DETROIT (AP) — A strike by auto workers against General Motors is expected to cut pretax earnings by $800 million this year, and another $200 million per week after that, the company's chief financial officer said. And those figures include only factories that are on strike now with less than a third of the company's workforce on the picket lines, so if more plants are added by the United Auto Workers union, the losses will pile up further, CFO Paul Jacobson told reporters.

WAYNE, Mich. (AP) — Throughout its 5-week-old strikes against Detroit’s automakers, the United Auto Workers union has cast an emphatically combative stance, reflecting the style of its pugnacious leader, Shawn Fain. Armed with a list of what even Fain has called “audacious” demands for better pay and benefits, the UAW leader has embodied the exasperation of workers who say they've struggled for years while the automakers have enjoyed billions in profits.

Chevron is buying Hess Corp. for $53 billion and it’s not even the biggest acquisition in the energy sector this month as major producers seize the initiative while oil prices surge. Crude prices rose sharply in early 2022 with Russia's invasion of Ukraine and are hovering around $90 per barrel after ticking another 9% higher this year, meaning big drillers are flush with cash and looking for places to invest piles of cash.

Spirit Airlines canceled about 100 flights on Friday after pulling some planes out of service for inspections, and the airline expects the disruptions to last several days.

ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia's jobless rate ticked up for the second month in a row in September, although jobs continued to rise in the state. Unemployment rose to 3.4% in September from 3.3% in August. That's also up slightly from 3.1% in September 2022, although the current jobless rate remains quite low in historical terms.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Thursday that inflation remains too high and that bringing it down to the Fed's target level will likely require a slower-growing economy and job market.

HAVANA (AP) — The house on Villegas Street, in the heart of Old Havana, looks nothing like the stately two-story home it used to be a century ago, with its high ceilings, wrought iron railings, semicircular arches and stairs covered in white marble. Its former elegance is such that local lore says it used to belong to a marquise.

American Airlines is reporting a $545 million loss for the third quarter due to higher labor costs. The airline said Thursday that its results were dragged down by nearly $1 billion in special …

The Chinese search engine and artificial intelligence firm Baidu has launched the latest version of its artificial intelligence model Ernie 4.0. Baidu claims it rivals models such as GPT-4 in the …

VACAVILLE, Calif. (AP) — Pacific Gas & Electric — one of the nation's largest utilities whose equipment has sparked some of California's deadliest wildfires — wants to bury power lines in some of its most at-risk areas to prevent destructive blazes like the 2018 Paradise fire that killed 85 people.

Rite Aid has filed for bankruptcy protection and plans to sell part of its business as it attempts to restructure while dealing with losses and opioid-related lawsuits. The company said Rite Aid stores will continue to fill prescriptions, and customers will still be able to visit its locations or shop online while it goes through its voluntary Chapter 11 process. But that process also will allow it to speed up its plan to close underperforming stores.

As more children emerge from the pandemic grappling with mental health issues, their parents are seeking ways for them to build emotional resilience.

DETROIT (AP) — Ford is recalling more than 238,000 Explorers in the U.S. because a rear axle bolt can fail, potentially causing a loss of drive power or allowing the SUVs to roll away while in park. The recall comes after U.S. safety regulators opened an investigation into the problem after getting two complaints that repairs didn't work in two previous recalls this year and in 2022.

Microsoft has completed its acquisition of video game-maker Activision Blizzard for $69 billion, closing one of the most expensive tech acquisitions in history that could have repercussions across the video game industry. The notice that the deal has gone through came seven hours after Microsoft got final approval from Britain’s competition watchdog, which reversed its earlier decision to block the $69 billion gaming deal, removing the last obstacle for the transaction.

DETROIT (AP) — A top Ford executive says the company has reached the limit of how much money it will spend to get a contract agreement with the striking United Auto Workers union. Kumar Galhotra, president of Ford Blue, the company's internal combustion engine business, told reporters Thursday that Ford stretched to get to the offer it now has on the table.

WASHINGTON (AP) — A report Thursday by the Labor Department indicates that consumer prices rose 0.4% from August to September, and year-over-year inflation was unchanged last month from a 3.7% rise in August. On a month-to-month basis, prices are continuing to rise faster than is consistent with the Federal Reserve’s 2% target. Core prices increased 0.3% from August to September.

LONDON (AP) — Elon Musk's social media platform X has removed hundreds of Hamas-linked accounts and taken down or labeled thousands of pieces of content since the militant group's attack on Israel, according to the CEO of the company formerly known as Twitter. Linda Yaccarino on Thursday outlined efforts by X to get a handle on illegal content flourishing on the platform.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Millions of Social Security recipients will get a 3.2% increase in their benefits in 2024, far less than this year's historic boost and reflecting moderating consumer prices. The cost-of-living adjustment, or COLA, means the average recipient will receive more money every month beginning in January, the Social Security Administration said Thursday.

Planes packed with summer travelers boosted Delta Air Lines to a $1.11 billion profit in the third quarter, and the carrier said Thursday that it expects revenue to keep rising into the holiday season. Profit was up 59% from a year earlier, as strong ticket sales — especially for premium seats and international flights — helped Delta shrug off higher labor costs.

DETROIT (AP) — The United Auto Workers union significantly escalated its strikes against Detroit Three automakers Wednesday when 8,700 workers walked off their jobs at Ford's Kentucky truck plant. The surprise move about 6:30 p.m. took down the largest and most profitable Ford plant in the world. The sprawling factory makes pricey heavy-duty F-Series pickup trucks and large Ford and Lincoln SUVs.

Exxon Mobil is buying Pioneer Natural Resources in an all-stock deal valued at $59.5 billion, its largest buyout since acquiring Mobil two decades ago, creating a colossal fracking operator in West Texas. Including debt, Exxon is committing about $64.5 billion to the acquisition, leaving no doubt of the Texas energy company's commitment to fossil fuels as energy prices surge.

The world economy has lost momentum from the impact of higher interest rates, the invasion of Ukraine and widening geopolitical rifts, and it now faces new uncertainty from the war between Israel and Hamas militants, International Monetary Fund warned Tuesday. The IMF said it expects global economic growth to slow to 2.9% in 2024 from an expected 3% this year. The forecast for next year is down a notch from the 3% it predicted back in July.

TORONTO (AP) — Auto workers walked off the job at three General Motors facilities in Canada early Tuesday after failing to reach agreement with the automaker. Their union, Unifor, represents more than 4,200 workers at the plants. They had warned they would begin a strike if no agreement was struck with GM by midnight local time.

PepsiCo's revenue rose 7% in the third quarter despite lower demand as the company continued to hike prices. Pepsi raised prices 11% in the July-September period, the seventh straight quarter that the Purchase, New York, company has increased prices by double-digits. Sales volumes fell 2.5%. PepsiCo has said its price hikes reflect the higher cost of ingredients like cooking oil.

NEW YORK (AP) — Major airlines have suspended flights to Israel after the nation declared war following a massive attack by Hamas. American Airlines, United Airlines and Delta Air Lines suspended service as the U.S. State Department issued travel advisories for the region citing potential for terrorism and civil unrest.