*By Carlo Versano*
Shares of the newly-public Chinese electric car company NIO surged for a second straight day Wednesday ー even amid a broader market slump ー on the news that Tesla's largest outside investor is taking a stake.
NIO ($NIO) was up as much as 5 percent on Wednesday morning, following an SEC [disclosure](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1088875/000108887518000054/NIOInc30092018.txt) that Baillie Gifford, an investment firm that owns 9 perfect of Tesla ($TSLA), is acquiring around 11 percent of NIO.
The investment shows that we're still in the early stages of a match to own the exploding market for luxury electric vehicles, and deep-pocketed investors seem willing to back more than one horse at a time.
"We're in uncharted territory now," said Tamara Warren, co-host of Cheddar Rides.
But NIO isn't Tesla.
Despite its troubles, Elon Musk's company has a soup-to-nuts production component.
NIO, on the other hand, doesn't actually make its own vehicles, as Warren noted. Instead, it has an agreement with a Chinese manufacturer. So while NIO proclaims itself to be a Tesla rival, "no one knows who's going to give Tesla run for their money," Warren said.
NIO raised $1 billion in a public offering last month on the NYSE, though it stumbled out of the gate. After more than doubling in its first few days on the market, shares feel back below their IPO price. With Wednesday's gains, the stock is at its highest level since Sept. 25.
The Rev. Al Sharpton is set to lead a protest march on Wall Street to urge corporate America to resist the Trump administration’s campaign to roll back diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. The New York civil rights leader will join clergy, labor and community leaders Thursday in a demonstration through Manhattan’s Financial District that’s timed with the anniversary of the Civil Rights-era March on Washington in 1963. Sharpton called DEI the “civil rights fight of our generation." He and other Black leaders have called for boycotting American retailers that scaled backed policies and programs aimed at bolstering diversity and reducing discrimination in their ranks.
President Donald Trump's administration last month awarded a $1.2 billion contract to build and operate what's expected to become the nation’s largest immigration detention complex to a tiny Virginia firm with no experience running correction facilities.
Chipmaker Nvidia is poised to release a quarterly report that could provide a better sense of whether the stock market has been riding an overhyped artificial intelligence bubble or is being propelled by a technological boom that’s still gathering momentum.
Cracker Barrel said late Tuesday it’s returning to its old logo after critics — including President Donald Trump — protested the company’s plan to modernize.
Low-value imports are losing their duty-free status in the U.S. this week as part of President Donald Trump's agenda for making the nation less dependent on foreign goods. A widely used customs exemption for international shipments worth $800 or less is set to end starting on Friday. Trump already ended the “de minimis” rule for inexpensive items sent from China and Hong Kong, but having to pay import taxes on small parcels from everywhere else likely will be a big change for some small businesses and online shoppers. Purchases that previously entered the U.S. without needing to clear customs will be subject to the origin country’s tariff rate, which can range from 10% to 50%.
Southwest Airlines will soon require plus-size travelers to pay for an extra seat in advance if they can't fit within the armrests of one seat. This change is part of several updates the airline is making. The new rule starts on Jan. 27, the same day Southwest begins assigning seats. Currently, plus-size passengers can pay for an extra seat in advance and later get a refund, or request a free extra seat at the airport. Under the new policy, refunds are still possible but not guaranteed. Southwest said in a statement it is updating policies to prepare for assigned seating next year.
Cracker Barrel is sticking with its new logo. For now. But the chain is also apologizing to fans who were angered when the change was announced last week.
Elon Musk on Monday targeted Apple and OpenAI in an antitrust lawsuit alleging that the iPhone maker and the ChatGPT maker are teaming up to thwart competition in artificial intelligence.
