Gloomy: The IMF doesn't hold much hope for the UK this year

4/13/23 7:00PM

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The UK's economic outlook isn't looking too bright, according to the IMF’s latest World Economic Outlook report, which predicts it will be the worst-performing economy among the G7 nations this year, shrinking by 0.3%. While the IMF forecasts a 1% increase in 2024, this still only puts the UK's output 0.7% higher than it was in 2022.

That’s a stark contrast to Britain’s previous performance as the fastest-growing economy in the G7, with growth rates of 7.4% and 4% in 2021 and 2022, respectively. The UK now finds itself as one of only two nations in the G7 predicted to shrink this year, the other is Germany with a -0.1% forecasted growth rate.

‍Bad news all round

‍It’s not just Britain and Germany suffering, however. The IMF diagnosed the Eurozone as an area where the “slowdown is concentrated” and gave the US its gloomiest five-year economic forecast since 1990. Indeed, no country in the G7 is predicted to even hit 2% growth in the next couple of years — a target many developed nations aim for.

The global economic forecast continues on a similarly pessimistic note too. The IMF predicts a growth rate of 2.8% this year and 3% in 2024, with the median-term forecast being the weakest the organization has made in over 30 years.

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Ford joins GM in backing off of its EV tax credit extension plan following GOP criticism

Ford, despite benefiting from an electric sales surge in recent months, is giving up on a clever accounting plan to extend the expired $7,500 EV tax credit to some of its customers.

Like its rival GM earlier this week, Ford on Thursday night confirmed to Reuters that it will not claim the tax credit, backing off from its short-lived leasing strategy.

The automakers’ plan was to extend the subsidy by using their financial arms to put down payments on electric vehicles already on their dealers’ lots in late September. Those transactions would qualify for the credit, and Ford and GM could pass the discount on to customers through leases.

But the strategy angered GOP senators, who last week wrote a letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent accusing the automakers of “bilking” taxpayers.

Ford CEO Jim Farley last month said he expects the end of the tax credit to cut EV sales in half.

Exclusive: Ford reverses plan to claim EV tax credits, following GM

But the strategy angered GOP senators, who last week wrote a letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent accusing the automakers of “bilking” taxpayers.

Ford CEO Jim Farley last month said he expects the end of the tax credit to cut EV sales in half.

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Porsche’s problems in China just keep getting worse

Sales in the region fell by more than a fifth in Q3.

Vintage Paint-Chipped Silver Porsche Speedster

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Delta, boosted by premium ticket sales, says customers who go Comfort+ don’t go back

Delta’s third-quarter revenue beat Wall Street estimates on Thursday, led by 9% growth in its premium ticket category.

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Domino’s just announced its first rebrand in 13 years — maybe a new, “doughier” font will help sales pick up

Shaboozey! Domino’s Sans! Hotter colors as a nod to the melty heat of a pizza pulled fresh from the oven!

In a buzzword-laden justification of its rebrand yesterday, Domino’s laid plain its new aesthetic direction, coined the term “Cravemark,” and announced it would be bringing the focus back to its food, having (at least in its executive vice president’s words) become known as “a technology company that happens to sell pizza” over the last decade.

It can’t go any worse than Cracker Barrel’s refresh efforts, at least...

The raft of changes, which will roll out across the US and other international markets in the coming months, includes a new “audio and visual expression” of the brand’s name (throwing a few extra M’s on the boxes and getting country/hip-hop artist Shaboozey to elongate the letter in a jingle); brighter packaging and hotter colors; “more youthful” team uniforms (company-color Salomons and an apron with “pizza is brat” on it, maybe?); and a new “Domino’s Sans” font, which is “thicker and doughier” and has circles and semicircles “in nod to pizza, with lots of personality baked right in!”

Domino’s is down about 2% so far this year.

Domino's® New Craveable Brand Refresh Makes You Say "Mmm" | Domino's Pizza

Domino’s is down about 2% so far this year.

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Ferrari sinks after unveiling first electric car; 2030 strategic plan and guidance underwhelms investors after halving its EV target

Ferrari is 14% in the red in premarket trading after unveiling its first electric car, while simultaneously scaling back its electrification plans to focus on its petrol and hybrid lineup until 2030.

In an event at its headquarters in northern Italy, the company lifted the hood on its new, production-ready “Elettrica” model, finally offering a glimpse into the iconic carmaker’s progress on its EV plan, which was announced back in 2022. The Elettrica is due to be delivered from late 2026, per the company’s 2030 strategic plan.

Still, as Ferrari CEO Benedetto Vigna was keen to emphasize, “The EV is an addition, not a transition,” suggesting that the new electric model will complement, not replace, the company’s existing lineup.

In the carmaker’s 2030 plan, released later in the day, Ferrari disclosed that it aims for a lineup made up of 40% internal combustion engine models, 40% hybrids, and 20% fully electric cars by 2030 — dialing down its 2022 ambitions for electrification, when the targets for EVs and ICE models were flipped.

Though Ferrari has ramped up its hybrid production since 2022, shipments have plateaued in recent quarters.

Ferrari hybrid vs petrol engine — Sherwood News