UPS delivery truck in a 2016 file photograph by Mike Mozart.

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UPS raised its full-year revenue and earnings outlook Tuesday after third-quarter sales rose 6.7% to $22.9 billion, with growth across all three business segments ahead of the holiday shipping season.

The package-delivery company now expects 2026 revenue of about $92.6 billion, adjusted operating profit of about $8.75 billion and adjusted earnings of about $7.28 a share. Its adjusted free-cash-flow target rose to about $6.1 billion, according to its October 27 earnings release.

The stronger outlook came despite a decline in quarterly earnings. Net income fell to $1.163 billion from $1.311 billion a year earlier. Reported diluted earnings were $1.37 a share, down from $1.55, while adjusted earnings were $1.69, compared with $1.74.

UPS reported operating profit of $1.744 billion, compared with $1.804 billion a year earlier. Adjusted operating profit was $2.054 billion, down from $2.132 billion. The adjusted operating margin narrowed to 9.0% from 10.0%.

U.S. revenue grows as daily package volume falls

U.S. domestic revenue rose 4.5% to $14.865 billion, helped by a 6.1% increase in revenue per package. Average daily domestic package volume fell to 15.621 million from 16.150 million. The segment’s adjusted operating profit rose to $1.034 billion from $905 million.

International revenue increased 7.1% to $5.007 billion, driven by a 15% increase in revenue per package. Supply Chain Solutions revenue rose 18.2% to $2.981 billion, primarily on forwarding and logistics growth, including healthcare.

That business recorded a $182 million goodwill impairment. UPS said the quarter’s reported results included a net charge of $279 million, or 32 cents a share, reflecting transformation costs and the impairment, partly offset by a gain on the sale of MD-11 assets.

The company also cautioned that the prior-year quarter included a $330 million pretax gain from a sale-leaseback transaction in Supply Chain Solutions, equivalent to 30 cents a share.

Higher holiday-quarter forecast

UPS now expects fourth-quarter revenue of approximately $25.7 billion and adjusted operating profit of approximately $3.3 billion. CEO Carol Tomé said the company was entering the holiday shipping season with its most automated and efficient network to date.

The company said its network reconfiguration and efficiency programs delivered about $1.8 billion in benefits in the first nine months of 2026. It expects nearly $3 billion for the full year, with its Efficiency Reimagined initiative continuing through the fourth quarter of 2027.

UPS kept its full-year capital spending forecast at approximately $3 billion and dividend payments at around $5.4 billion, subject to board approval. Tomé and CFO Brian Dykes are scheduled to discuss the results on an 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time conference call.

File photo: UPS delivery truck, photographed in 2016. Credit: Mike Mozart / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0. Image resized.

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Merger and acquisition activity in Israel’s defense technology sector jumped to $3.26 billion in the first half of 2026, an 8.5-fold increase from $384 million in 2025, according to a report by the American consulting giant Frost & Sullivan exclusively seen by Defense & Tech by The Jerusalem Post.

The report, presented this week at an industry event in Tel Aviv hosted by law firm Gornitzky in collaboration with defense-focused investment fund Aurelius, found a growing demand for Israeli military technologies, particularly in autonomous systems, sensors, robotics and counter-drone technologies.

It examined 44 announced mergers and acquisitions in Israel’s aviation and defense sectors between 2023 and 2026, excluding cyber and cyber intelligence transactions. Deal values were publicly disclosed in 22 of those transactions, totaling about $4.1b. The median disclosed deal size was approximately $37.8m. 

While, in part, a small number of large acquisitions drove the dramatic increase in the 2026 deal value, Frost & Sullivan said the data also point to a broader trend of defense companies seeking to acquire technologies rather than develop them internally.

“The market is increasingly focused on buying capabilities that can close operational gaps, accelerate time to market and respond quickly to evolving defense requirements,” the report said.

US-based acquirers accounted for roughly 45% of the transactions reviewed, making them the largest buyer group. Israeli purchasers represented about 30% of acquisitions, while European companies accounted for approximately 11%.

More than half of the deals were concentrated in three sectors: defense electronics and sensors, unmanned aerial vehicles and autonomous systems, and ground systems and robotics. 

According to the report, the wars in Ukraine, the Persian Gulf, Lebanon, and Gaza are not the only reason why the growth of the Israeli defense tech industry has accelerated; the technology has proven its effectiveness and ability to adapt on the battlefield; Israeli defense technologies have attracted increased interest from international buyers for this reason as well.

Not slowing down

Ariel Sagee, a partner at Gornitzky GNY who also leads the firm’s defense and defense regulation practices, linked the sector’s growth to recent conflict and tense global geopolitics.

“The war in Ukraine highlights the need for stable international alliances to ensure the supply chain. Israel cannot be isolated. Ukraine is under two-way pressure – Chinese drone components on the one hand and SpaceX’s satellite technology on the other. These two forces pull at it and illustrate the importance of international alliances in building stable defense solutions,” he said.

Irit Nudelman, vice president and head of defense consulting for Israel and Europe at Frost & Sullivan, said she expects deal activity to remain strong.

“We will continue to see significant deals in the coming years, primarily in the fields of anti-drone systems, robotics, underwater systems, space and autonomy,” she said, adding that the defense sector is becoming more receptive to technologies developed by start-ups and that maturation of the defense innovation market is likely to continue.

Although US and Israeli strategic buyers remain the dominant acquirers, Nudelman said European and Asian firms are more often pursuing partnerships, joint ventures and targeted investments rather than full acquisitions.

‘The Democratization of lethality’

The event also featured a discussion between retired Maj.-Gen. Amir Eshel, a partner at Aurelius and a former commander of the Israel Air Force, and Sagee.

Eshel noted that technological advances have expanded access to military capabilities once limited to nation-states.

“You can call it the democratization of lethality,” Eshel said. “Once, states were the sole sovereign that controlled war capabilities; today, organizations and individuals also have state capabilities.”

He also warned against weakening Israel’s domestic defense innovation ecosystem by relocating early-stage companies abroad. He stressed the importance of strengthening supply-chain partnerships rather than pursuing complete self-sufficiency.

“Full Israeli defense production independence is not possible,” Eshel said. “We do not have the raw materials, and there is also a lack of workforce. Nevertheless, Israeli capability can be strengthened, and additionally it is right to create partnerships for the supply chains required by Israel.”

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The Federal Trade Commission and 20 states have sued Dollar General, alleging that customers routinely paid more at checkout than the prices displayed on shelves, price tags and advertisements.

The lawsuit, filed October 26 in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee, accuses the discount retailer of failing to correct pricing problems despite knowing about them. Dollar General disputes the regulators’ approach and says it intends to vigorously defend the case.

In its announcement, the FTC said the alleged overcharges cost shoppers millions of dollars. The agency said Dollar General received tens of thousands of consumer complaints about not honoring advertised prices.

These are allegations, not a court finding. The FTC said the court will decide the case.

Dollar General said in an SEC filing that it had cooperated with the investigation since early February and tried to settle the matter before the lawsuit was filed. The company said the FTC’s demands for financial redress relied on assumptions and methods that it believes are unsupported and materially overstate any alleged consumer harm.

The company said the plaintiffs seek a court order, monetary judgment, civil penalties and other relief. It warned that defending the case could involve significant costs and that an unsuccessful defense could materially affect its financial statements.

New Jersey and Connecticut are among the 20 states that joined the FTC lawsuit.

The FTC said its commission voted 2-0 to authorize the complaint. The agency and states allege violations of the FTC Act, the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act and state laws.

File photo: Dollar General store exterior. Credit: Dollar General Newsroom.

JBizNews Desk | Washington

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When Procter & Gamble designed its premium Pampers Amore line, launched in the U.S. in March, the consumer products giant focused on the diapers’ greater absorbency, a cashmere-like feel, and superior skin protection properties to make it stand out from the pack.

Amore was P&G’s first new line for newborns and toddlers since 2018, and it’s been an early success. Sales are expected to hit $100 million in its first year, and it was a key contributor to P&G’s best quarter for organic sales growth in nearly three years. It also embodies how the company plans to convince consumers to stomach higher prices—a 108-pack of Amore diapers are 10% more expensive than Pampers Swaddlers—even as they battle inflation and demand more for their money.

Last week, P&G reported that organic sales, a metric that strips away the impact of currency movements and of acquisitions and divestitures, rose 4% in its first fiscal quarter of 2027, its best performance in 11 quarters. The performance reassured Wall Street that new P&G CEO Shailesh Jejurikar can navigate the tough climate for consumer goods. Shares rose 6% Thursday on the results, their biggest jump since 2020.

Bargains below, innovation above

Like many consumer products brands and food and beverage makers, P&G is confronting shoppers feeling pinched by rising prices and a growing chasm between the purchasing power of well-heeled consumers and the bargain hunting of those who are struggling.

Jejurikar told analysts last week that the strong quarter results reflected P&G’s “sharpened execution of our integrated strategy.” On the lower end of the economic spectrum, that strategy has offered consumers lower prices and new pack sizes of household staples. (In its most recent quarter, average price in P&G’s baby, feminine, and family care unit fell 1.2%.) On the higher end, P&G is offering product innovation—like its Amore diapers—that can command higher prices. Another recent P&G innovation was the creation last year of Pantene’s Abundant & Strong haircare line aimed at women struggling with hair loss, drawing on P&G research linking scalp oxidative stress with poorer scalp conditions and hair quality. 

“We know how to grow these categories and win with superior innovation, better execution, and clear communication.,” CFO Andre Schulten, a 30-year P&G veteran, told CNBC in an interview last week. 

Reversing a slide

Under Jejurikar’s predecessor Jon Moeller, P&G managed inflation by raising prices just enough to protect revenue without alienating consumers. It also pruned its portfolio of more stagnant products to focus on those with better growth prospects. But during Moeller’s time as CEO, which ran from 2021 through 2025, P&G’s organic sales growth gradually shrank, slipping from 7% in fiscal 2023 to 1% in fiscal 2026. 

The recent results sharply reversed that decline.

“[The results] should bolster confidence that its innovation and value interventions are restoring underlying growth,” Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Diana Gomes said in a research note. 

The innovation mandate

Jejurikar has witnessed many ups and downs at the consumer products behemoth. He started at Procter & Gamble in 1989 as assistant brand manager of personal health care in India. He joined P&G’s global leadership team in 2014, later becoming CEO of its largest business unit, Fabric & Homecare, in 2019. Two years later, he was promoted to operating chief, the same position Moeller held before he became CEO. The company named Jejurikar chairman this summer.

The current two-year restructuring program that began under Moeller and included 7,000 job cuts is halfway done. But Jejurikar has been tasked with more than just seeing that effort through. His mandate is to re-energize P&G’s innovation machine so it can protect its market share and its pricing power with a constant flow of new products. 

The company has to again “step out from the pack and lead,” Jejurikar told Wall Street analysts soon after becoming CEO on Jan. 1. The question now is whether shoppers counting every dollar will keep paying for products like cashmere-soft diapers once the novelty fades and if inflation keeps biting.

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Growing up in Soviet-controlled Hungary, Wizz Air founder József Váradi was born into a family still paying for his father’s role in the 1956 revolution — jailed, then frozen out of steady work for years, while his mother took factory shifts to keep them afloat. Six decades later, he’s running an airline that takes off somewhere in the world roughly once a minute.

“My father’s experience gave me a healthy skepticism about taking things for granted. It showed me how quickly circumstances can change and how important it is to remain adaptable. That mindset has helped me throughout my life and career,” Váradi told Fortune, adding that he “didn’t grow up dreaming of running an airline.” At first, he focused on getting a good education. And that he did. 

Váradi won a scholarship to one of Hungary’s top universities, moved to Budapest at 18, and graduated as an economist from Corvinus University in 1989. He then worked short stints at a chemical plant and a paint factory before joining Procter & Gamble, where he spent a decade climbing the ranks in commercial roles and eventually became sales director for global customers across Europe.

In 2001, he joined Malév Hungarian Airlines as a manager—only for the airline’s board to refuse to extend its CEO’s contract five months later and hand Váradi the job instead. It didn’t last: a change in government forced him out in 2003. 

“Instead of focusing on what was lost, I focused on what could be created,” Váradi added. “At the time it was disappointing, but looking back, it was also the catalyst for building Wizz Air. Sometimes what appears to be a setback becomes the beginning of something much bigger and better.”  

Just months later, he founded Wizz Air, betting that Hungary’s looming entry into the EU—and the freedom of movement that came with it—would send demand for cheap flights soaring. 

And he was right. Wizz Air is now the most popular short-haul carrier in Central and Eastern Europe, flying 265 aircraft to nearly 200 airports in 50 countries and carrying more than 550 million passengers to date. And it’s still growing: This year, the airline expanded into Spain, one of Europe’s biggest aviation markets. 

Meanwhile, Váradi, who took home a £3.3 million ($4.4 million) salary last year, has flown to nearly every continent on the planet in the last year alone, for both business and pleasure. The 60-year-old CEO spends more than 800 hours a year in the air—or rather, 33 days spent on a plane. That’s more than the number of days he takes off work in a year. 

But don’t expect him to slow down any time soon. Despite having well earned the right to put his feet up, he’s up most mornings for a 30-minute treadmill run before 9 a.m., lives 15 minutes from the office, and has lunch in the company canteen most days, with zero plans to retire. “I’d rather keep building than sit on a beach,” Váradi says. 

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Fortune’s series, The Good Life, shows how up-and-coming leaders spend their time and money outside of work. 

The C-suite is a high-pressure job with long hours, board responsibilities, and intense scrutiny. But what is it like to be a top executive when you’re off the clock? Here’s what she told us.

The Money

What’s the best financial decision you’ve ever made—and how much did it make or save you?

Investing in education. Every major opportunity in my life can be traced back to learning something new, whether formally or informally. Markets change, industries change, technology changes, but knowledge compounds. It’s probably the only investment I’ve made that has never had a bad year. The financial return has been many times over whatever it cost.

My belief in education is also why I established the Varadi Scholarship at UCL. I have benefited enormously from learning opportunities throughout my life, so it felt important to help create similar opportunities for others.

And the worst?

Probably investing in winemaking. (Juliet Victor Winery) I enjoy wine, but I’ve learned that making it and making money from it are two very different things. Fortunately, I approached it with low-cost principles, so the damage was limited, but it certainly wasn’t my best investment

What’s in your wallet?

Not much. An ID card, my driving license, and a couple of cards. I don’t carry cash anymore, and I’ve never been particularly attracted to credit cards, loyalty schemes or collecting points. If something becomes complicated to manage, it’s usually already costing me more in time than it’s worth.

What’s the one area of your life where you’re surprisingly tight with money, even now?
Probably tipping.

It’s not that I don’t appreciate good service, but I grew up in a culture where gratuity wasn’t as automatic as it is in some countries today. My instincts remain fairly conservative when it comes to spending money simply because everyone else does.

What’s your most ridiculous ongoing expense?

Hotel rates. I travel a lot, and every now and then I look at a bill and wonder how a room can cost that much for a single night.

Do you invest in shares?

Very little. When I do, it’s usually through a broker. My focus has always been on building businesses rather than managing a personal investment portfolio. My advice to beginners is to understand what you’re investing in and think long term. People often spend more time researching a holiday than researching where they put their savings.

What personal finance advice would you give your 20-year-old self?

Spend less time trying to look successful and more time becoming successful. Save before you spend, avoid unnecessary debt and invest in learning. Most things people buy to impress others are quickly forgotten. Skills and knowledge tend to stay with you much longer.

The Routine

What are your living arrangements like: Swanky apartment in the city or suburban sprawling?

I live in a condominium in the city, about 15 minutes from the office. I’ve always valued proximity. Time is the one resource you can never get back, so minimizing commuting time has always felt like a sensible investment.

How have you managed the juggle between work and family—and what has it cost you, financially and personally?

I have four children (three are already adults), and my wife and family have always been a conscious priority. I’ve never believed children should be raised by someone else while parents are busy building careers.

Of course, when you’re running an airline, there are sacrifices. I’ve missed events, spent countless nights away from home, and had periods when work demanded more attention than I would have liked. But we’ve always tried to make the time we had count. It has probably cost me some professional conveniences over the years, but I wouldn’t trade those family moments for anything.

What does your morning routine actually look like—be honest?

It’s fairly predictable. I wake up around 7:30 a.m. and start the day with a thirty-minute run on the treadmill. Running helps me clear my head and organize my thoughts before the workday begins. After that, I get ready, drive to the office, and I’m usually there by 9 a.m. 

I don’t spend much energy deciding what to do each morning. Routines are useful because they leave more mental capacity for bigger decisions later in the day. While it is not easy to maintain a routine with the amount of travel hours I have, I am quite disciplined.

How much do you spend each day on your caffeine hit?

Very little. I’m not really a coffee drinker. I occasionally have a cappuccino in a social setting, but caffeine isn’t what gets me going in the morning.

What about eating on the go?

I prefer a hot lunch and usually eat in the company canteen when in the office. I’m not somebody who spends a lot of time searching for the latest food trend. Good food, reasonably priced, efficiently served. 

Where do you buy groceries?

Honestly, that’s more my wife’s department than mine. She has much stronger views on grocery shopping than I do.

How often do you dine out versus cook at home?

We usually eat out once or twice a week as a family, often at high-quality restaurants. My go-to is probably lobster or a good steak. As for cooking, I’m not much of a chef. If I’m home after work, I generally eat whatever I find in the fridge.

What does your 5-to-9, after-your-9-to-5 look like?

After leaving the office around 4-5 p.m., I spend time with my youngest daughter, catch up on news and current affairs, and try to slow the pace after a busy day. I usually go to bed around 11 p.m. Running an international airline means you’re constantly dealing with developments around the world, so staying informed has become part of my routine.

How do you unwind from the top job?

I enjoy running, golf and skiing. What I like about sport is that it gives immediate feedback. The result depends largely on the effort you put in. Leadership can be complex and ambiguous; sport is refreshingly honest.

My advice to other leaders would be not to wait until you’re exhausted before doing something for yourself. Recovery should be part of the plan, not an emergency measure.

What’s your take on work-life balance at the top?

I don’t really believe in work-life balance. I believe in balance in life. Work is part of life, not something separate from it.

People often speak about balance as if there is a universal formula. There isn’t. What’s balanced for one person may feel completely wrong for another. The key is being comfortable with the trade-offs you’re making. I work a lot, and I always have, but I don’t count the hours. I do, however, ensure to make time for the things that matter to me. If you enjoy what you do and remain conscious about your priorities, balance tends to find its own level.

The Rewards

What’s the one subscription you can’t live without?

I’m probably disappointing the subscription economy, but I’ve managed to survive without becoming emotionally attached to any recurring payment so far. Most subscriptions are nice to have rather than essential

Are you the proud owner of any tech gadgets?

Not particularly; I have an iPad I use for work. 

How do you celebrate a big win? Do you still treat yourself when you hit a career milestone?

Usually with a party. Achievements are more enjoyable when they’re shared with the people who helped make them happen.

What’s the most expensive bonus treat you’ve bought yourself?:

An Aston Martin. It looked like a great idea at the time. The irony is that I’ve hardly driven it. It turns out owning a sports car is much easier than finding spare time to enjoy it

How many days of annual leave do you take a year? And do you ever truly switch off?

Around thirty days. As for switching off entirely, not really. When you’re responsible for a large international company, that becomes difficult. I’ve learned that the goal isn’t complete disconnection. It’s deciding what deserves your attention and what doesn’t.

Take us on holiday with you- where did you go this year?

I spend around 800 hours a year flying—more than a month. Travel is both my profession and one of my favorite ways to spend time with family, so it’s hard to separate, but I’ve been fortunate enough to visit nearly every continent this year for some kind of visit. 

I have a holiday home, which gives us a place to slow down and reconnect when schedules allow. I spend quite a lot on travel and holidays because experiences tend to outlast possessions.

One tradition I particularly enjoy is taking boys-only trips with my three sons. As they’ve grown older and gone their own way, those holidays have become a great excuse to reconnect, spend uninterrupted time together, and create new stories that can be retold for years afterward. Our next trip is likely Malaysia.

After everything you’ve built, what’s the ultimate reward:

Time to spend on what I really want. For most of my career, time has been the scarcest resource. You can always earn more money, but you can’t create more time. The ultimate reward isn’t retiring on a beach or buying something extravagant. It’s having the freedom to choose how you spend your days, whether that’s with family, traveling, playing golf, skiing, or simply pursuing interests because you enjoy them rather than because you have to.

Of course, seeing the results of what you’ve spent decades building and knowing you’ve created opportunities for other people is also part of it. But I don’t have a retirement date in mind. As long as I enjoy the challenge and feel I can contribute, I’d rather keep building than sit on a beach. That’s probably the real luxury. Not wealth, but choice.

Fortune wants to hear from leaders on what their “Good Life” looks like. Get in touch: orianna.royle@fortune.com

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Next Tuesday, Californians will vote on Proposition 40, which would impose a one-time 5% tax on the state’s billionaires. It would apply only to people whose primary residence was in California as of Jan. 1, 2026, so several of the state’s wealthiest residents have packed up and shipped out to avoid the extra tax.

One such figure was Travis Kalanick, Uber’s billionaire cofounder. Back in March, he said he had moved to Austin, Texas, on Dec. 18, 2025—just about two weeks before the tax would’ve applied to him. With an estimated net worth of $3.6 billion, Kalanick could have faced a $180 million tax bill. 

“Just to be clear, on December 18, I moved to Texas. I don’t know what’s so specific about December 18, but let’s just say it’s prior to January,” Kalanick told TBPN, hinting at the Jan. 1 cutoff. “Yeah, so I’m a primary resident of Texas.”

Unlike Google cofounder Larry Page, who spent $173.4 million on two Miami estates, Kalanick decided to plant his new roots in Texas. Jeff Bezos made a similar move, leaving Seattle for Miami before Washington passed a millionaires tax.

“I get a little bit [of] FOMO on like, these people going to Florida. I’m like, dude! Why so much Florida action?” Kalanick told TBPN. “Come on, homies.”  

Florida has drawn the biggest names. “All the big guys [are] moving down here,” Miami developer Robert Rivani previously told Fortune.

To be sure, it wasn’t a completely abrupt move for Kalanick. He told TBPN he had owned a home on Lake Austin, about 20 minutes outside the city, for roughly five years, drawn by the lake and his love of waterskiing. Craft Ventures cofounder David Sacks also relocated to Austin in December 2025.

He’s been embracing the lake life: In June, Kalanick posted a video on X of what he called his “5-minute jet ski commute” across Lake Austin to the office of Atoms, the robotics company he now runs, which was formerly known as CloudKitchens. 

Kalanick is one of several billionaires who left California between the measure’s filing in October 2025 and the Jan. 1 deadline, according to a working paper by Stanford economists Benjamin Jaros and Joshua Rauh published this month. Together, they took about $540 billion, or nearly 30% of the wealth the tax could have reached, out of the state, according to the paper, which counts only publicly confirmed departures.

The tax would apply to billionaires’ worldwide net worth but exclude real estate they own directly and most retirement accounts, according to the measure’s text. If it passes, the bill would come due in 2027, though billionaires could spread payments over five years for an added charge. Ninety percent of the revenue would go to public health care services, including Medi-Cal, according to the Legislative Analyst’s Office.

Passing Prop 40 may not be enough

California wouldn’t be the first to test whether taxing the ultrawealthy drives them away. Britain scrapped its non-dom tax status last year, and billionaires have been leaving since, including property mogul David Reuben, who moved to Monaco this summer.

Supporters say the tax would bring in about $100 billion, but Jaros and Rauh put the figure closer to $30 billion once they account for the billionaire departures. Factor in the income taxes California stops collecting from the billionaires who left, and their simulations show the state losing an average of $38.9 billion.

Two competing measures on the same ballot could also essentially undo the tax. Proposition 41 would cancel any new state tax enacted after Jan. 1 whose revenue is exempt from California’s spending limit, as Prop 40’s would be. Proposition 42 would ban new state taxes on owning personal property other than real estate, as well as certain retroactive taxes. If either outpolls Prop 40, courts could rule that it cancels the wealth tax. Polling suggests all three could pass: In a September survey by the Public Policy Institute of California, 52% of likely voters said they’d vote yes on Prop 40, 51% on Prop 41, and 54% on Prop 42.

The measure also doesn’t break neatly along party lines. Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, opposes it, while Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) have been among its most prominent champions.

A win next Tuesday would likely mean a trip to court. The measure gives opponents 60 days after approval to challenge it, and the backward-looking Jan. 1 residency date is an obvious target.

Kalanick’s case is different. Because he says he left California before Jan. 1, his exposure to the tax would hinge on whether the state’s tax authorities agree he truly made Texas his home, and the measure gives them broad power to audit billionaires they believe should have paid.

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Prior to Alexander Fleming’s accidental discovery of penicillin 100 years ago, almost half of all deaths were caused by infections. Fleming’s petri-dish experiments and the resulting development of modern antibiotics have added an average of 23 years to human life expectancy and are estimated to save millions of lives each year. 

Sandoz, the Swiss pharmaceuticals company, is one of the last producers of this vital medicine in Europe. Its €150 million ($168 million) factory in the Alpine town of Kundl, Austria, is the continent’s only fully integrated antibiotic manufacturing facility, capable of producing the active ingredients and turning it into medication ready for patients. 

However, Sandoz faces strong competition from China. Last year, 86% of EU imports of penicillins and their derivatives came from China, up from 44% in 2019, according to Eurostat. China is now the largest exporter of antibiotic ingredients in the world. 

Losing the ability to produce antibiotics in Europe raises questions about security and sovereignty, according to Richard Saynor, the CEO of Sandoz. “We’re now the last remaining penicillin manufacturer left in the Western world,” he says. “Do you really want to be in a world where all of your antibiotics come from Asian suppliers? I don’t think you do.” 

In written evidence to U.K. lawmakers, Sandoz warned that Europe’s dependence on China for antibiotics represented an “Achilles heel” for its public health and defense, adding that the restriction of supply could become a “tool of economic coercion or hybrid warfare” during times of diplomatic tension. 

Sandoz has also claimed that “market-distorting behavior” has helped Chinese manufacturers to undercut their competitors and “flood” global markets with ultra-cheap pharmaceutical ingredients.  

The company filed a complaint to the European Commission in May requesting an anti-dumping probe into Chinese imports of the active ingredient used in the antibiotic amoxicillin. “We’re competing with heavily subsidized Asian players,” Saynor says. “We want a level playing field.” 

The EU’s Critical Medicines Act, which was provisionally approved in May and aims to improve the availability and production of key medicines such as antibiotics and painkillers across Europe, is a step in the right direction, according to Saynor.  

However, he adds: “What’s not clear is how that then translates into European governments paying a little bit more for these drugs. As always, everyone agrees with you, but the moment you ask for the check, everyone has suddenly left the table.” 

The U.K.’s National Health Service currently pays £1.06 ($1.41) for a 21-pack of 250mg Amoxicillin capsules, according to the British National Formulary, a reference book which provides guidance on the prescribing and administration of drugs for healthcare professionals.  “Why should we sell a pack of antibiotics more cheaply than a Mars bar?” Saynor asks. “Do we value a Mars bar more than the medicine that has saved more lives than any other invention? Governments are very good at seeing the price, but they don’t necessarily see the value.” 

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Sandoz group’s rank on fortune 500 europe

Public health services globally are facing financial challenges and funding cuts, but Saynor does not think paying a higher price is unreasonable. “It’s not a fair comparator to say all drugs should be sold at the same price as a Mars bar when it costs $100 billion to develop and then bring products to the marketplace,” he adds. 

A “golden decade” for cheaper drugs 

Sandoz specializes in developing generic and biosimilar medicines. These off-patent drugs offer the same clinical effectiveness as their branded counterparts and are significantly cheaper for health services to purchase. Generic drugs constitute 80% of all medicines used globally.  

Sandoz estimates that the patents for medicines worth a combined $650 billion are set to expire in the next 10 years, leading to what Saynor describes as an “unprecedented golden decade” for the biosimilars market. 

“We’re now the last remaining penicillin manufacturer left in the Western world. Do you really want to be in a world where all of your antibiotics come from Asian suppliers?”

Richard Saynor, CEO of Sandoz

Last month, Sandoz unveiled its ambition to produce more than 100 biosimilar products by 2040—almost eight times its current total of 13. Sandoz estimates that bringing these products to market could create almost $1 trillion in social impact, partly through direct savings for healthcare systems. 

Sandoz has invested $300 billion in a new drug substance facility in Ljubljana, Slovenia, to support this ambition. “We see a huge opportunity there in biologics,” Saynor says. 

He believes that Sandoz’s spin-out from Novartis in 2023 put the company in a good position to capitalize on this upcoming opportunity. “Our job is to challenge patents and bring products to market as early as possible,” Saynor explains. In contrast, pharma companies, like Novartis, are seeking to protect their patents. “Intellectually, those are very different things,” he says. 

Now, as an independent company, Saynor says Sandoz can be a “voice of the industry”. He adds: “I’ve had access to the White House, to the European regulators, to European governments, international governments all over. I couldn’t have said half of the things that I’ve said as part of our parent company. It’s allowed us to shape policy.” 

Saynor has also been reshaping his leadership team. In July, Pascal Bouye, who previously held senior operations and supply roles at Mars and Danone, was appointed president of generics and manufacturing supply, and Keren Haruvi moved from Novartis to Sandoz to lead its North America operations. Remco Steenbergen, the former CFO of the German airline Lufthansa, was hired in 2024.  

Bringing in knowledge from other industries is crucial to Sandoz’s future growth, according to Saynor. “Pascal [Bouye] came from a very complex consumer goods organization, so he knows how to manage complex supply chains with many partnerships,” he says. Meanwhile, Steenberg has brought an understanding of managing finances within an asset-heavy industry with relatively thin margins.  

As Sandoz enters a new stage of growth and faces up to Chinese competition, Saynor recognizes that fresh perspectives will be important: “I don’t have all the answers as CEO. We need different points of view to challenge our thinking and people who can bring knowledge from different industries—not necessarily just a pharma viewpoint.” 

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

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Brown & Brown reported higher third-quarter revenue Monday, but its underlying growth remained modest and diluted earnings per share slipped as the insurance broker worked through what its chief executive called a challenging rate environment.

The company said revenue rose 7.4% to $1.725 billion for the quarter ended September 30, from $1.606 billion a year earlier. Organic revenue grew 1.2%, while organic revenue including contingent commissions increased 1.5%, according to its earnings release.

Net income attributable to Brown & Brown increased 5.7% to $240 million. Diluted earnings per share fell to 67 cents from 68 cents. On the company’s adjusted measure, diluted earnings per share increased 1.9% to $1.07 from $1.05.

Growth and margins diverge

Income before taxes rose 2.9% to $320 million, but the corresponding margin narrowed to 18.6% from 19.4% a year earlier.

Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, amortization and the change in estimated acquisition earn-out payables, a measure the company calls adjusted EBITDAC, increased 1.7% to $597 million. The adjusted margin fell to 34.6% from 36.6%.

“The third quarter reflected the incredible efforts of our teammates to win more customers in spite of a challenging rate environment,” President and Chief Executive J. Powell Brown said in the release.

He said the addition of about 5,000 employees from Accession just over a year ago had broadened the company’s capabilities.

For the first nine months of 2026, revenue increased 23.4% to $5.302 billion. Organic revenue grew 0.3%, or 1.5% when contingent commissions were included. Net income attributable to the company rose 20.8% to $954 million, while diluted earnings per share were unchanged at $2.57.

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UFP Industries agreed to buy the operating assets and real estate of Texas pallet maker Apache Products for approximately $27 million, expanding its industrial packaging business along the Gulf Coast.

The company announced the transaction Monday and said it expects closing on or around November 16. Apache Products operates as Acme Skid from Silsbee, Texas.

In its acquisition announcement, UFP said the business would add approximately $55 million in annual sales and 165 employees. Those sales describe the acquired business, not a forecast of profit from the transaction.

Gulf Coast pallet capacity

Apache designs and manufactures stringer and heat-treated pallets. Its facility will join UFP Packaging’s existing pallet manufacturing network, expanding the PalletOne business.

UFP said the purchase strengthens its ability to serve customers across the Gulf Coast, where manufacturing, energy and petrochemical operations create demand for industrial packaging.

Chief Executive Will Schwartz said the investment broadens UFP’s reach in a strategically important region and creates opportunities to serve national customers there.

The company plans to combine the acquired facility with its wider operating network while retaining Apache’s local expertise and customer focus.

UFP Industries is based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Its operating subsidiaries manufacture, distribute and sell products for retail, construction and industrial markets in North America, Europe, Asia and Australia.

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At the nexus of an ongoing affordability crisis and midterm election push, the Trump administration’s effort to reduce beef prices appears to be falling short.

President Donald Trump signed a proclamation in August to temporarily increase the quantity of beef in the U.S. by importing 300,000 metric tons of lean beef trimmings into the country at a reduced tariff rate. The imports were scheduled over 90 days, from September through November.

“This deal will reduce prices for Americans while giving space for our Great American Beef Herd to grow again,” Trump wrote on Truth Social announcing the policy. 

But as of Oct. 19, the U.S. has imported just 59,423 metric tons of beef, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection data, or just 20% of the target. And ground beef averaged $6.79 per pound as of September, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data, down from $6.92 in August, but still above $6.32 a year ago. 

This 7% year-over-year increase in beef, due to persistently high demand as well as dwindling herd sizes, has far outpaced the 2.5%-2.9% hike in overall U.S. grocery prices, which has become representative of America’s affordability woes. Trump has identified beef prices as a key issue to address during the second half of his term, as he targets policy toward the typically loyal Republican base of farmers.

“It really became unacceptable to the voter,” Trump said last month. “And we do have to get elected, because if we’re not going to get elected, your ranchers and your farmers are in big trouble.”

But both farmers and agricultural economists are doubtful that 300,000 tons of imported beef will deliver price cuts, arguing the initiative is ineffective at best, and a financial strain during an already challenging period for the industry at worst.

“The simple assumption there was that if we can just increase supply of beef in the U.S., that should lower prices,” Derrell Peel, a professor of agribusiness specializing in livestock at Oklahoma State University, told Fortune. “Unfortunately, the beef industry is much more complex than that.”

The White House did not immediately respond to Fortune’s request for comment.

Why Trump’s push for lower beef costs are falling short

Part of why Americans aren’t seeing a noticeable difference in beef costs is because the type of beef being sent from overseas doesn’t typically hit retail shelves, Peel noted. Lean beef trimmings are often combined with fatty trimmings produced from cattle in American feed lots. This combination of beef is usually used by fast food restaurants, not grocery stores where many American consumers are looking for relief.

The use of these lean trimmings as a complement to domestic fatty trimmings also means the demand for this type of beef is already modulated. The beef industry is able to import lean trimmings to meet demand, even absorbing tariffs to do so, according to Peel, and therefore an influx of supply at a cheaper cost doesn’t address the underlying retail cost issue. 

“When you take away the tariff, you make it cheaper, but you don’t necessarily increase the demand because we only need so much of it,” Peel said. “We were getting as much as we wanted.”

In addition, Brazil and Argentina, which account for much of America’s imported beef, have their own supply issues with low beef inventory.

Glynn Tonsor, an agricultural economics professor at Kansas State University, argued that if Trump wanted to truly lower beef prices, the best way to do so would be to not interfere with the prices to begin with, allowing them to rise.

“If you erode beef demand, you will erode beef prices,” he told Fortune. 

Beef demand has stayed high even as prices have soared, increasing 5.9% in the first six months of 2026 compared to the same period a year before. Tonsor blames demand, not smaller cattle herds, for higher prices. Herd sizes have been on the decline for 60 years, he noted, making them a predictable factor for the industry and therefore only partly responsible for more expensive beef. 

If prices remain high, it will effectively destroy demand and eventually ease prices. But that would also slow imports, not increase them, Tonsor said, meaning there would be no need or reasonable expectation for 300,000 metric tons of beef to enter the country.

American farmers’ beef with Trump

Farmers are largely uninterested in an intervention that would lower beef prices. American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall asked Trump to roll back the policy in a statement last month, arguing the imports would lower cattle prices and could cost ranchers $300 to $400 per head. 

“To put it simply, the plan undercut a fragile recovery in the cattle industry while failing to benefit consumers,” Duvall said.

What’s preventing farmers from being more upset about Trump’s import policy is its lack of efficacy, Peel noted. If there were more imports, cattle prices would be depressed, but the modest uptick has not had an overwhelming impact on the industry.

Instead, farmers are most upset about the president’s interference in an industry that has historically favored a free market, Peel explained. 

“Nothing is simple here,” he said. “There’s no simple answer when it comes to anything you might want to do policy-wise to influence this market.”

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

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DoorDash is reportedly in advanced talks to acquire food delivery company Instacart in a deal that could value the company at roughly $17 billion.

An agreement could be reached as early as this week, though there is no guarantee the talks will result in a deal, The Wall Street Journal reported Monday, citing people familiar with the discussions.

Investors sent the companies’ shares in opposite directions following the report. 

Instacart stock climbed about 8% Monday, while DoorDash shares dropped roughly 6%.

DOORDASH’S NEW AD TOOLS COULD CHANGE HOW RESTAURANTS COMPETE FOR CUSTOMERS

Instacart was valued at approximately $13 billion before news of the potential transaction surfaced, compared with DoorDash’s market capitalization of about $73 billion, according to The Wall Street Journal.

The acquisition would give DoorDash a larger foothold in the grocery delivery market as it continues expanding beyond its roots in restaurant delivery.

INSTACART AGREES TO $60M CONSUMER REFUNDS AFTER FTC ACCUSES COMPANY OF HIDDEN FEES AND FORCED SUBSCRIPTIONS

Instacart previously considered a sale in 2021. 

Since then, competition in grocery delivery has intensified as Walmart and Amazon have expanded their offerings, The Wall Street Journal reported.

The potential Instacart deal would come roughly a year after DoorDash completed its acquisition of British food delivery company Deliveroo. 

INSTACART’S AI PRICING EXPERIMENT DRIVES UP COSTS FOR SOME SHOPPERS, STUDY SAYS

The transaction became effective in 2025 following court approval, expanding DoorDash’s global footprint and adding Deliveroo’s operations across several international markets.

DoorDash also completed its acquisition of Finnish delivery company Wolt in 2022, an all-stock transaction that expanded the combined company’s presence to 27 countries at the time.

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DoorDash and Instacart could not immediately be reached by FOX Business for comment.

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A key Cabinet official in the Trump administration on Monday hit back at former President Barack Obama’s criticisms of White House renovations by having lunch at the restaurant that was caught up in the ex-president’s critique.

Obama spoke at a rally in Ohio on Saturday while campaigning for Democratic candidates and slammed President Donald Trump’s renovations at the White House. He said that Trump “seems very focused on home renovations” and “should be on HGTV.”

“He’s got the White House looking like Saddam Hussein opened a Cheesecake Factory,” Obama quipped after discussing Trump’s affinity for gold décor in the various projects underway at the White House, including the new ballroom, changes to the Rose Garden and a new helipad.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent responded by going to a Cheesecake Factory in Washington, D.C., for lunch and hit back at the former president’s remarks with a criticism of the design of the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago.

OBAMA COMPARES TRUMP’S WHITE HOUSE RENOVATIONS TO ‘SADDAM HUSSEIN OPENING A CHEESECAKE FACTORY’ AT OHIO RALLY

“This is the man who built the museum and it looks like Darth Vader’s tomb,” Bessent said. “I had a great meal. I always have a great meal, and I would tell the Martha’s Vineyard set to give it a try.”

Bessent was asked by FOX Business what he had for lunch at the Cheesecake Factory and said he ordered a French dip cheeseburger, which is his typical order at the restaurant chain.

NBA CHAMP TAKES ISSUE WITH OBAMA’S PITCH TO MICHIGAN VOTERS AMID HOTLY CONTESTED SENATE RACE

The Treasury secretary’s critique of the Obama Presidential Center’s design comes as the building has been dubbed the “Obamalisk” by some over the 225-foot, granite-clad tower’s appearance.

The projected price tag of the Obama Presidential Center has surged from its original estimate of $350 million to more than $1 billion, according to previous reporting by Fox News Digital.

OBAMA, JASON ALDEAN HIT CAMPAIGN TRAIL AS MIDTERM RACES HEAT UP

Additionally, taxpayers have faced hundreds of millions of dollars in associated public infrastructure costs that are separate from the Obama center’s construction budget.

Bessent has been a staunch defender of the Trump administration’s agenda and has taken rhetorical shots at critics, recently responding to a letter from Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., by telling her that “Rather than take my suggestion of studying introductory economics, you have continued your letter-writing crusade and participation in tabloid fodder about the Treasury Department.”

Fox News Digital’s Jasmine Baehr and Michael Dorgan contributed to this report.

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Microsoft on Monday announced a new voluntary buyout program that will cover about 60,000 eligible employees who can choose to leave the company with financial support and other career planning resources.

The buyout program covers more than a quarter of Microsoft’s global workforce, as the company said it had about 223,000 full-time employees around the world as of June 30, 2026, in its annual filing. The voluntary exit program was first reported by Business Insider and follows Microsoft’s rollout of a voluntary retirement program earlier this year.

Amy Coleman, Microsoft EVP and chief people officer, said in a memo posted on the official Microsoft blog that the buyout program “reflects an important part of how we’re evolving our approach to change: creating greater flexibility and, where possible, more ways for employees to shape their next chapter.”

The company’s voluntary exit program is time-limited and available to eligible employees at level 70 and below. Microsoft’s announcement indicated that eligible employees would be notified via email about the details of their voluntary exit offer within a few hours of the announcement.

MICROSOFT PRESIDENT SAYS AI FACES FEWER SAFETY RULES THAN MILK IN CALL FOR GLOBAL REGULATION

Some organizations within Microsoft are participating in the program, which covers eligible employees in the U.S., the United Kingdom, Canada and India.

Microsoft indicated that the participation of different organizations within the company is based on each business unit’s priorities, customer commitments and workforce needs.

Coleman added that the voluntary exit offer is new to Microsoft and that the company will learn from it and added, “At the same time, we’ll keep helping people focus on the work that matters most, build new skills and, where it makes sense, find new opportunities across Microsoft.”

MICROSOFT CEO SAYS SUPERINTELLIGENCE MUST REMAIN ‘UNDER HUMAN CONTROL’

“There is no one-size-fits-all approach for every team or every employee,” Coleman said. “These are a few of the ways we’re trying to meet different business needs while continuing to create opportunities for our own people to grow and contribute.”

“My promise is to continue to provide clarity, listen and learn and keep improving,” she added.

Earlier this year, Microsoft offered voluntary buyouts to about 7% of its U.S. workforce, or about 9,000 employees.

MICROSOFT SAYS ITS AI TOOL OUTPERFORMS GENERALIST DOCTORS IN COMPLEX DIAGNOSES

It also announced cuts affecting about 4,800 jobs in July, or about 2.1% of the global workforce, as it overhauled its Xbox gaming business and divested up to five studios to boost returns in the division.

Microsoft and other tech giants are facing costly investments in the buildout of artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure like data centers and in the chips that are used to train models, which have prompted moves to cut costs in other areas of their operations.

Reuters contributed to this report.

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Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says the Trump administration is intensifying its financial pressure on Iran, targeting foreign banking channels and isolating the country’s economy as Washington weighs its next steps against Tehran.

“I think that the Iranians are panicked. I think the economy is collapsing,” Bessent said.

During an appearance on the “Brian Kilmeade Show,” Trump’s Treasury chief discussed the administration’s economic campaign against Iran and the steady pressure it’s placing on the regime.

Bessent described an eight-week Treasury effort called Operation Economic Outcast, which he said builds on a blockade and aims to cut off financial and commercial connections that have allowed Iran to operate despite U.S. sanctions. He estimated Iran’s gross domestic product could fall by 20% to 25%.

LARRY KUDLOW: IN TWO WEEKS, IRAN MAY COME CRASHING DOWN

“We added many new authorities, including shutting down their airline travel, which I think has had a real effect, especially on the elites and the regime,” Bessent said.

The Treasury secretary also pointed to action against banking operations tied to Egypt, Turkey and Russia. He said one Egyptian bank’s Dubai branches had processed more than $1.8 billion in transactions potentially linked to Iranian financial networks.

IRAN KNOWS US ‘IS WINNING’ AS OPERATION ECONOMIC OUTCAST INFLICTS DAMAGE, TREASURY OFFICIAL SAYS

“We have taken out, and we’ve made an example of enough people and if we need to, we will continue doing that. But we’re getting good cooperation and the regime is desperate,” Bessent said.

Bessent said the economic strain is reaching ordinary Iranians as well as the security apparatus, saying some military personnel are going unpaid and some police officers are not reporting for duty.

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Bessent concluded by saying Trump still has options as the administration considers its next steps against Iran.

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A historic Los Angeles diner that served customers for more than a century is preparing to reopen after closing last year, with a new nonprofit business model that will direct all of its profits toward homelessness programs.

The Original Pantry Cafe, which first opened in 1924, is expected to reopen Nov. 19, according to SFGATE. The downtown Los Angeles restaurant closed in March 2025 after more than 100 years in business.

Under its new operating model, the restaurant will serve as a social enterprise for Hope the Mission, a Los Angeles-based nonprofit that provides meals, shelter, housing and other services to people experiencing homelessness.

The nonprofit says 100% of the diner’s profits will support its homelessness programs and projects that the restaurant could generate nearly $50,000 per month to help fund those services.

POPULAR SALAD CHAIN MAKES BIG CHANGES IN BID TO WIN BACK DINERS

To support the reopening, the nonprofit also launched an $800,000 fundraising campaign to cover renovations, kitchen equipment, initial staffing and food inventory.

The reopening is also expected to bring longtime union employees back to work following an agreement between new owner and real estate developer Leo Pustilnikov and UNITE HERE Local 11.

Some employees had worked at the restaurant for more than four decades before it closed, according to the union. The agreement was announced in September 2025, months after the restaurant shut its doors amid a labor dispute involving the previous ownership.

The restaurant was previously controlled by a trust associated with former Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan, who died in 2023.

While the ownership and operating model are changing, the restaurant plans to maintain its familiar dining experience, including its original recipes and the return of longtime employees.

“Come in for the food. Leave having done something good,” the restaurant says on its website.

The restaurant’s new mission builds on Hope the Mission’s existing operations. The nonprofit says it prepares and serves nearly 9,000 meals daily and operates 35 shelters and interim housing sites.

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The restaurant is located at 877 South Figueroa Street in downtown Los Angeles.

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Anthropic reported $16.3 billion in revenue for the first half of 2026 and a net loss of $80.7 billion in its newly public IPO filing Monday, but the enormous bottom-line loss is not the same as its operating loss.

The company’s Form S-1 shows an operating loss of $693 million for the six months ended June 30, down from $2.14 billion a year earlier. Its much larger net loss includes a $72.4 billion fair-value charge on convertible notes, derivative liabilities and simple agreements for future equity, known as SAFEs.

Anthropic said those fair-value changes were primarily driven by an increase in the value of its outstanding convertible promissory notes as its enterprise valuation rose. That accounting adjustment accounts for most of the reported net loss; it should not be read as an $80.7 billion operating shortfall.

The filing provides a detailed view of the business behind Claude as Anthropic seeks to sell shares to the public. The company intends to list its Class A common stock on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol ANT. It has not determined the number of shares or the proposed price range, and the registration statement is not yet effective.

First-half revenue was $16.286 billion, compared with $1.163 billion in the same period of 2025. Total operating expenses rose to $16.979 billion from $3.298 billion. Revenue therefore grew faster than operating expenses over that period, narrowing the operating loss even as the net loss expanded.

Compute and infrastructure expenses reached $8.945 billion, up from $2.334 billion a year earlier. Personnel expenses rose to $3.152 billion from $538 million, while sales, marketing and partnership expenses climbed to $3.168 billion from $120 million.

Outside operating expenses, Anthropic recorded $8.757 billion in other net expense. It said that change was primarily driven by the initial recognition and subsequent changes in the fair value of assets and liabilities under note purchase agreements. Interest income was $1.111 billion.

The resulting net loss was $80.748 billion, compared with $12.969 billion in the first half of 2025. The filing separates those financing-related valuation effects from the cost of running and expanding the business.

Anthropic also cautioned investors against assuming its recent revenue growth will continue at the same pace. It said the business remains highly capital intensive, expects costs to increase and expects losses to continue as it invests in growth and operating as a public company.

The proposed share sale remains subject to an effective registration statement. Anthropic said securities cannot be sold, and offers to buy cannot be accepted, before that step is complete.

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Anthropic on Monday released the prospectus for its highly anticipated initial public offering (IPO) as the tech giant looks to raise capital to help further its AI ambitions.

The company’s prospectus shows Anthropic has seen rapid growth over the last year, as well as mounting costs amid deep investment in the infrastructure needed to power artificial intelligence (AI) models.

The AI lab’s stock will trade on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol “ANT” after the IPO closes.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

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HealthSpan Partners agreed Monday to acquire Surgery Partners in a transaction with an enterprise value of about $5.7 billion, turning one of the country’s largest outpatient surgical operators into a privately held company.

Shareholders other than affiliates of Bain Capital would receive $23.50 in cash for each Surgery Partners share. Bain, which currently owns approximately 39% of the company, would exchange its shares for equity in the acquiring entity and remain invested alongside HealthSpan.

The definitive agreement replaces uncertainty about whether a sale would materialize with specific terms, though the acquisition is not complete. The companies expect it to close in the first quarter of 2027, subject to Surgery Partners shareholder approval, regulatory approvals and other customary conditions.

HealthSpan is a contractual affiliate and supporting organization of Bon Secours Mercy Health, the U.S.-based nonprofit health system. Surgery Partners, headquartered in Brentwood, Tennessee, operates a network spanning more than 200 locations in 30 states, with approximately 5,000 affiliated physicians.

The network includes ambulatory surgery centers, surgical hospitals and physician partnerships. Its specialties include orthopedic and spinal care, cardiology, gastroenterology and ophthalmology. The acquisition would expand HealthSpan’s presence in care delivered outside traditional inpatient hospital settings.

The companies said Surgery Partners’ name, brand, headquarters and operations are expected to remain in place after closing. They also said it is expected to remain a secular organization, operate under the Statement of Common Values and not be characterized as a Catholic ministry entity.

HealthSpan intends to finance the purchase with cash on hand and new debt, for which financing commitments have been secured. Surgery Partners’ board approved the transaction after a unanimous recommendation from a special committee made up entirely of independent, disinterested directors.

Bain entered a voting and support agreement committing all of its Surgery Partners shares in favor of the deal and setting out the rollover of its investment. The cash payout therefore does not apply to Bain’s shares in the same way it applies to other shareholders.

After completion, Surgery Partners’ common stock would no longer trade on Nasdaq. Until the required approvals and closing conditions are met, it remains a pending acquisition rather than a completed change of ownership.

JBizNews Desk | Cincinnati and Brentwood, Tennessee

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EQT has agreed to acquire Range Resources in an all-stock merger that would combine two major Appalachian natural-gas producers, with the companies putting the combined business’s enterprise value above $50 billion.

The companies announced the agreement Monday, October 26. Range shareholders would receive 0.987 EQT shares for each Range share they own. EQT shareholders are expected to hold about 73% of the combined company and Range shareholders about 27%.

The more-than-$50-billion figure describes the enterprise value of the combined company. It is not the price EQT is paying to buy Range. The announced consideration is stock, with the exchange ratio fixed in the merger agreement.

The proposed combination would bring together more than 9 billion cubic feet equivalent of daily net production, nearly 3 million net acres and more than 3,700 miles of midstream infrastructure, according to the companies. Cubic feet equivalent is a measure that puts natural gas and related energy production on a comparable basis.

The companies say the larger production base and infrastructure network would improve their ability to serve customers seeking long-term natural-gas supplies. Both operate in the Appalachian Basin. EQT’s business includes production and midstream operations, while Range produces natural gas and natural-gas liquids.

EQT and Range expect $325 million in annual savings and other operating benefits within two years. They identified corporate costs, operations and commodity marketing as areas for those benefits, and said further development and infrastructure changes could increase them over time. Those are company expectations, not savings already achieved.

The merger is not complete. Both boards unanimously approved the agreement, but shareholders of both companies must approve the transaction and required regulatory approvals and clearances must be obtained. The companies expect to close in the first quarter of 2027, subject to those and other customary conditions.

EQT’s executive management team would run the combined company, with headquarters remaining in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania. Two Range representatives, including its president and chief executive, Dennis Degner, would join EQT’s board at closing.

The announcement also changes the companies’ earnings-call schedule. EQT and Range canceled their separate third-quarter conference calls previously set for October 28. Both still plan to issue their third-quarter results after the market closes October 27.

JBizNews Desk | Canonsburg, Pennsylvania

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New York City lost about 23,000 private-sector jobs in September, yet its unemployment rate stayed at 4.8%. Both figures appear in the city’s latest economic reports. They measure different things, and the unchanged unemployment rate does not mean the job losses disappeared.

The September decline followed a loss of about 7,400 private-sector jobs in August, according to the October economic outlook from City Comptroller Mark Levine’s office. NYC’s Economic Development Corporation also reports the 23,000 September decline in its October 22 snapshot.

The payroll figures describe jobs at workplaces in the city. The unemployment rate comes from a survey of residents. It measures the share of people in the labor force who do not have a job and are looking for work, rather than the share of all New Yorkers without a job.

That distinction matters when fewer people are working or looking for work. The comptroller’s report says a decline in labor-force participation kept the city’s unemployment rate unchanged in September even as the number of residents employed fell. The city’s participation rate slipped to 62.0% from 62.1%, according to NYCEDC.

Someone who is not working and is not looking for a job is generally outside the labor force, rather than counted as unemployed. That can include students, retirees and people with family responsibilities. The figures do not show that everyone leaving the labor force has given up looking because they cannot find a job.

The industry numbers also tell a more specific story than the citywide total. Finance lost about 5,800 jobs in September, information lost about 1,700, and leisure and hospitality lost about 7,700, the comptroller’s seasonally adjusted figures show.

There were gains elsewhere. Professional and business services added about 3,800 jobs, although that followed roughly 11,000 jobs lost over the preceding three months. Health care and social assistance continued to add jobs.

For a person searching for work or a business deciding where to hire, those differences are more informative than treating every industry as if it were moving together. A citywide job decline does not mean every employer is cutting staff, just as a flat unemployment rate does not mean hiring conditions are unchanged.

The comptroller’s economists caution against reading too much into a single month. Local employment figures can be volatile, they say, and it is too early to tell whether September’s decline represents emerging economic weakness or seasonal noise.

The share of the city’s working-age population with a job was 59.0% in September, down only modestly from its recent record of 59.2%. That measure includes people outside the labor force and offers another check alongside payrolls and unemployment.

Sources: the NYC comptroller’s October outlook, NYCEDC’s October 22 economic snapshot, New York State’s city labor-market page and the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ guide to unemployment measures.

JBizNews Desk | New York

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President Donald Trump renewed his criticism of the Iran nuclear agreement and defended private health insurance in a Sunday television interview, putting energy costs and the future of health coverage at the center of his economic message ahead of the midterm elections.

Speaking by telephone with Larry Kudlow on Fox News in an October 25 interview, Trump attacked the agreement negotiated under former President Barack Obama and argued that government-run health insurance would leave patients facing delays. The remarks were made in the Sunday interview, a day after his campaign rally in Perry, Georgia.

The interview contained political arguments and predictions, not an announcement of a new nuclear agreement or a new health-insurance law. That distinction matters for households and businesses weighing fuel bills, employee benefits and medical expenses.

Iran policy and the cost of energy

Discussing Iran, Trump called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, or JCPOA, potentially “the worst and dumbest deal I’ve ever seen.” He also criticized the transfer of $1.7 billion to Iran during the Obama administration and alleged that Tehran used money to pursue nuclear weapons and buy missiles.

The payment he cited has a separate legal history from the nuclear restrictions themselves. In an August 2016 White House briefing, the Obama administration described $400 million as the return of Iranian funds deposited before the 1979 revolution for military equipment that was never delivered. It described another $1.3 billion as interest paid to settle the financial dispute. That was the administration’s stated explanation for the settlement, rather than a payment to purchase Iranian compliance with the nuclear agreement.

The Obama administration’s archived account of the nuclear deal describes limits on enrichment equipment and material, together with international monitoring, as its means of restricting Iran’s nuclear program. Trump’s allegation about how Iran used the money is his claim; the interview did not supply documentation tracing the settlement funds to particular weapons expenditures.

Trump framed his current choice on Iran as whether to negotiate a deal or pursue further action. He also predicted gasoline prices would fall quickly. Those comments offered no firm timetable that consumers or businesses could use to budget for lower fuel costs.

Private coverage and Medicare for All

On health care, Trump defended private plans, including coverage connected with employment. He said the United States had the best health plans while acknowledging that they did not cover everybody.

Criticizing government-run coverage, he said, “It’s socialized medicine,” and, “It’s expensive.” He also asserted that cancer patients could face nine-month waits, in a discussion that referenced Canada and the United Kingdom. He did not identify a study or a specific waiting-time measure supporting that figure during the interview.

Medicare for All is a proposal for a broader national insurance system, not simply another name for the existing Medicare program. The Congressional Research Service summary of the House Medicare for All Act, H.R. 3069, says it would establish a national program covering U.S. residents, prohibit patient cost-sharing for covered services and limit private insurers and employers to supplemental coverage that does not duplicate the program’s benefits.

Those provisions explain why the debate reaches beyond seniors. It concerns how people receive coverage, what employers provide and how medical care is financed. The bill’s provisions are proposals, not changes put into effect by Trump’s interview.

For readers, the immediate takeaway is to separate campaign claims from changes already in force. Sunday’s remarks did not change an insurance policy, establish a new patient charge or guarantee a particular price at the gas pump. They set out Trump’s position on two policy debates with direct consequences for household and business costs.

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Medicare’s annual open enrollment period is underway, giving people with Medicare until December 7 to review and change health or prescription-drug coverage for 2027.

The choice is about more than the monthly premium. Medicare says costs, benefits and participating providers can change each year, so a plan that worked in 2026 may have different terms next year.

Changes made during this enrollment period take effect January 1, 2027. The plan must receive the enrollment request by December 7.

Start with the notice from your current plan

Medicare’s yearly review guide tells beneficiaries to read their Annual Notice of Change. That document explains how a current plan’s costs and benefits will change for 2027.

Then compare options using your actual prescription drugs, preferred pharmacies and doctors. A low premium is only one part of the bill. The official comparison service provides estimates of total out-of-pocket costs and lets users compare coverage, quality ratings and provider networks.

Medicare Advantage is private-plan coverage that bundles hospital and medical benefits and usually prescription drugs. Original Medicare provides hospital and medical coverage, with a separate drug plan available. The two routes can have different provider-access rules and out-of-pocket costs.

What you can change

During the October 15 through December 7 window, beneficiaries can join, drop or switch Medicare Advantage or drug plans, or move between Medicare Advantage and Original Medicare, subject to the coverage options that apply to their situation.

If you review your options and are satisfied with your current coverage, Medicare’s guide says you generally do not need to make a change for it to continue. Review plan notices carefully rather than assuming all existing benefits, prices or providers will stay the same.

Do not confuse this window with Medigap enrollment

Medigap is supplemental insurance that can help pay certain costs under Original Medicare. The annual fall enrollment period does not create a new unrestricted right to buy it.

Medicare explains that the federal Medigap open enrollment period generally lasts six months, starting the first month a person has Part B and is 65 or older. Outside that window, an insurer may be able to deny an application or charge more unless a protection applies. State law may provide additional rights. Check those rules before dropping existing coverage or deciding to switch.

The official Medicare Plan Compare tool can show available plans and estimated costs. For individual help, beneficiaries can call 1-800-MEDICARE at 1-800-633-4227 or use their State Health Insurance Assistance Program. Medicare’s open enrollment page and Medigap guidance explain the enrollment limits.

JBizNews Desk | Washington

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Opinion column

By Duvi Honig

Originally published by JNS on October 26, 2026.

Are leaders across the Western part of the continent letting domestic pressure shape how they treat Israel? If so, it isn’t working out very well.

Europe, stop blaming the Jews for problems you won’t confront at home.

In September, 12 countries coordinated plans to restrict trade in goods from Israeli settlements in Judea and Samaria. France and the United Kingdom were among them; Belgium backed related measures; and Italy joined the chorus of criticism. Your governments held press conferences, issued joint statements and presented a united front. On this one issue, at least, Europe knew exactly what it wanted to do.

A month later, your streets are burning.

France. Italy. Belgium. Britain. Look at what is happening right in front of you.

In France, rioters set fire to Limoges Town Hall, a 143-year-old landmark. Its roof collapsed, and much of the building was destroyed. Across the country, demonstrations turned into fires, looting, rioting and attacks on police. A building that survived wars and generations of political change could not survive one night of unchecked rage.

French leaders now face serious questions about how protests spiraled into that kind of destruction. Yet weeks earlier, they had the energy to help coordinate economic pressure on the State of Israel.

In Italy, demonstrators clashed with police in Milan just steps from the Duomo and the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, some of the most visited places in Europe. Businesses shut their doors as tear gas filled the streets. In Bologna, police turned to water cannons. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni condemned the violence, and she was right to. But condemnation after the fact is not the same as prevention.

Belgium, Brussels—the political heart of the European Union—saw protesters overturn vehicles and fight security forces. The city where Europe writes its rules for everyone else could not keep order on its own streets.

In Britain, intelligence agencies keep warning of terrorist threats against Jewish and Israeli targets. Jewish schools and synagogues operate behind security guards, cameras and reinforced doors. This is the same country whose government just decided that an urgent diplomatic priority was restricting Israeli goods from Judea and Samaria.

These are not distant problems. They are on Europe’s doorstep right now.

To be fair, the unrest has different causes. Some come from economic grievances and some from far-left agitation. Islamist extremism is a separate and continuing threat. But taken together, they should be forcing European leaders to look hard at their own responsibilities, not search abroad for easy political victories.

So, what have the measures against Israel actually accomplished for Europeans?

They haven’t restored order in France. They haven’t protected shopkeepers in Milan. They haven’t stopped violence in Brussels. They haven’t made a single British Jewish family safer.

As someone who represents business owners, I can tell you that trade restrictions don’t create peace. They create lost contracts, lost jobs and lost trust, and they rarely hurt the people politicians claim to be targeting.

And this raises a harder question: Are European leaders letting domestic pressure shape how they treat Israel?

Are they betting that condemning the Jewish state will quiet the loudest radical voices at home? That another restriction will buy a few weeks of calm? That pointing a finger at Jerusalem is easier than confronting the people making demands in Paris, London and Brussels?

Real leadership means facing threats directly, protecting citizens and refusing to let intimidation write policy.

These questions deserve answers. Because appeasement doesn’t end with a press release. When governments respond to pressure by handing over what is being demanded, they teach everyone watching that pressure works. But demands don’t shrink; they only grow.

And when the target is Israel, Europe’s Jews are the ones left standing in the line of fire, blamed for a conflict thousands of miles away they have no power to control.

There is something deeply wrong with a continent where Jewish families need extraordinary protection while their governments spend so much effort condemning the Jewish state.

Jewish children shouldn’t be afraid to walk into school. Families shouldn’t feel that they need to tuck away a Star of David or swap a kippah for a baseball cap. Synagogues shouldn’t need armed guards just so people can pray. Yet across Europe, that is the reality.

Israel didn’t set fire to Limoges. Israel didn’t organize the clashes in Milan or Brussels. Israel didn’t build the extremist networks threatening European societies. Those are Europe’s problems, and Europe has to solve them.

Europe has every right to disagree with Israeli policy. Democracies disagree all the time. But no continent knows better than Europe where it all leads when Jews become the convenient scapegoat for unrest at home. That history isn’t ancient. It’s within living memory, and the scars are still visible in nearly every European city.

Real leadership means facing threats directly, protecting citizens and refusing to let intimidation write public policy. It does not mean looking abroad for someone easier to blame.

Citizens want and need security, public order and leaders who govern. Instead, they are watching historic buildings burn, city centers shut down and Jewish institutions turned into fortresses.

Their governments should be responsible to them—not to radical movements and the political convenience of making Israel the villain of the moment. Blaming a minority population in your country and abroad is not a substitute for governing.

Europe, you chose to target the Jewish state instead of confronting the pressure at home. You thought it would take the heat off your governments. Now your own streets are burning.

How’s that working out for you?

Duvi Honig is founder and chief executive officer of the Orthodox Jewish Chamber of Commerce.

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Prominent anti-illegal immigration activist Sheffi Paz, who led protests against illegal immigration in south Tel Aviv, died at the age of 74, the Save Tel Aviv organization announced on Monday.

Paz, one of the leading figures in the protest movement among residents of south Tel Aviv’s older neighborhoods, devoted many years to public activism aimed at improving residents’ personal safety and changing government immigration policy.

Paz died following a battle with cancer. The disease was diagnosed for the fourth time over the past month, after she had previously battled cancer on three occasions.

The daughter of Holocaust survivors who immigrated to Israel from Poland during her childhood, Paz began leading the public campaign against the presence of illegal migrants in south Tel Aviv in 2013. Over the years, she organized demonstrations and protests, confronted government officials and local authorities, and became one of the most recognizable figures associated with the movement.

Her activism also led to confrontations with law enforcement authorities and legal proceedings. In September 2024, she was sentenced to 45 days in prison after being convicted of offenses related to her protest activities, including spraying graffiti and disturbing public order. Paz served her prison sentence and continued her public activism following her release.

Held to her demands despite personal price paid

In a statement, the Save Tel Aviv organization said Paz had dedicated the final years of her life to fighting for south Tel Aviv residents and refused to abandon her demands despite the personal costs she had paid.

The organization’s deputy director-general, Amalia Ozer, and spokesperson, Yaakov Sela, paid tribute to her.

“Today we lost a courageous leader, a dear friend, and a woman who became a symbol of determination, dedication, and love for the country,” they said.

“Sheffi dedicated her life to the residents of south Tel Aviv,” the organization continued. “She was the voice of the invisible people, those who had been left behind, and proved time and again that even one person, armed with truth and faith in the justice of their cause, can shake an entire country.”

The organization also addressed the legal proceedings brought against Paz over the years.

“Sheffi sought justice for neighborhood residents and was unwilling to remain silent in the face of injustice. Even when she was persecuted, arrested, and sent to prison, she continued to stand tall.”

Concluding their statement, members of the organization pledged to continue the public campaign Paz had led.

‘Struggle is not over’

“Sheffi is gone, but her struggle is not over. We pledge to follow in her footsteps, fight for south Tel Aviv, combat illegal immigration, and work until we achieve the goals to which she dedicated her life. May her memory be a blessing.”

Paz’s close friend and the organization’s deputy director-general, Amalia Ozer, spoke to Walla on Monday morning about the loss and the period she spent accompanying Paz in the hospital.

“It was a very rapid and unexpected downward spiral,” Ozer said. “The State of Israel has lost a precious asset, someone who cared for the invisible people. I’m not sure she can be replaced.”

Ozer said they intended to continue Paz’s work and the campaign she had led.

She recounted spending nights at Paz’s bedside in the hospital for a month. Although they were aware that her condition was deteriorating, they had not expected the end to come so quickly.

“We didn’t think it would end so quickly. Who could have imagined it would be cut short so suddenly?” she said.

Ozer added that the question of who would carry on the campaign had occupied them even before Paz became ill.

“We always talked about who would inherit the struggle. I’m the one who does all the parliamentary work, but I’m not her. Sheffi is the recognizable face of our movement.”

“I have never known anyone so inspiring, especially at her age,” Ozer added. “A 74-year-old woman who, until her very last moment, functioned like a lioness.”

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Israel’s markets have soared despite three years of war and political turmoil, but some investors see further upside if the opposition defeats Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Tuesday’s election, potentially easing regional tensions and political risk.

Opinion polls point to a tight contest, with neither Netanyahu’s ruling Likud bloc nor an opposition alliance centered on former military chief Gadi Eisenkot expected to secure the 61 seats in the 120-seat Knesset needed to govern.

That raises the prospect of lengthy coalition negotiations or even another election. Since the October 7 Hamas attacks in 2023, the Tel Aviv stock market has soared 130%, far outpacing Wall Street’s 80% gain, while the shekel has climbed 25%, one of the world’s strongest currency performances.

Analysts attribute some of that strength to Israel’s tech sector and the global AI boom, while defense spending, which has nearly doubled to around 8% of GDP, has also provided a boost.

With both Netanyahu and Eisenkot vowing to maintain pressure on Hamas and Iran, markets are focused on their broader policy differences. JPMorgan estimates the shekel could swing as much as 3% depending on the result.

Opposition victory could improve Israeli economic position

An opposition victory that improves relations with Western allies and halts a judicial overhaul that sparked mass protests in 2023 could strengthen the currency, JPMorgan said, while another Netanyahu-led government could weaken it.

Billionaire investor Bill Ackman, while stopping short of backing a candidate, said a government without far-right ministers Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich would signal that Israel was “turning a new page,” potentially helping rebuild its international credibility and expand the Abraham Accords with its neighbors.

IBI Investment House also expects an opposition victory to lift the markets. “From a capital markets perspective, this would likely be reflected in a decline in Israel’s risk premium, appreciation pressure on the shekel, and a positive reaction in the local market,” IBI’s Chief Economist Rafi Gozlan said.

“The most significant issue is what the result will mean for the region,” said Equity Bank’s chief economic adviser Charlie Robertson. “If Netanyahu is reelected, it might increase the chances of further escalation with Iran, whereas a defeat might be seen as lessening the tensions.”

But the prospect of gains under an opposition government does not mean investors expect Israeli assets to suffer if Netanyahu remains in power. Stocks and bonds have proved remarkably resilient through years of war and political upheaval, and some investors remain confident in the economy regardless of the election outcome.

Union Investment’s Sergey Dergachev has been buying Israeli bonds ahead of the election, betting the economy and companies he favors will remain fundamentally strong. “We are very constructive on Israeli credits going into the election,” Dergachev said, adding that bonds were less prone to major swings and the region’s intertwined conflicts should eventually ease.

Despite the rally, foreign investors remain cautious. Copley Fund Research data show the share of global funds holding Israeli equities is at a record low, having fallen sharply since 2023.

TS Lombard’s Christopher Granville cited central bank estimates that the war had cost the economy more than $55 billion by last year, equivalent to 8.6% in cumulative lost GDP growth.

Public debt, budget deficit high amid Iran war

Israel’s fiscal position is another focus. Public debt has risen to nearly 70% of GDP, about 10 percentage points higher than in 2022, while the budget deficit is expected to remain around 4.5% of GDP, up from less than 2% before the conflict.

Central bank head Amir Yaron stressed last week the need to “preserve adequate fiscal policy space” given the Iran war.

Like stocks, Israeli government bonds have rallied, returning about 30% over the last two years, more than double the main emerging market indexes.

The main risk for investors is an inconclusive result that prolongs political uncertainty, delaying budgets, reforms and investment, some investors believe.

That uncertainty can produce sharp short-term swings. Tel Aviv Stock Exchange research covering the last 10 elections found volatility in leading share indexes rose by as much as 45% in the weeks after voting compared with a typical week. But initial losses were typically recovered within a month, with the indexes posting an average gain of about 1.7%.

Over a longer horizon, the TA-125 returned an average 16.4% in the year following elections, compared with a long-term annual average of 11.5%, the research found. Political deadlock often weighed on stocks before voting, but the effects typically faded within months, said Nissan Avraham, an analyst at the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange’s research unit.

Israeli businesses continue thriving despite political, regional upheaval

That record supports the view that elections matter less for Israeli companies than many investors assume.

Lior Yochpaz, chief investment officer at insurance company Menora Mivtachim, said businesses have continued to thrive despite years of political upheaval, judicial overhaul proposals, and regional conflict, helped by a relatively business-friendly environment.

For some investors, however, the more attractive election trade lies outside Israel. TT International’s Jean-Charles Sambor said an opposition victory or weakened Netanyahu government could ease regional tensions and benefit Lebanese bonds.

“The best way to play it for us is through other Middle East countries, and for us Lebanon is a good proxy,” Sambor said.

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New Jersey’s economic development authority has approved three tax-credit awards totaling up to $77.44 million for projects that would create or rehabilitate 274 affordable homes in Newark.

The NJEDA announced the approvals October 23, following its board’s action the previous day. The awards cover renovations at Cottage Place Apartments and senior and family housing at Crown Village, a redevelopment of a former brewery on South Orange Avenue.

These are capped tax-credit awards under the Aspire gap-financing program, not the projects’ total development costs or a statement that the money has already been spent. Each award can cover up to 60% of eligible project costs.

Cottage Place, at 125 West Kinney Street, was approved for up to $29.6 million to rehabilitate 100 existing affordable apartments. Planned work includes kitchens and bathrooms, new windows and roofs, and energy-efficient heating, ventilation and air-conditioning equipment. Construction is expected to begin in March 2027. The project also includes a supportive-services program intended to help tenants maintain housing stability and access economic opportunities.

At Crown Village, up to $27.8 million would support 105 apartments for residents aged 55 and older in two five-story buildings. Some apartments would be reserved for residents earning between 50% and 60% of area median income and for people experiencing homelessness. The plans include onsite parking and support such as job training, community outreach and construction-trades pre-apprenticeship programs.

A separate award of up to $20.04 million covers a five-story family-housing building with 69 one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments above ground-level parking. The Newark Housing Authority has committed project-based Section 8 rental assistance to the project, according to the NJEDA announcement.

The combined 274-home figure includes 100 homes being renovated and 174 planned at Crown Village; it is not a count of newly completed apartments. All three projects also have support from Low-Income Housing Tax Credits administered through the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency.

The awards come amid continuing housing-cost pressure nationally. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that its shelter index rose 0.4% in September and 3.2% over 12 months. Those nationwide measures do not establish rents at these Newark properties or the projects’ future effect on local housing costs.

JBizNews Desk | Newark, New Jersey

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Iraqi Prime Minister Ali Al-Zaidi ordered an investigation into the Maysan Provincial Council on Monday after its chairman, Mustafa Da’ir, threatened “civil disobedience” if Baghdad kept the al-Shib border crossing with Iran closed, according to Iraqi officials and media reports.

Authorities closed the crossing last week as they upgraded security and detection equipment, an Iraqi official told Reuters on Wednesday.

However, Kurdistan Democratic Party lawmaker Salwan Taha Akreyi told Kurdistan24 that Baghdad had shut the crossing at Washington’s request to restrict transit to and from Iran and thwart Tehran’s efforts to strengthen its militias in Iraq.

Da’ir responded by threatening unrest and warning that he would cut the province off from the rest of the country, giving Baghdad a three-day deadline before escalating his response.

Dozens of protesters also blocked roads leading to oil companies in the region to protest the closure, Asharq Al-Awsat reported.

Shiite bloc rejects Zaidi’s call for investigation into provincial council

The Iraqi Shiite Islamist Badr bloc reportedly rejected the prime minister’s call for an investigation, arguing that the closure was harming the region’s economy and warning that prolonging the dispute risked damaging relations between Baghdad and the province, according to the independent Iraqi outlet Shafaq News.

Badr also reportedly urged the government to intensify efforts to combat alleged smuggling through unofficial crossings in the Kurdistan region.

The closure comes as the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz has increased Iran’s reliance on land routes through neighboring Iraq and Pakistan for shipments. Tehran has strongly condemned the closure, rejecting allegations that the al-Shib crossing had been used to traffic drugs and counterfeit currency. 

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Attacks by Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis have nearly emptied the skies over Riyadh this month, aviation data showed on Monday, with cancellations grounding almost nine out of every 10 scheduled flights at the Saudi capital’s airport.

About 86% of scheduled flights at Riyadh’s King Khalid International Airport, or 4,071 out of 4,736, were canceled between October 8 and October 25, according to the latest data from aviation analytics firm Cirium.

The Houthis have stepped up attacks on Saudi Arabia this month, targeting airports, ports and oil facilities with ballistic missiles and drones. Riyadh’s airport, the kingdom’s second-busiest after Jeddah, has been struck repeatedly, including an attack on October 10 that killed 13 people, the deadliest in the kingdom in more than a decade.

Saudi authorities partially reopened the airport on Sunday after a halt that had started on October 10. Domestic flights resumed from Terminal 1, while national carriers were allowed to operate international services from Terminal 2.

However, the Houthis said they had attacked Riyadh’s airport again on Monday, calling it a “military target.” The attacks have prompted international airlines to suspend services to the Saudi capital into November, while Delta Air Lines has postponed the launch of its Riyadh route until next year.

Riyadh events canceled, other airports face disruption

The disruption has forced several events in Riyadh to be canceled or postponed, including Saudi Arabia’s marquee investment conference, as flight cancellations hamper travel to and across the kingdom.

The upheaval also spread beyond the Saudi capital. More than 7,800 flights, or 45% of all scheduled departures from Saudi airports, were canceled between October 8 and October 25, according to Cirium. The peak came on October 12, when cancellations exceeded 60% of scheduled flights nationwide.

Several major airports recorded severe disruption, including Riyadh at 86%, Dammam at 42% and Abha at 46.7%, where the Houthis have claimed strikes. A number of smaller regional airports saw the vast majority of flights canceled, including Najran, near the Yemeni border, where all flights were canceled.

Cancellations across Saudi airports in October https://reut.rs/3UKliak

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Birthright Israel will host the inaugural Taglit Global Business Summit, “Shaping Our Future Together,” November 1-3 at the Hilton Tel Aviv.

The landmark event will bring together more than 350 prominent business leaders, investors, entrepreneurs, and philanthropists from Israel and around the world at a critical time for the country.

More than 100 participants will travel to Israel from over 15 countries, including Argentina, Australia, Switzerland, and the United Arab Emirates, joining leading Israeli executives and entrepreneurs in a major international gathering focused on business, innovation, philanthropy, and Israel’s future

The first-of-its-kind summit marks a milestone in Birthright Israel’s 26-year history, bringing its international network of supporters together in Israel to explore opportunities for business collaboration, strengthen global partnerships, and deepen their shared commitment to the country and the next generation.

Prominent participants include Dr. Miriam Adelson, a leading supporter of Birthright Israel; Meir Shamir, chairman of Birthright Israel’s Israeli Board of Donors; and Josh Nash, international chairman of Birthright Israel and managing member of Ulysses Management. The summit will also bring together business leaders and entrepreneurs associated with companies shaping Israel’s economy, including NVIDIA, Wiz, Elbit Systems, El Al, and monday.com.

President Herzog expected to attend event, address participants

The three-day gathering will open on November 1 with a Gala Evening of Recognition honoring the leadership and philanthropy that have sustained Birthright Israel’s impact, including Dr. Miriam Adelson’s longstanding commitment to the organization. President Isaac Herzog is expected to address the gathering alongside leading supporters from Israel and around the world.

On November 2, the summit will feature prominent figures from technology, investment, finance, entrepreneurship, and public life. Speakers include Sir Ronald Cohen, a pioneer of impact investing and co-founder of Apax Partners; Dr. Miriam Adelson, a physician, media publisher, and prominent businesswoman known for her global philanthropy and investments; Eyal Waldman, founder of Mellanox; Yinon Costica, co-founder of Wiz; Sean Rad, founder of Tinder and a Birthright alumnus; Amit Krig, NVIDIA’s Israel site leader; former Mossad director Yossi Cohen; investor and ICON founder Yasmin Lukatz; former Microsoft Israel CEO Shelly Landsmann; author and public intellectual Dr. Micah Goodman; real-estate developer and philanthropist Danna Azrieli Hakim; and Angela Homsi, co-founder and president of Ignite Power.

The program will also feature Birthright Israel alumni who have become entrepreneurs, business leaders, and investors, showing how a ten-day educational experience can create connections and opportunities that extend far beyond the trip itself.

Among the participants will be Avinatan Or, an NVIDIA engineer who was abducted by Hamas from the Nova music festival on October 7, 2023, and released after 738 days in captivity.

Also among the participants will be Moran Samuel, an Israeli Paralympic basketball player and world champion rower who gives lectures to Jewish communities worldwide.

“For 26 years, Birthright Israel has connected the next generation of Jews to Israel while building an extraordinary global network of leaders who share a commitment to its future. The Taglit Global Business Summit is a natural extension of that mission. We are bringing this network together in Israel to turn shared values into action, foster new business partnerships, strengthen Israel’s economy, and invest in the next generation. At this moment, bringing global leaders to Israel is itself a powerful statement of confidence in its future,” said Gidi Mark, Global CEO of Birthright Israel.

The initiative builds on Birthright Israel’s established Business Forum, which brings together nearly 60 Israeli companies, creating an additional platform for meaningful engagement between Israeli business leaders and their international counterparts.

“Trust is one of the most valuable assets in business, and Birthright has spent 26 years building it across borders,” said Ethy Levy, Vice President of Global Resource Development and Partnerships at Birthright Israel. “We are bringing that network into one room, giving people who share a commitment to Israel the chance to discover what they can build together. A conversation here could become a business partnership, a philanthropic initiative, or an investment in Israel’s next generation.”

Program offers volunteer opportunities alongside current Birthright participants

On November 3, participants will move beyond the conference setting for curated visits to Israeli companies, innovation centers, and communities engaged in recovery and rebuilding. The program will also offer opportunities to volunteer alongside current Birthright Israel participants and to connect global business leaders directly with communities and initiatives the organization has supported since October 7.

The gathering reflects Birthright Israel’s impact both on Jewish communities worldwide and on Israel’s economy. Since 1999, nearly one million young Jewish adults from 70 countries have participated in Birthright Israel programs. The organization estimates that its activities have contributed approximately $2.6 billion to the Israeli economy over 26 years through travel, accommodation, and spending at local businesses.

A March 2026 study by Brandeis University’s Cohen Center for Modern Jewish Studies further demonstrated the organization’s long-term relevance. Among politically liberal young Jews surveyed, connection to Israel increased by 60% among Birthright Israel participants, compared with a 26% decline among applicants who did not participate. The findings highlight the lasting impact of firsthand experiences in Israel on Jewish identity and connection to the global Jewish community.

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As Thailand approved a $104.4 million emergency defense fund to buy military equipment and reinforce defenses along the Cambodian border, IWI (Israel Weapon Industries) announced it delivered its ARBEL Anti-Drone System (ADS) to Thailand’s Defense Ministry.

Thai forces have integrated the platform into their existing rifles after troops received on-site training from company officials.

Developed by IWI after close to a decade of design work, the fire control technology transforms standard infantry rifles into precision-guided interceptors.

“Small tactical drones have become a direct and growing threat to soldiers on the battlefield. We developed the ARBEL ADS to give soldiers an effective means of defending themselves against this evolving threat, while providing armed forces with a critical tactical advantage in an increasingly complex battlespace,” said SK Group’s vice chairman Ronen Hamudot.

Integrated directly into the AR-15 platform and IWI’s own ARAD assault rifles and Negev machine guns, ARBEL allows soldiers to engage threats, including aerial ones, using their existing weapons, optics, and ammunition with no additional gear required. Depending on the selected firing mode, it can hit targets up to 450 meters away using standard 5.56 mm ammunition.

With electronic sensors and gyros, it simplifies the shooting cycle after the initial shot and enables effective target engagement within a window of opportunity of several seconds, typical of real combat situations. According to IWI, it significantly improves efficiency and lethality by increasing hit probability for static and moving threats by two to three times.

Depending on the platform, the ARBEL system can be integrated into the lower receiver of the A-15 or mounted as an external unit on the grip of the Negev machine gun. The system adds only 900 grams to the weapon and meets MIL-STD-810 military standards, ensuring reliability under extreme environmental conditions. 

The Thai forces chose to integrate the system onto their existing rifles, which, according to the company, “enables militaries to upgrade their existing platforms locally without replacing their rifle inventories or procuring entirely new weapons.”

Battery-operated, ARBEL’s power supply allows for 50 hours of continuous operation. It’s optic-agnostic, mission-configurable, and its built-in fire control system releases rounds when the shooter is stable on the target, depending on the operational scenario. IWI told Defense & Tech by The Jerusalem Post that the system compensates for and mitigates shooting errors typical of combative scenarios such as heavy breathing, fatigue, and stress. 

“As Southeast Asian militaries place greater emphasis on counter-drone capabilities, Thailand’s adoption of ARBEL ADS reflects this growing operational priority. We see rising demand across the region for solutions that can help soldiers meet this challenge,” said SK Group vice president Doron Korol, who oversees the Asia-Pacific region.

According to the company, Thai military officials are in discussions with IWI about an additional order for the ARBEL ADS, and several other countries are at various stages of the procurement process. The company expects to announce additional deployments of the solution in the coming months.

IWI's ARBEL anti-drone system (credit: IWI)

Modernization plans

Earlier in October, local media reported that Bangkok approved emergency defense funding to repair combat-damaged gear and purchase new weapons, including long-range Rampage standoff missiles manufactured by Elbit Systems and Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), along with bunker-buster bombs and High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) artillery upgrades.

According to a report in The Nation, the Royal Thai Air Force’s procurement plan includes 20 Israeli Rampage missiles, with an estimated value of approximately $30 million (1.04 billion baht), for use with the country’s F-16 fighter aircraft along with Elbit’s MPR-500 penetrating bombs and Lizard III laser guidance kits. 

Under the modernization plan, the Royal Thai Army will procure HIMARS and M777 howitzers to replace older artillery, along with Stryker armored vehicles.

Thailand has been acquiring Israeli defense technology since the 1970s, and the relationship has only grown stronger with the transfer of knowledge to locally manufacture and produce certain weapons systems.

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A state-commissioned study places New York second to California in quantum-related businesses, research groups and patent families, offering a map of the industry as the state directs $360 million toward research and commercialization hubs.

The report, released October 23 by Governor Kathy Hochul’s office, was commissioned by Empire State Development’s NYSTAR division and prepared by The Quantum Insider. Its rankings are the study’s findings, not a separate federal industry census.

The study identified 134 operating entities, 219 research groups and 734 patent families connected to quantum technology across New York’s 10 regions. It highlighted coordination among researchers, manufacturers and potential customers as an opportunity to help technologies reach the market.

The state’s funding commitments include $300 million for a Quantum Research and Innovation Hub at SUNY Stony Brook and $60 million for up to four regional commercialization hubs. The regional hubs were funded in the fiscal 2027 budget and are intended to include incubators for quantum startups.

The report estimates that the combined $360 million commitment could support $2.3 billion to $5 billion in economic activity and 7,200 to 10,100 job-years through 2036. A job-year means one full-time job supported for one year. It is not the same as that many permanent jobs, and the estimates are forecasts rather than realized results.

The study points to New York’s semiconductor, optics and photonics capabilities and its concentration of potential customers in financial services, health care and advanced manufacturing. Turning research into products still requires customers, infrastructure and commercially usable technology.

The investment plans sit within a mixed national economy. The September employment report showed U.S. payrolls rising 29,000 and unemployment at 4.2%. Those figures describe the wider labor market, not demand for quantum workers in New York.

NYSTAR says the study will inform its strategy for linking research institutions, established companies and startups across the state.

JBizNews Desk | New York

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Singapore has broken ground on a S$62.5 million industrial test facility designed to help companies move low-carbon technologies from laboratory research into larger-scale trials.

The Low-Carbon Technology Translational Testbed, known as LCT3, will be located on Jurong Island and hosted by A*STAR’s Institute of Sustainability for Chemicals, Energy and Environment. A*STAR and the Singapore Economic Development Board announced the groundbreaking October 23.

Its first announced users are Amogy, IHI Corporation and Singapore startup Metha8. The projects cover ammonia-to-hydrogen conversion, catalysts for turning carbon dioxide into sustainable aviation fuel, and an integrated methanol-to-power system.

The facility will offer shared infrastructure, utilities, permits and licences for pilots under industry-relevant conditions. The aim is to let developers test equipment without having to build a separate trial facility from scratch.

A*STAR and Amogy plan to pilot ammonia-cracking systems intended to produce up to one tonne of hydrogen a day, alongside work on lower-cost catalysts. That is a project target, not a statement that the new testbed is already producing hydrogen.

IHI’s collaboration will examine catalyst performance at industrial flow rates, temperatures and pressures and over extended operating periods. Metha8’s project will test a system that produces hydrogen from methanol while capturing carbon dioxide before power generation.

The economic challenge is scaling technologies reliably in an industrial setting. The agencies say industrial activities, including manufacturing, account for nearly two-thirds of Singapore’s emissions. The announced trials are intended to generate operating data; they are not proof of commercial viability or a measured reduction in national emissions.

A*STAR says it is also developing potential collaborations with CERT Systems, Greenlyzer, Obayashi and RTI International.

JBizNews Desk | Singapore

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Verizon raised its annual subscriber and earnings outlook Monday after adding 406,000 monthly-bill-paying phone customers in the third quarter. The New York-based company also announced an agreement valued above $2 billion with Amazon Web Services to support computing infrastructure for artificial intelligence.

The company’s October 26 earnings release said the AWS agreement creates a commercial framework for distributed computing serving generative AI and AI agents. The agreement’s value is separate from Verizon’s reported quarterly revenue.

Verizon now expects 1.1 million to 1.2 million postpaid phone net additions for 2026, up from its previous forecast of the upper half of a 750,000-to-1 million range. Postpaid customers pay a recurring bill rather than buying service in advance; net additions count customer gains after departures.

The quarter’s 406,000 phone net additions were Verizon’s strongest third-quarter result in five years. It also added 137,000 postpaid accounts, its best quarterly account growth in more than a decade. Phone lines and accounts are different measures because one account can include several lines.

Total operating revenue rose 1.5% from a year earlier to $34.3 billion. Mobility and broadband service revenue increased 2.9% to about $23.5 billion, while equipment revenue fell 9%. Verizon attributed the equipment decline mainly to fewer device upgrades as customers kept phones longer, along with its decision to spend less on device subsidies.

Net income increased 5.2% to $5.3 billion. Reported earnings per share rose to $1.25 from $1.17 a year earlier. Adjusted earnings, which exclude special items and are a non-GAAP measure, were $1.31 a share, up from $1.21.

The company raised its full-year adjusted earnings forecast to $5.04 to $5.06 a share and increased its cash-flow growth outlook. These are company forecasts, not completed results.

Broadband net additions totaled 314,000, comprising 159,000 fixed-wireless connections and 155,000 fiber connections. Verizon ended the quarter with 17.4 million broadband connections. Its earnings discussion is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. Eastern on Monday.

JBizNews Desk | New York

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Amtrak has unveiled a $250 million Seattle maintenance facility built to service an entire Airo trainset indoors, as the railroad prepares the yard for its new generation of passenger trains.

The company said at its October 23 ribbon-cutting that the project was delivered on schedule and $50 million under budget. The facility will open in phases through the end of 2026, rather than begin all operations at once.

The nearly 100,000-square-foot building has three tracks for inspection, servicing and heavy maintenance. Its approximately 700-foot length accommodates a full Amtrak Cascades Airo trainset under one roof.

That changes a practical part of the maintenance process. At the yard’s existing facility, individual railcars from the legacy fleet must be moved in and out separately. Amtrak says the new layout is intended to make work more efficient and reduce downtime; the announcement does not provide measured improvements in passenger punctuality.

The Seattle project follows the debut of the new Airo fleet on Amtrak Cascades in September. The railroad described the building as the first of its kind in its network.

More than 40 subcontractors worked on construction, many from the Pacific Northwest, supporting approximately 120 construction jobs, according to Amtrak. The broader project includes an employee parking deck and covered storage for maintenance materials.

The project is a localized capital investment against a mixed national labor-market backdrop. The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ September employment report showed payrolls up 29,000 and unemployment at 4.2%. Those national figures describe the wider economy, not the project’s local effects or future hiring.

Equipment inside the building includes a drop table, split-rail system and overhead cranes. The project adds to earlier Seattle yard improvements completed in 2013, 2019 and 2025.

JBizNews Desk | Seattle

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Eli Lilly has broken ground on a $5 billion manufacturing plant in Goochland County, Virginia, that is designed to make both active pharmaceutical ingredients and finished medicines at one integrated site.

The October 22 groundbreaking advances a previously announced project west of Richmond. Lilly expects the facility to create 650 permanent jobs, including engineers, scientists, operations staff and laboratory technicians, alongside about 1,800 construction jobs.

The site will focus on antibody-drug conjugates and other bioconjugate and large-molecule medicines. Antibody-drug conjugates combine antibodies with cancer medicines to target diseased cells. Lilly says the plant will be its first to bring active-ingredient production and finished-medicine manufacturing together in a fully integrated facility.

The project is part of the company’s broader U.S. manufacturing expansion. Lilly says it has announced 10 new U.S. sites since 2020, five of which will produce active pharmaceutical ingredients.

The company has also committed $40 million to support the Virginia Center for Advanced Pharmaceutical Manufacturing, a statewide training network involving industry, government and higher education. The network is to include a hands-on pilot-scale training center in Goochland County with a targeted opening in 2028.

Lilly plans to use digital automation, machine learning and data analysis in the Richmond facility. The site is targeting LEED Gold environmental certification.

The job and production figures are company projections, not completed hiring or output. Lilly’s announcement notes that costs, construction timing, staffing and other risks can affect the expected benefits of a manufacturing expansion.

The national backdrop remains mixed. The September jobs report showed payrolls up just 29,000 and unemployment at 4.2%. Manufacturing employment changed little, rising 9,000. At the same time, consumer prices were 3.7% higher than a year earlier, with energy prices up 20.4%.

JBizNews Desk | Goochland County, Virginia

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President Donald Trump has changed the list of Canadian goods subject to an additional 50% U.S. tariff, removing certain plywood, paper, packaging and machinery products while adding other imports to the levy.

The October 23 proclamation takes effect for goods entered for consumption, or withdrawn from a warehouse for consumption, at or after 12:01 a.m. Eastern time on October 30. It changes which products face the tariff, rather than ending the broader Canadian tariff measure.

The shift matters to U.S. businesses that buy covered Canadian materials or equipment. A product coming off this particular list loses the additional 50% duty imposed under Section 338 of the Tariff Act of 1930. That does not necessarily mean it becomes duty-free: other applicable tariffs can remain.

Which products come off the list

The removal list includes specified thin plywood sheets, certain plastic packing boxes and bags, corrugated paper cartons and some other paper products. It also covers listed agricultural sorting equipment and certain packing or wrapping machinery.

Edible seaweeds and other algae, whether fresh, chilled, frozen or dried, are among the listed food products receiving relief.

These are specific customs classifications, not blanket exemptions for all plywood, paper or machinery. The product annex says its descriptions are informational and do not define the legal scope. It directs questions about particular tariff provisions to U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

Other Canadian goods join the tariff list

The order adds specified products including sweetened cocoa powder, certain carpets, valves and waste products. Importers need to check the exact Harmonized Tariff Schedule code, the numerical customs classification used to determine a product’s treatment, rather than relying only on its everyday name.

The White House says the Section 338 duties apply to covered goods even when they qualify as originating under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. The proclamation also states that these duties apply in addition to applicable tariffs imposed under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962.

For example, a 50% additional tariff means a $50 duty on each $100 of customs value, before any other applicable duties. Removing that additional duty is different from a promise that a retailer’s selling price will fall by 50%.

Businesses can compare the signed proclamation with its product additions and removals. The stated effective date is tied to customs entry or withdrawal, not the date a customer places an order.

JBizNews Desk | Washington

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Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Turkey are sending senior defense and intelligence officials to Tehran on Monday for talks with Iran’s president and security chief, a Saudi Foreign Ministry official announced, confirming a regional diplomatic push aimed at reducing tensions.

Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman is leading the kingdom’s delegation. Pakistan’s army chief, Field Marshal Asim Munir, and Turkish intelligence chief Ibrahim Kalin are also participating, Saudi Deputy Minister for Public Diplomacy Rayed Krimly said in a public statement.

The visitors are due to meet President Masoud Pezeshkian and Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council. The announcement describes planned meetings, not an agreement reached between the countries.

Krimly said the visit is intended to encourage dialogue and diplomatic solutions, reduce tensions between the parties to the current crisis and support mediation by Qatar and Pakistan. Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Turkey are participating as members of the Mecca Joint Defense Agreement.

Iran also confirmed the visit. Ali Bagheri, deputy secretary of its Supreme National Security Council, announced that senior officials from the three countries would travel to Tehran as part of efforts to develop regional security, according to a statement carried by Iran’s official news agency.

The announced agenda is regional security and diplomacy. Neither statement announced a ceasefire or other negotiated settlement.

JBizNews Desk | Tehran

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New York has awarded nearly $20 million to build 61 affordable starter homes through its MOVE-IN NY program, directing money to four land banks in a bid to make smaller homes available to low- and moderate-income buyers.

The October 23 awards cover 24 homes through the Essex County Land Bank, 11 through the Wayne County Regional Land Bank, 15 through the Rochester Land Bank and 11 through the Suffolk County Landbank. The state announcement puts the program’s cumulative awards above $80 million, supporting homeownership opportunities for 250 households. Those are funded plans, not a statement that all the homes are finished or available to buy today.

The program pays municipalities, land banks and nonprofits to purchase and place factory-built homes, then sell them below construction cost to eligible buyers. That structure addresses a problem that a cheaper building method alone would not solve: a household still needs an affordable purchase price and a mortgage it can qualify for.

The homes, known as CrossMods, are built to federal manufactured-housing standards and meet design guidelines approved by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, according to the state. That allows eligible buyers to use conventional mortgages rather than assume that every factory-built home requires a different type of financing.

The four awards are $7.26 million for Essex County, $3.33 million for Wayne County, $4.54 million for Rochester and $4.84 million for Suffolk County. These are grants to the program’s local partners, not checks paid directly to individual homebuyers or the selling prices of the homes.

New York Homes and Community Renewal administers MOVE-IN NY. The state says its fiscal 2026 budget provided $50 million for the program and the fiscal 2027 budget added $100 million for further expansion and exploration of factory-built and modular construction. The funding announcement does not give a single statewide buyer application deadline or a price for each of the 61 homes.

Prospective buyers can review the state’s award announcement and check with the relevant land bank for local availability, income requirements and the sales process. An award is an early step toward a home, not a guarantee that a particular applicant will qualify.

JBizNews Desk | Albany, New York

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Round Rock, Texas, has approved a performance-based incentive agreement for semiconductor-equipment company PulseForge that ties $600,000 in potential city payments to at least $20 million in investment and 60 new jobs.

The city announced the agreement October 22 after approval by its City Council and Transportation and Economic Development Corporation. The arrangement requires the company to meet investment and hiring milestones before receiving the payments.

PulseForge must invest at least $6 million in real-property improvements and $14 million in business personal property, including equipment. Half the $20 million total is due by the end of 2029 and the remaining half by the end of 2031.

The company must retain its existing 50 employees and add 60 primary jobs with starting average annual salaries of at least $100,000 plus benefits. The schedule requires 20 new jobs by the end of 2029 and another 40 by the end of 2031.

The city payments are divided into $250,000 in 2030 and $350,000 in 2032, following verification that the obligations have been met. The agreement includes compliance requirements and clawback provisions if the company fails to fulfill its commitments.

PulseForge develops semiconductor manufacturing equipment and digital thermal-processing technology. It is evaluating whether to expand its existing Round Rock operations or develop a new manufacturing facility in the city.

The local hiring plan comes against a slow national jobs backdrop. The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ September report showed payrolls up just 29,000 and unemployment at 4.2%. Manufacturing employment changed little, rising 9,000. Separately, consumer prices were 3.7% higher than a year earlier, with energy prices up 20.4%.

PulseForge is also seeking federal CHIPS Act and Texas Semiconductor Innovation Fund support. The city’s announcement describes those as funding opportunities being pursued, not awards already secured.

JBizNews Desk | Round Rock, Texas

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New York City is proposing new consumer-protection rules aimed at customer-service systems that send people through repeated automated menus without fixing billing errors, refund requests or other problems.

The proposal would require businesses to disclose at the start of an interaction that a customer is speaking with an automated system, rather than a person. It would also create a legal presumption against businesses that use automated customer service without offering a way to reach human help.

The Department of Consumer and Worker Protection published the proposal October 20. It is not a final rule. The city has scheduled an online and telephone hearing for November 19 at 11 a.m. Eastern time. Its comment portal lists a December 18 deadline, while the hearing notice PDF lists November 19. Readers should check the current city comment portal before submitting comments.

What would change for customers

Under the proposed text, businesses could not advertise customer service and then repeatedly provide irrelevant or incorrect answers, or send consumers through menus that unreasonably fail to address their questions. Automated systems include telephone voice-response systems as well as chatbots.

A clearly identified, single-step option could start a transfer to a human representative or a queue. Examples in the proposal include saying or typing “agent” or pressing 0. Businesses would have to give an estimated wait time when placing someone in a queue.

The proposal does not require every business to keep a human representative available around the clock. If no one is available, or the queue is unreasonably long, the business could give an alternative route to human assistance. Options include published service hours, a callback, email, text or a contact form, with response timing where the rule requires it.

What businesses would need to keep

Businesses using automated customer service would have to retain compliance records for at least three years. Those records would include system information, disclosures, interaction logs and data showing whether customers were offered and used a route to human assistance.

The proposal also says a business cannot defend a consumer-protection violation by arguing that technology made the statement or carried out the act. The proposed penalty schedule starts at $525 for specified first violations, with higher penalties for repeat violations.

Residents and businesses can read the city’s announcement and the full proposed rule and hearing notice. The department will review comments before deciding on a final rule.

JBizNews Desk | New York

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Elon Musk said SpaceX has closed $40 billion in debt financing to purchase graphics processing units for its artificial intelligence operations, highlighting the enormous sums being spent in the race to build AI computing capacity.

Musk announced the financing on Sunday, saying SpaceX was able to secure the money because of its investment-grade status and revenue generated outside AI through its Starlink satellite internet and rocket launch businesses.

“SpaceX closed $40B of debt for GPUs, but we’re investment grade and have Starlink & launch revenue,” Musk said.

Graphics processing units, or GPUs, are advanced chips that provide the computing power needed to train and operate AI systems.

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Reuters previously reported that SpaceX was in talks with banks and asset managers to raise $40 billion to purchase Nvidia AI chips.

“This is primarily callable debt for GPU purchases that will arrive in Q1 and Q2,” Musk said in a follow-up post on X, confirming that the GPUs are expected to arrive in the first half of 2027. “Not a major factor this quarter.”

It was not immediately clear whether investors had agreed to the debt’s pricing terms.

The funding underscores the cost of the AI race, as companies spend heavily on advanced chips and other computing infrastructure.

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SpaceX Chief Financial Officer Bret Johnsen said the company expects to spend $35 billion to $40 billion on capital expenditures in the fourth quarter alone, according to Reuters.

Musk also said borrowing conditions have deteriorated significantly for companies that rely heavily on AI infrastructure.

“As of the past few weeks, debt markets have almost entirely shut off access to money for any company that doesn’t have substantial revenue independent of AI data centers,” he said.

Musk warned that many of those companies could struggle to survive.

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“That means the 200+ neoclouds are going to see guppy-level death and consolidation,” Musk said, referring to companies that rent out computing power built primarily for AI customers. “Some will make it through, but not many.”

SpaceX’s established businesses, including Starlink and rocket launches, provide revenue streams outside its AI operations.

SpaceX’s third-quarter revenue climbed 161% from a year earlier to $14.58 billion, according to Reuters.

Musk suggested last week that a potential merger of Tesla and SpaceX would be “a good idea.”

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He also said both companies have formed special committees of independent directors to explore a potential deal, though Musk stressed that a merger is not certain.

Reuters contributed to this report.

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The Independent Community Bankers of America and OpenAI have formed an alliance to give eligible community banks a route to subsidized artificial-intelligence cybersecurity tools, training and peer support.

The banking trade group announced the arrangement October 22. Access to OpenAI’s Daybreak for Frontline Defenders will be subject to the program’s eligibility requirements, rather than automatically available to every member bank.

Daybreak is designed for defensive work such as identifying and validating vulnerabilities, investigating threats, conducting authorized security testing, supporting repairs and prioritizing risks.

The alliance also provides for member education with OpenAI experts and ICBA sessions in which banks can demonstrate practical AI uses and compare implementation challenges. A separate AI-adoption group on ICBA Community will provide a peer forum.

The announcement describes opportunities to explore the tools, not a completed rollout across community banks or evidence that the software has reduced losses. ICBA says the work is intended to accommodate institutions with different technology budgets and levels of AI readiness.

The initiative comes as lenders serve a slow-growing jobs market with renewed price pressure. The September employment report showed payrolls up 29,000 and unemployment at 4.2%. Consumer prices were 3.7% higher than a year earlier, with energy prices up 20.4%.

The partnership follows ICBA’s Secure and AI-Ready America Action Plan, which called for broader access to defensive capabilities for critical-infrastructure providers.

JBizNews Desk | Washington

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New Jersey Community Capital has closed $15 million in New Markets Tax Credit financing for a ResinTech expansion in Camden, supporting an approximately $18.6 million project at the water-filtration materials manufacturer’s campus.

The transaction, announced October 22 and posted by ResinTech October 23, will help finance a 34,500-square-foot addition to its manufacturing and warehouse facility. Construction is expected to run from October 2026 to October 2027.

The project is expected to retain 259 existing jobs, create 100 permanent full-time positions and support approximately 113 construction jobs. Those are projected employment effects, not a count of jobs already added.

ResinTech makes ion exchange resins used in water and wastewater filtration. The company says the expansion will increase production of water-treatment materials, including products used to remove PFAS.

JPMorgan Chase served as the tax-credit investor and provided another $3 million in New Markets Tax Credit allocation, bringing the project’s total allocation to $18 million. That allocation figure is distinct from both NJCC’s $15 million transaction and the approximately $18.6 million overall project cost.

The financing follows a $7 million NJCC tax-credit transaction in 2019 that supported ResinTech’s move from West Berlin to Camden. The company’s 170,000-square-foot plant opened in 2020 on a 27-acre campus; it added 25,000 square feet of warehouse space in 2024.

The local investment comes against a mixed national hiring backdrop. The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ September report showed payrolls up 29,000, unemployment at 4.2% and manufacturing employment up 9,000. These national figures do not measure the expansion’s effect on Camden.

ResinTech also operates a work-study program with Mastery High School of Camden and has committed to a community benefits agreement with the city, according to the announcement.

JBizNews Desk | Camden, New Jersey

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New Jersey added 14,900 payroll jobs in September, but its employment total was only 3,600 above a year earlier. The state’s latest labor figures show a strong month without an equally broad year of growth.

The Department of Labor and Workforce Development’s September employment report, released October 15, put seasonally adjusted nonfarm employment at 4,377,400. The unemployment rate was 4.2%, down from 4.3% in August and equal to the national September rate.

The monthly gain was unusual in the national comparison. In its October 20 state report, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics identified New Jersey and South Carolina as the only states with statistically significant payroll increases in September. That does not mean every other state added no jobs. It means their estimated changes, apart from a significant decline in Wisconsin, were not large enough to be distinguished statistically from little or no change.

Six of New Jersey’s nine major private industry sectors added jobs during September. Private education and health services gained 7,200 positions, professional and business services added 7,100, and leisure and hospitality gained 5,500. Manufacturing and other services each added 1,000, while construction gained 500.

Those gains were partly offset by losses. Trade, transportation and utilities shed 5,100 jobs. Information lost 1,100, financial activities lost 100, and public-sector payrolls fell by 1,100.

The year-over-year figures tell a different story. Private education and health services had 30,000 more jobs than in September 2025, and leisure and hospitality had 2,400 more. Seven other private sectors were below their year-earlier levels.

The largest annual decline was in trade, transportation and utilities, down 11,200. Information was down 4,500 and construction was down 3,100. Financial activities, manufacturing, professional and business services, and other services also recorded annual losses. Public-sector employment was down 3,300.

As a result, a large gain in one month should not be read as evidence that hiring has strengthened across every industry. Professional and business services, for example, added 7,100 jobs in September but still had 1,400 fewer jobs than a year earlier.

The payroll total and unemployment rate also measure different things. The state’s technical notes say payroll estimates describe jobs at business establishments, while resident employment and unemployment estimates rely largely on a household survey. The surveys can move differently because they do not count the same population in the same way.

These are preliminary September estimates, not October hiring results. Both employment and household figures are revised as more survey information arrives. New Jersey’s state release schedule lists November 19 for October estimates and revised September figures.

JBizNews Desk | Trenton, New Jersey

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