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1. Britain’s Interest Rate Hits 15-Year High
The Bank of England increased interest rates by a quarter of a percentage point to 4.5%, the highest since 2008, the New York Times reports. The bank chose to increase interest rates due to “the risk of more persistent strength in domestic price and wage setting.”
Inflation is expected to fall slower than anticipated due to the British economy performing better than forecasts three months ago. The newspaper reports that lower unemployment numbers and rising consumer confidence could keep some inflationary pressures present longer than expected.
“On Thursday, [the bank] unveiled the biggest upgrade to its economic forecasts in the bank’s history, because of lower wholesale energy prices and extra fiscal stimulus from the government,” the Times reports. “It no longer foresees any quarters of economic contraction.”
2. Airbnb Forecast Raises Caution Across Travel Industry
Airbnb said during its 2023 first-quarter earnings call that it expects lower bookings and average daily rate from price-sensitive travelers in the U.S., which led to a 10% stock drop, Reuters reports. The pessimism from Airbnb will have a domino effect throughout the whole travel sector, including hotels, airlines and vacation rental firms, JPMorgan analysts said.
“We also believe Airbnb’s commentary will result in increased caution in the travel space, but more specifically around vacation and the U.S.,” the analysts said.
3. Hotel Execs Share Career Advice
Overcoming fears of working in finance can lead to a rewarding career path for women seeking a position in the hospitality industry, said Tracy Prigmore, founder of the She Has a Deal event, HNN’s Dana Miller reports.
Hyatt Hotels Corp. Senior Vice President of Finance, Americas, Liz Bauer said it can be intimidating at first, but it can be powerful as a woman to have a financial background.
“You shouldn’t be afraid of the numbers,” she said. “In our company, finance is all about being that business partner, making those connections, providing insights to enable decisions. If you’re lucky enough to work at a company where that is truly valued, I think personally there’s no better place to bring value to an organization than finance.”
4. COVID Vaccine Requirement Lifted
Inbound international air travelers will no longer be required to have a COVID-19 vaccination as of Thursday at midnight, USA Today reports. The Biden administration announced this along with the lifting of vaccine requirements for federal employees and contractors.
"As we continue to monitor the evolving state of COVID-19 and the emergence of virus variants, we have the tools to detect and respond to the potential emergence of a variant of high consequence," President Joe Biden said Tuesday. "Considering the progress that we have made, and based on the latest guidance from our public health experts, I have determined that we no longer need the international air travel restrictions that I imposed in October 2021."
5. Employment Market Cools
The job market has largely avoided the effects of interest rate hikes and inflationary pressures from the Federal Reserve, but it’s now starting to cool off.
U.S. job openings were at their lowest since April 2021 in March, and layoffs were at 1.8 million, the highest level since December 2020, the Associated Press reports. Job gains from February through April were the lowest three-month average since January 2021.
“The labor market is usually the last to break in an economic downturn, and when it does, things can change quite rapidly,” said David Kelly, chief global strategist at JPMorgan Funds.