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The Wrap reports that a Paramount source has pushed back on reports that CEO David Ellison could unload CNN in an effort to resolve California's antitrust suit challenging ​its $110bn acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery. Paramount Skydance chief legal officer Makan Delrahim had said all options, including a possible sale of CNN, were "on the table." CNN chief media analyst Brian Stelter said Delrahim's remarks were intended to convey Paramount's willingness to negotiate with California Attorney General Rob Bonta, rather than signal that Ellison is preparing to sell CNN.

 

Politico

Reuters

The Wrap

A Bloomberg Economics report suggests the U.S. is running “dangerously low” on key munitions used during the war against Iran. Stocks of hard-to-replace air defense interceptors are “critically low” and long-range missile supplies are “under pressure,” according to the analysis. “The war has consumed important weapons faster than they can be bought and built. That is creating a generational gap in U.S. stockpiles of air defense interceptors and exquisite long-range munitions that cannot be quickly overcome,” Bloomberg Economics defense lead Becca Wasser and Courtney McBride wrote.

 

Bloomberg

JPMorgan Chase ended its banking relationship with Polymarket last year over regulatory concerns, underscoring persisting cautious sentiment towards prediction markets. Polymarket is now working with an unidentified new lender.

 

Financial Times

Reuters reports that private equity firm Silver ‌Lake is in ongoing talks to acquire human resources and financial management software company Workday in a deal that would be among the largest software buyouts in history. Workday shares had fallen about 15% this year, as ​investors questioned the durability of traditional software amid rapid advances in artificial intelligence.

 

Reuters

The Los Angeles City Council has approved the Enhanced City Resources Master Agreement, which outlines the reimbursement process for services provided during the 2028 Summer Olympic Games. Despite a 10-4 vote in favor, some council members expressed concerns about potential financial risks, warning that taxpayers could face up to $1bn in costs if the organizing committee, LA28, suffers significant losses. Councilmember Monica Rodriguez said: “This fails to provide any safeguards for Los Angeles taxpayers and most assuredly risks the City's fiscal stability.” The agreement allows the city to access a $270m contingency fund from LA28, but critics argue that the protections are insufficient. City Controller Kenneth Mejia emphasized the need for transparency and accountability, saying: “We're already locked into a huge financial liability.” The council is set to negotiate further on service costs leading up to the Games.

 

Los Angeles Times

Speaking with CNBC, Novo Nordisk CEO Mike Doustdar has defended the drugmaker’s decision to sue rival Eli Lilly over its weight-loss drug advertising. “I am a big fan of competition. I think competition has to be fierce, but I also think competition has to be fair . . . I believe that patients deserve to know the full truth together with their physicians before they make a choice of what product to take,” Doustdar said on CNBC’s “Mad Money.” Novo last month launched legal action against Lilly, seeking a preliminary U.S. court injunction to halt advertisements for their obesity and diabetes drugs in a move that underscores the escalating competition between the two pharmaceutical giants, who both vying for a share of the rapidly growing obesity drug market, which is forecast to exceed $100bn in the U.S. by the end of this decade. Novo claims that Lilly's ads mislead consumers regarding product comparisons, while Lilly has denied any wrongdoing and plans to defend its advertising strategy.

 

CNBC

Major U.S. companies have increasingly removed explicit diversity criteria from board appointments, with 61 S&P 100 companies dropping such provisions since 2023, including Apple, Alphabet, Amazon, Starbucks, and Wells Fargo. The retreat has accelerated over the past year amid the Trump administration’s efforts to dismantle DEI programs, with several companies also removing diversity requirements from chief executive succession policies. The proportion of companies using Rooney Rule-style provisions has fallen to 12% from 58% over the past year, according to executive recruiter Spencer Stuart, while women accounted for 29% of new S&P 500 directors this year, down from 46% in 2023. Companies are also increasingly turning to former CEOs for board seats, with this group accounting for 37% of new directors. More than 30 major companies continue to maintain explicit diversity criteria.

 

Los Angeles Times

Americans are increasingly tapping record levels of home equity to pay down mounting credit card debt, as high borrowing costs and persistent consumer spending put pressure on household finances. U.S. homeowners now hold about $35tn in home equity, while household debt rose 3% year over year to $18.8tn in the first quarter of 2026, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, including a 6% increase in credit card balances to $1.25tn. Homeowners withdrew an estimated $47bn in equity during the quarter, up 2% from a year earlier. Cash-out mortgage refinancing jumped 18% to $22bn, while second mortgages totaled $25bn. With homeowners holding an average of $310,500 in equity, refinancing can offer a way to replace credit card debt carrying rates of around 23% with mortgage borrowing at considerably lower rates. Mortgage brokers report that debt consolidation is becoming an increasingly common reason for refinancing, with some borrowers carrying $20,000-$50,000 in credit card balances, and occasionally as much as $90,000.

 

New York Times

The U.S. producer-price index was unchanged in July, according to the Labor Department after declining 0.1% in June, coming in below economists’ expectations for a 0.2% increase as energy prices edged lower. The softer-than-expected wholesale inflation reading follows data showing a slight decline in annual consumer inflation and will feed into estimates for the Federal Reserve’s preferred personal-consumption expenditures price index. Economists currently estimate that core PCE inflation, which excludes food and energy, rose by 0.2% to 0.3% in July, with the official report due later in August.

 

CNBC

Los Angeles Times

REuters

Wall Street Journal

A U.S. federal trade court has upheld President Donald Trump’s elimination of the “de minimis” exemption, which allowed goods worth less than $800 to enter the U.S. duty-free, rejecting a challenge that argued he lacked the authority to end it under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. The decision maintains a significant change for e-commerce retailers such as Shein and Temu, which have relied heavily on direct low-value shipments to U.S. consumers, potentially increasing the cost of their cross-border business models.

 

USA Today

Bloomberg

CNBC

Reuters

Lululemon Athletica chief AI and technology officer Ranju Das has left after less than a year in the role, becoming the latest senior departure ahead of Heidi O’Neill taking over as chief executive on September 8th. Mr Das, the first Lululemon executive to hold the title, was responsible for developing artificial intelligence strategies to improve efficiency and shareholder value. His departure follows the recent exit of chief strategy officer Rachel Acheson as Lululemon seeks to revive sales amid increased competition and a share price decline of more than 40% this year.

 

Bloomberg

A new study from California's Department of Public Health indicates that Latino men in the state who cut artificial-stone countertops are falling ill from silicosis, an incurable and deadly lung disease, at an unprecedented rate. The number of local cases reported has increased more than tenfold in less than four years, from 2019 through 2022 there were 47 cases; from 2023 through August of this year, there have been 571. Latino men account for about 98% of cases. “It's become clear that [ . . . ] engineered stone countertops . . . cannot be manufactured safely and economically,” said David Michaels, professor of environmental and occupational health at George Washington University and co-author of the study. “This is a product that we do not need that is damaging the lungs of hundreds of workers [in California] and probably thousands of workers across the country.”

 

Los Angeles Times

The State Department is preparing for reduced staffing at U.S. embassies in the Middle East due to the ongoing conflict with Iran. Personnel displaced from their posts may have the option to curtail assignments. The uncertainty surrounding staffing levels has left diplomats and their families in a difficult position, as they struggle to find housing and schooling options. Former diplomats warn that fewer staff could hinder the Department's ability to provide consular assistance and advance U.S. interests abroad. A State Department spokesperson told CNN that they “do not discuss internal deliberations or post-specific contingency planning,” but noted that the department “continually reviews the security and staffing posture at every diplomatic mission based on conditions on the ground and adjusts personnel levels as appropriate.”

 

Saudi Gazette