Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:MUFG) Shares Sold by OneDigital Investment Advisors LLCswerte meme 。

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks climbed Thursday after market superstar Nvidia and another round of companies said they’re making even fatter profits than expected. The S&P 500 pulled 0.5% higher after flipping between gains and losses several times during the day. Banks, smaller companies and other areas of the stock market that tend to do best when the economy is strong helped lead the way, while bitcoin briefly broke above $99,000. Crude oil, meanwhile, continued to rise. The Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 461 points, or 1.1%, and the Nasdaq composite edged up by less than 0.1%. Nvidia rose just 0.5% after beating analysts’ estimates for profit and revenue yet again, but it was still the strongest force pulling the S&P 500 upward. It also gave a forecast for revenue in the current quarter that topped most analysts’ expectations due to voracious demand for its chips used in artificial-intelligence technology. Its stock initially sank in afterhours trading Wednesday following the release of the results. Some investors said the market might have been looking for Nvidia’s revenue forecast to surpass expectations by even more. But its stock recovered in premarket trading Thursday, and Wedbush analyst Dan Ives said it was another “flawless” profit report provided by Nvidia and CEO Jensen Huang, whom Ives calls “the Godfather of AI.” The stock meandered through Thursday as well, dragging the S&P 500 and other indexes back and forth. How Nvidia’s stock performs has more impact than any other because it’s grown into Wall Street’s most valuable company at roughly $3.6 trillion. The frenzy around AI is sweeping up other stocks, and Snowflake jumped 32.7% after reporting stronger results for the latest quarter than analysts expected. The company, whose platform helps customers get a better view of all their silos of data and use AI, also reported stronger revenue growth than expected. BJ’S Wholesale Club rose 8.3% after likewise delivering a bigger profit than expected. That may help calm worries about how resilient U.S. shoppers can remain, given high prices across the economy and still-high interest rates. A day earlier, Target tumbled after reporting sluggish sales in the latest quarter and giving a dour forecast for the holiday shopping season. It followed Walmart , which gave a much more encouraging outlook. Nearly 90% of the stocks in the S&P 500 ended up rising Thursday, and the gains were even bigger among smaller companies. The Russell 2000 index of smaller stocks jumped a market-leading 1.7%. Google’s parent company, Alphabet, helped keep indexes in check. It fell 4.7% after U.S. regulators asked a judge to break up the tech giant by forcing it to sell its industry-leading Chrome web browser. In a 23-page document filed late Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Justice called for sweeping punishments that would include restrictions preventing Android from favoring its own search engine. Regulators stopped short of demanding Google sell Android but left the door open to it if the company’s oversight committee continues to see evidence of misconduct. All told, the S&P 500 rose 31.60 points to 5,948.71. The Dow jumped 461.88 to 43,870.35, and the Nasdaq composite added 6.28 to 18,972.42. In the crypto market, bitcoin eclipsed $99,000 for the first time before pulling back toward $98,000, according to CoinDesk. It’s more than doubled so far this year, and its climb has accelerated since Election Day. President-elect Donald Trump has pledged to make the country “the crypto capital of the planet” and create a “strategic reserve” of bitcoin. Bitcoin got a further boost after Gary Gensler, the chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission, said Thursday he would step down in January . Gensler has pushed for more protections for crypto investors. Bitcoin and related investment have a notorious history of big price swings in both directions. MicroStrategy, a company that’s been raising cash expressly to buy bitcoin, saw an early Thursday gain of 14.6% for its stock quickly disappear. It finished the day with a loss of 16.2%. In the oil market, a barrel of benchmark U.S. crude rose 2% to bring its gain for the week to 4.8%. Brent crude, the international standard, climbed 1.8%. Oil has been rising amid escalations in the Russia-Ukraine war. In stock markets abroad, shares of India’s Adani Enterprises plunged 22.6% Thursday after the U.S. charged founder Gautam Adani in a federal indictment with securities fraud and conspiracy to commit securities and wire fraud. The businessman and one of the world’s richest people is accused of concealing that his company’s huge solar energy project on the subcontinent was being facilitated by an alleged bribery scheme. Stock indexes elsewhere in Asia and Europe were mixed. In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury inched up to 4.43% from 4.41% late Wednesday following some mixed reports on the U.S. economy. One said fewer U.S. workers applied for unemployment benefits last week in the latest signal that the job market remains solid. Another report, though, said manufacturing in the mid-Atlantic region unexpectedly shrank. Sales of previously occupied homes, meanwhile, strengthened last month by more than expected. AP Business Writers Matt Ott and Yuri Kageyama contributed.Walmart’s DEI rollback signals a profound shift in the wake of Trump’s election victory

SAN JOSE – The San Jose Sharks activated center Nico Sturm off injured reserve Monday and made room for him on the 23-man roster by assigning defenseman Jack Thompson to the AHL’s San Jose Barracuda. The transactions mean that the Sharks currently have 14 forwards, six defensemen, and three goalies: Mackenzie Blackwood, Vitek Vanecek, and rookie Yaroslav Askarov. Sturm’s return to the Sharks’ active roster was believed to be imminent after he showed signs of improvement last week and practiced with the team on Sunday. He also took part in the Sharks’ morning skate on Monday, when he was officially considered a game-time decision by coach Ryan Warsofsky. The Sharks play the Los Angeles Kings on Monday night in the second game of a four-game homestand. Warsofsky did not say who his starting goalie would be. Warsofsky said he had a few players who were “nicked up” and considered game-time decisions, although it would be a surprise not to see Sturm, a mainstay as the Sharks’ fourth-line center, play against the Kings. Sturm, injured in the Sharks’ game earlier this month against the New York Rangers, is the Sharks’ faceoff leader by percentage and is one of the team’s leading penalty-killing forwards. Thompson has been on the Sharks’ roster for almost the entire season and played in 13 of the team’s 23 games. His five points are third-most among all Sharks defensemen, as he’s averaged just under 16 minutes of ice time per game. The Sharks have had three goalies on their roster since Nov. 18, when they recalled Askarov from the Barracuda. At the time, Vanecek was considered day-to-day with an upper-body injury, but Vanecek backed up Blackwood on Saturday in the Sharks’ 4-2 loss to the Buffalo Sabres. Askarov made his Sharks debut on Thursday, making 29 saves in a 3-2 shootout loss to the St. Louis Blues. It’s unclear how long the Sharks plan to keep three goalies on their active roster. Both Blackwood and Vanecek are pending unrestricted free agents, and speculation is that one could be dealt to another team before the NHL trade deadline on March 7. Kevin Weekes of ESPN and the NHL Network posted on the social media platform X on Monday that the Carolina Hurricanes “are exploring potential goalie options in the market.” Frederik Andersen is out eight to 12 weeks after knee surgery, and Pyotr Kochetkov left Saturday’s game at Columbus after colliding with defenseman Sean Walker. Kochetkov is now in concussion protocol.Former U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Florida, said on Friday that he does not intend to return to Congress after he resigned to become President-elect Donald Trump's attorney general nominee. Gaetz withdrew from consideration on Thursday as several Republican senators reportedly were not planning to vote to confirm his nomination. His nomination was potentially headed toward failure as senators raised concerns after the House Ethics Committee's findings into alleged sexual misconduct by Gaetz were not released to the public. The House Ethics Committee could have potentially released its findings, but Gaetz ended up leaving the House days before the committee's planned vote. After he resigned from Congress, Speaker Mike Johnson said the report and the committee's findings should not be made public. RELATED STORY | Matt Gaetz says he's removing his name for consideration for attorney general After Gaetz withdrew his nomination, there was speculation on whether Gaetz would attempt to return to Congress as he was reelected to the House earlier this month. Speaking to Charlie Kirk on Friday, he put an end to that speculation. "I'm still gonna be in the fight, but it's going to be from a new perch. I do not intend to join the 119th Congress," he said. "There are a number of fantastic Floridians who have stepped up to run for my seat." Gaetz said he has other goals in life after spending 16 years in elected office. "I am going to be fighting for President Trump," he said. "I am going to do whatever he asks of me, I always have. I think eight years is enough time in the United States Congress." Hours after Gaetz's announcement, Trump said that he would nominate former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi to be his nominee. Gaetz's seat will be filled following a special election.

Iran restores access to WhatsApp and Google Play after they were banned amid protestsCristiano Ronaldo's son models new Sporting Lisbon kit honouring 'legacy' of ex-Man United and Real Madrid icon... as fans hail 'beautiful' No 7 inspired shirt Cristiano Jr. modelled Sporting Lisbon's 2024-25 third kit, inspired by his father The Portuguese side paid tribute to Cristiano Ronaldo, where he began his career This Man City team is DONE and Pep Guardiola has been sleeping on the job - LISTEN NOW to It's All Kicking Off! New episodes every Monday and Thursday By YASEEN ZAMAN Published: 17:25, 30 November 2024 | Updated: 17:55, 30 November 2024 e-mail 38 shares View comments Sporting Lisbon paid tribute to Cristiano Ronaldo with the release of their new third kit and chose his son to model the No 7 inspired shirt. The jersey is black, with a gold streak overlaying the front in the shape of a No 7, and more gold detail on the collar and sleeves. Ronaldo made 31 appearances with Sporting, scoring five goals, before his £12million move to Man United in 2003, where he went on to win three Premier League titles, a UEFA Champions League trophy and the Ballon d'Or award in 2008. Fans reacted to the news on social media, with many marvelling over the tribute to football's all-time top goal scorer, while others could not help to set lofty expectations on his son, Cristiano Jr. 'That's awesome to honour the goat', wrote one user on X. Another said: 'This is beautiful.' A third commented: 'Big legacy', noting the pressure Cristiano Jr. faces to follow in his father's footsteps. Cristiano Jr. was chosen to model Sporting Lisbon's 2024-25 third kit, in honour of his father Just like his father, the 14-year-old currently plays in Saudi Arabia, but for Al-Nassr's youth setup Cristiano Ronaldo played one season for Sporting in 2002-03, before joining Man United for £12m Sporting captioned the promotional photo shoot with the words: 'We are our legacy,' further feeding this notion. 'There are numbers that leave a legacy because, behind them, there are people who build it day after day,' the club explained. Cristiano Jr. has, so far, followed his father throughout his playing career, having played for the respective academy sides of Ronaldo's clubs since 2016. The 14-year-old currently plays for Al-Nassr, joining the Saudi Arabian outfit in 2023 upon his father's controversial exit from United. Before then, he enjoyed stints at Real Madrid between 2016 and 2018, Juventus from 2018 to 2021, and one year with United between 2021 and 2022. In 2019, it was reported that Cristiano Jr. had scored 58 goals in 28 games in Juventus' Under nine youth team. Speaking recently on his YouTube channel 'UR Cristiano' with Mr Beast, Ronaldo entertained the idea of playing with his son one day, after basketball star LeBron James shared the court with his eldest son Bronny for the LA Lakers in October. Mr Beast said: 'It’s crazy how LeBron is not playing with his son, are you looking to make that happen in the football world?' Fans took to X to comment on Cristiano Jr's shoot with Sporting, providing mixed reactions Read More World's most marketable athletes revealed in shock new study... but can you guess No 1? ‘Maybe, I’ll see. He is fourteen now,' Ronaldo responded. Mr Beast suggested: ‘Maybe get him to play when he’s 17, so you’d have to play for three more years.’ ‘Let’s see, let’s see how my legs are doing, we’ll see,' Ronaldo added. However, the Portuguese striker admitted earlier this month that he may only play up to two more years, with many speculating that he may call it a day after the 2026 World Cup in the USA. Cristiano Ronaldo Share or comment on this article: Cristiano Ronaldo's son models new Sporting Lisbon kit honouring 'legacy' of ex-Man United and Real Madrid icon... as fans hail 'beautiful' No 7 inspired shirt e-mail 38 shares Add commentSharad Pawar reflects on MVA's poor performance in Maharashtra Elections, vows party revival

Atria Investments Inc lessened its holdings in shares of Carpenter Technology Co. ( NYSE:CRS – Free Report ) by 61.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,493 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 2,406 shares during the quarter. Atria Investments Inc’s holdings in Carpenter Technology were worth $238,000 at the end of the most recent quarter. Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Carpenter Technology by 0.3% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,686,022 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $406,096,000 after buying an additional 15,564 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in Carpenter Technology by 129.5% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 849,097 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $93,044,000 after acquiring an additional 479,047 shares in the last quarter. Wolf Hill Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Carpenter Technology in the 2nd quarter worth about $73,850,000. Bayberry Capital Partners LP acquired a new stake in shares of Carpenter Technology in the 1st quarter valued at about $35,887,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in shares of Carpenter Technology by 1,538.1% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 213,391 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $34,053,000 after purchasing an additional 200,364 shares in the last quarter. 92.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors. Analysts Set New Price Targets Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $175.00 price objective on shares of Carpenter Technology in a report on Friday, October 25th. BTIG Research lifted their target price on Carpenter Technology from $120.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. began coverage on Carpenter Technology in a research report on Friday. They set an “overweight” rating and a $220.00 price target on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $153.00. Carpenter Technology Price Performance NYSE CRS opened at $190.97 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $162.86 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $135.60. Carpenter Technology Co. has a 52 week low of $58.87 and a 52 week high of $192.34. The stock has a market cap of $9.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a current ratio of 3.84, a quick ratio of 2.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. Carpenter Technology ( NYSE:CRS – Get Free Report ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 24th. The basic materials company reported $1.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.58 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $717.60 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $742.96 million. Carpenter Technology had a return on equity of 18.01% and a net margin of 8.05%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.88 EPS. Analysts forecast that Carpenter Technology Co. will post 6.61 EPS for the current year. Carpenter Technology Dividend Announcement The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 5th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.20 per share. This represents a $0.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 22nd. Carpenter Technology’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 17.82%. Carpenter Technology Company Profile ( Free Report ) Carpenter Technology Corporation engages in the manufacture, fabrication, and distribution of specialty metals in the United States, Europe, the Asia Pacific, Mexico, Canada, and internationally. It operates in two segments, Specialty Alloys Operations and Performance Engineered Products. The company offers specialty alloys, including titanium alloys, powder metals, stainless steels, alloy steels, and tool steels, as well as additives, and metal powders and parts. Read More Five stocks we like better than Carpenter Technology Why Understanding Call Option Volume is Essential to Successful Options Trading Vertiv’s Cool Tech Makes Its Stock Red-Hot Insider Trading – What You Need to Know MarketBeat Week in Review – 11/18 – 11/22 What is Put Option Volume? 2 Finance Stocks With Competitive Advantages You Can’t Ignore Receive News & Ratings for Carpenter Technology Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Carpenter Technology and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter .Kentucky will aim to improve upon its best start in seven seasons when it hosts Western Kentucky on Tuesday night in Lexington, Ky., in the final game of the BBN Invitational. The Wildcats (5-0) are ranked No. 8 in the latest Associated Press poll and are setting impressive offensive milestones even for a program as tradition-rich as Kentucky, which includes eight national championships. The Wildcats have scored 97 or more points in their first four home games for the first time in program history and eclipsed the 100-point mark in three of those games. Their lone trip out of state was a solid 77-72 victory over Duke in a matchup of top-10 teams in Atlanta. Kentucky has also made at least 10 three-pointers in each of its first five games of a season for the first time ever. "I think Kentucky attracts good people," Kentucky coach Mark Pope said after the Wildcats' 108-59 win over Jackson State on Friday. "It's the one place in all college basketball where you represent just a fanbase in a different, unique way." Otega Oweh and Koby Brea have led the Wildcats' early scoring outburst. Oweh, who is averaging 16.2 points per game, had 21 points on 8-for-12 shooting against Jackson State. "He gets us off to unbelievable starts every night," Pope told reporters after that game. "He's probably been our most consistent guy in games." Brea, who scored 22 points against Jackson State and is averaging 16.0 points per game, is leading the nation in 3-point accuracy at 74.1 percent. As a team, the Wildcats are shooting 42.3 percent from beyond the arc. And the few times they miss, Amari Williams has been doing the dirty work on the glass, averaging 10.8 boards in addition to 9.6 points per game. Kentucky faces a different challenge than it's had to contend with so far in the Hilltoppers (3-2), who have won three in a row after losing their first two games to Wichita State and Grand Canyon. Their up-tempo play hasn't exactly resulted in great offensive output, but in the Hilltoppers' 79-62 win over Jackson State on Wednesday, they shot 45.2 percent from 3-point range (14 for 31). "I was happy to see a lot of different guys contribute tonight and, hopefully, get their feet under them a little bit and get some confidence," said Western Kentucky coach Hank Plona, who is in his first season as head coach. "Obviously, Tuesday will be quite a test and challenge for us and we'll need them to be at their absolute best." Western Kentucky has an experienced group, which returned mostly intact from last season. The team is led by Conference USA first-team selection Don McHenry, who is leading the team with 17.2 points and 2.2 steals per game. McHenry is one of four Hilltoppers with scoring averages in double figures. Julius Thedford (11.4 points per game) and Babacar Faye (15.0) are each shooting 40 percent or better from 3-point range. Western Kentucky also figures to challenge the Wildcats on the boards as it enters the game ranked in the top 25 in defensive rebounding (30.4 per game). Faye leads the Hilltoppers in that department, averaging 7.8 rebounds per game and figures to battle Williams inside. "We're not the biggest team in the world, but our depth and our quickness are our strengths," Plona said. --Field Level MediaInternational Criminal Court issues arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Hamas officials

Dictionary.com reveals its word of the yearBy ALEXANDRA OLSON and CATHY BUSSEWITZ NEW YORK (AP) — Walmart’s sweeping rollback of its diversity policies is the strongest indication yet of a profound shift taking hold at U.S. companies that are revaluating the legal and political risks associated with bold programs to bolster historically underrepresented groups in business. The changes announced by the world’s biggest retailer followed a string of legal victories by conservative groups that have filed an onslaught of lawsuits challenging corporate and federal programs aimed at elevating minority and women-owned businesses and employees. The risk associated with some of programs crystalized with the election of former President Donald Trump, whose administration is certain to make dismantling diversity, equity and inclusion programs a priority. Trump’s incoming deputy chief of policy will be his former adviser Stephen Miller , who leads a group called America First Legal that has aggressively challenged corporate DEI policies. “There has been a lot of reassessment of risk looking at programs that could be deemed to constitute reverse discrimination,” said Allan Schweyer, principal researcher the Human Capital Center at the Conference Board. “This is another domino to fall and it is a rather large domino,” he added. Among other changes, Walmart said it will no longer give priority treatment to suppliers owned by women or minorities. The company also will not renew a five-year commitment for a racial equity center set up in 2020 after the police killing of George Floyd. And it pulled out of a prominent gay rights index . Schweyer said the biggest trigger for companies making such changes is simply a reassessment of their legal risk exposure, which began after U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in June 2023 that ended affirmative action in college admissions. Since then, conservative groups using similar arguments have secured court victories against various diversity programs, especially those that steer contracts to minority or women-owned businesses. Most recently, the conservative Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty won a victory in a case against the U.S. Department of Transportation over its use of a program that gives priority to minority-owned businesses when it awards contracts. Companies are seeing a big legal risk in continuing with DEI efforts, said Dan Lennington, a deputy counsel at the institute. His organization says it has identified more than 60 programs in the federal government that it considers discriminatory, he said. “We have a legal landscape within the entire federal government, all three branches — the U.S. Supreme Court, the Congress and the President — are all now firmly pointed in the direction towards equality of individuals and individualized treatment of all Americans, instead of diversity, equity and inclusion treating people as members of racial groups,” Lennington said. The Trump administration is also likely to take direct aim at DEI initiatives through executive orders and other policies that affect private companies, especially federal contractors. “The impact of the election on DEI policies is huge. It can’t be overstated,” said Jason Schwartz, co-chair of the Labor & Employment Practice Group at law firm Gibson Dunn. With Miller returning to the White House, rolling back DEI initiatives is likely to be a priority, Schwartz said. “Companies are trying to strike the right balance to make clear they’ve got an inclusive workplace where everyone is welcome, and they want to get the best talent, while at the same time trying not to alienate various parts of their employees and customer base who might feel one way or the other. It’s a virtually impossible dilemma,” Schwartz said. A recent survey by Pew Research Center showed that workers are divided on the merits of DEI policies. While still broadly popular, the share of workers who said focusing on workplace diversity was mostly a good thing fell to 52% in the November survey, compared to 56% in a similar survey in February 2023. Rachel Minkin, a research associated at Pew called it a small but significant shift in short amount of time. There will be more companies pulling back from their DEI policies, but it likely won’t be a retreat across the board, said David Glasgow, executive director of the Meltzer Center for Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging at New York University. “There are vastly more companies that are sticking with DEI,” Glasgow said. “The only reason you don’t hear about it is most of them are doing it by stealth. They’re putting their heads down and doing DEI work and hoping not to attract attention.” Glasgow advises organizations to stick to their own core values, because attitudes toward the topic can change quickly in the span of four years. “It’s going to leave them looking a little bit weak if there’s a kind of flip-flopping, depending on whichever direction the political winds are blowing,” he said. One reason DEI programs exist is because without those programs, companies may be vulnerable to lawsuits for traditional discrimination. “Really think carefully about the risks in all directions on this topic,” Glasgow said. Walmart confirmed will no longer consider race and gender as a litmus test to improve diversity when it offers supplier contracts. Last fiscal year, Walmart said it spent more than $13 billion on minority, women or veteran-owned good and service suppliers. It was unclear how its relationships with such business would change going forward. Organizations that that have partnered with Walmart on its diversity initiatives offered a cautious response. The Women’s Business Enterprise National Council, a non-profit that last year named Walmart one of America’s top corporation for women-owned enterprises, said it was still evaluating the impact of Walmart’s announcement. Pamela Prince-Eason, the president and CEO of the organization, said she hoped Walmart’s need to cater to its diverse customer base will continue to drive contracts to women-owned suppliers even if the company no longer has explicit dollar goals. “I suspect Walmart will continue to have one of the most inclusive supply chains in the World,” Prince-Eason wrote. “Any retailer’s ability to serve the communities they operate in will continue to value understanding their customers, (many of which are women), in order to better provide products and services desired and no one understands customers better than Walmart.” Walmart’s announcement came after the company spoke directly with conservative political commentator and activist Robby Starbuck, who has been going after corporate DEI policies, calling out individual companies on the social media platform X. Several of those companies have subsequently announced that they are pulling back their initiatives, including Ford , Harley-Davidson, Lowe’s and Tractor Supply . Walmart confirmed to The Associated Press that it will better monitor its third-party marketplace items to make sure they don’t feature sexual and transgender products aimed at minors. The company also will stop participating in the Human Rights Campaign’s annual benchmark index that measures workplace inclusion for LGBTQ+ employees. A Walmart spokesperson added that some of the changes were already in progress and not as a result of conversations that it had with Starbuck. RaShawn “Shawnie” Hawkins, senior director of the HRC Foundation’s Workplace Equality Program, said companies that “abandon” their commitments workplace inclusion policies “are shirking their responsibility to their employees, consumers, and shareholders.” She said the buying power of LGBTQ customers is powerful and noted that the index will have record participation of more than 1,400 companies in 2025.Kentucky will aim to improve upon its best start in seven seasons when it hosts Western Kentucky on Tuesday night in Lexington, Ky., in the final game of the BBN Invitational. The Wildcats (5-0) are ranked No. 8 in the latest Associated Press poll and are setting impressive offensive milestones even for a program as tradition-rich as Kentucky, which includes eight national championships. The Wildcats have scored 97 or more points in their first four home games for the first time in program history and eclipsed the 100-point mark in three of those games. Their lone trip out of state was a solid 77-72 victory over Duke in a matchup of top-10 teams in Atlanta. Kentucky has also made at least 10 three-pointers in each of its first five games of a season for the first time ever. "I think Kentucky attracts good people," Kentucky coach Mark Pope said after the Wildcats' 108-59 win over Jackson State on Friday. "It's the one place in all college basketball where you represent just a fanbase in a different, unique way." Otega Oweh and Koby Brea have led the Wildcats' early scoring outburst. Oweh, who is averaging 16.2 points per game, had 21 points on 8-for-12 shooting against Jackson State. "He gets us off to unbelievable starts every night," Pope told reporters after that game. "He's probably been our most consistent guy in games." Brea, who scored 22 points against Jackson State and is averaging 16.0 points per game, is leading the nation in 3-point accuracy at 74.1 percent. As a team, the Wildcats are shooting 42.3 percent from beyond the arc. And the few times they miss, Amari Williams has been doing the dirty work on the glass, averaging 10.8 boards in addition to 9.6 points per game. Kentucky faces a different challenge than it's had to contend with so far in the Hilltoppers (3-2), who have won three in a row after losing their first two games to Wichita State and Grand Canyon. Their up-tempo play hasn't exactly resulted in great offensive output, but in the Hilltoppers' 79-62 win over Jackson State on Wednesday, they shot 45.2 percent from 3-point range (14 for 31). "I was happy to see a lot of different guys contribute tonight and, hopefully, get their feet under them a little bit and get some confidence," said Western Kentucky coach Hank Plona, who is in his first season as head coach. "Obviously, Tuesday will be quite a test and challenge for us and we'll need them to be at their absolute best." Western Kentucky has an experienced group, which returned mostly intact from last season. The team is led by Conference USA first-team selection Don McHenry, who is leading the team with 17.2 points and 2.2 steals per game. McHenry is one of four Hilltoppers with scoring averages in double figures. Julius Thedford (11.4 points per game) and Babacar Faye (15.0) are each shooting 40 percent or better from 3-point range. Western Kentucky also figures to challenge the Wildcats on the boards as it enters the game ranked in the top 25 in defensive rebounding (30.4 per game). Faye leads the Hilltoppers in that department, averaging 7.8 rebounds per game and figures to battle Williams inside. "We're not the biggest team in the world, but our depth and our quickness are our strengths," Plona said. --Field Level Media

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By ALEXANDRA OLSON and CATHY BUSSEWITZ NEW YORK (AP) — Walmart’s sweeping rollback of its diversity policies is the strongest indication yet of a profound shift taking hold at U.S. companies that are revaluating the legal and political risks associated with bold programs to bolster historically underrepresented groups in business. The changes announced by the world’s biggest retailer followed a string of legal victories by conservative groups that have filed an onslaught of lawsuits challenging corporate and federal programs aimed at elevating minority and women-owned businesses and employees. The risk associated with some of programs crystalized with the election of former President Donald Trump, whose administration is certain to make dismantling diversity, equity and inclusion programs a priority. Trump’s incoming deputy chief of policy will be his former adviser Stephen Miller , who leads a group called America First Legal that has aggressively challenged corporate DEI policies. “There has been a lot of reassessment of risk looking at programs that could be deemed to constitute reverse discrimination,” said Allan Schweyer, principal researcher the Human Capital Center at the Conference Board. “This is another domino to fall and it is a rather large domino,” he added. Among other changes, Walmart said it will no longer give priority treatment to suppliers owned by women or minorities. The company also will not renew a five-year commitment for a racial equity center set up in 2020 after the police killing of George Floyd. And it pulled out of a prominent gay rights index . Schweyer said the biggest trigger for companies making such changes is simply a reassessment of their legal risk exposure, which began after U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in June 2023 that ended affirmative action in college admissions. Since then, conservative groups using similar arguments have secured court victories against various diversity programs, especially those that steer contracts to minority or women-owned businesses. Most recently, the conservative Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty won a victory in a case against the U.S. Department of Transportation over its use of a program that gives priority to minority-owned businesses when it awards contracts. Companies are seeing a big legal risk in continuing with DEI efforts, said Dan Lennington, a deputy counsel at the institute. His organization says it has identified more than 60 programs in the federal government that it considers discriminatory, he said. “We have a legal landscape within the entire federal government, all three branches — the U.S. Supreme Court, the Congress and the President — are all now firmly pointed in the direction towards equality of individuals and individualized treatment of all Americans, instead of diversity, equity and inclusion treating people as members of racial groups,” Lennington said. The Trump administration is also likely to take direct aim at DEI initiatives through executive orders and other policies that affect private companies, especially federal contractors. “The impact of the election on DEI policies is huge. It can’t be overstated,” said Jason Schwartz, co-chair of the Labor & Employment Practice Group at law firm Gibson Dunn. With Miller returning to the White House, rolling back DEI initiatives is likely to be a priority, Schwartz said. “Companies are trying to strike the right balance to make clear they’ve got an inclusive workplace where everyone is welcome, and they want to get the best talent, while at the same time trying not to alienate various parts of their employees and customer base who might feel one way or the other. It’s a virtually impossible dilemma,” Schwartz said. A recent survey by Pew Research Center showed that workers are divided on the merits of DEI policies. While still broadly popular, the share of workers who said focusing on workplace diversity was mostly a good thing fell to 52% in the November survey, compared to 56% in a similar survey in February 2023. Rachel Minkin, a research associated at Pew called it a small but significant shift in short amount of time. There will be more companies pulling back from their DEI policies, but it likely won’t be a retreat across the board, said David Glasgow, executive director of the Meltzer Center for Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging at New York University. “There are vastly more companies that are sticking with DEI,” Glasgow said. “The only reason you don’t hear about it is most of them are doing it by stealth. They’re putting their heads down and doing DEI work and hoping not to attract attention.” Glasgow advises organizations to stick to their own core values, because attitudes toward the topic can change quickly in the span of four years. “It’s going to leave them looking a little bit weak if there’s a kind of flip-flopping, depending on whichever direction the political winds are blowing,” he said. One reason DEI programs exist is because without those programs, companies may be vulnerable to lawsuits for traditional discrimination. “Really think carefully about the risks in all directions on this topic,” Glasgow said. Walmart confirmed will no longer consider race and gender as a litmus test to improve diversity when it offers supplier contracts. Last fiscal year, Walmart said it spent more than $13 billion on minority, women or veteran-owned good and service suppliers. It was unclear how its relationships with such business would change going forward. Organizations that that have partnered with Walmart on its diversity initiatives offered a cautious response. The Women’s Business Enterprise National Council, a non-profit that last year named Walmart one of America’s top corporation for women-owned enterprises, said it was still evaluating the impact of Walmart’s announcement. Pamela Prince-Eason, the president and CEO of the organization, said she hoped Walmart’s need to cater to its diverse customer base will continue to drive contracts to women-owned suppliers even if the company no longer has explicit dollar goals. “I suspect Walmart will continue to have one of the most inclusive supply chains in the World,” Prince-Eason wrote. “Any retailer’s ability to serve the communities they operate in will continue to value understanding their customers, (many of which are women), in order to better provide products and services desired and no one understands customers better than Walmart.” Walmart’s announcement came after the company spoke directly with conservative political commentator and activist Robby Starbuck, who has been going after corporate DEI policies, calling out individual companies on the social media platform X. Several of those companies have subsequently announced that they are pulling back their initiatives, including Ford , Harley-Davidson, Lowe’s and Tractor Supply . Walmart confirmed to The Associated Press that it will better monitor its third-party marketplace items to make sure they don’t feature sexual and transgender products aimed at minors. The company also will stop participating in the Human Rights Campaign’s annual benchmark index that measures workplace inclusion for LGBTQ+ employees. A Walmart spokesperson added that some of the changes were already in progress and not as a result of conversations that it had with Starbuck. RaShawn “Shawnie” Hawkins, senior director of the HRC Foundation’s Workplace Equality Program, said companies that “abandon” their commitments workplace inclusion policies “are shirking their responsibility to their employees, consumers, and shareholders.” She said the buying power of LGBTQ customers is powerful and noted that the index will have record participation of more than 1,400 companies in 2025.

NASSAU, Bahamas (AP) — Kmani Doughty had 17 points in Indiana State's 83-80 victory against Iona on Saturday. Doughty shot 5 of 9 from the field, including 1 for 4 from 3-point range, and went 6 for 7 from the line for the Sycamores (4-4). Jaden Daughtry added 16 points while going 6 of 9 and 4 of 5 from the free-throw line while they also had six rebounds and three steals. Josiah LeGree shot 5 for 8, including 3 for 5 from beyond the arc to finish with 14 points. Javascript is required for you to be able to read premium content. Please enable it in your browser settings. Get updates and player profiles ahead of Friday's high school games, plus a recap Saturday with stories, photos, video Frequency: Seasonal Twice a weekPresident Murmu appoints new governors for Manipur, Mizoram, Kerala, Bihar, and OdishaIslamabad deserves debt relief from all creditors urgently, says economist Pakistan’s debt situation has been worsening since 2008, but deteriorated at speed never witnessed since 2019 ISLAMABAD: Several low-income countries (LICs) including Pakistan face severe debt crisis and deserve to receive debt relief from bilateral, multilateral and private creditors urgently. Pakistan’s renowned economist Dr Ashfaque Hassan Khan, who is currently serving at the National University of Sciences & Technology (NUST), has come up with a detailed research work titled ‘Sinking in debt: A framework for debt relief for low income countries’ and argued that Pakistan’s current debt situation is far worse than many of the LICs and hence it deserves to receive debt relief urgently. Pakistan’s debt situation has been worsening since 2008, but deteriorated at a speed never witnessed before since 2019. Pakistan’s external debt and liabilities have been growing at differing pace since 2000. They grew at an average rate of 1.4 per cent per annum during 2000-2007; the pace accelerated to 6.2pc per annum during 2008-2015; the pace further accelerated to 8.6pc per annum during 2016-2023. By December-end 2023, Pakistan’s external debt and liabilities stood at $131.4 billion – rising from $36.5 billion in 2000. In other words, Pakistan added almost $95 billion external debt and liabilities in just 23 years as against $37.1 billion in the last 53 years prior to the year 2000, that is, since independence in 1947. More importantly, Pakistan added $66.4 billion in total external debt and liabilities of $131.2 billion or 51pc during the two lost decades (Decades of the 1990s, and 2008-18). Public debt, on the other hand, is influenced by the size of the budget deficit, rate of depreciation of the currency and interest rate. Like external debt and liabilities, the rise in public debt exhibited different pace since the year 2000. Public debt grew at an average rate of 8pc per annum during 2000-2007; accelerated at the rate of 16.5pc per annum during 2008-18; and grew at a dangerously high level of 21.3pc per annum during 2019-2023. Devaluation of Pakistani currency and the persistence of unprecedentedly high interest have contributed enormously to the rise of public debt in Pakistan. With rise in public and external debt over the years, especially during the last five years (2019-2023), Pakistan’s debt servicing liabilities has turned out to be far worse than the many LICs. Devaluation and the persistence of keeping interest rate high have created serious budgetary problems for Pakistan, especially during the last five years. Interest payment as percentage of total revenue continued to surge since 2018-19. It was 28.7pc in 2017-18 but increased to 42.7pc in 2018-19 and further reached to an all-time high at 59.1pc by 2022-23. In other words, almost 60pc revenue (tax and non-tax revenue combined) was consumed by one budgetary item, that is, interest payment. With respect to tax revenue only, interest payment was almost 34pc in 2017-18 but surged to 72.8pc by 2022-23. In other words, Pakistan consumed almost three – fourth of its tax revenue for interest payment. More alarmingly, interest payment alone reached over three times the development expenditure and 35.3pc of total expenditure. Hence, devaluation and high-interest rate policies have seriously affected Pakistan’s economy and made Pakistan even far worse in the comity of developing countries in general and in LICs in particular as externally debt distress country, he added. He suggested that bilateral Creditors may suspend their debt repayment for 10 years. Besides, it is proposed that they may enter into various debt swap arrangements with the eligible countries. This will be a great help for the eligible LICs because instead of repaying principal and interest in foreign currency, they will be using these monies for budgetary purposes to spend on education health, climate change and improving other social indicators.

Pakistani security forces have launched an operation to disperse supporters of imprisoned former prime minister Imran Khan who had gathered in the capital to demand his release from prison. The latest development came hours after thousands of his supporters, defying government warnings, broke through a barrier of shipping containers blocking off Islamabad and entered a high-security zone, where they clashed with security forces, facing tear gas shelling, mass detentions and gunfire. Tension has been high in Islamabad since Sunday when supporters of the former PM began a “long march” from the restive north-west to demand his release. Khan has been in a prison for more than a year and faces more than 150 criminal cases that his party says are politically motivated. Khan’s wife, Bushra Bibi, led the protest, but she fled as police pushed back against demonstrators. Hundreds of Khan’s supporters are being arrested in the ongoing night-time operation. Interior minister Mohsin Naqvi told reporters that the Red Zone, which houses government buildings and embassies, and the surrounding areas have been cleared. Leaders from Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, or PTI, have also fled the protest site. Earlier on Tuesday, Pakistan’s army took control of D-Chowk, a large square in the Red Zone, where visiting Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko is staying. Since Monday, Mr Naqvi had threatened that security forces would use live fire if protesters fired weapons at them. “We have now authorised the police to respond as necessary,” Mr Naqvi said Tuesday while visiting the square. Before the operation began, protester Shahzor Ali said people had taken to the streets because Khan had called for them. “We will stay here until Khan joins us. He will decide what to do next,” Mr Ali said. Protester Fareeda Bibi, who is not related to Khan’s wife, said people have suffered greatly for the last two years. “We have really suffered for the last two years, whether it is economically, politically or socially. We have been ruined. I have not seen such a Pakistan in my life,” she said. Authorities have struggled to contain the protest-related violence. Six people, including four members of the security services, were killed when a vehicle rammed them on a street overnight into Tuesday. A police officer died in a separate incident. Dozens of Khan supporters beat a videographer covering the protest for the Associated Press and took his camera. He sustained head injuries and was treated in hospital. By Tuesday afternoon, fresh waves of protesters made their way unopposed to their final destination in the Red Zone. Mr Naqvi said Khan’s party had rejected a government offer to rally on the outskirts of the city. Information minister Atta Tarar warned there would be a severe government reaction to the violence. The government says only the courts can order Khan’s release. He was ousted in 2022 through a no-confidence vote in Parliament. In a bid to foil the unrest, police have arrested more than 4,000 Khan supporters since Friday and suspended mobile and internet services in some parts of the country. Messaging platforms were also experiencing severe disruption in the capital. Khan’s party relies heavily on social media and uses messaging platforms such as WhatsApp to share information, including details of events. The X platform, which is banned in Pakistan, is no longer accessible, even with a VPN. Last Thursday, a court prohibited rallies in the capital and Mr Naqvi said anyone violating the ban would be arrested. Travel between Islamabad and other cities has become nearly impossible because of shipping containers blocking the roads. All education institutions remain closed.Apple's senior vice president of services Eddy Cue has explained why the iPhone maker does not plan to create a search engine like Google. In a declaration filed with a U.S. federal court in Washington, D.C. last week, Cue said Apple is against the idea for the following reasons: Earlier this year, as part of the U.S. Department of Justice's antitrust trial against Google, the court declared that the deal that sees Google set as the default search engine in Apple's web browser Safari is illegal . In his declaration, Cue asked the court to allow Apple to defend the deal by having its own witnesses testify during the trial. "Only Apple can speak to what kinds of future collaborations can best serve its users," wrote Cue. "Apple is relentlessly focused on creating the best user experience possible and explores potential partnerships and arrangements with other companies to make that happen." As part of the deal, Cue revealed that Google paid Apple roughly $20 billion in 2022 alone. If the agreement can no longer continue, Cue said "it would hamstring Apple's ability to continue delivering products that best serve its users' needs." The declaration was earlier reported by Reuters . Note: Due to the political or social nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Political News forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.