Starbucks fans call for return of condiment station
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Here’s a look at Thursday’s business headlines with Jane King, who discusses 401K catch-up contributions, gas and oil prices, and the return of the Starbucks condiment station.
Report: Oil and gas prices likely to drop in coming years
The International Energy Agency has good news: oil and natural gas prices will probably be lower over the next five years.
The group says oil and natural gas supplies will increase in the second half of this decade, as long as the conflict in the Middle East and Russia’s war in Ukraine don’t derail current trends.
The report also calls for faster transition to clean energy, not only to address the climate crisis but also to ensure global energy security threatened by geopolitical tensions.
401k catch-up contributions increasing in 2025
Many Americans face a retirement savings shortfall, but setting aside more could get easier for some older workers in 2025.
Starting in 2025, workers aged 60 to 63 can boost annual 401k catch-up contributions to $10,000 — or 150% of the catch-up limit — whichever is greater.
Some 4 in 10 Americans workers are behind in retirement planning and savings, according to a CNBC survey.
Services required to simplify cancellation process
The Federal Trade Commission now requires publishers and others to simplify the process of canceling a subscription or membership.
This will make it easier to cancel automatic deliveries, gym memberships and other things.
Businesses will have to offer a cancellation method that is “easy to find when the consumer seeks to cancel, called a ‘click to cancel’ plan.
The new rules went into effect Wednesday.
Starbucks customers ask for return of condiment stations
Starbucks customers want their milk back.
Customers could doctor their drinks however they wished at Starbucks’ condiment stations. The chain axed those amid fears of spreading contagion, but many customers think it’s time to bring them back. These Starbucks die-hards want to customize their coffee without having to bother a barista — and without the risk of being judged for their preferences.
Pepsi replenishing previously downsized snack bags
Pepsi will replenish some bags of Tostitos and Ruffles it had downsized in a process known as shrinkflation.
The move comes under pressure; snack sales slipped in the third quarter.
Pepsi has pointed to football season as the occasion for its about-face.