The daily business briefing: September 26, 2018

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1. Markets cautious ahead of Fed decision
2. Dunkin' Donuts shortens name to Dunkin' in rebranding effort
3. Versace fans criticize Michael Kors deal
4. Nike beats expectations but shares fall
5. First-ever female duo will announce NFL games for Amazon Prime

published 26 September 2018

1. Markets cautious ahead of Fed decision

Economists, fund managers, and strategists surveyed by CNBC expect the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates two more times this year, starting on Wednesday at the close of a two-day meeting of Fed policy makers. Ninety-eight percent of the 46 respondents in the latest CNBC Fed Survey predicted a quarter-point hike on Wednesday, with 96 percent forecasting another quarter-point increase in December as the Fed tries to prevent a strengthening economy from overhearing. "Fed funds increases in September and December are as certain as certain can be," John Donaldson, director of fixed income at Haverford Trust, wrote in his response to the survey. Markets were cautious early Wednesday ahead of the Fed's decision.

Dunkin' Donuts plans to drop "Donuts" from its name in ads, packages, and signage at new and remodeled stores starting in January. The move, which also will extend to its social media accounts, is part of an effort to rebrand the company as a "beverage-led" one focusing on coffees, teas, and to-go food, including doughnuts and more. Beverages, led by coffee, account for 60 percent of the chain's U.S. sales. "Our new branding is one of many things we are doing as part of our blueprint for growth to modernize the Dunkin' experience for our customer," said Dunkin' Brands CEO David Hoffmann in a statement Tuesday. Before making the switch, the company tried out the shortened name at a few stores over the past year.

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Versace fans lashed out on Tuesday against a deal to sell the iconic luxury fashion company to accessory design giant Michael Kors, which plans to open about 100 more stores and focus on accessories and footwear. "Cheap fabric for soccer moms," one protester tweeted. "Duty-free cheap (expletive) you buy at the airport," said another. Michael Kors confirmed it was buying Versace in a deal worth more than $2 billion, confirming rumors that spread on Monday. Versace was founded by Gianni Versace in 1978, and has been run by his sister, Donatella Versace, and other heirs since he was murdered in Miami Beach 21 years ago. Donatella Versace said she was "very excited" about the deal, which she said would "allow Versace to reach its full potential."

Nike shares fell by more than 2 percent in after-hours trading after it reported quarterly earnings that beat Wall Street's expectations. Nike earned $1.1 billion, or 67 cents a share, up from $950 million, or 57 cents a share, in the same quarter last year. Revenues increased by 10 percent to $9.9 billion. Analysts polled by FactSet had expected earnings of 62 cents a share on sales of $9.9 billion. The quarter included sales through August, before the controversial Labor Day announcement of the sports apparel company's inclusion of former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick in its new "Just Do It" ad campaign. Analysts attributed the sell-off to several factors, including a 6 percent rise in the company's stock price since the Kaepernick announcement, which added to previous 2018 gains to make the shares expensive.

Amazon Prime announced Tuesday that its Thursday Night Football broadcasts would feature veteran sports journalists Hannah Storm and Andrea Kremer as commentators, the first women-only broadcasting team providing analysis for NFL games. Amazon Prime will give viewers four options when they watch football through the streaming service: a Fox broadcast featuring Joe Buck and Troy Aikman, a team of U.K. analysts, a Spanish-language broadcast, and the Storm-Kremer partnership. Storm, an ESPN anchor, and Kremer, an NFL Network correspondent, will make their debut during this week's matchup between the Minnesota Vikings and the Los Angeles Rams. They will offer analysis for 11 games this season.

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Harold Maass is a contributing editor at The Week. He has been writing for The Week since the 2001 debut of the U.S. print edition and served as editor of TheWeek.com when it launched in 2008. Harold started his career as a newspaper reporter in South Florida and Haiti. He has previously worked for a variety of news outlets, including The Miami Herald, ABC News and Fox News, and for several years wrote a daily roundup of financial news for The Week and Yahoo Finance.