Exit strategy

- A + A BENGALURU (May 16): McDonald's Corp on Monday became one of the biggest global brands to exit Russia, laying out plans to sell all its restaurants after operating in the country for more than 30 years, following the invasion of Ukraine. The world's largest burger chain, which owns about 84% of its nearly 850 restaurants in Russia, will take a related non-cash charge of up to US$1.4 billion following its sale. McDonald's had in March decided to close its restaurants in the country, including the iconic Pushkin Square location in central Moscow — a symbol of flourishing American capitalism in the dying embers of the Soviet Union. The burger chain represented the thawing of Cold War tensions and became a way to sample Western food and spirit for millions of people, even though the cost of a burger was several times bigger than the daily budgets of many city dwellers. "Some might argue that providing access to food and continuing to employ tens of thousands … [Read more...] about Golden arches to go dark in Russia as McDonald’s exits after 30 years

advertisement advertisement At a time when young companies struggle to find technology sectors not dominated by Silicon Valley’s giants , most startups remain oblivious to one of the largest markets in the world, the U.S. Defense Department. The military awarded $445 billion in contracts in 2020. By comparison, last year’s global market for software-as-a-service, one of the hottest sectors for startup creation and investment, was estimated at $104 billion . There’s a willing market here, too. The Pentagon is eager for help from the nation’s innovators. The military is clamoring for cutting-edge technologies in areas like artificial intelligence, machine learning, and autonomy. To attract interest the Defense Department is handing out unprecedented numbers of small contracts and in 2020 seeded 1,635 firms with more than $1.5 billion in early funding. Dozens of outreach programs across the military now offer quick revenue to early-stage companies. … [Read more...] about Why the defense industry could be the most transformative market for startups

Stocks are falling after hiring in January blew past expectations, raising concerns that the Federal Reserve will lift interest rates aggressively to prevent the economy from overheating. The U.S. added 467,000 jobs last month, the Labor Department reported today. That crushed economists' expectations for 150,000 hires, driving stocks lower despite Amazon.com, Inc. ( AMZN ) gaining after a solid earnings report . Key Takeaways Stocks are falling for a second day after January hiring crushed expectations and raised concerns that the Federal Reserve will lift interest rates aggressively. Amazon is gaining around 10% and Snap more than 40% after reporting solid earnings growth. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note jumped past 1.9%, its highest in more than a year. Crude oil soared past $90 per barrel. The Dow Jones Industrial Average , S&P 500 , and Nasdaq indexes are all lower, following big declines in each yesterday. Crude oil soared past $90 per … [Read more...] about Stocks Drop as Blowout Jobs Report Increases Rate-Hike Jitters

As one of the larger companies of the consumer discretionary sector, The Coca-Cola Company ( KO ) shares have enjoyed a relative upward trend since the beginning of 2022 as investors appear to be bracing for potential interest rate hikes. Coca-Cola shares currently trade in an above average range based on historical volatility, and option traders appear to be positioned for the stock to rise after the company reports earnings for the fiscal fourth quarter. Analysts expect the company to announce $0.41 in earnings per share (EPS) and $8.93 billion in revenue. Investors will be paying keen attention to how Coca-Cola has managed to navigate ongoing supply chain issues and how rising costs could affect the bottom line. Insiders have recently increased the amount of shares being sold, unloading over 314,000 shares valued at close to $18.6 million over the past 90 days. Investors will be keeping an eye on if the beverage maker can continue to increase sales volume and what, if … [Read more...] about Can Coca-Cola (KO) Keep Up the Trend?

U.S. equity markets are sinking as Russia escalates attacks on Ukraine, raising concerns about disruptions of oil and other commodities. The Dow at one point was down more than 600 points, while crude oil approached $107 a barrel. Key Takeaways The Dow Jones fell more than 600 points as crude oil surged past $105 a barrel and financial and travel company shares slumped. Wheat and corn futures traded limit up as both Russia and Ukraine are major exporters, with wheat hitting prices not seen since 2008. Retailers including Target and Walmart are trading higher. Oil prices are soaring to more than $105 a barrel, the highest they’ve been since 2014. Wheat and corn futures traded limit up as both Russia and Ukraine are major exporters. Wheat prices are at levels not seen since 2008. Investors continued to put money into haven investments. Bond prices are rising with the yield on the 10-year Treasury note falling another 11 basis points (BPS) to 1.72%. Gold and … [Read more...] about Stocks’ Rout Deepens as Oil Soars and Russian Invasion Raises Recovery Worries

U.S. stocks again started the day mixed after a report said that U.S. retail and food services fell more than expected last month. Investors are also digesting a slew of quarterly earnings reports from banks, as JPMorgan Chase & Co. ( JPM ) and Citigroup Inc. ( C ) recorded income declines, while Wells Fargo & Company ( WFC ) said that profit jumped. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) and the S&P 500 are poised to finish the week lower, while the Nasdaq may end up higher for the week. All three major indexes finished lower yesterday. Key Takeaways Stocks are mixed again this morning, with the Nasdaq gaining and the Dow and S&P 500 falling. Retail and food sales sank 1.9% in December, marking the biggest drop in 10 months. JPMorgan and Citigroup reported falling quarterly profit, while Wells Fargo reported fourth quarter profit that beat analysts' forecasts. The University of Michigan will release its Consumer Sentiment Index for … [Read more...] about Stocks Mixed as Retail Sales Drop Most in 10 Months

- A + A LONDON (May 16): European stocks slipped on Monday and Wall Street was set for a lower open, as investor sentiment struggled to recover from last week's sell off amid fears of a slowdown in economic growth. Global shares hit their lowest point in 18 months last week, with investors worried that rising interest rates to counter high inflation will damage the global economy. Unexpectedly weak economic data kept from China kept those worries in centre stage on Monday. April retail sales plunged 11.1% on the year, almost twice the fall forecast, as full or partial Covid-19 lockdowns were imposed in dozens of cities. Industrial output dropped 2.9% when analysts had looked for a slight increase. At 1104 GMT, the MSCI world equity index, which tracks shares in 50 countries, was up around 0.1% on the day, struggling to recover from last week's lows. Europe's STOXX 600 was down 0.2%, while London's FTSE 100 was down flat. US stock index futures pointed to a … [Read more...] about Stock markets struggle as fears over economy grow

Perak Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Saarani Mohamad - A + A IPOH (May 16): The Perak state government has received the proposal for the construction of a highway from Gopeng to Kuala Kangsar to bypass Menora Tunnel on the North-South Expressway to reduce the rate of accidents in the state. Perak Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Saarani Mohamad said the state government supports the project of the private sector involving a route through Gopeng exit to Siputeh linked to Kuala Kangsar over a distance of 64 kilometres, has also received the green light of the Cabinet. "The distance through this road is slightly longer but it would take less time without going through the hill. The state government supports the proposal as it is under private finance initiative (PFI) and would not be using government funds. “In one year, the company has succeeded in meeting the Public Works Department and the Public Private Partnership Unit (UKAS) for further discussions. “The company has … [Read more...] about New route bypassing Menora Tunnel to reduce risk of accidents

As the world’s need for large amounts of portable energy grows at an ever-increasing pace , many innovators have sought to replace current battery technology with something better. advertisement Italian physicist Alessandro Volta tapped into fundamental electrochemical principles when he invented the first battery in 1800. Essentially, the physical joining of two different materials, usually metals, generates a chemical reaction that results in the flow of electrons from one material to the other. That stream of electrons represents portable energy that can be harnessed to generate power . The first materials people employed to make batteries were copper and zinc. Today’s best batteries – those that produce the highest electrical output in the smallest possible size – pair the metal lithium with one of several different metallic compounds. There have been steady improvements over the centuries, but modern batteries rely on the same strategy as that of Volta: … [Read more...] about How electric eels inspired the first battery two centuries ago

Tired, deflated, hanging by a thread: These are just a few keywords your average American worker might use to describe themself these days. And who can blame them, as we head into year three of the pandemic? Compared with the “before times,” remote employees are working longer hours, attending more meetings, and juggling more communication channels. According to Zendesk, more than a quarter of working American adults say they now suffer from some form of depression, and nearly 60% report negative effects of workplace-related stress. advertisement advertisement So, it shouldn’t have been a surprise when 47.4 million Americans resigned from their jobs last year—with another 52% eyeballing the exit. To be sure, myriad factors have contributed to this mass exodus, but it’s worth noting that toxic culture is the top predictor of voluntary turnover. In fact, when compared with salary, toxic cultures are 10.4 times more likely to push an employee … [Read more...] about One key way to prevent employee burnout? Addressing toxic clients