Media

6 Most Important Things in Business Today

Douglas A. McIntyre

Published: September 8, 2017 5:09 am

Last Updated: March 13, 2020 3:55 pm

Credit analysis and reporting firm Equifax Inc. (NYSE: EFX) was hit by hackers who may have gained access to data on 143 million people. The firm has begun a process to try to inform people whose records may have been breached how they can start to secure their information.

According to The Wall Street Journal, Boeing Co. (NYSE: BA) and Airbus have started to enter the aircraft parts business. A proposed merger between United Technologies Corp. (NYSE: UTX) and Rockwell Collins Inc. (NYSE: COL) will create a giant in the industry. The moves by Boeing and Airbus may undermine the merged company’s customer base.

Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS) will add its Star Wars and Marvel films to the streaming services it has set up to compete with Netflix Inc. (NASDAQ: NFLX). The move will create a library that has some of the most popular films of all time. The service is expected to be up in two years.

Hurricane Irma, among the most powerful Atlantic storms in history, will likely hit the Miami area, which could cause damage of over $100 billion. Industries in the area such as orange farming and cruise ship companies will take major hits. The gross domestic product for the massive area will be battered as well.

According to Reuters, the head of the New York Federal Reserve, William Dudley, supports modest rate increases by the U.S. central bank. According to the news service:

The Federal Reserve should continue gradually raising U.S. interest rates given low inflation should rebound, an influential Fed policymaker said in a Thursday speech that sounded slightly less confident than his previous hawkish comments in the face of weak price readings.

New York Fed President William Dudley did not repeat an assertion three weeks ago that he expects to raise rates once more this year, and he called the persistent shortfall in prices surprising. Yet he reinforced the U.S. central bank’s general expectation that an inflation rebound is around the corner, allowing it to continue tightening monetary policy before too long.

Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) will launch an electric engine commercial truck. According to MarketWatch:

The unveiling of a Tesla commercial truck, expected later this month, could be the “biggest catalyst” in the trucking industry in decades, Morgan Stanley analysts said in a note Wednesday.

The Tesla truck will be electric and “we have high confidence that it could have significant autonomous/autopilot capabilities as well,” the analysts said.