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The average long-term U.S. mortgage rate drew closer this week to 6.5%, pushing up borrowing costs for prospective homebuyers. The benchmark 30-year fixed rate mortgage rate rose to 6.49% from 6.43% last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday. One year ago, the average rate was 6.72%. When mortgage rates rise they can add hundreds of dollars a month in costs for borrowers, reducing their purchasing power. Mortgage rates have remained elevated after the average rate on a 30-year loan briefly dropped below 6% in February for the f

Average 30-year US mortgage rate rises to 6.49%, pushing up homebuyers' borrowing costs

S&P 500, Nasdaq open higher as chip stocks gain; US-Iran tensions in focus

Mortgage rates are stuck near 6.5%. A new housing law may make buying easier – eventually

Fed's Williams doesn't expect sustained surge in energy prices

Federal Reserve Bank of New York President John Williams said Thursday that despite the renewal of war in the Middle East, he was not looking for a sustained rise in energy prices over the remainder of the year.“The markets still expect oil prices to come down over the next six to 12 months. I think that's a pretty reasonable baseline,” Williams said at a conference at his bank. “I still feel kind of the fundamentals are that energy prices are likely to be around their peak and then to come down over time.”Williams was asked about how the Fed could respond to recent events at the Fede

IMF looks forward to engaging with Fed on its review of communications, forward guidance

Maine Democrats seek path forward in critical US Senate race

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US markets brace for renewed funding pressure as leverage rises

U.S. equity funding markets remain stretched in the wake of last month's spike in short-term borrowing costs, as near-record stock prices and a frenzy over popular technology shares fuel demand for leverage.Concerns center on the equity repurchase or repo market, where investors and traders borrow short-term cash against stock holdings. Ahead of the June quarter-end, financing costs in that market surged as demand for leveraged equity exposure intensified. The cost of financing equity positions climbed to roughly 200 basis points above the federal funds rate on June 26, Morgan Stanley data sh

Suspected Ebola patient placed in Equatorial Guinea hotel with deportees from the US, lawyers say

Spain says Trump softened rhetoric after learning of Madrid's contributions to NATO

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Arts|Crime|Sports|US

Former Olympic canoeist David Hearn pleads not guilty to Reflecting Pool damage

Former Olympic canoeist David Hearn pleaded not guilty in Washington, DC, Superior Court Thursday to damaging the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, prompting a raucous scene at the courthouse where supporters chanted his name and accused the Trump administration of abusing the justice system.Hearn, 67, was indicted on July 2 on one count of destruction of property of more than $1,000 for allegedly damaging the Reflecting Pool in front of the Lincoln Memorial.The felony charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison, if convicted.Hearn’s indictment was a notably aggressive prosecutori

Crime|Election|US

Graham Platner drops Maine Senate bid, clearing way for Democrats to pick new nominee

Maine Democratic Senate nominee Graham Platner said in a video statement Wednesday he was suspending his campaign, taking aim at the Democratic establishment while clearing the way for the party to select a new candidate to take on Republican Sen. Susan Collins in one of the most important contests of November’s midterm elections.Platner’s decision comes after a woman told CNN and Politico he raped her while he was heavily intoxicated nearly five years ago when they were in a casual dating relationship – an allegation Platner denies.“We believe that for the movement to continue it can�

Democrat Graham Platner says he plans to withdraw from Maine Senate race after sexual assault claim

Second person in 4 days is fatally shot in Memphis by federal task force member

Crime|US

Three more people charged with damaging Reflecting Pool after Trump’s multimillion-dollar restoration

Three more people have been criminally charged with destruction of property at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool.Officers say they detained Cameron Thiers, Sophie Dennison-Gibby and Justin Carreno one Saturday afternoon in June and described in court documents witnessing them peeling and removing pieces of blue paint from the Reflecting Pool.One officer “witnessed Carreno reach down into the reflecting pool and pull up a piece of the blue paint,” according to the court documents.The officer who detained Dennison-Gibby “found 1 additional piece of the reflecting pool liner” in her pu

Election|Political|US

These Maine Democrats could run to replace Graham Platner in the Senate race

Maine Democrats now have less than three weeks to find a new candidate to take on the nation’s most formidable blue-state Republican in one of their party’s most important midterms contests.With the party’s current nominee, Graham Platner, saying Wednesday he was suspending his campaign in the face of heavy intraparty pressure, a field of prospective candidates is quickly emerging to take on five-term GOP Sen. Susan Collins.The behind-the-scenes scramble is being closely watched by Democrats in Washington, who see Maine as a critical seat in their effort to flip the Senate this November.

Why Trump left NATO summit on a positive note after seething about Iran, Spain and Greenland

Fact check: Trump’s false claims at his NATO press conference

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Europe|Sports|World

France and Morocco’s intense rivalry gets the World Cup quarterfinals started with a bang

Note: This story first appeared in The Beautiful Game by CNN Sports, our daily newsletter on all things World Cup. To subscribe, click here.I don’t know about you, but it was a little confusing having no soccer to watch on television yesterday. For almost a month that’s been my go-to setting and it felt strange not to have my daily fix of live World Cup action.But fear not, we are back underway again today with the first quarterfinal between France and Morocco. This could be the tie of the round with the rivalry hitting deep for both nations.We’ll discuss all you need to know about the m

Crime|Europe|Political|World

Turkey's Erdogan gives NATO leaders revolver conundrum after summit

Belgium's prime minister was a little surprised on landing back home from Wednesday's NATO summit in Turkey to find that he had a handgun and ammunition in his luggage.After NATO leaders gathered for Wednesday's fractious summit in Ankara, their host, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, handed each an unusual parting gift: a vintage revolver, along with live ammunition indicating it was not just for show.Erdogan wanted to showcase Turkey's defence industry, which has become a key export and foreign policy tool. Images shared by the office of Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda showed wha

Iran says it hits US military targets in Gulf, lays slain leader to rest

Farage left fighting a trash can as the UK populist leader’s election gamble backfires

Arts|Environment|Science|Technology|World

An impenetrable steel ‘Black Box’ will record ‘every step’ humanity takes toward catastrophe

A disused airport on Tasmania’s rugged West Coast will soon be home to an angular steel structure with a haunting purpose: to record “every step” humanity takes toward “catastrophe.”The striking monolith, known as “Earth’s Black Box,” will be perched on the granite landscape of western Tasmania — an island about 150 miles off the Australian mainland — and will be up and running by the end of the year, if all goes to plan.The box’s design is imposing. Roughly the size of a city bus and made of 3-inch-thick steel, it will be surrounded by concrete panels and covered by a ro

Political|World

US and Iran exchange more attacks across the Mideast, threatening ceasefire deal

The United States launched new airstrikes against Iran early Thursday, and Tehran responded by targeting U.S.-allied Mideast countries in an exchange of fire that threatened an interim deal intended to help end the war in the Middle East. Back-and-forth attacks, including a day earlier, have repeatedly threatened the ceasefire. But Thursday’s appeared bigger all around, with sirens sounding at least three times in Bahrain, home to the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet headquarters, and missiles targeting Kuwait and Qatar. Sirens sounded Thursday afternoon in Jordan as wel

Trump says Ukraine to be allowed to make Patriot missile interceptors

For 35 years, a Mexican father built homes in Houston. Then a morning drive ended in tragedy

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"Like a war scene:" Dozens injured in multi-vehicle crash involving MTA bus in Baltimore

Arts|Business|Economy|Entertainment|Environment

New York hopes converted offices can ease a housing crisis. A structural emergency at a high-rise tower shows the challenges

Bezos' Blue Origin seeks first outside funding at $130 billion valuation, NYT DealBook reports

Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin is looking to tap outside investors for the first time, aiming to raise $10 billion in a funding round that would value the rocket maker at $130 billion

Arts|Business|Entertainment|Political|Technology

Judge tosses Trump Media’s $3.8 billion defamation suit against The Washington Post

Economy|Europe|Opinion

Le Pen can run, but can’t hide her policy flaws

(The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions expressed are his own.)

Political

Maryland lawmakers to meet in August for special session on redistricting

Maryland lawmakers will meet for a special session next month to consider a constitutional amendment dealing with future congressional redistricting

Business|Economy|World

US strikes Iran and reimposes oil sanctions as ceasefire faces one of its most significant tests

Americas|Europe|Political|World

The Latest: US strikes Iran as Trump meets with NATO leaders in Turkey

The U.S. military has launched a series of strikes against Iranian targets after three merchant ships were struck in the waters off Oman

Business|Economy|Finance|Stock Markets|Technology

SpaceX is joining the Nasdaq 100. Here’s what to know

Asia|Crime|Political|Technology|World

South Korean law targeting 'fake news' takes effect as journalist groups raise concerns

South Korea is enforcing a law that allows steep punitive damages against news outlets and social media influencers for spreading false information as journalist groups warned it could chill public discourse and invite censorship

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From LA to Scottsdale: The Founder Behind AdDynamix Is Building the Bridge Between AI and Business Tools

An LA digital advertising veteran of 28 years has moved to Scottsdale and is building what he calls the missing piece between business software and the AI assistants people now use every day. SCOTTSDALE, AZ. When Benoit Pecqueur talks about his latest company, he sounds less like a founder pitching a product and more like an operator who got tired of watching the same problem repeat itself. “Most small business owners are watching the AI revolution from the sidelines,” he says. “Not because they don’t want it. Because their tools don’t talk to ChatGPT or Claude. Their accountant still pulls