“ U.S. companies laying off workers in response to the coronavirus pandemic but still paying dividends and buying back shares are drawing criticism from labor unions, pension fund advisers, lawmakers and corporate governance experts.”… via Reuters I by Alwyn Scott, Ross…
AIR IMPACT
Recognition of AIR research, opinions, and people in the media and elsewhere
Share buybacks have been the ‘only net source of money entering the stock market’ since 2008
By Nick Beams “Like every great crisis, the coronavirus pandemic has laid bare everything rotten and degenerate in capitalist society. Nowhere is that exposure more pronounced than in the case of the stock market—that vast institutionalised mechanism through which the…
No, we shouldn’t bail out Boeing
By Mandy Smithberger and Ryan Summers March 31th, 2020 “The coronavirus epidemic has already transformed the country, disrupting industries nationwide and causing thousands of Americans to lose their jobs. Congress recently approved over $2 trillion in spending to help businesses,…
Let this stimulus bill be just the first arrow to strike against stock buybacks
By Editors “The members of Congress who fought for a ban on stock buybacks in the $2.2 trillion coronavirus relief package did the right thing for Americans. But the ban should be considered a mere starting point in limiting corporations’…
Building and tearing down walls
By Harold Meyerson “One of the makes-sense-but-we-didn’t-expect-it consequences of the coronavirus pandemic has been the at least rhetorical support that centrists, conservatives, and Republicans have given to what until a couple of weeks ago had been left-wing ideas—many of them…
When will financial markets hit bottom: The past may not hold any clues
By Gretchen Morgenson “The coronavirus has ripped United States financial markets from their moorings. Even veteran investors say they’ve never seen the turbulence across all markets that we have experienced in recent days, making it extremely difficult to use the…
President Trump joins Democrats in calls to block share buybacks
By Jacob M. Schlesinger “As Congress rushes to bail out industries slammed by the coronavirus pandemic, President Trump has joined Democratic lawmakers demanding corporate aid include new restrictions on the stock buybacks that executives use to support the value of…
Share buybacks enable predatory value extraction
By Jomo Kwame Sundaram “‘Getting government out of the way’, the neoliberal ‘free market’ mantra, was supposed to boost private investment. Instead, business investment has declined as a consequence. Many economies now seem incapable of making much needed investments to…
Stock market bubble no basis for shared prosperity
By Jomo Kwame Sundaram “The US is currently still in a stock market bubble which, if history is any guide, is likely to end, perhaps soon due to Covid19. President Trump would, of course, like to sustain it to strengthen…
Les enterprises rachètent leurs propres actions: Explications
By Loïs Siggen Lopez [Click HERE to watch the interview] (in French)