>>Oregon's Self-Service Gas Prohibition Falls
(Salem, OR) -- Oregon's self-service gas prohibition has been repealed after 72 years. House Bill 2426 would require gas stations to staff half of the pumps, but the other have can be self-service. Fuel companies have wanted this for many years, siting staffing shortages. The Northwest Grocery Association, a retail and food supplier advocate, claims jobs won't be lost because half of the pumps are already closed due to understaffing.
>> Federal Reserve: 23 Biggest Banks Survived Severe Recession Test
(Washington, DC) -- The Federal Reserve says 23 of the biggest American banks were able to survive a severe recession scenario in a stress test. Every U.S. bank the test included was able to continue to lend to consumers and businesses, the regulator said. Despite a nearly 550-billion-dollar projected loss for the group, the banks were able to maintain minimum capital levels.
>>Gallup: More Americans Confident In U.S. Economy
(Washington, DC) -- More Americans are saying they have confidence in the U.S. economy. A Gallup poll shows June's Economic Confidence Index Score was at negative 32, on a scale from negative 100 to positive 100. The June score is the highest since January 2022, with the score almost always under 0 since the pandemic recession. Republicans rate their confidence much lower than Democrats, but both have increased similarly.
>>TikTok Users Bring Lawsuit Against Montana Funded By App
(Helena, MT) -- TikTok users are bringing a lawsuit funded by the company itself challenging Montana's ban against the app. The social media giant is covering legal fees for a group of five TikTok creators, according to a spokesperson for the platform. This is separate from TikTok's lawsuit to block Montana's new law that bans the app over national security concerns. The spokesperson said in a statement from the short-form video app said "We will support our creators in fighting for their constitutional rights."
>>Customers Cancelling F-150 Lightning Orders
(Dearborn, MI) -- Customers who originally placed an order for a Ford 150 Lightning are cancelling the order due to rising costs. The truck was introduced in 2022 with a price of 40-thousand dollars for the base model, but recent increases have pushed the base price to nearly 60-thousand dollars. Ford also had a problem with defective batteries which posed a fire risk but that issue has reportedly been resolved. Ford actually closed the ordering process for the Lightning after 200-thousand reservations were placed. Customers who have opted out say the price hikes were just too much.
>>One-Bedroom Rents Slow Across U.S.
(San Francisco, CA) -- Rising rents for one-bedroom apartments are slowing across the U.S. A new report from online rental platform Zumper shows that the nearly six-percent price increase for one-bedrooms year-over-year is the most modest gain in close to two years. Housing starts increasing and an uptick in new construction could be the reason for the cooling rents.
>>Overstock.com To Become Bed Bath & Beyond
(Midvale, UT) -- Utah-based Overstock.com is changing its name to Bed Bath & Beyond. The online retailer that bought Bed Bath & Beyond's intellectual property for 21-point-five million dollars said on Wednesday it will start operating its website under the bankrupt retailer's name. The change will begin in Canada. Starting in August, about a month after the last of Bed Bath & Beyond's stores in the U.S. close, customers in Canada who go to overstock.com will be redirected to bedbathandbeyond.com. Overstock will also rebrand its mobile app and its rewards program.
>>National Geographic Lays Off Last Of Staff Writers
(Undated) -- National Geographic has laid off the last of its staff writers. The cuts come as parent company Walt Disney has let go thousands of staffers across its divisions this year. A company spokesperson said in a statement Wednesday that National Geographic will continue publish a monthly magazine. National Geographic had more than one-point-seven million subscribers at the end of 2022. News of the layoffs has come out Tuesday and Wednesday as departing staff writers posted on social media that they are now looking for work.
