DINNER PARTY INTEL...
The topics you have to be able to discuss this week
1. Tick-tock for tech
Is it time to be more cautious around tech stocks? Chinese internet giant Tencent has tumbled 25% from its January peak, losing about $140bn in market value, according to Bloomberg. The company, Asia’s second largest, has been dogged by concern that growth in its mobile-gaming unit is slowing.
The drop comes after Facebook lost $120bn in a day last week. Bloomberg says investors are beginning to question whether the best days are over for technology stocks, which have led a nine-year boom in global equities.
2. On again, off again
A week after trading threats with Hassan Rouhani, US President Donald Trump says he is prepared to meet with the Iranian president with no conditions. At a news conference this week — three months after he withdrew the US from an international nuclear accord with which Iran had complied — Trump said he was prepared to “meet with anybody”.
Secretary of state Mike Pompeo later backtracked by citing preconditions for such a meeting. Iran is unlikely to agree to these.
3. World’s best job?
We’ve found our dream job. Ferrero, maker of the Nutella chocolate hazelnut spread, is in search of 60 tasters for its chocolate and hazelnut products. And, for the first time, the company hopes to employ tasters who are “nonprofessionals”. They are officially called “sensory judges” and will undergo training to hone their senses of taste and smell.
An advert for the role was posted to the Openjobmetis website on behalf of Soremartec Italia, Ferrero’s research & development company.