AP National Business

By PAUL WISEMAN AP Economics Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. sales of new homes edged up 0.4% last month, coming in below expectations as housing prices continued to climb. The Commerce Department reported Wednesday that sales of new single-family homes rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 745,000 last month from 742,000 in September.

By MARTIN CRUTSINGER AP Economics Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — Americans are doing the main thing that drives the U.S. economy — spending — but accelerating inflation is casting a pall. A raft of economic data issued Wednesday showed the economy on solid footing, with Americans’ incomes rising and jobless claims falling to a level not

By KRISHAN FRANCIS Associated Press COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — Sri Lanka’s government has lifted a ban on imports of agrochemicals that it said was aimed at encouraging organic cultivation. The agriculture minister announced the revocation of the ban, which took effect in April. But he said government subsidies, price guarantees for produce and technical

By MARI YAMAGUCHI Associated Press TOKYO (AP) — The leaders of Japan and Vietnam have expressed serious concern about any unilateral actions aimed at altering the status quo in the South China Sea, and agreed to work together to sustain free and open sea lanes as tensions escalate in the region amid China’s rise. Vietnamese

By ZEKE MILLER and COLLEEN LONG Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration’s vaccine mandate for millions of federal workers seems to be working, with no apparent disruption to law enforcement, intelligence-gathering or holiday travel. The White House says 92% of the 3.5 million federal workers covered by Biden’s mandate reported to the government

By GEOFF MULVIHILL and JOHN SEEWER Associated Press CLEVELAND (AP) — Pharmacies have lost in a groundbreaking trial in Ohio over the toll of opioids, but there’s no assurance the results will hold up on appeal. Tuesday’s verdict was the first in a wave of opioid lawsuits involving pharmacies and the first to be decided

By PAUL WISEMAN AP Economics WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits plummeted last week to the lowest level in more than half a century, another sign that the U.S. job market is rebounding rapidly from last year’s coronavirus recession. Jobless claims dropped by 71,000 to 199,000, the lowest since mid-November

By MARTIN CRUTSINGER AP Economics Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. economy slowed to a modest annual rate of 2.1% in the July-September quarter, slightly better than first reported. But economists are predicting a solid rebound in the current quarter as long as rising inflation and a recent uptick in COVID cases do not derail

By DARLENE SUPERVILLE and ALEXANDRA JAFFE Associated Press NANTUCKET, Mass. (AP) — President Joe Biden is nominating Shalanda Young to lead the White House Office of Management and Budget. He’s also nominating Nani Coloretti to be Young’s deputy. Biden announced the news Wednesday in a video. If the Senate confirms the nominations, it will be

By NICOLE WINFIELD Associated Press ROME (AP) — The Italian government is targeting unvaccinated people in its latest effort to contain rising coronavirus infections. A government decree is excluding them from certain activities, including indoor dining and theaters over the holidays. The aim is to stave off financially crippling lockdowns just as the economy is

By LORNE COOK Associated Press BRUSSELS (AP) — Belarus opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya is appealing to the European Union not to forget the plight of ordinary citizens and political prisoners in the former Soviet country. The EU is focused on a security crisis at its borders that it blames on President Alexander Lukashenko. It’s preparing

By ANNA HELHOSKI of NerdWallet Workers seeking a new career may face challenges if they’re looking to retrain, labor experts say. That’s because there are few social supports in place that allow career-change aspirants the time and financial help to do it. The “Great Resignation” won’t necessarily lead to a “great retraining,” but there are

BRATISLAVA, Slovakia (AP) — The Slovak government has approved a two-week national lockdown amid a record surge of coronavirus infections. Prime Minister Eduard Heger said the measures that become effective on Thursday will target all, both unvaccinated and vaccinated. Under the lockdown, people can leave their homes only for some specific reasons. These include buying

By RONALD MONTOYA Edmunds This has been a tough year to buy a new or used car in America. With COVID-19 factory shutdowns, semiconductor chip shortages, rising prices and supply chain issues, it’s been nothing but bad news for car shoppers. And for those who’ve waited, hoping Black Friday sales would bring some reprieve from

BERLIN (AP) — A closely watched survey shows that German business confidence has dropped for the fifth consecutive month amid persistent supply-chain bottlenecks and a resurgence of coronavirus infections in Europe’s biggest economy. The Ifo institute said Wednesday that its monthy confidence index dropped to 96.5 points in November from 97.7 last month. Companies’ assessment

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Sweden is recommending that everyone between the ages of 18 and 65 should get a booster shot against COVID-19 six months after having gotten the second jab. Swedish Social Affairs Minister Lena Hallengren said Wednesday about 7 million people in Sweden out of a total population of 10 million have had

By JAN M. OLSEN Associated Press COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Magdalena Andersson has resigned as Sweden’s prime minister hours after being appointed as the country’s first female prime minister. She did so after suffering a budget defeat in parliament Wednesday and her coalition partner the Greens left the two-party minority government. The government’s own budget

By DAVID KOENIG AP Airlines Writer DALLAS (AP) — Millions of Americans are loading up their cars or piling onto planes, determined to reclaim Thanksgiving traditions that were put on pause last year by the pandemic. The number of air travelers this week is expected to approach or even exceed pre-pandemic levels. Auto club AAA

By JOE McDONALD AP Business Writer BEIJING (AP) — Asian stock markets are lower after Federal Reserve officials indicated they were ready to raise interest rates sooner than expected if needed to cool inflation. Market benchmarks in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Seoul and Sydney declined. Tokyo advanced. Wall Street’s benchmark S&P 500 index gained 0.2% before

By JOHN ANTCZAK Associated Press LOS ANGELES (AP) — NASA has launched a spacecraft on a mission to smash into an asteroid and test whether it would be possible to knock a speeding space rock off course if one were to threaten Earth. The spacecraft is called DART, for Double Asteroid Redirection Test. It lifted

By MARK PRATT Associated Press The city manager in Newport, Rhode Island, is standing by the city police department’s review of the 1966 death of an employee of wealthy heiress Doris Duke. The city manager in a statement Tuesday said there is no new evidence that would suggest that the death of Eduardo Tirella after

By ALAN FRAM Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrats have finally driven President Joe Biden’s $2 trillion package of family services, health care and climate initiatives through the House. Now the focus turns to the Senate, where painful Republican amendments, restrictive rules and moderate Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin lurk. It took Democrats six months, but

By MICHAEL LIEDTKE AP Technology Writer SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — Biotechnology entrepreneur Elizabeth Holmes, a former billionaire accused of engineering a massive scam, expressed some remorse while on the witness stand Tuesday, but denied trying to conceal that her company’s blood-testing methods weren’t working as she had promised. In her third day of testimony

By MATTHEW DALY Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrats and climate activists generally support President Joe Biden’s decision to release a record-setting 50 million barrels of oil from America’s strategic reserve, even as the action appeared to contradict Biden’s long-term goal to fight climate change. The U.S. action announced Tuesday is aimed at global energy

By CATHY BUSSEWITZ AP Business Writer NEW YORK (AP) — President Joe Biden has ordered the release of 50 million barrels of oil from America’s strategic reserve. The move aims to reduce energy costs, which are a growing burden for millions of Americans embarking on Thanksgiving travel. The U.S. action was done in rare coordination

By PATRICK WHITTLE and DAVID SHARP Associated Press PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Maine’s environmental commissioner is suspending a permit for a 145-mile electricity transmission project in western Maine, delivering another blow to the controversial project. Her decision Tuesday comes after Maine residents rebuked the $1 billion project in a referendum and developers suspended construction under

By MICHAEL LIEDTKE AP Technology Writer SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — Biotechnology entrepreneur Elizabeth Holmes, a former billionaire accused of engineering a massive scam, expressed some remorse while on the witness stand Tuesday, but denied trying to conceal that her company’s blood-testing methods weren’t working as she had promised. In her third day of testimony

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Federal regulators have cleared a path to consider Canadian Pacific’s $31 billion acquisition of Kansas City Southern railroad . The U.S. Surface Transportation Board decided that Canadian Pacific’s merger application is complete, dismissing concerns from other railroads. The board also laid out a schedule for its review of the deal

By DAVID BAUDER AP Media Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Just over 5 million viewers tuned in to see Fox opinion host Tucker Carlson talk to Kyle Rittenhouse, who was acquitted of murder last Friday in a Wisconsin case that had the nation talking about guns and self-defense. It was Carlson’s biggest audience since the

By BOB CHRISTIE Associated Press PHOENIX (AP) — E-cigarette giant Juul Labs will pay Arizona $14.5 million and won’t market to young people in the state to settle a consumer fraud lawsuit filed by the Arizona attorney general’s office. The settlement announced by Attorney General Mark Brnovich Tuesday is the second Juul has reached with

WASHINGTON (AP) — Wireless carrier T-Mobile is paying $19.5 million in a settlement with the Federal Communications Commission over a 12-hour nationwide outage in June 2020 that resulted in thousands of failed 911 calls. The FCC said Tuesday that as part of the settlement, T-Mobile will also commit to improving communications of outages to emergency

NEW YORK (AP) — Faced with the rising cost of goods and freight, discount retail chain Dollar Tree says it will be raising its prices to $1.25 for the majority of its products. Dollar Tree said Tuesday that the reason for raising its prices to $1.25 was not due to short-term conditions and said the

By PAUL WISEMAN, CATHY BUSSEWITZ and CHRISTOPHER RUGABER AP Business Writers WASHINGTON (AP) — LBJ tried jawboning. Richard Nixon issued a presidential edict. The Ford administration printed buttons exhorting Americans to “Whip Inflation Now.’’ Over the years, American presidents have tried, and mostly floundered, in their efforts to quell the economic and political menace of

By MATT O’BRIEN AP Technology Writer Samsung said it plans to build a $17 billion semiconductor factory in Texas amid a global shortage of chips used in phones, laptops, cars and other electronic devices. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and Samsung announced the project Tuesday. The chip shortage has emerged as both a business obstacle and

The Associated Press Stocks closed mixed on Wall Street Tuesday after a day of wobbly trading. Losses in big technology stocks and companies that rely on consumer spending tempered gains elsewhere in the market. The S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose. The Nasdaq fell. Prices for crude oil and wholesale gasoline rose

Stocks that traded heavily or had substantial price changes Tuesday: Best Buy, Medtronic fall; Dollar Tree, Dycom rise.

By YURAS KARMANAU Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Belarus’ oldest newspaper has been banned on the 115th anniversary of its founding, the latest move in a relentless government crackdown on independent media in the ex-Soviet nation. The Nasha Niva newspaper was outlawed as extremist Tuesday by the Central District court in Minsk, which acted

The Associated Press Closing prices for crude oil, gold and other commodities, and foreign exchange levels.

A federal judge has approved a $5.4 million settlement between Transamerica and its current and former employees who accused the company of offering several poor performing investments in its employee retirement plan. The money will be divided up between roughly 24,000 people based on how long they invested in the funds and how much money

By ANTHONY IZAGUIRRE and TERRY SPENCER Associated Press TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — The Seminole Tribe of Florida on Tuesday moved to appeal a federal judge’s decision to block its deal with the state to expand gambling and online sports betting throughout Florida. The Seminole Tribe’s filing Tuesday came after a ruling from U.S. District Court

By ALAN SUDERMAN Associated Press RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Tech giant Apple is suing Israel’s NSO Group, seeking to block the world’s most infamous hacker-for-hire company from breaking into Apple’s products, like the iPhone. Apple said in a complaint filed Tuesday in federal court in California that NSO Group’s spyware, called Pegasus, had been used

By GEOFF MULVIHILL Associated Press The Biden administration is asking a federal court to let it move ahead with a workplace rule that would require employees at larger companies to be vaccinated against COVID-19 or face weekly testing. The mandate is a centerpiece of the administration’s efforts to contain the spread of COVID-19 as concerns

By ANDREW SELSKY Associated Press SALEM, Ore. (AP) — Oregon residents are increasingly pushing for the state to divest from fossil fuel companies and other controversial investments, but the state treasury is resisting. In addition to fossil fuel companies whose products are a main driver of global warming, the state employee retirement fund is also

By JOHN SEEWER Associated Press CLEVELAND (AP) — A federal jury says CVS, Walgreens and Walmart pharmacies didn’t do enough to stop the flow of opioid pills into two Ohio counties. The verdict Tuesday could set the tone for U.S. city and county governments that want to hold pharmacies accountable for their roles in the

AMSTERDAM (AP) — The European Medicines Agency says it has received a request from Merck to authorize its coronavirus antiviral, the first pill shown to treat COVID-19. In a statement Tuesday, the EU drug regulator said it had started evaluating molnupiravir, made by Merck and Ridgeback Biotherapeutics, and that a decision could be made within

BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Police and media reports in Serbia say that a series of explosions have ripped through a munitions factory on the outskirts of Belgrade. At least two workers have been killed and 16 others were injured. State RTS television said Tuesday the first explosion took place around 2 p.m. at a munitions

By ANNE D’INNOCENZIO The Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — Best Buy Co.’s shares tumbled after the nation’s largest consumer electronics chain posted a decline in gross profit margin for the fiscal third quarter, citing organized theft and increased promotions compared to a year ago. The company also offered a muted sales forecast for the

By MICHAEL BALSAMO Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department has filed a lawsuit seeking to block a major U.S. sugar manufacturer from acquiring its rival. The department contends that the deal would harm competition and consumers. The lawsuit was filed Tuesday in federal court in Delaware. It comes about eight months after U.S.

By LAURA MCMULLEN of NerdWallet You’ll probably face heavy pressure from retailers to take advantage of Black Friday deals, but you get to choose what to buy and when. So aim to shop with intention, rather than in response to sales. Determine how much you can spend on holiday gifts in total and for each

By JOSH FUNK AP Business Writer OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Kellogg’s plans to start hiring permanent replacements for some of its 1,400 striking cereal plant workers after negotiations broke down again. The Battle Creek, Michigan-based company said it failed to reach an agreement with the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union Monday,

By JUSTIN SPIKE Associated Press BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — The leaders of three Central European countries on Tuesday expressed their support for Poland in an ongoing migration crisis on its eastern border with Belarus. Following talks in Budapest, the prime ministers of Hungary, the Czech Republic and Slovakia all urged the European Union to provide

By EUGENE GARCIA and OLGA R. RODRIGUEZ Associated Press LOS ANGELES (AP) — Los Angeles police say a group of thieves smashed windows at a department store at a luxury mall. The latest incident in a trend of smash-and-grab crimes is part of a national trend that targeted a Nordstrom store late Monday. It came

BRATISLAVA, Slovakia (AP) — Slovakia’s leaders have proposed a national lockdown as hospitals across the European Union country are hitting their limits amid a record surge of coronavirus infections. Inspired by neighboring Austria, the government is to discuss a lockdown for everyone — vaccinated and unvaccinated alike — on Wednesday. President Zuzana Caputova says “it’s

By MICHELLE CHAPMAN AP Business Writer “Good Morning America” co-host Michael Strahan is going to space next month. Strahan, who turned 50 on Sunday, will join Laura Shepard Churchley, the eldest daughter of astronaut Alan Shepard, on the Dec. 9 mission aboard the New Shepard, a spacecraft named after her father, the first American in

MADRID (AP) — Metalworkers and police have clashed in southern Spain at the end of a protest march to demand that wages rise in line with the country’s surging inflation rate. Police used rubber bullets to disperse protestors who tried to erect barricades across streets in the city of Cádiz on Tuesday. The demonstration marked

By LEANNE ITALIE AP Entertainment Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Santa is back this year, but he’s asking people to be cautious as he continues to tiptoe through the pandemic. There are fewer available Santas this year, which means some are busier than ever. Where it’s allowed, some malls and big-box stores are offering Santa’s

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — The Turkish currency has weakened by some 10% against the U.S. dollar, a day after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan insisted there would be no turning back from his unconventional policy of cutting interest rates despite high inflation. The lira plunged to a record low of 13.44 on Tuesday before making some

By JOSH BOAK and COLLEEN LONG Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden is ordering a record 50 million barrels of oil released from America’s strategic reserve to help bring down energy costs. He said Tuesday he is acting in coordination with other major energy consuming nations, including China, India, and the United Kingdom.

GENEVA (AP) — The World Health Organization’s Europe office says projections show its 53-country region could face another 700,000 deaths due to the coronavirus pandemic by next spring, topping 2 million in total. WHO Europe is based in Copenhagen and it also cited growing evidence of a decline in protection against infection and mild disease

By LAURA MCMULLEN of NerdWallet You’ll probably face heavy pressure from retailers to take advantage of Black Friday deals, but you get to choose what to buy and when. So aim to shop with intention, rather than in response to sales. Determine how much you can spend on holiday gifts in total and for each

ROME (AP) — Italy’s antitrust watchdog has fined Apple and Amazon more than 200 million euros, or $225 million, for cooperating to restrict competition in the sale of Apple and Beats branded products. The Italian Competition Authority said Tuesday that its investigation found that the U.S. tech giants agreed to limit access to Italy’s Amazon

LONDON (AP) — Prince Charles is praising Cambridge as a center of scientific collaboration as the pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca opened a 1 billion-pound ($1.34 billion) research center there on Tuesday. AstraZeneca hopes the facility will build on work in developing one of the first COVID-19 vaccines. The 19,000 square-meter (more than 200,000 square-foot) complex near

By FRANK JORDANS Associated Press BERLIN (AP) — The German military is poised to make coronavirus vaccines mandatory for troops as COVID-19 infections continue to rise across the country. The Defense Ministry on Tuesday confirmed a report that officials and soldiers’ representatives have agreed to add the coronavirus shot to the list of vaccines soldiers

By YURI KAGEYAMA AP Business Writer TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares are falling as worries about inflation set off expectations the U.S. Federal Reserve might accelerate its plans to raise interest rates. Benchmarks in Japan, Australia, South Korea and China slipped in early trading. The Fed will release minutes later in the day from its

By CHRISTOPHER RUGABER AP Economics Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell gambled last year that his ultra-low rate policies would help revive an economy that had sunk deep into a pandemic-induced recession. So far, his bet has mostly paid off. Growth and hiring have rebounded faster than anyone expected. President Joe Biden,

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Two former Netflix employees who raised concerns about anti-transgender comments on Dave Chappelle’s TV special are dropping labor complaints and one has resigned from the company. Terra Field, a senior software engineer who is trans, announced a voluntary resignation on Monday. Field and B. Pagels-Minor also are dropping a National Labor

By ALAN SUDERMAN Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — World Cup 2022 host Qatar has for years employed a former CIA officer to help spy on soccer officials as part of a no-expense-spared effort to win and hold on to the planet’s most popular sports tournament. An investigation by The Associated Press found Qatar sought an

By ALAN SUDERMAN Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — World Cup 2022 host Qatar has for years employed a former CIA officer to help spy on soccer officials as part of a no-expense-spared effort to win and hold on to the planet’s most popular sports tournament. An investigation by The Associated Press found Qatar sought an

By STEVE LeBLANC Associated Press BOSTON (AP) — Gun manufacturers have asked a federal court in Massachusetts to dismiss a lawsuit filed by Mexico’s government arguing U.S. gun manufacturers and distributors fueled violence in Mexico through their negligent and illegal commercial practices. Gun maker Beretta U.S.A. Corp. argued Monday that there’s no basis for the

By KATHLEEN RONAYNE Associated Press SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California Gov. Gavin Newsom has named his senior adviser on energy policy as the next president of the powerful state body that regulates utilities. Alice Reynolds is set to lead the five-member California Public Utilities Commission starting Dec. 31. The job requires Senate confirmation, but that’s

By OLGA R. RODRIGUEZ Associated Press SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Groups of thieves ransacked jewelry and high-end clothing stores throughout the San Francisco Bay Area over the weekend, shocking holiday shoppers and prompting concerns about the busy retail season. The mob attacks are believed to be part of sophisticated criminal networks that recruit mainly young

By MICHAEL LIEDTKE AP Technology Writer SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — Fallen Silicon Valley star Elizabeth Holmes returned to the witness stand on Monday to tell a story likely to determine whether she is convicted or acquitted of criminal charges alleging she duped investors and patients into believing she had invented a breakthrough in blood-testing

WASHINGTON (AP) — The State Department is keeping up pressure on Russia over a Russian pipeline project in Europe that the United States opposes. The State Department announced sanctions Monday on what it said was a business with Russian links involved in the Nordstream 2 project. In a statement, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said

By SUSAN MONTOYA BRYAN Associated Press CHACO CULTURE NATIONAL HISTORICAL PARK, N.M. (AP) — U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland met with state and tribal leaders Monday in northwestern New Mexico where a battle has waged for decades over oil and gas development. Haaland reflected on actions her agency took last week to curb new leasing

The Associated Press A late drop robbed the S&P 500 of another record high on Wall Street Monday and left major indexes mostly lower after being up for much of the day. The S&P 500 ended lower and the Nasdaq fell. The Dow Jones Industrial Average eked out a tiny gain. The market was higher

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks that traded heavily or had substantial price changes Monday: Vonage, Lee Enterprises rise; Activision, Target fall.

By STEVE LeBLANC Associated Press BOSTON (AP) — Boston Mayor Michelle Wu has signed an ordinance designed to divest the city from fossil fuels. The ordinance signed Monday by the new mayor will prohibit the use of public funds from being invested in the stocks, securities or other obligations of any company which derives more

By ASHRAF KHALIL Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The regional train system serving the Washington D.C. area will remain on drastically reduced service levels through at least the end of this year. This comes as authorities grapple with a safety problem that has forced the majority of the trains out of service. Officials announced Monday

The Associated Press Closing prices for crude oil, gold and other commodities, and foreign exchange levels.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal officials are proposing more than $160,000 in fines against eight airline passengers over incidents involving alcohol. The Federal Aviation Administration said Monday that the biggest single fine tops $40,000 for a passenger who brought alcohol on the plane and drank it, smoked marijuana in the plane’s lavatory and sexually assaulted a

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (AP) — Disney has paused its policy requiring Florida-based employees to take the COVID-19 vaccine following new laws passed by the state’s legislature last week that limit employers’ power to require vaccinations. The company informed employees in a memo sent Friday that it paused the requirement due to the state legislature’s

By DEE-ANN DURBIN AP Business Writer Traveling this holiday season can be safe if you’re fully vaccinated for COVID-19. For those who haven’t gotten their shots, officials advise delaying travel. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also says not to travel if you’re sick, or if you tested positive for COVID-19 and your

BOSTON (AP) — American Airlines and JetBlue are asking a federal judge to throw out the government’s effort to block a deal between the two airlines that has them working together on service in the Northeast. The airlines filed a motion Monday in federal district court to dismiss the Justice Department’s lawsuit. Under the Trump

By RAF CASERT and MIKE CORDER Associated Press THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — European authorities are pleading for patience, calm and a willingness to still take a COVID-19 vaccine shot in the arm as infections and demonstrations increase. Protest marches from Zagreb to Rome and Vienna to Brussels and Rotterdam brought tens of thousands out

BERLIN (AP) — Amazon says it plans to cut the use of plastic packaging in Germany following complaints that the online retailer is contributing to growing mountains of waste. The company said Monday that its German logistics center will replace all single-use plastic packages with paper-based bags or cardboard boxes by the end of the

DETROIT (AP) — General Motors is testing the water in electric boating by buying a 25% stake in a Seattle company that makes battery-powered outboard motors. The Detroit automaker said Monday that it bought the stake in Pure Watercraft for a venture that it says will develop and commercialize battery electric watercraft. Privately held Pure

By TALI ARBEL AP Technology Writer Hedge fund Alden Global Capital, one of the country’s largest newspaper owners with a reputation for intense cost cuts and layoffs, has offered to buy the local newspaper chain Lee Enterprises for about $141 million. Alden said in a Monday press release that it sent Lee’s board a letter

By HALELUYA HADERO AP Business Writer Former President Barack Obama’s foundation says it has received a $100 million donation from Amazon founder Jeff Bezos that it says is the largest individual contribution it has received to date. Separately, New York University Langone Health said it has received a $166 million gift from Bezos and his

By MICHAEL RUBINKAM Associated Press Climate change isn’t what’s driving some U.S. coal-fired power plants to shut down — instead it’s the expense of stricter pollution controls on their wastewater. Dozens of power plants nationwide plan to shut down later this decade to comply with stricter federal wastewater guidelines. The power plant industry has been

By ALEX VEIGA AP Business Writer Sales of previously occupied U.S. homes ticked higher in October, marking their strongest pace since January, even as resilient demand and competition for relatively few properties on the market kept prices climbing. The National Association of Realtors said Monday that existing homes sales rose 0.8% last month from September

By DEE-ANN DURBIN AP Business Writer First, the good news: There is no shortage of whole turkeys in the U.S. this Thanksgiving. But those turkeys — along with other holiday staples like cranberry sauce and pie filling — could cost more. The American Farm Bureau estimates a Thanksgiving feast for 10 will cost $53.31 this

By FRANCES D’EMILIO Associated Press ROME (AP) — Italian customs police say they have cracked a Nigerian organized crime syndicate that forced dozens of young women into prostitution and street-begging in Italy. The police said 40 suspects were arrested in raids in several Italian cities on Monday, including on the island of Sardinia. The investigation

By KEN SWEET AP Business Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Synchrony may not be a household name, but it’s the largest issuer of retail-branded store credit cards in the country. Retailers from Amazon, Sam’s Club, Pep-Boys and hundreds of others use Synchrony as the issuer for their store cards. Brian Doubles, CEO of Synchrony Financial

AMSTERDAM (AP) — The European Medicines Agency says it is evaluating whether to authorize booster doses of Johnson & Johnson’s single-shot COVID-19 vaccine. In a statement Monday, the EU drug regulator said it was considering an application from J&J to recommend booster doses of the J&J vaccine for adults 18 and over, at least two

By CHRISTOPHER RUGABER AP Economics Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden announced he’s nominating Jerome Powell for a second term as Federal Reserve chair, endorsing Powell’s stewardship of the economy through a brutal pandemic recession in which the Fed’s ultra-low rate policies helped bolster confidence and revitalize the job market. Biden also said he

By ELODIE SOUPAMA Associated Press LE GOSIER, Guadeloupe (AP) — Schools have closed across the French Caribbean island of Guadeloupe and the French president has warned of a “very explosive” situation in the overseas department. Protests against COVID-19 rules and vaccinations descended into days of rioting and looting. France’s central government sent in police special

LONDON (AP) — Swedish telecom equipment maker Ericsson says it’s buying U.S. cloud communications company Vonage in a $6.2 billion deal that will help it expand wireless services for business customers. Ericsson said Monday that the acquisition would also give it access to software developers who it can tap to build new applications that advantage

By ANNE D’INNOCENZIO The Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — Target will no longer open its stores on Thanksgiving Day, making permanent a shift to the unofficial start of the holiday season that was suspended during the pandemic. To limit crowds in stores, retailers last year were forced to turn what had become a weekend