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California unemployment rises in September as forecast predicts slow jobs growth
California lost jobs for the fourth consecutive month in September — and it's expected to add only 62,000 new jobs next year as high taxes drag on business formation, according to a report released Thursday.
The annual Chapman University economic forecast released Thursday found that the state's job growth totaled just 2% from the second ...Read more
Anheuser-Busch to close its Newark brewery after 75 years
Beer giant Anheuser-Busch will be closing its brewery in Newark, New Jersey, in early 2026 after nearly 75 years.
Full-time employees will be offered a choice between severance packages or jobs at other locations, including money to relocate, according to a press release sent to media outlets Thursday.
“Over the last five years we have taken...Read more
TED Talks moving its flagship event to San Diego
Seeking to redefine its place in a changing media landscape, TED — the New York-based nonprofit behind the globally recognized TED Talks — is moving its flagship event to San Diego, potentially creating dozens of new jobs.
After a decade in Vancouver, Canada, the five-day speaking series will debut in San Diego in 2027. TED is moving beyond...Read more
Ford, SK On to split joint venture as EV market grows cold
Ford Motor Co. and its South Korean battery partner are getting a divorce.
SK On said Thursday it's made an agreement with Ford to exit their electric vehicle battery joint venture that had invested $11.4 billion into Kentucky and Tennessee. It's another sign of the dissipation of EV momentum in the United States as it becomes clear consumer ...Read more
Disney invests $1 billion in OpenAI, licenses Mickey Mouse to Sora AI platform
OpenAI said Thursday it reached a licensing deal with the Walt Disney Co. to use more than 200 popular Disney characters including Mickey Mouse, characters from “Frozen” and Yoda from “Star Wars” in OpenAI’s text to video tool Sora. Disney has also agreed to invest $1 billion in the San Francisco AI startup.
The deal marks a ...Read more
India draws $52 billion from Amazon, Microsoft in tech expansion
Amazon.com Inc. and Microsoft Corp. are intensifying their India push with a combined $52 billion in fresh investment, underscoring the country’s rising status as a key growth market for artificial intelligence, cloud services and online retail.
E-commerce giant Amazon on Wednesday boosted its India investment pledge to $35 billion through ...Read more
US jobless claims jump by most since 2020 after holiday drop
Applications for U.S. unemployment benefits rose last week by the most since the onset of the pandemic, underscoring the volatile nature of claims at this time of year.
Initial claims increased by 44,000 to 236,000 in the week ended Dec. 6, according to Labor Department data released Thursday. That was the biggest jump since March 2020 and ...Read more
Toxic water from Texas oil production is set to be treated and pumped into rivers
Texas is about to deploy a potential solution to the oil industry’s toxic wastewater problem — but it’s a move that carries environmental risks of its own.
State regulators are working to issue permits that would let four companies, including major landowner Texas Pacific Land Corp. and pipeline operator NGL Energy Partners LP, release ...Read more
Instacart is charging different prices to different customers in a dangerous AI experiment, report says
The grocery delivery service Instacart is using artificial intelligence to experiment with prices and charge some shoppers more than others for the same items, a new study found.
The study from nonprofits Groundwork Collaborative and Consumer Reports followed more than 400 shoppers in four cities and found that Instacart sometimes offered as ...Read more
Roblox sued by Southern California families alleging children met predators on its platform
Video gaming platform Roblox is facing more lawsuits from parents who allege the San Mateo, California, company isn't doing enough to safeguard children from sexual predators.
A Los Angeles County mother, whose identity wasn't revealed in a November lawsuit, alleges that her daughter met a predator on Roblox who persuaded her child to send ...Read more
Michael Hiltzik: Paramount-Warner fight shows the hostile takeover is back. So are the egos of the combatants
If there were any doubts that hostile corporate takeovers, which went into a decline after their heyday in the 1980s, are back, the $78 billion hostile bid by Paramount for Warner Bros. Discovery should put them to rest.
The bid by Paramount, which is controlled by the family of billionaire Larry Ellison, has many of the features of hostile ...Read more
Time names 'Architects of AI' 2025 Person of the Year
Time has named “the Architects of AI” as the magazine’s 2025 Person of the Year, recognizing the influence of the revolutionary technology on society, culture and the future of work.
This year, the honor given to any person, group, idea, or object that most influenced the global conversation over the past 12 months went to the individuals...Read more
Real estate Q&A: Can condo board keep me from renting if my credit score is barely too low?
Q: I’ve been having an issue while trying to rent a condo apartment. I have a good job, drive a nice car and have a credit score of 690. The condo’s board has refused to let me rent in their building because they say the rules require a minimum credit score of 700. Are they allowed to deny my application for this reason? —Gordon
A: Yes, ...Read more
California pro-housing group sues Newsom over duplex ban in wildfire zones
A pro-housing group sued Gov. Newsom on Wednesday over his decision to restrict SB 9, a housing law that allows owners to parcel up their properties, in the wake of the January fires.
YIMBY Law, a San Francisco-based organization, alleges that Newsom's executive order over the summer allowing cities to suspend SB 9 is a constitutional overreach...Read more
Coca-Cola names new CEO Henrique Braun to succeed James Quincey
Coca-Cola has named a successor to CEO James Quincey who will take the reins of the global beverage giant early next year.
Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Henrique Braun will become chief executive on March 31, with Quincey moving into the role of executive chairman, Coca-Cola said in a late Wednesday news release. Braun ...Read more
Most Citizens Insurance customers in South Florida could see rates fall by more than 11% in 2026
Most customers of state-owned Citizens Property Insurance Corp. could see significant rate decreases in 2026.
The company is recommending an average 2.6% statewide rate decrease for personal lines accounts beginning on June 1, the start of hurricane season.
Across the state, a projected 463,096 policyholders would save an average of $359 ...Read more
Fed cuts rates with three dissents, projects one cut in 2026
Federal Reserve officials delivered a third consecutive interest-rate reduction and maintained their outlook for just one cut in 2026.
The Federal Open Market Committee voted 9-3 Wednesday to lower the benchmark federal funds rate by a quarter point to a range of 3.5%-3.75%. It also subtly altered the wording of its statement suggesting greater...Read more
Federal workforce's toll after a year of DOGE and Trump: 317,000
The number of federal employees who left their jobs in 2025 will total about 317,000, according to the Office of Personnel Management, after efforts by Elon Musk and the Trump administration to reshape the government workforce.
In the most detailed official accounting to date, OPM Director Scott Kupor said Wednesday in a post on X that the ...Read more
Amazon bets on color and AI with its priciest Kindle to date
Amazon.com Inc.’s new Kindle Scribe Colorsoft is the company’s most serious effort yet to turn its e-reader into a productivity tool. But with a starting price of $630 — making it the priciest Kindle yet — Amazon will need to persuade even its most loyal readers that the upgrade is worth it.
The device, which went on sale starting in ...Read more
Report: Michigan's auto industry still leads, but competitors are gaining
Michigan's auto industry remains dominant by several metrics but faces serious threats from southern states and China, from the electric vehicle transition and other technological upheaval, and from educational shortcomings, a new MichAuto report finds.
"Michigan cannot expect to win the future of the industry through legacy alone," Glenn ...Read more
Popular Stories
- California pro-housing group sues Newsom over duplex ban in wildfire zones
- India draws $52 billion from Amazon, Microsoft in tech expansion
- Federal workforce's toll after a year of DOGE and Trump: 317,000
- Ford, SK On to split joint venture as EV market grows cold
- US jobless claims jump by most since 2020 after holiday drop









