White House reports that 90% of federal workers have received dose of COVID-19 vaccine

• A senior administration official from the White House has said that approximately 90% of federal employees are vaccinated
• The White House also reports that the federal workforce has reached 95% compliance with the vaccination mandate 
• The federal guidance states that Federal personnel who have not been immunized or submitted proof of vaccination may eventually be terminated

UK government says new homes in England must have EV charging points

• Authorities in the United Kingdom have announced plans that will require new homes in England to have charging points 
• During the Confederation of British Industry’s annual conference, Prime Minister Boris Johnson stated his remarks on the new regulations which will allow 145,000 new charging points to be installed

The US National Guard has helped combat the labor crisis 

• As employers across the US are experiencing a substantial labor shortage, with slowdowns in the supply chain, politicians have looked to the US military for support’
• So far, the US has used the National Guard to help fill in gaps in the healthcare sector, and in schools as well

Target to keep its stores closed on Thanksgiving going forward

• In an announcement from Target, the company will no longer open its stores on Thanksgiving Day and will make a permanent shift to the unofficial start of the holiday season
• On November 22, Target said its distribution and call centers will have some staff on thanksgiving Day but stores will remain closed

The post National News – 11-22-2021 appeared first on Easy Ad - Local Small Business Resources.

• The first all-electric aircraft Rolls-Royce has ever produced has completed its first flight for about 15 minutes in the United Kingdom this week
• According to information by Rolls-Royce, they say the plane is the “Spirit of Innovation” and it uses a 400-kilowatt electric powertrain 
• In the future, the company wants the top speed of the aircraft to exceed 300 miles per hour 

New jobs added as Ford ramps up production of electric F-150 with reservations above 150K

• According to Ford, in a statement on September 16, it plans to invest an additional $250 million into adding 450 jobs across its three Michigan facilities
• Ford has now invested around $950 million into the production of a hybrid F-150 and the electric F-150 lighting scheduled to go on sale around $40,000
• Since its debut in May, more than 150,000 reservations have been made for the F-150 Lightning, says Ford

Agot AI to use computer vision to get fast-food orders made accurately

• A restaurant tech start-up called Agot AI has closed a seed funding with Continental Grain, Frit Ventures, and the Kitchen Fund worth $10 million 
• The technology they plan to implement uses overhead cameras in restaurant kitchens which utilize computer vision to check the accuracy of food orders as they are prepared

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• On October 26, General Motors unveiled a high-performance Z06 version of the Chevrolet Corvette set for 2023
• The car is track-focused and will be powered by a new 5.5-liter V-8 naturally aspirated engine with a 0-60 mph or 2.6 seconds

Blue Eden project worth $2.35 billion plans underwater turbines for the UK

• Just recently, a project known as the Blue Eden project will be incorporating underwater turbines and floating solar power and battery storage in the UK
• The project will be located on the waterfront of a coastal city in Wales named Swansea and is being led by a technology firm called DST Innovations 

Verizon and Amazon partner to use satellite internet systems for rural broadband

• To expand broadband access in the United States, Verizon is partnering with Amazon to use the satellite internet system that is under development
• For Amazon, Project Kulper is a network of 3,236 satellites that it plans to use to provide high-speed internet to anywhere in the world 

The post Business News – 10-26-2021 appeared first on Easy Ad - Local Small Business Resources.

• COVID-19 outbreaks and congested ports have drastically increased the cost of moving merchandise across the world
• Dollar Tree said Thursday that rising freight costs will drag down its earnings by $1.50 to $1.60 per share — more than double the 60 cents to 65 cent decline that it had projected in May

Student debt will be canceled by Education Department for 115,000 borrowers

• On August 26, the U.S. Department of Education announced that they will waive $1.1 billion in student debt for 115,000 borrowers
• This debt forgiveness is extended to those who attended ITT Technical Institute, a for-profit school 
• Since January, the Biden Administration has canceled student loans for more than 563,000 followers

Chip shortage causes UK car production to drop to 1956 production levels 

• On August 26, The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders has announced that UK manufacturers built only 53,438 vehicles in July which is a 37.6% decrease from July of 2020
• The SMMT said a global semiconductor shortage, factory shutdowns, and worker absences amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic all contributed to the decline

Moderna Covid vaccine suspended by Japan over contamination concerns

• Over 1.6 million doses of the Moderna vaccine have been suspended by Japan on August 26 among concerns of contaminated vials
• Across 8 vaccination sites in Japan, 40 unused vials have been spotted with unspecified foreign matter over the past 10 days 

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• BMW’s new project centered around the development of a long distance electric vehicle battery has been awarded $36 million in joint funding from the EV industry along with the U.K. government
• By 2030, the U.K. plans to stop selling new gasoline and diesel engine cars and vans; technology that boost the range of electric vehicles will be crucial

US Covid booster shot distribution begins in September 

• United States agencies are preparing to offer booster shots to all eligible Americans (over 12 years old) starting in the week of September 20
• The announcement has come ahead of a White House Covid press briefing Wednesday, where federal health officials further outlined their plan for boosters
• According to the statement signed by CDC director Dr. Rochelle Walensky, it says, “We are starting to see evidence of reduced protection against mild and moderate disease.” 

Southwest Airlines to give referral bonuses worth $300 to hire workers

• Staff at Southwest Airlines have been informed that the company is struggling to hire workers so they have offered a referral bonus program
• The program will run until November 20 and staff can receive up to 20,000 “SWAG Points” consisting of 10,000 on their referral’s first day of work, and 10,000 after that individual completes six months with the airline. 
• Those points on Southwest’s internal platform have a taxable value of 1.5 cents each giving them a value of $300

The post Business News – 08-18-2021 appeared first on Easy Ad - Local Small Business Resources.

• Today vehicle manufacturer General Motors confirmed they will be offering a fully-electric full-size pickup truck
• Slated for production in April 2022, General Motors plans this electric variant of the Chevrolet Full-size pickup
• General Motors plans to release 30 Electric vehicles globally by 2025; they plan to invest $27 billion in the project

US Government advises residents against travel to UK due to rise in coronavirus cases

• The CDC and State Department have advised US travelers to avoid the United Kingdom as the country reaches “Level 4” in their tier system
• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have said that those who are traveling to the United Kingdom regardless of warnings, should be fully vaccinated 

• Peloton has hinted that they are preparing to enter the video game sector with the debut of an in-app experience they call “Lanebreak”
• The game is a “music-based experience” where players will be able to choose difficulty levels, win points, and be awarded for doing tasks while riding
• In a push to diversify Peloton’s content for users this model is set to officially launch near the beginning of 2022

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• The decreased amount of workers has put a strain on Airports all around the United States and restaurants/concession stands in US International airports have difficulties hiring
• The TSA is now currently offering a bonus of $1,000 for security screeners and reservation agents for airlines
• The TSA is attempting to add about 6,000 screeners by September and currently has hired 4,000

Settlement of $40 million agreed by Juul for teen marketing lawsuit in North Carolina

• In North Carolina, Juul Labs has agreed to pay the state $40 million plus along with changing their business practice as  a result of the teen marketing lawsuit
• Nine other states are also now confronting similar lawsuits to North Carolina
• Juul Labs has also been blamed for the rising popularity of e-cigarettes in teens by health officials and regulators

• The first response of the UK to Covid-19 with their immunization program and covid research have all helped other countries in how they could handle the pandemic
• Currently, the US is following the actions of the UK in regards to the delta variant and the US also has intentions of speeding up vaccinations in younger people

Disney Cruise sets test cruise back as Covid outcomes have been inconsistent

• The first test cruise since the start of the pandemic has been postponed for Disney Cruise Line 
• The test cruise has been postponed due to inconsistent test results for Covid-19 among employees
• The cruise line had planned to set sail tomorrow (Tuesday) from Port Canaveral, Florida along with 300 employees 

High wage earners in high taxed states might retain State and Local tax cap

• $120 billion from Senator Bernie Sanders $6 trillion budget is set aside for local and state tax relief for more than 5 years
• The measure of lifting the $10,000 cap on state and local tax deductions would be more costly and establish an income threshold of $400,000 a year 

The post Business News – 06-28-2021 appeared first on Easy Ad - Local Small Business Resources.

• CDC data has shown the 49.9% of the population in the U.S. has received at least one vaccine shot
• More CDC data shows that 40% of those have completed a full vaccination program
• 1.6 million vaccine shots have been reported administered each day for the average over the past week
• Average daily cases have fallen 5% or even more in 43 of the state in the nation along with DC (District of Columbia)

• Britain’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency said doses of the Janssen Covid-19 vaccine were expected to be available in the U.K. later this year
• The U.K. Health Minister Matt Hancock believes that the vaccine approval will accelerate the country’s “Hugely successful” vaccination program

• Microsoft has warned that Russian hackers have launched another attack through the U.S.A.I.D. (U.S. Agency for International Development) email system
• This warning has come 3 weeks before Joe Biden is scheduled to meet with the Russian President, Vladimir Putin in Geneva
• This hacking group is known as Novelium and has targeted over 150 organizations worldwide 

• The weekend of April 23 has been the highest-grossing weekend the box office has seen during the pandemic with ticket sales of $57 million
• Ore than 70% of theaters are now open, Heading into Memorial day weekend and Hollywood has two blockbuster releases
• The Hollywood releases that are expected to be among the most popular at the box office are “Cruella” and “A Quiet Place Part II”

• The company Relativity Space is pushing many boundaries of 3D-printing in order to build rockets and reach beyond the space industry
• The company’s CEO, Tim Elli says that the company is “.. reinventing the underpinnings of not just building rockets, but the whole stack of how you actually design, develop, and scale a company”

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