The Microsoft logo is pictured outside the headquarters in Paris, Jan. 8, 2021. A group of video game testers is forming Microsoft's first labor union in the U.S. and the largest in the video game industry. Communications Workers of America said Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2023, that about 300 quality assurance workers at Microsoft video game subsidiary ZeniMax Studios have voted to join the union. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus, File)
The Week's Top Stories is a guided tour through the biggest market stories of the week, from winning stocks to brutal dips to the facts and forecasts generating buzz on Wall Street.
TECH LAYOFFS
Shares of Amazon, Microsoft, and Google parent company Alphabet are all up this week following announcements of mass layoffs. Here's a quick refresher: Microsoft is cutting 10,000 jobs. Amazon is in the process of laying off 18,000 jobs, and Alphabet is putting 12,000 jobs on the chopping block as of Friday. The layoffs are happening despite a historically tight labor market, in part because tech firms hired too many workers during the pandemic. The companies said uncertainties around the global economy going into 2023 are behind the reversal.
NETFLIX ADDS SUBSCRIBERS
Netflix's stock is up near 4 percent this week after reporting that it added 7.6 million subscribers, compared to Wall Street estimates of around 4.5 million. The subscriber beat was enough to counterbalance an earnings miss, and the news that long-time co-CEO Reed Hasting will be transitioning to the role of executive chairman. Chief Operating Officer Greg Peters is replacing Hastings as CEO. Notably this is the first quarter that Netflix offered a cheaper ad-supported plan, though it's unclear how much that contributed to the subscriber gains.
WAYFAIR TAKEOFF
Online furniture retailer Wayfair also announced layoffs this week, and investors also rewarded the move. The stock is up around 23 percent for the week after laying off 1,750 employees, or about 10 percent of its workforce. CEO Niraj Shah said the company grew too rapidly and was now streamlining in anticipation of economic headwinds, a now familiar story in tech.
CHINA POP FALLS
Despite the bullish sentiment in tech following the cuts, markets are set to end the week slightly down, due in no small part to some negative news from China. The country reported a population decline for the first time in decades on top of slowing economic growth. China only recently eased its COVID-19 restrictions, and hopes were high that the change would help buoy the world economy. Now it's less clear that the country will bounce back as strongly.
BITCOIN RALLIES
Finally, Bitcoin's price crossed $20,000 this week despite the collapse of most major crypto exchanges, including an announcement from crypto lender Genesis on Friday that it was declaring bankruptcy. The largest cryptocurrency is now floating around $22,300.
Chris Williamson, Chief Business Economist at S&P Global, breaks down September’s CPI print and inflation trends, explaining what it means for markets.
A big-screen adaptation of the anime “Chainsaw Man” has topped the North American box office, beating a Springsteen biopic and “Black Phone 2.” The movie earned $17.25 million in the U.S. and Canada this weekend. “Black Phone 2” fell to second place with $13 million. Two new releases, the rom-com “Regretting You” and “Springsteen — Deliver Me From Nowhere,” earned $12.85 million and $9.1 million, respectively. “Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc” is based on the manga series about a demon hunter. It's another win for Sony-owned Crunchyroll, which also released a “Demon Slayer” film last month that debuted to a record $70 million.
The Federal Aviation Administration says flights departing for Los Angeles International Airport were halted briefly due to a staffing shortage at a Southern California air traffic facility. The FAA issued a temporary ground stop at one of the world’s busiest airports on Sunday morning soon after U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy predicted that travelers would see more flights delayed as the nation’s air traffic controllers work without pay during the federal government shutdown. The hold on planes taking off for LAX lasted an hour and 45 minutes and didn't appear to cause continued problems. The FAA said staffing shortages also delayed planes headed to Washington, Chicago and Newark, New Jersey on Sunday.
Boeing workers at three Midwest plants where military aircraft and weapons are developed have voted to reject the company’s latest contract offer and to continue a strike that started almost three months ago. The strike by about 3,200 machinists at the plants in the Missouri cities of St. Louis and St. Charles, and in Mascoutah, Illinois, is smaller in scale than a walkout last year by 33,000 Boeing workers who assemble commercial jetliners. The president of the International Association of Machinists says Sunday's outcome shows Boeing hasn't adequately addressed wages and retirement benefits. Boeing says Sunday's vote was close with 51% of union members opposing the revised offer.
The stunning indictment that led to the arrest of more than 30 people — including Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and other NBA figures — has drawn new scrutiny of the booming business of sports betting in the U.S. The multibillion-dollar industry has made it easy for sports fans — and even some players — to wager on everything from the outcome of games to that of a single play with just a few taps of a cellphone. But regulating the rapidly-growing industry has proven to be a challenge. Professional sports leagues’ own role in promoting gambling has also raised eyebrows.
Tesla, the car company run by Elon Musk, reported Wednesday that it sold more vehicles in the past three months after boycotts hit hard earlier this year, but profits still fell sharply. Third-quarter earnings fell to $1.4 billion, from $2.2 billion a year earlier. Excluding charges, per share profit of 50 cents came in below analysts' estimate. Tesla shares fell 3.5% in after-hours trading. Musk said the company's robotaxi service, which is available in Austin, Texas, and San Francisco, will roll out to as many as 10 other metro areas by the end of the year.
