Wealth Management News & Insights
A History of the New York Stock Exchange’s Ups and Downs, Google’s Big Win Is Even Bigger for Apple, Cutting-Edge AI Was Supposed to Get Cheaper – It’s More Expensive Than Ever
Primary Sources
- The Beige Book August 2025 – Summary of Commentary on Current Economic Conditions by Federal Reserve District: Most of the twelve Federal Reserve Districts reported little or no change in economic activity since the prior Beige Book period—the four Districts that differed reported modest growth. [FRB]
Financial Markets
- Payrolls Rose 22,000 in August, Less Than Expected in Further Sign of Hiring Slowdown: Health care again led by sectors, adding 31,000 jobs, while social assistance contributed 16,000. Wholesale trade and manufacturing both saw declines of 12,000 on the month. [CNBC]
- A History of the New York Stock Exchange’s Ups and Downs: Periodic upheavals have been typically followed by stability and growth. [WSJ]
- Why Coffee Prices Are So High — And Where They’re Headed Next: Ground roast coffee prices in the U.S. hit $8.41 per pound in July, a record high and a 33% increase from a year ago, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data. [CNBC]
- Record EV Sales Drive Auto Market Ahead of Credit End: Automakers hold prices steady despite billions in tariffs. [WSJ]
- Google’s Big Win Is Even Bigger for Apple: A court ruling keeps the search giant intact while also allowing payments to the iPhone maker to continue at a vulnerable time. [WSJ]
The chart above projects Google’s gross search revenue from Apple devices and non-Apple devices between 2021 and 2029. Apple devices are expected to generate approximately 34% of Google’s total search revenue throughout the period.
Financial Planning
- How the Megabill Boosts a Charitable Tax Break for Seniors: Qualified charitable distributions make more sense than ever for many savers. [WSJ]
Business Strategy
- Amazon Pares Back Free Shipping Perk on Prime Membership: The e-commerce giant is ending a program that let Prime members share free shipping with a family member who lives somewhere else. Here’s what to know. [NYT]
- America Closed Malls, but China Kept Building Them. Now It Has Too Many: The first closing of an Apple Store in mainland China hints at broader troubles facing the country’s shopping malls as developers open more of them despite a glut. [NYT]
- Starbucks to Launch Protein-Packed Cold Foam, Lattes Later This Month: Starbucks plans to tap into consumers’ protein obsession by launching protein-packed cold foam and lattes starting Sept. 29. [CNBC]
- How the Staples Playbook May Shape Walgreens’ Retail Turnaround: Sycamore completed its $10 billion purchase of the Deerfield-based company late last week, announcing it would split the company into five units: Walgreens, The Boots Group, Shields Health Solutions, CareCentrix and VillageMD. [Crain’s Chicago]
- OpenAI Set to Start Mass Production of its Own AI Chips with Broadcom: OpenAI set to start mass production of its own AI chips with Broadcom. [FT]
- Nike Changes Iconic ‘Just Do It’ Slogan to Win Over the Anxious Generation: For nearly four decades, Nike has been telling people to “Just Do It.” Today, the brand is reintroducing its iconic tagline, flipping it into a question: “Why Do It?”. [ADWEEK]
- Cutting-Edge AI Was Supposed to Get Cheaper. It’s More Expensive Than Ever: With models doing more ‘thinking,’ the small companies that buy AI from the giants to create apps and services are feeling the pinch. [WSJ]
The graphic above displays how smarter AI models performing more complex tasks require a greater number of tokens (units of AI).
Life & Work
- What We Know About America’s Billionaires: 1,135 and Counting: Exclusive, up-close look at the richest people in the U.S., from celebrities like Taylor Swift and Elon Musk to a founder of a roofing supplier in Wisconsin. [WSJ]
- Meet the New ‘S.N.L.’ Cast Members: Please Don’t Destroy will stop making videos for the show as Ben Marshall joins the cast. Watch clips of him and the other new additions. [NYT]
- Decline in Reading is Inhibiting Learning, Academics Warn: Business school faculty say changing consumption of news and longer form writing limits understanding. [FT]
- 45 Albums and Shows Coming This Fall: A crop of artists on the verge of what’s next are returning with new releases, and Taylor Swift is reuniting with some of her poppiest collaborators. [NYT]