Every year, about a third of Americans spend at least some time on a boat. In the landscape of recreational power sports, which includes boats, some categories have seen their fair share of struggles in recent years. But boat industry revenues have been mostly growing. Boat sales have seen a boost during Covid, but some analysts think the growth is poised to continue.
Tag Archives: Business
Analysis: How Landfills Make Millions From Trash
In 2019, the North American waste management market reached $208 billion. Thanks to advancements in modern chemistry and support from municipal governments, landfills have seen astonishing financial success in recent years. Private companies like Waste Management and Republic Services now own a majority of landfills across the U.S., their stocks outperforming the market every year since 2014. So how exactly are landfills turning a profit out of garbage and just how much money can be made? Watch the video to find out.
Views: How Louisiana Rice Farmers Produce Millions Of Pounds Of Crawfish
Rice farmers like Mike Frugé of Cajun Crawfish in Louisiana figured out that the two year growing cycle of crawfish synced perfectly with the two year cycle of the rice crop. He shows us how his rice fields are seeded with baby crawfish every other year, creating a new source of food and income for farmers in the area.
Credits: Host: Daniel Geneen Producer/Director: Connor Reid Camera: Connor Reid, Matthew Koesy Editor: Mike Imhoff
Conservation: The Marble Quarries Of Carrara, italy
Italy’s Carrara marble quarries are a source of controversy, pitting nature against economic gain. Environmentalists warn of overexploitation, while others defend the jobs these Tuscan quarries provide.
Franco Barratini quarries marble blocks that sell for €4,000 per ton. The amount of marble that was once quarried in a month can now be extracted in just three days, and environmentalists are alarmed at the consequences. Marble dust leaks into groundwater, turns rivers milky-white and hangs in the air. The effects of this are still not completely clear.
Sandro Manfredi is fighting what he sees as severe overexploitation in the marble quarries of Tuscany’s Apuan Alps. In 2018, he filed a complaint against an illegal marble quarry, and afterwards was nearly killed when someone tampered with his car. Carrara has experienced four floods in the last nine years. Environmentalists blame marble quarrying, which has increased dramatically thanks to rapidly evolving extraction techniques, upsetting the region’s hydrogeological balance.
Stock Trading: The Rise Of Robinhood (WSJ Video)
The twists and turns of the online brokerage’s path to a public offering The brokerage app Robinhood has transformed retail trading. WSJ explains its rise amidst a series of legal investigations and regulatory challenges as it looks forward to its IPO. Photo illustration: Jacob Reynolds/WSJ
Automobiles: Decline Of The American Convertible
Rising in popularity in the 1950s and 1960s, the convertible car is an automotive American icon. It was a vehicle meant for leisure and fun. Some of the most iconic models throughout history were convertibles, such as the Chevrolet Corvette and the Ford Mustang. However, in the last few years, convertibles have been slowly declining in popularity. Along with rising prices, American car buyers, especially those with children, value practicality and functionality over looks and leisure, leading their interest towards SUV’s and midsize sedans. In 2021, convertibles make up only 0.46% of new car sales. Can the iconic design stand the test of time?
Aviation: Boeing & Airbus Counter China’s Comac
Boeing and Airbus dominate global aviation, but China’s Comac wants to challenge the duopoly with new planes. WSJ’s Jon Sindreu explains how supply chains, technology and geopolitics could help the Western aircraft makers to protect key markets. Photo Composite: George Downs
Container Shipping: How Maersk Managed Crisis
The global container business is in chaos. Surging consumer demand, covid outbreaks and a shortage of containers has led to higher volume for ocean carriers and congestion at ports.
Maersk, the world’s largest container shipper, has seen record profits. The Danish shipping firm whose customers include Walmart and Nike announced May 2021 first-quarter revenue of $12.4 billion, a 30% increase from a year earlier. Maersk has a fleet of over 700 ships and handles one in every five containers shipped by sea. The company also owns terminals around the world and has a growing land-based logistics business. On average a Maersk container ship calls on a port somewhere around the globe every six minutes.
Like its competitors the company has faced a series of obstacles in the first half of 2021 ranging from the worldwide shortage of shipping containers to the blockage of the Suez Canal. So, with vaccine rollouts in place in the U.S. and consumer discretionary spending shifting towards services will Maersk and its rivals be able to maintain their momentum? And what do bottlenecks at ports and higher freight rates mean for U.S. consumers? Watch the video to find out what’s next for Maersk.
Employment: Do Hiring Incentives Work? (WSJ)
Low-wage work is in high demand, and employers are now competing for applicants, offering incentives ranging from sign-on bonuses to free food. But with many still unemployed, are these offers working? Photo: Bloomberg
