Shares in Trump Media slump after former president convicted in hush money trial
Shares of Trump Media & Technology Group, the owner of social networking site Truth Social, have slumped after former President Donald Trump was convicted in his hush money trial. A New York jury found Trump guilty of falsifying business records in a scheme to illegally influence the 2016 election through hush money payments to a porn actor who said the two had sex. Trump Media’s stock was down about 9% in after-hours trading Thursday as news of the verdict emerged. The stock has been extraordinarily volatile since its debut in late March.
US economic growth last quarter is revised down from 1.6% rate to 1.3%, but consumers kept spending
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. economy grew at a sluggish 1.3% annual pace from January through March, the weakest quarterly rate since the spring of 2022, the government said in a downgrade from its previous estimate. Consumer spending rose but at a slower pace than previously thought, a sign that high interest rates and lingering inflation are pressuring household budgets. The Commerce Department had previously estimated that the nation’s gross domestic product — the total output of goods and services — expanded at a 1.6% rate last quarter. The first quarter’s GDP growth marked a sharp slowdown from the vigorous 3.4% rate in the final three months of 2023.
IRS makes free tax return program permanent and is asking all states to join in 2025
WASHINGTON (AP) — The IRS will make permanent the free electronic tax return filing system that it experimented with this year. The agency is asking all 50 states and the District of Columbia to help taxpayers file their returns through the program in 2025. The IRS tried the Direct File project for the 2024 tax season on a limited basis in 12 states for people with very simple W-2s. That’s the employee’s wage and tax statement. The IRS is inviting all states with a state income tax to sign up and help people file their state returns for free.
Lab-grown meat isn’t on store shelves yet, but some states have already banned it
Lab-grown meat is not currently available in any U.S. grocery stores or restaurants. If some lawmakers have their way, it never will be. Earlier this month, both Florida and Alabama banned the sale of cultivated meat and seafood, which is grown from animal cells. In Iowa, the governor signed a bill prohibiting schools from buying lab-grown meat. Federal lawmakers are also looking to restrict it. It’s unclear how far these efforts will go. Some cultivated meat companies say they’re considering legal action, and some states shelved proposed bans after lawmakers argued they would restrict consumers’ choices. The U.S. first approved the sale of lab-grown meat a year ago.
Swift Trump verdict has the media considering history’s sweep — and the polarizing figure behind it
NEW YORK (AP) — After nearly two days of waiting at a Manhattan courtroom, a verdict in former President Donald Trump’s hush money trial came swiftly as news organizations were getting ready to leave. A jury foreman pronounced Trump guilty 34 times, but went unheard publicly because of New York state laws prohibiting audio-visual coverage in courtrooms. Broadcast networks ABC, CBS and NBC suspended regular programming to cover the verdict. Outlets reflected the sweep of history — the first felony conviction of a former U.S. president — along with heated views that surrounded the most polarizing figure in American politics. Anger coursed through outlets supportive of Trump.
Supreme Court gives homeowners another chance in escrow dispute with Bank of America
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court has given homeowners another chance to force Bank of America and other large banks to pay interest on mortgage escrow accounts. The court unanimously threw out an appeals court ruling in favor of Bank of America, which has refused to pay interest on money it collects to pay borrowers’ insurance and property tax bills. New York requires banks to pay at 2% interest on escrowed funds. Similar laws are in effect in another 13 states. Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote for the court in rejecting the appellate ruling that federal law governing national banks does not permit such state-by-state regulation.
Schumer, Democrats urge Justice Department to prosecute alleged oil industry collusion, price-fixing
WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and 22 other Democratic senators are calling on the Justice Department to prevent and prosecute alleged collusion and price-fixing in the oil industry. Democrats say in a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland on Thursday that alleged price-fixing by American oil executives and OPEC officials led to higher energy costs for consumers. The Federal Trade Commission says a former CEO of Pioneer Natural Resources colluded with OPEC and OPEC+ to potentially raise crude oil prices. Dallas-based Pioneer says it disagrees with the allegations. The American Petroleum Institute lobbying group says U.S. producers have “answered the call to meet growing energy demand.”
Stock market today: Most of Wall Street rises, but falls for some big tech stocks drag indexes lower
NEW YORK (AP) — Most U.S. stocks rose, but indexes nevertheless stumbled because of sharp drops for some influential technology giants. The S&P 500 fell 0.6% Thursday, even though the majority of stocks within it and across Wall Street rose. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.9%, and the Nasdaq composite lost 1.1%. Salesforce lost nearly a fifth of its value after reporting weaker revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected. Nvidia finally ran out of momentum after leaping higher following its blowout profit report last week. Treasury yields eased in the bond market following weaker-than-expected reports on the job market and overall economy.
Boeing tells federal regulators how it plans to fix aircraft safety and quality problems
Boeing officials have presented a plan for improving manufacturing quality and safety to federal officials. Federal Aviation Administration chief Mike Whitaker said the plan submitted on Thursday is comprehensive and includes encouraging Boeing employees to speak up about safety concerns. He says the FAA will continue the producution restrictions it placed on the company after a relatively new Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 Max 9 suffered a blowout of a fuselage panel in January. “Boeing has laid out their road map, and now they need to execute,” Whitaker says. The Boeing delegation was led by outgoing CEO David Calhoun. The company did not immediately comment.
Boeing firefighters ratify a contract with big raises, which they say will end a three-week lockout
Boeing’s private force of firefighters have approved a tentative new contract, and their union says they’re going back to work. The International Association of Fire Fighters union said workers voted 86-24 to ratify the contract. Boeing locked out the workers more than three weeks ago, after their last contract expired. The union says the new contract gives workers four hours of overtime pay for each 24-hour shift, boosting pay on average by about $21,000 per year. The workers are present when planes are fueled and flown and respond to fires and medical emergencies at the company’s facilities.
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