U.S. inching closer to energy independence as oil imports shrink

The U.S. trade deficit shrank unexpectedly in June as American oil production helped to wean the economy off foreign imports.The trade gap narrowed by 7% to $41.5 billion from May’s $44.7 billion, according to a Commerce Department release. The drop was better than the expansion to $44.8 billion that economists had predicted, according to Bloomberg data.

Students Build an Electric Car With Better Range Than a Tesla

Tesla has a new competitor, and it’s not from BMW or General Motors. It’s from Australian university students, whose electric Sunswift eVe set a new world record for fastest average speed—more than 60mph—over 500 kilometers (310 miles) on a single battery charge, on July 23. That’s a big deal: Range is the biggest issue holding back the widespread adoption of EVs, and this record shows the car can drive hundreds of miles at a reasonable highway speed. It stomped on the old record, a mere 45 mph, and drove farther than even the Tesla Model S, the current king of EVs, can go on a full charge.