Confusion as Musk’s Twitter yanks blue checks from agencies

CHICAGO (AP) — Twitter has been a way for people to keep track of tornado watches, train delays, news alerts or the latest crime warnings from their local police department. But when the Elon Musk-owned platform started stripping blue verification check marks this week from accounts that don’t pay a monthly fee, it left public agencies and other organizations around the world scrambling to figure out a way to be trusted. High-profile users who lost their blue checks Thursday included Beyoncé, Pope Francis, Oprah Winfrey and former President Donald Trump. But it also included accounts for major transit systems from San Francisco to Paris, national parks like Yosemite and official weather trackers.

Leaving drama behind, GOP warms to McCarthy in debt fight

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is working to round up the Republican votes needed to pass his debt ceiling package. It might be surprisingly easier than expected. That’s because the bill the Republican speaker has drafted includes many long-sought conservative priorities to cut spending. President Joe Biden says they are “wacko” Republican ideas that would harm Americans. Democrats are expected to vote against it. But Republicans are leaving the drama of their own party infighting behind, and rallying toward McCarthy’s plan. They want to put an offer on the table and force Biden into negotiations. A vote is expected next week.

Stock market today: Stocks close quiet week with small gains

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks finished with slight gains on Wall Street as investors closed out a quiet week highlighted by a batch of mostly mixed corporate earnings reports. The S&P 500, Dow Jones Industrial Average and Nasdaq all gained 0.1% Friday. Among the companies that reported results, hospital operator HCA Healthcare rose after raising its full-year profit outlook, while consumer products giant Procter & Gamble gained after its quarterly profit beat estimates. More earnings reports are in store next week from major companies such as Coca-Cola, Amazon, American Airlines and Boeing. Markets in Europe rose and exchanges in Asia declined overnight.

Credit Suisse investors sue after facing billions in losses

LONDON (AP) — A group of Credit Suisse investors have sued Swiss financial regulators after a government-engineered takeover of the struggling bank by rival UBS left them with billions in losses. Lawyers said Friday that the investors are contesting an order by the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority that wiped out about $17 billion in higher-risk Credit Suisse bonds as part of an emergency rescue last month. The deal prevented the downfall of Switzerland’s second-largest bank after its stock plunged and customers rushed to pull out their money. Regulators have defended their decision, saying contracts for those higher-risk bonds show that they can be written down in a “viability event.” The investors suing hold about $5 billion in those bonds.

Unions say rails should forgo buybacks, spend on safety

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Rail unions want railroads to take some of the billions they’re using every year to buy back their stock and use it to improve safety in the wake of several high-profile derailments and hire more workers. The 12 unions said Friday that collectively the six biggest freight railroads spent over $165 billion on buybacks — well above the $119 billion they spent on upgrading and maintaining their track and equipment between 2015 and last year. At the same time, their safety record worsened as they overhauled their operations to cut costs and eliminated nearly one-third of all rail jobs. Greg Regan with the Transportation Trades Department labor coalition says “the priorities of the railroads are out of whack.”

After 4 US price cuts, Tesla raises cost for older models

DETROIT (AP) — After cutting U.S. vehicle prices four times this year, Tesla raised them overnight on its slow-selling more expensive models. The move could be an effort to appease investors, who sold off the company’s stock Thursday after its earnings and profit margins dropped due to previous price cuts. The Austin, Texas, company added $2,500 to all four versions of the Models S and X, increasing prices by 2.4% to 2.9%. The lowest-price Model S now starts at $87,490, while the X starts at $97,490. Prices of the company’s top-selling Model Y small SUV and Model 3 small sedan remained the same after being lowered earlier this week. Tesla shares closed Thursday down nearly 10%. The stock was up 1.3% at Friday’s close.

‘The Champagne of Beers’ leaves French producers frothing

BRUSSELS (AP) — Belgian customs have destroyed more than 2,000 cans of Miller High Life, advertised as the ″Champagne of Beers,” at the request of houses and growers of the bubbly beverage. The Comité Champagne — the body protecting the Champagne designation — asked for the destruction of a shipment of 2,352 cans on the grounds that the term infringes the protected designation of origin “Champagne.” The consignment was intercepted in the Belgian port of Antwerp in early February. Miller High Life, Miller’s oldest brand, was launched as its flagship in 1903. According to its website, the company started to use the “Champagne of beers” nickname three years later. The brand owner said Friday it “respects local restrictions” around the word Champagne.

Lyft gears up to make ‘significant’ layoffs under new CEO

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Lyft is preparing to lay off hundreds of employees. The cuts are coming just days after new CEO David Risher began steering the ride-hailing service with a eye toward driving down costs as part of an effort to bring its fares more in line with its biggest rival, Uber. Risher informed Lyft’s workforce of more than 4,000 employees in an email posted online Friday that a “significant” number of them will lose their jobs. It came at the end of his first week as Lyft’s CEO. The note didn’t specify how many people will lose their jobs, but The Wall Street Journal reported at least 1,200 jobs will be cut.

P&G ups annual sales outlook as price hikes boost business

NEW YORK (AP) — Procter & Gamble, the maker of such iconic household products as Crest toothpaste, Tide detergent and Charmin toilet paper, raised its annual sales outlook on Friday, after turning in better-than expected fiscal third-quarter earnings results as a series of price hikes boosted its performance. The solid earnings results offer encouraging signs about the resiliency of the consumer ahead of reports next month from major retailers like Walmart amid an increasingly challenging economy. P&G executives told analysts on Friday that the U.S. consumer is “holding up well.” They said the company share of private label brands, which are less expensive, is stable at 16%, a good indication that it’s not seeing shoppers materially trade down.

The S&P 500 rose 3.73 points, or 0.1%, to 4,133.52. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 22.34 points, or 0.1%, to 33,808.96. The Nasdaq composite gained 12.90 points, or 0.1% to 12,072.46. The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies ended up 1.81 points, or 0.1%, to 1,791.51.

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