The District of Columbia sued Amazon on Wednesday, alleging the company secretly stopped providing its fastest delivery service to residents of two predominantly Black neighborhoods while still charging millions of dollars for a membership that promises the benefit.
The complaint filed in the District of Columbia Superior Court revolves around Amazon’s Prime membership, which costs consumers $139 per year or $14.99 per month for fast deliveries — including one-day, two-day, and same-day shipments — along with other enhancements.
In mid-2022, the lawsuit alleges, the Seattle-based online retailer imposed what it called a delivery “exclusion” on two low-income ZIP codes in the district — 20019 and 20020 — and began relying exclusively on third-party delivery services such as UPS and the U.S. Postal Service, rather than its own delivery systems.
Amazon says it made the change based on concerns about driver safety.
“There have been specific and targeted acts against drivers delivering Amazon packages” in the two ZIP codes and the company made the change to “put the safety of delivery drivers first,” Amazon spokesperson Kelly Nantel said in a prepared statement.
“We made the deliberate choice to adjust our operations, including delivery routes and times, for the sole reason of protecting the safety of drivers,” Nantel said. “The claims made by the attorney general, that our business practices are somehow discriminatory or deceptive, are categorically false.”
The District of Columbia’s attorney general’s office alleged the company never told Prime members in the two ZIP codes about the change even though they experienced slower deliveries as a result. Amazon also did not tell new customers about the exclusions when they signed up for Prime memberships, the lawsuit says.
“Amazon is charging tens of thousands of hard-working Ward 7 and 8 residents for an expedited delivery service it promises but does not provide,” District of Columbia Attorney General Brian Schwalb said in a statement, referencing the two areas in the city where Amazon is accused of excluding its speediest deliveries.
“While Amazon has every right to make operational changes, it cannot covertly decide that a dollar in one ZIP code is worth less than a dollar in another,” Schwalb said.
The lawsuit says Amazon has nearly 50,000 Prime members who live in the two ZIP codes, a number that represents nearly half of the population. Prime members in those neighborhoods have ordered more than 4.5 million packages in the past four years, and are more likely to rely on Amazon since they have fewer services and retail stores nearby, the city said. The area is also a notorious food desert.
The district says that in 2021, before Amazon implemented its delivery “exclusion,” more than 72% of Prime packages in the impacted ZIP codes were delivered within two days. But last year, it was only 24%, according to the complaint.
Meanwhile, the district’s lawsuit says Prime members who lived in other parts of the city received two-day deliveries 75% of the time. Amazon was also improving its delivery speeds nationwide.
When some customers in the city complained about the slower deliveries, Amazon concealed the true reason for the delays and “deceptively implied” that the delays “were simply due to natural fluctuations in shipping circumstances, rather than an affirmative decision by Amazon,” the lawsuit says.
District officials are asking the court to issue an order prohibiting Amazon from “engaging in unfair or deceptive practices.” They also want the company to pay restitution or damages to affected Prime members, as well as civil penalties.
This isn’t the first time Amazon has been accused of offering slower deliveries to some places where Black people make up most of the households.
In 2016, American news outlet Bloomberg published an investigation that said Black residents of cities like Atlanta and Chicago were about half as likely as white residents to live in neighborhoods with access to Amazon’s same-day delivery service.
Local news website DCist reported a year later that Amazon’s restaurant delivery service - which the company shut down five years ago - had excluded some neighborhoods in Washington, including one of the ZIP codes mentioned in the district’s lawsuit.
Nantel said Amazon is “always transparent” with its customers “during the shopping journey and checkout process about when, exactly, they can expect their orders to arrive.”
Since 2022, nearly 1.5 million Prime-eligible products were delivered in two days or less to Prime customers residing in the two ZIP codes, the company said.
“What we’d like to do, and have offered, is to work together with the attorney general and their office to reduce crime and improve safety in these areas,” Nantel said. “Nevertheless, we will proceed in the process and demonstrate that providing fast and accurate delivery times and prioritizing the safety of customers and delivery partners are not mutually exclusive.”
The complaint filed Wednesday represents the second major legal battle between Amazon and the District of Columbia which also filed an antitrust lawsuit against the company.
One Bitcoin is now worth $100,000—a monumental achievement for the cryptocurrency industry. The leading cryptocurrency hit an all-time high of $101,250 on the night of Wednesday, December 4, as investors continue to pour money into the spot Bitcoin ETFs. According to Farside, Bitcoin ETFs saw net inflows of $676 million on December 3, highlighting renewed investor interest in the cryptocurrency market.
From its humble beginnings in 2009 to just $1 in 2011 and to this groundbreaking milestone in 2024, Bitcoin’s journey is a testament to the disruptive power of innovation.
In just 12 years, Bitcoin has evolved from an experimental digital currency to a multifaceted financial phenomenon. It has established itself as an alternative to traditional fiat currencies like the dollar, a financial asset rivaling stocks, and a store of value comparable in some ways to gold. Beyond its own success, Bitcoin has been the cornerstone of a rapidly expanding cryptocurrency ecosystem.
This ascent has catalyzed the rise of decentralized finance (DeFi), popularized blockchain technology, and sparked numerous developments within the health and education sectors that are reshaping industries well beyond finance. Bitcoin’s $100,000 milestone is not just a triumph for the crypto community—it’s a moment that underscores the profound impact of this digital revolution on the global economy.
The growth alone this year was 120%
Had someone invested $1,000 as recently as January 2024, they would have witnessed a 120% growth in their investment this year alone. This scenario highlights the explosive potential of the cryptocurrency market in 2024, rewarding those who invested early.
Moreover, if someone had invested $1,000 in Bitcoin in early 2020, during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, they would have witnessed an astonishing 1,220% growth over these years. This price surge occurred during a period of unprecedented market volatility.
And, if someone had invested $1,000 in Bitcoin back in 2013, they would have experienced an astonishing growth of 146,714%, turning their investment into over $1.4 million—precisely $1,468,140—today.
This incredible growth reflects not only the resilience of the financial markets but also the immense opportunities that can arise, even in times of global uncertainty. It serves as a powerful reminder of how strategic investments can thrive, even amid challenging circumstances, and how crypto has emerged as a widely known alternative to traditional investments like stocks, bonds, and real estate.
President-elect Donald Trump nominated Gail Slater to lead the antitrust division of the Department of Justice.
In an announcement posted on Truth Social Wednesday, Trump said that the pick will help ensure that “competition laws are enforced, both vigorously and FAIRLY, with clear rules that facilitate, rather than stifle, the ingenuity of our greatest companies.”
“Big Tech has run wild for years, stifling competition in our most innovative sector and, as we all know, using its market power to crack down on the rights of so many Americans, as well as those of Little Tech,” Trump said.
While Trump has promised to cut red tape in several sectors, including banking and housing, he hasn’t shied away from criticizing the market dominance of major players within the technology sector. During his first term, he brought several lawsuits against tech firms — and with Slater, it appears Trump is hoping to continue to crack down on the industry.
During Trump’s first term, Slater served as the tech policy adviser on the National Economic Council. She currently advises the transition team on antitrust and tech policy and is the economic policy adviser to Vice President-elect JD Vance.
While the Trump administration is widely expected to be friendlier to mergers and acquisitions, it remains to be seen how lenient — if at all — his Justice Department will be when it comes to antitrust, considering that Trump has focused on encouraging innovation and technological advancement within the U.S.
That’s especially noteworthy given that there are several high-profile, ongoing cases that Trump’s Justice Department will have a say over in the coming years that could reshape the business landscape in the country.
In March, the Justice Department sued Apple (AAPL+0.13%) over what it claims is an illegal monopoly over the U.S. smartphone market. The DOJ has argued that Apple makes it prohibitively difficult for iPhone users to switch to other smartphones, stifling innovation within the market.
Late last month, Apple filed a motion to keep the case out of court, countering that the case is speculative and doesn’t prove that the company has maintained an illegal monopoly over the smartphone market.
Google (GOOGL+1.75%) also came under antitrust scrutiny, appearing in two major court cases over its dominance of the online search engine and advertising markets.
In August, Google lost the biggest antitrust trial in decades after a federal judge ruled that Google monopolized the online search engine market. The Justice Department said that it wants Google to sell off its Chrome web browser as a way to loosen the company’s grip on the search engine market.
Google and the DOJ made their final arguments in the trial focusing on the company’s ad tech stack on Nov. 25, with the federal judge expected to issue a ruling on the case by the end of the year.
Outside of the tech sector, Visa (V-1.06%) is expected to head to trial next year over a DOJ lawsuit accusing the card issuer of monopolizing debit markets. The suit alleges that Visa used its dominance to stifle the growth of existing competitors and prevent other firms from developing alternatives. More than 60% of debit transactions in the U.S. use Visa’s debit network, according to the complaint.
Also on Wednesday, Trump tapped Paul Atkins, a cryptocurrency advocate, as the next chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Atkins, who now leads the consulting firm Patomak Global Partners, is expected to be much friendlier to cryptocurrency interests than President Joe Biden’s SEC Chairman, Gary Gensler. Last month, Gensler — who has been maligned by the crypto lobby — said he would resign during Trump’s inauguration ceremony.
Chipotle (CMG+4.82%) fans, brace yourselves: Burritos, bowls, and chips are about to cost more. The company is raising prices by 2% nationwide to offset rising costs.
“For the first time in over a year, we have taken a modest price increase to offset inflation,” Laurie Schalow, Chipotle’s chief corporate affairs officer, confirmed to Quartz in an email.
Despite the price hike, Chipotle has remained resilient, even after raising prices four times over the past two years. At the time, the fast casual giant pointed to California’s minimum wage hike as a key factor. As CFO Jack Hartung pointed out during the company’s March earnings call, the company knew it would need to implement “significant price increases” to manage the roughly 25% rise in wages. Other chains, like McDonald’s (MCD+0.24%), have said they would follow a similar strategy.
However, the price bump comes at a tricky time for the chain. In November, the company found itself in the middle of a class action lawsuit from shareholders, who allege Chipotle had misled investors by failing to address inconsistent portion sizes. According to the suit, these inconsistencies led to higher costs and a steep drop in stock value.
Internet outcry over smaller portions began earlier this summer when former CEO Brian Niccol publicly acknowledged that portion sizes had become a problem. Customers weren’t happy, and as the company worked to fix the issue, costs continued to climb.
Even so, the chain has pushed forward. Despite the backlash, Chipotle is seeing strong sales in staple menu items like Al Pastor chicken and Braised Beef Barbacoa. In September, the company introduced two robots to improve service and to meet growing demand. The new tech appears to be paying off, with visits up, according to foot traffic analytics firm Placer.ai. At the California location using the avocado-cutting robot “Autocado,” nearly 44% of visits lasted 10 minutes or less, the firm noted.
Chair Jerome Powell said Wednesday that the Federal Reserve’s ability to set interest rates free of political interference is necessary for it to make decisions to serve “all Americans” rather than a political party or political outcome.
Speaking at the New York Times’ DealBook summit, Powell addressed a question about President-elect Donald Trump’s numerous public criticisms of the Fed and of Powell himself. During the election campaign, Trump had insisted that as president, he should have a “say” in the Fed’s interest rate policies.
In his remarks Wednesday, Powell said, “We’re supposed to achieve maximum employment and price stability for the benefit of all Americans and keep out of politics completely.”
Despite Trump’s comments, the Fed chair said he was confident of widespread support in Congress for maintaining the central bank’s independence.
“I’m not concerned,” he said, “that there’s some risk that that we would lose our statutory independence. “There’s very, very broad support for that set of ideas in Congress, in both political parties, on both sides of the Hill.”
On the topic of interest rates, Powell said the Fed can afford to cut its benchmark rate cautiously because the economy is doing better than the Fed thought it was in September when it collectively predicted four rate cuts in 2025 after three cuts in 2024.
“We’re not quite there on inflation, but we’re making progress,” Powell said. “We can afford to be a little more cautious.”
The Fed has been aiming to deliver a “soft landing” for the economy, whereby the central bank’s interest rate hikes manage to help reduce inflation to its 2% target without causing a recession. History has shown it’s a rare and difficult feat.
Yet the economy appears largely on track for such an outcome. The job market has slowed. And inflation is down sharply, though in recent months it has remained stuck modestly above the Fed’s target, which could make the policymakers reluctant to cut rates much further.
Several other Fed officials have said this week that they expect to keep reducing rates, without committing to a reduction at their next meeting later this month.
On Monday, Christopher Waller, an influential member of the Fed’s Board of Directors, said he was “leaning” toward a rate cut when the central bank meets in two weeks. Waller added, though, that if forthcoming data on inflation or hiring appears worse than the Fed expects, he might favor keeping rates unchanged.
On Tuesday, Mary Daly, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, said she supported further lowering rates, without commenting specifically on a timetable.
“Whether it’ll be in December or some time later, that’s a question we’ll have a chance to debate and discuss at our next meeting,” Daly said in an interview on Fox Business News. “But the point is, we have to keep policy moving down to accommodate the economy because we want a durable expansion with low inflation.”
SHOKI OMORI, CHIEF JAPAN DESK STRATEGIST, MIZUHO SECURITIES, TOKYO
JEFF MEI, COO AT BTSE, HONG KONG
GEOFF KENDRICK, GLOBAL HEAD OF DIGITAL ASSETS RESEARCH, STANDARD CHARTERED, LONDON
TONY SYCAMORE, ANALYST, IG, SYDNEY
KYLE RODDA, SENIOR FINANCIAL MARKET ANALYST, CAPITAL.COM, MELBOURNE
STRONG AUTO SALES
Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Paul Simao