1 Goldman Sachs sees profits plunge (BBC) US banking
giant Goldman Sachs has reported a sharp fall in profits as trading activity
slowed owing to concerns about global economic growth. Net profits for the
three months to 30 September were $1.43bn, down more than a third on a year
earlier. Revenue fell almost 20% to $6.9bn.
The results contrasted sharply with those of rival
Citigroup, which posted a 50% jump in profits, to $4.29bn. The bank said it was
able to offset a fall in revenue by cutting costs. Goldman's investment banking
division saw revenues increase, but other divisions, particularly market making
and bond trading, saw revenues drop.
Earlier this week, other big US banks also reported
a drop-off in trading during the quarter. Revenues at Citi fell by 5% to
$18.69bn, but the bank was able to cut costs dramatically.
2 China slowdown hits Burberry sales (Julia Kollewe
& Sarah Butler in The Guardian) Burberry blamed a sharp slowdown in sales
on a tough global market for luxury goods, in particular weaker demand from
Chinese customers. Shares in the company, known for its British-made trench
coats and cashmere scarves, tumbled 8% to a two-year low wiping more than £500m
from Burberry’s stock market value. Shares across the luxury sector were hit,
including Prada, Kering and Salvatore Ferragamo.
Burberry joins LVMH, which earlier this week became
the first major luxury goods company to warn that the stock market collapse in
China over the summer had affected sales, particularly at its flagship Louis
Vuitton brand.
China’s economic slowdown has prompted fears over
the global economy. The country’s stock markets have seen repeated bouts of panic
selling this summer, with “Black Monday” sending world markets into a spin.
This prompted Beijing to take unprecedented measures to stop the rout,
including the biggest devaluation of the yuan in 20 years, to help exporters
and boost the flagging economy.
Burberry’s sales in mainland China and Asia-Pacific
fell in the six months to the end of September. The region makes up 40% of
Burberry’s revenues. The company has stepped up efforts to cut costs by £20m to
minimise the impact on this year’s profits, which include a hiring freeze
outside its retail operations.
3 Why new hires are quitting jobs so soon (Kia Croom
in San Francisco Chronicle) One day you’re introduced to your company’s newest
hire. No sooner than you learn his or her name and claim to fame, you notice he
or she is no longer there.
Marion, an analyst relations worker, says she
recently quit her job after two weeks, all because she suspected her supervisor
was a workaholic. Marion was worried about meeting her supervisor’s reasonable
expectations.
“She told me within the last five years the most
she’d taken off was three consecutive days when she was sick with the flu,” she
said. “While I don’t plan on taking excessive time off, I have small children,
who get sick from time to time, so I occasionally need to take off. I suspected
she has no concept of work life balance and inclination to tend to my family and
children wouldn’t go over well with her. So I unapologetically quit.”
A recent study by Bamboo HR reports 31 percent of
workers have quit a job within the first six months. Reasons ranged from the
workers didn’t like their boss or the job to they changed their mind of the
career path. Others said they didn’t get enough training for the job or the
work didn’t line up with the job description.
SFGate conducted a survey to learn other reasons new
hires quit so quickly. One responded saying “the work culture wasn’t a good
fit.” Another said he didn’t like the hours. One said she quit after completing
the employee orientation because the “fringe benefits sucked.” According to her
calculations, under her employer’s health insurance plan, medical benefits
alone for her family would cost her one-third of her pay.
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