Mic Drop

Food prices have risen faster than other goods over the past year (#AisleAnxiety). Groceries were up 3.6% in July from a year ago, led by cereal and bakery staples, as the likes of General Mills, Kellogg, Hershey’s, and Kraft Heinz bumped prices (Kraft alone hiked prices 11% last quarter). While food companies point to higher commodity and labor costs, some consumers blame corporate “greedflation.” Now that shoppers are trimming back on pricier brand names, Coke, Pepsi, and others said they’ll ease off the hike pedal.

Fun fact of the day....

Turns out it did become a problem:

Amazon is said to be ditching all but 3 of its 30 clothing brands. It’s faced scrutiny from regulators and lawmakers who think private labels could conflict with its platform service for non-’Zon brands.

Novo Nordisk, the maker of Ozempic and Wegovy, became Europe’s second-most-valuable company as people seeking to lose weight rushed to its drugs. Now it’s struggling to meet demand. 

Now it appears to be getting real... 

China’s global exports sank at their steepest pace since early 2020. That’s bad news for the world’s second-largest economy, which has been struggling to recover after unwinding its zero-Covid policy. Western consumers have been spending less on electronics and clothes (often made in China) and more on travel and restaurants (not in China). Last week, UPS said its revenue took a hit from weaker China demand. Meanwhile, China tipped into “deflation” (falling prices) — an ominous sign for the global economy. 

WeWork rents nearly 20M square feet of office space — more than any other US biz — and one industry analyst said its collapse could serve as a “systematic shock” to major cities’ commercial real estate markets. If WeWork stops paying its landlords, they might struggle to pay their debts. Still, WeWork has argued that hybrid work will benefit its flex-working model — if it can keep chugging along.

Office-leasing leviathan WeWork told investors last week that it had “substantial doubt” it could remain in business as customers continued to bail. The once buzzy biz said it lost nearly $400M last quarter, and the stock’s plunged 99% since its SPAC-tastic debut in 2021. It’s a far cry from 2019, when WeWork was valued at $47B and occupied more office space in Manhattan and London than any other company.

• Rowdy: In its private-company era, WeWork’s culture of free-flowing booze and wild employee parties helped lead to it losing $219K/hour for an entire year. After layoffs and the ousting of cofounder/CEO Adam Neumann, it needed a $9.5B SoftBank bailout.

• Empty: WeWork has reined in its spending since those Coachella-esque days, but now it’s losing customers as hybrid work takes over. Office-space availability hit an all-time high in April (picture: 1B square feet of empty cubicles). 

Not just a We problem… A US commercial real estate crisis is brewing. 70%+ of US employers are hybrid, and surveys suggest flexible work is here to stay. Now analysts predict a 35% drop in office values by 2025. Already, forced sales of commercial properties spiked in Q1 (owners couldn’t make mortgage payments), and office-loan delinquencies hit 5%. The one-two punch of lower occupancy + higher interest payments could bring about even more trouble. Morgan Stanley estimated that $1.5T in commercial real estate debt will come due in the next two years.

Gary Gygax was an American game designer and author who co-created the pioneering tabletop role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) with Dave Arneson in 1974. He also founded the Gen Con gaming convention and the company Tactical Studies Rules (TSR). He wrote many manuals and modules for D&D and other role-playing games. He is widely regarded as the “father of role-playing games”¹²³

Updated pricing…

There are different reasons for the riots in France, depending on the time and location of the protests. The most recent riots occurred in July 2023, after a 17-year-old boy named Nahel was shot dead by a police officer during a traffic stop in Nanterre, a suburb of Paris¹². The shooting sparked outrage and anger among the youth and minority communities, who accuse the police of racism, brutality, and impunity²³. The riots spread to other cities across France, involving violent clashes, fires, and vandalism²³. President Emmanuel Macron condemned the police’s actions as “inexplicable and unforgivable” and held an emergency meeting to restore peace³.

However, the Nanterre incident was not the first or the only cause of riots in France. The country has a history of social unrest and protests over various issues, such as pension reforms, climate change, working conditions, and political corruption⁴³. Some of the previous riots include:

• The 2020 riots over a bill that would restrict filming police officers, which many saw as a threat to civil liberties and accountability¹.
• The 2017 riots following the alleged rape of a black man by police in Aulnay-sous-Bois, another Paris suburb¹.
• The 2014 riots over the Israeli-Gaza conflict, which involved pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli demonstrators¹.
• The 2013 riots over the Muslim veil, which were triggered by a law banning face-covering garments in public places¹.
• The 2005 riots in the suburbs of Paris and other cities, which were sparked by the deaths of two teenagers who were electrocuted while hiding from police in an electricity substation¹.

The French riots have been influenced by and have influenced other events and problems in Europe and the Muslim world, such as immigration, integration, terrorism, and identity¹⁴. They also reflect the deep-rooted social and economic inequalities, discrimination, and marginalization that many people face in France’s suburbs (banlieues), where poverty, unemployment, crime, and poor public services are prevalent¹⁴³.

The side effects of artificial sweeteners may vary depending on the type, the amount, and the individual. However, based on my web search, some of the common side effects reported by some studies and experts are:

• Digestive issues: Artificial sweeteners may cause bloating, gas, cramps, pain, and diarrhea in some people, especially those with irritable bowel syndrome or other digestive disorders. This is because some artificial sweeteners, such as sugar alcohols, are fermented by bacteria in the colon¹².
• Increased blood sugar levels: Artificial sweeteners may affect the balance of gut bacteria and hormones that regulate blood sugar and insulin sensitivity. This may lead to glucose intolerance, impaired glucose metabolism, and increased risk of type 2 diabetes in some people¹².
• Higher risk of cancer: Some animal studies have suggested that artificial sweeteners, such as saccharin and aspartame, may increase the risk of bladder cancer, brain tumors, leukemia, and lymphoma. However, the evidence in humans is inconclusive and more research is needed to confirm the safety of artificial sweeteners¹².
• Increased blood pressure: Artificial sweeteners may affect the production of nitric oxide, a molecule that helps relax blood vessels and lower blood pressure. This may increase the risk of hypertension and cardiovascular disease in some people².
• Adverse effects on mood: Artificial sweeteners may alter the levels of neurotransmitters, such as serotonin and dopamine, that affect mood and cognition. This may worsen symptoms of depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and other mental health conditions in some people².

• Increased appetite and cravings for sweets: Artificial sweeteners may stimulate the taste receptors for sweetness without providing calories or satisfying hunger. This may trigger the reward system in the brain and increase the desire for more sweet foods. Artificial sweeteners may also disrupt the signals that regulate hunger and satiety, leading to overeating and weight gain in some people¹³.

Based on these potential side effects, it is hard to say which artificial sweetener has the least amount of side effects. It may depend on your individual response and tolerance to different types of artificial sweeteners. However, some experts suggest that natural sweeteners derived from plants, such as stevia and monk fruit extracts, may have fewer side effects than synthetic ones, such as saccharin and aspartame³⁴. However, more research is needed to compare the safety and efficacy of different artificial sweeteners.

The best way to avoid the side effects of artificial sweeteners is to limit your intake of them or avoid them altogether. You may want to try other natural alternatives that have some nutritional benefits, such as honey, maple syrup, or coconut sugar. However, these also contain calories and can affect your blood sugar levels, so you should use them sparingly. The best option is to reduce your overall consumption of added sugars and sweet foods and drinks and enjoy the natural sweetness of fruits, vegetables, and dairy products. I hope this helps! 😊