In partnership with

Our friends at AdQuick will pay Cheddar $2.50 for everyone who clicks on the link in their ad below. AdQuick makes it easier than ever to plan, buy, and measure every kind of outdoor advertising — from static billboards to hand-painted murals. If you find that interesting (and you should) then please consider clicking to support our work!

_{The Merry Wyfes of Windsor}

Merry Wyfe cheese, as we all know,  is made using Wyfe of Bath curds, which are pressed then washed in apple cider every other day for four weeks. The result is an English cheese with a distinctive, aromatic orange rind. “The Merry Wives of Windsor,” meanwhile, is a Shakespearian comedy written in 1597. It features the character Sir John Falstaff, the fat knight who previously featured in Henry IV, Part 1 and 2. It features the following line in act 2, scene 1:

“I love not the humour of bread and cheese.”

Some say it might be the first ever written reference to a cheese sandwich, although others dispute that. Indeed, the reference to “humour” and cheese is more likely a reference to the character’s mood or inclination than to cheese being funny because (as we know) cheese is deadly serious. Still, today’s cheese pun is about an English cheese that references a 16^th century Shakespearian play that itself references cheese in an ambiguous way, which may or may not be funny. It is, I would venture, a quadruple axle of cheese puns and quite possibly the best cheese pun I have ever made…until tomorrow’s.

Today's Cheddlines You Need2Know

• English Cricket Raises $650M

  • Japanese Automakers End Merger Talks

  • Fewer Americans Seek Jobless Benefits

• White House Punishes Reporters Over Gulf Naming

  • What’s Driving Up Egg Prices?

—Matt Davis, Need2Know Chedditor

I like my humor without a ‘u’, personally.

P.S. We’ve got a collection of Elon Musk quotes on the ‘gram.

Quote of the Day

Should You Check Your 401(k) Today?

👍

(yep)

English Cricket Raises $650M

A sport which is incomprehensible to most Americans, English cricket has generated around $650 million from selling stakes in franchises in a new format to big-business investors from India and the United States. These transactions include consortiums involving NFL great Tom Brady and Los Angeles Dodgers part-owner Todd Boehly.

Auctions held over the past two weeks drew bids that value the eight teams in The Hundred — a new English cricket league format launched in 2021 — at more than $1.2 billion.

English cricket officials confirmed the huge figures for the first time Thursday and set out how they want the money spent. The priority? Safeguarding the future of the domestic game that has lurched into financial strife in recent years.

“We’ve reached a seminal moment for cricket in England and Wales,” said Richard Thompson, chairman of the England and Wales Cricket Board.

SEMINAL!

Modernize your marketing with AdQuick

AdQuick unlocks the benefits of Out Of Home (OOH) advertising in a way no one else has. Approaching the problem with eyes to performance, created for marketers with the engineering excellence you’ve come to expect for the internet.

Marketers agree OOH is one of the best ways for building brand awareness, reaching new customers, and reinforcing your brand message. It’s just been difficult to scale. But with AdQuick, you can easily plan, deploy and measure campaigns just as easily as digital ads, making them a no-brainer to add to your team’s toolbox.

Learn more now.

Japanese Automakers End Merger Talks

In a surprising turn of events, the collaborative aspirations of three of Japan's automotive behemoths — Honda, Nissan, and Mitsubishi — have come to a halting stop on the road to a possible merger.

The trio, which previously engaged in discussions aimed at forging a “business integration” to bolster their standing in the global automotive arena, announced on Thursday that all talks of partnership have ceased.

Discussions began by centering around the formation of a joint holding company but gradually veered off course. Nissan's Chief Executive, Makoto Uchida, revealed that the dialogue shifted towards making Nissan a subsidiary of Honda. Obviously, you know, that was never going to work.

At a separate news conference, Honda's Chief Executive, Toshihiro Mibe, shared his disappointment over the breakdown of talks. Mibe touched on the high hopes he harbored for the venture, despite the clear understanding that achieving their lofty goals would necessitate “painful decisions and sacrifices.” Like absorbing Nissan as a subsidiary? These guys crack me up.

The conversation between Honda and Nissan began with a hopeful tone in December, with Mitsubishi Motors expressing interest in joining the group shortly thereafter. The talks sparked widespread curiosity among analysts, given the overlapping strengths and product lineups of the automakers involved.

Although the path to integration has been abandoned, the three giants have not closed the door on future collaborations. Amidst the backdrop of halted merger talks and speculative industry rumors, the financial health of the companies involved has come under scrutiny. Honda reported a slight decline in profits, while Nissan faces more dire financial challenges, including significant losses and job cuts.

From @cheddar

Fewer Americans Seek Jobless Benefits

The American labor market has displayed remarkable resilience yet again, with fewer Americans seeking jobless benefits last week. Furthermore, the four-week average also slightly declined, reinforcing the narrative of a labor market that is, by several measures, thriving. That’s in stark contrast to some of the dire recent predictions about the American job market.

The robust labor market dynamics come in the context of the U.S. Federal Reserve's monitoring of inflation and labor market trends. With a cautious approach, the Fed has maintained its benchmark lending rate after a series of reductions.

Still, the narrative of a strong labor market is nuanced by the recent announcements of layoffs from several major companies across various sectors. From Workday to Dow and Starbucks to Meta, the wave of workforce reductions can be seen as a bit of an adjustment, rather than a wholesale downturn in labor demand.

White House Punishes Reporters Over Gulf Naming

The White House says that news organizations that refuse to use President Donald Trump’s new name for the Gulf of Mexico are telling “lies” and has insisted it will continue to bar Associated Press journalists from presidential events as a result.

Trump has decreed that the international body of water — which borders Mexico, the United States, and other nations — be called the Gulf of America. In its influential Stylebook, the AP said it would continue to use “Gulf of Mexico,” while also noting Trump’s decision, to ensure that names of geographical features are recognizable around the world.

The White House’s attempt at regulating language used by independent media — and the punitive measures attached to it — mark a sharp escalation in Trump’s often fraught dealings with news organizations. Here’s the AP:

On Tuesday, AP reporters were blocked from attending events in the Oval Office and the White House’s Diplomatic Reception Room. While an AP reporter was in the White House briefing room Wednesday for Leavitt’s remarks, they were turned away at a later event in the Oval Office for the swearing in of Tulsi Gabbard as national intelligence director.

What’s Driving Up Egg Prices?

Breakfast aficionados might have noticed their favorite morning staple — eggs — becoming pricier. In fact, they’re almost $5 a dozen in the grocery store, which is the highest they’ve ever been!

One reason for the rise is that major fast-food chains have significantly expanded their breakfast offerings. The allure of grabbing a quick, tasty breakfast has never been stronger, especially in a post-COVID economy where convenience is king. Fast-food giants like McDonald's have also transitioned to using cage-free eggs, signaling a shift in consumer preferences toward more ethically sourced and, of course, expensive ingredients.

The bottom line is that while the breakfast boom in U.S. restaurants is a significant factor, it's part of a larger mosaic influencing egg prices. U.S. inflation has also worsened, and bird flu is on the rise. I guess nothing in the world of eggs is all it’s cracked up to be?