By PAUL WISEMAN AP Economics Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of Americans signing up for unemployment benefits fell slightly last week, another sign that the labor market remains strong and most workers enjoy extraordinary job security. The Labor Department reported Thursday that jobless claims dipped by 2,000 to 210,000. The four-week average of claims,
Continue ReadingBy MICHAEL LIEDTKE and WYATTE GRANTHAM-PHILIPS AP Business Writers NEW YORK (AP) — Reddit and its eclectic bazaar of online communities is ready to plumb high-stakes territory — the stock market. The company priced its IPO at $34 a share Wednesday and shares will begin trading Thursday on the New York Stock Exchange under the
Continue ReadingBy MARIA SHERMAN AP Music Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — Days after Beyoncé releases her highly anticipated eighth studio album, she’ll make an appearance at the 2024 iHeartRadio Music Awards to receive its innovator award. Beyoncé will appear at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles to accept the honor during the April 1 ceremony hosted
Continue ReadingBy MARIA SHERMAN AP Music Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — Days after Beyoncé releases her highly anticipated eighth studio album, she’ll make an appearance at the 2024 iHeartRadio Music Awards to receive its innovator award. Beyoncé will appear at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles to accept the honor during the April 1 ceremony hosted
Continue ReadingBy Radina Gigova and Lauren Said-Moorhouse, CNN London (CNN) — The personal medical records of Britain’s King Charles III were not accessed in an alleged data breach at a London hospital, according to multiple British media outlets, including CNN affiliate ITV. The Daily Mirror, a UK tabloid, was the first to report on the story.
Continue ReadingBy DAMIAN J. TROISE AP Business Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Sweet Easter baskets will likely come at a bitter cost this year for consumers as the price of cocoa climbs to record highs. Cocoa futures have surged this year, roughly doubling since the start of 2024. Rising temperatures and weather conditions have stressed and
Continue ReadingPRAGUE (AP) — Four Central European countries remain deeply divided over how to resolve the Russian war against Ukraine. A meeting of their foreign ministers on Thursday showed that Hungary and Slovakia are not ready to change their strict refusal to provide arms to Ukraine. They declined to contribute to a Czech plan to acquire
Continue ReadingBy Ashley Strickland, CNN (CNN) — An unusual horned comet notable for a series of recent outbursts will be visible in the night sky for the remainder of March — and astronomers expect the so-called devil comet to make a rare appearance during the total solar eclipse on April 8. Exactly why the dynamic comet
Continue ReadingBy PAN PYLAS Associated Press LONDON (AP) — The Bank of England has kept its main interest rate unchanged at a 16-year high of 5.25% even though inflation continues to drop from multi-decade peaks. Thursday’s decision was widely anticipated in financial markets and comes a day after the U.S. Federal Reserve also left its key
Continue ReadingBy HANNA ARHIROVA and ANTON SHTUKA Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russia fired 31 ballistic and cruise missiles at Kyiv before dawn Thursday in the first attack on the Ukrainian capital in six weeks, officials said. Air defenses shot down all the incoming missiles, though 13 people including a child were injured by falling
Continue ReadingANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkey’s central bank has raised its key interest rate by 5 percentage points, resuming a policy of rate hikes aimed at combating soaring inflation that is causing households severe economic pain. In a surprise decision Thursday, the central bank said it was raising its benchmark one-week repo rate to 50%. The
Continue ReadingBy Andrew Carey, Victoria Butenko and Yulia Kesaieva, CNN (CNN) — Ukraine’s capital came under heavy missile attack in the early hours of Thursday for the first time in six weeks just hours after a visit to the city by US national security adviser Jake Sullivan. More than 25,000 people took shelter in the city’s
Continue ReadingBy The Associated Press President Vladimir Putin has thanked Russians for casting ballots in a presidential vote in which he cemented his grip on the country for another six years after the harshest crackdown on dissent since Soviet times. Any public criticism of Putin or his war in Ukraine has been stifled, independent media have
Continue ReadingBERLIN (AP) — The German parliament has welcomed its first deaf lawmaker, who took her place in a moment that the house’s speaker described as historic. Heike Heubach narrowly missed out on a seat in parliament’s lower house, or Bundestag, in Germany’s 2021 election. But she joined the house this week as the replacement for
Continue ReadingBy JILL LAWLESS Associated Press LONDON (AP) — The world has always loved a golden couple, especially when there are hints of trouble in paradise. Decades before millions tracked every move of Harry and Meghan, William and Kate or Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce, it was the turbulent union of actors Richard Burton and Elizabeth
Continue ReadingBy Ted Barrett, CNN Sen. Joe Manchin, a critical swing vote in the closely divided Senate, said Wednesday that from now on, he will only vote to confirm nominees who have the support of at least one Republican senator. “I’m going to be very honest with everybody, if my Democratic colleagues and friends can’t get
Continue ReadingBy GRAHAM LEE BREWER and AMELIA THOMSON-DEVEAUX Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — With abortion rights poised to be one of the major issues in the 2024 election, a new poll shows that Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders in the United States are highly supportive of legal abortion, even in situations where the pregnant
Continue ReadingBy STEPHEN WADE AP Sports Writer SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Yoshinobu Yamamoto lasted just one inning in his Los Angeles Dodgers’ debut after signing a record $325 million, 12-year contract, giving up five runs to the San Diego Padres in a 15-11 loss on Thursday night. The 25-year-old right-hander trailed 2-0 after nine pitches
Continue ReadingGENEVA (AP) — The Swiss National Bank says it’s trimming its key interest rate, a surprise move that makes Switzerland the first major financial center to announce a cut in recent months. Outgoing SNB chairman Thomas Jordan on Thursday credited the central bank’s push to rein in inflation in the wealthy Alpine country. The cut
Continue ReadingBy ASHOK SHARMA Associated Press NEW DELHI (AP) — India’s main opposition Congress party is accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government of stifling democracy and crippling the party by freezing its bank accounts in a tax dispute ahead of national elections. India’s 6-week-long general election will start April 19, with most polls predicting a victory
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