Amazon vendors doubled prices last year on 136 products considered essential for consumers, health providers and small businesses during the coronavirus pandemic, according to a new report.

The U.S. Public Interest Research Group Education Fund report released Thursday analyzed prices of 750 “essential supplies” such as toilet paper, pulse oximeters and hand sanitizers sold over the online retail site from Dec. 1, 2019 through Dec. 1, 2020.

Sellers of 409 products raised prices more than 20% over the past year. Another 136 items doubled in price, according to the report.

U.S. PIRG officials acknowledge price increases can be inevitable when demand spikes but said states should enact or enforce price-gouging laws and the online retailer should take aggressive steps to protect consumers.

“Amazon has done a lot to combat price gouging on their site,” said Grace Brombach, a U.S. PIRG Education Fund consumer watchdog associate who

The Consumer Electronics Show known for crowds, sensory-overload, and deal-making is relying on technology it has long hawked to put pizzazz into its first virtual event, kicking off Monday.

The deadly pandemic that has derailed in-person conferences around the world during the past year forced the Consumer Technology Association to follow suit with an online version of the annual gathering in Las Vegas.

“CES is one of the most experiential events in the world, where attendees can actually see and touch and experience the latest innovations,” CTA spokeswoman Jean Foster said during a briefing ahead of the show.

“And while we can’t recreate that magic that happens in Las Vegas, we can bring our audiences a new and unique

Westjet, Canada’s second largest airline, announced Friday temporary layoffs of as many as 1,000 staff as demand for flights dropped off with the sudden introduction of stricter Canadian entry rules to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus.

The carrier said it will have to cut 230 flights per week in February and March, reducing its capacity by almost one-third, citing “volatile demand” and “instability in the face of continuing federal government travel advisories and restrictions.”

As of Thursday, air travellers have been required to show a negative test for the COVID-19 illness before being allowed to board a flight to Canada. They must also quarantine for 14 days upon arrival.

“Immediately following

European plane maker Airbus said Friday that it garnered just 268 net new orders last year, a drop of 65 percent year-on-year reflecting persistent fears about the prospects for air travel amid the coronavirus crisis.

The new orders take into account 115 cancellations as airlines scaled back their ambitions because of uncertainty about how long international travel restrictions will remain in place.

Deliveries of completed Airbus planes also suffered, falling 34 percent to 566 planes last year.

“Based on our 2020 deliveries, we are cautiously optimistic as we look into 2021, although challenges and uncertainties remain high in the short term,” chief executive Guillaume Faury said in a statement.

The company scaled back production at its factories by 40 percent last spring, and Faury said in October that

The popular messaging app WhatsApp asked its some two billion users on Thursday to accept new terms that will allow it to share more information with its parent company Facebook and roll out advertising and e-commerce.

The update sparked criticism among users as they must accept the changes or see their access to the service—which also allows encrypted voice and video calls—cut off from February 8.

Facebook aims to monetise WhatsApp by allowing businesses to contact their clients via the platform, even sell them products directly using the service as they already do in India.

“Privacy policy and terms updates are common in the industry and we’re providing users with ample notice to review the changes, which go into effect on February 8th,” a Facebook spokesperson said.

“All users need to accept the new terms

Canadian airline WestJet said Wednesday it plans to return its passenger fleet of Boeing 737 MAX aircraft to the skies this month, nearly two years ago after their worldwide grounding following two crashes that killed 346 people.

“Our first MAX will be ready to return safely to service as of January 21,” company president Ed Sims said in a statement.

The return to service, however, is conditional on regulators reopening Canadian airspace to the jetliner, a decision expected this month after Boeing addressed technical issues and improved pilot training on the MAX.

In December, the Canadian government announced that it had validated changes made to the design of the aircraft used by domestic carriers Air Canada, WestJet and Sunwing.

“While we don’t have final confirmation on when (Transport Canada) will open Canadian