The retail apocalypse

More than 3,000 stores opened this year in the U.S.—but almost 6,800 closed. This comes while there is sky-high consumer confidence, unemployment is at a historical low, and the U.S. economy keeps growing. Those are normally all the ingredients for a retail boom, yet more chains are filing for bankruptcy and rated distressed than during the financial crisis.

The GOP tax plan could make your divorce more expensive. To help pay for sweeping tax cuts, the plan includes a controversial provision that would scrap the break divorcees get for paying alimony. If section 1309 of the tax bill becomes law, financial planners and divorce lawyers say the result could hurt all but the uber-wealthy. Senate tax writers plan to unveil their bill on Thursday.

Almost a third of millennials would rather own bitcoin than stock. That’s according to a survey by venture capital firm Blockchain Capital, which also found that 42 percent of those aged 18 to 34 were at least somewhat familiar with the cryptocurrency, compared with 15 percent among those ages 65 and up. Bitcoin surged to a record high on Wednesday on bets that a major test of the biggest digital currency has been called off.

Democrats score wins in key governor races. New Jersey's election of Democrat Phil Murphy was never much in doubt, but the decisive win in Virginia of Democratic Lieutenant Governor Ralph Northam has national implications. Voters turned away from Republican candidates aligned with Trump and telegraphed a fight for his party’s hold on Congress in 2018 midterm races.

Bill O’Reilly’s Fox deal shielded him from getting fired. The former Fox News star's contract said that he could not be dismissed over unproven harassment allegations, a fresh revelation that casts doubt over corporate governance standards at Rupert Murdoch’s media empire. Contractual clauses are coming under scrutiny as sexual-harassment claims sweep through Hollywood and beyond.

Apple is ramping up work on an augmented-reality headset. Seeking a breakthrough product to succeed the iPhone, the tech giant aims to have technology ready for the headset in 2019 and could ship a product as early as 2020. Apple is also working on a redesigned, high-end iPad for as early as 2018 that incorporates key iPhone X features such as slimmer edges and facial recognition.

A once-fanciful notion is edging closer to reality. The Pentagon has taken a keen interest in “directed-energy” platforms as a way to protect U.S. forces from drone swarms, missiles and mortar fire. This week, the Air Force Research Lab awarded Lockheed Martin a $26 million contract to develop a high-energy laser system to test on a tactical fighter jet by 2021.