The daily business briefing: May 8, 2023

1. Yellen: 'No good options' if Congress doesn't raise debt ceiling

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Sunday there are "simply no good options" to resolve the looming debt-limit crisis other than a vote by Congress to raise the borrowing cap. Yellen said on ABC's This Week that invoking the 14th Amendment, which says the validity of public debt "shall not be questioned," would lead to "a constitutional crisis." Constitutional scholars disagree on whether the provision would allow the Biden administration to keep issuing debt beyond the current cap, which the government will hit in June. "It's Congress's job to do this," Yellen said. "If they fail to do it, we will have an economic and financial catastrophe that will be of our own making."

Bloomberg

2. Biden administration to propose making airlines compensate passengers for controllable delays

The Biden administration on Monday plans to announce a proposed rule requiring airlines to compensate passengers for "controllable airline cancellations" and delays. "When an airline causes a flight cancellation or delay, passengers should not foot the bill," Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said in a statement. "This rule would, for the first time in U.S. history, propose to require airlines to compensate passengers and cover expenses such as meals, hotels, and rebooking in cases where the airline has caused a cancellation or significant delay." The 10 biggest airlines currently guarantee meals and free rebooking; nine guarantee hotel accommodations for preventable cancellations or delays.

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CNN USA Today

3. 'Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3' debuts at No. 1

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 brought in $114 million in domestic ticket sales over the weekend, kicking off the summer movie season with the second-biggest opening of the year behind The Super Mario Bros. Movie's $146 million debut. Guardians Vol. 3 is the 32nd consecutive Marvel release to launch at the top of the domestic box office. It was a strong start for Marvel's conclusion of the trilogy from director James Gunn about an extraterrestrial crew of zany but heroic misfits. Vol. 3's debut came in just under an expected $120 million and short of its 2017 predecessor, but it did better than the first Guardians in 2014. "The bar is set so high for Marvel that at $114 million, it might reflect some superhero market fatigue," said Comscore analyst Paul Dergarabedian.

Variety The Wall Street Journal

4. Stocks little changed after Friday's surge

U.S. stock futures were mixed early Monday as investors await key inflation data coming out this week. Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 were up 0.2 percent and 0.1 percent, respectively, at 6:45 a.m. ET. Nasdaq futures were down 0.1 percent. Regional bank stocks, which have been dragged down recently by concerns about their financial health, rebounded, with struggling PacWest jumping 37 percent after the lender slashed its dividend. Over the weekend, billionaire investor Warren Buffett said at Berkshire Hathaway's annual meeting that bank deposits should be safe. Stocks were volatile last week. On Friday, the Dow and the S&P 500 gained 1.7 percent and 1.9 percent, respectively. The tech-heavy Nasdaq surged by 2.3 percent.

CNBC

5. 27 die in fire inside Peru gold mine

At least 27 people were killed in a fire that broke out in a gold mine in Peru, officials said Sunday. As few as two people were rescued from what authorities described as the South American nation's worst mining accident in decades. Investigators suspect an electrical short circuit started the blaze in La Esperanza mine in Peru's Arequipa region. The miners were believed to have been working about 330 feet underground when the fire started. The small mining company in charge of the operation, Yanaquihua, did not immediately comment. Peru produces more than 100 tons of gold per year, about 4 percent of the world's annual supply.

BBC News