Bloomberg Southwest Airlines Co. said it would rescind plans to cut jobs and wages next year, now that new federal payroll support has been approved, averting what would have been the first worker layoffs in the carrier’s history. US airlines will receive $15 billion to pay workers as part of the package President Donald Trump signed into law on Sunday. …

Bloomberg Smaller Chinese companies and those in the retail industry are struggling to access credit amid a weak recovery in consumer spending, according to China Beige Book International (CBBI), a provider of independent economic data. Loan rejection rates for retail businesses increased to 38% in the final quarter of 2020 from 14% in the previous quarter, according to the latest …

Bloomberg Commercial drone use for deliveries and services is set to clear a major hurdle in the US as soon as this week with new requirements that most of the devices transmit a radio beacon with a digital license plate to help ensure safety and prevent misuse. All but the smallest drones will have to broadcast a radio signal identifying …

Bloomberg Ryanair Holdings Plc and Wizz Air Holdings Plc will take away the voting rights of shareholders outside of the European Union to ensure they comply with the bloc’s airline ownership rules after the Brexit transition. All non-EU nationals will lose their voting rights from January 1, Irish discounter Ryanair said on Tuesday in a statement. Hungarian rival Wizz said …

Bloomberg French retailers called for government support after sales failed to rebound fully from a second lockdown, suggesting measures to fight the coronavirus pandemic are changing consumer patterns. Despite a good pick-up in spending thanks to Black Friday discounts and year-end purchases, many clothing, shoe, jewelry, beauty-product and perfume retailers face a drop in revenue of more than 20% in …

Bloomberg Burundi will relaunch a state-owned airline next year, more than a decade after the failure of its erstwhile carrier, Air Burundi. The state will hold a 92% stake in Burundi Airlines, which will be the latest carrier to enter East African skies after the introduction of Uganda Airlines and the revamping of Air Tanzania Co. A Belgian company will …

Bloomberg A European Central Bank (ECB) push to make it easier for the region’s chronically unprofitable banks to merge is facing opposition from some national regulators, with one top official warning it could backfire and damage the integration of the financial system. Proposals by ECB supervisory board chair Andrea Enria to give banks more freedom to source funds in one …

Bloomberg Sheila Patel, chairman of Goldman Sachs Group Inc.’s asset-management unit, is leaving the $1.8 trillion division after almost two decades at the firm. Patel, 51, is among the company’s most senior women and shepherded some of Goldman’s highest-profile relationships with investors around the world. She will step down from the partnership and become an advisory director in the new …

Bloomberg Goldman Sachs Group Inc. is leading a $65 million financing in Echelon Fitness, giving the bank and another investor a controlling stake in a maker of exercise machines as more people work out at home amid the pandemic. The Chattanooga, Tennessee-based company competes with Peloton Interactive Inc., Lululemon Athletica Inc.’s Mirror, Tonal, Tempo, Icon’s NordicTrack, Hydrow and other connected …

Bloomberg Wells Fargo & Co. agreed to sell its $10 billion private student loan book to a group including Apollo Global Management Inc. and Blackstone Group Inc., according to reports. Wells Fargo said in a statement that it had agreed to the sale, without identifying the investors or disclosing terms. Apollo and Blackstone were the purchasers, the people said, asking …