Ticker: Trump media firm plans to sell high speed access
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President Donald Trump's media company is planning to charge for special high-speed access to Truth Social posts, including possibly his own affecting national security and financial markets.
The move announced Thursday would allow Wall Street trading firms and other institutions to get news from Truth Social contributors in milliseconds so they can make quick profits off moves in stocks, bonds and interest rates.
Average US mortgage rate climbs to 6.55%
The average long-term U.S. mortgage rate climbed this week to its highest level in nearly a year, driving up borrowing costs for prospective homebuyers.
Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday that the benchmark 30-year fixed rate mortgage rate rose to 6.55% from 6.49% last week. One year ago, the average rate was 6.75%.
Trump teleprompter operator on unpaid leave
The White House says President Donald Trump's teleprompter operator is on unpaid leave after reports that he used his inside knowledge to make bets about the president's speeches on the online prediction market Kalshi.
The firm's enforcement chief said Kalshi contacted federal regulators about bets allegedly made about what Trump would say in speeches.
Netflix posts higher Q2 results but shares drop
Netflix said Thursday its second-quarter profit grew thanks to new membership signups and price increases.
But the company's shares declined sharply in after-hours trading as the video streaming company's forecast for the current quarter fell below Wall Street's expectations. Netflix earned $3.4 billion, or 80 cents per share, in the March-June period. That's up 9% from $3.13 billion, or 72 cents per share, in the same period a year earlier.
Weekly unemployment claims fall to 208,000
Filings for unemployment benefits fell last week to the lowest level in 10 weeks as U.S. layoffs remain historically low.
The number of Americans applying for jobless aid in the week ending July 11 dropped by 8,000 to 208,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. That's well below the 219,000 new applications forecast by analysts surveyed by the data firm FactSet.
Slumping AI stocks drag down global markets
Drops for computer chipmakers and other AI winners dragged down stock markets worldwide.
The S&P 500 fell 0.5% Thursday, even though more stocks rose within the index than fell. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 0.2%, and the Nasdaq composite lost 1.5%.
AI chatbots may spread government restrictions
A study shows major artificial intelligence models are likely to refuse to criticize restrictive leaders worldwide.
Thursday's Meta Oversight Board report warns AI systems might unintentionally extend "illegitimate restrictions on freedom of expression." The report raises concerns the large language models powering chatbots and AI agents could fuel government influence over online speech.
EU forces Google to share system with rivals
The European Union has issued new rules for Google, requiring it to share search data and open its Android system to rival AI companies.
The aim is to support innovation and diversity in the EU, enabling fair competition in AI assistants for Android devices and search engines. Henna Virkkunen, an EU vice president for tech, hopes these measures will lead to alternatives to Google Search and AI services like Gemini.