Knicks Fans Priced Out of MSG Head to Texas for NBA Finals

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While supplies last, ends June 30th, in terms at aka.ms slash college PC.

Alex Ossola (0:33)

Meta starts courting business customers with its new AI agents.

Meghan Bobrowsky (0:37)

Meta is a consumer ads business, and this is really them saying, we're going after the enterprise business.

Alex Ossola (0:43)

Plus, federal regulators are investigating whether former congressman George Santos traded illegally on prediction markets. And the NBA finals tip off tonight, but high ticket prices have spurred some Nix fans to see their team far from home. It's Wednesday, June 3rd. I'm Alex Ossola for the Wall Street Journal. This is the PM Edition of What's News, the top headlines and business stories that move the world today.

We're looking today at some retail earnings. Macy's has raised its outlook for the year after its sales for the most recent quarter rose 1.8 percent. A key retail metric, same store sales rose 3 percent. To talk about what's driving this growth, I'm joined now by Suzanne Kappner, who covers retail for the journal. Suzanne, Macy's is in the middle of this turnaround plan under its CEO, Tony Spring. He is focused on improving the merchandise they have on sale. They're adding more higher-end brands. They're sprucing up stores. What do these quarters numbers tell us about that push?

Suzanne Kapner (1:40)

Well, they're building on some recent success. For Macy's overall, this was their fourth consecutive quarter of positive same-store sales, which is impressive for a department store. We all know how challenged department stores have been. It's really a big boat. He's trying to turn around and we are starting to see the fruits of those labors.

Alex Ossola (1:59)

In the earnings, Bloomingdale's was a standout. Its comparable sales rose more than 10 percent. Is this another example of the K-shaped economy where higher-income consumers are powering this growth?

Suzanne Kapner (2:11)

That's definitely part of it. Bloomingdale's has also benefited from the bankruptcy of the parent of Max and Neiman Marcus. It has also been doing a lot of work to improve the shopping experience. It's been getting new brands. They just added Chloe Ready to Wear. They have a big Prada shoe department in their 59th Street store. And Tony told me this morning that he's really seeing customers willing to pay up when the quality is there. And that means real leather jackets over vegan leather or linen pants over cotton.

Alex Ossola (2:44)

Zooming out a little bit from Macy's, we've been hearing pretty great earnings from several retailers this quarter. We were talking on the show yesterday about Victoria's Secret. That is all despite consumers saying they're like feeling pretty down about the economy. Is there a broader retail renaissance going on in the middle of all this?

Suzanne Kapner (3:01)

Some of these retailers are really hitting the mark. Victoria's Secret is another turnaround story, and they have a CEO who's been working really hard to re-spark that sexiness that the brand used to have without being off-color. They've come out with some new products that have really connected with shoppers. You've seen that with the Gap brand as well.

Some of it may tie into this 90s nostalgia that's fueling spending. J.Crew happens to be private, but they're benefiting from that too. Retailers that get it right, meaning they have the right product at the right price at the right time, are doing well even if there are some broader challenges in the economy.

Alex Ossola (3:39)

That was WSJ Reporter Suzanne Kapner. Thanks, Suzanne.

Suzanne Kapner (3:42)

Thank you.

Alex Ossola (3:44)

Macy's stock rose 0.6%.

The Journal has learned that Pershing Square, Bill Ackman's hedge fund, is said to make some $600 million on his investment in Universal Music Group. The firm is selling its remaining stake in Universal after the world's largest music company rejected its recent takeover offer. In Markets, stocks reversed course today, retreating from yesterday's record highs. The Dow fell the most, closing down 1.2%. Oil prices rose, with Brent crude futures up almost 2%. Traders are losing faith that a deal to end the Iran War will materialize quickly. And Bitcoin fell for its fourth straight day today, trading over just $65,000 at 4 p.m. Eastern. One thing pushing its price down, earlier this week, Strategy, the largest corporate accumulator of the digital token, sold a portion of its massive holdings for the first time since the depths of the crypto winter in 2022