For: October 5, 2026
>>Watching Wall Street
(New York, NY) -- The opening bell rings this morning after stocks closed higher to wrap up last week. Stocks rose after the Labor Department said the economy added just 29-thousand jobs in September which raised hopes the Federal Reserve will hold interest rates steady later this month. We're expected to get a glimpse at how the central bank is leaning when the minutes of the last Federal Open Market Committee meeting are released on Wednesday. At the closing bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 250 points to 51-176. The S&P 500 rose 56 points to 77-22. The Nasdaq climbed 319 points to 27-190.
>>Merged Paramount And Warner Brothers Company To Go By 'Skydance' Name
(Los Angeles, CA) -- Tuesday's expected finalization of the deal that will merge Paramount and Warner Brothers Discovery will see the company go by the name Skydance. Paramount CEO David Ellison says the name will become official once the merger is finalized. Ellison's film and television production company is called Skydance Media. Paramount was renamed Paramount Skydance in 2025, after Ellison merged his company with Paramount Global and National Amusements. Ellison says the name was chosen to preserve the identities and legacies of the iconic Paramount and Warner Brothers studios. This all comes after a California federal judge resolved a lawsuit filed by 12 state attorneys general who had opposed the 110-billion-dollar merger.
>>Americans Buying More Hybrid Cars
(Undated) -- Gas prices are topping four dollars a gallon and that's sending more Americans toward hybrid cars, which in turn is benefiting Asian automakers. Hyundai's hybrid sales jumped 39 percent in the third quarter, while Kia's surged 152 percent, with Toyota and Honda also reporting strong gains. The shift comes as electric vehicle sales decline and Detroit automakers offer far fewer hybrid options than their Asian competitors. Hyundai and Kia nearly overtook Ford in U.S. sales last quarter, as Asian automakers captured more than half of the new-car market. Experts say the lack of fuel-efficient models could cost Detroit automakers customers if high gas prices continue. Triple-A puts the price of a gallon of regular unleaded at four-dollars and 36-cents as the work week gets underway.
>>Amazon Fall Prime Big Deal Days
(Seattle, WA) -- Amazon's fall Prime Day event returns this week, running Tuesday and Wednesday. Prime Big Deal Days, is the scaled-back version of Prime Day, and gives members access to dynamic markdowns across tech, tools, and home essentials. Subscriptions cost 139-dollars annually to unlock the limited-time price cuts.
>>Liquor Distributor Southern Glazer's Agrees To FTC Settlement
(Washington, DC) -- Souther Glazer's, the largest U.S. liquor distributor, has agreed to a Federal Trade Commission settlement. Under the agreement the supplier won't charge small retailers significantly more than nearby chain stores. The Southern Glazer's settlement is aimed at leveling the playing field between independent stores and bigger chains such as Walmart, Costco and Kroger, which the FTC alleged had received better prices. The FTC said for six years, Southern Glazer's will be subject to penalties if it gives its biggest customers in 26 states significantly better prices than independent stores nearby.
>>Bayer To Invest $2B In New OH Pharma Site
(Albany, OH) -- Bayer plans to invest over two-billion dollars on a new pharmaceutical manufacturing site in New Albany, Ohio. The drugmaker said Friday it expects to create about 600 jobs in New Albany, with another 15-hundred jobs resulting temporarily from construction. Bayer expects the plant to become operational in 2031 with a site for finished drug product to follow in 2034.
