AP National News

The Associated Press Stocks are opening mostly higher on Wall Street Thursday as investors continue to monitor the spread of the new coronavirus variant as well as measures that the U.S. and other governments are taking to restrain it. The S&P 500 was up 0.3% in the early going, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average

ST. MORITZ, Switzerland (AP) — Quarantine exemptions have been given to hundreds of people arriving in Switzerland from Canada so women’s World Cup ski races can go ahead next week. The International Ski Federation says the canton of Graubünden “granted participants exceptional entry into Switzerland” for the races on Dec. 11-12 in St. Moritz. The

By FRANK JORDANS Associated Press BERLIN (AP) — German Chancellor Angela Merkel says that people who aren’t vaccinated will be excluded from non-essential stores, cultural and recreational venues as part of an effort to curb coronavirus infections. New cases again topped 70,000 newly confirmed cases in a 24-hour period. Merkel the measures were necessary in

HUMBOLDT, Tenn. (AP) — A teenager has been charged in a fatal shooting following a pair of basketball games at a Tennessee high school. Authorities say one man died in the shooting Tuesday night at Humboldt High School and another was seriously wounded. News outlets cited a police statement in reporting that 18-year-old Jadon Davon

By ANNE D’INNOCENZIO The Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — The holidays have always been defined by disappointing out-of-stock messages on the most popular items. But the pandemic-induced supply chain snarls have created unprecedented shortages across all types of products. That has many customers buying early as shortfalls are only expected to worsen as the

By MOGOMOTSI MAGOME and FARAI MUTSAKA Associated Press JOHANNESBURG (AP) — South Africa has accelerated its vaccination campaign with pop-up sites in shopping centers and at transportation hubs a week after the discovery of the omicron variant of the coronavirus. South Africa’s new daily cases nearly doubled to 8,561 Wednesday, from 4,373 a day earlier,

By VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV Associated Press MOSCOW (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned officials to strictly observe industrial safety in the wake of last week’s coal mine explosion that killed 51. A methane explosion rocked the Listvyazhnaya mine in the Kemerovo region of southwestern Siberia last week, killing 46 miners and five rescuers in

By ANDREW WELSH-HUGGINS Associated Press COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — The Ohio sheriff’s deputy who fatally shot Casey Goodson Jr. in the back five times has been charged with murder and reckless homicide. An attorney for Goodson’s family also announced Thursday a federal civil rights lawsuit against now-retired Franklin County Sheriff’s Deputy Jason Meade. Meade, who

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court has been asked in arguments to overturn a nationwide right to abortion that has existed for nearly 50 years. The fate of the court’s 1973 Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion throughout the United States and its 1992 ruling in Planned Parenthood v. Casey reaffirming Roe probably won’t be

PRAGUE (AP) — Czech travel writer Miroslav Zikmund has died at age 102. The museum in the eastern city of Zlin said Zikmund “left for his final journey” on Wednesday. Zikmund teamed up with his university schoolmate and friend Jiri Hanzelka to make two big adventurous and often dangerous trips throughout Asia, Africa Latin America

By FRANK JORDANS Associated Press BERLIN (AP) — German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Thursday that people who aren’t vaccinated will be excluded from non-essential stores, cultural and recreational venues as part of an effort to curb coronavirus infections. New cases again topped 70,000 newly confirmed cases in a 24-hour period. Merkel the measures were necessary

By PAUL WISEMAN AP Economics Writer WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits rose last week even though the U.S. job market has been rebounding from last year’s coronavirus recession. Jobless claims climbed by 28,000 to 222,000 from the previous week’s pandemic low 194,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. The four-week

By AARON MORRISON Associated Press A South Florida law school says it is creating a social justice center named after Ben Crump, the Black civil rights attorney who has gained national prominence representing victims of police brutality and vigilante violence. The Benjamin L. Crump Center for Social Justice, housed at the St. Thomas University College

BELLEFONTAINE NEIGHBORS, Mo. (AP) — Authorities say a police detective and a suspect he was trying to stop have both died in a head-on collision of their vehicles near St. Louis. Police say the crash happened Wednesday afternoon after police tried to stop a car that had been reported stolen. The car fled, and police

By LISA MASCARO and KEVIN FREKING Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — Congressional leaders reached agreement on a spending bill that would keep the government running through mid-February. But a temporary federal shutdown is still possible this weekend because some Republican senators are objecting to the Biden administration’s COVID-19 vaccine mandates. The House is expected to

COPENHAGEN (AP) — Authorities in Norway say at least 50 people in Oslo have been infected with the omicron coronavirus variant and the cases are connected to a Norwegian company’s Christmas party in a restaurant in the capital. The Oslo Municipality said Thursday that “more cases are expected,” and tracing is being carried out “to

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court has been asked in arguments to overturn a nationwide right to abortion that has existed for nearly 50 years. The fate of the court’s 1973 Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion throughout the United States and its 1992 ruling in Planned Parenthood v. Casey reaffirming Roe probably won’t be

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Singapore’s health ministry says preliminary tests have detected the new omicron variant of the coronavirus in two passengers who arrived on a plane from Johannesburg, the country’s first apparent cases. It says it is conducting further tests to confirm the results. The ministry says the two Singaporeans were isolated upon

BERLIN (AP) — Outgoing German Chancellor Angela Merkel is being treated to a traditional sendoff involving a military ceremony with a brass band playing her choice of music. The pieces are reported to include a Nina Hagen punk song from the 1970s. The military tattoo performed in Merkel’s honor will take place Thursday evening at

By MILES BRANMAN Edmunds After a 25-year hiatus, the Ford Bronco is back. This new 2021 Bronco SUV pays homage to its predecessors via boxy proportions, round headlights and short overhangs while introducing the latest in convenience and technology features. It’s generated plenty of excitement and serves as an intriguing alternative to a well-known off-roading