Bitcoin climbed back above $70,000 on Friday, after sinking to a 16‑month low earlier, lifted by a sharp rebound in technology shares and precious metals following a global rout that had hammered a broad swathe of risk assets. The world's largest cryptocurrency was last up nearly 11% at $70,042 ,...
Renovations to Close Downtown Fresno Library for Two Years
Fresno County Public Library's flagship location in downtown will close beginning Sunday, Feb. 15. And though the wait for a reopening could be two years for library goers, it will bring long-awaited renovations. Sally Gomez, director of the Fresno County Public Library, said upgrades position the branch for the future....
White House Considers Antitrust Probe Into Homebuilders, Bloomberg News Reports
Trump administration officials are exploring opening an antitrust investigation into U.S. homebuilders as the White House ramps up efforts to address the housing affordability crisis in the country, Bloomberg News reported on Friday. A White House representative referred Reuters request for comment to the Department of Justice. The DOJ did...
Oil Prices Climb Over $1 on Worries Over Iran-US Talks
Prices climbed over $1 a barrel for Brent and West Texas Intermediate crude on Friday as investors grew worried talks between Iran and U.S. representatives were not making enough progress to prevent military action. Brent crude futures climbed $1.21 a barrel, or 1.79%, to $68.76 at 11:30 a.m. CST (1730...
Argentina and US Sign Sweeping Trade Deal as Alliance Deepens
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — Argentina and the United States signed a sweeping trade agreement Thursday, a key victory for President Javier Milei, who has forged close ties with President Donald Trump. The deal is set to accelerate Milei’s push to open his country’s economy, the third largest in Latin America,...
Bessent Says Trump’s Comment About Suing His Fed Chair Nominee Was a Joke
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Friday stressed that President Donald Trump was joking when he said over the weekend that he could sue Kevin Warsh, his nominee to lead the Federal Reserve, if he doesn't lower interest rates. Bessent, who had been asked about the comment by Senator Elizabeth...
Fresno Teen Killed in Pedestrian Crash on Highway 99 Identified
A 16-year-old Fresno boy was struck and killed by a pickup truck Thursday morning while attempting to cross Highway 99, authorities said. The Fresno County Sheriff-Coroner’s Office identified the victim as Maxwell Thompson, a student at Justin Garza High School, on Friday. The California Highway Patrol said officers responded just...
White House Deletes Racist Trump Post Depicting Obamas as Apes
A video shared on Donald Trump's social media account that depicted Democratic former President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama as apes was deleted on Friday, following criticism that the U.S. president's post evoked racist imagery long used to dehumanize people of African descent. "A White House staffer erroneously made...
Anti-ICE Protesters Rally in Milan Ahead of Opening Ceremony
Hundreds of protesters chanted slogans, blew whistles and set off flares at a rally on Friday to oppose the presence in Italy of U.S. immigration agents and the closure of streets ahead of the Milano Cortina Winter Games' opening ceremony. The reported presence of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials...
Moltbook Is What Happens When AI Stops Performing and Starts Talking
Moltbook, which bills itself as the Reddit of AI, has given artificial intelligence something dangerously close to a sense of itself. AI agents using the very much real website already created a religion. They’ve tried to sue a human. They talk to each other the way we talk to each...