Q: We are new to Florida and dealing with our first major storm. Many people are telling us how to prepare, but not the realities of dealing with damage to our new home, should it occur. What do we do if something happens? — Justin

A: Natural disasters can occur no matter where someone lives. For some people, it could be a hurricane; for ...Read more

Applications for US unemployment benefits rose last week to a more than one-year high, reflecting notable increases in Michigan and states hit by Hurricane Helene.

Initial claims increased by 33,000 to 258,000 in the week ended Oct. 5, surpassing all estimates in a Bloomberg survey of economists. On an unadjusted basis, more than half of the ...Read more

Google’s antitrust problems are coming home to roost.

While the company has beat back European antitrust interventions by paying 6.5 billion euros ($7.1 billion), U.S. enforcers are now flexing their muscles — and the most painful part for the Alphabet Inc. unit won’t be monetary fines, but blows to core businesses that bring in big ...Read more

Underlying U.S. inflation rose more than forecast in September, representing a pause in the recent progress toward moderating price pressures.

The so-called core consumer price index — which excludes food and energy costs — increased 0.3% for a second month, disrupting a string of lower readings, Bureau of Labor Statistics figures showed ...Read more

SAN JOSE, California — The Bay Area’s three primary office markets, haunted by empty buildings, have reached forbidding new milestones of record-high vacancy levels, according to a grim new report.

Silicon Valley, which roughly equates to Santa Clara County; downtown Oakland; and San Francisco all hit record-high office vacancy rates in the...Read more

Jane Fonda is a powerful, passionate climate advocate. She’s gotten arrested protesting at the U.S. Capitol, raised money to defeat a Big Oil ballot measure in California and written a book about activism. She lives her values.

So I was disappointed by some of the anti-nuclear arguments Fonda made in a recent opinion piece.

Writing for the ...Read more

Environmental groups are worried about possible pollution impacts as Hurricane Milton is likely to pass directly over Bone Valley, Florida, the heart of the state's phosphate mining and production.

According to a Tampa Bay Times analysis, 22 of Florida’s 25 phosphate waste piles are located in Hurricane Milton’s projected path over Manatee,...Read more

The world’s largest fast-food chain is accusing the world’s largest beef companies of illegally colluding to raise prices and boost their profits.

McDonald’s says Cargill, JBS, Tyson and National Beef secretly worked together over the past decade to limit supplies of cattle and fix prices, according to a federal lawsuit filed this month. ...Read more

The crisis engulfing Boeing Co. took a dramatic turn after negotiations to resolve an almost monthlong strike collapsed and S&P Global Ratings warned it may cut the planemaker’s credit grade to junk.

Both the embattled company and the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers blamed each other for the impasse. Boeing said ...Read more

Amazon.com Inc. unveiled a new artificial intelligence tool designed to solve a major pain point in its quick delivery apparatus: drivers rummaging through cluttered vans at each stop searching for packages.

The technology projects a green circle on packages to be delivered at each stop and red Xs on those to be delivered later, Amazon said ...Read more

It could be months before Deerfield-based Baxter International is able to fully ramp back up its supplies of IV fluids, after its largest manufacturing plant was damaged by Hurricane Helene, Baxter said Wednesday – something that could have serious implications for hospitals.

The hurricane last month led to flooding at Baxter’s North Cove ...Read more

A couple of legal events involving the giant supermarket chain Albertsons — the owner of Vons and Pavilions, among other familiar brands — and the giant chain Kroger, owner of Ralphs and other big supermarket names, are coming together just as the two firms are trying to finalize their $24.6-billion merger.

One is a pending decision ...Read more

Elon Musk went all-in to get robotaxis onto roads, sacrificing a widely anticipated cheaper car, gutting teams focused on other projects and downplaying Tesla Inc.’s sales slowdown.

So when Musk finally unveils autonomous taxi prototypes late Thursday, the chief executive officer will have a lot to prove. He’s promised nothing short of a ...Read more

Let’s say the American West could dedicate a landmass smaller than Delaware to all of the large-scale solar farms that will be needed in this part of the country to help phase out planet-wrecking fossil fuels.

Delaware covers 1.6 million acres. An estimated 1.3 million — spanning 11 states, from California to Wyoming — could eventually be...Read more

PHILADELPHIA — Ben Fileccia has dozens of texts on his phone from Pennsylvania restaurant and bar owners wondering what questions they are allowed to ask customers dining with their canines.

“Hey sorry to bother you on a Friday night … happen to know my rights as to ‘service animals’ at the bar?” reads one recent text.

“I’m ...Read more

Kent Yoshimura moved his multimillion-dollar business from Los Angeles to Las Vegas a few years ago and said he has little regrets about leaving California.

One of the co-founders of NeuroGum, which produces caffeinated gum for memory and focus, Yoshimura said access to local politicians and hiking at Red Rock Canyon are just a few of the perks...Read more

Making predictions can be an exercise in futility but here goes anyway: The U.S. will experience a child care crisis within the next 10 years. The trigger will be the collapse of a large, debt-laden, for-profit provider of child care. At the prospect of seeing thousands of locations suddenly shuttered, jeopardizing the many families who rely on ...Read more

The U.S. Justice Department told a federal judge it is considering recommending that Google be forced to sell off parts of its operations to alleviate the harm caused by its monopolization of the online search market, in what would be a historic antitrust breakup.

In a court filing Tuesday, antitrust enforcers said Judge Amit Mehta could also ...Read more