By ANNE D’INNOCENZIO AP Retail Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Americans picked up their spending from October to November as the unofficial holiday season kicked off, underscoring that shoppers still have power to keep buying. Retail sales rose 0.3%, in November from October, when sales were down a revised 0.2% according to the Commerce Department.
Continue ReadingNEW YORK (AP) — Several key leaders at General Motors’ troubled autonomous vehicle unit are no longer with the company amid an ongoing investigation into an October accident involving one of its driverless cars. Cruise said late Wednesday that nine individuals departed following an initial analysis of the incident on Oct. 2 and the company
Continue ReadingBy JARI TANNER Associated Press HELSINKI (AP) — NATO’s newest member and Russia’s neighbor Finland is to sign a bilateral defense cooperation agreement next week with the United States in a deal that allows Washington to send troops into the Nordic country and to store weapons and equipment there. Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen told
Continue ReadingBy Jake Tapper and Jennifer Hansler, CNN (CNN) — US Navy officer Lt. Ridge Alkonis, who was jailed in Japan for negligent driving that resulted in the death of two people, has been booked into a federal prison in Los Angeles following his transfer to the US, according to a family spokesperson and the Federal
Continue ReadingBy SETH BORENSTEIN AP Science Writer DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The climate negotiations that just finished in Dubai hit upon the essence of compromise, finding common language that nearly 200 countries accepted, at times grudgingly. For the first time in nearly three decades of such talks, the final agreement mentioned fossil fuels —
Continue ReadingBy Annie Grayer, CNN Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire is introducing a new resolution with a bipartisan group of senators to condemn Hamas’ use of sexual violence and rape as a weapon of war against the people of Israel, according to a copy of the resolution shared first with CNN. The Senate-led resolution,
Continue ReadingCOPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — An academic who entered Norway as a Brazilian citizen and was arrested last year on suspicion of spying for Russia has confessed his real, Russian name. The man was detained in the Arctic city of Tromsoe, where he worked as a lecturer at the Arctic University of Norway. Norwegian media have
Continue ReadingBy BERT WILKINSON Associated Press KINGSTOWN, St. Vincent (AP) — The leaders of Guyana and Venezuela landed in St. Vincent and the Grenadines for a tense meeting Thursday as regional nations sought to defuse a long-standing territorial dispute that has escalated with Venezuelans voting in a referendum to claim two-thirds of their smaller neighbor. Pushed
Continue ReadingBy STAN CHOE AP Business Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street is rising again Thursday following its big rally the day before on excitement that several cuts to interest rates may indeed be coming next year, as hoped. The S&P 500 was 0.6% higher in early trading and within 1.3% of its all-time high
Continue ReadingBy STEPHEN WADE and YURI KAGEYAMA Associated Press TOKYO (AP) — A former member of the Tokyo Olympic organizing committee has appeared in district court and pleaded not guilty to taking $1.4 million in bribes in exchange for contracts for the Games. Haruyuki Takahashi was arrested more than a year ago and it is unclear
Continue ReadingBy BETH HARRIS AP Sports Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Los Angeles Dodgers are ready to welcome Shohei Ohtani to Hollywood. The biggest superstar in baseball will be formally introduced by the team at a news conference Thursday. A unique two-way star as both a hitter and pitcher, the 29-year-old Japanese sensation left the
Continue ReadingBy BETH HARRIS AP Sports Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Los Angeles Dodgers are ready to welcome Shohei Ohtani to Hollywood. The biggest superstar in baseball will be formally introduced by the team at a news conference Thursday. A unique two-way star as both a hitter and pitcher, the 29-year-old Japanese sensation left the
Continue ReadingBy Alayna Treene and Veronica Stracqualursi, CNN (CNN) — Former President Donald Trump returned to Iowa on Saturday, a day after a Colorado court rejected efforts to ban him from the state’s 2024 ballot. While the Colorado judge ruled Friday that Trump “engaged in an insurrection,” she found that the 14th Amendment’s “insurrection ban” doesn’t apply to presidents. “Today,
Continue ReadingBy Hannah Rabinowitz and Evan Perez, CNN (CNN) — Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta is leaving the Justice Department after three years overseeing some of the administration’s most contentious legal issues ranging from protecting abortion rights to criminal and police reform efforts, according to the department. Gupta is the first woman of color and first civil rights
Continue ReadingBy SAMUEL PETREQUIN Associated Press BRUSSELS (AP) — The dire humanitarian situation in Gaza is prompting more European Union countries to support the idea of a humanitarian cease-fire in the war between Israel and Hamas. Ireland’s prime minister Leo Varadkar said Thursday the EU is losing its credibility because of a lack of a strong
Continue ReadingCHICAGO (AP) — The family of a Chicago woman who froze to death after she became locked in a hotel freezer has agreed to a $10 million legal settlement. Kenneka Jenkins’ mother, Tereasa Martin, will receive about $3.7 million, according to court records made public Tuesday, the Chicago Tribune reported. Other family members will receive
Continue ReadingNAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — The head of Haiti’s national police is visiting Kenya as local authorities prepare for the deployment of police to the Caribbean nation plagued by gang violence. Frantz Elbe is on a three-day visit for bilateral security discussions, according to a statement from the Kenyan police chief. Elbe’s visit comes days after
Continue ReadingBy KIRSTEN GRIESHABER Associated Press BERLIN (AP) — Germany and Turkey have agreed to gradually end the deployment of Turkish state-employed imams to Germany and instead train imams in Germany to serve the country’s large Turkish immigrant community. As part of a joint training initiative announced on Thursday, 100 imams are to be educated in
Continue ReadingNEW YORK (AP) — Emmy-award winning actor, writer and producer Keegan-Michael Key will host the “NFL Honors” show on Feb. 8, when The Associated Press individual awards are announced. The prime-time honors special will air live from Resorts World Theatre in Las Vegas at 9 p.m. EST on CBS and NFL Network and stream on
Continue ReadingBy ERIC TUCKER Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — A Navy officer jailed in Japan over a car crash that killed two Japanese citizens has been transferred into American custody and was returned Thursday to the United States, where he was booked into a federal detention center. Lt. Ridge Alkonis had been serving a three-year prison
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