Business briefs - April 2, 2025
Trump to hold a meeting on possible investors to buy TikTok with possible ban at stake
LOS ANGELES (AP) — President Donald Trump will hold a Wednesday meeting with aides about possible investors who could buy a stake in TikTok. The details of the meeting were confirmed by a person familiar with the situation who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations. The deal could potentially stop the social media site from being banned in the United States. There has been uncertainty about the popular video app after a law took effect Jan. 19 requiring its China-based parent, ByteDance, to divest its ownership because of national security concerns. After taking office, Trump gave TikTok a 75-day reprieve.
No batteries? Thinner packaging? U.S. businesses look for ways to offset tariffs
NEW YORK (AP) — Gadgets sold without batteries. Toys sold in slimmed-down boxes or no packaging at all. More household goods that shoppers need to assemble themselves. These are some of the ways consumer product companies are retooling their wares to reduce costs and avoid raising prices as President Donald Trump levies new import taxes. Businesses that rely on foreign factories, materials and merchandise say they are wary of losing sales if they try to pass on all tariff-related expenses to consumers. Instead, some companies are looking at modifications to save money. Shoppers may notice some of the changes. Remember "shrinkflation?" Other adjustments shouldn't be noticeable. Either way, the cost-cutting tweaks won't eliminate price increases in every case.
February U.S. job openings slip to 7.6M, consistent with a healthy but decelerating job market
WASHINGTON (AP) — Employers posted 7.6 million job openings in February, a sign that that the job market is slowing but remains healthy. The number of vacancies was down slightly from a revised 7.8 million in January and from a 8.4 million a year earlier. Openings have come down more or less steadily since peaking at 12.2 million in March 2022 when the economy was still roaring back from COVID-19 lockdowns. The American job market has proven surprisingly durable. But it has clearly lost momentum from the frantic hiring days of 2021-2023. And the outlook for hiring is cloudy as President Donald Trump pursues trade wars, purges the federal workforce and promises to deport millions of immigrants working in the United States illegally.
Restaurant chain Hooters files for bankruptcy protection
Hooters is going bust. The U.S. restaurant chain, known for chicken wings and its skimpy "Hooters Girls" wait-staff outfits, has filed for bankruptcy protection. HOA Restaurant Group filed the motion for Chapter 11 protection Monday. Under the bankruptcy plan, Hooters will sell its 100 company-owned U.S. restaurants to a group of Hooters franchisees. Hooters is the latest legacy chain to run into financial trouble amid high food and labor price, growing competition and changing customer tastes. Last year, Red Lobster and TGI Fridays both filed for bankruptcy, and the Tex-Mex chain On the Border filed for bankruptcy last month.