FINANCIAL MARKETS
Stocks move higher
NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks have turned moderately higher on Wall Street amid speculation over the next step in the U.S. trade dispute with China.
Information technology and consumer staples are leading the gains, while health care and utilities stocks are trailing behind.
American and Chinese negotiators ended two days of talks in Washington last week without word of a deal.
Clorox Company is up 6.8 percent after reporting consensus-beating second-quarter profit. Weyerhaeuser is down 3.9 percent after reporting lower revenue and profit in its most recent quarter.
DIGITAL FIRST MEDIA-GANNETT
Gannett turns down hedge fund-backed Digital First Media
NEW YORK (AP) — The publisher of USA Today and dozens of other newspapers has said no to a hedge-fund backed media group with a reputation for slashing jobs, but the buyout fight may not be over.
Gannett says its board has unanimously rejected an unsolicited $1.36 billion buyout from MNG Enterprises , better known as Digital First Media. Digital First then said that it might nominate new Gannett board directors to consider its offer.
The board decided the $12 per share offer was too low, and that it wasn't in the interest of the company or its shareholders, according to Gannett Co. Gannett also cast doubt on Digital First's ability to complete the deal after it said the company refused to answer questions about its ability to fund the acquisition without a non-disclosure agreement.
BREXIT
Dutch court rejects British expats' Brexit case
LONDON (AP) — A Dutch judge has refused to hear a case brought by four British citizens who live in the Netherlands seeking to clarify their citizenship rights after Britain leaves the European Union.
The judge in Amsterdam ruled today that the case brought by the four Britons was inadmissible as it should be considered by a special immigration court.
A lawyer for the British citizens says his clients are "very disappointed" with the rejection.
They wanted the court to ask the European Union Court of Justice in Luxembourg to issue a ruling that would have clarified the post-Brexit rights of all British citizens living on mainland Europe.
The attorney says he will consult his clients before deciding whether to take the case to an immigration judge.
GERMANY-ECONOMY
Germany faces tighter public finances as growth slows
BERLIN (AP) — Germany's government is grappling with the prospect of tighter public finances over the coming years as economic growth slows. It is insisting it will stick to its policy of running up no new debt.
News agency dpa reported today that the government faces a budget shortfall of 24.7 billion euros ($28.3 billion) through 2023, compared with previous predictions. It cited a document sent by Werner Gatzer, a deputy finance minister, to other ministries.
Germany long enjoyed better-than-expected tax revenues as Europe's biggest economy motored along but Finance Minister Olaf Scholz warned last month that "the fat years are over." The government recently cut its economic growth forecast.
The finance ministry wouldn't confirm the shortfall figure but said maintaining a balanced budget remains "the clear proviso" in government planning.
GM-LAYOFFS
GM starting white-collar layoffs this week
DETROIT (AP) — General Motors is starting to lay off about 4,300 white-collar workers worldwide this week.
In November, the company said it wanted to cut 8,000 salaried and contract workers so it can raise profit margins and invest more in autonomous and electric vehicles.
The company says 2,200 white-collar employees took buyouts, while another 1,500 contract workers were let go.
Many of the layoffs will happen at GM's technical center near Detroit. Most work on components for internal combustion engines and discontinued car models.
GM also plans to close one Canadian and four U.S. car factories, shedding another 5,000 jobs. But 2,700 U.S. workers will be offered jobs at other factories.
GM says the layoffs are part of a restructuring will add up to $2.5 billion to its bottom line this year.
AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES-NOT READY YET
Autonomous cars aren't coming anytime soon
PITTSBURGH (AP) —Autonomous vehicles won't be coming to your city anytime soon.
Even the most optimistic of experts say it will be 10 years before the cars are everywhere, but others believe it will take decades.
The biggest reasons are camera and laser sensors that can't see through heavy snow or figure out where to go if lane lines are covered.
The fatal crash in Arizona involving an Uber autonomous vehicle in March slowed progress, largely because it hurt the public's perception of the safety of vehicles.
AP POLL-FINANCIAL SECURITY
AP-NORC poll: How financial security varies by age, income
WASHINGTON (AP) — Just how financially secure you feel depends on your age, your race, your education and — perhaps not surprisingly — your income.
A new survey by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research shows that college graduates feel far more confident than high school graduates that they could afford an emergency $1,000 expense.
People ages 18 to 29 are more optimistic about finding a good job than those in their 60s are.
But Americans in their 60s are more confident than adults under 30 are about affording credit card and other expenses.
Most white Americans say they can manage their housing costs; blacks and Hispanics are far less confident about that.
The poll's findings reflect the sharp demographic divides in the U.S. economy.
PAPA JOHN'S-BOARD
Struggling Papa John's names Starboard chief as new chairman
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — The head of the investment firm Starboard Value is being named board chairman at Papa John's, and it will invest $200 million in the troubled pizza chain.
The Louisville, Kentucky, company has struggled since the messy departure of its founder John Schnatter in late 2017.
In its most recent quarter, Papa John's International Inc. reported losses of $13 million and revenue tumbled 16 percent. Today it said it now expects its annual profit will be at the low-end of its prior forecast.
But the board changes sent company shares up 6 percent before the opening bell.
In addition to Starboard CEO Steve Ritchie, Anthony Sanfilippo, former chairman and CEO of Pinnacle Entertainment Inc., will join the board.
Starboard can make an additional $50 million investment through March 29.
ULTIMATE SOFTWARE PURCHASED
Equity firm buys Ultimate Software for $11 billion
WESTON, Fla. (AP) — A Florida software company is being purchased by a California private equity firm for $11 billion.
The South Florida Sun Sentinel reports that Ultimate Software announced today that it's being purchased by San Francisco-based Hellman & Friedman. Ultimate will continue operation under its founder and CEO, Scott Scherr.
The 29-year-old company is based in a Fort Lauderdale suburb and provides human resources and payroll software for such companies as Subway, Red Roof Inn and Yamaha Corp. of America. It has about 5,000 employees and Fortune magazine has rated it the country's top tech employer four years in a row.
Scherr says the sale will allow the company to provide new services and continue its expansion. The sale is expected to make some longtime employees millionaires through their stock ownership.
JANUS HENDERSON-GROSS
'Bond King' Bill Gross to retire from Janus
DENVER (AP) — Janus Henderson Investors says that "Bond King" William H. Gross is retiring to concentrate on his personal assets and private charitable foundation.
The 74-year-old Gross will retire on March 1.
Gross founded the investment firm Pimco in 1971 and helped build it into one of the world's biggest asset managers before leaving for Janus in 2014. When Gross left Pimco his fund was the biggest bond fund in the world, valued at $222 billion. Gross has attracted hundreds of millions of dollars to the funds he's run during his career.
Janus says that the fund Gross manages there will be taken over by his team and that there would be no change to the funds' investment objective or guidelines.
BUSIEST AIRPORTS
FAA: Chicago's O'Hare airport was busiest in US last year
CHICAGO (AP) — O'Hare International Airport in Chicago was the busiest airport in the U.S. last year, surpassing Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport for the first time in four years.
The Federal Aviation Administration released data today showing that O'Hare had more than 903,000 arrivals and departures during 2018. Atlanta's airport was second, with more than 895,000 arrivals and departures.
Los Angeles International Airport, Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport and Denver International Airport round out the top five.
O'Hare last held the top spot in 2014.
Last year, O'Hare operations increased 4.2 percent, compared with a 1.8 percent increase in Atlanta. United Airlines is the largest carrier at O'Hare and has been adding more flights from its hub at the Chicago airport to smaller cities throughout the Midwest.
