BONN, Germany, Apr 26 (IPS) - In December 2022, the fifteenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) saw governments worldwide unite behind a set of ambitious targets aimed at addressing biodiversity loss and restoring natural ecosystems, through the Global Biodiversity Framework – known now as the Biodiversity Plan.
https://www.globalissues.org/news/2024/04/26/36576 [Collection]
WASHINGTON DC, Apr 25 (IPS) - Artificial intelligence provides amazing potential for advancement across fields, from medicine to agriculture to industry to the entertainment business, even as it generates significant concerns. AI can also improve the efficiency of energy production and use in ways that can reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
https://www.globalissues.org/news/2024/04/25/36568 [Collection]
WASHINGTON DC, Apr 25 (IPS) - Artificial intelligence provides amazing potential for advancement across fields, from medicine to agriculture to industry to the entertainment business, even as it generates significant concerns. AI can also improve the efficiency of energy production and use in ways that can reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
https://www.globalissues.org/news/2024/04/25/36568 [Collection]
WASHINGTON DC, Apr 25 (IPS) - Artificial intelligence provides amazing potential for advancement across fields, from medicine to agriculture to industry to the entertainment business, even as it generates significant concerns. AI can also improve the efficiency of energy production and use in ways that can reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
https://www.globalissues.org/news/2024/04/25/36568 [Collection]
WASHINGTON DC, Apr 25 (IPS) - Artificial intelligence provides amazing potential for advancement across fields, from medicine to agriculture to industry to the entertainment business, even as it generates significant concerns. AI can also improve the efficiency of energy production and use in ways that can reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
https://www.globalissues.org/news/2024/04/25/36568 [Collection]
BRATISLAVA, Apr 25 (IPS) - As the refugee crisis on the Belarus/EU borders approaches its fourth year, a crackdown on activism in Belarus is worsening the situation for migrants stuck in a “death zone” as they attempt to leave the country.
https://www.globalissues.org/news/2024/04/25/36563 [Collection]
ABU DHABI, Apr 24 (IPS) - Small Island Developing States (SIDS), a distinct group of 39 states and 18 associate members, are making efforts to promote the blue economy as they possess enormous potential for renewable energy relying on the sea.
https://www.globalissues.org/news/2024/04/24/36556 [Collection]
NEW YORK, Apr 24 (IPS) - The UN Palestinian refugee agency welcomed the recommendations made in the report from the independent investigation led by Catherine Colonna, and warned of new and continuing concerns that threaten the agency’s operations.
https://www.globalissues.org/news/2024/04/24/36555 [Collection]The interest rate on a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage is 6.500% as of April 24, which is unchanged from yesterday. Additionally, the interest rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is 7.500%, which is also unchanged from yesterday.
With mortgage rates changing daily, it’s a good idea to check today’s rate before applying for a loan. It’s also important to compare different lenders’ current interest rates, terms, and fees to ensure you get the best deal.
Rates last updated on April 24, 2024. Rates are based on the assumptions shown here. Actual rates may vary. Credible, a personal finance marketplace, has 5,000 Trustpilot reviews with an average star rating of 4.7 (out of a possible 5.0).
When you take out a mortgage loan to purchase a home, you’re borrowing money from a lender. In order for that lender to make a profit and reduce risk to itself, it will charge interest on the principal — that is, the amount you borrowed.
Expressed as a percentage, a mortgage interest rate is essentially the cost of borrowing money. It can vary based on several factors, such as your credit score, debt-to-income ratio (DTI), down payment, loan amount, and repayment term.
After getting a mortgage, you’ll typically receive an amortization schedule, which shows your payment schedule over the life of the loan. It also indicates how much of each payment goes toward the principal balance versus the interest.
Near the beginning of the loan term, you’ll spend more money on interest and less on the principal balance. As you approach the end of the repayment term, you’ll pay more toward the principal and less toward interest.
Your mortgage interest rate can be either fixed or adjustable. With a fixed-rate mortgage, the rate will be consistent for the duration of the loan. With an adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM), the interest rate can fluctuate with the market.
Keep in mind that a mortgage’s interest rate is not the same as its annual percentage rate (APR). This is because an APR includes both the interest rate and any other lender fees or charges.
Mortgage rates change frequently — sometimes on a daily basis. Inflation plays a significant role in these fluctuations. Interest rates tend to rise in periods of high inflation, whereas they tend to drop or remain roughly the same in times of low inflation. Other factors, like the economic climate, demand, and inventory can also impact the current average mortgage rates.
To find great mortgage rates, start by using Credible’s secured website, which can show you current mortgage rates from multiple lenders without affecting your credit score. You can also use Credible’s mortgage calculator to estimate your monthly mortgage payments.
Mortgage lenders typically determine the interest rate on a case-by-case basis. Generally, they reserve the lowest rates for low-risk borrowers — that is, those with a higher credit score, income, and down payment amount. Here are some other personal factors that may determine your mortgage rate:
Other indirect factors that may determine the mortgage rate include:
Along with certain economic and personal factors, the lender you choose can also affect your mortgage rate. Some lenders have higher average mortgage rates than others, regardless of your credit or financial situation. That’s why it’s important to compare lenders and loan offers.
Here are some of the best ways to compare mortgage rates and ensure you get the best one:
One other way to compare mortgage rates is with a mortgage calculator. Use a calculator to determine your monthly payment amount and the total cost of the loan. Just remember, certain fees like homeowners insurance or taxes might not be included in the calculations.
Here’s a simple example of what a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage might look like versus a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage:
If you’re thinking about taking out a mortgage, here are some benefits to consider:
And here are some of the biggest downsides of getting a mortgage:
Requirements vary by lender, but here are the typical steps to qualify for a mortgage:
Here are the basic steps to apply for a mortgage, and what you can typically expect during the process:
Refinancing your mortgage lets you trade your current loan for a new one. It does not mean taking out a second loan. You will also still be responsible for making payments on the refinanced loan.
You might want to refinance your mortgage if you:
The refinancing process is similar to the process you follow for the original loan. Here are the basic steps:
If you need to tap into your home’s equity to pay off debt, fund a renovation, or cover an emergency expense, there are two popular options to choose from: a home equity loan and a home equity line of credit (HELOC). Both a home equity loan and a HELOC allow you to borrow against your home’s equity but a home equity loan comes in the form of a lump sum payment and a HELOC is a revolving line of credit.
These two loan types have some other key similarities and differences in how they work:
Interest rates on mortgages fluctuate all the time, but a rate lock allows you to lock in your current rate for a set amount of time. This ensures you get the rate you want as you complete the homebuying process.
Mortgage points are a type of prepaid interest that you can pay upfront — often as part of your closing costs — for a lower overall interest rate. This can lower your APR and monthly payments.
Closing costs are the fees you, as the buyer, need to pay before getting a loan. Common fees include attorney fees, home appraisal fees, origination fees, and application fees.
If you’re trying to find the right mortgage rate, consider using Credible. You can use Credible's free online tool to easily compare multiple lenders and see prequalified rates in just a few minutes.
https://www.foxbusiness.com/personal-finance/todays-mortgage-rates-april-24-2024Late Tuesday night, the U.S. Senate voted in favor of and passed the sell-or-ban TikTok bill, and a senior Republican divulged what will happen next for lawmakers and the Chinese-owned social platform.
"It will really be one of the most significant national security steps that the 118th Congress has taken," FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr said on "Cavuto: Coast to Coast," Tuesday.
"As soon as this bill passes the Senate," he added, "that starts a 270-day clock for TikTok to divest. When that happens, the whole technology company, including the algorithm, will be subject to a multi-agency review to make sure whoever ends up owning it isn't able to use the algorithm or any other component of it, to be controlled by a foreign adversary."
The clock started ticking just before 10 p.m. Tuesday night as the Senate passed a bill to force TikTok's parent company, ByteDance, to sell the platform or face a ban in the U.S., as lawmakers accuse the platform of collecting user data and spreading propaganda.
ELON MUSK SAYS HE OPPOSES TIKTOK BAN AS BILL RETURNS TO CAPITOL HILL
The TikTok legislation was part of a larger $95 billion package to provide foreign aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan that passed the Upper Chamber by a 79 to 18 vote. The package now heads to President Biden, who said he plans to sign it Wednesday.
ByteDance reportedly has nine months to sell TikTok and is permitted a three-month extension if a sale is in progress. This bill also prohibits the parent company from managing or manipulating the app’s content feed algorithm.
"I think the concerns raised here are really good ones, which is, we want to be careful not to allow something like this to be weaponized against other U.S. businesses," Carr reacted. "And that's why the approach [Congress] has taken is so smart, because it's very targeted on TikTok and any other application that is truly beholden to a foreign adversary."
Evidence of TikTok’s alleged malign intent, according to Carr, includes surveillance and foreign influence practices.
Lawmakers and administration officials have expressed concerns for years that Chinese officials could force ByteDance to provide U.S. user data and influence Americans by promoting certain content on the platform.
"A blockbuster report came out and showed... Everything is seen in China. Then they surveilled the locations of specific Americans, journalists that were writing negative stories. They promised to do better and wall off U.S. data. They failed," the commissioner said.
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"And just last week," Carr expanded, "a new report came out that a former senior data scientist for TikTok said his job was to deliver U.S. data to China."
China has previously said it would oppose a forced sale of TikTok, and has signaled it would oppose the latest legislation. TikTok has alleged the bill violates First Amendment rights, and told Reuters on Sunday that it would "trample" free speech.
FOX Business’ Landon Mion contributed to this report.
https://www.foxbusiness.com/politics/tiktoks-forced-sale-china-most-significant-national-security-step-fcc-commissionerAlthough inflation is still a top concern, middle-income Americans said they've gotten used to higher prices and feel better equipped to handle their finances, according to a recent Santander survey.
Additionally, worries about an economic recession have taken a backseat for many Americans as they begin to accept the high-interest rate environment as the new normal. The number of respondents who expected a recession in the next 12 months dropped from 69% to 60%.
Consumer confidence hit a record high of 79.4 in March, the highest since July 2021, according to the University of Michigan's benchmark Consumer Sentiment Index. The number reflects the improved consumer outlook that inflation will continue to soften and that personal finances will also be lifted as the effects of high prices and expenses on living standards ease.
However, consumers have had to make deep budget cuts to survive in a high-cost environment—67% of respondents said they cut out major purchases such as vacations, vehicles and home repairs, according to the survey.
"While middle-income households have had to navigate higher prices due to inflation, it is encouraging to see consumers taking positive steps to manage their finances and adjust their household budgets," Tim Wennes, CEO of Santander U.S., said.
If you are struggling with high inflation, you could consider taking out a personal loan to pay down debt at a lower interest rate, reducing your monthly payments. Visit Credible to find your personalized interest rate without affecting your credit score.
BIDEN WANTS TO GIVE HOMEBUYERS $400 PER MONTH: STATE OF THE UNION
Despite 74% of respondents saying they believe they are on the right path to financial prosperity, 60% are missing out on an opportunity to grow savings in a high-rate environment, with 56% still earning less than 3% interest, according to the survey.
"At the same time, many continue to miss out on the opportunity to leverage the current rate environment to grow their savings," Wennes said. "For most consumers, this is the first time in a generation when they can be earning meaningful interest on their hard-earned savings."
The Federal Reserve has raised interest rates 11 times since March 2022, pushing the federal funds rate to a 22-year high of 5.25% to 5.5% to lower soaring inflation.
Middle Americans could offset high costs by moving money into higher-yielding accounts like certificates of deposit (CD) and high-yield savings accounts. With CDs, cash is deposited for a fixed period, ranging from a few months to several years. In exchange, those funds earn a higher interest rate when compared to regular savings accounts. A high-yield savings account, also known as a high-interest account, offers higher interest rates on deposits than a traditional one. The interest rate is an annual percentage yield (APY) that fluctuates. However, these accounts allow you to make deposits and withdrawals.
If high-interest debt is putting a dent in your finances, you could consider paying it down with a personal loan at a lower interest rate. Visit Credible to get your personalized rate in minutes.
HOMEBUYERS GAINED THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS AS MORTGAGE INTEREST RATES FALL: REDFIN
The combination of high borrowing rates and home prices has put the dream of homeownership on ice for many would-be homebuyers.
The average 30-year fixed-rate mortgage has not dropped below 6.6% this year. Home prices recorded another gain in January and are now 6% above their level this time last year, up from 5.6% rise last month, according to the latest S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller Indices report.
Higher mortgage rates and home prices mean that 20% of Americans spend roughly 30% of their paychecks on monthly home loan payments and 10% spend more than half of their pay on their mortgage, according to a recent NewHomesMates.com survey.
"When you're saving up for a house, it can be hard to justify spending money on other things," a NewHomesMate spokesperson said in a statement. "But the unprecedented high costs of today's real estate are forcing potential buyers to make some extreme decisions. Not only are they slashing leisure spending and travel, but many are also cutting back on basic items like groceries."
Homebuyers can find the best mortgage rates by shopping around and comparing options. You can visit an online marketplace like Credible to compare rates, choose your loan term and get preapproved with multiple lenders at once.
HIGH HOMEOWNERS INSURANCE RATES SCARING AWAY FLORIDA HOMEBUYERS, OTHER STATES FACE THE SAME ISSUE
Have a finance-related question, but don't know who to ask? Email The Credible Money Expert at moneyexpert@credible.com and your question might be answered by Credible in our Money Expert column.
https://www.foxbusiness.com/personal-finance/middle-income-americans-finances-optimismThe Biden administration announced new rules that mandate automatic cash refunds for canceled or significantly delayed flights and protect consumers from surprise junk fees in air travel.
"These rules will significantly expand consumer protections in air travel, provide passengers an easier pathway to refunds when owed, and save consumers over half a billion dollars every year in hidden and surprise junk fees," the White House said in a statement released early Wednesday.
"Passengers deserve to get their money back when an airline owes them - without headaches or haggling," Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said. "Our new rule sets a new standard to require airlines to promptly provide cash refunds to their passengers."
The first rule requires airlines "to promptly provide passengers with automatic cash refunds when owed because their flights are cancelled or significantly changed, their checked bags are significantly delayed, or the ancillary services, like Wi-Fi, they purchased are not provided."
Newly required by the Department of Transportation (DOT), the change is supposed to prevent consumers from having to "navigate a patchwork of cumbersome processes to request and receive a refund — searching through airline websites to figure out how to make the request, filling out extra ‘digital paperwork,’ or at times waiting for hours on the phone," the White House said.
Without the new rule, the White House noted how passengers often received a travel credit or voucher by default from many airlines instead of getting their money back, so they could not use their refund to rebook on another airline when their flight was changed or canceled "without navigating a cumbersome request process."
The DOT is also now requiring airlines and ticket agents to tell consumers upfront what fees they charge for checked bags, a carry-on bag, for changing a reservation or canceling a reservation. The White House said the second new rule "ensures that consumers can avoid surprise fees when they purchase tickets from airlines or ticket agents, including both brick-and-mortar travel agencies or online travel agencies."
NEW CALIFORNIA BILL WOULD BAN LINE SKIPPING SERVICE CLEAR FROM AIRPORTS IN NAME OF EQUITY
It requires airlines to disclose baggage, change and cancelation fees upfront, explain fee policies before ticket purchase, share fee information with third parties, inform consumers that seats are guaranteed, provide both standard and passenger-specific fee information and end discount bait-and-switch tactics "that some airlines use to disguise the true cost of discounted flights." The White House estimates that this rule will save consumers "over half a billion dollars every year that they are currently overpaying in airline fees."
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Since President Biden took office, the DOT has helped return more than $3 billion in refunds and reimbursements owed to airline passengers – including over $600 million to passengers affected by the Southwest Airlines holiday meltdown in 2022, the White House said. The department also has issued over $164 million in penalties against airlines for consumer protection violations. Between 1996 and 2020, DOT collectively issued less than $71 million in penalties against airlines for consumer protection violations.
Fox News' Caroline McKee contributed to this report.
https://www.foxbusiness.com/economy/biden-admin-new-airline-rules-require-cash-refunds-canceled-flights-fees-disclosed-up-frontThe Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is preparing to vote Thursday on reinstating net neutrality regulations for the internet, which a new report warns could cause a slowdown in the pace of internet speed increases and price improvements seen in the years since net neutrality's repeal.
The FCC, which currently has a majority of Democrat appointees under the Biden administration, is planning to bring back net neutrality rules that allow the agency to regulate broadband internet access as a telecommunications service. That would return the FCC's framework for regulating the internet to what the Obama administration put in place in 2015, which was later rolled back by the Trump administration in 2017 under a framework that classified the internet as an information service.
A Committee to Unleash Prosperity report notes the gains in internet speed and cost decreases that occurred in the wake of the Trump-era deregulation as well as the increased investment by internet service providers.
"If the Biden administration can look at the experience of broadband in the last seven years and declare it a bad thing, something that needs to be reversed, there's really no regulation that they would ever dislike and no deregulation that they would ever like, because this is about the most stunning success possible, and yet they're going to reverse it," Phil Kerpen, president of American Commitment at the Committee to Unleash Prosperity, told FOX Business.
FORMER FCC HEAD AJIT PAI BLASTS NET NEUTRALITY VOTE AS 'COMPLETE WASTE OF TIME'
The report found that median internet download speeds for wired internet connections increased by a factor of 5.8 between 2017 and 2023, while wireless speeds increased by a factor of 8.7.
Although the report acknowledges that download speeds would have improved over time even under the net neutrality regulatory framework, the U.S. rose in speedtest.net's average national download speed rankings from 45th in the world in 2017 to 16th in 2022, while the median speed ranking for the U.S. improved from 22nd to 15th between 2022 and 2023.
It also analyzed price changes for wired broadband and wireless internet, which declined by about 15% and 28%, respectively, from 2016 to 2022. For comparison, from 2010, when the Obama administration first proposed regulating the internet as a utility, to 2016, wired broadband prices declined 9% and wireless declined 22%.
NEW FCC RULES REQUIRE ‘NUTRITION LABELS’ FOR HIGH-SPEED INTERNET PLANS
The report noted that those positive results ran counter to the narrative advanced by net neutrality's proponents as the Trump-era FCC moved to undo that regulation.
"The predictions that were made when the deregulation was proposed in the beginning of the Trump administration where [that] this was going to be some kind of an apocalypse and the 'end of the internet as we know it,' things were going to load one word at a time," Kerpen said.
"We don't have to hypothesize or guess about what will happen because we've run the experiment now the last seven years, and if it was the end of the internet as we knew it, it was only because it got so much faster and so much cheaper – basically the opposite of everything that they said would happen," he added.
FCC COMMISSIONER SAYS TIKTOK A 'CLEAR AND PRESENT DANGER' TO US NATIONAL SECURITY
Kerpen also took issue with the FCC's assertion in advancing its reinstatement of net neutrality rules that any disincentives for private investment by internet companies caused by the return of that regulatory framework will be offset by a $65 billion subsidy program from the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
"This is just kind of an insane way to think about things. I mean if you're going to subsidize something with taxpayer money, you want to get the most for that money that you possibly can," he said. "You want the incentives to be strong for private money to come in as well."
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"The investment effect will certainly be negative, and I think that's a big part of why we saw what we did," Kerpen added. "When you get deregulation and incentives for a strong, competitive market, you get investments in higher speeds. I don't think we would've seen the [five-times] jump in wired speeds and [eight-times] jump in wireless speeds if we hadn't had the deregulation."
https://www.foxbusiness.com/politics/fcc-reinstating-net-neutrality-could-slow-internet-gains-reportColumbia University's billionaire donors are divided on whether they should continue funneling money into the Ivy League school.
Ultra-wealthy benefactors like New York Patriots owner Robert Kraft announced he is pulling financial support to his alma mater over the anti-Israel protests that are unfolding on campus. Kraft also started the Foundation to Combat Antisemitism (FCAS). Kraft's net worth is over $11 billion, as tracked by Forbes.
Another graduate, billionaire industrialist Len Blavatnik, who also has a history of giving significant amounts of money to philanthropy, told FOX Business that the school's "leadership must take immediate steps to ensure that Jewish students are protected from threats and intimidation, and that those who violate their policies are held to account." Blavatnik has a net worth of over $31 billion, as tracked by Forbes.
Blavatnik didn't confirm if he was suspending his giving. However, sources told The New York Post he might also consider pulling back on his donations.
COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY MOVES TO HYBRID LEARNING ON MAIN CAMPUS AMID ANTISEMITIC PROTESTS
The school started losing donors shortly after the war kicked off in early October after Hamas terrorists stormed Gaza in a surprise attack, killing over 1,100 Israelis and kidnapping over 200, some of whom remain hostages.
During an interview with Liz Claman on "The Claman Countdown" on Oct. 26, 2023, Columbia University graduate, billionaire investor and Omega Advisors CEO Leon Cooperman pledged to suspend his giving.
"I think these kids at the colleges have sh*t for brains" Cooperman told Claman. "I've given to Columbia probably about $50 million over many years," he continued. "And I'm going to suspend my giving. I'll give my giving to other organizations."
This week, he told CNBC, he was "uncomfortable" with what is going on at the school but declined to elaborate on future donations. He did say he plans to support Columbia's business school "when they solicit" him.
Cooperman's net worth neared $3 billion, per Forbes.
In recent weeks and months, there has been an onslaught of anti-war protests not only at Columbia but other college campuses, including New York University, University of Michigan’s Ann Arbor and Yale, as tensions over the war in the Middle East continue to rise.
Pro-Palestinian students around the nation are condemning the assault on Gaza, which has resulted in tens of thousands of civilian deaths. But some Jewish students say there has been a rise in antisemitism. Some students at Columbia have recently told FOX News that they no longer feel physically safe.
At Columbia's New York City campus, there has been "too many examples of intimidating and harassing behavior" including antisemitic language, the school-- which was forced to switch to hybrid learning for the rest of the semester -- said in a statement.
Protestors initially formed an encampment — setting up tents and refusing to leave— on the campus last week. More than 100 demonstrators who had been camped out on the campus were arrested, according to The Associated Press.
The protesters marched in and around the campus demanding the school lose affiliations with groups that support Israel.
"There is a terrible conflict raging in the Middle East with devastating human consequences. I understand that many are experiencing deep moral distress and want Columbia to help alleviate this by taking action. We should be having serious conversations about how Columbia can contribute," the school wrote in a statement.
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However, the school continued, saying that there are many views and "we cannot have one group dictate terms and attempt to disrupt important milestones like graduation to advance their point of view."
FOX Business' Greg Norman contributed to this report.
https://www.foxbusiness.com/lifestyle/columbias-billionaire-donors-mull-giving-anti-israel-protestsElectric vehicles are often touted as the green alternative to gas-powered vehicles, but one expert believes that if people knew the truth about EVs, they would think twice before purchasing one.
Bryan Dean Wright, a former CIA operations officer and host of the podcast "The Wright Report," told Fox News Digital that electric vehicles pose environmental problems, national security issues and compromise the safety of drivers, making them a less than desirable alternative to gas-powered vehicles.
Wright said that one of the most important things to consider when buying an electric vehicle is whether they are actually green. It is his belief that they are actually quite "dirty." Starting with their batteries, he explained that thousands of pounds of minerals, including cobalt, lithium and nickel from all around the world have to first be extracted.
The Congo is the source of 70% of the world's cobalt. Of that, about a third come from miners who are "mostly kids," Wright said.
CAR DEALERS THROW COLD WATER ON ELECTRIC VEHICLES VERSUS GAS OPTIONS: ‘I WOULDN’T FEEL SAFE'
"That is a horrific thing, imagining these child miners pulling this stuff out of the ground to make our green cars go, but that is true," he said. "Also, we know about the 19 cobalt mines in the Congo, 15 of them are controlled by the Chinese government or a Chinese entity."
Lithium mostly comes from Australia, but a large amount also comes from the Atacama Desert in South America, also known as the lithium triangle, Wright said. The lithium mining process is problematic for the region because the land is extraordinarily dry, but the lithium extraction requires large amounts of water, requiring about 500,000 gallons needed to produce a single ton, he explained.
Because water is such a coveted resource in the region, Wright said it has caused tension in the region between governments, mining companies, and local, especially indigenous people, about how the water should be used.
"We are removing the one critical resource by a lot of those indigenous folks down there, so we can have our green and clean car," he said.
Nickel, which is also vital to EV battery production, primarily comes from Indonesia and is extracted using sulfuric acid, but he said the way the metal is mined poses environmental problems.
There are two different approaches to mining nickel, one involves an energy-intensive process that requires coal-fired furnaces, which he said is damaging to the Indonesian environment and its people and the second is through chemical extraction using sulphuric acid. Once you've finished mining for nickel, it needs to be disposed of either in tailing ponds or dried and stacked both of which pose environmental problems.
Just through the extraction process, he explained, there is the exploitation of child labor and environmental damage. But then, the minerals are sent to China, where about 80% of the batteries' raw materials are refined.
"But that's just the beginning," Wright said. "We haven't even gotten into the car to start to drive."
"So imagining we get into that car, we have a few different concerns," he continued. "First, we've got a national security concern, that car is basically a computer on wheels. So as that thing drives, it's going to both get things downloaded to it or you're going to upload stuff to whatever your car manufacturer might be. That opens up a major vector to be hacked or otherwise controlled."
While Wright said that might sound impossible or unlikely, he pointed to a move by Ford Motor Company last March when the company filed for a patent that would use self-driving capabilities to repossess a vehicle if an owner becomes delinquent on their loan. He warned that in the future, people might not actually be in control of their vehicle, leaving them at the mercy of hackers or their car company.
Wright also said China owns the EV industry and the "dirty green world."
"We know that they own a lot of the mines — whether it be nickel or cobalt in places like Africa, India, Indonesia — they control about 80% of the refining of those minerals for the batteries," he said.
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"But then if you start looking at the manufacturing, what Beijing has done is they are subsidizing the companies that create these vehicles," and "because they've got those subsidies, they can create really, really cheap cars," he added.
Wright said the Chinese Communist Party is subsidizing the EV companies because they're trying to de-industrialize Europe and the United States.
"They're trying to crash our economies by flooding the market with very, very cheap products so that we can't compete, whether that be because of our labor costs or environmental rules or otherwise," he said. "We are already seeing this, as a lot of Chinese companies are now moving their production to Mexico to try to then flood the North American market."
Wright said the U.S. is going to lose some of its own manufacturing plants if the government doesn’t either impose tariffs on Chinese EVs or block them from entering the U.S. market through Mexico.
"It is just one more reason why it's crazy to allow China to engage in the world economy in the way that we do," he said. "China absolutely is dominating this industry, and they will continue from batteries to solar panels to these EVs, and you will watch factories in this country shut down because of it."
Wright also said coal powers EV production in China and pointed out that the nation uses slave labor in regions like Xinjiang and elsewhere.
"You've got people who are living in concentration camps forced to build out the infrastructure for these EVs," he said. "We should stand up and say that it's wrong. We should block this stuff from ever coming into the United States."
"We need to be pointing out the hypocrisy of, gosh, we're creating dirty green EVs using coal or cobalt from the Congo and child labor, but it's also true that they're using concentration camp labor," he said. "All of this has to be a part of the conversation for when people walk into that dealership. What am I really buying?"
HYBRID VEHICLE SALES REVVING UP AS EV DEMAND SPUTTERS
In addition to the fact that EVs are a national security concern, Wright said they have also proven to be less safe on the road and more expensive to maintain when compared to their gas-powered counterparts.
"Now we're driving down the road, nobody's hacked us yet, and we have a couple of other concerns to think about," he said. "One, this [EV] car is very heavy. Much, much heavier than a traditional vehicle and that means that your tires are gonna wear down about 20% faster than a gas-powered vehicle. That's going to cause more damage, obviously, for your pocketbook as you have to replace your tires. It's also going to cause a lot more damage for the roads and the bridges."
Wright also said EVs are a lot more dangerous than a gas-powered vehicle or diesel-powered vehicle, simply because of the weight of the batteries. He explained that EVs are so much heavier than gas-powered cars, that there is up to a 47% higher chance of a driver dying if they crash an EV or are hit by an EV, according to data from the National Bureau of Economic Research.
Despite increasing EV criticism, the Biden White House has continually touted electric vehicles as the way forward, releasing a fact sheet on Wednesday that announced public and private commitments to support America’s historic transition to electric vehicles. President Biden plans to have 50% of all new vehicle sales be electric by 2030. The administration states the commitment by the government and private companies will "spur domestic manufacturing, strengthen supply chains, boost U.S. competitiveness and create good-paying jobs."
But, Wright believes the U.S. should be wary of EVs and the national security risk they pose if China is allowed to dominate the industry.
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"At the end of the day, EVs are not just about the environment, it's about national security, and if we allow China to dominate this industry, as we have, and then allow them to flood our markets … this is going to not just be a problem about climate change, this is going to be an economic disaster, and we need to be honest and talk about it," he said. "So I sure hope that that's why folks understand why I'm so interested in it, why I'm so passionate about it."
"As a former CIA officer, I care about national security and this is one of those vectors where Beijing is using it to try to weaken us and ultimately destroy us, and while we can be agnostic, like it or not, in terms of the EV infrastructure or the cars themselves, there is a national security component to this, and we need to talk about that," he said.
https://www.foxbusiness.com/media/evs-climate-agenda-national-security-threat-weaken-ultimately-destroy-expert-warnsOwning a home has long been considered the main pillar of the American dream, but the vast majority of aspiring homeowners in the U.S. say they simply cannot afford it.
A new survey released by Bankrate Wednesday found 78% of would-be homebuyers cited financial factors when asked what was holding them back from making a purchase.
The most common challenges cited by respondents were insufficient income (56%), followed by home prices being too high (47%) and the inability to afford down payments and closing costs (42%).
The findings come as a housing affordability crisis in the U.S. continues to escalate with no end in sight.
MORTGAGE RATES ARE RISING AGAIN. HERE'S HOW MUCH THE STEEPER RATES WILL COST YOU
As mortgage rates topped 7% last week for the first time this year, a separate report from Redfin found that the combination of steep mortgage rates and elevated home prices has pushed the median monthly housing payment to a new record of $2,775, an 11% increase from the same time last year.
The high costs have pushed homeownership out of reach for many Americans and have left the housing market stalled for months as many would-be buyers and sellers remain on the sidelines waiting for affordability to improve.
Bankrate's latest survey found that nearly seven in 10 Americans said they were willing to take at least one step necessary to find affordable housing.
YOUNGER GENERATIONS OPEN TO TURNING TO FRIENDS, FAMILY TO ACHIEVE HOMEOWNERSHIP
Forty-four percent of respondents said they could downsize their living space, while 34% said they would either move out of state or buy a fixer-upper.
Another 26% said they would be willing to move farther away from loved ones, 24% said they might consider taking on roommates or living with additional family members and 20% said they could move to a less desirable area. Seventeen percent said they would be willing to move farther away from work.
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"Owning a home is still the centerpiece of the American dream, but affordability is the main obstacle to making that a reality," said Bankrate Chief Financial Analyst Greg McBride. "With the cumulative rise in home prices, rents and insurance costs, downsizing space may not yield a proportionate downsizing of costs."
FOX Business' Megan Henney contributed to this report.
https://www.foxbusiness.com/economy/vast-majority-of-aspiring-homeowners-say-they-cannot-afford-the-american-dreamThe Senate passed a bill Tuesday to force TikTok's China-based parent company, ByteDance, to sell the video sharing social media platform or face a ban in the U.S., as lawmakers accuse the platform of collecting user data and spreading propaganda.
The TikTok legislation was part of a larger $95 billion package to provide foreign aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan that passed the Upper Chamber by a 79 to 18 vote. The package now heads to President Biden, who said he plans to sign it Wednesday.
House Republicans' decision last week to attach the TikTok bill to the foreign aid package helped expedite its passage, after an earlier version of the bill had stalled in the Senate. The Senate version would have given ByteDance six months to divest its stake in the platform, which some lawmakers believed was too short of a window for a complex deal potentially worth tens of billions of dollars.
The new measure gives ByteDance nine months to sell TikTok, as well as a possible three-month extension if a sale is in progress. The bill would also prohibit the company from controlling the algorithm that shows users videos based on their interests.
The passage of the legislation comes amid bipartisan fears in Congress over Chinese threats, which includes the ownership of TikTok. Lawmakers and administration officials have expressed concerns for years that Chinese officials could force ByteDance to provide U.S. user data and influence Americans by promoting certain content on the platform.
"Congress is not acting to punish ByteDance, TikTok or any other individual company," Senate Commerce Committee Chairwoman Maria Cantwell said. "Congress is acting to prevent foreign adversaries from conducting espionage, surveillance, maligned operations, harming vulnerable Americans, our servicemen and women, and our U.S. government personnel."
Opponents of the bill claim the Chinese government could easily access Americans' information in other ways, including through commercial data brokers that traffic in personal information. The foreign aid package also includes a provision to make it illegal for data brokers to sell or rent personally identifiable sensitive data to North Korea, China, Russia, Iran or entities in those countries, but critics, including the American Civil Liberties Union, say the language is too vague and could impact journalists and others who publish personal information.
Many opponents of the TikTok bill argue that the best way to protect U.S. consumers is by implementing a comprehensive federal data privacy law targeting all companies, regardless of their country of origin. These opponents also say the U.S. has not provided public evidence showing that TikTok shares U.S. user information with the Chinese government, or that Chinese officials have ever toyed with its algorithm.
"Banning TikTok would be an extraordinary step that requires extraordinary justification," said Becca Branum, a deputy director at the Center for Democracy & Technology. "Extending the divestiture deadline neither justifies the urgency of the threat to the public nor addresses the legislation’s fundamental constitutional flaws."
SENATORS SLAM 'DELAY TACTIC' ON TIKTOK BILL DESPITE 'NATIONAL SECURITY ISSUE'
Democrat Sen. Ron Wyden, who voted for the measure, said he has concerns about TikTok but also fears the bill could have hurt free speech, does not do enough to protect consumer privacy and could potentially be used by a future administration to violate First Amendment rights.
"I plan to watchdog how this legislation is implemented," Wyden said in a statement.
China has previously said it would oppose forcing the sale of TikTok, and has signaled it would oppose the latest legislation. TikTok has long denied it is a security threat, and is preparing a lawsuit to block the legislation.
"At the stage that the bill is signed, we will move to the courts for a legal challenge," TikTok's head of public policy for the Americas, Michael Beckerman, wrote in a memo sent to employees on Saturday.
"This is the beginning, not the end of this long process," Beckerman wrote.
The platform has had some success with court challenges in the past, but it has never attempted to prevent federal legislation from going into effect.
Former President Trump, whose administration had sought to ban TikTok if it was not sold to an American company, now says he opposes a ban as he seeks the presidency again in the 2024 election.
TikTok creators who rely on the app for income have spoken out against the bill, including at a protest in front of the Capitol on Tuesday.
Tiffany Cianci, a content creator who has more than 140,000 followers on the platform, said she believes TikTok is the safest platform for users right now because of Project Texas, the platform's $1.5 billion mitigation plan to store U.S. user data on servers owned and maintained by the tech giant Oracle.
"If our data is not safe on TikTok, I would ask why the president is on TikTok," she said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
https://www.foxbusiness.com/politics/tiktoks-china-based-parent-required-sell-platform-banned-usCoinbase is launching a $15 million TV ad campaign that aims to tout the merits of using cryptocurrency in a language that sports fans understand: Pizza.
FOX Business has learned that the U.S.’s largest crypto exchange is set to run three separate commercials across four channels airing the NBA playoffs starting Wednesday.
The idea behind the commercials, news of which hasn’t been reported yet, is to underscore how complex and expensive traditional payment methods are compared to crypto, which is settled almost instantly and cuts out the so-called "middlemen" like banks and payment service providers.
"We’re under the illusion that when we use credit cards or Venmo, things are happening instantly, but they're actually just part of very complex plumbing that’s masked by a digital interface," said Coinbase’s chief policy officer Faryar Shirzad.
AMAZON INTRODUCES UNLIMITED GROCERY DELIVERY SUBSCRIPTION WITH PRIME
To showcase this, the tongue-in-cheek ad shows the process a pizza pie would go through if it was money in today’s system. The commercial begins with the pizza going through several approval and authorization stages. The narrator is heard saying "If pizza worked like this, you wouldn’t like pizza."
The commercial follows the pie through more stages, mimicking the typical credit card transaction. Several different people take bites and slices from the pie, symbolizing the middlemen that want to take a proverbial slice of the pie. The narrator says "this is pretty much what happens to your money whenever you spend it or send it."
Finally, the pizza goes through a door marked "surcharge," to indicate the credit card fees customers pay on their transactions.
The commercial ends with the pie getting picked up by a delivery boy who turns to the camera and says, "we deserve a better system, easier simpler faster. That’s how crypto works."
"Crypto is a solve for Americans who are fed up with the middlemen taking a bite every time they order and pay for pizza, Coinbase’s Vice President of Engineering told FOX Business. "Coinbase is building the future of money to make sure American consumers own their own pie -- and making sure their payment moves at the speed of the internet."
POPULAR TEX-MEX CHAIN CLOSING SEVERAL LOCATIONS IN 4 STATES
The 60-second ad and two 30-second ads will air starting Wednesday on TNT, ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC and run through June 9.
Pizza seems to tie a reoccurring theme in Coinbase’s ads. The latest spots, which cost Coinbase $15 million, come just two days after the conclusion of its Bitcoin pizza ad, which aimed to show Bitcoin’s increasing value over time by illustrating how much pizza a person could buy with one bitcoin in 2012 compared to 2024. The ad has been viewed over 3 million times on X.
Coinbase’s marketing blitz comes as Congress inches closer to passing legislation on so-called stablecoins — cryptocurrency that mimics the dollar. Legislation introduced in the Senate last week is the latest in a series of bipartisan bills in both the House and the Senate that aim to establish comprehensive federal oversight of stablecoins.
"Stablecoins are actually a huge unlock for consumers who currently have to pay fees that they just can't afford and for merchants who pay fees that they can't afford," said Shirzad. "It's not that complicated on how you regulate stable coin issuance. And so there's no reason why you can't get agreement by on a bipartisan basis to get this done."
https://www.foxbusiness.com/money/coinbase-dunks-traditional-payment-methods-15m-nba-ad-spendOracle founder Larry Ellison announced Tuesday that he plans to move the software giant’s corporate headquarters to Nashville, Tennessee, which he added is at the center of the healthcare industry.
Ellison sat down with former Senate majority leader Bill Frist for an onstage conversation in Nashville, which was shared by Oracle Health on the social media platform LinkedIn on Tuesday.
The founder and executive chairman told Frist his company was moving its "huge campus" to Nashville, and it will "ultimately be our world headquarters."
"I shouldn’t have said that," Ellison quickly said, but there was no turning back because he disclosed information on his company’s future.
ORACLE ANNOUNCES NEW GENERATIVE AI SERVICES FOR BUSINESSES
Ellison said Oracle’s move to Nashville will position his company as one of the major players in the healthcare industry, an industry Oracle is looking to expand its position in.
Back in 2022, Oracle acquired Cerner for $28 billion. The Kansas City, Missouri-based company provides software for managing electronic health records.
As Ellison elaborated on the company’s plans to move, he said Nashville is "a fabulous place to live."
ORACLE TO ACQUIRE CERNER IN $28.3B DEAL
"It’s a great place to raise a family. It’s got a unique and vibrant culture. And as we surveyed our employees, large numbers of employees, Nashville ticked all the boxes," Ellison said.
He also said Nashville is "the center of the industry we’re most concerned about, which is the healthcare industry."
Norman Foster, who designed Apple Park in Cupertino, California, is designing the new Oracle campus in Nashville, which will be "right on the river."
ORACLE'S WORST DAY IN 21 YEARS MAY BE OVERDONE
The CEO said the new campus will not look anything like a corporate campus, but instead it will be a park with buildings on it.
Ellison said the news site will have office buildings, a community clinic, restaurants, hotels and a concert venue — a floating stage on the lake for concerts to be held for the community.
"We want to be part of the community," he said. "Our people love it here. And we think it’s the center of our future."
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Oracle did not immediately respond to inquiries from Fox News Digital on the announcement.
Oracle's headquarters is currently located in Austin, Texas. It moved there in 2020, after leaving Redwood Shores, California.
https://www.foxbusiness.com/technology/oracle-ceo-announces-plans-move-world-headquarters-nashvilleThe U.S. national debt is climbing at a rapid pace and has shown no signs of slowing down, despite the growing criticism of massive levels of government spending.
The national debt — which measures what the U.S. owes its creditors — increased to $34,591,776,354,253.41 as of Monday afternoon, according to the latest numbers published by the Treasury Department. That is up about $6.2 billion from the $34,585,528,182,775.46 figure reported the previous day.
By comparison, just four decades ago, the national debt hovered around $907 billion.
The outlook for the federal debt level is bleak, with economists increasingly sounding the alarm over the torrid pace of spending by Congress and the White House.
SOARING DEFICITS TO PUSH PUBLICLY HELD DEBT TO RECORD LEVEL IN 4 YEARS
The latest findings from the Congressional Budget Office indicate that the national debt will grow to an astonishing $54 trillion in the next decade, the result of an aging population and fishing federal health care costs. Higher interest rates are also compounding the pain of higher debt.
Should that debt materialize, it could risk America's economic standing in the world.
"America’s fiscal outlook is more dangerous and daunting than ever, threatening our economy and the next generation," said Michael Peterson, the CEO of the Peter G. Peterson Foundation that advocates for reducing the federal deficit. "This is not the future any of us want, and it’s no way to run a great nation like ours."
LARGE DEFICITS, HIGH INTEREST RATES MAKING FEDERAL DEBT LESS SUSTAINABLE
The unrelenting increase is what prompted Fitch Ratings to issue a surprise downgrade of the nation's long-term credit score in mid-2023. The agency cut the U.S. debt by one notch, snatching away its pristine AAA rating in exchange for an AA+ grade. In making the decision, Fitch cited alarm over the country's deteriorating finances and expressed concerns over the government's ability to address the ballooning debt burden amid sharp political divisions.
"This is a warning shot across the U.S. government's bow that it needs to right its fiscal ship," Sean Snaith, an economist at the University of Central Florida, told FOX Business. "You can't just spend trillions of dollars more than you have in revenue every year and expect no ill consequences."
The spike in the national debt follows a burst of spending by President Biden and Democratic lawmakers.
As of September 2022, Biden had already approved roughly $4.8 trillion in borrowing, including $1.85 trillion for a COVID relief measure dubbed the American Rescue Plan and $370 billion for the bipartisan infrastructure bill, according to the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget (CRFB), a group that advocates for reducing the deficit.
THE US IS PAYING A RECORD AMOUNT OF INTEREST ON ITS NATIONAL DEBT
While that is about half of the $7.5 trillion that former President Donald Trump added to the deficit while he was in office, it's far more than the $2.5 trillion Trump had approved at that same point during his term.
Biden has repeatedly defended the spending by his administration and boasted about cutting the deficit by $1.7 trillion.
"I might note parenthetically: In my first two years, I reduced the debt by $1.7 trillion. No President has ever done that," Biden said recently.
However, that figure refers to a reduction in the national deficit between fiscal years 2020 and 2022; while the deficit did shrink during that time period, that is largely because emergency measures put into place during the COVID-19 pandemic expired.
The White House has also tried to blame Republicans for the astronomical rise in debt in recent years.
"This is the trickle-down debt — driven overwhelmingly by repeated Republican giveaways skewed to big corporations and the wealthy," Michael Kikukawa, White House assistant press secretary, said in a statement provided to FOX Business after the debt surpassed $34 trillion.
US NATIONAL DEBT TOPS $34T FOR FIRST TIME IN HISTORY
Even more worrisome is that the spike in interest rates over the past year and a half has made the cost of servicing the national debt more expensive.
That is because as interest rates rise, the federal government's borrowing costs on its debt will also increase. In fact, interest payments on the national debt are projected to be the fastest-growing part of the federal budget over the next three decades, according to the CRFB.
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Payments are expected to triple from nearly $475 billion in fiscal year 2022 to a stunning $1.4 trillion in 2032. By 2053, the interest payments are projected to surge to $5.4 trillion. To put that into perspective, that will be more than the U.S. spends on Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and all other mandatory and discretionary spending programs.
"We are clearly on an unsustainable fiscal path," CRFB President Maya MacGuineas said. "We need to do better."
While the debt has been a source of concern among politicians and budget hawks, just how worried should you be about the nation's rapid pace of borrowing?
Experts say that the higher the debt climbs, the more the U.S. is paying in interest costs each year. Those expenses can eclipse important public investments that fuel economic growth — areas like education, research and development and infrastructure.
"A nation saddled with debt will have less to invest in its own future," the Peter G. Peterson Foundation said.
A Pew Research Center survey published in 2023 found that 57% of Americans think reducing the budget deficit should be a top priority for the president and Congress — up from just 45% the previous year.
https://www.foxbusiness.com/economy/us-national-debt-tracker
SEATTLE, Washington, Apr 24 (IPS) - The vote and the American veto at the United Nations Security Council on April 18 was predictable. Though European countries are increasingly supportive of a Palestinian state, the US is not yet ready for that eventuality, for these reasons:
https://www.globalissues.org/news/2024/04/24/36554 [Collection]I want to talk about the failure of Biden's Green New Deal climate bank ATM and the failure of all these Biden-subsidized offshore windmill projects.
Many of you don't know this, but the first windmills were built in 1200 A.D. in Holland. They were vertical and land-based, and I'm sure they worked reasonably well for their time. It was a technological breakthrough created to grind grains.
By the 19th Century, there were more than 9,000 windmills in Holland and an important power source. They were mainly used to power various industrial uses.
The trouble is, many of today's Joe Biden greenies want us to go back to the 19th Century. Actually, I suspect many of those greenies want us to go back to the 13th Century, but that's a separate topic.
Here's the problem: The Bidens have spent a fortune on subsidizing these gigantic offshore windmill projects, which just don't work. Please read the Wall Street Journal’s editorial on the collapse of New York state wind development.
General Electric has lost a fortune — $1.4 billion last year, and $2.2 billion the year before. The state subsidies come from the misnamed Inflation Reduction Act, which spent well over $1 trillion to subsidize everything outside of fossil fuels.
These huge wind turbines fall over, require expensive repairs and are completely non-economic. The Journal states that more than a dozen of these projects in the U.S. and Europe have been canceled or delayed in the last year.
GREEN ENERGY PROJECTS FACE STARK ENVIRONMENTAL, LOCAL OPPOSITION NATIONWIDE
Meanwhile, the cost of offshore wind, at least in New York, is about $150 per megawatt hour. But wait a second, the wholesale price for natural gas is around $30 a megawatt hour. So you would think businesses and consumers would go for the cheaper natural gas.
But no! No! Natural gas is a fossil fuel, and the greenies don't like fossil fuels. Actually, natural gas is a clean-burning fuel and is part of the long-term solution both for economic growth and climate change.
In the last 20 years or so, the increased use of natural gas has led to huge reductions in lead, particulates, smog and carbon monoxide. Indeed, according to the Committee to Unleash Prosperity Hotline, over the last five decades, GDP is up nearly 800%, while energy consumption has increased only 29%, and carbon emissions have actually fallen 60%.
This is the biggest carbon decline of any of the major economies in the world. Much of this grand, clean air progress can be traced to the increased use of natural gas, but the Bidens are stubborn. They won't acknowledge this.
BLUE STATE DELIVERS CRIPPLING BLOW TO GREEN ENERGY DEVELOPMENT, JEOPARDIZING BIDEN'S CLIMATE GOALS
Heck, even Europe has reclassified natural gas as a clean-burning fuel. Instead, the Bidens are doing everything they can to stop liquid natural gas development and exports. And, of course, they celebrated Earth Day by closing down 13 million acres in Alaska’s National Petroleum Reserve.
And if Mr. Biden were to be re-elected with his Green New Deal gang, then get ready for massive electricity and other power shortages plaguing the American economy and everything in it.
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At that point, 13th Century Holland is going to look better and better.
This article is adapted from Larry Kudlow's opening commentary on the April 23, 2024, edition of "Kudlow."
https://www.foxbusiness.com/media/larry-kudlow-bidens-doing-everything-they-can-stop-liquified-natural-gas-development-exportsTesla let thousands of employees in two states know it will be axing their jobs during upcoming layoffs.
The notifications in California and Texas, where the electric vehicle (EV) maker has large presences, came in the form of WARN notices, according to reports.
In California, the planned Tesla headcount reductions will hit approximately 3,300 workers, The San Francisco Standard reported Tuesday.
They will apparently occur at locations in a total of four different cities in the Golden State.
TESLA TO LAY OFF MORE THAN 10% OF WORKFORCE
Meanwhile, Texas will see almost 2,700 employees in Austin lose their jobs, according to the Austin American-Statesman.
The reported job cuts in the two states will together total roughly 6,000.
Tesla’s layoff plans, announced last week, will entail shedding 10% of its headcount around the world. The Texas-based company said at the time it had seen a "duplication of roles and job functions in certain areas" amid its "rapid growth" in recent years.
At the end of 2023, over 140,400 people had jobs at Tesla.
TESLA ASKS SHAREHOLDERS TO REINSTATE ELON MUSK'S PAY, MOVE TO TEXAS
The layoffs "will prepare Tesla for our next phase of growth, as we are developing some of the most revolutionary technologies in auto, energy and artificial intelligence," according to a filing Tesla submitted last week to the Securities and Exchange Commission.
The company disclosed alongside the layoffs that its senior vice president of powertrain and energy engineering, Andrew Baglino, had left after an 18-year stint at the EV maker.
Tesla currently offers Model Y, 3, X and S vehicles as options for customers as well as its Cybertruck.
The EV maker said Tuesday it had "updated our future vehicle line-up to accelerate the launch of new models ahead of our previously communicated state of production in the second half of 2025."
"These new vehicles, including more affordable models, will utilize aspects of the next generation platform as well as aspects of our current platforms, and will be able to be produced on the same manufacturing lines as our current vehicle line-up," it added.
Stephen Sorace contributed to this report.
https://www.foxbusiness.com/technology/tesla-notifies-thousands-texas-california-impending-layoffsU.S. Amazon Prime members can now order as many grocery deliveries as they’d like each month if they pay an extra fee and meet a certain dollar amount.
The additional monthly fee of $9.99 gives Prime members living in one of 3,500-plus areas access to Amazon’s new grocery delivery subscription, according to the company.
The unlimited deliveries offered through the subscription, which was introduced Tuesday, apply to orders that cost at least $35.
They can place delivery orders with Amazon Fresh and Whole Foods Market and a "variety of local grocery and specialty retailers" on the e-commerce giant’s site, Amazon said.
AMAZON TO LAUNCH PRIME AIR DELIVERY DRONES TO ARIZONA CITY
It identified Rite Aid, Pet Food Express and Cardenas Markets as some of the local and specialty retailers.
Amazon said it will give Prime members "unlimited 30-minute pickup on orders of any size" and "one-hour delivery windows at no extra cost where available." They also have "priority access" to its "Recurring Reservations" feature for Amazon Fresh and Whole Foods through it, according to the company.
The subscription might be familiar to Prime members in Columbus, Denver and Sacramento, where Amazon said it piloted the option late last year.
"The subscription pays for itself in as little as one delivery order per month from Whole Foods Market or one delivery order per month from Amazon Fresh for under $50," the company said.
AMAZON CEO ANDY JASSY TOUTS AI PUSH IN SHAREHOLDER LETTER
Amazon has owned Whole Foods since 2017, when it bought the grocery chain for roughly $13.7 billion. Amazon Fresh has been around for years.
The company said Tuesday it was also offering the grocery delivery subscription to consumers with a registered EBT card who don’t belong to Prime for just $4.99 a month.
The cost of a Prime membership has been set at $14.99 per month or $139 per year since 2022.
AMAZON ABANDONS CASHIER-LESS CHECKOUT SYSTEM, ‘JUST WALK OUT,’ IN FAVOR OF SMART SHOPPING CART
Some of its notable perks include free same-day and one-day shipping on "tens of millions" of items and access to entertainment through Prime Video and Amazon Music.
The company, known for its presence in both e-commerce and tech, had a market cap value of $1.87 trillion as of Tuesday afternoon.
https://www.foxbusiness.com/technology/amazon-introduces-9-99-unlimited-grocery-deliver-subscription-with-primeThe astronomic rise in mortgage rates and spike in home prices over the past year has pushed a key tenet of the American dream out of reach for millions of families.
Now, there is another obstacle to homeownership: higher home insurance premiums.
The average cost of home insurance for a $300,000 property in the U.S. surged 12% in 2023 to roughly $1,770 per year, according to recent data published by Insurify, an insurance comparison website headquartered in Massachusetts.
That is noticeably faster than the 2.8% increase in the consumer price index recorded during that same time period.
SURGING HOME INSURANCE COSTS COULD FORCE FAMILIES TO LEAVE THESE 10 STATES
"As a recurring cost of owning a home, albeit a relatively smaller component, surging insurance premiums could add extra cost burdens on many households in this high borrowing cost environment," Freddie Mac economists wrote in a recent blog post about the matter.
Freddie Mac data shows the average annual home insurance premium was $1,081 in 2018 among borrowers living in a single-family home with a conventional 30-year mortgage. By 2023, that had jumped to $1,522 – a more than 40% increase from just five years ago.
The problem may soon get worse.
JAMIE DIMON WARNS INFLATION, INTEREST RATES MAY REMAIN ELEVATED
Insurify predicts that the cost of home insurance will keep growing, with average premiums in the U.S. likely to hit a record high of $2,552 by the end of 2024. That would mark a whopping 44% increase from the previous year.
Researchers have blamed the skyrocketing prices on a number of factors, including weather disasters, rising re-insurance rates and steep home repairs as inflation pushes the cost of building materials higher.
Home insurance is even more expensive in states plagued by severe weather and other climate-related catastrophes. As the frequency and severity of destructive weather events have increased, more areas are considered high risk and unprofitable for insurance companies.
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In fact, a growing number of insurance companies are opting to leave states like California and Florida, driving prices even higher for homeowners. Florida is the most expensive state for home insurance, with the average annual cost rising $9,213 last year. That is 421% higher than the national average.
Rates jumped by 14% in 2023 as several major insurers stopped renewing certain policies or left the state entirely, citing concerns over hurricane risk. Severe weather damages in Florida topped $15 billion last year.
The spike in home insurance is not showing up in government inflation data, which only measures the slower-rising renters insurance policies. Had homeowners insurance been factored into the CPI in 2023, the gauge would have come in higher at 4.11% – a 0.7% percentage point increase from what was actually reported.
This suggests that the CPI does not fully capture the price pains that are actually hitting everyday Americans.
Inflation has created severe financial pressures for most U.S. households, which are forced to pay more for everyday necessities like food and rent. The burden is disproportionately borne by low-income Americans, whose already-stretched paychecks are heavily impacted by price fluctuations.
https://www.foxbusiness.com/economy/surge-home-insurance-costs-adding-more-inflation-pressure-on-americans