Money, Wealth & Power—A Daily Look at the Financial World
President Donald Trump approved Japan’s first $36 billion batch of U.S. investments on February 17, 2026, directing capital into energy and materials projects across Ohio, Texas, and Georgia. The deals represent the opening tranche of a $550 billion pledge that Japan made in exchange for relief from American tariffs on its exports. For Japanese manufacturers…
SoftBank’s energy subsidiary plans to build a $33 billion natural gas power plant near Portsmouth, Ohio, a facility so large it would become the biggest of its kind in the United States. The Portsmouth Powered Land Project, with a planned capacity of 9.2 gigawatts, sits at the center of a sweeping U.S.-Japan investment deal and…
Bondholders led by Nuveen LLC filed a lawsuit in early February 2026 alleging that the owners of the American Dream mall in East Rutherford, New Jersey, worked with local borough officials to deliberately slash the property’s assessed value, costing investors at least approximately $24 million per year. The complaint claims the mall’s valuation fell from…
Economic strategist Jim Rickards has issued back-to-back warnings projecting a 50% market collapse tied to the 2024 U.S. election cycle, citing political instability, dollar erosion, and the threat of civil unrest as converging forces. The predictions, distributed through press releases in October 2024, arrive without backing from federal agencies or independent economic models, yet they…
The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) has issued an order that would reduce certain FirstEnergy electric charges in its Ohio service territories, a move described by state officials as cutting roughly $39.4 million in net annual revenue for the utility. In a statement about the decision, state Rep. Sean P. Brennan said updated tariffs…
Toyota has built a stripped-down, modular pickup truck that starts at roughly $13,000 in Thailand, and the online speculation is predictable: what if Americans could buy a brand-new truck for a fraction of what a full-size F-150 costs? The vehicle in question is the Hilux Champ, a two-passenger workhorse that Toyota developed under its IMV…
A wave of tariffs on timber, lumber, and derivative products like upholstered wooden furniture and cabinetry is squeezing American furniture manufacturers from multiple directions at once. The White House has framed these duties as a national security measure, but for the workers and small firms that make up the domestic furniture sector, the policy is…
The Supreme Court is preparing to decide whether President Trump can use emergency powers to impose sweeping tariffs on imports from China, Mexico, and dozens of other countries, and the outcome could trigger one of the most disruptive market events in years. The case, Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump (No. 24-1287), challenges the legal foundation…
The American beef industry is telling shoppers to stop waiting for relief at the meat counter. With the U.S. cattle herd still shrinking and ranchers showing little appetite to rebuild, the message from producers and federal data alike is blunt: today’s elevated beef prices are not a temporary spike but a structural shift that will…
Nestle, the world’s largest food company, is preparing to shed its ice cream business as part of a sweeping corporate restructuring tied to leadership changes and persistent performance pressures. The move would separate the Swiss conglomerate from well-known frozen treat brands at a time when the underlying ice cream market is attracting significant investor capital….
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