AP National Business

By ASHIFA KASSAM Associated Press MADRID (AP) — Algeria has threatened to suspend its gas exports to Spain, the latest twist in a complex triangle of diplomatic tensions between the gas supplier, the gas importer and their shared neighbor Morocco. Spain has been in talks with Morocco about helping the North African kingdom boost its

By JILL LAWLESS Associated Press LONDON (AP) — Britain is postponing until the end of 2023 some checks on imports from the European Union that are required under post-Brexit trade rules. The U.K government is citing economic disruption caused by the war in Ukraine. Thursday’s announcement marks the fourth time the U.K. has delayed checks

NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street pointed toward strong gains hours before trading opened Thursday with quarterly earnings reports from American tech heavyweights on tap. Futures for the Dow Jones Industrials rose 0.9% while the same for the S&P jumped 1.6%. Twitter, Apple and Amazon will report their results on Thursday, following strong results from

DALLAS (AP) — Southwest Airlines is reporting a loss of $278 million in the first quarter but says it will be profitable the rest of 2022. Like other airlines, Southwest says travel demand is surging, and it’s hiring to increase staff before the expected summer rush. Southwest said Thursday that after a slow January and

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Danish brewer Carlsberg says it saw a strong growth in the first three months of the year despite trying to sell its business in Russia, where it generated around 10% of its sales. The Copenhagen-based company announced last month that it was exiting Russia but says it’s operations are continuing there

By LAURAN NEERGAARD AP Medical Writer Moderna is seeking to be the first to offer COVID-19 vaccine for the youngest American children, as it asked the Food and Drug Administration Thursday to clear low-dose shots for babies, toddlers and preschoolers. Frustrated families are waiting impatiently for a chance to protect the nation’s littlest kids as

By DEE-ANN DURBIN AP Business Writer McDonald’s said higher U.S. menu prices and easing COVID restrictions elsewhere helped offset troubled markets like China and Russia in the first quarter. The Chicago-based burger giant said Thursday its revenue rose 11% to $5.66 billion in the January-March period. McDonald’s announced in early March that it would temporarily

By DEE-ANN DURBIN AP Business Writer McDonald’s said higher U.S. menu prices and easing COVID restrictions elsewhere helped offset troubled markets like China and Russia in the first quarter. The Chicago-based burger giant said Thursday its revenue rose 11% to $5.66 billion in the January-March period. McDonald’s announced in early March that it would temporarily

By MICHELLE CHAPMAN AP Business Writer Caterpillar’s first-quarter sales climbed as construction equipment demand continues to surge even though supply chain challenges still plague most industries. Sales rose 14% to $13.59 billion, topping the $13.5 billion that analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research were looking for. Aside from improved demand for equipment, Caterpillar said higher

By TINA OREM of NerdWallet For small-business owners, preparing an income tax return is far from simple, which can increase the chances of making a mistake. According to two small-business pros, if you catch an error after you’ve filed your small-business tax return, the first thing to do is confirm there’s really an error on

By TOM MURPHY AP Health Writer Better-than-expected sales of its COVID-19 treatment and the cancer blockbuster Keytruda helped push Merck past profit forecasts in the first quarter. The drugmaker say its coronavirus capsule treatment Lagevrio brought in almost $3.2 billion in sales in the quarter. Analysts were expecting $2.54 billion for the drug, which debuted

By INNA VARENYTSIA and DAVID KEYTON Associated Press IRPIN, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine said Thursday that Russia’s offensive in the east picked up momentum, with several towns coming under intense attack as Moscow’s forces attempt to surround Ukrainian troops. In a reminder of the horrific toll the war has taken since it began Feb. 24,

STOCKHOLM (AP) — Sweden’s central bank has raised a key interest rate, citing the highest inflation level since the 1990s. Riksbanken said Thursday that there had been “unusually large fluctuations in inflation in Sweden” and the rise last year “was largely due to rapid increases in energy prices.” The inflation figure for March was at

By ZEN SOO AP Technology Writer SINGAPORE (AP) — Chinese telecoms equipment and smartphone maker Huawei has reported its sales fell 14% in the last quarter from a year earlier, as the company continued to pump money into research and development while grappling with U.S. sanctions. Huawei Technologies said its revenue was 131 billion yuan

By ELAINE KURTENBACH AP Business Writer Global shares were mostly higher Thursday as the latest bout of turbulence on Wall Street abated. Benchmarks rose in all major markets and U.S. futures jumped. Oil prices fell back. European countries united in condemning a decision by Russia to cut natural gas shipments to Poland and Bulgaria as

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Wireless and fixed-network equipment maker Nokia has reported first-quarter operating profits of 354 million euros, down 18% from a year ago. The Espoo, Finland-based company said Thursday that net sales in the first quarter grew 1% in constant currency to 5.348 billion euros. Nokia was “shocked to see the Russian invasion

BEIJING (AP) — Chinese internet services company Baidu has received a permit to provide driverless ride-hailing services to the public in Beijing, one of just two companies to receive such approvals. Baidu and a rival AI driving company, Pony.ai, obtained permits allowing them to offer rides without a safety driver behind the wheel to take

By KRISHAN FRANCIS Associated Press COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — Businesses in Sri Lanka are closed, teachers absent and public transportation interrupted as people heed a call for a general strike to pressure the president to step down over a growing economic and political crisis. Sri Lanka is on the verge of bankruptcy with huge

By YESICA FISCH, JON GAMBRELL and VANESSA GERA Associated Press POKROVSK, Ukraine (AP) — European leaders blasted Russia’s decision to cut natural gas shipments to Poland and Bulgaria as “blackmail,” saying the cutoff and the Kremlin’s warning that it might cease shipments to other countries is a failed attempt to divide the West over its