Wire stories category, Page 64
New homes sales rise for 2nd straight month in August
Sales of new homes in the U.S. rose modestly in August as rising prices continue to sideline potential buyers. Sales of new homes last month rose 1.5%, the Commerce Department reported Friday, reaching a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 740,000. That’s more than economists had expected and follows an increase...
China says all crypto transactions illegal; Bitcoin tumbles
China’s central bank on Friday declared all transactions involving Bitcoin and other virtual currencies illegal, stepping up a campaign to block use of unofficial digital money. Friday’s notice complained Bitcoin, Ethereum and other digital currencies disrupt the financial system and are used in money-laundering and other crimes. “Virtual currency derivative...
Stocks on Wall Street waver, clinging to gains for the week
Stocks are wavering between small gains and losses on Wall Street Friday, and are still barely higher for the week. The weak showing follows a two-day rally that helped erase a slump earlier in the week. Investors have been facing similar choppiness throughout September as they try to gauge how...
GM invests $300M in China’s self-driving car company Momenta
General Motors is investing $300 million in China’s self-driving car company Momenta. GM said Thursday that the investment will speed up the development of next-generation self-driving technologies in China. The move is also part of a plan GM announced three months ago to invest $35 billion in engineering and capital...
Port of Houston target of suspected nation-state hack
A major U.S. port was the target last month of suspected nation-state hackers, according to officials. The Port of Houston, a critical piece of infrastructure along the Gulf Coast, issued a statement Thursday saying it had successfully defended against an attempted hack in August and “no operational data or systems...
Another rally on Wall Street erases losses for the week
Stocks rose broadly for a second day in a row on Wall Street Thursday, reversing the market’s losses for the week just three days after the S&P 500 had its biggest skid since May. The S&P 500 added 1.2% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1.5%. Investors were pleased...
Inflation forces homebuilders to take it slow, raise prices
LOS ANGELES — Even in the hottest U.S. housing market in more than a decade, new home construction has turned into a frustratingly uncertain and costly proposition for many homebuilders. Rising costs and shortages of building materials and labor are rippling across the homebuilding industry, which accounted for nearly 12%...
Stocks hold their gains on Wall Street after Fed statementVideo
Stocks on Wall Street closed broadly higher Wednesday after the Federal Reserve signaled it may begin easing its extraordinary support measures for the economy later this year. The central bank said it may start raising its benchmark interest rate sometime next year, earlier than it envisioned three months ago. It...
Biden administration files antitrust lawsuit over American Airlines-JetBlue partnership
The Biden administration’s Justice Department has filed an antitrust lawsuit to challenge the partnership between American Airlines and JetBlue that links the two carrier’s operations tightly at four of the busiest airports in the Northeast, saying the tie-up will reduce competition and drive fares higher. The deal between American Airlines...
Stocks drop the most since May on worries over China, Fed
Stocks on Wall Street closed sharply lower Monday, mirroring losses overseas and handing the S&P 500 index its biggest drop in four months. Worries about debt-engorged Chinese property developers — and the damage they could do to investors worldwide if they default — rippled across markets. Investors are also concerned...
Stocks end lower after a brief afternoon recovery fades
Another day of choppy trading on Wall Street left stocks mostly lower, cutting into the major indexes’ gains for the week. The S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average each lost about 0.2%, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq managed to eke out a gain of 0.1%. More stocks fell than...
Apple’s next iPhone mirrors last year’s, adds more storage
Apple unveiled its next iPhone line-up, including a model that offers twice the storage available in earlier versions and other modest upgrades to last year’s editions that proved to be a big hit among consumers devouring the latest technology during the pandemic. The pre-recorded video event streamed Tuesday gave Apple...
Child tax credit payments go out this week. Here’s what to know.
Eligible families are set to receive a third round of monthly child tax credit direct payments this week. The temporarily enhanced tax credits — included in the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan signed into law by President Biden in March — provide eligible parents with up to $3,600 per child...
U.S. will give aircraft companies $482 million for pandemic
The Biden administration is making $482 million available to aviation industry manufacturers to help them avert job or pay cuts in the pandemic. The taxpayer-funded relief will cover up to half of the payroll costs at 313 companies, according to the Transportation Department, which said Thursday will help save up...
Stocks edge higher, regrouping after a down week
A late-afternoon burst of buying helped stock indexes close mostly higher Monday on Wall Street, snapping a five-day losing streak for the S&P 500. The benchmark index shook off an afternoon slump to finish 0.2% higher. Banks, energy companies and communication stocks accounted for much of the index’s broad gains....
Federal mandate takes vaccine decision off employers’ hands
Larger U.S. businesses now won’t have to decide whether to require their employees to get vaccinated against covid-19. Doing so is now federal policy. President Joe Biden announced sweeping new orders Thursday that will require employers with more than 100 workers to mandate immunizations or offer weekly testing. The new...
Stocks higher in early trading, still lower for the week
Stocks were slightlyi higher Thursday morning on Wall Street, as the market continues to wobble between gains and losses in this holiday-shortened week. The S&P 500 index rose 0.2% as of 10 a.m. Eastern. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2% and the Nasdaq composite rose 0.3%. The S&P 500...
Economic oddity: Record job openings and many unemployedVideo
WASHINGTON — The disconnect is jarring: Across the United States, employers who are desperate to fill jobs have posted a record-high number of job openings. They’re raising pay, too, and dangling bonuses to people who accept job offers or recruit their friends. And yet millions more Americans are unemployed compared...
Amazon to open 2 cashier-less Whole Foods stores next year
There will be something missing at two Whole Foods stores opening next year: the rows of cashiers. Amazon, which owns the grocery chain, said Wednesday that it will bring its cashier-less technology to two Whole Foods stores for the first time, letting shoppers grab what they need and leave without...
Stocks close mostly lower, but Nasdaq still inches higher
Stocks indexes on Wall Street closed mostly lower Tuesday, though solid gains by Apple, Facebook and other tech heavyweights helped nudged the Nasdaq to another all-time high. The S&P 500 slipped 0.3%, losing some ground after two straight weekly gains. Roughly 80% of companies in the benchmark index fell. Industrial...
Early stumble as El Salvador starts Bitcoin as currency
SAN SALVADOR — El Salvador became the first country to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender Tuesday, but the rollout stumbled in its first hours and President Nayib Bukele said the digital wallet used for transactions was not functioning. For part of the morning, El Salvador’s president became tech support for...
Jobless Americans will have few options as benefits expireVideo
NEW YORK — Millions of jobless Americans lost their unemployment benefits on Monday, leaving only a handful of economic support programs for those who are still being hit financially by the year-and-a-half-old coronavirus pandemic. Two critical programs expired on Monday. One provided jobless aid to self-employed and gig workers and...
Electric boats making waves without the noise
The auto industry has raced ahead on an electric wave with more manufacturers joining the race seemingly every day. The boating industry has sputtered far behind, bogged down by low-horsepower engines and batteries that take up nearly half the boat. That’s in the process of changing. Bolstered by new technology,...
Stocks decline after negative jobs report, bond yields rise
Stocks were falling Friday after a critical report on U.S. hiring showed employers created far fewer jobs than expected. It gave investors pause on whether the delta variant of the coronavirus was starting to impact economic growth out of the pandemic. The S&P 500 index fell 0.1% as of 10...
U.S. hiring slows to just 235,000 jobs after 2 strong months
WASHINGTON — America’s employers added just 235,000 jobs in August, a surprisingly weak gain after two months of robust hiring at a time when the delta variant’s spread has discouraged some people from flying, shopping and eating out. The August job gains the government reported Friday fell far short of...
