AP National Business

By FRANK BAJAK Associated Press BOSTON (AP) — Top U.S. election security officials say protecting the nation’s voting systems has become increasingly challenging. That’s due mostly to the embrace by millions of Americans of unfounded conspiracy theories and false claims about widespread fraud in the 2020 presidential race. With the midterm elections just days away

By FATIMA HUSSEIN Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. has imposed sanctions on a group of individuals, firms and vessels connected to an oil smuggling outfit said to benefit the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah and Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps. More than a dozen companies, six individuals and 11 vessels flagged from around the world

Associated Press The ride-hailing service Lyft is cutting 13% of its workforce, nearly 700 employees, as it tries to lower operating expenses. The company said in a regulatory filing that it anticipates incurring approximately $27 million to $32 million in restructuring and other charges related to employee severance and benefits costs. The charges are expected

The Associated Press DETROIT (AP) — Three more people have been killed in the past seven months by Takata air bag inflators that exploded and hurled shrapnel. Stellantis, formerly Fiat Chrysler, said Wednesday that people should not drive older Dodge and Chrysler cars until the air bags are replaced. The cars were recalled in 2015.

By MIKE STOBBE AP Medical Writer NEW YORK (AP) — The nation’s top public health agency on Thursday softened its guidelines for U.S. doctors prescribing oxycodone and other opioid painkillers. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention new recommendations are an update to 2016 guidelines that added momentum to a decline in opioid painkiller prescriptions.

By MATTHEW LEE AP Diplomatic Writer MUENSTER, Germany (AP) — Top diplomats from the world’s major industrialized democracies are seeking to expand unified positions on Russia’s war in Ukraine, China’s growing global economic clout and Iran’s crackdown on anti-government protestors. Foreign ministers from the Group of Seven nations opened two days of talks on Thursday

By DAVID BAUDER AP Media Writer NEW YORK (AP) — If you went missing, how much press would you be “worth”? The Columbia Journalism Review unveiled a tool on Thursday that calculates the number of stories your disappearance would net, based on demographics. It sounds morbid but the exercise is designed to call attention to

By HANNA ARHIROVA Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Europe’s largest nuclear power plant was relying on emergency diesel generators to run its safety systems Thursday after external power from the Ukrainian electric grid was again cut off, Ukrainian and U.N. officials reported. Fighting in Ukraine has repeatedly damaged power lines and electrical substations that

By DAVID KLEPPER Associated Press Researchers say nearly 1 in 5 videos suggested by YouTube in response to a search for terms related to next week’s elections came from untrustworthy sources. But the percentage of videos from untrustworthy sources was much higher on Rumble, a video platform that’s popular with some conservatives and far-right groups.

By RAF CASERT and COLLEEN BARRY Associated Press BRUSSELS (AP) — New Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has traveled to Brussels amid fears that her far-right-led coalition could further threaten unity in the European Union on issues as diverse as migration and LGBTQ rights. For some, the visit amounts to bringing the Trojan Horse of

By STAN CHOE AP Business Writer NEW YORK (AP) — The punishment has been extreme so far this earnings reporting season when companies report profits and sales that fall short of expectations. Companies that disappoint Wall Street have seen their stocks perform 6.7 percentage points worse the next day than the overall market. That’s a

By HANNA ARHIROVA Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — The U.N.’s nuclear agency says its inspections in Ukraine found no evidence of radioactive “dirty bomb” activity alleged by Russia. The International Atomic Energy Agency said Thursday that the inspections requested by the Ukrainian government “did not find any indications of undeclared nuclear activities and materials.”

By THOMAS PEIPERT Associated Press DENVER (AP) — Colorado voters are set to decide whether to decriminalize psychedelic mushrooms for those 21 and older and create state-regulated “healing centers” where participants can experience the drug. If the ballot initiative passes, the state will join Oregon in establishing a regulated system for substances like psilocybin and

By DAVID McHUGH AP Business Writer FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — The International Energy Agency says Europe could face a severe natural gas shortage next year and needs to act now to conserve. In a report Thursday, the Paris-based organization warned against complacency in an energy crisis triggered by Russia’s war in Ukraine after countries were

By DAMIAN J. TROISE and ALEX VEIGA AP Business Writers Stocks are down on Wall Street and Treasury yields are again bumping up against multiyear highs Thursday, a day after the Federal Reserve indicated that its fight against inflation is far from over. The S&P 500 fell 0.6% as of 2:44 p.m. Eastern. The benchmark

By TOM KRISHER AP Auto Writer DETROIT (AP) — Stellantis and the U.S. government are warning owners of 276,000 older vehicles to stop driving them after Takata air bags apparently exploded in three more vehicles, killing the drivers. The company that was formerly known as Fiat Chrysler is telling people to stop driving Dodge Magnum

By EVELYNE MUSAMBI Associated Press NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Tanzania’s prime minister says the fire burning on Mount Kilimanjaro for almost two weeks has been mostly contained after hundreds of military personnel were deployed to help. Prime Minister Kassim Majaliwa said Thursday that the blaze has destroyed 33 square kilometers (nearly 13 square miles) on

By MATT OTT AP Business Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — The average long-term U.S. mortgage rate dipped back under 7% this week, one day after the Federal Reserve raised its benchmark borrowing rate to its highest level in 15 years as it tries to squelch four-decade high inflation. Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac reported Thursday that the

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks are opening lower on Wall Street and Treasury yields are again bumping up against multiyear highs a day after the Federal Reserve indicated that its fight against inflation is far from over. The S&P 500 fell 1% in the early going, as did the Nasdaq composite. The Dow was off