Business Briefs – March 20, 2019

Fox Corp. Begins Trading As Disney Completion Looms

NEW YORK (AP) — Fox Corp., the Fox assets that are not part of Disney’s $71.3 billion acquisition of Fox’s entertainment assets, begins trading on Tuesday. The company named Paul Ryan and others to its board of directors. Disney’s acquisition of Fox assets was set to close around midnight, more than a year after the mega deal was first proposed in December 2017.

SEC Says Musk’s Contempt Defense ‘Borders on the Ridiculous’

DETROIT (AP) — U.S. securities regulators are fighting back against Tesla CEO Elon Musk, arguing in a Monday filing that he should be held in contempt for brazenly violating a federal court order. The SEC says that at the time of a contempt motion in February, he didn’t get a single tweet approved by a company lawyer, violating terms of the October order that settled fraud allegations. Musk’s lawyers accuse the SEC of violating Musk’s First Amendment rights.

Jury: Roundup Weed Killer Major Factor in Man’s Cancer

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A jury in federal court in San Francisco has concluded that Roundup weed killer was a substantial factor in a California man’s cancer.

The unanimous verdict on Tuesday came in a trial that plaintiffs’ attorneys said could help determine the fate of hundreds of similar lawsuits against Roundup’s manufacturer, agribusiness giant Monsanto. It was the second jury verdict to find that Roundup caused non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

Hawaii Bills Push 1st State Ban On Plastics in Restaurants

HONOLULU (AP) — Hawaii would be the first state to ban most plastics at restaurants under legislation that aims to cut down on waste that pollutes the ocean.

Dozens of cities nationwide have banned plastic foam containers, but Hawaii’s measure& would make it the first state to do so. The state has a history of prioritizing the environment — it’s mandated renewable energy use and prohibited sunscreen ingredients that harm coral.

A second, more ambitious proposal& would prohibit restaurants, stores, wholesalers and government agencies from distributing and using plastic drink bottles, utensils, stirring sticks, bags and straws.

White House Foresees Long Economic Boom Where Others Don’t

WASHINGTON (AP) – Contrary to the views of most economists, the Trump administration expects the U.S. economy to keep booming over the next decade on the strength of further tax cuts, reduced regulation and improvements to the nation’s infrastructure.

The annual report from President Donald Trump’s Council of Economic Advisers forecasts that the economy will expand a brisk 3.2 percent this year and 2.8 percent a decade from now. That is much faster than the Federal Reserve’s long-run forecast of 1.9 percent annual economic growth.