AP National Business

By MATT OTT AP Business Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — Fewer Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week following three straight increases economists blamed on the surge in cases of the omicron variant of COVID-19. The Labor Department reported Thursday that jobless claims fell by 30,000 to 260,000 last week, slightly less than the 265,000 analysts

By MENELAOS HADJICOSTIS Associated Press NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — Cyprus’ energy minister says the European Union has earmarked 657 million euros ($736 million) for the construction of a 2,000-megawatt undersea electricity cable linking the power grids of Israel, Cyprus and Greece. Energy Minister Natasa Pilides told reporters on Thursday the funding is Cyprus’ largest-ever investment

By DAVID KOENIG AP Airlines Writer DALLAS (AP) — Thanks to strong passenger traffic over the winter holidays, Southwest Airlines is reporting a $68 million profit for the fourth quarter. Southwest said Thursday it was the airline’s first profit without federal pandemic aid since late 2019. The airline is facing higher costs, however, from boosting

By CARA ANNA Associated Press NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) — Nearly 1,500 people died of malnutrition in just part of Ethiopia’s blockaded Tigray region over a four-month period last year, including more than 350 young children, a new report by the region’s health bureau says. It cites more than 5,000 blockade-related deaths in all from hunger

By RICARDO ALONSO-ZALDIVAR Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden says 14.5 million Americans got private health insurance for this year under the Obama-era health law, thanks to help from his administration. Biden said Thursday health care should be a right, not a privilege, and a record number of people now have coverage under

By DEE-ANN DURBIN AP Business Writer McDonald’s ended 2021 on a high note, with U.S. customers spending more and fewer restaurant closures in Europe. The burger giant said Thursday that global same-store sales rose 12.3% for the quarter. Analysts polled by FactSet were expecting a 10.5% increase.  But McDonald’s was still stung by rising prices

By DAVID KOENIG AP Airlines Writer DALLAS (AP) — Thanks to strong passenger traffic over the winter holidays, Southwest Airlines is reporting a $68 million profit for the fourth quarter. Southwest said Thursday it was the airline’s first profit without federal pandemic aid since late 2019. The airline is facing higher costs, however, from boosting

By BEV O’SHEA of NerdWallet Getting and maintaining good credit can feel like a long, hard journey. It’s not always easy to understand why your score changes. Start by checking your credit reports — you’re entitled to get them for free — and disputing errors if you find them. Then, avoid common mistakes like paying

By ASHOK SHARMA Associated Press NEW DELHI (AP) — Tata Sons, India’s oldest and largest conglomerate, has regained ownership of the country’s debt-laden national carrier Air India. Tata launched Air India in 1932 and it was taken over by the government in 1953. Tata Sons Chairman N. Chandrasekaran met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on

By RAF CASERT and LORNE COOK Associated Press BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union says it’s launched action against China at world trade’s governing body for discriminatory practices against Lithuania. The bloc says Beijing’s spat with the Baltic country is hitting other EU exports. Lithuania broke with diplomatic custom by agreeing that the Taiwanese office

NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — Cyprus’ energy minister says the European Union has earmarked 657 million euros ($736 million) for the construction of a a 2,000-megawatt undersea electricity cable linking the power grids of Israel, Cyprus and Greece. Energy Minister Natasa Pilides told reporters on Thursday the funding is Cyprus’ largest-ever investment as well as the

By HOPE YEN Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg is vowing to help to stem a rising U.S. epidemic of car fatalities. Buttigieg is pushing a broad-based government strategy released Thursday aimed at limiting the speed of cars, redesigning roads to better protect bicyclists and pedestrians and boosting car safety features such

By JOE McDONALD AP Business Writer BEIJING (AP) — Global stock markets and Wall Street futures have sunk after the Federal Reserve indicated it will raise interest rates soon to cool inflation. London and Frankfurt opened lower. Market benchmarks in Tokyo and Seoul fell more than 3%. The U.S. central bank said it “expects it

By YURI KAGEYAMA AP Business Writer TOKYO (AP) — The French-Japanese auto alliance of Renault and Nissan plans to invest 23 billion euros ($26 billion) in electric vehicle technology over the next five years. The companies say their alliance, which also includes smaller Japanese automaker Mitsubishi Motors, will share research, auto parts and technology to

By AYA BATRAWY Associated Press DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — A regulatory body in Dubai is seeking to fine the Pakistani-born founder of Abraaj Group a staggering penalty of $135.5 million. The now defunct Mideast private-equity firm’s founder and CEO, currently in Britain, is accused of fraud and misleading investors, including in the U.S.

By DAVID McHUGH AP Business Writer FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Deutsche Bank says it reaped its best annual profit in 10 years last year. Germany’s largest bank said it had put most of its wrenching, years-long restructuring behind it. The bank underlined its progress by announcing a dividend for 2021 and a 300 million-euro share

By GRAHAM DUNBAR AP Sports Writer GENEVA (AP) — The finance model for the Winter Olympics calls for the host country to spend several billion dollars, the IOC to earn a couple billion, and sports bodies to share around hundreds of millions. But turning a profit from the 2022 Beijing Games was never China’s priority

By ELAINE KURTENBACH AP Business Writer BANGKOK (AP) — Australia’s Woodside Petroleum says it is withdrawing from projects in strife-torn Myanmar, following a similar decision by Total and Chevron. Woodside put all its Myanmar activities under review after the military took over power a year ago, deposing the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi.

By AYA BATRAWY Associated Press DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — A regulatory body in Dubai is fining the Pakistani-born founder of Abraaj Group a staggering penalty of $135.5 million. The now defunct Mideast private-equity firm’s founder and CEO, currently in Britain, is accused of fraud and misleading investors, including in the U.S. where prosecutors