Donald Trump received a glass disc with a 24-karat gold base from Apple CEO Tim Cook on Wednesday, as the tech titan announced a $100 billion investment in U.S. manufacturing facilities.
Why it matters: The gold bauble is the latest lavish gift presented to Trump in an attempt to curry favor with the president this year, raising both ethical and legal concerns.
Tourism is down by roughly 11% in Las Vegas this year, with visitor numbers, convention attendance and hotel occupancy all lower than usual, according to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.
Why it matters: Las Vegas' financial health, with its large gambling market attractive to those with disposable income, is typically considered an indicator of the broader U.S. economy's strength.
The 60th anniversary of a shocking uprising in Los Angeles, which foretold similar unrest in cities throughout the 1960s and 1970s, is being marked with calls to revisit solutions to poverty outlined in a famous report.
The big picture: Activists and scholars have unveiled an updated edition of the 1968 Kerner Report that recommends a slew of initiatives to combat inequality, racial injustice and child poverty — issues stubbornly still here.
Former CNN anchor Jim Acosta's interview with an AI-generated avatar of a Parkland shooting victim has reignited debate on the ethics of creating deepfakes of the dead.
Why it matters: As cheap and free generative AI tools become capable of replicating voices, faces and personalities, some people are adding clauses to their wills to prevent the creation of their digital likeness after they die.
The Trump administration is preparing plans to sell stock in mortgage-finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac that could kick off before the end of the year, a senior administration official confirmed.
Why it matters: Significant changes to Fannie and Freddie's capitalization structures, or any signal of weaker government backing, could have big implications for the mortgage market.
The Trump administration is planning to issue an executive order soon clarifying the status of gold bars amid tariff confusion, a White House official says.
Why it matters: Reports that gold bars would be tariffed caused the precious metal to spike to an all-time high in U.S. trading.
Why it matters: Centuries after they were considered medicinal, mushrooms are today's go-to "functional" food — with a brain-boosting, sustainable aura.
No, not those mushrooms. We're not talking about so-called "functional" mushrooms, like lion's mane, chaga, reishi and cordyceps.
State of play: Mushrooms contain brain-supporting nutrients like ergothioneine and B vitamins, but their mood-boosting effects remain largely unstudied.
President Trumpsigned an executive order instructing the Department of Labor to reevaluate guidance for employers on incorporating assets like private credit, real estate and crypto into retirement plans.
Why it matters: Private credit is golden child of Wall Street, promising diversification and potentially enormous returns compared to the stock market. But the catch is in the name: private.
Spending is being held up by the wealthy, while consumption from middle and lower income groups continues to fade.
Why it matters: The tale of two economies, also called a K-shaped recovery, is taking shape before tariffs have even taken effect, which could further pressure lower-income spenders, and potentially, the labor market.
A Southern California wildfire forced thousands in Los Angeles and Ventura counties to evacuate and a local emergency proclamation was issued after it ignited and exploded in size during a searing heat wave on Thursday.
The big picture: The Canyon Fire near Lake Piru, a reservoir some 60 miles northwest of downtown LA, was first reported just before 1:30pm local time to be around 30 acres, per Cal Fire. It had grown to more than 1,000 acres in a few hours and was still burning out of control into the evening.
U.S. officials doubled a reward for the arrest of Venezuela's President Nicolás Maduro from $25 million to $50 million on Thursday.
The big picture: Attorney General Pam Bondi announced the increased reward in a video posted to X that accused the Venezuelan leader of using criminal gangs including Tren de Aragua (TDA) and the Sinaloa Cartel "to bring deadly drugs and violence" into the U.S.
