Member Briefing November 6, 2025

Posted By: Harold King Daily Briefing,

Supreme Court Appears Skeptical of Trump’s Tariffs

President Trump's global tariffs appeared to be on shaky ground after Supreme Court justices expressed skepticism during a hearing on Wednesday about his authority to impose sweeping measures on countries around the world. The Trump administration's top lawyer faced sharp questioning during arguments in one of the most consequential economic and political cases to come before the court in decades. Lawyers representing the tariff challengers were also pressed by some justices on what kind of limitations courts could impose on core presidential powers.

Over the course of nearly three hours, justices on both sides of the court’s ideological divide asked questions that signaled skepticism of the government's claim that Ieepa gives the president unbounded authority to impose global tariffs. Still, the arguments weren’t a complete rout, and conservative justices in particular made clear that they were cognizant of Trump’s broad powers to address foreign affairs.

Read more at the WSJ

ADP: U.S. Private Sector Added 42,000 Jobs in October

The U.S. added 42,000 private-sector jobs in October, payroll-processing giant ADP said Wednesday. That was up from a revised loss of 29,000 in September. Economists polled by The Wall Street Journal had expected an increase of 22,000 for October. In its release, ADP said the rebound after two months of weak hiring wasn’t broad-based. Education and healthcare, along with trade, transportation and utilities, led the growth, while employers shed jobs in professional business services, information, and leisure and hospitality for the third straight month.

The ADP report is part of a growing array of private data on which analysts are relying as a supplement to or check on the official data, which has suffered from large revisions, falling survey response rates, and worries about politicization since President Trump fired the commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics in August. While private data is less comprehensive, it is often released sooner and more frequently and is based on separate sources than the government data.

Read more at the WSJ

ISM: Service-Sector Activity Continues to Expand

The U.S. ISM Services Index rose to 52.4 in October, beating the 50.7 consensus, from 50.0 in the earlier month, according to data released by the Institute for Supply Management on Wednesday. The large services side of the U.S. economy grew in October at the fastest pace in eight months with the help of lower interest rates, but businesses expressed lingering worries over high tariffs and said the government shutdown could also cause pain if it drags on.

  • The new-orders index jumped 5.8 percentage points to a one-year high of 56.2%.
  • The employment barometer inched up to 48.2%, but it was negative for the fifth month in a row.
  • The prices-paid index, a measure of inflation, moved up 0.6 percentage points to a three-year high of 70%.
  • 16 of the 18 services industries included reporting paying higher prices during the month.

Read more at Wells Fargo

Middle East

Ukraine

Other Headlines

Advertisement

Your ad here! Contact Harold King to learn more

Group Of Senate Democrats Eye Abandoning Shutdown Fight — But Get Pushback

A group of centrist Senate Democrats are sounding out Democratic colleagues on a potential deal to reopen the federal government this week or next week, but they’re getting strong pushback that could scuttle a potential agreement, according to people familiar with the discussions. A senator familiar with the behind-the-scenes negotiations said that centrist Democrats, including retiring Sens. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) and Gary Peters (D-Mich.), have the contours of a deal and are “whipping” more of their colleagues to sign on — but it’s not yet clear whether they’ll get enough additional votes to end the 36-day shutdown.

Such a deal would include a plan to pass regular appropriations bills and a promised vote on extending expiring health insurance subsidies. The final details, however, have yet to be finalized. One person familiar with the heated discussion Tuesday within the caucus says there appears to be at least eight Democratic votes to reopen the government — even though progressive Democratic senators vented their frustration with the potential deal.

Read more at The Hill

Pentagon Looks To Accelerate Weapons Buys

The Pentagon is readying a slew of reforms to its acquisition practices designed to speed up the military’s process for buying weapons and systems and structure its program offices to prioritize competition and commercial capabilities, according to a draft memo. The document, obtained by Air & Space Forces Magazine, links the Defense Department’s “unacceptably slow acquisition fielding timelines” to three primary causes:

  • Lack of accountability and flexibility among acquisition leaders
  • Misaligned performance incentives for industry
  • Unwillingness to take advantage of commercial or private sector investment, which the memo argues is key to delivering systems quickly and at scale.

To remedy those issues, the department calls for more streamlined buying practices and flexibility in program offices. If adopted, it would mandate commercial-first acquisition approaches and require more adaptable testing approaches and “scalable production strategies.” It would also incentivize companies to deliver on time by rewarding those that meet schedule targets and penalizing delays.

Read more at Air & Space Forces

Democrats Dominate

Democrats dominated the first major election since President Donald Trump returned to the White House, winning key gubernatorial races in Virginia and New Jersey. And in a victory for progressives, Zohran Mamdani will become New York City’s next mayor, as the 34-year-old state assemblymember beat former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Republican Curtis Sliwa, calling his win a “mandate for a new kind of politics.” Meanwhile, Trump suggested Republicans performed poorly partly because his name wasn’t on the ballot, though he endorsed many of the candidates who lost key races.

Mamdani, a self-proclaimed democratic socialist who has said billionaires should not exist, overcame opposition from billionaires, though at least two did support his campaign. At least 26 billionaires and members of billionaire families, including Michael Bloomberg, Airbnb cofounder Joseph Gebbia and the Lauder family, donated over $22 million to his opponents.

Read more at Forbes

Don’t Let Your Health ‘Fall Back’ When Daylight Saving Time Ends

Many people may have woke up Sunday feeling more rested after gaining an hour of sleep thanks to daylight saving time. While this may be a perk, less daylight is a big trigger for those who suffer from seasonal affective disorder, also known as seasonal depression. The American Psychiatric Association says seasonal affective disorder impacts five percent of American adults and lasts 40 percent of the year.

Psychologist Dr. Katherine L. Stone says the colder months create less opportunities to be outdoors getting vitamin D, and less chances to socialize. She says the primary symptoms of seasonal affective disorder are persistent low mood, fatigue, loss of interests, changes in appetite, and social withdrawal. Stone says there are things she recommends to combat this. Establishing a routine of going to bed at the same time every night, scheduling out regular mealtimes, and even light therapy are ways to help. “With my clients, I often focus on sleep, nutrition, exercise, and screen time, and we look at those four things. When your balance is off on one, then your mental health is gonna drop a little bit,” Stone said.

Read more at WKYT

Upcoming Council Programs

Events

2025 Annual Luncheon - November 21, 2025 -11:00 AM Expo, 12:00 Lunch. The Grandview, Poughkeepsie.

Networks

Environment Health & Safety Sub Council Meeting Topic TBD, November 13, 2025, 8:30 - 11:00. MPI, Poughkeepsie.

HR Sub Council Meeting Topic TBD, January 14, 2026, 8:15 - 11:00. Selux Corporation, Highland.

Insight Exchange On Demand Webinars

Webinars and Seminars

Check back soon

Training

2 Seats Left Lean Six Sigma: Yellow Belt - Yellow Belt is an approach to process improvement that merges the complementary concepts and tools from both Six Sigma and Lean approaches. 3 Full days - November 12, 13 & 14 - DCC Fishkill.

Trade Wars

Renewable Energy Manufacturers Hit By $24B In Project Cancellations This Year

Manufacturers are feeling the effects of more than $24 billion worth of renewable energy project cancellations this year. The latest data, compiled by E2 and the Clean Economy Tracker, shows $1.6 billion worth of cancellations in September after $7 billion in June alone. This affects major manufacturers and technology suppliers for electric vehicles, solar, wind, battery, storage and related components.

Among the most notable cancellations are major projects such as General Motors’ $4.3 billion plan to expand its electric pickup trucks facility in Michigan. The company recently reported a $1.6 billion impairment charge owing to the “termination of tax incentives for EV purchases,” referring to the $7,500 consumer credits which expired at the end of September. “The primary factor contributing to the billions of dollars in project cancellations this year is policy uncertainty caused by federal repeals,” said Robbie Orvis, senior director of modeling and analysis at Energy Innovation, a non-partisan energy and climate policy think tank. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act, passed in July, rescinded several tax credits and incentive programs for renewable energy initiatives.

Read more at Manufacturing Dive

US Motor Vehicle Sales Drop In October As EV Subsidies Expire

Sales of U.S. light vehicles fell in October as the expiration of federal government subsidies undercut demand for battery-powered electric cars, and an easing labor market and looming higher prices from tariffs could limit any rebound this year. Light vehicle sales decreased 6.5% to a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 15.3 million units last month, data from market analysis firm Omdia showed. Unadjusted sales of electric vehicles dropped to 74,897 units from 98,289 units in September.

Overall unadjusted light vehicle sales were down 4.5% in October from a year ago. Last month's sharp decline would suggest moderate or weak retail sales in October. "Sharply lower electric vehicle sales, following the expiration of the federal tax credit on October 1, reduced dealer volumes over the month," said Ben Ayers, senior economist at Nationwide Financial. "With concerns about the labor market building, the near-term outlook for auto sales could be soft as more consumers stay away from auto showrooms this holiday season."

Read more at Reuters

Eaton To Buy Boyd Thermal in Bid To Meet Growing Data Center Demand

Eaton announced Monday it will acquire the Boyd Thermal business of Boyd Corporation for $9.5 billion. The deal, expected to close in Q2 2026, will enhance Eaton’s existing portfolio to fulfill the rapidly growing needs of data centers. “Our decades of expertise in liquid cooling, combined with Eaton’s premier positioning in intelligent power management, will deliver innovation in scaling and efficiency to address the high-power demand of AI data centers,” says Boyd Thermal Chief Executive Officer Doug Britt.

Boyd’s Engineered Materials business will continue to operate as an independent company under the Boyd Corporation structure.  “Bringing together Boyd Thermal’s highly engineered liquid cooling technology and global service model with Eaton’s existing products and scale will provide enhanced value to customers,” says Eaton Chief Executive Officer Paulo Ruiz. “In data centers particularly, our combined expertise in both power and liquid cooling from the chip to the grid will enable customers to manage increasing power demands more effectively.”

Read more at IndustryWeek

Toyota Raises Yearly Profit Forecast Despite An Expected $9 Billion Hit From U.S. Tariffs

Toyota Motor on Wednesday raised the operating profit forecast for its financial year ending in March, while flagging a 1.45 trillion yen hit from U.S. tariffs. “Despite the impact of U.S. tariffs, strong demand supported by the competitiveness of our products has led to increased sales volumes mainly in Japan and North America and has expanded value chain profits,” Toyota said in its earnings report.

The world’s largest carmaker by sales volume reported a nearly 28% quarterly drop in profit, year on year, while revenue increased over 8%. Net income reached 972.9 billion yen. For the quarter revenue was 12.38 trillion yen (about $81 billion) and operating profit was 834 billion yen. Despite decreasing profits, Toyota has continued to show strong global demand. The company recently reported that vehicle sales, including its luxury brand Lexus, reached 5.3 million in the nine months to September, a 4.7% increase from a year earlier.

Read more at CNBC

Toyota Still Bets on Hydrogen With the 2025 Tacoma H2 Overland SEMA Concept Pickup

Toyota is taking a bet on a hydrogen fuel cell Tacoma concept pickup for the 2025 SEMA Show. And there are a few points it makes in this concept truck that seem credible and worth considering. This may look like your average, fourth-generation “N400” Tacoma. But it isn’t. Rather, under the hood of this SEMA concept lies the sort of witchcraft and wizardry from the future. That would be hydrogen fuel-cell technology, which is indicated by the “H2” portion of the Tacoma H2-Overlander Concept.

In place of the usual gas-powered 2.4-liter “i-Force Max” turbocharged inline-four is Toyota’s latest hydrogen fuel-cell propulsion system. And it’s the Japanese automaker’s latest attempt at expressing continued interest in the technology as a path towards the future. Like other fuel cell vehicles, or FCVs, the Tacoma H2-Overlander is basically an electric vehicle. But rather than relying solely on electrons and an outrageously heavy battery pack that takes ages to recharge, the Tacoma H2 instead runs off of compressed liquid hydrogen. The system essentially burns compressed liquid hydrogen, which then powers a battery pack and electric motor to drive the wheels. All that’s expelled out of its tailpipe is pure water and the liquid hydrogen tank can be refilled in minutes like a conventional gas tank.

Read more at Gear Patrol

Tesla Is Obsessed With Musk’s Pay Package. Musk Is Obsessed With AI.

When Elon Musk left DOGE in May, Tesla investors hoped its longtime leader would hurry back to headquarters to focus on reversing a sales slump and recharging the company. For much of the summer, though, he was engrossed in something else. Musk was holed up at his newest startup, xAI, trying to catch up in the artificial-intelligence arms race. Meetings with employees often stretched into the wee hours of the morning as they brainstormed ways to make Grok, its artificial intelligence, go viral, according to former executives and people who worked with him.

At one point, Musk was spending so much time at xAI that he began holding meetings there with Tesla employees.  For years, the 54-year-old billionaire has balanced the responsibilities of running several fast-growing companies, including X and SpaceX, with his duties as CEO of Tesla. With the potential spoils of AI slipping away to rivals—especially Sam Altman at OpenAI—Musk has been spending much more of his time at xAI. Later today, Tesla will announce preliminary results for a shareholder vote on a giant pay package for Musk designed to ensure that he focuses on the company for years to come. It would increase his stake over a decade from about 15% to around 25%—potentially $1 trillion of stock—if he hits ambitious goals. They include selling one million robots like its Optimus humanoids, and reaching a market capitalization of $8.5 trillion, up from about $1.5 trillion today.

Read more at The WSJ

At Least 9 Killed, Others Injured After A UPS Plane Crashes Near The Louisville Airport

A United Parcel Service plane crashed shortly after takeoff in Louisville, Ky., at around 5:15 p.m. local time Tuesday, killing at least seven and injuring several others, according to local officials. Several people with significant injuries are being treated at local hospitals, according to Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear. Two businesses close to the airport were hit by the plane crash: Kentucky Petroleum Recycling and Grade A Auto Parts, which is an auto-salvage yard. Investigators said several explosions occurred after the plane crashed as it hit businesses that contained hazardous material. The investigators reminded people to stay away from the area.

UPS hasn’t confirmed any casualties or injuries of its three-person crew onboard the MD-11 aircraft. Photographs taken at the Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport showed the plane engulfed in fire and smoke billowing out. UPS’s global air hub occupies a large portion of the Louisville airport and is situated in a dense commercial and industrial corridor. The area includes e-commerce warehouses that rely on UPS shipping and the Ford plant that employs nearly 3,000 hourly workers assembling SUVs.

Read more at The WSJ

USS Massachusetts, One Of The World's Most Advanced Nuclear Powered Submarines Completed Its First US Test

The USS Massachusetts, a Virginia-class attack submarine, has completed its first sea trials, including submergence and high-speed maneuvers. Built by Newport News Shipbuilding and General Dynamics Electric Boat, the submarine is part of a $17.6 billion contract with the US Navy. The 377-foot, 7,800-ton submarine features advanced nuclear propulsion, the Virginia payload module, and a modular design for easy modernization, and is expected to enhance the Navy's capabilities in anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare, replacing older Los Angeles-class submarines.

Engineered to deliver next-level endurance, mobility, and stealth via nuclear propulsion technology, Massachusetts and its many fleet siblings are designed for modern anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare, and are capable of launching Tomahawk missiles, collecting intel, carrying out mine warfare, and special operations forces deployments. It is also the first vessel to receive the "Massachusetts" moniker since the USS Massachusetts (BB-59) battleship, which was officially decommissioned after World War II in 1947.

Read more at BGR

Quote of the Day

“Inspiration is a guest that does not willingly visit the lazy.”

Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky - Russian Composer of "the 1812 Overture," "Swan Lake," "The Nutcracker," and "Sleeping Beauty," who died on this day in 1893.

If you’re part of a Council of Industry member company and not yet subscribed, email us. If you’re not a Council member, become one today

Facebook  Instagram  LinkedIn  X  Youtube