The Commerce Department has revised down its growth rate in the fourth quarter of 2022 to 2.7 percent. Its previous estimate was 2.9 percent, which was still down from the 3.2 percent growth rate from July through September, suggesting that economic growth is slowing but remains steady.
FED MINUTES UPDATE
The minutes from the latest Federal Reserve FOMC meeting shows officials acknowledging that inflation is coming down but not enough to reverse course on more interest rate hikes.
SHRINKING MORTGAGE FEES
The Biden administration is lowering insurance premiums for borrowers who take out loans insured by the Federal Housing Administration. The move will save an estimated 850,000 homeowners an average of $800 on home financing costs. The annual premium will drop from 0.85 percent to 0.55 percent.
BILL GATES BUYS HEINEKEN STAKE
Bill Gates has purchased a $902 million stake in Heineken, according to the Netherlands Financial Markets Authority. He bought the shares, which represent 3.8 percent share of the company's value, from Mexico's FEMSA. Gates bought 6.65 million shares in an individual capacity, and Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Trust bought 4.18 million shares.
TESLA STAYING IN CALIFORNIA
Elon Musk says Tesla is staying in California for the foreseeable future. The electric vehicle maker will make the Golden State its global engineering home, while its corporate headquarters will remain in Texas. Tesla's plant in Fremont, California, will increase production this year to more than 600,000 vehicles.
MERCEDES BENZ-GOOGLE PARTNERSHIP
Mercedes-Benz and Google have announced a long-term partnership to bring supercomputers into automobiles. The automaker will use Google technology to develop a branded navigation experience based on in-car data and Google's Maps platform. The deal essentially gives Mercedes-Benz access to the latest Google geospatial technology.
Kraft Heinz is splitting into two companies a decade after they joined in a massive merger that created one of the biggest food companies on the planet. One of the companies will include brands such as Heinz, Philadelphia cream cheese and Kraft Mac & Cheese. The other will include brands like Oscar Mayer, Kraft Singles and Lunchables. When the company formed in 2015 it wanted to capitalize on its massive scale, but shifting tastes complicated those plans, with households seeking to introduce healthier options at the table. Kraft Heinz's net revenue has fallen every year since 2020.
About 780,000 pressure washers sold at retailers like Home Depot are being recalled across the U.S. and Canada, due to a projectile hazard that has resulted in fractures and other injuries among some consumers.
President Donald Trump has fired one of two Democratic members of the U.S. Surface Transportation Board to break a 2-2 tie ahead of the board considering the largest railroad merger ever proposed.
Ford is recalling more than 355,000 of its pickup trucks across the U.S. because of an instrument panel display failure that’s resulted in critical information, like warning lights and vehicle speed, not showing up on the dashboard.
