Business News

U.S. economy grows solid 2.3% in October-December on eve of Trump return to White House, 2.8% in ’24

WASHINGTON (AP) — The American economy ended 2024 on a solid note with consumer spending continuing to drive growth. The Commerce Department reported Thursday that gross domestic product — the economy’s output of goods and services — expanded at a 2.3% annual rate from October through December. For the full year, the economy grew a healthy 2.8%, compared to 2.9% in 2023.

European Central bank cuts benchmark rate by a quarter percentage point to boost stagnant economy

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — The European Central Bank is cutting its key interest rate, a step to boost an economy that’s struggling to grow as consumers burned by inflation warily eye price tags and businesses try to chart a course amid political turmoil in leading economies France and Germany. The cut on Thursday comes a day after the U.S. Federal Reserve held off on reducing rates, underlining the contrast between more robust growth in the U.S. economy and stagnation in Europe, which recorded zero growth at the end of last year. The ECB’s rate-setting council cut the benchmark rate by a quarter percentage point to 2.75%.

Stock market today: Meta climbs and Microsoft falls as most stocks rise on Wall Street

NEW YORK (AP) — Meta Platforms and most other U.S. stocks are rising, but drops for Nvidia and Microsoft are weighing on the market. The S&P 500 rose 0.1% in midday trading Thursday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 57 points, and the Nasdaq composite slipped 0.3%. Meta Platforms climbed after delivering a better profit report than expected and said it will continue to invest in AI efforts. Microsoft fell after reporting weaker growth than expected in its cloud-computing business. Treasury yields were relatively steady after a report indicated the U.S. economy grew at a slightly slower pace than expected to end last year.

Meta agrees to pay $25 million to settle lawsuit from Trump after Jan. 6 suspension

WASHINGTON (AP) — Meta has agreed to pay $25 million to settle a lawsuit filed by President Donald Trump against the company after it suspended his accounts following the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. That’s according to three people familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the settlement. It’s the latest instance of a large corporation settling litigation with the president, who has threatened retribution on his critics and rivals. And it comes as Meta and CEO Mark Zuckerberg have joined other large technology companies in trying to ingratiate themselves with the new administration. Two people said that terms of the agreement include $22 million going to Trump’s future presidential library.

Things to know about the Trump administration order on miles per gallon for cars and pickups

DETROIT (AP) — Hours after being sworn in as the new U.S. Secretary of Transportation, Sean Duffy took aim at the main way the federal government regulates miles per gallon for cars and pickup trucks — also a principal way that it controls air pollution and addresses climate change. Duffy ordered the federal agency in charge of the fuel economy standards to reverse them as soon as possible. The standards have been in place since the 1970s energy crisis and were intended to conserve fuel and save consumers money at the gas pump. The new administration says they limit consumer choice and don’t maximize use of American oil.

Fewer Americans apply for jobless benefits last week as labor market shows continued strength

The number of Americans filing for jobless benefits fell last week in a sign that the labor market remains strong. Applications for jobless benefits fell by 16,000 to 207,000 for the week ending January 25, the Labor Department said Thursday. Analysts were expecting 225,000 new applications. Weekly applications for jobless benefits are considered a proxy for layoffs. The four-average, which evens out some of the weekly volatility, ticked down by 1,000 to 212,500. The total number of Americans receiving unemployment benefits for the week of January 18 fell by 42,000 to 1.86 million.

Shell still reviewing moving listing away from London but not a live discussion

LONDON (AP) — Oil company Shell says is still mulling moving its stock market listing from London to New York but that it wasn’t a “live discussion” at the moment. Shell CEO Wael Sawan was asked if he was still considering moving Shell’s listing to close the valuation gap with its U.S. peers including ExxonMobil. Sawan appeared on CNBC on Thursday and said that the firm was “always reviewing headquarter listings and the like” but that “there is no live discussion at the moment.”

Microsoft reports 10% quarterly profit growth as it works to show AI investments paying off

Microsoft said Wednesday that its profit for the October-December quarter grew 10% from the same time last year as it works to capitalize on the huge amounts of money it has spent to advance its artificial intelligence technology. The company reported net income for the quarter of $24.1 billion, or $3.23 per share, beating Wall Street expectations of $3.11 per share. The Redmond, Washington-based software maker posted revenue of $69.6 billion in the quarter, up 12% from the previous year, also beating expectations. Analysts polled by FactSet Research expected Microsoft to generate revenue of $68.87 billion, and currently project revenue of $69.81 billion for the January-March quarter.

What goes into designing that popular teapot or water bottle? 2 top creators discuss the process

Ever wonder how some of the stuff we use every day came to be? Who designed your favorite sauté pan with that perfect trifecta of size, weight and performance? Or the little tracker that attaches so easily to wallets, phones and bikes? In the beginning, there’s a good industrial designer. Two top ones are Dan Harden of Whipsaw and Scott Henderson, who runs his own shop in Brooklyn. They’ve designed products for brands you’ve probably got in the kitchen, nursery and bathroom. Both say the “aha” moment of thinking up a good product design is the fun part. But it takes a lot of work to get the product to market. Then there’s the adrenalin rush of seeing the product out in the world making people happy.

Tesla Q4 results fall short of forecasts. Musk sees unsupervised full self-driving in Texas in June

Tesla’s fourth-quarter adjusted profits rose slightly amid a big push to sell its electric vehicles with offers of zero financing and other incentives, but the results still fell short of Wall Street forecasts. The electric vehicle, battery and robotics company run by Elon Musk said Wednesday that quarterly net income adjusted for one-time items rose to 3% to $2.6 billion, or 73 cents a share — less than analysts’ estimate of 77 cents. CEO Elon Musk told analysts on a conference call that the company was on track to offer unsupervised “full self-driving” technology to its customers as a paid service starting in Austin in June.