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^FINANCIAL MARKETS

Asian stocks follow Wall Street higher on trade optimism

BEIJING (AP) — Asian stock markets followed Wall Street higher today on optimism about U.S.-Chinese talks on ending a tariff war.

The Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.9% and Tokyo's Nikkei 225 gained 1.2%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng advanced 2.4%.

Seoul's Kospi rose 1.0% and Sydney's S&P-ASX 200 added 0.9%. India's Sensex climbed 0.3% and markets in Taiwan, New Zealand and Southeast Asia also advanced.

Yesterday on Wall Street, the benchmark S&P 500 Index rose 0.6% to 2,938.13. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.6% to 26,496.67. The Nasdaq added 0.6% to 7,950.78.

^CHINA-TRADE

Trump says US-China trade talks are 'going very well'

WASHINGTON (AP) _ President Donald Trump says U.S.-China trade talks are going "very well" and that he would meet at the White House today with the leader of the Chinese negotiating team. Expectations were low that the negotiations would do much to resolve a 15-month trade battle, which is weighing on the global economy. Trump made the remarks as the first of an expected two days of talks wrapped up Thursday.

Chinese Vice Premier Liu He (hu as in ‘put’) is leading the delegation in the 13th round of negotiations with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin (mih-NOO'-shin).

The world's two biggest economies are deadlocked over U.S. allegations that China steals technology and pressures foreign companies to hand over trade secrets.

Under Trump, the United States has slapped tariffs on more than $360 billion worth of Chinese imports and is planning to hit another $160 billion Dec. 15. That would extend import taxes to virtually everything China ships to the United States. China has hit back by targeting about $120 billion in U.S. goods, focusing on farm products.

^GM STRIKE-LETTER

UAW letter to GM indicates that strike won't end quickly

DETROIT (AP) — General Motors Chief Executive Mary Barra has stepped into contract talks with striking auto workers, asking the union to wrap up outstanding issues and respond to a company offer made this week.

But in a letter to GM's top bargainer Thursday, United Auto Workers Vice President Terry Dittes (DIT-ez) wrote that there won't be a response to Monday's offer until committees working issues are finished. He didn't know how long that will take.

Details of the Wednesday meeting between Barra and top union bargainers were disclosed in the letter, which was obtained by The Associated Press. It's an indication that there won't be a quick end to the nearly monthlong strike by 49,000 workers that has halted production at all of GM's U.S. factories.

^WALMART-PERSONNEL

Walmart promotes Sam's Club CEO to top role at US stores

NEW YORK (AP) — Walmart says it is promoting the president and CEO of its Sam's Club division to lead the company's namesake stores in the U.S.

John Furner will succeed Greg Foran, who was in that role for five years and spearheaded a turnaround at Walmart's U.S. division, the company's largest with more than 4,700 stores. The move is effective Nov.1.

Foran, a native of New Zealand, is taking on the CEO role at Air New Zealand. He will be staying on with Walmart through Jan. 31.

Walmart's U.S. division has posted several years of consecutive quarterly sales gains under Foran's leadership.

^CALIFORNIA-POWER-OUTAGE-IMPACT

California businesses face reality of electrical outages

SONOMA, Calif. (AP) — The head of California's energy regulator has blasted Pacific Gas and Electric's communication and management around power massive shutoffs and said that this cannot be the new normal. PG&E has defended it decision, casting the blackouts as a matter of public safety aimed at preventing catastrophic wildfires.

All types of businesses, from hardware chains to coffee shops, are dealing with a new economic reality of electrical outages in Northern California.

Many are struggling to keep their businesses open after the nation's biggest utility Pacific Gas & Electric initially cut off power Wednesday to about a million people to mitigate the risk of wildfires as heavy winds sweep through. Power has been restored to some, but about 510,000 people in Northern California remain in the dark.

Home improvement chains Lowe's and Home Depot said their stores have been busy with people seeking generators, batteries and flashlights. But for many mom and pop outlets, it was even more of a struggle as they can't rely on sophisticated distribution centers to keep restocking shelves.

^BOEING-PLANE CRACKS

Cracks were found in a key structural part on 38 Boeing jets

UNDATED (AP) _ More than three dozen older Boeing 737 jets have been found to have structural cracking in a part that helps keep wings from falling off the plane. U.S. safety regulators ordered inspections of certain planes after cracks were found in some that were undergoing overhauls. It's another safety issue for Boeing, which is already facing the grounding of its newer 737 Max after two deadly crashes.

Boeing said Thursday that airlines worldwide have inspected 810 planes following an order from U.S. safety regulators, and 38 — or 5% — had "findings" that will require repairs.

Airlines are under orders to inspect certain Boeing 737 NG planes for cracking in a part that helps keep wings attached to the fuselage.

Boeing isn't identifying which airlines found problems, but Brazil's Gol grounded 11 planes and U.S.-based Southwest Airlines grounded two.

The NG is being replaced by the 737 Max, which has been grounded since March.

^NASA-SPACEX

NASA administrator explains Twitter spat with SpaceX

HAWTHORNE, Calif. (AP) _ NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine says a Twitter statement critical of SpaceX was a signal to all of the space agency's contractors that more realism needs to be built into development timelines. Bridenstine addressed the issue Thursday at a news conference after touring SpaceX headquarters in Hawthorne, California.

SpaceX is developing a capsule under NASA's commercial crew program to launch astronauts to the international space station so that the U.S. does not have to rely on Russian spacecraft.

But last month SpaceX founder Elon Musk staged a big event to show off a prototype of an unrelated rocket he calls the Starship.

Bridenstine tweeted ahead of time that the commercial crew program is years behind schedule and NASA "expects to see the same level of enthusiasm focused on the investments of the American people."

^VENEZUELA-GASOLINE-SHORTAGES

Venezuela's gas shortages stall ambulances in their tracks

SAN CRISTOBAL, Venezuela (AP) _ Ambulances have become the latest casualty of Venezuela's unraveling political and economic crisis, struggling to fuel up and speed away to emergencies as gasoline scarcities deepen.

Despite having the world's largest petroleum reserves, Venezuela is in the throes of a historic political and economic crisis that has caused severe gas scarcities.

First responders in the mountainous state of Tachira said this week they're now being stripped of priority service due to the work of smugglers who sneak Venezuela's dirt-cheap gas to Colombia for huge profits in a corrupt system run by smugglers.

There are reporters that officials overseeing filling stations have started turning away ambulances. Drivers were previously able to jump to the front of mile-long gas lines.