Here’s what we have for you today:
• Modi on the spot
• Walmart’s next thing
• Americans on growth?
Walmart launched new initiative
The giant: Arkansas-based Walmart has a large brick-and-mortar footprint with 3,572 Supercenters, 600 Sam’s Clubs, and more than 5,300 retail units overall in the U.S. as of October 2022. That scale leads Walmart to say that it’s within 10 miles of 90% of the U.S. population.
Following who? America’s number 1 retailer is taking another cue from Amazon, in catering to other businesses.
For? Walmart launched a dedicated e-commerce site tailored for small and medium business customers.
India banning a documentary about Prime Minister Modi
The documentary: “The Modi Question” was originally broadcasted in the U.K., but it quickly generated hype in India after unauthorized video clips began circulating on social media platforms, reminding viewers of Modi’s controversial role in the 2002 Gujarat riots, thus- prompting the Indian government to block it from being aired on Indian platforms.
About: The 59-minute documentary takes an in-depth look at the 2002 Gujarat riots. Under Modi, who at the time was Gujarat’s Chief Minister. Footage in the documentary reveals how the police stood by as Hindu mobs attacked Muslims and religious attacks took hold of the state.
The ban: Indian government has already issued orders to YouTube and Twitter demanding that they block any content related to the documentary from being published on their platforms.
Currently, Americans are no longer supporting economic growth
Why: Rising interest rates have made home ownership too expensive for many. Inflation has cut deeply into the buying power of people’s incomes, and real spending has slowed accordingly.
Domino effect: Declines in homebuying and building have directly affected consumer spending, especially sales of furniture and appliances as well as home repair supplies.
Possible solution: If the Fed’s efforts can restrain inflation, households could easily return to more aggressive spending. Success on inflation might also prompt the Fed later in the new year to ease on its policies of credit restraint and perhaps reverse its present policy of hiking interest rates.