How the stock market defied expectations again this year, by the numbers

NEW YORK (AP) — What a wonderful year 2024 has been for investors. U.S. stocks ripped higher and carried the S&P 500 to records as the economy kept growing and the Federal Reserve began cutting interest rates. The year featured many familiar winners, such as Big...

Turkey's central bank lowers key interest rate to 47.5%

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkey’s central bank lowered its key interest rate by 2.5 percentage points to 47.5% on Thursday, carrying out its first rate cut in nearly two years as it tries to control soaring inflation. Citing slowing inflation, the bank’s Monetary Policy Committee...

Turkey's soaring costs are creating a 'lost generation' of kids forced to help their families get by

ISTANBUL (AP) — In a dim one-room apartment in one of Istanbul’s poorest neighborhoods, 11-year-old Atakan Sahin curls up on a threadbare sofa with his siblings to watch TV while their mother stirs a pot of pasta. The simple meal is all the family of six can look forward to most...

An analyst looks ahead to how the US economy might fare under Trump

WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump won a return to the White House in part by promising big changes in economic policy — more tax cuts, huge tariffs on imports, mass deportations of immigrants working in the United States illegally. In some ways, his victory marked a...

What changes should small businesses be aware of for 2025?

For small businesses, the biggest change in the new year will be the arrival of a presumably more business-friendly administration in Washington. But there are other shifts owners should keep on their radar. Among them: changes to state-level overtime and minimum wage rules, the...

Stock market today: Wall Street rises to turn a dismal week into just a bad one

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks rose Friday to turn what would have been one of the market’s worst weeks of the year into just a pretty bad one. The S&P 500 rallied 1.1% for its best day in six weeks and shaved its loss for the week down to 2%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average...

How major US stock indexes fared Friday, 12/20/2024

U.S. stocks rose to turn what would have been one of the market’s worst weeks of the year into just a pretty bad one. The S&P 500 rallied 1.1% Friday to shave its loss for the week down to 2%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped nearly 500 points, and the Nasdaq composite...

Russia's central bank holds off on interest rate hike amid friction between inflation, war spending

Russia's central bank has left its benchmark interest rate at a record 21%, holding off on further increases despite high consumer inflation fueled by the Kremlin's war against Ukraine. The decision Friday comes amid criticism from influential business figures, including tycoons...

Federal Reserve's preferred inflation gauge shows price pressures eased last month

WASHINGTON (AP) — An inflation gauge that is closely watched by the Federal Reserve barely rose last month in a sign that price pressures cooled after two months of sharp gains. Friday’s report from the Commerce Department showed that prices rose just 0.1% from October to...

Federal Reserve's preferred inflation gauge shows price pressures eased last month