Business

State Farm will issue about $5 billion in one-time dividends to qualifying auto insurance customers this summer, with average payments around $100; the company also said it has reduced auto rates in many states, estimating about $4.6 billion in annual customer savings.

The Kansas Senate passed SCR 1616 to limit assessed property valuation increases to 3% and sent the measure to the House; if approved by voters it would take effect Jan. 1, 2027. Opponents note the cap does not directly change mill levies, which determine final property tax bills.

A TikTok trend called "Chinamaxxing" features non-Chinese creators adopting aspects of Chinese lifestyle and aesthetics; users on Chinese platform RedNote have responded with amusement, pride, discomfort, and criticism, and experts say the trend may reflect soft power influence.

Nvidia forecast about 77% year-over-year revenue growth to roughly $78 billion this quarter, and the company says it is ramping production of its new Vera Rubin rack-scale AI system.

Federal prosecutors say Gerald Eddie Brown Jr. was arrested in Indiana and charged with providing defense services to Chinese military pilots without State Department authorization.

Founded in 2019, Sacramento's Black-owned Universoul Cafe recovers surplus food and trains young people in culinary skills; last year it delivered 17,000 meals and recently received a $500,000 grant.

The article lists six Toyota models frequently cited as especially long-lived — Tacoma, Land Cruiser, 4Runner, Camry, Corolla and Sequoia — and six models with more reported issues including Avalon, certain RAV4 years, Sienna, Venza, FJ Cruiser and early Prius models.

Residents in South Florida expressed mixed reactions after the U.S. announced it will allow Venezuelan oil to be sold to Cuba's private businesses; Treasury and Commerce guidance bars sales to Cuba's government or military but officials have not clarified the full scope.

The federal government will deposit $1,000 into Trump Accounts for babies born from Jan. 1, 2025, to Dec. 31, 2028, and the program is scheduled to begin on July 5, 2026.

President Trump announced an executive action at the State of the Union to create automatic federal retirement accounts for workers without employer plans and to match contributions up to $1,000 per year; the move is designed to pair with the refundable Saver's Match under SECURE 2.0, which takes effect in 2027.

Fanatics, which bought Topps in 2022 for $500 million, has promoted a comeback in sports card collecting by staging store events with athletes including Jaxson Dart and Breece Hall and distributing high-value products to fans.

Traders are citing lofty "whisper" numbers ahead of Nvidia's fiscal fourth-quarter report, including a '2+2' scenario that would lift both quarter revenue and the next-quarter guide; separate data show retail buying into the print has been materially lighter than prior quarters.

An Australian manager at a U.S. defense contractor pleaded guilty to selling cybersecurity tools to a buyer with ties to Russia and was sentenced to 87 months in prison. He admitted receiving cryptocurrency payments and was ordered to pay restitution and forfeitures.

Tavangarian completed Versa Villa, a roughly 4,200-square-foot, four-bedroom house on the family’s Palisades estate that the article says was built for about $3 million to $3.5 million and is designed to resist an active fire for up to six hours.

Ofgem announced a 7% cut in the energy price cap, lowering it to £1,641 a year from April, a £117 reduction from the previous cap.

Zoopla says newly listed homes for sale in the four weeks to Feb 15 were 6% higher than the same period in 2025, the strongest February for new listings in ten years. House prices rose 1.3% in the year to January, with notable regional differences.

Wayve, a U.K. autonomous driving software startup founded in 2017, reached an $8.6 billion valuation after a funding round that included Nvidia and Microsoft; the company has partnerships with Nissan and plans robotaxi trials with Uber beginning in London in 2026.

Lamborghini will rework its planned Lanzador from a full electric into a plug-in hybrid and aims for a PHEV lineup by 2030; Ford announced a recall of more than 412,000 Explorers (2017–2019) over a rear suspension toe link defect.

A Monday evening fire gutted the Camden Westwood apartment building in Morrisville; officials say the structure is a total loss and no deaths were reported, and investigators have located where the blaze began with an inquiry ongoing.

The European Commission announced the 'Repair, Rebuild, Restart' plan backed by more than €920 million and an immediate assistance package of over €100 million to help secure Ukraine's power supply for winter 2026–27.

The Conference Board said its consumer confidence index rose to 91.2 in February from an upwardly revised 89 in January, while the expectations index climbed to 72.0; consumers continued to cite prices and inflation as top concerns.

Kenya has joined the WHO-MPP mRNA Technology Transfer Project to develop local mRNA vaccine manufacturing capacity, with training and infrastructure upgrades planned for the Kenya BioVax Institute and scientific support from KEMRI.

Japan asked the United States to ensure its treatment under a new temporary 15% tariff regime is as favourable as an existing trade deal, and officials from both countries said they would implement last year’s agreement in good faith.

Intel has entered a multiyear collaboration with SambaNova that will see SambaNova adopt Intel server chips and graphics cards, and Intel is participating in a reported $350 million funding round; earlier acquisition talks reportedly fell apart.

Government-backed research found the average number of female FTSE 100 chief executives did not change last year, leaving nine women in those roles. The FTSE 350 missed its voluntary 40% senior leadership target, with women holding 36% of those positions.

Federal officials warned technology leaders that heavy reliance on Taiwan for advanced chips creates a major economic vulnerability, and governments plus some companies have announced investments to expand U.S. production that will take years to change global supply patterns.

Kyntra Bio reported that investigator‑sponsored Phase 1b/2 data for FG‑3246 combined with enzalutamide in metastatic castration‑resistant prostate cancer will be presented at ASCO GU; the study included 44 patients and showed a composite response rate of 21% overall and median radiographic progression‑free survival of 7.0 months (10.1 months in patients with one prior ARPI).

Protara reported interim ADVANCED-2 results showing a 68% complete response rate at six months in the BCG-unresponsive cohort and no Grade 3 or greater treatment-related adverse events; the company expects to complete enrollment of the BCG-unresponsive cohort in the second half of 2026.

A source confirmed the WNBA reached its revenue-sharing target in 2025, creating $16 million in shareable revenue; the WNBPA received the League Revenue Report on Feb. 9 and has 30 days to decide on distribution.

The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate fell to 5.99% on Monday, matching Mortgage News Daily's lowest level since 2022, and applications to refinance are reported about 130% higher than a year ago, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.