Like business leaders in other countries, Italian captains of industry have a history of striving for cordial relations with whomever is in power. That includes dealing with questionable characters like Silvio Berlusconi, a media tycoon who has been tried more than a dozen times for fraud, false accounting and bribery, and outright villains like Benito Mussolini, the second-world-war-era fascist dictator. Listen to this story. Enjoy more audio and podcasts on More

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Wednesday that the coronavirus outbreak could “stabilize” within weeks if the state maintains strict social distancing policies, even as he announced the highest daily death count yet and said life for New Yorkers will never be the same. “I don’t think we return to normal. I don’t think we […] More

The Kremlin has found itself increasingly isolated in recent days, with the U.S. and Western allies imposing an extraordinary set of measures that have sent its currency plummeting.
For some businesses, cutting ties with Russia marks the end of more than three decades of investment there following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.
The situation in Ukraine has prompted many to conclude that the financial and reputational risks of continuing operations in Russia are now too great.

Shell petrol station logo on Sept. 29, 2021 in Birmingham, United Kingdom.
Mike Kemp | In Pictures | Getty Images

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has prompted a fast-growing list of companies to shun Moscow, with firms scrambling to cut ties as foreign governments ratchet up punitive economic sanctions.
Russia attacked Ukraine on several fronts on Tuesday, the sixth day of the war, with a 40-mile convoy of tanks and other vehicles seen threatening the capital city of Kyiv. President Vladimir Putin’s troops continue to run into stiff Ukrainian resistance, however.

The Kremlin has found itself increasingly isolated in recent days, with the U.S. and Western allies imposing an extraordinary set of measures that have sent its currency plummeting.
The confluence of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the subsequent barrage of Western sanctions has triggered a mass corporate exodus from Moscow.
In an extraordinary 24-hour period through to Monday, European energy majors BP, Shell and Equinor all announced plans to bring an end to joint ventures in Russia.
“We are shocked by the loss of life in Ukraine, which we deplore, resulting from a senseless act of military aggression which threatens European security,” Shell CEO Ben van Beurden said on Monday.
Equinor President and CEO Anders Opedal said on Monday that the firm had decided to stop new investments into Russia because its position had become “untenable.”

BP Chair Helge Lund said on Sunday that Russia’s military action represents “a fundamental change” and the firm’s 19.75% stake in Russian-controlled oil company Rosneft “simply cannot continue.”

What are the limits now to economic decoupling from [the] West?

Nigel Gould-Davies
Senior fellow for Russia and Eurasia at the International Institute for Strategic Studies

“This is astonishing,” Nigel Gould-Davies, senior fellow for Russia and Eurasia at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, said via Twitter shortly after Shell announced it would exit all its Russian operations.
“What are the limits now to economic decoupling from [the] West?” Gould-Davies said.
Global bank HSBC, France’s Société Générale and South Korea’s Shinhan Bank have all wound down their relationships with a host of Russian banks, putting Western sanctions on interbank messaging system SWIFT into practice.
Swedish automaker Volvo has said it will suspend car shipments to Russia until further notice, while Germany’s Daimler Truck said on Monday it would immediately freeze its business activities in the country.
The world’s biggest aircraft leasing firm AerCap said on Monday it would cease leasing activity with Russian airlines, complying with applicable sanctions against Moscow.

A Volvo badge and parking-assist camera on the grille of an automobile at a Volvo Cars AB dealership in Stockholm, Sweden, on Thursday, Aug. 19, 2021.
Mikael Sjoberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images

U.S. payment card firms Visa and Mastercard have blocked multiple Russian financial institutions from their network, following government sanctions over the Kremlin’s invasion of Ukraine.
Shipping giant Maersk on Tuesday said it would temporarily halt all container shipping deliveries to and from Russia in response to Western sanctions, according to Reuters. The company had previously warned it was considering a possible suspension to all bookings to and from Russia.
A spokesperson for Maersk was not immediately available to comment when contacted by CNBC.
Investors are also pulling out of Russian firms. Norway’s $1.3 trillion sovereign wealth fund, the world’s largest, said on Sunday it would divest its Russian assets, while Australia’s sovereign wealth fund has announced plans to wind down Russian holdings.

‘History will judge them accordingly’

For some, cutting ties with Russia marks the end of more than three decades of investment there following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.
The situation in Ukraine has prompted many to conclude that the financial and reputational risks of continuing operations in Russia are now too great.
Speaking to CNBC’s Hadley Gamble in an interview on Monday, Ukraine Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba implored all firms still doing business with Russia to immediately cut ties.
“The world will judge them accordingly. And history will judge them accordingly,” Kuleba said.

It comes as pressure mounts on the firms that have not yet taken action. In the energy space, for example, France’s TotalEnergies and U.S. giant ExxonMobil are now the only remaining supermajors with significant drilling operations in Russia.
When asked about these two companies, Kuleba replied: “I can call, urge, them and all other businesses. If they want to save peace, if they want to save lives of civilians, they must stop making business with Russia.”
“Cut off your business with Russia. If you have moral ground, do it immediately without any delay. Trading with Russia is financing aggression, murder of civilians and destruction of peaceful cities,” he added.
TotalEnergies on Tuesday condemned Russia’s military aggression against Ukraine and said it would no longer provide capital for new projects in Russia.
“TotalEnergies supports the scope and strength of the sanctions put in place by Europe and will implement them regardless of the consequences (currently being assessed) on its activities in Russia,” the company said.
A spokesperson for ExxonMobil was not immediately available for comment when contacted by CNBC.

Shell has said it will exit all its Russian operations, including the flagship Sakhalin 2 LNG plant in which it holds a 27.5% stake — and which is 50% owned and operated by Russian gas giant Gazprom. The company also announced plans to end its involvement in the highly contentious Nord Stream 2 pipeline project.
— CNBC’s Matt Clinch contributed to this report.

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Abercrombie & Fitch’s winning streak is still on fire.
The apparel retailer posted 22% fiscal first-quarter sales growth, far ahead of expectations.
Abercrombie, which also runs the Hollister banner, has spent the better part of the last decade transforming itself into a retailer that’s nearly unrecognizable from its 2000s heyday.

An Abercrombie & Fitch signage is seen on a store on Fifth Avenue on August 25, 2022 in New York City. 
Michael M. Santiago | Getty Images

Abercrombie & Fitch reported its strongest first quarter in its history on Wednesday, continuing a winning streak that again exceeded expectations.
The retailer’s sales jumped 22% compared to last year, while profits were nearly seven times higher and came in well ahead of Wall Street’s estimates.

Shares were up about flat in premarket trading.
Here’s how the apparel company did in its first fiscal quarter compared with what Wall Street was anticipating, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:

Earnings per share: $2.14 vs. $1.74 expected
Revenue: $1.02 billion vs. $963.3 million expected

The company’s reported net income for the three-month period that ended May 4 was $113.9 million, or $2.14 per share, compared with $16.6 million, or 32 cents a share, a year earlier. 
Sales rose to $1.02 billion, up about 22% from $836 million a year earlier.
“We successfully navigated seasonal transitions with relevant assortments and compelling marketing, leveraging agile chase capabilities and inventory discipline, driving sales above our expectations,” CEO Fran Horowitz said in a news release. “Growth was broad-based across regions and brands with Abercrombie brands registering 31% growth and Hollister brands delivering growth of 12%.”

Abercrombie has been one of the biggest winners in retail. As it stares down a tough year of comparisons, the company is building on the double-digit sales growth it saw in 2023.
The retailer’s comparable sales grew 21%, on top of the 3% growth it saw in the year-ago period. Abercrombie is expecting sales to increase again in the current fiscal year, and increased its revenue guidance.
For the full year, the retailer now expects sales to grow about 10%, compared to a previous outlook of between 4% and 6%. Analysts had expected growth of about 7%, according to LSEG.
For the current quarter, Abercrombie anticipates sales will increase by a mid-teens percentage, ahead of estimates of up 9%, according to LSEG.
Horowitz plans to build on the company’s success by developing its Hollister brand, which accounts for about half of the company’s overall sales, and bringing more categories to its namesake banner. In March the retailer debuted the “A&F Wedding Shop” – a collection of apparel for brides and attendees that can be used not only for the day of but also for other wedding parties, like bachelorette festivities and rehearsals. 
Pieces in the collection, which include a range of dresses, bikinis, pajamas, skirts and other items, range between $80 and $150. The mid-tier price point for a day that’s typically very costly for many couples gives Abercrombie an in with the value-seeking consumer and a foothold in the overall bridal wear market, which is expected to reach $83.5 billion in the U.S. by 2030, according to ResearchAndMarkets.com. 
Over the last six years, Abercrombie has been working to transform itself from an exclusionary retailer that used loud branding and shirtless models to drive sales into a company that’s focused on inclusivity and geared towards working millennials. 
The company’s transformation is years in the making, but began to bear fruit in 2023 when the retailer posted a 16% annual sales gain at the same time the U.S. apparel market shrunk. Its stock surged 285% in 2023 and is up another 73% so far this year as of Tuesday’s close, outpacing the S&P 500’s gains of 11%. 
Read the full earnings release here.  More

In this articleFBFashion trends are shifting as consumers prepare for the post-pandemic world, Manish Chandra, CEO of online resaler Poshmark, told CNBC Thursday.Sales of clothing for going out are on the rise after roughly a year of lockdowns.Meanwhile, fitness apparel purchases are on the decline, and the e-commerce platform is a channel for buyers and sellers to “purge” their closets, he said in a one-on-one with “Mad Money” host Jim Cramer.”We certainly are seeing real change in what people are buying,” Chandra said.Poshmark is an online marketplace that incorporates social media elements where buyers and sellers can create profiles to make connections, like, comment and share apparel for sale in what’s called “Posh parties.””We’re sort of in a way starting to get people ready,” Chandra said.As interest in in-person social activities picks up in the warmer months, bikini and jean short sales have roughly doubled on the consignment site. And as many employers call staff back to the office after about a year of remote work, sales of work dresses are up 30%, Chandra said.On the other hand, sales of sweatpants and other items associated with working out have slowed, he added.The sustainability-minded website, which doesn’t hold inventory, allows users to recycle or sell their clothing, redirecting would-be discarded items from the landfill.”In a way, it’s a gigantic purge, but your purge is value for someone else,” Chandra said.Poshmark began trading in January in a hot public offering that valued the company at $3 billion, more than double its value in 2019.The stock last closed at $39.34.Questions for Cramer? Call Cramer: 1-800-743-CNBCWant to take a deep dive into Cramer’s world? Hit him up! Mad Money Twitter – Jim Cramer Twitter – Facebook – InstagramQuestions, comments, suggestions for the “Mad Money” website? madcap@cnbc.com More