US Business

Hiring gains slowed sharply headed into the fall as more layoffs turned permanent, adding to signs that the U.S. economy faces a long slog to fully recover from the pandemic.

Before the pandemic, the neighborhood used to attract 50 million visitors a year. Now it is feeling the full force of the downturn in real estate, Broadway, tourism and retail; “All of a sudden everything is toxic.”

The Oracle co-founder could score two prizes at once in a TikTok deal: a flashy new customer for the company’s cloud-computing business and a victory over fierce rival Microsoft.

Some auto companies, like Tesla, are getting more involved in making electric-car batteries, while Ford and others favor buying from specialized manufacturers.

Advertisers are mindful of the nation’s mood, offering patriotism during wartime and nostalgia during recessions. Covid-19 offers a new challenge. The nation’s biggest brands are still searching for the right tone.

Vehicle deliveries hit a record in the most recent quarter, accelerating the Silicon Valley car maker’s recovery after sales slowed during the height of the pandemic.

Shares of Academy Sports & Outdoors fell in their market debut, even after the company lowered its price, highlighting the challenge the sporting-goods chain faces in winning over investors when much of the retail sector is ailing.

Walmart agreed to sell U.K. grocery-store chain Asda to a private investment group in a deal that values the company at $8.8 billion, as the world’s largest retailer reorganizes its international businesses in favor of bets on the growth of online services.

Some of the biggest raises in corporate America went to the executives in charge of U.S. shale companies, even as their shareholders lost billions of dollars.

A federal judge in San Francisco has partially blocked the Trump administration from enforcing its ban on foreign workers on H-1B and several other types of visa through the end of the year.