Business
/ArcaMax
Ford sales drop 6.6% in Q3, roughly even when accounting for phaseouts
Ford Motor Co. sales totaled 509,764 in the third quarter, a year-over-year decrease of 6.6% and a continuation of declines from the first half of 2026.
The Dearborn, Michigan-based automaker again projected confidence despite the decrease, noting that total vehicle sales volume was "essentially unchanged" for the quarter when adjusting for the...Read more
California's economic growth expected to continue, but slowly and with few jobs gains
Boosted by investments in AI, a revitalized aerospace industry and a growing U.S. defense budget, California's economic growth is expected to continue outpacing the nation, according to a forecast from the UCLA Anderson School of Management.
However, tariffs, deportations and high energy prices are likely to somewhat slow growth, though it ...Read more
Michael Hiltzik: Sure, use Meta's Muse bot to help with your chores -- if you want Mark Zuckerberg to know all your secrets
If Silicon Valley has perfected any business model, it's the one in which it cooks up a new technology and then persuades people they can't live without it. The newest example is Meta Platforms' personal artificial intelligence agent, Muse.
Something in Meta's pitch for Muse, which is represented as a furry version of the Stay Puft Marshmallow ...Read more
Paramount, Warner Bros. will be named Skydance after merger
David Ellison said the merged Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery will be called Skydance — the moniker he picked nearly two decades ago when the tech scion began building his Hollywood empire.
Ellison, currently the chairman and chief executive of Paramount, is aiming to finalize the acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery by Tuesday. Then ...Read more
Auto review: 2026 Subaru Trailseeker: The electric car for people who don't mind dirt on their floor mats
Subaru has spent 50 years selling cars to people who own at least one kayak and a dog that sheds more than the national debt accrues interest.
Now, Subaru has built those people another electric car, and the results are fairly good. The 2026 Subaru Trailseeker shares the Solterra’s Toyota-derived underpinnings, but stretches them into ...Read more
Lyft will pay more than $270 million in California wage theft settlement
The ride-hailing company Lyft will pay $272.5 million to settle a California wage-and-hour lawsuit, marking the largest such settlement in the state's history.
The settlement will resolve allegations that Lyft misclassified its workers as independent contractors between 2016 and 2020 and denied them wage and workplace protections that were ...Read more
Is Congress on the right track with its proposed EV tax?
A bipartisan bill in Congress could add a new tax for electric vehicles just as there is a renewed push to move away from gas-powered cars.
The proposed EV fee would start at $130 annually and is considered an attempt to make sure all drivers pay their fair share. The federal government collects 18.4 cents per gallon on every U.S. gasoline ...Read more
Auto review: 2026 Ford Mustang Mach-E delivers upscale electric vibes
Entering Grasso’s Garage this week is an EV that values aggressive styling as much as neck-snapping acceleration.
Wrapped in Ford’s stunning Glacier Gray Metallic paint, our Mustang Mach-E GT eAWD tester skip-stepped right over the hiccups of typical EVs.
This all-electric Mustang hits consumers with presence, featuring an upscale black ...Read more
Auto review: The Mustang RTR is affordable, rip-roaring fun
NAPA VALLEY, California — Before it ditched cars for a lineup of engaging SUVs and trucks like F-150 Raptors, Bronco Sport Sasquatches and Maverick Lobos, Ford made affordable hellions like the Focus RS that you could take big game-hunting with 300-plus turbo-4 horsepower, nimble handling, and drift mode. The Focus RS exited the market in 2018...Read more
Rising yields are wreaking havoc on stocks outside the AI trade
After the 10-year Treasury yield rose as high as 5.34% for the first time since 2002, stock traders are fiercely debating when the selloff in bonds will start to trigger pain for a resilient U.S. stock market.
Under the surface, however, the spike in rates is already wreaking havoc.
While the S&P 500 Index is less than 2% from a record, ...Read more
Boeing's white-collar union approves contract offer, avoiding strike
Boeing’s white-collar union members voted to accept the company’s contract offer Thursday, avoiding the possibility of a work stoppage.
The union, the Society of Professional Engineering Employees in Aerospace, or SPEEA, represents 17,000 workers in Boeing’s Washington factories and in nearby states, with the majority of its membership ...Read more
Stellantis US sales flatten in Q3 amid tumultuous turnaround
Year-over-year U.S. sales for Stellantis NV dipped slightly in the third quarter of 2026, according to company data released Oct. 1, as the struggling transatlantic automaker continues to chase an elusive turnaround.
The Jeep and Chrysler parent company sold 324,277 vehicles in the quarter spanning July through September. That was a decline of ...Read more
After ban threats, TikTok touts a $12 billion boost to California businesses
When Brandon Hurst first decided to sell his plants on TikTok Live in 2023, the 32-year-old Los Angeles resident didn't know what to expect. He said he thought he could sell at least 30 plants, but instead sold 250.
Now, three years later, the internet creator, who goes by Brandon the Plant Guy, sells up to 5,000 plants a week, works out of a 3...Read more
A billionaire playbook? How Carnegie Mellon fits in the plan to reinvent Miami
MIAMI — When South Florida billionaires Ken Griffin and Stephen Ross gathered with business leaders in February, they made a powerful pitch for a different kind of South Florida.
Through a statewide initiative powered by the advisory group Florida Council of 100, Griffin and Ross called on CEOs, billionaires and entrepreneurs to bring and ...Read more
Real estate Q&A: What happens to deal to sell our house after buyer unexpectedly died?
Q: We are selling our home and are under contract with a buyer who was getting a mortgage. Last week we were told the buyer died unexpectedly. We feel terrible for the family, but we have already put money down on our next house, which depends on this sale closing. Where does this leave us? Is the deal dead, and what happens to the deposit? — ...Read more
US mortgage rate rises to 7.28%, highest since November 2023
Mortgage rates surged to the highest level since November 2023, further straining a U.S. housing market already hampered by high borrowing costs.
The average for a 30-year, fixed loan jumped 25 basis points from a week earlier to 7.28%, Freddie Mac said in a statement Thursday. The weekly increase was the biggest since October 2022. A year ago,...Read more
US companies announce fewest job cuts for a September since 2022
U.S. companies announced the fewest number of job cuts for any September since 2022, according to data from outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc.
Employers last month announced 43,281 job cuts, a near 20% decrease from a year earlier. So far this year, planned staffing reductions are down almost 40% from the same nine months in ...Read more
GM loses ground to Toyota as high prices reshape US car market
Toyota Motor Corp. and Hyundai Motor Co. are pulling closer to Detroit’s marquee automakers in the U.S. auto market, boosted by demand for gas-electric hybrids and affordable vehicles as average car payments rise well above $800 a month.
Toyota’s sales rose slightly to more than 633,000 vehicle in the third quarter, including its Lexus ...Read more
A record not worth cheering? California gas prices near all-time high
SAN JOSE, California — A march to an all-time record is on again, and the path to it is likely to unite Californians — in their anger at gas prices, boiling as drivers watch their totals reach higher and higher.
“It’s nothing but a financial burden, man,” 31-year-old Saleh Abdullah said as he pumped gas at the Costco station on ...Read more
Bill Ford knocks 'technology for technology's sake'
DETROIT — Martha Firestone Ford, 101, isn't looking for much more than an AM radio in her vehicle, her son Bill Ford said during a panel Tuesday with executives from Google, Time magazine and United Airlines.
"I don't have a lot of 101-year-old customers," said Ford Motor Co.'s executive chair, joking during the panel at Michigan Central in ...Read more
Popular Stories
- Will an early switch to winter-blend gasoline give California drivers a price break?
- Hormel makes $1 billion bet on chicken
- Ford sounds alarm on skilled trades shortage at Accelerate forum
- Fed's watchdog finds no criminal violations in renovations
- Federal judge allows Paramount-Warner merger to move forward









