In their annual letter, Bill and Melinda Gates share their thoughts on the Trump administration and social media's growing influence. The couple outlines the 10 questions they're most commonly asked. It turns out people are most interested in hearing their views on the Trump administration. Bill Gates expressed concerns with the president's "America First" agenda. Melinda Gates wishes Trump would treat people with more respect. Plus, the Microsoft co-founder says he's hopeful social media companies like Facebook will adequately address its growing influence.
Under Armour saw a 47% surge in international sales last quarter. The company beat Wall Street expectations on earnings and revenue in its latest quarterly report. After a year of declining sales, this was welcome news for the Baltimore-based company. Shares surged on Tuesday after the report was released.
Facebook's VP of U.S. Public Policy and Chief Privacy Officer joins Cheddar to discuss the importance of doing regular privacy check-ups. Erin Egan says people often don't know what their settings are and who they're sharing information with on the social media platform. She encourages people to educate themselves about their sharing settings. Additionally, Egan says it's important for parents to have conversations with their children about privacy on Facebook.
Ty Pennington and Amanda Brinkman, co-hosts of the show "Small Business Revolution - Main Street," tell us what to expect from the upcoming third season. Brinkman says the goal of the show is to revitalize small communities through investing in small businesses. Pennington, who is a newcomer to the show, talks about how this compares to his hosting gig on the popular show, "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition."
Cheddar's Chloe Aiello has our cannabis year-in-review, breaking down how several states legalized adult recreational use and greenlit medicinal use in 2021. She noted that while a cannabis legalization and decriminalization bill was introduced in Congress this year, potential FDA involvement in the industry, as well as a 25 percent excise tax, killed any chance the bill had of moving forward. Aiello also speculated that some form of cannabis reform could be rolled out in 2022, as the midterm elections draw closer.
Jim Worden, Chief Investment Officer at Wealth Consulting Group, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell, where he says the period between Christmas and New Year's is difficult to predict due to a lack of institutional volume, with the Omicron variant adding even more uncertainty on Wall Street.
Prices at the pump this year reached a seven-year high, and a new forecast from GasBuddy shared with CNN predicts that gas prices will only continue to rise in 2022 and that the national average could even reach $4.00 a gallon; however, analysts at GasBuddy say anything could happen when it comes to gas prices in the future, as the pandemic has made it difficult to make any predictions about the economy. Consumer Energy Alliance federal policy advisor Michael Zehr joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
David Stryzewski, CEO of Sound Planning Group, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell, where he says that some of the major stock positions are getting the most lift to the upside as the major indexes climb higher to begin the week.
