March is the time for women to shine, and there are no more amazing women than those who have started off in difficult situations and worked their way to the top. There are many musicians and celebrities that have started off with nothing and are now millionaires or billionaires. And the best thing about these women is that they try to help other women that come behind them.
Vladimir Putin, after months of planning and talk, invaded Ukraine at the end of February in the most widespread traditional attack on a sovereign nation since World War II. The response of the west has been swift, leveling economic sanctions on Russia that are catapulting them into a banking crisis. The nations of the West are hoping to cause a great recession that will force Putin to back off his Ukrainian pursuits, returning more peace to Ukraine.
Throughout the two-year battle with the pandemic, prices of goods and services have increased astronomically, and the rising inflation around the globe is truly no secret. Automobiles have fueled the inflation increase, and the price of cars themselves has also risen significantly in the last two years. Although the future is looking better, the automotive industry still has a long way to go to get back on the road.
With all the changes that the pandemic has brought into the world, the change to a hybrid work model is seen as a positive. For many people, it brought with it more work/life balance, and employees are interested in continuing this trend. Across the globe, countries have been toying with the idea of a four-day workweek even before the pandemic, and Belgium is the latest country to jump into the mix.
Although it seems like America’s workers have been at the starting blocks again and again, waiting for the gun to go off that will get them back to their offices, Covid-19 flare-ups have prohibited a mass re-entry. But managers and CEOs are optimistic that as the Omicron numbers die, American workers can get back to business.
No one has faced more roadblocks in the last two years than the owners of small businesses. With inflation, supply chain issues, and the “Great Resignation” of workers, small business owners have been tested in a myriad of ways. The good news is that they have been passing the test, employing innovation and resilience to outlast the hurdles laid in their way. If the economy recovers in 2022, it will be because small business owners are in the driver’s seat.
For Americans who struggle to make ends meet, the necessity for prescriptions throws a wrench in the monthly budget. With costs of prescriptions skyrocketing, and no end in sight, consumers are often forced to make difficult decisions when it comes to how to spend their money, and whether they will purchase their much-needed medicine, or they will purchase other necessities like food or rent instead.
Last week the news became official that we at Berkeley Capital have formed a partnership with Cohen Brothers, widening our reach to London and beyond by partnering with this established international placement agent and advisory firm. This brings Robert Cohen and Marcelo Dellavedova officially onboard, and opens a world of opportunities for our clients and investors.
As Russia creeps closer to the Eastern border of Ukraine, the world is watching and waiting to see what will happen. Talks last week with NATO and the United States did nothing to squelch the skirmish, and no one knows quite what Vladimir Putin has in mind. Besides the geopolitical uncertainty, the effect on the stock market is also in question.
With Omicron barreling through the country, now more than ever the issue of vaccination is resurfacing. Truly, most hospitals are reporting that the vast majority of those hospitalized with Covid-19 are unvaccinated, but for those unwilling to get the shot, there is another issue. Many employers are mandating vaccinations for their employees, and for those refusing to get vaccinated, more than their health is currently at stake.
Surprisingly, despite the fact that the pandemic has been raging for two years, many businesses in America are finding economic success. From the bleak picture formulated in March of 2020, this positive economic news is a welcome surprise for entrepreneurs and workers alike. By changing their business models and leaning in to the niches the pandemic has offered, many companies are meeting with success.
The news is filled with the Omicron variant, which came sweeping through the nation at the most inopportune time, right before the holidays. On the heels of the Delta variant, many people have been forced back into isolation and quarantine. But for holiday shoppers, it was business as usual (and then some), and numbers were good despite the turbulent pandemic news.
For two years, the pandemic has upended life as we know it, but there is one part of the economy that has come out ahead. The private equity realm rebounded from a miserable first half of 2020, and with the ball rolling in a positive direction, they have never looked back. Private equity deals are crushing previous deals and it looks as though the good fortune will continue into the new year.
With the trend toward remote working, office buildings have been left behind while their workers stay home, like dinosaurs rising out of the mist. And with so much of the country still locked in a debate about when and if workers might return to business as usual, the question of what to do with the giant skyscrapers and complexes left behind is of utmost importance. Odds are that the office lifestyle as we knew it is gone forever, and developers will need to get creative to make the best use
As the pandemic continues to surge its way around the globe and back again, creating new variants and disrupting everything from daily life to the supply chain, it has also dipped its hand into the inflation and cost-of-living sector. The cost of everything from crude oil to simple groceries has skyrocketed around the world, and the ramifications of inflation have been felt in many of the world’s most popular cities.
For workers who have spent a lifetime paying into a pension program, the countdown to retirement is usually a joyful time. But with the unpredictability of the economic world, especially in terms of the ramifications of the pandemic, and past risky financial moves by employers managing pension accounts, the idyllic retirement scene many workers have hoped for might not come to fruition.
Whether you are trying to stay in a hotel, get your roof fixed, or even eat out at your favorite restaurant, you have probably noticed the lack of workers. There is one glaring reason employers have so many gaps in their staff: There are not enough immigrant workers. The combined effects of the Trump administration shunning immigrants, along with the understandable closing of the border because of the pandemic, have left companies begging for help.
If your turkey and stuffing fixings are costing you more this year as you prepare for the holiday of Thanksgiving, you are not alone. At a 30 year high, inflation has reared its ugly head just as the holidays are approaching, and for those who were already struggling to make ends meet, trips to the grocery store and gas pump will find them tightening their belts even further. Unfortunately, the inflation is not slated to end any time soon.
As learning gaps continue to grow across the United States, there is one gap in education that legislators are finally addressing: the need for high school students to learn about personal finance.
Like a pebble thrown into a pond, the pandemic continues to send out ripples that are affecting the daily life of the consumers across the United States. The country is experiencing a phenomenon of severe labor shortages coupled with the highest wages in 20 years, and experts are not quite sure which way the pendulum will swing when all the dust settles. One thing is for certain: employers are straining their creative and monetary resources in order to keep their business afloat.
Crude oil prices are topping the charts at levels not seen in years. With the glut of oil stockpiled during the pandemic shutdown, getting the crude oil commodities back to an even keel has been difficult. And now that more fuel is needed with winter coming, crude oil is difficult to find. Oil prices are through the roof as global commodity prices have spiked, and experts are predicting a drought of fossil fuels to get the world through the winter.
You have probably noticed a shortage of your favorite items in the grocery stores these days, and although there are many reasons that the broken supply chain is causing empty store shelves, the most far-reaching reason is that there are not enough truck drivers to get items to the shelves.
With seemingly harmless games like “What is Your Favorite Color?” and “What Does Your Name Mean?” Facebook has garnered an enormous following of people seeking connections, relaxation, and information. But recently the harsher side of Facebook is under scrutiny, with whistleblower Frances Haugen telling the world that the safety of children is at risk. Social media companies need to forego endless profits in favor of safety, and algorithms are the way to do that.
Chinese real estate developer, Evergrande Property Services Group, has a predicament on their hands. After amassing $300 billion of debt in the real estate sector, the Chinese government is cracking down on debt since 2020, and Evergrande is struggling.
International events of this past weekend have proven yet again that politics and business don’t mix. With China taking on a larger role in the world of trade in the past several years, and also looking to get their due as a global superpower, innocent entrepreneurs have been used as pawns in their political plans. Governments need to be careful to separate business from politics so that uninvolved people do not bear the weight of a country’s desire for trade.
The American economy has been through the wringer for more than 18 months. And just when things started looking up, the Delta variant reared its ugly head to derail the positive movement of the economy from early in the summer. Fortunately, with schools opening and college students going back to school, the economy received a boost in retail sales that is leaving America in the positive column, despite the setbacks.
At a time when many companies are in crisis, the story for business owners has become even bleaker with the retirement of many Baby Boomers who have chosen to leave the workforce.
Americans are amid a job crisis that is affecting businesses throughout the country, no matter the type or scope of work they do. Although there are many people who are out of work, and many jobs that are open, there is currently a mismatch between the unemployed and the skills needed to fill the open jobs in our country.
When a 20-year war comes to an end, not with a bang but a whimper, it seems as though the Stock Market might react to that major event. But whether the length of the war or the distance from America, when United States President Joe Biden ended the war with Afghanistan a few weeks ago, calling for the removal of all the troops, the Stock Market really didn’t budge.
American troops have been in Afghanistan for 20 years, keeping the Taliban quiet and helping the Afghan people live with some sense of autonomy and peace. They have also served as a deterrent to terrorist groups that wish harm to America and the rest of the world.