Friday business headlines

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Here is a look at Friday’s business headlines with Jane King.

Airlines predict “Frenzied demand” for holiday week

Airlines are expecting frenzied demand over the Christmas holiday week, with some projecting it will be their busiest holiday travel season.

United and Delta are expecting around nine million travelers each throughout the holiday week. Airlines, to ensure they were well-prepared for the holiday rush, boosted their schedules earlier this year as demand started to build.

Mortgage rates to drop in 2024

Mortgage rates are expected to fall next year. Economists predict rates could land anywhere from 5.7% to 6.8% depending on how quickly inflation cools.

Southwest hopes to avoid travel meltdown

Southwest CEO Bob Jordan told Bloomberg that carrier is “absolutely ready” to avoid a repeat this year.

It’s created a “disruption pod” of company leaders and updated its technology. It’s also added de-icing trucks, trained new workers, and improved early warning systems for any potential problems.

Getting tired of constant tipping

People are tipping less as Americans keep pushing back against increasing requests. Payroll provider Gusto says gratuities for workers in several industries are down compared to prior years.

As of November, workers in leisure and hospitability roles, not including restaurant workers, made an average of $1.28 hourly in tips, down 7% from the $1.38 hourly a year earlier.

This follows statistics from toast showing tips for restaurant workers dipped to some of the lowest levels since the pandemic this year.