CNN – Business/Consumer

By Alicia Wallace, CNN (CNN) — The US economy kicked off 2025 by adding 143,000 jobs in January, fewer than expected; but the unemployment rate dipped to 4%, according to data released Friday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Economists were projecting the unemployment rate would stay at 4.1% and 170,000 jobs would be added,

By Liam Reilly, CNN (CNN) — The chief executive of Politico’s parent company pushed back hard against a debunked right-wing conspiracy theory that has been buoyed by the Trump administration concerning the publication, telling CNN that Politico has never accepted any form of federal funding. “Politico, since its launch 18 years ago, has never taken

By Bryan Mena and Elisabeth Buchwald, CNN (CNN) — Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has a new plan in the fight to bring down historically high interest rates, and it’s got nothing to do with the Federal Reserve. Bessent, in two interviews this week, said the Trump administration wants to focus on lowering long-term interest rates,

By Ramishah Maruf, CNN New York (CNN) — One of Google’s Super Bowl ads features a Wisconsin cheese market owner who uses the company’s Gemini AI tool to write product descriptions. But cheese fans quickly caught a hole in a previous version last week. The AI-generated copy in the commercial claimed that Gouda accounts “for

By Clare Duffy, CNN New York (CNN) — A pair of US lawmakers are seeking to ban government workers from using Chinese startup DeepSeek’s artificial intelligence chatbot on official devices. Reps. Darin LaHood, a Republican from Illinois, and Josh Gottheimer, a New Jersey Democrat, are set to propose legislation on Friday that would ban the

By Jordan Valinsky, CNN New York (CNN) — LG is recalling 500,000 electric ranges that have been involved in at least 28 fires and caused several injuries. However, customers who comply aren’t receiving refunds or exchanges — they’re getting stickers. The Consumer Product Safety Commission said in an alert that it has received 86 reports

By Chris Isidore, CNN New York (CNN) — Allstate Insurance says it will pay out $1.1 billion in claims caused by the wildfires that swept through Southern California in January. While the expected payout is significant, Allstate said Wednesday it was able to limit its losses partly by pulling back from the California market. Many

By Alicia Wallace, CNN (CNN) — If the pundits proved right, the US labor market was supposed to have broken down by now. It wasn’t supposed to survive the Federal Reserve’s historic and aggressive rate-hiking campaign to reel in high inflation. Instead, the job market — much like the broader US economy — has remained

By Jordan Valinsky, CNN New York (CNN) — Quiksilver, Billabong and Volcom, once a magnet for Millennials looking for surfer and skateboard-inspired clothing, are permanently closing all of their stores. More than 100 locations across the United States are shutting down in the coming weeks after their operator, Liberated Brands, filed for bankruptcy, blaming fast-fashion

By Tami Luhby, CNN (CNN) — In an effort to shrink the size of the federal workforce, the Trump administration is prodding government employees to shift to the private sector for the next stage of their careers. But it may not be that simple. Eligible federal workers initially had until Thursday to accept the administration’s

By Nathaniel Meyersohn, CNN New York (CNN) — Kermit the Frog. Coffee puns like “thanks a latte” and “a matcha made in heaven.” Drawings of dogs, cats, birds and bees. Starbucks baristas are scribbling on customers’ to-go coffee cups again, part of new CEO Brian Niccol’s “Back to Starbucks” strategy to humanize the global chain

By John Liu and Hassan Tayir, CNN Hong Kong (CNN) — Travel and spending during China’s Lunar New Year holiday hit new records this year, giving the government an encouraging boost as it seeks to ramp up the ailing economy. A total of 501 million trips were made within China during the eight-day travel season,

By Jeanne Sahadi, CNN (CNN) — Elon Musk, head of the chaos-causing Department of Government Efficiency, made an assertion this week that raised questions in some people’s minds about the status of the IRS Direct File program. That program enables tax filers in 25 states, if they choose, to file their taxes for free on

By Brian Stelter, CNN (CNN) — A newly released transcript of a contested interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris refutes President Donald Trump’s assertions that CBS committed “election interference” last October. The Harris interview led Trump to sue CBS, and a pro-Trump advocacy group filed a formal complaint with the FCC, the federal agency

By Liam Reilly, CNN (CNN) — White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, responding Wednesday to a question about a right-wing conspiracy theory, announced that the federal government would cancel $8 million worth of Politico subscriptions. Leavitt elevated a bogus claim spreading on social media that Politico and the Associated Press for years received millions of

By Clare Duffy and Hadas Gold, CNN New York (CNN) — As Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency associates barrel through the federal government, former Twitter (now X) employees have seen this all before. Musk appears to be bringing his Twitter takeover playbook to the public sector, and, as they did at the

By Jordan Valinsky, CNN New York (CNN) — People don’t buy “domestic” cars or salute the “domestic” flag, so they shouldn’t drink “domestic” beer. At least, that’s what Anheuser-Busch’s CEO thinks. Brendan Whitworth, the beermaker’s chief executive, says he wants to change the term that describes his US-made beers, which includes Budweiser, Michelob Ultra and