Slack Technologies Inc. (NYSE: WORK) is integrating with competitor Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT) Teams to let users make cross-platform calls.What Happened "We're working on Teams integrations for calling features," the workplace communications company's chief executive officer Stewart Butterfield told RBC analyst Alex Zukin on a call, as reported by CNBC.The feature would allow Slack users to be able to directly call users of Teams, without needing to leave its platform.It's not immediately clear when the integration will happen.Slack already has other Microsoft products integrated with its platform, including Outlook, OneDrive, and SharePoint, as noted earlier by CNBC.The move comes as the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak has caused a remote work boom.The demand for telecommunication services has increased, including for other companies like Zoom Video Communications Inc. (NASDAQ: ZM) and Cisco Systems Inc.'s (NASDAQ: CSCO) Webex.Slack's simultaneously connected users jumped 20% between March 16 and March 25 at 12.5 million. Microsoft earlier...
(Bloomberg) -- U.S. futures dropped after the first three-day rally in American equities since mid-February, and Asian stocks came off their highs Friday as investors assess whether the worst is over for the rout in risk assets.The S&P 500 rose more than 6% Thursday after the U.S. Senate passed a $2 trillion fiscal package. Equity benchmarks were up about 2% in Tokyo, Hong Kong and Seoul, while early gains in Australia gave way to a modest retreat. The MSCI All Country World Index is on course for a 13% rise this week, following a crash that dragged stocks around the globe into bear markets. The dollar stabilized after retreating for three days.Data are beginning to show the extent of the economic damage of the outbreak -- U.S. jobless claims surged to a record 3.28 million last week as businesses shut down to help prevent its spread. While the reading exceeded estimates,...
(Bloomberg) -- American stock futures declined, cooling off after the first three-day rally since February as investors speculated whether government and central-bank aid will offset the pandemic’s damage to the economy.Contracts on the S&P 500 were down 0.9% at 2,585.50 as of 10:36 a.m. in Tokyo. The underlying gauge surged almost 18% over Tuesday-Thursday in the biggest rally since 1933, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 20% above its recent low, meeting the technical definition of a bull market.The U.S. overtook China for the most coronavirus cases worldwide, fueled by a large jump in infections in New York. Still, the market’s recent gains show investors have grown increasingly confident that a $2 trillion stimulus package and fresh assurances from the Federal Reserve may be enough to rescue the economy from a deep recession. Jobless claims more than quadrupled the prior record, providing the first evidence of how severe the damage...
(Bloomberg) -- Singapore Airlines Ltd. plunged after saying it would issue new shares and bonds in an effort to raise about S$8.8 billion ($6.2 billion) to contend with the devastating impact of the coronavirus pandemic. State investor Temasek Holdings Pte., the carrier’s biggest shareholder, said it would back the resolutions.The airline’s shares slid as much as 10% to S$5.82 Friday morning following a trading halt Thursday. They are down 35% this year.The carrier will issue S$5.3 billion in new stock at S$3 apiece, 54% lower than the last closing price on Wednesday, according to a statement released early Friday in Singapore. It will also raise S$9.7 billion in 10-year mandatory convertible bonds, with as much as S$3.5 billion initially issued as 295 rights convertible for every 100 shares. The carrier arranged a S$4 billion bridge loan with DBS Bank Ltd. to support near-term cash requirements.Singapore Airlines will seek approval from shareholders...
The phrases “flattening the curve” and “social distancing” are among those most likely to pop up in future discussions recalling the coronavirus pandemic of the early 21st century. But among students of Wall Street’s behavior during the period, the phrase “lowering estimates” might get a few mentions, too.As valuations have plummeted, stocks are currently selling at significant discounts due to COVID-19’s restructuring of the market. Facebook (FB), the world’s most successful social media platform, hasn’t been immune to the viral impact, and the stock is down by 24% year-to-date. What’s more, with advertising budgets getting slashed around the globe, the economic outlook for the social media giant is not as rosy as before.5-star Monness analyst Brian White argues the “new reality” will impact Facebook’s top and bottom line. As a result, the analyst recently lowered revenue and EPS estimates for Facebook. For 1Q20, the revenue estimate comes down from $18.47 billion...
(Bloomberg) -- When Saudi Arabia kicked off its oil-price war and triggered the worst crude crash in a generation, U.S. President Donald Trump lauded the ensuing decline in pump prices, saying it would be “like a tax cut” for Americans.Weeks later, the crisis remains a low priority for the president, who has continually expressed his satisfaction with cheap gasoline and whose agenda has been consumed by the coronavirus pandemic itself, according to people familiar with the situation. While Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Wednesday took the strongest action yet to calm the market -- pressing Saudi Arabia to dial back its production surge -- the kingdom has shown no signs of slowing down.Now, with thousands of oil jobs hanging in the balance and the U.S. shale industry in upheaval, any action by Trump himself may be too little, too late. Oil’s downturn has rapidly devolved from a simple case of...
