How much sawdust can you put in a rice crispy treat before people notice? The answer is approximately 33%. Based on its latest content, it appears Disney is currently running a similar experiment on its streaming service. Even worse, it is now asking subscribers to pay more for a worse product. Who is the new head of streaming? Scrooge McDuck?

The lowdown

• 🏰 Disney narrows streaming losses to $512 million from over $1 billion a year ago.

• 📈 US CPI rises 3.2% year on year, coming down from a peak of 9.1% in June 2022

• 🇮🇹 Italy waters down its controversial bank tax announcing it will be capped at 0.1% of assets.

Featured story

Deliveroo lifts guidance, returns capital

Deliveroo lifted its earnings guidance after supposedly improving its algorithm to deliver meals and groceries more efficiently.

The company raised its full-year EBITDA forecast to £60-80 million, up from the previous £20-50 million. The adjusted EBITDA for the first half was £39.4 million, reversing a £51.6 million loss a year earlier.

With around £1 billion on its balance sheet, the company also plans to return £250 million to shareholders ($). The company has reached a point where it believes it is essentially at free cash flow break-even. The capital will be delivered to shareholders through a special dividend, share buybacks, or a tender offer, pending consultation.

The content we're consuming today

• The Economist: Saudi Arabia’s rush into global sports ($).

• Puck: Are You There, Aryeh? It’s Me, Shari… ($).

• Capital Allocators: Active Management Today is a Single Decision.

Off-balance sheet items

• Next time you and your partner cannot agree on a movie to watch, I suggest using ‘Movie Maths’. You pick two movies, and it suggests a third that has elements of both. This way no one wins and you can both be equally unhappy.

The bottom line