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Consumer confidence rises

Americans’ attitudes toward the economy improved slightly this month as gas prices declined, but their outlook is still mostly negative by historical standards. The Conference Board said Tuesday that its consumer confidence index rose 0.6 point to 91.2 in June, a figure that is still below its year-ago reading of 95.2. Consumer attitudes worsened after the Iran war caused oil and gas prices to spike, accelerating inflation and causing Americans’ inflation-adjusted incomes to decline. Before the pandemic, the index regularly topped 120. The report suggests that consumer confidence ...

May job openings stay strong

WASHINGTON — U.S. job openings stayed at a surprisingly strong 7.6 million in May as the American labor market remains resilient in the face of the economic shock from the Iran war. Forecasters had expected employers to post just 7 million openings in May. The job market is sturdy but not exactly booming. Layoffs rose in May, and the number of people quitting their jobs — a sign of confidence in their prospects — ticked up only slightly. That’s according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics released Tuesday. Employers are advertising openings, but they aren’t actually ...

Comcast plans to split into two public companies

NEW YORK — Communications giant Comcast is planning to split itself into two: one media-centered business that would include brands like NBCUniversal and Sky and a separate company focused on broadband and wireless services. In a Monday announcement, Comcast said the breakup will put both of these operations in a better position to pursue their own priorities and growth. The move arrives as communications companies continue to wrestle with years of cord-cutting, and shifting habits in how consumers now buy subscriptions for anything from their phone plans to streaming budgets more ...

Europe bank head defends rate hike

FRANKFURT, Germany — The head of the European Central Bank defended its June 11 rate hike as justified to ward off real inflationary pressures and said it wasn’t just a mere “insurance hike.” ECB head Christine Lagarde said Monday that without the quarter percentage-point increase, inflation could have lingered above the bank’s 2% target into 2028. “Some have characterized our rate increase earlier this month as an ‘insurance hike,’” Lagarde said. “I’m sorry to disappoint them. That is not an accurate description. We faced an outlook of rising headline and core ...

Ticker: Millions drop Obamacare after subsidies expire

New federal figures show that about 3 million fewer people had Affordable Care Act health insurance plans in February compared with the same time last year. The Department of Health and Human Services suggests the 13% drop is due to a federal crackdown on fraudulent enrollment. But health analysts believe it’s more likely related to the Jan. 1 expiration of federal subsidies that has caused a surge in costs. The healthcare research nonprofit KFF has said it expects the number of people in the government healthcare program to continue to decline throughout the year. Saks officially ...

Berry demanding: Serbian town’s raspberries are exported around the world

ARILJE, Serbia — Serbia ‘s town of Arilje is known as the Balkan country’s “raspberry capital,” with its fame reaching beyond borders. Arilje and its surroundings yield berries that are exported as far as the United States and Japan. Serbia is among the top three exporters of ...