Embraer: NetJets converting midsize jet options into orders
Stocks around the globe bask in Nvidia glow; dollar steady
Global stocks hit record highs on Wednesday, driven by a rally in tech shares that has made AI chipmaker Nvidia the world’s most valuable company, while the dollar stalled as soft U.S. retail sales data suggested rates could fall this year.
MSCI’s All-World index was up 0.15% at 805.12, having traded at an all-time high of 805.43.
A burst higher in U.S. tech stocks on Tuesday allowed Nvidia to dethrone Microsoft, which boosted shares in chipmakers in Asia overnight.
U.S. stock index futures also rose, with those on the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 up 0.23% and those on the S&P 500 up 0.1%. In Europe, the STOXX 600 fell 0.1%.
U.S. markets were closed on Wednesday for the Juneteenth holiday, which kept overall market volatility subdued.
India’s rights body wants scrutiny of Amazon warehouse practices
India’s human rights commission asked the government on Wednesday to look into allegations of labor law violations at an Amazon warehouse near New Delhi over alleged harsh working conditions during a severe heat wave.
Indian media this month reported that workers in the e-commerce giant’s warehouse in Manesar, near New Delhi, complained of a lack of water and bathroom breaks as they were under pressure to achieve packaging targets.
The National Human Rights Commission in a statement said the findings “raise a serious issue of human rights of the workers” and asked the labor ministry to look into the alleged violations within one week.
While the NHRC statement referred to alleged misconduct by a multinational company, the commission confirmed to Reuters it was in reference to the Amazon warehouse near New Delhi.
Amazon in a statement said the safety and well-being of its associates and employees are its top priority.
“We provide adequate provision of water and hydration, as well as regularly scheduled rest breaks in a cooler environment, and we ensure additional breaks when temperatures are high,” it
India’s human rights commission has asked the government to look into allegations of labor law violations at an Amazon warehouse near New Delhi. Seen here is an Amazon facility on the outskirts of Mumbai. said.
Detroit Three automakers should exit China, leading analyst says
Legacy U.S. automakers such as Ford Motor and General Motors should leave the China market to preserve capital amid the costly electric vehicle transition, a leading auto analyst said on Tuesday.
“I think you have to see the (Detroit Three) exit China as soon as they possibly can,” said John Murphy, a Bank of America Securities analyst, at his annual presentation of “Car Wars,” a closely watched industry report.
Murphy’s guidance for the Big Three came during a discussion of the harsh cost-cutting measures they would have to take to be competitive with EV manufacturers like Tesla, as well as carmakers abroad.
In response to slower-than-expected EV sales, Ford, GM and Jeep-maker Stellantis have focused on cost cutting in all segments of their business. The Big Three will likely have to take more drastic measures to shave off spending, Murphy warned.
“Very aggressively manage your core business. And it’s really some tough medicine. There’s a lot of really hard work to do here,” Murphy said at the event, which was put on by the Automotive Press Association in a Detroit suburb.
It is difficult to overcome the strength of Chinese companies on their home turf, Murphy and other analysts noted.
Buyers’ loyalty there is strong.
Ford and GM’s sales in China have slipped over the last decade. to homegrown brands
Berkshire Hathaway’s NetJets has started to convert its options for the purchase of up to 250 Praetor 500 business jets from Embraer into firm orders, an executive at the Brazilian planemaker said on Wednesday.
The first five options have been converted into orders this year, with deliveries expected to start in 2025, the market and product intelligence director of Embraer’s executive jets unit, Alvadi Serpa Jr., told reporters at the company’s headquarters.
“As we move forward, we should expect to see more of these orders,” Serpa said.
NetJets, a U.S. company that offers shared ownership of private business jets, had signed the deal with Embraer last year for the 250 options, valued at more than $5 billion.
Last year’s agreement marked the third deal between Embraer and NetJets, but was the first time the Berkshire Hathaway firm offered the Praetor 500, a midsize business jet, to its clients. Previously, it had purchased the smaller Phenom 300 jet.
Amazon aggregator Thrasio out of bankruptcy, names CEO
Amazon aggregator Thrasio said on Tuesday it has emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy and appointed Stephanie Fox as its chief executive officer.
Fox, previously the company’s chief operating officer, would succeed Greg Greeley, who would step down from the position after the company completes its global restructuring.
Thrasio, which acquires third-party sellers on Amazon, said it would now focus on profitability.
The company had filed for bankruptcy protection at the end of February and entered into a restructuring agreement with some of its lenders to reduce its debt.
Thrasio had said at the time it received financial commitments of $90 million from existing shareholders.
New Bayer short corn variety withstands winds up to 75 mph
Bayer’s Preceon variety of short-stature corn has been shown to withstand up to 75 mph winds in some trials, the company said on Tuesday, but could not withstand winds over 100 mph.
That means the corn could still be damaged by extreme weather such as the derecho storm that hit the heart of the Corn Belt in August 2020, causing $11 billion in damage, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Bayer said other shortstature corn survives winds up to 50 mph.
A derecho is a type of large, longlived thunderstorm carrying damaging straight-line winds. Scientists say extreme weather events are becoming more common due to global warming.
“After 100 mph, nothing really stands,” Bob Reiter, head of research and development in crop science at Bayer, told Reuters.
At an event in Chicago, the company said 390 farmers grew the Preceon variety on around 35,000 acres in the U.S. and Europe in a 2023 trial of the conventionally bred version of the corn.
Bayer intends to make a genetically modified version of the corn available in 2027 and is at work on a gene-edited version “to appeal to various global markets.” Bayer says the corn will reduce yield losses due to extreme weather because it has less height to catch wind.