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Is it a ‘skip’ or a ‘pause’? Federal Reserve won’t likely raise rates next week but maybe next month
WASHINGTON (AP) — Don’t call it a “pause.” When the Federal Reserve meets next week, it is widely expected to leave interest rates alone — after 10 straight meetings in which it has jacked up its key rate to fight inflation. But what might otherwise be seen as a “pause” will likely be characterized instead as a “skip.” The difference? A “pause” might suggest that the Fed may not raise its benchmark rate again. A “skip” implies that it probably will — just not now. The purpose of suspending its rate hikes is to give the Fed’s policymakers time to look around and assess how much higher borrowing rates are slowing inflation.
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CNN ousts CEO Chris Licht after a brief, tumultuous tenure
NEW YORK (AP) — Chris Licht was ousted as chief executive at CNN, following a series of missteps and plunging ratings. David Zaslav, the CEO of CNN parent company Warner Bros. Discovery, announced the leadership change on CNN’s morning editorial call on Wednesday. Zaslav appointed a four-person leadership team to lead the network in the interim. Licht replaced Jeff Zucker as CNN’s chief executive last year, with a mandate to move the network more toward the political center. The executive’s revamp of CNN’s morning show fell flat, leading to the firing of longtime personality Don Lemon. Licht’s plans to restructure the network’s prime-time lineup have moved slowly.
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Los Angeles Times announces 74 job cuts due to economic challenges
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Los Angeles Times says it is cutting 74 jobs due to economic challenges as the newspaper strives to transform itself into a digital media organization. Times Executive Editor Kevin Merida wrote in a message to staff Wednesday that employees whose positions have been eliminated from the Pulitzer Prize-winning newspaper are being notified. A staff meeting is planned. The paper reports that the cuts will eliminate about 13% of newsroom positions. The Los Angeles Times Guild says it was blindsided by the layoffs. The cuts follow layoffs at other news organizations and come days after journalists walked off the job at Gannett-owned newspapers to protest cost-cutting measures.
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Richard Snyder, ‘warrior-king’ of publishing who presided over rise of Simon & Schuster, dead at 90
NEW YORK (AP) — Richard Snyder, a visionary and imperious executive at Simon & Schuster who presided over the publisher’s exponential rise during the second half of the 20th century and helped define an era of growing corporate power, has died. He was 90. During Snyder’s reign, bestsellers included Mary Higgins Clark’s crime thrillers and Larry McMurtry’s “Lonesome Dove.” Snyder was also an early advocate for electronic publishing and vastly expanded Simon & Schuster’s scope by spending more than $1 billion on acquisitions. The company’s revenues multiplied from around $40 million annually in the 1970s to more than $2 billion by the mid-1990s.
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China trade tumbles in May, adding to signs economic recovery is slowing
BEIJING (AP) — China’s exports fell 7.5% from a year earlier in May and imports were down 4.5%, adding to signs an economic recovery is slowing. Customs data show exports slid to $283.5 billion, reversing from April’s unexpectedly strong 8.5% growth. Imports fell to $217.7 billion, moderating from the previous month’s 7.9% contraction. Trade weakness adds to signs of a slowing of China’s rebound following the lifting in December of anti-virus controls that disrupted travel and commerce. Retail spending is lower than expected as consumers worry about the economic outlook and possible job losses. Manufacturing activity has been contracting as interest rate hikes in the United States and Europe chill demand for exports.
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Persistent inflation, higher interest rates will weigh on global economy, OECD predicts
FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — The global economy is bouncing back from an an energy price spike fed by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. But growth will stay below average this year and next. And trouble could emerge as central banks trying to fight inflation push interest rates higher and make borrowing for house purchases and business expansion more costly. That is the outlook Wednesday from the Paris-based Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. The OECD foresees growth of 2.7% this year and 2.9% next year — below the average pace before the pandemic.
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Leaders gather in Paris to accelerate wringing more out of every ounce of fuel
As 30 environment and trade ministers, and 50 CEOs gather in Paris for the 8th international conference on energy efficiency, the International Energy Agency is taking stock. The conference brings together world leaders on energy, business, environment and climate to accelerate progress on energy efficiency globally. The agency just released a report that shows significant strides in improving energy efficiency. Investment increased 15% globally in one year to $600 billion, and growth is not leading to the traditional parallel growth in emissions. Eliminating wasted energy is the most affordable way to bring goods and services to the people who need them — while slowing greenhouse gas emissions – which cause of global warming.
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Ukraine rushes drinking water to flooded areas as environmental damage mounts from dam break
KHERSON, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian authorities are rushing supplies of drinking water to areas affected by flooding from a collapsed dam in southern Ukraine. They also are weighing where they might resettle residents who relied on the breached reservoir on the Dnieper River, which forms part of the front line of the 15-month war. More than 2,700 people have fled flooded areas on both the Russian and Ukrainian-controlled sides of the river, but it was not clear whether the true scale of the disaster had yet emerged in an area that was home to more than 60,000 people. The hydroelectric dam and reservoir is essential for the supply of drinking water and irrigation to a huge area of southern Ukraine.
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Security guards at London’s Heathrow Airport to escalate strikes over pay into busy summer months
LONDON (AP) — Security guards at London’s Heathrow Airport will escalate their strike action over pay into the busy summer months. The Unite union said Wednesday that more than 2,000 of its members will walk out for 31 days from June 24 through to Aug. 27. It’s a move that could wreak havoc for the millions of people going through Heathrow during the summer travel season. Security guards have already been striking in recent months including during the Easter break and the coronation of King Charles III. A spokesperson for Heathrow wasn’t immediately available for comment.
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The S&P 500 fell 16.33 points, or 0.4%, to 4,267.52. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 91.74 points, or 0.3%, to 33,665.02. The Nasdaq composite fell 171.52 points, or 1.3% to 13,104.89. The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 33.05 points, or 1.8%, to 1,888.45.
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