AP National Business

By MIKE CORDER Associated Press THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — A group of Dutch students has reimagined van life and is hitting the road to Portugal. They call their groundbreaking new solar-powered vehicle “a self-sustaining house on wheels.” A team from the Technical University in the southern Dutch city of Eindhoven designed the sleek, odd-looking

By KEITH RIDLER Associated Press BOISE, Idaho (AP) — The U.S. Department of Defense is taking input on its plan to build an advanced mobile nuclear microreactor prototype at the Idaho National Laboratory in eastern Idaho. The department on Friday began the 45-day comment period by releasing a draft environmental impact study evaluating alternatives for

WASHINGTON (AP) — United Airlines has been fined $1.9 million over 25 delayed flights in which passengers were stuck on the ground for at least three hours. It’s the largest fine ever imposed by the U.S. Transportation Department for such long delays. The government said Friday that the incidents occurred between late 2015 and February

By STEVE LeBLANC Associated Press BOSTON (AP) — Officials from companies with fleets of trucks are urging governors across the country to embrace a rule meant to speed the adoption of zero-emission trucks and reduce a potent source of greenhouse gases spewed from the large commercial vehicles. Representatives of companies like IKEA, Nestle, Siemens, Etsy,

By OLGA R. RODRIGUEZ Associated Press SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Pacific Gas & Electric has been charged with involuntary manslaughter and other crimes in a Northern California wildfire last year that killed four people and destroyed hundreds of homes. Investigators determined that aging equipment belonging to the nation’s largest utility sparked the Zogg Fire last

Mercedes-Benz is teaming up with Stellantis and TotalEnergies in a European electric vehicle battery joint venture. The partners in Automotive Cells Co. plan to increase the company’s industrial capacity to at least 120 GWh by 2030. The company is looking to develop and make battery cells and modules for electric vehicles with a focus on

By ERIC TUCKER, JIM MUSTIAN and ROB GILLIES Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — Two Canadians detained in China have been released from prison. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced their release Friday night, hours after the U.S. Justice Department resolved criminal charges against a top executive of Chinese communications giant Huawei.  Canadians Michael Kovrig

By DIANE JEANTET Associated Press RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Brazil is in the throes of its worst drought in 91 years, which has returned the specter of power rationing. Authorities are reviewing the scope of benefits of daylight saving time, ended by a presidential decree in 2019. Federal lawmakers discussed its return this week,

By LORNE COOK Associated Press BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union is warning Russia against allowing hackers to attack data bases or spread disinformation in the bloc just as Germans prepare to go the polls for parliamentary elections. EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell says some of the 27 member countries “have observed malicious cyber

By LISA MASCARO and JONATHAN LEMIRE Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden says talks over his $3.5 trillion rebuilding plan have hit a “stalemate” in Congress. Biden delivered off-cuff remarks Friday at the White House as Democrats in the House and Senate are laboring to finish drafts and overcome party differences, The president’s

French luxury house Saint Laurent will go completely fur free in its collections from next year, its parent company Kering says. In a statement Friday, Kering added that another of its houses, Italian menswear brand Brioni, will also stop using fur — making the luxury giant that includes Gucci, Alexander McQueen, Balenciaga, Bottega Veneta completely

By MATT OTT AP Business Writer SILVER SPRING, Md. (AP) — Sales of new homes in the U.S. rose modestly in August as rising prices continue to sideline potential buyers. The Commerce Department reported Friday that sales of new homes last month rose 1.5%, reaching a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 740,000. That follows July’s

LONDON (AP) — Travelers arriving at U.K. airports are facing delays after electronic passport gates have failed, forcing passengers to wait in line for border officers to inspect their documents. London Heathrow, Manchester and Edinburgh airports all reported that a technology failure disrupted gates that allow passengers with biometric passports to quickly pass through border

BEIJING (AP) — HNA Group, the Chinese airline operator that ran into financial trouble following a global acquisition spree beginning in 2014, says its chairman and CEO have been detained on suspicion of committing crimes. A company statement says Chen Feng and Tan Xiangdong were “taken under compulsory measures” by police in the southern island

By LAURAN NEERGAARD and MIKE STOBBE AP Medical Writers The U.S. launched a campaign to offer boosters of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine to millions of Americans on Friday even as health officials stressed the real problem remains getting first shots to the unvaccinated. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention endorsed boosters for some who got

By OLIVERA PERKINS of The Chronicle of Philanthropy Chronicle of Philanthropy A new effort in Northwest Arkansas offering $10,000 incentives to new residents is part of an increasing number of philanthropy-financed projects trying to spark economic development, promote civic and cultural life, attract skilled workers, and offset declining or sparse populations. Remote workers are especially

ROME (AP) — Hundreds of Alitalia workers are blocking a highway exit outside Rome’s main airport to demonstrate their anger that most of the airline’s staff will soon lose their jobs. As of Oct. 1, the financially-ailing Alitalia won’t exist anymore. The new company being formed, called ITA, says it will only keep some 2,800

By JOSHUA GOODMAN Associated Press Writer ABOARD THE OCEAN WARRIOR in the eastern Pacific Ocean (AP) — José López proudly remembers his first catch: he was 13 and a local skipper, pitying his ragamuffin look, hired him as an extra hand. When he returned home, his pockets stuffed with a day’s wages, his mother protested.

By KHADIJA KOTHIA Associated Press LONDON (AP) — The British government is seeking a legal injunction against climate protestors who blocked the entrance to Britain’s busiest ferry port to highlight the climate crisis and fuel poverty. Vehicles were stuck in lines as more than 40 protesters from the climate group Insulate Britain blocked the main

BEIJING (AP) — China’s central bank has declared all transactions involving Bitcoin and other virtual currencies illegal, stepping up a campaign to block use of unofficial digital money. The central bank complained Bitcoin, Ethereum and other digital currencies disrupt the financial system and are used in money-laundering and other crime. Prices for Bitcoin and other