The daily business briefing: October 17, 2016

1. Pepsi vows to cut calories in response to health concerns

PepsiCo Chairman and CEO Indra Nooyi pledged Monday that the company would significantly cut calories in its beverages in response to health concerns over sugary sodas and other drinks. PepsiCo says that by 2025 at least two-thirds of its beverages will contain 100 calories or less per 12-ounce serving. It also plans to step up its focus on zero or lower-calorie products. "Over the last decade, we have made progress in reducing sugar," Nooyi said. "But there's a lot more we needed to do because countries which loved sugar were growing faster than countries which were consuming lower-sugar products."

CNBC

2. Dollar rises as investors seek safer assets

The dollar reached a seven-month high and U.S. and European bond yields hit their highest levels since June on Monday, while global stocks edged down. The shifts came as investors steered clear of riskier assets for several reasons, including concerns over a possible interest rate hike in the U.S., the outcome of the American presidential election, the British exit from the European Union, and the health of European banks. Investors will have fresh earnings reports and economic data to consider this week, starting with U.S. industrial production figures on Monday.

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Reuters

3. Tesla and Panasonic announce new solar-energy collaboration

Tesla Motors and Panasonic announced Sunday that they had signed an agreement to produce solar-energy equipment in Buffalo, New York. The two companies already are collaborating on a massive battery plant outside Reno. The latest deal came as Tesla is trying to acquire solar-energy firm SolarCity. Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and chairman and chief financier of SolarCity, aims to merge his companies to offer one-stop shopping for electric cars and solar-powered electricity to charge them.

Bloomberg USA Today

4. Casino stocks suffer as China cracks down on gambling firms

Asian casino company stocks plunged on Monday as China appeared to crack down on foreign gambling firms. The Chinese government said Monday that it had detained a senior executive of Australia's largest casino operator and two other Australians in an investigation of suspected gambling crimes. Crown Resorts told the Australian Securities Exchange that Jason O'Connor, head of Crown's VIP International team, was one of 18 Crown employees facing questioning by Chinese authorities. Crown shares closed down by 13.9 percent.

BBC News The Associated Press

5. Bank of America beats estimates

Bank of America reported Monday that its third-quarter profit rose to 41 cents a share, up from 38 cents a share in the same period last year, and beating analysts' expectations of 34 cents a share. The Charlotte, North Carolina, lender — the second largest bank in the U.S. by assets — said its revenue rose by 3 percent to $21.6 billion, beating the average analyst forecast of $20.97 billion thanks to strong trading revenue. J.P. Morgan Chase and Citigroup last week also reported strong trading, which helped offset weaker consumer-based business. Bank of America shares rose by about 1 percent in pre-market trading. The bank's stock has fallen by 4.9 percent this year.

MarketWatch