Wall Street advances in short Christmas Eve session on megacap gains

By Medha Singh and David French (Reuters) -Wall Street’s main indexes advanced on Tuesday, as gains in a handful of megacap and growth stocks bolstered benchmarks in a truncated trading session before Christmas. With megacap stocks having outsized influence on markets, their performance is often a key driver of indexes. When coupled with reduced trading volumes and few other catalysts, as many investors take time off for the holidays, this is even more pronounced. All … Read more…

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Toyota is donating $1 million to Trump’s inauguration

By Nora Eckert DETROIT (Reuters) – Toyota Motor of North America is donating $1 million to President-elect Donald Trump’s Jan. 20 inauguration, a company spokesman said on Tuesday, a day after Detroit’s Ford Motor and General Motors, said they would give the same amount. Ford and GM are also contributing vehicles to the festivities, while Toyota is not planning to, the Japan-based company said. Trump’s proposed tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada would affect … Read more…

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Apple seeks to defend Google’s billion-dollar payments in search case

By Jody Godoy (Reuters) – Apple has asked to participate in Google’s upcoming U.S. antitrust trial over online search, saying it cannot rely on Google to defend revenue-sharing agreements that send the iPhone maker billions of dollars each year for making Google the default search engine on its Safari browser. Apple does not plan to build its own search engine to compete with Alphabet’s Google, whether or not the payments continue, the company’s lawyers said … Read more…

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Big banks, business groups sue US Fed over annual stress tests

By Pete Schroeder (Reuters) -Major banks and business groups sued the Federal Reserve on Tuesday, alleging the U.S. central bank’s annual “stress tests” of Wall Street firms violate the law. The lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Columbus, Ohio, claims the Fed’s practice of determining how big banks perform against hypothetical economic turmoil, and assigning capital requirements accordingly, do not follow proper administrative procedure. Plaintiffs included the Bank Policy Institute, the U.S. Chamber of … Read more…

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US crypto industry eyes possible day-one Trump executive orders

By Hannah Lang (Reuters) – The cryptocurrency industry is pushing President-elect Donald Trump’s team to kick start his promised crypto policy overhaul when he takes office next month with executive orders that would help push tokens mainstream, according to industry officials. Trump plans to issue a flurry of executive orders and directives on everything from immigration to energy on his first day in office on Jan. 20, Reuters reported this month. On the campaign trail, … Read more…

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Google’s proposed search result changes get thumbs up from EU airlines

By Foo Yun Chee BRUSSELS (Reuters) – Alphabet’s Google’s proposed changes to its search results to comply with EU tech legislation has received the thumbs up from lobbying group Airlines for Europe whose members include Air France KLM and Lufthansa. Google has announced a series of changes in search result formats in recent months following conflicting demands from price-comparison sites, hotels, airlines and small retailers, with the latest tweaks announced last month. It is trying … Read more…

Ford donates $1 million and fleet of vehicles to Trump’s inauguration

By Nora Eckert and David Shepardson DETROIT (Reuters) – Ford Motor Co is donating $1 million and a fleet of vehicles to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s January inauguration, a company spokesperson said on Monday. Policies on tariffs and electric vehicles that are being considered by the incoming administration would likely affect Detroit carmakers like Ford, who are struggling to ramp up and sell their battery-powered models. Republican Trump has proposed significant tariffs on imports from … Read more…

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Elon Musk’s X lifts price for premium-plus tier to pay creators

(Reuters) – Elon Musk-owned X raised the price of its premium-plus plan in several markets from Dec. 21 as the social media company looks to boost payment for creators on its platform. The top-tier plan is now priced at $22 a month in the U.S., up from $16 earlier, according to a blog post. Prices for the basic tier and premium subscriptions remain unchanged at $3 and $8, respectively. X changed its revenue-sharing practices in … Read more…

Lilly’s weight-loss treatment Zepbound becomes first FDA-approved drug for sleep apnea

By Bhanvi Satija (Reuters) -The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Friday approved Eli Lilly’s weight-loss treatment, Zepbound, for obstructive sleep apnea, making it the first drug greenlighted to directly treat patients with the common sleeping disorder. The regulator approved the drug for moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnea in adults with obesity, the company said. The approval opens up a wide market of patients for Lilly at a time when demand for Zepbound is … Read more…

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Google offers to loosen search deals in US antitrust case remedy

By Jody Godoy (Reuters) -Alphabet’s Google proposed on Friday a loosening of its agreements with Apple and others to set Google as the default search engine on new devices, in a bid to address a U.S. ruling that it unlawfully dominates online search. The proposal is much narrower than the government’s push to make Google sell its Chrome browser, which Google called a drastic attempt to intervene in the search market. Google urged U.S. District … Read more…

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