A group of freelance writers and editors has sued the U.S. Department of Labor, claiming the Biden administration's new rule making it more difficult for companies to treat some workers as independent contractors is illegal and should be struck down.
Sainsbury’s will undertake a “phased withdrawal” from its banking efforts, the supermarket giant confirmed this morning.
The grocer said after a strategic review it had been decided that all financial products offered in the future would be provided by third parties – similar to the model it uses for its insurance providers.
Sainsbury’s Bank chief Jim Brown will step down from his role, to be replaced by former AIB exec Robert Mulhall.
The bank offloaded its £400m-plus mortgage book to Co-op Bank last summer.
Simon Roberts, Sainsbury’s CEO, said this morning: “We have been clear since we launched our Food First strategy in 2020 that we would concentrate our efforts on our core retail businesses and today’s announcement reflects that strategic focus.
“It’s business as usual for now at Sainsbury’s Bank and there will be no immediate changes to products and services as a result of today’s announcement. We will of course communicate directly to customers well in advance of any changes to their products and services.”
The supermarket said that there are no immediate changes for customers' products and services.
It comes as the group enjoyed a buoyant Christmas, fuelled largely by food sales but general merchandise sales disappointed.
U.S. economic activity changed little in recent weeks as hiring stalled, prices grew modestly and the private sector feared uncertainty tied to the 2024 election, a Federal Reserve report released on Wednesday showed.
A rosy outlook nevertheless pervaded the findings, since industry officials anticipated interest rate cuts this year, the report said.
On the whole, the report depicts an economy that has downshifted from blistering growth in the middle of last year, slowing hiring and putting the brakes on price increases.
The report, known as the Beige Book, detailed economic conditions in 12 different regions -- known as "districts" -- based on the results of interviews with businesses by local Fed officials.
The fresh information suggests that a prolonged period of high-interest rates has succeeded in cooling the economy, which could reinforce the Fed's plans to cut rates in the coming months.
Private sector officials nationwide drew hope from the prospect of such an outcome, the Fed report said.
"Districts continued to note that high-interest rates were limiting auto sales and real estate deals; however, the prospect of falling interest rates was cited by numerous contacts in various sectors as a source of optimism," the report said.
The fresh report appeared to contradict some economic data from recent weeks indicating robust performance.
A stronger-than-expected jobs report demonstrated solid hiring growth in December, rebuking fears of an economic downturn anytime soon.
Consumer prices, meanwhile, rose 3.4% in December compared to a year ago, accelerating markedly from the previous month and defying a smooth path down to normal levels, a report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics last week showed.
Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller said Tuesday the central bank expects to cut rates this year, but that it won't be "rushed" to make the decision soon.
Those remarks helped send treasury yields soaring and major stock indexes tumbling on Wednesday.
The Fed risks a rebound of inflation if it cuts interest rates too quickly. An additional burst of economic activity for an already robust economy could hike demand and raise prices once again.
While the vast majority of districts reported little or no change in economic conditions, three districts reported modest growth and one reported moderate decline, the Fed report said.
Similarly, the report added, that most districts described little or no change in overall employment levels. The slow hiring gave businesses in many districts confidence that wage growth would ease in the coming months, the Fed said.
Those expectations align with forecasts at the Fed of continued progress in the inflation fight over this year.
When facing high inflation, policymakers fear what's referred to as a price-wage spiral, in which a rise in prices prompts workers to demand raises that help them afford goods, which in turn pushes up prices, leading to a self-perpetuating cycle of runaway inflation.
If wage growth slows, however, policymakers gain assurance the economy will avert a spike in prices.
Inflation stands well below last summer's peak of over 9%, but remains more than a percentage point higher than the Fed's target rate of 2%.
Many market observers are expecting interest rate cuts as soon as a Fed meeting in March. As of last week, markets put the probability of a rate cut in March at 75%, said Ellen Zentner, chief U.S. economist and managing director at Morgan Stanley.
However, observers holding such expectations "may be in for a disappointment," Zentner wrote earlier this month, citing strong job gains that allow the Fed to keep rates high without fear of an imminent recession.
The cushion affords Fed policymakers "room to watch and wait," Zentner added.
Indeed may be known as the leading job listings website, but it's actually had a side hustle as an ad business for a while--selling job ads on its website to third parties. Now it's expanding its efforts with what it's calling Specialist Media Networks. These send employers' job ads out across other websites, and target specific industries. The goal is to help employers reach the right kind of potential employees and also to send more ad money to Indeed. Meanwhile, Google, long an online ad industry leader, has laid off hundreds of ad staff. Is the ad industry changing? Here's what makes Indeed's move different:
Indeed's first Specialist Media Network is aimed at technology professionals. Paying Indeed users that opt into the scheme will see their job adverts pop up on a long list of sites that appeal to tech-centric minds, including publications like Wired.
This is a form of targeted advertising, of course. Targeted ads are one of the mainstays of the current digital advertising business. Despite the controversy, targeted ads allow ad partners to be more sure their ads are appearing in front of consumers who are more likely to spend money on their products. Typically the targeting happens when ad companies build up a profile of a user, including using cookies. In our enlightened, privacy-centric time, of course, cookies are problematic.
Indeed has seemingly found a way to dodge such controversies and deliver targeted ad placements via this curated system. It's also tapping into a trend: Raj Mukherjee, Indeed EVP and general manager, said recent tech industry layoffs are changing how employees are looking for new roles. They are shunning traditional job listing websites, and are more open to ads on sites that they habitually read. Advertising job positions on a tech news website also allows employers to get their message in front of people who may not be actively looking for a job, but who nevertheless may be tempted to apply if they see a relevant ad. Indeed is keeping control of the job application process, too, since a click on these new embedded ads takes an applicant to Indeed's site to complete the application.
Indeed's news landed at the same time that Google reportedly laid off "hundreds" of staff from its ad sales team. The new layoffs come after a slew of recent Google layoffs across different divisions--moves that stirred up criticism of CEO Sundar Pichai, partly for making decisions that drove the layoffs, and partly for how he handled staff questions on the matter.
An internal memo about the fresh layoffs, obtained by Business Insider, suggests the majority of job cuts will be hitting Google's Large Customer Sales unit, which, as its name suggests, sells ads to larger-scale enterprises. Instead, the team that had formerly specialized in selling ads to smaller clients will become Google's core ad system. This could be seen as an implication that Google is sensing a sea change in the advertising business, with more income potentially coming from small-scale advertisers versus traditional giant corporate customers.
Combine these developments and it suggests the online ad industry is changing as fast as tech giants are themselves changing. The change may even be particularly favorable to smaller companies, especially if Google is courting their business. Small businesses using Indeed to advertise job positions also may choose to try out its new targeted ad solution. It seems well-placed to appeal to potential Gen-Z staff--these youngsters live their life online in a way different from previous generations, and seeing job ads pop up on already familiar publications chimes, in a way, with the sort of new ad-placement, influencer culture they are familiar with.