July 1, 2025

  • Luxury jewelry is enjoying a surge in sales as high-income consumers begin to shy away from purchasing handbags and apparel, a Citi report claims (via CNBC).
  • The U.S. dollar continues to slide, notching its worst yearly performance so far since 1973. The New York Times’ Joe Rennison pins the blame on President Trump’s aggressive tariffs and isolationist policy (via The New York Times).
  • Sephora has announced a partnership with Lyft, allowing customers to be “Delivered to Beauty” and enjoy a $20 ride credit en route to a Sephora location (via Forbes).
  • Online purchases for home delivery are declining according to a new survey from Alix Partners, largely attributed to the impact of tariffs on consumer spend. A minority of respondents, about 20%, showed an intention to “Buy American” (via CNBC).
  • The FTC has declared July “Made in the USA” month. The FTC declared a focus on educating U.S. business and consumers about Made in the USA standards while celebrating enterprises which make their products stateside (via FOX Business).
  • AMC Theaters is incorporating more ads prior to the beginning of movie screenings as part of a deal with National CineMedia. The deal could provide a financial buffer to the embattled theater chain (via CNN Business).
  • H&M experienced a significant uptick in shares purchased by its founding Persson family over the course of the first half of 2025. Approximately 42.75 million H&M shares have been purchased by the family’s Ramsbury Invest holding company so far this year (via Reuters).
  • Amazon has deployed its millionth robotic worker, and is on pace to have more robot workers than human staff in its warehouses (via Newser).
  • CPG companies are shrinking product sizes in order to provide lower-priced options, hoping to woo cash-strapped consumers. PepsiCo, Campbell’s, and Mondelez International, among others, are participating in this practice (via The Wall Street Journal).
  • General Motors reported a Q2 sales increase of 7%, moving 746,588 units in the three months leading up to June. Demand for its SUV lineup was credited for at least some of the sales boost (via Reuters).