COMPLIANCE

Scoping it out

On March 6, the SEC released its long-awaited climate rule. The final rule, which will affect some 2,800 US and 540 non-US companies, has been scaled back from the proposal the SEC put out in March 2022. But, at 800+ pages, it’s still plenty robust.

Perhaps the most notable change from the proposal is the elimination of the requirement to report Scope 3 emissions, or emissions produced by a company’s supply chain. Now, only large accelerated filers and accelerated filers will need to disclose information about their emissions, and only about their Scope 1 and/or Scope 2 emissions, or those emissions they directly produce and those related to their energy consumption.

The SEC rule will ultimately provide investors and other stakeholders with a more “holistic” picture of companies’ climate risks, Wes Bricker, vice chair and US trust solutions co-leader at PwC, told CFO Brew.

It “takes the topic of climate risk disclosure and more comprehensively incorporates” it from business outlook, scenario planning, and risk management through to outcomes as captured in financial statements, he said. That allows stakeholders to “see the connection from risk to financial effect,” he said.

For more on the new climate rule, click here.—CV

PRESENTED BY MINDBRIDGE

Can’t spell audit without AI

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Sure, sure. But what exactly can MindBridge do for you? For starters, their explainable AI turbocharges finance and internal audit teams, giving them a massive leg up in the audit race. It’s like having a sidekick who’s always got your back. And that’s just the beginning.

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EARNINGS

Timber!

If you’re having a bad day, at least you’re not Dollar Tree in human form, because then you’d really be having a rough time.

The company, which operates more than 16,700 stores and owns the Family Dollar chain, said it would close nearly 1,000 Family Dollar stores in the coming years. It plans to close 600 locations in 2024, and then 370 additional stores over the next few years as leases expire.

Dollar Tree acquired Family Dollar for $8.5 billion in 2015, and, despite fighting a bidding war to win the company, it has largely struggled to incorporate the latter brand successfully.

Both stores target lower-income consumers, but slight discrepancies between the two brands have proved challenging to merge: Family Dollar outposts tend to be located in urban areas, with a focus on groceries and other household basics, while the more suburban Dollar Tree also caters to middle-income consumers.

More broadly, dollar stores have faced challenges amid consumer spending shifts, CNBC reported, and have struggled to compete with larger national retailers that can respond to consumer demand more swiftly.

Click here to see how bad things seem for Dollar Tree.—NP

ECONOMY

Stay on target

The latest inflation numbers suggest that lower interest rates may appear around the same time as our newly chiseled beach bods (hopefully at least one of those things proves true).

The Consumer Price Index for February grew 0.4% for the month and 3.2% year over year, according to the latest inflation report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The folks at CNBC noted the annual bump was ever-so-slightly ahead of the 3.1% Dow Jones consensus. That said, inflation remains above the Fed’s target of 2%.

In other words: Don’t expect the Fed to ease interest rates quite yet. Most economists estimate the first rate cut will occur in summer, according to the Associated Press.

Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell told Congress last week that “it will likely be appropriate” to start easing rates sometime this year. He also warned that taking action too soon could reverse the work the Fed has done to rein in inflation.

Click here to continue reading.—AZ

TOGETHER WITH CALM

The workforce has spoken. Find out what it has to say in Calm’s 2024 Voice of the Workplace Report. Get the scoop on workplace mental health trends and learn actionable takeaways for leaders. Here’s a not-so-surprising teaser: Financial woes are a top stressor for employees. Grab your copy of the full report.

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