Outside The Box: The Blowback Against Stock Buybacks

Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo raised concerns around Russia's shadow fleet of oil tankers after a vessel was seized on Thursday as part of an investigation into a ruptured undersea cable. Jussi Nukari/Lehtikuva/AFP via Getty ImagesAn undersea cable in the Baltic Sea that provides power to Estonia was cut on Wednesday.

"The Flipping El Moussas" season two premiered on HGTV. HGTVOn Thursday, season two of "The Flipping El Moussas" premiered on HGTV. Tarek and Heather Rae El Moussa flipped a three-bedroom, two-bathroom home in Los Angeles. The flip took longer than they anticipated, but they still made a profit on the property.

Meta Quest. MetaMeta's Horizon app topped Apple's App Store on Christmas Day, signaling strong VR headset demand. Quest headsets, starting at $299, are gaining mainstream traction in virtual reality. Despite strong demand, Meta's Reality Labs faces significant financial losses. Meta's virtual reality ambitions got a Christmas boost this year. On Christmas Day, the company's Meta Horizon app, which users must download to set up the Quest virtual reality headsets developed by Meta, was the top free app in Apple's App Store in the US and the UK, indicating strong holiday demand.

Competition for the New York City affordable-housing lottery is stiff: On average, there are 450 applications received for each rental unit.urfinguss/Getty Images/iStockphotoFor some New Yorkers, winning the NYC housing lottery is the only way they can afford to stay in the city. But competition is tough: There are about 3.5 million applications each year.

As an entrepreneur and mom, Lindsay Jang has struggled with work-life balance. Lindsay JangLindsay Jang moved to Hong Kong 15 years ago and has launched five businesses. Despite not all of Jang's ventures being successful, she says she has learned something from each. At 43, the entrepreneur and mom says she's finally found ways to disconnect and find work-life balance.

Justin K. Aller/Getty ImagesNetflix didn't crash when it streamed two NFL games on Christmas. Even better for the NFL and Netflix: The streaming-only games got audiences that were only a bit smaller than a TV game. Streaming live sports used to be a novelty. Not anymore. Netflix passed two tests on Wednesday when it streamed live NFL football games for the first time in its history.