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An Agiloft survey shows that 92% of companies have included tariff clauses in contracts to hedge against uncertainty; legal departments lead reviews (70%), followed by finance departments (45%). The U.S. collected $165 billion in tariff revenue from January to August, but an appellate court ruled the tariffs illegal, and the government may need to issue refunds.
At its September 17 meeting, the Federal Reserve announced a 25-basis-point rate cut, adjusting the federal funds rate target range to 4%-4.25%, and released updated economic projections suggesting two more cuts may occur before the end of 2025. Fed Chair Powell noted that a cooling job market coexists with rising inflation, making policy balancing more difficult. Governor Miran dissented, advocating for a larger rate cut.
OpenAI announced on Tuesday the appointment of Mike Liberatore as finance officer (BFO) for its AI infrastructure business, reporting to CFO Sarah Friar, with a focus on supporting teams that scale access to computing resources. Liberatore previously left xAI after only four months in the role, sparking discussions about his adaptability.
U.S. retail sales rose 0.6% month-over-month in August, marking a third consecutive monthly increase and exceeding market expectations. Despite a weak labor market and declining consumer confidence, categories such as e-commerce and apparel performed strongly. The Atlanta Fed raised its Q3 GDP forecast to 3.4%.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) responded Monday evening to President Trump's renewed call to eliminate quarterly reporting requirements for listed companies, saying it will prioritize the matter. In a statement, an SEC spokesperson said that at Trump's request, Chairman Paul Atkins and the SEC are prioritizing the proposal to further reduce unnecessary regulatory burdens on businesses. Trump argued on social media for changing the reporting frequency to semi-annual, saying it would save costs and allow management to focus on operations. The SEC implemented a semi-annual reporting system in 1955 and shifted to quarterly reporting in 1970. Analysts noted that under Atkins' leadership, the SEC's rulemaking process may accelerate. Trump also made a similar suggestion during his first term in 2018, and the SEC subsequently issued a request for comment in December of that year, but the matter was quietly shelved in 2021 by then-Chairman Gary Gensler.
Kroger announced accelerated AI deployment during its Q2 2025 earnings call, covering areas such as pricing, shrink, and fulfillment. Leveraging years of data accumulation and support from its 84.51° division, the company plans to enhance competitiveness through AI and will provide updates on strategic review progress in Q3.
The recently passed U.S. "One Big Beautiful Bill" makes significant adjustments to the tax treatment of R&D expenditures, restoring immediate expensing for domestic R&D costs, offering two options for unamortized balances, and providing retroactive relief for eligible small businesses. This article outlines the strategic points CFOs need to focus on, including cash flow optimization, tax rate management, coordination with the R&D tax credit, and investor relations impact.
The FBI issued an alert on Friday, warning that two hacker groups, UNC6040 and UNC6395, are attacking Salesforce instances. UNC6040 has been using vishing to obtain employee credentials since October 2024, while UNC6395 conducts supply chain attacks through compromised OAuth tokens from Salesloft Drift. Some victims have received ransom demands claiming to be from ShinyHunters.
A survey commissioned by AI cost management company Mavvrik and conducted by Benchmarkit reveals that most enterprises have significant deviations in AI cost forecasts: 56% of enterprises have errors between 11% and 25%, and nearly a quarter (24%) have errors exceeding 50%. 84% of respondents stated that AI costs cause gross margin losses of more than 6%, with over a quarter of enterprises experiencing losses of 16% or more. Mavvrik CEO Sundeep Goel predicts that as pilot projects transition to production environments in the first half of 2026, CFOs will face substantial cost overruns.
Vena, a financial planning and analysis (FP&A) software provider, announced on Monday the launch of new artificial intelligence 'planning agents' that have already helped customers reduce budget cycles by more than 60% during private preview. Vena stated that these agents operate seamlessly within Excel and other Microsoft products, aiming to accelerate budgeting, forecasting, and scenario modeling. The company's Chief Technology Officer, Hugh Cumming, noted that the tool enables decision-makers to simulate outcomes and adjust strategies without waiting weeks or months.