This year showed the world just how sheltered the U.S. economy is from geopolitical and health crises around the world. As The Associated Press puts it in its new overview of the top business stories of the year: “The global economy sputtered, but the U.S. powered ahead.”
Employers are finally hiring enough to lower unemployment. A plunge in gas prices and a rising stock market has Americans feeling richer and spending a bit more. Those are some of the top business stories of 2014, as chosen by business editors at The AP.
Others include massive product disasters: A string of auto recalls after faulty ignition switches from General Motors Corp. and air bags in many car models caused injuries and deaths. Hackers stole personal information from millions of people in a wave of breaches at stores, banks, a movie studio and other organizations.
We’re also becoming increasingly dependent on our phones and tablets, using them to communicate, play and pay. Meanwhile, Janet Yellen became the first woman to head the Federal Reserve, and U.S. workers won higher pay as cities and states across the country raised the minimum hourly wage.
Corporate deal-making was also in the spotlight. Companies acquired each other at a level not seen since 2007, the year the Great Recession began, while a burst of businesses went public. See The AP’s complete top 10 business stories of 2014.
