AP National Business

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Poland’s Defense Ministry says that a massive leak from a military equipment database includes only publicly available information and is not harmful. The ministry said Friday that the database found on the internet is a list coming from a body responsible for making purchases for Poland’s military. It blamed the leak

By MATT OTT AP Business Writer SILVER SPRING, Md. (AP) — Wells Fargo easily beat Wall Street expectations for the fourth quarter with interest rates beginning to take off, likely another boost for the nation’s largest mortgage lender going forward. The San Francisco bank posted earnings on Friday of $5.8 billion, or $1.38 per share,

By KEN SWEET AP Business Writer NEW YORK (AP) — JPMorgan Chase says fourth-quarter profits fell 14% from a year earlier, due to a weaker performance from its trading desk and higher compensation expenses for employees. Even with the weaker quarter, JPMorgan had a record annual profit, nearly $50 billion. The total is significantly more

ZAGREB, Croatia (AP) — Croatian authorities say last year’s population census in the European Union country has shown an almost 10% drop over the past decade. Officials said Friday that the census listed 3.8 million citizens compared to close to 4.2 in the previous census in 2011. The decrease reflects the depopulation problem in Croatia

By YURAS KARMANAU, FRANK BAJAK and DASHA LITVINOVA Associated Press KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian officials say a cyberattack has left a number of government websites temporarily unavailable. It wasn’t immediately clear who was behind Friday’s cyberattack. But it comes amid heightened tensions with Russia and after talks between Moscow and the West failed to

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — A fire  that erupted during maintenance work at a major oil refinery in Kuwait has killed two workers and critically injured five others. The Kuwait National Petroleum Company says the blaze broke out on Friday at a gas liquefaction unit that had been out of service for maintenance work.

By COLLEEN BARRY AP Fashion Writer MILAN (AP) — Milan fashion houses were charting a path out of the pandemic that included a menswear calendar packed with 22 live runway shows and another 18 physical presentations this month. But that was before the omicron surge. Milan Fashion Week with previews for fall-winter 2022-23 opens Friday

By FRANCES D’EMILIO Associated Press ROME (AP) — Italy, Spain and other European countries are reinstating or stiffening mask mandates as their hospitals struggle with mounting numbers of COVID-19 patients. Other nations like the Netherlands are considering introducing masking rules. The use of more protective FFP2 masks in Italy is also seen as a way

By JOSH BOAK Associated Press The Transportation Department is launching a $27 billion program to repair and upgrade U.S. bridges. It’s happening as part of the infrastructure law approved in November and comes as President Joe Biden tries to showcase how his policies are delivering for the public. The program is expected to help repair

By DAVID McHUGH Associated Press FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — The risk of recession is looming for Germany after Europe’s biggest economy shrank at the end of 2021 and as it faces a bumpy start to this year. The rapid spread of COVID-19’s omicron variant is deterring people from shopping and travel and supply bottlenecks are

By ZEN SOO Associated Press HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong International Airport is banning transit passengers from 150 countries and territories starting Sunday, tightening stringent travel controls in an effort to stem the spread of the highly contagious omicron variant. Authorities also said Friday they will extend social distancing restrictions, including a ban on

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Five people have been severely injured by a fire that erupted in Kuwait at a major oil refinery. The Kuwait National Petroleum Company said Friday five people were being treated at a nearby hospital for severe burns and another two for moderate burns. Others received treatment at an on-site

By ELAINE KURTENBACH AP Business Writer BANGKOK (AP) — Shares have slipped in Europe and Asia after a retreat on Wall Street that left the Nasdaq composite down 2.5%. Benchmarks fell in Frankfurt, Paris, Tokyo and Shanghai. China reported its global trade surplus surged nearly 30% in 2021 to $676.4 billion. South Korea’s central bank

By ELAINE KURTENBACH AP Business Writer BANGKOK (AP) — Asian shares are lower after a retreat on Wall Street that left the Nasdaq composite down 2.5%. Tokyo fell nearly 2% and Hong Kong, Shanghai and Seoul were also lower. China reported its global trade surplus surged nearly 30% in 2021 to $676.4 billion. On Thursday,

The crowdfunding platform GoFundMe announced Thursday that it has signed a deal to acquire the nonprofit fundraising company Classy. The move will help the largest crowdfunding site in the world further increase its influence in the philanthropic sector. A news release from GoFundMe says under the agreement, Classy will become a subsidiary of GoFundMe and

By JOE McDONALD AP Business Writer BEIJING (AP) — China’s politically volatile global trade surplus surged to $676.4 billion in 2021, likely the highest ever for any country. Exports jumped nearly 30% over a year earlier despite semiconductor shortages that disrupted manufacturing. Customs data showed the country’s trade surplus in December swelled 20.8% over a

By CHRISTOPHER RUGABER AP Economics Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden will nominate three people for the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors, including Sarah Bloom Raskin, a former Fed and Treasury official, for the top regulatory slot and Lisa Cook, who would be the first Black woman to serve on the Fed’s board. Biden

By CHRISTOPHER RUGABER AP Economics Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden will nominate three people to the Senate for the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors. They include former Fed official Sarah Bloom Raskin for the top regulatory slot, and Lisa Cook, who would be the first Black woman to serve as a governor. Biden

By DAVID KOENIG AP Business Writer For big companies across the country, it’s now up to them to decide whether to require employees to get vaccinated. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Thursday that OSHA doesn’t have authority to impose a vaccinate-or-test requirement on businesses with at least 100 employees. Many companies are silent so far

By JOHN ANTCZAK Associated Press LOS ANGELES (AP) — A Virgin Orbit rocket released from a jet flying off the California coast has carried seven small satellites into space. The launch Thursday kicks off a year in which the company plans a total of six missions, including two originating from Britain. Virgin Orbit’s modified Boeing