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The mayor of the Ukraine capital, Kyiv, says one person is dead and 20 others injured after missile strikes.
<img src="” title=”[World] Ukraine war: At least one dead in Russian strikes on Kyiv” />
BBC News world
The mayor of the Ukraine capital, Kyiv, says one person is dead and 20 others injured after missile strikes.
<img src="” title=”[World] Ukraine war: At least one dead in Russian strikes on Kyiv” />
Wall Street capped a quiet day of trading with more losses Friday, as it closed the book on the worst year for the S&P 500 since 2008.
The benchmark index finished with a loss of 19.4% for 2022, or 18.1%, including dividends. It’s just its third annual decline since the financial crisis 14 years ago and a painful reversal for investors after the S&P 500 notched a gain of nearly 27% in 2021. All told, the index lost $8.2 trillion in value, according to S&P Dow Jones Indices.
The Nasdaq composite, with a heavy component of technology stocks, racked up an even bigger loss of 33.1%.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average, meanwhile, posted an 8.8% loss for 2022.
Stocks struggled all year as inflation put increasing pressure on consumers and raised concerns about economies slipping into recession. Central banks raised interest rates to fight high prices. The Federal Reserve’s aggressive rate hikes remain a major focus for investors as the central bank walks a thin line between raising rates enough to cool inflation, but not so much that they stall the U.S. economy into a recession.
The Fed’s key lending rate stood at a range of 0% to 0.25% at the beginning of 2022 and will close the year at a range of 4.25% to 4.5% after seven increases. The U.S. central bank forecasts that will reach a range of 5% to 5.25% by the end of 2023. Its forecast doesn’t call for a rate cut before 2024.
Rising interest rates prompted investors to sell the high-priced shares of technology giants such as Apple and Microsoft as well as other companies that flourished as the economy recovered from the pandemic. Amazon and Netflix lost roughly 50% of their market value. Tesla and Meta Platforms, the parent company of Facebook, each dropped more than 60%, their biggest-ever annual declines.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine worsened inflationary pressure earlier in the year by making oil, gas and food commodity prices even more volatile amid existing supply chain issues. Oil closed Friday around $80, about $5 higher than where it started the year. But in between oil jumped above $120, helping energy stocks post the only gain among the 11 sectors in the S&P 500, up 59%.
China spent most of the year imposing strict COVID-19 policies ,which crimped production for raw materials and goods, but is now in the process of removing travel and other restrictions. It’s uncertain at this point what impact China’s reopening will have on the global economy.
The Fed’s battle against inflation, though, will likely remain the overarching concern on Wall Street in 2023, according to analysts. Investors will continue searching for a better sense of whether inflation is easing fast enough to take pressure off of consumers and the Fed.
If inflation continues to show signs of easing, and the Fed reins in its rate-hiking campaign, that could pave the way for a rebound for stocks in 2023, said Jay Hatfield, CEO of Infrastructure Capital Advisors.
“The Fed has been the overhang on this market, really since November of last year, so if the Fed pauses and we don’t have a major recession, we think that sets us up for a rally,” he said.
There was scant corporate or economic news for Wall Street to review Friday. That, plus the holiday shortened week, set the stage for mostly light trading.
The S&P 500 fell 9.78 points, or 0.3%, to finish at 3,839.50. The index posted a 5.9% loss for the month of December.
The Dow dropped 73.55 points, or 0.2%, to close at 33,147.25. The Nasdaq slipped 11.61 points, or 0.1%, to 10,466.48.
Tesla rose 1.1%, as it continued to stabilize after steep losses earlier in the week. The electric vehicle maker’s stock plummeted 65% in 2022, erasing about $700 billion of market value.
Southwest Airlines rose 0.9% as its operations returned to relative normalcy following massive cancellations over the holiday period. The stock still ended down 6.7% for the week.
Small company stocks also fell Friday. The Russell 2000 shed 5 points, or 0.3%, to close at 1,761.25.
Bond yields mostly rose. The yield on the 10-Year Treasury, which influences mortgage rates, rose to 3.88% from 3.82% late Thursday. Although bonds typically fair well when stocks slump, 2022 turned out to be one of the worst years for the bond market in history, thanks to the Fed’s rapid rate increases and inflation.
Several big updates on the employment market are on tap for the first week of 2023. It has been a particularly strong area of the economy and has helped create a bulwark against a recession. That has made the Fed’s job more difficult, though, because strong employment and wages mean it may have to remain aggressive to keep fighting inflation. That, in turn, raises the risk of slowing the economy too much and bringing on a recession.
The Fed will release minutes from its latest policy meeting on Wednesday, potentially giving investors more insight into its next moves.
The government will also release its November report on job openings Wednesday. That will be followed by a weekly update on unemployment on Thursday. The closely-watched monthly employment report is due Friday.
Wall Street is also waiting on the latest round of corporate earnings reports, which will start flowing in around the middle of January. Companies have been warning investors that inflation will likely crimp their profits and revenue in 2023. That’s after spending most of 2022 raising prices on everything from food to clothing in an effort to offset inflation, though many companies went further and actually padded their profit margins.
Companies in the S&P 500 are expected to broadly report a 3.5% drop in earnings during the fourth quarter, according to FactSet. Analysts expect earnings to then remain roughly flat through the first half of 2023.
U.S. stock markets will be closed Monday in observance of the New Year’s Day holiday.
CNN
—
Authorities carefully tracked the man charged in the killings of four Idaho college students as he drove across the country around Christmas and continued surveilling him for several days before finally arresting him Friday, sources tell CNN.
Bryan Christopher Kohberger, 28, was arrested in his home state of Pennsylvania and charged with four counts of murder in the first degree, as well as felony burglary in connection with the stabbing deaths of four University of Idaho students in November, according to Latah County Prosecutor Bill Thompson.
Still, investigators have not publicly confirmed the suspect’s motive or whether he knew the victims. The murder weapon has also not been located, Moscow Police Chief James Fry said Friday.
In the nearly seven weeks since the students were found stabbed to death in an off-campus home, investigators have conducted more than 300 interviews and scoured approximately 20,000 tips in their search for the suspect. News of the killings – and the long stretch of time without a suspect or significant developments – have rattled the University of Idaho community and the surrounding town of Moscow, which had not seen a murder in seven years.
Investigators honed in on Kohberger as the suspect through DNA evidence and by confirming his ownership of a white Hyundai Elantra seen near the crime scene, according to two law enforcement sources briefed on the investigation.
Kohberger, who authorities say lived just minutes from the scene of the killings, is a PhD student in Washington State University’s Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology, the school confirmed.
He drove cross-country in a white Hyundai Elantra and arrived at his parents’ house in Pennsylvania around Christmas, according to a law enforcement source. Authorities were tracking him as he drove and were also surveilling his parents’ house, the source said.
An FBI surveillance team tracked him for four days before his arrest while law enforcement worked with prosecutors to develop enough probable cause to obtain a warrant, the two law enforcement sources said.
Genetic genealogy techniques were used to connect Kohberger to unidentified DNA evidence, another source with knowledge of the case tells CNN. The DNA was run through a public database to find potential family member matches, and subsequent investigative work by law enforcement led to him as the suspect, the source said.
Kohberger was arraigned Friday morning in Pennsylvania and is being held without bail, records show.
Kohberger intends to waive his extradition hearing to expedite his transport to Idaho, Monroe County Chief Public Defender Jason LaBar said in a statement to CNN on Saturday.
“Mr. Kohberger is eager to be exonerated of these charges and looks forward to resolving these matters as promptly as possible,” LaBar said.
Even with a suspect charged, law enforcement’s work is far from over, prosecutors said.
“This is not the end of this investigation. In fact, this is a new beginning,” Thompson said Friday night.
Thompson urged people to continue submitting tips, asking anyone with information about the suspect “to come forward, call the tip line, report anything you know about him to help the investigators.”
Since the killings of the four students – Kaylee Goncalves, 21; Madison Mogen, 21; Xana Kernodle, 20; and Ethan Chapin, 20 some community members have grown frustrated as investigators have yet to offer a thorough narrative of how the night unfolded. Authorities have released limited details, including the victims’ activities leading up to the attacks and people they have ruled out as suspects.
Fry told reporters Friday state law limits what information authorities can release before Kohberger makes an initial appearance in Idaho court. The probable cause affidavit – which details the factual basis of Kohberger’s charges – is sealed until the suspect is physically in Latah County, Idaho and has been served with the Idaho arrest warrant, Thompson said.
Kohberger is a resident of Pullman, Washington, a city just about nine miles from the site of the killings, authorities said. His apartment and office on the Washington State University’s Pullman campus were searched by law enforcement Friday morning, the university confirmed in a statement.
In June 2022, he finished graduate studies at DeSales University, where he also was an undergraduate, according to a statement on the school’s website. He also got an associate degree from Northampton Community College in 2018, the college confirmed to CNN.
In a Reddit post removed after Kohberger’s arrest was announced, a student investigator named Bryan Kohberger who was associated with a DeSales University study sought participation in a research project “to understand how emotions and psychological traits influence decision-making when committing a crime.”
“In particular, this study seeks to understand the story behind your most recent criminal offense, with an emphasis on your thoughts and feelings throughout your experience,” the post said.
CNN reached one of the principal investigators of the study, a professor at DeSales University, but they declined to comment on the matter. The university has not responded to requests for comment.
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Wildhorse Saloon’s restaurant operations manager showcased two “All-American cocktails” that will be available during Fox’s All-American New Year celebration this year in Nashville, Tennessee — and can be made at home by anyone.
Speaking on “Fox & Friends Weekend” on Saturday, Dec. 31, Stephen D’Amico showed off two specialty cocktails for co-hosts Will Cain, Rachel Campos-Duffy and Pete Hegseth.
The cocktails featured liquors that honor America’s veterans.
The All-American cocktail is “reminiscent of a rocket pop,” said D’Amico, and features Sprite, grenadine, Heroes Vodka and blue Curaçao.
“First we’re going to start with the grenadine,” said D’Amico as he poured the syrup into a pint glass filled with ice.
Next, D’Amico added Heroes Vodka and Sprite, taking care to layer the spirit on top of the grenadine for a gradient effect.
Heroes Vodka is made in Frankfort, Kentucky — and was founded by U.S. Marine Corps veteran Travis McVey, its website notes.
“Heroes donates a lot of its proceeds — it’s a veteran-owned vodka company, and they donate a lot of their proceeds to veterans,” said D’Amico.
FOR NEW YEAR’S EVE, CHARITY SPONSORS ‘BUCKET LIST’ TRIP TO NYC FOR VETERANS AND MILITARY FAMILIES
To finish the drink, D’Amico added a floater of blue Curaçao.
“And you’re red, white and blue. All American,” said D’Amico.
The cocktail is “so pretty,” Campos-Duffy noted.
D’Amico then showed his twist on the Old Fashioned with a drink he called “I’ve Got Your Six.”
“Got your 6” is a military term originating from World War I, meaning, “I got your back,” the website for the Bob Woodruff Foundation’s “Got Your 6 Network” notes.
“We’ve got Soldier Valley Bourbon,” said D’Amico, pouring it into a cocktail glass with ice.
Soldier Valley is affiliated with country singer Lee Greenwood, “so we know it’s patriotic,” said Campos-Duffy.
NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTION: ‘BIBLE MEMORY MAN’ SHARES TIPS FOR MEMORIZING THE BIBLE IN 2023
On its website, Soldier Valley Spirits says that the company “originated from a desire to celebrate and honor U.S. veterans, both those in our own families [and] all veterans who have served our great nation.”
Just as Heroes Vodka does, Soldier Valley Spirits makes donations to support veterans and first responders, explained D’Amico.
The “I’ve Got Your Six” cocktail was finished off with simple syrup, “a drip of bitters” and garnishes of maraschino cherries and an orange peel.
D’Amico predicted he would be serving “thousands” of the two special drinks during the evening’s events.
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Campos-Duffy, Cain and Hegseth will be live at Wildhorse Saloon on Saturday, Dec. 31, for Fox’s All-American New Year.
The event will feature many familiar Fox News faces, as well as showcase a performance from multi-platinum country music star Brantley Gilbert.
To learn more, watch the video at the top of this article, or click here to access it.
Venezuela’s opposition has voted to dissolve its parallel government and remove its leader, Juan Guaidó.
The move comes four years after Mr Guaidó declared himself president following the re-election of Nicolás Maduro in disputed polls.
He was recognised by many Western countries, including the US, but failed to oust the left-wing president.
The vote shows how most opposition politicians in Venezuela have lost faith in Mr Guaidó.
The National Assembly voted 72 to 29 to abolish his interim government.
Lawmakers also voted to appoint a commission to govern the country’s foreign assets, as they seek a united front ahead of elections scheduled for 2024.
Venezuela’s long-running political and humanitarian crisis has seen some seven million people flee the country since 2015.
In November, Venezuela’s government and the opposition signed a preliminary agreement to find a way out of the country’s political crisis.
During talks in Mexico, the two issued a joint statement requesting that billions of dollars frozen abroad be released to help fund social projects.
It followed years of failed attempts to solve a political deadlock.
In response, the US said that it would allow the American oil company Chevron to resume some activity in Venezuela.
Now let’s look at what else has been happening as we close out 2022.
Airline passengers, international tourists and even airplane pilots got more than a bit lively this year too, with fisticuffs, high jinks and underclad exhibitionism breaking out all over the place. Have a read here. — INSERT LINK —
Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula should be opening its 948-mile Tren Maya route by the end of the year, which will connect Caribbean resorts such as Cancun with cities and cultural sites inland.
And for the very grand traveler, there’s Orient Express La Dolce Vita. Accor Hotels group’s new 11-car train, with interiors inspired by Italian decor of the 1960s and 1970s, will visit Italian cities including Rome, Venice, Siena, Matera and Palermo.
Sad the holidays are nearly over?
A puppy was abandoned at San Francisco airport.
One of the world’s most densely populated cities opened its first metro line.
These stunning natural wonders aren’t US national parks.
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Landslides closed roadways across California on Friday as the Golden State was hit with more rainy weather.
The National Weather Service in Sacramento said that a large area of moderate-to-heavy rain was moving inland from the Bay Area early Saturday morning, with widespread urban and small stream flooding expected to develop.
“Cosumnes River at Michigan Bar has exceeded flood stage and will crest at 15.5 ft by 8 pm tonight!” it noted.
The agency’s Bay Area office tweeted that flood advisories there were in effect.
OREGON, WASHINGTON HIT WITH DEADLY STORMS, FLOODING
“Peak gusts will be 30-50 mph with strongest winds over mountains. With saturated soils, even moderate winds could cause downed trees/branches, power outages, falling debris,” it cautioned early Saturday.
Northern California officials warned that rivers and streams could overflow, and urged residents to get sandbags ready.
Outage tracker PowerOutage.US showed that more than 16,000 customers were without power on Saturday morning.
Humboldt County also saw roadways begin to flood, according to the National Weather Service’s Eureka office.
Landslides had already closed routes between Fremont and Sunol, as well as in Mendocino County.
The California Highway Patrol reported that parts of eastern Sacramento roads were impassable at times on Friday due to flooding.
‘COLD-STUNNED’ SEA TURTLES RESCUED IN GEORGIA DUE TO ‘UNUSUAL EXTREME COLD WEATHER’
Crews cleared debris in Piercy into Friday evening.
The atmospheric river storm was expected to bring more precipitation through the day, with the potential for flooding and multiple feet of snow in the Sierra Nevada.
A winter storm warning was in effect into Sunday for the upper elevations of the Sierra – from south of Yosemite National Park to north of Lake Tahoe – where as much as five feet of snow are possible, according to the National Weather Service’s Reno office.
Flood advisories were also in effect in western Nevada.
In addition, avalanche warnings were issued in the backcountry around Lake Tahoe and Mammoth Lakes south of Yosemite.
In Southern California, moderate-to-heavy rain was forecast on Saturday.
This marks the first of several storms expected to hit California over the coming week.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
BBC News world
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Australia welcomes 2023 with Sydney harbour fireworks display
New year celebrations are in full flow in parts of the world where 2023 has already arrived.
The Pacific nation of Kiribati was the first to welcome in the new year, followed by New Zealand an hour later.
And thousands gathered in Sydney for the Australian city’s renowned fireworks display.
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CNN
—
The year 2022 is finally coming to a close – but not before some rainy weather arrives on both the West and East coasts.
Here’s what you can expect from the weather on the last day of 2022 and the first day of 2023.
Americans along the East Coast, from Maine to Florida, will likely have a damp New Year’s Eve, with intermittent showers throughout the day. Heavier rain is forecast further south in Georgia and Florida than in New England.
In New york City, the heaviest rainfall is expected between 7 p.m. Saturday and 1 a.m. Sunday. Temperatures will hover around 50 through most of the afternoon into Sunday.
In Buffalo, New York, where a historic blizzard left 39 people dead, rain is also expected. The rain and melting snow have also sparked flood concerns. Additional rain in the area is expected early next week.
Luckily, the rainy weather likely won’t continue onto New Year’s Day. Sunday is forecast to be cloudy but not as rainy as Saturday. New Year’s morning might see record high minimum temperatures from Washington D.C. into Boston and over the southwest, according to a Friday update from the National Weather Service.
Just like New Yorkers, Californians can also anticipate a rainy New Year’s Eve. A strong storm will begin bringing widespread heavy rain to the West Coast Friday through Saturday, creating a flood threat for much of Northern and Central California.
Over the holiday weekend, Californians will also witness an “atmospheric river,” a long, narrow region in the atmosphere that can transport moisture thousands of miles, like a fire hose in the sky. This heavy rainfall will slide southward to Southern California on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day, accompanied by gusty winds moving at 30 to 50 mph.
“We now expect shallow landslides to be likely with the heavy rain coming New Year’s Eve,” said the National Weather Service office in San Francisco.
A flood watch for more than 16 million California residents, including the entire Bay Area and Central Valley, is in effect though Saturday night. The flooding is most likely in rivers, creeks, streams and other flood-prone areas, according to the National Weather Service office in Sacramento. Rain could ease Saturday evening before the calendar turns to 2023.
Widespread rainfall accumulations of 2 to 4 inches are expected in Northern and Central California, but locally higher amounts of 5 to 7 inches are also possible for the foothills.
Northern California and the Central California coast have already received 2 to 4 inches of rain in the last week. The cumulative effect of multiple Pacific storm systems laden with moisture from a potent atmospheric river will make impacts such as flash floods and landslides more likely.
Southern California is also expecting strong wind gusts of 30 to 50 mph on New Year’s Day in addition to rain.
Whereas the coasts will see a rainy New Year’s Eve, the western mountains from the Sierra Nevada to the Rockies can count on snow for the new year. The snow follows several days of heavy and dangerous snowfall.
An eastbound stretch of Interstate-70 in Colorado reopened Thursday after a nine-hour closure left drivers stranded amid bouts of heavy mountain snow, widespread rain and gusty winds.
Severe weather that caused trees to fall on passing vehicles left five people dead in Oregon on Tuesday, including a 4-year-old girl, state police said.
Wind gusts in the state exceeded 100 mph in some areas, according to the National Weather Service.
Scientology leader David Miscavige is nowhere to be found as attempts are made to serve the 62-year-old with a child trafficking lawsuit that names him as a defendant, according to public court documents and the Tampa Bay Times.
The court documents show process servers attempted to serve papers to Miscavige 27 different times over the past few months in the Clearwater, Fla. area and in Los Angeles to no avail.
A motion to serve Miscavige by default filed in Florida court on Dec. 13 read, “there is more than enough evidence to demonstrate that [Miscavige] has intentionally concealed his location and erected obstacles to evade personal services of process.”
The Church of Scientology’s Public Affairs Director Karin Pouw told Fox News Digital Miscavige is “not running from the law.” She declined to comment further on the pending lawsuit.
Former Scientology church members, husband and wife, Gawain and Laura Baxter and Valeska Paris filed the lawsuit after claiming they were forced into labor on Scientology boats as children after signing a one billion-year contract in exchange for little or no money. Paris reportedly left the church in 2009 and Gawain and Laura Baxter left in 2012.
In addition to the trafficking allegations, Paris alleges she was the victim of repeated sexual assaults in her youth and that when her mother left Scientology, the then-17-year-old was locked in an engine room for 48 hours as punishment.
Gawain Baxter said his parents put him in a Sea Org nursery when he was two months old, according to the lawsuit. When he turned six, he was also forced to sign the one billion-year contract and sent to live in a Cadet Org dormitory with around 100 other children.
Children over six years old are considered to be, and are frequently told that they are, adults and that they should act and expect to be treated as adults. The lawsuit noted in background that the children must be referred to as “cadets” and not kids.
CHURCH OF SCIENTOLOGY GOT TOM CRUISE A DIVORCE, HELPED HIM MARRY NICOLE KIDMAN, BOOK ALLEGES
Miscavige’s last known address is the church’s international building in L.A., but similar to other members of Scientology’s extremist wing, the Sea Org, he does not have a publicly recorded address. When lawyers showed up to Scientology properties in search of the leader, security guards denied entry to the properties and reportedly said they were not aware of his location.
The plaintiffs in the lawsuit have also hired a private investigator to help reach Miscavige, according to
Court filings related to the recent lawsuit list his home as a Scientology property in a gated community known as the Hacienda Gardens in Clearwater. The 120-unit apartment complex hosts Scientology staff and was purchased by the organization in 2001, the Tampa Bay Times reported.
During the motion filed earlier in December, one of the plaintiff’s attorneys, Neil Glazer, said, “Miscavige cannot be permitted to continue his gamesmanship.” He is due in court on Jan. 20, 2023, but that meeting is pending unless he is served with the papers.
Court documents related to the suit stated lawyers have tried to locate him through two traffic tickets he received in the 1990s, but both of those citations list the Scientology Los Angeles center as his home.
Miscavige’s lawyers told the newspaper he is merely the target of a legal strategy due to his status within Scientology. They added that he does not live in Florida, which is why they can’t serve him there.
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US Magistrate Judge Julie Sneed served a summons to Miscavige on behalf of the plaintiffs. Ten copies of the summons were sent to various Scientology properties in Florida and California in efforts to reach Miscavige.
All were sent back as undelivered since nobody would sign for them, court documents showed.
Miscavige is one of five defendants named in the lawsuit. The remaining four are operating entities of the Church of Scientology.