WhatsApp outage fixed by Meta

WhatsApp, the instant messaging service owned by Meta Platforms Inc. said it fixed an issue that caused a widespread outage, with tens of thousands of users reporting problems.

A spokesperson for Meta said the “brief outage was a result of a technical error on our part.”

Nearly 70,000 users reported disruptions including not being able to send messages or connect to the server, data from Down Detector showed on Tuesday morning.

Consumer doubt grew in October

U.S. consumer confidence fell in October by more than expected to a three-month low as widespread inflation and growing concerns about the economic outlook weighed on Americans.

The Conference Board’s index decreased to 102.5 from a 107.8 reading in September, data out Tuesday showed.

The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for a drop to 105.9.

A measure of expectations – which reflects consumers’ six-month outlook – dropped to 78.1, while the group’s gauge of current conditions plunged to 138.9, the lowest since April 2021.

The pullback in confidence underscores how high prices across the economy and growing concerns that aggressive interest-rate hikes by the Federal Reserve will tip the U.S. into recession are weighing on consumers.

Offices remain largely vacant

Many offices in the nation’s biggest cities are still less than half full, more than a month after employers ramped up campaigns to cajole or compel workers back to their desks more often.

The 10-city average occupancy rate for the week ended Oct. 19 was 47.9%, according to security firm Kastle Systems, while New York came in slightly under that at 46.5%.

Both figures were below the previous week’s tally, but those numbers were inflated as Kastle didn’t include data for the federal holiday that fell on Monday, Oct. 10.

Monday is a popular day to work from home, so excluding it resulted in a boost for the resulting four-day week ended Oct. 12, a Kastle representative said.

The Kastle numbers, while not fully capturing all return-to-office activity in cities like New York, have become an informal barometer of so-called RTO progress.

From wire reports

Kastle also disclosed additional figures on which days of the week attract the most office visits.

Tuesday is the most popular day across the 10 cities surveyed, followed closely by Wednesday and Thursday, while Friday is the day most people work from home.