Business category, Page 72
The IRS wants to end another major tax loophole for the wealthy and raise $50 billion in the process
WASHINGTON — The IRS plans to end a major tax loophole for wealthy taxpayers that could raise more than $50 billion in revenue over the next decade, the U.S. Treasury Department says. The proposed rule and guidance announced Monday includes plans to essentially stop “partnership basis shifting” — a process...
Pittsburgh tops list as most affordable housing market in U.S. — but there’s a catch
Pittsburgh’s housing market is the most affordable in the United States, according to a study by a university in California. However, the report’s authors say, the ‘Burgh still falls just short of true affordability. Issued by the Center for Demographics and Policy at Chapman University and the Frontier Centre for...
Robinson-based Sabika jewelry closing after 23 years
Endings create new beginnings. That philosophy inspired Karin Mayr to launch Sabika, a Pittsburgh-based, woman-owned jewelry company. For 23 years, the business has sold sparkling necklaces, earrings, bracelets and rings through stylists who specialize in knowledge of the brand. That beginning has now reached an end. Mayr and her daughters,...
Southwest plane plunged within 400 feet of ocean near Hawaii
A Southwest Airlines Co. passenger flight in April came within 400 feet of slamming into the ocean off the coast of Hawaii after weather conditions forced pilots to bypass a landing attempt. The Boeing Co. 737 Max 8 jet briefly dropped at an abnormally high rate of more than 4,000...
Microsoft delays controversial AI Recall feature on new Windows computers
REDMOND, Wash. — New laptops equipped with Microsoft Windows start shipping to customers next week without a flagship feature called Recall that drew concerns about privacy and cybersecurity. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella touted the new Recall feature at a showcase event last month, describing it as a step toward artificial...
ATI’s $1.2B hot strip mill in Harrison marks 10 years, remains world’s most powerful, company says
Lou Koprivnikar launched his career at ATI 36 years ago when everything was hands-on. Employees would load 43-ton metal coils by crane and affix labels on specialty metals fresh out of a 2,250-degree furnace. Today, operations are fully automated inside the Hot Rolling and Processing Facility (HRPF), a $1.2 billion...
Gamestop’s annual shareholder meeting disrupted after ‘unprecedented demand’ causes tech issue
NEW YORK — Gamestop’s highly-anticipated shareholder meeting ran into a technical problem Thursday — resulting in many eager investors being unable to log on to the livestream. A spokesperson for Computershare, the company hosting the webcast, confirmed that “unprecedented demand” from shareholders looking to access the meeting led to a...
The number of Americans filing for jobless benefits jumps to the highest level in 10 months
The number of Americans filing for jobless benefits jumped to the highest level in 10 months last week, a sign that the labor market is likely cooling under the weight of high interest rates. Unemployment benefit applications for the week ending June 8 rose by 13,000 to 242,000, up from...
Federal Reserve sees some progress on inflation but envisions just 1 rate cut this yearVideo
WASHINGTON — Federal Reserve officials said Wednesday that inflation has fallen further toward their target level in recent months but signaled that they expect to cut their benchmark interest rate just once this year. The policymakers’ forecast for one rate cut was down from a previous forecast of three, because...
Elon Musk drops lawsuit against ChatGPT-maker OpenAI without explanation
SAN FRANCISCO — Elon Musk has dropped his lawsuit against OpenAI just ahead of a scheduled Wednesday hearing on the case. Musk in February sued the San Francisco artificial intelligence company and its CEO Sam Altman over what he said was a betrayal of the ChatGPT maker’s founding aims of...
Thefts of charging cables pose yet another obstacle to appeal of electric vehicles
DETROIT — Just before 2 a.m. on a chilly April night in Seattle, a Chevrolet Silverado pickup stopped at an electric vehicle charging station on the edge of a shopping center parking lot. Two men, one with a light strapped to his head, got out. A security camera recorded them...
Faking an honest woman: Why Russia, China and Big Tech all use faux females to get clicks
WASHINGTON — When disinformation researcher Wen-Ping Liu looked into China’s efforts to influence Taiwan’s recent election using fake social media accounts, something unusual stood out about the most successful profiles. They were female, or at least that’s what they appeared to be. Fake profiles that claimed to be women got...
BNY scrapping ‘Mellon’ in rebrand, but Pittsburgh ties will remain
BNY Mellon, a global financial firm with ties to Pittsburgh, is rebranding and losing the “Mellon” part of its logo. The New York-based bank announced Tuesday it is updating its logo and simplifying its company umbrella brand to BNY, according to a press release. It may seem like an erasure...
Gas prices are falling. Experts point to mild demand at the pump ahead of summer travel
NEW YORK — Gas prices are once again on the decline across the country, bringing some relief to drivers now paying a little less to fill up their tanks. The national average for gas prices on Monday stood around $3.44, according to AAA. That’s down about 9 cents from a...
Future of Elon Musk and Tesla are on the line this week as shareholders vote on massive pay package
DETROIT — If Tesla shareholders vote against restoring Elon Musk’s $44.9 billion pay package Thursday, the CEO could deliver on threats to take artificial intelligence research to one of this other companies. Or he could even could walk away. If they approve the all-stock compensation package that was thrown out...
Apple leaps into AI with an array of upcoming iPhone features and a ChatGPT deal to smarten up Siri
CUPERTINO, Calif. — Apple has jumped into the race to bring generative artificial intelligence to the masses, spotlighting a slew of features Monday designed to soup up the iPhone, iPad and Mac. And in a move befitting a company known for its marketing prowess, the AI technology coming as part...
Alzheimer’s drug that can slow disease gets backing from FDA advisers
WASHINGTON — A closely watched Alzheimer’s drug from Eli Lilly won the backing of federal health advisers on Monday, setting the stage for the treatment’s expected approval for people with mild dementia caused by the brain-robbing disease. A panel of Food and Drug Administration advisers voted unanimously that the drug’s...
Chrysler recalls more than 211,000 SUVs and pickup trucks due to software malfunction
Stellantis-owned Chrysler is recalling more than 211,000 SUVs and pickup trucks in the U.S., due to a software malfunction that could disable the cars’ electronic stability control systems. The recall covers certain model year 2022 Dodge Durango, Ram 2500 and Ram 3500 vehicles. According to documents published by the National...
John Dorfman: Graco and A.O. Smith boast high profit, low debt
Two qualities of outstanding companies are high profitability and low debt. Let’s look at a handful of companies that can boast both. Among the largest 2,000 U.S. companies, about 27% have high profitability, as gauged by a return on stockholders’ equity of 20% or more. About 15% of companies have...
Credit card delinquencies are rising. Here’s what to do if you’re at risk
NEW YORK — Seriously overdue credit card debt is at the highest level in more than a decade, and people 35 and under are struggling more than other age groups to pay their bills. The share of credit card debt that’s severely delinquent, defined as being more than 90 days...
Kia recalls nearly 463,000 Telluride SUVs due to fire risk, urges consumers to park outside
NEW YORK — Kia America is recalling nearly 463,000 Telluride SUVs — and urging owners to park their cars outside and away from other structures until an issue posing a fire hazard is fixed. The front power seat motor on the affected Tellurides from the 2020-2024 model years might overheat...
U.S. employers added a robust 272,000 jobs in May in a sign of sustained economic health
WASHINGTON — America’s employers added a strong 272,000 jobs in May, accelerating from April and a sign that companies are still confident enough in the economy to keep hiring despite persistently high interest rates. Last month’s sizable job gain suggests that the economy is still growing steadily, propelled by consumer...
Zombies: Ranks of world’s most debt-hobbled companies are soaring, and not all will survive
NEW YORK — They are called zombies, companies so laden with debt that they are just stumbling by on the brink of survival, barely able to pay even the interest on their loans and often just a bad business hit away from dying off for good. An Associated Press analysis...
Paid family leave draws bipartisan support as good for the economy, but some oppose cost, lost control
This story first appeared in How We Care, a weekly newsletter by Spotlight PA featuring original reporting and perspectives on how we care for one another at all stages of life. Alana Griffin was employed and on maternity leave when she and her infant son moved into a Tampa, Florida,...
Kentucky Democratic governor pushes back against Trump-led attacks on electric vehicles
FRANKFORT, Ky. — Electric vehicles have built up enough momentum from job growth and investments to steer past any roadblocks from Donald Trump and other critics, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said Thursday. The Democratic governor said the thousands of EV-related jobs springing up across the country, including in rural GOP...
