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CEOs got hefty pay raises in 2023, widening the gap with the workers they oversee

NEW YORK (AP) — The typical compensation package for chief executives who run companies in the S&P 500 jumped nearly 13% last year, easily surpassing the gains for workers at a time when inflation was putting considerable pressure on Americans’ budgets. The median pay package for CEOs rose to $16.3 million, up 12.6%, according to data analyzed for The Associated Press by Equilar. Meanwhile, wages and benefits netted by private-sector workers rose 4.1% through 2023. At half the companies in AP’s annual pay survey, it would take the worker at the middle of the company’s pay scale ...

Lab-grown meat isn’t on store shelves yet, but some states have already banned it

(AP) — Lab-grown meat is not currently available in any U.S. grocery stores or restaurants. If some lawmakers have their way, it never will be. Earlier this month, both Florida and Alabama banned the sale of cultivated meat and seafood, which is grown from animal cells. In Iowa, the governor signed a bill prohibiting schools from buying lab-grown meat. Federal lawmakers are also looking to restrict it. It’s unclear how far these efforts will go. Some cultivated meat companies say they’re considering legal action, and some states – like Tennessee – shelved proposed bans ...

More people make ‘no-buy year’ pledges as overspending or climate worries catch up with them

NEW YORK (AP) — A 35-year-old Brooklyn resident gave up buying new clothes. A 22-year old in San Diego swore off retail therapy at Target. A 26-year old in England banned carbonated drinks from her shopping list. These three women, who don’t know each other, all started the year resolving to spend money only on necessary purchases, or what is popularly known as engaging in a no-buy challenge. The self-imposed rules of the challenge are simple: participants pledge to stop buying non-essential items, be they unneeded shoes, additional beauty products or other impulse buys for a set ...

Long-term mortgage rates ease for third straight week, dipping to just below 7%

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The average rate on a 30-year mortgage dipped this week to just below 7% for the first time since mid April, a modest boost for home shoppers navigating a housing market dampened by rising prices and relatively few available properties. The rate fell to 6.94% from 7.02% last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday. A year ago, the rate averaged 6.57%. This is the third straight weekly decline in the average rate. The recent pullbacks follow a five-week string of increases that pushed the average rate to its highest level since November 30. Higher mortgage ...

Biden releasing 1M barrels of gasoline from reserve in bid to lower prices at pump

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration said Tuesday it is releasing 1 million barrels of gasoline from a Northeast reserve established after Superstorm Sandy in a bid to lower prices at the pump this summer. The sale, from storage sites in New Jersey and Maine, will be allocated in increments of 100,000 barrels at a time. The approach will create a competitive bidding process that ensures gasoline can flow into local retailers ahead of the July 4 holiday and sold at competitive prices, the Energy Department said. The move, which the department said is intended to help “lower ...