by Rick Manning The bedrock of American commerce – and of the broader capitalist experiment – has always been competition. If you can build a better mousetrap, invent a longer-lasting light bulb or more efficiently churn out widgets (or in this case, clichés), odds are your endeavor will encounter success. It doesn’t…
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By Robert Romano In March, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) proposed a new transaction fee pilot that would “subject stock exchange transaction fee pricing, including ‘maker-taker’ fee-and-rebate pricing models, to new temporary pricing restrictions across three test groups, and require the exchanges to prepare and publicly post data,” according to the…
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by Evie Fordham Several states including Wisconsin and New Jersey are seeking to copy Minnesota’s model of federal reinsurance program funding that contributed to a 13-percent drop in premium rates in the state from 2017 to 2018. The Minnesota legislature adopted the program, which uses mostly federal funds to…
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By Robert Romano One of the conventional wisdoms to do with the tariffs and duties levied by the Trump administration on steel, aluminum and lumber is that they will lead to higher prices and inflation, hurting producers and consumers, thus stunting economic growth. For example, billionaire Charles Koch warned on July…
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by Nick Givas Tribune Media Company killed its merger with Sinclair Broadcast Group on Thursday and filed a lawsuit against the media conglomerate, claiming breach of contract. Tribune is seeking financial compensation for losses it claims it suffered as a result of Sinclair’s breach of the merger agreement. Tribune is…
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Already threatened by escalating U.S. taxes on its goods, China is about to find it much harder to invest in U.S. companies or to buy American technology in such cutting-edge areas as robotics, artificial intelligence and virtual reality. President Donald Trump is expected as early as this week to sign…
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Tesla CEO Elon Musk is considering leading a buyout of the electric car maker in a stunning move that would end the maverick company’s eight-year history trading on the stock market. In his typically unorthodox fashion, the eccentric Musk dropped his bombshell on his Twitter account, which he has used…
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by Robert Romano Government-created monopolies are not a new thing, and indeed there are times when Congress has determined that having a government charter for an authoritative, monopoly function can serve a valuable public need. Sometimes these are agencies. The Federal Reserve is tasked by Congress to control the money…
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by Kyle Perisic Papa John’s founder and former CEO John Schnatter is suing the company, seeking documents related to the person who outed him saying the N-word and accused the company of planning a “coup” against him. “Instead of standing behind the founder and working with news media to…
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Reuters President Donald Trump’s oldest daughter, Ivanka Trump, is closing her fashion line to focus her energies on advising her father’s White House, she said through a representative on Tuesday. Trump, whose fortune comes from real estate development, came into office carrying a broad family business portfolio that trades…
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Reuters Fiat Chrysler named on Saturday its Jeep division boss, Mike Manley, to take over immediately for Chief Executive Sergio Marchionne, who is seriously ill after suffering major complications following surgery. The carmaker said British-born Manley, who also takes responsibility for the North America region, will push ahead with…
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by Eric Leiberman Google, Microsoft, Twitter and Facebook are teaming up to provide users with the capability of transferring data across platforms and services, the latter two social media giants announced Friday morning. After heightened concerns over data utilization (even exploitation and manipulation), companies appear to be trying to…
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by Rachel del Guidice The overhaul of the tax code by congressional Republicans didn’t produce just crumbs for the business of a popular cookie maker based in Florida. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act has meant hiring, raises, investment in new equipment, and expanded operations, he says. “It has had…
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by Alex Muresianu A new report from the University of Wisconsin-Madison comparing employment between Minnesota and Wisconsin after Minnesota raised its minimum wage found that Minnesotan workers saw a decline in employment, especially for young, inexperienced, and low-skilled workers, as employment in Wisconsin rose. Despite this evidence reaffirming that the minimum wage can hurt…
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by Luis Pablo De La Horra Milton Friedman is probably the most important free-market thinker of the twentieth century. His ideas in defense of capitalism and economic freedom had an enormous influence on the shift towards free-market policies that took place from the 1970s onwards. Countries like the UK, China,…
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Reuters China’s trade surplus with the United States swelled to a record in June as its overall exports grew at a solid pace, a result that could further inflame a bitter trade dispute with Washington. But signs exporters were rushing shipments before tariffs went into effect in the first…
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by Derrick Hollie Despite rampant speculation that President Donald Trump’s trade policy might increase some car prices, how his regulatory relief agenda may lower sticker prices and increase safety goes largely ignored. How did this happen? The Trump administration is revising the Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards imposed on automakers…
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A U.S. judge has ordered one of China’s biggest makers of wind turbines to pay a $1.5 million fine – the maximum allowable – after the company was convicted of stealing trade secrets from a U.S. manufacturer. The judge in Madison, Wisconsin, also sentenced Sinovel Wind Group (Sinovel) on Friday…
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Reuters One of the world’s biggest cargo shippers announced Saturday that it was pulling out of Iran for fear of becoming entangled in U.S. sanctions, and President Hassan Rouhani demanded that European countries to do more to offset the U.S. measures. The announcement by France’s CMA CGM that it was…
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by Elias Atienza The New Jersey state chapter of Americans for Prosperity (AFP) is helping West African immigrants lobby the New Jersey legislature to change cosmetology requirements. West African immigrants, usually women, operate hair-braiding businesses that are essentially illegal, since state regulations require these workers to get a license, WNYC reported Monday.…
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General Electric Company is shrinking again, becoming a mere shadow of the globe-spanning conglomerate that it was before the Great Recession. GE said Tuesday that it will spin off its health-care business and sell its interest in Baker Hughes, which provides drilling services to oil and gas companies. The moves…
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Reuters Intel Corp Chief Executive Brian Krzanich resigned on Thursday after a probe found his consensual relationship with an employee violated company policy. The head of the largest U.S. chipmaker is the latest in a line of powerful men in business and politics to lose their jobs or resign…
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by Rachel Greszler An economic crisis has engulfed Puerto Rico. The Financial Oversight Management Board, a federally-mandated advisory group, has worked to help Puerto Rico deal with its financial crisis and establish policies that will lead to long-run growth. The board says Puerto Rico must reform its labor market to…
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Reuters AT&T Inc may close its $85 billion deal to buy Time Warner Inc under an agreement reached on Thursday with the U.S. government, which might still appeal a case seen as a turning point for the media industry. AT&T said it could close the deal by Friday. The…
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Those looking for a swifter path to becoming a barber in Tennessee just might find relief. The Tennessee Board of Cosmetology and Barbers Examiners is under fire for what twenty-five year-old Elias Zarate is calling “irrelevant requirements” associated with obtaining a Barber license – namely, a high school diploma. Born…
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by Vandana Rambaran Walmart is introducing a new same-day delivery service called Jetblack through its Store No. 8 incubator, which rivals competitor Amazon’s services like Amazon Prime and Prime Now. Jetblack, which has launched in New York City and will be rolling out to the rest of the country throughout the coming year,…
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by Kyle Perisic An anti-virus company has discovered malware comes pre-installed on Android phones, including on ZTE phones — a Chinese phone company with ties to the Chinese government. “Thousands of users are affected” by the ad-related malware, or adware, according to Avast, the Czech anti-virus company, in its…
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If Tennessee voters send former Democratic Gov. Phil Bredesen to the U.S. Senate this fall then Bredesen will step down as chair Silicon Ranch, a company he founded that has ethics problems. Silicon Ranch Corporation helps finance the construction of solar arrays. According to the Tennessean, Silicon Ranch owns or…
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Nashville, Tennessee-based law firm Branstetter, Stranch & Jennings has filed a class action lawsuit against Georgia-headquartered regional bank United Community Bank, which has locations in three additional states, including Tennessee. BS&J filed the lawsuit with Cohen & Malad, LLP of Indianapolis, Indiana. The suit was filed in the United States…
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