AP National Business

By DAMIAN J. TROISE and ALEX VEIGA AP Business Writers Technology companies led stocks lower Thursday as investors weighed the implications of higher interest rates. The decline came a day after the Federal Reserve said it’s preparing to begin raising rates next year to fight inflation. The S&P 500 fell 0.9% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq

By MICHAEL LIEDTKE AP Technology Writer SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — A federal prosecutor on Thursday described Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes as a shameless fraudster who duped investors and patents while concealing dangerous defects in her startup’s blood-testing technology. Federal prosecutors made their closing arguments in the three-month trial in which Holmes stands accused of

By KEVIN McGILL Associated Press NEW ORLEANS (AP) — A federal appeals court in New Orleans has upheld a federal ban on “bump stocks” — devices attached to semiautomatic firearms to let a shooter fire multiple rounds with a single trigger pull. The ban was instituted in 2019 by the Trump administration after a sniper

By LAURAN NEERGAARD and MIKE STOBBE Associated Press U.S. health advisers are recommending that most Americans get the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines instead of the Johnson & Johnson shot. Thursday’s recommendation came after government advisers reviewed new safety data about rare but potentially life-threatening blood clots linked to J&J’s shot. The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines

By BERNARD CONDON Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — A congressional report says the federal agency overseeing the lease of the luxury hotel that Donald Trump’s family company runs in the nation’s capital failed to carry out its basic responsibilities. The report by a Democratic-run House committee says the General Services Administration never tracked the

By DAMIAN J. TROISE and ALEX VEIGA AP Business Writers Technology companies led stocks mostly lower on Wall Street in afternoon trading Thursday, as investors weighed the implications of higher interest rates as the Federal Reserve prepares to begin raising rates next year to fight inflation. The S&P 500 fell 0.7%, the tech-heavy Nasdaq slid

HOUSTON (AP) — Miami Herald President Nancy Meyer has been hired as the new publisher of the Houston Chronicle. New York-based Hearst Corp. announced Wednesday that Meyer will succeed John McKeon, who is retiring after a 40-year career in newspapers. The Chronicle reports that Meyer has been publisher of the Herald, a McClatchy newspaper, and

By HOPE YEN and TOM KRISHER Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden’s pick to run the nation’s highway safety agency is pledging to attack a crisis of fatal car crashes by implementing safety rules to deter impaired driving. He also is promising to scrutinize fast-emerging “self-driving” technologies, such as in Tesla vehicles, that

BOSTON (AP) — The chief executive of a California liquor distribution company who authorities say paid $500,000 to get her son into college as a bogus athletic recruit was sentenced to six weeks’ imprisonment on Thursday. Marci Palatella was sentenced in Boston federal court after pleading guilty to a charge of conspiracy to conspiracy to

By KEN RITTER Associated Press LAS VEGAS (AP) — Fireworks are returning to the Las Vegas Strip this New Year’s Eve with a theme pointed toward 2022 — Deuces Wild. Officials noted Thursday that last year’s event was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic, although thousands of revelers still congregated on casino-lined Las Vegas Boulevard.

By ANDREW SELSKY Associated Press SALEM, Ore. (AP) — The Oregon Legislature has dedicated $25 million to combatting the proliferation of illegal marijuana farms in Oregon. They made the move after hearing testimony this week about the harm these sites are inflicting on the community. The farms have been accused of stealing water during a

Associated Press Associated Press KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Intel is expanding its manufacturing operation in Malaysia as chipmakers work to diversify global supply chains that were hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic. The U.S. semiconductor company is no stranger to Malaysia, where it built its first offshore assembly plant in Penang in 1972. But

By LAURAN NEERGAARD and MIKE STOBBE Associated Press A government advisory panel is reviewing new safety data about rare but potentially life-threatening blood clots linked to the Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccine. The government has counted more of the unusual clots since a temporary pause in J&J vaccinations last spring, including nine confirmed deaths. Of

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden has signed a bill raising the nation’s borrowing limit by $2.5 trillion, avoiding a potentially catastrophic default and resolving the turbulent issue until after the 2022 midterm elections. The House voted early Wednesday to raise the debt limit, amid urgent warnings from Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen that further delay

By ELLEN KNICKMEYER and AAMER MADHANI Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate has given final approval to a bill barring all imports from China’s Xinjiang region unless businesses can prove they were produced without forced labor. In doing so they overcame initial hesitation from the White House and what supporters say was opposition from

By ALEX VEIGA AP Business Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — Homebuilder stocks have outpaced the broader market this year, and analysts are bullish on the prospects for more gains in 2022, despite expectations of continued supply chain woes. The SPDR S&P Homebuilders exchange-traded fund is up 45% this year, more than double the S&P 500.

By PAN PYLAS and DAVID McHUGH Associated Press LONDON (AP) — The United Kingdom’s central bank has become the first in a major advanced economy to raise interest rates since the coronavirus pandemic began. Banks controlling monetary policy around the globe are shifting their focus from stimulating the economy to combating soaring consumer prices that

By ALAN FRAM Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrats’ vast social and environment package is stuck in the Senate. And party leaders’ hopes of resolving holdout Sen. Joe Manchin’s demands and considering the bill in this year’s waning days seem all but dead. For weeks, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has said he wants to

By MIKE CORDER Associated Press THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The European Union drug regulator has issued advice on the use of Pfizer’s experimental pill to treat COVID-19 for countries where authorities may want to use it before it is officially authorized amid surging infection rates. The European Medicines Agency said Thursday the medicine, which

By HALELUYA HADERO Associated Press Americans across the country are pitching in to help after last week’s tornadoes ravaged the South and Midwest, killing at least 90 people and displacing hundreds. Some are removing broken tree limbs from the ground. Others are preparing hot meals and shelters for those who have nowhere to turn. And