Citi Financial News

Party City announced that it's going to “wind down” its retail and wholesale operations as it prepares to shutter nearly 700 stores nationwide

Sampat Bhansali, 41, is based in Bengaluru, where he owns a small apartment that he has rented out. He lives in a larger apartment with his family on the outskirts of the city, closer to his workplace.

Amazon delivery drivers and Starbucks baristas are on strike in a handful of U.S. cities as they seek to exert pressure on the two major companies to recognize them as unionized employees or to meet demands for an inaugural labor contract. The strikes that started Thursday and Friday followed other recent standoffs between corporate America and organized labor. Large and established labor unions secured meaningful employer concessions this year following strikes by Boeing factory workers, dockworkers at East and Gulf coast ports, video game performers, and hotel and casino workers on the Las Vegas Strip. But workers at Starbucks, Amazon and some other prominent consumer brands still are fighting for their first contracts. Amazon refuses to acknowledge the organizing efforts of drivers and warehouse workers — many of whom have voted to unionize — even though the powerful Teamsters union says it represents them. Starbucks long resisted the unionization of its stores, but had agreed to negotiate a contract by the end of the year. Why are the strikes happening now?

BJP leader and Delhi Assembly LoP Vijender Gupta slammed Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener and former Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and claimed that he has done nothing for women in the last ten years of tenure. Gupta also cited the example of Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal's alleged assault case and further said that many of AAP MLAs have not even been nice to their wives. «Arvind Kejriwal is rattled. He didn't do anything for women in the last 10 years. He got Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal assaulted in his home. His MLAs have not even been nice to their wives. Now they are lying and playing with the emotions of women… He had 10 years if he truly wanted to do something for women, why is he cheating on women now… Delhi's only problem is Arvind Kejriwal..,» Vijender Gupta told ANI.

The National Department of Transport Infrastructure said the central span of the 533-meter (0.3-mile) bridge, linking the cities of Estreito in Maranhao state and Aguiarnopolis in Tocantins state, gave way in the afternoon. A tanker truck carrying the acid plunged into the water, officials said. According to the fire department, one person has been confirmed dead and another was rescued alive.

Do you believe the market has borrowed returns from the near future or is there enough left on the table? Markets always tend to price themselves based on the expectations of future growth. When we evaluate the current valuations through the lens of anticipated economic growth, small- and mid-cap stocks appear to be trading at stretched levels compared to their historical averages. On the brighter side, large-cap stocks seem more resilient, backed by stronger growth metrics and better return on equity.

Held under the leadership of Acharya Mahamandaleshwar Swami Arun Giri Ji, the 'Chhavni Pravesh' procession started from the local ashram of Aawahan Akhara in Madouka with a number saints marching to the cantonment area on horses and camels chanting 'Har Har Mahadev'. Mahant Gopal Giri of the Akhara said more than a dozen Mahamandaleshwars and 51 Shri Mahants, besides a large number of Naga saints, participated in the Yatra.

Boxing Day sales. However, not all retailers and supermarkets will swing their doors open on December 26. Over the past few years, several stores have embraced a new tradition of staying closed on Boxing Day, a practice initiated during the pandemic in 2020.

ALSO READ: Why applying for a Schengen visa is 'humiliating' for Indians The year marks a Jubilee Year, also known as the Holy Year – a momentous occasion for Catholic worshippers who flock to Rome and Vatican City to seek forgiveness for their sins, says a Condé Nast Traveller report. During this time, Rome becomes a “focal point” for Catholic faith and traditions, the report adds. Held once every 25 years, the upcoming Jubilee Year will commence on Christmas Eve 2024 and conclude on January 6, 2026. Pilgrims will have a unique chance to walk through the Holy Doors of four papal basilicas—St. Peter’s Basilica, St. John Lateran, Saint Paul Outside the Walls, and Saint Mary Major—which are opened solely for this sacred occasion.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Last month a 33-year-old woman in Xi’an, in central China, posted a video on social media that showed snowflakes falling on the ancient city. It was early in the year for such weather, so netizens shared the video widely.

«The helicopter fell to the ground after having struck the fourth storey of a hospital during take-off,» killing two pilots, a doctor and an employee on board the vehicle, Mugla provincial governor Idris Akbiyik said. «There was intense fog,» Akbiyik said, adding that the authorities were investigating the accident's cause.

New supply in Delhi-NCR is set to increase 59 per cent to 11,223 units in the current December quarter from 7,072 units in the corresponding period of the previous year. Among nine major cities across India, Delhi-NCR is the only market where sales and new supply are estimated to rise during the current quarter, real estate data analytics firm PropEquity's data showed.

Air Quality Index (AQI) in the national capital remained in the 'very poor' category on Sunday, with a thin layer of fog covering parts of the city and limiting visibility. According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), the AQI was 388 at 7 am on Sunday in the national capital. On Saturday, the AQI in Delhi was recorded at 398, as per the CPCB. The Air Quality Index in several areas of the national capital was recorded as 'very poor.' The AQI was recorded 384 at ITO, 372 at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, DTU 354, IGI Airport (T3) 372, DU North Campus 381, at 7 am on Sunday.

The alleged attack Friday evening in Magdeburg, about 130 kilometers (80 miles) west of Berlin, killed a 9-year-old and four adults and injured 41 people badly enough that authorities warned the death toll could rise. Magdeburg marked the tragedy Saturday with the tolling church bells at 7:04 p.m., the exact time of the attack in the city of roughly 240,000 people.

Premier League standings, continuing City's recent struggles. Unai Emery’s Aston Villa came out strong from the start, with Jhon Duran opening the scoring in the 15th minute after converting a brilliant pass from Youri Tielemans. Villa continued to dominate, and Morgan Rogers, who struck against his former club, sealed the victory with a goal on the hour mark. City were unable to respond, with key players like Erling Haaland and Jack Grealish failing to make an impact. Also Read: Luigi Mangione attains cult figure-like status, gets 54 emails, 87 letters and 163 financial deposits in Pennsylvania jail; sparks massive fan following

data and AI labs in tier 2 and tier 3 cities across the country and has invited proposals from all 36 states as well as Union Territories for the same, Parliament was informed on Friday. Minister of state for electronics and IT Jitin Prasada in a written reply to Rajya Sabha said that besides proposals expected from states and UTs, IndiaAI in collaboration with National Institute of Electronics and Information Technology (NIELIT) also plans to establish 27 data labs in tier 2 and tier 3 cities across the country. «All the 36 states and Union Territories (UTs) have been requested to submit their nominated list of Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs)/Polytechnics located in tier 2 and tier 3 cities for the setting up of data labs. Additionally, IndiaAI in collaboration with NIELIT plans to establish 27 data labs in tier 2 and tier 3 cities across the country,» Prasada said. The data and AI labs are part of the skilling initiative of the government under IndiaAI mission.

AAP MLA Sukhbir Singh Dalal joined the BJP on Saturday. The Mundka ex-MLA joined the BJP at its Delhi office in the presence of city unit chief Virendra Sachdeva, Union minister Harsh Malhotra, and Ashish Sood. Six-time Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee member Sardar Balbir Singh also joined the saffron party. He was appointed secretary of the Delhi BJP by Sachdeva.

Sanjay Raut on Saturday dismissed Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis's claims linking Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Yatra to urban naxal groups, and accused him of lying. Speaking to the media, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Raut said, «Devendra Fadnavis speaks lie ...he spoke lie about Beed sarpanch killing and Parbhviolence. What does he know, who is Naxal.» On December 10, violence broke out in Parbhani city over the alleged vandalising of a replica of the Indian Constitution. On December 9, in Beed, the sarpanch of Massajog village, Santosh Deshmukh, was abducted and murdered.

Luigi Mangione, the man accused of killing a health insurance executive in broad daylight earlier this month, was cast in the public spotlight as he arrived in New York City Thursday. Handcuffed and donning an orange jumpsuit, Luigi Mangione was surrounded by armed law enforcement officers as they led him off a helipad and was flanked by none other New York Mayor Eric Adams. Mayor Eric Adams walked behind, wearing a navy blue overcoat and a stern look on his face but his appearance was atypical. Most mayors do not personally oversee the handling of people in federal custody, but Adams made an exception for Mangione, who came to the city to face murder and terror charges in the shooting death of UnitedHealthcare’s chief executive Brian Thompson. ALSO READ: Why thousands are supporting Luigi Mangione, the suspect in UnitedHealthcare CEO's murder, and fundraising for him

Infosys Founder Narayana Murthy said true nationalism is to work for the betterment of the country and not by merely wrapping oneself in the national flag. “The young generation must work with a sense of responsibility toward the nation and society. We must care for the underprivileged sections of society, or else we are no better than animals. Becoming a responsible citizen and working toward the country’s betterment is true nationalism. Merely wrapping oneself in the national flag does not make one a true nationalist,” Murthy said while speaking at the Sustainability Crusade award ceremony organised by the J P Shroff Foundation in Hyderabad on Friday.

Chillai Kalan, the 40-day period of harshest winter, commenced in Kashmir on Saturday with Srinagar experiencing its coldest December night in five decades at minus 8.5 degrees Celsius, according to the meteorological department. Minimum temperatures dropped several notches below the freezing point in other parts of the valley as well. In Srinagar, the temperature came down to minus 8.5 degrees Celsius on Friday night from minus 6.2 degrees Celsius the previous night, the meteorological department said. It was Srinagar's coldest December night since 1974, when the city recorded a low of minus 10.3 degrees Celsius, and the third coldest since 1891.