Hey Snackers,
A taco trademark battle is over: the phrase "Taco Tuesday" can finally be used by restaurants in the US (except in New Jersey) after Taco John's and Taco Bell settled a months-long legal dispute. We’re glad they put the beef to rest.
The Dow jumped for the seventh straight day, its longest streak since 2021, as earnings season got off to a stronger-than-expected start. Bank of America topped profit estimates yesterday thanks to higher interest rates on customer loans — a trend also enjoyed by consumer banking rivals Chase and Wells Fargo.
Russia ends a critical grain-shipping deal with Ukraine, threatening global food security
No go… The Black Sea Grain Initiative expired Monday after Russia refused to extend the wartime deal. The agreement had allowed Ukraine (a leading exporter of grains and vegetable oils) to safely ship food across the Black Sea, which both countries border. After the deal’s collapse, wheat, corn, and soybean prices jumped, and Russia attacked one of Ukraine’s main grain-shipping ports.
Putin’s problem: Russia said the deal favors Ukraine, but it’s willing to reconsider if global leaders meet a list of demands to unwind key economic sanctions.Â
One hitch: Russia’s ally China is the leading importer of Ukrainian grain under the Black Sea deal, and it could pressure Russia to reconsider.
Food crisis… Since the pact was signed a year ago (five months after Russia invaded Ukraine), 33M tons of crops have been sent across the Black Sea to 45 countries. Fourteen African countries depend on Russia and Ukraine for over half of their wheat imports, and one, Eritrea, is totally dependent. Now they’ll likely rely more on Russia, which has been the biggest global wheat exporter over the past two harvest seasons. But experts say that increased output from Russia and other suppliers can’t fill the widening gap left by Ukraine. Food supplies are expected to be further devastated by the El Niño storm season and droughts in Europe.
One player can upset the balance… in a globalized world. Countries are more interconnected than ever, which can be dangerous in times of turmoil. Global leaders have worked to roll back involvement with Russia (the EU cutting back on Russian energy, companies ditching operations there). But Russia’s using the cards it has left — food, in this case — as a weapon.
Airlines add more long-haul routes as Americans’ FOMO fuels an international vacay boom
Breakfast at the Centurion Lounge… dinner in Manila. United Airlines is piling on more Asia routes as an international travel boom propels airlines to new highs. United, for instance, will become the only American airline to offer daily nonstop flights between Manila and the continental US (via San Francisco). It’s also adding flights to Tokyo and Taipei.
Pacific voyage: Airlines are growing routes to meet surging demand for destinations like Tokyo. Excluding China, United’s Asia service this winter will be 40% larger than in 2019.Â
Mediterranean magic: This summer, airlines have scheduled 51K flights from the US to Europe (nearly a record). Round-trip tix are selling for an average $1.2K.
Cue the “White Lotus” soundtrack… Airlines have seen a surge in long-distance bookings as travel restrictions fade and the rise of hybrid work makes OOO schedules more flexible. A strong dollar is also making global getaways more appealing. Last week, Delta delivered its highest-ever quarterly sales and profit and lifted its forecast thanks to booming international demand. Delta’s international revenue was up over 60% from a year earlier, with Americans fueling bookings for “southern European destinations” like Italy (#SicilianSummer).
The FOMO effect is in full flight… Covid lockdowns made the world small, and international “revenge travel” is a way for folks to make it bigger. Social-media posts of balmy beaches in Bali and Aperol spritzes in Spain are feeding a fear of missing out (after years of missing out). It seems consumers are in it for the long haul: Delta CEO Ed Bastian expects the vacay boom to continue, saying we’re just in the “mid-innings” of travel growth.
Heard on the Block: "XRP"
⚡When you’re trying to build a revolutionary rocket ship, so you create futuristic fuel…
XRP is the native token of XRP Ledger, a public blockchain that’s the foundation of Ripple Lab’s effort to facilitate fast and cheap cross-border payments between banks. (Goodbye, SWIFT. Hello, RippleNet.) Unlike bitcoin and ether, XRP’s 100B tokens were premined — meaning they were all created at once.Â
A judge ruled last week that XRP is not itself a security — dealing a blow to the SEC. Chair Gensler said Monday that while he’s disappointed with the ruling, the SEC would continue to bring enforcement actions against crypto cos it sees as noncompliant.
What else we’re Snackin’
Wire: Thousands of miles of lead-sheathed telecom company cables could be a US public-health liability, The Wall Street Journal reported. Verizon fell and AT&T shares hit a 30-year low as investors considered the risk of big lawsuits.
Hold: Scammers changed the phone numbers for major airlines like Delta and Southwest in Google search results, redirecting callers to try to steal their $$. Last year, scam victims reported $10B+ in online losses.
Flat: E-bike maker VanMoof, a pandemic darling that raised $200M+ in VC cash, has declared bankruptcy. Custom parts and difficult repairs kept the company unprofitable, even as the broader e-bike market boomed.Â
Dose: Johnson & Johnson is joining Merck and Bristol Myers Squibb in suing the Biden admin over its Medicare drug price negotiation plan, which would ease Rx prices but could lose drugmakers billions.Â
Guac: Double chicken is coming to a town near you: Chipotle plans to build hundreds of stores in smaller markets, saying they’ve seen up to 3X the sales of average store openings.
Wednesday
Earnings expected from Alcoa, Discover, Equifax, First Horizon Bank, Goldman Sachs, IBM, Kinder Morgan, Las Vegas Sands, Nasdaq, Netflix, Tesla, United Airlines, US Bank, and Volvo
Authors of this Snacks own bitcoin and ethereum and shares of: Delta, Google, Tesla, and Yum Brands