CosMc’s is officially open: What to know about the McDonald’s offshoot
(NEW YORK) — CosMc’s, a new small-format beverage-led concept from McDonald’s, has officially opened in San Antonio, Texas.
Starting Thursday, patrons in the Alamo City will be among the first to try the new “out-of-this-world beverage experience” from the McDonad’s universe.
“The extraterrestrial experience will continue August 10-11 for the CosMc’s San Antonio official grand opening from 10 am – 4 pm where fans will have the opportunity to try free samples of menu items and receive exclusive merch for the first 100 customers each day,” the company said in a press release.
The first CosMc’s restaurant features “an outdoor patio with eye-catching elements that come alive at dusk.”
There will be a CosMc’s drive thru, kiosks, counter service, walk-up and in-app ordering available to customers at the new location.
With four locations open at launch — in Bolingbrook, Illinois, and Arlington, Dallas and Watauga, Texas — another six are set to open across the Dallas and San Antonio metro areas in the coming months, according to the company.
The expansive menu of drink offerings, all of which can be personalized, includes the Sprite Moonsplash, a sparkling Sprite plus citrus and sweet vanilla flavors that’s served with dried blueberries and a lemon wheel over ice, as well as other items like the Sour Cherry Energy Burst and Churro Cold Brew Frappé.
Customers can opt for add-ons like fruity popping boba or energy shots to an array of menu items.
Other fan favorite options available at CosMc’s include Hazelnut Mocha Cold Brew, Popping Pear Slush, Sour Tango Lemonade and small bites.
(NEW YORK) — A worldwide selloff jolted markets on Monday in the aftermath of a weaker-than-expected U.S. jobs report that elicited fear of an economic recession.
Japan’s main Nikkei 225 stock index dropped more than 12%, its worst day of trading since 1987. Each of the major U.S. stock indexes plummeted more than 2%.
Nvidia, a chipmaker that had helped catapult market gains so far this year, dropped as much as 14% before recovering some of those losses.
Renewed warnings of an imminent recession arrive after years of doomsday forecasts that stretch back to the staggering rise of inflation three years ago. So far, the U.S. has defied alarm and sustained solid growth, proving many analysts wrong.
Economists who spoke to ABC News disagreed about whether current economic conditions warrant serious concern about a possible recession or foretell resilience of the kind that has followed previous bouts of uncertainty.
Some analysts voiced optimism, pointing to continued economic growth and a tendency for markets to overreact in the face of negative news. Others cautioned of a monthslong labor market cooldown that indicates wider economic weakness and a potential downturn.
“You can see the probability of a recession moving slightly higher, but for me it’s nowhere near the level at which you jump out of the window because the house is burning,” Olu Sonola, the head of U.S. regional economics at Fitch Ratings, told ABC News. “You can still safely take the elevator or the stairs.”
The stock market downswing was set off by a disappointing jobs report on Friday. Employers hired 114,000 workers in July, falling well short of economist expectations of 185,000 jobs. The unemployment rate climbed to 4.3%, the highest level since October 2021.
The unemployment rate has soared this year from 3.7% to 4.3%. That trend has triggered a recession indicator known as the “Sahm Rule,” which says that a rise of 0.5 percentage points in the unemployment rate within a 12-month period typically precedes a recession.
Some economists have doubted whether the trend signals a recession in this case. That’s because the rising unemployment rate owes more to an increase in eligible workers that has expanded the labor pool rather than layoffs that have reduced the number of people with jobs.
The labor market is still growing and the unemployment rate remains at a historically low level.
“I still think we’re in the soft-landing stage,” Stephan Weiler, a professor of economics at Colorado State University and a former Fed research officer, told ABC News, predicting an outcome in which inflation returns to normal and the economy averts a recession.
“Some people expected this recession two years ago or more, and it still hasn’t come about,” Weiler added.
Some economists rebutted that rosy outlook, however. Nancy Lazar, chief global economist at investment firm Piper Sandler, said the uptick in the unemployment rate marks a key piece of evidence indicating a recession will take place before the end of the year.
“It wasn’t just a one-month number,” Lazar said, referring to the jobs report on Friday. “This has been a rising trend.”
The recent labor market cooldown took hold roughly two years after the Federal Reserve began raising interest rates in March 2022 as part of an effort to dial back inflation. On average, Lazar said, the economy dips into a recession two-and-a-half years after the Fed begins a series of rate hikes.
“We’ve been expecting a recession to unfold,” Lazar added, acknowledging that Piper Sandler had previously forecasted a recession as early as the end of 2023. The firm had erred in part because it underestimated the staying power of pandemic-era government stimulus, she said.
“We’re now at the highest risk of the economy moving into a recession,” she added.
On Sunday, Goldman Sachs economists raised the probability of a U.S. recession in the next year from 15% to 25%.
The market downturn has triggered calls for a large interest rate cut at the Fed’s next meeting in September. Some investors have voiced an even more urgent request for a rare emergency rate cut as soon as this week.
In theory, interest rate cuts would ease borrowing fees, unleash consumer demand and business investment and help the economy avert a downturn.
Economists, however, said an interest rate cut likely would not help the economy avoid an imminent recession, since rate changes typically affect the economy only after a period of several months.
Pointing to the market drop-off on Monday, economists said investors have a track record of overreacting to emerging trends in the economy. But, experts added, market swings can help bring about a recession anyway.
“Markets always tend to overreact to the upside and overreact to the downside,” said Sonola, adding that market sentiment may in turn weigh on business investment and economic activity. “It can be a self-reinforcing feedback loop.”
(SEATTLE) — Tens of thousands of Boeing workers are set to cast ballots in a vote Thursday that could potentially trigger a major strike against the embattled aerospace company with far-reaching implications for the U.S. economy.
Boeing reached a tentative agreement earlier this week with the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, or IAM, the union representing 33,000 workers at Boeing plants in Washington State, Oregon and California.
However, union members could potentially reject the contract agreement, walk off the job and send the two sides back to the bargaining table.
A work stoppage would weaken Boeing as it struggles to recover from a years-long stretch of scandals and setbacks, hamstringing the nation’s largest exporter, experts told ABC News. But, they added, workers are frustrated with what they perceive as inadequate compensation and a sense they must sacrifice to make up for the company’s mismanagement.
The ratification vote concludes at 9 p.m. ET, and the union will release the results in a press conference soon afterward. If union members reject the contract, they will take a second vote on a strike that could begin as soon as Friday morning.
“This is a very, very high-stakes game of chicken,” Henry Harteveldt, a travel industry analyst at Atmosphere Research Group, told ABC News.
Here’s what to know about what’s behind the strike and its implications for the U.S. economy:
Why are Boeing workers threatening to strike?
Neither Boeing nor the IAM want a strike. The workers might carry one out anyway.
The tentative agreement struck this week delivers a 25% raise over the four-year duration of the contract, as well as worker gains on healthcare costs and retirement benefits. The union had sought a 40% pay increase over the life of the deal.
The agreement also features a commitment from Boeing to build its next commercial plane with union labor in Washington state.
Boeing touted the strength of its offer earlier this week. “Simply put, this is the best contract we’ve ever presented,” Stephanie Pope, Boeing Commercial Airplanes president and CEO, wrote in a letter to union members obtained by ABC News.
The union echoed support for the agreement, urging workers to ratify the deal.
“We have achieved everything we could in bargaining, short of a strike. We recommended acceptance because we can’t guarantee we can achieve more in a strike,” IAM District 571 President Jon Holden, who leads the union local involved in negotiations, told members in a public letter.
In response to ABC News’ request for comment, a Boeing spokesperson pointed to a letter sent to union members by CEO Kelly Ortberg.
“I hope you will choose the bright future ahead, but I also know there are employees considering another path — and it’s one where no one wins,” Ortberg said.
“For Boeing, it is no secret that our business is in a difficult period, in part due to our own mistakes in the past. Working together, I know that we can get back on track, but a strike would put our shared recovery in jeopardy, further eroding trust with our customers and hurting our ability to determine our future together,” Ortberg added.
IAM declined to respond to ABC News’ request for comment.
Still, workers may defy the company and the union. For years, West Coast Boeing workers have taken issue with their level of compensation, especially in light of strong company performance and a surge in the cost of living, experts said.
“There are years and years of pent up frustration among Boeing workers,” Jake Rosenfeld, a professor of sociology at the University of Washington who studies labor, told ABC News. “This is an expression of being completely fed up.”
Union members also view themselves as being asked to make sacrifices made necessary by the company’s mismanagement, said Harteveldt, of Atmosphere Research Group.
In January, a door plug blew out of the company’s 737 Max 9 aircraft during an Alaska Airlines flight, prompting a federal investigation. The renewed scrutiny arrived roughly five years after Boeing 737 Max aircraft were grounded worldwide following a pair of crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia that killed a combined 346 people.
In 2021, after a two-year ban, Boeing 737 Max aircraft were permitted to fly.
Boeing is carrying nearly $60 billion in debt, Pope noted in her letter to union members. The company’s share price has plummeted almost 40% since the outset of 2024. Ortberg took over as CEO last month.
“The workers cannot and should not be expected to bear all of the burden of the changes needed at Boeing,” Harteveldt said.
“But I don’t think Boeing is asking them or expecting them to do that,” Harteveldt added. “Boeing has extended what appears to be a very generous offer with substantial wage increases.”
What’s at stake in a potential Boeing strike?
Boeing, which employs 145,000 U.S.-based workers, is a major U.S. firm with a sprawling network of suppliers, experts said.
The company estimates that it contributes nearly $80 billion to the U.S. economy each year, and indirectly accounts for 1.6 million jobs.
A prolonged strike would weaken production with the potential to slow output, diminish income and trigger layoffs, Harteveldt said.
“There’s a risk of a downward spiral,” Harteveldt said.
Such a strike would not impact flight activity or down planes, however, since the workers at issue take part in manufacturing new products. That stands in contrast with an averted railroad strike in 2022, which would have halted a sizable share of the nation’s cargo trains.
“This wouldn’t be as devastating,” Rosenfeld said.
Still, he added, a potential strike would hold implications for a signature U.S. firm.
“It would further damage an iconic company that has already had years of setbacks,” Rosenfeld said.
(Bloomington, Minn.) — Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the Democratic vice presidential nominee, has enacted economic policies in the state on key issues like job creation and taxes.
The track record, stretching back to 2018, indicates how he may approach such issues if granted the nation’s second-highest office.
His positions could also help shape perceptions of the Harris-Walz ticket on the economy, which ranks as one of the most important issues among voters.
Here’s what to know about where Walz stands on key economic issues:
Jobs
During his tenure, Walz has sought to boost employment in Minnesota.
In 2020, he enacted the $1.9 billion Local Jobs and Projects Plan, which invested in construction and renovation projects as a means of restoring employment after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Still, the state has lagged behind the nation as a whole in the number of jobs created since the outbreak of the pandemic. Total nonfarm payrolls in Minnesota have grown by just 0.5% since 2020, which lags far behind a rate of 5.8% nationwide over that period, according to a Reuters analysis of data released by the Bureau of Labor statistics.
Walz has signed into law a series of measures viewed as pro-worker. Last year, Minnesota established paid sick and medical leave, banned non-compete agreements and expanded protections for Amazon warehouse workers. In May, Minnesota enacted a measure providing a raise for Uber and Lyft drivers while averting a threat made by those companies to stop doing business in the state.
The AFL-CIO, the nation’s largest labor organization, praised the selection of Walz as vice presidential nominee. “We know that Gov. Walz will be a strong partner in the Harris White House, fighting every day to improve the lives of workers in communities across America,” AFL-CIO President Liz Schuler said in a statement on Tuesday.
Taxes
Last year, Walz enacted tax reform legislation that included a child tax credit worth up to $1,750 for each child 17 years old and younger in households earning up to about $96,000 a year
In addition, Walz expanded tax exemptions for social security payments as well as income resulting from student loan forgiveness.
To help offset these tax cuts, Walz enacted tax increases for some wealthy individuals and corporations. The state imposed a 1% surtax on capital gains, dividends, and other investment income that exceeds $1 million in a year. He also raised taxes for corporations that bring in a portion of their revenue abroad.
Minnesota is expected to end 2025 with a $3.7 billion budget surplus, according to a projection issued in February by the Minnesota Department of Management and Budget, a state agency.
“Minnesota stands apart from the pack with a moderately progressive tax system that asks slightly more of the rich than of low- and middle-income families,” the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a non-partisan think tank, said on Tuesday.
Tax Foundation, a non-partisan advocacy group focused on tax reform, on Tuesday pointed to Walz’s record of supporting some tax increases.
“Gov. Walz’s tax policy record is notable because of how much it contrasts with broader national trends,” the organization said. “In recent years, most governors have championed tax cuts. Walz, rare among his peers, chose tax increases.”
Economic growth and inflation
In recent years, economic growth in Minnesota has trailed the rate of growth in the U.S. overall.
In 2023, inflation-adjusted gross domestic product in Minnesota grew 1.2%, less than half of the 2.5% expansion nationwide, U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis data showed. The previous year, Minnesota’s inflation-adjusted GDP grew nearly one percentage point slower than the rate nationwide, according to BEA data.
Inflation in a key metropolitan area of Minnesota, meanwhile, is lower than the nationwide average.
As of May, prices in the Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington area rose 2.6% over the previous year, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data showed. Consumer prices increased 3.3% nationwide over that period, BLS found.