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Instablog9ja
You Can Read The Night Before Your Exam And Pass— Lady Writes From Experience
~0.2 mins read

A lady has written from experience that you can read the night before your exam and still pass the exams.

She said she has done this in all 8 semesters, secured first position from 1st semester to 8th semester enjoyed the university life and studied the last night.

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Investopedia
What To Expect In The Markets This Week
~2.4 mins read

This week will bring fresh data on inflation, the housing market, and retail sales after a volatile week for markets amid worries about the health of the economy. A handful of Federal Reserve speakers will also give remarks during the week, potentially offering more insights.

Investors could get more updates on the health of consumer spending as well, when major retailers including Walmart (WMT) and Home Depot (HD) report earnings.

Tuesday's Producer Price Index (PPI) will offer an update on wholesale inflation, while Wednesday's release of the July Consumer Price Index (CPI) will show whether consumer inflation will continue its downward trend after dropping to an annual rate of 3% in the prior month. 

The latest inflation data could influence the Federal Reserve's stance on interest rates. While easing price pressures could raise expectations of an interest rate cut, a higher reading would raise worries that rates will remain elevated.

Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic, St. Louis Fed President Alberto Musalem, Philadelphia Fed President Patrick Harker, and Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee are all scheduled to deliver remarks this week, potentially offering more insights. 

Market watchers will also get sentiment surveys from home builders on Wednesday and consumers on Friday. Retail sales numbers on Thursday will follow a surprisingly strong July report that showed consumers still had an appetite for spending, and housing starts data on Friday will show whether builders are able to follow up on June’s increase in construction, potentially providing relief to a housing market struggling to build up inventory.  

Investors will likely be watching to see if Thursday’s weekly initial jobless claims data will continue to show resilience in the labor market as well, after last week's report helped ease concerns about the economy.

Along with retail sales data, Thursday will bring a quarterly update from the nation’s largest retailer, Walmart. The big box chain surprised analysts with 6% year-over-year revenue growth in the first quarter, and the company raised its full-year guidance.

Meanwhile, Home Depot is expected to post slight declines in sales and profits from the same time last year, as inflation-weary consumers have pulled back on big-ticket spending for home improvement projects.

Investors could also get a look at international retail trends this week with reports from Chinese e-commerce giants Alibaba and JD.com. 

Cisco earnings on Tuesday could highlight tech infrastructure spending, while financial firms SunLife Financial and UBS are also scheduled to report.

Do you have a news tip for Investopedia reporters? Please email us at tips@investopedia.com

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Healthwatch
Does Sleeping With An Eye Mask Improve Learning And Alertness?
~3.8 mins read

Red old-fashioned alarm clock next to black sleep mask against a turquoise and white background

All of us have an internal clock that regulates our circadian rhythms, including when we sleep and when we are awake. And light is the single most important factor that helps establish when we should feel wakeful (generally during the day) and when we should feel sleepy (typically at night).

So, let me ask you a personal question: just how dark is your bedroom? To find out why that matters — and whether sleeping in an eye mask is worthwhile — read on.

How is light related to sleep?

Our circadian system evolved well before the advent of artificial light. As anyone who has been to Times Square can confirm, just a few watts of power can trick the brain into believing that it is daytime at any time of night. So, what's keeping your bedroom alight?

  • A tablet used in bed at night to watch a movie is more than 100 times brighter than being outside when there is a full moon.
  • Working on or watching a computer screen at night is about 10 times brighter than standing in a well-lit parking lot.
  • Light exposure at night affects the natural processes that help prepare the body for sleep. Specifically, your pineal gland produces melatonin in response to darkness. This hormone is integral for the circadian regulation of sleep.

    What happens when we are exposed to light at night?

    Being exposed to light at night suppresses melatonin production, changing our sleep patterns. Compared to sleeping without a night light, adults who slept next to a night light had shallower sleep and more frequent arousals. Even outdoor artificial light at night, such as street lamps, has been linked with getting less sleep.

    But the impact of light at night is not limited to just sleep. It's also associated with increased risk of developing depressive symptoms, obesity, diabetes, and high blood pressure. Light exposure misaligned with our circadian rhythms — that is, dark during the day and light at night — is one reason scientists believe that shift work puts people at higher risk for serious health problems.

    Could sleeping with an eye mask help?

    Researchers from Cardiff University in the United Kingdom conducted a series of experiments to see if wearing an eye mask while sleeping at night could improve certain measures of learning and alertness.

    Roughly 90 healthy young adults, 18 to 35 years of age, alternated between sleeping while wearing an eye mask or being exposed to light at night. They recorded their sleep patterns in a sleep diary.

    In the first part of the study, participants wore an intact eye mask for a week. Then during the next week, they wore an eye mask with a hole exposing each eye so that the mask didn't block the light.

    After sleeping with no light exposure (wearing the intact eye mask) and with minimal light exposure (the eye mask with the holes), participants completed three cognitive tasks on days six and seven of each week:

  • First was a paired-associate learning task. This helps show how effectively a person can learn new associations. Here the task was learning related word pairs. Participants performed better after wearing an intact eye mask during sleep in the days leading up to the test than after being exposed to light at night.
  • Second, the researchers administered a psychomotor vigilance test, which assesses alertness. Blocking light at night also improved reaction times on this task.
  • Finally, a motor skill learning test was given, which involved tapping a five-digit sequence in the correct order. For this task, there was no difference in performance whether participants had worn an intact eye mask or been exposed to light at night.
  • What else did the researchers learn?

    No research study is ever perfect, so it is important to take the conclusions above with a grain of salt.

    According to sleep diary data, there was no difference in the amount of sleep, nor in their perceptions of sleep quality, regardless of whether people wore an eye mask or not.

    Further, in a second experiment with about 30 participants, the researchers tracked sleep objectively using a monitoring device called the Dreem headband. They found no changes to the structure of sleep — for example, how much time participants spent in REM sleep — when wearing an eye mask.

    Should I rush out to buy an eye mask before an important meeting or exam?

    If you decide to try using an eye mask, you probably don't need to pay extra for overnight shipping. Instead, follow a chronobiologist's rule of thumb: "bright days, dark nights."

  • During the daytime, get as much natural daylight as you possibly can: go out to pick up your morning bagel from a local bakery, take a short walk during your afternoon lull at work.
  • In the evening, reduce your exposure to electronic devices such as your cell phone, and use the night-dimming modes on these devices. Make sure that you turn off all unnecessary lights. Finally, try to make your bedroom as dark as possible when you go to bed. This could mean turning the alarm clock next to your bed away from you or covering up the light on a humidifier.
  • Of course, you might decide a well-fitted, comfortable eye mask is a useful addition to your light hygiene toolkit. Most cost $10 to $20, so you may find yourself snoozing better and improving cognitive performance for the price of a few cups of coffee.

    Source: Harvard Health Publishing

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    Investopedia
    Top ExxonMobil Shareholders
    ~3.6 mins read

    ExxonMobil Corporation (XOM) is a multinational company that engages in the exploration and production of oil and gas, electric power generation, and coal and minerals operations. It also manufactures fuels, lubricants, and chemicals. ExxonMobil operates three business units: Upstream, Downstream, and Chemical.

    The top shareholders of ExxonMobil are Neil Chapman, Angela Braly, Steven Kandarian, Vanguard Group Inc., BlackRock Inc. (BLK), and State Street Corp.

    ExxonMobil has created a business division, ExxonMobil Low Carbon Solutions, to commercialize low-carbon technology solutions, including carbon capture and storage. The entity plans to invest $3 billion in lower-emission energy solutions through 2025.

    ExxonMobil's trailing 12-month revenue (TTM) was $340.6 billion as of August 2024. Its 12-month trailing net income was $40.69 billion. The company's market cap was about $523 billion at that time.

    This list reflects direct ownership. It doesn't include indirect ownership of shares or shares accessible through stock options.

    The term "insider" refers to people in senior management positions and members of the board of directors, as well as people or entities that own more than 10% of the company's stock. It has nothing to do with insider trading in this context.

    Neil Chapman held 856,908 shares of ExxonMobil as of May 24, 2024.

    Chapman serves as senior vice president at ExxonMobil. He's held the position since 2018. Chapman previously served as vice president of ExxonMobil Chemical Company’s global polyethylene business before he took on the position of executive assistant to the chairman of ExxonMobil in 2006. He became president of ExxonMobil Global Services Company in 2007 before ultimately taking on the role of senior vice president at ExxonMobil.

    Angela Braly owned 29,475 ExxonMobil shares as of Jan. 2, 2024.

    Braly has served as an independent director at ExxonMobil since 2016. She's the chairperson of the compensation committee and a member of the environment, safety, and public policy committee. Braley also has experience in portfolio management.

    Steven Kandarian held 23,000 shares of ExxonMobil as of Jan. 2, 2024.

    Kandarian was elected to the ExxonMobil board of directors in 2018. He's also served as the chairman, president, and CEO of MetLife Inc. since 2011 and 2012. He was MetLife's chief investment officer before taking on these roles.

    Institutional investors hold 57.82% of ExxonMobil's total shares outstanding as of August 2024.

    Vanguard Group owned 383.94 million shares of ExxonMobil as of March 31, 2024, representing 9.74% of total shares outstanding.

    Vanguard is known for its line of low-cost mutual funds and ETFs with over $8.6 trillion in global assets under management (AUM) as of Dec. 31, 2023. The Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) is one of the company's largest ETFs with about $461 billion in AUM as of August 2024. ExxonMobil makes up 1.12% of VOO's holdings.

    BlackRock owned 272.71 million shares of ExxonMobil, representing 6.92% of total shares outstanding as of March 31, 2024.

    The company is primarily a mutual fund and ETF management company with approximately $10.5 trillion in AUM in April 2024. The iShares Core S&P 500 ETF (IVV) is among one of BlackRock's largest ETFs with approximately $478 billion in AUM. ExxonMobil makes up about 1.18% of IVV's holdings.

    State Street owned 210.48 million shares of ExxonMobil as of March 31, 2024, representing 5.34% of total shares outstanding.

    The company is primarily a manager of mutual funds, ETFs, and other assets with approximately $4.1 trillion in AUM as of Dec. 31, 2023. The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY) is among one of State Street's largest ETFs with approximately $528 million in AUM. ExxonMobil made up 1.18% of SPY's total holdings as of Aug. 7, 2024.

    ExxonMobil was selling at about $119 per share on Aug. 9, 2024. Its 52-week range was about $95 to $123 at that time.

    ExxonMobil does pay quarterly dividends. The dividend yield was 3.21% as of early August 2024. The company boasts 41 years of dividend increases. Dividends are typically paid midway through the third month of each quarter.

    A total of 4,560 institutions held ExxonMobil shares as of Aug. 9, 2024.

    ExxonMobil Corporation produces oil, gas, lubricants, chemicals, and electric power worldwide. The company also maintains coal and minerals operations. It’s created a dedicated business division to commercialize low-carbon solutions. The company's market cap was about $523 billion midway through 2024.

    The top shareholders of ExxonMobil are Neil Chapman, Angela Braly, Steven Kandarian, Vanguard Group Inc., BlackRock Inc., and State Street Corp.

    Do you have a news tip for Investopedia reporters? Please email us at tips@investopedia.com

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    Instablog9ja
    #EndBadGovernance Protest Cost Nigeria’s Economy Over N500 Billion— Minister Of Industry, Trade And Investment
    ~0.6 mins read

    The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Doris Uzoka Anite has revealed that the economic sabotage from the ongoing EndBadGovernance protest is estimated at N500 billion.

    In a post shared on her official X handle, she lamented the deaths because of the protest and other damages caused by the protests.

    According to her post, around N52 billion worth of goods were destroyed while the d3ath toll from the protest had reached 21. She noted that the lootings from the protest are a setback to businesses and entrepreneurs across the country.

    She said, “The loss of lives during the protests is saddening. My thoughts are with the families affected. The looting, resulting in billions lost, is a severe setback for our economy and entrepreneurs. Let’s honour those we’ve lost by striving for more peaceful and constructive dialogue.”

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    Investopedia
    What Do Chain Restaurant Closures Say About The Economy?
    ~4.9 mins read

    You may have noticed that the Red Lobster or Applebees in your town is closing down, or that Boston Markets, which used to be everywhere, have all but vanished. What’s going wrong in the restaurant industry?Economic data shows and restaurant experts say there's no need to fret—the industry as a whole is likely growing—but changing currents of the economy, as well as specific circumstances for some restaurants, have left a handful of well-known brands struggling to survive. 

    “The restaurant industry is notoriously competitive,” Sara Senatore, a Bank of America analyst who specializes in restaurants, told Investopedia. “And in the current environment, what we're seeing is a return to intense competition.” 

    It’s easy to take a look at headlines and hear the hoofbeats of the Four Horsemen. 

    In June, seafood chain Red Lobster declared bankruptcy and closed down at least 50 locations, and asked a bankruptcy judge for permission to shutter 100 more. Applebee’s closed 35 more locations than it opened last quarter, according to parent company Dine Brands' latest earnings report. In January, TGI Fridays said it would close 36 “underperforming” locations. Boston Market, once a national rotisserie chicken chain, has closed hundreds of restaurants since 2023 and, as of March, was down to just 27 according to a report by , an industry trade magazine.

    But while some businesses struggle, others are gaining ground. For every Red Lobster that shutters, it seems, there is a Chipotle to take its place: the fast food burrito chain opened 52 locations in the second quarter alone, the company said in an earnings report in June.As a whole, restaurants are gaining more ground than they are losing, data suggests. The National Restaurant Association, a trade group for the industry, forecasts that restaurants will bring in a record $1 trillion in revenue in 2024, and add 200,000 jobs. Data on retail sales from the Census Bureau show the industry growing too, with sales at food service and drinking places—the category that includes restaurants—up 6% in the first six months of the year compared to the year before. 

    If the industry is healthy, why are closures grabbing all the attention?

    The closures may be particularly unnerving because they seem so sudden. For example, Red Lobster, a privately held company, was not required to file shareholder disclosures, so the public had little notice that a storm was brewing. On Red Lobster’s press website, the most recent news release before it filed for bankruptcy was headlined “Red Lobster Drops Music Tracks as Fresh as Their Cheddar Bay Biscuits.” 

    According to press reports after the fact, Red Lobster had been plagued by a unique set of troubles including questionable management by the private equity firm that owned it and an Endless Shrimp promotion gone wrong.“These are never things that just come out of nowhere,” Senatore said of mass restaurant closures. “There's a longer term pattern that leads to this. But they appear to be more sudden, whereas openings don't happen all at once.” 

    The economic upheavals of the last few years also may be a factor in the latest round of closures even if those closures do not constitute an apocalypse.Immediately after the pandemic, times were good for the restaurants that made it through. Diners had plenty of money in their pockets because of rapid wage growth, and a “revenge spending” mindset drove people to spend on dining out and other luxuries they had missed during lockdowns. 

    But that wage growth was a double-edged sword, as restaurants had to raise their own wages to attract and retain staff, and also faced higher costs for food and other expenses. Now, with household budgets straining under higher-than-normal inflation and elevated interest rates for loans, customers may have reached their limit to pay for increasingly expensive restaurant tabs. Restaurants that haven’t adapted to the new economic realities are being left behind, Senatore said. 

    There are signs that lower-income customers are eating out less and shifting their spending to cheaper restaurants, Evert Gruyaert, restaurant and food service leader at Deloitte, said. And restaurants can’t raise prices to cover their increased costs or else they’ll lose more customers.

    “They cannot really pull the pricing lever anymore,” he said. “And in this war for customers, they have to go pretty creative on value and deals and promotions.”But those promotions can be costly—think endless shrimp. “The combination of all of those things is putting a level of stress on brands that leads to, unfortunately, some of the announcements that you have seen,” he said.There are a few other trends putting financial pressure on restaurants, Gruyaert said. The industry has made large capital investments in the last few years, including renovating buildings, buying self-service kiosks, upgrading kitchen equipment, and making other improvements. The debt incurred to make those investments is starting to bite harder because of high interest rates, a result of the Federal Reserve’s campaign to battle inflation.“I made investments for the long term, and I might start seeing the benefits now: better customer experience, more efficiencies and all that stuff,” Gruyaert said. “But the reality is, from a cash flow perspective, just the interest that I need to pay for all those investments on a monthly basis is really putting pressure on my business.” 

    The current environment may be especially challenging for sit-down restaurant chains, known in the industry as “casual dining” establishments, said Michael S. Kaufman, a consultant and lecturer on restaurants at Harvard Business School. Meals at places like that may be among the first sacrifices for people looking to cut costs.“Consumers, as McDonald's and others have indicated, are looking at discretionary spends more critically now. What’s a restaurant to do?“ he said. “Consumers are saying, ‘We're struggling, or we're beginning to struggle or we're thinking more carefully about what we spend.' And that combination for that middle market of Applebee's, Chili's, TGI Fridays, maybe even Outback, you know, it's inherently going to be more challenging.” 

    The chains that have flourished in the high-wage, high-inflation economy are those with relatively low labor costs, or who have found ways to save, by switching to electronic ordering for example, Kaufman said. But there will likely be more casualties.“I don't know that the ability to maintain the large fleets of traditional casual dining restaurants can continue,” he said.

    Do you have a news tip for Investopedia reporters? Please email us at tips@investopedia.com

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