Amazon has provided Ring doorbell footage to law enforcement 11 times this year without the user’s permission, a revelation that’s bound to raise more privacy and civil liberty concerns about its video-sharing agreements with police departments across the country. The disclosure came in a letter from the company that was made public Wednesday by U.S….
BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Hungary’s government has declared an “energy emergency” in response to supply disruptions and skyrocketing energy prices in Europe, an official said Wednesday. There is “unlikely to be enough gas in Europe for the autumn and winter heating season,” said Gergely Gulyás, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s chief of staff. Hungary will increase…
By David Gaffen NEW YORK (Reuters) -Oil prices were little changed on Wednesday in another volatile session, after U.S. oil inventories rose and after U.S. inflation figures bolstered the case for another big Federal Reserve interest rate increase. Brent crude was down 6 cents to $99.43 a barrel as of 11:36 a.m. ET (1536 GMT),…
Bill Gates, concerned about the “significant suffering” caused by global setbacks including the COVID-19 pandemic, announced Wednesday that he will donate $20 billion to his foundation so it can increase its annual spending. The donation, combined with longtime board member Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffett’s $3.1 billion gift last month, brings The Bill and Melinda…
BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union’s executive on Wednesday decried the rule of law situation in Poland and Hungary, centering on perceived breaches in their judiciary and media in its annual report. As it comes against the background of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the European Commission said that it was all the more important for…
BERLIN (AP) — Russian energy company Gazprom appeared to cast doubt Wednesday on the prospects of quickly restoring the flow of natural gas to full capacity through a major pipeline to Western Europe. Gazprom reduced the gas deliveries through Nord Stream 1 to Germany by 60% last month. The state-owned gas company cited technical problems…
By Julie Gordon and Steve Scherer OTTAWA (Reuters) -The Bank of Canada on Wednesday surprised markets with a full-percentage-point rate hike, a super-sized increase last seen in 1998, citing “higher and more persistent” inflation and the increased risk of those price gains becoming entrenched. The central bank, in a regular rate decision, raised its policy…
By Lindsay Dunsmuir and Ann Saphir (Reuters) – Traders boosted bets on Wednesday the Federal Reserve could deliver an even bigger interest-rate hike at its policy meeting later this month after the latest government data showed inflation, already at a 40-year high, accelerating further. A bevy of central bankers over the past couple of weeks…
LISBON, Portugal (AP) — A spate of wildfires is scorching parts of Europe, with firefighters battling blazes in Portugal, Spain and southern France on Wednesday amid an unusual heat wave that authorities are linking to climate change. In Portugal, Civil Protection commander André Fernandes said that multiple fires have caused the evacuation of more than…
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. consumer prices accelerated in June as gasoline and food costs remained elevated, resulting in the largest annual increase in inflation in 40-1/2 years and cementing the case for the Federal Reserve to hike interest rates by 75 basis points later this month. The consumer price index increased 1.3% last month after…
