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President Donald Trump is visiting the Federal Reserve headquarters in Washington Thursday, a week after indicating that Fed chair Jerome Powell’s handling of an extensive renovation project on two Fed buildings could be grounds for firing.Trump has criticized Powell for months because the chair has kept the short-term interest rate the Fed controls at 4.3% this year, after cutting it three times last year. Powell says the Fed wants to see how the economy responds to Trump’s sweeping tariffs on imports, which Powell says could push up inflation.Powell’s caution has infuriated Trump, who has demanded the Fed cut borrowing costs to spur the economy and reduce the interest rates the federal government pays on its debt.The Fed has been renovating its Washington headquarters and a neighboring building. With some of the construction occurring underground and as building materials have soared in price after inflation spiked in 2021 and 2022, the estimated cost has ballooned to about $2.5 billion, from $1.9 billion.When asked last week if the costly rebuilding could be grounds to fire Powell, Trump said, “I think it is.”“When you spend $2.5 billion on, really, a renovation, I think it’s really disgraceful,” Trump said.Firing Powell would threaten the Fed’s independence, which has long been supported by most economists and Wall Street investors.
Category:
E-Commerce
Chipotle Mexican Grill announced its second-quarter financial results on Wednesday, July 23, and the news isnt great. The fast casual restaurant chain failed to reach its quarterly sales estimates and reduced its targeted annual sales growth. Chipotle reported net income of $436.1 million (32 cents per diluted share), a decrease from $455.7 million (33 cents per diluted share) year-over-year (YOY). In premarket trading, Chipotles stock price (NYSE:CMG) has plummeted over 12% since the market closed Wednesday night. While Chipotle reported a 3% increase YOY in total revenue, it credited the $3.1 billion sum to the opening of 61 new restaurants. In reality, restaurants saw comparable sales drop 4%, thanks to smaller bills. Wall Street had predicted a 2.9% decrease, according to consensus estimates cited by CNBC. What’s eating American diners? In a post-earnings investors meeting, Chipotle CEO Scott Boatwright blamed ongoing volatility in consumer environment trends. Much of what were experiencing right now is due to macro and the consumer. The low-income consumer is looking for value as a price point at present, Boatwright stated. Tariffs are also a factor, with Chipotle estimating a 0.5% rise in cost of sales. Chipotles decline is part of a broader trend. Fast food restaurants saw a 0.9% decrease in traffic YOY during quarter two, according to a report published this month by Revenue Management Solutions (RMS). At the same time, prices at these quick-service restaurants increased by 1.3% YOYthough this is less than quarter ones 3.1% increase. Meanwhile, the average bill at Chipotle increased by 0.9%.
Category:
E-Commerce
Investors in Tesla cant seem to catch a break. Yesterday, Elon Musks electric vehicle company reported its Q2 2025 resultsand they werent good. Today, the stock (Nasdaq: TSLA) is down significantly because of it. Heres what you need to know about TSLAs latest movement. TSLA shares hit in early trading As of the time of this writing, TSLA shares are currently down over 6%, or $20 per share, to $312.56 in premarket trading. That drop comes after the company reported its second-quarter results for its fiscal 2025 yesterday. The company reported that it produced 410,244 vehicles during the quarter, over 396,000 of which were its popular models 3 and Y. During the same period, Tesla delivered 384,122 vehicles, its models 3 and Y accounting for over 373,000 of those deliveries. But what seems to have concerned investors the most about the companys Q2 results is its revenue number. For the quarter, Tesla reported revenue of $22.5 billion. That was a 12% decline from the $25.5 billion that the company posted in the same quarter a year earlier. It was also worse than the $22.74 billion in revenue that many analysts were expecting. Even worse was that this revenue decline was the second quarterly revenue drop in a row, and it came after Tesla launched refreshed versions of its popular Model Y SUV. 3 factors weighing Tesla down Tesla is facing several problems, which are both impacting its revenue and making investors nervous for the future. The main problem is that Teslas revenues are declining. This decline can be attributed to multiple factors, the first being Musk himself. Ever since CEO Elon Musk leapt headfirst into politics earlier this year, Teslas brand has taken a popularity hit. Musks leadership of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)and the extreme cuts it implemented after President Trumps inaugurationwas deeply unpopular with progressives, who have historically been the ones attracted to Teslas electric vehicles. This alienation of a large part of Teslas customer base hasnt done the company any favors as far as sales are concerned. But Musk isnt directly to blame for all of the problems Tesla is facing. The second factor hurting the company is increased competition from electric vehicles produced by competitors around the world. Car manufacturers of all stripes, from America to Europe to Asia, are releasing EVs that are often much more affordable than Teslas, giving customers cheaper options to choose from. A third factor that is likely weighing on investors minds is the upcoming expiration of the $7,500 electric vehicle tax credit in the United States. This EV credit was killed in Trumps Big Beautiful Bill Act, which Elon Musk vehemently opposed. The credit expires on September 30, and investors are nervous about how the loss of the credit will impact sales of Teslas pricy EVs. TSLA shares have had a rough 2025 After Teslas disappointing Q2 2025 earnings yesterday, the stock is down over 6% in premarket trading this morning as of the time of this writing. However, thats not the worst news when it comes to Teslas stock price. After hitting an all-time high of $488.54 per share in December 2024, TSLA shares have declined sharply. As of yesterdays close at $332 per share, Teslas shares have declined 17.6% this year. Teslas additional 6% decline is only compounding those losses and shows that investors are still jittery about where the companys sales go from here.
Category:
E-Commerce
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