Industries

Oil-dependent Venezuela’s persistent hyperinflation, which still leaves its residents waiting in lengthy lines for toilet paper and other basics, lands it as the “most miserable” country in 2016 for yet another year, by one measure.

A top aide to national security adviser Michael Flynn was denied security clearance to serve on the National Security Council, Politico reported late Friday. Robin Townley, the senior Africa director on the NSC, learned on Friday that the CIA had denied his "sensitive compartmented information" security clearance. CIA director Mike Pompeo approved of the rejection, the report said. The rejection, which analysts in the Politico report said smacked of a CIA "hit job," is the latest hurdle for Flynn. Flynn reportedly discussed Obama-led sanctions against Russia with the country's ambassador to the U.S. in December, the Washington Post reported this week, although Flynn had previously denied it. President Trump on his way to Florida on Friday told the reporter pool he did not know of Flynn's talk with Russian ambassador Sergey Kislyak, but said he would look into the matter.

Energy companies have reported quarterly numbers that cast a pall on future profits.

The prospect of trade protectionism leaves a farm belt that largely voted for Donald Trump, and an ag industry-leading California—which did not go Trump’s way last November—in the same tough spot.

At Donald Trump’s first meeting with Gary Cohn in late November, he appeared so impressed with the then-president of Goldman Sachs Group Inc. that he joked about offering him the post of Treasury secretary, said a person who recalled the moment. Sitting nearby was the odds-on favorite for the job, Steven Mnuchin, who got the nod.

Shares of Yelp Inc. tumbled nearly 14% on Friday as investors reacted to a disappointing outlook that offset better-than-expected earnings. The company estimated full-year 2017 revenue in the range of $880 million to $900 million, the midpoint of which missed the FactSet consensus view of $895.3 million. The company had previously forecast that it would hit $1 billion in revenue for the year. Shares of Yelp closed down around $35.83 on Friday. Despite the sell-off, the stock is still up more than 133% in the past 12 months, vastly outperforming the S&P 500's 25% increase.

Professor Richard Thaler, an expert in behavioral economics, talked to MarketWatch about his 'lazy' investing strategy that allows investors to maximize their returns while doing very little.

Yelp Inc. shares fell in the extended session Thursday after the business-review website's outlook paled in comparison to Wall Street expectations. Yelp shares fell 8.2% to $38.07 after hours. The company forecast first-quarter revenue between $195 million and $199 million, and full year revenue of $880 million to $900 million. Analysts surveyed by FactSet estimate revenue of $204.4 million for the first quarter, and $895.3 million for the year. For the fourth quarter, Yelp reported adjusted earnings of 27 cents a share on revenue of $194.8 million. Analysts estimated 22 cents a share on revenue of $194.4 million.

Ford Motor Co. said Friday it would invest $1 billion over five years in Argo AI, an artificial intelligence company based in Pittsburgh, aiming at developing a virtual driver system for Ford's driverless car coming in 2021. Argo AI founders Bryan Salesky, the company's chief executive, and Peter Rander, chief operating officer, led the self-driving car teams of Alphabet Inc. and Uber, Ford said. "Argo AI's agility and Ford's scale uniquely combine the benefits of a technology startup with the experience and discipline of the automaker's industry-leading autonomous vehicle development program," Ford said in a statement. Ford last year announced plans to sell driverless cars by 2021 and unveiled partnerships and investments in the arena, as well as buying a San Francisco-based shuttle startup. Shares of Ford rose 3% on Friday.

Tesla Inc. will produce test versions of its Model 3 vehicle this month, Reuters reported Wednesday afternoon, ahead of a mid-year deadline to start production of the new car. Anonymous sources told Reuters that the electric-car company plans to begin test-building the sedans at its Fremont, Calif., factory on Feb. 20, two days before Tesla details fourth-quarter earnings. Tesla has already disclosed disappointing fourth-quarter deliveries, though that hasn't hurt its stock price, which is up 22.6% so far in 2017. Chief Executive Elon Musk has framed the Model 3 as his attempt to offer an electric car for the masses, with a targeted starting price of around $35,000, and an important piece of his plan for the company. After revealing the car at an event last April, Tesla reported more than 370,000 reservations were taken to purchase one, a move that required customers to put up $1,000. Musk has promised to reach a production rate of 500,000 cars by the end of 2018 to meet that demand, though the company failed to deliver its stated goal of at least 80,000 cars in 2016.

Vice President Mike Pence and Tesla Inc. chief executive Elon Musk are scheduled to talk on the phone on Wednesday afternoon, the White House announced. The purpose of the call was not disclosed. Musk has tried to distance himself from President Donald Trump even though he is a member of the president's economic advisory council. Musk tweeted that being on the advisory council did not mean he agreed with the administration's actions.

CEO Jeff Bezos has dismissed reports that Amazon’s planning automated grocery stores, but online grocery shopping is gaining traction.

The reaction by Nordstrom’s stock to President Trump’s critical tweet could leave companies less worried about drawing the president’s ire.

Under Armour’s stock was subjected to multiple downgrades this week, but the bad news didn’t stop there.

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. said Thursday that it has been subpoenaed by the U.S. Attorney's Office over its support of a nonprofit that provides financial assistance to patients taking Regeneron medications. The subpoena, issued in January by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts, called for documents on Regeneron's financial support of the nonprofit with regard to its own products and "certain other related documents and communications." Regeneron said it is cooperating with the investigation. The practice of funneling financial assistance through these nonprofits is widespread in the pharmaceutical industry, and other companies' use has come under scrutiny before. Though companies say the practice allows some patients free access to medications they can't afford, critics say it allows companies to maintain and increase high prices for drugs. Regeneron shares slumped 0.2% after the bell. Shares have dropped 14.0% over the last three months, compared with a 6.7% rise in the S&P 500 .

The Food and Drug Administration said Thursday that it has approved privately-held Marathon Pharmaceuticals' Duchenne muscular dystrophy drug Emflaza. Emflaza is a corticosteroid that decreases inflammation and reduces the immune system's activity. Patients in a clinical trial had better muscle strength relative to patients on the placebo, the FDA said. The first drug approved in the U.S. for DMD, made by Sarepta Therapeutics Inc. , was approved last fall. Corticosteroids are used for patients with DMD in other parts of the world but have side effects such as problems with endocrine function, infection susceptibility, serious skin rashes and more, the FDA said. Sarepta shares have dropped 31.3% over the last three months, compared with a 6.7% rise in the S&P 500 .

Analysts say the data doesn’t stack up against a previous clinical trial.