Pennsylvania company to complete purchase of R.I. utility – The Boston Globe

AUTOMOTIVE

Age of US automobiles hits a file

Automobiles on US roads are as outdated as they’ve ever been, doubtlessly complicating efforts to increase using new security and emissions-reduction applied sciences. The age of sunshine automobiles domestically is now 12.2 years on common, up nearly two months from final yr’s determine, in response to S&P International Mobility. That’s a file excessive and marks the fifth straight yr of will increase. Analysts on the information supplier pointed to the worldwide microchip scarcity, supply-chain snags, and stock challenges — all of which probably saved drivers of their outdated automobiles longer. The rising value of recent automobiles — $46,526 final month, in response to Kelley Blue Guide — was one other deterrent for potential consumers. — BLOOMBERG NEWS

MIGRATION

N.Y. dropping residents because of excessive value of dwelling

Even earlier than COVID-19 hit, the state of New York was dealing with an outflow of tax-paying residents. The state had a median annual internet out-migration of 28,700 part-year residents, or 0.3 % of taxpayers, between 2015 and 2019, in response to a report from New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli. Which means the state misplaced roughly 115,000 tax filers in the course of the interval, in a pattern that’s prone to have continued after the pandemic with the rise of distant working. Households in search of extra space and rich people making an attempt to save lots of on taxes are leaving the state, which is among the many most costly locations to reside. — BLOOMBERG NEWS

MINERALS

Nice curiosity in Chinese language lithium mine

An public sale for a controlling stake in a Chinese language lithium mine has garnered 3,448 bids, underscoring the scramble to safe the battery steel that’s key to the clean-energy transition. The 54.3 % stake in Yajiang Snowway Mining Growth, which owns the mine in Sichuan, a southwestern province in China, was bought for about 2 billion yuan ($299 million), in response to the JD.com’s judicial public sale platform. The shift to electrical automobiles has spurred a world rush for lithium, which is utilized in nearly all EV batteries, and seen Chinese language costs of lithium carbonate surge greater than 400 % over the previous yr. — BLOOMBERG NEWS

UKRAINE

Starbucks newest firm to drag out of Russia completely

Starbucks introduced Monday that it was formally exiting Russia, with 130 shops run by a licensee there closing. The corporate has additionally halted the cargo of any Starbucks merchandise. The corporate stated in a press release that almost 2,000 staff within the nation could be paid for six months and given assist to “transition to new alternatives outdoors of Starbucks.” In early March, the espresso chain condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and introduced that it was suspending all retailer operations in settlement with its licensing accomplice, which owns and operates all the Starbucks shops within the Russia. — NEW YORK TIMES

FINANCE

Financial institution of America raises minimal wage to $22 an hour

Financial institution of America is growing its minimal hourly wage to $22, taking one other step towards a aim of paying $25 by 2025, as employers beef up compensation and advantages in a good labor market. The transfer, introduced Monday, bumps pay up from $21, a stage the agency had enacted final yr inside its deliberate schedule. A $22 wage interprets to a full-time annualized wage of $45,000. It continues a sequence of hikes lifting the agency’s base pay from $15 in 2017. — BLOOMBERG NEWS

TOURISM

Vacationers say Bonjour to Paris once more

Paris tourism is bouncing again as European and American guests return to soak up the sights of the French capital after two years of COVID-related lockdowns and restrictions. The town is the second-most sought-after vacation spot worldwide this yr, behind London, in response to reserving aggregator Trivago. That has steadily pushed up resort room charges and occupancy for the reason that starting of the yr. The common resort value in Paris was round 173 euros ($183) the final week of April, a 17 % improve from the identical interval in 2019 and up much more sharply in contrast with the beginning of the yr, in response to information from tourism analysis agency MKG Consulting. Paris is historically one of many most-visited cities on the earth and, earlier than COVID, tourism-related spending represented greater than 7 % of France’s financial system, in response to the Group for Financial Cooperation and Growth. — BLOOMBERG NEWS

BANKING

Chase hiring 1,300 wealth-management advisers

JPMorgan Chase plans to rent about 1,300 advisers over the following three years as a part of a technique to spice up belongings in its wealth-management operation to $1 trillion. The additions would convey the full to six,000 from about 4,700, Jennifer Piepszak, co-chief govt officer of JPMorgan’s client and neighborhood banking operation, stated on the agency’s investor day Monday. The financial institution has already added 1,100 advisers since 2017, she stated. — BLOOMBERG NEWS

TRAVEL

Luxurious corporations need Britain to reinstate tax-free looking for vacationers

A bunch of 250 luxurious UK manufacturers, together with Burberry and Harrods, have known as on the federal government to reintroduce tax-free looking for vacationers as a option to increase the financial system. Scrapping tax from purchases will set off an additional £1.2 billion ($1.5 billion) in annual retail gross sales and appeal to an extra 600,000 guests to the nation, in response to Walpole, a bunch representing the UK luxurious business. The UK is the one European nation to not supply this perk to vacationers from outdoors the European Union. Earlier than the pandemic, tourism contributed 4 % of Britain’s financial system and had an general worth of £85 billion. Greater than a 3rd of that cash was generated by gross sales to high-end vacationers staying in luxurious lodging similar to five-star motels. These guests, who usually spent 14 instances greater than the common vacationer, at the moment are favoring boutiques in cities like Paris, Madrid, and Milan. That’s largely due to the UK’s resolution to abolish tax-free procuring in 2020, the report stated. — BLOOMBERG NEWS