Author: Press Room

Holiday shopping is in full swing right now.Representatives from some American-made businesses joined “Fox & Friends Weekend” on Saturday to reveal some strong gift ideas made right here in the U.S.A.With shipping and labor costs skyrocketing as the holidays near, shoppers can buy from these small businesses right here in America.WHERE TO BUY USA-MADE CHRISTMAS GIFTS THIS YEARFor the chef in the house, check out 360 Cookware — a cookware business based in Wisconsin. Founders Beth and Brian Hurley joined the program to discuss why their products make a great purchase.  “It’s the last pan you’ll ever buy,” said Brian Hurley.The…

A “For Sale” sign in front of a home in Sacramento, California, on Monday, Dec. 5, 2022.David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesLower mortgage rates are pulling some current homeowners back to the refinance market, but not enough to offset the drop in demand from homebuyers. Mortgage application volume fell 1.9% last week compared with the previous week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s seasonally adjusted index.The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($647,200 or less) decreased to 6.41% from 6.49%, with points decreasing to 0.63 from 0.68 (including the origination fee) for…

Lionel Messi’s smile was melancholic as he answered the reporter’s question after Argentina’s loss to Chile in the 2016 Copa America final. “That’s it for me, I’m done with the national team,” said Messi. “Like I said before, we lost four finals and it’s just not for me.” The anguish was evident on Messi’s face in that interview, where he announced his international retirement in the immediate aftermath of the loss. When asked if his decision was final, he was non-committal but pointedly added how it just had to be him to miss the decisive first penalty in the shootout.…

SCRAPPING “HEALTH CODES” The Chinese public is no longer required to show a green health code on their phone to enter public buildings and spaces, except for “nursing homes, medical institutions, kindergartens, middle and high schools”. The widespread use of health codes tracking citizens’ whereabouts has raised concerns over privacy, official abuse and data theft. Five officials in central China’s Zhengzhou city were punished in June for deliberately turning thousands of citizens’ health codes red to stop them from protesting against a banking scandal. Despite the changes, China’s borders remain largely closed, with inbound travellers still required to quarantine for…

Can Morocco produce another stunning upset at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar? The north African side have already made history in making it through their group before dumping out Spain in a penalty shootout in the last 16.Morocco stunned the world by knocking out 2010 World Cup winners Spain, with goalkeeper Bono the hero as he saved two kicks. Luis Enrique’s side were dominant throughout but couldn’t find a way through a rugged Moroccan defence, who celebrated wildly at the finale.As for Portugal, while all the talk has been about Cristiano Ronaldo having been benched for their last-16 win…

LUNC, the native cryptocurrency that powers the Luna Classic blockchain, was last changing hands near $0.00017 and was just above its 21-Day Moving Average at $0.0001675. Whilst the cryptocurrency is still trading about 14% higher versus its November lows under $0.00015, it has seen a sharp pullback since nearing $0.00019 earlier this month.Traders have attributed this downside to technical selling after LUNC hit a key area of resistance and price predictions remain bearish. LUNC had been trending higher since June but in mid-November broke below this uptrend. In early December, LUNC tried to retest and break back above this uptrend…

The crown jewel in Steven Schwarzman’s real estate investment empire — the $70bn Blackstone Real Estate Income Trust — has hit a spot of bother lately. But its executives think they know how to get it back on track. Nadeem Meghji, head of Americas real estate at Blackstone, this week made an appearance on “BX TV”, the company’s Monday morning global video call for employees. According to details passed to FT Alphaville after the event, Meghji chatted with chief administrative officer Vik Sawhney to rally the troops and explain why BREIT is actually awesome. What followed was a version of…

Markets always crave a good story and the relaxation of China’s zero-Covid policy, with the prospect of a sustained growth rebound, already has an excellent shot at being the noisiest narrative of the impending new year.New, wide-ranging relaxations, which were outlined by China’s State Council on Wednesday and include the possibility of home quarantine and dropping test requirements for public places, added to the picture of a nation on the brink of two profound shifts — one psychological, the other practical. Markets in the US and Europe, note commodity traders, may have underestimated how big these shifts could be for…

The Bank of Canada is expected to raise its key interest rate Wednesday, making it the seventh consecutive time it does so this year. The central bank will publish its rate decision at 10 a.m. accompanied by a news release that will provide insight into the reasons behind the governing council’s decision.Forecasters are split on whether the Bank of Canada will raise its key rate by a quarter or half percentage point. Market watchers will be paying attention to the central bank’s language for any indication on whether more rate hikes should be expected.The Bank of Canada began raising interest…

CNN  —  The final report from the House select committee investigating January 6, 2021, will include information about Republican National Committee fundraising directly after the 2020 presidential election, what Secret Service knew ahead of the attack and the response by the National Guard, committee member Rep. Pete Aguilar said in a wide-ranging interview that aired exclusively on “CNN This Morning.” “Those are all important aspects that we look forward to highlighting and sharing at the conclusion of our work,” the California Democrat who serves on the House select committee said. The comments from Aguilar expand on themes the committee has…