>>Ahead Of The Bell
(New York, NY) -- The opening bell rings this morning after Wall Street closed higher to kick off the new trading week. At the closing bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 201 points to 43-065. The S&P 500 rose by 44 points to 58-59, notching a record high. The Nasdaq gained 159 points to 18-502.
>>Earnings In The News
(Undated) -- Coming up today, earnings reports are due from Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, United Airlines and Johnson & Johnson. Things are pretty quit Wednesday and then retail sales numbers will be out Thursday along with the home builder confidence index. Netflix also releases earnings and weekly jobless claims come out the same day. The week wraps up with word on housing starts and building permits on Friday.
>>Massachusetts Knocks NJ Off Its Perch As Highest-Earning U.S. State
(Boston, MA) -- Massachusetts has knocked New Jersey off its perch as the highest-earning U.S. state. New census data gives Massachusetts the number one spot with close to 100-thousand-dollars a year in median household income. New Jersey is right behind at over 99-thousand-dollars. But the District of Columbia beats all states with a median household income of more than 108-thousand-dollars. Mississippi had the lowest income of any state last year at just over 54-thousand-dollars.
>>True Value Files For Bankruptcy
(Chicago, IL) -- Hardware store brand True Value is filing for bankruptcy. The 75-year-old company is selling its operations to rival Do It Best, it announced today. True Value will continue its day-to-day operations selling hardware and other homewares during the Chapter 11 process. In court filings, the company said money is tight as the housing market slows consumer demand, as many become less inclined to spend on discretionary purchases.
>>Fisher-Price Recalls All 2.1-Million Snuga Baby Swings
(East Aurora, NY) -- Fisher-Price is recalling all two-point-one-million of its Snuga Swings due to suffocation risk. The company and the Consumer Product Safety Commission have issued a joint statement saying five babies from one-month-old and three-months-old died while sleeping in the swings between 2012 and 2022. Snuga Swings were sold for 160-dollars by Toys R Us, Walmart/Sam's Club, Target and through Amazon through January of this year. The CPSC says the headrest and body support insert on the seat pad can increase the risk of suffocation. The remedies being offered are repairing the swing and offering a 25-dollar refund to customers who destroy and remove the headrest and insert.
>>Boston Omni Hotel Workers Join Strike
(Boston, MA) -- Unionized workers at the Omni hotels in Boston yesterday joined Hilton hotel employees on the picket lines. Close to 700 workers at the Omni Boston Seaport and Omni Parker House hotels began indefinite strikes yesterday in efforts to secure a new contract. There were already over 600 Hilton hotel workers on strike, as they walked out last week. The striking workers hold jobs that include housekeeping and bellhops, along with kitchen, banquet and bar positions.
>>Owners Of Skilled Trade Businesses Benefiting From Private Equity Interest
(New York, NY) -- Private equity firms are scooping up home services like HVAC, plumbing and electrical companies hoping to profit by running larger, more lucrative operations. According to data from PitchBook, private-equity investors have purchased roughly 800 HVAC, plumbing and electrical companies since 2022. The strategy is to roll up businesses to create larger players and improve their margins. The P.E. firms add back-office efficiency, managerial know-how, increase marketing efforts and recruiting budgets. Critics say the model leads to higher prices for consumers and less competition, but others say it can improve service quality and boost the bottom line.
