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Fast Company
11-07-2025
- Business
- Fast Company
Why Sun Valley has never felt more out of step with the public mood than it does in 2025
An estimated 175 private jets touched down in Sun Valley, Idaho, on Tuesday, kicking off the secretive annual retreat colloquially known as 'summer camp for billionaires.' Less than a week after Congress passed President Trump's tax and spending bill —which experts project will cut healthcare benefits for 17 million Americans, while also giving tax breaks to the wealthy and corporations —the largest-looming figures in tech, media, and finance have convened in Sun Valley for a closed-door schmoozefest and deal-a-thon. It's a gathering that not only ignores the current national mood felt by many Americans but stands in opposition to it. Hosted by Allen & Co., a boutique investment bank with tentacles in media and tech, the Sun Valley conference has been a must-attend for powerbrokers since 1983. It's like Davos minus the press access, and not even a pretense of addressing global issues. Tectonic plate-shifting deals made at past retreats include Disney's acquisition of ABC in 1995, the AOL-Time Warner merger in 1999, and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos's purchase of The Washington Post in 2013. Among attendees at this year's edition, which runs from July 8–July 13, are Apple CEO Tim Cook, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, and Ivanka Trump —an eclectic who's who of the elite's elite. Warner Bros Discovery CEO David Zaslav is also in attendance. Zaslav, you might recall, had perhaps the most well-circulated quote from last year's outing. When a Bloomberg reporter asked him during Sun Valley 2024 whether he had a preference between Joe Biden and Donald Trump to be the next president, the CEO deflected with his reply: 'We just need an opportunity for deregulation, so companies can consolidate and do what we need to be even better.' Although his remarks could be read as an indirect Trump endorsement, since Republicans tend to favor deregulation, it's the phrasing that speaks volumes. It encapsulates the way in which some of the country's most powerful figures appear indifferent to how political decisions affect the lives of actual Americans, and instead seem interested solely in how they affect business. This ambivalence is reflected in the abundance of founders and CEOs who were once vocally critical of Trump's policies but later donated to and attended his second inauguration. It also explains why the disconnect between the gilded world of Sun Valley and the reality of people reeling from the consequences of last year's election feels so profound. Inequality and an unknowable economy The 2009 iteration of the retreat, with the global financial crisis unfurling in the background, was one of the only times in recent memory when the event's setting may have felt even more out of step with the public mood. During that year's retreat, a CNBC reporter asked Warren Buffett about the vibe behind the scenes at Sun Valley. '[I]t's a tough period,' Buffett replied. 'On the other hand, this movie will have a good ending.' The reporter pushed for clarification on just how long that ending might take to arrive. Buffett understandably could not respond with any certainty. 'I know the ending will be good,' he said, 'but I don't know whether it's a two-hour movie or a four-hour movie. In the 16 years since, the Sun Valley set did indeed enjoy a good ending. The 793 billionaires that existed in 2009 then had combined wealth of $2.4 trillion, while the 3,000-plus billionaires of 2025 now enjoy combined wealth of $16.1 trillion —an increase of over 570%. Meanwhile, many Americans were apparently living in a different movie. Middle-income households have seen their share of aggregate income shrink from 45% in 2012 to 42% in 2020. As for lower-income Americans, the federal minimum wage increased from $6.55 per hour to $7.25 during the same month as the Sun Valley retreat in 2009 —and it has not gone up one penny since, despite the best efforts of labor organizers. The economic outlook is not quite as precarious in 2025 as it was in 2009, but thanks to Trump's erratic approach to tariffs, it feels as unstable as a rickety roller coaster. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said back in May that the economy 'may be entering a period of more volatile inflation and more regular supply shocks,' citing tariffs as the reason for his hesitation to adjust interest rates. A majority of Americans seem to agree with this analysis. In a late-June poll from Gallup, around the time that Bezos dropped a reported $20 million-plus on his wedding with Lauren Sanchez, 72% of citizens surveyed said they thought the economy was either 'poor' or 'only fair,' while a relatively paltry 27% described it as either 'good' or 'excellent.' Anti-billionaire animosity Another reason this year's 'summer camp for billionaires' feels out of step with the national mood is because Americans have had excessive exposure to billionaires in 2025, and many don't seem particularly thrilled with what they've seen. According to a January poll, only 12% of Americans thought it would be 'very or somewhat good' for the president to rely on billionaires for advice about government policy—and that was before they got a taste of what it might look like in practice. Despite running on a populist platform, the president—a billionaire himself, it must be said— stocked his cabinet with fellow billionaires, and has since delivered this cohort their promised tax cuts. Before the world's richest man fell spectacularly out of favor with Trump, the president empowered Elon Musk and his DOGE team to 'reduce waste, fraud, and abuse' throughout the government. This mandate resulted in thousands of federal workers losing their jobs, various staffing crises and data breaches, and, thanks to Musk's gleeful decimation of USAID, untold devastation and suffering around the world. By making himself the sneering face of this effort, Musk became so unpopular that he inspired a global protest movement. All the unmistakable hostility directed toward him, however, is only a symptom of a broader sentiment. Judging from the historically unfavorable polling of Trump's just-passed tax bill—which had an average net favorability of -23% in every poll between May and July—Americans are fed up with a system that makes life easier for the wealthy and harder for everyone else. Although the 2026 midterms are still a long way off, voters are already registering their complaints electorally. In last month's New York mayoral primary, for instance, voters soundly rejected front-runner Andrew Cuomo, the disgraced former governor, in favor of Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani, who spent a fraction of what Cuomo's Super PAC put into the race and won anyway. It is very much in keeping with the substance of Mamdani's campaign that, during the June 29 episode of Meet the Press, the candidate said, 'I don't think that we should have billionaires because, frankly, it is so much money in a moment of so much inequality, and ultimately, what we need more of is equality across our city and across our state and across our country.' No wonder billionaires like former mayor and media mogul Michael Bloomberg, hedge fund manager Bill Ackman, and corporations like DoorDash poured millions into the race against him, and tech investors like Tyler Winklevoss have denounced the people's choice for mayor with extreme prejudice (quite literally, in the notorious anti-Mamdani posts from Sequoia Capital's Shaun Maguire). This exact MCU-style crossover of tech, media, political, and financial interests also happens to comprise the demographic makeup of the Sun Valley retreat. The epitome of growth-at-all-costs mindset In the year since Zaslav said at Sun Valley that he preferred the candidate who would best allow companies to 'consolidate,' Zaslav's company has done the opposite. Warner Bros Discovery announced last month that it will split into two companies —and that Zaslav's pay will be 'significantly reduced.' This despite Zaslav's much hoped-for deregulation coming to pass. Although WBD's fate would likely have been the same no matter who won last November, other media conglomerates might not say the same. The July 2024 merger deal between Paramount and Skydance was reportedly the talk of Sun Valley last summer. However, Trump's handpicked FCC chair has since slowed approval of the merger, creating the appearance that it would be contingent on Paramount settling a $16 million Trump lawsuit against Paramount-owned CBS News, for alleged 'unfair' editing in an episode of 60 Minutes last fall. On July 2, Paramount announced that it would settle the lawsuit, despite legal experts dismissing the suit as 'meritless and absurd.' This decision could set a dangerous precedent for press freedom, and may very well have a direct impact on how Americans receive their news going forward. It's also a sterling example of growth-at-all-costs mindset—the pernicious force that drives companies to conduct mass layoffs in order to please shareholders, jam AI into every aspect of consumer goods and services, and support whichever political candidate promises to be best for business. With its cloistered dealmaking by the biggest names in tech, finance, and media, Sun Valley is the epitome of growth-at-all-costs mindset. At any other moment, it might have been easier to separate the event from all the political and social turmoil of 2025, but coming so soon after the signing of Trump's tax bill, which is expected to kick 17 million Americans off of healthcare while giving venture capitalists a $17 billion loophole, it's nearly impossible to ignore. The masters of the universe gathering this week in Idaho don't seem to care if growth at all costs ends up literally costing everything —as long as it's somebody else who pays.
New York Times
11-07-2025
- Business
- New York Times
Nantucket's Workers Are Living on the Margins
As private jets and superyachts arrive on Nantucket for the summer season, full-time residents and government officials are warning that the Massachusetts island must shake up the housing market so that the local work force can afford to live there. Around 65 percent of the island's nearly 12,000 housing units are occupied by seasonal residents. The median home price is around $2.5 million, according to data from the local housing agency and an island real estate brokerage. That leaves little housing for workers on an island where a decades-long divide of the haves and have-nots has reached a tipping point, town leaders say. The island town of charming cobblestone streets, lined with shops selling handmade $400 caftans and high-end restaurants offering $50 lobster rolls, is experiencing the same imbalance that has racked other vacation destinations. In Spain, seasonal workers live in tent cities on Ibiza. Day laborers in the Hamptons have formed encampments. In Frisco, Colo., ski instructors, E.R. nurses and others can live in their cars and vans in a parking lot, if they can show proof that they are working in the area. 'Nantucket has 10 years or less before the entire island is owned by island conservation entities or seasonal homeowners,' said Brian Sullivan, 50, who is a principal broker at Fisher Real Estate and has lived on Nantucket for 28 years. Even families living on the island, earning well into six-figures, are struggling to find affordable options. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Fox News
10-07-2025
- Business
- Fox News
Wealthy travelers use invite-only WhatsApp groups to find and share private jet seats at discount prices
Even billionaires like discounts. An invite-only WhatsApp group for one-percent fliers is one of several used by travelers to buy and sell seats on private jets on certain routes in an effort to save money while still wanting to travel in luxury. The group focuses on routes like New York to Palm Beach, Aspen to Southern California, Texas to Cabo, and other prime destinations and vacation spots, The Wall Street Journal reported. "They'll go in a chat and say, 'Hey, I'm going to Aspen on August 1. Who wants to split a plane with me?'" Peter Minikes, who runs private-jet charter company Priority One Jets, told the newspaper. Nick Molina, a 57-year-old investor and former startup entrepreneur in Key Biscayne, Fla., was sitting in the American Express Centurion Lounge at New York's LaGuardia Airport and chatting with a stranger about flight delays when she asked him whether he would considered flying private. "She was telling me about this WhatsApp group," he said. "She offered to get me added." Enrico Scarda, 56, who sold his own jet last year and still flies private, is a member of the same 676-person group as Molina. "I guess, at first, I was a little hesitant about having a stranger meet you on the plane," Scarda said. "But after the three or four times that I either bought a seat or sold a seat, I realized it's all pretty much the same types of people." Members of the group buy and sell seats on private planes for a number of reasons, such as avoiding long Transportation Security Administration (TSA) lines or avoiding baggage fees and full-body scans. Kaden Green, a 20-year-old private-jet broker, is active on many of these private chats and has started his own chat dedicated to private flights between Europe and the United States. Arik Kislin, an investor, started a separate 23-person "Turks Private Jet Group" for travelers to Turks and Caicos, the report states. "I do understand that sometimes you don't want to spend $25,000 to $30,000 going up to New York, but you're OK spending three or four [thousand]," Kislin said. Plane operators typically must be certified under Part 135 if they receive any money over their pro rata share of cost, aviation attorney Steve Taber said. If aircraft operators are found in violation of Part 135 FAA rules, they face civil penalties, according to aviation attorney Mary-Caitlin Ray. FAA officials have since begun to monitor Instagram accounts and Facebook groups where users sell private jet seats for profit, Taber said.
Forbes
07-07-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Forbes Daily: Big Week Ahead For Trump's Tariffs And Trade Deal Policy
There's one less-discussed group that's getting a boost from the GOP's One Big Beautiful Bill: private jet owners. The spending package permanently restores the 100% 'bonus depreciation' law, which permits businesses to write off the full amount of qualifying items the year they were purchased and was previously set to expire by 2027. And while bonus depreciation applies to a variety of physical items, its creation led to a boom in jet sales in the past decade. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that the permanent establishment of 100% bonus depreciation would cost taxpayers $378 billion over a decade. People look on as law enforcement and volunteers continue to search for missing people near Camp Mystic, the site of where at least 20 girls went missing after flash flooding in Hunt, Texas, on July 5, 2025. RONALDO SCHEMIDT/AFP via Getty Images Flash flooding in Central Texas killed at least 81 people over the July 4 weekend, including 28 children, and recovery and rescue efforts are ongoing. Blame is swirling over preparedness and whether residents were properly alerted, and the National Weather Service was one of several federal agencies targeted by DOGE's cost-cutting efforts. President Donald Trump's 90-day pause on his sweeping tariffs is set to expire Wednesday, he pledged to send letters to at least a dozen countries imposing rates as high as 70%, the latest in his administration's start-and-stop trade saga. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said there are likely to be a 'flurry' of deals made before this week's deadline, as Trump suggested countries would have to start paying their new tariff rates on August 1 'in pretty much all cases.' MORE : Trump on Sunday night denounced the BRICS bloc of nations as 'Anti-American' and warned that any country adopting its policies will face an additional 10% tariff, as the group of developing economies including Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa held its annual summit. Trump didn't clarify if he intends to impose levies on all members of BRICS or if he has issues with any specific policies. Hiring topped economists' forecasts last month, a welcome sign for the labor market despite recession warnings. Still, the seemingly good news means investors could wait longer for relief from the Federal Reserve on interest rates, as the data 'completely dispels [the] case for imminent rate cuts' wrote Seema Shah, Principal Asset Management's chief global strategist. Despite the recent hype around stablecoins, Americans are highly unlikely to change how they pay for goods on a widespread basis. International payments are the clearest use case for stablecoins so far, according to one Stripe executive, and they are becoming popular among consumers in emerging markets in Latin America and Africa, but there are few incentives for those in developed countries to adopt them. WEALTH + ENTREPRENEURSHIP 'I don't live an expensive lifestyle. And my retirement is my business. We don't need [retirement funds] because we're not going to retire,' says Pat Neal. GUERIN BLASK FOR FORBES Homebuilding mogul Pat Neal has built a $1.2 billion fortune despite not owning any bonds or public stocks, largely thanks to his company Neal Communities, which has put up 25,000 houses in Florida. 'I like controlling my own future,' says Neal, who sells undeveloped home lots when he requires additional cash. Paylocity founder Steve Sarowitz suddenly shut down his charitable foundation in May amid the legal drama and threats surrounding the saga between actor Blake Lively, Sarowitz and his business partner Justin Baldoni, Lively's co-star in the film It Ends with Us. Though several media outlets blamed Wayfarer's shuttering in part on financial difficulties arising from the legal battle, that's not likely the case: While experts say the hefty legal, security and PR expenses could already total $40 million, Sarowitz still has an estimated $2.3 billion fortune. MONEY + POLITICS President Donald Trump signed his signature spending bill on the July 4 deadline he had set, as the legislation will slash federal Medicaid spending, extend Trump's tax cuts and phase out the wind and solar tax credit, among other changes. The bill will impact millions of Americans and businesses, whether it's a new, temporary deduction for seniors, an increased child tax credit or a higher SALT (State and Local Tax) cap. It's slated to increase federal deficits over the next 10 years by nearly $3.3 trillion, per the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. TRAVEL + LIFESTYLE Izipizi's founders (from left): Xavier Aguera, Quentin Courtier and Charles Brun IZIPIZI The French founders of affordable luxury eyewear company Izipizi have grown their brand to one that generates nearly $60 million in annual revenue. But Izipizi has a different approach than competitor Warby Parker, focusing on brick-and-mortar stores rather than a direct-to-consumer strategy. Now, the company is eyeing a U.S. expansion, and looking to launch its first American retail location next year. TRENDS + EXPLAINERS Larger, wealthy universities—including some that have been targeted by the Trump Administration—will face a higher tax on their endowments' investment earnings as a result of President Donald Trump's budget and tax bill. But some smaller schools will get a tax break: Forbes identified at least 26 wealthy colleges that are likely subject to the endowment tax now, but will be exempt next year based on their size. DAILY COVER STORY This Secretive Company Built An Empire By Hawking Bad Financial And Health Advice To Seniors On Facebook ILLUSTRATION BY PHILIP SMITH FOR FORBES; FANATIC STUDIO/GETTY IMAGES In a roughly 57-minute video, a white-haired man in a checkered shirt is sitting in a blurred hallway. He speaks slowly: 'With Donald Trump taking the White House and RFK Jr. now positioned to dismantle the uniparty's corrupt FDA … multibillion dollar drug conglomerates, some of Big Pharma's oldest and most prominent, will be in a desperate race to flood our nation with poison.' The man urges 'seniors like you and me' to join the online 'Health Sciences Institute,' where they can learn about alleged 'remarkable medical breakthroughs' that the government and pharmaceutical companies 'have been intentionally hiding.' (The Institute's website contains a disclaimer stating that its content should not be interpreted as personal medical advice.) The man's video is one of many of longform advertisements produced by The Agora and its sprawling conglomerate of subsidiaries, which have spent decades cashing in on Americans' growing distrust in government, financial institutions and healthcare providers. The Agora makes its money by selling subscriptions to 'natural health' newsletters that are a vector for its wellness supplements business, as well as investment advice newsletters that can cost thousands of dollars a year. It says it is a '1.5bn+ company,' and its subsidiaries pour millions each month into advertising on Facebook and Instagram. But a Forbes investigation into hundreds of Agora-linked ads domains, and opaque social media accounts—and interviews with six people who have worked for Agora companies—reveal a company that has found success by misleading vulnerable people. WHY IT MATTERS Despite regulatory action from the FTC in recent years, The Agora seems to have done little to change its ways—and it's poised to continue its practices at a moment when Trump has gutted consumer protection enforcement, social media companies have taken their proverbial feet off the gas when it comes to taking down misleading messages, and mistrust in institutions is at an all-time high. As Bonnie Patten, executive director of the nonprofit consumer protection group Truth in Advertising, told Forbes , 'This is the perfect storm for a company like Agora to manipulate consumers in the U.S.' MORE AI Generated Pro-Iran Propaganda Is Flooding TikTok, Instagram And YouTube FACTS + COMMENTS Teenage drivers are on their phone more than one-fifth of the time they're behind the wheel, a new study shows, though most respondents said they understand the risk. The most common reasons were to be entertained, text or follow a map: 21%: The average percentage of each drive that teens said they spend on their phones, the survey found More than a quarter: The share of those instances that lasted two seconds or longer, which is shown to significantly increase the risk of a crash or near crash 235: The number of people killed in crashes involving distracted drivers between the ages of 15 and 19 in 2022, according to the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia's Teen Driver Source STRATEGY + SUCCESS The One Big Beautiful Bill will transform taxes for millions of Americans: The legislation provides an exemption of $25,000 of tip income for certain professions, an additional $6,000 deduction for taxpayers ages 65 and older, and an increase in the cap on state and local tax deductions to $40,000. Plus, the federal estate tax exemption will increase to $15 million. VIDEO Centibillionaire and Tesla CEO Elon Musk informally announced a new political party Saturday, after breaking with Republicans and former ally President Donald Trump over their tax megabill. What is the name of the party? A. xParty B. DOGE Party C. Never Trump Party D. America Party Check your answer. Thanks for reading! This edition of Forbes Daily was edited by Sarah Whitmire and Chris Dobstaff
Yahoo
04-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Bombardier flies high while analysts soured on one of the Big Three telecoms
The week may have been short, but there was no shortage of analysts' investing notes breaking down some of the stocks that should be on investors' radars. Keep reading to find out why Bombardier took off and why gold stocks aren't the only commodity equities that are glittering. Bombardier Inc. (BBD/B) was flying high this week with the stock reaching its highest level since 2011 on news of a massive deal for the purchase of 50 private jets from the Montreal-based planemaker. Shares closed Wednesday up 21 per cent on news of the US$1.7 billion deal that could morph into a US$4 billion contract if the anonymous buyer exercises an option for 70 more aircraft. BMO Capital Markets analyst Fadi Chamoun raised his price target for the shares to $150 from $130, while Desjardins Securities analyst Benoit Poirier raised his target to $175. 'The business aviation cycle remains on firm footing and the recent significant order for 50 aircraft announced on June 30 further solidifies the outlook,' Chamoun said in a note. Shares of the planemaker failed to lift off in the early part of the year as tariff worries weighed them down. But, the clouds lifted in early April as tariff concerns eased, Bloomberg Intelligence analysts said. That cleared the runway for a steady climb to Wednesday's gain. Bombardier shares closed Friday at $149.75, up almost 30 per cent for the week. With a new quarter underway, RBC Capital Markets has updated its Top 30 global ideas for stocks. 'The Top 30 list is built around bottom-up best ideas that we also view as offering attractive positioning in the current environment,' Graeme Pearson and Mark Odendahl, co-heads of global research, said in a note. Among the Canadian additions to the list are Barrick Mining Corp. (ABX) and Brookfield Corp. (BN). In the case of Barrick, RBC said the Toronto-based gold miner is trading at an 'unusually large discount to peers.' The Capital Markets team said share buybacks and continuing strength in gold prices are among the keys to driving returns, while cautioning that some patience might be called for before seeing returns. RBC has a price target of $35.24 for Barrick and $110.27 for Brookfield. Barrick closed Friday at $29.18. Brookfield closed at $87.39. Meanwhile, a few Toronto-listed companies held on to their spots on the list, including Alimentation Couche-Tard Inc. (ATD), Canadian Pacific Kansas City Ltd. (CP) and Constellation Software Inc. (CSU). RBC has price targets of $94 for retail giant Couche-Tard, $127 for Canadian Pacific and $5,700 for Constellation. RBC likes Montreal-based Couche-Tard for a recovery in consumer spending, improvements in procurement and the opportunity for more acquisitions. It remains hot on Canadian Pacific as it believes the purchase of Kansas City Southern Railway 'significantly improves network reach.' On Constellation: 'We believe that Constellation Software is likely to generate one of the highest returns for shareholders over the long term in our coverage universe,' RBC said. Couche-Tard closed at $69.13, CP at $81.03 and Constellation at $5,005.00. BMO Capital Markets is making the call that there's reason for some investing optimism where two of Canada's three major wireless providers are concerned. 'The wireless pricing environment appears to be improving (becoming less negative) with operators raising prices in April and largely maintaining those levels through the quarter,' Tim Casey, telecom, media and cable analyst at BMO, said in a note. He raised his price targets for Rogers Communications Inc. (RCI/B) to $57 and Telus Corp. (T) to $24. Rogers completed a $7 billion financing deal to help close the purchase of BCE Inc.'s share of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment Ltd., with Casey noting, 'Rogers' sports assets provide significant upside potential.' For Telus, Casey said the Canadian-radio Television and Telecommunications Commission's recent decision on wholesale fibre is a 'tailwind.' Rogers closed at $44.04 on Friday and Telus closed at $22.03. BCE Inc. the remaining telco of the Big Three, was noticeably absent from BMO's upgrade note for Telus and Rogers. But it was on CIBC Capital Markets' radar. The company's beleaguered stock, down 10 per cent year to date, took a blow this week, falling as much as 3.2 per cent intraday when CIBC downgraded its rating to neutral from its previous rating last summer of outperform. Rogers is up 1.2 per cent from the start of the year and Telus is up almost 11 per cent. CIBC has a price target of $33. BCE rebounded on Friday to close at 30.84. Prices for copper have risen on the spectre of U.S. tariffs and now analysts at RBC Capital Markets think that equities have finally caught up with the commodity. 'North American copper equities under coverage are up 14 per cent year to date, significantly outperforming the LME (London Metals Exchange) copper price, up four per cent despite materially underperforming in Q1,' equity analysts Sam Crittenden and Harrison Reynolds said in a note. Preferred names in the copper mining space for the pair include Hudbay Minerals Inc. (HBM), Capstone Copper Corp. (CS) and First Quantum Minerals Ltd. (FM). They have a price target of $17 for Hudbay, $12 for Capstone and $25 for First Quantum. The trio of companies closed at $14.55, $8.58 and $25.07, respectively. Why BMO thinks Costco shares still have room to run and other calls from the week in stocks The week in stocks: Empire, Algoma Steel, and why the case for the trade in war 'keeps getting stronger' • Email: gmvsuhanic@ Every week, the Financial Post breaks down the most interesting developments in the week's world of investing, from top performers to surprising analyst calls and stocks to have on your radar. Are you an investor looking for stock ideas and market insight? Sign up for the weekly FP Investor Newsletter here to get the best of the Financial Post's investing news, analysis and expert commentary straight to your inbox.
