Detroit carmakers cut production amid sales slump

Aug 1, 2017
July sales are down across the board for the Detroit Three automakers, 15.5 percent for GM, 10 percent for Chrysler and 7.5 percent for Ford. That makes seven straight months of declines for the U.S. auto industry at large. Now, considering the last two years basically broke every kind of sales record in the books, […]

Walmart aims high on lowering carbon footprint

Aug 1, 2017
Walmart among the businesses stepping up as government retreats on climate change.
BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty Images

Denim makers are making jeans stretchier to get in on the athleisure market

Aug 1, 2017
Jean sales dropped 4.5 percent in 2014 and 3.4 percent in 2015 but are on the upswing this year, thanks, in part, to stretchier fabrics.
“Comfort is a key attribute that consumers are looking for in their denim jeans," said Kara Nicholas, vice president of product design and marketing at Cone Denim.
Carsten Koall/Getty Images

Corporate profits surprise analysts this earnings season

Jul 31, 2017
Earnings season is well underway, and so far corporate profits for the second quarter have been pretty good. Surprisingly good, actually. Of the companies in the S&P 500 index that have reported results so far, most have exceeded analysts’ expectations. Plenty of earnings news is still to come, including reports tomorrow from biggies like Apple, […]

Internet restrictions make doing business harder in China

Jul 31, 2017
Many popular internet sites are blocked for users of the state network in China — Google, YouTube and more. Some users, many of them business users, employ a VPN, a virtual personal network, to get around that “Great Firewall.” In a crackdown on unregistered VPNs, China has persuaded Apple to pull all major VPN services […]

Tax reform is the next battleground

Jul 31, 2017
With the drama around health care refusing to die, legislators already have begun the next big policy effort on the Hill: tax reform. Congressional Republican leaders last week laid out what they want — permanent tax reductions is what it boils down to. And conservative organizations and grassroots groups are getting ready to blast Congress […]

How tax withholding became the norm for American workers

Jul 31, 2017
Not everyone thinks automatic deductions for state and federal taxes are a good idea.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

For public good, not for profit.

How airports are failing senior travelers

Jul 31, 2017
Long distances to walk, heavy bags to lift, arrival screens to squint at — older flyers face challenges
Travelers go through the TSA PreCheck security point at Miami International Airport in Miami, Florida.
Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Retail discounters flourish as traditional department stores struggle

Jul 31, 2017
Off-price retailers have become a bright spot amidst the doom and gloom of widespread closures of brick-and-mortar stores and online shopping’s growing dominance.
A former Macy's store in North Hollywood, California is fenced off from public access. The Laurel Plaza shopping center location closed its doors in October 2016, one of 68 Macy's stores nationwide to close through Spring 2017. 
Libby Denkmann/ for Marketplace

As Apple gets ready to announce earnings, analysts look at how the next iPhone might be priced

Jul 31, 2017
Apple’s earnings are out Tuesday amid speculation about its next iPhone offerings. One possibility: that the next iteration will include a souped-up, expensive model that could even break the $1,000 price tag. What features could lure customers to pay that kind of money? And how would phone companies adjust their payment schedules to help customers with […]