Covid 19 news and trends

FTC Says Grocery Giants Profited From Pandemic-Era Supply Chain Problems
Economy // March 21, 2024

Large players in the grocery industry took advantage of the pandemic’s supply chain problems to raise prices and profits and keep them high. So said the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in a press release and staff report issued Thursday (March 21). “As the pandemic illustrated,...

IRS Launches Voluntary Disclosure Program for Businesses That Filed Dubious ERC Claims 
Disbursements // December 21, 2023

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has launched a new program that aims to assist businesses that mistakenly filed Employee Retention Credit (ERC) claims and want to repay the funds they received in error.  The IRS has been working on this Voluntary Disclosure Program for several months...

Walgreens Looks Aisle to Aisle to Cut Costs
Retail // October 13, 2023

Following the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic’s transition, a leadership reorganization, a shaky foray into health care, and recent labor issues with pharmacy staff, Walgreens is now going “line by line” to see where the company could cut costs.   That’s the latest from the...

80% of Americans See Savings Decline Since Pandemic Peak
Economy // September 25, 2023

Most Americans are reportedly facing financial challenges as their pandemic savings have dwindled. Beyond the wealthiest 20% of the U.S., Americans have depleted their extra savings and now have less cash on hand than they did when the pandemic began, Bloomberg reported Monday (Sept. 25),...

Interviews & Exclusives
Fender CFO on Finding the Right Chord When Disaster Strikes

August 25, 2023
The ability to make tough decisions quickly is often the difference between success and failure. After all, if it were easy to be a leader, everyone would be one. “We had 16 million people pick up a guitar during the pandemic, 30 million worldwide. And Fender really benefited from that,” Matt Janopaul, CFO at Fender, told PYMNTS […]

Simon Property CEO Says ‘The Mall Is Safe’ Amid Rising Concerns Over Delta Variant

August 03, 2021
Despite concerns that the spread of the COVID-19 Delta variant could impact consumer spending as pandemic anxiety rises again and mask mandates are reintroduced across the U.S., mall operator Simon...

NuData: It’s Time For Businesses To Replace The Old ‘New Normal’ With A New One

June 30, 2021
For almost a year and a half, we’ve heard the phrase “new normal” thrown around a lot to describe the massive shift in behavior created by the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s...

Gift Cards Become Employee COVID Vaccination Incentives

February 25, 2021
The vaccines are here, and while rolling them out has presented some logistical hurdles across the country, employers have been ramping up efforts to get their respective workforces vaccinated in...

Quick Reads
World Bank: Global Growth Still Lower Than Pre-COVID

June 11, 2024
A new report from the World Bank has good news and bad news about the global economy. The good news, according to the Global Economics Prospects 2024 report issued Tuesday (June 11), is that global growth remains steady, inflation has dropped to a three-year low and financial conditions have improved. “Yet, more than four years […]

FTC Says Grocery Giants Profited From Pandemic-Era Supply Chain Problems

March 21, 2024
Large players in the grocery industry took advantage of the pandemic’s supply chain problems to raise prices and profits and keep them high. So said the Federal Trade Commission (FTC)...

IRS Launches Voluntary Disclosure Program for Businesses That Filed Dubious ERC Claims 

December 21, 2023
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has launched a new program that aims to assist businesses that mistakenly filed Employee Retention Credit (ERC) claims and want to repay the funds they received...

80% of Americans See Savings Decline Since Pandemic Peak

September 25, 2023
Most Americans are reportedly facing financial challenges as their pandemic savings have dwindled. Beyond the wealthiest 20% of the U.S., Americans have depleted their extra savings and now have less...