Associated Press
Latest stories
Global stocks tumble after Wall Street drops on worries about economy

World stocks tumbled Wednesday after Wall Street had its worst day since early August, with heavyweight Nvidia falling 9.5%, leading to a global decline in chip-related stocks.

France's CAC 40 slipped 0.8% in early trading to 7,513.31, and Germany's DAX lost 0.8% to 18,607.62. Britain's FTSE 100 also dropped 0.8% to 8,230.49. The futures for the S&P 500 were down 0.4% and those for the Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 0.2%.

W140 Full Story
Raise taxes on the rich or cut them? Harris, Trump differ on how to boost US economy

Donald Trump is betting that Americans crave trillions of dollars in tax cuts — and that growth will be so fantastic that it's not worth worrying about budget deficits.

In short, he's hoping that most economic analyses of his ideas are dead wrong.

W140 Full Story
Serbia official meets Putin, says Belgrade an ally and won't join Western penalties

Serbia is a Russian ally and will never impose sanctions against Moscow or join NATO, the Balkan nation's deputy prime minister said Wednesday as he met with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The remarks by Aleksandar Vulin, a former intelligence chief who is under U.S. sanctions, reflect persistent close relations between Belgrade and Moscow despite Serbia's proclaimed bid to join the European Union.

W140 Full Story
Pope urges Indonesia to live up to promise of 'harmony in diversity'

Pope Francis urged Indonesia to live up to its promise of "harmony in diversity" and fight religious intolerance on Wednesday, as he set a rigorous pace for an 11-day, four-nation trip through tropical Southeast Asia and Oceania that will test his stamina and health.

Francis had a packed first full day in Indonesia, meeting with outgoing President Joko Widodo and other Indonesian authorities at the presidential palace and then greeting Catholic priests, nuns and seminarians at Jakarta's main cathedral in the afternoon.

W140 Full Story
Salameh remanded in custody, Ghada Aoun asks to question him

State Prosecutor Judge Jamal al-Hajjar on Wednesday referred the file of detained former Central Bank governor Riad Salameh to Financial Prosecutor Judge Ali Ibrahim, who charged Salameh and referred him in custody to Beirut First Examining Magistrate Bilal Halawi.

W140 Full Story
US envoy to Taiwan declares ties 'rock solid' amid military threats from China

The top U.S. envoy to Taiwan on Wednesday said American support for the island is "rock-solid, principled, and bipartisan," and said Washington will continue to follow through on its commitments to ensure the island can defend itself against threats from China.

Raymond F. Greene's remarks Wednesday come at a time of uncertainty over China's intentions toward the island it claims as its own territory — to be taken by force if necessary — and amid conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East that threaten to draw the U.S. in further.

W140 Full Story
Salvagers abandon effort to tow burning oil tanker in Red Sea

Salvagers abandoned an initial effort to tow away a burning oil tanker in the Red Sea targeted by Yemen's Houthi rebels as it "was not safe to proceed," a European Union naval mission said, leaving the Sounion stranded and its 1 million barrels of oil at risk of spilling.

While a major spill has yet to occur, the incident threatens to become one of the worst yet in the Iranian-backed rebels' campaign that has disrupted the $1 trillion in goods that pass through the Red Sea each year over the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip. It also has halted some aid shipments to conflict-ravaged Sudan and Yemen.

W140 Full Story
Iraqi women fear rise in child marriages as MPs consider controversial legal changes

Shaimaa Saadoun is haunted by her memory of being forced into an abusive marriage to a 39-year-old man just after she turned 13.

Her impoverished family near the southern Iraqi city of Basra hoped that the dowry of gold and money would help improve their circumstances. Her husband presented a bloodstained piece of linen to prove her virginity after their wedding night.

W140 Full Story
Ukraine's Foreign Minister resigns as Russian strikes kill 7 people in Lviv

Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba, one of Ukraine's most recognizable faces on the international stage, submitted his resignation Wednesday ahead of an expected major government reshuffle. Russian strikes, meanwhile, killed at least seven people in the Ukrainian city of Lviv near the Polish border, a day after one of the deadliest missile attacks since the war began.

Kuleba, 43, didn't give a reason for stepping down. His resignation will be discussed by lawmakers at their next session, parliamentary Speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk said on his Facebook page. Four other Cabinet ministers tendered their resignations late Tuesday, making the Cabinet reshuffle likely the biggest since Russia's February 2022 invasion.

W140 Full Story
Egyptian President el-Sissi makes first visit to Turkey, as relations thaw

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi on Wednesday is making his first official visit to Turkey since assuming power, after the two regional powers ended years of tensions.

El-Sissi and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan are set to discuss bilateral relations, the conflict in Gaza and escalating tensions in the Middle East, among other topics. They are also expected to oversee the signing of more than a dozen cooperation agreements to strengthen the relationship between their nations, including in energy, defense and tourism.

W140 Full Story