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Federal Reserve minutes: Officials signal cautious approach to rates amid heightened uncertainty
WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal Reserve officials regarded the U.S. economy’s outlook as particularly uncertain last month, according to minutes released Wednesday, and said they would “proceed carefully” in deciding whether to further raise their benchmark interest rate. Such cautious views are generally seen as evidence that the Fed isn’t necessarily inclined to raise rates in the near future. Economic data from the past several months “generally suggested that inflation was slowing,” the minutes of the Sept. 19-20 meeting said. The policymakers added that further evidence of declining inflation was needed to be sure it would slow to the Fed’s 2% target.
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Caroline Ellison says FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried corrupted her values so she could lie and steal
NEW YORK (AP) — Sam Bankman-Fried’s former top executive has blamed the FTX founder of corrupting her values so that she could lie and steal and create false balance sheets. Wednesday was the second day on the witness stand for the prosecution’s star witness at Bankman-Fried’s federal trial in Manhattan: Caroline Ellison. Ellison pleaded guilty to fraud charges in a cooperation deal in December, when Bankman-Fried was extradited to the United States from the Bahamas after his cryptocurrency businesses collapsed. While testifying Wednesday, Ellison repeatedly blamed Bankman-Fried for directing fraudulent actions aimed at hiding billions of dollars that were being stolen from customers. Bankman-Fried has pleaded not guilty.
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The Social Security cost-of-living adjustment is coming -- but it won’t be as big as this year’s
WASHINGTON (AP) — Social Security’s cost-of-living increase for 2024 will be announced Thursday. But retirees won’t see anything close to the 8.7% increase that they got this year. With consumer prices moderating, analysts are forecasting that the 2024 increase will be around 3.2% The cost-of-living announcement comes as the Social Security program continues to be on shaky financial footing. The annual Social Security and Medicare trustees report released in March said the program’s trust fund will be unable to pay full benefits beginning in 2033. If the trust fund is depleted by then, the government will be able to pay only 77% of scheduled benefits, the report said.
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Detroit automakers and union leaders spar over 4,800 layoffs at non-striking factories
DETROIT (AP) — Detroit’s three automakers have laid off roughly 4,800 workers at factories that are not among the plants that have been hit by the United Auto Workers strikes, which have lasted for nearly four weeks. The companies say the strikes have nevertheless forced them to impose those layoffs. They note that the job cuts have occurred mainly at factories that make parts for assembly plants that were closed by strikes. The UAW rejects that argument. It contends that the layoffs are unjustified and were imposed as part of the companies’ pressure campaign to persuade UAW members to accept less favorable terms in negotiations with automakers.
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Exxon Mobil doubles down on fossil fuels with $59.5 billion deal for Pioneer Natural as prices surge
Exxon Mobil is buying Pioneer Natural Resources in an all-stock deal valued at $59.5 billion, its largest buyout since acquiring Mobil two decades ago, creating a colossal fracking operator in West Texas. Including debt, Exxon is committing about $64.5 billion to the acquisition announced Wednesday, leaving no doubt of the Texas energy company’s commitment to fossil fuels as energy prices surge. In the late 1990s, the merger between Exxon and Mobil was valued around $80 billion. The deal with Pioneer Natural expands Exxon’s presence in the Permian Basin that straddles the border between Texas and New Mexico. The region made up 18% of all U.S. natural gas production last year, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
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Social media is awash in misinformation about Israel-Gaza war, but Musk’s X is the most egregious
While Twitter has always struggled with combating misinformation about major news events, it was still the go-to place to find out what’s happening in the world. But the Israel-Hamas war has underscored how the platform now transformed into X has become not only unreliable but is actively promoting falsehoods. And while Elon Musk’s X is awash in chaos, rivals such as TikTok, YouTube and Facebook are also coping with a flood of unsubstantiated rumors and falsehoods about the conflict, playing the usual whack-a-mole that emerges every time a news event captivates the world’s attention. So if you’re looking for a central hub to find reliable, real time information online, you might be out of luck.
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Birkenstock stumbles on Wall Street as traders find sandal maker’s shares too pricey
NEW YORK (AP) — Birkenstock shares are tumbling as the stock makes its debut on the New York Stock Exchange as Wall Street trades in its wingtips for sandals for a day. The 249-year-old German maker of upmarket sandals set a price of $46 per share for its initial public offering of stock, valuing the company at $8.64 billion. It opened at $41 under the “BIRK” ticker symbol. The company’s footwear was first cobbled together by Johann Adam Birkenstock in Germany in 1774. The sandals have long been derided as the antithesis of high fashion but have a cult following and this year got a plug in the blockbuster film “Barbie.”
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The power dynamic in labor has shifted and pickets are seemingly everywhere. But for how long?
NEW YORK (AP) — From auto production lines to Hollywood, the power of labor unions is back in the national spotlight. But despite historic strikes and record contract negotiations seen this year, there’s still a lot stacked against organizing today. Rates of union membership have been falling for decades. More than 35% of private sector workers, for example, had a union in 1953 compared with about 6% today. Experts point to changes in the U.S. economy, ample employer opposition and growing political partisanship seen in recent decades. And, under current federal and state labor laws, desires to organize can only go so far without policy change.
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The S&P 500 rose 18.71 points, or 0.4%, to 4,376.95. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 65.57 points, or 0.2%, to 33,804.87. The Nasdaq composite rose 96.83 points, or 0.7%, to 13,659.68. The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies fell 2.65 points, or 0.1% to 1,773.30.