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Transactions of $10bn or more have doubled so far in 2025 compared to 2024, according to LSEG, after President Donald Trump’s deregulatory push unleashed Wall Street’s animal spirits and a blitz of global dealmaking. Total deal value in the U.S. so far this year is up more than 40% from the same period in 2024 to about $1.9tn. However, antitrust leaders Gail Slater at the Justice Department and Andrew Ferguson at the Federal Trade Commission have made clear they are most concerned about protecting competition in cost-of-living sectors, such as healthcare and housing. “Companies are taking advantage of this window to pursue the larger transactions that they’ve long wanted to do and have been expected by the market,” said Ivan Farman, global co-head of mergers and acquisitions at Bank of America. “When you see big deals being struck in your industry, you don’t want to be left out when the chess pieces move.”

 

Financial Times

Wall Street Journal

International Rights Advocates (IRAdvocates) has filed a lawsuit against Apple in Washington, alleging the company uses minerals linked to conflict and human rights abuses in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda. The lawsuit claims Apple's supply chain includes cobalt, tin, tantalum, and tungsten associated with child and forced labor. Apple has denied these allegations, saying it has instructed suppliers to cease sourcing from these regions. The lawsuit seeks a court ruling on consumer protection violations and an injunction against deceptive marketing, but does not demand monetary damages.

 

Reuters

The world's central banks are wary of artificial intelligence amid concern that AI-driven behavior could "accelerate future crises," according to a survey by the Official Monetary and Financial Institutions Forum. "AI helps us see more, but decisions must remain with people," one participant was quoted as saying in the report from a working group of 10 central banks from Europe, Africa, Latin America and Asia managing roughly $6.5 trillion. More than 60% of respondents said that AI tools are not yet supporting core operations. although most central banks are using AI mainly for basic work, such as summarizing data or scanning markets. "Most early applications centered on routine analytical tasks rather than risk management or portfolio construction," the report said.

 

Barron's

Reuters

The Labor Department reported Wednesday, a day earlier than usual due to the Thanksgiving holiday, that 216,000 Americans filed new claims for unemployment benefits in the seven days to November 22nd, a 6,000 weekly drop to their lowest level since April. Economists polled by FactSet had expected 230,000 new claims. The four-week average of claims dropped 1,000 to 223,750, while the total number of claims, reported with a one-week lag, rose 7,000 to 1.96m. The figures suggest that both the economy and inflation are slowing, boosting expectations in some quarters of a Federal Reserve rate cut next month. however, Carl Weinberg, chief economist at High Frequency Economics, commented: "No one can construe any story about a surge in layoffs from this report. The message to the Fed from this data point is that there is no reason to rush to cut rates in December."

 

AP News

Reuters

Wall Street Journal

The Trump administration is negotiating a trade deal with Taiwan that aims to enhance U.S. semiconductor manufacturing through investment and workforce training, according to sources. Taiwanese companies, including TSMC, are expected to contribute capital and skilled workers to expand their U.S. operations. Currently, Taiwan's exports to the U.S. face a 20% tariff, which the companies hope to reduce as part of this agreement. The deal's specifics remain uncertain, but it could involve building science park infrastructure in the U.S. Taiwan's Premier Cho Jung-tai said that the two sides are at the stage of exchanging documents to finalize details.  "Until announced by President Trump, reporting about potential trade deals is speculation," said White House spokesman Kush Desai. 

 

U.S. News

U.S. economic activity was little changed in recent weeks, according to the Federal Reserve, although consumer spending declined, and employment was weaker in around half of its 12 districts. The central bank's Beige Book compilation of anecdotes from businesses in the weeks leading up to November 17th also noted that, on prices, tariffs were still a concern for businesses, especially those in manufacturing and retail, who reported widespread input cost pressures. Multiple firms reported tighter margins or financial strain related to tariffs, but some also said prices had declined due to reduced demand or delayed or reduced tariff rates. Consumer spending in several districts was hampered by the government shutdown, which hurt demand from lower-income households that depend on aid programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program that were interrupted by the closure. The report also reinforced indications that spending was being carried by more affluent households, while lower-income consumers were feeling pinched.

 

Bloomberg

Reuters

Wall Street Journal

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says the Federal Reserve's system of managing interest rates needs to be simplified. "We've gotten to this point where monetary policy has gotten very complicated" and the U.S. central bank should "simplify things," Bessent said in an interview with CNBC, adding "The Fed has taken us into a new regime, and what is called ample-reserves regime. And it looks like that might be fraying a bit here in terms of whether the reserves are actually ample." Bessent also said he expects President Donald Trump to make a decision on the new Federal Reserve chair by the holiday season.

 

CNBC

Reuters

Amazon has been granted a preliminary injunction by a federal judge to block the New York State Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) from enforcing a new state law that the online retailer considers an attempt to illegally regulate private-sector labor relations. A state law recently signed by Gov. Kathy Hochul permitted PERB to hear private-sector labor cases while its federal counterpart, the National Labor Relations Board, lacked the necessary quorum to make rulings. US District Judge Eric Komitee cited a 1959 U.S. Supreme Court precedent in concluding that Amazon would likely succeed on its claim that federal labor law forbade New York from enforcing its law. The online retailer had been seeking to block PERB from hearing a case concerning the August 9th firing of Brima Sylla, a local union vice president at its JFK8 warehouse in Staten Island, Amazon's only U.S. facility to unionize.

 

Bloomberg Law

Reuters

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., Federal Reserve and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency have finalized a plan to ease rules for the "enhanced supplementary leverage ratio," requiring lenders such as Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase and Goldman Sachs to hold less capital relative to total assets. Bloomberg says the adoption of the measure is a win for Wall Street banking giants, as officials look to soften several capital measures established following the 2008 global financial crisis. 

 

Bloomberg

Reuters

Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) has been leading bipartisan efforts to secure a temporary extension of enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies, which she originally helped create. Despite no deal emerging during the government shutdown, she secured a Senate vote on a Democratic healthcare proposal. Shaheen is working with both Republican and Democratic lawmakers on a compromise package that includes tighter eligibility criteria. The debate comes as many Republicans oppose the subsidies, while some Democrats are threatening political consequences if the deal fails. Talks continue amid rising premium concerns and a year-end deadline.

 

Wall Street Journal

Robinhood chief executive Vlad Tenev has embraced a culture of high-intensity retail trading, presenting the company as a platform for risk-tolerant, tech-savvy investors who use the app to trade options, cryptocurrencies, prediction-market contracts and other complex products. While critics argue the environment resembles gambling, supporters say Robinhood has broadened access to sophisticated financial tools. After the post-pandemic slowdown, Mr. Tenev shifted the company’s focus toward its most active traders, whose use of crypto and options now generates a majority of Robinhood’s revenue. This strategic pivot has reinvigorated the company’s stock performance and cultivated a loyal community of users, even as concerns persist about market volatility, regulatory scrutiny and the long-term sustainability of such high-risk trading behavior.

 

Wall Street Journal

The Enhanced Games, an athletics competition dubbed the “steroid Olympics”, has agreed to go public by merging with a blank-cheque company in a $1.2bn deal. The transaction is expected to provide as much as $200m in gross cash proceeds, assuming no redemptions. Founded by Aron D’Souza and German entrepreneur Christian Angermayer in 2023, the Enhanced Games promises an annual event that allows competitors to use performance-enhancing drugs. It is due to hold its inaugural event in Las Vegas in May next year with competitions in short distance swimming in freestyle and butterfly, as well as in athletics and weightlifting.

 

Bloomberg

Financial Times

The FASB has introduced a new accounting standards update to enhance hedge accounting guidance. This update allows companies to aggregate hedged risks across a broader range of forecasted transactions, changing the criteria for risk exposure assessment. Richard Jones, FASB chair, said:"The new standard clarifies the application of previous guidance and addresses emerging issues identified by stakeholders." The amendments also expand hedge accounting for nonfinancial asset transactions and simplify the assessment of hedge effectiveness. The new rules will take effect for public business entities after December 15th 2026, and for other entities after December 15th 2027, with early adoption permitted.

 

Bloomberg Tax

Accounting Today

CPA Practice Advisor

Journal of Accountancy

Japanese beverage giant Asahi Group has reported that 1.91m sets of personal information were compromised in the recent cyberattack that saw it suspend shipments to distributors and retailers, with 1.52m sets belonging to the company's customers. In a statement on its investigation into the ransomware attack, which the hacker group Qilin has claimed responsibility for, Asahi said that it has not confirmed any evidence of the data being released and that the impact of the attack is limited to systems managed in Japan. President and chief executive Atshushi Katsuki said the company plans to resume placing and taking orders through its system in early December, aiming to fully restore its logistics operations by February 2026. The company will take recurrence prevention measures such as tightening access restrictions and improving the accuracy of its cyberattack detection. 

 

Black Friday is losing its appeal as shoppers no longer rush to stores after Thanksgiving, according to some retailers, with online shopping and early discounts diminishing the excitement of in-store sales. Despite this, it remains the busiest shopping day in the U.S. Analysts and mall executives have spoken of solid momentum in recent weeks, with foot traffic at the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota, surpassing the comparable period in 2019. Mastercard SpendingPulse, which tracks spending across all payment methods, predicted a 3.6% increase in holiday sales from November 1st through December 24th. That compares with a 4.1% increase last year. “Clearly, there’s uncertainty,” Mastercard chief economist Michelle Meyer said. “Clearly, consumers feel on edge. But at the moment, it doesn’t seem like it’s changing how they are showing up for this season". Online sales, meanwhile, are expected to rise 6% year-on-year to $8.6bn, according to Salesforce. 

 

Reuters

Washington Post