following the meeting, Ms Fahnbulleh said the determination from all those present to protect vulnerable families was clear.  ""We are committed to putting in place winter support this October. We will be hashing out the details over the next month so that families that need it are protected in the colder months.” Energy UK chief executive Emma Pinchbeck told the BBC that the ""red lights [were] flashing on the dashboard"". ""It was crystal clear that we all agree there was a real problem for this winter. ""We definitely need intervention. We have to do our bit as industry but we know it’s got to be a partnership with government."" She added that the meeting had been ""really positive"" with some ""good ideas in the room"". Both Octopus Energy and Good Energy called for long-term investment in renewables to help bring bills down. Good Energy also repeated its call for the government to implement a social tariff.  Earlier, Dame Clare said: ""Winter fuel payment will still be paid to people receiving pension credit, and that’s actually one of the most underclaimed benefits there is, so 1.4 million people receive pension credit and there’s nearly another 900,000 people who could. ""It’s really important to see better support so that people do access it."" However, there are concerns the government's decision to stop the payments for everyone could create a public health emergency.  Speaking to the BBC, Dame Clare said pensioners who are least able to afford gas and electricity should be put on to a social tariff offering discounted bills. And she said energy suppliers ""need to step up to their responsibilities on energy efficiency and on payment plans for those who are struggling"". Roger Gardner, 73, is classed as extremely clinically vulnerable. He told the BBC that means he has to stay warm in the winter. He and his wife have lost their winter fuel payments, a change they didn't anticipate.  ""It's not as though we've got extra money coming in. Unfortunately when you're a pensioner, money is limited and what you've got coming in, that is it and you've got to plan how you spend it really wisely."" He said they don't eat much anyway so they can't cut down on food. ""Turning [down] the thermostat unfortunately doesn't work because I've got to keep warm all the time in the winter. We're hoping that we don't have a cold winter."" The charity Age UK says it believes ""as many as two million pensioners who find paying their energy bills a real stretch will be seriously hit by this cut"" and have launched a petition calling for a government U-turn.  The Conservatives have also urged Labour to back down on the decision and are seeking to challenge the policy change in the House of Commons.  The decision was announced in July by Chancellor Rachel Reeves and applies to pensioners in England and Wales. Subsequently the Scottish government has said it will follow suit and scrap universal fuel payments. Since the announcement both Ms Reeves and Sir Keir have defended the move.  On Tuesday, the prime minister said he ""didn't want to means-test the winter fuel payment but it was a choice we had to take"". Speaking on Wednesday, the chancellor said it was necessary ""given the inheritance that we faced from the Conservative government"". However, Paul Johnson of the Institute for Fiscal Studies has previously said ""half of [the] spending 'hole' is public pay over which government made a choice and where pressures were known"". For example, £9bn of that came from government agreeing higher pay awards to the public sector.  Wednesday's meeting followed the publication of a new report that has found that the reduction of people in fuel poverty has ""flatlined"" in the past few years. ""There has been a stalling of progress,"" said Caroline Flint, chair of the Committee on Fuel Poverty, which advises the government. Ms Flint said that while the war in Ukraine and the Covid pandemic had ""obscured the lack of material progress"" being made in fuel poverty reduction, the committee had hoped more progress would have been made on its 2023 recommendations. These included improving the affordability of bills through fairer pricing and creating a ""robust"" fuel poverty strategy.  She said eligibility for the Warm Home Discount - a one-off £150 discount applied to electricity bills by suppliers - needed to be widened.  She called for a ""winter plan"" to help struggling households, including the one in four households in private rented accommodation. Ms Flint added that without a change in government policy, a drop in fuel poverty levels was unlikely in the near future.  ",BBC,28/08/2024,"[""Pensioners with the highest needs and lowest incomes should receive better targeted support with energy bills, says Citizens' Advice."", 'From next month, those not on pension credit or other means-tested benefits will no longer get the annual winter fuel payments, worth between £100 and £300.', 'But Citizens\' Advice boss Dame Clare Moriarty, who attended a government meeting with energy firms to discuss the issue on Wednesday, called for a ""social tariff"" - discounted bills for those least able to afford them.', 'The prime minister has defended the decision to scrap universal winter fuel payments, saying it was needed to repair what he claims is a £22bn ""hole"" in the public finances.', 'In a speech on Tuesday, Sir Keir Starmer said he had to be honest that ""things [would] get worse before they [got] better"" when it came to public spending.', 'The meeting to discuss how to help those struggling with energy bills was called last week by Energy Consumers Minister Miatta Fahnbulleh after it was announced the energy price cap would rise from October.', 'Regulator Ofgem has said gas and electricity prices will rise by 10% in England, Scotland and Wales under the new energy price cap, with the typical annual dual-fuel bill paid by direct debit to be £1,717 per year.', 'Ofgem, trade association Energy UK and Citizens Advice all attended the meeting.', 'Following the meeting, Ms Fahnbulleh said the determination from all those present to protect vulnerable families was clear. ""', 'We are committed to putting in place winter support this October.', 'We will be hashing out the details over the next month so that families that need it are protected in the colder months.”', 'Energy UK chief executive Emma Pinchbeck told the BBC that the ""red lights [were] flashing on the dashboard"". ""', 'It was crystal clear that we all agree there was a real problem for this winter. ""', 'We definitely need intervention.', 'We have to do our bit as industry but we know it’s got to be a partnership with government.""', 'She added that the meeting had been ""really positive"" with some ""good ideas in the room"".', 'Both Octopus Energy and Good Energy called for long-term investment in renewables to help bring bills down.', 'Good Energy also repeated its call for the government to implement a social tariff.', 'Earlier, Dame Clare said: ""Winter fuel payment will still be paid to people receiving pension credit, and that’s actually one of the most underclaimed benefits there is, so 1.4 million people receive pension credit and there’s nearly another 900,000 people who could. ""', 'It’s really important to see better support so that people do access it.""', ""However, there are concerns the government's decision to stop the payments for everyone could create a public health emergency."", 'Speaking to the BBC, Dame Clare said pensioners who are least able to afford gas and electricity should be put on to a social tariff offering discounted bills.', 'And she said energy suppliers ""need to step up to their responsibilities on energy efficiency and on payment plans for those who are struggling"".', 'Roger Gardner, 73, is classed as extremely clinically vulnerable.', 'He told the BBC that means he has to stay warm in the winter.', 'He and his wife have lost their winter fuel payments, a change they didn\'t anticipate. ""', ""It's not as though we've got extra money coming in."", 'Unfortunately when you\'re a pensioner, money is limited and what you\'ve got coming in, that is it and you\'ve got to plan how you spend it really wisely.""', 'He said they don\'t eat much anyway so they can\'t cut down on food. ""', ""Turning [down] the thermostat unfortunately doesn't work because I've got to keep warm all the time in the winter."", 'We\'re hoping that we don\'t have a cold winter.""', 'The charity Age UK says it believes ""as many as two million pensioners who find paying their energy bills a real stretch will be seriously hit by this cut"" and have launched a petition calling for a government U-turn.', 'The Conservatives have also urged Labour to back down on the decision and are seeking to challenge the policy change in the House of Commons.', 'The decision was announced in July by Chancellor Rachel Reeves and applies to pensioners in England and Wales.', 'Subsequently the Scottish government has said it will follow suit and scrap universal fuel payments.', 'Since the announcement both Ms Reeves and Sir Keir have defended the move.', 'On Tuesday, the prime minister said he ""didn\'t want to means-test the winter fuel payment but it was a choice we had to take"".', 'Speaking on Wednesday, the chancellor said it was necessary ""given the inheritance that we faced from the Conservative government"".', 'However, Paul Johnson of the Institute for Fiscal Studies has previously said ""half of [the] spending \'hole\' is public pay over which government made a choice and where pressures were known"".', 'For example, £9bn of that came from government agreeing higher pay awards to the public sector.', 'Wednesday\'s meeting followed the publication of a new report that has found that the reduction of people in fuel poverty has ""flatlined"" in the past few years. ""', 'There has been a stalling of progress,"" said Caroline Flint, chair of the Committee on Fuel Poverty, which advises the government.', 'Ms Flint said that while the war in Ukraine and the Covid pandemic had ""obscured the lack of material progress"" being made in fuel poverty reduction, the committee had hoped more progress would have been made on its 2023 recommendations.', 'These included improving the affordability of bills through fairer pricing and creating a ""robust"" fuel poverty strategy.', 'She said eligibility for the Warm Home Discount - a one-off £150 discount applied to electricity bills by suppliers - needed to be widened.', 'She called for a ""winter plan"" to help struggling households, including the one in four households in private rented accommodation.', 'Ms Flint added that without a change in government policy, a drop in fuel poverty levels was unlikely in the near future.']",0.1836555759099886,Both Octopus Energy and Good Energy called for long-term investment in renewables to help bring bills down.,"Ms Flint added that without a change in government policy, a drop in fuel poverty levels was unlikely in the near future.",0.1298028439283371,"Wednesday's meeting followed the publication of a new report that has found that the reduction of people in fuel poverty has ""flatlined"" in the past few years. ""","There has been a stalling of progress,"" said Caroline Flint, chair of the Committee on Fuel Poverty, which advises the government.",2024-08-30
American Eagle saw profits grow nearly 60% as costs come down,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/29/american-eagle-aeo-earnings-q2-2024.html,2024-08-29T16:30:21+0000,"In this articleAmerican Eagle missed Wall Street's sales targets for a second quarter in a row on Thursday, but profit grew by nearly 60% thanks in part to lower product costs. The company's shares fell roughly 3% in early trading Thursday.Here's how the apparel company did in its fiscal second quarter compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended Aug. 3 was $77.3 million, or 39 cents per share, compared with $48.6 million, or 25 cents per share, a year earlier. Sales rose to $1.29 billion, up about 8% from $1.2 billion a year earlier. That sales gain would have been slimmer had it not been for a calendar shift, which positively impacted second-quarter sales by $55 million.During the quarter, American Eagle's intimates line Aerie saw revenue grow 9% while its namesake brand grew by 8%. American Eagle's gross margin came in at 38.6% — 0.9 percentage point higher than the prior year and in line with what analysts had expected. The gross margin expansion was led by ""favorable product costs,"" indicating American Eagle spent less to make its assortment during the quarter. It's unclear if it lowered prices as a result.The longtime mall brand issued a better-than-expected outlook for the current quarter but its forecast was lower than anticipated for the full year, indicating the company is still bracing for a turbulent second half. For the current quarter, American Eagle expects comparable sales to grow between 3% and 4%, which is better than the 2.8% growth that analysts had expected the company to forecast, according to StreetAccount. The retailer is expecting total revenue to be flat to up slightly for the third quarter — in line with expectations, according to LSEG.For the year, the company expects comparable sales to increase approximately 4%, with total revenue up 2% to 3%, shy of what analysts had expected. Wall Street was expecting its full-year comparable sales forecast to be up 4.2% and overall sales to be up 3.5%, according to StreetAccount and LSEG.In May, Finance Chief Mike Mathias told CNBC that American Eagle is maintaining a ""cautious"" view for the back half of the year as it awaits interest rate decisions from the Federal Reserve and prepares for ""noise"" around the upcoming presidential election. Like other retailers contending with slowing demand for discretionary items, American Eagle has looked to cut costs and boost efficiencies so it can protect profits, even if sales are sluggish. Earlier this year, it unveiled a new strategy to grow profits and is working to boost sales by 3% to 5% each year over the next three years and get its operating margin to about 10%.""In all the years I've been in this business, I probably see the greatest opportunity in the history of the company,"" CEO Jay Schottenstein said on the company's earnings call on Thursday. ""From our standpoint, today, we're a $5 billion business. We think the next few years we could be a $10 billion business. And I would emphasize this: We are committed to making the investment to become that business.""During the quarter, American Eagle made some strides in achieving that goal. It posted operating income of $101 million, an increase of 55%, while its operating margin grew 2.4 percentage points to 7.8%. Operating income would have been lower had it not been for the calendar shift, which positively impacted the metric by $20 million. Although back-to-school season has already started with a ""strong performance"" for the company, executives expect it to last into September and get a second wind after Labor Day, a trend that Matthias said the company has observed in recent years, especially in the Northeast.President and Executive Creative Officer Jennifer Foyle added that while the American Eagle brand is leaning into women's and denim categories, the brand's mainstay segment, it is also looking to expand into new trends going forward.Foyle also said the menswear business is starting to turn around.""We are not just a one-fit brand anymore … We're making sure that we're leaning in as we go into the back half of Q3 and Q4 and we're ready to play,"" Foyle said.",CNBC,29/08/2024,"[""In this articleAmerican Eagle missed Wall Street's sales targets for a second quarter in a row on Thursday, but profit grew by nearly 60% thanks in part to lower product costs."", ""The company's shares fell roughly 3% in early trading Thursday."", ""Here's how the apparel company did in its fiscal second quarter compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended Aug. 3 was $77.3 million, or 39 cents per share, compared with $48.6 million, or 25 cents per share, a year earlier."", 'Sales rose to $1.29 billion, up about 8% from $1.2 billion a year earlier.', 'That sales gain would have been slimmer had it not been for a calendar shift, which positively impacted second-quarter sales by $55 million.', ""During the quarter, American Eagle's intimates line Aerie saw revenue grow 9% while its namesake brand grew by 8%.American Eagle's gross margin came in at 38.6% — 0.9 percentage point higher than the prior year and in line with what analysts had expected."", 'The gross margin expansion was led by ""favorable product costs,"" indicating American Eagle spent less to make its assortment during the quarter.', ""It's unclear if it lowered prices as a result."", 'The longtime mall brand issued a better-than-expected outlook for the current quarter but its forecast was lower than anticipated for the full year, indicating the company is still bracing for a turbulent second half.', 'For the current quarter, American Eagle expects comparable sales to grow between 3% and 4%, which is better than the 2.8% growth that analysts had expected the company to forecast, according to StreetAccount.', 'The retailer is expecting total revenue to be flat to up slightly for the third quarter — in line with expectations, according to LSEG.For the year, the company expects comparable sales to increase approximately 4%, with total revenue up 2% to 3%, shy of what analysts had expected.', 'Wall Street was expecting its full-year comparable sales forecast to be up 4.2% and overall sales to be up 3.5%, according to StreetAccount and LSEG.In May, Finance Chief Mike Mathias told CNBC that American Eagle is maintaining a ""cautious"" view for the back half of the year as it awaits interest rate decisions from the Federal Reserve and prepares for ""noise"" around the upcoming presidential election.', 'Like other retailers contending with slowing demand for discretionary items, American Eagle has looked to cut costs and boost efficiencies so it can protect profits, even if sales are sluggish.', 'Earlier this year, it unveiled a new strategy to grow profits and is working to boost sales by 3% to 5% each year over the next three years and get its operating margin to about 10%.""In all the years I\'ve been in this business, I probably see the greatest opportunity in the history of the company,"" CEO Jay Schottenstein said on the company\'s earnings call on Thursday. ""', ""From our standpoint, today, we're a $5 billion business."", 'We think the next few years we could be a $10 billion business.', 'And I would emphasize this: We are committed to making the investment to become that business.', '""During the quarter, American Eagle made some strides in achieving that goal.', 'It posted operating income of $101 million, an increase of 55%, while its operating margin grew 2.4 percentage points to 7.8%.', 'Operating income would have been lower had it not been for the calendar shift, which positively impacted the metric by $20 million.', 'Although back-to-school season has already started with a ""strong performance"" for the company, executives expect it to last into September and get a second wind after Labor Day, a trend that Matthias said the company has observed in recent years, especially in the Northeast.', ""President and Executive Creative Officer Jennifer Foyle added that while the American Eagle brand is leaning into women's and denim categories, the brand's mainstay segment, it is also looking to expand into new trends going forward."", 'Foyle also said the menswear business is starting to turn around.', '""We are not just a one-fit brand anymore … We\'re making sure that we\'re leaning in as we go into the back half of Q3 and Q4 and we\'re ready to play,"" Foyle said.']",0.2901999922407762,"Earlier this year, it unveiled a new strategy to grow profits and is working to boost sales by 3% to 5% each year over the next three years and get its operating margin to about 10%.""In all the years I've been in this business, I probably see the greatest opportunity in the history of the company,"" CEO Jay Schottenstein said on the company's earnings call on Thursday. ""","During the quarter, American Eagle's intimates line Aerie saw revenue grow 9% while its namesake brand grew by 8%.American Eagle's gross margin came in at 38.6% — 0.9 percentage point higher than the prior year and in line with what analysts had expected.",0.6825194045117027,"Wall Street was expecting its full-year comparable sales forecast to be up 4.2% and overall sales to be up 3.5%, according to StreetAccount and LSEG.In May, Finance Chief Mike Mathias told CNBC that American Eagle is maintaining a ""cautious"" view for the back half of the year as it awaits interest rate decisions from the Federal Reserve and prepares for ""noise"" around the upcoming presidential election.","Operating income would have been lower had it not been for the calendar shift, which positively impacted the metric by $20 million.",2024-08-30
Why is Thames Water in so much trouble?,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-66051555,2023-06-29T12:22:03.000Z,"Thames Water has said its bills need to rise by 59% between 2025 and 2030 or else the business will not be able to recover from its financial crisis. The UK's largest water company demanded the bill hike as the wider water industry raised concerns over a proposed cap from the regulator for water bill rises for all suppliers. So why is Thames Water facing a crisis - and are other firms facing similar problems? When the company was privatised in 1989, it had no debt. But over the years it borrowed heavily and is currently £15.2bn in debt, by one measure. A large proportion of that was added when Macquarie, an Australian infrastructure bank, owned Thames Water, reaching over £10bn when the company was sold in 2017. Analysts say Thames Water's current debt amounts to about 80% of the value of the business, making it the most heavily indebted of England and Wales' water companies.  Also, interest payments on more than half of Thames' debt rise with inflation, which has been high in recent years, adding to the firm's woes. Macquarie said that it invested billions of pounds in upgrading Thames's water and sewage infrastructure while it owned the company.   But critics argue that it took billions of pounds out of the company in loans and dividends - which is a share of a business's profits that is paid to shareholders. Thames Water said that it has not paid dividends to external shareholders since 2017.   However, dividends can also be used to move money around companies that are ultimately owned by one parent company. Thames Water has paid over £200m in dividends to other companies within the group in the past five years.  Most of this money has then been paid as interest to outside investors who have loaned the group money.   Critics argue that the dividends were paid with money that could have been spent on improving Thames Water's infrastructure and services. However, Thames Water is legally obliged to make those debt interest payments. The company says it has enough cash until the end of May next year. Thames Water's travails have certainly put a spotlight on what is a debt-laden industry. According to the regulator Ofwat, the sector's total debt reached £60.6bn by March last year.  Of the 11 companies that provide water and sewage services in England and Wales, six are owned by or controlled by overseas investors from countries including Hong Kong, Canada and Malaysia. Like Thames Water, critics claim that overseas owners have loaded water companies up with debt and paid themselves handsome dividends at the expense of investment.   While the sector has - like other industries - been hit by higher costs for things like chemicals and energy, one problem for water companies is that the interest that they pay on their debt is linked to the retail prices index (RPI) measure of inflation.  This is usually higher than the consumer prices index (CPI) measure of inflation. For example, in July RPI inflation was 3.6% compared with CPI inflation of 2.2%. Ofwat estimates that half of water companies' debt is linked to inflation and the vast majority of that is tied to the RPI measure.  Meanwhile, in December 2022 Ofwat raised concerns about the financial resilience of five companies: Thames Water, Southern Water, Yorkshire Water, SES and Portsmouth. Yorkshire, Southern, Portsmouth and SES all say they have taken steps to address Ofwat's concerns. Thames Water is owned by a group of investors spanning four continents. The largest is the Canadian pension fund, OMERS, with 31.8%.  The second-largest is the Universities Superannuation Scheme, with 19.7%, a pension fund for UK academics. Other investors include sovereign wealth funds from China and Abu Dhabi, which invest those nations' assets on behalf of their governments.   Three other pension funds and two investment firms make up the rest.   The entire water and waste sector was privatised 34 years ago under the late Margaret Thatcher's Conservative government for £7.6bn. At the time, Mrs Thatcher wrote off the industry's £5bn debt, leaving companies with a clean slate and gave them £1.5bn in public money.  The government had wanted to privatise the industry in 1984 but a public backlash against the plan saw it shelved until after the general election three years later. At the time, the UK was under pressure from Europe to improve the purity of its water. However, meeting European standards would cost billions of pounds worth of investment which, it was hoped, would come from the private sector and, by extension, companies' customers.  ""If we want environmental improvement, it will cost money,"" said Mrs Thatcher in 1988. ""It will be the people who want those improvements in water who will have to pay."" Former Labour MP Ann Taylor later said of privatising the water industry: ""The message is always the same - maximise the cost to the consumer to ensure maximum return to the investor. We should not be surprised at that. After all, that is what private investors expect of their companies.""  ",BBC,29/06/2023,"['Thames Water has said its bills need to rise by 59% between 2025 and 2030 or else the business will not be able to recover from its financial crisis.', ""The UK's largest water company demanded the bill hike as the wider water industry raised concerns over a proposed cap from the regulator for water bill rises for all suppliers."", 'So why is Thames Water facing a crisis - and are other firms facing similar problems?', 'When the company was privatised in 1989, it had no debt.', 'But over the years it borrowed heavily and is currently £15.2bn in debt, by one measure.', 'A large proportion of that was added when Macquarie, an Australian infrastructure bank, owned Thames Water, reaching over £10bn when the company was sold in 2017.', ""Analysts say Thames Water's current debt amounts to about 80% of the value of the business, making it the most heavily indebted of England and Wales' water companies."", ""Also, interest payments on more than half of Thames' debt rise with inflation, which has been high in recent years, adding to the firm's woes."", ""Macquarie said that it invested billions of pounds in upgrading Thames's water and sewage infrastructure while it owned the company."", ""But critics argue that it took billions of pounds out of the company in loans and dividends - which is a share of a business's profits that is paid to shareholders."", 'Thames Water said that it has not paid dividends to external shareholders since 2017.', 'However, dividends can also be used to move money around companies that are ultimately owned by one parent company.', 'Thames Water has paid over £200m in dividends to other companies within the group in the past five years.', 'Most of this money has then been paid as interest to outside investors who have loaned the group money.', ""Critics argue that the dividends were paid with money that could have been spent on improving Thames Water's infrastructure and services."", 'However, Thames Water is legally obliged to make those debt interest payments.', 'The company says it has enough cash until the end of May next year.', ""Thames Water's travails have certainly put a spotlight on what is a debt-laden industry."", ""According to the regulator Ofwat, the sector's total debt reached £60.6bn by March last year."", 'Of the 11 companies that provide water and sewage services in England and Wales, six are owned by or controlled by overseas investors from countries including Hong Kong, Canada and Malaysia.', 'Like Thames Water, critics claim that overseas owners have loaded water companies up with debt and paid themselves handsome dividends at the expense of investment.', 'While the sector has - like other industries - been hit by higher costs for things like chemicals and energy, one problem for water companies is that the interest that they pay on their debt is linked to the retail prices index (RPI) measure of inflation.', 'This is usually higher than the consumer prices index (CPI) measure of inflation.', 'For example, in July RPI inflation was 3.6% compared with CPI inflation of 2.2%.', ""Ofwat estimates that half of water companies' debt is linked to inflation and the vast majority of that is tied to the RPI measure."", 'Meanwhile, in December 2022 Ofwat raised concerns about the financial resilience of five companies: Thames Water, Southern Water, Yorkshire Water, SES and Portsmouth.', ""Yorkshire, Southern, Portsmouth and SES all say they have taken steps to address Ofwat's concerns."", 'Thames Water is owned by a group of investors spanning four continents.', 'The largest is the Canadian pension fund, OMERS, with 31.8%.', 'The second-largest is the Universities Superannuation Scheme, with 19.7%, a pension fund for UK academics.', ""Other investors include sovereign wealth funds from China and Abu Dhabi, which invest those nations' assets on behalf of their governments."", 'Three other pension funds and two investment firms make up the rest.', ""The entire water and waste sector was privatised 34 years ago under the late Margaret Thatcher's Conservative government for £7.6bn."", ""At the time, Mrs Thatcher wrote off the industry's £5bn debt, leaving companies with a clean slate and gave them £1.5bn in public money."", 'The government had wanted to privatise the industry in 1984 but a public backlash against the plan saw it shelved until after the general election three years later.', 'At the time, the UK was under pressure from Europe to improve the purity of its water.', 'However, meeting European standards would cost billions of pounds worth of investment which, it was hoped, would come from the private sector and, by extension, companies\' customers. ""', 'If we want environmental improvement, it will cost money,"" said Mrs Thatcher in 1988. ""', 'It will be the people who want those improvements in water who will have to pay.""', 'Former Labour MP Ann Taylor later said of privatising the water industry: ""The message is always the same - maximise the cost to the consumer to ensure maximum return to the investor.', 'We should not be surprised at that.', 'After all, that is what private investors expect of their companies.""']",-0.0023051724465894,"Other investors include sovereign wealth funds from China and Abu Dhabi, which invest those nations' assets on behalf of their governments.",So why is Thames Water facing a crisis - and are other firms facing similar problems?,-0.4340577233921397,"At the time, the UK was under pressure from Europe to improve the purity of its water.","Meanwhile, in December 2022 Ofwat raised concerns about the financial resilience of five companies: Thames Water, Southern Water, Yorkshire Water, SES and Portsmouth.",2024-08-30
Telegram boss Pavel Durov banned from leaving France in criminal probe,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c985ppy0znyo,2024-08-28T20:09:37.589Z,"Telegram boss and founder Pavel Durov has been placed under formal investigation in France as part of a probe into organised crime on the messaging app, Paris prosecutors say. Mr Durov, 39, has not been remanded in custody, but placed under judicial supervision, and has to pay a €5m (£4.2m; $5.6m) deposit. The Russian-born billionaire, who is also a French national, also has to show up at a French police station twice a week and is not allowed to leave French territory. Mr Durov was first detained upon arrival at Le Bourget airport north of Paris last Saturday under a warrant for offences related to the app.  In Wednesday's statement, the Paris prosecutors said Mr Durov was put under formal investigation over alleged offences that included:  In France, being put under formal investigation does not imply guilt or necessarily result in a trial - but it indicates that judges consider there is enough of a case to proceed with an investigation. Mr Durov has so far made no public comments on the latest developments. His lawyer, David-Olivier Kaminski, said Telegram complied in every respect with European digital regulations and was moderated to the same standards as other social networks. It was ""absurd"" to suggest his client could be involved ""in criminal acts that don't concern him either directly or indirectly"", he added. It is unprecedented for the owner of a social media platform to be arrested because of the way in which that platform is being used, and it has fuelled a fierce debate online about freedom of speech and accountability.  We have previously seen tech bosses hauled in front of lawmakers for confrontational grillings about their practices and failings, but not met by law enforcement at airports. Elon Musk, the owner of X, has defended Mr Durov, arguing that moderation is a ""propaganda word"" for censorship. He has called for Mr Durov's release.  Chris Pavlovski, the founder of a controversial video-sharing app called Rumble, said he had fled Europe following Mr Durov’s detention. While most of the world’s largest social networks do engage with national and international bodies when it comes to serious criminal offences such as the sharing of child sexual abuse images, Telegram is accused of ignoring them.  The firm, which is now headquartered in Dubai, insists that its moderation tools meet industry standards. French President Emmanuel Macron said earlier this week that France was deeply committed to freedom of expression, and that the decision to hold Mr Durov was ""in no way... political"". Huge groups of up to 200,000 people can share and comment on information and content on Telegram - WhatsApp on the other hand limits its maximum group size to just over 1,000. While Telegram messages can be encrypted, meaning that only the sender and recipient can view them, this is not activated by default and has to be manually switched on to private chats. On Monday evening, Paris prosecutors said Mr Durov was being held in custody as part of a cyber-criminality investigation. In response, Telegram said Mr Durov had ""nothing to hide"". Russia has warned France against turning the case into what it described as a ""political persecution"", having previously said that without serious evidence the charges could be construed as an act of ""intimidation"". ""We know that the president of France has denied any connection [to the case] with politics,"" Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday, according to Reuters.  ""But on the other hand, certain accusations are being made."" Russian lawmaker Leonid Slutsky said that the charges against Mr Durov sounded ""wild"" and that the Telegram CEO was a ""hostage of the dictatorship of democracy of the collective West"".  Telegram is ranked as one of the major social media platforms.  It was founded in 2013 and is particularly popular in Russia, Ukraine and other former Soviet Union states, as well as Iran. Russian war correspondent Sasha Kots wondered whether users would ever ""trust Telegram as before"". Kots, who regularly posts updates about the war in Ukraine to his large Telegram following, suggested that French and Western authorities might now have access to the network's encryption keys. ""The truth is that no matter how events around Durov develop now, one can never be sure of the security of the messenger,"" he wrote on Telegram. The BBC revealed on Wednesday that Telegram - which has more than 950 million registered users - has repeatedly refused to join international programmes aimed at detecting and removing child abuse material online. The BBC has contacted Telegram for comment about its refusal to join the child protection schemes. Mr Durov, who also founded the popular Russian social media company VKontakte, left Russia in 2014 after refusing to comply with government demands to shut down opposition communities on the platform. He also holds passports of St Kitts and Nevis and the United Arab Emirates. ",BBC,28/08/2024,"['Telegram boss and founder Pavel Durov has been placed under formal investigation in France as part of a probe into organised crime on the messaging app, Paris prosecutors say.', 'Mr Durov, 39, has not been remanded in custody, but placed under judicial supervision, and has to pay a €5m (£4.2m; $5.6m) deposit.', 'The Russian-born billionaire, who is also a French national, also has to show up at a French police station twice a week and is not allowed to leave French territory.', 'Mr Durov was first detained upon arrival at Le Bourget airport north of Paris last Saturday under a warrant for offences related to the app.', ""In Wednesday's statement, the Paris prosecutors said Mr Durov was put under formal investigation over alleged offences that included: In France, being put under formal investigation does not imply guilt or necessarily result in a trial - but it indicates that judges consider there is enough of a case to proceed with an investigation."", 'Mr Durov has so far made no public comments on the latest developments.', 'His lawyer, David-Olivier Kaminski, said Telegram complied in every respect with European digital regulations and was moderated to the same standards as other social networks.', 'It was ""absurd"" to suggest his client could be involved ""in criminal acts that don\'t concern him either directly or indirectly"", he added.', 'It is unprecedented for the owner of a social media platform to be arrested because of the way in which that platform is being used, and it has fuelled a fierce debate online about freedom of speech and accountability.', 'We have previously seen tech bosses hauled in front of lawmakers for confrontational grillings about their practices and failings, but not met by law enforcement at airports.', 'Elon Musk, the owner of X, has defended Mr Durov, arguing that moderation is a ""propaganda word"" for censorship.', ""He has called for Mr Durov's release."", 'Chris Pavlovski, the founder of a controversial video-sharing app called Rumble, said he had fled Europe following Mr Durov’s detention.', 'While most of the world’s largest social networks do engage with national and international bodies when it comes to serious criminal offences such as the sharing of child sexual abuse images, Telegram is accused of ignoring them.', 'The firm, which is now headquartered in Dubai, insists that its moderation tools meet industry standards.', 'French President Emmanuel Macron said earlier this week that France was deeply committed to freedom of expression, and that the decision to hold Mr Durov was ""in no way... political"".', 'Huge groups of up to 200,000 people can share and comment on information and content on Telegram - WhatsApp on the other hand limits its maximum group size to just over 1,000.', 'While Telegram messages can be encrypted, meaning that only the sender and recipient can view them, this is not activated by default and has to be manually switched on to private chats.', 'On Monday evening, Paris prosecutors said Mr Durov was being held in custody as part of a cyber-criminality investigation.', 'In response, Telegram said Mr Durov had ""nothing to hide"".', 'Russia has warned France against turning the case into what it described as a ""political persecution"", having previously said that without serious evidence the charges could be construed as an act of ""intimidation"". ""', 'We know that the president of France has denied any connection [to the case] with politics,"" Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday, according to Reuters. ""', 'But on the other hand, certain accusations are being made.""', 'Russian lawmaker Leonid Slutsky said that the charges against Mr Durov sounded ""wild"" and that the Telegram CEO was a ""hostage of the dictatorship of democracy of the collective West"".', 'Telegram is ranked as one of the major social media platforms.', 'It was founded in 2013 and is particularly popular in Russia, Ukraine and other former Soviet Union states, as well as Iran.', 'Russian war correspondent Sasha Kots wondered whether users would ever ""trust Telegram as before"".', 'Kots, who regularly posts updates about the war in Ukraine to his large Telegram following, suggested that French and Western authorities might now have access to the network\'s encryption keys. ""', 'The truth is that no matter how events around Durov develop now, one can never be sure of the security of the messenger,"" he wrote on Telegram.', 'The BBC revealed on Wednesday that Telegram - which has more than 950 million registered users - has repeatedly refused to join international programmes aimed at detecting and removing child abuse material online.', 'The BBC has contacted Telegram for comment about its refusal to join the child protection schemes.', 'Mr Durov, who also founded the popular Russian social media company VKontakte, left Russia in 2014 after refusing to comply with government demands to shut down opposition communities on the platform.', 'He also holds passports of St Kitts and Nevis and the United Arab Emirates.']",-0.0787895017591469,"Huge groups of up to 200,000 people can share and comment on information and content on Telegram - WhatsApp on the other hand limits its maximum group size to just over 1,000.","While most of the world’s largest social networks do engage with national and international bodies when it comes to serious criminal offences such as the sharing of child sexual abuse images, Telegram is accused of ignoring them.",-0.702962264418602,,The BBC revealed on Wednesday that Telegram - which has more than 950 million registered users - has repeatedly refused to join international programmes aimed at detecting and removing child abuse material online.,2024-08-30
Four-day week: Workers' rights could be strengthened,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c4gl5w83z7do,2024-08-30T03:54:03.608Z,"Full-time workers' rights to ask for a four-day working week could be strengthened under government plans to increase flexible working. Employees would still have to work their full hours to receive their full pay but could request to compress their contracted hours into a shorter working week, as first reported by the Daily Telegraph.  Since April, workers have already had the right to ask for flexible working as soon as they start a job but firms do not have to agree. The government says it will not impose changes on staff or businesses, but the Conservatives say businesses are ""petrified"" about the plans.  A spokesperson at the Department for Business and Trade said: ""Any changes to employment legislation will be consulted on, working in partnership with business.""  Education Minister Baroness Jacqui Smith told LBC that ""flexible working is actually good for productivity"". She said the four-day week being discussed would allow someone to work 10 hours a day for four days instead of working eight hours a day for five days. ""You're still doing the same amount of work, but perhaps you're doing it in a way that enables you, for example, to need less childcare, to spend more time with your family, to do other things, that encourages more people into the workplace,"" she added. Employees already have  the right to request flexible working Employers must deal with requests in a ""reasonable manner"" but can turn them down ""if they have a good business reason for doing so"". Charlie Thompson, employment partner at law firm Stewarts, said: ""It’s not yet clear what this “new” law will entail. ""One possibility is for the government to make it more difficult for employers to refuse such requests, because at present it is quite easy for them to do so.” Earlier this year, Morrisons scrapped four-day working weeks for its head office staff following feedback. In order to make the four-day week work, staff had to work some Saturdays, which resulted in complaints and dissatisfaction. In July, Asda shelved a four-day week trial after staff complained that their longer shifts were too demanding. Ben Willmott, head of public policy at HR body the Chartered Institute for Personnel and Development, said flexible working arrangements such as compressed hours ""can help people balance their work and home life commitments, while also supporting employer efforts to recruit and retain staff"".  ""However flexible working has to work for both the business and workers if it’s to be sustainable."" He added that it would make sense for the government to assess the impact of changes introduced in April, which allow people to request flexible working from day one of employment, before making further changes. Kelly Burton is a mental health nurse from Crewe who asked to condense her hours into a four day working week to get a better work-life balance. She was granted permission from her employer once she could prove it was possible to do her five-day job in the space of four days. “Since July I have started working Monday to Thursday 8-6pm instead of Monday to Friday 9-5pm. ""I’m happier at work, can spend the extra day looking after elderly parents and still have my weekend. Perfect work-life balance,"" Ms Burton said. She thinks she would have had to change jobs or move to part-time if flexible working hadn't been an option. ""My employer has a happy worker and a happy worker always goes over and above for them,"" she said. Details of any changes are expected in the autumn when a law to create a new package of workers' rights is expected to begin its journey through Parliament. Labour has pledged to repeal some anti-trade union laws, restrict the use of zero-hours contracts and expand flexible working arrangements.  Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer calls the proposals ""the biggest upgrade to workers' rights in a generation"". But the Conservative opposition claims the approach would damage business and lead to reduced productivity. In 2022, several UK companies took place in a six-month trial to test a four-day working week, which saw workers receive full pay for working fewer hours. Tyler Grange, an environmental consultancy, took part in the trial and in 2023 told the BBC it was sticking with the working pattern. Simon Ursell, its managing director, said the first month of the trial had been ""a bit white knuckle"". But the firm said it found the extra day off boosted staff happiness and even resulted in more people applying to work there. However, the experiment did not work for Mark Roderick’s engineering and industrial supplies company Allcap. “As opposed to 10 normal workdays, we found that employees would have nine extreme ones – once they got to their scheduled day off they were exhausted,"" he said last year. ""Once we factored in holidays, sickness and caring responsibilities, we also struggled to find cover for an employee on their rest day,"" he said. ",BBC,30/08/2024,"[""Full-time workers' rights to ask for a four-day working week could be strengthened under government plans to increase flexible working."", 'Employees would still have to work their full hours to receive their full pay but could request to compress their contracted hours into a shorter working week, as first reported by the Daily Telegraph.', 'Since April, workers have already had the right to ask for flexible working as soon as they start a job but firms do not have to agree.', 'The government says it will not impose changes on staff or businesses, but the Conservatives say businesses are ""petrified"" about the plans.', 'A spokesperson at the Department for Business and Trade said: ""Any changes to employment legislation will be consulted on, working in partnership with business.""', 'Education Minister Baroness Jacqui Smith told LBC that ""flexible working is actually good for productivity"".', 'She said the four-day week being discussed would allow someone to work 10 hours a day for four days instead of working eight hours a day for five days. ""', 'You\'re still doing the same amount of work, but perhaps you\'re doing it in a way that enables you, for example, to need less childcare, to spend more time with your family, to do other things, that encourages more people into the workplace,"" she added.', 'Employees already have the right to request flexible working Employers must deal with requests in a ""reasonable manner"" but can turn them down ""if they have a good business reason for doing so"".', 'Charlie Thompson, employment partner at law firm Stewarts, said: ""It’s not yet clear what this “new” law will entail. ""', 'One possibility is for the government to make it more difficult for employers to refuse such requests, because at present it is quite easy for them to do so.”', 'Earlier this year, Morrisons scrapped four-day working weeks for its head office staff following feedback.', 'In order to make the four-day week work, staff had to work some Saturdays, which resulted in complaints and dissatisfaction.', 'In July, Asda shelved a four-day week trial after staff complained that their longer shifts were too demanding.', 'Ben Willmott, head of public policy at HR body the Chartered Institute for Personnel and Development, said flexible working arrangements such as compressed hours ""can help people balance their work and home life commitments, while also supporting employer efforts to recruit and retain staff"". ""', 'However flexible working has to work for both the business and workers if it’s to be sustainable.""', 'He added that it would make sense for the government to assess the impact of changes introduced in April, which allow people to request flexible working from day one of employment, before making further changes.', 'Kelly Burton is a mental health nurse from Crewe who asked to condense her hours into a four day working week to get a better work-life balance.', 'She was granted permission from her employer once she could prove it was possible to do her five-day job in the space of four days. “', 'Since July I have started working Monday to Thursday 8-6pm instead of Monday to Friday 9-5pm. ""', 'I’m happier at work, can spend the extra day looking after elderly parents and still have my weekend.', 'Perfect work-life balance,"" Ms Burton said.', 'She thinks she would have had to change jobs or move to part-time if flexible working hadn\'t been an option. ""', 'My employer has a happy worker and a happy worker always goes over and above for them,"" she said.', ""Details of any changes are expected in the autumn when a law to create a new package of workers' rights is expected to begin its journey through Parliament."", 'Labour has pledged to repeal some anti-trade union laws, restrict the use of zero-hours contracts and expand flexible working arrangements.', 'Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer calls the proposals ""the biggest upgrade to workers\' rights in a generation"".', 'But the Conservative opposition claims the approach would damage business and lead to reduced productivity.', 'In 2022, several UK companies took place in a six-month trial to test a four-day working week, which saw workers receive full pay for working fewer hours.', 'Tyler Grange, an environmental consultancy, took part in the trial and in 2023 told the BBC it was sticking with the working pattern.', 'Simon Ursell, its managing director, said the first month of the trial had been ""a bit white knuckle"".', 'But the firm said it found the extra day off boosted staff happiness and even resulted in more people applying to work there.', 'However, the experiment did not work for Mark Roderick’s engineering and industrial supplies company Allcap. “', 'As opposed to 10 normal workdays, we found that employees would have nine extreme ones – once they got to their scheduled day off they were exhausted,"" he said last year. ""', 'Once we factored in holidays, sickness and caring responsibilities, we also struggled to find cover for an employee on their rest day,"" he said.']",0.1323547792131192,But the firm said it found the extra day off boosted staff happiness and even resulted in more people applying to work there.,"In order to make the four-day week work, staff had to work some Saturdays, which resulted in complaints and dissatisfaction.",0.2448939569294452,But the firm said it found the extra day off boosted staff happiness and even resulted in more people applying to work there.,But the Conservative opposition claims the approach would damage business and lead to reduced productivity.,2024-08-30
AI chip giant Nvidia's shares sink despite record sales of $30bn,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c984jrj24wyo,2024-08-29T00:13:57.887Z,"Shares in Nvidia have fallen despite the artificial intelligence (AI) chip giant comfortably beating expectations after more than doubling its sales. Nvidia announced record revenues of $30bn (£24.7bn) over a three-month period.  The company has been one of the biggest beneficiaries of the AI boom, with its stock market value soaring to more than $3 trillion. But while analysts have grown used to Nvidia producing ""spectacular"" sales growth, the latest results indicate ""that rate of growth was starting to slow,"" said Simon French, head of research at Panmure Liberum. Analysts had forecast sales growth of $28.7bn for the three months to 28 July. Nvidia surpassed this with revenues increasing by 122% compared to the same period last year.  But following the release of the results, Nvidia's share price fell by 6% in after-hours trading in New York on Wednesday.  On Thursday, its shares were down about 2% in early trading, but its stock remains about 150% up so far in 2024, making it one of the big winners in the US market. ""It’s less about just beating estimates now,"" said Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown. ""Markets expect them to be shattered and it’s the scale of the beat today that looks to have disappointed a touch.""  Announcing the latest results, Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang said: ""Generative AI will revolutionise every industry."" But Mr French told the BBC: ""If you’re going to raise expectations that high then you’ve got to keep growing at spectacular rates."" He added that while its current AI chip - called Hopper - is selling well, the next generation Blackwell chip ""has faced some production delays and that perhaps is one of the reasons why Wall Street after hours sold off the stock"". Nvidia's results have become a quarterly event which sends Wall Street into a frenzy of buying and selling shares. A ""watch party"" had been planned in Manhattan, according to the Wall Street Journal, while Mr Huang, famed for his signature leather jacket, has been dubbed the ""Taylor Swift of tech"". Alvin Nguyen, senior analyst at Forrester, told the BBC both Nvidia and Mr Huang have become the ""face of AI"". This has helped the company so far, but it could also hurt its valuation if AI fails to deliver after firms have invested billions of dollars in the technology, Mr Nguyen said. ""A thousand use cases for AI is not enough. You need a million."" Mr Nguyen also said Nvidia's first-mover advantage means it has market-leading products, which its customers have spent decades using and has a ""software ecosystem"". He said that rivals, such as Intel, could ""chip away"" at Nvidia's market share if they developed a better product, though he said this would take time. ",BBC,29/08/2024,"['Shares in Nvidia have fallen despite the artificial intelligence (AI) chip giant comfortably beating expectations after more than doubling its sales.', 'Nvidia announced record revenues of $30bn (£24.7bn) over a three-month period.', 'The company has been one of the biggest beneficiaries of the AI boom, with its stock market value soaring to more than $3 trillion.', 'But while analysts have grown used to Nvidia producing ""spectacular"" sales growth, the latest results indicate ""that rate of growth was starting to slow,"" said Simon French, head of research at Panmure Liberum.', 'Analysts had forecast sales growth of $28.7bn for the three months to 28 July.', 'Nvidia surpassed this with revenues increasing by 122% compared to the same period last year.', ""But following the release of the results, Nvidia's share price fell by 6% in after-hours trading in New York on Wednesday."", 'On Thursday, its shares were down about 2% in early trading, but its stock remains about 150% up so far in 2024, making it one of the big winners in the US market. ""', 'It’s less about just beating estimates now,"" said Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown. ""', 'Markets expect them to be shattered and it’s the scale of the beat today that looks to have disappointed a touch.""', 'Announcing the latest results, Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang said: ""Generative AI will revolutionise every industry.""', 'But Mr French told the BBC: ""If you’re going to raise expectations that high then you’ve got to keep growing at spectacular rates.""', 'He added that while its current AI chip - called Hopper - is selling well, the next generation Blackwell chip ""has faced some production delays and that perhaps is one of the reasons why Wall Street after hours sold off the stock"".', ""Nvidia's results have become a quarterly event which sends Wall Street into a frenzy of buying and selling shares."", 'A ""watch party"" had been planned in Manhattan, according to the Wall Street Journal, while Mr Huang, famed for his signature leather jacket, has been dubbed the ""Taylor Swift of tech"".', 'Alvin Nguyen, senior analyst at Forrester, told the BBC both Nvidia and Mr Huang have become the ""face of AI"".', 'This has helped the company so far, but it could also hurt its valuation if AI fails to deliver after firms have invested billions of dollars in the technology, Mr Nguyen said. ""', 'A thousand use cases for AI is not enough.', 'You need a million.""', 'Mr Nguyen also said Nvidia\'s first-mover advantage means it has market-leading products, which its customers have spent decades using and has a ""software ecosystem"".', 'He said that rivals, such as Intel, could ""chip away"" at Nvidia\'s market share if they developed a better product, though he said this would take time.']",0.1131297485865743,"But while analysts have grown used to Nvidia producing ""spectacular"" sales growth, the latest results indicate ""that rate of growth was starting to slow,"" said Simon French, head of research at Panmure Liberum.","This has helped the company so far, but it could also hurt its valuation if AI fails to deliver after firms have invested billions of dollars in the technology, Mr Nguyen said. """,0.0963081081708272,Nvidia surpassed this with revenues increasing by 122% compared to the same period last year.,"But following the release of the results, Nvidia's share price fell by 6% in after-hours trading in New York on Wednesday.",2024-08-30
NFL wants a cut of private equity investment profits,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/27/nfl-wants-to-take-percentage-of-private-equity-investment-profits.html,2024-08-28T13:54:30+0000,"The National Football League has informed owners and investment firms that it intends to take a percentage of private equity profits on any future sales of ownership stakes, according to people familiar with the matter.NFL owners voted Tuesday to allow private equity firms to take a maximum 10% stake in teams.The league has never allowed private equity investment before. Major League Baseball, the National Basketball Association and the National Hockey League already allow up to 30% of teams to be owned by investment firms, though the cap for individual funds is between 15% and 20%.No other league takes a percentage of the so-called carry — the percentage of a fund's investment profits that managers typically receive as compensation — for all private equity firms. It was unclear heading into the owners' meeting if the NFL plan would apply to all or only some firms, or what percentage of the profits the league wanted to take.The NFL has informally told investment firms that if they make a return on an investment, it wants a portion of the profits to be returned to the league.""Each of us are privileged to own an asset that we're custodians of the local community and we don't want ownership that's putting making money first,"" New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft told CNBC's ""Squawk Box"" on Wednesday. ""If you do your job and you present a good product, the community gets behind it.""It was unclear if the NFL's plans to take a piece of profits would deter future investment from private equity. The initial approved firms include Ares Management, Sixth Street Partners and Arctos Partners, and a consortium of investors including Dynasty Equity, Blackstone, Carlyle Group, CVC Capital Partners and Ludis, a platform founded by investor and former NFL running back Curtis Martin.The NFL declined to comment.Over the past 20 years, the league's total value has risen from $23.46 billion to $190 billion, a 710% gain, according to Sportico. The S&P 500 index has risen about 660% during the same time span.— CNBC's Jake Piazza contributed to this report.",CNBC,28/08/2024,"['The National Football League has informed owners and investment firms that it intends to take a percentage of private equity profits on any future sales of ownership stakes, according to people familiar with the matter.', 'NFL owners voted Tuesday to allow private equity firms to take a maximum 10% stake in teams.', 'The league has never allowed private equity investment before.', ""Major League Baseball, the National Basketball Association and the National Hockey League already allow up to 30% of teams to be owned by investment firms, though the cap for individual funds is between 15% and 20%.No other league takes a percentage of the so-called carry — the percentage of a fund's investment profits that managers typically receive as compensation — for all private equity firms."", ""It was unclear heading into the owners' meeting if the NFL plan would apply to all or only some firms, or what percentage of the profits the league wanted to take."", 'The NFL has informally told investment firms that if they make a return on an investment, it wants a portion of the profits to be returned to the league.', '""Each of us are privileged to own an asset that we\'re custodians of the local community and we don\'t want ownership that\'s putting making money first,"" New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft told CNBC\'s ""Squawk Box"" on Wednesday. ""', 'If you do your job and you present a good product, the community gets behind it.', '""It was unclear if the NFL\'s plans to take a piece of profits would deter future investment from private equity.', 'The initial approved firms includeAres Management,Sixth Street Partners and Arctos Partners, and a consortium of investors including Dynasty Equity,Blackstone,Carlyle Group,CVC Capital Partnersand Ludis, a platform founded by investor and former NFL running back Curtis Martin.', 'The NFL declined to comment.', ""Over the past 20 years, the league's total value has risen from $23.46 billion to $190 billion, a 710% gain, according to Sportico."", 'The S&P 500 index has risen about 660% during the same time span.—', ""CNBC's Jake Piazza contributed to this report.""]",0.3173730239255343,"Over the past 20 years, the league's total value has risen from $23.46 billion to $190 billion, a 710% gain, according to Sportico.",,0.3556423584620158,"Over the past 20 years, the league's total value has risen from $23.46 billion to $190 billion, a 710% gain, according to Sportico.","""It was unclear if the NFL's plans to take a piece of profits would deter future investment from private equity.",2024-08-30
"YES Network, MSG Networks to launch combined New York regional sports app",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/28/yes-network-msg-networks-to-launch-bundled-new-york-sports-app.html,2024-08-28T22:09:35+0000,"Gotham Advanced Media and Entertainment, the joint venture between MSG Networks and the YES Network, is launching a new app in the fall that will air local games for seven New York area teams.The package announced Wednesday is believed to be the first time that two regional sports networks have combined their apps into a bundled option. The Gotham Sports app will launch ahead of the NBA and NHL seasons. Locals will be able to watch the New York Knicks, New York Rangers, New Jersey Devils, New York Islanders, Buffalo Sabres, Brooklyn Nets and New York Yankees with a subscription.The Gotham Package that gives access to all of those teams will cost $359.99 annually and $41.99 monthly, almost identical to the monthly price of Fox, Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery's joint Venu streaming service that was blocked with a temporary injunction earlier this month. Customers who watch only some of those teams can also purchase access to just MSG+ or the YES App services for $29.99 and $24.99 monthly, respectively. If they already have MSG Networks and YES Network via their pay-TV subscription, they will get Gotham Sports App's services for no extra fee.""With the increased fragmentation of outlets carrying fan favorite sports programming, The Gotham Sports App allows fans of our teams one easy access point for New York area sporting events from MSG Networks and the YES Network,"" MSG Networks President and CEO Andrea Greenberg said in a press release.Notably, SportsNet New York — the regional sports network that airs the New York Mets — is not included in this joint venture. It is only available via FuboTV, DirecTV stream and online login for people who pay for cable. Sterling Entertainment Enterprises, Comcast and Charter co-own SportsNet New York.The regional sports networks business has undergone dramatic changes in recent years. Boston's local cable network that aired Red Sox and Bruins games launched the first stand-alone regional streaming service in 2022, and other markets have followed. Diamond Sports Group, the biggest owner of regional sports networks, filed for bankruptcy in March 2023, leading many professional teams across leagues to change the way they air their games.A handful of NBA, WNBA and NHL teams have turned to local broadcasters, most recently the NBA's New Orleans Pelicans and Dallas Mavericks.Some MLB teams have opted to have their games produced by the league. The Gotham Sports App is not the first regional sports streaming option residents of the greater New York area have had. YES Network and MSG Networks both launched separate streaming services last year, and customers who only want one of the networks' services and not the combined package can still pay a cheaper rate.Not all the new regional sports streaming services follow the subscription model. The NHL's Dallas Stars and Anaheim Ducks both announced their games would be locally aired on Victory+, a free, ad-supported streaming service owned by A Parent Media Co. Both teams previously had their local games carried by a regional sports network owned by Diamond Sports. Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of CNBC.",CNBC,28/08/2024,"['Gotham Advanced Media and Entertainment, the joint venture between MSG Networks and the YES Network, is launching a new app in the fall that will air local games for seven New York area teams.', 'The package announced Wednesday is believed to be the first time that two regional sports networks have combined their apps into a bundled option.', 'The Gotham Sports app will launch ahead of the NBA and NHL seasons.', 'Locals will be able to watch the New York Knicks, New York Rangers, New Jersey Devils, New York Islanders, Buffalo Sabres, Brooklyn Nets and New York Yankees with a subscription.', ""The Gotham Package that gives access to all of those teams will cost $359.99 annually and $41.99 monthly, almost identical to the monthly price of Fox, Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery's joint Venu streaming service that was blocked with a temporary injunction earlier this month."", 'Customers who watch only some of those teams can also purchase access to just MSG+ or the YES App services for $29.99 and $24.99 monthly, respectively.', ""If they already have MSG Networks and YES Network via their pay-TV subscription, they will get Gotham Sports App's services for no extra fee."", '""With the increased fragmentation of outlets carrying fan favorite sports programming, The Gotham Sports App allows fans of our teams one easy access point for New York area sporting events from MSG Networks and the YES Network,"" MSG Networks President and CEO Andrea Greenberg said in a press release.', 'Notably, SportsNet New York — the regional sports network that airs the New York Mets — is not included in this joint venture.', 'It is only available via FuboTV, DirecTV stream and online login for people who pay for cable.', 'Sterling Entertainment Enterprises, Comcast and Charter co-own SportsNet New York.', 'The regional sports networks business has undergone dramatic changes in recent years.', ""Boston's local cable network that aired Red Sox and Bruins games launched the first stand-alone regional streaming service in 2022, and other markets have followed."", 'Diamond Sports Group, the biggest owner of regional sports networks, filed for bankruptcy in March 2023, leading many professional teams across leagues to change the way they air their games.', ""A handful of NBA, WNBA and NHL teams have turned to local broadcasters, most recently the NBA's New Orleans Pelicans and Dallas Mavericks."", 'Some MLB teams have opted to have their games produced by the league.', 'The Gotham Sports App is not the first regional sports streaming option residents of the greater New York area have had.', ""YES Network and MSG Networks both launched separate streaming services last year, and customers who only want one of the networks' services and not the combined package can still pay a cheaper rate."", 'Not all the new regional sports streaming services follow the subscription model.', ""The NHL's Dallas Stars and Anaheim Ducks both announced their games would be locally aired on Victory+, a free, ad-supported streaming service owned by A Parent Media Co.Both teams previously had their local games carried by a regional sports network owned by Diamond Sports."", 'Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of CNBC.']",0.1932998874991772,"""With the increased fragmentation of outlets carrying fan favorite sports programming, The Gotham Sports App allows fans of our teams one easy access point for New York area sporting events from MSG Networks and the YES Network,"" MSG Networks President and CEO Andrea Greenberg said in a press release.","Locals will be able to watch the New York Knicks, New York Rangers, New Jersey Devils, New York Islanders, Buffalo Sabres, Brooklyn Nets and New York Yankees with a subscription.",0.4888350814580917,"YES Network and MSG Networks both launched separate streaming services last year, and customers who only want one of the networks' services and not the combined package can still pay a cheaper rate.","Diamond Sports Group, the biggest owner of regional sports networks, filed for bankruptcy in March 2023, leading many professional teams across leagues to change the way they air their games.",2024-08-30
Star Wars Outlaws: Massive defends glitches in 'complex' game,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c9d1v41xzj5o,2024-08-29T09:39:35.668Z,"The journey to the first-ever open-world Star Wars game has had intrigue, interest and for those with early access, some bugs and glitches. Some pre-release players of Star Wars Outlaws have reported problems with game progression, being stuck in certain parts of the game and issues with saving, with studio Ubisoft now advising of possible fixes. But the early issues are a source of slight frustration for Julian Gerighty, creative director for Massive Entertainment, which made the game. ""When you have millions of players step into your world, you'd rather it not happen,"" he tells BBC Newsbeat. ""It's one of those things that we’ll keep a look out for, keep correcting and keep improving."" But he believes it is partly a product of their ambition for this game, particularly compared to previous generations. ""I think it's very important that the bigger the game is, the more systems you have, the more complex that it’s going to be. ""It's also the joy of video games, of being able to step into these worlds and sometimes [these] things happen,"" he says. Outlaws is set between the events of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, with players following the story of Kay Vess, a ""scoundrel"" wanting freedom and the means to start a new life, navigating through the galaxy’s crime syndicates. The reviews of the game have so far been mixed. IGN has given a ""good"" rating, saying it is ""a fun intergalactic heist adventure with great exploration, but hindered by simple stealth, repetitive combat, and a few too many bugs at launch"". Eurogamer says Outlaws ""isn’t a squeaky clean game on a technical level, with a few rough points amid a general trend of brilliance"". PC Gamer describes Outlaws as ""everything good and bad about big-budget open world excess"". ""There is so much going on between its main quests, side quests… yet fundamental fun video game stuff like getting from place to place falls flat,"" it writes. Gamespot gives it a ""fair"" rating, saying ""the unexciting space combat and unrewarding syndicate-relationship tracker don't add anything meaningful to the experience"".  But it points out the game has success when ""it comes to gunslinging or sneaking, both of which are aided by a superb soundtrack"". Compared to previous games, they’ve been able to do more this time around, Julian says. ""[Things like] the density of cities… the city's streets, to a densely populated market town to your spaceship. And then blast off into orbit completely seamlessly with no loading."" But trying to go bigger has not been simple in terms of design. ""It’s a real technical challenge with the speeds.  ""It can only be achievable with this generation of consoles,"" he says, adding that previously it would have been ""completely impossible"" to achieve the same scale due to the limits of technology. ""I think the game really flies when people step into their own role-playing of being a scoundrel and an outlaw and they follow their own path. ""That's where the world comes together and you really feel like you're a part of Star Wars,"" he says. The Star Wars fanbase, like many notable franchises, has passionate fans scrutinising every last detail. And Julian appreciates the importance of feedback from them. ""If you look at the history of Massive Entertainment, the community is such a vocal part of making things better and improving the game. ""We see it as more of an opportunity to examine how we can push things further in the future. And that’s going to be a part of the action plan on this game, too. ""I think you have to look at it through the lens of your creative vision as well as good faith and bad faith takes,"" he says. ""So there's a lot of things that we can do to improve the experiences. But it always has to be through the lens of the creative filter."" And Julian is also aware of the place of Outlaws in the wider universe - crediting development group LucasFilm Games for its guidance. ""[We need] to make sure that we understand what else is being made within the galaxy, of different media elements from publishing to TV to movies. ""We know more or less how we fit within that, without spoiling any of the other entertainment pieces that are coming out or have to come out."" Reflecting on Outlaws, Julian feels a sense of pride. ""It's equal parts thrilling and terrifying, always a joy to launch something. ""Letting it go into the wild and wanting people to have the best possible experience. It's always a little bit scary at the same time."" But after celebrating, there will be an evaluation of ""how people are playing the game"". ""Where the real points of joy are, and frustration as well. How do we address those things in later updates?"" He shares in the next year or so, the team is planning to launch downloadable content (DLC) – extra content that can be downloaded for games after they’ve been released. ""With every single DLC, it'll be a moment for us to update, improve and make sure that the experience is as good as it can be,"" he says. Star Wars Outlaws is due to be widely released on 30 August. Listen to Newsbeat live at 12:45 and 17:45 weekdays - or listen back here. ",BBC,29/08/2024,"['The journey to the first-ever open-world Star Wars game has had intrigue, interest and for those with early access, some bugs and glitches.', 'Some pre-release players of Star Wars Outlaws have reported problems with game progression, being stuck in certain parts of the game and issues with saving, with studio Ubisoft now advising of possible fixes.', 'But the early issues are a source of slight frustration for Julian Gerighty, creative director for Massive Entertainment, which made the game. ""', 'When you have millions of players step into your world, you\'d rather it not happen,"" he tells BBC Newsbeat. ""', 'It\'s one of those things that we’ll keep a look out for, keep correcting and keep improving.""', 'But he believes it is partly a product of their ambition for this game, particularly compared to previous generations. ""', 'I think it\'s very important that the bigger the game is, the more systems you have, the more complex that it’s going to be. ""', 'It\'s also the joy of video games, of being able to step into these worlds and sometimes [these] things happen,"" he says.', 'Outlaws is set between the events of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, with players following the story of Kay Vess, a ""scoundrel"" wanting freedom and the means to start a new life, navigating through the galaxy’s crime syndicates.', 'The reviews of the game have so far been mixed.', 'IGN has given a ""good"" rating, saying it is ""a fun intergalactic heist adventure with great exploration, but hindered by simple stealth, repetitive combat, and a few too many bugs at launch"".', 'Eurogamer says Outlaws ""isn’t a squeaky clean game on a technical level, with a few rough points amid a general trend of brilliance"".', 'PC Gamer describes Outlaws as ""everything good and bad about big-budget open world excess"". ""', 'There is so much going on between its main quests, side quests… yet fundamental fun video game stuff like getting from place to place falls flat,"" it writes.', 'Gamespot gives it a ""fair"" rating, saying ""the unexciting space combat and unrewarding syndicate-relationship tracker don\'t add anything meaningful to the experience"".', 'But it points out the game has success when ""it comes to gunslinging or sneaking, both of which are aided by a superb soundtrack"".', 'Compared to previous games, they’ve been able to do more this time around, Julian says. ""[', ""Things like] the density of cities… the city's streets, to a densely populated market town to your spaceship."", 'And then blast off into orbit completely seamlessly with no loading.""', 'But trying to go bigger has not been simple in terms of design. ""', 'It’s a real technical challenge with the speeds. ""', 'It can only be achievable with this generation of consoles,"" he says, adding that previously it would have been ""completely impossible"" to achieve the same scale due to the limits of technology. ""', 'I think the game really flies when people step into their own role-playing of being a scoundrel and an outlaw and they follow their own path. ""', 'That\'s where the world comes together and you really feel like you\'re a part of Star Wars,"" he says.', 'The Star Wars fanbase, like many notable franchises, has passionate fans scrutinising every last detail.', 'And Julian appreciates the importance of feedback from them. ""', 'If you look at the history of Massive Entertainment, the community is such a vocal part of making things better and improving the game. ""', 'We see it as more of an opportunity to examine how we can push things further in the future.', 'And that’s going to be a part of the action plan on this game, too. ""', 'I think you have to look at it through the lens of your creative vision as well as good faith and bad faith takes,"" he says. ""', ""So there's a lot of things that we can do to improve the experiences."", 'But it always has to be through the lens of the creative filter.""', 'And Julian is also aware of the place of Outlaws in the wider universe - crediting development group LucasFilm Games for its guidance. ""[', 'We need] to make sure that we understand what else is being made within the galaxy, of different media elements from publishing to TV to movies. ""', 'We know more or less how we fit within that, without spoiling any of the other entertainment pieces that are coming out or have to come out.""', 'Reflecting on Outlaws, Julian feels a sense of pride. ""', 'It\'s equal parts thrilling and terrifying, always a joy to launch something. ""', 'Letting it go into the wild and wanting people to have the best possible experience.', 'It\'s always a little bit scary at the same time.""', 'But after celebrating, there will be an evaluation of ""how people are playing the game"". ""', 'Where the real points of joy are, and frustration as well.', 'How do we address those things in later updates?""', 'He shares in the next year or so, the team is planning to launch downloadable content (DLC) – extra content that can be downloaded for games after they’ve been released. ""', 'With every single DLC, it\'ll be a moment for us to update, improve and make sure that the experience is as good as it can be,"" he says.', 'Star Wars Outlaws is due to be widely released on 30 August.', 'Listen to Newsbeat live at 12:45 and 17:45 weekdays - or listen back here.']",0.2601625422509638,"But it points out the game has success when ""it comes to gunslinging or sneaking, both of which are aided by a superb soundtrack"".","Some pre-release players of Star Wars Outlaws have reported problems with game progression, being stuck in certain parts of the game and issues with saving, with studio Ubisoft now advising of possible fixes.",0.1541444845497608,"Compared to previous games, they’ve been able to do more this time around, Julian says. ""[","Eurogamer says Outlaws ""isn’t a squeaky clean game on a technical level, with a few rough points amid a general trend of brilliance"".",2024-08-30
Shares of Abercrombie & Fitch plunge 15% after CEO warns of 'increasingly uncertain environment',https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/28/abercrombie-fitch-anf-earnings-q2-2024.html,2024-08-28T14:03:16+0000,"In this articleAbercrombie & Fitch's revenue grew 21% during its fiscal second quarter as the apparel company builds on its torrid growth. The sales gain, which follows 16% growth in the year-ago period, led the company to issue bullish guidance for the current quarter. Still, its full-year outlook was largely in line with estimates as it prepares for one fewer week this year than last. CEO Fran Horowitz – who often says good companies win in any economic environment – may be bracing for a turbulent second half of the year because for the first time in four quarters, she referenced the uncertain state of the economy in the company's earnings release.""We delivered a strong first half of the year, and we are increasing our full-year outlook. Although we continue to operate in an increasingly uncertain environment, we remain steadfast in executing our global playbook and maintaining discipline over inventory and expenses,"" said Horowitz. ""We are on track and confident in our goal to deliver sustainable, profitable growth this year, while making strategic long-term investments across marketing, digital and technology and stores to enable future growth.""The company's shares — which were up nearly 89% this year as of Tuesday's close — fell about 15% in early trading. Here's how Abercrombie did compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG, formerly known as Refinitiv:The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended Aug. 3 was $133 million, or $2.50 per share, compared with $57 million, or $1.10 per share, a year earlier.  Sales rose to $1.13 billion, up about 21% from $935 million a year earlier. During the quarter, same-store sales jumped 18%, driven by better-than-expected summer and back-to-school selling. For the current quarter, Abercrombie expects sales to rise by a low double-digit percentage, better than the 8.9% growth that LSEG analysts had expected. Abercrombie raised its full-year sales guidance from 10% growth to a 12% to 13% increase, which is roughly in line with the 12% rise that LSEG analysts had expected. The company's fiscal 2024 will have one fewer week than fiscal 2023, which is likely weighing on its full-year guidance. Abercrombie expects the loss of one selling week will have an $80 million impact on its holiday quarter, or 5.5 percentage points. For the full year, the company expects it to hit sales by $50 million, or 1.2 percentage points. Over the last year, Abercrombie has become known as retail's biggest comeback story, and investors have been watching to see if the company can keep up its growth. Horowitz has looked to international markets and the company's Hollister and Abercrombie Kids brands as growth vectors, which are already boosting sales. During the quarter, sales at Hollister jumped 17% while comparable sales rose 15%. In the company's Europe, Middle East and Africa division, sales climbed 16%. Costly international expansion was one of the missteps that weighed on Abercrombie's performance in the past, but the company is taking a different approach this time around.Earlier this month, it announced a partnership with Haddad Brands – a licensor of children's wear – to create new distribution channels for Abercrombie Kids and grow the product line to include infant and toddler categories. ""As we work to diversify A&F Co.'s channel mix and drive sustainable, profitable growth, we are thrilled to partner with Haddad Brands to build on our success and create an opportunity to grow the brand in the years ahead by engaging with new customers globally,"" Horowitz said in a statement at the time. Products from Abercrombie Kids are set to be available in Haddad Brands' showrooms globally next month.",CNBC,28/08/2024,"[""In this articleAbercrombie & Fitch's revenue grew 21% during its fiscal second quarter as the apparel company builds on its torrid growth."", 'The sales gain, which follows 16% growth in the year-ago period, led the company to issue bullish guidance for the current quarter.', 'Still, its full-year outlook was largely in line with estimates as it prepares for one fewer week this year than last.', ""CEO Fran Horowitz – who often says good companies win in any economic environment – may be bracing for a turbulent second half of the year because for the first time in four quarters, she referenced the uncertain state of the economy in the company's earnings release."", '""We delivered a strong first half of the year, and we are increasing our full-year outlook.', 'Although we continue to operate in an increasingly uncertain environment, we remain steadfast in executing our global playbook and maintaining discipline over inventory and expenses,"" said Horowitz. ""', 'We are on track and confident in our goal to deliver sustainable, profitable growth this year, while making strategic long-term investments across marketing, digital and technology and stores to enable future growth.', '""The company\'s shares — which were up nearly 89% this year as of Tuesday\'s close — fell about 15% in early trading.', ""Here's how Abercrombie did compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG, formerly known as Refinitiv:The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended Aug. 3 was $133 million, or $2.50 per share, compared with $57 million, or $1.10 per share, a year earlier."", 'Sales rose to $1.13 billion, up about 21% from $935 million a year earlier.', 'During the quarter, same-store sales jumped 18%, driven by better-than-expected summer and back-to-school selling.', 'For the current quarter, Abercrombie expects sales to rise by a low double-digit percentage, better than the 8.9% growth that LSEG analysts had expected.', 'Abercrombie raised its full-year sales guidance from 10% growth to a 12% to 13% increase, which is roughly in line with the 12% rise that LSEG analysts had expected.', ""The company's fiscal 2024 will have one fewer week than fiscal 2023, which is likely weighing on its full-year guidance."", 'Abercrombie expects the loss of one selling week will have an $80 million impact on its holiday quarter, or 5.5 percentage points.', 'For the full year, the company expects it to hit sales by $50 million, or 1.2 percentage points.', ""Over the last year, Abercrombie has become known as retail's biggest comeback story, and investors have been watching to see if the company can keep up its growth."", ""Horowitz has looked to international markets and the company's Hollister and Abercrombie Kids brands as growth vectors, which are already boosting sales."", 'During the quarter, sales at Hollister jumped 17% while comparable sales rose 15%.', ""In the company's Europe, Middle East and Africa division, sales climbed 16%.Costly international expansion was one of the missteps that weighed on Abercrombie's performance in the past, but the company is taking a different approach this time around."", ""Earlier this month, it announced a partnership with Haddad Brands – a licensor of children's wear – to create new distribution channels for Abercrombie Kids and grow the product line to include infant and toddler categories."", '""As we work to diversify A&F Co.\'s channel mix and drive sustainable, profitable growth, we are thrilled to partner with Haddad Brands to build on our success and create an opportunity to grow the brand in the years ahead by engaging with new customers globally,"" Horowitz said in a statement at the time.', ""Products from Abercrombie Kids are set to be available in Haddad Brands' showrooms globally next month.""]",0.3403059944775122,"""As we work to diversify A&F Co.'s channel mix and drive sustainable, profitable growth, we are thrilled to partner with Haddad Brands to build on our success and create an opportunity to grow the brand in the years ahead by engaging with new customers globally,"" Horowitz said in a statement at the time.",,0.6236073403131395,"During the quarter, same-store sales jumped 18%, driven by better-than-expected summer and back-to-school selling.","""The company's shares — which were up nearly 89% this year as of Tuesday's close — fell about 15% in early trading.",2024-08-30
"Mavericks, Pelicans games are leaving their local sports networks ahead of NBA season",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/26/mavericks-pelicans-games-leave-local-networks-amid-diamond-bankruptcy.html,2024-08-26T20:44:33+0000,"Dallas Mavericks and New Orleans Pelicans fans are waiting for a new way to watch local games in the upcoming National Basketball Association season.Both teams are exiting their regional sports networks owned by Diamond Sports, according to a Friday bankruptcy court filing.The NBA season is set to begin Oct. 22. While neither franchise has publicly announced where its local games will be aired, both teams have a history of televising their games with local broadcasters.The Pelicans have reached an agreement in principle with Gray Television to air games this season, a person close to the team told CNBC, confirming earlier media reports. Representatives for Gray and the Pelicans declined to comment on the matter.Last season, the Pelicans aired 10 of their matchups on Gray's local stations, and the Mavericks, who appeared in last season's NBA Finals, entered a 13-game agreement with Tegna's Dallas-Fort Worth stations.Representatives for the Mavericks and Tegna did not immediately respond to CNBC's requests asking who would broadcast their local games.The Mavericks and Pelicans are the latest teams to move the bulk of their regular-season games from their Diamond-owned regional sports networks, which are under the Bally Sports brand.Diamond Sports has spent the past 18 months trying to navigate its way out of bankruptcy, and along the way, several NBA, WNBA and National Hockey League teams have ditched regional sports networks in favor of local broadcasters. Some Major League Baseball teams that have left these networks will now have their games produced by the league.Diamond Sports will receive $1.3 million and more than $297,000 in repayments from the Mavericks and Pelicans, respectively, as part of the terminations, according to the court filing.The split with the Mavericks and Pelicans comes as Diamond enters into broadcast and streaming rights agreements with the NBA and NHL for the upcoming season as part of its bankruptcy process. The deals are subject to court approval.""We are appreciative of the ongoing collaboration and long-term partnerships with the NBA and NHL,"" Diamond Sports CEO David Preschlack said in a statement, adding the deals with the leagues ""are another major milestone"" toward exiting bankruptcy protection.Diamond Sports has been one of many companies crushed by the decline of cable. Though it launched a sports-only streaming service for some of its teams in 2022, the company's $8 billion debt load was too staggering to stop it from filing for bankruptcy protection.As the NBA and NHL seasons near, Diamond has also faced more pressure in recent months to form a viable business plan and prove it can make the necessary rights payments.Diamond marked another milestone this summer when it reached a deal to return its networks to Comcast's cable TV customers. The Bally Sports networks went dark on Comcast — Diamond's third largest distributor — in early May.Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal and CNBC.",CNBC,26/08/2024,"['Dallas Mavericks and New Orleans Pelicans fans are waiting for a new way to watch local games in the upcoming National Basketball Association season.', 'Both teams are exiting their regional sports networks owned by Diamond Sports, according to a Friday bankruptcy court filing.', 'The NBA season is set to begin Oct. 22.', 'While neither franchise has publicly announced where its local games will be aired, both teams have a history of televising their games with local broadcasters.', 'The Pelicans have reached an agreement in principle with Gray Television to air games this season,a personclose to the team told CNBC, confirming earlier media reports.', 'Representatives for Gray and the Pelicans declined to comment on the matter.', ""Last season, the Pelicans aired 10 of their matchups on Gray's local stations, and the Mavericks, who appeared in last season's NBA Finals, entered a 13-game agreement with Tegna's Dallas-Fort Worth stations."", ""Representatives for the Mavericks and Tegna did not immediately respond to CNBC's requests asking who would broadcast their local games."", 'The Mavericks and Pelicans are the latest teams to move the bulk of their regular-season games from their Diamond-owned regional sports networks, which are under the Bally Sports brand.', 'Diamond Sports has spent the past 18 months trying to navigate its way out of bankruptcy, and along the way, several NBA, WNBA and National Hockey League teams have ditched regional sports networks in favor of local broadcasters.', 'Some Major League Baseball teams that have left these networks will now have their games produced by the league.', 'Diamond Sports will receive $1.3 million and more than $297,000 in repayments from the Mavericks and Pelicans, respectively, as part of the terminations, according to the court filing.', 'The split with the Mavericks and Pelicans comes as Diamond enters into broadcast and streaming rights agreements with the NBA and NHL for the upcoming season as part of its bankruptcy process.', 'The deals are subject to court approval.', '""We are appreciative of the ongoing collaboration and long-term partnerships with the NBA and NHL,"" Diamond Sports CEO David Preschlack said in a statement, adding the deals with the leagues ""are another major milestone"" toward exiting bankruptcy protection.', 'Diamond Sports has been one of many companies crushed by the decline of cable.', ""Though it launched a sports-only streaming service for some of its teams in 2022, the company's $8 billion debt load was too staggering to stop it from filing for bankruptcy protection."", 'As the NBA and NHL seasons near, Diamond has also faced more pressure in recent months to form a viable business plan and prove it can make the necessary rights payments.', ""Diamond marked another milestone this summer when it reached a deal to return its networks to Comcast's cable TV customers."", ""The Bally Sports networks went dark on Comcast — Diamond's third largest distributor — in early May."", 'Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal and CNBC.']",0.2369959799857742,"""We are appreciative of the ongoing collaboration and long-term partnerships with the NBA and NHL,"" Diamond Sports CEO David Preschlack said in a statement, adding the deals with the leagues ""are another major milestone"" toward exiting bankruptcy protection.","Though it launched a sports-only streaming service for some of its teams in 2022, the company's $8 billion debt load was too staggering to stop it from filing for bankruptcy protection.",-0.2300930470228195,Diamond marked another milestone this summer when it reached a deal to return its networks to Comcast's cable TV customers.,Diamond Sports has been one of many companies crushed by the decline of cable.,2024-08-30
Train penalty fare overhaul urged: 'We were fined £50 each over £3 extra fare',https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c0l841xeyklo,2024-08-29T23:02:08.607Z,"Train ticket inspectors should treat deliberate fare dodgers differently to people who make genuine mistakes, the passenger watchdog has said. Transport Focus said there was ""an overwhelming need for reform"" but the Rail Delivery Group, which represents train firms, said staff have discretion over individual circumstances. Scores of people have contacted BBC News to say they felt ticket inspectors had been over-zealous in giving them penalty fares. Alexandra Petri and her partner Ross Jones bought advance train tickets but ended up on the wrong train. When they tried to pay the difference in fares of £3 they each had to pay a penalty fare of £50. ""We felt like there was no understanding for small errors. We just paid the fine because I am not from the UK and didn't want to risk anything potentially going on my record that could cause trouble in the future,"" she added. They got in touch with the BBC after it reported that thousands of prosecutions for alleged rail fare evasion were to be quashed. Transport Focus said it accepted the need for a penalty-fare system but called for more discretion to be used in the case of passengers who make an honest mistake. ""We accept that some cases are very clear cut,"" said Mike Hewitson, the watchdog's head of policy. ""But there are grey areas, cases where perhaps more discretion should be used."" Railway companies lose £240 million every year from ticketless travel – but there are certain cases where a passenger making a mistake with their fare doesn't cost the train company money, he added. ""It's about trying to strip out the mistake from the deliberate,"" Mr Hewitson said.  ""It can be easy to get it wrong... people should know what their ticket entitles them to, but the train operators also have to make this clear to them"". Last year the then Conservative government announced a trial of scrapping return train tickets. It said there were 55 million fares available in Britain, which made it difficult for travellers to decide which is best for them. This month a landmark ruling found as many as 74,000 prosecutions for alleged rail fare evasion in England and Wales were set to be quashed as a certain legal procedure should not have been used. Following the BBC's reporting of this story passengers who had not been prosecuted but had received penalty fares got in touch.  Many we spoke to said they had mistakenly believed they could buy tickets on board a train.  In the UK, you must have a valid ticket to travel on a train, unless no ticket purchasing facilities exist. A penalty fare is charged if you do not comply with ticket purchasing rules and the maximum is £1,000.   The penalty is £100 plus the price of the full single fare applicable for your intended journey.  However, if it is paid within 21 days, the penalty is reduced to £50 plus the price of the single fare applicable.  A fine for rail ticket evasion can arise if the penalty fare is not paid and court proceedings follow. Holly, 29, was among those who told the BBC she thought she could buy a ticket on board a train.  ""I found the guard and said: 'Can I buy a ticket, please?' And he said: 'No you can't, you're fare dodging.' I was a bit shocked,"" she said. After Holly unsuccessfully tried to appeal her penalty fare, she was sent a magistrates court summons. ""Eventually, I got through to the train company's phone line and paid £55,"" she said. Rob McDowall, 41, told the BBC he also tried to buy a ticket on board when there were no working ticket machines at Leatherhead station in Surrey due to building works. He decided to buy a ticket when he got off, two stops later at Epsom.  ""The ticket inspector told me I was lying, as if I had refused to buy a ticket,"" he said. ""He was very forceful - he prodded me in the chest twice. ""I reported it to BTP [British Transport Police] but nothing came of it."" Rob received a court summons and pleaded guilty after receiving legal advice and was fined more than £300.  ""The way the whole system is set up you basically can’t explain yourself,"" Rob said. A spokesperson for the Rail Delivery Group told the BBC: “Fare dodging is unfair because it means less money to invest in improving services and increases the burden on fare-paying passengers and taxpayers. “We would always advise customers to purchase a ticket before they travel. All staff involved in the issuing of penalty fares have discretion over the individual circumstances of the customer.  ""There is a robust statutory appeals process for every penalty issued, which includes an independent final appeal stage to consider wider circumstances.” ",BBC,29/08/2024,"['Train ticket inspectors should treat deliberate fare dodgers differently to people who make genuine mistakes, the passenger watchdog has said.', 'Transport Focus said there was ""an overwhelming need for reform"" but the Rail Delivery Group, which represents train firms, said staff have discretion over individual circumstances.', 'Scores of people have contacted BBC News to say they felt ticket inspectors had been over-zealous in giving them penalty fares.', 'Alexandra Petri and her partner Ross Jones bought advance train tickets but ended up on the wrong train.', 'When they tried to pay the difference in fares of £3 they each had to pay a penalty fare of £50. ""', 'We felt like there was no understanding for small errors.', 'We just paid the fine because I am not from the UK and didn\'t want to risk anything potentially going on my record that could cause trouble in the future,"" she added.', 'They got in touch with the BBC after it reported that thousands of prosecutions for alleged rail fare evasion were to be quashed.', 'Transport Focus said it accepted the need for a penalty-fare system but called for more discretion to be used in the case of passengers who make an honest mistake. ""', 'We accept that some cases are very clear cut,"" said Mike Hewitson, the watchdog\'s head of policy. ""', 'But there are grey areas, cases where perhaps more discretion should be used.""', 'Railway companies lose £240 million every year from ticketless travel – but there are certain cases where a passenger making a mistake with their fare doesn\'t cost the train company money, he added. ""', 'It\'s about trying to strip out the mistake from the deliberate,"" Mr Hewitson said. ""', 'It can be easy to get it wrong... people should know what their ticket entitles them to, but the train operators also have to make this clear to them"".', 'Last year the then Conservative government announced a trial of scrapping return train tickets.', 'It said there were 55 million fares available in Britain, which made it difficult for travellers to decide which is best for them.', 'This month a landmark ruling found as many as 74,000 prosecutions for alleged rail fare evasion in England and Wales were set to be quashed as a certain legal procedure should not have been used.', ""Following the BBC's reporting of this story passengers who had not been prosecuted but had received penalty fares got in touch."", 'Many we spoke to said they had mistakenly believed they could buy tickets on board a train.', 'In the UK, you must have a valid ticket to travel on a train, unless no ticket purchasing facilities exist.', 'A penalty fare is charged if you do not comply with ticket purchasing rules and the maximum is £1,000.', 'The penalty is £100 plus the price of the full single fare applicable for your intended journey.', 'However, if it is paid within 21 days, the penalty is reduced to £50 plus the price of the single fare applicable.', 'A fine for rail ticket evasion can arise if the penalty fare is not paid and court proceedings follow.', 'Holly, 29, was among those who told the BBC she thought she could buy a ticket on board a train. ""', ""I found the guard and said: 'Can I buy a ticket, please?'"", ""And he said: 'No you can't, you're fare dodging.'"", 'I was a bit shocked,"" she said.', 'After Holly unsuccessfully tried to appeal her penalty fare, she was sent a magistrates court summons. ""', 'Eventually, I got through to the train company\'s phone line and paid £55,"" she said.', 'Rob McDowall, 41, told the BBC he also tried to buy a ticket on board when there were no working ticket machines at Leatherhead station in Surrey due to building works.', 'He decided to buy a ticket when he got off, two stops later at Epsom. ""', 'The ticket inspector told me I was lying, as if I had refused to buy a ticket,"" he said. ""', 'He was very forceful - he prodded me in the chest twice. ""', 'I reported it to BTP [British Transport Police] but nothing came of it.""', 'Rob received a court summons and pleaded guilty after receiving legal advice and was fined more than £300. ""', 'The way the whole system is set up you basically can’t explain yourself,"" Rob said.', 'A spokesperson for the Rail Delivery Group told the BBC: “Fare dodging is unfair because it means less money to invest in improving services and increases the burden on fare-paying passengers and taxpayers. “', 'We would always advise customers to purchase a ticket before they travel.', 'All staff involved in the issuing of penalty fares have discretion over the individual circumstances of the customer. ""', 'There is a robust statutory appeals process for every penalty issued, which includes an independent final appeal stage to consider wider circumstances.”']",-0.203686551319477,"It can be easy to get it wrong... people should know what their ticket entitles them to, but the train operators also have to make this clear to them"".","Rob received a court summons and pleaded guilty after receiving legal advice and was fined more than £300. """,-0.5650351941585541,"We just paid the fine because I am not from the UK and didn't want to risk anything potentially going on my record that could cause trouble in the future,"" she added.",A spokesperson for the Rail Delivery Group told the BBC: “Fare dodging is unfair because it means less money to invest in improving services and increases the burden on fare-paying passengers and taxpayers. “,2024-08-30
"Gap beats earnings and revenue estimates, hikes profit margin outlook as results are posted early",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/29/gap-q2-earnings-shares-halted-after-apparent-early-release.html,2024-08-29T22:55:10+0000,"In this articleGap raised its full-year profit outlook on Thursday after seeing better-than-expected results at its largest brand, Old Navy.The apparel company's fiscal second quarter results were released earlier than planned after the company ""inadvertently"" posted them to its website and then removed them, a Gap spokesperson told CNBC.""As soon as the error was caught, we notified the NYSE and trading of our stock was halted temporarily,"" the spokesperson said, adding the results were posted ""as a result of administrative error.""Gap's stock was halted just before 10 a.m. ET. The company then released its quarterly results at 11:12 a.m. ET. Following the release, shares rose more than 2% after being halted for much of the morning.Here's what the company reported, compared with what Wall Street expected, according to analysts surveyed by LSEG:The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended Aug. 3 nearly doubled from the year-ago period. Gap posted earnings of $206 million, or 54 cents per share, compared with $117 million, or 32 cents per share, a year earlier.Sales rose to $3.72 billion, up about 5% from $3.55 billion in the prior-year period.For the full year, Gap now expects its gross margin to be 2 percentage points higher than the uptick of at least 1.5 percentage points it had previously forecast. It also expects its operating income to grow by about 50%. It previously anticipated it would increase by slightly more than 40%.Over the last year, Gap has been working to turn around its business, reverse a sales slump and reclaim cultural relevance under the direction of CEO Richard Dickson — the former Mattel executive credited with reviving the Barbie empire.Since Dickson took over, sales have started to turn around at the company's four brands — Banana Republic, Old Navy, Athleta and its namesake banner — and the company is finding its voice again among its peers. Beyond sales and relevance, Gap's profits and balance sheet have also improved significantly under Dickson. The company ended the quarter with $2.1 billion in cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments, an increase of 59% compared to last year.The company's second-quarter results didn't blow away expectations, but are solid improvements from where the company was a year ago.""We really concentrated on our strategic priorities, and the first priority has been about maintaining financial and operational rigor that is becoming, to the extent that we can define it, the fabric of how we work, and it's reinforcing better processes and cultural accountability,"" Dickson told CNBC in an interview.""Reinvigorating our brands is enabled by financial and operational rigor, and you see it. You see it in the results, you see it in our stores. You see it on our sites,"" he added.""We're building stronger brand identities. They're supported by trend right products,"" Dickson said. ""We're amplifying those through better storytelling. Our media mix has gotten much more innovative, and generally speaking, I'm proud of the brand's portfolio work in the context of cultural relevance.""During the quarter, comparable sales were up 3%, in line with the 3.1% growth that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount. Its gross margin came in better than forecast at 42.6%, ahead of the 40.8% that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount.Here's a closer look at how each brand performed:Sales rose 8% to $2.1 billion, with comparable sales up 5%, better than the 4.3% growth analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount. The company has been working to improve its assortment and ensure that its value offering isn't just low cost but also fashionable.""We've been dialing up, if you will, our fashion quotient,"" said Dickson. ""Besides really driving a much more disciplined approach with financial and operational rigor, we're now dialing up and seeing the results of our reinvigoration strategy.""As consumers feel the brunt of inflation and high interest rates, many have traded down to cheaper options, and Dickson said Old Navy is seeing ""growth across all income cohorts.""""With a presumed flight to value, Old Navy is there with a welcome mat,"" said Dickson. ""We become the style authority and the brand in the value space, and so again, we're concentrating on our strategic approach, our strategic priorities. I think we're seeing the success of that.""Revenue at Gap's namesake banner rose 1% to $766 million during the quarter, with comparable sales up 3%, just shy of the 3.4% uptick analysts had expected. As Dickson looks to bring cultural relevancy back to the company, it has helped the company's namesake banner grow sales, he said.Gap's elevated work-wear line has dragged on the company's overall performance. Both revenue and comparable sales were flat in the second quarter compared to last year, versus StreetAccount estimates of up 0.5%. The company said it is working to ""improve its pricing and assortment"" to turn around the brand's performance.""In some cases, we got too ahead of ourselves, and in other cases, we could add more value orientation to drive more scale,"" Dickson said when asked what work the company is doing to improve pricing.""Some of our new merchandising strategies include depth of product in store, finding that right mix, if you will. And last but not least, really improving fit, which is an important part of any brand, but in particular, has been a challenge in the women's space in Banana Republic, where we're really concentrating,"" he said.Sales at Gap's athleisure brand Athleta slid 1% to $388 million, with comparable sales down 4%. The results were not comparable to analyst estimates.One of Gap's strongest brands during the pandemic, Athleta had been on a downward trajectory and weighed heavily on the company's performance until it appointed former Alo Yoga president Chris Blakeslee as its CEO last summer. Since then, Blakeslee has worked to improve Athleta's assortment and has also worked to generate more excitement at the line with product drops and collaborations with athletes.In a press release, the company said it expects Athleta to return to positive comparable sales growth for the remainder of the year.",CNBC,29/08/2024,"['In this articleGap raised its full-year profit outlook on Thursday after seeing better-than-expected results at its largest brand, Old Navy.', 'The apparel company\'s fiscal second quarter results were released earlier than planned after the company ""inadvertently"" posted them to its website and then removed them, a Gap spokesperson told CNBC.""As soon as the error was caught,we notified the NYSE and trading of our stock was halted temporarily,"" the spokesperson said, adding the results were posted ""as a result of administrative error.', '""Gap\'s stock was halted just before 10 a.m. ET.', 'The company then released its quarterly results at 11:12 a.m. ET.', 'Following the release, shares rose more than 2% after being halted for much of the morning.', ""Here's what the company reported, compared with what Wall Street expected, according to analysts surveyed by LSEG:The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended Aug. 3 nearly doubled from the year-ago period."", 'Gap posted earnings of $206 million, or 54 cents per share, compared with $117 million, or 32 cents per share, a year earlier.', 'Sales rose to $3.72 billion, up about 5% from $3.55 billion in the prior-year period.', 'For the full year, Gap now expects its gross margin to be 2 percentage points higher than the uptick of at least 1.5 percentage points it had previously forecast.', 'It also expects its operating income to grow by about 50%.', 'It previously anticipated it would increase by slightly more than 40%.Over the last year, Gap has been working to turn around its business, reverse a sales slump and reclaim cultural relevance under the direction of CEO Richard Dickson — the former Mattel executive credited with reviving the Barbie empire.', ""Since Dickson took over, sales have started to turn around at the company's four brands — Banana Republic, Old Navy, Athleta and its namesake banner — and the company is finding its voice again among its peers."", ""Beyond sales and relevance, Gap's profits and balance sheet have also improved significantly under Dickson."", 'The company ended the quarter with $2.1 billion in cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments, an increase of 59% compared to last year.', ""The company's second-quarter results didn't blow away expectations, but are solid improvements from where the company was a year ago."", '""We really concentrated on our strategic priorities, and the first priority has been about maintaining financial and operational rigor that is becoming, to the extent that we can define it, the fabric of how we work, and it\'s reinforcing better processes and cultural accountability,"" Dickson told CNBC in an interview.', '""Reinvigorating our brands is enabled by financial and operational rigor, and you see it.', 'You see it in the results, you see it in our stores.', 'You see it on our sites,"" he added.', '""We\'re building stronger brand identities.', 'They\'re supported by trend right products,"" Dickson said. ""', ""We're amplifying those through better storytelling."", ""Our media mix has gotten much more innovative, and generally speaking, I'm proud of the brand's portfolio work in the context of cultural relevance."", '""During the quarter, comparable sales were up 3%, in line with the 3.1% growth that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount.', 'Its gross margin came in better than forecast at 42.6%, ahead of the 40.8% that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount.', ""Here's a closer look at how each brand performed:Sales rose 8% to $2.1 billion, with comparable sales up 5%, better than the 4.3% growth analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount."", ""The company has been working to improve its assortment and ensure that its value offering isn't just low cost but also fashionable."", '""We\'ve been dialing up, if you will, our fashion quotient,"" said Dickson. ""', ""Besides really driving a much more disciplined approach with financial and operational rigor, we're now dialing up and seeing the results of our reinvigoration strategy."", '""As consumers feel the brunt of inflation and high interest rates, many have traded down to cheaper options, and Dickson said Old Navy is seeing ""growth across all income cohorts.', '""""With a presumed flight to value, Old Navy is there with a welcome mat,"" said Dickson. ""', ""We become the style authority and the brand in the value space, and so again, we're concentrating on our strategic approach, our strategic priorities."", ""I think we're seeing the success of that."", '""Revenue at Gap\'s namesake banner rose 1% to $766 million during the quarter, with comparable sales up 3%, just shy of the 3.4% uptick analysts had expected.', ""As Dickson looks to bring cultural relevancy back to the company, it has helped the company's namesake banner grow sales, he said."", ""Gap's elevated work-wear line has dragged on the company's overall performance."", 'Both revenue and comparable sales were flat in the second quarter compared to last year, versus StreetAccount estimates of up 0.5%.', 'The company said it is working to ""improve its pricing and assortment"" to turn around the brand\'s performance.', '""In some cases, we got too ahead of ourselves, and in other cases, we could add more value orientation to drive more scale,"" Dickson said when asked what work the company is doing to improve pricing.', '""Some of our new merchandising strategies include depth of product in store, finding that right mix, if you will.', 'And last but not least, really improving fit, which is an important part of any brand, but in particular, has been a challenge in the women\'s space in Banana Republic, where we\'re really concentrating,"" he said.', ""Sales at Gap's athleisure brand Athleta slid 1% to $388 million, with comparable sales down 4%."", 'The results were not comparable to analyst estimates.', ""One of Gap's strongest brands during the pandemic, Athleta had been on a downward trajectory and weighed heavily on the company's performance until it appointed former Alo Yoga president Chris Blakeslee as its CEO last summer."", ""Since then, Blakeslee has worked to improve Athleta's assortment and has also worked to generate more excitement at the line with product drops and collaborations with athletes."", 'In a press release, the company said it expects Athleta to return to positive comparable sales growth for the remainder of the year.']",0.2871461857237231,"And last but not least, really improving fit, which is an important part of any brand, but in particular, has been a challenge in the women's space in Banana Republic, where we're really concentrating,"" he said.","The apparel company's fiscal second quarter results were released earlier than planned after the company ""inadvertently"" posted them to its website and then removed them, a Gap spokesperson told CNBC.""As soon as the error was caught,we notified the NYSE and trading of our stock was halted temporarily,"" the spokesperson said, adding the results were posted ""as a result of administrative error.",0.762261722017737,"Here's a closer look at how each brand performed:Sales rose 8% to $2.1 billion, with comparable sales up 5%, better than the 4.3% growth analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount.","Sales at Gap's athleisure brand Athleta slid 1% to $388 million, with comparable sales down 4%.",2024-08-30
"Stephen Curry signs $62.6 million, one-year contract extension with Warriors",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/29/stephen-curry-signs-62point6-million-extension-with-warriors.html,2024-08-29T18:31:42+0000,"NBA superstar Stephen Curry has agreed to sign a one-year, $62.6 million extension with the Golden State Warriors, his agent confirmed to CNBC.The extension keeps Curry in a Warriors uniform through the 2026-2027 season, and will make him the first NBA player to make $60 million in a season, according to Spotrac. As of now, several NBA players who have signed long-term extensions are set to eclipse Curry's $62.6 million salary the following year.Curry is a four-time NBA champion and most recently won a gold medal with the Team USA basketball team at the 2024 Olympics. In the championship game against France, Curry led the team with 24 points, all of which were three-pointers.Curry is no stranger to setting records. He was the first NBA player to hit both the $40 million and $50 million annual base salary marks and has been the highest paid player in the league since the 2017-2018 season, according to Spotrac.Curry, among other stars, is one of the reasons why the NBA was able to negotiate an 11-year, $77 billion media rights contract in its most recent deal with Disney, NBCUniversal and Amazon, which takes effect after the upcoming season. The booming value of media rights is driving player salaries up with it.Younger players like Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum have signed contracts worth more than $300 million over five years, as the league keeps growing more popular and sports continue to be one of the only types of television that people will tune in for live.Curry, 36, has played his entire NBA career with the Warriors. He has won two league MVP awards and is the all-time leader in three-pointers made.Programming note: Curry will appear on CNBC's ""Squawk on the Street"" at 10:30 a.m. ET on Tuesday.Disclosure: Comcast NBCUniversal is the parent company of CNBC.",CNBC,29/08/2024,"['NBA superstar Stephen Curry has agreed to sign a one-year, $62.6 million extension with the Golden State Warriors, his agent confirmed to CNBC.The extension keeps Curry in a Warriors uniform through the 2026-2027 season, and will make him the first NBA player to make $60 million in a season, according to Spotrac.', ""As of now, several NBA players who have signed long-term extensions are set to eclipse Curry's $62.6 million salary the following year."", 'Curry is a four-time NBA champion and most recently won a gold medal with the Team USA basketball team at the 2024 Olympics.', 'In the championship game against France, Curry led the team with 24 points, all of which were three-pointers.', 'Curry is no stranger to setting records.', 'He was the first NBA player to hit both the $40 million and $50 million annual base salary marks and has been the highest paid player in the league since the 2017-2018 season, according to Spotrac.', 'Curry, among other stars, is one of the reasons why the NBA was able to negotiate an 11-year, $77 billion media rights contract in its most recent deal with Disney, NBCUniversal and Amazon, which takes effect after the upcoming season.', 'The booming value of media rights is driving player salaries up with it.', 'Younger players like Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum have signed contracts worth more than $300 million over five years, as the league keeps growing more popular and sports continue to be one of the only types of television that people will tune in for live.', 'Curry, 36, has played his entire NBA career with the Warriors.', 'He has won two league MVP awards and is the all-time leader in three-pointers made.', 'Programming note: Curry will appear on CNBC\'s ""Squawk on the Street"" at 10:30 a.m. ET on Tuesday.', 'Disclosure: Comcast NBCUniversal is the parent company of CNBC.']",0.2883384119498057,Curry is a four-time NBA champion and most recently won a gold medal with the Team USA basketball team at the 2024 Olympics.,Curry is no stranger to setting records.,0.9991334676742554,"Younger players like Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum have signed contracts worth more than $300 million over five years, as the league keeps growing more popular and sports continue to be one of the only types of television that people will tune in for live.",,2024-08-30
"Lego revenue jumps 13% in first half of 2024, boosted by Lego Fortnite and diverse brick sets",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/28/lego-revenue-first-half-2024.html,2024-08-28T15:07:41+0000,"An inflation-fueled sales slump hit the toy industry in the first half of 2024, but one company is gaining market share brick by brick.On Wednesday, Lego said revenue during the first six months of the year jumped 13%, reaching 31 billion Danish kroner, or about $4.65 billion.Niels Christiansen, CEO of the privately held Danish toymaker, told CNBC that the company is seeing strength across its portfolio, especially with Lego Icons and Lego Creator, and through its partnership with Epic Games' Fortnite.Last year, Lego saw a trend of consumers ""trading down"" or opting for lower-priced sets, while still buying the same volume as the year before. This year, volume is up, Christiansen said.""To the extent they traded down last year, they're not trading further down,"" he said. ""So that has stabilized. And we see almost all of the growth is actually growth in volume.""Meanwhile, publicly traded rival Mattel saw net sales fall 1% in the first six months of 2024 and Hasbro reported that its net revenue fell 21% between January and the end of June. Mattel is facing tough comparisons from toy sales fueled by ""Barbie"" in 2023, and Hasbro is still reeling from its divestment of eOne.Lego has continued to build on pandemic-era growth with a diverse slate of products that cater to kids and adults alike. In addition to sets tied to popular franchises such as Harry Potter and Star Wars, Lego also has innovative design options for consumers to build flowers and succulents, famous works of art and animals.Sales in the U.S. and Europe remain strong, Christiansen noted, while China sales are flat. He said consumers in the region are spending less on bigger-ticket items, and their frequency of purchasing is down.However, Lego is not giving up on expansion in China. Christiansen said there is still ""long-term potential"" in the area.Of the 40 Lego stores that opened in the first quarter, 20 were in China. Similarly, of the 60 planned openings in the second half of the year, 20 are set for China.Christiansen also touted Lego's sustainability efforts. So far this year, the company has nearly doubled the amount of renewable and recyclable materials it uses in its bricks compared to full-year 2023.""That's a good milestone,"" he said. ""That's a good step forward. [We are] spending quite significantly on that in a couple of ways, primarily in buying material that is more expensive, because mass balance material is more expensive than just standard.""Christiansen noted that Lego is not passing that cost on to consumers.""By actually being willing to pay a premium to get to this product, we also created an incentive for [suppliers] to actually develop the kind of products and to establish more production capacity for these type of products. We are working really as an industry need to try to put more speed on that entire process.""Over the next few years, Lego hopes to source half its raw materials from sustainable sources.",CNBC,28/08/2024,"['An inflation-fueled sales slump hit the toy industry in the first half of 2024, but one company is gaining market share brick by brick.', 'On Wednesday, Lego said revenue during the first six months of the year jumped 13%, reaching 31 billion Danish kroner, or about $4.65 billion.', ""Niels Christiansen, CEO of the privately held Danish toymaker, told CNBC that the company is seeing strength across its portfolio, especially with Lego Icons and Lego Creator, and through its partnership with Epic Games' Fortnite."", 'Last year, Lego saw a trend of consumers ""trading down"" or opting for lower-priced sets, while still buying the same volume as the year before.', 'This year, volume is up, Christiansen said.', '""To the extent they traded down last year, they\'re not trading further down,"" he said. ""', 'So that has stabilized.', 'And we see almost all of the growth is actually growth in volume.', '""Meanwhile, publicly traded rivalMattel saw net sales fall 1% in the first six months of 2024 and Hasbroreported that its net revenue fell 21% between January and the end of June.', 'Mattel is facing tough comparisons from toy sales fueled by ""Barbie"" in 2023, and Hasbro is still reeling from its divestment of eOne.', 'Lego has continued to build on pandemic-era growth with a diverse slate of products that cater to kids and adults alike.', 'In addition to sets tied to popular franchises such as Harry Potter and Star Wars, Lego also has innovative design options for consumers to build flowers and succulents, famous works of art and animals.', 'Sales in the U.S. and Europe remain strong, Christiansen noted, while China sales are flat.', 'He said consumers in the region are spending less on bigger-ticket items, and their frequency of purchasing is down.', 'However, Lego is not giving up on expansion in China.', 'Christiansen said there is still ""long-term potential"" in the area.', 'Of the 40 Lego stores that opened in the first quarter, 20 were in China.', 'Similarly, of the 60 planned openings in the second half of the year, 20 are set for China.', ""Christiansen also touted Lego's sustainability efforts."", 'So far this year, the company has nearly doubled the amount of renewable and recyclable materials it uses in its bricks compared to full-year 2023.""That\'s a good milestone,"" he said. ""', ""That's a good step forward. ["", 'We are] spending quite significantly on that in a couple of ways, primarily in buying material that is more expensive, because mass balance material is more expensive than just standard.', '""Christiansen noted that Lego is not passing that cost on to consumers.', '""By actually being willing to pay a premium to get to this product, we also created an incentive for [suppliers] to actually develop the kind of products and to establish more production capacity for these type of products.', 'We are working really as an industry need to try to put more speed on that entire process.', '""Over the next few years, Lego hopes to source half its raw materials from sustainable sources.']",0.176270062906085,"An inflation-fueled sales slump hit the toy industry in the first half of 2024, but one company is gaining market share brick by brick.","Last year, Lego saw a trend of consumers ""trading down"" or opting for lower-priced sets, while still buying the same volume as the year before.",0.4372433854473961,"On Wednesday, Lego said revenue during the first six months of the year jumped 13%, reaching 31 billion Danish kroner, or about $4.65 billion.","""Meanwhile, publicly traded rivalMattel saw net sales fall 1% in the first six months of 2024 and Hasbroreported that its net revenue fell 21% between January and the end of June.",2024-08-30
Bronfman's Paramount bid could keep Shari Redstone involved at the company,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/23/bronfman-paramount-bid-shari-redstone.html,2024-08-23T20:42:26+0000,"In this articleEdgar Bronfman Jr.'s offer for a controlling stake in Paramount Global could keep Shari Redstone close to the company, if his bid is successful.Bronfman is open to having Redstone, currently non-executive chairman at Paramount, remain involved with the company if the Paramount special committee accepts his consortium's bid for National Amusements, the controlling shareholder, according to a person familiar with the matter.Bronfman has raised $6 billion to challenge Skydance Media for ownership of National Amusements, the holding company founded by Sumner Redstone, according to people familiar with the matter. Both Bronfman's bid and Skydance's bid would also include money to buy out a percentage of Paramount Global common shareholders.At $6 billion, Bronfman's bid would give cash to about 20% of Class B holders at $16 per share. Skydance would pay out about 50% of current Paramount common investors at $15 per share as part of its bid, according to the people familiar.It's not clear if Redstone prefers one offer over the other. The Paramount Global special committee will determine if Bronfman's offer is a superior proposal for shareholders by Aug. 28. If the committee decides Bronfman's offer is better, Skydance will then have four business days to match. The deadline for the entire process to be concluded is Sept. 5.Bronfman still has a few more days to raise more money for a competing bid to counter Skydance, which agreed to an $8 billion deal to merge with Paramount Global last month. The special committee earlier this week extended the so-called ""go-shop"" period — during which it could entertain competing offers — by 15 days to review Bronfman's initial bid.One of the individuals who is part of Bronfman's bid is former AOL CEO Jon Miller, suggesting Redstone could potentially have more control over a future Paramount Global than she'd get with Skydance. Miller, a close ally of Redstone, has been connecting Bronfman with potential capital and would likely take a role with the company if it came under Bronfman's stewardship — perhaps a board seat and an operational job — according to people familiar with the matter. Bronfman would be CEO of the company if his deal were to be accepted and go through, said the people.Miller, Redstone and Redstone's son-in-law, Jason Ostheimer, together run Advancit Capital, a small venture capital firm that invests in media and technology. The trio are the only three people that appear on the firm's website. Miller has also operated as a de facto strategic advisor to Redstone for many years, according to people familiar with the matter.Redstone has not spoken with Miller about the bid, according to people familiar with the matter.While the Redstone family and Bronfman family have run in similar circles, including donating heavily to Jewish foundations, Edgar Bronfman Jr. and Shari Redstone haven't met many times and don't have a close preexisting relationship, two of the people said.Skydance CEO David Ellison and Redstone have had several discussions about the potential for Redstone to stay in as a shareholder of a combined Skydance-Paramount Global, according to people familiar with the matter.Redstone is taking a wait-and-see approach to any future involvement she may want to have in Paramount Global moving forward regardless of its ownership, according to a person familiar with her thinking.Spokespeople for Redstone, Bronfman, the Paramount Global special committee and Skydance all declined to comment.Bronfman has spent the last few weeks aggregating individuals with interest in owning a piece of Paramount Global, including film producer Steven Paul and Patron cofounder John Paul DeJoria, who had previously considered a bid of their own, according to a person familiar with the process, as well as Fortress Investment Group, the credit arm of private equity firm BC Partners, and former Turner Broadcasting CEO John Martin.Bronfman's financing comes from many different sources, which may potentially trigger regulatory concerns if too much of the money is from foreign entities. Having so many different financers may also make Bronfman's offer riskier than Skydance's bid, which is backed by private equity firm RedBird Capital and multibillionaire Larry Ellison, the father of David Ellison.Bronfman is the chairman of Fubo, a sports streaming service, and the former head of Universal and Warner Music.Skydance's lawyers sent a letter to the Paramount Global special committee demanding the company stop negotiating with Bronfman, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday. Skydance said Paramount Global breached the terms of the go-shop agreement by not alerting Skydance that it planned to extend the window, the report said.Skydance also argued the special committee didn't have the right to extend the go-shop because a bid had to ""reasonably be expected to lead to a superior proposal."" Skydance argued the Bronfman bid didn't meet the criteria.WATCH: Media power struggle: Paramount deal in jeopardy?",CNBC,23/08/2024,"[""In this articleEdgar Bronfman Jr.'s offer for a controlling stake in Paramount Global could keep Shari Redstone close to the company, if his bid is successful."", ""Bronfman is open to having Redstone, currently non-executive chairman at Paramount, remain involved with the company if the Paramount special committee accepts his consortium's bid for National Amusements, the controlling shareholder, according to a person familiar with the matter."", 'Bronfman has raised $6 billion to challenge Skydance Media for ownership of National Amusements, the holding company founded by Sumner Redstone, according to people familiar with the matter.', ""Both Bronfman's bid and Skydance's bid would also include money to buy out a percentage of Paramount Global common shareholders."", ""At $6 billion, Bronfman's bid would give cash to about 20% of Class B holders at $16 per share."", 'Skydance would pay out about 50% of current Paramount common investors at $15 per share as part of its bid, according to the people familiar.', ""It's not clear if Redstone prefers one offer over the other."", ""The Paramount Global special committee will determine if Bronfman's offer is a superior proposal for shareholders by Aug. 28."", ""If the committee decides Bronfman's offer is better, Skydance will then have four business days to match."", 'The deadline for the entire process to be concluded is Sept. 5.Bronfman still has a few more days to raise more money for a competing bid to counter Skydance, which agreed to an $8 billion deal to merge with Paramount Global last month.', 'The special committee earlier this week extended the so-called ""go-shop"" period — during which it could entertain competing offers — by 15 days to review Bronfman\'s initial bid.', ""One of the individuals who is part of Bronfman's bid is former AOL CEO Jon Miller, suggesting Redstone could potentially have more control over a future Paramount Global than she'd get with Skydance."", ""Miller, a close ally of Redstone, has been connecting Bronfman with potential capital and would likely take a role with the company if it came under Bronfman's stewardship — perhaps a board seat and an operational job — according to people familiar with the matter."", 'Bronfman would be CEO of the company if his deal were to be accepted and go through, said the people.', ""Miller, Redstone and Redstone's son-in-law, Jason Ostheimer, together run Advancit Capital, a small venture capital firm that invests in media and technology."", ""The trio are the only three people that appear on the firm's website."", 'Miller has also operated as a de facto strategic advisor to Redstone for many years, according to people familiar with the matter.', 'Redstone has not spoken with Miller about the bid, according to people familiar with the matter.', ""While the Redstone family and Bronfman family have run in similar circles, including donating heavily to Jewish foundations, Edgar Bronfman Jr. and Shari Redstone haven't met many times and don't have a close preexisting relationship, two of the people said."", 'Skydance CEO David Ellison and Redstone have had several discussions about the potential for Redstone to stay in as a shareholder of a combined Skydance-Paramount Global, according to people familiar with the matter.', 'Redstone is taking a wait-and-see approach to any future involvement she may want to have in Paramount Global moving forward regardless of its ownership, according to a person familiar with her thinking.', 'Spokespeople for Redstone, Bronfman, the Paramount Global special committee and Skydance all declined to comment.', 'Bronfman has spent the last few weeks aggregating individuals with interest in owning a piece of Paramount Global, including film producer Steven Paul and Patron cofounder John Paul DeJoria, who had previously considered a bid of their own, according to a person familiar with the process, as well as Fortress Investment Group, the credit arm of private equity firm BC Partners, and former Turner Broadcasting CEO John Martin.', ""Bronfman's financing comes from many different sources, which may potentially trigger regulatory concerns if too much of the money is from foreign entities."", ""Having so many different financers may also make Bronfman's offer riskier than Skydance's bid, which is backed by private equity firm RedBird Capital and multibillionaire Larry Ellison, the father of David Ellison."", 'Bronfman is the chairman of Fubo, a sports streaming service, and the former head of Universal and Warner Music.', ""Skydance's lawyers sent a letter to the Paramount Global special committee demanding the company stop negotiating with Bronfman, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday."", 'Skydance said Paramount Global breached the terms of the go-shop agreement by not alerting Skydance that it planned to extend the window, the report said.', 'Skydance also argued the special committee didn\'t have the right to extend the go-shop because a bid had to ""reasonably be expected to lead to a superior proposal.""', ""Skydance argued the Bronfman bid didn't meet the criteria."", 'WATCH: Media power struggle: Paramount deal in jeopardy?']",0.1775149756430325,"Bronfman has spent the last few weeks aggregating individuals with interest in owning a piece of Paramount Global, including film producer Steven Paul and Patron cofounder John Paul DeJoria, who had previously considered a bid of their own, according to a person familiar with the process, as well as Fortress Investment Group, the credit arm of private equity firm BC Partners, and former Turner Broadcasting CEO John Martin.",WATCH: Media power struggle: Paramount deal in jeopardy?,-0.8429049104452133,,"Skydance said Paramount Global breached the terms of the go-shop agreement by not alerting Skydance that it planned to extend the window, the report said.",2024-08-30
"Peloton shares soar 35% as turnaround plan takes hold, losses shrink",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/22/peloton-pton-earnings-q4-2024.html,2024-08-22T20:07:22+0000,"In this articlePeloton said Thursday it is digging itself out of the red and eked out a slight sales increase for the first time in nine quarters as it slashed its overall losses. The company's shares spiked 35% on Thursday.The beleaguered connected fitness company, which two board members have run since former CEO Barry McCarthy resigned earlier this year, saw sales grow by 0.2% during its fiscal fourth quarter. While only a modest uptick, it's the first time Peloton posted year-over-year revenue growth since its 2021 holiday quarter. The company also indicated it's ready to focus on profitability over growth with significant cuts to its marketing and sales spending and meaningful increases to free cash flow and adjusted EBITDA. Those cuts helped Peloton narrow its quarterly losses to $30.5 million from $241.1 million in the year-ago period.Here's how the Bike and Tread maker performed compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:For the three-month period that ended June 30, Peloton significantly narrowed its losses. The company posted a loss of $30.5 million, or 8 cents per share, compared with a loss of $241.8 million, or 68 cents per share, a year earlier. Sales rose to $643.6 million, up about 0.2% from $642.1 million a year earlier. That's only a $1.5 million increase, but Peloton did it at a time when sales are typically a bit slower for the company, because the quarter bleeds into the summer when people are more focused on going out and traveling than working out. The last time Peloton delivered year-over-year sales growth was during its holiday season in 2021, which is typically the company's strongest quarter.During the quarter, sales for Peloton's pricy connected fitness hardware fell about 4%, continuing a trend for the company. But subscription revenue rose by 2.3%, and the segment's gross margin increased by 1 percentage point.Though hardware sales were down, Peloton is growing its subscription revenue through the secondary market where people can buy used stationary bikes for a fraction of the cost of a new one. During the quarter, subscription revenue from hardware purchased on the secondary market grew 16% year over year.""We believe a meaningful share of these subscribers are incremental, and they exhibit lower net churn rates than rental subscribers,"" the company said in a letter to shareholders.While hardware sales have hurt Peloton's overall performance, sales for its Tread are growing after it overcame a costly recall. During the quarter, sales from Peloton's treadmill portfolio grew 42% year over year.The company is also seeing some positive signs in its Bike rental program, which allowed it to clear through a glut of inventory. During the quarter, average net monthly paid subscription churn for rentals was down 1.1 percentage points. Demand has been so steady, it no longer has the refurbished inventory levels necessary to supply that side of the program. The company ceased offering its original Bike rental program on Aug. 1 and since then, has seen demand grow for its Bike+ rental, refurbished original Bike sales and financed new Bike sales.""These alternative programs have stronger unit economics than original Bike rental, with more cash paid upfront and a stronger retention profile,"" the company said in its shareholder letter.Ever since Peloton's pandemic heyday came to an end, the company has struggled to generate free cash flow and ensure it has enough assets on its balance sheet to cover its many liabilities. Earlier this year, it announced a sprawling restructuring plan that included cutting 15% of the company's global workforce to achieve $200 million in annualized cost savings by the end of fiscal 2025.Those efforts are starting to bear fruit.During the quarter, Peloton delivered adjusted EBITDA and free cash flow for the second consecutive quarter – a feat it had not pulled off since the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. It posted $70 million of adjusted EBITDA, far more than the $53 million that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount. That metric was up $105 million compared with the year-ago period and $64 million quarter over quarter.Peloton also generated $26 million in free cash flow, compared with negative $74 million in the year-ago period and $8 million in the prior quarter.Improvements to Peloton's balance sheet come after the company completed massive refinancing of its debt that staved off a looming liquidity crunch and pushed out its debt maturities by several years.As far as who will be Peloton's next leader, interim co-CEO Karen Boone said the search is ""well underway"" and they've seen ""no shortage of interest.""""We are far along in the process. We've done a lot of vetting, a lot of conversations, and we've narrowed it down to some very highly qualified candidates,"" Boone said. ""We have some very specific folks in mind at this point.""In her opening remarks, Boone said the company can't speculate on when its next CEO will start. But just before ending the call, she said the new hire will be in place by the time the company next reports earnings, which is expected to be sometime in the fall.""I should probably under-promise here, but I am excited to say that I do believe you will be speaking to and hearing from the new CEO of Peloton on this call next quarter,"" said Boone.For the year ahead, Peloton is planning to invest in its hardware and software to deliver a better user experience, among other initiatives. However, its guidance assumes that investments in these new initiatives ""will not deliver subscriber growth within the fiscal year,"" indicating Peloton may finally be shifting its focus away from growth in favor of profitability and free cash flow generation.""Chris, and I, in partnership with Peloton's strong leadership team, are continuing to make progress on several key strategic priorities, which include aligning our cost structure to the current size of our business to improve profitability, and deliver meaningful free cash flow without requiring growth to get there,"" Boone said on a call with analysts.""We're enthusiastic about our innovative roadmap, but we'll be judicious about deploying marketing dollars until we demonstrate product market fit, and continue to be cautious about marketing spend given the uncertain consumer backdrop, and ongoing macro environment,"" she said.That shift shows in its reductions to sales and marketing spending — an expense that has long dragged down Peloton's balance sheet and has been criticized as being too high for the company's size.During the quarter, Peloton cut sales and marketing spending by $25.5 million, or 19% year over year. It said it expects to continue to make reductions to its marketing budget throughout fiscal 2025.For the current quarter, Peloton is projecting sales to be worse than Wall Street expected but is guiding to higher-than-forecast adjusted EBITDA. The company said it anticipates sales to be between $560 million and $580 million, compared with estimates of $609 million, according to LSEG. It's expecting to post adjusted EBITDA of $50 million to $60 million, compared with estimates of $45 million, according to StreetAccount.StreetAccount analysts had expected the number of connected fitness subscribers to be 2.96 million during the current quarter, but Peloton projects a range of 2.88 million to 2.89 million instead.For the full year, Peloton expects sales to be between $2.4 billion and $2.5 billion, compared with estimates of $2.7 billion, according to LSEG.",CNBC,22/08/2024,"['In this articlePeloton said Thursday it is digging itself out of the red and eked out a slight sales increase for the first time in nine quarters as it slashed its overall losses.', ""The company's shares spiked 35% on Thursday."", 'The beleaguered connected fitness company, which two board members have run since former CEO Barry McCarthy resigned earlier this year, saw sales grow by 0.2% during its fiscal fourth quarter.', ""While only a modest uptick, it's the first time Peloton posted year-over-year revenue growth since its 2021 holiday quarter."", ""The company also indicated it's ready to focus on profitability over growth with significant cuts to its marketing and sales spending and meaningful increases to free cash flow and adjusted EBITDA."", 'Those cuts helped Peloton narrow its quarterly losses to $30.5 million from $241.1 million in the year-ago period.', ""Here's how the Bike and Tread maker performed compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:For the three-month period that ended June 30, Peloton significantly narrowed its losses."", 'The company posted a loss of $30.5 million, or 8 cents per share, compared with a loss of $241.8 million, or 68 cents per share, a year earlier.', 'Sales rose to $643.6 million, up about 0.2% from $642.1 million a year earlier.', ""That's only a $1.5 million increase, but Peloton did it at a time when sales are typically a bit slower for the company, because the quarter bleeds into the summer when people are more focused on going out and traveling than working out."", ""The last time Peloton delivered year-over-year sales growth was during its holiday season in 2021, which is typically the company's strongest quarter."", ""During the quarter, sales for Peloton's pricy connected fitness hardware fell about 4%, continuing a trend for the company."", ""But subscription revenue rose by 2.3%, and the segment's gross margin increased by 1 percentage point."", 'Though hardware sales were down, Peloton is growing its subscription revenue through the secondary market where people can buy used stationary bikes for a fraction of the cost of a new one.', 'During the quarter, subscription revenue from hardware purchased on the secondary market grew 16% year over year.', '""We believe a meaningful share of these subscribers are incremental, and they exhibit lower net churn rates than rental subscribers,"" the company said in a letter to shareholders.', ""While hardware sales have hurt Peloton's overall performance, sales for its Tread are growing after it overcame a costly recall."", ""During the quarter, sales from Peloton's treadmill portfolio grew 42% year over year."", 'The company is also seeing some positive signs in its Bike rental program, which allowed it to clear through a glut of inventory.', 'During the quarter, average net monthly paid subscription churn for rentals was down 1.1 percentage points.', 'Demand has been so steady, it no longer has the refurbished inventory levels necessary to supply that side of the program.', 'The company ceased offering its original Bike rental program on Aug. 1 and since then, has seen demand grow for its Bike+ rental, refurbished original Bike sales and financed new Bike sales.', '""These alternative programs have stronger unit economics than original Bike rental, with more cash paid upfront and a stronger retention profile,"" the company said in its shareholder letter.', ""Ever since Peloton's pandemic heyday came to an end, the company has struggled to generate free cash flow and ensure it has enough assets on its balance sheet to cover its many liabilities."", ""Earlier this year, it announced a sprawling restructuring plan that included cutting 15% of the company's global workforce to achieve $200 million in annualized cost savings by the end of fiscal 2025.Those efforts are starting to bear fruit."", 'During the quarter, Peloton delivered adjusted EBITDA and free cash flow for the second consecutive quarter – a feat it had not pulled off since the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.', 'It posted $70 million of adjusted EBITDA, far more than the $53 million that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount.', 'That metric was up $105 million compared with the year-ago period and $64 million quarter over quarter.', 'Peloton also generated $26 million in free cash flow, compared with negative $74 million in the year-ago period and $8 million in the prior quarter.', ""Improvements to Peloton's balance sheet come after the company completed massive refinancing of its debt that staved off a looming liquidity crunch and pushed out its debt maturities by several years."", 'As far as who will be Peloton\'s next leader, interim co-CEO Karen Boone said the search is ""well underway"" and they\'ve seen ""no shortage of interest.', '""""We are far along in the process.', 'We\'ve done a lot of vetting, a lot of conversations, and we\'ve narrowed it down to some very highly qualified candidates,"" Boone said. ""', 'We have some very specific folks in mind at this point.', '""In her opening remarks, Boone said the company can\'t speculate on when its next CEO will start.', 'But just before ending the call, she said the new hire will be in place by the time the company next reports earnings, which is expected to be sometime in the fall.', '""I should probably under-promise here, but I am excited to say that I do believe you will be speaking to and hearing from the new CEO of Peloton on this call next quarter,"" said Boone.', 'For the year ahead, Peloton is planning to invest in its hardware and software to deliver a better user experience, among other initiatives.', 'However, its guidance assumes that investments in these new initiatives ""will not deliver subscriber growth within the fiscal year,"" indicating Peloton may finally be shifting its focus away from growth in favor of profitability and free cash flow generation.', '""Chris, and I, in partnership with Peloton\'s strong leadership team, are continuing to make progress on several key strategic priorities, which include aligning our cost structure to the current size of our business to improve profitability, and deliver meaningful free cash flow without requiring growth to get there,"" Boone said on a call with analysts.', '""We\'re enthusiastic about our innovative roadmap, but we\'ll be judicious about deploying marketing dollars until we demonstrate product market fit, and continue to be cautious about marketing spend given the uncertain consumer backdrop, and ongoing macro environment,"" she said.', ""That shift shows in its reductions to sales and marketing spending — an expense that has long dragged down Peloton's balance sheet and has been criticized as being too high for the company's size."", 'During the quarter, Peloton cut sales and marketing spending by $25.5 million, or 19% year over year.', 'It said it expects to continue to make reductions to its marketing budget throughout fiscal 2025.For the current quarter, Peloton is projecting sales to be worse than Wall Street expected but is guiding to higher-than-forecast adjusted EBITDA.', 'The company said it anticipates sales to be between $560 million and $580 million, compared with estimates of $609 million, according to LSEG.', ""It's expecting to post adjusted EBITDA of $50 million to $60 million, compared with estimates of $45 million, according to StreetAccount."", 'StreetAccount analysts had expected the number of connected fitness subscribers to be 2.96 million during the current quarter, but Peloton projects a range of 2.88 million to 2.89 million instead.', 'For the full year, Peloton expects sales to be between $2.4 billion and $2.5 billion, compared with estimates of $2.7 billion, according to LSEG.']",0.1329421236166253,"""Chris, and I, in partnership with Peloton's strong leadership team, are continuing to make progress on several key strategic priorities, which include aligning our cost structure to the current size of our business to improve profitability, and deliver meaningful free cash flow without requiring growth to get there,"" Boone said on a call with analysts.",Those cuts helped Peloton narrow its quarterly losses to $30.5 million from $241.1 million in the year-ago period.,0.5970576956868172,"During the quarter, sales from Peloton's treadmill portfolio grew 42% year over year.","It said it expects to continue to make reductions to its marketing budget throughout fiscal 2025.For the current quarter, Peloton is projecting sales to be worse than Wall Street expected but is guiding to higher-than-forecast adjusted EBITDA.",2024-08-30
Cava earnings beat estimates as restaurant traffic climbs nearly 10%,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/22/cava-group-cava-earnings-q2-2024.html,2024-08-23T11:28:50+0000,"In this articleCava on Thursday raised its full-year outlook as its restaurants reported strong traffic, fueling better-than-expected quarterly earnings and revenue.Shares of the company rose 9% in extended trading. The stock has more than doubled its value this year, bringing Cava's market cap up to about $11.6 billion, as of Thursday's close.Here is what the company reported for the quarter that ended July 14 compared to what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:The Mediterranean restaurant chain reported fiscal second-quarter net income of $19.7 million, or 17 cents per share, up from $6.5 million, or 21 cents per share, a year earlier.Net sales climbed 35% to $233 million. The company's same-store sales rose 14.4%, topping StreetAccount estimates of 7.9%.While many other restaurant companies have reported declines in visits as consumers pull back their spending, Cava said its traffic grew 9.5% in the quarter. Cava CEO and co-founder Brett Schulman credited the chain's new grilled steak option as one reason customers kept coming to its restaurants during the quarter.Cava opened 18 net new locations during the quarter, bringing its total footprint up to 341 restaurants.For fiscal 2024, Cava now expects same-store sales growth of 8.5% to 9.5%, up from its prior range of 4.5% to 6.5%. The company is also projecting that it will open 54 to 57 new locations this year, up from its previous forecast of 50 to 54 restaurants.Cava also expects to report adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of $109 million to $114 million. Previously, it was projecting adjusted EBITDA of $100 million to $105 million for the fiscal year.",CNBC,23/08/2024,"['In this articleCava on Thursday raised its full-year outlook as its restaurants reported strong traffic, fueling better-than-expected quarterly earnings and revenue.', 'Shares of the company rose 9% in extended trading.', ""The stock has more than doubled its value this year, bringing Cava's market cap up to about $11.6 billion, as of Thursday's close."", 'Here is what the company reported for the quarter that ended July 14 compared to what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:The Mediterranean restaurant chain reported fiscal second-quarter net income of $19.7 million, or 17 cents per share, up from $6.5 million, or 21 cents per share, a year earlier.', 'Net salesclimbed 35% to $233 million.', ""The company's same-store sales rose 14.4%, topping StreetAccount estimates of 7.9%.While many other restaurant companies have reported declines in visits as consumers pull back their spending, Cava said its traffic grew 9.5% in the quarter."", ""Cava CEO and co-founder Brett Schulman credited the chain's new grilled steak option as one reason customers kept coming to its restaurants during the quarter."", 'Cava opened 18 net new locations during the quarter, bringing its total footprint up to 341 restaurants.', 'For fiscal 2024, Cava now expects same-store sales growth of 8.5% to 9.5%, up from its prior range of 4.5% to 6.5%.', 'The company is also projecting that it will open 54 to 57 new locations this year, up from its previous forecast of 50 to 54 restaurants.', 'Cava also expects to report adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of $109 million to $114 million.', 'Previously, it was projecting adjusted EBITDA of $100 million to $105 million for the fiscal year.']",0.2665119947167048,"In this articleCava on Thursday raised its full-year outlook as its restaurants reported strong traffic, fueling better-than-expected quarterly earnings and revenue.",,0.9992665383550856,Shares of the company rose 9% in extended trading.,,2024-08-30
Grand Canyon National Park hotels to close after waterpipe fails,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cdd7n25lqjpo,2024-08-29T21:36:02.743Z,"All hotels within the Grand Canyon National Park will be closed and camping will be restricted in advance of one of the busiest holiday weekends of the year due to problems with the park’s water supply. The US National Park Service said in a statement that hotels would be closed starting on Thursday night. Only “dry camping” – meaning campers will have to supply their own water – will be allowed. The park relies on the ageing Transcanyon Waterline, which has suffered four recent significant breaks, cutting off water to the park. Park officials said there are a total of around 950 hotel rooms located inside the park but declined to comment further when reached on Thursday. The park will remain open to day trippers over the US Labor Day weekend, and visitor services such as food outlets, a post office and a medical clinic will still operate. Limited water will be available via spigots and in bathrooms, and park officials said campers should carry all water supplies with them or be able to treat water from streams or the Colorado River. No campfires will be allowed on the South Rim and inner canyon areas. “These measures are crucial for ensuring the safety and sustainability of water resources,” the park service said in a statement.  ""The goal is to restore full operational status for overnight guests on the South Rim as quickly as possible.” However, park officials did not give a timeline for restoring the water supply. Hotels located outside the park in nearby Arizona towns are not affected. Tourists planning to visit commented about scrambling for alternative places to stay on the national park’s Facebook page. “I will look for accommodations outside the park. Sorry this is going on, but we won't let it stop us!” one wrote. Another commented: “I ended up booking outside of the park and plan on canceling my [National Park Service] reservation. I have spent tons of money on this trip which includes other stops along the way.” High temperatures in the park on Thursday are expected to range from 28C (84F) at the South Rim to 38C (100F) in the Inner Canyon. The 12 1/2 mile (20km) Transcanyon Waterline was originally built in the 1960s and according to the National Park Service “has exceeded its expected lifespan and experiences frequent failures”. Park officials said they began to experience water supply issues on 8 July and that currently no water is being pumped to either the South or North Rim – two of the park’s main tourist hubs. There have been more than 85 major breaks in the pipeline since 2010, and the park service has recently started a $208m (£158m) reconstruction project due to be completed in 2027. Around six million people visit Grand Canyon National Park each year, and park grounds are home to around 2,500 year-round residents. ",BBC,29/08/2024,"['All hotels within the Grand Canyon National Park will be closed and camping will be restricted in advance of one of the busiest holiday weekends of the year due to problems with the park’s water supply.', 'The US National Park Service said in a statement that hotels would be closed starting on Thursday night.', 'Only “dry camping” – meaning campers will have to supply their own water – will be allowed.', 'The park relies on the ageing Transcanyon Waterline, which has suffered four recent significant breaks, cutting off water to the park.', 'Park officials said there are a total of around 950 hotel rooms located inside the park but declined to comment further when reached on Thursday.', 'The park will remain open to day trippers over the US Labor Day weekend, and visitor services such as food outlets, a post office and a medical clinic will still operate.', 'Limited water will be available via spigots and in bathrooms, and park officials said campers should carry all water supplies with them or be able to treat water from streams or the Colorado River.', 'No campfires will be allowed on the South Rim and inner canyon areas. “', 'These measures are crucial for ensuring the safety and sustainability of water resources,” the park service said in a statement. ""', 'The goal is to restore full operational status for overnight guests on the South Rim as quickly as possible.”', 'However, park officials did not give a timeline for restoring the water supply.', 'Hotels located outside the park in nearby Arizona towns are not affected.', 'Tourists planning to visit commented about scrambling for alternative places to stay on the national park’s Facebook page. “', 'I will look for accommodations outside the park.', ""Sorry this is going on, but we won't let it stop us!”"", 'one wrote.', 'Another commented: “I ended up booking outside of the park and plan on canceling my [National Park Service] reservation.', 'I have spent tons of money on this trip which includes other stops along the way.”', 'High temperatures in the park on Thursday are expected to range from 28C (84F) at the South Rim to 38C (100F) in the Inner Canyon.', 'The 12 1/2 mile (20km) Transcanyon Waterline was originally built in the 1960s and according to the National Park Service “has exceeded its expected lifespan and experiences frequent failures”.', 'Park officials said they began to experience water supply issues on 8 July and that currently no water is being pumped to either the South or North Rim – two of the park’s main tourist hubs.', 'There have been more than 85 major breaks in the pipeline since 2010, and the park service has recently started a $208m (£158m) reconstruction project due to be completed in 2027.', 'Around six million people visit Grand Canyon National Park each year, and park grounds are home to around 2,500 year-round residents.']",0.0033418204327335,"These measures are crucial for ensuring the safety and sustainability of water resources,” the park service said in a statement. ""","Sorry this is going on, but we won't let it stop us!”",-0.6021321912606558,The goal is to restore full operational status for overnight guests on the South Rim as quickly as possible.”,The 12 1/2 mile (20km) Transcanyon Waterline was originally built in the 1960s and according to the National Park Service “has exceeded its expected lifespan and experiences frequent failures”.,2024-08-30
"FDA authorizes Novavax’s updated Covid vaccine, paving way for fall rollout",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/30/fda-authorizes-novavax-protein-covid-vaccine.html,2024-08-30T19:50:23+0000,"In this articleThe Food and Drug Administration authorized Novavax's updated protein-based Covid vaccine for emergency use in people ages 12 and up on Friday, paving the way for the shot to compete with Pfizer and Moderna's jabs this fall and winter. Novavax's vaccine targets the highly contagious omicron subvariant JN.1, which began circulating widely in the U.S. earlier this year. JN.1 only accounted for 0.2% of cases circulating nationwide as of this week, according to the latest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data. Novavax manufactures protein-based vaccines, which cannot be quickly updated to target another strain of the virus.Despite that, the biotech company has noted that its shot provides protection against descendants of JN.1 that are currently dominant in the U.S., including KP.2.3, KP.3, KP.3.1.1 and LB.1.""Our updated vaccine targets JN.1, the 'parent strain' of currently circulating variants, and has shown robust cross-reactivity against JN.1 lineage viruses,"" Novavax CEO John Jacobs said in a statement.Novavax said it expects its shot to be ""broadly available"" in thousands of locations across the U.S., including retail and independent pharmacies and regional grocers.Shares of Novavax rose more than 8% on Friday following the announcement. The FDA's decision comes only a week after it approved a new round of messenger RNA shots from Pfizer and Moderna, which both target another offshoot of JN.1 called KP.2. Last year, the agency authorized Novavax's shot nearly a month after clearing vaccines from its rivals, putting the company at a disadvantage. Public health officials see Novavax's vaccine as a valuable alternative for people who don't want to take mRNA shots from Pfizer and Moderna, which use a newer vaccine method to teach cells how to make proteins that trigger an immune response against Covid. Novavax's shot, meanwhile, fends off the virus with protein-based technology, a decades-old method used in routine vaccinations against hepatitis B and shingles.It's unclear how many people will get a new Covid shot this fall and winter. Only around 22.5% of U.S. adults received the latest round of shots that came out last fall, according to CDC data through early May.",CNBC,30/08/2024,"[""In this articleThe Food and Drug Administration authorized Novavax's updated protein-based Covid vaccine for emergency use in people ages 12 and up on Friday, paving the way for the shot to compete with Pfizer and Moderna's jabs this fall and winter."", ""Novavax's vaccine targets the highly contagious omicron subvariant JN.1, which began circulating widely in the U.S. earlier this year."", 'JN.1 only accounted for 0.2% of cases circulating nationwide as of this week, according to the latest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data.', 'Novavax manufactures protein-based vaccines, which cannot be quickly updated to target another strain of the virus.', 'Despite that, the biotech company has noted that its shot provides protection against descendants of JN.1 that are currently dominant in the U.S., including KP.2.3, KP.3, KP.3.1.1 and LB.1.""Our updated vaccine targets JN.1, the \'parent strain\' of currently circulating variants, and has shown robust cross-reactivity against JN.1 lineage viruses,"" Novavax CEO John Jacobs said in a statement.', 'Novavax said it expects its shot to be ""broadly available"" in thousands of locations across the U.S., including retail and independent pharmacies and regional grocers.', 'Shares of Novavax rose more than 8% on Friday following the announcement.', ""The FDA's decision comes only a week after it approved a new round of messenger RNA shots from Pfizer and Moderna, which both target another offshoot of JN.1 called KP.2."", ""Last year, the agency authorized Novavax's shot nearly a month after clearing vaccines from its rivals, putting the company at a disadvantage."", ""Public health officials see Novavax's vaccine as a valuable alternative for people who don't want to take mRNA shots from Pfizer and Moderna, which use a newer vaccine method to teach cells how to make proteins that trigger an immune response against Covid."", ""Novavax's shot, meanwhile, fends off the virus with protein-based technology, a decades-old method used in routine vaccinations against hepatitis B and shingles."", ""It's unclear how many people will get a new Covid shot this fall and winter."", 'Only around 22.5% of U.S. adults received the latest round of shots that came out last fall, according to CDC data through early May.']",0.0145241411095258,"Public health officials see Novavax's vaccine as a valuable alternative for people who don't want to take mRNA shots from Pfizer and Moderna, which use a newer vaccine method to teach cells how to make proteins that trigger an immune response against Covid.","Last year, the agency authorized Novavax's shot nearly a month after clearing vaccines from its rivals, putting the company at a disadvantage.",0.5800193548202515,Shares of Novavax rose more than 8% on Friday following the announcement.,"Last year, the agency authorized Novavax's shot nearly a month after clearing vaccines from its rivals, putting the company at a disadvantage.",2024-08-30
Boeing Starliner returning empty as NASA turns to SpaceX to bring astronauts back from ISS,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/24/nasa-boeing-starliner-decision-return-empty-spacex-astronauts-iss.html,2024-08-29T13:13:56+0000,"In this articleBoeing will return its Starliner capsule from the International Space Station without the NASA astronauts that it delivered to orbit in early June, the agency announced on Saturday.With Starliner coming back to Earth empty, NASA will now have astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams return via SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft, which is expected to launch its ninth regular mission to the ISS for the agency on Sept. 24.Ultimately, Wilmore and Williams will stay at the ISS for about six more months before flying home in February on SpaceX's Crew-9 vehicle. The test flight was originally intended to last about nine days.The decision to bring Starliner back from the ISS empty marks a dramatic about-face for NASA and Boeing, as the organizations were previously adamant that the capsule was the primary choice for returning the crew.But Starliner's crew flight test, which had been seen as the final major milestone in the spacecraft's development, faced problems — most notably with its propulsion system.""Boeing has worked very hard with NASA to get the necessary data to make this decision,"" NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said during a press conference with top NASA officials at Johnson Space Center in Houston on Saturday. ""We want to further understand the root causes and understand the design improvements so that the Boeing Starliner will serve as an important part of our assured crew access to the ISS.""He reiterated that test flights are ""neither safe, nor routine,"" and that the decision was the ""result of a commitment to safety.""NASA will now conduct another phase of its Flight Readiness Review to determine when to bring the empty Starliner home.Boeing officials had been adamant in press briefings that Starliner was safe for the astronauts to fly home in the event of an emergency, despite delaying the return multiple times. NASA said there was a ""technical disagreement"" between the agency and the aerospace company, and said it evaluated risk differently than Boeing for returning its crew.Nonetheless, NASA officials repeatedly expressed support for Boeing, and Nelson said he was ""100% certain"" that Starliner would be able to launch with a crew again someday.""We continue to focus, first and foremost, on the safety of the crew and spacecraft,"" Boeing said in a statement posted on X on Saturday. ""We are executing the mission as determined by NASA, and we are preparing the spacecraft for a safe and successful uncrewed return.""Ken Bowersox, NASA associate administrator, said NASA officials were unanimous in their decision to choose SpaceX to bring the crew home.Meanwhile, SpaceX will bring two astronauts along on its Crew-9 vehicle — instead of four who were originally planned to go — to make room for Wilmore and Williams.""SpaceX stands ready to support @NASA however we can,"" President and COO Gwynne Shotwell responded in a social media post on X.Boeing's Starliner capsule ""Calypso"" has been at the International Space Station since early June on a mission that NASA extended indefinitely as the agency and company tried to identify why multiple of the spacecraft's thrusters failed during docking.Those thrusters, part of the spacecraft's propulsion system, are key to Starliner's safe return from the ISS. NASA cited the thrusters on Saturday as an ongoing problem.The Starliner crew flight test was supposed to be a final box checked for Boeing and a key asset gained for NASA. The agency was hoping to fulfill its dream of having two competing companies — Boeing and Elon Musk's SpaceX — flying alternating missions to the ISS.Instead, the flight test is further setting back Boeing's progress in NASA's Commercial Crew program and, with over $1.5 billion in losses absorbed already, threatens the company's future involvement with it.",CNBC,29/08/2024,"['In this articleBoeing will return its Starliner capsule from the International Space Station without the NASA astronauts that it delivered to orbit in early June, the agency announced on Saturday.', ""With Starliner coming back to Earth empty, NASA will now have astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams return via SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft, which is expected to launch its ninth regular mission to the ISS for the agency on Sept. 24.Ultimately, Wilmore and Williams will stay at the ISS for about six more months before flying home in February on SpaceX's Crew-9 vehicle."", 'The test flight was originally intended to last about nine days.', 'The decision to bring Starliner back from the ISS empty marks a dramatic about-face for NASA and Boeing, as the organizations were previously adamant that the capsule was the primary choice for returning the crew.', ""But Starliner's crew flight test, which had been seen as the final major milestone in the spacecraft's development, faced problems — most notably with its propulsion system."", '""Boeing has worked very hard with NASA to get the necessary data to make this decision,"" NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said during a press conference with top NASA officials at Johnson Space Center in Houston on Saturday. ""', 'We want to further understand the root causes and understand the design improvements so that the Boeing Starliner will serve as an important part of our assured crew access to the ISS.""He reiterated that test flights are ""neither safe, nor routine,"" and that the decision was the ""result of a commitment to safety.', '""NASA will now conduct another phase of its Flight Readiness Review to determine when to bring the empty Starliner home.', 'Boeing officials had been adamant in press briefings that Starliner was safe for the astronauts to fly home in the event of an emergency, despite delaying the return multiple times.', 'NASA said there was a ""technical disagreement"" between the agency and the aerospace company, and said it evaluated risk differently than Boeing for returning its crew.', 'Nonetheless, NASA officials repeatedly expressed support for Boeing, and Nelson said he was ""100% certain"" that Starliner would be able to launch with a crew again someday.', '""We continue to focus, first and foremost, on the safety of the crew and spacecraft,"" Boeing said in a statement posted on X on Saturday. ""', 'We are executing the mission as determined by NASA, and we are preparing the spacecraft for a safe and successful uncrewed return.', '""Ken Bowersox, NASA associate administrator, said NASA officials were unanimous in their decision to choose SpaceX to bring the crew home.', 'Meanwhile, SpaceX will bring two astronauts along on its Crew-9 vehicle — instead of four who were originally planned to go — to make room for Wilmore and Williams.', '""SpaceX stands ready to support@NASAhowever we can,"" President and COO Gwynne Shotwell responded in a social media post on X.Boeing\'s Starliner capsule ""Calypso"" has been at the International Space Station since early June on a mission that NASA extended indefinitely as the agency and company tried to identify why multiple of the spacecraft\'sthrusters failed during docking.', ""Those thrusters, part of the spacecraft's propulsion system, are key to Starliner's safe return from the ISS."", 'NASA cited the thrusters on Saturday as an ongoing problem.', 'The Starliner crew flight test was supposed to be a final box checked for Boeing and a key asset gained for NASA.', ""The agency was hoping to fulfill its dream of having two competing companies — Boeing and Elon Musk's SpaceX — flying alternating missions to the ISS.Instead, the flight test is further setting back Boeing's progress in NASA's Commercial Crew program and, withover $1.5 billion in lossesabsorbed already, threatens the company's future involvement with it.""]",0.1288737369317408,"We are executing the mission as determined by NASA, and we are preparing the spacecraft for a safe and successful uncrewed return.","NASA said there was a ""technical disagreement"" between the agency and the aerospace company, and said it evaluated risk differently than Boeing for returning its crew.",0.1006312668323516,"Nonetheless, NASA officials repeatedly expressed support for Boeing, and Nelson said he was ""100% certain"" that Starliner would be able to launch with a crew again someday.","But Starliner's crew flight test, which had been seen as the final major milestone in the spacecraft's development, faced problems — most notably with its propulsion system.",2024-08-30
"Lululemon cuts guidance, misses sales estimates after botched product launch",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/29/lululemon-lulu-earnings-q2-2024.html,2024-08-30T11:42:15+0000,"In this articleLululemon lowered its guidance and posted its first revenue miss in more than two years on Thursday after it botched a highly anticipated product launch and growth slowed in the Americas. The company now expects full-year net revenue to be between $10.38 billion and $10.48 billion, down from a previous range of between $10.7 billion and $10.8 billion. Lululemon anticipates earnings per share will be in a range of $13.95 to $14.15, down from previous guidance of $14.27 to $14.47.Here's how company did in its fiscal second quarter compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG, formerly known as Refinitiv:Lululemon shares rose more than 2% in extended trading after initially falling.The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended July 28 was $393 million, or $3.15 per share, compared with $342 million, or $2.68 per share, a year earlier. Sales rose to $2.37 billion, up about 7% from $2.21 billion a year earlier. Beyond total sales, Lululemon also missed expectations on comparable sales, which grew 2%, well behind estimates of 5.9%, according to StreetAccount. Comparable sales in the Americas fell 3%.The trend doesn't appear poised to improve in the current quarter. Lululemon said it expects sales to grow 6% to 7%, worse than the 9.2% growth that analysts had expected, according to LSEG.However, Lululemon's profit guidance is roughly in line with what Wall Street anticipated. The company said it expects third-quarter earnings per share to be between $2.68 and $2.73, compared with estimates of $2.70, according to LSEG.During the quarter, Lululemon pulled its Breezethrough leggings, launched in early July, after it received a wave of complaints about the product's unflattering fit.On a call with analysts, CEO Calvin McDonald addressed the Breezethrough launch and said it was an opportunity for the company to ""test and learn."" He added Lululemon bought a small amount of product for the launch.""While guests were excited by the fabric, the design didn't meet their expectations. Listening to our guests is central to who we are and how we grow our brand, and we took the right step of pausing on sales and look forward to reintroducing the fabric in the future,"" said McDonald. ""This decision had a negligible impact on our performance in this quarter.""The botched launch came after the company struggled with other self-inflicted issues with its assortment, including not having the colors and sizes that its core customers desired, which has had an impact on sales in the U.S. During the quarter, sales grew only 1% in the Americas, the company's largest region.On the call with analysts, McDonald acknowledged Lululemon's women's business has slowed down in the U.S. He said the company has determined the ""most significant factor"" affecting the segment is a lack of new styles, which has hurt sales of bottoms and the company's online business.""The newness that we had performed well. We simply did not have enough to inspire her to purchase,"" he said.McDonald insisted the Lululemon brand ""remains strong in the U.S. market"" and said its men's business continues to grow.""Guests are looking for our product, coming into our stores and visiting our e-commerce sites,"" said McDonald.Lululemon's product challenges follow the departure of its longtime chief product officer, Sun Choe, who resigned in May to pursue another opportunity. At the time, the decision weighed on Lululemon's stock over concerns that Choe's department would hurt the company's ability to innovate and keep winning over customers with trendy new fits.McDonald said Lululemon had a succession plan in place at the time of Choe's departure, and said the company's global creative director, Jonathan Cheung, would report directly to McDonald and oversee product design and innovation.The company also appointed Nikki Neuburger as its new chief brand and product activation officer, overseeing merchandising, footwear and product operations. On Thursday, McDonald said he and Neuberger are ""pleased"" with the new structure, which puts design and merchandising on ""equal footing"" and ""reestablishes the healthy balance that must exist within a product organization.""""The teams are working well together and already in action,"" said McDonald.Like other retailers that are seeing demand slow, Lululemon appears focused on what's within its control: operations and efficiency. While the sales picture during the quarter was rougher than expected, Lululemon's profits came in higher than anticipated.Gross profit grew 9% to $1.4 billion, while its gross margin increase 0.8 percentage point to 59.6% — better than the 57.7% that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount. Its operating margin and operating income also increased.Sales jumped 29% in Lululemon's international markets as the company looks to China for growth.",CNBC,30/08/2024,"['In this articleLululemon lowered its guidance and posted its first revenue miss in more than two years on Thursday after it botched a highly anticipated product launch and growth slowed in the Americas.', 'The company now expects full-year net revenue to be between $10.38 billion and $10.48 billion, down from a previous range of between $10.7 billion and $10.8 billion.', ""Lululemon anticipates earnings per share will be in a range of $13.95 to $14.15, down from previous guidance of $14.27 to $14.47.Here's how company did in its fiscal second quarter compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG, formerly known as Refinitiv:Lululemon shares rose more than 2% in extended trading after initially falling."", ""The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended July 28 was $393 million, or $3.15 per share, compared with $342 million, or $2.68 per share, a year earlier."", 'Sales rose to $2.37 billion, up about 7% from $2.21 billion a year earlier.', 'Beyond total sales, Lululemon also missed expectations on comparable sales, which grew 2%, well behind estimates of 5.9%, according to StreetAccount.', ""Comparable sales in the Americas fell 3%.The trend doesn't appear poised to improve in the current quarter."", ""Lululemon said it expects sales to grow 6% to 7%, worse than the 9.2% growth that analysts had expected, according to LSEG.However, Lululemon's profit guidance is roughly in line with what Wall Street anticipated."", ""The company said it expects third-quarter earnings per share to be between $2.68 and $2.73, compared with estimates of $2.70, according to LSEG.During the quarter, Lululemon pulled its Breezethrough leggings, launched in early July, after it received a wave of complaints about the product's unflattering fit."", 'On a call with analysts, CEO Calvin McDonald addressed the Breezethrough launch and said it was an opportunity for the company to ""test and learn.""', 'He added Lululemon bought a small amount of product for the launch.', '""While guests were excited by the fabric, the design didn\'t meet their expectations.', 'Listening to our guests is central to who we are and how we grow our brand, and we took the right step of pausing on sales and look forward to reintroducing the fabric in the future,"" said McDonald. ""', 'This decision had a negligible impact on our performance in this quarter.', '""The botched launch came after the company struggled with other self-inflicted issues with its assortment, including not having the colors and sizes that its core customers desired, which has had an impact on sales in the U.S. During the quarter, sales grew only 1% in the Americas, the company\'s largest region.', 'On the call with analysts, McDonald acknowledged Lululemon\'s women\'s business has slowed down in the U.S. He said the company has determined the ""most significant factor"" affecting the segment is a lack of new styles, which has hurt sales of bottoms and the company\'s online business.', '""The newness that we had performed well.', 'We simply did not have enough to inspire her to purchase,"" he said.', 'McDonald insisted the Lululemon brand ""remains strong in the U.S. market"" and said its men\'s business continues to grow.', '""Guests are looking for our product, coming into our stores and visiting our e-commerce sites,"" said McDonald.', ""Lululemon's product challenges follow the departure of its longtime chief product officer, Sun Choe, who resigned in May to pursue another opportunity."", ""At the time, the decision weighed on Lululemon's stock over concerns that Choe's department would hurt the company's ability to innovate and keep winning over customers with trendy new fits."", ""McDonald said Lululemon had a succession plan in place at the time of Choe's departure, and said the company's global creative director, Jonathan Cheung, would report directly to McDonald and oversee product design and innovation."", 'The company also appointed Nikki Neuburger as its new chief brand and product activation officer, overseeing merchandising, footwear and product operations.', 'On Thursday, McDonald said he and Neuberger are ""pleased"" with the new structure, which puts design and merchandising on ""equal footing"" and ""reestablishes the healthy balance that must exist within a product organization.', '""""The teams are working well together and already in action,"" said McDonald.', ""Like other retailers that are seeing demand slow, Lululemon appears focused on what's within its control: operations and efficiency."", ""While the sales picture during the quarter was rougher than expected, Lululemon's profits came in higher than anticipated."", 'Gross profit grew 9% to $1.4 billion, while its gross margin increase 0.8 percentage point to 59.6% — better than the 57.7% that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount.', 'Its operating margin and operating income also increased.', ""Sales jumped 29% in Lululemon's international markets as the company looks to China for growth.""]",0.2833159185811433,"McDonald said Lululemon had a succession plan in place at the time of Choe's departure, and said the company's global creative director, Jonathan Cheung, would report directly to McDonald and oversee product design and innovation.","On the call with analysts, McDonald acknowledged Lululemon's women's business has slowed down in the U.S. He said the company has determined the ""most significant factor"" affecting the segment is a lack of new styles, which has hurt sales of bottoms and the company's online business.",-0.0151658083001772,"Gross profit grew 9% to $1.4 billion, while its gross margin increase 0.8 percentage point to 59.6% — better than the 57.7% that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount.",In this articleLululemon lowered its guidance and posted its first revenue miss in more than two years on Thursday after it botched a highly anticipated product launch and growth slowed in the Americas.,2024-08-30
Could 'super potatoes' save the tattie industry?,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cjdkyrk0g0lo,2024-08-29T22:10:09.456Z,"Scientists have made a major breakthrough which could save the Scottish potato industry from collapse. A pest called potato cyst nematodes (PCN) has been steadily infecting fields and rendering them useless for growing seed potatoes. A team from the James Hutton Institute has been testing varieties which are resistant to PCN while retaining their taste. They have discovered several varieties and have been working with supermarkets to make sure they can replace potatoes which are more vulnerable. James Price, a molecular plant pathologist at the Institute, says the potatoes ""have every possibility to save the industry."" ""Having resistance to both species of the potato cyst nematodes that we see in Scotland and the UK, they'll be able to keep the numbers reduced in the soil,"" he said.  ""This means that seed could be returned to these lands when PCN aren't detectable in the soil any more."" Scientists had been predicting that PCN would wipe out Scotland’s seed potato industry by 2050. Seed potatoes are those which are grown to be sold to other farmers who then use them to grow ""ware"" potatoes. Ware potatoes are the potatoes we buy for eating at home, in restaurants or as processed foods like chips and crisps. The sector is worth £4.5bn to the economy with almost 80% of Britain’s seed potatoes coming from Scotland. Those seeds are needed for the UK’s food security with potatoes being a huge staple of the British diet. Dr Kerry Leslie, a potato specialist at SAC Consulting, believes there is little difference in the taste of the resistant varieties compared with favourites such as the Maris Piper. She said taste was key for retailers to get on board. ""As long as these varieties aren't majorly different in terms of taste and texture, they should be fine to get taken up by the supermarkets,"" she said. To slow the spread, fields with even low levels of PCN can no longer grow seed potatoes until they have been shown to be clear for a number of years. An action network was set up in 2021 to see if alternative varieties could be found which are resistant to PCN. Field trials have been under way to identify the ones which can be sold as “white potatoes” in supermarkets.  ",BBC,29/08/2024,"['Scientists have made a major breakthrough which could save the Scottish potato industry from collapse.', 'A pest called potato cyst nematodes (PCN) has been steadily infecting fields and rendering them useless for growing seed potatoes.', 'A team from the James Hutton Institute has been testing varieties which are resistant to PCN while retaining their taste.', 'They have discovered several varieties and have been working with supermarkets to make sure they can replace potatoes which are more vulnerable.', 'James Price, a molecular plant pathologist at the Institute, says the potatoes ""have every possibility to save the industry."" ""', 'Having resistance to both species of the potato cyst nematodes that we see in Scotland and the UK, they\'ll be able to keep the numbers reduced in the soil,"" he said. ""', 'This means that seed could be returned to these lands when PCN aren\'t detectable in the soil any more.""', 'Scientists had been predicting that PCN would wipe out Scotland’s seed potato industry by 2050.', 'Seed potatoes are those which are grown to be sold to other farmers who then use them to grow ""ware"" potatoes.', 'Ware potatoes are the potatoes we buy for eating at home, in restaurants or as processed foods like chips and crisps.', 'The sector is worth £4.5bn to the economy with almost 80% of Britain’s seed potatoes coming from Scotland.', 'Those seeds are needed for the UK’s food security with potatoes being a huge staple of the British diet.', 'Dr Kerry Leslie, a potato specialist at SAC Consulting, believes there is little difference in the taste of the resistant varieties compared with favourites such as the Maris Piper.', 'She said taste was key for retailers to get on board. ""', 'As long as these varieties aren\'t majorly different in terms of taste and texture, they should be fine to get taken up by the supermarkets,"" she said.', 'To slow the spread, fields with even low levels of PCN can no longer grow seed potatoes until they have been shown to be clear for a number of years.', 'An action network was set up in 2021 to see if alternative varieties could be found which are resistant to PCN.', 'Field trials have been under way to identify the ones which can be sold as “white potatoes” in supermarkets.']",0.0837369211446974,Those seeds are needed for the UK’s food security with potatoes being a huge staple of the British diet.,A pest called potato cyst nematodes (PCN) has been steadily infecting fields and rendering them useless for growing seed potatoes.,0.0172424217065175,"James Price, a molecular plant pathologist at the Institute, says the potatoes ""have every possibility to save the industry."" """,A pest called potato cyst nematodes (PCN) has been steadily infecting fields and rendering them useless for growing seed potatoes.,2024-08-30
Delta chief operations officer departing for another company after just over a year on the job,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/23/delta-chief-operations-officer-coo-mike-spanos.html,2024-08-23T16:25:57+0000,"In this articleDelta Air Lines' chief operating officer is leaving at the end of the month, the company said in a securities filing Friday.CEO Ed Bastian said in an employee memo that Chief Operating Officer Mike Spanos is taking a job at another company.His departure, after just over a year on the job, comes weeks after Delta suffered a meltdown in the wake of the massive CrowdStrike outage in July. Delta estimates those disruptions cost the airline some $500 million and said it will seek compensation from CrowdStrike and Microsoft.However, Bastian said in the memo Friday that Spanos told him earlier in the summer that he was ""considering opportunities outside of Delta.""Delta doesn't plan to replace Spanos, Bastian said. Instead, John Laughter, chief of operations and president of Delta's TechOps maintenance and overhaul unit, and Allison Ausband, chief customer experience officer, will report to Bastian. Spanos joined Delta in May 2023 and previously held the role of CEO at Six Flags Entertainment and executive positions at PepsiCo.",CNBC,23/08/2024,"[""In this articleDelta Air Lines' chief operating officer is leaving at the end of the month, the company said in a securities filing Friday."", 'CEO Ed Bastian said in an employee memo that Chief Operating Officer Mike Spanos is taking a job at another company.', 'His departure, after just over a year on the job, comes weeks after Delta suffered a meltdown in the wake of the massive CrowdStrike outage in July.', 'Delta estimates those disruptions cost the airline some $500 million and said it will seek compensation from CrowdStrike and Microsoft.', 'However, Bastian said in the memo Friday that Spanos told him earlier in the summer that he was ""considering opportunities outside of Delta.', '""Delta doesn\'t plan to replace Spanos, Bastian said.', ""Instead, John Laughter, chief of operations and president of Delta's TechOps maintenance and overhaul unit, and Allison Ausband, chief customer experience officer, will report to Bastian."", 'Spanos joined Delta in May 2023 and previously held the role of CEO at Six Flags Entertainment and executive positions at PepsiCo.']",0.094911363188699,"Instead, John Laughter, chief of operations and president of Delta's TechOps maintenance and overhaul unit, and Allison Ausband, chief customer experience officer, will report to Bastian.","His departure, after just over a year on the job, comes weeks after Delta suffered a meltdown in the wake of the massive CrowdStrike outage in July.",-0.9799729585647584,,"His departure, after just over a year on the job, comes weeks after Delta suffered a meltdown in the wake of the massive CrowdStrike outage in July.",2024-08-30
"Why Ford believes its $1.9 billion shift in EV strategy is the right choice for the company, investors",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/23/ford-ev-strategy-smaller-cars.html,2024-08-23T13:56:54+0000,"In this articleDETROIT – Ford Motor's profit engine for decades has been large trucks and SUVs in the U.S. So it might surprise investors that the automaker believes its new path to profitability for electric vehicles will first be led by smaller, more affordable vehicles.The new plan is an ""insurance policy"" for the automaker to be able to expand its growingly popular hybrid models and create more affordable EVs that it believes will deliver a more capital-efficient, profitable electric vehicle business for the company and investors, according to Marin Gjaja, Ford's chief operating officer for its Model e EV unit.""We're quite convinced that the highest adoption rates for electric vehicles will be in the affordable segment on the lower size-end of the range,"" he told CNBC on Thursday. ""We have to play there in order to compete with the entrants that are coming.""Those expected newcomers are largely Chinese automakers, such as Warren Buffett-backed BYD, that have been rapidly growing from their home market to Europe and other countries.Gjaja's comments came a day after the automaker announced updates to its EV strategy that will cost up to $1.9 billion. That includes about $400 million for the write-down of manufacturing assets, as well as additional expenses and cash expenditures of up to $1.5 billion.Ford's new plans for North America include canceling a large, electric three-row SUV that was already far in development, delaying production of its next-generation ""T3"" electric full-size pickup truck by about 18 months until late 2027, and refocusing battery production and sourcing to the U.S.Instead of the three-row SUV or large pickup, the company's first new EV is expected to be a commercial van in 2026, followed the next year by a midsized pickup and then the T3 full-size pickup.Gjaja said the decision wasn't taken lightly, especially the cancellation of the upcoming three-row vehicle, which Ford CEO Jim Farley and other executives had been touting as a game changer for several years.The commercial van comes as Ford's ""Pro"" commercial vehicle and fleet business, which includes vans and large Super Duty trucks, has been a standout for the company and offset billions of dollars in EV losses.And the midsize pickup is scheduled to be the first vehicle from a specialized ""skunkworks"" team in California, The company had tasked the team two years ago with developing a new small EV platform.""We believe smaller, more affordable vehicles are the way to go for EV in volume. Why? Because the math is completely different than [internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles],"" Farley told investors last month. ""In ICE, a business we've been in for 120 years, the bigger the vehicle, the higher the margin. But it's exactly the opposite for EVs.""Farley has said the weight and cost of battery packs needed for large vehicles such as a three-row SUV, which many families buy for road trips, towing and hauling, are a limitation for EVs due to current ranges and charging networks.Ford's current EVs — the Mustang Mach-E crossover, F-150 Lightning and a commercial van in the U.S. – are not profitable overall. The Model e operations have lost nearly $2.5 billion during the first half of this year and lost $4.7 billion in 2023.The losses, as well as changing market conditions and business plans, caused Ford earlier this year to withdraw an ambitious 8% profit margin for its EV unit by 2026.Investors and Wall Street analysts have largely supported the EV changes, most recently sending the company's shares up about 2.3% since the announcement earlier this week, despite the expected costs.""Overall, these changes will position Ford to benefit from growing demand for EVs, while also focusing on areas in which it has a Core competitive advantage,"" BofA's John Murphy wrote Wednesday in an investor note. ""Given the size of the charge, this is clearly a tough decision in the short-term, but we think makes sense in the medium to long-term given what will likely be subpar economics in the three-row CUV/SUV segment.""The updates are the latest for Ford's electrification plans, which now include a heavy focus on hybrid and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, or PHEVs, to assist in meeting tightening fuel economy regulations in addition to all-electric vehicles.Ford CFO John Lawler said Wednesday that the company's future capital expenditure plans will shift from spending about 40% on all-electric vehicles to spending 30%. He did not give a timeline for the change, but it's a massive swing from when the company announced plans in 2021 to spend more than $30 billion on EVs through 2025.The hybrid plans include offering such options across its entire North American lineup by 2030, including three-row SUVs, to assist in meeting tightening emissions and fuel economy requirements. Lawler said that to improve profitability, Ford is also accelerating the mix of battery production in the U.S. that will qualify for tax incentives and credits.The shift in Ford's plans is consistent with the overall auto industry, which is facing growing, but slower-than-expected adoption of EVs, as well as automakers not being able to achieve expected profitability on the vehicles.""What we saw in '21 and '22 was a temporary market spike where the demand for EVs really took off,"" Gjaja told CNBC during an interview earlier this year. ""It's still growing but not nearly at the rate we thought it might have in '21, '22.""There's also an industrywide fear that Chinese automakers could be able to flood markets with cheaper, more profitable EVs. Chinese automakers such as BYD are quickly growing exports of vehicles to Europe and other countries.Lawler pushed back Wednesday on the idea that the Chinese have outgunned American automakers. He said the Ford, in part, developed the skunkworks team to prove that Ford can compete against the Chinese automakers.""As we've watched in the last 18 to 24 months, the emergence of incredible products and formidable competitors in China has really been, I think, the story for us,"" Gjaja said. ""And so now, when we look at the competitive landscape, we have to chin ourselves against the most competitive companies in China.""Ford's new plans are polar opposite of its closest rival, General Motors.America's largest automaker has pulled back spending and delayed many of its EVs, but it has several large all-electric vehicles on sale coming soon.GM was among the first to go ""all in"" on EVs, including by creating a vertically integrated, dedicated electric vehicle platform and supporting technologies such as batteries and motors.Aside from Tesla, GM was the first automaker to begin U.S. battery cell manufacturing through a joint venture at scale, which the company has continued to tout as a cost advantageGM's current lineup includes three all-electric large pickup trucks, a Hummer SUV, two recently launched Chevrolet crossovers, a luxury Cadillac crossover and $300,000 Celestiq car. Several more crossover models and an all-electric Escalade SUV are expected to join the lineup this year as well.As recently as last month, GM reconfirmed expectations for its EVs to be profitable on a production, or contribution-margin basis, once it reaches output of 200,000 units by the fourth quarter.A GM spokesman Thursday said the automaker continues ""to work to reach variable profit positive during the fourth quarter.""Gjaja declined to comment on GM's target or operations but said Ford is doing what's best for the company.""We're focusing on what we think are the right technologies to serve our customers that can also be affordable for them and profitable for us,"" he said.",CNBC,23/08/2024,"[""In this articleDETROIT – Ford Motor's profit engine for decades has been large trucks and SUVs in the U.S. So it might surprise investors that the automaker believes its new path to profitability for electric vehicles will first be led by smaller, more affordable vehicles."", 'The new plan is an ""insurance policy"" for the automaker to be able to expand its growingly popular hybrid models and create more affordable EVs that it believes will deliver a more capital-efficient, profitable electric vehicle business for the company and investors, according to Marin Gjaja, Ford\'s chief operating officer for its Model e EV unit.', '""We\'re quite convinced that the highest adoption rates for electric vehicles will be in the affordable segment on the lower size-end of the range,"" he told CNBC on Thursday. ""', 'We have to play there in order to compete with the entrants that are coming.', '""Those expected newcomers are largely Chinese automakers, such as Warren Buffett-backed BYD, that have been rapidly growing from their home market to Europe and other countries.', ""Gjaja's comments came a day after the automaker announced updates to its EV strategy that will cost up to $1.9 billion."", 'That includes about $400 million for the write-down of manufacturing assets, as well as additional expenses and cash expenditures of up to $1.5 billion.', 'Ford\'s new plans for North America include canceling a large, electric three-row SUV that was already far in development, delaying production of its next-generation ""T3"" electric full-size pickup truck by about 18 months until late 2027, and refocusing battery production and sourcing to the U.S.Instead of the three-row SUV or large pickup, the company\'s first new EV is expected to be a commercial van in 2026, followed the next year by a midsized pickup and then the T3 full-size pickup.', ""Gjaja said the decision wasn't taken lightly, especially the cancellation of the upcoming three-row vehicle, which Ford CEO Jim Farley and other executives had been touting as a game changer for several years."", 'The commercial van comes as Ford\'s ""Pro"" commercial vehicle and fleet business, which includes vans and large Super Duty trucks, has been a standout for the company and offset billions of dollars in EV losses.', 'And the midsize pickup is scheduled to be the first vehicle from a specialized ""skunkworks"" team in California, The company had tasked the team two years ago with developing a new small EV platform.', '""We believe smaller, more affordable vehicles are the way to go for EV in volume.', 'Why?', 'Because the math is completely different than [internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles],"" Farley told investors last month. ""', ""In ICE, a business we've been in for 120 years, the bigger the vehicle, the higher the margin."", ""But it's exactly the opposite for EVs."", '""Farley has said the weight and cost of battery packs needed for large vehicles such as a three-row SUV, which many families buy for road trips, towing and hauling, are a limitation for EVs due to current ranges and charging networks.', ""Ford's current EVs — the Mustang Mach-E crossover, F-150 Lightning and a commercial van in the U.S. – are not profitable overall."", ""The Model e operations have lost nearly $2.5 billion during the first half of this year and lost $4.7 billion in 2023.The losses, as well as changing market conditions and business plans, caused Ford earlier this year to withdraw an ambitious 8% profit margin for its EV unit by 2026.Investors and Wall Street analysts have largely supported the EV changes, most recently sending the company's shares up about 2.3% since the announcement earlier this week, despite the expected costs."", '""Overall, these changes will position Ford to benefit from growing demand for EVs, while also focusing on areas in which it has a Core competitive advantage,"" BofA\'s John Murphy wrote Wednesday in an investor note. ""', 'Given the size of the charge, this is clearly a tough decision in the short-term, but we think makes sense in the medium to long-term given what will likely be subpar economics in the three-row CUV/SUV segment.', '""The updates are the latest for Ford\'s electrification plans, which now include a heavy focus on hybrid and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, or PHEVs, to assist in meeting tightening fuel economy regulations in addition to all-electric vehicles.', ""Ford CFO John Lawler said Wednesday that the company's future capital expenditure plans will shift from spending about 40% on all-electric vehicles to spending 30%."", ""He did not give a timeline for the change, but it's a massive swing from when the company announced plans in 2021 to spend more than $30 billion on EVs through 2025.The hybrid plans include offering such options across its entire North American lineup by 2030, including three-row SUVs, to assist in meeting tightening emissions and fuel economy requirements."", 'Lawler said that to improve profitability, Ford is also accelerating the mix of battery production in the U.S. that will qualify for tax incentives and credits.', ""The shift in Ford's plans is consistent with the overall auto industry, which is facing growing, but slower-than-expected adoption of EVs, as well as automakers not being able to achieve expected profitability on the vehicles."", '""What we saw in \'21 and \'22 was a temporary market spike where the demand for EVs really took off,"" Gjaja told CNBC during an interview earlier this year. ""', 'It\'s still growing but not nearly at the rate we thought it might have in \'21, \'22.""There\'s also an industrywide fear that Chinese automakers could be able to flood markets with cheaper, more profitable EVs.', 'Chinese automakers such as BYD are quickly growing exports of vehicles to Europe and other countries.', 'Lawler pushed back Wednesday on the idea that the Chinese have outgunned American automakers.', 'He said the Ford, in part, developed the skunkworks team to prove that Ford can compete against the Chinese automakers.', '""As we\'ve watched in the last 18 to 24 months, the emergence of incredible products and formidable competitors in China has really been, I think, the story for us,"" Gjaja said. ""', 'And so now, when we look at the competitive landscape, we have to chin ourselves against the most competitive companies in China.', '""Ford\'s new plans are polar opposite of its closest rival, General Motors.', ""America's largest automaker has pulled back spending and delayed many of its EVs, but it has several large all-electric vehicles on sale coming soon."", 'GM was among the first to go ""all in"" on EVs, including by creating a vertically integrated, dedicated electric vehicle platform and supporting technologies such as batteries and motors.', ""Aside from Tesla, GM was the first automaker to begin U.S. battery cell manufacturing through a joint venture at scale, which the company has continued to tout as a cost advantageGM's current lineup includes three all-electric large pickup trucks, a Hummer SUV, two recently launched Chevrolet crossovers, a luxury Cadillac crossover and $300,000 Celestiq car."", 'Several more crossover models and an all-electric Escalade SUV are expected to join the lineup this year as well.', 'As recently as last month, GM reconfirmed expectations for its EVs to be profitable on a production, or contribution-margin basis, once it reaches output of 200,000 units by the fourth quarter.', 'A GM spokesman Thursday said the automaker continues ""to work to reach variable profit positive during the fourth quarter.', '""Gjaja declined to comment on GM\'s target or operations but said Ford is doing what\'s best for the company.', '""We\'re focusing on what we think are the right technologies to serve our customers that can also be affordable for them and profitable for us,"" he said.']",0.2265440827974339,"The new plan is an ""insurance policy"" for the automaker to be able to expand its growingly popular hybrid models and create more affordable EVs that it believes will deliver a more capital-efficient, profitable electric vehicle business for the company and investors, according to Marin Gjaja, Ford's chief operating officer for its Model e EV unit.","Ford's current EVs — the Mustang Mach-E crossover, F-150 Lightning and a commercial van in the U.S. – are not profitable overall.",0.4859956295593925,"""Overall, these changes will position Ford to benefit from growing demand for EVs, while also focusing on areas in which it has a Core competitive advantage,"" BofA's John Murphy wrote Wednesday in an investor note. ""","The Model e operations have lost nearly $2.5 billion during the first half of this year and lost $4.7 billion in 2023.The losses, as well as changing market conditions and business plans, caused Ford earlier this year to withdraw an ambitious 8% profit margin for its EV unit by 2026.Investors and Wall Street analysts have largely supported the EV changes, most recently sending the company's shares up about 2.3% since the announcement earlier this week, despite the expected costs.",2024-08-30
Weekend strikes by LNER train drivers called off,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cy4lwde3l73o,2024-08-29T17:52:53.929Z,"Train driver strikes at London North Eastern Railway (LNER) have been called off following last-ditch talks between union and company officials. Some 450 drivers at the company had planned to walk out every weekend until mid-November over what the union said were broken agreements. However, Aslef told the BBC late on Thursday a ""resolution"" had been reached and confirmed drivers would ""now report for duty as normal"". LNER said it would look to ""strengthen"" its timetable for this weekend having planned fewer services. LNER, which operates services between Edinburgh and London on the East Coast Mainline, had warned that trains would be ""extremely busy"" due to the reduced timetable. It advised passengers to still check bookings before travelling. The company, which is run by the government, operates trains to and from London King's Cross station and also through major cities including Newcastle, York and Durham. Aslef originally announced the strikes earlier this month, with the first action scheduled to take place from this weekend, and every following one until 10 November. The dispute between LNER and Aslef was separate to the long-running row over pay between drivers and all 16 train companies in England, which could soon be resolved following a new pay offer. The union accused LNER of ""breaking agreements"" on working practices, which officials said included driver managers driving trains and ""improper use"" of overtime working. Mick Whelan, general secretary of Aslef, said the union was ""pleased to have finally resolved this long-standing issue with LNER’s abuse of our agreements"". He said the union would ""continue to campaign for a fully-staffed railway that does not rely on excessive use of driver overtime"". An LNER spokesperson described the talks as ""constructive"" and said it was pleased the strikes had been called off. Transport Secretary Louise Haigh welcomed the resolution, which she said had come at ""no extra cost to the taxpayer"". Various railway strikes have led to cancelled services and disruption for passengers for more than two years. But a breakthrough between the parties was made earlier this month when Aslef revealed its members will vote on a fresh pay deal. The new offer is for a 5% backdated pay rise for 2022/23, a 4.75% rise for 23/24, and 4.5% increase for 24/25. ",BBC,29/08/2024,"['Train driver strikes at London North Eastern Railway (LNER) have been called off following last-ditch talks between union and company officials.', 'Some 450 drivers at the company had planned to walk out every weekend until mid-November over what the union said were broken agreements.', 'However, Aslef told the BBC late on Thursday a ""resolution"" had been reached and confirmed drivers would ""now report for duty as normal"".', 'LNER said it would look to ""strengthen"" its timetable for this weekend having planned fewer services.', 'LNER, which operates services between Edinburgh and London on the East Coast Mainline, had warned that trains would be ""extremely busy"" due to the reduced timetable.', 'It advised passengers to still check bookings before travelling.', ""The company, which is run by the government, operates trains to and from London King's Cross station and also through major cities including Newcastle, York and Durham."", 'Aslef originally announced the strikes earlier this month, with the first action scheduled to take place from this weekend, and every following one until 10 November.', 'The dispute between LNER and Aslef was separate to the long-running row over pay between drivers and all 16 train companies in England, which could soon be resolved following a new pay offer.', 'The union accused LNER of ""breaking agreements"" on working practices, which officials said included driver managers driving trains and ""improper use"" of overtime working.', 'Mick Whelan, general secretary of Aslef, said the union was ""pleased to have finally resolved this long-standing issue with LNER’s abuse of our agreements"".', 'He said the union would ""continue to campaign for a fully-staffed railway that does not rely on excessive use of driver overtime"".', 'An LNER spokesperson described the talks as ""constructive"" and said it was pleased the strikes had been called off.', 'Transport Secretary Louise Haigh welcomed the resolution, which she said had come at ""no extra cost to the taxpayer"".', 'Various railway strikes have led to cancelled services and disruption for passengers for more than two years.', 'But a breakthrough between the parties was made earlier this month when Aslef revealed its members will vote on a fresh pay deal.', 'The new offer is for a 5% backdated pay rise for 2022/23, a 4.75% rise for 23/24, and 4.5% increase for 24/25.']",-0.0454135780190486,But a breakthrough between the parties was made earlier this month when Aslef revealed its members will vote on a fresh pay deal.,Various railway strikes have led to cancelled services and disruption for passengers for more than two years.,-0.0556250864809209,"The new offer is for a 5% backdated pay rise for 2022/23, a 4.75% rise for 23/24, and 4.5% increase for 24/25.","The union accused LNER of ""breaking agreements"" on working practices, which officials said included driver managers driving trains and ""improper use"" of overtime working.",2024-08-30
Walmart adds a Burger King benefit to its membership program,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/22/walmart-plus-burger-king-benefit.html,2024-08-22T20:57:32+0000,"In this articleWalmart members are in for a whopper of a deal.The retailer on Thursday announced a new partnership with fast-food chain Burger King that will offer members of its Walmart+ subscription program 25% off any Burger King order made through the BK app. Members will also be eligible for a free flame-grilled Whopper every three months starting in September with a purchase, according to a news release.Walmart positioned the added benefits as cost savings for its members. It comes at a time when cost-conscious diners increasingly hunt for value.""We're confident our members will welcome the additional savings, and we're thrilled to collaborate with a trusted brand like Burger King to offer this benefit,"" Venessa Yates, senior vice president and general manager, said in a statement.Walmart+ costs $12.95 per month, or $98 annually, and includes free shipping and delivery on Walmart orders. In 2022, Walmart struck a streaming deal with Paramount Global to offer Walmart+ members free access to an ad-supported plan on Paramount+.""We're thrilled to join the Walmart+ program as its first ever dining partner and look forward to providing members of Walmart+ even more savings on their flame-grilled favorites at Burger King,"" said Pat O'Toole, chief marketing officer for Burger King North America, in a statement.",CNBC,22/08/2024,"['In this articleWalmart members are in for a whopper of a deal.', 'The retailer on Thursday announced a new partnership with fast-food chain Burger King that will offer members of its Walmart+ subscription program 25% off any Burger King order made through the BK app.', 'Members will also be eligible for a free flame-grilled Whopper every three months starting in September with a purchase, according to a news release.', 'Walmart positioned the added benefits as cost savings for its members.', 'It comes at a time when cost-conscious diners increasingly hunt for value.', '""We\'re confident our members will welcome the additional savings, and we\'re thrilled to collaborate with a trusted brand like Burger King to offer this benefit,"" Venessa Yates, senior vice president and general manager, said in a statement.', 'Walmart+ costs $12.95 per month, or $98 annually, and includes free shipping and delivery on Walmart orders.', 'In 2022, Walmart struck a streaming deal with Paramount Global to offer Walmart+ members free access to an ad-supported plan on Paramount+.""We\'re thrilled to join the Walmart+ program as its first ever dining partner and look forward to providing members of Walmart+ even more savings on their flame-grilled favorites at Burger King,"" said Pat O\'Toole, chief marketing officer for Burger King North America, in a statement.']",0.4476056920287553,"""We're confident our members will welcome the additional savings, and we're thrilled to collaborate with a trusted brand like Burger King to offer this benefit,"" Venessa Yates, senior vice president and general manager, said in a statement.",,0.9945579767227172,"In 2022, Walmart struck a streaming deal with Paramount Global to offer Walmart+ members free access to an ad-supported plan on Paramount+.""We're thrilled to join the Walmart+ program as its first ever dining partner and look forward to providing members of Walmart+ even more savings on their flame-grilled favorites at Burger King,"" said Pat O'Toole, chief marketing officer for Burger King North America, in a statement.",,2024-08-30
Homelessness: Councils spent £1bn housing families in England,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cj9l8njg2rzo,2024-08-29T16:06:31.985Z,"Councils in England spent a record £1bn on temporary accommodation for homeless families in the past year. This is more than 50% higher than the year before, driven by record numbers of families living in short-term housing, including over 150,000 children. Councils spent £417m accommodating families in hostels and bed and breakfasts, a 63% increase on the year before. The Labour government has said it inherited a housing crisis which has ""left families stuck living in temporary accommodation"". In a statement, a housing ministry spokesperson said the government would deliver on its target of 1.5 million homes and ""prevent homelessness before it occurs"" by banning no-fault evictions.  Experts say soaring private rents, a lack of housebuilding and increased eviction rates have made homelessness a chronic problem. Romel Peters, 37, has been stuck in temporary accommodation in London with her two young sons for over a year after being served a no-fault eviction by her private landlord. The family all sleep in one room, while the “filthy” cooking and washing facilities are shared with other tenants. “I can’t even describe how dirty the place is. I don’t cook here, my family cook and bring us food or I will cook at my mum’s house.  ""I’ve gone into the kitchen to cook food and there have been cockroaches around the microwave,” she said. She worries about the impact on her children, who have little space to play or do their homework, while most of their toys are in storage. Romel had been on her local council’s housing list for almost a decade when she was evicted – only to be told she was no longer eligible because she had previously been renting privately. “I’m devastated, I’ve been trying to contact the council for 18 months and no case worker has ever contacted me [back].  ""I tried to find something myself and join housing associations, but they need a referral from the council and for weeks they got no reply."" The council now want the family to move to temporary accommodation three hours away in West Bromwich.  As she doesn’t want to leave her family network or the children’s school behind, she refused – and the council says it no longer has a duty to help her. The family now face being homeless again as she cannot afford the increased cost of renting privately. Latest figures from the Office for National Statistics show average rent increases across the UK ranged from 8.6% in England through to 8.2% in Scotland and 7.9% in Wales. Northern Ireland's data lags behind the rest of the UK, with figures currently available up to the end of last year. The ONS reported a 10% increase in the country for the year to May 2024. High inflation - in part caused by the Covid pandemic and high energy prices after Russia invaded Ukraine - has kept rent prices high. Polly Neate, chief executive of Shelter, said: “It’s absurd that we keep throwing good money after bad into grim homeless accommodation instead of investing in solutions that would help families into a safe and secure home. “Decades of failure to build enough social homes combined with runaway rents and rising evictions has caused homelessness to spiral.  ""Too many children are being forced to grow up homeless in grotty, cramped hostels and B&Bs, sharing beds with their siblings, with no place to play or do their homework. “Rather than sinking billions into temporary solutions every year, the government must invest in genuinely affordable social homes and support councils so they can start building them.""  Shelter is calling on the government to build 90,000 social homes over the next decade. They and other housing charities point out the real cost of homelessness to the public is even higher.   They say the figures, published by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, show £2.3bn was spent paying for households in temporary accommodation once housing benefit, which is paid by the government, was included. Housing is not just a problem in England - the devolved nations are equally under pressure. In Scotland, the government has declared a national housing emergency. It is offering targeted funding of £2 million in 2023 to 2024 to the local authorities facing the most significant temporary accommodation pressures. The latest data on spending on temporary accommodation in Wales has risen from £5.6m in 2018, to £42.9m in 2022 - a seven-fold increase - based on data from 20 out of 22 councils. There are also problems in Northern Ireland - the country's Housing Executive chief executive Grainia Long says there are 11,000 placements in temporary accommodation, compared to 3,000 before the Covid pandemic. ",BBC,29/08/2024,"['Councils in England spent a record £1bn on temporary accommodation for homeless families in the past year.', 'This is more than 50% higher than the year before, driven by record numbers of families living in short-term housing, including over 150,000 children.', 'Councils spent £417m accommodating families in hostels and bed and breakfasts, a 63% increase on the year before.', 'The Labour government has said it inherited a housing crisis which has ""left families stuck living in temporary accommodation"".', 'In a statement, a housing ministry spokesperson said the government would deliver on its target of 1.5 million homes and ""prevent homelessness before it occurs"" by banning no-fault evictions.', 'Experts say soaring private rents, a lack of housebuilding and increased eviction rates have made homelessness a chronic problem.', 'Romel Peters, 37, has been stuck in temporary accommodation in London with her two young sons for over a year after being served a no-fault eviction by her private landlord.', 'The family all sleep in one room, while the “filthy” cooking and washing facilities are shared with other tenants. “', 'I can’t even describe how dirty the place is.', 'I don’t cook here, my family cook and bring us food or I will cook at my mum’s house. ""', 'I’ve gone into the kitchen to cook food and there have been cockroaches around the microwave,” she said.', 'She worries about the impact on her children, who have little space to play or do their homework, while most of their toys are in storage.', 'Romel had been on her local council’s housing list for almost a decade when she was evicted – only to be told she was no longer eligible because she had previously been renting privately. “', 'I’m devastated, I’ve been trying to contact the council for 18 months and no case worker has ever contacted me [back]. ""', 'I tried to find something myself and join housing associations, but they need a referral from the council and for weeks they got no reply.""', 'The council now want the family to move to temporary accommodation three hours away in West Bromwich.', 'As she doesn’t want to leave her family network or the children’s school behind, she refused – and the council says it no longer has a duty to help her.', 'The family now face being homeless again as she cannot afford the increased cost of renting privately.', 'Latest figures from the Office for National Statistics show average rent increases across the UK ranged from 8.6% in England through to 8.2% in Scotland and 7.9% in Wales.', ""Northern Ireland's data lags behind the rest of the UK, with figures currently available up to the end of last year."", 'The ONS reported a 10% increase in the country for the year to May 2024.', 'High inflation - in part caused by the Covid pandemic and high energy prices after Russia invaded Ukraine - has kept rent prices high.', 'Polly Neate, chief executive of Shelter, said: “It’s absurd that we keep throwing good money after bad into grim homeless accommodation instead of investing in solutions that would help families into a safe and secure home. “', 'Decades of failure to build enough social homes combined with runaway rents and rising evictions has caused homelessness to spiral. ""', 'Too many children are being forced to grow up homeless in grotty, cramped hostels and B&Bs, sharing beds with their siblings, with no place to play or do their homework. “', 'Rather than sinking billions into temporary solutions every year, the government must invest in genuinely affordable social homes and support councils so they can start building them.""', 'Shelter is calling on the government to build 90,000 social homes over the next decade.', 'They and other housing charities point out the real cost of homelessness to the public is even higher.', 'They say the figures, published by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, show £2.3bn was spent paying for households in temporary accommodation once housing benefit, which is paid by the government, was included.', 'Housing is not just a problem in England - the devolved nations are equally under pressure.', 'In Scotland, the government has declared a national housing emergency.', 'It is offering targeted funding of £2 million in 2023 to 2024 to the local authorities facing the most significant temporary accommodation pressures.', 'The latest data on spending on temporary accommodation in Wales has risen from £5.6m in 2018, to £42.9m in 2022 - a seven-fold increase - based on data from 20 out of 22 councils.', ""There are also problems in Northern Ireland - the country's Housing Executive chief executive Grainia Long says there are 11,000 placements in temporary accommodation, compared to 3,000 before the Covid pandemic.""]",-0.0940055810183249,"Rather than sinking billions into temporary solutions every year, the government must invest in genuinely affordable social homes and support councils so they can start building them.""","Romel Peters, 37, has been stuck in temporary accommodation in London with her two young sons for over a year after being served a no-fault eviction by her private landlord.",-0.1623226158759173,The ONS reported a 10% increase in the country for the year to May 2024.,"Decades of failure to build enough social homes combined with runaway rents and rising evictions has caused homelessness to spiral. """,2024-08-30
What taxes might be raised in the Budget?,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cv2gxkln5elo,2024-07-31T23:01:05.897Z,"The government has said it will have to increase taxes to plug what it claims is a £22bn ""hole"" in the public finances.  Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has warned the first Budget under his new administration on 30 October is ""going to be painful"". But Labour has ruled out raising taxes on ""working people"", including VAT (value added tax), income tax and National Insurance.   So which taxes might go up? One option would be to introduce a so-called stealth tax - a means of raising revenue which is not explicitly labelled or intended as a tax. Paul Johnson, director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), believes the most obvious solution would be to focus on tax thresholds - the amount of money you can earn before any tax starts to be paid. Currently the thresholds on income tax and National Insurance are frozen until 2028, a policy brought in by the previous government. But Labour could extend them beyond this date.  The policy amounts to a tax rise because of a process called ""fiscal drag"", which sees more people ""dragged"" into paying higher rates of tax as their wages rise. The Resolution Foundation, a think tank that aims to improve living standards for low-to-middle income families, calculates the current freeze will generate about £40bn of revenue by 2028.  Its director James Smith told the BBC that may be enough to address the ""shortfall"" in the public finances, meaning Ms Reeves would not have to raise any other taxes.  Another route Ms Reeves could take is to put up capital gains tax (CGT). This is charged on the profit made from the sale of an asset that has increased in value, with some examples including stocks that are not held in ISAs or second homes.   CGT is payable by individuals, but also self-employed sole traders, partners in business partnerships and company owners, among others. It starts at a rate of 10% (or 18% on residential property) on profits above £3,000. It then rises to 20% on any amount above the basic tax rate, or 24% on residential property. Critics point out that CGT rates are substantially lower than income tax. They say this can benefit wealthier people and Ms Reeves could opt to level the playing field or cut some CGT tax breaks for businesses. However, industry groups have warned that increasing CGT could hit those at the centre of Labour's plans to grow the economy. ""No government at all serious about growth would hike CGT on entrepreneurs selling a small business,"" Tina McKenzie from the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) told the BBC. “Investing in a small business is already one of the least tax-efficient things anyone can do with their money,"" she said, adding that she hoped the party would continue to work ""in partnership"" with business. Fuel duty is a tax that is levied on purchases of petrol, diesel and other fuels - the level it is set at should have an impact on what drivers pay at the pumps. The levy is a ""significant source"" of revenue for government, according to Office for Budget Responsibility, with £24.7bn expected to have been raised in 2023-24. But fuel duty has not been raised in more than a decade. Between 2012 and 2022 it was frozen at the same level.  Then in March 2022 the then Conservative chancellor Rishi Sunak cut it by 5p a litre after Russia's invasion of Ukraine led to record pump prices. However, some motoring groups have argued this cut - which is due to end in March next year - has not been passed on to drivers. This has prompted the RAC to suggest the cut should be scrapped by Ms Reeves in the Budget. Simon Williams, head of policy at the RAC, said the motoring group had reached the conclusion the chancellor ""has no option but to put fuel duty back up"". Ms Reeves ""knows the 5p discount is losing the Treasury £2bn a year,"" he said. When people or their employers pay into private pension pots, they receive tax relief on these contributions, up to set limits. The relief allows some of a person's earnings that may have been taken by government in tax to go into their savings for retirement instead. Under the current system, savers receive tax relief at the same rate as their income tax - meaning basic rate taxpayers receive relief at 20% and higher rate taxpayers at 40% or 45%. In the run-up to big political events like the Budget, Tom Selby, director of public policy at AJ Bell, says that there is often speculation that a flat rate of pension tax relief could be introduced.  This would mean the system is less generous for higher earners, but the IFS has suggested this could raise ""billions"" for the government. Some opponents have said, however, this could dissuade people from saving for the future and might be difficult to implement. Inheritance tax, currently paid at a rate of 40%, is charged on the part of a deceased person's estate above a threshold of £325,000. But it only applies to fewer than one in 20 estates.  No tax is paid if the estate is valued at less than £325,000, or if anything above this threshold is left to a husband or wife, civil partner, charity, or a community amateur sports club. And if a home is part of the estate and a person's children and grandchildren stand to inherit it, the threshold can go up to £500,000. Ms Reeves could raise the rate of inheritance tax, or curb the relief available on certain inherited assets.  These include agricultural land and pension savings, which can both be inherited tax-free.  There are also allowances for unquoted shares, which are shares in a business not listed on the stock exchange. James Smith of the Resolution Foundation believes inheritance tax should be reformed because there are ""all sorts of reliefs within the system that allow you to move your assets in a way that allows you to avoid paying inheritance tax"". However, Paul Johnson from the IFS says Ms Reeves will have to go further than simply curbing allowances, saying: ""You won't raise a lot by doing that - maybe a billion or two."" Calls to cut or abolish inheritance tax come often as the tax is so unpopular, the Resolution Foundation says. ",BBC,31/07/2024,"['The government has said it will have to increase taxes to plug what it claims is a £22bn ""hole"" in the public finances.', 'Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has warned the first Budget under his new administration on 30 October is ""going to be painful"".', 'But Labour has ruled out raising taxes on ""working people"", including VAT (value added tax), income tax and National Insurance.', 'So which taxes might go up?', 'One option would be to introduce a so-called stealth tax - a means of raising revenue which is not explicitly labelled or intended as a tax.', 'Paul Johnson, director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), believes the most obvious solution would be to focus on tax thresholds - the amount of money you can earn before any tax starts to be paid.', 'Currently the thresholds on income tax and National Insurance are frozen until 2028, a policy brought in by the previous government.', 'But Labour could extend them beyond this date.', 'The policy amounts to a tax rise because of a process called ""fiscal drag"", which sees more people ""dragged"" into paying higher rates of tax as their wages rise.', 'The Resolution Foundation, a think tank that aims to improve living standards for low-to-middle income families, calculates the current freeze will generate about £40bn of revenue by 2028.', 'Its director James Smith told the BBC that may be enough to address the ""shortfall"" in the public finances, meaning Ms Reeves would not have to raise any other taxes.', 'Another route Ms Reeves could take is to put up capital gains tax (CGT).', 'This is charged on the profit made from the sale of an asset that has increased in value, with some examples including stocks that are not held in ISAs or second homes.', 'CGT is payable by individuals, but also self-employed sole traders, partners in business partnerships and company owners, among others.', 'It starts at a rate of 10% (or 18% on residential property) on profits above £3,000.', 'It then rises to 20% on any amount above the basic tax rate, or 24% on residential property.', 'Critics point out that CGT rates are substantially lower than income tax.', 'They say this can benefit wealthier people and Ms Reeves could opt to level the playing field or cut some CGT tax breaks for businesses.', 'However, industry groups have warned that increasing CGT could hit those at the centre of Labour\'s plans to grow the economy. ""', 'No government at all serious about growth would hike CGT on entrepreneurs selling a small business,"" Tina McKenzie from the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) told the BBC. “', 'Investing in a small business is already one of the least tax-efficient things anyone can do with their money,"" she said, adding that she hoped the party would continue to work ""in partnership"" with business.', 'Fuel duty is a tax that is levied on purchases of petrol, diesel and other fuels - the level it is set at should have an impact on what drivers pay at the pumps.', 'The levy is a ""significant source"" of revenue for government, according to Office for Budget Responsibility, with £24.7bn expected to have been raised in 2023-24.', 'But fuel duty has not been raised in more than a decade.', 'Between 2012 and 2022 it was frozen at the same level.', ""Then in March 2022 the then Conservative chancellor Rishi Sunak cut it by 5p a litre after Russia's invasion of Ukraine led to record pump prices."", 'However, some motoring groups have argued this cut - which is due to end in March next year - has not been passed on to drivers.', 'This has prompted the RAC to suggest the cut should be scrapped by Ms Reeves in the Budget.', 'Simon Williams, head of policy at the RAC, said the motoring group had reached the conclusion the chancellor ""has no option but to put fuel duty back up"".', 'Ms Reeves ""knows the 5p discount is losing the Treasury £2bn a year,"" he said.', 'When people or their employers pay into private pension pots, they receive tax relief on these contributions, up to set limits.', ""The relief allows some of a person's earnings that may have been taken by government in tax to go into their savings for retirement instead."", 'Under the current system, savers receive tax relief at the same rate as their income tax - meaning basic rate taxpayers receive relief at 20% and higher rate taxpayers at 40% or 45%.', 'In the run-up to big political events like the Budget, Tom Selby, director of public policy at AJ Bell, says that there is often speculation that a flat rate of pension tax relief could be introduced.', 'This would mean the system is less generous for higher earners, but the IFS has suggested this could raise ""billions"" for the government.', 'Some opponents have said, however, this could dissuade people from saving for the future and might be difficult to implement.', ""Inheritance tax, currently paid at a rate of 40%, is charged on the part of a deceased person's estate above a threshold of £325,000."", 'But it only applies to fewer than one in 20 estates.', 'No tax is paid if the estate is valued at less than £325,000, or if anything above this threshold is left to a husband or wife, civil partner, charity, or a community amateur sports club.', ""And if a home is part of the estate and a person's children and grandchildren stand to inherit it, the threshold can go up to £500,000."", 'Ms Reeves could raise the rate of inheritance tax, or curb the relief available on certain inherited assets.', 'These include agricultural land and pension savings, which can both be inherited tax-free.', 'There are also allowances for unquoted shares, which are shares in a business not listed on the stock exchange.', 'James Smith of the Resolution Foundation believes inheritance tax should be reformed because there are ""all sorts of reliefs within the system that allow you to move your assets in a way that allows you to avoid paying inheritance tax"".', 'However, Paul Johnson from the IFS says Ms Reeves will have to go further than simply curbing allowances, saying: ""You won\'t raise a lot by doing that - maybe a billion or two.""', 'Calls to cut or abolish inheritance tax come often as the tax is so unpopular, the Resolution Foundation says.']",0.1293575285738439,"This is charged on the profit made from the sale of an asset that has increased in value, with some examples including stocks that are not held in ISAs or second homes.","Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has warned the first Budget under his new administration on 30 October is ""going to be painful"".",-0.3856328340137706,They say this can benefit wealthier people and Ms Reeves could opt to level the playing field or cut some CGT tax breaks for businesses.,Then in March 2022 the then Conservative chancellor Rishi Sunak cut it by 5p a litre after Russia's invasion of Ukraine led to record pump prices.,2024-08-30
"Ulta misses Wall Street expectations first time in 4 years, trims guidance after quarterly sales decline",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/29/ulta-earnings-q2-2024.html,2024-08-29T22:08:33+0000,"In this articleUlta Beauty shares sank 7% in extended trading Thursday as the company fell short of second-quarter expectations and trimmed its full-year guidance after a decline in same-store sales during the most recent period.It was the company's first earnings per share miss since May 2020 and first revenue miss since December 2020.Comparable sales for the second quarter fell 1.2%, compared with an 8% increase a year earlier and well below the 1.2% growth that Wall Street analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount.""While we are encouraged by many positive indicators across our business, our second quarter performance did not meet our expectations, driven primarily by a decline in comparable store sales. We are clear about the factors that adversely impacted our store performance, and we have actions underway to address the trends,"" CEO Dave Kimbell said a press release.During the company's earnings call, Kimbell attributed the declining sales performance to four key factors, including an ""unanticipated operational disruption"" due to a change in store systems as well as disappointing impact from promotions. The company also suffered from what Kimbell described as consumers who are increasingly cautious with their spending and from heightened competition in the beauty industry. Kimbell conceded that Ulta's market share is being challenged and said although the company maintained its share in mass beauty during the most quarter, it lost share in the prestige beauty sector driven by makeup and hair categories, according to Circana data, cited by Kimbell. It's not uncommon for stores to experience a short-term negative sales impact due to competitors' openings or cannibalization by new Ulta beauty stores, but Kimbell said the scale and pace of change now has been unusual, adding that 80% of stores have been impacted.""We know we're still in the midst of this...these competitive pressures will likely continue into the near term, but the positive signals...in our broader business, the guest engagement, the impact of newness, the impact of our new stores, the success of our salon business, the loyalty growth, all of those factors suggest to us and give us a lot of confidence that our business continues to have underlying strength and health,"" Kimbell said.The company now forecasts full-year same-store sales in a range of flat to 2% down, compared with prior guidance of 2% to 3% growth.""Our updated outlook for sales assumes it will take more time for our actions to change the top line trajectory and that stores impacted by multiple competitive openings will continue to be pressured,"" CFO Paula Oyibo said.Ulta also now expects full-year revenue of $11 billion to $11.2 billion, down from previous guidance of $11.5 billion to $11.6 billion, and full-year earnings per share of $22.60 to $23.50, down from a previous forecast of $25.20 to $26.Here's how the beauty retailer performed in the period ended August 3 compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:The company reported net income of $252.6 million, or $5.30 per share, compared with $300.1 million, or $6.02 per share, during the same quarter a year earlier. Revenue rose to $2.55 billion, up from $2.53 billion a year earlier.Earlier this month, Warren Buffet's Berkshire Hathaway disclosed a $266 million stake in the beauty retailer, sending Ulta shares surging. For some analysts, it was validation that the stock was oversold after falling 32% in 2024 up to that point, tumbling 26% in the second quarter alone.Shares of Ulta have been suffering since CEO Dave Kimbell warned of cooling beauty demand at an investor conference back in April. Kimbell said although a pullback was expected, it had hit the company ""a bit earlier and bit bigger"" than anticipated.During the company's first-quarter earnings call in May, Kimbell outlined plans to boost sales that spanned five key areas: product assortment, brand social relevance, enhancing the consumer digital experience, boosting the loyalty program and evolving the company's promotional levers.In the same call, Kimbell also said the beauty retailer later this year would be expanding its partnership with delivery service DoorDash, would start testing new gamification platforms and would activate new marketing technology to personalize customer shopping experience.This time around, Kimbell said that executives has identified further opportunities within the attempted turnaround plan, such as relaunching Ulta's own beauty collection and introducing new personalized product recommendations for consumers online. The company is also focusing on increasing rewards program value through member-only events and exclusive member-tiered offers.Clarification: This story has been updated to clarify that Ulta Beauty forecast full-year earnings per share of $22.60 to $23.50, down from a previous forecast of $25.20 to $26.",CNBC,29/08/2024,"['In this articleUlta Beauty shares sank 7% in extended trading Thursday as the company fell short of second-quarter expectations and trimmed its full-year guidance after a decline in same-store sales during the most recent period.', ""It was the company's first earnings per share miss since May 2020 and first revenue miss since December 2020.Comparable sales for the second quarter fell 1.2%, compared with an 8% increase a year earlier and well below the 1.2% growth that Wall Street analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount."", '""While we are encouraged by many positive indicators across our business, our second quarter performance did not meet our expectations, driven primarily by a decline in comparable store sales.', 'We are clear about the factors that adversely impacted our store performance, and we have actions underway to address the trends,"" CEO Dave Kimbell said a press release.', 'During the company\'s earnings call, Kimbell attributed the declining sales performance to four key factors, including an ""unanticipated operational disruption"" due to a change in store systems as well as disappointing impact from promotions.', 'The company also suffered from what Kimbell described as consumers who are increasingly cautious with their spending and from heightened competition in the beauty industry.', ""Kimbell conceded that Ulta's market share is being challenged and said although the company maintained its share in mass beauty during the most quarter, it lost share in the prestige beauty sector driven by makeup and hair categories, according to Circana data, cited by Kimbell."", ""It's not uncommon for stores to experience a short-term negative sales impact due to competitors' openings or cannibalization by new Ulta beauty stores, but Kimbell said the scale and pace of change now has been unusual, adding that 80% of stores have been impacted."", '""We know we\'re still in the midst of this...these competitive pressures will likely continue into the near term, but the positive signals...in our broader business, the guest engagement, the impact of newness, the impact of our new stores, the success of our salon business, the loyalty growth, all of those factors suggest to us and give us a lot of confidence that our business continues to have underlying strength and health,"" Kimbell said.', 'The company now forecasts full-year same-store sales in a range of flat to 2% down, compared with prior guidance of 2% to 3% growth.', '""Our updated outlook for sales assumes it will take more time for our actions to change the top line trajectory and that stores impacted by multiple competitive openings will continue to be pressured,"" CFO Paula Oyibo said.', ""Ulta also now expects full-year revenue of $11 billion to $11.2 billion, down from previous guidance of $11.5 billion to $11.6 billion, and full-year earnings per share of $22.60 to $23.50, down from a previous forecast of $25.20 to $26.Here's how the beauty retailer performed in the period ended August 3 compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:The company reported net income of $252.6 million, or $5.30 per share, compared with $300.1 million, or $6.02 per share, during the same quarter a year earlier."", 'Revenue rose to $2.55 billion, up from $2.53 billion a year earlier.', ""Earlier this month, Warren Buffet's Berkshire Hathaway disclosed a$266 million stake in the beauty retailer, sending Ulta shares surging."", 'For some analysts, it was validation that the stock was oversold after falling 32% in 2024 up to that point, tumbling 26% in the second quarter alone.', 'Shares of Ulta have been suffering since CEO Dave Kimbell warned of cooling beauty demand at an investor conference back in April.', 'Kimbell said although a pullback was expected, it had hit the company ""a bit earlier and bit bigger"" than anticipated.', ""During the company's first-quarter earnings call in May, Kimbell outlined plans to boost sales that spanned five key areas: product assortment, brand social relevance, enhancing the consumer digital experience, boosting the loyalty program and evolving the company's promotional levers."", 'In the same call, Kimbell also said the beauty retailer later this year would be expanding its partnership with delivery service DoorDash, would start testing new gamification platforms and would activate new marketing technology to personalize customer shopping experience.', ""This time around, Kimbell said that executives has identified further opportunities within the attempted turnaround plan, such as relaunching Ulta's own beauty collection and introducing new personalized product recommendations for consumers online."", 'The company is also focusing on increasing rewards program value through member-only events and exclusive member-tiered offers.', 'Clarification: This story has been updated to clarify that Ulta Beauty forecast full-year earnings per share of $22.60 to $23.50, down from a previous forecast of $25.20 to $26.']",0.4158434741378043,"""We know we're still in the midst of this...these competitive pressures will likely continue into the near term, but the positive signals...in our broader business, the guest engagement, the impact of newness, the impact of our new stores, the success of our salon business, the loyalty growth, all of those factors suggest to us and give us a lot of confidence that our business continues to have underlying strength and health,"" Kimbell said.","During the company's earnings call, Kimbell attributed the declining sales performance to four key factors, including an ""unanticipated operational disruption"" due to a change in store systems as well as disappointing impact from promotions.",-0.3607965436848727,"During the company's first-quarter earnings call in May, Kimbell outlined plans to boost sales that spanned five key areas: product assortment, brand social relevance, enhancing the consumer digital experience, boosting the loyalty program and evolving the company's promotional levers.",In this articleUlta Beauty shares sank 7% in extended trading Thursday as the company fell short of second-quarter expectations and trimmed its full-year guidance after a decline in same-store sales during the most recent period.,2024-08-30
U.S. will again offer free at-home Covid tests starting in late September,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/23/covid-tests-us-will-offer-free-at-home-kits-starting-late-september.html,2024-08-23T16:52:24+0000,"The Biden administration on Friday said it will resume offering free at-home Covid-19 tests to American households in late September as the virus has gained a stronger foothold in the U.S. this summer.Americans will soon be able to use COVIDtests.gov to request four free tests, administration officials told reporters during a briefing. The tests will be able to detect the Covid variants that are currently circulating, most of which are descendants of the highly contagious omicron variant JN.1. ""These tests will help keep families and their loved ones safe this fall and winter season,"" Dawn O'Connell, an assistant secretary for preparedness and response at the Health and Human Services Department, said during the briefing. ""This is the seventh time over the last three years that the Biden-Harris administration has given families the opportunity to order the over-the-counter Covid-19 tests for free"" through the government's website.The government's program has provided more than 1.8 billion free over-the-counter Covid tests to Americans since it started in 2021, according to O'Connell.The government is relaunching the program amid a relatively large spike in Covid cases this summer, and ahead of the fall and winter, when the virus typically spreads at higher levels each year. There is a ""high"" or ""very high"" level of Covid being detected in wastewater in almost every U.S. state, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But the government decided to reopen the program in late September because it's when more Americans begin to travel and gather indoors with loved ones. ""As people start to travel, as they start to get together with friends and family through the holidays, we want them to have those four tests available to them at that time,"" David Boucher, director of infectious disease preparedness and response at HHS, told reporters during the briefing.By then, the latest round of Covid shots from Pfizer and Moderna will be available to most Americans in pharmacies, health clinics and other locations nationwide. The Food and Drug Administration approved those shots, which target a JN.1 offshoot called KP.2, on Thursday.Testing is a critical tool for protection as Covid infections climb again. But lab PCR tests — the traditional method of detecting Covid — have become more expensive and less accessible for some Americans since the U.S. government ended the public health emergency in May last year. Still, certain local health clinics and community sites offer at-home tests to the public at no cost.",CNBC,23/08/2024,"['The Biden administration on Friday said it will resume offering free at-home Covid-19 tests to American households in late September as the virus has gained a stronger foothold in the U.S. this summer.', 'Americans will soon be able to use COVIDtests.gov to request four free tests, administration officials told reporters during a briefing.', 'The tests will be able to detect the Covid variants that are currently circulating, most of which are descendants of the highly contagious omicron variant JN.1.""These tests will help keep families and their loved ones safe this fall and winter season,"" Dawn O\'Connell, an assistant secretary for preparedness and response at the Health and Human Services Department, said during the briefing. ""', 'This is the seventh time over the last three years that the Biden-Harris administration has given families the opportunity to order the over-the-counter Covid-19 tests for free"" through the government\'s website.', ""The government's program has provided more than 1.8 billion free over-the-counter Covid tests to Americans since it started in 2021, according to O'Connell."", 'The government is relaunching the program amid a relatively large spike in Covid cases this summer, and ahead of the fall and winter, when the virus typically spreads at higher levels each year.', 'There is a ""high"" or ""very high"" level of Covid being detected in wastewater in almost every U.S. state, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.', ""But the government decided to reopen the program in late September because it's when more Americans begin to travel and gather indoors with loved ones."", '""As people start to travel, as they start to get together with friends and family through the holidays, we want them to have those four tests available to them at that time,"" David Boucher, director of infectious disease preparedness and response at HHS, told reporters during the briefing.', 'By then, the latest round of Covid shots from Pfizer and Moderna will be available to most Americans in pharmacies, health clinics and other locations nationwide.', 'The Food and Drug Administration approved those shots, which target a JN.1 offshoot called KP.2, on Thursday.', 'Testing is a critical tool for protection as Covid infections climb again.', 'But lab PCR tests — the traditional method of detecting Covid — have become more expensive and less accessible for some Americans since the U.S. government ended the public health emergency in May last year.', 'Still, certain local health clinics and community sites offer at-home tests to the public at no cost.']",0.3114625193288947,The Biden administration on Friday said it will resume offering free at-home Covid-19 tests to American households in late September as the virus has gained a stronger foothold in the U.S. this summer.,But lab PCR tests — the traditional method of detecting Covid — have become more expensive and less accessible for some Americans since the U.S. government ended the public health emergency in May last year.,0.2481389999389648,The Biden administration on Friday said it will resume offering free at-home Covid-19 tests to American households in late September as the virus has gained a stronger foothold in the U.S. this summer.,But lab PCR tests — the traditional method of detecting Covid — have become more expensive and less accessible for some Americans since the U.S. government ended the public health emergency in May last year.,2024-08-30
Trump: 'IVF should be paid for by insurance or government',https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/clyg1rlnywyo,2024-08-30T01:02:13.341Z,"Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has said that in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) treatments will be paid for by insurance companies or the government if he returns to the White House.  “I was always for IVF. Right from the beginning, as soon as we heard about it,"" he told NBC News on Thursday. The new campaign pledge comes after his Democratic rival, Vice-President Kamala Harris, and other members of her party have alleged that Republican-led abortion restrictions in some states could further threaten access to fertility treatments. Trump's announcement could put him at odds with some conservative anti-abortion activists who want to ban IVF for discarding unused human embryos. But he committed to the new position on Thursday in the interview with NBC. ""Under the Trump administration, we are going to be paying for that treatment,"" Trump told the news outlet. ""Or we're going to be mandating that the insurance company pay."" IVF treatments can be very expensive - often around $20,000 (£15,000) per round - and are rarely covered by insurance in the US. Trump did not explain how this new policy would work or be put into effect.  The Harris-Walz campaign was quick to respond to the former president's new policy position, blaming him for the US Supreme Court's decision to overturn the landmark 1973 abortion case - Roe v Wade - which eliminated the national right to abortion. State governments can now decide Americans' access to abortion, and at least 14 have banned or put severe restrictions on the procedure.  ""Because Trump overturned Roe v. Wade, IVF is already under attack and women’s freedoms have been ripped away in states across the country,"" said Harris campaign spokeswoman Sarafina Chitika in response to Trump's comments on Thursday.  Trump has previously bragged about appointing three of the six conservatives on the Supreme Court who backed overturning the abortion access law.  ""I was able to kill Roe v Wade,"" the former president posted online in May 2023. But Trump has attempted to distance himself from his record on abortion, as Harris capitalises on voter concerns about how Republicans could affect reproductive rights. In his interview, Trump - a Florida resident - also said he planned to vote against a Florida state ballot measure that would prohibit abortion after six weeks, with some exceptions. ""I think the six-week [ban] is too short. There has to be more time,"" he said. ""I am going to be voting that we need more than six weeks."" IVF became a new political lightning rod in America's debate over abortion access in February.  That's when the Republican-controlled Alabama Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos created through IVF are considered children under state law. At the time, Trump called on Alabama lawmakers to ""quickly find an immediate solution to preserve the availability of IVF in Alabama"". They passed a law protecting IVF in March. The ruling was a political headache for Republicans, forcing several leaders to put out statements objecting to the Alabama ruling that had the possibility of damaging their prospects in an election year.  Forty-two percent of Americans have either used IVF treatments or known someone who did, according to a Pew Survey last year. That percentage rises with increased earnings - 45% among middle-income Americans and 59% for those with high-incomes. Those individuals are more likely to be white Americans who vote Republican, and many are ones whom Trump hopes to bring back into the political fold after losing their support in 2020. Trump told supporter about his new position at a rally in Michigan on Thursday.  ""Your government will pay for, or your insurance company will be mandated to pay for, all costs associated with IVF treatment,"" he said. But Democrats continued to reject that a Trump administration would adopt such a policy on Thursday night.  ""Americans have seen with their own eyes how Donald Trump overturned Roe v Wade and paved the way for extreme Maga Republicans to restrict IVF and pass cruel abortion bans across the country, hurting women and families,"" Democratic National Committee Spokesperson Aida Ross said in a statement.  ""When voters head to the ballot box this November, they will vote for the Harris-Walz ticket to protect our freedoms - not Trump and Vance’s all-out assault on our basic rights.” ",BBC,30/08/2024,"['Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump has said that in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) treatments will be paid for by insurance companies or the government if he returns to the White House. “', 'I was always for IVF.', 'Right from the beginning, as soon as we heard about it,"" he told NBC News on Thursday.', 'The new campaign pledge comes after his Democratic rival, Vice-President Kamala Harris, and other members of her party have alleged that Republican-led abortion restrictions in some states could further threaten access to fertility treatments.', ""Trump's announcement could put him at odds with some conservative anti-abortion activists who want to ban IVF for discarding unused human embryos."", 'But he committed to the new position on Thursday in the interview with NBC. ""', 'Under the Trump administration, we are going to be paying for that treatment,"" Trump told the news outlet. ""', 'Or we\'re going to be mandating that the insurance company pay.""', 'IVF treatments can be very expensive - often around $20,000 (£15,000) per round - and are rarely covered by insurance in the US.', 'Trump did not explain how this new policy would work or be put into effect.', ""The Harris-Walz campaign was quick to respond to the former president's new policy position, blaming him for the US Supreme Court's decision to overturn the landmark 1973 abortion case - Roe v Wade - which eliminated the national right to abortion."", 'State governments can now decide Americans\' access to abortion, and at least 14 have banned or put severe restrictions on the procedure. ""', 'Because Trump overturned Roe v. Wade, IVF is already under attack and women’s freedoms have been ripped away in states across the country,"" said Harris campaign spokeswoman Sarafina Chitika in response to Trump\'s comments on Thursday.', 'Trump has previously bragged about appointing three of the six conservatives on the Supreme Court who backed overturning the abortion access law. ""', 'I was able to kill Roe v Wade,"" the former president posted online in May 2023.', 'But Trump has attempted to distance himself from his record on abortion, as Harris capitalises on voter concerns about how Republicans could affect reproductive rights.', 'In his interview, Trump - a Florida resident - also said he planned to vote against a Florida state ballot measure that would prohibit abortion after six weeks, with some exceptions. ""', 'I think the six-week [ban] is too short.', 'There has to be more time,"" he said. ""', 'I am going to be voting that we need more than six weeks.""', ""IVF became a new political lightning rod in America's debate over abortion access in February."", ""That's when the Republican-controlled Alabama Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos created through IVF are considered children under state law."", 'At the time, Trump called on Alabama lawmakers to ""quickly find an immediate solution to preserve the availability of IVF in Alabama"".', 'They passed a law protecting IVF in March.', 'The ruling was a political headache for Republicans, forcing several leaders to put out statements objecting to the Alabama ruling that had the possibility of damaging their prospects in an election year.', 'Forty-two percent of Americans have either used IVF treatments or known someone who did, according to a Pew Survey last year.', 'That percentage rises with increased earnings - 45% among middle-income Americans and 59% for those with high-incomes.', 'Those individuals are more likely to be white Americans who vote Republican, and many are ones whom Trump hopes to bring back into the political fold after losing their support in 2020.', 'Trump told supporter about his new position at a rally in Michigan on Thursday. ""', 'Your government will pay for, or your insurance company will be mandated to pay for, all costs associated with IVF treatment,"" he said.', 'But Democrats continued to reject that a Trump administration would adopt such a policy on Thursday night. ""', 'Americans have seen with their own eyes how Donald Trump overturned Roe v Wade and paved the way for extreme Maga Republicans to restrict IVF and pass cruel abortion bans across the country, hurting women and families,"" Democratic National Committee Spokesperson Aida Ross said in a statement. ""', 'When voters head to the ballot box this November, they will vote for the Harris-Walz ticket to protect our freedoms - not Trump and Vance’s all-out assault on our basic rights.”']",-0.0463203650593945,That's when the Republican-controlled Alabama Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos created through IVF are considered children under state law.,"Americans have seen with their own eyes how Donald Trump overturned Roe v Wade and paved the way for extreme Maga Republicans to restrict IVF and pass cruel abortion bans across the country, hurting women and families,"" Democratic National Committee Spokesperson Aida Ross said in a statement. """,-0.6501393417517344,That percentage rises with increased earnings - 45% among middle-income Americans and 59% for those with high-incomes.,"The ruling was a political headache for Republicans, forcing several leaders to put out statements objecting to the Alabama ruling that had the possibility of damaging their prospects in an election year.",2024-08-30
Ford joins list of companies walking back DEI policies,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/28/ford-joins-list-of-companies-walking-back-dei-policies.html,2024-08-29T12:48:39+0000,"In this articleFord Motor is the latest company to walk back some of its commitments to diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.The automaker has taken ""a fresh look"" at its DEI policies and practices over the past year to take in to account the evolving ""external and legal environment related to political and social issues,"" according to an internal communication that was shared with global Ford employees and posted Wednesday on X by an anti-DEI activist. Ford confirmed the letter was authentic and said it had no additional comment on the matter.Ford's move follows retailer Tractor Supply, which one of the first major companies to stop its DEI efforts, as it severed ties earlier this summer with the Human Rights Campaign, an LGBTQ+ advocacy group, and retired DEI targets like boosting the number of employees of color at the manager level. Harley-Davidson, whose board of directors includes Ford CEO Jim Farley, also decided last week to stop consulting the HRC's metric for treatment of LGBTQ+ employees and affirmed that it does not have a DEI function.Home improvement retailer Lowe's joined the efforts earlier this week, and noted that it might also make additional changes to the policies over time.The companies have cited conservative backlash or changing social and political environments in their announcements. Tractor Supply and Harley-Davidson also noted a desire to appeal to their more rural or conservative-leaning customers.""I think you will start to see this move towards more politically neutral companies, which is to say that most of these companies didn't really want to be doing this stuff in the first place,"" Liz Hoffman, Semafor's business and finance editor, said on CNBC's ""Squawk Box"" earlier Wednesday, before the Ford memo was posted. In the memo Wednesday, Farley said the company will not use quotas for minority dealerships or suppliers, adding that it does not have hiring quotas.The automaker will also stop participating in the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index, as well as various other ""best places to work"" lists.The Human Rights Campaign scores over 1,300 companies annually based on their corporate equality measures for LGBTQ+ individuals, including practices like offering spousal medical benefits regardless of sex and having distinct LGBTQ+ community outreach efforts. Ford, in previous years, had received a perfect score on the index.""Ford Motor Company's shortsighted decisions will have long-term consequences,"" Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson said in a statement. ""Hastily abandoning efforts that ensure fair, safe, and inclusive work environments is bad for business and leaves Ford's employees and millions of LGBTQ+-allied consumers behind.""The organization also added that it evaluates every Fortune 500 company on its equality index, regardless of whether or not the company submits additional information about its priorities, which means Ford will continue to be scored on the list.""As a global company, we will continue to put our effort and resources into taking care of our customers, our team, and our communities versus publicly commenting on the many polarizing issues of the day,"" Ford said in the statement sent to employees. ""There will of course be times when we will speak out on core issues if we believe our voice can make a positive difference.""Many companies, including automakers such as Ford, amped up their DEI commitments in the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd and Black Lives Matter protests of the summer of 2020 — and Ford spoke up about that at the time.""We are not interested in superficial actions. This is our moment to lead from the front and fully commit to creating the fair, just and inclusive culture that our employees deserve,"" the company said in 2020 in a letter reaffirming its DEI commitment. ""We cannot turn a blind eye to it or accept some sense of 'order' that's based on oppression.""But, in the wake of the Supreme Court decision to overturn affirmative action in colleges, a growing number of conservative activists on social media have called on companies to stop investing in DEI.""There is an old saying: If you give an inch, people take a mile, and that is essentially what we have seen when the Supreme Court made a ruling that was very specific to institutions of higher education,"" industrial and organizational psychologist Derek Avery told CNBC. ""Conservative state attorney generals sent letters to corporations warning them that they could expect to be sued if they continue to advocate and promote DEI practices within their organizations that could be construed as counter to the Supreme Court ruling, even though the Supreme Court ruling had no bearing on those corporate initiatives.""",CNBC,29/08/2024,"['In this articleFord Motor is the latest company to walk back some of its commitments to diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.', 'The automaker has taken ""a fresh look"" at its DEI policies and practices over the past year to take in to account the evolving ""external and legal environment related to political and social issues,"" according to an internal communication that was shared with global Ford employees and posted Wednesday on X by an anti-DEI activist.', 'Ford confirmed the letter was authentic and said it had no additional comment on the matter.', ""Ford's move follows retailer Tractor Supply, which one of the first major companies to stop its DEI efforts, as it severed ties earlier this summer with the Human Rights Campaign, an LGBTQ+ advocacy group, and retired DEI targets like boosting the number of employees of color at the manager level."", ""Harley-Davidson, whose board of directors includes Ford CEO Jim Farley, also decided last week to stop consulting the HRC's metric for treatment of LGBTQ+ employees and affirmed that it does not have a DEI function."", ""Home improvement retailer Lowe's joined the efforts earlier this week, and noted that it might also make additional changes to the policies over time."", 'The companies have cited conservative backlash or changing social and political environments in their announcements.', 'Tractor Supply and Harley-Davidson also noted a desire to appeal to their more rural or conservative-leaning customers.', '""I think you will start to see this move towards more politically neutral companies, which is to say that most of these companies didn\'t really want to be doing this stuff in the first place,"" Liz Hoffman, Semafor\'s business and finance editor, said on CNBC\'s ""Squawk Box"" earlier Wednesday, before the Ford memo was posted.', 'In the memo Wednesday, Farley said the company will not use quotas for minority dealerships or suppliers, adding that it does not have hiring quotas.', 'The automaker will also stop participating in the Human Rights Campaign\'s Corporate Equality Index, as well as various other ""best places to work"" lists.', 'The Human Rights Campaign scores over 1,300 companies annually based on their corporate equality measures for LGBTQ+ individuals, including practices like offering spousal medical benefits regardless of sex and having distinct LGBTQ+ community outreach efforts.', 'Ford, in previous years, had received a perfect score on the index.', '""Ford Motor Company\'s shortsighted decisions will have long-term consequences,"" Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson said in a statement. ""', ""Hastily abandoning efforts that ensure fair, safe, and inclusive work environments is bad for business and leaves Ford's employees and millions of LGBTQ+-allied consumers behind."", '""The organization also added that it evaluates every Fortune 500 company on its equality index, regardless of whether or not the company submits additional information about its priorities, which means Ford will continue to be scored on the list.', '""As a global company, we will continue to put our effort and resources into taking care of our customers, our team, and our communities versus publicly commenting on the many polarizing issues of the day,"" Ford said in the statement sent to employees. ""', 'There will of course be times when we will speak out on core issues if we believe our voice can make a positive difference.', '""Many companies, including automakers such as Ford, amped up their DEI commitments in the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd and Black Lives Matter protests of the summer of 2020 — and Ford spoke up about that at the time.', '""We are not interested in superficial actions.', 'This is our moment to lead from the front and fully commit to creating the fair, just and inclusive culture that our employees deserve,""the company said in 2020 in a letter reaffirming its DEI commitment. ""', ""We cannot turn a blind eye to it or accept some sense of 'order' that's based on oppression."", '""But, in the wake of the Supreme Court decision to overturn affirmative action in colleges, a growing number of conservative activists on social media have called on companies to stop investing in DEI.""There is an old saying: If you give an inch, people take a mile, and that is essentially what we have seen when the Supreme Court made a ruling that was very specific to institutions of higher education,"" industrial and organizational psychologist Derek Avery told CNBC.""Conservative state attorney generals sent letters to corporations warning them that they could expect to be sued if they continue to advocate and promote DEI practices within their organizations that could be construed as counter to the Supreme Court ruling, even though the Supreme Court ruling had no bearing on those corporate initiatives.""']",0.246965207230626,"""But, in the wake of the Supreme Court decision to overturn affirmative action in colleges, a growing number of conservative activists on social media have called on companies to stop investing in DEI.""There is an old saying: If you give an inch, people take a mile, and that is essentially what we have seen when the Supreme Court made a ruling that was very specific to institutions of higher education,"" industrial and organizational psychologist Derek Avery told CNBC.""Conservative state attorney generals sent letters to corporations warning them that they could expect to be sued if they continue to advocate and promote DEI practices within their organizations that could be construed as counter to the Supreme Court ruling, even though the Supreme Court ruling had no bearing on those corporate initiatives.""","""Many companies, including automakers such as Ford, amped up their DEI commitments in the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd and Black Lives Matter protests of the summer of 2020 — and Ford spoke up about that at the time.",0.001978059609731,"""Many companies, including automakers such as Ford, amped up their DEI commitments in the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd and Black Lives Matter protests of the summer of 2020 — and Ford spoke up about that at the time.","Hastily abandoning efforts that ensure fair, safe, and inclusive work environments is bad for business and leaves Ford's employees and millions of LGBTQ+-allied consumers behind.",2024-08-30
Best Buy shares surge on profit beat and guidance hike,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/29/best-buy-bby-earnings-q2-2025.html,2024-08-29T15:30:58+0000,"In this articleBest Buy raised its fiscal-year profit guidance Thursday after exceeding earnings and revenue expectations for the most recent quarter.Shares of Best Buy jumped more than 15% in morning trading Thursday.The retailer now expects to see full-year adjusted earnings per share in the range of $6.10 to $6.35, up from a prior range of $5.75 to $6.20. The company, however, lowered the top end of its guidance ranges for both full-year revenue and comparable sales.""As we look to the back half of the year, we expect our industry to continue to show increasing stabilization,"" Best Buy CFO Matt Bilunas said in the company's press release.Here's how the consumer electronics retailer did for the period ended Aug. 3 compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:The company reported net income for the quarter of $291 million, or $1.34 per share, compared with $274 million, or $1.25 per share, a year earlier. Net sales in the quarter dropped to $9.29 billion from $9.58 billion during the same period a year earlier.Comparable sales declined 2.3% during the quarter, compared with a 6.2% fall a year earlier.That drop in comparable sales was the company's best result for the metric since the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022, CEO Corie Barry said on the company's earnings call.Barry said the industry is returning to growth, adding that Best Buy's positioning within the sector is helping the retailer ""to capture that growth trajectory.""Best Buy has been in the midst of an attempted turnaround in response to a two-year sales slump. Discretionary merchandise retailers across the board have struggled with softer consumer demand in the wake of unusually high sales throughout the Covid pandemic and as consumers pull back due to elevated inflation.As the much-awaited replacement cycle of pandemic-era tech purchases starts trickling in, the retailer is hoping to cash in through marketing and operational initiatives. Best Buy said in July that it would add trained sales teams to three key parts of its stores — computing, appliance and home theater — and kick off a marketing campaign that includes YouTube videos to draw consumer interest.The company was also betting on a wave of new tech gadget debuts, such as a collection of new iPads launched by Apple in May and artificial intelligence-enabled laptops touted by Microsoft, to drive sales.The company on Thursday posted comparable sales growth of 6% in the domestic tablet and computing categories. However, that was ""more than offset"" by declines in appliances, home theater and gaming, executives said.Barry added that AI could continue to boost sales across categories over the next few years.""We believe we are just at the beginning of the impact of AI on tech innovation and customer demand,"" she said.Best Buy has seen a doubling in the number of consumers choosing to trade in old electronics for new ones, which Barry said is ""another indicator that people are wanting to renew and refresh"" their current tech gadgets.""We capitalized on demand driven by our customers' desire to replace or upgrade their products, combined with new innovation,"" Barry said during the company's earnings call. ""We see a consumer who is seeking value in sales events and one who is also willing to spend on high-price-point products when they need to or when there is new, compelling technology.""Still, the consumer environment continues to be ""unpredictable and uneven,"" Barry said, citing the upcoming election and the holiday season.""There's probably an even greater risk that the consumer is a little bit unsettled"" in the back half of the year, she said.",CNBC,29/08/2024,"['In this articleBest Buy raised its fiscal-year profit guidance Thursday after exceeding earnings and revenue expectations for the most recent quarter.', 'Shares of Best Buy jumped more than 15% in morning trading Thursday.', 'The retailer now expects to see full-year adjusted earnings per share in the range of $6.10 to $6.35, up from a prior range of $5.75 to $6.20.', 'The company, however, lowered the top end of its guidance ranges for both full-year revenue and comparable sales.', '""As we look to the back half of the year, we expect our industry to continue to show increasing stabilization,"" Best Buy CFO Matt Bilunas said in the company\'s press release.', ""Here's how the consumer electronics retailer did for the period ended Aug. 3 compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:The company reported net income for the quarter of $291 million, or $1.34 per share, compared with $274 million, or $1.25 per share, a year earlier."", 'Net sales in the quarter dropped to $9.29 billion from $9.58 billion during the same period a year earlier.', 'Comparable sales declined 2.3% during the quarter, compared with a 6.2% fall a year earlier.', ""That drop in comparable sales was the company's best result for the metric since the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022, CEO Corie Barry said on the company's earnings call."", 'Barry said the industry is returning to growth, adding that Best Buy\'s positioning within the sector is helping the retailer ""to capture that growth trajectory.', '""Best Buy has been in the midst of an attempted turnaround in response to a two-year sales slump.', 'Discretionary merchandise retailers across the board have struggled with softer consumer demand in the wake of unusually high sales throughout the Covid pandemic and as consumers pull back due to elevated inflation.', 'As the much-awaited replacement cycle of pandemic-era tech purchases starts trickling in, the retailer is hoping to cash in through marketing and operational initiatives.', 'Best Buy said in July that it would add trained sales teams to three key parts of its stores — computing, appliance and home theater — and kick off a marketing campaign that includes YouTube videos to draw consumer interest.', 'The company was also betting on a wave of new tech gadget debuts, such as a collection of new iPads launched by Apple in May and artificial intelligence-enabled laptops touted by Microsoft, to drive sales.', 'The company on Thursday posted comparable sales growth of 6% in the domestic tablet and computing categories.', 'However, that was ""more than offset"" by declines in appliances, home theater and gaming, executives said.', 'Barry added that AI could continue to boost sales across categories over the next few years.', '""We believe we are just at the beginning of the impact of AI on tech innovation and customer demand,"" she said.', 'Best Buy has seen a doubling in the number of consumers choosing to trade in old electronics for new ones, which Barry said is ""another indicator that people are wanting to renew and refresh"" their current tech gadgets.', '""We capitalized on demand driven by our customers\' desire to replace or upgrade their products, combined with new innovation,"" Barry said during the company\'s earnings call. ""', 'We see a consumer who is seeking value in sales events and one who is also willing to spend on high-price-point products when they need to or when there is new, compelling technology.', '""Still, the consumer environment continues to be ""unpredictable and uneven,"" Barry said, citing the upcoming election and the holiday season.', '""There\'s probably an even greater risk that the consumer is a little bit unsettled"" in the back half of the year, she said.']",0.3770564662732343,"Barry said the industry is returning to growth, adding that Best Buy's positioning within the sector is helping the retailer ""to capture that growth trajectory.",Discretionary merchandise retailers across the board have struggled with softer consumer demand in the wake of unusually high sales throughout the Covid pandemic and as consumers pull back due to elevated inflation.,0.2777897663738417,"The retailer now expects to see full-year adjusted earnings per share in the range of $6.10 to $6.35, up from a prior range of $5.75 to $6.20.",Net sales in the quarter dropped to $9.29 billion from $9.58 billion during the same period a year earlier.,2024-08-30
NFL owners vote in favor of private equity investment; select firms commit $12 billion,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/27/nfl-private-equity-ownership-vote.html,2024-08-28T13:55:22+0000,"The NFL's most exclusive club just let in new members.At a special league meeting in Eagan, Minnesota, on Tuesday, National Football League owners voted in favor of allowing select private equity firms to buy up to a 10% stake of a team. Each fund or consortium will be able to do deals with up to six teams.The vote passed with support from 31 of the 32 franchise owners. Cincinnati Bengals owner Mike Brown voted against the measure, according to a person familiar with the vote.Kansas City Chiefs owner Clark Hunt led the special committee on ownership policy. He told CNBC's Jim Cramer after the vote that the NFL has been considering such a move for upwards of 5 years and felt it was the right time for the league — though he acknowledged the 10% cap amounted to ""baby steps.""""The capital will be very helpful to teams as they look to grow their business and improve the fan experience,"" Hunt said.The initial approved firms include Ares Management, Sixth Street Partners and Arctos Partners, in addition to a consortium nicknamed ""The Avengers"" that includes Dynasty Equity, Blackstone, Carlyle Group, CVC Capital Partners and Ludis, a platform founded by investor and former NFL running back Curtis Martin.The firms collectively have $2 trillion in assets and intend to commit $12 billion of capital to be raised (inclusive of leverage) over time, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified to speak about terms that were not public. With at least four investor groups able to invest in up to six teams each, that works out to $500 million of added capital on average for each team that receives an investment.According to the terms of the proposal, the minimum hold period for these funds will be six years.""We thought it's an opportunity for us to really change how some of the ownership groups have real problems with the illiquidity, they have big families and have to solve a lot of problems that are not usual,"" New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft told CNBC's ""Squawk Box"" on Wednesday. ""And so we thought this was a great source of capital and could be done in a way that was very functional and wouldn't affect the operation.""Pending final approval, Arctos, one of the approved firms, would be the only firm approved to invest in equity across each of the five most popular major North American sports leagues.""We are honored to be among the first private investment firms being considered by the National Football League as potential partners for their clubs and owners,"" Arctos said in a statement. ""[We] look forward to contributing to the League's continued success.""Ares said in a statement it was honored to be able to invest in ""iconic football franchises.""""The NFL has long engendered deeply loyal fanbases, innovative approaches to media and some of the most viewed and highest valued sports franchises in the world. We are excited for the opportunity to support the continued growth of NFL teams through Ares' extensive investment experience and strong relationship networks in the sports, media and entertainment sector,"" the firm said.The investing consortium of Blackstone, Carlyle, CVC, Dynasty Equity and Ludis said in a statement: ""We are pleased to have secured this provisional approval following the NFL's thoughtful and robust process, and welcome the potential opportunity to partner with the league.""The approval Tuesday comes after years of discussion.NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell told CNBC in July that the league had seen tremendous interest from private equity.The league created a committee last September to look at the possibility of welcoming private equity funding and has been meeting with the selected firms more recently.The NFL is the last major sports league to allow private equity investment, and it's still treading lightly on the issue by allowing only a select group to participate and at a lower rate than the other professional sports leagues.The National Basketball Association, Major League Baseball, the National Hockey League and Major League Soccer all allow private equity ownership of up to 30%.Goodell told CNBC in July that he believes the 10% is a complement to the existing ownership structure and that the percentage could be raised at some point in the future.As NFL team valuations rise, it's meant a smaller pool of owners have the money to foot the price tag when teams become available.That dynamic was on display during the sale of the Washington Commanders last year. The franchise sold for a record $6.05 billion to an ownership group that included Apollo co-founder Josh Harris and 20 other investors.Harris said in June that the process ""created a little bit of a wake-up call at the NFL.""""Unless you're one of the wealthiest 50 people [in the world], writing a $5 billion equity check is pretty hard for anyone,"" Harris told CNBC at the CNBC CEO Council Summit at the time.As the NFL opens its doors to fresh capital, the money will also free up funding for new stadiums and related projects.""It will give teams who are considering new or renovated stadiums access to a capital pool they haven't had access to in the past,"" Hunt said.The Buffalo Bills and Tennessee Titans are both currently in the process of building new stadiums, while the Cleveland Browns, Chicago Bears and Washington Commanders are actively pursuing new stadiums in the future.— CNBC's Jake Piazza contributed to this report.",CNBC,28/08/2024,"[""The NFL's most exclusive club just let in new members."", 'At a special league meeting in Eagan, Minnesota, on Tuesday, National Football League owners voted in favor of allowing select private equity firms to buy up to a 10% stake of a team.', 'Each fund or consortium will be able to do deals with up to six teams.', 'The vote passed with support from 31 of the 32 franchise owners.', 'Cincinnati Bengals owner Mike Brown voted against the measure, according to a person familiar with the vote.', 'Kansas City Chiefs owner Clark Hunt led the special committee on ownership policy.', 'He told CNBC\'s Jim Cramer after the vote that the NFL has been considering such a move for upwards of 5 years and felt it was the right time for the league — though he acknowledged the 10% cap amounted to ""baby steps.', '""""The capital will be very helpful to teams as they look to grow their business and improve the fan experience,"" Hunt said.', 'The initial approved firms include Ares Management, Sixth Street Partners and Arctos Partners, in addition to a consortium nicknamed ""The Avengers"" that includes Dynasty Equity, Blackstone, Carlyle Group, CVC Capital Partners and Ludis, a platform founded by investor and former NFL running back Curtis Martin.', 'The firms collectively have $2 trillion in assets and intend to commit $12 billion of capital to be raised (inclusive of leverage) over time, according to people familiar with the matter,who asked not to be identified to speak about terms that were not public.', 'With at least four investor groups able to invest in up to six teams each, that works out to $500 million of added capital on average for each team that receives an investment.', 'According to the terms of the proposal, the minimum hold period for these funds will be six years.', '""We thought it\'s an opportunity for us to really change how some of the ownership groups have real problems with the illiquidity, they have big families and have to solve a lot of problems that are not usual,"" New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft told CNBC\'s ""Squawk Box"" on Wednesday. ""', ""And so we thought this was a great source of capital and could be done in a way that was very functional and wouldn't affect the operation."", '""Pending final approval, Arctos, one of the approved firms, would be the only firm approved to invest in equity across each of the five most popular major North American sports leagues.', '""We are honored to be among the first private investment firms being considered by the National Football League as potential partners for their clubs and owners,"" Arctos said in a statement. ""[', ""We] look forward to contributing to the League's continued success."", '""Ares said in a statement it was honored to be able to invest in ""iconic football franchises.', '""""The NFL has long engendered deeply loyal fanbases, innovative approaches to media and some of the most viewed and highest valued sports franchises in the world.', 'We are excited for the opportunity to support the continued growth of NFL teams through Ares\' extensive investment experience and strong relationship networks in the sports, media and entertainment sector,"" the firm said.', 'The investing consortium of Blackstone, Carlyle, CVC, Dynasty Equity and Ludis said in a statement: ""We are pleased to have secured this provisional approval following the NFL\'s thoughtful and robust process, and welcome the potential opportunity to partner with the league.', '""The approval Tuesday comes after years of discussion.', 'NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell told CNBC in July that the league had seen tremendous interest from private equity.', 'The league created a committee last September to look at the possibility of welcoming private equity funding and has been meeting with the selected firms more recently.', ""The NFL is the last major sports league to allow private equity investment, and it's still treading lightly on the issue by allowing only a select group to participate and at a lower rate than the other professional sports leagues."", 'The National Basketball Association, Major League Baseball, the National Hockey League and Major League Soccer all allow private equity ownership of up to 30%.Goodell told CNBC in July that he believes the 10% is a complement to the existing ownership structure and that the percentage could be raised at some point in the future.', ""As NFL team valuations rise, it's meant a smaller pool of owners have the money to foot the price tag when teams become available."", 'That dynamic was on display during the sale of the Washington Commanders last year.', 'The franchise sold for a record $6.05 billion to an ownership group that included Apollo co-founder Josh Harris and 20 other investors.', 'Harris said in June that the process ""created a little bit of a wake-up call at the NFL.""""Unless you\'re one of the wealthiest 50 people [in the world], writing a $5 billion equity check is pretty hard for anyone,"" Harris told CNBC at the CNBC CEO Council Summit at the time.', 'As the NFL opens its doors to fresh capital, the money will also free up funding for new stadiums and related projects.', '""It will give teams who are considering new or renovated stadiums access to a capital pool they haven\'t had access to in the past,"" Hunt said.', 'The Buffalo Bills and Tennessee Titans are both currently in the process of building new stadiums, while the Cleveland Browns, Chicago Bears and Washington Commanders are actively pursuing new stadiums in the future.—', ""CNBC's Jake Piazza contributed to this report.""]",0.3841646113134327,"The investing consortium of Blackstone, Carlyle, CVC, Dynasty Equity and Ludis said in a statement: ""We are pleased to have secured this provisional approval following the NFL's thoughtful and robust process, and welcome the potential opportunity to partner with the league.","""We thought it's an opportunity for us to really change how some of the ownership groups have real problems with the illiquidity, they have big families and have to solve a lot of problems that are not usual,"" New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft told CNBC's ""Squawk Box"" on Wednesday. """,0.8392235094850714,"We are excited for the opportunity to support the continued growth of NFL teams through Ares' extensive investment experience and strong relationship networks in the sports, media and entertainment sector,"" the firm said.","Harris said in June that the process ""created a little bit of a wake-up call at the NFL.""""Unless you're one of the wealthiest 50 people [in the world], writing a $5 billion equity check is pretty hard for anyone,"" Harris told CNBC at the CNBC CEO Council Summit at the time.",2024-08-30
Will sustainable aviation fuels take off?,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cg64pwxzln4o,2024-08-30T01:14:43.247Z,"In a building on the edge of a business park outside Sheffield, researcher Ihab Ahmed is preparing to fire up a small jet engine. Originally used as an auxiliary power unit for a commercial airliner, it has been turned into a testbed for new fuels developed in a laboratory next door. The arrangement is a centrepiece of Sheffield University’s Sustainable Fuels Innovation Centre (SAF-IC), a research facility set up to allow synthetic fuels to be prepared and evaluated on a small scale, before being put into large scale production. On a bank of computer screens in a nearby control room, Ihab can monitor the engine as it starts with a burst of flame and powers up. Sensors tell him what the engine is doing in real time – and allow the exhaust gases to be continually analysed. Sustainable fuels are synthetic alternatives to fossil fuels, made from renewable sources. These can include waste cooking oils, vegetable fats and agricultural waste, as well as captured carbon dioxide. The advantage of burning fuels like these is that it does not add to the overall load of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. The carbon emitted has only recently been removed, either by plants or by chemical processes. By contrast, burning fossil fuels releases carbon that has been stored in the earth for millions of years. “From an environmental perspective, it’s day and night,"" Mr Ahmed explains. “In principle, the CO2 should be a net zero, so there is no more carbon dioxide added to the atmosphere, but another benefit is the non-CO2 part of things. “For example, it reduces the particulates or smoke that comes out of the engine, which can affect your lungs, as well as contributing to the creation of contrails."" For the aviation industry, this is potentially a game-changer. According to forecasts from both Airbus and Boeing, the global airliner fleet is expected to more than double over the next two decades, as the middle classes in countries like India and China expand, and demand for air travel increases. At the same time, members of the International Air Transport Association, which represents airlines, have committed to reaching net zero by 2050. Some gains will be made by replacing older planes with new ones. The most modern aircraft are between 15 and 30% more fuel efficient than their predecessors. Yet if the industry is to continue expanding, much more will be needed. In the longer term, new technologies such as hydrogen power and electrification are likely to play a role, at least on shorter routes. But there are steep challenges to overcome. Hydrogen, for example, is bulky and difficult to store in large quantities. It either needs to be kept as a highly compressed gas or as a very cold liquid. To be sustainable, it has to be made in a ""clean"" way, from renewable sources – and supplies now are very limited. “We believe we could bring a small hydrogen fuel cell aircraft to the market between 2035 and 2045, technically,” says Arjen Meijer, chief executive of the Brazilian jet maker Embraer. “But the question that needs to be answered is: will there be sufficient hydrogen to feed those aircraft? These things need to come together. They can’t happen separately."" Batteries, meanwhile, are currently very heavy in relation to the energy they contain. This makes them unsuitable for powering large planes, or being used over long distances. This means that hydrogen and hybrid, or fully electric, planes remain years away. Sustainable aviation fuels, by contrast, can be made in the lab to have the same characteristics as conventional ones derived from crude oil, so they can be used in today’s aircraft. There are restrictions. Airlines must currently use a blend of SAF with ordinary fuel, with the SAF component not exceeding 50%. However, modern planes are capable of burning 100% SAF. In a specially approved test flight last year, Virgin Atlantic flew a Boeing 787 from London to New York using fuel exclusively produced from waste fats and plant sugars. “The technologies are already available and certified for use in aircraft,"" explains Julie Kitcher, chief sustainability officer at Airbus. “The challenge with sustainable fuels is really about getting it produced at scale, across the globe, because this is a global industry, at an affordable price.” And that is very clearly the catch. Supplies of SAF are currently minimal. According to the European regulator EASA, they make up just 0.05% of the fuel used in the EU. They also cost between three and five times as much as ""regular"" jet fuel. Governments want to change this. In the UK a ""SAF mandate"" has been introduced, which stipulates that from next year, 2% of all jet fuel supplied must be SAF, increasing to 10% in 2030 and 22% in 2040. The EU has a similar mandate, although it extends to 2050 – when the target for SAF use will be 63%. The US does not have minimum requirements but offers subsidies to bring down the price of sustainable fuels. But if SAF usage is to increase, production will also need to be ramped up dramatically. There are many different methods, or pathways for making sustainable fuels. They can be made from biomass, such as waste cooking oil, energy crops, wood, agricultural residues and even human waste. However, there are concerns that this will not provide all the fuel the market will ultimately need. Some feedstocks may need to be avoided, either to prevent environmental degradation such as deforestation, or to prevent land needed for growing food from being turned over to energy production. An alternative is to use a method called power to liquid, in which water and carbon dioxide are broken down, with the resulting carbon and hydrogen combined to create liquid fuel. This could produce potentially limitless supplies of fuel, but in order to be sustainable would require large quantities of renewable electricity, as well as a substantial increase in carbon capture and storage. Both processes – using biomass or power to liquid - are currently very expensive. As a result, the aviation industry is demanding action to increase production, and bring prices down through economies of scale. However, environmentalists question whether this is actually viable. ""There are good SAFs, and there are bad SAFs, but the brutal truth is that right now there is not much of either,” says Matt Finch, UK head of campaign group Transport & Environment. “Conversely, right now there are thousands of new planes on order from airlines, and all of them will burn fossil fuels for at least 20 years. ""Actions speak louder than words, and it's clear that the aviation sector has no plans to wean itself off its addiction to pollution."" Nonetheless, at the recent Farnborough Airshow, there were several significant announcements relating to SAF. A consortium including Airbus, AirFrance-KLM, Associated Energy Group, BNP Paribas and Qantas among others announced plans to invest $200m (£151m) in a new fund which will invest in “technologically mature SAF-producing projects using for instance waste-based feedstocks”. Meanwhile Boeing said it had set up a partnership with the investment company Clear Sky to promote a method of producing SAF pioneered by the British company Firefly. That method involves taking human waste and using heat and high pressure to turn it into a substance which can then be used to make SAF. In other words, it allows planes to be powered by poo. Sign up for our Future Earth newsletter to get exclusive insight on the latest climate and environment news from the BBC's Climate Editor Justin Rowlatt, delivered to your inbox every week. Outside the UK? Sign up to our international newsletter here. ",BBC,30/08/2024,"['In a building on the edge of a business park outside Sheffield, researcher Ihab Ahmed is preparing to fire up a small jet engine.', 'Originally used as an auxiliary power unit for a commercial airliner, it has been turned into a testbed for new fuels developed in a laboratory next door.', 'The arrangement is a centrepiece of Sheffield University’s Sustainable Fuels Innovation Centre (SAF-IC), a research facility set up to allow synthetic fuels to be prepared and evaluated on a small scale, before being put into large scale production.', 'On a bank of computer screens in a nearby control room, Ihab can monitor the engine as it starts with a burst of flame and powers up.', 'Sensors tell him what the engine is doing in real time – and allow the exhaust gases to be continually analysed.', 'Sustainable fuels are synthetic alternatives to fossil fuels, made from renewable sources.', 'These can include waste cooking oils, vegetable fats and agricultural waste, as well as captured carbon dioxide.', 'The advantage of burning fuels like these is that it does not add to the overall load of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.', 'The carbon emitted has only recently been removed, either by plants or by chemical processes.', 'By contrast, burning fossil fuels releases carbon that has been stored in the earth for millions of years. “', 'From an environmental perspective, it’s day and night,"" Mr Ahmed explains. “', 'In principle, the CO2 should be a net zero, so there is no more carbon dioxide added to the atmosphere, but another benefit is the non-CO2 part of things. “', 'For example, it reduces the particulates or smoke that comes out of the engine, which can affect your lungs, as well as contributing to the creation of contrails.""', 'For the aviation industry, this is potentially a game-changer.', 'According to forecasts from both Airbus and Boeing, the global airliner fleet is expected to more than double over the next two decades, as the middle classes in countries like India and China expand, and demand for air travel increases.', 'At the same time, members of the International Air Transport Association, which represents airlines, have committed to reaching net zero by 2050.', 'Some gains will be made by replacing older planes with new ones.', 'The most modern aircraft are between 15 and 30% more fuel efficient than their predecessors.', 'Yet if the industry is to continue expanding, much more will be needed.', 'In the longer term, new technologies such as hydrogen power and electrification are likely to play a role, at least on shorter routes.', 'But there are steep challenges to overcome.', 'Hydrogen, for example, is bulky and difficult to store in large quantities.', 'It either needs to be kept as a highly compressed gas or as a very cold liquid.', 'To be sustainable, it has to be made in a ""clean"" way, from renewable sources – and supplies now are very limited. “', 'We believe we could bring a small hydrogen fuel cell aircraft to the market between 2035 and 2045, technically,” says Arjen Meijer, chief executive of the Brazilian jet maker Embraer. “', 'But the question that needs to be answered is: will there be sufficient hydrogen to feed those aircraft?', 'These things need to come together.', 'They can’t happen separately.""', 'Batteries, meanwhile, are currently very heavy in relation to the energy they contain.', 'This makes them unsuitable for powering large planes, or being used over long distances.', 'This means that hydrogen and hybrid, or fully electric, planes remain years away.', 'Sustainable aviation fuels, by contrast, can be made in the lab to have the same characteristics as conventional ones derived from crude oil, so they can be used in today’s aircraft.', 'There are restrictions.', 'Airlines must currently use a blend of SAF with ordinary fuel, with the SAF component not exceeding 50%.', 'However, modern planes are capable of burning 100% SAF.', 'In a specially approved test flight last year, Virgin Atlantic flew a Boeing 787 from London to New York using fuel exclusively produced from waste fats and plant sugars. “', 'The technologies are already available and certified for use in aircraft,"" explains Julie Kitcher, chief sustainability officer at Airbus. “', 'The challenge with sustainable fuels is really about getting it produced at scale, across the globe, because this is a global industry, at an affordable price.”', 'And that is very clearly the catch.', 'Supplies of SAF are currently minimal.', 'According to the European regulator EASA, they make up just 0.05% of the fuel used in the EU.', 'They also cost between three and five times as much as ""regular"" jet fuel.', 'Governments want to change this.', 'In the UK a ""SAF mandate"" has been introduced, which stipulates that from next year, 2% of all jet fuel supplied must be SAF, increasing to 10% in 2030 and 22% in 2040.', 'The EU has a similar mandate, although it extends to 2050 – when the target for SAF use will be 63%.', 'The US does not have minimum requirements but offers subsidies to bring down the price of sustainable fuels.', 'But if SAF usage is to increase, production will also need to be ramped up dramatically.', 'There are many different methods, or pathways for making sustainable fuels.', 'They can be made from biomass, such as waste cooking oil, energy crops, wood, agricultural residues and even human waste.', 'However, there are concerns that this will not provide all the fuel the market will ultimately need.', 'Some feedstocks may need to be avoided, either to prevent environmental degradation such as deforestation, or to prevent land needed for growing food from being turned over to energy production.', 'An alternative is to use a method called power to liquid, in which water and carbon dioxide are broken down, with the resulting carbon and hydrogen combined to create liquid fuel.', 'This could produce potentially limitless supplies of fuel, but in order to be sustainable would require large quantities of renewable electricity, as well as a substantial increase in carbon capture and storage.', 'Both processes – using biomass or power to liquid - are currently very expensive.', 'As a result, the aviation industry is demanding action to increase production, and bring prices down through economies of scale.', 'However, environmentalists question whether this is actually viable. ""', 'There are good SAFs, and there are bad SAFs, but the brutal truth is that right now there is not much of either,” says Matt Finch, UK head of campaign group Transport & Environment. “', 'Conversely, right now there are thousands of new planes on order from airlines, and all of them will burn fossil fuels for at least 20 years. ""', 'Actions speak louder than words, and it\'s clear that the aviation sector has no plans to wean itself off its addiction to pollution.""', 'Nonetheless, at the recent Farnborough Airshow, there were several significant announcements relating to SAF.', 'A consortium including Airbus, AirFrance-KLM, Associated Energy Group, BNP Paribas and Qantas among others announced plans to invest $200m (£151m) in a new fund which will invest in “technologically mature SAF-producing projects using for instance waste-based feedstocks”.', 'Meanwhile Boeing said it had set up a partnership with the investment company Clear Sky to promote a method of producing SAF pioneered by the British company Firefly.', 'That method involves taking human waste and using heat and high pressure to turn it into a substance which can then be used to make SAF.', 'In other words, it allows planes to be powered by poo.', ""Sign up for our Future Earth newsletter to get exclusive insight on the latest climate and environment news from the BBC's Climate Editor Justin Rowlatt, delivered to your inbox every week."", 'Outside the UK?', 'Sign up to our international newsletter here.']",0.0640035522416933,"This could produce potentially limitless supplies of fuel, but in order to be sustainable would require large quantities of renewable electricity, as well as a substantial increase in carbon capture and storage.","There are good SAFs, and there are bad SAFs, but the brutal truth is that right now there is not much of either,” says Matt Finch, UK head of campaign group Transport & Environment. “",0.796401688685784,"According to forecasts from both Airbus and Boeing, the global airliner fleet is expected to more than double over the next two decades, as the middle classes in countries like India and China expand, and demand for air travel increases.","This makes them unsuitable for powering large planes, or being used over long distances.",2024-08-30
Peloton to start charging subscribers with used equipment $95 activation fee,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/22/peloton-to-charge-95-activation-fee-for-used-bikes-.html,2024-08-23T11:51:25+0000,"In this articlePeloton on Thursday said it will start charging new subscribers a one-time $95 activation fee if they bought their hardware on the secondary market as more consumers snag lightly used equipment for a fraction of the typical retail price.The used equipment activation fee for subscribers in the U.S. and Canada comes as Peloton starts to see a meaningful increase in new members who bought used Bikes or Treads from peer-to-peer markets such as Facebook Marketplace. During its fiscal fourth quarter, which ended June 30, Peloton said it saw a ""steady stream of paid connected fitness subscribers"" who bought hardware on the secondary market. The company said the segment grew 16% year over year.""We believe a meaningful share of these subscribers are incremental, and they exhibit lower net churn rates than rental subscribers,"" the company said in a letter to shareholders. ""It's also worth highlighting that this activation fee will be a source of incremental revenue and gross profit for us, helping to support our investments in improving the fitness experience for our members,"" interim co-CEO Christopher Bruzzo later added on a call with analysts. While plenty of Peloton subscribers are avid users of the home workout machines, some have likened them to glorified clothes racks because so many people stop using the equipment. Those people paid Peloton for that hardware originally, but importantly, many of them have canceled their monthly subscription, which is how Peloton makes the bulk of its money. The ability to attract new, budget-conscious members from the secondary market who are willing to pay for a monthly subscription is a unique opportunity for Peloton to grow revenue without any upfront cost, on top of the revenue from the original sale. Ari Kimmelfeld — whose startup Trade My Stuff, formerly known as Trade My Spin, sells used Peloton equipment — estimates there are around a million Bikes collecting dust in homes around the world that could be a source of new revenue for the company. He told CNBC he previously met with Peloton executives to discuss ways to collaborate, because every time he sells a used piece of equipment, it could lead to more than $500 in new revenue per year for Peloton. With the new used equipment activation fee, that number could grow to more than $600 for the first year. ""We save the customer a lot more than $95,"" Kimmelfeld told CNBC on Thursday after the new activation fee was announced. ""I don't think it'll stop or slow down people from buying secondary equipment … because you can get a bike delivered faster and cheaper on the secondary market, even with the $95, let's call it a tax, from Peloton."" Trade My Stuff sells first-generation Bikes for $499, compared with $1,445 new. It offers the Bike+ for $1,199, compared with $2,495 new. It also sells used Treads for $1,999, compared with $2,995 new. Since launching his business, Kimmelfeld has worked with people looking to sell their used Peloton equipment and has since sold a ""few thousand"" Bikes. In 14 cities around the country, including Los Angeles, Denver and New York City, the company offers same- or next-day delivery. Outside of those locales, it provides delivery within three to five days. That compares with a new Peloton purchase, which can take significantly longer to deliver. The used equipment activation fee is designed to ensure that new members ""receive the same high-quality onboarding experience Peloton is known for,"" the company said. Bruzzo said that those who buy a used Bike or Bike+ have access to a virtual custom fitting ahead of their first ride, as well as a history summary that shows how many rides those bikes had before they were resold. ""We're also offering these new members discounts on accessories such as bike shoes, bike mats and spare parts,"" said Bruzzo. ""We'll continue to lean into this important channel and find additional ways to improve the new member experience, for example, providing early education about the broad range of fitness modalities that we offer and the many series and programs our instructors provide to new members.""",CNBC,23/08/2024,"['In this articlePeloton on Thursday said it will start charging new subscribers a one-time $95 activation fee if they bought their hardware on the secondary market as more consumers snag lightly used equipment for a fraction of the typical retail price.', 'The used equipment activation fee for subscribers in the U.S. and Canada comes as Peloton starts to see a meaningful increase in new members who bought used Bikes or Treads from peer-to-peer markets such as Facebook Marketplace.', 'During its fiscal fourth quarter, which ended June 30, Peloton said it saw a ""steady stream of paid connected fitness subscribers"" who bought hardware on the secondary market.', 'The company said the segment grew 16% year over year.', '""We believe a meaningful share of these subscribers are incremental, and they exhibit lower net churn rates than rental subscribers,"" the company said in a letter to shareholders.', '""It\'s also worth highlighting that this activation fee will be a source of incremental revenue and gross profit for us, helping to support our investments in improving the fitness experience for our members,"" interim co-CEO Christopher Bruzzo later added on a call with analysts.', 'While plenty of Peloton subscribers are avid users of the home workout machines, some have likened them to glorified clothes racks because so many people stop using the equipment.', 'Those people paid Peloton for that hardware originally, but importantly, many of them have canceled their monthly subscription, which is how Peloton makes the bulk of its money.', 'The ability to attract new, budget-conscious members from the secondary market who are willing to pay for a monthly subscription is a unique opportunity for Peloton to grow revenue without any upfront cost, on top of the revenue from the original sale.', 'Ari Kimmelfeld — whose startup Trade My Stuff, formerly known as Trade My Spin, sells used Peloton equipment — estimates there are around a million Bikes collecting dust in homes around the world that could be a source of new revenue for the company.', 'He told CNBC he previously met with Peloton executives to discuss ways to collaborate, because every time he sells a used piece of equipment, it could lead to more than $500 in new revenue per year for Peloton.', 'With the new used equipment activation fee, that number could grow to more than $600 for the first year.', '""We save the customer a lot more than $95,"" Kimmelfeld told CNBC on Thursday after the new activation fee was announced. ""', ""I don't think it'll stop or slow down people from buying secondary equipment … because you can get a bike delivered faster and cheaper on the secondary market, even with the $95, let's call it a tax, from Peloton."", '""Trade My Stuff sells first-generation Bikes for $499, compared with $1,445 new.', 'It offers the Bike+ for $1,199, compared with $2,495 new.', 'It also sells used Treads for $1,999, compared with $2,995 new.', 'Since launching his business, Kimmelfeld has worked with people looking to sell their used Peloton equipment and has since sold a ""few thousand"" Bikes.', 'In 14 cities around the country, including Los Angeles, Denver and New York City, the company offers same- or next-day delivery.', 'Outside of those locales, it provides delivery within three to five days.', 'That compares with a new Peloton purchase, which can take significantly longer to deliver.', 'The used equipment activation fee is designed to ensure that new members ""receive the same high-quality onboarding experience Peloton is known for,"" the company said.', 'Bruzzo said that those who buy a used Bike or Bike+ have access to a virtual custom fitting ahead of their first ride, as well as a history summary that shows how many rides those bikes had before they were resold.', '""We\'re also offering these new members discounts on accessories such as bike shoes, bike mats and spare parts,"" said Bruzzo. ""', 'We\'ll continue to lean into this important channel and find additional ways to improve the new member experience, for example, providing early education about the broad range of fitness modalities that we offer and the many series and programs our instructors provide to new members.""']",0.2162157198496136,"""It's also worth highlighting that this activation fee will be a source of incremental revenue and gross profit for us, helping to support our investments in improving the fitness experience for our members,"" interim co-CEO Christopher Bruzzo later added on a call with analysts.","I don't think it'll stop or slow down people from buying secondary equipment … because you can get a bike delivered faster and cheaper on the secondary market, even with the $95, let's call it a tax, from Peloton.",0.828438401222229,The used equipment activation fee for subscribers in the U.S. and Canada comes as Peloton starts to see a meaningful increase in new members who bought used Bikes or Treads from peer-to-peer markets such as Facebook Marketplace.,"That compares with a new Peloton purchase, which can take significantly longer to deliver.",2024-08-30
South Korea battery maker boss arrested over deadly fire,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c5y35nvvepwo,2024-08-29T03:47:03.969Z,"The chief executive of Aricell, a South Korean lithium battery company, has been arrested over a massive factory fire in June that killed 23 people and injured nine others.  A court approved the warrant for Park Soon-kwan's arrest on Wednesday. Investigators have said Aricell's management is suspected of workplace safety violations. The fire was one of South Korea's worst factory disasters in recent years. Aricells' parent company, S-Connect, did not immediately respond to a BBC request for comment. After the fire Mr Park issued an apology: ""We are deeply saddened by the loss of life and would like to express our deepest condolences and apologies to the bereaved families."" ""We take great responsibility and will sincerely provide support to the deceased and their families in every way possible,"" he added.  His arrest comes after a police investigation found that the factory had been rushing to meet production deadlines. Investigators said there were a number of safety issues at the plant, including a failure to address quality defects in batteries and hiring unskilled staff to handle dangerous materials. It was also alleged that Aricell had been cheating in quality inspections related to contracts with the military. The blaze broke out on 24 June after several battery cells exploded. At the time of the fire, the Aricell factory housed an estimated 35,000 battery cells on its second floor, where batteries were inspected and packaged. As a lithium fire can react intensely with water, firefighters had to use dry sand to extinguish the blaze, which took several hours to get under control. The victims were mostly foreign workers, from country's including China and Laos. South Korea is a leading producer of lithium batteries, which are used in many items from electric cars to laptops. ",BBC,29/08/2024,"['The chief executive of Aricell, a South Korean lithium battery company, has been arrested over a massive factory fire in June that killed 23 people and injured nine others.', ""A court approved the warrant for Park Soon-kwan's arrest on Wednesday."", ""Investigators have said Aricell's management is suspected of workplace safety violations."", ""The fire was one of South Korea's worst factory disasters in recent years."", ""Aricells' parent company, S-Connect, did not immediately respond to a BBC request for comment."", 'After the fire Mr Park issued an apology: ""We are deeply saddened by the loss of life and would like to express our deepest condolences and apologies to the bereaved families."" ""', 'We take great responsibility and will sincerely provide support to the deceased and their families in every way possible,"" he added.', 'His arrest comes after a police investigation found that the factory had been rushing to meet production deadlines.', 'Investigators said there were a number of safety issues at the plant, including a failure to address quality defects in batteries and hiring unskilled staff to handle dangerous materials.', 'It was also alleged that Aricell had been cheating in quality inspections related to contracts with the military.', 'The blaze broke out on 24 June after several battery cells exploded.', 'At the time of the fire, the Aricell factory housed an estimated 35,000 battery cells on its second floor, where batteries were inspected and packaged.', 'As a lithium fire can react intensely with water, firefighters had to use dry sand to extinguish the blaze, which took several hours to get under control.', ""The victims were mostly foreign workers, from country's including China and Laos."", 'South Korea is a leading producer of lithium batteries, which are used in many items from electric cars to laptops.']",-0.3362992556668456,"We take great responsibility and will sincerely provide support to the deceased and their families in every way possible,"" he added.","The chief executive of Aricell, a South Korean lithium battery company, has been arrested over a massive factory fire in June that killed 23 people and injured nine others.",-0.9734751582145692,,It was also alleged that Aricell had been cheating in quality inspections related to contracts with the military.,2024-08-30
"Bitcoin rally helps create more than 84,000 new crypto millionaires in a year",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/27/bitcoin-rally-new-crypto-billionaires.html,2024-08-27T12:40:08+0000,"The population of crypto millionaires in the world soared 95% over the past year, as bitcoin ETFs and other crypto assets climbed, according to a new report.There are now 172,300 individuals worldwide holding over $1 million in crypto assets, up from 88,200 last year, according to a report from New World Wealth and Henley & Partners. The number of pure bitcoin millionaires more than doubled, to 85,400.The ranks of the crypto rich have grown all the way up the wealth ladder. There are now 325 crypto centi-millionaires (those with $100 million or more in crypto holdings), and 28 crypto billionaires, according to the report.The surge reflects the rapid growth of bitcoin ETFs, which now have over $50 billion in assets since their launch in January and have touched off a wave of institutional participation.The Inside Wealth newsletter by Robert Frank is your weekly guide to high-net-worth investors and the industries that serve them.Subscribe here to get access today. The price of bitcoin has jumped 45% this year to about 64,000. As other coins have increased in value, the market cap of crypto assets has increased to $2.3 trillion, according to Henley, up from $1.2 trillion last summer.Of the six new crypto billionaires created over the past year, five can attribute their newfound wealth to bitcoin, ""underscoring its dominant position when it comes to attracting long-term investors who buy large holdings,"" according to Andrew Amoils, head of research for New World Wealth.According to Forbes, the richest crypto billionaire (for the third year in a row) is Changpeng Zhao, the founder and former CEO of crypto exchange Binance, who's worth an estimated $33 billion. Zhao pled guilty to U.S. money laundering charges in November and agreed to pay a $50 million fine. His wealth has soared by more than $10.5 billion over the past year.Ranking second is Brian Armstrong, the co-founder of Coinbase, worth an estimated $11 billion, according to Forbes. He's followed by Giancarlo Devasini, the chief financial officer of Tether; and Michael Saylor, the cofounder of MicroStrategy, according to the list.Granted, many crypto assets are still below their 2021 highs, and bitcoin's recent rise essentially marks a three-year round-trip to those levels. Crypto assets reached a market cap of $3 trillion in November of 2021.Yet the growing acceptance of crypto assets among big asset managers like BlackRock and Fidelity, with help from Morgan Stanley's salesforce of 15,000 brokers, could fuel further wealth creation among large crypto holders.Crypto will not only create more millionaires and billionaires, but it will also change where the rich live and work. According to Henley, many of the newly crypto rich are looking to move to tax-friendly and crypto-friendly jurisdictions.""We've seen a significant uptick in crypto-wealthy clients seeking alternative residence and citizenship options,"" said Dominic Volek, head of private clients at Henley & Partners.To better advise the new crypto nomads, Henley created a ""Crypto Adoption Index,"" ranking countries according to their tax and regulatory approach to crypto. Singapore ranks first on the index, due to its ""supportive banking system, significant investment, comprehensive regulations such as the Payment Services Act, regulatory sandboxes, and alignment with global standards,"" according to Henley.Hong Kong ranked second, followed by the United Arab Emirates and the United States. In the U.S., according to the report, 15% of the population owns cryptocurrencies: ""This is supported by strong infrastructure, with a high density of crypto ATMs, crypto-friendly banks, and an increasing number of businesses accepting cryptocurrency,"" the report said.Correction: This story has been updated to correct a headline that misstated the number of crypto millionaires created by the bitcoin rally.",CNBC,27/08/2024,"['The population of crypto millionaires in the world soared 95% over the past year, as bitcoin ETFs and other crypto assets climbed, according to a new report.', 'There are now 172,300 individuals worldwide holding over $1 million in crypto assets, up from 88,200 last year, according to a report from New World Wealth and Henley & Partners.', 'The number of pure bitcoin millionaires more than doubled, to 85,400.The ranks of the crypto rich have grown all the way up the wealth ladder.', 'There are now 325 crypto centi-millionaires (those with $100 million or more in crypto holdings), and 28 crypto billionaires, according to the report.', 'The surge reflects the rapid growth of bitcoin ETFs, which now have over $50 billion in assets since their launch in January and have touched off a wave of institutional participation.', 'The Inside Wealth newsletter by Robert Frank is your weekly guide to high-net-worth investors and the industries that serve them.', 'Subscribe here to get access today.', 'The price of bitcoin has jumped 45% this year to about 64,000.', 'As other coins have increased in value, the market cap of crypto assets has increased to $2.3 trillion, according to Henley, up from $1.2 trillion last summer.', 'Of the six new crypto billionaires created over the past year, five can attribute their newfound wealth to bitcoin, ""underscoring its dominant position when it comes to attracting long-term investors who buy large holdings,"" according to Andrew Amoils, head of research for New World Wealth.', ""According to Forbes, the richest crypto billionaire (for the third year in a row) is Changpeng Zhao, the founder and former CEO of crypto exchange Binance, who's worth an estimated $33 billion."", 'Zhao pled guilty to U.S. money laundering charges in November and agreed to pay a $50 million fine.', 'His wealth has soared by more than $10.5 billion over the past year.', 'Ranking second is Brian Armstrong, the co-founder of Coinbase, worth an estimated $11 billion, according to Forbes.', ""He's followed by Giancarlo Devasini, the chief financial officer of Tether; and Michael Saylor, the cofounder of MicroStrategy, according to the list."", ""Granted, many crypto assets are still below their 2021 highs, and bitcoin's recent rise essentially marks a three-year round-trip to those levels."", ""Crypto assets reached a market cap of $3 trillion in November of 2021.Yet the growing acceptance of crypto assets among big asset managers like BlackRock and Fidelity, with help from Morgan Stanley's salesforce of 15,000 brokers, could fuel further wealth creation among large crypto holders."", 'Crypto will not only create more millionaires and billionaires, but it will also change where the rich live and work.', 'According to Henley, many of the newly crypto rich are looking to move to tax-friendly and crypto-friendly jurisdictions.', '""We\'ve seen a significant uptick in crypto-wealthy clients seeking alternative residence and citizenship options,"" said Dominic Volek, head of private clients at Henley & Partners.', 'To better advise the new crypto nomads, Henley created a ""Crypto Adoption Index,"" ranking countries according to their tax and regulatory approach to crypto.', 'Singapore ranks first on the index, due to its ""supportive banking system, significant investment, comprehensive regulations such as the Payment Services Act, regulatory sandboxes, and alignment with global standards,"" according to Henley.', 'Hong Kong ranked second, followed by the United Arab Emirates and the United States.', 'In the U.S., according to the report, 15% of the population owns cryptocurrencies: ""This is supported by strong infrastructure, with a high density of crypto ATMs, crypto-friendly banks, and an increasing number of businesses accepting cryptocurrency,"" the report said.', 'Correction: This story has been updated to correct a headline that misstated the number of crypto millionaires created by the bitcoin rally.']",0.4754463428446764,"Crypto assets reached a market cap of $3 trillion in November of 2021.Yet the growing acceptance of crypto assets among big asset managers like BlackRock and Fidelity, with help from Morgan Stanley's salesforce of 15,000 brokers, could fuel further wealth creation among large crypto holders.",Zhao pled guilty to U.S. money laundering charges in November and agreed to pay a $50 million fine.,0.935733050107956,"The population of crypto millionaires in the world soared 95% over the past year, as bitcoin ETFs and other crypto assets climbed, according to a new report.",,2024-08-30
"Nordstrom shares climb 5% as earnings top estimates, but retailer issues cautious guidance",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/27/nordstrom-jwn-earnings-q2-2024.html,2024-08-27T23:18:11+0000,"In this articleNordstrom on Tuesday posted earnings that blew past Wall Street's expectations, indicating the department store is making strides in its efforts to cut costs and boost efficiencies. Though the Seattle-based retailer posted earnings per share that were 25 cents higher than expected, it issued tepid guidance for the full year. Nordstrom now expects adjusted earnings per share to be between $1.75 and $2.05, compared to a previous range of $1.65 to $2.05. It anticipates sales will be in a range of a 1% decline to 1% growth from the prior year, compared to previous guidance of down 2% to up 1%. In a news release, Nordstrom CEO Erik Nordstrom said the company is optimistic about the second half of the year despite the cautious guidance.""Our second quarter results were solid, and we're encouraged by the continued topline strength in both banners and the progress we're making to expand gross margin and increase profitability,"" said Nordstrom. ""We're confident in our outlook for the remainder of the year and look forward to sustaining the momentum we've built.""Shares rose about 5% in extended trading.Here is how the department store did in its second fiscal quarter compared to what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended Aug. 3 was $122 million, or 72 cents per share, compared to $137 million, or 84 cents per share, a year earlier. Excluding one-time items related to supply chain impairments, the retailer posted adjusted earnings of 96 cents per share. Sales rose to $3.89 billion, up about 3.4% from $3.77 billion a year earlier. Revenue came in just shy of analysts' expectations.  Across the company, comparable sales increased 1.9%, while gross merchandise value jumped 3.5%. It is unclear how much of that GMV uptick was related to price increases versus volume.As consumers continue to pull back on discretionary spending in the face of persistent inflation and high interest rates, retailers have been working to improve operations and cut costs to protect profits against softening demand. During the quarter, Nordstrom's profits fell compared to the same period a year ago, but earnings grew over the past six months. Last year, Nordstrom reported a net loss of $67 million in the six months that ended July 29, 2023, but during the same period this year, it posted a profit of $83 million. Nordstrom has said it is working to improve its supply chain. Last quarter, it said the time it takes for online orders to arrive was more than 5% faster. It has also improved the way merchandise is making its way to customers and stores, which it said has helped drive higher conversion and lower return rates. Another key focus area for the company has been growing its off-price banner, Nordstrom Rack. Over the past couple of quarters, momentum has been growing at Nordstrom Rack and has helped prop up the company's overall results. During the quarter, sales at Nordstrom Rack were up 8.8%, while comparable sales increased 4.1% compared to the same period a year ago.That compares to Nordstrom's mainline banner, which saw net sales and comparable sales each increase just 0.9%. Nordstrom has been working to build more Rack locations and has opened 11 new locations so far this fiscal year, with a goal of opening at least 22 by the end of the year. The focus on Rack has been critical for Nordstrom's ability to compete with off-price giant TJX Cos., the owner of TJ Maxx and Marshall's, and capture consumers who are still spending but eager for cheaper options and deals.The off-price sector has seen explosive growth for more than a year, but Rack missed out on the beginning of that trend. To reverse the slump, the company has focused on opening more locations, hiring off-price veterans and sharpening its focus on well-known brands.",CNBC,27/08/2024,"[""In this articleNordstrom on Tuesday posted earnings that blew past Wall Street's expectations, indicating the department store is making strides in its efforts to cut costs and boost efficiencies."", 'Though the Seattle-based retailer posted earnings per share that were 25 cents higher than expected, it issued tepid guidance for the full year.', 'Nordstrom now expects adjusted earnings per share to be between $1.75 and $2.05, compared to a previous range of $1.65 to $2.05.', 'It anticipates sales will be in a range of a 1% decline to 1% growth from the prior year, compared to previous guidance of down 2% to up 1%.In a news release, Nordstrom CEO Erik Nordstrom said the company is optimistic about the second half of the year despite the cautious guidance.', '""Our second quarter results were solid, and we\'re encouraged by the continued topline strength in both banners and the progress we\'re making to expand gross margin and increase profitability,"" said Nordstrom. ""', ""We're confident in our outlook for the remainder of the year and look forward to sustaining the momentum we've built."", '""Shares rose about 5% in extended trading.', ""Here is how the department store did in its second fiscal quarter compared to what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended Aug. 3 was $122 million, or 72 cents per share, compared to $137 million, or 84 cents per share, a year earlier."", 'Excluding one-time items related to supply chain impairments, the retailer posted adjusted earnings of 96 cents per share.', 'Sales rose to $3.89 billion, up about 3.4% from $3.77 billion a year earlier.', ""Revenue came in just shy of analysts' expectations."", 'Across the company, comparable sales increased 1.9%, while gross merchandise value jumped 3.5%.', 'It is unclear how much of that GMV uptick was related to price increases versus volume.', 'As consumers continue to pull back on discretionary spending in the face of persistent inflation and high interest rates, retailers have been working to improve operations and cut costs to protect profits against softening demand.', ""During the quarter, Nordstrom's profits fell compared to the same period a year ago, but earnings grew over the past six months."", 'Last year, Nordstrom reported a net loss of $67 million in the six months that ended July 29, 2023, but during the same period this year, it posted a profit of $83 million.', 'Nordstrom has said it is working to improve its supply chain.', 'Last quarter, it said the time it takes for online orders to arrive was more than 5% faster.', 'It has also improved the way merchandise is making its way to customers and stores, which it said has helped drive higher conversion and lower return rates.', 'Another key focus area for the company has been growing its off-price banner, Nordstrom Rack.', ""Over the past couple of quarters, momentum has been growing at Nordstrom Rack and has helped prop up the company's overall results."", 'During the quarter, sales at Nordstrom Rack were up 8.8%, while comparable sales increased 4.1% compared to the same period a year ago.', ""That compares to Nordstrom's mainline banner, which saw net sales and comparable sales each increase just 0.9%.Nordstrom has been working to build more Rack locations and has opened 11 new locations so far this fiscal year, with a goal of opening at least 22 by the end of the year."", ""The focus on Rack has been critical for Nordstrom's ability to compete with off-price giant TJX Cos.,"", ""the owner of TJ Maxx and Marshall's, and capture consumers who are still spending but eager for cheaper options and deals."", 'The off-price sector has seen explosive growth for more than a year, but Rack missed out on the beginning of that trend.', 'To reverse the slump, the company has focused on opening more locations, hiring off-price veterans and sharpening its focus on well-known brands.']",0.2901067069296191,"""Our second quarter results were solid, and we're encouraged by the continued topline strength in both banners and the progress we're making to expand gross margin and increase profitability,"" said Nordstrom. """,Revenue came in just shy of analysts' expectations.,0.6823056225593274,"""Shares rose about 5% in extended trading.","It anticipates sales will be in a range of a 1% decline to 1% growth from the prior year, compared to previous guidance of down 2% to up 1%.In a news release, Nordstrom CEO Erik Nordstrom said the company is optimistic about the second half of the year despite the cautious guidance.",2024-08-30
Washington Commanders strike stadium naming rights deal with Northwest Federal Credit Union,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/27/washington-commanders-stadium-northwest-federal-credit-union.html,2024-08-27T19:46:50+0000,"The home of the Washington Commanders just got a new name.The team's stadium will be renamed Northwest Stadium, per a new agreement with Northwest Federal Credit Union that runs through the 2030-31 season, according to a person familiar with the matter. The deal is worth an average annual value in the low $8 million range, according to the person.The home of the Washington, D.C., NFL team has been without a naming rights partner since FedEx ended its deal with the Commanders in February, two years early. The shipping giant had a deal with the football team that ran from 1999 through the 2025 season.""As we continue to work toward our goal of building the Commanders into an elite franchise that consistently competes for championships, we are excited to welcome our team and fans to Northwest Stadium and look forward to creating incredible memories together on the field and in the communities we serve,"" said Washington Commanders Managing Partner Josh Harris in a statement.The new agreement with the Northwest Federal Credit Union adds to an existing stadium sponsorship deal that came in at around $2 million per year, according to the person familiar with the matter. That deal did not include naming rights.The expanded partnership includes Northwest branding across the stadium, including a new stadium logo. Northwest will also serve as the team's jersey patch partner for off-season and in-season practices. The partnership will also extend new benefits to Commanders fans who are members of Northwest Federal Credit Union, including discounts on tickets and merchandise.Last year,  Northwest Federal Credit Union became the Commanders' official credit union partner.The Commanders are looking to build a new stadium in either Washington, D.C., or Virginia. Should the team move into a new stadium before the 2030-31 season ends, the Commanders have the right under the new agreement to seek a new naming rights partner for the new stadium, the person familiar with the matter said. The credit union does not have the rights to the new stadium or right of first refusal for those rights, the person added.The Los Angeles Rams currently have the most valuable stadium naming rights deal in the NFL. That deal, with SoFi, is for $625 million over 20 years, according to a person familiar with that agreement. SoFi Stadium is also home to the NFL's Chargers, but Rams owner Stanley Kroenke owns the stadium, so the Rams collect 85% of stadium sponsorship revenue.",CNBC,27/08/2024,"['The home of the Washington Commanders just got a new name.', ""The team's stadium will be renamed Northwest Stadium, per a new agreement with Northwest Federal Credit Union that runs through the 2030-31 season, according to a person familiar with the matter."", 'The deal is worth an average annual value in the low $8 million range,according to the person.', 'The home of the Washington, D.C., NFL team has been without a naming rights partner since FedEx ended its deal with the Commanders in February, two years early.', 'The shipping giant had a deal with the football team that ran from 1999 throughthe 2025 season.', '""As we continue to work toward our goal of building the Commanders into an elite franchise that consistently competes for championships, we are excited to welcome our team and fans to Northwest Stadium and look forward to creating incredible memories together on the field and in the communities we serve,"" said Washington Commanders Managing Partner Josh Harris in a statement.', 'The new agreement with the Northwest Federal Credit Union adds to an existing stadium sponsorship deal that came in at around $2 million per year, according to the person familiar with the matter.', 'That deal did not include naming rights.', 'The expanded partnership includes Northwest branding across the stadium, including a new stadium logo.', ""Northwest will also serve as the team's jersey patch partner for off-season and in-season practices."", 'The partnership will also extend new benefits to Commanders fans who are members of Northwest Federal Credit Union, including discounts on tickets and merchandise.', ""Last year, Northwest Federal Credit Union became the Commanders' official credit union partner."", 'The Commanders are looking to build a new stadium in either Washington, D.C., or Virginia.', 'Should the team move into a new stadium before the 2030-31 season ends, the Commanders have the right under the new agreement to seek a new naming rights partner for the new stadium, the person familiar with the matter said.', 'The credit union does not have the rights to the new stadium or right of first refusal for those rights, the person added.', 'The Los Angeles Rams currently have the most valuable stadium naming rights deal in the NFL.', 'That deal, with SoFi, is for $625 million over 20 years, according to a person familiar with that agreement.', ""SoFi Stadium is also home to the NFL's Chargers, but Rams owner Stanley Kroenke owns the stadium, so the Rams collect 85% of stadium sponsorship revenue.""]",0.3245834831982503,"""As we continue to work toward our goal of building the Commanders into an elite franchise that consistently competes for championships, we are excited to welcome our team and fans to Northwest Stadium and look forward to creating incredible memories together on the field and in the communities we serve,"" said Washington Commanders Managing Partner Josh Harris in a statement.",,0.949747696518898,"The partnership will also extend new benefits to Commanders fans who are members of Northwest Federal Credit Union, including discounts on tickets and merchandise.",,2024-08-30
Manchester hotel chain denies reselling rooms booked by Oasis fans,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c935v1kkzjvo,2024-08-28T10:33:02.258Z,"A hotel chain has been accused of trying to cash in on Oasis shows next year by cancelling bookings customers had made before the reunion tour was announced.  Lily Stroud from Newcastle said she ""took a risk "" by reserving rooms on two weekends at a Maldron Hotel in Manchester in July 2025 after speculation about the band's return. But the hotel chain cancelled her bookings after the tour announcement due to a ""technical error"", with the same rooms now listed as unavailable.  A spokesman for Maldron Hotels said there was ""an overbooking issue"" at two of its locations and it was not an attempt to ""resell rooms at inflated prices"". Greater Manchester's night-time economy adviser Sacha Lord confirmed a number of people had been in touch with him to complain about the chain. The chain, which has two hotels in Manchester - the Maldron Hotel Manchester City and Maldron Hotel Cathedral Quarter - said all reservations made before 26 August would be honoured. Oasis announced on Tuesday that they would be reuniting for a tour in 2025, with the Gallagher brothers confirming dates in London, Manchester, Cardiff, Edinburgh and Dublin. Rumours had been swirling the day before, after the band posted an image of a date that read ""27.08.24"" on their social media platforms. Oasis are set to play at Heaton Park in Manchester on 11, 12 ,19 and 20 July. The hotel said a technical error with bookings made on Monday and Tuesday led to ""substantially more rooms booked"" than were available on the dates of the concerts. The same problem allowed ""a small number of customers"" to book rooms at a higher price later on Tuesday, he said, adding these bookings would also be cancelled.  An apology has been issued by the hotel, which is not taking any new reservations while it investigates the problem.  It comes after Mr Lord called on the hotel to ""do the right thing"" after he received numerous complaints.  Mr Lord said he had been contacted by several disgruntled customers on X, some of whom said their bookings had been cancelled by the hotel and were ""now back up for three times the price"".  As of Wednesday, the prices for some Manchester hotels for the weekends of the Oasis gigs were about double those of the weeks before and afterwards. One hotel's website listed rooms for about £750 on the weekends of the Heaton Park shows, compared to about £350 on the nearest other weekends.  Another hotel listed rooms at about £600 for the gig weekends, compared to about £240 for the weekend after the 19 July 2025 gig.  Ms Stroud, who described herself as a ""massive"" Oasis fan, said she and her mum booked the room in Manchester on Sunday after spotting a list of speculative dates for the reunion tour circulating online.  ""We thought, if it's free cancellation, why not, because we know what the demand would be like,"" she said.  The hotel then emailed her and scores of other fans after the tour was announced to say the bookings had been unsuccessful. The 26-year-old said she rang the Maldron Hotel directly, and was told initially her booking was still on the system, before later being told it could not be found.  ""We were kind of expecting it,"" she said, adding she was ""frustrated"" as ""it's stressful enough as it is thinking, 'are you going to get tickets'"". Emma Cough, 37, from Ulverston in Cumbria, had also fallen foul of the booking problems at the Maldron after making two reservations ahead of the tour announcement. “Surely they knew how many rooms they had! It’s daft,"" she said. “People are disgruntled that they’ve done this early. It’s not fair.” David O'Gorman, 37, also booked a room at the Maldron for roughly £90 at 8.03am on Tuesday for July 20 2025, with the hope he would also be able to secure a ticket to see Oasis perform in Manchester that night. However at 8.15pm on Tuesday, he received an email from the hotel which said a technical error meant his booking had not been successful.  Mr O'Gorman, from County Meath, Ireland, said: ""The minute I saw that email from the hotel, I opened up Booking.com and the exact same room I booked is now around £350, so there's no technical error there."" He said he is ""limbo"", adding: ""Realistically, I'll probably be priced out of that date so I can't go for that ticket as I will also need to book a flight. ""I feel really frustrated and it feels so unfair as I tried to be ahead of the curve. I'm a massive fan but have never got to see them live, so thought it would be amazing to go to Manchester to see them."" George Snape said he was ""quite angry and really disappointed"" after the bookings he made at the hotel ahead of attending a wedding in Manchester next year were cancelled.  ""I think they were just putting up the prices for Oasis,"" he said.  Manchester City councillor Pat Karney told BBC Radio Manchester staff at the council would investigate what had happened.  ""If this is the case then they have let themselves down and they've let Manchester down,"" he said. ""We’re not daft, we know prices are going to be high, so long as people in hotels are fair about it. ""There’s no justification for ripping off people."" Dan, aged 37, from Hull, said he had booked at the Hazeldean Hotel in Salford, which had offered free cancellation ahead of the announcement, but he has now been told he must pay in full by Friday, the day before Oasis tickets go on sale. “How is this fair and how am I supposed to pay this when I don't know if I'll get tickets? “I'm sure they're doing this just so they can cancel and then put on for a higher price."" The Hazeldean Hotel has been contacted for comment. Additional reporting by PA Media. Listen to the best of BBC Radio Manchester on Sounds and follow BBC Manchester on Facebook, X, and Instagram. You can also send story ideas to northwest.newsonline@bbc.co.uk ",BBC,28/08/2024,"['A hotel chain has been accused of trying to cash in on Oasis shows next year by cancelling bookings customers had made before the reunion tour was announced.', 'Lily Stroud from Newcastle said she ""took a risk "" by reserving rooms on two weekends at a Maldron Hotel in Manchester in July 2025 after speculation about the band\'s return.', 'But the hotel chain cancelled her bookings after the tour announcement due to a ""technical error"", with the same rooms now listed as unavailable.', 'A spokesman for Maldron Hotels said there was ""an overbooking issue"" at two of its locations and it was not an attempt to ""resell rooms at inflated prices"".', ""Greater Manchester's night-time economy adviser Sacha Lord confirmed a number of people had been in touch with him to complain about the chain."", 'The chain, which has two hotels in Manchester - the Maldron Hotel Manchester City and Maldron Hotel Cathedral Quarter - said all reservations made before 26 August would be honoured.', 'Oasis announced on Tuesday that they would be reuniting for a tour in 2025, with the Gallagher brothers confirming dates in London, Manchester, Cardiff, Edinburgh and Dublin.', 'Rumours had been swirling the day before, after the band posted an image of a date that read ""27.08.24"" on their social media platforms.', 'Oasis are set to play at Heaton Park in Manchester on 11, 12 ,19 and 20 July.', 'The hotel said a technical error with bookings made on Monday and Tuesday led to ""substantially more rooms booked"" than were available on the dates of the concerts.', 'The same problem allowed ""a small number of customers"" to book rooms at a higher price later on Tuesday, he said, adding these bookings would also be cancelled.', 'An apology has been issued by the hotel, which is not taking any new reservations while it investigates the problem.', 'It comes after Mr Lord called on the hotel to ""do the right thing"" after he received numerous complaints.', 'Mr Lord said he had been contacted by several disgruntled customers on X, some of whom said their bookings had been cancelled by the hotel and were ""now back up for three times the price"".', 'As of Wednesday, the prices for some Manchester hotels for the weekends of the Oasis gigs were about double those of the weeks before and afterwards.', ""One hotel's website listed rooms for about £750 on the weekends of the Heaton Park shows, compared to about £350 on the nearest other weekends."", 'Another hotel listed rooms at about £600 for the gig weekends, compared to about £240 for the weekend after the 19 July 2025 gig.', 'Ms Stroud, who described herself as a ""massive"" Oasis fan, said she and her mum booked the room in Manchester on Sunday after spotting a list of speculative dates for the reunion tour circulating online. ""', 'We thought, if it\'s free cancellation, why not, because we know what the demand would be like,"" she said.', 'The hotel then emailed her and scores of other fans after the tour was announced to say the bookings had been unsuccessful.', 'The 26-year-old said she rang the Maldron Hotel directly, and was told initially her booking was still on the system, before later being told it could not be found. ""', 'We were kind of expecting it,"" she said, adding she was ""frustrated"" as ""it\'s stressful enough as it is thinking, \'are you going to get tickets\'"".', 'Emma Cough, 37, from Ulverston in Cumbria, had also fallen foul of the booking problems at the Maldron after making two reservations ahead of the tour announcement. “', 'Surely they knew how many rooms they had!', 'It’s daft,"" she said. “', 'People are disgruntled that they’ve done this early.', 'It’s not fair.”', ""David O'Gorman, 37, also booked a room at the Maldron for roughly £90 at 8.03am on Tuesday for July 20 2025, with the hope he would also be able to secure a ticket to see Oasis perform in Manchester that night."", 'However at 8.15pm on Tuesday, he received an email from the hotel which said a technical error meant his booking had not been successful.', 'Mr O\'Gorman, from County Meath, Ireland, said: ""The minute I saw that email from the hotel, I opened up Booking.com and the exact same room I booked is now around £350, so there\'s no technical error there.""', 'He said he is ""limbo"", adding: ""Realistically, I\'ll probably be priced out of that date so I can\'t go for that ticket as I will also need to book a flight. ""', 'I feel really frustrated and it feels so unfair as I tried to be ahead of the curve.', 'I\'m a massive fan but have never got to see them live, so thought it would be amazing to go to Manchester to see them.""', 'George Snape said he was ""quite angry and really disappointed"" after the bookings he made at the hotel ahead of attending a wedding in Manchester next year were cancelled. ""', 'I think they were just putting up the prices for Oasis,"" he said.', 'Manchester City councillor Pat Karney told BBC Radio Manchester staff at the council would investigate what had happened. ""', 'If this is the case then they have let themselves down and they\'ve let Manchester down,"" he said. ""', 'We’re not daft, we know prices are going to be high, so long as people in hotels are fair about it. ""', 'There’s no justification for ripping off people.""', 'Dan, aged 37, from Hull, said he had booked at the Hazeldean Hotel in Salford, which had offered free cancellation ahead of the announcement, but he has now been told he must pay in full by Friday, the day before Oasis tickets go on sale. “', ""How is this fair and how am I supposed to pay this when I don't know if I'll get tickets? “"", 'I\'m sure they\'re doing this just so they can cancel and then put on for a higher price.""', 'The Hazeldean Hotel has been contacted for comment.', 'Additional reporting by PA Media.', 'Listen to the best of BBC Radio Manchester on Sounds and follow BBC Manchester on Facebook, X, and Instagram.', 'You can also send story ideas to northwest.newsonline@bbc.co.uk']",-0.0693951153025533,"I'm a massive fan but have never got to see them live, so thought it would be amazing to go to Manchester to see them.""","George Snape said he was ""quite angry and really disappointed"" after the bookings he made at the hotel ahead of attending a wedding in Manchester next year were cancelled. """,-0.4836164853152107,"As of Wednesday, the prices for some Manchester hotels for the weekends of the Oasis gigs were about double those of the weeks before and afterwards.","The hotel said a technical error with bookings made on Monday and Tuesday led to ""substantially more rooms booked"" than were available on the dates of the concerts.",2024-08-30
"'People are right to be angry', says water boss",https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cx2lgl9kypno,2024-08-28T01:49:33.135Z,"Thames Water has warned it will not survive unless it is allowed to increase water bills by almost 60% over a five-year period. The UK’s largest water company demanded the bill hike after the wider water industry issued a scathing response to a proposed cap from the regulator for water bill rises. In July, regulator Ofwat proposed an average £19 a year ceiling on water bill rises, with a final decision due in December. But the water industry has argued the increase is not enough and said there was a risk that companies would not be able to raise enough investment to stop things like sewage spills. Water firms have faced a fierce backlash over sewage discharges and leaks in recent years. Critics have also said companies have historically neglected investment in favour of paying executive bonuses and shareholder dividends. It has led to a stand-off between regulator Ofwat and water companies over how much customers should pay. Thames Water has been in the spotlight and faced questions over whether it can survive as it struggles under a £15.2bn debt pile and only has enough cash to fund its operations until the end of May next year. When all water firms put forward requests to Ofwat for bills from 2025 to 2030, Thames originally asked the regulator to increase bills by 44%, but the regulator proposed a 23% rise. On Wednesday, the company announced it wanted to go further, hiking bills by as much as 59%. The proposed changes in bills do not take account of inflation. Such a move would take the average annual water bill to £638 per customer by 2030. Average bills are currently around £443. Chris Weston, chief executive of Thames Water, said the money from higher bills would be invested in new infrastructure and improving services.  ""They [customers] are not being asked to pay twice, but to make up for years of focus on keeping bills low,"" he said in a response to the regulator. Mr Weston claimed Ofwat's current proposal - a 23% rise in bills - would be ""neither financeable nor investible"". ""It would also prevent the turnaround and recovery of the company,"" he added. The warning came after Water UK, the industry body for all water firms, said bills needed to be increased by more in order to stop leaks. David Henderson, chief executive of Water UK, told the BBC people were ""right to be angry"" at water companies over sewage spills, but said the country had a ""system that's tired and it's old"". ""If Ofwat doesn't change its proposal then investors may not stump up the money that we need,"" Mr Henderson said. ""No rational investor is going to put their money into water right now."" Ofwat has proposed a water bill increase limit as part of its draft decision on the business plans of water companies from 2025 to 2030. The proposed increase is a third less than the amount requested by water firms, who argue companies must be able to charge more in order to spend money on fixing leaks. Mr Henderson rejected the idea that the amount paid out in dividends to investors in recent years was part of the reason there was not enough money for companies to invest, rather than just bills being lower. He said returns were set by the regulator Ofwat, adding: ""If you want investors to put their money into the UK they need to receive a return."" He said without more investment, building projects such as hospitals and housing developments would potentially not be built. The GMB union called the claims from water companies ""absolute balderdash"". ""Water companies have had the money, failed to invest in plugging leaks and preventing sewage spills and now want more money to do what they failed to do,"" said Gary Carter, GMB's national officer. An Ofwat spokesperson told the BBC it would carefully consider all responses to its proposals, which were required by midday on Wednesday. ""We expect to receive responses from many organisations, including water companies, customers, environmental and consumer organisations and investors,"" they said.  ""These are likely to reflect a diverse range of views on the proposals we have made."" Raw sewage spills into England's rivers and the sea by water companies more than doubled last year. A BBC investigation earlier this year revealed sewage had potentially been released illegally 6,000 times in 2022 by England's water companies in breach of their permits. Thames Water, along with Yorkshire Water and Northumbrian Water face a total of £168m in fines from the regulator for a ""failure"" to stop years of leaks. Ofwat has suggested a ban on director bonuses until leaks and sewage spills are dealt with. ",BBC,28/08/2024,"['Thames Water has warned it will not survive unless it is allowed to increase water bills by almost 60% over a five-year period.', 'The UK’s largest water company demanded the bill hike after the wider water industry issued a scathing response to a proposed cap from the regulator for water bill rises.', 'In July, regulator Ofwat proposed an average £19 a year ceiling on water bill rises, with a final decision due in December.', 'But the water industry has argued the increase is not enough and said there was a risk that companies would not be able to raise enough investment to stop things like sewage spills.', 'Water firms have faced a fierce backlash over sewage discharges and leaks in recent years.', 'Critics have also said companies have historically neglected investment in favour of paying executive bonuses and shareholder dividends.', 'It has led to a stand-off between regulator Ofwat and water companies over how much customers should pay.', 'Thames Water has been in the spotlight and faced questions over whether it can survive as it struggles under a £15.2bn debt pile and only has enough cash to fund its operations until the end of May next year.', 'When all water firms put forward requests to Ofwat for bills from 2025 to 2030, Thames originally asked the regulator to increase bills by 44%, but the regulator proposed a 23% rise.', 'On Wednesday, the company announced it wanted to go further, hiking bills by as much as 59%.', 'The proposed changes in bills do not take account of inflation.', 'Such a move would take the average annual water bill to £638 per customer by 2030.', 'Average bills are currently around £443.', 'Chris Weston, chief executive of Thames Water, said the money from higher bills would be invested in new infrastructure and improving services. ""', 'They [customers] are not being asked to pay twice, but to make up for years of focus on keeping bills low,"" he said in a response to the regulator.', 'Mr Weston claimed Ofwat\'s current proposal - a 23% rise in bills - would be ""neither financeable nor investible"". ""', 'It would also prevent the turnaround and recovery of the company,"" he added.', 'The warning came after Water UK, the industry body for all water firms, said bills needed to be increased by more in order to stop leaks.', 'David Henderson, chief executive of Water UK, told the BBC people were ""right to be angry"" at water companies over sewage spills, but said the country had a ""system that\'s tired and it\'s old"". ""', 'If Ofwat doesn\'t change its proposal then investors may not stump up the money that we need,"" Mr Henderson said. ""', 'No rational investor is going to put their money into water right now.""', 'Ofwat has proposed a water bill increase limit as part of its draft decision on the business plans of water companies from 2025 to 2030.', 'The proposed increase is a third less than the amount requested by water firms, who argue companies must be able to charge more in order to spend money on fixing leaks.', 'Mr Henderson rejected the idea that the amount paid out in dividends to investors in recent years was part of the reason there was not enough money for companies to invest, rather than just bills being lower.', 'He said returns were set by the regulator Ofwat, adding: ""If you want investors to put their money into the UK they need to receive a return.""', 'He said without more investment, building projects such as hospitals and housing developments would potentially not be built.', 'The GMB union called the claims from water companies ""absolute balderdash"". ""', 'Water companies have had the money, failed to invest in plugging leaks and preventing sewage spills and now want more money to do what they failed to do,"" said Gary Carter, GMB\'s national officer.', 'An Ofwat spokesperson told the BBC it would carefully consider all responses to its proposals, which were required by midday on Wednesday. ""', 'We expect to receive responses from many organisations, including water companies, customers, environmental and consumer organisations and investors,"" they said. ""', 'These are likely to reflect a diverse range of views on the proposals we have made.""', ""Raw sewage spills into England's rivers and the sea by water companies more than doubled last year."", ""A BBC investigation earlier this year revealed sewage had potentially been released illegally 6,000 times in 2022 by England's water companies in breach of their permits."", 'Thames Water, along with Yorkshire Water and Northumbrian Water face a total of £168m in fines from the regulator for a ""failure"" to stop years of leaks.', 'Ofwat has suggested a ban on director bonuses until leaks and sewage spills are dealt with.']",-0.1089251948326627,"Chris Weston, chief executive of Thames Water, said the money from higher bills would be invested in new infrastructure and improving services. ""","Water companies have had the money, failed to invest in plugging leaks and preventing sewage spills and now want more money to do what they failed to do,"" said Gary Carter, GMB's national officer.",-0.5123525047302246,Raw sewage spills into England's rivers and the sea by water companies more than doubled last year.,But the water industry has argued the increase is not enough and said there was a risk that companies would not be able to raise enough investment to stop things like sewage spills.,2024-08-30
UK government will not fight Rosebank oil field legal challenge,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c30393m4z50o,2024-08-29T07:45:36.285Z,"The UK government will not fight a legal challenge against the decision to grant consent to drill in untapped oil and gas fields off Shetland and Aberdeen.  Greenpeace and Uplift jointly brought judicial reviews to stop the development of the Rosebank and Jackdaw fields. It comes after the Supreme Court ruled that a UK council should have considered the climate impact of new oil wells – setting a precedent for all regulators. The government's decision does not mean the licences for Jackdaw and Rosebank have been withdrawn. But if the judicial review backs the environmental groups, operators would need to resubmit environmental assessments.   This would create more delay and additional costs for Rosebank's owners, Equinor and Ithaca Energy, and Jackdaw's owner, Shell. The UK government has pledged that oil and gas would play an important role in the economy ""for decades to come"" as the UK transitions to clean energy. It is planning to consult later this year on its manifesto position not to issue new oil and gas licences to explore new fields. Energy Minister Michael Shanks said: “We will consult at pace on new guidance that takes into account the Supreme Court’s ruling on environmental impact assessments, to enable the industry to plan, secure jobs, and invest in our economy.” Environmental groups welcomed the government’s decision.  Greenpeace said the licences should not have been granted without being ""properly assessed"" for their climate impact. Mel Evans, Greenpeace UK climate team leader, said: “The two new fields combined would generate a vast amount of emissions while doing nothing to lower energy bills.  ""The only real winners from giving them the greenlight would be multi-billion-pound oil giants.” Tessa Khan, executive director of Uplift, said it was a “common sense” decision. She told BBC Radio Scotland: ""Rosebank is a terrible proposition economically, from an energy-security perspective and environmentally for the UK public.  ""No government should be prepared to approve a project like that."" The government's decision comes after the Supreme Court ruled in June that the way fossil fuels are used by consumers – known as Scope 3 emissions – have to be considered when environmental impact assessments are being carried out. The decision could still be challenged by oil companies. Industry body Offshore Energies UK urged the government to conduct its consultation “at pace”, warning that uncertainty “further impacts investor confidence”. A spokesperson added: “We remain absolutely committed to operations in the North Sea that meet the UK's net zero ambitions and support energy security.” Rosebank off Shetland, owned by Norwegian energy giant Equinor and British firm Ithaca Energy, is the UK's largest untapped oil field. Consent for drilling there was granted in September last year. Scotland’s then first minister Humza Yousaf said he was ""disappointed"" at the decision and accused Downing Street of ""climate denial"". Shell’s proposals to develop Jackdaw, east of Aberdeen, were approved in 2022 after initially being rejected on environmental grounds. Both Equinor and Shell said they would carefully consider the implications of the government’s announcement. An Equinor spokesperson said: “Rosebank is a vital project for the UK and is bringing benefits in terms of investment, job creation and energy security."" A Shell spokesperson said: “We believe the Jackdaw field remains an important development for the UK, providing fuel to heat 1.4 million homes and supporting energy security, as other older gas fields reach the end of production.” First things first, this does not mean the end for either Jackdaw or Rosebank, but it is another significant victory for environmental groups.   They key is whether the emissions from consuming the oil and gas produced is considered in environmental impact assessments. Historically, those Scope 3 emissions were disregarded, but July's Supreme Court ruling changed that.  Now, if the judicial review at two of the most prominent North Sea developments rules in favour of the green lobby, operators will have to resubmit environmental impact assessments to be considered afresh. The regulators could then stick to their guns and approve it again.  But this creates more delay and significant additional costs - which environmentalists hope will make fossil fuels less appealing to investors. In its draft energy strategy, published last year, the Scottish government confirmed a ""presumption against"" any new oil and gas exploration. But First Minister John Swinney said in June that North Sea oil and gas would still be needed ""for a period of time"" to help the country meet its net-zero emissions target by 2045. Scotland's acting Energy Secrertary, Gillian Martin, said ministers would carefully consider the UK government announcement.  She noted that offshore oil and gas licensing is reserved to Westminster, but said decisions should be made on a “case by case basis and include rigorous assessments of both climate compatibility and energy security”. Following the Supreme Court ruling, the government also walked away from a legal challenge against a new coal mine in Cumbria approved under the previous Conservative administration. ",BBC,29/08/2024,"['The UK government will not fight a legal challenge against the decision to grant consent to drill in untapped oil and gas fields off Shetland and Aberdeen.', 'Greenpeace and Uplift jointly brought judicial reviews to stop the development of the Rosebank and Jackdaw fields.', 'It comes after the Supreme Court ruled that a UK council should have considered the climate impact of new oil wells – setting a precedent for all regulators.', ""The government's decision does not mean the licences for Jackdaw and Rosebank have been withdrawn."", 'But if the judicial review backs the environmental groups, operators would need to resubmit environmental assessments.', ""This would create more delay and additional costs for Rosebank's owners, Equinor and Ithaca Energy, and Jackdaw's owner, Shell."", 'The UK government has pledged that oil and gas would play an important role in the economy ""for decades to come"" as the UK transitions to clean energy.', 'It is planning to consult later this year on its manifesto position not to issue new oil and gas licences to explore new fields.', 'Energy Minister Michael Shanks said: “We will consult at pace on new guidance that takes into account the Supreme Court’s ruling on environmental impact assessments, to enable the industry to plan, secure jobs, and invest in our economy.”', 'Environmental groups welcomed the government’s decision.', 'Greenpeace said the licences should not have been granted without being ""properly assessed"" for their climate impact.', 'Mel Evans, Greenpeace UK climate team leader, said: “The two new fields combined would generate a vast amount of emissions while doing nothing to lower energy bills. ""', 'The only real winners from giving them the greenlight would be multi-billion-pound oil giants.”', 'Tessa Khan, executive director of Uplift, said it was a “common sense” decision.', 'She told BBC Radio Scotland: ""Rosebank is a terrible proposition economically, from an energy-security perspective and environmentally for the UK public. ""', 'No government should be prepared to approve a project like that.""', ""The government's decision comes after the Supreme Court ruled in June that the way fossil fuels are used by consumers – known as Scope 3 emissions – have to be considered when environmental impact assessments are being carried out."", 'The decision could still be challenged by oil companies.', 'Industry body Offshore Energies UK urged the government to conduct its consultation “at pace”, warning that uncertainty “further impacts investor confidence”.', ""A spokesperson added: “We remain absolutely committed to operations in the North Sea that meet the UK's net zero ambitions and support energy security.”"", ""Rosebank off Shetland, owned by Norwegian energy giant Equinor and British firm Ithaca Energy, is the UK's largest untapped oil field."", 'Consent for drilling there was granted in September last year.', 'Scotland’s then first minister Humza Yousaf said he was ""disappointed"" at the decision and accused Downing Street of ""climate denial"".', 'Shell’s proposals to develop Jackdaw, east of Aberdeen, were approved in 2022 after initially being rejected on environmental grounds.', 'Both Equinor and Shell said they would carefully consider the implications of the government’s announcement.', 'An Equinor spokesperson said: “Rosebank is a vital project for the UK and is bringing benefits in terms of investment, job creation and energy security.""', 'A Shell spokesperson said: “We believe the Jackdaw field remains an important development for the UK, providing fuel to heat 1.4 million homes and supporting energy security, as other older gas fields reach the end of production.”', 'First things first, this does not mean the end for either Jackdaw or Rosebank, but it is another significant victory for environmental groups.', 'They key is whether the emissions from consuming the oil and gas produced is considered in environmental impact assessments.', ""Historically, those Scope 3 emissions were disregarded, but July's Supreme Court ruling changed that."", 'Now, if the judicial review at two of the most prominent North Sea developments rules in favour of the green lobby, operators will have to resubmit environmental impact assessments to be considered afresh.', 'The regulators could then stick to their guns and approve it again.', 'But this creates more delay and significant additional costs - which environmentalists hope will make fossil fuels less appealing to investors.', 'In its draft energy strategy, published last year, the Scottish government confirmed a ""presumption against"" any new oil and gas exploration.', 'But First Minister John Swinney said in June that North Sea oil and gas would still be needed ""for a period of time"" to help the country meet its net-zero emissions target by 2045.', ""Scotland's acting Energy Secrertary, Gillian Martin, said ministers would carefully consider the UK government announcement."", 'She noted that offshore oil and gas licensing is reserved to Westminster, but said decisions should be made on a “case by case basis and include rigorous assessments of both climate compatibility and energy security”.', 'Following the Supreme Court ruling, the government also walked away from a legal challenge against a new coal mine in Cumbria approved under the previous Conservative administration.']",0.3224134278207528,"An Equinor spokesperson said: “Rosebank is a vital project for the UK and is bringing benefits in terms of investment, job creation and energy security.""","Scotland’s then first minister Humza Yousaf said he was ""disappointed"" at the decision and accused Downing Street of ""climate denial"".",-0.2363549023866653,"An Equinor spokesperson said: “Rosebank is a vital project for the UK and is bringing benefits in terms of investment, job creation and energy security.""","Industry body Offshore Energies UK urged the government to conduct its consultation “at pace”, warning that uncertainty “further impacts investor confidence”.",2024-08-30
Foot Locker shares drop 10% despite first comparable sales growth in six quarters,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/28/foot-locker-fl-earnings-q2-2024.html,2024-08-28T20:14:18+0000,"In this articleFoot Locker on Wednesday said comparable sales grew for the first time in six quarters as its efforts to refresh its stores and improve the customer experience continue to bear fruit. The beleaguered sneaker company's same-store sales grew 2.6% during its fiscal second quarter, far better than the 0.7% uptick that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount. Its gross margin also expanded for the first time in more than two years. Despite the positive trends, the company's shares closed more than 10% lower. ""The Lace Up Plan is working,"" CEO Mary Dillon said in a press release, referencing the company's turnaround strategy. ""Our top line trends strengthened as we moved through the quarter, including a solid start to Back-to-School. We were also particularly pleased to deliver stabilization in our Champs Sports banner."" Here's how Foot Locker did compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:In the three-month period that ended Aug. 3, Foot Locker had a loss of $12 million, or 13 cents per share, compared with a loss of $5 million, or 5 cents per share, a year earlier. Excluding one-time items, Foot Locker posted a loss of 5 cents per share. Sales rose to $1.90 billion, up about 2% from $1.86 billion a year earlier. For the current fiscal year, Foot Locker largely maintained its guidance and continues to expect sales to be in a range of a 1% decline to 1% growth from the prior year – better than the 0.4% decline that analysts had expected, according to LSEG. Foot Locker also stood by its adjusted earnings per share guidance. It expects earnings to be between $1.50 and $1.70 – much of that range ahead of the $1.54 that analysts had expected, according to LSEG. Since former Ulta Beauty boss Mary Dillon took the helm of Foot Locker about two years ago, she has worked to transform the company and ensure that it stays relevant in a world where brands aren't as reliant on multibrand retailers as they were in the past. Dillon has worked to repair the company's relationship with its biggest brand partner, Nike, and has also taken a hard look at its sprawling, but aging, store fleet, where the company does about 80% of its sales. The company plans to spend $275 million upgrading its stores this year, and it expects to have two-thirds of its fleet remodeled by the end of fiscal 2025.In an interview with CNBC, Dillon said the store investments are leading to increased conversion, basket size and profitability, and better performance for Foot Locker's women's business.""The reason that we're doing it is that it is working for us, both in terms of enhancing a customer experience and a striper [store employee] experience, but also the financial returns,"" said Dillon. ""The performance is ahead of what we thought.""In a series of new megastores Foot Locker is building in hotspots like New York City and Paris, the retailer is working hand in hand with Nike to develop some portions of the shops.""With Nike, this has been since Day One, a high priority for me, and really building a partnership that isn't just about like, what number of shoes are we going to sell, but how do we think about using consumer insights to mutually grow our businesses together,"" said Dillon. ""For us and Nike, it's about the places that we really connect.""Dillon has also worked to streamline costs at Foot Locker. On Wednesday, the company said it was closing its stores and e-commerce operations in South Korea, Denmark, Norway and Sweden, and will rely on a third party for operations in Greece and Romania, where it plans to expand its reach, according to Dillon. In all, 30 of Foot Locker's 140 stores in the Asia-Pacific region and 629 in Europe will be closed or go under a new operator as part of the changes. Foot Locker's Champs banner, which has been dragging down the company's overall performance, is also showing some signs of improvement. During the quarter, comparable sales were down 3.9%, which is an improvement from the 25.3% decline it saw in the year-ago period.Foot Locker is also planning to move its global headquarters from New York City to St. Petersburg, Florida, in late 2025 and plans to maintain only a limited presence in the Big Apple moving forward. ""The intent of the relocation is to further build on the Company's meaningful presence in St. Petersburg and to enable increased collaboration among teams across banners and functions, while also reducing costs,"" Foot Locker said in a news release. Dillon told CNBC the move will increase margins by 0.2 percentage point by 2027, but the decision wasn't just based on saving money.""We've got a big center of gravity already in St. Pete ... many of our executives are there. A lot of our commercial teams,"" said Dillon. ""We think actually bringing more people together for collaboration is going to matter and that's also part of this. It's not just about saving money. It's about, how do we really continue to build on this momentum?""The company isn't planning to make employees relocate and Dillon, who is based in Chicago, won't be forced to become a super commuter, either.""I am traveling, I would say, 90% of the time, to our teams around the world, and to our brand partners, and to investor meetings and to events,"" said Dillon. ""I spend a good chunk of time in New York, I spend a lot of time in St. Pete, I spend a lot of time in Amsterdam where we have our headquarters, and visiting our brand partners. So I'm planning to keep my primary residence in Chicago, but the way that this has been working is really, I think, working pretty well so we're going to continue to do that.""As it improves stores, products, and the customer experience online and in stores, Foot Locker is managing to drive sales even as its core consumer continues to feel the pressure of consistent inflation and high interest rates – indicating that Dillon's efforts are working. ""We're not expecting our customer to get, like, less pressured or more pressured. We're just trying to say this is a category they care about,"" said Dillon. ""How can Foot Locker be the best to serve their needs? And I think our results are showing that that's working.""As of Tuesday's close, shares of the company are up more than 5% this year, compared with Nike's stock, which has fallen more than 21% in the same time period.Demand has undoubtedly slowed across the retail industry, but consumers are still spending. They're just being far choosier on who they're spending with — which has made execution that much more important. ""Our strategies are building momentum as we look to the remainder of the year,"" said Dillon in a statement. ""I remain confident that we are taking the right actions to position the Company for its next 50 years of profitable growth and create long-term shareholder value.""",CNBC,28/08/2024,"['In this articleFoot Locker on Wednesday said comparable sales grew for the first time in six quarters as its efforts to refresh its stores and improve the customer experience continue to bear fruit.', ""The beleaguered sneaker company's same-store sales grew 2.6% during its fiscal second quarter, far better than the 0.7% uptick that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount."", 'Its gross margin also expanded for the first time in more than two years.', 'Despite the positive trends, the company\'s shares closed more than 10% lower. ""', 'The Lace Up Plan is working,"" CEO Mary Dillon said in a press release, referencing the company\'s turnaround strategy. ""', 'Our top line trends strengthened as we moved through the quarter, including a solid start to Back-to-School.', 'We were also particularly pleased to deliver stabilization in our Champs Sports banner.', '""Here\'s how Foot Locker did compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:In the three-month period that ended Aug. 3, Foot Locker had a loss of $12 million, or 13 cents per share, compared with a loss of $5 million, or 5 cents per share, a year earlier.', 'Excluding one-time items, Foot Locker posted a loss of 5 cents per share.', 'Sales rose to $1.90 billion, up about 2% from $1.86 billion a year earlier.', 'For the current fiscal year, Foot Locker largely maintained its guidance and continues to expect sales to be in a range of a 1% decline to 1% growth from the prior year – better than the 0.4% decline that analysts had expected, according to LSEG.Foot Locker also stood by its adjusted earnings per share guidance.', ""It expects earnings to be between $1.50 and $1.70 – much of that range ahead of the $1.54 that analysts had expected, according to LSEG.Since former Ulta Beauty boss Mary Dillon took the helm of Foot Locker about two years ago, she has worked to transform the company and ensure that it stays relevant in a world where brands aren't as reliant on multibrand retailers as they were in the past."", ""Dillon has worked to repair the company's relationship with its biggest brand partner, Nike, and has also taken a hard look at its sprawling, but aging, store fleet, where the company does about 80% of its sales."", ""The company plans to spend $275 million upgrading its stores this year, and it expects to have two-thirds of its fleet remodeled by the end of fiscal 2025.In an interview with CNBC, Dillon said the store investments are leading to increased conversion, basket size and profitability, and better performance for Foot Locker's women's business."", '""The reason that we\'re doing it is that it is working for us, both in terms of enhancing a customer experience and a striper [store employee] experience, but also the financial returns,"" said Dillon. ""', 'The performance is ahead of what we thought.', '""In a series of new megastores Foot Locker is building in hotspots like New York City and Paris, the retailer is working hand in hand with Nike to develop some portions of the shops.', '""With Nike, this has been since Day One, a high priority for me, and really building a partnership that isn\'t just about like, what number of shoes are we going to sell, but how do we think about using consumer insights to mutually grow our businesses together,"" said Dillon. ""', ""For us and Nike, it's about the places that we really connect."", '""Dillon has also worked to streamline costs at Foot Locker.', 'On Wednesday, the company said it was closing its stores and e-commerce operations in South Korea, Denmark, Norway and Sweden, and will rely on a third party for operations in Greece and Romania, where it plans to expand its reach, according to Dillon.', ""In all, 30 of Foot Locker's 140 stores in the Asia-Pacific region and 629 in Europe will be closed or go under a new operator as part of the changes."", ""Foot Locker's Champs banner, which has been dragging down the company's overall performance, is also showing some signs of improvement."", 'During the quarter, comparable sales were down 3.9%, which is an improvement from the 25.3% decline it saw in the year-ago period.', 'Foot Locker is also planning to move its global headquarters from New York City to St. Petersburg, Florida, in late 2025 and plans to maintain only a limited presence in the Big Apple moving forward.', '""The intent of the relocation is to further build on the Company\'s meaningful presence in St. Petersburg and to enable increased collaboration among teams across banners and functions, while also reducing costs,"" Foot Locker said in a news release.', ""Dillon told CNBC the move will increase margins by 0.2 percentage point by 2027, but the decision wasn't just based on saving money."", '""We\'ve got a big center of gravity already in St. Pete ... many of our executives are there.', 'A lot of our commercial teams,"" said Dillon. ""', ""We think actually bringing more people together for collaboration is going to matter and that's also part of this."", ""It's not just about saving money."", 'It\'s about, how do we really continue to build on this momentum?""The company isn\'t planning to make employees relocate and Dillon, who is based in Chicago, won\'t be forced to become a super commuter, either.', '""I am traveling, I would say, 90% of the time, to our teams around the world, and to our brand partners, and to investor meetings and to events,"" said Dillon. ""', 'I spend a good chunk of time in New York, I spend a lot of time in St. Pete, I spend a lot of time in Amsterdam where we have our headquarters, and visiting our brand partners.', ""So I'm planning to keep my primary residence in Chicago, but the way that this has been working is really, I think, working pretty well so we're going to continue to do that."", '""As it improves stores, products, and the customer experience online and in stores, Foot Locker is managing to drive sales even as its core consumer continues to feel the pressure of consistent inflation and high interest rates – indicating that Dillon\'s efforts are working.', '""We\'re not expecting our customer to get, like, less pressured or more pressured.', 'We\'re just trying to say this is a category they care about,"" said Dillon. ""', 'How can Foot Locker be the best to serve their needs?', ""And I think our results are showing that that's working."", '""As of Tuesday\'s close, shares of the company are up more than 5% this year, compared with Nike\'s stock, which has fallen more than 21% in the same time period.', 'Demand has undoubtedly slowed across the retail industry, but consumers are still spending.', ""They're just being far choosier on who they're spending with — which has made execution that much more important."", '""Our strategies are building momentum as we look to the remainder of the year,"" said Dillon in a statement. ""', 'I remain confident that we are taking the right actions to position the Company for its next 50 years of profitable growth and create long-term shareholder value.""']",0.242355211483859,"I remain confident that we are taking the right actions to position the Company for its next 50 years of profitable growth and create long-term shareholder value.""",Its gross margin also expanded for the first time in more than two years.,0.5484147248444734,Its gross margin also expanded for the first time in more than two years.,"Despite the positive trends, the company's shares closed more than 10% lower. """,2024-08-30
Star Wars Outlaws: Massive defends glitches in 'complex' game,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c9d1v41xzj5o,2024-08-29T09:39:35.668Z,"The journey to the first-ever open-world Star Wars game has had intrigue, interest and for those with early access, some bugs and glitches. Some pre-release players of Star Wars Outlaws have reported problems with game progression, being stuck in certain parts of the game and issues with saving, with studio Ubisoft now advising of possible fixes. But the early issues are a source of slight frustration for Julian Gerighty, creative director for Massive Entertainment, which made the game. ""When you have millions of players step into your world, you'd rather it not happen,"" he tells BBC Newsbeat. ""It's one of those things that we’ll keep a look out for, keep correcting and keep improving."" But he believes it is partly a product of their ambition for this game, particularly compared to previous generations. ""I think it's very important that the bigger the game is, the more systems you have, the more complex that it’s going to be. ""It's also the joy of video games, of being able to step into these worlds and sometimes [these] things happen,"" he says. Outlaws is set between the events of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, with players following the story of Kay Vess, a ""scoundrel"" wanting freedom and the means to start a new life, navigating through the galaxy’s crime syndicates. The reviews of the game have so far been mixed. IGN has given a ""good"" rating, saying it is ""a fun intergalactic heist adventure with great exploration, but hindered by simple stealth, repetitive combat, and a few too many bugs at launch"". Eurogamer says Outlaws ""isn’t a squeaky clean game on a technical level, with a few rough points amid a general trend of brilliance"". PC Gamer describes Outlaws as ""everything good and bad about big-budget open world excess"". ""There is so much going on between its main quests, side quests… yet fundamental fun video game stuff like getting from place to place falls flat,"" it writes. Gamespot gives it a ""fair"" rating, saying ""the unexciting space combat and unrewarding syndicate-relationship tracker don't add anything meaningful to the experience"".  But it points out the game has success when ""it comes to gunslinging or sneaking, both of which are aided by a superb soundtrack"". Compared to previous games, they’ve been able to do more this time around, Julian says. ""[Things like] the density of cities… the city's streets, to a densely populated market town to your spaceship. And then blast off into orbit completely seamlessly with no loading."" But trying to go bigger has not been simple in terms of design. ""It’s a real technical challenge with the speeds.  ""It can only be achievable with this generation of consoles,"" he says, adding that previously it would have been ""completely impossible"" to achieve the same scale due to the limits of technology. ""I think the game really flies when people step into their own role-playing of being a scoundrel and an outlaw and they follow their own path. ""That's where the world comes together and you really feel like you're a part of Star Wars,"" he says. The Star Wars fanbase, like many notable franchises, has passionate fans scrutinising every last detail. And Julian appreciates the importance of feedback from them. ""If you look at the history of Massive Entertainment, the community is such a vocal part of making things better and improving the game. ""We see it as more of an opportunity to examine how we can push things further in the future. And that’s going to be a part of the action plan on this game, too. ""I think you have to look at it through the lens of your creative vision as well as good faith and bad faith takes,"" he says. ""So there's a lot of things that we can do to improve the experiences. But it always has to be through the lens of the creative filter."" And Julian is also aware of the place of Outlaws in the wider universe - crediting development group LucasFilm Games for its guidance. ""[We need] to make sure that we understand what else is being made within the galaxy, of different media elements from publishing to TV to movies. ""We know more or less how we fit within that, without spoiling any of the other entertainment pieces that are coming out or have to come out."" Reflecting on Outlaws, Julian feels a sense of pride. ""It's equal parts thrilling and terrifying, always a joy to launch something. ""Letting it go into the wild and wanting people to have the best possible experience. It's always a little bit scary at the same time."" But after celebrating, there will be an evaluation of ""how people are playing the game"". ""Where the real points of joy are, and frustration as well. How do we address those things in later updates?"" He shares in the next year or so, the team is planning to launch downloadable content (DLC) – extra content that can be downloaded for games after they’ve been released. ""With every single DLC, it'll be a moment for us to update, improve and make sure that the experience is as good as it can be,"" he says. Star Wars Outlaws is due to be widely released on 30 August. Listen to Newsbeat live at 12:45 and 17:45 weekdays - or listen back here. ",BBC,29/08/2024,"['The journey to the first-ever open-world Star Wars game has had intrigue, interest and for those with early access, some bugs and glitches.', 'Some pre-release players of Star Wars Outlaws have reported problems with game progression, being stuck in certain parts of the game and issues with saving, with studio Ubisoft now advising of possible fixes.', 'But the early issues are a source of slight frustration for Julian Gerighty, creative director for Massive Entertainment, which made the game. ""', 'When you have millions of players step into your world, you\'d rather it not happen,"" he tells BBC Newsbeat. ""', 'It\'s one of those things that we’ll keep a look out for, keep correcting and keep improving.""', 'But he believes it is partly a product of their ambition for this game, particularly compared to previous generations. ""', 'I think it\'s very important that the bigger the game is, the more systems you have, the more complex that it’s going to be. ""', 'It\'s also the joy of video games, of being able to step into these worlds and sometimes [these] things happen,"" he says.', 'Outlaws is set between the events of The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, with players following the story of Kay Vess, a ""scoundrel"" wanting freedom and the means to start a new life, navigating through the galaxy’s crime syndicates.', 'The reviews of the game have so far been mixed.', 'IGN has given a ""good"" rating, saying it is ""a fun intergalactic heist adventure with great exploration, but hindered by simple stealth, repetitive combat, and a few too many bugs at launch"".', 'Eurogamer says Outlaws ""isn’t a squeaky clean game on a technical level, with a few rough points amid a general trend of brilliance"".', 'PC Gamer describes Outlaws as ""everything good and bad about big-budget open world excess"". ""', 'There is so much going on between its main quests, side quests… yet fundamental fun video game stuff like getting from place to place falls flat,"" it writes.', 'Gamespot gives it a ""fair"" rating, saying ""the unexciting space combat and unrewarding syndicate-relationship tracker don\'t add anything meaningful to the experience"".', 'But it points out the game has success when ""it comes to gunslinging or sneaking, both of which are aided by a superb soundtrack"".', 'Compared to previous games, they’ve been able to do more this time around, Julian says. ""[', ""Things like] the density of cities… the city's streets, to a densely populated market town to your spaceship."", 'And then blast off into orbit completely seamlessly with no loading.""', 'But trying to go bigger has not been simple in terms of design. ""', 'It’s a real technical challenge with the speeds. ""', 'It can only be achievable with this generation of consoles,"" he says, adding that previously it would have been ""completely impossible"" to achieve the same scale due to the limits of technology. ""', 'I think the game really flies when people step into their own role-playing of being a scoundrel and an outlaw and they follow their own path. ""', 'That\'s where the world comes together and you really feel like you\'re a part of Star Wars,"" he says.', 'The Star Wars fanbase, like many notable franchises, has passionate fans scrutinising every last detail.', 'And Julian appreciates the importance of feedback from them. ""', 'If you look at the history of Massive Entertainment, the community is such a vocal part of making things better and improving the game. ""', 'We see it as more of an opportunity to examine how we can push things further in the future.', 'And that’s going to be a part of the action plan on this game, too. ""', 'I think you have to look at it through the lens of your creative vision as well as good faith and bad faith takes,"" he says. ""', ""So there's a lot of things that we can do to improve the experiences."", 'But it always has to be through the lens of the creative filter.""', 'And Julian is also aware of the place of Outlaws in the wider universe - crediting development group LucasFilm Games for its guidance. ""[', 'We need] to make sure that we understand what else is being made within the galaxy, of different media elements from publishing to TV to movies. ""', 'We know more or less how we fit within that, without spoiling any of the other entertainment pieces that are coming out or have to come out.""', 'Reflecting on Outlaws, Julian feels a sense of pride. ""', 'It\'s equal parts thrilling and terrifying, always a joy to launch something. ""', 'Letting it go into the wild and wanting people to have the best possible experience.', 'It\'s always a little bit scary at the same time.""', 'But after celebrating, there will be an evaluation of ""how people are playing the game"". ""', 'Where the real points of joy are, and frustration as well.', 'How do we address those things in later updates?""', 'He shares in the next year or so, the team is planning to launch downloadable content (DLC) – extra content that can be downloaded for games after they’ve been released. ""', 'With every single DLC, it\'ll be a moment for us to update, improve and make sure that the experience is as good as it can be,"" he says.', 'Star Wars Outlaws is due to be widely released on 30 August.', 'Listen to Newsbeat live at 12:45 and 17:45 weekdays - or listen back here.']",0.2601625422509638,"But it points out the game has success when ""it comes to gunslinging or sneaking, both of which are aided by a superb soundtrack"".","Some pre-release players of Star Wars Outlaws have reported problems with game progression, being stuck in certain parts of the game and issues with saving, with studio Ubisoft now advising of possible fixes.",0.1541444845497608,"Compared to previous games, they’ve been able to do more this time around, Julian says. ""[","Eurogamer says Outlaws ""isn’t a squeaky clean game on a technical level, with a few rough points amid a general trend of brilliance"".",2024-08-29
Massive Reliance-Disney merger cleared by India watchdog,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c7v5j5dern7o,2024-08-29T09:22:53.693Z,"A $8.5bn (£6.43bn) merger between Disney and Reliance Industries has been provisionally approved by the India's competition watchdog. The venture, in which billionaire Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries will have majority stake, will create India's biggest entertainment player which will compete with Sony, Netflix and Amazon. The joint venture will enjoy broadcasting rights for a majority of India's sports events, including coveted cricket tournaments. The merger is expected to be completed in the next six months and will be chaired by Mr Ambani's wife, Nita Ambani, according to reports. The deal is “subject to the compliance of voluntary modifications"", India's competition watchdog said in a press release on Wednesday. It had previously raised concerns about the control this merger would grant the two companies over broadcasting rights for cricket, the country's most popular sport with a massive fan base. Streaming services offered by Disney and Reliance have been attracting Indian subscribers for years by providing free livestreams of cricket matches. According to Reuters news agency, the two companies have spent $9.5bn on TV and streaming rights for the Indian Premier League (IPL), T20 World Cups and matches held by the International Cricket Council.   The competition watchdog had raised concerns that the new entity could increase advertising prices for these matches.  However, the two companies have reportedly pledged not to raise advertising rates excessively for cricket match streams. They have also said they would sell seven to eight of their non-sports TV channels  to balance out revenues, a source told Reuters.  With the merger, the two companies will also have Indian broadcast rights for the Wimbledon, MotoGP and the English Premier League or EPL. The deal ""creates a huge digital entertainment giant"", Gurmeet Chadha, managing partner of financial consultant Complete Circle, told CNBC-TV18 news channel.  ""They have the content muscle and their tech capabilities are well-known. They have the reach in terms of distribution. They have the relative analytics and insight into what content is consumed where,"" he said.  In a country with 1.4bn people and 90% internet penetration, ""this has huge, huge long-term implications,"" he added. ",BBC,29/08/2024,"[""A $8.5bn (£6.43bn) merger between Disney and Reliance Industries has been provisionally approved by the India's competition watchdog."", ""The venture, in which billionaire Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries will have majority stake, will create India's biggest entertainment player which will compete with Sony, Netflix and Amazon."", ""The joint venture will enjoy broadcasting rights for a majority of India's sports events, including coveted cricket tournaments."", ""The merger is expected to be completed in the next six months and will be chaired by Mr Ambani's wife, Nita Ambani, according to reports."", 'The deal is “subject to the compliance of voluntary modifications"", India\'s competition watchdog said in a press release on Wednesday.', ""It had previously raised concerns about the control this merger would grant the two companies over broadcasting rights for cricket, the country's most popular sport with a massive fan base."", 'Streaming services offered by Disney and Reliance have been attracting Indian subscribers for years by providing free livestreams of cricket matches.', 'According to Reuters news agency, the two companies have spent $9.5bn on TV and streaming rights for the Indian Premier League (IPL), T20 World Cups and matches held by the International Cricket Council.', 'The competition watchdog had raised concerns that the new entity could increase advertising prices for these matches.', 'However, the two companies have reportedly pledged not to raise advertising rates excessively for cricket match streams.', 'They have also said they would sell seven to eight of their non-sports TV channels to balance out revenues, a source told Reuters.', 'With the merger, the two companies will also have Indian broadcast rights for the Wimbledon, MotoGP and the English Premier League or EPL.', 'The deal ""creates a huge digital entertainment giant"", Gurmeet Chadha, managing partner of financial consultant Complete Circle, told CNBC-TV18 news channel. ""', 'They have the content muscle and their tech capabilities are well-known.', 'They have the reach in terms of distribution.', 'They have the relative analytics and insight into what content is consumed where,"" he said.', 'In a country with 1.4bn people and 90% internet penetration, ""this has huge, huge long-term implications,"" he added.']",0.2965105595822964,"It had previously raised concerns about the control this merger would grant the two companies over broadcasting rights for cricket, the country's most popular sport with a massive fan base.",,0.3517102301120758,Streaming services offered by Disney and Reliance have been attracting Indian subscribers for years by providing free livestreams of cricket matches.,The competition watchdog had raised concerns that the new entity could increase advertising prices for these matches.,2024-08-29
New Heights: Travis and Jason Kelce sign $100m podcast deal with Amazon,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/czxl1wnpjgyo,2024-08-28T10:27:45.694Z,"NFL stars Travis and Jason Kelce have signed a lucrative podcast deal with Amazon, reportedly worth $100m (£75m). The three-year deal, announced on Tuesday, gives the company's Wondery audio network exclusive multimedia rights to the brothers' popular New Heights podcast. The pair said they ""couldn't be more excited"" at the deal ahead of the show's third series. The siblings launched the podcast in 2022 - interviewing celebrity guests and discussing their own lives - all with brotherly humour.  Travis, 34, a three-time Super Bowl champion for the Kansas City Chiefs, has since found wider fame as the boyfriend of pop megastar Taylor Swift.  Elder brother Jason, 36, recently retired after 13 seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles and has taken up an analyst role with ESPN. The deal marks a high watermark in the booming popularity of both sport podcasts and the medium in general, with New Heights winning podcast of the year at the 2024 iHeartPodcast Awards. Wondery boss Jen Sargent said: ""New Heights on the surface is a sports podcast, and sports is such a well-listened-to category. But it's become a cultural phenomenon, they're all in that zeitgeist."" According to Nielsen's recent podcast analysis, the number of Americans listening to podcasts has increased by 45% in the last five years alone - more than doubling in the past decade to reach 183m people.  A similar shift has happened in the UK, with ad revenue spiking worldwide to be worth billions, according to PwC.  The rise reflects a change in consumption habits, with younger audiences increasingly choosing podcasts over linear TV. The Kelces' signing to Wondery follows the company's similar deal with comedian and podcaster Dax Shephard last month. Other big-name, big-money podcast deals include Joe Rogan's $100m partnership with Spotify and Alex Cooper's move to Sirius XM. Earlier this year, it was announced that Kelce would host US gameshow Are You Smarter Than a Celebrity?, also for Amazon. ",BBC,28/08/2024,"['NFL stars Travis and Jason Kelce have signed a lucrative podcast deal with Amazon, reportedly worth $100m (£75m).', ""The three-year deal, announced on Tuesday, gives the company's Wondery audio network exclusive multimedia rights to the brothers' popular New Heights podcast."", 'The pair said they ""couldn\'t be more excited"" at the deal ahead of the show\'s third series.', 'The siblings launched the podcast in 2022 - interviewing celebrity guests and discussing their own lives - all with brotherly humour.', 'Travis, 34, a three-time Super Bowl champion for the Kansas City Chiefs, has since found wider fame as the boyfriend of pop megastar Taylor Swift.', 'Elder brother Jason, 36, recently retired after 13 seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles and has taken up an analyst role with ESPN.', 'The deal marks a high watermark in the booming popularity of both sport podcasts and the medium in general, with New Heights winning podcast of the year at the 2024 iHeartPodcast Awards.', 'Wondery boss Jen Sargent said: ""New Heights on the surface is a sports podcast, and sports is such a well-listened-to category.', 'But it\'s become a cultural phenomenon, they\'re all in that zeitgeist.""', ""According to Nielsen's recent podcast analysis, the number of Americans listening to podcasts has increased by 45% in the last five years alone - more than doubling in the past decade to reach 183m people."", 'A similar shift has happened in the UK, with ad revenue spiking worldwide to be worth billions, according to PwC. The rise reflects a change in consumption habits, with younger audiences increasingly choosing podcasts over linear TV.', ""The Kelces' signing to Wondery follows the company's similar deal with comedian and podcaster Dax Shephard last month."", ""Other big-name, big-money podcast deals include Joe Rogan's $100m partnership with Spotify and Alex Cooper's move to Sirius XM."", 'Earlier this year, it was announced that Kelce would host US gameshow Are You Smarter Than a Celebrity?,', 'also for Amazon.']",0.3510327113687824,"Travis, 34, a three-time Super Bowl champion for the Kansas City Chiefs, has since found wider fame as the boyfriend of pop megastar Taylor Swift.",,0.9992065310478212,"According to Nielsen's recent podcast analysis, the number of Americans listening to podcasts has increased by 45% in the last five years alone - more than doubling in the past decade to reach 183m people.",,2024-08-29
NFL wants a cut of private equity investment profits,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/27/nfl-wants-to-take-percentage-of-private-equity-investment-profits.html,2024-08-28T13:54:30+0000,"The National Football League has informed owners and investment firms that it intends to take a percentage of private equity profits on any future sales of ownership stakes, according to people familiar with the matter.NFL owners voted Tuesday to allow private equity firms to take a maximum 10% stake in teams.The league has never allowed private equity investment before. Major League Baseball, the National Basketball Association and the National Hockey League already allow up to 30% of teams to be owned by investment firms, though the cap for individual funds is between 15% and 20%.No other league takes a percentage of the so-called carry — the percentage of a fund's investment profits that managers typically receive as compensation — for all private equity firms. It was unclear heading into the owners' meeting if the NFL plan would apply to all or only some firms, or what percentage of the profits the league wanted to take.The NFL has informally told investment firms that if they make a return on an investment, it wants a portion of the profits to be returned to the league.""Each of us are privileged to own an asset that we're custodians of the local community and we don't want ownership that's putting making money first,"" New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft told CNBC's ""Squawk Box"" on Wednesday. ""If you do your job and you present a good product, the community gets behind it.""It was unclear if the NFL's plans to take a piece of profits would deter future investment from private equity. The initial approved firms include Ares Management, Sixth Street Partners and Arctos Partners, and a consortium of investors including Dynasty Equity, Blackstone, Carlyle Group, CVC Capital Partners and Ludis, a platform founded by investor and former NFL running back Curtis Martin.The NFL declined to comment.Over the past 20 years, the league's total value has risen from $23.46 billion to $190 billion, a 710% gain, according to Sportico. The S&P 500 index has risen about 660% during the same time span.— CNBC's Jake Piazza contributed to this report.",CNBC,28/08/2024,"['The National Football League has informed owners and investment firms that it intends to take a percentage of private equity profits on any future sales of ownership stakes, according to people familiar with the matter.', 'NFL owners voted Tuesday to allow private equity firms to take a maximum 10% stake in teams.', 'The league has never allowed private equity investment before.', ""Major League Baseball, the National Basketball Association and the National Hockey League already allow up to 30% of teams to be owned by investment firms, though the cap for individual funds is between 15% and 20%.No other league takes a percentage of the so-called carry — the percentage of a fund's investment profits that managers typically receive as compensation — for all private equity firms."", ""It was unclear heading into the owners' meeting if the NFL plan would apply to all or only some firms, or what percentage of the profits the league wanted to take."", 'The NFL has informally told investment firms that if they make a return on an investment, it wants a portion of the profits to be returned to the league.', '""Each of us are privileged to own an asset that we\'re custodians of the local community and we don\'t want ownership that\'s putting making money first,"" New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft told CNBC\'s ""Squawk Box"" on Wednesday. ""', 'If you do your job and you present a good product, the community gets behind it.', '""It was unclear if the NFL\'s plans to take a piece of profits would deter future investment from private equity.', 'The initial approved firms includeAres Management,Sixth Street Partners and Arctos Partners, and a consortium of investors including Dynasty Equity,Blackstone,Carlyle Group,CVC Capital Partnersand Ludis, a platform founded by investor and former NFL running back Curtis Martin.', 'The NFL declined to comment.', ""Over the past 20 years, the league's total value has risen from $23.46 billion to $190 billion, a 710% gain, according to Sportico."", 'The S&P 500 index has risen about 660% during the same time span.—', ""CNBC's Jake Piazza contributed to this report.""]",0.3173730239255343,"Over the past 20 years, the league's total value has risen from $23.46 billion to $190 billion, a 710% gain, according to Sportico.",,0.3556423584620158,"Over the past 20 years, the league's total value has risen from $23.46 billion to $190 billion, a 710% gain, according to Sportico.","""It was unclear if the NFL's plans to take a piece of profits would deter future investment from private equity.",2024-08-29
"Mavericks, Pelicans games are leaving their local sports networks ahead of NBA season",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/26/mavericks-pelicans-games-leave-local-networks-amid-diamond-bankruptcy.html,2024-08-26T20:44:33+0000,"Dallas Mavericks and New Orleans Pelicans fans are waiting for a new way to watch local games in the upcoming National Basketball Association season.Both teams are exiting their regional sports networks owned by Diamond Sports, according to a Friday bankruptcy court filing.The NBA season is set to begin Oct. 22. While neither franchise has publicly announced where its local games will be aired, both teams have a history of televising their games with local broadcasters.The Pelicans have reached an agreement in principle with Gray Television to air games this season, a person close to the team told CNBC, confirming earlier media reports. Representatives for Gray and the Pelicans declined to comment on the matter.Last season, the Pelicans aired 10 of their matchups on Gray's local stations, and the Mavericks, who appeared in last season's NBA Finals, entered a 13-game agreement with Tegna's Dallas-Fort Worth stations.Representatives for the Mavericks and Tegna did not immediately respond to CNBC's requests asking who would broadcast their local games.The Mavericks and Pelicans are the latest teams to move the bulk of their regular-season games from their Diamond-owned regional sports networks, which are under the Bally Sports brand.Diamond Sports has spent the past 18 months trying to navigate its way out of bankruptcy, and along the way, several NBA, WNBA and National Hockey League teams have ditched regional sports networks in favor of local broadcasters. Some Major League Baseball teams that have left these networks will now have their games produced by the league.Diamond Sports will receive $1.3 million and more than $297,000 in repayments from the Mavericks and Pelicans, respectively, as part of the terminations, according to the court filing.The split with the Mavericks and Pelicans comes as Diamond enters into broadcast and streaming rights agreements with the NBA and NHL for the upcoming season as part of its bankruptcy process. The deals are subject to court approval.""We are appreciative of the ongoing collaboration and long-term partnerships with the NBA and NHL,"" Diamond Sports CEO David Preschlack said in a statement, adding the deals with the leagues ""are another major milestone"" toward exiting bankruptcy protection.Diamond Sports has been one of many companies crushed by the decline of cable. Though it launched a sports-only streaming service for some of its teams in 2022, the company's $8 billion debt load was too staggering to stop it from filing for bankruptcy protection.As the NBA and NHL seasons near, Diamond has also faced more pressure in recent months to form a viable business plan and prove it can make the necessary rights payments.Diamond marked another milestone this summer when it reached a deal to return its networks to Comcast's cable TV customers. The Bally Sports networks went dark on Comcast — Diamond's third largest distributor — in early May.Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal and CNBC.",CNBC,26/08/2024,"['Dallas Mavericks and New Orleans Pelicans fans are waiting for a new way to watch local games in the upcoming National Basketball Association season.', 'Both teams are exiting their regional sports networks owned by Diamond Sports, according to a Friday bankruptcy court filing.', 'The NBA season is set to begin Oct. 22.', 'While neither franchise has publicly announced where its local games will be aired, both teams have a history of televising their games with local broadcasters.', 'The Pelicans have reached an agreement in principle with Gray Television to air games this season,a personclose to the team told CNBC, confirming earlier media reports.', 'Representatives for Gray and the Pelicans declined to comment on the matter.', ""Last season, the Pelicans aired 10 of their matchups on Gray's local stations, and the Mavericks, who appeared in last season's NBA Finals, entered a 13-game agreement with Tegna's Dallas-Fort Worth stations."", ""Representatives for the Mavericks and Tegna did not immediately respond to CNBC's requests asking who would broadcast their local games."", 'The Mavericks and Pelicans are the latest teams to move the bulk of their regular-season games from their Diamond-owned regional sports networks, which are under the Bally Sports brand.', 'Diamond Sports has spent the past 18 months trying to navigate its way out of bankruptcy, and along the way, several NBA, WNBA and National Hockey League teams have ditched regional sports networks in favor of local broadcasters.', 'Some Major League Baseball teams that have left these networks will now have their games produced by the league.', 'Diamond Sports will receive $1.3 million and more than $297,000 in repayments from the Mavericks and Pelicans, respectively, as part of the terminations, according to the court filing.', 'The split with the Mavericks and Pelicans comes as Diamond enters into broadcast and streaming rights agreements with the NBA and NHL for the upcoming season as part of its bankruptcy process.', 'The deals are subject to court approval.', '""We are appreciative of the ongoing collaboration and long-term partnerships with the NBA and NHL,"" Diamond Sports CEO David Preschlack said in a statement, adding the deals with the leagues ""are another major milestone"" toward exiting bankruptcy protection.', 'Diamond Sports has been one of many companies crushed by the decline of cable.', ""Though it launched a sports-only streaming service for some of its teams in 2022, the company's $8 billion debt load was too staggering to stop it from filing for bankruptcy protection."", 'As the NBA and NHL seasons near, Diamond has also faced more pressure in recent months to form a viable business plan and prove it can make the necessary rights payments.', ""Diamond marked another milestone this summer when it reached a deal to return its networks to Comcast's cable TV customers."", ""The Bally Sports networks went dark on Comcast — Diamond's third largest distributor — in early May."", 'Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal and CNBC.']",0.2369959799857742,"""We are appreciative of the ongoing collaboration and long-term partnerships with the NBA and NHL,"" Diamond Sports CEO David Preschlack said in a statement, adding the deals with the leagues ""are another major milestone"" toward exiting bankruptcy protection.","Though it launched a sports-only streaming service for some of its teams in 2022, the company's $8 billion debt load was too staggering to stop it from filing for bankruptcy protection.",-0.2300930470228195,Diamond marked another milestone this summer when it reached a deal to return its networks to Comcast's cable TV customers.,Diamond Sports has been one of many companies crushed by the decline of cable.,2024-08-29
Washington Commanders strike stadium naming rights deal with Northwest Federal Credit Union,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/27/washington-commanders-stadium-northwest-federal-credit-union.html,2024-08-27T19:46:50+0000,"The home of the Washington Commanders just got a new name.The team's stadium will be renamed Northwest Stadium, per a new agreement with Northwest Federal Credit Union that runs through the 2030-31 season, according to a person familiar with the matter. The deal is worth an average annual value in the low $8 million range, according to the person.The home of the Washington, D.C., NFL team has been without a naming rights partner since FedEx ended its deal with the Commanders in February, two years early. The shipping giant had a deal with the football team that ran from 1999 through the 2025 season.""As we continue to work toward our goal of building the Commanders into an elite franchise that consistently competes for championships, we are excited to welcome our team and fans to Northwest Stadium and look forward to creating incredible memories together on the field and in the communities we serve,"" said Washington Commanders Managing Partner Josh Harris in a statement.The new agreement with the Northwest Federal Credit Union adds to an existing stadium sponsorship deal that came in at around $2 million per year, according to the person familiar with the matter. That deal did not include naming rights.The expanded partnership includes Northwest branding across the stadium, including a new stadium logo. Northwest will also serve as the team's jersey patch partner for off-season and in-season practices. The partnership will also extend new benefits to Commanders fans who are members of Northwest Federal Credit Union, including discounts on tickets and merchandise.Last year,  Northwest Federal Credit Union became the Commanders' official credit union partner.The Commanders are looking to build a new stadium in either Washington, D.C., or Virginia. Should the team move into a new stadium before the 2030-31 season ends, the Commanders have the right under the new agreement to seek a new naming rights partner for the new stadium, the person familiar with the matter said. The credit union does not have the rights to the new stadium or right of first refusal for those rights, the person added.The Los Angeles Rams currently have the most valuable stadium naming rights deal in the NFL. That deal, with SoFi, is for $625 million over 20 years, according to a person familiar with that agreement. SoFi Stadium is also home to the NFL's Chargers, but Rams owner Stanley Kroenke owns the stadium, so the Rams collect 85% of stadium sponsorship revenue.",CNBC,27/08/2024,"['The home of the Washington Commanders just got a new name.', ""The team's stadium will be renamed Northwest Stadium, per a new agreement with Northwest Federal Credit Union that runs through the 2030-31 season, according to a person familiar with the matter."", 'The deal is worth an average annual value in the low $8 million range,according to the person.', 'The home of the Washington, D.C., NFL team has been without a naming rights partner since FedEx ended its deal with the Commanders in February, two years early.', 'The shipping giant had a deal with the football team that ran from 1999 throughthe 2025 season.', '""As we continue to work toward our goal of building the Commanders into an elite franchise that consistently competes for championships, we are excited to welcome our team and fans to Northwest Stadium and look forward to creating incredible memories together on the field and in the communities we serve,"" said Washington Commanders Managing Partner Josh Harris in a statement.', 'The new agreement with the Northwest Federal Credit Union adds to an existing stadium sponsorship deal that came in at around $2 million per year, according to the person familiar with the matter.', 'That deal did not include naming rights.', 'The expanded partnership includes Northwest branding across the stadium, including a new stadium logo.', ""Northwest will also serve as the team's jersey patch partner for off-season and in-season practices."", 'The partnership will also extend new benefits to Commanders fans who are members of Northwest Federal Credit Union, including discounts on tickets and merchandise.', ""Last year, Northwest Federal Credit Union became the Commanders' official credit union partner."", 'The Commanders are looking to build a new stadium in either Washington, D.C., or Virginia.', 'Should the team move into a new stadium before the 2030-31 season ends, the Commanders have the right under the new agreement to seek a new naming rights partner for the new stadium, the person familiar with the matter said.', 'The credit union does not have the rights to the new stadium or right of first refusal for those rights, the person added.', 'The Los Angeles Rams currently have the most valuable stadium naming rights deal in the NFL.', 'That deal, with SoFi, is for $625 million over 20 years, according to a person familiar with that agreement.', ""SoFi Stadium is also home to the NFL's Chargers, but Rams owner Stanley Kroenke owns the stadium, so the Rams collect 85% of stadium sponsorship revenue.""]",0.3245834831982503,"""As we continue to work toward our goal of building the Commanders into an elite franchise that consistently competes for championships, we are excited to welcome our team and fans to Northwest Stadium and look forward to creating incredible memories together on the field and in the communities we serve,"" said Washington Commanders Managing Partner Josh Harris in a statement.",,0.949747696518898,"The partnership will also extend new benefits to Commanders fans who are members of Northwest Federal Credit Union, including discounts on tickets and merchandise.",,2024-08-29
Are AI-created recipes hard to swallow?,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cl7y71krnjvo,2024-08-28T23:11:55.251Z,"Can AI help restaurant owners come up with tasty new menus to tempt customers, or is this just a recipe for disaster? ""We asked [popular AI chatbot] ChatGPT to create a recipe - the best pizza for Dubai,"" says Spartak Arutyunyan, who heads menu development for the city’s branch of restaurant and delivery chain Dodo Pizza. ""And it did create a recipe. We launched it, it was actually a huge hit, and it's still on the menu.” With 90% of Dubai's three million people being immigrants, ""there's so many cultures here"", says Mr Arutyunyan. ""Indians, Pakistanis, Filipinos, Arab people, European guys."" He asked ChatGPT to come up with a pizza that represented that cultural mix. Its response was a topping comprising Arab shawarma chicken, Indian grilled paneer cheese, Middle Eastern Za'atar herbs, and tahini sauce. And Dodo Pizza’s customers apparently cannot get enough of it. “As a chef, I wouldn't mix these ingredients ever on a pizza, but still, the mix of flavours was surprisingly good,” says Mr Arutyunyan. Yet other pizzas dreamed up by the AI did not make it to the menu, for example strawberries and pasta, and blueberries and breakfast cereal. A world away in the US, Venecia Willis conducted a similar AI experiment at Dallas' Velvet Taco, where she is culinary director. She became ""really curious"" about AI, so she let ChatGPT loose on devising one of their tacos of the week. For prompts, Ms Willis says she told it to ""use, like, eight ingredients, and it could only select one tortilla and one protein"". Some recipe results were rather less than moreish. ""There were some funky combinations, and I was like, I'm not really sure if red curry, coconut tofu and pineapple are going to be delicious together,"" says Ms Willis. But she made three of the recipes that looked more promising, and ultimately chose a prawns and steak taco to go on public sale. They sold 22,000 in a week. “I think AI is a great tool to use when you're in a bit of a creative slump, to get the brain going again – ‘that combination might actually work, let's try it’. The AI can suggest something maybe I wouldn't have thought of."" But Ms Willis adds that she “wouldn’t go completely rogue with AI. There has to be a human element to validate recipes.” Not everyone in the food trade loves the idea of AI though. London-based cocktail creator Julian de Feral says he avoids AI because it “seems very counter-intuitive”, with its choices lacking common sense. AI chatbots are “not magic”, warns Emily Bender, a linguistics professor at the University of Washington in Seattle. She says that they have instead learned from what they have read online. “If you can get ChatGPT to spit out something that looks like a recipe, then it's because there are recipes on the internet.” She adds that the AI could have grabbed the recipe from someone’s cookery blog, thereby decreasing their reader numbers, and their ability to make a living from subscriptions or advertising revenue. However, Prof Bender does concede that in the future more sophisticated AI may be helpful in recipe creation. She says that the AI could be asked to ""categorise ingredients as sweet, or acidic, and so on"", find those that the internet says should taste good together, and then come up with endless detailed recipes. ""However, you have to have a well-defined research question [to give the AI] to get that kind of benefit,"" she adds. Still, UK supermarket chain Waitrose is using AI to spot rising food trends on social media. Currently these include “smash burgers” – crispy burgers made by squashing ground beef onto a super-hot pan – and “crookies” – a croissant filled with cookie dough and chocolate chips. ""We saw smash burgers trending all over social media,"" says Lizzie Haywood, Waitrose's innovations manager. “Now three or four dedicated smash burger restaurants opening up in the UK has coincided with us launching our smash burgers.” As for crookies, she says the AI saw that the mention of them had “jumped 80 to 90% from last year on social media, and we managed to launch them into trial stores in three months"". In Singapore, Italian expat Stefano Cantù has created an AI-powered app that can suggest recipes in response to you telling it what ingredients you have in your fridge and cupboards. In a nod to the app being powered by ChatGPT he has called it “ChefGPT”. ""I'm Italian, so of course I cook stuff,"" says Mr Cantù, whose day job is at a software company. He says he came up with the idea “over a weekend” after asking ChatGPT for recipe inspirations. The app also has drop-down menus and toggles, to let a user specify tools they have in their kitchen, or if they're in a hurry or not a very good cook. The AI then comes up with a recipe and a picture of the dish. Mr Cantù says he got 30,000 users within a week and a half of launching last year. But then he got “quite a big bill from OpenAI”, the company behind ChatGPT. He now continues to pay OpenAI a regular fee for using its AI. Mr Cantù explains that this is a standard arrangement when a start-up like his builds its app on top of another company's technology. He adds that he is continuing to try to find “the right balance between advertising and subscriptions, and the right level of usage to give free users"". And how he can “monetise free users without selling their data"". Back in Dubai, Spartak Arutyunyan at Dodo Pizza says AI should be seen as more of a fun thing to use rather than something you’d base your entire menu around. Yet Dodo Pizza is now enabling customers in Dubai, who order via its app, to try using AI themselves to dream up unusual pizza toppings. And the firm says it aims to extend the AI function to its other branches around the world. ",BBC,28/08/2024,"['Can AI help restaurant owners come up with tasty new menus to tempt customers, or is this just a recipe for disaster? ""', 'We asked [popular AI chatbot] ChatGPT to create a recipe - the best pizza for Dubai,"" says Spartak Arutyunyan, who heads menu development for the city’s branch of restaurant and delivery chain Dodo Pizza. ""', 'And it did create a recipe.', ""We launched it, it was actually a huge hit, and it's still on the menu.”"", 'With 90% of Dubai\'s three million people being immigrants, ""there\'s so many cultures here"", says Mr Arutyunyan. ""', 'Indians, Pakistanis, Filipinos, Arab people, European guys.""', 'He asked ChatGPT to come up with a pizza that represented that cultural mix.', ""Its response was a topping comprising Arab shawarma chicken, Indian grilled paneer cheese, Middle Eastern Za'atar herbs, and tahini sauce."", 'And Dodo Pizza’s customers apparently cannot get enough of it. “', ""As a chef, I wouldn't mix these ingredients ever on a pizza, but still, the mix of flavours was surprisingly good,” says Mr Arutyunyan."", 'Yet other pizzas dreamed up by the AI did not make it to the menu, for example strawberries and pasta, and blueberries and breakfast cereal.', ""A world away in the US, Venecia Willis conducted a similar AI experiment at Dallas' Velvet Taco, where she is culinary director."", 'She became ""really curious"" about AI, so she let ChatGPT loose on devising one of their tacos of the week.', 'For prompts, Ms Willis says she told it to ""use, like, eight ingredients, and it could only select one tortilla and one protein"".', 'Some recipe results were rather less than moreish. ""', 'There were some funky combinations, and I was like, I\'m not really sure if red curry, coconut tofu and pineapple are going to be delicious together,"" says Ms Willis.', 'But she made three of the recipes that looked more promising, and ultimately chose a prawns and steak taco to go on public sale.', 'They sold 22,000 in a week. “', ""I think AI is a great tool to use when you're in a bit of a creative slump, to get the brain going again – ‘that combination might actually work, let's try it’."", 'The AI can suggest something maybe I wouldn\'t have thought of.""', 'But Ms Willis adds that she “wouldn’t go completely rogue with AI.', 'There has to be a human element to validate recipes.”', 'Not everyone in the food trade loves the idea of AI though.', 'London-based cocktail creator Julian de Feral says he avoids AI because it “seems very counter-intuitive”, with its choices lacking common sense.', 'AI chatbots are “not magic”, warns Emily Bender, a linguistics professor at the University of Washington in Seattle.', 'She says that they have instead learned from what they have read online. “', ""If you can get ChatGPT to spit out something that looks like a recipe, then it's because there are recipes on the internet.”"", 'She adds that the AI could have grabbed the recipe from someone’s cookery blog, thereby decreasing their reader numbers, and their ability to make a living from subscriptions or advertising revenue.', 'However, Prof Bender does concede that in the future more sophisticated AI may be helpful in recipe creation.', 'She says that the AI could be asked to ""categorise ingredients as sweet, or acidic, and so on"", find those that the internet says should taste good together, and then come up with endless detailed recipes. ""', 'However, you have to have a well-defined research question [to give the AI] to get that kind of benefit,"" she adds.', 'Still, UK supermarket chain Waitrose is using AI to spot rising food trends on social media.', 'Currently these include “smash burgers” – crispy burgers made by squashing ground beef onto a super-hot pan – and “crookies” – a croissant filled with cookie dough and chocolate chips. ""', 'We saw smash burgers trending all over social media,"" says Lizzie Haywood, Waitrose\'s innovations manager. “', 'Now three or four dedicated smash burger restaurants opening up in the UK has coincided with us launching our smash burgers.”', 'As for crookies, she says the AI saw that the mention of them had “jumped 80 to 90% from last year on social media, and we managed to launch them into trial stores in three months"".', 'In Singapore, Italian expat Stefano Cantù has created an AI-powered app that can suggest recipes in response to you telling it what ingredients you have in your fridge and cupboards.', 'In a nod to the app being powered by ChatGPT he has called it “ChefGPT”. ""', 'I\'m Italian, so of course I cook stuff,"" says Mr Cantù, whose day job is at a software company.', 'He says he came up with the idea “over a weekend” after asking ChatGPT for recipe inspirations.', ""The app also has drop-down menus and toggles, to let a user specify tools they have in their kitchen, or if they're in a hurry or not a very good cook."", 'The AI then comes up with a recipe and a picture of the dish.', 'Mr Cantù says he got 30,000 users within a week and a half of launching last year.', 'But then he got “quite a big bill from OpenAI”, the company behind ChatGPT.', 'He now continues to pay OpenAI a regular fee for using its AI.', ""Mr Cantù explains that this is a standard arrangement when a start-up like his builds its app on top of another company's technology."", 'He adds that he is continuing to try to find “the right balance between advertising and subscriptions, and the right level of usage to give free users"".', 'And how he can “monetise free users without selling their data"".', 'Back in Dubai, Spartak Arutyunyan at Dodo Pizza says AI should be seen as more of a fun thing to use rather than something you’d base your entire menu around.', 'Yet Dodo Pizza is now enabling customers in Dubai, who order via its app, to try using AI themselves to dream up unusual pizza toppings.', 'And the firm says it aims to extend the AI function to its other branches around the world.']",0.2289213709271987,"We asked [popular AI chatbot] ChatGPT to create a recipe - the best pizza for Dubai,"" says Spartak Arutyunyan, who heads menu development for the city’s branch of restaurant and delivery chain Dodo Pizza. ""","The app also has drop-down menus and toggles, to let a user specify tools they have in their kitchen, or if they're in a hurry or not a very good cook.",0.407850456237793,"As for crookies, she says the AI saw that the mention of them had “jumped 80 to 90% from last year on social media, and we managed to launch them into trial stores in three months"".","She adds that the AI could have grabbed the recipe from someone’s cookery blog, thereby decreasing their reader numbers, and their ability to make a living from subscriptions or advertising revenue.",2024-08-29
"'People are right to be angry', says water boss",https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cx2lgl9kypno,2024-08-28T01:49:33.135Z,"Thames Water has warned it will not survive unless it is allowed to increase water bills by almost 60% over a five-year period. The UK’s largest water company demanded the bill hike after the wider water industry issued a scathing response to a proposed cap from the regulator for water bill rises. In July, regulator Ofwat proposed an average £19 a year ceiling on water bill rises, with a final decision due in December. But the water industry has argued the increase is not enough and said there was a risk that companies would not be able to raise enough investment to stop things like sewage spills. Water firms have faced a fierce backlash over sewage discharges and leaks in recent years. Critics have also said companies have historically neglected investment in favour of paying executive bonuses and shareholder dividends. It has led to a stand-off between regulator Ofwat and water companies over how much customers should pay. Thames Water has been in the spotlight and faced questions over whether it can survive as it struggles under a £15.2bn debt pile and only has enough cash to fund its operations until the end of May next year. When all water firms put forward requests to Ofwat for bills from 2025 to 2030, Thames originally asked the regulator to increase bills by 44%, but the regulator proposed a 23% rise. On Wednesday, the company announced it wanted to go further, hiking bills by as much as 59%. The proposed changes in bills do not take account of inflation. Such a move would take the average annual water bill to £638 per customer by 2030. Average bills are currently around £443. Chris Weston, chief executive of Thames Water, said the money from higher bills would be invested in new infrastructure and improving services.  ""They [customers] are not being asked to pay twice, but to make up for years of focus on keeping bills low,"" he said in a response to the regulator. Mr Weston claimed Ofwat's current proposal - a 23% rise in bills - would be ""neither financeable nor investible"". ""It would also prevent the turnaround and recovery of the company,"" he added. The warning came after Water UK, the industry body for all water firms, said bills needed to be increased by more in order to stop leaks. David Henderson, chief executive of Water UK, told the BBC people were ""right to be angry"" at water companies over sewage spills, but said the country had a ""system that's tired and it's old"". ""If Ofwat doesn't change its proposal then investors may not stump up the money that we need,"" Mr Henderson said. ""No rational investor is going to put their money into water right now."" Ofwat has proposed a water bill increase limit as part of its draft decision on the business plans of water companies from 2025 to 2030. The proposed increase is a third less than the amount requested by water firms, who argue companies must be able to charge more in order to spend money on fixing leaks. Mr Henderson rejected the idea that the amount paid out in dividends to investors in recent years was part of the reason there was not enough money for companies to invest, rather than just bills being lower. He said returns were set by the regulator Ofwat, adding: ""If you want investors to put their money into the UK they need to receive a return."" He said without more investment, building projects such as hospitals and housing developments would potentially not be built. The GMB union called the claims from water companies ""absolute balderdash"". ""Water companies have had the money, failed to invest in plugging leaks and preventing sewage spills and now want more money to do what they failed to do,"" said Gary Carter, GMB's national officer. An Ofwat spokesperson told the BBC it would carefully consider all responses to its proposals, which were required by midday on Wednesday. ""We expect to receive responses from many organisations, including water companies, customers, environmental and consumer organisations and investors,"" they said.  ""These are likely to reflect a diverse range of views on the proposals we have made."" Raw sewage spills into England's rivers and the sea by water companies more than doubled last year. A BBC investigation earlier this year revealed sewage had potentially been released illegally 6,000 times in 2022 by England's water companies in breach of their permits. Thames Water, along with Yorkshire Water and Northumbrian Water face a total of £168m in fines from the regulator for a ""failure"" to stop years of leaks. Ofwat has suggested a ban on director bonuses until leaks and sewage spills are dealt with. ",BBC,28/08/2024,"['Thames Water has warned it will not survive unless it is allowed to increase water bills by almost 60% over a five-year period.', 'The UK’s largest water company demanded the bill hike after the wider water industry issued a scathing response to a proposed cap from the regulator for water bill rises.', 'In July, regulator Ofwat proposed an average £19 a year ceiling on water bill rises, with a final decision due in December.', 'But the water industry has argued the increase is not enough and said there was a risk that companies would not be able to raise enough investment to stop things like sewage spills.', 'Water firms have faced a fierce backlash over sewage discharges and leaks in recent years.', 'Critics have also said companies have historically neglected investment in favour of paying executive bonuses and shareholder dividends.', 'It has led to a stand-off between regulator Ofwat and water companies over how much customers should pay.', 'Thames Water has been in the spotlight and faced questions over whether it can survive as it struggles under a £15.2bn debt pile and only has enough cash to fund its operations until the end of May next year.', 'When all water firms put forward requests to Ofwat for bills from 2025 to 2030, Thames originally asked the regulator to increase bills by 44%, but the regulator proposed a 23% rise.', 'On Wednesday, the company announced it wanted to go further, hiking bills by as much as 59%.', 'The proposed changes in bills do not take account of inflation.', 'Such a move would take the average annual water bill to £638 per customer by 2030.', 'Average bills are currently around £443.', 'Chris Weston, chief executive of Thames Water, said the money from higher bills would be invested in new infrastructure and improving services. ""', 'They [customers] are not being asked to pay twice, but to make up for years of focus on keeping bills low,"" he said in a response to the regulator.', 'Mr Weston claimed Ofwat\'s current proposal - a 23% rise in bills - would be ""neither financeable nor investible"". ""', 'It would also prevent the turnaround and recovery of the company,"" he added.', 'The warning came after Water UK, the industry body for all water firms, said bills needed to be increased by more in order to stop leaks.', 'David Henderson, chief executive of Water UK, told the BBC people were ""right to be angry"" at water companies over sewage spills, but said the country had a ""system that\'s tired and it\'s old"". ""', 'If Ofwat doesn\'t change its proposal then investors may not stump up the money that we need,"" Mr Henderson said. ""', 'No rational investor is going to put their money into water right now.""', 'Ofwat has proposed a water bill increase limit as part of its draft decision on the business plans of water companies from 2025 to 2030.', 'The proposed increase is a third less than the amount requested by water firms, who argue companies must be able to charge more in order to spend money on fixing leaks.', 'Mr Henderson rejected the idea that the amount paid out in dividends to investors in recent years was part of the reason there was not enough money for companies to invest, rather than just bills being lower.', 'He said returns were set by the regulator Ofwat, adding: ""If you want investors to put their money into the UK they need to receive a return.""', 'He said without more investment, building projects such as hospitals and housing developments would potentially not be built.', 'The GMB union called the claims from water companies ""absolute balderdash"". ""', 'Water companies have had the money, failed to invest in plugging leaks and preventing sewage spills and now want more money to do what they failed to do,"" said Gary Carter, GMB\'s national officer.', 'An Ofwat spokesperson told the BBC it would carefully consider all responses to its proposals, which were required by midday on Wednesday. ""', 'We expect to receive responses from many organisations, including water companies, customers, environmental and consumer organisations and investors,"" they said. ""', 'These are likely to reflect a diverse range of views on the proposals we have made.""', ""Raw sewage spills into England's rivers and the sea by water companies more than doubled last year."", ""A BBC investigation earlier this year revealed sewage had potentially been released illegally 6,000 times in 2022 by England's water companies in breach of their permits."", 'Thames Water, along with Yorkshire Water and Northumbrian Water face a total of £168m in fines from the regulator for a ""failure"" to stop years of leaks.', 'Ofwat has suggested a ban on director bonuses until leaks and sewage spills are dealt with.']",-0.1089251948326627,"Chris Weston, chief executive of Thames Water, said the money from higher bills would be invested in new infrastructure and improving services. ""","Water companies have had the money, failed to invest in plugging leaks and preventing sewage spills and now want more money to do what they failed to do,"" said Gary Carter, GMB's national officer.",-0.5123525047302246,Raw sewage spills into England's rivers and the sea by water companies more than doubled last year.,But the water industry has argued the increase is not enough and said there was a risk that companies would not be able to raise enough investment to stop things like sewage spills.,2024-08-29
Why is Thames Water in so much trouble?,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-66051555,2023-06-29T12:22:03.000Z,"Thames Water has said its bills need to rise by 59% between 2025 and 2030 or else the business will not be able to recover from its financial crisis. The UK's largest water company demanded the bill hike as the wider water industry raised concerns over a proposed cap from the regulator for water bill rises for all suppliers. So why is Thames Water facing a crisis - and are other firms facing similar problems? When the company was privatised in 1989, it had no debt. But over the years it borrowed heavily and is currently £15.2bn in debt, by one measure. A large proportion of that was added when Macquarie, an Australian infrastructure bank, owned Thames Water, reaching over £10bn when the company was sold in 2017. Analysts say Thames Water's current debt amounts to about 80% of the value of the business, making it the most heavily indebted of England and Wales' water companies.  Also, interest payments on more than half of Thames' debt rise with inflation, which has been high in recent years, adding to the firm's woes. Macquarie said that it invested billions of pounds in upgrading Thames's water and sewage infrastructure while it owned the company.   But critics argue that it took billions of pounds out of the company in loans and dividends - which is a share of a business's profits that is paid to shareholders. Thames Water said that it has not paid dividends to external shareholders since 2017.   However, dividends can also be used to move money around companies that are ultimately owned by one parent company. Thames Water has paid over £200m in dividends to other companies within the group in the past five years.  Most of this money has then been paid as interest to outside investors who have loaned the group money.   Critics argue that the dividends were paid with money that could have been spent on improving Thames Water's infrastructure and services. However, Thames Water is legally obliged to make those debt interest payments. The company says it has enough cash until the end of May next year. Thames Water's travails have certainly put a spotlight on what is a debt-laden industry. According to the regulator Ofwat, the sector's total debt reached £60.6bn by March last year.  Of the 11 companies that provide water and sewage services in England and Wales, six are owned by or controlled by overseas investors from countries including Hong Kong, Canada and Malaysia. Like Thames Water, critics claim that overseas owners have loaded water companies up with debt and paid themselves handsome dividends at the expense of investment.   While the sector has - like other industries - been hit by higher costs for things like chemicals and energy, one problem for water companies is that the interest that they pay on their debt is linked to the retail prices index (RPI) measure of inflation.  This is usually higher than the consumer prices index (CPI) measure of inflation. For example, in July RPI inflation was 3.6% compared with CPI inflation of 2.2%. Ofwat estimates that half of water companies' debt is linked to inflation and the vast majority of that is tied to the RPI measure.  Meanwhile, in December 2022 Ofwat raised concerns about the financial resilience of five companies: Thames Water, Southern Water, Yorkshire Water, SES and Portsmouth. Yorkshire, Southern, Portsmouth and SES all say they have taken steps to address Ofwat's concerns. Thames Water is owned by a group of investors spanning four continents. The largest is the Canadian pension fund, OMERS, with 31.8%.  The second-largest is the Universities Superannuation Scheme, with 19.7%, a pension fund for UK academics. Other investors include sovereign wealth funds from China and Abu Dhabi, which invest those nations' assets on behalf of their governments.   Three other pension funds and two investment firms make up the rest.   The entire water and waste sector was privatised 34 years ago under the late Margaret Thatcher's Conservative government for £7.6bn. At the time, Mrs Thatcher wrote off the industry's £5bn debt, leaving companies with a clean slate and gave them £1.5bn in public money.  The government had wanted to privatise the industry in 1984 but a public backlash against the plan saw it shelved until after the general election three years later. At the time, the UK was under pressure from Europe to improve the purity of its water. However, meeting European standards would cost billions of pounds worth of investment which, it was hoped, would come from the private sector and, by extension, companies' customers.  ""If we want environmental improvement, it will cost money,"" said Mrs Thatcher in 1988. ""It will be the people who want those improvements in water who will have to pay."" Former Labour MP Ann Taylor later said of privatising the water industry: ""The message is always the same - maximise the cost to the consumer to ensure maximum return to the investor. We should not be surprised at that. After all, that is what private investors expect of their companies.""  ",BBC,29/06/2023,"['Thames Water has said its bills need to rise by 59% between 2025 and 2030 or else the business will not be able to recover from its financial crisis.', ""The UK's largest water company demanded the bill hike as the wider water industry raised concerns over a proposed cap from the regulator for water bill rises for all suppliers."", 'So why is Thames Water facing a crisis - and are other firms facing similar problems?', 'When the company was privatised in 1989, it had no debt.', 'But over the years it borrowed heavily and is currently £15.2bn in debt, by one measure.', 'A large proportion of that was added when Macquarie, an Australian infrastructure bank, owned Thames Water, reaching over £10bn when the company was sold in 2017.', ""Analysts say Thames Water's current debt amounts to about 80% of the value of the business, making it the most heavily indebted of England and Wales' water companies."", ""Also, interest payments on more than half of Thames' debt rise with inflation, which has been high in recent years, adding to the firm's woes."", ""Macquarie said that it invested billions of pounds in upgrading Thames's water and sewage infrastructure while it owned the company."", ""But critics argue that it took billions of pounds out of the company in loans and dividends - which is a share of a business's profits that is paid to shareholders."", 'Thames Water said that it has not paid dividends to external shareholders since 2017.', 'However, dividends can also be used to move money around companies that are ultimately owned by one parent company.', 'Thames Water has paid over £200m in dividends to other companies within the group in the past five years.', 'Most of this money has then been paid as interest to outside investors who have loaned the group money.', ""Critics argue that the dividends were paid with money that could have been spent on improving Thames Water's infrastructure and services."", 'However, Thames Water is legally obliged to make those debt interest payments.', 'The company says it has enough cash until the end of May next year.', ""Thames Water's travails have certainly put a spotlight on what is a debt-laden industry."", ""According to the regulator Ofwat, the sector's total debt reached £60.6bn by March last year."", 'Of the 11 companies that provide water and sewage services in England and Wales, six are owned by or controlled by overseas investors from countries including Hong Kong, Canada and Malaysia.', 'Like Thames Water, critics claim that overseas owners have loaded water companies up with debt and paid themselves handsome dividends at the expense of investment.', 'While the sector has - like other industries - been hit by higher costs for things like chemicals and energy, one problem for water companies is that the interest that they pay on their debt is linked to the retail prices index (RPI) measure of inflation.', 'This is usually higher than the consumer prices index (CPI) measure of inflation.', 'For example, in July RPI inflation was 3.6% compared with CPI inflation of 2.2%.', ""Ofwat estimates that half of water companies' debt is linked to inflation and the vast majority of that is tied to the RPI measure."", 'Meanwhile, in December 2022 Ofwat raised concerns about the financial resilience of five companies: Thames Water, Southern Water, Yorkshire Water, SES and Portsmouth.', ""Yorkshire, Southern, Portsmouth and SES all say they have taken steps to address Ofwat's concerns."", 'Thames Water is owned by a group of investors spanning four continents.', 'The largest is the Canadian pension fund, OMERS, with 31.8%.', 'The second-largest is the Universities Superannuation Scheme, with 19.7%, a pension fund for UK academics.', ""Other investors include sovereign wealth funds from China and Abu Dhabi, which invest those nations' assets on behalf of their governments."", 'Three other pension funds and two investment firms make up the rest.', ""The entire water and waste sector was privatised 34 years ago under the late Margaret Thatcher's Conservative government for £7.6bn."", ""At the time, Mrs Thatcher wrote off the industry's £5bn debt, leaving companies with a clean slate and gave them £1.5bn in public money."", 'The government had wanted to privatise the industry in 1984 but a public backlash against the plan saw it shelved until after the general election three years later.', 'At the time, the UK was under pressure from Europe to improve the purity of its water.', 'However, meeting European standards would cost billions of pounds worth of investment which, it was hoped, would come from the private sector and, by extension, companies\' customers. ""', 'If we want environmental improvement, it will cost money,"" said Mrs Thatcher in 1988. ""', 'It will be the people who want those improvements in water who will have to pay.""', 'Former Labour MP Ann Taylor later said of privatising the water industry: ""The message is always the same - maximise the cost to the consumer to ensure maximum return to the investor.', 'We should not be surprised at that.', 'After all, that is what private investors expect of their companies.""']",-0.0023051724465894,"Other investors include sovereign wealth funds from China and Abu Dhabi, which invest those nations' assets on behalf of their governments.",So why is Thames Water facing a crisis - and are other firms facing similar problems?,-0.4340577233921397,"At the time, the UK was under pressure from Europe to improve the purity of its water.","Meanwhile, in December 2022 Ofwat raised concerns about the financial resilience of five companies: Thames Water, Southern Water, Yorkshire Water, SES and Portsmouth.",2024-08-29
Telegram boss Pavel Durov banned from leaving France in criminal probe,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c985ppy0znyo,2024-08-28T20:09:37.589Z,"Telegram boss and founder Pavel Durov has been placed under formal investigation in France as part of a probe into organised crime on the messaging app, Paris prosecutors say. Mr Durov, 39, has not been remanded in custody, but placed under judicial supervision, and has to pay a €5m (£4.2m; $5.6m) deposit. The Russian-born billionaire, who is also a French national, also has to show up at a French police station twice a week and is not allowed to leave French territory. Mr Durov was first detained upon arrival at Le Bourget airport north of Paris last Saturday under a warrant for offences related to the app.  In Wednesday's statement, the Paris prosecutors said Mr Durov was put under formal investigation over alleged offences that included:  In France, being put under formal investigation does not imply guilt or necessarily result in a trial - but it indicates that judges consider there is enough of a case to proceed with an investigation. Mr Durov has so far made no public comments on the latest developments. His lawyer, David-Olivier Kaminski, said Telegram complied in every respect with European digital regulations and was moderated to the same standards as other social networks. It was ""absurd"" to suggest his client could be involved ""in criminal acts that don't concern him either directly or indirectly"", he added. It is unprecedented for the owner of a social media platform to be arrested because of the way in which that platform is being used, and it has fuelled a fierce debate online about freedom of speech and accountability.  We have previously seen tech bosses hauled in front of lawmakers for confrontational grillings about their practices and failings, but not met by law enforcement at airports. Elon Musk, the owner of X, has defended Mr Durov, arguing that moderation is a ""propaganda word"" for censorship. He has called for Mr Durov's release.  Chris Pavlovski, the founder of a controversial video-sharing app called Rumble, said he had fled Europe following Mr Durov’s detention. While most of the world’s largest social networks do engage with national and international bodies when it comes to serious criminal offences such as the sharing of child sexual abuse images, Telegram is accused of ignoring them.  The firm, which is now headquartered in Dubai, insists that its moderation tools meet industry standards. French President Emmanuel Macron said earlier this week that France was deeply committed to freedom of expression, and that the decision to hold Mr Durov was ""in no way... political"". Huge groups of up to 200,000 people can share and comment on information and content on Telegram - WhatsApp on the other hand limits its maximum group size to just over 1,000. While Telegram messages can be encrypted, meaning that only the sender and recipient can view them, this is not activated by default and has to be manually switched on to private chats. On Monday evening, Paris prosecutors said Mr Durov was being held in custody as part of a cyber-criminality investigation. In response, Telegram said Mr Durov had ""nothing to hide"". Russia has warned France against turning the case into what it described as a ""political persecution"", having previously said that without serious evidence the charges could be construed as an act of ""intimidation"". ""We know that the president of France has denied any connection [to the case] with politics,"" Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday, according to Reuters.  ""But on the other hand, certain accusations are being made."" Russian lawmaker Leonid Slutsky said that the charges against Mr Durov sounded ""wild"" and that the Telegram CEO was a ""hostage of the dictatorship of democracy of the collective West"".  Telegram is ranked as one of the major social media platforms.  It was founded in 2013 and is particularly popular in Russia, Ukraine and other former Soviet Union states, as well as Iran. Russian war correspondent Sasha Kots wondered whether users would ever ""trust Telegram as before"". Kots, who regularly posts updates about the war in Ukraine to his large Telegram following, suggested that French and Western authorities might now have access to the network's encryption keys. ""The truth is that no matter how events around Durov develop now, one can never be sure of the security of the messenger,"" he wrote on Telegram. The BBC revealed on Wednesday that Telegram - which has more than 950 million registered users - has repeatedly refused to join international programmes aimed at detecting and removing child abuse material online. The BBC has contacted Telegram for comment about its refusal to join the child protection schemes. Mr Durov, who also founded the popular Russian social media company VKontakte, left Russia in 2014 after refusing to comply with government demands to shut down opposition communities on the platform. He also holds passports of St Kitts and Nevis and the United Arab Emirates. ",BBC,28/08/2024,"['Telegram boss and founder Pavel Durov has been placed under formal investigation in France as part of a probe into organised crime on the messaging app, Paris prosecutors say.', 'Mr Durov, 39, has not been remanded in custody, but placed under judicial supervision, and has to pay a €5m (£4.2m; $5.6m) deposit.', 'The Russian-born billionaire, who is also a French national, also has to show up at a French police station twice a week and is not allowed to leave French territory.', 'Mr Durov was first detained upon arrival at Le Bourget airport north of Paris last Saturday under a warrant for offences related to the app.', ""In Wednesday's statement, the Paris prosecutors said Mr Durov was put under formal investigation over alleged offences that included: In France, being put under formal investigation does not imply guilt or necessarily result in a trial - but it indicates that judges consider there is enough of a case to proceed with an investigation."", 'Mr Durov has so far made no public comments on the latest developments.', 'His lawyer, David-Olivier Kaminski, said Telegram complied in every respect with European digital regulations and was moderated to the same standards as other social networks.', 'It was ""absurd"" to suggest his client could be involved ""in criminal acts that don\'t concern him either directly or indirectly"", he added.', 'It is unprecedented for the owner of a social media platform to be arrested because of the way in which that platform is being used, and it has fuelled a fierce debate online about freedom of speech and accountability.', 'We have previously seen tech bosses hauled in front of lawmakers for confrontational grillings about their practices and failings, but not met by law enforcement at airports.', 'Elon Musk, the owner of X, has defended Mr Durov, arguing that moderation is a ""propaganda word"" for censorship.', ""He has called for Mr Durov's release."", 'Chris Pavlovski, the founder of a controversial video-sharing app called Rumble, said he had fled Europe following Mr Durov’s detention.', 'While most of the world’s largest social networks do engage with national and international bodies when it comes to serious criminal offences such as the sharing of child sexual abuse images, Telegram is accused of ignoring them.', 'The firm, which is now headquartered in Dubai, insists that its moderation tools meet industry standards.', 'French President Emmanuel Macron said earlier this week that France was deeply committed to freedom of expression, and that the decision to hold Mr Durov was ""in no way... political"".', 'Huge groups of up to 200,000 people can share and comment on information and content on Telegram - WhatsApp on the other hand limits its maximum group size to just over 1,000.', 'While Telegram messages can be encrypted, meaning that only the sender and recipient can view them, this is not activated by default and has to be manually switched on to private chats.', 'On Monday evening, Paris prosecutors said Mr Durov was being held in custody as part of a cyber-criminality investigation.', 'In response, Telegram said Mr Durov had ""nothing to hide"".', 'Russia has warned France against turning the case into what it described as a ""political persecution"", having previously said that without serious evidence the charges could be construed as an act of ""intimidation"". ""', 'We know that the president of France has denied any connection [to the case] with politics,"" Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Thursday, according to Reuters. ""', 'But on the other hand, certain accusations are being made.""', 'Russian lawmaker Leonid Slutsky said that the charges against Mr Durov sounded ""wild"" and that the Telegram CEO was a ""hostage of the dictatorship of democracy of the collective West"".', 'Telegram is ranked as one of the major social media platforms.', 'It was founded in 2013 and is particularly popular in Russia, Ukraine and other former Soviet Union states, as well as Iran.', 'Russian war correspondent Sasha Kots wondered whether users would ever ""trust Telegram as before"".', 'Kots, who regularly posts updates about the war in Ukraine to his large Telegram following, suggested that French and Western authorities might now have access to the network\'s encryption keys. ""', 'The truth is that no matter how events around Durov develop now, one can never be sure of the security of the messenger,"" he wrote on Telegram.', 'The BBC revealed on Wednesday that Telegram - which has more than 950 million registered users - has repeatedly refused to join international programmes aimed at detecting and removing child abuse material online.', 'The BBC has contacted Telegram for comment about its refusal to join the child protection schemes.', 'Mr Durov, who also founded the popular Russian social media company VKontakte, left Russia in 2014 after refusing to comply with government demands to shut down opposition communities on the platform.', 'He also holds passports of St Kitts and Nevis and the United Arab Emirates.']",-0.0787895017591469,"Huge groups of up to 200,000 people can share and comment on information and content on Telegram - WhatsApp on the other hand limits its maximum group size to just over 1,000.","While most of the world’s largest social networks do engage with national and international bodies when it comes to serious criminal offences such as the sharing of child sexual abuse images, Telegram is accused of ignoring them.",-0.702962264418602,,The BBC revealed on Wednesday that Telegram - which has more than 950 million registered users - has repeatedly refused to join international programmes aimed at detecting and removing child abuse material online.,2024-08-29
"Nordstrom shares climb 5% as earnings top estimates, but retailer issues cautious guidance",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/27/nordstrom-jwn-earnings-q2-2024.html,2024-08-27T23:18:11+0000,"In this articleNordstrom on Tuesday posted earnings that blew past Wall Street's expectations, indicating the department store is making strides in its efforts to cut costs and boost efficiencies. Though the Seattle-based retailer posted earnings per share that were 25 cents higher than expected, it issued tepid guidance for the full year. Nordstrom now expects adjusted earnings per share to be between $1.75 and $2.05, compared to a previous range of $1.65 to $2.05. It anticipates sales will be in a range of a 1% decline to 1% growth from the prior year, compared to previous guidance of down 2% to up 1%. In a news release, Nordstrom CEO Erik Nordstrom said the company is optimistic about the second half of the year despite the cautious guidance.""Our second quarter results were solid, and we're encouraged by the continued topline strength in both banners and the progress we're making to expand gross margin and increase profitability,"" said Nordstrom. ""We're confident in our outlook for the remainder of the year and look forward to sustaining the momentum we've built.""Shares rose about 5% in extended trading.Here is how the department store did in its second fiscal quarter compared to what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended Aug. 3 was $122 million, or 72 cents per share, compared to $137 million, or 84 cents per share, a year earlier. Excluding one-time items related to supply chain impairments, the retailer posted adjusted earnings of 96 cents per share. Sales rose to $3.89 billion, up about 3.4% from $3.77 billion a year earlier. Revenue came in just shy of analysts' expectations.  Across the company, comparable sales increased 1.9%, while gross merchandise value jumped 3.5%. It is unclear how much of that GMV uptick was related to price increases versus volume.As consumers continue to pull back on discretionary spending in the face of persistent inflation and high interest rates, retailers have been working to improve operations and cut costs to protect profits against softening demand. During the quarter, Nordstrom's profits fell compared to the same period a year ago, but earnings grew over the past six months. Last year, Nordstrom reported a net loss of $67 million in the six months that ended July 29, 2023, but during the same period this year, it posted a profit of $83 million. Nordstrom has said it is working to improve its supply chain. Last quarter, it said the time it takes for online orders to arrive was more than 5% faster. It has also improved the way merchandise is making its way to customers and stores, which it said has helped drive higher conversion and lower return rates. Another key focus area for the company has been growing its off-price banner, Nordstrom Rack. Over the past couple of quarters, momentum has been growing at Nordstrom Rack and has helped prop up the company's overall results. During the quarter, sales at Nordstrom Rack were up 8.8%, while comparable sales increased 4.1% compared to the same period a year ago.That compares to Nordstrom's mainline banner, which saw net sales and comparable sales each increase just 0.9%. Nordstrom has been working to build more Rack locations and has opened 11 new locations so far this fiscal year, with a goal of opening at least 22 by the end of the year. The focus on Rack has been critical for Nordstrom's ability to compete with off-price giant TJX Cos., the owner of TJ Maxx and Marshall's, and capture consumers who are still spending but eager for cheaper options and deals.The off-price sector has seen explosive growth for more than a year, but Rack missed out on the beginning of that trend. To reverse the slump, the company has focused on opening more locations, hiring off-price veterans and sharpening its focus on well-known brands.",CNBC,27/08/2024,"[""In this articleNordstrom on Tuesday posted earnings that blew past Wall Street's expectations, indicating the department store is making strides in its efforts to cut costs and boost efficiencies."", 'Though the Seattle-based retailer posted earnings per share that were 25 cents higher than expected, it issued tepid guidance for the full year.', 'Nordstrom now expects adjusted earnings per share to be between $1.75 and $2.05, compared to a previous range of $1.65 to $2.05.', 'It anticipates sales will be in a range of a 1% decline to 1% growth from the prior year, compared to previous guidance of down 2% to up 1%.In a news release, Nordstrom CEO Erik Nordstrom said the company is optimistic about the second half of the year despite the cautious guidance.', '""Our second quarter results were solid, and we\'re encouraged by the continued topline strength in both banners and the progress we\'re making to expand gross margin and increase profitability,"" said Nordstrom. ""', ""We're confident in our outlook for the remainder of the year and look forward to sustaining the momentum we've built."", '""Shares rose about 5% in extended trading.', ""Here is how the department store did in its second fiscal quarter compared to what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended Aug. 3 was $122 million, or 72 cents per share, compared to $137 million, or 84 cents per share, a year earlier."", 'Excluding one-time items related to supply chain impairments, the retailer posted adjusted earnings of 96 cents per share.', 'Sales rose to $3.89 billion, up about 3.4% from $3.77 billion a year earlier.', ""Revenue came in just shy of analysts' expectations."", 'Across the company, comparable sales increased 1.9%, while gross merchandise value jumped 3.5%.', 'It is unclear how much of that GMV uptick was related to price increases versus volume.', 'As consumers continue to pull back on discretionary spending in the face of persistent inflation and high interest rates, retailers have been working to improve operations and cut costs to protect profits against softening demand.', ""During the quarter, Nordstrom's profits fell compared to the same period a year ago, but earnings grew over the past six months."", 'Last year, Nordstrom reported a net loss of $67 million in the six months that ended July 29, 2023, but during the same period this year, it posted a profit of $83 million.', 'Nordstrom has said it is working to improve its supply chain.', 'Last quarter, it said the time it takes for online orders to arrive was more than 5% faster.', 'It has also improved the way merchandise is making its way to customers and stores, which it said has helped drive higher conversion and lower return rates.', 'Another key focus area for the company has been growing its off-price banner, Nordstrom Rack.', ""Over the past couple of quarters, momentum has been growing at Nordstrom Rack and has helped prop up the company's overall results."", 'During the quarter, sales at Nordstrom Rack were up 8.8%, while comparable sales increased 4.1% compared to the same period a year ago.', ""That compares to Nordstrom's mainline banner, which saw net sales and comparable sales each increase just 0.9%.Nordstrom has been working to build more Rack locations and has opened 11 new locations so far this fiscal year, with a goal of opening at least 22 by the end of the year."", ""The focus on Rack has been critical for Nordstrom's ability to compete with off-price giant TJX Cos.,"", ""the owner of TJ Maxx and Marshall's, and capture consumers who are still spending but eager for cheaper options and deals."", 'The off-price sector has seen explosive growth for more than a year, but Rack missed out on the beginning of that trend.', 'To reverse the slump, the company has focused on opening more locations, hiring off-price veterans and sharpening its focus on well-known brands.']",0.2901067069296191,"""Our second quarter results were solid, and we're encouraged by the continued topline strength in both banners and the progress we're making to expand gross margin and increase profitability,"" said Nordstrom. """,Revenue came in just shy of analysts' expectations.,0.6823056225593274,"""Shares rose about 5% in extended trading.","It anticipates sales will be in a range of a 1% decline to 1% growth from the prior year, compared to previous guidance of down 2% to up 1%.In a news release, Nordstrom CEO Erik Nordstrom said the company is optimistic about the second half of the year despite the cautious guidance.",2024-08-29
"YES Network, MSG Networks to launch combined New York regional sports app",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/28/yes-network-msg-networks-to-launch-bundled-new-york-sports-app.html,2024-08-28T22:09:35+0000,"Gotham Advanced Media and Entertainment, the joint venture between MSG Networks and the YES Network, is launching a new app in the fall that will air local games for seven New York area teams.The package announced Wednesday is believed to be the first time that two regional sports networks have combined their apps into a bundled option. The Gotham Sports app will launch ahead of the NBA and NHL seasons. Locals will be able to watch the New York Knicks, New York Rangers, New Jersey Devils, New York Islanders, Buffalo Sabres, Brooklyn Nets and New York Yankees with a subscription.The Gotham Package that gives access to all of those teams will cost $359.99 annually and $41.99 monthly, almost identical to the monthly price of Fox, Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery's joint Venu streaming service that was blocked with a temporary injunction earlier this month. Customers who watch only some of those teams can also purchase access to just MSG+ or the YES App services for $29.99 and $24.99 monthly, respectively. If they already have MSG Networks and YES Network via their pay-TV subscription, they will get Gotham Sports App's services for no extra fee.""With the increased fragmentation of outlets carrying fan favorite sports programming, The Gotham Sports App allows fans of our teams one easy access point for New York area sporting events from MSG Networks and the YES Network,"" MSG Networks President and CEO Andrea Greenberg said in a press release.Notably, SportsNet New York — the regional sports network that airs the New York Mets — is not included in this joint venture. It is only available via FuboTV, DirecTV stream and online login for people who pay for cable. Sterling Entertainment Enterprises, Comcast and Charter co-own SportsNet New York.The regional sports networks business has undergone dramatic changes in recent years. Boston's local cable network that aired Red Sox and Bruins games launched the first stand-alone regional streaming service in 2022, and other markets have followed. Diamond Sports Group, the biggest owner of regional sports networks, filed for bankruptcy in March 2023, leading many professional teams across leagues to change the way they air their games.A handful of NBA, WNBA and NHL teams have turned to local broadcasters, most recently the NBA's New Orleans Pelicans and Dallas Mavericks.Some MLB teams have opted to have their games produced by the league. The Gotham Sports App is not the first regional sports streaming option residents of the greater New York area have had. YES Network and MSG Networks both launched separate streaming services last year, and customers who only want one of the networks' services and not the combined package can still pay a cheaper rate.Not all the new regional sports streaming services follow the subscription model. The NHL's Dallas Stars and Anaheim Ducks both announced their games would be locally aired on Victory+, a free, ad-supported streaming service owned by A Parent Media Co. Both teams previously had their local games carried by a regional sports network owned by Diamond Sports. Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of CNBC.",CNBC,28/08/2024,"['Gotham Advanced Media and Entertainment, the joint venture between MSG Networks and the YES Network, is launching a new app in the fall that will air local games for seven New York area teams.', 'The package announced Wednesday is believed to be the first time that two regional sports networks have combined their apps into a bundled option.', 'The Gotham Sports app will launch ahead of the NBA and NHL seasons.', 'Locals will be able to watch the New York Knicks, New York Rangers, New Jersey Devils, New York Islanders, Buffalo Sabres, Brooklyn Nets and New York Yankees with a subscription.', ""The Gotham Package that gives access to all of those teams will cost $359.99 annually and $41.99 monthly, almost identical to the monthly price of Fox, Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery's joint Venu streaming service that was blocked with a temporary injunction earlier this month."", 'Customers who watch only some of those teams can also purchase access to just MSG+ or the YES App services for $29.99 and $24.99 monthly, respectively.', ""If they already have MSG Networks and YES Network via their pay-TV subscription, they will get Gotham Sports App's services for no extra fee."", '""With the increased fragmentation of outlets carrying fan favorite sports programming, The Gotham Sports App allows fans of our teams one easy access point for New York area sporting events from MSG Networks and the YES Network,"" MSG Networks President and CEO Andrea Greenberg said in a press release.', 'Notably, SportsNet New York — the regional sports network that airs the New York Mets — is not included in this joint venture.', 'It is only available via FuboTV, DirecTV stream and online login for people who pay for cable.', 'Sterling Entertainment Enterprises, Comcast and Charter co-own SportsNet New York.', 'The regional sports networks business has undergone dramatic changes in recent years.', ""Boston's local cable network that aired Red Sox and Bruins games launched the first stand-alone regional streaming service in 2022, and other markets have followed."", 'Diamond Sports Group, the biggest owner of regional sports networks, filed for bankruptcy in March 2023, leading many professional teams across leagues to change the way they air their games.', ""A handful of NBA, WNBA and NHL teams have turned to local broadcasters, most recently the NBA's New Orleans Pelicans and Dallas Mavericks."", 'Some MLB teams have opted to have their games produced by the league.', 'The Gotham Sports App is not the first regional sports streaming option residents of the greater New York area have had.', ""YES Network and MSG Networks both launched separate streaming services last year, and customers who only want one of the networks' services and not the combined package can still pay a cheaper rate."", 'Not all the new regional sports streaming services follow the subscription model.', ""The NHL's Dallas Stars and Anaheim Ducks both announced their games would be locally aired on Victory+, a free, ad-supported streaming service owned by A Parent Media Co.Both teams previously had their local games carried by a regional sports network owned by Diamond Sports."", 'Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of CNBC.']",0.1932998874991772,"""With the increased fragmentation of outlets carrying fan favorite sports programming, The Gotham Sports App allows fans of our teams one easy access point for New York area sporting events from MSG Networks and the YES Network,"" MSG Networks President and CEO Andrea Greenberg said in a press release.","Locals will be able to watch the New York Knicks, New York Rangers, New Jersey Devils, New York Islanders, Buffalo Sabres, Brooklyn Nets and New York Yankees with a subscription.",0.4888350814580917,"YES Network and MSG Networks both launched separate streaming services last year, and customers who only want one of the networks' services and not the combined package can still pay a cheaper rate.","Diamond Sports Group, the biggest owner of regional sports networks, filed for bankruptcy in March 2023, leading many professional teams across leagues to change the way they air their games.",2024-08-29
"Fuel duty cut could be scrapped, says RAC",https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cm2nrneym82o,2024-08-29T08:15:35.559Z,"A 5p cut in fuel duty is expected to be scrapped in the upcoming Budget, according to the RAC motoring organisation, because drivers are not gaining any benefit. The RAC has claimed that retailers have failed to pass on lower petrol and diesel prices to motorists and instead have boosted their own profits.   On Wednesday, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer refused to rule out a rise in fuel duty in the forthcoming Budget.  Chancellor Rachel Reeves will set out Labour's first Budget on 30 October, which Sir Keir has warned ""will be painful"". Fuel duty has been frozen for more than a decade under the Conservative government. In 2022, the then chancellor Rishi Sunak cut it by 5p per litre. That was extended until March next year. Simon Williams, head of policy at the RAC, said Ms Reeves ""knows the 5p discount is losing the Treasury £2bn a year"". The UK's competition watchdog recently found that drivers were still paying too much for fuel, costing them £1.6bn in 2023. Consequently, the RAC said it had reached the conclusion that Ms Reeves ""has no option but to put fuel duty back up"". “We’d normally be against any increase in duty,"" said Mr Williams. ""But we’ve long been saying drivers haven’t been benefitting from the current discount due to much higher-than-average retailer margins."" Sir Keir has refused to rule out any changes to fuel duty. During the election, Labour pledged to protect ""working people"" by not raising income tax, VAT or national insurance. In response to whether an increase in fuel duty would be a tax increase for working people, Sir Keir said on Wednesday that Labour would stick to its past promises on tax. ""Beyond that, I'm not going to speculate about the Budget,"" he said. Ms Reeves has also refused to comment on speculation that she may increase inheritance tax, capital gains tax or reform tax relief on pensions. A Treasury spokesperson said: “The chancellor will set out decisions on tax policy at the Budget on 30 October.” The chancellor has already set out plans to scrap winter fuel payments for pensioners in England and Wales who are not on benefits.  Within weeks of taking over, Labour claimed that it had uncovered a major shortfall in public finances - which former chancellor Jeremy Hunt has denied. The AA is opposed to the 5p cut being scrapped. The motoring group said the government already takes 52.95p per litre in fuel duty as well as 20% in VAT. The Office for Budget Responsibility, the independent fiscal watchdog, forecasts that duties on petrol, diesel and other fuels will raise £24.7bn for 2023-24.  The AA said an increase in fuel duty ""could backfire by fuelling inflation and hitting those in rural areas who have no alternative to the car, disabled drivers, and low-income shift workers"". According to the latest figures from the RAC, the average price for a litre of unleaded petrol is 142.17p across the UK and 147.02p for diesel.  Last month, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) found that supermarkets' profit margins - the difference between the price they pay to buy fuel and what they charge motorists - had doubled since 2019. The CMA's chief executive, Sarah Cardell, said she would work with the new government to introduce a ""real-time fuel finder scheme"" to show motorists where the cheapest petrol and diesel prices are in their area.   ",BBC,29/08/2024,"['A 5p cut in fuel duty is expected to be scrapped in the upcoming Budget, according to the RAC motoring organisation, because drivers are not gaining any benefit.', 'The RAC has claimed that retailers have failed to pass on lower petrol and diesel prices to motorists and instead have boosted their own profits.', 'On Wednesday, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer refused to rule out a rise in fuel duty in the forthcoming Budget.', 'Chancellor Rachel Reeves will set out Labour\'s first Budget on 30 October, which Sir Keir has warned ""will be painful"".', 'Fuel duty has been frozen for more than a decade under the Conservative government.', 'In 2022, the then chancellor Rishi Sunak cut it by 5p per litre.', 'That was extended until March next year.', 'Simon Williams, head of policy at the RAC, said Ms Reeves ""knows the 5p discount is losing the Treasury £2bn a year"".', ""The UK's competition watchdog recently found that drivers were still paying too much for fuel, costing them £1.6bn in 2023."", 'Consequently, the RAC said it had reached the conclusion that Ms Reeves ""has no option but to put fuel duty back up"". “', 'We’d normally be against any increase in duty,"" said Mr Williams. ""', 'But we’ve long been saying drivers haven’t been benefitting from the current discount due to much higher-than-average retailer margins.""', 'Sir Keir has refused to rule out any changes to fuel duty.', 'During the election, Labour pledged to protect ""working people"" by not raising income tax, VAT or national insurance.', 'In response to whether an increase in fuel duty would be a tax increase for working people, Sir Keir said on Wednesday that Labour would stick to its past promises on tax. ""', 'Beyond that, I\'m not going to speculate about the Budget,"" he said.', 'Ms Reeves has also refused to comment on speculation that she may increase inheritance tax, capital gains tax or reform tax relief on pensions.', 'A Treasury spokesperson said: “The chancellor will set out decisions on tax policy at the Budget on 30 October.”', 'The chancellor has already set out plans to scrap winter fuel payments for pensioners in England and Wales who are not on benefits.', 'Within weeks of taking over, Labour claimed that it had uncovered a major shortfall in public finances - which former chancellor Jeremy Hunt has denied.', 'The AA is opposed to the 5p cut being scrapped.', 'The motoring group said the government already takes 52.95p per litre in fuel duty as well as 20% in VAT.', 'The Office for Budget Responsibility, the independent fiscal watchdog, forecasts that duties on petrol, diesel and other fuels will raise £24.7bn for 2023-24.', 'The AA said an increase in fuel duty ""could backfire by fuelling inflation and hitting those in rural areas who have no alternative to the car, disabled drivers, and low-income shift workers"".', 'According to the latest figures from the RAC, the average price for a litre of unleaded petrol is 142.17p across the UK and 147.02p for diesel.', ""Last month, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) found that supermarkets' profit margins - the difference between the price they pay to buy fuel and what they charge motorists - had doubled since 2019."", 'The CMA\'s chief executive, Sarah Cardell, said she would work with the new government to introduce a ""real-time fuel finder scheme"" to show motorists where the cheapest petrol and diesel prices are in their area.']",-0.0062710962480952,"In response to whether an increase in fuel duty would be a tax increase for working people, Sir Keir said on Wednesday that Labour would stick to its past promises on tax. ""","A 5p cut in fuel duty is expected to be scrapped in the upcoming Budget, according to the RAC motoring organisation, because drivers are not gaining any benefit.",-0.3151469975709915,"Last month, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) found that supermarkets' profit margins - the difference between the price they pay to buy fuel and what they charge motorists - had doubled since 2019.","Within weeks of taking over, Labour claimed that it had uncovered a major shortfall in public finances - which former chancellor Jeremy Hunt has denied.",2024-08-29
Peloton to start charging subscribers with used equipment $95 activation fee,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/22/peloton-to-charge-95-activation-fee-for-used-bikes-.html,2024-08-23T11:51:25+0000,"In this articlePeloton on Thursday said it will start charging new subscribers a one-time $95 activation fee if they bought their hardware on the secondary market as more consumers snag lightly used equipment for a fraction of the typical retail price.The used equipment activation fee for subscribers in the U.S. and Canada comes as Peloton starts to see a meaningful increase in new members who bought used Bikes or Treads from peer-to-peer markets such as Facebook Marketplace. During its fiscal fourth quarter, which ended June 30, Peloton said it saw a ""steady stream of paid connected fitness subscribers"" who bought hardware on the secondary market. The company said the segment grew 16% year over year.""We believe a meaningful share of these subscribers are incremental, and they exhibit lower net churn rates than rental subscribers,"" the company said in a letter to shareholders. ""It's also worth highlighting that this activation fee will be a source of incremental revenue and gross profit for us, helping to support our investments in improving the fitness experience for our members,"" interim co-CEO Christopher Bruzzo later added on a call with analysts. While plenty of Peloton subscribers are avid users of the home workout machines, some have likened them to glorified clothes racks because so many people stop using the equipment. Those people paid Peloton for that hardware originally, but importantly, many of them have canceled their monthly subscription, which is how Peloton makes the bulk of its money. The ability to attract new, budget-conscious members from the secondary market who are willing to pay for a monthly subscription is a unique opportunity for Peloton to grow revenue without any upfront cost, on top of the revenue from the original sale. Ari Kimmelfeld — whose startup Trade My Stuff, formerly known as Trade My Spin, sells used Peloton equipment — estimates there are around a million Bikes collecting dust in homes around the world that could be a source of new revenue for the company. He told CNBC he previously met with Peloton executives to discuss ways to collaborate, because every time he sells a used piece of equipment, it could lead to more than $500 in new revenue per year for Peloton. With the new used equipment activation fee, that number could grow to more than $600 for the first year. ""We save the customer a lot more than $95,"" Kimmelfeld told CNBC on Thursday after the new activation fee was announced. ""I don't think it'll stop or slow down people from buying secondary equipment … because you can get a bike delivered faster and cheaper on the secondary market, even with the $95, let's call it a tax, from Peloton."" Trade My Stuff sells first-generation Bikes for $499, compared with $1,445 new. It offers the Bike+ for $1,199, compared with $2,495 new. It also sells used Treads for $1,999, compared with $2,995 new. Since launching his business, Kimmelfeld has worked with people looking to sell their used Peloton equipment and has since sold a ""few thousand"" Bikes. In 14 cities around the country, including Los Angeles, Denver and New York City, the company offers same- or next-day delivery. Outside of those locales, it provides delivery within three to five days. That compares with a new Peloton purchase, which can take significantly longer to deliver. The used equipment activation fee is designed to ensure that new members ""receive the same high-quality onboarding experience Peloton is known for,"" the company said. Bruzzo said that those who buy a used Bike or Bike+ have access to a virtual custom fitting ahead of their first ride, as well as a history summary that shows how many rides those bikes had before they were resold. ""We're also offering these new members discounts on accessories such as bike shoes, bike mats and spare parts,"" said Bruzzo. ""We'll continue to lean into this important channel and find additional ways to improve the new member experience, for example, providing early education about the broad range of fitness modalities that we offer and the many series and programs our instructors provide to new members.""",CNBC,23/08/2024,"['In this articlePeloton on Thursday said it will start charging new subscribers a one-time $95 activation fee if they bought their hardware on the secondary market as more consumers snag lightly used equipment for a fraction of the typical retail price.', 'The used equipment activation fee for subscribers in the U.S. and Canada comes as Peloton starts to see a meaningful increase in new members who bought used Bikes or Treads from peer-to-peer markets such as Facebook Marketplace.', 'During its fiscal fourth quarter, which ended June 30, Peloton said it saw a ""steady stream of paid connected fitness subscribers"" who bought hardware on the secondary market.', 'The company said the segment grew 16% year over year.', '""We believe a meaningful share of these subscribers are incremental, and they exhibit lower net churn rates than rental subscribers,"" the company said in a letter to shareholders.', '""It\'s also worth highlighting that this activation fee will be a source of incremental revenue and gross profit for us, helping to support our investments in improving the fitness experience for our members,"" interim co-CEO Christopher Bruzzo later added on a call with analysts.', 'While plenty of Peloton subscribers are avid users of the home workout machines, some have likened them to glorified clothes racks because so many people stop using the equipment.', 'Those people paid Peloton for that hardware originally, but importantly, many of them have canceled their monthly subscription, which is how Peloton makes the bulk of its money.', 'The ability to attract new, budget-conscious members from the secondary market who are willing to pay for a monthly subscription is a unique opportunity for Peloton to grow revenue without any upfront cost, on top of the revenue from the original sale.', 'Ari Kimmelfeld — whose startup Trade My Stuff, formerly known as Trade My Spin, sells used Peloton equipment — estimates there are around a million Bikes collecting dust in homes around the world that could be a source of new revenue for the company.', 'He told CNBC he previously met with Peloton executives to discuss ways to collaborate, because every time he sells a used piece of equipment, it could lead to more than $500 in new revenue per year for Peloton.', 'With the new used equipment activation fee, that number could grow to more than $600 for the first year.', '""We save the customer a lot more than $95,"" Kimmelfeld told CNBC on Thursday after the new activation fee was announced. ""', ""I don't think it'll stop or slow down people from buying secondary equipment … because you can get a bike delivered faster and cheaper on the secondary market, even with the $95, let's call it a tax, from Peloton."", '""Trade My Stuff sells first-generation Bikes for $499, compared with $1,445 new.', 'It offers the Bike+ for $1,199, compared with $2,495 new.', 'It also sells used Treads for $1,999, compared with $2,995 new.', 'Since launching his business, Kimmelfeld has worked with people looking to sell their used Peloton equipment and has since sold a ""few thousand"" Bikes.', 'In 14 cities around the country, including Los Angeles, Denver and New York City, the company offers same- or next-day delivery.', 'Outside of those locales, it provides delivery within three to five days.', 'That compares with a new Peloton purchase, which can take significantly longer to deliver.', 'The used equipment activation fee is designed to ensure that new members ""receive the same high-quality onboarding experience Peloton is known for,"" the company said.', 'Bruzzo said that those who buy a used Bike or Bike+ have access to a virtual custom fitting ahead of their first ride, as well as a history summary that shows how many rides those bikes had before they were resold.', '""We\'re also offering these new members discounts on accessories such as bike shoes, bike mats and spare parts,"" said Bruzzo. ""', 'We\'ll continue to lean into this important channel and find additional ways to improve the new member experience, for example, providing early education about the broad range of fitness modalities that we offer and the many series and programs our instructors provide to new members.""']",0.2162157198496136,"""It's also worth highlighting that this activation fee will be a source of incremental revenue and gross profit for us, helping to support our investments in improving the fitness experience for our members,"" interim co-CEO Christopher Bruzzo later added on a call with analysts.","I don't think it'll stop or slow down people from buying secondary equipment … because you can get a bike delivered faster and cheaper on the secondary market, even with the $95, let's call it a tax, from Peloton.",0.828438401222229,The used equipment activation fee for subscribers in the U.S. and Canada comes as Peloton starts to see a meaningful increase in new members who bought used Bikes or Treads from peer-to-peer markets such as Facebook Marketplace.,"That compares with a new Peloton purchase, which can take significantly longer to deliver.",2024-08-29
Bronfman's Paramount bid could keep Shari Redstone involved at the company,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/23/bronfman-paramount-bid-shari-redstone.html,2024-08-23T20:42:26+0000,"In this articleEdgar Bronfman Jr.'s offer for a controlling stake in Paramount Global could keep Shari Redstone close to the company, if his bid is successful.Bronfman is open to having Redstone, currently non-executive chairman at Paramount, remain involved with the company if the Paramount special committee accepts his consortium's bid for National Amusements, the controlling shareholder, according to a person familiar with the matter.Bronfman has raised $6 billion to challenge Skydance Media for ownership of National Amusements, the holding company founded by Sumner Redstone, according to people familiar with the matter. Both Bronfman's bid and Skydance's bid would also include money to buy out a percentage of Paramount Global common shareholders.At $6 billion, Bronfman's bid would give cash to about 20% of Class B holders at $16 per share. Skydance would pay out about 50% of current Paramount common investors at $15 per share as part of its bid, according to the people familiar.It's not clear if Redstone prefers one offer over the other. The Paramount Global special committee will determine if Bronfman's offer is a superior proposal for shareholders by Aug. 28. If the committee decides Bronfman's offer is better, Skydance will then have four business days to match. The deadline for the entire process to be concluded is Sept. 5.Bronfman still has a few more days to raise more money for a competing bid to counter Skydance, which agreed to an $8 billion deal to merge with Paramount Global last month. The special committee earlier this week extended the so-called ""go-shop"" period — during which it could entertain competing offers — by 15 days to review Bronfman's initial bid.One of the individuals who is part of Bronfman's bid is former AOL CEO Jon Miller, suggesting Redstone could potentially have more control over a future Paramount Global than she'd get with Skydance. Miller, a close ally of Redstone, has been connecting Bronfman with potential capital and would likely take a role with the company if it came under Bronfman's stewardship — perhaps a board seat and an operational job — according to people familiar with the matter. Bronfman would be CEO of the company if his deal were to be accepted and go through, said the people.Miller, Redstone and Redstone's son-in-law, Jason Ostheimer, together run Advancit Capital, a small venture capital firm that invests in media and technology. The trio are the only three people that appear on the firm's website. Miller has also operated as a de facto strategic advisor to Redstone for many years, according to people familiar with the matter.Redstone has not spoken with Miller about the bid, according to people familiar with the matter.While the Redstone family and Bronfman family have run in similar circles, including donating heavily to Jewish foundations, Edgar Bronfman Jr. and Shari Redstone haven't met many times and don't have a close preexisting relationship, two of the people said.Skydance CEO David Ellison and Redstone have had several discussions about the potential for Redstone to stay in as a shareholder of a combined Skydance-Paramount Global, according to people familiar with the matter.Redstone is taking a wait-and-see approach to any future involvement she may want to have in Paramount Global moving forward regardless of its ownership, according to a person familiar with her thinking.Spokespeople for Redstone, Bronfman, the Paramount Global special committee and Skydance all declined to comment.Bronfman has spent the last few weeks aggregating individuals with interest in owning a piece of Paramount Global, including film producer Steven Paul and Patron cofounder John Paul DeJoria, who had previously considered a bid of their own, according to a person familiar with the process, as well as Fortress Investment Group, the credit arm of private equity firm BC Partners, and former Turner Broadcasting CEO John Martin.Bronfman's financing comes from many different sources, which may potentially trigger regulatory concerns if too much of the money is from foreign entities. Having so many different financers may also make Bronfman's offer riskier than Skydance's bid, which is backed by private equity firm RedBird Capital and multibillionaire Larry Ellison, the father of David Ellison.Bronfman is the chairman of Fubo, a sports streaming service, and the former head of Universal and Warner Music.Skydance's lawyers sent a letter to the Paramount Global special committee demanding the company stop negotiating with Bronfman, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday. Skydance said Paramount Global breached the terms of the go-shop agreement by not alerting Skydance that it planned to extend the window, the report said.Skydance also argued the special committee didn't have the right to extend the go-shop because a bid had to ""reasonably be expected to lead to a superior proposal."" Skydance argued the Bronfman bid didn't meet the criteria.WATCH: Media power struggle: Paramount deal in jeopardy?",CNBC,23/08/2024,"[""In this articleEdgar Bronfman Jr.'s offer for a controlling stake in Paramount Global could keep Shari Redstone close to the company, if his bid is successful."", ""Bronfman is open to having Redstone, currently non-executive chairman at Paramount, remain involved with the company if the Paramount special committee accepts his consortium's bid for National Amusements, the controlling shareholder, according to a person familiar with the matter."", 'Bronfman has raised $6 billion to challenge Skydance Media for ownership of National Amusements, the holding company founded by Sumner Redstone, according to people familiar with the matter.', ""Both Bronfman's bid and Skydance's bid would also include money to buy out a percentage of Paramount Global common shareholders."", ""At $6 billion, Bronfman's bid would give cash to about 20% of Class B holders at $16 per share."", 'Skydance would pay out about 50% of current Paramount common investors at $15 per share as part of its bid, according to the people familiar.', ""It's not clear if Redstone prefers one offer over the other."", ""The Paramount Global special committee will determine if Bronfman's offer is a superior proposal for shareholders by Aug. 28."", ""If the committee decides Bronfman's offer is better, Skydance will then have four business days to match."", 'The deadline for the entire process to be concluded is Sept. 5.Bronfman still has a few more days to raise more money for a competing bid to counter Skydance, which agreed to an $8 billion deal to merge with Paramount Global last month.', 'The special committee earlier this week extended the so-called ""go-shop"" period — during which it could entertain competing offers — by 15 days to review Bronfman\'s initial bid.', ""One of the individuals who is part of Bronfman's bid is former AOL CEO Jon Miller, suggesting Redstone could potentially have more control over a future Paramount Global than she'd get with Skydance."", ""Miller, a close ally of Redstone, has been connecting Bronfman with potential capital and would likely take a role with the company if it came under Bronfman's stewardship — perhaps a board seat and an operational job — according to people familiar with the matter."", 'Bronfman would be CEO of the company if his deal were to be accepted and go through, said the people.', ""Miller, Redstone and Redstone's son-in-law, Jason Ostheimer, together run Advancit Capital, a small venture capital firm that invests in media and technology."", ""The trio are the only three people that appear on the firm's website."", 'Miller has also operated as a de facto strategic advisor to Redstone for many years, according to people familiar with the matter.', 'Redstone has not spoken with Miller about the bid, according to people familiar with the matter.', ""While the Redstone family and Bronfman family have run in similar circles, including donating heavily to Jewish foundations, Edgar Bronfman Jr. and Shari Redstone haven't met many times and don't have a close preexisting relationship, two of the people said."", 'Skydance CEO David Ellison and Redstone have had several discussions about the potential for Redstone to stay in as a shareholder of a combined Skydance-Paramount Global, according to people familiar with the matter.', 'Redstone is taking a wait-and-see approach to any future involvement she may want to have in Paramount Global moving forward regardless of its ownership, according to a person familiar with her thinking.', 'Spokespeople for Redstone, Bronfman, the Paramount Global special committee and Skydance all declined to comment.', 'Bronfman has spent the last few weeks aggregating individuals with interest in owning a piece of Paramount Global, including film producer Steven Paul and Patron cofounder John Paul DeJoria, who had previously considered a bid of their own, according to a person familiar with the process, as well as Fortress Investment Group, the credit arm of private equity firm BC Partners, and former Turner Broadcasting CEO John Martin.', ""Bronfman's financing comes from many different sources, which may potentially trigger regulatory concerns if too much of the money is from foreign entities."", ""Having so many different financers may also make Bronfman's offer riskier than Skydance's bid, which is backed by private equity firm RedBird Capital and multibillionaire Larry Ellison, the father of David Ellison."", 'Bronfman is the chairman of Fubo, a sports streaming service, and the former head of Universal and Warner Music.', ""Skydance's lawyers sent a letter to the Paramount Global special committee demanding the company stop negotiating with Bronfman, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday."", 'Skydance said Paramount Global breached the terms of the go-shop agreement by not alerting Skydance that it planned to extend the window, the report said.', 'Skydance also argued the special committee didn\'t have the right to extend the go-shop because a bid had to ""reasonably be expected to lead to a superior proposal.""', ""Skydance argued the Bronfman bid didn't meet the criteria."", 'WATCH: Media power struggle: Paramount deal in jeopardy?']",0.1775149756430325,"Bronfman has spent the last few weeks aggregating individuals with interest in owning a piece of Paramount Global, including film producer Steven Paul and Patron cofounder John Paul DeJoria, who had previously considered a bid of their own, according to a person familiar with the process, as well as Fortress Investment Group, the credit arm of private equity firm BC Partners, and former Turner Broadcasting CEO John Martin.",WATCH: Media power struggle: Paramount deal in jeopardy?,-0.8429049104452133,,"Skydance said Paramount Global breached the terms of the go-shop agreement by not alerting Skydance that it planned to extend the window, the report said.",2024-08-29
What taxes might be raised in the Budget?,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cv2gxkln5elo,2024-07-31T23:01:05.897Z,"The government has said it will have to increase taxes to plug what it claims is a £22bn ""hole"" in the public finances.  Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has warned the first Budget under his new administration on 30 October is ""going to be painful"". But Labour has ruled out raising taxes on ""working people"", including VAT (value added tax), income tax and National Insurance.   So which taxes might go up? One option would be to introduce a so-called stealth tax - a means of raising revenue which is not explicitly labelled or intended as a tax. Paul Johnson, director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), believes the most obvious solution would be to focus on tax thresholds - the amount of money you can earn before any tax starts to be paid. Currently the thresholds on income tax and National Insurance are frozen until 2028, a policy brought in by the previous government. But Labour could extend them beyond this date.  The policy amounts to a tax rise because of a process called ""fiscal drag"", which sees more people ""dragged"" into paying higher rates of tax as their wages rise. The Resolution Foundation, a think tank that aims to improve living standards for low-to-middle income families, calculates the current freeze will generate about £40bn of revenue by 2028.  Its director James Smith told the BBC that may be enough to address the ""shortfall"" in the public finances, meaning Ms Reeves would not have to raise any other taxes.  Another route Ms Reeves could take is to put up capital gains tax (CGT). This is charged on the profit made from the sale of an asset that has increased in value, with some examples including stocks that are not held in ISAs or second homes.   CGT is payable by individuals, but also self-employed sole traders, partners in business partnerships and company owners, among others. It starts at a rate of 10% (or 18% on residential property) on profits above £3,000. It then rises to 20% on any amount above the basic tax rate, or 24% on residential property. Critics point out that CGT rates are substantially lower than income tax. They say this can benefit wealthier people and Ms Reeves could opt to level the playing field or cut some CGT tax breaks for businesses. However, industry groups have warned that increasing CGT could hit those at the centre of Labour's plans to grow the economy. ""No government at all serious about growth would hike CGT on entrepreneurs selling a small business,"" Tina McKenzie from the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) told the BBC. “Investing in a small business is already one of the least tax-efficient things anyone can do with their money,"" she said, adding that she hoped the party would continue to work ""in partnership"" with business. Fuel duty is a tax that is levied on purchases of petrol, diesel and other fuels - the level it is set at should have an impact on what drivers pay at the pumps. The levy is a ""significant source"" of revenue for government, according to Office for Budget Responsibility, with £24.7bn expected to have been raised in 2023-24. But fuel duty has not been raised in more than a decade. Between 2012 and 2022 it was frozen at the same level.  Then in March 2022 the then Conservative chancellor Rishi Sunak cut it by 5p a litre after Russia's invasion of Ukraine led to record pump prices. However, some motoring groups have argued this cut - which is due to end in March next year - has not been passed on to drivers. This has prompted the RAC to suggest the cut should be scrapped by Ms Reeves in the Budget. Simon Williams, head of policy at the RAC, said the motoring group had reached the conclusion the chancellor ""has no option but to put fuel duty back up"". Ms Reeves ""knows the 5p discount is losing the Treasury £2bn a year,"" he said. When people or their employers pay into private pension pots, they receive tax relief on these contributions, up to set limits. The relief allows some of a person's earnings that may have been taken by government in tax to go into their savings for retirement instead. Under the current system, savers receive tax relief at the same rate as their income tax - meaning basic rate taxpayers receive relief at 20% and higher rate taxpayers at 40% or 45%. In the run-up to big political events like the Budget, Tom Selby, director of public policy at AJ Bell, says that there is often speculation that a flat rate of pension tax relief could be introduced.  This would mean the system is less generous for higher earners, but the IFS has suggested this could raise ""billions"" for the government. Some opponents have said, however, this could dissuade people from saving for the future and might be difficult to implement. Inheritance tax, currently paid at a rate of 40%, is charged on the part of a deceased person's estate above a threshold of £325,000. But it only applies to fewer than one in 20 estates.  No tax is paid if the estate is valued at less than £325,000, or if anything above this threshold is left to a husband or wife, civil partner, charity, or a community amateur sports club. And if a home is part of the estate and a person's children and grandchildren stand to inherit it, the threshold can go up to £500,000. Ms Reeves could raise the rate of inheritance tax, or curb the relief available on certain inherited assets.  These include agricultural land and pension savings, which can both be inherited tax-free.  There are also allowances for unquoted shares, which are shares in a business not listed on the stock exchange. James Smith of the Resolution Foundation believes inheritance tax should be reformed because there are ""all sorts of reliefs within the system that allow you to move your assets in a way that allows you to avoid paying inheritance tax"". However, Paul Johnson from the IFS says Ms Reeves will have to go further than simply curbing allowances, saying: ""You won't raise a lot by doing that - maybe a billion or two."" Calls to cut or abolish inheritance tax come often as the tax is so unpopular, the Resolution Foundation says. ",BBC,31/07/2024,"['The government has said it will have to increase taxes to plug what it claims is a £22bn ""hole"" in the public finances.', 'Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has warned the first Budget under his new administration on 30 October is ""going to be painful"".', 'But Labour has ruled out raising taxes on ""working people"", including VAT (value added tax), income tax and National Insurance.', 'So which taxes might go up?', 'One option would be to introduce a so-called stealth tax - a means of raising revenue which is not explicitly labelled or intended as a tax.', 'Paul Johnson, director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), believes the most obvious solution would be to focus on tax thresholds - the amount of money you can earn before any tax starts to be paid.', 'Currently the thresholds on income tax and National Insurance are frozen until 2028, a policy brought in by the previous government.', 'But Labour could extend them beyond this date.', 'The policy amounts to a tax rise because of a process called ""fiscal drag"", which sees more people ""dragged"" into paying higher rates of tax as their wages rise.', 'The Resolution Foundation, a think tank that aims to improve living standards for low-to-middle income families, calculates the current freeze will generate about £40bn of revenue by 2028.', 'Its director James Smith told the BBC that may be enough to address the ""shortfall"" in the public finances, meaning Ms Reeves would not have to raise any other taxes.', 'Another route Ms Reeves could take is to put up capital gains tax (CGT).', 'This is charged on the profit made from the sale of an asset that has increased in value, with some examples including stocks that are not held in ISAs or second homes.', 'CGT is payable by individuals, but also self-employed sole traders, partners in business partnerships and company owners, among others.', 'It starts at a rate of 10% (or 18% on residential property) on profits above £3,000.', 'It then rises to 20% on any amount above the basic tax rate, or 24% on residential property.', 'Critics point out that CGT rates are substantially lower than income tax.', 'They say this can benefit wealthier people and Ms Reeves could opt to level the playing field or cut some CGT tax breaks for businesses.', 'However, industry groups have warned that increasing CGT could hit those at the centre of Labour\'s plans to grow the economy. ""', 'No government at all serious about growth would hike CGT on entrepreneurs selling a small business,"" Tina McKenzie from the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) told the BBC. “', 'Investing in a small business is already one of the least tax-efficient things anyone can do with their money,"" she said, adding that she hoped the party would continue to work ""in partnership"" with business.', 'Fuel duty is a tax that is levied on purchases of petrol, diesel and other fuels - the level it is set at should have an impact on what drivers pay at the pumps.', 'The levy is a ""significant source"" of revenue for government, according to Office for Budget Responsibility, with £24.7bn expected to have been raised in 2023-24.', 'But fuel duty has not been raised in more than a decade.', 'Between 2012 and 2022 it was frozen at the same level.', ""Then in March 2022 the then Conservative chancellor Rishi Sunak cut it by 5p a litre after Russia's invasion of Ukraine led to record pump prices."", 'However, some motoring groups have argued this cut - which is due to end in March next year - has not been passed on to drivers.', 'This has prompted the RAC to suggest the cut should be scrapped by Ms Reeves in the Budget.', 'Simon Williams, head of policy at the RAC, said the motoring group had reached the conclusion the chancellor ""has no option but to put fuel duty back up"".', 'Ms Reeves ""knows the 5p discount is losing the Treasury £2bn a year,"" he said.', 'When people or their employers pay into private pension pots, they receive tax relief on these contributions, up to set limits.', ""The relief allows some of a person's earnings that may have been taken by government in tax to go into their savings for retirement instead."", 'Under the current system, savers receive tax relief at the same rate as their income tax - meaning basic rate taxpayers receive relief at 20% and higher rate taxpayers at 40% or 45%.', 'In the run-up to big political events like the Budget, Tom Selby, director of public policy at AJ Bell, says that there is often speculation that a flat rate of pension tax relief could be introduced.', 'This would mean the system is less generous for higher earners, but the IFS has suggested this could raise ""billions"" for the government.', 'Some opponents have said, however, this could dissuade people from saving for the future and might be difficult to implement.', ""Inheritance tax, currently paid at a rate of 40%, is charged on the part of a deceased person's estate above a threshold of £325,000."", 'But it only applies to fewer than one in 20 estates.', 'No tax is paid if the estate is valued at less than £325,000, or if anything above this threshold is left to a husband or wife, civil partner, charity, or a community amateur sports club.', ""And if a home is part of the estate and a person's children and grandchildren stand to inherit it, the threshold can go up to £500,000."", 'Ms Reeves could raise the rate of inheritance tax, or curb the relief available on certain inherited assets.', 'These include agricultural land and pension savings, which can both be inherited tax-free.', 'There are also allowances for unquoted shares, which are shares in a business not listed on the stock exchange.', 'James Smith of the Resolution Foundation believes inheritance tax should be reformed because there are ""all sorts of reliefs within the system that allow you to move your assets in a way that allows you to avoid paying inheritance tax"".', 'However, Paul Johnson from the IFS says Ms Reeves will have to go further than simply curbing allowances, saying: ""You won\'t raise a lot by doing that - maybe a billion or two.""', 'Calls to cut or abolish inheritance tax come often as the tax is so unpopular, the Resolution Foundation says.']",0.1293575285738439,"This is charged on the profit made from the sale of an asset that has increased in value, with some examples including stocks that are not held in ISAs or second homes.","Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has warned the first Budget under his new administration on 30 October is ""going to be painful"".",-0.3856328340137706,They say this can benefit wealthier people and Ms Reeves could opt to level the playing field or cut some CGT tax breaks for businesses.,Then in March 2022 the then Conservative chancellor Rishi Sunak cut it by 5p a litre after Russia's invasion of Ukraine led to record pump prices.,2024-08-29
Delta chief operations officer departing for another company after just over a year on the job,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/23/delta-chief-operations-officer-coo-mike-spanos.html,2024-08-23T16:25:57+0000,"In this articleDelta Air Lines' chief operating officer is leaving at the end of the month, the company said in a securities filing Friday.CEO Ed Bastian said in an employee memo that Chief Operating Officer Mike Spanos is taking a job at another company.His departure, after just over a year on the job, comes weeks after Delta suffered a meltdown in the wake of the massive CrowdStrike outage in July. Delta estimates those disruptions cost the airline some $500 million and said it will seek compensation from CrowdStrike and Microsoft.However, Bastian said in the memo Friday that Spanos told him earlier in the summer that he was ""considering opportunities outside of Delta.""Delta doesn't plan to replace Spanos, Bastian said. Instead, John Laughter, chief of operations and president of Delta's TechOps maintenance and overhaul unit, and Allison Ausband, chief customer experience officer, will report to Bastian. Spanos joined Delta in May 2023 and previously held the role of CEO at Six Flags Entertainment and executive positions at PepsiCo.",CNBC,23/08/2024,"[""In this articleDelta Air Lines' chief operating officer is leaving at the end of the month, the company said in a securities filing Friday."", 'CEO Ed Bastian said in an employee memo that Chief Operating Officer Mike Spanos is taking a job at another company.', 'His departure, after just over a year on the job, comes weeks after Delta suffered a meltdown in the wake of the massive CrowdStrike outage in July.', 'Delta estimates those disruptions cost the airline some $500 million and said it will seek compensation from CrowdStrike and Microsoft.', 'However, Bastian said in the memo Friday that Spanos told him earlier in the summer that he was ""considering opportunities outside of Delta.', '""Delta doesn\'t plan to replace Spanos, Bastian said.', ""Instead, John Laughter, chief of operations and president of Delta's TechOps maintenance and overhaul unit, and Allison Ausband, chief customer experience officer, will report to Bastian."", 'Spanos joined Delta in May 2023 and previously held the role of CEO at Six Flags Entertainment and executive positions at PepsiCo.']",0.094911363188699,"Instead, John Laughter, chief of operations and president of Delta's TechOps maintenance and overhaul unit, and Allison Ausband, chief customer experience officer, will report to Bastian.","His departure, after just over a year on the job, comes weeks after Delta suffered a meltdown in the wake of the massive CrowdStrike outage in July.",-0.9799729585647584,,"His departure, after just over a year on the job, comes weeks after Delta suffered a meltdown in the wake of the massive CrowdStrike outage in July.",2024-08-29
"Lego revenue jumps 13% in first half of 2024, boosted by Lego Fortnite and diverse brick sets",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/28/lego-revenue-first-half-2024.html,2024-08-28T15:07:41+0000,"An inflation-fueled sales slump hit the toy industry in the first half of 2024, but one company is gaining market share brick by brick.On Wednesday, Lego said revenue during the first six months of the year jumped 13%, reaching 31 billion Danish kroner, or about $4.65 billion.Niels Christiansen, CEO of the privately held Danish toymaker, told CNBC that the company is seeing strength across its portfolio, especially with Lego Icons and Lego Creator, and through its partnership with Epic Games' Fortnite.Last year, Lego saw a trend of consumers ""trading down"" or opting for lower-priced sets, while still buying the same volume as the year before. This year, volume is up, Christiansen said.""To the extent they traded down last year, they're not trading further down,"" he said. ""So that has stabilized. And we see almost all of the growth is actually growth in volume.""Meanwhile, publicly traded rival Mattel saw net sales fall 1% in the first six months of 2024 and Hasbro reported that its net revenue fell 21% between January and the end of June. Mattel is facing tough comparisons from toy sales fueled by ""Barbie"" in 2023, and Hasbro is still reeling from its divestment of eOne.Lego has continued to build on pandemic-era growth with a diverse slate of products that cater to kids and adults alike. In addition to sets tied to popular franchises such as Harry Potter and Star Wars, Lego also has innovative design options for consumers to build flowers and succulents, famous works of art and animals.Sales in the U.S. and Europe remain strong, Christiansen noted, while China sales are flat. He said consumers in the region are spending less on bigger-ticket items, and their frequency of purchasing is down.However, Lego is not giving up on expansion in China. Christiansen said there is still ""long-term potential"" in the area.Of the 40 Lego stores that opened in the first quarter, 20 were in China. Similarly, of the 60 planned openings in the second half of the year, 20 are set for China.Christiansen also touted Lego's sustainability efforts. So far this year, the company has nearly doubled the amount of renewable and recyclable materials it uses in its bricks compared to full-year 2023.""That's a good milestone,"" he said. ""That's a good step forward. [We are] spending quite significantly on that in a couple of ways, primarily in buying material that is more expensive, because mass balance material is more expensive than just standard.""Christiansen noted that Lego is not passing that cost on to consumers.""By actually being willing to pay a premium to get to this product, we also created an incentive for [suppliers] to actually develop the kind of products and to establish more production capacity for these type of products. We are working really as an industry need to try to put more speed on that entire process.""Over the next few years, Lego hopes to source half its raw materials from sustainable sources.",CNBC,28/08/2024,"['An inflation-fueled sales slump hit the toy industry in the first half of 2024, but one company is gaining market share brick by brick.', 'On Wednesday, Lego said revenue during the first six months of the year jumped 13%, reaching 31 billion Danish kroner, or about $4.65 billion.', ""Niels Christiansen, CEO of the privately held Danish toymaker, told CNBC that the company is seeing strength across its portfolio, especially with Lego Icons and Lego Creator, and through its partnership with Epic Games' Fortnite."", 'Last year, Lego saw a trend of consumers ""trading down"" or opting for lower-priced sets, while still buying the same volume as the year before.', 'This year, volume is up, Christiansen said.', '""To the extent they traded down last year, they\'re not trading further down,"" he said. ""', 'So that has stabilized.', 'And we see almost all of the growth is actually growth in volume.', '""Meanwhile, publicly traded rivalMattel saw net sales fall 1% in the first six months of 2024 and Hasbroreported that its net revenue fell 21% between January and the end of June.', 'Mattel is facing tough comparisons from toy sales fueled by ""Barbie"" in 2023, and Hasbro is still reeling from its divestment of eOne.', 'Lego has continued to build on pandemic-era growth with a diverse slate of products that cater to kids and adults alike.', 'In addition to sets tied to popular franchises such as Harry Potter and Star Wars, Lego also has innovative design options for consumers to build flowers and succulents, famous works of art and animals.', 'Sales in the U.S. and Europe remain strong, Christiansen noted, while China sales are flat.', 'He said consumers in the region are spending less on bigger-ticket items, and their frequency of purchasing is down.', 'However, Lego is not giving up on expansion in China.', 'Christiansen said there is still ""long-term potential"" in the area.', 'Of the 40 Lego stores that opened in the first quarter, 20 were in China.', 'Similarly, of the 60 planned openings in the second half of the year, 20 are set for China.', ""Christiansen also touted Lego's sustainability efforts."", 'So far this year, the company has nearly doubled the amount of renewable and recyclable materials it uses in its bricks compared to full-year 2023.""That\'s a good milestone,"" he said. ""', ""That's a good step forward. ["", 'We are] spending quite significantly on that in a couple of ways, primarily in buying material that is more expensive, because mass balance material is more expensive than just standard.', '""Christiansen noted that Lego is not passing that cost on to consumers.', '""By actually being willing to pay a premium to get to this product, we also created an incentive for [suppliers] to actually develop the kind of products and to establish more production capacity for these type of products.', 'We are working really as an industry need to try to put more speed on that entire process.', '""Over the next few years, Lego hopes to source half its raw materials from sustainable sources.']",0.176270062906085,"An inflation-fueled sales slump hit the toy industry in the first half of 2024, but one company is gaining market share brick by brick.","Last year, Lego saw a trend of consumers ""trading down"" or opting for lower-priced sets, while still buying the same volume as the year before.",0.4372433854473961,"On Wednesday, Lego said revenue during the first six months of the year jumped 13%, reaching 31 billion Danish kroner, or about $4.65 billion.","""Meanwhile, publicly traded rivalMattel saw net sales fall 1% in the first six months of 2024 and Hasbroreported that its net revenue fell 21% between January and the end of June.",2024-08-29
'We were fined £50 each over £3 extra train fare',https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c0l841xeyklo,2024-08-29T23:02:08.607Z,"Train ticket inspectors should treat deliberate fare dodgers differently to people who make genuine mistakes, the passenger watchdog has said. When BBC News reported that thousands of prosecutions for alleged rail fare evasion were to be quashed, scores of people who were not prosecuted got in touch to say they felt ticket inspectors had been over-zealous in giving them penalty fares. Transport Focus said there was ""an overwhelming need for reform of the fares and ticketing system"" because it was easy to buy the wrong ticket.  But the Rail Delivery Group which represents train companies said all staff could use discretion in giving penalties and there was a robust appeals process. Alexandra Petri and her partner Ross Jones bought advance train tickets on holiday in York but ended up on the wrong train. When they tried to pay the difference in fares of £3 they each had to pay a penalty fare of £50, they told the BBC. ""We felt like there was no understanding for small errors. We just paid the fine because I am not from the UK and didn't want to risk anything potentially going on my record that could cause trouble in the future,"" she added. Transport Focus said it accepted the need for a penalty-fare system but called for more discretion to be used in the case of passengers who make an honest mistake. ""We accept that some cases are very clear cut,"" said Mike Hewitson, the watchdog's head of policy. ""But there are grey areas, cases where perhaps more discretion should be used."" Railway companies lose £240 million every year from ticketless travel – but there are certain cases where a passenger making a mistake with their fare doesn't cost the train company money, he added. ""It's about trying to strip out the mistake from the deliberate,"" Mr Hewitson said.  ""It can be easy to get it wrong... people should know what their ticket entitles them to, but the train operators also have to make this clear to them"". Last year the then Conservative government announced a trial of scrapping return train tickets. It said there were 55 million fares available in Britain, which made it difficult for travellers to decide which is best for them. This month a landmark ruling found as many as 74,000 prosecutions for alleged rail fare evasion in England and Wales were set to be quashed as a certain legal procedure should not have been used. Following the BBC's reporting of this story passengers who had not been prosecuted but had received penalty fares got in touch.  Many we spoke to said they had mistakenly believed they could buy tickets on board a train.  In the UK, you must have a valid ticket to travel on a train, unless you are in an area that is not designated as a compulsory ticket area.  A penalty fare is charged if you do not comply with ticket purchasing rules and the maximum is £1,000.   The penalty is £100 plus the price of the full single fare applicable for your intended journey.  However, if it is paid within 21 days, the penalty is reduced to £50 plus the price of the single fare applicable.  A fine for rail ticket evasion can arise if the penalty fare is not paid and court proceedings follow. Holly, 29, was among those who told the BBC she thought she could buy a ticket on board a train.  ""I found the guard and said: 'Can I buy a ticket, please?' And he said: 'No you can't, you're fare dodging.' I was a bit shocked,"" she said. After Holly unsuccessfully tried to appeal her penalty fare, she was sent a magistrates court summons. ""Eventually, I got through to the train company's phone line and paid £55,"" she said. Rob McDowall, 41, told the BBC he also tried to buy a ticket on board when there were no working ticket machines at Leatherhead station in Surrey due to building works. He decided to buy a ticket when he got off, two stops later at Epsom.  ""The ticket inspector told me I was lying, as if I had refused to buy a ticket,"" he said. ""He was very forceful - he prodded me in the chest twice. ""I reported it to BTP [British Transport Police] but nothing came of it."" Rob received a court summons and pleaded guilty after receiving legal advice and was fined more than £300.  ""The way the whole system is set up you basically can’t explain yourself,"" Rob said. A spokesperson for the Rail Delivery Group told the BBC: “Fare dodging is unfair because it means less money to invest in improving services and increases the burden on fare-paying passengers and taxpayers. “We would always advise customers to purchase a ticket before they travel. All staff involved in the issuing of penalty fares have discretion over the individual circumstances of the customer.  ""There is a robust statutory appeals process for every penalty issued, which includes an independent final appeal stage to consider wider circumstances.” ",BBC,29/08/2024,"['Train ticket inspectors should treat deliberate fare dodgers differently to people who make genuine mistakes, the passenger watchdog has said.', 'When BBC News reported that thousands of prosecutions for alleged rail fare evasion were to be quashed, scores of people who were not prosecuted got in touch to say they felt ticket inspectors had been over-zealous in giving them penalty fares.', 'Transport Focus said there was ""an overwhelming need for reform of the fares and ticketing system"" because it was easy to buy the wrong ticket.', 'But the Rail Delivery Group which represents train companies said all staff could use discretion in giving penalties and there was a robust appeals process.', 'Alexandra Petri and her partner Ross Jones bought advance train tickets on holiday in York but ended up on the wrong train.', 'When they tried to pay the difference in fares of £3 they each had to pay a penalty fare of £50, they told the BBC. ""', 'We felt like there was no understanding for small errors.', 'We just paid the fine because I am not from the UK and didn\'t want to risk anything potentially going on my record that could cause trouble in the future,"" she added.', 'Transport Focus said it accepted the need for a penalty-fare system but called for more discretion to be used in the case of passengers who make an honest mistake. ""', 'We accept that some cases are very clear cut,"" said Mike Hewitson, the watchdog\'s head of policy. ""', 'But there are grey areas, cases where perhaps more discretion should be used.""', 'Railway companies lose £240 million every year from ticketless travel – but there are certain cases where a passenger making a mistake with their fare doesn\'t cost the train company money, he added. ""', 'It\'s about trying to strip out the mistake from the deliberate,"" Mr Hewitson said. ""', 'It can be easy to get it wrong... people should know what their ticket entitles them to, but the train operators also have to make this clear to them"".', 'Last year the then Conservative government announced a trial of scrapping return train tickets.', 'It said there were 55 million fares available in Britain, which made it difficult for travellers to decide which is best for them.', 'This month a landmark ruling found as many as 74,000 prosecutions for alleged rail fare evasion in England and Wales were set to be quashed as a certain legal procedure should not have been used.', ""Following the BBC's reporting of this story passengers who had not been prosecuted but had received penalty fares got in touch."", 'Many we spoke to said they had mistakenly believed they could buy tickets on board a train.', 'In the UK, you must have a valid ticket to travel on a train, unless you are in an area that is not designated as a compulsory ticket area.', 'A penalty fare is charged if you do not comply with ticket purchasing rules and the maximum is £1,000.', 'The penalty is £100 plus the price of the full single fare applicable for your intended journey.', 'However, if it is paid within 21 days, the penalty is reduced to £50 plus the price of the single fare applicable.', 'A fine for rail ticket evasion can arise if the penalty fare is not paid and court proceedings follow.', 'Holly, 29, was among those who told the BBC she thought she could buy a ticket on board a train. ""', ""I found the guard and said: 'Can I buy a ticket, please?'"", ""And he said: 'No you can't, you're fare dodging.'"", 'I was a bit shocked,"" she said.', 'After Holly unsuccessfully tried to appeal her penalty fare, she was sent a magistrates court summons. ""', 'Eventually, I got through to the train company\'s phone line and paid £55,"" she said.', 'Rob McDowall, 41, told the BBC he also tried to buy a ticket on board when there were no working ticket machines at Leatherhead station in Surrey due to building works.', 'He decided to buy a ticket when he got off, two stops later at Epsom. ""', 'The ticket inspector told me I was lying, as if I had refused to buy a ticket,"" he said. ""', 'He was very forceful - he prodded me in the chest twice. ""', 'I reported it to BTP [British Transport Police] but nothing came of it.""', 'Rob received a court summons and pleaded guilty after receiving legal advice and was fined more than £300. ""', 'The way the whole system is set up you basically can’t explain yourself,"" Rob said.', 'A spokesperson for the Rail Delivery Group told the BBC: “Fare dodging is unfair because it means less money to invest in improving services and increases the burden on fare-paying passengers and taxpayers. “', 'We would always advise customers to purchase a ticket before they travel.', 'All staff involved in the issuing of penalty fares have discretion over the individual circumstances of the customer. ""', 'There is a robust statutory appeals process for every penalty issued, which includes an independent final appeal stage to consider wider circumstances.”']",-0.1696561437107165,But the Rail Delivery Group which represents train companies said all staff could use discretion in giving penalties and there was a robust appeals process.,"Rob received a court summons and pleaded guilty after receiving legal advice and was fined more than £300. """,-0.5559211075305939,"We just paid the fine because I am not from the UK and didn't want to risk anything potentially going on my record that could cause trouble in the future,"" she added.",A spokesperson for the Rail Delivery Group told the BBC: “Fare dodging is unfair because it means less money to invest in improving services and increases the burden on fare-paying passengers and taxpayers. “,2024-08-29
The Gruffalo's Child to go on commemorative Royal Mint 50p coin,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cewl8101d0no,2024-08-28T07:16:21.405Z,"The Gruffalo's Child will appear on a new commemorative 50p coin to mark 20 years since the story was first published. The character will follow in the footsteps of her father, the Gruffalo, who appeared on 50p coins in 2019. The new coins will not enter general circulation but will be available to buy from The Royal Mint in precious metal finishes, starting at £12. The book's illustrator Axel Scheffler said he was ""honoured"" that the Gruffalo's offspring was being celebrated, while author Julia Donaldson said it was ""wonderful"". The new coins will pair the Gruffalo's Child with the ""mouse in the woods"" from the story, and some will have colour in the design. The cheapest one costs £12 while a gold one will set you back £99, although past Gruffalo coins have sold for much higher prices on resale sites due to their rarity. The Gruffalo book series has sold more than 18 million copies worldwide, and has been translated into more than 100 languages. The books have earned several awards since their release, with an animated version of The Gruffalo's Child first airing on BBC One in 2011 on Christmas Day. “The heart-warming tale of The Gruffalo’s Child has captivated readers since its release 20 years ago, and this year, the curious little monster finds a permanent home on a 50 pence piece,"" said Rebecca Morgan, The Royal Mint's director of commemorative coin. The Royal Mint, which is one of Britain’s oldest companies and the original maker of UK coins, has previously featured hugely popular children's characters on its coins, including Paddington, The Snowman, and Beatrix Potter favourites. ",BBC,28/08/2024,"[""The Gruffalo's Child will appear on a new commemorative 50p coin to mark 20 years since the story was first published."", 'The character will follow in the footsteps of her father, the Gruffalo, who appeared on 50p coins in 2019.', 'The new coins will not enter general circulation but will be available to buy from The Royal Mint in precious metal finishes, starting at £12.', 'The book\'s illustrator Axel Scheffler said he was ""honoured"" that the Gruffalo\'s offspring was being celebrated, while author Julia Donaldson said it was ""wonderful"".', 'The new coins will pair the Gruffalo\'s Child with the ""mouse in the woods"" from the story, and some will have colour in the design.', 'The cheapest one costs £12 while a gold one will set you back £99, although past Gruffalo coins have sold for much higher prices on resale sites due to their rarity.', 'The Gruffalo book series has sold more than 18 million copies worldwide, and has been translated into more than 100 languages.', ""The books have earned several awards since their release, with an animated version of The Gruffalo's Child first airing on BBC One in 2011 on Christmas Day. “"", 'The heart-warming tale of The Gruffalo’s Child has captivated readers since its release 20 years ago, and this year, the curious little monster finds a permanent home on a 50 pence piece,"" said Rebecca Morgan, The Royal Mint\'s director of commemorative coin.', ""The Royal Mint, which is one of Britain’s oldest companies and the original maker of UK coins, has previously featured hugely popular children's characters on its coins, including Paddington, The Snowman, and Beatrix Potter favourites.""]",0.3401972960107644,"The book's illustrator Axel Scheffler said he was ""honoured"" that the Gruffalo's offspring was being celebrated, while author Julia Donaldson said it was ""wonderful"".",,0.980387270450592,"The book's illustrator Axel Scheffler said he was ""honoured"" that the Gruffalo's offspring was being celebrated, while author Julia Donaldson said it was ""wonderful"".",,2024-08-29
"FDA approves updated Pfizer, Moderna Covid vaccines as virus surges; shots to be available within days",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/22/covid-vaccines-fda-approves-pfizer-moderna-updated-kppoint2-shots.html,2024-08-22T20:30:31+0000,"In this articleThe Food and Drug Administration on Thursday approved updated Covid vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna, putting the new shots on track to reach most Americans in the coming days amid a summer surge of the virus. The jabs target a strain called KP.2, a descendant of the highly contagious omicron subvariant JN.1 that began circulating widely in the U.S. earlier this year. KP.2 was the dominant Covid strain in May, but now only accounts for roughly 3% of all U.S. cases as of Saturday, according to the latest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data.Still, Pfizer and Moderna have said their KP.2 vaccines can produce stronger immune responses against other circulating subvariants of JN.1, such as KP.3 and LB.1, than last year's round of shots targeting the omicron strain XBB.1.5 can.""Given waning immunity of the population from previous exposure to the virus and from prior vaccination, we strongly encourage those who are eligible to consider receiving an updated COVID-19 vaccine to provide better protection against currently circulating variants,"" Dr. Peter Marks, director of the FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, said in a statement.In June, the CDC recommended that everyone over 6 months old receive an updated Covid vaccine and flu jab this year. The new shots from Pfizer and Moderna are specifically approved for people ages 12 and older and are authorized under emergency use for children 6 months through 11 years old.  Pfizer will begin shipping its new shot immediately and expects it to be available in pharmacies, hospitals and clinics across the U.S. ""beginning in the coming days,"" the company said in a statement. Moderna also expects its shot to be available in a similar time frame, according to a statement.""Staying up to date with your COVID-19 vaccine remains one of the best ways for people to be protected and prevent severe illness,"" Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel said in a statement. ""We appreciate the U.S. FDA's timely review and encourage individuals to speak to their healthcare providers about receiving their updated COVID-19 vaccine alongside their flu shot this fall.""The FDA's approval comes a few weeks ahead of last year's round of shots, which the agency cleared on Sept. 11.The earlier arrival of updated vaccines could offer some reassurance to Americans as the nation sees a relatively large spike in the virus this summer. A ""high"" or ""very high"" level of Covid is being detected in wastewater in almost every state, according to CDC data. Wastewater monitoring provides a glimpse of how widespread the virus is in the U.S. as other forms of testing have fallen off.Other measures of the virus are rising but remain far below where they were at the peak of the pandemic. Covid test positivity rates rose to 18.3% for the week ended Aug. 10, from 17.9% the week before, according to the CDC.Meanwhile, the CDC said about four people are being hospitalized for Covid for every 100,000 people in a given area. That's up from about one Covid hospitalization for every 100,000 people in May, which was the lowest level since the pandemic began. The summer Covid wave may decline by the time the shots reach patients' arms and kick in an immune response against the virus, which typically takes two weeks after vaccination. Still, federal health officials have long told Americans to expect annual updates to Covid shots as the virus churns out new strains that can dodge the immunity people have from previous vaccinations or infections — protection that wanes over time. It's similar to how the U.S. rolls out new flu vaccines every year. It's unclear how many Americans will actually roll up their sleeves to get another shot in the coming months.Only around 22.5% of U.S. adults received the latest round of shots that came out last fall, according to CDC data through early May. Many Americans who got previous rounds of Covid shots cited a lack of worry about the virus as a reason they didn't get the latest booster, according to a November survey from health policy research organization KFF. Others said they had been too busy to get their shot, the survey said.In June, the FDA asked vaccine makers to manufacture shots against JN.1 before telling them to target KP.2 instead ""if feasible.""That shift appeared to put Novavax, which filed for authorization of a new JN.1 shot that same month, at a disadvantage. The FDA has not cleared the biotech company's jab. In a statement, Novavax said it is working ""productively"" with the FDA as the agency completes its review. Novavax expects its shot to receive authorization in time for peak vaccination season in the U.S.The company noted that its shot provides protection against descendants of JN.1, including KP.2.3, KP.3, KP.3.1.1 and LB.1.Novavax manufactures protein-based vaccines, which cannot be quickly updated to target another strain of the virus. Protein-based technology is a decades-old method used in routine vaccinations against hepatitis B and shingles. Meanwhile, Pfizer's and Moderna's shots use messenger RNA technology, which teaches cells how to make proteins that trigger an immune response against Covid. The mRNA vaccines are much easier to develop and update than protein shots.",CNBC,22/08/2024,"['In this articleThe Food and Drug Administration on Thursday approved updated Covid vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna, putting the new shots on track to reach most Americans in the coming days amid a summer surge of the virus.', 'The jabs target a strain called KP.2, a descendant of the highly contagious omicron subvariant JN.1 that began circulating widely in the U.S. earlier this year.', 'KP.2 was the dominant Covid strain in May, but now only accounts for roughly 3% of all U.S. cases as of Saturday, according to the latest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data.', ""Still, Pfizer and Moderna have said their KP.2 vaccines can produce stronger immune responses against other circulating subvariants of JN.1, such as KP.3 and LB.1, than last year's round of shots targeting the omicron strain XBB.1.5 can."", '""Given waning immunity of the population from previous exposure to the virus and from prior vaccination, we strongly encourage those who are eligible to consider receiving an updated COVID-19 vaccine to provide better protection against currently circulating variants,"" Dr. Peter Marks, director of the FDA\'s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, said in a statement.', 'In June, the CDC recommended that everyone over 6 months old receive an updated Covid vaccine and flu jab this year.', 'The new shots from Pfizer and Moderna are specifically approved for people ages 12 and older and are authorized under emergency use for children 6 months through 11 years old.', 'Pfizer will begin shipping its new shot immediately and expects it to be available in pharmacies, hospitals and clinics across the U.S. ""beginning in the coming days,"" the company said in a statement.', 'Moderna also expectsitsshotto be available in a similar time frame, according to a statement.', '""Staying up to date with your COVID-19 vaccine remains one of the best ways for people to be protected and prevent severe illness,"" Moderna CEO Stephane Bancel said in a statement. ""', ""We appreciate the U.S. FDA's timely review and encourage individuals to speak to their healthcare providers about receiving their updated COVID-19 vaccine alongside their flu shot this fall."", '""The FDA\'s approval comes a few weeks ahead of last year\'s round of shots, which the agency cleared on Sept. 11.The earlier arrival of updated vaccines could offer some reassurance to Americans as the nation sees a relatively large spike in the virus this summer.', 'A ""high"" or ""very high"" level of Covid is being detected in wastewater in almost every state, according to CDC data.', 'Wastewater monitoring provides a glimpse of how widespread the virus is in the U.S. as other forms of testing have fallen off.', 'Other measures of the virus are rising but remain far below where they were at the peak of the pandemic.', 'Covid test positivity rates rose to 18.3% for the week ended Aug. 10, from 17.9% the week before, according to the CDC.Meanwhile, the CDC said about four people are being hospitalized for Covid for every 100,000 people in a given area.', ""That's up from about one Covid hospitalization for every 100,000 people in May, which was the lowest level since the pandemic began."", ""The summer Covid wave may decline by the time the shots reach patients' arms and kick in an immune response against the virus, which typically takes two weeks after vaccination."", 'Still, federal health officials have long told Americans to expect annual updates to Covid shots as the virus churns out new strains that can dodge the immunity people have from previous vaccinations or infections — protection that wanes over time.', ""It's similar to how the U.S. rolls out new flu vaccines every year."", ""It's unclear how many Americans will actually roll up their sleeves to get another shot in the coming months."", 'Only around 22.5% of U.S. adults received the latest round of shots that came out last fall, according to CDC data through early May.', ""Many Americans who got previous rounds of Covid shots cited a lack of worry about the virus as a reason they didn't get the latest booster, according to a November survey from health policy research organization KFF."", 'Others said they had been too busy to get their shot, the survey said.', 'In June, the FDA asked vaccine makers to manufacture shots against JN.1 before telling them to target KP.2 instead ""if feasible.', '""That shift appeared to put Novavax, which filed for authorization of a new JN.1 shot that same month, at a disadvantage.', ""The FDA has not cleared the biotech company's jab."", 'In a statement, Novavax said it is working ""productively"" with the FDA as the agency completes its review.', 'Novavax expects its shot to receive authorization in time for peak vaccination season in the U.S.The company noted that its shot provides protection against descendants of JN.1, including KP.2.3, KP.3, KP.3.1.1 and LB.1.Novavax manufactures protein-based vaccines, which cannot be quickly updated to target another strain of the virus.', 'Protein-based technology is a decades-old method used in routine vaccinations against hepatitis B and shingles.', ""Meanwhile, Pfizer's and Moderna's shots use messenger RNA technology, which teaches cells how to make proteins that trigger an immune response against Covid."", 'The mRNA vaccines are much easier to develop and update than protein shots.']",0.0488887973547498,"""Given waning immunity of the population from previous exposure to the virus and from prior vaccination, we strongly encourage those who are eligible to consider receiving an updated COVID-19 vaccine to provide better protection against currently circulating variants,"" Dr. Peter Marks, director of the FDA's Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, said in a statement.","Many Americans who got previous rounds of Covid shots cited a lack of worry about the virus as a reason they didn't get the latest booster, according to a November survey from health policy research organization KFF.",0.0050598631302515,"Covid test positivity rates rose to 18.3% for the week ended Aug. 10, from 17.9% the week before, according to the CDC.Meanwhile, the CDC said about four people are being hospitalized for Covid for every 100,000 people in a given area.","""That shift appeared to put Novavax, which filed for authorization of a new JN.1 shot that same month, at a disadvantage.",2024-08-29
NFL owners vote in favor of private equity investment; select firms commit $12 billion,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/27/nfl-private-equity-ownership-vote.html,2024-08-28T13:55:22+0000,"The NFL's most exclusive club just let in new members.At a special league meeting in Eagan, Minnesota, on Tuesday, National Football League owners voted in favor of allowing select private equity firms to buy up to a 10% stake of a team. Each fund or consortium will be able to do deals with up to six teams.The vote passed with support from 31 of the 32 franchise owners. Cincinnati Bengals owner Mike Brown voted against the measure, according to a person familiar with the vote.Kansas City Chiefs owner Clark Hunt led the special committee on ownership policy. He told CNBC's Jim Cramer after the vote that the NFL has been considering such a move for upwards of 5 years and felt it was the right time for the league — though he acknowledged the 10% cap amounted to ""baby steps.""""The capital will be very helpful to teams as they look to grow their business and improve the fan experience,"" Hunt said.The initial approved firms include Ares Management, Sixth Street Partners and Arctos Partners, in addition to a consortium nicknamed ""The Avengers"" that includes Dynasty Equity, Blackstone, Carlyle Group, CVC Capital Partners and Ludis, a platform founded by investor and former NFL running back Curtis Martin.The firms collectively have $2 trillion in assets and intend to commit $12 billion of capital to be raised (inclusive of leverage) over time, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified to speak about terms that were not public. With at least four investor groups able to invest in up to six teams each, that works out to $500 million of added capital on average for each team that receives an investment.According to the terms of the proposal, the minimum hold period for these funds will be six years.""We thought it's an opportunity for us to really change how some of the ownership groups have real problems with the illiquidity, they have big families and have to solve a lot of problems that are not usual,"" New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft told CNBC's ""Squawk Box"" on Wednesday. ""And so we thought this was a great source of capital and could be done in a way that was very functional and wouldn't affect the operation.""Pending final approval, Arctos, one of the approved firms, would be the only firm approved to invest in equity across each of the five most popular major North American sports leagues.""We are honored to be among the first private investment firms being considered by the National Football League as potential partners for their clubs and owners,"" Arctos said in a statement. ""[We] look forward to contributing to the League's continued success.""Ares said in a statement it was honored to be able to invest in ""iconic football franchises.""""The NFL has long engendered deeply loyal fanbases, innovative approaches to media and some of the most viewed and highest valued sports franchises in the world. We are excited for the opportunity to support the continued growth of NFL teams through Ares' extensive investment experience and strong relationship networks in the sports, media and entertainment sector,"" the firm said.The investing consortium of Blackstone, Carlyle, CVC, Dynasty Equity and Ludis said in a statement: ""We are pleased to have secured this provisional approval following the NFL's thoughtful and robust process, and welcome the potential opportunity to partner with the league.""The approval Tuesday comes after years of discussion.NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell told CNBC in July that the league had seen tremendous interest from private equity.The league created a committee last September to look at the possibility of welcoming private equity funding and has been meeting with the selected firms more recently.The NFL is the last major sports league to allow private equity investment, and it's still treading lightly on the issue by allowing only a select group to participate and at a lower rate than the other professional sports leagues.The National Basketball Association, Major League Baseball, the National Hockey League and Major League Soccer all allow private equity ownership of up to 30%.Goodell told CNBC in July that he believes the 10% is a complement to the existing ownership structure and that the percentage could be raised at some point in the future.As NFL team valuations rise, it's meant a smaller pool of owners have the money to foot the price tag when teams become available.That dynamic was on display during the sale of the Washington Commanders last year. The franchise sold for a record $6.05 billion to an ownership group that included Apollo co-founder Josh Harris and 20 other investors.Harris said in June that the process ""created a little bit of a wake-up call at the NFL.""""Unless you're one of the wealthiest 50 people [in the world], writing a $5 billion equity check is pretty hard for anyone,"" Harris told CNBC at the CNBC CEO Council Summit at the time.As the NFL opens its doors to fresh capital, the money will also free up funding for new stadiums and related projects.""It will give teams who are considering new or renovated stadiums access to a capital pool they haven't had access to in the past,"" Hunt said.The Buffalo Bills and Tennessee Titans are both currently in the process of building new stadiums, while the Cleveland Browns, Chicago Bears and Washington Commanders are actively pursuing new stadiums in the future.— CNBC's Jake Piazza contributed to this report.",CNBC,28/08/2024,"[""The NFL's most exclusive club just let in new members."", 'At a special league meeting in Eagan, Minnesota, on Tuesday, National Football League owners voted in favor of allowing select private equity firms to buy up to a 10% stake of a team.', 'Each fund or consortium will be able to do deals with up to six teams.', 'The vote passed with support from 31 of the 32 franchise owners.', 'Cincinnati Bengals owner Mike Brown voted against the measure, according to a person familiar with the vote.', 'Kansas City Chiefs owner Clark Hunt led the special committee on ownership policy.', 'He told CNBC\'s Jim Cramer after the vote that the NFL has been considering such a move for upwards of 5 years and felt it was the right time for the league — though he acknowledged the 10% cap amounted to ""baby steps.', '""""The capital will be very helpful to teams as they look to grow their business and improve the fan experience,"" Hunt said.', 'The initial approved firms include Ares Management, Sixth Street Partners and Arctos Partners, in addition to a consortium nicknamed ""The Avengers"" that includes Dynasty Equity, Blackstone, Carlyle Group, CVC Capital Partners and Ludis, a platform founded by investor and former NFL running back Curtis Martin.', 'The firms collectively have $2 trillion in assets and intend to commit $12 billion of capital to be raised (inclusive of leverage) over time, according to people familiar with the matter,who asked not to be identified to speak about terms that were not public.', 'With at least four investor groups able to invest in up to six teams each, that works out to $500 million of added capital on average for each team that receives an investment.', 'According to the terms of the proposal, the minimum hold period for these funds will be six years.', '""We thought it\'s an opportunity for us to really change how some of the ownership groups have real problems with the illiquidity, they have big families and have to solve a lot of problems that are not usual,"" New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft told CNBC\'s ""Squawk Box"" on Wednesday. ""', ""And so we thought this was a great source of capital and could be done in a way that was very functional and wouldn't affect the operation."", '""Pending final approval, Arctos, one of the approved firms, would be the only firm approved to invest in equity across each of the five most popular major North American sports leagues.', '""We are honored to be among the first private investment firms being considered by the National Football League as potential partners for their clubs and owners,"" Arctos said in a statement. ""[', ""We] look forward to contributing to the League's continued success."", '""Ares said in a statement it was honored to be able to invest in ""iconic football franchises.', '""""The NFL has long engendered deeply loyal fanbases, innovative approaches to media and some of the most viewed and highest valued sports franchises in the world.', 'We are excited for the opportunity to support the continued growth of NFL teams through Ares\' extensive investment experience and strong relationship networks in the sports, media and entertainment sector,"" the firm said.', 'The investing consortium of Blackstone, Carlyle, CVC, Dynasty Equity and Ludis said in a statement: ""We are pleased to have secured this provisional approval following the NFL\'s thoughtful and robust process, and welcome the potential opportunity to partner with the league.', '""The approval Tuesday comes after years of discussion.', 'NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell told CNBC in July that the league had seen tremendous interest from private equity.', 'The league created a committee last September to look at the possibility of welcoming private equity funding and has been meeting with the selected firms more recently.', ""The NFL is the last major sports league to allow private equity investment, and it's still treading lightly on the issue by allowing only a select group to participate and at a lower rate than the other professional sports leagues."", 'The National Basketball Association, Major League Baseball, the National Hockey League and Major League Soccer all allow private equity ownership of up to 30%.Goodell told CNBC in July that he believes the 10% is a complement to the existing ownership structure and that the percentage could be raised at some point in the future.', ""As NFL team valuations rise, it's meant a smaller pool of owners have the money to foot the price tag when teams become available."", 'That dynamic was on display during the sale of the Washington Commanders last year.', 'The franchise sold for a record $6.05 billion to an ownership group that included Apollo co-founder Josh Harris and 20 other investors.', 'Harris said in June that the process ""created a little bit of a wake-up call at the NFL.""""Unless you\'re one of the wealthiest 50 people [in the world], writing a $5 billion equity check is pretty hard for anyone,"" Harris told CNBC at the CNBC CEO Council Summit at the time.', 'As the NFL opens its doors to fresh capital, the money will also free up funding for new stadiums and related projects.', '""It will give teams who are considering new or renovated stadiums access to a capital pool they haven\'t had access to in the past,"" Hunt said.', 'The Buffalo Bills and Tennessee Titans are both currently in the process of building new stadiums, while the Cleveland Browns, Chicago Bears and Washington Commanders are actively pursuing new stadiums in the future.—', ""CNBC's Jake Piazza contributed to this report.""]",0.3841646113134327,"The investing consortium of Blackstone, Carlyle, CVC, Dynasty Equity and Ludis said in a statement: ""We are pleased to have secured this provisional approval following the NFL's thoughtful and robust process, and welcome the potential opportunity to partner with the league.","""We thought it's an opportunity for us to really change how some of the ownership groups have real problems with the illiquidity, they have big families and have to solve a lot of problems that are not usual,"" New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft told CNBC's ""Squawk Box"" on Wednesday. """,0.8392235094850714,"We are excited for the opportunity to support the continued growth of NFL teams through Ares' extensive investment experience and strong relationship networks in the sports, media and entertainment sector,"" the firm said.","Harris said in June that the process ""created a little bit of a wake-up call at the NFL.""""Unless you're one of the wealthiest 50 people [in the world], writing a $5 billion equity check is pretty hard for anyone,"" Harris told CNBC at the CNBC CEO Council Summit at the time.",2024-08-29
"Stephen Curry signs $62.6 million, one-year contract extension with Warriors",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/29/stephen-curry-signs-62point6-million-extension-with-warriors.html,2024-08-29T18:31:42+0000,"NBA superstar Stephen Curry has agreed to sign a one-year, $62.6 million extension with the Golden State Warriors, his agent confirmed to CNBC.The extension keeps Curry in a Warriors uniform through the 2026-2027 season, and will make him the first NBA player to make $60 million in a season, according to Spotrac. As of now, several NBA players who have signed long-term extensions are set to eclipse Curry's $62.6 million salary the following year.Curry is a four-time NBA champion and most recently won a gold medal with the Team USA basketball team at the 2024 Olympics. In the championship game against France, Curry led the team with 24 points, all of which were three-pointers.Curry is no stranger to setting records. He was the first NBA player to hit both the $40 million and $50 million annual base salary marks and has been the highest paid player in the league since the 2017-2018 season, according to Spotrac.Curry, among other stars, is one of the reasons why the NBA was able to negotiate an 11-year, $77 billion media rights contract in its most recent deal with Disney, NBCUniversal and Amazon, which takes effect after the upcoming season. The booming value of media rights is driving player salaries up with it.Younger players like Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum have signed contracts worth more than $300 million over five years, as the league keeps growing more popular and sports continue to be one of the only types of television that people will tune in for live.Curry, 36, has played his entire NBA career with the Warriors. He has won two league MVP awards and is the all-time leader in three-pointers made.Programming note: Curry will appear on CNBC's ""Squawk on the Street"" at 10:30 a.m. ET on Tuesday.Disclosure: Comcast NBCUniversal is the parent company of CNBC.",CNBC,29/08/2024,"['NBA superstar Stephen Curry has agreed to sign a one-year, $62.6 million extension with the Golden State Warriors, his agent confirmed to CNBC.The extension keeps Curry in a Warriors uniform through the 2026-2027 season, and will make him the first NBA player to make $60 million in a season, according to Spotrac.', ""As of now, several NBA players who have signed long-term extensions are set to eclipse Curry's $62.6 million salary the following year."", 'Curry is a four-time NBA champion and most recently won a gold medal with the Team USA basketball team at the 2024 Olympics.', 'In the championship game against France, Curry led the team with 24 points, all of which were three-pointers.', 'Curry is no stranger to setting records.', 'He was the first NBA player to hit both the $40 million and $50 million annual base salary marks and has been the highest paid player in the league since the 2017-2018 season, according to Spotrac.', 'Curry, among other stars, is one of the reasons why the NBA was able to negotiate an 11-year, $77 billion media rights contract in its most recent deal with Disney, NBCUniversal and Amazon, which takes effect after the upcoming season.', 'The booming value of media rights is driving player salaries up with it.', 'Younger players like Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum have signed contracts worth more than $300 million over five years, as the league keeps growing more popular and sports continue to be one of the only types of television that people will tune in for live.', 'Curry, 36, has played his entire NBA career with the Warriors.', 'He has won two league MVP awards and is the all-time leader in three-pointers made.', 'Programming note: Curry will appear on CNBC\'s ""Squawk on the Street"" at 10:30 a.m. ET on Tuesday.', 'Disclosure: Comcast NBCUniversal is the parent company of CNBC.']",0.2883384119498057,Curry is a four-time NBA champion and most recently won a gold medal with the Team USA basketball team at the 2024 Olympics.,Curry is no stranger to setting records.,0.9991334676742554,"Younger players like Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum have signed contracts worth more than $300 million over five years, as the league keeps growing more popular and sports continue to be one of the only types of television that people will tune in for live.",,2024-08-29
"Gap beats earnings and revenue estimates, hikes profit margin outlook as results are posted early",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/29/gap-q2-earnings-shares-halted-after-apparent-early-release.html,2024-08-29T22:55:10+0000,"In this articleGap raised its full-year profit outlook on Thursday after seeing better-than-expected results at its largest brand, Old Navy.The apparel company's fiscal second quarter results were released earlier than planned after the company ""inadvertently"" posted them to its website and then removed them, a Gap spokesperson told CNBC.""As soon as the error was caught, we notified the NYSE and trading of our stock was halted temporarily,"" the spokesperson said, adding the results were posted ""as a result of administrative error.""Gap's stock was halted just before 10 a.m. ET. The company then released its quarterly results at 11:12 a.m. ET. Following the release, shares rose more than 2% after being halted for much of the morning.Here's what the company reported, compared with what Wall Street expected, according to analysts surveyed by LSEG:The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended Aug. 3 nearly doubled from the year-ago period. Gap posted earnings of $206 million, or 54 cents per share, compared with $117 million, or 32 cents per share, a year earlier.Sales rose to $3.72 billion, up about 5% from $3.55 billion in the prior-year period.For the full year, Gap now expects its gross margin to be 2 percentage points higher than the uptick of at least 1.5 percentage points it had previously forecast. It also expects its operating income to grow by about 50%. It previously anticipated it would increase by slightly more than 40%.Over the last year, Gap has been working to turn around its business, reverse a sales slump and reclaim cultural relevance under the direction of CEO Richard Dickson — the former Mattel executive credited with reviving the Barbie empire.Since Dickson took over, sales have started to turn around at the company's four brands — Banana Republic, Old Navy, Athleta and its namesake banner — and the company is finding its voice again among its peers. Beyond sales and relevance, Gap's profits and balance sheet have also improved significantly under Dickson. The company ended the quarter with $2.1 billion in cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments, an increase of 59% compared to last year.The company's second-quarter results didn't blow away expectations, but are solid improvements from where the company was a year ago.""We really concentrated on our strategic priorities, and the first priority has been about maintaining financial and operational rigor that is becoming, to the extent that we can define it, the fabric of how we work, and it's reinforcing better processes and cultural accountability,"" Dickson told CNBC in an interview.""Reinvigorating our brands is enabled by financial and operational rigor, and you see it. You see it in the results, you see it in our stores. You see it on our sites,"" he added.""We're building stronger brand identities. They're supported by trend right products,"" Dickson said. ""We're amplifying those through better storytelling. Our media mix has gotten much more innovative, and generally speaking, I'm proud of the brand's portfolio work in the context of cultural relevance.""During the quarter, comparable sales were up 3%, in line with the 3.1% growth that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount. Its gross margin came in better than forecast at 42.6%, ahead of the 40.8% that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount.Here's a closer look at how each brand performed:Sales rose 8% to $2.1 billion, with comparable sales up 5%, better than the 4.3% growth analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount. The company has been working to improve its assortment and ensure that its value offering isn't just low cost but also fashionable.""We've been dialing up, if you will, our fashion quotient,"" said Dickson. ""Besides really driving a much more disciplined approach with financial and operational rigor, we're now dialing up and seeing the results of our reinvigoration strategy.""As consumers feel the brunt of inflation and high interest rates, many have traded down to cheaper options, and Dickson said Old Navy is seeing ""growth across all income cohorts.""""With a presumed flight to value, Old Navy is there with a welcome mat,"" said Dickson. ""We become the style authority and the brand in the value space, and so again, we're concentrating on our strategic approach, our strategic priorities. I think we're seeing the success of that.""Revenue at Gap's namesake banner rose 1% to $766 million during the quarter, with comparable sales up 3%, just shy of the 3.4% uptick analysts had expected. As Dickson looks to bring cultural relevancy back to the company, it has helped the company's namesake banner grow sales, he said.Gap's elevated work-wear line has dragged on the company's overall performance. Both revenue and comparable sales were flat in the second quarter compared to last year, versus StreetAccount estimates of up 0.5%. The company said it is working to ""improve its pricing and assortment"" to turn around the brand's performance.""In some cases, we got too ahead of ourselves, and in other cases, we could add more value orientation to drive more scale,"" Dickson said when asked what work the company is doing to improve pricing.""Some of our new merchandising strategies include depth of product in store, finding that right mix, if you will. And last but not least, really improving fit, which is an important part of any brand, but in particular, has been a challenge in the women's space in Banana Republic, where we're really concentrating,"" he said.Sales at Gap's athleisure brand Athleta slid 1% to $388 million, with comparable sales down 4%. The results were not comparable to analyst estimates.One of Gap's strongest brands during the pandemic, Athleta had been on a downward trajectory and weighed heavily on the company's performance until it appointed former Alo Yoga president Chris Blakeslee as its CEO last summer. Since then, Blakeslee has worked to improve Athleta's assortment and has also worked to generate more excitement at the line with product drops and collaborations with athletes.In a press release, the company said it expects Athleta to return to positive comparable sales growth for the remainder of the year.",CNBC,29/08/2024,"['In this articleGap raised its full-year profit outlook on Thursday after seeing better-than-expected results at its largest brand, Old Navy.', 'The apparel company\'s fiscal second quarter results were released earlier than planned after the company ""inadvertently"" posted them to its website and then removed them, a Gap spokesperson told CNBC.""As soon as the error was caught,we notified the NYSE and trading of our stock was halted temporarily,"" the spokesperson said, adding the results were posted ""as a result of administrative error.', '""Gap\'s stock was halted just before 10 a.m. ET.', 'The company then released its quarterly results at 11:12 a.m. ET.', 'Following the release, shares rose more than 2% after being halted for much of the morning.', ""Here's what the company reported, compared with what Wall Street expected, according to analysts surveyed by LSEG:The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended Aug. 3 nearly doubled from the year-ago period."", 'Gap posted earnings of $206 million, or 54 cents per share, compared with $117 million, or 32 cents per share, a year earlier.', 'Sales rose to $3.72 billion, up about 5% from $3.55 billion in the prior-year period.', 'For the full year, Gap now expects its gross margin to be 2 percentage points higher than the uptick of at least 1.5 percentage points it had previously forecast.', 'It also expects its operating income to grow by about 50%.', 'It previously anticipated it would increase by slightly more than 40%.Over the last year, Gap has been working to turn around its business, reverse a sales slump and reclaim cultural relevance under the direction of CEO Richard Dickson — the former Mattel executive credited with reviving the Barbie empire.', ""Since Dickson took over, sales have started to turn around at the company's four brands — Banana Republic, Old Navy, Athleta and its namesake banner — and the company is finding its voice again among its peers."", ""Beyond sales and relevance, Gap's profits and balance sheet have also improved significantly under Dickson."", 'The company ended the quarter with $2.1 billion in cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments, an increase of 59% compared to last year.', ""The company's second-quarter results didn't blow away expectations, but are solid improvements from where the company was a year ago."", '""We really concentrated on our strategic priorities, and the first priority has been about maintaining financial and operational rigor that is becoming, to the extent that we can define it, the fabric of how we work, and it\'s reinforcing better processes and cultural accountability,"" Dickson told CNBC in an interview.', '""Reinvigorating our brands is enabled by financial and operational rigor, and you see it.', 'You see it in the results, you see it in our stores.', 'You see it on our sites,"" he added.', '""We\'re building stronger brand identities.', 'They\'re supported by trend right products,"" Dickson said. ""', ""We're amplifying those through better storytelling."", ""Our media mix has gotten much more innovative, and generally speaking, I'm proud of the brand's portfolio work in the context of cultural relevance."", '""During the quarter, comparable sales were up 3%, in line with the 3.1% growth that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount.', 'Its gross margin came in better than forecast at 42.6%, ahead of the 40.8% that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount.', ""Here's a closer look at how each brand performed:Sales rose 8% to $2.1 billion, with comparable sales up 5%, better than the 4.3% growth analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount."", ""The company has been working to improve its assortment and ensure that its value offering isn't just low cost but also fashionable."", '""We\'ve been dialing up, if you will, our fashion quotient,"" said Dickson. ""', ""Besides really driving a much more disciplined approach with financial and operational rigor, we're now dialing up and seeing the results of our reinvigoration strategy."", '""As consumers feel the brunt of inflation and high interest rates, many have traded down to cheaper options, and Dickson said Old Navy is seeing ""growth across all income cohorts.', '""""With a presumed flight to value, Old Navy is there with a welcome mat,"" said Dickson. ""', ""We become the style authority and the brand in the value space, and so again, we're concentrating on our strategic approach, our strategic priorities."", ""I think we're seeing the success of that."", '""Revenue at Gap\'s namesake banner rose 1% to $766 million during the quarter, with comparable sales up 3%, just shy of the 3.4% uptick analysts had expected.', ""As Dickson looks to bring cultural relevancy back to the company, it has helped the company's namesake banner grow sales, he said."", ""Gap's elevated work-wear line has dragged on the company's overall performance."", 'Both revenue and comparable sales were flat in the second quarter compared to last year, versus StreetAccount estimates of up 0.5%.', 'The company said it is working to ""improve its pricing and assortment"" to turn around the brand\'s performance.', '""In some cases, we got too ahead of ourselves, and in other cases, we could add more value orientation to drive more scale,"" Dickson said when asked what work the company is doing to improve pricing.', '""Some of our new merchandising strategies include depth of product in store, finding that right mix, if you will.', 'And last but not least, really improving fit, which is an important part of any brand, but in particular, has been a challenge in the women\'s space in Banana Republic, where we\'re really concentrating,"" he said.', ""Sales at Gap's athleisure brand Athleta slid 1% to $388 million, with comparable sales down 4%."", 'The results were not comparable to analyst estimates.', ""One of Gap's strongest brands during the pandemic, Athleta had been on a downward trajectory and weighed heavily on the company's performance until it appointed former Alo Yoga president Chris Blakeslee as its CEO last summer."", ""Since then, Blakeslee has worked to improve Athleta's assortment and has also worked to generate more excitement at the line with product drops and collaborations with athletes."", 'In a press release, the company said it expects Athleta to return to positive comparable sales growth for the remainder of the year.']",0.2871461857237231,"And last but not least, really improving fit, which is an important part of any brand, but in particular, has been a challenge in the women's space in Banana Republic, where we're really concentrating,"" he said.","The apparel company's fiscal second quarter results were released earlier than planned after the company ""inadvertently"" posted them to its website and then removed them, a Gap spokesperson told CNBC.""As soon as the error was caught,we notified the NYSE and trading of our stock was halted temporarily,"" the spokesperson said, adding the results were posted ""as a result of administrative error.",0.762261722017737,"Here's a closer look at how each brand performed:Sales rose 8% to $2.1 billion, with comparable sales up 5%, better than the 4.3% growth analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount.","Sales at Gap's athleisure brand Athleta slid 1% to $388 million, with comparable sales down 4%.",2024-08-29
Could 'super potatoes' save the tattie industry?,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cjdkyrk0g0lo,2024-08-29T22:10:09.456Z,"Scientists have made a major breakthrough which could save the Scottish potato industry from collapse. A pest called potato cyst nematodes (PCN) has been steadily infecting fields and rendering them useless for growing seed potatoes. A team from the James Hutton Institute has been testing varieties which are resistant to PCN while retaining their taste. They have discovered several varieties and have been working with supermarkets to make sure they can replace potatoes which are more vulnerable. James Price, a molecular plant pathologist at the Institute, says the potatoes ""have every possibility to save the industry."" ""Having resistance to both species of the potato cyst nematodes that we see in Scotland and the UK, they'll be able to keep the numbers reduced in the soil,"" he said.  ""This means that seed could be returned to these lands when PCN aren't detectable in the soil any more."" Scientists had been predicting that PCN would wipe out Scotland’s seed potato industry by 2050. Seed potatoes are those which are grown to be sold to other farmers who then use them to grow ""ware"" potatoes. Ware potatoes are the potatoes we buy for eating at home, in restaurants or as processed foods like chips and crisps. The sector is worth £4.5bn to the economy with almost 80% of Britain’s seed potatoes coming from Scotland. Those seeds are needed for the UK’s food security with potatoes being a huge staple of the British diet. Dr Kerry Leslie, a potato specialist at SAC Consulting, believes there is little difference in the taste of the resistant varieties compared with favourites such as the Maris Piper. She said taste was key for retailers to get on board. ""As long as these varieties aren't majorly different in terms of taste and texture, they should be fine to get taken up by the supermarkets,"" she said. To slow the spread, fields with even low levels of PCN can no longer grow seed potatoes until they have been shown to be clear for a number of years. An action network was set up in 2021 to see if alternative varieties could be found which are resistant to PCN. Field trials have been under way to identify the ones which can be sold as “white potatoes” in supermarkets.  ",BBC,29/08/2024,"['Scientists have made a major breakthrough which could save the Scottish potato industry from collapse.', 'A pest called potato cyst nematodes (PCN) has been steadily infecting fields and rendering them useless for growing seed potatoes.', 'A team from the James Hutton Institute has been testing varieties which are resistant to PCN while retaining their taste.', 'They have discovered several varieties and have been working with supermarkets to make sure they can replace potatoes which are more vulnerable.', 'James Price, a molecular plant pathologist at the Institute, says the potatoes ""have every possibility to save the industry."" ""', 'Having resistance to both species of the potato cyst nematodes that we see in Scotland and the UK, they\'ll be able to keep the numbers reduced in the soil,"" he said. ""', 'This means that seed could be returned to these lands when PCN aren\'t detectable in the soil any more.""', 'Scientists had been predicting that PCN would wipe out Scotland’s seed potato industry by 2050.', 'Seed potatoes are those which are grown to be sold to other farmers who then use them to grow ""ware"" potatoes.', 'Ware potatoes are the potatoes we buy for eating at home, in restaurants or as processed foods like chips and crisps.', 'The sector is worth £4.5bn to the economy with almost 80% of Britain’s seed potatoes coming from Scotland.', 'Those seeds are needed for the UK’s food security with potatoes being a huge staple of the British diet.', 'Dr Kerry Leslie, a potato specialist at SAC Consulting, believes there is little difference in the taste of the resistant varieties compared with favourites such as the Maris Piper.', 'She said taste was key for retailers to get on board. ""', 'As long as these varieties aren\'t majorly different in terms of taste and texture, they should be fine to get taken up by the supermarkets,"" she said.', 'To slow the spread, fields with even low levels of PCN can no longer grow seed potatoes until they have been shown to be clear for a number of years.', 'An action network was set up in 2021 to see if alternative varieties could be found which are resistant to PCN.', 'Field trials have been under way to identify the ones which can be sold as “white potatoes” in supermarkets.']",0.0837369211446974,Those seeds are needed for the UK’s food security with potatoes being a huge staple of the British diet.,A pest called potato cyst nematodes (PCN) has been steadily infecting fields and rendering them useless for growing seed potatoes.,0.0172424217065175,"James Price, a molecular plant pathologist at the Institute, says the potatoes ""have every possibility to save the industry."" """,A pest called potato cyst nematodes (PCN) has been steadily infecting fields and rendering them useless for growing seed potatoes.,2024-08-29
Ryanair boss calls for two-drink limit at airports to tackle disorder,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cgl28npy7e2o,2024-08-28T07:42:53.275Z,"Aeroplane passengers should be restricted to two drinks at airports, Ryanair chief executive Michael O'Leary has said. Mr O'Leary said introducing alcohol limits at airports would help tackle a rise in disorder on flights. Violent outbursts are occurring weekly due to alcohol, he said, especially when it is mixed with other substances. ""We don't want to begrudge people having a drink,"" he told the Daily Telegraph.  ""But we don't allow people to drink-drive, yet we keep putting them up in aircraft at 33,000ft."" Crew members and other passengers have become targets, according to Mr O'Leary. Delays add to the problem, with longer drinking times at airports. ""In the old days, people who drank too much would eventually fall over or fall asleep. But now those passengers are also on tablets and powder,"" he added. ""It's the mix. You get much more aggressive behaviour that becomes very difficult to manage."" Mr O'Leary said it was difficult for airlines to identify inebriated people at the gate, especially when they boarded in a group. ""As long as they can stand up and shuffle they will get through. Then when the plane takes off, we see the misbehaviour,"" he said. Ryanair staff search bags for alcohol before passengers board flights to Ibiza, one of the worst-affected ""party destinations"".  Other challenging destinations include some of the Greek islands. An AirportsUK spokesperson said that disruptive behaviour, whether due to alcohol or other causes, ""is unacceptable and could lead to substantial penalties"".  These penalties include fines, boarding being refused, or up to two years in jail. The spokesperson added that airports have ""a wide range of measures in place to monitor and tackle disruptive behaviour and ensure everyone's safety"". ""Airports are committed to providing a safe and enjoyable travel experience for all passengers and we're pleased that the vast majority of travellers continue to enjoy their journeys responsibly,"" they said. In response to Mr O'Leary's comments, Wetherspoon chairman Tim Martin said they have reviewed their sales in the last four weeks at their busiest airport pub. “We have had no complaints about our pubs from the airport authorities or airlines, that I'm aware of, in recent years,"" Mr Martin said. “If our pub teams do see a possibly disruptive passenger, they alert airport police and security,"" he continued. While there is ""no perfect solution"", he added, ""working with airports and airlines and the licensing authorities"" strikes a ""reasonable balance for outbound flights.” ",BBC,28/08/2024,"[""Aeroplane passengers should be restricted to two drinks at airports, Ryanair chief executive Michael O'Leary has said."", ""Mr O'Leary said introducing alcohol limits at airports would help tackle a rise in disorder on flights."", 'Violent outbursts are occurring weekly due to alcohol, he said, especially when it is mixed with other substances. ""', 'We don\'t want to begrudge people having a drink,"" he told the Daily Telegraph. ""', 'But we don\'t allow people to drink-drive, yet we keep putting them up in aircraft at 33,000ft.""', ""Crew members and other passengers have become targets, according to Mr O'Leary."", 'Delays add to the problem, with longer drinking times at airports. ""', 'In the old days, people who drank too much would eventually fall over or fall asleep.', 'But now those passengers are also on tablets and powder,"" he added. ""', ""It's the mix."", 'You get much more aggressive behaviour that becomes very difficult to manage.""', 'Mr O\'Leary said it was difficult for airlines to identify inebriated people at the gate, especially when they boarded in a group. ""', 'As long as they can stand up and shuffle they will get through.', 'Then when the plane takes off, we see the misbehaviour,"" he said.', 'Ryanair staff search bags for alcohol before passengers board flights to Ibiza, one of the worst-affected ""party destinations"".', 'Other challenging destinations include some of the Greek islands.', 'An AirportsUK spokesperson said that disruptive behaviour, whether due to alcohol or other causes, ""is unacceptable and could lead to substantial penalties"".', 'These penalties include fines, boarding being refused, or up to two years in jail.', 'The spokesperson added that airports have ""a wide range of measures in place to monitor and tackle disruptive behaviour and ensure everyone\'s safety"". ""', 'Airports are committed to providing a safe and enjoyable travel experience for all passengers and we\'re pleased that the vast majority of travellers continue to enjoy their journeys responsibly,"" they said.', ""In response to Mr O'Leary's comments, Wetherspoon chairman Tim Martin said they have reviewed their sales in the last four weeks at their busiest airport pub. “"", 'We have had no complaints about our pubs from the airport authorities or airlines, that I\'m aware of, in recent years,"" Mr Martin said. “', 'If our pub teams do see a possibly disruptive passenger, they alert airport police and security,"" he continued.', 'While there is ""no perfect solution"", he added, ""working with airports and airlines and the licensing authorities"" strikes a ""reasonable balance for outbound flights.”']",-0.0674808945529526,"Airports are committed to providing a safe and enjoyable travel experience for all passengers and we're pleased that the vast majority of travellers continue to enjoy their journeys responsibly,"" they said.","Violent outbursts are occurring weekly due to alcohol, he said, especially when it is mixed with other substances. """,0.0078751345475514,"Airports are committed to providing a safe and enjoyable travel experience for all passengers and we're pleased that the vast majority of travellers continue to enjoy their journeys responsibly,"" they said.","Delays add to the problem, with longer drinking times at airports. """,2024-08-29
Home prices hit record high in June on S&P Case-Shiller Index,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/27/home-prices-hit-record-high-in-june-on-sp-case-shiller-index.html,2024-08-27T17:55:03+0000,"Even as mortgage interest rates were rising, home prices reached the highest level ever on the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index.On a three-month running average ended in June, prices nationally were 5.4% higher than they were in June 2023, according to data released Tuesday. Despite being a record high for the index, the annual gain was smaller than May's 5.9% reading.The index's 10-city composite rose 7.4% annually, down from 7.8% in the previous month. The 20-city composite was 6.5% higher year over year, down from a 6.9% increase in May.""While both housing and inflation have slowed, the gap between the two is larger than historical norms, with our National Index averaging 2.8% more than the Consumer Price Index,"" noted Brian Luke, head of commodities, real and digital assets at S&P Dow Jones Indices, in a release. ""That is a full percentage point above the 50-year average. Before accounting for inflation, home prices have risen over 1,100% since 1974, but have slightly more than doubled (111%) after accounting for inflation.""New York saw the highest annual gain among the 20 cities, with prices climbing 9% in June, followed by San Diego and Las Vegas with annual increases of 8.7% and 8.5%, respectively. Portland, Oregon, saw just a 0.8% annual rise in June, the smallest gain of the top cities.Since housing affordability has been a major talking point in this election cycle, this month's report also broke out home values by price tier, dividing each city's market into three tiers. Looking just at large markets over the past five years, it found that 75% of the markets covered show low-price tiers rising faster than the overall market.""For example, the lower tier of the Atlanta market has risen 18% faster than the middle- and higher-tiered homes,"" Luke wrote in the release.""New York's low tier has the largest five-year outperformance, rising nearly 20% above the overall New York region,"" he continued. ""New York also has the largest divergence between low- and high-tier prices. Conversely, San Diego has seen the largest appreciation in higher-tier homes over the past five years.""Prices in the overall San Diego market are up 72% in the past five years, but the high tier is up 79% versus 63% for the lower tier.The increase in prices came even as mortgage rates rose sharply from April through June, which is the period averaged on the index. Usually when rates rise, prices cool.The average rate on the 30-year fixed started April just below 7% and then shot up to 7.5% by the end of the month, according to Mortgage News Daily. Rates stayed over 7% before falling back under that level in July. The 30-year fixed is now right around 6.5%.""Mortgage rates have fallen since June, but there is evidence that even the decline in rates has not been enough to bring buyers back into the market,"" said Lisa Sturtevant, chief economist at Bright MLS. ""Some buyers are waiting for home prices — and not just interest rates — to come down,""While home prices should ease month to month going into the fall, due to seasonal factors and more inventory on the market, they are unlikely to drop significantly, and are expected to still be higher than they were last fall.",CNBC,27/08/2024,"['Even as mortgage interest rates were rising, home prices reached the highest level ever on the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price Index.', 'On a three-month running average ended in June, prices nationally were 5.4% higher than they were in June 2023, according to data released Tuesday.', ""Despite being a record high for the index, the annual gain was smaller than May's 5.9% reading."", ""The index's 10-city composite rose 7.4% annually, down from 7.8% in the previous month."", 'The 20-city composite was 6.5% higher year over year, down from a 6.9% increase in May.', '""While both housing and inflation have slowed, the gap between the two is larger than historical norms, with our National Index averaging 2.8% more than the Consumer Price Index,"" noted Brian Luke, head of commodities, real and digital assets at S&P Dow Jones Indices, in a release. ""', 'That is a full percentage point above the 50-year average.', 'Before accounting for inflation, home prices have risen over 1,100% since 1974, but have slightly more than doubled (111%) after accounting for inflation.', '""New York saw the highest annual gain among the 20 cities, with prices climbing 9% in June, followed by San Diego and Las Vegas with annual increases of 8.7% and 8.5%, respectively.', 'Portland, Oregon, saw just a 0.8% annual rise in June, the smallest gain of the top cities.', ""Since housing affordability has been a major talking point in this election cycle, this month's report also broke out home values by price tier, dividing each city's market into three tiers."", 'Looking just at large markets over the past five years, it found that 75% of the markets covered show low-price tiers rising faster than the overall market.', '""For example, the lower tier of the Atlanta market has risen 18% faster than the middle- and higher-tiered homes,"" Luke wrote in the release.', '""New York\'s low tier has the largest five-year outperformance, rising nearly 20% above the overall New York region,"" he continued. ""', 'New York also has the largest divergence between low- and high-tier prices.', 'Conversely, San Diego has seen the largest appreciation in higher-tier homes over the past five years.', '""Prices in the overall San Diego market are up 72% in the past five years, but the high tier is up 79% versus 63% for the lower tier.', 'The increase in prices came even as mortgage rates rose sharply from April through June, which is the period averaged on the index.', 'Usually when rates rise, prices cool.', 'The average rate on the 30-year fixed started April just below 7% and then shot up to 7.5% by the end of the month, according to Mortgage News Daily.', 'Rates stayed over 7% before falling back under that level in July.', 'The 30-year fixed is now right around 6.5%.""Mortgage rates have fallen since June, but there is evidence that even the decline in rates has not been enough to bring buyers back into the market,"" said Lisa Sturtevant, chief economist at Bright MLS. ""', 'Some buyers are waiting for home prices — and not just interest rates — to come down,""While home prices should ease month to month going into the fall, due to seasonal factors and more inventory on the market, they are unlikely to drop significantly, and are expected to still be higher than they were last fall.']",0.1217034221770017,"""New York saw the highest annual gain among the 20 cities, with prices climbing 9% in June, followed by San Diego and Las Vegas with annual increases of 8.7% and 8.5%, respectively.","""Prices in the overall San Diego market are up 72% in the past five years, but the high tier is up 79% versus 63% for the lower tier.",0.347285787264506,"""Prices in the overall San Diego market are up 72% in the past five years, but the high tier is up 79% versus 63% for the lower tier.","The 20-city composite was 6.5% higher year over year, down from a 6.9% increase in May.",2024-08-29
Mineral Resources' boss opposes staff leaving office for coffee,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cdey4zzl529o,2024-08-29T22:07:43.000Z,"Workers who leave the head office to buy a cup of coffee are costing an Australian mining firm too much money, according to its boss. Managing director of Mineral Resources Chris Ellison said during a financial results presentation on Wednesday he wants to ""hold staff captive all day long"". ""I don't want them leaving the building,"" he said. The head office in Perth has a restaurant, nine staff psychologists, a gym, and other facilities designed to encourage staff to stay in the office. ""We have a lot of different benefits that we have brought on,"" said Mr Ellison, whose company has a strict ""no work from home policy"". ""Why have I done that? Because when I get them first thing in the morning, I want to hold them captive all day long. I don't want them leaving the building. ""I don't want them walking down the road for a cup of coffee. We kind of figured out a few years ago how much that costs."" He said the rest of the mining industry should ""get on board"" with his thinking on the benefits of working in the office rather than at home. ""The industry cannot afford it. We can't have people working three days a week and picking up five days a week pay - or four days."" The company culture at Mining Resources also extends to Mr Ellison's views on parents, with the company building a day-care centre on site big enough for 105 children. ""Another reason for them to come in and enjoy work,"" he said.  ""Drop their little tykes off next door. We have doctors on board and nurses who are going to feed them, but mum and dad will be working in our office."" Mr Ellison is not the only boss to enforce a no work from home policy.  Last week, the head of London-based smartphone maker Nothing sent an all-staff email to announce the end of hybrid working and a move to fully office-based work. ""I know this is a controversial decision that may not be a fit for everyone, and there are definitely companies out there that thrive in remote or hybrid setups,"" he wrote in the email. ""But that’s not right for our type of business, and won’t help us fully realize our potential as a company."" ",BBC,29/08/2024,"['Workers who leave the head office to buy a cup of coffee are costing an Australian mining firm too much money, according to its boss.', 'Managing director of Mineral Resources Chris Ellison said during a financial results presentation on Wednesday he wants to ""hold staff captive all day long"". ""', 'I don\'t want them leaving the building,"" he said.', 'The head office in Perth has a restaurant, nine staff psychologists, a gym, and other facilities designed to encourage staff to stay in the office. ""', 'We have a lot of different benefits that we have brought on,"" said Mr Ellison, whose company has a strict ""no work from home policy"". ""', 'Why have I done that?', 'Because when I get them first thing in the morning, I want to hold them captive all day long.', 'I don\'t want them leaving the building. ""', ""I don't want them walking down the road for a cup of coffee."", 'We kind of figured out a few years ago how much that costs.""', 'He said the rest of the mining industry should ""get on board"" with his thinking on the benefits of working in the office rather than at home. ""', 'The industry cannot afford it.', 'We can\'t have people working three days a week and picking up five days a week pay - or four days.""', 'The company culture at Mining Resources also extends to Mr Ellison\'s views on parents, with the company building a day-care centre on site big enough for 105 children. ""', 'Another reason for them to come in and enjoy work,"" he said. ""', 'Drop their little tykes off next door.', 'We have doctors on board and nurses who are going to feed them, but mum and dad will be working in our office.""', 'Mr Ellison is not the only boss to enforce a no work from home policy.', 'Last week, the head of London-based smartphone maker Nothing sent an all-staff email to announce the end of hybrid working and a move to fully office-based work. ""', 'I know this is a controversial decision that may not be a fit for everyone, and there are definitely companies out there that thrive in remote or hybrid setups,"" he wrote in the email. ""', 'But that’s not right for our type of business, and won’t help us fully realize our potential as a company.""']",0.1270910239503675,"The company culture at Mining Resources also extends to Mr Ellison's views on parents, with the company building a day-care centre on site big enough for 105 children. """,Mr Ellison is not the only boss to enforce a no work from home policy.,-0.991248220205307,,"But that’s not right for our type of business, and won’t help us fully realize our potential as a company.""",2024-08-29
"Peloton shares soar 35% as turnaround plan takes hold, losses shrink",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/22/peloton-pton-earnings-q4-2024.html,2024-08-22T20:07:22+0000,"In this articlePeloton said Thursday it is digging itself out of the red and eked out a slight sales increase for the first time in nine quarters as it slashed its overall losses. The company's shares spiked 35% on Thursday.The beleaguered connected fitness company, which two board members have run since former CEO Barry McCarthy resigned earlier this year, saw sales grow by 0.2% during its fiscal fourth quarter. While only a modest uptick, it's the first time Peloton posted year-over-year revenue growth since its 2021 holiday quarter. The company also indicated it's ready to focus on profitability over growth with significant cuts to its marketing and sales spending and meaningful increases to free cash flow and adjusted EBITDA. Those cuts helped Peloton narrow its quarterly losses to $30.5 million from $241.1 million in the year-ago period.Here's how the Bike and Tread maker performed compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:For the three-month period that ended June 30, Peloton significantly narrowed its losses. The company posted a loss of $30.5 million, or 8 cents per share, compared with a loss of $241.8 million, or 68 cents per share, a year earlier. Sales rose to $643.6 million, up about 0.2% from $642.1 million a year earlier. That's only a $1.5 million increase, but Peloton did it at a time when sales are typically a bit slower for the company, because the quarter bleeds into the summer when people are more focused on going out and traveling than working out. The last time Peloton delivered year-over-year sales growth was during its holiday season in 2021, which is typically the company's strongest quarter.During the quarter, sales for Peloton's pricy connected fitness hardware fell about 4%, continuing a trend for the company. But subscription revenue rose by 2.3%, and the segment's gross margin increased by 1 percentage point.Though hardware sales were down, Peloton is growing its subscription revenue through the secondary market where people can buy used stationary bikes for a fraction of the cost of a new one. During the quarter, subscription revenue from hardware purchased on the secondary market grew 16% year over year.""We believe a meaningful share of these subscribers are incremental, and they exhibit lower net churn rates than rental subscribers,"" the company said in a letter to shareholders.While hardware sales have hurt Peloton's overall performance, sales for its Tread are growing after it overcame a costly recall. During the quarter, sales from Peloton's treadmill portfolio grew 42% year over year.The company is also seeing some positive signs in its Bike rental program, which allowed it to clear through a glut of inventory. During the quarter, average net monthly paid subscription churn for rentals was down 1.1 percentage points. Demand has been so steady, it no longer has the refurbished inventory levels necessary to supply that side of the program. The company ceased offering its original Bike rental program on Aug. 1 and since then, has seen demand grow for its Bike+ rental, refurbished original Bike sales and financed new Bike sales.""These alternative programs have stronger unit economics than original Bike rental, with more cash paid upfront and a stronger retention profile,"" the company said in its shareholder letter.Ever since Peloton's pandemic heyday came to an end, the company has struggled to generate free cash flow and ensure it has enough assets on its balance sheet to cover its many liabilities. Earlier this year, it announced a sprawling restructuring plan that included cutting 15% of the company's global workforce to achieve $200 million in annualized cost savings by the end of fiscal 2025.Those efforts are starting to bear fruit.During the quarter, Peloton delivered adjusted EBITDA and free cash flow for the second consecutive quarter – a feat it had not pulled off since the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. It posted $70 million of adjusted EBITDA, far more than the $53 million that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount. That metric was up $105 million compared with the year-ago period and $64 million quarter over quarter.Peloton also generated $26 million in free cash flow, compared with negative $74 million in the year-ago period and $8 million in the prior quarter.Improvements to Peloton's balance sheet come after the company completed massive refinancing of its debt that staved off a looming liquidity crunch and pushed out its debt maturities by several years.As far as who will be Peloton's next leader, interim co-CEO Karen Boone said the search is ""well underway"" and they've seen ""no shortage of interest.""""We are far along in the process. We've done a lot of vetting, a lot of conversations, and we've narrowed it down to some very highly qualified candidates,"" Boone said. ""We have some very specific folks in mind at this point.""In her opening remarks, Boone said the company can't speculate on when its next CEO will start. But just before ending the call, she said the new hire will be in place by the time the company next reports earnings, which is expected to be sometime in the fall.""I should probably under-promise here, but I am excited to say that I do believe you will be speaking to and hearing from the new CEO of Peloton on this call next quarter,"" said Boone.For the year ahead, Peloton is planning to invest in its hardware and software to deliver a better user experience, among other initiatives. However, its guidance assumes that investments in these new initiatives ""will not deliver subscriber growth within the fiscal year,"" indicating Peloton may finally be shifting its focus away from growth in favor of profitability and free cash flow generation.""Chris, and I, in partnership with Peloton's strong leadership team, are continuing to make progress on several key strategic priorities, which include aligning our cost structure to the current size of our business to improve profitability, and deliver meaningful free cash flow without requiring growth to get there,"" Boone said on a call with analysts.""We're enthusiastic about our innovative roadmap, but we'll be judicious about deploying marketing dollars until we demonstrate product market fit, and continue to be cautious about marketing spend given the uncertain consumer backdrop, and ongoing macro environment,"" she said.That shift shows in its reductions to sales and marketing spending — an expense that has long dragged down Peloton's balance sheet and has been criticized as being too high for the company's size.During the quarter, Peloton cut sales and marketing spending by $25.5 million, or 19% year over year. It said it expects to continue to make reductions to its marketing budget throughout fiscal 2025.For the current quarter, Peloton is projecting sales to be worse than Wall Street expected but is guiding to higher-than-forecast adjusted EBITDA. The company said it anticipates sales to be between $560 million and $580 million, compared with estimates of $609 million, according to LSEG. It's expecting to post adjusted EBITDA of $50 million to $60 million, compared with estimates of $45 million, according to StreetAccount.StreetAccount analysts had expected the number of connected fitness subscribers to be 2.96 million during the current quarter, but Peloton projects a range of 2.88 million to 2.89 million instead.For the full year, Peloton expects sales to be between $2.4 billion and $2.5 billion, compared with estimates of $2.7 billion, according to LSEG.",CNBC,22/08/2024,"['In this articlePeloton said Thursday it is digging itself out of the red and eked out a slight sales increase for the first time in nine quarters as it slashed its overall losses.', ""The company's shares spiked 35% on Thursday."", 'The beleaguered connected fitness company, which two board members have run since former CEO Barry McCarthy resigned earlier this year, saw sales grow by 0.2% during its fiscal fourth quarter.', ""While only a modest uptick, it's the first time Peloton posted year-over-year revenue growth since its 2021 holiday quarter."", ""The company also indicated it's ready to focus on profitability over growth with significant cuts to its marketing and sales spending and meaningful increases to free cash flow and adjusted EBITDA."", 'Those cuts helped Peloton narrow its quarterly losses to $30.5 million from $241.1 million in the year-ago period.', ""Here's how the Bike and Tread maker performed compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:For the three-month period that ended June 30, Peloton significantly narrowed its losses."", 'The company posted a loss of $30.5 million, or 8 cents per share, compared with a loss of $241.8 million, or 68 cents per share, a year earlier.', 'Sales rose to $643.6 million, up about 0.2% from $642.1 million a year earlier.', ""That's only a $1.5 million increase, but Peloton did it at a time when sales are typically a bit slower for the company, because the quarter bleeds into the summer when people are more focused on going out and traveling than working out."", ""The last time Peloton delivered year-over-year sales growth was during its holiday season in 2021, which is typically the company's strongest quarter."", ""During the quarter, sales for Peloton's pricy connected fitness hardware fell about 4%, continuing a trend for the company."", ""But subscription revenue rose by 2.3%, and the segment's gross margin increased by 1 percentage point."", 'Though hardware sales were down, Peloton is growing its subscription revenue through the secondary market where people can buy used stationary bikes for a fraction of the cost of a new one.', 'During the quarter, subscription revenue from hardware purchased on the secondary market grew 16% year over year.', '""We believe a meaningful share of these subscribers are incremental, and they exhibit lower net churn rates than rental subscribers,"" the company said in a letter to shareholders.', ""While hardware sales have hurt Peloton's overall performance, sales for its Tread are growing after it overcame a costly recall."", ""During the quarter, sales from Peloton's treadmill portfolio grew 42% year over year."", 'The company is also seeing some positive signs in its Bike rental program, which allowed it to clear through a glut of inventory.', 'During the quarter, average net monthly paid subscription churn for rentals was down 1.1 percentage points.', 'Demand has been so steady, it no longer has the refurbished inventory levels necessary to supply that side of the program.', 'The company ceased offering its original Bike rental program on Aug. 1 and since then, has seen demand grow for its Bike+ rental, refurbished original Bike sales and financed new Bike sales.', '""These alternative programs have stronger unit economics than original Bike rental, with more cash paid upfront and a stronger retention profile,"" the company said in its shareholder letter.', ""Ever since Peloton's pandemic heyday came to an end, the company has struggled to generate free cash flow and ensure it has enough assets on its balance sheet to cover its many liabilities."", ""Earlier this year, it announced a sprawling restructuring plan that included cutting 15% of the company's global workforce to achieve $200 million in annualized cost savings by the end of fiscal 2025.Those efforts are starting to bear fruit."", 'During the quarter, Peloton delivered adjusted EBITDA and free cash flow for the second consecutive quarter – a feat it had not pulled off since the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.', 'It posted $70 million of adjusted EBITDA, far more than the $53 million that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount.', 'That metric was up $105 million compared with the year-ago period and $64 million quarter over quarter.', 'Peloton also generated $26 million in free cash flow, compared with negative $74 million in the year-ago period and $8 million in the prior quarter.', ""Improvements to Peloton's balance sheet come after the company completed massive refinancing of its debt that staved off a looming liquidity crunch and pushed out its debt maturities by several years."", 'As far as who will be Peloton\'s next leader, interim co-CEO Karen Boone said the search is ""well underway"" and they\'ve seen ""no shortage of interest.', '""""We are far along in the process.', 'We\'ve done a lot of vetting, a lot of conversations, and we\'ve narrowed it down to some very highly qualified candidates,"" Boone said. ""', 'We have some very specific folks in mind at this point.', '""In her opening remarks, Boone said the company can\'t speculate on when its next CEO will start.', 'But just before ending the call, she said the new hire will be in place by the time the company next reports earnings, which is expected to be sometime in the fall.', '""I should probably under-promise here, but I am excited to say that I do believe you will be speaking to and hearing from the new CEO of Peloton on this call next quarter,"" said Boone.', 'For the year ahead, Peloton is planning to invest in its hardware and software to deliver a better user experience, among other initiatives.', 'However, its guidance assumes that investments in these new initiatives ""will not deliver subscriber growth within the fiscal year,"" indicating Peloton may finally be shifting its focus away from growth in favor of profitability and free cash flow generation.', '""Chris, and I, in partnership with Peloton\'s strong leadership team, are continuing to make progress on several key strategic priorities, which include aligning our cost structure to the current size of our business to improve profitability, and deliver meaningful free cash flow without requiring growth to get there,"" Boone said on a call with analysts.', '""We\'re enthusiastic about our innovative roadmap, but we\'ll be judicious about deploying marketing dollars until we demonstrate product market fit, and continue to be cautious about marketing spend given the uncertain consumer backdrop, and ongoing macro environment,"" she said.', ""That shift shows in its reductions to sales and marketing spending — an expense that has long dragged down Peloton's balance sheet and has been criticized as being too high for the company's size."", 'During the quarter, Peloton cut sales and marketing spending by $25.5 million, or 19% year over year.', 'It said it expects to continue to make reductions to its marketing budget throughout fiscal 2025.For the current quarter, Peloton is projecting sales to be worse than Wall Street expected but is guiding to higher-than-forecast adjusted EBITDA.', 'The company said it anticipates sales to be between $560 million and $580 million, compared with estimates of $609 million, according to LSEG.', ""It's expecting to post adjusted EBITDA of $50 million to $60 million, compared with estimates of $45 million, according to StreetAccount."", 'StreetAccount analysts had expected the number of connected fitness subscribers to be 2.96 million during the current quarter, but Peloton projects a range of 2.88 million to 2.89 million instead.', 'For the full year, Peloton expects sales to be between $2.4 billion and $2.5 billion, compared with estimates of $2.7 billion, according to LSEG.']",0.1329421236166253,"""Chris, and I, in partnership with Peloton's strong leadership team, are continuing to make progress on several key strategic priorities, which include aligning our cost structure to the current size of our business to improve profitability, and deliver meaningful free cash flow without requiring growth to get there,"" Boone said on a call with analysts.",Those cuts helped Peloton narrow its quarterly losses to $30.5 million from $241.1 million in the year-ago period.,0.5970576956868172,"During the quarter, sales from Peloton's treadmill portfolio grew 42% year over year.","It said it expects to continue to make reductions to its marketing budget throughout fiscal 2025.For the current quarter, Peloton is projecting sales to be worse than Wall Street expected but is guiding to higher-than-forecast adjusted EBITDA.",2024-08-29
Weekend strikes by LNER train drivers called off,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cy4lwde3l73o,2024-08-29T17:52:53.929Z,"Train driver strikes at London North Eastern Railway (LNER) have been called off following last-ditch talks between union and company officials. Some 450 drivers at the company had planned to walk out every weekend until mid-November over what the union said were broken agreements. However, Aslef told the BBC late on Thursday a ""resolution"" had been reached and confirmed drivers would ""now report for duty as normal"". LNER said it would look to ""strengthen"" its timetable for this weekend having planned fewer services. LNER, which operates services between Edinburgh and London on the East Coast Mainline, had warned that trains would be ""extremely busy"" due to the reduced timetable. It advised passengers to still check bookings before travelling. The company, which is run by the government, operates trains to and from London King's Cross station and also through major cities including Newcastle, York and Durham. Aslef originally announced the strikes earlier this month, with the first action scheduled to take place from this weekend, and every following one until 10 November. The dispute between LNER and Aslef was separate to the long-running row over pay between drivers and all 16 train companies in England, which could soon be resolved following a new pay offer. The union accused LNER of ""breaking agreements"" on working practices, which officials said included driver managers driving trains and ""improper use"" of overtime working. Mick Whelan, general secretary of Aslef, said the union was ""pleased to have finally resolved this long-standing issue with LNER’s abuse of our agreements"". He said the union would ""continue to campaign for a fully-staffed railway that does not rely on excessive use of driver overtime"". An LNER spokesperson described the talks as ""constructive"" and said it was pleased the strikes had been called off. Transport Secretary Louise Haigh welcomed the resolution, which she said had come at ""no extra cost to the taxpayer"". Various railway strikes have led to cancelled services and disruption for passengers for more than two years. But a breakthrough between the parties was made earlier this month when Aslef revealed its members will vote on a fresh pay deal. The new offer is for a 5% backdated pay rise for 2022/23, a 4.75% rise for 23/24, and 4.5% increase for 24/25. ",BBC,29/08/2024,"['Train driver strikes at London North Eastern Railway (LNER) have been called off following last-ditch talks between union and company officials.', 'Some 450 drivers at the company had planned to walk out every weekend until mid-November over what the union said were broken agreements.', 'However, Aslef told the BBC late on Thursday a ""resolution"" had been reached and confirmed drivers would ""now report for duty as normal"".', 'LNER said it would look to ""strengthen"" its timetable for this weekend having planned fewer services.', 'LNER, which operates services between Edinburgh and London on the East Coast Mainline, had warned that trains would be ""extremely busy"" due to the reduced timetable.', 'It advised passengers to still check bookings before travelling.', ""The company, which is run by the government, operates trains to and from London King's Cross station and also through major cities including Newcastle, York and Durham."", 'Aslef originally announced the strikes earlier this month, with the first action scheduled to take place from this weekend, and every following one until 10 November.', 'The dispute between LNER and Aslef was separate to the long-running row over pay between drivers and all 16 train companies in England, which could soon be resolved following a new pay offer.', 'The union accused LNER of ""breaking agreements"" on working practices, which officials said included driver managers driving trains and ""improper use"" of overtime working.', 'Mick Whelan, general secretary of Aslef, said the union was ""pleased to have finally resolved this long-standing issue with LNER’s abuse of our agreements"".', 'He said the union would ""continue to campaign for a fully-staffed railway that does not rely on excessive use of driver overtime"".', 'An LNER spokesperson described the talks as ""constructive"" and said it was pleased the strikes had been called off.', 'Transport Secretary Louise Haigh welcomed the resolution, which she said had come at ""no extra cost to the taxpayer"".', 'Various railway strikes have led to cancelled services and disruption for passengers for more than two years.', 'But a breakthrough between the parties was made earlier this month when Aslef revealed its members will vote on a fresh pay deal.', 'The new offer is for a 5% backdated pay rise for 2022/23, a 4.75% rise for 23/24, and 4.5% increase for 24/25.']",-0.0454135780190486,But a breakthrough between the parties was made earlier this month when Aslef revealed its members will vote on a fresh pay deal.,Various railway strikes have led to cancelled services and disruption for passengers for more than two years.,-0.0556250864809209,"The new offer is for a 5% backdated pay rise for 2022/23, a 4.75% rise for 23/24, and 4.5% increase for 24/25.","The union accused LNER of ""breaking agreements"" on working practices, which officials said included driver managers driving trains and ""improper use"" of overtime working.",2024-08-29
UK government will not fight Rosebank oil field legal challenge,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c30393m4z50o,2024-08-29T07:45:36.285Z,"The UK government will not fight a legal challenge against the decision to grant consent to drill in untapped oil and gas fields off Shetland and Aberdeen.  Greenpeace and Uplift jointly brought judicial reviews to stop the development of the Rosebank and Jackdaw fields. It comes after the Supreme Court ruled that a UK council should have considered the climate impact of new oil wells – setting a precedent for all regulators. The government's decision does not mean the licences for Jackdaw and Rosebank have been withdrawn. But if the judicial review backs the environmental groups, operators would need to resubmit environmental assessments.   This would create more delay and additional costs for Rosebank's owners, Equinor and Ithaca Energy, and Jackdaw's owner, Shell. The UK government has pledged that oil and gas would play an important role in the economy ""for decades to come"" as the UK transitions to clean energy. It is planning to consult later this year on its manifesto position not to issue new oil and gas licences to explore new fields. Energy Minister Michael Shanks said: “We will consult at pace on new guidance that takes into account the Supreme Court’s ruling on environmental impact assessments, to enable the industry to plan, secure jobs, and invest in our economy.” Environmental groups welcomed the government’s decision.  Greenpeace said the licences should not have been granted without being ""properly assessed"" for their climate impact. Mel Evans, Greenpeace UK climate team leader, said: “The two new fields combined would generate a vast amount of emissions while doing nothing to lower energy bills.  ""The only real winners from giving them the greenlight would be multi-billion-pound oil giants.” Tessa Khan, executive director of Uplift, said it was a “common sense” decision. She told BBC Radio Scotland: ""Rosebank is a terrible proposition economically, from an energy-security perspective and environmentally for the UK public.  ""No government should be prepared to approve a project like that."" The government's decision comes after the Supreme Court ruled in June that the way fossil fuels are used by consumers – known as Scope 3 emissions – have to be considered when environmental impact assessments are being carried out. The decision could still be challenged by oil companies. Industry body Offshore Energies UK urged the government to conduct its consultation “at pace”, warning that uncertainty “further impacts investor confidence”. A spokesperson added: “We remain absolutely committed to operations in the North Sea that meet the UK's net zero ambitions and support energy security.” Rosebank off Shetland, owned by Norwegian energy giant Equinor and British firm Ithaca Energy, is the UK's largest untapped oil field. Consent for drilling there was granted in September last year. Scotland’s then first minister Humza Yousaf said he was ""disappointed"" at the decision and accused Downing Street of ""climate denial"". Shell’s proposals to develop Jackdaw, east of Aberdeen, were approved in 2022 after initially being rejected on environmental grounds. Both Equinor and Shell said they would carefully consider the implications of the government’s announcement. An Equinor spokesperson said: “Rosebank is a vital project for the UK and is bringing benefits in terms of investment, job creation and energy security."" A Shell spokesperson said: “We believe the Jackdaw field remains an important development for the UK, providing fuel to heat 1.4 million homes and supporting energy security, as other older gas fields reach the end of production.” First things first, this does not mean the end for either Jackdaw or Rosebank, but it is another significant victory for environmental groups.   They key is whether the emissions from consuming the oil and gas produced is considered in environmental impact assessments. Historically, those Scope 3 emissions were disregarded, but July's Supreme Court ruling changed that.  Now, if the judicial review at two of the most prominent North Sea developments rules in favour of the green lobby, operators will have to resubmit environmental impact assessments to be considered afresh. The regulators could then stick to their guns and approve it again.  But this creates more delay and significant additional costs - which environmentalists hope will make fossil fuels less appealing to investors. In its draft energy strategy, published last year, the Scottish government confirmed a ""presumption against"" any new oil and gas exploration. But First Minister John Swinney said in June that North Sea oil and gas would still be needed ""for a period of time"" to help the country meet its net-zero emissions target by 2045. Scotland's acting Energy Secrertary, Gillian Martin, said ministers would carefully consider the UK government announcement.  She noted that offshore oil and gas licensing is reserved to Westminster, but said decisions should be made on a “case by case basis and include rigorous assessments of both climate compatibility and energy security”. Following the Supreme Court ruling, the government also walked away from a legal challenge against a new coal mine in Cumbria approved under the previous Conservative administration. ",BBC,29/08/2024,"['The UK government will not fight a legal challenge against the decision to grant consent to drill in untapped oil and gas fields off Shetland and Aberdeen.', 'Greenpeace and Uplift jointly brought judicial reviews to stop the development of the Rosebank and Jackdaw fields.', 'It comes after the Supreme Court ruled that a UK council should have considered the climate impact of new oil wells – setting a precedent for all regulators.', ""The government's decision does not mean the licences for Jackdaw and Rosebank have been withdrawn."", 'But if the judicial review backs the environmental groups, operators would need to resubmit environmental assessments.', ""This would create more delay and additional costs for Rosebank's owners, Equinor and Ithaca Energy, and Jackdaw's owner, Shell."", 'The UK government has pledged that oil and gas would play an important role in the economy ""for decades to come"" as the UK transitions to clean energy.', 'It is planning to consult later this year on its manifesto position not to issue new oil and gas licences to explore new fields.', 'Energy Minister Michael Shanks said: “We will consult at pace on new guidance that takes into account the Supreme Court’s ruling on environmental impact assessments, to enable the industry to plan, secure jobs, and invest in our economy.”', 'Environmental groups welcomed the government’s decision.', 'Greenpeace said the licences should not have been granted without being ""properly assessed"" for their climate impact.', 'Mel Evans, Greenpeace UK climate team leader, said: “The two new fields combined would generate a vast amount of emissions while doing nothing to lower energy bills. ""', 'The only real winners from giving them the greenlight would be multi-billion-pound oil giants.”', 'Tessa Khan, executive director of Uplift, said it was a “common sense” decision.', 'She told BBC Radio Scotland: ""Rosebank is a terrible proposition economically, from an energy-security perspective and environmentally for the UK public. ""', 'No government should be prepared to approve a project like that.""', ""The government's decision comes after the Supreme Court ruled in June that the way fossil fuels are used by consumers – known as Scope 3 emissions – have to be considered when environmental impact assessments are being carried out."", 'The decision could still be challenged by oil companies.', 'Industry body Offshore Energies UK urged the government to conduct its consultation “at pace”, warning that uncertainty “further impacts investor confidence”.', ""A spokesperson added: “We remain absolutely committed to operations in the North Sea that meet the UK's net zero ambitions and support energy security.”"", ""Rosebank off Shetland, owned by Norwegian energy giant Equinor and British firm Ithaca Energy, is the UK's largest untapped oil field."", 'Consent for drilling there was granted in September last year.', 'Scotland’s then first minister Humza Yousaf said he was ""disappointed"" at the decision and accused Downing Street of ""climate denial"".', 'Shell’s proposals to develop Jackdaw, east of Aberdeen, were approved in 2022 after initially being rejected on environmental grounds.', 'Both Equinor and Shell said they would carefully consider the implications of the government’s announcement.', 'An Equinor spokesperson said: “Rosebank is a vital project for the UK and is bringing benefits in terms of investment, job creation and energy security.""', 'A Shell spokesperson said: “We believe the Jackdaw field remains an important development for the UK, providing fuel to heat 1.4 million homes and supporting energy security, as other older gas fields reach the end of production.”', 'First things first, this does not mean the end for either Jackdaw or Rosebank, but it is another significant victory for environmental groups.', 'They key is whether the emissions from consuming the oil and gas produced is considered in environmental impact assessments.', ""Historically, those Scope 3 emissions were disregarded, but July's Supreme Court ruling changed that."", 'Now, if the judicial review at two of the most prominent North Sea developments rules in favour of the green lobby, operators will have to resubmit environmental impact assessments to be considered afresh.', 'The regulators could then stick to their guns and approve it again.', 'But this creates more delay and significant additional costs - which environmentalists hope will make fossil fuels less appealing to investors.', 'In its draft energy strategy, published last year, the Scottish government confirmed a ""presumption against"" any new oil and gas exploration.', 'But First Minister John Swinney said in June that North Sea oil and gas would still be needed ""for a period of time"" to help the country meet its net-zero emissions target by 2045.', ""Scotland's acting Energy Secrertary, Gillian Martin, said ministers would carefully consider the UK government announcement."", 'She noted that offshore oil and gas licensing is reserved to Westminster, but said decisions should be made on a “case by case basis and include rigorous assessments of both climate compatibility and energy security”.', 'Following the Supreme Court ruling, the government also walked away from a legal challenge against a new coal mine in Cumbria approved under the previous Conservative administration.']",0.3224134278207528,"An Equinor spokesperson said: “Rosebank is a vital project for the UK and is bringing benefits in terms of investment, job creation and energy security.""","Scotland’s then first minister Humza Yousaf said he was ""disappointed"" at the decision and accused Downing Street of ""climate denial"".",-0.2363549023866653,"An Equinor spokesperson said: “Rosebank is a vital project for the UK and is bringing benefits in terms of investment, job creation and energy security.""","Industry body Offshore Energies UK urged the government to conduct its consultation “at pace”, warning that uncertainty “further impacts investor confidence”.",2024-08-29
Foot Locker shares drop 10% despite first comparable sales growth in six quarters,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/28/foot-locker-fl-earnings-q2-2024.html,2024-08-28T20:14:18+0000,"In this articleFoot Locker on Wednesday said comparable sales grew for the first time in six quarters as its efforts to refresh its stores and improve the customer experience continue to bear fruit. The beleaguered sneaker company's same-store sales grew 2.6% during its fiscal second quarter, far better than the 0.7% uptick that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount. Its gross margin also expanded for the first time in more than two years. Despite the positive trends, the company's shares closed more than 10% lower. ""The Lace Up Plan is working,"" CEO Mary Dillon said in a press release, referencing the company's turnaround strategy. ""Our top line trends strengthened as we moved through the quarter, including a solid start to Back-to-School. We were also particularly pleased to deliver stabilization in our Champs Sports banner."" Here's how Foot Locker did compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:In the three-month period that ended Aug. 3, Foot Locker had a loss of $12 million, or 13 cents per share, compared with a loss of $5 million, or 5 cents per share, a year earlier. Excluding one-time items, Foot Locker posted a loss of 5 cents per share. Sales rose to $1.90 billion, up about 2% from $1.86 billion a year earlier. For the current fiscal year, Foot Locker largely maintained its guidance and continues to expect sales to be in a range of a 1% decline to 1% growth from the prior year – better than the 0.4% decline that analysts had expected, according to LSEG. Foot Locker also stood by its adjusted earnings per share guidance. It expects earnings to be between $1.50 and $1.70 – much of that range ahead of the $1.54 that analysts had expected, according to LSEG. Since former Ulta Beauty boss Mary Dillon took the helm of Foot Locker about two years ago, she has worked to transform the company and ensure that it stays relevant in a world where brands aren't as reliant on multibrand retailers as they were in the past. Dillon has worked to repair the company's relationship with its biggest brand partner, Nike, and has also taken a hard look at its sprawling, but aging, store fleet, where the company does about 80% of its sales. The company plans to spend $275 million upgrading its stores this year, and it expects to have two-thirds of its fleet remodeled by the end of fiscal 2025.In an interview with CNBC, Dillon said the store investments are leading to increased conversion, basket size and profitability, and better performance for Foot Locker's women's business.""The reason that we're doing it is that it is working for us, both in terms of enhancing a customer experience and a striper [store employee] experience, but also the financial returns,"" said Dillon. ""The performance is ahead of what we thought.""In a series of new megastores Foot Locker is building in hotspots like New York City and Paris, the retailer is working hand in hand with Nike to develop some portions of the shops.""With Nike, this has been since Day One, a high priority for me, and really building a partnership that isn't just about like, what number of shoes are we going to sell, but how do we think about using consumer insights to mutually grow our businesses together,"" said Dillon. ""For us and Nike, it's about the places that we really connect.""Dillon has also worked to streamline costs at Foot Locker. On Wednesday, the company said it was closing its stores and e-commerce operations in South Korea, Denmark, Norway and Sweden, and will rely on a third party for operations in Greece and Romania, where it plans to expand its reach, according to Dillon. In all, 30 of Foot Locker's 140 stores in the Asia-Pacific region and 629 in Europe will be closed or go under a new operator as part of the changes. Foot Locker's Champs banner, which has been dragging down the company's overall performance, is also showing some signs of improvement. During the quarter, comparable sales were down 3.9%, which is an improvement from the 25.3% decline it saw in the year-ago period.Foot Locker is also planning to move its global headquarters from New York City to St. Petersburg, Florida, in late 2025 and plans to maintain only a limited presence in the Big Apple moving forward. ""The intent of the relocation is to further build on the Company's meaningful presence in St. Petersburg and to enable increased collaboration among teams across banners and functions, while also reducing costs,"" Foot Locker said in a news release. Dillon told CNBC the move will increase margins by 0.2 percentage point by 2027, but the decision wasn't just based on saving money.""We've got a big center of gravity already in St. Pete ... many of our executives are there. A lot of our commercial teams,"" said Dillon. ""We think actually bringing more people together for collaboration is going to matter and that's also part of this. It's not just about saving money. It's about, how do we really continue to build on this momentum?""The company isn't planning to make employees relocate and Dillon, who is based in Chicago, won't be forced to become a super commuter, either.""I am traveling, I would say, 90% of the time, to our teams around the world, and to our brand partners, and to investor meetings and to events,"" said Dillon. ""I spend a good chunk of time in New York, I spend a lot of time in St. Pete, I spend a lot of time in Amsterdam where we have our headquarters, and visiting our brand partners. So I'm planning to keep my primary residence in Chicago, but the way that this has been working is really, I think, working pretty well so we're going to continue to do that.""As it improves stores, products, and the customer experience online and in stores, Foot Locker is managing to drive sales even as its core consumer continues to feel the pressure of consistent inflation and high interest rates – indicating that Dillon's efforts are working. ""We're not expecting our customer to get, like, less pressured or more pressured. We're just trying to say this is a category they care about,"" said Dillon. ""How can Foot Locker be the best to serve their needs? And I think our results are showing that that's working.""As of Tuesday's close, shares of the company are up more than 5% this year, compared with Nike's stock, which has fallen more than 21% in the same time period.Demand has undoubtedly slowed across the retail industry, but consumers are still spending. They're just being far choosier on who they're spending with — which has made execution that much more important. ""Our strategies are building momentum as we look to the remainder of the year,"" said Dillon in a statement. ""I remain confident that we are taking the right actions to position the Company for its next 50 years of profitable growth and create long-term shareholder value.""",CNBC,28/08/2024,"['In this articleFoot Locker on Wednesday said comparable sales grew for the first time in six quarters as its efforts to refresh its stores and improve the customer experience continue to bear fruit.', ""The beleaguered sneaker company's same-store sales grew 2.6% during its fiscal second quarter, far better than the 0.7% uptick that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount."", 'Its gross margin also expanded for the first time in more than two years.', 'Despite the positive trends, the company\'s shares closed more than 10% lower. ""', 'The Lace Up Plan is working,"" CEO Mary Dillon said in a press release, referencing the company\'s turnaround strategy. ""', 'Our top line trends strengthened as we moved through the quarter, including a solid start to Back-to-School.', 'We were also particularly pleased to deliver stabilization in our Champs Sports banner.', '""Here\'s how Foot Locker did compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:In the three-month period that ended Aug. 3, Foot Locker had a loss of $12 million, or 13 cents per share, compared with a loss of $5 million, or 5 cents per share, a year earlier.', 'Excluding one-time items, Foot Locker posted a loss of 5 cents per share.', 'Sales rose to $1.90 billion, up about 2% from $1.86 billion a year earlier.', 'For the current fiscal year, Foot Locker largely maintained its guidance and continues to expect sales to be in a range of a 1% decline to 1% growth from the prior year – better than the 0.4% decline that analysts had expected, according to LSEG.Foot Locker also stood by its adjusted earnings per share guidance.', ""It expects earnings to be between $1.50 and $1.70 – much of that range ahead of the $1.54 that analysts had expected, according to LSEG.Since former Ulta Beauty boss Mary Dillon took the helm of Foot Locker about two years ago, she has worked to transform the company and ensure that it stays relevant in a world where brands aren't as reliant on multibrand retailers as they were in the past."", ""Dillon has worked to repair the company's relationship with its biggest brand partner, Nike, and has also taken a hard look at its sprawling, but aging, store fleet, where the company does about 80% of its sales."", ""The company plans to spend $275 million upgrading its stores this year, and it expects to have two-thirds of its fleet remodeled by the end of fiscal 2025.In an interview with CNBC, Dillon said the store investments are leading to increased conversion, basket size and profitability, and better performance for Foot Locker's women's business."", '""The reason that we\'re doing it is that it is working for us, both in terms of enhancing a customer experience and a striper [store employee] experience, but also the financial returns,"" said Dillon. ""', 'The performance is ahead of what we thought.', '""In a series of new megastores Foot Locker is building in hotspots like New York City and Paris, the retailer is working hand in hand with Nike to develop some portions of the shops.', '""With Nike, this has been since Day One, a high priority for me, and really building a partnership that isn\'t just about like, what number of shoes are we going to sell, but how do we think about using consumer insights to mutually grow our businesses together,"" said Dillon. ""', ""For us and Nike, it's about the places that we really connect."", '""Dillon has also worked to streamline costs at Foot Locker.', 'On Wednesday, the company said it was closing its stores and e-commerce operations in South Korea, Denmark, Norway and Sweden, and will rely on a third party for operations in Greece and Romania, where it plans to expand its reach, according to Dillon.', ""In all, 30 of Foot Locker's 140 stores in the Asia-Pacific region and 629 in Europe will be closed or go under a new operator as part of the changes."", ""Foot Locker's Champs banner, which has been dragging down the company's overall performance, is also showing some signs of improvement."", 'During the quarter, comparable sales were down 3.9%, which is an improvement from the 25.3% decline it saw in the year-ago period.', 'Foot Locker is also planning to move its global headquarters from New York City to St. Petersburg, Florida, in late 2025 and plans to maintain only a limited presence in the Big Apple moving forward.', '""The intent of the relocation is to further build on the Company\'s meaningful presence in St. Petersburg and to enable increased collaboration among teams across banners and functions, while also reducing costs,"" Foot Locker said in a news release.', ""Dillon told CNBC the move will increase margins by 0.2 percentage point by 2027, but the decision wasn't just based on saving money."", '""We\'ve got a big center of gravity already in St. Pete ... many of our executives are there.', 'A lot of our commercial teams,"" said Dillon. ""', ""We think actually bringing more people together for collaboration is going to matter and that's also part of this."", ""It's not just about saving money."", 'It\'s about, how do we really continue to build on this momentum?""The company isn\'t planning to make employees relocate and Dillon, who is based in Chicago, won\'t be forced to become a super commuter, either.', '""I am traveling, I would say, 90% of the time, to our teams around the world, and to our brand partners, and to investor meetings and to events,"" said Dillon. ""', 'I spend a good chunk of time in New York, I spend a lot of time in St. Pete, I spend a lot of time in Amsterdam where we have our headquarters, and visiting our brand partners.', ""So I'm planning to keep my primary residence in Chicago, but the way that this has been working is really, I think, working pretty well so we're going to continue to do that."", '""As it improves stores, products, and the customer experience online and in stores, Foot Locker is managing to drive sales even as its core consumer continues to feel the pressure of consistent inflation and high interest rates – indicating that Dillon\'s efforts are working.', '""We\'re not expecting our customer to get, like, less pressured or more pressured.', 'We\'re just trying to say this is a category they care about,"" said Dillon. ""', 'How can Foot Locker be the best to serve their needs?', ""And I think our results are showing that that's working."", '""As of Tuesday\'s close, shares of the company are up more than 5% this year, compared with Nike\'s stock, which has fallen more than 21% in the same time period.', 'Demand has undoubtedly slowed across the retail industry, but consumers are still spending.', ""They're just being far choosier on who they're spending with — which has made execution that much more important."", '""Our strategies are building momentum as we look to the remainder of the year,"" said Dillon in a statement. ""', 'I remain confident that we are taking the right actions to position the Company for its next 50 years of profitable growth and create long-term shareholder value.""']",0.242355211483859,"I remain confident that we are taking the right actions to position the Company for its next 50 years of profitable growth and create long-term shareholder value.""",Its gross margin also expanded for the first time in more than two years.,0.5484147248444734,Its gross margin also expanded for the first time in more than two years.,"Despite the positive trends, the company's shares closed more than 10% lower. """,2024-08-29
Grand Canyon National Park hotels to close after waterpipe fails,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cdd7n25lqjpo,2024-08-29T21:36:02.743Z,"All hotels within the Grand Canyon National Park will be closed and camping will be restricted in advance of one of the busiest holiday weekends of the year due to problems with the park’s water supply. The US National Park Service said in a statement that hotels would be closed starting on Thursday night. Only “dry camping” – meaning campers will have to supply their own water – will be allowed. The park relies on the ageing Transcanyon Waterline, which has suffered four recent significant breaks, cutting off water to the park. Park officials said there are a total of around 950 hotel rooms located inside the park but declined to comment further when reached on Thursday. The park will remain open to day trippers over the US Labor Day weekend, and visitor services such as food outlets, a post office and a medical clinic will still operate. Limited water will be available via spigots and in bathrooms, and park officials said campers should carry all water supplies with them or be able to treat water from streams or the Colorado River. No campfires will be allowed on the South Rim and inner canyon areas. “These measures are crucial for ensuring the safety and sustainability of water resources,” the park service said in a statement.  ""The goal is to restore full operational status for overnight guests on the South Rim as quickly as possible.” However, park officials did not give a timeline for restoring the water supply. Hotels located outside the park in nearby Arizona towns are not affected. Tourists planning to visit commented about scrambling for alternative places to stay on the national park’s Facebook page. “I will look for accommodations outside the park. Sorry this is going on, but we won't let it stop us!” one wrote. Another commented: “I ended up booking outside of the park and plan on canceling my [National Park Service] reservation. I have spent tons of money on this trip which includes other stops along the way.” High temperatures in the park on Thursday are expected to range from 28C (84F) at the South Rim to 38C (100F) in the Inner Canyon. The 12 1/2 mile (20km) Transcanyon Waterline was originally built in the 1960s and according to the National Park Service “has exceeded its expected lifespan and experiences frequent failures”. Park officials said they began to experience water supply issues on 8 July and that currently no water is being pumped to either the South or North Rim – two of the park’s main tourist hubs. There have been more than 85 major breaks in the pipeline since 2010, and the park service has recently started a $208m (£158m) reconstruction project due to be completed in 2027. Around six million people visit Grand Canyon National Park each year, and park grounds are home to around 2,500 year-round residents. ",BBC,29/08/2024,"['All hotels within the Grand Canyon National Park will be closed and camping will be restricted in advance of one of the busiest holiday weekends of the year due to problems with the park’s water supply.', 'The US National Park Service said in a statement that hotels would be closed starting on Thursday night.', 'Only “dry camping” – meaning campers will have to supply their own water – will be allowed.', 'The park relies on the ageing Transcanyon Waterline, which has suffered four recent significant breaks, cutting off water to the park.', 'Park officials said there are a total of around 950 hotel rooms located inside the park but declined to comment further when reached on Thursday.', 'The park will remain open to day trippers over the US Labor Day weekend, and visitor services such as food outlets, a post office and a medical clinic will still operate.', 'Limited water will be available via spigots and in bathrooms, and park officials said campers should carry all water supplies with them or be able to treat water from streams or the Colorado River.', 'No campfires will be allowed on the South Rim and inner canyon areas. “', 'These measures are crucial for ensuring the safety and sustainability of water resources,” the park service said in a statement. ""', 'The goal is to restore full operational status for overnight guests on the South Rim as quickly as possible.”', 'However, park officials did not give a timeline for restoring the water supply.', 'Hotels located outside the park in nearby Arizona towns are not affected.', 'Tourists planning to visit commented about scrambling for alternative places to stay on the national park’s Facebook page. “', 'I will look for accommodations outside the park.', ""Sorry this is going on, but we won't let it stop us!”"", 'one wrote.', 'Another commented: “I ended up booking outside of the park and plan on canceling my [National Park Service] reservation.', 'I have spent tons of money on this trip which includes other stops along the way.”', 'High temperatures in the park on Thursday are expected to range from 28C (84F) at the South Rim to 38C (100F) in the Inner Canyon.', 'The 12 1/2 mile (20km) Transcanyon Waterline was originally built in the 1960s and according to the National Park Service “has exceeded its expected lifespan and experiences frequent failures”.', 'Park officials said they began to experience water supply issues on 8 July and that currently no water is being pumped to either the South or North Rim – two of the park’s main tourist hubs.', 'There have been more than 85 major breaks in the pipeline since 2010, and the park service has recently started a $208m (£158m) reconstruction project due to be completed in 2027.', 'Around six million people visit Grand Canyon National Park each year, and park grounds are home to around 2,500 year-round residents.']",0.0033418204327335,"These measures are crucial for ensuring the safety and sustainability of water resources,” the park service said in a statement. ""","Sorry this is going on, but we won't let it stop us!”",-0.6021321912606558,The goal is to restore full operational status for overnight guests on the South Rim as quickly as possible.”,The 12 1/2 mile (20km) Transcanyon Waterline was originally built in the 1960s and according to the National Park Service “has exceeded its expected lifespan and experiences frequent failures”.,2024-08-29
Keir Starmer: Reset with EU does not mean reversing Brexit,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvg3pxz4334o,2024-08-27T21:30:57.653Z,"The government's desire to reset relations with the European Union does not mean reversing Brexit, Sir Keir Starmer has said.  The prime minister said he wanted a closer relationship with Europe, but the UK had no plans for a youth mobility scheme, which could give young people in the EU the right to live and work in the UK, and vice versa.  Sir Keir was speaking at a joint news conference with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin, after the pair began talks on a new co-operation agreement between the two nations.   The PM said the agreement aimed to boost trade, create jobs and deliver economic growth in both countries.  The two leaders hope to sign a treaty, covering areas including defence, energy security, science and technology, by early next year.  During the visit, they also agreed a joint action plan to tackle illegal migration and smuggling gangs by sharing intelligence and data.  Sir Keir has previously said he will seek a better deal on trade with the EU than the one negotiated by Boris Johnson in late 2020. However, it remains unclear whether Brussels would entertain major changes to the UK's existing Brexit trade deal, which is due to be reviewed in 2026. Taking questions from journalists after the news conference, Sir Keir was pressed over what concessions the UK would have to offer to secure an improved deal.  The PM said he was ""absolutely clear"" the government wanted to reset relations with Europe.  He added: ""That does not mean reversing Brexit or re-entering the single market or the customs union. ""But it does mean a closer relationship on a number of fronts, including the economy, including defence, including exchanges."" The single market enables goods, service and people to move freely between member states, with countries applying many common rules and standards.  The customs union is an agreement not to charge taxes called tariffs on goods coming from other EU countries, and to charge the same tariffs as each other on goods coming from outside the EU.  Asked if the UK would allow freedom of movement for young Germans, the PM said: ""We do not have plans for a youth mobility scheme but do have plans for closer relationship between us and the EU."" A youth mobility scheme - which would make it easier for EU citizens aged 18 to 30 to study and work in the UK for a limited period, with young Britons allowed to do the same in Europe in return - has been proposed by the EU.  Speaking after the news conference, Sir Keir insisted the planned treaty with Germany had ""nothing to do with youth mobility"". But when asked about the possibility of student exchanges between the UK and Germany, the prime minister said he wanted a ""close relationship"" including ""education and cultural exchange"". Sir Keir stressed that he and Mr Scholz ""didn’t go into the details of that today"", focusing more on illegal immigration. In his opening remarks at the news conference, Mr Scholz lamented how relations between Britons and Germans had waned after Brexit and the Covid pandemic, adding that he and Sir Keir ""share similar views on this"" and want to ""intensify the exchanges"". Earlier Nils Schmid, foreign affairs spokesperson for Mr Scholz's Social Democratic Party, told the BBC a scheme making it easier for young Germans to travel to the UK to study was a ""major feature of our wish list"". He insisted such a scheme would not be about ""immigration in a general sense"", but ""stays of limited duration"" for educational programmes, student exchanges or work experience. Conservative shadow business secretary Kevin Hollinrake accused Sir Keir of ""cosying up to politicians in Germany and calling for a closer relationship with Europe"". ""Starmer has spent his entire political career plotting to reverse Brexit, so it doesn't take a genius to see where the new Labour government is headed,"" he added.  Liberal Democrat foreign affairs spokeswoman Layla Moran said the talks with Mr Scholz were ""a positive step forward after years of the Conservatives trashing the UK's relationship with Europe"".  ""But the new government needs to be more ambitious about rebuilding stronger ties with our European allies,"" she added.   ""That should start with agreeing a Youth Mobility Scheme giving young people the opportunity to easily live and work across the continent."" ",BBC,27/08/2024,"[""The government's desire to reset relations with the European Union does not mean reversing Brexit, Sir Keir Starmer has said."", 'The prime minister said he wanted a closer relationship with Europe, but the UK had no plans for a youth mobility scheme, which could give young people in the EU the right to live and work in the UK, and vice versa.', 'Sir Keir was speaking at a joint news conference with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin, after the pair began talks on a new co-operation agreement between the two nations.', 'The PM said the agreement aimed to boost trade, create jobs and deliver economic growth in both countries.', 'The two leaders hope to sign a treaty, covering areas including defence, energy security, science and technology, by early next year.', 'During the visit, they also agreed a joint action plan to tackle illegal migration and smuggling gangs by sharing intelligence and data.', 'Sir Keir has previously said he will seek a better deal on trade with the EU than the one negotiated by Boris Johnson in late 2020.', ""However, it remains unclear whether Brussels would entertain major changes to the UK's existing Brexit trade deal, which is due to be reviewed in 2026."", 'Taking questions from journalists after the news conference, Sir Keir was pressed over what concessions the UK would have to offer to secure an improved deal.', 'The PM said he was ""absolutely clear"" the government wanted to reset relations with Europe.', 'He added: ""That does not mean reversing Brexit or re-entering the single market or the customs union. ""', 'But it does mean a closer relationship on a number of fronts, including the economy, including defence, including exchanges.""', 'The single market enables goods, service and people to move freely between member states, with countries applying many common rules and standards.', 'The customs union is an agreement not to charge taxes called tariffs on goods coming from other EU countries, and to charge the same tariffs as each other on goods coming from outside the EU.', 'Asked if the UK would allow freedom of movement for young Germans, the PM said: ""We do not have plans for a youth mobility scheme but do have plans for closer relationship between us and the EU.""', 'A youth mobility scheme - which would make it easier for EU citizens aged 18 to 30 to study and work in the UK for a limited period, with young Britons allowed to do the same in Europe in return - has been proposed by the EU.', 'Speaking after the news conference, Sir Keir insisted the planned treaty with Germany had ""nothing to do with youth mobility"".', 'But when asked about the possibility of student exchanges between the UK and Germany, the prime minister said he wanted a ""close relationship"" including ""education and cultural exchange"".', 'Sir Keir stressed that he and Mr Scholz ""didn’t go into the details of that today"", focusing more on illegal immigration.', 'In his opening remarks at the news conference, Mr Scholz lamented how relations between Britons and Germans had waned after Brexit and the Covid pandemic, adding that he and Sir Keir ""share similar views on this"" and want to ""intensify the exchanges"".', 'Earlier Nils Schmid, foreign affairs spokesperson for Mr Scholz\'s Social Democratic Party, told the BBC a scheme making it easier for young Germans to travel to the UK to study was a ""major feature of our wish list"".', 'He insisted such a scheme would not be about ""immigration in a general sense"", but ""stays of limited duration"" for educational programmes, student exchanges or work experience.', 'Conservative shadow business secretary Kevin Hollinrake accused Sir Keir of ""cosying up to politicians in Germany and calling for a closer relationship with Europe"". ""', 'Starmer has spent his entire political career plotting to reverse Brexit, so it doesn\'t take a genius to see where the new Labour government is headed,"" he added.', 'Liberal Democrat foreign affairs spokeswoman Layla Moran said the talks with Mr Scholz were ""a positive step forward after years of the Conservatives trashing the UK\'s relationship with Europe"". ""', 'But the new government needs to be more ambitious about rebuilding stronger ties with our European allies,"" she added. ""', 'That should start with agreeing a Youth Mobility Scheme giving young people the opportunity to easily live and work across the continent.""']",0.2743846650954506,"The PM said the agreement aimed to boost trade, create jobs and deliver economic growth in both countries.","Sir Keir stressed that he and Mr Scholz ""didn’t go into the details of that today"", focusing more on illegal immigration.",0.7492219358682632,"The PM said the agreement aimed to boost trade, create jobs and deliver economic growth in both countries.","In his opening remarks at the news conference, Mr Scholz lamented how relations between Britons and Germans had waned after Brexit and the Covid pandemic, adding that he and Sir Keir ""share similar views on this"" and want to ""intensify the exchanges"".",2024-08-29
AI chip giant Nvidia's shares sink despite record sales of $30bn,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c984jrj24wyo,2024-08-29T00:13:57.887Z,"Shares in Nvidia have fallen despite the artificial intelligence (AI) chip giant comfortably beating expectations after more than doubling its sales. Nvidia announced record revenues of $30bn (£24.7bn) over a three-month period.  The company has been one of the biggest beneficiaries of the AI boom, with its stock market value soaring to more than $3 trillion. But while analysts have grown used to Nvidia producing ""spectacular"" sales growth, the latest results indicate ""that rate of growth was starting to slow,"" said Simon French, head of research at Panmure Liberum. Analysts had forecast sales growth of $28.7bn for the three months to 28 July. Nvidia surpassed this with revenues increasing by 122% compared to the same period last year.  But following the release of the results, Nvidia's share price fell by 6% in after-hours trading in New York on Wednesday.  On Thursday, its shares were down about 2% in early trading, but its stock remains about 150% up so far in 2024, making it one of the big winners in the US market. ""It’s less about just beating estimates now,"" said Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown. ""Markets expect them to be shattered and it’s the scale of the beat today that looks to have disappointed a touch.""  Announcing the latest results, Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang said: ""Generative AI will revolutionise every industry."" But Mr French told the BBC: ""If you’re going to raise expectations that high then you’ve got to keep growing at spectacular rates."" He added that while its current AI chip - called Hopper - is selling well, the next generation Blackwell chip ""has faced some production delays and that perhaps is one of the reasons why Wall Street after hours sold off the stock"". Nvidia's results have become a quarterly event which sends Wall Street into a frenzy of buying and selling shares. A ""watch party"" had been planned in Manhattan, according to the Wall Street Journal, while Mr Huang, famed for his signature leather jacket, has been dubbed the ""Taylor Swift of tech"". Alvin Nguyen, senior analyst at Forrester, told the BBC both Nvidia and Mr Huang have become the ""face of AI"". This has helped the company so far, but it could also hurt its valuation if AI fails to deliver after firms have invested billions of dollars in the technology, Mr Nguyen said. ""A thousand use cases for AI is not enough. You need a million."" Mr Nguyen also said Nvidia's first-mover advantage means it has market-leading products, which its customers have spent decades using and has a ""software ecosystem"". He said that rivals, such as Intel, could ""chip away"" at Nvidia's market share if they developed a better product, though he said this would take time. ",BBC,29/08/2024,"['Shares in Nvidia have fallen despite the artificial intelligence (AI) chip giant comfortably beating expectations after more than doubling its sales.', 'Nvidia announced record revenues of $30bn (£24.7bn) over a three-month period.', 'The company has been one of the biggest beneficiaries of the AI boom, with its stock market value soaring to more than $3 trillion.', 'But while analysts have grown used to Nvidia producing ""spectacular"" sales growth, the latest results indicate ""that rate of growth was starting to slow,"" said Simon French, head of research at Panmure Liberum.', 'Analysts had forecast sales growth of $28.7bn for the three months to 28 July.', 'Nvidia surpassed this with revenues increasing by 122% compared to the same period last year.', ""But following the release of the results, Nvidia's share price fell by 6% in after-hours trading in New York on Wednesday."", 'On Thursday, its shares were down about 2% in early trading, but its stock remains about 150% up so far in 2024, making it one of the big winners in the US market. ""', 'It’s less about just beating estimates now,"" said Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown. ""', 'Markets expect them to be shattered and it’s the scale of the beat today that looks to have disappointed a touch.""', 'Announcing the latest results, Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang said: ""Generative AI will revolutionise every industry.""', 'But Mr French told the BBC: ""If you’re going to raise expectations that high then you’ve got to keep growing at spectacular rates.""', 'He added that while its current AI chip - called Hopper - is selling well, the next generation Blackwell chip ""has faced some production delays and that perhaps is one of the reasons why Wall Street after hours sold off the stock"".', ""Nvidia's results have become a quarterly event which sends Wall Street into a frenzy of buying and selling shares."", 'A ""watch party"" had been planned in Manhattan, according to the Wall Street Journal, while Mr Huang, famed for his signature leather jacket, has been dubbed the ""Taylor Swift of tech"".', 'Alvin Nguyen, senior analyst at Forrester, told the BBC both Nvidia and Mr Huang have become the ""face of AI"".', 'This has helped the company so far, but it could also hurt its valuation if AI fails to deliver after firms have invested billions of dollars in the technology, Mr Nguyen said. ""', 'A thousand use cases for AI is not enough.', 'You need a million.""', 'Mr Nguyen also said Nvidia\'s first-mover advantage means it has market-leading products, which its customers have spent decades using and has a ""software ecosystem"".', 'He said that rivals, such as Intel, could ""chip away"" at Nvidia\'s market share if they developed a better product, though he said this would take time.']",0.1131297485865743,"But while analysts have grown used to Nvidia producing ""spectacular"" sales growth, the latest results indicate ""that rate of growth was starting to slow,"" said Simon French, head of research at Panmure Liberum.","This has helped the company so far, but it could also hurt its valuation if AI fails to deliver after firms have invested billions of dollars in the technology, Mr Nguyen said. """,0.0963081081708272,Nvidia surpassed this with revenues increasing by 122% compared to the same period last year.,"But following the release of the results, Nvidia's share price fell by 6% in after-hours trading in New York on Wednesday.",2024-08-29
Walmart adds a Burger King benefit to its membership program,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/22/walmart-plus-burger-king-benefit.html,2024-08-22T20:57:32+0000,"In this articleWalmart members are in for a whopper of a deal.The retailer on Thursday announced a new partnership with fast-food chain Burger King that will offer members of its Walmart+ subscription program 25% off any Burger King order made through the BK app. Members will also be eligible for a free flame-grilled Whopper every three months starting in September with a purchase, according to a news release.Walmart positioned the added benefits as cost savings for its members. It comes at a time when cost-conscious diners increasingly hunt for value.""We're confident our members will welcome the additional savings, and we're thrilled to collaborate with a trusted brand like Burger King to offer this benefit,"" Venessa Yates, senior vice president and general manager, said in a statement.Walmart+ costs $12.95 per month, or $98 annually, and includes free shipping and delivery on Walmart orders. In 2022, Walmart struck a streaming deal with Paramount Global to offer Walmart+ members free access to an ad-supported plan on Paramount+.""We're thrilled to join the Walmart+ program as its first ever dining partner and look forward to providing members of Walmart+ even more savings on their flame-grilled favorites at Burger King,"" said Pat O'Toole, chief marketing officer for Burger King North America, in a statement.",CNBC,22/08/2024,"['In this articleWalmart members are in for a whopper of a deal.', 'The retailer on Thursday announced a new partnership with fast-food chain Burger King that will offer members of its Walmart+ subscription program 25% off any Burger King order made through the BK app.', 'Members will also be eligible for a free flame-grilled Whopper every three months starting in September with a purchase, according to a news release.', 'Walmart positioned the added benefits as cost savings for its members.', 'It comes at a time when cost-conscious diners increasingly hunt for value.', '""We\'re confident our members will welcome the additional savings, and we\'re thrilled to collaborate with a trusted brand like Burger King to offer this benefit,"" Venessa Yates, senior vice president and general manager, said in a statement.', 'Walmart+ costs $12.95 per month, or $98 annually, and includes free shipping and delivery on Walmart orders.', 'In 2022, Walmart struck a streaming deal with Paramount Global to offer Walmart+ members free access to an ad-supported plan on Paramount+.""We\'re thrilled to join the Walmart+ program as its first ever dining partner and look forward to providing members of Walmart+ even more savings on their flame-grilled favorites at Burger King,"" said Pat O\'Toole, chief marketing officer for Burger King North America, in a statement.']",0.4476056920287553,"""We're confident our members will welcome the additional savings, and we're thrilled to collaborate with a trusted brand like Burger King to offer this benefit,"" Venessa Yates, senior vice president and general manager, said in a statement.",,0.9945579767227172,"In 2022, Walmart struck a streaming deal with Paramount Global to offer Walmart+ members free access to an ad-supported plan on Paramount+.""We're thrilled to join the Walmart+ program as its first ever dining partner and look forward to providing members of Walmart+ even more savings on their flame-grilled favorites at Burger King,"" said Pat O'Toole, chief marketing officer for Burger King North America, in a statement.",,2024-08-29
Homelessness: Councils spent £1bn housing families in England,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cj9l8njg2rzo,2024-08-29T16:06:31.985Z,"Councils in England spent a record £1bn on temporary accommodation for homeless families in the past year. This is more than 50% higher than the year before, driven by record numbers of families living in short-term housing, including over 150,000 children. Councils spent £417m accommodating families in hostels and bed and breakfasts, a 63% increase on the year before. The Labour government has said it inherited a housing crisis which has ""left families stuck living in temporary accommodation"". In a statement, a housing ministry spokesperson said the government would deliver on its target of 1.5 million homes and ""prevent homelessness before it occurs"" by banning no-fault evictions.  Experts say soaring private rents, a lack of housebuilding and increased eviction rates have made homelessness a chronic problem. Romel Peters, 37, has been stuck in temporary accommodation in London with her two young sons for over a year after being served a no-fault eviction by her private landlord. The family all sleep in one room, while the “filthy” cooking and washing facilities are shared with other tenants. “I can’t even describe how dirty the place is. I don’t cook here, my family cook and bring us food or I will cook at my mum’s house.  ""I’ve gone into the kitchen to cook food and there have been cockroaches around the microwave,” she said. She worries about the impact on her children, who have little space to play or do their homework, while most of their toys are in storage. Romel had been on her local council’s housing list for almost a decade when she was evicted – only to be told she was no longer eligible because she had previously been renting privately. “I’m devastated, I’ve been trying to contact the council for 18 months and no case worker has ever contacted me [back].  ""I tried to find something myself and join housing associations, but they need a referral from the council and for weeks they got no reply."" The council now want the family to move to temporary accommodation three hours away in West Bromwich.  As she doesn’t want to leave her family network or the children’s school behind, she refused – and the council says it no longer has a duty to help her. The family now face being homeless again as she cannot afford the increased cost of renting privately. Latest figures from the Office for National Statistics show average rent increases across the UK ranged from 8.6% in England through to 8.2% in Scotland and 7.9% in Wales. Northern Ireland's data lags behind the rest of the UK, with figures currently available up to the end of last year. The ONS reported a 10% increase in the country for the year to May 2024. High inflation - in part caused by the Covid pandemic and high energy prices after Russia invaded Ukraine - has kept rent prices high. Polly Neate, chief executive of Shelter, said: “It’s absurd that we keep throwing good money after bad into grim homeless accommodation instead of investing in solutions that would help families into a safe and secure home. “Decades of failure to build enough social homes combined with runaway rents and rising evictions has caused homelessness to spiral.  ""Too many children are being forced to grow up homeless in grotty, cramped hostels and B&Bs, sharing beds with their siblings, with no place to play or do their homework. “Rather than sinking billions into temporary solutions every year, the government must invest in genuinely affordable social homes and support councils so they can start building them.""  Shelter is calling on the government to build 90,000 social homes over the next decade. They and other housing charities point out the real cost of homelessness to the public is even higher.   They say the figures, published by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, show £2.3bn was spent paying for households in temporary accommodation once housing benefit, which is paid by the government, was included. Housing is not just a problem in England - the devolved nations are equally under pressure. In Scotland, the government has declared a national housing emergency. It is offering targeted funding of £2 million in 2023 to 2024 to the local authorities facing the most significant temporary accommodation pressures. The latest data on spending on temporary accommodation in Wales has risen from £5.6m in 2018, to £42.9m in 2022 - a seven-fold increase - based on data from 20 out of 22 councils. There are also problems in Northern Ireland - the country's Housing Executive chief executive Grainia Long says there are 11,000 placements in temporary accommodation, compared to 3,000 before the Covid pandemic. ",BBC,29/08/2024,"['Councils in England spent a record £1bn on temporary accommodation for homeless families in the past year.', 'This is more than 50% higher than the year before, driven by record numbers of families living in short-term housing, including over 150,000 children.', 'Councils spent £417m accommodating families in hostels and bed and breakfasts, a 63% increase on the year before.', 'The Labour government has said it inherited a housing crisis which has ""left families stuck living in temporary accommodation"".', 'In a statement, a housing ministry spokesperson said the government would deliver on its target of 1.5 million homes and ""prevent homelessness before it occurs"" by banning no-fault evictions.', 'Experts say soaring private rents, a lack of housebuilding and increased eviction rates have made homelessness a chronic problem.', 'Romel Peters, 37, has been stuck in temporary accommodation in London with her two young sons for over a year after being served a no-fault eviction by her private landlord.', 'The family all sleep in one room, while the “filthy” cooking and washing facilities are shared with other tenants. “', 'I can’t even describe how dirty the place is.', 'I don’t cook here, my family cook and bring us food or I will cook at my mum’s house. ""', 'I’ve gone into the kitchen to cook food and there have been cockroaches around the microwave,” she said.', 'She worries about the impact on her children, who have little space to play or do their homework, while most of their toys are in storage.', 'Romel had been on her local council’s housing list for almost a decade when she was evicted – only to be told she was no longer eligible because she had previously been renting privately. “', 'I’m devastated, I’ve been trying to contact the council for 18 months and no case worker has ever contacted me [back]. ""', 'I tried to find something myself and join housing associations, but they need a referral from the council and for weeks they got no reply.""', 'The council now want the family to move to temporary accommodation three hours away in West Bromwich.', 'As she doesn’t want to leave her family network or the children’s school behind, she refused – and the council says it no longer has a duty to help her.', 'The family now face being homeless again as she cannot afford the increased cost of renting privately.', 'Latest figures from the Office for National Statistics show average rent increases across the UK ranged from 8.6% in England through to 8.2% in Scotland and 7.9% in Wales.', ""Northern Ireland's data lags behind the rest of the UK, with figures currently available up to the end of last year."", 'The ONS reported a 10% increase in the country for the year to May 2024.', 'High inflation - in part caused by the Covid pandemic and high energy prices after Russia invaded Ukraine - has kept rent prices high.', 'Polly Neate, chief executive of Shelter, said: “It’s absurd that we keep throwing good money after bad into grim homeless accommodation instead of investing in solutions that would help families into a safe and secure home. “', 'Decades of failure to build enough social homes combined with runaway rents and rising evictions has caused homelessness to spiral. ""', 'Too many children are being forced to grow up homeless in grotty, cramped hostels and B&Bs, sharing beds with their siblings, with no place to play or do their homework. “', 'Rather than sinking billions into temporary solutions every year, the government must invest in genuinely affordable social homes and support councils so they can start building them.""', 'Shelter is calling on the government to build 90,000 social homes over the next decade.', 'They and other housing charities point out the real cost of homelessness to the public is even higher.', 'They say the figures, published by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, show £2.3bn was spent paying for households in temporary accommodation once housing benefit, which is paid by the government, was included.', 'Housing is not just a problem in England - the devolved nations are equally under pressure.', 'In Scotland, the government has declared a national housing emergency.', 'It is offering targeted funding of £2 million in 2023 to 2024 to the local authorities facing the most significant temporary accommodation pressures.', 'The latest data on spending on temporary accommodation in Wales has risen from £5.6m in 2018, to £42.9m in 2022 - a seven-fold increase - based on data from 20 out of 22 councils.', ""There are also problems in Northern Ireland - the country's Housing Executive chief executive Grainia Long says there are 11,000 placements in temporary accommodation, compared to 3,000 before the Covid pandemic.""]",-0.0940055810183249,"Rather than sinking billions into temporary solutions every year, the government must invest in genuinely affordable social homes and support councils so they can start building them.""","Romel Peters, 37, has been stuck in temporary accommodation in London with her two young sons for over a year after being served a no-fault eviction by her private landlord.",-0.1623226158759173,The ONS reported a 10% increase in the country for the year to May 2024.,"Decades of failure to build enough social homes combined with runaway rents and rising evictions has caused homelessness to spiral. """,2024-08-29
South Korea battery maker boss arrested over deadly fire,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c5y35nvvepwo,2024-08-29T03:47:03.969Z,"The chief executive of Aricell, a South Korean lithium battery company, has been arrested over a massive factory fire in June that killed 23 people and injured nine others.  A court approved the warrant for Park Soon-kwan's arrest on Wednesday. Investigators have said Aricell's management is suspected of workplace safety violations. The fire was one of South Korea's worst factory disasters in recent years. Aricells' parent company, S-Connect, did not immediately respond to a BBC request for comment. After the fire Mr Park issued an apology: ""We are deeply saddened by the loss of life and would like to express our deepest condolences and apologies to the bereaved families."" ""We take great responsibility and will sincerely provide support to the deceased and their families in every way possible,"" he added.  His arrest comes after a police investigation found that the factory had been rushing to meet production deadlines. Investigators said there were a number of safety issues at the plant, including a failure to address quality defects in batteries and hiring unskilled staff to handle dangerous materials. It was also alleged that Aricell had been cheating in quality inspections related to contracts with the military. The blaze broke out on 24 June after several battery cells exploded. At the time of the fire, the Aricell factory housed an estimated 35,000 battery cells on its second floor, where batteries were inspected and packaged. As a lithium fire can react intensely with water, firefighters had to use dry sand to extinguish the blaze, which took several hours to get under control. The victims were mostly foreign workers, from country's including China and Laos. South Korea is a leading producer of lithium batteries, which are used in many items from electric cars to laptops. ",BBC,29/08/2024,"['The chief executive of Aricell, a South Korean lithium battery company, has been arrested over a massive factory fire in June that killed 23 people and injured nine others.', ""A court approved the warrant for Park Soon-kwan's arrest on Wednesday."", ""Investigators have said Aricell's management is suspected of workplace safety violations."", ""The fire was one of South Korea's worst factory disasters in recent years."", ""Aricells' parent company, S-Connect, did not immediately respond to a BBC request for comment."", 'After the fire Mr Park issued an apology: ""We are deeply saddened by the loss of life and would like to express our deepest condolences and apologies to the bereaved families."" ""', 'We take great responsibility and will sincerely provide support to the deceased and their families in every way possible,"" he added.', 'His arrest comes after a police investigation found that the factory had been rushing to meet production deadlines.', 'Investigators said there were a number of safety issues at the plant, including a failure to address quality defects in batteries and hiring unskilled staff to handle dangerous materials.', 'It was also alleged that Aricell had been cheating in quality inspections related to contracts with the military.', 'The blaze broke out on 24 June after several battery cells exploded.', 'At the time of the fire, the Aricell factory housed an estimated 35,000 battery cells on its second floor, where batteries were inspected and packaged.', 'As a lithium fire can react intensely with water, firefighters had to use dry sand to extinguish the blaze, which took several hours to get under control.', ""The victims were mostly foreign workers, from country's including China and Laos."", 'South Korea is a leading producer of lithium batteries, which are used in many items from electric cars to laptops.']",-0.3362992556668456,"We take great responsibility and will sincerely provide support to the deceased and their families in every way possible,"" he added.","The chief executive of Aricell, a South Korean lithium battery company, has been arrested over a massive factory fire in June that killed 23 people and injured nine others.",-0.9734751582145692,,It was also alleged that Aricell had been cheating in quality inspections related to contracts with the military.,2024-08-29
"Bitcoin rally helps create more than 84,000 new crypto millionaires in a year",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/27/bitcoin-rally-new-crypto-billionaires.html,2024-08-27T12:40:08+0000,"The population of crypto millionaires in the world soared 95% over the past year, as bitcoin ETFs and other crypto assets climbed, according to a new report.There are now 172,300 individuals worldwide holding over $1 million in crypto assets, up from 88,200 last year, according to a report from New World Wealth and Henley & Partners. The number of pure bitcoin millionaires more than doubled, to 85,400.The ranks of the crypto rich have grown all the way up the wealth ladder. There are now 325 crypto centi-millionaires (those with $100 million or more in crypto holdings), and 28 crypto billionaires, according to the report.The surge reflects the rapid growth of bitcoin ETFs, which now have over $50 billion in assets since their launch in January and have touched off a wave of institutional participation.The Inside Wealth newsletter by Robert Frank is your weekly guide to high-net-worth investors and the industries that serve them.Subscribe here to get access today. The price of bitcoin has jumped 45% this year to about 64,000. As other coins have increased in value, the market cap of crypto assets has increased to $2.3 trillion, according to Henley, up from $1.2 trillion last summer.Of the six new crypto billionaires created over the past year, five can attribute their newfound wealth to bitcoin, ""underscoring its dominant position when it comes to attracting long-term investors who buy large holdings,"" according to Andrew Amoils, head of research for New World Wealth.According to Forbes, the richest crypto billionaire (for the third year in a row) is Changpeng Zhao, the founder and former CEO of crypto exchange Binance, who's worth an estimated $33 billion. Zhao pled guilty to U.S. money laundering charges in November and agreed to pay a $50 million fine. His wealth has soared by more than $10.5 billion over the past year.Ranking second is Brian Armstrong, the co-founder of Coinbase, worth an estimated $11 billion, according to Forbes. He's followed by Giancarlo Devasini, the chief financial officer of Tether; and Michael Saylor, the cofounder of MicroStrategy, according to the list.Granted, many crypto assets are still below their 2021 highs, and bitcoin's recent rise essentially marks a three-year round-trip to those levels. Crypto assets reached a market cap of $3 trillion in November of 2021.Yet the growing acceptance of crypto assets among big asset managers like BlackRock and Fidelity, with help from Morgan Stanley's salesforce of 15,000 brokers, could fuel further wealth creation among large crypto holders.Crypto will not only create more millionaires and billionaires, but it will also change where the rich live and work. According to Henley, many of the newly crypto rich are looking to move to tax-friendly and crypto-friendly jurisdictions.""We've seen a significant uptick in crypto-wealthy clients seeking alternative residence and citizenship options,"" said Dominic Volek, head of private clients at Henley & Partners.To better advise the new crypto nomads, Henley created a ""Crypto Adoption Index,"" ranking countries according to their tax and regulatory approach to crypto. Singapore ranks first on the index, due to its ""supportive banking system, significant investment, comprehensive regulations such as the Payment Services Act, regulatory sandboxes, and alignment with global standards,"" according to Henley.Hong Kong ranked second, followed by the United Arab Emirates and the United States. In the U.S., according to the report, 15% of the population owns cryptocurrencies: ""This is supported by strong infrastructure, with a high density of crypto ATMs, crypto-friendly banks, and an increasing number of businesses accepting cryptocurrency,"" the report said.Correction: This story has been updated to correct a headline that misstated the number of crypto millionaires created by the bitcoin rally.",CNBC,27/08/2024,"['The population of crypto millionaires in the world soared 95% over the past year, as bitcoin ETFs and other crypto assets climbed, according to a new report.', 'There are now 172,300 individuals worldwide holding over $1 million in crypto assets, up from 88,200 last year, according to a report from New World Wealth and Henley & Partners.', 'The number of pure bitcoin millionaires more than doubled, to 85,400.The ranks of the crypto rich have grown all the way up the wealth ladder.', 'There are now 325 crypto centi-millionaires (those with $100 million or more in crypto holdings), and 28 crypto billionaires, according to the report.', 'The surge reflects the rapid growth of bitcoin ETFs, which now have over $50 billion in assets since their launch in January and have touched off a wave of institutional participation.', 'The Inside Wealth newsletter by Robert Frank is your weekly guide to high-net-worth investors and the industries that serve them.', 'Subscribe here to get access today.', 'The price of bitcoin has jumped 45% this year to about 64,000.', 'As other coins have increased in value, the market cap of crypto assets has increased to $2.3 trillion, according to Henley, up from $1.2 trillion last summer.', 'Of the six new crypto billionaires created over the past year, five can attribute their newfound wealth to bitcoin, ""underscoring its dominant position when it comes to attracting long-term investors who buy large holdings,"" according to Andrew Amoils, head of research for New World Wealth.', ""According to Forbes, the richest crypto billionaire (for the third year in a row) is Changpeng Zhao, the founder and former CEO of crypto exchange Binance, who's worth an estimated $33 billion."", 'Zhao pled guilty to U.S. money laundering charges in November and agreed to pay a $50 million fine.', 'His wealth has soared by more than $10.5 billion over the past year.', 'Ranking second is Brian Armstrong, the co-founder of Coinbase, worth an estimated $11 billion, according to Forbes.', ""He's followed by Giancarlo Devasini, the chief financial officer of Tether; and Michael Saylor, the cofounder of MicroStrategy, according to the list."", ""Granted, many crypto assets are still below their 2021 highs, and bitcoin's recent rise essentially marks a three-year round-trip to those levels."", ""Crypto assets reached a market cap of $3 trillion in November of 2021.Yet the growing acceptance of crypto assets among big asset managers like BlackRock and Fidelity, with help from Morgan Stanley's salesforce of 15,000 brokers, could fuel further wealth creation among large crypto holders."", 'Crypto will not only create more millionaires and billionaires, but it will also change where the rich live and work.', 'According to Henley, many of the newly crypto rich are looking to move to tax-friendly and crypto-friendly jurisdictions.', '""We\'ve seen a significant uptick in crypto-wealthy clients seeking alternative residence and citizenship options,"" said Dominic Volek, head of private clients at Henley & Partners.', 'To better advise the new crypto nomads, Henley created a ""Crypto Adoption Index,"" ranking countries according to their tax and regulatory approach to crypto.', 'Singapore ranks first on the index, due to its ""supportive banking system, significant investment, comprehensive regulations such as the Payment Services Act, regulatory sandboxes, and alignment with global standards,"" according to Henley.', 'Hong Kong ranked second, followed by the United Arab Emirates and the United States.', 'In the U.S., according to the report, 15% of the population owns cryptocurrencies: ""This is supported by strong infrastructure, with a high density of crypto ATMs, crypto-friendly banks, and an increasing number of businesses accepting cryptocurrency,"" the report said.', 'Correction: This story has been updated to correct a headline that misstated the number of crypto millionaires created by the bitcoin rally.']",0.4754463428446764,"Crypto assets reached a market cap of $3 trillion in November of 2021.Yet the growing acceptance of crypto assets among big asset managers like BlackRock and Fidelity, with help from Morgan Stanley's salesforce of 15,000 brokers, could fuel further wealth creation among large crypto holders.",Zhao pled guilty to U.S. money laundering charges in November and agreed to pay a $50 million fine.,0.935733050107956,"The population of crypto millionaires in the world soared 95% over the past year, as bitcoin ETFs and other crypto assets climbed, according to a new report.",,2024-08-29
Energy bills: Help urged for struggling pensioners,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/clyg3nk8kjno,2024-08-28T03:28:48.925Z,"Pensioners with the highest needs and lowest incomes should receive better targeted support with energy bills, says Citizens' Advice. From next month, those not on pension credit or other means-tested benefits will no longer get the annual winter fuel payments, worth between £100 and £300. But Citizens' Advice boss Dame Clare Moriarty, who attended a government meeting with energy firms to discuss the issue on Wednesday, called for a ""social tariff"" - discounted bills for those least able to afford them. The prime minister has defended the decision to scrap universal winter fuel payments, saying it was needed to repair what he claims is a £22bn ""hole"" in the public finances. In a speech on Tuesday, Sir Keir Starmer said he had to be honest that ""things [would] get worse before they [got] better"" when it came to public spending. The meeting to discuss how to help those struggling with energy bills was called last week by Energy Consumers Minister Miatta Fahnbulleh after it was announced the energy price cap would rise from October. Regulator Ofgem has said gas and electricity prices will rise by 10% in England, Scotland and Wales under the new energy price cap, with the typical annual dual-fuel bill paid by direct debit to be £1,717 per year. Ofgem, trade association Energy UK and Citizens Advice all attended the meeting.  Following the meeting, Ms Fahnbulleh said the determination from all those present to protect vulnerable families was clear.  ""We are committed to putting in place winter support this October. We will be hashing out the details over the next month so that families that need it are protected in the colder months.” Energy UK chief executive Emma Pinchbeck told the BBC that the ""red lights [were] flashing on the dashboard"". ""It was crystal clear that we all agree there was a real problem for this winter. ""We definitely need intervention. We have to do our bit as industry but we know it’s got to be a partnership with government."" She added that the meeting had been ""really positive"" with some ""good ideas in the room"". Both Octopus Energy and Good Energy called for long-term investment in renewables to help bring bills down. Good Energy also repeated its call for the government to implement a social tariff.  Earlier, Dame Clare said: ""Winter fuel payment will still be paid to people receiving pension credit, and that’s actually one of the most underclaimed benefits there is, so 1.4 million people receive pension credit and there’s nearly another 900,000 people who could. ""It’s really important to see better support so that people do access it."" However, there are concerns the government's decision to stop the payments for everyone could create a public health emergency.  Speaking to the BBC, Dame Clare said pensioners who are least able to afford gas and electricity should be put on to a social tariff offering discounted bills. And she said energy suppliers ""need to step up to their responsibilities on energy efficiency and on payment plans for those who are struggling"". Roger Gardner, 73, is classed as extremely clinically vulnerable. He told the BBC that means he has to stay warm in the winter. He and his wife have lost their winter fuel payments, a change they didn't anticipate.  ""It's not as though we've got extra money coming in. Unfortunately when you're a pensioner, money is limited and what you've got coming in, that is it and you've got to plan how you spend it really wisely."" He said they don't eat much anyway so they can't cut down on food. ""Turning [down] the thermostat unfortunately doesn't work because I've got to keep warm all the time in the winter. We're hoping that we don't have a cold winter."" The charity Age UK says it believes ""as many as two million pensioners who find paying their energy bills a real stretch will be seriously hit by this cut"" and have launched a petition calling for a government U-turn.  The Conservatives have also urged Labour to back down on the decision and are seeking to challenge the policy change in the House of Commons.  The decision was announced in July by Chancellor Rachel Reeves and applies to pensioners in England and Wales. Subsequently the Scottish government has said it will follow suit and scrap universal fuel payments. Since the announcement both Ms Reeves and Sir Keir have defended the move.  On Tuesday, the prime minister said he ""didn't want to means-test the winter fuel payment but it was a choice we had to take"". Speaking on Wednesday, the chancellor said it was necessary ""given the inheritance that we faced from the Conservative government"". However, Paul Johnson of the Institute for Fiscal Studies has previously said ""half of [the] spending 'hole' is public pay over which government made a choice and where pressures were known"". For example, £9bn of that came from government agreeing higher pay awards to the public sector.  Wednesday's meeting followed the publication of a new report that has found that the reduction of people in fuel poverty has ""flatlined"" in the past few years. ""There has been a stalling of progress,"" said Caroline Flint, chair of the Committee on Fuel Poverty, which advises the government. Ms Flint said that while the war in Ukraine and the Covid pandemic had ""obscured the lack of material progress"" being made in fuel poverty reduction, the committee had hoped more progress would have been made on its 2023 recommendations. These included improving the affordability of bills through fairer pricing and creating a ""robust"" fuel poverty strategy.  She said eligibility for the Warm Home Discount - a one-off £150 discount applied to electricity bills by suppliers - needed to be widened.  She called for a ""winter plan"" to help struggling households, including the one in four households in private rented accommodation. Ms Flint added that without a change in government policy, a drop in fuel poverty levels was unlikely in the near future.  ",BBC,28/08/2024,"[""Pensioners with the highest needs and lowest incomes should receive better targeted support with energy bills, says Citizens' Advice."", 'From next month, those not on pension credit or other means-tested benefits will no longer get the annual winter fuel payments, worth between £100 and £300.', 'But Citizens\' Advice boss Dame Clare Moriarty, who attended a government meeting with energy firms to discuss the issue on Wednesday, called for a ""social tariff"" - discounted bills for those least able to afford them.', 'The prime minister has defended the decision to scrap universal winter fuel payments, saying it was needed to repair what he claims is a £22bn ""hole"" in the public finances.', 'In a speech on Tuesday, Sir Keir Starmer said he had to be honest that ""things [would] get worse before they [got] better"" when it came to public spending.', 'The meeting to discuss how to help those struggling with energy bills was called last week by Energy Consumers Minister Miatta Fahnbulleh after it was announced the energy price cap would rise from October.', 'Regulator Ofgem has said gas and electricity prices will rise by 10% in England, Scotland and Wales under the new energy price cap, with the typical annual dual-fuel bill paid by direct debit to be £1,717 per year.', 'Ofgem, trade association Energy UK and Citizens Advice all attended the meeting.', 'Following the meeting, Ms Fahnbulleh said the determination from all those present to protect vulnerable families was clear. ""', 'We are committed to putting in place winter support this October.', 'We will be hashing out the details over the next month so that families that need it are protected in the colder months.”', 'Energy UK chief executive Emma Pinchbeck told the BBC that the ""red lights [were] flashing on the dashboard"". ""', 'It was crystal clear that we all agree there was a real problem for this winter. ""', 'We definitely need intervention.', 'We have to do our bit as industry but we know it’s got to be a partnership with government.""', 'She added that the meeting had been ""really positive"" with some ""good ideas in the room"".', 'Both Octopus Energy and Good Energy called for long-term investment in renewables to help bring bills down.', 'Good Energy also repeated its call for the government to implement a social tariff.', 'Earlier, Dame Clare said: ""Winter fuel payment will still be paid to people receiving pension credit, and that’s actually one of the most underclaimed benefits there is, so 1.4 million people receive pension credit and there’s nearly another 900,000 people who could. ""', 'It’s really important to see better support so that people do access it.""', ""However, there are concerns the government's decision to stop the payments for everyone could create a public health emergency."", 'Speaking to the BBC, Dame Clare said pensioners who are least able to afford gas and electricity should be put on to a social tariff offering discounted bills.', 'And she said energy suppliers ""need to step up to their responsibilities on energy efficiency and on payment plans for those who are struggling"".', 'Roger Gardner, 73, is classed as extremely clinically vulnerable.', 'He told the BBC that means he has to stay warm in the winter.', 'He and his wife have lost their winter fuel payments, a change they didn\'t anticipate. ""', ""It's not as though we've got extra money coming in."", 'Unfortunately when you\'re a pensioner, money is limited and what you\'ve got coming in, that is it and you\'ve got to plan how you spend it really wisely.""', 'He said they don\'t eat much anyway so they can\'t cut down on food. ""', ""Turning [down] the thermostat unfortunately doesn't work because I've got to keep warm all the time in the winter."", 'We\'re hoping that we don\'t have a cold winter.""', 'The charity Age UK says it believes ""as many as two million pensioners who find paying their energy bills a real stretch will be seriously hit by this cut"" and have launched a petition calling for a government U-turn.', 'The Conservatives have also urged Labour to back down on the decision and are seeking to challenge the policy change in the House of Commons.', 'The decision was announced in July by Chancellor Rachel Reeves and applies to pensioners in England and Wales.', 'Subsequently the Scottish government has said it will follow suit and scrap universal fuel payments.', 'Since the announcement both Ms Reeves and Sir Keir have defended the move.', 'On Tuesday, the prime minister said he ""didn\'t want to means-test the winter fuel payment but it was a choice we had to take"".', 'Speaking on Wednesday, the chancellor said it was necessary ""given the inheritance that we faced from the Conservative government"".', 'However, Paul Johnson of the Institute for Fiscal Studies has previously said ""half of [the] spending \'hole\' is public pay over which government made a choice and where pressures were known"".', 'For example, £9bn of that came from government agreeing higher pay awards to the public sector.', 'Wednesday\'s meeting followed the publication of a new report that has found that the reduction of people in fuel poverty has ""flatlined"" in the past few years. ""', 'There has been a stalling of progress,"" said Caroline Flint, chair of the Committee on Fuel Poverty, which advises the government.', 'Ms Flint said that while the war in Ukraine and the Covid pandemic had ""obscured the lack of material progress"" being made in fuel poverty reduction, the committee had hoped more progress would have been made on its 2023 recommendations.', 'These included improving the affordability of bills through fairer pricing and creating a ""robust"" fuel poverty strategy.', 'She said eligibility for the Warm Home Discount - a one-off £150 discount applied to electricity bills by suppliers - needed to be widened.', 'She called for a ""winter plan"" to help struggling households, including the one in four households in private rented accommodation.', 'Ms Flint added that without a change in government policy, a drop in fuel poverty levels was unlikely in the near future.']",0.1836555759099886,Both Octopus Energy and Good Energy called for long-term investment in renewables to help bring bills down.,"Ms Flint added that without a change in government policy, a drop in fuel poverty levels was unlikely in the near future.",0.1298028439283371,"Wednesday's meeting followed the publication of a new report that has found that the reduction of people in fuel poverty has ""flatlined"" in the past few years. ""","There has been a stalling of progress,"" said Caroline Flint, chair of the Committee on Fuel Poverty, which advises the government.",2024-08-29
"Lululemon cuts guidance, misses sales estimates after botched product launch",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/29/lululemon-lulu-earnings-q2-2024.html,2024-08-29T21:43:28+0000,"In this articleLululemon lowered its guidance and posted its first revenue miss in more than two years on Thursday after it botched a highly anticipated product launch and growth slowed in the Americas. The company now expects full-year net revenue to be between $10.38 and $10.48 billion, down from a previous range of between $10.7 billion and $10.8 billion. Lululemon anticipates earnings per share will be in a range of $13.95 to $14.15, down from previous guidance of $14.27 to $14.47.Here's how company did in its fiscal second quarter compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG, formerly known as Refinitiv:Shares rose more than 2% in extended trading after initially falling.The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended July 28 was $393 million, or $3.15 per share, compared with $342 million, or $2.68 per share, a year earlier. Sales rose to $2.37 billion, up about 7% from $2.21 billion a year earlier. Beyond total sales, Lululemon also missed expectations on comparable sales, which grew 2%, well behind estimates of 5.9%, according to StreetAccount. Comparable sales in the Americas fell 3%.The trend doesn't appear poised to improve in the current quarter. Lululemon said it expects sales to grow 6% to 7%, worse than the 9.2% growth that analysts had expected, according to LSEG.However, Lululemon's profit guidance is roughly in line with what Wall Street anticipated. The company said it expects third-quarter earnings per share to be between $2.68 and $2.73, compared to estimates of $2.70, according to LSEG.During the quarter, Lululemon pulled its Breezethrough leggings, launched in early July, after it received a wave of complaints about the product's unflattering fit.On a call with analysts, CEO Calvin McDonald addressed the Breezethrough launch and said it was an opportunity for the company to ""test and learn."" He added the company bought a small amount of product for the launch.""While guests were excited by the fabric, the design didn't meet their expectations. Listening to our guests is central to who we are and how we grow our brand, and we took the right step of pausing on sales and look forward to reintroducing the fabric in the future,"" said McDonald. ""This decision had a negligible impact on our performance in this quarter.""The botched launch came after the company struggled with other self-inflicted issues with its assortment, including not having the colors and sizes that its core customers desired, which has had an impact on sales in the U.S. During the quarter, sales grew only 1% in the Americas, the company's largest region.On a call with analysts, McDonald acknowledged Lululemon's women's business has slowed down in the U.S. He said the company has determined the ""most significant factor"" affecting the segment is a lack of new styles, which has hurt sales of bottoms and the company's online business.""The newness that we had performed well. We simply did not have enough to inspire her to purchase,"" he said.McDonald insisted that the Lululemon brand ""remains strong in the U.S. market"" and said its men's business continues to grow.""Guests are looking for our product, coming into our stores and visiting our e-commerce sites,"" said McDonald.Lululemon's product challenges follow the departure of its longtime Chief Product Officer Sun Choe, who resigned in May to pursue another opportunity. At the time, the decision weighed on Lululemon's stock over concerns that Choe's department would hurt the company's ability to innovate and keep winning over customers with trendy new fits.McDonald said the company had a succession plan in place at the time of Choe's departure, and said the company's global creative director, Jonathan Cheung, would report directly to McDonald and oversee product design and innovation.The company also appointed Nikki Neuburger as its new chief brand and product activation officer, overseeing merchandising, footwear, and product operations. On Thursday, McDonald said he and Neuberger are ""pleased"" with the new structure, which puts design and merchandising on ""equal footing"" and ""reestablishes the healthy balance that must exist within a product organization.""""The teams are working well together and already in action,"" said McDonald.Like other retailers that are seeing demand slow, Lululemon appears focused on what's within its control: operations and efficiency. While the sales picture during the quarter was rougher than expected, Lululemon's profits came in higher than anticipated.Gross profit grew 9% to $1.4 billion, while its gross margin increase 0.8 percentage points to 59.6% — better than the 57.7% that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount. Its operating margin and operating income also increased.Sales jumped 29% in Lululemon's international markets as the company looks to China for growth.",CNBC,29/08/2024,"['In this articleLululemon lowered its guidance and posted its first revenue miss in more than two years on Thursday after it botched a highly anticipated product launch and growth slowed in the Americas.', 'The company now expects full-year net revenue to be between $10.38 and $10.48 billion, down from a previous range of between $10.7 billion and $10.8 billion.', ""Lululemon anticipates earnings per share will be in a range of $13.95 to $14.15, down from previous guidance of $14.27 to $14.47.Here's how company did in its fiscal second quarter compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG, formerly known as Refinitiv:Shares rose more than 2% in extended trading after initially falling."", ""The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended July 28 was $393 million, or $3.15 per share, compared with $342 million, or $2.68 per share, a year earlier."", 'Sales rose to $2.37 billion, up about 7% from $2.21 billion a year earlier.', 'Beyond total sales, Lululemon also missed expectations on comparable sales, which grew 2%, well behind estimates of 5.9%, according to StreetAccount.', ""Comparable sales in the Americas fell 3%.The trend doesn't appear poised to improve in the current quarter."", ""Lululemon said it expects sales to grow 6% to 7%, worse than the 9.2% growth that analysts had expected, according to LSEG.However, Lululemon's profit guidance is roughly in line with what Wall Street anticipated."", ""The company said it expects third-quarter earnings per share to be between $2.68 and $2.73, compared to estimates of $2.70, according to LSEG.During the quarter, Lululemon pulled its Breezethrough leggings, launched in early July, after it received a wave of complaints about the product's unflattering fit."", 'On a call with analysts, CEO Calvin McDonald addressed the Breezethrough launch and said it was an opportunity for the company to ""test and learn.""', 'He added the company bought a small amount of product for the launch.', '""While guests were excited by the fabric, the design didn\'t meet their expectations.', 'Listening to our guests is central to who we are and how we grow our brand, and we took the right step of pausing on sales and look forward to reintroducing the fabric in the future,"" said McDonald. ""', 'This decision had a negligible impact on our performance in this quarter.', '""The botched launch came after the company struggled with other self-inflicted issues with its assortment, including not having the colors and sizes that its core customers desired, which has had an impact on sales in the U.S. During the quarter, sales grew only 1% in the Americas, the company\'s largest region.', 'On a call with analysts, McDonald acknowledged Lululemon\'s women\'s business has slowed down in the U.S. He said the company has determined the ""most significant factor"" affecting the segment is a lack of new styles, which has hurt sales of bottoms and the company\'s online business.', '""The newness that we had performed well.', 'We simply did not have enough to inspire her to purchase,"" he said.', 'McDonald insisted that the Lululemon brand ""remains strong in the U.S. market"" and said its men\'s business continues to grow.', '""Guests are looking for our product, coming into our stores and visiting our e-commerce sites,"" said McDonald.', ""Lululemon's product challenges follow the departure of its longtime Chief Product Officer Sun Choe, who resigned in May to pursue another opportunity."", ""At the time, the decision weighed on Lululemon's stock over concerns that Choe's department would hurt the company's ability to innovate and keep winning over customers with trendy new fits."", ""McDonald said the company had a succession plan in place at the time of Choe's departure, and said the company's global creative director, Jonathan Cheung, would report directly to McDonald and oversee product design and innovation."", 'The company also appointed Nikki Neuburger as its new chief brand and product activation officer, overseeing merchandising, footwear, and product operations.', 'On Thursday, McDonald said he and Neuberger are ""pleased"" with the new structure, which puts design and merchandising on ""equal footing"" and ""reestablishes the healthy balance that must exist within a product organization.', '""""The teams are working well together and already in action,"" said McDonald.', ""Like other retailers that are seeing demand slow, Lululemon appears focused on what's within its control: operations and efficiency."", ""While the sales picture during the quarter was rougher than expected, Lululemon's profits came in higher than anticipated."", 'Gross profit grew 9% to $1.4 billion, while its gross margin increase 0.8 percentage points to 59.6% — better than the 57.7% that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount.', 'Its operating margin and operating income also increased.', ""Sales jumped 29% in Lululemon's international markets as the company looks to China for growth.""]",0.2833159185811433,"McDonald said the company had a succession plan in place at the time of Choe's departure, and said the company's global creative director, Jonathan Cheung, would report directly to McDonald and oversee product design and innovation.","On a call with analysts, McDonald acknowledged Lululemon's women's business has slowed down in the U.S. He said the company has determined the ""most significant factor"" affecting the segment is a lack of new styles, which has hurt sales of bottoms and the company's online business.",-0.0151737928390502,"Gross profit grew 9% to $1.4 billion, while its gross margin increase 0.8 percentage points to 59.6% — better than the 57.7% that analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount.",In this articleLululemon lowered its guidance and posted its first revenue miss in more than two years on Thursday after it botched a highly anticipated product launch and growth slowed in the Americas.,2024-08-29
Home sales rose in July for the first time in five months,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/22/july-home-sales-break-4-month-losing-streak-as-supply-rises-nearly-20percent.html,2024-08-22T16:18:44+0000,"Closed sales of previously owned homes rose 1.3% in July compared with June to a seasonally adjusted, annualized rate of 3.95 million units, according to the National Association of Realtors. That was the first gain in five months.Sales were 2.5% lower compared with the same time last year.Sales saw the biggest gains in the Northeast and were flat in the Midwest. Prices also rose the most in the Northeast.""Despite the modest gain, home sales are still sluggish,"" said Lawrence Yun, the NAR's chief economist, in a release. ""But consumers are definitely seeing more choices, and affordability is improving due to lower interest rates.""These sales are based on contracts that were likely signed in May and June, when mortgage rates were well over 7% on the popular 30-year fixed loan. Rates began dropping in July and are now hovering around 6.5%.All-cash offers made up 27% of July sales, up from 26% the year before and far higher than the historical norm.The supply of homes for sale continued to move higher in July. At the end of the month, there were 1.33 million houses on the market, an increase of 0.8% from June and 19.8% higher than in July 2023. At the current sales pace, that represents a four-month supply, slightly lower than it was in June.The increase in supply did not, however, help to cool home prices. The median price of an existing home sold in July was $442,600, an increase of 4.2% year over year.First-time buyers made up 29% of sales in July, unchanged from June but down from 30% in July 2023. Historically, these buyers make up closer to 40% of home sales, but affordability has been hit hard in the last two years due to fast-rising home prices and higher mortgage rates.With rates now slightly lower, demand is starting to pick up. A separate report from Redfin, a real estate brokerage, found requests for tours and other buying services from Redfin agents rose 4% over the last week to their highest level in two months.Correction: A previous version of this story misstated a time frame for the decline in home sales.",CNBC,22/08/2024,"['Closed sales of previously owned homes rose 1.3% in July compared with June to a seasonally adjusted, annualized rate of 3.95 million units, according to the National Association of Realtors.', 'That was the first gain in five months.', 'Sales were2.5% lower compared with the same time last year.', 'Sales saw the biggest gains in the Northeast and were flat in the Midwest.', 'Prices also rose the most in the Northeast.', '""Despite the modest gain, home sales are still sluggish,"" said Lawrence Yun, the NAR\'s chief economist, in a release. ""', 'But consumers are definitely seeing more choices, and affordability is improving due to lower interest rates.', '""These sales are based on contracts that were likely signed in May and June, when mortgage rates were well over 7% on the popular 30-year fixed loan.', 'Rates began dropping in July and are now hovering around 6.5%.All-cash offers made up 27% of July sales, up from 26% the year before and far higher than the historical norm.', 'The supply of homes for sale continued to move higher in July.', 'At the end of the month, there were1.33 million houses on the market, an increase of0.8% from June and 19.8% higher than in July 2023.', 'At the current sales pace, that represents afour-month supply, slightly lower than it was in June.', 'The increase in supply did not, however, help to cool home prices.', 'The median price of an existing home sold in July was $442,600, an increase of 4.2% year over year.', 'First-time buyers made up 29% of sales in July, unchanged from June but down from 30% in July 2023.', 'Historically, these buyers make up closer to 40% of home sales, but affordability has been hit hard in the last two years due to fast-rising home prices and higher mortgage rates.', 'With rates now slightly lower, demand is starting to pick up.', 'A separate report from Redfin, a real estate brokerage, found requests for tours and other buying services from Redfin agents rose 4% over the last week to their highest level in two months.', 'Correction: A previous version of this story misstated a time frame for the decline in home sales.']",0.1091956565592473,"But consumers are definitely seeing more choices, and affordability is improving due to lower interest rates.","""Despite the modest gain, home sales are still sluggish,"" said Lawrence Yun, the NAR's chief economist, in a release. """,0.3335675762759315,"Closed sales of previously owned homes rose 1.3% in July compared with June to a seasonally adjusted, annualized rate of 3.95 million units, according to the National Association of Realtors.",Sales were2.5% lower compared with the same time last year.,2024-08-29
Shares of Abercrombie & Fitch plunge 15% after CEO warns of 'increasingly uncertain environment',https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/28/abercrombie-fitch-anf-earnings-q2-2024.html,2024-08-28T14:03:16+0000,"In this articleAbercrombie & Fitch's revenue grew 21% during its fiscal second quarter as the apparel company builds on its torrid growth. The sales gain, which follows 16% growth in the year-ago period, led the company to issue bullish guidance for the current quarter. Still, its full-year outlook was largely in line with estimates as it prepares for one fewer week this year than last. CEO Fran Horowitz – who often says good companies win in any economic environment – may be bracing for a turbulent second half of the year because for the first time in four quarters, she referenced the uncertain state of the economy in the company's earnings release.""We delivered a strong first half of the year, and we are increasing our full-year outlook. Although we continue to operate in an increasingly uncertain environment, we remain steadfast in executing our global playbook and maintaining discipline over inventory and expenses,"" said Horowitz. ""We are on track and confident in our goal to deliver sustainable, profitable growth this year, while making strategic long-term investments across marketing, digital and technology and stores to enable future growth.""The company's shares — which were up nearly 89% this year as of Tuesday's close — fell about 15% in early trading. Here's how Abercrombie did compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG, formerly known as Refinitiv:The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended Aug. 3 was $133 million, or $2.50 per share, compared with $57 million, or $1.10 per share, a year earlier.  Sales rose to $1.13 billion, up about 21% from $935 million a year earlier. During the quarter, same-store sales jumped 18%, driven by better-than-expected summer and back-to-school selling. For the current quarter, Abercrombie expects sales to rise by a low double-digit percentage, better than the 8.9% growth that LSEG analysts had expected. Abercrombie raised its full-year sales guidance from 10% growth to a 12% to 13% increase, which is roughly in line with the 12% rise that LSEG analysts had expected. The company's fiscal 2024 will have one fewer week than fiscal 2023, which is likely weighing on its full-year guidance. Abercrombie expects the loss of one selling week will have an $80 million impact on its holiday quarter, or 5.5 percentage points. For the full year, the company expects it to hit sales by $50 million, or 1.2 percentage points. Over the last year, Abercrombie has become known as retail's biggest comeback story, and investors have been watching to see if the company can keep up its growth. Horowitz has looked to international markets and the company's Hollister and Abercrombie Kids brands as growth vectors, which are already boosting sales. During the quarter, sales at Hollister jumped 17% while comparable sales rose 15%. In the company's Europe, Middle East and Africa division, sales climbed 16%. Costly international expansion was one of the missteps that weighed on Abercrombie's performance in the past, but the company is taking a different approach this time around.Earlier this month, it announced a partnership with Haddad Brands – a licensor of children's wear – to create new distribution channels for Abercrombie Kids and grow the product line to include infant and toddler categories. ""As we work to diversify A&F Co.'s channel mix and drive sustainable, profitable growth, we are thrilled to partner with Haddad Brands to build on our success and create an opportunity to grow the brand in the years ahead by engaging with new customers globally,"" Horowitz said in a statement at the time. Products from Abercrombie Kids are set to be available in Haddad Brands' showrooms globally next month.",CNBC,28/08/2024,"[""In this articleAbercrombie & Fitch's revenue grew 21% during its fiscal second quarter as the apparel company builds on its torrid growth."", 'The sales gain, which follows 16% growth in the year-ago period, led the company to issue bullish guidance for the current quarter.', 'Still, its full-year outlook was largely in line with estimates as it prepares for one fewer week this year than last.', ""CEO Fran Horowitz – who often says good companies win in any economic environment – may be bracing for a turbulent second half of the year because for the first time in four quarters, she referenced the uncertain state of the economy in the company's earnings release."", '""We delivered a strong first half of the year, and we are increasing our full-year outlook.', 'Although we continue to operate in an increasingly uncertain environment, we remain steadfast in executing our global playbook and maintaining discipline over inventory and expenses,"" said Horowitz. ""', 'We are on track and confident in our goal to deliver sustainable, profitable growth this year, while making strategic long-term investments across marketing, digital and technology and stores to enable future growth.', '""The company\'s shares — which were up nearly 89% this year as of Tuesday\'s close — fell about 15% in early trading.', ""Here's how Abercrombie did compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG, formerly known as Refinitiv:The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended Aug. 3 was $133 million, or $2.50 per share, compared with $57 million, or $1.10 per share, a year earlier."", 'Sales rose to $1.13 billion, up about 21% from $935 million a year earlier.', 'During the quarter, same-store sales jumped 18%, driven by better-than-expected summer and back-to-school selling.', 'For the current quarter, Abercrombie expects sales to rise by a low double-digit percentage, better than the 8.9% growth that LSEG analysts had expected.', 'Abercrombie raised its full-year sales guidance from 10% growth to a 12% to 13% increase, which is roughly in line with the 12% rise that LSEG analysts had expected.', ""The company's fiscal 2024 will have one fewer week than fiscal 2023, which is likely weighing on its full-year guidance."", 'Abercrombie expects the loss of one selling week will have an $80 million impact on its holiday quarter, or 5.5 percentage points.', 'For the full year, the company expects it to hit sales by $50 million, or 1.2 percentage points.', ""Over the last year, Abercrombie has become known as retail's biggest comeback story, and investors have been watching to see if the company can keep up its growth."", ""Horowitz has looked to international markets and the company's Hollister and Abercrombie Kids brands as growth vectors, which are already boosting sales."", 'During the quarter, sales at Hollister jumped 17% while comparable sales rose 15%.', ""In the company's Europe, Middle East and Africa division, sales climbed 16%.Costly international expansion was one of the missteps that weighed on Abercrombie's performance in the past, but the company is taking a different approach this time around."", ""Earlier this month, it announced a partnership with Haddad Brands – a licensor of children's wear – to create new distribution channels for Abercrombie Kids and grow the product line to include infant and toddler categories."", '""As we work to diversify A&F Co.\'s channel mix and drive sustainable, profitable growth, we are thrilled to partner with Haddad Brands to build on our success and create an opportunity to grow the brand in the years ahead by engaging with new customers globally,"" Horowitz said in a statement at the time.', ""Products from Abercrombie Kids are set to be available in Haddad Brands' showrooms globally next month.""]",0.3403059944775122,"""As we work to diversify A&F Co.'s channel mix and drive sustainable, profitable growth, we are thrilled to partner with Haddad Brands to build on our success and create an opportunity to grow the brand in the years ahead by engaging with new customers globally,"" Horowitz said in a statement at the time.",,0.6236073403131395,"During the quarter, same-store sales jumped 18%, driven by better-than-expected summer and back-to-school selling.","""The company's shares — which were up nearly 89% this year as of Tuesday's close — fell about 15% in early trading.",2024-08-29
"Eli Lilly releases new form of weight loss drug Zepbound for half the price to boost access, supply",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/27/zepbound-eli-lilly-releases-new-cheaper-form-of-weight-loss-drug.html,2024-08-27T21:57:40+0000,"In this articleEli Lilly on Tuesday released a new form of its weight loss drug Zepbound for roughly half its usual monthly list price to reach millions of patients without insurance coverage for the popular injection, such as those with Medicare. The move also aims to expand the supply of Zepbound in the U.S. as demand skyrockets, and to ensure eligible patients are safely accessing the real treatment as cheaper copycat versions gain traction. The company is now offering 2.5-milligram and 5-milligram single-dose vials of Zepbound for $399 per month and $549 per month, respectively, through its direct-to-consumer website. Patients typically start treatment with a 2.5-milligram dose, gradually increase the amount and later take so-called maintenance doses to keep the weight off.The list prices of Zepbound and other popular weight loss drugs, such as Novo Nordisk's Wegovy, are around $1,000 per month before insurance and other rebates. Those treatments are part of a blockbuster class of medications called GLP-1s, which mimic certain gut hormones to tamp down a person's appetite and regulate blood sugar. Patients need to use a syringe and needle to draw up the medicine from a single-dose vial — the version of Zepbound Eli Lilly is releasing Tuesday — and inject themselves. That differs from single-dose autoinjector pens, the currently available form of all Zepbound doses, which patients can directly inject under their skin with the click of a button.Eli Lilly has said the vials will create additional supply capacity because they are easier to manufacture than autoinjector pens.The lower price points will benefit patients who are willing to pay for Zepbound themselves and are enrolled in Medicare or employer-sponsored health plans that do not currently cover obesity treatments, said Patrik Jonsson, president of Eli Lilly diabetes and obesity, in an interview. He noted that Medicare beneficiaries are also not eligible for Eli Lilly's savings card programs for Zepbound. One program allows people with insurance coverage for Zepbound to pay as little as $25 out of pocket.The company offers another to patients whose commercial insurance does not cover the drug. Patients currently enrolled in that program can continue to pay as low as $550 per month for Zepbound through the end of the year.But as of Tuesday, the lowest cost of the drug for new patients who join that program will increase to $650 per month, according to an update on the company's website. That price hike will ""help maintain the sustainability of the program as coverage for Zepbound improves,"" a spokesperson for Eli Lilly said in a statement Tuesday.Having patients directly pay for single-dose vials of Zepbound also ""enables a transparent price by removing third-party supply chain entities,"" the company added in a release. There ""will be no markups, and we believe that's super important … that consumers have this predictability in terms of pricing,"" Jonsson said. Patients with a valid prescription can purchase the single-dose vials from a new ""self-pay pharmacy"" section on the company's direct-to-consumer site, LillyDirect. Eli Lilly is partnering with a third-party digital pharmacy, Gifthealth, which will process prescriptions electronically as well as package and send vials to eligible patients.People can also choose to purchase syringes and needles from Eli Lilly's website and will have access to materials on how to correctly administer Zepbound from a vial. LillyDirect, which launched in January, connects people with an independent telehealth company that can prescribe certain drugs if the patients are eligible. The site also offers a home-delivery option if the prescribed treatment is Eli Lilly's, tapping a third-party online pharmacy to fill prescriptions and send them directly to patients. Eli Lilly said in a release that distributing the vials through the site will ensure patients and health-care providers are receiving ""genuine"" Zepbound. It builds on the company's efforts to ""help protect the public from the dangers posed by the proliferation of counterfeit, fake, unsafe or untested knock-offs of Lilly's medications,"" according to the release.During shortages, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration allows compounding pharmacies to make versions of drugs that are essentially a copy of brand-name medicines. Compounded medications are custom-made alternatives to branded drugs designed to meet a specific patient's needs. But both Zepbound and Eli Lilly's diabetes drug, Mounjaro, are under patent protection in the U.S. The company also does not supply the active ingredient of those two drugs, tirzepatide, to outside groups. Eli Lilly has said that raises questions about what some compounding pharmacies and other clinics are selling and marketing to consumers. The company and its rival Novo Nordisk have both stepped in to address illicit versions of their weight loss and diabetes treatments, suing wellness clinics, medical spas and compounding pharmacies across the U.S. over the past year. All doses of Zepbound are now listed as available on the FDA's drug shortage database. Still, thousands of online platforms offering compounded versions of weight loss drugs from Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly have cropped up over the past six months, according to Jonsson. ""We believe that the U.S. population is actually a target for … untested, unapproved, unregulated anti-obesity medications that we know is far from always containing the drug it's supposed to,"" he said. ""This is also an opportunity to make sure that there is access to FDA-approved, quality-approved tirzepatide for consumers in need.""",CNBC,27/08/2024,"['In this articleEli Lilly on Tuesday released a new form of its weight loss drug Zepbound for roughly half its usual monthly list price to reach millions of patients without insurance coverage for the popular injection, such as those with Medicare.', 'The move also aims to expand the supply of Zepbound in the U.S. as demand skyrockets, and to ensure eligible patients are safely accessing the real treatment as cheaper copycat versions gain traction.', 'The company is now offering 2.5-milligram and 5-milligram single-dose vials of Zepbound for $399 per month and $549 per month, respectively, through its direct-to-consumer website.', 'Patients typically start treatment with a 2.5-milligram dose, gradually increase the amount and later take so-called maintenance doses to keep the weight off.', ""The list prices of Zepbound and other popular weight loss drugs, such as Novo Nordisk's Wegovy, are around $1,000 per month before insurance and other rebates."", ""Those treatments are part of a blockbuster class of medications called GLP-1s, which mimic certain gut hormones to tamp down a person's appetite and regulate blood sugar."", 'Patients need to use a syringe and needle to draw up the medicine from a single-dose vial — the version of Zepbound Eli Lilly is releasing Tuesday — and inject themselves.', 'That differs from single-dose autoinjector pens, the currently available form of all Zepbound doses, which patients can directly inject under their skin with the click of a button.', 'Eli Lilly has said the vials willcreate additional supply capacitybecause they are easier to manufacture than autoinjector pens.', 'The lower price points will benefit patients who are willing to pay for Zepbound themselves and are enrolled in Medicare or employer-sponsored health plans that do not currently cover obesity treatments, said Patrik Jonsson, president of Eli Lilly diabetes and obesity, in an interview.', ""He noted that Medicare beneficiaries are also not eligible for Eli Lilly's savings card programs for Zepbound."", 'One program allows people with insurance coverage for Zepbound to pay as little as $25 out of pocket.', 'The company offers another to patients whose commercial insurance does not cover the drug.', 'Patients currently enrolled in that program can continue to pay as low as $550 per month for Zepbound through the end of the year.', ""But as of Tuesday, the lowest cost of the drug for new patients who join that program will increase to $650 per month, according to an update on the company's website."", 'That price hike will ""help maintain the sustainability of the program as coverage for Zepbound improves,"" a spokesperson for Eli Lilly said in a statement Tuesday.', 'Having patients directly pay for single-dose vials of Zepbound also ""enables a transparent price by removing third-party supply chain entities,"" the company added in a release.', 'There ""will be no markups, and we believe that\'s super important … that consumers have this predictability in terms of pricing,"" Jonsson said.', 'Patients with a valid prescription can purchase the single-dose vials from a new ""self-pay pharmacy"" section on the company\'s direct-to-consumer site, LillyDirect.', 'Eli Lilly is partnering with a third-party digital pharmacy, Gifthealth, which will process prescriptions electronically as well as package and send vials to eligible patients.', ""People can also choose to purchase syringes and needles from Eli Lilly's website and will have access to materials on how to correctly administer Zepbound from a vial."", 'LillyDirect, which launched in January, connects people with an independent telehealth company that can prescribe certain drugs if the patients are eligible.', ""The site also offers a home-delivery option if the prescribed treatment is Eli Lilly's, tapping a third-party online pharmacy to fill prescriptions and send them directly to patients."", 'Eli Lilly said in a release that distributing the vials through the site will ensure patients and health-care providers are receiving ""genuine"" Zepbound.', 'It builds on the company\'s efforts to ""help protect the public from the dangers posed by the proliferation of counterfeit, fake, unsafe or untested knock-offs of Lilly\'s medications,"" according to the release.', 'During shortages, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration allows compounding pharmacies to make versions of drugs that are essentially a copy of brand-name medicines.', ""Compounded medications are custom-made alternatives to branded drugs designed to meet a specific patient's needs."", ""But both Zepbound and Eli Lilly's diabetes drug, Mounjaro, are under patent protection in the U.S. The company also does not supply the active ingredient of those two drugs, tirzepatide, to outside groups."", 'Eli Lilly has said that raises questions about what some compounding pharmacies and other clinics are selling and marketing to consumers.', 'The company and its rival Novo Nordisk have both stepped in to address illicit versions of their weight loss and diabetes treatments, suing wellness clinics, medical spas and compounding pharmacies across the U.S. over the past year.', ""All doses of Zepbound are now listed as available on the FDA's drug shortage database."", 'Still, thousands of online platforms offering compounded versions of weight loss drugs from Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly have cropped up over the past six months, according to Jonsson.', '""We believe that the U.S. population is actually a target for … untested, unapproved, unregulated anti-obesity medications that we know is far from always containing the drug it\'s supposed to,"" he said. ""', 'This is also an opportunity to make sure that there is access to FDA-approved, quality-approved tirzepatide for consumers in need.""']",0.1646593759491673,"The move also aims to expand the supply of Zepbound in the U.S. as demand skyrockets, and to ensure eligible patients are safely accessing the real treatment as cheaper copycat versions gain traction.","""We believe that the U.S. population is actually a target for … untested, unapproved, unregulated anti-obesity medications that we know is far from always containing the drug it's supposed to,"" he said. """,0.5932532012462616,"The move also aims to expand the supply of Zepbound in the U.S. as demand skyrockets, and to ensure eligible patients are safely accessing the real treatment as cheaper copycat versions gain traction.",Patients currently enrolled in that program can continue to pay as low as $550 per month for Zepbound through the end of the year.,2024-08-29
Telegram repeatedly refused to join child protection schemes,https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cy54905nv0go,2024-08-28T11:23:31.671Z,"The BBC has learned that Telegram - the messaging app service whose boss has been arrested in France - refuses to join international programmes aimed at detecting and removing child abuse material online. The app is not a member of either the National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) or the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) - both of which work with most online platforms to find, report and remove such material. It comes as the founder and chief executive of the app - which has more than 950 million registered users - remains under investigation in France. Billionaire Pavel Durov has been detained over alleged offences relating to a lack of moderation on the platform. According to officials the 39-year-old is accused of failure to co-operate with law enforcement over drug trafficking, child sexual content and fraud. Telegram says it proactively moderates harmful content on its platform including child abuse material. The company insists that its moderation is ""within industry standards and constantly improving"". However, unlike all other social networks, it is not signed up to programmes like NCMEC’s CyberTipline which has more than 1,600 internet companies registered.  US-based firms are legally required to sign up but 16% of the companies who participate are not based in the US. Telegram is based in Dubai, where Mr Durov lives. The vast majority of child sexual abuse material reports came from tech giants and social networks including Facebook, Google, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter (X), Snapchat and WhatsApp. The BBC understands that NCMEC has repeatedly asked Telegram to join to help tackle child sexual abuse material (CSAM) but it has ignored requests. Telegram also refuses to work with the Internet Watch Foundation, which is the UK’s equivalent of NCMEC. An IWF spokesperson said: “Despite attempts to proactively engage with Telegram over the last year, they are not members of the IWF and do not take any of our services to block, prevent, and disrupt the sharing of child sexual abuse imagery."" By not being an active part of IWF or NCMEC, Telegram is not able to proactively find, remove or block confirmed CSAM which is categorised and added to lists compiled by the charities. IWF said that the company did remove CSAM once material was confirmed but said it was slower and less responsive to day-to-day requests. The BBC contacted Telegram for comment about its refusal to join the child protection schemes and received a response after publication which has been included.  Telegram is also not a part of the TakeItDown programme that works to remove so-called revenge porn.  Snap, Facebook, Instagram, Threads, TikTok, Pornhub and OnlyFans are all members of the scheme that uses a so-called hash list to scan for images and videos on their public or unencrypted platforms. Another norm that Telegram does not conform to in the usual way is Transparency Reporting. Every six months social networks publish a list of all the content taken down because of police requests.  Most other social networks including Meta's apps, Snapchat and TikTok publish their reports online with previous years in a library to refer to.  Telegram has no such website and only a channel on the app with no library history of transparency reports. It also describes its approach to Transparency Reports as ""semiannual"".  The Telegram Transparency channel did not reply to a request to see previous reports and said that there was ""no report available for your region"".  Telegram also has an unusual system for media in general. The contact method is through an automated bot on the app. This reporter has not had a reply in the months of trying to get a response to various requests. A reply was sent to this article but the press team did not respond to follow up questions.  In June Pavel Durov told journalist Tucker Carlson that he only employs “about 30 engineers” to run his platform.  Mr Durov, who was born in Russia and now lives in Dubai, has citizenship in Russia, France, the United Arab Emirates and the Caribbean island nation of St Kitts and Nevis. Telegram is particularly popular in Russia, Ukraine and former Soviet Union states as well as Iran. ",BBC,28/08/2024,"['The BBC has learned that Telegram - the messaging app service whose boss has been arrested in France - refuses to join international programmes aimed at detecting and removing child abuse material online.', 'The app is not a member of either the National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) or the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) - both of which work with most online platforms to find, report and remove such material.', 'It comes as the founder and chief executive of the app - which has more than 950 million registered users - remains under investigation in France.', 'Billionaire Pavel Durov has been detained over alleged offences relating to a lack of moderation on the platform.', 'According to officials the 39-year-old is accused of failure to co-operate with law enforcement over drug trafficking, child sexual content and fraud.', 'Telegram says it proactively moderates harmful content on its platform including child abuse material.', 'The company insists that its moderation is ""within industry standards and constantly improving"".', 'However, unlike all other social networks, it is not signed up to programmes like NCMEC’s CyberTipline which has more than 1,600 internet companies registered.', 'US-based firms are legally required to sign up but 16% of the companies who participate are not based in the US.', 'Telegram is based in Dubai, where Mr Durov lives.', 'The vast majority of child sexual abuse material reports came from tech giants and social networks including Facebook, Google, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter (X), Snapchat and WhatsApp.', 'The BBC understands that NCMEC has repeatedly asked Telegram to join to help tackle child sexual abuse material (CSAM) but it has ignored requests.', 'Telegram also refuses to work with the Internet Watch Foundation, which is the UK’s equivalent of NCMEC.', 'An IWF spokesperson said: “Despite attempts to proactively engage with Telegram over the last year, they are not members of the IWF and do not take any of our services to block, prevent, and disrupt the sharing of child sexual abuse imagery.""', 'By not being an active part of IWF or NCMEC, Telegram is not able to proactively find, remove or block confirmed CSAM which is categorised and added to lists compiled by the charities.', 'IWF said that the company did remove CSAM once material was confirmed but said it was slower and less responsive to day-to-day requests.', 'The BBC contacted Telegram for comment about its refusal to join the child protection schemes and received a response after publication which has been included.', 'Telegram is also not a part of the TakeItDown programme that works to remove so-called revenge porn.', 'Snap, Facebook, Instagram, Threads, TikTok, Pornhub and OnlyFans are all members of the scheme that uses a so-called hash list to scan for images and videos on their public or unencrypted platforms.', 'Another norm that Telegram does not conform to in the usual way is Transparency Reporting.', 'Every six months social networks publish a list of all the content taken down because of police requests.', ""Most other social networks including Meta's apps, Snapchat and TikTok publish their reports online with previous years in a library to refer to."", 'Telegram has no such website and only a channel on the app with no library history of transparency reports.', 'It also describes its approach to Transparency Reports as ""semiannual"".', 'The Telegram Transparency channel did not reply to a request to see previous reports and said that there was ""no report available for your region"".', 'Telegram also has an unusual system for media in general.', 'The contact method is through an automated bot on the app.', 'This reporter has not had a reply in the months of trying to get a response to various requests.', 'A reply was sent to this article but the press team did not respond to follow up questions.', 'In June Pavel Durov told journalist Tucker Carlson that he only employs “about 30 engineers” to run his platform.', 'Mr Durov, who was born in Russia and now lives in Dubai, has citizenship in Russia, France, the United Arab Emirates and the Caribbean island nation of St Kitts and Nevis.', 'Telegram is particularly popular in Russia, Ukraine and former Soviet Union states as well as Iran.']",-0.1298975113487514,"Telegram is particularly popular in Russia, Ukraine and former Soviet Union states as well as Iran.","According to officials the 39-year-old is accused of failure to co-operate with law enforcement over drug trafficking, child sexual content and fraud.",-0.160037624835968,"The company insists that its moderation is ""within industry standards and constantly improving"".",The BBC has learned that Telegram - the messaging app service whose boss has been arrested in France - refuses to join international programmes aimed at detecting and removing child abuse material online.,2024-08-29
Boeing Starliner returning empty as NASA turns to SpaceX to bring astronauts back from ISS,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/24/nasa-boeing-starliner-decision-return-empty-spacex-astronauts-iss.html,2024-08-29T13:13:56+0000,"In this articleBoeing will return its Starliner capsule from the International Space Station without the NASA astronauts that it delivered to orbit in early June, the agency announced on Saturday.With Starliner coming back to Earth empty, NASA will now have astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams return via SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft, which is expected to launch its ninth regular mission to the ISS for the agency on Sept. 24.Ultimately, Wilmore and Williams will stay at the ISS for about six more months before flying home in February on SpaceX's Crew-9 vehicle. The test flight was originally intended to last about nine days.The decision to bring Starliner back from the ISS empty marks a dramatic about-face for NASA and Boeing, as the organizations were previously adamant that the capsule was the primary choice for returning the crew.But Starliner's crew flight test, which had been seen as the final major milestone in the spacecraft's development, faced problems — most notably with its propulsion system.""Boeing has worked very hard with NASA to get the necessary data to make this decision,"" NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said during a press conference with top NASA officials at Johnson Space Center in Houston on Saturday. ""We want to further understand the root causes and understand the design improvements so that the Boeing Starliner will serve as an important part of our assured crew access to the ISS.""He reiterated that test flights are ""neither safe, nor routine,"" and that the decision was the ""result of a commitment to safety.""NASA will now conduct another phase of its Flight Readiness Review to determine when to bring the empty Starliner home.Boeing officials had been adamant in press briefings that Starliner was safe for the astronauts to fly home in the event of an emergency, despite delaying the return multiple times. NASA said there was a ""technical disagreement"" between the agency and the aerospace company, and said it evaluated risk differently than Boeing for returning its crew.Nonetheless, NASA officials repeatedly expressed support for Boeing, and Nelson said he was ""100% certain"" that Starliner would be able to launch with a crew again someday.""We continue to focus, first and foremost, on the safety of the crew and spacecraft,"" Boeing said in a statement posted on X on Saturday. ""We are executing the mission as determined by NASA, and we are preparing the spacecraft for a safe and successful uncrewed return.""Ken Bowersox, NASA associate administrator, said NASA officials were unanimous in their decision to choose SpaceX to bring the crew home.Meanwhile, SpaceX will bring two astronauts along on its Crew-9 vehicle — instead of four who were originally planned to go — to make room for Wilmore and Williams.""SpaceX stands ready to support @NASA however we can,"" President and COO Gwynne Shotwell responded in a social media post on X.Boeing's Starliner capsule ""Calypso"" has been at the International Space Station since early June on a mission that NASA extended indefinitely as the agency and company tried to identify why multiple of the spacecraft's thrusters failed during docking.Those thrusters, part of the spacecraft's propulsion system, are key to Starliner's safe return from the ISS. NASA cited the thrusters on Saturday as an ongoing problem.The Starliner crew flight test was supposed to be a final box checked for Boeing and a key asset gained for NASA. The agency was hoping to fulfill its dream of having two competing companies — Boeing and Elon Musk's SpaceX — flying alternating missions to the ISS.Instead, the flight test is further setting back Boeing's progress in NASA's Commercial Crew program and, with over $1.5 billion in losses absorbed already, threatens the company's future involvement with it.",CNBC,29/08/2024,"['In this articleBoeing will return its Starliner capsule from the International Space Station without the NASA astronauts that it delivered to orbit in early June, the agency announced on Saturday.', ""With Starliner coming back to Earth empty, NASA will now have astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams return via SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft, which is expected to launch its ninth regular mission to the ISS for the agency on Sept. 24.Ultimately, Wilmore and Williams will stay at the ISS for about six more months before flying home in February on SpaceX's Crew-9 vehicle."", 'The test flight was originally intended to last about nine days.', 'The decision to bring Starliner back from the ISS empty marks a dramatic about-face for NASA and Boeing, as the organizations were previously adamant that the capsule was the primary choice for returning the crew.', ""But Starliner's crew flight test, which had been seen as the final major milestone in the spacecraft's development, faced problems — most notably with its propulsion system."", '""Boeing has worked very hard with NASA to get the necessary data to make this decision,"" NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said during a press conference with top NASA officials at Johnson Space Center in Houston on Saturday. ""', 'We want to further understand the root causes and understand the design improvements so that the Boeing Starliner will serve as an important part of our assured crew access to the ISS.""He reiterated that test flights are ""neither safe, nor routine,"" and that the decision was the ""result of a commitment to safety.', '""NASA will now conduct another phase of its Flight Readiness Review to determine when to bring the empty Starliner home.', 'Boeing officials had been adamant in press briefings that Starliner was safe for the astronauts to fly home in the event of an emergency, despite delaying the return multiple times.', 'NASA said there was a ""technical disagreement"" between the agency and the aerospace company, and said it evaluated risk differently than Boeing for returning its crew.', 'Nonetheless, NASA officials repeatedly expressed support for Boeing, and Nelson said he was ""100% certain"" that Starliner would be able to launch with a crew again someday.', '""We continue to focus, first and foremost, on the safety of the crew and spacecraft,"" Boeing said in a statement posted on X on Saturday. ""', 'We are executing the mission as determined by NASA, and we are preparing the spacecraft for a safe and successful uncrewed return.', '""Ken Bowersox, NASA associate administrator, said NASA officials were unanimous in their decision to choose SpaceX to bring the crew home.', 'Meanwhile, SpaceX will bring two astronauts along on its Crew-9 vehicle — instead of four who were originally planned to go — to make room for Wilmore and Williams.', '""SpaceX stands ready to support@NASAhowever we can,"" President and COO Gwynne Shotwell responded in a social media post on X.Boeing\'s Starliner capsule ""Calypso"" has been at the International Space Station since early June on a mission that NASA extended indefinitely as the agency and company tried to identify why multiple of the spacecraft\'sthrusters failed during docking.', ""Those thrusters, part of the spacecraft's propulsion system, are key to Starliner's safe return from the ISS."", 'NASA cited the thrusters on Saturday as an ongoing problem.', 'The Starliner crew flight test was supposed to be a final box checked for Boeing and a key asset gained for NASA.', ""The agency was hoping to fulfill its dream of having two competing companies — Boeing and Elon Musk's SpaceX — flying alternating missions to the ISS.Instead, the flight test is further setting back Boeing's progress in NASA's Commercial Crew program and, withover $1.5 billion in lossesabsorbed already, threatens the company's future involvement with it.""]",0.1288737369317408,"We are executing the mission as determined by NASA, and we are preparing the spacecraft for a safe and successful uncrewed return.","NASA said there was a ""technical disagreement"" between the agency and the aerospace company, and said it evaluated risk differently than Boeing for returning its crew.",0.1006312668323516,"Nonetheless, NASA officials repeatedly expressed support for Boeing, and Nelson said he was ""100% certain"" that Starliner would be able to launch with a crew again someday.","But Starliner's crew flight test, which had been seen as the final major milestone in the spacecraft's development, faced problems — most notably with its propulsion system.",2024-08-29
"Why Ford believes its $1.9 billion shift in EV strategy is the right choice for the company, investors",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/23/ford-ev-strategy-smaller-cars.html,2024-08-23T13:56:54+0000,"In this articleDETROIT – Ford Motor's profit engine for decades has been large trucks and SUVs in the U.S. So it might surprise investors that the automaker believes its new path to profitability for electric vehicles will first be led by smaller, more affordable vehicles.The new plan is an ""insurance policy"" for the automaker to be able to expand its growingly popular hybrid models and create more affordable EVs that it believes will deliver a more capital-efficient, profitable electric vehicle business for the company and investors, according to Marin Gjaja, Ford's chief operating officer for its Model e EV unit.""We're quite convinced that the highest adoption rates for electric vehicles will be in the affordable segment on the lower size-end of the range,"" he told CNBC on Thursday. ""We have to play there in order to compete with the entrants that are coming.""Those expected newcomers are largely Chinese automakers, such as Warren Buffett-backed BYD, that have been rapidly growing from their home market to Europe and other countries.Gjaja's comments came a day after the automaker announced updates to its EV strategy that will cost up to $1.9 billion. That includes about $400 million for the write-down of manufacturing assets, as well as additional expenses and cash expenditures of up to $1.5 billion.Ford's new plans for North America include canceling a large, electric three-row SUV that was already far in development, delaying production of its next-generation ""T3"" electric full-size pickup truck by about 18 months until late 2027, and refocusing battery production and sourcing to the U.S.Instead of the three-row SUV or large pickup, the company's first new EV is expected to be a commercial van in 2026, followed the next year by a midsized pickup and then the T3 full-size pickup.Gjaja said the decision wasn't taken lightly, especially the cancellation of the upcoming three-row vehicle, which Ford CEO Jim Farley and other executives had been touting as a game changer for several years.The commercial van comes as Ford's ""Pro"" commercial vehicle and fleet business, which includes vans and large Super Duty trucks, has been a standout for the company and offset billions of dollars in EV losses.And the midsize pickup is scheduled to be the first vehicle from a specialized ""skunkworks"" team in California, The company had tasked the team two years ago with developing a new small EV platform.""We believe smaller, more affordable vehicles are the way to go for EV in volume. Why? Because the math is completely different than [internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles],"" Farley told investors last month. ""In ICE, a business we've been in for 120 years, the bigger the vehicle, the higher the margin. But it's exactly the opposite for EVs.""Farley has said the weight and cost of battery packs needed for large vehicles such as a three-row SUV, which many families buy for road trips, towing and hauling, are a limitation for EVs due to current ranges and charging networks.Ford's current EVs — the Mustang Mach-E crossover, F-150 Lightning and a commercial van in the U.S. – are not profitable overall. The Model e operations have lost nearly $2.5 billion during the first half of this year and lost $4.7 billion in 2023.The losses, as well as changing market conditions and business plans, caused Ford earlier this year to withdraw an ambitious 8% profit margin for its EV unit by 2026.Investors and Wall Street analysts have largely supported the EV changes, most recently sending the company's shares up about 2.3% since the announcement earlier this week, despite the expected costs.""Overall, these changes will position Ford to benefit from growing demand for EVs, while also focusing on areas in which it has a Core competitive advantage,"" BofA's John Murphy wrote Wednesday in an investor note. ""Given the size of the charge, this is clearly a tough decision in the short-term, but we think makes sense in the medium to long-term given what will likely be subpar economics in the three-row CUV/SUV segment.""The updates are the latest for Ford's electrification plans, which now include a heavy focus on hybrid and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, or PHEVs, to assist in meeting tightening fuel economy regulations in addition to all-electric vehicles.Ford CFO John Lawler said Wednesday that the company's future capital expenditure plans will shift from spending about 40% on all-electric vehicles to spending 30%. He did not give a timeline for the change, but it's a massive swing from when the company announced plans in 2021 to spend more than $30 billion on EVs through 2025.The hybrid plans include offering such options across its entire North American lineup by 2030, including three-row SUVs, to assist in meeting tightening emissions and fuel economy requirements. Lawler said that to improve profitability, Ford is also accelerating the mix of battery production in the U.S. that will qualify for tax incentives and credits.The shift in Ford's plans is consistent with the overall auto industry, which is facing growing, but slower-than-expected adoption of EVs, as well as automakers not being able to achieve expected profitability on the vehicles.""What we saw in '21 and '22 was a temporary market spike where the demand for EVs really took off,"" Gjaja told CNBC during an interview earlier this year. ""It's still growing but not nearly at the rate we thought it might have in '21, '22.""There's also an industrywide fear that Chinese automakers could be able to flood markets with cheaper, more profitable EVs. Chinese automakers such as BYD are quickly growing exports of vehicles to Europe and other countries.Lawler pushed back Wednesday on the idea that the Chinese have outgunned American automakers. He said the Ford, in part, developed the skunkworks team to prove that Ford can compete against the Chinese automakers.""As we've watched in the last 18 to 24 months, the emergence of incredible products and formidable competitors in China has really been, I think, the story for us,"" Gjaja said. ""And so now, when we look at the competitive landscape, we have to chin ourselves against the most competitive companies in China.""Ford's new plans are polar opposite of its closest rival, General Motors.America's largest automaker has pulled back spending and delayed many of its EVs, but it has several large all-electric vehicles on sale coming soon.GM was among the first to go ""all in"" on EVs, including by creating a vertically integrated, dedicated electric vehicle platform and supporting technologies such as batteries and motors.Aside from Tesla, GM was the first automaker to begin U.S. battery cell manufacturing through a joint venture at scale, which the company has continued to tout as a cost advantageGM's current lineup includes three all-electric large pickup trucks, a Hummer SUV, two recently launched Chevrolet crossovers, a luxury Cadillac crossover and $300,000 Celestiq car. Several more crossover models and an all-electric Escalade SUV are expected to join the lineup this year as well.As recently as last month, GM reconfirmed expectations for its EVs to be profitable on a production, or contribution-margin basis, once it reaches output of 200,000 units by the fourth quarter.A GM spokesman Thursday said the automaker continues ""to work to reach variable profit positive during the fourth quarter.""Gjaja declined to comment on GM's target or operations but said Ford is doing what's best for the company.""We're focusing on what we think are the right technologies to serve our customers that can also be affordable for them and profitable for us,"" he said.",CNBC,23/08/2024,"[""In this articleDETROIT – Ford Motor's profit engine for decades has been large trucks and SUVs in the U.S. So it might surprise investors that the automaker believes its new path to profitability for electric vehicles will first be led by smaller, more affordable vehicles."", 'The new plan is an ""insurance policy"" for the automaker to be able to expand its growingly popular hybrid models and create more affordable EVs that it believes will deliver a more capital-efficient, profitable electric vehicle business for the company and investors, according to Marin Gjaja, Ford\'s chief operating officer for its Model e EV unit.', '""We\'re quite convinced that the highest adoption rates for electric vehicles will be in the affordable segment on the lower size-end of the range,"" he told CNBC on Thursday. ""', 'We have to play there in order to compete with the entrants that are coming.', '""Those expected newcomers are largely Chinese automakers, such as Warren Buffett-backed BYD, that have been rapidly growing from their home market to Europe and other countries.', ""Gjaja's comments came a day after the automaker announced updates to its EV strategy that will cost up to $1.9 billion."", 'That includes about $400 million for the write-down of manufacturing assets, as well as additional expenses and cash expenditures of up to $1.5 billion.', 'Ford\'s new plans for North America include canceling a large, electric three-row SUV that was already far in development, delaying production of its next-generation ""T3"" electric full-size pickup truck by about 18 months until late 2027, and refocusing battery production and sourcing to the U.S.Instead of the three-row SUV or large pickup, the company\'s first new EV is expected to be a commercial van in 2026, followed the next year by a midsized pickup and then the T3 full-size pickup.', ""Gjaja said the decision wasn't taken lightly, especially the cancellation of the upcoming three-row vehicle, which Ford CEO Jim Farley and other executives had been touting as a game changer for several years."", 'The commercial van comes as Ford\'s ""Pro"" commercial vehicle and fleet business, which includes vans and large Super Duty trucks, has been a standout for the company and offset billions of dollars in EV losses.', 'And the midsize pickup is scheduled to be the first vehicle from a specialized ""skunkworks"" team in California, The company had tasked the team two years ago with developing a new small EV platform.', '""We believe smaller, more affordable vehicles are the way to go for EV in volume.', 'Why?', 'Because the math is completely different than [internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles],"" Farley told investors last month. ""', ""In ICE, a business we've been in for 120 years, the bigger the vehicle, the higher the margin."", ""But it's exactly the opposite for EVs."", '""Farley has said the weight and cost of battery packs needed for large vehicles such as a three-row SUV, which many families buy for road trips, towing and hauling, are a limitation for EVs due to current ranges and charging networks.', ""Ford's current EVs — the Mustang Mach-E crossover, F-150 Lightning and a commercial van in the U.S. – are not profitable overall."", ""The Model e operations have lost nearly $2.5 billion during the first half of this year and lost $4.7 billion in 2023.The losses, as well as changing market conditions and business plans, caused Ford earlier this year to withdraw an ambitious 8% profit margin for its EV unit by 2026.Investors and Wall Street analysts have largely supported the EV changes, most recently sending the company's shares up about 2.3% since the announcement earlier this week, despite the expected costs."", '""Overall, these changes will position Ford to benefit from growing demand for EVs, while also focusing on areas in which it has a Core competitive advantage,"" BofA\'s John Murphy wrote Wednesday in an investor note. ""', 'Given the size of the charge, this is clearly a tough decision in the short-term, but we think makes sense in the medium to long-term given what will likely be subpar economics in the three-row CUV/SUV segment.', '""The updates are the latest for Ford\'s electrification plans, which now include a heavy focus on hybrid and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, or PHEVs, to assist in meeting tightening fuel economy regulations in addition to all-electric vehicles.', ""Ford CFO John Lawler said Wednesday that the company's future capital expenditure plans will shift from spending about 40% on all-electric vehicles to spending 30%."", ""He did not give a timeline for the change, but it's a massive swing from when the company announced plans in 2021 to spend more than $30 billion on EVs through 2025.The hybrid plans include offering such options across its entire North American lineup by 2030, including three-row SUVs, to assist in meeting tightening emissions and fuel economy requirements."", 'Lawler said that to improve profitability, Ford is also accelerating the mix of battery production in the U.S. that will qualify for tax incentives and credits.', ""The shift in Ford's plans is consistent with the overall auto industry, which is facing growing, but slower-than-expected adoption of EVs, as well as automakers not being able to achieve expected profitability on the vehicles."", '""What we saw in \'21 and \'22 was a temporary market spike where the demand for EVs really took off,"" Gjaja told CNBC during an interview earlier this year. ""', 'It\'s still growing but not nearly at the rate we thought it might have in \'21, \'22.""There\'s also an industrywide fear that Chinese automakers could be able to flood markets with cheaper, more profitable EVs.', 'Chinese automakers such as BYD are quickly growing exports of vehicles to Europe and other countries.', 'Lawler pushed back Wednesday on the idea that the Chinese have outgunned American automakers.', 'He said the Ford, in part, developed the skunkworks team to prove that Ford can compete against the Chinese automakers.', '""As we\'ve watched in the last 18 to 24 months, the emergence of incredible products and formidable competitors in China has really been, I think, the story for us,"" Gjaja said. ""', 'And so now, when we look at the competitive landscape, we have to chin ourselves against the most competitive companies in China.', '""Ford\'s new plans are polar opposite of its closest rival, General Motors.', ""America's largest automaker has pulled back spending and delayed many of its EVs, but it has several large all-electric vehicles on sale coming soon."", 'GM was among the first to go ""all in"" on EVs, including by creating a vertically integrated, dedicated electric vehicle platform and supporting technologies such as batteries and motors.', ""Aside from Tesla, GM was the first automaker to begin U.S. battery cell manufacturing through a joint venture at scale, which the company has continued to tout as a cost advantageGM's current lineup includes three all-electric large pickup trucks, a Hummer SUV, two recently launched Chevrolet crossovers, a luxury Cadillac crossover and $300,000 Celestiq car."", 'Several more crossover models and an all-electric Escalade SUV are expected to join the lineup this year as well.', 'As recently as last month, GM reconfirmed expectations for its EVs to be profitable on a production, or contribution-margin basis, once it reaches output of 200,000 units by the fourth quarter.', 'A GM spokesman Thursday said the automaker continues ""to work to reach variable profit positive during the fourth quarter.', '""Gjaja declined to comment on GM\'s target or operations but said Ford is doing what\'s best for the company.', '""We\'re focusing on what we think are the right technologies to serve our customers that can also be affordable for them and profitable for us,"" he said.']",0.2265440827974339,"The new plan is an ""insurance policy"" for the automaker to be able to expand its growingly popular hybrid models and create more affordable EVs that it believes will deliver a more capital-efficient, profitable electric vehicle business for the company and investors, according to Marin Gjaja, Ford's chief operating officer for its Model e EV unit.","Ford's current EVs — the Mustang Mach-E crossover, F-150 Lightning and a commercial van in the U.S. – are not profitable overall.",0.4859956295593925,"""Overall, these changes will position Ford to benefit from growing demand for EVs, while also focusing on areas in which it has a Core competitive advantage,"" BofA's John Murphy wrote Wednesday in an investor note. ""","The Model e operations have lost nearly $2.5 billion during the first half of this year and lost $4.7 billion in 2023.The losses, as well as changing market conditions and business plans, caused Ford earlier this year to withdraw an ambitious 8% profit margin for its EV unit by 2026.Investors and Wall Street analysts have largely supported the EV changes, most recently sending the company's shares up about 2.3% since the announcement earlier this week, despite the expected costs.",2024-08-29
"Ulta misses Wall Street expectations first time in 4 years, trims guidance after quarterly sales decline",https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/29/ulta-earnings-q2-2024.html,2024-08-29T22:08:33+0000,"In this articleUlta Beauty shares sank 7% in extended trading Thursday as the company fell short of second-quarter expectations and trimmed its full-year guidance after a decline in same-store sales during the most recent period.It was the company's first earnings per share miss since May 2020 and first revenue miss since December 2020.Comparable sales for the second quarter fell 1.2%, compared with an 8% increase a year earlier and well below the 1.2% growth that Wall Street analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount.""While we are encouraged by many positive indicators across our business, our second quarter performance did not meet our expectations, driven primarily by a decline in comparable store sales. We are clear about the factors that adversely impacted our store performance, and we have actions underway to address the trends,"" CEO Dave Kimbell said a press release.During the company's earnings call, Kimbell attributed the declining sales performance to four key factors, including an ""unanticipated operational disruption"" due to a change in store systems as well as disappointing impact from promotions. The company also suffered from what Kimbell described as consumers who are increasingly cautious with their spending and from heightened competition in the beauty industry. Kimbell conceded that Ulta's market share is being challenged and said although the company maintained its share in mass beauty during the most quarter, it lost share in the prestige beauty sector driven by makeup and hair categories, according to Circana data, cited by Kimbell. It's not uncommon for stores to experience a short-term negative sales impact due to competitors' openings or cannibalization by new Ulta beauty stores, but Kimbell said the scale and pace of change now has been unusual, adding that 80% of stores have been impacted.""We know we're still in the midst of this...these competitive pressures will likely continue into the near term, but the positive signals...in our broader business, the guest engagement, the impact of newness, the impact of our new stores, the success of our salon business, the loyalty growth, all of those factors suggest to us and give us a lot of confidence that our business continues to have underlying strength and health,"" Kimbell said.The company now forecasts full-year same-store sales in a range of flat to 2% down, compared with prior guidance of 2% to 3% growth.""Our updated outlook for sales assumes it will take more time for our actions to change the top line trajectory and that stores impacted by multiple competitive openings will continue to be pressured,"" CFO Paula Oyibo said.Ulta also now expects full-year revenue of $11 billion to $11.2 billion, down from previous guidance of $11.5 billion to $11.6 billion, and full-year earnings per share of $22.60 to $23.50, down from a previous forecast of $25.20 to $26.Here's how the beauty retailer performed in the period ended August 3 compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:The company reported net income of $252.6 million, or $5.30 per share, compared with $300.1 million, or $6.02 per share, during the same quarter a year earlier. Revenue rose to $2.55 billion, up from $2.53 billion a year earlier.Earlier this month, Warren Buffet's Berkshire Hathaway disclosed a $266 million stake in the beauty retailer, sending Ulta shares surging. For some analysts, it was validation that the stock was oversold after falling 32% in 2024 up to that point, tumbling 26% in the second quarter alone.Shares of Ulta have been suffering since CEO Dave Kimbell warned of cooling beauty demand at an investor conference back in April. Kimbell said although a pullback was expected, it had hit the company ""a bit earlier and bit bigger"" than anticipated.During the company's first-quarter earnings call in May, Kimbell outlined plans to boost sales that spanned five key areas: product assortment, brand social relevance, enhancing the consumer digital experience, boosting the loyalty program and evolving the company's promotional levers.In the same call, Kimbell also said the beauty retailer later this year would be expanding its partnership with delivery service DoorDash, would start testing new gamification platforms and would activate new marketing technology to personalize customer shopping experience.This time around, Kimbell said that executives has identified further opportunities within the attempted turnaround plan, such as relaunching Ulta's own beauty collection and introducing new personalized product recommendations for consumers online. The company is also focusing on increasing rewards program value through member-only events and exclusive member-tiered offers.Clarification: This story has been updated to clarify that Ulta Beauty forecast full-year earnings per share of $22.60 to $23.50, down from a previous forecast of $25.20 to $26.",CNBC,29/08/2024,"['In this articleUlta Beauty shares sank 7% in extended trading Thursday as the company fell short of second-quarter expectations and trimmed its full-year guidance after a decline in same-store sales during the most recent period.', ""It was the company's first earnings per share miss since May 2020 and first revenue miss since December 2020.Comparable sales for the second quarter fell 1.2%, compared with an 8% increase a year earlier and well below the 1.2% growth that Wall Street analysts had expected, according to StreetAccount."", '""While we are encouraged by many positive indicators across our business, our second quarter performance did not meet our expectations, driven primarily by a decline in comparable store sales.', 'We are clear about the factors that adversely impacted our store performance, and we have actions underway to address the trends,"" CEO Dave Kimbell said a press release.', 'During the company\'s earnings call, Kimbell attributed the declining sales performance to four key factors, including an ""unanticipated operational disruption"" due to a change in store systems as well as disappointing impact from promotions.', 'The company also suffered from what Kimbell described as consumers who are increasingly cautious with their spending and from heightened competition in the beauty industry.', ""Kimbell conceded that Ulta's market share is being challenged and said although the company maintained its share in mass beauty during the most quarter, it lost share in the prestige beauty sector driven by makeup and hair categories, according to Circana data, cited by Kimbell."", ""It's not uncommon for stores to experience a short-term negative sales impact due to competitors' openings or cannibalization by new Ulta beauty stores, but Kimbell said the scale and pace of change now has been unusual, adding that 80% of stores have been impacted."", '""We know we\'re still in the midst of this...these competitive pressures will likely continue into the near term, but the positive signals...in our broader business, the guest engagement, the impact of newness, the impact of our new stores, the success of our salon business, the loyalty growth, all of those factors suggest to us and give us a lot of confidence that our business continues to have underlying strength and health,"" Kimbell said.', 'The company now forecasts full-year same-store sales in a range of flat to 2% down, compared with prior guidance of 2% to 3% growth.', '""Our updated outlook for sales assumes it will take more time for our actions to change the top line trajectory and that stores impacted by multiple competitive openings will continue to be pressured,"" CFO Paula Oyibo said.', ""Ulta also now expects full-year revenue of $11 billion to $11.2 billion, down from previous guidance of $11.5 billion to $11.6 billion, and full-year earnings per share of $22.60 to $23.50, down from a previous forecast of $25.20 to $26.Here's how the beauty retailer performed in the period ended August 3 compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:The company reported net income of $252.6 million, or $5.30 per share, compared with $300.1 million, or $6.02 per share, during the same quarter a year earlier."", 'Revenue rose to $2.55 billion, up from $2.53 billion a year earlier.', ""Earlier this month, Warren Buffet's Berkshire Hathaway disclosed a$266 million stake in the beauty retailer, sending Ulta shares surging."", 'For some analysts, it was validation that the stock was oversold after falling 32% in 2024 up to that point, tumbling 26% in the second quarter alone.', 'Shares of Ulta have been suffering since CEO Dave Kimbell warned of cooling beauty demand at an investor conference back in April.', 'Kimbell said although a pullback was expected, it had hit the company ""a bit earlier and bit bigger"" than anticipated.', ""During the company's first-quarter earnings call in May, Kimbell outlined plans to boost sales that spanned five key areas: product assortment, brand social relevance, enhancing the consumer digital experience, boosting the loyalty program and evolving the company's promotional levers."", 'In the same call, Kimbell also said the beauty retailer later this year would be expanding its partnership with delivery service DoorDash, would start testing new gamification platforms and would activate new marketing technology to personalize customer shopping experience.', ""This time around, Kimbell said that executives has identified further opportunities within the attempted turnaround plan, such as relaunching Ulta's own beauty collection and introducing new personalized product recommendations for consumers online."", 'The company is also focusing on increasing rewards program value through member-only events and exclusive member-tiered offers.', 'Clarification: This story has been updated to clarify that Ulta Beauty forecast full-year earnings per share of $22.60 to $23.50, down from a previous forecast of $25.20 to $26.']",0.4158434741378043,"""We know we're still in the midst of this...these competitive pressures will likely continue into the near term, but the positive signals...in our broader business, the guest engagement, the impact of newness, the impact of our new stores, the success of our salon business, the loyalty growth, all of those factors suggest to us and give us a lot of confidence that our business continues to have underlying strength and health,"" Kimbell said.","During the company's earnings call, Kimbell attributed the declining sales performance to four key factors, including an ""unanticipated operational disruption"" due to a change in store systems as well as disappointing impact from promotions.",-0.3607965436848727,"During the company's first-quarter earnings call in May, Kimbell outlined plans to boost sales that spanned five key areas: product assortment, brand social relevance, enhancing the consumer digital experience, boosting the loyalty program and evolving the company's promotional levers.",In this articleUlta Beauty shares sank 7% in extended trading Thursday as the company fell short of second-quarter expectations and trimmed its full-year guidance after a decline in same-store sales during the most recent period.,2024-08-29
American Eagle saw profits grow nearly 60% as costs come down,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/29/american-eagle-aeo-earnings-q2-2024.html,2024-08-29T16:30:21+0000,"In this articleAmerican Eagle missed Wall Street's sales targets for a second quarter in a row on Thursday, but profit grew by nearly 60% thanks in part to lower product costs. The company's shares fell roughly 3% in early trading Thursday.Here's how the apparel company did in its fiscal second quarter compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended Aug. 3 was $77.3 million, or 39 cents per share, compared with $48.6 million, or 25 cents per share, a year earlier. Sales rose to $1.29 billion, up about 8% from $1.2 billion a year earlier. That sales gain would have been slimmer had it not been for a calendar shift, which positively impacted second-quarter sales by $55 million.During the quarter, American Eagle's intimates line Aerie saw revenue grow 9% while its namesake brand grew by 8%. American Eagle's gross margin came in at 38.6% — 0.9 percentage point higher than the prior year and in line with what analysts had expected. The gross margin expansion was led by ""favorable product costs,"" indicating American Eagle spent less to make its assortment during the quarter. It's unclear if it lowered prices as a result.The longtime mall brand issued a better-than-expected outlook for the current quarter but its forecast was lower than anticipated for the full year, indicating the company is still bracing for a turbulent second half. For the current quarter, American Eagle expects comparable sales to grow between 3% and 4%, which is better than the 2.8% growth that analysts had expected the company to forecast, according to StreetAccount. The retailer is expecting total revenue to be flat to up slightly for the third quarter — in line with expectations, according to LSEG.For the year, the company expects comparable sales to increase approximately 4%, with total revenue up 2% to 3%, shy of what analysts had expected. Wall Street was expecting its full-year comparable sales forecast to be up 4.2% and overall sales to be up 3.5%, according to StreetAccount and LSEG.In May, Finance Chief Mike Mathias told CNBC that American Eagle is maintaining a ""cautious"" view for the back half of the year as it awaits interest rate decisions from the Federal Reserve and prepares for ""noise"" around the upcoming presidential election. Like other retailers contending with slowing demand for discretionary items, American Eagle has looked to cut costs and boost efficiencies so it can protect profits, even if sales are sluggish. Earlier this year, it unveiled a new strategy to grow profits and is working to boost sales by 3% to 5% each year over the next three years and get its operating margin to about 10%.""In all the years I've been in this business, I probably see the greatest opportunity in the history of the company,"" CEO Jay Schottenstein said on the company's earnings call on Thursday. ""From our standpoint, today, we're a $5 billion business. We think the next few years we could be a $10 billion business. And I would emphasize this: We are committed to making the investment to become that business.""During the quarter, American Eagle made some strides in achieving that goal. It posted operating income of $101 million, an increase of 55%, while its operating margin grew 2.4 percentage points to 7.8%. Operating income would have been lower had it not been for the calendar shift, which positively impacted the metric by $20 million. Although back-to-school season has already started with a ""strong performance"" for the company, executives expect it to last into September and get a second wind after Labor Day, a trend that Matthias said the company has observed in recent years, especially in the Northeast.President and Executive Creative Officer Jennifer Foyle added that while the American Eagle brand is leaning into women's and denim categories, the brand's mainstay segment, it is also looking to expand into new trends going forward.Foyle also said the menswear business is starting to turn around.""We are not just a one-fit brand anymore … We're making sure that we're leaning in as we go into the back half of Q3 and Q4 and we're ready to play,"" Foyle said.",CNBC,29/08/2024,"[""In this articleAmerican Eagle missed Wall Street's sales targets for a second quarter in a row on Thursday, but profit grew by nearly 60% thanks in part to lower product costs."", ""The company's shares fell roughly 3% in early trading Thursday."", ""Here's how the apparel company did in its fiscal second quarter compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:The company's reported net income for the three-month period that ended Aug. 3 was $77.3 million, or 39 cents per share, compared with $48.6 million, or 25 cents per share, a year earlier."", 'Sales rose to $1.29 billion, up about 8% from $1.2 billion a year earlier.', 'That sales gain would have been slimmer had it not been for a calendar shift, which positively impacted second-quarter sales by $55 million.', ""During the quarter, American Eagle's intimates line Aerie saw revenue grow 9% while its namesake brand grew by 8%.American Eagle's gross margin came in at 38.6% — 0.9 percentage point higher than the prior year and in line with what analysts had expected."", 'The gross margin expansion was led by ""favorable product costs,"" indicating American Eagle spent less to make its assortment during the quarter.', ""It's unclear if it lowered prices as a result."", 'The longtime mall brand issued a better-than-expected outlook for the current quarter but its forecast was lower than anticipated for the full year, indicating the company is still bracing for a turbulent second half.', 'For the current quarter, American Eagle expects comparable sales to grow between 3% and 4%, which is better than the 2.8% growth that analysts had expected the company to forecast, according to StreetAccount.', 'The retailer is expecting total revenue to be flat to up slightly for the third quarter — in line with expectations, according to LSEG.For the year, the company expects comparable sales to increase approximately 4%, with total revenue up 2% to 3%, shy of what analysts had expected.', 'Wall Street was expecting its full-year comparable sales forecast to be up 4.2% and overall sales to be up 3.5%, according to StreetAccount and LSEG.In May, Finance Chief Mike Mathias told CNBC that American Eagle is maintaining a ""cautious"" view for the back half of the year as it awaits interest rate decisions from the Federal Reserve and prepares for ""noise"" around the upcoming presidential election.', 'Like other retailers contending with slowing demand for discretionary items, American Eagle has looked to cut costs and boost efficiencies so it can protect profits, even if sales are sluggish.', 'Earlier this year, it unveiled a new strategy to grow profits and is working to boost sales by 3% to 5% each year over the next three years and get its operating margin to about 10%.""In all the years I\'ve been in this business, I probably see the greatest opportunity in the history of the company,"" CEO Jay Schottenstein said on the company\'s earnings call on Thursday. ""', ""From our standpoint, today, we're a $5 billion business."", 'We think the next few years we could be a $10 billion business.', 'And I would emphasize this: We are committed to making the investment to become that business.', '""During the quarter, American Eagle made some strides in achieving that goal.', 'It posted operating income of $101 million, an increase of 55%, while its operating margin grew 2.4 percentage points to 7.8%.', 'Operating income would have been lower had it not been for the calendar shift, which positively impacted the metric by $20 million.', 'Although back-to-school season has already started with a ""strong performance"" for the company, executives expect it to last into September and get a second wind after Labor Day, a trend that Matthias said the company has observed in recent years, especially in the Northeast.', ""President and Executive Creative Officer Jennifer Foyle added that while the American Eagle brand is leaning into women's and denim categories, the brand's mainstay segment, it is also looking to expand into new trends going forward."", 'Foyle also said the menswear business is starting to turn around.', '""We are not just a one-fit brand anymore … We\'re making sure that we\'re leaning in as we go into the back half of Q3 and Q4 and we\'re ready to play,"" Foyle said.']",0.2901999922407762,"Earlier this year, it unveiled a new strategy to grow profits and is working to boost sales by 3% to 5% each year over the next three years and get its operating margin to about 10%.""In all the years I've been in this business, I probably see the greatest opportunity in the history of the company,"" CEO Jay Schottenstein said on the company's earnings call on Thursday. ""","During the quarter, American Eagle's intimates line Aerie saw revenue grow 9% while its namesake brand grew by 8%.American Eagle's gross margin came in at 38.6% — 0.9 percentage point higher than the prior year and in line with what analysts had expected.",0.6825194045117027,"Wall Street was expecting its full-year comparable sales forecast to be up 4.2% and overall sales to be up 3.5%, according to StreetAccount and LSEG.In May, Finance Chief Mike Mathias told CNBC that American Eagle is maintaining a ""cautious"" view for the back half of the year as it awaits interest rate decisions from the Federal Reserve and prepares for ""noise"" around the upcoming presidential election.","Operating income would have been lower had it not been for the calendar shift, which positively impacted the metric by $20 million.",2024-08-29
Ford joins list of companies walking back DEI policies,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/28/ford-joins-list-of-companies-walking-back-dei-policies.html,2024-08-29T12:48:39+0000,"In this articleFord Motor is the latest company to walk back some of its commitments to diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.The automaker has taken ""a fresh look"" at its DEI policies and practices over the past year to take in to account the evolving ""external and legal environment related to political and social issues,"" according to an internal communication that was shared with global Ford employees and posted Wednesday on X by an anti-DEI activist. Ford confirmed the letter was authentic and said it had no additional comment on the matter.Ford's move follows retailer Tractor Supply, which one of the first major companies to stop its DEI efforts, as it severed ties earlier this summer with the Human Rights Campaign, an LGBTQ+ advocacy group, and retired DEI targets like boosting the number of employees of color at the manager level. Harley-Davidson, whose board of directors includes Ford CEO Jim Farley, also decided last week to stop consulting the HRC's metric for treatment of LGBTQ+ employees and affirmed that it does not have a DEI function.Home improvement retailer Lowe's joined the efforts earlier this week, and noted that it might also make additional changes to the policies over time.The companies have cited conservative backlash or changing social and political environments in their announcements. Tractor Supply and Harley-Davidson also noted a desire to appeal to their more rural or conservative-leaning customers.""I think you will start to see this move towards more politically neutral companies, which is to say that most of these companies didn't really want to be doing this stuff in the first place,"" Liz Hoffman, Semafor's business and finance editor, said on CNBC's ""Squawk Box"" earlier Wednesday, before the Ford memo was posted. In the memo Wednesday, Farley said the company will not use quotas for minority dealerships or suppliers, adding that it does not have hiring quotas.The automaker will also stop participating in the Human Rights Campaign's Corporate Equality Index, as well as various other ""best places to work"" lists.The Human Rights Campaign scores over 1,300 companies annually based on their corporate equality measures for LGBTQ+ individuals, including practices like offering spousal medical benefits regardless of sex and having distinct LGBTQ+ community outreach efforts. Ford, in previous years, had received a perfect score on the index.""Ford Motor Company's shortsighted decisions will have long-term consequences,"" Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson said in a statement. ""Hastily abandoning efforts that ensure fair, safe, and inclusive work environments is bad for business and leaves Ford's employees and millions of LGBTQ+-allied consumers behind.""The organization also added that it evaluates every Fortune 500 company on its equality index, regardless of whether or not the company submits additional information about its priorities, which means Ford will continue to be scored on the list.""As a global company, we will continue to put our effort and resources into taking care of our customers, our team, and our communities versus publicly commenting on the many polarizing issues of the day,"" Ford said in the statement sent to employees. ""There will of course be times when we will speak out on core issues if we believe our voice can make a positive difference.""Many companies, including automakers such as Ford, amped up their DEI commitments in the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd and Black Lives Matter protests of the summer of 2020 — and Ford spoke up about that at the time.""We are not interested in superficial actions. This is our moment to lead from the front and fully commit to creating the fair, just and inclusive culture that our employees deserve,"" the company said in 2020 in a letter reaffirming its DEI commitment. ""We cannot turn a blind eye to it or accept some sense of 'order' that's based on oppression.""But, in the wake of the Supreme Court decision to overturn affirmative action in colleges, a growing number of conservative activists on social media have called on companies to stop investing in DEI.""There is an old saying: If you give an inch, people take a mile, and that is essentially what we have seen when the Supreme Court made a ruling that was very specific to institutions of higher education,"" industrial and organizational psychologist Derek Avery told CNBC. ""Conservative state attorney generals sent letters to corporations warning them that they could expect to be sued if they continue to advocate and promote DEI practices within their organizations that could be construed as counter to the Supreme Court ruling, even though the Supreme Court ruling had no bearing on those corporate initiatives.""",CNBC,29/08/2024,"['In this articleFord Motor is the latest company to walk back some of its commitments to diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.', 'The automaker has taken ""a fresh look"" at its DEI policies and practices over the past year to take in to account the evolving ""external and legal environment related to political and social issues,"" according to an internal communication that was shared with global Ford employees and posted Wednesday on X by an anti-DEI activist.', 'Ford confirmed the letter was authentic and said it had no additional comment on the matter.', ""Ford's move follows retailer Tractor Supply, which one of the first major companies to stop its DEI efforts, as it severed ties earlier this summer with the Human Rights Campaign, an LGBTQ+ advocacy group, and retired DEI targets like boosting the number of employees of color at the manager level."", ""Harley-Davidson, whose board of directors includes Ford CEO Jim Farley, also decided last week to stop consulting the HRC's metric for treatment of LGBTQ+ employees and affirmed that it does not have a DEI function."", ""Home improvement retailer Lowe's joined the efforts earlier this week, and noted that it might also make additional changes to the policies over time."", 'The companies have cited conservative backlash or changing social and political environments in their announcements.', 'Tractor Supply and Harley-Davidson also noted a desire to appeal to their more rural or conservative-leaning customers.', '""I think you will start to see this move towards more politically neutral companies, which is to say that most of these companies didn\'t really want to be doing this stuff in the first place,"" Liz Hoffman, Semafor\'s business and finance editor, said on CNBC\'s ""Squawk Box"" earlier Wednesday, before the Ford memo was posted.', 'In the memo Wednesday, Farley said the company will not use quotas for minority dealerships or suppliers, adding that it does not have hiring quotas.', 'The automaker will also stop participating in the Human Rights Campaign\'s Corporate Equality Index, as well as various other ""best places to work"" lists.', 'The Human Rights Campaign scores over 1,300 companies annually based on their corporate equality measures for LGBTQ+ individuals, including practices like offering spousal medical benefits regardless of sex and having distinct LGBTQ+ community outreach efforts.', 'Ford, in previous years, had received a perfect score on the index.', '""Ford Motor Company\'s shortsighted decisions will have long-term consequences,"" Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson said in a statement. ""', ""Hastily abandoning efforts that ensure fair, safe, and inclusive work environments is bad for business and leaves Ford's employees and millions of LGBTQ+-allied consumers behind."", '""The organization also added that it evaluates every Fortune 500 company on its equality index, regardless of whether or not the company submits additional information about its priorities, which means Ford will continue to be scored on the list.', '""As a global company, we will continue to put our effort and resources into taking care of our customers, our team, and our communities versus publicly commenting on the many polarizing issues of the day,"" Ford said in the statement sent to employees. ""', 'There will of course be times when we will speak out on core issues if we believe our voice can make a positive difference.', '""Many companies, including automakers such as Ford, amped up their DEI commitments in the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd and Black Lives Matter protests of the summer of 2020 — and Ford spoke up about that at the time.', '""We are not interested in superficial actions.', 'This is our moment to lead from the front and fully commit to creating the fair, just and inclusive culture that our employees deserve,""the company said in 2020 in a letter reaffirming its DEI commitment. ""', ""We cannot turn a blind eye to it or accept some sense of 'order' that's based on oppression."", '""But, in the wake of the Supreme Court decision to overturn affirmative action in colleges, a growing number of conservative activists on social media have called on companies to stop investing in DEI.""There is an old saying: If you give an inch, people take a mile, and that is essentially what we have seen when the Supreme Court made a ruling that was very specific to institutions of higher education,"" industrial and organizational psychologist Derek Avery told CNBC.""Conservative state attorney generals sent letters to corporations warning them that they could expect to be sued if they continue to advocate and promote DEI practices within their organizations that could be construed as counter to the Supreme Court ruling, even though the Supreme Court ruling had no bearing on those corporate initiatives.""']",0.246965207230626,"""But, in the wake of the Supreme Court decision to overturn affirmative action in colleges, a growing number of conservative activists on social media have called on companies to stop investing in DEI.""There is an old saying: If you give an inch, people take a mile, and that is essentially what we have seen when the Supreme Court made a ruling that was very specific to institutions of higher education,"" industrial and organizational psychologist Derek Avery told CNBC.""Conservative state attorney generals sent letters to corporations warning them that they could expect to be sued if they continue to advocate and promote DEI practices within their organizations that could be construed as counter to the Supreme Court ruling, even though the Supreme Court ruling had no bearing on those corporate initiatives.""","""Many companies, including automakers such as Ford, amped up their DEI commitments in the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd and Black Lives Matter protests of the summer of 2020 — and Ford spoke up about that at the time.",0.001978059609731,"""Many companies, including automakers such as Ford, amped up their DEI commitments in the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd and Black Lives Matter protests of the summer of 2020 — and Ford spoke up about that at the time.","Hastily abandoning efforts that ensure fair, safe, and inclusive work environments is bad for business and leaves Ford's employees and millions of LGBTQ+-allied consumers behind.",2024-08-29
Best Buy shares surge on profit beat and guidance hike,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/29/best-buy-bby-earnings-q2-2025.html,2024-08-29T15:30:58+0000,"In this articleBest Buy raised its fiscal-year profit guidance Thursday after exceeding earnings and revenue expectations for the most recent quarter.Shares of Best Buy jumped more than 15% in morning trading Thursday.The retailer now expects to see full-year adjusted earnings per share in the range of $6.10 to $6.35, up from a prior range of $5.75 to $6.20. The company, however, lowered the top end of its guidance ranges for both full-year revenue and comparable sales.""As we look to the back half of the year, we expect our industry to continue to show increasing stabilization,"" Best Buy CFO Matt Bilunas said in the company's press release.Here's how the consumer electronics retailer did for the period ended Aug. 3 compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:The company reported net income for the quarter of $291 million, or $1.34 per share, compared with $274 million, or $1.25 per share, a year earlier. Net sales in the quarter dropped to $9.29 billion from $9.58 billion during the same period a year earlier.Comparable sales declined 2.3% during the quarter, compared with a 6.2% fall a year earlier.That drop in comparable sales was the company's best result for the metric since the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022, CEO Corie Barry said on the company's earnings call.Barry said the industry is returning to growth, adding that Best Buy's positioning within the sector is helping the retailer ""to capture that growth trajectory.""Best Buy has been in the midst of an attempted turnaround in response to a two-year sales slump. Discretionary merchandise retailers across the board have struggled with softer consumer demand in the wake of unusually high sales throughout the Covid pandemic and as consumers pull back due to elevated inflation.As the much-awaited replacement cycle of pandemic-era tech purchases starts trickling in, the retailer is hoping to cash in through marketing and operational initiatives. Best Buy said in July that it would add trained sales teams to three key parts of its stores — computing, appliance and home theater — and kick off a marketing campaign that includes YouTube videos to draw consumer interest.The company was also betting on a wave of new tech gadget debuts, such as a collection of new iPads launched by Apple in May and artificial intelligence-enabled laptops touted by Microsoft, to drive sales.The company on Thursday posted comparable sales growth of 6% in the domestic tablet and computing categories. However, that was ""more than offset"" by declines in appliances, home theater and gaming, executives said.Barry added that AI could continue to boost sales across categories over the next few years.""We believe we are just at the beginning of the impact of AI on tech innovation and customer demand,"" she said.Best Buy has seen a doubling in the number of consumers choosing to trade in old electronics for new ones, which Barry said is ""another indicator that people are wanting to renew and refresh"" their current tech gadgets.""We capitalized on demand driven by our customers' desire to replace or upgrade their products, combined with new innovation,"" Barry said during the company's earnings call. ""We see a consumer who is seeking value in sales events and one who is also willing to spend on high-price-point products when they need to or when there is new, compelling technology.""Still, the consumer environment continues to be ""unpredictable and uneven,"" Barry said, citing the upcoming election and the holiday season.""There's probably an even greater risk that the consumer is a little bit unsettled"" in the back half of the year, she said.",CNBC,29/08/2024,"['In this articleBest Buy raised its fiscal-year profit guidance Thursday after exceeding earnings and revenue expectations for the most recent quarter.', 'Shares of Best Buy jumped more than 15% in morning trading Thursday.', 'The retailer now expects to see full-year adjusted earnings per share in the range of $6.10 to $6.35, up from a prior range of $5.75 to $6.20.', 'The company, however, lowered the top end of its guidance ranges for both full-year revenue and comparable sales.', '""As we look to the back half of the year, we expect our industry to continue to show increasing stabilization,"" Best Buy CFO Matt Bilunas said in the company\'s press release.', ""Here's how the consumer electronics retailer did for the period ended Aug. 3 compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:The company reported net income for the quarter of $291 million, or $1.34 per share, compared with $274 million, or $1.25 per share, a year earlier."", 'Net sales in the quarter dropped to $9.29 billion from $9.58 billion during the same period a year earlier.', 'Comparable sales declined 2.3% during the quarter, compared with a 6.2% fall a year earlier.', ""That drop in comparable sales was the company's best result for the metric since the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022, CEO Corie Barry said on the company's earnings call."", 'Barry said the industry is returning to growth, adding that Best Buy\'s positioning within the sector is helping the retailer ""to capture that growth trajectory.', '""Best Buy has been in the midst of an attempted turnaround in response to a two-year sales slump.', 'Discretionary merchandise retailers across the board have struggled with softer consumer demand in the wake of unusually high sales throughout the Covid pandemic and as consumers pull back due to elevated inflation.', 'As the much-awaited replacement cycle of pandemic-era tech purchases starts trickling in, the retailer is hoping to cash in through marketing and operational initiatives.', 'Best Buy said in July that it would add trained sales teams to three key parts of its stores — computing, appliance and home theater — and kick off a marketing campaign that includes YouTube videos to draw consumer interest.', 'The company was also betting on a wave of new tech gadget debuts, such as a collection of new iPads launched by Apple in May and artificial intelligence-enabled laptops touted by Microsoft, to drive sales.', 'The company on Thursday posted comparable sales growth of 6% in the domestic tablet and computing categories.', 'However, that was ""more than offset"" by declines in appliances, home theater and gaming, executives said.', 'Barry added that AI could continue to boost sales across categories over the next few years.', '""We believe we are just at the beginning of the impact of AI on tech innovation and customer demand,"" she said.', 'Best Buy has seen a doubling in the number of consumers choosing to trade in old electronics for new ones, which Barry said is ""another indicator that people are wanting to renew and refresh"" their current tech gadgets.', '""We capitalized on demand driven by our customers\' desire to replace or upgrade their products, combined with new innovation,"" Barry said during the company\'s earnings call. ""', 'We see a consumer who is seeking value in sales events and one who is also willing to spend on high-price-point products when they need to or when there is new, compelling technology.', '""Still, the consumer environment continues to be ""unpredictable and uneven,"" Barry said, citing the upcoming election and the holiday season.', '""There\'s probably an even greater risk that the consumer is a little bit unsettled"" in the back half of the year, she said.']",0.3770564662732343,"Barry said the industry is returning to growth, adding that Best Buy's positioning within the sector is helping the retailer ""to capture that growth trajectory.",Discretionary merchandise retailers across the board have struggled with softer consumer demand in the wake of unusually high sales throughout the Covid pandemic and as consumers pull back due to elevated inflation.,0.2777897663738417,"The retailer now expects to see full-year adjusted earnings per share in the range of $6.10 to $6.35, up from a prior range of $5.75 to $6.20.",Net sales in the quarter dropped to $9.29 billion from $9.58 billion during the same period a year earlier.,2024-08-29
U.S. will again offer free at-home Covid tests starting in late September,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/23/covid-tests-us-will-offer-free-at-home-kits-starting-late-september.html,2024-08-23T16:52:24+0000,"The Biden administration on Friday said it will resume offering free at-home Covid-19 tests to American households in late September as the virus has gained a stronger foothold in the U.S. this summer.Americans will soon be able to use COVIDtests.gov to request four free tests, administration officials told reporters during a briefing. The tests will be able to detect the Covid variants that are currently circulating, most of which are descendants of the highly contagious omicron variant JN.1. ""These tests will help keep families and their loved ones safe this fall and winter season,"" Dawn O'Connell, an assistant secretary for preparedness and response at the Health and Human Services Department, said during the briefing. ""This is the seventh time over the last three years that the Biden-Harris administration has given families the opportunity to order the over-the-counter Covid-19 tests for free"" through the government's website.The government's program has provided more than 1.8 billion free over-the-counter Covid tests to Americans since it started in 2021, according to O'Connell.The government is relaunching the program amid a relatively large spike in Covid cases this summer, and ahead of the fall and winter, when the virus typically spreads at higher levels each year. There is a ""high"" or ""very high"" level of Covid being detected in wastewater in almost every U.S. state, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But the government decided to reopen the program in late September because it's when more Americans begin to travel and gather indoors with loved ones. ""As people start to travel, as they start to get together with friends and family through the holidays, we want them to have those four tests available to them at that time,"" David Boucher, director of infectious disease preparedness and response at HHS, told reporters during the briefing.By then, the latest round of Covid shots from Pfizer and Moderna will be available to most Americans in pharmacies, health clinics and other locations nationwide. The Food and Drug Administration approved those shots, which target a JN.1 offshoot called KP.2, on Thursday.Testing is a critical tool for protection as Covid infections climb again. But lab PCR tests — the traditional method of detecting Covid — have become more expensive and less accessible for some Americans since the U.S. government ended the public health emergency in May last year. Still, certain local health clinics and community sites offer at-home tests to the public at no cost.",CNBC,23/08/2024,"['The Biden administration on Friday said it will resume offering free at-home Covid-19 tests to American households in late September as the virus has gained a stronger foothold in the U.S. this summer.', 'Americans will soon be able to use COVIDtests.gov to request four free tests, administration officials told reporters during a briefing.', 'The tests will be able to detect the Covid variants that are currently circulating, most of which are descendants of the highly contagious omicron variant JN.1.""These tests will help keep families and their loved ones safe this fall and winter season,"" Dawn O\'Connell, an assistant secretary for preparedness and response at the Health and Human Services Department, said during the briefing. ""', 'This is the seventh time over the last three years that the Biden-Harris administration has given families the opportunity to order the over-the-counter Covid-19 tests for free"" through the government\'s website.', ""The government's program has provided more than 1.8 billion free over-the-counter Covid tests to Americans since it started in 2021, according to O'Connell."", 'The government is relaunching the program amid a relatively large spike in Covid cases this summer, and ahead of the fall and winter, when the virus typically spreads at higher levels each year.', 'There is a ""high"" or ""very high"" level of Covid being detected in wastewater in almost every U.S. state, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.', ""But the government decided to reopen the program in late September because it's when more Americans begin to travel and gather indoors with loved ones."", '""As people start to travel, as they start to get together with friends and family through the holidays, we want them to have those four tests available to them at that time,"" David Boucher, director of infectious disease preparedness and response at HHS, told reporters during the briefing.', 'By then, the latest round of Covid shots from Pfizer and Moderna will be available to most Americans in pharmacies, health clinics and other locations nationwide.', 'The Food and Drug Administration approved those shots, which target a JN.1 offshoot called KP.2, on Thursday.', 'Testing is a critical tool for protection as Covid infections climb again.', 'But lab PCR tests — the traditional method of detecting Covid — have become more expensive and less accessible for some Americans since the U.S. government ended the public health emergency in May last year.', 'Still, certain local health clinics and community sites offer at-home tests to the public at no cost.']",0.3114625193288947,The Biden administration on Friday said it will resume offering free at-home Covid-19 tests to American households in late September as the virus has gained a stronger foothold in the U.S. this summer.,But lab PCR tests — the traditional method of detecting Covid — have become more expensive and less accessible for some Americans since the U.S. government ended the public health emergency in May last year.,0.2481389999389648,The Biden administration on Friday said it will resume offering free at-home Covid-19 tests to American households in late September as the virus has gained a stronger foothold in the U.S. this summer.,But lab PCR tests — the traditional method of detecting Covid — have become more expensive and less accessible for some Americans since the U.S. government ended the public health emergency in May last year.,2024-08-29
Cava earnings beat estimates as restaurant traffic climbs nearly 10%,https://www.cnbc.com/2024/08/22/cava-group-cava-earnings-q2-2024.html,2024-08-23T11:28:50+0000,"In this articleCava on Thursday raised its full-year outlook as its restaurants reported strong traffic, fueling better-than-expected quarterly earnings and revenue.Shares of the company rose 9% in extended trading. The stock has more than doubled its value this year, bringing Cava's market cap up to about $11.6 billion, as of Thursday's close.Here is what the company reported for the quarter that ended July 14 compared to what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:The Mediterranean restaurant chain reported fiscal second-quarter net income of $19.7 million, or 17 cents per share, up from $6.5 million, or 21 cents per share, a year earlier.Net sales climbed 35% to $233 million. The company's same-store sales rose 14.4%, topping StreetAccount estimates of 7.9%.While many other restaurant companies have reported declines in visits as consumers pull back their spending, Cava said its traffic grew 9.5% in the quarter. Cava CEO and co-founder Brett Schulman credited the chain's new grilled steak option as one reason customers kept coming to its restaurants during the quarter.Cava opened 18 net new locations during the quarter, bringing its total footprint up to 341 restaurants.For fiscal 2024, Cava now expects same-store sales growth of 8.5% to 9.5%, up from its prior range of 4.5% to 6.5%. The company is also projecting that it will open 54 to 57 new locations this year, up from its previous forecast of 50 to 54 restaurants.Cava also expects to report adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of $109 million to $114 million. Previously, it was projecting adjusted EBITDA of $100 million to $105 million for the fiscal year.",CNBC,23/08/2024,"['In this articleCava on Thursday raised its full-year outlook as its restaurants reported strong traffic, fueling better-than-expected quarterly earnings and revenue.', 'Shares of the company rose 9% in extended trading.', ""The stock has more than doubled its value this year, bringing Cava's market cap up to about $11.6 billion, as of Thursday's close."", 'Here is what the company reported for the quarter that ended July 14 compared to what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:The Mediterranean restaurant chain reported fiscal second-quarter net income of $19.7 million, or 17 cents per share, up from $6.5 million, or 21 cents per share, a year earlier.', 'Net salesclimbed 35% to $233 million.', ""The company's same-store sales rose 14.4%, topping StreetAccount estimates of 7.9%.While many other restaurant companies have reported declines in visits as consumers pull back their spending, Cava said its traffic grew 9.5% in the quarter."", ""Cava CEO and co-founder Brett Schulman credited the chain's new grilled steak option as one reason customers kept coming to its restaurants during the quarter."", 'Cava opened 18 net new locations during the quarter, bringing its total footprint up to 341 restaurants.', 'For fiscal 2024, Cava now expects same-store sales growth of 8.5% to 9.5%, up from its prior range of 4.5% to 6.5%.', 'The company is also projecting that it will open 54 to 57 new locations this year, up from its previous forecast of 50 to 54 restaurants.', 'Cava also expects to report adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of $109 million to $114 million.', 'Previously, it was projecting adjusted EBITDA of $100 million to $105 million for the fiscal year.']",0.2665119947167048,"In this articleCava on Thursday raised its full-year outlook as its restaurants reported strong traffic, fueling better-than-expected quarterly earnings and revenue.",,0.9992665383550856,Shares of the company rose 9% in extended trading.,,2024-08-29