Business News

Elon Musk has often inflamed politically tense moments, raising worries for the US election

NEW YORK (AP) — As Election Day draws nearer, social media posts by X owner Elon Musk are raising concerns that he will use his immense platform to question the legitimacy of the vote in the U.S. presidential election and perhaps call for resistance if Republican nominee Donald Trump loses. Musk drew fierce pushback recently when he suggested a “civil war” was brewing during recent anti-Muslim riots in Great Britain. Experts and election officials worry that Musk could influence people to question the legitimacy of voting in the U.S. 

US retail sales ticked up last month in sign of ongoing consumer resilience

WASHINGTON (AP) — Americans spent a bit more at retailers last month, providing a small boost to the economy just as the Federal Reserve considers how much to cut its key interest rate. The Commerce Department reported Tuesday that retail sales ticked up 0.1% from July to August, after jumping the most in 18 months the previous month. Online retailers, sporting goods stores, and home and garden stores reported higher sales. The data indicate that consumers are still able to spend more despite the cumulative impact of three years of excess inflation and higher interest rates.

Fortified bouillon cubes are seen as a way to curb malnutrition in Africa as climate worsens hunger

IBADAN, Nigeria (AP) — In Nigeria and other countries in sub-Saharan Africa, many households have limited access to nutrient-rich foods due to rising costs and the impact of climate change on agriculture and food systems. The resulting micronutrient deficiencies have led to a public health crisis, one especially affecting children and women. If public health advocates and the Nigerian government have their way, malnourished households in the West African nation soon will have a simple ingredient available to improve their intake of key vitamins and minerals. Government regulators on Tuesday are launching a code of standards for adding iron, zinc, folic acid and vitamin B12 to bouillon cubes at minimum levels recommended by experts.

Instagram makes teen accounts private as pressure mounts on the app to protect children

Instagram is introducing separate teen accounts for those under 18 as it tries to make the platform safer for children amid growing backlash against how social media affects young people’s lives. The teen accounts will be private by default. Messages are restricted so they can only get them from people they follow or are already connected to. “Sensitive content,” such as videos of people fighting or those promoting cosmetic procedures, will be limited, Meta said. They will get notifications if they are on Instagram for more than 60 minutes and a “sleep mode” will be enabled that turns off notifications and send auto-replies to direct messages from 10 p.m. until 7 a.m.

How small businesses can recover from break-ins and theft

Break-ins and thefts can happen at any small business, no matter how tight the security. In the retail sector alone, more than half of small businesses said they had been victims of shoplifting in in the prior year, according to a 2022 survey by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. And break-ins and thefts occur across all sectors. So it is important for small business owners to prepare in advance and have a plan for dealing with a break-in or theft, in order to minimize damage.

Stock market today: Wall Street hangs near records as it counts down to a rate cut

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks are hanging near their records as Wall Street continues to expect bigger-than-usual relief for the economy to arrive Wednesday through a coming cut to interest rates. The S&P 500 was virtually flat in midday trading on Tuesday and was just 0.6% below its all-time high set in July. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 21 points from its own record set the day before, while the Nasdaq composite was up 0.1%, lifted by gains for Intel and Microsoft. Treasury yields were edging higher. Most traders are still expecting a bigger-than-usual cut to rates from the Federal Reserve on Wednesday.

Major companies abandon an LGBTQ+ rights report card after facing anti-diversity backlash

NEW YORK (AP) — More than two decades ago, a national LGBTQ+ rights group decided to promote change by grading corporations on their workplace policies. The Human Rights Campaign initially focused its Corporate Equality Index on ensuring that gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and queer employees did not face discrimination in hiring and on the job. Just 13 companies received a perfect score in 2002. By last year, 545 businesses did. But the scorecard itself has come under attack in recent months by conservative activists who targeted businesses as part of a broader pushback against diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. Ford, Harley-Davidson and Lowe’s are among the companies that announced they would no longer participate in the index.

Railroads and regulators must address the dangers of long trains, report says

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A new report says the number of derailments related to the forces created when railcars push and pull against each other has increased as freight trains have gotten longer. The National Academies of Sciences on Tuesday released a long-awaited report. It says that regulators, Congress and the industry should reexamine the risks associated with long trains and make sure they are addressed. The report said there is a clear correlation between the number of derailments related to in-train forces and the long trains that routinely measure more than a mile long. That means railroads must take special care in the way they assemble long trains.

Trump will soon be able to sell shares in Truth Social’s parent company. What’s at stake?

NEW YORK (AP) — Donald Trump should have the opportunity starting Thursday to sell his shares in Trump Media & Technology Group, the company behind the Truth Social platform. The former president owns a 57% stake in the company worth around $2 billion. Trump and other insiders in the company known as TMTG have been unable to cash in because a “lock-up agreement” has prevented them from selling any of their shares since TMTG began trading publicly in March. If he sells, Trump risks sending a negative signal to other shareholders and prompting them to dump their shares. For now, Trump says he’s not selling.

Google says it will rethink its plans for a big data center in Chile over water worries

SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) — Google says it will halt plans to develop a major $200 million data center in Chile to address environmental grievances. The decision announced on Tuesday reflected growing concerns about the impact of the power-thirsty projects around the world. The U.S. technology company first obtained permits in 2020 to construct the vast project in Chilean capital Santiago. Demand for the server farms skyrocketed across the globe. It was fueled by a surge in cloud-based technologies and a craze for generative artificial intelligence. Google said it would make changes to the project to comply with more stringent environmental requirements. The company said it would find ways to change the data center’s water-intensive cooling system.