Forbes Daily: New Trump Savings Accounts Leave Experts With Questions
Even wealthier consumers are pulling back on their travel plans, a concerning sign for the travel industry and economy at large.
Credit card spending on airline tickets among those making over $150,000 per year saw a 7% decline in growth in a little over a monthlong period this spring, new data shows. That could be a 'potential forward indicator,' since spending today translates to future travel, one industry analyst told Forbes.
Airline stocks have faltered in 2025, and numerous carriers pulled their guidance for the year in the wake of President Donald Trump's 'Liberation Day' tariffs. And the weakness is extending to other travel industry forecasts, like hotels.
National Guard soldiers stand in front of a federal building as protests continue in Los Angeles.
Photo byHundreds of Marines were deployed to Los Angeles in the latest escalation in the response to protests over federal immigration raids. The Marines were sent to aid the more than 2,000 members of the National Guard President Donald Trump deployed. California Governor Gavin Newsom said Monday night that the state would sue to stop what he described 'a blatant abuse of power,' as he urged courts and Congress to 'act.'
MORE: After at least six Waymo vehicles were set on fire Sunday, the robotaxi firm suspended service and removed vehicles from downtown Los Angeles 'out of an abundance of caution.' Law enforcement warned that burning lithium-ion batteries used in the cars release toxic gases, posing possible health risks.
President Donald Trump and Tesla CEO Elon Musk stand next to a Tesla Cybertruck in March.
Photo by MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images
Tesla continues to pay a price for Elon Musk's political involvement, with Baird analysts downgrading the automaker's stock in part due to the CEO's recent feud with President Donald Trump. The analysts also expressed skepticism over the company's expectations for its upcoming robotaxi launch, noting it forecasts just 6,000 of the driverless cabs will be on the road by the second half of next year, a fraction of the 'hundreds of thousands' Musk recently predicted.
Despite the uncertainty generated by Trump's tariffs, small business owners' optimism rose last month. The Small Business Optimism Index from the National Federation of Independent Business, a lobbying group for small business owners, saw its headline optimism number tick up to 98.8 in May, the first month-over-month increase since December. Expectations for better business conditions and stronger sales mostly drove the gains.
Gail Federici
Jamel Toppin for Forbes
After selling her first company, John Frieda Hair Care, Gail Federici found success in hair care again with Color Wow, which offers products combating everything from frizz to dryness. Forbes estimates the brand is worth about half a billion, and thanks to the growing value of Federici's stake, she's worth an estimated $600 million, earning the No. 61 spot on Forbes' 2025 list of America's Richest Self-Made Women.
For billionaires, the AI revolution is here: A Forbes survey of the world's richest people found that more than three quarters are using AI in their businesses, while 65% said they utilize the technology in their personal life. Some are embracing it more than others: LinkedIn cofounder Reid Hoffman made an AI twin of himself and conducted a Q&A with it, while Warren Buffett compared AI to a 'genie out of the bottle' that 'scares the hell out of me.'
As part of President Donald Trump's sweeping policy bill, the Treasury Department would fund $1,000 in investment accounts for all newborn Americans, and the president officially announced the so-called 'Trump savings accounts' alongside the CEOs of major companies Monday. Parents or other account custodians would also be able to add up to $5,000 in post-tax contributions into the accounts each year, but financial experts are skeptical as to whether the accounts will be attractive to parents—their tax benefits are more limited than 529 college savings and Roth IRA retirement accounts.
Around the time that Trump took office, the Trump Organization made moves to sell a stake in one of the president's crypto companies, a letter from an independent monitor overseeing the president's business revealed. The letter did not specify the price of the transaction or the identity of the purchaser, but as Forbes' Dan Alexander reports, it seems to say something about the Trump family's intentions with crypto: In public, the Trumps pump up their projects, yet in private the first family appears to be dumping at least a portion of its holdings.
New York's Overstory is nominated again for Best U.S. Cocktail Bar.
Overstory/Adrian Gaut
Bottom's up: The Tales of the Cocktail Foundation unveiled the nominees for the 2025 Spirited Awards, which Forbes is the official media partner of, honoring the world's best bars, bartenders and more. The Big Apple flexed its muscle, with three of the four nominees for Best New U.S. Cocktail Bar located in Manhattan, and bars in Denver, Miami and Washington, D.C. also received nominations.
'The energy of the summer is contagious,' says Erik Brust, JonnyPops' CEO (left) with CFO Connor Wray. 'This is our Super Bowl—and it just happens to be multiple months long.'
JonnyPops
In 13 years, Forbes 30 Under 30 alums Erik Brust and Connor Wray's popsicle company JonnyPops has quietly become one of the hottest brands in the frozen aisle.
Some 60% of JonnyPops' annual sales (which Forbes estimates at $100 million) are made during the hottest six months of the year, Brust says. And the brand, which he says has been profitable from year one, now pulls in an estimated 30% net margin. It's also the top seller among natural grocers' lineup of 'frozen novelties' nationwide, which grocery data provider Spins tracks as nearly $7 billion in annual retail sales.
Brust believes that the business he and Wray, JonnyPops' chief financial officer, dreamed up in their dorm room at St. Olaf College, about an hour south of Minneapolis, was built for the long haul. 'We don't chase fads,' he says of the business, which was bootstrapped with friends and family, and has taken on no private equity funding. 'We're thinking about what's the next decade look like. This was never a grow-the-business-to-sell-it type idea.'
But if the pair did decide to sell, even as the market for food deals has scaled back multiples amid uncertainty and volatility, JonnyPops could expect to get around $300 million or more. Mainstream ice cream bars like Dove and Klondike have been struggling as consumers opt for healthier brands, but their respective parent companies—Mars and Unilever—need brands like JonnyPops (which has been eating away at their sales) for future growth.
WHY IT MATTERS 'JonnyPops is riding the MAHA wave since its recipes have no artificial colors and use cane sugar instead of artificial sweeteners,' says Forbes staff writer Chloe Sorvino. 'But around 60% of grocery stores nationwide have yet to sell one of their popsicles, and that includes going nationwide with Walmart. Brust and Wray believe they can double their footprint, but it will be incremental over several years.'
MORE How Kettle & Fire Turned Bone Broth Into A $100 Million Business
As corporations retreat from Pride, retailers like Target, Walmart and Macy's are placing less emphasis on their pro-LGBTQ merchandise in favor of products themed for other summer holidays:
Over 100 items: The size of Target's Pride 2025 collection, about the same number as last year
4%: The decline in comparable sales at Target in the first quarter of 2025 as the company has faced backlash
2,000: The number of stores the company has, about half of which have in-store Pride merchandise displays, after the company scaled back last year
A personal brand statement doesn't have to be posted on your LinkedIn or professional website—it's about creating a north star that helps you make decisions that are aligned with who you are. To write one, examine your unique strengths, identify your target audience and define the impact you make. Use the statement like a personal leadership mantra that can be a guide for evaluating opportunities and preparing for big moments.
Coco Gauff won her first French Open over the weekend, becoming the first American to do so since Serena Williams in which year?
A. 2013
B. 2019
C. 2015
D. 2007
Check your answer.
Thanks for reading! This edition of Forbes Daily was edited by Sarah Whitmire and Chris Dobstaff.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
6 minutes ago
- Yahoo
2 Growth Stocks to Stash and 1 to Question
Growth is a hallmark of all great companies, but the laws of gravity eventually take hold. Those who rode the COVID boom and ensuing tech selloff in 2022 will surely remember that the market's punishment can be swift and severe when trajectories fall. Deciphering which businesses can sustain their high growth rates is a challenge for even the most seasoned professionals, which is why we started StockStory. On that note, here are two growth stocks expanding their competitive advantages and one climbing an uphill battle. One-Year Revenue Growth: +25.3% Founded in 2009 by enterprise software veteran Tom Seibel, (NYSE:AI) provides software that makes it easy for organizations to add artificial intelligence technology to their applications. Why Does AI Fall Short? 15.5% annual revenue growth over the last three years was slower than its software peers Extended payback periods on sales investments suggest the company's platform isn't resonating enough to drive efficient sales conversions Historical operating margin losses point to an inefficient cost structure stock price of $25.72 implies a valuation ratio of 7.4x forward price-to-sales. Dive into our free research report to see why there are better opportunities than AI. One-Year Revenue Growth: +32.3% Founded in 2014 and named after the dreaded first day of the work week, (NASDAQ:MNDY) is a software-as-a-service platform that helps organizations plan and track work efficiently. Why Is MNDY a Good Business? ARR trends over the last year show it's maintaining a steady flow of long-term contracts that contribute positively to its revenue predictability Software is difficult to replicate at scale and results in a best-in-class gross margin of 89.5% Strong free cash flow margin of 30.4% enables it to reinvest or return capital consistently is trading at $305 per share, or 12.7x forward price-to-sales. Is now a good time to buy? Find out in our full research report, it's free. One-Year Revenue Growth: +20% Founded in 2010 and named for a combination of 'docs' and 'proximity', Doximity (NYSE: DOCS) is the leading social network for U.S. medical professionals. Why Should DOCS Be on Your Watchlist? Billings have averaged 23.5% growth over the last year, showing it's securing new contracts that could potentially increase in value over time Well-designed software integrates seamlessly with other workflows, enabling swift payback periods on marketing expenses and customer growth at scale DOCS is a free cash flow machine with the flexibility to invest in growth initiatives or return capital to shareholders At $58.44 per share, Doximity trades at 19x forward price-to-sales. Is now the right time to buy? See for yourself in our comprehensive research report, it's free. Market indices reached historic highs following Donald Trump's presidential victory in November 2024, but the outlook for 2025 is clouded by new trade policies that could impact business confidence and growth. While this has caused many investors to adopt a "fearful" wait-and-see approach, we're leaning into our best ideas that can grow regardless of the political or macroeconomic climate. Take advantage of Mr. Market by checking out our Top 5 Growth Stocks for this month. This is a curated list of our High Quality stocks that have generated a market-beating return of 183% over the last five years (as of March 31st 2025). Stocks that made our list in 2020 include now familiar names such as Nvidia (+1,545% between March 2020 and March 2025) as well as under-the-radar businesses like the once-small-cap company Comfort Systems (+782% five-year return). Find your next big winner with StockStory today for free.
Yahoo
7 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Federal appeals court to hear arguments in Trump's long-shot effort to fight hush money conviction
Five months after President Donald Trump was sentenced without penalty in the New York hush money case, his attorneys will square off again with prosecutors Wednesday in one of the first major tests of the Supreme Court's landmark presidential immunity decision. Trump is relying heavily on the high court's divisive 6-3 immunity ruling from July in a long-shot bid to get his conviction reviewed – and ultimately overturned – by federal courts. After being convicted on 34 counts of falsifying business records, Trump in January became the first felon to ascend to the presidency in US history. Even after Trump was reelected and federal courts became flooded with litigation tied to his second term, the appeals in the hush money case have chugged forward in multiple courts. A three-judge panel of the 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals – all named to the bench by Democratic presidents – will hear arguments Wednesday in one of those cases. Trump will be represented on Wednesday by Jeffrey Wall, a private lawyer and Supreme Court litigator who served as acting solicitor general during Trump's first administration. Many of the lawyers who served on Trump's defense team in the hush money case have since taken top jobs within the Justice Department. The case stems from the 2023 indictment announced by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, a Democrat, who accused Trump of falsely categorizing payments he said were made to quash unflattering stories during the 2016 election. Trump was accused of falsifying a payment to his former lawyer, Michael Cohen, to cover up a $130,000 payment Cohen made to adult-film star Stormy Daniels to keep her from speaking out before the 2016 election about an alleged affair with Trump. (Trump has denied the affair.) Trump was ultimately convicted last year and was sentenced without penalty in January, days before he took office. The president is now attempting to move that case to federal court, where he is betting he'll have an easier shot at arguing that the Supreme Court's immunity decision in July will help him overturn the conviction. Trump's earlier attempts to move the case to federal court have been unsuccessful. US District Judge Alvin Hellerstein, nominated by President Bill Clinton, denied the request in September – keeping Trump's case in New York courts instead. The 2nd Circuit will now hear arguments on Trump's appeal of that decision on Wednesday. 'He's lost already several times in the state courts,' said David Shapiro, a former prosecutor and now a lecturer at John Jay College of Criminal Justice. And Trump's long-running battle with New York Judge Juan Merchan, Shapiro said, has 'just simmered up through the system' in New York courts in a way that may have convinced Trump that federal courts will be more receptive. Trump, who frequently complained about Merchan, has said he wants his case heard in an 'unbiased federal forum.' Trump's argument hangs largely on a technical but hotly debated section of the Supreme Court's immunity decision last year. Broadly, that decision granted former presidents 'at least presumptive' immunity for official acts and 'absolute immunity' when presidents were exercising their constitutional powers. State prosecutors say the hush money payments were a private matter – not official acts of the president – and so they are not covered by immunity. But the Supreme Court's decision also barred prosecutors from attempting to show a jury evidence concerning a president's official acts, even if they are pursuing alleged crimes involving that president's private conduct. Without that prohibition, the Supreme Court reasoned, a prosecutor could 'eviscerate the immunity' the court recognized by allowing a jury to second-guess a president's official acts. Trump is arguing that is exactly what Bragg did when he called White House officials such as former communications director Hope Hicks and former executive assistant Madeleine Westerhout to testify at his trial. Hicks had testified that Trump felt it would 'have been bad to have that story come out before the election,' which prosecutors later described as the 'nail' in the coffin of the president's defense. Trump's attorneys are also pointing to social media posts the president sent in 2018 denying the Daniels hush money scheme as official statements that should not have been used in the trial. State prosecutors 'introduced into evidence and asked the jury to scrutinize President Trump's official presidential acts,' Trump's attorneys told the appeals court in a filing last month. 'One month after trial, the Supreme Court unequivocally recognized an immunity prohibiting the use of such acts as evidence at any trial of a former president.' A White House spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment. If Trump's case is ultimately reviewed by federal courts, that would not change his state law conviction into a federal conviction. Trump would not be able to pardon himself just because a federal court reviews the case. Bragg's office countered that it's too late for federal courts to intervene. Federal officials facing prosecution in state courts may move their cases to federal court in many circumstances under a 19th century law designed to ensure states don't attempt to prosecute them for conduct performed 'under color' of a US office or agency. A federal government worker, for instance, might seek to have a case moved to federal court if they are sued after getting into a car accident while driving on the job. But in this case, Bragg's office argued, Trump has already been convicted and sentenced. That means, prosecutors said, there's really nothing left for federal courts to do. 'Because final judgment has been entered and the state criminal action has concluded, there is nothing to remove to federal district court,' prosecutors told the 2nd Circuit in January. Even if that's not true, they said, seeking testimony from a White House adviser about purely private acts doesn't conflict with the Supreme Court's ruling in last year's immunity case. Bragg's office has pointed to a Supreme Court ruling as well: the 5-4 decision in January that allowed Trump to be sentenced in the hush money case. The president raised many of the same concerns about evidence when he attempted to halt that sentencing before the inauguration. A majority of the Supreme Court balked at that argument in a single sentence that, effectively, said Trump could raise those concerns when he appeals his conviction. That appeal remains pending in state court. 'The alleged evidentiary violations at President-elect Trump's state-court trial,' the Supreme Court wrote, 'can be addressed in the ordinary course on appeal.'
Yahoo
7 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Fox News Host Jesse Watters Uses Edited Clip to Cover Up Trump Flub
Fox News' Jesse Watters Primetime conveniently omitted a portion of Donald Trump's comment about a phone call with Gavin Newsom in order to make the California governor look bad. The attempted dunk tried to skirt the fact that Trump told reporters in the Oval Office Tuesday afternoon that he last spoke with Newsom 'a day ago,' which Newsom denied. 'There was no call. Not even a voicemail,' he wrote on X in response. Fox News anchor John Roberts obtained a record of a call from Trump to Newsom on Friday night Pacific time (Saturday morning in the east), and admitted the calls were not made 'a day ago,' as Trump claimed. 'This was June the 7th. Now, granted, this was on Saturday,' the Fox anchor said. However some on the right, like Watters, spun the story as somehow proof that Newsom was lying. When Watters introduced the topic Tuesday night, Fox's broadcast of Trump's comments just so happened to begin a split-second after he said those three words, omitting, 'a day ago' from its broadcast. 'Called him up to tell him: got to do a better job. He's done a bad job, causing a lot of death and a lot of potential death,' Trump said, as Fox portrayed it. Watters made no mention of the omission Tuesday night. Instead, he went ahead bashing Newsom anyways. 'Newsom responded, and he said there wasn't a phone call. He said Trump never called him. Not even a voicemail, he said. But John Roberts got Trump's call logs, and it shows Trump called him late Friday night and they talked for 16 minutes,' Watters said confidently. 'Why would Newsom lie and claim Trump never called him? Why would he do that?' he then asked. Newsom has already said that Trump didn't even talk about the National Guard during their call last week. 'We talked for almost 20 minutes and this issue never came up,' he told MSNBC. 'He never once brought up the National Guard. He's a stone-cold liar.'
