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Asian stocks mixed after more US debt talks fail to break impasse

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:17:44 GMT

BEIJING (AP) — Asian stock markets were mixed Tuesday after more talks in Washington on government debt ended with no deal to avoid a potentially jarring default.Shanghai and Hong Kong declined while Tokyo and Sydney advanced. Oil prices rose.Wall Street’s benchmark S&P 500 index edged up less than 0.1% on Monday as Congress and the White House negotiated over Republican demands to cut social programs in exchange for agreeing to raise the amount the government can borrow.“The resumption of debt ceiling negotiations spurred some hopes despite distinct risks of brinksmanship and blame-shifting,” Tan Boon Heng of Mizuho Bank said in a report.The Shanghai Composite Index sank 0.8% to 3,270.46 while the Nikkei 225 in Tokyo gained 0.6% to 31,286.70. The Hang Seng in Hong Kong shed 0.3% to 19,626.06.The Kospi in Seoul advanced 0.8% to 2,576.48 and Sydney’s S&P-ASX 200 added 0.4% to 61,963.68.New Zealand declined while Singapore and Jakarta advanced.Worries about a poten...

Donald Trump to appear by video as judge reinforces ban on attacking witnesses

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:17:44 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — The judge in Donald Trump’s criminal case is holding a hybrid hearing Tuesday to make doubly sure the former president is aware of new rules barring him from using evidence to attack witnesses.Trump won’t have to show up to court for the afternoon hearing at a Manhattan courthouse, avoiding the mammoth security and logistical challenges that accompanied his arraignment last month.Instead, the Republican will be connected by video conference, with his face beamed onto courtroom TV monitors. His lawyers and prosecutors must still appear in person.Judge Juan Manuel Merchan agreed to the extra step of personally instructing Trump on the restrictions after listing them May 8 in what’s known as a protective order.Trump is allowed to speak publicly about the case, but he risks being held in contempt if he uses evidence turned over by prosecutors in the pretrial discovery process to target witnesses or others involved in the case.Trump pleaded not guilty April 4 ...

Why do so many Black women die in pregnancy? One reason: Doctors don’t take them seriously

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:17:44 GMT

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) — Angelica Lyons knew it was dangerous for Black women to give birth in America.As a public health instructor, she taught college students about racial health disparities, including the fact that Black women in the U.S. are nearly three times more likely to die during pregnancy or delivery than any other race. Her home state of Alabama has the third-highest maternal mortality rate in the nation.Then, in 2019, it nearly happened to her.What should have been a joyous first pregnancy quickly turned into a nightmare when she began to suffer debilitating stomach pain.Her pleas for help were shrugged off, she said, and she was repeatedly sent home from the hospital. Doctors and nurses told her she was suffering from normal contractions, she said, even as her abdominal pain worsened and she began to vomit bile. Angelica said she wasn’t taken seriously until a searing pain rocketed throughout her body and her baby’s heart rate plummeted.Rushed into the operating room f...

Success coaches ‘dig a little deeper’ to help community college students

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:17:44 GMT

DALLAS (AP) — Daisy Donjuan’s family never saw the value in college. After graduating from high school, she did what was expected of her — dropped education, worked and pitched in at home.When she enrolled in Dallas College after a five-year break in school, she had to navigate a dizzying array of options and decisions as she sought a career outside of retail management.With the help of a success coach, Donjuan created a plan to graduate through the college’s paralegal program. She avoided taking classes that didn’t advance her goals and stayed on top of coursework.“It felt good, the fact that someone is actually checking up on you and that they’re keeping up with you,” Donjuan, 24, said. “They actually care about us succeeding.”Amid declines in enrollment in community colleges nationally and low completion rates, Dallas College invested nearly three years ago in hiring counselors who take a more hands-on approach to advising. The program pairs students with success coaches to navig...

‘Leap of faith:’ Alaska pursues carbon offset market while embracing oil

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:17:44 GMT

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — Alaska’s push to become a bigger player in the clean energy market is in the spotlight this week at a conference convened by its Republican governor, even as the state continues to embrace new fossil fuel production, including the controversial Willow oil project on the petroleum-rich North Slope.Gov. Mike Dunleavy successfully pushed through the legislature a bill he is expected to sign Tuesday that would allow the oil-reliant state to cash in on the sale of so-called carbon credits to companies looking to offset their carbon emissions. Projects could include credits for improving a forest’s health through thinning or by allowing trees to grow bigger, thereby increasing a forest’s potential to hold carbon.Lawmakers cast the bill as allowing Alaska to have the best of both worlds — continuing to permit oil drilling, mining and timber activities while also stepping into the potentially lucrative market for sequestering carbon dioxide. But some watching Ala...

Kiszla: On night Nuggets earn first-ever trip to the NBA Finals, Kroenke quotes center Nikola Jokic: “We got a chance, to do something nice.”

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:17:44 GMT

LOS ANGELES — On the glorious night when the Nuggets ended a tortuous 47-year wait to earn their first invitation to the NBA Finals, team owner Stan Kroenke admired the 17 championship banners hanging in the rafters of the arena where the Lakers have long ruled.His dream? For Denver to be second to nobody, not even King LeBron James, in the pro basketball world.“We’ve got work to do,” Kroenke told me Monday. “But this is a nice start. All those championships? That’s what you work for and strive for.”Nuggets center Nikola Jokic came through in the clutch like the real MVP. With a driving layup, he hit the winning basket in a 113-111 victory to eliminate James and the Lakers, then was serenaded on L.A.’s home floor with fans that loudly chanted: “Let’s go Nuggets!”This basketball team is writing a history that many diehards in Denver never dreamed was possible. And the Nuggets aren’t done yet. They now await the w...

Mountain Vista beats Valor Christian for Class 5A boys lacrosse title, 10-8, giving Golden Eagles second crown in last three years

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:17:44 GMT

After losing in the state championship last year, Mountain Vista wasn’t going to be denied the title Monday evening at Peter Barton Stadium.The Golden Eagles rallied to defeat Valor Christian, 10-8, in an all-Highlands Ranch Class 5A championship and a rematch of Mountain Vista’s overtime win in the title game two years ago. Senior Joel Palasz led Mountain Vista with five goals.“We had huge motivation from last year,” Palasz said. “Losing that game (to Arapahoe), that was terrible. We thought about it for a long time, we made adjustments, we put the right pieces in the right places. It feels amazing to be at the top of the mountain, and we were determined to get here.”Valor Christian controlled the tempo early, jumping out to a 4-1 first-quarter lead. But Mountain Vista started chipping away in the second quarter. After Mountain Vista senior Dawson Long and Valor Christian freshman Christian Eframo traded goals to make it 5-2, the Golden Eagles grabbed ...

Keeler: “I haven’t had this good a day in three months.” Nuggets’ takedown of LeBron James, Lakers rocked Ball Arena, brought longtime fans to tears.

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:17:44 GMT

Rick Driscoll kept the angels up late Monday. Even from a mile high, you could just about hear him dancing on Cloud 9, rocking a Carmelo Anthony jersey and waving his harp at Chick Hearn and Wilt Chamberlain.“He was a huge sports fan,” Denee Driscoll said as she watched her late husband’s beloved Nuggets clinch their first-ever NBA Finals berth from 1,000 miles away at a Ball Arena watch party. “And he would be thrilled right now.”Rick Alan Driscoll, lifelong Nuggets fan, passed away this past February. He went to eight or 10 games a year, blue and gold through thick and thin. As a member of Iron Workers Local 24, he gave the skyline his hands and Chauncey Billups his heart.“You know, it’s bittersweet,” Denee said softly before Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals. “But it’s awesome.”Nuggets 113, Lakers 111? Awesome. A 4-0 sweep? Awesome. ESPN’s talking heads left completely, hopelessly speechless? Awesome.“I’m so excited,” Denee beamed. “I haven’t had this good a day in three mo...

Rockies beat Marlins behind red-hot Jurickson Profar, Elias Diaz

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:17:44 GMT

Jurickson Profar has a megawatt smile that could light up Broadway. That smile was beaming Monday night at Coors Field.The left fielder put on a boffo performance, ripping two doubles to right field, including a two-run liner off the wall in the seventh inning in the Rockies’ 5-3 victory over Miami. The victory, in front of an announced crowd of 20,331, snapped Colorado’s three-game losing streak.“Jurickson is playing as he expects to play and what we envisioned when we signed him in March,” manager Bud Black said. “We thought there was a hitter in there and it’s showing up.”Profar extended his on-base streak to 30 games, the longest active streak in the majors. Since May 7, Profar is hitting .360, with two home runs, seven doubles and nine RBIs. He’s recorded multiple hits in each of his past four games.Catcher Elias Diaz, by far the Rockies’  most consistent performer this season, provided them with the go-ahead run with a one-...

Evacuation orders lifted after brush fire erupts in Riverside County

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:17:44 GMT

Authorities in Riverside County lifted evacuation orders for residents whose homes were threated by the Ramona Fire, which broke out just west of San Jacinto Monday afternoon. Firefighters responded to the blaze near the Ramona Expressway and Warren Road just after 2 p.m. The blaze grew to 328 acres and was 20% contained by 8:30 p.m., when fire officials said "all evacuation warnings on the Ramona Fire are lifted and residents are permitted to return to their residences."Authorities also said that Warren Road, between Ramona Expressway and Esplanade Avenue, has been opened. Footage from Sky5 showed crews creating fire breaks in front of homes in the area, spraying retardant and clearing brush before, while firefighting aircraft made water drops on hotspots along the fire's path. Crews with Riverside County Fire Department battle a blaze in vegetation west of San Jacinto in Riverside County on May 22, 2023. (Cal Fire Riverside)Evacuation orders and warnings, which have since been lif...