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Your Daily BriefJuly 29th, 2022 |
Good morning, and welcome to your Friday! Today is the last day to earn entries in our $2,000 vacation package giveaway, and the more people you refer using your personal link at the bottom of this email, the better chance you’ll have at winning! We’re excited to announce the winner next week, but in the meantime, here’s what we have for you:
In Today’s Brief
- Notre-Dame: Cathedral on track to reopen in 2024
- CDC: Issues alert for potentially deadly bacteria found in U.S. soil for the first time
- Shawn Mendes: Cancels all dates on world tour for mental health reasons
- Amazon: Shares rise 12% after posting $2 billion quarterly loss
- Johnny Depp: Earns $3.6 million selling his own artwork
- Top Tips: Spirit Airlines and JetBlue agree to merge, U.S. GDP shrinks for second straight quarter, flash floods in Kentucky leave at least eight dead
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Spirit Airlines and JetBlue Airways agree to merge in a $3.8 billion dollar deal
After Frontier and Spirit Airlines walked away from their proposed agreement to merge on Wednesday, JetBlue announced yesterday that it would buy Spirit for $3.8 billion.
The deal–which requires regulatory approval in order to close–comes after months of attempts from both Frontier and JetBlue to acquire Spirit Airlines. Per the agreement, JetBlue will purchase Spirit in an all-cash deal for $33.50 per share, including a prepayment of $2.50 per share in cash payable once Spirit stockholders approve the transaction. JetBlue will also pay a ticking fee of 10 cents per share each month starting January 2023 until the deal closes.
According to a fact sheet with the terms of the agreement, JetBlue’s acquisition of Spirit will create a combined fleet of 458 aircraft with over 1,700 daily flights to more than 127 unique destinations. If approved by regulators, the merger would create the fifth-largest airline in the United States.
Commerce Department reports second straight quarter of GDP decline
According to the Commerce Department, U.S. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) shrank for the second consecutive quarter, posting a decline of 0.9% compared to Q2 2021.
The Commerce Department’s report reflected “decreases in private inventory investment, residential fixed investment, federal government spending, state and local government spending, and nonresidential fixed investment.” The report comes one day after the Federal Reserve raised interest rates by 75 basis points for the second straight month to fight inflation due to pandemic-related supply issues, higher food and gas prices, and broad price pressures across the economy.
In Q1 of 2022, GDP decreased at a rate of 1.6% year-over-year. While the Commerce Department’s report marks two consecutive quarters of negative GDP growth, Fed Chair Jerome Powell on Wednesday stated that he does not yet believe the United States is in a recession.
At least eight dead from flash floods in Kentucky
Flash floods caused by rains in Kentucky have killed at least eight people and left over 25,000 residents without power in the southeastern part of the state.
According to National Weather Service radar estimates and local observers, some parts of the state received over nine inches of rain overnight from Wednesday into Thursday morning. In addition to declaring a state of emergency for several counties, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear called the flooding “the worst flooding disaster at least of my lifetime in Kentucky.” Beshear also added that people are still unaccounted for and that he expects the death toll to rise to the double-digits.
About four million people are currently under flood alerts across Kentucky, southern Ohio, West Virginia, and southwestern Virginia. According to the governor, Kentucky could see another two to three inches of rainfall through the weekend.
Around the Globe
- Chinese billionaire Jack Ma plans to cede control of Ant Group Co. as the company furthers efforts to move away from Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., according to people familiar with the matter
- France’s Minister of Culture Rima Abdul Malak confirms that the Notre-Dame Cathedral is on track to reopen to worshippers and the public in 2024
- President Biden held a video meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping over the island of Taiwan, in which Biden said the U.S. opposed of any unilateral moves to change the island’s status, while Xinping told Biden to abide by the principle that there is only one sovereign state under the name China
On the Homefront
- The House of Representatives voted 243-187 to pass the CHIPS and Science Act aimed at boosting domestic production of semiconductors one day after the Senate passed it; the bill now heads to President Biden’s desk
- A 15-year-old boy in Alaska is believed to have fatally shot his three younger siblings before turning the gun on himself, according to Alaska State Troopers
- The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention identified the bacterium Burkholderia pseudomallei in U.S. water and soil samples for the first time; the bacterium “causes a rare and serious disease called melioidosis,” according to the CDC’s health alert
Glitz and Games
- American Idol judges Katy Perry, Lionel Richie, and Luke Bryan will return for the show’s sixth season on ABC, along with Ryan Seacrest as the host; it will be the show’s 21st season overall
- Netflix’s The Witcher halts season three production due to Covid-19, according to the steaming company; it is the second time production has shut down since filming season two in 2020
- Singer-songwriter Shawn Mendes has canceled all dates on his scheduled 2022 world tour, citing mental health reasons
Money Moves
- Major indexes in the stock market rose after beginning the day with losses (Dow +1.03%, Nasdaq +1.08%, S&P 500 +1.21%)
- Shares of plant-based company Beyond Meat (NASDAQ: BYND) fell 6% during morning trading after McDonald’s concluded its U.S. trial of the McPlant Burger; shares are down 53% YTD
- Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) posted a quarterly loss of $2 billion while revenue increased 7.2% year-over-year to $121.2 billion; shares rose over 12% in after-hours trading
Tip & Tricks
- Sneak Peek: Check out the official trailer that Netflix dropped for the upcoming NC-17 Marilyn Monroe biopic Blonde, starring Ana de Armas
- Bump This: The Renaissance is here - listen to Beyoncé’s new album on Apple Music and Spotify
- So Long: Coca-Cola is ditching Sprite’s signature green bottles in favor of recycling-friendly clear bottles (our stock portfolio has also ditched the color green, to be honest)
- Cash Grab: Johnny Depp earned about $3.6 million by selling 780 pieces of art through his debut collection
- Say What: “Anyone who says words hurt has never been punched in the face,” Chris Rock said during a recent set on his Rock Hart: Only Headliners Allowed comedy tour with Kevin Hart (does anyone else out there think this would make a great fortune cookie quote?)
- Hot Goss: Swedish YouTube personality PewDiePie has apologized after appearing to mock Scarlet May–a TikTok creator who is deaf–in a recent video
- Life Hack: Holding a banana peel over a bruise for 20-30 minutes will help remove some of its dark color
Looking Back…
On July 29th: President Dwight D. Eisenhower signs legislation to establish the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, aka NASA (1958); Prince Charles and Lady Diana married at St. Paul’s Cathedral (1981); J.R.R. Tolkien’s first installment of Lord of the Rings is published (1954); artist Vincent Van Gogh dies (1890).
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