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Semafor has reported that U.S. antitrust regulators are poised to approve Paramount's $110bn takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery following a two-hour meeting at the Justice Department where staff attorneys ​appeared swayed by arguments from Paramount executives that ⁠the deal would not hurt other studios and creative talent. DOJ antitrust staff members quizzed Paramount CEO David Ellison on whether the combined company would be less inclined to send movies to big screens. Ellison reiterated a commitment to releasing movies in theaters, Semafor reports.

 

Semafor

Chicago Federal Reserve President Austan Goolsbee warned that the U.S. economy risks moving into a “stagflationary” environment, as persistent inflation, rising energy costs linked to the Middle East conflict, and slowing growth create a difficult backdrop for policymakers. In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Mr. Goolsbee said the combination of stubborn inflation and potential increases in unemployment represents one of the most challenging scenarios for central banks, because neither raising nor cutting interest rates fully addresses the problem. He said inflation pressures had already remained elevated before the latest energy shock, with services inflation continuing to rise independently of tariffs or oil prices. Mr. Goolsbee defended his earlier opposition to a Federal Reserve rate cut, arguing inflation has proved more persistent than expected. He added that incoming Fed Chair Kevin Warsh appeared “level-headed and quite reasonable,” suggesting confidence in his ability to navigate political and economic pressures if confirmed to lead the central bank.

 

Wall Street Journal

U.S. consumer confidence weakened slightly in May as households continued to face inflation pressures linked to the conflict in the Middle East, according to data from The Conference Board. The organization’s consumer confidence index fell to 93.1 in May from a revised 93.8 in April, although the reading came in above economists’ expectations. Consumers’ assessment of current business and labor market conditions declined, with the present situation index falling 3.2 points to 121.2. Meanwhile, the expectations index, which measures short-term views on income, business, and labor conditions, edged up slightly to 74.4. Confidence trends varied by age group, rising modestly among consumers aged 35 to 54 but declining among younger and older Americans. Perceptions of the labor market also softened, with fewer consumers saying jobs are plentiful.

 

Bloomberg

Reuters

US News and World Report

Wall Street Journal

Interviews with global health officials and documents ​from a meeting led by the World Health Organization (WHO) and Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention last Friday suggest the rapidly-spreading Ebola epidemic in the Democratic Republic of Congo is outpacing the world's response. Documents from the virtual meeting show that, as of last week, only ​7% of the 1,261 people identified as contacts of suspected Ebola patients had been located and followed up. The WHO put the number at more than 2,000 on ⁠Wednesday. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus observed that "Attacks on health facilities make tracking cases and their contacts nearly impossible." 

 

Reuters

Lululemon has reached a settlement with founder Chip Wilson that will allow him to appoint two new directors to the company’s board in exchange for an 18-month standstill and non-disparagement agreement, ending a prolonged governance dispute. The athletic apparel group will also appoint a third director with apparel product and brand expertise by October 2026, subject to Mr Wilson’s approval. The agreement follows months of public criticism from Wilson, who argued the company had lost its edge and was falling behind newer rivals such as Alo Yoga, Vuori, and Beyond Yoga. Mr. Wilson, who owns 8.7% of the company, had launched a proxy fight in December seeking board changes after raising concerns over strategy, product quality and weakening U.S. sales. As part of the settlement, Lululemon also agreed to support annual elections for all directors from 2028 onwards, replacing the current staggered board structure. 

 

CNN

CNBC

Reuters

Wall Street Journal

State attorneys general are taking a more aggressive role in antitrust enforcement as the Trump administration adopts a more merger-friendly approach and scales back some federal cases. The shift became especially visible after more than 30 states continued litigating against Live Nation after the Justice Department settled its case with the company, ultimately winning a jury verdict that found Live Nation engaged in illegal monopolization. The states are now seeking sweeping remedies, including forcing Live Nation to divest Ticketmaster and certain amphitheaters. Attorneys general involved in the case said the outcome demonstrated that states can pursue major antitrust actions independently, even when federal regulators step back. Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti said states are likely to become “a lot more assertive” in protecting their interests going forward. Despite having far fewer antitrust lawyers and resources than federal agencies, states are increasingly collaborating across party lines and hiring outside legal specialists to pursue complex competition cases, signaling a broader shift in antitrust power from Washington to state capitals.

 

Wall Street Journal

Fenwick & West, the law firm which advised Sam Bankman-Fried's FTX before its 2022 collapse and bankruptcy, is to pay $54m to resolve claims ‌from FTX customers who alleged the firm helped enable one of the largest financial frauds in U.S. history. The firm “helped to craft and implement strategies that facilitated FTX’s fraud,” plaintiffs alleged. Fenwick ‌said it "was not aware of the fraud at FTX, stands by the integrity of its legal work, and disputes wrongdoing of any kind, as we have consistently stated ​throughout this matter." ​Attorneys for the plaintiffs told the court that the deal was reasonable and will avoid the risk of complex and protracted litigation. 

 

Reuters

A visitor to Disneyland has filed a $5m class action lawsuit, alleging the Anaheim theme park does not properly disclose the use of facial recognition technology that violates privacy rights. Summer Christine Duffield of Riverside County claims Disneyland and Disney California Adventure violated privacy, competition and consumer protection laws by collecting the biometric data.

 

Chicago Tribune

Insurance entrepreneur Greg Lindberg has been sentenced to 12 years in prison after federal convictions tied to a $2bn insurance fraud scheme and an attempted bribery of a North Carolina regulator. The sentencing concludes a yearslong legal battle involving two separate criminal cases against Lindberg, who prosecutors accused of diverting policyholder funds from life insurance companies he controlled through a network of affiliated loans. Prosecutors described the case as one of the largest insurance frauds in U.S. history. A judge also issued a preliminary order requiring Lindberg to pay $1.6bn in restitution. Prosecutors had sought a prison term of more than 14 years. Federal authorities said Lindberg used insurance companies as a “personal piggy bank,” financing luxury spending that allegedly included private jets, a superyacht, real estate, and millions of dollars in payments tied to personal relationships.

 

Bloomberg

Wall Street Journal

The most comprehensive independent study of AI-powered hiring algorithms to date has identified “clear racial disparities” embedded in the tools used to screen millions of job applicants, with Black and Asian candidates disproportionately affected. A Stanford University-led study of 4m job applications submitted by 3m applicants across 156 employers who used the Pymetrics hiring platform, which assesses people through online games designed to measure cognitive traits such as risk tolerance and altruism, found evidence of “systemic rejection.” Northeastern professor and research co-author Kathleen Creel said: “As a single vendor comes to dominate decision-making in a space, their quirks or shortfalls can be present across that entire sector in a way that wasn’t possible before.” Pymetrics’ owner, Harver, did not respond to a request for comment.

 

Fortune

Financial Times

Target is deepening its adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) across the business, but rising costs linked to usage-based pricing models from AI providers are prompting the retailer to reassess how the technology is deployed, according to Target India president Andrea Zimmerman. She said the retailer is moving from “using AI to running on AI”, while focusing on targeted integration rather than broad deployment, and said discussions around AI pricing are now taking place at the highest levels of the business as providers such as OpenAI and Anthropic shift towards token-based charging structures. Target also plans to increase investment in analytics teams in India to better turn consumer data into actionable insights, as the retailer continues efforts to revive growth after three years of declining revenue.

 

Reuters

Russia has announced plans to intensify its strikes on Kyiv, targeting what it described as Ukraine's "decision-making centers." The warning followed a weekend attack that killed four people and injured many others. Russia's foreign ministry has called on foreign diplomats and civilians to evacuate the city. However, Western diplomatic missions, including those from France and the EU, have rejected the evacuation calls, and Ukrainian officials have labelled Russia's threats as mere "rhetoric." Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga urged partners not to succumb to Russian intimidation.

 

France 24

Bloomberg reports that expats to London, such as Vanessa Chan, who moved to the U.K. capital from Hong Kong, are struggling with the current extreme early-season heat and a lack of solutions to help Londoners deal with high temperatures. “The whole infrastructure in the U.K. is not designed for the heat,” Chan says. In London, “there’s nowhere to retreat to. It’s hot outside and then it’s even hotter inside,” observes Dimple Rana, heat resilience leader at buildings consultancy Arup. The U.K.'s Climate Change Committee recently advised that air conditioning should be part of the country's plan for more active cooling, particularly in places with vulnerable people.

 

Bloomberg