Business category, Page 276
As China retaliates on tariffs, stock markets take deep diveVideo
U.S. markets plunged Monday as China said it would raise steep tariffs on $60 billion in U.S. goods, upping the stakes of a trade war that threatens to imperil the global economy. The Dow Jones industrial average closed down 617 points, or nearly 2.4%, as investors feared that a trade...
Condom company’s plugin blocks baby photos on Facebook
Your friends just can’t stop posting photos of their new babies on Facebook. And it’s infuriating. Well condom maker Skyn is here to rescue you — with a “social media contraceptive.” They’ve come up with a Google Chrome extension that filters out those annoying photos on your Facebook feed and...
Escalating U.S.-China trade war sinks stocks
NEW YORK — U.S. stocks moved sharply lower Monday on Wall Street and extended the market’s slide into a second week as investors seek shelter from an escalating trade war between the U.S. and China. The world’s largest economies had seemed on track to resolve the ongoing trade dispute that...
Supreme Court rules against Apple, allowing lawsuit targeting App Store to proceed
Apple suffered a significant defeat at the Supreme Court on Monday, when the justices ruled that consumers could forge ahead with a lawsuit against the iPhone giant over the way it manages its App Store. The 5-4 decision could spell serious repercussions for one of Apple’s most lucrative lines of...
First Commonwealth to acquire 14 Santander Bank branches
Indiana-based First Commonwealth Bank announced it is buying 14 branches of Santander Bank in central Pennsylvania. First Commonwealth, which also has been in growth mode in Ohio, last week applied to the Pennsylvania Department of Banking and Securities for approval to purchase assets and assume liabilities for the branches located...
Amazon to employees: We’ll pay you to quit and haul packages
NEW YORK — Amazon, which is racing to deliver packages faster, is turning to its employees with a proposition: Quit your job and we’ll help you start a business delivering Amazon packages. The offer, announced Monday, comes as Amazon seeks to speed up its shipping time from two days to...
Washington state to offer first ‘public option’ insurance in U.S.
SEATTLE — Washington is set to become the first state to enter the private health insurance market with a universally available public option. A set of tiered public plans will cover standard services and are expected to be up to 10% cheaper than comparable private insurance, thanks in part to...
Uber’s hyped-up IPO hits potholes on 1st day
NEW YORK — After much hype leading up to the largest initial public offering in five years, Uber hit a few potholes on its first day of trading, closing down 8% and reflecting lingering doubts about its future prospects for profitability. The ride-hailing company injected investors with a dose of...
Stocks rebound as hopes rise that trade tensions will ease
Major U.S. stock indexes turned higher in late afternoon trading Friday, shaking off an early slump triggered by the latest escalation in the trade war between the U.S. and China. The market fell sharply in the early going after the U.S. raised tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods...
Here’s how tariffs on Chinese goods will affect U.S. consumers
WASHINGTON — With the Trump administration more than doubling tariffs on billions of dollars of Chinese imports, will Americans soon see higher prices on store shelves? Yes, but it may take a few weeks. U.S. import taxes on $200 billion of Chinese goods jumped to 25% on Friday, from 10%,...
Natty Light looking to fill sweet summer intern gig
When you get back to college in the fall, you will surely be asked by friends: “What did you do over the summer?” If the answer to that is anything other than, “I was a summer intern for Natty Light,” then you have failed at summer. That’s right: The crew...
In France, McDonald’s ditches fries for cucumbers in Happy Meals
Hopefully, the irony isn’t lost in translation. Instead of french fries in its Happy Meals, young diners at McDonald’s restaurants in France will be getting Petits Concombres (“little cucumbers”), reports VegNews. It’s all for the health of it’s customers. “The arrival of the Little Cucumbers is fully in line with...
Coal’s slide to continue in U.S. as renewables fill the gap
BILLINGS, Mont. — U.S. demand for coal to generate electricity will continue its slide in coming months despite efforts by the Trump administration to prop up the struggling industry, federal officials said Thursday. Renewable energy sources are expected to fill much of the gap left by coal’s decline, according to...
China Mobile blocked from offering phone service in U.S.
U.S. communications regulators on Thursday rejected a Chinese telecom company’s application to provide service in the U.S. due to national security risks amid an escalation in tensions between the two countries. The Federal Communications Commission on Thursday voted unanimously, 5-0 across party lines, to reject China Mobile International USA Inc.’s...
High-tech sex toy for women wins back a rescinded award
ARLINGTON, Va. — A trade group has reinstated an award to the makers of a robotic sex toy for women that it had taken away four months ago for not keeping with its image. The Consumer Technology Association on Wednesday restored the Consumer Electronics Show’s 2019 Innovation Award in the...
Parents can’t delete what kids tell Amazon voice assistant
Amazon met with skepticism from some privacy advocates and members of Congress last year when it introduced its first kid-oriented voice assistant , along with brightly colored models of its Echo Dot speaker designed for children. Now those advocates say the kids’ version of Amazon’s Alexa won’t forget what children...
Schick owner buys Harry’s in new shaving war alliance
NEW YORK — The owner of Schick razors is acquiring upstart shaving company Harry’s for $1.37 billion, continuing a trend of consolidation in the shaving industry, where established brands have struggled with the rise of digital-savvy newcomers. About 79% of the deal is cash, and the remainder stock. Harry’s has...
Uber and Lyft drivers strike for pay transparency
SAN FRANCISCO – Uber and Lyft drivers in multiple cities nationwide launched strikes and demonstrations Wednesday to lobby for better pay and transparency. The demonstrations, which could prove disruptive to riders and raise the profile of movements to secure better driver pay and benefits, highlight a contradiction: Technology has long...
Trump: GM to sell Lordstown, Ohio, plant to electric truck company
DETROIT — General Motors plans to sell its shuttered factory in Lordstown, Ohio, to a company that builds electric trucks. President Donald Trump announced the deal with a company named Workhorse on Twitter Wednesday morning. He also wrote that GM plans to spend $700 million at three locations in Ohio...
Walmart raises minimum age to buy tobacco to 21
NEW YORK — Walmart said Wednesday that it will raise the minimum age to buy tobaccoproducts and e-cigarettes at its U.S. stores to 21 amid growing pressure from regulators to cut tobacco sales and use among minors. The world’s largest retailer also said it will also stop selling fruit and...
Oops! Small businesses are vulnerable to marketing mistakes
NEW YORK — When Tom Scarda heard about a franchise opportunity called Super Supper, he fell in love with it. He was so confident that he and his business partner decided against researching the concept — a marketing mistake that led to the failure of the business. “It was great...
Burn victims sue Conagra after cans of Pam cooking spray explode
DETROIT — Eight burn victims sued the maker of Pam cooking spray Tuesday, saying they were severely injured when cans of the spray exploded in their kitchens. The plaintiffs’ attorney, J. Craig Smith, says larger cans of Pam and similar cooking sprays made by Conagra Brands have a faulty, U-shaped...
Worsening U.S.-China trade tensions rattle financial marketsVideo
The Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbled more than 470 points Tuesday amid a broad sell-off on Wall Street as the United States and China moved closer to an escalation of their already costly trade war. The United States was set to impose higher tariffs on China on Friday, a day...
Steel industry leaders see brighter future, tout tariffs at Pittsburgh conference
The American steel industry is basking in the glow of a revival sparked by technological advances and a more level playing field created by tariffs President Trump imposed last year on imported products dumped in the domestic market, industry leaders said Tuesday at a conference in Pittsburgh. The current “golden...
Nestle to cut 4,000 jobs in delivery changes
Nestle SA’s U.S. unit will lay off about 4,000 workers as it stops delivering frozen pizza and ice cream directly to stores and instead transitions to a warehouse model that’s becoming an industry standard for Big Food companies looking to trim costs. The company said Tuesday that it’s shutting down...
