Pink's Bottom Line on Media, Money and Sports

Social media usage, a global economic outlook and French Open tennis

In today’s newsletter, I discuss social media usage, a global economic outlook and French Open tennis.

MEDIA: Social Media Usage

The percentage of Americans who use social media stands at roughly 70%, according to the Pew Research Center, an independent think tank. That percentage has been relatively stable over the past five years.

Notably, YouTube and Reddit have seen increases in their usage while other social media services haven’t seen much growth, according to Pew.

For YouTube, 81% now say they use the service, up from 73% in 2019, and 18% now say they use Reddit, up from 11% in 2019, according to Pew.

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For adults age 18 to 29, overall social media usage is much heavier than average at 84%, according to Pew. Among that younger demographic 95% say they use YouTube, 71% use Instagram and 65% use Snapchat.

For those 65 and older, overall social media usage stands at 45% with YouTube and Facebook as the most popular services, according to Pew.

As such, it appears that a way to reach a broad cross section of users is via YouTube while the best way to reach the younger demographic is via Instagram or Snapchat — in addition to YouTube.

MONEY: IMF World Economic Outlook

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) projects the global economy to grow 6% this year with robust 6.4% growth in the United States, according to the latest IMF World Economic Outlook released earlier this week.

Those are increases from the IMF’s prior forecasts in January when it said it expected the global economy to grow 5.5% this year, and the US economy to grow 5.1% in 2021.

Pink's Bottom Line

Those higher growth projections reflect the implementation of fiscal stimulus around the world and the increase in the number of vaccinations administered for coronavirus, according to the IMF.

As such, if those fiscal stimulus measures work as expected and if more people around the world receive vaccinations, global economic recovery looks achievable — and potentially even sustainable — beyond 2021.

SPORTS: French Open Tennis

The French Open tennis tournament will start a week later than originally planned due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic — the tournament will now run from May 30 to June 13.

While a one week delay might not seem significant, it could impact both the French Open and Wimbledon as Wimbledon begins only two weeks after the French Open concludes.

That could mean that some players might choose to play in one tournament, and not the other, because the events are now so close together that playing in both tournaments would be very physically demanding.

Pink's Bottom Line

The French Open and Wimbledon are two of the four major tennis tournaments, and three current men’s players are chasing the record for all-time major victories.

Currently, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer are tied for the most major victories of all time with Novak Djokovic close behind with 18 titles.

Nadal, who already has won 13 French Opens, is the favorite to win it again this year while Djokovic is the favorite to capture the Wimbledon title.

While I expect that Nadal and Djokovic will make deep runs in both tournaments, it wouldn’t surprise me if a less heralded — but better rested player — emerges with a victory in either the French Open or Wimbledon this year.

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Jeremy Pink is currently COO of Geniecast, a leading virtual content and experience company. He is the former CEO of private-equity backed Broadcast Sports International where he helped lead the company to a successful sale and exit during his tenure there. He is also a former CNBC television executive in New York, London and Singapore.

The information contained in this communication is strictly for general informational and entertainment purposes and is not meant to be construed as financial, investment, tax, or legal advice. This communication is not a solicitation to buy or sell any securities. I am not a financial advisor or offering professional advice of any kind. Users should not act upon the content or information found within this communication without first seeking professional advice appropriate for their individual situation. Decisions based on information contained in this communication are the sole responsibility of the user, and use of this communication and its contents constitutes an explicit understanding and acceptance of the foregoing disclaimers.

(Newsletter Editor: Karina Pink)