Business category, Page 238
Comcast launches preview of new streaming service
Comcast began offering a preview of the premium tier of NBCUniversal’s new streaming service Peacock to some customers on Wednesday. With most people under stay-at-home restrictions because of the coronavirus pandemic, Comcast said it has seen a 50% increase in on-demand consumption year-over-year. Voice remote searches for free content are...
With commerce frozen, retail sales plunge unprecedented 8.7%Video
WASHINGTON — U.S. retail sales plummeted 8.7% in March, an unprecedented decline, as the viral outbreak forces an almost complete lock down of commerce nationwide. The deterioration of sales far outpaces the previous record decline of 3.9% that took place during the depths of the Great Recession in November 2008....
Factory shutdowns near WWII demobilization levels in U.S.
WASHINGTON — American industry collapsed in March as the pandemic wreaked havoc on the U.S. economy. Manufacturing and overall industrial production posted the biggest declines since the United States demobilized after World War II. The Federal Reserve reported Wednesday that manufacturing output dropped 6.3% last month, led by plunging production...
Stocks sink following grim data on economic hit from coronavirus
NEW YORK — Selling swept Wall Street Wednesday after a dismal lineup of reports made clear how historic the coronavirus crunch has been for the economy. Markets are already bracing for what’s forecast to be the worst downturn since the Great Depression, but Wednesday’s data was even more dispiriting than...
Banks brace for big loan defaults by U.S., global customers
NEW YORK — The major banks in the U.S. are anticipating a flood of loan defaults as households and business customers take a big financial hit from the coronavirus pandemic. JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, Bank of America, Citigroup and Goldman Sachs raised the funds set aside for bad loans by...
EU unveils virus exit plan, hoping to avoid more chaosVideo
BRUSSELS — The European Union moved Wednesday to head off a chaotic and potentially disastrous easing of restrictions that are limiting the spread of the coronavirus, warning its 27 nations to move very cautiously as they return to normal life and base their actions on scientific advice. With Austria, the...
Major airlines line up to split $25 billion in payroll aid
The nation’s biggest airlines have tentatively agreed to terms for $25 billion in government aid to pay workers and avoid massive layoffs in an industry that has been slammed by the coronavirus pandemic. The assistance will include a mix of cash and loans, with the government getting warrants that can...
Indiana firefighter waiting on stimulus check finds $8.2 million in bank accountVideo
Surprise! An Indiana volunteer firefighter went to an ATM to withdraw $200 from his checking account only to find out he was a millionaire after looking at his receipt. According to Chicago-based television station WGN 9, Charles Calvin, of New Chicago, Ind., said he glanced down at his receipt and...
Stocks end higher as traders hope restrictions will ease
Stocks are ending with solid gains on Wall Street on Tuesday as the market turns its attention to how and when authorities might begin to lift business shutdowns and limits on people’s movements imposed to slow the spread of the coronavirus. Big companies also started reporting their first-quarter earnings, giving...
App tells you where to find toilet paper, milk, other suppliesVideo
The search for toilet paper and milk just got a little easier. A new app is offering shoppers a guide to where products are plentiful or scarce. What started out in January as a crowdsourcing app for cyclists and runners to report unsafe conditions on city streets has become a...
Workers sue McDonald’s over harassment at Florida stores
Two McDonald’s workers in Florida are filing a $500 million class action lawsuit against the company, claiming a “systemic sexual harassment problem” at company-owned stores. The lawsuit was filed Monday in federal court in Illinois, where McDonald’s is based. In the complaint, current McDonald’s employee Jamelia Fairley and former employee...
Coronavirus closes some meat plants, raising fears of shortagesVideo
OMAHA, Neb. — Some massive meat processing plants have closed at least temporarily because their workers were sickened by the new coronavirus, raising concerns that there could soon be shortages of beef, pork and poultry in supermarkets. The meat supply chain is especially vulnerable since processing is increasingly done at...
Lockdowns cut driving and crashes, bring insurance discountsVideo
DETROIT — Interstates and city streets are empty and cars are quarantined in their owners’ garages, so consumer advocates argue that it only makes sense for auto insurance rates to reflect that. In the states of Washington and New York, the number of traffic crashes reported to state police fell...
Coronavirus fuels pot industry’s push for online sales, deliveryVideo
DENVER — Colorado has made online sales of recreational marijuana legal during the coronavirus pandemic, fulfilling one of the pot industry’s biggest wishes and fueling its argument for more concessions that could be made permanent when the crisis eases. It’s one of several signs emerging from the virus outbreak of...
IRS online tool tracks when your stimulus money will arriveVideo
For millions of Americans out of work and struggling for cash, the government’s $2.2 trillion economic relief plan can’t come soon enough. The first coronavirus-related stimulus checks have started hitting bank accounts, according to the House Ways and Means Committee. But how can you know when will you get yours?...
US stocks open lower following their biggest week since 1974Video
TOKYO — Stocks fell broadly in early trading on Wall Street as the market gave back some gains after notching its best week since 1974. The S&P 500 was down 1.2% after surging 12% last week. Banks and technology stocks accounted for much of the selling in the early going....
Fiori’s Pizzaria making masks to combat covid-19
Fiori’s Pizzaria has now joined the mask-making brigade in an attempt to protect the public during the coronavirus pandemic. The restaurant started crafting the masks shortly after Gov. Tom Wolf suggested that Pennsylvania residents, along with practicing social distancing, should wear face coverings when out in public. Amy Rodgers, who...
Airlines and Trump administration haggle over payroll grants
The Trump administration is proposing that a significant amount of the $25 billion in cash that airlines expected to keep workers on the job will instead be low-interest loans that big airlines will have to repay, according to two people familiar with the matter. The Treasury Department began sending proposals...
Report: Toilet paper shortage a result of people being home more, not hoarding
By now, most have heard about confrontations between people wanting to buy toilet paper during the coronavirus pandemic that have reached the point of authorities having to intervene. A recent report from USA Today suggests the idea that people have been selfishly hoarding the highly coveted tool may not paint...
Another stock rally loses steam, still headed for big week
NEW YORK — A rally on Wall Street Thursday is fading, the second time this week that a big early gain threatened to give out in the afternoon. The S&P 500 is up 1.1% with an hour to go in trading after earlier being up as much as 2.5%. The...
Pandemic has set the number of air travelers back decades
The number of Americans getting on airplanes has sunk to a level not seen in more than 60 years as people shelter in their homes to avoid catching or spreading the new coronavirus. The Transportation Security Administration screened 94,931 people on Wednesday, a drop of 96% from a year ago...
U.S. economy unlikely to recover as rapidly as it collapsedVideo
BALTIMORE — President Donald Trump has been telling voters that the U.S. economy will leap back to life “like a rocket,” stronger than ever after its bout with the coronavirus. But there is a reason economics is called the “dismal science.” There are emerging signs that any recovery will fail...
Hurry up and wait? Why relief to small businesses has lagged
NEW YORK — Speed is of the essence if a federal relief program for small businesses is going to be effective in combating the damage wrought by the coronavirus lockdowns. Yet, days into the program, many Main Street businesses are still waiting for the cash infusion necessary to stay alive....
Fed rolls out $2.3 trillion to stabilize governments, businessesVideo
WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve is taking additional steps to provide up to $2.3 trillion in loans to support the economy. The money will target American households and businesses, as well as local governments besieged by the coronavirus outbreak. The Fed said Thursday that it is activating a Main Street...
Record 16.8 million have sought U.S. jobless aid since virusVideo
WASHINGTON — With a startling 6.6 million people seeking jobless benefits last week, the United States has reached a grim landmark: More than one in 10 workers have lost their jobs in just the past three weeks to the coronavirus outbreak. The figures collectively constitute the largest and fastest string...
