In other news, North Korea fired two additional missiles into the ocean this morning and then canceled future talks with South Korean President Moon Jae-in, who the North described as "impudent."
I guess they're done smiling for the cameras.
Meanwhile, half of corporate CFOs surveyed by Duke University say they expect the U.S. economy will shrink by the second quarter of 2020 and two-thirds of them see a recession by the end of 2020.
Finally, CEO pay has increased by over 1000 percent over the last 40 years according to new research from the Economic Policy Institute and their compensation has increased more than the value of the companies they represent.
Top corporate executives have seen their pay grow by more than 1,000% over the past 40 years, nearly 100 times the rate of average workers, according to a study released this week. [...]
In terms of pay, benefits and the value of stock options when they are exercised, total CEO compensation growth was 1,007.5% from 1978 to 2018. That compares with a wage increase of just 11.9% for what the liberal-leaning institute terms “average workers.” Using another measure of compensation, which takes into account the realized value of the options when they were granted, the CEO comp growth still stood at 940.3%. [...]
In comparative terms, CEOs now make on average 278 times the average worker’s salary, using the options-exercised formula. That’s up from 58 times in 1989 and 20 times in 1965, according to the institute’s figures though, it is down from the 2000 peak of 368 to 1. The total compensation growth since 1978 has outstripped that of the stock market growth of 706.7% and the wages of “very high earners,” which have grown 339.2%.
I barely made it through the day without falling asleep at my desk. Late summer allergies are the worst.
Have a good weekend.