Unemployment claims fall, still 4 times the level before the virus
WASHINGTON – The number of Americans seeking unemployment insurance last week fell by 19,000 to 787,000, still a historically high level, as a resurgent coronavirus maintains its grip on the US economy.
Although they are at the lowest level in four weeks, the figures released on Thursday by the Department of Labor are almost four times higher than last year, at this time, before the coronavirus attack. Employers continue to cut jobs as rising infections keep many people at home and state and local governments impose stricter restrictions on business and public activities.
Claims made by South Carolina residents for the first time rose by about 1,100 to 4,551 in the week ending December 26.
US unemployment insurance claims were around 225,000 a week before the pandemic hit last March, when weekly unemployment insurance claims rose to 6.9 million and put the US economy in a deep recession.
The total number of people receiving traditional unemployment benefits fell by 103,000 to 5.2 million in the week ending December 19. This is still much higher than 1.7 million a year ago, when the unemployment rate was hovering around half a century, a minimum of 3.9%.
Unemployment claims peaked in May at 25.9 million.
The four-week average for claims, which smoothes out weekly changes, rose last week to 836,750, an increase of 17,750 from the previous week.
Economists believe that the holiday, in addition to widespread confusion over the status of a COVID-19 aid package, suppressed claims for benefits last week, so the numbers may be worse than they appear.
Amazon expands into the podcast business
NEW YORK – Amazon is entering the podcast business.
The online shopping giant is buying Wondery, a 4-year-old producer of popular true crime podcasts like “Dr. Death” and “Dirty John”, which was later turned into a TV series.
An explosion of new podcasts has led to a series of acquisitions as competing platforms try to increase their audience and ad revenue. The music streaming platform Spotify bought two podcast companies in 2019 and added high-profile hosts to its list, including Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.
Wondery podcasts will be part of Amazon’s music streaming service, but will still be available on other platforms.
“This is a pivotal time to expand Amazon Music’s offering beyond music as the listener’s habits evolve,” Amazon said in a blog on Wednesday.
The terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.
Benchmark mortgage rate rose slightly
MCLEAN, Virginia – US long-term mortgage rates have risen slightly this week, but remain close to record lows as the coronavirus pandemic continues to wreak havoc in the US and global economies.
The average rate on the 30-year benchmark home loan rose to 2.67 percent, from a record 2.66 percent last week, according to mortgage giant Freddie Mac. A year ago, it was 3.72%.
The average rate on 15-year fixed-rate loans, popular with homeowners looking to refinance their mortgages, dropped from 2.19% to 2.17%. A year ago, it averaged 3.16%.
The 5-year adjustable rate mortgage averaged 2.71%, down from 2.79% last week. The average was 3.16% a year ago.
Record low loan rates helped push buyers into the housing market, but the lack of available homes left many home hunters empty-handed. The lack of supply had put pressure on prices even before the pandemic broke out in March.
Hedge fund offers for the rest of Tribune shares
NEW YORK – The hedge fund Alden, Tribune’s largest shareholder, has offered to buy the rest of the newspaper’s publisher for a price that estimates it at $ 520.6 million.
Alden sent a letter to the Tribune on December 14, according to a regulatory document on Thursday, offering $ 14.25 a share for the shares of the Tribune he does not yet own. Alden owns 31.6% of the media company. The hedge fund said it had received “no feedback” in its letter, which it described as a “preliminary investigation”.
The Tribune did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Thursday.
Alden bought his stake in Tribune in November 2019 and has three seats on his seven-member board. Tribune publishes nine major daily newspapers, including the New York Daily News, the Chicago Tribune and the Baltimore Sun. Alden controls a major US publisher whose newspapers include the Denver Post, the Orange County Register and the Boston Herald. It has a reputation for layoffs and intense cost cuts, even beyond the news industry’s overall turn in that direction.
Daimler fines for slow rising recalls
WASHINGTON – Failing to recall vehicles quickly enough can cost Daimler Trucks up to $ 30 million in fines and other costs.
In penalties announced on Thursday, the National Road Traffic Safety Administration said Daimler also failed to comply with other reporting requirements. They include an initial $ 10 million fine, another $ 5 million that the automaker must spend on safety improvements and a deferred $ 15 million fine, which may or may not have to be paid.
The order follows several recalls between 2017 and 2018. Daimler said there were no known accidents or injuries related to what it called “voluntary recalls”.
The consent order, which lasts two to three years, requires Daimler to improve its ability to detect and investigate possible safety defects in its vehicles. The company must also improve its collection of security information from its business and report the information accurately to NHTSA regulators. It also requires Daimler to develop written procedures and training for employees working on recalls and reporting requirements.
“We appreciate the opportunity to briefly resolve this issue and continue to build safe, efficient and reliable commercial vehicles,” Daimler Trucks said in a statement prepared on Thursday.
Xi praises China’s growth despite the virus
BEIJING – China made great strides in developing its economy and eradicating rural poverty in the past year, despite the coronavirus pandemic, Chinese President Xi Jinping said in a New Year’s speech on Thursday.
China was the first major economy to register positive economic growth in 2020, with its gross domestic product exceeding the equivalent of almost $ 14 trillion a year, Xi said on national television.
The International Monetary Fund predicted in October that China, the world’s second largest economy, would grow 1.9 percent in 2020, a sharp slowdown from its 6.1 percent gain in 2019, and then expand 8.2 percent in 2021.
This compares with an IMF forecast of a 4.4% global economic contraction in 2020, the worst drop since the Great Depression of the 1930s.
China largely ended the domestic transmission of the coronavirus, but Xi’s speech came as the government ordered additional measures to prevent a resurgence in the coming months. Xi called for greater international cooperation in the fight against the virus, which is believed to have appeared in the Chinese city of Wuhan in late 2019.