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- Outdoor retailer closing nearly 60 stores amid bankruptcy
West Marine is planning to close 59 stores around the country as it works through bankruptcy proceedings.The boating and fishing supply retailer based in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last month and submitted a list of retail locations it intends to close amid its restructuring, which includes 59 stores in 23 states.It said in its announcement that it has more than 200 retail locations across 34 states and Puerto Rico.MAJOR CARL'S JR OPERATOR REPORTEDLY SET TO SHUTTER, SELL DOZENS OF CALIFORNIA LOCATIONS"After productive discussions with key advisors, we've reached an agreement to pursue a strategic reorganization that will address our capital structure while maximizing value for all our stakeholders," West Marine said in a statement announcing the move.The company said that it has encountered headwinds from supply chain disruptions, extreme weather events and changes in consumer behavior that contributed to the financial difficulties that prompted the bankruptcy filing.DETROIT BANKRUPTCY CASE OFFICIALLY CLOSES MORE THAN 13 YEARS AFTER HISTORIC FILINGIt added that its restructuring plan will strengthen its balance sheet, reduce debt levels and give the firm more financial flexibility."West Marine has been a trusted partner to the boating community for decades. The actions we are taking today will allow us to optimize our operations so that we can continue to serve our customers and community well into the future," West Marine CEO Paulee Day said in a statement.SPIRIT AIRLINES LAWYER SAYS JET FUEL PRICE SURGE LEFT CARRIER WITH 'NO REMAINING WAY OUT' OF BANKRUPTCYThe company's restructuring website said that West Marine plans to move through bankruptcy in an expedited process and is considering emerging from Chapter 11 by mid-August.West Marine said it will be open for business and that customers should not expect changes to day-to-day operations throughout the duration of the bankruptcy.The company is closing stores in: Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin.GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE [TheTopNews] Read More.1 hour ago - LARRY KUDLOW: Because We Never Trust Iran, That’s All the More Reason To Verif...Give at least a couple of cheers for coercive diplomacy, which is to say diplomacy through bombing. As the Prussian military strategist Carl von Clausewitz told us a couple hundred years ago, "war is the continuation of politics," or diplomacy, "by other means."Last week’s bombing may well have finally pushed Iran and all their internal factions to at least signing a memo of understanding that represents at least the beginning of the end of the war.President Trump is a master at coercive diplomacy. He’s also a master of psychological warfare diplomacy with his threats to destroy Iran’s infrastructure, such as power, bridges, water, etcetera. He even kept Kharg island, the apex of Iran’s energy industry, in play as well.The full text of the memo might come at the end of the week with a formal signing ceremony, as Mr. Trump said today at the G-7 meeting in France. Asked by a reporter "when will the text of the MOU be released," Mr. Trump replied: "I think pretty soon I would say I mean, I want it to be released because it’s a very powerful document. It’s not like the Obama document, which was just a terrible document. This is a very powerful document and I want it to be released. So probably pretty soon, I would say after sometime after Friday, of course, the Strait opens."And though we await all of the details, it seems that the president is keeping all his promises to the American people. And, for that matter, to the defeated and surrendering Iranians. They may never acknowledge their surrender, but they are surrendering.Mr. Trump has said no nuclear weapons for Iran, and that’s in the deal. He has said that the nuclearized enriched uranium must be transferred out of Iran or destroyed altogether. White House sources maintain that’s in the deal.He has promised a free navigation reopening of the Strait of Hormuz without any Iranian tolls, and that’s in the deal. Here’s what the president said today on Iranian nukes, again from the G-7 in France: "the main thing is that Iran will not have a nuclear weapon. They fully agreed to that with strong policing powers, and they won’t have a nuclear weapon, which is what it was all about, because they probably would have used it if they had it."Now Mr. Trump has also said no money for Iran unless and until they completely change… [TheTopNews] Read More.1 hour ago
- Jean Ziegler, Swiss Gadfly Who Provoked His Countrymen, Dies at 92
In a nation that sees itself as a tranquil oasis of prosperity and business virtue, he drew death threats for pointing out a dark underside. [TheTopNews] Read More.2 hours ago - Centene to offer buyouts to some employees as health insurer cuts costs
The health insurer Centene did not indicate how many employees it offered buyouts to, or how much it is aiming to reduce its workforce. [TheTopNews] Read More.2 hours ago - Some rich Californians are giving away cash to skirt the state’s proposed ...Rather than hand over their fortunes to the California state government, wealthy Californians are finding creative, tax-efficient ways to minimize potential billionaire-tax impact — including giving their money away.Some high-net-worth residents in the Golden State are intentionally reducing their balance sheets through philanthropy or real estate strategies because they do not trust Sacramento to spend their tax dollars effectively, according to a recent Wall Street Journal report."People take steps to take advantage of the tax law before it changes all the time. This is just another example of that," HCVT partner and advisor Andrew Katzenstein told The Journal, adding that he is working with multiple clients to help them navigate the proposed wealth tax.In April, the Service Employees International Union–United Healthcare Workers West (SEIU-UHW) said it had collected more than 1.55 million signatures, according to a press release — nearly double the 875,000-signature requirement — to put a one-time tax on billionaire assets on the California ballot.FLEEING FOR THEIR FUTURES, A CALIFORNIA EXODUS UNLEASHES A FLORIDA ‘GOLD RUSH’The California Billionaire Tax Act would target the net worth of roughly 200 residents and impose a one-time 5% tax on the net worth of California residents with assets exceeding $1 billion. The tax would be due in 2027, and taxpayers could spread payments over five years, with interest, according to the Legislative Analyst’s Office.If the measure is approved by voters in November, anyone who was a California resident on Jan. 1, 2026, would owe the tax.For those who did not move their primary residence by that deadline, they and their financial teams are working to reduce client valuations below the $1 billion mark, including by ramping up charitable donations, as clients would "rather their money go to charities that… do good work than to California’s government, which [they don’t] trust to use the funds effectively," The Journal wrote.Other methods aimed at minimizing the tax burden include restructuring balance sheets entirely, delaying private funding rounds and pulling real estate holdings out of corporate LLCs and placing them directly under personal names or revocable trusts to legally shield their property.Wealthy residents are also considering purchasing expensive tangible assets, such as art and yachts, while keeping them outside California for at least 270 days per year to legally avoid the tax."I like to tell my students this maxim of tax-planning: Pigs get fed, hogs get slaughtered," University of Missouri law professor David Gamage told The… [TheTopNews] Read More.2 hours ago
- Oil prices plunge to lowest levels since early March after Trump signs Iran dealOil prices fell on Monday to the lowest levels since early March following the announcement of a preliminary agreement between the U.S. and Iran to end the war that has strained the energy market.West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil prices were down over 5% during Monday's trading session on the news, trading just above $80 a barrel.Despite that decline, prices for the U.S. oil benchmark remain well above their pre-war levels, as oil prices were between $60 and $70 a barrel in the month leading up to the beginning of the conflict.Prices for Brent crude, the global benchmark, were down over 3.6% on Monday and were trading below $80 a barrel for the first time since early March.US OIL RESERVES DROP TOWARDS REAGAN-ERA LOWS, 'SIGNIFICANT IMPACT AT THE PUMP' COMING, EXPERTS WARNThe decline in oil prices occurred after President Donald Trump said that he signed a memorandum of understanding with Iran that aims to end the war, which has disrupted the flow of oil shipped via tankers transiting the Strait of Hormuz.The vital chokepoint has had tanker traffic reduced substantially during the war, pushing oil prices higher and raising supply concerns in regions with limited oil production."The deal's all signed. And the Strait is already partially opened," Trump said after he arrived in France for the G7 summit.ZELDIN TOUTS US ENERGY FUTURE, SAYS INDO-PACIFIC NATIONS INCREASINGLY INTEREST IN AMERICAN SUPPLYAn official signing ceremony is planned for Friday in Geneva, which is about an hour away from the summit's location in Evian-les-Bains in the French Alps.Trump was asked about when the Iran memorandum will be published publicly and said, "I think pretty soon, I would say. I mean, I want it to be released because it's a very powerful document. It's not like the Obama document, which was just a terrible document.""So probably pretty soon, I would say sometime after Friday, because the Strait opens – it's open now, but it opens completely, we'll have all the mines knocked out for the most part. We have a lot of lanes right now," Trump said.The president added that the agreement is "really a behavioral thing" when it comes to Iran because if "they do what they're supposed to do, that starts taking effect."TRUMP OFFICIAL REVEALS WHERE CALIFORNIA GETS MUCH OF ITS OIL – AND CALLS IT A NATIONAL SECURITY THREATThe deal to end the war with Iran is expected to ease pressure… [TheTopNews] Read More.2 hours ago
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