Business

April 24 (UPI) — The Trump administration is working on a bailout of Spirit Airlines, which is in bankruptcy for the second time in a year, to keep it from shutting down.

President Donald Trump several times this week that the government may get involved in the situation — specifically highlighting his concerns about jobs and the airline industry — after increases in jet fuel cost made the airline’s situation even worse, CNBC and USA Today reported.

Spirit has not commented on the bailout negotiations, which would have to be approved by its creditors, but the administration has offered Spirit a $500 million loan, with the government receiving the right to own 90% of the company when it exits bankruptcy, CBS News reported.

“We’re thinking about doing it, helping them out, meaning bailing them out, or buying it,” Trump said on Thursday.

“I’d love to be able to save those jobs,” he said. “I’d love to be able to save an airline. I like having a lot of airlines so it’s competitive.”

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has argued it is necessary for the government to step in and save Spirit because if it is shut down and liquidated during bankruptcy, at least 7,500 jobs will be lost.

The White House may use the Defense Production Act, which gives the government the ability to compel private companies to prioritize its contracts in the event of an emergency and to loan money to those companies, to give Spirit a loan.

The loan would make the government Spirit’s main debtor and, while the company is working its way through bankruptcy, the Department of Defense would use extra seats for transporting troops or moving other military cargo.

The union that represents Spirit’s ramp service employees, the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, urged the administration to prioritize employees at the airline, The Hill reported.

“IAM Union members at Spirit, and all frontline aviation workers, did not cause this crisis,” the union said in a statement.

“They should not be the ones forced to pay the price. Any federal assistance must prioritize protecting jobs, preserving pay and benefits, and maintaining the affordable air service that millions of Americans rely on,” the union statement said.

Spirit filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in November 2024 after a judge blocked its proposed $3.8 billion merger with JetBlue Airlines in March of that year, and filed for bankruptcy again in 2025.

Spirit’s current bankruptcy plan includes the cost of jet fuel, which has roughly doubled for the company since the United States and Israel launched the war in Iran. The cost of fuel has also tanked their current business model, according to reports.

Spirit missed an interest payment this week, leading to it being warned that it could be in default with its creditors — to which Spirit has warned they may only have days to operate, which spurred the bailout talks.

The federal government already is working with the company’s creditors and has made a loan offer, CBS News reported, and Spirit has said it continues to operate normally, which includes deeply discounted flights.

April 24 (UPI) — Maine Gov. Janet Mills on Friday vetoed a bill that would have paused artificial intelligence data center construction in the state for 18 months.

Mills said she decided to veto it because it would have potentially harmed a permitted and in progress data center expected to create hundreds of jobs, both for construction and once the center opens.

The project, a $550 million data center in Jay, Maine, is a multi-year effort to redevelop the former Androscoggin Mill, which was damaged in a 2020 boiler explosion and then closed in 2023, took with it hundreds of jobs and 22% of the town’s tax revenue.

The bill would have been the first in the country restricting or slowing the spread of large-scale data centers required for power-hungry AI systems, which have driven up the cost of both electricity and water for residents living near them, NBC News and Politico reported.

“A moratorium is appropriate given the impacts of massive data centers in other states on the environment and electricity rates,” Mills said in a press release.

“But the final version of this bill fails to allow for a specific project in the Town of Jay that enjoys strong local support from its host community and region,” she said.

There are more than 5,000 data centers in the United States — more than any country in the world — and that number has grown significantly in the last four years as artificial intelligence has become a focus the tech industry.

While many state and local leaders have started to respond to concerns among residents about the huge amounts of electricity needed to power AI data centers and the huge amounts of water needed to keep them cool, as have some members of Congress.

As states have contemplated increased regulation and scrutiny from tech and AI companies, President Donald Trump at the same time has worked to keep the cuffs of tech companies because they “must be free to innovate without cumbersome regulation,” he said in December.

“Excessive state regulation thwarts this imperative,” Trump said in an executive order meant to prevent states from creating new regulations.

Mills said she worked with Maine’s legislature to carve out an exemption for the data center in Jay but was unsuccessful, so she vetoed the law.

The development in Jay, she said, is under contract and permitted, and is expected to create 800 construction jobs, more than 100 high-paying permanent jobs and “substantial tax revenue” for the Town of Jay.

In a letter informing the legislature that she planned to veto the bill, Mills said she plans to issue an executive order to establish a council to study the impacts — real and potential — of data centers in Maine.

“I believe it necessary and important to examine and plan for the potential impacts of large-scale data centers in Maine, as the use of artificial intelligence becomes more widespread,” Mills said.

“Given the serious conversations about data centers here and around the country, I believe this work should commence without delay,” she told legislators.

The announcement on Friday is expected to clear the path for the confirmation of his successor, Kevin Warsh.

The United States Department of Justice has ended its probe into US Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell, clearing a major roadblock to the confirmation of his successor, Kevin Warsh.

US Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeannine Pirro said on X on Friday that her office was ending its probe into the Fed’s extensive building renovations because the Fed’s inspector general would scrutinise them instead.

Pirro, a Trump ally and the top federal prosecutor in Washington, DC, said she had instead asked the Fed’s internal watchdog, the Office of Inspector General, to examine cost overruns in renovations of the central bank’s Washington headquarters.

“The IG has the authority to hold the Federal Reserve accountable to American taxpayers,” Pirro said in a social media post. “I expect a comprehensive report in short order and am confident the outcome will assist in resolving, once and for all, the questions that led this office to issue subpoenas.”

The move could lead to a swift confirmation vote by the Senate for Warsh, a former top Fed official whom US President Donald Trump, a Republican, nominated in January to replace Powell. Powell’s term as chair ends May 15.

Senator Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican, had said he would oppose Warsh until the investigation was resolved, effectively blocking his confirmation.

The leadership transition at the world’s leading central bank could now proceed quickly.

Republicans praised Warsh during a Tuesday hearing even as Democrats questioned his independence from Trump, the lack of transparency around some of his financial holdings, and what they said was his flip-flopping on interest rates. Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, the ranking Democrat on the committee, questioned if Warsh will be a “sock puppet“.

Still, Trump’s previous appointment to the Fed’s board of governors, Stephen Miran, was approved by the full Senate just 13 days after his nomination.

No evidence

The investigation was among several undertaken by the Department of Justice into Trump’s perceived adversaries. For months, it had failed to gain traction as prosecutors struggled to articulate a basis to suspect criminal conduct.

A prosecutor handling the case conceded at a closed-door court hearing in March that the government had not yet found any evidence of a crime, and a judge subsequently quashed subpoenas issued to the Federal Reserve.

The judge, James Boasberg, said prosecutors had produced “essentially zero evidence” to suspect Powell of a crime. Boasberg branded prosecutors’ justification for the subpoenas as “thin and unsubstantiated”.

More recently, prosecutors made an unannounced visit to a construction site at the Fed’s headquarters but were turned away, drawing a rebuke from a defence lawyer in the case who called the manoeuvre “not appropriate”.

Warsh said during the Senate hearing on Tuesday that he never promised the White House that he would cut interest rates, even as the president renewed his calls for the central bank to do so.

“The president never once asked me to commit to any particular interest rate decision, period,” Warsh said during the hearing. “Nor would I ever agree to do so if he had … I will be an independent actor if confirmed as chair of the Federal Reserve.”

Warsh’s comments came just hours after Trump, in an interview on CNBC, was asked if he would be disappointed if Warsh did not immediately cut rates and responded, “I would.”

The decision to abandon the investigation represents a rare pullback for a Department of Justice that over the last year has moved aggressively, albeit unsuccessfully, to prosecute public figures the president does not like.

Robert Hur, an lawyer for the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, did not immediately respond on Friday to an email seeking comment.

E-commerce firm Coupang Inc. on Friday denied allegations that it lobbied U.S. government officials to pressure the South Korean government following a data leak controversy that emerged in November.

The company also rejected claims that its lobbying activities involved security-related issues, calling such assertions unfounded.

Citing disclosures under the U.S. Lobbying Disclosure Act (LDA), Coupang said its lobbying efforts focused on promoting economic cooperation between Seoul and Washington and expanding professional visa opportunities for South Koreans seeking employment in the United States.

The filings show the company also engaged with U.S. authorities on plans to expand investment and commercial activity in South Korea, Taiwan and Japan, without addressing security matters, Coupang said in a text message.

Coupang said it has prioritized communication on artificial intelligence (AI) innovation, investment, job creation and cross-border commerce involving the U.S. and other markets, including South Korea.

The company said it spent 1.6 billion won (US$1.09 million) on lobbying in the January-March period.

“Lobbying activities by both U.S. and South Korean companies are conducted within legal frameworks,” Coupang said, adding that major U.S. firms typically spend three to four times more than it does.

Copyright (c) Yonhap News Agency prohibits its content from being redistributed or reprinted without consent, and forbids the content from being learned and used by artificial intelligence systems.

Meta will lay off 8,000 workers while Microsoft is offering buyouts to 8,750 people, a first for the Windows maker.

Meta is laying off about 8,000 workers, or about 10 percent of its workforce, the company has said as it continues to ramp up spending on artificial intelligence infrastructure and highly paid AI-expert hires.

On Thursday, the company said it was making the cuts for the sake of efficiency and to allow new investments in parts of its business, as first reported by Bloomberg, which also said the company will leave about 6,000 jobs unfilled.

Also on Thursday, Microsoft said it was offering voluntary buyouts to thousands of its US employees.

The software giant plans to make the offers in early May to about 8,750 people, or 7 percent of its US workforce, according to two people familiar with the plan who were not authorised to speak about it publicly.

While an alternative to the sudden layoffs removing tech workers from peers like Meta and Oracle, the savings are likely tied to a similar industry upheaval that is requiring huge spending on the costs of artificial intelligence.

Meta has already warned investors that its 2026 expenses will grow significantly — to the range of $162bn to $169bn — driven by infrastructure costs and employee compensation, particularly for the AI experts it has been hiring at eye-popping pay levels.

This week, Meta also said it was breaking ground on an AI-optimised data centre in Tulsa, Oklahoma, a $1bn investment and its 28th data centre in the US.

Wedbush analyst Dan Ives welcomed Meta’s cuts in a note to investors on Thursday.

He said he sees it as part of a strategy of using AI tools to “automate tasks that once required large teams, allowing the company to streamline operations and reduce costs while maintaining productivity, driving an increased need for a leaner operating structure”.

Microsoft, based in Redmond, Washington state, has spent billions of dollars on operating an ever-expanding global network of data centres that power cloud computing services, AI systems and its own suite of productivity tools, including the AI assistant Copilot.

CNBC reported earlier on Thursday on a memo from Microsoft’s chief people officer, Amy Coleman, announcing the voluntary retirement plan.

“Our hope is that this program gives those eligible the choice to take that next step on their own terms, with generous company support,” Coleman wrote, according to CNBC.

Meta stock fell 2.3 percent on Thursday, while Microsoft stock ended the day down 3.97 percent.

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SEOUL, April 22 (UPI) — South Korea’s LG AI Research said that it has agreed to strengthen cooperation with NVIDIA to develop next-generation AI technologies and expand the ecosystem of its flagship AI model, EXAONE.

Toward that goal, LG AI Research’s chief Lim Woo-hyung met with NVIDIA Vice President Bryan Catanzaro, who visited Korea to attend the NVIDIA Nemotron Developer Days Seoul 2026.

The two companies have collaborated before. LG AI Research said that it has leveraged datasets of NVIDIA’s Nemotron open ecosystems to develop and upgrade its EXAONE models.

“Purpose-built, domain-specific models unlock the full value of AI by using culture- and language-specific data aligned with what makes nations and industries unique,” Catanzaro said in a statement.

“By integrating the LG AI Research EXAONE platform with NVIDIA Nemotron, organizations can create high-quality local models that advance sovereign AI initiatives-opening the door to new business opportunities and enhanced social services.”

Lim stressed that NVIDIA has been a key partner throughout the development of EXAONE.

“We will expand our collaboration with NVIDIA beyond research into a broader innovation ecosystem to deliver tangible sovereign AI outcomes that can be realized across industries,” he said.

As one of the leaders in South Korea’s sovereign AI project, LG Group has recently sought to accelerate the conglomerate’s AI transformation.

Earlier this month, for example, Chairman Koo Kwang-mo flew to Silicon Valley to meet with chiefs of global tech companies Palantir Technologies and Skild AI.

The share price of LG Corp., the holding company of LG Group, gained 0.95% on the Seoul bourse Wednesday.

April 21 (UPI) — Retail sales rose by 1.7% in March mostly due to high gas prices from the ongoing conflict with Iran, the Commerce Department announced Tuesday.

It was the fastest monthly change in three years, according to a release.

In February, sales rose 0.7%.

Retail sales are seasonally adjusted but not for inflation. In March inflation rose by 0.9%, which was three times the February rate, according to the latest Consumer Price Index.

The war between the United States, Israel and Iran has caused gas prices to spike. The Strait of Hormuz, a critical transportation route for oil, has been closed to most traffic throughout the fighting. It has dramatically affected the price of gas in the United States and abroad.

Gas station sales jumped in March by 15.5% from February. Without gas station sales, retail rose 0.6% in March, which was at 0.7% in February.

Some categories were stronger. Furniture and home furnishing sales were up 2.2% in March.

Electronics and building materials held up well, too.

Gary Schlossberg, global strategist at Wells Fargo Investment Institute, said in commentary to investors on Tuesday: “Pressure on household budgets is being cushioned, for now, by sizable increases in tax refunds tied to last year’s legislation.”

Consumers adjusted their spending in other areas. Apparel sales were flat, and restaurant sales rose only 0.1%.

Gas prices likely caused that, said Dan North, Allianz Trade senior economist for North America.

“Gasoline is a thing you love to hate, because you have to buy it; there’s really no substitute,” North told CNN in an interview.

Eventually, consumers will deplete savings and tax refunds, and for lower-income Americans, it could be a struggle, North said.

“If we can wind this up, so to speak, in the next few months, the damage to the consumer and economy might not be so bad,” North said. “If you start stretching it out for months and months and toward the end of the year, then consumers and the rest of the economy get in trouble.”

April 20 (UPI) — A Southwest Airlines flight arriving at Nashville International Airport over the weekend was directed into the path of another Southwest flight that was taking off, causing them to pass within 500 vertical feet of each other.

A flight arriving from Myrtle Beach, S.C., on Saturday evening initiated a go-around before landing because it was facing “gusty winds” during it’s approach, but air traffic controllers directed the crew into the path of another flight, USA Today, WSMV and WTVF reported.

The other flight was departing NIA on a parallel runway, which caused the close call, and “both flight crews responded to onboard alerts” because the two aircraft were 500 feet apart, the Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement.

Five hundred feet is equivalent to 1 2/3 football fields, including the end zones, or two Boeing 747s lined up nose-to-tail, which is half the 1,000-foot distance the FAA requires aircraft to maintain.

The air traffic controller who gave the errant order recognized the mistake and corrected himself with both flight crews, who had already responded to alerts from their Traffic Collision Avoidance System, devices that are standard on all commercial aircraft.

“We are engaged with the FAA as part of the investigation,” Southwest said in a statement.

“Southwest appreciates the professionalism of its Pilots and Flights Crews in responding to the event,” the company said. “Nothing is more importing to Southwest than the Safety of our Customers and Employees.”

April 20 (UPI) — The Federal Aviation Administration grounded Blue Origin‘s New Glenn rocket after it botched the release of a satellite following its successful launch two hours earlier.

The third launch of New Glenn and second landing of its reusable booster stage “Never Tell Me The Odds” on a drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean was a success in those terms, but the spacecraft delivered AST SpaceMobile’s BlueBird 7 satellite to an orbit too low for it to operate properly.

Blue Origin said Monday that it is leading an investigation into one of New Glenn’s engines producing insufficient thrust to reach the mission’s target orbit.

“While we were pleased with the nominal booster recovery, we clearly didn’t deliver the mission our customer wanted, and our team expects,” Blue Origin CEO Dave Limp said in a post on X.

The FAA, NASA, the National Transportation Safety Board and the U.S. Space Force also have been monitoring the situation and will require Blue Origin to complete its investigation and report on the engine anomaly, the Orlando Sentinel reported.

“A return to flight is based on the FAA determining that any system, process or procedure related to the mishap does not affect public safety,” the FAA said in explaining why it grounded the rocket.

The New Glenn-3 rocket launched around 7:30 a.m. EDT on Sunday morning, nailing the flight and landing portion of its mission, and successfully released the BlueBird 7 satellite once it reached orbit.

Because one of the two BE-3U engines that power New Glenn’s upper stage didn’t produce sufficient thrust on its second engine burn, which is meant to boost the spacecraft to its target orbit above Earth, it never got there.

Although the satellite was released and powered on properly, the off-nominal orbit — which was too low for it to be useful — AST said it would be jettisoned.

BlueBird 7 is one of 45 satellites that AST SpaceMobile hopes to get in orbit by the end of 2026 as part of a satellite-based cellular network designed to operate with standard smartphones.

The satellite would have been the companies eighth to reach orbit, and it’s share price Feller by more than 6% on Monday, The BBC reported.

Limp said Blue Origin is analyzing data as it conducts the investigation and is “in steady communication with the team at AST SpaceMobile.”

“We appreciate their partnership, and we’re looking forward to many flights together,” Limp said.

April 20 (UPI) — Venezuela’s interim president, Delcy Rodríguez, said her government is talking with two major companies to address the country’s power crisis, citing recent diplomatic engagement with the United States.

“Thanks to that diplomatic dialogue, I can say we are now in direct contact with Siemens and General Electric to resolve the electricity problem in Zulia state,” Rodríguez said Sunday during a public event broadcast by state television.

She said the government decided to “open a new chapter in national political life” and in Venezuela’s international relations following a Jan. 3 U>S> military operation that captured President Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores.

Analysts say Zulia, a key oil-producing region in western Venezuela, is critical to the country’s hydrocarbons industry. Persistent electricity shortages have limited efforts to boost crude production, making restoration of the power system a strategic priority for economic recovery.

Situated at the western edge of the national grid, Zulia is the last region to receive electricity transmitted from the south. Failures in the transmission network often leave it disconnected. The system in the region operates at less than 40% of installed capacity.

According to local outlet El Tequeño, both companies conducted technical missions in March to assess Venezuela’s electrical infrastructure and present rehabilitation proposals.

The inspections included hydroelectric facilities in the Bajo Caroní complex in Bolívar state, following a February visit to Caracas by U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright.

Rodríguez made the remarks at the launch of a 13-day pilgrimage she called to demand the full lifting of economic sanctions imposed on Venezuela.

“Enough sanctions against the noble Venezuelan people,” she said, addressing the governments of the United States and Europe, according to Globovisión. She added that economic freedom is a sovereign right, not a concession from foreign powers.

The mobilizations began in Zulia, Amazonas and Táchira states and were led by Rodríguez, National Assembly President Jorge Rodríguez and ruling party leader Diosdado Cabello.

International sanctions have worsened Venezuela’s electricity crisis by limiting access to financing and technology needed to maintain and upgrade infrastructure.

A partial easing of U.S. sanctions on the oil and mining sectors has opened the door to talks with companies such as Siemens and General Electric to address those gaps.

April 19 (UPI) — Citing steep tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said Sunday his country’s historically close trade and economic ties to the United States have become a “weakness.”

In a video statement posted to YouTube, the Canadian leader asserted the United States has “fundamentally changed its approach to trade, raising its tariffs to levels last seen during the Great Depression.”

This has meant that “many of our former strengths, based on our close ties to America, have become our weaknesses — weaknesses that we must correct.”

Carney’s comments as Trump’s trade war with Canada has disrupted decades of cross border cooperation, triggered in part by a broad 10% tariff slapped by Washington onto all goods not excluded under the Canada-US-Mexico free trade agreement known as CUSMA.

Significantly higher U.S. levies have also been imposed on key strategic sectors, including a 50% tariff on Canadian products that are almost entirely made of steel, aluminum or copper, and a 25% tariff on products that are “largely” made of those metals.

Many types of Canadian heavy equipment also face a 15% tariff upon entry into the United States.

Ottawa says the effect of these measures has been profound, “displacing workers, disrupting supply chains, forcing companies to rethink where they source their materials and products, and causing uncertainty that is curbing investment.”

Although Canada still has the best deal of any U.S. trading partner in an era when Trump has used the threat of tariffs and against both allies and adversaries for strategic and political ends, “we cannot rely on our most important trade relationship as we once did. We must build our strength at home,” Carney said.

“Workers in our industries most affected by U.S. tariffs in autos and steel and lumber are under threat,” he added. “Businesses are holding back investments restrained by the pall of uncertainty that’s hanging over all of us.”

Triggered by the U.S. trade actions and Trump’s oft-repeated desire to annex Canada as the “51st state,” Carney’s Liberal Party government in January made a milestone deal with China to lower some of the tariffs imposed by one another on some of their trade goods.

Under that pact, China lowered its tariffs on Canadian agricultural products, while Canada slashed its tariffs on up to 49,000 electric vehicles that are made in China.

The deal was denounced by Trump, who threatened to impose a 100% tariff on all Canadian goods sent to the United States in response.

“China will eat Canada alive, completely devour it, including the destruction of their businesses, social fabric and general way of life,” the U.S. president asserted.

But Carney on Sunday again defended his expansion of trade away from the United States, saying, “We will attract new investment so we can build more for ourselves, striking new partnerships abroad so we can sell into new markets.

“It’s about taking back control of our security, our borders and our future.”

April 19 (UPI) — U.S. Customs and Border Protection is expected to launch a website on Monday to process refund requests for some Trump administration tariffs, although there are limits to which ones will be processed.

The first phase of tariff refunds comes after the Supreme Court ruled in February that President Donald Trump could not use the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to generate revenue by imposing tariffs.

Although Trump decided to use Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 to justify new tariffs after the Court’s decision, the administration still is required to refund duties collected under the now-nullified tariffs.

CBP has estimated that it owes about $166 billion in refunds, with the agency’s announcement of phase 1 expected to take care of the vast majority of expected claims, NPR reported.

The website is specifically aimed at letting businesses request refunds, and experts have said that consumers are unlikely to be affected by the refunds, CBS News reported.

“[The Consolidated Administration and Processing of Entries] is being deployed in phases, and CBP will launch the first phase of CAPE on April 20,” the agency said in an update last week.

“Phase 1 is limited to certain unliquidated entries and certain entries within 80 days of liquidation,” the agency said.

The refunds are linked to lawsuits filed in December by Costco and other companies — more than 50 companies brought filed suit for refunds — asking for duties to be returned to them if the Supreme Court ruled against the administration.

In March, CBP raised concern in court that it could not immediately handle refunding the duties based on 53 million entries from 330,000 importers who had paid tariffs as of March 4.

Mukalla, Yemen – The Yemeni government’s measures to curb the devaluation of the Yemeni riyal have finally borne fruit, but they have created another problem: A severe liquidity crunch.

The government’s central bank, based in the southern city of Aden, has shut down unauthorised exchange firms it says were involved in currency speculation, centralised internal remittances under a controlled system, and formed a committee to oversee imports and provide traders with hard currency.

These measures have helped curb the riyal’s freefall, from about 2,900 to the United States dollar months ago to about 1,500 today, a move that was initially welcomed. But the gains have been short-lived, as public frustration has grown over a worsening shortage of cash in riyals.

People across government-controlled cities such as Aden, Taiz, Mukalla and others have said they are facing an unprecedented shortage of Yemeni riyals in the market. Many, particularly those holding US dollars or Saudi riyals, said local banks and exchange firms are refusing to convert foreign currency, or are limiting daily exchanges to as little as 50 Saudi riyals per person, citing a shortage of local cash.

This has left many Yemenis unable to access cash or use their savings in hard currency at a time of mounting economic pressure, paralysing businesses and giving rise to a black market where traders exchange foreign currency at more unfavourable rates to the customer.

Businesses grind to a halt

Mohammed Omer, who runs a small grocery shop in Mukalla, said he has spent hours crisscrossing the city’s exchange firms trying to convert a few hundred Saudi riyals he received from customers. “I’ve gone from one exchange to another, and they refuse to exchange more than 50 riyals,” said Omer, a man in his early 50s with a salt-and-pepper goatee. “It’s a waste of time and effort – I’ve had to close my shop.”

Yemen has endured an economic meltdown for more than a decade, stemming from a war between the Saudi-backed government and the Iran-aligned Houthis that has killed thousands and displaced millions.

Alongside the fighting on the battlefield, the warring sides have targeted each other’s main sources of revenue, leaving both the Houthis and the government strapped for cash, struggling to pay public-sector salaries and fund basic services in areas under their control.

At a board meeting in March, the Central Bank in Aden said it was aware of the cash shortage and had approved several unspecified “short- and long-term” measures to address the problem, noting that it is pursuing “conservative precautionary policies” to stabilise the riyal and curb inflationary pressures.

Government employees have also complained that the cash-strapped Yemeni government is paying salaries in low-denomination banknotes – mainly 100 riyals – forcing them to carry their wages in bags.

Munif Ali, a government employee in Lahj, took to Facebook to express his frustration, posting a video of himself sitting beside large, tightly packed bundles of 100- and 200-riyal notes that he said he received from the central bank. Munif, like many Yemenis on social media, said traders are refusing to accept large quantities of low-value notes. “Merchants are refusing to recognise this,” Munif said, referring to the stacks of 100- and 200-riyal notes in front of him. “Legal action should be taken against them.”

People who have kept their savings in Saudi riyals, the de facto currency in parts of Yemen, as well as Yemeni expatriates who send remittances in hard currency to their families, and soldiers paid in Saudi riyals, are among those most affected by the cash shortage.

Finding workarounds

To cope with cash shortages and the refusal of exchange firms to convert hard currency, Yemenis have adopted a range of workarounds. Some rely on trusted shopkeepers who allow delayed payments, while others exchange foreign currency at local groceries or supermarkets, often at lower, unfavourable rates. Banks and exchange firms have also introduced online money transfers, which have helped ease the crisis for some.

In rural areas, where internet access is limited and exchange shops are scarce, the problem is even more acute.

Saleh Omer, a resident of the Dawan district in Hadramout, told Al Jazeera that he received a remittance of 1,300 Saudi riyals sent from Saudi Arabia. But the exchange firm that handed him the money refused to convert it into Yemeni riyals, citing a lack of cash, and advised him to try nearby shops.

With the official exchange rate at about 410 riyals to the Saudi riyal, a shopkeeper agreed – after repeated appeals – to exchange only 500 riyals, and at a lower rate of 400. “I nearly begged the shopkeeper to exchange 500 riyals,” Saleh said. To convert the remaining 800 riyals, he added, he would have to return another day and go from one shop to another. “We are suffering greatly just to convert Saudi riyals into Yemeni riyals.”

Connections matter

Well-connected individuals are often better positioned than others to navigate the cash shortage, with some relying on personal contacts at banks and exchange firms to access cash. Khaled Omer, who runs a travel agency in Mukalla, said most of his business transactions are conducted in Saudi riyals or US dollars. But when he needs Yemeni riyals to pay employees or cover utilities, he turns to a trusted contact at a local exchange firm. “We work with a money exchange trader when we need riyals to pay salaries or meet basic expenses,” Khaled told Al Jazeera. “Exchange companies say they are facing a liquidity crunch.”

On social media, Yemenis say some patients have been denied medication as health facilities refuse to accept payment in Saudi riyals, while exchange firms decline to convert the currency into Yemeni riyals.

In Taiz, Hesham al-Samaan said a local hospital refused to accept Saudi riyals from a relative of a patient, forcing him to roam the city in search of someone to exchange the money to pay for treatment. “Is there any justice for the people, oh government? Will anyone hold accountable those who refuse to exchange currency and exploit people’s needs?” al-Samaan wrote in a Facebook post that drew dozens of comments from others reporting similar experiences, including being denied medical services because they did not have local currency.

For traders who import goods from Saudi Arabia, the cash crisis has become something of a blessing in disguise, as Saudi riyals are increasingly available at discounted rates. A clothing trader in Mukalla told Al Jazeera that he accepts payments in both Yemeni riyals and Saudi riyals, partly to attract customers and partly to secure the foreign currency he needs for his business. “As a businessman who sells goods in Yemeni riyals, I benefit from the cash shortage,” he said on condition of anonymity. “Exchange companies that need local currency I hold sell me Saudi riyals at lower rates.”

April 18 (UPI) — Just one day after the Strait of Hormuz was declared open, Iran has blocked the passage again, citing “breach of promise” by the United States, and has begun firing on commercial ships.

Iran accused the United States of “banditry and piracy under the guise of a so-called blockade.”

“Until the United States ends its interference with the full freedom of movement for vessels traveling to and from Iran, the status of the Strait of Hormuz will remain under intense control and in its previous state,” Iran’s semiofficial Fars media said on X.

On Friday, Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said the Strait of Hormuz was open after a cease-fire in Lebanon.

But by Saturday morning, that had changed. President Donald Trump said the United States would continue blocking Iranian ships.

Gunboats fired on a tanker in the strait Saturday morning, CNN reported the United Kingdom Maritime Traffic Organization said.

The UKMTO said a tanker captain reported that it was “being approached by 2 [Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps] gun boats,” about 20 nautical miles off the coast of Oman.

The captain said there had been no radio warning before the ship was fired on.

“Tanker and crew are reported safe,” UKMTO posted.

Just hours later, a container ship was hit by “unknown projectile which caused damage to some of the containers” about 25 nautical miles off the coast of Oman, CNN reported the UKMTO said. In the second event, the UKMTO did not say who was responsible for the attack. No fires or environmental damage have been reported.

Trump reported Saturday that talks between Iran and the United States were continuing but that “Iran got a little cute,” CNN reported.

“We have very good conversations going on,” Trump said. “They got a little cute, as they have been doing for 47 years.”

“They wanted to close up the strait again, as they’ve been doing for years. They can’t blackmail us,” the president said.

“We’re talking to them, and you know, we’re taking a tough stand. They killed a lot of people. A lot of our people have been killed,” Trump said.

On Friday, Trump told CBS News in a phone interview that Iran had “agreed to everything.”

He said that the United States would remove Iran’s enriched uranium but would not involve ground troops.

“No. No troops,” he said. “We’ll go down and get it with them, and then we’ll take it. We’ll be getting it together because by that time, we’ll have an agreement and there’s no need for fighting when there’s an agreement. Nice right? That’s better. We would have done it the other way if we had to.”

“Our people, together with the Iranians, are going to work together to go get it. And then we’ll take it to the United States,” he said.

But hours later, a spokesperson for Iran’s foreign ministry said in a statement, “Enriched uranium is as sacred to us as Iranian soil and will not be transferred anywhere under any circumstances. … Transferring uranium to the United States has not been an option.”

Football can teach many life lessons and no one knows that better than Jazmin Gamble, the new varsity head coach at Hawthorne High.

As a woman in a male-dominated profession, one could define her as a trailblazer — and that would be accurate — but while she acknowledges the historical significance of what she is doing, Gamble is not letting it distract her from the task at hand — turning around a program that has fallen on hard times.

“It’s less about proving a point and more about giving all these boys a better experience,” Gamble said. “I’m not downplaying the impact of it, rather I want to leverage the attention in a way that benefits the players and opens doors for them. I’m elated and honored that the district saw my vision and said ‘this girl can do that.’ I have to ask myself how I can use this opportunity to spotlight our team.”

Gamble, who turns 36 in June, is a running back and linebacker for the Los Angeles Legends in the Women’s National Football Conference, a full-contact professional league consisting of 16 franchises across the United States.

Gamble was selected defensive player of the year in 2024 and offensive player of the year in 2025 when she gained a league-leading 549 yards rushing (averaging 11.9 yards per carry) while scoring three touchdowns.

“I tore my ACL my first season and was on injured reserve, but I came back in 2022 and have been playing ever since,” she said. “We made the playoffs last season but lost in the first round. We’re 2-1 right now with three games left. We played our first home game at Long Beach Poly, so the boys got to see their coach in action. We won 23-0 and I scored a touchdown, but it got called back due to holding.”

Hawthorne High football coach Jazmin Gamble calls for her players to huddle during a recent practice.

(Steve Galluzzo / For The Times)

The Legends’ next home game is April 25 against the Utah Falconz at St. Anthony Sports Complex in Lakewood.

“This is my last year playing, but I’ve been wanting to transition more into coaching,” said Gamble, a certified personal trainer and fitness instructor who started a business 10 years ago called the Jazz Standard. “I first heard about the job through my coaching network and it sounded very appealing. I applied, I interviewed and I got it. Football takes up so much of your time and energy. I’ve done enough in this sport. This is a good time for me to stop, and although this is my first crack as a football head coach I’ve been coaching athletes for six or seven years, including some of my teammates, and they got better.”

A Bakersfield native, Gamble was an exceptional all-around athlete. Growing up she was a gymnast and a cheerleader. She played club volleyball, ran track and played basketball while attending four high schools, two in Bakersfield and two in the Bay Area, and graduated from Mt. Diablo High in Concord.

Upon moving to Los Angeles 13 years ago, she was in survival mode.

“I was homeless and slept in the back seat of my car for a couple of months until I got a job in human resources,” she recalled. “I started training and working in the fitness field and after struggling to make it for a few years I decided I wanted to be a business owner and things took off from there. Now I have 33 active clients that I see two to four times a week and even train the No. 2 rusher in the WNFC.”

Gamble lives in Inglewood but her business is in Gardena near Serra High, where she got involved behind the scenes with the flag football team before the sport was officially sanctioned by the CIF in 2023.

“A few of those girls trained with me and I learned to adopt a different schematic approach. Boys are playing football as early as 5 or 6 years old, whereas women are starting at 20 or even their early 30s and their bodies aren’t prepared for it. I didn’t start playing tackle until I was 31.”

Gamble is still assembling a staff but one of her assistants will be her brother, Kenneth Davis, a former receiver at Liberty High in Bakersfield.

Hawthorne does not have a junior varsity team. There were 29 players on the roster last year and nine graduated.

“On Day 1, I had 22 come to the weight room,” Gamble said. “Some players are in track right now, but in May I’ll have ‘em all. My strong suit is development so I’m ready for this. Right now, we’re at ground zero. We’ve only had a handful of practices, mainly conditioning. The boys have been super receptive. I’m just going to be me!”

Hawthorne went 2-8 last season, finishing fourth in the Ocean League and being outscored by 281 points. The Cougars were shut out three times.

“Jazmin’s a breath of fresh air,” said athletic director Mario Romero, who was involved in the hiring process. “She’s brought enthusiasm across the entire school community and I’m excited about where her leadership is going to take us.”

Hawthorne High football coach Jazmin Gamble shows her players how to run a drill during practice.

(Steve Galluzzo / For The Times)

Fifteen players showed up for a one-hour workout Wednesday at HalCap Field. One of them was quarterback Anthony Green, who played in the last two games as a sophomore last year after transferring from King/Drew and is the projected starter next season.

“She made a good impression,” he said. “I like the workouts — they’re very intense — and I like the competition. Coach expects a lot and she pushes us.”

Gamble put her players through a series of drills to test their stamina, quickness and technique. The penalty for walking was push-ups.

“Everything out here is earned … may the best man win!’ she shouted.

“Her practices are intense — she knows what she’s doing,” added junior linebacker Adrian Lopez, who was an All-League first teamer last fall. “She has a home game coming up and I think I’ll go out and watch. My goal for us is to have at least a .500 season and make the playoffs.”

Gamble is not the first female to coach varsity football at Hawthorne. Monique Boone was the varsity defensive line and assistant offensive line coach in 2021 under previous head coach Corey Thedford. However, overseeing the entire program puts Gamble in rarefied air.

What convinced Romero that Gamble was the right person for the job?

“Her background, her skill set and also the fact that she plays the sport herself at a high level,” he said.

April 18 (UPI) — The Federal Aviation Administration is working with three bidders to develop artificial intelligence software to help air traffic controllers manage flights across the nation’s airspace.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy discussed the effort during a media event on Friday, and said the goal is to help anticipate schedule conflicts and improve planning for bottlenecks at busy airports.

“This software, as they look at the flight paths, won’t see [potential issues] 15 minutes before it happens .. a controller will get a notice that they could change one of the airplane’s flight paths slightly and they can deconflict it an hour and a half or two hours before the conflict even happens,” Duffy said during a media event hosted by Semafor.

The program is aimed at fundamentally changing how airspace in the United States operates, The Air Current reported, and is a major part of the agency’s efforts at modernization and redesign.

The FAA has mounted an effort to see how AI can improve the functionality and safety of the country’s air traffic control systems, especially amid a growing shortage of controllers, at least partially because political debates that have hampered the agency’s funding.

The system that the FAA is looking to develop — called SMART, which stands for Strategic Management of Airspace Routing Trajectories — is part of a $32.5 billion modernization program that includes replacing hundreds of radars and growing its air controller staff, The Next Web reported.

Development of the new system, which follows a series of issues at airports across the country that have seen near-misses and actual crashes that have raised concerns among experts and travelers alike, is being bid on by the companies Palantir, Thales and Air Space Intelligence.

The system could begin to be operational some time later this year, with an update on progress expected from the Department of Transportation and FAA on April 21.

The world is reckoning with the biggest oil supply disruption in history, one that has sent energy prices soaring, rattled stock markets and exposed the deep vulnerabilities of economies still hooked on fossil fuels. While millions face higher fuel and energy bills, top oil and gas companies are reportedly profiting about $30m per hour since the war began.

This week on UpFront, Redi Tlhabi speaks with renowned economist Mariana Mazzucato about what a genuine green industrial strategy looks like, why the World Bank has fallen short, and how her concept of the “common good economy” offers a new compass for governments navigating crises.

April 17 (UPI) — A federal judge on Friday blocked a lawsuit against the state of Hawaii that the federal government filed to prevent it from suing oil companies.

The Department of Justice last year sued Hawaii to stop a suit against fossil fuel companies for the impact of climate change on the state, but Senior Judge Helen Gillmor of the U.S. District Court in Hawaii said they it has no standing, The Hill and The New York Times reported.

In the ruling, Gillmor said that an “abstract, theoretical future harm” is not a valid basis for a lawsuit because stating an intention to file suit — which the state’s governor declared on television that he planned to do — does not amount to “concrete harm” that would allow an entity to sue.

Gillmor blocked the lawsuit because the DOJ’s theory of harm would require predicting claims brought against unknown companies; predicting that the lawsuit would be successful; “guessing” that oil companies would react in specific way; and then hypothesizing that the reaction would somehow harm the United States’ commerce and future energy policy, she wrote in the 30-page decision.

The DOJ’s suit, which was filed by now-former Attorney General Pam Bondi, alleged that Hawaii’s action was a “burdensome and ideologically motivated” lawsuit that could cause “crippling damages” with the energy and climate policies the state allegedly is pursuing.

“We disagree with the Hawaii District Court’s ruling, which ignored Supreme Court precedent regarding the United States’ interest in the supremacy of federal law,” the DOJ’s principal deputy assistant attorney general Adam Gustafson said in a statement. “We are exploring all options.”

April 17 (UPI) — The Supreme Court ruled unanimously in favor of Chevron in a case related to damage to wetlands in Louisiana that dates to World War II.

The case was brought more than a decade ago and relates to damage allegedly done when Chevron’s corporate predecessors were refining aviation gas on behalf of the federal government during the war, Scotusblog and The Washington Post reported.

The 8-0 ruling sent the federal lawsuit back to a lower court in a move that could jeopardize a $745 million ruling against the company to restore the wetlands, as well as other similar cases with fossil fuel companies before courts in the United States.

Parishes in Louisiana filed the case with the help of state officials against oil and gas companies refining crude oil along the coast during the war, claiming that proper permits were never obtained for their work and that they had not followed “prudent industry practices.”

The previous decision on the $745 million ruling was made by a state court, which Chevron contended does not have the jurisdiction to rule because it was working under the auspices of the federal government.

After the state court judgement was handed down, the company’s lawyers asked the U.S. Supreme Court to move the case to a federal court, where it may be able to have the ruling thrown out.

FORGET battling for the armrest or squinting your eyes at the tiny screen – the future of flying has been revealed.

We all love to try and make a flight as comfortable as possible, whether that be upgrading to premium economy or taking a cosy jumper onboard, but a new business class plane seat has been revealed and it is more like a private cinema.

In a collaboration between plane seating provider Safran and in-flight entertainment system provider RAVE Aerospace, a new plane suite with U-shaped TV screen and seat headrest speakers has been revealed.

Known as Origin, the suite’s will bring greater comfort to passengers with a giant screen that travels across the front and sides of the pod, essentially looking like a wraparound cinema screen.

The screen can be used for in-flight entertainment such as films, but can also be used as a wallpaper.

As such, the screen can show all sorts from the inside of a cafe to a cosy library, reports Flight Global.

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In addition to the screen, Origin has a number of other cool technologies.

For example, the suite has a temperature management system which allows passengers to create their own microclimate.

The seat also has Euphony, which is Safran’s headset-free audio system, meaning that there are speakers built in the headrest so passengers don’t have to plug in headphones.

The entire suite also has lighting that changes to match the screen’s visuals.

And the seat has cushions that have been made to improve comfort on long-haul flights.

The new concept was revealed at the annual Aircraft Interiors Expo in Hamburg and while the concept isn’t in any planes yet, the show often allows airlines to essentially ‘shop’ for future features of their service offering.

Ben Asmar, Vice President, Products and Strategy at RAVE Aerospace said: “Future display technologies are about more than just consuming content.

“They enable curated experiences, whether that’s deep immersion or the ability to escape into environments beyond the physical.”

Asmar added that the suite could be the future of premium travel and that it could be flying within the next five to 10 years.

Jean-Christophe Gaudeau, VP Marketing at Safran Seats said: “Our ambition is to redefine the future of premium travel.

“With Origin, we bring together seating innovation and future display technologies to create an immersive, adaptive environment that puts comfort, well‑being and passenger control at the forefront.”

Safran already has other seat designs on a number of airlines including Emirates, Japan Airlines, Air France, United Airlines and Air New Zealand.

Its designs usually include privacy doors, wireless charging and premium comfort.

In other flight news, there’s a new unusual double decker plane seat that could make economy travel much better.

Plus, a budget airline has axed all London flights to long-haul holiday destination despite only launching three years ago.

The International Monetary Fund has downgraded its global growth forecast for 2026 from 3.3 to 3.1 percent, citing the impact of the United States-Israeli war on Iran and the shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz on the world economy.

The war has damaged energy infrastructure across the Gulf, while critical exports like oil, gas, chemicals and fertiliser remain largely stranded by Iran’s shutdown of the strait and the subsequent US naval blockade of Iranian ports.

In the worst-case scenario of a prolonged war, the IMF said global growth could fall to 2.5 percent in 2026, with low-income and developing economies hit the hardest by soaring commodity and energy prices. The global shipping and logistics industry is facing a separate crisis.

But every economic crisis also has beneficiaries: despite the dire macroeconomic outlook, some corners of the global economy are thriving on the uncertainty.

Here’s a look at five industries that are doing well either despite – or because of – the darkening economic outlook.

Wall Street investment banks

Global investors have been on a rollercoaster since the start of US President Donald Trump’s second term last year. The president’s erratic decision-making, where he often issues an ultimatum one day and then changes it the next, has led traders to coin the term “TACO trade”, where TACO stands for “Trump Always Chickens Out”.

The recent volatility has made some investors anxious, but it’s been a boon to investment banks, which make millions in commissions and revenue from the surging volume of trade, according to Sean Dunlap, a director of equity research at Morningstar Research Services.

“Clients want to reposition, so they trade frequently,” he told Al Jazeera. “Spreads tend to increase, which increases the profitability for trade intermediaries like banks.”

First-quarter results for 2026 – released this week – showed that Morgan Stanley reported a profit of $5.57bn, up 29 percent year on year, while Goldman Sachs reported a profit of $5.63bn, up 19 percent year on year.

JP Morgan Chase also reported major gains, with first-quarter earnings of $16.49bn, up 13 percent year on year. The banks all cited high levels of trading, deal-making, and “robust client engagement” as the reasons behind surging profits.

The boomtime for banks could reverse course, however, if volatility persists for too long, Dunlap warned, because investors may become increasingly cautious and less willing to borrow money to make trades.

Prediction markets

As mainstream Wall Street banks reap profits, the crypto-based prediction platform Polymarket has been earning upwards of $1m a day since the start of the month by letting users make peer-to-peer bets on everything from sports tournaments to elections.

Polymarket has been doing well since the start of the war, but it revised its fee structure on March 30 to cash in even more on its popularity.

Rival platforms like Kalshi, Novig and Robinhood also follow the same business model, but Polymarket has been the standout winner of 2026 because it controversially allows users to bet on the outcome of conflicts like the Iran war.

Polymarket revised its fee structure on March 30 to cash in on its popularity. The change has already netted the platform more than $21m in fees since April 1, up from $11.6m for all of March and $6.23m for all of February, according to DefiLlama, a website that provides data analysis for decentralised finance platforms.

If the current trend continues, Polymarket could make $342m in fees this year alone, according to DefiLlama’s analysis.

Anonymous users have also made millions correctly predicting the dates of major events like the US-Iran ceasefire, but the outcomes for rank-and-file users are typically less impressive.

Researchers found that the top 1 percent of Polymarket users captured 84 percent of all trading gains, according to a new report released this month analysing 70 million trades from 2022 to 2025. The returns are so high that US federal regulators have pledged to crack down on insider trading in prediction markets following suspiciously well-timed bets on Iran war outcomes.

Aerospace and defence

Unsurprisingly, the aerospace and defence industries are booming this year due to major conflicts in Ukraine, Iran, Sudan, Gaza and Lebanon and a surge in global defence spending.

About half of the world’s countries have increased their military budgets over the past five years, according to an April report from the IMF, which means they are also buying everything from drones to missiles — more than ever before. Demand is growing particularly fast in Europe, where NATO countries have committed to raising defence spending to 5 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) by 2035.

The defence industry has, in turn, seen major gains on the stock market. The MSCI World Aerospace and Defence Index – which tracks aerospace and defence stocks across 23 global markets – reported net returns of 32 percent year on year at the end of March.

The defence index outpaced the MSCI World Index, which tracks 1,300 large and mid-cap companies across the same 23 markets. The index, which gives a broader overview of global stock markets, reported net returns of 18.9 percent over the same period.

Artificial intelligence

Last year, the United Nations Trade and Development (UNCTAD) office predicted that the AI industry would grow from $189bn in 2023 to $4.8 trillion by 2033, and the Iran war does not seem to have dented the outlook.

“Despite the shocks from the Iran war, we’re still seeing resilience in a lot of sectors like artificial intelligence and renewable energy,” said Nick Marro, lead analyst for global trade at the Economist Intelligence Unit.

One metric for the AI boom has been the high volume of semiconductor chips still being exported out of East Asia, he said. At the top of the chart is chipmaking powerhouse Taiwan, which reported record-breaking merchandise exports of $80.2bn in March, up 61.8 percent year on year, according to EIU analysis.

The surge was led by exports to the US, which grew by 124 percent year on year, the EIU said.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, the world’s top chipmaker better known by its acronym “TSMC,” on Thursday posted a net income of 572.8 billion New Taiwan Dollars (NTD) ($18.1bn) for the first three months of 2026 – up 58 percent year on year in NTD.

Another metric, initial public offerings or “IPOs,” also shows that the industry is confident for the moment, with industry leaders Anthropic and OpenAI both planning to go public this year.

Renewable energy

The Iran war has highlighted the need to transition from fossil fuels not only for environmental reasons, but also for reasons of energy security. The war marks the third major energy shock this decade, following the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The Iran war has “boosted” renewable energy “given the urgency to switch away from fossil fuels and diversify towards renewable sources,” Marro of the EIU said.

Even before the Iran war began, the International Energy Agency reported that global governments were already taking active measures to invest in renewable energy for geopolitical reasons.

According to an IEA report released this month, “150 countries have active policies to advance renewable and nuclear deployment, 130 have energy efficiency and electrification policies, and 32 have policies to incentivise supply chain resilience and diversification across critical minerals and clean energy technologies.”

The Iran war has triggered another flurry of policymaking in Asia, which typically buys 80 to 90 percent of the oil and gas that transits through the Strait of Hormuz. Since the shutdown, the region has been struggling to find alternative sources of energy, forcing governments to deploy emergency measures like fuel rationing and price caps.

South Korea, Thailand, India, Cambodia, Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines have all announced a variety of measures from tax breaks for at-home solar panels to commissioning new renewable energy projects – and even restarting nuclear reactors.

The surge in policymaking has been good for the renewable industry. The S&P Global Clean Energy Transition Index, which tracks 100 companies that produce solar, wind, hydro, biomass and other renewable energy across emerging and developed markets, is up 70.92 percent year on year.