San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
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In a week when Tesla stunned the world by posting a fourth consecutive profitable quarter, this also happened:
The Commerce Department reported that sales of new homes rose 13.8% in June, the second straight increase after two months when sales plunged during shutdowns because of the coronavirus. The June gain pushed sales of new homes to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 776,000, but that is still roughly 20% below pre-pandemic levels. A separate report showed that sales of previously owned homes surged 20.7% in June to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.72 million. Delta Air Lines will provide at-home coronavirus tests for some employees and Southwest Airlines will tighten its rule on face masks by ending exceptions for medical reasons. Those moves come as airlines try to reassure passengers and their employees about safety during a pandemic that has made many people afraid to fly. Delta will expand coronavirus testing at its hub airports and provide at-home tests for its employees in Florida and
Texas. Southwest will require all passengers older than 2 to wear masks.
McDonald’s will be requiring customers to wear face coverings when entering its U.S. restaurants. The rule will go into effect Saturday. It joins companies issuing mask mandates recently, including Starbucks, Walmart, Target, Best Buy and Kohl’s.
The New York Times agreed to buy Serial Productions, the company behind the hit podcast “Serial,” the paper’s latest move to broaden its digital journalism. The arrangement will allow Serial Productions to increase the number of shows it makes, said Julie Snyder, executive editor of Serial Productions. The Times will promote the shows on its website, in its newsletters and through its other channels. The Times paid about $25 million for the company, according to a person with knowledge of the deal.
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