US gas prices back up to an average of $4 a gallon as Iran war heats up
NEW YORK (AP) – U.S. gas prices have jumped to an average of $4 a gallon again as the U.S. and Iran launch more attacks. According to AAA, the national average for a gallon of regular gasoline is now back to $4. The average price a year ago was $3.14 a gallon. The price is a national average, meaning drivers in some states have been paying well over $4 a gallon for a while now. Prices vary between states due to factors ranging from nearby supply to differing tax rates. People around the world are also dealing with high gas prices as a result of the war.
As defaults on student loans surge, millions are trying to get their lives back on track
According to an Associated Press analysis, more than 4.2 million people across the country defaulted on student loans between April 2025 and March 2026. The total number of borrowers in default has reached a record 9.5 million. The surge includes many who went off track in 2024, when loan payments started coming due again after a pandemic-era freeze. Hundreds of thousands more are months behind on payments, and another surge in defaults could be on the way. Borrowers enter default after missing payments for nine months. The consequences can upend people’s lives. It hurts credit ratings and can lead to the debt being sent to collections.
Expansion of US strikes on Iran leads to more retaliation across the Gulf
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) – The United States has conducted a new round of airstrikes targeting Iran after announcing the death of another American service member. Iran has responded Monday by launching an attack targeting Bahrain, the home of the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet. Even as the U.S. and Iran inch closer to all-out war, glimmers of hope appeared on the diplomatic front. Iran’s interior minister traveled to Pakistan, a key mediator in the conflict, for talks. With shipping traffic in the Strait of Hormuz largely stalled, oil prices have been rising in recent weeks. Regular gasoline in the U.S. has climbed to an average of $4 a gallon.
EU hits AliExpress with a record 550 million-euro fine over unsafe and counterfeit goods
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) – The European Commission has fined AliExpress 550 million euros for failing to curb the sale of unsafe and counterfeit products. This is the largest fine under the EU’s Digital Services Act. The announcement came Monday, months after another retailer, Temu, faced a similar penalty. The commission criticized AliExpress for not complying with its obligations to ensure consumer safety. AliExpress disagreed with the fine, claiming it has made significant improvements. The company has until Oct. 20 to submit an action plan. The Digital Services Act aims to protect users from harmful content and uphold fundamental rights.
Wall Street steadies as AI stocks recover some of last week’s sharp losses
NEW YORK (AP) – Wall Street is holding steadier, as AI stocks trim some of their sharp recent losses. The S&P 500 rose 0.4% Monday, coming off its first losing week in the last three and just its third since the end of March. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped 87 points, and the Nasdaq composite climbed 0.7%. Stocks like Nvidia, Sandisk and AMD helped lead the way after tumbling last week on worries that their prices had shot too high. Oil prices swung sharply on uncertainty about the war with Iran but pulled back from their overnight highs.
In the Israeli-occupied West Bank, too much cash is breaking the economy
RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) – In most places, cash is king. But in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, having too much is gumming up the machinery of daily life. The Palestinian Monetary Authority says Israel’s longtime limit on accepting cash that accumulates in Palestinian banks is creating a cascading crisis. Palestinian banks are so awash in Israeli shekels that they are running out of vault space and refusing cash deposits from customers. That’s made it harder for West Bank residents to spend paper money and for businesses to put their earnings into accounts. Palestinian officials and business owners worry the growing surplus is pushing the economy toward collapse.
The men behind Trump’s $3.47 gas: An NFL coach, a GOP fundraiser and two New Jersey brothers
WASHINGTON (AP) – President Donald Trump and his White House have enthusiastically promoted the Freedom Fuel Network, a chain of star-spangled gas stations. Untangling exactly who is behind the venture from public records has proven difficult. Records lead to a group of New Jersey businessmen that include an NFL kicking coach, a GOP fundraiser and a pair of brothers who were ordered by a judge earlier this year to pay civil damages for unlawfully taking more than 200,000 gallons of fuel. And none of them want to talk about it.
Nolan’s ‘The Odyssey’ storms the box office with a $264.1 million global debut
NEW YORK (AP) – Christopher Nolan’s “The Odyssey” launched with an estimated $124.5 million in domestic ticket sales and another $139.6 million from overseas, even better than the filmmaker’s “Oppenheimer” debut. The weekend tally marked Nolan’s best opening since “The Dark Knight Rises” in 2012. Few filmmakers alive could pull off such a starry, big-budget adaptation of Homer’s epic poem. But in a Hollywood where intellectual property rights rule most hits, Nolan turned one of the world’s oldest works of literature into an unlikely summer blockbuster. By comparison, The Walt Disney Co.’s “Moana” landed in a distant second place with $19 million in its third box office weekend.
Taylor Farms recalls lettuce shipped to 27 states over cyclospora risk
Taylor Farms has expanded a voluntary recall of its iceberg lettuce products sourced from central Mexico because of a potential link to the multistate cyclospora outbreak that has sickened people across the U.S. The California-based company said products with the potential to be contaminated with the diarrhea-causing parasite were shipped to 27 states including Texas, Florida, Pennsylvania and Illinois. Cyclospora is a microscopic parasite that infects food that has come into contact with human feces, most commonly when produce is irrigated or washed with contaminated water. U.S. health officials earlier this week identified lettuce from a supplier in Mexico as a source of cyclospora contamination in food served at Taco Bell restaurants in five Midwestern states.
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