Things To Do In SW Florida

By CHRISTOPHER RUGABER and ANNE D’INNOCENZIO, AP Business Writers

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. retail sales dropped sharply last month, in part because cold weather kept more Americans indoors, denting sales at car dealers and most other stores.

Retail sales fell 0.9% in January from the previous month, the Commerce Department said, after two months of healthy gains. It was a much bigger drop than economists expected and the biggest decline in a year.

The average temperature in January was the lowest since 1988, according to Pantheon Macroeconomics, and was particularly disruptive in the more temperate South. Devastating fires in Los Angeles may have also impacted spending.

The data does not show that Americans rushed to buy goods in January to get ahead of President Donald Trump’s proposed tariffs, as some analysts had expected. However, sales were revised higher for December. Many consumers may have just cut back in January after splurging during the holiday season.

The tail-off in sales may provide some measure of reassurance for the Federal Reserve, after a very hot read on inflation for January, that the economy may not be overheating. read more

An overnight SpaceX launch planned for early Saturday will use a booster that’s already flown to space 25 times.

A Falcon 9 is targeting 1:14 a.m. carrying 21 Starlink satellites from Cape Canaveal Space Force Station’s Space Launch Complex 40 with backup options through 2:15 a.m. as well as a Sunday launch window opening at 12:41 a.m.

Space Launch Delta 45’s weather squadron forecasts an 80% chance for good conditions at the launch site, which increases to 95% if delayed until Sunday.

The first-stage booster is aiming to build on its fleet-leading tally and stick the landing for the 26th time aiming for a recovery on SpaceX’s droneship A Shortfall of Gravitas stationed downrange in the Atlantic.

The booster had previously been used on two human spaceflights — Crew-3 and Crew-4 — as well as two cargo resupply launches to the International Space Station among others. It made its first launch on June 3, 2021.

SpaceX has five boosters with 20 or more flights under their belt that are still active, two of which sit on 23 liftoffs. Three others had made to to 20 or more before either being expended without a landing attempt to get a payload to a higher orbit, or in once case, tipping over upon landing. read more

By JOSH FUNK, SEJAL GOVINDARAO and TY ONEIL, Associated Press

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Back when egg prices remained securely under $2 a dozen in 2021, Nevada joined several other states concerned about animal welfare in requiring cage-free eggs.

Now four years later, a dozen eggs costs an average of nearly $5 in the U.S. because of the lingering bird flu, so Nevada passed a law the governor signed Thursday that will allow the state to suspend that law temporarily in hopes of getting residents some relief at the checkout counter.

But it is not quite that simple, which is why the other six states with the same laws are so far reticent to follow suit.

By relaxing the rule, Nevada might get access to additional eggs, but the supply of all eggs remains tight because nearly 159 million birds have been slaughtered since the bird flu outbreak began in 2022 to help limit virus spread. The virus prompts the slaughter of entire flocks anytime it is found.

It is not clear dropping cage-free laws will have a significant effect on egg prices that have peaked at an average of $4.95 per dozen because the farmers who collectively invested several billion dollars in making the switch can’t easily go back to raising chickens packed together in massive barns that they already spent the money to convert. read more

By RAF CASERT, Associated Press

BRUGES, Belgium (AP) — St. Valentine chocolates always seek to show how deep your love is. This year, it might just also show how deep your pockets are.

With the price of cocoa beans setting unprecedented records on the commodities market, it will certainly turn the gift of love into a bigger financial commitment than it once was. Turns out that if love is reputed to be eternal, a low price for cocoa, the essential ingredient in chocolate, is not.

No beans, no Valentine’s chocolate

“The price increase of cocoa is absolutely spectacular, now for 2, 2½ years,” said Philippe de Sellier, the head of both Leonidas and Belgian chocolate federation Choprabisco. When it stood at less than $2,000 a ton in the summer of 2022, it really took over early last year and peaked at well over $12,000 during the Christmas season and has been hovering around the $10,000 mark since.

“We are seeing unprecedented prices. They haven’t been this high for the last 50 years,” said Bart Van Besien, policy adviser of the Oxfam fair trade group. And the impact can be felt deep in chocolate gourmet country Belgium, where some of its 280 chocolate companies are left with a bleeding heart during Valentine’s week. read more

Health care

Pulmonary and sleep medicine specialist Dr. Francis Christian has joined AdventHealth Medical Group and will care for patients at AdventHealth Waterman.

Vascular surgeon Dr. Mauricio Perez Martinez has joined AdventHealth Medical Group and will care for patients at AdventHealth Waterman.

Lindsay Kist was promoted to vice president at the Winter Park Health Foundation.

Pest control

Rossani Nelson was promoted to resource specialist for Central Florida at Truly Nolen Pest Control. He will remain based at the company’s East Coast Operations Headquarters in Orlando.

Real estate

Jonathan Clayton has joined Maury L. Carter & Associates Inc., Orlando, as vice president.

Darren Pierce was promoted to chief executive officer at ZRS Management, Orlando.

Submit professional appointments, management-level promotions and significant awards for individuals, along with photos as .jpg attachments, to peopleonmove@orlandosentinel.com.