Business category, Page 102
‘New normal’ and other annoying buzzwords sure to drive co-workers crazy
If you haven’t uttered them yourself, you’ve probably heard them spew from the mouths of co-workers or your boss. They are the most annoying business buzzwords for 2023. So what’s the most fingernail-on-blackboard phrase for workers? “New normal,” according to a survey conducted by Preply Business, a language learning platform...
Apple’s new iPhones get faster chips, better cameras and new charging portsVideo
CUPERTINO, Calif. — Apple on Tuesday unveiled its next generation of iPhones — a lineup that will boast better cameras, faster processors, a new charging system and a price hike for the fanciest model. The showcase at Apple’s headquarters in Cupertino, California, comes as the company tries to reverse a...
Hostess is being acquired by JM Smucker in a deal valued at $5.6B after coming back from the brink
Hostess, the maker of snack classics such as Twinkies and HoHos, is being sold to J.M. Smucker in a cash-and-stock deal worth about $5.6 billion. Smucker, which makes everything from coffee to peanut butter and jelly, will pay $34.25 per share in cash and stock, and it will also pick...
Wall Street rises to reverse some of last week’s losses
NEW YORK — U.S. stocks are rising Monday as Wall Street recovers some of its losses from last week. The S&P 500 was 0.6% higher in afternoon trading, coming off its first losing week in the last three. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 90 points, or 0.3%, at...
Google’s dominance of internet search faces major challenge in legal showdown with U.S. regulators
The U.S. government is taking aim at what has been an indomitable empire: Google’s ubiquitous search engine that has become the internet’s main gateway. The legal attack will swing into full force Tuesday in a Washington D.C. federal courtroom that will serve as the battleground for the biggest U.S. antitrust...
John Dorfman: EOG, Livent have pleasingly plump profit margins
No one wants to hear the word “fat.” But put it together with “profit margins,” and it doesn’t sound bad. Once a year, I feature in this column some stocks that boast unusually large profit margins. These can be a sign that a company has a unique product or is...
New federal rule may help boost competition for railroad shipments at companies with few options
OMAHA, Neb. — Companies that have plants and facilities only served by one railroad may soon be able to get a bid from another railroad if their current service is bad enough under a new rule that was proposed Thursday to help boost competition. The U.S. Surface Transportation Board announced...
Self-driving truck startup launches in Pittsburgh
Almost a year after Argo AI closed its doors in Pittsburgh’s Strip District, the founders of that autonomous automobile startup have embarked on a new venture focusing on self-driving trucks. Called Stack AV, the firm plans to use self-driving technology to improve efficiency and enhance safety in the trucking industry....
The average long-term U.S. mortgage rate fell to 7.12%, second weekly drop since marking 22-year high
LOS ANGELES — The average long-term U.S. mortgage rate fell again this week, but remains near the 22-year high it hit three weeks ago, little relief for house hunters facing persistently high prices and a near-historic low number of homes for sale. Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday that the...
Spirit Airlines to add daily flights between Pittsburgh and Miami
Pittsburghers will soon have another travel option to get to South Florida. Spirit Airlines said Monday that it will begin new nonstop service between Pittsburgh International Airport and Miami International Airport on Nov. 15 The low-cost carrier will offer daily flights leaving Pittsburgh at 11:29 a.m. and arriving in Miami...
Neuroscience Institute facility planned on Allegheny General Hospital campus
A five-story building at Allegheny General Hospital will be converted into a Neuroscience Institute for the acute treatment and long-term holistic management of neurological diseases. Construction at James and Hemlock streets on Pittsburgh’s North Side is underway and expected to be completed late next year. The project in the 80,000-square-foot...
Retired quarterback Tom Brady will be a strategic adviser for Delta Air Lines
ATLANTA — Delta Air Lines says it’s bringing former star quarterback Tom Brady on board as a “long-term strategic adviser.” Brady is a seven-time Super Bowl winner for the New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. “Bringing a leader like Tom onto the Delta team furthers our mission to connect...
Google reaches tentative settlement with 36 states and D.C. over alleged app store monopoly
Thirty-six states and the District of Colombia have reached an agreement in principle with Google to settle a lawsuit filed in 2021 over the tech giant’s alleged monopolistic control of app distribution for the software that runs most of the world’s cellphones. The agreement, cited in a court filing late...
Carmakers failing privacy test, as owners have little or no control of data they hand over
BOSTON — Cars are getting an “F” in data privacy. Most major manufacturers admit they may be selling your personal information, a new study finds, with half also saying they would share it with the government or law enforcement without a court order. The proliferation of sensors in automobiles —...
Striking workers returning to Wabtec’s Erie plant after new contract
Union workers are returning to Wabtec’s Erie plant this week after a 10-week strike. About 1,400 members of UE Locals 506 and 618 ratified a new collective bargaining agreement with the Pittsburgh-based locomotive manufacturer last week. “This contract represents a substantial improvement over what Wabtec had on the table in...
Drew’s Family Restaurant, a fixture in Forest Hills, is on the market for $1.5M
A restaurant that’s been a longtime staple in the Forest Hills community is up for sale. Drew’s Family Restaurant has been listed by Century 21 Fairways for an asking price of $1.5 million. The listing describes it as a turnkey restaurant. The Ardmore Boulevard eatery was opened by Spiro Countouris...
UPMC names new chief financial officer
UPMC has tapped Frederick Hargett as its executive vice president and chief financial officer, effective Oct. 1, succeeding Edward Karlovich. Hargett comes to UPMC from Novant Health, Inc., a Winston-Salem, N.C.-based health system that encompasses 16 medical centers, more than 1,900 physicians and outpatient surgery centers, rehabilitation programs, diagnostic imaging...
Scenes from Pittsburgh’s Labor Day parade
Thousands of people attended Pittsburgh’s Labor Day parade Monday morning. The annual event featured hundreds of labor organizations and a visit by Gov. Josh Shapiro, Pa. Secretary of Labor & Industry Nancy A. Walker and Acting U.S. Secretary of Labor Julie A. Su. “It’s important people understand our work ethic....
UAW’s clash with Big 3 automakers shows off a more confrontational union as strike deadline loomsVideo
DETROIT — A 46% pay raise. A 32-hour week with 40 hours of pay. A restoration of traditional pensions. The demands that a more combative United Auto Workers union has pressed on General Motors, Stellantis and Ford — demands that even the UAW’s own president calls “audacious” — are edging...
Amazon challenge: Finding workers to fill hundreds of jobsVideo
When Amazon casts a net for workers to receive and distribute consumer goods at its new 1-million-square-foot warehouse in New Stanton, it will be doing so in a tight labor market. “That is one of the big challenges,” because of the loss of workers in Southwestern Pennsylvania, said James Futrell,...
‘More than just a woman’s fight’: Stories of the Equal Pay Act
It was pretty obvious there was something wrong with the newspaper job listings. The postings were separated between men and women — the latter often advertising lower-paid gigs. It was a common practice until a 1973 U.S. Supreme Court ruling said job listings could no longer be segregated. “I learned...
Equal Pay Act turns 60, but wage gaps remain between men and women
Phylliss Ewell was a home health aide who loved caring for people in need. She was a single mother who worked two, sometimes three, jobs to support herself and two children she raised in Duquesne in the 1970s. Despite Ewell’s multiple jobs, the family still qualified for programs such as...
Federal loan to support $500M expansion at Eos Energy’s Mon Valley facility
New Jersey-based battery company Eos Energy is expanding at its Mon Valley facility and creating a $500 million program that elected officials say will create hundreds of jobs locally. U.S. Rep. Summer Lee, D-Swissvale, announced Thursday that the U.S. Department of Energy has made a conditional commitment on a nearly...
NexTier, Mars Bancorp banks reach merger agreement
Two local banks have agreed to merge. Butler-based NexTier Inc. plans to acquire Mars Bancorp Inc., according to a joint announcement by the two companies. The Mars-based bank will operate under NexTier’s brand. “We believe the merger with Mars Bank provides NexTier the opportunity to provide additional banking services to...
Pittsburgh startup launches system to monitor inventory at stores
A Pittsburgh startup that makes technology to track the comings and goings of products on a store’s shelves has struck a deal that will deploy its technology at 7-Eleven convenience stores in the region. Shelfmark, an Uptown-based tech firm, has installed its small cameras in the ceiling at 11 7-Eleven...
