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A growing number of car owners are finding themselves underwater on their auto loans, according to new data from the auto shopping website Edmunds.com. In short, that means what they owe is larger than what the cars are actually worth. Edmunds reported that underwater trade-ins are at their highest record since the first quarter of 2021, during the pandemic, when 31.9% of new-car trade-ins were upside down. The latest data from Edmunds for the second quarter of 2025 revealed that more than 1 in 4 new vehicle trade-ins are underwater. Simply put, that means 26.6% of trade-ins for new cars had negative equity, up from 26.1% in Q1 2025 and 23.9% in Q2 2024. The most recent data showed many Americans with upside-down car loans owed, on average, $6,754 in Q2 2025up from $6,255 for the same period last year, but still slightly lower than for the first three months of this year, when it was $6,880. “Consumers being underwater on their car loans isn’t a new trend, but the stakes are higher than ever in today’s financial landscape,” Ivan Drury, director of insights for Edmunds, said in a statement. Drury added that “affordability pressuresfrom elevated vehicle prices to higher interest ratesare compounding the negative effects of decisions like trading in too early or rolling debt into a new loan. “And as buyers take on new loans with much higher interest rates than those from just a few years ago, even potential tax deductions can’t meaningfully offset the thousands more they’ll pay in interest,” he said. That tax deduction, which is tucked away in President Donald Trumps massive 940-page tax bill that was signed into law July 4, allows many people, for the first time, to deduct interest on their vehicle loans; and it is available whether or not taxpayers itemize deductions. However, the vehicles must be new and assembled in the U.S., and the loans issued no sooner than this year. For more consumer information on underwater car loans, Edmunds offers advice in this guide. Shoppers can also use Edmunds’s appraisal tool to determine their car’s current value.
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E-Commerce
Fast-food chains are losing their breakfast customers to an unlikely source: gas stations and convenience stores. Turns out, more and more Americans are getting their morning start by heading to the pump, or their local 7-Eleven, as consumershit with skyrocketing prices, inflation, and an overall higher cost of livingare tightening their spending and eating out less. New data from market research firm Circana found visits to “food-forward convenience stores” increased a whopping 9% for the quarter ending in July, while fast-food restaurants like McDonalds saw a 1% increase in in-store morning traffic for that same period, as reported by CNBC. “Food-forward convenience stores” include Pennsylvania-based Wawa, whose coffee bars and pre-made breakfast sandwich are a major draw in the MidAtlantic region, and Caseys General Store in the Midwest; both of whom are expanding their food offerings, per CNBC. [Photo: Jeffrey Greenberg/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images] At the same time, 7-Eleven’s Japanese parent company Seven & i Holdings is betting big on Japanese-style convenience storesknown for their fresh prepared food including their popular egg sandwicheswith a five-year, $13 billion campaign to add 1,000 Japanese-style in-store restaurants in the U.S. with quicker service, and fresher food, according to The New York Times. Whether its hot food or cold food or any kind of food, we have to lean into how we improve the quality and the experience,” Seven & i Holdings CEO Stephen Dacustold the Times. “Thats what Japan does extraordinarily well. Dacustold, a former Walmart executive, who started as CEO of 7-Eleven’s parent company just three months ago, is leading the charge. In the Midwest, Kwik Trip has also been “upping its game for years with fresh food options” on top of the hot dogs and breakfast sandwiches, according to Catherine Roberts, senior business editor at The Minnesota Star Tribune.
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E-Commerce
Corrective lenses and eye surgery are common treatments for those who are farsighted (have difficulty seeing close up). However, a new, noninvasive approach could soon be the preferred treatment and even make reading glasses obsolete. The results of a new study were presented on Sunday at the European Society of Cataract and Refractive Surgeons (ESCRS) in Copenhagen. The research, which involved 766 patients who were an average age of 55, found that subjects had positive results after using special eyedrops, formulated to improve vision.The eye drops were developed by the late Dr. Jorge Benozzi, whose daughter, Dr. Giovanna Benozzi, now continues his work as the director of the Centre for Advanced Research for Presbyopia in Buenos Aires. The drops contain pilocarpine, “a drug that constricts the pupils and contracts the ciliary muscle, which is a muscle controlling the eye’s accommodation for seeing objects at varying distances,” as well as the ingredient diclofenac, “a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) that reduces inflammation and the discomfort that pilocarpine often causes.” Participants received one of three doses of the medication, with varying concentrations of diclofenac (1%, 2%, and 3%). Most participants, who suffered from farsightedness, could read two to three additional lines on the Jaeger eye chart used for testing sight after using the drops. Dr. Benozzi said, per Science Daily, that the way patients responded to the treatments depended on the severity of their condition. “Patients with less severe presbyopia responded best to 1% concentrations, while those with more advanced presbyopia required higher 2% or 3% concentrations to achieve significant visual improvement.” Still, the drops improved sight, not just for short-range vision, but at all distances. Our most significant result showed rapid and sustained improvements in near vision for all three concentrations,” Benozzi said. “One hour after having the first drops, patients had an average improvement of 3.45 Jaeger lines [the measurement used for testing near visual acuity].” The improvement was found for up to two years. Benozzi added, Impressively, 99% of 148 patients in the 1% pilocarpine group reached optimal near vision and were able to read two or more extra lines. However, the results of the other groups were positive, too: 69% of the 2% group were able to read three or more extra lines; 84% of the 3% group could do the same. There were some notable side effects, including temporary dim vision, eye irritation, and headaches. However, Benozzi said the medication was “well-tolerated” and could soon be a viable alternative to surgery and corrective lenses for some. “It significantly reduces dependence on reading glasses, providing a convenient, non-invasive option for patients, although these eye drops may not eliminate the need for glasses in all individuals,” Benozzi said.
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E-Commerce
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