Wire stories category, Page 92
White House punts economic update as election draws nearVideo
WASHINGTON — The White House took the unusual step on Thursday of deciding not to release an updated economic forecast as planned this year, a fresh sign of the administration’s anxiety about how the coronavirus has ravaged the nation just months before the election. The decision, which was confirmed by...
Airlines increase job cuts as pandemic crushes air travelVideo
Major airlines on both sides of the Atlantic are cutting even more jobs as they struggle to cope with a plunge in air travel that will leave the airline industry much smaller than it was before the coronavirus pandemic and economic collapse. EasyJet said Thursday that it will cut up...
Great Clips sites in Missouri close after virus-related threats
O’FALLON, Mo. — Great Clips has temporarily closed its salons in Springfield, Missouri, after threatening messages that followed news that two hairstylists potentially exposed 140 clients to the coronavirus. Great Clips Inc., which has thousands of franchises in the U.S. and Canada, said in a news release Thursday that its...
In pandemic, drones used to drop medical supplies from skyVideo
With a loud whir and a whoosh, a fixed-wing drone slingshots out of a medical warehouse, zips through hazy skies at 80 mph, pops open a belly hatch and drops a box of medical supplies. Slowed by a little parachute, the box drifts downward and lands with a plop, less...
Big Oil loses appeal as climate suits go to California courts
LOS ANGELES — A U.S. appeals court ruled Tuesday against major oil companies in lawsuits brought by California cities and counties seeking damages for the impact of climate change. A panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said state courts are the proper forum for lawsuits alleging Big...
Debt and coronavirus push Hertz into bankruptcy protection
Hertz filed for bankruptcy protection Friday, unable to withstand the coronavirus pandemic that has crippled global travel and with it, the heavily indebted 102-year-old car rental company’s business. The Estero, Florida-based company’s lenders were unwilling to grant it another extension on its auto lease debt payments past a Friday deadline,...
Pandemic job losses hit tourism-dependent states hardest
HONOLULU — The coronavirus pandemic has been particularly brutal to the tourism-dependent economies of Nevada and Hawaii, lifting the unemployment rate in both states to about one-quarter of the workforce. Nevada topped the nation with an April unemployment rate of 28.2%, the worst any state has seen since the national...
NASA’s newest test pilots are veteran astronauts, friends
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — The two astronauts who will test drive SpaceX’s brand new rocketship are classmates and friends, veteran spacefliers married to veteran spacefliers, and fathers of young sons. Together, they will end a nine-year drought for NASA when they blast into orbit next week from Florida’s Kennedy Space...
ABC renews 19 shows, adds David E. Kelley drama ‘Big Sky’
LOS ANGELES — ABC is bringing back the lion’s share of its series for next season, including “black-ish,” “A Million Little Things” and “The Rookie.” They are among the 19 shows that will return in the 2020-21 season, the network said Thursday, adding to a list of previously announced renewals....
Stocks end lower on Wall Street as US-China tensions continue
Stocks closed broadly lower on Wall Street on Thursday as investors weighed more data showing the economic damage being caused by the coronavirus pandemic and another flareup in tensions between the U.S. and China. The S&P 500 fell 0.8%, shedding some of the gains it made in a solid rally...
Another 2.4 million apply for unemployment benefits, 39 million in all since coronavirus hit
WASHINGTON — More than 2.4 million people applied for U.S. unemployment benefits last week in the latest wave of layoffs from the viral outbreak that triggered widespread business shutdowns two months ago and sent the economy into a deep recession. Roughly 38.6 million people have now filed for jobless aid...
3M billed government $7.63 for 85-cent earplugs. It now has $1 billion covid contract
WASHINGTON — The company that has been awarded the largest single covid-19 federal contract once boasted it charged the Defense Department $7.63 for earplugs that cost 85 cents a pair to produce. That company, 3M, was awarded a $1 billion contract on April 15 for “medical and surgical instruments, equipment...
Ford shuts down Dearborn Truck Plant when worker tests positive for coronavirus
DETROIT — Ford Motor Company shut down its Dearborn Truck Plant on Wednesday afternoon because of coronavirus, releasing its early shift of UAW hourly workers. “They sent everybody home,” said a UAW worker who asked not to be named for fear of disciplinary action. “We probably got 800 people there....
Stocks rally on hopes for vaccine and economic recoveryVideo
NEW YORK — The stock market bounced back from its worst week in nearly two months Monday as optimism about a potential vaccine for the coronavirus and hopes for a U.S. economic recovery in the second half of the year put investors in a buying mood. The S&P 500 climbed...
Tesla picks Austin, Tulsa as finalists for new US factory
DETROIT — Tesla has picked Austin, Texas, and Tulsa, Oklahoma, as finalists for its new U.S. assembly plant, a person briefed on the matter said Friday. The person says company officials visited Tulsa in the past week and were shown two sites. It wasn’t clear if there were any other...
Florida governor says 9 of 10 people frustrated by unemployment system made application errors
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Gov. Ron DeSantis said some Floridians waiting on unemployment checks have themselves to blame for not filling out their applications properly. During an exchange with a reporter during a Friday news conference in Jacksonville, DeSantis expressed frustration with news stories that quote Floridians who have been unable...
U.S. layoffs surged to record high of 11.4 million in March
WASHINGTON — U.S. layoffs soared in March to a record 11.4 million after state and local governments closed restaurants, bars, movie theaters and other nonessential businesses in response to the intensifying viral outbreak. The Labor Department also said Friday that job openings plunged, and hiring fell, though those changes weren’t...
Uber to require all drivers and riders to wear masks starting Monday
Uber will require all of its drivers and riders worldwide to wear masks over their faces for the foreseeable future, Chief Executive Dara Khosrowshahi said Wednesday. Khosrowshahi made the announcement during a conference call outlining new health and safety steps Uber is taking in order to ease concerns about the...
Wall Street drops after reopening worries lead to late slide
Worries about the downside of reopening the economy too soon are weighing on markets, and Wall Street fell Tuesday to its biggest loss since the start of the month. The S&P 500 dropped 2.1% after spending much of the day drifting between small gains and losses, as investors debate whether...
Twitter to label disputed covid-19 tweets
CHICAGO — Twitter announced Monday it will start alerting users when a tweet makes disputed or misleading claims about the coronavirus. The new rule is the latest in a wave of stricter policies that tech companies are rolling out to confront an outbreak of virus-related misinformation on their sites. Facebook...
Trump’s economic team braces for worsening job market in MayVideo
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s top economic advisers on Sunday argued that a “safe” reopening of the U.S. is needed urgently as they stare down the worst job numbers since the Great Depression. Meanwhile, although Trump has said he’s in no rush to enact another round of economic stimulus, the...
Elon Musk threatens to exit California over coronavirus restrictions
Tesla CEO Elon Musk threatened Saturday to pull the company’s factory and headquarters out of California in an escalating spat with local officials who have stopped the company from reopening its electric vehicle factory. On Twitter, Musk also threatened to sue over Alameda County Health Department coronavirus restrictions that have...
Stocks rise on hopes that awful jobs report marks the bottom
Wall Street doubled down on its bet that the worst of the recession has passed, sending stocks higher again on Friday despite another historic, crushing report on the job market. Stocks around the world were already rising before the U.S. government gave its monthly report on jobs, in part on...
TV broadcaster Sinclair fined record $48 million over Tribune deal
The federal government has fined Sinclair Broadcasting Corp. $48 million, largely because of actions the TV broadcaster took in its failed attempt to acquire smaller rival Tribune Media. Sinclair in 2017 proposed a $3.9 billion deal for Tribune’s TV stations, attempting to extend its reach into new markets. The deal...
Wall Street dips to week’s first loss despite tech’s efforts
Stocks fell on Wall Street Wednesday, sending the market to its first loss in three days, after more depressing data rolled in on the devastation sweeping the global economy. The S&P 500 dropped 0.7%, and three out of four stocks in the index sank. But the market’s losses would have...
