Consumers aren’t so worried about tariffs any more. American...
Consumers aren’t so worried about tariffs any more. American consumers have decided to look on the bright side this month. The University of Michigan released its high-profile preliminary index of consumer sentiment for June, and the data showed the first increase in shoppers’ attitudes since December. “Consumers appear to have settled somewhat from the shock of the extremely high tariffs announced in April and the policy volatility seen in the weeks that followed,” Joanne Hsu, the survey’s director said, though she noted consumers are still wary about the economy and potential inflation.
President Trump issued an executive order approving US Steel’s merger with Japan’s Nippon Steel, after the companies signed a national security agreement.
23andMe founder Anne Wojcicki is poised to regain control of the company because a nonprofit she controls outbid Regeneron Pharmaceuticals for its assets in a bankruptcy auction, offering $305 million. Wojcicki’s return to power over the company—and its DNA data—comes as a surprise after 23andMe announced last month that Regeneron had won the bidding (it got reopened because the nonprofit made an unsolicited bid).
A federal judge paused portions of President Trump’s executive order requiring proof of citizenship to register to vote and limiting how states count mail-in ballots. It’s the second federal judge to put parts of the order on hold.
The sole survivor of the Air India crash recounted what he experienced.
Iran Fires Missiles at Israel in Retaliation for Strikes on Nuclear Sites
Explosions were...
Explosions were heard over the sky of Jerusalem and Tel Aviv on Friday as Iran launched missiles toward Israel, beginning its retaliatory campaign after waves of Israeli strikes devastated Tehran’s military chain of command and hit critical nuclear facilities.
Sirens blared across Israel, including in Jerusalem, and smoke was seen billowing into the sky in Tel Aviv as residents were told to go to bomb shelters: “You must enter the protected areas and remain there until further notice,” the Israeli military said in a statement.
Bechtel Inks $9B in Contracts for NextDecade’s Rio Grande LNG Trains
NextDecade Corp. (NEXT) subsidiaries have finalized contracts with Bechtel...
NextDecade Corp. (NEXT) subsidiaries have finalized contracts with Bechtel Energy for construction of Rio Grande LNG’s Train 4 and related infrastructure and a similar contract for Train 5. Taken together, the contracts are worth $9.09 billion, NextDecade said on June 12.
NextDecade finalized a “pricing refresh” of Bechtel’s lump-sum, turnkey engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) for Train 4, the company said in a press release. Rio Grande LNG Train 4 LLC will pay Bechtel approximately $4.77 billion. Pricing validity under the Train 4 EPC contract extends through Sept. 15.
NextDecade said it projects owner’s costs, contingencies, financing fees and interest during construction will total approximately $1.8 billion to $2.0 billion for Train 4.
Under a separate contract, Rio Grande LNG Train 5 LLC agreed to pay Bechtel approximately $4.32 billion for the work under the EPC contract for Train 5.
Israel strikes Iran nuclear sites, assassinates military leaders and scientists
Israel launched five waves of airstrikes on Iran starting before dawn...
Israel launched five waves of airstrikes on Iran starting before dawn on Friday local time, killing Iran’s top three military officials and at least two prominent nuclear scientists. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the military action sought to crush “the heart of Iran’s ballistic missile program.” More than 200 warplanes struck at least 100 targets across Iran, including the main building of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, residential compounds of prominent individuals, and the Natanz nuclear enrichment facility. At least 12 civilians were killed in strikes on Tehran alone, according to Iran’s state news agency. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader, said Israel “should anticipate a harsh punishment.” Iran deployed at least 100 drones to Israel immediately following the strikes. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that the US was not involved in the attacks on Iran. Fox News host Bret Baier said President Trump told him he had prior knowledge of Israel’s planned attacks on Iranian leadership, but hoped nuclear negotiations with Iran could continue. Iran announced on state TV that it would not participate in nuclear negotiations with the US until further notice, scrapping talks planned for Sunday.
Boeing draws fresh scrutiny for the crash. The scandal-ridden...
Boeing draws fresh scrutiny for the crash. The scandal-ridden planemaker has had fatal problems with the 737 Max for years, but this is the first time that Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner has crashed since the model launched in 2011. Last year, a whistleblower working on the 787 raised concerns about the craft (he said he was later fired), while many airlines have reportedly discovered engine problems with the 787, leading them to delay or cancel flights. Meanwhile, yesterday’s crash came less than two weeks after Boeing agreed to pay $1.1 billion to dodge criminal charges for two fatal 737 Max crashes in 2018 and 2019.
A federal judge ordered President Trump to return control of the National Guard in Los Angeles to California Gov. Gavin Newsom by Friday afternoon. Hours later, an appeals court paused that ruling, enabling Trump to keep control of the National Guard for now. A hearing is scheduled for Tuesday.
Sen. Alex Padilla, a Democrat from California, was forcibly removed from and then handcuffed at a press conference held by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem yesterday in Los Angeles.
A massive internet outage disrupted service on popular apps like Gmail, Twitch, and Spotify for at least an hour yesterday.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott deployed more than 5,000 National Guard troops amid protests against the Trump administration’s immigration raids, the Associated Press reported.
Apollo Global Management, a top private equity firm, announced it would delay hiring young bankers after its CEO, Marc Rowan, said he agreed with criticisms of the practice from JPMorgan’s Jamie Dimon.
