Business News

US inflation cools again, potentially paving way for Fed to cut interest rates soon

WASHINGTON (AP) — Inflation in the United States cooled in June for a third straight month, a sign that the worst price spike in four decades is steadily fading and may soon usher in interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve. In a better-than-expected report, consumer prices declined 0.1% from May to June after having remained flat the previous month, the government said Thursday. Measured from 12 months earlier, prices were up 3% in June, down from 3.3% in May. The latest inflation readings could help convince the Fed’s policymakers that inflation is returning to its 2% target.

Groceries are expensive, but they don’t have to break the bank. Here are some tips to save

NEW YORK (AP) — If you’ve noticed that you’re paying more than before for the same amount of groceries, you’re not the only one. Inflation is easing slightly, but grocery prices are still high. Unlike some other items, you can’t just stop buying groceries when they get pricy. There’s nothing you can do about inflation, but you can find ways to save on groceries so they don’t heavily impact your wallet or your eating habits. These include using coupons, budgeting, and buying in bulk.

IRS collects milestone $1 billion in back taxes from high-wealth taxpayers

WASHINGTON (AP) — The IRS has collected $1 billion in back taxes from high-wealth tax cheats — a milestone meant to showcase how the agency is making use of the money it received as part of the Biden administration’s signature climate, health care and tax package signed into law in 2022. The announcement Thursday comes as the much-maligned agency shows the public how much work it is getting done. In a statement, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen praises the Inflation Reduction Act for “increasing tax fairness and ensuring that all wealthy taxpayers pay the taxes they owe, just like working families do.”

Biden awards $1.7 billion to boost electric vehicle manufacturing and assembly in eight states

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration is awarding nearly $2 billion in grants to help restart or expand electric vehicle manufacturing and assembly sites in eight states, including the presidential battlegrounds of Michigan, Pennsylvania and Georgia. The Energy Department will issue grants totaling $1.7 billion to General Motors, Volvo and other automakers to create or retain thousands of union jobs and support auto-based communities. Besides the three battleground states, grants also will go to EV facilities in Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland and Virginia. The grants cover a broad range of the automotive supply chain, the White House said, including electric motorcycles and school buses, hybrid powertrains, heavy-duty commercial truck batteries and electric SUVs.

EU accepts Apple pledge to let rivals access ‘tap to pay’ iPhone tech to resolve antitrust case

LONDON (AP) — The European Union says it’s accepting Apple’s pledge to open up its “tap to pay” iPhone payment system to rivals as a way to resolve an antitrust case and head off a potential hefty fine. The European Commission, the EU’s executive arm and top antitrust enforcer, said Thursday that it’s accepting the commitments that Apple offered earlier this year and will make them legally binding. The Commission had accused Apple in 2022 of abusing its dominant position by limiting access to its mobile payment technology. The changes that Apple is making are to remain in force for a decade and apply throughout the bloc’s 27 countries plus Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein.

Higher costs and low base fares send Delta’s profit down 29%. The airline still earned $1.31 billion

Delta Air Lines says its second-quarter profit is down 29% from a year earlier, and it’s giving a disappointing outlook for the third quarter. Delta said Thursday that it earned $1.31 billion in the second quarter, down from more than $1.83 billion last year. The weaker profit comes despite strong revenue, as Americans travel in record numbers. But Delta’s costs are rising even faster than its revenue. The airline spent much more on labor, jet fuel and other big items than it did in the same period of last year.

Two 80-something journalists tried ChatGPT. Then, they sued to protect the ‘written word’

GRAFTON, Mass. (AP) — When two octogenarian buddies named Nick discovered that ChatGPT might be stealing and repurposing a lifetime of their work, they tapped a son-in-law to sue the companies behind the artificial intelligence chatbot. Veteran journalists Nicholas Gage, 84, and Nicholas Basbanes, 81, who live near each other in the same Massachusetts town, each devoted decades to reporting, writing and book authorship. Now their lawsuit against OpenAI and business partner Microsoft is subsumed into a broader case seeking class-action status led by household names like John Grisham, Jodi Picoult and “Game of Thrones” novelist George R. R. Martin; and proceeding under the same New York federal judge who’s hearing similar copyright claims from news media outlets.

PepsiCo’s second quarter profits jump but customers slow their purchases after years of price hikes

PepsiCo reported higher-than-expected earnings in the second quarter but acknowledged that after raising prices every quarter for more than two years, customers are not buying as many of its snacks and drinks. PepsiCo said Thursday that North American demand for its Frito-Lay snacks was “subdued” during the quarter as customers become more value-conscious. The company plans to amp up deals and advertising in the second half of this year. PepsiCo said its net income rose 12% to $3 billion, or $2.28 per share. That beat Wall Street’s forecast. Revenue grew less than 1% to $22.5 billion, which was slightly lower than expected. PepsiCo shares fell 2%.

Insurers hike rates as extreme storms like Beryl proliferate, bringing forecasts for fatter profits

NEW YORK (AP) — Destructive storms like Hurricane Beryl that knocked out power to 3 million homes and businesses in Texas are growing more frequent and intense, and insurers are jacking up rates in response. That could mean big profits for property and casualty insurers like Allstate and Progressive in the coming year. The U.S. experienced 28 separate billion-dollar weather and climate disasters in 2023, the most ever, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Rate hikes have been a way for property insurers to offset the cost of those catastrophic events. Hurricanes account for most insured catastrophe losses, according to CFRA.

Stock market today: Most of Wall Street rises after a pivotal inflation report comes up cool

NEW YORK (AP) — Most U.S. stocks are rising after the latest update on inflation bolstered Wall Street’s belief that relief on interest rates may come as soon as September. Four out of every five stocks in the S&P 500 were climbing Thursday, and homebuilders, real-estate owners and other stocks that tend to benefit the most from easier interest rates led the way. But modest dips for Microsoft and some other influential companies masked the underlying strength. That dragged the S&P 500 down 0.5%, while the Nasdaq fell 1.2% and the Dow rose 102 points. Bond yields tumbled in the bond market.