Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern claim that their proposed merger could reduce carload shipment transit times by up to two days and reduce costs, but many shippers are skeptical the move would deliver the intended benefits. Single-line service makes sense from an efficiency perspective, but previous mergers have failed to live up to service-related promises, said American Chemistry Council President and CEO Chris Jahn.

The Trump administration has announced trade agreements with Malaysia and Cambodia, as well as frameworks for future deals with Thailand and Vietnam, aiming to reduce trade barriers for US goods. Malaysia and Cambodia will lower tariffs and buy more US goods, according to the administration. Meanwhile, the US and China are nearing a potential trade deal, and Trump has said he intends to increase tariffs on Canada.

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and President Donald Trump have signed an agreement to secure the supply of rare earths and critical minerals, responding to China's tightened export controls. The deal aims to create resilient supply chains through coordinated economic policy and investment, with Takaichi expressing a desire to usher in a "golden age" of US-Japan relations and Trump praising Japanese orders for US military hardware.

Corteva Agriscience, originally a DuPont spinoff, will relocate its Delaware office from Chestnut Run Plaza to downtown Wilmington's 1000 North West building, previously DuPont's headquarters. "We're pleased to continue our footprint in Delaware, where we and our heritage companies have enjoyed more than 200 years of partnership," said Corteva's Cornel Fuerer.

Flexible packaging generates $151.4 billion in economic output and employs nearly 400,000 workers in the US, according to a report from the Flexible Packaging Association. "As our members continue to invest in new materials, technologies, and recycling innovations, the economic and environmental value of flexible packaging will only continue to grow," says CEO Dan Felton.

America's economic growth is increasingly driven by massive AI infrastructure investment, with tech giants pouring trillions into data centers and software while traditional manufacturing continues to contract. While spending on data centers is up 18% this year, creating jobs in construction and trades, it is also straining power supplies and diverting capital from factory construction, which is down 2.5%, highlighting the tension between the White House's AI ambitions and promise to revive US manufacturing.

Paul Lavallee, global market manager for Kynar Coatings at Arkema, discusses the importance of paints and coatings on the "ASME TechCast" podcast. Lavallee highlights coatings developed for the Thomas Point Shoal Lighthouse and the Ralph D. Turlington Florida Education Center, emphasizing their role in protecting structures and improving energy efficiency.

Researchers at Adelaide University in Australia have developed a simple and scalable method to upcycle a variety of common plastics, such as polyethylene and polypropylene, into high-performance carbon nanomaterials. The technique employs lamellar transition metal chloride salts as both template and catalyst, facilitating the confined carbonization of plastics into layered structures.

Instead of waiting for permission from others, living authentically requires you to consciously permit yourself to act in ways that align with your values, including taking risks and expressing vulnerability, says Alaina Love, the CEO of Purpose Linked Consulting. In this interview with SmartBrief's Candace Chellew, Love outlines how permission works and how her new book, "Permission to Be You," can provide a "coach in a box" to help you recognize and honor who you already are.

On October 20, the Alliance for Chemical Distribution (ACD) and the American Chemistry Council (ACC) proudly hosted the Swings for STEM golf tournament at Lansdowne Golf Course in Leesburg, Virginia. The event culminated in a $111,000 donation benefitting the Future of STEM Scholars Initiative (FOSSI) and Creating Exciting Futures in STEM (CEFinSTEM), surpassing last year's inaugural donation of $75,000. Read more.