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By Lisa BaertleinLONG BEACH, Calif. (Reuters) – The former Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) executive who oversaw the e-commerce company’s transportation network buildout for its sellers, now aims to do the same for rival shipping customers as chief executive of logistics startup Flexport.”I wanted to … do it again for everyone else,” said Dave Clark, the former Amazon executive who will become Flexport CEO on March 1 after spending six months as co-CEO.Getting big is the key to success, Clark said at S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI) Market Intelligence’s TPM23 conference in Long Beach, California, on Tuesday.”Most companies will never have the opportunity to roll up the kind of scale that really large global conglomerates can do,” Clark said.Among other things, Flexport is teaming with Amazon rival Shopify (NYSE:SHOP) Inc to help that platform’s sellers manage and track ocean cargo shipments. Flexport also offers a service that helps small customers combine orders to fill an ocean container – enabling them to choose lower-cost sea freight and avoid pricey air transportation. Clark was CEO of Amazon’s consumer business when he ended his 23-year run at the company on July 1. Privately held Flexport is one of the most valuable logistics startups after raising more than $2 billion in funding. Its investors include SoftBank Vision Fund and Shopify. Flexport is a fully licensed freight forwarder, meaning it manages end-to-end sea, air, rail and road freight shipments. Its established and much larger competitors include Kuehne + Nagel, DHL and United Parcel Service (NYSE:UPS).Industry experts say many of those rivals already have the technology that Flexport claims differentiates it from the competition. Clark said Flexport’s system makes shipping data easier to see and use. He also said the company still has about $1 billion to spend as it invests in its engineering team after cutting jobs to adjust to tumbling industry demand. More

(Reuters) – A look at the day ahead in Asian markets from Jamie McGeever.Chinese reflation vs U.S. inflation.That’s the broad market picture painted by manufacturing PMIs for the world’s two largest economies on Wednesday, as Asian stocks excluding Japan surged 2% for their best day in two months, and two of Wall Street’s three main indexes slumped into the red.How Asian markets trade on the second day of the month on Thursday may come down to which of these two forces retains the most momentum. The impact of Chinese and U.S. manufacturing purchasing managers index data on Wednesday was powerful.China’s reopening from years of COVID-19 lockdown appears to be extraordinary. Manufacturing activity exploded in February, expanding at the fastest pace in more than a decade, and new export orders rose for the first time since April 2021. On top of that, Chinese consumers are back with a bang, with some of the world’s top consumer and luxury goods companies saying sales in the country are picking up again.The U.S. manufacturing PMI report, however, prompted heavy selling across risky assets (stocks) and safe assets (bonds) alike – activity contracted for a fourth month in a row, but the prices paid index jumped much more than economists had expected. More evidence of inflationary pressures was followed by another flurry of hawkish comments from Fed officials, sending the 10-year Treasury yield up to 4%, the two-year yield to a 16-year high near 5%, and the implied Fed terminal rate through 5.50%.Spiraling bond yields, rates and inflation expectations aren’t confined to the U.S. – euro zone PMIs also highlighted stagflationary pressures, while euro zone inflation expectations are the highest in over a decade and, in a rare occurrence, pushing above U.S. equivalents. Can Asian markets withstand these pressures on Thursday and take their cue again from China’s economic renaissance? There are no top-tier Asian economic data releases on tap – South Korean retail sales, Australian building approvals and Japanese consumer confidence – leaving flash February euro zone inflation as perhaps the biggest market-mover of the day.Here are three key developments that could provide more direction to markets on Thursday:- South Korea retail sales (February)- Australia building approvals (February)- Japan consumer confidence (February) (By Jamie McGeever; Editing by Josie Kao) More

The S&P Global (NYSE:SPGI)’s seasonally adjusted purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for South Korean manufacturers stood at 48.5 in January, unchanged from December and remaining below the 50-mark since July, 2022.The 50-level separates expansion from contraction. Sub-indexes showed output fell for a tenth month but at a slightly milder pace than a month before, while new orders shrank for an eighth month, with its pace also easing. New orders for exports fell for a 12th month, though the downturn eased from the previous two months. “PMI survey data for February continued to depict subdued operating conditions in the South Korean manufacturing sector,” said Usamah Bhatti, economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence. “On a more positive note, South Korean goods producers signalled softer albeit still sharp rises in prices midway through the first quarter.”Soft domestic and global economic conditions and inflationary pressures, often caused by exchange rate weakness, were linked to subdued overall demand, according to the survey. Currency weakness was cited as a key driving force behind the latest drop in demand from overseas.Reflecting weak demand, backlogs of work fell at the sharpest pace since July 2020, and stocks of finished goods jumped by the most since November 2007. The input price inflation softened for a fourth month to the weakest level since November 2020. However, the rise in operating expenses remained sharp overall, largely pressured by a weak exchange rate and rising raw material prices.At the same time, the rate of output price inflation also softened, with the latest increase the second-weakest in 27 months.Manufacturers’ optimism about the future output over the coming year rose for a second month to the highest level in five months, helped by hopes of a domestic and global economic recovery. More

SINGAPORE (Reuters) – The dollar nursed losses on Thursday as optimism about China’s reopening was supported by encouraging data and underpinned Asian currencies, while sticky inflation had the euro eying its best week in a month and a half.The dollar lost 0.9% on the euro overnight, and since it moved lower despite U.S. yields rising some are speculating it might have peaked as February’s rally runs out of steam.The euro is up 1.2% on the week and last bought $1.0667 with hotter-than-expected German inflation in February adding to pressure on the European Central Bank to raise rates following unexpectedly strong readings in France and Spain. “The turn in the dollar came right on schedule as month end flows fizzled and the dominant driver of euro/dollar, rate differentials, reasserted itself,” said Brent Donnelly, president of analytics firm Spectra Markets.Euro zone inflation data is due later in the day.The yen hardly budged but the dollar made broad falls on Asian currencies as it retreats from recent highs.China’s better-than-expected manufacturing activity set the yuan on its biggest one-day jump of the year so far on Wednesday, surging about 0.9%. [MKTS/GLOB]On Thursday the yen was a tad stronger at 136.04 to the dollar in early trade while the Australian dollar held Wednesday gains made despite softer-than-expected growth data and some hints that inflation may have peaked.”Yesterday’s positive surprise in the PMIs for China in February are a positive for mining commodity prices and the currencies of countries that export them,” said Commonwealth Bank of Australia (OTC:CMWAY)’s head of international economics, Joe Capurso.”We consider the Australian dollar can increase materially in the weeks after China’s Two Sessions meetings,” he said.”The yuan and commodity currencies such as the Australian and New Zealand dollars can rise materially if the meeting sends a pro‑growth signal, as we expect.”China’s annual parliament meeting opens on Sunday and will implement the biggest government reshuffle in a decade, confirming President Xi Jinping’s new economic team.South Korea’s won jumped more than 1% on the dollar, catching up Wednesday gains after markets had been closed for a holiday. The Aussie was last at $0.6759 and the kiwi at $0.6255, while the yuan traded at 6.8731 per dollar in offshore trade. [AUD/][CNY/]Elsewhere sterling was held back by remarks from Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey, who said “nothing is decided” on future rate hikes which had traders trimming back bets on higher rates. Sterling was steady at $1.2027. [GBP/]Bitcoin has made little headway despite the dollar’s dip and was last at $23,631. Trouble at crypto bank Silvergate has weighed on the mood and the bank’s stock dropped 28% on Wednesday after it warned it was delaying its annual report and evaluating its ability to operate.Besides European inflation, euro zone employment and central bank minutes are due later in the day, as is U.S. jobless claims data.========================================================Currency bid prices at 0010 GMTDescription RIC Last U.S. Close Pct Change YTD Pct High Bid Low Bid Previous Change Session Euro/Dollar $1.0666 $1.0670 -0.04% -0.46% +1.0672 +1.0664 Dollar/Yen 136.1350 136.2350 -0.10% +3.70% +136.2250 +136.0700 Euro/Yen 145.22 145.29 -0.05% +3.50% +145.3300 +145.1300 Dollar/Swiss 0.9396 0.9398 +0.00% +1.63% +0.9398 +0.0000 Sterling/Dollar 1.2026 1.2025 +0.02% +0.00% +1.2028 +1.2023 Dollar/Canadian 1.3590 1.3592 -0.02% +0.30% +1.3596 +1.3589 Aussie/Dollar 0.6756 0.6759 -0.04% -0.89% +0.6761 +0.6755 NZ Dollar/Dollar 0.6250 0.6257 -0.11% -1.57% +0.6257 +0.6250 All spotsTokyo spotsEurope spots Volatilities Tokyo Forex market info from BOJ More

The decision cited “egregious and widespread misconduct,” including illegal monitoring and firing of workers. Starbucks signaled that it would appeal.In a sweeping decision, an administrative judge in New York ruled on Wednesday that Starbucks had violated federal labor law dozens of times in responding to a union campaign in the Buffalo area shortly after the campaign began roughly 18 months ago.Michael A. Rosas, a judge for the National Labor Relations Board, concluded that Starbucks had illegally monitored, disciplined and fired employees engaged in union organizing; added workers to stores to dilute support for the union; and promised new benefits to workers in an attempt to defuse support for the union.The ruling mandates the reinstatement of seven Buffalo-area workers who the judge concluded were unlawfully discharged from the company, and back pay and damages to more than two dozen workers who the judge concluded had suffered retaliation that affected their compensation, such as a reduction of hours.In addition, the judge ordered the chief executive of Starbucks, Howard Schultz, to read or be present for the reading of a notice, more than 10 pages long, promising to refrain from committing a series of labor law violations in the future, and to make and distribute a video of the reading.Because of the company’s “egregious and widespread misconduct demonstrating a general disregard for the employees’ fundamental rights,” Judge Rosas wrote, it was necessary to issue a broad order requiring Starbucks “to cease and desist from infringing in any other manner on rights guaranteed employees.”“This is truly a historic ruling,” Gary Bonadonna Jr., the regional head of Workers United, the union organizing Starbucks, said in a statement. “We will continue to fight and hold billionaires like Howard Schultz accountable for their actions. We will not rest until every Starbucks worker wins the right to organize.”The ruling can be appealed to the labor board in Washington, and to federal court after that, and Starbucks indicated that it might do so. “We believe the decision and the remedies ordered are inappropriate given the record in this matter and are considering all options to obtain further legal review,” the company said in a statement.The organizing campaign notched its first victory in Buffalo in 2021. Since then, more than 280 of the roughly 9,300 corporate-owned Starbucks locations in the United States have unionized. The ruling covers the period from August 2021 to July 2022, by which point the campaign had spread from the Buffalo area to dozens of stores nationwide.In the early months of the campaign, Starbucks workers complained that executives and other company officials were converging on Buffalo in an attempt to undermine their unionization effort.Judge Rosas found that Starbucks had violated labor law by “having high-ranking company officials make repeated and unprecedented visits to stores in order to more closely supervise, monitor or create the impression that employees’ union activities are under surveillance.”He also ordered the company to bargain with the union at a Buffalo-area location where the union lost an election in December 2021, concluding that the scope of the violations at the store tainted the vote and made a rerun of the election an “insufficient” remedy.It is rare but not unprecedented for a judge to effectively order in a union upon concluding that it had support among workers but that a fair vote is nearly impossible. More

(Reuters) -Salesforce Inc on Wednesday forecast first-quarter revenue above analysts’ estimates and doubled its share repurchase to $20 billion, indicating a strong cash flow for the company that has come under pressure from activist investors.The upbeat forecast and fourth-quarter results that beat analysts’ estimates pushed the shares of the cloud-based software provider up 14% in extended trading.They also got a boost from Chief Executive Officer Marc Benioff statement that the company would integrate artificial intelligence into all of its cloud as well as Slack, data analytics platform Tableau and MuleSoft platform.”I think this (fourth) quarter does buy Salesforce (NYSE:CRM) some time with the activists,” says RBC analyst Rishi Jaluria.Several activist investors including Elliott Management Corp and Starboard Value have raised concrens about slowing growth at the Silicon Valley favorite, one of the biggest beneficiaries of the pandemic, and have been pushing for changes.The company recorded one of the slowest quarterly revenue growth since it went public in 2004 as consumers have been cautious about spending in a turbulent economy.While the company posted another quarter of slow revenue growth with sales rising 14%, analysts said that profitability is the focal point.”Revenue growth is probably a secondary point of leverage for management versus the activists; profits and cash flow are the primary focal points for improvement,” said Steve Koenig, managing director at SMBC Nikko Securities.Excluding items, Salesforce expects annual profit between $7.12 per share and $7.14 per share, compared with analysts’ estimates of $5.84, according to Refinitiv IBES data.Salesforce in January said it planned to close some offices and cut jobs by 10% after pandemic hiring left it with a bloated workforce. The company forecast first-quarter revenue between $8.16 billion and $8.18 billion, compared with analysts’ average estimate of $8.06 billion. More

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. President Joe Biden’s pick to head the World Bank, ex-Mastercard CEO Ajay Banga, met on Wednesday with executive directors at the bank as he launched a “charm offensive” to win the post, three sources familiar with the matter said.Biden last week nominated the 63-year-old, Indian-born business executive to run the global development bank and jump-start the 77-year-old institution’s overhaul to better address climate change.Barring any last-minute challenges, Biden’s nomination of Banga, now a U.S. citizen, all but assures he will assume a job that oversees billions of dollars of funding to help developing countries.Adriana Kugler, the Senate-confirmed U.S. executive director at the World Bank, hosted an informal “meet and greet” for Banga, where he and and other executive directors discussed “efficiency, effectiveness, and the impact of the bank’s work,” one of the source said.Directors appreciated Banga’s management and leadership experience, and his willingness to engage openly, the source added.U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said she was pleased so far with positive reviews from Group of 20 finance officials for Banga, who has won praise for his work transforming Mastercard (NYSE:MA) and lifting people in developing countries out of poverty.As the World Bank’s largest shareholder with 16.35% of its voting power, the United States wields strong influence over the bank’s policies, and the lender’s president works closely with the Treasury Department.But Biden’s swift nomination has drawn criticism from some non-profit groups who had pressed for member countries to choose a president from an emerging market. Others have pushed for the first woman president in the bank’s 77-year history.The World Bank declined to comment on Banga’s meetings since the nominating process continues through March 29, and other candidates could still be put forth by other member countries.So far, no other nominations have been made, said one of the sources. More