The global economy is already in the early throes of a recession, but business is booming at Amazon (AMZN). As Deutsche Bank's Lloyd Walmsley puts it: “it may not be judicious for the company to be perceived as profiting from the COVID-related turmoil.”The proof is in the pudding. While unemployment figures have risen dramatically since the viral outbreak has sent millions of workers home, Amazon has set in motion the hiring of an additional 100,000 employees to help with the surging demand. According to the NY Times, orders for Amazon groceries are 50 times higher than normal during this stay-at-home period.The news has prompted Walmsley to touch down with a “logistics consultant intimately familiar with Amazon's operations,” to gain insight on how the additional labor costs will impact the balance sheet. “We come away optimistic that near-term higher volumes on existing infrastructure and lower energy prices can help offset higher wages,”...
A U.S. judge canceled a key permit Wednesday for the Keystone XL oil pipeline that’s expected to stretch from Canada to Nebraska, another setback for the disputed project that got underway less than two weeks ago following years of delays. Judge Brian Morris said the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers failed to adequately consider effects on endangered species such as pallid sturgeon, a massive, dinosaur-like fish that lives in rivers the pipeline would cross. Pipeline sponsor TC Energy will need the permit for future construction across hundreds of rivers and streams along Keystone's 1,200-mile (1,930-kilometer) route....
(Bloomberg) -- The physical oil market, where millions of barrels of real cargoes are traded each day, needed OPEC+’s historic cuts to global crude production months ago.On Sunday, producer nations pledged to limit output by an unprecedented 10% of global supply. While there’s skepticism the cuts will prove deep enough -- demand has plunged by far more -- a more pressing issue is one of timing: the real market, the one that underpins headline prices, has a huge glut and the output curbs won’t even begin until May. Before then, it’s pump at will so the curbs won’t really affect physical oil supply for months.Signs of weakness abound. Key North Sea crude swaps are trading more than $6 a barrel below the headline Brent futures price of about $28 -- the biggest discount in almost a decade. The critically important Dated Brent benchmark that shapes the price of millions of barrels...
(Bloomberg) -- GoPro Inc. said it will cut more than 200 jobs, shift the company’s sales operation to market its digital adventure cameras directly to consumers and withdraw its 2020 financial guidance in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.The operational changes, staff reductions of more than 20% and cuts to office space will save $100 million in 2020, and reduce expenses next year to $250 million, the San Mateo, California-based company said Wednesday in a statement. GoPro said its shift to direct sales will mean a stronger focus on its website. The company said it still will use retail outlets for a small number of regions where such sales are preferred by consumers.“We have a clear opportunity to super-serve consumers’ demand for our products in a more direct and efficient manner which can have a positive impact on the profitability of our business,” Chief Executive Officer Nick Woodman said in the statement.While...
