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Amazon’s mission: Get a “key” for your home
NEW YORK (AP) – Amazon is urging landlords across the country to allow drivers to open the front doors of residential buildings when they need to leave parcels in the lobby instead of on the street. The service called Amazon Key for Business enables delivery agents to make their rounds faster since they don’t have to ring the doorbell. And fewer stolen packages could give Amazon an edge over other online retailers. But there can be downsides. The device is connected to the internet, which could make it vulnerable to hackers. And renters may not be aware that Amazon drivers have access to their building’s front doors.
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Unemployment claims in the US rise from a pandemic low to 419,000
WASHINGTON (AP) – The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits has risen from the bottom of the pandemic last week, although the labor market appears to be recovering due to a reopened economy. Unemployment claims rose from 368,000 the previous week to 419,000. The weekly number of initial claims for benefits, which typically track layoffs, has declined steadily since over 900,000 in early January. Economists say the surge is most likely a rash caused by some one-off factors. Applications for unemployment benefits skyrocketed last week, for example in Michigan, where some auto plants have temporarily stopped production due to supply shortages.
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Priest, who was outed through the Grindr app, highlights the rampant data tracking
NEW YORK (AP) – When a religious publication used smartphone app data to infer the sexual orientation of a senior Roman Catholic official, it exposed an issue that goes well beyond a debate about church doctrine and priestly celibacy. With few U.S. restrictions on what companies can do with the huge amounts of data they gather from website visits, apps, and location tracking built into phones, there’s not much against similar spying on politicians, celebrities, and pretty much anyone else who is the target of curiosity of person – or malice. Data protection experts say such cases will pile up until federal law regulates the handling of this data.
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The Biden administrator increases the community grants from the COVID bill
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Joe Biden’s administration says it is providing $ 3 billion in economic development grants to communities – a tenfold increase on the program paid for by this year’s COVID-19 relief bill. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo told The Associated Press that her agency will begin accepting applications for competitive grants that officials hope will create hundreds of thousands of jobs. The aim is to help troubled cities make long-term investments to spur development in the years to come. The grants will be aimed at supporting local infrastructure, vocational training programs and the development of new industries.
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Indexes on Wall Street are inches higher and receive weekly gains
NEW YORK (AP) – Major indices on Wall Street rose after a day of subdued trading, holding gains for the week. The S&P 500 emerged from a dip at noon and ended up 0.2% on Thursday. Although most of the stocks in the S&P 500 fell, gains from several tech heavyweights, including Apple and Microsoft, drove the index higher. The Nasdaq was up 0.4%, while small business stocks lost 1.5%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.1%. Trading was muted as investors scrutinized recent corporate earnings and a surprising surge in the number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits.
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Southwest, American gains after Q2 as air traffic picks up
DALLAS (AP) – Travelers are returning to flying and this is reflected in increased revenue for airlines. On Thursday, both American Airlines and Southwest Airlines reported second-quarter profits thanks to generous federal pandemic aid that covers most of their labor costs. The reports show that airlines are making progress in recovery after the coronavirus hit air traffic. But they still have a long way to go before they fully recover. Southwest says it made money in June even without federal funding, which CEO Gary Kelly calls a major milestone.
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Twitter publishes stronger than expected Q2 results, stocks soar
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) – Twitter released an unexpectedly strong second quarter result. The strong numbers were due to growing advertising demand across all geographic regions and types of promotional products. The San Francisco-based company made $ 65.6 million, or 8 cents per share, for the April-June quarter. This compares with a loss of $ 1.38 billion or $ 1.75 per share last year. Revenue rose 74% from $ 683.4 million to $ 1.19 billion, exceeding Wall Street’s expectations. Twitter shares rose 5% in after-hours trading.
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Mercedes outlines fully electric scenario by the end of the decade
FRANKFURT, Germany (dpa) – The luxury car manufacturer Mercedes-Benz is stepping up its entry into electric cars. It says it can see a market scenario where all sales will be electric by the end of the decade. In the short term, the Stuttgart-based car manufacturer wants to increase the proportion of battery and plug-in hybrid cars to 50% of sales by 2025. That is double the previous forecast. Mercedes predicts more electrics, just as the authorities of the European Union are calling for even lower limits for carbon dioxide emissions from cars in order to combat climate change. The latest EU proposal is to eliminate all C02 emissions from cars by 2035, forcing a switch to electrics and other alternative drives.
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The S&P 500 rose 8.79 points, or 0.2%, to 4,367.48 points. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 25.35 points, or 0.1%, to 34,823.35. The Nasdaq added 52.64 points, or 0.4%, to 14,684.60. The Russell 2000 Small Business Index fell 34.57 points, or 1.5%, to 2,199.48 points.
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