(NEW YORK) — For retail lovers there’s nothing quite like the rush of a good deal, and whether it’s TikTok Shop or discounts for digital boutiques on Instagram, deals are seemingly always at shoppers’ fingertips.
The digital trend of “spaving,” spending more money to save more overall, has taken off online.
“Brands have always pulled out all the stops, but the stops that they can pull out are … greatly enhanced now because of the technology and data that they have available,” financial planner Natasha Knox, founder of Alaphia Financial Wellness, told ABC News.
Despite inflation, Americans are still spending money, owing $1.2 trillion in credit card debt, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s Q1 financial report.
Meanwhile, online promotions are on the rise by 26% from the same time last year, according to Numerator.
Knox explained that “the sophistication of understanding our particular buying patterns and habits” has made shoppers “that much more susceptible” to spending.
Mom of two Kristen Kline told ABC News “spaving” is a trend she has become more familiar with in recent years online.
“About half the time or more, I will spend more to save more, especially, I think, in the past couple of years on TikTok and online and Instagram with all of those ads,” she said. “They’re really enticing.”
Kline will “spave” ordering things like household necessities, but other times she’s spent money just because there’s seemingly a deal.
“They’ll say, you know, ‘this is going to sell out.’ And it sold out last time. So, I used to go — ‘oh my gosh, I have to get it,'” Kline recalled. “Because of that, I have been sending my daughter a lot of the things that I bought that maybe I don’t really need.”
When it comes down to spending and saving or skipping entirely, Knox suggests staying practical.
“If it’s for something that is, let’s say, consumable that you use regularly anyway and that you have the budget for — it makes sense,” she said. “But when it is items that were not planned — you end up buying two things in order to get the third one free — most importantly, you didn’t account for it or budget for it then that’s when it becomes problematic.”
A JetBlue passenger puts his carry-on luggage into an overhead compartment January 28, 2022 at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City. — Robert Nickelsberg/Getty Images
(NEW YORK) — Many travelers are taking tips from TikTok packing carry-on bags as efficiently as possible to avoid checked baggage fees, and while some airlines still charge for smaller roll aboard suitcases depending on your fare class, JetBlue just announced plans to drop the fee entirely.
Starting September 6, all JetBlue customers, including Blue Basic fares, will receive one free carry-on bag in addition to one small personal item, the airline announced this week.
Previously, customers who purchased a Blue Basic fare and wanted to bring a carry-on bag would need to buy another fare option or purchase an Even More Space seat.
“Carry-on bags are an important part of travel to customers, and when presented with a choice between JetBlue’s award-winning service and another carrier’s basic offering, we want JetBlue to be the easy winner,” JetBlue president Marty St. George said in a statement. “We’re always looking for ways to evolve our offering in response to customer preferences. This is a win-win as we improve the customer experience and keep JetBlue competitive in our industry.”
This comes on the heels of major airlines, including Delta, United and American updating pricing structures on checked bags, during a time when airfare is expected to increase due to a combination of inflation, jet fuel costs and a backlog of new plane orders.
As more travelers look for ways to save at each leg of the journey, the decision from JetBlue ensures fare variety with reasonable accommodations at no additional cost for every type of customer.
“As flying becomes cheaper and more accessible for a spectrum of customers, a one-size-fits-all offering no longer works,” St. George added. “Whether a customer prefers more included benefits, or they shop solely on price, our fare options coupled with our great onboard service, makes JetBlue the best choice. No matter what fare a customer prefers, we provide clear and transparent information on what that selection includes.”
Blue Basic customers remain the final boarding group, and those fares are subject to a cancellation fee that does not apply to any other fares.
(NEW YORK) — Welcome to the new era of electrification.
Bugatti, the 115-year-old French marque known for its powerful W16 engines, unveiled its first electrified hypercar, the Tourbillon, on Thursday at the company’s atelier in Molsheim.
A naturally aspirated V16 engine and three electric motors replace the prodigious W16 powerplant and four turbochargers found in previous Bugatti models. The Tourbillon’s all-new hybrid powertrain generates 1,800 horsepower, up from 1,500 horsepower in the Chiron, the last model to showcase the W16.
The $4.1 million Tourbillon, which is currently in the testing phase, can also reach a top speed of 248 mph.
Emilio Scervo, Bugatti’s chief technical officer, said choosing a hybrid powertrain over an engine-less design was the “most important decision” for his team.
“We chose the hardest option, creating a powertrain from scratch and pairing it seamlessly with a complex system of e-motors, a new generation eight-speed dual-clutch gearbox and more, all developed from the ground up,” he said in a press release. “But it was important to us that this car retain that pure and raw analogue feel of a naturally aspirated combustion engine.”
Bugatti’s move to produce a hybrid over an EV mirrors the reversal taking place in the automotive industry. A growing list of automakers are delaying their electrification plans as sales of EVs weaken and demand for hybrids heats up. When Matt Rimac, the founder of electric sports car maker Rimac, merged Bugatti with Rimac in November of 2021, analysts largely expected to see a fully electric Bugatti by the end of the decade. Insiders are now heralding the company’s transition to hybrid and expect Bugatti to sell all 250 units of the Tourbillon.
“I’m delighted that Bugatti chose to make an entirely new engine in a world turning to electric motors,” Tony Quiroga, editor-in-chief of Car and Driver and co-host of the magazine’s “Into Cars” podcast, told ABC News. “That it’s powered by an 8.3-liter, V16 that revs to 9000 rpm makes it entirely unique not only today, but in the history of street cars. Bugatti’s decision to build an internal-combustion engine that makes less power than its quad-turbocharged predecessor may have been driven by the desire to prioritize engine sound and characteristics over horsepower.”
Pairing an electric motor to a gas-powered engine is becoming more common among automakers; the latest examples include the Corvette E-Ray, McLaren Artura and Ferrari SF90 Stradale. Bugatti, however, is the sole automaker to offer a 16-cylinder hybrid powertrain. Adding electric motors to an internal combustion engine — hypercar or not — maximizes performance and can produce eye-popping horsepower. Drivers get instantaneous torque without spewing too many noxious gases. For a Bugatti Tourbillon owner, there’s not much to dislike.
“You get the efficiency gain of a turbo but with the low-end throttle response of a larger engine, an appreciable performance step,” Larry Webster, senior vice president of media and editorial at Hagerty, told ABC News. “From an enthusiast perspective, this is a great application of electrification and a trend I think we’ll see continue.”
He added, “Electrification has opened up entirely new ways for engineers to squeeze more power into the same amount of space. The horsepower war is in full swing and shows no sign of abating.”
The Tourbillon’s 8.3-liter engine makes 1,000 horsepower and the car’s three electric motors produce another 800. The car, including the added weight of the large battery pack and its electrically actuated dihedral doors, still weighs less than the Chiron, which the company attributes to the lightweight materials used in the engine and chassis.
The electric motors — two in the front, one at the rear axle — are powered by a 25 kWh 800V battery that’s stationed behind the driver and passenger. The car can travel more than 37 miles on electric power alone.
The interior of the Tourbillon has been totally redesigned as well. There is now a small touchscreen that can display vehicle data and Apple CarPlay. There’s also the option of keeping it entirely hidden; a mechanism deploys the screen if the driver so chooses.
The instrument cluster was built by Swiss watchmakers and contains more than 600 parts, titanium and gemstones such as ruby and sapphire. Bugatti’s designers reworked the interior to be more spacious, “making it ideal for longer trips and daily use,” according to the company. There’s even a frunk — a front trunk — now for extra storage space.
“It is crazy to build a new V16 engine, to integrate with a new battery pack and electric motors and to have a real Swiss-made watchmaker instrument cluster and 3D-printed suspension parts … but this is what Ettore [Bugatti] would have done,” said Rimac.
An electric Bugatti may be coming one day, but for now, a hybrid Tourbillon still satisfies the needs of the uber wealthy who can afford it, Webster said.
“I certainly never thought we needed all-electric sports cars for maximum performance and pleasure,” he said. “An internal combustion engine is a major contributor to the personality of the car thanks to the sound, the throttle response, and the motive power.”
(NEW YORK) — As Americans continue to seek value amid increased food costs and inflation, Subway is adding its hat to the summer deals ring, offering customers the promise of more bang for their buck with a new menu item.
“We are starting to see restaurants come up with menu items that are focused on adding greater value. The challenge that comes with greater value is there’s a sacrifice for consumers — quality,” Doug Fry, president of Subway North America, told ABC News’ Good Morning America about the current landscape and trends. “We don’t think our guests need to sacrifice quality for price. So we’re bringing in $3 Footlong Dippers.”
On Tuesday, the fast food sandwich chain announced the debut of Footlong Dippers — a hot, cheesy rolled snack made from the new lavash-style flatbread — joining the Sidekicks menu for $3.
The new Footlong Dippers come in three flavors: pepperoni and cheese, chicken and cheese, and double cheese.
“It’s really about consumers wanting to snack on the go, but not sacrifice quality or quantity for price,” Fry said. “When I think about value, value is really about price, quantity and quality. That’s what consumers need when they want to go over a value proposition.”
Although inflation has dipped over the last couple months, Fry said that Subway is “focused on listening to guests” who have sought out snacks on the go.
“We want quality, something they can feel good about eating. With the $3 Footlong Dipper, it comes with 11 different sauces to choose from. Our consumers get to mix and match,” he said.
When it comes to course-correcting on food pricing, which lawmakers have called out as corporate greed using inflation as an excuse to raise prices, Fry spoke to how Subway is offering every day value across its locations.
“What we try to do is offer something for everyone’s appetite and everyone’s budget. We work closely with our franchisees who set their prices. We work with data analytics to make sure we are meeting the needs of our guests, offering value on every part of our menu, without sacrificing quality,” he explained.
Whether its a fast food spot or the grocery store, Fry emphasized that the most value for consumers comes in the form of brand loyalty.
“I think loyalty programs in general are really important in today’s economic times,” he said. “Our MVP Rewards loyalty program is where our most loyal fans go to get the best perks, best values. We’ve given back $60 million in cash to our loyal fans. That’s value going right back into their pocket. That’s not going away.”
(ALBANY, N.Y.) — New York employers are now required by law to provide paid break time to employees who need to pump breast milk while they are at work.
The law, which went into effect on Wednesday, allows employees to take 30 minutes of paid break time to express breast milk for up to three years following childbirth.
“As New York’s first mom Governor, I am fighting every day to give working parents the protections they need to keep their families strong and healthy,” New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said in a news release.
“From our nation-leading prenatal leave program to this legislation requiring employers to give breastfeeding mothers much-needed break time, our state is continuing to stand up for parents in the workplace and protect maternal and child health,” she added.
Under the new law, employers are required to let their employees know about their right to the paid breaks. The legislation applies to both public and private employers in the state, regardless of their size or industry.
Mangoes are seen in a net during harvest on a farm, March 24, 2021, in Actopan, Veracruz state, Mexico. (Hector Quintanar/Bloomberg via Getty Images, FILE)
(NEW YORK) — The U.S. Department of Agriculture has temporarily paused any new exports of mangoes and avocados out of Michoacán, Mexico after an incident that reportedly sparked security concerns for its safety inspectors on the ground.
A spokesman for the agency said Monday that the inspection program will remain paused until it can ensure its Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service inspectors working in Mexico are safe.
The USDA did not elaborate on the nature of the specific security threats.
“The programs will remain paused until the security situation is reviewed and protocols and safeguards are in place for APHIS personnel,” the USDA spokesman added.
The USDA first alerted the Avocado Exporting Producers and Packers of Mexico of its decision to suspend new exports out of the western Mexican state earlier this month.
Any produce that has already been inspected and is in transit will not be blocked or impacted by the suspension, the agency said.
This marks the second time in just over two years that inspections have been suspended following an incident in February 2022 that dealt with USDA employee safety, which was resolved within a week of the ban and had no severe impact on the avocado supply in the U.S.
The USDA has inspectors working in Mexico to ensure the products meet U.S. standards, without whose signoff the avocados and mangos cannot be sent north.
Michoacán and Jalisco are the only two Mexican states allowed to export avocados to the U.S., an industry worth billions of dollars each year.
Michoacán is known as one of Mexico’s most dangerous states, which has been dominated by organized crime for decades. The avocado industry has been no exception, with extortion rampant in the lucrative produce industry.
If the current issue is not resolved as swiftly as the 2022 incident, and the supply chain is disrupted for a long period of time, there could be an impact on U.S. supply.
(NEW YORK) — Apple has announced it is scrapping Apple Pay Later, the company’s buy now, pay later service that launched last year.
In a statement, Apple said users instead will be able to apply for installment loans via credit cards, debit cards and lenders when checking out with Apple Pay later this year.
“With the introduction of this new global installment loan offering, we will no longer offer Apple Pay Later in the U.S.,” the company said in the statement. “Our focus continues to be on providing our users with access to easy, secure and private payment options with Apple Pay, and this solution will enable us to bring flexible payments to more users, in more places across the globe, in collaboration with Apple Pay enabled banks and lenders.”
Apple introduced Apple Pay Later last March. The service allowed users to split purchases into four interest-free installments, paid over six weeks. Users were allowed to apply for Apple Pay Later loans of up to $1,000.
The Bud Light logo is seen on a truck semitrailer, Oct. 21, 2022, in Maryland. — Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images
(NEW YORK) — When conservative activists set aflame boxes of Bud Light and urged a boycott in response to an endorsement from a trans influencer last spring, they sent sales of the beer plummeting in a rare success in the long history of consumer movements.
Even more improbably, the backlash continues to hammer Bud Light and strain independent local wholesalers more than a year later, according to third-party sales data shared with ABC News as well as interviews with six Anheuser-Busch wholesalers.
Most of the wholesalers, small- and medium-sized businesses that draw a significant portion of their revenue from Bud Light, said they remain weakened by the decline in sales and uncertain about when, if ever, the brand will fully recover.
The owner of an Anheuser-Busch wholesaler in the Northeast, whose child is trans, told ABC News they have taken a 30% pay cut to make up for the losses and are considering retirement.
“It was really hurtful personally,” the owner said. “I’m trying to understand what my kid is going through and then this happens.”
“It’s still very upsetting,” the owner added, noting the company’s Bud Light sales declined by 50% in the immediate aftermath of the boycott. “It’s very difficult to come in every day and look at those sales numbers, knowing I have a responsibility for everyone here.”
Another executive at a wholesaler in the Mid-Atlantic said they have spent sleepless nights devising ways to shed costs without laying off employees; and a top official at a distributor in the Southeast said they expect sales of Bud Light will remain down for at least two more years.
Still, the wholesalers added, harassment of employees and drinkers has faded, indicating the boycott fervor has died down and the brand reputation of Bud Light has begun to mend. Many of the wholesalers said sales had improved lately and Bud Light remains their top-selling beer.
The wholesalers requested anonymity because they didn’t want to be publicly identified speaking about the financial consequences of the boycott. In all, roughly 500 independent distributors sell Anheuser-Busch products nationwide.
In response to ABC News’ request for comment, a spokesperson at Anheuser-Busch touted the success of Bud Light and the company’s relationship with wholesalers.
“Bud Light continues to be the number one selling beer brand in the country because for decades it has been synonymous with programs and activations that consumers love, including partnerships with the NFL, NHL, UFC, and College Football,” the spokesperson said.
“As we have for nearly a century, we continue to work side-by-side with our 350+ wholesaler partners to drive growth for our collective business and provide best-in-class service to our consumers and retailers across the country,” the spokesperson added.
Sales of Bud Light declined by roughly 25% over the weeks following a product endorsement from Dylan Mulvaney, a transgender influencer, which sparked backlash among many conservatives last April, according to data from Bump Williams Consulting and Nielsen NIQ obtained by ABC News.
In a video posted on Instagram, Mulvaney held a specially designed can of Bud Light featuring an illustration of her. The can, Mulvaney said, included a message congratulating her on “365 days of womanhood.”
Until April of this year, sales of the beer stayed stuck at the same level while the boycott persisted, Dave Williams, the president of Bump Williams Consulting, told ABC News.
“Sales cratered and sat there. They didn’t get any worse but they sure as heck didn’t get any better,” Williams said. “I don’t think there are a lot of examples where the king of the castle, someone in such prominence, took such a public and drastic hit in beer.”
In recent months, sales have shown signs of improvement but remain well below pre-boycott levels, Williams added, noting that some customers appear to have returned to the brand as the social stigma has waned while others remain steadfast in their opposition.
“The goal is to retain the consumers they have and hopefully try to win some back.”
An executive at a wholesaler in the Southeast said Bud Light sales plummeted by at least 20% in the aftermath of the boycott and remained at that level for the rest of 2023. The blow to the balance sheet hurt company morale and raised questions about the firm’s future, the executive said.
“We’ve got employees who expected a career helping to build this brand and this business,” the executive added. “To have that undone was a bit of a shock, to say the least.”
In recent months, hostility toward the brand has faded, sales have stabilized and morale has improved, the executive added, acknowledging that sales still stand well below pre-boycott levels.
“Once a consumer drops off a product — where there is a readily available and similarly priced substitute — a habit has formed and it’s difficult to shake that habit,” the executive said. “We have to give them a reason to come back.”
Williams said Bud Light has returned to its spot as the top-selling U.S. beer by volume, even if revenue has lagged. Meanwhile, other Anheuser-Busch beer brands are performing better than they did before the boycott.
Some wholesalers expressed optimism about Bud Light’s outlook and praised Anheuser-Busch for providing financial support in response to the sales slump. They also downplayed the boycott’s impact, attributing much of the sales decline to a wider shift away from beer to other alcoholic drinks.
“The beer industry — no matter what product you’re selling — is down in sales,” Tom Davis, director of operations at Maryland-based Katcef Brothers, Inc., an Anheuser-Busch wholesaler, told ABC News. “That has a bigger impact on beer sales than anything.”
An Anheuser-Busch spokesperson shared a statement from a wholesaler with ABC News.
“Anheuser-Busch recognizes the vital role their wholesaler partners play in the business, and last year they stepped in to provide critical resources to ensure we were positioned to continue serving our consumers and communities across the country,” Sarah Matesich Schwab, President of Ohio-based Matesich Distributing, said in the statement.
“There’s lots of positive momentum in the system, and we are focused on strengthening our partnership so that we can continue to grow and succeed together,” Matesich Schwab added.
The enduring impact of the Bud Light boycott defies a decadeslong history of largely ineffective consumer boycotts, Maurice Schweitzer, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business who studies consumer movements, told ABC News.
The continued struggle of Bud Light owes to the easy availability of similar products as well as the highly polarized political environment nationwide, Schweitzer said.
“Given the history of boycotts and its history of ineffectiveness, it is really surprising that this one has had the staying power that it has,” Schweitzer told ABC News.
“In this moment, we’re so politicized,” Schweitzer added. “The weather is political, the employment rate is political and now beer is political.”
(WASHINGTON) — The Federal Reserve decided to hold its benchmark interest rate steady on Wednesday, prolonging an aggressive fight against inflation despite fresh data hours earlier that showed a slight cooldown of price increases.
At seven consecutive meetings spanning nearly a year, the Fed has opted to hold rates steady in response to elevated inflation and robust economic performance.
In theory, the prolonged stretch of high interest rates should weigh on economic activity, reduce consumer demand and cut prices. Instead, a resilient economy and stubborn inflation have largely defied the Fed’s efforts.
Inflation has fallen significantly from a peak of 9.1%, but price increases have barely budged in recent months and remain more than a percentage point higher than the Fed’s target rate of 2%.
The Fed has all but abandoned a previous forecast of three interest rate cuts by the end of the year.
The Federal Open Market Committee, the Fed’s decision-making body on interest rates, said last month that it does not anticipate cutting interest rates until it regains confidence that inflation is moving sustainably downward.
“So far, the data has not given us that greater confidence,” Fed Chair Jerome Powell said at a press conference in Washington, D.C., last month. “It is likely that gaining such greater confidence will take longer than previously expected.”
Some observers expect the Fed to forgo interest rate cuts for the remainder of 2024.
Roger Aliaga-Diaz, chief economist at the investment giant Vanguard, said in a statement to ABC News before the rate announcement that he believed the Fed would keep interest rates at current levels for at least the next six months.
The forecast, Aliaga-Diaz added, owes to “inadequate progress in the inflation fight and continued growth and labor momentum.”
In a note to clients, Deutsche Bank echoed skepticism about rate cuts anytime soon. “Fed officials have clearly signaled that they are in a wait-and-see mode with respect to the timing and magnitude of rate cuts,” the note said.
The Fed risks a rebound of inflation if it cuts interest rates too quickly, since stronger consumer demand on top of solid economic activity could lead to an acceleration of price increases.
A prolonged period of high interest rates, however, threatens to place downward pressure on economic growth and plunge the U.S. into a recession.
A jobs report released on Friday blew past economist expectations, demonstrating the resilient strength of the economy. Blockbuster hiring in May exceeded the average number of jobs added each month over the previous year, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics said.
Average hourly wages surged 4.1% over the year ending in May, the report found. That rate of pay increase exceeds the pace of inflation, indicating that the spending power of workers has grown even as prices jump.
The data marks a boon for workers but could give pause to policymakers, since they fear that a rise in pay could prompt businesses to raise prices in order to cover the added labor cost.
Economic output slowed markedly at the outset of 2024, though it continued to grow at a solid pace.
While the Fed has resisted lowering interest rates, consumers have faced high borrowing costs for everything from mortgages to credit cards.
The average rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage stands at 6.99%, according to Freddie Mac data released last week.
When the Fed imposed its first rate hike of the current series in March 2022, the average 30-year fixed mortgage stood at just 3.85%, Freddie Mac data showed.
(WASHINGTON) — Consumer prices rose 3.3% in May compared to a year ago, easing slightly from the previous month and outperforming economists’ expectations.
The data arrived hours before the Federal Reserve is set to announce a decision about whether to move its benchmark interest rate.
Price increases have slowed significantly from a peak of about 9%, but inflation still stands more than a percentage point higher than the Federal Reserve’s target rate of 2%.
For nearly a year, the Fed has held interest rates steady at their highest level since 2001, hoping that elevated borrowing costs would slow economic activity, reduce consumer demand and lower prices.
Instead, the economy has hummed along and price increases have largely stalled.
A jobs report released on Friday blew past economist expectations, demonstrating the resilient strength of the economy. Blockbuster hiring in May exceeded the average number of jobs added each month over the previous year, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics said.
Average hourly wages surged 4.1% over the year ending in May, the report found. That rate of pay increase exceeds the pace of inflation, indicating that the spending power of workers has grown even as prices jump.
The data marks a boon for workers but could give pause to policymakers, since they fear that a rise in pay could prompt businesses to raise prices in order to cover the added labor cost.
Economic output slowed markedly at the outset of 2024, though it continued to grow at a solid pace.
The Fed, in turn, has all but abandoned a previous forecast of three interest rate cuts by the end of the year.
The Federal Open Market Committee, the Fed’s decision-making body on interest rates, said last month that it does not anticipate cutting interest rates until it retains confidence that inflation is moving sustainably downward.
“So far the data has not given us that greater confidence,” Fed Chair Jerome Powell said at a press conference in Washington, D.C., last month. “It is likely that gaining such greater confidence will take longer than previously expected.”
Economists expect the Fed to hold interest rates steady for the seventh consecutive time at the close of its meeting on Wednesday.
The Fed risks a rebound of inflation if it cuts interest rates too quickly, since stronger consumer demand on top of solid economic activity could lead to an acceleration of price increases.
A prolonged period of high interest rates, however, threatens to place downward pressure on economic growth and plunge the U.S. into a recession.
Price increases have drawn attention from voters as the U.S. hurtles toward what appears to be a closely contested presidential election in the fall.
Eighty-five percent of U.S. adults surveyed by ABC News/Ipsos last month said inflation is an important issue, making it the second-highest priority among adults surveyed. The top priority, the economy, also relates to individuals’ perceptions of price increases.
On each of those issues, the economy and inflation, those surveyed by ABC News/Ipsos said they trusted former President Donald Trump over President Joe Biden by a margin of 14 percentage points.
“Inflation is something that affects absolutely everybody,” Elaine Kamarck, a senior fellow in the Governance Studies program at the Brookings Institution, previously told ABC News. “People notice it, whether they’re rich or poor.”
