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S&P raises Greece to investment grade for first time in more than a decade

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:00:31 GMT

ATHENS — Greece’s credit rating was raised to investment grade by Standard & Poor’s in the first such move by one of the three major rating agencies since the country was shaken by the debt crisis more than a decade ago.S&P Global upgraded Greece late Friday to BBB- from BB+, citing the country’s improved budgetary position, in a move that the government hopes will boost market confidence, attract foreign investments and lower borrowing costs. S&P said the ratings outlook is stable.“Proud of the recognition of what our country has achieved,” Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis posted on social media. “We are determined to continue our reform agenda, a path that is attracting investment, creating jobs and achieving inclusive growth.”Securing investment grade was a key target for the conservative leader, who secured a second term with a landslide victory in June.The move back into investment grade at S&P comes more than a decade after Greece was brough...

Friday’s high school roundup/scores: Sweet 16: Archbishop Williams qualifies for state tournament again

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:00:31 GMT

Michael Folan, Antonio Guarino and DJ Tandy scored while Robbie Cibotti earned his 10th shutout as Archbishop Williams (8-3-4) qualified for the tournament for the 16th straight year with a 3-0 boys soccer win over Cardinal Spellman in the Catholic Central League.Francis Amani and Pat Moore scored for Plymouth North (10-2-3) in a 2-1 Patriot League win over crosstown rival Plymouth South.Ryan Gasparro and Finn Ingalls found the net for Newburyport (11-3-2) in a 2-1 Cape Ann League win over Georgetown. … Kaiky Araujo struck for two goals, and Simon Ghebremariam netted his first goal as Rockland (10-5) rolled to a 4-0 South Shore League win over Randolph.A pair of goals from Lucas Bereaud and two points from Jack Fredrickson (goal, assist) paced Swampscott (11-2-1) in a 3-1 Northeastern Conference win over Salem. … Marcus Dutra Africano (two goals), Nyzaiah Pacheco (goal, two assists) and Will Quinlan (goal) got the job done offensively for Westport (14-0) in a 4-0 Mayflow...

Ukrainian officials say civilians were killed and wounded in Russian overnight attacks

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:00:31 GMT

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — At least two civilians were killed and others wounded across Ukraine as Russian forces continued to shell frontline areas and other parts of the country, local Ukrainian officials reported Saturday. In Kryvyi Rih, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s hometown in central Ukraine, a 60-year-old man died on Friday evening when a Russian missile slammed into an industrial facility, according to Telegram posts by Mayor Oleksandr Vilkul. Vilkul added that the man’s wife was hospitalized with serious shrapnel wounds. Early on Saturday, Vilkul reported that Russian missiles and drones overnight hit the same site again, causing unspecified damage and sparking a fire that was put out by morning. Vilkul did not elaborate on the site’s nature or whether it was linked to Ukraine’s war effort. He said nobody was hurt in the second strike. In Ukraine’s front-line Kherson region in the south, one civilian was killed and another suffered wounds as Russia...

Storm hits northern Europe, killing at least 4 people

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:00:31 GMT

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — A storm battered Britain, northern Germany and southern Scandinavia early Saturday, for a third day, with powerful winds, heavy rain and storm surges that caused floods, power outages, evacuations and disrupted flights, railway service and ferry lines.Since Thursday, at least four people have died in the storm, named Babet by the UK Meteorological Office. The latest victim was a 33-year-old woman who was killed when a tree fell on her car on the Baltic Sea island of Fehmarn on Friday afternoon, German news agency dpa reported. Three storm-related deaths were reported in England and Scotland on Thursday and Friday.Gale-force winds whipped up storm surges on the southern shores of the Baltic Sea, breaking through flood defenses in coastal areas in Denmark and northern Germany. In Flensburg, a German city just south of the border with Denmark, water levels rose more than 2 meters to the highest level recorded in a century, dpa said. Power was cut to flooded p...

Cyprus police arrest 4 people after a small explosion near the Israeli Embassy

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:00:31 GMT

NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — Police in Cyprus said Saturday they arrested four people on suspicion of setting off a small explosive device that caused no damage not far from Israeli Embassy in the capital Nicosia. Police said the four, ranging in ages between 17 and 21, face charges of attempted destruction of property using explosives, possession and use of explosives and possession of a knife. Police did not say whether the bombing some 30 meters (98 feet) from the Israeli Embassy was connected to the war in Gaza. Security has been stepped up across the European Union following Hamas’ attack on Israel Oct. 7 and the ensuing hostilities. The suspects will appear before a Nicosia court later Saturday for a hearing to decide the duration of their detention until investigators can formally bring charges against them or they will be released. According to police, two of the suspects were spotted walking near the scene of the explosion, while the other two were sitting inside a car park...

Egypt’s border crossing opens to let a trickle of desperately needed aid into besieged Gaza

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:00:31 GMT

RAFAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — The border crossing between Egypt and Gaza opened on Saturday to let a trickle of desperately needed aid into the besieged Palestinian territory for the first time since Israel sealed it off in the wake of Hamas’ bloody rampage two weeks ago.Gaza’s 2.3 million Palestinians, half of whom have fled their homes, are rationing food and drinking dirty water. Hospitals say they are running low on medical supplies and fuel for emergency generators amid a territory-wide power blackout. Israel is still launching waves of airstrikes across Gaza as Palestinian militants fire rocket barrages into Israel.The opening came after more than a week of high-level diplomacy by various mediators, including visits to the region by U.S. President Joe Biden and U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. Israel had insisted that nothing would enter Gaza until some 200 people captured by Hamas were freed, and the Palestinian side of the crossing had been shut down by Israel...

Historic Justus Ramsey House finds new home at Minnesota Transportation Museum

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:00:31 GMT

The historic Justus Ramsey House may have found a new home in St. Paul.The small limestone residence, erected for the brother of territorial governor Alexander Ramsey, had stood for roughly 170 years off Walnut Street, at what is now the side patio of Burger Moe’s restaurant, not far from the Xcel Energy Center. It was removed in pieces by the restaurant owner last February after a wall partially collapsed, despite the objections of historic preservationists and other neighborhood residents eager to see it remain in place.Since then, the disassembled cottage-like structure has sat in a secure storage facility outside the city while community advocates searched for a new steward.Following a request for proposals, that steward has just been announced. The Minnesota Transportation Museum will lead the reconstruction effort, “an exciting development that promises to further enrich the historical narrative of St. Paul’s West Seventh neighborhood,” reads a written ...

Ask Amy: Spouses air (but don’t wash) dirty laundry

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:00:31 GMT

Dear Amy: For as long as I have known my wife (20 years), she has been reluctant to do the laundry.I politely ask her to do it, and she tells me that she will.However, two days later, dirty clothes are still piling up.To be fair, she follows through about 20 percent of the time.She works part-time outside the home, and I work full time from home.She has plenty of time in her day to do the laundry. Instead, she chooses to watch videos on her phone for hours on end.I used to think it was just a personality quirk. But after two decades, I feel she is taking advantage of me.The root of this issue is not laundry, of course. It is trust, which has been shaken to the point that it threatens the integrity of our relationship.How can we move forward?— Wits End in WisconsinDear Wits End: If your wife agrees to do something and then doesn’t do it, then I agree that she is at the very least unreliable. Some of your disconnect, however, might have to do with timing. She’ll do it when she w...

Parents step back on selling now in the Bay Area; is that a smart move?

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:00:31 GMT

Question: My parents planned to sell their Bay Area home. Their plans have changed. Their friends and neighbors told them to wait. Their seller’s agent agrees. They blame high interest rates. The advice is to wait until spring. “The interest rates will come down” is what they hear. It is shocking. My parents bought an out-of-state condominium near me. They need to relocate. I cannot help them long distance. Your column indicates a robust Bay Area seller’s market. You also claim a housing shortage. Is it necessary to sit out the home-selling market until spring?  Answer: No, it is not. The San Francisco Bay Area counties have enjoyed a seller’s market despite rising interest rates. Today, on a Realtor video call, the regional sales manager for a national bank claimed the interest rates are the highest of his career, yet “buyer demand remains high.” Robust home sales are proof.On Tuesday, on a Realtor video call, a manager at the National Association of Realtors showed a slide titled ...

Walters: California employers, unions enter a new labor law battle

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 18:00:31 GMT

When Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 365 this month, he opened a new chapter in a decades-long political and legal war over California laws governing relations between employers and their workers.Briefly, SB 365 declares that when an employer loses a civil suit seeking to compel arbitration in a labor law dispute with a worker, the employer is not automatically allowed to freeze proceedings in the underlying issue by filing an appeal.Thus, the measure weakens the long-standing ability of employers to require arbitration of such disputes, which flows from a pro-arbitration federal law, and is a significant victory for unions and lawyers who specialize in pursuing employment cases for workers.Ironically, however, as the bill was winding its way through the Legislature this year, the U.S. Supreme Court declared that appeals of disputes over the applicability of arbitration in federal courts should freeze (stay, in legal jargon) the underlying cases.In June, a legislative staff ana...