National Business - The Morning Sun

EPA rule bans toxic chemical that's commonly used as paint stripper but known to cause liver cancer

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The Environmental Protection Agency has finalized a ban on consumer uses of methylene chloride, a chemical widely used as a paint stripper but known to cause liver cancer and other health problems. … more

By MATTHEW DALY | 4/30/24

A construction workers cuts wood at a residential building site in Mount Prospect, Ill., Monday, March 18, 2024. On Tuesday, April 30, 2024, the Labor Department reports on wages and benefits for U.S. workers during the first quarter of 2024. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Workers' paycheck growth accelerated in the first quarter, a possible concern for the Fed

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Pay and benefits for America’s workers grew more quickly in the first three months of this year, a trend that could contribute to higher inflation and raise concerns about the future path of price … more

By CHRISTOPHER RUGABER | 4/30/24

FILE - Voters wait for the polls to open to cast their ballots in the 2020 election at the Farmville Volunteer Fire Department, Nov. 3, 2020, in Auburn, Ala. Some 170 foundations, donors and advisors have signed on to a pledge started by the nonprofit Democracy Fund to make their grants earlier this Election Year. A small portion of the billions spent around the November election will go to nonprofits working to boost voter participation and usually, those funds come in right before Election Day. (AP Photo/Julie Bennett)

In unusual push, funders band together to get out grants around election work 'early'

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Some 170 foundations, donors and advisors have signed on to a pledge started by the nonprofit Democracy Fund to make their grants earlier this Election Year. A small portion of the billions spent … more

By THALIA BEATY | 4/30/24

FILE - McDonald's sign is seen in Wheeling, Ill., Thursday, March 14, 2024. McDonald's will report earnings on Tuesday, April 30, 2024 (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh, File)

McDonald's posts weaker-than-expected Q1 results as boycotts weigh on sales

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McDonald’s said higher U.S. sales in the first quarter helped it overcome weakness in the Middle East and other markets where consumers have been boycotting the brand over its perceived support for … more

By DEE-ANN DURBIN | 4/30/24

Facebook and Instagram face European Union scrutiny over possible breaches of digital rulebook

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The European Union is scrutinizing Facebook and Instagram over a range of suspected violations of the bloc’s digital rulebook, including not doing enough to protect users from foreign … more

By KELVIN CHAN | 4/30/24

FILE - Group Chief Executive of HSBC, Noel Quinn, speaks during the Bloomberg Transition Finance Action Forum at the Plaza Hotel, on Sept. 19, 2023, in New York. HSBC, Europe's largest bank, says that CEO Noel Quinn plans to retire after serving nearly five years in the post. (AP Photo/Andres Kudacki, File)

HSBC CEO Noel Quinn plans to retire

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HSBC, Europe’s largest bank, says that CEO Noel Quinn plans to retire after serving nearly five years in the post. Quinn has worked at HSBC since 1987. As CEO, he helped with the sale of its Canada … more

By MICHELLE CHAPMAN | 4/30/24

Walmart launches store-label food brand as it seeks to appeal to younger shoppers

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Walmart is launching its biggest store-label food brand in 20 years in terms of its breadth of items. It's an attempt to appeal to younger customers who are not brand loyal and want chef-inspired … more

By ANNE D'INNOCENZIO | 4/30/24

FILE - A multicolor 10 Polish Zloty coin marking Poland entering the European Union is presented by the National Bank of Poland in Warsaw, on April 14, 2004. The finance minister in Poland’s pro-European Union government says the country is still not ready to adopt the euro currency. The finance minister in the Cabinet of Prime Minister Donald Tusk said that Poland joining the eurozone, the currency union of 20 EU members, is not justified at this time. (AP Photo/Alik Keplicz, File)

Poland is still not ready to adopt the euro, its finance minister says

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Twenty years after Poland joined the European Union, its finance minister says the country is still not ready to adopt the euro currency. The finance minister in the pro-European Union government of … more

4/30/24

This March 2024 photo provided by The Hechinger Report shows Derrika Richard as she walks her three youngest children to their child care classrooms at Clara's Little Lambs in New Orleans. (Ariel Gilreath/The Hechinger Report via AP)

These cities raised taxes — for child care. Parents say the free day care 'changed my life'

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A growing number of cities are passing tax increases to expand access to child care. Last year, New Orleans added more than 1,000 child care seats for low-income families after voters approved a … more

By ARIEL GILREATH of The Hechinger Report | 4/30/24

FILE - Pemex oil workers set the drill on the Centenario deep-water drilling platform in the Gulf of Mexico off the coast of Veracruz, Mexico, Nov. 22, 2013. The 1938 nationalization of Mexico's oil sector from U.S. and British companies is a point of pride for millions of Mexicans.(AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills, File)

Mexico proudly controls its energy but could find it hard to reach its climate goals

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Mexico's taking control of its oil from U.S. and British companies is taught in schools and celebrated every year. The 1938 nationalization is a point of pride for millions, including President … more

By FABIOLA SÁNCHEZ | 4/30/24

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella speaks during an event titled "Microsoft Build: AI Day" in Jakarta, Indonesia, Tuesday, April 30, 2024. Microsoft will invest $1.7 billion over the next four years in new cloud and artificial intelligence infrastructure in Indonesia — the single largest investment in Microsoft's 29-year history in the country — Nadella said Tuesday. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)

Microsoft will invest $1.7 billion in AI and cloud infrastructure in Indonesia

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Microsoft will invest $1.7 billion over the next four years in new cloud and artificial intelligence infrastructure in Indonesia — the single largest investment in Microsoft’s 29-year history in … more

By EDNA TARIGAN | 4/30/24

FILE - Binance founder and CEO Changpeng Zhao, right, leaves federal court in Seattle on Nov. 21, 2023, after pleading guilty to violations of U.S. anti-money laundering laws. Zhao, the founder of Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, faces sentencing Tuesday, April 30, 2024, in Seattle, where U.S. prosecutors are asking a judge to give him a three-year prison term for allowing rampant money laundering on the platform. (Ken Lambert/The Seattle Times via AP, File)

Binance founder Changpeng Zhao faces sentencing; US seeks 3-year term for allowing money laundering

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Changpeng Zhao, the founder of Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, faces sentencing in a Seattle courtroom. U.S. prosecutors are asking a judge on Tuesday to give him a three-year … more

By GENE JOHNSON | 4/30/24

Afghans work in the garden of the renovated Darul Aman Palace in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. (AP Photo/Siddiqullah Alizai)

From spring offensive to charm offensive: The Taliban are working to woo tourists to Afghanistan

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A Taliban-run tourism and hotel management institute has opened its doors to students. What they lack in hospitality experience, they make up for in their enthusiasm to promote a positive side of … more

By RIAZAT BUTT | 4/30/24

A man walks by Samsung Electronics' shop in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, April 30, 2024. Samsung Electronics on Tuesday reported a 10-fold increase in operating profit for the last quarter as the expansion of artificial intelligence technologies drives a rebound in the markets for computer memory chips.(AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

Samsung reports a 10-fold increase in profit as AI drives rebound in memory chip markets

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Samsung Electronics on Tuesday reported a 10-fold increase in operating profit for the last quarter as the expansion of artificial intelligence technologies drives a rebound in the markets for … more

4/29/24

Hawaii Insurance Commissioner Gordon Ito films a wildfire burn risk demonstration at the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho, Monday, April 29, 2024. Some property insurance companies in Hawaii and other states have stopped providing coverage to residents because of increasing wildfire risk and climbing construction costs. The Idaho Department of Insurance hosted the burn demonstration as part of a forum for western Insurance commissioners on the impact wildfires are having on the nation’s insurance market. (AP Photo/Rebecca Boone)

Growing wildfire risk leaves states grappling with how to keep property insurers from fleeing

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Months after a catastrophic fire burned more than 2,200 homes and killed 101 people in Hawaii, some property owners are getting more bad news — their property insurance won’t be renewed because … more

By REBECCA BOONE | 4/29/24

FILE - 2024 Accord sedans are displayed at a Honda dealership April 14, 2023, in Highlands Ranch, Colo. The U.S. Department of Transportation on Monday, April 29, 2024, is expected to unveil a requirement that automatic emergency braking become standard equipment on nearly all new passenger vehicles. The 2024 Accord has automatic emergency braking. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)

US to require automatic emergency braking on new vehicles in 5 years and set performance standards

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Automatic emergency braking will have to come standard on all U.S. new passenger vehicles in five years. It's a requirement that the government says will save hundreds of lives and prevent thousands … more

By TOM KRISHER | 4/29/24

FILE - Seattle Storm guard Sue Bird brings the ball up against the Washington Mystics during the second half of Game 1 of a WNBA basketball first-round playoff series Aug. 18, 2022, in Seattle. The Storm's owners, Force 10 Hoops, said Wednesday, April 24, 2024, that Bird has joined the ownership group. Bird said in a team statement her involvement with the Storm will continue to grow the game. “Investing in women's sports isn't just about passion,” she said. “It's smart business.” (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson, File)

Sue Bird says joining ownership group of the Seattle Storm felt inevitable

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Sue Bird says becoming a part-owner of the only WNBA franchise she ever played for felt like an inevitability. It’s one more thing Bird is adding to an already busy agenda in retirement. The … more

By TIM BOOTH | 4/29/24

FILE - Paramount CEO Bob Bakish speaks as he attends an interview during the Barron's Roundtable at the Fox Business Network, Aug. 5, 2022, in New York. Paramount Global on Monday, April 29, 2024, announced that Bakish is stepping down as CEO of the film, television and multimedia company. (AP Photo/Eduardo Munoz Alvarez, File)

Paramount Global replaces CEO Bob Bakish with a troika of executives

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Paramount Global has announced that Bob Bakish is stepping down as CEO of the film, television and multimedia company. Bakish will be replaced by a troika of executives who will form a new “Office … more

4/29/24

FILE - Norfolk Southern locomotives are moved through the Conway Terminal in Conway, Pa., June 17, 2023. The activist investors trying to take control of Norfolk Southern's board are picking up key support, but the railroad's CEO promised Monday, April 29, 2024, to continue fighting until the May 9 vote because he believes his strategy is the best in the long run for investors, customers and workers. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File)

Investors trying to take control of Norfolk Southern railroad pick up key support

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The activist investors trying to take control of Norfolk Southern are picking up key support. But the railroad's CEO promised Monday to fight the takeover attempt because he believes his strategy is … more

By JOSH FUNK | 4/29/24

FILE - The sun flares in the camera lens as it rises behind the U.S. Supreme Court building in Washington, June 25, 2017. The Supreme Court will hear an appeal from a Vista, Calif., CBD hemp oil company fighting a lawsuit from a truck driver who says he got fired after using a product falsely advertised as being free from the active ingredient in marijuana.(AP Photo/J. David Ake, File)

Supreme Court will hear case claiming CBD product got trucker fired

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The Supreme Court will hear an appeal from a Vista, California, CBD hemp oil company fighting a lawsuit from a truck driver who says he got fired after using a product falsely advertised as being … more

By LINDSAY WHITEHURST | 4/29/24