It hasn’t been this easy to get a car loan in years.

Why it matters: It comes amid a demand bonanza that got underway at the onset of the pandemic — when traveling by car became the more appealing mode of transportation.

Car loan approval ratings are at the highest since 2015, according to Cox Automotive.

• What's happening: Auto loans are getting cheaper and lengthier, two factors that lower monthly payments — what "most consumers are focusing on, more than anything else," says Cox Automotive economist Jonathan Smoke.
• "Consumers have been consistently seeing better rates every month this year than a year ago — that's really helped offset some of the inflation in vehicle prices," Smoke says.

The big picture: The net percentage of banks making loans harder to get is at the lowest level since 2012 — a sign that lenders are keeping borrowing conditions loose, if not making them looser.

• It's a sharp reversal from last year, when it looked like the economy was on the precipice of disaster.
• Meanwhile, the net share of banks reporting stronger demand for auto loans hit a new pandemic-era high (also the highest in nine years).

But, but, but: "Banks aren't just giving loans to anyone," says Jesse Rosenthal, an analyst at CreditSights.

• Around a third of auto loan originations are going to people with credit scores above 760 — higher than it was trending previously, Rosenthal says.

For the first time since the pandemic hit, there are more open jobs than unemployed workers to fill them.

• With U.S. job openings notching (yet another) record high in June, there is less than 1 worker available for each open job, per data out today.

For perspective: The unemployment rate was at a 50-year low the last time America notched this milestone.

• Now the jobless rate is a whole 2 percentage points higher — and by this measure, it’s just as difficult to find workers.

🍿 AMC — of meme stock fame — said its losses narrowed last quarter, thanks to more movie-goers returning (and eating) as new films were released. (Yahoo Finance)

• There was practically nowhere to go but up compared to last year.
• This time last year, it raked in a mere $900,000 from admission sales. That's rebounded to $233 million.

In a sign of the times, cryptocurrency regulations held up a massive infrastructure bill in the U.S. Senate, CoinDesk's Zack Seward writes for Axios.

Catch up quick: A crypto tax reporting amendment to the $1 trillion package sought to bring in some $28 billion in new tax revenue.

The latest: A vote was held today at around 4:30pm ET, potentially determining how the crypto industry evolves in the U.S. — in a bill completely unrelated to crypto.

• The amendment needed unanimous consent to make the cut. An objection from Sen. Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) appears to have killed it.

The big picture: As CoinDesk’s Nikhilesh De reports, the crypto industry fears the passage of the bill might lead to businesses and developers leaving the U.S.

• At issue is a provision that would broadly define the term "broker," leading to fears that non-broker entities would be forced to shut down for non-compliance.

Full story.

Rapper Saweetie is the latest musician to get a limited-time McDonald's meal. It lands on menus today.

• What you get: a Big Mac, four-piece Chicken McNuggets, fries, Sprite — plus Tangy BBQ and "Saweetie 'N Sour" sauces.

Why it matters: This has been a go-to strategy for McDonald's since last fall: celebrities curate a meal, with the hope that the hype lures fans to restaurants (and drive-thrus).

• On earnings calls, executives say it works — though they won't quantify it.

Others in the custom-meal club: rapper Travis Scott, reggaeton star J. Balvin and K-pop group BTS.

See the commercial.

"It is unequivocal that human influence has warmed the atmosphere, ocean and land."

Go deeper: Effects of climate change more severe than we thought