Today’s News
Retail sales up 0.6 percent in August
NEW YORK (AP) — Shoppers increased their spending at a better-than-expected pace in August from July, helped by back-to-school shopping, according to a new federal government report. Retail sales rose 0.6 percent last month from July, when sales were up a revised 0.6 percent, according to the Commerce Department’s report. In June, retail sales rose 0.9 percent. The August performance was also likely helped by the continued efforts by Americans to keep pushing up purchases [...]
FDA sends warning letters to telehealth companies about their advertising practices
WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal health officials are taking aim at telehealth companies promoting unofficial versions of prescription drugs — including popular weight loss medications — as part of the Trump administration’s crackdown on pharmaceutical advertising. The Food and Drug Administration earlier this week posted more than 100 letters to various drug and online prescribing companies, including Hims & Hers, which has built a multibillion-dollar business centered around lower-cost versions of blockbuster obesity injections. The FDA [...]
Trump wants companies to discontinue issuance of quarterly earnings reports
President Donald Trump wants to do away with the quarterly earnings report issued by publicly traded companies. In a post on Truth Social, Trump said securities regulators should stop requiring companies to issue financial reports every three months and instead switch to a six-month reporting period. The Securities and Exchange Commission has required publicly traded companies to report on a quarterly basis since 1970. “This will save money, and allow managers to focus on properly [...]
Rivian’s road to profitability could be riding on new electric-vehicle plant in Georgia
ATLANTA (AP) — It seems like an unfavorable time to build an electric-vehicle plant in the United States, but Rivian Automotive leaders say they’re confident as the company starts long-delayed work on a $5 billion facility in Georgia. The money-losing California-based company broke ground this week east of Atlanta despite President Donald Trump’s successful push to roll back electric-vehicle tax credits. Starting Sept. 30, buyers will no longer qualify for savings of up to $7,500 [...]
Local counties OK’d for SBA disaster loans
The Small Business Administration has approved Gov. Mike DeWine’s request for a disaster declaration for flooding that impacted Fairfield County in late July. The declaration makes low-interest loans available to impacted homes and businesses that sustained uninsured losses of 40 percent or more of the estimated fair replacement value. Businesses and residents of Fairfield County, as well as the adjacent counties of Franklin, Hocking, Licking, Perry and Pickaway, are eligible to apply for Business Physical [...]
Target to expand next-day parcel delivery service
NEW YORK (AP) — Target is expanding its next-day delivery of parcel shipments to 35 of the nation’s top 60 metropolitan markets by the end of next month, marking 22 new cities this year, as the discount retailer aims to narrow the gap with the likes of Amazon. That means its next-day delivery expansion will go to 54 percent of the nation’s population, up from 20 percent, according to Gretchen McCarthy, Target’s chief supply chain [...]
McDonald’s to promote regenerative cattle practices
McDonald’s said it plans to invest $200 million over the next seven years to promote regenerative agriculture practices on cattle ranches. The Chicago burger giant said the investment was its largest to date in support of regenerative agriculture in the United States. The company also has funded regenerative projects on potato farms in Canada and Europe. Regenerative techniques aim to conserve water, enhance soil health and reduce the need for synthetic chemicals and fertilizers. Other [...]
Lawmakers ask whether Boar’s Head plant is fit to reopen
Democratic lawmakers are questioning whether a Boar’s Head deli meat plant at the center of last year’s deadly listeria outbreak will be fit to reopen. Rep. Rosa DeLauro, of Connecticut, sent a letter this week asking company officials to appear before the Congressional Food Safety Caucus to discuss “a repeated pattern of food safety negligence that jeopardized Americans’ public health.” The letter, signed by nine other Democrats, cited Associated Press reporting that described sanitation problems [...]
Regulators eyeing Tesla door lock issue
Auto safety regulators are investigating certain Tesla Model Ys for a possible defect in the electronic door handles that can leave passengers trapped inside the vehicle. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said its preliminary evaluation is for the 2021 Tesla Model Y. The agency said the electronic door handles of the vehicle may become inoperative due to low battery voltage and impede vehicle reentry. The investigation covers approximately 174,300 of the midsize SUVs. The [...]
Shipping firms support global greenhouse gases fee
Nearly 200 shipping companies this week said they want the world’s largest maritime nations to adopt regulations that include the first-ever global fee on greenhouse gases to reduce their sector’s emissions. The Getting to Zero Coalition, an alliance of companies, governments and intergovernmental organizations, is asking member states of the International Maritime Organization to support adopting regulations to transition to green shipping, including the fee, when they meet in London next month. The statement was [...]
Legal News
Agents seize hundreds of thousands of illegal vapes
BENSENVILLE, Ill. (AP) — Federal agents seized hundreds of thousands of illegal vaping products in raids across the country last week as the Trump administration [...]
Judge skewers $1.5B Anthropic settlement
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A federal judge this week skewered a $1.5 billion settlement between artificial intelligence company Anthropic and authors who allege nearly half [...]
Anthropic to pay authors $1.5B settlement
NEW YORK (AP) — Artificial intelligence company Anthropic has agreed to pay $1.5 billion to settle a class-action lawsuit brought by book authors who say [...]
Business News
Inflation rate at 2.9 percent in August
WASHINGTON (AP) — Inflation rose last month as the prices of gas, groceries and air fares jumped, according to a new federal government report. Consumer [...]
Southern convenience store chain RaceTrac to purchase Potbelly for $566 million
Sandwich maker Potbelly is being acquired by the gas station and convenience store chain RaceTrac for $566 million. Potbelly, which was founded in Chicago in [...]
Applications for jobless benefits hit 4-year high
WASHINGTON (AP) — Jobless claim applications jumped to their highest level in almost four years, the latest sign that the labor market is softening. The [...]
Real Estate
Metropolitan Library to sell vacant land to affordable-housing developer
The Columbus Metropolitan Library has announced plans to sell a parcel of vacant land just north of its Shepard Branch at 850 N. Nelson Road [...]
$2.4 million in funding proposed for local projects
The Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission and the Central Ohio Rural Planning Organization have proposed a list of transportation projects to receive a total of $2,447,376 [...]
Number of new apartments in central Ohio expected to fall next year
The number of new apartments available for rent in central Ohio next year is expected to fall by nearly half compared to this year, according [...]
Politics
Tighter enforcement of drug advertising rules could take years
WASHINGTON (AP) — Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and other administration officials are vowing a crackdown on deceptive drug ads, but the effort is [...]
Democratic senator voices concern about SCORE Act
Sen. Maria Cantwell warned her colleagues last week that a bill heading to the House floor that would regulate college sports would solidify an unsustainable [...]
Trump administration wants to cancel Biden-era leasing rule for public land
BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — Interior Secretary Doug Burgum earlier this week proposed canceling a public-land management rule that allows for the leasing of public land [...]