Will Amazon Rule the World?

The semiconductor shortage has caused problems for dozens of industries. But the most-affected industry is arguably automobiles, which have lost out on billions after being forced to cut production of new vehicles.

Why did automakers cut production? With COVID on the rise, many companies expected suppressed demand for months. Unfortunately, the opposite happened — and there was no getting back that production they sold off. Once the pandemic and semi shortage are behind us, the automotive industry will have lost $110 billion, according to one consulting firm. 😬

Today, Toyota announced it would cut its September output by 40%, citing the chip shortage. The company warded off “bad chip mojo” for months, steering clear of the shortage by stockpiling and monitoring suppliers. Unfortunately, there’s not a whole lot of manufacturing you can do without those semiconductor chips. Toyota will suspend manufacturing at 14 plants throughout September.

To make matters worse, Toyota might just be early to the supply cut party. Last week, American automaker Ford said it would “idle” its F-150 pickup plant in Kansas City due to the semi shortage. And this week, BMW AG warned of the “second coming” of the chip shortage. With COVID spreading once again and lockdowns afflicting some regions, who knows when and where automakers will catch a break. 😪

Amidst the shortage, politicians and companies have made moves to mitigate future shortages. The U.S. has asked Taiwan for help in addressing the shortage, partially because some of the world’s biggest chipmakers are located there. During the shortage, Intel tried to acquire a number of semiconductor companies in M&A action. Although Intel came up short in most deals, the company is still a “willing buyer.”

$TM fell 4.09%. $BMWYY fell 2.39%. $F fell 2.54%.

The words “Amazon” and “retail” are usually used together in just one context: when people talk about how Amazon is killing retail. 🔪

The e-commerce giant’s latest plan, however, positions for a lot more direct competition with Target, Best Buy, Walmart, and other big box retailers. That’s because Amazon plans to open brick-and-mortar stores to compete with traditional department stores.

According to close sources, Amazon will open several physical locations. The first stores could be in Ohio and California, coming in at about 30,000 sq ft. That’s smaller than a “typical department store,” but Amazon is far from typical.

In the last few years, Amazon has subtly advanced into brick-and-mortar with its acquisition of Whole Foods, trials of its checkout-free “Amazon Go” stores, and return partnerships with Kohl’s. However, the company’s latest plan is a much bigger push than its previous ventures. Opening brick-and-mortar stores could even accommodate the company’s shipping and “last-mile” efforts.

The news sent big-box retailers lower, with $TGT falling 0.88% and $BBY down 0.31%. $AMZN also fell today, dipping -0.4%.

We have some unfortunate news for the OnlyFans community… the site announced that they’re banning “sexually explicit videos.”

OnlyFans announced its decision to pivot towards non-sexual video content, like yoga and cooking lessons. 😅 Nude photos, however, will still be allowed: “Creators will continue to be allowed to post content containing nudity as long as it is consistent with [the OnlyFans] Acceptable Use Policy.”

The company indicated that “In order to ensure the long-term sustainability of the platform, and to continue to host an inclusive community of creators and fans, [OnlyFans] must evolve [its] content guidelines.“ This conservative content shift could be the result of payment processors stuck in their puritanical complexes or the company’s own shift in sentiment. Who knows.

OnlyFans didn’t just ban porn, either. The site also recently launched a nudity-free app called OFTV (OnlyFans TV), which features non-explicit content from OnlyFans’ top creators. Apple and Google didn’t allow OnlyFans in their app stores prior to the ban.

Before the announcement, OnlyFans was seeking a new capital raise at a $1 billion valuation with plans for a possible IPO on the horizon. OnlyFans’ business model takes 20% of each content creator’s revenue, which generated $400 million in revenue last year. But alienating the platform’s base of sex workers?? That moves some zeroes, and not in the right direction. 🤔 It may not exactly be profitable. 👎

Will OnlyFans successfully pivot to cooking lessons? Or will the sex-ban bash profits?? Time will tell…

U.S. cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase jumped head-first into the Japanese market today. 🇯🇵 🇯🇵 The exchange partnered with Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG) to attract retail traders in Japan — MUFG is one of the largest banks in Japan, serving 40 million customers.

Why Japan? The country is the second-largest source of crypto-trading traffic after the U.S. 🙌

The partnership will likely allow Japanese customers to deposit funds through MUFG’s Quick Deposit service. Customers can trade the exchange’s five largest crypto assets by trading volume — $BTC.X, $ETH.X, $XLM.X, $LTC.X, and $BCH.X. The number of assets offered will increase in the coming months.  

The launch is part of Coinbase’s global expansion strategy as the company aims to become Japan’s “most trusted exchange” that’s also compliant with local regulations.

Japan’s crypto regulations are strict. As other exchanges shut their doors in Japan, Coinbase’s adherence to the country’s regulatory overlords has just begun. 

$COIN climbed 1.58% today.