Business News

They are TV’s ghosts — networks that somehow survive with little reason to watch them anymore

NEW YORK (AP) — Cable television is filled with ghosts. They’re networks that somehow survive as shadows of themselves, with schedules clogged with reruns and devoid of any real innovation. Fueled by the onset of streaming, this has come on quickly: once-thriving networks like USA, MTV, Disney and BET have lost more than half of their viewers in only a decade. As they fade, so are the communities they helped to create. Streaming has revolutionized how people watch TV, and industry leaders have raced toward what they regard as the future. But for the cable networks left behind the question has to be: did it really have to be this way?

Elon Musk sues OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman, claiming betrayal of its goal to benefit humanity

Elon Musk is suing OpenAI and its CEO Sam Altman over what he says is a betrayal of the ChatGPT maker’s founding aims of benefiting humanity rather than pursuing profits. The lawsuit was filed Thursday in San Francisco Superior Court. Billionaire Musk says that when he bankrolled OpenAI’s creation, he secured an agreement with Altman and Greg Brockman, the president, to keep the AI company as a nonprofit that would develop technology for the benefit of the public. However, by embracing a close relationship with Microsoft, OpenAI and its top executives have set that pact “aflame” and are “perverting” the company’s mission, Musk alleges in the lawsuit.

One year after buying a failed bank, New York Community Bancorp is struggling

A New York bank is under severe pressure close to one year after absorbing a large chunk of another bank 30 miles away that had failed. Shares of New York Community Bancorp plunged at the opening bell Friday after longtime CEO Thomas Cangemi, who has spent much of this year reassuring investors about the bank’s viability, stepped down abruptly and the bank postponed a mandatory annual financial disclosure to U.S. regulators due to “material weakness” tied to loans. Commercial banks like New York Community Bancorp have been hammered by falling values in the commercial real estate market after the pandemic upended work in offices for millions. New York Community stands out as it also became much bigger after acquiring failed Signature Bank.

Boeing is reportedly in talks to buy Spirit AeroSystems, its key supplier on the troubled 737 Max

DALLAS (AP) — Boeing is in talks to buy Spirit AeroSystems, which makes fuselages for Boeing 737 Max jetliners, according to a person knowledgeable about the discussions. The Wall Street Journal first reported on Friday that the companies have held preliminary discussions about a sale. The companies are declining to comment. Boeing used to own Spirit AeroSystems but spun it off nearly 20 years ago as it moved to an outsourcing model. That model has come under question because of quality issues at Spirit, which is based in Wichita, Kansas. Spirit made the door panel that blew off an Alaska Airlines jetliner in January.

Stock market today: Wall Street adds to its records as bond yields ease

NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street is adding to its records as U.S. stock indexes tick higher. The S&P 500 was up 0.7% Friday after setting an all-time high the day before. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 75 points, and the Nasdaq composite was 1.2% higher a day after surpassing the record it set in 2021. More leaps for Dell and other companies on excitement around artificial-intelligence technology helped support the market. New York Community Bancorp plunged after warning investors that it found serious weaknesses in how it reviews loans. Treasury yields eased following weaker-than-expected reports on U.S. manufacturing and consumer sentiment.

China pledges to increase opportunities for foreign companies as it seeks to boost its economy

BEIJING (AP) — Chinese Vice President Han Zheng has pledged to provide more opportunities for foreign companies in China as the government tries to restore confidence in the world’s second largest economy. Han told an audience of American business people in Beijing on Friday that the government would continue to open up more industries to foreign investment and create a market-oriented and law-based international business environment. Officials of the American Chamber of Commerce in China portrayed his appearance at an annual chamber dinner as a positive signal that the government is serious about addressing the concerns of U.S. and other foreign companies.

Lobster catch dips to lowest level since 2009 as fishers grapple with climate change, whale rules

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — America’s lobster fishing business dipped in catch while grappling with challenges including a changing ocean environment and new rules designed to protect rare whales. Members of the industry say they face existential threats from proposed rules intended to protect the North Atlantic right whale and climate change that is influencing where lobsters can be trapped. Data released Friday say Maine fishermen’s catch of 93.7 million pounds in 2023 was 5% less than the year that preceded it and the lowest total catch since 2009.

Activists build treehouses to protest Tesla’s plans to expand its plant near Berlin

BERLIN (AP) — Environmental activists are staging a protest in a forest near Berlin against plans to expand the grounds of electric car maker Tesla’s first plant in Europe and are vowing to stay in place for weeks. Between 80 and 100 activists have been camping in the forest since early Thursday, according to an initiative called “Stop Tesla.” They put up tents and built treehouses, some of them several meters above the ground — something that has been a tactic in previous German environmental protests. Police have decided that the demonstration can continue until at least March 15 and are keeping an eye on what is going on, but see no need to break up the protest camp.

European inflation eases to 2.6% as energy prices fall and food inflation slows

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Inflation just keeps dropping in Europe. The consumer price index fell to 2.6 in February from 2.8% the month before. Falling oil and gas prices played a role, and food inflation isn’t as bad as it was. Inflation is now far below its peak of 10.6% in October 2022, which it hit after Russia cut off most supplies of natural gas and sent energy prices through the roof. But the return of inflation to 2%, the goal set by the European Central Bank, is taking time. Food inflation eased to 4% from 5.6%, offering some relief to people on modest incomes who spend more of their pay on necessities than the well-off. Another factor was energy prices, which fell by 3.7%

Local transport in much of Germany hit by strikes in a dispute over working conditions

BERLIN (AP) — Local buses, subway trains and trams have ground to a halt in much of Germany, at the peak of a week of walkouts by employees demanding better working conditions. The Ver.di service workers’ union called for a week of strikes lasting from Monday through Saturday, with the main day of walkouts on Friday. The union is being backed by the Fridays for Future climate activist group, which called on supporters to take to the streets for “good work and climate-friendly mobility.” This week’s walkouts follow a previous round of strikes on Feb. 2.