QUICK HITS

1

U.S. births fell last year to lowest total since 1979,

report says: U.S. births declined in 2023 to their lowest level in more than 40 years, continuing a twodecade trend of Americans having fewer children. Total births for the year fell 2% to 3.59 million, according to preliminary data released Thursday from the U.S. National Center for Health Statistics, a level not seen since 1979, when about 3.4 million U.S. babies were born. The rate of U.S. women of child-bearing age having babies is the lowest since the center began compiling statistics.

2

New battery warns parents if

their child swallows it: Almost two years after a report warned children were swallowing batteries at an alarming rate, Energizer is releasing a new battery designed to alert parents if their child has swallowed one. The new coin lithium battery features more secure packaging, a nontoxic bitter coating to discourage swallowing and“color alert technology”that activates a blue dye when the battery comes into contact with moisture, like saliva, so parents and caregivers know medical attention could be required.

3

Mining giant BHP makes $39B bid for rival Anglo American:

BHP Group, the world’s largest mining company, has proposed a takeover of its rival Anglo American. BHP said Thursday it had approached Anglo with a bid valued at $39 billion, in what would be one of the most significant deals in the industry in years. If successful, the acquisition would create one of the world’s largest miners of copper at a time of growing global demand for the metal, which is essential to the green-energy transition.

4

Net neutrality restored as FCC votes to regulate

internet providers: The FCC on Thursday restored rules to prevent broadband internet providers such as Comcast and AT&T from favoring some sites and apps over others — for instance, by slowing or blocking certain content or by offering higher speeds to customers willing to pay extra. The move effectively reinstates a“net neutrality”order the commission first issued in 2015 during the Obama administration; the FCC under then-President Donald Trump subsequently overturned those rules in 2017.

5

Judge reject’s Trump’s bid for a new trial in defamation

case: A federal judge in New York rejected Donald Trump’s request for a new trial Thursday after a jury awarded $83.3 million in damages to a longtime magazine columnist who sued the former president for defamation for calling her claim he had sexually assaulted her in a Manhattan department store a lie.