Based on reporting from WSJ’s Bradley Olson, “Alphabet Inc.’s Google and Amazon.com Inc. are taking early steps to expand into the electricity business, as home-energy automation emerges as a rich source of customer data.” Olson explains, “The technology giants aren’t interested in selling megawatts – at least not for now. But they are seeking ways […]
On Jan 16, WSJ writer, Joe Flint, reported that Netflix raised prices for its subscriptions, something the organization had not done since 2017. Specifically, the most popular subscription increased “by 18% to $13, from $11.” Upon announcing this hike, Netflix’s stock price also went up: 6.5%. Evidence suggests that the increase is aimed at paying […]
For years developers and other impacted business people have complained about how long it takes to get a permit in Tallahassee. It appears this may be changing for residential permits. Recently, the Leon County Board of County Commissioners (LCC) was provided a status report related to the ongoing analysis of the time it takes to […]
Last Tuesday, November 27, Mike Colias of the Wall Street Journal reported that GM will close several factories in North America and cut up to 14,800 jobs. Spurred by slowing sedan sales, the changes affect plants in Michigan, Ohio, and Canada. This is the first major downsizing since the company’s bankruptcy in 2009. Reducing GM’s […]
Americans have hit the highest share of cash-out refinancing since 2007 warns a recent Wall Street Journal article by Ben Eisen and Christina Rexrode. Specifically, more than 80% of borrowers who refinanced in the third quarter chose the “cash out” option, withdrawing $14.6 billion in equity out of their homes, according to government-sponsored mortgage corporation […]
As uncertainty over the future outlook of the U.S. economy looms, the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) worries that inflated home values will create market turbulence. Cezary Podkul of the Wall Street Journal writes, “the FHA insures about 11% of all U.S. single-family residential mortgage debt.” Of this debt, reverse mortgages, formally known as Home Equity […]
The latest employment information shows that Leon County added 64 jobs in October, 2018. One year ago Leon County lost 2,047 jobs. This month’s job gains follows a gain of 5,264 jobs in September. The unemployment rate ticked up from 2.8% in September to 2.9% in October. The number of people working in October 2018 […]
Amazon.com Inc. chose NYC and Northern Virginia as the locations for its new headquarters, referred to as H2Q. Understanding why Amazon chose these cities is crucial to understanding the trends of corporate America. Many would think that Amazon chose NYC and Northern Virginia because they offered the company the most financial incentive: $3 and $2.5 […]
At the end of last week, U.S. stocks dropped. Specifically, the S&P 500, an index of the 500 largest U.S. publicly traded companies, fell nearly one percent (0.92%) on Friday. Considering the positive economic news from the Federal Reserve last week, why did the week end in a slump? Jessica Menton and Donato Mancini of […]
Keeping up to date with the decisions of the Federal Reserve is a must. Right now, major stock market indexes and employment rates point to a strong economy, but the cost of borrowing money could be on the rise, which would test company profits. So who decides the cost of borrowing? One of the ways […]