Business category, Page 146
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...
Whistleblower accuses Twitter of cybersecurity negligence
A former head of security at Twitter alleged that the company misled regulators about its poor cybersecurity defenses and its negligence in attempting to root out fake accounts that spread disinformation, according to a whistleblower complaint filed with U.S. officials. The revelation could create serious legal and financial problems for...
John Dorfman: Occidental Petroleum, U.S. Steel look good on cash flow
Suppose you run a successful food-delivery business. Two years ago, you spent $1 million on a fleet of a dozen new trucks. On your books and tax records this year, you will subtract $200,000 from your earnings (profits) reflecting depreciation on those trucks. But you aren’t actually laying out any...
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%...
Ford cutting 3,000 white-collar jobs in bid to lower costs
DETROIT — Ford Motor Co. is cutting about 3,000 white-collar jobs as it attempts to lower costs and make the transition from internal combustion to electric vehicles. Leaders of the Dearborn, Michigan, automaker made the announcement Monday in a companywide email, saying that 2,000 full-time salaried workers would be let...
Wanted: 7,000 construction workers for Intel chip plants
JOHNSTOWN, Ohio — Ohio’s largest-ever economic development project comes with a big employment challenge: how to find 7,000 construction workers in an already booming building environment when there’s also a national shortage of people working in the trades. At hand is the $20 billion semiconductor manufacturing operation near the state’s...
Georgia jury awards $1.7 billion in Ford truck crash case
WOODSTOCK, Ga. — Ford Motor Co. says it plans to appeal a $1.7 billion verdict against the automaker after a pickup truck crash that claimed the lives of a Georgia couple, a company representative said Sunday. Jurors in Gwinnett County, just northeast of Atlanta, returned the verdict late last week...
Changing agricultural landscape leaves fewer farmers to work larger farms
When Ralph Myers, 85, looks at the farming operations around him, the difference is stark compared to three decades ago. “In 1995, there were about 195 dairy farmers in Armstrong County,” said Myers, a fourth-generation farmer from Gilpin and patriarch at Myers Pickle Farm, which dates to 1866. “Today, there...
Westmoreland banks loan for East Huntingdon industrial park development
Financing for a $6.3 million project to develop nearly 79 acres at an East Huntingdon industrial park is finalized, Westmoreland County development officials announced this week. County commissioners, serving as members of the county’s Industrial Development Corp., approved an agreement for a $2.25 million low-interest loan through the Pennsylvania Industrial...
Don’t dawdle with latest iPhone update. Here’s why and how
Apple regularly issues updates to the software powering the iPhone, and sometimes it’s OK to dawdle when it comes to installing them. But that’s not the case with its latest — an upgrade that Apple released Wednesday to close a security hole that could allow hackers to seize control of...
Downtown Greensburg Citizens Bank closed for remodeling
Downtown Greensburg’s Citizens Bank branch is closed for remodeling through mid-September. Spokeswoman Eleni Garbis said the location at 400 S. Main St., next to City Hall, is expected to reopen with a new look on Sept. 15. The branch has been closed since Aug. 10. As part of the makeover,...
Comcast supports small businesses in Pittsburgh area with RISE grants
Since 2020, Comcast Corp. has taken the initiative to support representation, investment, strength and empowerment by providing grants and marketing, media and technology services to small businesses. Comcast’s RISE program — Representation, Investment, Strength and Empowerment — began by providing services to small businesses owned by people of color, including...
Fewer Americans file for jobless benefits last week
WASHINGTON — Slightly fewer Americans filed for unemployment benefits last week as the labor market continues to stand out as one of the strongest segments of the U.S. economy. Applications for jobless aid for the week ending August 13 fell by 2,000 to 250,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. Last...
Airbnb is rolling out new screening tools to stop parties
SAN FRANCISCO — Airbnb says it will use new methods to spot and block people who try to use the short-term rental service to throw a party. The company said this week it has introduced technology that examines the would-be renter’s history on Airbnb, how far they live from the...
U.S. retail sales were flat in July as inflation takes a toll
WASHINGTON — The pace of sales at U.S. retailers was unchanged last month as persistently high inflation and rising interest rates forced many households to spend more cautiously. Retail purchases were flat in July after having risen 0.8% in June, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday. America’s consumers, whose spending accounts...
Target takes a hit after heavy discounts to clear inventory
NEW YORK — Target reported solid sales for the fiscal second quarter but its profit plunged nearly 90% after it was forced to slash prices to clear unwanted inventories of clothing, home goods and electronics. In early June, Target warned that it was canceling orders from suppliers and aggressively cutting...
White House receives plan on ending railway contract dispute
OMAHA, Neb. — The special board appointed by President Joe Biden to intervene in stalled railroad contract talks submitted its recommendations Tuesday to the White House on a potential deal covering 115,000 rail workers and avert a strike, but details of their recommendations weren’t immediately available. Railroads and unions will...
Former ITT Tech students get $3.9B in debt cancellation
WASHINGTON — Students who used federal loans to attend ITT Technical Institute as far back as 2005 will automatically get that debt canceled after authorities found “widespread and pervasive misrepresentations” at the defunct for-profit college chain, the Biden administration announced Tuesday. The action will cancel $3.9 billion in federal student...
Trisha Gadson named CEO of Jefferson Regional Foundation
Trisha M. Gadson, Ph.D. has been appointed to the helm of the Jefferson Regional Foundation as its new chief executive officer. The foundation maintains assets of more than $107 million and is dedicated to investing in the health and vitality of the communities served by Jefferson Hospital in the South...
American Airlines places deposit on 20 supersonic planes
American Airlines has agreed to buy up to 20 supersonic jets and put down a non-refundable deposit on the planes that are still on the drawing board and years away from flying. Neither American nor the manufacturer Boom Supersonic would provide financial details Tuesday, including the size of American’s deposit....
FAA warns that staffing shortage will delay flights in New York
The Federal Aviation Administration said Monday that it was reducing flights in the area around New York City because of lack of staffing. Departing and arriving flights could be delayed up to two hours at John F. Kennedy International, LaGuardia and Newark (New Jersey) Liberty International airports, the FAA said....
John Dorfman: What stocks would value saint Ben Graham like today?
Value investors speak in reverential tones about Benjamin Graham. A hedge-fund manager, Columbia University professor and author, Graham (1884-1976) is widely considered the father of value investing. Once a year, I attempt to guess what stocks the maestro would buy if he were alive today. Graham Method I use a...
Starbucks asks labor board to halt union votes temporarily
Starbucks is asking the National Labor Relations Board to temporarily suspend all union elections at its U.S. stores after a career employee with the labor board told the company of alleged improper coordination between regional NLRB officials and the union. In a letter sent Monday to the NLRB, Starbucks said...
Expanded IRS free-file system one step closer in Dems’ bill
WASHINGTON — The flagship climate change and health care bill passed by Democrats and soon to be signed by President Joe Biden will bring U.S. taxpayers one step closer to a government-operated electronic free-file tax return system. It’s something lawmakers and advocates have been seeking for years. For many Americans,...
