—The U.S. Senate confirmed billionaire investor Wilbur Ross as the next commerce secretary. More here

—SpaceX CEO Elon Musk announced his company will send two private citizens on a trip around the moon sometime in 2018. More here

—Islamist militants in the Philippines beheaded a German tourist whom they abducted last November. More here

—We’re tracking the news stories of the day below. All updates are in Eastern Standard Time (GMT -5).