Skip to content

The numbers in the news

    Two major central banks – the Bank of Japan and the People’s Bank of China – were the only ones not to raise interest rates this year, as inflation threatened economic growth and undermined consumer purchasing power. Collectively, central banks have increased rates by more than 70 percent by 2022, with the same goal: raising borrowing costs to cool rising prices that have hit shoppers from London to Poughkeepsie, according to LPL Financial. Many followed the Fed, which raised its prime lending rate to a target range of 4.25 to 4.5 percent from about zero a year ago. The effect: Stocks and bonds fell on fears that the increases would slow the economy.

    The dollar value of Elon Musk’s deal to buy Twitter backed by about $12.5 billion in debt that investment banks, led by Morgan Stanley, took on to help fund the acquisition. The banks made the pledge before stocks in the tech sector crashed, the billionaire tried to walk away from the takeover and seized the leveraged lending market. Unable to sell that debt without incurring massive losses, banks are entering the new year saddled with loans that will limit their ability to fund more deals.

    Mr. Musk’s management of Twitter has been erratic: he has fired employees, refused to pay bills, changed content moderation policies, allowed banned users back on the platform, temporarily suspended the accounts of some journalists, has been accused of neglecting his other companies and said he would step down as CEO (eventually). But his style has won the admiration of many tech executives, founders and investors.

    The number of vacant properties in China as of the end of the summer. The world’s second-largest economy has suffered this year, and a sharp slowdown in the crucial real estate sector has been a major reason. Real estate development has accounted for about a quarter of China’s GDP over the past decade, but an industry squeeze has sent seemingly impregnable businesses falter and sparked rare social unrest among hapless property owners. The ongoing challenges faced by the debt-fueled housing sector point to structural problems that still hang over the economy.

    The number of layoffs in the tech sector, according to Layoffs.fyi. Job cuts at companies like Amazon, Meta, Twitter and Stripe have dominated headlines in recent months as Silicon Valley is under pressure to downsize. The shift is partly a post-pandemic correction. Companies hired aggressively (perhaps too aggressively) as demand for services boomed as consumers were locked into homes. But as the broader economy slowed in the second half of the year, companies came under pressure and technology stocks plummeted.

    The number of jobs created in the past 12 months, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The labor market puzzles economists. When economic growth falters, hiring usually slows down as well (example A: the technology sector). Job growth is ticking lower, but employers continue to hire people, keeping the unemployment rate at a relatively high level of 3.7 percent. That’s good news for workers, but it could force the Fed to double down on aggressive rate hikes in the first half of 2023.

    The cost in euros of Germany’s rescue of Uniper, once Europe’s largest importer of Russian gas. The utility has been decimated this year as energy prices soared. The company was particularly hard hit after Gazprom, Russia’s largest energy supplier, cut gas supplies in retaliation for economic sanctions against Moscow over its invasion of Ukraine. Uniper posted a net loss of €40 billion, or about $42.5 billion – the largest in German corporate history – for the first nine months of 2022. The government nationalized the company to avoid a Lehman Brothers-like effect on the energy sector. appearance.

    The number of consecutive quarters Apple has grown – a series that is now in jeopardy. The tech giant last reported a year-over-year quarterly decline in 2019, but the punitive impact of China’s “zero Covid” policy on supply chains and consumer spending in one of its largest markets is now a major threat. Apple produces more than 95 percent of its iPhones in China and last month warned it would ship fewer of its latest models following a Covid outbreak and a weeks-long lockdown in the device’s largest manufacturing hub. That could have hit sales in the crucial holiday quarter.

    The dollar amount of the shortfall in FTX’s accounts when the cryptocurrency exchange founded by Sam Bankman-Fried went bankrupt last month. The company, once considered one of the most stable in the industry, could owe money to more than a million people and organizations. Mr. Bankman-Fried was once hailed as an industry leader, able to secure funding from top investors who backed a wide variety of charities and businesses, from charities and politicians to sports and the news media. But he’s now under criminal investigation, former top employees are cooperating with authorities, and FTX has been called “one of the biggest financial fraudsters in American history.”

    The time when Elizabeth Holmes, the founder of the blood test start-up Theranos, was sentenced to prison after being convicted of defrauding investors. (Ramesh Balwani, the company’s former COO, was sentenced to nearly 13 years.) Ms. Holmes raised $945 million and her company was valued at $9 billion, making her one of Silicon Valley’s most celebrated entrepreneurs. But her claim that Theranos’ technology would make it possible to run tests with just a few drops of blood turned out to be untrue.

    Boeing produced its last hunchback jumbo jet on December 6. The industry’s push for more fuel-efficient planes and the pandemic were the death knell for the former titan of airspace. The plane made its first commercial flight in January 1970. By being able to carry hundreds of passengers at once, the 747 sparked an explosion in international travel. But market share has declined in recent years as airlines switched to more sustainable and cheaper aircraft.

    We want your feedback! Email your thoughts and suggestions to dealbook@CBNewz.