Business category, Page 5
John Dorfman: After big falls, PayPal, TaskUs look like bargains
No one wants to go to the hospital. But sometimes it’s the best thing for you. That’s the notion behind my quarterly Casualty List. It contains stocks that have been roughed up in the latest quarter, and that I think can recover and thrive. My Casualty List picks from a...
Kevin Hassett says Trump may be right to keep him out as Fed chair
White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett said President Donald Trump may well keep him in his current job, which would eliminate him from contention for the next Federal Reserve chair. “From the beginning, he and I have talked about whether it’s better for me to be here in the West...
Analysts’ darlings often fizzle, but they soared in ’25
Don’t buy the stocks analysts love. Don’t buy the ones they hate, either. Those are conclusions from my 27-year study of the four stocks analysts most adore at the beginning of each year and the four stocks they most despise. The average return on the analysts’ darlings has been 8.2%....
ChatGPT’s free ride is ending: Here’s what OpenAI plans for advertising on the chatbot
OpenAI says it will soon start showing advertisements to ChatGPT users who aren’t paying for a premium version of the chatbot. The artificial intelligence company said Friday it hasn’t yet rolled out ads but will start testing them in the coming weeks. It’s the latest effort by the San Francisco-based...
Shapiro backs plan with Trump admin to slow rising electricity prices amid data center surge
This article is made possible through Spotlight PA’s partnership with NOTUS, a nonpartisan news organization that covers government and politics with the fresh eyes of early career journalists and the expertise of veteran reporters. Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro and Maryland Gov. Wes Moore — both possible 2028 Democratic presidential candidates...
Pittsburgh International Airport adds nonstop flight to Los Angeles on United
United Airlines announced Friday it’s reintroducing daily nonstop service between Pittsburgh International Airport and Los Angeles International Airport, with flights starting March 29. United — which last flew a direct connection between the airports in 2014 — will become the third airline offering this route. Breeze Airways has done so...
Canada agrees to cut tariff on Chinese EVs in return for lower tariffs on Canadian farm products
BEIJING — Breaking with the United States, Canada has agreed to cut its 100% tariff on Chinese electric cars in return for lower tariffs on Canadian farm products, Prime Minister Mark Carney said Friday. Carney made the announcement after two days of meetings with Chinese leaders. He said there would...
‘Sole venture’: Latrobe family takes reins of longtime Mancuso’s Shoe Repair shop
The whirr of sewing machines and light mist of the steam cleaner filled Ron Mancuso’s nearly 50-year-old shoe repair shop Thursday morning as he continued his family’s decades-old tradition: passing along the tricks of the trade. Earlier this month, Latrobe resident Christine Marquis took the reins of Mancuso’s Shoe Repair,...
Trump moves to make data centers pay for surging power costs
President Donald Trump and Northeast governors will direct the nation’s largest grid operator to hold an emergency power auction that would force technology giants to pay for the construction of a fleet of new plants. The unprecedented move, set to come Friday, aims to quell concerns about data centers driving...
Wall Street strengthens as Big Tech bounces back and oil prices ease
NEW YORK — Wall Street is strengthening on Thursday as tech stocks bounce back following an encouraging report from a Taiwanese chip giant and as oil prices ease sharply. The S&P 500 rose 0.7% and was on track to break the two-day losing streak it’s been on since setting an...
Grok blocked from undressing images in places where it’s illegal, X says
BANGKOK — Elon Musk’s AI chatbot Grok won’t be able to edit photos to portray real people in revealing clothing in places where that is illegal, according to a statement posted on X. The announcement late Wednesday followed a global backlash over sexualized images of women and children, including bans...
Taiwan computer chipmaker TSMC’s to expand investment as profit jumps 35%
HONG KONG — Taiwan-based TSMC, the world’s largest computer chipmaker, plans to increase its capital spending by as much as nearly 40% this year after it reported a 35% jump in its net profit for the latest quarter thanks to the boom in artificial intelligence, the company said Thursday. Taiwan...
Officials worry for future as passenger levels at Arnold Palmer Regional Airport hit new lows
Air traffic through Arnold Palmer Regional Airport last year fell to its lowest level since 2011 even as local leaders brace for more decline while questions linger about the future of the facility’s lone commercial carrier. According to figures released this week, just 119,379 passengers went through the gates in...
Irwin OKs plans for Chipotle restaurant
Irwin officials gave the green light to a national Mexican food chain’s plan to build one of its 4,000 restaurants along Route 30 in the borough. Borough council on Wednesday unanimously approved the land development plan from Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. for its eatery at 9174 Route 30, the site...
Verizon outage disrupts calling and data services for phone customers across the country
NEW YORK — Many Verizon customers encountered a widespread outage on Wednesday, disrupting calling and other cellular services across the U.S. The New York-based carrier acknowledged that there was an “issue impacting wireless voice and data services.” Verizon didn’t specify what was causing the disruptions, but said in an update...
PNC mandates 5-day office work week for all employees
PNC said today that all employees will return to the office five days a week starting May 4. In a memo sent Wednesday morning, Chairman and CEO Bill Demchak said PNC has “always been an in-office company. “It’s not just how we operate — it’s part of our culture,” he...
Plans for $500M Bakery Square expansion retooled by Walnut Capital
Dwindling demand for office space has forced a developer to rethink a major expansion of its sprawling Bakery Square development in Pittsburgh’s East End and focus on retail and housing instead of office space. Pittsburgh-based developer Walnut Capital for years has been eyeing a 14-acre, $500 million extension of its...
Luxury retailer Saks seeks bankruptcy protection overwhelmed by debt
The owner of Saks Fifth Avenue is seeking bankruptcy protection, buffeted by rising competition and the massive debt it took on to buy its rival in the luxury sector, Neiman Marcus, just over a year ago. Saks Global, which also operates Bergdorf Goodman, has secured roughly $1.75 billion in financing,...
Trump visits Ford plant and defends his tariffs, hoping to counter jitters about the economy
DETROIT — President Donald Trump offered a full-throated defense of his sweeping tariffs on Tuesday, traveling to swing-state Michigan to push the case that he’s boosted domestic manufacturing in hopes of countering fears about a weakening job market and still-rising prices that have squeezed American pocketbooks. Trump visited the factory...
Wall Street executives warn Trump: Stop attacking the Fed, credit card industry
NEW YORK — Up until this week, Wall Street has generally benefited from the Trump administration’s policies and has been supportive of the president. That relationship has suddenly soured. When President Donald Trump signed the One Big Beautiful Bill into law in July, it pushed another significant round of tax...
Rutter’s opens 1st store in Westmoreland CountyVideo
Rutter’s, the convenience chain founded by members of the Rutter farm family in York, opened its first location in Westmoreland County on Tuesday. The convenience store, gas station and truck stop located at the corner of Interstate 70 and Waltz Mill Road in Sewickley Township also includes a small bar...
Value City Furniture to close all Western Pa. locations
Value City Furniture and American Signature Furniture are going out of business. All retail stores will be permanently closing, including those in Western Pennsylvania. Value City Furniture’s parent company, American Signature Inc., filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in November. All remaining stores are being liquidated. There are four Value City...
Microsoft’s Brad Smith pushes Big Tech to ‘pay our way’ for AI data centers amid rising opposition
It won’t be easy for Big Tech companies to win the hearts and minds of Americans who are angered about massive artificial intelligence data centers sprouting up in their neighborhoods, straining electricity grids and drawing on local reservoirs. Microsoft is trying anyway. The software giant’s president, Brad Smith, is meeting...
Inflation cooled slightly in December though it remains above Fed’s target
WASHINGTON — Inflation cooled a bit last month as prices for gas and used cars fell, a sign that stubbornly elevated cost pressures are slowly easing. Consumer prices rose 0.3% in December from the prior month, the U.S. Labor Department said Tuesday, the same as in November. Excluding the volatile...
Richland play cafe owner looks to create place where children, parents can make memories together
After her childhood plan of becoming a school teacher didn’t turn out the way she thought it would, Ashley Domenick is pursuing a new dream of opening a play cafe. The Busy Berry Play Cafe is scheduled to open Jan. 19 at the Richland Mall in Richland, near Emiliano’s Mexican...
