Economy news summaries — Page 5
Essential facts and source links for recent economy stories.
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Vanguard's VDE outpaced iShares' ICLN with a 46.8% one-year return
As of Sept. 18, 2026, Vanguard's VDE returned 46.8% over a year, versus 18.5% for iShares' ICLN. VDE holds U.S. oil and gas firms; ICLN targets global clean energy. Over five years, ICLN's maximum drawdown was 57.2%, against 26.6% for VDE. -
Kara Swisher says she plans to leave CNN rather than work under David Ellison
Kara Swisher says she plans to leave CNN rather than work under David Ellison once Paramount Skydance's merger with Warner Bros. Discovery is complete. She said she'd rather work for Rupert Murdoch and has asked her agent about an early exit; her contract runs through year-end. -
Insider Monkey favors Micron over Western Digital, citing long-term deals
Insider Monkey’s analysis favors Micron over Western Digital, citing higher profitability and signed supply deals through decade’s end amid AI-driven demand. It says Micron’s low valuation reflects fears that memory profits will fade; pricing into 2027 is a key test. -
BHP suspends Escondida after worker dies during maintenance
Operations at BHP’s Escondida mine in Chile, the world’s largest copper mine, were suspended Wednesday after a worker died while doing maintenance, the company said. BHP gave no restart date; the site’s union said a front-end loader was involved. -
Redburn raises Southwest to Neutral, keeps Delta and United at Buy
Rothschild & Co Redburn raised Southwest Airlines to Neutral from Sell on Sept. 18 and lifted its price target to $40 from $35, saying valuation had improved and gains from its product shift beat expectations. It kept Buy ratings on Delta and United. -
Costco’s Sept. 24 report may be the last to get much fee-hike lift
Costco is due to report fiscal 2026 fourth-quarter results after market close Sept. 24; net sales are already known at $93.9 billion, up 11.3% year over year. The September 2024 U.S. and Canada fee increase is nearly fully phased into results, potentially ending its major boost. -
Colgate-Palmolive exits S&P 100 but stays in S&P 500
S&P Global removed Colgate-Palmolive from the S&P 100 on Sept. 21 as faster-growing AI-related stocks eclipsed its $69 billion market cap—not because its share price was falling. It remains in the S&P 500, so funds tracking that index will continue buying its shares. -
Establishment Labs raises 2026 revenue guidance after 31.7% quarterly growth
Establishment Labs’ second-quarter revenue rose 31.7% year over year to $67.5 million, while adjusted EBITDA turned positive at $3.7 million from an $8.5 million loss. It raised 2026 revenue guidance to $269 million-$271 million despite an $11.7 million net loss. -
Zumiez scales back fiscal 2026 closure plan to about 16 stores
Zumiez plans to close about 16 stores in fiscal 2026—10 in North America and six internationally, down from an earlier plan for 25. The retailer's second-quarter sales fell 2.5% to $209 million, with CEO Rick Brooks citing weak U.S. footwear sales and lower traffic. -
Motley Fool ties Tesla's $1.2 trillion valuation to Robotaxi and Optimus hopes
Motley Fool flags Tesla's slower growth, a possible competitive edge, and a $1.2 trillion valuation tied to Robotaxi and Optimus hopes. First-half 2026 auto revenue rose 24%; trailing 12-month company sales were only 10% above their level three years earlier. -
Apple Card Savings raises variable APY to 3.5%; existing accounts update automatically
Apple Card Savings raised its APY to 3.5% on Sept. 22, from 3.4%, partly reversing cuts in April and June. Existing accounts get the change automatically. A $1,000 balance held for a year would earn about $35 at 3.5%, versus $34 before, according to MacRumors. -
Mastercard teams with Alchemy to put virtual cards in AI shopping agents
Mastercard and Alchemy’s deal will bring Mastercard-backed virtual cards, spending limits and approval controls to AI shopping agents. If agents prioritize cost, they could eventually move payments to cheaper stablecoin rails, putting Mastercard’s network fees at risk. -
AutoZone’s quarterly earnings per share beat estimates, but revenue missed
AutoZone’s fourth-quarter revenue rose 5.6% to $6.59 billion, missing the $6.7 billion consensus, while earnings per share climbed 15.1% to $56.05, above the $53.84 estimate. Tariff refunds boosted gross margin by 145 basis points, a roughly $100 million windfall. -
Rafael Santana cuts his Westinghouse Air Brake stake by 2,183 shares in $612,000 sale
Westinghouse Air Brake Technologies CEO Rafael Santana sold 2,183 shares for $612,000 across Sept. 1 and 2, an SEC Form 4 filing shows. He held 117,242 shares directly afterward, valued at $32.8 million using the Sept. 2 closing price. -
Shopify lets Meta’s Muse shop its stores as Amazon blocks the agent
Amazon began blocking Meta’s Muse shopping agent on Sept. 20, while Shopify said the next day it would let Muse shop across every store on its platform, with checkout through Shop Pay. Shopify shares closed 7.3% higher at $137.92 Monday, then rose nearly 8% Tuesday. -
TIC Solutions adds three businesses amid record backlog, net loss and $1.6B debt
TIC Solutions acquired we-do-IT, GeoVerra and Core Group on Aug. 18; the cash-funded deals add about $90 million in annualized revenue. Its backlog hit a record $1.18 billion in Q2, while the company reported a $13.3 million net loss and $1.6 billion in term debt. -
Bitcoin climbs past $85,000 as Benjamin Cowen admits his call was wrong
Crypto analyst Benjamin Cowen said on Sept. 21 he was wrong to expect Bitcoin’s cycle low still lay ahead after the cryptocurrency rose past $85,000 this week. On Sept. 4, he gave a 65% chance that the low was still to come, with some scenarios pointing as low as $44,000. -
Louis Navellier expects AI growth to continue despite takeover fears
Investor Louis Navellier says fears that AI could take over the world are exaggerated and expects development to keep moving quickly, citing order backlogs projected through 2032. He highlights Ciena and Coherent as beneficiaries of AI growth. -
SoftBank launches over $11 billion in bonds ahead of $10 billion OpenAI installment
On Sept. 21, SoftBank launched more than $11 billion in dollar and euro bonds as it prepared another $10 billion OpenAI installment. Its Arm-backed facility can reach about $25 billion; SoftBank sold its roughly $5.8 billion Nvidia stake in 2025. -
With median asking rent near $3,285, Miami ranks last for affordability among 182 U.S. cities
Miami ranked last for rental affordability among 182 major U.S. cities, with median asking rent at about $3,285 a month, The Latin Times reported. A $1,500 monthly budget covers about 498 square feet; Hispanic renters face especially high cost burdens. -
Perdoceo agrees to buy South University, adding 11 campuses
Perdoceo Education agreed to acquire South University, adding 11 campuses and online programs in nursing, pharmacy and physician assistant studies. The deal still needs regulatory and accreditor approvals and could close as early as April 2027. -
Insider Monkey says Intel's rally leaves little room for setbacks
Intel shares closed at $123.86 on Sept. 22, after trading below $30 within the past year. Insider Monkey says improving production and demand are offset by ongoing losses and a foundry reliant on Intel's own orders, leaving little room for delays at the current price. -
Brent gains 3.86%, outpacing WTI as Pezeshkian vows Iran won't surrender to the US
Brent crude settled 3.86% higher at $103.08 a barrel on Wednesday; U.S. WTI rose 1.81% to $92.16. Traders weighed Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian's vow not to surrender to the United States, though he said Tehran still believes in diplomacy. -
Oracle’s planned 50,000-GPU cloud deployment tests AMD’s $1 trillion valuation
AMD's market value topped $1 trillion for the first time on Sept. 21 after its shares rose about 10%. Oracle's announced 50,000-MI450-GPU cloud cluster is set to begin deployment in Q3 2026, testing whether AMD can turn the deal into sustained share gains. -
Google backs Vogtle and Hatch upgrades that could add 96 MW
Georgia Power and Google announced Sept. 21 an agreement to support upgrades at the Vogtle and Hatch nuclear stations that could add about 96 megawatts, subject to regulatory approval. Georgia Power projects roughly $900 million in customer benefits over the units’ lifetimes. -
U.S. diesel futures lose 4% after White House rejects export-ban report
U.S. diesel futures fell 4% Wednesday to $4.7437 a gallon after Politico reported a 90-day ban on exports; a White House official said the report was incorrect. Trump backed a ban Tuesday, but Energy Secretary Chris Wright said no decision had been made. -
Energy Transfer leads Enterprise on yield as both expand distributions
Energy Transfer yields 6.4% and plans 3%-5% annual distribution growth; Enterprise Products Partners yields 5.8% and has raised its payout for 28 straight years. The company forecasts double-digit EBITDA and distributable cash-flow growth in 2027 as projects ramp up. -
Iambic's IPO filing coincides with AbbVie's multi-year AI drug pact
Iambic Therapeutics filed for a U.S. IPO on Sept. 21 and announced a multi-year research pact with AbbVie that day. Its AI platform will design small-molecule programs in immunology, neuroscience and oncology; NVIDIA and Qatar Investment Authority have backed the startup.
