Business

The New Jersey Advance reports: The phone at Aqua Blu Kitchen & Cocktails has been ringing off the hook for days. Its email inbox has been flooded with hundreds of passionate messages. The restaurant has been a popular fixture of the Toms River scene for the past 13 years. But attention like this? Never. “It’s a nightmare,” owner Cathy Varriale …

The Wall Street Journal reports: Banks are getting ready to sell billions of dollars in debt borrowed by Elon Musk’s X, bringing Wall Street a step closer to exiting the nerve-racking deal that financed the social-media company’s buyout. Morgan Stanley bankers have reached out to investors ahead of a planned sale next week of up to $3 billion of debt …

CNBC reports: Target on Friday said it’s rolling back diversity, equity and inclusion programs — including some that aim to make its workforce and merchandise better reflect its customers. In a memo sent to its employees, the Minneapolis-based retailer said it will end its three-year DEI goals, stop reports to external diversity-focused groups like the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality …

San Francisco’s NBC affiliate reports: The impact of Trump’s promise of mass deportation is already starting to show. The California Farm Bureau says fears in the Central Valley have led to migrant farmworkers not showing up for work, which has virtually halted the area’s citrus harvest. Agriculture leaders in the Bay Area are worried about something similar happening locally and …

The Associated Press reports: UnitedHealth Group will promote one of its top insurance executives to replace Brian Thompson, the slain CEO of its UnitedHealthcare arm. The company said Thursday that Tim Noel will become the next UnitedHealthcare leader. Noel most recently led UnitedHealthcare’s Medicare and retirement business. He joined the company in 2007. UnitedHealthcare is the nation’s largest insurer, covering …

Just in via press release: The construction industry will need to attract an estimated 439,000 net new workers in 2025 to meet anticipated demand for construction services, according to a proprietary model developed and released today by Associated Builders and Contractors. In 2026, the industry will need to bring in 499,000 new workers as spending picks up in response to …

ABC News reports: The company and the once-prominent family behind the drug OxyContin agreed Thursday to increase their financial contribution to resolve mass opioid litigation. The Sacklers and Purdue Pharma boosted their settlement contribution to $7.4 billion after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned a prior settlement in June 2024. If approved, the new plan would end the costliest corporate bankruptcy …

Bottle Raiders reports: During Donald Trump’s inauguration to the U.S. presidency, bottles of the Brown-Forman-owned brand, Woodford Reserve, were gifted to attendees witnessing the 47th president of the United States take office. The guest list was a mix of Supreme Court justices, members of Congress and CEOS from major tech companies like Apple and Amazon. The bottles were provided by …

CNET reports: A new broadband law is going into effect this week in New York state requiring internet provider to offer low-income residents access to monthly broadband rates of $15 for 25Mbps or $20 for 200Mbps. As a response, AT&T has decided that it no longer plans to offer its 5G home internet in the Empire State and will begin …

Eater DC reports: Tech titan Elon Musk is slated to be the highest bidder on D.C.’s trendy Line hotel. The recently inducted member of Trump’s billionaire boys club plans to turn the desirable Northwest digs with 220 rooms into a “private social club” of sorts, according to multiple sources familiar with the deal. A previously announced public auction for the …

The Verge reports: Falling debris from the SpaceX Starship explosion yesterday created what looked like a meteor shower, or a colorful fireworks show based on videos shared by people in the area, but it also delayed flights. Eight and a half minutes after launch yesterday, the upper stage of the SpaceX Starship “experienced a rapid unscheduled disassembly,” following the separation …

CNN reports: SpaceX just took to the social media platform X to rehash what happened today: Starship experienced a “rapid unscheduled disassembly.” That’s a favored SpaceX euphemism for an explosion or unplanned destruction of a launch vehicle. It’s not clear how, when or why the Starship spacecraft exploded. The vehicle is equipped with a “flight termination system,” which is designed …

CBS News reports: A Southwest Airlines pilot was removed from the cockpit ahead of a Wednesday flight from Georgia to Chicago and was booked on a charge of driving under the influence, a source familiar with the incident told CBS News. David Paul Allsop allegedly smelled of alcohol and may have shown other signs of intoxication, the source said. Airport …

Semafor reports: President-elect Donald Trump and his running mate JD Vance had lunch with Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella Wednesday, along with Elon Musk, according to people briefed on the meeting. Microsoft President Brad Smith also attended the gathering at Mar-a-Lago, the latest example of the tech industry’s increasingly close relationship with Trump following his victory in the November election. Microsoft …

Politico reports: Google CEO Sundar Pichai will join the growing list of tech executives sitting on the dais as President-elect Donald Trump is sworn into office on Monday, according to a person familiar with the company’s plans who was not authorized to speak publicly. Tesla CEO Elon Musk, a close confidant of the incoming president, is expected to attend the …

CBS News reports: Locking up store merchandise can deter shoplifters and paying customers alike, according to Walgreens.  The pharmacy chain’s CEO Tim Wentworth said in Walgreens Boots Alliance’s first-quarter earnings call Tuesday that “When you lock things up … you don’t sell as many of them. We’ve kind of proven that pretty conclusively.” Keeping retail products under lock and key …

The New York Times reports: The chief executive of TikTok plans to attend President-elect Donald J. Trump’s inauguration and has been invited to sit in a position of honor on the dais, where former presidents, family members and other important guests traditionally are seated, two people familiar with the plans said Wednesday. The invitation to the executive, Shou Chew, went …

The Guardian reports: Pakistan’s prime minister has ordered an investigation after the country’s national airline released an advert that drew accusations that it evoked imagery of the 9/11 attacks. The advert was released by Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) last week to celebrate the resumption of flights to Paris, which had been suspended for four years over safety concerns about its …

Newsweek reports: Donald Trump has received a special personalized inauguration present from beverage giant Coca-Cola, which previously criticized the president-elect after the January 6 Capitol riot. Coca-Cola condemned Trump and his supporters following the January 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. At the time, the company said the riots were “an offense to the ideals of …

The New York Times reports: U.S. securities regulators sued Elon Musk in federal court in Washington on Tuesday in an enforcement action arising from his $44 billion purchase of Twitter, now called X. The lawsuit against Mr. Musk, who has become a close adviser to President-elect Donald J. Trump, is likely to be one of the more contentious final acts …