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Starbucks said Tuesday that customers are responding to improved service in its stores, which saw better-than-expected sales in the company’s fiscal second quarter. The Seattle coffee giant said global same-store sales for the January-March period rose 6.2%. That was higher than the 4% increase Wall Street was anticipating, according to analysts polled by FactSet. In the U.S., same-store sales jumped 7%. Over the last year, Starbucks has been adding employees […]

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel’s president on Tuesday invited Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and government prosecutors to his official residence in hopes of brokering a settlement to end an ongoing corruption case against the Israeli leader. President Isaac Herzog’s office issued the invitation days after announcing that he would not decide on Netanyahu’s request for a pardon and instead urge the sides to reach a settlement. The invitation, signed by Herzog’s […]

NEW YORK (AP) — The woman at the center of Harvey Weinstein ‘s repeatedly retried rape case testified — for the third time — Tuesday that the former Hollywood honcho trapped her in a New York hotel room and assaulted her, ignoring her pleas not to do anything sexual. “I said ‘no’ over and over, and I tried to leave,” Jessica Mann told jurors, sobbing. “He just treated me like […]

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department is pressing for the dismissal of preservationists’ lawsuit over the planned $400 million White House ballroom after the shooting at Saturday’s media gala. But its latest court filing reads more like a Truth Social post from the president than a document crafted by government lawyers. The filing submitted Monday by the Justice Department is chock-full of the kind of Trumpian touches the president uses […]

SAVANNAH, Ga. (AP) — Officials battling two large wildfires that have destroyed dozens of homes in southern Georgia warned Tuesday that firefighters are bracing for a prolonged battle even after weekend rains gave a big boost to containment efforts. “A little bit of rain is going to help us, but it’s not going to get us out of this situation,” Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp told a news conference after touring […]

WASHINGTON (AP) — The State Department said Tuesday that it is preparing a limited release of commemorative U.S. passports celebrating America’s 250th birthday that feature a picture of President Donald Trump, who would be the first living president to be featured in the travel document. The concept for the special passport, including a rendering of Trump’s stern-looking visage, had been under consideration for months before finally being approved late Monday. […]

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — The decision by the United Arab Emirates to leave the OPEC oil cartel shook up the 65-year-old alliance that produces some 40% of the world’s crude oil and exerts major influence over the price of energy around the globe. Following its exit in May, the UAE said in an announcement Tuesday, it plans to carry on with its long-held goal of increasing crude production “in a […]

BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Dozens of protesters gathered outside the Serbian state RTS broadcaster on Tuesday to demand that the Balkan country pull out of the Eurovision Song Contest because of Israel’s participation. The year’s main competition with 35 competing countries is scheduled to be held May 12-16 in Vienna. Serbia will be represented by Lavina, a six-member metal band. The protesters in central Belgrade waved Palestinian flags and held […]

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Amazon announced what it called a “major expansion” of its partnership with ChatGPT maker OpenAI on Tuesday, a day after the artificial intelligence company said it was loosening its ties to longtime backer Microsoft. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said the collaboration with Amazon’s cloud computing division, Amazon Web Services, would involve co-developing a new platform for AI agents that can do computer-based work on people’s behalf. […]