Unusual Whales

Japanese automakers have begun passing the costs of U.S. tariffs onto American consumers

Toyota raised U.S. prices in July by roughly $270 per vehicle, while Subaru — which derives about 70% of its global sales from the American market — lifted prices on certain models a month earlier. Subaru estimates the tariffs imposed under President Donald Trump’s administration will cut its 2026 earnings

Fitch Ratings: U.S. consumer spending is slowing sharply, pressured by a weakening labor market and rising inflation from tariffs

U.S. consumer spending slowed sharply in the first half of 2025, retreating from the strong momentum of late 2024, according to Fitch Ratings’ latest U.S. Consumer Health Monitor. Weaker sentiment and confidence, driven by heightened trade policy uncertainty and volatile equity markets, weighed on household demand, while a

Russia’s foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, said European proposals to deploy troops in Ukraine after a settlement would amount to “foreign intervention"

Moscow threw Donald Trump’s Ukraine peace plan into turmoil on Thursday, declaring it must have a veto over any postwar aid to Kyiv, even as Russian forces unleashed a massive overnight missile assault. Delivering a series of uncompromising statements, Russia’s foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, warned that European ideas

Student loan delinquency rates have hit a record high at 12.9%, the highest in 21 years

Delinquencies on student loans are climbing sharply now that years of pandemic-era protections have expired. In the second quarter of 2025, 10.2% of student debt was more than 90 days overdue, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Even more striking, 12.9% of loans entered

Trump: "We won't approve wind or farmer destroying solar projects"

President Donald Trump said the U.S. will no longer approve wind and solar projects that take farmland out of production, arguing they drive up electricity costs. His comments, posted on Truth Social, came a day after the Department of Agriculture announced it was ending programs that provide federal support

Israel has begun first stages of its planned assault on Gaza City

The Israeli military says it has launched the first phase of a planned ground operation aimed at capturing and occupying all of Gaza City, claiming its forces already control the city’s outskirts. According to a military spokesperson, troops are operating in the Zeitoun and Jabalia areas to prepare the

Sony hikes PlayStation 5 prices in US due to tariffs

Sony announced Wednesday that it will raise prices on its PlayStation 5 consoles starting Thursday, August 21. The company cited “a challenging economic environment,” a phrase widely seen as a reference to President Trump’s tariffs on imported goods. In the U.S., the PlayStation 5 will now cost $549.

US housing affordability hits record low

ising prices have made it increasingly difficult for first-time buyers to enter the market almost everywhere, pushing many millennials to delay purchasing a home. Even with a recent dip in mortgage rates, record-high prices and limited inventory have left affordability out of reach for many. “This is holding

Fed will begin cutting interest rates in September as the labor market weakens and inflation presents less risk

Following July’s relatively positive inflation report, expectations for a Federal Reserve rate cut in September have surged. As of Aug. 18, CME Group’s FedWatch tool put the probability at about 83%, up sharply from 59% just a month earlier. Market sentiment has shifted quickly. President Donald Trump has

Trump has said that Fed Governor Lisa Cook must resign after a report tied her to possible mortgage fraud

On Wednesday, President Trump called for Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook to step down after one of his administration officials accused her of mortgage fraud and pressed for an investigation. The allegations came from Bill Pulte, whom Trump appointed in March as director of the U.S. Federal Housing Finance

Young adults' personalities are changing, with conscientiousness in freefall

Recent research points to a possible shift in the personalities of young adults, with conscientiousness—the trait linked to responsibility, organization, and goal-directed behavior—showing a troubling decline. Data from the Understanding America Study highlights this trend, suggesting a broader cultural change that could influence both the workplace and

FDA warns public not to eat possibly radioactive shrimp sold at Walmart

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is advising the public not to eat, sell, or serve certain Great Value raw frozen shrimp sold at Walmart due to potential contamination with Cesium-137, a radioactive isotope. According to an FDA press release on Tuesday, U.S. Customs and Border Protection detected

17% of teachers work a second job

A large share of U.S. public school teachers say they’re unhappy with their pay—and that may help explain why so many pick up a second job, not just during summer break but throughout the school year. In 2020–21, the most recent year of available data, 16%

Americans get 55% of their calories from ultra-processed foods

A new federal analysis shows that the bulk of the American diet comes from ultra-processed foods—those calorie-packed products loaded with sugar, salt, and unhealthy fats. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than half of the nation’s daily calories now come

Ethereum will hit $12,000 in 2026, $18,000 in 2027, and $25,000 in 2028–2029

ChatGPT said: Standard Chartered has dramatically boosted its Ethereum outlook, now predicting the token could soar to $25,000 by 2028 — a stark reversal from just months ago, when the bank warned of a long-term decline in the world’s second-largest cryptocurrency. The UK lender now projects Ethereum

China’s youth unemployment is so bad that Gen Z job-seekers are paying $7 a day to pretend to work in an office

Fresh Gen Z graduates in China are leaving universities with strong credentials, only to run headfirst into a sluggish job market that makes securing employment feel almost impossible. The crunch has gotten so intense that some young people are now paying to sit in mock office spaces just to fill

AI is minting billion-dollar startups faster than the dot-com era, with 100 unicorns born in the last two years

There are now roughly 498 artificial intelligence unicorns — privately held AI companies valued at $1 billion or more — with a combined valuation of about $2.7 trillion, according to CB Insights. Of that group, 100 were founded just since 2023, highlighting the breakneck pace of growth in the sector. More

Trump: Ukraine will not become part of NATO

Donald Trump has stated that Ukraine’s president could bring Russia’s war to an end “if he wants to,” but stressed that any settlement would mean “no Nato membership for Ukraine.” Speaking just hours before hosting Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House, Trump also insisted that Crimea — which Moscow

The top 10 schools for long-term career success

LinkedIn built its latest university ranking around five equally weighted factors: Job placement measured the share of graduates from 2019 to 2024 who entered a full-time job or graduate program within a year of finishing school. Internships and recruiter demand looked at how many students completed internships, combined with

Mark Cuban says companies should be taxed more for buying back their own shares

Mark Cuban is taking aim at one of corporate America’s most powerful financial tools: stock buybacks. In a post on X Tuesday, the billionaire entrepreneur argued that raising the federal tax on buybacks would pressure companies to reinvest in their businesses instead of funneling cash to shareholders. He added

US bankruptcies are surging past 2020 pandemic levels

Forever 21 and Joann’s are the latest in a string of well-known retailers forced into bankruptcy, as store closures and shrinking physical footprints continue to reshape the retail landscape. According to S&P Global data, U.S. corporate bankruptcies spiked this summer to their highest level since

Vanguard says buy more bonds than stocks over the next decade

Vanguard’s recommended portfolio mix for the next decade is raising eyebrows. The asset manager now advises investors to allocate 70% of their holdings to bonds and just 30% to stocks — a far more cautious stance than the long-favored 60/40 stock-bond portfolio. The shift reflects Vanguard’s

U.S. birth rate hits all-time low

The U.S. fertility rate fell to a record low in 2024, with fewer than 1.6 children born per woman, according to new federal data released Thursday by the CDC. For decades, the U.S. maintained a birth rate that ensured population replacement — about 2.1 children per woman.

Meta’s, META, Reality Labs posted a $4.53 billion loss in second quarter

Meta’s Reality Labs division, which is responsible for building the company’s vision of the metaverse, continues to rack up heavy losses. In its second-quarter earnings report released Wednesday, Meta disclosed that Reality Labs posted an operating loss of $4.53 billion while generating $370 million in revenue.

Trump: The US states must do what the Federal government tells them

Trump says ceasefire not essential for talks to move forward Pressed on whether there would still be “serious consequences” for Russia if no ceasefire is reached, as he had previously suggested, Trump responded: “I don’t think you need a ceasefire.” He added that while a ceasefire is “good to