Society

Review: New tech brings golden age of media

16 Nov 2018

The internet has provided ample fodder for the endless debate over culture versus commerce. In “Digital Renaissance,” business professor Joel Waldfogel says consumers have more good music, movies and television shows than ever to choose from, and haven’t bankrupted industry.

Corporate America leads the country to the polls

5 Nov 2018

Walmart, Tyson Foods and hundreds of other firms are making it easier for employees to cast a ballot in the U.S. congressional elections. A mishmash of state laws and the lack of a national holiday makes voting a challenge. This initiative shows how companies can be good citizens.

Facebook’s Africa friends need heart, not darkness

5 Nov 2018

Cameroon used a fake cannibalism video Mark Zuckerberg’s $430 bln outfit left on its pages to justify a military crackdown. Facebook has not done enough to combat online abuse as social media booms on the poorest continent. But effective monitoring would hardly break the bank.

Dick’s fires starter pistol for smart-gun market

2 Nov 2018

The $3.6 bln U.S. retailer that ditched AR-15s in February would support selling guns that can only be fired by their owner, an idea the industry traditionally hates. The previous stand on safety dented sales but helped profit. If this one takes off it could be good for both.

Google staff protests point to growing labor clout

2 Nov 2018

They were aimed at the company’s failures in tackling sexual harassment. Ditto at McDonald’s a few weeks ago. When executives at such different firms have to listen, though, it’s another sign – backed up by the latest U.S. jobs data – that workers are becoming a scarce commodity.

Exclusive: FedEx drops NRA deal by snail-mail

30 Oct 2018

The shipping giant is ending discounts for the U.S. gun-lobby group’s members, eight months after other firms ditched similar schemes. FedEx says it’s an economic decision, not a response to mass shootings. Even so, it suggests offending the NRA is no longer bad for business.

Khashoggi showcases moral trilemma of big business

26 Oct 2018

Total sent its CEO to Riyadh for Saudi’s flagship conference despite its role in a Saudi journalist’s death. HSBC fielded a big team, too. Firms strive to be larger, profitable and ethical, but often only achieve the first two. Profit’s lead over ethics appears to be narrowing.

Hadas: Six economic reasons to hate Uber

25 Oct 2018

Economists are wrong to drool over the car service provider as an exemplar of free markets. This financial zombie has destructive effects on transit, a dysfunctional strategy and an antisocial approach to regulation. Also, it hurts its workers and makes investors look foolish.

Cannabis is like bitcoin, only with revenue

15 Oct 2018

Stocks of producers like Tilray and Canopy have risen faster than the digital currency did, fueled by Canada’s imminent legalization. Today’s valuations make no sense and accounting is patchy. Unlike bitcoin, these pot companies have real sales – but that only fuels the frenzy.

Review: Forget robots, capitalism is the future

12 Oct 2018

Ex-Fed boss Alan Greenspan and journalist Adrian Wooldridge have penned a fast-paced history of the good wrought by American entrepreneurs. But their solutions for today’s perceived stagnation – less welfare and fewer regulations – undervalue the adaptability of their subjects.

Amazon gender-diversity fail shows limits of tech

10 Oct 2018

The $900 bln e-commerce giant scrapped a résumé-reviewing computer program after discovering it was prejudiced against women. Algorithms and machine learning hold promise, but are limited by programmers’ own biases. Weeding out such regressive traits requires human intervention.

Hadas: Nobel rewards pointless economic modelling

8 Oct 2018

Paul Romer won half the 2018 prize for recognising that education and governments help growth. William Nordhaus won the other half for condemning man-made climate change. Obvious? Maybe, but their work has complex equations. Unfortunately, these obscure more than they clarify.

Facebook is late to fight second existential crisis

5 Oct 2018

User and government annoyance at poor security, low-quality content and excessive advertising is as big a danger to Mark Zuckerberg’s company as the 2012 growth of mobile. Facebook finally appears focused on the threat, but it won’t be as easy to solve.

Shale gas industry hopefuls face rock-hard barrier

5 Oct 2018

Fracking is about to make its debut in the UK. The practice of extracting gas from shale rock is hailed as likely to put the country on the road to fuel self-reliance. But the industry faces many obstacles, and investors should be sceptical of the scope for gushing returns.

Argentine shake-up raises risks for Macri and IMF

26 Sep 2018

A new central bank chief improves the chances of securing an increase in a $50 billion credit line with the international lender. President Macri and the IMF are gambling that a freer floating peso will spur growth, not instability. But time is running out for the bet to pay off.

Gun activists’ victory is only a warning shot

25 Sep 2018

Investors just demanded Smith & Wesson’s owner publish a report detailing how its weapons abet violent crime and what it’s doing to create safer firearms. For now they can’t do much more. Eventually, market forces are likely to achieve what shareholder activists still can’t.

Thoughts and prayers could pierce gunmakers’ armor

24 Sep 2018

A group of church leaders is taking on the maker of Smith & Wesson in a shareholder meeting, hoping to reprise their earlier success with Sturm, Ruger. This battle will be tougher, but winning isn’t really the point. More help could come from unexpected places – like Silicon Valley.

Chinese IPOs bring casino trading to New York

18 Sep 2018

U.S. markets are getting a taste of mainland volatility. News app Qutoutiao more than doubled on its first day before plunging on the second; carmaker Nio has also see-sawed. Small floats and untested models are partly to blame, but erratic behaviour will hamper future debuts.

Cannabis stocks have whiff of 2006

14 Sep 2018

A weed ETF has doubled in price in just over a year, while a Canadian producer has been targeted by an activist because its stock “only” trades at eight times EBITDA. Demand is real and legalization is coming. But online gaming’s sharp correction 12 years ago offers a warning.

Review: The mess at the heart of economic theory

14 Sep 2018

Robert Skidelsky wrote a three-volume biography of John Maynard Keynes. His new book brings a Keynesian slant on the financial crisis, its antecedents and its aftermath. He argues against fiscal austerity. Fine, but the global economy is too complex for any simple diagnosis.