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  • Daily business and finance update 5th June 2023

Daily business and finance update 5th June 2023

Surprising jobs report

Good morning. Today we're talking about the US jobs report, another Twitter departure and oil production cuts.

Big Stories

Surprising jobs report

The US economy added 339,000 jobs in May, exceeding economist estimates of 190,000 and more than in any of the previous three months. The data suggests that the labour market is still going strong despite rising interest rates, inflation and recent bank failures in world’s largest economy. The report comes ahead of the Federal Reserve's meeting next week when it must decide whether to continue raising interest rates, currently at 5.25% a 16-year high. The central bank previously signalled a pause in the rate hikes is likely. Although US inflation reached a two-year low in April of 4.9% it remains more than double the 2% target which could mean interest rate hikes continue.

Twitter loses trust

Twitter has lost its second trust executive within days. AJ Brown, the social media platform's head of brand safety and ad quality, has left the company, according to reports Friday. Brown's departure follows the resignation of Ella Irwin, Twitter's head of trust and safety, who left Thursday. Irwin handled content moderation, while Brown worked with advertisers - two areas that have come under the spotlight since Elon Musk's takeover last year. The latest departure adds to a growing challenge for new Twitter CEO Linda Yaccarino, even before she steps into the role.

Oil cut backs

Saudi Arabia will make an extra 1 million barrel-a-day oil supply cut in July, taking its production to the lowest level for several years as it tries to prop up falling oil prices. The bold move by the most important member of the oil cartel OPEC+ came at the cost of ceding ground to two key allies: Russia, which made no commitment to cut output deeper, and the United Arab Emirates, which secured a higher production quota for 2024. Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said he “will do whatever is necessary to bring stability to this market.” The country is the only member of OPEC+ with sufficient spare capacity and storage to be able to easily reduce and increase output.

Elsewhere...

Business support: Major firms including Microsoft and oil firm Esso have signed a letter backing the CBI ahead of a crunch vote on the lobbying group’s future.

Closing down: Barclays and Lloyds have announced they are closing a total of 63 branches.

Fighting to survive: Struggling retailer Asos reportedly received a £1bn takeover offer from a Turkish rival backed by Chinese giant Alibaba.

Cutting back: Walt Disney's Pixar has cut 75 roles including those of two executives behind box office flop “Lightyear”.

Old notes: Almost £9bn in old banknotes have not been cashed in across the UK, even though paper £20 and £50 stopped being legal tender in October.

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67

The median age of the world’s billionaires.

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