Washington Post Publisher Will Lewis Steps Down After Layoffs 
Innovent Biologics Shares Rally on New Eli Lilly Oncology and Immunology Deal 
Kroger Set to Name Former Walmart Executive Greg Foran as Next CEO 
SoftBank Shares Slide After Arm Earnings Miss Fuels Tech Stock Sell-Off 
Australian Pension Funds Boost Currency Hedging as Aussie Dollar Strengthens 
Amazon Stock Rebounds After Earnings as $200B Capex Plan Sparks AI Spending Debate 
Australian Household Spending Dips in December as RBA Tightens Policy 
Missouri Judge Dismisses Lawsuit Challenging Starbucks’ Diversity and Inclusion Policies 
Rio Tinto Shares Hit Record High After Ending Glencore Merger Talks 
Gold and Silver Prices Climb in Asian Trade as Markets Eye Key U.S. Economic Data 
India–U.S. Interim Trade Pact Cuts Auto Tariffs but Leaves Tesla Out 
SpaceX Pivots Toward Moon City as Musk Reframes Long-Term Space Vision 
U.S. Stock Futures Rise as Markets Brace for Jobs and Inflation Data 
Yen Slides as Japan Election Boosts Fiscal Stimulus Expectations 
FDA Targets Hims & Hers Over $49 Weight-Loss Pill, Raising Legal and Safety Concerns 
South Africa Eyes ECB Repo Lines as Inflation Eases and Rate Cuts Loom 
Sales of US-branded coffee shops such as Starbucks, JDE Peet’s, and Dunkin’ are expected to return to pre-pandemic levels only in 2022, after suffering an estimated 24 percent drop to $36 billion last year.
The coffee shops are expected to climb back to $40 billion this year, below 2019 levels.
According to Allegra World Coffee Portal, a research and consultancy firm, the US coffee shop market is enduring the worst trading environment in memory, with 208 out of a total of 37,189 branded stores closing permanently in 2020.
Allegra Group CEO Jeffrey Young said they expect trading to begin stabilizing from summer 2021 due to mass vaccinations, operators adapting with new trading formats, and a changing political situation.
Young added that it will take several years before coffee shop operators fully readjust to the ‘new normal.’
