Category: Economy

Bentley Pushes Back Ambitious All-Electric Goals

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Driver getting into his Bently

British luxury carmaker Bentley Motors is pushing back its plans to have an all-electric vehicle (EV) offering by 2030, following other top vehicle manufacturers, according to CNBC.

Bentley had originally planned to transition all of its vehicle sales to EVs by 2030 but announced that it would be looking to delay that change by a couple of years, continuing to offer hybrids through that time, CEO Adrian Hallmark said in a media briefing following the company’s fourth quarter results, according to CNBC. General Motors, Ford, Mercedes-Benz and Honda have all backed off of previously made EV goals in the past year as low demand and high costs have stifled the commodity’s profitability compared to traditional vehicles.

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Layoffs Continue Nationwide as Economic Concerns Rise

The Center Square
Fired by email

As the economy worsens, multiple industries continue to shed jobs.

U.S.-based companies laid off 82,307 employees in January, a 136 percent increase from the previous month, according to a report by the business and coaching firm, Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc. The Wall Street Journal reported companies are still cutting white-collar jobs in an attempt “to do more with less.”

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Vinnie Vernuccio Says New Attempt to Unionize the Chattanooga Volkswagen Plant Seems to be ‘Failing’

Kaitlin Housler

Vinnie Vernuccio, president of the Institute for the American Worker, said workers’ latest attempts to unionize the Volkswagen plant in Chattanooga appear to be “failing.”

On Monday, the United Auto Workers (UAW) announced that a group of Volkswagen workers in Chattanooga filed a petition with the National Labor Relations Board for a vote to join the labor union.

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Commentary: We Must Protect Our Farmers

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Farmer Working

Tennessee’s farmers and growers generate $89 billion annually in economic activity. Simply put, we rely on our farmers. And today, we honor them. Few Americans make more of a difference in the lives of others than farmers. From growing the food we cook to the cotton we use to make clothes, our farmers truly are the backbone of our economy.

My greatest privilege in Congress is to serve the hardworking people of Tennessee, especially farmers. Those who work hard to feed our families, those who tirelessly labor sun-up to sun-down, those who make possible the American dream; it is their selfless sacrifice to the soil that keeps our state growing.

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Georgia Attorney General Leads Coalition Challenging ‘Unlawful’ Rule Demanding Companies Issue Annual Climate Change Reports

Tom Pappert
Georgia Atty Gen Chris Carr

Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr on Thursday announced he is leading a coalition of 10 attorneys general in opposition to a new rule requiring publicly traded companies to create annual climate change reports.

Carr leads a coalition that includes attorneys general serving Georgia, West Virginia, Alabama, Alaska, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Wyoming and Virginia in a petition for the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to review whether the newly-enacted rule should remain.

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Retailer Joann Fabrics Files for Bankruptcy as Americans Cut Back on Creature Comforts

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Joann Fabrics store

Major fabric and craft retailer Joann announced Monday that it was filing for bankruptcy as consumers pull back on spending due to harsh economic conditions.

The retailer recently reached an agreement with a majority of its financial stakeholders as well as other financing parties, giving the company around $132 million in new financing while also reducing the debt on the company’s balance sheet by around $505 million, according to an announcement from Joann. Retail sales across the U.S. economy have continued to slump in recent months, growing just 0.6 percent month-to-month in February, not including inflation, and declining 1.1 percent in January as consumers pull back on non-essentials as prices rise.

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Jeff Bezos’ Charity Spending Millions to Fund Development of Fake Meat

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Lauren Sanchez

The charitable foundation of Amazon founder and billionaire Jeff Bezos is pouring tens of millions of dollars into efforts to advance synthetic meat.

The Bezos Earth Fund (BEF) will be spending an initial $60 million to fund research and development of “alternative proteins,” which the University of Melbourne defines as “plant-based and food-technology alternatives to animal protein,” the BEF announced Tuesday. The $60 million commitment is part of the BEF’s $1 billion campaign to transform food systems to fight climate change.

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Commentary: Electric Transmission Buildout Could Cost Americans Trillions of Dollars

RealClearWire
Electric Grid

Though windmills and solar panels get the headlines, the big energy topic in Washington is electric transmission. Whether it is Congress’s newfound interest in permitting reform, the U.S. Department of Energy’s new Grid Deployment Office, or the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (FERC) upcoming final rule on transmission planning and cost allocation, how to build and pay for long-range transmission to connect generators to customers is considered the final piece in the quest to meet net-zero goals.   

Like so many issues in Washington, the need for more transmission lines is accepted without question and the costs are not considered. But for American consumers, especially low-income and elderly, as well as small businesses and energy intense manufacturers, building new transmission lines could result in much higher monthly bills and leave them on the hook for stranded assets.

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Nashville Chief Development Officer Addresses Proposed ‘East Bank Authority,’ Prioritizes Residential Buildings for East Bank Development

Matthew Giffin
Bob Mendes East Bank

Metro Nashville Chief Development Officer Bob Mendes addressed the proposed “East Bank Development Authority” that would oversee the East Bank development project at a Friday press conference. Mendes also detailed some restrictions he said are intended to create a “neighborhood” in a 30-acre area of the East Bank.

Mendes said he was hopeful that the Tennessee General Assembly would pass the necessary legislation to create an East Bank Development Authority, which he added would also need to be approved by the Nashville Metro Council.

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Inflation Woes: Home Buyers Need 80 Percent More Income to Buy than Four Years Ago

The Center Square
Home Buyers

The housing market is not immune from inflationary woes as buyer’s purchasing power has significantly diminished in four years. Home buyers in 2024 need 80% more income to purchase a home than they did in 2020, according to a new report by Zillow.

“The income needed to comfortably afford a home is up 80% since 2020, while median income has risen 23% in that time,” the report states. That equates to $47,000 more than four years ago.

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Feds Announce $200 Million for Georgia Projects

The Center Square
Atlanta Money

The federal government is sending more than $210 million for projects across the state, from building a park over downtown Atlanta’s Connector to removing a flyover ramp in Savannah.

The largest project is a $157.6 million Reconnecting Communities and Neighborhoods Grant award to jumpstart the first phase of construction of the Stitch, a four-acre park over Interstates 75 and 85.

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Family Dollar and Dollar Tree to Close 1,000 Stores After $1.71 Billion Net Loss

Just the News
Family Dollar Store

Dollar Tree and its subsidiary, Family Dollar, will close 1,000 stores following a net loss of $1.71 billion over three months, the discount retailer said Wednesday.

The company plans to close about 600 Family Dollar stores in the first half of this year and allow about 370 Family Dollar stores and 30 Dollar Tree stores to close over the next few years at the end of their lease terms.

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Sedona Designates ‘Safe Place to Park’ for Homeless Arizonans Living in Vehicles

Tom Pappert
Sedona City Council

The Sedona City Council voted on Tuesday to designate an area for homeless Arizonans who live in their vehicles to park overnight.

In a decision proponents presented as a partial solution to the city’s housing crisis, the city council voted to allow residents to park and stay overnight in an unpaved parking area that formerly served Cultural Park, which closed in 2004.

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Semiconductor Giant Faces U.S. Delays While Racing Ahead in Japan amid Biden Chips Funding Uncertainty

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A major Taiwanese chip manufacturer’s plan to build a key factory in the U.S. has been plagued with significant delays. Meanwhile, the chipmaker is on schedule to open a separate facility in Japan.

One of the plants Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) is building in Arizona has delayed manufacturing until 2027 or 2028 instead of 2026 because of uncertainty regarding funding it will receive from President Joe Biden’s administration, according to The New York Times. TSMC’s factory in Japan is on track to operate on schedule as the country’s government has helped the factory by committing billions in funding and assisting with assembling thousands of employees to build it, the WSJ reported.

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Biden to Oppose Foreign Acquisition of U.S. Steel in Bid to Sway Blue Collar Voters

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Biden U.S. Steel

President Joe Biden is expected to announce his opposition to the foreign acquisition of the iconic American company U.S. Steel on Thursday as he looks to win over blue collar voters, according to The Associated Press.

The Japanese Nippon Steel Corporation first announced that it would be acquiring U.S. Steel, the world’s fourth-largest steel producer, in December for around $14.9 billion after entertaining multiple offers, including from American steel company Cleveland Cliffs. The announcement is part of the president’s bid to sway blue-collar voters and union members by positioning himself as supporting American manufacturing, with the remarks to be delivered in the battleground state of Michigan, according to the AP.

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Gov. Brian Kemp Acknowledges ‘Disappointing’ Pause to Rivian Electric Vehicles Plant After $1.5 Billion in Subsidies

Tom Pappert
Brian Kemp

Governor Brian Kemp made public remarks about electric vehicle manufacturer Rivian Automotive announcing plans to pause work on its $5 billion plant in Georgia in a Tuesday press event.

Kemp, whose support for the Rivian deal helped generate $1.5 billion in tax incentives for the company, called the situation “no doubt disappointing” in a press conference.

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Commentary: The Financialization of Nature

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Power Plant Money

Financialization: “A pattern of accumulation in which profit making occurs increasingly through financial channels rather than through trade and commodity production.”
– Greta Krippner, Economic Sociologist, University of Michigan

There are plenty of examples of how America’s economy shifted from a production-based economy to a financially-based economy over the past forty years. Starting around 1980, with the economies of post-World War II Europe and Japan fully rebuilt and roaring, and emerging Asian economies turning into powerhouses of manufacturing as well, America chose financialization as an alternative to rising up to meet the competition.

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Border Crisis: Water Scarcity Forces Texas’ Last Sugar Mill to Close

The Center Square
Sugar Cane Farmer

The border crisis has taken on many forms in Texas, from crime to fentanyl poisonings to farmers and ranchers losing their livelihoods.

Another casualty of the border crisis is the U.S. State Department’s failure to hold accountable Mexican government authorities to a 1944 Treaty of Utilization of Waters, resulting in Texas’ last sugar mill shut down, the industry contends. The Rio Grande Valley is bracing for an expected initial $100 million in economic losses as a result.

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Nashville, Memphis, and Chattanooga Will Receive Federal Funds Through Bloomberg’s American Sustainable Cities Initiative to Lobby for Billions from Biden’s Federal Slush Fund

Matthew Giffin
Mike Bloomberg

Bloomberg Philanthropies announced on Tuesday that three Tennessee cities will take part in an initiative that would use federal funds provided by the Biden administration.

Nashville, Memphis, and Chattanooga were selected for the organization’s American Sustainable Cities Initiative, which stated its focus would be on creating economic equity and green energy jobs, according to a Tuesday news release from Bloomberg Philanthropies. Mike Bloomberg, the former Democratic New York Mayor, founded Bloomberg Philanthropies.

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U.S. House Passes Bill to Require Tennessee Valley Authority Disclose Salaries for Top Executives

Tom Pappert

The U.S. House of Representatives on recently legislation filed by Representatives Steve Cohen (D-TN-09) and Tim Burchett (R-TN-02) that would require the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) to publish the salaries of its top executives, Cohen announced in a Monday press release.

Titled the TVA Salary Transparency Act, text of the two-page bill reveals new requirements would be posed for the TVA to provide annually “a report of the total number of employees at the management level or above, to include all executives and board members, that shall include the names, salaries, and duties” of employees “that are receiving compensation” higher than that allotted to the highest paid government employees.

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Watchdog: Biden’s 2025 Budget Would Drive National Debt to $45 Trillion in 10 Years, 106 Percent of GDP

Just the News

The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget (CRFB) a budget watchdog group, found that President Joe Biden’s fiscal year 2025 budget would drive the national debt to $45.1 trillion or 106 percent of the U.S. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by 2034, from $27.4 trillion or about 97 percent of GDP at the present time.

The organization noted that those calculations are based on the Biden administration’s own internal figures. The current $27.4 trillion debt figure is the debt held by the public, not the total national debt including intragovernmental holdings.

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Georgia Tax Collections Decrease 4 Percent amid Calls for Income Tax Cut Acceleration

Tom Pappert
Gov Brian Kemp

Tax collections in Georgia decreased by about 4 percent in February. The change was driven by sharp decreases in the state’s income tax revenues following Republican-led tax cuts, though Georgia simultaneously saw increased revenue from sales taxes and taxes on corporations.

A press release from the office of Governor Brian Kemp notes the state’s tax revenues fell 4.3 percent in February while the year’s tax collections are down 3.1 percent to date.

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Titans Seat License Bill Would Cap Increase at 20 Percent for 10-Year License Holders

The Center Square
Proposed New Titans Stadium

A bill intending to cap increases on the cost of personal seat licenses at the new Nissan Stadium in Nashville would now put a 20% cap on those price increases for 10-year seat license holders at the Tennessee Titans’ current stadium.

The bill initially was written to block any increase in those prices but Rep. Larry Miller, D-Memphis, said he was planning to amend the bill to be more reasonable to the Titans.

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Towing Company Behind Racism Lawsuit Against Memphis Now Accused of Racketeering

Tom Pappert

A towing company that sued the City of Memphis last year over racism allegations is now a defendant in a lawsuit which asserts it is engaged in a racketeering scheme to squeeze owners 18-wheelers with excessive, duplicative and illegal fees for parking. The plaintiffs also claim the company engages in illegal towing, booting or impounding of vehicles.

The lawsuit claims the owner of A1’s Towing and Hauling of Memphis, Colton Ahmad Cathey, is the co-creator of an illegal network of towing and booting companies that lure unsuspecting drivers to their lots then charge excessive fees to remediate illegal booting and towing of their vehicles.

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Commentary: Unemployment Up Another 760,000 Since December 2022 as Unemployment Rate Jumps to 3.9 Percent

Admin

Don’t look now, but U.S. labor markets appear to be churning in the wrong direction, as the unemployment rate jumped to 3.9 percent in February, and the unemployment level hit a new high for this cycle at almost 6.5 million, up 760,000 from its low this cycle of 5.7 million in Dec. 2022, according to the latest data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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Report: Post-Pandemic Remote, Hybrid Work Will Impact Businesses near Offices

The Center Square
Empty Office

Remote and hybrid workers will impact more than office vacancy rates, according to an analysis by the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City.

The report, “Hybrid Work May Pose Challenge To Bars and Restaurants in Parts of the Tenth Federal Reserve District,” stated hybrid work arrangements and a preference for remote work are here to stay. It quoted research suggesting approximately 30% of working days in 2023 took place at home and office occupancy is down at least 40% compared to pre-pandemic levels.

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Government Jobs Continue to Swell Under Biden as Unemployment Ticks Up

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Team Work at Office

The U.S. set another new record for the total number of government jobs in February, even as overall unemployment ticks up, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

The government added 52,000 positions in February, around the average gain per month seen in the last year, totaling 23,180,000, according to the BLS. The U.S. economy added 275,000 nonfarm payroll jobs in February, far higher than expectations of 200,000, but unemployment shot up from 3.7% to 3.9%.

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Job Gains Surge for Another Month as Unemployment Ticks Up

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Office Work

The U.S. added 275,000 nonfarm payroll jobs in February as the unemployment rate ticked up to 3.9%, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data released Friday.

Economists anticipated that the country would add 200,000 jobs in February compared to the 353,000 that were added in January, and that the unemployment rate would remain at 3.7%, according to Reuters. The job gains were announced two days after Jerome Powell, chair of the Federal Reserve, told the House Financial Services Committee in its semi-annual monetary policy report that he does not believe that there is evidence for a recession, meaning rate cuts could be on the horizon.

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Tennessee Lawmaker Drops Bid to Ban Cold Beer Sales After Lukewarm Response

Tom Pappert
Ron Gant

The Tennessee State Senate advanced a new version of a bill aimed at addressing drunk driving laws, but the version advanced by lawmakers on Thursday was amended to omit any plans to ban the sale of cold beer.

After lawmakers greeted “The Tennessee Prevention of Drunk Driving Act” with a lukewarm reception over language that banned stores from selling cold beer to the public in a bid to lower the number of drunk drivers throughout the state, its sponsor announced plans to change the contents of the legislation through an amendment.

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Layoffs Surge for Another Month Despite Job Gains

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Empty Office

Layoffs at U.S. companies surged for another month as businesses adjusted to current market conditions, despite huge reported job gains, according to outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc.

Job cuts increased to 84,638 in February, 3% higher than in January when layoffs also soared, and 9% higher than February last year, which had 77,770 cuts, according to the report. The layoffs are in spite of strong reported job growth, with the U.S. adding 353,000 nonfarm payroll jobs in January, far higher than expectations of 180,000.

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Nashville Mayor Reportedly Committed to Funding Transportation Plans with Sales Tax Increase

Tom Pappert
Freddie O'Connell

A report released on Wednesday claims Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell is committed to funding his proposed transportation initiative with an increase to the city’s sales tax.

O’Connell and his administration are reportedly “leaning toward a half cent sales tax” as the primary funding source of the transit referendum he plans to take before voters in November, a News Channel 5 report claims.

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Commentary: The Federal Government is Deciding Who Can Start a Small Business

Admin
Business Owner

Just when it seemed impossible for things to get tougher for small businesses, the federal government decided to make things worse.

Small businesses have had a tough run for the last few years. Record inflation, high interest rates, and workforce shortages have led to widespread pessimism among small businesses. The last thing they need is more government interference, but that is exactly what is happening.

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Top Contender to Take over Massive Union Has Repeatedly Been Accused of Union Busting

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April Verrett

The presumptive heir to the position of president of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) has had employees under her command complain of union-busting tactics and retaliation, according to a report from the Center for Union Facts.

April Verrett, the current secretary treasurer of the SEIU and the former president of SEIU Local 2015, is a top contender to replace the current outgoing president, Mary Kay Henry, according to the report. In both positions, Verrett was reportedly part of the management that faced off with SEIU employees, who had organized separately from the SEIU, about working conditions and contract negotiations.

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Struggling Bank Gets Bailed Out with Help from Former Trump Admin Treasury Secretary

Admin
New York Community Bank

New York Community Bancorp (NYCB) announced on Thursday that it would be getting more than $1 billion from investors to help stabilize the bank, including from a firm run by a former Trump administration Treasury secretary.

The bank will receive $450 million from Mnuchin Liberty Strategic Capital, headed by former Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, as well as a $250 million and $200 million investment from Hudson Bay Capital and Reverence Capital, according to an announcement from the bank. NYCB posted a $252 million loss in the fourth quarter of 2023, sending its stock to the lowest level since 1997 and worrying investors about another potential crisis in the banking sector, accordingto CNN.

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Hobbs Announces Up to $30 Million in Taxpayer Dollars Aimed at Tackling Medical Debt

The Center Square
Katie Hobbs

Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs launched a program on Monday aimed at “buying back” medical debt with taxpayer dollars distributed by the federal government.

The program is called “Affordable Arizona: Tackling Medical Debt for Working Families” and it is a public-private partnership between the state of Arizona and RIP Medical Debt, a national nonprofit.

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Local Restaurants Can’t Keep Up with Minimum Wage Hikes, Inflation

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local restaurant

Minimum wage hikes in many states around the country and sky-high inflation are crushing independent restaurants that don’t want to raise prices on their customers, according to the Wall Street Journal.

In January, 22 states raised their minimum wage for hourly workers, according to the WSJ. Around 59 percent of small business owners said that higher labor costs were the biggest source of inflation in January, requiring price hikes to maintain current revenue levels.

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Electric Vehicle Parts Maker Gets Tax Break to Open New Plant in Ohio

The Center Square
Electric Car

Ohio plans to give a 15-year tax credit to a company planning a new manufacturing facility to build parts for electric vehicles.

Schaeffler, owner of two plants in the state, plans a third in Dover that is expected to employ 650 people after a $230 million investment. The tax credits are tied to job creation.

The new jobs are expected to be split between the company’s plant in Wooster and the new Dover plant. The company employs more than 1,600 people.

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