By Natalie DeCoste Consumers on a tight budget because of all the streaming subscriptions they subscribe to are in for a treat as Google’s YouTube is piloting a more affordable option to their YouTube Premium service. YouTube is now offering “Premium Lite” which will give YouTube users ad-free viewing without all the other features of [...]
By Natalie DeCoste Square has announced that it is acquiring Afterpay. The two companies have entered into a Scheme Implementation Deed under which Square has agreed to acquire all of the issued shares in Afterpay through a recommended court-approved Scheme of Arrangement. The all-stock deal is worth roughly $29 billion based on the closing price of Square’s [...]
By Natalie DeCoste Members of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) testified on Wednesday before the House Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Commerce of the Committee on Energy and Commerce in a hearing entitled “Transforming the FTC: Legislation to Modernize Consumer Protection.” The subcommittee hearing was held to address legislation to modify the FTC’s authority and [...]
By Natalie DeCoste The U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) has pushed past the economic hardship spurred by the coronavirus pandemic but failed to meet economists’ expectations. The U.S.’s GDP for the second fiscal quarter rose 6.5% on an annualized basis. The figure was slightly better than the 6.3% gain in the GDP posted in the first [...]
By Natalie DeCoste The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has released a new issue brief on consumer loans, showing that loans had mostly returned to pre-pandemic levels by May 2021. The new 14-page issue brief, entitled "The Recovery of Credit Applications to PrePandemic Levels," was released by the CFPB on July 27. The report's goal [...]
By Natalie DeCoste Orders for planes, cars, and other long-lasting products increased in June, showing signs of a strong U.S. economy amidst struggling manufacturers continue to deal with shortages in both parts and labor and higher material costs. According to U.S. Census Bureau data from Tuesday, new orders for manufactured durable goods in June increased $2.1 billion [...]
By Natalie DeCoste One of the worst frosts seen in two decades has hit Brazil’s coffee-growing region, and the impact is hitting global markets. Last Thursday, coffee futures rose 10%, with prices posting their largest single-session gain since early 2014 and their highest settlement in more than six years. This means that futures for arabica beans [...]
By Natalie DeCoste Home prices in the U.S. hit new record highs as consumers continue to face rising costs across the country. Home-price growth climbed to a new record in May, fueled by high demand and low mortgage interest rates. The S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller National Home Price Index, the index which measures average home prices in [...]
By Natalie DeCoste The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has voted to rescind a 1995 policy statement that eliminated prior approval and prior notice provisions from most merger settlements. The FTC voted on July 21 to repeal “The 1995 Policy Statement on Prior Approval and Prior Notice Provisions.” The agency claimed the statement made it more difficult and [...]
By Natalie DeCoste On Thursday, July 22, the Committee for Justice hosted an online entitled "Biden's Executive Order on Competition: A Discussion" moderated by Ashley Baker, the Director of Public Policy for the Committee for Justice. The event centered around President Joe Biden's July 9 "Executive Order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy." The [...]
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