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North America's finance chiefs have grown significantly more pessimistic about the global economic outlook, even as confidence in their own organizations has strengthened, according to Deloitte’s second-quarter 2026 CFO Signals survey. The survey found that 90% of respondents are optimistic about their companies’ prospects, up from 74% in the first quarter. However, confidence in the broader economy weakened, with only 37% describing the North American economy as "good now," while 50% expect it to improve over the next year. Sentiment toward other major regions - including South America, Asia excluding China, and China -also declined, while Europe showed a modest improvement, albeit from a low base. Deloitte’s overall CFO confidence score fell to 5.9 out of 10 from 6.3 in the previous quarter, dropping from the "high" to the "medium" confidence category. Despite the weaker macroeconomic outlook, CFOs’ financial expectations remained largely unchanged, with respondents forecasting average revenue growth of 4.5% over the next year, compared with 4.4% in the first quarter, and earnings growth holding steady at 4%.

 

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Ford Motor has brought back so-called “gray beard” engineers to help train younger staff and reprogram AI tools to address quality problems. The hiring of these 350 veterans over the last three years to address what were seemingly intractable quality issues that have cost the company billions has helped Ford become the top mainstream brand in the latest JD Power Initial Quality Survey. Charles Poon, Ford’s vice president of vehicle hardware engineering, said: “Over prior years, we didn’t pay as much attention as we should have to the experience of our most knowledgeable engineers that have been with us through many product cycles.” Ford chief operating officer, Kumar Galhotra, explained: “We had been relying more and more on automated quality systems” and not getting the desired results, adding that the rehired technical specialists “hunt for failure points before a part ever reaches the plant floor.”

 

Bloomberg

​The Chemours Company has agreed a $450m settlement with the Department of Justice over the release of so-called "forever chemicals" in West Virginia, North Carolina and New ‌Jersey. The settlement includes a $22.5m civil penalty and $90m in funding to control per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), which have been linked to cancer and other risks, and remove them from drinking water. "This is the first comprehensive settlement by the federal government to resolve enforcement claims over ​pollution by a manufacturer of forever chemicals," DOJ said. The settlement “delivers on the Trump administration’s promise to make polluters pay and stop PFAS contamination at the source,” said Jeffrey Hall, assistant EPA administrator for enforcement and compliance assurance.

 

CBS News

New York Times

Reuters

The Guardian

U.S. Rep. Nathaniel Moran has introduced the AI Incident Reporting Act, which would create a federal process for reporting certain serious AI incidents to the Department of Commerce. The proposal focuses on advanced AI systems and includes reports on dangerous capabilities, security breaches, and safety issues. Under the measure, Commerce would identify which models meet risk thresholds. Developers of those systems would have seven days to report qualifying incidents, while the most serious cases would trigger a 48-hour notice to congressional leaders and committee chairs. The bill also calls for consultation with industry, researchers, cybersecurity experts, and national security officials.

 

Crypto Briefing

Reuters

The U.S. economy expanded at an annualized 2.1% rate during the first quarter of 2026, according to the Commerce Department’s final estimate, an upward revision from the previous 1.6% estimate and a rebound from 0.5% growth in the final quarter of 2025. The stronger-than-expected performance was driven by robust business investment, particularly in artificial intelligence-related infrastructure. Investment excluding housing increased 10.6%, while spending on information-processing equipment surged 39.9% as companies expanded data center capacity. Federal government spending and investment also rose 9.4% following the end of the previous quarter’s government shutdown, and a smaller-than-estimated drag from imports contributed to the upward GDP revision. Consumer spending, however, was revised lower, signaling weaker household demand amid higher gasoline prices linked to the conflict with Iran. Residential investment fell 7.8%, marking its fifth consecutive quarterly decline as elevated interest rates continued to weigh on the housing market.  

 

AP News

Fox News

Reuters

The Federal Reserve’s preferred measure of inflation accelerated in May, with the core personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index rising 3.4% year over year, its highest level since October 2023, while the headline PCE inflation rate reached 4.1%, the highest since April 2023. The Commerce Department reported that core PCE, which excludes food and energy, increased 0.3% for the month, while headline PCE rose 0.4%. Higher energy costs, driven by the conflict with Iran, remained the primary source of inflation, although price increases also spread to other categories, including housing, financial services, and insurance. Despite elevated inflation, consumer spending remained resilient. Personal consumption expenditures increased 0.7% in May, exceeding expectations, while personal income also rose 0.7%, lifting the personal saving rate to 3%. 

 

CNBC

Reuters

Initial claims for U.S. unemployment benefits fell by 12,000 to a seasonally adjusted 215,000 in the seven days to June 20th, outperforming economists’ expectations of 225,000 and signaling continued resilience in the labor market, according to the Labor Department. The four-week moving average was up by 750 to 224,250, while continuing claims, reported with a one-week lag, rose by 21,000 to 1.821m. 

 

ABC News

Reuters

Wall Street Journal

Reuters reports on research which suggests that complexity in financial ​regulation is useful because it can make rules harder to ​get around. Moves toward simplification in the U.S. and U.K. could make the system less safe, with rules more likely to be gamed as lenders shift risks elsewhere ​in the system, according to the study. "Our evidence suggests the U.S. rollback risks going too far," the authors of the research, including Stockholm School of Economics professor Mariassunta ⁠Giannetti, said. They added that Britain was also slowly moving in the same direction.

 

Reuters

Anthropic’s Claude is gaining momentum among paying consumers, with credit card transaction data from Indagari showing consumer revenue and paid users rising by about 75% since January 2026. The growth suggests Anthropic is expanding beyond its traditional base of enterprise customers and software developers, with demand continuing to increase even after a surge in March tied to the company’s stance against government use of its AI for mass surveillance and autonomous weapons. Additional data from DataCamp indicates growing consumer interest, with "Claude" now the platform’s most searched term, surpassing "AI," and self-directed demand for Claude courses running at three times the level of ChatGPT courses. However, ChatGPT remains the clear market leader, retaining significantly more paying users and broader consumer adoption, although Claude has narrowed the gap in consumer revenue growth and brand awareness during 2026.

 

TechCrunch

President Donald Trump has said he would reject a final Iran deal if it included any service or shipping fees in the Strait of Hormuz. “It would be unacceptable to me, because we have numerous strengths, and if you did that for them, you’d have to do it for other people,” the president told reporters. “It would be a game changer.” Bloomberg notes that Trump's comments represent his most definitive statement yet about possible maritime service fees and shipping tolls that could be imposed in the strait.

 

Bloomberg

Managing the rapid pace of technological change and the growing impact of artificial intelligence has become the leading long-term concern for CPA firms, according to AICPA's latest CPA Firm Top Issues Survey. The biennial survey, which gathered responses from 629 practitioners across firms of all sizes, found that “change management due to technology and AI” ranked as the top issue over the next five years across every firm-size category. It also featured among the top current concerns for most firms. AICPA Vice President of Firm Services Lisa Simpson said the profession is undergoing significant transformation in technology, workforce skills, and operating models. While firms are working to keep pace with advances in AI, many are also struggling to integrate new technologies effectively and use them to enhance client services.

 

Journal of Accountancy

The Accountant Online

The PCAOB is inviting feedback on its standard-setting and research agendas through an open comment period until August 7th. The initiative marks the first time the PCAOB has sought public input on its standards. Chairman Demetrios Logothetis emphasized the importance of evolving agendas to meet the needs of investors and capital markets, saying: "As we continue to advance our standard-setting and research activities, our agendas must evolve with the audit and financial reporting ecosystem." The PCAOB aims to enhance audit quality by incorporating stakeholder insights into its processes.

 

Accounting Today

Rep. Ron Estes (R-KS), a senior member of the House Ways and Means Committee, has been vocal against digital services taxes (DSTs), arguing they undermine American prosperity and democracy. He states: "These discriminatory levies are being used to pad foreign budgets at the expense of U.S. workers and companies." Despite victories in Canada and India, the fight continues as France and the U.K. maintain punitive DSTs. The Tholos Foundation reports that U.S. firms currently pay $2.96 bn annually in DSTs, a figure projected to rise to nearly $6 bn by 2030. Estes emphasizes that these taxes violate constitutional principles and calls for strong action to defend American interests, insisting that U.S. companies should not be treated as a revenue source for foreign governments.

 

Bloomberg Tax

LVMH has strongly denied allegations that it played any role in the disappearance of more than $15bn worth of Hermès shares belonging to heir Nicolas Puech, arguing the dispute centers on Mr Puech's late wealth manager, Eric Freymond, rather than the luxury goods group or its chief executive, Bernard Arnault. In a newly disclosed court filing, LVMH said it had no knowledge that any Hermès shares acquired during its covert stake-building campaign in the late 2000s may have been transferred without Mr Puech's knowledge or consent. The company argued that if Mr Freymond had sold Mr Puech's shares without authorization, it would have represented a breach of trust against both Mr Puech and LVMH. The filing comes after Mr Puech launched legal action last year seeking damages of more than $15bn, while French prosecutors continue investigating the circumstances surrounding the missing shares.

 

Wall Street Journal

King Charles has disclosed a tax payment of £12.9m ($17.04m) for 2024/2025, marking the first time a British monarch has revealed their tax bill. The size of the King's contribution places him among the top 100 taxpayers in the U.K. The Prince of Wales, meanwhile, reported a tax payment of £7.76m for the same period. Buckingham Palace said the decision to release details of the King and Prince William's tax bills comes as the Palace looks to enhance transparency and accountability.

 

Washington Post

BBC News