US Firms Announce Fewer New Hires in April, Challenger Says

2024 sees slowest first four months of hiring in since 2016 AI cited for 800 job cuts in April, highest since May 2023 US companies pared back hiring plans in April, with employers announcing the fewest new hires in the first four months of the year since 2016,...

The State of Crypto Is Anything But Strong

Industry boosters say they’ve learned their lessons from the last crash, but regulators need to move faster to protect a new wave of mainstream investors from the same old story. After more than a year, the freeze of a deep crypto winter has thawed. Bitcoin prices...

US Consumer Confidence Slumps to Lowest Level Since July 2022

Conference Board index fell for a third month in April Expectations for more available jobs fell to lowest since 2011 US consumer confidence fell in April to the lowest since mid-2022 as Americans’ views of the labor market and their outlook for the economy...

Japan’s Factory Output Records Weakest Quarter Since Pandemic

Quarterly decline in industrial output steepest since 2020 Economists see slight economic contraction in January-March Japan’s factory output rebounded in March from a dismal start to the year, with the quarterly figure registering the weakest performance since the...

Sodium Batteries From Michigan to Challenge Lithium’s Grip

Natron Energy’s batteries boast cheap materials, fast response. Modern life runs on lithium-ion batteries, powering smartphones, laptops and electric cars alike. But as dominant as they’ve become, there are other ways to build a battery. Natron Energy Inc. will unveil...