The commercial real estate sell-off may be coming to a head, as banks who carry these loans on their books may be looking to cash them out at a discounted rate.
As losses could reach as high as 8%, the questions about what CFOs should do with their company's office spaces are becoming more pressing. Meanwhile, speculation continues about how long generative artificial intelligence will take to disrupt advanced economies. Can combining a more flexible workplace and AI-powered tools deliver a productivity boost in the next few years? We'll have to wait and see.
Is the U.S. debt ceiling drama behind us? On Friday, credit rating firm Fitch said it was not removing the U.S. from "negative watch." It explained that "repeated political standoffs around the debt limit and last-minute suspensions before the x-date (when the Treasury’s cash position and extraordinary measures are exhausted) lowers confidence in governance on fiscal and debt matters."
On the lesser-known-holidays calendar, today is national moonshine day, followed by national fishing and boating week. So, if you like booze and boats, maybe you should consider requesting some PTO this week. But leave the piloting to the non-drinkers.
For those who tend to keep it more low-key, you can get outside and enjoy yourself for world environment day, first celebrated in 1973.
(Trial Balance is CFO’s weekly preview of stories, stats, and events to help you prepare.)
Part 1: Conference Season and the State of Finance for SMBs
Reporter Adam Zaki details the happenings and highlights at last week's Gartner CFO & Finance Executive Conference and this week’s CFO Leadership Council conference East in Boston. (June 9)
Zaki will also cover a new Datarails survey being published this week, which shows how CFOs of SMBs are handling the current economic situation. The data also highlights how their opinions about the overall economy and its future greatly differ from those in charge of larger companies. (June 7)
Part 2: Economic Calendar
Monday — The Apple Worldwide Developers Conference features CEO Tim Cook revealing possibly Apple’s biggest product launch since the iPad — a mixed-reality headset.
The Peterson Institute for International Economics holds a two-day conference on the macroeconomic impacts of climate action. Speakers include Jason Furman of the Harvard Kennedy School.
The AICPA & CIMA’s Engage 2023 accounting conference kicks off in Las Vegas (and online) and runs through Thursday.
Tuesday — The World Bank unveils the summer edition of its Global Economic Prospects report.
The three-day Bloomberg Invest conference starts, featuring some heavy hitters from the world of asset management.
The Financial Accounting Standards Advisory Council (FASAC) will meet to discuss segment reporting, accounting for and disclosure of software costs, and updates on other FASB projects. The meeting will be live-streamed from the FASB website.
Wednesday — The SEC holds an open meeting to discuss fraud prevention in security-based swaps; an amendment to the consolidated audit trail funding model for tracking securities transactions and broker-dealers; and the potential consolidation of new rules concerning credit ratings and alternative measures of creditworthiness.
Data on consumer credit and the U.S. trade deficit is due.
The OECD releases its economic outlook.
Thursday — Initial jobless claims numbers are projected to be flat with last week.
At 10:15 a.m. Eastern, the House Committee on Education and the Workforce holds a hearing on “Examining the Policies and Priorities of the Department of Labor.” Julie Su (right), the nation’s acting secretary of labor, will be the featured witness.
Friday — Racing fans prepare for Saturday’s 24 Hours of Lemans road race in France, starting at 10 a.m. Eastern time.
Earnings this week — Ciena, J.M. Smucker, Cracker Barrel, Campbell Soup, J. Jill, Signet Jewelers, and China’s Nio.
Part 3: Uncollectible Debt
June’s Metric of the Month column from APQC explores how to benchmark and track uncollectible balances to keep bad debt from eating into your cash reserves. APQC CFO Perry Wiggins points out the warning signs of uncollectible balances and describes some strategies for bringing in cash. (June 7)
Stat of the Week
42
The number of pending enforcement cases the Securities and Exchange Commission had to drop after it found one of its databases inadvertently let SEC enforcement staff view materials meant for commissioners and attorneys who advise the SEC on rulings.