When Emma-Jane Nutbrown went on a family vacation to Jamaica last year, she did so with one condition: that everyone donated to an LGBTQ charity once they got there.

Nutbrown felt uncomfortable with her parents’ choice of destination. Same-sex sexual activity between men is against the law in Jamaica and carries a maximum jail term of 10 years with hard labor. Both Nutbrown and her brother, Simon – whose 40th birthday the family was celebrating on that trip – are gay.

“It made Simon uneasy going there, but most people like to travel for the place, not the politics behind it, so we couldn’t really hold my parents accountable,” says Nutbrown, founder of Queer Edge, which creates safe spaces for the community in London. “I won’t refuse to travel somewhere with family, but I will raise it. So instead of us refusing to go, Simon made everyone donate to a charity out there as his birthday present.”

Nutbrown and her brother are some of the millions worldwide who have an extra layer to consider when booking a vacation: Will they be safe in the destination, and how are local members of the LGBTQ community treated?

“I’m predominantly against it [travel to destinations where homosexuality is banned], but I’m pragmatic. It’s not as easy as ‘Don’t go,’ ” she says. “If there was a shared consensus across the planet [to boycott destinations] then it would work, but I think it’s a lot more complex.”

There are 62 countries worldwide that still criminalize (or de facto criminalize) homosexuality, according to the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (ILGA), which counts UN member states. The Human Dignity Trust counts 64.

Of these, 12 could potentially impose the death penalty for same-sex activity, including tourist favorite the United Arab Emirates; Qatar, whose airline was this week deemed the best in the world; Nigeria, which welcomed the Duke and Duchess of Sussex in May; and Saudi Arabia, which last year claimed that it welcomed LGBTQ travelers.

Many people – even those outside the LGBTQ community – simply will not travel to countries where homosexuality is illegal. Corey O’Neill, an office manager from London, is one.

“Safety is at the forefront of anyone’s mind when traveling,” he says. “Even if you’re not visibly queer, there’s an innate danger that how you act might be perceived as gay, which entails not only formal punishments, but police brutality, hate crimes, the general atmosphere. I don’t want to have that in my mind on vacation.”

O’Neill’s stance means that unless laws change, he will never see the pyramids (Egypt has de-facto criminalized homosexuality with jail-term punishment); sleep overwater in the Maldives (up to eight years jail-time plus 100 lashes); take a Kenyan safari (maximum 14 years imprisonment); see Red Square (Russia designates the LGBTQ movement – even displaying a rainbow flag – as ‘extremist’ with up to 12-year sentences); or stop over in Qatar (up to 10 years in prison, with “no legal certainty” over a potential death penalty).

But he’s OK with that. “Why would I give money to a country that doesn’t want me to exist? Even if $10 went towards a tax that actively harmed people, that’d be my money I gave them.”

It’s not just LGBTQ people who feel this way.

Members and allies of the community are currently in their 10th year of boycotting the Dorchester Collection hotels, owned by the Brunei Investment Agency (part of the Ministry of Finance and Economy), since the country introduced laws authorizing the stoning to death of LGBTQ people, as well as the public flogging of women for adultery. In 2019, George Clooney wrote of the importance of boycotting.

But while a boycott may be possible against a business, some feel that swerving an entire country harms the local community even more.

“It can cause a very visceral reaction in people, but there are 50 shades of discrimination, and the challenge is where you draw the line,” says Darren Burn, founder of inclusive travel companies Out of Office and TravelGay.

“Would you go somewhere you can’t get married, or can’t go into the army? The reality is there are loads of places where, even if it’s not illegal to be gay, there are challenges. I totally respect that some people don’t want to support an economy where [homosexuality] is illegal. But the other side is that I want to go, and by going, I’m helping to change mindsets. Every country has gay people. We hear from staff members and locals in destinations, who say, ‘Please come.’ ”

Burn never planned to enter the travel industry. He was a journalist when he went on holiday to Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt.

“I was in my early 20s, and I was a bit naïve. It was Sharm – a tourist haven,” he says.

“I was traveling with my ex, and we weren’t allowed to check in. We had to go to another hotel. I thought, that shouldn’t happen to anyone, ever.” In 2016, he founded Out of Office, building a contact book of “welcoming suppliers and tour guides.”

‘Do you need two beds?’

In recent years, destination marketers have become more vociferous in attracting LGBTQ clients. There’s usually a financial reason behind it, says Burn. Travelers from the community “are less likely to have children and more likely to have disposable income. They’re loyal customers and trust word-of-mouth referrals.”

Sherwin Banda, president of luxury safari provider African Travel Inc says that the LGBTQ community has “the largest disposable income of any other niche market.”

“A destination’s reputation as being LGBT-friendly is a primary motivation for us,” he says.

A 2021 report from nonprofit Open for Business showed that Caribbean nations outlawing homosexuality saw their GDP hit by up to 5.7% and lost the tourist industry $423 million to $689 million annually.

In Jamaica, tourism officials have tried to downplay the impact of the island nation’s laws against homosexuality.

In 2022, legislation was repealed in Barbados, Antigua and Barbuda, and St. Kitts and Nevis. Trinidad and Tobago had already decriminalized same-sex relations in 2018; in April 2024, Dominica followed suit.

“The Caribbean is moving quite quickly,” says Burn, who adds that the anti-homosexuality laws in many Caribbean and African countries were established under European colonialism.

Banda, who is South African, agrees. “Colonial laws combined with stringent religious beliefs have prolonged a stigma attached to homosexuality across Africa,” he says.

However, he is still comfortable arranging safaris for LGBTQ travelers.

“Once we know travelers are from the community, we take great care to ensure guides, hotels, all the touchpoints throughout the journey are safe for them, but also inclusive,” he says.

“Nobody will say, ‘Do you need two beds?’ We ensure our clients don’t have to come out again to everyone they meet in Africa.”

‘Tolerance is practiced not preached’

The experience on the ground is often different from the letter of the law. As Burn says, “It’s also illegal to drink alcohol in the Maldives, but all resorts have it.” (He advises not holding hands at the airport, however.)

In 2020, Bilal El Hammoumy and Rania Chentouf launched Inclusive Morocco, the first LGBT-founded tour operator in a country that punishes same-sex activity with up to three years in jail.

“Being members of the community, we felt we would understand better how to approach it,” says El Hammoumy. “Morocco is a country where tolerance is practiced but not preached.

“We could understand clients’ fears, but on the other hand, it was important to create a space where the local LGBT community can be involved in training programs and hiring opportunities.”

El Hammoumy says that in Morocco, “the reality is a bit different from the law.”

In the early 20th century, cities such as Tangier were “gay heavens” for creatives escaping conservative Western countries. One of Marrakech’s main sights is the Majorelle Garden, where the ashes of former owner Yves Saint Laurent were scattered by his former partner, Pierre Bergé.

El Hammoumy says that Moroccan hotels are generally accepting of same-sex couples, but those they work with have extra training to ensure travelers are comfortable. Some guides have opted not to work with them when they explain their clientele, he says.

However, he says that visiting destinations can change mindsets.

“A lot of anti-LGBT feelings come from prejudice and a lack of education, and direct contact can change preconceived ideas about the community,” he says. Burn agrees.

There’s the economic incentive, too. Banda, who grew up under apartheid, believes that South Africa would not have changed without economic pressure from the wider world.

“Travel does something no other industry can do,” he says. “Africa is heavily dependent on tourism dollars. We can advocate for inclusivity with partners who are prepared to actively welcome our guests. If we stay away, we lose that opportunity to use our voice.”

Travel can ‘bring change’

Does that mean every country should be showered in travel dollars in a bid to change opinions? Not according to these experts, none of whom would send a client to Saudi Arabia.

Uganda is another sticking point – its 2023 Anti-Homosexuality Act legalized the targeting of the LGBTQ community in myriad ways and even carries the death sentence.

“As a company, you need to stand for something, and Uganda advocates for brutal violent acts against gay people. We cannot in good conscience send people there,” says Banda.

Michael Kajubi has a different perspective. In 2013 he founded McBern Tours, curating Uganda tours, after being fired from his previous job because of “suspicions” that he was gay.

“I had to start a company to employ myself and people like me who could not get jobs because of who they are,” he says. The majority of McBern staff are LGBTQ, and all profits go to the McBern Foundation, which supports elderly Ugandans and marginalized youths.

Kajubi – who left Uganda four years ago because of his activism – says that he is still comfortable sending LGBTQ travelers there, as long as they “respect the laws – don’t wave their rainbow flag all over the place.”

All the hotels that McBern uses – even for straight guests – have been carefully vetted as LGBTQ-friendly, says Kajubi. He believes travelers should still visit these destinations but be vigilant where their money is going. He suggests looking for tour operators affiliated to the IGLTA, so that you can be sure you’re not funding inequality.

Boycotting leaves the local community stranded, he argues. Companies that have stopped working with McBern because of Uganda’s anti-gay legislation “have a valid point, but supporting local companies can bring change. You’re paying salaries for people who wouldn’t otherwise be employed.

“If people don’t come we can’t support [Foundation] beneficiaries with healthcare, tuition and basic needs.”

‘Discrimination all over the place’

Of course, discrimination isn’t confined to countries where homosexuality is illegal.

For starters, over 500 anti-LGBTQ laws were introduced in US state legislatures last year alone. In May, the US State Department issued a worldwide alert about potential attacks on LGBTQ+ people and events.

In 2014, Matthieu Jost founded MisterB&B, an LGBTQ travel community with 1.3 million members, after an Airbnb host in Barcelona made it clear that he and his partner were unwelcome. Previously, a French hotel had refused him and his then-boyfriend a double bed.

“This kind of discrimination is all over the place, even in 2024,” says Jost, who won’t even hold hands with his partner in Paris. Banda won’t do that in Los Angeles, either.

For Jost, traveling to a country where homosexuality is banned means abiding by local rules. MisterB&B users are not allowed to book travel in a country with the death penalty for same-sex behavior. In a destination where it’s illegal, users are flagged before booking.

“We warn travelers they need to be cautious. Ask for separate beds, don’t show personal gestures, let family know where they’re traveling and have the embassy contact,” he says.

“If you really want to go there, you need to respect the laws and religion of these countries and play the game.” Burn adds that booking with a specialist is essential – his staff have mystery-shopped mainstream tour operators and found them lacking in knowledge, he says.

For O’Neill, and many like him, it’s not enough.

“I know it limits where I can go – I’ll probably never see the pyramids or go on safari. But there are so many beautiful places in the world that support queer people. That sounds like a much nicer vacation to me.”

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Anyone with half an eye on the housing market over the last two decades will know that in many countries, not least the United States, it’s become much more difficult to buy a home.

But a new report sums up the feeling of many potential home buyers by creating a category that labels some major cities as “impossibly unaffordable.”

The report compared average incomes with average home prices. It found that pandemic-driven demand for homes with outside space, land use policies aimed at limiting urban sprawl, and investors piling into markets had sent prices soaring.

US cities on the West Coast and Hawaii occupied five of the top 10 most unaffordable places, according to the annual Demographic International Housing Affordability report, which has been tracking house prices for 20 years.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the most expensive US cities to buy home are in California, where San Jose, Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Diego have all made the top 10.

The Hawaiian capital of Honolulu also rates a mention in sixth place of 94 major markets surveyed in eight countries.

Australia is the only other country besides the US to dominate the “impossibly unaffordable” list, led by Sydney and the southern cities of Melbourne in Victoria and Adelaide in South Australia.

But topping the global leaderboard is Hong Kong, the compact Asian financial hub known for its tiny apartments and sky-high rents. Notably, it’s the only Chinese market covered in the report.

A regular entrant on the “most expensive” tables, Hong Kong has the lowest home ownership rate of all the cities surveyed, at just 51%, compared to its Asian rival Singapore where home ownership tops 89% due to the government’s decades-long commitment to public housing.

Hong Kong may be the least affordable city worldwide, but potential home buyers may be encouraged to know that it’s not as unaffordable as it once was.

House prices slipped during the pandemic in 2020, when the government closed the city’s borders and imposed a zero-Covid policy — that’s on top of new national security laws that have had a chilling effect on the city.

Why so high?

The report measures affordability using a price-to-income ratio of the median house price divided by the gross median household income.

It links the rise in working from home during the pandemic to a “demand shock” for houses outside city centers, which have more outside space. But it also blames soaring house prices on land use policies, including “urban containment,” a kind of planning designed to stop urban sprawl.

“The middle-class is under siege principally due to the escalation of land costs. As land has been rationed in an effort to curb urban sprawl, the excess of demand over supply has driven prices up,” the report said.

Prices were driven up even further as investors jumped into the market to make a profit.

One solution, the report’s author wrote, is to look to New Zealand.

In an opinion piece for Canada’s Financial Post, Wendell Cox, a senior fellow at the Frontier Centre for Public Policy, advocated for Canada, in particular, to follow New Zealand’s lead and free up more land for immediate development.

Both Vancouver and Toronto made the list of the cities that are “impossibly unaffordable.”

Cox points to a policy, “Going for Housing Growth,” introduced by New Zealand’s coalition government that requires local authorities to immediately zone for 30 years of housing growth.

“Toronto and Vancouver show that the cost of taming expansion is unacceptably high: inflated house prices, higher rents and, for increasing numbers of people, poverty,” Cox wrote.

For those who can’t wait for a change in policy or for demand to fall, the report also identifies the most affordable cities of the 94 surveyed worldwide.

They are Pittsburgh, Rochester and St Louis in the US; Edmonton and Calgary in Canada; Blackpool, Lancashire and Glasgow in the United Kingdom; and Perth and Brisbane in Australia.

The report was compiled by researchers from the Center for Demographics and Policy at Chapman University in California and the Frontier Centre for Public Policy, an independent public policy think tank in Canada.

Top 10 “impossibly unaffordable” cities

• Hong Kong
• Sydney
• Vancouver
• San Jose
• Los Angeles
• Honolulu
• Melbourne
• San Francisco/Adelaide
• San Diego
• Toronto

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Federal authorities and Boeing are trying to figure out why a 737 Max 8 experienced a rare, unsafe back-and-forth roll during flight.

The oscillating motion is known as a Dutch roll, and one characteristic described by the Federal Aviation Administration is the nose of an aircraft making a figure-eight.

There were no injuries onboard Southwest Airlines flight 746 on May 25, according to the airline and a preliminary report by the FAA. The report said the crew “regained control,” and the plane safely landed.

But the aircraft suffered “substantial” damage and the FAA classified the incident as an “accident.” The FAA report said an inspection “revealed damage to the standby PCU,” or power control unit, which controls the rudder.

It is unclear if the damaged unit led to or was a result of the roll.

The plane has not flown since landing in Oakland, California after the incident, except to move it to a Boeing facility in Washington state. Boeing did not immediately comment to CNN.

Southwest told CNN it referred the incident to the FAA and National Transportation Safety Board and is participating in and supporting the investigation.

The incident occurred almost three weeks ago and was added to a FAA database this week. There were 175 passengers and six crew onboard, according to the airline.

CNN has reached out to the NTSB. It has not said whether it is investigating the incident.

In February, the FAA required airlines flying some 737 Max 8 and similar aircraft to inspect the rudder assembly for loose or missing nut, washer and bolt. It said the flaw would prevent the pilots from controlling the rudder using foot pedals. Authorities have not said if this condition and the Dutch roll last month are related.

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Cupertino  — Apple just kicked off a brand new era for the company with the introduction of its first generative AI features for the iPhone.

At its annual Worldwide Developers Conference on Monday, the company unveiled the first batch of tools powered by “Apple Intelligence,” from personalized Genmoji – Apple’s AI-generated emoji – to a significantly smarter Siri, which can answer questions about your schedule, what’s in your email and what time your loved one’s flight is landing.

Apple emphasized privacy and security during its presentation, noting most AI functions will be done on the phone, keeping inputs away from a far-off server cloud.

A big push into AI could spur growth for iPhone sales and services for years to come, as users are now waiting longer to upgrade their devices and an uncertain economic environment weighs on consumers, particularly in China. The company also faces regulatory scrutiny in Washington and was passed this week by chip maker Nvidia as the second-largest public company in the US.

The company said it’s been impressed with the generative AI tools already on the market, but wanted to make it more personal with privacy in mind.

“As we look to build in these incredible new capabilities, we want to ensure that the outcome reflects the principles at the core of our products, it has to be powerful enough to help with the things that matter most to you,” Apple CEO Tim Cook said during the keynote. “It has to be intuitive and easy to use. It has to be deeply integrated into your product experiences.”

He added: “Most importantly, it has to understand you and be grounded in your personal context, like your routine, your relationships, your communications, and more. And, of course, it has to be built with privacy, from the ground up.”

The timing is also noteworthy: Apple is not always first to adopt and integrate emerging technologies — it typically researches, develops and aims to perfect new tech for years before including it in new products — but the speed at which the world is adopting generative AI is perhaps expediting the company’s need to have a smartphone with the most cutting-edge technology.

Here’s a closer look at what Apple announced at its big event:

AI, AI and more AI

Apple is embracing generative AI – the buzzy form of artificial intelligence that can provide thoughtful and thorough responses to questions – through Siri, the company’s virtual assistant with a hit-or-miss track record, essentially turning it into an iPhone chatbot.

This could enable Siri to perform specific tasks such as recalling a picture taken years ago on the device or answering detailed questions about the weather, the news or trivia. It can also perform more advanced tasks, such as answering when a user’s mom’s plane is landing, by analyzing information previously sent in an email. Over time, it could learn the user’s preferences and respond accordingly.

This is not unlike what some competitors have already introduced in generative tools. Siri will also likely adapt automatically and seamlessly to users, based on voice, audio and natural language, along with images and contextual cues.

Users will also be able to create personalized photos, such as taking a picture of your mom and making it into a stylized, cartoon-y version, adding a superhero cape. It can take action across apps, including asking the software to pull up all photos of a family member, and retrieve and analyze data from across your apps, such as factoring in what’s on your screen like email or a calendar.

If a meeting is being rescheduled, Apple Intelligence can process relevant personal data and see the email your kid sent days before about a recital, alerting users if there may be a conflict.

In a Q&A following the keynote, Cook once again said the company is taking privacy and security very seriously with the rollout of the new technology.

“We think AI’s role is not to replace users but to empower them,” he said. “When you think about what’s possible, it has to be integrated with the experience and be intuitive, and informed by your personal context and knowledge of you. If you’re going to do that, there’s a lot of responsibility.”

Beyond AI

Apple kicked off its iOS 18 portion of the event by highlighting new controls and personalization coming to iOS 18, including a revamped look for all icons when it goes into Dark Mode, a new tint color that compliments wallpaper and a redesigned control center that is available from the lock screen, so you can swap the flashlight icon for other tools.

Apple said it is also doubling down on privacy and security, such as giving users the option to “lock” certain apps, making them accessible only via Face ID, Touch ID or a user’s passcode. The feature could be especially helpful to protect apps like a banking app, an insurance app, or if you’re handing your phone over to show off photos or get someone’s phone number.

Users can now also “hide” an app, so it will show up only in a locked, hidden folder. And media from hidden apps won’t show up anywhere else on their phone.

Text messages are getting a bump, too. The company said it will soon let people send texts via satellite, even if they don’t have a cell or WiFi connection. Apple is also adding what it called one of the most requested features in iMessage: the ability to schedule messages.

IPhone users will now be able to record and create transcripts of calls right from the phone app. All parties to the call will be notified when it is being recorded.

Other product updates

The company also made software updates to other products, including the Mac, AirPods and Apple Watch.

Apple showed off its latest MacOS software called Sequoia, with a handful of new productivity features. Phone mirroring, for example, will bring iPhone alerts directly to the laptop that show up directly next to Mac notifications.

MacOS will also support the ability to arrange windows open on screen in certain areas, such as side by side — a concept popularized by Microsoft Windows.

Video conferencing is getting a presenter preview, so users can see what they’re going to share before they share it. Apple is also introducing background replacements on calls, so users can hide the laundry behind them.

Meanwhile, AirPods users will be able to answer or decline a call with just a nod or shake of their head. And new vital sign tracking on Apple Watch can notify users when they may be getting sick, based on signals like body temperature and heart rate.

Vision Pro update

Just a few months after its launch, Apple showed off a few upgrades coming to the software that powers its Vision Pro mixed reality headset.

During its most recent earnings call, Cook said more than half of the Fortune 100 companies have already bought an Apple Vision Pro. “[We] are exploring innovative ways to use it to do things that weren’t possible before,” he added.

Vision OS 2 promises to offer more rich experiences for users, such as a wider display for work stations, new hand gestures that let you check battery life or open up the home screen, and get deeper inside the photos in your library, thanks to advanced machine learning that provides more natural depth.

The company said it is also adding more capability for users to capture spatial videos.

Apple is also bringing Vision Pro to more countries, including the UK, China, Japan Singapore and Australia, this summer.

Upgrades could also boost sales of the pricey Vision Pro, which starts at $3,499. Demand for Apple’s new headset has reportedly been weak.

CNN’s Clare Duffy contributed to this report

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Federal regulators are planning to use a rarely enforced law from the Great Depression to allege America’s largest alcohol distributor is unfairly pricing wine and spirits, a person familiar with the matter told CNN.

A looming Federal Trade Commission lawsuit against Southern Glazer’s Wine and Spirits would be aimed at lowering costs for consumers — in this case on alcohol — and ensuring mom-and-pop shops have a level playing field against big chains, the source said.

The case, which could be risky, would represent the latest effort by Biden administration regulators to show they are taking action to lower costs and confront dominant companies. It would also be the latest aggressive step by FTC Chair Lina Khan, who recently led the agency to ban most employers from using noncompete clauses and is probing a Microsoft deal with an artificial intelligence startup.

The latest battleground in the antitrust fight could be booze. Southern Glazer’s, based in Miami and operating in 44 US states, is the largest wine and spirits distributor in the United States. The family-owned company distributes everything from Grey Goose vodka and Jim Beam bourbon to Yellow Tail wine.

Abandoned antitrust law from 1936

The FTC lawsuit, previously reported by Politico, could come in the next few weeks and would rely on the Robinson-Patman Act of 1936, the source said. That Depression-era law prohibits suppliers from providing deeper discounts to large chains than to smaller stores.

In other words, discounts to big-box chains must be available to mom-and-pop stores, too.

At the time, the antitrust law was aimed at helping smaller grocers survive when A&P and other chains dominated with lower prices.

However, an FTC lawsuit against Southern Glazer’s today would be controversial in part because the Robinson-Patman Act has rarely been enforced since the late 1980s. In fact, this would be the first time it’s been invoked since 2000, when the agency settled with spice company McCormick.

“It’s been a law since 1936. It’s still a law on the books. We enforce the law,” the source told CNN, adding that since the law hasn’t been enforced some smaller stores have struggled to survive. “If you can’t compete on price or come even close, you can’t stay in business.”

The thinking is that if a major alcohol distributor is offering deeper discounts to, say, Walmart or Target, that’s unfair to the smaller stores and their shoppers. And if those stores don’t exist, consumers are harmed from the lack of access and from the fact that the larger chains now face less competition on price.

Could enforcement backfire on shoppers?

Yet critics of the Robinson-Patman Act argue that enforcement would backfire on consumers, causing big chains to raise prices because they lose access to deep discounts they currently enjoy.

Favoring small businesses over large ones, critics argue, would harm consumers.

Alden Abbott, a former FTC general counsel during the Trump administration, warned in a Forbes op-ed last month that the FTC should consider the “major downside” of Robinson-Patman Act (RPA) prosecutions.

“While perhaps cloaked in ‘fairness,’ a major RPA lawsuit could discourage business discounting at a time of public concern over excessively high prices,” wrote Abbott, senior research fellow at George Mason University’s Mercatus Center.

The Antitrust Modernization Commission, a bipartisan commission created by Congress, concluded in 2007 that Congress should “finally repeal” the Robinson-Patman Act because it “appears antithetical to core antitrust principles.”

“A successful revival of Robinson-Patman would more likely result in higher not lower prices,” said Ed Schwartz, an antitrust partner with Reed Smith.

However, that is hard to prove. Much of the debate is theoretical since the law hasn’t been enforced in decades.

“There is no empirical evidence that enforcement of the Robinson-Patman Act raises consumer prices,” said Lee Hepner, senior counsel at the American Economic Liberties Project, a nonpartisan anti-monopoly advocacy group.

While opponents of enforcing Robinson-Patman say consumers are helped by the big discounts large chains get, Hepner argued the opposite is true.

“Price discrimination is a tool used by dominant corporations to enhance their market power,” he said. “That market power leads to higher consumer prices.”

Chris Jones, chief government relations officer and counsel at the National Grocers Association, a national trade association for independent grocers, said enforcement of the Robinson-Patman Act by the FTC is “long overdue.”

“For decades, antitrust enforcers have overlooked this statute, allowing dominant firms to use their size and market power to crush main street businesses and increase consumer costs,” said Jones, leader of the Main Street Competition Coalition, an industry group that supports enforcement of the 1936 law. “Enforcing the Robinson-Patman Act will help restore true price competition across the economy, benefiting consumers with more choices and lower prices for everyday essentials.”

A key test case in antitrust

Both the FTC and Southern Glazer’s declined to comment.

However, a person familiar with the matter said Southern Glazer’s discounts are available to all retailers where permitted by state law.

The source added that there are no secret discounts going on and that the only reason a smaller store may not enjoy the same discount as a larger store is because they can’t or won’t take on the same volume.

The FTC has not filed a lawsuit against Southern Glazer’s, and there is no guarantee the agency will pursue one. It’s still possible that FTC commissioners vote against such a lawsuit.

But if the lawsuit does go forward, it would represent a test case — and a complex one at that.

One complicating factor is that the alcohol industry is already heavily regulated at the state level. There is a maze of state-level rules that dictate who can sell what booze to whom. That could make such a case a state’s rights issue – and one where businesses argue consumers will be hurt.

Schwartz, the Reed Smith lawyer, said a case against Southern Glazer’s would reflect a shift in enforcement policy at the FTC under Khan away from the consumer welfare standards, where lower prices are almost always considered better for competition.

The goal here would be to “try to level the playing field for small retailers who are trying to compete,” he said. “You could think of it as much as a challenge to the mega-retailers as it is to the suppliers.”

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US job growth shot much higher than expected in May, jumping to 272,000, while the nation’s jobless rate rose slightly and broke a 27-month streak of below-4% unemployment.

At a time when Americans and the Federal Reserve are clamoring for clear-cut data about the state and trajectory of the economy, Friday’s jobs report was much more opaque than everyone had hoped.

“It’s hard not to like a lot of jobs, and this report was well above what I expected, and I think just about what everyone expected,” Dean Baker, an economist who co-founded the Center for Economic and Policy Research, told CNN. “We’re seeing a lot of job growth, that’s a generally good story.”

He added: “But the Fed’s going ‘Oh, can we cut [interest rates]? Can we cut? Can we cut?’ It’s hard to look at this report and make a good case for cutting, I’ve got to say.”

May’s job gains are considerably higher than the April total, which was revised down to 165,000, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data released Friday. The May data came in well above expectations for 180,000, according to FactSet consensus estimates.

The unemployment rate rose to 4% from 3.9%. It’s the first time in more than two years that the jobless rate is not below 4%.

Stronger-than-expected wage gains for the month pushed up average hourly earnings to 4.1% over the past year, reversing a monthslong trend of cooling there.

“The Fed doesn’t directly target wages; but where the wages picked up are in the areas where we’ve seen the most inflation,” Diane Swonk, chief economist with KPMG, told CNN.

That’s in the service sector, everything from personal care services, dry cleaning, cleaning and home maintenance and vehicle maintenance, she said.

“And that is something that is hard for the Fed, because in order for some of the increases we’re seeing in the service sector, we need to see offset in goods prices in order to bring inflation down,” she said. “But you need a lot of that consistently to deal with stickier inflation that we’re seeing in the service sector; and, unfortunately, wages matter more in particular areas where inflation has gotten stickiest.”

Critical inflation data is due out Wednesday: The May Consumer Price Index lands the same day the Fed will make its latest policymaking announcement (which is overwhelmingly expected to be that they are keeping rates on hold).

Traders weren’t too giddy about Friday’s employment report, at least when it comes to rate cut prospects. Wall Street’s best bet for the first rate cut is now December, the CME FedWatch Tool shows.

A tale of two surveys

The strong job market has underpinned a robust period of consumer spending that has kept the economy churning — but has not necessarily helped in the inflation fight.

The surge in job gains and the rising unemployment offer a tale of two surveys: The monthly jobs report is composed of two surveys to measure employment levels and activity, one that surveys non-farm businesses about employment, hours and earnings, and the other of households to obtain the labor force status of the population with demographic details.

Employment fell in the household survey, while unemployment increased to just shy of 6.5 million and pushing the unemployment rate to the threshold of 4%. However, the household survey typically is more volatile than the establishment survey that showed payroll gains jumping higher.

“It is literally the height of confusion trying to make sense of one of the most divergent monthly employment reports that we can ever remember,” economist Chris Rupkey, of FwdBonds, wrote in a note issued Friday. “Is it safe out there for consumers and businesses or is the economy on the cusp of a recession?”

CEPR’s Baker said the growing “dissonance” between the household and establishment surveys could be a reflection of the data not fully picking up the post-pandemic surge in immigration that economists say have increased the supply of workers and productivity, allowing for stronger job growth without being inflationary.

“The immigrants are overwhelmingly working when they’re coming here, and we have the data on that,” Baker said. “But my best guess is we’re not picking up the full impact of immigration with the population controls [of the BLS survey].”

Americans are still faring well

Friday’s jobs report may be a mixed bag at a time when the Fed is trying to rein in inflation; but from a historical standpoint, this current jobs market remains one for the record books.

And from a current standpoint, one that’s healthy for Americans who are trying their hardest to keep up with inflation.

“I think it still shows that there’s still plenty of support within the labor market for people who depend on income for spending, which is obviously the vast majority of Americans,” Thomas Simons, senior economist at Jeffries, said in an interview.

Through May, the US economy has added an average of 247,800 jobs per month, which is roughly in line with the strong job growth seen last year. March’s and April’s estimated payroll gains were revised down slightly: March by 5,000 to 310,000; and April by 10,000 to 165,000.

May marks the 41st consecutive month of job gains, extending what is the fifth longest streak on records that go back to 1939, BLS data shows.

Service-providing industries accounted for the bulk of the month’s job gains, with health care and social assistance continuing to lead the way, with 83,500 jobs added. Health care, government and leisure and hospitality accounted for 60% of May’s gains; however, interest rate-sensitive sectors such as construction and manufacturing added jobs as well, Nick Bunker, economic research director for North America for the Indeed Hiring Lab, wrote in a note issued Friday.

“The gains are still broad-based,” he said.

The BLS’ “diffusion index,” which is a measurement of the percentage of industries that are adding or losing jobs, hit 63.4 in May, which is the highest it’s been since January 2023.

The labor market is still showing a lot of strength, Bunker said, noting that the increase in unemployment can be attributed to workers 24 and under, as prime-age employment rose.

In fact, the labor force participation rate for prime working-age women (25-54 years old) set a fresh all-time high of 78.1% in May, BLS data shows.

“Don’t get overly spooked by the rise in the unemployment rate,” Bunker wrote. “The labor market is still gliding toward a soft landing.”

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New York — Elon Musk and the Tesla board are facing a shareholder suit over his sale of $7.5 billion worth of Tesla shares in late 2022, ahead of a January 2023 sales report that sent the price of the stock plunging.

Musk sold a total of 41.5 million shares of Tesla stock between November 4 and December 12, according to company filings, as he liquidated some of his holdings to free up cash for his recently completed purchase of Twitter.

The sales came not long after a October 19, 2022 earning call in which he told investors “I can’t emphasize enough, we have excellent demand for Q4.”

But when Tesla reported fourth-quarter sales, they were far weaker than forecast, and that sent stocks down 12%, the worst day of trading for the stock in more than two years.

“Musk profited from his misconduct and his exploitation of material and adverse inside information,” alleged the suit, filed by shareholder Michael Perry. The suit requests that Musk return the profits on the stock sale to the company, as well as attorney fees and other costs to Perry for bringing the suit.

Musk likely knew the weaker sales report was coming at the time of the sale, the suit charges. Tesla reduced its prices in China by as much as 9% on October 24, 2022, starting a string of price cuts that has driven down prices of electric vehicles by Tesla and other automakers in the face of weaker-than-forecast sales.

And in April of last year, Musk bragged about the up-to-the-minute sales data that Tesla has, compared to automakers that sell their vehicles to a network of independent dealerships rather than directly to customers.

“I’m not sure there’s any company on earth that has better real-time data than Tesla, except maybe SpaceX Starlink,” he told investors at that time, referring to one of his other companies.

Tesla stock sales funded Twitter purchase

But from April through December in 2022, Musk sold $22.9 billion worth of Tesla stock in unscheduled sales to help fund his $44 billion purchase of Twitter that year.

His sales in November and December of 2022, along with the price cuts in China, helped to push down the price of Tesla shares even before the January sales report. His sale on November 4 2022 came at an average price of $208.58, according to filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. His final sales of this group, on December 14, came at an average price that day of $158.37.

But the January fourth-quarter sales report, which came on a Sunday, sent shares down to $108.10 from $123.18 at the close the previous Friday.

Tesla shares soon rebounded, though, and more than doubled during the course of 2023 to close at $248.48. But shares have struggled this year, losing 29% of their value year to date through Monday’s close.

The suit was filed in Delaware Chancery Court on Thursday and first reported by Bloomberg. Tesla, which does not have a public relations department, did not return a request for comment.

The lawsuit comes as Tesla is seeking shareholder approval to return the stock options to Musk that he was stripped of in a January court decision in Delaware. Two influential advisory firms have urged shareholders to vote against his controversial billion pay package and raised concerns about the CEO’s numerous side projects.

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New York — Costco’s new chief financial officer has a reassuring message for inflation-weary customers: don’t worry about the price of the $1.50 hot dog-soda combo.

“To clear up some recent media speculation, I also want to confirm the $1.50 hot dog price is safe,” Costco CFO Gary Millerchip said on an earnings call with analysts Thursday. It was Millerchip’s first earnings call with analysts since taking over for Richard Galanti, Costco’s colorful finance chief of nearly four decades and the longest-serving CFO of a major US public company.

With Costco’s leadership change — and other longtime deals like Trader Joe’s 19-cent bananas and Planet Fitness’ $10 membership ending amid rising inflation — some had speculated about the future of Costco’s $1.50 hot dog. The price has remained the same since 1985.

RELATED: Costco lawsuit dropped; building of East Bay warehouse planned this summer

If Costco’s hot dog deal kept pace with inflation, it would be three times as expensive today — nearly $4.50. But Costco’s $1.50 combo is a strategic decision, known as a loss-leader: The company is willing to lose money selling the hot dogs at that price as long as it helps Costco draw in and retain customers.

It’d be an odd time to raise prices, anyway. Other companies, such as Walmart and Target, have been cutting prices on thousands of items to draw in shoppers who are increasingly fed up with rising costs.

The $1.50 hot dog is a powerful marketing tool for Costco and is synonymous with Costco’s brand.

“I know it sounds crazy making a big deal about a hot dog, but we spend a lot of time on it,” Costco co-founder Jim Sinegal told the Seattle Times in 2009. “We’re known for that hot dog. That’s something you don’t mess with.”

Sinegal also famously once said, “If you raise the effing hot dog, I will kill you. Figure it out,” according to former CEO Craig Jelinek.

Costco offsets hot dog losses by increasing prices of pizzas and other items at its food courts and cutting costs.

It also recently added chocolate chip cookies to its food court menu. The $2.49 double chocolate chunk cookie has been a “continued success,” Millerchip said Thursday.

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The Supreme Court on Thursday unanimously backed the National Rifle Association in a First Amendment ruling that could make it harder for state regulators to pressure advocacy groups.

The decision means the NRA may continue to pursue its lawsuit against a New York official who urged banks and insurance companies to cut ties with the gun rights group following the 2018 mass shooting at a Parkland, Florida, high school that left 17 people dead.

“Ultimately, the critical takeaway is that the First Amendment prohibits government officials from wielding their power selectively to punish or suppress speech, directly or (as alleged here) through private intermediaries,” the opinion by Justice Sonia Sotomayor said.

The NRA claimed that Maria Vullo, the former superintendent of the New York State Department of Financial Services, not only leaned on insurance companies to part ways with the gun lobby but threatened enforcement actions against those firms if they failed to comply.

At the center of the dispute was a meeting Vullo had with insurance market Lloyd’s of London in 2018 in which the NRA claims she offered to not prosecute other violations as long as the company helped with the campaign against gun groups. Vullo tried to wave off the significance of the meeting, arguing in part that the NRA’s allegations of what took place were not specific.

Vullo, who served in Democratic former Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s administration, said her enforcement targeted an insurance product that is illegal in New York: third-party policies sold through the NRA that cover personal injury and criminal defense costs following the use of a firearm. Critics dubbed the policies “murder insurance.”

The decision will provide some clarity to government regulators — both liberal and conservative — about how far they may go to pressure private companies that do business with controversial advocacy groups.

While the NRA is more likely to be at the Supreme Court making Second Amendment arguments, it picked up unfamiliar allies with its First Amendment claim. The American Civil Liberties Union, which usually sits opposite the NRA in the debate over guns, agreed to represent the group before the Supreme Court.

A US district court denied some of the NRA’s claims but allowed its First Amendment arguments to proceed against Vullo. The 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals reversed that decision, concluding that Vullo’s actions were not coercive. It also ruled that Vullo was entitled to qualified immunity, a legal doctrine that shields government officials from lawsuits in some circumstances.

The NRA largely relied on a 1963 Supreme Court decision, Bantam Books v. Sullivan, that dealt with a Rhode Island commission that had threatened to refer distributors to police if they sold books deemed to be obscene. The Supreme Court held that such “informal censorship” was unconstitutional.

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“There is nothing we can do except feel immense gratitude and commit to pay it forward, and do what we can to build the scaffolding up a little higher,” the pair said.

Bloomberg reports that Altman, 39, is worth at least $2 billion, with much of his wealth drawn from startup investments, including a sizable investment in Reddit. He doesn’t have a stake in OpenAI, the tech company that’s at the forefront of artificial intelligence.

Altman and Mulherin live in San Francisco and reportedly also have homes in Napa Valley and Hawaii. They were married in January.

The Giving Pledge was started in 2010 by billionaires Warren Buffett and the formerly married couple, Bill and Melinda French Gates, to get the world’s wealthiest to commit to donating at least half of their fortunes to charities and philanthropic causes either during their lifetimes or in their wills.

The pledge isn’t a legally binding contract, but more of a moral commitment. The campaign’s intention is to “inspire conversations, discussions, and action, not just about how much [to give] but also for what purposes and to what end,” according to the website.

There are currently more than 245 couples and individuals from 30 countries that have signed on.

Earlier Tuesday, French Gates, who is one of the world’s wealthiest and most prominent philanthropists, announced that she was donating $1 billion through 2026 to advance women’s rights around the world through her organization, Pivotal Ventures.

She recently resigned from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation earlier this month following her divorce from Bill. As part of her divorce agreement, she received $12.5 billion from the Gates Foundation for her work upon her resignation.

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