Latest from Olie D'Albertanson

• Apr 27, 2023

  Are big banks following through on their climate pledges?

  

  Big banks across the financial sector — including giants like JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, and Bank of America — have made green pledges to reduce their contributions to climate change. But as a pair of new reports point out, the firms’ progress toward those goals has been slow even amid a period of high profitability. We look at why that’s been the case. Plus, the embattled First Republic Bank, one of the mid-sized financial institutions caught in the backblast of the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, is in fresh trouble after its stock tanked this week. And, oil tankers are becoming more and more expensive for companies to hire because of Russia’s war in Ukraine. 

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• Apr 27, 2023

  Microsoft’s Activision play is far from a done deal after UK snub

  

  From the BBC World Service: Microsoft’s president Brad Smith has been left fuming after the UK’s anti-trust regulator blocked the planned $70 billion merger with gaming giant Activision Blizzard.  He told the BBC he’s disappointed with the UK approach and now sees the European Union as a better place for business investment. Britain’s Competition and Markets Authority is one of three key regulators considering the deal along with those in the U.S. and the EU. Plus, Deutsche Bank has allayed concerns over its health with a set of strong results, but First Republic has hit new lows. And, how the humble homemade sandwich is not immune to inflation.Plus, Deutsche Bank has allayed concerns over its health with a set of strong results, but First Republic has hit new lows. And, how the humble homemade sandwich is not immune to inflation.

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• Apr 26, 2023

  Google sends mixed signals amid ad revenue slump

  

  Google’s parent company, Alphabet, reported higher-than-expected profits yesterday, leading to a big stock buyback being authorized by CEO Sundar Pichai. However, that’s a seemingly contradictory move to the extreme cost-cutting measures the company announced this year in response to a slowdown in ad revenue, including layoffs of over 12,000 employees. Plus, a look at how the airline industry is doing amid widespread delays and flight cancellations. And, why fire insurance is increasingly hard to come by for companies that conduct controlled burns to prevent wildfires. 

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• Apr 26, 2023

  Turmoil at Fox News could — somehow — bring advertisers back

  

  The chaos at Fox News in recent weeks amid the sacking of Tucker Carlson and the Dominion legal settlement has cast a spotlight on the network, which would normally be unwanted. But the chaos may actually end up bringing advertisers who had previously fled when Tucker took over primetime. And, we talk about the musings of the U.S. dollar’s decline with Council on Foreign Relations expert Zongyuan Zoe Liu.

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• Apr 26, 2023

  Volvo CEO: Europe needs to hit the gas on green subsidies

  

  From the BBC World Service:  The head of carmaker Volvo joins the Marketplace Morning Report and tells us Europe needs to work harder to implement green subsidies to counter the impact of the Biden administration’s Inflation Reduction Act. Plus, British American Tobacco has been handed a $635 million fine for selling cigarette materials to North Korea. And, we finish by heading to Portugal, which has become the unlikely European capital for bicycle manufacturing.

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• Apr 25, 2023

  First Republic reveals the severity of last month’s banking crisis

  

  The embattled First Republic Bank, which was nearly a casualty of the banking crisis that saw the collapse of three banks in early March, released earnings yesterday that showed the institution lost $100 billion in deposits due to panic among consumers. We look at what that says about First Republic and the wider banking sector. Plus, how the housing market is looking as home price increases continue to slow. And, we talked to Jean Twenge, professor of psychology at San Diego State University, about her new book “Generations,” which explores the differences between people of different age groups.

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• Apr 25, 2023

  Airlines are looking to reclaim their groove

  

  Airlines aren’t doing the hottest at the moment — just look at the headlines about Southwest’s latest spate of flight cancelations. According to Samuel Engel, senior vice president at the consultancy ICF, that’s been due to higher labor costs and a slowdown in highly-profitable business travel. Plus, tech sector results from some of the industry’s biggest companies are out soon, which will shed light on how the AI race is playing out. And, what a weakening U.S. dollar means for companies at home and abroad. 

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• Apr 25, 2023

  Squid Game effect? Netflix doubles down on South Korean content

  

  From the BBC World Service: Hoping to capitalize on the huge success of Squid Game, streaming service Netflix has announced that it is doubling its investment in Korean films and TV shows to $2.5 billion. Plus, is a fresh privatization drive coming to Russia as the head of a state-owned bank calls for extra investment? Russian economic analyst Alexandra Prokopenko gives us the details. And, the BBC’s Bernadette Kehoe looks at China’s plans to use 3D printing technology to construct buildings on the moon.

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• Apr 24, 2023

  A collective shrug from economists on recession odds

  

  A new survey out from the National Association for Business Economics that polled over 50 economists shows a collective “maybe” on whether respondents thought a recession will appear later this year. We chat with NABE president Julia Coronado about what the survey can tell us about the wider economy. Plus, we look at new power plant emissions guidelines to be proposed by the Environmental Protection Agency. And, senior economics contributor Chris Farrell talks about the health insurance inequality trends between people with and without college degrees. 

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• Apr 24, 2023

  Car prices are falling, but there’s a catch for buyers

  

  Prices for new and used cars are finally falling, but prospective buyers may have another hurdle to overcome: rising rates on loans. We look at what that could mean for people who are looking to make their next big auto purchase. Plus, this year looks to be a hot one with the prospect of an “El Niño” weather event, which could affect the economy. And, how some people are using cryptocurrency to track criminals through the blockchain. 

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