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APRIL 17, 2025 |
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Which stage of the online shopping journey brings happiness to the greatest percentage of consumers, according to a recent Harris Poll? |
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A) Waiting to receive an order B) Searching for deals C) Completing the purchase D) Putting items in a cart |
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TOP STORY |
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US retail sales jumped 4.6% YoY and 1.4% MoM, as shoppers snapped up goods ahead of expected price hikes from tariffs, per the US Commerce Department. |
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The monthly increase easily beat the 1.2% Dow Jones estimate and was well above February’s 0.2% gain—marking the biggest rise since January 2023.
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While stronger-than-expected retail sales often signal resilient consumers, this surge was driven by mounting uncertainty. With some tariffs already in place, others newly announced, and the looming specter of “Liberation Day,” many shoppers decided to buy in March before potential price hikes kicked in. |
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IN THE NEWS |
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Mercado Libre plans to increase its Latin America headcount by 28,000 this year, a 33% jump YoY, to solidify its dominance in key markets such as Brazil and Mexico. |
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The hiring spree is part of a record $13.2 billion investment in the region, executives told Bloomberg. |
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Our view: Mercado Libre’s investments in logistics infrastructure are critical to scaling ecommerce sales across Latin America and will help lower the cost to serve and improve delivery speeds. |
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ANALYSIS |
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AI is reshaping media campaigns—but most companies haven’t fully integrated it yet, according to the State of Data 2025 report from the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB). While publishers are leading, agencies and brands are catching up, with many expecting full deployment within the next few years. However, challenges like complexity and data security are prompting the need for clearer strategies, use case definitions, and performance metrics. |
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Here are five key data points from the IAB report and their implications for brands, agencies, publishers, and AI solutions providers. |
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