RETAIL
L.L. Bean to open Boston store on April 6
Area customers of L.L. Bean won’t have to drive far to buy duck boots and brushed fleece pullovers. The New England outdoor retailer is opening its first urban retail store in Boston on April 6. The 8,600-square-foot store at One Seaport will sell casual and active apparel, footwear, and outdoor gear. Doors will open at 9 a.m., and the first 100 customers in line will receive a store gift card worth up to $500. Red Sox legends Jim Rice and Luis Tiant will be at the event, which coincides with Red Sox opening weekend. The Maine-based company said it is excited to have its first city store in Boston, citing the ‘‘outdoor spirit’’ of Bostonians as one of its reasons for choosing the location. L.L. Bean’s sales dipped slightly over the past year, forcing the elimination of worker bonuses for the first time since 2008. — ASSOCIATED PRESS
SELF-DRIVING CARS
Waymo to buy up to 20,000 electric vehicles from Jaguar Land Rover
Self-driving car pioneer Waymo will buy up to 20,000 electric vehicles from Jaguar Land Rover to help realize its vision for a robotic ride-hailing service. The commitment announced Tuesday marks another step in Waymo’s evolution from a secret project started in Google nine years ago to a spin-off that’s gearing up for an audacious attempt to reshape the transportation business. The Jaguar deal will expand upon a fleet of self-driving cars that Waymo has been gradually building in partnership with Fiat Chrysler since 2015. Waymo initially equipped about 600 Pacifica minivans with its self-driving technology before negotiating to buy ‘‘thousands’’ more of the vehicles. — ASSOCIATED PRESS
FOOD
Egg prices are up, just in time for Easter
Egg prices in the United States have surged close to a record high, just in time for Easter. The wholesale cost of a dozen eggs in the Midwest has more than doubled in the five weeks through March 23 to $2.71, Department of Agriculture data show. That’s the highest since prices hit a record $2.77 in August 2015 amid a bird flu outbreak. This year, Easter is on April 1. Demand for decorating and cooking typically rises before Easter, and adverse weather in the Northeast may have prompted shoppers to stock up on grocery staples, Knox Jones, an analyst at Advanced Economic Solutions in Omaha, said in a telephone interview. — BLOOMBERG NEWS
BEER
Heineken pulls commercial criticized as racist
Heineken has removed a commercial for its light beer after some complaints that it was racist. The ad featured a bartender sliding a bottle of Heineken light. The bottle passes several black people before it arrives to a lighter-skinned woman. The tag line: Sometimes lighter is better. Hip-hop star Chance the Rapper on Sunday tweeted the commercial was ‘‘terribly racist.’’ He said he thought some companies were purposely ‘‘putting out noticeably racist ads so they can get more views.’’ In a statement, Heineken says while the ad was referencing Heineken Light, ‘‘we missed the mark.’’ Heineken drew praise last year for its ‘‘Open Your World’’ commercials, which featured people of different backgrounds discussing their viewpoints. — ASSOCIATED PRESS
LEISURE
Finalists announced for World Video Game Hall of Fame
Calling all gamers to help pick World Video Game Hall of Fame inductees. Twelve finalists were named Tuesday for the class of 2018, pitting ‘‘Ms. Pac-Man’’ against ‘‘John Madden Football.’’ Also in the running are: ‘‘Asteroids,’’ ‘‘Call of Duty,’’ ‘‘Dance Dance Revolution,’’ ‘‘Final Fantasy VII,’’ ‘‘Half-Life,’’ ‘‘King’s Quest,’’ ‘‘Metroid,’’ ‘‘Minecraft,’’ ‘‘Spacewar!’’ and ‘‘Tomb Raider.’’ New this year, the hall is inviting gamers to weigh in on inductees. Online balloting closes April 4. A panel of experts will vote as well. The winners will be inducted May 3. — ASSOCIATED PRESS
RETAIL
Expectant parents search for new baby registries with Babies ‘R’ Us stores closing
The liquidation of Toys “R’’ Us Inc. has stoked fears about how the toy industry will absorb the blow. But the shutdown of the company’s sister chain, Babies “R’’ Us, is setting off its own wave of disruption in the market for infant products. One of the biggest questions: What happens to all the customers who had baby registries at the soon-to-be-defunct retailer? As the company begins holding closeout sales and planning store closures, other retailers are scrambling to scoop up customers and capture their registries — a potentially lucrative prize. Buy Buy Baby Inc., Target Corp., and Amazon.com Inc. stand to benefit from the shake-up. — BLOOMBERG NEWS
GENDER EQUITY
Citigroup, Bank of America, and Morgan Stanley pay women less than men in UK
Citigroup Inc. and Morgan Stanley were among US lenders to reveal wide disparities in how women are paid versus men in the United Kingdom, reflecting the greater proportion of males in more senior positions. Citigroup pays UK females 44 percent less than male employees on average and the gap widens to 67 percent for bonuses, according to a spokesman. The bank, which employs about 9,000 people in Britain, made the disclosure on Tuesday under legislation requiring companies to release the data by April 4. Bank of America Corp. also said Tuesday that female staff in Britain receive 29 percent less on average than male employees. The divide broadens to 58 percent for year-end discretionary awards. The company is “committed to bringing more women into financial services at a senior level, and into roles that offer the prospect of significant progression,’’ BofA said in a statement. Morgan Stanley’s UK female staff received 42 percent less, widening to 73 percent for bonuses. — BLOOMBERG NEWS
RETAIL
H&M cuts prices as it deals with billions in unsold merchandise
Swedish fashion retailer H& M said it’s increasing markdowns this quarter after accumulating a record pile of unsold garments worth more than $4 billion. Operating profit fell 62 percent to the lowest level in more than a decade as clearance sales failed to reduce quantities of T-shirts and jeans that customers had passed over. The stock slumped to the lowest level since 2005. H&M’s already-downbeat forecast for the start of 2018 was exacerbated by unseasonably warm European weather in January followed by February’s cold snap, whipsawing the clothing retail industry. That forced the company to slash prices even more. — BLOOMBERG NEWS
REAL ESTATE
Home prices rise again in January
US home prices posted another big gain in January, pushed higher by a shortage of homes for sale. Standard & Poor’s said Tuesday that its S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller national home price index climbed 6.2 percent in January from a year earlier. That nearly matches December’s 6.3 percent gain, which had been the fastest 12-month growth in almost three years. The January increase was in line with economists’ expectations. As the spring home-buying season begins, house shoppers are facing higher prices and fierce competition for a limited inventory of available homes. But a strong job market has given American consumers, including an influx of younger millennials, the confidence to shop for homes anyway. — ASSOCIATED PRESS
