Category: 3. Business

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Shortly before Christmas the US Federal Communications Commission gave an unexpected gift to America’s drone industry. By adding all foreign-made drones and key components to its “Covered List” of equipment that poses an unacceptable national security risk, the commission de facto banned China’s DJI, the industry leader in drones. This opens the market to US drone companies. It may also mark a shift towards greater use of import restrictions in Washington’s tech competition.  

The FCC — previously best known for regulating obscenities on TV — is now taking centre stage in the tech war. It has authority to ban imports of any communications equipment that it believes facilitates espionage or threatens critical infrastructure. From internet routers to drones, as the range of communication equipment increases so does the FCC’s authority. Congressional legislation has expanded its reach, arming it to take on technology challenges posed by China.

The FCC’s move comes as a counterpoint to President Donald Trump’s broader détente with China as the US tries to reduce its rare earth vulnerabilities. Yet Trump himself has also outlined a strategy of “drone dominance”, with the Pentagon planning to purchase 300,000 small attack drones by 2028.

The Russia-Ukraine War has exposed a “drone gap” in American defence production. Many US companies still rely on China for key components like batteries and motors. In 2024, China cut off battery sales to US drone companies, forcing makers like Skydio to ration battery sales.

The problem that US drone companies face is scale. China’s DJI is estimated to sell more than half the world’s cheap, first-person view drones. Because of this, China is also the leader in producing many key drone components. This provides major advantages. Companies can only justify developing specialised chips and other hardware if they can amortise the cost over many units sold. China’s market dominance has made it impossible for foreign companies to compete.

During the first Trump administration, the US tried to address this by imposing a 25 per cent tariff on imported Chinese drones. DJI quickly pivoted its production base for US sales to Malaysia. In 2024, Malaysia exported three times as many drones by value to the US as China did.

The ease with which China’s drone industry shifted production shows why globalised supply chains make tariffs a blunt and often ineffective tool.

Drones weren’t the only industry to relocate production. Now Trump’s trade officials are pushing other Asian countries to limit the rerouting of Chinese goods. 

Although the US has leaned more heavily on tariffs (under Trump) and export controls (under Trump and President Joe Biden), the drone ban is not the first time America has banned Chinese tech imports. The first Trump administration prohibited use of Huawei’s telecom equipment, for example. The Biden administration banned the Chinese communication equipment and software used in connected cars, using the Commerce Department’s Office of Information and Communications Technology and Services.

Congress is now considering legislation to bolster the commerce department’s powers. Senior Republican legislators recently called on commerce secretary Howard Lutnick to use this authority against imports of Chinese equipment in sectors including data centres, robotics and the energy grid.

The FCC’s move against drones shows that the Trump administration has plenty of legal power should it choose to act. Beijing will not be pleased but its long history of forcing Chinese companies to buy local products will undermine any criticism it raises. This year, targeted import restrictions could look more attractive than blanket tariffs.

The race to become the next leader of the P.E.I. Progressive Conservative party is down to two men.

Rob Lantz and Mark Ledwell were the only applicants for the vacant leadership position prior to Saturday’s deadline, the party announced on social media.

Lantz served as interim premier, after Dennis King resigned in February of 2025.

Before entering politics, Lantz worked in the private sector as a consultant in the information technology sector, and was involved in business startups.

He also served two terms on Charlottetown city council, and volunteered with community organizations. Lantz became an MLA for District 13 in 2023.

Lantz resigned as the province’s interim premier last month in order to run for the permanent position. Bloyce Thompson was sworn in as P.E.I. premier following Lantz’s resignation.

Meanwhile, Ledwell declared his candidacy for the party’s leadership back in May.

He is a business and legal professional with over 35 years of experience leading complex agri-food, infrastructure, energy and financing transactions.

Ledwell’s early career included a central role in Atlantic Canadian infrastructure projects, such as the Confederation Bridge, and the New Brunswick Trans-Canada Highway, according to his website.

Later in his career, Ledwell led and advised on major projects across Canada, and the world, and served as managing partner of law firms in Toronto and London, United Kingdom.

He most recently served as chair of the board at the Holland College Foundation.

Islanders that new members must sign up by Jan. 16 to be eligible to vote in the leadership contest, the PC Party said in Saturday’s Facebook post.

The next PC party leader will be voted on during the leadership convention on Feb. 7.

NEW YORK CITY (WABC) — Heads up commuters: getting around New York City will cost you a little bit more after MTA fare hikes took effect over the weekend.

The base cost to ride the subway or bus went up 10 cents to $3 on Sunday morning, as part of a larger increase in MTA tolls and fares.

The hike completes the MTA’s transition from MetroCard swipes to OMNY tap and ride.

The elimination of the MetroCard ended monthly 30-day unlimited passes. Replacing it is a $35 unlimited seven-day pass, an increase from the current $34. After riders pay for 12 trips in a seven-day period, all subsequent trips are free, meaning no rider will pay more than $35 in a week.

Meanwhile, express bus fares increased from $7 to $7.25, and unlimited seven-day express bus fares increased from $64 to $67. All bus riders must use OMNY, as buses will no longer accept cash or coins.

MetroCards were also accepted on NICE buses on Long Island, Bee Line buses in Westchester, AirTrain, PATH trains, Roosevelt Island tram, and Staten Island Railway, and all have had to come up with their own transition plans to OMNY.

Both NICE ($2.90) and Bee-Line ($2.75) base fares also increased to $3 Sunday to align with the MTA.

Commuter rails are also seeing fare hikes and other changes Sunday, including new rules to reduce fare evasion on LIRR and Metro-North.

Long Island Railroad and Metro-North monthly and weekly tickets also increased by 4.5%.

Subway and bus fares last went up in 2023, when it rose from $2.75 to $2.90. Fares normally increase every two years, usually in August. The current increase was delayed six months to coincide with the transition to OMNY.

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PwC decided to “lean in” to cryptocurrency work after years of taking a more cautious stance, following the Trump administration’s embrace of digital assets, according to the US boss of the Big Four firm.

The strategic reversal last year came as the US appointed pro-crypto regulators and Congress passed new laws governing digital assets such as stablecoins, Paul Griggs told the Financial Times in an interview.

“The Genius Act and the regulatory rulemaking around stablecoin I expect will create more conviction around leaning into that product and that asset class,” Griggs said. “The tokenisation of things will certainly continue to evolve as well. PwC has to be in that ecosystem.”

His comments highlight how the Trump administration’s moves on cryptocurrency policy have finally convinced blue-chip businesses that they can dive into the digital asset market that many have long shunned.

The Genius Act, signed into law by President Donald Trump in July, marked the first time the US has regulated the tokens pegged to assets such as the US dollar, and paves the way for banks to launch their own digital assets.

The Securities and Exchange Commission, under Trump appointee Paul Atkins, has also prioritised setting rules for crypto, reversing the antipathy to digital assets that characterised the agency under the Biden administration.

“We feel a responsibility to be hyper-engaged on both sides of the business,” Griggs said. “Whether we are doing work in the audit space or doing work in the consulting arena — we do all the above in crypto — we see more and more opportunities coming our way.”

The Big Four firms had, until recently, shied away from auditing many crypto-related ventures in the US and set high hurdles for taking on crypto clients, in part because of US regulators’ sceptical stance.

Financial watchdogs around the world have long been concerned by the consumer protection and financial stability risks posed by crypto assets, as well as their use in fraud and money laundering.

With the change in US policy, Griggs said PwC had been pitching companies on how they could use crypto technology. The firm has told clients that stablecoins can be used to improve the efficiency of payments systems, for example.

Other Big Four firms are also offering expertise in digital assets. Deloitte, which has audited the publicly traded crypto exchange Coinbase since 2020, published its inaugural “digital assets roadmap” to crypto accounting in May. KPMG declared a “tipping point” for digital assets adoption in 2025 and has been marketing compliance advice and risk management services around crypto.

PwC has taken on audit clients in the crypto space, such as the bitcoin miner Mara Holdings, which appointed PwC in March, and is also pitching tax advice related to digital assets.

Griggs was elected US senior partner in 2024 after almost 30 years at PwC, during which he led the audit of Goldman Sachs and managed some of the firm’s career development initiatives.

He said PwC had needed to look outside the firm to bolster its crypto expertise. Hires at the partner level included Cheryl Lesnik, who returned to the firm after three years focused on crypto clients at a smaller accounting firm.

“We are never going to lean into a business that we haven’t equipped ourselves to deliver,” Griggs said. “Over the last 10 to 12 months, as we’ve taken on more opportunities in that digital assets arena, we’ve bolstered our resource pool inside and outside.”

Battery electric cars are poised to overtake diesels on Great Britain’s roads by 2030, according to analysis that suggests London will be the first UK city to go diesel-free.

The number of diesel cars on Great Britain’s roads in June had fallen to 9.9m in June last year, 21% below its peak of 12.4m vehicles, according to analysis by New AutoMotive, a thinktank focused on the transition to electric cars. Electric car sales are still growing rapidly, albeit more slowly than manufacturers had expected.

However, the transition to cleaner vans is lagging behind cars, and the number of diesel vans has continued to rise, to a record 4.4m.

The UK went through a “dash for diesel” cars in the 2000s as the government granted them cheaper tax rates. Diesel engines tend to be more efficient than petrol engines, burning less fuel and producing less carbon dioxide.

However, they also produce more nitrous oxides, which are harmful to health. In 2015 Volkswagen was found to have created software to cheat on emissions tests, kicking off the “Dieselgate” scandal, costing it alone €30bn (£26bn) around the world in fines, compensation and legal costs. Analysis this year suggested the extra emissions from cheat devices from Volkswagen and other carmakers were responsible for thousands of deaths and cases of asthma.

Sales of cars with diesel engines duly plummeted, to fewer than 100,000 in the first 11 months of 2025. However, it will take some time for the share of diesel cars on the road to diminish, as many cars bought during the peak years of diesels are only now being scrapped.

Battery electric cars made up only 4% of the cars on UK roads last year, compared with 32% diesels and 58% that use petrol, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), a lobby group. The other 6% were hybrids, which mostly combine a smaller battery with a petrol engine.

Graph showing that electric cars will overtake diesel ones on roads in Great Britain by 2030

Nevertheless, the number of diesels should drop as older cars are scrapped, delivering benefits for towns and cities where particulates tend to be concentrated. That will also have a knock-on effect for filling stations, leading to many withdrawing diesel supplies.

London is expected to be the first place in the UK where no diesel cars or vans are registered, largely because of the ultra-low emission zone (Ulez), which applies charges for more polluting non-compliant cars. Diesel numbers are also dropping rapidly in the central belt of Scotland, which contains Edinburgh and Glasgow, both of which have low-emission zones.

“Ending the use of diesel is essential to clean up Britain’s choking cities,” said Ben Nelmes, the chief executive of New AutoMotive. “The UK is now rolling out electric cars at a rapid pace, and this is great news for everyone that enjoys clean air, quieter streets and really cheap running costs.

“The UK imports billions of pounds of diesel every year, and we have been completely reliant on other countries to feed our thirst. Thankfully, we’re switching to electric cars at a rapid rate, and that will make the country cleaner and wealthier.”

However, the analysis found that people in cities appeared to be selling their diesels to people in more rural areas.

The report found that, while the number of diesel vans has risen over the past decade, the peak of new diesel van sales probably happened before the pandemic, meaning the numbers on roads will eventually fall.

Matt Finch, an environmental policy expert who co-wrote the report, said the world was “leaving the diesel age”. He said: “No one is denying diesel hasn’t been useful, but it has had its day.”

Story Continues

• Visa and ExxonMobil are highly efficient businesses that return capital to shareholders through buybacks and dividends.

• Oracle is a high-risk, high-potential-reward bet on increased demand for artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure.

• Netflix deserves a premium valuation.

• 10 stocks we like better than Visa ›

Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) ended 2025 as the most valuable company in the world. It is one of nine S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) stocks with market capitalizations exceeding $1 trillion — the others being Apple, Alphabet, Microsoft, Amazon, Meta Platforms, Broadcom, Tesla, and Berkshire Hathaway.

Eli Lilly, Walmart, and JPMorgan Chase only need to rise 14% or less to expand the list to 12 companies.

Here’s why Visa (NYSE: V), ExxonMobil (NYSE: XOM), Oracle (NYSE: ORCL), and Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX) have what it takes to be winning investments over the next five years and join the $1 trillion club by 2030.

Visa’s path to $1 trillion is fairly straightforward. The payment processor has high margins, a reasonable valuation, and steady earnings growth, and returns tons of capital to shareholders through buybacks and dividends.

Visa can generate high single-digit or double-digit earnings growth even during challenging periods.

Despite slowdowns in consumer spending, Visa grew non-generally accepted accounting principles (non-GAAP) earnings per share by 14% in 2025. If Visa can maintain that growth rate going forward, it could reach a market cap well beyond $1 trillion by 2030.

ExxonMobil will need to double in five years to surpass $1 trillion in market cap. It absolutely has what it takes.

ExxonMobil is generating gobs of free cash flow (FCF) and high earnings, even though oil prices are hovering around four-year lows. It has reduced its production costs and can break even at low oil prices, and has plenty of upside potential during a higher-price environment. It also has a growing low-carbon business and a massive refining and marketing segment.

ExxonMobil’s corporate plan through 2030 forecasts double-digit earnings growth even if oil and gas prices are mediocre. Although the U.S. Energy Information Administration is only forecasting $55 per Brent crude oil barrel in 2026, oil prices could rise in the coming years due to economic demand fueled by artificial intelligence (AI), as well as overall economic growth and geopolitical tensions.

Either way, ExxonMobil doesn’t need a lot of help from oil prices to grow earnings at a solid pace. A 15% annual growth rate, compounded over five years, would double earnings. Given the stock’s reasonable volatility, it could double as well, pole-vaulting ExxonMobil over the $1 trillion bar.

In the meantime, ExxonMobil investors will benefit from its stable and growing 3.4% dividend, which ExxonMobil has increased for 43 consecutive years.

Oracle almost surpassed $1 trillion in market cap in September before falling over 40% from that high due to concerns about its AI spending and mounting debt.

Oracle is ramping up spending to build out data center infrastructure to grow its cloud computing market share, especially for high-performance computing workflows. It exited its most recent quarter with $523 billion in remaining performance obligations, signaling demand is high for its infrastructure. But Oracle needs to convert capital expenditures into earnings. In the meantime, it is FCF negative, making Oracle a leveraged bet on increased AI adoption.

Despite its risks, Oracle’s potential is impossible to ignore. Oracle is a great buy for investors who agree that its aggressive AI investments are the right long-term move and are willing to endure what will likely be a highly volatile period in the stock price.

Over the last six months, Netflix’s market cap has slipped from over $560 billion to under $400 billion due to a mix of valuation concerns and uncertainties regarding its planned acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery (NASDAQ: WBD). Netflix will probably receive regulatory approval for the acquisition, but still faces challenges from Paramount Skydance (NASDAQ: PSKY), which is attempting a hostile takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery.

But with or without Warner Bros. Discovery, Netflix has what it takes to steadily grow earnings through a combination of global subscriber growth and pricing power. If Netflix were to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery, it could create a highly lucrative top-tier streaming platform that features content from both Netflix and HBO, as well as a revamped ad-supported tier.

Even without HBO, Netflix has mastered the art of aligning content spending with steady subscription revenues, thanks to its depth and breadth of content — from building global franchises from scratch like Stranger Things, to the success of KPop Demon Hunters.

Netflix has already demonstrated impeccable pricing power with multiple price increases in a relatively short amount of time and a crackdown on password sharing that was largely accepted by users — even during a period when people are pulling back on discretionary spending. So even if it doesn’t quite crack the $1 trillion club, I still fully expect Netflix to be a winning investment and outperform the S&P 500 over the next five years.

With the broader indexes around all-time highs, it’s easy to get enamored by the companies that could surge in value in the coming months or in 2026. But a far more rewarding approach is to invest in companies that have what it takes to compound in value over the long term.

Visa, ExxonMobil, Oracle, and Netflix certainly fit that mold. That’s why I expect all four stocks to outperform the S&P 500 and join the $1 trillion club over the next five years, even though they are currently far from reaching that milestone.

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JPMorgan Chase is an advertising partner of Motley Fool Money. Daniel Foelber has positions in Nvidia and Oracle and has the following options: short March 2026 $240 calls on Oracle. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Berkshire Hathaway, JPMorgan Chase, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Netflix, Nvidia, Oracle, Tesla, Visa, Walmart, and Warner Bros. Discovery. The Motley Fool recommends Broadcom and recommends the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

4 Stocks to Buy in January That Could Join Nvidia in the $1 Trillion Club by 2030 was originally published by The Motley Fool

Each weekend, the closures are taking place from 20:00 GMT on the Friday night to 05:00 on the Monday morning.

During the day, vehicles travelling southbound are being diverted on the A66 through the Eden Valley. Northbound traffic and all overnight traffic is using the A6 through villages like Shap.

Mr Walker, who frequently travels from Staffordshire to Glasgow to see his grandchildren, was taken on the diversion on Friday night having caught a lift with friends when his train back was cancelled.

“They’re trying to put modern traffic through what’s basically a 1950s route, creating quite a potentially dangerous situation,” he said.