MONEY-Herbalife-Loeb-Ackman

Herbalife's stock rallied more than 9% Wednesday, after Third Point, the hedge fund founded by Dan Loeb, said it had taken an 8% stake in the nutritional supplement firm.

MONEY-multilevel-marketing-industry

Lately, all eyes have been on Herbalife, a $4 billion weight loss and nutritional supplement company that hedge fund manger Bill Ackman has attacked as an alleged "pyramid scheme." Herbalife contests those charges, saying its multilevel marketing strategy is above board. But the headlines have brought this huge industry into the spotlight. From lipsticks sold by iconic "Avon ladies" to the popular P90X workout system, multilevel marketing companies represent nearly $30 billion in annual U.S. sales and enlist tens of millions of Americans as independent salespeople. Here's a look at how the industry works.

MONEY-obama-treasury-lew

President Obama will nominate his White House chief of staff, Jacob "Jack" Lew, to be the next U.S. Treasury Secretary on Thursday, a source with knowledge of the nomination tells CNN. Lew, 57, has been the leading candidate for months and would be the second Treasury Secretary during the Obama administration.

MONEY-jack-lew-treasury-signature

Jack Lew, Obama's presumptive nominee for U.S. Treasury Secretary will face many challenges if he is confirmed -- from increasing the debt ceiling to tackling budget cuts. He may also have to change his signature.

MONEY-sec-khuzami

Robert Khuzami, who led enforcement efforts at the Securities and Exchange Commission in the aftermath of the financial crisis, is stepping down, the agency said Wednesday.

MONEY-infrastructure-cyberattacks

America's power, water, and nuclear systems are increasingly being targeted by cybercriminals seeking to gain access to some of the nation's most critical infrastructure.

MONEY-google-wind-farm

More than 90% of Google's revenue comes from search, but some of the company's biggest bets are being made in seemingly unrelated fields. You've heard about Google's driverless cars, virtual-reality glasses and plans for a space elevator. What's less well-known is that the company is also a huge investor in green energy. Google announced another big renewable energy deal on Wednesday, purchasing a $200 million stake in a wind farm in west Texas.

MONEY-nissan-leaf-america

Nissan's all-electric Leaf sedan will soon be made in America. Nissan, which previously made the car exclusively in Japan, will begin producing Leaf models for U.S. consumption this week at its plant in Smyrna, Tenn., where the gas-powered Altima and Maxima are already made.

MONEY-microsoft-messenger-skype

Microsoft will be killing off its Windows Live Messenger chat service on March 15, transitioning its more than 100 million users to Skype.

MONEY-mark-cuban-tweet-fine

Mark Cuban fired off the one of the most expensive tweets in history on Saturday. The media mogul and Dallas Mavericks owner was fined $50,000 for his Jan. 5 tweet criticizing NBA officiating, according to USA Today and other news outlets.

MONEY-tmobile-bullpen-phones

Major League Baseball, a sport that loves clinging to outdated traditions, is about to embrace modern technology for one of its most frequently used tools -- at least for teams with lousy pitching. The landline phones that managers pick up to summon relief pitchers will be replaced this year with cell phones.

MONEY-pebble-ship-date

The highly hyped Pebble e-watch, which raised a record-setting $10 million on crowdfunding site Kickstarter last year, will finally start shipping January 23.

MONEY-germany-economy

Disappointing German industrial output and orders data rekindled fears Wednesday that Europe's powerhouse economy may have stalled at the end of last year.

MONEY-private-equity-ipo-china

China's stalled market for new share listings is severely limiting the ability of private equity funds to cash out their investments in the country, according to a new research report from China First Capital.

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