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Its no secret that raising kids in the U.S. has become grossly expensive. The price of childcare alone has ballooned over the past decade, with many families reporting that it costs them at least a quarter of their annual income. Across many states, families need to earn an average of $180,000 to comfortably afford infant care; the high cost of living in states like California and New York can require an income exceeding $250,000. An increasing burden on families A new analysis by the online lending marketplace LendingTree captures why so many families are struggling to manage the enormous cost of having children. The study found that since 2023, the annual cost of raising a young child has jumped by nearly 36%, coming to about $30,000 per year. Over the course of 18 years, that amounts to almost a whopping $300,000. In four statesHawaii, North Dakota, Washington, and Marylandthat figure can be well over $300,000, even rising over $360,000. Overall, families report spending nearly 23% of their income on the annual expenses of raising children. Childcare comprises a significant portion of those expenses for families with young kids: According to LendingTree’s analysis, childcare costs spiked by more than 50% in just the past two years. Childcare centers have always struggled to make ends meet due to the steep cost of labor. As federal funding has dried up following the pandemic, however, that financial strain has only been exacerbated. Beyond childcare The cost of care is just one of the many additional expenses borne by families with children. There’s the cost of housing, as well as the attendant expenses associated with food, clothing, transportation, and healthcare. The LendingTree analysis found, for example, that food costs jumped by nearly 30% since 2023. That means even in states where childcare is less expensivelike North Dakotathe annual cost of raising children can remain high due to other expenses, like housing. (In fact, the average cost of raising children over 18 years is lower in Massachusetts than it is in North Dakota.) LendingTree’s findings also indicate that even as these costs rise precipitously, families are receiving less assistance from the government. Between 2023 and 2025, the value of federal tax credits decreased by over 44%, in part because the expanded child tax credit secured by the Biden administration expired. While it’s true that the cost of childcare continues to be one of the greatest challenges for many families, the financial burden doesn’t end thereand that’s unlikely to change without broader federal investment.
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E-Commerce
UFC is joining up with Facebook’s parent company Meta in a deal that will bring mixed martial arts to more fans around the world. The companies said Wednesday that their multiyear partnership will give UFC the ability to use Meta’s technology platforms, services, and products, including Meta AI, Meta Glasses, Meta Quest, Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Threads, so that UFC fans have more ways to view its content. Meta and UFC, whose parent company is TKO Group, said they will work together to incorporate Meta’s AI glasses into UFC events. Meta has the greatest minds in tech and they are going to take fan engagement to the next level,” UFC President and CEO Dana White said in a statement. White mentioned that Meta is already working on some innovations for a new fighter rankings system. The deal, whose financial terms were not disclosed, will also see the Meta brand appear in UFC’s Octagon, as well as across numerous broadcasts. Meta’s social media platform Threads will feature exclusive original UFC content. I love this sport and Im looking forward to working with the UFC to let fans experience it in new ways, Meta Founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg said. Zuckerberg is trained in mixed martial arts and posted about completing his first jiu jitsu tournament in 2023. That same year, there were talks of him and Tesla CEO Elon Musk squaring off in a cage match, but the event never happened. Zuckerberg and White are no strangers to each other, with White joining Meta’s board of directors in January. Both Zuckerberg and White are among the many high profile business figures within the orbit of President Donald Trump. After Trump won reelection in November, Zuckerberg dined at the president-elects Mar-a-Lago club in Florida and Meta donated $1 million to Trumps inauguration fund. Other Big Tech companies such as Amazon have donated similar amounts. Trump is a longtime UFC fan and frequent attendee of major fights. His ties with White date back to 2001, when White hosted a UFC at the Republicans former casino-hotel in Atlantic City, New Jersey, the Trump Taj Mahal. Trump has also appeared with White at UFC matches over the years, especially in his 2024 campaign as part of efforts to appeal to younger male voters. White has had speaking roles at the 2016, 2020 and 2024 Republican conventions and appeared on stage at Trumps election victory party in November. Shares of Meta Platforms Inc. rose slightly in midday trading, while shares of TKO Group Holdings Inc. climbed more than 2%. Michelle Chapman, AP business writer
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E-Commerce
The White House said on Wednesday that tech billionaire Elon Musk will stay on to complete his mission to slash government spending and downsize the federal workforce, dismissing media reports that he will leave the role soon. Politico and ABC reported that President Donald Trump had told members of his Cabinet that Musk will soon depart and return to the private sector, although the reports did not make clear if that would mean Musk leaving before his 130-day mandate as a special government employee is set to expire around late May. Trump has tasked the Tesla and SpaceX CEO with leading efforts through the Department of Government Efficiency to cut government funding and reshape the federal bureaucracy. “Elon Musk and President Trump have both publicly stated that Elon will depart from public service as a special government employee when his incredible work at DOGE is complete,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said. Musk and DOGE did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the reports. On Tuesday, Musk and Trump suffered a setback as a liberal judge in Wisconsin won election to the state Supreme Court, easily defeating a conservative judge whose campaign had been heavily bankrolled by Musk and groups tied to him. The vote had been seen as an early referendum on Trump’s presidency and Musk’s campaign to remake the U.S. civil service. Shares of some government contracting companies rose following the reports of Musk’s possible impending return to the private sector. Shares of Musk’s Tesla, which had been down more than 6% in early trading after a sharper-than-expected fall in first-quarter deliveries, reversed course and were up about 5% on Wednesday afternoon. Musk told Fox News’ “Special Report with Bret Baier” last week that he was confident he would finish most of his stated aim of cutting $1 trillion in federal spending by the end of his 130 days. But in a March 10 interview with Fox Business Network’s “Kudlow,” when he was asked by host Larry Kudlow, “You going to go another year?” Musk replied, “Yeah, I think so.” According to the DOGE website, the only official window into its operations, DOGE estimates it has saved U.S. taxpayers $140 billion as of April 2 through a series of actions including workforce reductions, asset sales, and contract cancellations, still far short of Musk’s $1 trillion goal. But evidence for the stated savings is often missing, and the website’s calculations have been riddled with errors and corrections. DOGE’s mandate as a whole is set to continue to July 4, 2026. However, many of the top figures in DOGE are tied to Musk and have not said whether they would want to stay on after the departure of the billionaire, who has been the ideological force behind the government overhaul. There has been growing unease across the U.S. over Musk’s blunt approach to mass layoffs from the government workforce. Nearly 200,000 employees have been fired, earmarked for termination or have accepted buyouts. Republican lawmakers have faced the wrath of angry voters at unruly town halls, while many of DOGE’s efforts have become the subject of lawsuits. Tesla dealerships have been vandalized in the U.S. and abroad, and a nationwide protest against DOGE and Trump’s agenda is planned for this Saturday. Susan Heavey, Nandita Bose, Andrea Shalal, and Tim Reid, Reuters Additional reporting by Shivani Jayesh Tanna, Akash Sriram, Abhirup Roy, and Sayantani Ghosh.
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E-Commerce
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