AP Business SummaryBrief at 10:10 p.m. EDT

Apple's quarterly iPhone sales plunge 10%, but stock price surges on dividend, stock buyback news

Apple has posted its steepest quarterly decline in iPhone sales since the pandemic’s outset. The results reflect a deepening slump that’s increasing the pressure on the trendsetting company to spruce up its products with more artificial intelligence. The 10% drop in year-over-year iPhone sales for the January-March period is latest sign of weakness in a product that generates most of Apple’s revenue. It marked the biggest drop in iPhone sales since July-September period in 2020 when production bottlenecks caused by factory closures during the pandemic resulted in a delayed release of the new model that year. Apple's revenue and profit still eclipsed analyst projections, and its stock rose in extended trading.

Peloton cutting about 400 jobs worldwide; CEO McCarthy stepping down

Peloton is cutting about 400 jobs worldwide as part of a restructuring effort and its CEO Barry McCarthy is stepping down after two years as the company continues to work on turning around its business. Peloton Interactive Inc. said Thursday that the job reductions amount to approximately 15% of its global headcount. The restructuring efforts, which are expected to lower its annual run-rate expenses by more than $200 million by fiscal 2025’s end, also include continuing to close retail showrooms.

Artists from Universal Music Group are heading back to TikTok as new licensing deal reached

Artists from Universal Music Group, which include Drake, Adele, Bad Bunny and Billie Eilish, will be returning to TikTok as the two parties have struck a new licensing agreement following an approximately three-month long dispute. The two sides said Thursday that they are “now working expeditiously to return music by artists represented by Universal Music Group and songwriters represented by Universal Music Publishing Group to TikTok in due course.”

E-waste is overflowing landfills. At one sprawling Vietnam market, workers recycle some of it

HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam (AP) — The world is producing more electronic waste than ever — 62 million metric tons in 2022. And it's growing faster than formal efforts to recycle it. Some gets picked up by a web of low-paid workers who pull apart old laptops, scarred mobile phones, television remotes and other items to get valuable materials inside. In Vietnam, an army of mostly women waste collectors collect discarded electronic devices from homes and bins on street corners. But informal waste workers face health risks and insecure livelihoods. Experts say collaborations between the informal and formal sector could help both. The informal workers are good at getting the e-waste, while recycling companies struggle to get enough to make recycling cost-effective.

Stock market today: Wall Street climbs to trim its loss for the week

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks closed higher and trimmed their losses for the week. The S&P 500 climbed 0.9% Thursday, a day after swinging sharply when the Federal Reserve said it’s likely delaying cuts to interest rates. The Dow Jones Industrial Average also rose 0.9%, and the Nasdaq composite added 1.5%. Qualcomm, Carvana and other companies helped lead the market after reporting stronger results for the latest quarter than expected. Treasury yields eased in the bond market following reports on joblessness and worker productivity. Friday's monthly update on the U.S. job market will likely be more impactful.

The Fed indicated rates will remain higher for longer. What does that mean for you?

NEW YORK (AP) — The Federal Reserve’s decision Wednesday to keep its benchmark rate at a two-decade high should have ripple effects across the economy. Mortgage rates, credit card rates, and auto loan rates will all likely maintain their highs, with consequences for consumer spending. The Fed has indicated it doesn’t plan to cut interest rates until it has “greater confidence” that price increases are slowing to its 2% target. The central bank kept its key rate at roughly 5.3%, where it has been since last August. While inflation has cooled from a peak of 7.1% to 2.7%, average prices remain well above pre-pandemic levels.

Sony Pictures and private equity firm interested in buying Paramount for $26 billion, AP source says

Sony Pictures and Apollo Global Management have expressed interest in buying Paramount Global for $26 billion. That's according to a person familiar with the details. Sony would be the majority shareholder and Apollo would have a minority stake, according to the person, who requested anonymity because details of the offer have not been made public. The Sony-Apollo offer was first reported by The Wall Street Journal.

Number of Americans applying for jobless claims remains historically low

The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits was unchanged last week and remains historically low as the labor market continues to show resiliency in the face of high interest rates and elevated inflation. The Labor Department reported Thursday that unemployment claims for the week ending April 27 was 208,000, the same as the previous week. That’s the fewest since mid-February. Weekly unemployment claims are considered a proxy for the number of U.S. layoffs in a given week. In total, 1.77 million Americans were collecting jobless benefits during the week that ended April 20. That’s also the same as the previous week.

IRS acts to address wide disparity in audit rates between Black taxpayers and other filers

WASHINGTON (AP) — The IRS says it's taken steps to address a wide disparity in audit rates between Black taxpayers and others filers. And the agency is more closely examining the returns of larger numbers of wealthy people and major companies. The IRS says in an annual report that it's overhauling compliance efforts as it strives to “hold ourselves accountable to taxpayers we serve.” A 2023 study involving university researchers and the Treasury Department found that IRS data-driven algorithms selected Black taxpayers for auditing at up to 4.7 times the rate of non-Black taxpayers. Commissioner Daniel Werfel says discriminatory audits “degrade trust in our tax system.”

Berkshire Hathaway board feels sure Greg Abel is the man to eventually replace Warren Buffett

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Everyone knows Warren Buffett’s successor won’t be able to match the legendary investor. But Berkshire Hathaway’s board remains confident Greg Abel is the right guy to one day lead the conglomerate into the future. Longtime Berkshire board member Ron Olson told investors gathered Thursday at a conference two days ahead of Berkshire’s annual shareholders meeting that Abel understands all the fundamental principles that Buffett used to build Berkshire. Olson says he’s confident business owners will still be willing to sell their companies to Berkshire once the Canadian utility executive takes over after the 93-year-old Buffett is gone. And Olson doesn’t think last year’s public legal fight over the price of the Pilot truck stop chain will be a deterrent to future deals either.