Transition pact: President-elect Donald Trump has finally signed an agreement with President Joe Biden to allow for the official transition of power. This comes three weeks after the general election. The agreement enables Trump and his transition team to access non-public government information, receive government briefings and deploy personnel inside the federal agencies and departments.
Ceasefire holds: A ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel has held after the Israeli cabinet approved it on Tuesday. The deal was brokered by the U.S. and France. Despite the truce, Israeli troops have cautioned Lebanese residents to delay returning to their homes in southern Lebanon until further notice. However, fighting in Gaza continues as U.S. tries to broker a ceasefire there. Israel and Hamas have been at war since the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas terrorist attack on Israeli kibbutzim.
Trump tariffs: President-elect Donald Trump’s promised tariffs on products made in Mexico, Canada and China could hurt American consumers, economic experts have warned. Trump plans to place 25% tariffs on products coming from Mexico and Canada and an additional 10% on items coming from China. Trump said he plans to institute the tariffs to cut down on drugs and illegal immigration to the U.S. Meanwhile, Mexico has announce retaliatory tariffs on U.S. products coming into their country.
Inflation figures: The U.S. Commerce Department released its latest inflation rate figures Wednesday. The personal consumption expenditures price index increased 0.2% on the month and showed a 12-month inflation rate of 2.3%. Core inflation showed even stronger readings, with the increase at 0.3% on a monthly basis and an annual reading of 2.8%. Spending rose 0.4% on the month, as forecast, while personal income jumped 0.6%, well above the 0.3% estimate.
Thanksgiving travel: Nearly 80 million people have started traveling ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday, according to AAA. The organization predicts nearly 72 million people will travel by car over the holiday period and about 6 million will travel by plane within the U.S. More than 50,000 flights were expected to take off Tuesday — one of the busiest Thanksgiving travel days — and around 50,000 are expected to fly on Wednesday as well, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. But the weather may cause many people to be late getting to where they want to go as coast-to-coast winter and rain storms have started bearing down.
