All Economy
Which state has the most energy-efficient cars? Not the one you think.A recent study ranks states by the energy efficiency of both their cars and homes. Usual suspects like California and Vermont had high overall rankings, but the most energy-efficient state for cars was a bit of a surprise.
Jobless claims in the US dip to an eight-year lowJobless claims by American workers for unemployment benefits fell by 1,000 to 287,000 last week, a sign that US employers are hanging on to workers. Jobless claims are currently lower than they were before the country's economic crisis began.聽
No more free Legos at Shell gas stations. Why?Lego, the Danish toy maker, said Thursday it won't renew a deal allowing Shell to hand out聽Lego聽sets at gas stations. Greenpeace campaigned against the Lego-Shell deal.聽
JPMorgan Chase hackers strike several more US banks. How to protect yourself.JPMorgan Chase's hackers may have targeted several other US banks and financial firms, including Citigroup and E-Trade. Customers of JPMorgan Chase or any other bank should be on the lookout for attempts to steal their information.聽
Sharing economy: San Francisco becomes first major US city to legalize AirbnbNearly every US city currently bans short-term rentals in residential areas. Some see the San Francisco 鈥楢irbnb law鈥� as a practical shift, while others see it as further hurting neighborhoods.
J.C. Penney (JCP) stock plunges, but the company is doing betterJ.C. Penney (JCP) shares fell sharply Wednesday after the company said same-store sales growth this quarter would be less than forecast. Still, after nine-straight quarters of declines, J.C. Penney same-store sales have turned positive for the last three quarters.
Did Comcast arrange to have a fed-up customer fired from his job?A former Comcast customer who complained about his service says that the cable giant contacted his employer, who subsequently fired him.
AT&T will pay $105 million for bogus charges on customer billsAT&T billed millions of customers for charges from third-party companies for services people never asked to receive or were duped into subscribing to 鈥� things like horoscope texts or flirting tips, according to the FCC. AT&T will pay $105 million in fines, with $80 million going to customer refunds.聽
Siri is more distracting than texting while driving, study findsToyota and Hyundai were top performers in a recent AAA study measuring the distractive power of voice-activated and hands-free devices in certain vehicles. Interacting with Apple's Siri feature, meanwhile was one of the most distracting activities measured. 聽
What happened to SodaStream?SodaStream was supposed to compete with Coke and Pepsi in the US, but the homemade soda maker company isn't attracting enough new users. SodaStream stock hit an all-time low Tuesday on the news.聽
Millennials and investing: Five questions, answeredMillennials are beginning to wade into the investing world, and, like all of us, they could use some help. Here are five of millennials' most commonly personal finance and investing questions, with answers.聽
China just overtook US as the world's largest economy, IMF saysChina just overtook the US to become the world's largest economy, according to the International Monetary Fund.聽By the end of 2014, China will make up 16.48% of the world's purchasing-power adjusted GDP (or $17.632 trillion), and the US will make up just 16.28% (or $17.416 trillion).
Hybrid cars: Cadillac to unveil a luxury plug-in model next yearHybrid cars are the new frontier for luxury automakers, and Cadillac is looking to compete German prestige brands like BMW and Porsche with the Cadillac CT6 plug-in hybrid. The new luxury sedan will be unveiled in the US this spring.聽
Obamacare exemptions: Too complicated to claim?Millions of Americans without health insurance risk fines from the IRS, but at least half of them are eligible for waivers 鈥撀爄f they can figure out how to claim them.
Is 'Big Soda' mimicking Big Tobacco? California beverage battle spills over.The beverage industry has fended off bids to regulate or tax sugary drinks in 30 states, but California is a trend-setter and two initiatives could be a pivot point.
Panasonic will invest hundreds of millions in Tesla gigafactoryPanasonic's CEO says the company will invest tens of billions of yen (hundreds of millions US) into Tesla's $5 billion gigafactory project.聽Panasonic 鈥� which also owns a portion of Tesla 鈥撀爃as also formed a company in the U.S. to oversee production of batteries at the gigafactory.
Will calm seas last for the stock market?The stock market has been pleasantly stable over the past five months, but such low volatility is rare in today's stock market environment.聽
McDonald's bringing 'build-your-own' burger kiosks to AustraliaMcDonald's is testing build-your-own burger technology that it plans to install throughout Australia over the next 12 months. Could build-your-own McDonald's burgers make it the the US?聽
Wal-Mart cuts health care benefits for some part-time workersWal-Mart's announcement follows similar decisions by Target, Home Depot, and others to completely eliminate health insurance benefits for part-time employees,聽in a move aimed at controlling rising health-care costs.
Lew: 'need for more action' from other nations to help boost global growthTreasury Secretary Jacob聽Lew said Tuesday that the US economy is strengthening, but said聽he doesn't 'think the United States alone can pull the global economy to where it needs to be.'
