Business category, Page 163
‘Kill more’: Facebook fails to detect hate against Rohingya
JAKARTA, Indonesia — A new report has found that Facebook failed to detect blatant hate speech and calls to violence against Myanmar’s Rohingya Muslim minority years after such behavior was found to have played a determining role in the genocide against them. The report shared exclusively with The Associated Press...
Liz Weston: How to keep your tax return from getting hung up
There may never be a good time to draw the IRS’ attention, but this year you really want to avoid extra scrutiny. The IRS is so understaffed and overwhelmed that even a tiny mistake could delay your refund for months. A return that requires “manual processing” — basically, any action...
Labor foe Howard Schultz returns as Starbucks union effort grows
From the time he bought Starbucks in 1987 to the time he stepped down as chairman in 2018, Howard Schultz consistently — and successfully — fought attempts to unionize Starbucks’ U.S. stores and roasting plants. But Schultz — who was recently named Starbucks’ interim chief executive — never confronted a...
Vail Resorts announces raise in base minimum wage to $20 an hour next ski season
Vail Resorts, the parent company of Seven Springs, Hidden Valley and Laurel Mountain ski areas, announced this week the company will be increasing its minimum wage to $20 per hour for next ski season. The company’s new Chief Executive Officer Kirsten Lynch announced the $20 per hour minimum wage for...
New owners of Seven Springs, Hidden Valley, Laurel Mountain optimistic about futureVideo
As the ski season at Seven Springs begins to wind down, all indications are that the three most well-known Western Pennsylvania ski resorts — Seven Springs, Hidden Valley and Laurel Mountain— bounced back after the covid-19 pandemic. Although the resorts’ new owner, Vail Resorts Inc., does not disclose resort-specific visitor...
Pa. sports betting slips, but March Madness may bring recovery
Pennsylvania’s sports betting industry took a hit last month, seemingly contributing to a downward trend in revenues recorded at casinos across the state in February, officials said. In all, casinos generated more than $375.6 million in revenues last month, according to a report from the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board. That’s...
Amazon’s withdrawal from Churchill development met with mixed reactions
News that Amazon will not forge ahead with its plans to build a massive warehouse in Churchill was met with mixed reactions Friday. Amazon’s decision to nix the proposed 2.6-million square-foot warehouse, which was to be developed at the former site of the George Westinghouse Research Park, came after more...
LL Bean sales grow 14% during 2nd year of pandemic
FREEPORT, Maine — A greater interest in the outdoors during the pandemic helped to drive double-digit revenue growth for L.L. Bean, allowing the board to provide a healthy bonus for workers Friday. Sales grew by 14% during the retailer’s 2021 fiscal year, the biggest gain since 1993, and a cash...
Amazon drops plans for Churchill warehouse
After more than 50 hours of public hearings and debate lasting some eight months last year, Amazon announced Thursday it was pulling out of its proposed massive warehouse project at the former George Westinghouse Research and Technology Park in Churchill. Amazon said in a statement that it has decided not...
Average U.S. mortgage rates rise; 30-year loan breaches 4%
WASHINGTON — Average long-term U.S. mortgage rates rose this week as the key 30-year loan vaulted over 4% for the first time since May 2019. The increase came amid expectations that with inflation at a four-decade high, the Federal Reserve would raise its benchmark short-term interest rate at its policy...
One of the most basic hotel amenities is disappearing
Whether out of necessity due to staffing shortages, out of respect for social distancing or perhaps just to save money, one of the primary amenities that sets a hotel apart from your home — daily housekeeping — is disappearing. The days of returning to a wrinkle-free duvet are likely gone....
Amazon closes $8.45 billion deal to buy MGM, add 4,000 movies to Prime Video
Amazon has officially acquired MGM Studios for $8.45 billion — a deal that will bring thousands of movies and TV show episodes to Prime Video. The deal was first announced in May 2021. MGM Studios tweeted, “So excited to share that MGM is now part of Prime Video and Amazon...
Stocks open lower as crude oil price turn sharply higher
NEW YORK — Stocks are opening lower on Wall Street Thursday but are still holding on to sizable gains for the week. Traders are turning cautious as oil prices surge again, pushing U.S. benchmark crude up 7% and back above $100 a barrel. That’s a worrisome sign for inflation, which...
War in Ukraine will take global economic toll, group warns
Russia’s war in Ukraine will disrupt commerce and clog up supply chains, slashing economic growth and pushing prices sharply higher around the globe, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development warned Thursday. In a grim new assessment, the 38-country OECD said that over the next year, the conflict would reduce...
Wall Street adds to gains following surge in Chinese markets
Stocks rose in afternoon trading Wednesday and Wall Street added to its gains as markets gather hope that there may be better news on the horizon on inflation, the war in Ukraine and other worries that have been keeping investors unsettled. The S&P 500 rose 1.7% as of 12:06 p.m....
Murrysville PixCams brings live footage of wildlife and more into homes
While PixCams of Murrysville is best known for its live Pittsburgh Hays bald eagle webcam, the small company has been expanding and now has 30 live webcams. They rolled out a new product for the public, businesses and nonprofits to set up their own live webcam system and broadcast it...
Embattled Federal Reserve pick Sarah Bloom Raskin withdraws nominationVideo
WASHINGTON — Sarah Bloom Raskin withdrew her nomination Tuesday to a position on the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors after a key Democrat had joined with all Senate Republicans to oppose her confirmation. West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin announced Monday that he opposed Raskin’s confirmation, and all Republicans in the...
Stocks rally on Wall Street as oil prices keep falling
NEW YORK — Technology companies led stocks broadly higher Tuesday on Wall Street, as oil prices slid sharply for the second day and inflation worries ebbed. The market rally came a day ahead of the Federal Reserve’s highly anticipated interest rate policy update. The S&P 500 rose 2.1%, ending a...
Plane ticket prices will continue to go up, experts say. Here’s why — and how to save
Another mode of transportation has been impacted by the fallout over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as gas prices soar — and it might affect Americans’ vacation plans. The cost of jet fuel for commercial airplanes has also spiked, with prices per gallon rising above $4 at one point since the...
Stocks sway lower and crude oil slides to $100 per barrel
Stocks lost more ground, crude oil prices fell and bond yields rose sharply Monday as anxiety over the war in Ukraine and an upcoming Federal Reserve meeting on interest rates keep global financial markets on edge. The S&P 500 gave up an early gain and closed 0.7% lower after another...
Pennsylvania payrolls, labor force grew in January
Pennsylvania’s payrolls grew again in January, the unemployment rate crept down and the labor force expanded after more than a year of contraction, according to new figures released Friday. Pennsylvania’s unemployment rate dropped a tenth of a percentage point to 5.4% from December’s adjusted rate, according to the state Department...
Stocks slip on Wall Street as oil and inflation worries rise
Stocks slipped on Wall Street Thursday as global markets remain choppy amid uncertainty about where inflation, interest rates and the global economy are heading. The S&P 500 slumped 1.2% in morning trading, on pace for its fifth drop in the last six days. It marks another reversal for U.S. stocks,...
‘Scum of the earth’: Drug victims face Purdue Pharma owners
NEW YORK — Angry, defiant and sometimes tearful, more than two dozen Americans whose lives were upended by the opioid crisis finally had their long-awaited chance Thursday to confront in court some members of the family they blame for fueling it. They were unsparing as they unleashed decades of frustration...
Goldman Sachs to shut down its Russia business
NEW YORK — Goldman Sachs says it is closing its operations in Russia entirely, making it the first major Wall Street bank to do so since Russia invaded Ukraine. Goldman’s announcement comes after Citigroup said it would start winding down its Russia operations. But that process will likely take longer...
U.S. inflation soared 7.9% in past year, a fresh 40-year high
WASHINGTON — Propelled by surging costs for gas, food and housing, consumer inflation jumped 7.9% over the past year, the sharpest spike since 1982 and likely only a harbinger of even higher prices to come. The increase reported Thursday by the Labor Department reflected the 12 months ending in February...
