PRESS DIGEST- New York Times business news - April 26

April 26 (Reuters) - The following are the top stories on the New York Times business pages. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

- Southwest Airlines is ceasing operations at four airports, and reducing flights from others, in an effort to cut costs as its growth plans were also curtailed by fewer-than-expected plane deliveries from Boeing.

- BHP Group, the world's largest mining company, has proposed a takeover of its rival Anglo American, in a deal valued at 31.1 billion pounds ($38.87 billion)that has the potential to shake up the industry at a time when demand for copper is soaring.

- Honda Motor on Thursday said it and several suppliers would invest $11 billion to build batteries and electric cars in Ontario, a significant commitment from a company that has been slow to embrace the technology.

- The U.S. Federal regulators have discovered fragments of bird flu virus in roughly 20 percent of retail milk samples tested in a nationally representative study, the Food and Drug Administration said in an online update on Thursday. ($1 = 0.8001 pounds) (Compiled by Bengaluru newsroom)