AP Business Digest
Here are the AP's top business stories that have moved or are planned to move today. All times U.S. Eastern. For up-to-the minute information on AP's coverage, visit AP Newsroom's Coverage Plan.
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UPCOMING
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OPIOIDS CRISIS PURDUE PHARMA
DESCRIPTION: A judge plans to issue a ruling Friday on a plan for local governments and individual victims to vote on a proposed settlements of thousands of lawsuits against OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma over the toil of opioids. Government entities, emergency room doctors, insurers, families of children born into withdrawal from the powerful prescription painkiller, individual victims and their families and others would have until Sept. 30 to vote on whether to accept the deal, which calls for members of the Sackler family who own the company to pay up to $7 billion over 15 years.
UPCOMING: By 06/20/2025 5:00 p.m. EDT, Text, Photo, DigitalPlans, Alternate Headlines, Graphic
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NEW AND DEVELOPING
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US--AFLAC-CYBERATTACK
Aflac finds suspicious activity on US network that may impact Social Security numbers, other data
SUMMARY: Aflac says that it has identified suspicious activity on its network in the U.S. that may impact Social Security numbers and other personal information, calling the incident part of a cybercrime campaign against the insurance industry. The company said Friday that the intrusion was stopped within hours. "We continue to serve our customers as we respond to this incident and can underwrite policies, review claims, and otherwise service our customers as usual," Aflac said in a statement.
WORDS: 411 - MOVED: 06/20/2025 9:49 a.m. EDT
https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:fac4b3b978c616d82c575080853f095f&mediaType=text
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FINANCIAL MARKETS
US stocks rise in their return from the Juneteenth holiday
SUMMARY: U.S. stocks are drifting higher in their return to trading following the Juneteenth holiday. The S&P 500 rose 0.4% Friday and added to its modest gain for the week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 162 points, and the Nasdaq composite gained 0.6%. Kroger jumped to one of the market's bigger gains after reporting a stronger profit than analysts expected. Treasury yields also edged higher in the bond market after President Donald Trump said he will decide within two weeks whether the U.S. military will get directly involved in Israel's fighting with Iran. Stocks indexes rose in Europe and were mixed in Asia.
WORDS: 558 - MOVED: 06/20/2025 9:48 a.m. EDT
https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:6fa164eed314c41002440d5d304c1eba&mediaType=text
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ML--MIDEAST WARS-TURKEY-ISRAEL-IRAN
Erdogan vows to boost Turkey's missile production as Israel-Iran war escalates
SUMMARY: Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced plans to step up the production of medium- and long-range missiles in a sign that the Israel-Iran war could trigger a new arms race in the region. Analysts and officials don't see an immediate threat of conflict spreading into Turkey despite the NATO member's tense ties with Israel. Erdogan discussed the Iran-Israel war with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in a telephone call on Friday. Erdogan's office said that the Turkish president told Merz that the Iranian nuclear issue can only be resolved through negotiations.
WORDS: 796 - MOVED: 06/20/2025 9:46 a.m. EDT
https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:41c6471f2b5c958c7e08a956f64e4972&mediaType=text
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EU--DEEZER-AI MUSIC
Music streaming service Deezer adds AI song tags in fight against fraud
SUMMARY: Music streaming service Deezer said Friday that it will start flagging albums with AI-generated songs, part of its fight against streaming fraudsters. The Paris-based company is grappling with a surge in music on its platform created purely with generative artificial intelligence tools that it says are used to fraudulently earn royalties. The app will display an on-screen warning label about AI-generated content and notify listeners that some tracks on an album were created with AI. The company said AI-generated music is an industry wide issue.
WORDS: 715 - MOVED: 06/20/2025 9:39 a.m. EDT
https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:01bb3ef5a344045a64a0a7004e88df5b&mediaType=text
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US--OPIOID CRISIS-PURDUE PHARMA
Purdue Pharma's $7B opioid settlement plan could get votes from victims and cities
SUMMARY: A judge could decide Friday whether to advance OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma's $7 billion-plus plan to settle thousands of lawsuits over the toll of opioids. State governments across the country have already signed on to the deal. If a judge approves, it would go to votes of other groups, including local governments and individual victims. Members of the Sackler family who own the company would pay up to $7 billion and give up ownership on the company. The U.S. Supreme Court rejected an earlier version of the deal because of the way it would have protected members of the family from lawsuits.
WORDS: 513 - MOVED: 06/20/2025 9:12 a.m. EDT
https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:190b288d0aa19425092111180d164463&mediaType=text
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AF--NIGER-URANIUM
Niger says it will nationalize a uranium venture operated by France's Orano
WORDS: 330 - MOVED: 06/20/2025 7:50 a.m. EDT
https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:4a3a9490d9c4f89edd3906a98ba2f79a&mediaType=text
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BKN--LAKERS-SALE-WALTER
How billionaire Mark Walter, set to own the controlling stake in Lakers, made his fortune
SUMMARY: The billionaire slated to takeover the controlling interest in the Los Angeles Lakers has built a career leading businesses investing in everything from sports franchises to artificial intelligence. Mark Walter is CEO of the global investment and advisory company Guggenheim Partners, which is estimated to have more than $325 billion in assets. He's also co-founder and CEO of holding company TWG Global, which includes a portfolio of businesses spanning several sectors, including finance, technology, insurance, sports and entertainment. Forbes estimates Walter's net worth is $6.1 billion. The publication ranked him at No. 216 on its Forbes 400 list last year.
WORDS: 297 - MOVED: 06/20/2025 6:38 a.m. EDT
https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:d7021cdd12bc56c08bbeb58eb8befd80&mediaType=text
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ML--MIDEAST-WARS-IRAN INTERNET BLACKOUT
Iran's internet blackout leaves public in dark and creates an uneven picture of the war with Israel
SUMMARY: As the war between Israel and Iran hits the one-week mark, Iranians have spent nearly half of the conflict in a near-communication blackout, unable to connect not only with the outside world but also with their neighbors and loved ones across the country. Civilians are left unaware of when and where Israel will strike next, despite Israeli forces issuing warnings through their Persian-language online channels. When the missiles land, disconnected phone and web services mean not knowing for hours or days if their family or friends are among the victims. That's left many scrambling on various social media apps to see what's happening -- again, only a glimpse of life able to reach the internet in a country of over 80 million people.
WORDS: 847 - MOVED: 06/20/2025 6:32 a.m. EDT
https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:6aa315eff871579f8bfc220ce3930e5f&mediaType=text
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AS--MALAYSIA-CORRUPTION
Malaysian court drops money laundering charges against jailed ex-leader Najib Razak
WORDS: 406 - MOVED: 06/20/2025 5:20 a.m. EDT
https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:d25615f8b200c5ccab39b813b7529c0b&mediaType=text
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CN--CANADA-US-TRADE
Canadian tariffs on US steel and aluminum could rise depending on trade talks, Carney says
WORDS: 504 - MOVED: 06/20/2025 4:00 a.m. EDT
https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:4d22145bc3834b65f6e68805ce0cc3e6&mediaType=text
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AS--CHINA-NEW ZEALAND
New Zealand Prime Minister Luxon talks trade in meeting with China's Xi
SUMMARY: The prime minister of New Zealand has stressed the importance of his country's trade ties with China in a meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon was in Beijing on Friday after two days of meetings with officials and business leaders in Shanghai. He wants to maintain healthy trade relations with China despite differences over regional and global security issues and China's growing divide with the United States. Luxon said he raised the need to reduce tensions in the Indo-Pacific region. China is an important market for New Zealand products, accounting for more than 20 percent of the country's exports.
WORDS: 350 - MOVED: 06/20/2025 3:14 a.m. EDT
https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:a12dd1dbb880bb8d62e15bb51ae1e22f&mediaType=text
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US--GUNMAKER-LIABILITY-PROTECTION
Sig Sauer, faced with lawsuits over a popular pistol, gets protection in New Hampshire
SUMMARY: Faced with mounting lawsuits over a popular pistol, New Hampshire-based gunmaker Sig Sauer has gotten protection in the form of a new state law that makes it harder to take the manufacturer to court. The law covers all gun manufacturers and federal firearm licensees regarding the "absence or presence" of certain safety features. Supporters in the Republican-led Legislature say it was needed to help a major employer after lawsuits representing more than 70 people were filed against Sig Sauer about the design of the P320 pistol. Many of the plaintiffs are law enforcement officers from around the U.S. who say the gun can go off without the trigger being pulled. Sig Sauer denies the allegations and says the gun is safe.
WORDS: 1110 - MOVED: 06/20/2025 12:06 a.m. EDT
https://newsroom.ap.org/home/search?query=itemid:654278c792e8e1309d70e3f69ff19bfe&mediaType=text
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