AP Business SummaryBrief at 9:29 a.m. EDT

By The Associated Press

US wholesale inflation picked up in June in sign that some price pressures remain elevated

WASHINGTON (AP) — Wholesale prices in the United States rose by a larger-than-expected 2.6% last month from a year earlier, a sign that some inflation pressures remain elevated. The increase, the sharpest year-over-year increase since March 2023, comes at a time when other price indicators are showing that inflation has continued to ease. The government’s producer price index — which tracks inflation before it reaches consumers — rose 0.2% from May to June after being unchanged the month before. Excluding food and energy prices, which tend to bounce around from month to month, so-called core wholesale prices were up 0.4% from May and 3% from June 2023.

JPMorgan Q2 profit jumps as bank cashes in Visa shares, but higher interest rates also help results

NEW YORK (AP) — JPMorgan Chase says profits jumped sharply in the second quarter as the bank cashed in billions of dollars of its holdings in Visa Inc. But the bank’s results were also helped by higher interest rates, as well as consumers who seemed to still want to spend, despite geopolitical and economic uncertainties. The nation’s biggest bank by assets posted a profit of $18.15 billion, up 25% from a year earlier. A significant part of JPMorgan’s results was a $7.9 billion gain on its stake in Visa. Without that, profit fell compared with the year-ago quarter.

European Union says X’s blue checks are deceptive ‘dark patterns’ that breach its social media laws

LONDON (AP) — The European Union says blue checkmarks from Elon Musk’s X are deceptive and that the online platform falls short on transparency and accountability requirements. They’re the first charges against a tech company since the bloc’s new social media regulations took effect. The European Commission outlined on Friday the preliminary findings from its investigation into X, formerly known as Twitter, under the 27-nation bloc’s Digital Services Act. The rulebook, also known as the DSA, is a sweeping set of regulations that requires platforms to take more responsibility for protecting users and cleaning up their sites. Regulators said the blue checks constitute “dark patterns” that are not in line with industry best practice.

Data of nearly all AT&T customers downloaded to a third-party platform after a security breach

The data of nearly all customers of the telecommunications giant AT&T was downloaded to a third-party platform in a 2022 security breach in a year already rife with massive cyberattacks. The company said Friday that the breach hit customers of AT&T’s cellular customers, customers of mobile virtual network operators using AT&T’s wireless network, as well as its landline customers interacted with those cellular numbers.

Senator calls out Big Tech’s new approach to poaching talent, products from smaller AI startups

U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden is calling for action against a new practice big technology companies are using to swallow up the talent and products of innovative AI startups without formally acquiring them. The Oregon Democrat sent a letter Friday urging antitrust enforcers at the Justice Department and the Federal Trade Commission to act against “undue consolidation across the industry.” The practice general involves a smaller startup sending its key employees to a larger company after they license its products or datasets.

Some smaller news outlets in swing states can’t afford election coverage. AP is helping them

NEW YORK (AP) — The Associated Press says it will provide free campaign and election night coverage to dozens of small and independent newsrooms located in swing states, through a program funded by a Knight Foundation grant. Several newsrooms in Michigan, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Arizona and Nevada will qualify. The Institute for Nonprofit News says the material will augment local political coverage at outlets that are often the only source of independent news in a community. The grant comes during troubled financial times for the news industry; the Gannett and McClatchy chain of local news outlets said earlier this year they would stop paying for AP material

China’s exports grow 8.6% in June, beating forecasts despite trade tensions

HONG KONG (AP) — China’s exports beat forecasts in June, while imports grew less than expected. Chinese customs data released Friday showed exports grew 8.6% from the same time last year to hit $307.8 billion. That beat estimates of about 7.4% to 8% growth. Imports, however, fell 2.3% from a year earlier to $208.8 billion. China’s strong exports for June led to its trade surplus widening to $99 billion, up from $82.6 billion in May. The growth in exports comes as China faces escalated trade tensions with the U.S. and Europe. The U.S. and Europe have ramped up tariffs on Chinese-made electric cars.

IRS collects milestone $1 billion in back taxes from high-wealth taxpayers

WASHINGTON (AP) — The IRS has collected $1 billion in back taxes from high-wealth tax cheats — a milestone meant to showcase how the agency is making use of the money it received as part of the Biden administration’s signature climate, health care and tax package signed into law in 2022. The announcement Thursday comes as the much-maligned agency shows the public how much work it is getting done. In a statement, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen praises the Inflation Reduction Act for “increasing tax fairness and ensuring that all wealthy taxpayers pay the taxes they owe, just like working families do.”

Stock market today: Wall Street flat admit rush of bank earnings, inflation data

Wall Street is essentially flat before the opening bell as new data pulled markets in different directions. Futures for the S&P 500 were unchanged before the bell Friday while futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average ticked up less than 0.1%. Shares in big U.S. banks fell even as most reported healthy profits that beat Wall Street expectations. JPMorgan shares initially fell but then recovered after it reported a 25% jump in profits from a year ago. Wells Fargo shares tumbled nearly 6% after it reported that its net interest income fell 9% from the same quarter last year.

Marathon Oil reaches $241 million settlement with EPA for environmental violations in North Dakota

The federal government announced a $241.5 million settlement with Marathon Oil on Thursday for alleged air quality violations at the company’s oil and gas operations on the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation in North Dakota. The Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Justice said the settlement requires Marathon to reduce climate- and health-harming emissions from those facilities and will result in over 2.3 millions tons worth of pollution reduction. Attorney General Merrick Garland calls the settlement “historic” and says it “will ensure cleaner air for the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation and other communities in North Dakota, while holding Marathon accountable for its illegal pollution.”