For Thursday, August 1st, 2024
>>Stocks Close Higher After Fed Announcement
(New York, NY) -- Wall Street closed with stocks higher Wednesday. This comes after the Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged yet again. Fed Chair Jerome Powell said if data continues to bring confidence to the central bank, a rate cut could happen. At the closing bell, the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 99 points to 40-842. The S&P 500 rose by 85 points to 55-22. The Nasdaq gained 451 points to 17-599.
>>Feds Leave Interest Rates Unchanged
(Washington, DC) -- The Federal Reserve is leaving interest rates unchanged. Fed Chair Jerome Powell said the Central Bank is aware of the difficulties Americans are facing because of inflation. Rates have been in the same range for the past year as the Fed tries to lower inflation to its goal of two-percent. However, many investors believe rate cuts are likely to begin in September. The central bank's next meeting is set for the 17th and 18th of that month.
>>Boeing Names New CEO
(Arlington, VA) -- Boeing is naming Kelly Ortberg as its new president and CEO. Ortberg, a former executive with aerospace company Rockwell Collins, will take the helm August 8th. The company is hoping Ortberg can help tum things around after a slew of safety issues have led to losses of trust and revenue. The most recent string of troubles started in January when a door panel blew out on a 737 MAX 9 flight, an accident that eventually led to the resignation of CEO Dave Calhoun.
>> Delta CEO Blames CrowdStrike, Microsoft For Service Meltdown
(New York, NY) -- Delta Airlines' CEO is lashing out at the cyber security firm CrowdStrike and Microsoft after software issues caused a meltdown across the globe earlier this month. CEO Ed Bastian said the five-day outage beginning July 19th cost the airline 500-million-dollars. He said on CNBC that "they haven't offered us anything." He blamed CrowdStrike for the issues. Bastian said "You can't come into a mission critical 24-seven operation and tell us we have a bug. It doesn't work."
>>Shoppers Can Anticipate Higher Prices For Fruit And Vegetables In Near Future
(New York, NY) -- Extreme heat across the country is likely to translate to higher prices in the produce aisle. Higher growing costs due to extreme heat will soon convert to shoppers paying higher prices for fruit and vegetables as farmers pass the burden onto retailers. The good news: Consumers aren't likely to see higher prices for the rest of this summer, as contracts with distributors are generally worked out in advance. However, the effects of climate change have caused many farmers in the U.S. to shift their operations indoors, where they can control the environment. But the high costs to make that switch will also contribute to higher prices for consumers in the near future.
