Category: ESTA News

Returning to original state after 4 years, a positive indicator of New York State’s economic recovery, the number of private sector jobs in New York State has fully recovered to the figure before the COVID-19 pandemic.

New York Governor Cathy Hokull announced on the 7th, “The number of private sector jobs, which had plummeted due to the pandemic, reached a total of 8,346,200, including an increase of 47,000 in January, exceeding the pre-pandemic figure.”

It is evaluated as a positive indicator of New York State’s economic recovery as it returns to its original state four years after the pandemic. According to the Governor’s Office, the number of private sector jobs plummeted to 6.4 million in April 2020, when COVID-19 spread rapidly, and closures continued. It was the lowest record in 30 years, but it is explained that 1,935,600 jobs were recovered over 4 years. T

he New York State Department of Labor, the current unemployment rate in New York is 4.5%. Compared to the average of 10% in 2020, it has improved by more than half.

New York’s private sector job numbers are based on a survey of corporate salaries conducted by the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics. Governor Hokul said, “New York is back.

“The private sector, particularly private education, health services, tourism (leisure and hospitality), and professional and business services, led the job recovery,” he said, adding that the country recorded a record 8.3 million jobs thanks to its remarkable resilience.  Jobs in the private sector went beyond simple recovery and transformed into eco-friendly jobs.”

Several Washington D.C. officials in charge of issuing barber, cosmetology, and nail-related licenses were caught receiving kickbacks and illegally issuing licenses for several years and are also under investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), making related industries and D.C. officials’ keen.

According to local media outlet ABC7, this incident involved officials from Washington DC’s Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection (DLCP) receiving kickbacks for several years and illegally issuing barber, beauty, and nail licenses.

It was revealed to the surface by acknowledging it. It was discovered that one of the officials involved was a member of the Utilization and Grooming Committee, who was appointed directly by the mayor of Washington, D.C., where some of the bribes could be considered high-ranking officials. Officials involved in the fraudulent issuance are required to meet the mandatory 1,500 hours of practical training to take the license exam, but after receiving bribes from people who failed to do so, they allowed them to take the exam and then manipulated the test scores to make them pass or had others take the exam for them.

It is known that a license was issued after passing the exam. It is currently unknown how many public officials were involved, how long the fraud was committed, and how many illegally issued licenses there were, but the scale is said to be significant.

As this fact became known, the Washington DC government began a large-scale audit and personnel reform, including replacing the head of the department. In addition, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is also known to be intensively investigating related documents, phones, and computers regarding the department, personnel, and licensor issuance status related to this incident.

The lawyers who won a lawsuit challenging the $56 billion in compensation paid by the board of directors of electric car company Tesla to CEO Elon Musk are demanding trillions of won worth of Tesla stock.

According to Reuters and Bloomberg News on the 3rd, lawyers from three law firms representing the plaintiff in the lawsuit filed by Tesla shareholder Richard Tornetta against Tesla’s board of directors and Musk stated in a document submitted to the Delaware State Court on the 1st that the law of this lawsuit was filed. He requested that he receive 29 million shares of Tesla stock as a fee.

If calculated based on the current Tesla stock price of $202.64, the amount is approximately $5.9 billion (KRW 7.8824 trillion). They explained that they calculated the hourly fee to be $288,888 (about 386 million won). “We recognize that the amount requested is unprecedented in terms of absolute scale,” they said, “but we are prepared to ‘eat our cooking.’” They argued that since the company benefited from receiving back the 267 million shares that Tesla’s board of directors paid to Musk according to the court ruling, it should pay the corresponding legal fees.

“This structure has the advantage of tying compensation directly to the profits generated (by the lawsuit), without having to take even a cent out of Tesla’s balance sheet to pay the fees,” he said, citing the reason for requiring stock rather than cash.

Musk linked an article reporting this news on the social media Previously, Tonetta, a minority shareholder of Tesla, filed a lawsuit in October 2022, saying, “Musk’s compensation package approved by the board of directors in 2018 is invalid,” and the Delaware State Court ruled in favor of Toneta at the end of January this year.

The judge who heard the lawsuit ruled that “the process by which the board approved his compensation was highly flawed” and that “the contract to provide the defendant (Musk) with a record amount of money should be null and void.”

Accordingly, Musk is at risk of spitting out $56 billion worth of stock options he received based on Tesla’s performance after the compensation plan was approved in 2018. Musk reportedly began the process of appealing this ruling last month.

American electric vehicle startups, which once attracted investors’ attention as rivals to Tesla, are struggling with a sudden drop in performance. According to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) on the 25th, last week, electric sports utility vehicle (SUV) and pickup truck manufacturer Rivian closed trading at $10.06 per share, a 38% drop from the previous week. Lucid, a company that makes luxury sedan electric vehicles, also saw its stock price fall 19% during the same period.

In their recently released fourth-quarter performance reports for last year, the two companies presented a bleak performance outlook that this year’s production would remain at last year’s level or only increase slightly. This is because demand for electric vehicles has slowed due to high interest rates and economic uncertainty.

“We are focused on increasing demand to meet our 2024 delivery target,” said Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe. He explained that the increased burden of monthly car installments due to interest rate increases appears to have had some impact. Peter Rawlinson, CEO of Lucid, also said, “The important thing to see here is that there are no restrictions on production, (what is limited) is sales and delivery,” and said that the company will put more effort into sales activities to find potential customers this year.

WSJ pointed out that this situation contrasts with the plan to further increase production to satisfy the demands of customers waiting for vehicle delivery until last summer. Investors poured billions of dollars into Rivian and Lucid, believing they were innovative companies with the potential to surpass traditional automakers in the electric vehicle market. However, the WSJ pointed out that these companies, which overcame initial trial and error and succeeded in developing luxurious, high-performance electric vehicles, faced a new problem in that there were not as many consumers willing to open their wallets as expected.

This is because each country is competitively raising trade barriers, and the outlook for the electric vehicle market has become uncertain because of increased uncertainty in the international situation, such as high interest rates, the global economic slump, the Ukraine war, and the Israel-Hamas war.

The automobile industry is already showing signs of lowering the price of electric vehicles or being reluctant to make related investments. WSJ said, “Startups are more exposed to the sudden cooling of the electric vehicle market than established automakers,” and “This is because there is no profitable (other) business to withstand the slowdown in (electric vehicle) sales.” In fact, Rivian’s cash reserves were $7.9 billion at the end of December last year, a significant decrease from a year ago.

Lucid’s cash and cash equivalent assets amounted to $1.4 billion, down $365 million from the previous year. However, the WSJ reported that both companies emphasized that the cash they currently have is available until 2025.

New York City is pursuing a plan to expand the installation of traffic signal violation cameras by nine times the current size.

New York City Transportation Director Idanis Rodriguez said on the 22nd, “The number of traffic fatalities in New York City last year due to traffic signal violations was 29, the highest since related statistics began to be compiled,” and “All intersections where 29 deaths occurred have cameras.” It was an area where was not installed. “In response to this, we will pursue measures to expand camera installation,” he said.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority announced plans to promote a plan to increase the number of traffic signal violation cameras across New York City, which is currently limited to 150 by New York State law, to 1,325 by 2030 by pushing for a bill in the state legislature.

Regarding the related bill, State Senator Andrew Gonades and State Representative Jeffrey Dinowitz are expected to sponsor the bill in the Senate and House of Representatives, respectively. Currently, there are 13,700 traffic lights installed at intersections across New York City, and only 150 traffic lights, or 1% of all traffic lights, have red light violation cameras. If camera installation is expanded to 1,325, it will amount to about 10% of all traffic lights.

New York State Senator Michael Gianaris supported the policy, saying, “Just as an antidote to a fatal disease is not prescribed to only 1% of patients, the expansion of camera installations to prevent traffic accidents at intersections must be done.” Meanwhile, according to New York City statistics, 94% of all vehicles caught by traffic light cameras last year had fewer than two violations, and 0.5% of vehicles had five or more violations.

Additionally, the incidence of injuries due to ‘T-Bone’ crashes, which refers to side collisions that occur at intersections, decreased by 13% after installing cameras compared to before installation.

California law enforcement officials have busted a gang of organized thieves who stole $8 million worth of cosmetics across Southern California and sold them on Amazon and other sites.

A task force specializing in organized theft, comprised of the California Highway Patrol, has raided cosmetics stores across the state through an investigation over the past several months. It was announced on the 16th that the leader of an organized theft group that committed targeted theft was arrested.

On the 16th, California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced at a press conference held in San Diego that a total of nine people had been indicted and that they had been found to have committed similar crimes not only in Southern California but also in the eastern region. It was revealed that the arrested leader of the organized crime ring recruited at least seven people as henchmen and had them steal cosmetics from Ulta Beauty Stores and other retail outlets across the state and then sell the stolen items at a discount through Amazon.

It was revealed that this organized theft crime had been going on for over ten years. The organized theft took place in a total of 21 counties, including LA and Orange County, Alameda, Placer, Kern, Contra Costa, Santa Clara, San Diego, Riverside, San Mateo, San Bernardino, Napa, and Ventura. This investigation was conducted in cooperation with the Highway Patrol, the California Department of Justice, the Federal Department of Homeland Security, and the Federal Postal Service, and employees of the affected stores also appeared to have joined the investigation.

Authorities have been investigating since last summer to catch up with these thieves after more than 230 thefts were reported at Ulta stores in Southern California. In December of last year, several suspects involved in organized theft gangs were arrested throughout Southern California, and this time, the leader of the theft gang was arrested.

New York Governor Cathy Hochul is pushing to make alcohol to-go service permanent at restaurants and bars in the state, which expires in April next year. Governor Hochul announced on the 15th, “We plan to make permanent the ‘Alcohol Subscription Service’ for restaurants and bars, which was first introduced in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.”

It is my intention to make this permanent by including this content in the negotiation process for the $233 billion budget plan that I proposed last month. Governor Hochul said, “The ‘alcohol donation service’ for restaurants and bars, which started due to the pandemic, is a policy that has been successfully established with great response from residents,” and added, “It should have already been legalized and made permanent, but it is rather too late.” If the ‘Alcohol Subscription Service’ for restaurants and bars is made permanent as the governor plans, New York State will become the 21st state in the country to legalize the service.

According to New York State’s current regulations, to use the ‘Alcohol Toss Service’, you must order a ‘substantial food item’ from restaurants and bars. This significant amount of food (menu) includes pre-cooked and processed frozen foods such as set meals, sandwiches, soups, salads, chicken wings, and hot dogs. However, potato chips, candy or nuts, and small amounts of lettuce are not accepted. This is to prevent formal orders such as the so-called ‘$1 Cuomo chips’, which were controversial in 2020 when alcoholic beverages were first allowed.

Additionally, an entire bottle of alcohol cannot be sold for delivery, and take-out alcohol must be sold packaged in a sealed container. The price must be the same as drinking at a restaurant or bar, and upon delivery, you must prove that you are over 21 years of age.

Alcohol cannot be delivered to people who are already drunk. Also, if you are caught charging an additional fee for alcoholic beverages and having them delivered instead of ordering food, your liquor license may be suspended or revoked. Meanwhile, liquor store owners, including Liquor Store, are clearly opposing the push to make the ‘alcohol to-go service’ permanent for restaurants and bars in New York State, saying it is an infringement on their territory.

It is still unclear whether the bill will be passed into reality by the State Senate Speaker. New Jersey’s paid family leave expansion bill has been resubmitted to the State House of Representatives and has passed the subcommittee threshold. On the 8th, the New Jersey State House Appropriations Committee approved the bill (A-3451), which expands New Jersey paid family medical leave coverage to workers at businesses with five or more employees, with 7 in favor and 4 against, and sent it to the plenary session.

Current law requires businesses with 30 or more employees to guarantee the employment of employees who use paid family medical leave. The amendment expands the obligation to guarantee employment based on paid family medical leave to businesses with five or more employees.

This bill was introduced last year but was automatically scrapped due to the end of the 2022-2023 state legislative session. However, it was resubmitted when the 2024-2025 state legislative session began in January of this year and was approved by a subcommittee of the state House of Representatives. However, in the State Senate, it is unclear whether it will become a reality as State Senate Chairman Nick Scutari and others are passive about processing the bill.

In New Jersey, paid family medical leave has been guaranteed since 2009. As of 2023, if you have earned wages of at least $283 per week for 20 weeks or a total of $14,200 or more in 12 months from the date of application, you can use paid family medical leave for up to 12 weeks. Beneficiaries can receive 85% of their salary (up to $1,025 per week). However, only businesses with 30 or more employees are required to guarantee employment for employees who use paid family medical leave, so employees at smaller businesses are unable to use paid family medical leave due to fear of losing their jobs.

The labor community supports expanding paid family medical leave, but companies oppose it. The New Jersey Business and Industry Association’s position is that “it will place an undue burden on small and medium-sized businesses.”

U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, who caused controversy for not reporting his hospitalization in time, is hospitalized again. The U.S. Department of Defense announced on the 11th that Secretary Austin had symptoms that appeared to be bladder problems, so Secret Service agents took him to Walter Reed Military Medical Center around 2:20 p.m.

The Department of Defense stated that Secretary Austin continues to perform the functions and duties of the Secretary and that the Deputy Secretary is prepared to act on his behalf if necessary. Secretary Austin brought confidential communication systems necessary for performing his duties to the hospital. Secretary Austin was hospitalized on the 1st of last month due to a urinary tract infection after undergoing surgery for prostate cancer last year, but caused controversy by belatedly informing President Joe Biden, the military commander-in-chief, of his hospitalization.

After being discharged from the hospital on the 15th of last month, he worked from home and returned to the Ministry of Defense on the 29th of last month but was still recovering due to leg pain.

Apple CEO Tim Cook became the head of Apple, succeeding Steve Jobs on August 24, 2011. Due to Jobs’ reputation as an ‘icon of innovation,’ there were some uneasy views of him at the beginning of his inauguration, but now, 12 years later, Cook’s role has been evaluated as successful.

Apple’s sales for the fourth quarter of 2023 (the first quarter of the fiscal year) announced on the 1st were $119.58 billion. That’s more than four times the $26.74 billion in the fourth quarter of 2010, before he took office. Apple’s market capitalization has soared nine times since Cook took office. At the time of Cook’s inauguration, Apple’s market cap was $349 billion, but it is now close to $3 trillion.

It is said that Cook’s leadership was responsible for the iPhone’s reign as the world’s best smartphone for ten years and the success of a new product called the Apple Watch. He strengthened the service business sector, including Apple Pay, and established the ‘Apple Dynasty’ with the ‘Apple Ecosystem’ strategy that connects hardware, developers, and customers.

Cook, who developed Apple into the world’s most expensive company, is often evaluated as having emerged from Jobs’ long shadow and surpassed him. However, Apple is once again facing strong challenges and is faltering. Apple lost its leading position in the global stock market, which it had held for over two years, to Microsoft (MS) last month. This may be a preview of what’s to come for Apple.

Apple’s sales growth rate in the fourth quarter of last year was 2% compared to the previous year, ending four quarters of negative growth (decrease in sales) starting in the fourth quarter of 2022. However, the performance is shabby compared to the double-digit increase in sales of competitors during the same period. Microsoft and Amazon recorded sales growth of 17% and 14%, respectively, while Google parent company Alphabet also surged 13% and Facebook parent company Meta soared 25%.

The status of the iPhone, which accounts for half of Apple’s sales, is shaking. In China, one of Apple’s largest markets, iPhone sales fell 13% from a year ago. The AI phones first released by Samsung Electronics, along with the ‘Mate 60’ released by China’s Huawei in August last year, are gaining popularity and are threatening the iPhone.

Taiwan’s TF Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who specializes in Apple, observed, “Apple could see the biggest decline among major global mobile phone brands this year.” The reality is that the popularity of the Apple Watch, launched in 2015, has waned, and the popularity of laptops, Macs, and tablet PCs, such as the iPad, is not what it used to be.

In addition, the ‘closed ecosystem’ of the App Store, which drives the growth of the service sector, is starting to crack. Apple has been allowing apps to be downloaded only through its App Store and has been charging a commission of up to 30% when users pay. However, starting in March, the European Union (EU) will implement the Digital Markets Act (DMA), which will open these closed platforms of large companies. In response, Apple recently decided to allow apps to be downloaded from other app stores and lowered payment fees to up to 17%. Epic Games, the maker of the popular game Fortnite, filed a lawsuit in 2020, claiming that Apple’s App Store payment system violates antitrust laws and is anti-competitive.

“There may be cracks in the ‘walled garden’ where Apple controls app distribution on the iPhone,” the analysis said. Apple is also falling behind in the AI competition, which is gaining popularity around the world. Microsoft, Google, etc. are already generating new profits by installing AI functions in their products, but Apple has not yet released a significant AI product.

Although CEO Cook predicted that “AI products could be announced by the end of this year,” two years have already passed since ChatGPT was introduced to the world. It is difficult to guarantee the success of the Vision Pro, a mixed reality (MR) headset released on the 2nd, as sales this year are expected to be only around 500,000 units. In addition, as it is reported that the launch of the self-driving electric vehicle ‘Apple Car’, which has been ambitiously prepared, will be delayed again to 2028, the outlook for the future industry is not bright.

Cook, who was in his early 50s when he took office, is now well over 60. Cook’s leadership will be tested to see how he can overcome the challenges facing Apple and regain its position as the world’s most expensive company.