• JPMorgan, Banks Eye Venezuela Investment
  
  The U.S. involvement in Venezuela's oil sector offers a potential opportunity for international banks, with JPMorgan Chase in an advantageous spot due to its history in the country and past involvement with international trade financing.
• Investors Turn Bullish on Latin America After Maduro Capture
  
  U.S. President Donald Trump's muscular moves in Venezuela and Argentina ?are adding to a rightward shift across Latin America in a pivotal election year, making foreign cash more likely to flow to the region as investors anticipate market-friendly reforms.
• As Saks Teeters, Department Stores Bet on Experiences
  
  From ?Paris to New York, department stores are sharpening their focus on curated shopping experiences , ice-skating shows, wine tasting and architectural tours , to try to win back shoppers.
• AI Health Gadgets at CES Spark Expert Skepticism
  
  Health tech gadgets displayed at the annual CES trade show make a lot of promises. A smart scale promoted a healthier lifestyle by scanning your feet to track your heart health, and an egg-shaped hormone tracker uses AI to help you figure out the best time to conceive.
• Bank Profits Surge on Investment Banking Jump in Q4
  
  The largest U.S. banks are expected to ?report bigger fourth quarter profits next week, fueled by a surge in investment banking revenue as dealmaking accelerates.
• 2026 Market Watch: Fed Succession, Political Risk, AI
  
  Geopolitics, U.S. midterm elections and diverging monetary policies are among key drivers for world markets in 2026, alongside an artificial intelligence boom that has raised concerns about a tech share bubble.
• US Auto Sales Defy Uncertainty to Rise 2% in 2025
  
  Sales of new cars in the United States rose about 2% in 2025, analysts estimate, defying extraordinary disruptions all year in an industry where "black swan" events have become routine.
• Fed Policymakers Judged 'Ample' Reserves Warranted Bill-Buying
  
  The Federal Reserve's decision earlier this ?month to start buying short-dated government bonds came after a recommendation from staff to do so and a judgment by policymakers that the level of reserves had fallen to a targeted "ample" range, minutes of the central bank's...
• China Blasts US Arms Sale as Taiwan Drills Continue
  
  China's foreign minister on Tuesday slammed a record U.S. arms sale to Taiwan as Beijing conducted the second day of military drills around the island it has long claimed as its own. Wang Yi, the most senior Chinese official to comment on the sales so far, also blasted the...
• Weight-Loss Pills Could Spur Food Product Overhauls
  
  Packaged food makers and fast-food restaurants may be forced to overhaul more of their products next year as newly approved, appetite-suppressing GLP-1 pills become available in January, analysts say.
• Senior Baby Boomers Turn 80 in 2026
  
  The oldest baby boomers , once the vanguard of an American youth that revolutionized U.S. culture and politics , turn 80 in 2026.
• Dept. Stores Adapt as Beauty Moves to TikTok, Amazon
  
  It's shoppers like Quinn Kelsey who keep department store executives up at night.The 38-year-old Denver resident gets makeup ideas from TikTok videos and other social media content, not salespeople at beauty counters.
• American Airlines Ramps up Premium Upgrades
  
  American Airlines is betting big on luxury to regain altitude. From lie-flat seats and Bollinger champagne to Lavazza coffee and ultra-fast Wi-Fi, the carrier is rolling out a premium makeover to claw back ground lost to Delta Air Lines and United Airlines.
• Does AI Capex Spending Lead to Positive Outcomes?
  
  As someone who views corporate finance through a pragmatic lens, I've been closely watching the current surge in capital expenditures (capex) tied to artificial intelligence (AI).
• Trump Reining in Proxy Advisers May Empower CEOs
  
  A new White House order aiming to rein in proxy advisory firms marks a major step in a broader Republican effort to weaken the role of investors and put more power in the hands of CEOs, corporate governance analysts and attorneys said.
• Business Leaders Doubt AI's Current Capabilities
  
  Last spring, CellarTracker, a wine-collection app, built an AI-powered sommelier to make unvarnished wine recommendations based on a person's palate. The problem was the chatbot was too nice.
• Trump Approves US-Built Tiny Cars
  
  President Donald Trump announced Friday he has approved the manufacturing of "tiny cars" in the U.S.
• Mark Cuban Seeks Trump's Backing for Drug Fee Relief
  
  Billionaire Mark Cuban has urged the Trump administration to waive the hundreds of thousands of dollars in regulatory fees required for generic drug approvals, he told Reuters on Wednesday.Cost Plus Drugs, an online pharmacy Cuban launched to sell drugs directly to...
• BlackRock: AI Will Keep Dominating Markets in 2026
  
  BlackRock, the world's largest asset manager, expects AI to continue dominating markets in 2026 and anticipates a turbulent ride for investors as speculative trading and leverage raise the risks of a repeat of last month's sharp selloff.
• Bain: Luxury Sector to Revive in 2026
  
  The global luxury goods industry is likely to sell 3% to 5% more next year after stagnating in 2025, but years of aggressive price increases have alienated customers, threatening long-term growth, Bain & Company warned Thursday.
• How Big Tech Is Faring Against US Antitrust Lawsuits
  
  A federal judge ruling that Meta Platforms does not hold an illegal social media monopoly handed Big Tech its first decisive win against the antitrust crackdown started in President Donald Trump's first term.
• Survey Shows AI Music Is Virtually Undetectable
  
  A staggering 97% of listeners cannot distinguish between artificial intelligence-generated and human-composed songs, a Deezer-Ipsos survey showed Wednesday, underscoring growing concerns that AI could upend how music is created, consumed, and monetized.
• AMD: Data Center Market to Grow to $1T by 2030
  
  Advanced Micro Devices expects the market for the company's data center chips will grow to $1 trillion by 2030, CEO Lisa Su said at the company's analyst day Tuesday.
• Crypto Expert to Newsmax: Georgia, Indiana Powering AI, Bitcoin Surge
  
  As the race to expand cryptocurrency mining and artificial intelligence infrastructure accelerates across the United States, Michael Zuccarelli, co-founder of Terra Hosting, told Newsmax on Tuesday that states like Georgia and Indiana...
• Global Chip Dispute Threatens Auto Production Again!
  
  The auto industry just can't seem to get a break. U.S. assembly plants are weeks away from shutdowns due to new chip shortage.

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