Big Take

Will we know the result of the 2024 US Presidential election on election night? Or will the new normal look like 2020, when Americans had to wait days for the final call?

Bloomberg politics reporter Gregory Korte joins Big Take DC host Saleha Mohsin to break down what’s changed since former President Donald Trump began contesting the results of his 2020 loss, and what could happen if a drawn-out election call stokes uncertainty in the electoral process.

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Perrier, the popular French bottled water brand, has long been a symbol of luxury. But it’s now under scrutiny after regulators found trace amounts of fecal matter and pesticides where its water is sourced.

On today’s Big Take podcast, Bloomberg consumer goods reporter Dasha Afanasieva joins host David Gura to talk about how Perrier and its parent company, Nestlé, have responded — and ask bigger questions about sustainability in the global water business.

Read more: Perrier Well Contamination Sparks Scrutiny for Luxe Water Brand

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Adrian Cheng, the third-generation scion of property dynasty New World Development, seemed poised to take over his family’s $20 billion empire. But last month, in a surprising twist, he was replaced as CEO by someone outside of his family.  

On today’s Big Take Asia Podcast, host K. Oanh Ha talks to Bloomberg’s Shawna Kwan about the succession drama at New World, the possible ripple effects on other family dynasties in the region, and what it all could mean for the future of one of Hong Kong’s major property developers.

Read more: New World Scion’s Fall Upends Succession at $23 Billion Dynasty

Further listening: $200 Billion, Four Heirs and One Might Indian Empire

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On October 7, 2023, Hamas attacked Israel and Israel responded by declaring war. One year later, that war rages on, conflict has spread through the region, and activists around the world are calling for peace.

Today on the Big Take podcast, Bloomberg’s Israel bureau chief Ethan Bronner joins host David Gura to reflect on how the October 7 attacks have transformed the region and what comes next.

Further listening: The Escalating Conflict in the Middle East

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Shipping ports all along the East Coast and Gulf Coast shut down earlier this week, as the 47,000 members of the International Longshoremen’s Association went on strike. Their demands: A pay raise of nearly 80% over 6 years and strict limits on the use of automation in the nation’s ports. Shipping companies refused and worries mounted that the strike could drag on for weeks, creating gridlock at the ports, and recreating some of the pandemic-era supply chain snarls.

But dockworkers and shipping companies struck a temporary deal late Thursday. Today on the Big Take, Sarah Holder and reporter Laura Curtis talk through the details of the deal, why the White House got involved and who the winners and losers are.

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After a Russian missile hit the Ukrainian city of Chernihiv, Ukrainian investigators found the navigation system had components made by four Western companies, including two in the US. 

Today on the Big Take, Bloomberg reporter Stephanie Baker talks to host David Gura about how these components are making their way to the battlefield and what steps the US government is taking to try to prevent that from happening. 

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In the first and only vice presidential debate of the 2024 US election cycle, Tim Walz and JD Vance had two objectives: Keep the momentum going for Kamala Harris or Donald Trump, and do no harm. But one of the most surprising takeaways of the policy-forward debate was just how respectful the conversation was. 

Bloomberg senior editor Wendy Benjaminson joins host Sarah Holder to break down key moments – from the cordial to the confrontational – and what Vance and Walz’s performances mean for their tickets.

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Iran attacked Israel for the second time in five months Tuesday, with a volley of missiles coming hours after Israel launched a ground incursion into Lebanon. 

Today on the Big Take, Bloomberg’s Dan Williams, a reporter in Bloomberg’s Jerusalem bureau, and Joumanna Bercetche in Dubai join host David Gura to talk about the latest on the Middle East and what that means for the region – and the US.

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Harvard University’s endowment fund is larger than the endowment of any other university on the planet. That’s, in part, because of a pioneering investment strategy. But in recent years, the returns haven’t measured up to rival universities like Yale or Brown.

Bloomberg’s Janet Lorin joins host David Gura to talk about how Harvard University’s early edge seems to have waned in the midst of changing leadership and strategies.

Read more: Harvard’s Not-So-Smart Money: Two Decades of Poor Returns and Rich Pay

Further Listening:

• Facing Huge Challenges, One College Tries to Be Too Big to Fail
• If College Is an Investment, These Offer the Best ROI

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This week, China’s central bank announced a stimulus package designed to revive the economy, cutting an interest rate and reducing the amount of money banks need to hold in reserve.

But the country’s ongoing drive to upgrade its struggling economy has left millions of people facing job losses or pay cuts, fueling an existential crisis among some of its best and brightest workers.

On today's Big Take Asia Podcast, host K. Oanh Ha talks to Bloomberg's Lulu Chen about the impact Xi Jinping’s push is having on professionals, from banking to tech, and what this anxiety could mean for the outlook of the world’s second-largest economy.

Read more: 
Xi Unleashes a Crisis for Millions of China's Best-Paid Workers

China Unleashes Stimulus Package to Revive Economy, Markets

Further listening:

Why China’s Investment Bankers Are Breaking Up With Capitalism

What Does China’s Economic Slowdown Mean For the Communist Party?

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