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General Mills has announced all its cereals in the U.S. are now artificial-color-free. The company made the changes in response to HHS Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr.’s MAHA challenge to companies to replace artificial colors with natural alternatives.

US Breakfast Giant Removes Artificial Dyes From Cereals In MAHA-Friendly Move– dailycaller.com
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General Mills announced Wednesday that all of its cereals in the U.S. are now made without artificial colors.

The American food company said in a news release that with all of its U.S. cereals — including popular options like Lucky Charms and Trix — now being free of certified colors, 90% of its total retail portfolio in the nation has completed the transition. (RELATED: EXCLUSIVE: Americans Can Now See If Companies Are Actually Making Good On Food Dye Pledge)

“As the leader in cereal, General Mills is focused on giving people what they are looking for from the brands they know and love,” Bethany Quam, president of Big G Cereal at General Mills, said in a statement. “This achievement reflects how we are evolving with consumer needs while continuing to offer food that tastes great, delivers quality and provides value.”

General Mills also said it will launch more than twice as many new products “that align with evolving consumer nutrition preferences as it did just two years ago” during, such as products with more protein and fiber options, according to the press release. The company is currently on track to remove certified colors from its full U.S. retail portfolio by the end of 2027, per the announcement.

The announcement comes as many companies have begun phasing out artificial dyes in their food and beverage products in recent months. Nestlé announced in June that it has fully eliminated artificial colors from all of its food and beverage products in the U.S.

The Strait of Hormuz appears to be mostly opened, but not fully safe. The Trump administration has ended all negotiations with Iran, demanding total surrender. The U.S. has switched to economic warfare against Iran, of a scale never seen before. They’ve warned their allies that any refusal to go along with the U.S. plan will result in them being removed from the U.S. dollar system.

DOJ Moves to Confiscate Iran Oil As Legal War Prize – RedState– redstate.com
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During the Revolutionary War and before, war at sea was fought with some very different presumptions. The crews of warships were often as not paid in part by prize money, money earned from the ships and cargoes they captured. This process was handled by something called a maritime prize court. These courts would adjudicate the legality of any ship and cargo seizures under existing maritime law; they could also order the sale of ships and cargoes, with the proceeds going to the ship’s company.

The recipients of prize money weren’t always regular navy forces, either. Governments, including the newly formed United States government, would, in those times, issue something called a letter of marque, authorizing privately owned warships to hunt enemy ships on the high seas; these ships and their companies were called privateers. And, yes, the unfortunate side effect of that was that some of the privateers, when the war they were authorized to help fight ended, turned to piracy.

Now, though, the Department of Justice may be reactivating the maritime prize courts, something the United States has not done since our Civil War.

The Justice Department is preparing to activate a long-dormant maritime war court to streamline military capture of Iranian oil tankers as US prizes, according to three people familiar with the plans.

Reviving prize courts, which is expected to face legal challenges, is intended to strengthen the blockade of Iran and offset the cost of the conflict.

Aaron Reitz, the Houston-based US attorney whose office is partnering with department headquarters on the initiative, confirmed DOJ is “now reviving” prize courts, which he described as an “ancient body of maritime law.”

The unfinalized plans, if adopted, would offer a faster path for federal prosecutors to claim oil and other cargo taken from enemy or neutral vessels as US property. The seized goods would then be sold with proceeds transferred to the treasury.

Meta’s plans to replace workers with AI fell flat, report says – Computerworld– www.computerworld.com
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Earlier this year, Meta, one of the industry’s loudest AI advocates, was ready to slash up to 60% of the members of some teams and replace them with AI, as part of what it called Project OT (Organization Transformation), an initiative to make Meta “AI native.”

But it backed off at the last minute after internal data showed that the plan wasn’t working out, according to a Reuters investigation published Wednesday. For example, Reuters said, code changes made to the internal software platforms and infrastructure that employees used on the job were up 220% year-over-year, according to an early June post by Meta CTO Andrew Bosworth, yet changes that led to new or upgraded features reaching Meta users were only up 36%.

Meta executives also saw “’reliability warning signs’ caused by the AI coding surge,” according to an internal post, Reuters reported. “Another post, in April, said that unchecked AI agents were performing ‘large-scale, disruptive actions that humans are unlikely to execute.’ The result: Major technical and security incidents, such as service disruptions and possible data leaks, spiked 40% from the previous year, with the time staffers had to spend firefighting them up 70%.”

 

Australian Social Media Ban Flops Badly, as Teens Are Returning to TikTok ‘En Masse’ * The Gateway Pundit * by Paul Serran– www.thegatewaypundit.com
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Albanese’s tricks have misfired.

There’s perhaps no more pristine example of a Globalist leader than Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese: the guy checks all the boxes.

He is obsessed with Net-zero and Paris-aligned climate targets, of course.

During the COVID crisis, we saw him angling to cede health-policy control to an unelected international body – and in fact, he seems to want to give up sovereignty altogether in favor of a ‘UN-centric multilateralism’.

Albanese has maintained a sustained high level of migration, and is big on ‘identity politics’.

And then, we come to his online-control ideas, which, of course, center around the nefarious ‘Digital-ID’, and have, as a first experiment, his ‘groundbreaking’ under-16 social-media ban.

We all understand Albanese’s online plans to be nothing but attempts at back-door surveillance, and a revival of the rejected and dropped ‘misinformation laws’.

The good news is that the ban is turning out to be a total flop.

Business Insider reported:

“According to a report by parental-control tool company Qustodio, the Australian social media ban has been impressively ineffective.

[…] Some 26% of children between the ages of 13 and 15 were on TikTok as of last month, just one percentage point below the rate prior to Australia’s groundbreaking rules coming into effect, the parental control software maker said. The rate for children between the ages of 10 and 12 is higher now than before the ban, according to the data.

What Qustodio found across Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat use, there was a distinct drop in use among 10-12 year olds and 13-15 year olds for a few weeks right when the ban started in December 2025. But after a few months, kids steadily got back on, nearing or matching pre-ban levels.”

Even Australia’s own eSafety commission found that ‘the amo

Buc-ee’s CEO Says He’s Prioritizing ‘Conservative, Business-Friendly’ States For New Locations– wltreport.com
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Although customers are willing to drive for miles for the experience of visiting one of the popular chain’s locations, the CEO of Buc-ee’s says leftist officials aren’t always as welcoming.

That’s why, as the business faces pushback against legal action against other companies using similar logos, he now says the company will be far more selective about where new locations will be opening.

According to The Hill:

“We have a lot of opportunities. We’re growing. We’re building in a lot of places, but when you find a conservative, business-friendly state with a phenomenal workforce, it makes a difference,” CEO Arch Aplin III said in a video clip posted by Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders (R).

“And I’m starting to realize life’s too short to try to build in places that people don’t appreciate what you’re bringing versus a place like this, where people do appreciate what you’re building,” Aplin continued.

Currently, the company has locations in Texas, Arizona, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, South Carolina and Tennessee. The franchise can also be found in Colorado, Missouri, Virginia and Ohio.

Its expansion has seen the company grow into a chain of giant travel centers and gas stations known for their clean restrooms, multiple fuel pumps and unique snack and merchandise selections.

His outspokenness received some social media attention:

A Federal lawsuit against social media giant Meta has been settled. Meta has agreed to pay $16.7 billion in an agreement with multiple states Attorney Generals. California is one of the states, but Texas and other large states are not. The lawsuit charged Meta with facilitating childhood social media addiction.

California State AG Rob Bonta said of the settlement, “Today, we have secured a settlement with Meta that will make social media less dangerous for our kids and make a world of a difference for children and their families,” Bonta said in a statement. “Meta has agreed to make massive transformations that will reduce the risk of harm from its platforms — and will do it within months.”

Meta settles social media addiction case for $16.7 billion– www.cnbc.com
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Meta and a coalition of state attorneys general have settled a major federal case centering on allegations that the social media giant misrepresented the extent of child-related mental health harms caused by apps like Facebook and Instagram.

The settlement was revealed in a court filing released Wednesday that details several requirements Meta must make to its apps as part of a proposed “consent judgement.”

Those changes include daily usage limits and “nighttime blocks” for teenagers that use the company’s apps like Facebook and Instagram, “enhanced age assurance measures” that would prevent children from using the apps, and the creation of additional tools for parents and guardians.

Canada Announces Major Retaliatory Measures Against the US– www.westernjournal.com
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Canada escalated its brewing trade conflict with the United States on Tuesday by issuing retaliatory tariffs that match America dollar for dollar, while also raising rates on steel products.

Minister of National Revenue of Canada François-Philippe Champagne announced the tariffs, saying, “Canada must respond, and today we are, in a proportionate, targeted, and strategic way. Today I’m announcing that Canada will match the United States’ tariffs, dollar for dollar, rate for rate.”

“Effective Sept. 8, Canada will impose counter-tariffs of up to 15, 25, or 50 percent on $27.6 billion in imports from the United States of America,” he added.

Canada’s Department of Finance said on its website that the tariffs will “focus on sectors such as steel, dairy, appliances, agricultural equipment, pulp and paper, and electronics.”

Houthis claim strike on Saudi tanker in latest Red Sea escalation– www.euronews.com
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Yemen’s Houthis said on Monday that their forces hit a Saudi oil tanker in the Red Sea with a ballistic missile, as the Iran-backed group continues to pursue a maritime blockade of the Bab el-Mandeb strait, another crucial artery for global shipping.

“The strike was accurate and direct, resulting in a fire breaking out aboard the vessel and causing a number of other ships that were present in the target area to flee,” the Houthis said in a statement.

“This targeting comes as part of the implementation of the Armed Forces’ decision to ban maritime navigation by the Saudi enemy.”

The Houthi claim came hours after a British maritime agency said a tanker struck by an “unknown projectile” caught fire off Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea coast.

“The Company Security Officer reported a tanker has been struck by (an) unknown projectile causing a fire to the vessel on the main deck,” said the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations.

“All crew are safe and accounted for and no environmental impact has been reported,” it added.

Mideast live: Oil tanker struck by projectile in Strait of Hormuz off Oman– www.france24.com
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German GDP growth revised upwards, defying Iran war turmoil

German growth rose faster than previously thought in the second quarter thanks to strong exports, official data showed, as Europe’s biggest economy defied the turmoil unleashed by the Iran war.

Gross domestic product grew 0.3 percent from April to June compared with the first three months of the year, according to revised data from the statistics office Destatis. A first estimate in July had put growth at 0.2 percent.

What could new US sanctions on Iran entail?

The US says it is preparing to announce new sanctions on Iran. It’s been billed an “economic D-day” and is expected to add further pressure on the country’s economy that’s already been battered from previous sanctions and a US naval blockade.

The renewed economic pressure would not be the first time the US has used economic tools at its disposal to corner Iran.

US sanctions oil trader Wellbred over Iran links

The US imposed sanctions ​on Singapore-based Wellbred Capital and its trading firms in the ​United Arab Emirates and Switzerland, citing links with Iran, as it steps up measures to target Tehran’s global financial links.

The company ​had ties ‌to Iranian oil shipping magnate Mohammad Hossein ⁠Shamkhani, the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control said on its website ‌on Monday.

“Shamkhani built Wellbred as a company outside ⁠the network’s Iranian business, though Shamkhani is ultimately responsible for Wellbred’s operations,” it added in a statement ​outlining the measures targeting nearly 60 companies, individuals ‌and ships.

Six months of war: 20 dead in 68 incidents near Hormuz, IMO says

The Strait of Hormuz has been the main focus of the six-month war between Iran and the US and Israel, with many commercial vessels targeted in the vital conduit for oil and gas shipments.

In total, 68 incidents have been confirmed by the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) in the Gulf and neighbouring bodies of water, the equivalent of one every 2.6 days.

Across all incidents, at least 20 seafarers or port workers were reported killed, 35 wounded and one missing, the UN maritime agency said.

About half of the incidents have involved tankers, 20 percent container ships and 15 percent bulk carriers.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) classified 47 of the incidents as attacks.

Liberia-flagged vessels have been most affected, being involved in 13 incidents, followed by 10 vessels each from Panama and the Marshall Islands.

Iran-flagged vessels were reported as being involved in four incidents.

Pakistan says army chief held talks with Iran focussed on preventing further escalation of Middle East conflict

Pakistan’s ​army chief ​Asim Munir held discussions with Iran that ​were ‌focussed ⁠on measures including the ‌prevention of a ⁠further escalation of the conflict and ​the reopening ‌of the Strait of Hormuz, ‌the Pakistani military said ​in a statement on Tuesday.

Munir discussed ​regional peace ​and ways ​to reach a negotiated ​settlement to disputes, the statement added.

Commodity vessel transits through Strait of Hormuz fall to three-month low, data shows

Only one ​commodity vessel transited ​the Strait of Hormuz on Monday, the ​lowest ‌number since ⁠May 7, preliminary ‌shipping data showed on ⁠Tuesday.

One very large gas carrier entered ​the strait ‌from the Gulf of Oman on Monday, ‌initial data from ​shiptracker Kpler showed at 0251 GMT, compared with six ​vessels of ​all types ​on Sunday. The figures could ​change as some ships had switched off transponders on their ⁠way through.

Oil tanker struck by projectile off Oman

An oil tanker was struck and disabled by a projectile in the Strait of Hormuz off the coast of Oman, causing damage but no casualties, a British maritime agency said early Tuesday.

“The Master of an oil tanker reports the vessel has been struck by an unknown projectile causing damage to the engine room and disabling the vessel,” with the crew reported as safe, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said.

The incident occurred nine nautical miles (16.7 kilometres) northeast of Ash Shishah in Oman, it said.

The online statement did not specify the vessel’s nationality or direction of travel.

Oil prices steady as investors weigh impact of expanded US sanctions against Iran

Oil prices steadied on Tuesday, after falling more than 2% in the previous session, as investors assessed the impact of harsher US secondary sanctions against Iran.

Brent crude futures were down 9 cents, or 0.1%, at $92.16 by 0104 ​GMT, while US ‌West Texas Intermediate crude was up 1 cent at $85.02 a barrel.

Both contracts fell ⁠more than 2% on Monday with US crude oil falling to a one-week low on profit taking after prices rallied over the previous two weeks.

 

U.S.-Canada talks fail; Carney says retaliatory tariffs start Sept. 8– www.cnbc.com
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The U.S. imposed 50% tariffs on some Canadian products on Saturday after trade talks between the two countries fell apart on Friday.

In response, Canada said it would impose its own retaliatory tariffs beginning on Sept. 8.

Negotiators for both sides had been working on a deal all week, at times signaling that an agreement was near. President Donald Trump had postponed the original deadline of Wednesday just hours ahead of it being imposed, saying that there was a soon-to-be finalized deal. Dominic LeBlanc, Canada’s trade minister for the U.S., told reporters on Thursday that a deal was “very close.”

However, both sides blamed the other for not reaching a deal as the tariffs, impacting roughly $20 billion in Canadian exports, including wine, furniture, dairy products, cement, clothing, fishing rods, hockey equipment, went into effect on Saturday morning.

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, in a post on X early Saturday morning, that “Canada declined to finalize the trade deal under the terms agreed earlier this week.”

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said in a statement released on Friday that despite working toward a deal, “that progress has not been enough to meet our objectives for Canadians,” saying that “last-minute changes in the U.S. proposed terms were unfair, uneconomic, and called into question the reliability of any deal.”

Iran’s rial currency hits new record low as US prepares to announce more sanctions– abcnews.com
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TEHRAN, Iran — Iran’s currency hit a record low Monday as Washington prepared to announce new sanctions it said would add further pressure on an economy already battered by previous sanctions and a U.S. naval blockade.

The rial dropped to 2.02 million to the U.S. dollar as trading opened on currency markets. Iran’s official Central Bank rate stood at around 1.5 million rial to the dollar, but the market rate is what most Iranians pay.

The currency had already been under pressure before the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on Feb. 28, as Iran faced double-digit inflation and negative growth, but has repeatedly hit new lows as nearly six months of war have taken an even greater toll.

Iranians find daily staples increasingly unaffordable. Since the war began, rice is up some 60% and prices of beef are more than 150% higher. The International Monetary Fund forecasts that GDP will contract more than 5%.

Still, economic pressure has not yet translated into political pressure. Iran retains a key strategic advantage: Its attacks and threats on ships in the Strait of Hormuz have brought traffic in the vital waterway to a near halt, damaging the world economy and heaping pressure on U.S. President Donald Trump ahead of congressional elections.

Trump Announces New Development in Strait of Hormuz– townhall.com
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President Donald Trump says that there are no more mines in the Strait of Hormuz, as he warns that any “new mines” will result in a military response.

Both the U.S. and the Islamic Republic of Iran have said they are in charge of the strait, which has global significance for cargo transportation, but the U.S. currently has the upper hand by a wide margin, according to CNN.

The comments come as the president said earlier this month that there no longer talks occurring between the U.S. and the Islamic Republic, as the war now shifts to an economic focus.

Most GOP politicians now talk negatively about data centers, data shows– www.washingtonpost.com
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Sen. Jon Husted once promoted data centers as all upside for his state of Ohio. “Data centers are essential to our digital lives,” the Republican said in 2024, praising a planned Google project that he claimed would establish “central Ohio as an important tech hub in America.”

 

Ottawa and Washington head for all-out trade war– www.cnbc.com
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The Canadian dollar fell on Monday morning after trade talks between Ottawa and Washington fell apart, leaving both sides facing higher prices on a wide array of imported goods.

The U.S. on Saturday slapped 50% tariffs on around $20 billion worth of imports from Canada, its second-biggest trading partner after Mexico. The affected goods span dairy, wine, wood products, ceramics and a slew of other areas.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said he would retaliate “dollar for dollar” with tariffs starting Sept. 8, targeting sectors such as steel, dairy, agricultural equipment, paper and electronics. Details will be released “in the coming days,” Carney added.

The Canadian dollar was 0.45% lower against the U.S. dollar at 6:10 a.m. ET. The loonie also dipped against the euro, British pound and Japanese yen.

“As a smaller, more open economy, Canada has more to lose from this, but Prime Minister Mark Carney seems to have opened the door to more fiscal stimulus to support affected business,” FX strategists at bank ING wrote in a Monday note.

Canada Strikes Back at President Trump With Major New Tariffs on US Goods– townhall.com
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Canada has escalated its trade dispute with the United States, announcing retaliatory tariffs after President Trump imposed 50 percent duties on roughly $20 billion in Canadian imports on Saturday.

“Today I’m announcing that Canada will match the United States tariffs dollar for dollar, rate for rate,” Canadian Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne said. “Effective September 8, Canada will impose counter tariffs of up to 15, 25 or 50 percent on 27.6 billion in imports from the United States of America. For each product, our tariff would match the American tariff on the same type of Canadian good.”

China warns US of retaliation if Trump’s ‘Economic D-Day’ sanctions hit their Iran oil trade– timesofindia.indiatimes.com
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China has warned the US that it could retaliate if Washington significantly expands secondary sanctions on Chinese companies doing business with Iran

China has warned that it could take retaliatory measures if the United States significantly expands secondary sanctions targeting Chinese companies doing business with Iran, according to reporting by the Financial Times.The warning came after the Trump administration on Monday announced new sanctions targeting companies in Hong Kong and mainland China as part of a broader crackdown on Iran’s oil trade. The measures, however, did not target major Chinese financial institutions, FT reported.A Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said on Tuesday that Beijing would take “all necessary measures” to safeguard its rights and interests, while reiterating China’s opposition to what it described as unilateral sanctions lacking a basis in international law or United Nations Security Council authorisation.The spokesperson also called for de-escalation and a return to dialogue and negotiations.

The UAE Just Delivered a Crushing Blow to Iran’s Economy– townhall.com
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The United Arab Emirates suspended all trade, commercial exchanges, and financial transactions with Iran after accusing Tehran of firing two ballistic missiles toward the Gulf state, an incident that triggered nationwide shelter warnings for the first time in weeks.

The decision could deal a severe blow to Iran’s already strained economy.

Mongolia positions itself as Asia’s next data centre hub– www.euronews.com
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Mongolia is positioning itself as a global data centre hub, signing agreements for 863 megawatts of data centre capacity on the sidelines of a United Nations conference on desertification that brought 197 delegations to Ulaanbaatar this month.

The move to attract data centre investment was the most concrete economic outcome of the 12-day COP17 conference of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification, where delegates are discussing how to restore land degraded by climate change.

According to Deputy Prime Minister Togmid Dorjkhand, Mongolia has three main competitive advantages: cheap renewable energy, a cold climate that reduces cooling costs, and a vast land area and stable legal framework.

“We have a lot of energy generation potential, above the ground and under the ground and we have all kinds of deposits, uranium and coal and other resources,” Togmid told Euronews.

“And yes, we are a very cold country, eight months a year are very cold. Cold weather is important for the data centres because they need a lot of cooling, so the colder the weather the more you save on cooling.”

The U.S. economy lost 23,000 jobs in July, but the unemployment rate went from 4.2% in June to 4.1% in July. Last month, 20,000 jobs were added. The labor participation rate hit 61.4%, which is the lowest this has been in five years.

US economy loses 23,000 jobs in July, unemployment rate falls to 4.1% – gulftoday.ae
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Bessent’s Quixotic Attempt to Strengthen the Yen | American Enterprise Institute– www.aei.org
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George Santanyana, the Spanish philosopher, famously said that those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.

When it comes to foreign currency intervention, it is surprising that of all people, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, a former hedge fund operator, seems to have forgotten the many earlier attempts at foreign exchange intervention that failed for want of being supported by fundamental economic policy change. This has induced Mr. Bessent to embark on a quixotic attempt to prop up the swooning Japanese yen with foreign exchange intervention without requiring that the Bank of Japan hikes interest rates or that the Japanese government addresses Japan’s public finance sustainability problem.

If there is one episode of failed foreign exchange intervention with which Mr. Bessent should be more than familiar, it is that in support of the pound sterling in 1992. In that year, the Bank of England failed to prevent a humiliating sterling devaluation despite massive foreign exchange intervention and then large interest rate hikes. After all, Mr. Bessent was a principal advisor to George Soros in his successful attempt to break the Bank of England on what came to be known as Black Wednesday.

White House Warns China and Dozens of Countries Are Stealing Billions with ‘Transshipment Scam’– slaynews.com
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The White House is warning that China and dozens of other countries are using third-party nations to disguise the origin of exports and evade U.S. tariffs, costing the Treasury billions of dollars each year.

A new 25-page report from the White House Office of Trade and Manufacturing Policy identifies more than 40 countries as posing a high risk for tariff-avoiding transshipment.

Those nations include China, Mexico, Panama, Colombia, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Peru, Costa Rica, and the Dominican Republic.

The report, titled “The Great Transshipment Scam,” says the practice allows exporters to route goods through intermediary countries before they enter the United States under a different declared country of origin.

White House Says China Built Global Transshipment Network

The report identifies China as the clearest historical example of the practice.