World

Voters in Switzerland have shocked the political establishment by rejecting a reform plan that would have brought the country's corporate tax system in line with international norms. The tax reforms, which were widely supported by the business community, would have removed a set of special low-tax privileges that had encouraged many multinational companies to set up shop in Switzerland. Experts say the future of Switzerland's tax system is now unclear. The vote result could create headaches for firms that had been banking on their implementation, and deter companies who had been considering a move to the country. "They do not know what [tax] measures will be available... That is not a very solid basis for making investment decisions," Peter Uebelhart, head of tax at KPM...

Nordstrom. Neiman Marcus. TJ Maxx. And now, Sears and Kmart. Sears Holdings, the company that owns retail stores Sears and Kmart, reportedly said this weekend that it would remove 31 Trump-branded items from its website. The company pulled the products as part of a plan to focus on its "most profitable items," Sears spokesman Brian Hanover told Reuters. Hanover told the news organization that items in the Trump Home line of furnishings were removed from the company's website, although they could still be purchased through third-party vendors online. Neither store carried the items in their physical stores, he said. Searches of the Sears and KMart websites did not turn up Trump Home products, except for those sold by third-party vendors. In a statement Monday, spoke...

Tesla is bringing its electric cars to the heart of the oil producing world. The automaker announced Monday that its first official venture in the Middle East will be in the United Arab Emirates. The first cars -- the Model S and Model X -- will hit the road this summer. "Timing seems to be good to really make a significant debut in this region starting in Dubai," Tesla (TSLA) CEO Elon Musk said at the World Government Summit in Dubai. Tesla owners will have access to two existing supercharging stations in the UAE, and Telsa plans to open five more by the end of the year. Despite sitting on huge oil and gas reserves, the UAE has ambitious plans to go green. Last month it said it will invest $163 billion to boost alternative energy use over the next three decades. ...

Verizon has brought back its unlimited data plan. That's great if you're a Verizon customer. But it is terrible news for its investors. Verizon (VZ) stock fell nearly 1.5% in early trading Monday. It's now down about 10% so far this year, making it the Dow's worst performer of 2017. Verizon's move is a clear sign the company has to pull out all the stops to remain competitive with wireless rivals AT&T (T), Sprint (S) and T-Mobile (TMUS). "In recent months, both T-Mobile and Sprint had some success taking additional share from Verizon by virtue of their unlimited offerings," wrote Morgan Stanley analysts in a report Monday morning. That may explain why shares of T-Mobile and Sprint, which is now controlled by Japanese tech conglomerate SoftBank, are both up this ye...

America and Canada have one of the world's biggest trade relationships. President Donald Trump met for the first time Monday with Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. "We have a very outstanding trade relationship with Canada," Trump said at the news conference. But the U.S.-Canada trade relationship over the years has not been as smooth as you might think. There have been trade wars, acts of retaliation, allegations of dumping and jobs lost. "Our trading relationship obviously is strong...but the relationship has been rocky, despite the agreements we have in place," says Stuart Trew, an editor at the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, a research group in Ottawa, Canada's capital. Trump has often slammed Mexico and NAFTA, the trade agreement between the U....

Apple has found its groove again. The iPhone maker's stock hit $133.82 in early trading Monday, putting Apple less than $1 away from its intraday trading high of $134.54, reached in April 2015. Apple's stock ended the day at $133.29, beating its previous record closing price of $133, set in February 2015. The stock surge, pushing Apple (AAPL) to a $700 billion market cap, comes amid renewed optimism for the iPhone. Goldman Sachs raised its price target for the stock on Monday, citing the likelihood of "major new features" like "3D sensing" being added to the next iPhone model, according to an investor note provided to CNNMoney. Apple's previous high was set six months after it released the redesigned iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, kicking off what CEO Tim Cook described as the ...

The Dow, S&P 500, Nasdaq and Russell 2000 each hit new all-time highs Monday. Investors are giddy with excitement and they clearly believe that both big blue chip multinationals and smaller companies that do most of their business in the U.S. will continue to thrive. So is this the Donald Trump rally? Or the Janet Yellen rally? Some strategists believe Trump's stimulus plans and talk of killing many burdensome regulations are the reasons stocks are soaring. Or perhaps this is better characterized as a continuation of the Barack Obama rally instead? You could argue that POTUS 44 has dealt POTUS 45 a pretty good hand. The solid job market and overall economy that Trump inherited may be the reason consumers and businesses are so confident. But investors (and f...

Mexico is ready to hit the U.S. where it hurts: Corn. Mexico is one of the top buyers of American corn in the world today. And Mexican senator Armando Rios Piter, who leads a congressional committee on foreign relations, says he will introduce a bill this week where Mexico will buy corn from Brazil and Argentina instead of the United States. It's one of the first signs of potential concrete action from Mexico in response to President Trump's threats against the country. "I'm going to send a bill for the corn that we are buying in the Midwest and...change to Brazil or Argentina," Rios Piter, 43, told told CNN's Leyla Santiago on Sunday at an anti-Trump protest in Mexico City. He added: It's a "good way to tell them that this hostile relationship has consequences, hope ...

America is great because of its willingness to accept talented immigrants. That's what Nandan Nilekani, the billionaire co-founder of Infosys Technologies, would tell President Trump if he had the opportunity. "If you really want to keep the U.S. ... globally competitive, you should be open to overseas talent," Nilekani said on the sidelines of CNN's Asia Business Forum in Bangalore. Infosys (INFY) is India's second-largest outsourcing firm, and a major recipient of U.S. H-1B visas. The documents allow the tech firm to employ a huge number of Indians in U.S. jobs. The Trump administration is now considering significant changes to the visa program. Press Secretary Sean Spicer said in January that Trump will continue to talk about reforming the H-1B program, among other...