AP National Business

By MIKE SCHNEIDER Associated Press More than 1,100 cities, towns and villages in the U.S. lost their status as urban areas on Thursday as the U.S. Census Bureau released a new list of places considered urban based on revised criteria. Around 4.2 million residents living in 1,140 small cities, hamlets, towns and villages that lost

By DAMIAN J. TROISE and ALEX VEIGA AP Business Writers Stocks rallied on Wall Street in afternoon trading Thursday as investors reviewed the latest government update showing that the labor market remains strong. The S&P 500 rose 1.8% as of 3:02 p.m. Eastern. More than 95% of stocks within the benchmark index gained ground. It’s

By MIKE SCHNEIDER Associated Press Almost 1,000 towns, hamlets and villages in the U.S. lost their status as urban areas as the U.S. Census Bureau released a new list of places considered urban based on revised criteria. The new standards raise the population threshold from 2,500 to 5,000 people and add housing units to the

By ELAINE KURTENBACH AP Business Writer BANGKOK (AP) — Stocks are opening higher on Wall Street Thursday in a broad rally led by the IT and communications sectors. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq are up over 1% shortly after the open in New York, but remain on track for a losing month with one day

Associated Press DALLAS (AP) — Southwest Airlines continued to extract itself from sustained scheduling chaos Thursday, cancelling another 2,350 flights after a winter storm overwhelmed its operations days ago. The Dallas carrier acknowledged it has inadequate and outdated operations technology that can leave flight crews out of position when adverse weather strikes. Southwest was the

By CHRISTOPHER RUGABER AP Economics Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of people seeking unemployment benefits rose only slightly last week with the labor market remaining strong despite the Federal Reserve’s efforts to cool the economy and hiring. Applications for unemployment aid for the week ending Dec. 24 climbed 9,000 to 225,000, the Labor Department

By HENG SINITH and SOPHENG CHEANG Associated Press POIPET, Cambodia (AP) — A massive fire at a Cambodian hotel casino Thursday injured over 60 people and killed at least 19 — a number that officials warned would rise after the search for bodies resumes Friday. The blaze, which started around midnight Wednesday, was put out

By KEN MORITSUGU and HUIZHONG WU Associated Press BEIJING (AP) — Moves by several countries to mandate COVID-19 tests for passengers arriving from China reflect global concern that new variants could emerge in its ongoing explosive outbreak — and that the government may not inform the rest of the world quickly enough. There have been

LISBON, Portugal (AP) — The Portuguese government’s chief official in charge of transportation, including the fate of the troubled national airline and a long-postponed plan for high-speed train lines, has resigned. Infrastructure and Housing Minister Pedro Nuno Santos quit late Wednesday amid an outcry over a 500,000-euro ($532,000) compensation payment made to a board member

By COURTNEY WALSH Associated Press MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Fiji’s Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka has vowed to address the “litany of woe” created by the nation’s former government while raising concerns about the Pacific nation’s massive debt. In his first address to the country since being sworn in to office on Christmas Eve, Rabuka said

By ELAINE KURTENBACH AP Business Writer BANGKOK (AP) — Shares slipped in Europe and Asia on Thursday after benchmarks fell more than 1% on Wall Street in the middle of a mostly quiet and holiday-shortened week. U.S. futures were mixed and oil prices declined more than $1 a barrel. Investors are watching to see how

By SOPHENG CHEANG Associated Press PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — A massive fire that lasted more than 12 hours in a Cambodian hotel casino killed at least 16 people and injured about 50, while other victims were apparently not yet accounted for Thursday, as neighboring Thailand sent firetrucks to help fight the blaze in a

By SOPHENG CHEANG Associated Press PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — A massive fire raging more than 12 hours in a Cambodian hotel casino killed at least 11 people, injured 30 and apparently trapped others Thursday as neighboring Thailand sent firetrucks to help fight the blaze in a bustling border region. Videos posted on social media

By KEN MORITSUGU and HUIZHONG WU Associated Press BEIJING (AP) — Moves by several countries to mandate COVID-19 tests for passengers arriving from China reflect global concern that new variants could emerge in its ongoing explosive outbreak — and that the government may not inform the rest of the world quickly enough. There have been

By KEN MORITSUGU and HUIZHONG WU Associated Press BEIJING (AP) — Moves by the U.S., Japan and others to mandate COVID-19 tests for passengers arriving from China reflect global concern that new variants could emerge in its ongoing explosive outbreak — and the government may not inform the rest of the world quickly enough. There

By ELAINE KURTENBACH AP Business Writer BANGKOK (AP) — Shares slipped in Asia on Thursday after benchmarks fell more than 1% on Wall Street in the middle of a mostly quiet and holiday-shortened week. U.S. futures were mixed and oil prices declined. Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index lost 1.3% to 25,990.68. The Hang Seng in Hong

By SOPHENG CHEANG Associated Press PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — A fire burning through a Cambodian hotel casino has killed at least 10 people and injured 30 others, police said Thursday, and neighboring Thailand sent firetrucks to help fight the blaze in a bustling border region. Videos posted on social media showed people apparently jumping

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) — Local reports say a fire burning through a Cambodian hotel casino on the border with Thailand has killed at least 10 people. The reports said the blaze at the Grand Diamond Casino and Hotel in the border town of Poipet broke out around midnight on Wednesday and was still burning

The Associated Press Stocks are closing lower on Wall Street as investors count down to the end of the worst year for the S&P 500 since 2008. The benchmark S&P 500 fell 1.2% Wednesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the technology heavy Nasdaq composite also lost ground. Southwest Airlines shares dropped as the carrier’s

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks that traded heavily or had substantial price changes Wednesday: Chevron, Toll Brothers fall; Generac Holdings rises.