Bill Gates has outdone himself yet again: For Reddit’s annual Secret Santa gift exchange, in which Reddit users are matched up with Internet strangers to give presents, the billionaire shipped an 81-pound package to one lucky recipient, u/szor. Gates, who lives in Washington, sent the package via Fedex overnight “across eight shipment zones,” Szor posted on Reddit. It was her 95th Reddit gift exchange, a detail Gates acknowledged by labeling each side of the box with the number. Gates also sent

When it comes to habits, breaking the bad ones is just as important as establishing the good ones. If you want to build your wealth in 2020, start by eliminating these five costly habits. If your company doesn’t offer one, or you’re self-employed, consider other options, like contributing to a traditional or Roth IRA. But the less you pay now, the more you’ll pay later. If your goal is savings specific, figure out how much you’d have to save per month or per paycheck over the course of the year

If you’ve been consistently saving for retirement for years (or even decades), you may start to wonder whether it’s possible to over-invest in your future. “How much to save (and whether to save) for retirement is entirely based on the goals and priorities of the individual,” Samantha Gorelick, a certified financial planner at Brunch & Budget, tells CNBC Make It. Ensure your retirement plan makes senseIf you aren’t sure where you’re headed with your retirement plan, Boneparth recommends taking t

Migraine sufferers now have a new tool in their arsenal to fight the debilitating headaches with federal approval of Allergan’s first oral medication proven to ease migraine symptoms within two hours — even after they’ve started. The Food and Drug Administration approved Ubrelvy, the company’s ubrogepant treatment, on Monday. The oral medication is aimed at treating migraines in patients who are unresponsive to common migraine treatments, such as triptans, or are at risk of cardiovascular disord

Piper Jaffray: Netflix will grow subscribers next quarter despite increase competitionMike Olson, senior research analyst at Piper Jaffray, explains his bullish stance on Netflix on CNBC’s “Squawk on the Street.”

Thousands across South Asia marvel at last eclipse of the decade3 Hours AgoThousands of people gazed at the sky across Southern Asia as the sun transformed into a dark orb during the last solar eclipse of the decade.

Russian President Vladimir Putin opens rail route linking country’s two biggest cities to Crimea2 Hours AgoRussian President Vladimir Putin just opened a rail line that linked the country’s two biggest cities to the Crimean Peninsula. He built the $13.4 billion project against the wishes of Ukrainian leaders, and said the route was proof Russia could deliver on big infrastructure projects.

Amazon just reported that consumers not only bought billions of dollars in stuff from it over the holidays, but purchased “tens of millions” of Amazon devices. The CNBC Millionaire Survey finds that almost half of wealthy Americans (49%) believe the U.S. government should pursue potential antitrust violations for large tech companies including Alphabet/Google, Amazon and Facebook. President Trump has railed against Amazon and its CEO Jeff Bezos, while also making claims of social media bias and

The year also marked when Beats Electronics, owned by super-producer and businessman Andre Young (aka Dr. Dre) was acquired by Apple for $3 billion. This major deal helped Dr. Dre secure his top spot as the highest-paid musician of the 2010s, during which time he earned a reported $950 million, according to Forbes’ list of the 10 top-earning musicians of the decade. Unlike Taylor Swift and Beyonce, who come in second, earning $825 million, and third, earning $685 million respectively, Dr. Dre di

Amazon said in a statement that “billions” of items were ordered worldwide and “tens of millions” Amazon devices were purchased. Apple – Shares of the tech giant gained more than 1% as the Nasdaq topped 9,000 for the first time. The S&P also hit a new all-time high, fueled by optimism over a U.S.-China trade deal. Facebook, Amazon and Alphabet were among the other FAANG stocks moving higher on Thursday. Marathon Oil – Shares of the exploration and production company gained more than 1% as oil pr

Rey and Kylo Ren face off in “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.” “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” gained momentum at the box office this week, hauling in $32 million in the U.S. on Christmas Day, the second-highest single-day gross on that holiday in box office history. Only “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” had a better Christmas showing, garnering $49.3 million in 2015. Each film was also the highest grossing on Christmas Day during those years as well. “The Rise of Skywalker” led a terrific si

United Airlines employees picket outside the United terminal at O’Hare International Airport on June 16, 2016 in Chicago, Illinois. The president of American Airlines’ pilots union told CNBC he wants the airline to similarly share with pilots a portion of American’s eventual compensation from Boeing. The last commercial airline pilot strike in the United States was by Spirit Airlines pilots in 2010. Delta pilots won a 16% raise in 2016, a 3% rise in 2017 and 2018 and a 4% increase in 2019. “We’r

Walgreens will be the first retailer in the U.S. to test an on-demand drone delivery service with Wing in Christiansburg, Virginia next month. The rule will require drones to implement a remote ID system, which will make it possible for third parties to track them. The measure will help law enforcement identify unauthorized drones that may pose a security threat, paving the way for wider adoption of commercial drone technology. The rule said that the FAA expects all eligible drones in the U.S. t

As the 2010s come to a close, Okta co-founder Todd McKinnon leads a $14.6 billion company at the center of the rapidly expanding cloud economy. In late 2008, as the economy suffered through its worst recession since the Great Depression, McKinnon became convinced that he should leave his senior executive role at Salesforce. So he put together a Google Slides presentation for his wife that he titled, “Proposal to move to a new job starting a company (Why I’m not crazy).” McKinnon had also just be

Tech startups have created bug bounty programs to protect against data breachesCNBC’s Kate Rooney talks about silicon valley companies using freelance hackers to help find potential loop holes before data breaches occur on “Squawk Alley.”

Many people struggle with overspending regardless of how much they earn, according to certified financial planner Josh Nelson, founder and CEO of Keystone Financial Services in Loveland, Colorado. The survey asked 2,000 adults about their budgeting habits and weekly spending. Topping the list of categories where respondents overspend is online shopping, followed by grocery shopping and subscription services. TOP 10 WEEKLY BUDGET BUSTERS Online shopping: 40%Grocery shopping: 39%Subscription servi

Senator Lisa Murkowski said she was “disturbed” by the Senate leader’s approach to working with White House counsel on the impeachment trial of President Donald Trump, saying there should be distance between the two. Republicans have a 53-seat majority in the Senate, where 51 votes are needed to pass a set of rules for the Trump trial. The actual impeachment trial in the Senate would need a two-thirds majority vote for a conviction. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has not yet transmitted the articles

Stock futures pointed to a higher open on Thursday morning, adding to a record-setting year-end rally. Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose about 36 points, implying a 31-point gain at the open. Futures on the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite were also trading higher. The S&P 500 has risen 2.6% this month and 8.2% this quarter, bring the year-to-date gains to 28.6%. In a shortened Christmas Eve session Tuesday, the S&P 500 finished flat and the Nasdaq rose to another record.

Gold prices rose above the key $1,500 mark to a near two-month peak on Thursday, as uncertainty around the signing of the ‘phase one’ trade deal between the United States and China boosted safe-haven flows into the metal. Spot gold rose 0.43% to $1,505.10 per ounce. Bullion has gained about 17% this year so far and is on track for its best year since 2010, owing to a protracted U.S.-China trade dispute and its impact on the global economy. “Technically, gold prices have broken out above and tren

Oil pumpjacks in the Permian Basin oil field are getting to work as crude oil prices gain. Oil prices rose on Thursday, buoyed by a potential breakthrough in the Sino-U.S. trade war and OPEC-led efforts to constrain supply, although trading was quiet as many markets were in holiday mode. “All of which is pointing to a stronger performance for oil prices in Q1 than anyone had thought only two months ago.” [nL1N28Y0A0]The roughly 17-month trade war hit global economic growth and demand for oil, le