On The Deals Shaping Our Economy
As ChatGPT turns three, the "experiment" is over: AI is fundamentally reshaping the corporate pyramid, freezing salaries, and changing job titles.
Why it matters: The traditional "pyramid" model of consulting—hiring armies of junior analysts—is crumbling.
Firms like McKinsey, BCG, and Bain are freezing starting salaries for the third year in a row as AI automates entry-level tasks the Financial Times reports.
Accenture is rebranding nearly 800,000 employees as "reinventors," a move critics call "corporate absurdity."
Productivity vs. Jobs: While AI completes tasks 100x faster, workers spend 41% of their time fact-checking the output.
Hiring Shift: Firms are pivoting toward "mid-career, specialized" staff rather than generalist graduates.
The takeaway: Three years in, the "AI bubble" hasn't popped—it has just made the corporate ladder much harder to climb for new graduates.
Japan’s Butterfly Effect 📉
Global bond markets took a hit Monday after Bank of Japan (BoJ) Governor Kazuo Ueda signaled a potential interest rate hike later this month, sparking a "butterfly effect" across the world's financial systems.
Driving the news: Ueda’s hawkish comments sent the yen up and bond prices down. This rippled into the U.S., where Treasury yields rose as traders scaled back bets on Federal Reserve rate cuts in 2026.
By the numbers:
The probability of a December BoJ rate hike jumped to 75%.
Japanese two-year government bond yields hit their highest level since 2008.
Bitcoin fell 7%, dragging down tech stocks.
Zoom in: The fear is that as Japanese rates normalize, domestic investors will repatriate funds, pulling cash out of foreign bond markets just as sovereign issuance is surging.
🇿🇦 The Answer is No
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa is pushing back hard against claims by the incoming Trump administration that South Africa could be barred from the 2026 G20 summit hosted by the U.S.
Why it matters: Tensions are boiling over following Trump's criticism of South African domestic policy and tariffs.
Despite the friction, Ramaphosa insists his nation holds founding member status and cannot be unilaterally excluded.
The big picture: Ramaphosa addressed the nation Sunday to assert South Africa's rights, even as legal experts and trade officials worry about the economic impact of Trump's 30% tariffs and rhetoric regarding land expropriation.
"South Africa is one of the founding members of the G20, and South Africa is therefore a member of the G20 in its own name and right. We will continue to participate as a full, active and constructive member of the G20."
The bottom line: Ramaphosa remains "upbeat," betting that diplomatic protocols and sovereign equality will outweigh political pressure from the White House.
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