Business category, Page 82
Federal judge orders U.S. minority business agency to serve all races
NEW YORK — A federal judge in Texas has ordered a 55-year-old U.S. agency that caters to minority-owned businesses to serve people regardless of race, siding with white business owners who claimed the program discriminated against them. The ruling was a significant victory for conservative activists waging a far-ranging legal...
Regulator proposes capping credit card late fees at $8, latest in Biden’s campaign against junk fees
NEW YORK — The Biden administration announced a rule Tuesday to cap all credit card late fees, the latest effort in the White House push to end what it has called junk fees and a move that regulators say will save Americans up to $10 billion a year. The Consumer...
Federal safety officials say Boeing fails to meet quality-control standards in manufacturing
The Federal Aviation Administration said Monday its audit of 737 Max manufacturing at airplane-maker Boeing and its key supplier turned up “multiple instances” of them failing to make sure manufacturing met quality standards. The FAA said that it found “non-compliance issues” with Boeing’s manufacturing-process control and parts handling and storage....
American Airlines to buy 260 new planes from Boeing, Airbus and Embraer to meet growing demand
DALLAS — American Airlines announced a massive order for new planes on Monday, splitting 260 new aircraft between Boeing, Airbus and Embraer in a move designed to meet growing travel demand and increase the airline’s supply of premium seats. American said it placed options for up to 193 more planes...
Scrapped merger of Spirit, JetBlue good news for Westmoreland airport, official says
Arnold Palmer Regional Airport’s top official welcomed Monday’s announcement that Spirit Airlines and JetBlue Airways are grounding plans for a proposed $3.8 billion merger. “It is a great opportunity for us to know what we are facing. I think it holds nothing but good news for us,” said Gabe Monzo,...
Apple fined nearly $2 billion by the European Union over music streaming competition
LONDON — The European Union leveled its first antitrust penalty against Apple on Monday, fining the U.S. tech giant nearly $2 billion for breaking the bloc’s competition laws by unfairly favoring its own music streaming service over rivals. Apple muzzled app developers from telling users where they could go to...
JetBlue, Spirit ending $3.8B deal to combine after court ruling blocked their merger
JetBlue and Spirit Airlines are ending their proposed $3.8 billion combination after a court ruling blocked their merger. JetBlue said Monday that even though both companies still believe in the benefits of a combination, they felt they were unlikely to meet the required closing conditions before the July 24 deadline...
Trader Joe’s chicken soup dumplings recalled for possibly containing permanent marker plastic
NEW YORK — More than 61,000 pounds of steamed chicken soup dumplings sold at Trader Joe’s are being recalled for possibly containing hard plastic, U.S. regulators announced Saturday. The Agriculture Department’s Food Safety and Inspection Service noted that the now-recalled dumplings, which are produced by the California-based CJ Foods Manufacturing...
Elon Musk sues OpenAI, CEO Sam Altman, claiming betrayal of goal to benefit humanity
Elon Musk is suing OpenAI and its CEO Sam Altman over what he says is a betrayal of the ChatGPT maker’s founding aims of benefiting humanity rather than pursuing profits. In a lawsuit filed at San Francisco Superior Court, billionaire Musk said, when he bankrolled OpenAI’s creation, he secured an...
China pledges to increase opportunities for foreign companies as it seeks to boost its economy
BEIJING — Chinese Vice President Han Zheng pledged Friday to provide more opportunities for foreign companies in China as the government tries to restore confidence in the world’s second largest economy. Han told an audience of American business people in Beijing that the government would continue to open up more...
Some doorbell cameras sold on Amazon and other online sites have major security flaws, report says
NEW YORK — Some doorbell cameras sold by Amazon and other online retailers have security flaws that could allow bad actors to view footage from the devices or control them completely, according to an investigation published Thursday by Consumer Reports. Researchers from the product-review organization said they found major vulnerabilities...
Sen. Casey questions Wendy’s intent with dynamic pricing plans
Fast-food giant Wendy’s has come under fire this week for its plan to implement dynamic pricing at its restaurants. Now the move is drawing concerns from Pennsylvania politicians. U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Scranton, sent a letter to Wendy’s CEO on Wednesday raising issues about their plans for dynamic — or...
Anheuser-Busch, Teamsters reach labor agreement that avoids U.S. strike
Budweiser brewer Anheuser-Busch has reached a contract agreement with the Teamsters union that avoids a strike at its U.S. plants. The union had threatened a strike at the brewer’s 12 U.S. plants if an agreement on a new five-year contract wasn’t reached by 11:59 p.m. EST Thursday. The Teamsters union...
John Dorfman: Enter my economic forecasting derby
Predicting the economy is close to impossible. But we have fun trying. Welcome to the 22nd Derby of Economic Forecasting Talent, or DEFT for short. Contestants must predict six economic variables for the calendar year in progress. You can play. The winner will get a trophy, plaque or certificate. Plus,...
Consumer confidence slips in February as anxiety over potential recession surprisingly reappears
American consumers are feeling less confident this month as concerns over a possible recession grew. The Conference Board, a business research group, said Tuesday that its consumer confidence index fell to 106.7 from a revised 110.9 in January. Analysts had been forecasting that the index remained steady from January to...
Kellogg’s CEO suggests eating cereal for dinner to fight food inflation
The CEO of Kellogg’s just had his ‘let them eat cake’ moment. This after the Frosted Flakes and Fruit Loops boss has been making the rounds on cable news shows suggesting Americans serve up cereal for dinner to save on their soaring food budgets. “If you think about the cost...
Macy’s to close 150 stores as sales slip as it pivots to luxury at Bloomingdale’s, Blue Mercury
NEW YORK — Macy’s will close 150 stores over the next three years and 50 by the end of 2024, the department store said Tuesday after posting a fourth quarter loss and declining sales. At the same time the company signaled a pivot to luxury. It said it would open...
Wendy’s to introduce surge-style pricing
How much you pay for a Wendy’s meal could depend on when you’re hungry. The Ohio-based fast-food chain is planning to introduce dynamic — or surge — pricing in 2025, according to Fox Business. That means the price of burgers, fries, chicken nuggets and Wendy’s signature Frosty milkshakes could fluctuate...
Employers at job fair face hurdles to fill slots — fewer workers and low unemployment rate
About four dozen businesses and organizations seeking workers at a job fair this week in Hempfield are facing a double whammy as they attempt to woo prospective employees: The jobless rate is at a record low, and there are fewer people in the workforce since the covid pandemic upended the...
U.S. sues to block merger of grocery giants Kroger and Albertsons, saying it could push prices higher
The Federal Trade Commission sued to block a proposed merger between grocery giants Kroger and Albertsons, saying the $24.6 billion deal would eliminate competition and lead to higher prices for millions of Americans. The FTC filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Oregon on Monday. It was joined in...
What recession? Professional forecasters raise expectations for U.S. economy in 2024
NEW YORK — This year looks to be a much better one for the U.S. economy than business economists were forecasting just a few months ago, according to a survey released Monday. The economy looks set to grow 2.2% this year after adjusting for inflation, according to the National Association...
Consumers are increasingly pushing back against price increases — and winning
WASHINGTON — Inflation has changed the way many Americans shop. Now, those changes in consumer habits are helping bring down inflation. Fed up with prices that remain about 19%, on average, above where they were before the pandemic, consumers are fighting back. In grocery stores, they’re shifting away from name...
AT&T says some customers will receive credits as a result of network outage
AT&T said that it plans to reimburse customers for the nearly 12-hour network outage that took place Feb. 22. The company announced in a news release late Saturday that it will issue a $5 credit to “potentially impacted” AT&T Wireless customers, which it says is the “average cost of a...
‘A big fumble’: Pittsburgh’s clunky rollout of plastic bag ban sows confusion
Jake Diettrich, manager of Market Outlet, a Pittsburgh produce shop, has been grappling since January with the city’s plastic bag ban. Diettrich has had to calm grumbling patrons, swap his stock of outlawed plastic bags for pricier paper ones and contend with worries that the bag ban and mandatory fees...
Warren Buffett uses annual letter to warn about Wall Street
OMAHA, Neb. — Warren Buffett credited his longtime partner — the late Charlie Munger — with being the architect of the Berkshire Hathaway conglomerate he has received the credit for leading and warned shareholders in his annual letter Saturday not to listen to Wall Street pundits or financial advisers who...
