AP National Business

JEMISON, Ala. (AP) — Police say nearly two dozen FedEx packages have been found in woods along a rural Alabama road about 75 miles from a ravine where hundreds of undelivered FedEx parcels previously were discovered. Police in Jemison said in a statement Wednesday that about 20 packages bound for locations on nine different roads

By BRIAN MELLEY Associated Press LOS ANGELES (AP) — When California’s former Gov. Jerry Brown signed the nation’s first law requiring women on boards of publicly traded companies three years ago, he suggested it might not survive legal challenges. On Wednesday a judge begins hearing evidence of whether the law violates the equal protection clause

By CHRISTOPHER RUGABER AP Economics Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — Chair Jerome Powell said Wednesday that the Federal Reserve can’t be sure that inflation will fade in the second half of next year, as many economists expect, a fresh sign of the Fed’s growing concern about rising prices. Powell, in comments to the House Financial Services

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Two budget airlines in the U.S. and Mexico say they will seek government approval to form an alliance and expand their flights across the border. Las Vegas-based Allegiant and Mexico’s Viva Aerobus said Wednesday they will seek antitrust immunity from the U.S. and Mexican governments. The airlines want to work together

By LORNE COOK and DAVID KEYTON Associated Press RIGA, Latvia (AP) — NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg says the military organization was a victim of mission creep in Afghanistan as the international community went from fighting extremists to trying to rebuild the conflict-torn country. Stoltenberg addressed NATO’s role on Wednesday after foreign ministers debated a

By MARCY GORDON AP Business Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — Ex-Facebook employee and whistleblower Frances Haugen implored lawmakers to avert the usual congressional stalemates as they weigh proposals to curb abuses on social media platforms by limiting the companies’ free-speech protections against legal liability. Still, Haugen urged caution in making changes to the 1996 law that

By KEN SWEET AP Business Writer SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The head of Visa says he believes the pandemic caused a permanent shift of how consumers choose to pay for goods and services away from cash and into payments. In an interview with The Associated Press, CEO Al Kelly said the coronavirus outbreak helped accelerate

BERLIN (AP) — A court has ruled that German authorities are justified in banning three pornographic websites based in Cyprus from operating in Germany due to rules intended to protect minors. The Duesseldorf administrative court said Wednesday it had rejected complaints by the sites’ two unnamed operators, who argued that child-protection regulations in Germany didn’t

By TOM KRISHER AP Auto Writer DETROIT (AP) — General Motors is forming a joint venture with Posco Chemical of South Korea to build a North American battery materials plant as it moves to bring more steps in the electric vehicle supply chain under its umbrella. The automaker said details of the venture are still

By STAN CHOE and DAMIAN J. TROISE AP Business Writers NEW YORK (AP) — The latest move in Wall Street’s jolting roller-coaster ride is back up, as stocks, oil and bond yields climb in Wednesday morning trading to recover some of their sharp losses from the day before. The S&P 500 was 1.6% higher following

By KEN SWEET AP Business Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Capital One said Wednesday that will get rid of all overdraft fees, the latest bank to do so this year and one of the largest financial institutions to shy away from the long-hated practice. The Virginia-based bank said it will still allow customers to overdraft,

By RAF CASESRT Associated Press BRUSSELS (AP) — The chief of the European Union’s executive arm says EU nations should consider making COVID-19 vaccinations mandatory because too many people still refuse to get shots voluntarily. The EU-wide vaccination rate stands at 66%, and unexpectedly high case surges in much of the 27-nation bloc has led

By MATT OTT AP Business Reporter SILVER SPRING, Md. (AP) — U.S. manufacturing activity grew at a faster pace in November as companies continue to struggle to keep up with demand amid ongoing supply shortages and delays. The Institute for Supply Management, a trade group of purchasing managers, said Wednesday that its index of manufacturing

By STAN CHOE AP Business Writer NEW YORK (AP) — The latest move in Wall Street’s jolting roller-coaster ride is back up, as stocks, oil and bond yields climb in Wednesday morning trading to recover some of their sharp losses from the day before. The S&P 500 was 1.5% higher following some better-than-expected readings on

By MATT OTT AP Business Reporter SILVER SPRING, Md. (AP) — U.S. manufacturing activity grew at a faster pace in November as companies continue to struggle to keep up with demand amid ongoing supply shortages and delays. The Institute for Supply Management, a trade group of purchasing managers, said Wednesday that its index of manufacturing

By STAN CHOE AP Business Writer NEW YORK (AP) — The latest move in Wall Street’s jolting roller-coaster ride is back up, as stocks, oil and bond yields climb early Wednesday to recover some of their sharp losses from the day before. The S&P 500 was 1.1% higher, following a dizzying sequence where it sank

BRATISLAVA, SLovakia (AP) — Slovakia’s government has proposed a plan to give people 60 and older a 500-euro ($568) bonus if they get vaccinated against COVID-19. The measure should boost inoculations in the European Union country with one of the lowest vaccination rates in the bloc at only 46.1%. The bill will now go to

By LORNE COOK Associated Press BRUSSELS (AP) — Top European Union migration officials have offered to ease the asylum procedures for Poland, Lithuania and Latvia in response to what the EU has called a “hybrid attack” by Belarus to destabilize the bloc using migrants and refugees. The EU migration officials proposed allowing Poland, Lithuania and

NEW YORK (AP) — Peter Prengaman has been named climate and environmental editor of The Associated Press. This new position will lead the news agency’s expanding coverage of climate issues as part of a major global initiative. Prengaman is a multiformat journalist and newsroom leader who has led coverage of major stories around the world.