Business Highlights
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Virus worries force cancellation of major tech show in Spain
LONDON (AP) — Organizers of the world’s biggest mobile technology fair are pulling the plug over worries about the viral outbreak from China. The annual Mobile World Congress show will no longer be held as planned in Barcelona, Spain, on Feb. 24-27. Wednesday's decision comes after dozens of tech companies and wireless carriers dropped out. Tech analyst Tim Bajarin says the show lets many people in the mobile industry to meet in one place, and for that reason it's a significant loss. Spanish officials insist there was “no public health reason” to call off the show, a huge source of revenue for hotels, restaurants and taxi companies.
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Powell hears bipartisan Senate support for Fed independence
WASHINGTON (AP) — Republican and Democratic senators voiced strong support for an independent Federal Reserve during a hearing with Fed Chair Jerome Powell, one day after President Donald Trump launched another attack directed at Powell on Twitter. The support from members of the Senate Banking Committee suggests Trump's attacks on Powell and the Fed has found little traction among members of his own party on Capitol Hill. Trump has called Fed officials “boneheads" and argued that the central bank should cut interest rates further. It is the second day of Powell's semiannual appearances before Congress.
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Coronavirus has many U.S. firms waiting for products to ship
NEW YORK (AP) — Many small business owners in the U.S. are facing a shortage of products or components because Chinese suppliers, who closed for the weeks-long Lunar New Year holiday, remain shut due to the coronavirus outbreak. Even owners who stocked up in advance of the holiday are worried about a prolonged outbreak. They're looking for alternate ways to fill orders. Some are even considering moving their manufacturing to another country. Some owners say they've had a hard time getting information about the factories they use. Others are in touch with designers and getting some work done — but they don't know how long it will take for production to ramp up again.
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US on track for first $1 trillion budget deficit since 2012
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. budget deficit through the first four months of this budget year is up 19% from the same period a year ago, putting the country on track to record its first $1 trillion deficit since 2012. The Treasury Department said Wednesday in its monthly budget report that the deficit from October through January was $389.2 billion, up $78.9 billion from the same period last year.
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CVS Health swings to 4Q profit, lays out leadership changes
WOONSOCKET, R.I. (AP) — CVS Health swung to a fourth-quarter profit and is starting the new year with a management shakeup for its largest business. The company’s CVS Caremark pharmacy benefit management segment will now be run by Dr. Alan Lotvin, a corporate executive vice president. CVS Health said Wednesday that he will replace Derica Rice as president. The Caremark business runs prescription drug plans for employers, insurers and other large clients. It pulled in more than $141 billion in revenue last year.
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White House claims Huawei equipment has backdoor for spying
WASHINGTON (AP) — A U.S. official is charging that the Chinese company Huawei can secretly tap into communications through the networking equipment it sells globally. It's a stepping up of White House efforts to persuade allies to ban the gear from next-generation cellular networks. The U.S. national security adviser, Robert C. O’Brien, made the statement at an Atlantic Council forum.
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UN list targets firms linked to Israeli settlements
JERUSALEM (AP) — The U.N. human rights office has released a long-awaited list of more than 100 companies it said are complicit in human rights violations by operating in Israeli settlements in the West Bank and east Jerusalem. The list is dominated by Israeli companies, including banks and construction firms. But it also has international firms, including travel companies Airbnb, Expedia and TripAdvisor, tech giant Motorola and construction and infrastructure companies including France's Egis and British company JC Bamford Excavators.
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Virus outbreak in China poses a new problem for Boeing
CHICAGO (AP) — Boeing is concerned that the virus outbreak in China could hurt deliveries of new planes early this year. The company's chief financial officer gave the outlook Wednesday at an investor conference. China is an important market for Boeing. But restrictions on travel there, and airlines suspending flight, are hurting air travel. The virus concern comes after a dismal January report for Boeing, which got no new airline orders for planes last month and delivered just 13 planes to customers. Boeing’s business has slumped since the grounding nearly a year ago of its 737 Max jet after two crashes that killed 346 people.
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NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks closed broadly higher on Wall Street Wednesday, driving the S&P 500 and Nasdaq indexes to more record highs. Technology stocks powered much of the rally as investors focused on the latest batch of mostly solid company earnings reports. The latest gains came as worries about the economic impact of the virus outbreak that originated in China continued to subside.
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The S&P 500 index rose 21.70 points, or 0.6%, to 3,379.45. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 275.08 points, or 0.9%, to 29,551.42. The Nasdaq climbed 87.02 points, or 0.9%, to 9,725.96. The Russell 2000 index of smaller company stocks picked up 11.86 points, or 0.7%, to 1,689.38.