WASHINGTON (AP) — The chairmen of the top tax policy committees in Congress announced a bipartisan agreement Tuesday to and revive a variety of tax breaks for businesses, a combination designed to attract support from lawmakers of both political parties.

The roughly $78 billion in tax cuts would be paid for by more quickly ending a tax break Congress approved during the COVID-19 pandemic that encouraged businesses to keep employees on their payroll.

The agreement was announced by , the Democratic chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, and ,

Stock and bond markets have a bumpy year ahead of them but will end 2024 on a positive note as they navigate the last mile of inflation and tightened monetary policy, a new report from Edward Jones says.

The investment firm’s prediction is based on three fundamentals that will favour markets this year: interest rate cuts from the Bank of Canada and U.S. Federal Reserve, continued easing inflation and growth returning in the second half of the year.

“If we go back the last two months

DALLAS (AP) — A federal judge on Tuesday sided with the Biden administration and blocked JetBlue Airways from buying Spirit Airlines, saying the $3.8 billion deal would reduce competition.

The Justice Department had , saying it would drive up fares by eliminating Spirit, the nation’s biggest low-cost airline.

U.S. District Judge William Young, who presided over a non-jury trial last year, said Tuesday that the government had proven that the merger “would substantially lessen competition” and violated a

MEXICO CITY (AP) — For filmmaker Issa López, the first question was where?

“The moment I understood it was the Arctic, everything started falling into place,” the director of told reporters in Mexico City ahead of Sunday’s premiere on HBO and HBO Max. All six episodes were written and directed by López.

The Mexican director was looking for a region of the United States that had a totally different physical feel from the which were set in Louisiana, Los Angeles and Arkansas,

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration is expected to soon announce plans to redesignate Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen as specially designated global terrorists, according to two people familiar with the White House decision and a U.S. official.

The move comes as the Houthis have launched dozens of attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea. The group says it has attacked the ships in response to Israel’s military operations in Gaza in the aftermath of Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel.

The three people

NEW YORK (AP) — Sit down and talk to Justin Tranter for just a while and likely a hit song will emerge.

The Grammy-nominated songwriter credited with some of the biggest bangers of the past decade — “Sorry” by and “Believer” by among them — usually begins a writing session with a friendly chat.

“I just start having a conversation with the artist,” Tranter says. “When they say something that I think is either already the song title or is at least the song topic

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (AP) — Private and public companies in the Dominican Republic are preparing for a voluntary six-month pilot program aimed at creating a four-day workweek, the first move of its kind for the Caribbean country.

The initiative announced Monday will launch in February, with employees earning the same salary, according to the Dominican government. The move would reduce the standard workweek from the required 44 hours to 36 hours, with employees working Monday through Thursday only.

“It prioritizes people,

NEW YORK (AP) — The squabble over billion of dollars in overdraft fees that Americans get charged every year is intensifying.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is expected to propose rules this week that further rein in banks’ ability to charge customers a fee when they overdraw their bank account. Opponents of the fees often cite the example of a $3 cup of coffee costing someone $40.

The banking industry is gearing up to fight back with a multimillion-dollar marketing and lobbying campaign. While banks have drastically cut