Marketplace®

Daily business news and economic stories

Nick Esposito

Latest from Nick Esposito

  • A big rate decision today for Jerome Powell and Co.
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    The Fed is expected to announce later today that it will continue its recent interest-rate-hiking trend, which comes amid a strong jobs report from the private payroll company ADP. We turn to Susan Schmidt, head of public equity at the State of Wisconsin Investment Fund, to break down what Jerome Powell and Co. could decide. Plus, the Fed’s inflation fight has hinged on raising rates to slow a tight labor market, and some signs like high-profile layoffs are pointing in that direction. And, we speak with Duke law professor Jennifer Jenkins about the court case playing out between Ed Sheeran and Marvin Gaye for alleged copyright infringement.

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  • Ripples from the screenwriters strike reach beyond Hollywood
    Valerie Macon/AFP via Getty Images

    Screenwriters for TV and film went on strike yesterday after studios and the writers guild failed to come to a new contract deal. We look at how the work stoppage is affecting the industry further afield from Hollywood, particularly in the Atlanta metro area. Plus, bank stocks took a tumble yesterday after the announcement by federal regulators that First Republic Bank had failed and been acquired by JPMorgan Chase. Also, the collapse is likely to bring more regulation — and consolidation — to the banking industry. And, how the education field will change signficantly as generative AI explodes onto the scene.

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  • UK watchdog plans to shake up stock listing rules
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    From the BBC World Service:  The Chief Executive of UK regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority, has told the BBC they’ll relax rules around Initial Public Offerings in the UK after a 40% decline on the London Stock Exchange in 15 years. Also, we hear from a Professor of Business after educational stocks take a hit with the advancement of AI, and finally, BBC Sport Correspondent Alex Capstick explains why the Women’s Soccer World Cup is at risk of not being shown across Europe.

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  • As two grocery giants look to merge, rural towns watch in suspense
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    A proposed merger between two of the largest grocery chains in the country, Kroger and Albertsons, is under review by the Federal Trade Commission for antitrust violations. If it goes through, rural communities fear that the union could mean store closures and layoffs. We examine how past mergers play into fears today. Plus, a look ahead to tomorrow’s Federal Reserve interest-rate-setting announcement with Michael Pugliese, senior economist at Wells Fargo Corporate & Investment Banking. And, the nominee to assume the World Bank presidency is looking to retool the Bank’s programs to further emphasize the fight against climate change. 

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  • The debt ceiling fight just got a lot more real
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    The pressure is now on for the White House and House Republicans to strike a deal to raise the nation’s debt ceiling by the end of the month. Yesterday, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen announced that the U.S. could run out of money to pay its bills as soon as June 1. We look at what the deadline means for negotiators in Washington. Plus, JPMorgan Chase’s deal to acquire the failed First Republic Bank means that the megabank will bring in a bevy of assets and new customers, but also a load of debt and restructuring headaches. And, the BBC’s Elizabeth Hotson reports on how confectioners are dealing with higher prices for producing candy. 

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  • The ‘Godfather’ of AI warns of the technology’s danger
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    From the BBC World Service: Geoffrey Hinton, one of the pioneers of Artificial Intelligence, quit his job at Google and has issued a stark warning to the BBC about the technology he helped create. Additionally, HSBC’s profits tripled in Q1 after acquiring Silicon Valley Bank UK. And Marketplace’s Leanna Byrne visits companies in the UK that are gearing up for the King’s coronation this weekend.

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  • Could we be nearing the end of the banking crisis?
    Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images

    The failure and subsequent sale of First Republic Bank is the latest episode in the continuing fallout from the Silicon Valley Bank collapse in March. Yet there may be cause for cautious optimism this could be one of the final dominos to fall in the banking crisis. Julia Coronado, president of MacroPolicy Perspectives, tells us more about what could lay ahead. Plus, a deeper look into what exactly happened when financial regulators sprung into action overnight Monday. And, how Homeboy Industries, an LA-based nonprofit that rehabilitates formerly incarcerated and gang-affiliated people, is taking on the challenge of recycling clothing. 

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  • How the latest bank failure reshaped the financial industry overnight
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    The embattled First Republic Bank, one of the institutions caught in the wake of Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse, was acquired overnight by federal regulators and sold to JPMorgan Chase. It’s a massive, multi-billion dollar deal that makes America’s largest bank even larger. Erik Gordon, professor at the University of Michigan, explains what the collapse says about the financial industry. Plus, we look at how the construction industry is dealing with an ever-present shortage of workers. 

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  • First Republic becomes the second biggest bank to fail in U.S. history
    Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

    From the BBC World Service: Overnight, First Republic Bank was taken under the stewardship of regulators, who then immediately sold it on to JPMorgan Chase, making it the second biggest bank in American history to fail. Banking analyst Frances Coppola talks us through the ramifications. Plus the BBC Business Editor in India, Arunoday Mukharji, reports on India becoming the world’s most populous country.

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  • The economic crystal ball foresees another Fed rate hike
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    The latest measure of the Federal Reserve’s preferred gauge of inflation is out today, and it showed a considerable tapering in rising prices. But according to FHN Financial Chief Economist Christopher Low, the economic tea leaves are still saying that America’s central bank will likely hike rates again when its top interest rate-setting committee meets next month. Plus, we chat with Zanny Minton Beddoes, editor-in-chief of The Economist, about the news magazine’s recent edition highlighting the U.S. economy’s surprising long-term overperformance. And, what the latest rounds of layoffs at Gap Inc. say about the retail sector. 

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