Adios: Almost a year ago, after heavy criticism from President-elect Donald J. Trump, Ford Motor Company canceled plans to build a $1.6 billion car plant in Mexico and announced it would instead equip a Michigan factory to make electric and hybrid models. But The New York Times reports the automaker is changing its plans again, saying it intends to assemble new battery-powered cars in Mexico, not Michigan. But the Michigan location will get an even larger investment than previously planned and will focus on making a range of self-driving cars. Read the full story.
Currency disruption: Bitcoin is coming to Wall Street on Sunday, and some executives at the world’s biggest banks aren’t sleeping well. With just a few days left until Cboe Global Markets Inc. debuts futures contracts on the cryptocurrency, Bloomberg reports many banks are still weighing whether to offer them to clients—and if so, how to handle the mechanics. Several of the largest firms, including JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Citigroup Inc., aren’t immediately offering the clearing of the futures as they wait to see how it will work, according to people briefed on the plans. Read the full story.
North of South: The nation’s shrinking pool of available workers is shifting the economic balance of power in the U.S., with the South surpassing the West as the region boasting the fastest job growth, USA Today reports. During the three months ending in October, employment in the South was up 1.8% from the same period last year, compared with 1.7% in the West, according to an analysis of Labor Department data by Moody’s Analytics. The West had been the undisputed leader since 2012 until the South nosed ahead in June. Read the full story.
