Business category, Page 81
Biden administration agrees to provide $6.4 billion to Samsung for making computer chips in Texas
WASHINGTON — The Biden administration has reached an agreement to provide up to $6.4 billion in direct funding for Samsung Electronics to develop a computer chip manufacturing and research cluster in Texas. The funding announced Monday by the Commerce Department is part of a total investment in the cluster that,...
The IRS is quicker to answer the phone on this Tax Day
WASHINGTON — On this Tax Day, the IRS is promoting the customer service improvements the agency rolled out since receiving tens of billions in new funding dollars through Democrats’ Inflation Reduction Act. From cutting phone wait times to digitizing more documents and improving the “Where’s My Refund” tool to show...
Bob Casey, Sherrod Brown press Biden to stop U.S. Steel-Nippon deal
WASHINGTON — Two steel-state Democrats in tough reelection fights are urging President Joe Biden to do more to stop the proposed acquisition of U.S. Steel by Japan-based Nippon Steel Corp. “We’re pushing the White House on national security grounds and on trade enforcement,” Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio told Bloomberg...
Goofy sued for negligence, inflicting trauma, in Disneyland collision
LOS ANGELES — Oh, Goofy, what have you done now? Katrina Amian Redfern Griffin was bent over, tying her daughter’s shoes during a trip to Disneyland in April 2022, when a park employee dressed as Goofy — the klutzy but lovable cartoon canine — barreled straight into her, according to...
It’s almost April 15. Here’s how to reduce stress and get your taxes done
NEW YORK — For many people, tax season isn’t only about gathering W-2 forms or calling an accountant. It can also bring intense feelings of stress or anxiety about dealing with finances. Financial stress during tax season can manifest in different ways, whether that’s procrastinating on your tax return until...
Job demand, good pay spur growth in nursing programs
Chelsey Strickland grew up watching her single mom work long shifts as a nurse at UPMC St. Margaret hospital to provide for her family. That’s what led the Tarentum resident to enroll in nursing school at 25, despite, two years earlier, having earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the...
Fewer Americans file for jobless claims as labor market continues to shrug off higher interest rates
WASHINGTON — Fewer Americans applied for jobless benefits last week as the labor market continues to thrive despite the Federal Reserve’s efforts to cool it. The Labor Department reported Thursday that filings for unemployment claims for the week ending April 6 fell by 11,000 to 211,000 from the previous week’s...
Internet providers must now be more transparent about fees, pricing, FCC says
NEW YORK — Much like nutritional labels on food products, “broadband labels” for internet packages will soon tell you just what is going into the pricing of your service, thanks to new rules adopted by the Federal Communications Commission this week. “If you’ve ever shopped for home or mobile internet,...
Post-Gazette settles strike with Teamsters
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette said Wednesday night it has settled its long 18-month strike by Teamsters Local 211/205, a newspaper executive confirmed. Tracey DeAngelo, Post-Gazette president and general manager, confirmed the settlement through a spokesperson as she was returning from Toledo, Ohio, where Block Communications Inc., owner of the Pittsburgh newspaper,...
Penn State New Kensington students show off skills, network with future employers
Bryce Eddy knew the New Kensington cat rescue Frankie’s Friends often takes in lots of cats rescued from poor conditions. So, to take some pressure off Frankie’s team of volunteers, the Harrison native and his Penn State New Kensington classmates James Matus and Heather Shultz decided to put their skills...
Pa. Supreme Court hears debate on gun-industry immunity in lawsuit over Mt. Pleasant boy’s death
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court on Tuesday heard argument on whether a federal law that protects gun manufacturers from civil liability prohibits a Westmoreland County family from suing the company whose gun killed their teenage son. The case turns on the court’s interpretation of the federal Protection of Lawful Commerce in...
Tesla settles lawsuit over man’s death in a crash involving its semi-autonomous driving software
SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Tesla has settled a lawsuit brought by the family of a Silicon Valley engineer who died in a crash while relying on the company’s semi-autonomous driving software. The amount Tesla paid to settle the case was not disclosed in court documents filed Monday, just a day...
2 years after its historic win, a divided Amazon Labor Union lurches toward a leadership election
Two years after clinching a historic victory at a warehouse in New York City, the first labor union for Amazon workers in the United States is divided, running out of money and fighting over an election that could determine who will lead the group in the near future. Despite campaigns...
Will China flood the globe with EVs, green tech? What’s behind latest US-China trade fight
WASHINGTON — China’s burgeoning production of electric cars and other green technologies has become a flashpoint in a new U.S.-China trade fight, highlighted by Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen during her five-day visit to China and seized on by former President Donald Trump in incendiary remarks on the campaign trail. China...
P&G recalls 8.2 million bags of Tide, Gain and other laundry detergents over packaging defect
NEW YORK — Procter & Gamble is recalling more than 8 million bags of Tide, Gain, Ace and Ariel laundry detergent packets sold in the U.S. and Canada due to a defect in the products’ child-resistant packaging. According to Friday notices from both P&G and product-safety regulators in the U.S....
Justice Department can reopen Realtors case, court says
The Justice Department can reopen an antitrust probe into the National Association of Realtors, an appeals court ruled Friday, rejecting a bid by the real estate trade group to enforce a 2020 settlement with the Trump administration to close the case. “The fact that DOJ ‘closed its investigation’ does not...
Dick’s House of Sport opens at Ross Park Mall
Dick’s House of Sport is a true experiential shopping setting. With a 30-foot, 360-degree rock climbing wall, an 18,000-square-foot outdoor track and field, multi-sport cage and golf simulators, athletes can try before they buy. “This is a retail experience, a community experience and a museum experience — although unlike a...
U.S. employers added a surprisingly robust 303,000 jobs in March in a sign of economic strength
WASHINGTON — America’s employers delivered another outpouring of jobs in March, adding a sizzling 303,000 workers to their payrolls and bolstering hopes that the economy can vanquish inflation without succumbing to a recession in the face of high interest rates. Last month’s job growth was up from a revised 270,000...
Free blue checks are back for some accounts on Elon Musk’s X — not everyone is happy about it
NEW YORK — Elon Musk’s social platform X has begun restoring complimentary blue checks for some of its users, the latest unexpected shift to cause a lot of confusion on the platform. For years, Twitter’s blue checks mirrored verification badges that are common on social media, largely reserved for celebrities,...
Target’s latest ads feature Kristen Wiig’s SNL ‘Target Lady’ and Prince’s music
Target has brought the “Target Lady” back with her bowl cut, red vest and overexuberant approach to customer service and all things “Tergit” to help get out the word out about Target Circle Week and changes to the retailer’s loyalty program. It’s the first time the Minneapolis-based retailer has tapped...
Elon Musk’s X has a new safety leader, 9 months after predecessor left
NEW YORK — Elon Musk’s X has named a new head of safety nine months after the last executive to hold the position departed from the social media company. X said that company veteran Kylie McRoberts will oversee the global safety team. The platform also announced that Yale Cohen, who...
Amazon is cutting hundreds of jobs in its cloud computing unit AWS
Amazon said Wednesday it will cut hundreds of jobs in its cloud computing unit AWS as part of a strategic shift. The company will trim “a few hundred roles” in the team that overlooks technology for physical stores, a move that comes just a day after Amazon said it was...
6 with Pittsburgh ties make Forbes’ 2024 billionaires list
Several people with Pittsburgh ties have been named on Forbes’ World’s Billionaires List, which was released Tuesday. David Tepper, 66, tops the local connections tied at No. 94 with an estimated $24.6 billion in net worth, according to Forbes. In 2003, he donated $55 million to Carnegie Mellon University, from...
FirstEnergy seeks rate hike to fund improvements
FirstEnergy Pennsylvania, which includes West Penn Power, is seeking an increase of its base electric rates from the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission. If the plan is approved by the commission, the new rates would take effect June 1, according to information released by FirstEnergy. Typical West Penn residential customers who...
John Dorfman: U.S. Steel, Humana on Casualty List
Not every stock that gets roughed up deserves it. Finding stocks that have been banged around, and that have good recovery potential, is the point of my quarterly Casualty List. This year’s first quarter saw healthy gains for most stocks, but some stocks took it on the chin. Four that...
