Category: Business

(WASHINGTON) — President Donald Trump has posted two letters on his social media platform announcing new tariffs on the European Union and Mexico that will take effect on Aug. 1.

Trump will impose a 30% tariff on Mexico due to fentanyl crossing the border, he said in a letter to Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum.

“Mexico has been helping me secure the border, BUT what Mexico has done is not enough. Mexico still has not stopped the Cartels who are trying to turn all of North America in a Narco-Trafficking Playground,” Trump wrote in the letter.

Mexico did not face a new tariff on April 2, the day of Trump’s so-called “Liberation Day” tariff rollout. There remains a 25% tariff on non-USMCA-compliant goods from Canada and Mexico, as well as a 50% tariff on steel, aluminum and derivative products.

The United States mainly imports vehicles, machinery and electrical equipment, alongside agricultural products such as fruits, vegetables, beer and spirits from Mexico.

Trump said the EU will also face a 30% tariff as a result of the United States trade deficit, in a letter addressed to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

The EU, one of the largest trading blocs with the U.S., primarily exports pharmaceutical products and mechanical appliances to the U.S.

According to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, the U.S. goods trade deficit with the European Union was $235.6 billion in 2024, a 12.9 % increase over 2023.

Trump has long touted productive conversations that left him “extremely satisfied” regarding a trade deal with the EU; however, at one point, he once threatened tariffs as high as 50%.

In his letters, Trump again promised that there would be no tariffs on manufacturing companies that decide to build in the U.S.

The European Commission president responded Saturday saying the 30% tariff “would hurt businesses, consumers and patients on both side of the Atlantic.”

“We will continue working towards an agreement by August 1,” von der Leyen said. “At the same time, we are ready to safeguard EU interests on the basis of proportionate countermeasures.”

In a statement posted on X, Mexican economic minister Marcelo Ebrard said Mexico had already been negotiating with the U.S. to “protect businesses and jobs.”

“We were informed that, as part of the profound changes in U.S. trade policy, all countries will receive a letter signed by the President of the United States establishing new tariffs starting August 1st,” Ebrard said. “We stated at the meeting that this was an unfair deal and that we did not agree with it.”

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(WASHINGTON) — President Donald Trump ratcheted up tariffs on Canada late Thursday, stoking tensions with a top U.S. trade partner as the two sides try to hash out a trade agreement by the end of the month.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbled 250 points, or 0.5%, in early trading on Friday, erasing some of the index’s gains in recent weeks as it approached a record high. The S&P 500 dipped 0.4%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq fell 0.2%.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney struck a forceful but measured tone in a response late Thursday night, saying on X that Canada would continue trade negotiations while defending its national interests.

Here’s what to know about new U.S. tariffs on Canada, and what they mean for fraught economic relations between the two allies:

When will Trump’s new tariffs on Canada take effect?

The fresh round of 35% tariffs on Canadian goods will take effect on Aug. 1, which matches the start date of levies issued for more than 20 other countries in recent days.

Aug. 1 also marks the deadline for ongoing trade negotiations between the U.S. and Canada.

Canada already faces 25% tariffs on exports to the U.S., though those levies exclude a host of goods compliant with the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA, a free trade agreement.

Trump threatened to escalate tariffs beyond 35% if Canada opts to retaliate with tariffs on U.S. goods.

Canadian goods are also subject to sector-specific tariffs, such as 50% levies on steel and aluminum as well as 25% tariffs on non-USMCA compliant autos and auto parts.

Why did Trump propose new tariffs on Canada

Trump offered up two reasons for the fresh round of tariffs, which align with grievances voiced by Trump in previous trade announcements targeting Canada.

First, Trump faulted Canada for its alleged failure to stop the transport of fentanyl into the U.S.

“As you will recall, the United States imposed tariffs on Canada to deal with our Nation’s Fentanyl crisis, which is caused, in part, by Canada’s failure to stop the drugs from pouring into our Country,” Trump wrote in a letter to Carney, which was posted on social media late Thursday.

Between September and April, nearly all fentanyl seized by the U.S. came through the southern border with Mexico, according to U.S. Customs and Border Patrol, or CBP. Less than 1% of fentanyl was seized at the northern border with Canada, CBP found.

Next, Trump sharply criticized tariffs and other trade barriers erected by Canada that put U.S. businesses at a disadvantage when seeking to reach Canadian shoppers. Those barriers, Trump said in the letter, have brought about a U.S. trade deficit with Canada.

Last year, the U.S. ran a trade deficit with Canada of $63 billion, which marked a slight decrease from the previous year, according to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative. By comparison, the U.S. ran a larger trade deficit last year with its other top trading partners: A $295 billion deficit with China and a $171 billion deficit with Mexico.

How did Canada respond to Trump’s new tariffs?

Carney posted a 114-word response on X late Thursday that appeared to avert further escalation of trade tensions while striking a firm posture in defense of Canada’s economic interests.

“Throughout the current trade negotiations with the United States, the Canadian government has steadfastly defended our workers and businesses,” Carney said. “We will continue to do so as we work towards the revised deadline of August 1.”

Carney responded directly to Trump’s allegations about Canada’s failure to address fentanyl, saying Canada had “made vital progress to stop the scourge of fentanyl in North America.”

“We are committed to continuing to work with the United States to save lives and protect communities in both our countries,” Carney added.

The tit-for-tat public proclamations from Trump and Carney follow a hiccup in trade negotiations late last month, when Trump suspended talks over Canada’s plans for a Digital Service Tax, which would have imposed a 3% levy on U.S. technology companies. Talks resumed days later after Canada abandoned plans for the tax.

Canada previously retaliated against tariffs with levies on U.S. goods, slapping tariffs on $20.7 billion of goods in March as well as 25% tariffs on non-USMCA compliant autos in April. As of early Friday, Canada had not announced another round of retaliatory tariffs in response to the latest levies.

In his social media post on Thursday, Carney noted that Canada has sought trade agreements with other countries in an effort to bolster its economy.

“We are building Canada strong,” Carney said.

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(NEW YORK) — Linda Yaccarino said she is stepping down from her role as CEO of X, the social media platform owned by Elon Musk.

Yaccarino, who previously served as an advertising executive at NBCUniversal, took the helm of X two years ago.

In post on X announcing her departure, Yaccarino thanked Musk for the opportunity.

“When [Musk] and I first spoke of his vision for X, I knew it would be the opportunity of a lifetime to carry out the extraordinary mission of this company. I’m immensely grateful to him for entrusting me with the responsibility of protecting free speech, turning the company around, and transforming X into the Everything App,” Yaccarino said.

Musk, the wealthiest person in the world, who runs Tesla and Space X, named Yaccarino as CEO in May 2023, just months after Musk acquired X in a $44 billion deal.

At the time, Musk transitioned to a role as the company’s executive chairman and chief technology officer, but he appeared to continue closely tracking activities on the platform, where he boasts 222 million followers.

At the outset of her tenure, Yaccarino faced an advertiser boycott against X over concerns about hate speech and other content on the platform.

In July 2023, Musk said advertising revenue had plummeted 50% since he’d acquired X less than a year earlier.

In a post on Wednesday, Yaccarino described challenges navigated during the early part of her time atop the company.

“We started with the critical early work necessary to prioritize the safety of our users—especially children, and to restore advertiser confidence,” Yaccarino said. “This team has worked relentlessly from groundbreaking innovations like Community Notes, and, soon, X Money to bringing the most iconic voices and content to the platform.”

Before her role at X, Yaccarino oversaw an international team of about 2,000 employees, according to the NBCUniversal website.

Yaccarino worked at NBCUniversal for nearly 12 years, rising through the executive ranks to become chairman of global advertising and partnerships in 2020.

Before NBCUniversal, Yaccarino served as an advertising executive at Turner Broadcasting Company for almost 20 years.

When Yaccarino joined X, the move came months after Musk pledged to step down as the head of the company as soon as he found someone “foolish enough to take the job.”

Yaccarino, who often posts on X multiple times per day, said on Wednesday that she plans to continue using the platform.

“I’ll be cheering you all on as you continue to change the world,” Yaccarino said, addressing her former colleagues. “As always, I’ll see you on 𝕏.”

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

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(WASHINGTON) — Stocks closed down significantly on Monday after President Donald Trump announced steep tariffs on seven countries and threatened to impose new levies on others.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down 422 points, or 0.9%, while the S&P 500 dropped 0.7%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq declined 0.9%.

Tesla, the electric-vehicle company led by tech billionaire Elon Musk, fell 6% after the CEO reignited a feud with Trump by announcing plans to launch a political party.

The selloff interrupted a weekslong market surge propelled in part by strong economic data and expectations of interest rate cuts at the Federal Reserve.

On Monday morning, Trump unveiled 25% tariffs on South Korea and Japan that would take effect at the beginning of August. Within hours, Trump announced fresh tariffs on five additional countries, including South Africa and Malaysia.

Trump plans to sign an executive order on Monday setting Aug. 1 as the new start date for so-called “reciprocal tariffs,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters. Those levies had targeted dozens of countries with a range of tariffs as high as 50%.

Trump delayed the country-specific tariffs in April, vowing to strike roughly 90 trade deals in 90 days. That pause had been set to expire on Wednesday.

So far, the White House says it has reached trade agreements with only the United Kingdom and Vietnam, as well as a preliminary accord with China.

On Monday, Trump also threatened to place an additional 10% tariff on countries that align with BRICS nations, suggesting he had not backed off his commitment to use levies as a diplomatic policy tool.

BRICS nations, which recently voiced “serious concerns” about unilateral tariffs, are made up of founding members Brazil, Russia, India and China, among a few others.

Key measures of the economy have proven resilient in recent months, defying fears of resurgent inflation and a possible economic downturn. The stock market has also surged, hitting fresh record highs and eliciting cautious optimism from some Wall Street analysts.

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(WASHINGTON) — President Donald Trump on Monday will sign an executive order delaying steep levies on dozens of countries that were set to take effect on Wednesday, the White House said.

Trump’s so-called reciprocal tariffs will now take effect on Aug. 1, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters.

Minutes earlier, Trump announced 25% tariffs on South Korea and Japan that would take effect at the start of August. Twelve additional countries would receive notifications Monday about new tariffs, Leavitt said.

Trump delayed the “reciprocal tariffs” in April, vowing to strike roughly 90 trade deals in 90 days. So far, the White House says it has reached trade agreements with only the United Kingdom and Vietnam, as well as a preliminary accord with China.

“The president and his trade team want to cut the best deals for the American people and the American worker,” Leavitt said.

The return of the policy would dramatically hike tariffs on dozens of trade partners. Examples include a 49% tariff on Cambodia and a 37% tariff on Bangladesh.

Here’s what to know about Trump’s tariff deadline and what it means for you:

What was Trump’s July 9 tariff deadline?

The deadline on Wednesday traced back to the Rose Garden “Liberation Day” tariff announcement on April 2, when Trump imposed country-specific levies on most U.S. trading partners as part of a wider policy rollout.

The major stock indexes lost about $3.1 trillion in value the next day, suffering their biggest one-day decline since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Days later, Trump imposed a 90-day suspension of the country-specific tariffs, sending the market to one of its largest ever single-day increases.

Since then, the stock market has climbed to a record high and key measures of economic performance have proven resilient.

On Wednesday, the 90-day suspension was set to expire. The vast majority of nations targeted by the tariffs had yet to strike a trade agreement with the U.S., meaning the deadline could have brought back the slate of tariffs that had triggered the April stock selloff.

Is the Trump administration pushing back its tariff deadline?

The White House on Monday said it plans to push back the July 9 deadline.

The announcement came after U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Sunday said the Trump administration planned to send letters to about 100 countries, warning that high tariffs could return at the start of next month.

The letters, Bessent told CNN, will tell target countries “if you don’t move things along, then on August 1st, you will boomerang back to your April 2nd tariff level.”

Trump appeared to echo the plans in a social media post on Sunday, saying the White House would soon send out “UNITED STATES TARIFF Letters.”

In a separate social media post on Monday, Trump threatened to place an additional 10% tariff on countries that align with BRICS nations, suggesting he had not backed off his commitment to levies.

BRICS nations, which recently voiced “serious concerns” about unilateral tariffs, are made up of founding members Brazil, Russia, India and China, among a few others.

Where do Trump’s tariffs stand now?

In recent weeks, Trump has dialed back some of his steepest tariffs. Another batch of tariffs remains in legal limbo following a pair of federal court rulings in May, though the levies remain in place for now.

A trade agreement last month between the U.S. and China slashed tit-for-tat tariffs between the world’s two largest economies.

Still, an across-the-board 10% tariff applies to nearly all imports, except for semiconductors, pharmaceuticals and some other items.

Goods from Mexico and Canada face tariffs of 25%, though the measure excludes products covered under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA. In May, Trump vowed to double steel and aluminum tariffs. Tariffs still apply to autos and car parts.

Jim Reid, a research strategist at Deutsche Bank, said in a memo to clients on Monday that the firm’s economists estimate a current effective tariff rate of 15%.

The level of tariffs has fallen “a good deal below the implied rate from Liberation Day,” but it remains “well above the low single figures before Trump returned to office,” Reid added.

Citing the pullback of other tariffs, Reid voiced skepticism about sturdiness of the Aug. 1 deadline.

Aug. 1, Reid said, “might be the new July 9.”

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(NEW YORK) — Gas prices are hovering near their lowest summer level in four years as millions of people ready themselves to hit the roads over the Fourth of July holiday weekend.

The national average for a gallon of gas on Thursday stood at $3.16, which amounts to a nearly 10% decline from a year ago, AAA data showed. Gas prices dropped in recent weeks as crude oil erased a spike set off by the outbreak of war in the Middle East.

Twenty states boast average gas prices below $3, spanning from New Mexico to Missouri to South Carolina. Mississippi, the state with the nation’s lowest gas prices, offers drivers an average gallon for $2.71.

More than 61 million people are expected to travel by car over the July 4 holiday, AAA forecasted.

“The lower gasoline prices provide welcome relief for travelers,” Timothy Fitzgerald, a professor of business economics at the University of Tennessee who studies the petroleum industry, told ABC News.

Cheap crude oil is the main driver of low gas prices, analysts told ABC News.

The U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures price — a key measure of U.S. oil prices – has plummeted more than 17% since a recent peak in January.

Oil prices have dropped as forecasters predicted a slowdown in global economic growth, which would slash demand for oil.

Meanwhile, the alliance of oil-producing countries known as OPEC+ has increased output in recent months, boosting supply. The extra oil on the market has helped accommodate an annual surge in demand that takes hold over the summer traveling season, Aixa Diaz, a spokesperson for AAA, told ABC News.

“Most of what we pay at the pump is in direct correlation to the price of crude oil,” Diaz said.

Crude oil prices surged as war broke out in the Middle East last month, but prices have returned to where they stood before the recent conflict between Israel and Iran.

“The resolution in the Middle East does help,” Patrick de Haan, the head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, told ABC News.

President Donald Trump has touted the low gas prices on numerous occasions since he took office.

“We have everything down at levels that nobody ever thought possible,” Trump said in a social media post in April.

Speaking at an event in Ochopee, Florida, on Monday, Trump claimed gas prices had fallen below $2 per gallon in five states.

GasBuddy, which tracks prices at thousands of gas stations nationwide, found zero locations offering gasoline below $2 per gallon, de Haan said in a post Monday on X. That remained true as of Thursday, de Haan told ABC News.

Trump could be referring to wholesale gas prices but such price levels hold little relevance since they are not paid by consumers, de Haan said.

“This does not pass the sniff test,” de Haan added.

Gas prices will likely remain at current levels over the remainder of the summer — and they may even drop lower, some analysts said. Gas supply typically increases over the course of the summer, alleviating price pressures, they added.

Still, prices could rise in the event of a geopolitical conflict, disruptive hurricane season or major oil refinery outages, de Haan said, adding the national average price for a gallon of gas could drop below $3 by September.

“It could happen if we don’t see any of those caveats,” de Haan said. “If it’s a normal year.”

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(NEW YORK) — Hiring surged in June as businesses navigated uncertainty surrounding President Donald Trump’s tariffs, federal government data on Thursday showed. The reading exceeded economists’ expectations.

The U.S. added 147,000 jobs in June, according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. That figure showed a slight increase from 139,000 jobs added in the previous month. The unemployment rate ticked down to 4.1%, putting it at near-historic lows.

Key measures of the economy have proven resilient in recent months, defying fears of resurgent inflation and a possible economic downturn. Hiring has kept up a solid pace, humming along with less disruption than some economists anticipated.

Federal government employment declined by 7,000 jobs in June, bringing total losses in the federal government to 69,000 since January, when Trump established the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE. The Elon Musk-led organization has sought to slash federal spending, in part by eliminating some federal jobs.

Employment showed little change in the manufacturing sector, which Trump has sought to boost with levies on foreign goods.

The fresh data arrived less than a week before a deadline established by the Trump administration for the completion of dozens of trade deals with countries facing the threat of so-called “reciprocal tariffs.”

So far, the White House says it has reached trade agreements with the United Kingdom and Vietnam, as well as a preliminary accord with China.

In recent weeks, Trump has dialed back some of his steepest tariffs. Another batch of tariffs remains in legal limbo following a pair of federal court rulings in May, though the levies remain in place for now.

Prices accelerated slightly in May, the most recent month for which such data is available, but inflation remains near its lowest level since 2021.

Warning signs point to the possibility of elevated prices over the coming months, however. Nationwide retailers like Walmart and Best Buy have voiced alarm about the possibility that they may raise prices as a result of the levies.

The Fed held its benchmark interest rate steady last month, continuing a wait-and-see approach adopted by the central bank in recent months as it observes potential effects of Trump’s tariff policy. Four meetings and six months have elapsed since the Fed last adjusted interest rates.

The Fed is guided by a dual mandate to keep inflation under control and maximize employment. In theory, a lowering of interest rates could help stimulate economic activity and boost employment, especially while inflation remains low.

Powell, in recent months, has warned about the possibility that tariffs may cause what economists call “stagflation,” which is when inflation rises and the economy slows.

Stagflation could put the central bank in a difficult position. If the Fed raises interest rates as a means of protecting against tariff-induced inflation under such a scenario, it risks stifling borrowing and slowing the economy further.

On the other hand, if the Fed lowers rates to stimulate the economy in the face of a potential slowdown, it threatens to boost spending and worsen inflation.

On Tuesday, Powell appeared to signal an openness to cutting interest rates as early as this month.

When asked about a possible interest rate cut at the Fed’s upcoming meeting, Powell said, “I wouldn’t take any meeting off the table or put any on the table. It depends on how the data evolves.”

Powell affirmed that a majority of members of the Fed’s policy-making board support additional interest cuts this year. The central bank will hold four rate-setting meetings over the remainder of 2025, and the first will happen on July 29 and 30.

“A majority of us do feel it will be appropriate in the remaining four settings of the year to begin reducing rates again,” Powell told the audience at the European Central Bank forum in Sintra, Portugal.

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(NEW YORK) — The United States dollar is suffering its worst start to a year in more than five decades, likely triggering a price hike for some everyday items and a jump in expenses faced by travelers abroad, some analysts told ABC News.

The greenback has fallen more than 10% in value this year relative to a group of foreign currencies that belong to top U.S. trading partners.

Investors have fled U.S. dollars out of fear inflation could devalue the currency, especially as Congress has moved forward with a large spending bill set to worsen a decades-long trend of ballooning U.S. debt, analysts said.

Even more, they added, President Donald Trump’s fluctuating trade policy and sharp criticism of the Federal Reserve have prompted uncertainty about the nation’s economic stewardship, eroding trust in the dollar as the world’s preeminent “safe haven” asset.

Here’s what to know about the weakening of the U.S. dollar and what it means for you:

Why has the U.S. dollar weakened this year?

The value of the U.S. dollar – like most assets – is set by supply and demand.

For decades, the U.S. dollar has garnered eager demand due to the strength and stability of the U.S economy, which offers foreign investors a safe place to park their funds. In periods of global economic or political crisis, the U.S. dollar often receives a burst of interest from asset holders.

As a result, the value of the U.S. dollar has proven robust for generations.

The unusually sharp decline at the outset of this year owes in part to concern about a resurgence of inflation, which would reduce the spending power of the dollar and put downward pressure on its value, analysts said.

Trump’s tariff policy has stoked worry about price increases, since importers typically pass along a share of the tax burden in the form of higher prices. A potential increase in the national debt could also push up inflation, as the U.S. issues bonds to cover the cost burden.

“If I’m a central bank holding half a trillion dollars of U.S. Treasuries, essentially the value of that would decline with more inflation if I don’t take action now. If I think it might happen, I might shift to other assets like gold or the [Japanese] yen.”

Investors’ faith in the continued stability of the U.S. economy has also diminished, analysts said, pointing to growing U.S. debt, fluctuating tariffs and Trump’s attacks on the central bank.

Paolo Pasquariello, a professor of finance at the University of Michigan, attributed the decline of the dollar to “the recent erratic policy making by U.S. authorities.”

U.S. Treasuries, Pasquariello said, are no longer viewed as quite as safe an asset, meaning investors are less likely to “park their money during normal times and especially during times of distress.”

What does a weaker U.S. dollar mean for you?

A weaker U.S. dollar could result in higher prices for imported goods and steeper costs for travelers abroad, analysts said.

The anticipated rise in prices for U.S. consumers stems from the uptick in costs faced by importers paying for goods in U.S. currency. A foreign firm would likely demand a higher price since the dollars paid by a customer carry less purchasing power than they previously did, analysts said.

“If you’re buying light fixtures from a firm in India and they’re taking dollars, and they get fewer rupees for those dollars, they’re going to start to charge more dollars,” Richard Michelfelder, a professor of professional practice at Rutgers University, told ABC News.

The potential surge in the price of imports could compound the inflation risk posed by tariffs, analysts said, but the dollar-related price hike would hit just about every import entering the U.S.

“If you go online and buy a product that doesn’t come from the U.S., the price is likely to go up,” Michelfelder said.

A weaker dollar also means U.S. travelers abroad are likely to face higher costs since what’s in their pocket will exchange at a lower rate with foreign currencies, analysts said.

“If it takes more dollars to buy a euro and you’re going to Europe, everything you buy will cost more,” Michelfelder said.

The decline in the dollar does deliver some benefits, however. Foreign buyers face lower prices for purchasing U.S. goods, meaning exporters could receive a boost as their products become more competitive on the global market.

The favorable outcome for exporters could improve employment in industries like car manufacturing or advanced technology, while the relative strength of foreign currencies could bring additional tourists and expand the hospitality sector, Michelfelder said.

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(WASHINGTON) — Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said on Tuesday he would not rule out a potential interest rate cut as soon as this month. The remarks come amid a public pressure campaign from President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly urged Powell to slash interest rates.

When asked on Tuesday about a possible interest rate cut at the Fed’s meeting this month, Powell said, “I wouldn’t take any meeting off the table or put any on the table. It depends on how the data evolve.”

Speaking on a panel at the European Central Bank forum in Sinatra, Portugal, Powell deflected a question from the moderator about challenges posed by Trump’s barbed criticism.

“I’m very focused on just doing my job,” Powell said, drawing applause. The central bank remains “100% focused” on its dual mandate of controlling inflation and delivering maximum employment, Powell added.

The moderator then asked European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde whether she would do anything differently if she were in Powell’s position.

“I speak for myself but I speak for all my colleagues on this panel, who would do the exact same thing as Jay Powell,” Lagarde said. “The exact same thing.”

Since Trump took office he has criticized Powell on numerous occasions, despite a longstanding norm of political independence at the central bank. The Fed is an independent government agency established by Congress.

In a social media post on Monday, Trump said Powell and other central bankers “should be ashamed of themselves.”

“We should be paying 1% Interest, or better!” Trump said, calling for a sharp reduction in interest rates from a current level of between 4.25% and 4.5%.

The social media post included an image of an apparent hand-written letter to Powell, which bore Trump’s signature.

The Fed held its benchmark interest rate steady last month, continuing a wait-and-see approach adopted by the central bank in recent months as it observes potential effects of Trump’s tariff policy. Four meetings and six months have elapsed since the Fed last adjusted interest rates.

The Fed last month forecasted two quarter-point interest-rate cuts over the remainder of 2025, carrying over a prediction issued in March.

On Tuesday, Powell affirmed that a majority of members of the Fed’s policy-making board support additional interest cuts this year. The central bank will hold four rate-setting meetings over the remainder of 2025 – and the first will happen on July 29 and 30.

“A majority of us do feel it will be appropriate in the remaining four settings of the year to begin reducing rates again,” Powell said.

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(NEW YORK) — A bankruptcy court this week approved the $305 million sale of genetics testing firm 23andMe to a nonprofit organization led by the company’s former CEO Anne Wojcicki, the company announced.

The 23andMe bankruptcy earlier this year elicited fears about the security of genetic data belonging to the company’s roughly 15 million customers.

The TTAM Research Institute, or TTAM, a California-based nonprofit set to acquire 23andMe, plans to maintain the company’s customer privacy policies and add further data security measures, 23andMe said in a statement.

The sale replaces a previous $256 million bid announced in May by Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, which said the genetic information could improve drug development.

Last month, 27 states and the District of Columbia filed a lawsuit to block the sale of customers’ genetic information without their consent.

Wojcicki, 23andMe’s co-founder and former chief executive, said TTAM aims to operate for “the public good.”

“I am thrilled that TTAM will be able to build on the mission of 23andMe to help people access, understand and benefit from the human genome,” Wojcicki said. “As a nonprofit, TTAM will be a champion of improving our knowledge of DNA – the code of life – for the public good, creating a resource to advance human health globally.”

“Core to my beliefs is that individuals should be empowered to have choice and transparency with respect to their genetic data and have the opportunity to continue to learn about their ancestry and health risks as they wish. The future of healthcare belongs to all of us,” Wojcicki added.

The acquisition of 23andMe will include Lemonaid Health, a telemedicine service that 23andMe purchased for about $400 million in 2021.

In March, 23andMe filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, saying it would enter a “court-supervised” sale process. At the same time, Wojcicki resigned from her role as chief executive.

The move followed a series of setbacks for the company, including a 2023 class-action settlement over a data breach and a mass resignation among its board of directors in 2024.

Founded in 2006, 23andMe helped pioneer consumer genetic testing but faced difficulty turning the service into a sustainable business.

The sale received approval on Monday from the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Missouri. The transaction is expected to close in the coming weeks, 23andMe said in a statement.

All customers will receive an email informing them of the sale prior to closure of the acquisition, the company said.

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