Friday's Fast Five: Week of 8.18

Streamflation Is Here and Media Companies Are Betting You’ll Pay Up (The Wall Street Journal): The average cost of watching a major ad-free streaming service is going up by nearly 25% in about a year, according to a Wall Street Journal analysis, as entertainment giants bet that customers will either pay up or switch to their cheaper and more-lucrative ad-supported plans.

Fed officials see ‘upside risks’ to inflation possibly leading to more rate hikes, minutes show (CNBC): Federal Reserve officials expressed concern at their most recent meeting about the pace of inflation and said more rate hikes could be necessary in the future unless conditions change, minutes released Wednesday from the session indicated.

The Clean Energy Future Is Arriving Faster Than You Think (The New York Times): Across the country, a profound shift is taking place that is nearly invisible to most Americans. The nation that burned coal, oil and gas for more than a century to become the richest economy on the planet, as well as historically the most polluting, is rapidly shifting away from fossil fuels.

Charted: The Rise and Fall of WeWork (Visual Capitalist): Despite its recommitment to core business fundamentals in the last few years, WeWork’s management—which saw a shakeup in May 2023 when CEO Sandeep Mathrani departed—is setting off a signal flare about the company’s future. But how did the once-poster child of Silicon Valley end up seeing its valuation collapse more than 99% from its peak?

Lots of US Homeowners Want to Move. They Just Have Nowhere to Go (Bloomberg): Locked into cheaper borrowing costs and unable to find a new place that fits their budgets, countless people are opting to remain in their current homes, adding to an acute shortage of available properties.