The S&P 500 hardly budged on Friday afternoon, marking the end of a week in which the stock market dropped significantly. The broad market index decreased by 0.1% while the Nasdaq Composite was virtually unchanged. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 63 points, or 0.2%.
Since the Covid virus keeps spreading, the Biden administration said on Wednesday that they would resume offering free at-home tests to American citizens once again starting on Monday. Four free exams will soon be available at COVIDtests.gov, according to a press release.
McDonald’s franchisees that invest in growth by opening new restaurants may soon be required to pay higher royalties to the fast-food chain. The fast-food titan will increase prices by one full percentage point beginning in 2019. For the first time in more than three decades, McDonald’s is raising its royalty rates.
Amazon (AMZN) Prime Video will join competitors next year in introducing advertisements and providing a more expensive ad-free tier as the streaming industry suffers with a slowdown in membership growth since the epidemic. The American tech giant revealed on Friday that commercials would begin airing in the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, and Canada beginning in the first quarter of 2024.
To learn more about the pet care and grooming industries, Walmart is conducting research. The largest retailer in the United States has launched a pet services hub and plans to roll out more locations. The pilot stores will include veterinarian care and grooming services in addition to their current service, which enables users to automate orders of dog food, cat litter, and other recurring pet-related items.
Meta now offers a premium verification badge that can be added to business profiles. Formerly accessible only to personal accounts, Facebook and Instagram’s specialized features and support are now open to business pages as well. However, the total cost for a business to utilize Facebook or Instagram will be $22 per month, an increase of $12 to $15 per month.
Uber Eats wants to grow by utilizing a Google-powered chatbot. The company has stated that before the end of the year, customers in the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Canada would have access to chatbot help. Generative AI-powered help will initially streamline the process of finding deals and restocking favorites for consumers.
Microsoft has revealed the official release date for its AI-powered Copilot function and showcased some of its features. Business leaders were cautioned against placing too much faith in the generative software, which was shown creating blog posts, images, and emails based on user inputs, during a “Responsible AI” conversation that followed the debut.
As part of its ongoing commercial push in India, WhatsApp has introduced new in-app payment options. The messaging app will begin enabling in-app credit card purchases and services from competing digital payment providers in a move to expand its commercial offerings in its largest market, India.
Fox and News Corp. stock rose after the news of Rupert Murdoch’s retirement as chairman was announced. The conservative media mogul, now 92 years old, is turning over the reins to his eldest son, Lachlan Murdoch, who will become the sole chairman of both companies.
YouTube now provides access to AI-powered editing and production capabilities. At its Made-on YouTube event, Google’s video platform, YouTube, unveiled many notable features. Artificial intelligence-based photo and video background creation, video topic ideas, and music-related keyword searches are all examples of such capabilities. It also showcased an AI-enabled dubbing capability, allowing for the simultaneous inclusion of subtitles in a number of languages.
The inclusion of India in JPMorgan (JPM)’s widely regarded developing market debt index will bring in billions of dollars, helping to finance the country’s current account and fiscal deficits.
Novaform ComfortGrande and DreamAway mattresses supplied only at Costco have been recalled after the U.S. The Consumer Product Safety Commission announced the recall owing to suspected mold exposure during production.
Stocks to watch with positive momentum and Buy Rating:
Sundial (SNDL), Tesla (TSLA), Groupon (GRPN), Chase Bank (JPM), Microsoft (MSFT), GOOGL, eBay, Apple (AAPL), Pay Pal (PYPL),
Daily Shocker Recap of Today Business News September 21, 2023