Business briefs: Uber announces CdA, Idaho Falls launch

Coeur d’Alene residents can now grab a lift from the ride-sharing service Uber.

The company announced that it launched its service Thursday in Coeur d’Alene and Idaho Falls. The launch follows the Idaho Legislature’s decision this year to prevent local governments from regulating companies like Uber that offer a crowd-sourced alternative to taxis. A bill giving ride-sharing companies the authority to regulate themselves, which was opposed by Coeur d’Alene, Boise and the Association of Idaho Cities, became law without Gov. Butch Otter’s signature in April. Since then, Uber has given tens of thousands of rides in Idaho, according to a news release from the company.

Spokane signed agreements with Uber and one of its main competitors, Lyft, last year regulating insurance coverage and what vehicles may be hired under the umbrella of the company, which allows users to catch a ride using a smartphone application. The companies both pay Spokane a 10-cent-per-ride fee to cover “administrative and regulatory costs.”

IMF to Fed: Delay rate hikes

WASHINGTON – What’s the hurry?

The International Monetary Fund on Thursday urged the Federal Reserve to put off raising short-term interest rates until next year because the U.S. economy still needs help.

In its yearly checkup of the United States, the IMF predicted the American economy would grow just 2.5 percent this year, down from its April forecast of 3.1 percent. The downgrade reflects the economy’s stumbling start to the year: Gross domestic product fell the first three months of 2015, tripped up by harsh winter weather and the export-killing strength of the dollar.

U.S. productivity falls

WASHINGTON – U.S. worker productivity declined more sharply in the first three months of the year than previously thought, while labor costs rose more quickly.

Productivity fell at a 3.1 percent rate in the first quarter, a bigger drop than the 1.9 percent decline estimated a month ago, the Labor Department reported Thursday. Labor costs rose at a 6.7 percent rate in the first quarter, faster than the 5 percent rise first estimated.

Cruises focus on volunteering

NEW YORK – Carnival Corp. announced a new concept in cruising Thursday: service trips where passengers sail to a destination in order to volunteer there.

Carnival launched a new brand, fathom, to handle the trips. The first voyage will be a seven-day trip from Miami to the Dominican Republic in April 2016 on a ship that carries 710 passengers.

Passengers will get orientations, basic Spanish lessons and other training en route, and can choose from activities in the Puerto Plata region of the Dominican Republic ranging from teaching English to building water filters to cultivating cacao plants for a women’s chocolate-making cooperative. The trips will take place on a regular basis in order to have a “sustained impact and lasting development,” according to a statement from Carnival.

Trip prices start at $1,540 a person.

Chrysler admits recall errors

DETROIT – Fiat Chrysler has admitted that it missed legal deadlines to notify customers in five safety recalls, a pattern that could bring a fine from U.S. safety regulators.

But the company, in documents posted Thursday, said it’s taking steps to improve recall completion and notification rates and shouldn’t be subjected to a July 2 public hearing on its safety performance scheduled by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.