DALLAS (AP) — International airlines have canceled some flights heading to or departing from the U.S. The cancellations Wednesday were less dramatic than feared, but represented the latest complication in a dispute over concerns that 5G mobile phone service could interfere with aircraft technology. Airlines said they received warnings from the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration or Boeing that the plane maker’s 777 was particularly vulnerable to interference from 5G service. Airlines for America, a trade group, said cancellations were limited because telecom providers agreed to temporarily reduce the rollout of 5G near airports while industry and the government work out a longer-term solution.
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Starbucks nixes vaccine mandate after Supreme Court ruling
SEATTLE (AP) — Starbucks is no longer requiring its U.S. workers to be vaccinated against COVID-19, reversing a plan it announced earlier this month. The Seattle coffee giant says it’s responding to last week’s ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court. In a 6-3 vote, the court rejected the Biden administration’s plan to require vaccines or regular COVID testing at companies with more than 100 workers. On Jan. 3, Starbucks said it would require its 228,000 U.S. employees to be vaccinated by Feb. 9 or face a weekly COVID test requirement. Starbucks won’t say how many of its employees are fully vaccinated.
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Stocks extend 2022 losses as investors brace for rate hikes
NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks closed broadly lower on Wall Street Wednesday and deepened the weekly losses for major indexes following another choppy day of trading. The S&P 500 fell 1%, the Nasdaq fell 1.1% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1%. The major indexes all set new lows for the year, with technology stocks’ weakness again giving direction to the broader market. UnitedHealth Group, Bank of America and Procter & Gamble all rose after reporting encouraging financial results. Bond yields fell. Small company stocks, a gauge of confidence in economic growth, fell more than the rest of the market.
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US, UK begin talks on lifting Trump’s steel tariffs
WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States and the United Kingdom have agreed to begin talks on removing former President Donald Trump’s import taxes on British steel and aluminum. In a joint statement Wednesday, the U.S. and U.K. said they would work toward a swift deal that ensures the viability of the steel and aluminum industries in both countries and that strengthens their alliance. In 2018, Trump imposed tariffs on imported steel and aluminum, calling them a threat to U.S. national security. Although President Joe Biden had criticized Trump for alienating allies, he was slow once taking office to undo the metals tariffs.
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German leader champions new tack on climate at Davos event
GENEVA (AP) — New German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has called for a “paradigm shift” in the way the world approaches climate policy, saying his country would leverage its presidency of the Group of Seven industrial nations to push for standards to fight global warming. Discussions on energy use and ways to fight climate change have been a key theme this week at the World Economic Forum’s virtual meeting. Scholz said nations could seek to achieve climate goals “by pricing carbon and preventing carbon leakage.” Those proposals are designed to prevent companies from shifting carbon-heavy industries to countries with less stringent emissions rules. But it’s not clear that the U.S. and major developing countries such as China and India agree with those ideas.
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Donors to launch Houston newsroom with $20M in seed funding
HOUSTON (AP) — Five philanthropies have announced plans to spend more than $20 million to bolster news coverage in Houston and create what they say will be one of the largest local nonprofit news organizations in the country. The donors said Wednesday in a news release that the newsroom is anticipated to launch later this year or early 2023 on multiple platforms. The goal is to “elevate the voices of Houstonians” and address information needs identified through focus groups, community listening sessions and multi-language surveys conducted with local residents. The donors include the Houston Endowment, the Kinder Foundation and Arnold Ventures.
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December marks 3rd straight month of growth for US builders
SILVER SPRING, Md. (AP) — Construction of new homes in the U.S. rose for the third consecutive month in December and data released Wednesday suggests that the frantic pace of building will continue this year. The December increase left home construction at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.70 million units, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday. Applications for building permits, which can forecast future activity, rose a whopping 9.1% to a seasonally-adjusted rate of 1.87 million units. Both starts and permits topped expectations. Analysts surveyed by FactSet were expecting 1.65 million starts and 1.70 million permit applications. applications.
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United posts $646 million loss, omicron casts shadow over 1Q
CHICAGO (AP) — United Airlines lost $646 million in the last three months of 2021, and the new year doesn’t look too good either. United said Wednesday that the current spike in COVID-19 cases will hurt its results in the March quarter, and its revenue will be 20% to 25% lower than it was at the same time in 2019. United says the omicron variant of COVID-19 is hurting near-term bookings, but the outlook is better for travel in spring and summer. United officials are scheduled to discuss the results with analysts on Thursday.
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The S&P 500 fell 44.35 points, or 1%, to 4,532.76. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 339.82 points, or 1%, to 35,028.65. The Nasdaq lost 166.64 points, or 1.2%, to 14,340.26. The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies gave back 33.44 points, or 1.6%, to 2,062.78.
