>>Stock Market Closed For Federal Holiday
(Undated) -- Markets are closed today in observance of Presidents' Day. When trading does resume tomorrow for what will be an abbreviated trading week, it will follow Friday's mixed close. Markets hovered around flatline for much of the session as investors weighed the latest on tariffs and inflation. New government data showed a nearly one percent drop in retail sales for January as consumers dialed back on post-holiday spending.
>>Coming Up In The Business Week Ahead
(Undated) -- Only a few major economic reports appear on this week's calendar. Things get rolling on Tuesday with the release of the home builder confidence index. Minutes from the Federal Reserve's January meeting follow on Wednesday along with housing starts and building permits. Weekly jobless claims will be out Thursday, and things wrap up with existing home sales data and consumer sentiment on Friday.
>>Reports: IRS To Lay Off Thousands of Employees
(Washington, DC) -- The IRS is reportedly set to lay off thousands of employees as soon as this week. This would come at the busiest time of the year for the tax collecting agency. Multiple media outlets cite sources saying the IRS will be letting go of probationary workers. This is part of the Trump administration's efforts to reduce the federal government workforce.
>>OpenAI Tells Musk It's Not For Sale
(San Francisco, CA) -- OpenAI is rejecting Elon Musk's 97-billion-dollar bid to take control of the company. Musk offered to buy the nonprofit last week, although his bid was quickly dismissed by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. On Friday, the tech company's board of directors unanimously rejected the offer as well, saying they won't give in to "Musk's latest attempt to disrupt his competition."
>>Kentucky And New Jersey Worst States To Retire
(Undated) -- Kentucky is the worst state to retire, followed by Louisiana, Mississippi, Washington, New Mexico and New Jersey. WalletHub looked at 46 key indicators of retirement-friendliness, everything from tax rates, cost of living and access to quality medical care and fun things to do. The best states to retire: Florida is number one, followed by Minnesota, Colorado, Wyoming and South Dakota.
>>Starbucks To Use Compostable Cups In Some Cities
(Seattle, WA) -- Starbucks is starting to use compostable cups for drinks like iced coffee or Frappuccinos in some cities. The cups look opaque. They're fiber based and have a bioplastic lining. Starbucks has a goal to make packaging reusable, recyclable, or compostable by 2030. Customers who don't like the cups can bring in their own clean cup or drink it in the store using a ceramic mug or glass. Select stores in several states including Washington, California, and Colorado, are on board with the new cups.
>>Uber Eats Delivered By Robot In Jersey City
(Jersey City, NJ) -- Uber Eats customers in Jersey City are making history. Jersey City has become the first city on the East Coast where Uber Eats is being delivered by a robot. It's part of a partnership between Uber Eats and autonomous vehicle startup Avride. When placing an order, customers will have the option to decline the delivery robot and choose a traditional courier. The robotic service has already been rolled out in Dallas and Austin, Texas.
>>Wendy's Combines Their Frosty With Girl Scout Cookie
(Undated) -- A new flavor will soon be available for Wendy's Frosty lovers. On February 21st - that's this Friday - Wendy's will start selling Thin Mint-flavored Frostys. Last year, Wendy's sold an average of 500 Frostys a minute in the U.S.
