Hello! Well... what do we do now? A cruise that was set to tour the world for 3 years has been canceled, stranding the guests who were set to occupy its 111 cabins with less than 2 weeks’ notice. Today we're exploring:
One-stop Tok
Following the success of "social shopping" offerings in Asia, TikTok may soon reap retail rewards from its >150 million monthly active users in the US.
The e-commerce arm of the platform, TikTok Shop, opened up in the States this September, features a new marketplace tab on the homepage; a commission-based programme for content creators; and the ability to buy tagged products using shop links featured on livestreams and in-feed videos.
The move into the shopping sphere feels like a natural progression for TikTok, having already established itself as a hub for young people to discover new products, particularly clothing and cosmetics. Some of the app’s most popular trends, including the 6-million-post strong #tiktokmademebuyit, are related to marketing. In fact, the #tiktokshop tag itself has racked up some 5 billion views over the last 30 days in the US alone.
By allowing for in-app purchases in America, TikTok aims to raise its global gross merchandise value to $20 billion, up from $5 billion last year — pitting itself directly against e-commerce behemoths like Amazon.
However, political roadblocks remain in TikTok’s master plan. After ramping up e-commerce efforts in Southeast Asia earlier this year, its online shopping operations were banned in Indonesia just months later. And, with privacy concerns still high on legislators' radars across the US, the dance app might have a new, shop-sized target on its back.
Barrels beyond belief
The US is producing more oil than ever before. That’s according to the latest data from the Energy Information Administration, which revealed that the nation’s crude oil production hit 13.2 million barrels per day, surpassing the pre-Covid peak.
After relying on imported oil from around the world for decades, the US has turned its energy dependence into a strength in recent years. Domestic oil production has more than doubled since 2012 — which has made the US the world's leading producer, after beating Russia for the top spot in 2018.
Lone star: producing star
As of last year, the US accounted for nearly 15% of the world's crude oil production, with Texas alone contributing more than 40% of that. Indeed, if Texas were a nation, it would be the fourth-largest producer, eclipsing the entire European continent and the UAE, which had reportedly planned to use the upcoming COP28 UN climate summit in Dubai to vie for fossil fuel deals.
Current projections indicate that the planet is on track to warm by 2.5-2.9°C above pre-industrial levels by 2100 — a modest improvement from the 3°C estimate at COP21 in 2015, but still significantly worse than the agreed-upon target of 1.5°C. Even so, for its part, the US has pledged to achieve "net zero" by 2050.
Wishful thinking
Despite going into the holiday period as many people’s favorite for the top spot this Thanksgiving, Disney’s Wish was beaten out by the fifth installment of the Hunger Games franchise, which was in its 2nd week, as well as Ridley Scott’s newly-released Napoleon — another disappointing upset for the House of Mouse.
Wish mustered just $31.7 million over the 5-day Thanksgiving period (Wed-Sun), way down from its $45-50 million pre-release projections. That performance compounds a rough patch for Disney, which has been used to dominating the holiday box office in the past, producing 7 of the 10 highest-grossing Thanksgiving debuts of all time, according to data from The Numbers.
Fall flicks fall
Trips to the theater have become as much of a Thanksgiving tradition in some US households as carving up turkey or arguing with the in-laws. However, box office takings have sagged since Covid, with this year’s total estimated figure at $172 million, down 35% since 2019 — consistent with the wider malaise on the big screen, which is still yet to reach its pre-pandemic heights.
Although Disney's 2018 effort Ralph Breaks The Internet may hold the record for the top-grossing Thanksgiving weekend release of all time, the biggest-earning Thanksgiving-themed flick is actually Adam Sandler’s Jack & Jill, which, despite winning just a 3% approval rating from critics on Rotten Tomatoes, takes that particular accolade.
• The world’s largest iceberg, roughly 3x the size of New York City, is on the move for the first time in over 3 decades, propelled by strong winds and currents.
• A 17-year-old girl has been donating vegetables to low-income families since the age of 14, bringing the total to over 7,000 lbs.
• The push for more eco-friendly dishwashers has extended the average wait time for clean dishes to 160.3 minutes — more than double the 69.4 minutes it took in 1983.
• TIME's Top 100 Photos of 2023.
• Charting the 25 fastest-growing sports in the US over the past 4 years.
Off the charts: Which airline is reportedly considering using customer data to sell personalized ads to its passengers? [Answer below].
