Why it matters: Wall Street generally hates uncertainty and had already been grappling this year with tightening monetary policy — before the potential for war popped up.
Ye, the artist formerly known as Kanye West, wants more control over his music. That’s why his “Donda 2” album, set to be released today, will be available only on a device called the Stem Player.
Why it matters: The $200 physical music player, shaped like a smooth stone, enables Ye to sell direct-to-consumer and to own customer data, GQ’s Jake Woolf writes.
The U.S. housing market experienced its highest one-year increase in home prices in at least 34 years in 2021.
By the numbers: U.S. home prices soared 18.8% over 2020 levels, according to the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price NSA Index released today.
Fintech investors didn't get the note about the growth stock pullback. Some $18.2 billion in funding flowed to fintech companies in the first month-and-half of 2022, putting in on track to beat last year's historical record, per a Friday report from Citi Global Insights.
Why it matters: Companies in the space attracted a record $136.8 billion last year and market observers wondered if those nosebleed levels of funding could hold. The numbers so far suggest investors are emphatically saying yes.
Luxury giant LVMH has held exploratory discussions with Ralph Lauren over the past couple of years about a possible acquisition of the U.S. fashion brand, according to several sources familiar with the situation.
Why it matters: At any premium to its current enterprise value, which is just under $8 billion, it would be one of the largest apparel deals of all time and cement LVMH's presence in the U.S. market.
Tagboard has raised $8 million in a series A funding round valuing the startup at $40 million, CEO Nathan Peterson exclusively told Axios.
Why it matters: Tagboard, a cloud production platform for live programming, lets broadcasters and sports leagues incorporate social media graphics onto on-air coverage and in-stadium videos.
SoFi has agreed to acquire Technisys, a Latin America-based banking software company, for $1.1 billion in an all-stock deal. SoFi estimates that the acquisition will generate up to $800 million in additional revenue and up to $85 million in cost savings through 2025.
Why it matters: SoFi, which recently became a bank after acquiring Golden Pacific Bancorp, is continuing its acquisition spree, which has included Galileo Financial Technologies for $1.2 billion in 2020.
It's hard to admit when you've gotten something wrong (especially when, like me, that's never happened to you before). But with prices rising faster and higher than I ever expected — 7.5% over the last year! — it's time to admit it: We really do have honest-to-god inflation.
Why it matters: The path of inflation has clearly emerged as the single most important issue facing investors, policy makers and politicians, many of whom missed it. Figuring out why we were slow to see it coming could make me better at understanding how price dynamics play out.
The White House announced new moves Tuesday morning aimed at bolstering U.S. development and processing of key minerals used in electric cars and other energy applications.
Why it matters: Demand for materials like lithium, cobalt, rare earth minerals and more is slated to soar in coming years and decades, and the U.S. is dependent on China and other nations for raw materials.
Crude oil prices are moving closer to $100-per-barrel after Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered troops into eastern Ukraine and recognized the independence of two Kremlin-backed separatist regions.
Why it matters: Further escalation would push prices higher and shake energy markets more broadly as tensions with Russia — the main oil and natural gas supplier to Europe — reach their highest levels since the Cold War.
The U.S. consumer magazine industry shrunk by more than 20% in the past five years, due largely to print advertising declines, per PwC data. But the rate of decline is expected to slow slightly in the next five years, thanks to new efforts from online media companies to acquire and digitize traditional print brands.
Why it matters: "If you make the right acquisition in the right vertical ... it can give you real scale that is meaningful and major clout in that vertical very quickly," said Jason Webby, chief revenue officer at Future, which owns over 200 print and digital magazine titles, including The Week, Marie Claire US and Kiplinger.
Tegna, one of the largest U.S. local news broadcast companies, has sold to one of its largest shareholders, Standard General, in a $5.4 billion deal backed by private equity giant Apollo Global Management, the companies said Tuesday.
Why it matters: Consolidation in local media has accelerated in recent years as private investment firms look to squeeze profits out of local news companies whose businesses have been in terminal decline.
A fire on the Felicity Ace, a cargo ship carrying luxury cars that is adrift in the mid-Atlantic, subsided Tuesday after burning for about six days, according to AP.
Why it matters: The ship, which was destined for Rhode Island but caught fire off the coast of Portugal's Azores Islands, is expected to be towed to the Bahamas.
Stocks continue to struggle in the face of higher interest rates, climbing oil prices and the risks that Europe's largest land war since 1945 is about to start.
Driving the news: The S&P 500 closed at its second-lowest level this year on Friday, after falling 0.7%.
If you want to know what it looks like when Federal Reserve leaders decide to send a concerted signal about their plans, well, it looks like what took place Friday.
Comments from Governor Lael Brainard and New York Fed President John Williams made clear that the central bank intends to raise interest rates only a quarter-percent at its March meeting, then keep raising them steadily over the rest of the year.
Why it matters: The Fed appears committed to moving decisively but steadily toward tighter money — not moving so quickly as to shock markets or the economy unnecessarily.
GM designers envision a future where luxury car passengers, unencumbered by driving, can relax and enjoy the journey with experiences tailored to enhance their well-being.
Why it matters: The first autonomous vehicles for personal use could arrive "as soon as mid-decade," according to General Motors — although some industry experts take issue with the claim. Whenever they arrive, self-driving cars promise to transform personal mobility.
As companies reopen offices, who goes back and who stays home could determine the trajectory of workers' careers.
The big picture: Women and people of color are generally happier working from home and are likelier than their white male colleagues to want to continue teleworking, according to a new Harris Poll survey of professional workers across the U.S.
America doesn't have enough homes for all the people who want to buy them. So the construction sector is getting busy — or at least trying to.
Driving the news: Homebuilding activity has surged, with the number of new housing units under construction soaring to the highest level in nearly 50 years.
