Business category, Page 266
Stocks climb to records on hopes for lower interest rates
NEW YORK — The major U.S. stock indexes closed at record highs Friday, with the S&P 500 ending above 3,000 for the first time. The market was driven higher by technology, consumer discretionary and industrial company stocks, which more than offset the drop in drugmakers. Investors continued to remain focused...
Report: FTC approves roughly $5B fine for Facebook
SAN FRANCISCO — The FTC has voted to approve a fine of about $5 billion for Facebook over privacy violations, the Wall Street Journal reported Friday. The report cited an unnamed person familiar with the matter. Facebook and the FTC declined to comment. The Journal said the 3-2 vote broke...
Trump accuses big tech of bias against conservative voices
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said Thursday that big tech companies must not be allowed to censor the voices of the American people on social media, even as he hailed conservative critics for using the platforms to get around the “fake news filter.” Trump has weaponized social media to eviscerate...
2020 Ford Explorer’s tires fix themselves, representing a new trend
The 2020 Ford Explorer will offer tires that patch their own holes. Drivers may not even know they ran over a nail, but here’s what they should know: The tires allow them to keep traveling after a puncture, in some cases continuing for days without a repair. They use different...
Volkswagen investing $2.6B in Ford-owned, Pittsburgh-based Argo AI
DETROIT — Volkswagen will sink $2.6 billion into a Pittsburgh autonomous vehicle company that’s mostly owned by Ford as part of a broader partnership on electric and self-driving vehicles, the companies confirmed Friday. The two automakers will become equal owners of Argo AI, a robocar firm that was majority-owned by...
Study: Starting a business in Pennsylvania is not easy
Pennsylvania ranks among the worst states in which to start a new business, according to a new WalletHub study. The study, comparing 50 states across 26 indicators of startup success, ranked Pennsylvania 46th overall based on business environment, access to resources and business costs. Pennsylvania’s ranking put it below even...
John Dorfman: Here’s my Perfect 10 Portfolio
Perhaps the phrase “Perfect 10” makes you think of a beautiful woman, or a perfect score in gymnastics. Well, my Perfect 10 Portfolio is a little different. It consists of 10 stocks, each of which carries a price/earnings ratio (P/E) of 10. The P/E is simply a stock’s price divided...
AP Sources: Jeffrey Epstein arrested in NY on sex charges
NEW YORK — Wealthy financier and registered sex offender Jeffrey Epstein was arrested Saturday in New York on sex-trafficking charges involving allegations that date to the 2000s, according to law enforcement officials. Epstein, a wealthy hedge fund manager who once counted as friends former President Bill Clinton, Great Britain’s Prince...
W.Va. coal billionaire Chris Cline killed in helicopter crash
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Coal tycoon Chris Cline, who worked his way out of West Virginia’s underground mines to amass a fortune and become a major Republican donor, has died in a helicopter crash outside a string of islands he owned in the Bahamas. Cline and his 22-year-old daughter Kameron were...
U.S. adds solid 224,000 jobs; Fed rate cut may be less certain
WASHINGTON — U.S. employers sharply stepped up their hiring in June, adding a robust 224,000 jobs, an indication of the economy’s durability after more than a decade of expansion. The strength of the jobs report the Labor Department issued Friday could complicate a decision for the Federal Reserve late this...
Boeing to pay $100 million to crash families, communities
Boeing said Wednesday that it will provide an “initial investment” of $100 million over several years to help families and communities affected by two crashes of its 737 Max plane that killed 346 people. The Chicago-based company said some of the money will go toward living expenses and to cover...
Pet owners have some tools to fight veterinary sticker shock
That cuddly new puppy can be pretty intimidating if pet owners consider the veterinary bills it might produce. A pet’s torn knee ligaments or a broken leg that needs surgery could cost a few thousand dollars. Even stitches to close a bite wound after a scrap with another dog can...
Blackjewel CEO confident bankrupt coal operator will rebound
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The CEO of one of the nation’s largest coal producers says he’s confident the company will bounce back despite the shutdown of several mines after it filed for federal bankruptcy protection. Milton-based Blackjewel LLC filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Monday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for southern...
Facebook to make jobs, credit ads searchable
BOSTON — Facebook says it will make advertisements for jobs, loans and credit card offers searchable for all U.S. users under a legal settlement designed to eliminate discrimination on its platform. The plan disclosed in an internal report Sunday voluntarily expands on a commitment the social medial giant made in...
Trump says U.S. ‘winning’ trade war after reviving China talks
WASHINGTON — President Trump declared the U.S. was “winning” the trade war a day after reaching a temporary truce with Chinese President Xi Jinping. On a visit to South Korea following the Group of 20 summit in Japan, Trump said at a news conference the Federal Reserve “has not been...
Report: Apple to shift assembly of Mac Pro from U.S. to China
SAN FRANCISCO — A newspaper is reporting that Apple will manufacture its new Mac Pro computer in China, shifting away from a U.S. assembly line it had been using for that product in recent years. The Wall Street Journal reported the plan Friday, citing unidentified people familiar with the move....
Lego strikes deal to buy Legoland, Madame Tussauds
COPENHAGEN, Denmark — The owners of toy maker Lego are teaming up with a group of investors to buy Merlin Entertainment, a British company that operates theme parks like Legoland and the Madame Tussauds wax museums. Kirkbi Invest said Friday it is joining forces with private equity firm Blackstone and...
Trucking company to expand Indiana County operations, add 25 jobs
PGT Trucking Inc., a flatbed transportation company, will expand its Indiana County operations and add 25 jobs, Gov. Tom Wolf said Thursday. PGT Trucking plans to expand its Burrell Township location to improve its training operations and maintenance capabilities. The project includes significant expansion of the primary training facility for...
Trade tensions, India tariffs put California almonds at risk
MODESTO, Calif. — Along large swaths of California’s lush central valley, almonds in the fuzzy hulls of tree leaves blow in the wind on thousands of acres of orchards. Thousands of miles away in India, customers browse the nut sections of busy street markets and grocery stores in search of...
Politicians’ tweets could get slapped with warning labels
SAN FRANCISCO — Presidents and other world leaders and political figures who use Twitter to threaten or abuse others could find their tweets slapped with warning labels. The new policy, announced by the company on Thursday, comes amid complaints from activists and others that President Donald Trump has gotten a...
Future is in doubt for cheaper versions of biologic drugs
TRENTON, N.J. — They were the drugs that were supposed to save the U.S. tens of billions of dollars. Called “biosimilars,” they are near-copies of complex and expensive biologic drugs to treat cancer, rare diseases and autoimmune disorders like rheumatoid arthritis and colitis. But U.S. sales have been so limited...
Apple recalls some MacBook Pro laptops due to fire hazard
NEW YORK — Apple is recalling some MacBook Pro laptops due to a fire hazard. The batteries in the laptops can overheat, posing a safety risk. The recalled MacBook Pros have a screen that measures 15-inches diagonally and were sold between September 2015 through February 2017 in the United States...
How did 7-Eleven get its name? It was all timing
What’s in a name? 7-Eleven, with more than 68,000 locations across 17 countries, including nearly 10,000 in the United States, is among the world’s most widely recognized convenience store chains. The story behind its seemingly unique name is … well … not very unique at all. Originally named Tote’m Stores,...
Facebook enlists plain English to clarify how it makes money
SAN FRANCISCO — Facebook is updating its terms and services guidelines to clarify how it makes money from the personal information of its users. The changes reflect its ongoing attempts to satisfy regulators in the U.S. and Europe, which have urged the company to make sure users know what they...
Starbucks is losing money in Britain
Starbucks reported an annual loss in its United Kingdom operations, saying foot traffic at its cafes declined in a downbeat economy and as consumers want coffee delivered to their homes or desks. The company’s British store arm lost about $22 million in the year ended September 2018, after a profit...
