Featured Articles in Business

Retailers Scramble as U.S. Penny Phase-Out Forces Price Rounding

Now that the United States has officially stopped making pennies, a nationwide scramble is underway among gas stations, fast-food chains, and major retailers to adjust prices and handle cash transactions — a shift that could quietly erode profits for many high-volume businesses. The transition follows President Donald Trump’s decision earlier this year to halt production Read More…

Bitcoin Heads for First October Loss Since 2018, Snapping Seven-Year Winning Streak

Bitcoin was on track Friday to post its first October loss in seven years, breaking a streak that had given the month a “lucky” reputation among cryptocurrency traders. The world’s largest digital currency is set to fall nearly 5% for the month, trading around $66,800 Friday afternoon, as investors pulled back from risk assets amid Read More…

Montana manufacturing outpaces most other sectors, generating $2 billion in wages

Montana’s manufacturing sector remains a cornerstone of the state’s economy, according to three reports on the state of manufacturing recently released by the Montana Manufacturing Extension Center at Montana State University and authored by the Bureau of Business and Economic Research at the University of Montana. The manufacturing sector generated more than $2 billion in Read More…

Dakota Foundry Named One of America’s Top 100 Small Businesses by U.S. Chamber of Commerce

Dakota Foundry, a vertically integrated grey and ductile iron foundry, has been named one of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce “CO—100 Top 100 Small Businesses in America”, a national recognition that highlights the company’s innovation, craftsmanship, and impact on American manufacturing. The CO—100 designation honors small businesses demonstrating exceptional innovation and influence across the country. Read More…

All in: Business

Meghan McCain calls CNN’s Kaitlan Collins a ‘hack’ and ‘imbecile,’ demands she be stripped of WH credentials

Meghan McCain is calling for CNN Chief White House Correspondent Kaitlan Collins to have her press credentials revoked, calling her an “absolute imbecile” and a “pure partisan hack” following a tense exchange during a White House press briefing. McCain’s criticism comes after Collins clashed with Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard and White House Press Read More…

Inside the ‘arms race’ to win the new luxury cruise ship market

Once viewed by wealthier vacationers as mass market, déclassé venues for watery cocktails, garish waterslides, buffet stampedes and Norovirus outbreaks, cruises are now chic. Everyone from Martha Stewart and Tom Brady to Kendall Jenner and Dakota Johnson was onboard the Ritz’s recent launch of Luminara, the hotel brand’s new ship, which has been floating around the Mediterranean. Savvy investors and luxury brands are Read More…

Target drops popular perk for shoppers after more than a decade

Target is dropping its price-matching policy with rivals Walmart and Amazon after more than a decade as the company aims to reposition itself amid slowing sales and competitive pressure. Under its new Price Match Guarantee policy, taking effect July 28, customers of the Minneapolis-based retail giant will be able to price match other Target products in the Read More…

Trump makes gains on economy, policy with small business owners, even among Democrats

Join us for Small Business Playbook Virtual Event on August 6th! Register now! Small Business Playbook Events Small Business Playbook Event 2025 Concerns about inflation and tariffs are still relatively high on Main Street, but small business owners are more confident in the economy and business outlook than earlier in 2025. President Trump’s approval ratings Read More…

Simplot to Acquire Clarebout Potatoes

The J.R. Simplot Company and Clarebout Potatoes announced this week Simplot’s intention to acquire the operating business of Clarebout, in a move that unites two family-owned leaders in the frozen potato industry. The transaction, expected to close in 2025 pending regulatory approvals, will significantly expand Simplot’s footprint in Europe and enhance its global processing and Read More…

KRAMBU Unveils Plans for World’s Most Sustainable AI Factory in Montana

KRAMBU, Inc., a sustainable high-performance computing infrastructure company, announced this week the development of a next-generation AI data center campus in Montana—what the company is calling the world’s most sustainable “AI Factory.” The project is designed to redefine the future of artificial intelligence infrastructure by integrating direct liquid cooling (DLC) technology, renewable energy sources, and Read More…

Bozeman Tops List as Most Expensive U.S. Airport for Summer Car Rentals, Survey Finds

Travelers heading to Montana this summer may face sticker shock at the rental car counter. Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport (BZN) has been named the most expensive airport in the country for car rentals, according to a new survey from travel website Cheapcarrental.com. The survey, which analyzed rental rates across 100 U.S. airports for the peak Read More…

Irrigation in Montana: Sustaining agriculture, landscapes and communities

Montana’s wide-open spaces and fluctuating climate make water a precious resource. Across the state, irrigation is central not only to agriculture but also to the health of residential landscapes and community green spaces. From century-old canal systems feeding hay fields to backyard sprinklers keeping lawns green in dry summers, water use in Montana requires careful Read More…

Bridger Aerospace Welcomes Executive Order to Reshape Wildland Firefighting

Bridger Aerospace Group Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: BAER), one of the nation’s leading aerial firefighting companies, today praised the recent Executive Order aimed at restructuring the U.S. wildland firefighting system and emphasized the impact of a significant increase in the Department of the Interior’s fiscal 2026 budget request. Sam Davis, CEO of Bridger Aerospace, said, “Bridger Read More…

Gianforte Appoints Marta Bertoglio as Department of Commerce Director

Governor Greg Gianforte announced the appointment of State Representative Marta Bertoglio as the new Director of the Montana Department of Commerce, signaling a continued focus on economic growth and job creation in the state. “Marta has been a strong partner in the Legislature and is a driven leader, dedicated to making Montana the best place Read More…

Performance Engineering Earns National Honors

Performance Engineering continues to gain national attention for combining rapid growth with a people-first workplace culture, earning two prestigious 2025 awards from the Zweig Group: Best Firms to Work For and Hot Firm. The Montana-based civil engineering firm was recognized as one of the 100 fastest-growing Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) firms in the U.S. Read More…

Clearwater Properties Honors Top-Producing Agents of 2024 Across the Mountain West

Clearwater Properties, a leading real estate brokerage in the Mountain West, has announced the recipients of its prestigious Top Producer Awards for 2024, recognizing the firm’s ten highest-performing agents and brokers across the region in total sales volume. The annual awards, presented each April, celebrate not only exceptional production but also the agents’ deep commitment Read More…

Trump’s tax bill could end popular ‘SALT’ deduction workaround for certain business owners

Currently, many pass-through businesses use a workaround — the pass-through entity, or PTE, tax — to bypass the $10,000 limit on the federal deduction for state and local taxes, known as SALT. The House-approved bill could block certain pass-through businesses from using the popular state-level tax break. However, this provision could still face changes amid Read More…

House Republican budget bill calls for bigger ‘pass-through’ business tax break. Who could benefit

For 2025, the Section 199A deduction for qualified business income, or QBI, is worth up to 20% of eligible revenue, with some limitations. This applies to so-called pass-through businesses, including sole proprietors, partnerships and S-corporations, along with some trusts and estates. The House Republican bill would make the deduction permanent, raise the maximum tax break Read More…

Daktronics to Participate in Craig-Hallum’s 22nd Annual Institutional Investor Conference

Daktronics, Inc. (Nasdaq: DAKT), a dynamic video communication displays and control systems company, announced today that Interim Chief Executive Officer Brad Wiemann and Acting Chief Financial Officer Howard Atkins will represent the company at the Craig-Hallum Capital Group’s 22nd Annual Institutional Investor Conference. The event will take place on Wednesday, May 28, 2025, in Minneapolis, Read More…

Bridger Aerospace Lands Record-Breaking Wildfire Contracts for Super Scooper Aircraft

Bridger Aerospace Group Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: BAER, BAERW), one of the nation’s leading aerial firefighting companies, announced today it has secured two unprecedented 120-day task orders from the U.S. Forest Service for its fleet of CL-415EAF “Super Scooper” aircraft. The contracts, each covering two aircraft, mark the longest task orders ever awarded to Bridger for Read More…

Montana Ranks Third Nationally for Lowest Unemployment

Montana continues to outperform much of the nation in employment, ranking third among U.S. states for the lowest unemployment rate, Governor Greg Gianforte announced. The state’s jobless rate held steady at 2.7% in April, trailing only South Dakota and North Dakota. The figure marks an ongoing trend of low unemployment in Montana, maintaining 46 consecutive Read More…