Business Briefs – October 23, 2018

Americans Who Don’t Have a Bank Account at Lowest Level Ever

NEW YORK (AP) — The percentage of Americans who do not have a bank account fell to a record low last year, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. said Tuesday, a sign that the economic fortunes of the country’s most vulnerable people continues to improve.

In 2017, approximately 6.5 percent of U.S. households did not have a primary bank account. That is down from 7 percent in 2015 and from a high of 8.2 percent in 2011. That translates into roughly 14.1 million adults without a bank account.

China-U.S. Ties Sinking Amid Acrimony Over Trade, Politics

BEIJING (AP) — The White House’s move to expand Washington’s dispute with Beijing beyond trade and technology and into accusations of political meddling has sunk U.S.-China relations to the lowest level since the Cold War. Both are trading increasingly sharp accusations over human rights and global hegemony, exposing an ideological divide that pits the two on a path of confrontation with no clear resolution in sight.

Yahoo to Pay $50m, Other Costs For Massive Security Breach

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Yahoo has agreed to pay $50 million in damages and provide two years of free credit-monitoring services to about 200 million people in the U.S. and Israel whose email addresses and other personal information were stolen as part of the biggest security breach in history. The restitution hinges on court approval of a settlement filed late Monday in a two-year-old lawsuit seeking to hold Yahoo accountable for digital burglaries that occurred in 2013 and 2014, but weren’t disclosed until 2016.

Puerto Ricans Fight for Insurance Money a Year After Maria

DORADO, Puerto Rico (AP) — More than a year after Hurricane Maria, thousands of Puerto Ricans are fighting to settle claims from insurance companies teetering financially in the aftermath of the Category 4 storm. One major insurance company has already folded, leaving more than 1,500 claims worth a total of $70 million up in the air. Many worry other companies could soon follow as Puerto Ricans are forced to close businesses or sell homes to deal with their losses amid a 12-year recession.