Axios

According to a study by NSF research, 64% of U.S. consumers now pay more attention to food labels compared to five years ago, suggesting that consumers are more aware of the nutrient-density of their food.

Why it's important: Meeting growing expectations for nutrition requires coordination across the food ecosystem, including deep collaboration with farmers, manufacturing and nutrition science.

It's been a long and winding road for the bipartisan 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act, but it looks set to become law Friday evening. Probably.

Driving the news: President Trump said Friday morning on Truth Social that he won't sign the bill, the most sweeping action to encourage housing supply in decades, in protest of Congress failing to move unrelated legislation on election security.

• But it's what he didn't say that matters most. Trump did not say he will veto the housing legislation. In the absence of a presidential veto, the bill will automatically become law at midnight.

Zoom in: The legislation reflects a rare cross-the-aisle consensus that the underbuilding of housing is a severe problem for the U.S. economy.

• It includes provisions that encourage local governments to allow more permissive zoning, streamline environmental regulations for home construction and much more.

What we're watching: We're most intrigued by provisions that loosen restrictions on manufactured housing, in particular no longer requiring that the homes be built on a permanent chassis.

• That opens up the possibility of major new innovation in building houses in factories, achieving greater productivity, producing houses that don't feel like downscale trailer-style mobile homes.

Go deeper: Congress passes landmark bipartisan housing bill.

Federal Reserve chairman Kevin Warsh has created five task forces to rethink the central bank's policymaking process. They are likely to bring outside-the-box ideas combined with intellectual chops to an often insular institution.

The big picture: The task forces consist of economists and business leaders who bring serious credibility to the table but also are not part of the "Fed Borg" — that is, not among the usual lineup of people who have recently worked at the central bank.

President Trump is refusing to sign a landmark bipartisan housing bill to protest Senate Republicans' failure to pass an unrelated bill that would tighten voting restrictions.

Why it matters: The president's refusal is a symbolic gesture, as the housing bill will become law at midnight — with or without Trump's signature.

Crack spreads — energy industry measures of the gap between crude prices and refined products like diesel — have soared in recent days as the global fuel picture is increasingly determined by global politics and war.

Why it matters: Crack spreads are basically the profit margin that refiners add on top of the price of a barrel of crude in order to come up with the prices they charge for refined products like diesel.

• Because the crack spread for diesel fuel, charted above, is rising, diesel fuel will likely get more expensive.
• And because diesel is a key input for industries like trucking and agriculture, higher diesel prices will ultimately be passed along to consumers, at least in part.

Qatar, Pakistan and other regional mediators are trying to de-escalate tensions between the U.S. and Iran and revive negotiations on a nuclear deal, according to two sources from the mediating countries and a U.S. official.

Why it matters: While President Trump announced on Wednesday that the U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding (MOU) and the ceasefire were "over" and ordered two rounds of airstrikes, he is focused on reopening the Strait of Hormuz and still wants to avoid a return to an all-out war with Iran.

Yields on inflation-protected long-term Treasury bonds are a lot higher than they've typically been in decades.

Why it matters: This is one of those times when what happens in the bond market matters to the stock market.

The Federal Reserve on Thursday announced leaders of five outside task forces that chairman Kevin Warsh has formed in his push to reform the central bank — a list that includes a number of outsiders to the often insular institution.

Driving the news: The panels include a range of well-known figures from finance and economics, as well as business — including top venture capitalist Marc Andreessen and former Walmart CEO Doug McMillon.

• Other bold-faced names include former top central bankers in other countries: Mervyn King, the former governor of the Bank of England, Raghuram Rajan, former governor of the Reserve Bank of India, and Arminio Fraga, former president of the Central Bank of Brazil.
• Prominent economists participating include Greg Mankiw, Karen Dynan, Jeremy Stein, and Raj Chetty, all at Harvard, as well as Charles I. Jones, a Stanford professor on leave at the AI firm Anthropic, and Thomas Sargent, a New York University professor and Nobel laureate.

Just a few weeks ago, there were plenty of reasons to expect inflation pressures to fade in the back half of 2026. The latest evidence makes that seem a little less sure.

Why it matters: These are new cracks in the disinflationary narrative, which raises doubts about the Federal Reserve's ability to forestall interest rate increases.

For years, the economy has looked K-shaped. There's new evidence that some of that divide is beginning to narrow.

• The wage-growth gap between lower- and middle-income workers has disappeared — with pay gains among lower-income workers nearly matching those of their higher-income counterparts.
• Spending growth among lower- and higher-income households is the most similar in years.

Why it matters: A resilient labor market is chipping away at one dimension of the K-shaped economy, even as the wealth divide remains firmly intact.

More venture capital dollars were invested in U.S. companies during the first half of 2026 than in any full year, according to data released Wednesday by PitchBook and the National Venture Capital Association.

By the numbers: U.S. companies raised $412.7 billion between January and June, a whopping 29% increase over what U.S. companies raised in all of 2025 and a 15% increase over the all-time record set in 2021.

B Capital and CalPERS on Wednesday agreed to acquire Russell Investments from TA Associates and Reverence Capital Partners.

Why it matters: It's not normal for a venture capital firm to buy a 90-year-old business from private equity, but we could see more of this as legacy industry looks to AI for growth and relevance.

Latino voters aren't just splitting over President Trump. They're divided over how being Latino shapes their identity in America, according to a new Pew Research Center report.

Why it matters: This is a deeper fracture than a typical partisan divide — Latino voters are splintering over whether their ethnicity feels like a barrier, an asset or is politically irrelevant.

As civic leaders and policymakers look to strengthen economic opportunity for all Americans, new research from the Capital One Insights Center unpacks small business owner confidence and how they are unlocking efficiency and new levels of growth.

The momentum trade is having a terrible start to the second half.

Why it matters: Momentum shares drove the market gains early in the year, and it will be harder for the rally to continue without their participation.

President Trump's threat to "cut off all trade" with Spain was immediately a market event — at least in Europe.

Why it matters: Well into Trump's second term, foreign investors aren't totally dismissing the president's trade threats, even if the legal authority, the path to implementing them and the ultimate outcome remain unclear.

Three AI trends are accelerating and colliding, forcing government, business and investors to rethink strategies in real time:

1. AI is getting bigger and better, both here and in China.
2. The U.S. government is scrambling to keep pace by creating a regulatory framework, perhaps with international reach.
3. Both America and China are considering blocking access to their best AI, in recognition of the rising stakes.

Why it matters: The explosive rise of truly autonomous agents is forcing Washington and Beijing away from light-touch oversight, transforming the global AI race from a commercial sprint into a national-security standoff.

The group behind a 2025 report predicting dire outcomes from AI development is out with a new prescription: To avoid dangerous outcomes from superintelligent AI, slow everything down.

Why it matters: The researchers behind the new essay, first shared with Axios, are saying that while people can't stave off the development of superintelligence, they can slow it down so the world is ready when it comes.

America's state governments now run on two very different tax engines: income in many coastal and professional-class states, and consumption in much of the Sun Belt and low-tax-growth belt.

Why it matters: States are not just competing over tax rates. They've built systems around which parts of the economy to tax — and which residents feel it most.

The U.S. military struck Iranian targets near the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday, a U.S. official said.

Why it matters: This was the second day in a row that the U.S. had attacked Iranian targets in what U.S. officials say is an effort to stop Tehran from striking commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz.