Wire stories category, Page 93
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...
Small businesses slash more than 11 million jobs in April
NEW YORK — The nation’s small businesses slashed more than 11 million jobs in April as they were forced to close or suffered steep revenue losses amid the coronavirus outbreak. The tally from ADP counts jobs lost at the payroll provider’s business customers with under 500 workers. The smallest companies,...
Stocks end higher on Wall Street even after late-day stumble
Stocks closed broadly higher on Wall Street on Tuesday as more countries relaxed restrictions on businesses, raising hopes for a recovery from the historic plunge that is sweeping the global economy. The S&P 500 rose 0.9% after losing about half of its early gains in a late-afternoon burst of selling....
Disney’s second-quarter profit sinks on pandemic woes
NEW YORK — Disney reported a steep decline in profit as many segments of its media and entertainment offerings have ground to a standstill during the coronavirus pandemic. Its second quarter profit dropped 91% to $475 million. Overall, the company said costs related to covid-19 cut Disney’s pretax profit by...
Treasury says April-June borrowing will be a record $2.99T
WASHINGTON — The economic paralysis triggered by the coronavirus pandemic is forcing the U.S. Treasury to borrow far more than it ever has before — $2.99 trillion in the current quarter alone. The amount is more than five times the government’s previous record borrowing for a quarter, $569 billion, set...
Back to work, owners make changes so workers feel safe
NEW YORK — Before the coronavirus outbreak, furniture deliveries at Sunnyland Outdoor Living meant two employees sitting side-by-side in a truck. Now, one will be driving the truck while the second follows in a car. And when Sunnyland’s workers reach a customer’s home, “we’ll deliver outside — we won’t go...
Major U.S. airlines to require passengers to wear face masksVideo
DALLAS — American Airlines, Delta Air Lines and United Airlines said Thursday they will soon require passengers to cover their faces during flights, following the lead of JetBlue Airways. The move comes as airlines big and small contemplate how to comply with social-distancing recommendations in the midst of the coronavirus...
Workers must risk infection or losing unemployment payments
ATLANTA — Some of the millions of American workers laid off because of the coronavirus are beginning to face a tough choice — return to work and risk infection, or stay home and risk losing unemployment payments. The decision is most pressing in states where governors have started allowing businesses...
Wall Street pulls back as dismal economic data piles higher
Stocks are falling on Wall Street Thursday after more reports made clear the worldwide devastation the coronavirus outbreak is causing for the economy. The dour figures helped drive most U.S. stocks to losses, and the S&P 500 was down 1.4% in afternoon trading. Treasury yields also sank, while European stocks...
Fed signals it will likely hold interest rates near zero for months
WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve is signaling that it will keep its key short-term interest rate near zero for the foreseeable future as part of its extraordinary efforts to bolster an economy that is sinking into its worst crisis since the 1930s The Fed says it will also continue to...
Treasury plans to reclaim stimulus payments sent to deceased
WASHINGTON — The Treasury Department is planning to instruct people whose deceased relatives received coronavirus stimulus payments to return the money to the federal government, according to a department spokesman. The Treasury is aware that some individuals who have recently died received the $1,200 economic impact payments and plans to...
Analyst: Ford needs to consider merger after $2B lossVideo
Ford Motor Co. and its competitors have warned for weeks that their finances are teetering on the brink of uncertainty as a global pandemic continues to brutalize America and bring manufacturing to a standstill. While the current landscape is grim, coming months promise to be unrelenting. The cold reality for...
Pandemic exposes gaps in travel insurance coverage
NORFOLK, Va. — For many people, travel insurance has been little more than a box that pops up on a booking site to offer some cheap peace of mind. But the coverage’s limitations have been brought into stark relief during the coronavirus pandemic, leaving would-be travelers frustrated over denied claims...
Coronavirus is expected to reduce meat selection and raise pricesVideo
DES MOINES, Iowa — Meat isn’t going to disappear from supermarkets because of outbreaks of the coronavirus among workers at U.S. slaughterhouses. But as the meat plants struggle to remain open, consumers could face less selection and slightly higher prices. Industry leaders acknowledge that the U.S. food chain has rarely...
CBO says deficit to reach $3.7 trillion in economic decline
WASHINGTON — A recession caused by the coronavirus pandemic and a burst of government spending on testing, health care and aid to businesses and households will nearly quadruple the government’s budget deficit to $3.7 trillion, the Congressional Budget Office said Friday. The 2020 budget deficit will explode after four coronavirus...
Wall Street ends a bumpy week with a gain, led by technology
NEW YORK — Stocks are closing out a tumultuous week with broad gains, led by familar names in technology, including Apple. The S&P 500 rose 1.4% Friday, but still ended the week lower, breaking a two-week winning streak. Stocks meandered between gains and losses for much of the morning then...
