Money

By Samantha Delouya, CNN (CNN) — US homebuilders pulled back on projects in April amid whipsaw tariff announcements and growing fears of economic stress, new data on Friday revealed. Single-family home starts dropped 12% in April compared to one year ago, on a seasonally adjusted basis, according to data from the US Census Bureau and

By Clare Duffy, CNN New York (CNN) — In recent years, people ranging from Taylor Swift and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez to high school girls around the country have been victims of non-consensual, explicit deepfakes — images where a person’s face is superimposed on a nude body using artificial intelligence. Now, after months of outcry, there

By David Goldman, CNN (CNN) — Wall Street is on edge about American investments again after receiving a significant warning about the safest of all safe havens: US debt. Moody’s downgraded America’s debt on Friday evening from its previously perfect AAA credit rating, the last of the three major credit rating agencies to strip US

By Chris Isidore, CNN (CNN) — Negotiators for New Jersey Transit and the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET), the union representing 450 striking engineers, have reached a tentative labor agreement that could bring an end to the three-day strike, according to the union. “This is a good result for labor. It’s a good

CNN By Auzinea Bacon, CNN (CNN) — Tariff rates will soon return to a “reciprocal” level if countries don’t reach trade agreements during the 90-day pause, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Sunday. “President Trump has put them on notice that if you do not negotiate in good faith, you will ratchet back up to your

By Auzinea Bacon, CNN (CNN) — Tariff rates will soon return to a “reciprocal” level if countries don’t reach trade agreements during the 90-day pause, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Sunday. “President Trump has put them on notice that if you do not negotiate in good faith, you will ratchet back up to your April

By Jeanne Sahadi, CNN (CNN) — Getting into college can be hard. But figuring out how to finance college so that neither parent nor child are left financially hard up? It’s a new, highly annoying level of hard — at least if you hope to get an adequate financial aid package to supplement your and

By Elisabeth Buchwald, CNN (CNN) — The steep drop in tariff rates on Chinese goods shipped to the United States might have consumers thinking there’s significant relief in sight — at least compared to before. But in practice it might not feel that way. With timing of the essence given the new rates are only

By Jordan Valinsky, CNN New York (CNN) — It’s tough out there to be a tequila maker — not even Kendall Jenner is immune from the industry’s challenges. 818 Tequila, the four-year-old brand owned by Jenner, has slowed down hiring and dialed back spending on some of its marketing efforts, a troubling sign for the

By Ramishah Maruf, CNN New York (CNN) — Naomi Lin’s favorite high-end accessory is wildly popular, an acquired taste, and shockingly resilient in the face of a tariff onslaught. No, it’s not Manolos or the latest offering from Prada — it’s a gremlin-like plush. It’s a Labubu, a palm-sized Nordic elf with bright eyes, sharp

By Auzinea Bacon, CNN (CNN) — President Donald Trump on Saturday said Walmart needs to stop “trying to blame tariffs” after the retail giant announced its products would become more expensive. Walmart’s CEO said the price increases were a result of Trump’s tariffs being “too high,” particularly when it came to Chinese goods. “We will

By Clare Duffy, CNN New York (CNN) — If you search “Adderall” on Spotify’s podcast page, you’ll find health podcasts about ADHD, shows about addiction recovery and comedy podcasts where hosts talk about using the medication. You may also come across multiple pages masquerading as podcasts that direct users to buy drugs from potentially dangerous

By Chris Isidore, CNN (CNN) — The US Department of Justice is set to drop a criminal case against aircraft maker Boeing despite the fact that the company agreed to plead guilty last year, according to attorneys for families of victims of two fatal crashes of the 737 Max that led to the case. The

By Liam Reilly and Hadas Gold, CNN Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company on Friday said a “rogue employee” was behind its chatbot’s unsolicited rants about “white genocide” in South Africa earlier this week. The clarification comes less than 48 hours after Grok — the chatbot from Musk’s xAI that is available through his social media

By Jordan Valinsky, CNN New York (CNN) — Bahama Breeze abruptly closed more than one-third of its restaurants this week, further compounding the casual dining segment’s problems. Darden Restaurants, Bahama Breeze’s parent company, said in a statement that the closure of 15 locations was the “right decision because it will allow Bahama Breeze to focus

By Alicia Wallace, CNN (CNN) — Americans’ feelings about the US economy remain in the doldrums after President Donald Trump’s tariffs: Consumer sentiment continued its freefall this month, settling in at a near-record low. The University of Michigan’s closely watched consumer sentiment index fell 2.7% to a preliminary reading of 50.8 for May, dropping further

By Tami Luhby, CNN (CNN) — Keeping cool could cost a lot more this summer — yet another financial squeeze for many inflation-weary consumers. Americans can expect to shell out a record $784, on average, to cool their homes from June through September, according to a new analysis by the National Energy Assistance Directors Association

By Jordan Valinsky, CNN New York (CNN) — Two of the biggest cable companies in the United States have agreed to merge, marking a major milestone in consolidation as cord-cutters continue to ditch their pricey TV packages, thus forcing companies to adjust to their dwindling futures. Charter Communications, which operates under the Spectrum branding, is

By David Goldman and Betsy Klein, CNN (CNN) — If you thought President Donald Trump’s trade war was over, he has some news for you: Tariffs are going up again. At the conclusion of his Middle East trip Friday, Trump acknowledged that trade negotiations are progressing too slowly to accommodate every country that wants to