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News reports from around the world.
TikTok compares itself to foreign-owned American news outlets
( ) -q-28- UNDATED (Correspondent Jeremy House) “a German publisher.”
TikTok has pushed back on arguments that the popular social media platform is not shielded by the First Amendment.
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TAG: Correspondent Jeremy House reporting. The arguments were made in a case between the U.S. and TikTok over the federal law that could lead to a ban on the popular app.
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VERBATIM: The U.S. Justice Department had said in a legal brief submitted last month, that TikTok’s owner, China-based ByteDance, as well as the platform’s global and U.S. arms were not entitled to First Amendment protections. TikTok attorneys argued that the platform’s U.S. arm doesn’t forfeit its constitutional rights because it is owned by a foreign entity. They drew a parallel between TikTok and well-known news outlets such as Politico and Business Insider, which are owned by a German publisher.
Amid Mideast conflict, Dubai booms with an influx of anxious wealth
( ) -q-21- UNDATED (Correspondent Jeremy House) “friendly visa system.”
As conflict casts a shadow across the Middle East, people are getting rich in Dubai.
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TAG: Correspondent Jeremy House reporting. Dubai is positioning itself as a safe haven in a region that’s resting on a knife’s edge following the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Iran.
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VERBATIM: Years after a momentary slump in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, the desert sheikdom’s economy is buzzing with tourism and construction. Dubai has a long history of indirectly benefiting from crises in the region. When the ultra-wealthy worry about turmoil, the city offers stability, low taxes and a friendly visa system.
Walmart grows more optimistic about 2024 as bargains boom
( ) -q-21- UNDATED (Correspondent Jeremy House) “are fraying either.”
Walmart had another quarter of strong sales that topped almost all expectations.
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TAG: Correspondent Jeremy House reporting.
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VERBATIM: Walmart’s comparatively low prices are proving to be a powerful draw for millions who have struggled with rising costs for housing, groceries and almost everything else. The nation’s largest retailer raised its full-year outlook. Walmart executives say the consumer may still be holding out for deals, but they’re not seeing signs that their customers are fraying either.
Retail spending was higher in July despite higher prices
( ) -q-18- UNDATED (Correspondent Jeremy House) “about eight-percent.”
Americans stepped up their spending at retailers last month by the most in a year and a half.
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TAG: Correspondent Jeremy House reporting. Excluding gas station sales, retail sales also rose 1%. Consumers have been pummeled since the pandemic by high prices and elevated interest rates. Yet at the same time, average wages have also been rising.
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VERBATIM: U.S. retail sales increased 1% from June to July after having declined slightly the previous month. Auto dealers, electronics and appliance stores and grocery stores all reported strong gains. Adjusted for inflation, sales rose about 0.8%.
Meta kills off misinformation tracking tool CrowdTangle
( ) -v-34- UNDATED (Correspondent Jeremy House) “std.”
Facebook and Instagram parent Meta Platforms has shut down CrowdTangle. Correspondent Jeremy House reports.
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VERBATIM: It was a tool widely used by researchers, watchdog organizations and journalists to monitor social media posts, notably to track how misinformation spreads on its platforms. The shutdown was protested by researchers and nonprofits. Dozens of groups, including the Center for Democracy and Technology, the Digital Forensic Research Lab at the Atlantic Council and Human Rights Watch sent a letter to the company asking that it keep CrowdTangle running through at least January so it would be available through the U.S. presidential elections.
Top official says Fed can’t risk being too late with rate cuts
( ) -q-28- UNDATED (Correspondent Jeremy House) “a 23-year high.”
A top Federal Reserve official warned that the central bank needs to cut its key interest rate before the job market weakened further.
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TAG: Correspondent Jeremy House reporting. Most economists envision a modest quarter-point cut next month, with similar rate cuts to follow in November and December.
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VERBATIM: Austan Goolsbee, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, tells the AP failure to do so means the Fed would risk moving too late and potentially imperil the economy. Goolsbee says because the Fed’s rate decisions typically affect the economy only after an extended time lag, it must avoid waiting too long before reducing rates. With inflation steadily easing, the Fed is widely expected to start cutting its benchmark rate next month from a 23-year high.
US inflation slowed again in July, clearing the way for rate cuts
A mild increase in consumer prices in July. According to the Labor Department, consumer prices rose 0.2% from June to July after dropping slightly the previous month for the first time in four years. Meanwhile, year-over-year inflation reached its lowest level in more than three years in July. It’s the latest sign that the worst price spike in four decades is fading and setting up the Federal Reserve for an interest rate cut in September.
Listen DownloadElliott seeks 10 of the 15 board seats at Southwest
( ) -q-29- UNDATED (Correspondent Jeremy House) “and Ireland’s Ryanair.”
Hedge fund Elliott Management is escalating its fight against the management of Southwest Airlines.
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TAG: Correspondent Jeremy House reporting.
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VERBATIM: Elliott says it plans to nominate 10 candidates for Southwest’s 15-member board of directors. Elliott accuses Southwest’s management and board of not acting strongly enough to reverse deteriorating financial results and a drop in the stock price. Elliott’s intended slate for the Southwest board includes former CEOs of Air Canada, Canadian low-cost carrier WestJet and Virgin America, as well as former senior executives at JetBlue and Ireland’s Ryanair.
Spending at small businesses rose in July
( ) -q-27- UNDATED (Correspondent Jeremy House) “U.S. small businesses.”
Consumers spent more at small businesses in July.
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TAG: Correspondent Jeremy House reporting. Compared with July of last year, sales rose 3.5% and number of transactions rose 3.3%. Retail spending rose 4.6% and retail transactions jumped 5.8%. General merchandise was the strongest category, up 10.9%.
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VERBATIM: It was a rebound fueled by strong sales of general merchandise and health aas well as personal care products. The Fiserv Small Business Index rose one point to 141 after a four point decline in June. The figure is derived from point-of-sale transaction data, including card, cash, and check transactions in-store and online across about 2 million U.S. small businesses.
Google rolls out Pixel 9 phones earlier than usual
( ) -q-29- UNDATED (Correspondent Jeremy House) “to reshape society.”
Google has unveiled its next generation of Pixel phones.
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TAG: Correspondent Jeremy House reporting. The Pixel 9 phones are priced from $800 to $1,800. They will being shipping Aug. 22.
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VERBATIM: The launch provides the maker of Android software a head start on the next iPhone in the race to bring more artificial intelligence-services to devices that have become people’s constant companions. The showcase occurred two months earlier than the company typically rolls out the next models in its Pixel phone line-up. And Google left little doubt that the Pixel 9 phones are meant to be a vessel for the AI technology that is expected to reshape society.
US wholesale inflation cooled in July in sign of easing price pressures
( ) -q-26- UNDATED (Correspondent Jeremy House) “two-percent inflation target.”
Wholesale price increases in the United States eased in July.
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TAG: Correspondent Jeremy House reporting. The latest figure suggests that inflation pressures are further cooling as the Federal Reserve moves closer to cutting interest rates, likely beginning next month.
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VERBATIM: The Labor Department reports its producer price index rose 0.1% from June to July and 2.2% from a year earlier. Excluding food and energy prices, so-called core wholesale prices were unchanged from June and up 2.4% from July 2023. The increases were milder than forecasters had expected and were nearly consistent with the Fed’s 2% inflation target.
An uneasy relationship between older adults and AI
( ) -q-25- UNDATED (Correspondent Jeremy House) “by the technology.”
Older adults are grappling with how artificial intelligence is changing the world.
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TAG: Correspondent Jeremy House reporting. To learn more about how AI works, seniors are taking classes to figure out how AI is transforming their world — and the threat it poses.
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VERBATIM: The technology offers them significant benefits, from the ability to curb loneliness to making it easier to get to medical appointments. But it also has drawbacks that could be particularly dangerous for older people. A series of studies have found that senior citizens are more susceptible to both scams perpetrated using artificial intelligence and believing the types of misinformation that are being supercharged by the technology.
Home Depot trims guidance amid increased anxiety about broader economy
( 9a ) -q-24- UNDATED (Correspondent Jeremy House) “of approximately one-percent.”
Home Depot’s second quarter sales rose slightly as the nation’s biggest home improvement retailer booked gains from a recent acquisition
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TAG: Correspondent Jeremy House reporting. Home Depot expects 2024 earnings per share to fall between 2% and 4%. Previously, the company predicted earnings per share growth of about 1%.
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VERBATIM: Despite the sales increase, customers reined in spending because of broadly higher costs and elevated interest rates. Sales edged up to $43.18 billion, from $42.92 billion. However, Home Depot is now expecting sales at stores open at least a year to decline between 3% and 4%. Its previous outlook was for a decline of approximately 1%.
Vance backs Trump’s support for a presidential ‘say’ on Fed’s fiscal policy
( ) -q-28- UNDATED (Correspondent Jeremy House) “global financial system.”
JD Vance has endorsed Republican residential nominee Donald Trump’s call for the White House to have “a say” over the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policies.
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TAG: Correspondent Jeremy House reporting.
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VERBATIM: The GOP vice presidential nominee says it’s very important for the political leadership to have more input over the country’s monetary police. Last week, Mr. Trump said during a news conference that the president “should have at least a say in there.” The GOP ticket’s view runs counter to decades of economic research suggesting that politically independent central banks are essential to controlling inflation and maintaining confidence in the global financial system.
US colleges are cutting majors and slashing programs after years of putting it off
( ) -q-23- UNDATED (Correspondent Jeremy House) “to study music.”
Colleges large and small in the U.S. are cutting programs and eliminating majors to make ends meet.
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TAG: Correspondent Jeremy House reporting. Humanities and the arts often top the list of cuts across the country. Some colleges are phasing out the programs. In others, students are abruptly forced to find a new school or change directions.
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VERBATIM: Among their budget challenges: Federal COVID relief money is expiring, operational costs are rising and fewer high school graduates are going straight to college. At St. Cloud State University in Minnesota, officials announced a plan to cut 42 degree programs and 50 minors, music among them. The move has created turmoil for students who chose the campus to study music.
Summer tourists flock to boardwalks and piers while sticking to their budgets
( ) -q-29- UNDATED (Correspondent Jeremy House) “than international tourism.”
Small businesses along popular vacation destinations like boardwalks and piers in the U.S. say the number of tourists flocking to the waterfront is back to normal, meaning pre-2020 levels.
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TAG: Correspondent Jeremy House reporting.
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VERBATIM: While affluent tourists are spending freely, lower-income vacationers are sticking to carefully planned-out budgets and buying less on impulse. According to the U.S. Travel Association’s forecast, 2024 tourism volume is expected to top 2019’s numbers for the first time since the pandemic began, with 2.45 billion trips taken. The USTA adds domestic tourism is rebounding faster than international tourism.
The US government wants to make it easier for you to click the ‘unsubscribe’ button
( ) -q-23- UNDATED (Correspondent Jeremy House) “up for one.”
A slew of U.S. federal agencies are working to make it easier for Americans to click the unsubscribe button for unwanted memberships and recurring payment services.
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TAG: Correspondent Jeremy House reporting.
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VERBATIM: It’s a broad new government initiative, dubbed “Time Is Money.” It will impact industries including healthcare, fitness memberships, media subscriptions, education and many more. The announcement includes new FCC efforts to consider imposing requirements on communications companies that would make it as easy to cancel a subscription or service as it was to sign up for one.
Montana Poll Shows Leads For Sheehy, Trump
Republicans Tie Harris To Inflation, “Bidenomics”.
With inflation rising, Mexico’s central bank cuts interest rates
( ) -q-24- UNDATED (Correspondent Jeremy House) “energy and food.”
Analysts are expressing shock at a decision by Mexico’s central bank to cut interest rates on the same day that official figures showed a sharp rise in domestic inflation.
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TAG: Correspondent Jeremy House reporting. Inflation has been getting further away from the central bank’s objective of 3%.
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VERBATIM: Central banks usually raise interest rates to make money more expensive, in order to discourage price increases. But, the Bank of Mexico CUT interest rates by a quarter-percent to 10.75%, even though inflation rose by over one percent to 5.57% in July. The bank justified the move, saying prices hikes occurred in more volatile sectors like energy and food.
China auto sales fall in July, while exports jump about 20%
( ) -q-26- UNDATED (Correspondent Jeremy House) “plug-in hybrids.”
Auto sales in China faltered in July, falling 5% from a year earlier.
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TAG: Correspondent Jeremy House reporting. To try to boost demand, the government has expanded incentives to encourage drivers to trade in their older, gas and diesel-fueled cars and buy EVs. While overall car sales have remained lackluster, sales of EVs rose nearly 30% in July from the year before.
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VERBATIM: The decline occurred, although exports jumped about 20% from a year earlier as makers of electric vehicles expanded into global markets. The China Passenger Car Association said sales of passenger cars totaled about 2 million units, with 1.6 million sold inside China. About half of the vehicles sold were so-called “new energy vehicles,” or electrics and plug-in hybrids.
Toyota promises to do better with vehicle testing after major scandal
( ) -q-21- UNDATED (Correspondent Jeremy House) “has reprimanded Toyota.”
Toyota is promising to strengthen oversight of its vehicle certifications so the scandal that surfaced recently over improper tests will never recur.
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TAG: Correspondent Jeremy House reporting. The wide-ranging fraudulent testing include the use of inadequate or outdated data in crash tests, incorrect testing of airbag inflation and engine power checks. The wrongdoing is said not to affect vehicle safety.
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VERBATIM: Japan’s top automaker has outlined in detail the measures it will take. They include greater managerial involvement, assigning more staff to certification tasks and clarifying responsibilities of specific posts, such as the chief engineer. The report was presented to the Japanese government, which has reprimanded Toyota.
