Business category, Page 96
Californians bet farming agave for spirits holds key to weathering drought and groundwater limits
MURRIETA, Calif. — Leo Ortega started growing spiky blue agave plants on the arid hillsides around his Southern California home because his wife liked the way they looked. A decade later, his property is now dotted with thousands of what he and others hope is a promising new crop for...
Sam Bankman-Fried’s trial exposed crypto fraud but Congress has not been eager to regulate the industry
PALM SPRINGS, Calif. — The conviction of former cryptocurrency mogul Sam Bankman-Fried for stealing at least $10 billion from customers and investors is the latest black mark for the cryptocurrency industry, but in Washington, there seems to be little to no interest in pushing through regulation. When cryptocurrencies collapsed and...
AGH, nurses strike deal on 3-year contract
After a final 26-hour negotiation meeting, unionized nurses at Allegheny General Hospital struck a deal with hospital management on a new contract. The three-year agreement between the 1,200 nurses and nurse practitioners represented by SEIU Healthcare Pennsylvania and AGH’s parent company, Allegheny Health Network, will make significant investments in wages...
U.S. employers pulled back on hiring in October, adding 150,000 jobs
WASHINGTON — The nation’s employers slowed their hiring in October, adding a modest but still decent 150,000 jobs, a sign that the labor market may be cooling but remains resilient despite high interest rates that have made borrowing much costlier for companies and consumers. Last month’s job growth, though down...
Biden will host Americas summit that focuses on supply chains, migration and new investment
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden is gathering leaders from 11 other countries across the Americas on Friday in the U.S. capital to discuss the tightening of supply chains and address migration issues. In a preview of the first Americas Partnership for Economic Prosperity Leaders’ Summit, White House National Security Council...
Amazon and Meta settle U.K. investigations with pledges to refrain from unfair practices
LONDON — Amazon and Meta settled separate U.K. antitrust investigations by agreeing to stop practices that give them an unfair advantage over merchants and customers using their platforms, the watchdog said Friday. The Competition and Markets Authority said it accepted the committments from the U.S. tech companies to close the...
PepsiCo opens distribution center in Coraopolis
PepsiCo has an eye on expansion as it opened a 150,000-square-foot distribution center and warehouse in Coraopolis. The facility officially opened Wednesday near Pittsburgh International Airport. It handles about 10 million cases annually of beverages like Pepsi, Starbucks, Gatorade and Rockstar that it sends to retailers in Allegheny, Butler, Beaver...
FTX founder Sam-Bankman-Fried convicted of defrauding cryptocurrency customers
NEW YORK — FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried’s spectacular rise and fall in the cryptocurrency industry — a journey that included his testimony before Congress, a Super Bowl advertisement and dreams of a future run for president — hit a new bottom Thursday when a New York jury convicted him of...
Labor union members picket outside several Westmoreland County facilities, call for bargainings
Members of Westmoreland County’s largest labor union on Thursday continued to pressure county commissioners to return to the bargaining table. Members of the Service Employees International Union and HealthCare Pennsylvania conducted informational picketing in front of the Westmoreland County Courthouse as well as other county facilities including Area Agency on...
Average long-term U.S. mortgage rate slips to 7.76% in first drop after climbing 7 weeks in a row
LOS ANGELES — The average rate on the benchmark 30-year home loan fell slightly this week, ending a seven-week climb — modest relief for prospective homebuyers grappling with an increasingly unaffordable housing market. The average rate on the benchmark 30-year home loan fell to 7.76% from 7.79% last week, mortgage...
Uber and Lyft to pay $328M in New York wage theft settlement
ALBANY, N.Y. — Ride-hailing companies Uber and Lyft will pay a combined $328 million to settle wage theft claims in New York, Attorney General Letitia James announced Thursday. James said the settlements resolve investigations into the companies improperly charging drivers sales taxes and other fees when customers should have paid...
U.S. Steel to cut more than 100 workers related to IT
U.S. Steel is laying off more than 100 workers as the Pittsburgh steel maker changes its IT operations. According to a WARN notice filed with the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry, the Pittsburgh steelmaker is letting go of 105 workers, primarily at a location on the South Side. U.S....
Disney says it expects to pay $8.6 billion for Comcast’s Hulu stake
The Walt Disney Co. is proceeding with its buyout of Comcast Corp.’s stake in streaming service Hulu — a major step in the Burbank entertainment giant’s pivot to streaming. The move was expected. Months ago, Comcast Chief Executive Brian Roberts signaled that the Philadelphia cable giant was planning to divest...
Federal Reserve leaves its key rate unchanged but keeps open possibility of a future hikeVideo
WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve kept its key short-term interest rate unchanged Wednesday for a second straight time but left the door open to further rate hikes if inflation pressures should accelerate in the months ahead. The Fed said in a statement after its latest meeting that it would keep...
What to know about the latest eyedrops recall
John Shields expects more calls to Allegheny Eye Associates in Lower Burrell from concerned customers after federal regulators issued another recall on eyedrops. The Food and Drug Administration has issued warnings for 26 over-the-counter eye care products because of the potential for infection that could result in partial vision loss...
Auto strike settlements will raise costs for Detroit’s Big 3
DETROIT — From generous pay and benefits to stronger job security, the United Auto Workers union won significant concessions in tentative settlements that have ended their strikes against Detroit’s three automakers. Now, General Motors, Ford and Stellantis are facing sharply higher labor costs, estimated by some analysts at exceeding $1...
Southwestern Pa. jobless rate fell again in September
The unemployment rate in Southwestern Pennsylvania dropped to a new record low in September — the lowest in nearly 50 years. The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in the seven-county region fell one-tenth of a percentage point over the month to a record low 3.5% last month, according to the state...
U.S. consumers feeling slightly less confident in October for 3rd straight month
WASHINGTON — American consumers are feeling increasingly less confident these days as fears of an oncoming recession remain elevated. The Conference Board, a business research group, said Tuesday that its consumer confidence index fell to 102.6 from 104.3 in September. The index measures both Americans’ assessment of current economic conditions...
John Dorfman: Markel, Pulte flaunt rapid revenue growth
For a while, revenue growth at all costs was a popular approach, and investors fell for it. Now that stocks such as AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc. (AMC) and WeWork Inc. (WE) have crashed to earth, investors are a little less in love with revenue growth. So now that the fad...
On track: U.S. Steel converts 2 diesel locomotives to battery power
Within U.S. Steel’s Mon Valley Works, diesel-powered locomotives chug along the plant’s rail lines, hauling tons of steel, coke, scrap metals and iron ore for steel production. Now, those engines will be a little cleaner. U.S. Steel converted two of its diesel switcher locomotives at the Mon Valley Works’ Edgar...
For the second Halloween in a row, U.S. candy inflation hits double digits
Spooked by the high price of Halloween candy? There’s not much relief in sight. For the second year in a row, U.S. shoppers are seeing double-digit inflation in the candy aisle. Candy and gum prices are up an average of 13% this month compared to last October, more than double...
Credit card companies charged $105B in interest in 2022 while consumer debt climbed
If you noticed you’ve been getting charged higher interest on your credit card, you’re not alone. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau found that in 2022 credit card companies charged consumers more than $105 billion in interest and more than $25 billion in fees. And more people are carrying debt. Total...
U.S. Steel still weighing interest from ‘highly credible bidders’ as it considers sale
U.S. Steel says it is still reviewing bids to buy the iconic Pittsburgh-based company, but executives on Friday refrained from giving a timeline for a decision. On the steelmaker’s third-quarter earnings call, David Burritt, president and CEO, noted that after “receiving multiple unsolicited proposals from credible bidders, ranging from the...
Economy grew at a 4.9% pace last quarter, fastest since 2021Video
The U.S. economy grew at the fastest pace in nearly two years last quarter on a burst of consumer spending, which will be tested in coming months. Gross domestic product accelerated to a 4.9% annualized rate, more than double the second-quarter pace, according to the government’s preliminary estimate Thursday. The...
Argentine restaurant, Balvanera, opens its doors in Pittsburgh’s Strip District
For the owners of the Argentine restaurant Balvanera, opening in the Strip District is a bit of a homecoming. Meredith Boyle grew up in Aspinwall. On one of their many trips back to her hometown, her husband Chef Fernando Navas fell in love with the city as well. So when...
