Coffee is one of the few bright spots in the sluggish food and drinks sector

Politicians in California want listed companies based in the state to have at least one woman on their boards.

The state’s assembly voted in favour of the idea on Wednesday and the bill is expected to pass California’s senate, which has backed an earlier version.

It would then go to the Governor, Jerry Brown, who is yet to state his position.

Vodafone’s Australian operations will become part of a new telecoms giant.

Under a A$15bn ($11bn; £8bn) merger Vodafone Hutchison Australia and TPG Telecom will create a mobile, fixed-line and broadband provider with the scale to rival Telstra and Optus.

With construction continuing to boom, the state’s construction companies are continuing to struggle to find enough people to do the work.

According to the 2018 Workforce Survey released Wednesday by the Associated General Contractors of America, 85 percent of Nebraska construction firms reported difficulty in finding hourly craftspeople, the same number as last year.

Some foreign airlines have already started charging for carry-on bags to reduce boarding delays

Buckle up: Now that Air Canada and WestJet have hiked their checked bag fees for economy fares, some airline experts predict charges for carry-on luggage could be next.

“It’s only a matter of time,” said airline analyst, Fred Lazar. He believes higher checked bag fees will inspire even more people to stuff all their luggage into carry-on bags, prompting the two airlines to introduce carry-on charges to help stem the tide.

NEW YORK, N.Y. – As small business owners in Hawaii and California clean up following Hurricane Lane and wildfires, they’ll find there’s no one formula for recovery.

The same disaster can devastate businesses in divergent ways — a hurricane might tear the roof off one restaurant, flood another and leave a third with little damage.

The U.S. economy grew at a strong 4.2 per cent annual rate in the April-June quarter, the best showing in nearly four years, as growth stayed on track to produce its strongest full-year gain in more than a decade. Strength in business investment offset slightly slower consumer spending.

Technology companies lead the way as US indexes shake off a slow start and rise for the fourth day in a row.

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks climbed Wednesday, driven by gains for big technology companies and Amazon. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq finished at record highs for the fourth day in a row.

Oil hit a one-month high as energy stocks helped lift Canada’s main stock index slightly and investors watched for any positive signs from NAFTA negotiations.