The daily business briefing: November 21, 2018

1. CDC warns against eating romaine lettuce due to E. coli outbreak

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Tuesday warned consumers not to eat romaine lettuce, saying it is unsafe due to an outbreak of illnesses from a dangerous type of E. coli contamination. The CDC said consumers should throw away any romaine they have already purchased, and refrain from buying more until the alert is lifted. Restaurants are advised not to serve the lettuce, and stores are on notice not to sell it. The warning applies to all romaine lettuce, no matter where it was grown. Thirty-two people in 11 states have fallen ill from eating contaminated romaine. Thirteen of them have been hospitalized, one with a form of kidney failure. Eighteen people in Canada have been infected with the same strain of E. coli.

The Washington Post

2. Glamour magazine to end print publication to focus on website

Publisher Conde Nast announced Tuesday that it would end regular print publication of Glamour magazine. The company said it would continue to print occasional special editions of Glamour, including its annual Women of the Year award or topics such as power and money, but would focus its efforts on its website. The monthly magazine's circulation has held steady at around 2.2 million over the last three years, but its web traffic has risen by 12 percent to 6.3 million monthly unique viewers since digital journalist Samantha Barry took over as the magazine's top editor in January. "It's where the audiences are, and it's where our growth is," Barry told The New York Times in an interview. "That monthly schedule, for a Glamour audience, doesn't make sense anymore."

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The New York Times

3. Stock futures edge up after Tuesday's plunge

U.S. stock-index futures rose early Wednesday, pointing to a higher open after Tuesday's heavy losses. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average were up by 0.4 percent, while those of the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq-100 gained 0.3 percent and 0.6 percent, respectively. The Dow dropped by 550 points or 2.2 percent on Tuesday. The S&P 500 lost 1.8 percent, and the Nasdaq Composite fell by 1.7 percent. All three are now in negative territory for 2018. Stocks have faced ongoing pressure over fears of slowing growth, rising interest rates, and ongoing trade tensions. Tech giants, including Apple and Amazon, led Tuesday's declines. Retailer Target added to concerns about the economy's strength on Tuesday, reporting third-quarter sales and profit that fell short of Wall Street expectations.

MarketWatch The New York Times

4. Severance fund set up for former Toys 'R' Us workers

Bain Capital and KKR, two of the three companies that took over Toys 'R' Us in 2005, said Tuesday that they would contribute $10 million each to a fund for employees who were laid off without severance. Toys 'R' Us closed 735 stores earlier this year, leaving more than 30,000 people without work. Under a working payment plan, eligible former workers would get at least $200, and as much as $12,800. Worker advocates say the fund is $55 million short of the amount needed to provide severance called for in long-established policies at the iconic retailer, which declared bankruptcy in September 2017.

CBS News

5. Ghosn's detention extended as Nissan considers replacement

Japanese media reported Wednesday that Nissan chairman Carlos Ghosn's detention has been extended for another 10 days following his arrest on suspicion of under-reporting $44.6 million of income from 2011 to 2015, and misusing company assets for personal gain. The Japanese auto maker's board of directors is scheduled to meet Thursday to decide on a proposal to oust Ghosn and another director, Greg Kelly, who also was arrested Monday on suspicion of collaborating in financial misconduct. A conviction for violating finance and exchange laws could result in up to 10 years in prison, a 10 million yen ($89,000) fine, or both. Analysts said they doubted the scandal would have much impact on Nissan auto sales.

The Associated Press