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Busch Gardens Tampa Bay plans to spend about $40 million in theme park projects as well as an expansion of its Adventure Island water park.

That figure includes the Wild Oasis at Jungala attraction set to debut in May.

“The additions and improvements will be made across our infrastructure, operations, staff recruiting, equipment, as well as adding to our aesthetics with more beautiful gardens and plant life,”  Jeff Davis, park president, said in a news release.

“New animal arrivals are also in the plans, such as the reimaged meerkat habitat set to open this summer, to inspire awe and wonder for all who visit,” said Davis, who moved into his Busch Gardens role in February.

Legoland Florida preps, gets Peely for new global Lego Festival

Busch Gardens Tampa Bay is owned by Orlando-based United Parks & Resorts, which also operates SeaWorld Orlando, Discovery Cove and Aquatica water park in Central Florida.

Improvements to the park’s animal habitats will include a climbing structure for a new group of chimpanzees, a new barn for giraffes and accessibility features for the park’s geriatric Asian elephants. read more

By DAMIAN J. TROISE, AP Business Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — Uncertainty continues to hang over the latest round of financial results and forecasts for companies both big and small as they try to navigate a global trade system severely shaken by a shift in U.S. policy.

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  Europe saw stronger growth at start of year, but Trump’s tariffs have darkened outlook

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  Trump says US kids may get ‘2 dolls instead of 30,’ but China will suffer more in a trade war

Tariffs and the stark shift in policy has also shaken consumer and business confidence. The U.S. economy shrank during the first quarter of the year, its first drop in three years. Consumer spending ramped up in March, likely an effort to get ahead of tariffs, but fell for the entire quarter. Meanwhile, companies have been pulling back on hiring. read more

By DAVID McHUGH

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Europe’s economy grew more strongly in the first three months of the year, only to see hopes for an ongoing recovery quickly squelched by U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade war.

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Gross domestic product in the 20 eurozone countries grew 0.4% in the first quarter, improving on 0.2% growth in the last part of 2024, according to official figures released Wednesday by European Union statistics agency Eurostat.

But on April 2, just two days after the end of the quarter, Trump announced an onslaught of new tariffs on almost every U.S. trading partner and hit goods imported from the EU with a 20% tariff rate. That has led to widespread downgrading of Europe’s growth outlook for the year since its economy is heavily dependent on exports and the U.S. is its largest single export destination. read more

By JOSH BOAK

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Wednesday acknowledged that his tariffs could result in fewer and costlier products in the United States, saying American kids might “have two dolls instead of 30 dolls,” but he insisted China will suffer more from his trade war.

The Republican president has tried to reassure a nervous country that his tariffs will not provoke a recession, after a new government report showed the U.S. economy shrank during the first three months of the year.

Trump was quick to blame his Democratic predecessor, Joe Biden, for any setbacks while telling his Cabinet that his tariffs meant China was “having tremendous difficulty because their factories are not doing business,” adding that the U.S. did not really need imports from the world’s dominant manufacturer.

“You know, somebody said, ‘Oh, the shelves are going to be open,’” Trump continued, offering a hypothetical. “Well, maybe the children will have two dolls instead of 30 dolls. So maybe the two dolls will cost a couple bucks more than they would normally.” read more

NASA could soon have its new leader after a committee Wednesday advanced President Trump’s nomination of billionaire Jared Isaacman to get a confirmation vote by the full Senate.

The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation voted 19-9 to allow the two-time space traveler’s nomination to move forward. Isaacman testified before the committee on April 9 and won the support of both committee Chairman Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and the Ranking Member Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Washington.

The bipartisan support came after Isaacman told the committee that the Artemis missions to the moon would remain a priority despite Trump and SpaceX founder Elon Musk’s pushes to refocus on Mars.

Hearing could set up billionaire Isaacman for full Senate vote to lead NASA

“Mr. Isaacman is a successful entrepreneur with a bold, boundary-pushing vision for space exploration. As we heard at his nomination hearing earlier this month, (Isaacman said) ‘NASA was built to do the near impossible.’ I agree, but NASA’s plans for space must remain grounded in reality and align with our strategic interests,” Cruz said during opening comments. read more