Bloomberg - Evening Briefing - Guilty on all counts

Donald Trump has another first to add to his resume. He was the first US president to be impeached twice and the first US president to be indicted (not once, but four times). Now the Republican can say that he is the first former US president to be convicted of a crime—34 of them in the case of his prosecution in New York state court in Manhattan. Trump had been indicted for fraudulently concealing hush-money payments made as part of a scheme to manipulate the 2016 US presidential election. The payoffs were intended to keep embarrassing details of Trump’s personal life out of the public eye in order to preserve his chances of winning the White House, a grand jury said. On Thursday, after less than two days of deliberations, a trial jury found the 77-year-old real estate developer and presumptive GOP presidential nominee guilty on all counts. Trump faces as many as four years in prison at sentencing. But any prison term could end up being delayed, given his unique circumstances. —David E. Rovella and Natasha Solo-Lyons

Around the world, people are living through the havoc brought on by the accelerating climate crisis. And it’s about to get worse. Odds are growing that 2024 will be the hottest year in history. Prices for some of the world’s most vital commodities—natural gas, electricity and staple crops like wheat and soy—are climbing. The world of shipping, already thrown into chaos from the Red Sea to the Panama Canal, is likely to be rocked again by parched waterways. And the potential for destructive wildfires is increasing. 

The US economy grew at a slower pace in the first quarter than initially reported, reflecting softer consumer spending on goods. Gross domestic product rose at a 1.3% annualized rate in the first three months of the year, coming in below the previous estimate of 1.6%. The economy’s main growth engine—personal spending—advanced 2%, versus the previous estimate of 2.5%. All of this is good news for US central bank plans aimed at slowing the economy—as well as Wall Street’s hopes for rate cuts.

Speaking of which, Federal Reserve Bank of New York President John Williams said he expects inflation to continue falling in the second half of the year. Williams said that while inflation is still too high, the imbalances between supply and demand are easing. “With the economy coming into better balance over time and the disinflation taking place in other economies reducing global inflationary pressures, I expect inflation to resume moderating in the second half of this year,” Williams said.

China may be poised to impose a record fine on PricewaterhouseCoopers and suspend some of the global auditor’s local operations over its role in one of the nation’s biggest alleged financial fraud cases. The Ministry of Finance may announce the penalties on PwC as soon as this week over its auditing work for China Evergrande Group. PwC is said to face a fine of at least 1 billion yuan ($138 million). 

KKR and other private equity firms are looking to snap up thousands of family-owned outfits in the US and Europe that ply the home-services trades—plumbing, electrical, air conditioning and heating, landscaping and pest control. But the UK’s richest plumber, Charlie Mullins, has regrets about selling out to the private equity giant. 

Charlie Mullins in his new office in London Photographer: Felicity McCabe for Bloomberg Markets

American Airlines is said to have dismissed its commercial chief in the wake of a critical review from Bain & Co. finding a new marketing strategy was alienating corporate clients. Chief Executive Officer Robert Isom fired veteran executive Vasu Raja in recent days after receiving feedback in the report, which American commissioned from the consulting firm.

Yes, Walmart store managers really can make $500,000 a year. In an effort to boost retention, the retailer has sweetened pay and stock incentives for its store chiefs, whose individual locations employ hundreds and can exceed $100 million in annual sales. 

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Travelers are increasingly opting to skip Europe’s most-visited cities and beachside locales in favor of less-frequented destinations for summer vacations this year. Fresh data shared with Bloomberg by Chase Travel shows that cities with the biggest year-on-year tourism increases this summer include such off-the-beaten-track destinations as Brussels, Munich, Zurich and Warsaw. The shifting emphasis toward secondary cities largely reflects surging prices in Mediterranean hotspots like the Amalfi Coast as well as record heat on the continent, say industry experts. Read the full list. 

The Central Square in Brussels Photographer: FrankyDeMeyer/E+

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