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☆ Long-awaited Fed digital payment system to launch in July
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( Jeff Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

The Federal Reserve's digital payments system, which it promises will help speed up the way money moves around the world, will debut in July. FedNow, as it will be known, will create "a leading-edge payments system that is resilient, adaptive, and accessible," said Richmond Fed President Tom Barkin, who is the program's executive sponsor. Participants will complete a training and certification process in early April, according to a Fed announcement. Institutions that participate in the program will have seven-day, 24-hour access, as opposed to a system currently in place that closes on weekends. Some Fed officials say the program even could supplant the need for a central bank digital currency.

☆ Oxy CEO Vicki Hollub doesn't seem worried about White House pressure on buybacks, oil prices
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Eric Rosenbaum | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

That new fiscal approach from the energy patch has not made the White House happy, especially when oil prices and oil company profits were at a peak last year. Gas prices are right where they should be right now, she says, and are likely to stay this way. If there is risk to gas prices this year, it's to the upside. Amid high gas prices last year, the Biden administration released the most oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve on record, 180 million barrels. Among the reasons oil prices will remain higher?

Big brands have seen earnings propelled by double-digit price hikes – even if it has had a negative impact on demand elasticity. Only two-thirds (67%) of the companies that have reported have beat earnings estimates, the lowest beat rate in eight years. But workforce reductions aren't the only way for companies to cut costs, or necessarily the best way in a tight labor market. We've seen notable examples across industries of just how important general cost cuts have been this earnings season. Of course, Airbnb was one of the first companies to cut costs when the pandemic hit.

Review: Is the Discover it Cash Back the Best Credit Card for You? For example, you could look at a no-annual-fee card that offers a flat cash rewards rate on all purchases, like the Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card, which earns 2% cash rewards on spending. Insider's Featured Cash Back Credit Cards Discover it® Cash BackCiti® Double Cash CardWells Fargo Active Cash® Card Chevron icon It indicates an expandable section or menu, or sometimes previous / next navigation options. How to Earn Rewards With the Discover it Cash Back CardTo earn the most cash back with the Discover it® Cash Back, you'll have to activate the rotating bonus categories each quarter through your online Discover account. How to Use Discover Cash Back RewardsThe best way to redeem your Discover it® Cash Back rewards is usually as a statement credit, which lowers your balance, or simply take the cash as a direct deposit to your bank account.

In this article LUV Follow your favorite stocks CREATE FREE ACCOUNTGenaro Molina | Los Angeles Times | Getty ImagesWill the majority of travelers forgive Southwest Airlines and start buying tickets on the major U.S. air carrier again? Southwest Airlines accepted the blame for its technological meltdown during the holidays, and it has committed over $1 billion to fixing it. He pointed to $29 fare sales, "something I haven't seen Southwest offer in a long time," he said. The Southwest spokeswoman said the airline has a long history of innovation and pioneering technology in the airline industry. BALTIMORE, MD - DEC 27: Hundreds of passengers wait in line to handle their baggage claim issues with Southwest Airlines at Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport in Baltimore, Maryland on December 27, 2022.

Signing up for a new high-yield savings account online can take as little as five minutes. Compare high-yield savings account optionsShop around for the best high-yield savings account that fits your needs. Quick tip: You can read our article about what a savings account is to learn more about savings account features. On your online account, you'll be able to see account balances, make transfers from one account to another, and see your transaction history. There are three main things to consider when choosing a savings account: APY A high APY is especially important if you are looking for a high-yield savings account, rather than a regular savings account at an in-person bank.

☆ House, Senate to renew fight pitting child tax credit vs. corporate cash
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Eric Rosenbaum | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

The fate of that corporate tax policy, supported by many Democrats, had been linked to the Democratic Party's desire for a deal on the child tax credit . But House and Senate members are getting ready to reintroduce legislation on the R&D tax credit. Indexing the child tax credit to inflation would also be a matter of tax policy that both parties might agree on as a way to enshrine future increases in law. But there's still the divide on the corporate tax priorities and child tax credit, and at a basic level, getting a bipartisan tax bill through the House and Senate and to the White House is always challenging. Many companies were surprised that the R&D tax credit did not get extended in the late year legislative package because it had so much bipartisan support.

☆ The ChatGPT AI hype cycle is peaking, but even tech skeptics don't expect a bust
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-11 | by ( Eric Rosenbaum | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +18 min

Even the skeptics of the latest hype cycle recounted during the Town Hall numerous examples of how AI is already embedded in more efficient business processes. The arrival of ChatGPT and generative AI only a few years after the hype cycle over the metaverse has attracted both the AI bulls and bears as tech pursues its next big thing. Another executive who works with lawyers and accountants said the sentiment right now is that AI is not to replace lawyers, but "lawyers using AI are gonna replace lawyers." And what generative AI does, is really help you crunch, take your machine learning to, you know, the 'nth' level of the finite level. That may also place AI in the crosshairs of ESG investors, making sure that the ethics part is part of the mission of companies using it.

☆ American small business pessimism on recession, inflation, isn't relenting
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Eric Rosenbaum | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +10 min

That's according to the CNBC|SurveyMonkey Small Business Survey for the first quarter of 2023. The Q1 survey was conducted from Jan. 23-Jan. 30 among over 2,300 small business owners across the country. "Small business owners have a more difficult time gaining benefits of economies of scale," said Holly Wade, executive director of the NFIB Research Center, whose own recent surveying of small business owners finds persistent pessimism. The new CNBC|SurveyMonkey data finds 75% of small business owners saying they are still facing rising costs of supplies and just over half (51%) supply chain disruptions. Politics is a factor in Main Street outlook Politics plays a role in any small business survey, with a demographic that skews conservative.

☆ Biden's stock buyback tax isn't working. In State of the Union, he's asking Congress for more
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( Eric Rosenbaum | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +14 min

In September 2021, Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Oregon) proposed that stock buybacks should be taxed at 2%. Lazonick, who thought any minor buyback tax would be ineffective, says he has been proven correct. If a higher buyback tax is enacted, he is betting it will not have the outcomes that Democrats envision. While it's hard to see a higher tax getting passed in the current Congress, it does make sense for Biden to state his desire for 4%. Changing a buyback tax, though, might first prove harder.

☆ Why the case is growing for a Federal Reserve interest rate cut before year end
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-31 | by ( Eric Rosenbaum | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +11 min

The Fed will get to 5%, but quickly start to retreat so that the year-end rate is going to be 4.6%, according to the Fed Survey. The Fed interest rate policy path is pretty clear for the next few months of Federal Reserve FOMC meetings. Fear of recession dipped in the latest Fed Survey, but it's still elevated, with 51% of respondents expecting a recession. The Fed Survey doesn't have a positive outlook on growth for 2023, but isn't forecasting negative growth either. But one consumer CFO did say that the way price increases are "pushed through" is becoming more strategic as opposed to across-the-board.

It's easy to earn United miles without stepping on a plane, and because they don't expire, you can use miles when you're ready to travel. There are six United credit cards to consider if you just want to earn United miles and enjoy some day-of-travel perks to boot. Review: Ink Business Preferred card reviewBilt Mastercard® 4.5 /5 A five pointed star A five pointed star A five pointed star A five pointed star A five pointed star 4.5 out of 5 Stars Intro offer N/A Rewards Earn 3X point on dining. Earn United miles by flying United and its partnersOf course, the other main way to stock up on a lot of United MileagePlus miles is to fly United and its other airline partners. Earn United miles with other travelIn addition to just flights, you can earn United miles by booking stays with United's hotel partners, sailings through United Cruises, and entire trips through United Vacations, as well as partner car rentals.

You can get many thousands of dollars in value from Aeroplan points even if you never step foot on an Air Canada plane. Earn Aeroplan points with credit cards and points transfersThe Aeroplan® Credit Card is the only US credit card that earns Aeroplan points directly. So if you transferred 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points, you'd end up with 20,000 Aeroplan points, plus a 5,000-point bonus for a total of 25,000 Aeroplan points. Earn Aeroplan points flying Air CanadaThe next easiest way to rack up Aeroplan points is by actually flying Air Canada, but the earning formula is going to change later this year. As far as we know, it will look like this:Basic fares: Earn 2x points per (Canadian) dollarStandard fares: Earn 3x points per (Canadian) dollarFlex/Comfort fares: Earn 3x points per (Canadian) dollarLatitude fares: Earn 3x points per (Canadian) dollarPremium economy fares: Earn 3x points per (Canadian) dollarBusiness fares: Earn 3x points per (Canadian) dollarEssentially, everything but basic economy fares will earn 3x per dollar.

☆ How the market is rating the risk of debt ceiling default and a divided, dysfunctional Congress
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( Eric Rosenbaum | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +13 min

That would be the worst-case outcome, of course, but even the best case will probably see the sort of brinksmanship that occurred in the 2011 debt ceiling crisis." From the Senate, Mitch McConnell recently said it's an issue for Biden and the House GOP to work out. Kevin Brady , the former top Republican on the House Ways and Means Committee, dismissed talk of debt default as "fear mongering." Narrowness of GOP House majority does matterJPMorgan also referred to the path for a political agreement as being "narrow." In 2013, the Federal Reserve ran a simulation of a debt default by the U.S. government.

☆ Moderna, Pfizer's new race: The RSV vaccine FDA approval process
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( Eric Rosenbaum | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Both companies have released results from RSV vaccine trials with efficacy results strong enough to expect expedited approval from the FDA. The companies — which have been involved in litigation brought by Moderna alleging mRNA patent infringement, a claim Pfizer disputes — are both expected the FDA approval process for the RSV vaccine to occur soon. We can use the same, the same equipment and raw materials as the Covid vaccine." The RSV approval process is just one part of a widening vaccine industry for these two companies. "Every strain is treated as suspicious and we start working on it to see if it can overcome the vaccine," Bourla said.

More than a decade later, those that heeded this advice went on to become game-changing tech behemoths, including CNBC Disruptor 50 companies Block , Pinterest , Slack, Twilio , and Cloudera. Seed rounds had a record deal value in 2022, and valuations continued to grow even as late-stage venture companies nearer to the public market suffered. Venture funds raised a record amount of money in 2022, with $162.8 billion closed across 769 funds, according to PitchBook and the NVCA. We've seen companies struggle as public companies and then skyrocket, so a lower value-IPO is not the end of the road." "But when you can generate new share in a difficult market, when the market does turn, they are in a perfect position to capture more market share and customers."

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☆ Tesla, Uber, Amazon, Starbucks: The 2023 Just 100 list biggest gainers, losers and surprises
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( Eric Rosenbaum | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Where does it continue to post mixed performance: significantly lower worker scores than other companies, and importantly, than other auto companies. 505, well out of the Just 100 rankings. "We figured it out to our satisfaction this year ... and it wouldn't surprise you that the vast majority of gig workers did not receive benefits." "Market forces will drive them to offer gig workers more," he said, and in fact they already are. Starbucks and Amazon and unionization Amazon and Starbucks were both outside of the Just 100 rankings in 2022.

☆ Banks take No. 1 spot, tech loses a market crown: The 2023 Just 100 rankings
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( Eric Rosenbaum | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

1 on the 2023 Just 100 list, and it's not alone among peers. On last year's list, the top four spots all went to tech companies. "Banks have been steadily improving their game and that's the standout," he said of this year's Just 100 list. 71, making the cut for the Just 100 list. This year's top 10 still included five tech companies: NVIDIA , Microsoft , Hewlett Packard Enterprise , Apple , and Intel .

David Slotnick/Business InsiderAmerican Express Membership Rewards points are among the most valuable card rewards you can earn. You'll usually get the most value from Amex points by transferring them to airline and hotel partners. In fact, the Amex Membership Rewards program debuted way back in 1991 with just seven US airline partners. More Information Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $6,000 on purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. What to know about transferring Amex points to partnersAmerican Express Membership Rewards points are among the most valuable and versatile travel rewards out there.

☆ Dow headed back below 30,000, slim chance of soft landing for economy in 2023: CNBC CFO survey
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-28 | by ( Eric Rosenbaum | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Throughout 2022, conversations with individual CFO Council members have more often than not tended to the view that the economy is headed for a hard landing. The CNBC CFO Council Q4 2022 survey is a sample of the current outlook among top financial officers. Recession is comingIt's been remarked that no recession has been more predicted than the one that still hasn't hit the economy. In a few key areas for the economy and markets, CFOs do think the worst is in. An equal percentage (roughly 40%) of CFOs say their spending and headcount will remain the same next year as those who expect it to increase.

☆ Worker demands for more money on the job hit a record level, a New York Fed survey finds
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( Eric Rosenbaum | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

The level surpassed the $73,283 record reached earlier this year in March, which it had more recently dipped below. The continued strength in the labor market will will put pressure on companies to keep using price as a lever to make back some of the margin lost to labor costs. This approach to offering more pay doesn't tie them into salary increases which can't be easily reversed, and also does not factor into the wage inflation trend for long. But for now Powell is stuck with a labor market that isn't relenting to Fed policy as quickly as hoped. "We do see a very, very strong labor market, one where we haven't seen much softening, where job growth is very high, where wages are very high.

☆ How to manage cash and stay out of debt running a business in a recession
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( Eric Rosenbaum | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

The difference now for all business owners is the need to be mindful of what customers can afford going forward. She has some advice for business owners on how to stay out of bad debt, make the right investments, and keep sales flowing even through a recession. Rethink contractors and extra cashIf business owners stay on top of their financials and avoid the bad debt decisions, they may be fortunate enough to end up with extra cash. She said one of the biggest challenges business owners face is waiting too long to pay themselves. Each month, each quarter, business owners should be considering changes.

☆ When will the Federal Reserve ease its rate hikes and inflation fight? Keep an eye on your annual raise
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( Eric Rosenbaum | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell holds a news conference in Washington, November 2, 2022. It's the labor market as much as the CPI, and employment data remains troubling for the Fed. Inflation is down, but employee expectations are still high for raises because they have lost purchasing power. This views positions the positive news on CPI inflation as only one piece of the puzzle, and not even the biggest piece as far as the Fed is concerned. And until the Fed sees that labor market inflation coming into line, the central bank is not likely to make a major move away from its tightening course.

☆ Fed rate hike pushes small business loan interest over 10% for first time in nearly a generation
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( Eric Rosenbaum | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Many business owners have never seen double-digits," said Rohit Arora, co-founder and CEO of small business lending platform Biz2Credit. Almost a quarter of small business owners said they are paying a higher rate on their most recent loan, and the highest since 2008. The latest CNBC Fed Survey shows the market forecasting a peak Fed rate around 5% in March 2023 and the rate being held there for nine months. "Talking to small business owners looking for financing, it's starting to slow things down," Hurn said. Small business loan approval percentages at big banks dropped in November to the second lowest total in 2022 (14.6%), according to the latest Biz2Credit Small Business Lending Index released this week; and also dropped at small banks (21.1%).

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