A modest drop in mortgage rates over the past month has helped home builder confidence improve in January, after 12 consecutive months of falling, according to a survey released Wednesday. Experts say that could mean new home building is set for a pivot as construction…

When Jane Fraser became CEO of Citigroup nearly two years ago, in the middle of the pandemic, she established the kind of flexible hybrid work culture that’s mostly unheard of among elite Wall Street bankers. Although Fraser sees no need to return to the old…

The University of Texas at Austin blocked TikTok from its IT network on Wednesday under an earlier order by Gov. Greg Abbott banning the short-form video app from state-managed electronic resources. The move makes it impossible for users of TikTok to access the app, even…

Party City filed for bankruptcy protection Tuesday, weighed down by competition and years of financial losses. The largest party goods and Halloween specialty retail chain in the United States said in a regulatory filing that it reached an agreement with debtholders to cut its $1.7…

US retail sales continued to fall in December, dropping by 1.1% amid high inflation, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday. Economists had expected sales to fall 0.8% for the month, according to Refinitiv. The November number was revised down to -1%. Annual retail sales were up…

A version of this story first appeared in CNN Business’ Before the Bell newsletter. Not a subscriber? You can sign up right here. You can listen to an audio version of the newsletter by clicking the same link. The largest six banks in the United States…