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Wall Street Journal, September 19,
These are the most popular stories from the Wall Street Journal. These stories have not been verified and we cannot vouch their accuracy. Nvidia announced on Thursday that it would invest $5 Billion in Intel. The chipmaker, which is struggling in the United States, will now have the backing of a major company. This comes just weeks after White House negotiated an unprecedented deal with the federal government for the latter to acquire a large stake in the firm. UPS has canceled its plans to purchase Estafeta after a year-long attempt to acquire the Mexican small packages provider. Ames Watson, a private equity firm, closed on Thursday a $140 million deal to purchase jewelry retailer Claire's from bankruptcy. Sardar Biglari is the founder of Biglari Holdings Inc., an investor in Steak 'n Shake. He has targeted Cracker Barrel with a proxy fight. FedEx will rely more heavily on shipping from the U.S. to markets like Europe as tariffs from China are slowing down the trade into the U.S. American Express has increased the annual fee for its Platinum Credit Card to $895, up from $695. This will take effect on Thursday. (Compiled by Bengaluru Newsroom)
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Italian deputy PM discusses autos with China amid EU tensions
During an interview with the state news agency Xinhua in Italy, the deputy prime minister praised the cooperation between Italy and China in the automotive industry. Beijing is under scrutiny by the European Union for providing unfair subsidies to their carmakers. In an interview published Friday, Matteo Salvini - who is also Italy’s transport minister - said that "the two countries have broad prospects for cooperating in automobiles and smart roads, as well as other transport areas." During a trip to China, he said: "While we work to increase train speeds to 300km per hour China is already exploring the possibility of 400, 450, and even 500km per hour while also advancing autonomous driving, artificial intelligent, and innovation." Italy, despite voting for the European Commission 2024 decision on tariffs against Chinese electric vehicles has always tried to remain in Beijing's good graces - constantly praising the merits and investments of Chinese companies in Europe. Giorgia Mello, the Italian Prime Minister, managed to improve relations with Beijing by keeping the door wide open for more Chinese investment during a July visit, despite the fact that she had announced the third largest economy in the eurozone would be leaving President Xi Jinping’s flagship 'Belt and Road Infrastructure Initiative'. Salvini told Xinhua he sees "great potential" for infrastructure development. Analysts attribute the trade tensions between China and the European Commission (which handles the trade policy of the 27-strong EU) to Brussels' decision imposing import tariffs in order to deter a flood cheap Chinese electric cars. Beijing has responded by imposing anti-dumping duty on European brandy and pork, as well as by investigating its dairy sector. (Reporting and editing by Lincoln Feast; Reporting by Joe Cash)
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Adani Group shares rise after SEBI dismisses certain Hindenburg allegations
Adani Group shares rose between 1% to 10% on Friday after India's stock market regulator Hindenburg Research, a short seller, has made allegations of stock manipulation against Gautam Adani's conglomerate and billionaire Gautam. The Securities and Exchange Board of India cleared two charges against Adani Group firms. However, 22 more orders are still pending. Adani Total Gas, the flagship company, rose 10%. Adani Enterprises, Adani's flagship company, grew 4.3%. Morgan Stanley began coverage of the power producer, Adani Power with an "overweight" ratings. SEBI began its investigation in 2023, after the US-based Hindenburg accused Adani Group using tax havens to hide related-party transactions. The conglomerate denied the charges and the market value of the group dropped by $150 billion at the time. However, most stocks have recovered since then. "SEBI reaffirmed our position, that the Hindenburg allegations were unfounded. Adani Group has always been defined by transparency and integrity," Gautam Adani said on Thursday, late, in a post to social media platform X. Adani Ports grew by 2% while Adani Green, Adani Energy Solutions and Adani Energy Solutions each rose by nearly 4%.
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Report: Trump's policies could threaten US clean-energy jobs engine
According to a report published on Friday, jobs in solar, wind, and other clean energy sectors grew three-times faster than the rest of U.S. workers last year. However, the study warns that some of these jobs could be lost due to Trump's efforts to stop renewables. According to the environmental advocacy group E2, who has published a study on clean energy jobs over the past decade, in 2024 there will be 100,000 new jobs created by the clean energy industry. Idaho, Oklahoma Texas, Florida, and New Jersey were the states that saw the largest growth in jobs related to clean energy over all last year. The study revealed that more than 80% (or all the new jobs) in energy in 2024 will be in clean energy. Bob Keefe, E2's Executive Director, said that the numbers showed this to be one of the most exciting and promising job sectors for the country by the year 2024. Clean energy job growth and our economy are now in serious danger. The study examines the employment of industries such as renewable electricity generation, biofuels and electric vehicles. It also analyzes energy efficiency, battery storage, grid modernization, and grid modernization. The analysis fails to take into account the changes in U.S. policies since Donald Trump assumed office in January. Since then, the Trump administration has taken several measures to dismantle federal funding for wind and solar energy projects, which were supported by his predecessor Joe Biden and promoted fossil fuels instead. According to E2, the number of Americans working in clean energy is three times greater than those who work for oil, gas, and coal. According to the report, the states with the highest number of jobs in wind and sun include California, Texas Florida, New York, and Massachusetts. Nearly 2.4 million people are employed in the energy efficiency sector, including installing efficient heating, lighting, and cooling systems, and manufacturing certified appliances. (Reporting and editing by Sonali Paul; Nichola Groom)
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US Senate confirms top car safety official who will oversee Tesla investigations
The U.S. Senate voted Thursday to confirm dozens of nominees including those in charge of highways and pipelines. The Senate confirmed Jonathan Morrison as the new head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, along with 47 other nominees. This is the first time in three years that the NHTSA had a permanent director. Morrison, a lawyer who worked for Apple before joining the NHTSA in the first term of President Donald Trump, will supervise a number of safety investigations at the NHTSA. This includes an investigation launched this week on 174,000 Tesla Model Y vehicles from the model year 2021, based on reports that the electronic door handles could become non-functional and trap children. Morrison stated that the NHTSA cannot wait and see if problems arise, but it must show strong leadership. The NHTSA announced last month that it would be launching a new website. It would investigate Tesla Delays in reporting crashes involving self-driving cars or advanced driver assistance systems. Since October last year, the NHTSA been investigating Tesla has 2.4 million vehicles with self-driving capabilities after four collisions reported, including one fatal accident in 2023. Separately, the agency opened An investigation in January The Federal Bureau of Investigation is looking into 2.6 Million Tesla Vehicles after reports of accidents involving a feature which allows users to remotely move their vehicles. Tesla has not responded to our request for comment. Sean Duffy, Transportation Secretary has promised to take action Speed up the deployment of autonomous vehicles . This month, the NHTSA announced that it would be revising several regulations based on the assumption that a human is at control. August is the month of the NHTSA certifies Amazon's self-driving vehicle Zoox demonstration vehicles were delivered and a review was conducted to determine if they met federal requirements. Automakers, Safety advocates and lawmakers The NHTSA has been criticized on several fronts including its slow response to regulations Or, it can impede progress. The Alliance for Automotive Innovation (which represents major automakers) said: "The auto industry wants and needs a strong NHTSA. We are committed to a collaboration that achieves our common goals: saving life, reducing accidents and deploying cleanest, safer and smartest cars ever." (Reporting and editing by Chris Reese, Leslie Adler, and David Shepardson)
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US legislator wants Trump to restrict Chinese flight over rare earths access
The chairman of the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on China called on the Trump Administration to restrict or suspend Chinese airlines landing rights in the U.S. until Beijing restored full access to magnets and rare earths. John Moolenaar (a Republican) said that the U.S. export control policy should be reviewed to ensure the sale of parts, commercial aircraft and maintenance services in China is compliant. "These steps will send a clear signal to Beijing that they cannot cut off vital supplies to our defence industries without consequences for their own strategic sectors," Moolenaar stated. The rare earths group is made up of 17 different elements that are used in a variety of products, from military equipment and lasers to consumer electronics and wind turbines. China is concerned about rare earths, and it wants to control the supply. In April, in response to U.S. tariff increases, China added several rare earth products and magnets on its export restrictions list. U.S. Airlines are only allowed to fly a small percentage of the flights they can operate to China due to low demand between both nations. China may be considering a nuclear power plant, according to reports. As part of the trade negotiations with the U.S., China is buying up to 500 Boeing aircrafts. The U.S. Transportation Department granted another extension of six months on Wednesday. This allows United Airlines, American Airlines, and Delta Air Lines only 48 flights per week to China, out of the 119 that were approved. Chinese carriers fly the same number of flights to the U.S. A group representing U.S. carriers declined comment. The Chinese Embassy at Washington declined to comment immediately. Major U.S. Airlines and Aviation Unions successfully asked former President Joe Biden to stop approving additional flights between China & the U.S. last year. They cited the "anti-competitive" policies of the Chinese Government. Flights between China, the U.S. and Canada were at the center of controversy during the COVID-19 epidemic. (Reporting and editing by Leslie Adler, David Gregorio and David Shepardson)
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Lyft has paid New Jersey $19.4 Million for driver misclassification.
Officials from New Jersey announced on Thursday that Lyft had paid New Jersey $19.4 millions after an audit revealed the ride-sharing firm incorrectly classified over 100,000 drivers as independent contractors. Lyft, according to officials including the state attorney general Matthew Platkin, made the payment only after it retracted its request for an hearing to contest a New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development audit of its records and books from 2014 to 2017. New Jersey's audit revealed that Lyft had not contributed to the state fund for these years on behalf drivers. This deprived them of benefits such as unemployment compensation and temporary disability benefits. Lyft owed more than $10,8 million in unpaid contributions plus $8.5 million in penalties and interest. It paid $10.8 million in order to stop the interest running and the remaining amount after it ended its challenge. In June 2024, the San Francisco-based firm reached a settlement of $27 million with Massachusetts. Lyft stated that it believes it has classified drivers correctly under New Jersey law and that most drivers prefer to work on their terms, rather than as an employee. We will not challenge the NJDOL assessment further, even though we disagree with its findings. Over the past few years, many regulators have said that Uber and Lyft's alleged misclassifications deprive drivers other benefits such as a minimum wage and overtime pay. Robert Asaro Angelo, New Jersey's Labor Commissioner, said that there is no reason why temporary and on-demand workers, who work flexible hours or minutes at a given time, cannot be treated the same as other employees. (Reporting and editing by Chris Reese in New York, Jonathan Stempel from New York)
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Oneworld Alliance looks to India as a partner in its expansion.
Oneworld Alliance, a 15-member airline group that includes American Airlines, Qantas Airways and other airlines, is looking at a possible Indian airline partner, as the Indian market continues to grow. "India is a marketplace that we all have an interest in finding someone," Nat Pieper, CEO of the company, said on Thursday at a meeting in New York with aviation executives and analysts. Piper stated that adding a new team member is "always difficult" as it must work for both the entire group and each of its 15 members. He added that, given the fact that many of the alliance's members serve India, they are also looking at ways to leverage the joint presence. For example, through a loyalty program or joint lounge initiative. "We have 10 employees who serve in India, so it's a market that is growing at a rapid pace." Hawaiian Airlines will join the alliance by 2026. Alaska Air acquired the airline in 2024. (Doyinsola Oladipo in New York; Editing by Sonali Paul)
Maguire: Texas and California extend their clean energy lead over the rest of US
Texas and California have driven U.S. clean electricity supplies to record-high levels so far in 2025. They are also building a wider lead over the remainder of the country when it comes to the share of power generated by clean energy sources.
LSEG data shows that the combined clean power output of the main power systems from California and Texas reached new highs from January to August, and increased by 10% compared to the same months in the year 2024.
The clean output growth in California and Texas was nearly two times as high as the total electricity generation elsewhere.
Texas and California are also leading the U.S. for new installations of combined solar and battery storage capacities so far in 2025. This will likely lead to a further concentration of clean energy growth in these states.
Other states could now fall further behind Texas in terms of clean energy and total power generation.
It could lead to a lopsided growth in national electricity, as states with large clean capacity footprints will outpace states who have adopted clean generation capacity more slowly over the past few years.
FORGING Ahead
According to LSEG, data shows that from January to August, 74% of wholesale electricity generated by the California Independent System Operator - CAISO came from clean sources.
This was the highest share of clean generation ever recorded for California. It compares with a 68% share in the same months a year ago and a 60% percentage for the same period in 2023.
Electric Reliability Council of Texas, which covers the majority of Texas, generated 46.5% of their power from clean sources between January and August. This was a record-breaking share, up from 43% in 2013 and 41% in 2023.
LSEG data show that the total volume of clean energy generated by CAISO from January to August 2024 increased by 4%, to a new record of 3.8 million Megawatt Hours (MWh).
ERCOT generated 6.4 million MWh between January and August, which is 14% higher than the same period the previous year. It's also a record high.
This combined total of clean generation from these two states reached 10.2 million MWh. This represents a 10% increase from the previous year.
The rest of the U.S. generated clean power at a rate of 39.9 millions MWh from January to August, which is also a record. However, this was only a 2.6% rise compared to the same months in 2020.
Shares Expanding
California and Texas have expanded their clean energy generation faster than the rest the country. Their combined share of national clean electricity generation has reached a new record of 20,4% in 2025.
This share is compared to 19.3% from January to August 2024 and a 19% during January to July 2023.
Clean power supply in CAISO & ERCOT has grown at a rapid pace. In January to August of this year, clean power accounted for 54% of total combined power generation. Fossil fuels made up 46%.
LSEG data show that the remaining U.S. power generation system is composed of a mix of 39% fossil fuel and 61% clean energy. CAISO and the ERCOT systems also accounted for a large portion of the U.S. new solar and battery storage capacities over the last year. According to the data portal Cleanview, 36% of the new solar capacity and 66% new battery capacity was built.
These additions place CAISO/ERCOT in a position of strength to continue outperforming other states in harnessing and deploying new clean energy, even as power operators from other states struggle with reduced federal funding for clean energy.
This means that Texas and California are more likely to be able to keep up with national power demand growth than other states, and this could result in a divergence of power market dynamics among ERCOT and CAISO.
These are the opinions of a columnist who writes for.
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(source: Reuters)