Oil Prices, Labor Strikes, and Hunter Biden's Legal Drama | Weekly Business Briefs w/ Martin Perdomo

Ready to delve into the intricacies of an economic rollercoaster? This episode promises to equip you with an understanding of the global economic effects of rising oil prices and the boom in strikes and lockouts across the US. We dissect the reasons behind the increase in labor activism, examining how stagnant wages and a rising cost of living play crucial roles. From OPEC's supply cuts to the decline in US shale output, we'll unpack how these factors contribute to a pressure cooker situation for the middle class.

In the second half of the episode, we take a turn into the world of legal drama, with the story of Joe Biden's controversial lawsuit over an alleged possession of a handgun. Discover the intricate layers of this conflict, as we scrutinize the details of the failed plea deal Biden had been negotiating with prosecutors. Charged with failing to pay taxes, this case is far more than a simple courtroom tussle. Tune in for an episode that promises to keep you on the edge of your seat, exploring both economic tumult and legal intrigue.

Chapters

• 0:00 Oil Prices, Strikes, and Lawsuit
• 7:11 Biden's Lawsuit and Plea Deal Controversy

Transcript

Speaker 0: 0:00

Oil prices are up again. Us lost 4.1 million days of work last month, two strikes and Hunter Biden is suing the IRS. These are the top three headlines in this week's weekly business brief. First up oil prices rise on supply deficit concerns. We had a problem with oil prices if you haven't been to the gas pump lately and you haven't been watching those numbers. Those numbers are ticking up, gradually, ticking up Again, robbing middle class of their wealth.

Speaker 0: 0:28

Oil prices rose on Tuesday for a fourth consecutive session as weak US shale output spurred further concerns about a supply deficit stemming from extended production cuts by Saudi Arabia and Russia. One thing that, whether you liked him or not, liked him was President Trump is he had us independent energy. We were independent of energy when it came to oil, so I think we almost agree that when President Trump was our president, he did make us energy independent. And as this article continues to go on, it says prices have gained for three consecutive weeks and both benchmarks are around 10 months high. Okay, us oil output from top shale producing regions is on track to fall 9.3 million barrels per day. Fall, guys. This is on the opposite side. Not produce more, produce less, which means if they produce less. That means demand stays the same and prices go up. Supply demand the lowest level since May of 2022, the US Energy Information Administration said on Monday. It will have fallen three months in a row.

Speaker 0: 1:31

Saudi Arabian Energy Minister, prince Salman, on Monday defended OPEC cuts to oil supply, saying international energy markets need light-handed regulation to limit volatility, while also warning of the uncertainty demand from the Chinese, european growth and central bank action to tackle inflation. Now this is interesting. The feds are increasing interest rates to tackle inflation. Prices of gas is going up, so I wonder what the inflation numbers are going to look like next month, in October, when they come out. Interest rate decisions are due this week. So interest rates we'll see what the feds are going to do about interest rates from the central banks this week from the US, britain, japan, sweden, switzerland and Norway. This will do nothing to calm the nerves as the clash between considerably reduced supply and less reassuring economic outlook continues, said PVM Energy's Thomas Barga.

Speaker 0: 2:26

Okay, my thought on this. I'm going to go back to a few years ago. We were paying the lowest at the gas pump, americans were paying the lowest prices at the gas pump that we've seen in years, and our current administration went in there and cut the pipeline. He reduced the number of permits that were given out in the US for drilling and we're paying the price. And now the Saudis are cutting output. Guess for what guys? For you and I to pay higher dollars for our gas. This is all that is. It's a play to get more money out of the American people and people around the world that are dependent on the Saudis and OPEC to supply them with its business guys. This is a money play and, as the leader of our country, regardless of who's in office, has one responsibility and is to look out for the American people first and make sure that American people are not being robbed of their wealth and that inflation is not eating us up. We'll see what happens this week with interest rates. As interest rates continue to creep up, we have a problem in real estate. We have a problem with inflation. We have a lot of financial issues right now in our country.

Speaker 0: 3:32

Next up, workers' strike in the US are at the highest point since the year 2000, with 4.1 million days lost in August due to labor activism. According to Business Insider, at the highest rate in almost 25 years, this August, 4.1 million work days were lost to strike and lockouts. According to analysis from Labor Department, data by the Wall Street Journal, compared to August, the monthly total of days lost to strikes since 2000 has not even come close to half of the levels we've seen this summer, never rising over 2 million the Hollywood writers you guys remember about those guys? Those guys are still on strike has fueled the peak in lost work days. But major strike action has also been ongoing across the transportation sector, their service industry and in education. The increased action comes as the rising cost of living has exuberated the pressure of decades of stagnant wages. Frustrated as their companies make record profits and CEO exec salaries rise, unions have been seeking higher pay and improved benefits and working conditions.

Speaker 0: 4:39

Here's the thing about this man. This is legit. Workers need to be taken care of. I agree that there needs to be some sort of meeting and increasing people working class people's wages. People need to get paid. Interest rates are up, housing is through the roof, food is through the roof, inflation is insane right now. How can people, the average American afford to take care of their family, take care of their kids, put the kids through school, pay for education, pay for the household, pay for a mortgage, pay for rent, pay for electric, pay for insurance. All this stuff is up and yet a lot of these big companies are increasing pay for these CEOs and the guys doing all the work are not getting compensated as well. I believe those, the CEOs, should get compensated. However, the little guys need to eat. For you, if you're working class person, my advice to you and that's you, your income is not going up is you need to level up your skill and you need to find another way to earn more income on the side.

Speaker 0: 5:44

The labor action has had some success. Over the summer, ups secured a five-year contract giving 340,000 employees a $2.75 hourly pay increase and heat safety protections, per NBC News. But in Hollywood, strikes are going as writers fight against changes to the industry created by the streaming revolution and seek greater protection against encroachment of AI on their jobs. This is the threat for them, man, for the writers. I feel your pain. I don't even know what to make of this. You guys are going to have to level up, figure out ways to bring more value to the table. The market will always reward you according to the value you bring to the marketplace. Always remember that.

Speaker 0: 6:29

Lastly, hunter Biden, the recently indicted son of President Biden sued the IRS, claiming agents intentionally made his private tax return information public. Hunter Biden filed the lawsuit Monday, accusing IRS agents of repeatedly and intentionally publicly sharing his private tax return information while they criminally investigate him. Those agents have targeted and sought to embarrass Mr Biden's disclosing confidential information about his private tax matters to the media. The president's son alleged in a civil suit in the federal court in Washington DC. Biden wants a court to declare the IRS unlawfully revealed his tax information and award him $1,000 in damages for each unauthorized disclosure.

Speaker 0: 7:11

The lawsuit comes days after Biden, 53, was indicted on three criminal counts related to his possession of a handgun. Less than two months earlier, biden had neared a plea deal with prosecutors on misdemeanor charges that he failed to pay federal taxes on more than $1.5 million annually In 2017 and 2018,. He had also prepared to enter into a separate pretrial diversion agreement related to the gun matter, but the whole arrangement fell apart during a dramatic court hearing in July. Instead of locking in the deal, biden pleaded not guilty to get to the tax charges, while his attorneys have insisted that the deal for the gun charges was agreed and is valid. And this has been your weekly business brief. I'll see you guys next week, peace.