U.S. employers likely added a solid 65,000 jobs last month despite uncertainty arising from Iran war

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Iran war has caused the biggest disruption of global oil supplies in history and sent average U.S. gasoline prices surging past $4.50 a gallon this week. But the conflict hasn’t done much damage to the American job market – at least not yet. The Labor Department is expeced to report Friday that U.S. companies, nonprofits and government agencies together added 65,000 jobs last month, down from a surprisingly strong 178,000 in March. Retirements and President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown mean that fewer people are competing for work and that the economy doesn’t need to generate many jobs to keep unemployment from rising. The unemployment rate is forecast to remain at a low 4.3%.

Shipping firms are being whipsawed by changing stances and risks as they wait for Hormuz to reopen

NEW YORK (AP) — With hundreds of vessels still stuck in the Persian Gulf and costs piling up, shipping companies are being whipsawed by uncertainty over how and when the Strait of Hormuz might reopen more than two months into the Iran war. U.S. President Donald Trump first announced an effort in which the U.S. military would “guide” ships through the strait, then paused that to allow time for a deal to end the war. A French-operated ship was damaged attempting to transit the strait. Industry figures say a return to normal transit will take weeks even if there's a deal.

These numbers show the global impact of Iran's grip on the Strait of Hormuz

Iran’s grip on the Strait of Hormuz has jolted the world economy. It has also left tens of thousands of mariners and hundreds of ships stranded in the Persian Gulf. Iran effectively seized control of the critical waterway for global energy after the U.S. and Israel attacked it on Feb. 28. Weeks of heavy bombing and a U.S. naval blockade imposed last month have yet to loosen its grip. Iran says it will only reopen the strait if the war ends and the blockade is lifted. U.S. President Donald Trump is seeking wider concessions, including on Iran’s nuclear program.

World shares fall and oil prices dip after attacks imperil the ceasefire with Iran

HONG KONG (AP) — World shares have mostly retreated and oil prices fell again after climbing as the fragile ceasefire with Iran was strained by missile and drone attacks that prompted U.S. retaliatory strikes on Iranian military facilities. U.S. futures advanced despite the latest flare ups in the conflict. On Thursday, U.S. stocks pulled back from records. Investors are closely watching the war situation as negotiations between the U.S. and Iran to end the war make limited progress. Brent crude oil was trading at around $100 a barrel early Friday. On Thursday, the S&P 500 dropped 0.4%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.6%, and the Nasdaq slipped 0.1%.

Trump says EU has until July 4 to approve last year’s trade deal or it will face higher tariffs

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump says goods from the European Union will face higher tariff rates if the 27-member bloc fails to approve last year’s trade framework by July 4. Trump's announcement on social media Thursday appears to be a deadline extension after the president said last Friday that EU autos would face a higher 25% tariff starting this week. Trump is displeased that the European Parliament has yet to finalize the trade arrangement reached last year. It was further complicated in February by the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that Trump lacked the legal authority to declare an economic emergency to impose the initial tariffs used to pressure the EU into talks.

Federal court rules against new global tariffs Trump imposed after loss at the Supreme Court

WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal court has ruled against the new global tariffs that President Donald Trump imposed after a stinging loss at the Supreme Court. A split three-judge panel of the Court of International Trade in New York found the 10% global tariffs were illegal after small businesses sued. The court ruled 2-1 Thursday that Trump overstepped the tariff power that Congress had allowed the president under the law. The tariffs are “invalid″ and “unauthorized by law,” the majority wrote. At issue are temporary 10% worldwide tariffs the Trump administration imposed after the Supreme Court in February struck down even broader tariffs the president had imposed last year on almost every country on Earth.

Lower-income Americans hit hardest by gas price spike, widening inequalities, study finds

WASHINGTON (AP) — Lower-income Americans sharply reduced their gas consumption in the month following the Iran war, yet spiking prices still forced them to spend more at the pump, worsening the economy’s disparities, new research released Wednesday showed. Higher-income households, meanwhile, ratcheted up their spending on gas while barely reducing their consumption, according to a report from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Middle-income households fell in-between. The figures suggest the gas-price surge has worsened what many economists call the “K-shaped economy.”

Why gasoline costs 52% more in the US than it did before the Iran war

NEW YORK (AP) — The price of a gallon of regular gasoline in the U.S. has climbed 31 cents in the past week and is now 52% higher than before the Iran war began. That's according to the latest data from AAA, which said regular gasoline reached an average of $4.54 per gallon on Wednesday. The main reason drivers are paying more for gas is because the war has stranded oil tankers near the Strait of Hormuz. Oil prices fell below $100 a barrel on Wednesday on renewed hopes of an agreement to end the war. That could pull gasoline prices down as well, but energy experts say it will take months for prices to return to pre-war levels.

McDonald's focus on value lifts first-quarter sales, but company says gas prices could dent demand

McDonald’s posted better-than-expected sales in the first quarter but said high gas prices and consumer anxiety could dent sales this spring. McDonald’s Chairman and CEO Chris Kempczinski said the company has been making progress bringing lower-income customers back into its stores with combo meal deals and value pricing. But he said gas prices will disproportionately impact lower-income consumers. McDonald’s global same-store sales rose 3.8% in the January-March period, which was better than Wall Street was expecting. But same-store sales slid in April. McDonald's said its revenue rose 9% to $6.52 billion in the first quarter, which also beat Wall Street's expectations

Both engines shut off and cockpit struggle came before 2022 China plane crash, NTSB data suggests

Both engines were intentionally shut down and there was a cockpit struggle before a China Eastern Airlines jet slammed into a mountain in 2022. All 132 people on board died. In response to a public records request, the National Transportation Safety Board released a report on what the Boeing 737-800’s flight data recorder revealed. Aviation safety experts agree that the data shows both engines stopped and someone sent the plane into a nosedive and a 360-degree roll. And the back-and-forth movement of the controls suggests a struggle in the cockpit. Chinese authorities have yet to release a final report.