WASHINGTON — For months, the outlook for the U.S. economy has been a mostly bleak one: Inflation hitting a four-decade high, consumer spending weakening, interest rates surging. Most economists penciled in a recession for 2023. An economic downturn is still possible. Yet in recent weeks, ...

The travel recovery has boosted Booking Holdings Inc. to record quarterly earnings, and Wall Street expects the company to post even bigger profits this year. The company, which operates its namesake website, Booking.com, plus Priceline, Kayak and other travel and dining sites, has earned ...

NEW YORK (AP) — Small businesses face a mix of old and new challenges as 2023 begins. A looming recession, still high (although easing) inflation and labor woes are some of issues carrying over from 2022 that small businesses will have to tackle. There are also new regulatory wrinkles, such ...

WASHINGTON — For the economy, 2022 was a throwback year. And not in a good way. At times, it felt like the 1970s or early ‘80s. Inflation running rampant. The United States and its European allies engaged in a not-so-Cold War with Russia. A bleak outlook leaving people feeling sour and ...

Investors found few, if any, safe havens in 2022, as central banks in the U.S. and around the globe raised interest rates for the first time in years to fight surging inflation, stoking fear of a global recession. Consumers paid more for energy, food and just about everything else. Borrowing ...

If you feel you have more to complain about these days, you may be right. The products we use are increasingly complex, which often means they have more ways to malfunction. Companies are still struggling to hire and retain workers, so the customer service representatives who are supposed to ...