Prices surge: Oil prices soared today, extending their rebound after major oil-producing nations said they would accelerate planned production cuts to combat the dramatic slump in demand due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Reuters reports. Whether the accelerated cuts will be sufficient to offset weak demand is unclear. Read the full story.
Stalled: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has suspended a nationwide program used to approve oil and gas pipelines, power lines and other utility work, spurred by a court ruling that industry representatives warn could slow or halt numerous infrastructure projects over environmental concerns. Read the full story.
Data dealings: Amazon.com employees have used data about independent sellers on the company’s platform to develop competing products, a practice at odds with the company’s stated policies. The online retailing giant has long asserted, including to Congress, that when it makes and sells its own products, it doesn’t use the information it collects from the site’s individual third-party sellers—data those sellers view as proprietary. Yet interviews with more than 20 former employees of Amazon’s private-label business and documents reviewed by The Wall Street Journal reveal that employees did just that. Read the full story.
