Wire stories category, Page 48
Walmart to hire 40,000 mostly seasonal workers for holidays
NEW YORK — Walmart said it will hire 40,000 U.S. workers for the holidays, a majority of them seasonal workers. The move, announced Wednesday, comes as the nation’s largest retailer and largest private employer said it’s in a stronger staffing position heading into the holidays than last year and is...
How much ‘pain’? Fed to signal more rate hikes ahead
WASHINGTON — Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell bluntly warned in a speech last month that the Fed’s drive to curb inflation by aggressively raising interest rates would “bring some pain.” On Wednesday, Americans may get a better sense of how much pain could be in store. The Fed is expected...
U.S. stocks rise ahead of expected interest rate hike by Fed
A choppy day of trading on Wall Street ended with stocks closing higher Monday as investors brace for another big interest rate increase this week from the Federal Reserve. The indexes swayed between modest gains and losses for much of the day before a burst of buying in the final...
Mortgage rates hit 6%, first time since 2008 housing crash
WASHINGTON — Average long-term U.S. mortgage rates climbed over 6% this week for the first time since the housing crash of 2008, threatening to sideline even more homebuyers from a rapidly cooling housing market. Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac reported Thursday that the 30-year rate rose to 6.02% from 5.89% last...
As ‘buy now, pay later’ plans grow, so do delinquencies
NEW YORK — Americans have grown fond of “buy now, pay later” services, but the “pay later” part is becoming increasingly difficult for some borrowers. Buy now, pay later loans allow users to pay for items such new sneakers, electronics or luxury goods in installments. Companies such as Affirm, Afterpay,...
Patagonia founder donates company to environmental causes
The founder of outdoor clothing retailer Patagonia announced Wednesday that its profits would all go toward fighting climate change and conserving land. Yvon Chouinard said the company was now in the Patagonia Purpose Trust and the Holdfast Collective, a nonprofit. The trust will oversee operations of the company and its...
Study: 1-in-5 U.S. adults bet money on sports in past year
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — Nearly one in five U.S. adults bet money on sports over the past year, according to a survey released Wednesday. The report from the Pew Research Center shows that 19% of adults surveyed said they had wagered on sports. The most common way they did so...
1 rail union rejects deal, 2 accept ahead of strike deadline
OMAHA, Neb. — Members of one union rejected a tentative deal with the largest U.S. freight railroads Wednesday, while two ratified agreements and three others remained at the bargaining table just days ahead of a strike deadline, threatening to intensify snarls in the nation’s supply chain that have contributed to...
Jim Beam outlines expansion to ramp up bourbon production
Jim Beam plans to ramp up bourbon production at its largest Kentucky distillery to meet growing global demand in a more than $400 million expansion to be powered by renewable energy. The project will increase capacity by 50% at the Beam plant in Boston, Kentucky, while reducing greenhouse gas emissions...
A less-glitzy Detroit auto show returns after 3-year absence
DETROIT — When it came time to showcase its electric Chevrolet Equinox SUV to the public this year, General Motors decided against doing so at the big Detroit auto show, as it typically would have done in the past. Instead, it unveiled the Equinox six days earlier. GM’s decision symbolized...
Markets shudder on dashed inflation hopes; Dow falls 1,250
NEW YORK — Stocks tumbled to their worst day in more than two years Tuesday, knocking the Dow Jones Industrial Average down more than 1,250 points, following Wall Street’s humbling realization that inflation is not slowing as much as hoped. The S&P 500 sank 4.3%, its biggest drop since June...
Burger King investing $400M in U.S. revamp to boost sales
Burger King plans to invest $400 million in its U.S. restaurants over the next two years to update its stores and boost flagging sales. The burger chain said Friday the investment includes $250 million to revamp stores and update technology and kitchen equipment and $120 million for heavier advertising. Burger...
Stocks end broadly higher, breaking a 3-week losing streak
Wall Street added to its recent gains Friday with a broad rally that broke the market’s three-week losing streak. The S&P 500 closed 1.5% higher, its third straight increase, and ended with a 3.7% gain for the week. That makes it the benchmark index’s best week going back to July....
Citing imminent danger, Cloudflare drops hate site Kiwi Farms
SAN FRANCISCO — Citing an “immediate threat to human life,” Cloudflare has dropped the notorious stalking and harassment site Kiwi Farms from its internet security services following an online campaign started by transgender Twitch streamer Clara Sorrenti to pressure it to do so. “This is an extraordinary decision for us...
Gustavo Arnal, Bed Bath & Beyond CFO, plunges to death from New York high-rise
Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. Chief Financial Officer Gustavo Arnal fell to his death from a skyscraper in Manhattan’s Tribeca neighborhood on Friday. The Union, New Jersey-based company confirmed it was Arnal who died in a statement Sunday. Earlier on Sunday, the New York Police Department named the person as...
KeyBank: Hackers of third-party provider stole customer data
BOSTON — Hackers stole personal data including Social Security numbers, addresses and account numbers of home mortgage holders at KeyBank, the bank reports, in the breach of a third-party vendor that serves multiple corporate clients. The hackers obtained the information on July 5 after breaking into computers at the insurance...
Electric-motor watercrafts maker to open plant in West Virginia
WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, W.Va. — Pure Watercraft will manufacture electric-motor pontoon boats in West Virginia, Gov. Jim Justice announced. The Seattle-based company will invest at least $5 million in a former steel plant in the Northern Panhandle community of Beech Bottom and expects to create more than 100 full-time jobs...
Bed Bath & Beyond to sell stock, shut 150 stores in survival bid
Bed Bath & Beyond said it’s close to securing financing and is putting in place a new business strategy to reduce costs as the troubled retailer tries to convince investors, vendors and customers that it has a credible survival plan. The home-goods retailer said it has received commitments for a...
Michigan Chipotle store’s workers unionize, a 1st for chain
LANSING, Mich. — Workers at a Chipotle store in Michigan have voted to unionize, becoming the first of the Mexican fast-food chain’s 3,000 locations to do so amid a broader unionization push across the country. The International Brotherhood of Teamsters said workers at a Chipotle store in Lansing, Mich., “voted...
Small businesses feel the pinch from slowing housing market
NEW YORK — The chill in the housing market is rippling out to the carpenters, landscapers and other small businesses that lose out when fewer homeowners are renovating their properties. Inflation was already causing some homeowners to delay big renovation projects as prices for building materials, fixtures and appliances jumped....
Government revision shows economy shrank 0.6% last quarter
WASHINGTON — The U.S. economy shrank at a 0.6% annual rate from April through June, the government said Thursday in an upgrade from its initial estimate. It marked a second straight quarter of economic contraction, which meets one informal sign of a recession. Most economists, though, have said they doubt...
California moves toward phasing out gas-fueled vehiclesVideo
SACRAMENTO — California plans to require all new cars, trucks and SUVs to run on electricity or hydrogen by 2035 under a policy approved Thursday by regulators that seeks a dramatic cut in carbon emissions and an eventual end to gasoline-powered vehicles. The decision by the California Air Resources Board...
Euro falls below parity with the dollar. What’s the impact?
The euro has fallen below parity with the dollar, diving to its lowest level in 20 years and ending a one-to-one exchange rate with the U.S. currency. It’s a psychological barrier in the markets. But psychology is important, and the euro’s slide underlines the foreboding in the 19 European countries...
Park outside: Fire risk prompts Hyundai, Kia hitch recalls
DETROIT — Hyundai and Kia are telling owners of some of their large SUVs to park them outdoors and away from buildings after a series of fires involving trailer hitch wiring. The Korean automakers are recalling more than 281,000 vehicles in the U.S. because of the problem, but they haven’t...
Stocks fall broadly on Wall Street, extending market lossesVideo
Another broad stock market sell-off on Monday deepened Wall Street’s losses from last week, leaving the S&P 500 with its biggest slide since mid-June. The benchmark index fell 2.1%, nearly doubling its losses from last week, when it broke a four-week winning streak. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slumped 1.9%...
