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Here's why the auto industry supports a US Steel sale to Japan's Nippon Steel

Business / Business News /

WASHINGTON — With a deal still in flux, the U.S. auto industry keeps pushing top government officials to allow the proposed acquisition of United States Steel Corp. by Japanese rival Nippon Steel Corp.

That push, analysts told The Detroit News, signals how much the global auto industry operating in the United States stands to benefit from ...Read more

Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group/TNS

War of names widens between the Oakland and San Francisco airports

Business / Business News /

OAKLAND, California — The war of the names between two of the region’s three major airports has widened now that San Francisco has asked a federal court to block Oakland from using the new name for the East Bay airport.

San Francisco has asked a federal court to block Oakland from continuing to use the new name of the East Bay aviation hub,...Read more

Pocketbook issues front of mind as Target, Best Buy launch holiday retail season

Business / Business News /

Target plans again to hire 100,000 seasonal workers and will have its first holiday sales event next month.

Richfield-based Best Buy and other retailers also are stretching the ever-important holiday retail season as long as possible.

Both Target and Best Buy have acknowledged they must work hard to entice consumers who are shopping more ...Read more

Justin Sullivan/Getty Images North America/TNS

'A stab in the back.' How Elon Musk's decision to move X from San Francisco is stirring mixed emotions

Business / Business News /

SAN FRANCISCO — When Elon Musk took over Twitter in 2022, it marked a new era for the struggling San Francisco company.

As the deal neared completion, Musk, the eccentric entrepreneur known for leading Tesla and SpaceX, tweeted, “Entering Twitter HQ — let that sink in!” with a video of him carrying a white sink into Twitter’s San ...Read more

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Major auto suppliers tackle bumpy EV road with different strategies

Business / Business News /

FLAT ROCK, Michigan, and TROY, Michigan — A slower-than-expected ramp-up of electric vehicle production and sales present major risks for suppliers, and major Tier 1s are tackling that challenge differently.

Suppliers are making special requests, forging new types of partnerships and prioritizing adaptability as the mix of gas-powered, hybrid...Read more

Nelvin C. Cepeda/The San Diego Union-Tribune/TNS

Qualcomm partners with company that sued Apple – and won – over its smartwatch technology

Business / Business News /

At this point, smartwatches are expected to tell you more than just the time of day or your step count. So more technology companies have turned to your health, such as tracking sleeping patterns and your heart rate, as the next key upgrade.

San Diego’s Qualcomm has struck a new partnership to do just that with Masimo, a medical technology ...Read more

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US says Google saw ad startup as a 'threat' -- and bought it

Business / Business News /

Google bought advertising technology provider AdMeld in 2011 because the search giant saw the startup as a “threat” to its online display ad strategy, antitrust enforcers sought to show at trial Monday.

The purchase of the company was portrayed by the Justice Department in its monopolization trial against the Alphabet Inc. unit as an ...Read more

Andrew Parsons/Parsons Media/Zuma Press/TNS

The Murdoch family's legal battle over a media empire: What you need to know

Business / Business News /

The fight for the future of Rupert Murdoch's media empire began Monday in a Nevada courtroom.

The 93-year-old media titan is petitioning to change his irrevocable family trust to ensure his eldest son, Lachlan, will have sole control over his media companies News Corp. and Fox Corp. after the elder Murdoch's death.

News Corp. owns influential ...Read more

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UAW fears Stellantis wants to move Dodge Durango production from Detroit to Canada

Business / Business News /

The United Auto Workers says it's worried Stellantis NV wants to move Dodge Durango SUV production from Detroit to Canada, adding that the company has refused to share any information about its vehicle plans or investments recently.

The union said it filed an unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board on Monday, which ...Read more

Marc Grasso/Boston Herald/TNS

Jeep cuts production of Gladiators and Wranglers at Toledo plant

Business / Business News /

Production cuts are hitting the Stellantis NV plant in Toledo, Ohio, that builds the Jeep Gladiator pickup and Wrangler SUV this week, the latest of several factory pauses or slowdowns by the automaker as it deals with large vehicle inventories and other challenges.

The automaker paused production of the Gladiator at the Toledo Assembly Complex...Read more

Karen Ducey/The Seattle Times/TNS

Barely getting by on one income in the Seattle area

Business / Business News /

Rabi Asghar, 37, didn’t realize just how expensive divorced life would be until after the paperwork was filed and the dust had settled.

Without a partner to split bills, the cost of daily life ballooned. For the first time in years, he found himself having to shoulder the full burden of utilities and groceries on his own. His ex had taken the...Read more

Ken Lambert/The Seattle Times/TNS

Boeing considers temporary layoffs to cut costs during Machinists strike

Business / Business News /

Boeing on Monday announced internally a series of sweeping cost-cutting moves in response to the Machinists strike, and said it may temporarily lay off some employees, including managers and executives.

The cost-cutting measures also include significant holds on taking aircraft parts from suppliers, an action that will ripple through the ...Read more

Erika Schultz/The Seattle Times/TNS

Amazon workers will return to the office five days a week

Business / Business News /

Amazon will require employees to work from the office five days a week, starting in January, the tech giant announced Monday.

It’s a shift from the current three-day-a-week return to office mandate, which Amazon has had in place since May 2023. In a note to employees Monday, CEO Andy Jassy wrote that the company is going to return to being in...Read more

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Walmart embarks on 'style tour' to prove it is a fashion destination, with two stops in LA

Business / Business News /

Zara. Shein. Walmart?

In its latest bid to be seen as an affordable fashion destination, Walmart is hitting the road to prove that it has more to offer beyond household essentials and grocery staples.

The mega-retailer has embarked on a Walmart Style Tour, bringing its collection of fall styles directly to consumers at more than 40 shopping ...Read more

Aric Crabb/Bay Area News Group/TNS

Amid a weakened wine market, Alameda County grape growers nearly double the acreage of a classic varietal

Business / Business News /

Beneath swaying cypress trees and Spanish tile roofs, winemakers at Las Positas Vineyards are preparing to harvest two of the fastest-growing grapes in Alameda County, California: cabernet sauvignon and cabernet franc.

These two Livermore Valley varietals are taking up more space in vineyards in recent years amid a contracting wine industry, as...Read more

Mark Adams/Dreamstime/TNS

Study: Americans' pay hasn't fully recovered from inflation. Will it ever?

Business / Business News /

For 13 years, the 3% annual salary boost that Ricardo M. could count on every October felt like a beacon of stability and a nod that his loyalty as a plumbing supply salesman was being rewarded.

But in the aftermath of a post-pandemic inflation surge, those raises have since lost their luster. His grocery bills have doubled. The cost of ...Read more

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July Fed meeting preview: As unemployment rises and inflation slows, should officials cut interest rates now?

Business / Business News /

The last worry on a firefighter’s mind as he extinguishes the blaze of a burning building is the potential for water damage. For the Federal Reserve, the same is often true as it battles inflation; there’s little room for concern about what it could mean for jobseekers.

Until those red-hot price pressures start to fizzle out.

For the first...Read more

John Smierciak/Chicago Tribune/TNS

David Nicklaus: Politics trumps business sense in blocking US Steel deal

Business / Business News /

U.S. Steel was once the world’s most valuable company, which may explain why it remains a political icon even as its economic clout has waned.

President Joe Biden reportedly plans to block the company’s $15 billion sale to Japanese competitor Nippon Steel, citing national security concerns even though the Pentagon buys only a negligible ...Read more

Vitalij Sova/Dreamstime/TNS

Motormouth: Starter problem? Maybe not

Business / Business News /

Q: You wrote in a recent column that you should never attempt to start an already running car, due to the nasty noise it makes. My wife and I hear a similar noise when we cold start our 2014 Honda CR-V. The dealer says it's a common issue with our make and model year resulting from faulty design. They further say, it would be an expensive repair...Read more