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US October trade deficit lowest since 2009 as imports decline

Summary

  • narrowed 39% to $29.4 billion in October
  • Imports fell sharply, led by declines in consumer and industrial goods
  • Exports rose to a record high, boosted by precious metals
  • Trade could add to U.S. economic growth in the fourth quarter

WASHINGTON, Jan 8 (Reuters) – The U.S. trade deficit contracted sharply in October, hitting the lowest level since mid-2009 as imports declined, a trend that if sustained could see trade again adding to economic growth in the fourth quarter.

The trade gap narrowed 39.0% to $29.4 billion, the lowest level since June 2009, the ‘s Bureau of Economic Analysis and Census Bureau said on Thursday.

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast the trade deficit rising to $58.9 billion. The report was delayed because of the 43-day shutdown of the government.

Imports decreased 3.2% to $331.4 billion. Goods imports tumbled 4.5% to $255.0 billion, the lowest level since June 2023. The decline in imports could be the result of President ‘s sweeping . The drop also suggests softening domestic demand.

Imports of industrial supplies dropped $2.7 billion to the lowest level since February 2021, mostly reflecting a $1.4 billion decline in nonmonetary gold, which is excluded in the calculation of gross domestic product.

Consumer goods imports decreased $14.0 billion to the lowest level since June 2020, pulled down by a $14.3 billion drop in pharmaceutical preparations. But imports of capital goods increased $6.8 billion, boosted by computer accessories, telecommunications equipment and computers, likely linked to investment.

Exports rose 2.6% to a record $302.0 billion in October. Goods exports jumped 3.8% to $195.9 billion, also an all-time high. They were boosted by exports of nonmonetary gold and other precious metals. But exports of consumer goods, mostly pharmaceutical preparations, fell as did those of other goods.

The goods trade deficit compressed 24.5% to $59.1 billion, the lowest level since March 2016. Exports and imports of services were both the highest on record.

There have been large swings in the trade deficit amid Trump’s protectionist trade policy. Trade contributed to in the second and third quarters of 2025.

The Atlanta Federal Reserve is currently forecasting GDP increasing at a 2.7% annualized rate in the fourth quarter. The economy grew at a 4.3% pace in the July-September quarter.

(Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Andrea Ricci)

 

 

Old Dominion Electric Cooperative (ODEC)

Mike Wise
Mike Wise

Old Dominion Electric Cooperative (ODEC), one of the nation’s largest and most successful Generation and Transmission Cooperatives, announced that Mike Wise, Senior Vice President of Power Supply, has been promoted to Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, effective January 1, 2026.

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Oil rises as market focuses on Venezuela and US sanctions plans

Summary

  • Brent and U.S. crude prices rise nearly 2% after recent declines
  • Trump allows bill to advance, lifting supply concerns
  • U.S. reaches deal to access up to $2B in Venezuelan crude
  • Analysts still expect global oil supply to remain abundant in 2026

LONDON, Jan 8 (Reuters) – rose on Thursday after two days of declines as investors assessed Venezuela developments and reports on the progress of proposed U.S. sanctions legislation against countries doing business with Russia.

futures were up $1.21, or 2%, at $61.17 a barrel by 1417 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude gained $1.10, or nearly 2%, to $57.09.

Higher prices are led by U.S. President allowing the Russia sanctions bill to advance, raising fears of further disruption to Russian oil exports, said PVM analyst Tamas Varga.

Republican Senator Lindsey Graham said on Wednesday that Trump had given the green light to the legislation, adding that the bill could be put to a vote as early as next week.

Both benchmarks fell more than 1% for a second day on Wednesday, with market participants expecting abundant global supply this year. Analysts at Morgan Stanley forecast a surplus as high as 3 million barrels per day in the first half of 2026.

U.S. gasoline and distillate stocks increased by more than analysts expected in the week ended January 2, while crude stocks fell, the Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday.

On Tuesday, Washington announced a deal with Caracas to gain access to up to $2 billion worth of Venezuelan crude. The deal initially could require the rerouting of cargoes that were bound for China, sources told Reuters.

U.S. Energy Secretary said there was room to balance roles for both the United States and China in Venezuela to allow for commerce but that Washington would not allow Beijing to have major control over the Latin American country.

The U.S. seized two Venezuela-linked oil tankers in the Atlantic Ocean on Wednesday, one sailing under Russia’s flag, as part of President Donald Trump’s aggressive push to dictate oil flows in the Americas and force Venezuela’s socialist government to become an ally.

In Ukraine, Russian attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure continued while a Russia-bound oil tanker was hit by a drone attack in the Black Sea on Wednesday, maritime sources said.

(Reporting by Enes TunagurAdditional reporting by Yuka Obayashi in Tokyo and Siyi Liu in SingaporeEditing by David Goodman, Kirsten Donovan)

 

Trump blocks defense company payouts until arms production speeds up

Summary:

  • President Trump writes on social media that aren’t producing equipment fast enough
  • , Northrop Grumman running behind on major projects
  • Trump doesn’t say how he would enforce limits on and buybacks

WASHINGTON, Jan 7 (Reuters) – President vowed to block defense contractors from paying dividends or buying back shares until they speed up weapons production, a rare presidential strike at norms that sent tumbling and signaled sweeping changes for America’s military-industrial complex.

Trump and the have criticized the defense industry for what they say are high costs and slow production and have promised dramatic changes to make production of war equipment more nimble.

“Defense Companies are not producing our Great Military Equipment rapidly enough and, once produced, not maintaining it properly or quickly,” Trump posted on Truth Social on Wednesday.

Trump did not say how he would enforce limits on dividends and buybacks, and defense stocks fell after his remarks, reversing recent gains following the high-profile use of U.S. military equipment to capture Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife.

Trump also called executive pay packages in the defense industry “exorbitant and unjustifiable,” and said they should be limited to $5 million, far less than what many executives earn.

“From this moment forward, these Executives must build NEW and MODERN Production Plants, both for delivering and maintaining this important Equipment, and for building the latest Models of future Military Equipment,” he posted without naming specific companies or executives.

are common among defense firms, and several pay a dividend. Lockheed in October, for example, raised its dividend for the 23rd year in a row, to $3.45 per share. At the same time, it authorized the purchase of up to $2 billion of its shares, raising the total amount promised for repurchases to $9.1 billion.

Lockheed’s F-35 fighter jet, one of the most expensive U.S. defense programs, has been plagued by rising costs and delays. Many big defense programs take much longer to deliver a product than initially promised and at a far higher price.

The $140 billion Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile program that will replace aging Minuteman III missiles, designed and managed by Falls Church-based Northrop Grumman, will be years behind schedule and 81% over budget, the U.S. military said last year.

Neither Lockheed nor Northrop Grumman responded immediately to Reuters’ requests for comment.

Speaking Monday at Shipbuilding, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said, “the days of cost-plus contracts for programs that are years behind schedule are finished. We will give longer, larger, more predictable contracts to companies that deliver on time and on budget, companies that invest in their people, that invest in more capability and more capacity, not companies that invest in stock buybacks or CEO salaries or more dividends.”

(Reporting by Katharine Jackson and Bhargav Acharya in Toronto; Editing by Caitlin Webber and Howard Goller)

Virginia Business Deputy Editor Kate Andrews contributed to this article.

S&P 500 reaches record high as AI trade returns

Summary

  • reaches a record high led by AI-related stocks
  • , , Microsoft and Amazon post solid gains
  • Dow slips as JPMorgan shares fall after a downgrade
  • Investors eye earnings season and upcoming U.S. jobs data

NEW YORK, Jan 7 (Reuters) – The S&P 500 climbed to a record high on Wednesday, lifted by gains in Nvidia, Alphabet and other AI-related stocks, while a dip in JPMorgan weighed on the Industrial Average.

Nvidia, Microsoft, Broadcom and Amazon all climbed more than 1%, while Alphabet jumped 2.5% as investors jumped back into following recent worries they were overvalued.

Underscoring investor appetite for heavyweight AI players, Anthropic is planning a multibillion-dollar fundraise that would value the Claude chatbot maker at $350 billion. That would make the privately held company more valuable than the vast majority of corporations, including Advanced Micro Devices, Chevron and Wells Fargo.

“Investors have come into 2026 with a similar playbook to last year: Buy tech and forget about it. Rumors that the AI trade was done turned out not to be true,” said Jake Dollarhide, chief executive officer of Longbow in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Shares of housing acquisition companies tumbled after President said his administration is moving to ban Wall Street investors from buying single-family homes, in a bid to reduce home prices.

American Homes 4 Rent and Blackstone dropped more than 4%, while real estate platform Zillow added 2.5%.

JPMorgan Chase fell 2.4% after Wolfe Research downgraded the bank to “peer perform” from “outperform.”

Heading into fourth-quarter earnings season in the next few weeks, valuations on Wall Street remain relatively pricey. The S&P 500 is trading at about 22 times expected earnings, down from 23 in November, but above the index’s five-year average of 19, according to LSEG data.

The S&P 500 was up 0.03% at 6,946.92 points after hitting an intraday high of 6,965.69.

The gained 0.48% to 23,660.86 points, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.54% at 49,193.37 points.

Eight of the 11 S&P 500 sector indexes rose, led by materials, up 2.04%, followed by a 1.96% gain in .

Data on Wednesday showed U.S. job openings fell more than expected in November after rising marginally in October, while a separate ADP report showed that private payrolls increased less than expected in December.

While the latest labor market datasets mark a return to the standard release of disrupted by the U.S. government shutdown, they did little to change expectations of interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve ahead of Friday’s key government payrolls report.

Investors were also monitoring geopolitical developments after the U.S. said it seized a Russian-flagged, Venezuela-linked tanker as part of Trump’s aggressive push to dictate oil flows in the Americas and force Caracas’ socialist government to become its ally.

The White House said on Tuesday that Trump was discussing options for acquiring Greenland, including potential use of the U.S. military.

Memory and storage technology companies gave up some of their gains following a recent rally. Western Digital and Seagate Technology dropped more than 6%.

First Solar fell more than 10% after Jefferies downgraded the solar panel maker’s rating to “hold” from “buy.”

Declining stocks outnumbered rising ones within the S&P 500 by a 2.5-to-one ratio.

The S&P 500 posted 28 new highs and 17 new lows; the Nasdaq recorded 90 new highs and 53 new lows.

(Reporting by Noel Randewich in San Francisco and Chuck Mikolajczak in New York; Additional reporting by Purvi Agarwal and Nikhil Sharma in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli and Matthew Lewis)

 

US says it needs to control Venezuelan oil sales indefinitely to drive change

Summary

  • U.S. seeks long-term control over Venezuelan oil sales and revenue
  • Energy Secretary says oil income would stabilize Venezuela’s economy
  • Stored oil to be sold first, with proceeds held in U.S.-controlled accounts
  • U.S. oil companies may help rebuild Venezuela’s oil sector

Jan 7 (Reuters) – The U.S. needs to control Venezuela’s oil sales and revenue indefinitely to stabilize that country’s economy and rebuild its oil sector, Energy Secretary said on Wednesday.

The comments reflect the importance of crude oil to President ‘s strategy in Venezuela after U.S. forces ousted the country’s leader, Nicolas Maduro, in a raid on the capital Caracas on Saturday.

“We need to have that leverage and that control of those oil sales to drive the changes that simply must happen in Venezuela,” Wright said at the Goldman Sachs Energy, CleanTech & Utilities Conference in Miami.

He said the revenues would be used to stabilize Venezuela’s economy and eventually to repay oil majors Exxon Mobil and ConocoPhillips for losses when their assets were nationalized by former President Hugo Chavez nearly two decades ago.

The OPEC member nation sits atop the world’s largest oil reserves but accounts for only about 1% of global supply after decades of underinvestment eroded production.

STORED OIL MOVING TO MARKET FIRST

Wright said the U.S. would market stored Venezuelan oil first and then sell ongoing future production, including to U.S. refineries specially equipped to process it, with revenues deposited into accounts controlled by the U.S. government.

Such sales already have begun and the U.S. has engaged “the world’s leading commodity marketers and key banks” to execute and provide financial support for them, according to a statement from the U.S. Department of Energy.

Wright added he was speaking to U.S. oil companies to learn what conditions would enable them to enter Venezuela to help boost the country’s production in the longer term.

“The resources are immense. This should be a wealthy, prosperous, peaceful energy powerhouse,” he said.

On Tuesday, Washington announced a deal with Caracas to initially export up to $2 billion worth of Venezuelan crude to the United States. The agreement is a sign that Venezuelan government officials are responding to Trump’s demand that they open up to U.S. oil companies or risk more military intervention. Trump has said he wants interim Venezuelan President Delcy Rodriguez to give the U.S. and private companies “total access” to her country’s oil industry.

“Instead of the oil being blockaded, as it is right now, we’re going to let the oil flow,” Wright said at the conference.

Selling the oil “will benefit the American people, the American economy and , but of course, it will also massively benefit the people of Venezuela,” he said.

Venezuela’s state-run oil company said on Wednesday it is progressing in negotiations with the United States for oil sales. PDVSA board member Wills Rangel told Reuters the U.S. will need to buy cargoes at international prices if it wants Venezuelan oil.

Shares of U.S. refiners Marathon Petroleum, Phillips 66 and Valero Energy were up between 2.5% and 5%.

WHITE HOUSE MEETINGS

Raising crude output from Venezuela is a top objective for Trump, who is scheduled to meet with the heads of major oil companies at the White House on Friday.

Representatives from Exxon Mobil, ConocoPhillips and Chevron – the top three U.S. oil companies – would be present, according to a source familiar with the planning.

The companies, all of which have experience in Venezuela, have declined to comment.

Wright said in an interview with CNBC on Wednesday afternoon that he spoke with the CEOs of Exxon, Conoco and Chevron immediately after Maduro was seized, and expected the companies to be engaged in rehabilitating Venezuela’s oil sector.

“Are they going to put billions of dollars into building new infrastructure in Venezuela next week? Of course not. You’re going to have transformation of the conditions there. But they want to be productive advisers and helpers in that process,” he said.

Wright also told CNBC that some of the proceeds from Venezuelan oil sales could eventually be used to repay ConocoPhillips and Exxon Mobil for their losses in the country, but only after Venezuela’s economy is stabilized.

“The huge debts that are owed Conoco and Exxon, those are very real and need to be recompensed in the future. But that’s a longer-term issue.”

Chevron is the only U.S. oil major now operating in Venezuela’s oil fields.

Venezuela was producing as much as 3.5 million barrels per day in the 1970s. But mismanagement and limited foreign investment have since led to a huge drop in annual production, which averaged about 1.1 million bpd last year.

Wright said he believed that short-term production increases in Venezuela are possible with an infusion of equipment and technology, but that a bigger recovery to past production levels would take years.

(Reporting by Nathan Crooks and Sheila Dang in Miami and Vallari Srivastava in Bengaluru; Writing by Richard Valdmanis; Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty, Sriraj Kalluvila, Rod Nickel, Paul Simao and Edmund Klamann)

 

Port of Virginia to complete $450M dredging project in February

The will complete its $450 million next month, delivering the deepest and widest shipping channels on the East Coast, the port announced this week.

Started in 2019, the project will produce channels 55 feet deep and wide enough to safely handle two-way traffic for the largest ships in the Atlantic trade, without tidal restrictions or overhead obstructions. The port completed the widening portion of the project in February 2024.

Also announced Tuesday was the of another berth for ultra-large container vessels in coming days. According to the port, the berth will be at the Norfolk International Terminals, and four new Suez-class cranes will go into operation this month. When the new berth opens, the port’s facilities will have four ultra-large container vessel berths total.

The port said that a fifth ultra-large container vessel berth is being developed at NIT’s North Berth and is scheduled to be in operation in 2027, when a $650 million reconfiguration and optimization of that area of the terminal is completed.

“This is an important chapter in the story of the Port of Virginia and the ongoing development of America’s Most Modern Gateway,” interim CEO and Executive Director said in a statement. “In order to be a 21st-century port, you must have 21st-century infrastructure. Channel depth has the same level of importance to Virginia as any of our landside assets and investments. To remain competitive, the big ships require deep water and modern terminals. The Port of Virginia is the logical choice.”

The port previously said that the widening allows two ultra-large container vessels, each capable of carrying more than 20,000 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs), to safely move through the channel simultaneously.

Chief Sales Officer Thomas D. Capozzi said the port’s ongoing modernization will ensure that companies using the port can grow their volumes here without concern for capacity.

The Port of Virginia is one of the state’s economic drivers, accounting for more than 565,000 jobs, more than $124.1 billion in total spending and $5.8 billion in state and local tax revenues.

Stephen Edwards, the port authority’s former CEO and executive director, left the port at the end of 2025, becoming CEO of ferrying company Hornblower Group.

JPMorgan’s asset management arm to end use of proxy advisers in US, memo shows

Jan 7 (Reuters) – ‘s division no longer plans to use in the U.S., according to an internal memo seen by Reuters on Wednesday, a move the bank described as an industry first.

Conservatives and some business leaders have for years leveled complaints about proxy advisers and large fund managers, arguing that they often recommend votes against boardroom decisions or directors and place too much emphasis on climate and social issues.

Proxy advisory firms review shareholder proposals and issues and provide voting recommendations to institutional investors ahead of annual shareholder meetings.

JPMorgan Chase said in the memo it no longer needs third-party data collection or voting recommendations in the country. It plans to rely on a newly launched -powered in-house tool, called Proxy IQ, which aggregates and analyzes proprietary data from more than 3,000 annual company meetings.

Proxy firms Glass Lewis and ISS did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for comment on JPMorgan’s move. The news was first reported by the Journal earlier on Wednesday.

The shift comes as the industry continues to face criticism from U.S. President and prominent corporate executives over the influence of proxy advisers’ recommendations, as their guidance remains widely used by institutional investors.

In December, Trump signed an executive order aimed at increasing oversight of the proxy advisory industry, on the grounds that top firms often “advance and prioritize radical politically-motivated agendas.”

JPMorgan’s long-time CEO Jamie Dimon and Tesla chief Elon Musk have been among the most outspoken critics of the proxy advisory industry in corporate America.

Corporate governance analysts and attorneys have, however, said the White House order could weaken shareholder rights, while Glass Lewis and ISS have repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.

(Reporting by Manya Saini in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli)

 

Riverside opens $300M hospital in Smithfield

After years of anticipation, officially opened its doors to patients Tuesday, giving residents of the region access to a 24/7 full-service emergency department.

Located at 19339 Benns Grant Blvd, the 200,000-square-foot has 50 beds, advanced surgical suites, an intensive care unit, diagnostic imaging services and a medical and surgical unit for inpatient care. Riverside described the as a “historic milestone” for and the surrounding communities.

“This day has been years in the making, and we could not be more grateful to the community that cheered us on, watched us build from the ground up and helped us reach the finish line,” Riverside Smithfield Hospital President Jessica Macalino said in a statement. “Many of our team members live, and now work, in this community and it is such an honor to now be able to make a difference for our neighbors.”

Planning, community engagement and regional health assessments for the hospital began in 2021, and the health system broke ground on the project in July 2023, followed by more than two years of construction.

Riverside said the hospital was needed due to Isle of Wight’s expanding population and local demand for nearby, comprehensive medical services. The health system said that residents previously had to travel outside of the community to access several essential services, and that the new Smithfield-based hospital brings those resources closer to home.

“Having Riverside Smithfield Hospital right here in our community is a game changer for emergency response,” said Isle of Wight Volunteer Rescue Squad Chief Brian Carroll in a statement. “Every minute matters when someone is in crisis. The ability to transport patients to a full-service hospital just minutes away will save lives and ensure our teams can provide the fastest, highest-quality care possible.”

The hospital’s opening follows the September 2025 opening of a separate facility on the same hospital campus, the Jamison-Longford Medical Office Building. The 27,000-square-foot facility provides administrative and clinical space for multiple specialty practices.

A Riverside spokesperson confirmed that the hospital and medical office building combined cost $300 million. The Riverside Smithfield medical campus employs roughly 300 team members across multiple specialty services and administrative support.

Headquartered in , Riverside Health has five acute care hospitals, three specialty hospitals, more than 9,500 staff members and more than 800 clinical providers. Its coverage area spans 8,000 square miles in eastern Virginia.

EAB acquires UK-based AI marketer

EAB, a Washington, D.C.-based education research company with a significant presence in , has acquired Hybrid, a U.K.-based company focused on higher education, according to a Tuesday announcement.

purchased Hybrid from London-based LDC, the arm of Lloyds Banking Group.

A request for comment on the deal’s financial terms was not immediately returned.

“By joining forces with Hybrid, we can quickly and substantially expand how we help our partners engage students and alumni on their preferred digital platforms with standout creative and storytelling that break through the noise,” Chris Marett, EAB president of marketing and enrollment solutions, said in a statement. “We look forward to working with Hybrid’s world-class teams in Asia, Australia, Europe and North America to serve our partners and enhance how they connect with prospective students from around the world.”

Hybrid offers -powered marketing solutions to build brand awareness and engage audiences across paid search, social media and generative search. The company also has advanced analytics platforms that allow colleges and universities to see what’s working and what doesn’t.

A November 2025 survey conducted by EAB found almost half of high school students use AI to research colleges.

“I’m excited to join forces and bring EAB’s deep enrollment solutions and research-driven approach to better serve our global partners and improve how we support all students in their journey to and through college,” Chris Cammann, CEO of Hybrid, said in the news release.

EAB grew out of Royall & Co., which was founded by the late Bill Royall in 1983 and offered student recruitment, enrollment, financial aid and alumni donation services. In 2014, the Advisory Board Co., a Washington D.C.-based provider of research and analysis, business intelligence and software tools and management and advisory services, announced plans to acquire Royall & Co. for $850 million. The company was folded into the Advisory Board Co.’s education division called EAB.

Today, EAB works with more than 2,800 institutions to drive results across enrollment, student success, institutional strategy, data analytics and advancement.