đ Big Tech doesnât break a sweat
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Hereâs what you need to know
Microsoft and Google parent Alphabet both beat quarterly estimates. Microsoft saw big growth in its Azure cloud business, while Alphabetâs revenue growth returned to double digits, despite a miss on its own cloud business.
Manufacturing numbers suggest a recession is on in Germany. Business activity in Europeâs biggest economy contracted for the fourth month in a row in October.
Xi Jinping made his first known visit to Chinaâs central bank in his presidency. The unprecedented trip comes as the country continues to face economic headwinds and a weak consumer market.
United Nations chief AntĂłnio Guterres renewed calls for a ceasefire in Gaza. He said international laws have been broken in the war between Israel and Hamas.
The US is going to have to raise taxes
If Congress wants to shrink the nationâs $1.7 trillion deficit, it needs to start getting serious about a key part of the equation: Revenue.
The timing is particularly pressing. The US government is currently borrowing a lot of money at high interest rates, and rising debt surely doesnât suit efforts to fight inflation, decarbonize the economy, or invest in new social benefits.
But if you think the reason the US is borrowing so much is because of spending, think againâfederal outlays were actually down 2% in 2023. It comes down to falling revenue, and as Quartzâs Tim Fernholz writes, the good news is that there is space for action.
OpenAI is going for a monster valuation
$80 billion: Valuation that OpenAI could reach via a potential deal involving employee shares
Quartzâs Michelle Cheng charted where that valuation would put OpenAI among the top 20 most valuable startups in the worldâand itâs high.
Quotable: The purpose-driven business
âThis idea of a purpose-driven company is a recognition for people that they are buying into things, not just buying things.ââDev Patnaik, CEO of consulting firm Jump Associates
A new scorecard from Jump ranks companies based on how strongly they align with their purposeâa high-level metric thatâs the tentpole they use to define what theyâre about and how they plan to achieve it.
Jump shared with Quartz the overall scores for 16 big businesses, including Google parent Alphabet, Disney, and Starbucks. The results arenât anything too surprising, but what the firm found about the link between purpose and stock performance is striking.
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Surprising discoveries
Homebuyers donât mind a ghost in the attic. If a home checks all their boxes, people donât care if itâs haunted.
Americans havenât been this behind on their car payments since 1994. Interest rate hikes are making loans more expensive, and drivers are feeling the pinch.
Slackâs new jukebox feature is just the elevator music of remote work. Weâre not sure if smooth jazz makes waiting for your coworkers to join the huddle any less awkward.
Kendall Jennerâs Meta AI avatar canât recommend her tequila. It drinks Don Julio or Patron.
The worldâs oldest dog died. RIP Bobi, who took 31 trips around the sun plus 165 days.
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Our best wishes for a productive day. Send any news, comments, haunted house stories, and tequila recommendations to [email protected]. Todayâs Daily Brief was brought to you by Morgan Haefner.