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Stock market today: Asian shares trading mixed after Wall Street rally led by Microsoft gains

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:01:38 GMT

TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares traded mixed Tuesday after a rally on Wall Street that was led by gains in Microsoft following its announcement that it was hiring Sam Altman, former CEO of OpenAI, the ChatGPT maker. U.S. futures were higher while oil prices fell. Chinese markets were initially lifted by a report in the financial magazine Caixin that regulators had drafted a list of property developers that will be able to tap low-cost financing. The moves to facilitate more lending come as the real estate industry remains mired in a crisis brought on by a crackdown on excessive borrowing and worsened by a broad economic slowdown. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng was little changed, erasing earlier gains, and was up less than 0.1% at 17,783.77, while the Shanghai Composite inched down less than 0.1% to 3,067.93. “Hopes continue to build that China’s unabating and deepening property slump … will catch a break, if not stage a turnaround; in particular, as Beijing steps up stimulus efforts to back...

Las Vegas union hotel workers ratify Caesars contract

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:01:38 GMT

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Las Vegas hotel union workers voted overwhelmingly Monday to approve their contract agreement with casino giant Caesars Entertainment, signaling an end to lengthy labor disputes that had brought the threat of a historic strike to the Strip.The Culinary Workers Union announced on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, that 99% of the vote favored the new five-year deal.“BEST CONTRACT EVER! Congratulations to 10,000 hospitality workers!,” the post said. The union is expected to also approve its proposed contracts with Wynn Resorts and MGM Resorts International, the Strip’s largest employer, later this week. The breakthrough deals were tentatively reached earlier this month, just hours before the union had threatened a massive walkout at 18 hotel-casinos on the Strip, including Bellagio, Paris Las Vegas, MGM Grand and Caesars Palace.In a statement, Ted Pappageorge, the union’s chief negotiator, said the workers had been willing to take a cut in pay if the uni...

Eruption of Papua New Guinea volcano subsides, though thick ash is billowing 3 miles into the sky

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:01:38 GMT

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — The eruption of Papua New Guinea’s tallest volcano subsided Tuesday, but thick ash still billowed into the sky and coated roofs and palm trees nearby.One of the South Pacific nation’s most active volcanoes, Mount Ulawun erupted on Monday afternoon, spewing ash as high as 15 kilometers (50,000 feet).The alert level for the volcano on the northeastern island of New Britain was downgraded by Papua New Guinea’s Geohazards Management Division to Stage 3, which means a moderate-to-strong eruption. It had been at Stage 4 on Monday, indicating a very strong eruption. But the volcano, which stands 2,334 meters (7,657 feet) above sea level, remained active and the eruption could continue indefinitely, the division said.The Volcanic Ash Advisory Center in Darwin, Australia, reported volcanic smoke rising as high as 15,000 meters (50,000 feet) on Monday.The Papua New Guinea division reported the ash plume rising at least 5,000 meters (16,000 feet) on Tuesday before be...

Agriculture output: 19% value rise fuelled by price surge

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:01:38 GMT

In 2022, agricultural output in the EU was valued at €537.5 billion in basic prices, equivalent to an increase of 19% compared with 2021. This represented a new peak and continued the upward trend that started in 2010. The change in nominal value largely reflected the sharp rise in the nominal price for agricultural goods and services as a whole (an estimated +22.8%), with the volume of the output declining moderately from the 2021 level (an estimated 3.1% lower).This information comes from the economic accounts for agriculture (EAA) for 2022 published by Eurostat today. This news item presents a handful of findings from the more detailed Statistics Explained article. Three quarters of the value of the EU’s agricultural output in 2022 came from seven EU countries: France (€97.1bn, equivalent to 18% of the EU total), Germany (€76.2bn, 14%), Italy (€71.5bn, 13%), Spain (€63bn, 12%), Poland (€39.5bn, 7%), the Netherlands (€36.1bn, 7%), and Romania (€22.2bn, 4%).All EU countries registe...

Home erupts into flames after hours-long standoff in San Bernardino County

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:01:38 GMT

Authorities in San Bernardino County responded to a structure fire at home where police and SWAT had been engaged in an hours-long standoff Monday.  The incident unfolded in the 1500 block of Fairwood Way at approximately 3:15 p.m. after deputies with the San Bernardino Sheriff's Department, who were at the home to serve a search warrant, were fired on by a suspect inside the home.Some six hours after the standoff began, the residence caught fire, though it is unclear what exactly ignited the blaze. A home is seen in flames after an hours-long SWAT standoff on Nov. 20, 2023. (OnScene TV)Home erupts into flames after hours-long standoffCrews with the Upland Fire Department responded to the scene and multiple nearby residences were evacuated, an independent news agency reported.  Video of the scene obtained by KTLA showed heavy flames pouring at out of the house as firefighters attempted to douse the fire. Authorities have not said whether anyone was injured or if any arrest...

Prince Harry, Meghan Markle see familiar script play out for San Jose Sharks

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:01:38 GMT

The San Jose Sharks feel they’ve made some strides as a team since their general manager gave them a bit of a talking-to earlier this month. Notably, they’ve cut down on their goals against and have been competitive in just about every game they’ve played.Still, with such a small margin for error, the rebuilding Sharks will go into their game with the Seattle Kraken on Wednesday still looking for their first win away from home.The Sharks on Monday had a goal overturned due to goaltender interference and later gave up a shorthanded goal just before the second intermission. Those events, along with some other missed chances, proved to be too much to overcome as San Jose lost 3-1 to the Vancouver Canucks at Rogers Arena.Prince Harry attended the game with his wife, Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex, but saw a familiar script play out.Tomas Hertl scored a power-play goal and goalie Mackenzie Blackwood made 34 saves but the Sharks (3-14-1) lost for the fourth time in fiv...

Tsartsidze rallies North Dakota to 73-71 victory over Pacific

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:01:38 GMT

STOCKTON, Calif. (AP) — Tsotne Tsartsidze had a go-ahead layup with 21 seconds remaining and scored 19 points to rally North Dakota to a 73-71 victory over Pacific on Monday night.Tsartsidze sank 1 of 2 free throws with 2 seconds left for the Fighting Hawks (3-1) and Judson Martindale missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer for the Tigers (2-3). Eli King had 12 points, eight rebounds and five assists. B.J. Omot scored 12 and blocked three shots. Amar Kuljuhovic added 10 points and five rebounds off the bench.Donovan Williams finished with 19 points and nine rebounds to pace Pacific. Martindale had 13 points, while reserve Burke Smith scored 12 before fouling out. Cam Denson had 10 points and five boards before fouling out. Smith’s layup with 40 seconds left gave the Tigers a 71-70 lead.___Get poll alerts and updates on AP Top 25 basketball throughout the season. Sign up here___AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/c...

Cricket World Cup in India sets all-time tournament attendance record of 1.25 million

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:01:38 GMT

NEW DELHI (AP) — The Cricket World Cup attracted a tournament-record 1.25 million spectators during the 6 1-2-week event which ended Sunday with Australia beating India by six wickets for its sixth title.The ICC said Tuesday that the tournament had 1,250,307 spectators. With six games to go, the spectator figures had already surpassed the one million mark.The India attendance figures surpass the earlier marks of the 2015 World Cup held in Australia and New Zealand which attracted 1,016,420 spectators and the 2019 edition in England and Wales which had 752,000 fans.The 10-team tournament in India saw each team play the others once to advance to the semifinals. There were 48 matches played overall for a total average attendance of about 26,000.It was the 13th edition of the Cricket World Cup first held in 1975.___AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricketSource

Verificación de hechos: Trump sigue diciendo que fue acusado más que Al Capone. No es verdad

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:01:38 GMT

El expresidente Donald Trump afirmó en discurso que fue acusado tres veces más que el infame gángster Al Capone .No es verdad.Trump, el favorito para la nominación presidencial republicana, hizo uso de la afirmación sobre Al Capone mientras intenta presentarse como víctima de procesamientos infundados y con motivaciones políticas. En un discurso en Iowa este sábado, dijo : “Y, por cierto, fui acusado más veces que Alphonse Capone. Es el más cruel de todos los gánsteres. Si te lleva a cenar y no te ves bien, si te ríes un poco, podría pensar que te estás riendo de él, es peligroso reírse: te mataría inmediatamente. Fue acusado una vez. Me acusaron cuatro veces”.Lo mismo dijo en un discurso en octubre en Florida: “Si lo miraras mal, te mataría, y te mataría con sus manos. Era un tipo duro. Lo acusaron una vez. A mí me  acusaron cuatro veces”.Primero los hechos : la afirmación de Trump de que Al Capone fue acusado solo una vez es falsa. Al Capone fue acusado al menos seis veces, como d...

Northwestern gets go-ahead from city council to build new Ryan Field

Published Wed, 19 Feb 2025 00:01:38 GMT

EVANSTON, Ill. (AP) — Northwestern got the go-ahead to build a new Ryan Field on Monday night after extensive discussions with residents over the number of concerts the football stadium would host.The Evanston, Illinois, city council voted in favor of the project and approved a rezoning application to allow six concerts per year in addition to other events.“This decision marks a pivotal moment for Northwestern and the city of Evanston,” said Dave Davis, Northwestern’s senior executive director of Neighborhood and Community Relations. “We’re embarking on a journey that promises not just a state-of-the-art stadium, but also a beacon of cultural and economic vitality. This project is a testament to our shared vision of progress and prosperity.”The new stadium to be built on the site of the current, 97-year-old Ryan Field is part of a $480 million donation from the family of Patrick and Shirley Ryan that was the largest in school history. Some of that money is also funding academic vent...