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Student debt: Biden has a big decision to make

Student debt: Biden has a big decision to make

Cancel culture

President Biden has a big decision on his hands: what to do about student loans. Biden is under mounting pressure from his party to forgive or cancel billions, or even trillions, of dollars worth of student loans — a debt that in 2003 was roughly one-third the size of credit card debt, but has ballooned to be almost twice as big in less than 20 years.

So far borrowers have been given a pass for much of the pandemic, with payments (and crucially interest on the loans) having been paused for more than 2 years. The latest pause on payments is set to last until August 31st.

Biden has ruled out the $50k per person forgiveness some are calling for, yesterday saying that he would reach a decision on student debt "within a month".

Inflation is... good?

If you owe a terrifying amount in student loans, you may actually be happy about inflation. With interest paused on the loans higher inflation is actually eroding the principal value of your debt.

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Delta to increase bag fees by $10 on domestic flights this week, following JetBlue and United, as jet fuel surges

As the price of jet fuel surges amid the war in Iran, Delta Air Lines on Tuesday announced that it will hike its checked bag fees by $10 beginning this week.

Checking one bag on a domestic Delta flight will now cost $45, up from $35. A second bag will cost $55, up from $45, and a third will cost $200, up from $150. In a statement to Sherwood News, Delta issued the following announcement:

“For tickets purchased on or after April 8, Delta will increase fees for first and second checked bags by $10 and for a third checked bag by $50 on domestic and select short-haul international routes. These updates are part of Delta’s ongoing review of pricing across its business and reflect the impact of evolving global conditions and industry dynamics. Delta SkyMiles Medallion Members; customers traveling in First Class, Delta Premium Select and Delta One; active-duty military customers; and those with eligible co-branded Delta SkyMiles American Express Cards will continue to receive their allotment of complimentary checked bags.”

The move follows similar hikes by JetBlue and United Airlines last week. More are likely to come: when one major airline adjusts its fees, others tend to follow quickly behind. Delta last raised its bag fees in 2024, along with other major airlines.

Jet fuel prices were $4.69 a gallon on Monday, per the Argus US Jet Fuel Index. That’s up from the low $2 range for much of January.

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Paramount reportedly receives $24 billion from Gulf funds to back its Warner Bros. takeover

Three Middle East sovereign wealth funds have agreed to back Paramount’s takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery to the tune of roughly $24 billion, according to Wall Street Journal reporting.

The company’s triumph over Netflix in the bidding war came thanks in part to financial backing from Oracle cofounder Larry Ellison, billionaire father of Paramount CEO David Ellison.

Saudi Arabia’s PIF, which last year led the $55 billion deal to take Electronic Arts private, will provide about $10 billion in the deal. The Qatar Investment Authority and Abu Dhabi’s L’imad Holding Co. is also involved.

According to the WSJ, the funds will not receive voting rights in the combined Paramount-Warner company. Those working on the deal don’t expect the Gulf funds’ involvement to spark any additional regulatory reviews.

The company’s triumph over Netflix in the bidding war came thanks in part to financial backing from Oracle cofounder Larry Ellison, billionaire father of Paramount CEO David Ellison.

Saudi Arabia’s PIF, which last year led the $55 billion deal to take Electronic Arts private, will provide about $10 billion in the deal. The Qatar Investment Authority and Abu Dhabi’s L’imad Holding Co. is also involved.

According to the WSJ, the funds will not receive voting rights in the combined Paramount-Warner company. Those working on the deal don’t expect the Gulf funds’ involvement to spark any additional regulatory reviews.

The entrance of Allbirds seen from Hayes St. in San Francisco, Calif.

Allbirds, the once buzzy multibillion-dollar sneaker startup, is selling up for $39 million

That’s less than 1% of its peak market cap about four years ago.

Tom Jones3/31/26

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