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Stock market today: Wall Street drifts after a strong retail sales report

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:08:01 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street is drifting Tuesday following the latest signal that the U.S. economy remains solid, though perhaps too strong for the Federal Reserve’s liking.The S&P 500 was 0.2% lower in late trading after flipping between small gains and losses through the day. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 39 points, or 0.1%, with less than an hour remaining in trading, and the Nasdaq composite was 0.4% lower.Financial markets have been shaky in recent weeks due to worries about war in the Middle East and its potential impact on oil prices. But those worries have receded a bit to put the focus back on what usually drives the stock market’s long-term movements: where interest rates, the economy and corporate profits are heading.A report Tuesday morning showed shoppers spent more at U.S. retailers last month than economists expected. That’s a sign of a healthy economy and likely a result of a still-solid job market, which should help to support profits at companies. Bu...

Steph Curry to receive Charlie Sifford Award for advancing diversity in golf

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:08:01 GMT

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry has been selected to receive the Charlie Sifford Award for his work in advancing diversity in golf.Curry two years ago launched “Underrated Golf” that commits to providing equity, access and opportunity to high school athletes from all communities. He also funded the Howard University golf team for six years to help the historically Black school compete on the Division I level. Howard had not had a golf team since the 1970s.Curry will receive the award at the World Golf Hall of Fame ceremony at Pinehurst, North Carolina, on June 10, the Monday before the U.S. Open.Sifford was the first Black player to become a PGA Tour member in 1961. He was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2004. The Charlie Sifford Award was created in 2021 to honor an individual who personifies Sifford’s groundbreaking achievements through perseverance, confidence, respect, and adaptability.“I’m incredibly honored to be chosen as t...

All-woman F1 Academy series to race in Saudi Arabia to start an expanded 2024 schedule

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:08:01 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Formula One’s F1 Academy series for female drivers will race next year in Saudi Arabia to start an expanded schedule with a more prominent role in grand prix weekends.The event in March in Saudi Arabia — which lifted a ban on women driving on its roads in 2018 — starts an expanded seven-round calendar announced Tuesday for the F1 Academy in its second season. The series will also race in Miami in May before heading to Spain, the Netherlands, Singapore, Qatar and Abu Dhabi. For the first time, all F1 Academy events will be held as support races for the F1 championship.Of the six F1 Academy events in this year’s inaugural season, only the finale this week at the Circuit of the Americas in Texas is supporting an F1 event. Spanish driver Marta Garcia leads the standings with three races remaining.“This calendar cements our ambition to become a truly global series, expanding our reach and improving visibility for our mission,” F1 Academy managing director Susie ...

Las Vegas police officer gets 12 years in prison for casino robberies netting $165,000

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:08:01 GMT

LAS VEGAS (AP) — A Las Vegas police officer was sentenced Tuesday to 12 years in federal prison for stealing nearly $165,000 in a trio of casino heists, including one in which he was found guilty of brandishing a department-issued weapon.Caleb Rogers, who has been on unpaid suspension in a solo jail cell since his arrest nearly 20 months ago, apologized before sentencing. His mother, Crystal Rogers, from Toledo, Ohio, told the judge that she was “not pleased” but that her son had full family support.Rogers, 35, brandished the gun during his arrest in February 2022 following the final robbery and a brief struggle with security officers in a casino parking lot not far from the Las Vegas Strip. One guard was so shaken he said he left the job shortly afterward and moved to a new line of work altogether.U.S. District Judge Andrew Gordon acknowledged that Rogers struggled with a gambling addiction and financial troubles and credited him with service to the community, and sentenced him to ...

North Carolina’s new voting rules challenged again in court, and GOP lawmakers seek to get involved

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:08:01 GMT

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Another federal lawsuit has been filed in North Carolina challenging provisions of a new wide-ranging state elections law that critics contend will discourage young adults from voting through a popular method. The complaint filed on Tuesday by voter advocacy and civil rights groups marks the third such lawsuit in central North Carolina federal court against portions of a voting bill that became law Oct. 10. That’s the day the Republican-controlled General Assembly overrode Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper’s veto of the measure. The lawsuits combined are fighting changes to the process by which someone can both register to vote and cast a ballot during 17 days of early in-person voting, as well as the deadline to turn in completed mail-in absentee votes and the role of partisan poll observers. The three lawsuits are likely to be consolidated and proceed in court as one case, according to a news release from the plaintiffs in Tuesday’s lawsuit. Republicans s...

Jada Pinkett Smith says revealing separation from Will Smith is a ‘weight off my shoulders’

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:08:01 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Jada Pinkett Smith is feeling free these days. She’s no longer hiding that she’s been separated from megastar husband Will Smith for seven years.“It’s a weight off my shoulders, honestly,” said Pinkett Smith whose new memoir, “Worthy,” is out now. “Ever since the Oscars, it’s so interesting how such an intense event can bring you closer together, and I would say that after that, we really dove in and dug in and got to this beautiful place we are now.”The actor, who first revealed the bombshell news to NBC’s Hoda Kotb last week, details her much-gossiped about marriage throughout the biography. Through the years, the couple has faced rumors — of having an open marriage, a swinging lifestyle and questions about their sexual orientations — all while wearing smiles, seemingly portraying a picture-perfect life. The daytime Emmy award winner briefly thought about scrapping the project; she started writing the 400-plus page book, co-written with Mim Eichler Rivas, at ...

Student groups hold vigils as violence continues to sweep Middle East

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:08:01 GMT

Two separate vigils were held on Monday night on Queen’s campus, with two communities mourning the tremendous losses that have accumulated over several weeks of heightened violence in the Middle East. After a brutal and bone chilling assault by Hamas -a militant group sworn to Israel’s destruction- on October 7 left at least 1,400 Israeli citizens dead and more taken hostage, Israel’s government promised a swift and merciless response.That response, including the reported use of white phosphorus gas in the densely populated Palestinian territory of Gaza, has resulted in over 2,500 dead Palestinians and hundreds of thousands displaced as Gaza as a whole crumbles under the unrelenting Israeli air assault and the ever looming threat of a ground assault. The heightened conflict has left people around the world connected to Palestine and Israel feeling helpless, and in light of that both the vigils hoped to provide a space for people in Kingston to come together in comm...

Dive team called to Bowles Reservoir for reported missing kayaker

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:08:01 GMT

LAKEWOOD, Colo. (KDVR) -- West Metro Fire Rescue is responding to Bowles Reservoir, near Marston Lake, in Lakewood, on the report of a missing person and overturned boat.According to authorities, a person is missing from the neighborhood and a boat is visibly overturned in the water. No witnesses have reported seeing anyone enter the water. FOX31 Newsletters: Sign up to get breaking news sent to your inbox The West Metro Fire Rescue dive team is reported to be searching the water. The South Metro Fire Rescue team is assisting.

Jefferson County mailing TABOR refund checks to property owners

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:08:01 GMT

DENVER (KDVR) -- If you're a property owner in Jefferson County, you might soon find a check in the mail addressed to you.According to the county, 210,000 property owners will receive an extra TABOR refund check. Ballot guide: Everything you need to know about the upcoming election The total refund, which amounts to around $39.4 million, is for funds the county got from 2022 that were above the TABOR revenue limit. The county legally cannot use these funds due to TABOR. Jefferson County said it decided that mailing refund checks to property owners was the best and most transparent way of giving out the refund.How much will the refund be?It depends, but everyone who pays property taxes in Jefferson County will receive the refund, including homeowners and business owners. The average check amount was $185, according to the county, and 95% of people will receive checks of less than $250. What is Prop II? Voters to decide on preschool and nicotine taxes Additionally, the median chec...

Blast kills hundreds at Gaza hospital; Hamas and Israel trade blame, as Biden heads to Mideast

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 16:08:01 GMT

KHAN YOUNIS, Gaza Strip (AP) — A massive blast rocked a Gaza City hospital packed with wounded and other Palestinians seeking shelter Tuesday, killing hundreds of people, the Hamas-run Health Ministry said. Hamas blamed an Israeli airstrike, while the Israeli military said the hospital was hit by a rocket misfired by Palestinian militants.The health ministry said at least 500 people had been killed. Video that The Associated Press confirmed was from the hospital showed fire engulfing the building and the hospital’s grounds strewn with torn bodies, many of them young children. Around them in the grass were blankets, school backpacks and other belongings.The carnage came as the U.S. tried to convince Israel to allow the delivery of supplies to desperate civilians, aid groups and hospitals in the tiny Gaza Strip, which has been under a complete siege since Hamas’ deadly rampage in southern Israel last week. It also came a day before President Joe Biden was due to visit the ...