It is only one U.S. company; however, the makers of Weber Grills and products released their sales data, and the background shows a severe economic contraction that has resulted in their operating loss of $51 million in the quarter that ended March 31, 2022NOTE THE DATE.

July 25 (Reuters) – Weber Inc (WEBR.N) on Monday replaced top boss Chris Scherzinger with an insider and warned that mounting inflationary and supply chain pressures could hit the grill maker’s financials and workforce, sending its shares down 20% in premarket trading.

The company withdrew its fiscal 2022 net sales and core earnings forecasts, saying higher consumer prices and geopolitical uncertainty were squeezing store traffic as well as margins.

Weber, which also suspended its quarterly cash dividend, said it was pursuing a number of initiatives, which may include job cuts, reducing expenses and tightening its inventory levels.

The company also forecast a net loss for the quarter ending June 30, citing weak store traffic and higher discounting. In the quarter ended March 31, Weber’s net sales decreased 7% and net loss came in at $51 million compared with a net income last year. (read more)

Weber is a good company with strong fundamental products.  Unfortunately, the layoffs that are likely to soon surface are not going to be isolated to Weber.  The contraction of economic activity is going to start surfacing in the balance sheets of multiple companies this quarter.

We can expect to see a bloodbath of employment layoffs in this quarter (July, Aug, Sept) at the same time as the federal reserve continues to raise interest rates to support the new energy “transition.”

As noted in Weber’s financials, the consumer contraction started escalating more than six months ago.  Companies can only hide a severe drop in income for a short period, and then eventually cost-cutting decisions must be made.

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