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American consumers kept spending in April even as furniture, clothing and auto sales hinted at growing strain beneath the surface economy. The Supreme Court preserved nationwide mail access to mifepristone for now, setting up another major abortion-rights battle, while a new Human Rights Watch report accused M23 fighters and Rwandan forces of executions, rapes and disappearances during the occupation of a city in eastern Congo.

Meanwhile, lawmakers advanced a major crypto bill, Tesla recalled every steel-wheel Cybertruck, and scientists say dinosaur proteins may have survived 66 million years.

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US consumers spent $757.1 billion on retail and food in April, a 0.5 percent gain over March, the third straight monthly rise. Non-store sales jumped 11.1 percent year over year.

Furniture, car dealerships, department stores, and clothing all slipped on the month, signaling consumers are pulling discretionary spend even as the headline holds. The print lands as the Fed weighs how much energy-driven inflation is bleeding into demand.

The Supreme Court Thursday blocked the Fifth Circuit ruling that would have reinstated in-person dispensing rules for mifepristone, preserving mail and telehealth access nationwide while the case proceeds. Justices Thomas and Alito dissented from the unsigned order.

The decision protects the 63 percent of US abortions performed through medication and keeps the FDA's pandemic-era rules in place at least through the next round of appeals. Louisiana's challenge in Louisiana v. FDA continues at the Fifth Circuit but now without the immediate access freeze.

Human Rights Watch documented 53 summary executions, 8 rapes, and 12 enforced disappearances by M23 fighters and Rwandan forces during the December-January occupation of Uvira, South Kivu. Door-to-door raids targeted men and boys accused of links to government militias.

The 120-interview report frames Uvira as the worst single atrocity site of the eastern Congo war so far. Washington sanctioned the Rwandan Defence Force in March; HRW is asking the UN Security Council to enforce an arms embargo.

Hungary called in Russia’s ambassador after strikes near the Ukrainian border raised security concerns. Neighboring governments are facing increasing pressure to prepare for spillover risks.

Trump continued emphasizing Iran during his overseas trip, with nuclear negotiations remaining a major diplomatic focus. Energy markets are closely watching any signal that could affect oil supply.

Warsaw registered its first same-sex marriage after European legal pressure pushed recognition efforts forward. Cultural and political divisions over LGBTQ rights remain sharp across parts of Europe.

Walmart is cutting 1,000 corporate roles in product, design, and digital tech as it consolidates three platforms. Affected staff can either apply for open roles or relocate to Bentonville or Northern California.

The Senate Banking Committee advanced the CLARITY Act out of markup, drawing clearer SEC and CFTC lines on digital assets. An AI-sandbox amendment from Sen. Mike Rounds passed 15-9 while Sen. Elizabeth Warren's bid to ban risky assets in retirement accounts failed 11-13.

European officials advanced proposals aimed at simplifying cross-border rail ticketing systems. Easier train access could strengthen regional tourism and commuter travel.

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The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate eased to 6.28 percent as the 10-year Treasury yield pulled back from this week's highs. The dip nudges purchase calculators marginally lower for spring-market buyers.

Bitcoin pushed to $82,000 and Coinbase led the crypto-equity rally after the Senate Banking Committee advanced the CLARITY Act. The 15-9 vote pushed the strongest signal yet that a federal digital-asset framework will reach the floor in 2026.

Tesla recalled every Cybertruck sold with 18-inch steel wheels, all 173 of them, after on-road forces were found to crack the studs around the brake rotors. Tesla says no collisions or injuries have been linked, and repairs are free.

A Columbia and Lamont-Doherty team described in Nature Geoscience how CO2 molecules absorb longwave energy below but emit some of it to space from the stratosphere. The "Goldilocks-zone" wavelength mechanism resolves a long-standing puzzle in climate modeling.

Global experts renamed PCOS to PMOS, polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome, after a multi-year Lancet-published consensus involving 56 organizations and 14,300 survey responses. The new name emphasizes insulin, androgen, and cardiometabolic risk rather than the long-misleading "cyst" focus.

A new analysis recovered organic molecules in an Edmontosaurus bone from South Dakota, evidence that some fossils may preserve original proteins. The find reopens questions about evolutionary relationships, dinosaur physiology, and the role of bone mineralization in shielding biomolecules.

The NFL unveils its full 18-week 2026 schedule at 8 p.m. ET, with the kickoff matchup, Christmas tripleheader, and international windows in London, Madrid, Mexico City, and Sao Paulo. The release sets travel and broadcast plans for September 10's opener.

A.J. Ewing's first big-league home run lifted the Mets to a 9-4 comeback win over Detroit at Citi Field, completing a three-game sweep. New York moves to nine games over .500 and stays atop the NL East.

Broadcasting networks continued recruiting active athletes after new basketball media partnerships emerged Thursday. Sports media companies are leaning further into personality-driven coverage.

Sandra Huller drew a five-minute standing ovation at the Cannes competition premiere of Pawel Pawlikowski's Fatherland, with the postwar German legacy drama drawing early Oscar buzz. The film weighs fascism, communism, and the cost of inherited identity.

Japanese director Koji Fukada's first Cannes competition entry Nagi Notes drew restrained applause as critics scored it 2.5 on the Screen jury grid. The Harmonium follow-up traces two ex-sisters-in-law rebuilding a complex bond.

Charline Bourgeois-Tacquet's A Woman's Life opened Wednesday night with Lea Drucker as a 55-year-old surgeon stretched between hospital and family. The Screen jury grid average sits at 2.8, the highest of Day Two.

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What it is: The UN World Food Programme has halved emergency food aid inside Syria, cutting beneficiaries from 1.3 million to 650,000 and pausing a country-wide bread subsidy that had reached up to 4 million people a day. Operations across seven of Syria's 14 governorates have shut down as donor funding collapses.

The detail: The cut is driven entirely by money, not by easing need. More than 7 million Syrians are acutely food insecure and 1.6 million are in emergency conditions, while WFP says it needs $189 million between June and November just to keep the lights on inside Syria. The agency also pulled cash-based assistance from 135,000 Syrian refugees in Jordan host communities and slimmed rations for 85,000 in camps.

Why it matters: Hunger has historically been a primary driver of displacement out of Syria into Turkey, Lebanon, and Jordan, and aid groups expect a renewed migration push within weeks. The bread subsidy was the political glue tying urban families to functioning state services, so its collapse exposes neighborhoods that were already cycling through inflation, currency loss, and reconstruction stalemate. Donor capitals are absorbed by Iran-war costs and Ukraine, and Gulf states have so far conditioned new money on political reform that Damascus has not delivered.

What to watch: Whether the EU, Saudi Arabia, or the UAE close the gap with bridge funding before the June operations review. If Damascus moves to recapture the bread-subsidy infrastructure as a political tool, that becomes a signal Assad is leveraging hunger to entrench loyalty. A second WFP cut before fall would be a tripwire for regional instability, and the displacement uptick would land on Lebanese, Jordanian, and Turkish governments already running fragile coalitions.

- Nashville Zoo welcomed a baby pudu for Mother's Day, proving the world's smallest deer species can still command a press release the size of an elk.

- Westlake, Ohio police logged a report of "unwanted slithering" and apprehended a loose ball python, finally bringing the long-running neighborhood mystery of "what was that on the porch" to a peaceful close.

- A pregnant cheetah bolted a Dutch zoo before being tranquilized and returned to her habitat, where she presumably has some explaining to do at the next OB-GYN appointment.

That’s your Five Minute Daily briefing — the biggest stories, without the endless scroll. Share this with someone who wants to stay informed in less time.

—The Five Minute Daily Team