___

1.9 million seek jobless aid even as reopenings slow layoffs

WASHINGTON (AP) — Nearly 1.9 million people applied for U.S. unemployment benefits last week, evidence that many employers are still cutting jobs even as the gradual reopening of businesses has slowed the pace of layoffs. The total number of people who are receiving jobless aid rose slightly to 21.5 million, down from a peak of nearly 25 million two weeks ago but still at a historically high level. It shows that scattered rehiring is offsetting only some of the ongoing layoffs with the economy mired in a recession. The latest weekly number is still more than double the record high that prevailed before the viral outbreak.

___

China easing airline access amid conflict with Washington

BEIJING (AP) — Chinese regulators say more foreign airlines will be allowed to fly to China as anti-coronavirus controls ease. But it was unclear whether that will defuse a fresh conflict with the Trump administration over air travel. Washington said earlier it would bar four Chinese airlines from the United States because Beijing was failing to allow United Airlines and Delta Air Lines to resume flights to China. The dispute adds to U.S.-Chinese strains over trade, technology, Taiwan, human rights and the status of Hong Kong.

___

Vegas, baby! Casinos reopen after long coronavirus closure

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Mask use was spotty among customers as casinos in Las Vegas and throughout Nevada reopened Thursday for the first time since March. Downtown and suburban casinos were first to open after midnight, and Las Vegas Strip resorts opened later in the morning in a nod to recent nighttime protests over the death of George Floyd. Employees wore masks, but not many customers, at about a dozen places that one casino devotee visited in a self-appointed mission to visit every reopened site in Las Vegas. Gambling was shut down for 78 days in a bid to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

___

Study: Autonomous vehicles won’t make roads completely safe

DETROIT (AP) — A new study says that while autonomous vehicle technology has great promise to reduce crashes, it may not be able to prevent all crashes caused by humans. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety study questions whether self-driving cars will be able to prevent all crashes now blamed on human error. It says that while autonomous vehicles eventually will identify hazards and react faster than humans, and they won’t get distracted, that’s only enough to prevent about one-third of roadway crashes.

___

You’re not the only one skeptical of the stock market rally

NEW YORK (AP) — Much of Wall Street is still skeptical of the huge surge for stocks over the last two months. Stocks have a long history of making big gains within long-term down markets, only for the bottom to give out again. Such mini rallies were regular occurrences during the Great Depression, and they’ve been recurring in some of the most recent downturns. While many analysts don’t expect stocks to fall all the way back to their lows set in March, much of Wall Street says the recent climb for stocks may be setting investors up for disappointment, with rougher times likely to come.

___

Wall Street pauses, and S&P 500′s 4-day winning streak snaps

NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street paused on Thursday, and the S&P 500 fell 0.3% for its first loss in five days. Stocks that had held steadiest through this year’s feverish swings gave back some of their gains, with losses for technology and health care companies weighing most heavily on the market. A report showed that the number of U.S. workers filing for unemployment benefits eased for a ninth straight week. But economists saw pockets of disappointment after the total number of people getting benefits rose slightly.

—-

European Central Bank nearly doubles pandemic support scheme

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — The European Central Bank has boosted its pandemic emergency support program by 600 billion euros to 1.35 trillion euros ($1.5 trillion) in an effort to keep affordable credit flowing to the economy during the steep downturn caused by the virus outbreak. The move announced Thursday is an effort to keep affordable credit flowing to the economy during the steep downturn caused by the virus outbreak. The central bank for the 19 countries that use the euro also extended the monetary stimulus program to at least the end of June next year, from the end of 2020 currently.

___

American Airlines soars on Wall Street on upbeat flight plan

DALLAS (AP) — American Airlines soared on Wall Street after announcing that it will add back flights in July as it bets on a continued recovery in air travel. American said Thursday it plans to operate 55% of its normal schedule of U.S. flights in July. That’s up from a 20% operation in April and May. Demand for foreign trips is expected to remain slow, however, and American is only planning to run one-fifth of its international schedule in July. American’s stock rose 41%, its biggest one-day percentage gain since the current company was formed by a 2013 merger with US Airways. Other airline stocks rose too.

___

The S&P 500 lost 10.52 points, or 0.3%, to 3,112.35. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 11.93 points, or less than 0.1%, to 26,281.82, and the Nasdaq composite fell 67.10, or 0.7%, to 9,615.81. The Russell 2000 index of smaller-company stocks ended little changed at 1,452.06.