Business News

JetBlue and Spirit are ending their $3.8 billion merger plan after a federal judge blocked the deal

JetBlue and Spirit Airlines are ending their proposed $3.8 billion merger after a federal judge blocked the deal, ruling it would hurt competition. JetBlue said Monday that even though both companies still believe in the benefits of a combination, they felt they were unlikely to meet the required closing conditions before a July 24 deadline. The airlines say they are mutually agreeing that terminating the deal is the best decision for both. A merger would have eliminated Spirit, the nation’s biggest discount airline. The Justice Department sued to block the deal and won in court.

Apple gets fined nearly $2 billion by the EU for hindering music streaming competition

LONDON (AP) — The European Union has fined Apple nearly $2 billion by forbidding rivals like Spotify from telling users how they could pay for cheaper subscriptions outside of iPhone apps. Monday’s move is the 27-nation bloc’s first antitrust penalty against the U.S. tech giant. The EU’s executive commission says Apple muzzled streaming services from telling people about payment options available through their websites. That would avoid the 30% fee charged when people pay through apps downloaded with the iOS App Store. A complaint from Spotify triggered the investigation amid a yearslong feud with Apple over music streaming supremacy. Apple says the EU didn’t “uncover any credible evidence of consumer harm” and vowed to appeal.

Saks CEO Marc Metrick on how he’s tackling online return fraud, a growing industrywide issue

NEW YORK (AP) — At Saks Fifth Avenue’s return area at its Manhattan flagship, shoppers now see a camera and signage highlighting the enhanced video surveillance and a new policy: customers must now show a photo ID. The company is also looking at ways to better scrutinize packages sent back to the warehouse. Saks’ increased measures, to be rolled out at all 39 stores in some form, are the latest moves that a growing number of retailers including Macy’s are undertaking to combat a rise of return fraud, particularly online, seen in the past two years. Other measures including mandating receipts and charging return fees. It’s a problem worth $101 billion, or 13.7% of all returns, according to the National Retail Federation.

American Airlines to buy 260 new planes from Boeing, Airbus and Embraer to meet growing demand

DALLAS (AP) — American Airlines is ordering 260 new planes to meet growing travel demand and increase the airline’s supply of premium seats. The airline based in Fort Worth, Texas, said Monday that it will buy 85 planes each from U.S. aircraft-maker Boeing and Europe’s Airbus. In addition, American is ordering 90 smaller planes from Brazil’s Embraer. American will also get options to buy up to 193 more planes over the next several years. The planes are all single-aisle, narrow-body aircraft that American plans to use for flights within the United States and to nearby international destinations.

Stock market today: Wall Street drifts around its records ahead of a busy week

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks are drifting around their record heights. The S&P 500 was mostly unchanged Monday, coming off its latest all-time high and its 16th winning week in the last 18. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 50 points, and the Nasdaq composite was 0.1% lower. Later this week, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell will speak before Congress. What he says could sway expectations for when the Fed will start cutting interest rates, now expected in June. The latest monthly jobs update will also arrive at the end of the week. In Japan, the Nikkei 225 topped 40,000 for the first time.

Three Red Sea underwater data cables have been cut as Houthi attacks continue in the vital waterway

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Three Red Sea underwater cables providing internet and telecommunications around the world have been cut as the waterway remains a target of Yemen’s Houthi rebels. A statement Monday by Hong Kong-based HGC Global Communications acknowledged the cuts but didn’t say what caused the lines to be severed. There has been concern about the cables being targeted in the Houthi campaign which the rebels describe as an effort to pressure Israel to end its war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip. The Houthis have denied attacking the lines. The sabotage of telecommunication lines could further escalate the monthslong crisis. A Houthi missile attack meanwhile set a ship ablaze in the Gulf of Aden but caused no injuries.

How Chinese retailers can offer Americans steep bargains on clothes and why that could change

WASHINGTON (AP) — The flow of millions of small parcels into the U.S. from China thanks to the explosive growth of online shopping has caught the attention of Congress. It casts a spotlight on a trade rule allowing parcels valued under $800 to enter the country duty-free. Lawmakers are questioning whether the rule allows manufacturers to avoid tariffs aimed at protecting American companies and to bypass laws barring the imports of illicit drugs or products made by forced labor. Supporters say the so-called de minimis exception helps keep down costs for American consumers and small businesses as online shopping goes global. Custom and Border Protection’s Chicago field office oversees one of the nation’s busiest ports for de minimis parcels.

China seeks ways to revive slowing economy and salvage property market as annual congress convenes

BEIJING (AP) — China’s efforts to restore confidence and rev up the economy will top the agenda during this month’s meeting of the ceremonial national legislature. The strong, consumer-led recovery hoped for after leaders gave up on severe anti-virus controls in late 2022 never materialized. Premier Li Qiang’s work report Tuesday will showcase Beijing’s success in meeting last year’s target of about 5% growth. But the mood on the streets and in financial markets remains glum. Property prices have continued to fall, local governments are mired in trillions of dollars of debt and many Chinese are holding back on spending.

Black women struggle to find their way in a job world where diversity is under attack

BOSTON (AP) — With attacks on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives raging, Black women looking to climb the corporate ladder face a more hostile landscape than ever. Claudine Gay’s resignation in January as Harvard’s first Black president was just the latest in a revolving door of Black women who have been especially and aggressively questioned or abandoned after achieving a career pinnacle. This has led some women to build networking groups or mentorship, even as some question whether it’s worth trying for top positions. For others, it has triggered an exodus to entrepreneurship and reinvention.

Lawyers who successfully argued Musk pay package was illegal seek $5.6 billion in Tesla stock

DOVER, Del. (AP) — The lawyers who successfully argued that a massive pay package for Tesla CEO Elon Musk was illegal and should be voided are asking the presiding judge to award company stock worth $5.6 billion as legal fees. The attorneys represented Tesla shareholders in the case decided in January and made the request in court papers filed Friday. The amount would be the largest such award, if approved. Lawyers in cases stemming from the collapse of Enron got a record $688 million in legal fees in 2008. The lawyers say the sum is justified because they wouldn’t have been paid had they lost and the benefit to Tesla “was massive.”