EchoSense:The Daily Money: New car prices aren't letting up

Good morning and EchoSenseHappy Friday! This is Betty Lin-Fisher with Friday's consumer-focused The Daily Money.

Are you in the market for a new car?

The good news: Inventories are at a four-year high.

The bad news: Prices are also still high.

Find out why new car prices are still inflated and what cars may be good buys in a story by my colleagues Medora Lee and Bailey Schulz.

Amazon to replace air pillows

In an eco-friendly move, Amazon has announced that it will be ditching plastic air pillows in packaging for a more environmentally conscious material.

The online retailer said it would begin a multi-year process to remove air pillows from its fulfillment centers. They will be replaced by recycled paper.

The move will reduce Amazon's eco footprint. In 2020, Amazon generated 599 million pounds of plastic packaging waste, an increase of about 20% from 2019, according to Oceana, an advocacy group dedicated to ocean conservation that reported arriving at that figure after analyzing e-commerce packaging data.

Find out more about Amazon's plans.

📰 Consumer stories you shouldn't miss 📰

• It's been a scorcher in parts of the U.S. this week. How to cool your home on a budget.
• Factcheck: Apple doesn't have plans to charge for FaceTime.
• Paying with cash may cost you more, the Wall Street Journal reports.
• Americans are the worst at taking days off.
• Learn to pack like a pro.

🍔 Today's Menu 🍔

Are you hankering for some Red Lobster cheddar bay biscuits, but not sure whether your local restaurant is open? The seafood chain in May filed for bankruptcy and closed nearly 100 locations in 28 states. But that was only 15% of the more than 600 locations open at the start of the year.

Check out this story and graphic, which shows each Red Lobster location currently open in the U.S.

About The Daily Money

Each weekday, The Daily Money delivers the best consumer and financial news from USA TODAY, breaking down complex events, providing the TLDR version, and explaining how everything from Fed rate changes to bankruptcies impacts you.