Greenspan, Bernanke and Yellen urge Supreme Court to let Lisa Cook keep her job as a Fed governor
WASHINGTON (AP) — Alan Greenspan, Ben Bernanke, Janet Yellen and other former top economic officials appointed by presidents of both parties are urging the Supreme Court to preserve the Federal Reserve’s political independence and allow Lisa Cook to remain as a central bank governor for now. The filing Thursday comes as the justices are weighing an emergency appeal from the administration to remove Cook while her lawsuit challenging her firing by President Donald Trump proceeds through the courts. The Fed board was designed to be largely independent from day-to-day politics. No president has fired a sitting Fed governor in the agency’s 112-year history.
US economy expanded at a surprising 3.8% pace in significant upgrade of second quarter growth
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. economy expanded at a surprising 3.8% from April through June in a dramatic upgrade of the government's previous estimate of second-quarter growth. The Commerce Department said Thursday that U.S. gross domestic product — the nation’s output of goods and services — rebounded in the spring from a 0.6% first-quarter drop caused by fallout from President Donald Trump’s trade wars. The department had previously estimated second-quarter growth at 3.3%. The first-quarter GDP drop, the first retreat of the U.S. economy in three years, was mainly caused by a surge in imports as businesses hurried to bring in foreign goods before Trump could impose sweeping taxes on them.
Amazon to pay $2.5 billion to settle FTC allegations it duped customers into enrolling in Prime
SEATTLE (AP) — Amazon has reached a historic $2.5 billion settlement with the Federal Trade Commission which said the online giant tricked customers into signing up for its Prime memberships, and made it difficult to cancel after they did so. The Seattle company will pay $1 billion in civil penalties — the largest fine in FTC history, and $1.5 billion will be paid to consumers who were unintentionally enrolled in Prime, or were deterred from canceling their subscriptions.
Starbucks to close hundreds of stores, lay off 900 workers as part of turnaround plan
Starbucks said Thursday it's closing hundreds of stores in the U.S., Canada and Europe and laying off 900 nonretail employees so it can focus resources on its turnaround plan. The Seattle coffee giant wouldn't say exactly how many stores it's closing. But the company expects to end its fiscal year this Sunday with 434 fewer stores in North America than it had at the end of June. Starbucks also said it's closing some stores in the U.K., Austria and Switzerland. Starbucks CEO Brian Niccol said company is closing stores that don't have a path to financial stability or have physical spaces that don't meet customers' expectations.
He's the budget scorekeeper for Congress. Lately, it's been a tough job
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Congressional Budget Office has faced criticism over its analysis of Republicans' big tax breaks and spending cuts bill. Speaker Mike Johnson and House Majority Leader Steve Scalise have denounced the CBO, while President Donald Trump has called the office “very hostile.” CBO Director Phillip Swagel emphasizes in an interview with The Associated Press the agency plays a nonpartisan role in assessing legislation. The CBO recently reported Trump's tariffs could reduce the national deficit by $4 trillion but may cause temporary inflation. Swagel stresses the importance of unbiased analysis to inform Congress and the public. Swagel says the CBO's priority is to make sure its work is accurate.
EU official: Automakers to save 500-600 million euros as trade deal with US takes effect
European automakers are set to save around 500-600 million euros each month after the Trump administration implemented the U.S. end of its trade deal with the European Union. This change, effective from August 1, reduces the tariff on most EU goods from 27.5% to 15%. Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic announced the news on Thursday. The reduction eases a significant burden on EU automakers and is a key selling point for the deal. However, the 15% tariff remains higher than pre-Trump levels, drawing criticism from business associations and some European Parliament members.
US home sales sluggish in August despite late-summer mortgage rate slide
Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes remained sluggish in August, despite a late-summer slide in mortgage rates. The National Association of Realtors said Thursday that existing home sales slipped 0.2% last month from July to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4 million units. This is the slowest sales pace since June. However, sales rose 1.8% compared to August last year. The national median sales price increased 2% from August last year to $422,600, the 26th consecutive annual increase. The housing market has been in a slump since 2022, when mortgage rates climbed from historic lows. Affordability remains a daunting challenge for most aspiring homeowners following years of skyrocketing home prices.
Average rate on a 30-year mortgage edges higher after declining four weeks in a row
The average rate on a 30-year U.S. mortgage ticked up this week, ending a four-week decline. Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday that the average rate rose to 6.3% from 6.26% last week. A year ago, it averaged 6.08%. Borrowing costs on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages also edged higher, rising to 5.49% from 5.41% last week. Mortgage rates are influenced by factors like the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policies and bond market investors’ expectations. The recent downward trend bodes well for prospective homebuyers who have been held back by stubbornly high home financing costs.
Wall Street stumbles toward a 3rd straight loss
NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street is heading toward a rare three-day losing streak. The S&P 500 slipped 1% Thursday and was on track for its longest losing streak in more than a month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 320 points, and the Nasdaq composite fell 1.2%. All three indexes are still near their records set at the start of the week. Stocks felt pressure from strong economic reports that could make the Federal Reserve less likely to cut interest rates in the coming months. CarMax tumbled after reporting a weaker profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected.
Fewer Americans file for jobless benefits last week despite signs of a slowing labor market
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. jobless claim applications fell to their lowest level in two months last week as layoffs remain low despite mounting evidence of a softening labor market. The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits for the week ending Sept. 20 fell by 14,000 to 218,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. Analysts surveyed by the data firm FactSet had forecast 235,000 new applications. The four-week average of claims, which softens some of the weekly volatility, declined by 2,750 to 237,500. The total number of Americans collecting unemployment benefits for the previous week of Sept. 13 inched down by 2,000 to 1.93 million.
