Month: February 2022

PRAGUE (AP) — The Czech Republic’s central bank has increased its key interest rate by three-quarters of a point in an effort to tackle soaring inflation. Thursday’s hike to 4.5% was the sixth straight increase since June, and analysts expected it. The bank, which considers high consumer prices a major threat, also had indicated it

By SUZAN FRASER Associated Press ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has again offered to mediate between Russia and Ukraine after talks with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Kyiv, as Turkey walks a tightrope balancing its relations with both countries. A key NATO member in the Black Sea region, Turkey has been

BRUSSELS (AP) — At least two energy companies in the Belgian ports of Antwerp and Ghent have been hit by cyberattacks and Belgian authorities have opened an investigation, one day after Germany opened a probe into similar attack. In Germany, prosecutors have said they opened an investigation into suspected blackmail after two companies involved in

By MATT OTT AP Business Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — Fewer Americans applied for unemployment benefits for the second week in a row after three straight weeks of increases. The Labor Department reported Thursday that jobless claims fell by 23,000 to 238,000 last week, from 261,000 the previous week. The four-week average for claims, which compensates

By TOM MURPHY AP Health Writer Biogen expects “minimal” revenue this year from its Alzheimer’s treatment initially hailed as potentially a breakthrough drug, but one with an eye-popping price tag that drew immediate criticism from  doctors and patient advocates. The drugmaker on Thursday released a forecast for 2022 that caught investors off guard, sending shares

By TOM MURPHY AP Health Writer The blockbuster cancer treatment Keytruda pushed Merck past fourth-quarter expectations, and the drugmaker’s COVID-19 treatment debuted with nearly $1 billion in sales. A 50% jump in sales for the Gardasil vaccine, which protects against cancer-causing human papilloma virus infections, also helped, Merck said Thursday. Overall, Merck earned $3.76 billion

By DANICA KIRKA Associated Press LONDON (AP) — Northern Ireland’s first minister has resigned as tensions over Britain’s departure from the European Union  trigger a fresh political crisis in the region. Paul Givan stepped aside Thursday after one of his ministers tried to block the inspection of goods arriving from other parts of the U.K.

By SYLVIA HUI Associated Press LONDON (AP) — Britain’s energy regulator says a cap on energy prices is going up by a record 54% because of soaring costs of wholesale natural gas. The change announced Thursday will significantly burden millions of households already squeezed by rapidly climbing bills. The Office of Gas and Electricity Markets

By MIKE CORDER Associated Press THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The U.S. has obtained intelligence indicating that the Russian government has developed a plan to stage a fake Ukrainian attack to establish a pretext for military action. The disclosure came from a senior Biden administration official who spoke on  condition of anonymity. The new intelligence

BERLIN (AP) — Authorities say a container ship has run aground off a German North Sea island, and an initial attempt to free it was unsuccessful. Shipping company Maersk said on Twitter that the Mumbai Maersk ran aground on a “shallow patch” on Wednesday night. It said that “all crew are safe, there is no

By TOM KRISHER AP Auto Writer DETROIT (AP) — Tesla is recalling more than 817,000 vehicles in the U.S. because the seat belt reminder chimes may not sound when the vehicles are started and the driver hasn’t buckled up. Documents posted Thursday by safety regulators say the recall covers the 2021 and 2022 Model S

HELSINKI (AP) — Nokia has reported profits in line with analyst expectations and says the wireless and fixed-network equipment maker will resume paying a dividend and launch a share-buyback program. The Espoo, Finland-based company on Thursday reported net profit of 727 million euros for the October-December period, compared with 787 million euros a year earlier.

COPENHAGEN (AP) — The director of the World Health Organization’s Europe office says the continent is now entering a “plausible endgame” to the pandemic and that the number of coronavirus deaths is now starting to plateau. Dr. Hans Kluge said at a media briefing Thursday that there is a “singular opportunity” for countries to take

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkey’s annual inflation came in at nearly 49%, hitting a nearly 20-year high and further eroding people’s ability to buy even basic things like food. The Turkish Statistical Institute said Thursday that the consumer price index increased by just over 11% in January from the previous month. The data shows that

STOCKHOLM (AP) — Sweden is joining other European nations in saying it will drop coronavirus restrictions. Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson says “it is time to open Sweden again.” She announced the restrictions will be dropped from Feb. 9. Sweden will allow people to return to restaurants with no limitation on how many people can be

By DAVID McHUGH AP Business Writer FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — The head of the European Central Bank says record inflation could linger for “longer than expected” and appeared to open the door at least a crack for an interest rate increase this year. Asked twice by journalists Thursday, Christine Lagarde declined to repeat previous comments

By SYLVIE CORBET and LORNE COOK The Associated Press LILLE, France (AP) — European Union interior ministers have agreed to create a new decision-making body in efforts to beef up the 27-nation bloc’s borders, and to kick-start desperately needed reforms to the EU’s malfunctioning asylum system. The EU has been mired in a deep political

By VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV Associated Press MOSCOW (AP) — American and European officials may be staying away from the Beijing Winter Olympics because of human rights concerns, but Russian President Vladimir Putin will be on hand even as tensions soar over his buildup of troops along his country’s border with Ukraine. Putin’s talks with Chinese President

By AYA BATRAWY Associated Press DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Abu Dhabi’s state-owned oil and gas company has announced the discovery of between 1.5 to 2 trillion standard cubic feet of raw gas in an offshore area located in the northwest of the emirate. The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, also known as ADNOC,

LONDON (AP) — The pay-TV sports market in Britain could be shaken up after media companies Discovery and BT Group said they are in exclusive discussions about forming a partnership. The potential deal would see BT Sport link up with Discovery-owned Eurosport UK in what they are calling a 50/50 venture. BT Sport holds the

By DANICA KIRKA Associated Press LONDON (AP) — The Bank of England has raised interest rates for the second time in three months. That decision Thursday puts the United Kingdom far ahead of the rest of Europe and the U.S. in moving to tame surging inflation that’s squeezing consumers and businesses. The bank boosted its

By AAMER MADHANI, LORNE COOK and SUZAN FRASER Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. is accusing the Kremlin of an elaborate plot to fabricate an attack by Ukrainian forces that Russia could use as a pretext to take military action against its neighbor. Pentagon spokesman John Kirby says the scheme includes production of a

By YURI KAGEYAMA AP Business Writer TOKYO (AP) — Nintendo has reported its profit for the nine months through December slipped 2.5% as shortages of computer chips hurt production. The Japanese video game maker behind the Super Mario and Pokemon franchises said its sales also fell, by 6%. Game makers have reaped windfall profits from

By RAF CASERT Associated Press SAINT-SYMPHORIEN, Belgium (AP) — Many European Union nations are wary about spending big on their militaries. They remain scarred by losing tens of millions of lives on their soil in two world wars. They’re now facing a painful reality as Russian pressure builds at the Ukrainian border. Much of Europe

By ELAINE KURTENBACH AP Business Writer BANGKOK (AP) — Asian shares are mostly higher after a historic plunge in the stock price of Facebook’s parent company helped yank other tech stocks lower on Wall Street. Hong Kong jumped 2.6% after reopening from Lunar New Year holidays. Shanghai remained closed. Tokyo and Seoul advanced while Sydney