Jerome Powell just went back-to-back-to-back. In his increasingly urgent campaign to stamp out inflation, the Fed chair unleashed a third straight interest rate hike of 75 basis points. While the massive increase was expected, it highlights how concerned the Fed is that higher prices will stick around if it doesn’t take a firehose to the economy.

And so it’s boosted rates at the fastest pace since the ’80s. Now, the country’s benchmark interest rate has reached its highest level since 2008.

And it’s not coming down anytime soon

In fact, most Fed officials expect rates to rise even more next year, before potentially being cut back in 2024.

It will lead to economic pain, Powell said. The Fed projected that the unemployment rate will rise from the current 3.7% to 4.4% at the end of 2023—a spike in unemployment that’s typically accompanied by a recession. “We have got to get inflation behind us. I wish there were a painless way to do that. There isn’t,” Powell said yesterday.

The Fed’s rate-hiking extravaganza is already having a major impact across the economy.

• On Wall Street, surging Treasury yields are making government bonds more attractive than stocks—hurting high-growth tech companies the most. The tech-heavy Nasdaq has plunged 29% this year.
• In the housing market, the average fixed-rate mortgage notched its highest level in 14 years last week, which has put a chill on home sales.
• On the other hand: Saving your cash hasn’t been this lucrative in more than a decade. The returns on high-yield savings accounts and CDs have risen to their highest level since 2009.

Big picture: The world’s central banks are more in sync than J.D. and Turk as they’ve jacked up interest rates in coordinated fashion this summer. But with countries all slamming the economic brakes at the same time, a global recession could hit next year, the World Bank warned.—NF

Dorsals in distress. Rescue efforts are underway after about 230 pilot whales washed up on the western coast of Tasmania; half of them are estimated to still be alive. The mass stranding comes just days after 14 sperm whales were found beached on an island off Tasmania’s coast, and exactly two years after one of the largest mass strandings: 470 pilot whales, also found on Tasmanian shores. Scientists don’t yet know why this has been happening, but the similar timing, locations, and whale species could indicate a shared environmental cause.

Robert Sarver will sell his basketball teams. The Phoenix Suns and Mercury owner said he’s kicking off a process to sell both teams after an investigation found he used racist language, harassed employees, and fostered a toxic workplace culture. In a statement, Sarver wrote that “words that I deeply regret now overshadow nearly two decades of building organizations that brought people together.” He was suspended by the NBA for one year and fined $10 million, but some players and the Suns jersey sponsor, PayPal, said the punishment was light for the crime.

Twitch bans (some) gambling streams. Gambling, especially digital slots, is one of the most popular streaming categories on Twitch. But folding under pressure from popular streamers like Pokimane, who threatened to boycott, Twitch announced that creators can no longer stream themselves gambling on sites that aren’t licensed in the US or other jurisdictions with “sufficient consumer protections.” That includes sites such as Stake, Rollbit, Roobet, and Duelbits, but the ban won’t affect any platforms for sports betting, fantasy sports, or poker.

Gold-plated toilet seats may not be the only sus way former President Donald Trump tried to project an image of wealth throughout his career. Trump allegedly lied about the value of his real estate on his company’s annual financial statements for a decade, inflating his wealth by billions, according to a lawsuit filed yesterday by New York Attorney General Letitia James.

The fraud suit—which also names the Trump Organization; three of Trump’s adult children, Eric, Ivanka, and Donald Jr.; and others—claims Trump used those fake numbers to pay lower taxes and get loans and better insurance rates.

It seeks to recover at least $250 million of allegedly ill-gotten gains.

Although Trump reportedly invoked his Fifth Amendment right more than 400 times when being questioned by James earlier this summer, this is not a criminal case. Still, James said Trump “plausibly” committed crimes and that she’s passed that on to prosecutors. There are already ongoing criminal probes into Trump’s handling of classified documents and potential election interference in Georgia.

Big picture: Everyone seems to agree that the investigations and lawsuits piling up against Trump are unprecedented—but supporters claim he’s a political victim, while detractors maintain it’s his own wrongdoing that’s brought so much scrutiny. The Trump Organization called James’s case “an abhorrent abuse of power.”—AR

Russian men took to the internet to figure out escape routes from the country this week.

Google searches for “how to leave Russia” skyrocketed in the lead-up to a Wednesday morning decree from President Vladimir Putin that drafted nearly 300,000 new soldiers for the war in Ukraine. Putin was expected to announce tapping into military reserves Tuesday night (which is when the Google search first spiked), but the announcement was pushed to Wednesday morning.

One-way plane tickets to the few countries that allow Russians to enter sans visa jumped in price and quickly sold out after Russia ordered its first mobilization since World War II.

Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said only Russians with previous military experience will get called up, but many men in the country worry their service requirement is not an “if,” but a “when.”

It’s Putin’s biggest move since the invasion. In his announcement, Putin claimed that he decided to bring in backup due to Western aggression that “wants to destroy our country.” He also stated he supported annexing parts of Russian-occupied Ukraine and doubled down on threats to use nuclear weapons to defend his country.—MM

Stat: If you think the Centurion Lounge feels more crowded…well, 5.2 million people became millionaires last year. About half of the nouveaux riches are from the US, making last year the biggest increase of millionaires for “any country in any year this century,” according to Credit Suisse’s wealth report. Zooming out, the top 1%’s share of the world’s wealth rose for the second year in a row, to nearly 46%.

Quote: “We are in the country of mafias. If you are not a wolf, the wolves will eat you.”

This is what Sali Hafiz of Lebanon told Reuters after holding up a bank. Hafiz brandished a gun—later found to be a toy—and poured diluted gasoline on a bank employee until they gave her $13,000 out of her own account to pay for her sister’s cancer treatment. She, like many others in Lebanon, has had her funds frozen during the country’s current economic crisis. Because of that, Hafiz and other “bank robbers” like her are being hailed as heroes.

Read: These scientists are searching for Bigfoot—just don’t tell their bosses. (Wall Street Journal)

Just breathe: How five minutes of breath training a day can reduce blood pressure.

You’re taking pills wrong: New research shows there’s a right way.

For the pack rats: 27 tips to declutter your space.

Amtrak may not be the fastest mode of transport—but it’s got the best Twitter game.

Brew crossword: Order up. “Cookout grub,” “lunchbox classics,” and “cheese that might be sharp” are all clues in today’s Mini. Play it here.

Three headlines and a lie

Three of these headlines are real and one is faker than the suggested serving size for Reese’s Puffs. Can you spot the odd one out?

1. After a string of robberies, a Welsh museum introduced guard snakes
2. Space Force releases official song, “Semper Supra”
3. The new iPhone camera is reportedly rumbling loudly
4. Suspicious slime trail leads German authorities to stash of giant African snails

If you love Three Headlines and a Lie, play along on The Refresh from Insider and dive deeper into these weird headlines.

This week on the Money with Katie Show, Katie explains how your money anxiety might actually help build wealth. Listen or watch now.

Does a four-day workweek mean less money? We asked New Yorkers for their thoughts. Watch here.

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