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NASDAQ
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12,977.68
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+ 0.12%
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S&P
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3,909.73
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+ 0.53%
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DOW
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32,620.87
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+ 0.62%
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GOLD
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1,725.90
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- 0.42%
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10-YR
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1.627%
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+ 1.00 bps
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OIL
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58.51
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- 4.36%
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*As of market close.
Here's what these numbers mean.
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Economy: The number of jobless claims filed last week dropped to a pandemic-era low of 684,000, another data point that indicates an economic rebound is just around the riverbend.
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DC: In his first formal press conference,
President Biden doubled his original vaccination goal to 200 million
Covid-19 shots administered in his first 100 days. Biden also pushed for
changes to the Senate filibuster, which results in most legislation
needing 60/100 votes to pass.
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Francis Scialabba
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Your guidance counselor wasn’t kidding when they said everything you post online can come back to haunt you.
Ex.: Last
September, H&M released a statement saying it was concerned about
allegations of forced labor in Xinjiang, a Chinese territory that
produces an estimated 20% of the world’s cotton. This week, that
statement got attention from internet users in China, who joined state officials and businesses there in making this a week from hell for H&M.
Popular Chinese e-commerce platforms pulled
H&M products. State media outlets called out other apparel brands,
including Nike and Adidas, that've made statements about boycotting
Xinjiang cotton. And celebrities including Wang Yibo and Victoria Song
are dropping H&M and/or Nike endorsements.
- Beijing helped fuel consumer anger using social media. On the Weibo app, users are posting videos of their burning Nike kicks.
Zoom out: There's
a lot at stake for H&M. China is its third-largest market and in
2019 accounted for 500+ stores and $1.4 billion in sales.
Retailers aren't alone figuring this out
Businesses across industries walk a careful line
to stay on Beijing's nice list and get access to its massive consumer
market. Calls to support pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong rocked the
boat in 2019, but Xinjiang may prove a harder issue to dodge.
China is
accused of detaining an estimated 1–2 million members of Muslim ethnic
minorities and subjecting them to torture, forced labor, sterilization,
and more.
The US,
Canadian, and Dutch governments recently labeled what’s happening as
genocide. And this week, the US, Britain, Canada, and the EU sanctioned
Chinese officials with links to Xinjiang abuses.
An emerging business case study
In light of Xinjiang, calls are growing to boycott the 2022 Beijing Olympics. Some of the games' top sponsors—which include Airbnb, Visa, Coca-Cola, and P&G—are already fielding questions.
- On
Tuesday, a human rights group coalition sent a letter to Airbnb asking
it to pull out, questioning the company's commitment to "social
responsibility."
As they
weigh commenting on the situation in Xinjiang, execs are surely watching
what happens to these apparel brands and considering their options.
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Suez Canal Authority/HO/AFP via Getty Images
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The chief
executive of a Dutch company trying to free the 220,000-ton container
ship that's currently stuck in the Suez Canal said it could take days, if not weeks, to unstuck it.
Describing
the ship's "enormous weight on the sand," Boskalis CEO Peter Berdowski
said workers might need to try a combo of dredging the sand and
unloading the ship, called the Ever Given, to get it floating again.
Zoom out: This
is the worst marine traffic jam since Crush got a flat fin on the East
Australian Current. About 185 cargo ships carrying billions of dollars
in goods—from livestock to crude oil—are waiting to enter the waterway.
The situation for global trade is so dire that two of the largest ocean shipping companies in the world are considering rerouting ships
around the Horn of Africa to get their cargo to its destinations. But
that's like driving from New York to Philadelphia via Calgary: It adds
6,000 miles and $300,000 in fuel costs to the journey.
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Giphy
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Darden Restaurants, the parent company of Olive Garden, said hourly workers will make at least $10/hour in wages + tips combined starting Monday. It will also give $17 million in one-time employee bonuses.
- Though a
proposed $15 federal minimum wage was scrapped from the last Covid
relief bill, other companies like Amazon and Costco have set minimum
wages of at least $15 and encouraged other retailers to follow.
Darden isn’t
just trying to outshine Bezos and…Mr. Costco (?): The restaurant
business is starting to look better. The CEO of Darden, which also owns
LongHorn Steakhouse, said he was “cautiously optimistic” about the future of sit-down dining.
Then vs. now. Covid
did a number on restaurants, specifically those that make their money
off of middle school soccer team banquets. At one point during the
pandemic, same-store sales at Darden restaurants dropped 75%. But last
week, same-store sales topped levels from the same week in 2019 by 5.4%.
Bottom line: Darden’s
positive outlook could point to the beginning of a restaurant industry
recovery, and signal you’re one step closer to getting back into a big
leather booth.
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Giphy
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Stat: The full Epic Pass, which grants access to dozens of Vail ski resorts across the world, costs $783 for the 2021-22 ski season—a 20% reduction from years past.
Quote: "You don't really believe the peeing in bottles thing, do you?"
This was how the Amazon News Twitter account replied to accusations
from US Rep. Mark Pocan that company employees were forced to urinate
in water bottles because work quotas were so demanding. Amazon's labor
practices are in the DC spotlight as workers at an Alabama warehouse
vote on whether to unionize.
Read: The geopolitical fight to come over green energy. (Engelsberg Ideas)
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Bank of England
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Yesterday, the Bank of England unveiled the design for its new £50 banknote featuring legendary codebreaker Alan Turing.
Missed The Imitation Game? Turing was a computer scientist and mathematician who helped crack the Nazis' Enigma code during WWII, and is therefore credited with helping bring the war to a close.
- In his
work solving Enigma, he came up with the "Turing bombe," a precursor to
the modern computer. He also developed the "Turing Test," which measures
artificial intelligence.
- After the
war, Turing was persecuted by the UK government for his homosexuality.
The government apologized for its treatment of him in 2009, and in 2013,
Turing was royally pardoned.
The banknote
includes an image of Turing, one of his quotes, and lots of nerdy
Easter eggs such as a string of ticker tape displaying Turing's birthday
in binary code. There's even a set of 12 puzzles, together called The Turing Challenge, baked into the design.
Looking ahead...the notes will enter circulation on June 23, Turing's birthday.
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Francis Scialabba
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The feeling
of getting a 5/5 on the Brew's Weekly News Quiz has been compared to
randomly applying a SAVE20 promo code that works.
It’s that satisfying. Ace the quiz.
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-
Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey
said his company played a role in the Capitol riots on Jan. 6 during
testimony on Capitol Hill yesterday. Meanwhile, Facebook CEO Mark
Zuckerberg said the responsibility "lies with the people who took the
actions to break the law…"
-
Here's more on the hearing, which featured Dorsey, Zuckerberg, and Google CEO Sundar Pichai talking about misinformation.
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Robinhood
is reportedly building a platform to “democratize” IPOs and allow
regular investors to buy into public offerings (like its own) as big
banks do.
-
New York City is aiming to open Broadway shows in September.
-
The New York Times sold an NFT of a column for $560,000.
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This one will either take you 30 seconds or 30 days.
What common English word has the letters "WSP" in that order, without any letters between?
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Newspaper
Joe Biden is well on his way of cementing himself as the worst President in history.
Even with the so-called “mainstream” media propping him up, the American people are seeing through his lies.
And Biden is irate after Trump destroyed his biggest failure in a blistering statement.
Joe Biden made a jaw-dropping admission about the border that no one expected to hear
Donald Trump just revealed something surprising about running for President in 2024
Ted Cruz revealed the one terrible thing Joe Biden is doing to help child molesters
Joe Biden prepared everyone for Kamala Harris taking over when he said these two words
One letter to the FBI could be used to remove this Justice from the Supreme Court
Biden
Turns to Kamala and CONFIRMS What We All Suspected
Would You Still Wear a MAGA Hat to Show Support for
Trump? (sponsor)
Rep.
Dan Crenshaw Just Put MSNBC Host on Blast for their Pathetic reporting
RNC
Will Not Depend on Establishment Media for Future Presidential Debates
Is
Dr. Fauci the New Dr. Seuss?
Biden Asked 3 Times About Biggest Press Conf, He Responds ‘What Press Conf?’
How Much Further? Dems Describe Saving Unborn Lives as ‘Racist’
Buffett Proposes A $8.3 Billion Fix For The Texas Power Grid, But There’s Catch
Calif. Mayor Unveils $500-per-Month Income Program, White Families Not Allowed
March 26th, 2021
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