If Walmart CEO Doug McMillon's public challenge to Congress to raise the federal minimum wage from $7.25 turns into reality, it could be a big boon for the retail giant.
What's happening: McMillon issued his call yesterday at Walmart's annual shareholder's meeting, saying the federal rate was "lagging behind." Among the upsides of such a move for Walmart...
But, but, but: "Media freedom can recover much more quickly after a period of authoritarian governance than some other elements of democracy, such as the rule of law," the report notes.
The Federal Communications Commission voted on a ruling Thursday that would combat robocalls that spoof legitimate, in-service numbers and provide a legal framework for phone carriers to carry out the action.
Why it matters: It's one of the most complained-about issues in America. The FCC gets roughly 200,000 complaints each year about robocalls. Nearly 48 billion robocalls were made in 2018, according to YouMail Robocall Index.
Peloton, the connected fitness company, said that it filed confidential IPO paperwork. No specifics were disclosed, but word is that Goldman Sachs and J.P. Morgan are lead bankers, with plans to price the offering in September.
Why it matters: Peloton may be first out of the gate for the post-Labor Day IPO rush, and will confound analyst "buckets." It's a hardware maker that's also a subscription content creator that's also a streaming software company that also does its own last-mile logistics. CEO John Foley is known to prompt cynical chuckles by calling Peloton the next Apple, but it's hard to think of a much better comp.
Fox News host Tucker Carlson praised 2020 Democratic candidate Sen. Elizabeth Warren's "economic patriotism" plan during his Wednesday show, quoting the policy at length before saying "she sounds like Donald Trump at his best."
The big picture: Carlson emphasized that he believes most Republicans would agree with the elements of Warren's proposal that deal with "creating and defending good American jobs," saying that many of her policies "make obvious sense."
They're baaa-aack: Kars4Kids has cast another commercial, and the iconic jingle that has drawn such ire will likely remain the same, as the controversial nonprofit gears up for a new marketing push.
Why it matters: Kars4Kids, which saw contributions soar after its nationwide TV commercial debuted in 2014, owes a lot of its success to TV and radio advertising. But most people don't know that the charity's primary goal is to encourage secular Jews to become more religious, which it does through a summer camp in the Catskills and other programs.
President Trump told reporters on Thursday he could raise China tariffs by "at least" another $300 billion of tariffs, Reuters video shows.
"Our talks with China, a lot of interesting things are happening. We’ll see what happens... I could go up another at least $300 billion and I’ll do that at the right time, but I think China wants to make a deal and I think Mexico wants to make a deal badly."
Congress has received notification of a potential $2 billion U.S. sale of tanks and other weapons to Taiwan, Reuters first reported Wednesday, citing 4 sources who spoke on condition of remaining anonymous.
Details: Bloomberg reports the Pentagon and State Department outlined to Congress the deal would include a resupply of anti-air and anti-armor weapons and the first-time sale of the U.S. Army’s the M1A2 tank, described as the "backbone of the armored forces."
Mexican officials failed to fend off impending tariffs during a meeting with White House officials in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday, reports CNBC.
What's next: President Trump — who is currently in the U.K. — said progress was made, but not enough. The talks are set to continue on Thursday, but if no agreement is reached, tariffs are expected to take effect on June 10.
The private sector added just 27,000 jobs in May — the fewest since the economic expansion began — according to the ADP employment report, which tracks the employers of about 24 million workers. The number was way below economists' expectations of 173,000 job gains and a steep drop-off from April's 275,000 increase in jobs.
What's happening: Small businesses — which ADP counts as companies that employ up to 49 people — saw the steepest decline in employment, with payrolls dropping by 52,000, continuing a pattern of pain for smaller companies.
Walmart CEO Doug McMillon urged Congress to increase the federal minimum wage during the retailer's shareholders' meeting on Wednesday, saying that the nationwide standard of $7.25 per hour is "lagging behind."
The other side: Sen. Bernie Sanders, who was present at the meeting, said Walmart pays its employees "starvation wages" — the company's minimum wage is $11 per hour, which was instituted last year — and called for its employees to be paid $15 an hour.
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy told Bloomberg News on Wednesday that Senate Republicans need to support President Trump's tariff threat against Mexico in order to give the White House a strong hand in negotiations, even if they're opposed to the proposal.
"End of the day we should support the president so we can get an agreement so we don't have tariffs. Them talking about not supporting him undercuts his ability to do that."
Why it matters: Most Republicans are fundamentally opposed to these tariffs, as became even clearer on Tuesday when senators warned the White House that the Mexico threat has little to no support from GOP lawmakers. McCarthy, in a roundabout way, is arguing that Republicans who raise their concerns will undermine negotiations with Mexico, which could ultimately hurt Trump's ability to strike an immigration deal and result in the very tariffs they are seeking to avoid.
The private sector added just 27,000 jobs in May — the fewest in 9 years — way below the 173,000 economists had been expecting, ADP and Moody's Analytics said on Wednesday.
Why it matters: The data is typically a good barometer of what’s to come in the government’s official jobs report. It comes amid concerns that the stellar job market may finally be slowing down. In a press release, Moody’s chief economist Mark Zandi said, "Job growth is moderating. Labor shortages are impeding job growth, particularly at small companies, and layoffs at brick-and-mortar retailers are hurting."
Though President Trump insisted he plans to follow through on his threat to add escalating tariffs to all goods imported from Mexico, suspicion is beginning to grow among asset managers.
What it means: The timing, lack of clarity and lack of policy action or precedent has some wondering whether the president's actions are less about punishing Mexico and more an attempt to get the Fed to cut rates in order to stimulate the economy ahead of 2020.
U.S. stocks have had a major reaction after Fed Chair Jerome Powell's policy meetings, a pattern that continued Tuesday when the S&P 500, the Dow and the Nasdaq all had their largest one-day gains in five months after Powell said the central bank would act "as appropriate" to address risks to the economy.
Why it matters: The U.S. trade war that could include China, Mexico, the EU, India and others has dominated the conversation in business circles over the past month, but Tuesday's price action showed nothing moves stocks like Powell and the Fed.
One set of retailers is doing a great job of bucking the retailpocalypse trend: famous people.
Why it matters: If you want your retail store to be swarmed, it helps to be a YouTube influencer. A pop-up shop for David Dobrik's hoodie-centric Clickbait brand attracted 10,000 fans in a single weekend. More established retailers like Nordstrom have teamed up with influencers like Gal Meets Glam's Julia Engel to drive traffic and sales.
Chinese authorities have fined Ford's joint Chinese venture 162.8 million yuan ($23.5 million) for monopoly law violations, Reuters first reported on Tuesday.
Details: The State Administration for Market Regulation said the Changan Ford venture had set a minimum resale price for its cars that deprived dealers in the Chinese municipality of Chongqing of pricing autonomy since 2013, per Reuters. The fine is equivalent to 4% of Changan Ford’s 2018 sales in Chongqing last year, it said.
What they're saying: Ford said in a statement that it respects China’s decision, per Bloomberg.
