Megan Myscofski

Gas prices in Montana are on the rise, though not as quickly as in the rest of the country. One expert says prices will likely continue to increase.

Trade with China boomed in the U.S. last year after a new trade deal went into effect, one which the Montana Farm Bureau says was great news for Montana farmers. The deal was crafted to offset losses from former President Trump’s trade war with China.

An international group helping refugees resettle in Missoula plans to expand its operations. The announcement came after news that President Joe Biden is significantly increasing the number of refugees that the U.S. allows into the country.

The Bitterroot Valley is welcoming a third biotech company: vaccine-developer Tonix Pharmaceuticals announced its plans to build a facility near Hamilton late last year. But to local officials, it's more than a new company. Tonix is the latest development in a decade-long effort to turn this southwest Montana valley into a biotech corridor.

Montana topped the list in a new report that ranks best states for starting a new small business. The state's first-place ranking was based on a handful of factors including consumer spending, labor costs and climate by The Blueprint, an off-shoot of the investment advice publication The Motley Fool.

The Montana Senate gave an initial endorsement this week to a bill meant to encourage the spread of high-speed internet across the state. The legislation would introduce tax exemptions for businesses that lay the cable needed for high-speed connections.

Even with vaccine doses rolling out, testing is still critical for tracing and containing the coronavirus. But throughout 2020, the White House Coronavirus Task Force consistently said that Montana wasn’t testing enough to contain the spread. Now, institutions statewide have set up their own testing, and are reporting the results to county health departments.

Amtrak says it will work with the Big Sky Passenger Rail Authority in an effort to bring a rail line back to Southern Montana.

Amtrak offered its support to the new project at the Big Sky Passenger Rail Authority’s second-ever meeting last week. The group is made of a dozen local governments that are proposing a passenger rail line stretching across southern Montana from Wibaux to Sanders counties. 

The Paycheck Protection Program reopened Friday with a more finessed approach, as small business optimism is waning.