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Amazon plans to open more grocery stores across US
SEATTLE -- Amazon is preparing to open its second automated-checkout grocery store in a Seattle suburb and is hiring managers for a third store in the nation's capitol.
The commerce giant's grocery strategy is also advancing on another front, with new locations of its conventional checkout grocery stores coming to Seattle, California, and the ...Read more
Susan Tompor: July 15 tax return deadline is right around the corner: What to know
If you still need to file that 2019 income tax return, it's time to get cracking.
July 15 is the new April 15 for those who still have not filed a tax return. The traditional April income tax deadline was extended this year for 2019 tax returns, due to the upheaval created by COVID-19.
The one-time extension applied for some state and ...Read more
How COVID-19 is accelerating the shift to a cashless society
PHILADELPHIA -- Tom Ivory, the founder of the Baker Street Bread Co. in Philadelphia's Chestnut Hill section, fought a valiant effort for years to rein in bank fees by imposing a minimum credit card purchase of $10. But more customers wanted to go cashless, and Ivory eventually relented and accepted plastic for any transaction, no matter how ...Read more
Uber, Postmates agree on $2.65 billion all-stock deal
Uber Technologies Inc. has agreed to acquire Postmates Inc. in a $2.65 billion all-stock takeover expected to be announced as soon as Monday morning in the U.S., according to people familiar with the matter.
Uber Eats head Pierre-Dimitri Gore-Coty is expected to continue to run Uber's combined delivery business, according to a person who asked ...Read more
Fearful and frugal: Coronavirus wreaks havoc on America's psyche
As the U.S. reopens, Americans aren't much interested in going out and spending.
A survey of 2,200 U.S. adults shows how COVID-19 has dramatically changed behavior in the world's biggest economy, potentially for the long haul. The data flashes warning signs for the recovery, showing waning interest in public events and material things, like ...Read more
Barr asked if probe into hacking of environmentalists is limited
WASHINGTON -- A Democratic senator is asking Attorney General William Barr whether "political pressure" is limiting a probe into the hacking of environmental groups in light of Barr's ouster of the chief U.S. prosecutor in Manhattan.
"The risk is obvious that the investigation will be slow-walked or curtailed" because of President Donald Trump'...Read more
Keystone XL breaks ground in Canada in bid to ward off US veto
Construction on the controversial Keystone XL oil pipeline has begun in Canada, and the premier of the nation's top oil-producing province says the project's momentum may make it difficult for a future U.S. administration to cancel it.
"We have taken a conscious risk to get construction started, to get facts on the ground," Alberta Premier ...Read more
Social media policy banning term 'Black Lives Matter' prompts Minneapolis ad agency to walk out
MINNEAPOLIS -- Periscope ad agency's parent company changed a rule forbidding employees from using "Black Lives Matter" in social media posts after 179 Minneapolis workers walked off the job on Thursday.
Employees said they wanted to use the term to show solidarity with Black and racial justice protesters in the wake of the George Floyd killing...Read more
Atlantic City's casinos — all but one — reopen with no smoking, drinking, or eating inside
Atlantic City casinos welcomed gamblers for the first time in almost four months on Thursday, but the seaside city famous for not enforcing Prohibition couldn't let its guests drink on the casino floors.
The booze ban was one of several state restrictions that casinos complied with to open during the coronavirus pandemic. Gamblers wore masks ...Read more
Google probe has states split on strategy with US antitrust case looming
WASHINGTON -- With the U.S. Justice Department nearing a lawsuit against Alphabet Inc.'s Google for antitrust violations, a coalition of states that are conducting a parallel investigation are divided over the best strategy for taking on the internet giant, according to people familiar with the matter.
While the multistate investigation into ...Read more
Natasha Frost: 4 steps to avoiding a horrible co-living situation
With the unemployment rate at its highest since the Great Depression, perhaps you're one of the many Americans currently having difficult conversations -- or avoiding one -- on the topic of sharing space.
That might mean welcoming a roommate into your home, crashing with Mom and Pop for the foreseeable future, or taking the plunge to work from ...Read more
The Week Ahead: Follow the mouse
There were several milestones in March that grabbed the attention of Americans to the fast developing threat from the novel coronavirus: local schools closing, California's statewide stay-at-home order, and Disney closing the gates of its theme parks.
Some of those gates are scheduled to reopen in the week ahead. Downtown Disney starts the ...Read more
Even popular Ford F-Series hit hard amid plummeting industry sales
DETROIT -- If anything in life is predictable, it's steady sales of the Ford F-150.
The popular pickup truck saves the day -- every quarter, evey year -- for Ford Motor Co.
America loves its trucks. And, global pandemic or not, trucks sell.
The F-Series allowed Ford to reflect the smallest second quarter sales drop of the Detroit Three.
Ford...Read more
Unemployment and job growth show strong improvement, but coronavirus darkens the outlook
WASHINGTON -- The U.S. economy added a larger-than-expected 4.8 million jobs in June despite the worsening COVID-19 pandemic, registering solid gains for the second straight month after suffering near-Great Depression losses in the spring, the government reported Thursday.
Reflecting the June increase, the nation's unemployment level fell to 11...Read more
Consumer Confidential: Fake reviews should stay online, researchers say. I'm not so sure
Perhaps it was inevitable that in this strange era of "alternative facts" and fake claims of "fake news," someone would make the case for why bogus online reviews are a good thing.
Still, that anyone would make such an argument is jarring, especially when it comes from scholars writing in an academic journal.
The study is titled, "A Tangled ...Read more
Silverado edges out Ram in the truck wars as automakers report dismal overall sales
DETROIT -- The Chevy Silverado is keeping the ever-encroaching Ram at bay in the ongoing truck wars, despite overall dismal industry auto sales in the second quarter due to the global coronavirus pandemic.
On Wednesday, many automakers reported quarterly sales results that reflected the impact of idled vehicle production for most of the quarter...Read more
Some homeowners struggled to pay PACE improvement loans. The coronavirus made it harder
LOS ANGELES -- It wasn't until the work was done that Marcelino and Josefina Rodriguez said they learned the truth.
They had been signed up for a roughly $45,000 PACE home improvement loan at nearly 10% interest -- even though they said a woman working with the contractor told them their new roof and water heater would be free through a ...Read more
New trade agreement means steep learning curve for auto industry
DETROIT -- Imagine being asked to bake a cake but not being told what kind of cake you'll be baking and knowing you'll be judged on the results.
You might know you need milk, eggs and flour, but whether the cake needs to be chocolate or carrot is pretty important, too, and will change what you pick up during your shopping trip.
That's how ...Read more
Ford Motor Co. partners with Disney on Ford Bronco reveal
DETROIT -- Disney will partner with Ford Motor Co. on the upcoming Ford Bronco reveal, the automaker confirmed Thursday.
Ford will unveil the all-new SUV "across Disney's broadcast, cable, digital and streaming properties" on July 13, Ford said in a news release.
"Three custom 3-minute films will air on ABC, ESPN and National Geographic, in ...Read more
Real estate Q&A: Who has to pay for place to stay while rental home is tented for termites?
Q: We rent a single-family home and just found out that it needs to be tented for termites early next month. The landlord told us she would reduce our rent for the time we need to stay in a hotel. Money is tight, and a few days of rent reduction will not cover the cost of a hotel and meals. We want her to pay for these too. This is a massive ...Read more
Popular Stories
- Amazon plans to open more grocery stores across US
- Fearful and frugal: Coronavirus wreaks havoc on America's psyche
- Susan Tompor: July 15 tax return deadline is right around the corner: What to know
- Uber, Postmates agree on $2.65 billion all-stock deal
- Atlantic City's casinos — all but one — reopen with no smoking, drinking, or eating inside
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