>>Retail Sales Rise In December
(Washington, DC) -- The Commerce Department reports retail sales soared in December. The latest government data released Wednesday showed retail sales jumped point-six-percent last month thanks to the Holiday shopping season. That number beat expectations of a point-four-percent increase. It also marked the biggest jump in three months. Year-over-year retail sales rose five-point-six-percent.
>>Congress Announces Tax Deal To Expand Child Tax Credit
(Washington, DC) -- Congress is announcing a bipartisan deal to expand the child tax credit and create a series of tax breaks for businesses. The deal is between Missouri Republican Jason Smith and Oregon Democrat Ron Wyden and ends months of negotiating. It will enhance refundable child tax credits to try to provide relief to struggling families and those with multiple children. It'll also raise the tax credit's refundable cap and adjust it for inflation. In a statement, Smith said American families will benefit from this agreement that provides greater tax relief and creates jobs. Wyden said fifteen million kids from low-income families will now be better off because of this deal.
>>Boeing Stock Plunges After Critical Wall Street Report
(New York, NY) -- Boeing stock is taking a hit after a Wall Street report said an FAA audit "opens up a whole new can of worms." That comes after a door plug blew off during an Alaska Airlines flight on a Boeing 737 Max 9 earlier this month. Wells Fargo analysts have downgraded Boeing stock to Equal Weight from Overweight given the recent developments, saying "the odds of a clean audit are low." Boeing's stock dropped eight-percent at Tuesday's closing bell.
>>JetBlue, Spirit Airlines Merger Blocked
(Boston, MA) -- A federal judge is blocking a planned merger of JetBlue and Spirit Airlines. The Department of Justice sued last March to stop JetBlue's proposed three-point-eight-billion-dollar deal. It was the first time in more than two decades the federal government tried to block an airline merger. U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland argued the merger would lead to higher fares and fewer choices for travelers. JetBlue claimed the merger would only create stronger competition for the four larger airlines and would make fares cheaper.
>>Liquor Delivery Company Dropped Uber
(Boston, MA) -- The liquor delivery service Drizly founded by two Boston College students over a decade ago is shutting down. Drizly was bought by Uber Technologies in 2021 for over a billion-dollars. It's now set to shutter the service at the end of March. Uber has decided to focus on their core strategy of allowing consumers to order almost everything through the single Uber Eats app. Drizly experienced a surge in business during the pandemic, but laid off around a hundred employees last year.
>>Supreme Court Denies To Review Apple And Epic Games Dispute
(Cupertino, CA) -- Apple could see a big hit to sales after the Supreme Court decided not to review a dispute between the tech giant and "Fortnite" publisher Epic Games. That leaves in place a lower court's decision that requires changes to certain rules in Apple's App Store. Epic Games filed an antitrust lawsuit in 2020 that accused Apple of being an illegal monopoly because it requires users to download apps only via its App Store and to buy digital content inside apps using its own system. Apple charges as much as a 30-percent commission for in-app purchases.
