Business category, Page 112
Acrisure donates $7.5M to to UPMC Children’s Hospital Foundation for heart treatments
Financial technology company Acrisure on Thursday donated $7.5 million to the UPMC Children’s Hospital Foundation to help advance clinical care, research and the patient experience for children and families at the facility’s Heart Institute. The donation is said to be the largest corporate gift received by the foundation. “This is...
Swedish online fashion retailer blocks 42,000 customers for returning too many purchased items
STOCKHOLM — Sweden-based online fashion retailer Bootz AB said Thursday it has blocked 42,000 customers for returning too many items they had purchased, calling their actions too costly for the company and the environment. Ask Kirkeskov Riis, a spokesman for the multi-brand e-commerce webstore selling clothes and beauty products online,...
Microsoft: State-sponsored Chinese hackers could be laying groundwork for disruption
BOSTON — State-backed Chinese hackers have been targeting U.S. critical infrastructure and could be laying the technical groundwork for the potential disruption of critical communications between the U.S. and Asia during future crises, Microsoft said Wednesday. The targets include sites in Guam, where the U.S. has a major military presence,...
3 ways to pay for your summer vacation
A summer vacation can feel like a seasonal rite of passage — a sacred time to break away from the demands of everyday life in favor of fun and relaxation. But summer can also be an expensive time to travel, which makes it hard to budget enough money for your...
Target removes some LGBTQ merchandise from stores ahead of June Pride month after threats to workers
NEW YORK — Target is removing certain items from its stores and making other changes to its LGBTQ merchandise nationwide ahead of Pride month, after an intense backlash from some customers including violent confrontations with its workers. “Since introducing this year’s collection, we’ve experienced threats impacting our team members’ sense...
Energy Dept. cancels $200M grant to battery maker after GOP criticism over alleged ties to China
WASHINGTON — The Biden administration has canceled plans to award a $200 million grant to a U.S. battery manufacturer amid criticism from Republican lawmakers over the company’s alleged ties to China. Texas-based Microvast was one of 20 companies to win preliminary grants totaling $2.8 billion to boost domestic manufacturing of...
Meta sells Giphy for $53M to Shutterstock after U.K. blocked GIF platform purchase
WASHINGTON — Shutterstock said Tuesday it’s buying Giphy from Meta Platforms for $53 million, the final step to unwind the deal blocked by British regulators, who prevented the Facebook owner from purchasing the GIF-sharing platform over competition concerns. The stock image service said it’s paying cash for Giphy, which has...
Ford to keep AM radio on ’24 models, restore it on 2 electrics from ’23
DETROIT— Owners of new Ford vehicles will be able to tune in to AM radio in their cars, trucks and SUVs after all. CEO Jim Farley wrote in social media postings Tuesday that the company is reversing a decision to scrub the band after speaking with government policy leaders who...
Robert Coury to step down as Viatris executive chairman
Viatris Inc.’s executive chairman Robert Coury will transition from his current position to chairman emeritus and senior strategic adviser to the board and management, the company announced Monday. The move will follow the pharmaceutical company’s annual shareholder meeting in mid-December. Coury will continue to serve in this new non-employee capacity...
Climate protesters dragged from Shell shareholder meeting as they rush stage
LONDON — Climate change protesters were dragged away as they tried to storm the stage at Shell’s shareholder meeting Tuesday, while activist investors added pressure with a resolution demanding the global oil and gas giant beef up its emissions strategy. Shell Chairman Andrew Mackenzie could not start the meeting for...
Fake image of Pentagon explosion briefly sends jitters through stock market
An image of black smoke billowing next to a bureaucratic-looking building spread across social media Monday morning, with the claim that it showed an explosion near the Pentagon. The posts sent a brief shiver through the stock market and were quickly picked up by news outlets outside the U.S., before...
Millennial Money: How to pick a socially responsible bank
It has never been easier to open a bank account, especially with the spread of online services, but there has also never been so much choice about where to put your money. If you’re overwhelmed by your banking options, think about your ability to shape social change with your money....
California employees share what a 4-day work is really like
OAKLAND, California — It’s after noon on a recent Wednesday, and the kitchen and patio at ThredUp’s Oakland headquarters are packed. Employees are eating lunch and chatting around a long table in the kitchen. Smaller groups are clustered outside and enjoying a sunny spring day after weeks of rain. But...
Pittsburgh to get more nonstop flights to Los Angeles via Breeze Airways
Pittsburgh International Airport is getting more direct flights to Los Angeles International Airport because of a shift in service from Breeze Airways. The airport said Monday that Breeze, a low-cost carrier, is starting nonstop service between Pittsburgh and LAX starting Sept. 8. The move comes after Breeze will shift service...
TikTok files lawsuit to overturn Montana’s 1st-in-nation ban on the video sharing app
HELENA, Mont. — Social media company TikTok Inc. filed a lawsuit Monday seeking to overturn Montana’s first-in-the-nation ban on the video sharing app, arguing the law is an unconstitutional violation of free speech rights and is based on “unfounded speculation” that the Chinese government could access users’ data. The lawsuit...
Venmo to be officially available for teenagers
NEW YORK — Teenagers will officially be allowed to open a Venmo account with their parent’s permission, the company said Monday, expanding the popular social payments app to a age demographic that is likely to embrace it almost immediately. Using Venmo won’t necessarily be new to a good number of...
Meta fined $1.3 billion, ordered to stop sending European user data to U.S.
LONDON — The European Union slapped Meta with a record $1.3 billion privacy fine Monday and ordered it to stop transferring user data across the Atlantic by October, the latest salvo in a decadelong case sparked by U.S. cybersnooping fears. The penalty of 1.2 billion euros is the biggest since...
Laurelville Retreat Center launches capital campaign for $2.3M Gathering Place
Laurelville Retreat Center in Mt. Pleasant Township plans to break ground this fall on a $2.3 million meeting space at the center of its 600-acre campus. According to Executive Director Jeanette Lahm, Laurelville leadership has anticipated this expansion for the past 20 years. “The bed space that we have here...
Fed Chair Powell hints at a pause in rate hikes when central bank meets next month
WASHINGTON — Chair Jerome Powell indicated Friday that the Federal Reserve will likely forgo an increase in its benchmark interest rate when it meets in June for the first time since it began raising its key rate 14 months ago to fight high inflation. In signaling so, Powell provided some...
Sheetz orders up more space in Pittsburgh’s Bakery Square
Any given Sheetz convenience store location is recognizable by its bright red décor and liberal use of the letter Z. But its Bakery Square presence is a bit more unassuming in a former industrial space along Penn Avenue where the Altoona-based retailer is expanding, adding 20,000 square feet to accommodate...
Disney scraps plans for $1B Florida campus as fight with DeSantis continues
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — The Walt Disney Co. announced Thursday that it was scrapping plans to build a new campus in central Florida and relocate 2,000 employees from Southern California to work in digital technology, finance and product development. The decision follows a year of attacks from Gov. Ron...
Unions contend UPMC’s market dominance suppresses workers’ wages
Two labor organizations filed an antitrust complaint against UPMC with the Department of Justice accusing the health care giant of using its market dominance to tamp down wages and trap workers in low-paying, unsafe conditions. In a 55-page complaint filed Thursday, SEIU Healthcare Pennsylvania and the Strategic Organizing Center contend...
Sam Zell, billionaire real estate investor, dies
Sam Zell, a Chicago real estate magnate who earned a multibillion-dollar fortune and a reputation as “the grave dancer” for his ability to revive moribund properties died on Thursday. He was 81. Zell died at home due to complications from a recent illness, according to Equity Group Investments, a company...
Fewer Americans apply for jobless benefits, labor market still showing strength
Fewer Americans applied for jobless benefits last week after a previous spike that some took as a sign that higher interest rates were finally cooling the labor market. Applications for jobless claims for the week ending May 6 fell by 22,000 to 242,000, from 264,000 the week before, the Labor...
Oscar Mayer’s iconic Weinermobile gets a new name
The iconic Weinermobile is no more. The hot dog on wheels is going by a new name — Frankmobile. Oscar Mayer announced the name change Wednesday in conjunction with the debut of a hot dog recipe, according to a news release. Known as Weinermobiles since they first hit roads in...
