Business

HOUSTON (AP) — A word to the wise: If you overhear your work-from-home spouse talking business, just forget anything you may learn from it. And most definitely do not trade stocks using what authorities will almost certainly view as inside information. Tyler Loudon, a 42-year-old Houston man, learned this lesson the hard way. He pleaded guilty Thursday to securities fraud …

TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares were trading mixed Tuesday a day after Chinese markets reopened from a long Lunar New Year holiday. Wall Street trading was closed Monday in the United States for President’s Day. Investors were generally turning less optimistic because of expectations that higher interest rates would likely kick in soon. China’s central bank kept its 1-year loan …

Amazon is arguing in a legal filing that the 88-year-old National Labor Relations Board is unconstitutional, echoing similar arguments made this year by Elon Musk’s SpaceX and the grocery store chain Trader Joe’s in disputes about workers’ rights and organizing. The Amazon filing, made Thursday, came in response to a case before an administrative law judge overseeing a complaint from …

TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s economy is now the world’s fourth-largest after it contracted in the last quarter of 2023 and fell behind Germany. The government reported the economy shrank at an annual rate of 0.4% in October to December, according to Cabinet Office data on real GDP released Thursday, though it grew 1.9% for all of 2023. It contracted 2.9% …

DETROIT (AP) — General Motors is adding about 350,000 miles (563,000 kilometers) of roadways in the U.S and Canada to the area where drivers can use the company’s “Super Cruise” partially automated driving system. The expansion nearly doubles the road miles where the system can run. It includes both limited-access divided highways as well as some two-lane roads connecting cities …

Thousands of ride-hailing and delivery workers in the U.S. and the U.K. went on strike on Valentine’s Day, calling for higher pay and other changes to their working conditions. In the U.S., Uber and Lyft drivers planned daylong strikes in Chicago; Philadelphia; Pittsburgh; Miami; Orlando and Tampa, Florida; Hartford, Connecticut; Newark, New Jersey; Austin, Texas; and Providence, Rhode Island. Drivers …

Benchmark U.S. crude oil for March delivery fell $1.23 to $76.64 per barrel Wednesday. Brent crude for April delivery fell $1.17 to $81.60 per barrel. Wholesale gasoline for March delivery fell 7 cents to $2.32 a gallon. March heating fell 9 cents to $2.81 a gallon. March natural gas fell 8 cents to $1.61 per 1,000 cubic feet. Gold for …

Jayson Tatum remembers how it felt when he first bought a home. “It didn’t seem real,” said the Boston Celtics power forward, a five-time NBA All-Star set to start for the Eastern Conference in this year’s All-Star Game on Sunday. Tatum told The Associated Press in an interview how he wants to help others in his hometown of St. Louis …

TOKYO (AP) — Shares declined Wednesday in Asia after disappointingly high U.S. inflation data sent stocks sliding on Wall Street, raising prospects that interest rates will remain elevated for longer. Regional market watchers were paying close attention to the outcome of the presidential election in Indonesia, one of Southeast Asia’s biggest economies and a supplier of strategically important resources like …

TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares mostly rose Tuesday, as investors watched for the latest indicators on U.S. inflation. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 added 2.2% in morning trading to 37,723.62. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 edged up nearly 0.1% to 7,619.20. South Korea’s Kospi jumped 1.2% to 2,651.33. Trading was closed in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan for the Lunar New Year holiday. …