Wal-Mart logistics chief stepping down
Chris Sultemeier is retiring as Wal-Mart Stores Inc.'s executive vice president of logistics.
Wal-Mart Chief Executive Officer Doug McMillon announced Sultemeier's departure during the company's Veterans Day celebration Friday but did not discuss a specific date. Sultemeier has been with Wal-Mart since 1989.
"The word that kept coming to my mind is character. Chris has character," McMillon said during the Veterans Day event. "You've been a really important part of this company and we appreciate your service."
Prior to his current position, Sultemeier was senior vice president of transportation services and also held various logistics and merchandising roles in both Wal-Mart U.S. and Sam's Club throughout his career. He was promoted to executive vice president of logistics in 2012 and is currently responsible for all distribution and fulfillment centers as well as domestic and global ocean transportation functions, according to his biography on the retailer's corporate website.
Sultemeier was a captain in the U.S. Army before joining Wal-Mart. He is a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and has a degree in mechanical engineering.
-- Robbie Neiswanger
Trucking group meets with Trump team
American Trucking Associations President and CEO Chris Spear said in a release that the group had "already begun meeting with President-elect Donald Trump's transition team" to discuss regulatory issues facing the trucking industry.
In his campaign's plan for his first 100 days in office, Trump had promised "$1 trillion in infrastructure investment over 10 years" that he called "revenue neutral."
Shannon Newton, president of the Arkansas Trucking Association, said the industry is "cautiously optimistic about the opportunity to work with President-elect Trump to address some of our industry's challenges." She highlighted "investing in our nation's infrastructure, strengthening our economy, reforming the tax code and limiting government overreach" as "areas of our mutual concern."
-- Emma N. Hurt
Airlines encounter brief computer glitch
DALLAS -- Airlines are dealing with another computer glitch that is disrupting flight schedules heading into the weekend.
American Airlines, JetBlue Airways and Alaska Airlines confirmed that a technology glitch briefly interrupted their operations Friday, and other carriers may also have been involved. The problems seemed to have been fixed by midday, and airlines reported that flights had resumed.
The airlines blamed their difficulties on a breakdown in systems operated by Sabre Corp., a Texas company that provides software and other technology services to airlines and hotels.
A Sabre spokesman said the systems were running again by early Friday afternoon. She said she did not know the cause of the breakdown.
-- The Associated Press
Grubhub CEO recants anti-Trump email
CHICAGO -- The co-founder of food delivery service Grubhub sent an email to all his employees suggesting that supporters of President-elect Donald Trump should resign, then issued a statement saying he welcomes all employees, regardless of their political beliefs.
CEO Matt Maloney's email Wednesday said he rejects Trump's "nationalist, anti-immigrant and hateful politics" and that anyone who disagrees should immediately resign "because you have no place here."
In a tweet Thursday that was later deleted, Maloney said, "Grubhub does not tolerate hate and we are proud of all our employees -- even those who voted for Trump."
Maloney later issued a statement saying his email advocated for inclusion and tolerance and that Grubhub doesn't discriminate based on political beliefs.
Chicago-based Grubhub connects online customers with takeout restaurants in the U.S. and London.
-- The Associated Press
3 arrested in U.K. insider trading probe
Three employees from major banks have been arrested in an insider-trading investigation that could become the U.K.'s biggest case related to the crime, according to two people with knowledge of the situation.
The U.K. Financial Conduct Authority is working with the National Crime Agency, which is assisting with covert surveillance, the people said, who didn't want to be identified because the investigation is private. The arrests of the workers, whose identities haven't been disclosed, were carried out in recent months and more are planned, according to the people.
An insider-trading probe was made public last week in a report by the government on the so-called Panama Papers scandal. The briefing said that a task force, set up to investigate leaked documents from a Panama law firm, had "identified a number of leads relevant to a major insider-trading operation" led by the Financial Conduct Authority and supported by the National Crime Agency.
Officials at the regulator declined to comment and a spokesman for the crime agency declined to immediately comment.
The news of the arrests comes six months after the Financial Conduct Authority concluded a major trial in an insider-trading case dubbed Operation Tabernula.
-- Bloomberg News
Brazil files protest of U.S. steel tariffs
GENEVA -- Brazil has filed a complaint at the World Trade Organization against the U.S. over duties imposed on Brazilian steel products.
A WTO announcement Friday on the filing comes amid questions about how the U.S. will interact with the Geneva-based trade body after President-elect Donald Trump's January inauguration.
WTO Director-General Roberto Azevedo tweeted Wednesday that the WTO "stands ready to work with the new administration."
Brazil claims the U.S. violated WTO subsidy rules by imposing higher tariffs over the past year on Brazilian cold- and hot-rolled steel flat products in response to alleged improper Brazilian government subsidies.
Brazil's request for "dispute consultations" centers partly on allegations that a U.S. investigation into Brazilian steel products was based on insufficient evidence.
The WTO said further information was expected in coming days.
-- The Associated Press
Business on 11/12/2016