Category: News

U.S. employers stepped up hiring modestly in April, and the unemployment rate fell to 3.9 percent, evidence of the economy's resilience amid the recent stock market chaos and anxieties about a possible trade war. Job growth amounted to a decent 164,000 last month, up from an upwardly revised 135,000 in March. The unemployment rate fell after having held at 4.1 percent for the prior six months largely because fewer people were searching for jobs. The overall unemployment rate is now the lowest since December 2000. The rate for African-Americans — 6.6 percent — is the lowest on record since 1972. Many employers say it's difficult to find qualified workers. But they have yet to significantly bump up pay in most industries. Average hourly earnings rose 2.6 percent from a year…

Venezuela said on Thursday it would take over the country's leading private bank, Banesco, for 90 days and announced the arrest of 11 top executives for "attacks" against the country's rapidly depreciating bolivar currency. The detentions came on the heels of last month's shock arrests of two Venezuelan executives working in the country for U.S. oil company Chevron Corp. Oil-rich Venezuela is suffering from hyperinflation and a steady collapse of the bolivar currency, which President Nicolas Maduro has attributed to an "economic war," but critics blame on incompetence and failed socialist policies. Maduro's foes say he is cracking down on the business sector to try to shore up support and halt price increases ahead of a controversial May 20 presidential election, which key opposition parties have boycotted as a sham. Chief Prosecutor Tarek Saab announced the arrests in a televised press conference, but…

Venezuela said on Thursday it would take over the country's leading private bank, Banesco, for 90 days and announced the arrest of 11 top executives for "attacks" against the country's rapidly depreciating bolivar currency. The detentions came on the heels of last month's shock arrests of two Venezuelan executives working in the country for U.S. oil company Chevron Corp. Oil-rich Venezuela is suffering from hyperinflation and a steady collapse of the bolivar currency, which President Nicolas Maduro has attributed to an "economic war," but critics blame on incompetence and failed socialist policies. Maduro's foes say he is cracking down on the business sector to try to shore up support and halt price increases ahead of a controversial May 20 presidential election, which key opposition parties have boycotted as a sham. Chief Prosecutor Tarek Saab announced the arrests in a televised press conference, but…

A federal grand jury in Detroit has indicted former Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn with conspiracy and wire fraud in the car builder's scheme to rig diesel emissions tests. "If you try to deceive the United States, then you will pay a heavy price," Attorney General Jeff Sessions said Thursday. "The indictment unsealed today alleges that Volkswagen's scheme to cheat its legal requirements went all the way to the top of the company." Winterkorn is alleged to have conspired with other top Volkswagen bosses to defraud the U.S. government and consumers with false claims that the company was complying with the Clean Air Act. Volkswagen already admitted it installed devices on diesel models designed to turn on pollution control devices during emissions tests and turn them off when the car is…

The U.S. trade deficit narrowed sharply in March as exports increased to a record high amid a surge in deliveries of commercial aircraft and soybeans, bolstering the economy's outlook heading into the second quarter. While other data on Thursday showed a modest increase in new applications for jobless benefits last week, the number of Americans receiving unemployment aid fell to its lowest level since 1973, pointing to tightening labor market conditions. Wage growth is also rising, with hourly compensation accelerating in the first quarter, more evidence that inflation pressures are building. "The good news is that we are exporting more, but with the labor markets incredibly tight, labor costs are accelerating as well," said Joel Naroff, chief economist at Naroff Economic Advisors in Holland, Pennsylvania. "The rise in labor costs…

President Trump plans to meet next week with leaders from U.S. and foreign carmakers on trade and changes to emission standards. “When the White House wants to meet with us about our sector and policy, we welcome the opportunity,” Alliance of American Automobile Manufacturers spokeswoman Gloria Bergquist said Wednesday. The time and agenda of the talks are still to be announced. But the car builders want to make their concerns about possible changes to the North American Free Trade Agreement known to the president. They are also expected to talk about Trump administration plans to revise strict Obama-era emission standards for U.S. cars and light trucks. Seventeen states and Washington, D.C., are suing the administration over the plans, accusing the Environmental Protection Agency of breaking the law. “This is about…

The International Monetary Fund censured Venezuela on Wednesday for failing to hand over essential economic data to the fund. “The [Executive] Board noted that adequate data provision was an essential first step to understanding Venezuela's economic crisis and identifying possible solutions,” an IMF statement said. The board is giving Venezuela another six months to comply or face possible expulsion from the IMF. “The Fund stands ready to work constructively with Venezuela toward resolving its economic crisis when it is prepared to re-engage with the Fund,” the IMF said. Venezuela has not responded to the IMF’s action. But President Nicolas Maduro’s socialist government has long declined to provide data to the IMF. It regards the IMF as a U.S. tool and part of a Washington-inspired economic war against Venezuela. Corruption and…

A Chinese company that manufactured Ivanka Trump shoes and has been accused of serious labor abuses is being celebrated in a blockbuster propaganda film for extending China's influence around the globe.   The state-backed documentary "Amazing China" portrays the Huajian Group as a beneficent force spreading prosperity — in this case, by hiring thousands of Ethiopians at wages a fraction of what they'd have to pay in China. But in Ethiopia, Huajian workers told The Associated Press they work without safety equipment for pay so low they can barely make ends meet.   "I'm left with nothing at the end of the month," said Ayelech Geletu, 21, who told the AP she earns a base monthly salary of 1,400 Birr ($51) at Huajian's factory in Lebu, outside Addis Ababa. "Plus,…

U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said on Tuesday that the Trump administration was prepared to levy tariffs on China if an American delegation heading to Beijing did not reach a negotiated settlement to reduce trade imbalances. Ross, speaking to CNBC television before traveling to China for talks on Thursday and Friday with top Chinese officials, said he had “some hope” agreements could be reached to resolve the trade tensions between the world’s two largest economies. But he added that U.S. President Donald Trump, who has made reducing the U.S. trade deficit with China a key part of his administration's trade policy, would have to first approve any deals. Top economic officials The U.S. delegation to Beijing also includes Trump’s top economic officials, including Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, U.S. Trade Representative…

Workers and protesters throughout the world observed May Day Tuesday with rallies and strikes demanding their governments address better working conditions and other labor issues. In addition to being an international day honoring workers or a traditional spring time festival, Tuesday is also International Worker’s Day in many countries. Russia In Moscow, about 120,000 people marched from Red Square to the main streets in a traditional May Day parade. In St. Petersburg, Russia, several hundred citizens upset over the Kremlin’s efforts to restrict internet freedom, joined the official May Day celebration. They protested the ban of the messaging application Telegram, a move that triggered a rally in Moscow that was attended by 10,000 people. Spain Marches calling for gender equality, higher salaries and better pensions were held in more than…

Pakistan has formally reopened a major trade route with landlocked Afghanistan after nearly four years. Authorities had closed the remote Ghulam Khan border crossing in North Waziristan in 2014 after launching a major army-led counter-militancy offensive in the tribal district, once condemned as the “epicenter” of international terrorism. Military officials say the Waziristan region has since been almost completely secured and rehabilitation as well as reconstruction activities are currently under way there. Pakistani Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi traveled to the tribal region on Monday and inaugurated a newly constructed terminal to formally resume cross-border trading activities. Ghulam Khan is the third-largest official crossing point on the nearly 2,600-kilometer, largely porous frontier between Pakistan and Afghanistan. Torkham and Chaman are the other two crossings that Afghans use for bilateral trade…

The third and fourth biggest U.S. wireless carriers, T-Mobile and Sprint, said Sunday they plan to merge, the third attempt they've made to join forces against the country's two biggest mobile device firms, Verizon and AT&T. The deal, if it happens this time, calls for T-Mobile to buy Sprint for $26 billion in an all-stock deal. The combined carrier would have 126 million customers, still third in the pecking order of U.S. wireless carriers, but closer to the top two. Verizon has more than 150 million customers, and AT&T more than 142 million. The latest agreement caps four years of on-and-off talks between T-Mobile and Sprint. Sprint dropped its bid for T-Mobile more than three years ago after U.S. regulators objected and another proposed merger fell through last November. The…