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President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Friday, October 16, waiving major parts of a new U.S. law designed to increase economic pressure on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine. The White House says the waiver serves the national interest. Ukrainian officials and some U.S. lawmakers say delaying the pressure weakens efforts to stop Russia's war.
The U.S. government ran a roughly $1.99 trillion budget deficit in fiscal year 2026, which ended September 30. The Treasury figures reported Friday show the annual shortfall grew by about $217 billion from fiscal 2025, even though government receipts also increased.
A report released October 16 by the Democratic minority of the Joint Economic Committee examines President Donald Trump's disclosed pharmaceutical investments and a 2025 tax-and-spending law. The minority staff estimates the maximum reported value of his drug-company holdings rose sharply from 2024 to 2025, including investments in manufacturers benefiting from broader exemptions to Medicare's drug-price negotiation program.
Hurricane Trudy strengthened into a major Category 3 storm in the eastern Pacific, with sustained winds estimated at 120 mph on the morning of October 16, according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center. The center placed the storm southwest of Acapulco and said it was moving northwest toward the general area of Mexico's southwestern and west-central coast.
A shooting at Silver Rail Elementary School in Bend, Oregon, left three children and a teacher dead Thursday, October 15. Police say the suspected attacker, a 16-year-old local resident carrying a long gun, first fired toward a vehicle outside the school and then shot through a locked school door. A community member who saw him enter followed him into the school and fatally shot him. The reported timeline does not establish the precise moment of the shooting relative to officers’ arrival. Two other victims—a young child and a teacher—were being treated for critical injuries, according to reporting available Friday morning.
A new report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that producer prices rose 1.3% in September, the strongest monthly advance since March 2022. A particularly sharp jump in energy costs contributed to the rise: producer-level gasoline prices increased 20.3% for the month.
UNICEF warned on October 16 that progress in reducing acute malnutrition in Gaza could be reversed if deliveries of food and other essential goods remain unreliable. Following a ceasefire and expanded humanitarian assistance, child nutrition outcomes improved from the worst conditions of 2025—but many families are still displaced and facing unsafe living conditions.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced on October 14 that it identified approximately 189,000 Affordable Care Act Marketplace enrollment records associated with either duplicate government health coverage or individuals reported deceased. The agency says it has acted to remove associated federal premium subsidies.
The roofs of two classrooms collapsed during lessons on October 15 at the privately run Al-Khair school in Peshawar, northwestern Pakistan. According to the Associated Press's updated October 15 report, at least 34 children and one teacher were killed, and more than 50 other people were injured. Some were critically hurt. Earlier reports listed fewer deaths; these updated figures may still be revised.
Technology and artificial-intelligence-related stocks fell sharply in the United States on October 14 and across Asian markets on October 15 after an unexpectedly strong U.S. inflation report raised concerns about future interest rates.
A Wall Street Journal investigation published October 15 reports that a consulting business co-owned by former Trump administration cryptocurrency adviser Bo Hines received approximately $6.3 million through an arrangement with stablecoin issuer Tether. Payments began while Hines worked in the White House on the GENIUS Act, the 2025 law governing certain dollar-linked digital tokens.
October 15 update: Ukrainian Defense Ministry sources told the Kyiv Independent and other outlets that military-oriented Starshield satellite connectivity while in motion had been restored after sudden restrictions interrupted some drone operations on October 14. Axios separately reported that a Ukrainian official described Starlink and Starshield access as restored to full capacity. However, a Ukrainian drone-industry source told the Kyiv Independent that performance was still uneven in some locations. The precise extent of any remaining restrictions has not been independently established.
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