NIGHTLIFE
City of Boston to spend $300,000 boosting nighttime activities
Boston City Hall is looking to boost the local after-hours scene with a $300,000 investment in “nighttime activities.” The money from the Office of Nightlife Economy — split into 42 grants up to $10,000 — will support business improvement districts, cultural organizations, and event series. Among the grantees are a South End summer jazz series, a Roslindale pop-up opera, trivia nights, parades, and even a non-alcoholic beer garden. The events will span 13 neighborhoods and be open to the public. Corean Reynolds, the city-sanctioned night life czar, said in a statement that “by amplifying community-led solutions and supporting diverse and inclusive events across our neighborhoods, we aim to create a thriving nighttime economy that benefits all residents.” The city received 198 applications after the grants launched in April. — DITI KOHLI
DIGITAL HEALTH CARE
Amwell has laid off about 100 workers
Digital health care company Amwell disclosed that it has laid off more than 10 percent of its workforce, or about 100 workers, since the beginning of the year. The Boston company, which provides software for virtual doctors visits, said it expects to lose somewhat less money for the rest of the year as a result the cost-cutting effort. “We had a high degree of focus on cost-cutting initiatives in the first half of the year,” chief executive Ido Schoenberg said on a call with analysts on Wednesday evening. “We are beginning to deliver the significant savings and efficiencies that are part of our path to profitability.” Shares of Amwell jumped more than 40 percent Thursday. Still, the shares remain down from an adjusted peak of of $856 hit in January, 2021, when pandemic closures gave the company’s business a massive boost. But revenue — and the company’s stock price — have shrunk since 2022. A company spokeswoman confirmed the cuts. “In the past year, we’ve taken steps to calibrate our team to ensure we’re in the best possible position to meet the needs of our healthcare clients,” she said in an e-mail. The company employed 1,104 people at the end of 2023, according to its annual 10-K report. Amwell cut workers in its sales organization at the end of 2023 and in the first quarter of 2024, chief financial officer Robert Shepardson said on the call. More recent cuts have been in the sales support unit and in general and administrative positions. On Wednesday, Amwell said it expected to lose $145 million to $150 million for the year, excluding some costs. That reflected a $10 million improvement from the company’s initial 2024 forecast three months ago. But the company maintained its 2024 revenue forecast of $259 million to $269 million, which would demonstrate growth of up to 4 percent from 2023. — AARON PRESSMAN
MEDIA
CBS overhauls its evening news program
“CBS Evening News,” one of America’s longest-running newscasts, is getting a significant overhaul, one that will put the role of a singular and towering Walter Cronkite-like evening news anchor in the rearview mirror. Just two days after Norah O’Donnell announced that she would depart the show’s anchor chair this fall, CBS News executives said she would be replaced by John Dickerson, the network’s lead political analyst and the host of an evening CBS News streaming show, and Maurice DuBois, a longtime anchor for the CBS affiliate in New York. Additionally, the network named Lonnie Quinn, a local weather forecaster and DuBois’ colleague at WCBS-TV, the first-ever chief weathercaster for “Evening News.” Other veteran CBS journalists, such as Jim Axelrod, Steve Hartman, and Margaret Brennan, are expected to be regular presences on the show, as will other correspondents. DuBois and Quinn will continue in their local roles as well, the network said. — NEW YORK TIMES
PHARMACEUTICALS
Lilly’s weight-loss drug helps those with heart failure, study finds
Eli Lilly’s blockbuster Zepbound improved the long-term health of patients with obesity-related heart failure in a study, illuminating the cardiovascular benefits of the weight-loss shot. The risk of death, hospitalization, and other bad outcomes was 38 percent lower in patients given Zepbound compared to those who received a placebo, Lilly said Thursday. The drug also significantly reduced heart failure symptoms, including shortness of breath, fatigue, and an irregular heartbeat. The two-year trial involving more than 700 patients is part of Lilly’s broader effort to prove that Zepbound, already in high demand for its effects on body weight, can do more than just shrink waistlines. — BLOOMBERG NEWS
ENERGY
World’s deepest oil and gas well to be drilled in Colombia
The oil industry is pushing the limits of offshore exploration with plans to drill a record-setting deepwater well in Colombia within months. Occidental Petroleum and Ecopetrol are gearing up to plumb the depths of Colombia’s Caribbean waters in search of natural gas and oil. The plan is to drill the Komodo-1 well before the year is out in seas close to 13,000 feet deep. That’s equal to about 10 Empire State Buildings stacked on top of each other and would shatter the current water-depth record holder in Angola. — BLOOMBERG NEWS
WEIGHT LOSS
WeightWatchers laying off workers as obesity treatments change landscape
WW International Inc., better known as WeightWatchers, is laying off employees and cutting costs as it struggles to stay afloat in a new era of obesity treatment. The New York company will save about $100 million a year by streamlining its business and cutting an undisclosed number of jobs, WeightWatchers said Thursday. The company’s shares dropped by 5 percent in premarket trading. Shares have lost about 90 percent of their value this year as the escalating popularity of weight-loss treatments from Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk have decimated demand for its trademark diet plans. — BLOOMBERG NEWS
INTERNATIONAL
Bank of England cuts interest rates for first time since 2020
The Bank of England cut interest rates for the first time since early 2020 and signaled further cautious reductions ahead, offering some relief to households after a year of the UK’s highest borrowing costs for a generation. Governor Andrew Bailey’s casting vote clinched the quarter-point drop in the benchmark to 5 percent. The decision was “finely balanced” for some of those supporting the move, and opposed by a minority of four on the nine-member Monetary Policy Committee, according to minutes of the meeting. — BLOOMBERG NEWS
ELECTRIC VEHICLES
Nissan and Honda team up on EVs
Japanese automakers Nissan and Honda say they plan to share components for electric vehicles like batteries and jointly research software for autonomous driving. A third Japanese manufacturer, Mitsubishi Motors Corp., has joined the Nissan-Honda partnership, sharing the view that speed and size are crucial in responding to dramatic changes in the auto industry centered around electrification. — ASSOCIATED PRESS
MORTGAGES
Rates fell to lowest level since last winter
The average rate on a 30-year mortgage fell this week to its lowest level since early February, easing borrowing costs for prospective homebuyers facing record-high home prices. The rate fell to 6.73 percent from 6.78 percent last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday. A year ago, the rate averaged 6.9 percent. — ASSOCIATED PRESS