Author: Sharnita Sanders

The softwood lumber dispute between the United States and Canada is just one trade argument that seems like it’s going to take a few years to sort out. President Donald Trump announced this Monday that there will be countervailing duties of up to 24 percent on any of the softwood lumber brought from Canada. In response to this, Cana threatened legal action. The last time the United States and Canada had a spat over softwood lumber it lasted from 2001 to 2006. Yet many say that this won’t be easily solved for either side. Duties aren’t able to be appealed…

What happens when you create a program that allows you to make 1.7 million attacks on Xbox Live, Minecraft, and TeamSpeak? A young man from the United Kingdom found out the hard way and is going to spend up to 2 years in jail for it. The teenager in question is Adam Mudd. He created Titanium Stresser when he was just sixteen. After creating the program that performed millions of attacks, he sold his creation to random cyber criminals. That earned him over £386,000 ($400,000). Mudd is twenty now and has pleaded guilty to the charges against him. Those charges…

Android users might have put themselves in danger and not even know it. It’s estimated that over 600,000 users accidentally downloaded malware from Google Play. The malware, once downloaded, attempts to create a botnet which then brings fraudulent mobile adware and earns money for the cybercriminals responsible for the malware’s creation. Cybersecurity researchers at Check Point discovered the sneaky malware and named it FalseGuide. The malware is hidden within over 40 fake companion guide applications for app games like Pokemon GO and FIFA Mobile. Check Point also found that the oldest of the malware was put on Google Play around…

Some might be worried about the fights being started overseas but what about the one right in our own back yard? On Tuesday, President Trump attacked Canada about their tax on ultra-filtered milk. It wasn’t long until Trump took to Twitter. https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/856847826663460865 It was just last week that Trump made comments on the dairy issue. He called it a “disgrace” and even went as far as to blame the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Trump stood up for dairy farmers saying, “What they’ve done to our dairy farm workers is a disgrace. It’s a disgrace.” Yet this issue about…

Hyundai and Kia aren’t the only automakers issuing a recall for vehicles. Recently, Tesla Motors issued a global recall from some of its Model S and X cars for a problem with the parking break. While earlier in the month Hyundai and Kia said they’d have to recall over 1.4 million vehicles in Canada, Europe and the U.S., Tesla says that only 53,000 vehicles are to be recalled. The vehicles that fall under the recall are those that were manufactured during the span of February to October 2016. Yet even though only 2 percent of the 53,000 vehicles were affected…

Since Apple released its new environmental report, the company says it’s going to do what it can for the good of the planet. It seems like it was only last year that Apple bragged about all the money they saved in recycling. That amount included the $40 million it saved in re-used gold from older devices. Yet this year the company says that it plans to change the way it uses raw materials in the devices it makes. With its new idea, Apple has hopes that it will be able to use only recycled materials to create future products. Yet…

You might have noticed something a little different when you went to get your morning coffee. In fact, Starbucks new Unicorn Frappuccino is causing quite the stir. Instagram is flooded with photos of the new drink option as Starbucks customers line up to try the colorful creation. https://www.instagram.com/p/BTEnyfuFr43/?tagged=starbucksunicorndrink One look at the drink and you’re reminded of something out of a carnival. The coffee giant says that the Unicorn Frappuccino has a “flavor and color-changing” uniqueness. It’s made using pink powder that is blended into a mango crème Frappuccino. It’s then layered with a sour powder topping. The color-changing will…

Despite all the constant fiasco that seem to plague United Airlines, the company’s top executive want to assure its investors that the airlines will continue to prosper while dealing with new changes brought about by recent events. One event was the forceful removal of a passenger that, thanks to social media, became a worldwide disaster. United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz, as well as two other executives, started the conference the conference call to talk about the quarterly earnings of United Continental Holdings Inc. The CEO and his group were forced to recognize the horrific confrontations that occurred on April 9th,…

Uber announced a gross of $20 billion for the year of 2016, which is double what the company made just the year before. After its drivers took their share, the company’s net revenue was an estimated $6.5 billion for the entire year. However, that rapid growth did not come without a price. In fact, the company says that in the year of 2016 it lost over $2.8 billion. That money does not include its business in China that it sold in the middle of the year. Before Uber sold its China business to Didi Chuxing in the summer, it has…

Phones can get to be quite pricey. So, if you don’t feel like paying hundreds of dollars for a smartphone, just make your own. At least that’s what one man thought when he built his own iPhone 6s from scratch. The crafty guy in question is named Scotty Allen. Allen has been living in China for nearly a year now. One day he decided to put together his own fully functional iPhone 6s. Allen did this by searching around the markets of Huaqiangbei for cellphone parts. Huaqiangbei is full of spare parts and other technological components. The search for the…

The cost of college has gone up exponentially in the last few years. The only way some can afford to get the education they want is to take out student loans. However, it can be quite difficult to take care of a home, children, and other expenses as well as pay back your loans. So, if you stopped paying them, you might be in for quite a shock when you do your taxes. Not paying your federal student loans could prevent you from getting a tax refund. Due to what is known as a tax refund “offset,” the government is…

It’s safe to assume that Nintendo is beaming with pride. The Nintendo Switch sold over 906,000 units in the United States this past month. That’s just the United States, so the number of units sold in Canada, Japan (who’s numbers are estimated at half a million), and the United Kingdom could significantly add to that massive amount. Nintendo bragged in a press release just recently that the Switch is the fastest selling video game unit in the history of the company. It’s being compared by many to the Wii U which only sold over 890,000 units in the United States…

A new Burger Kind ad was created to be able to trigger Googles voice-activated Home smart speaker. This ad was put in place to help advertise the Whopper but unfortunately doesn’t seem to be working anymore. The ad came out Wednesday and has an actor playing a Burger King worker say, “OK Google: What is the Whopper burger?” Saying that line was supposed to trigger your Google app to read off the definition of the Whopper per it’s Wikipedia page. It was just three short hours after the ad was launched that it stopped working. Google would simply light up…

Some believe that Donald Trump is well on his way to surpassing former President Barack Obama’s eight-year travel spending amount. It’s only been 80 days since Trump took office and his trip to his private club in Florida cost an estimated $20 million. So why are so many slightly raising their eyebrows at this lucrative spending? Well if you recall, back during the Obama presidency, Trump openly criticized President Obama for the money he cost American taxpayers for every trip he took. Yet when a president decides to go on a trip, he can’t just book a flight and be…

Things with United Airlines seemed to cool down after the airline kicked two young women off of its flight for wearing leggings. However, just this Sunday, the airline suffered another fiasco. It was Sunday evening that a video of a man being dragged off of a United flight began floating around social media. The man was removed from the flight not only because it was booked but because United had to make room for its own employees. This incident follows behind one that happened just a few weeks ago. United prevented two girls from boarding their flight due to the…

Things between Uber and Alphabet’s Waymo, have only begun to get heated. Just this Friday, Uber made a long-awaited response about the lawsuit that Waymo filed against it. Waymo sued Uber for stealing its self-driving technology. Uber, on the other hand, says that’s just not true. This Friday, Uber announced in a statement that there’s no way it could have pilfered Waymo’s technology. Uber’s reason for not needing Waymo tech? It says that it’s still using off-the-shelf technology for its own autonomous vehicle testing. Uber calls the lawsuit an utter “misfire.” Yet in doing so, it was forced to swallow…

The US Department of Labor says that they have found evidence of a “systemic compensation disparities against women pretty much across the entire workforce” at Google. It was just this winter in January that the labor department sued the tech giant after it was accused of withholding information regarding a compliance audit. Back in September of 2015, Google didn’t hand over data on employee compensation that had been requested by the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP). After Googled refused to provide the data information, the Department of Labor was forced to take the tech giant to court in…

It appears that Ford isn’t the only automaker to be making recalls on its vehicles. Hyundai and Kia are recalling over 1.4 million cars in the United States, Canada, and South Korea. The cause? There’s trouble in the engine that can cause it to fail or even stall which can result in car crashes. This huge recall spans to some of the most popular of the Korean car maker’s brands. Those recalled in the U.S. and Canada included the 2013 and 2014 Hyundai Santa Fe Sport SUV and Sonata midsize cars. There are also the 2011-2014 Kia Optima midsize models,…

Amazon announces that it will provide another stream of jobs. The online retail giant says that it hopes to add over 30,000 part-time jobs in the United States over a span of the next year. Amazon says that many of the positions they will be opening up will be for virtual customer service. It will open at least 5,000 jobs in that division. But a great majority, the remaining 25,000 to be exact, would be for Amazon’s warehouses. Amazon says that any part-time employee who works at least 20 hours a week or more will be eligible for benefits. This…

An appeal by the Department of Environmental Affairs was recently dismissed by South Africa’s Constitutional Court. The appeal was to retain a moratorium on the domestic trade in rhino horns. According to a source, Pelham Jones, who is the chairman of South Africa’s Private Rhino Owners Association (PROA), was named as one of the respondents to the appeal case. Jones told Reuters that the court’s decision means that the selling of rhino horn is now legal in South Africa. Jones commented on the situation saying that “We welcome the Constitutional Courts ruling, we believe it is a right we have…

The record price for any diamond or jewelry piece to be sold at auction was set recently when a pink diamond known as the “Pink Star” went for $71.2 million at Sotheby’s auction. The Pink Star is stunning coming in at 59.6 carats. The Pink Star came from the mines of Africa in 1999 by De Beers. The raw uncut gem was 132.5 carats. It took over two years to cut the diamond down. Its recent sale price crushed the $60 million pre-sale price it was estimated at, set by Sotheby’s before it went on the block for auction. It…

It’s no secret that online shopping is taking brick and mortar stores by storm. In fact, in the race to obtain more customers, online retailers in the lead. This past year hasn’t been too good for a few stores, and now Payless ShoeSource has announced that it will be filing Chapter 11. Its name goes on the list along with Sears Holdings, Macy’s, and a few other stores that are trying to hold on. Both Sears and Macy’s have announced in the past few months that they will be closing down a large number of stores in order to keep…

For years, Walmart has pulled in millions of customers with its promise of “Everyday Low Prices.” However, recently, the company had to call in a few of its suppliers to have a long serious talk. Walmart prides itself on the guarantee that its prices will be lower than competitors, yet it appears that the company is having to bite its tongue far too often on that statement. The solution? Gather the consumer brands that line Walmart shelves and online sites with soap, chips, and health care products and attempt to reset the expectations when it comes to prices. Walmart has…

Dow Chemical and DuPont have delayed their merger. The cause would be due to the fact that both are making at attempt at an asset swap, totaling $1.6 billion, with FMC Corp. a known pesticide maker. The merger between Dow Chemical and DuPont runs at an estimated $78.7 billion and is expected to be finalized sometime in August. Yet it would seem that FMC grew the most in the eight years that it came to the agreement to purchase DuPont’s crop-protection assets. The European Union wanted those assets to be sold off before things are finalized with Dow Chemical. DuPont…

When you think of the recent news, all the new jobs to Michigan, the large profit-sharing checks for employees, it’s safe to say that things have been going quite well for Ford. However, recently the auto giant announced that it will be recalling over 570,000 of its vehicles. The cars are being recalled in North America and Europe due to two different issues. The first being the risk of engine fires and the second is door latches that malfunction causing the doors to fly open unexpectedly. Ford announced that recall will cut pretax earnings by nearly $295 million. The engine…

It was just a few days ago that an Uber autonomous SUV was involved in a crash that caused the company to halt all testing of its self-driving vehicles. Yet no more than a day later, Uber says that it will resume testing in Pittsburgh and Arizona starting on Monday. In Tempe, Arizona, a car and an Uber self-driving SUV were in an accident due to the other vehicle failing to yield to the Uber car. No one was hurt during the accident, but the Uber SUV was flipped onto its side. The other car sustained a good deal of…

The new electronics ban, which started just this week, affects a large number of passengers in the U.S. going and coming from a majority of Middle Eastern countries. The ban prevents passengers from taking their laptops or tablets onto planes headed to the United States. Yet Turkish and Gulf airlines are flaunting their availability of free WiFi along with the benefit of in-flight connectivity for smartphones, shadowing the beginning of the electronics ban. The ban isn’t only dealing a blow to travelers who find that canceling flights that abide by the ban means paying large cancellation and flight redirecting fees,…

Uber stopped all testing of its self-driving vehicles in Tempe, Arizona after one of the autonomous cars was involved in a three-car collision. Although there were no injuries sustained in the crash, the Uber vehicle was turned on its side during the accident and the other car appeared to sustain the majority of the damage. It’s reported by a source that another car failed to yield to the Uber vehicle.  Uber did say that here was a person behind the wheel of the autonomous car, but was unclear about whether the person was driving or not. Uber’s test of its…

It wasn’t that long ago that Panasonic and Tesla joined together to create solar cells. In the Fall Tesla announced its plans to create a solar roof. It was a project that has been highly anticipated since Tesla acquired SolarCity. The solar roof project not only took a giant step into energy conservation but created 1,400 new jobs as well at over 500 manufacturing positions. Panasonic also dug deep into their pockets and invested 30 billion yen ($256 million) toward the building of solar panels and solar equipment. It was just recently that Chief Executive Officer of Tesla Elon Musk…

Enhanced security for travelers is beginning to strengthen along with the enforcement of a ban on electronics. Many travelers are being screened for carry-on devices that are larger than a smartphone. One traveler coming from Qatar to New York City told of her experience with agents. She said that she had to report of all electronic on her person including her laptop and iPad. She also told a source that once at the gate “the security agent asked me if I had any electronics. I said they were checked in.” The start of the ban, on March 25th, is only…

The Keystone XL pipeline is no longer on delay. In fact, this Friday President Donald Trump gave the okay for construction to begin. The president called it a “great day for American jobs.” It’s more than clear that President Trump has sided with energy advocates rather than environmentalists when it comes to the debate over the pipeline’s construction. It’s been almost a decade since TransCanada applied to build the pipeline that estimated $8 million dollars. The pipeline would run from Canada through the United States. The State Department believes that the pipeline project will aid in the advance of national…

Wells Fargo hasn’t really had the best of luck. Last fall the company was found guilty of opening accounts without customer permission which caused the bank million in fines as well as employees since nearly 5,000 were terminated due to the scandal. There was also question about the sudden increase in the bank’s overdraft fines which had grown considerably when compared to other banks. Yet recently the bank says that not too many people are opening up checking and savings accounts as much as expected. In fact, the number of new customer accounts has fallen by 43 percent in February as…

Lobster imports from the United States has become increasingly popular in China. So much so, that it’s setting a new record for the country as China begins to further its expansion of its lobster market. Until 2010, American lobster wasn’t something you would find in China. Around that time, however, the value for the delectable crustacean jumped by 250 percent to $7.4 million. That number only continued to grow which is proved by last year’s high number $108 million in lobsters from the United States. That number is up from the $90.2 million China imports saw back in 2014. Just…

Enterprise players will now be able to create their own secured blockchain network. IBM recently announced the launch of its new commercial service called IBM Blockchain. In its press release, IBM says that the IBM Blockchain is based on Hyperledger Fabric 1.0 version by the Linux Foundation. The company will use Hyperledger, which is also a way of making blockchains available to businesses. This way developers will have the option to host or even builder their through IBM Cloud at a fast rate. As a protective measure, IBM Blockchain is backed by IBM LinuxONE. LinuxONE is a server by Linux…

Back in 2013, Yahoo was hacked and over one billion users account information was stolen and put up for sale on the dark web. The offer stands as $200,000 or best offers. Even though the passwords are available, the dates of birth, telephone numbers and even security questions could be extremely useful if put in the wrong hands. The Feds alerted Yahoo of the hack after seeing the information for sale on the cyber underground. Their investigation afterward led to the indictment of four men who they believed responsible. Yet even after the prosecutors unsealed indictments against the four men,…

It’s a topic that is probably far more taboo than politics and religion. It has caused debates among even the sharpest of minds and now is possibly the cause of a class-action lawsuit about overtime pay for truck drivers. You guessed right. It’s the Oxford comma. It would seem that one little punctuation mark could cause a dairy company in Portland, Maine, over $10 million dollars. It started back in 2014 when three of the company’s truck drivers decided to sue Oakhurst Dairy for nearly four years’ worth of overtime pay that they felt had been denied them during their…

Disney has a reputation for being the creator of the most magical movies and places that children and adults love. However, 16,339 of its employees don’t think the Walt Disney Co. is so magical. The company as agreed to provide $3.8 million in back wages to those thousands of employees due to an investigation done by the U.S. Labor Department. The Labor Department found that Disney had been making dozens of violations against minimum wage, overtime, and record-keeping laws. The Labor Department’s investigation found that Disney wasn’t paying its employees for the fifteen minutes of work before and after shifts.…

President Donald Trump made his way to Detroit earlier this week with an announcement. His announcement of the rollback of a stringent fuel economy, put in place during the Obama administration, would be experiencing a rollback. This message was meant to be a positive gesture to American automakers yet at the same time, it might slow the race toward the production of better efficient vehicles. President Obama’s climate change legacy involved cutting heat-trapping carbon dioxide, which was just one of two fuel-economy rules. The rules were established back in 2012 and would have automakers nearly double the fuel economy of…

Standard Innovation Corp, an Ottawa-based marital aid maker, recently settled a lawsuit with two women for $3.75 million. The women’s claims were against the way the toy maker handles the type of personal data which the products are capable of generating. The women filed the lawsuit last fall in September. In an Illinois court, they brought their claims against Standard Innovation Corp who makes the popular sex toy the We-Vibe. The newer version of the vibrating toy, called the We-Vibe Rave has Bluetooth and WiFi options through and app called We-Connect. The app allows users and their partners to change…

The more technology advances, the more open we become to scrupulous activity. Facebook has recently responded to the reports that a few surveillance agencies have been using the social media giant as a means for spying. Since the report has been made Facebook has responded by updating its platform policy to prevent such things from occurring. The deputy chief privacy officer at Facebook, Rob Sherman, announced this new policy platform update just this Monday. Sherman and his team say that they have made sure that the language in Facebook’s Platform Privacy are very clear in preventing unwanted surveillance tools from…

It’s been fifty years since regular passenger flights have made a stop in Cuba. Unfortunately, just six months since flights have been allowed to the estranged country, two U.S. airlines are turning their backs on the country already. Both Silver Airway and Frontier say that they will soon drop their routes to the country. Silver says that by April 22 all nine of its routes to Cube will have ceased, and Frontier will have dropped its Miami-Havanan route as soon as June 4th. The initial reason? Both airlines say that the cost just seems to be too much. The two…

In case you haven’t noticed, this year has brought about many changes when it comes to smart phones and their carriers. Many of the top carriers have begun offering unlimited data plans. Every announcement from one carrier is followed by an even bigger announcement from another. In order to stand against competitors, AT&T got rid of its triple-play requirement for those who chose its unlimited plan. Every major carrier might have a different plan, but one thing remains the same for all of them. Once you fall over that monthly data usage number, the soft cap comes in effect. It’s…

Nintendo fans finally get what they’ve been waiting so long for. Nearly a week ago the Nintendo Switch video game console was released. Nintendo hoped to improve the missteps that took place with the release of the previous generation Wii U console. The new Switch was targeted to Nintendo’s fanbase yet at the same time bringing in a new set of gamers. While the Switch isn’t proving to be the hit that the original Wii came to be, it is bringing the world of gaming to a whole new level. This is something that consumers seem to be loving. Since…

Even though investors aren’t entirely sold on Tesla’s new switch from an electric car company to a sustainable energy producer, that hasn’t stop Tesla from pursuing its new project. One state, in particular, seems to be reaping a positive benefit from Tesla’s new sustainable energy venture. Hawaii’s Kauai Island Utility Cooperative (KIUC) is using over 272 of Tesla’s power packs as an alternative electricity source for the island at night. The island is no stranger to solar energy. In fact, Kauai used to use solar energy as a power source on the island at night. Although this was a daytime…

President Trump’s latest plan involves a requirement that would have the states start any infrastructure project within the 90 days they receive their federal funding. This new plan involves putting the pressure on states to speed up their permitting process. This would put a major emphasis on renovations for things like roads and highways rather than the building of new ones. According to a source, Trump had a private meeting with business executives and aides in which he stated, “We’re not going to give the money to states unless they can prove that they can be ready, willing and able…

On Wednesday, some AT&T cellphone users were unable to dial 911, but it was only for a few hours. It didn’t take long for city and county law enforcement along with emergency response teams to warm people. The teams headed to social media warning people over the span of five hours about the possibility of being unable to dial for emergencies. Officials in Alabama, Arkansas, California, Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia, Indiana, Colorado, and even Washington D.C. released warnings to AT&T customers that they might not be able to contact 911 dispatchers in the case…

Oil and diesel spills can cause unmeasurable amounts of damage to the environment and the wildlife that inhabit it. That’s why scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory have claimed to found an easy cleaning solution. They’ve come up with a block of sponge that will be able to soak up oil and diesel from the water and be rung out separating the oil and allowing the sponge to be used again. This new sponge invention, called Oleo Sponge, began in a lab with the use of common polyurethane foam. Polyurethane is found in even the most…

Nintendo’s gaming cartridges for the Switch will leave gamers with a bitter taste in their mouths. Literally. The company has reportedly added “the most-bitter chemical compound known to humanity,” to its cartridges for the Nintendo Switch. The chemical, denatonium benzoate, is often used to apply to things that most companies don’t want people put in their mouths or attempt to ingest. Since the Switch is designed to be portable for gaming convenience, there is no disc drive. Like many other hand-held Nintendo devices, the games come on small cartridges. Like most things, we as humans can’t believe it until we…

Not long after taking office, President Donald Trump made sure that the Keystone XL oil pipeline mission would be seen through to the end. The president even made a bold statement saying that not only would the pipeline be built but it would be done using American-produced steel. However, it seems that despite Trumps insisting, the pipeline won’t be built using American steel. When it comes to reasons why, that’s pretty simple. The pipeline is already under construction and the steel that will be used to finish it is already present at the construction site. White House spokesperson Sarah Huckabee…

The traditional way of ordering fast food is about to be a thing of the past. Wendy’s has big plans on changing the way consumers do fast food. The fast food giant says it has plans to open up self-serve kiosks in over 1,000 locations. Not only will these new kiosks be great time savers for customers, they are designed to attract a younger crowd and bring down the cost the company spends on labor. At one location, the typical number of kiosks will be at least three. Those three machines would only cost around $15,000. Those restaurants that receive…

Hershey says it has decided to cut back on jobs. The chocolate makers will cut down thousands of jobs globally from its workforce. This is prompted as many of the Big Food companies are reporting falling sales. Hershey’s move to cut jobs will reduce the company’s global workforce by at least 15 percent. Although that seems like a small percentage, it’s important to note that Hershey has around 19,000 full time and 1,650-part time employees all over the globe. Therefore many of the cuts that will be made are affecting the hourly staff outside of the United States. The company…

Former President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama received bids for a book deal that has jumped to the price of $60 million. Penguin Random House was first in line with HarperCollins, Simon & Schuster, and Macmillan trailing not too far behind in the bid. Yet on Tuesday Penguin Random House won the bid with a $65 million deal for the rights to two books written by the former President and his first lady. According to the Financial times, both the books will be written separately by the couple but the rights to both books will be sold jointly.…

McDonald’s has expectations to create not only adequate delivery service but better quality burgers. The fast food giant hopes to bounce back after “hundreds of millions” of lost customers by creating more digital friendly options at its restaurants. Many of McDonald’s customers abandoned the fast food chain due to dip in food quality and value. McDonald’s has plans to do what it can in order to bring its customers back. Shares for the fast food chain came to a jolt on Wednesday as the McDonald’s executives proposed their plans to investors. The executives hope to increase growth in customers by…

It appears that Yahoo isn’t the only company that’s had a breach in their security system. Cloudflare had a small bug in its code that has put an unknown number of users at risk. Passwords, cookies, messages, and other information has been leaked throughout the internet. The situation has been given the scary name, Cloudbleed. Cloudflare, which is one of the world’s largest internet security companies, reacted rather quickly once they found out and did what they could to put an end to the leaking of user information. They were alerted by Google’s Project Zero security researcher Tavis Ormandy who…

The sweetened beverage tax received this year for the city of Philadelphia was up to $5.7 million for just the first month. That’s more than double what the Revenue Department estimated but less than the amount needed. Earlier in the year the Revenue Department project the amount of tax to be $2.3 million in January. This number was to accommodate the expectation that businesses would lag long enough for the new tax to register. There was also the expectation that more than a few retailers would load up on pre-tax products. The main goal for the year is $91 million.…

Along with the presidential election came the boycotting of all Trump brands from retail stores. The number of stores that have dropped merchandise that carries the name Trump has increased due to consumer boycotting. An estimated 3,600 Trump products have been dropped from retailers around the country. It’s reported that Trump brands have suffered a 61 percent drop in products since November. The #GrabYourWallet campaign started late October. Digital strategist, Shannon Coulter, co-founded the movement after the tape of President Trump making belligerent comments about women was leaked to the public. The movement was brought on to encourage others who…

J.C. Penney can be added to the list of retailers closing some of its stores. Many consumers have shifted their focus to online shopping which has lowered the number of sales in many brick and mortar stores. Recently, however, the 114-year-old retail veteran company says that about 140 of its 1,000 stores will be closing sometime around June. On Friday, a J.C. Penney executive said that in order to focus more on the stronger stores that bring in better profit, the company would cut weaker locations. The company also will offer a buyout to the nearly 6,000 employees of those…

The French military is training eagles to destroy terrorist drones. Under the supervision of the French military, four eagle chicks were hatched atop drones. The chicks training began atop the back of its adversary. The four baby eagles were named d’Artagnan, Parthos, Aramis, and Athos which are names from “The Three Musketeers.” As the four grew, they spent their time chasing the drones during the summer pecking at the device. In reward for actions against the drone, they were given meat which was eaten off the back of the drones. This month symbolized that the eagles were prepared and this first…

More than a few stores have shut their doors for good or announced mass closings which have resulted in the loss of quite a few jobs. However, on a positive note, the company in charge of discount retailers Marshall’s and T.J. Maxx says that it is looking into opening around 1,300 more locations throughout U.S. and Canada. The part of the company that owns U.S. T.J. Maxx and Marshall’s say that around 800 more stores will be opened. There are also Sierra Trading Post and HomeGoods store brands in the U.S., coupled with Winners, HomeSense, and Marshall’s in Canada that…

Amazon isn’t the only company to experiment with the use of drones. On Tuesday, UPS tried out its very own drone experiment in Lithia, Florida. According to UPS senior vice president of global engineering and sustainability, Mark Wallace, some of UPS’s truck will be equipped with drones to be used in rural areas. However, the use of drones for delivery purposes has yet to be approved in the United States. In fact, it’s estimated that federal regulators and the drone industry are years away from actually making the process legal in the U.S. Yet, this hasn’t entirely stopped companies from…

Yahoo says it is will to cut back $350 million of the price that Verizon will be to obtain the internet business. This decision seems to be following the unknown costs caused by the hack that Yahoo suffered some time ago. Both Verizon and Yahoo have agreed to share the liabilities that come with the hacks. The hacks occurred sometime during 2013 and 2014. During this time, over 1 billion of Yahoo’s users were exposed to hacker who gained the email, names, birthdays, and security questions of over 1 billion of the internet company’s users. It was the largest security…

General Motors is getting a head start on its autonomous vehicle testing venture. GM told a source that, with the help of Lyft, it plans on testing thousands of self-driving Bolt EVs by 2018. If the automaker is successful in this feat, it will be one of the first car makers to test such a large group of autonomous vehicles before 2020. General Motors CEO, Mary Barra, said back in December that GM had plans to begin making a self-driving Bolt EV starting the beginning of this year.  The automaker was already testing about 40 self-driving Bolts in Arizona, California,…

Nintendo says the Switch a NeoGAF user posted photos from earlier on Thursday was stolen. This accusation came not long after the user posted photos from the device and claimed to have bought it from a store he couldn’t quite identify. Nintendo says that the Switch was stolen those who work with a distributor in the United States. Not too long after the photos were posted, the user says he returned the device. Two days after the NeoGAF user hiphoptherobot opened the device and posted videos of the Switch’s interface, he wrote on a NeoGAF message board that he sent the…

Dolls have been used by children for centuries. They’re good companions and even pose as a good listener. However, this doll might be a little too good at listening. Good enough to ban her from Germany under suspicion of being a device of espionage. German regulators have found suspicion in the seemingly harmless doll called My Friend Cayla. It’s said that the doll is able to share what it hears. This means the doll could be taken over by a third party. The doll has recently been banned in Germany. The president, Jochen Homann, of the Germany’s Federal Network Agency,…

Since the arrest of the Samsung vice president Lee Jae-yong earlier on Friday, reports say that this may not have any initial impact on the company’s business. The arrest probably won’t affect any of Samsung’s high-profile business ventures like its smartphones or electronics business. Lee Jae-yong’s promotion to vice president was announced earlier in 2012. In the past, he was seen as simply running the Samsung electronics business for his ill father who is Samsung Chairman Lee Kun-Hee. Lee Jae-young was arrested due to the charges of bribery that lead to an alleged corruption scandal. The whole fiasco, in turn,…

Eminem, who is also known as Slim Shady and is a Grammy award winning rapper, recently invested in a startup sneaker company called StockX. The Detroit native invested money in the startup company before now. He was one of the former investors to add additional funds to StockX, which is dabbling in the global sneaker resell business. StockX does this by connecting buyers with sellers using a live bidding system. Eminem is only one out of a group of investors that has put in more than $6 million for StockX. Other investors alongside the Detroit rapper are Wale, Mark Wahlberg,…

With Verizon, T-Mobile, and Sprint coming out with unlimited data plans to bring in more customers, it was only a matter of time before AT&T joined in. The company announced that starting February 17th AT&T says it will be offering a new unlimited data plan for its consumers. Even though each company is coming out with a new unlimited data plan, neither wants to be outdone by any of the others. That brings about extra incentives like extra gigabytes of data and even Verizon has an offer for free iPhone 7, or iPhone 7 plus with the switch to its…

It’s estimated that Twitch users spent 292 billion minutes watching Twitch last year. That’s an estimated 4.86 billion hours or 555,555 years. There were 14.2 billion in chat messages were sent and almost 153 million whispers were sent. Yet the most favorable game watched last year was Blizzard’s Overwatch. Even though Overwatch was the most watched game, the most favored shooter remains Counter Strike: Global Offensive. The game has remained on top as a favorite since it was first launched. Even though it’s remained on top, Pokemon Go became the first mobile game to skyrocket to the top of Twitch…

McDonald’s recently said that it has better engineered a straw that will allow its customers to better enjoy the shamrock shake. McDonald’s sought the help of two engineering companies, JACE and NK Labs, in order to achieve its goal. What brought about this new change? McDonald’s is currently coming out with new flavors of the shake, like chocolate for example, and wants its customers to be able to experience the full flavor of the shakes. Yet to some a straw is just a straw. Most would like to know how has McDonald’s managed to engineer a straw that will better…

This Wednesday brought the announcement from the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) that they have successfully launched over 100 nano satellites into orbit on a single rocket. Of those, there’s the inclusion of an observation satellite as well as a technology demonstration satellite. https://youtu.be/OyJ2x8HyuqM?t=46s India’s space agency says that each nano satellite weighs about 10 kilograms or just 22 pounds. They were launched into orbit from a location in southern India. The space agency says that their launch of nearly 104 nano satellites beats out Russia’s launch of 37 satellites on a single rocket back in 2014. That was the…

Social Media giant Facebook is always coming up with new ways to improve its usability for its consumers. In fact, the company is now coming up with ways get its users to upload and stream more and more videos. In order to achieve this, the social media site has made new changes when it comes to how its users distribute and display video. However, that’s not all the good news that Facebook is sharing. Just recently vice president of partnerships, Dan Rose, announced that Facebook would start a series of apps for things like Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, and…

The owner of fast food chains Burger King and Tim Horton’s, Restaurant Brands International Inc., contemplates the acquisition of the Atlanta, Georgia-based Popeye’s Louisiana Kitchen. Two sources, who according to Reuters wish not to be identified to do confidentiality of the agreement, announced on Monday. The Ontario-based Restaurant Brands, Oakville, plans to spearhead the deal. It has high hopes that it will be able to bring Popeye’s Louisiana-style fried chicken and buttermilk biscuits to more consumers all over the world. Oakville has international reach that would allow great expansion for Popeye’s globally. However, Restaurant Brands International and Popeye’s haven not…

Public-transportation advocates say that they need more money than what was proposed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo for the New York City transit system. Advocates came together with state lawmakers on Monday. The concern was that there was a provision in the $152.3 billion state budget proposal by Gov. Andrew Cuomo. The provision has the potential to limit the amount of state money that would be sent to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). It would also 2011 payroll tax that aids in the funding of the system. Cuomo’s proposal would send $244 million for payroll tax revenue losses. That number is…

Two major United States retailers added their names to the list of companies that refuse to carry Trump products. The boycott on Trump products continues on with the addition of Sears Holdings and Kmart. The two announced on Saturday that they will no longer be the carrier of the Trump Home collection available online. The collection sells furniture, lamps, and chandeliers. Although it is uncertain which of the Trump Home Collections 31 items will be discontinued from the site, at least 14 of the Trump Home Collection products that are sold by third party sellers still remain on the Sears…

Valentine’s Day is Tuesday, and many will take this opportunity to shower their loved ones and partners with gifts to show just how much appreciation and admiration they have. Yet with the holiday estimating to cost America a big $18 billion this year, the scammers are going to be out on the prowl to take advantage. The Better Business Bureau is providing a few tips on how to avoid those scams that will most likely cause a Valentine’s Day fail. First, when it comes to ordering flowers keep a sharp eye out for scrupulous businesses. This year it’s estimated that…

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, pediatrician Priscilla Chan, got their first group of applicants for their Chan Zuckerberg Biohub. The organization is a non-profit medical research initiative. The new applicants applied to receive funding for research on deadly diseases. The organization said Wednesday that $50 million would be donated in support of nearly 47 researchers from various universities including Berkley, University of California, and UCSF in San Francisco. The applicants range from scientists, engineer and even technologists who were chosen out of 700 others. Each will receive almost $1.5 million in “unrestricted” funding spanning out through 5 years…

Boeing and Airbus Group SE competitor Bombardier Inc. is getting a little boost from the Canadian government for funding of its two jet programs. One of the programs will include Bombardier’s C Series single-aisle plane that already is up for competition with Boeing and Airbus jets. The Canadian government says it will give C$372.5 million ($282 million) toward the programs. Canada says it expects that at least a third of what is called “repayable program contribution” will be going toward the C Series program. The rest of the money, which will be given out over a span of four years,…

Ford Motor Co. has decided to jump head first into the self-driving car craze that is sweeping through automakers who want to be the first to come out with the perfect autonomous vehicle. From Tesla to Honda, automakers are doing all they can to further develop their autonomous technology that will one day soon be the future of driving. Ford recently announced that it will be investing over $1 billion into its future self-driving car. That amount, the company noted, will span out over five years toward the development of start-up technology for autonomous vehicles which has been given the…

It’s hard to think that your information could be stolen by making a simple purchase at your favorite fast food restaurant. However, thousands of people recent had to find out the hard way. Over 355,000 credit and debit cards were at risk after a malware breach hit Arby’s cash registers. The incident could have affected hundreds of the fast food chain’s restaurants that were owned the Atlanta Ga based company were hit. It would seem that the franchise wasn’t affected. The malware breach gave the attackers leeway to steal information from each credit card that came through the cash register.…

As Whole Foods reports in its sixth straight sales drop this Wednesday, it’s clear that the company will have to slow down its steady tread toward expanding its stores. The cause of its steadily falling sales could be the fact that more and more traditional supermarkets are offering organic and natural products. While more of its customers are drifting off to traditional supermarkets, Whole Foods says that it plans to work hard to focus on and keep its loyal customers. In order to keep those customers loyal, the company is trying to change its merchandising. To make this happen, Whole…

With Valentine’s Day right around the corner, there are going to be a lot of upcoming proposals. There’s also wedding season that is inching ever closer as the season goes on. Yet when you think of wedding registry, Domino’s is the last place you have on your list. On Wednesday, Domino’s announced that it would be launching a new wedding registry campaign. Some might find themselves wondering what Domino’s has to offer when it comes to their wedding. The answer, of course, is obvious. Pizza. The pizza chain will be offering gifts of pizza for happy couples around the country.…

Millions celebrate Valentine’s Day every year with jewelry, chocolate, flowers and other specials gifts given to that special someone. In fact, last year men spent two times more than woman did in celebration of Valentine’s Day. It has to be one of the most anticipated holidays throughout the year. Valentine’s Day is recorded as the third largest holiday in the United States. It’s estimated that nearly $18 million total will be spent on this year’s Valentine’s Day. For those who like to buy bouquets for their special someone, 34 percent of Americans, an estimated $2 billion will be spent on…

The Japanese corporation, Toshiba, has been looking to raise around 300 billion yen from the sale of 19.9 percent stake toward its flash memory chip business. So far, Toshiba has only received bids of 200 million yen to 400 million yen ($1.8-3.6 billion) according to Reuters. The price of 300 million would aid in the company’s offset of a multi-billion dollar writedown regarding its U.S. nuclear power business. The company’s U.S. nuclear power company has the potential to get rid of shareholder equity, which is the main concern for investors. When it comes to bids, Toshiba has a few potential…

Some estimate that in the future Amazon could be the first to utilize the robotic technology that continues to develop over the years. Amazon’s new high-tech supermarket might possibly be operated by only three humans. Three workers is even less than most supermarkets around today. In fact, according to Amazon the maximum number of employees required to work in its supermarket is only ten. Amazon’s future supermarket is estimated to be a three-story building that has an expansion of 10,000 to 40,000 square feet. Aside from the shoppers and the minimum number of human workers, the supermarket would be heavily…

Automakers in North America are reaping the benefits of their success through profit sharing. For some 52,000 General Motors employees in the United States, record sales and earnings produced a record profit sharing for the auto company. It is reported by GM this week that some eligible employees will receive up to $12,000 in profit sharing. Most GM workers at the company’s Lordstown Assembly Complex, an estimated 4,000, will be getting close to or right at $12,000 profit sharing. Thirteen hundred workers on the fabrication side will be getting a check as well as 3,000 on the assembly line side.…

After many consumers decided to boycott over thirty retailers that carry Ivanka Trump’s clothing line, Ivanka’s line suffered a bit during the week. In fact, Nordstrom said on the 2nd that it wouldn’t be carrying the line anymore. That’s not the only major retailer to ditch the Ivanka’s clothing line. Nieman Marcus announced just a day later that it too would be dropping the line. The list of companies that have been targeted by consumers who are boycotting nearly all products that have anything to do with the U.S. president’s family include Amazon, Bloomingdales, and even Dillards. Those are just…

Before its Super Bowl ad could hit televisions around America, Tiffany & Co. replaced its Chief Executive Officer, Frederic Cumenal. It would seem the abrupt firing of Cumenal was due to the discouraging financial numbers possibly linking to poor holiday sales that lowered the stock. Tiffany said that the company will be replacing Cumenal with former CEO Michael Kowalski who will only be taking over the position on an interim level. Cumenal ran the company since April 2015 and his absence in the company is preceded by the loss of the jewelry company’s top designer who left three weeks prior.…

Recently the Federal Communications Commission told nine companies, who were all part of a program made to provide subsidized internet, that they are no longer allowed to service low-income customers with the service. This announcement was made by the FCCs new chairman, Ajit Pai. Pai reversed the decision that was made by the last FCC chairman, Tom Wheeler. Pai, part of the new Trump administration and current head of the regulatory commission, stated that the choice to provide lower income American families with internet service was a good example of what’s called a “midnight regulation.” The low-income internet service program,…

The travel ban that President Trump executed banned seven Muslim countries, Syria, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Yemen, Sudan, and Iran. In those nations, as well as in the U.S, the ban has caused emotions to flare through many Americans. However, it would seem that foreign airlines have ordered Iranian travel agencies not to sell tickets for flights to the United States to Iranians who hold U.S. visas. This announcement came not too long after Trump issued his executive travel ban on all seven Muslim countries. Yet on Friday a U.S. judge temporarily blocked the ban. The judge’s rule came after two…

Honda announced this Friday that its sales jumped by at least 36 percent. This was just for the October-December months. Dismissing damage done by the yen, Honda Motors managed to raise its profits for the full year. The maker of the Odyssey raised its full fiscal profit to around 545 billion yen ($4.8 billion). That amount is a full 58 percent more than the 344 billion yen that Honda brought in about a year ago. That year Honda had expected to bring in 415 billion yen ($3.6 billion) As for the third quarter, a series of cost cuts ended up…

Rakesh Kapoor, the CEO of the company Reckitt Benckiser Group Plc. hopes to turn around what could only be considered an unlucky streak. Kapoor recently invested $16.7 billion in the baby food maker Mead Johnson Nutrition Co. Although this recent investment might seem random, it’s far from it. Just a year ago, Reckitt, who is the maker of not only French’s mustard but Lysol cleaner, struggled with sluggish revenue growth and shareholders held their breath when the company issued a $33.6 million pay package. Not only that, the company was boycotted for toxic disinfectants used in South Korea. This new…

President Donald Trump’s recent executive order, a travel ban, has stirred much controversy, sadness, and even anger. Recently, however, a new travel ban has been issued. This one, might not be too highly favored either. Simply put, if you don’t pay your taxes your passport will be denied or revoked. The IRS was given leeway by congress nearly a year ago to do this through tax code Section 7345 which is labeled “Revocation or Denial of Passport in Case of Certain Tax Delinquencies.” The law was rejected at least once before in 2012 than in 2015, when Congress finally passed…

Tesla says it’s changing its name. The company announced that it will go from Tesla Motors to just Tesla. When the company was founded back in 2003, the “motors” part of their name was seen as a necessity. It’s possible the company added this part to be seen as an alternative and competitive automaker. It wanted to been seen on the same level as larger companies like General Motors. Larger companies like GM helped define the auto industry. By adding Motors to its name, Tesla felt that it was sealing its place among the larger car industries. Over thirteen years…

Despite the rumors surrounding Sony, the company announced on Thursday that it was not selling its picture business. The company struggled through a $1 billion writedown that was caused by the low demand for movies on disc. This ended up having Sony cut at least 11 percent of Sony’s yearly profit that estimated around 240 billion. This percentage cut would not have affected the company so harshly had it not been for a few factors. One would be the weakness of the yen. The yen has recently been reported at its lowest in a while. The other factor that added…

A slew of investors, including Samsung Catalyst Fund and Nvidia GPU Ventures, raised about $75 million for SoundHound. This brings the total amount raised by the California-based company $115 million. The funds will be used to further the development of the artificial intelligence (AI) program for Houndify.  Just a year after its launch, Houndify has been entrenched into at least 500 products ranging from cars to appliances. As well as continue the expansion of its AI program, SoundHound hopes to expand its market through Europe and Asia. SoundHound longed to stand alongside competitors such as Google and Amazon by starting…

President Trump’s message to pharmaceutical executives sounded quite the same as it was for automakers. The president met with companies like Merck & Co., Johnson & Johnson and others in the oval office. He warned them that if they didn’t keep their business in the United States regulations for them would rise. Not only was Trump adamant about keeping business in the United States, as he has been with many businesses, he stressed the importance of pharmaceutical companies lowering their prices. In the meeting, Trump acknowledged how high the drug prices have been in the United States. Along with lowering…

It wasn’t too long ago that Deutsche Bank settled with U.S. Department of Justice for $7.2 billion under certain allegations of selling faulty mortgage securities. Now, the bank agreed to pay the United states and the UK $630 million for its failure to stop fraudulent trades made from Russia totaling an estimated $10 billion. According to the accusations, the bank’s locations in Moscow, London and New York were part of a mirror trade scam between the years of 2011 and 2015. During that time, Russian blue-chip stock was purchased in rubles and sold for the same quantity at the same…

Once again, the Council of Aspiring American Fashion Designers (CAAFD) and iFashion Network will bring in a host of new talent from all over the globe. New York Fashion Week is much awaited by all. Designers display their work for fans and celebrities who can’t wait to watch, wear, and admire such hard work and dedication. One of the returning designers to the February 2017 New York Fashion Week is Irina Vitjaz. Vitjaz is known for her work in Austria and Europe, but debuted a new line in New York Fashion Week last year. Resk ‘Que, noted fashion guru, will also…

One of the orders made by President Donald Trump on Monday was aimed toward regulations on businesses. The president’s new order stated that business can get rid of two regulations for every new one that is established. Behind his desk in the Oval Office Trump, signed the document and called it “a big one.” Even though many of the business owners were present for the signing, the White House added to the order and stated that new regulations should be offset by getting rid of regulations that have the same cost. The military, however, was excluded in these regulations. Yet…

Climate change can be quite a controversial topic. Some might even call it a myth. Yet Bill Gates recently warned against the effects of global warming. Along with billionaire friend Warren Buffett, the Microsoft co-founder held a Q&A with some students at Columbia University on Friday. Gates pushed for alternative and innovational methods to produce clean energy. Among other things, Gates said that it would greatly benefit the planet to obtain cheap, reliable, and clean energy. Back in December, Gates said that he and a few other investors would put at least $1 billion in a fund called Breakthrough Energy Ventures.…

As the legal marijuana market continues to grow, the government of California is set to a rather difficult task. They must form the regulations that will govern California’s legal marijuana market. California joins twenty-six other states, and the District of Columbia, who already have some form of laws surrounding the ever-growing legal marijuana market. Many of these states made marijuana legal and other simply legalized the drug for medicinal or recreational uses. As of now, California allows adults the age of 21 to possess one ounce of marijuana and own at least six plants in their home. More thorough laws…

Banners waved high along with the chant, “Barcelona is not for sale” rang out through the city as more than 2,000 citizens marched through the city streets in protest. There were also chants of “We will not be driven out” throughout the Rambla, Barcelona’s famous boulevard. Nearly 40 community and residential groups from all over took to the streets. Even though the number of tourists has grown exponentially in the last year, the protest wasn’t just directed at mass tourist spots. It’s reported that in 2016 nearly 9 million people occupied hotels and another 9 million stayed in holiday apartments.…

President Donald Trump appears quite confident in his measure to apply a 20 percent tax on all imported goods from Mexico. The downside to that whole plan would be the drastic rise in prices of Mexican goods. There’s a good chance that even before Trump imposes his 20 percent tax raise that the next time an American consumer reaches for an avocado, a handbag made in Mexico, or even a favorite Mexican beer, the price will be more. This will be done as a defensive measure on Mexico’s end if the 20 percent tariff ever takes place. The rise in…

Wet Seal Inc. would appear to be one of the many retailers to close its doors as of late. Wet Seal was established in 1962 in Newport Beach and named Lorne’s after its founder Lorne Huycke. The name of the company was later changed when Huycke’s wife saw a model in a black bathing suit and thought it looked like a “wet seal.” It didn’t take long for the store to expand around the country within the 1980s and the 1990s. It provided young women with casual clothing. Wet Seal later started Limbo Lounge In a round of many mall…

As, Boeing, the world’s largest plane maker rises out of the ashes of nearly a decade of losses, its shares reach a record high. The 787 Dreamliner contributed to the boost in profits for the plane maker. Boeing holds hope that not only the 787 but the 737 helps aid to the boost in sales results this year. The plane maker did, however, report that sales did drop when it slowed production of wide-body 777 planes. This lag in 777 production will also bring down revenue to around $92.5 billion. Boeing stock did well. Its average index scaled up well…

Phone scams are age old and have claimed many victims over the years. A new scam, however, is using your just one word to make you a victim. Recently, the “Can you hear me” phone scam has begun to grow. When you answer the phone, the automation on the other end goes through an introduction which provides the identity of a business or agency. After the introduction, the automated voice will ask you if you can hear. This is where the scam comes in. If you say “yes”, the person on the other end may be recording you. Once they…

The benefits of consumers’ increasing demand for vehicles in America, auto workers will receive the dues in a profit-sharing bonus. Auto employees are estimated to get the largest bonus checks yet. The fourth quarter report for the big three reported that consumer’s dependence on light-trucks is part of the profit increase. However, the bonuses aren’t just coming due to the increase in sales. Recently Ford and GM announced that they would be bringing in mass amounts of jobs to the U.S. Fiat Chrysler also put in that it would spend over $1 billion in remodeling two of its factories which…

Instead of AppDynamics having its debut listing on Nasdaq Thursday, Cisco swooped in taking the app performance company off the market. AppDynamics was supposed to be the first big tech IPO of the year, however, Cisco purchased the company for $3.7 billion. Many hoped for the trade to start IPO season, however, they were thrown off Cisco, whose net market capital is an estimated $150 billion, snatched the software app company up. Yet this large acquisition by Cisco only set the standard for future acquisitions worth just as much if not more. However, a deal as big as this one…

Although Amazon doesn’t own any crews or ships, it has started shipping products from merchants in China to the United States by ocean freighters. Amazon has started acting as a logistics operator organizing ocean carriers for the owners. And so far things are off to great start for Amazon. It organized 150 carriers of imported products from China. These transactions date as far back as October. Initially, Amazon stated that it planned to increase its air transport for its products. The company followed through on this by an agreement with Boeing. The agreement allowed Amazon to lease Boeing cargo jets…

The company Oculus went through a few speed bumps that begged the question who would take on the leadership role. Oculus VR, the virtual reality goggle maker, was purchased by Facebook for over $2 billion. Recently Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook chief executive officer, announced that Hugo Barra who formerly worked as a former executive at Google and Xiaomi, a Chinese phone maker, will lead Facebook’s virtual reality conquest. Barra is known for his aid in the growth of Google’s Android business. It wasn’t until 2013 that he left Google and went to Xiaomi, who at the time was trying to establish…

For many homeowners, the word foreclosure isn’t one they’d like to hear. If anything, foreclosure is the very last option most people hope to seek. Citigroup, a mortgage company, will pay $28.8 million for withholding information about avoiding foreclosure from its homeowners. This caused great difficulty for people seeking to apply for foreclosure relief. It is estimated that CitiMortgage is to pay $17 million in compensations of those who were wronged in the process. CitiMortgage is also responsible for $3 million in civil penalties. On the other hand, CitiFinancial Services will pay out $4.4 million to wronged consumers as well…

With the new year comes new conquests for companies and businesses. Many are selling their companies in order to better satisfy not only customers but shareholders. Some companies are joining together in order to further their profit because isn’t the age old saying “two heads are better than one?” Singapore wealth fund GIC Pte Ltd and Paramount Group have come together to obtain tower 60 Wall Street located in downtown Manhattan. The joint purchase is estimated at around $1.04 billion. GIC holds around 95 percent shares in JV, which says it will pay $640 per square foot for the tower…

Bob Evans Farms Inc. has been feeling the pressure from shareholders. So much so that it prompted the company to sell its restaurant chain to Golden Gate Capital. While it sold the restaurant portion of its business, Bob Evans says it will be focusing on its packaged foods. Golden Gate Capital receives 523 dining chains for $565 million. Bob Evans restaurants have been struggling and this shows in the 1.8 percent decline in October. Bob Evans packaged food business, known as BEF Foods, made a purchase of its own. BEF Foods obtained Pineland Farms Potato Company for around $115 million.…

McDonald’s numbers haven’t exactly been ideal when it comes to its customer traffic. When the fast food chain decided to sell breakfast all day, the company saw a slight increase in sales number. However, that number isn’t as high as expected. Just last year customer count dropped by 2.1 percent. That’s just shy of the 3 percent the burger chain saw the year before, and the fourth year in a row that customer count dropped for McDonald’s. In an effort to bring more customers through its doors, McDonald’s started it McPick 2 campaign last January. However, the low prices of…

The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) are advocating for the governor and lawmakers approve of the $68 million for funding. Due to cuts in funds over the years, the NAMI wants to use the money as restoration. NAMI also hopes to restore police training as well as 24/7 crisis center for those with mental health issues to be taken to. Jails often are equipped to handle those suffering from mental issues. Around 30 percent of the inmates in Alabama prison suffer from mental illness. This was amongst the discussion when the NAMI met last week in Hoover. Since a majority…

Solar energy could be giving coal a run for its money. When it comes to alternative power, coal is up against some tough contenders. It seems, however, that solar energy is leading the competition. When it compares to other power alternatives, coal comes in as the cheapest. On average, it cost around 6 cents per kWh. However, solar is closing in fast as the cheapest source. Last year multiple countries including the United States averaged the use of solar energy for as low as 3 cents per kilowatt-hour. It is said that Mexico and even Saudi Arabia will hold auctions…

As a people, we have progressed into the digital age. Whether it’s staying in touch with family overseas, paying your bills, or simply emailing your boss, everything is done by a smartphone or through the computer. The age of the pen and paper are slowly fading away but haven’t died out altogether. In fact, the cost of using a U.S. postage stamp is going to cost you a little bit more. This Sunday the cost of a Forever Stamp went up to 49 cents. This is the first time the cost of stamps has risen since 2015. When it comes to things…

When people think of New York City, they automatically envision fashion. New York has long been the epicenter of fashion icons, inquisitive style, and innovative creativity. The company Official Made in Italy recently joined the chain of stores that line Broadway, and several New York notables made appearances, such as fashion producer and media guru Redeemer Resk ‘Que as well as YRB Magazine Managing Partner and Editor, Jonn Nubian. Yet this is only temporary. Official Made in Italy will be hosting a series of pop up stores much like the one currently located in New York. The pop up store…

There is a high possibility that job cuts will be hitting Microsoft soon. When the company announces it’s quarterly earnings, it is expected a round of layoffs that can affect around 700 jobs. Seven hundred might not seem like such a big number compared to the 113,000 employees the company currently has. However, tension has been high since Microsoft announced that hundreds of jobs would be cut. In its annual report during the summer, Microsoft said that it would cut about 2,850 positions. During that time Microsoft hoped that those positions would be eliminated by June of this year. However,…

Walgreens’ acquisition of Rite Aid doesn’t seem to be going according to plan. Walgreens has yet to gain U.S. antitrust clearance from Federal Trade Commission (FTC) officials. The FTC’s lawyers don’t seem too convinced of the Walgreens’ idea to sell 865 of its stores to Fred’s then take over Rite Aid. The hesitation on the deal also worries investors who are more than optimistic about the transaction. Yet Walgreens offer of $9 a share has dropped to $2.57. The merger of Walgreens and Rite Aid is estimated at $9.4 billion. This would bring Walgreen past CVS Pharmacy, currently the number…

 The forecast that President Donald Trump would enforce the prices of the aerospace industry prompted a publication by Andrew Left. Left, of Citron Research, is the short seller that brought down Valeant Pharmaceuticals. On the day the President was sworn in, Left made it known to bet against TransDigm Group, an airplane parts manufacturer. After the publishing of his paper, stock for TransDigm dropped as low as 13 percent. By the time the market closed that day, the TransDigm lost $1.4 billion in market capital. This made TransDigm the worst performing stock on the S&P 500 that day. Left wrote…

From President Trump’s criticizing Tweets to threats of “big border tax”, the start of the year has been slightly rocky for Ford. However, despite new Presidents threats, Ford created a great deal of jobs in Michigan and managed to invest millions toward factory expansion in the state. Yet recently Ford says that an alteration in the ways it looks at its pensions could be the cause the of a net income drop by $2 billion. The change that Ford made goes as far back as 2015. The automaker changed the way losses and gains of pension are measured. They are…

Wiring money can be one of the fastest ways of delivering cash. However, Western Union’s failure to control its anti-money laundering security led to the loss of millions due to faulty transactions. Thousands of consumers fell victim to scams and illegal gambling. Even undocumented Chinese immigrants used the service to pay their smugglers. Due to this lapse in policy, Western Union not only admitted to its failure in the prevention of wire fraud and money laundering, but the company agreed to pay $586 million in a settlement with the United States. The settlement is one of many that the Obama…

The world’s second-largest economy, China, saw a rise in the fourth quarter by 6.8 percent. Rapid percent growth was thanks to the government’s spending and the bank’s lending. However, despite the growth, there might be some financial risk resulting from debt growth and more pressure to slow the rise of housing. GDP in China rose to 277 percent near the end of 2016. That’s up from the 254 percent from the year before. According to the National Bureau of Statistics China’s economy grew 6.7 percent in 2016 as well. Housing was also a beneficial factor in keeping the growth up. The…

After accusations of engaging in anti-competitive behavior over an infantile spasm medication, Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals will pay $100 million in a lawsuit settlement. The drug in question is H.P. Acthar Gel. Acthar Gel sold for $40 a vial when owned by Questcor. Mallinckrodt obtained Questcor in 2014. After the acquisition, Mallinckrodt raised the list price of the drug to $34,000 a vial. What drew the Federal Trade Commission in was the fact that Athcar Gel had “limited direct competition” and the $1 billion Mallinckrodt gained in revenue during 2015. While Mallinckrodt isn’t the only company to drastically raise prices, this is…

After being accused of deceiving its investors by selling faulty mortgage securities, Credit Suisse will pay $5.3 billion in a settlement. This news comes just after Deutsche Bank agreed to a $7.2 billion settlement over similar allegations. The Department of Justice announced Wednesday that as part of the agreement, Credit Suisse pays $2.48 billion as a penalty and $2.8 to consumers toward loan forgiveness. Another part of the settlement calls for Credit Suisse to admit that its home loans were nowhere near the underwriting guidelines. A source even says that many of the employees describe them as “complete trash.” Credit…

For many auto enthusiasts, the Detroit Auto Show is the highlight of the year. It’s the perfect chance for investors and automakers from all over the globe to gather around and admire each other’s hard work and dedication.  Nearly all automakers have excitedly begun diving head first into the future of electric and autonomous cars. The anticipated theme of the 2017 Detroit Auto Show seemed to be the electric and autonomous car. Every automaker has their own version of either an electric vehicle or a fully autonomous car. As makers like GM, Chrysler, Tesla, and even Volkswagen come together, they…

The pressure from President-elect Donald Trump isn’t just resting on the shoulders of auto companies. Even retailers like Walmart are feeling it. This Tuesday Walmart announced the creation of nearly 10,000 jobs in the U.S. However, these 10,000 jobs it plans to create this year is just a small number compared to the 1.4 million employees the company has all over the United States. Trump will take office tomorrow but has been using Twitter to criticize companies that seem to be straying outside the U.S. with their business. Amazon’s CEO Jeff Bezos received many harsh words from the President-elect last…

Coinbase, the world’s largest bitcoin company, received permission from the New York Department of Financial Services (DFS) for virtual currency and money transmitter license. The superintendent of DFS Maria Vullo made the announcement Monday. In her statement, she commented on her hope that DFS would continue “New York’s long record of being responsive to technological innovation.” Coinbase offers its users a selection of services that range from selling and sending to receiving and storing bitcoin. However, the company remains under the strict watch of the DFS. The DFS led a review of every aspect of Coinbase. DFS went over applications,…

If you recall Google’s Android One, you’ll remember that it was initially created to bring low-cost Androids to developing markets. The Android One, however, intentionally came without the hindrances of many other low-cost Androids. For example, lack of software, competing services, and security updates. Recently it was announced that the Android One will be bringing all those benefits to the U.S. Most companies, ones that don’t appear in the media too often or at all, have been producing Android One devices for a while now. Companies like Micromax, Cherry, and QMobile expanded the device. Google initially started detailing what components…

Just this past Monday, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (M.T.A.) came to an agreement that will give New York City subway and bus workers a 2 percent pay raise. They reached an agreement not too long after the end of the last contract. Many would believe that the finalization of the contract is to be the last act the M.T.A. chairman, Thomas Prendergast, performs while still in power. Prendergast steps down soon and announced this decision when the Second Avenue subway first opened. One of the main focuses of the contract was worker safety. This became a main issue after a…

Not too long ago President-elect Donald Trump criticized General Motors for its decision to build its cars in Mexico. Now, however, the automaker announced its $1 billion investment. The company says it will bring in over 1,000 jobs. While the announcement hasn’t been officially brought to light, GM isn’t the first automaker to say it will bring more jobs. Fiat Chrysler recently said it would bring over 2,000 jobs to Michigan. Fiat, though, wasn’t threatened with Trumps “big border tax”. Yet even though Trump criticized GM for the making of its Cruze in Mexico. GM contradicted that most of the…

Mark Zuckerberg, the well-known owner of the social media giant Facebook, has to testify in court over a $2 billion lawsuit. ZeniMax Media filed the lawsuit against Oculus and co-founder Palmer Luckey. Since Facebook is now the owner of Oculus, ZeniMax added Facebook to the lawsuit. ZeniMax says Facebook knew that Oculus stole ZeniMax’s tech but purchased the company regardless. ZeniMax who owns id Software, a video game developer, filed the suit back in 2014. Facebook also made a $2 billion purchase of Oculus during the same time frame. The lawsuit also accuses Facebook of trying to “leverage and commercially exploit” ZeniMax technology.…

Shares for Sunac China Holdings Ltd. dropped the most in the last sixteen months. The stock fell more than 10 percent which is the largest decline since 2015. While investors in Hong Kong were questioning the company’s decision to bet $2.2 billion on Chinese technology company LeEco, Sunac stock traded 6.2 percent. Many who knew about the deal with LeEco seemed to question Chairman Sun Hongbin’s decision to invest $2.2 billion on the company. However, despite the skepticism, Sun stated that he anticipates “very rapid” development as the real estate industry continues to consolidated over the next 10 years. Sun…

The list of companies to close their doors seems to get longer. The Andersons says it will close its Columbus and Toledo-based stores along with two other sites. The company says its retail business has been steadily losing money over the years and plans to shut down sometime between April and June. The Andersons started in 1952 by the agribusiness that has brought in more than $4.2 billion in revenue. Yet the retail chains only pulled in an estimated $140 million. Over the past few years it’s been evident that the retail hasn’t been doing so well. It pulled in…

After three years as the Federal Trade Commission Chairwoman (FTC), Edith Ramirez is now stepping down. This week she announced she will finish out her time until President-elect Donald Trump takes his seat in the White House. Ramirez gained the FTC a reputation during her time in Washington. Most know the FTC as technology regulators. For example, many would relate the emissions software scandal, associated with Volkswagen, to the Environmental Protection Agency. However, consumers should know that the FTC was in charge of figuring how much Volkswagen owed its consumers. Yet Volkswagen isn’t the only company the FTC cracked down…

JetBlue, an airliner based in New York City, just announced its new Fly-Fi program. In a day and age where not many things work without Wi-Fi, the airline says it will now offer free Wi-Fi to its passengers from the moment they depart to the moment they arrive. Vice President of JetBlue, Jamie Perry, announced that all 227 of the airliners fleet now contain what the company calls “broadband speeds” for each of its passengers. Perry also stated that, “It’s 2017 and our customers expect to be connected everywhere, whether that be from the comfort of their sofa or 35,000…

Things aren’t going so well for many retail companies in the last few months. Sears Holdings closed dozens of its stores, Macy’s did the same, and The Limited said farewell to all 250 of its stores. Now, American Apparel is shutting down all 110 of its stores. However, even though American Apparel is gone, the Canadian company that purchased it plans a revamp. At a bankruptcy auction, Gildan Activewear snagged American Apparel for $88 million. Gildan now owns all American Apparel property, factories in L.A., and even manufacturing equipment. Gildan produces t-shirts and other apparel and says it will shut…

The air bag corporation Takata Corporation in Japan will plead guilty to criminal wrongdoing. Takata and the U.S. Justice Department agreed to a $1 billion settlement after faulty airbags led to the deaths of 16 people. In the settlement, Takata pays $25 million in fines as well as $125 million in compensations of victims and $850 million to the automakers for compensation. A few of the automakers looking for compensation are Honda Motors as well as nineteen others including Ford Motor Company, General Motors, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles who had to recall many vehicles with defected inflators. Along with pleading guilty to criminal…

On Thursday, the online giant Amazon announced that it plans to provide 100,000 new jobs over the next 18 months. This addition of new positions increased the 56 percent in the 180,000 full-time positions in the United States reported near the end of 2016. In Baltimore, Amazon has a new warehouse that currently employs around 3,000 full-time workers. The Baltimore warehouse is one of 70 others in the U.S. that provide opportunities for many Americans. This comes as good news since Macy’s recently announced that it is tanking 10,000 job positions and closing many of its stores. The Limited has…

The second largest credit-rating agency, Moody’s agrees to pay $864 million. The money goes toward the settling of federal and state claims of inflated mortgage investments. Moody’s admits it did not meet its own standards when it came to rating security risks baking home mortgages and collateral debts. The deal made Friday was with the Justice Department and the attorney general of twelve states and the District of Columbia. Moody’s pays $437.5 million to the Justice Department, and the other $426.3 divided among the states. Moody’s, Standard & Poor’s, and Fitch received heavy criticism for low-risk ratings and faulty mortgage securities. However,…

South Korea is looking at a lower economic expansion than predicted, according to the Bank of Korea. The country stated Friday that economy would expand by 2.5 percent which is lower than the estimated 2.8 percent announced in October. It appears that these low numbers could be a result of the peddling scandal that has recently occurred. The impeachment of President Park Geun-hye was a result of the scandal. The accusation against President Park was that she allowed a friend to interfere in government affairs. Parliament has not decided as to whether she will be permanently removed from office. Not…

Six of Volkswagen’s executive face criminal charges in ties with the company’s emissions-cheating scandal. Of the six executives, one is the former head of development. Another includes the head of engine development. This incident first underwent investigation back in 2014. During initial testing, it showed diesel vehicles emitted less pollution than on the road. According to those investigating, executives were aware that the cars knew when testing happened. Since they were able to detect testing, the vehicles produced ideal pollution ratings. Volkswagen executives knowingly distributed inaccurate information to the California Air Resources Board as well as the Environmental Protection Agency. Volkswagen…

Nintendo fans are now able to preorder the Nintendo Switch. Nintendo Switch has been described as a device that will not only allow you to game at home but on the go as well. Those who preorder are guaranteed to be able to retrieve the device once it becomes available in March. Nintendo plans to updates consumers on other details such as specs and specific prices very soon. The Nintendo Store in New York announced on Twitter the preorder date, and they also stated that Nintendo Switch devices would be available in “a limited quantity.” Customers can preorder the Nintendo…

Millions of Americans had foreclosures on their homes or properties last year. However, the rates of foreclosure have hit a 10-year low since 2009. Last year foreclosure rates dropped 14 percent. This is a 70 percent drop from 2009. It’s reported, according to Reuters, that last year’s nearly 379,000 home and property owners lost their property due to foreclosure. On the bright side, that number dropped from the 1.05 million Americans that lost their homes and property in 2009. In all except fifteen states, fewer home and property owners are going through the earlier stages of foreclosure. When a home…

Democratic senators are questioning Wells Fargo about its overdraft fees. Recently the bank’s fines have drastically increased as opposed to its peers. The senators are also wondering if the bank’s recent increase in funds has any relation to the sales-practice fiasco. Ohio senator, Sherrod Brown, and Massachusetts senator, Elizabeth Warren, are members of the Senate Banking Committee. Both senators question the fact that Wells Fargo overdraft related income risen five times higher than other banks. A spokeswoman for Wells Fargo commented that the bank has done nothing unusual as of late. According to the spokeswoman, the bank has kept its actions…

AT&T reported that it will up the price of its long time unlimited data plan by $5. This is one of its first increases since last year. AT&T said that this change will affect subscribers that are already on the unlimited plan. Those who are on AT&T’s “legacy unlimited data plan” already saw a spike in their unlimited plan back in February by $5 increasing to $35. The announcement of the new price hike will bring the plan up to $40 per month. AT&T stopped making unlimited data available to its new subscribers. The company even went as far as…

Special prosecutors are in the course of investigating Lee Jae-yong, vice chairman of Samsung, on suspicions of bribery. Lee reports in Thursday morning for questioning. The scandal involving Samsung’s third generation heir hasn’t reached the end of the rabbit hole just yet. The accusation of corruption that Samsung is under investigation for resulted in the impeachment of South Korea’s president, Park Geun-hye. The special prosecutors also wanted Lee reported for lying under oath. The special prosecutors team came about after there has been accusations of corruption involving many of South Korea’s large businesses and President Park Geun-hye. The main goal of…

Alibaba Group Holding, an E-Commerce firm, and the founder of Intime have joined together to bid on Intime, a noted Chinese department store. Alibaba, along with Shen Guo Jun, offer HK$10 per share. It announced recently that both partners will obtain Intime for HK$19.79 billion ($2.55 billion). Intime currently runs seventeen shopping malls and 29 department stores in China. Since E-Commerce upgraded competition, Intime reported a drop in sales by 21.3 percent. Alibaba presently has 27.82 percent of Intime and Shen has 9.17 percent. China’s retail division has an estimated worth $4.5 trillion with an expected growth of 10.7 percent. Alibaba…

After eighteen years of manufacturing the Victory Motorcycle brand Polaris says it has decided to part ways. Polaris started the company from scratch, yet shares dropped two percent last year and three percent three years ago. Polaris says this decision won’t have any effect on its other existing brands like Indian Motorcycle and other brands. Even though Polaris begins to liquidate Victory, it will honor its warranty and provide coverage and service for the next ten years. Although there is no way to tell how this decision effect employment. Victory was a capstone brand that first gave Polaris the confidence at…

In efforts to revamp its franchise in the international market, McDonald’s will sell at least 80 percent of its business in Hong Kong and throughout China. McDonald’s already operates and estimated 65 percent of the 2,000 outlets it owns in China. This new move will help McDonald’s build its franchising worldwide. McDonald’s announced that it was on the lookout for partners to create over 1,500 restaurants in China and Korea within the next five years. Citic, China’s investment group, along with the U.S. firm Carlyle Group agreed to a deal with an estimated value of $2.1 billion.  The benefits of…

Transportation has come a long way in recent years. Many automakers are in the process of making autonomous cars and plane makers are creating larger faster jets. Recently Colorado says it will further the development of a transport system with Hyperloop One. Researchers describe Hyperloop One as a super train capable of traveling from Los Angeles to San Francisco in thirty minutes. A drive from L.A. to San Francisco normally takes five hours by car. The use of Hyperloop One would allow passengers and cargo to move through Front Range at speeds around 700 mph. At that speed it’s estimated the…

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) says it will move jobs from Mexico to Michigan. FCA announced that it will make 2,000 jobs in Michigan. It will also invest $1 billion in two Michigan factories. Along with new jobs, FCA says that there’s a possibility it will move its Ram Heavy Duty pickup truck production from its Mexican plant to Michigan. President-elect Donald Trump threatened Ford, GM, and Toyota with imported vehicle tax. He also criticized the automaker’s decisions to move production of some of their vehicles to Mexico. This could be one reason FCA is hesitant to invest in any production in Mexico. FCA Chief Executive, Sergio Marchionne,…

When it comes to gas prices in 2017, Mexico isn’t the only country that’s in for a shock. It’s estimated that consumers in the U.S. are going to pay 36 cents more for gas this year. In total, they’ll be shelling out $52 billion more this year than in 2016. GasBuddy, a company that monitors gas prices, foresees the average price for gas going up to $2.65 per gallon. Last year’s average price was only $2.49 per gallon. In 2016 United States motorists paid $39 billion less than what they did in 2015. This year, however, can see an estimated…

From recently closing a few of its stores to borrowing money from the CEO, Sears Holdings struggles to keep its head above water. However, recently the company announced that it will sell its tool brand Craftsman to Stanley Black & Decker for $900 million. The payment for Craftsman will split into two installments. Stanley Black & Decker pays Sears $525 million sometime this year. Sears receives the other $250 million three years from now. Stanley’s CEO, James Loree, commented in a press release that this deal is a “significant opportunity to grow the market by increasing the availability of Craftsman.”…

China’s yuan managed to reach its sharpest decline in the last twenty years. China’s foreign currency stayed above $3 trillion for December. The People’s Bank of China confirmed that reserves dropped $41 trillion to $3 trillion. The State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) says the attempt to stabilize the yuan contributed to the fall in foreign currency. The bank provided the funds to help maintain the foreign exchange balance. This also caused the drop in exchange reserves. To keep investor confidence and prevent further drops in the yuan, China will attempt to keep the currency above $3 trillion. Policy makers began extra…

Many retailers suffered at the hands of online shopping this holiday season. The Limited has also announced that it is closing all 250 of its stores. It’s assumed that this is due to consumer preference for online shopping. Leslie H. Wexner started The Limited in 1963. The store got its name for its limited variety of women’s apparel. What started out as a 2,000-square foot establishment, became the largest presence to circulate shopping malls. The Limited even began to dominate many larger retailers. The more his business grew, the more ideas Wexner began to harbor. He opened The Limited Express and…

It was just four months ago that Samsung had to recall its Note 7. However, the company believes that the fourth quarter of 2016 can get them back on track. For the fourth quarter earnings, Samsung expects to bring in an estimated 9.2 trillion won ($7.2 billion). That would double the fourth quarter profit from 2015. While the Note 7 was part of the reason the sales were down, Samsung’s third quarter was the other reason. Samsung had high expectations for the third quarter before they had to recall the Note 7. With a hope for numbers like 7.8 won ($6.6…

Ford Motor Co. and General Motors are joined by another automaker receiving Trump’s criticism. Trump once again took to Twitter. He made it known that Toyota Motor Corp. would also receive a “big border tax” unless it withdraws plans to build in Mexico. Like Ford and General Motors, Toyota has plans to start a new plant in Mexico. Before Trump’s Tweet Akio Toyoda, president of Toyota, seemed positive about the Trump administration. He described the Trump administration as a new “opportunity.”  Toyoda went on to say that the company has no problem working with Trump to make the U.S. stronger. Yet…

Recently Boeing confirmed the order of 80 of its 737 MAX 8 airliners. The aircraft maker made $8.8 billion for the company. While this is good news, Boeing didn’t quite reach its goal to sell as many jets as it made. Even though Boeing delivered 681 jets in the fall, they made between 745 and 750. The numbers have the potential to rise, though. Friday Boeing will list a sales update for 2016. The plane maker earns a large part of its profit through deliveries of planes. General Electric Capital Aviation Service(GECAS) was one to place an order. For those orders, Boeing delivered…

The holiday sales weren’t too kind to Macy’s this year. Sales for the retailer fell by two percent between the months of November and December. Macy’s sales earnings were $2.95 to $3.10 which is lower than the $3.15 to $3.40 the company expected. To improve their sales performance, the company plans to close nearly sixty-eight stores. Along with closing stores, Macy’s strategy is to remove management. The company will terminate over 6,200 workers. To cut non-payroll costs, Macy’s also plans to reallocate or let go of, at least 3,900 other workers. These closures can save Macy’s a predicted $550 million starting…

In April Ford announced it had decided to build a new $1.6 billion plant in San Luis Potosi, Mexico. President-elect Donald Trump opposed the idea. He called the automaker an “absolute disgrace” during his campaign. This choice follows Trump’s criticism of General Motors. Trump threatened General Motors with a “border tax” on the compact cars made in Mexico. Trump tweeted, “General Motors is sending Mexican made model of Chevy Cruze to U.S. car dealers-tax free across border. Make in U.S.A. or pay big border tax!” GM contradicted the statement. The automaker planned to target global customers with its Mexico plants. The…

The two largest automakers in South Korea, Hyundai and Kia, estimate a rise in auto sales by 4.7 percent. This year the two automakers are relying on the sales of new models to increase their profit. Both automakers estimate to produce 8.25 million vehicles. Hyundai will generate 5.08 million and Kia 3.17 million.  This is a large increase from the 7.88 million vehicles they produced last year. The two companies hope that the introduction of new car models will put them ahead of the competition. Both are relying on new auto plants in Mexico and China. Those two countries expect to…

A new year often means new promises. Finland has started 2017 by offering free money to the unemployed for two years. The plan is to see how the free cash helps the unemployed citizens find work. The social-security company, Kela, will start sending out around $590 to an estimated 2,000 citizens. The program started Monday and plans to last through to 2019. Even if the citizens find work or not, the money will come the first of each month. This plan is a trial of basic income. Universal basic income (UBI) gives out money to people just for being alive.…

The Mexican government’s recent price deregulation has caused the price of gasoline to rise about twenty percent. It has also sent many citizens to the streets in protest. Dozens of small protests have popped up all over the country, the Mexican government says that this deregulation was planned. It is just an unfortunate coincidence that it happens to fall along with the rise of oil prices all over the world. The government set the deregulation to put an end to the subsidies that have more benefits for the wealthier citizens. Since New Year’s Day, when the deregulation officially took effect,…

Although many of China’s factories were operating a bit slowly this winter, the country is still progressing through its fifth consecutive month of expansion. For China, the monthly purchasing index, per the Chinese Federation of Logistics and Purchasing, climbed up from 49.7 to 51.4 this December. The monthly purchasing index is based on a 100-point scale which makes fifty points the dividing mark between expansion and contraction in business. This makes it the second highest level in the year 2016. This wasn’t the highest, however. It reached 51.7 in November for the first time since summer of 2014. Since Beijing…

Tim Horton’s and Burger King will join other restaurants in the switch to serving chicken that has been raised without antibiotics. The owner of the companies, Restaurant Brands International, says it is getting rid of the drug due to health concerns and will be making changes throughout U.S. restaurants this year and in Canada in 2018. Even though the use of seventy percent of antibiotics, which are beneficial for fighting infection, are approved for use in dairy and meats, the overuse of these drugs in food are aiding in the large number of consumer who develop infections from “superbugs” or…

2016 saw some good and bad times for Tesla Motors. There was the purchase of SolarCity for $2.6 billion and unexpected high figures for the Model 3. However, the safety of the company’s auto-piloting systems were questioned, and there were a few discrepancies with journalists. This year, however, seems to be looking up for Tesla. Analysts believe that 2017 will be a promising year for the motor company. There is even a belief that the Model 3 and Tesla’s energy storage company will be more than ready to face the competition. Shares for Tesla already traded for $213 Friday. Where…

The founder of Foxconn Tech, Terry Gou, says that the company has plans to build a television flat-panel factory for $8.8 billion (61 billion yuan) in Guangzhou, China. Even though Trump wants to enforce a 45% tax on all things made in China as an effort to encourage more U.S. manufacturing, Gou went as far as to call the country of China an “investment treasure land.” Although he didn’t mention Trump or the tax. Gou even applauded the profitable atmosphere in Taiwan where Apple produces iPhones. Foxconn had said that it was contemplating the increase of U.S. jobs but with…

One of the original members of Run-DMC, Darryl McDaniels, is suing Amazon, Wal-Mart, and Jet.com, a company which Wal-Mart owns, for selling clothing and other merchandise without the brand’s permission. In this lawsuit, McDaniel’s is asking for $50 million from the stores. The defendants are being asked to pay for the hats, t-shirts, wallets and other infringed merchandise that McDaniels says is “extremely valuable” and having endorsements for sneakers from Adidas as well as other licensed deals. Run-DMC started in New York City and was founded by McDaniels, Joseph “Run” Simmons and Jason “Jam Master Jay” Mizell in 1981. The group…

It’s true that Kmart has been in the game for a long time and the same goes for Sears. However, it would seem that the round of stores closing for Sears Holdings isn’t over. The company will be closing twenty-four Kmart stores and eight Sears stores late on in April. Liquidation sales are scheduled to take place the beginning of January. It’s more than likely that this won’t be the only round of store closures for 2017. The holiday sales for the company were not as high as expected and with the steady decline of many of its stores, it…

Sprint says it will “create or bring back” nearly 5,000 customer care and sales jobs for Americans. Another company called OneWeb also plans to create around 3,000 jobs for Americans. President-elect Donald Trump claims to take credit for both announcements. SoftBank, a Japanese company that owns controlling stake in Sprint and has large investments in OneWeb, had announced it had a 50,000-job plan this winter. Whereas SoftBank had announced it would make $100 billion in technology investments long before Trump won the election, it didn’t announce the addition of jobs until December. Although some of its jobs are still headed…

At the busiest time of the year for all retailers when cash intake is at its peak, Sears Holdings announced that it will obtain a loan from CEO Eddie Lampert in order to keep the company above water. Thursday Sears said they received a $200 million loan that has the potential to be expanded to $500 million. This loan from the hedge fund guarantees the lenders will be paid should Sears default on its debt. This request also comes after Sears announced that it will also be closing more stores. The recent quarter has not been too nice for the retailer.…

After university graduate, Matsuri Takahashi committed suicide the winter of 2015, the president Tadashi Ishii of Japan’s largest advertising agency, Dentsu, has announced that he will step down. Takahashi had clocked in 105 hours of overtime that October, which resulted in depression. The Japanese government decided her death was “karoshi” or death by overwork and can also be considered suicide following work-related mental stress. This is one of two types of karoshi that the government identifies. The other is death from cardiovascular illness related to overwork. The government performed many raids on Dentsu. A study shows that in the country…

The healthcare company Abbott Laboratories was approved for a $25 billion procurement of St. Jude Medical, who is known for its production of medical devices. Abbott announced that it will be selling a vascular closure, used to seal small holes in the artery after a coronary, that is made by St. Jude along with its own steering device, which is used to place catheters into hearts, to a Japan-based corporation. Abbott says that the deal with St. Jude will be a great asset when it comes to competition with other companies like Medtronic. The deal also comes at a good…

This week Delta Air Lines said they have reached an agreement with Boeing to retract the order of 18 of Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner crafts. These aircraft were ones that Delta had presumed was part of the merger with Northwest Airlines in 2008. The merger with Northwest gained Delta $2.6 billion. However, the order that was recently canceled was estimated at $4 billion. Delta’s fleet already has around 25 aircraft from Airbus and is still expecting to receive four of their A350s by 2018. Although the order for the Dreamliner was canceled, Delta says they will continue to accept 120 of the new…

Panasonic and Tesla are in the making of becoming the dynamic duo of solar tech. The two companies have just recently finished the inner workings of a deal that will allow them to begin making solar cells and modules in Tesla’s Buffalo, New York factory. This deal between the two companies stands to create an estimated 1,400 new jobs which include at least 500 manufacturing jobs. Since Tesla has hopes of furthering its manufacturing in the U.S., it helps that Tesla and Panasonic are to spend $5 billion building a factory in Nevada that will begin making batteries for energy storage…

With a new year, there’s always a promise of new beginnings and a fresh start, however, one thing motorists won’t be looking forward to is the upcoming rise in gas tax. Dozens of states will be raising their gas taxes in 2017. Large increases will be seen in states like Michigan, which already has a gas tax of 30.54 cents per gallon. Michigan’s gas tax will rise by 7.3 cents per gallon. Nebraska will also see an surge to its current 27.7 cents per gallon by 1.5 cents per gallon. That state of Pennsylvania holds the highest gas tax in…

Snapchat recently made its first purchase in Israel by procuring the company Cimagine. Snapchat is reported to have paid around $30 to $40 million for Cimagine, who has worked with Coke, Shop Direct, based in the UK, and a furniture store in California named Jerome’s. While this is Snapchat’s first purchase in Israel, it is one of many ventures the company has explored this year. Snapchat rebranded itself, now called Snap Inc. and purchased Bitstrips for $100 million and the search app Vurb for $110 million. Cimagine works with companies like these by boosting their in-store sales by supplementing their…

Both Walgreens and Rite-Aid are the two leading drugstore chains throughout the U.S. A merger between the two would result in the largest drugstore chain in America, surpassing CVS. However, the Federal Trade Commission has yet to decide if they will approve the merger which is estimated at a $9.6 billion. Just earlier this week Rite Aid proclaimed a sale of 865 of its stores in a $950 million deal with a small pharmaceutical company called Fred’s. This purchase is only if the FTC approves the Walgreens-Rite Aid merger. Even though Fred’s hasn’t been authorized as a buyer, Fred’s acquisition…

Not long after Boeing completed their deal to sell over 80 jets to Iran, Airbus has joined the game. Airbus announced Thursday that they will be selling over 100 jetliners to Iran. This transaction, along with the deal with Boeing, is in an effort to help Iran revive its air fleet which has seen turmoil in recent years due to economic depletion. Iran has reported that they will need to purchase around four hundred planes in order to refurbish their fleet. Both deals were able to be completed because the sanctions on Iran had been lifted over a year ago.…

If you happen to be taking a drive in the northern part of France, you might notice something a little different about the road. In the village of Tourouvre-au-Perche in Normandy, the first solar power road covers over 30,000 square feet. The new solar power road, named Wattway, was built by the French engineering firm Colas, who is also working on nearly a hundred more solar projects, like this one, around the world. The one 1 kilometer (0.62 miles) stretch of solar panel road was put in place to power the street lights. The project cost €5 million ($5.2 million)…

Monte dei Paschi di Siena is over 544 years old and has earned the title as the world’s oldest bank. The ancient bank has caused quite a few problems for investors. However, the bank announced Wednesday that due to its failure to land an investor for its new shares it’s in need of government help. Since it wasn’t able to secure an investor, many institutions were hesitant to invest their money into the €5 billion ($5.2 billion) the bank needed. The bank had largely based its dependency upon the investment of €1 billion from Qatar. Because that investment fell through,…

Retired Army major and West Point graduate, Vincent Viola is President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for secretary of the Army. Confirmation per the Senate is that the 61-year-old will be the senior civilian leader for the Army. Viola is the owner of the hockey team the Florida Panthers. He has helped with the foundation of the Combating Terrorism Center, which was established after September 11th, and is estimated to be worth $1.8 billion according to Forbes. Not only is he one of the four hundred richest Americans, but Trump’s transition office stated that Viola is working “tirelessly to promote the Army…

Until Anheuser-Busch InBev can hire a new owner, Coca-Cola has purchased majority shares for $3.15 billion in their Africa bottling company. Back in October Coke said that it would purchase stake that had been owned by SABMiller who took over AB InBev. Both Coke and AB InBev commented in a joint statement that they are both in complete agreement of the transfer of almost 54 percent stake in one of the largest soft drink bottler throughout countries like Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania, Coca-Cola Beverages Africa (CCBA). Coke also announced it’s future expansion to other African territories like Botswana and Zambia that…

The Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, has brought health care to millions across the nation. Obamacare has provided subsidies to Americans with low or moderate income Last year almost thirteen percent of Americans went without health care due to expensive prices. That percent dropped by three percent since 2013. The cost of healthcare has increased significantly in the past years, but the Affordable Care Act has made billions of dollars available to aid in the extension of Medicaid, which is used as coverage by a majority of Americans. Republican leaders, along with President-elect Donald Trump, are planning to repeal…

Honda Motor’s recently announced that it will be collaborating with Waymo in an effort to utilize the companies self-driving car technology. The use of self-driving sensors and computing technology will give Honda an alternative approach the autonomous vehicle market. The merger with the auto company could be where Alphabet has its sites sets on boosting the development of its autonomous cars. However, according to Computerworld, in recent months “Alphabet advanced into a separate business whose motto is to make it safe and easy for people and things to move around.” While Fiat Chrysler has already revealed one hundred Pacifica minivans…

The U.S. dollar has risen to a fourteen-year high compared to six other currencies, including the euro and the yen. The dollar index has recently increased to 103.560, which makes for the largest surge within a six-month period. The dollar held its own against the yen rising to 0.9 percent, bringing it to 118.11 yen, before rising again to 1.4 percent, 118.66 yen. The euro, however, has fallen 1.2 percent. It is expected that the euro equal the dollar around the third quarter of 2017. This gain in the dollar’s index comes shortly after interest rates have risen for the…

Uber says its self-driving cars have a “problem” with the concept of bike lanes. It made this statement after a few of its autonomous cars were caught making various traffic violations in the city of San Francisco. Uber says its working to fix the way the cars make unsafe turns when confronted with biking lanes. The Bicycle Coalition of San Francisco gave Uber a warning after its executive director, Brian Weidenmeier claims to have seen Uber’s self-driving car make unsafe right turns through bike lanes, twice. The vehicles allegedly moved across the bike lanes at the last second to turn,…

The Washington Post has created a Google Chrome plugin the will fact check Donald Trump’s tweets. The content will be displayed next to Trump’s tweets and provide factual statements. The Washington Post says that the Chrome extension is still in its early stages but once people install it they will have access to content attached to Trump’s Tweets. The Post’s owner Jeff Bezos is known for his twitter battles with Trump during the election. Trump even blackballed the Post’s reporters from his campaign events during election time as well. Therefore, it’s no surprise that the Washington Post would come up…

If Donald Trump’s administration terminates a deal between Iran and Boeing for the purchase of nearly eighty Boeing jets, then Iran says they want their money back. This includes “prepayments with interest” on the $16.6 billion-dollar deal. Trump has openly criticized President Obama’s choice to lift sanctions on Iran so that the country better controls their nuclear program. This deal with Boeing was one of the first made after President Obama lifted the sanctions. The purchase of almost 200 jets from Boeing, and even Airbus, will help increase Iran’s air field which has fallen on hard times in recent years. Iran’s…

The United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW) isn’t too happy about the prospect of Amazon’s new store that presents the aspect of having no cashier. The new Amazon store will run off artificial intelligence and computer technology that will give customers the access to pick whatever they want off the shelf and leave without having to wait in any type of long lines. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrmMk1Myrxc Since cashiers make up an estimated 3.5 million jobs in America, the idea of a store without them doesn’t sit too well with many. Marc Perrone, who is international president of the UFCW, said,…

Airbnb is known for letting homeowners rent out their homes to other. Whether it be just one room or their entire house, many homeowners choose to rent out their space with Airbnb. The company has seen some good business over the years but has also been facing some tough times. Airbnb even had to go as far as suing the cities of San Francisco and New York. Now Airbnb is trying to raise over $153 million to further their expansion of the estimated $30 billion company. Airbnb confirmed Friday that investors have already taken interest in the $153 million shares…

Uber says that it will continue to test its self-driving cars despite being told by the California DMV to cease all testing. The California Department of Motor Vehicles threatened to take action unless Uber shuts down all testing within the city of San Francisco unless the company obtains a permit to do so. Uber doesn’t think that it needs a permit to do what companies like Tesla have been doing with cars that are able to park themselves without driver assist. Uber also believes that the only way they would need a permit is if the vehicles they are testing…

In a way to prevent misuse of Tesla’s Superchargers, the company will be establishing an “idle” fee. This new program was developed to open the charging station for other owners. This way, instead of arriving at the charging station and finding a fully charged car sitting at the charging station the owner will have to move their vehicle in order to prevent a fee. Tesla stated that the new fee will charge users $0.40 every additional minute that their car remains connected to the charging station after it is fully charged. If the driver retrieves their vehicle within a five-minute…

Solar power seems to be coming in as the number one contender for the world’s cheapest form of electricity. According to Bloomberg, Solar energy is rapidly passing up coal and other natural options. It’s even becoming almost as cheap as wind. The cost for solar energy in over fifty countries including China and Brazil has dropped. Head of U.S. policy analysis at Bloomberg New Energy Finance stated that, “A huge part of this story is China, which has been rapidly deploying solar.” He also went on to say that China’s efforts have inspired other countries to pursue solar energy projects…

American Airlines is being fined $1.6 million for violating the Department of Transportations’ tarmac delay rule. This comes after the DOT investigated a few incidents 2014 and 2015 where a few domestic flights were left on the tarmac for hours at a time. Flights in Dallas, Shreveport, and Charlotte all experienced this during 2013 and 2015.  The DOT demanded the airline abstain from making any future violations of the same kind. The DOT rules state that an airline cannot have more than thirty passengers on a plane waiting for more than three hours without the option of getting off the…

In the summer of 2013, Yahoo experienced the largest known data security breach of any company. Hackers perforated Yahoo email systems and collected names, birth dates, alternate emails, and security questions of over 1 billion users. Yahoo is one of the oldest sources for obtaining free email addresses. This isn’t the first time the company has been hacked. Back in 2014, nearly 500 million accounts were breached, and Yahoo has been making progress tracking down the suspect. The information stolen by the hackers three years ago, however, could be used to break into other accounts across the web. This also…

Prime Air, the beginning of a new Amazon service, made its first test run. Amazon delivered its first package by drone in the United Kingdom. Amazon has begun pilot testing drones for future delivery purposes. With permission from the Civil Aviation Authority in Britain, the first test flight of Amazons delivery drones took place a few miles away from a drone testing site near Cambridge.  This new service is going to be for the delivery of packages that weigh up to five pounds and will take less than thirty minutes. The only two trial customers for this new service has…

Over a year ago, a food contamination scare lost Chipotle a huge chunk of its customers. In a huge effort to gain back its customer’s trust, Chipotle added chorizo to the menu and began offering free kids meals. Despite all its efforts, however, things still don’t seem to be looking up for the restaurant. For restaurants that have been open for nearly a year, sales have dropped to around twenty-two percent. While the concern of food contamination could be the main source of customer shortage, executives met Monday to entertain the possibility of another reason. They came to the conclusion that…

UPS and FedEx are struggling to keep up with the copious amounts of deliveries that have sprung up by online shoppers since Thanksgiving and Black Friday. To brace themselves for the holiday season, both UPS and FedEx are sending out extra employees to help with loading truck and even driving. Both companies had to go as far as lengthen delivery windows for certain routes, suspended refunds and express deliveries in certain cases. Yet these delays have caused rates for both FedEx and UPS to drop. Normal rates for the two companies are around 99%, but a few weeks ago, UPS…

Former Uber employee, Ward Spangenberg, claims that other employees had access information to not only spy on ex-girlfriends and boyfriends but also on celebrities and politicians. Spangenberg claims that it is Uber’s lack of security that allowed for things like this to come about. Spangenberg was a forensic investigator for the company but was terminated last winter. In turn, Spangenberg decided to sue Uber for defamation of character and discrimination. Uber argues the accuracy of such claims saying that it has always maintained the privacy of its users. The company firmly stands behind its strict security policy for the protection…

Qantas hopes to start one of the world’s longest non-stop flights from Australia to Europe. The company announced that in March 2018 it would start flying non-stop passenger flights from Perth to London Heathrow using its Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner. This route will be one of the first to directly connect Australia to Europe with an estimated 9,010 miles and 17 hours. To date, Emirates holds the tops spot for longest flights with its route from Dubai and New Zealand being 8,819 miles. This brings Qantas at number two with its Dallas to Sydney route stretching 8,576. Meanwhile, Air India is…

After Apple Airpods had been on delay since their supposed launch in October, they have now gone on sale. The reason for the delay is still uncertain but Apple tried to placate its customers by saying it required “more time” before the AirPods were “ready for our customers”. Apple announced that the AirPods would be “shipping in limited quantities” and that customers should “check online for updates.” Customers can expect to see AirPods in Apple Stores and other Apple authorized stores within the next week. AirPods go great with the iPhone 7, which is one of the first smartphones that…

Skype’s translation feature, created back in 2014, only allowed users to translate Skype to Skype calls. The company, however, recently announced that the translation option will soon be available for landline and mobile use as well. Users will need to be members of the Windows Insider Program which is free and allows its users to sign up for Windows features before others. They will also need to have the latest version of the Skype app, Skype Preview, downloaded as well as have some Skype credits. To begin, you’ll start like any other Skype call. Click the dialer, select the switch…

Airbnb and their policies haven’t earned the company much favor with cities. The company had to go as far as suing New York and San Francisco. Airbnb sued New York City after the state’s governor made it illegal to rent out a space for thirty days without the owner of said space being there. San Francisco was sued by the company due to the fact that the city has a law stating homeowners need to register their property with the federal government before listing their homes for rental. Somehow though the company seems to be trying to make things right,…

Governor Rick Snyder approved a legislation that will allow Michigan to be the first state to test and sell self-driving cars. The law will allow the testing of cars that lack a steering wheel or brake pedal. Companies like Ford, Fiat Chrysler, and Uber came together to help form the legislation. Once the technology is properly tested and secured, the self-driving vehicles can be sold. Google and Ford, which are part of the Self-Driving Coalition for Safer Streets, are just a few companies who want the government to release a better set of rules on the testing of self-driving. Meanwhile,…

Who doesn’t love a good sale? In fact, there’s something satisfying about purchasing something at a lower price. However, a Los Angeles attorney is suing four major retailers for wrongly advertising sale prices. According to attorney Mike Feuer, retail customers need to know “the truth about the prices they’re paying.” Kohl’s, Macy’s, JCPenney and Sears are under fire for allegations of “false price advertising.” The lawsuit against the four retail giants claims that the companies falsely represented “thousands of products” as a marketing ploy. The lawsuit claim accuses Macy’s of offering a cross pendant necklace online in May for $30…

As of Thursday, Uber has laid down the law when it comes to dos and don’ts for its riders and drivers. Some Uber drivers probably could tell you some gruesome horror stories when it comes to past riders. Uber says that the following list of things could lose you a ride with their company: Damaging driver’s or other passengers’ property: If you get drunk and vomit, break the drivers or the other passenger’s cell phone or spill your drink you can be denied a ride. Physical contact with other riders or the driver: No fighting with other passengers or hitting the…

On December 12th, the White House will have its first e-sports and gaming marathon. Shaquille O’Neal announced his participation in the gaming event this Thursday. The event will be hosted to help encourage gamers to sign up for healthcare through the Affordable Care Act. Since millions of people have begun to tune in more to e-sports than the World Series or NBA finals, this gaming event will be just a few days before the deadline, December 15th, to sign up for health care coverage that will begin starting January 1st. E-sports fans are a large and rapidly growing group of…

Microsoft closed its biggest deal ever by purchasing LinkedIn for $26.2 billion. This deal exceeded the one Microsoft made by purchasing Skype for $8.5 billion back in 2011. Six months ago, Microsoft had announced that they planned on buying LinkedIn, and this Thursday the details were made final. Although Microsoft will own LinkedIn, the CEO of the company, Jeff Weiner will still oversee the company. LinkedIn simply reports to Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella. Weiner commented on the deal saying that he was “more confident than ever” about the pair up with Microsoft. LinkedIn has been around for nearly thirteen years…

Recently the U.S. Pharmaceutical company Pfizer is being fined $106 million for raising the prices of anti-epilepsy medication a record of 2,600%. According to British regulator Competition and Markets Authority, the New York-based company overcharged patients for phenytoin sodium capsules, a drug that had been de-banded around September 2012. Although Pfizer said that it’s going to appeal the fine, the price of the epilepsy drug capsules skyrocketed from $3.75 for 100 milligrams to $85.06. Even though the price was ultimately dropped to around $68 in May. This caused prices for the National Health Care Service in Britain to rise to…

After we cut all ties with Cuba in 1961, President Obama decided in July 2015 that it was time for the United States to stop giving Cuba the silent treatment. Since then, Cuba and the Obama administration have been working on agreements between the two countries. However, what Cuba fears is that all the hard work they and the Obama administration have put into these agreements will be for nothing when President-elect Donald Trump takes office in January. Many business owners in Cuba have asked Trump not to end the relationship that Cuba has established with the U.S. through the…

Fitbit confirmed in an announcement that the deal to buy assets of smartwatch company Pebble is coming to a close. The move comes at a time when Pebble seems to be suffering financial struggles. Fitbit has taken this opportunity to gain use of Pebbles cloud system, apps for its watches, and the people that are familiar with creating the technology for the company. According to Bloomberg, Fitbit said that it will be offering jobs to many Pebble employees. However, Pebble CEO and founder, Eric Migicovsky won’t be staying with the company after this transition but moving on Y Combinator as…

Google has announced the launch of its new application called Trusted Contacts. This will allow close friends and love ones to be able to track your location during times of an emergency. You will be able to add close friends and family you want to share your location with to Trusted Contacts and they will be updated on your exact whereabouts. If for some reason there’s an emergency, you will be able to share their GPS location with family and friends. There is also a timeframe in which, if you are unable to respond, your location will be automatically sent…

The Chesapeake Energy Corp. announced that it’s going to be selling 78,000 acres of land and wells for $450 million. The deal includes about 250 wells in northern Louisiana Haynesville Shale. The wells produce around 30 million cubic feet of natural gas daily. The improvement in the drilling in Haynesville has brought Chesapeake to the 35 rigs it’s had since 2010. Earlier this fall the company stated that it was willing to sell at least 125,000 acres in Haynesville, which is equal to one-third of the company’s shares there. That announcement proceeded the one Chesapeake made Monday in which the…

The popular home renting company Airbnb has begun setting limits on how often its users can rent out their homes. These limits will especially apply to homes in London, Amsterdam and San Francisco. This began when San Francisco homeowners were found to have been illegally renting out their homes. The Bay Area Investigative Unit uncovered thousands of people across the city that were renting their homes out under the radar. Since the incident, Airbnb stated that in London and Amsterdam homeowner are restricted to renting out their homes for no longer than their city ordinances allow unless necessary paperwork proving…

CEO of Starbucks Howard Schultz is stepping down and handing the reigns over to current Chief Operating Officer Kevin Johnson. Johnson has been with the company seven years before joining the executive board about two years ago. Schultz has been with Starbucks for over twenty years and is accredited with bringing the company to new heights. After joining the company as marketing director in 1982, Schultz modified the way Americans drink coffee and opened a door for a social gathering place that gets people out of the house. Schultz later left the company to open Il Giornale, his own coffee…

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers gave the protesters at Standing Rock Sioux Reservation until Monday to leave the property. Four months of tear gas, water cannons, police confrontations and prayer marching leaves the protesters with the ultimatum of vacating the premises or be fined for trespassing. Though it is said that the land should belong to the Standing Rock Sioux, the property the protesters currently occupy is federal land. Despite the cold and the threats coming from the Army Corps and the North Dakota governor’s office, the people are standing firm. Tents, tepee, and lodges are sprouting up all…

A manager at Foxconn, part of Apple’s manufacturing chain, can face up to ten years in jail for stealing iPhones and selling them. The manager, who is only being identified by the name Tsai, sold over 5,700 iPhone’s to stores in Shenzhen, China, between the years of 2013-2014. It is reported that Tsai had eight other employees remove iPhone 5 and iPhone 5s, which were marked to be scrapped, from the manufacturing line and sold them throughout China. Tsai and his comrades collected a total of $2.2 million before they were discovered. The thieves were caught during one of Foxconn’s…

It’s only a matter of time until the Norwegian Air Shuttle begins offering discounts on trans-Atlantic flights. The Norwegian Air Shuttle was recently approved by the US Transportation Department in their request to use an Irish secondary in order to increase U.S. flights. Spokesman Anders Lindstorm says that the new move will certainly lead to an increase in flights and the addition of new jobs. The Department of Transportation also found Norwegian Air International to be a good fit for U.S. carriers. However, some lawmakers and even unions rejected the idea. While Norwegian Air says that the Irish unit will attract…

Coinbase must release the identity of select customers who transferred currency during the years of 2013-2015. Judge Jacqueline Corley granted the IRS a John Doe summons to collect the information from Coinbase. Coinbase is a company that handles transactions of Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other digital currency. The IRS made a request for the John Doe summons once it suspected Coinbase customers were committing tax evasion. In her ruling, Judge Corley stated that “There is a reasonable basis for believing that such groups or class of persons has failed or may have failed to comply with any provision of any internal…

When you find something on Facebook you think is a bit too risqué, you make a report. A Facebook employee then takes the reported material and compares it against Facebook’s “company policies”. Now, however, Facebook has announced that it will be using artificial intelligence to detect offensive material. According to Facebook’s director of applied machine learning, Joaquin Candela, says that the Facebook has slowly but surely been incorporating artificial intelligence into the way it monitors site content. The social media giant uses AI in order to sort through all the millions of reports it receives each week. The computer sorts…

Johnson & Johnson and DePuy Orthopedics were ordered by a federal court in Texas to pay six plaintiffs a total of $1 billion this Thursday after losing a lawsuit involving their Pinnacle metal-on-metal hip implants. The plaintiffs complained that Johnson & Johnson and DePuy promoted the implants to be longer lasting than most plastic or ceramic competitors. The six victims also said they not only experienced bone erosion but tissue death and other related injuries from the implants. The six plaintiffs aren’t the only ones who claim that Johnson & Johnson and DePuy failed to warn them of the risks…

Apple says it needs “a little more time” before the new AirPods, Apples wireless earbuds, will be available for customers. The AirPods were announced at the beginning of September but since then their release date keeps getting deferred. Customers have been impatiently awaiting the release of the AirPods since October. One consumer wrote to Apple demanding to know the exact release date and even threatened to seek business elsewhere. Tim Cook, CEO of Apple, promptly responded to the email saying, “Thanks for your note. Sorry for the delay—we are finalizing them and I anticipate we will begin to ship over…

Twitter has developed a new feature that will count replies and rank conversations. It will do this in the same way it tallies up retweets and likes. This will be Twitter’s way of keeping track of which conversations are sparking the most interest on Twitter. When it comes to counting replies, the number will appear next to the reply icon. Twitter has hopes that this will inspire users to become more engaged in Twitter’s conversations. However, the total number of replies throughout the conversation will not be listed. Conversation ranking, on the other hand, has been available on the desktop…

This Wednesday Saudi Arabia’s king has approved a distribution of 100 billion riyals from royal reserves to be placed into a Public Investment Fund (PIF). That’s equal to $27 billion U.S. King Salman gave a statement to news agency SPA telling them that the fund is to help support investments in not only the foreign market but the local sector as well. The PIF was established in 1971 to aid in financing development projects throughout the country. The beginning of this year the Saudi Arabian government announced that they wanted to expand the fund’s assets from $160 billion to $2…

The inventors of the innovative, wearable camera known as GoPro announced Wednesday that the company will be cutting over fifteen percent of its workforce which is equivalent to two hundred jobs. This, the company says, is part of a bigger plan that will allow the company to focus more on its core products. It would seem, however, that GoPro designers underestimated its popularity. Some say that the announcement to cut jobs will allow the company time to innovate and plan its next move. While GoPro’s camera had once been head of the tech market, companies like Sony, Nikon, and Canon have…

Netflix subscribers are getting Christmas early this year; the company has finally announced that it will be making some of its shows available for download on Apple and Android devices without being connected to the internet. Netflix will stand alongside Amazon Prime and YouTube Red, who have both been offering video downloads to iOS and Android members. Netflix will offer its new program to iOS and Android users who have the updated version of the Netflix app. They will also have to have an iOS 8.0 or Android 4.4.2 versions of phones or tablet devices. While users must use Wi-Fi…

Kellogg has announced that it will no longer be adverting on Breitbart.com. The owner of Pringles, Pop-tarts, and other brands joins many other in withdrawing its advertising from Breitbart since the site has been ridiculed by consumers for content that has been deemed anti-Semitic, racist, and sexist. Kellogg discontinued it advertising on Breitbart on Tuesday joining the San Diego Zoo, pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk and AppNexus who blocked Breitbart. The site was formerly run by Steve Bannon, who Donald Trump recently named as his chief strategist has made himself a reliable asset to the president-elect. Bannon left the news and…

Chief executive Brian Krzanich has recently announced that Intel will invest $250 million in self-driving cars with the hopes to “make fully autonomous driving a reality.” Mobileye, the creators of Tesla Motors’ autopilot system, along with Delphi have signed on to help make this a reality. Intel and Mobileye have teamed up with BMW to have a self-driving car produced by 2021. Intel has decided to use the Core i7 as a preliminary controlling source, along with Mobileye’s EyeQ chip. The Core i7 will be able to do “twenty trillion mathematical operations per second”, and after further development, the chip…

Uber drivers have decided to take to the picket lines alongside many airport, fast food, and part time workers who are seeking better pay and benefits. Uber’s drivers in over a dozen cities across the U.S. plan to join the labor movement Fight for $15 The company settled two class action lawsuits for $84 million dollars back in April. The drivers in these two cases argued their status as independent contractors and wanted the benefits, they felt they were unjustly denied, that came along with being an employee. Despite the large chunk of cash Uber had to pay out, the…

Starting in December, Sling TV is going to be offering a DVR cloud-based service for its users. The new DVR service promises users the ability to record up to 100 hours of television shows, movies, and full seasons of TV series. Users will also be able to record multiple shows simultaneously, but not all channels will have these options. As well as its own subscribers, Sling plans to offer the programs to select Roku users during the beta testing period. Roku customers who currently use Sling Orange, Sling single or multi-stream service, or Sling Blue will get the first test of…

China has recently approved a project that will expand the railway system between the cities of Beijing, Tianjin, and Hebei. The railway plan, which has been named the Jing-Jin-Ji project, is made up of nine separate plans that have an estimated length of 638 miles (1,100km). The connection of the railway between these three cities will assimilate them into one large mega-city. The cost of improving the railway transportation between the cities is about $36 billion (247 billion yuan) and will continue until 2020. In recent years, the expansion of railways in China has greatly cut down the time and…

Samsung still insists on the safety of its devices even though there has been a report of a Galaxy S7 exploding in a man’s hands. According to a Canadian newspaper, Amarjit Mann says his S7 felt hot in his pocket. When he took it out, the device exploded resulting in third-degree burns to his hands. Mann says he plans on filing a lawsuit against the South Korean electronics company. In response to this incident, the company made a statement saying, “Samsung stands behind the quality and safety of the Galaxy S7 family. There have been no confirmed cases of internal…

As the holiday season begins to roll in, Domino’s in Japan has begun to experiment with having reindeer deliver pizza to customers during the cold winter months. The company released video of employees leading a reindeer around the parking lot with delivery boxes on its back. Later, the reindeer were attached to red sleighs. The staff would be able to monitor the reindeer using map with a little picture of the reindeer’s head to show the animal’s location. Although the idea sounds interesting, it may be short lived. The boxes slipped off the reindeer’s back and employees had difficulty keeping…

Insiders report that 2017 will indeed be a year of change for the BMW i3 electric city car, as the BMW i3 is to be completely redesigned. The revamp of the electric car will change the rear, front, and battery range. The battery range will be increased beyond 180 miles this will ensure drivers more time in between charges. While sources promise that the new battery range will grow significantly, it will be less than a 50% increase. A BMW spokesperson told IBTimes UK that, “BMW has a process of ongoing development for its cars from launch through to complete…

Wells Fargo opened 2 million unauthorized accounts and now the customers, whose names were used to open those accounts, have filed a class-action lawsuit against the bank. A majority of the victims of this scam were already customers of the bank. Because of this, they are under contract with the bank and won’t be able to file a lawsuit against it. Wednesday, the bank went to U.S. District Court of Utah where the lawsuit was filed and asked for it to be dropped. Wells Fargo did this in hopes of settling whatever qualms the customers have behind the closed doors of…

Airbus flew the new A350-1000 for the first time Thursday. It is the largest twin jet the European aerospace company has made. The jet took to the sky from Toulouse, France, headquarters of Airbus, at 10:42 a.m. local time (4:42 a.m. ET) and flew over France several hours before returning to the runway. The new jet is powered by the Trent XWB engine, which is made by Rolls-Royce and can put out 97,000lbs of thrust. The A350-1000 can seat at least 350 to 440 passengers depending on airline configuration. With its 7,950-mile range, Airbus estimates the jet will be able to…

Japan has always been first in the technology world. As times begin to change, the world has crept into the digital age where industrial labor has started to become less humane. The nation of Japan hopes to launch itself even further into the future by building the world fastest supercomputer which, for now, is named ABCI (AI Bridging Cloud Infrastructure). The resulting machine will achieve 130 petaflops which would surpass China’s Sunway TaihuLight, which runs at 93 petaflops. It is even rumored that Japanese officials will spend at least $173 million on the ABCI project. Although the hope of this…

North Dakota protesters were anything but thankful this Thursday. Protesters gathered to form a bridge across a small creek that leads to tribal burial grounds. Activists who call themselves “water protectors” say that the reason for the bridges being formed is to reach a known tribal burial ground near Turtle Island. Three protests were held Thursday. One was the Turtle Island bridge, the second in a small town called Mandan, and the third at Backwater Bridge where law enforcement injured a woman with a concussion grenade. Morton County Sheriff, Kyle Kirchmeier, made a statement saying that law enforcement wasn’t surprised…

As the retail industry begins to prepare for its busiest time of the year, the amount of online shopping will increase by 11%. It’s estimated that consumers will spend over $91.6 billion in online shopping during the months of November and December. One of the largest online retailers, Amazon, seems to be having a bit of trouble with its distribution. ABX Air flies for companies like Amazon and DHL and asked a federal judge to force pilots to go to work after a strike proves to upset holiday deliveries. On Tuesday, ABX filed a lawsuit to send the pilots back…

In the upcoming year, soda companies like Coca-Cola and Pepsi have decided to switch their focus onto non-carbonated beverages. This is the result of a soda tax following the recent election. Boulder and San Francisco are just two of the cities who are looking at a rise in taxes for their sugar-sweetened drinks. Dr. Pepper and Snapple soon announced they too were joining the ranks of soda companies who are changing up their approach. This past Tuesday, Dr. Pepper, along with Pepsi, announced that they are pivoting toward acquiring more favored water and probiotic companies. As we all know, however,…

President-elect Donald Trump seems to believe he did a great service to American autoworkers by persuading Ford Motor company to keep its Lincoln plant in Louisville, Kentucky, and not moving its production to Mexico. Trump made a post to twitter saying, “Got a call from my friend Bill Ford, chairman of Ford, who advised me that he will be keeping the Lincoln plan in Kentucky—no Mexico.” https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/799432403727028224 The reality of the situation goes deeper, however. Ford had stated that it was transferring the production of small Lincoln sports vehicles to Mexico, not that it was moving its entire plant. Although…

Facebook has announced that 2017 will be a year of increased expansion. In its first repurchase program, a move to placate its shareholders, the company will buy over $6 billion back in shares. This move will happen during the first quarter of 2017 and although the company has $26 billion in cash and other marketable profits, only some of that will be used in the buyback process while the rest will go toward the growth and expansion of the company. Facebook isn’t the first business using buybacks to keep its shareholders content. In fact, the company joins a long line…

Whether it be food, business, or fashion New York City has well-earned it reputation as the greatest city in the world. New York City is also known for its diverse creativity. In February, it hosts an event that will hopefully bring inspiration to artist over the world. The event is called the ASPIRE FESTIVAL. ASP FEST, created by iConcept Media, seeks to give aspiring talent exposure to thousands of people. The audience, in turn, has the chance to get closer to artists who have dedicated so much time to their work. It is the Aspire Series’ hope that not only the…