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Global stocks rise ahead of US inflation update

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:24:51 GMT

BEIJING (AP) — Global stocks and Wall Street futures rose Friday ahead of a United States inflation update that traders hope might prompt the Federal Reserve to ease plans for more interest rate hikes.London and Frankfurt opened higher. Shanghai and Tokyo advanced. Oil prices declined.Wall Street rose Thursday as worries about the global financial system eased following the collapse of two U.S. banks and one in Switzerland.Traders hope a measure of U.S. inflation due out Friday that is closely watched by the Federal Reserve will show upward pressure on prices easing. That might prompt the Fed to postpone plans for a possible rate hike at its May meeting.A softer inflation reading would be a “signal to continue with the risk-on theme,” said Tim Waterer of Kohle Capital Markets in a report.Inflation in the 20 countries that use the euro slowed to 6.9% in March from 8.5% the month before. Food costs are still on the rise, but energy prices fell, making a sharp turnaround after mo...

Biden heads to Mississippi town ravaged by deadly tornado

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:24:51 GMT

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden on Friday will visit a Mississippi town ravaged by a deadly tornado even as a new series of severe storms threatens to rip across the Midwest and the South.Last week’s twister destroyed roughly 300 homes and businesses in Rolling Fork and the nearby town of Silver City, leaving mounds of wreckage full of lumber, bricks and twisted metal. Hundreds of additional structures were badly damaged. The death toll in Mississippi stood at 21, based on deaths confirmed by coroners. One person died in Alabama, as well. Biden and first lady Jill Biden will survey the damage, meet with homeowners impacted by the storms and first responders and get an operational briefing from federal and state officials. They are expected to be joined by Gov. Tate Reeves, Mississippi Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith and Rep. Bennie Thompson, along with local leaders. In a statement after the tornado, Biden pledged that the federal government would “do everything we can to he...

Vaughan says he has been cleared of making racist comment

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:24:51 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Former England cricket captain Michael Vaughan said Friday a disciplinary panel has dismissed a charge against him alleging he made a racially aggravated remark toward a group of Yorkshire teammates of Asian ethnicity in 2009.The verdict marks the latest stage of a scandal that erupted when Azeem Rafiq, a former player at Yorkshire, went public in 2020 saying he had been the victim of racial harassment and bullying across two spells at English cricket’s most successful club between 2008-18.Among Rafiq’s allegations was one where he accused Vaughan of saying to Rafiq and other teammates of Asian ethnicity on the sidelines of a Twenty20 match that there were “too many of you lot, we need to do something about it.”Vaughan categorically denied the charge and he said on Twitter the charge of the England and Wales Cricket Board has been dismissed.___More AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket and https://twitter.com/AP_SportsThe Associated Press

Huawei profit sinks in 2022 amid sanctions but sales higher

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:24:51 GMT

HONG KONG (AP) — Huawei on Friday reported a nearly 70% decline in profit last year amid sanctions and pandemic challenges, but its enterprise sales rose as the Chinese technology giant sought to pivot into digital industries and reduce its vulnerabilities to U.S. sanctions.“While it’s true that we have considerable pressures ahead of us, we still see opportunities to grow a resilient business portfolio, a unique competitive edge, the trust of our customers and partners and have the courage to invest heavily in R&D,” Eric Xu, the outgoing rotating chairman of Huawei, said during a news conference Friday.Huawei said Friday that its annual revenue for 2022 reached 642.3 billion yuan ($93.5 billion), a 0.9% gain from the year before.The net profit for the year was 35.6 billion yuan ($5.18 billion), down 68.7% from 2021 amid pressures from the pandemic, U.S. sanctions, an increase in commodity prices and a decline in the company’s consumer business, which mostly sells smartpho...

Pirates hold hostage some crew of oil tanker off West Africa

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:24:51 GMT

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Several members of the 16-man crew on a Liberia-flagged tanker are being held hostage by pirates who boarded the ship in West Africa’s Gulf of Guinea last week, the Danish shipper that owns the vessel said Friday.Pirates boarded the Monjasa Reformer southwest of Port Pointe-Noire, Congo, on March 25 and five days later, the French Navy that was patrolling the area, found the ship off the small island nation of Sao Tomé and Principe north of where it had been attacked.In a statement, company spokesman Thorstein Andreasen said that “the pirates had abandoned the vessel and brought a part of the crew members with them.” It did not say how many had been kidnapped or how they were taken. The online shipping magazine Trade Winds said it was three crew members.After the pirates had boarded the tanker, the crew sought refuge in a citadel — a safe area on the ship — in line with the onboard anti-piracy emergency protocol. However, the pirates somehow managed to tak...

Europe’s inflation eases to 6.9% as energy falls but food up

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:24:51 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Inflation in the 20 countries that use the euro currency slowed to 6.9% in March, the lowest level in a year, with food costs still on the rise while energy prices fell, making a sharp turnaround after months of punishing increases. Consumer prices in the eurozone dropped from the 8.5% recorded in February, according to data released Friday by the European Union’s statistics agency, Eurostat. The inflation has dropped to its lowest level in a year since since peaking at 10.6% in October. But prices for food, alcohol and tobacco rose by a painful 15.4%, faster than the previous month’s 15%, in a sign that European consumers are still getting squeezed. Energy prices, however, fell 0.9% — an abrupt change of direction after rising at double-digit rates over the past year.Russia’s war in Ukraine pushed up prices for natural gas used to heat homes and generate electricity, fueling overall inflation, but the latest reading indicates that a mild winter and Europea...

Michael Cohen says he believes Trump is 'petrified' over indictment

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:24:51 GMT

(The Hill) - Michael Cohen, the onetime attorney of former President Trump and key witness in the Manhattan district attorney’s case, said on Thursday that he believes Trump is “petrified” over his indictment.Trump was indicted on criminal charges Thursday over his role in hush money payments made to adult film star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 presidential election. “I believe that Donald right now is petrified,” Cohen told MSNBC, just minutes after media outlets began reporting the indictment. “This is one of his biggest fears, that he would be called out for who and what he is.”Cohen, who served as the former president’s personal attorney and longtime fixer, pleaded guilty in 2018 to campaign finance violations in connection with the $130,000 payment that sought to buy Daniels’ silence about an alleged affair with Trump.“What I did, I did at the direction of, for the benefit of, and in cooperation with Donald J. Trump,” Cohen said on Thursday. “And so, I ended being forc...

Greene County men admit to tax evasion conspiracy

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:24:51 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) — Two Elka Park men pleaded guilty on Thursday to conspiring to evade taxes on income they earned from stock sales. Dennis Radcliffe, 51, and Kenneth Radcliffe, 49, each of Elka Park, will face up to 5 years in prison when they are sentenced this August. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! Dennis and Kenneth Radcliffe, who are cousins, each admitted to two conspiracies. In the first, they failed to report millions of dollars they earned from penny stocks to the IRS. The money was earned from 2014 through 2017, according to court documents. The stock sales occurred in brokerage accounts that the duo controlled, which stood in the names of their companies Crackerjack Classics LLC and Universal Consulting LLC. Traffic stop ends in drug charges for Catskill duo In the second conspiracy, Dennis and Kenneth Radcliffe conspired with each other and with Joseph Radcliffe, Dennis' father, to avoid taxes on aroun...

Traffic stop ends in drug charges for Catskill duo

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:24:51 GMT

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) — A traffic stop on Washington Avenue Thursday afternoon ended in drug charges for two people, according to a press release from the Albany County Sheriff's Office. Deputies stopped a car around 3:45 p.m., near the intersection of Washington Avenue and Lark Street. Get the latest, news, weather, sports and community events delivered right to your inbox! According to the release, Bilal Ahmad, 22, was behind the wheel. Police say he had a revoked license, which resulted in a misdemeanor charge of aggravated unlicensed operation. The car's two passengers were identified as Wayne J. Vandiver, 29, and Ashley R. Steenburn, 36, both of Catskill. Deputies found cocaine on Vandiver and fentanyl on Steenburn, the release stated. Cohoes man sentenced for 2022 fatal shooting Steenburn was charged with two counts of criminal possession of a controlled substance, both felonies. She was also charged with the misdemeanor of criminally using drug paraphernalia and sent to ...

Spanish government criticises TV celebrity for alleged child surrogacy

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:24:51 GMT

Spanish ministers criticized a 68 year-old TV actress for allegedly adopting a child through a surrogate in the United States. This practice is illegal in Spain.Ana Obregon (pictured), a Spanish actress who rose to fame in the 1980s, was featured on the cover for !Hola! Outside Miami's Memorial Regional Hospital, Ana Obregon is seen in a wheelchair holding a baby girl and holding the magazine.The headline of the article is 'Ana Obregon: Mother of a surrogate baby girl' and it claims to be exclusive. Obregon does not quote, cite sources or state whether she was financially compensated by a surrogate mother.She shared a photo of the magazine cover on Instagram and wrote: "We've got caught!" My darkness was brought to my attention by a light filled with love. I will never again be alone. I AM ALIVE AGAIN."Obregon's biological only child, Aless Lequio (age 27), died from cancer in 2020.Spain is among EU countries that ban surrogacy.Three ministers from the Spanish government publicly cr...