Business Highlights: Oil price cap, captions everywhere

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Oil price cap could strike Russia’s war chest — if enforced

GARMISCH-PARTENKIRCHEN, Germany (AP) — Leaders of the world’s biggest developed economies are looking for ways to cut off Russian President Vladimir Putin’s oil money, which is helping finance the war against Ukraine. So far, many Western customers are simply shunning Russian oil. But Asian customers are picking up the slack, and Russia is still making money from oil despite selling at a discount as the price of crude has shot up. Members of the Group of Seven developed economies are looking at a price cap for oil that would fight energy inflation while cutting into Kremlin revenue. The big question is, can it be enforced?

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Qatar Energy to cut emissions as methane movement grows

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The state-owned oil and gas company Qatar Energy says it is joining a new industry initiative aiming to reduce nearly all methane emissions from their operations by 2030. It comes as part of a broader global push to tackle emissions from methane, or natural gas, which is the second most significant climate-changing gas after carbon dioxide, and a much more potent greenhouse gas than CO2. Technology has allowed energy companies, independent groups and citizen sleuths to monitor methane leakage with cameras, drones and satellites. With its pledge Monday, Qatar Energy joins an initiative launched in March by 12 other major oil and gas companies.

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Wall Street ends mixed after a day of wavering up and down

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks ended mixed after a day of wavering between gains and losses Monday as the market cools off following a rare winning week. The S&P 500 edged 0.3% lower, the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.2% and the Nasdaq fell 0.8%. Small-company stocks rose. Declines in technology and communication stocks, and in several big retailers and travel-related companies weighed on the market. Those losses checked gains in energy stocks and elsewhere. Treasury yields rose. Stocks closed out last week with solid gains and the S&P 500 had its best day in two years on Friday.

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Why captions are suddenly everywhere and how they got there

NEW YORK (AP) — People with hearing loss have long adopted technology to navigate the world, especially since hearing aids are expensive and inaccessible to many. Over the past several years, new options have exploded. Captions from apps like Otter have proven critical for people who needed to join online meetings, or even talk in person, especially when mask-wearing muffled speech during the pandemic. For others, captions have served as a helpful backstop. They are spreading beyond television to videoconferencing apps like Zoom, streaming services like Netflix, social media video on TikTok and YouTube, movie theaters and live arts venues and, of course, personal communications.

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Average US gasoline price drops 4 cents to $5.05 per gallon

CAMARILLO, Calif. (AP) — The average U.S. price of regular-grade gasoline fell by 4 cents in the past two weeks to $5.05 per gallon. Industry analyst Trilby Lundberg says it’s the first drop in nine weeks. She says oil prices fell sharply amid deepening global inflation fears. She also expects further drops. However, the average price at the pump as of Friday was still $1.90 higher than it was one year ago. Nationwide, the highest average price for regular-grade gas was in the San Francisco Bay Area, at $6.39 per gallon. The lowest average was in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, at $4.39 per gallon.

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Did corporate greed fuel inflation? It’s not biggest culprit

WASHINGTON (AP) — Furious about surging prices at the gasoline station and the supermarket, many consumers feel they know just where to cast blame: On greedy companies that relentlessly jack up prices and pocket the profits. Yet most economists say corporate price gouging is, at most, one of many causes of runaway inflation — and not the primary one. Others include: Supply disruptions at factories, ports and freight yards. Worker shortages. President Joe Biden’s enormous pandemic aid program. COVID 19-caused shutdowns in China. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. And, not least, a Federal Reserve that kept interest rates ultra-low longer than experts say it should have. Most of all, though, economists say resurgent spending drove inflation up.

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Credit Suisse fined for facilitating cocaine cash laundering

ZURICH (AP) — A Swiss court has fined Credit Suisse more than $2 million for failing to prevent money laundering linked to a Bulgarian criminal organization a decade-and-a-half ago. The court also ordered the confiscation of the equivalent of more than $12 million worth of deposits linked to the criminal group and opened with Credit Suisse. The bank is also on the hook for a compensatory claim of more than $19 million. That’s an amount the court said could not be confiscated due to the bank’s internal failures, which it said encouraged the money laundering. Zurich-based Credit Suisse said it will appeal the result.

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Frontier and Spirit stocks fall heading into key merger vote

DENVER (AP) — Shares of Frontier Airlines and Spirit Airlines have tumbled just days ahead of a crucial shareholder vote on their proposed merger. Frontier shares fell more than 11% and Spirit lost 8% on Monday. Frontier CEO Barry Biffle says he’s optimistic that Spirit shareholders will approve Frontier’s latest stock-and-cash offer for Spirit when they vote on Thursday. If the shareholders reject Frontier, it would help clear the way for JetBlue to swoop in and buy Spirit.

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The S&P 500 fell 11.63 points, or 0.3%, to 3,900.11. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 62.42 points, or 0.2%, to 31,438.26. The Nasdaq slipped 83.07 points, or 0.7%, to 11,524.55.The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 6.01 points, or 0.3%, to 1,771.74.