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Blinken will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping at 4:30 p.m., State Department official says

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:19:47 GMT

BEIJING (AP) — Blinken will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping at 4:30 p.m., State Department official says.Source

This Week: FedEx earns, existing US home sales, CarMax earns

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:19:47 GMT

A look at some of the key business events and economic indicators upcoming this week:TIME TO DELIVERFedEx delivers its latest quarterly snapshot Tuesday.Wall Street predicts the package delivery company will report lower earnings and revenue for its fiscal fourth-quarter than in the same period last year. FedEx’s operating expenses have been cutting into its profits. In April, the company announced it would restructure its operations in a $4 billion cost-cutting plan.HOUSING MARKET BAROMETERThe National Association of Realtors releases its latest monthly tally of existing U.S. home sales Thursday.Economists project that sales slowed in May to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.17 million. That would mark the third straight decline. Despite home prices easing back this year, many would-be homebuyers remain frustrated by a low supply of homes for sale and elevated borrowing costs.Existing home sales, in millions, seasonally adjusted annual rate:Dec. 4.03Jan. 4.00Feb. 4.55March 4.4...

Atlanta visits Dallas after Ogunbowale’s 41-point game

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:19:47 GMT

Atlanta Dream (5-5, 4-3 Eastern Conference) at Dallas Wings (5-6, 4-2 Western Conference)Arlington, Texas; Tuesday, 8 p.m. EDTBOTTOM LINE: Dallas plays the Atlanta Dream after Arike Ogunbowale scored 41 points in the Dallas Wings’ 109-103 loss to the Seattle Storm.Dallas finished 18-18 overall last season while going 8-10 at home. The Wings averaged 82.9 points per game last season, 34.1 in the paint, 15.2 off of turnovers and 11.4 on fast breaks.Atlanta finished 6-12 on the road and 14-22 overall a season ago. The Dream averaged 15.7 points off of turnovers, 10.6 second chance points and 23.9 bench points last season.INJURIES: Wings: Lou Lopez Senechal: out (knee), Diamond DeShields: out (knee).Dream: Aari McDonald: out (torn labrum), Danielle Robinson: out (knee).___The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.Source

Los Angeles plays conference rival Minnesota

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:19:47 GMT

Minnesota Lynx (3-7, 2-4 Western Conference) at Los Angeles Sparks (5-5, 4-5 Western Conference)Los Angeles; Tuesday, 10 p.m. EDTBOTTOM LINE: Western Conference foes Los Angeles and Minnesota will play on Tuesday.Los Angeles finished 7-11 at home and 6-12 in Western Conference games during the 2022-23 season. The Sparks averaged 8.6 steals, 3.9 blocks and 13.8 turnovers per game last season.Minnesota went 8-10 in Western Conference games and 14-22 overall during the 2022-23 season. The Lynx averaged 13.1 points off of turnovers, 11.6 second chance points and 26.8 bench points last season.INJURIES: Sparks: Lexie Brown: out (illness), Layshia Clarendon: out (foot), Chiney Ogwumike: out (foot), Nia Clouden: out (knee), Jasmine Thomas: out (knee), Katie Lou Samuelson: out (personal).Lynx: Aerial Powers: out (ankle), Diamond Miller: out (ankle), Natalie Achonwa: out (personal).___The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.Source

Connecticut visits Seattle following Loyd’s 39-point game

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:19:47 GMT

Connecticut Sun (8-3, 5-2 Eastern Conference) at Seattle Storm (3-7, 3-4 Western Conference)Seattle; Tuesday, 10 p.m. EDTBOTTOM LINE: Seattle hosts the Connecticut Sun after Jewell Loyd scored 39 points in the Seattle Storm’s 109-103 win against the Dallas Wings.Seattle finished 13-5 at home last season while going 22-14 overall. The Storm gave up 78.4 points per game while committing 15.6 fouls last season.Connecticut finished 25-11 overall last season while going 12-6 on the road. The Sun averaged 8.9 steals, 2.7 blocks and 14.4 turnovers per game last season.INJURIES: Storm: None listed.Sun: None listed.___The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.Source

Trump and other Republicans conjure a familiar enemy in attacking Democrats as ‘communists’

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:19:47 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Lashing out after his arraignment on federal charges last week, Donald Trump took aim at President Joe Biden and Democrats with language that seemed to evoke another era: He was being persecuted, he said, by “Marxists” and “communists.”Trump has used the labels since he first appeared on the political scene, but it lately has become an omnipresent attack line that also has been deployed by other Republicans. The rhetoric is both inaccurate and potentially dangerous because it attempts to demonize an entire party with a description that has long been associated with America’s enemies.Experts who study political messaging say associating Democrats with Marxism only furthers the country’s polarization — and is simply wrong: Biden has promoted capitalism and Democratic lawmakers are not pushing to reshape American democracy into a communist system.That hasn’t mattered to Trump and other Republicans, who for years have used hyperbolic references to the a...

Blinken meets Chinese President Xi in bid to ease soaring US-China tensions

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:19:47 GMT

BEIJING (AP) — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday as he wrapped up a two-day high-stakes visit to Beijing aimed at easing soaring tensions between the countries. The meeting at the Great Hall of the People had been expected and was seen as key to the success of the trip, but neither side confirmed it would happen until a State Department official announced it just an hour beforehand. A snub by the Chinese leader would have been a major setback to the effort to restore and maintain communications at senior levels. In earlier meetings between Blinken and senior Chinese officials, the two sides expressed willingness to talk but showed little inclination to bend on hardened positions.Blinken is the highest-level U.S. official to visit China since President Joe Biden took office, and the first secretary of state to make the trip in five years. His visit is expected to usher in a new round of visits by senior U.S. and Chinese officials, ...

Death toll rises amid sweltering heat wave in 2 of India’s most populous states

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:19:47 GMT

BALLIA, India (AP) — Nearly 170 people have died in two of India’s most populous states in recent days amid a sweltering heat wave, officials said Monday, as hospitals are overwhelmed with patients and routine power outages add to the challenges.In the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, 119 people have died from heat-related illnesses over the last several days while in neighboring Bihar state 47 people have died, according to local news reports and health officials.The largest hospital in Ballia district in Uttar Pradesh is unable to accommodate more patients, officials said, and its morgue was overwhelmed after 54 people died due to the heat. Some families were asked to take the bodies of their relatives home.While northern regions of India are known for sweltering heat during the summer months, temperatures have been consistently above normal, according to the Indian Meteorological Department, with highs in recent days reaching 43.5 degrees Celsius (110 degrees Fahrenheit). A...

Japan’s emperor meets with Indonesian president on his first official foreign trip as monarch

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:19:47 GMT

BOGOR, Indonesia (AP) — Japanese Emperor Naruhito met with Indonesian President Joko Widodo on Monday during his first official foreign trip since ascending the Chrysanthemum Throne in 2019.Widodo and first lady Iriana welcomed Naruhito and Empress Masako at the Bogor presidential palace, along with greeters wearing Indonesian traditional clothes and a military band that played both national anthems.“I feel very honored because Indonesia is the first destination for the Japanese emperor’s bilateral state visit abroad,” Widodo said.Naruhito is seeking to underline the friendship between Japan and Indonesia during his weeklong visit, and officials said the two leaders would talk about cooperation between the countries.Naruhito said he and Masako have been able to deepen their understanding of Indonesia’s people and culture while also reflecting on its history.“I also sincerely hope that exchanges between young people from both countries will lead to further development of ...

New Chinese premier starts 1st trip abroad to Germany and France

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:19:47 GMT

BERLIN (AP) — Chinese Premier Li Qiang has started a visit to Germany and France that comes as Europe seeks to balance concerns over economic dependence on China and about its stance toward Ukraine and Taiwan with a desire to engage Beijing on issues such as climate change.Li, on his first trip abroad since taking office, was received by German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier on Monday. Li and a large delegation of Chinese ministers meet with Chancellor Olaf Scholz and their German counterparts on Tuesday, the seventh such gathering. Top officials from both sides also will meet business representatives.Li, a former Communist Party secretary for Shanghai, took office in March as China’s No. 2 official. It was part of a once-a-decade change of government that installed loyalists of Chinese leader Xi Jinping to enforce his vision of tighter political control over the economy and society.The visit comes as Europe and Germany consider how best to handle an increasingly assertive ...