The U.S. and Houthis announced a truce last week that did not involve Israel after a weekslong air campaign by Washington to “annihilate” the Houthis who have enforced a blockade in the Red Sea over Israel’s brutal genocide against Palestinians in Gaza.
GOING OUT OF BUSINESS TRENDS
The economic landscape has presented an array of challenges that will profoundly affect the business community this year.
WHEN THE ECONOMY FALLS, JOBS GO WITH IT
U.S.-based employers cut 105,441 positions in April with retailers cutting 7,235 jobs, according to outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas.
BANK OF ENGLAND CUTS INTEREST RATE FOR A FOURTH TIME
On 8 May, the Bank of England (BoE) cut its policy interest rate from 4.5 percent to 4.25 percent, the fourth reduction in the rate-setting committee’s last seven meetings.
RUSSIA TRIPLES ITS BUDGET DEFICIT AS OIL PRICES TUMBLE
The Kremlin will allow Russia’s budget deficit to more than triple this year from 0.5 percent of GDP to 1.7 percent as oil prices are projected to remain in their current $60 neighborhood for weeks or months to come.
PRIVATE EQUITY READY TO FUND EUROPE’S REARMAMENT
As the U.S. has indicated it will scale back its military defense of Europe, the continent’s capitals are preparing to spend billions to expand their own defense capacities and take a larger role in supporting the Ukraine War and selling the line to the public that if Russia is not defeated they will invade Europe.
RESTAURANT HOLDING COMPANY’S EARNINGS MISS EXPECTATIONS
Restaurant Brands International, which owns Burger King, Firehouse Subs, Popeye’s, and Tim Horton’s, reported first-quarter revenue of $2.11 billion, slightly short of the $2.13 billion analysts had foreseen.
U.S. EV SALES HIT A SPEED BUMP IN APRIL
Last month, U.S. sales of electric vehicles (EVs) fell 5 percent below March’s volume while the country’s overall car market grew by 10 percent, data service Motor Intelligence reported.
U.S. CORPORATIONS WILL BUY BACK A RECORD $518 BILLION IN SHARES
Flush with cash from a multi-year stock market rally, continued consumer spending, and a robust earnings season, American corporations have announced plans to repurchase a record $518 billion worth of their own shares in 2025.
AI CAN MAKE IRRATIONAL DECISIONS JUST LIKE PEOPLE DO, STUDY FINDS
OpenAI’s GPT-3.5 and GPT-4 large language models, recent AIs that run on the company’s Chat-GPT platform, are “impressively consistent” in their ability to reason, according to a study by researchers in Australia and Canada.
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