• S.C. Treasurer Nixes Disney From Approved Investment List
  
  South Carolina State Treasurer Curtis Loftis this week removed The Walt Disney Company from a list of approved investments due to its "far-left activism," which he said was a sign of "structural rot."
• Memo Shows Amazon Plan to Advance Interests in California
  
  An internal Amazon memo has provided a stark look at the company's carefully laid out plans to grow its influence in Southern California through a plethora of efforts that include burnishing its reputation through charity work and pushing back against "labor agitation."
• Bud Light Tries to Revive 'Shattered' Brand After 'Woke' Turn
  
  Even a new ad campaign featuring a pair of popular NFL Hall of Famers such as Peyton Manning and Emmitt Smith won't be enough for Bud Light to repair its reputation after the beer brand's ill-conceived "woke" marketing ploy earlier this year sent sales tumbling.
• Meta to Fully Encrypt Messages on Facebook, Messenger
  
  Meta Platforms said on Wednesday it has started to roll out end-to-end encryption for all personal chats and calls on Messenger and Facebook.
• Meta Oversight Board to Examine Hamas War Content
  
  Meta's independent Oversight Board said Thursday it will review how the company has handled violent content on its social media platforms in two cases involving hostage-taking and bombing in the Israel-Hamas conflict.
• CVS Health Changes to Clarify Prescription Drug Pricing May Save Some Money
  
  CVS Health is introducing changes to how its prescription drug pricing model works, and that could lead to some savings for customers starting next year.
• TikTok's ByteDance Offers Investors $268B Share Buyback
  
  TikTok owner ByteDance is offering to buy back around $5 billion worth of shares from investors at a price that will value the company at about $268 billion, two people familiar with the matter said Wednesday.
• Airlines See Stable Profits, Record Traveler Numbers in '24
  
  Airline profits are set to stabilize in 2024 as continued growth in post-pandemic travel is offset by the high cost of capital and capacity constraints, industry group IATA said Wednesday.
• Wall Street Rises as Soft Employment Data Supports Rate Cut Bets
  
  Wall Street's main indexes gained Wednesday as investors turned more optimistic about rate cuts from the Federal Reserve early next year, after data showed further signs of a cooling jobs market.
• US Regulators Clamp Down in Bid to Prevent More Bank Failures
  
  U.S. bank supervisors are increasing scrutiny of lenders' risk management practices and taking disciplinary action as they try to fix problems that could lead to more bank failures, banking industry sources said.
• Wall Street Bank Bosses Warn Congress New Regulations Will Hurt Economy
  
  Top bosses of JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, and other major banks planned on Wednesday to warn lawmakers that capital hikes and other new regulations being contemplated by U.S. bank regulators will hurt credit markets and the broader economy.
• US Gas Pump Prices Sink to 11-Month Low
  
  U.S. gasoline prices are the lowest they have been since January and by Christmas could fall below $3 a gallon for the first time since 2021, analysts said, which should boost consumer confidence during the holiday shopping season.
• McDonald's to Add 10,000 New Stores by 2027, Double Loyalty Program Sales
  
  McDonald's is planning to open about 10,000 restaurants globally by 2027 and more than double revenue from its loyalty program, the company said Wednesday, as it invests heavily to automate processes and speed up service at its stores.
• Actors Vote to Approve Deal to End Hollywood Strike
  
  Hollywood's actors have voted to ratify the deal with studios that ended their strike after nearly four months, bringing an official finish to the labor strife that shook the entertainment industry for most of 2023.
• Goldman Sachs Sees Better Investment Banking Outlook, Trading Flat
  
  Goldman Sachs said the outlook for strategic mergers and acquisitions is improving, according to its Chief Financial Officer Denis Coleman.
• JM Smucker Beats on Easing Costs, Higher Prices
  
  J.M. Smucker, which owns Jif peanut butter and Dunkin' pre-made coffee, beat second-quarter profit expectations Tuesday, helped by higher product pricing and easing input costs.
• Wells Fargo CEO Expects Severance Expenses to Exceed $750 Million
  
  Wells Fargo CEO Charlie Scharf told investors Tuesday he expects to book higher-than-anticipated severance expenses between $750 million to a little less than $1 billion in the fourth quarter.
• Exxon, Pioneer Get Second FTC Request for Information on Pending Takeover
  
  The U.S. Federal Trade Commission has sent shale oil producer Pioneer Natural Resources and Exxon Mobil a second request for more information on their $60 billion takeover deal, Pioneer said Tuesday.
• JetBlue-Spirit Merger Antitrust Trial Heads to Closing Arguments
  
  Lawyers for the Justice Department and JetBlue Airways are scheduled to make closing arguments Tuesday in a trial that will determine whether JetBlue can buy Spirit Airlines, the nation's biggest low-fare carrier.
• 'Grand Theft Auto VI' to Feature Woman for First Time
  
  Millions of video game fans got their first glimpse Tuesday of "Grand Theft Auto VI," after a trailer landed on YouTube promising the first woman lead character and a 2025 release date for the latest installment of one of the world's biggest entertainment franchises.
• CVS Boosts '24 Revenue Forecast on Health Services Demand
  
  CVS Health on Tuesday forecast 2024 revenue above market estimates and said it would shift to fixed rates for reimbursements from pharmacy benefit managers and insurers, to boost transparency amid scrutiny on high drug prices.
• Families of 3 Black Shooting Victims Sue Dollar General, Others
  
  Family members of three Black people fatally shot at a Dollar General store in north Florida by a racist gunman have sued the store's landlord, operator, and security contractor for negligence, claiming lax security led to their loved ones' deaths.
• Hollywood Braces for Actors' Vote on Strike Deal
  
  Hollywood on Tuesday anxiously waited to learn if actors have approved their union's hard-fought deal with studios, or if an entertainment industry still reeling from months-long strikes could be plunged back into turmoil.
• DeSantis Board Accuses Disney of Controlling Predecessor
  
  The board appointed by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis to oversee Walt Disney's theme parks accused the company of giving a previous local board and its employees millions of dollars' worth of tickets, discounted hotel stays, merchandise, and other benefits that were "akin to...
• Supreme Court Leans Toward Backing Purdue Pharma Deal
  
  The Supreme Court on Monday wrestled with a nationwide settlement with OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma that would shield members of the Sackler family who own the company from civil lawsuits over the toll of opioids.

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