 |
|
|
|||||
President Donald Trump is threatening Apple with a 25% tariff if the tech giant doesn’t start producing iPhones in the U.S. In a post on Truth Social, his social media platform, Trump said he had “long ago informed Tim Cook of Apple that I expect their iPhones that will be sold in the United States of America will be manufactured and built in the United States, not India, or anyplace else.” “If that is not the case, a Tariff of at least 25% must be paid by Apple to the U.S.” he added. An Apple spokesperson didn’t immediately respond to Fast Company‘s request for comment. It’s the latest company to be caught up in the administration’s aggressive tariff policies. Walmart, for example, drew the president’s ire after it warned consumers last week that it may have to raise prices due to cost pressures. For its part, Apple has been working to diversify its production for the more than 60 million iPhones it sells in the U.S. annually. The vast majority of Apple products are made in China, though the company is reportedly working to move production for most of its U.S.-bound iPhones to India. Still, Trump’s threat spooked investors. Shares of Apple fell more than 2% on the news, as iPhones could become incredibly pricey. Wedbush Securities managing director Dan Ives said in a note to clients that it would take five to 10 years to shift production to the U.S. and phones could end up costing $3,500. New iPhones, without all the bells and whistles, currently go for around $800. “We believe the concept of Apple producing iPhones in the US is a fairy tale that is not feasible,” Ives wrote.
Category:
E-Commerce
The number of domestic travelers in the U.S. is expected to break a record for Memorial Day weekend that was set in 2005. AAA anticipates that 45.1 million people will travel 50 miles or more from home over the weekend, an increase of 1.4 million travelers compared to last year. Those traveling by car see the biggest difference, with more than a million extra travelers expected on the roads compared to last year. While 87% of travelers choose to take road trips during Memorial Day weekend, this year, they’re also aided by the lower crude oil prices making gasoline cheaper nationwide. (Typically, gas prices will peak in the summer as the busy travel season commences. You can avoid price hikes by staying away from the gas stations closest to the interstate, and optimizing your fuel economy.) As for traffic, AAA expects peak congestion in the afternoons all weekend, with the best travel times in the mornings. Get out early if you can, and on Monday, try to get back home before 2 p.m. Airports will also see a more crowded weekend than last year, with AAA projecting 3.61 million air travelers. In 2024, 3.55 million passengers chose flight as their preferred mode of travel, a difference of nearly 2% compared to the projection for this year. However, flights are more expensive than last year, with the average roundtrip ticket price costing $850. Popular destinations include Chicago, New York, Orlando, Denver, and Seattle. (If youre planning to travel by air, follow the recommended airport arrival time of at least two hours before your domestic flight.) Other modes of transportation travelers are utilizing this weekend include trains, buses, and cruises. Those have increased 8.5% compared to last years numbers, with cruises seeing a high demand for Alaskan destinations for Memorial Day weekend, including Fairbanks, Anchorage, and Juneau.
Category:
E-Commerce
Brazilian meat giant JBS came a step closer Friday to its long-held goal of trading its shares on the New York Stock Exchange. The company’s minority shareholders voted to approve the company’s plan to list its shares both in Sao Paulo and New York, casting aside opposition from environmental groups, U.S. lawmakers and others who noted JBS’ record of corruption, monopolistic behavior and environmental destruction. JBS Global CEO Gilberto Tomazoni said the outcome showed shareholders were confident in the benefits a dual listing would bring. The company said before the vote that listing shares in the U.S. would boost its global profile and attract new investors. JBS said it expected to begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange on June 12. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission granted the companys request to list its shares in New York late last month. JBS is one of the worlds largest food companies, with more than 250 production facilities in 17 countries. Half of its annual revenue comes from the U.S., where it has more than 72,000 employees. Its Americas top beef producer and its second-largest producer of poultry and pork. JBS’s planwhich has been in the works for yearshas generated significant pushback. Last fall, 20 environmental organizationsincluding Mighty Earth, Greenpeace and Rainforest Action Networksigned an open letter to JBS investors opposing the listing, saying it would put the climate at greater risk. Glass Lewis, an influential independent investor advisory firm, was also among those recommending that shareholders reject the plan. In its report, Glass Lewis said the recent return of brothers Joesley and Wesley Batista to the JBS board should concern investors. The brothers, who are the sons of JBS founder, were briefly jailed in Brazil in 2017 on bribery and corruption charges. In our view, the involvement of the company and of Joesley and Wesley Batista in multiple high-profile scandals has tarnished the companys reputation, undermining stakeholder trust and posing a significant risk to its competitive position, Glass Lewis said. Glass Lewis also objected to the companys plan for dual share classes, which would give the Batistas and other controlling shareholders more voting power. In its response to Glass Lewis’ report, JBS said it has established more stringent controls and anti-corruption training at the company in recent years. It also said a U.S. listing would ensure more oversight from U.S. authorities. We believe this transaction will increase our visibility in global markets, attract new investors and further strengthen our position as a global food industry leader, Tomazoni said in a statement last month when the company announced Fridays vote. Many U.S. lawmakers also aren’t convinced JBS belongs on the New York Stock Exchange. In a letter sent last week to JBS, U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, a Massachusetts Democrat, noted that Pilgrims Pridea U.S. company owned by JBSwas the largest single donor to President Donald Trumps inaugural committee, with a $5 million gift. The SECs approval came just weeks after that donation, Warren said. I am concerned Pilgrims Pride may have made its contribution to the inaugural fund to curry favor with the Trump administration, Warren wrote in the letter, which asked the company why the donation was made. In a statement, JBS said it has a long bipartisan history of participating in the civic process. Warren was also among a bipartisan group of 15 U.S. senators who sent a letter to the SEC in January 2024 urging the agency to reject a U.S. listing for JBS. The senators, a diverse group that rarely agrees on policy, included Republicans Marco Rubio of Florida and Josh Hawley of Missouri, Democrat Cory Booker of New Jersey and Independent Bernie Sanders of Vermont. The letter noted that in 2020, J&F Investments, a controlling shareholder of JBS that is owned by the Batista family, pleaded guilty to bribery charges in U.S. federal court and agreed to pay fines of $256 million. It also said Pilgrims Pride pleaded guilty to price-fixing charges in 2021. And it said U.S. Senate investigations found that JBS is turning a blind eye to rainforest destruction in the Amazon by its suppliers. Approval of JBS proposed listing would subject U.S. investors to risk from a company with a history of blatant, systemic corruption, and further entrench its monopoly power and embolden its monopoly practices, the letter said. Dee-Ann Durbin, AP business writer
Category:
E-Commerce
All news |
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||