6 Most Important Things in Business Today

January 12, 2018 by Douglas A. McIntyre

An Intel Corp. (NASDAQ: INTC) chip patch to address a flaw in the company’s processors may not work. According to The Wall Street Journal:

Intel is quietly advising some customers to hold off installing patches that address new security flaws affecting virtually all of its processors. It turns out the patches had bugs of their own.

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles N.V. (NYSE: FCAU) is moving a large number of jobs to Michigan. According to The Wall Street Journal:

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles said Thursday it would invest $1 billion to move production of profitable trucks from Mexico to Michigan, a move that will significantly lower the auto maker’s exposure to potential changes to Nafta.

Facebook Inc. (NASDAQ: FB) has made a radical change to its news feed features. According to Bloomberg:

Facebook Inc. said it’s making major changes to its flagship social network, shifting users’ news feeds back toward posts from friends and family and away from businesses and media outlets — a transition that is likely to mean people spend less time on the site.

In a post Thursday, Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg said community feedback has shown that public content has been “crowding out the personal moments that lead us to connect more with each other.” The goal of the product teams will be to help Facebook’s more than 2 billion monthly users find content that will lead to more meaningful social interactions, he said.

China’s trade surplus with the United States rose sharply last year. According to CNBC:

China’s 2017 trade surplus with the U.S. was $275.81 billion, the country’s customs data showed Friday, according to Reuters.

By that data, last year’s surplus is a record high, the wire service reported. For comparison, the previous record was a surplus of $260.8 billion in 2015.

General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM) wants to test cars without a steering wheel. According to CNBC:

Would you get in a self-driving car that has no steering wheel and no pedals? General Motors thinks so, and wants to test its newest autonomous-driving vehicle on public roads and highways starting in 2019.

“When you see this image for the first time it’s quite striking,” said Dan Ammann, president of GM.

“That’s why we believe this is a notable moment on the journey to full AV (autonomous vehicle) deployment.”

The automaker has petitioned the federal government for approval to adjust 16 motor vehicle standards so it can test cars that have no steering wheel, pedals and other driver controls.

After Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (NYSE: WMT) closed 63 Sam’s Club locations, BJ’s Wholesale Club said it may hire some of those laid off:

BJ’s Wholesale Club has a message for employees who got laid off from Sam’s Club: Come work for us.

The warehouse retailer issued the statement in response to news that the Walmart-owned Samla’s Club is shutting down stores. Walmart is closing 63 locations throughout the country, leaving those workers without jobs.

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