Oil rises and Asian stocks fall after Trump says US will hit Iran hard and 'finish the job'
HONG KONG (AP) — Oil prices have risen more than 4% and Asian stocks are lower after U.S. President Donald Trump's first national address since the Iran war began. Trump says the U.S. will continue to hit Iran very hard and “finish the job” soon. He did not offer a clear path to end supply disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz that have sent energy prices soaring. Brent crude, the international standard, jumped 5% to $106 per barrel. Renewed optimism earlier for a possible end to the Iran war pushed world stocks higher. On Wednesday, the S&P 500 added 0.7%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.5% and the Nasdaq composite climbed 1.2%.
Retail sales rose in February before the Iran war, which threatens to derail spending
NEW YORK (AP) — Shoppers increased their spending in February, particularly on cars and clothing, after pulling back at the start of the year due to severe winter storms. Retail sales rose a better-than-expected 0.6% in February, from a revised 0.1% decline in January, the Commerce Department said Wednesday. But there’s concern that the Iran war, which is sending gasoline prices soaring and whose impact wasn’t reflected in the retail sales data, will derail spending at a time when Americans have already been squeezed by years of elevated inflation. Gas sped past an average of $4 a gallon on Tuesday for the first time since 2022 and jumped another 4 cents overnight. The national average for a gallon of regular gasoline hit $4.06 Wednesday. That was a dollar more per gallon before the war.
AI machine sorts clothes faster than humans to boost textile recycling in China
ZHANGJIAGANG, China (AP) — A company in eastern China is using an artificial intelligence-powered machine to sort clothes and boost recycling. It offers a glimpse into how AI could help reduce the impact of synthetic textile waste. The Fastsort-Textile machine was named one of Time magazine’s Best Inventions of 2025 and was created by Databeyond. The Chinese AI recycling company was founded in 2018. The equipment operates in Zhangjiagang and can sort 100 kilograms of clothes in two to three minutes. That compares with one worker taking around four hours to do the same thing.
FDA grants speedy approval to Eli Lilly's weight-loss pill for obesity
U.S. health officials have approved a new weight-loss pill from Eli Lilly. The Food and Drug Administration's decision Wednesday means patients in the United States will soon have access to a second daily oral medication to treat obesity and weight-related issues. The drug will be sold as Foundayo and it's expected to begin shipping Monday. Lilly says pricing for people with insurance will start as low as $25 per month. The new pill joins Novo Nordisk’s oral Wegovy pill, which has generated more than 600,000 prescriptions in the U.S. since its approval in December.
What you need to know about desalination, a growing source of drinking water
As droughts worsen and freshwater grows scarce, desalination is expanding rapidly. More than 20,000 plants now convert seawater to drinking water worldwide. Most use reverse osmosis, forcing seawater through membranes that filter out salt. But the process carries steep environmental costs: plants emit millions of tons of carbon annually, rivaling aviation’s footprint, while concentrated brine discharge harms ocean ecosystems and intake systems kill marine organisms. Some companies are testing renewable energy and deep sea systems to reduce impacts, though experts say water recycling remains more sustainable.
Apple's 50-year odyssey has redefined technology, pop culture and comeback stories
CUPERTINO, Calif. (AP) — A scrawny hippie and a nerdy engineer who became prank-playing friends vowed to change the world when they founded a Silicon Valley startup on April Fools’ Day 50 years ago and then — no joke — pulled it off. The improbable odyssey began April 1, 1976 when a then-shaggy Steve Jobs and his gadget-tinkering friend Steve Wozniak signed the partnership papers that created Apple Computer Co. What happened next has become ingrained in the cultural zeitgeist. The Associated Press looks back Apple's peaks and valleys during a journey that thrust the company to the brink of bankruptcy before its exiled co-founder Steve Jobs came back to build an empire.
SpaceX files initial paperwork to sell shares to the public and likely make Musk a trillionaire
NEW YORK (AP) — Elon Musk’s space exploration company has filed preliminary paperwork to sell shares to the public, according to two sources familiar with the filing, a blockbuster offering that is likely to rank as the biggest ever and make its founder the world’s first trillionaire. A SpaceX IPO promises to be one of the biggest Wall Street events of the year with several investment banks lining up to help raise tens of billions to fund Musk’s ambitions to set up a base on the moon and possibly one day send a man to Mars. The sources spoke on anonymity because they were not authorized to talk publicly about the confidential registration.
Stopgap measures aren't enough to halt rising gas prices as the world scrambles for more oil
NEW YORK (AP) — Global leaders have been scrambling to contain the rising cost of oil and gasoline since the start of the Iran war. President Donald Trump and other heads of state have been pulling on various levers while hoping to ease pain for consumers. They coordinated to launch 400 million barrels of oil onto the market. And Trump lifted sanctions on Russian and Iranian crude. Experts say the maneuvers are adding some oil to the market but it's not enough to halt the steep climb in gas prices that consumers are experiencing.
Gas prices are high. But do the numbers support suspending state gas taxes?
Some federal and state officials are talking about reducing fuel taxes to ease the burden of high gas prices caused by the war in Iran. Georgia and Utah have already passed laws to suspend all or part of their gas taxes. But officials in some states are hesitant. Concerns include the impact on government finances, the effectiveness of the action, and uncertainty about how long the war with Iran will last. California's high gas tax has sparked debate, but no action has been taken. Florida's governor says he doesn't think consumers noticed the full benefit when the state suspended gas taxes in the past.
Brazilian banks to verify satellite deforestation data for rural credit
SAO PAULO (AP) — Brazilian banks are now required to verify satellite deforestation data before approving rural credit. Financial institutions must check starting Wednesday if a property is listed in a government registry for potential illegal deforestation after July 31, 2019. The database is maintained by the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change using satellite data. Farmers can challenge flagged properties by providing legal documents or restoration plans. The Finance Ministry says the new rule aligns rural credit with conservation policies. The Confederation of Agriculture and Livestock of Brazil warns this could complicate credit access for compliant producers.
