Investors breathed a sigh of relief Friday that President Trump’s blistering critique of China’s crackdown on Hong Kong dissidents did not include a threat to blow up U.S.-Chinese trade, propelling the three major U.S. indexes to their second consecutive month in the plus column. Get a curated selection of 10 of our best stories in your inbox every weekend. The Dow Jones industrial average ended Friday at 25,383.11, about even on the day, after plunging as much as 300 points on fears of a...

The worst unemployment report in American history screamed across computer and television screens Friday morning, announcing that a breathtaking 20.5 million Americans lost their jobs in April. The next 60 seconds saw the Dow Jones industrial average jump, a 300-point pop that extended through the opening bell and into afternoon trading. The Standard & Poor's index 500, a broader indicator of corporate America, likewise surged roughly 1.4 percent. Stocks held onto their gains and pushed them...

Add food habits to list of societal and economic changes wrought by coronavirus lockdowns. Packaged grocery brands that had run up against Americans’ growing preference for fresh and private-label foods are seeing a resurgence as iconic brands like Goldfish, Oreos, Campbell’s Soup and Doritos fill the pantries of homebound consumers in search of small pleasures. Major processed food companies such as General Mills, ConAgra, Kellogg and Campbell’s are among the suppliers whose snacks, canned...

Add food habits to a list of societal and economic changes wrought by the coronavirus lockdowns. Packaged grocery brands that had run up against Americans’ growing preference for fresh and private-label foods are seeing a resurgence as iconic brands such as Goldfish, Oreos, Campbell Soup and Doritos fill the pantries of homebound consumers in search of small pleasures. Major processed-food companies such as General Mills, ConAgra, Kellogg and Campbell’s are among suppliers whose snacks,...

A crash in oil prices unleashed by the coronavirus lockdown hammered global stocks Tuesday and opened another battlefront for pandemic-battered economies. A global oil glut sent prices so low Monday that sellers holding U.S. crude contracts paid buyers as much as $30 per barrel to take it off their hands. The collapse went international Tuesday, with futures prices for the global benchmark, Brent crude, dropping to a fraction of the $50 or so needed for a producer to make money. It was an...