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April 9th - Data from the U.S. Commerce Department shows that U.S. consumer spending barely increased in February amid persistent inflation. Meanwhile, the ongoing inflationary situation is expected to worsen further due to the Iran war. Inflation-adjusted consumer spending rose 0.1% from January. The core PCE index, excluding food and energy, rose 0.4% from January, while the Federal Reserves preferred core PCE price index recorded an annualized rate of 3.0%.On April 9th, data from the U.S. Department of Labor showed that initial jobless claims in the U.S. rose by 16,000 in the week ending April 4th, reaching a seasonally adjusted 219,000. Economists had previously expected 210,000. The low number of layoffs is providing support to the labor market, and there are currently no signs that employers are laying off workers due to the oil price shock caused by the U.S.-Israel war with Iran. The labor market is in what economists call a "low hiring, low laying" situation, which they attribute to the uncertainty caused by Trumps import tariffs and large-scale deportations. Although non-farm payrolls rebounded by 178,000 in March, the average length of time unemployed reached 11.4 weeks, the longest in nearly four and a half years. Continuing jobless claims fell to 1.794 million, but this may be because people have exhausted their unemployment benefits, with most states limiting claims to 26 weeks.The final reading for U.S. corporate earnings in the fourth quarter was 5.7% annualized, compared to 4.7% previously.The final reading of the U.S. fourth-quarter PCE price index was 2.9% year-on-year, compared with 2.8% in the previous quarter.The final reading of the US fourth-quarter GDP price index was 3.7%, below the expected 3.8% and the previous reading of 3.80%.

Hershey, Nestle, and Cargill win the dismissal of a claim of child slavery in the United States

Charlie Brooks

Jun 29, 2022 11:06


Tuesday, a federal judge in Washington, D.C. dismissed a case brought by eight Malians claiming child slavery on Ivory Coast cocoa plantations against Hershey Co (NYSE:HSY), Nestle SA (SIX:NESN), Cargill Inc, and others.


U.S. District Judge Dabney Friedrich determined that the proposed class action plaintiffs lacked legal standing to sue because they failed to prove a "traceable nexus" between the seven defendant companies and the individual farms where the plaintiffs worked.


She added that the plaintiffs did not adequately explain the role of intermediaries in the cocoa supply chain, and that the companies did not oversee actions in "free zones" where 70 to 80 percent of cocoa is farmed.


Mali and Ivory Coast share a border in West Africa.


The plaintiffs claimed they were trafficked as children after being approached by strangers who promised them employment for which they would be compensated, but did not pay them, threatened them with starvation if they did not work, and forced them to live in squalor.


Their attorney, Terry Collingsworth, said that the plaintiffs plan to file an appeal to "compel the businesses to keep their agreements and put an end to this dreadful system they have created."


Other defendants included Mars Inc, Mondelez International Inc (NASDAQ:MDLZ), Barry Callebaut AG, and Olam International Ltd.


In court filings, the seven defendants said that they "strongly abhor the practice of forced labor" and that they were addressing non-forced child labor in cocoa supply chains.


However, they contended that the plaintiffs' too broad legal theory may hold too many parties liable for forced child labor, including consumers and merchants who would benefit from lower prices.


In accordance with the Reauthorization of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act, the plaintiffs filed suit.


The Supreme Court of the United States rejected a similar case brought by six Malians against Cargill and Nestle under the Alien Tort Statute of 1789 in June of last year.


This was the most recent in a line of judgments denying access to federal courts based on human rights breaches occurring outside the United States.


Coubaly et al. v. Cargill Inc. et al., U.S. District Court, District of Columbia, case number 21-00386.


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