- Oil prices log steepest annual drop since 2020 Reuters
- 2025 Oil Market Review: A Year of Weak Prices, Oversupply and Strategic Realignments in Global Energy Dawan Africa
- Brent and Copper Slip as Dollar Stability and Supply Concerns Weigh on Markets equiti.com
- Crude Prices Fall on Abundant Supplies and Dollar Strength TradingView — Track All Markets
- Global oversupply remains unresolved! Crude oil to end 2025 on a bleak note, with Trump and OPEC+ as key variables. 富途牛牛
Category: 3. Business
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Oil prices log steepest annual drop since 2020 – Reuters
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City of Courtenay launches monthly e-newsletter
Stay connected with what’s happening in Courtenay. A new monthly City of Courtenay e-newsletter will deliver timely updates on City services, programs, projects and community events straight to residents’ inboxes.
“Our community deserves clear, accurate information about the decisions and projects that shape Courtenay,” explains Mayor Bob Wells. “This e-newsletter is a direct line from the City to residents, ensuring transparency and trust remain at the heart of everything we do.”
The free e-newsletter will feature Council highlights, links to City services, updates on major projects, recreation opportunities, and upcoming community events. Subscribers will gain a clearer picture of how City programs and services support quality of life in Courtenay.
“Our resident surveys consistently show that people want more direct updates from the City on planning, engagement opportunities, financial information and more,” says Anne Guillo, the City’s manager of communications. “Email is a channel residents find especially useful, and this new tool will help us share timely updates about City news, services and initiatives that matter to our community.”
The first issue will be released mid-January 2026 with future editions distributed at the beginning of each month. To mark the launch, subscribers can enter to win one of three $50 gift certificates to a Downtown Courtenay business. The random prize draw will take place on January 31, 2026.
Sign up for the free monthly e-newsletter at www.courtenay.ca/subscribe.
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Silver, gold and copper trounced stocks. Here’s what a key chart level suggests could be ahead for 2026.
By Joy Wiltermuth
Despite year-end drops for gold and silver, both logged their biggest yearly percentage gains since 1979
Gold, silver and copper were the big winners of 2025, even with year-end turbulence. What a key chart level may signal about the road ahead.
Year-end turbulence only modestly slowed the surge in silver, gold and copper in 2025, with the metals providing important ballast to portfolios as President Donald Trump’s tariffs rattled markets and a spending frenzy around artificial intelligence entered a new debt-funded chapter.
For the year, gold (GC00) logged a 64.37% gain and silver (SI00) was 141.44% higher, both notching their biggest annual percentage gains since 1979, according to Dow Jones Market Data based on the most-active metals contracts.
Copper’s (HG00) 41.22% jump this year, while slightly more modest, still marks its largest yearly increase since 2009 and amount to more than double the S&P 500 index’s SPX 17% gain.
The clamor around metals has stirred debate about potential bubbles forming in gold and silver that could end badly for investors, especially those arriving late to the party. Yet to close out 2025, all three metals were perched above their 50-day moving averages, a key technical level that can be a bullish signal for an asset’s price.
“Big picture, it means there’s a lot more buyers than sellers,” Sameer Samana, head of global equities and real assets at the Wells Fargo Investment Institute, said of the uptrend. “That has to do with the dollar weakness in the early part of 2025, plus, you could argue, a lot of uncertainty around how countries will manage their fiscal health going forward.”
The ICE U.S. dollar index DXY, a measure of the buck against a basket of rival currencies, booked its worst first half of the year since 1973, when Richard Nixon was president. It since has recouped some of its 2025 losses but was still 9.4% lower on the year through Wednesday, according to FactSet.
A turbo rally in silver
Unlike gold and silver, copper isn’t considered one of the world’s precious metals. Yet like silver, it was added to the U.S. Interior Department’s list of critical minerals this year, given its role in wiring, power generation and electrical transmissions, all which are essential to the AI buildout.
Read: Why it’s time for investors to start treating copper like a precious metal
Recent bullishness helped silver gain more than 51% in the past three months alone, while copper shot up more than 17%, gold rose nearly 12% and the S&P 500 added almost 3% over the same span, according to FactSet data.
From a technical perspective, the most recent leg of the metals rally has pushed gold and silver above their 50-day moving averages for a relatively long 93 trading days through Wednesday, while copper was above that threshold for 25 trading days, according to Dow Jones Market Data based on most-active futures contracts.
That has happened only four other times for gold since 1993 and five other times for silver since 1982, according to Dow Jones Market Data. Shorter stretches of at least 25 days for copper have been fairly common in recent years.
While the past doesn’t predict the future, similarly long trading stretches above the 50-day moving average have tended to skew bullish for stocks and gold in the weeks and months that follow, while silver has been mixed and copper has seen most of its gains after the three-month mark.
This table shows gold, silver, copper and stocks after previous stretches when the metals traded above their 50-day moving averages.
Importantly, gold showed its resilience this year after equities sold off in April following Trump’s “liberation day” tariff announcement, which shocked investors and triggered an ugly reaction in the bond market.
“Fixed income sort of helped, but crypto (BTCUSD) also fell by the wayside, while gold held up,” Samana at Wells Fargo said. “Given the nature of the beast, you look at your last best hedge when markets sell off, and I think it’s fair to say that’s gold.”
Skepticism around inflation and whether it can be tamed next year, especially with tax breaks and the data-center boom likely to reaccelerate the economy, would likely work in favor of metals in 2026, Samana said.
Spending on AI infrastructure is also not expected to let up in the years ahead. The U.S. already has nearly 3,750 data centers, according to the Data Center Map, an industry research tool launched in 2007.
For every new data center, metals have a role in the process. “There’s copper for wiring and silver in a lot of chips,” Samana said. And at least globally, demands for power from data centers will mean harnessing alternative-energy sources, where silver has been playing a major role.
Mike DeStefano and Brian Benner contributed.
Opinion: China launches its silver weapon on Jan. 1. Here’s what that means for prices.
-Joy Wiltermuth
This content was created by MarketWatch, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. MarketWatch is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
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Samuel De Champlain Bridge: Special Illumination to celebrate the arrival of 2026
Media advisory
Montreal, Quebec, December 31, 2025 — On December 31st and January 1st, the Samuel De Champlain Bridge will be lit up in blue and golden white from sunset to 1:00 a.m. to celebrate the New Year.
Contacts
For more information (media only), please contact:
Renée LeBlanc Proctor
Senior Communications Advisor and Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities
Renee.Proctor@infc.gc.caMedia Relations
Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Canada
613-960-9251
Toll free: 1-877-250-7154
Email: media-medias@infc.gc.ca
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Web: Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Canada
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Trump administration forces coal power plant near Craig to continue operating
The Trump administration, saying there is an emergency need for electricity, has ordered Tri-State Generation and Transmission to keep its coal-powered Craig Unit 1 running. The unit was scheduled to close Wednesday.
“The emergency conditions resulting from increasing demand and shortage from accelerated retirement of generation facilities … could lead to the loss of power to homes, and businesses,” the U.S. Department of Energy order states.
Tri-State was directed to “take all measures necessary to ensure that Craig Unit 1 is available to operate” through March 2026.
Craig Unit 1 was closing to comply with clean air regulations and for economic reasons, Tri-State said in a statement. On Dec. 19 it also suffered a mechanical failure in a valve that shut down the plant.
“As a result of the order, retaining Unit 1 will likely require additional investments in operations, repairs, maintenance and, potentially, fuel supply, all factors increasing costs,” Tri-State said.
“Tri-State is continuing to review the order to determine how best to comply while limiting the costs to its members, and the impacts to its employees and operations,” the association said.
Coal accounts for most of the cost to operate
When it is up and running, Craig Unit 1 would cost $85 million a year to operate, according to a report by energy consultant Grid Strategies using federal data, with fuel accounting for two-thirds of the cost.
The Trump administration move drew sharp criticism from Colorado officials and environment groups Wednesday.
“This order will pass tens of millions in costs to Colorado rate payers, in order to keep a coal plant open that is broken and not needed,” Gov. Jared Polis said in a statement.
“The coal plant isn’t even operational right now, meaning repairs — to the tune of millions of dollars — just to get it running, all on the backs of Colorado ratepayers,” Polis said.
Tri-State provides power to 41 rural electric cooperatives and public power districts in four states, including 15 in Colorado. While the association operates the plant, Xcel Energy and the Platte River Power Authority own a percentage of the unit and will share its costs.
The Trump administration is abusing the section of the Federal Power Act that allows for emergency action, Eric Frankowski, executive director of the Western Clean Energy Campaign, said in a statement.
“The Energy Secretary has the authority to issue such orders, but they are supposed to be used only in rare emergency circumstances,” Frankowski said. “There is no crisis or emergency involving Craig Unit 1, which at 45 years old is nearing the end of its expected operational life.”
The DOE has issued emergency orders to keep open fossil fuel plants scheduled to be closed in New York, Michigan and Indiana as part of the Trump administration’s push to revive the coal industry.
The report that DOE cites to justify the emergency action — the North American Electric Reliability Corp. 2024 assessment — found adequate generating capacity for 2026. NERC is the agency responsible for ensuring grid reliability.
The report says that the region including Colorado and all or parts of 10 other states could face generating capacity issues, if additional plants aren’t brought online, starting in the summer of 2031.
In approving Tri-State’s Electric Resource Plan, or ERP, which calls for shutting Craig Unit 1 in 2025 and Units 2 and 3 in 2028, the Colorado Public Utilities Commission found that the closure would not impair reliability.
“Craig Unit 1 is not required for reliability or resource adequacy purposes based on the record in this ERP,” the commission said, placing the Colorado and the Trump administration at odds once more.
As part of the ERP, Tri-State plans to put a 307-megawatt plant, powered by natural gas, on the site of the Craig Station and 200 MW of battery storage. The Craig Unit 1 capacity is 446 MW.
State wants 6 coal plants to retire by 2031
To meet clean air and greenhouse gas reduction goals, the state wants the six remaining coal-fired plants in Colorado to close by 2031 and have them replaced with renewable and gas-fired generation.
Meanwhile, President Donald Trump has called climate change a hoax and is trying to revive the coal industry. The administration also recently denied disaster relief to Colorado for floods and fires in western Colorado.
“The administration basically has a policy of not allowing any coal plants to retire regardless of the facts,” said Matthew Gerhart, a Sierra Club senior attorney. “It is an ideologically driven exercise rather than a fact-driven exercise.”
The Grid Strategies analysis of Craig Unit 1 costs was done for the Sierra Club using data from the Federal Energy Regulation Commission and the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
In comparing megawatt-hour prices for electricity from Craig Unit 1 with nearby power prices, the Grid Strategies study found the Craig prices higher 90% of the time. “Key reasons that Craig Unit 1 is uneconomic are its high fuel cost and low efficiency,” the report said.
The administration order did receive support from U.S. Rep. Jeff Hurd, a Grand Junction Republican, whose 3rd Congressional District includes Craig and Pueblo, where the coal-fueled Comanche Unit 2 that was supposed to shut down for good Wednesday remains in service because the newer Unit 3 is broken down and cannot be repaired until summer.
“For years,” Hurd said Wednesday in a prepared statement, “Colorado’s energy policy has been driven by ideology instead of reality, and working families in places like Craig and Pueblo have paid the price.
“Colorado needs energy policy rooted in facts, reliability, and respect for the people who keep the lights on, not mandates written to satisfy political pressure from activists and Denver bureaucrats,” Hurd said.
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L15M4PC2 L15L4PC2 Laptop Battery for Lenovo Ideapad Yoga 710 14 15 710-14ISK 710-14IKB 710-15IKB 710-151KB 710-15ISK 710-14ISK-IFI 710-14ISK-ISE Yoga 710-11 Series 5B10K90778 5B10K90802 7.64V 53Wh
Patrick Quilter
Reviewed in the United States on March 20, 2025
Works great and easy to replace.May need TEKRREM small, complete Torx screwdriver set includes T3, T4, and T5 Torx screwdrivers, as well as T6, T7, T8, T9, and T10 security Torx screwdrivers, depending on your laptop model.Jean
Reviewed in the United States on August 5, 2024
No good. Put on the trash.Continue Reading
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Camden County Library Systems enters reciprocal borrowing agreement with Atlantic, Burlington, and Gloucester County Libraries
(Voorhees Township, NJ) – The Camden County Library System is proud to announce a new reciprocal borrowing agreement with Atlantic, Burlington, and Gloucester County Library Systems starting in January 2026. This new agreement invites Camden County Library cardholders, in good standing, to sign up for a library card in neighboring counties at no cost. The reciprocal borrowing agreement offers cardholders a wider selection of materials and increased convenience while promoting the collective value of library systems across the state.
“Libraries are the heart of our communities, and this partnership helps to strengthen libraries throughout our area,” said Commissioner Jennifer Fleisher, liaison to the Camden County Library System. “We’re excited to offer this program to our residents, giving them access to thousands more books and resources at no additional cost.”
Much like the reciprocal borrowing pilot program launched in 2024 that included Camden County and Burlington County along with several counties in North Jersey, Camden County residents will soon be able to obtain a library card from participating Library Systems to borrow books and other physical items. However, because each library’s policies differ, access to certain services like eBooks, digital streaming services, museum passes, technology items, and other online resources may be restricted.
“Partnering with our neighboring counties was the clear next step in expanding access to library resources,” said Linda Devlin, Director of the Camden County Library System. “We know that our community’s needs do not stop at the county line, so by sharing our resources, we are able to strengthen the need for equitable access to library services to all.”
Getting a library card is free, easy, and a smart way to stay connected to your community. The reciprocal borrowing program between Atlantic, Burlington and Gloucester County Library Systems will go into effect on January 1, 2026.
About the Camden County Library System
The Camden County Library System is dedicated to meeting the diverse needs of our community. As your gateway to the world, we provide access to a wealth of information, resources, and opportunities. Our commitment to social responsibility drives us to create an inclusive and welcoming environment where everyone can learn, grow, and thrive. We are proud to be a cornerstone of our community, fostering connections, inspiring creativity, and empowering individuals to reach their full potential.
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Cabinet records from the Victorian governments of John Cain and Joan Kirner released
Previously secret cabinet documents from one of the defining periods of Victoria’s modern history have been released after more than 30 years.
The documents cover the period of the John Cain Jr and Joan Kirner Labor state governments, from 1982 to 1992.
It’s the first time confidential cabinet records have been made public in Victoria, bringing the state in line with the National Archives’ yearly release of federal cabinet documents.
The Cain-Kirner cabinet documents fill 332 archival boxes and two electronic databases and are now open for public access.
The cabinet records and countless other historical documents are held in the Victorian Archives Centre Repository. (Public Records Office of Victoria)
The period covered by the cabinet records include some of the defining events and issues of Victoria’s recent history, including the Ash Wednesday bushfires, the introduction of poker machines, plans for the Melbourne Park Tennis Centre and the development of Docklands and Southbank.
They also record the government’s attempts to address financial disasters, including the collapse of the State Bank of Victoria, which helped plunge the state into economic decline.
The cabinet documents from the governments led by John Cain and Joan Kirner are being released to the public for the first time. (ABC News)
It was a period marked by two Labor premiers who made history in their own way: John Cain Jr, who broke a 27-year-streak of Liberal party dominance to claim power, and Joan Kirner, who was the first woman to lead Victoria.
Despite history-making reforms, it was the Cain and Kirner governments’ handling of the economy that ultimately led to a record-making electoral defeat in 1992.
Cain brought Labor out of the wilderness in Victoria
The Labor Party had suffered nine successive electoral defeats before Cain defeated Lindsay Thompson at the 1982 state election with a swing of nearly 5 per cent.
He became the first Labor premier of Victoria since his father John Cain Sr was ousted from government in 1957 and undertook a series of of legislative reforms in his first term that set the tone for his years in power.
His government introduced freedom of information legislation, appointed an independent director of public prosecutions, decriminalised prostitution and introduced firearms control legislation.
John Cain and his wife Nancye with actors Mel Gibson and Steve Bisley at an event in 1984. (National Archives of Australia)
Emeritus Professor of Politics at Monah University, Paul Strangio, argues there have been four highly consequential Victorian premiers over the last 50 years — Rupert Hamer, John Cain Jr, Jeff Kennett and Daniel Andrews.
Of those, he said Cain was the most transformative.
“It is no exaggeration to say that the Labor premiers who followed Cain this century — Steve Bracks, John Brumby, Daniel Andrews and now Jacinta Allan — stand on Cain’s shoulders,” Dr Strangio said.
“Cain was the first Labor premier since his father 27 years before. His government proceeded to win two further elections.
“In doing so, Cain became the first Labor leader in the state’s history to govern for consecutive terms and the fourth longest-serving premier of the 20th century.”
Reforms were Cain’s legacy as premier
Cain’s achievements in government were considerable and lay the foundations for state institutions that exist to this day, such as the Transport Accident Commission, the Victorian Health Promotion Foundation (now known as VicHealth) and Victoria’s Freedom of Information laws.
Cain famously forced some of Victoria’s oldest exclusively male clubs to accept female members, even turning down invitations for events at certain clubs if his wife Nancye wasn’t able to join him.
The government’s policy on retaining the MCG as the VFL/AFL Grand Final is among the cabinet documents released today. (Public Records Office of Victoria.)
He would tell clubs such as the Melbourne Cricket Club and Victoria Racing Club that as they occupied public land they had no right to exclude half the population from membership.
40 years later, Cain’s son James Cain said he is still impressed that his father challenged some of those institutions.
“These are things that when I talk to my kids — I’ve got four daughters — they say is that true?”
“How could it possibly be true that he would turn up [to events] with his wife and there’s a white line. It seems outrageous now.”
A long-time football fan, Cain also prevented the VFL/AFL Grand Final from being moved away from the MCG to Waverley Park, which the game’s governing body wanted to transform into a 100,000 seat venue.
Cain argued Melbourne wasn’t big enough to sustain two football venues of that size and backed an extensive renovation of the MCG which came with a stipulation that the ground host the AFL Grand Final for the next 40 years.
Decades later it’s hard to imagine an AFL Grand Final being played anywhere else.
Financial disasters led to government’s downfall
Cain was re-elected in 1985 and secured a third term in 1988, but won that election by a margin of just two seats.
Victoria’s State Bank collapsed and was sold to the Commonwealth Bank. (Public Records Office of Victoria)
The global stock market crash of 1987 preceded a number of financial disasters that put the Victorian government under enormous pressure.
The government-controlled State Bank of Victoria collapsed and was eventually taken over by the Commonwealth Bank in 1990.
The previous year, auditors discovered the bank’s Tricontinental merchant bank subsidiary had amassed losses of around $1.5 billion.
The declining economic conditions in Victoria and the public’s fatigue with Cain’s eight-year reign as premier saw his popularity fall at the end of the 1980s.
James Cain, then in his early 20s, remembered standing in his father’s office the day he decided to stand down as leader.
“He shouldered a real burden during that period and I think it was a difficult decision for him to make,” he said.
“I think he would’ve been disappointed to see that it ended that way. I think he had a really sincere belief that if government led in the interests of economic development then the economy would follow.
“But when you’re staring into 17.5 per cent interest rates and a national economy that’s in decline, it’s a bit of a house of cards.”
Joan Kirner became Victoria’s first female premier when she took over as Labor leader in 1990. (Public Records Office of Victoria)
Cain stood down in August 1990, handing the reins to Joan Kirner who faced the difficult task of leading a government in crisis to an election it was considered destined to lose.
It was under Kirner’s leadership that the government sold the State Bank and attempted a raft of other cost cutting measures that put her at odd with trade unions.
Joan Kirner faced Jeff Kennett in the 1992 Victorian election with the government well and truly on the nose with voters. (National Library of Australia)
According to Paul Strangio, Kirner led a party that had “turned absolutely feral” in the face of likely electoral defeat, with factions turning on one another.
“She took over from a broken Cain in August 1990 when the Labor government was dying on its feet and sliding to an inevitable electoral defeat,” he said.
Melbourne failed in its bid to host the 1996 Olympic Games. (Public Records Office of Victoria)
“Her two years in office largely comprised crisis management as she tried to stabilise Victoria’s ailing economy, hold together a restive party and parry the trade union movement.”
Kirner was also at the helm when Melbourne’s bid to host the 1996 Olympic Games spectacularly failed.
Thousands of people gathered in Melbourne’s CBD for the announcement of the winning bid only to hear that Atlanta was the surprise pick, prompting a chorus of boos and shouts of “rigged” from the crowd.
But it was the state’s debt crisis that was of most concern with voters, who had little faith that Kirner could turn Victoria’s economy around.
Kirner was trounced at the 1992 state election by Jeff Kennett in one of the worst defeats a sitting government has suffered in Victoria.
Dr Strangio said it was tempting to draw comparisons between the situation Kirner faced and that currently being experienced by Jacinta Allan, who became premier after nearly ten years of Daniel Andrews leadership.
“The situation that Jacinta has inherited isn’t as dire and we can all imagine that Labor would survive the next election, whereas Kirner was doomed and the government was doomed,” he said.
“And they had opposed to them in Kennett a leader who was a powerful public performer and an effective Liberal opposition.”
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Charlotte Delivers Record-Breaking Year for City Priorities in 2025
Published on December 31, 2025
In 2025, Charlotte made significant progress on the priorities shaping daily life for residents across the city. Through strategic investment, strong partnerships and community support, the city delivered results across its top priorities, including safety, mobility, jobs and affordable housing.
From record-setting economic growth to expanded housing opportunities, a historic transportation investment and continued reductions in violent crime, 2025 marked a year of momentum and measurable outcomes.
Safety
Charlotte made measurable progress on public safety in 2025, supported by sustained efforts to reduce crime and expanded collaboration among local, state, and federal partners. Overall crime declined 8% citywide, including a 20% reduction in violent offenses, reflecting continued focus on prevention, enforcement and accountability.
Building on this momentum, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department launched Operation Safe Season in December. The proactive, multi-agency public safety initiative is designed to increase police presence and enforcement during peak activity periods. The effort initially focuses on Uptown, with plans to expand to other areas experiencing repeated violence and criminal behavior. The initiative combines strategic visibility, strong partnerships and a commitment to strict accountability.
To tackle public perception while addressing areas of opportunity, CMPD recently launched the Entertainment District Unit (EDU) and the CROWN Culture Initiative. The EDU is a specialized, high-visibility proactive policing unit focused on making Uptown and South End nightlife safer. The CROWN Culture Initiative (otherwise known as Center City’s Restoration of Order, Wellness and Nonviolence) is a focused, high-impact effort through elevated police presence, strict enforcement and close collaboration with our community partners. The goal with both initiatives is to build public confidence, reduce crime and reinforce safe, livable streets.
In addition to these focused initiatives, the strategic deployment of Crime Reduction Units (CRUs) in the four patrol service areas is supporting long-term crime reduction. These units work tirelessly to identify and target high-crime areas, reducing victimization and creating a safer community. Prosecutors assigned to these areas continue prioritizing repeat offenders and serious crimes, reinforcing a coordinated approach to public safety.
Later in the year, CMPD welcomed a new chief, Chief Estella Patterson, who has a continued focus on filling vacancies and sustaining violent crime reduction efforts. The city enters the coming year building on positive momentum and a shared commitment to safe, thriving neighborhoods.
Mobility
Charlotte reached a milestone for transportation in 2025 as voters approved a sales tax referendum to expand transit and roadway improvements across the region. The vote marked the largest investment in public transportation and infrastructure in Charlotte and Mecklenburg County history.
The referendum is expected to generate an estimated $19.4 billion over 30 years to support expanded bus and rail service, improved roadways and enhanced multimodal access for drivers, pedestrians and cyclists.
The city also launched its Strategic Investment Areas (SIA) program to accelerate local mobility improvements. Through a data-driven process, the city identified 22 Strategic Investment Areas where coordinated transportation projects can be delivered more efficiently and responsively to community needs.
Initial funding from a $55 million capital bond investment will support pilot improvements in the Far East-Harrisburg and Arrowood areas, including new sidewalks, pedestrian crossings, lighting and intersection enhancements designed to better connect residents with transit, schools, parks and neighborhood centers. The SIA approach lays the foundation for broader future investment across Charlotte as funding becomes available.
These investments will help improve access to jobs, reduce congestion and strengthen connections between neighborhoods as Charlotte continues to grow. Plan details and next steps can be found on the Meck Connect website. More information on the plan, including project details and next steps, is available on the Meck Connect website.
Jobs
Charlotte posted its strongest year for business recruitment in more than a decade, with 15 major project announcements supported by the City of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County. Those projects are expected to deliver more than 3,880 new jobs and over $424 million in capital investment across the city.
Announcements spanned industries and neighborhoods, highlighting Charlotte’s growing competitiveness as a destination for global employers, corporate headquarters and high-growth startups. Business leaders consistently cited workforce talent, infrastructure and quality of life as key factors driving investment decisions.
Highlights for 2025 include:
Affordable Housing
Addressing housing affordability remained a top priority in 2025. The City of Charlotte increased investment in both new housing and preservation efforts to help residents remain in their communities
City Council approved more than $49 million through the Housing Trust Fund to support 1,548 housing units across the affordable housing continuum. This investment ensures a diverse range of options for our residents:
- 798 New Rental Units: Expanding the supply of affordable apartments.
- 222 Homeownership Units: Opening doors for first-time homebuyers.
- 418 Preserved Rental Units: Securing long-term affordability for existing homes.
- 110 Shelter Spaces: Providing critical support for those experiencing homelessness.
The city also advanced voluntary affordable housing commitments with private developers, integrating additional affordable homes into market-rate projects across Charlotte. Detailed data on housing investments, unit production and preservation is available through the City of Charlotte Housing Dashboard.
Looking Ahead
The progress made in 2025 reflects Charlotte’s commitment to delivering results while planning for long-term success. Investments in jobs, affordable housing, mobility, and safety continue to enhance opportunities and improve the quality of life for residents.
As the city looks ahead, the momentum from 2025 provides a strong foundation for continued growth and a more connected, resilient Charlotte.
Did you enjoy this read? Stay in the know by subscribing to our bi-weekly newsletter, City Speaks, for the latest news and updates.
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Chairmen Guthrie and Latta Announce Hearing on Nuclear Energy
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congressman Brett Guthrie (KY-02), Chairman of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, and Congressman Bob Latta (OH-05), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Energy, announced a hearing titled American Energy Dominance: Dawn of the New Nuclear Era.
“Nuclear energy provides affordable and reliable power to our grid while generating the largest portion of carbon free electricity in the United States,” said Chairmen Guthrie and Latta. “This hearing will offer a chance to discuss the current state of our nuclear industry, addressing the licensing and deployment of nuclear power while examining how the implementation of recent laws and policies can support the industry growth that will be vital to meeting our energy and security needs.”
Subcommittee on Energy hearing titled American Energy Dominance: Dawn of the New Nuclear Era
WHAT: Subcommittee on Energy hearing to discuss the licensing, deployment, and implementation of recently enacted federal laws and administration policies in nuclear energy.
DATE: Wednesday, January 7, 2026
TIME: 10:15 AM ET
LOCATION: 2123 Rayburn House Office Building
This notice is at the direction of the Chairman. The hearing will be open to the public and press and will be livestreamed online at energycommerce.house.gov. If you have any questions concerning this hearing, please contact Calvin Huggins at Calvin.Huggins1@mail.house.gov. If you have any press-related questions, please contact Ben Mullany at Ben.Mullany@mail.house.gov.
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