Reuters Business News

U.S. retail sales suffered a record drop in March and output at factories declined by the most since 1946, buttressing analysts' views that the economy contracted in the first quarter at its sharpest pace in decades as extraordinary measures to control the spread of the novel coronavirus shut down the country.

After closing their doors to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, many small businesses face an uncertain future following government-ordered lockdowns.

Warehouse operator Costco Wholesale Corp on Wednesday raised its quarterly dividend by about 8%, joining a small but growing list of companies to do so at a time when most of corporate America is suspending shareholders returns in order to shore up liquidity as the coronavirus crisis deepens.

Mylan NV on Wednesday named Chairman Robert Coury to the role of executive chairman to help steer the drugmaker through the coronavirus pandemic and its delayed merger with Pfizer Inc's off-patent branded drug unit, Upjohn.

Amazon.com Inc's vice president of the European Union segment, Roy Perticucci, has stepped down, the company confirmed on Wednesday.

For the first time in years, Goldman Sachs Group Inc's having a sizeable trading business and a tiny consumer bank seems like a good idea.

Airbus SE is delaying its planned Canadian production ramp-up of its A220 jet by a year, a company spokeswoman said on Wednesday, as the coronavirus outbreak weighs on broader airline demand for aircraft.

Smithfield Foods Inc, the world's largest pork processor, said on Wednesday it would shutter two U.S. plants that process bacon and ham, after closing a separate hog slaughterhouse because of an outbreak of the coronavirus among employees.

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that data suggested the county had passed the peak on new infections with coronavirus, and said he would announce "new guidelines" for reopening the economy at a news conference on Thursday.

Google Chief Executive Officer Sundar Pichai told his staff on Wednesday that parent Alphabet Inc will slow hiring for the rest of the year, Bloomberg reported, citing an internal email.

Costco Wholesale Corp said on Wednesday it would raise its quarterly dividend by 7.7% to 70 cents per share, at a time when several major companies have suspended cash returns to shareholders to shore up liquidity.

By Marc Jones, Karin Strohecker, Tom Arnold and Cassandra Garrison

Canadian auto supplier Magna International Inc is planning for a return to production in North America on May 4, with a subsequent gradual increase in output as the industry recovers from the shutdown caused by the coronavirus pandemic, a top executive said on Wednesday.

U.S. companies have been battered by the fallout from the novel coronavirus outbreak, with economic activity plunging at an unprecedented speed over the past few weeks, a Federal Reserve report released on Wednesday showed.

U.S. stocks fell on Wednesday as dismal economic data and first-quarter earnings reports compounded concerns over the extent of damage from the coronavirus outbreak.

The Trump administration plans to buy milk and meat from U.S. farmers as part of an initial $15.5 billion effort to help them weather the impact of the coronavirus outbreak, Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said on Wednesday.

U.S. government officials warned on Wednesday about the threat of North Korean hackers, calling particular attention to banking and other financial services.

A double whammy of economic data showing the U.S. economy in a deep downturn and reports of persistent crude oil oversupply and collapsing demand slammed global markets on Wednesday as vivid reminders of the damage from coronavirus-related lockdowns.

U.S. crude prices fell to an 18-year low and Brent lost more than 6% on Wednesday after the United States reported its biggest weekly inventory build on record, while global demand is expected to fall to quarter-century lows due to the coronavirus pandemic.

U.S. companies are grappling with how best to provide guidance on their earnings outlook as the novel coronavirus takes uncertainty to new heights and exposes them to potential shareholder lawsuits if forecasts prove misplaced.