Pipe systems and shut-off devices at the gas receiving station of the Nord Stream 1 Baltic Sea pipeline and the transfer station of the OPAL (Ostsee-Pipeline-Anbindungsleitung) on July 11 2022, in Mecklenburg, Western Pomerania, Lubmin, Germany. Those turbines have since been allowed to travel to Germany from Canada, where they were being repaired, under a sanctions waiver, the Canadian government said last week. But Russia could still decide to keep the taps turned off. The country has alrea...

Pipe systems and shut-off devices at the gas receiving station of the Nord Stream 1 Baltic Sea pipeline and the transfer station of the OPAL (Ostsee-Pipeline-Anbindungsleitung) on July 11 2022, in Mecklenburg, Western Pomerania, Lubmin, Germany. Those turbines have since been allowed to travel to Germany from Canada, where they were being repaired, under a sanctions waiver, the Canadian government said last week. But Russia could still decide to keep the taps turned off. The country has alrea...

Nearly three years after Adam Neumann stepped down as CEO of WeWork following a failed attempt to take the company public, he is said to once again be in charge of a billion-dollar real estate startup. Andreessen Horowitz, the prominent venture capital firm known for its early investments in Twitter and Airbnb, has pumped about $350 million into Neumann's newest venture, called Flow, according to The New York Times, citing unnamed sources briefed on the deal. The investment valued the st...

Nearly three years after Adam Neumann stepped down as CEO of WeWork following a failed attempt to take the company public, he is said to once again be in charge of a billion-dollar real estate startup. Andreessen Horowitz, the prominent venture capital firm known for its early investments in Twitter and Airbnb, has pumped about $350 million into Neumann's newest venture, called Flow, according to The New York Times, citing unnamed sources briefed on the deal. The investment valued the st...

"While some maintain that two consecutive quarters of falling real GDP constitute a recession, that is neither the official definition nor the way economists evaluate the state of the business cycle," the White House said in a recent blog post. Big picture: Don't expect the NBER to settle the back-and-forth any time soon. It waited until June 2020 to announce that the coronavirus-induced recession started the previous February — and that was faster than usual. That means the recession de...

"While some maintain that two consecutive quarters of falling real GDP constitute a recession, that is neither the official definition nor the way economists evaluate the state of the business cycle," the White House said in a recent blog post. Big picture: Don't expect the NBER to settle the back-and-forth any time soon. It waited until June 2020 to announce that the coronavirus-induced recession started the previous February — and that was faster than usual. That means the recession de...

Double-edged swordThis report, viewed in conjunction with the latest data that shows job openings still far surpassing the number of people looking for work, could put pressure on the Federal Reserve to continue its spate of aggressive rate hikes, he added. "As [Fed Chair] Jerome Powell and his colleagues continue to judge the job market as hot, that stays on the side of the ledger compelling them to continue to raise interest rates," he said. The Fed's monetary policymaking committee ne...

Double-edged swordThis report, viewed in conjunction with the latest data that shows job openings still far surpassing the number of people looking for work, could put pressure on the Federal Reserve to continue its spate of aggressive rate hikes, he added. "As [Fed Chair] Jerome Powell and his colleagues continue to judge the job market as hot, that stays on the side of the ledger compelling them to continue to raise interest rates," he said. The Fed's monetary policymaking committee ne...

Squeri also said the company's credit performance "remains exceptional, with delinquencies and write-offs near historical lows." That said, AmEx also built a small credit reserve in the quarter. Squeri said during a conference call with analysts that the company is keeping a close eye on labor-market data, saying that there is a correlation between "people losing their jobs and not being able to pay their bills." "So that's potentially an issue down the road," he said. * Yet AmEx is...

Squeri also said the company's credit performance "remains exceptional, with delinquencies and write-offs near historical lows." That said, AmEx also built a small credit reserve in the quarter. Squeri said during a conference call with analysts that the company is keeping a close eye on labor-market data, saying that there is a correlation between "people losing their jobs and not being able to pay their bills." "So that's potentially an issue down the road," he said. * Yet AmEx is...

The European Union has agreed to ration its natural gas this winter to prevent a severe supply shock. But the bloc has watered down its ambitions by offering countries some significant leeway. On Tuesday, EU energy ministers agreed to a voluntary target to reduce gas usage by 15% between August and March 2023. That reduction is measured against each country's average gas consumption during the same months over the previous five years. The EU Commission first unveiled the 15% target in it...

The European Union has agreed to ration its natural gas this winter to prevent a severe supply shock. But the bloc has watered down its ambitions by offering countries some significant leeway. On Tuesday, EU energy ministers agreed to a voluntary target to reduce gas usage by 15% between August and March 2023. That reduction is measured against each country's average gas consumption during the same months over the previous five years. The EU Commission first unveiled the 15% target in it...

"Creatives, script, agency, client, casting... does everyone think rape is a joke?," Chadha tweeted. Responding to Chadha's Tweet, Quantico star Priyanka Chopra called the ad "shameful and disgusting" and said she was glad that the ministry has taken it down. Film writer and director Farhan Akhtar also slammed the advertisement. "What incredibly tasteless and twisted minds it must take to think up, approve and create these stinking body spray 'gang rape' innuendo ads. Shameful,...

"Creatives, script, agency, client, casting... does everyone think rape is a joke?," Chadha tweeted. Responding to Chadha's Tweet, Quantico star Priyanka Chopra called the ad "shameful and disgusting" and said she was glad that the ministry has taken it down. Film writer and director Farhan Akhtar also slammed the advertisement. "What incredibly tasteless and twisted minds it must take to think up, approve and create these stinking body spray 'gang rape' innuendo ads. Shameful,...

The Federal Reserve is stepping up its war on inflation. That means borrowing costs are going sharply higher for families and businesses. The US central bank last increased its benchmark interest rate by three-quarters of a percentage point, which is the biggest single hike since 1994. This follows the Fed's decision to raise its rate by half a percentage point in May, the biggest increase in 22 years. * The Fed is expected to announce another three-quarters of a point rate hike on Wedne...

The Federal Reserve is stepping up its war on inflation. That means borrowing costs are going sharply higher for families and businesses. The US central bank last increased its benchmark interest rate by three-quarters of a percentage point, which is the biggest single hike since 1994. This follows the Fed's decision to raise its rate by half a percentage point in May, the biggest increase in 22 years. * The Fed is expected to announce another three-quarters of a point rate hike on Wedne...

About 30 states and Washington DC have minimum wages above the federal standard. Five states have not adopted a state minimum wage: Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina and Tennessee. Two states, Georgia and Wyoming, have a minimum wage below $7.25 per hour. In all seven of these states, the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour applies.Up nextMonday: Chicago Fed national activity index for June Tuesday: Microsoft, Alphabet, Coca-Cola and McDonald's report earnings Wednesday:...

About 30 states and Washington DC have minimum wages above the federal standard. Five states have not adopted a state minimum wage: Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina and Tennessee. Two states, Georgia and Wyoming, have a minimum wage below $7.25 per hour. In all seven of these states, the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour applies.Up nextMonday: Chicago Fed national activity index for June Tuesday: Microsoft, Alphabet, Coca-Cola and McDonald's report earnings Wednesday:...

I drove the last 150 miles to Atlanta, crossing the state line through gorgeous wetlands and stopping at the Georgia Welcome Center, with hardly a thought about batteries or charging or range. * But I was driving $105,000 Mercedes. What if I'd been driving something that cost less and that, while still going farther than a human would want to drive at a stretch, wouldn't go far enough to make that trip as easily. Obviously, people do it. One thing that surprised me on this trip, com...

I drove the last 150 miles to Atlanta, crossing the state line through gorgeous wetlands and stopping at the Georgia Welcome Center, with hardly a thought about batteries or charging or range. * But I was driving $105,000 Mercedes. What if I'd been driving something that cost less and that, while still going farther than a human would want to drive at a stretch, wouldn't go far enough to make that trip as easily. Obviously, people do it. One thing that surprised me on this trip, com...

STREAM KINGSThe next episode of the Netflix saga is going to be hard to watch. Here's the deal: After losing nearly a million customers last quarter, Netflix has got to figure out a sustainable revenue plan to keep investors happy. And, as my colleague Frank Pallotta writes, that's going to mean peeling back some of the things that have made Netflix Netflix. In other words, pleasing Wall Street is going to mean angering, or at least annoying, customers. How? First, adding advertisin...

STREAM KINGSThe next episode of the Netflix saga is going to be hard to watch. Here's the deal: After losing nearly a million customers last quarter, Netflix has got to figure out a sustainable revenue plan to keep investors happy. And, as my colleague Frank Pallotta writes, that's going to mean peeling back some of the things that have made Netflix Netflix. In other words, pleasing Wall Street is going to mean angering, or at least annoying, customers. How? First, adding advertisin...

If you're confused about whether the US economy is in a recession, you're not alone. On one hand, gross domestic product, a key measure of economic output, shrank for the second straight quarter this week, raising fears that the country has entered -- or will soon enter -- recession territory. On the other hand, the job market remains very strong, telling us the economy is still robust. Some economists call two consecutive quarters of contraction a technical recession. And with good...

If you're confused about whether the US economy is in a recession, you're not alone. On one hand, gross domestic product, a key measure of economic output, shrank for the second straight quarter this week, raising fears that the country has entered -- or will soon enter -- recession territory. On the other hand, the job market remains very strong, telling us the economy is still robust. Some economists call two consecutive quarters of contraction a technical recession. And with good...