Skip to content

The Week in Business: Shoppers open their wallets

    Bank account looking a little thinner than usual after Thanksgiving? That’s not entirely surprising. Those who had the classic dishes on the table on Thursday — turkey, gravy, stuffing, potatoes and, of course, lots of butter in almost everything — paid a whopping 41 percent more for their dinner this year than they did last year. But many dug deeper into their wallets on Friday, kicking off a multibillion-dollar Christmas shopping season. With inflation rising and only recently showing signs of moderation, interest rates rising and pandemic fears largely abating, retailers are struggling to keep up with changing consumer habits. Some have had success introducing holiday items in late summer and early fall and rolling out more early discounts.

    In a surprise move, Disney fired its CEO, Bob Chapek, on Sunday night and announced the return of its predecessor, Robert A. Iger, who left the company late last year after leading it for 15 years. growth and profit. But that’s where Mr. Chapek’s bliss ended: Last quarter, Disney reported $1.5 billion in losses, falling short of analyst expectations for revenue and earnings per share, almost unheard of for Disney. Mr. Iger has signed a two-year contract and will remain CEO until the end of 2024, during which time Disney’s board of directors hopes he can get the company back on track and train a successor. Investors applauded the decision, which sent Disney shares soaring Monday morning, though share prices are still more than a third lower this year.

    When Ticketmaster’s site fell into chaos after opening sales for Taylor Swift concerts, it quickly became clear that the problem wasn’t just a result of Ms. Swift’s immense popularity. The Justice Department had already launched an investigation into the owner of the ticketing company, Live Nation Entertainment, to determine whether it essentially acts as a monopoly in the multibillion-dollar live music industry. The company is also under scrutiny from lawmakers on the Senate Subcommittee on Competition Policy, Antitrust and Consumer Rights, which will hold a hearing on the lack of competition in the ticketing industry. Live Nation has said it “takes its responsibilities under antitrust laws seriously and does not engage in conduct that could warrant antitrust litigation.”

    The November jobs report expects job growth to slow again and move closer to the Federal Reserve’s goal of adding fewer than 100,000 jobs per month. That kind of moderation would allay central bankers’ fears of wage growth and a subsequent wage-price spiral that can occur when higher wages help drive prices higher, leading to more wage increases. It would also indicate that the Fed’s efforts to cool the economy with higher interest rates are starting to work. But the latest numbers are likely still a long way from that goal. Last month, jobs added 261,000, suggesting that the labor market was resilient despite the best efforts of Fed officials. And while layoffs have swept the tech sector, they’ve generally remained low. Job vacancies are still high, with about 1.7 unemployed for every available job, close to the highest rate on record.