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By MICHELLE L. PRICE and LISA MASCARO

WASHINGTON (AP) — The children’s savings program included in President Donald Trump’s tax break-and-spending cut law “is a back door for privatizing Social Security,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Wednesday.

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Bessent’s remark, which he made at a forum hosted by Breitbart News, was striking after Trump’s repeated promises that he would not cut Social Security. Democrats quickly seized on the comment as a sign the GOP wants to revive a dormant but unpopular push to privatize the long-running retirement program. read more

By DAMIAN TROISE, AP Business Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — Investors occasionally scoop up shares of companies whose financial prospects appear dim. The consensus around such companies is that the shares should, if anything, fall further. But they suddenly get touted in online forums and take off for no fundamental reason. Wall Street has dubbed them “meme stocks.”

Here are some characteristics of meme stocks:

Poor growth prospects

Meme stock investors typically look for companies with poor financials that are unlikely to grow much in coming years. This could be due to a number of factors, such as an outdated business model or fierce competition.

Examples: GameStop, the original meme stock, faced a changing gaming environment where online gaming essentially replaced the need for video-game rental stores. Kohl’s, battered for years by growth of online shopping, is now facing an increasingly competitive retail market that includes traditional department stores like Macy’s and big-box retailers like Walmart.

Beaten down share price

Meme stocks are cheap. That’s often part of the big attraction for investors looking to turn a quick profit. The low price allows for easier entry. read more

By RENATA BRITO

MASERU, Lesotho (AP) — The deafening roar of hundreds of sewing machines has gone silent. Spools of thread in every color are covered in dust. The warehouse is dark and empty.

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In the tiny African nation of Lesotho, clothing manufacturer Tzicc’s business has dried up in the face of tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration. A few months ago, work was steady. The factory’s 1,300 employees have made and exported sportswear to American stores, including JCPenney, Walmart and Costco.

But when Trump announced sweeping new tariffs on nearly all U.S. trading partners in April, Lesotho found itself topping the list, with a rate of 50% — higher even than that of China, where the economy is 8,000 times larger. Officials here and economic experts said they were baffled. read more

By JOSH FUNK, Associated Press Transportation Writer

Three days of investigative hearings on the deadly midair collision over Washington in January begin Wednesday and aim to reveal new insights into what caused the crash between a passenger plane and an Army helicopter that killed 67 people.

The National Transportation Safety Board will question witnesses and investigators about how the actions of the Federal Aviation Administration and its air traffic controllers and the Army may have contributed to the nation’s deadliest plane crash since November 2001. It’s likely too early for the board to identify the cause of the crash.

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By DEE-ANN DURBIN, Associated Press

Starbucks said Tuesday it’s confident that new products coming next year — including a cold foam protein drink, coconut water-based beverages and improved baked goods — will help turn around the company’s lagging U.S. sales.

In the meantime, slow U.S. demand continues to be a drag on the company’s results.

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Starbucks reported that its revenue rose 4% to $9.5 billion in its fiscal third quarter. That was better than the $9.3 billion Wall Street expected, according to analysts polled by FactSet. read more