Afternoon Coffee: Apple Flirts with Indian Manufacturing, Obama Bans Arctic Drilling

Sasajo/Adobe Stock

Apple is discussing the idea of manufacturing some of its products in India with that country’s government, according to the Wall Street Journal. The move would allow Apple to open its own stores in India, where it controls less than 5% of the growing smartphone market. Success in the world's second-most populous country could potentially offset the slowdown of iPhone sales in China.

Obama Invokes ‘Permanent’ Drilling Ban

President Obama announced Tuesday what he called a permanent ban on offshore oil and gas drilling along wide areas of the Arctic and the Atlantic Seaboard, the New York Times reports. The ban relies an unusual interpretation of a 1953 law, the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act, which the president said gives him the authority to act unilaterally. The announcement would ban drilling in about 98% of federally owned Arctic waters, or about 115 million acres.

UPS Invests in Optoro

Optoro, a software company that helps retailers and manufacturers manage, process and sell returned and excess inventory, received a boost from UPS Wednesday, writes Supply Chain 24/7. The partnership news is timely, as UPS should expect more than 1.3 million packages to be returned to retailers and manufacturers on Thursday, Jan. 5, 2017, alone.  

Euro-Dollar Parity Approaches

The euro hit its weakest level against the dollar in 14 years, sending money rushing out of eurozone financial markets, according to a Wall Street Journal report. Late Tuesday in New York, the euro was at $1.0388, its lowest level since January 2003, compared with $1.0403 late Monday.