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The U.S. federal judiciary's electronic case filing system has been compromised in a sweeping cyber hack that is understood to have exposed sensitive court data in several states. The Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, which manages the federal court filing system, first determined how serious the matter was around July 4, said a source. The office, and also the Justice Department and individual district courts around the U.S., are still trying to determine the full extent of the incident. “It’s the first time I’ve ever seen a hack at this level,” observed one person with knowledge of the incident who has more than two decades' experience on the federal judiciary.

 

Politico

The Trump administration is reallocating Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) staff to expedite the hiring of 10,000 Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. The move, which involves transferring over 100 employees from FEMA's human resources and security teams, has raised concerns about FEMA's ability to respond effectively during the critical hurricane season. Former FEMA officials worry that the transfers could exacerbate staffing shortages, especially as the agency has already faced resignations and departures. Deanne Criswell, a former FEMA head, expressed concern about the non-voluntary nature of the reassignments, observing: "They're already short staffed because they've lost so many."

 

U.S. News

President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that he has four names in mind to replace Jerome Powell as Federal Reserve chair - but has ruled out giving the job to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. “I love Scott, but he wants to stay where he is,” Mr. Trump said. “He’s doing a great job, and he wants to do what he’s doing.” Names in the frame include Kevin Warsh, a former member of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, and Kevin Hassett, his director of the National Economic Council. He did not reveal the names of the two other contenders. Mr. Trump has for months complained about the Federal Reserve keeping interest rates steady and ignoring his calls to lower the rates. However, he has held off removing Mr. Powell, despite repeatedly threatening to do so.

 

USA Today

New York Times

Politico

Wall Street Journal

A recent poll reveals that a significant number of U.S. adults are experiencing stress due to rising grocery prices, with about half identifying it as a "major" source of anxiety. The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that 64% of individuals earning less than $30,000 annually consider grocery costs a major stressor. Adam Bush, a 19-year-old welder, expressed his concerns, commenting: "I just keep watching the prices go up, so I'm looking for the cheapest possible stuff." The survey also highlights that younger Americans are increasingly using "buy now, pay later" services to manage expenses, with many feeling the financial strain across various sectors, including housing and healthcare. Women and Hispanic adults report higher levels of economic anxiety, particularly regarding grocery and housing costs.

 

US News and World Report

The Institute for Supply Management (ISM) reported Tuesday that U.S. services sector activity flatlined in July, slipping to 50.1, from 50.8 in June. It also missed the 51.5 reading forecast among economists polled by Reuters, although it remained above the 50-mark separating expansion from contraction. The new orders measure dropped 1.2 points to 50.3m while the measure of services employment fell to 46.4, the lowest since March. Relatedly, the S&P Global U.S. Services PMI rose to 55.7 in July from 52.9 in June, significantly above the initial market consensus of 53, for the most significant expansion in private services activity since the beginning of the year.

 

Reuters

Trading View

Boeing is set to conduct the first flight of its 777-9 jet on August 5, marking its first flight in nearly five years, according to Air Current editor Jon Ostrower. The development comes as the company aims to advance its 777X programme, which has faced delays and challenges in recent years.

 

Reuters

United Airlines has resumed flights after resolving a technology issue that caused a temporary grounding and significant delays across its network. The airline said: "While we expect residual delays, our team is working to restore our normal operations."

 

Reuters

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has ordered U.S. diplomats in Europe to launch a lobbying campaign against the European Union's Digital Services Act (DSA). A State Department cable - the headline of which described it as an "action request" - said the EU is pursuing "undue" restrictions on freedom of expression by its efforts to combat hateful speech, misinformation and disinformation, and the DSA was further enhancing these curbs.

 

Reuters

Ford plans to unveil details about its low-cost electric vehicles at an event in Kentucky on August 11. CEO Jim Farley described the announcement as “a Model T moment” for the company. Despite a $1.3bn loss in its electric vehicle division in Q2 2025, Ford aims to develop a mid-size pickup truck on a new platform by 2027. The initiative is led by former Tesla executive Alan Clarke, with a team from various tech companies. Farley noted that the new vehicles will offer “personalised digital experiences.”

 

Techcrunch

X is using parent company xAI’s Grok artificial intelligence tools to handle more of the social media site’s advertising business. Roman Grachev, head of ads engineering, said Wednesday that Grok is being deployed to improve targeting based on user data, and to evaluate whether ads look good or bad. X is also likely to introduce ads in chatbot answers.

 

Financial Times

The Information

Two Chinese nationals, Chuan Geng and Shiwei Yang, have been arrested in California for allegedly shipping tens of millions of dollars worth of Nvidia AI chips to China without the necessary export licenses. The U.S. Justice Department claims that their company, ALX Solutions, exported these advanced chips in violation of U.S. export controls established to protect national security.

 

Reuters

Asia-U.S. sea freight rates are projected to continue declining throughout 2025 due to an oversupply of shipping capacity and shifting trade routes influenced by tariffs and geopolitical tensions. Average spot rates for containers have already decreased significantly, with a 58% drop for the U.S. west coast and 46% for the east coast since June 1. While vessel rerouting is helping to mitigate some losses by absorbing excess capacity, ongoing uncertainties in trade relations, particularly between the U.S. and China, are expected to exert further pressure on freight rates.

 

Reuters

Disasters such as last month's devastating floods along the Nepal-China border, which resulted in the loss of nine lives, demonstrate the vulnerability of infrastructure in a region which is bearing the brunt of global warming, experts say. They emphasize the need for "smart rebuilding" in recognition of local vulnerability to climate change. “The statistics of the past no longer apply for the future,” observes John Pomeroy, a hydrologist at the University of Saskatchewan in Canada. “The risk that goes into building a bridge or other infrastructure is generally based on historical observations of past risk, but this is no longer useful because future risk is different and often much higher.”

 

AP News

Washingtonpost.com

Germans are concerned over potential price increases and a possible shortage of their beloved kebab in a pita. Workers at Birtat Meat World SE, a major kebab factory, are engaged in ongoing strikes, demanding wage increases of €375 ($434) per month. The Food, Beverages and Catering Union has previously highlighted issues of nontransparent pay among workers, many of whom are immigrants from Turkey, Romania, and Bulgaria. Halil Duman, a kebab vendor in Berlin, observed: “It’s all getting more and more difficult. The produce is becoming more expensive and we barely make profit anymore.” With rising costs, the classic döner kebab, once a cheap staple, is now priced at around €7 ($8). The kebab, which was introduced to Germany by Turkish immigrants in the 1970s, has become a national favorite, with over 13 million consumers each month relying on Birtat's production.

 

U.S. News