Five TSA employees nationwide have died of COVID-19, and 516 employees have tested positive, including seven at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.

Patrick Marshall answers your personal technology questions. This week's topics include changing the default program for images and photo editing software, trouble with colors on a LG GRAM and updating to Windows 10 and security software.

WASHINGTON — The Small Business Administration did not direct private lenders to prioritize minority and women-owned businesses as Congress intended when they started implementing a $669 billion loan program under the CARES Act, a federal watchdog concluded in a report released Friday. The findings from the SBA Office of the Inspector General add to growing […]

For $399, this smartphone hits the high notes: speedy, a great camera and a nice screen. Took long enough, didn’t it?

As Washington grapples with a tsunami of legitimate unemployment claims — more than 100,000 last week — the state also is seeing a rise in attempts by fraudsters to siphon off a portion of the benefits.

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea’s capital has shut down more than 2,100 nightclubs, hostess bars and discos after dozens of coronavirus infections were linked to club goers who went out last weekend as the country relaxed social distancing guidelines. The measures imposed Saturday by Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon came after the national government […]

ROME (AP) — South Korea’s capital closed down more than 2,100 bars and other nightspots Saturday because of a new cluster of coronavirus infections, Germany scrambled to contain fresh outbreaks at slaughterhouses, and Italian authorities worried that people were getting too friendly at cocktail hour during the country’s first weekend of eased restrictions. The new […]

NEW YORK (AP) — The record unemployment rate reported on Friday captured the pain of a nation where tens of millions of jobs suddenly vanished, devastating the economy and forcing President Donald Trump to overcome historic headwinds to win a second term. Just a few short months ago, Trump planned to campaign for reelection on […]

“My parents have been through worse,” one farmer said. “We'll get through this.”

In many cases, the response from insurers has been: We don't cover viruses.

MALE, Maldives (AP) — The Maldives, an Indian Ocean archipelago nation with one of the world’s most congested capitals, has seen a rapid rise in coronavirus cases over the past few weeks. Health officials predict that more than 77,000 people — or a fourth of those currently living in the country — could become infected, […]

While this year’s Mother’s Day weekend promises warm weather, Seattle officials are restricting hours in city parks out of fears that large crowds hoping to enjoy the sun could further spread the novel coronavirus. A recent report shows the COVID-19 transmission rate in Western Washington may be steadily increasing, suggesting that the number of virus cases […]

U.S. regulators have approved a new type of coronavirus test that administration officials have promoted as a key to opening up the country. The Food and Drug Administration on Saturday announced emergency authorization for antigen tests developed by Quidel Corp. of San Diego. The test can rapidly detect fragments of virus proteins in samples collected […]

Chuck Jaffe: As they shelter at home, Americans have been building their knowledge on seemingly every subject. That doesn't make them financial experts.

As the pandemic wreaks havoc on the economy, tech giants Facebook, Amazon, Apple and Microsoft are benefiting enormously from a potentially permanent shift in consumer habits, leveraging their political clout by arguing that they are essential services, and gutting their competition.

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Logan Stiner was just days from high school graduation when his brother found him unresponsive in their family’s home southwest of Cleveland in May 2014. Stiner, 18, died of cardiac arrhythmia and seizure from acute caffeine toxicity, a coroner ruled. He had more than 70 micrograms of caffeine per milliliter of […]

Sporadic protests continue at Amazon warehouses. The company has fired employees involved in walkouts or organizing in New York and Minnesota for what it says are violations of corporate policy.

Amazon Prime Video and Twitch also will have exclusive streaming rights to one additional regular-season game in 2020.

The company’s first-quarter earnings report will provide a view of how the pandemic has accelerated trends already working in its favor, and the extent to which coronavirus restrictions on businesses and consumers have boosted Amazon’s sales.

The tax on companies with annual payrolls over $7 million would apply to gig-economy companies, such as Uber. But franchises, such as McDonald's, could avoid the 1.3% payroll tax.

In Germany, unions are pushing Amazon.com to prevent warehouse workers from congregating like bunches of “grapes” before their shifts. In Italy, where a COVID-19 outbreak hit Amazon’s main logistics depot, unions staged an 11-day strike that ended after the company granted employees an additional five-minute break to practice better personal hygiene. And in what amounts […]

The company's first-quarter sales rose 26% year over year to $75.5 billion. But expenses related to Amazon’s pandemic response weighed on the bottom line in the three-month period ended March 31.

The extension raises the prospect that one of Seattle’s busiest neighborhoods could be largely deserted for another five months.

The onset of the coronavirus and the subsequent classification of many of these workers as "essential" have heightened some existing tensions. Workers have accused companies of being slow to provide protective gear and implement precautions, something that may put them in danger.

WASHINGTON (AP) — House lawmakers investigating the market dominance of Big Tech are asking Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos to testify to address possible misleading statements by the company on its competition practices. In a letter to Bezos on Friday, leaders of the House Judiciary Committee from both parties are holding out the threat of a […]

What used to be an annual May Day march for workers’ and immigration rights has taken on a different look this year due to coronavirus stay-at-home restrictions. This year, the march from Judkins Park to downtown Seattle has been canceled. Instead, march sponsors El Comité and the May 1st Action Coalition have scheduled a vehicle […]

Business and government insiders say other companies and organizations are contemplating similarly extended time frames as they consider the new realities of the workplace in the COVID-19 era.

Amazon-owned Whole Foods will provide grocery shoppers with free single-use masks at all its stores beginning this week, in keeping with the chain's "request" that all shoppers wear masks.

Tim Bray described the firings as “evidence of a vein of toxicity running through the company culture. I choose neither to serve nor drink that poison.”

Before the pandemic, many brands and wholesalers kept Amazon at arm's length. Now, consultants that help brands navigate Amazon's marketplace say the company is attracting a broad range of vendors that sold at physical stores.

The public back-and-forth about a controversial, high-profile topic is unusual for a company that has lately enforced policies limiting what employees can say publicly without authorization, and for the seniority of those involved.

The decision by Council President M. Lorena González and Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda will stall the big-business tax championed by Councilmembers Kshama Sawant and Tammy Morales, which already faced opposition from Mayor Jenny Durkan.

The most popular online grocery category was packaged foods such as breakfast cereal and pasta; followed by toiletries, personal care products and diapers; household cleaners and paper products; and frozen food.

In a letter sent to Amazon, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, a frequent critic of the e-commerce giant, and the eight other senators asked Amazon to provide more information about its policies for firing employees.

Perspective: The losses aren’t coming just from the drop in stock prices. The effect of the dividend cuts sweeping through the market will hurt, too.

TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares are mixed Tuesday as governments inch toward letting businesses reopen and central banks step in to provide cash to economies. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 lost earlier gains, dipping 0.4% to 19,706.19. South Korea’s Kospi stood virtually unchanged, inching down less than 0.1% to 1,921.39. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 gained 0.2% to […]

The investment, valued at about $500 million, comes as businesses like Live Nation that depend heavily on live events have been hard hit by COVID-19 pandemic.

BEIJING (AP) — Asian stock markets gained Wednesday after France and Spain joined governments that plan to ease anti-virus controls and allow businesses to reopen. Benchmarks in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Sydney and Southeast Asia advanced. Japanese markets were closed for a holiday. Wall Street retreated overnight, hurt by declines in health care and tech stocks […]

DALLAS (AP) — Southwest Airlines posted its first quarterly loss in nearly a decade and said Tuesday that the downturn in air travel that began in late February shows no signs of letting up. The airline said trip cancellations have pulled back from a peak in March but remain at levels that Southwest has never […]

The most active week of the earnings season is on and the rush of quarterly reports Tuesday, 39 in all, captured the maneuvering of companies from almost every sector as they feel their way through an unprecedented economic shockwave. Companies are being affected in different ways but if there’s a common theme, it’s that the […]

BERKELEY, Calif. (AP) — Google reported its weakest revenue growth in nearly five years as the pandemic-driven recession began to shrivel its advertising sales in the first quarter. The January-March earnings for Google parent Alphabet offer a first look at how the digital ad market has fared amid widespread orders requiring consumers to stay at […]

TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares advanced on Thursday, riding a wave of optimism about a possible treatment for the coronavirus that set off a rally on Wall Street powerful enough to override data showing the U.S. economy had logged its worst quarterly performance since 2009. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 surged 2.6% in morning trading to […]

The company’s first-quarter earnings report will provide a view of how the pandemic has accelerated trends already working in its favor, and the extent to which coronavirus restrictions on businesses and consumers have boosted Amazon’s sales.

BERKELEY, Calif. (AP) — Apple’s profit dipped slightly while revenues rose in the January-March quarter, reflecting early fallout from a coronavirus pandemic that shut down its factories and then forced hundreds of Apple retail stores to close. The results released Thursday give the first sign of how one of the world’s best-known companies is faring […]

The planemaker won't seek additional funding through the capital markets or U.S. government aid at this time, according to a company statement late Thursday after the debt sale.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Billionaire investor Warren Buffett doesn’t know how or when the economy will recover from the coronavirus outbreak shutdown, but he remains optimistic in the long-term future of the United States. Buffett said Saturday at Berkshire Hathaway’s online annual meeting that there’s no way to predict the economic future right now because […]

NEW YORK (AP) — The U.S. renewable energy industry is reeling from the new coronavirus pandemic, which has delayed construction, put thousands of skilled laborers out of work and sowed doubts about solar and wind projects on the drawing board. In locked-down California, some local agencies that issue permits for new work closed temporarily, and […]

BANGKOK (AP) — Shares advanced in Asia early Tuesday after Wall Street shook off a weak start and ended with modest gains thanks to another solid showing from big technology companies. Shares rose in Hong Kong, Sydney and Singapore. Markets in Shanghai and Tokyo were closed for a holiday. Wall Street shook off a weak […]

(Bloomberg) — Senate Democrats challenged a vow of “fairness and impartiality” by Brian Miller, President Donald Trump’s nominee to oversee trillions of dollars being spent in the effort to rescue the economy from the coronavirus pandemic. “President Trump has shown outright hostility to anyone who has tried to hold him accountable to the American people,” […]

The company's cash burn rate peaked at $400 million for the month of March. Management hopes to reduce the cash burn rate to zero by year end and will make whatever cuts are necessary to do so.