Consumers borrowed 19.6% less in April

WASHINGTON — U.S. consumer borrowing plunged in April as households fretted about the disruptions caused by the coronavirus pandemic and cut back on their use of credit.

The Federal Reserve reported Friday that total borrowing fell by $68.8 billion, or 19.6 percent. That was the biggest one-month decline in percentage terms since the end of World War II.

Borrowing in the category that includes credit cards fell by $58.3 billion, or 64.9 percent, a record decline in a series that began in 1968. Borrowing in the category that covers auto loans and student loans fell by $10.5 billion, or 4 percent.

Economists believe consumers will keep cutting back on their borrowing for the rest of this quarter, reflecting an overall economy that is expected to shrink by at a record annual rate of around 40 percent during this period.

The Trump administration is expecting a sharp rebound in the second half of this year but many economists are concerned that those hopes could be derailed if coronavirus cases begin rising sharply as the country tries to re-open.

US to allow some Chinese flights

WASHINGTON — The Trump administration said Friday it will let Chinese airlines operate a limited number of flights to the U.S., backing down from a threat to ban the flights.

The decision came one day after China appeared to open the door to U.S. carriers United Airlines and Delta Air Lines resuming one flight per week each into the country.

The Transportation Department said it will let Chinese passenger airlines fly a combined total of two round-trip flights per week between the U.S. and China, which it said would equal the number of flights that China's aviation authority will allow for U.S. carriers.

China's embassy in Washington did not respond to messages seeking comment.

Canada jobs report an upbeat surprise

OTTAWA, Ontario — Statistics Canada reported Friday the Canadian economy added 289,600 jobs in May, with businesses reopening amid easing public health restrictions.

The unemployment rate rose to a record high of 13.7 percent, topping the previous high of 13.1 percent set in December 1982 in more than four decades of comparable data. The increase in the unemployment rate came as more people started looking for work.

Some economists had predicted a loss of 500,000 jobs in May and an unemployment rate of 15 percent according to financial markets data firm Refinitiv.

The increase in the number of jobs comes after three million jobs were lost over March and April, and about 2.5 million more workers had their hours slashed.

Statistics Canada said the number of people who worked less than half their usual hours fell by 292,000 in May.

Reddit co-founder quits, urges black successor

SAN FRANCISCO — Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian announced his resignation from the board of the social media site and urged the board to replace him with a black candidate.

Ohanian implicitly linked his move to protests around the globe over the killing of George Floyd, who died in Minneapolis after a police officer pressed his knee against his neck for several minutes, even after he stopped pleading for air and became unresponsive.

The entrepreneur, who is married to tennis star Serena Williams, said he made the decision for the sake of his daughter.

"I'm writing this as a father who needs to be able to answer his black daughter when she asks: "What did you do?," Ohanian said in a blog post. He pledged to use future gains on his Reddit stock to "serve the black community, chiefly to curb racial hate."

He also said he would give $1 million to Colin Kaepernick's Know Your Rights Camp. Former NFL player Kaepernick is known for kneeling to protest police brutality and racism in 2016.

Reddit calls itself "the front page of the internet" and has millions of users.

German factory orders take a big dive

BERLIN — Factory orders in Germany plunged even more than anticipated in April, underlining the effect the coronavirus pandemic has had on Europe's largest economy and one of South Carolina's most important trading partners.

The Economy Ministry said Friday that industrial orders dropped 25.8 percent in April over the previous month, in figures adjusted for seasonal and calendar effects.

Economists had been predicting a 19.9 percent drop for April, which is thought to have been the worst month of the economic deterioration ascribed to the pandemic and lockdown measures meant to slow its spread.

The decline followed a 15 percent drop already in March, and suggests lean times ahead for German industry.

Germany is already in a recession and the government's economic advisers are predicting a contraction of between 6 percent and 7 percent in 2020.

La-Z-Boy to close factory in Miss.

NEWTON, Miss. — A Michigan-based furniture maker is announcing the closure of its Mississippi manufacturing plant.

La-Z-Boy Inc. on Thursday said would permanently close its upholstery manufacturing facility in Newton.

The company aims to reduce its global workforce, The Meridian Star reported.

The Monroe, Michigan-based firm cited the impact of the coronavirus pandemic in its decision.

The Mississippi plant was built in 1960 and employs about 300 people, the newspaper reported. It manufactures La-Z-Boy recliners and sofas.

La-Z-Boy said the Mississippi plant's production will be shifted to the company's plants in Dayton, Tennessee; Neosho, Missouri; and Siloam Springs, Arkansas.

Wire reports