AP National Business

By LIZ WESTON of NerdWallet You likely lean on a variety of apps and websites to manage your professional life, your social life and even your financial life. Technology can do a lot for you, but sometimes taking an old-fashioned approach is actually better. In some circumstances, talking to a real person — either over

LISBON, Portugal (AP) — Environmental activists are welcoming the end of electricity generation from coal in Portugal. But they said Monday the possible conversion of the country’s last coal-fired power plant into one that burns wood pellets would be a step in the wrong direction. The last Portuguese coal plant stopped generating over the weekend.

The Associated Press Thailand’s DTAC and True Corp. plan a merger that they say will create an “equal partnership” for pursuing opportunities in the tech sector. Regulators reportedly asked the companies for clarification about the plan, which was announced Monday by Norway’s Telenor Group, parent company of DTAC, and Charoen Pokphand (CP) Holding, the parent

ROME (AP) — The Italian telecommunications company TIM says it is assessing a non-binding “indication of interest” by the U.S. investment fund KKR. TIM in a statement issued on Sunday evening says its board of directors met and “acknowledged” the fund’s interest in launching a possible public tender for the entire capital share of the

The Associated Press The National Association of Realtors reports its October tally of U.S. home sales Monday. Best Buy serves up its third-quarter results Tuesday. The Commerce Department issues its monthly snapshot of U.S. consumer spending Wednesday.

By NICK PERRY Associated Press WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Bars, restaurants and gyms can reopen in Auckland from early December but customers will be required to show proof they’ve been fully vaccinated. The New Zealand government announcement removes the last remnants of a lockdown that began in the nation’s largest city in August. It

By MATTHEW DALY Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — A huge social and environmental policy bill passed by House Democrats includes a plan to impose a fee on emissions of methane. The powerful pollutant leaks from oil and gas wells and contributes to global warming. As the measure moves to the Senate, attention again will focus

By COLLEEN BARRY Associated Press VIENNA (AP) — Austrians have begun a new 10-day national lockdown and many are wondering how they will endure their fourth such ordeal as the nation seeks to reverse skyrocketing new infections. In the capital of Vienna, some people headed to work, brought children to school or exercised outdoors. Police

By ELAINE KURTENBACH AP Business Writer Asian shares are mixed after a late drop left major Wall Street indexes mostly lower. Tokyo was closed Tuesday for a holiday. Hong Kong and Seoul declined while Shanghai advanced. The S&P 500 ended 0.3% lower. The Nasdaq fell 1.3% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average eked out a

BEIJING (AP) — China says five of its citizens have been kidnapped from a mining operation in eastern Congo. The Chinese Embassy in Kinshasa posted on its Chinese social media account that the five were abducted early Sunday from the site in South Kivu province that borders Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania. It urged all Chinese

By ROD McGUIRK Associated Press CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — The Australian government expects 200,000 vaccinated foreign students and skilled workers will soon return without quarantining when the country further relaxes pandemic restrictions next week. Prime Minister Scott Morrison says that from from Dec. 1, students, skilled workers and travelers on working vacations will be allowed

LONDON (AP) — WhatsApp is adding more details to its privacy policy and flagging the information for European users. The update is to comply with a ruling from Irish regulators who slapped the chat service with a record fine for breaching strict EU data privacy rules. Starting Monday, WhatsApp’s privacy policy will be reorganized to

CAMARILLO, Calif. (AP) — The average U.S. price of regular-grade gasoline held steady over the past two weeks, at $3.49 per gallon. Industry analyst Trilby Lundberg of the Lundberg Survey says spiking ethanol costs prevented a drop in gas prices. The average price at the pump is $1.31 higher than it was one year ago.

By ISABEL DEBRE Associated Press ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Just over a week after some 200 nations struck an agreement aimed at intensifying global efforts to fight climate change, the finance minister of France has warned that the cost of the energy transition will be “much higher than expected.” Bruno Le Maire

By DAVID BARRAZA Associated Press LA LIBERTAD, El Salvador (AP) — El Salvador President Nayib Bukele says his government will build an oceanside “Bitcoin City” at the base of a volcano. The announcement came in a rock concert-like atmosphere at a gathering gathering of Bitcoin enthusiasts Saturday night. Bukele says a bond offering in 2022

By SCOTT McFETRIDGE Associated Press DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Much of downtown Des Moines, Iowa, has been transformed in the past decade by new apartments, shops and restaurants, but a stench from animal processing plants still often lingers over all that shiny new development. Many other cities across the country are dealing with similar

PARIS (AP) — France’s minister of the sea has vowed to “continue the fight” in the country’s dispute with Britain over fishing rights. Annick Girardin met with fishermen in northern France on Sunday. She told reporters “we fight every day for these ships, for these licenses and we will not give up.” Girardin denounced the

By RICARDO ALONSO-ZALDIVAR Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Workers and families with private health insurance would reap savings on prescription drugs from a little-noticed provision in President Joe Biden’s social agenda bill. Drug companies would have to pay rebates to Medicare if they increase prices above the rate of inflation. Business groups are paying close

By RAF CASERT Associated Press BRUSSELS (AP) — Tens of thousands of people have marched through Brussels to protest reinforced COVID-19 restrictions imposed by the Belgian government to counter the latest spike in coronavirus cases. Many among the 35,000 at the rally Sunday had already left for home when the demonstration descended into violence. Several

BY ELODIE SOUPAMA AND SYLVIE CORBET LE GOSIER, Guadeloupe (AP) — France is sending police special forces to its overseas Caribbean territory of Guadeloupe as protests over COVID-19 restrictions have erupted into rioting and looting for the third day in a row. Residents expressed their dismay after the violence. On Sunday, many road blockades by

By JILL LAWLESS Associated Press LONDON (AP) — The British government is investigating whether built-in racial bias in some medical devices led to Black and Asian people getting sick and dying disproportionately from COVID-19. Health Secretary Sajid Javid says the pandemic has highlighted health disparities along race and gender lines. Britain’s statistics office has found

By EMILY SCHULTHEIS Associated Press VIENNA (AP) — Austria has gone into a nationwide lockdown to combat skyrocketing coronavirus infections. The measures took effect early Monday and are expected to last for a maximum of 20 days. But they will be reevaluated after 10 days. The new restrictions require people to stay home apart from

By AYA BATRAWY Associated Press DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The fiancee of slain Saudi critic Jamal Khashoggi joined a chorus of voices calling on pop star Justin Bieber to cancel his concert in Saudi Arabia next month. In an open letter published by The Washington Post, she urged the Canadian megastar to cancel

By VESELIN TOSHKOV Associated Press SOFIA, Bulgaria (AP) — Exit polls in Bulgaria suggest that incumbent Rumen Radev is the apparent winner in the country’s presidential runoff. Partial official results are expected later Sunday. Surveys by several polling groups give Radev, 58, about 65% of the vote. He is seeking a second five-year term in

By MSTYSLAV CHERNOV and YURAS KARMANAU Associated Press KAKHOVKA, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine is setting records almost every day for coronavirus infections and deaths. Vaccination rates in Eastern Europe have generally lagged and Ukraine has one of the lowest. But the situation has turned dire nearly two years since the virus swept into Europe because

By YURI KAGEYAMA AP Business Writer TOKYO (AP) — Two women whose relatives died from the coronavirus at home are questioning the Japanese government’s policy of having some infected people recuperate in their own homes. The move comes as the government says it will ensure the availability of more hospital beds for any future COVID-19

By MATTHEW PERRONE AP Health Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — Holiday season could strain COVID-19 home test supplies as more Americans try to screen themselves before Thanksgiving and other family gatherings. After weeks of shortages, retail chains like CVS say they have restocked supplies of home tests, which deliver results in about 15 minutes. But experts

By BOBBY CAINA CALVAN Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — Even as visitors again crowd below the jumbo screens in New York’s Times Square, the souvenir shops, restaurants, hotels and entrepreneurs within the iconic U.S. landmark are still reeling from a staggering pandemic. With vaccinated foreign tourists now welcomed back into the United States, New

By EMILY SCHULTHEIS and KIRSTEN GRIESHABER Associated Press VIENNA (AP) — Tens of thousands of protesters, many from far-right groups, have marched through Vienna after the Austrian government announced a nationwide lockdown to contain skyrocketing coronavirus infections. Demonstrations against virus restrictions also took place in Switzerland, Croatia, Italy, Northern Ireland and the Netherlands on Saturday.

HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — Vietnam has welcomed more than 200 foreign tourists to its largest island, the first to visit the Southeast Asian country after nearly two years of border closure due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The fully vaccinated travelers from South Korea will spend their holidays in Phu Quoc hotel resorts without a mandatory

By DUSAN STOJANOVIC Associated Press ZRENJANIN, Serbia (AP) — Vietnamese workers helping construct the first Chinese car tire factory in Europe say they’re shivering in barracks without heat, going hungry and stuck in a plainland in Serbia because their passports have been taken by their Chinese employer. The Associated Press visited the construction site in

BEIJING (AP) — China’s market regulator has fined tech giants including Alibaba Group and Tencent Holdings for failing to report corporate acquisitions. The moves add to an anti-monopoly crackdown by the ruling Communist Party. The State Administration for Market Regulation said the companies failed to report 43 acquisitions that occurred up to eight years ago

By KEITH RIDLER Associated Press BOISE, Idaho (AP) — A Canadian mining company hoping to build an open-pit gold mine in Idaho west of Yellowstone National Park can resume exploratory drilling. The U.S. Forest Service on Friday announced it had approved Excellon Idaho Gold’s Kilgore Gold Exploration Project in the Caribou-Targhee National Forest in Clark

PHOENIX (AP) — The U.S. Senate has confirmed President Joe Biden’s choice to be the top federal law enforcement officer in Arizona. Gary Restaino was confirmed as the United States Attorney for Arizona on Friday. Restaino has been a federal prosecutor in Arizona since 2003 and was previously the chief of the criminal division and

LOS ANGELES (AP) — U.S. Coast Guard investigators say they have identified a second ship suspected of dragging its anchor near an underwater pipeline that later leaked crude oil into the waters off the Southern California coast. The U.S. Coast Guard said in a statement that investigators boarded the BEIJING in the Port of Long

The Associated Press Stocks closed mostly lower on Wall Street Friday, though gains for several tech companies pushed the Nasdaq composite to another record high and its first close over 16,000 points. The S&P 500 index and the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell. A choppy several days of trading left the S&P 500 and Nasdaq

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks that traded heavily or had substantial price changes Friday: Ross Stores, Applied Materials fall; Intuit, Moderna rise.

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

By ROB HARRIS AP Global Soccer Writer LONDON (AP) — Concerns about two cryptocurrency companies have led to two of Europe’s leading soccer clubs, Barcelona and Manchester City, dropping short-lived sponsorship agreements. Premier League champion City suspended a deal with 3Key Technologies after concerns were highlighted about the limited digital footprint of the company and

By MICHAEL LIEDTKE and BARBARA ORTUTAY AP Technology Writers SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — Fallen Silicon Valley star Elizabeth Holmes, accused of bamboozling investors and patients about her startup Theranos and its medical device that she said would reshape health care, unexpectedly took the witness stand Friday in her trial for criminal fraud. The decision

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Pakistan’s media regulating authority has again lifted a ban on the popular Chinese video-sharing service TikTok, this time after four months. It was the fourth time in the past 15 months that Pakistan Telecommunication Authority imposed and lifted such a ban. Pakistan first blocked TikTok in October 2020 over widespread complaints about

By KEITH RIDLER Associated Press BOISE, Idaho (AP) — If anyone has a good idea on how to put a nuclear fission power plant on the moon, the U.S. government wants to hear about it. NASA and the nation’s top federal nuclear research lab on Friday put out a request for proposals for a fission

By CEDAR ATTANASIO Associated Press / Report for America SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico education officials are partnering with public television providers for a stopgap that could ease students’ internet problems. A pilot program starting in Taos this week connects students to their schools through TV transmissions. New Mexico PBS affiliates are using

By JAMES MacPHERSON Associated Press BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — A federal appeals court has largely upheld a North Dakota law aimed at regulating companies that are hired to hold down prescription costs for insurers and employers. The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled on Wednesday, reversing its earlier decision on the state law that

By ANDREW WELSH-HUGGINS Associated Press COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Ohio State University has announced an initiative that would allow students to graduate debt-free after four years. The program known as the Scarlet and Gray Advantage will consist of increased scholarships, a paid internship program, more state and federal grants, and instruction in financial literacy. President

By EUGENE GARCIA Associated Press INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Business is booming at a truck-driving academy in suburban Los Angeles amid a nationwide shortage of long-haul drivers. The California Truck Driving Academy in Inglewood has seen annual enrollment grow by almost 20% since last year, and has expanded to offering night classes. Experts credit the

SANTA ANA, Calif. (AP) — A Southern California man has been sentenced to three years in federal prison for operating an unlicensed business that exchanged at least $13 million in Bitcoin and cash. Federal prosecutors say 50-year-old Hugo Mejia of the city of Ontario structured his business to establish an anonymous conduit for money laundering

By HALELUYA HADERO AP Business Writer With an Emmy win and a hit Apple TV+ series under his belt, Jason Sudeikis is having one big year. The show, of course, is Ted Lasso, where Sudeikis plays a good-natured American football coach who takes charge of a professional British soccer team despite having little knowledge of

By CHRISTOPHER RUGABER AP Economics Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — Two Senate Democrats will oppose the reappointment of Jerome Powell as chair of the Federal Reserve, as President Joe Biden is expected to announce within days who he will pick for the nation’s most powerful economic position. Sens. Sheldon Whitehouse from Rhode Island and Jeff Merkley

BERLIN (AP) — Google says it has signed agreements with several large German publishers to avoid copyright disputes over the use of their material. The Internet giant said Friday it reached deals with publishers including news weeklies Der Spiegel and Die Zeit, technology portals Golem and Netzwelt, as well as the business publications WirtschaftsWoche and

By KAREN MATTHEWS Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — A rare first printing of the U.S. Constitution has sold at Sotheby’s in New York for $43.2 million, a record price for a document or book sold at auction. Sotheby’s announced Friday that the buyer was hedge fund manager Kenneth Griffin. He will loan the Constitution

By GLENN GAMBOA AP Business Writer By offering its existing delivery platform technology to food banks for free, DoorDash, like a growing number of companies, is providing something that many nonprofits say is even more valuable than cash – knowhow. Project DASH has already made more than a million deliveries, the equivalent of about 21

By LAURAN NEERGAARD, MATTHEW PERRONE and MIKE STOBBE Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. is opening COVID-19 vaccine boosters to all adults, and urging them for anyone 50 and older. The decision Friday seeks to simplify what has been a confusing list of who’s eligible. Now for anyone 18 or older, the only requirement

By MATT O’BRIEN AP Technology Writer Job candidates rarely know when hidden artificial intelligence tools are rejecting their resumes or analyzing their video interviews — but New York City residents could soon have more say over the computers making behind-the-scenes decisions about their careers. A bill passed by the city council in early November would

By SALLY FRENCH of NerdWallet If you skipped holiday travel last year (or haven’t traveled much at all since the start of the pandemic), your travel skills might have gotten a little rusty. Plus, a lot about travel etiquette has changed. When you combine that with a challenging travel world filled with canceled flights and

By RAF CASERT Associated Press BRUSSELS (AP) — Another week of Brexit negotiations still left the European Union awaiting a firm counterproposal from the United Kingdom to ease a standoff over how to deal with Britain’s departure from the bloc. Both sides are fighting over differences in how to regulate trade in Northern Ireland, which

By SHEIKH SAALIQ and KRUTIKA PATHI Associated Press NEW DELHI (AP) — Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made a surprise announcement that he will withdraw agriculture laws that triggered a year of farmer protests, in what is seen as a major climbdown by his government. Experts say elections could be a major reason behind

By DAVID McHUGH AP Business Writer FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — The head of the European Central Bank is doubling down on the message that it’s no time to raise interest rates. Christine Lagarde says the bank won’t add to the squeeze on consumers who are facing rising prices driven by high energy costs. Higher inflation

BEIJING (AP) — China is threatening to retaliate against Lithuania after the Baltic nation allowed Taiwan to open a representative office in its capital. A Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian says Lithuania will “reap what it sows,” but gave no details.  He described the move as an “egregious act” that “grossly interferes” in China’s internal

By AYA BATRAWY Associated Press DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Afghanistan is facing a looming humanitarian crisis as aid organizations struggle with ways to pay doctors, nurses and others on the ground because there is currently no way to transfer salaries to bank accounts there. The head of the International Committee of the Red

By CARA ANNA Associated Press NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Ethiopia’s once rapidly growing economy is taking another hit tied to its yearlong war, with global clothing manufacturer PVH Corp. saying it’s closing its facility there because of the “speed and volatility of the escalating situation.” The company’s statement to The Associated Press comes two weeks

By SHEIKH SAALIQ Associated Press NEW DELHI (AP) — Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that he would repeal the controversial agriculture laws that sparked yearlong protests from tens of thousands of farmers and posed a significant challenge to his administration. Farmers form one of India’s most influential voting blocs. They have camped out on

By DAMIAN J. TROISE and ALEX VEIGA AP Business Writers Stocks closed mostly lower on Wall Street Friday, though gains for several tech companies pushed the Nasdaq composite to another record high and its first close over 16,000 points. The S&P 500 index gave up 0.1% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.8%. A

By ALAN FRAM Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The House has handed President Joe Biden a marquee victory. It’s approved his far-reaching, roughly $2 trillion social and environment bill. It happened Friday after Democrats cast aside disputes that for months had stalled the measure and hampered efforts to sell their priorities to voters. The House

By YURI KAGEYAMA AP Business Writer TOKYO (AP) — Japan’s Cabinet has approved a record 56 trillion yen, or $490 billion stimulus package, including cash handouts and aid to ailing businesses, to help the economy out of the doldrums worsened by the coronavirus pandemic. The plan includes doling out 100,000 yen, or $880, each in

By MORGAN LEE Associated Press SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — A federal raid on a small household marijuana garden on tribal land in northern New Mexico is sowing confusion and resentment about U.S. drug enforcement priorities on Native American lands, as more states roll out legal marketplaces for recreational pot. Bureau of Indian Affairs officers

By MICHAEL LIEDTKE AP Technology Writer SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — A Fortune Magazine reporter whose story helped turn Elizabeth Holmes into a Silicon Valley sensation came to court Thursday to explain why he felt like he became a pawn in her attempts to hype a blood-testing technology she promised would revolutionize health care.  Roger

By STEVE LeBLANC Associated Press BOSTON (AP) — Gov. Charlie Baker is abandoning his administration’s ambitious plan to create a multi-state compact aimed at dramatically reducing transportation pollution after the deal failed to gain traction. The announcement comes after Democratic Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont, who supported the initiative, indicated this week he was backing away

By SUMAN NAISHADHAM and MATTHEW DALY Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration has taken action to restore federal protections for hundreds of thousands of small streams, wetlands and other waterways. The government is undoing a Trump-era rule that was considered one of that administration’s hallmark environmental rollbacks. At issue is a regulation that

BOSTON (AP) — U.S. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland has joined with Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker to mark the groundbreaking of the first commercial-scale offshore wind farm in the United States. Haaland said Thursday on Cape Cod that the Vineyard Wind 1 project is the first of many that will contribute to President Joe Biden’s goal

By PAUL J. WEBER Associated Press AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A group that oversees the reliability of the nation’s electrical sector says Texas is again at risk of blackouts this winter because of extreme weather like the catastrophic February storm that buckled the state’s electricity grid. The North American Electric Reliability Corporation issued a report

The Associated Press Stocks closed mixed on Wall Street Thursday as investors reviewed the latest earnings reports from retailers and an update on the employment market. The S&P 500 rose and reached a new high. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell and the Nasdaq composite rose, also reaching a new high.

By BARBARA ORTUTAY AP Technology Writer A group of state attorneys general are investigating Instagram and its effects on children and young adults, saying its parent company Facebook — recently renamed Meta Platforms — ignored research about the harms it causes to young people. The investigation is led by a bipartisan coalition of attorneys general

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks that traded heavily or had substantial price changes Thursday: Helmerich & Payne, Cisco fall; Macy’s, Nvidia rise.

RIVERSIDE, Calif. (AP) — California has a new $419 million research facility that will allow state air quality regulators to expand emissions testing for heavy duty vehicles. Officials on Thursday dedicated the center in the city of Riverside that will allow for more checks on heavy duty vehicles such as trucks, buses and bulldozers in

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

By ERIC TUCKER Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Two suspected Iranian computer hackers have been charged in a broad campaign of election interference aimed at intimidating American voters during last year’s presidential race and undermining confidence that the results of the contest could be trusted. Prosecutors say the activities exploited not only computer vulnerabilities but

By CHRISTOPHER RUGABER AP Economics Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell surely expected to have some breathing room after taking the first step this month to dial back the Fed’s emergency aid for the economy. Just a week later, though, the government reported that consumer prices grew over the previous 12 months

By TOM DAVIES Associated Press INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The company that runs the Kentucky Derby has been picked to take over the stalled project to build a casino in the western Indiana city of Terre Haute. Indiana Gaming Commission members voted Wednesday in favor of Louisville, Kentucky-based Churchill Downs Inc. over three other companies that

By ALAN FRAM Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrats have brushed aside months-long divisions and are approaching House passage of their expansive social and environment bill. Final approval has been delayed indefinitely by House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, who has spoken for over three hours criticizing the legislation, President Joe Biden and Democrats. But passage

DETROIT (AP) — Ford Motor Co. is in talks with a computer chip maker GlobalFoundaries Inc. to shore up its semiconductor supplies as it tries to avoid factory shutdowns in the future. Few details of the nonbinding agreement were released, but the deal aims to boost supplies with joint development of automotive-grade chips. And it

By TALI ARBEL AP Technology Writer U.S. communications regulators are requiring that phone companies allow people to text as well as call a new “988” number for the suicide-prevention hotline. The Federal Communications Commission last summer voted to require phone companies support the 988 number for people to call to reach an existing suicide-prevention hotline.

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Disney Cruise Line will require all guests ages 5 and up to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 before setting sail starting early next year. The company posted a statement on its website Wednesday announcing the new rules will begin Jan. 13, 2022. The vaccine was recently approved for children ages 5

By JAMEY KEATEN Associated Press GENEVA (AP) — Switzerland’s financial markets watchdog says it has reprimanded and set restrictions on two Swiss banks for violating their obligation to fight money laundering in connection with clients in Venezuela, notably with links to state-run oil giant PDVSA. Banca Zarattini & Co. SA and CBH Compagnie Bancaire Helvetique

By DAVID BAUDER AP Media Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Several independent websites are joining forces to create a network for news about rural America, hoping to fill a void in areas hit hard by the shrinking media industry of the past two decades. The Rural News Network is being put together by the Institute

By TOM KRISHER AP Auto Writer DETROIT (AP) — Consumer Reports says electric SUVs generally are among the least reliable vehicles on the road, but it’s not because of the batteries or electric motors that power them. The magazine and website’s annual auto reliability survey found that it’s because of glitch-prone electronics including climate controls

By KEN SWEET AP Business Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden’s choice to become one of the top banking regulators endured a contentious nomination hearing Thursday, with Republican senators warning she would nationalize the U.S. banking system and Democrats saying she’s eminently qualified and would be tough overseer of Wall Street. Saule Omarova, 55,

By TOM MURPHY AP Health Writer CVS Health will close hundreds of drugstores over the next three years, as the health care giant adjusts to changing customer needs and converts to new store formats. The company said Thursday that it will close about 300 stores a year for the next three years as it looks

By KELVIN CHAN AP Business Writer LONDON (AP) — Customers are caught in the middle of a growing dispute between Amazon and Visa over transaction fees. The online retail giant moved this week to stop shoppers from using Visa credit cards issued in the United Kingdom starting next year. It’s the latest salvo in a

By MATT OTT AP Business Writer SILVER SPRING, Md. (AP) — The average long-term U.S. mortgage rate rose this week, with the main 30-year rate inching back up over 3%. Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac reported Thursday that the average rate on the 30-year benchmark home loan jumped to a still-low 3.1% from 2.98% last week.

By SAMUEL PETREQUIN Associated Press BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Commission says it could approve aid to fund production of semiconductors in the 27-nation bloc amid a global chip shortage. Most chipmakers are based in Asia, and the bloc wants to reduce its dependence on chips manufactured abroad by developing production on its soil. The

By DAMIAN J. TROISE AP Business Writer A wide range of companies could feel a tighter squeeze on their profits from rising food prices if inflation keeps running hot. Grocery stores, restaurants and food producers have been able to pass along much of the impact from inflation to consumers, who have so far eaten most

By ADAM BEAM and MICHAEL CASEY Associated Press SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Unemployment agencies across the country were bombarded with fraudulent claims during the pandemic. But so far states have reported few fraud attempts among their rental assistance programs. Congress has approved $45 billion to help eligible tenants pay their rent during the pandemic. More

AMSTERDAM (AP) — The European Union’s medicines authority says it has begun evaluating a new drug for treating COVID-19 patients who do not require extra oxygen but are at increased risk of developing severe symptoms of the disease. The drug developed by U.S. company Vir Biotechnology and Britain-based GlaxoSmithKline uses lab-made versions of virus-blocking antibodies

By PAUL WISEMAN AP Economics Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits fell for the seventh straight week to a pandemic low 268,000. U.S. jobless claims dipped by 1,000 last week from the week before, the Labor Department reported Thursday. The applications for unemployment aid are a proxy for layoffs,

By PAN PYLAS Associated Press LONDON (AP) — The British government has came under fire for scrapping a long-planned high-speed rail line to the northern English city of Leeds as part of a package of revisions that potentially reduces costs by tens of billions of pounds. Critics argue that the scaling back of plans will

By ANNE D’INNOCENZIO AP Retail Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Department store chains Macy’s and Kohl’s delivered strong results for the fiscal third quarter as shoppers go back to buying dresses and other goods that fell to the bottom of the shopping list when the pandemic struck. Macy’s and Kohl’s swung to a quarterly profit

BERLIN (AP) — Berlin-based online bank N26 is shuttering its business in the United States after two years and focusing its expansion efforts on Eastern Europe. N26 said on Thursday that it would wind down its business in North America by Jan. 11. It said that “as far as possible, the company will help all