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☆ Gap will cut more than 500 workers in latest layoffs, as struggling retailer tries to reduce costs
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Gabrielle Fonrouge | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

A clearance sale sign is seen at the Gap retail store on September 20, 2022 in Los Angeles, California. Gap is laying off more than 500 employees in an attempt to cut costs and become more efficient, as the company tries to move back to profitability, CNBC has learned. The cuts come after Martin told investors during a March earnings call that the apparel retailer's staff has been "dampened by a complicated organizational structure, bureaucracy, and outdated processes." It managed to turn an annual net profit in 2021, but reported net losses in both 2020 and 2022. As of Jan. 28, Gap employed about 95,000 staff members, 81% of which work in retail locations.

The logo of German software group SAP is pictured at the headquarters of SAP (Schweiz) AG in Regensdorf, Switzerland January 22, 2021. Revenue from SAP's lucrative cloud business grew 24% year-on-year, broadly in line with consensus. For the year, SAP expects non-IFRS operating profit in the range of 8.6-8.9 billion euros, 200 million euros less than before. Cloud revenue forecast is seen down by 1.3 billion euros to between 14 and 14.4 billion euros. "Underlying guidance is essentially unchanged, although updated to reflect the disposal of Qualtrics," Jefferies analysts wrote in a client note.

☆ SAP slightly lowers outlook after Qualtrics divestment
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

April 21 (Reuters) - Business software maker SAP (SAPG.DE) on Friday slightly lowered its outlook due to the divestment of its Qualtrics unit while reporting first-quarter revenue growth that beat expectations. SAP reported revenue growth of 10% in the first three months of 2023, to 7.44 billion euros ($8.15 billion), beating expectations of 7% in company-provided consensus. The tech giant now expects non-IFRS operating profit in the range of 8.6-8.9 billion euros, 200 million euros less than before. For cloud revenue, it now targets between 14 and 14.4 billion euros, down 1.3 billion euros from previous guidance. Additionally, the IFRS operating result was affected by restructuring costs associated with SAP's recent cost-cutting program.

☆ Snap says Snapchat+ has 3 million paid subscribers
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Sheila Dang | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

April 19 (Reuters) - Snap Inc (SNAP.N) on Wednesday said its subscription service Snapchat+ now has 3 million users, as the tech company aims to diversify its business. The number of subscribers for Snapchat+ indicates the company is seeing success at a time when social media platforms are increasingly seeking to charge users for certain features. Snap's subscription service allows users to gain early access to new features. In February, Snap introduced a generative artificial intelligence chatbot called My AI, which can produce written responses to queries, rolling it out first to Snapchat+ subscribers. Last month, Snap launched an enterprise division to help other companies build AR experiences for their own apps and websites.

☆ Snap expands AI chatbot with ability to create images
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Sheila Dang | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Snap's chatbot, called My AI, which can help users with everything from writing poems to searching for information, was built using startup OpenAI's ChatGPT technology. My AI is now available free to all Snapchat users and can be invoked to respond to questions in conversations between friends on Snapchat, Snap said on Wednesday. My AI's ability to respond to users with its own AI-generated images will be available first on Snapchat+, which has reached 3 million subscribers, Snap said. Snap analyzes conversations with My AI and has found that 99.5% of the chatbot's responses adhere to Snapchat's community guidelines, Spiegel said. The venture could also help Snap diversify beyond digital advertising, which currently makes up the majority of its revenue.

☆ Snapchat breaks down how creators can qualify to make money from ad-revenue sharing, as it expands access to the program
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Dan Whateley | Shriya Bhattacharya | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Snapchat is widening its stories ad-revenue sharing program to more creators. The expansion comes as competitors YouTube and TikTok also test ad-revenue sharing with users. Snapchat is opening up ad-revenue sharing to more creators, the company announced during its partner summit on Wednesday. TikTok began testing an ad-revenue sharing program called Pulse for creators with at least 100,000 followers last year. Outside of its stories ad program, Snap pays creators via other initiatives like content challenges and a fund for its short-video feature Spotlight.

MEXICO CITY, April 13 (Reuters) - The airport operating business in Mexico is thriving as traffic surges due to multinational companies bringing overseas operations closer to home and growth at Mexican airlines, according to the head of GAP, which operates 12 airports in the country. Manufacturing hubs such as Guadalajara have seen record traffic growth due to the relocation trend, called nearshoring, CEO Raul Revuelta told Reuters in an interview late Wednesday. "But it's also Mexican airlines, VivaAerobus, Volaris, Aeromexico, expanding their fleets, which allows them to open new routes and move more passengers." The downgrade has prevented Mexican airlines from opening new routes to the United States, limiting expansion plans. The passage of a proposed aviation reform by Mexico's Congress will be an important step, he added.

☆ Big Tech employees are getting culled. Their European colleagues get stronger labor laws and softer landings.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Riddhi Kanetkar | Jyoti Mann | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

European Big Tech employees have better labor protections"There are regulations in Europe that apply to collective situations, based on European law: the so-called Mass Dismissal Directive," said Dr. Jordan. But in January, Twitter employees were reported to have been paid just one month's severance, according to CNN. Twitter employees in other European hubs such as Germany, Spain, Ireland, and the UK are also pushing back, with the help of the countries' labor laws and unions. Twitter employees in Germany have also worked with the Verdi union to push Twitter into making a better severance offer, Fortune reported. The process could take months instead of weeks, Brittin added — another testament to Europe's stronger labor protections for its employees.

NEW YORK/WASHINGTON, April 10 (Reuters) - A Goldman Sachs & Co (GS.N) unit has agreed to pay $15 million to settle U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) charges that it failed to make proper disclosures and communicate fairly to swap customers, the regulator saidon Monday. In 2015 and 2016, Goldman opportunistically sold clients on so-called "same-day" swaps at times that financially benefited the bank and hurt the customers, the CFTC said in a settled order. The firm did not disclose key marks to customers for assessing the swap's value and did not communicate to them in a fair and balanced manner, the regulator said. By depriving clients of transparency into the relative value of the swaps it was offering, Goldman violated CFTC's business conduct standards for swap dealers, the regulator said. The "CFTC will aggressively pursue swap dealers that violate these business conduct standards" that promote fairness in the swaps market, enforcement director Ian McGinley said in a statement.

☆ Webb telescope takes striking image of planet Uranus
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-07 | by ( Taylor Nicioli | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —The James Webb Space Telescope has captured a new stunning image of ice giant Uranus, with almost all its faint dusty rings on display. Uranus has 13 known rings, with 11 of them visible in the new Webb image. A November Hubble image of Uranus (left) captured the planet's bright polar cap, while the recent Webb image displayed more detail, with a subtle enhanced brightness at the cap's center. With the exact mechanism behind the haze unknown, scientists are studying the polar cap using telescope images such as this new Webb image. In this new Webb image, similar to other recent images by the Hubble Space Telescope, storm clouds can be seen at the edge of the polar cap.

Houston, Texas-based EnCap is working with an investment bank to independently sell Novo Oil & Gas Holdings and Forge Energy II, the sources said. EnCap, Novo, and Forge did not respond to comment requests. In 2018, EnCap invested about $400 million in Forge, which currently produces about 14,000 boepd, the sources said. On Monday, Ovintiv Inc (OVV.N) said it would buy assets in the Midland part of the Permian from EnCap for $4.3 billion. In January, Matador Resources Co (MTDR.N) bought Advance Energy Partners from EnCap for $1.6 billion.

☆ Strong management can help companies 'change their stripes,' Jim Cramer says
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( Rohan Goswami | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Strong management can make all the difference for a company to "change their stripes" in a corporate pivot, CNBC's Jim Cramer said on Thursday. Cramer pointed to Costco as a prime example of the difference capable management can make. A bevy of other, non-retail companies are suffering as well, Cramer said, including medical-technology company Medtronic and industrial concern 3M . There's hope in the food companies, Cramer noted, pointing to stark evolutions from JM Smucker and Campbell Soup , both of which have rebalanced towards snack foods. But at a well-managed company like Costco, Cramer has no concerns.

☆ Value trap? Growth trap? What to know to avoid getting snagged
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Zev Fima | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

It's a value trap! No, it's a growth trap! Value traps In the case of a so-called value trap, an investor buys a stock on the premise it provides deep value because its valuation is inexpensive relative to the company's earnings or cash flow. Growth traps While value traps reel in an investor for a supposedly undervalued opportunity, a growth trap's appeal comes from the promise that a relatively expensive stock will see rapid growth in the future. With a value trap, you may be stuck until earnings rebound with the next business- or economic cycle, while collecting a dividend in the meantime.

☆ Jay-Z is now worth $2.5 billion—Warren Buffett once said 'he's the guy to learn from'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( Nicolas Vega | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Less than four years after becoming the first billionaire rapper, Jay-Z is showing no signs of slowing down. The Brooklyn-born artist's net worth is now $2.5 billion, according to the latest estimate from Forbes. Forbes pegged his net worth at $1.4 billion just last year. At the end of their conversation, Buffett said that soon enough, young people would be looking to Jay-Z for their money-making advice. "For a young person growing up he's the guy to learn from."

☆ Leaked documents show how Snapchat's lucrative Snap Stars program pays influencers and best practices the company shares with creators
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-24 | by ( Shriya Bhattacharya | Marta Biino | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Creators who are part of the Snap Stars program are eligible for the ad-revenue-share beta. When asked about the ad program's eligibility criteria by Insider, Snap declined to comment. Meanwhile, Snap Stars who aren't in the beta program are posting more on the platform in the hopes they'll be selected for this financially lucrative opportunity. "I was really excited because being a Snap Star really helps with your growth," he said. A document for creators shows Snap's best practices for postingSnap has sent some Snap Stars guidelines with best practices for posting.

☆ TikTok CEO set for grilling in House hearing. But U.S. lawmakers also face questions
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( Lauren Feiner | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +15 min

U.S. tech platforms including Meta's Facebook and Instagram, Google's YouTube , Twitter and Snap's Snapchat have raised similar fears for lawmakers and users. Evaluating a potential banThere's little appetite in Washington to accept the potential risks that TikTok's ownership by Chinese company ByteDance poses to U.S. national security. The interagency panel tasked with reviewing national security risks stemming from ByteDance's ownership has threatened a ban if the company won't sell its stake in the app. Trahan said members should ask about national security risks of the app, but those questions should be substantive. Bowman noted lawmakers haven't received a bipartisan congressional briefing from the administration on national security risks stemming from TikTok.

☆ Snap launches enterprise division to help businesses build AR features
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( Sheila Dang | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

March 23 (Reuters) - Snap Inc (SNAP.N), owner of photo messaging app Snapchat, launched a new division on Thursday that will help other companies build augmented reality features for their websites or apps. The division called AR Enterprise Services (ARES) marks the first time Snap will sell to business customers its AR technology, which can enhance photos and videos of the real world with computerized images, said Jill Popelka, head of ARES, in an interview. Certain arrangements with clients could allow Snap to earn a cut of product sales driven by Snap's AR tools, she added. Artificial intelligence is also helping advance Snap's AR capabilities. The company is using AI to take a two-dimensional image and make it appear 3D without the need to first build a 3D model.

☆ Silicon Valley Bank became the go-to bank for startups with a network of top-tier VCs. Underrepresented founders say that created barriers to access for them.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( April Joyner | Ben Bergman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

But some early-stage founders told Insider they had trouble getting access to SVB's services. SVB's reliance on VC networks made it less accessible to some underrepresented founders, they said. With its focus on venture-backed startups, Silicon Valley Bank provided loans and lines of credit to businesses that often wouldn't qualify for such services at a larger bank. But the earliest-stage companies — those without significant venture funding or a notable VC backer — were still sometimes shut out, founders told Insider. Jean-Charles and Alvarez-Bailey said they didn't believe bias or discrimination was at play in SVB's decisions — they simply didn't meet the bank's VC funding threshold.

☆ Gap has quietly dissolved its advertising business. It shows the challenges companies have competing for the $45 billion retail media industry.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( Lauren Johnson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Gap was hoping to tap into a lucrative new revenue stream called retail media, projected to be worth $45 billion in 2023, according to Insider Intelligence, Insider's sister company. Instead of GPS Media, Gap is devoting resources to support GPS Platform, which handles logistics and fulfillment services for other retailers including next-day and two-day shipping. Gap has also started GPS Apparel, which customizes apparel for companies. Lipsman said that Gap also had a disadvantage in retail media because it only sold its own brands. Are you a Gap employee or do you have insight about retail media to share?

☆ Microsoft, Salesforce and SAP are still some of the best places to work in the world even after layoffs, according to Glassdoor
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( Morgan Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Despite months of wide-sweeping job cuts across Silicon Valley, tech companies are still some of the best places to work in the world, according to recent research from Glassdoor. This year, only three companies appear in the top 25 for each of the five countries: Microsoft, SAP and Salesforce. Yet the employee reviews on Microsoft, SAP and Salesforce's Glassdoor pages remain overwhelmingly positive, even after the recent layoff announcements. Six months ago, pre-layoffs, Microsoft had an overall rating of 4.4 out of 5 stars, while SAP and Salesforce had overall ratings of 4.4 each. Check out:The 10 best U.S. places to work in 2023, according to GlassdoorI was VP at Google for 10 years.

☆ Goldman Sachs just raised their recession probability due to stress in the banking system. These 20 stocks are least sensitive to an economic downturn, the bank says.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( William Edwards | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Silicon Valley Bank, Signature Bank, and First Republic Bank have all battled woes in the last week. Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank of New York both closed in recent days as a result of a run on deposits. Silicon Valley Bank had taken significant losses on bond investments, causing depositors to worry that their money would not be safe. This fear spread to customers of Signature Bank, which then sold assets at a loss to meet liquidity demands. First Republic Bank also appeared to have insufficient liquidity to weather a bank run, fueling concerns that it would be closed down.

☆ SAP agrees to sell Qualtrics stake for $7.7 bln
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

BERLIN, March 13 (Reuters) - Software group SAP (SAPG.DE) said on Monday it had agreed to sell its stake in data analytics firm Qualtrics (XM.O) for $7.7 billion as part of the acquisition of Qualtrics by funds affiliated with financial investor Silver Lake. "At a purchase price of US$18.15 in cash per share, the transaction corresponds to a Qualtrics equity value of approximately US$12.5 billion on a fully diluted basis," SAP said in a statement. "SAP's stake will be acquired for approximately US$7.7 billion," it added. Writing by Paul Carrel; Editing by Christopher CushingOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ A 24-year-old stock trader who made over $8 million in 2 years shares the 4 indicators he uses as his guides to buy and sell
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-12 | by ( Laila Maidan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Jack Kellogg began trading stocks right out of high school in 2017. I'm just using basic trend lines, support, resistance, volume, and those are all my indicators," Kellogg said. By the time the stock market began to rally hard in 2020, he was ready to ride the upwards wave. He uses it on the daily chart as a guide to determine a good buy-in price for the stock he's trading. This gives him a better sense that the stock's price action will trend according to his thesis.

☆ Do not underestimate how important humans are, even as we automate, the chief technology officer of SAP says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( Josée Rose | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Automation, generative artificial intelligence like ChatGPT and Bard, and machine learning are pushing business leaders like never before. They deployed this app, built on SAP Business Technology Platform, and said it saves 400,000 hours per year. Maybe it's a bike company: You're interested more in road bikes or fun bikes. You talked about providing and embedding AI and machine learning and giving customers ways to solve problems in a scalable, ethical way. When machine learning arrived, first that automates a lot of capabilities, but now you have completely new jobs.

☆ Former owner of Portugal's TAP denies overpaying for Airbus planes
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LISBON, March 10 (Reuters) - A former owner of Portugal's flag carrier TAP, David Neeleman, denied on Friday making a deal in 2015 to overpay for Airbus planes after prosecutors said last month they were investigating the complex leasing deal, as well as suggestions he had bought TAP shares with company money. "It is also completely absurd to say that TAP shares were bought with Airbus funds or with TAP's future cash flows," he wrote, adding that TAP exclusively used the $226 million from Airbus in ancillary benefits to pay salaries and for its cash needs. He said Atlantic Gateway had also injected its own funds into TAP and arranged a 90 million euro ($96.04 million) loan from Azul, the Brazilian airline that Neeleman founded, "on very favorable terms for TAP", saving TAP from immediate insolvency. Portugal in 2020 bought Neeleman's stake in TAP, which is under a 3.2 billion euro Brussels-approved bailout. ($1 = 0.9371 euros)Reporting by Andrei Khalip and Patricia Rua; Editing by Josie KaoOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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