Author: Press Room

While inflation is showing signs of easing, consumers in the country may still be feeling its effects for quite some time, according to Joel Anderson, CEO of discount retailer Five Below. The executive sees underperformance particularly in the lower-income demographic.”The lower-end customer is really being stretched,” Anderson said on an earnings call with analysts Wednesday. “We’ve got to deliver value, and we’ve got to really display that in how we go to market, and when you walk in the store, what you see. But all that’s in flight right now, and [we] expect to see some of those changes improve…

Shares of GameStop shot to session highs Thursday after meme stock leader “Roaring Kitty” scheduled a livestream on YouTube, which would be his first one in almost four years.Roaring Kitty, whose real name is Keith Gill, set the time for his live chat at noon Friday, which traders speculated would be a bullish discussion about his massive GameStop stake. The investor hosted three-hour livestreams in August 2020 explaining his investing thesis behind his favorite brick-and-mortar video game retailer.GameStop popped 30% higher to trade around $40 apiece. It surged 40% at one point after this livestream update and trading was briefly…

The Israeli government is seeking to extend its controversial ban on the Al Jazeera news network in the country, after a court upheld the ban but shortened it by 10 days. In May, Israel banned the Qatari-based news network from operating in the country for 45 days under a sweeping new wartime law that allows the Israeli government to ban foreign media organizations it deems “harmful” to the nation’s security. Al Jazeera condemned the move as a “dark day for democracy” that sets a concerning precedent for other international media outlets operating in Israel. While the ban is not permanent and only valid during the declared period of war, the Israeli government can continue to extend the closure for…

While Halliburton’s (NYSE:HAL) North America business has been challenged over the past 12 months, this is currently being offset by increased activity internationally. The company’s profits continue to edge higher, but this hasn’t mattered to the share price, which has been fairly range bound over the past two years. The last time I wrote about Halliburton, I suggested it was vulnerable due to uncertain macro conditions and its dependence on OPEC supporting oil prices. This is proving to be the case, with soft economic data and a planned reduction in OPEC supply cuts now pressuring the share price. Market Conditions…

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.Nvidia’s market value rose past $3tn to briefly overtake Apple on Wednesday as the world’s second-most valuable company, following a year of incredible growth driven by demand for its artificial intelligence chips.The US chip designer pulled ahead of Apple for the first time before paring its gains slightly ahead of the close of trading. The iPhone-maker lost its spot as the most valuable listed company to Microsoft earlier this year.Investors have flocked to Nvidia’s stock as tech groups such as Google, Microsoft…

The New York City Police Department is preparing to revoke former President Donald Trump’s license to carry a gun, a senior police official told CNN. Trump’s New York concealed carry license was quietly suspended on April 1, 2023, following his indictment on criminal charges in New York, the official said. Two of the three pistols he was licensed to carry were turned over to the NYPD on March 31, 2023, and a third gun listed on Trump’s license “was lawfully moved to Florida,” the person added. After Trump was convicted of 34 felonies on May 30, 2024, he could be in violation…

We all know the population of older adults is growing rapidly. But we are aging in very different ways. And if we are going to reimagine medicine, caregiving, and government policy, it is important to better understand who older adults are and how they live. In its newest Profile of Older Americans, the federal Administration for Community Living paints a detailed picture of the lives of US residents age 65 or older. In some ways, this snapshot, which focuses mostly on older adults in 2022, tells a tale of extremes. The headline, of course, is the continued rapid growth of…

Mortgage rates declined for a second consecutive week but remain above 7% as a home affordability crisis maintains its grip on the housing market. Freddie Mac’s latest Primary Mortgage Market Survey, released Thursday, showed that the average rate on the benchmark 30-year fixed mortgage dropped to 7.02% this week from 7.09% last week. The average rate on a 30-year loan was 6.39% a year ago.  The average rate on the 15-year fixed mortgage also fell to 6.28% from 6.38% last week. One year ago, the rate on the 15-year fixed note averaged 5.75%. Read the full article here

There’s been much ado about federal student loan forgiveness with little relief directed to students holding private student debt. However, a little-known program directed by private student loan lender Navient is forgiving private loans for borrowers seeking relief on the grounds that their school lied to them. The Project on Predatory Student Lending (PPSL) launched a campaign to raise awareness of the servicer’s “School Misconduct Discharge Application.” The application gives borrowers who experienced misconduct at their school the right to apply directly for discharge of private loans, marking a long-overdue recognition of borrower rights, PPSL said.  In January 2022, Navient entered…

eBay customers will no longer be able to use American Express credit cards to pay for purchases on the online marketplace come mid-August. The e-commerce company said in a statement to FOX Business that “unacceptably high fees American Express charges for processing credit card transactions” have prompted it to cease accepting American Express as of Aug. 17.The move, earlier reported by Bloomberg and The Associated Press, will apply for eBay transactions in all markets around the world where the online marketplace operates.  “At a time when payment processing costs should be declining because of technological advancements, investments in fraud capabilities and…