Nobel economics prize goes to professor for research on the workplace gender gap
STOCKHOLM (AP) — The Nobel economics prize has been awarded to Harvard University professor Claudia Goldin for research that has advanced the understanding of the gender gap in the labor market. Announced as the winner Monday, Goldin is only the third woman to win the economics prize. She’s studied 200 years of women’s participation in the workplace, showing that despite continued economic growth, women’s pay did not continuously catch up to men’s and a divide still exists despite women gaining higher levels of education than men. She told The Associated Press that “we have to step back and ask questions about piecing together the family, the home, together with the marketplace and employment.”
Stock market today: Oil prices and defense stocks climb as Middle East violence rattles markets
NEW YORK (AP) — Oil prices are climbing, and stocks are slipping as violence in the Middle East injects more unease into financial markets worldwide. The S&P 500 was 0.2% lower Monday in its first trading since Hamas launched a surprise attack over the weekend against Israel, which then formally declared war. The Dow fell 26 points, and the Nasdaq composite was down 0.7%. The area under conflict is not home to major oil production, but fears that the fighting could spill into the politics around the crude market sent a barrel of U.S. oil up 3.9%. Stocks of oil and defense companies rose.
Workers at Mack Trucks go on strike after rejecting tentative contract deal
DETROIT (AP) — Union workers at Mack Trucks are on strike after voting down a tentative five-year contract agreement that negotiators had reached with the company. The United Auto Workers said 4,000 unionized workers walked out at 7 a.m. Monday, adding to labor turmoil in the industry that has ensnared all three big Detroit automakers. Union President Shawn Fain said in a letter to Mack parent company Volvo Trucks that 73% of workers voted against the deal in results counted on Sunday. The UAW represents Mack workers in Pennsylvania, Maryland and Florida. Union leaders had reached a tentative agreement on the deal on Oct. 1.
A workforce crisis is damaging families’ access to therapies for babies with developmental delays
CHICAGO (AP) — American babies and toddlers with disabilities are entitled to publicly funded therapies known as Early Intervention, since all U.S. states and territories accept federal funding for this program. But stagnant pay and an increasing cost of living mean many health care providers can no longer afford to participate in the program, and children’s development has suffered as a result. Almost all states have reported Early Intervention staffing shortages, and officials and experts say the situation has become critical post-pandemic, meaning young children are left waiting months for the care they need. Speech-language pathologist Sarah Ziemba says when children don’t get the help they need at a young age, “sometimes we are limiting their potential into adulthood.”
Morocco welcomes the annual meeting of the IMF and World Bank a month after its deadly earthquake
MARRAKECH, Morocco (AP) — The International Monetary Fund and World Bank are holding their annual meeting in Morocco, one month after an earthquake killed nearly 3,000 people in the North African country. Officials gathering in Marrakech on Monday will likely continue discussions about how to confront climate change and promote resiliency as inflation and debt challenge both rich and poor countries. Morocco has estimated it will cost roughly $11.7 billion to repair earthquake damage, and the IMF approved a $1.3 billion loan last month.
Founder of Joby Aviation says electric air taxis will be in service in 2025
Joby Aviation is working to develop electric-powered aircraft that will take off and land like a helicopter but fly like a small plane. Battery technology is helping Joby and other startups that are developing eVTOLs – short for electric vertical takeoff and landing. The company’s biggest shareholder is Toyota, and it has a partnership with Delta Air Lines. Founder and CEO JoeBen Bevirt says the company is the realization of a longtime dream of his to make a better way for people to get from one place to another.
From Coke floats to Cronuts, going viral can have a lasting effect on a small business
NEW YORK (AP) — Lexington Candy Shop has had a line outside for over a year since a TikTok of its Coke float went viral. The owner of Fatima’s Grill parlayed his viral fame into an expansion. When a smaller restaurant unexpectedly goes viral on TikTok or other social media, the sudden demand can be overwhelming. Owners have to adapt on the fly, revamping operations to quickly serve a crush of people. But savvy business owners who are able to adapt can parlay newfound fame into a lasting boost for their business. Just ask Dominique Ansel, who created a craze with the Cronut a decade ago, before the term “going viral” was widely used.
Tourism resumes in West Maui near Lahaina as hotels and timeshare properties welcome visitors
HONOLULU (AP) — The area around the historic Maui town largely destroyed by wildfire two months ago has begun welcoming back travelers. The move this weekend comes as the mayor and Hawaii’s governor push ahead to restart tourism in support of the economy despite vocal opposition from some Lahaina residents. The websites of five hotels in West Maui show they are accepting reservations again. Eight timeshare properties also are opening across the region early this month, including some a few miles from the devastation. The reopening falls on the two-month anniversary of the wildfire that killed at least 98 people.
A Baltic Sea gas pipeline between Finland and Estonia is shut down over a suspected leak
HELSINKI (AP) — Finland and Estonia say the undersea Balticconnector gas pipeline running between the two countries across the Baltic Sea has been temporarily taken out of service due to a suspected leak. Gasgrid Finland and Elering, the Finnish and Estonian gas system operators, said they noted an unusual drop in pressure in the pipeline shortly before 2 a.m. Sunday, after which they shut down the gas flow. Gasgrid Finland says it was suspected that the offshore pipeline between Finland and Estonia was leaking. The Finnish operator gave no reason for the suspected leak and said it’s investigating together with Elering.
