Main Street Squeezed?

Small Business Owners Testify to Congress

Forbes Breaking News · full hearing · 1 hour 27 minutes

Today's Stories

1. Houthi missiles hit Saudi Aramco headquarters

• A strike late Monday hit Aramco's headquarters in Dhahran. Saudi Arabia's energy ministry says a "limited fire" and no injuries; a company source told Reuters the top 3 floors of one tower were badly damaged.
• Bloomberg counts at least 18 dead across this wave of Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia, including the Riyadh airport strikes. Riyadh's airport stays closed through Oct 17.
• The US has not struck the Houthis yet. Trump says they are acting "probably at the behest of Iran." Two more ships were hit near the Strait of Hormuz Tuesday.

If you own a business: oil at $106 means your fuel, shipping and supplier prices keep climbing.

Sources: Bloomberg · Euronews · ABC News

2. The "energy ceasefire" isn't holding

• Zelensky says Russia fired 39 ballistic missiles and more than 120 drones at power sites overnight, and more than 600,000 people lost power.
• The Kremlin says it isn't breaking the truce because Trump never said which sites it covers. The EU approved its biggest sanctions package since 2022.

Sources: Al Jazeera · Euronews

3. Ilhan Omar: home searched, and now her finances are under review

• Monday: Homeland Security Investigations searched her DC-area home. ABC News sources say that investigation relates to her immigration paperwork.
• Tuesday: DC US Attorney Jeanine Pirro said her office is looking at Omar's financial disclosures. Her husband's firms were listed at about $51,000 in 2023, then up to $30 million in 2024; the latest form shows $20,000 to $125,000. Omar calls it an "accounting error."
• No charges have been filed. Omar calls the search political targeting.

Sources: Axios · Fox News · ABC News

4. Guilfoyle out as ambassador to Greece

• Kimberly Guilfoyle resigned at the White House's request after the Wall Street Journal reported she asked a Trump donor to pay her $100,000 credit card bill. She denies it. Trump: "I didn't like what I read."

Sources: CBS News · Axios

5. Bank of America fined $1.2 billion over money laundering

• Treasury and regulators say more than $5 billion in suspicious activity went unreported or was reported late, including Chinese money-laundering networks and activity on the southwest border. The bank admitted willful violations.
• It's the third-largest penalty in Treasury history, including a record $750 million from the OCC.

Sources: CNBC · Washington Post

6. ICE shooting in Manhattan: where it stands

• Who he is, per DHS: Oscar Belgal, a Dominican national with ties to the Trinitarios gang and a New York record that includes robbery and grand larceny. DHS says he tried to drive into agents and is linked to an investigation of a 2025 shooting of a Border Protection officer.
• The other side: Mayor Mamdani says there was no active warrant. His lawyers dispute DHS's account and say he's in solitary with the bullet still in his neck; officials call it a superficial wound.
• A judge's order blocking his deportation still stands.

Sources: ABC7 · Democracy Now

7. Isaias: 8 dead, still no major disaster declaration

• DeSantis says 6 died in Florida; 2 more died in Alabama. Escambia County estimates $64 million in public damage, and households still can't apply for FEMA individual aid.

If you own a business: document the damage and file your claim now. Don't wait on FEMA.

Sources: Weather.com · Florida Phoenix

8. Also: Six Flags coaster death; Trump rallies in Alaska

• A 42-year-old man was ejected from the Goliath coaster at Six Flags Over Georgia and died; 4 others were hurt. Six Flags closed 9 rides nationwide and its stock fell 14%.
• Trump held a rally in Wasilla, Alaska, a sign of how close the Senate race there is.

Sources: CNN · CNBC · AP

Your Money and the Job Market

1. Inflation jumps to 3.7%. Paychecks are up 3%

• September prices rose 0.6% in a month. Over the year: 3.7%, up from 3.4% and above the 3.6% expected. Core inflation: 2.6%.
• Gas was the driver: up 9.1% in a month and 34.2% over the year. Average pay is up just 3%, so most people are falling behind.
• Odds of a Fed rate hike on Oct 28 jumped from about 20% to 54%. White House adviser Hassett says the energy spike will be temporary.

If you own a business: expect higher borrowing costs. Lock in financing now if you need it.

Sources: CBS News · CNBC · CNN

2. Small business owners are losing confidence

• NFIB's optimism index fell to 97.9, just under its 52-year average. Uncertainty is at 90, far above the norm of 68.
• Only 7% say now is a good time to expand. Finding good workers is their No. 1 problem; 32% have jobs they can't fill. Short-term loan rates averaged 8.2%.

If you own a business: you're not alone. Every owner is fighting for good people and paying more to borrow.

Sources: NFIB · NFIB report

3. Americans are still starting businesses

• Census: 534,947 new business applications in September, up 0.5%. The ones most likely to hire employees rose 1.3% to 147,331.

If you own a business: people are still betting on themselves, even now.

Sources: Census

4. Big banks: Wall Street booms, JPMorgan warns

• JPMorgan missed estimates. Jamie Dimon warned that sticky inflation and high rates could raise unemployment and strain consumer credit.
• Goldman and Citi beat on trading. Bank of America's profit fell 17%, with the fine taking a bite.

Sources: Fortune · CNBC

5. Netflix cuts about 1,000 jobs

• About 6% of its staff, the biggest round since 2022, mostly in product, tech, legal and HR.

Sources: CNBC

6. Social Security raise: 3.6% next year

• About $75 more a month on average for about 76 million people, the biggest raise since 2023. It's big because inflation is.

Sources: SSA · CNBC

7. Diesel over $6. Trump defends the Russia diesel deal

• Diesel averaged about $6.27 Monday, roughly $2.60 above a year ago. Small truckers say every extra $1 a gallon costs them about $400 a week.

If you own a business: price fuel into every quote, or it comes out of your pocket.

Sources: The Hill · CNBC · ABC News

8. The smallest businesses, and new grads, are getting squeezed

• Companies with 1 to 9 employees cut about 7,000 jobs in September (QuickBooks).
• 77% of new grads say employers want too much experience for entry-level jobs (Cengage).

Sources: QuickBooks · CNBC

9. Stocks fell on the hot inflation report

• Wednesday: S&P 500 down 1.11% to 7,718.94, Nasdaq down 1.88%, small caps down 1.93%. The 10-year Treasury yield hit about 5.3%.

Sources: TheStreet

Still to come this week

• Thu: weekly jobless claims (last week 197,000). Fed Chair Warsh speaks.
• Fri: the Elf Bots get graded at the close.

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