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Wall Street is rising toward more records on Thursday as Nvidia and Intel lead a rally for technology stocks after announcing a deal that includes a $5 billion investment. The S&P 500 rose 0.5% and was on track to squeak past its all-time high, which was set at the start of the week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 88 points, or 0.2%, as of noon Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 1% higher. Both were likewise flirting with records. Intel soared 29.3% and was heading toward its best day since 1973 after Nvidia said it would buy $5 billion of the chipmakers stock. Its part of a collaboration where the pair will develop products for data centers and personal computers. Nvidia climbed 3.4% and was by far the strongest force lifting the S&P 500 because its Wall Streets most valuable company. Encouraging reports on the economy, meanwhile, helped send Treasury yields climbing in the bond market. One report said that growth in manufacturing in the mid-Atlantic region was much stronger than economists expected. Another said that fewer U.S. workers applied for unemployment benefits last week than expected. The second report could indicate the pace of layoffs is slowing, and it was a relief after the prior weeks data showed a disconcerting leap to a four-year high. The job market has slowed so much that the Federal Reserve on Wednesday cut its main interest rate for the first time this year in order to give it some help. The Fed also indicated more cuts may be on the way this year and next, though Chair Jerome Powell warned that the Fed is stuck in a precarious position and may have to change course quickly. Thats because the economy is in the unusual situation where the job market is slowing when inflation is remaining stubbornly high at the same time. The Fed is in charge of fixing both, but it has only one tool to do that. And helping one by moving interest rates often hurts the other in the short term. Expectations are high on Wall Street for the Fed to keep cutting interest rates, and a halt in cuts could send stocks tumbling. Critics say stock prices have already shot too high and become too expensive, in part because of the heavy bets on continued cuts in rates. On Wall Street, Novo Nordisk saw its stock that trades in the United States rise 5.8% after the Danish company said a newly published study showed its once-a-day pill version of Wegovy helped people lose significant weight. It also said that its Ozempic product reduced the risk of heart attack, stroke and death for patients versus another treatment for some people with type 2 diabetes. Stocks in the cryptocurrency industry also jumped to strong gains, including rises of 7.8% for Coinbase Global, 11.3% for Bullish and 6.1% for Circle Internet Group. Bitcoin has climbed above $117,500 following the Fed’s cut to interest rates. On the losing end of Wall Street, the company behind Olive Garden and other restaurant chains sank 9.5% after it reported a profit for the latest quarter that was below analysts’ expectations. Darden Restaurants also raised its forecast for revenue growth this fiscal year, but not by much more than analysts expected. Cracker Barrel fell 4.8% after the restaurant chain likewise reported a weaker profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected. It also gave a forecast for revenue in its upcoming fiscal year that fell short of analysts, as the controversy over its planned logo change continues to play out. The Walt Disney Co. slipped 1.5% after the entertainment giant announced that its ABC television division had suspended Jimmy Kimmels late-night show indefinitely after comments that he made about Charlie Kirks killing led a group of ABC-affiliated stations to say they would not air the show. Earlier in the day, FCC Chairman Brendan Carr called Kimmels comments truly sick and said his agency has a strong case for holding Kimmel, ABC and Disney accountable for spreading misinformation. In stock markets abroad, indexes rose in Europe following a mixed performance in Asia. Londons FTSE 100 added 0.2% after the Bank of England held its main interest rate steady. South Koreas Kospi rallied 1.4%, and Hong Kongs Hang Seng fell 1.4% for two of the worlds bigger moves. In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 4.11% from 4.06% late Wednesday. Its a notable move after it had briefly dropped below 4% on Wednesday, weighed down by expectations for continued cuts to interest rates by the Fed. Stan Choe, AP business writer AP Writers Teresa Cerojano and Matt Ott contributed.
Category:
E-Commerce
Starbucks workers took legal action against the company on Wednesday over its newly imposed dress code. The workers accused Starbucks of refusing to reimburse employees for expenses related to its new dress code, thereby breaking the law. The workers, backed by the union, filed class-action lawsuits in Illinois and Colorado, and filed complaints with California’s Labor and Workforce Development Agency in a push for the agency to penalize the coffee chain. According to the lawsuits, Colorado state law prohibits employers from imposing expenses on workers without the workers’ consent. Meanwhile, several plaintiffs say they asked their employer to reimburse them for funds they spent on new clothing, but their requests were denied. Starbucks announced the changes to the company uniform earlier this year as part of its “Back to Starbucks” initiative. It said starting in May, workers would be required to wear solid black shirts under their aprons, and khaki, black, or blue denim bottoms. At the time, Starbucks said it would give each employee two free T-shirts. While the uniform has remained largely the same over the years, in 2016, the company loosened its dress code to allow for different shirt colors, as well as brightly colored hair, and hats. Some employees said the changes lifted morale and allowed for greater freedom of expression on the job. This year, that freedom of expression was rolled back. By updating our dress code, we can deliver a more consistent coffeehouse experience that will also bring simpler and clearer guidance to our partners, which means they can focus on what matters most, crafting great beverages and fostering connections with customers, the company said in an April 14 statement. However, the union has expressed anger that changes to the dress code are “restrictive” and happened without input from the baristas it affects. Likewise, workers feel there are other more important issues Starbucks should be focused on. In a September statement, Strategic Organizing Center Research Director Joan Moriarty said that a new union survey found huge issues with understaffing in Starbucks stores, with nine out of 10 respondents saying it’s a concern. “The results of our survey demonstrate how Brian Niccols plan for Starbucks isnt coming close to getting the company back on track for its workers and customers, Moriarty said. Moriarty added, Starbucks baristas and shift supervisors told us loud and clear that theyre still struggling with understaffing, erratic scheduling, and an unsustainable pace of work. Its long past time for Starbucks to listen to its workers, return to the bargaining table, and get to work on a real comeback strategy for Starbucks. For the past three years, the union has been pushing for a contract that includes higher wages, guaranteed hours, and better staffing. Jasmine Leli, a Starbucks barista and union bargaining delegate, said in a previous statement, Instead of addressing the most pressing issues baristas have been raising for years, Starbucks is prioritizing a limiting dress code that wont improve the companys operation. Leli added, Theyre forcing baristas to pay for new clothes when were struggling as it is on Starbucks wages and without guaranteed hours. At the time, a Starbucks spokesperson told Fast Company that the union would be better served if it put the same effort into coming back to the table to finalize a reasonable contract” than attacking the dress code.
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E-Commerce
The U.S. may soon scrap the penal import tariff on Indian goods and also cut the reciprocal tariff to 10-15% from the existing 25%, India’s Chief Economist Adviser V. Anantha Nageswaran said on Thursday. “My personal confidence is that in the next couple of months, if not earlier, we will see a resolution to at least to the extra penal tariff of 25%,” Nageswaran said at an event in Kolkata. “It may also be the case that reciprocal tariff of 25% may also come down to levels, which we were earlier anticipating somewhere between 10% and 15%.” India and the U.S. held “positive” and “forward-looking” trade discussions on Tuesday, New Delhi said, raising hopes for a breakthrough after President Donald Trump imposed punitive tariffs on the South Asian nation for buying Russian oil. Trump slapped a punitive 25% levy on India from August 27, doubling overall tariffs to 50%, as part of Washington’s efforts to step up pressure on Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine. Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said they spoke by phone on Tuesday with the U.S. president saying he thanked Modi for his help in ending the war between Russia and Ukraine. Neither gave any detail of any agreement on Ukraine, but the call appeared to be a sign of further thawing of U.S.-Indian tensions, which blew up in recent months raising questions about the future relationship between the partners, which share concerns about China. Trump also struck a more conciliatory tone in statements last week and expressed optimism that they could finalise a trade deal. Indian stocks extended gains after Nageswaran’s comments on easing trade tensions, with the benchmark Nifty 50 hitting one-week highs and notching it’s highest close since July 9. Swati Bhat, Reuters
Category:
E-Commerce
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