Month: June 2023

By MATT OTT AP Business Writer The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits remained elevated last week, a possible sign that the Federal Reserve’s interest rate hikes over the past year may taking hold in what’s been a resilient job market. The Labor Department reported Thursday that U.S. applications for jobless claims were 262,000

By DAVID McHUGH AP Business Writer FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — The European Central Bank has pressed ahead with another interest rate hike. The quarter-percentage point increase Thursday aims to crush inflation that’s driving up the cost of groceries, utility bills and summer vacations. It comes a day after the U.S. Federal Reserve took a break

By MARI YAMAGUCHI Associated Press TOKYO (AP) — The leader of the Pacific island nation of Palau says it needs U.S. help to deter China’s “unwanted activities” around its coasts. Palau’s President Surangel Whipps Jr. also repeated on Thursday his government’s determination to maintain diplomatic ties with Taiwan. The president said in Tokyo that three

By SAMUEL PETREQUIN Associated Press The European Union’s ambition to lead the way on ecological issues has avoided a major setback. The environment committee of the European Parliament voted by the thinnest margin on Thursday to reject a proposal that would have killed a draft law on restoring nature and lost species across the continent.

By ANNE D’INNOCENZIO AP Retail Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Americans increased their spending at retailers last month despite pressure from  still-high inflation and rising borrowing costs. Thursday’s report from the Commerce Department showed that retail sales rose 0.3% from April to May, , helped by stronger sales of auto dealers. Economists were expecting a

BRUSSELS (AP) — NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg says the military organization has seen no evidence that Russia has changed its nuclear posture. On Tuesday, President Alexander Lukashenko claimed that Belarus has already received some tactical nuclear weapons from Moscow. He’s warning that he would order their use if his country comes under threat. Stoltenberg said

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea says North Korea has fired a ballistic missile off its east coast. South Korea’s military says the North Korean launch occurred Thursday evening but gave no further details. The launch came after North Korea’s military vowed an unspecified response after South Korean and U.S. troops finished five rounds

By SYLEJMAN KLLOKOQI and LLAZAR SEMINI Associated Press PRISTINA, Kosovo (AP) — Kosovo’s prime minister says border security will be tightened following what he described as Serbia’s role in the “kidnapping of three police officers.” Prime Minister Albin Kurti on Thursday also criticized NATO-led international peacekeepers for not providing an official explanation of what happened

By JIM MUSTIAN and JESSE BEDAYN Associated Press COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) — The suspect in a mass shooting at a Colorado Springs gay nightclub is expected to strike a plea deal to state murder and hate charges that would ensure at least a life sentence for the attack that killed five people and wounded

By ASHOK SHARMA Associated Press NEW DELHI (AP) — New Delhi police have filed charges of sexual harassment and outraging the modesty of six female athletes by Indian wrestling federation president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh at the end of their investigation. Singh faces a maximum of five years in prison if convicted. He denies the