McDonald’s Boosts Its Payout for Franchise Upgrades
– The Wall Street Journal
When McDonald’s imposes changes on its restaurants, it normally expects its franchisees to bear the brunt of the expenses. But in an effort to regain the core customers it has lost to rivals, the company is trying to get franchisees on board by ponying up a big chunk of the money for upgrades that can cost anywhere from $150,000 to $700,000 per location.
Palace Whispers in The Court of King Donald
– The Economist
The Economist opines on why more crises are likely to follow the Comey/Russia episode, paralyzing the Administration.
Watch Out Amazon. Walmart Is Coming For You
– CNN Money
The latest earnings and forecasts from most big American retailers could be summed up with a variety of negative adjectives. Underwhelming. Dismal. Bleak. Then there’s Walmart. The Arkansas-based home of the yellow smiley face reported profits that topped forecasts and an increase in same-store sales (which measures how well stores open at least a year are doing) that was also better than expected.
– The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal opinion page outlines why the business community’s DC agenda may be in a ditch for the foreseeable future. While the decision to appoint a special council will provide some short-term political relief, it also opens up years of political risk to the Trump Administration with no guarantee that the public will end up with any better understanding of what really happened.