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Business Highlights

Business Highlights

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2 Americans win econ Nobel for work on climate and growth

STOCKHOLM (AP) — Just a day after a United Nations panel called for urgent action on climate change, the Nobel Prize in economics was awarded Monday to one American researcher for his work on the economics of a warming planet and to another whose study of innovation raises hopes that people can do something about it. The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences awarded the $1 million prize Monday to William Nordhaus of Yale University and to Paul Romer of New York University. Nordhaus, 77, who has been called "the father of climate-change economics," developed models that suggest how governments can combat global warming.

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Carbon tax gets renewed attention but still faces resistance

Advocates of taxing fossil fuels believe their position is stronger now because of an alarming new report on climate change and a Nobel Prize awarded to by two American economists, but neither development is likely to break down political resistance to a carbon tax. Previous alarms about global warming met with resistance from Congress and the White House. President Donald Trump withdrew the United States from the Paris agreement on climate change last year. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, a panel of scientists brought together by the United Nations, warned in a report Monday that droughts, wildfires, coral reef destruction and other climate and environmental disasters could grow worse as soon as 2040, even with a smaller increase in temperatures than used to set the Paris targets.

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SpaceX satellite launch lights up night sky, social media

LOS ANGELES (AP) — When SpaceX launched a rocket carrying an Argentine Earth-observation satellite from California's Central Coast, both the night sky and social media lit up. People as far away as San Francisco, Sacramento, Phoenix and Reno, Nevada, posted photos of the Falcon 9 rocket's launch and return on Sunday night. It was the first time SpaceX landed a first-stage booster back at its launch site at Vandenberg Air Force Base, about 130 miles (210 kilometers) northwest of Los Angeles. The Air Force warned residents on the Central Coast that they might see multiple engine burns by the first stage and hear one or more sonic booms as it returned.

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Netflix assembles new US production hub in New Mexico

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Netflix has chosen New Mexico as the site of a new U.S. production hub and is in final negotiations to buy an existing multimillion-dollar studio complex on the edge of the state's largest city, government and corporate leaders announced Monday. It's the company's first purchase of such a property, and upcoming production work in Albuquerque and at other spots around New Mexico is forecast to result in $1 billion in spending over the next decade. More than $14 million in state and local economic development funding is being tapped to bring Netflix to New Mexico. Republican Gov.

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Former Trump aide Hope Hicks to work at Fox company

NEW YORK (AP) — President Trump's former communications chief Hope Hicks is taking on a similar role at the new Fox company, meaning she'll supervise messaging at her former boss' favorite television network. The new company, being created by the shedding of many of 21st Century Fox's entertainment assets to the Walt Disney Co., will include Fox News Channel, the Fox broadcasting network, several local Fox stations and Fox Sports. Hicks' hiring was announced Monday by Viet Dinh, chief legal and policy officer. Hicks, who left the White House on March 29, will be based in Los Angeles. Hicks had a mostly behind-the-scenes role at the White House.

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Facebook wants people to invite its cameras into their homes

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Facebook is launching the first electronic device to bear its brand, a screen and camera-equipped gadget intended to make video calls easier and more intuitive. But it's unclear if people will open their homes to an internet-connected camera sold by a company with a questionable track record on protecting user privacy. Facebook is marketing the device, called Portal, as a way for its more than 2 billion users to chat with one another without having to fuss with positioning and other controls. The device features a camera that uses artificial intelligence to automatically zoom as people move around during calls.

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Global executives cooling on deals amid trade uncertainty

LONDON (AP) — Executives around the world are cooling to the idea of mergers and acquisitions in the face of rising trade tensions, notably between the U.S. and China, a leading adviser on international corporate deals said Monday. In its half-yearly assessment of corporate mergers and acquisitions, or M&A, EY found that only 46 percent of executives are planning a takeover in the next 12 months. That's down 10 percentage points from a year ago and marks the lowest level in four years. "Geopolitical, trade and tariff uncertainties have finally caused some dealmakers to hit the pause button," said Steve Krouskos, a global vice chair at EY.

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Box office top 20: 'Venom,' 'A Star Is Born'

NEW YORK (AP) — Sony Pictures' "Spider-Man" spinoff "Venom" and Bradley Cooper's acclaimed remake "A Star Is Born" fueled the best-ever October weekend at North American theaters. Both films debuted above expectations. "Venom," starring Tom Hardy as the comic-book antihero, opened with $80.3 million, according to final studio figures Monday. Sony's opening effort to create a larger universe for its available Marvel characters shrugged off terrible reviews to set a new box office record for an October debut. Warner Bros.'s anticipated "A Star Is Born," starring Cooper and Lady Gaga, also opened resoundingly with $42.9 million. "Venom" attracted a largely male, younger audience, while "A Star Is Born" found predominantly female and older crowds.

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Working past 65? It's easier to do if you graduated college

NEW YORK (AP) — Close to one in five Americans who's 65 or older is still working, the highest percentage in more than half a century. And the one who's still working may be better off. As more and more Americans delay retirement, it's those with a college degree that find it easiest to keep working past 65. Their less-educated peers, meanwhile, are having a more difficult time staying in the workforce. It's a crucial distinction because financial experts say both groups would benefit from working an extra year or more to improve their retirement security. By staying on the job, older Americans can build up their savings, which in too many cases are inadequate.

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2,700 workers at major Hawaii hotels join national strike

HONOLULU (AP) — Workers at some of Hawaii's most iconic hotels are joining a national strike. About 2,700 Marriott employees on Oahu and Maui on Monday joined the strike that began last week in Boston, San Francisco and other cities. They work at four Waikiki properties operated by Marriott, including The Royal Hawaiian Hotel, an historic institution famous for its pink exterior. Workers at the Sheraton Maui are also striking. Waikiki Beach Marriott workers are not currently striking. Workers are picketing the properties. Leaders of the Unite Here Local 5 union say they have not reached agreement with management on a union demand for workers to be paid enough so they only need one job to support themselves.

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The S&P 500 index dipped 1.14 points to 2,884.43. The Dow Jones Industrial Average reversed an early loss of 223 points and rose 39.73 points, or 0.2 percent, to 26,486.78.

The Nasdaq composite sank 52.50 points, or 0.7 percent, to 7,735.95. The Russell 2000 index of smaller-company stocks slipped 2.60 points, or 0.2 percent, to 1,629.51. The Nasdaq and Russell are each coming off their worst week since late March.

Benchmark U.S. crude slid 0.1 percent to $74.29 a barrel in New York and Brent crude, used to price international oils, dropped 0.3 percent to $83.91 a barrel in London.

Disclaimer: This is unedited, unformatted feed from the Associated Press (AP) wire.