Business

Hotel groups have long complained about online booking agents, which typically take a cut of 15-25% © Wellych/Dreamstime Major hotel groups are intensifying efforts to get customers to book directly, as they seek to save on commissions paid to online platforms and prepare for the rise of artificial intelligence “agents”. Marriott, the world’s largest hotel…

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China’s policymakers have increasingly warned companies against over-investment that they fear is driving down prices © AFP via Getty Images China’s industrial profits fell at their fastest pace in more than a year last month, as Xi Jinping’s economic planners struggled to contain the fallout from industrial overcapacity and lacklustre consumer confidence. Profits at industrial…

Christmas came early for someone who purchased a Powerball ticket at a gas station outside Little Rock, Arkansas, worth more than $1.8 billion. The lone winner in Wednesday’s Christmas Eve drawing matched all five winning numbers and the Powerball to capture the second-largest lottery jackpot in U.S. history, ending the game’s three-month stretch without a…

Natalie ShermanNew York Geoff Perlman As self-driving cars get closer to reality, Tesla is striving to remain a big player. But is it sacrificing safety to stay in the game? For the past few weeks, Geoff Perlman, a 61-year-old technology executive from Texas, has been testing a free trial of Tesla’s latest self-driving software as…

PHOENIX (AZFamily) — Over the holidays, six lucky Arizona Lottery players hit big across the state. Here’s where and when the winning tickets were sold. Tuesday, December 23, 2025 Two $20,000 Mega Millions winners were sold at: Fry’s Food Store: 39508 N Daisy Mountain Drive in Anthem Circle K: 1542 E Highway 70 in Safford…

A lucky lottery player in Arkansas won the $1.817 billion Powerball drawing on Christmas Eve, but someone in the Twin Cities was also treated to a nice stocking stuffer in the form of $100,000. The Minnesota Lottery says a ticket sold at Jerry’s Food in Woodbury matched four numbers and the Power Play-boosted Powerball. Adam…

ULA President and CEO Tory Bruno participated in a fireside chat with Michael Dickey, director of the Force Design Integration Office at the U.S. Space Force’s Space Warfighting Analysis Center. The conversation happened on the final day of the Space Force Association’s Spacepower Conference on Dec. 12, 2024. Image: Will Robinson-Smith/Spaceflight Now Blue Origin announced…

ROANOKE, Va. (WSET) — A Roanoke family is suing two airline companies, alleging the entire family was bitten by bed bugs during their flight. According to the lawsuit, the Albuquerque family is suing Delta Airlines and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines for $200,000 after an incident involving bed bugs ruined their family vacation. The Albuquerque’s began…

Sakshi VenkatramanUS reporter Kaaviya Sambasivam/Simone Mckenzie/Google Veo 3 In some ways, Gigi is like any other young social media influencer. With perfect hair and makeup, she logs on and talks to her fans. She shares clips: eating, doing skin care, putting on lipstick. She even has a cute baby who appears in some videos. But…

Hassle-free returns may be a thing of the past, and if you’re staring at a stack of unwanted Christmas gifts, you may have to think twice before mailing them back. Several major retailers are now charging customers to return items even if they are unopened and in perfect condition. Macy’s now charges $9.99 for mail-in…

The holiday season will soon come to a close, but the busiest time of the year for product returns is just beginning. The National Retail Federation estimates 17% of holiday purchases will be sent back this year. More retailers are reporting extended return windows and increased holiday staff to handle the rush this year. A…

Happy Friday and welcome to the final weekend of 2025! It’s going to be a snowy one, with a winter storm expected to hit NYC and the surrounding area later today. This has led to an occurrence we haven’t seen in the history of this newsletter: Nearly every planned service change for this weekend has…

ATLANTA (WTOC/WCSC) — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reported 64 people across 22 states have been diagnosed with the same strain of Salmonella from eating raw oysters. Three cases were in South Carolina, the agency reported. People in this outbreak are reporting eating raw oysters, the CDC’s website states. The CDC and…

A trader works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. NYSE This is CNBC’s Morning Squawk newsletter. Subscribe here to receive future editions in your inbox. Here are five key things investors need to know to start the trading day: 1. Tiptoeing toward a winning week Stock futures are little changed after the Christmas holiday…

The holiday season will soon come to a close, but the busiest time of the year for product returns is just beginning. The National Retail Federation estimates 17% of holiday purchases will be sent back this year. More retailers are reporting extended return windows and increased holiday staff to handle the rush this year. A…

The rest of the world is now clearly looking at the US’s markets through an entirely new lens © Timothy A Clarey/AFP/Getty Images Make no mistake, global markets really did change in 2025. American exceptionalism may never be the same again. You have to poke around to see this clearly. On the face of it,…

(Bloomberg) — China vowed to prevent the yuan’s exchange rate from overshooting, sending yet another clear signal of its intention to slow the currency’s appreciation. The People’s Bank of China said while it will maintain the exchange rate’s flexibility, it will strengthen efforts to guide expectations and guard against  “overshooting risks” for the currency, according…

Fire crews have attended a runway incident at Aberdeen Airport after a Loganair flight to Dublin was unable to take off. Images from the scene showed an emergency team hosing down the landing gear on a Loganair ATR 72 aircraft, which had been due to depart at 10:05. The airline said passengers were disembarked and…

Many Americans are heading into 2026 with serious money worries as an affordability crisis collides with stagnant wages, making it more important to take steps to shore up their finances. On top of that, a major tax overhaul is taking effect under Republicans’ “big, beautiful” law, or OBBBA, creating opportunities to benefit from the new rules….

Bloomberg (Bloomberg) — Copper surged to a record in Shanghai and rallied in New York, adding to substantial annual gains as investors bet on tighter global supplies in 2026, while also pricing in the impact of a weaker US dollar. In China, prices gained as much as 4.7% to trade near 100,000 yuan ($14,270) a…

You must leave now, take what you need you think will last. But whatever you wish to keep, you better grab it fast. — Bob Dylan If September 2025 was peak bubble, 2026 will likely the year which it all falls apart. The clues are everywhere. Here are two I read this morning: And a…

The top five mortgage lenders continue to outpace their competitors with rates in the upper-5% range, according to a survey conducted by Yahoo Finance. Lenders were ranked by annual percentage rate (APR), which includes lender fees. Here are the 10 mortgage lenders with the best interest rates this week, as determined by our survey of…

Faarea MasudBusiness reporter Getty Images Boxing Day sales have seen a muted start as shoppers continued to shun bricks-and-mortar stores in favour of online. By 3pm, visits to UK high streets were down 1.5% on 2024, while shopping centres saw a 0.6% fall, according to data from MRI Software. MRI’s footfall data showed retail parks…

A Wendell man is the latest to be arrested in connection with the theft of copper wiring from a North Carolina demolition company. According to case warrants, the four people charged were employees of 4 Seasons Demolition working at the site of the former state DMV headquarters on New Bern Avenue in Raleigh. The thefts occurred on…

Getting a bachelor’s degree isn’t the only way to land a lucrative job anymore. Resume Genius’s latest report identified the jobs that offer the highest pay without requiring a four-year college degree, using data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The report demonstrates that “there’s no one way to get a high-paying job,” according…

Raymond James is banking on several stocks to reap considerable returns next year, and they aren’t the usual artificial intelligence heavyweights, its recently released list of analysts’ best picks for 2026 shows. In a note to clients dated Dec. 8, the financial services firm pointed to 18 stocks that are likely to grow in 2026,…

Brothers91 | E+ | Getty Images For unmarried couples in long-term relationships, being non-spouses from a legal standpoint may be an unremarkable part of everyday life. In the event of death, however, that unwed status can make a huge difference. While the person who passed away might have wanted their partner to receive all or…

If you’ve ever opened a car tax bill and wondered how your aging vehicle somehow gained value like fine wine, Stephen Martin knows the feeling. The Amherst County driver says his 2022 Toyota Sienna and a 2016 Ford F-250 are worth far less than what he’s being taxed on, and he’s not convinced the county…

In this article JNJ Follow your favorite stocksCREATE FREE ACCOUNT Johnson & Johnson offices in Irvine, California, US, on Friday, Oct. 10, 2025. Kyle Grillot | Bloomberg | Getty Images Johnson & Johnson said on Friday it discontinued a mid-stage study of its experimental drug to treat patients with moderate to severe atopic dermatitis after…

Target in November reported its 12th consecutive quarter of weak or declining sales, with consumers becoming more cautious about personal spending © David Paul Morris/Bloomberg US retail chain Target is facing pressure from an activist investor after a sales slump that has wiped out nearly a third of its share value this year, according to…