U.S. stocks opened higher on Wednesday on hopes of a pickup in business activity with states easing coronavirus-induced curbs, while investors looked past a stunning 20 million plunge in U.S. private payrolls last month.
United Airlines Holdings Inc said it plans to raise $2.25 billion through a bond offering as it grapples with a slump in air travel demand due to government-mandated lockdowns across the world.
U.S. private employers laid off a record 20.236 million workers in April as mandatory business closures in response to the novel coronavirus outbreak savaged the economy, setting up the overall labor market for historic job losses last month.
The massive drop in U.S. private payrolls for April, reported on Wednesday, is "not a surprise" but employment could recover dramatically in the second half of the year if the coronavirus pandemic is controlled, St. Louis Federal Reserve president James Bullard said.
The U.S. Department of Commerce is close to signing off on a new rule that allows U.S. companies to work with China's Huawei Technologies on setting standards for next generation 5G networks, people familiar with the matter said.
Eating more healthy food? More junk food? Nearly everyone's eating and shopping habits are feeling the fallout of the pandemic — and boredom and anxiety are driving plenty of change.
Recent central bank bond-buying to calm market turmoil has breached the wall dividing top-grade debt from so-called junk-rated issues, raising the likelihood of the investment industry and even regulators eventually dismantling the barrier.
Britain's advertising watchdog has ruled Royal Dutch Shell's ad campaign on petrol pumps promising customers they can "drive carbon neutral" is acceptable, following complaints.
Abercrombie & Fitch Co has begun reopening stores in parts of the world where lockdown restrictions have eased, the company said on Wednesday, as more retailers chart out paths to recovery after the COVID-19 pandemic upended businesses.
The New York Times Co warned of a steep fall in advertising sales in the current quarter after beating Wall Street's profit and revenue estimates on Wednesday, as it added more subscribers in a period dominated by heavy news coverage around the COVID-19 pandemic.
Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd has launched a new luxury platform targeting younger consumers that also aims to help high-end brands shed excess inventory built up during the global coronavirus lockdown.
Qatar Airways said on Wednesday it would this month start to rebuild its network, in anticipation countries will ease air travel restrictions and based on monitoring of passenger trends.
Standard Chartered Chairman Jose Vinals said on Wednesday his Asia-focused bank was well placed to benefit from a late 2020 economic rally, despite the "extraordinary" impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the global economy.
Miner Barrick Gold Corp reported a nearly 55% rise in quarterly adjusted profit on Wednesday, benefiting from a surge in gold prices, but trimmed production outlook for the precious metal over a mining lease issue in Papua New Guinea.
Global shares struggled on Wednesday as weak economic data, doubts about the easing of coronavirus lockdowns and simmering U.S.-China tensions cast a pall over markets.