Quick Reads

IonQ Will Buy Cybersecurity Firm Elisity in a Deal Worth Up to $1.3 Billion

IonQ is using a $1.3 billion deal to build out the security side of its quantum-computing strategy.

A Shipping Squeeze Has Created an Oil Glut in the Americas

The oil market has enough crude in the Americas — but moving it overseas has become extraordinarily expensive.

WindBorne Won a U.S. Air Force Data Contract Worth Up to $49 Million

The Air Force is buying commercial weather-balloon data as AI forecasting becomes a larger government capability.

TikTok Gave Thousands of Users a Feed-Reset Tool That Didn’t Work, New York Says

Newly unsealed filings say thousands of users, including teens, got a version of TikTok’s feed-reset tool that changed nothing.

Checks Are Disappearing. More Than Half of Consumers Still Use Them.

A Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta analysis published October 8 found that U.S. consumers wrote an average of 1.12 personal checks per month in 2025, down from 1.83 in 2021. Yet 51.29% of respondents had written at least one check in the previous 12 months, and 32.54% had done so in the previous month. Check use rises with age: respondents 75 and older averaged 4.14 checks monthly. Checks remain common in payments to contractors, for taxes, donations and rent. That creates an access challenge for businesses and public agencies transitioning to digital payments: the shrinking share of transactions does not mean everyone can switch easily. Source: Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.

Delhi’s Voter-Roll Protests Are Disrupting Transit and Raising Access Questions

Delhi authorities closed six metro stations and restricted traffic on October 12 as protests over India's voter-roll revisions reached the capital's courts and transit network. Reuters reported the closures as opposition groups challenged the election commission's changes to electoral lists. Hindustan Times reported that police said more than 700 people were detained during Sunday's demonstrations; weekend totals reported by different outlets vary by date and scope. Opposition parties argue that the revisions risk excluding eligible voters, while the election commission and governing party reject allegations of manipulation. The immediate consequence reaches beyond party politics: residents faced interrupted transit, protesters faced detention, and the process for determining who appears on the voter register is under intensifying scrutiny. Associated Press also covered the October 12 court-focused demonstrations.

Five Movies You Should Stream On Netflix This Weekend

Netflix has plenty of new material competing for your weekend, but scrolling through the homepage can easily take longer than choosing the movie itself. So we narrowed it down.

The IMF Cuts Its Latin America and Caribbean Growth Outlook

The IMF's October 2026 World Economic Outlook data project 2.3% growth for Latin America and the Caribbean this year, below the 3.1% global forecast. Reuters reported that the region's outlook was reduced from the IMF's July estimate of 2.4%, while the 2027 projection fell to 2.5% from 2.7%. Energy costs and uneven access to new investment are among the pressures. These are regional aggregates, not a prediction that every Caribbean economy will slow: energy exporters and importers face different conditions, and individual countries may diverge sharply. The latest revision advances SSC's existing reporting on uneven Caribbean growth rather than replacing it. The policy question is how governments protect household purchasing power and finance infrastructure when external shocks are transmitted differently across the region.

Elle Duncan Says WNBA Coverage Has Become “Open Season” on Black Women

One of sports media’s best-known voices said out loud what fans have been arguing about online, just as the league prepares to choose a new commissioner.

Kroger Says Cutting 3,000 Corporate Jobs Will Help Lower Grocery Prices

Kroger plans to eliminate about 3,000 corporate jobs over the next three years as part of a broader restructuring that includes expanded use of artificial intelligence and a push to reduce operating costs. CEO Greg Foran says some of the savings will be redirected toward lower prices and greater investment in frontline workers as the grocer tries to compete more effectively with Walmart and Aldi.

KFC Is Going With Coke. Pepsi Has Now Lost Another Marquee Account

KFC is preparing to replace Pepsi with Coca-Cola in its U.S. restaurants, ending a decades-long beverage partnership and signaling a competitive win for Coke.

A Fed Official Says Inflation Is Spreading Beyond Energy Costs

Cleveland Federal Reserve President Beth Hammack says inflation pressures are spreading beyond fuel, strengthening her case for restrictive interest rates. In an October 12 speech, she cited August headline PCE inflation of 3.4% and core PCE inflation of 3.0%, both above the Fed's 2% objective. Those readings were up from 2.7% and 2.9%, respectively, a year earlier. Reuters reported that Hammack favors acting relatively quickly if the evidence calls for tighter policy, arguing that waiting could require more disruptive adjustments later. Her view is not a committee decision or a confirmed rate increase. For borrowers and employers, the consequence is continued uncertainty over financing costs even as policymakers try to contain inflation without triggering unnecessary job losses.

In Case You Missed It · Page 6

Delhi’s Voter-Roll Protests Are Disrupting Transit and Raising Access Questions

Five Movies You Should Stream On Netflix This Weekend

The IMF Cuts Its Latin America and Caribbean Growth Outlook

Elle Duncan Says WNBA Coverage Has Become “Open Season” on Black Women

Kroger Says Cutting 3,000 Corporate Jobs Will Help Lower Grocery Prices

KFC Is Going With Coke. Pepsi Has Now Lost Another Marquee Account

A Fed Official Says Inflation Is Spreading Beyond Energy Costs

Harris County Is Arresting More Alleged Abusers. Survivors Still Have Fewer Places to Go.

Nearly Half of Americans Struggled to Afford at Least One Basic Necessity This Year

Starlink’s India Launch Is Stuck in a Fight Over Market Access.

IMF Says Weak-Bank Exposure Is Rising Despite Resilient Markets

China Has Approved Apple Intelligence. Alibaba Will Help Decide What Chinese iPhone Users Get.

IonQ Will Buy Cybersecurity Firm Elisity in a Deal Worth Up to $1.3 Billion

A Shipping Squeeze Has Created an Oil Glut in the Americas

WindBorne Won a U.S. Air Force Data Contract Worth Up to $49 Million

TikTok Gave Thousands of Users a Feed-Reset Tool That Didn’t Work, New York Says

Checks Are Disappearing. More Than Half of Consumers Still Use Them.

Delhi’s Voter-Roll Protests Are Disrupting Transit and Raising Access Questions

Five Movies You Should Stream On Netflix This Weekend

The IMF Cuts Its Latin America and Caribbean Growth Outlook

Elle Duncan Says WNBA Coverage Has Become “Open Season” on Black Women

Kroger Says Cutting 3,000 Corporate Jobs Will Help Lower Grocery Prices

KFC Is Going With Coke. Pepsi Has Now Lost Another Marquee Account

A Fed Official Says Inflation Is Spreading Beyond Energy Costs

Get The End of Day Closing Note

Quick Reads

In Case You Missed It · Page 6

Delhi’s Voter-Roll Protests Are Disrupting Transit and Raising Access Questions

Five Movies You Should Stream On Netflix This Weekend

The IMF Cuts Its Latin America and Caribbean Growth Outlook

Elle Duncan Says WNBA Coverage Has Become “Open Season” on Black Women

Kroger Says Cutting 3,000 Corporate Jobs Will Help Lower Grocery Prices

KFC Is Going With Coke. Pepsi Has Now Lost Another Marquee Account

A Fed Official Says Inflation Is Spreading Beyond Energy Costs

Harris County Is Arresting More Alleged Abusers. Survivors Still Have Fewer Places to Go.

Nearly Half of Americans Struggled to Afford at Least One Basic Necessity This Year

Starlink’s India Launch Is Stuck in a Fight Over Market Access.

IMF Says Weak-Bank Exposure Is Rising Despite Resilient Markets

China Has Approved Apple Intelligence. Alibaba Will Help Decide What Chinese iPhone Users Get.