The U.S. House of Representatives passed a short-term spending bill to keep the government from shut down, but it hit hurdles in the Senate. According to Reuters:
Legislation to stave off an imminent federal government shutdown encountered obstacles in the U.S. Senate late on Thursday, despite the passage of a month-long funding bill by the House of Representatives hours earlier.
Without the injection of new money, no matter how temporary, scores of federal agencies across the United States will be forced to shut starting at midnight Friday, when existing funds expire.
The Republican-controlled House approved funding through Feb. 16 on a mostly partisan vote of 230-197, sending the stopgap bill to the Senate for consideration as President Donald Trump pushed hard for a measure to sign before Friday’s deadline.
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A judge made a ruling in the General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM) faulty ignition case. According to The Wall Street Journal:
General Motors Co. avoided a potential $1 billion-plus stock payout to address claims stemming from the auto giant’s ignition-switch crisis after a judge found a settlement between plaintiffs and a trust for the company’s bankruptcy estate unenforceable.
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Martin Glenn on Thursday ruled that an August deal reached between ignition-switch plaintiffs and a trust tasked with compensating creditors of so-called Old GM couldn’t go forward because the settlement lacked necessary signatures. Old GM is the term often used to describe the assets GM left behind in 2009 as part of its $50 billion government rescue and bankruptcy restructuring.
A new cyberattack method threatens factory operations. According to The Wall Street Journal:
Hackers who attacked a petrochemical plant in Saudi Arabia last year gained control over a safety shut-off system that is critical in defending against catastrophic events, according to security researchers shedding light on what they describe as a new type of cyberattack.
Security firms first disclosed the attack last month, but now the company that makes the emergency shut-off system, Schneider Electric, has analyzed code used in the attack and determined its purpose.
The malicious software, dubbed Triton, was able to manipulate Schneider devices’ memory and run unauthorized programs on the system by leveraging a previously unknown bug, said Andrew Kling, a director of process automation cybersecurity with Schneider Electric.
The International Energy Agency said U.S. shale production would boom, triggering a major new source of supply to the world. The IEA reports:
A remarkable ability to unlock new resources cost-effectively pushes combined United States oil and gas output to a level 50% higher than any other country has ever managed; already a net exporter of gas, the US becomes a net exporter of oil in the late 2020s.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) voiced worry about cryptocurrency exchange traded funds (ETFs). According to CNBC:
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission indicated Thursday it would not be open to approving cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds until concerns related to rules aimed at protecting investors are addressed.
“We believe … that there are a number of significant investor protection issues that need to be examined before sponsors begin offering these funds to retail investors,” Dalia Blass, director of investment management at the SEC, wrote in a letter addressed to two U.S. trade groups.
Tesla Inc.’s (NASDAQ: TSLA) Model 3 will hit showrooms soon. According to CNNMoney:
Tesla is going to exhibit its electric car for the people, the Model 3, at five showrooms in four states so the customers who ordered it might actually get a chance to see it up close.
Tesla said it will display the Model 3 on Friday at its showrooms in Manhattan and Boston, and also in San Jose and Walnut Creek, California, according to a company spokesperson. This weekend, Tesla will also exhibit the Model 3 in Miami.
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