Business Highlights
WASHINGTON (AP) — A push by a group of Republican statesmen for a tax on carbon to help combat the effects of climate change is already meeting entrenched opposition from their own party.
Former Secretary of State Jim Baker went to the White House on Wednesday in an effort to gain Trump administration support for the plan, which would place a new tax on oil, natural gas and coal and then use the proceeds to provide quarterly dividends to American taxpayers.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Andrew Puzder says he would avoid conflicts of interest as President Donald Trump's secretary of labor by resigning as executive of a fast food empire, selling off his holdings and recusing himself from government decisions in which he knows he has a financial interest.
NEW YORK (AP) — Utilities, real estate and other high-dividend-paying companies lead U.S. stocks mostly higher, pushing the Nasdaq composite to an all-time high for the second day in a row.
The gains in stocks that pay big dividends came as bond yields fell, making those traditional safe-haven companies more attractive to investors seeking income.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration and congressional Republicans are looking at how to stabilize wobbly health insurance markets for nearly 20 million people buying their own policies.
Government and industry officials say the goal is to soothe jittery insurance companies that could bolt next year and reassure consumers.
In other energy futures trading, wholesale gasoline rose 7 cents, or 4.4 percent, to $1.55 a gallon, while heating oil added 1 cent to $1.64 a gallon.