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American workers and consumers are more likely to prefer brands that publicly align with LGBTQ causes, according to a new analysis. More than 51% of U.S. employees who responded to a global survey conducted by public relations firm Edelman from July to August said they were more likely to work for a pro-LGBTQ company, compared to 11% who said they were less likely. In a separate Edelman survey fielded in May, 34% of consumers said they were more likely to buy from a brand that expressed support for LGBTQ rights, versus 19% who said they were less likely. LGBTQ advocacy group GLAAD partnered with Edelman to analyze the survey data to gather LGBTQ-specific insights. The survey responses came from 1,000 consumers and 1,000 workers in the U.S. The insights come in a year where anti-LGBTQ government policy and violence are on the rise. Over 300 anti-LGBTQ bills have been proposed in state legislatures in 2022 and derogatory misinformation about LGBTQ people has increased by 400% on socia...

Consumers are racking up credit card debt at a pace not seen in decades as inflation continues to pervade the U.S. economy. In the most recent quarter, which ended in September, consumers’ overall credit card balances increased by 15% — the largest year-on-year increase the New York Federal Reserve has measured in more than 20 years. In aggregate, balances are nearing $1 trillion, not adjusted for inflation, for the first time ever. And while analysts say many U.S. consumers remain in good financial shape thanks mostly to low unemployment, the debt situation is growing dire. As the Federal Reserve has continued to lift interest rates to counter sky-high inflation, credit card rates have climbed to the highest levels ever measured. According to Bankrate, the average annual rate for credit cards is 19.2%, the highest since it began measuring the data in 1985. Bankrate data shows it would take 16 years for someone to pay off the current average credit card balance of $5,474 by making ...

Consumers took advantage of heavy discounting by online retailers to start up the holiday shopping season in high gear. According to Adobe Analytics, record online spending on Thanksgiving and Black Friday drove Cyber Week — Thanksgiving through Cyber Monday — to $35 billion in total sales, itself a record and up 4% from last year. The numbers were driven by discounts across categories, with peak deals of 34% off the prices of toys, 25% off electronics like computers and TVs and 18% off apparel. “With oversupply and a softening consumer spending environment, retailers made the right call this season to drive demand through heavy discounting,” Vivek Pandya, a lead analyst at Adobe Digital Insights, said in a statement. “It spurred online spending to levels that were higher than expected, and reinforced e-commerce as a major channel to drive volume and capture consumer interest.”  Top-selling toys included Pokémon cards, Legos, Hot Wheels, Disney's “Encanto”-branded merchandise...