Good morning! In this weekly snapshot:

• Texas wants heightened security at the US-Mexico border🇲🇽

• UPS has to cut back thousands of jobs due to revenue decline📦

• The weekly market update📈

Heightened Security at the US-Mexico Border

Governor Greg Abbott of Texas is intensifying the state's clash with the federal government over jurisdiction of the US-Mexico border. Despite opposition from the Biden administration and a Supreme Court ruling (5-4) supporting federal authority, Abbott persists in expanding the use of controversial razor wire barriers along the border. This move questions the Supreme Court's stance on federal government control in immigration matters, underscoring Abbott's commitment to fortifying the border on his terms. Presently, the US harbors approximately 3 million undocumented individuals.

States’ Rights

Governor Abbott employs the principle of state sovereignty to implement border security measures in Texas, challenging the 2012 Supreme Court decision in Arizona v. United States that upheld federal authority over immigration. Abbott cites the "invasion" provision in both the US and Texas constitutions, drawing parallels between migrants and foreign adversaries to justify his actions. He consistently deploys the Texas National Guard to install razor wire, exploiting their operational alignment under state rather than presidential authority, resulting in a standoff with federal forces.

Turning Tide:  President Biden faces bipartisan pressure regarding his border policies amid a record 2.5 million migrant interactions. Democratic Senator John Fetterman and 14 House Democrats criticize Biden's approach. Secretary Mayorkas, overseeing border management, faces potential impeachment, marking a historic event in almost 150 years for a Cabinet secretary. The border situation remains in a deadlock, with federal authorities awaiting an official response from Texas.

Revenue Decline Forces UPS to Cut 12,000 Jobs

UPS announced on Tuesday that it is officially cutting 12,000 employees due to a revenue shortfall in 2023. The company was expecting upwards of $95.6 billion in profits, and instead, is expected to rake in between $92 billion to $94.5 billion. The drop in revenue stems from the loss of customers due to the expected rumor of an employee strike the previous year, which sent consumers over to competitors such as FedEx. The company is yet to recover entirely from the loss and is currently shipping out to a mere 60% of their previous customer base totals. Of the 12,000 jobs cut, the majority are manager and contractor positions in the organization. Further reasoning for the action stems from a 12.1% increase in union wages, making employees less affordable for the company.  

Repercussions for UPS

Post announcement, UPS’s stock dropped a whopping 7%. This decline is a particularly hard pill for UPS to swallow, considering that only two years ago, their revenue exceeded $100 billion due to the pandemic and the coinciding explosion of online shopping that came with it. Despite this unwelcome decline, CFO Brian Newman is confident the choice is permanent: “We don’t expect these jobs to come back. It’s changing the effective way that we operate”

📈 Market Updates

Economic Pulse 🌐 

This past month, the United States of America recorded the second-highest month for layoffs and the lowest planned hiring levels since 2009. Reports indicate that technology and finance were particularly hit the hardest; in other news, federal reserve officers stated that they are waiting for more good data to ease interest rates. The FED’s chair, Jerome H. Powell, acknowledged the past six months of progress but is skeptical that rates will be lowered by their next meeting at the end of March. 

Money Moves 💰️ 

On Wednesday, Alps Global Holdings announced that they are going public in the United States of America with a blank check company merger. The deal valued Alps global holdings at 1.6 billion dollars. The company will hit the NASDAQ under the name Alps Life Science Inc. during the second quarter of the fiscal year. In other news, A new bidder for Paramount has emerged. Byron Allen has offered 14.3 billion dollars to purchase all outstanding shares. The deal’s total value is about 30 billion dollars, including all of the company’s equity and debt.

👀Job Opportunities

• TYLin is hiring a Finance Intern for this summer.

• Critical Mass is looking for a Project Delivery Intern.

• Bell is looking for someone in Montreal for their Business Markets Internship.

• BMO is hiring a student with a business background for their Risk Analyst Internship.

📞Word on the Street

• Sick geese in Kingston causes an investigation.

• NHL is allowing players to compete at the Winter Olympics in 2026.

• Groundhog day calls for an early Spring.

Writers: Isaac Moore, Joshua Cristofoli and Tomas Serrano

Senior Editor: Amyn Dehal

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