IBM is announcing the acquisition of StepZen Inc, which developed a GraphQL server with a unique architecture that helps developers build GraphQL APIs quickly and with less code. Today’s news marks IBM’s first acquisition of 2023. Since Arvind Krishna became CEO in April 2020, IBM has acquired 30 companies to bolster its hybrid cloud and artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities. The rising adoption of hybrid cloud has resulted in data stored everywhere – in different types of data stores likes data warehouses, lakes, and lakehouses as well as across different clouds and on-premises environments. APIs serve as the essential connector between different data sources and applications, which means that businesses are relying on and creating more APIs than ever before to get the data they need to power their applications and experiences. GraphQL has rapidly become a go-to query language for companies to interact with their data and is emerging as a new standard for APIs, layering upon the investments in REST APIs and data systems. Take an e-commerce application for example. With a single call, GraphQL can merge data that is found in different subsystems, like customer information, order numbers, and delivery status, and return it in an expected […]

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getty An economic downturn can be a difficult time for any company. During a downturn, consumers tend to spend less money, resulting in downward pressure on prices, sales cycles getting longer and fiercer competition. All these developments can lead to a decrease in revenue and profitability as well as a higher risk of going out of business for many companies. However, with the right strategies in place, a company cannot only survive but flourish during such a period. Here are 10 tips that can help a company stay afloat and come out stronger on the other side. 1. Optimize your operations and P&L. One of the first things a company should do during an economic downturn is to take a hard look at its income statement and consider optimizing its operations. This can include reducing some expenses or freezing business lines that are marginal or are not likely to deliver during a tougher economy. By doing so, a company can maintain its margins and have enough cash to invest in other areas and improve its bottom line or at least have a more solid position. 2. Maintain a strong balance sheet. Following profit and loss statement (P&L) optimizations, management […]

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MOSCOW, Feb 8 (Reuters) – Russia is looking at introducing a one-off, voluntary windfall tax on big business, an official said on Wednesday, as the country’s monthly revenues from oil and gas drop to their lowest levels since 2020. Three sources familiar with the discussions later told Reuters that authorities were considering a one-off budget contribution from businesses of about 200-250 billion roubles ($2.8-$3.5 billion). The price of Russian oil has fallen around 20% since early December, when Western countries set a $60 price cap on Russian oil exports. Urals oil is currently trading at about $56 a barrel, much lower than the $70 needed to balance the budget. The finance ministry said last week that it was trebling its daily sales of foreign currency to cover the shortfall, but analysts have warned that tax rises are inevitable if Russia is going to continue ramping up defence spending. Latest Updates "A voluntary contribution from business… is being discussed, a one-off contribution," First Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Belousov said, in comments published by Russian news agencies. "The fact is that last year’s financial results were very good and many companies, especially in the first half of the year… for the […]

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The Andy Reid Bowl. The Kelce Family Reunion. The first clash of two Black starting quarterbacks in a Super Bowl. Cheesesteak versus barbecue ribs. Rocky or Huckleberry Finn. There’s no shortage of compelling storylines and civic pride comparisons when the Kansas City Chiefs meet the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday in Super Bowl LVII at State Farm Stadium, so to further enrich your viewing experience, here’s a look at how the two NFL franchises compare on the field and off it as businesses in terms of dollars and their social media reach. The game kicks off at 6:30 p.m. on Fox, and The Athletic will have live coverage (and I’ll be tweeting sports business nuggets during the broadcast). Much like last year’s Cincinnati Bengals – Los Angeles Rams championship game, this year’s Super Bowl is again a contrast in NFL markets. Philly is a major East Coast city while Kansas City, Mo., is a smaller Midwest urban hub in the center of the country. And both markets straddle rivers and have fantastic food and pretty dang good football teams with rabid fans. Both franchises have enjoyed their share of historic and recent pro football success — the Eagles won their […]

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The three founders of the On sneaker brand – Photo: On Some of the world’s biggest footwear brands have been backing away from wholesalers’ shelves in favor of direct-to-consumer (DTC) channels, but new developments in shoe retailing are signaling that wholesale might prove to be the right fit for shoes in the long run. Nike’s reduction of its allocations to Foot Locker appears to be slowing and the athletic shoe brand recently invited wholesale partners onto its campus for the first time in three years, according to The Wall Street Journal . Michael Binetti, an equity analyst at Credit Suisse, has taken this as a sign that the top athletic footwear brand is beginning to reembrace wholesale as a channel. Nike furthermore recently announced a new design partnership with one of its third-party retail partners, Glossy reported. Jennifer Ford, the owner of women’s sneaker retailer Premium Goods, has designed a new Nike Air Force 1, which will be available at particular women-owned sneaker retailers chosen by Ms. Ford herself. Startup sneaker brands are also demonstrating success on retailers’ shelves, The Journal reported. Swiss high-end sneaker brand On, for instance, has focused on retailers to sell its shoes. Wall Street […]

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Photo: Hunter Abrams Capri Holdings said revenue dropped 6 per cent to $1.51 billion year-on-year in the third quarter of 2023, missing analyst expectations, due to weakened wholesale demand. Performance in the quarter was “more challenging than anticipated”, said CEO John Idol in a statement. Gross profit was $1.01 billion versus $1.05 billion compared to the same period the prior year, and gross margin was 66.5 per cent compared to 65.1 per cent last year. The company lowered its 2023 annual revenue forecast in response, to $5.56 billion from its previous outlook of $5.7 billion. Shares plummeted 24 per cent on Wednesday morning. “The earnings miss was driven by broad-based underperformance with sales, gross margin, and operating expenses all coming in below expectations,” said analyst Dana Telsey, CEO and chief research officer of Telsey Advisory Group, in a note. “[Capri]’s fiscal third quarter results were disappointing, in our view. With expectations for continued softness over the final two months of FY23, [Capri] issued a much weaker fourth quarter guide and, in turn, lowered the annual outlook across the board as well.” “We were disappointed with the performance of our global wholesale business in the quarter,” Idol said. Sales in […]

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Although it’s impossible to solidify the broad range of opinion for insurance technology specialist Lemonade (LMND), the consensus may be that the business itself is intriguing. By streamlining insurance services through a quick and convenient app, Lemonade aligns with the sensibilities of millennials and Generation Z. However, the broader financial technology sector hasn’t exactly provided much confidence for LMND stock. Indeed, in most longer-term contexts, LMND stock appears a terrible investment. In the trailing six months, for example, shares gave up over 21% of equity value. In the trailing year, they slipped more than 36%. And since making its public market debut in 2020 – during the midst of peak coronavirus fears – Lemonade veritably cratered, bleeding out to the tune of 73.55%. With other names in the broader financial technology sphere not faring much better, skepticism arises quickly regarding the bullish potential of LMND stock. Piper Sandler ( PIPR ) analyst Arvind Ramnani may have summed up Lemonade the best, who lowered his price target to $19 from $20. Although Ramnani remains optimistic about Lemonade’s core product, he states 2023 may be a transition year . Essentially, management will focus on cross-selling insurance products and boosting profitability. In […]

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Good Day Traders, In this technical blog, we are going to take a look at the Elliott Wave path in Chevron (CVX) . Chevron Corporation is an American multinational energy corporation predominantly in oil and gas. It is the second-largest direct descendant of Standard Oil, and originally known as the Standard Oil Company of California, it is headquartered in San Ramon, California, and active in more than 180 countries. Within oil and gas, Chevron is vertical integrated and is involved in hydrocarbon exploration, production, refining, marketing and transport, chemicals manufacturing and sales, and power generation. $CVX 4H Elliott Wave Analysis Feb 5th 2023: The 4H Chart above shows the cycle from 9.28.2022 low unfold in a 5 wave impulsive structure that ended red III on 11.14.2022 at $189.68. The stock then started a pullback to correct the cycle against 9.28 low in a Double Three structure (WXY). The correction is still unfolding and so far has completed the first and second leg. As long as price remains below ((X)) at $189.00, $CVX is expected to remain weak. Bounces should find sellers and continue lower towards the Blue Box area at $166.35 – 152.32. We like buying the blue box […]

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fergregory/iStock via Getty Images Investment Overview San Diego based Poseida Therapeutics (NASDAQ: PSTX ) opted to abandon plans to launch its initial public offering back in April 2019, instead completing a Series C financing worth $142m, which was led by a $75m equity investment from Danish Pharma giant Novartis ( NVS ). Poseida is a cell therapy specialist that was spun out of Transposagen Biopharmaceuticals in 2015. Transposagen is a genetic engineering platform technology specialist whose CEO and President of 13 years Dr. Eric Ostertag became CEO of Poseida, serving in the role until 2022, when he became Executive Chairman. 18 months later, Poseida did complete an IPO – after raising a further $110m via a Series D financing – raising ~$224m via the issuance of 14m shares at $16 per share. It’s lead candidate throughout this period was a B-cell maturation antigen ("BCMA") CAR-T therapy, P-BCMA-101 indicated for multiple myeloma. P-BCMA-101 was an autologous CAR-T candidate that had shown early promise, but despite the progress made in this drug class (there are now 6 FDA approved autologous on the market, including Bristol Myers Squibb’s ( BMY ) Abecma and Breyanzi, Legend Biotech’s ( LEGN ) / Johnson & […]

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Following Nissan and Renault’s new partnership deal, Nissan has invested in Renault’s EV development unit, showing the Japanese brand’s intent to grow its EV focus under the new structure. Nissan and Renault have had a strange and, at times, uneasy partnership. But thanks to a new deal set to place the two corporations as near equals in the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Group, Nissan has already used the new structure to expand its focus on EVs. The Japanese automaker announced that it would be investing in Renault’s EV development unit, which could allow it to expand its EV offerings globally. According to Reuters , who reported Nissan’s investment initially, Nissan will be taking 15 percent of the Renault EV unit named “Ampere.” Neither company made financial information available, but it is set to benefit both quite greatly. There has been no time for Renault with a greater need for capital. Despite being the controlling brand in the Renault/Nissan alliance ever since it bailed out the Japanese carmaker, it has since fallen behind Nissan in terms of global sales. With added cash to put towards the EV transition, which is becoming increasingly important in Europe, Renault has been given a chance it needs […]

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