The Semiconductor Industry is Upside Down

TIMES SQUARE INVESTMENT JOURNAL – Led by upstart chipmakers Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices, shares of semiconductor firms have fared well this year but, after stumbling its way through the summer, Intel has been the best of the bunch in weathering this month’s tech selloff.

Trouble Down the Line for Manufacturing Workers

DISMAL SCIENCE – The manufacturing sector has been rehiring workers since May. But with the demand for many products – like Boeing’s airplanes – lagging due to coronavirus-related restrictions and fears, the situation for manufacturers could spiral. Federal government assistance programs for individuals expired at the end of July, leaving laid-off workers with $600 per week less spending power and, for manufacturers, less income to rehire workers going forward. 

The NBA is Big Business in China

THE WIRE CHINA – Basketball is back, with the NBA set to resume play in Orlando on Thursday. But the league’s largest overseas fanbase, in China, will have a tough time tuning in. Following Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey’s October 2019 tweet in support of protests in Hong Kong, Chinese sponsors and the country’s state broadcaster, CCTV, pulled their support for the league. Players, owners, and even Morey himself went into damage control immediately after, hoping to preserve one of the biggest cash cows for the Rockets — the former home of Chinese basketball star Yao Ming — and the league.