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Don’t waste your efforts by shortchanging your planning. By August Aquila MAX: Maximize Productivity, Profitability and Client Retention Go PRO for members-only access to more August J. Aquila. View the full article

Don’t waste your efforts by shortchanging your planning. By August Aquila MAX: Maximize Productivity, Profitability and Client Retention Go PRO for members-only access to more August J. Aquila. View the full article

An action plan including what to do in 60 minutes to start. By Jackie Meyer The Balanced Millionaire: Advisor Edition Go PRO for members-only access to more Jackie Meyer. View the full article

An action plan including what to do in 60 minutes to start. By Jackie Meyer The Balanced Millionaire: Advisor Edition Go PRO for members-only access to more Jackie Meyer. View the full article

The five types you have to choose from. By Ed Mendlowitz Call Me Before You Do Anything: The Art of Accounting Go PRO for members-only access to more Edward Mendlowitz. View the full article

The five types you have to choose from. By Ed Mendlowitz Call Me Before You Do Anything: The Art of Accounting Go PRO for members-only access to more Edward Mendlowitz. View the full article

Manufacturing operations rely on structured planning, coordination and execution to meet production goals. That’s where manufacturing project management comes in, connecting workflows, timelines and deliverables into a controlled system. From resource allocation to production scheduling, it brings clarity and direction to complex manufacturing activities while ensuring outputs stay aligned with business objectives. What Is Manufacturing Project Management? Manufacturing project management is the application of project management methodologies, tools and techniques to plan, execute and control manufacturing initiatives. It involves coordinating production activities, resources, schedules and costs to deliver defined outputs within specific constraints. By structuring manufacturing work as projects, organizations can improve efficiency, maintain quality standards and ensure alignment between production goals and business objectives. ProjectManager is an award-winning project management software that is equipped with tools that allow manufacturers to plan, schedule and monitor their projects from start to finish. Use Gantt charts to make production roadmaps, manage workflows with kanban boards, allocate resources with workload charts, track costs with timesheets and monitor your projects with real-time dashboards and reports. Get started for free today. /wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Manufacturing-gantt-chart-light-mode-costs-exposed-cta-e1712005286389.jpgProjectManager is a powerful manufacturing project management solution Learn more The influence of project management in manufacturing projects and operations can be better understood from these 10 project management knowledge areas. Project integration management: Coordinates manufacturing plans, schedules, resources and deliverables so all moving parts work together as one controlled project. Project scope management: Defines production requirements, specifications and deliverables so manufacturing teams complete the right work without unnecessary changes. Project schedule management: Organizes production activities into timelines that account for sequencing, lead times, dependencies and required completion dates. Project cost management: Estimates, budgets and tracks manufacturing expenses such as labor, materials, equipment and overhead to protect project profitability. Project quality management: Applies standards, inspections and quality control procedures to ensure outputs meet technical, regulatory and customer requirements. Project resource management: Assigns workers, machinery, tools and materials in a way that supports productivity and reduces operational bottlenecks. Project communications management: Keeps production teams, managers, suppliers and clients informed about progress, issues, changes and delivery expectations. Project risk management: Identifies threats such as supply delays, equipment breakdowns or labor shortages and plans responses before they disrupt the production process. Project procurement management: Manages the sourcing of raw materials, components, equipment and outside services needed to keep production moving. Project stakeholder management: Aligns the expectations of clients, executives, suppliers, production teams and other parties affected by manufacturing outcomes. What Is a Manufacturing Project? A manufacturing project is a temporary production effort that delivers specific goods based on defined requirements, characterized by planned workflows, resource allocation and controlled timelines, often initiated through a manufacturing contract, and resulting in completed products that meet agreed specifications, costs and delivery dates. In practice, each client order functions as a structured project with clear objectives and constraints. Manufacturing contract: Defines the scope, specifications, quantities, pricing, deadlines and obligations agreed between the manufacturer and the client Production roadmap: Outlines the sequence of activities required to move from planning and procurement to fabrication, assembly and delivery Production schedule: Establishes timelines, task durations and dependencies to ensure manufacturing activities are completed on time Resource plan: Identifies labor, machinery, tools and materials required to execute each stage of the production process Budget and cost structure: Estimates and tracks expenses related to materials, labor, equipment usage and overhead Quality requirements: Specifies standards, inspections and acceptance criteria to ensure outputs meet client and regulatory expectations Procurement plan: Manages sourcing and delivery of raw materials and components needed for production Risk management plan: Identifies potential disruptions such as supply delays or equipment failures and defines risk mitigation strategies Delivery and handoff plan: Defines packaging, logistics and final delivery requirements to complete the manufacturing project How Important Is Project Management for Manufacturing Businesses? Project management is critical for manufacturing businesses, especially those operating under contract-based or custom production models. Each production order can function as a project with defined scope, timelines, deliverables and resource constraints. Applying project management practices helps coordinate complex workflows, optimize resource allocation and maintain cost control. It also improves visibility across operations, reduces delays and ensures that production outputs consistently meet client requirements and quality standards. What Project Management Methodologies are Used in Manufacturing? Different manufacturing environments require different ways of planning, controlling and improving work. Choosing the right approach within manufacturing project management depends on factors like production volume, customization, process stability and customer requirements. Each methodology brings a distinct way to manage workflows, reduce inefficiencies and maintain consistent output across production operations. Lean Manufacturing Lean manufacturing is a process improvement methodology that focuses on eliminating waste and maximizing value, characterized by continuous improvement and streamlined workflows, often driven by inefficiencies in production systems, and resulting in faster processes and reduced costs. It works by analyzing activities and removing steps that do not directly contribute to final output. Production teams benefit from lean practices because they reduce excess inventory, shorten cycle times and improve overall efficiency. By focusing only on value-adding activities, manufacturers can lower operating costs while increasing throughput. This approach also helps identify bottlenecks early, making operations more predictable and easier to control at scale. Six Sigma Six Sigma is a data-driven quality management methodology that reduces process variation and defects, characterized by statistical analysis and structured problem-solving, often triggered by inconsistent output or high error rates, and resulting in improved quality and process stability. It operates through defined phases such as DMAIC to systematically improve performance. Manufacturing operations gain consistency through Six Sigma by minimizing defects and improving process accuracy. This leads to fewer reworks, less material waste and higher product reliability. With better control over variability, production becomes more predictable, helping manufacturers meet strict quality standards and customer expectations without increasing operational costs. Agile Project Management Agile project management is an iterative approach that delivers work in small increments, characterized by flexibility and continuous feedback, often used when requirements change frequently, and resulting in faster adaptation to evolving needs. It relies on short cycles, cross-functional teams and regular adjustments based on performance and stakeholder input. Manufacturers working with custom products or changing specifications benefit from Agile because it allows adjustments during production planning and execution. Teams can respond quickly to design changes, customer feedback or supply constraints. This flexibility reduces the risk of producing incorrect outputs and supports better alignment with client expectations throughout the project. Waterfall Project Management Waterfall project management is a linear approach that completes work in sequential phases, characterized by detailed upfront planning and defined stages, often used when requirements are stable, and resulting in predictable execution and clear documentation. Each phase must be completed before the next begins, ensuring structured progression through the project life cycle. For manufacturing processes with fixed designs and repeatable steps, Waterfall provides strong control and clarity. Detailed planning reduces uncertainty and ensures that production follows a defined path. This approach supports accurate scheduling, cost estimation and quality control, making it ideal for large-scale or standardized manufacturing environments with minimal variation. What Project Management Tools & Techniques are Used in Manufacturing? Running production efficiently depends on having the right tools to plan, track and control work. Within manufacturing project management, these tools help teams visualize schedules, break down complex processes and manage task dependencies. Each one supports better coordination across production lines, improving visibility and decision-making throughout the manufacturing process. Gantt Charts A Gantt chart is a scheduling tool that maps tasks along a timeline, characterized by horizontal bars representing durations, dependencies and milestones, often used to organize sequential and parallel work, and resulting in clear visibility of project schedules. It shows when tasks start, how long they last and how they relate to each other. /wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Manufacturing-gantt-chart-light-mode-costs-exposed-.png Production managers use Gantt charts to coordinate manufacturing schedules, ensuring materials, labor and equipment are available when needed. By visualizing task dependencies and timelines, teams can avoid delays and adjust plans quickly. This improves on-time delivery, reduces idle time and keeps production aligned with overall project deadlines. Kanban Boards A kanban board is a visual workflow tool that organizes tasks into stages, characterized by columns representing process steps and cards representing work items, often used to manage continuous flow, and resulting in improved task visibility and process control. It helps teams track progress as work moves through each stage of production. /wp-content/uploads/2024/04/Kanban-task-card-moving-manufacturing-order-management-light-mode.png Manufacturing teams benefit from kanban boards by gaining real-time visibility into production status and workload distribution. This helps identify bottlenecks, balance tasks across teams and maintain steady workflow. By limiting work in progress, operations become more efficient, reducing delays and improving throughput across production lines. Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) A work breakdown structure is a hierarchical planning tool that divides a project into smaller components, characterized by structured levels of deliverables and tasks, often used to simplify complex work, and resulting in clearer scope definition and task organization. It breaks manufacturing projects into manageable units that can be planned and controlled. /wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Work-breakdown-structure-screenshot.png Breaking production into smaller tasks helps manufacturing teams plan more accurately and assign responsibilities effectively. A WBS improves coordination by clarifying what needs to be done at each stage of production. This reduces confusion, prevents missed steps and supports better tracking of progress across complex manufacturing operations. Critical Path Method (CPM) The critical path method is a scheduling technique that identifies the longest sequence of dependent tasks, characterized by focus on task dependencies and durations, often used to determine minimum project completion time, and resulting in improved schedule control. It highlights which activities directly impact the overall timeline. /wp-content/uploads/2024/10/how-to-make-a-gantt-chart-identifying-the-critical-path.webp Manufacturers use CPM to prioritize tasks that cannot be delayed without affecting delivery dates. By focusing on critical activities, teams can allocate resources more effectively and monitor high-impact work closely. This reduces the risk of delays, improves planning accuracy and ensures production schedules stay on track. How ProjectManager Helps Manufacturing Businesses Keeping production on schedule while managing resources, costs and changing priorities requires more than spreadsheets or disconnected tools. Manufacturing project management becomes easier when teams can plan, track and adjust work in one centralized system. ProjectManager brings together production scheduling, resource planning and performance tracking so production teams can stay aligned and make faster decisions on the shop floor. With interactive Gantt charts, manufacturing teams can build detailed production schedules, map task dependencies, identify milestones and adjust timelines as conditions change. Resource management tools allow managers to assign labor, equipment and materials efficiently, while monitoring resource availability and avoiding bottlenecks. Real-time dashboards and reports provide instant visibility into progress, costs and workload, helping teams identify issues early and maintain control over production performance. Teams can also collaborate more effectively using kanban boards and task lists that track work at every stage of the manufacturing process. Thanks to these and other tools and features, ProjectManager helps manufacturing businesses improve efficiency, reduce delays and deliver consistent results. Watch the video below to learn more! ProjectManager is award-winning software for managing any project. Our collaborative platform connects your teams and gives you access to the manufacturing floor no matter where you are or what time it is. Get started with ProjectManager today for free. The post Manufacturing Project Management: A Quick Guide appeared first on ProjectManager. View the full article

Travelers will soon face restrictions on how many portable chargers they can carry on a flight as airlines continue to try to reduce the risk of another lithium battery fire aboard their jets. Southwest Airlines announced Tuesday that starting April 20 passengers will only be able to carry one charger on their planes, and they won’t be allowed to put it in the overhead bin or in their checked luggage. The airline already requires passengers to keep their chargers in the open while they are using them, so flight attendants can act quickly if they start to overheat. The new Southwest rule goes even further than the limit of two chargers per passenger that the International Civil Aviation Organization recommended last month. But the airline says it isn’t going to aggressively enforce the policy by searching bags and confiscating chargers. Instead, Southwest’s Vice President of Safety and Security Dave Hunt said the airline will stress this to travelers when they book their flights and arrive at the airport while explaining the potential dangers. That alone might be a big help because most people don’t seem to be aware of the risks, said Jeff Marootian, who is CEO of UL Standards & Engagement, which establishes the guidelines for the makers of these chargers and other electronic devices. “A huge part of the concern here is seeing that number of incidents continue to increase, correlating, of course, to the number of devices that people are bringing on planes,” he said. The Federal Aviation Administration said more lithium battery incidents are reported every year and hit 97 in 2025 as everyone carries more re-chargable devices like phones, iPads, laptops and these portable chargers. Marootian said that his organization hears about two incidents every week, and reported a 42% increase in the number of incidents involving portable chargers in 2025. One of the worst happened in January 2025 when a devastating fire aboard an Air Busan plane waiting to take off from an airport in South Korea forced the evacuation of all 176 people aboard before the fire burned through the plane’s roof. Flight attendants have fire-resistant bags and insulated gloves to put overheating devices into to contain any potential blaze. Southwest’s Hunt said the airline’s new rule will “strengthen our ability to contain and mitigate lithium battery incidents, including reducing the risk of battery fires.” To help make the rule workable for passengers, Southwest plans to equip all of its planes with in-seat power by the middle of next year. Aviation safety expert Steve Arroyo, who flew for United Airlines for 37 years, said he thinks Southwest’s new policy is a positive step to reduce the risk. Even though the number of fires is small compared to the roughly 100,000 flights every day around the globe, the potential consequences of a battery fire can be disastrous. “It can turn into something very serious very quickly,” Arroyo said. —Josh Funk, AP Transportation Writer View the full article

Google may be making local search ads more interactive, potentially changing how advertisers showcase multiple locations and capture nearby demand. What’s happening. Google Ads appears to be testing a new format that displays multiple business locations in a swipeable carousel within search ads, allowing users to browse options directly in the ad unit. How it works. Instead of listing locations separately, the new format groups them into a horizontal carousel with business details like ratings and proximity, enabling users to swipe through locations without leaving the search results page. Zoom in. Early comparisons show a shift from static, stacked location assets to a more dynamic experience, where multiple listings are consolidated into a single, scrollable unit. Why we care. Advertisers with multiple locations could gain more visibility within a single ad, while users get a quicker way to compare nearby options. Between the lines. This format could increase engagement with location-based ads, but may also intensify competition within the carousel itself as businesses vie for attention. What to watch. Whether the feature rolls out more broadly and how it impacts click-through rates and local ad performance. First spotted. This update was spotted by Founder of Adsquire Anthony Higman who shared spotting this ad type on LinkedIn. View the full article

Square is changing the lending landscape for small businesses, and the implications are significant. Leveraging advanced machine learning and real-time data, Square has fashioned a cutting-edge approach to small business financing that promises to break down barriers many entrepreneurs face when seeking credit. For over a decade, Square has championed the cause of small businesses, providing them with essential capital that not only fuels their growth but also strengthens local economies. With small businesses being vital to community health, Square’s commitment to expanding access to credit is not just a business strategy; it’s a community investment. Traditionally, financial institutions have relied on static metrics and outdated documentation, often turning away businesses deemed “too risky” or “too small.” In contrast, Square’s innovative underwriting process draws from a comprehensive understanding of a business’s real-time financial activity. Using transaction data, revenue patterns, and other dynamic signals, Square can offer loans that empower rather than hinder. Since 2014, Square has issued over $32 billion in loans, averaging nearly $10,000 per loan, addressing significant gaps in access to capital. Notably, women-owned businesses receive 58% of Square Loans, while minority-owned businesses account for 36%. Additionally, more than half of these loans are directed to areas with low traditional loan approval rates. This commitment to inclusivity not only showcases Square’s progressive approach but also highlights the potential for such a model to create lasting impact. Square’s latest enhancements are designed to reach even more sellers. By refining their underwriting models, the company is now in a position to extend credit offers to over 50% more sellers previously ineligible for Square Loans. This includes newer businesses within their first week of processing, seasonal operations, and service providers with project-based income, reflecting the diverse realities many small businesses encounter. One key benefit of Square’s strategy is the more flexible repayment terms tailored to the unique cash flow cycles of small businesses. Instead of relying on a rigid repayment structure, Square allows sellers to pay back more in busy periods and less when business slows. This flexibility provides immediate relief for businesses facing cash flow hurdles, such as supply needs or utility costs, fostering resilience in challenging times. The early outcomes are already promising: nearly half of the sellers who accessed these new loans had never before received a Square Loan offer. Notably, 66% of offers went to businesses with fewer than $25,000 in annual gross payment volume (GPV), further substantiating Square’s mission to empower small players in the market. However, while these innovations present a wealth of opportunities, small business owners should consider some potential challenges. Applying for funding, even through a streamlined process, still requires thorough preparation and understanding of one’s own financial health. Businesses with volatile revenue streams or those in highly competitive industries may find securing loans challenging, even with the new underwriting model in place. Moreover, as Square expands its lending capabilities, it’s crucial for small business owners to maintain an awareness of their financial practices. Adequate record-keeping and an understanding of how cash flow works can be the difference between securing a loan and missing out. Fostering a good relationship with a financial advisor or engaging with Square’s resources might help navigate these waters effectively. In the evolving landscape of small business lending, Square stands out as a frontrunner in creating meaningful pathways to capital. Their use of technology to assess creditworthiness dynamically offers a lifeline to many who have traditionally struggled to access funding. As small businesses adapt to these changes, the promise of sustained growth and community prosperity becomes more tangible. For more detailed information, you can read the original press release here. Image via Google Gemini This article, "Square Expands Lending Access, Empowering More Small Businesses than Ever" was first published on Small Business Trends View the full article

Google is consolidating its advertising and measurement resources into a single destination, aiming to make it easier for developers and technical marketers to build, automate and scale campaigns. What’s happening. Google has introduced a new Advertising and Measurement Developers Hub, a centralized site designed to help users access tools, documentation and support across its ad ecosystem. The hub brings together resources for products like the Google Ads API, Google Analytics and publisher tools such as AdMob and Google Ad Manager, all organized into categories including advertising, tagging and measurement. How it works. The site offers a streamlined homepage with quick access to documentation, blog updates and community channels, along with dedicated sections to explore products, connect with support and engage with Google’s developer relations team. Why we care. Google is making it easier to access and implement advanced tools that power automation, tracking and campaign optimization. This can help teams work more efficiently, especially those relying on APIs, tagging and data integrations. As advertising becomes more technical and AI-driven, having a centralized hub lowers the barrier to building more sophisticated, scalable setups. The big picture. As advertising becomes more automated and API-driven, Google is investing in infrastructure that supports developers and technical users who manage complex integrations across platforms. Zoom in. New features include a “meet the team” section, a centralized support page linking to Discord and GitHub resources, and a media hub featuring content like Ads DevCast. What to watch. Whether this hub becomes the primary entry point for developers working across Google’s ad products — and how it evolves with new AI and measurement tools. Bottom line. Google is simplifying access to its ad tech ecosystem, betting that better developer support will drive more innovation and adoption. Dig deeper. Introducing the Google Advertising and Measurement Developers Hub! View the full article

Most agencies present prospective clients with an account audit as part of their sales process. The purpose is twofold: To provide immediate value (usually without strings attached). To demonstrate that they know their stuff. But how often do brand marketers turn the tables and audit their agencies in their RFP? I’m the head of performance marketing at a marketing agency, so I’m clearly writing from a biased perspective. However, over my decade-plus in the industry, I’ve seen too many brands settle for “good enough” because they didn’t know which questions would reveal the cracks in a potential partner’s strategy and approach. If I were a brand looking for a true growth partner, here are the specific questions I’d ask to separate the top performers from the rest. 1. What are your key services, and what percentage of your clients utilize each? A lot of agencies claim to be “full service,” but rarely are they “full excellence.” I’d be looking for where an agency truly spends its time versus where they’re just trying to upsell me. It’s less about the channels in question (although if, say, LinkedIn is a key growth driver for your brand, they’d better demonstrate proficiency there), and more about how their strengths align with your needs. If an agency claims to be experts in SEO, creative strategy, and paid media, but 90% of their client base only uses them for paid search, that’s a red flag. You want a partner whose core competencies align with your primary needs. If you need high-volume creative testing, you want an agency where 80%+ of clients use its creative production frameworks, not one that treats creative as an add-on service. Dig deeper: Confessions of a PPC-only agency: Why we finally embraced SEO Your customers search everywhere. Make sure your brand shows up. The SEO toolkit you know, plus the AI visibility data you need. Start Free Trial Get started with 2. How are you approaching AI-driven account optimization and platform automation? I miss the days when knowledge of the manual controls at your disposal could set you apart as a high-performing marketer. But those days have been gone for a while. In 2026, there’s a real danger of over-optimization with the controls we have left. This can reset algorithmic learnings and prevent them from fine-tuning in service of your goals. Agency teams that strike this balance most certainly have a healthier approach than those who either blindly trust algorithms or can’t help tinkering excessively. One control you can and must be diligent about using is first-party data for enhanced conversions and offline conversion tracking. Part of the job of a great marketer is training the algorithms on which leads and which conversions to target, and first-party data is a huge lever to pull in that regard. 3. What is your reporting process and what KPIs do you focus on for the majority of your clients? Don’t just ask for a sample report. Anyone can make a PDF look pretty. You need to understand their philosophy on data. You’re looking for an agency that’s willing to move upstream. If the majority of their clients are measuring success on clicks, traffic, or even MQLs, run the other way. A performance-driven agency should be obsessed with revenue, ROAS, and pipeline velocity. Ask them how they handle attribution. If they rely solely on in-platform metrics, which often over-claim credit, they aren’t looking at the full picture. Dig deeper: What successful brand-agency partnerships look like in 2026 Get the newsletter search marketers rely on. See terms. 4. What’s the average industry tenure of the team on my account? This is actually a pretty common question and has been for years. Too many marketers know the pain of integrating rotating sets of agency teams because the agency can’t hold onto top employees, and you should be evaluating the answer from this perspective. There’s another factor to consider. Generally speaking, the more experienced a marketing team is, the more effectively it uses AI tools. Whereas junior marketers might be more avid proponents of AI and quicker to adopt its functionality, they’re also far more likely to use it for things like creative ideation and strategy. Both are areas where high-quality human thought is a true differentiator. For this answer specifically, remember that you have some great research tools like Glassdoor that you can and should access. Employee tenure is one thing, but a Glassdoor profile with a bunch of red flags is an indicator that the agency might struggle to keep the talent it really wants to retain. 5. How is your team using AI on client accounts? Again, you’re looking for a balance here. Agency teams that don’t use AI at all are almost certainly burning resources on manual tasks, but agency teams that overuse it to replace perspective, critical thinking, and creativity are commoditizing their own client service. Two follow-up questions to ask: What is your governance structure for AI use? What’s your process for QAing AI output? You’re looking for firm answers and redundant layers for each of these questions — at the very least, someone relatively senior should approve any output before it goes live. Dig deeper: Why PPC teams are becoming data teams 6. When you take over an account, what are the first things you do to save budget without affecting growth? This is the ultimate litmus test for technical proficiency. A great performance marketer knows where the ad platforms hide the waste buttons. If I were a brand marketer, I’d want to hear about: Any harmful default settings that need to be turned off. What inputs are driving wasted spend (audiences, networks, keywords, etc.). A plan to prioritize budget around what’s driving business outcomes. If an agency can’t rattle off these specific checks, they’re likely missing the “low-hanging fruit” of budget efficiency. Fixing some of these takes seconds, but missing them costs thousands. What separates a true growth partner from the rest Remember: when you’re choosing an agency partner, it’s the job of each agency to sound as good as they possibly can, but what an agency considers to be a great answer might not be a great fit for your brand. By focusing on utilization rates of services, strategic application of AI, and approaches to budget efficiency, you’ll find a partner capable of driving actual performance, not just spending your budget. Dig deeper: How to find your next PPC agency: 12 top tips View the full article

Content warning for upsetting discussion of sexual abuse of children. A reader writes: I spent most of my 20s managing a business, eventually becoming more or less second-in-command. The owner was an older guy in his 60s. He was a bit of a grumpy guy and more conservative than me in many ways, but we overall got along very well. I found that he was generally a fair guy, and we bonded over a few shared interests. I wouldn’t call him a “friend,” but we had a good relationship. He sold his business in 2020 (he was planning to retire that year anyway and the pandemic moved up the timeline a few months). He and I stayed in loose texting contact until I stopped hearing from him. A few months ago, an old employee of mine reached out to me with some horrifying news: In 2023, our boss was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison for receipt of child pornography. According to court filings, he had over 84,000 images of child sexual abuse material in his possession, which he amassed after trading images on Russian sites. Many of these images were violent and gruesome in ways that are too horrifying to recount, though he denies looking at the more horrific ones. He started amassing this collection not too long after he retired and moved in 2021. He was arrested later that year and eventually made a plea deal. He’ll be in prison until he’s in his 90s. His defense team admitted that he has a “criminal interest” in boys between the ages of 11-14ish. This part horrified me, because many of our employees started out as high schoolers. Based on his testimony and my own experiences with him, I’m inclined to believe no human being who ever encountered him was ever in danger and he wasn’t even consciously aware of his attractions until he fell down this awful rabbit hole in his retirement. But I’ll never know, and I don’t know if he will either. Even though he’s not accused of child abuse himself, the court did acknowledge that his interest in these images keeps the child sex abuse going, something even he agreed with during sentencing. In the process of this, he got divorced, spent all his capital on a legal defense, lost all of his friends, and will very likely die in federal custody. Despite the fact that he took part in a horrific trade, and that he had that criminal interest at all, I can’t help but feel sorry for him. It’s easy to see a story like this on the news, think “lock him up and throw away the key,” and move on. It’s harder when it’s someone you know. It’s all his own fault, but it’s sad knowing how he was saving up for retirement and built a business worth selling, only to lose everything. It’s sad knowing that his friends and most of his family have largely abandoned him. It’s sad knowing that if he’s lucky enough to survive prison, he’ll be in his 90s and flat broke. With that, I come to my ask: should I reach out to him? I’m conflicted on this. Part of me thinks he’d be embarrassed if I reached out, because only one of our coworkers was reached out to about this so I don’t think he knows I’d know. But part of me thinks about how a guy who did something horrible could probably use a little connection to the outside world, because he’s almost certainly lonely beyond belief. There’s also the fact that sexual interest in children is sometimes the result of abuse, which – and I don’t want to speculate more than this – means he might have been a victim himself. I’m not asking for judgment on whether he’s a good or a bad person, because he undeniably did a bad thing. But people who do bad things, even horrific things, don’t necessarily deserve to lose all contact with humanity. I have no tolerance for people who produce those images, but I think that a lot of the people who trade and watch them are more sick than dangerous, if that makes any sense. Should I let him live in ignorance of me knowing that I know, or should I reach out and try to form a human connection and alleviate some of that loneliness – without, obviously, excusing what he did? This is not really a work question; this is a question about being a human around other humans, some of whom hurt others, and how we deal with people who have committed some of the worst harms against others. I can’t tell you what you should do. I am going to point out that there’s a lot of minimizing language in your letter about a man who found sexual gratification by watching children being abused, thousands of them, perhaps violently, and who actively helped to create a market for that abuse. Is he still a human who could use a connection to the outside world? Yes. Might he have been a victim himself? Maybe. Did he repeatedly choose to do something that causes severe and lasting harm to kids? Yes. There are people who feel called to work with people who have committed some of the worst crimes possible, to find their humanity and connect with it. Maybe you’re one of them. But I would get really clear in your head about what’s motivating you and whether you could explain it to someone who’s been a victim of this type of abuse and still come away feeling confident in your stance. If you can, there’s your answer. And if you can’t, I think that’s an answer too. The post should I contact my old boss, who’s in prison for a terrible crime? appeared first on Ask a Manager. View the full article

Google is laying the groundwork for “agentic commerce,” where users can complete purchases directly inside AI-driven search experiences. What’s happening. Google has published a new onboarding guide for its Universal Commerce Protocol (UCP) in Merchant Center, outlining how merchants can integrate with the system and enable checkout directly from product listings in AI Mode and Gemini. The big picture. As AI search evolves from discovery to transaction, Google is pushing to keep users within its ecosystem by embedding shopping and checkout into conversational experiences. How it works. Merchants must first complete a technical integration, then submit an interest form and wait for approval before gaining access to onboarding tools in Google Merchant Center, including a sandbox environment to test integration, identity linking and checkout APIs. Why we care. Google is moving search closer to transaction, meaning users may complete purchases directly inside AI experiences instead of visiting your website. This shifts where conversions happen and could change how performance is measured, attributed and optimized. Early adopters of the Universal Commerce Protocol may gain a competitive advantage as shopping becomes more integrated into tools like Gemini. Zoom in. The protocol acts as an open standard for connecting product data, user identity and payment flows, enabling seamless purchases without redirecting users to external sites. What to watch: The rollout is gradual and currently limited to the U.S., with a dedicated UCP integration tab expected to appear in Merchant Center accounts over the coming months. Bottom line. If widely adopted, the Universal Commerce Protocol could redefine how online shopping works — turning search into a full-funnel, AI-powered checkout experience. Dig deeper. How to onboard to the Universal Commerce Protocol in Merchant Center View the full article

Roughly a third of homeowners with a mortgage rate less than 6% would not give up their rate for any reason, according to a survey of 1,000 mortgage holders. View the full article

Idea for pause in fighting originated from Donald The President’s team even as he escalated threats against IranView the full article

Meta Platforms is making it easier for advertisers to implement tracking, reducing technical friction for teams running campaigns across platforms. What’s happening. Meta released an official Pixel template inside Google Tag Manager, replacing the need for third-party or community-built workarounds. How it works. The new template allows advertisers to reuse their existing GA4 dataLayer, meaning events already configured for Google Analytics 4 can be leveraged without rebuilding tracking from scratch. It also automatically maps enhanced e-commerce events such as purchases, add-to-cart actions, content views and checkout initiations, eliminating the need for duplicate tagging. Why we care. This reduces implementation time, lowers the risk of tracking errors and ensures consistency across platforms, especially for advertisers managing both Google and Meta campaigns. What to watch. Whether this leads to broader adoption of Meta Pixel tracking among advertisers who previously avoided complex setups, and if similar cross-platform integrations follow. Bottom line. Meta is removing one of the biggest headaches in ad tracking — making it faster and easier to get reliable data across platforms. First seen. This update was spotted by Paid Media expert Thomas Eccel who shared spotting the update on LinkedIn. View the full article

A Iran ceasefire sparked a $20 oil drop and Treasury rally, narrowing the rate-cut window from 18 to 15 months, but key technical resistance levels and a potentially ugly Friday CPI report could still reshape the outlook, according to the head of correspondent business development at AD Mortgage. View the full article

For all the advances in data science, artificial intelligence, and behavioral assessments, one hiring ritual remains stubbornly unchanged: the job interview, where candidates are still subjected to awkward brainteasers about golf balls in airplanes, forced to disclose their “biggest weaknesses” to amateur psychologists, asked whether they would keep working after winning the lottery, or made to present to silent panels who seem less interested in evidence of competence than in observing how gracefully applicants endure a mildly humiliating social experiment. Despite decades of research showing that traditional interviews are only moderately reliable predictors of performance, organizations continue to rely on them heavily. In fact, the typical interview still resembles what it looked like decades ago: a loosely structured conversation in which hiring managers form impressions based on intuition, chemistry, and gut feeling. From a scientific standpoint, this is not ideal. Unstructured interviews are vulnerable to a long list of well-documented biases. Interviewers may favor candidates who resemble themselves (“similarity bias”), appear confident or attractive (“halo effects”), or simply fit the cultural stereotype of what a successful employee looks like (“culture fit”). First impressions loom large, even when they are based on thin evidence. Charisma often outperforms competence. And yet, interviews persist. Why? Because hiring managers, like most humans, remain convinced they can “spot talent” when they see it. In other words, the interview is unlikely to disappear anytime soon. The end game Fortunately for candidates, this irrationality does not mean human behavior is unpredictable. As behavioral economist Dan Ariely famously put it, people are “predictably irrational.” That predictability matters, and you can use it to your advantage. Even if interviews are imperfect, there is a growing body of research on how interviewers evaluate candidates and what signals tend to shape their judgments. Understanding those signals does not mean manipulating the system. It simply means avoiding the common mistakes that cause many candidates to underperform, or ensuring that you come across as well as you can. One of the most overlooked opportunities occurs at the very end of the interview, when the interviewer – at times without a proper underlying plan or deliberate strategy – asks a deceivingly simple question: “Do you have any questions for us?” Many candidates treat this moment as a formality. Some (usually the unprepared ones) say “not really.” Others improvise a question on the spot, which rarely has a significant positive impact. Indeed, both approaches are somewhat risky and could result in decreasing candidates’ ratings even after an overall good performance. Studies on interview dynamics suggest that most employers expect candidates to ask questions, and they interpret this behavior as a signal of preparation, motivation, and interest. When candidates decline to ask anything, interviewers often interpret it as a sign of disengagement or lack of curiosity or preparation. At the same time, asking the wrong question (or too many of them) will likely backfire. The difference between leaving a strong impression and undermining one often comes down to a few subtle signals. Five rules With that, here are five basic rules to inform your interview question strategy: First rule: Avoid questions that make the conversation about you A bad type of questions candidates often ask at the end of interviews are typically self-centered, focused on maximizing personal value at the expense of the organization or employer, and, above all, signal a total lack of social skills (lack of awareness of, or interested in acknowledging, the basic etiquette or rules of interaction governing any professional setting). Examples (from most to least acceptable) may include: “What is your working from home policy?” “What would my vacation time be?” “How soon could I be promoted?” “What are the working hours like?” “How quickly could I get a raise?” “If I get bored after a few months, would the company help me find a more interesting role somewhere else?” “Is it acceptable if I continue applying for other jobs while working here, just to keep my options open?” “How flexible are you if I decide I’m not really a morning person?” “Would it be a problem if I occasionally skipped meetings that seem unnecessary to me?” “How soon before I could start delegating most of my work to other people?” To be sure, these may be legitimate concerns. But raising them too early signals that your primary focus is personal gain rather than contribution. It is also a good illustration of a broader point I made in Don’t Be Yourself, authenticity is often overrated as a career strategy. Saying exactly what you think, when you think it, regardless of what others may think, may feel courageous and honest to you, but in professional settings it can simply reveal poor judgment and be a suicidal career move. Successful people don’t just express themselves; they also know when to edit themselves and how to say things to maximize positive effects and minimize negative effects, which requires quite a bit of strategy. A more effective strategy is to instead ask questions that focus on the organization, the team, or the work itself. This signals interest in the role and demonstrates that you are thinking about the broader context. Second rule: Demonstrate preparation One of the easiest ways to impress an interviewer is to show that you have done your homework. Instead of asking generic questions like … “What does the company do?” “What are your priorities?” “How has the role evolved over the past few years” “What would success look like in the first 12 months?” … try referencing recent public information, which signals engagement. For example: “I saw that the company recently expanded into the European market. How does this role contribute to that strategy?” “I noticed the company has been investing heavily in AI and data capabilities. How is that changing the way this team operates day to day?” “I saw your CEO recently emphasized sustainability as a strategic priority. How does that translate into concrete initiatives for this role or department?” Or: “I read about the recent partnership your firm announced. What challenges does that create for the team?” Questions like these demonstrate that you are informed, engaged, and attentive. Third rule: Use questions to signal the traits employers value Smart candidates use the final questions not just to gather information but to highlight desirable traits indirectly. Consider the following examples. To signal curiosity and learning orientation: “What are the most important things someone in this role needs to learn during the first six months?” To signal teamwork and emotional intelligence: “Which teams or stakeholders does this role interact with most closely?” To signal ambition and drive: “What does success look like in this role after the first year?” To signal self-awareness and self-criticism: “What distinguishes people who really thrive here from those who struggle?” To signal adaptability and resilience: “What challenges tend to surprise people when they first take on this role?” Each of these questions subtly communicates something about the candidate asking it. Fourth rule: Listen carefully to the answer Asking the right question is only half the equation. What happens next matters just as much. Strong candidates treat the answer as an opportunity for dialogue rather than simply nodding politely. For example, if the interviewer describes the challenges of the role, you might respond: “That’s interesting. Could you say a bit more about what has made that particularly difficult for the team so far?” “That’s useful context. From what you’ve seen, what distinguishes the people who end up thriving in this role from those who struggle?” “That’s helpful to know. In my previous role we faced something similar when we expanded our client base, and one thing that helped was…” This approach allows you to reinforce your experience without sounding rehearsed. More importantly, it shows that you are paying attention and treating the occasion as an opportunity for smart dialogue and interaction, making the most of it. Similarly, if the interviewer describes a key success factor, you might respond: “That’s interesting; building cross-team relationships was actually a big part of my last project.” “That resonates with me; in my previous role we found that clear communication across functions made a huge difference in delivering results.” “That’s helpful context; in my last position we faced a similar priority, and one of the things that worked well was…” In short, the goal is not to prolong the interview unnecessarily, but rather to connect your experience to what the interviewer values, and showcase your ability to react, improvise, and share relevant experiences on the fly. Fifth rule: Don’t overdo it Candidates who ask no questions risk appearing uninterested. But candidates who ask too many questions risk appearing unfocused or overly demanding. A good rule of thumb is to ask one or two thoughtful questions. Remember that interviewers are usually busy. Turning the last five minutes of the interview into a 15-minute interrogation is unlikely to win you many points. Curiosity is good; monopolizing the conversation is not, and could make you come across as a self-centered narcissist or someone with zero self-awareness if you fail to get the signals that is timed to shut up. Equally important is the tone. Questions should feel prepared but not scripted. If they sound rehearsed, they may come across as performative. If they are entirely improvised, they may reveal a lack of preparation. The goal is to appear thoughtful, engaged, and authentic, which requires you to pay a great deal of attention to how interviewers evaluate you. The worst possible response? Of course, there is one response that consistently creates a poor impression: “No, I think you’ve covered everything.” This answer suggests either a lack of curiosity or a lack of preparation. Neither interpretation works in your favor. The real purpose of the question? In theory, the opportunity to ask questions at the end of an interview exists to help candidates evaluate whether the role suits them. In practice, it often functions as another evaluation moment. Interviewers are not just listening to what you ask. They are asking themselves what your question reveals about you: your curiosity, your priorities, your preparation, and your interpersonal skills. In that sense, the final question is less about information gathering and more about signaling. The irony is that while the science of hiring has advanced enormously (from predictive analytics to AI-assisted assessments) the human interview remains stubbornly subjective. But once you accept that reality, the strategy becomes clear. You cannot eliminate the biases embedded in interviews. But you can learn to navigate them. And sometimes, the difference between a forgettable interview and a memorable one comes down to something as simple as asking the right question at the very end. 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Ask most ecommerce brands who owns their product feed, and the answer is almost always the same: the paid media team. Maybe a feed management tool sits under PPC. Maybe the shopping team built the feed years ago, and nobody’s touched the titles since. Either way, SEO rarely has a seat at the table, and it’s often forgotten as part of the broader feed management strategy. Whether you’re worried about AI search or traditional clicks, you’re missing out on opportunities by excluding SEO from your feed management strategy. AI shopping results are grounded in Google Shopping data Up to 83% of ChatGPT carousel products match Google Shopping’s organic results, according to a recent Peec AI study analyzing more than 43,000 listings. And 60% of those matches came from Shopping positions 1-10. Data shows how ChatGPT’s product carousel matches Google Shopping’s organic results, with Google dominating over Bing. On Google’s side, the Shopping Graph now contains more than 50 billion product listings and feeds directly into AI Overviews, AI Mode, and Gemini. AI Overviews appear in roughly 14% of shopping queries, up from about 2% in late 2024. Like many other things we’ve discovered about AI search, the generative results are informed by traditional SERP. SEO needs to be the strategic quarterback for brand authority. This is a highly valuable opportunity to work cross-channel toward a common goal of improving visibility across search surfaces. It really requires SEOs, commerce, and paid media teams to get in the same room. Your customers search everywhere. Make sure your brand shows up. The SEO toolkit you know, plus the AI visibility data you need. Start Free Trial Get started with The case for a dedicated organic feed Typically, brands run a single product feed optimized for Google paid shopping campaigns. Titles are written for bid relevance, descriptions are built for Quality Score, and the feed exists to win auctions, with less consideration for user search behaviors. As user behavior shifts, search surfaces favor stronger semantic alignment between queries and product data. A title stuffed with paid-friendly modifiers or branded terms isn’t the same as a title that mirrors how someone conversationally searches for a product. We tested this with a large ecommerce brand. Our agency’s AI SEO team partnered with the commerce team to launch a dedicated product feed for free organic listings, with titles and descriptions optimized specifically for organic visibility, rather than replicating what was already running in the paid feed. After the organic feed was pushed live: Organic listing CTR increased 10% month over month, alongside a 4% lift in purchasing rate. A product-level test saw a 92% increase in revenue for free listings, with visibility up 83%, and add-to-cart up 14%. The organic optimization changes alone drove 35,000 impressions at a 1.4% CTR, 55% higher than the CTR seen in paid for the same time period. Rather than replacing our paid feed strategy, we recognized that organic and paid shopping solve different problems and have different needs that require optimizing accordingly. Organic feed titles should reflect how your customers actually search, not how your bidding strategy is structured. Dig deeper: How AI-driven shopping discovery changes product page optimization Get the newsletter search marketers rely on. See terms. What to prioritize in an organic feed strategy Not every feed attribute carries equal weight. If you’re building a dedicated organic feed or just auditing your existing feed for gaps, here’s where you could start. Titles are the highest-impact lever Google’s algorithm heavily favors feed titles when matching products to queries, and its own documentation emphasizes including important attributes to “better match search queries and drive performance lift.” Consider how a customer might describe what they’re looking for in a conversational way, and how that aligns with product attributes. Google’s Merchant Center documentation reinforces the point that your feed strategy should map to how your customer actually shops to help improve their search journey Global Trade Item Numbers (GTINs) are non-negotiable Google’s GTIN documentation makes clear that products with correct GTINs receive significantly more visibility. Industry data has consistently shown that properly matched products can drive up to 40% more clicks. They’re also the primary signal for aggregating product reviews across sources. Don’t overlook images They’re still the most common source of Merchant Center disapprovals. Products with both standard and lifestyle images typically see significantly higher engagement. If budget or bandwidth has kept better product images on the back burner, Google’s Product Studio can help handle some of the editing, so you can test and improve creative at scale without a full reshoot. It’s also a way for SEO and creative teams to collaborate on feed-specific assets and testing. Optimize key product attributes: product_highlight and product_detail product_highlight lets you add scannable benefit statements that appear in expanded Shopping views. For instance, “water-resistant for light rain commutes” is doing more work than “high-quality material” for both the shopper and the AI. product_detail provides structured specifications that power Google’s faceted filters in organic product grids. The same semantic work SEOs are doing to optimize product detail pages (PDPs) for conversational search — like defining ideal buyers, naming use cases, and articulating compatibility — should inform feed attributes. Product and content teams already understand what drives someone to buy. That context should be in the feed, not just on a brand’s PDPs. Dig deeper: How to make ecommerce product pages work in an AI-first world Your feed is also your agentic commerce foundation Here’s what makes this investment compound: the feed optimization work done today for organic shopping visibility will also help build brand readiness for agentic commerce standards and applications. Google’s Universal Commerce Protocol, announced in January, is a framework that enables AI agents to discover products, build carts, and complete transactions directly inside AI Mode and Gemini. The shopper may never land on the brand website to make a purchase. UCP isn’t a replacement for Google Merchant Center, because it’s built directly on top of GMC data. Feeds are how products enter the Shopping Graph. The Shopping Graph is the dataset AI agents query when processing a shopping request. The new native_commerce attribute added to feeds is what signals that a product is eligible for the UCP-powered “Buy” button in traditional and AI-driven Google services. Google has also announced the eventual rollout of several new Merchant Center attributes designed specifically for conversational commerce: Product FAQs. Use cases. Compatible accessories. Product substitutes. These are additions to an existing GMC feed that give AI agents the contextual understanding they need to match products to natural-language queries like “what’s a good waterproof jacket for bike commuting?” These new conversational attributes are rolling out to a small group of retailers first. This is where feed data and on-page content need to stay tightly aligned. Search surfaces cross-reference a brand’s feed against: Structured data. PDP content. Other sources to validate findings. When those layers contradict each other, trust erodes at the domain level. Dig deeper: 7 organic content investments that drive ecommerce ROI Building a cross-channel strategy for AI search Product feed strategy and optimization is an opportunity for genuine cross-team collaboration to test, execute, and measure visibility. A holistic approach to managing product details across every surface will benefit brands in both traditional and AI-driven search. SEOs bring the keyword intelligence, semantic understanding, and knowledge of how AI systems match queries to content. Commerce and marketplace teams own the product data, product information management, and relationships with retailers. Paid teams have the feed infrastructure, the tools, and years of experience managing feed health at scale. These teams must work together to coordinate their insights and effectively establish an AI SEO operating system. The product feed sits at that intersection as it’s an owned asset managed by commerce infrastructure that directly feeds AI-powered visibility. The first step is to pull a current feed and compare organic titles to paid titles. The second step is getting the right people in the room to build something better. SEO is most successful when more channels align toward the same goal: better brand visibility. View the full article

Google Keyword Planner is a free tool. Here’s how to use it to find terms for content and ad campaigns. View the full article

Greece is moving forward with a ban on under-15s using social media, becoming the latest country to restrict young teens from using the online platforms. On Wednesday, April 8, Greece Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis announced plans to restrict social media use by age starting on January 1, 2027, Reuters reports. In a video announcement directed to Greece’s young people, the prime minister cited concerns such as problems sleeping, increasing anxiety, and social media platforms’ addictive designs. In the video, Mitsotakis also pointed to factors such as children not allowing their minds to rest, feeling constant comparisons, and spending long hours scrolling through their phones. Mitsotakis followed the announcement with a letter to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Greek news organization OEMA reports. In the letter, the prime minister detailed Greece’s plans and pushed for a “unified European framework” on the issue by the end of the year. Mitsotakis proposes a standard age-verification system, repeated verification every six months, and a European “digital age of majority” of 15-years-old—or the minimum age to use social media. Which countries have age-centric social media bans in place? Greece joins 10 countries around the world that have already taken steps to restrict young people from using social media, while more are considering such moves. Such widespread moves would’ve been unthinkable until recently, with companies such as Meta Platforms, which owns Instagram and Facebook, focusing on parental control. On December 10, 2025, Australia became the first country to outright ban social media for a certain age group—completely restricting it for people under 16. The European Union (EU) has also taken steps to ban social media use for under-16s, requiring parental consent for young people aged 13 to 15. In November, Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) voted 483 to 92 in favor of a non-legislative report calling for the age restriction. EU members such as France, Italy, and Australia have already taken separate steps to restrict social media use by age. Elsewhere, countries such as the United Kingdom, New Zealand, and Thailand have also taken steps toward banning social media for young people. View the full article

The March 2026 core update finished rolling out today after 12 days and 4 hours, completing Google’s first broad ranking update of the year. What happened. Google confirmed the rollout ended at 06:12 PDT, per its Search Status Dashboard. The update began March 27 and impacted search rankings globally. Google previously said this was “a regular update designed to better surface relevant, satisfying content for searchers from all types of sites.” The timeline. Google originally estimated the March 2026 core update would take up to two weeks to complete. Started: March 27. Completed: April 8. Total rollout: 12 days, 4 hours The context. This was the first core update of 2026. It followed the March 2026 spam update and the February 2026 Discover update. Core updates introduce broad changes to ranking systems and typically drive noticeable volatility across search results. What to do if you were impacted. Google didn’t issue any new guidance for the March 2026 core update. Its standing advice remains: Ranking drops don’t necessarily mean something is wrong. Recovery often comes with future updates, not immediate fixes. Focus on helpful, reliable, people-first content. Google continues to point site owners to its core update and helpful content guidance. Why we care. Now that the rollout is complete, you can assess impact with more confidence. Analyze ranking and traffic changes, identify winners and losers, and adjust your content strategy based on what the update appears to reward. Previous core updates. Here’s a timeline and our coverage of recent core updates: The December 2025 core update was on Dec. 12 and ended on Dec. 29. The June 2025 core update was on June 30 and ended on July 17. The March 2025 core update was on Mar. 13 and ended on Mar. 27. The December 2024 core update was on Dec. 12 and ended on Dec. 18. The November 2024 core update was on Nov. 11 and ended on Dec. 5. The August 2024 core update was on Aug. 15 and ended on Sept. 3. The March 2024 core update was on March 5 and ended on April 19. View the full article

Google's March core update finished rolling out. Here's what to know about the rollout and when to check your data. The post Google Confirms March 2026 Core Update Is Complete appeared first on Search Engine Journal. View the full article

Wall Street surged in Wednesday premarket trading as oil prices plunged 16% after the U.S. and Iran agreed to a two-week ceasefire that includes the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. Futures for the S&P 500 jumped 2.7% before the opening bell and futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 2.6%. Nasdaq futures soared 3.4%. Benchmark U.S. crude sank $18.43 to $94.52 a barrel, a nearly 16% decline. Brent crude, the international standard dropped $15.54 to $93.73 a barrel. Natural gas futures declined close to 5%. The drops reversed some of the rise in oil prices since the start of the war more than five weeks ago that had effectively blocked passage through the strait that’s a crucial route for global supplies. “Yet the mood remains one of cautious optimism rather than outright celebration,” said Tim Waterer, chief market analyst at KCM Trade. “The ceasefire is only two weeks long, and markets will be watching closely to see whether shipping through the Strait of Hormuz normalizes as promised and whether the fragile truce can pave the way for a more durable peace agreement.” Late Tuesday, The President said he was holding off on his threatened attacks on Iranian bridges, power plants and other civilian targets. Iran’s foreign minister said passage through the strait would be allowed for the next two weeks under Iranian military management. But analysts warned against too much optimism. “There is a reason to be optimistic, but it is still too early to tell, because, as you know, after all, it is The President,” said Takashi Hiroki, chief strategist at MONEX. In equities trading, major U.S. airline stocks soared on the steep drop in oil prices. Delta and United jump more than 12% in premarket while American rose 10%. Delta on Wednesday also reported first-quarter sales and profit that came in ahead of Wall Street forecasts and said that demand remained strong with the summer travel season just a few months away. Elsewhere, in Europe France’s CAC 40 added 4.5% by midday, while the German DAX soared nearly 5%. Britain’s FTSE 100 gained 2.9%. In Asia, Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 gained 5.4% to finish at 56,308.42. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 jumped 2.6% to 8,951.80. South Korea’s Kospi soared 6.9% to 5,872.34. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng surged 3.1% to 25,893.02, while the Shanghai Composite added 2.7% to 3,995.00. In currency trading, the U.S. dollar fell to 158.39 Japanese yen from 159.52 yen Wednesday. The euro cost $1.1701, up from $1.1597. The dollar usually becomes a safe haven during geopolitical uncertainty, so the ceasefire deal worked to lessen that appeal. Associated Press videographer Mayuko Ono and Writer Jon Gambrell contributed to this report. Yuri Kageyama is on Threads: https://www.threads.com/@yurikageyama —Yuri Kageyama and Matt Ott, AP Business Writers View the full article