Business category, Page 271
Report shows U.S. deficit to exceed $1 trillion next yearVideo
WASHINGTON — The federal budget deficit is expected to balloon to more than $1 trillion in the next fiscal year under the first projections taking into account the big budget deal that President Trump and Congress reached this summer, the Congressional Budget Office reported Wednesday. The return of $1 trillion...
U.S. has 501,000 fewer jobs than first reported
WASHINGTON — The U.S. job market isn’t quite as strong as originally believed — with revised figures showing that the economy had 501,000 fewer total jobs this March than initially reported. The Labor Department says that nearly two-thirds of the downward revision came from the retail and leisure and hospitality...
U.S. Steel plans to lay off nearly 200 workers in Michigan
U.S. Steel Corp. is planning to lay off almost 200 workers from its Great Lakes Works facility just outside of Detroit. The Detroit Free Press reports the Pittsburgh company said in a filing with the state of Michigan that “market conditions and recent reductions in customer demand” are the reason...
Is online shoe-buying bad for kids’ feet?
CHICAGO — It’s a back-to-school tradition: a visit to the neighborhood shoe store, where employees pull out a well-worn metal foot measuring tool from under a seat to measure children’s feet, fit them with the right shoes, and send them out the door, frequently wearing the new kicks. Generations of...
Long-sought Volcker Rule revisions land on a changed Wall Street
NEW YORK — Wall Street spent the better part of a decade battling for regulators to reshape the reviled Volcker Rule. When the changes finally landed Tuesday, the win felt more symbolic. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and other regulators rolled out tweaks that clarify which trades are prohibited and...
Facebook rolls out tool to block off-Facebook data gathering
SAN FRANCISCO — Soon, you could get fewer familiar ads following you around the internet — or at least on Facebook. Facebook is launching a long-promised tool that lets you block the social network from gathering information about you on outside websites and apps. The company said Tuesday that it...
Eddie Bauer to shut down its Midwest call center, send jobs overseas
In yet another example of a beloved Northwest retailer trying to turn itself around, Eddie Bauer will shutter a call center near Columbus, Ohio, and eliminate 111 jobs there in October. The closure, disclosed last week by the Ohio Department of Jobs and Family Services, comes a little over a...
U.S. extends limited reprieve on tech sales to China’s Huawei
The Trump administration has extended a limited reprieve on U.S. technology sales to Huawei, even as questions remain over how much of an effect broader sanctions are having on the Chinese technology giant. Huawei has become enmeshed in the trade war between Washington and Beijing, with President Trump showing a...
Brand-name drug prices rising at slower pace, lower amounts
TRENTON, N.J. — Drug companies are still raising prices for brand-name prescription medicines, just not as often or by as much as they used to, according to an Associated Press analysis. After years of frequent list price hikes, many drugmakers are showing some restraint, according to the analysis of drug...
U.S. gives Huawei a 90-day reprieve on technology trade ban
NEW YORK — Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross says the U.S. will extend by 90 days the ability of Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei to buy supplies from U.S. companies. It’s the second extension for Huawei, a company that the U.S. sees as a national security risk. The comments Monday from Ross...
Beer named for Pacific island nuke test site draws criticismVideo
HAGATNA, Guam — A Texas-based company is facing criticism for naming a beer after the location of nuclear tests that resulted in the contamination of a Pacific island chain, a report said. Manhattan Project Beer Company is under scrutiny by Marshall Islanders who were exposed to high levels of radiation...
Ohio newspaper to begin publishing Vindicator edition
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio — A daily newspaper in Ohio has purchased the name and subscriber list of The Vindicator in Youngstown, which is publishing its final edition Aug. 31. Vindicator owner and general manager Mark Brown said Friday The Tribune Chronicle in Warren also is buying the Vindy.com website and will...
Colorado OKs electric car requirement to fight air pollution
DENVER — Colorado tightened its air quality regulations on Friday, requiring that at least 5% of the vehicles sold in the state by 2023 emit zero pollution. The state Air Quality Control Commission, which passed the rule on an 8-1 vote, said the requirement applies to auto manufacturers, not buyers....
U.S. home construction fell 4% in July
WASHINGTON — U.S. housing starts fell 4.0% in July, driven by a decline in the construction of apartment buildings. The Commerce Department says that housing starts slipped last month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.19 million units. So far this year, housing starts have declined 3.1%. While there...
Stock indexes end mostly higher after volatile day
Investors rode out another turbulent day on Wall Street on Thursday that kept stock indexes flipping between gains and losses until a late-day bounce gave the market a modest gain. Worries about a possible recession collided with hopes that the strongest part of the economy — shoppers spending at stores...
Virgin Galactic reveals futuristic outpost for space tourism
UPHAM, N.M. — Spaceport America is no longer just a shiny shell of hope that space tourism would one day launch from this remote spot in the New Mexico desert. The once-empty hangar that anchors the taxpayer-financed launch and landing facility has been transformed into a custom-tailored headquarters where Virgin...
U.S. makes new push for graphic warning labels on cigarettes
WASHINGTON — U.S. health officials are making a new attempt at adding graphic images to cigarette packets to discourage and Americans from lighting up. If successful, it would be the first change to U.S. cigarette warnings in 35 years. The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday proposed 13 new warnings...
U.S. long-term mortgage rates stay near historic lows
WASHINGTON — U.S. long-term mortgage rates remained near historically low levels this week against a backdrop of volatile financial markets around the globe. Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac says the average rate on the benchmark 30-year loan was unchanged at 3.60%, its lowest level since November 2016. A year ago the...
U.S. industrial output fell 0.2% in July as factories struggle
WASHINGTON — U.S. industrial production fell 0.2% in July, as factory activity slumped in a worrisome sign for the economy. The Federal Reserve said Thursday that the overall decline was caused primarily by a 0.4% drop last month in manufacturing production. Output decreased for autos, fabricated metals, wood products, textiles...
Dow plunges as bond market flashes recession warning for first time since 2007Video
NEW YORK —The threat of a recession doesn’t seem so remote anymore for investors in financial markets. The yield on the closely watched 10-year Treasury fell so low Wednesday that, for the first time since 2007, it briefly crossed a threshold that has correctly predicted many past recessions. Weak economic...
Facebook paid contractors to transcribe users’ audio clips
NEW YORK — Facebook has paid contractors to transcribe audio clips from users of its Messenger service. The practice raises privacy concerns, as users aren’t typically aware that humans are reviewing audio. Facebook and other tech companies say the practice helps improve their services. Facebook said that audio snippets were...
Amazon says its facial software can recognize fear
With Halloween just months away, Amazon’s timing seems perfect. The tech company announced in a blog post this week that it’s facial recognition software — Rekognition — now has the ability to recognize fear. Amazon Rekognition has “improved accuracy for emotion detection (for all 7 emotions: ‘Happy’, ‘Sad’, ‘Angry’, ‘Surprised’,...
Treasury yields invert, signaling possibility of recession
NEW YORK — An economic alarm bell has sounded in the United States, sending warnings of a possible recession ahead. Yields on 2-year and 10-year Treasury notes inverted early Wednesday, a market phenomenon that shows investors want more in return for short-term government bonds than they are for long-term bonds....
U.S. delays tariffs on some Chinese goods, drops others
WASHINGTON — The United States is delaying tariffs on Chinese-made cellphones, laptop computers and other items and removing other Chinese imports from its target list altogether in a move that triggered a rally on Wall Street. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative said Tuesday that it is still planning...
U.S. budget deficit already exceeds last year’s total figure
WASHINGTON — The U.S. fiscal deficit has already exceeded the full-year figure for last year, as spending growth outpaces revenue. The gap grew to $866.8 billion in the first 10 months of the fiscal year, up 27% from the same period a year earlier, the Treasury Department said in an...
