jili one

Grades are in: Pat Bryant sparks another Illinois winLucknow: Countering Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath 's claim that Congress always disrespected Babasaheb Bhim Rao Ambedkar , UPCC chief Ajay Rai on Tuesday condemned the "lies being peddled by Yogi and other members of his cabinet". "What Yogi Ji said is nothing but a blatant lie. This outright falsehood is strongly condemned and countered by the Congress," Rai told reporters, besides putting up his side of the story. "Dr Ambedkar was elected to the Constituent Assembly from the Bengal Legislative Assembly but lost his seat when it went to East Pakistan. Blaming Congress and its leaders for this is propaganda," said Rai. Regarding the inclusion of Ambedkar in the drafting committee for the Constituent Assembly, Rai said: "After independence, when the drafting committee was to be formed, Nehru and Sardar Patel consulted Gandhiji, who agreed to the inclusion of Ambedkar. In fact, it was Nehruji who convinced MR Jayakar to resign from his seat and make way for Ambedkar." He further said that later, when the chairperson of the Constituent Assembly was to be finalised, Nehru proposed the name of Ambedkar. "The BJP and its leaders, including Yogi, Amit Shah, and others, are playing politics," Rai claimed. The Congress also issued a point-wise rebuttal of BJP leaders' remarks, besides calling them anti-Dalit. "Yogi claims to be a well-wisher of the Dalits, but figures from the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) show that he failed to safeguard the basic survival interests of the community," he said, asking what keeps Yogi away when it comes to acting against upper-caste persons who insult Dalits. Stay updated with the latest news on Times of India . Don't miss daily games like Crossword , Sudoku , Location Guesser and Mini Crossword . Spread love this holiday season with these Christmas wishes , messages , and quotes .

Renowned Architect Kazuyo Sejima Appointed to United States-Japan Foundation Board

December events at Manross include magician and an autism empowerment speaker

Player of the game Illinois’ pass catchers finished Saturday’s game against Rutgers with 132 yards after the catch. Bryant was responsible for 131 of them, including 22 on his 40-yard touchdown pass from Luke Altmyer that proved to be the winner against the Scarlet Knights. Bryant has been the guy for the Illini every time they’ve needed a big play this season. The Jacksonville, Fla., native finished the game with seven catches (of Illinois’ 12) for 197 yards (of Illinois’ 249). It was his fourth 100-yard game of the season, and 197 puts him seventh all-time in program history for a single-game performance. Offense The Illini’s fourth-quarter effort turned around what had been a fairly flat performance the rest of the game. More than half of the Illini’s 431 yards of total offense 23 of their 38 points came in the final 15 minutes Saturday in New Jersey. Better late than never, right? Faced with a true need to score, Luke Altmyer and Co. came through in another 2-minute drill situation. They had to. Rutgers was just as effective behind Athan Kaliakmanis. Defense Illinois struggled to get off the field in the first half, as Rutgers pieced together three scoring drives with double-digit plays, including a 16-play, 75-yard drive that gave the Scarlet Knights a 17-9 halftime lead. The Illini were better in the second half. Fewer drawn-out drives and a takeaway the offense then turned into a Josh McCray touchdown. Special teams David Olano’s missed extra point was the result of an off-kilter snap. Not great to miss a chip shot, but the entire operation was thrown off. Most of the rest of Illinois’ special teams play was on point. That included a 59-yard punt return by Hank Beatty that the Rochester native nearly turned into his first touchdown of the season. (It came later on a touchdown reception). Rutgers was more consistent punting the ball, though, and had its own big kick return. Coaching Icing the kicker is basically an automatic move for most coaches. It makes sense. Take the kicker out of his routine, and the result might turn in your favor. Icing Ethan Moczulski on a 57-yard attempt with serious winds blowing through SHI Stadium, though? That was a scenario where Rutgers coach Greg Schiano might have been better off just letting it ride. Because Moczulski was seriously short on his attempt. Overall Part of Bret Bielema’s postgame press conference included the phrase “we tried to give that one away” from the Illinois coach. A combination of those long Rutgers drives and certainly the 11 Illini penalties that gifted the Scarlet Knights 93 free yards. Not ideal. But Illinois still got the win. A 38-31 victory that pushed the Illini to 8-3 on the season with the chance to make this the best year for the program since the 2007 squad went to the Rose Bowl. That’s progress.

Revenue grows 125% year over year Current hashrate surpasses 33.5 EH/s on track for 37 EH/s LAS VEGAS , Dec. 2, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- CleanSpark, Inc. CLSK (the "Company"), America's Bitcoin Miner®, today reported financial results for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2024 . "Our performance this year reflects a sustained growth trajectory, solidifying our position as one of the top Bitcoin miners in the world, as we move into an anticipated new bull market," said CleanSpark CEO Zach Bradford . "Reflecting on the past year, our results in FY 2024 and the positioning of the company going into 2025 demonstrated the wisdom of our counter-cyclical growth and capital allocation strategy. We produce durable, high performing growth and have been since our earliest days in Bitcoin mining," Bradford said. "CleanSpark has prioritized owned infrastructure as its core foundation, putting us in the best position to optimize our portfolio of data centers to drive ROI to our shareholders as we continue to rapidly deploy additional hashrate on our path to 37 EH by year-end and 50 EH and beyond in 2025." "We anticipated that there would be prime opportunities for M&A paired with organic growth, and over the past year we capitalized by adding 423 MWs to our operating portfolio bringing us to 726 MW, as of today. As we continue focusing on scale in FY 2025 and beyond, we will develop the remaining hundreds of MW in the near-term pipeline while always staying opportunistic," said Bradford. "The team produced our strongest year of financial performance to date, solidifying a track record of effective execution and keeping commitments to shareholders. This fiscal year included the fourth halving event in Bitcoin 's history, and our organizational commitment to operational excellence has allowed us to weather it more successfully than many of our industry peers," said CleanSpark CFO Gary Vecchiarelli . "Even with the halving event impacting block rewards and a significant increase in difficulty, our production outpaced both, yielding approximately 7,100 BTC thanks to our growth in hashrate and the efficiency improvements to our fleet. "CleanSpark's financial strength continued to grow in fiscal 2024," said Vecchiarelli. "Heading into 2025, we have significant scale and size, a healthy balance sheet, industry leading operations and a strong liquidity position, and we are well positioned to pursue diverse capital raising strategies," Vecchiarelli said. Financial Highlights: Full Fiscal Year 2024 Financial Results for the Fiscal Year Ended September 30, 2024 . The Company's annual revenues were $378.9 million , an increase of $210.5 million , or 125%, from $168.4 million for the prior fiscal year. Net loss for the year ended September 30, 2024 , was ($145.8) million or ($0.69) basic loss per share compared to a net loss of ($138.1) million or ($1.30) loss per share for the prior fiscal year. Adjusted EBITDA was $245.8 million , an increase of $220.8 million from $25.0 million for the prior fiscal year. 1 Balance Sheet Highlights as of September 30, 2024 Assets Cash: $122.2 million Bitcoin : $509.5 million (includes bitcoin receivable of $77.8 million posted as collateral), based upon 8,049 bitcoin at a price of $63,301 at September 30, 2024 Total Current Assets: $705.4 million Total Mining Assets (including prepaid deposits & deployed miners): $902.0 million Total Assets: $2.0 billion Liabilities and Stockholders' Equity Current Liabilities: $187.9 million Total Liabilities: $201.8 million Total Stockholders' Equity: $1.8 billion The Company had working capital of $517.5 million and $66.0 million of loans payable as of September 30, 2024 . 1 See "Non-GAAP Measure" and the related reconciliation below Investor Conference Call and Webcast The Company will hold its fiscal year 2024 earnings presentation and business update for investors and analysts today, December 2, 2024 , at 1:30 p.m. PT / 4:30 p.m. ET . Webcast URL: https://investors.cleanspark.com The webcast will be accessible for at least 30 days on the Company's website and a transcript of the call will be available on the Company's website following the call. About CleanSpark CleanSpark CLSK , America's Bitcoin Miner ® , is a market-leading, pure play bitcoin miner with a proven track record of success. We own and operate a portfolio of mining facilities across the United States powered by globally competitive energy prices. Sitting at the intersection of Bitcoin , energy, operational excellence and capital stewardship, we optimize our mining facilities to deliver superior returns to our shareholders. Monetizing low-cost, high reliability energy by securing the most important finite, global asset – Bitcoin – positions us to prosper in an ever-changing world. Visit our website at www.cleanspark.com . Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. In this press release, forward-looking statements include, but may not be limited to, statements regarding the Company's expectations, beliefs, plans, intentions, and strategies. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terms such as "may," "will," "should," "expects," "plans," "anticipates," "could," "intends," "targets," "projects," "contemplates," "believes," "estimates," "forecasts," "predicts," "potential" or "continue" or the negative of these terms or other similar expressions. The forward-looking statements are subject to a variety of known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors that may cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to: the risk that the electrical power available to our facilities does not increase as expected; the success of its digital currency mining activities; the volatile and unpredictable cycles in the emerging and evolving industries in which we operate, including the volatility of BTC prices; increasing difficulty rates for bitcoin mining; bitcoin halving; new or additional governmental regulation; the anticipated delivery dates of new miners; the Company's ability to successfully completed acquisitions, including integration risks relating to completed and potential acquisitions, the ability to successfully deploy new miners; the dependency on utility rate structures and government incentive programs; dependency on third-party power providers for expansion efforts; the expectations of future revenue growth may not be realized; and other risks described in the Company's prior press releases and in its filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including under the heading "Risk Factors" in those filings. Forward-looking statements contained herein are made only as to the date of this press release, and we assume no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements as a result of any new information, changed circumstances or future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable law. Non-GAAP Measure The Company presents adjusted EBITDA, which is not a measurement of financial performance under generally accepted accounting principles in the United States ("GAAP"). The Company's non-GAAP "Adjusted EBITDA" excludes (i) impacts of interest, taxes, and depreciation; (ii) the Company's share-based compensation expense, unrealized gains/losses on securities, and, changes in the fair value of contingent consideration with respect to previously completed acquisitions, all of which are non-cash items that the Company believes are not reflective of the Company's general business performance, and for which the accounting requires management judgment, and the resulting expenses could vary significantly in comparison to other companies; (iii) non-cash impairment losses related to long-lived assets (including goodwill); (iv) realized gains and losses on sales of equity securities, the amounts of which are directly related to the unrealized gains and losses that are also excluded; (v) legal fees related to litigation and various transactions, which fees management does not believe are reflective of the Company's ongoing operating activities; (vi) gains and losses on disposal of assets, the majority of which are related to obsolete or unrepairable machines that are no longer deployed; (vii) gains and losses related to discontinued operations that would not be applicable to the Company's future business activities; and (viii) severance expenses. The Company previously excluded non-cash impairment losses related to digital assets and realized gains and losses on sales of bitcoin from its calculation of adjusted EBITDA, but has determined such items are part of the Company's normal ongoing operations and will no longer be excluding them from its calculation of adjusted EBITDA. Management believes that providing this non-GAAP financial measure that excludes these items allows for meaningful comparisons between the Company's core business operating results and those of other companies, and provides the Company with an important tool for financial and operational decision making and for evaluating its own core business operating results over different periods of time. In addition to management's internal use of non-GAAP adjusted EBITDA, management believes that adjusted EBITDA is also useful to investors and analysts in comparing the Company's performance across reporting periods on a consistent basis. Management believes the foregoing to be the case even though some of the excluded items involve cash outlays and some of them recur on a regular basis (although management does not believe any of such items are normal operating expenses necessary to generate the Company's bitcoin related revenues). For example, the Company expects that share-based compensation expense, which is excluded from adjusted EBITDA, will continue to be a significant recurring expense over the coming years and is an important part of the compensation provided to certain employees, officers, and directors. Additionally, management does not consider any of the excluded items to be expenses necessary to generate the Company's bitcoin related revenue. The Company's adjusted EBITDA measure may not be directly comparable to similar measures provided by other companies in our industry, as other companies in the Company's industry may calculate non-GAAP financial results differently. The Company's adjusted EBITDA is not a measurement of financial performance under GAAP and should not be considered as an alternative to operating (loss) income or any other measure of performance derived in accordance with GAAP. Although management utilizes internally and presents adjusted EBITDA, the Company only utilizes that measure supplementally and does not consider it to be a substitute for, or superior to, the information provided by GAAP financial results. Accordingly, adjusted EBITDA is not meant to be considered in isolation of, and should be read in conjunction with, the information contained in the Company's consolidated financial statements, which have been prepared in accordance with GAAP. CLEANSPARK, INC. CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (in thousands, except par value and share amounts) September 30, 2024 September 30, 2023 ASSETS Current assets Cash and cash equivalents $ 121,222 $ 29,215 Restricted cash 3,056 — Receivable for equity offerings — 9,590 Prepaid expense and other current assets 7,995 3,258 Bitcoin (See Note 2 and Note 6) 431,661 56,241 Receivable for bitcoin collateral (See Note 2 and Note 12) 77,827 — Note receivable from GRIID (see Note 7) 60,919 — Derivative investments 1,832 2,697 Investment in debt security, AFS, at fair value 918 726 Current assets held for sale — 445 Total current assets $ 705,430 $ 102,172 Property and equipment, net $ 869,693 $ 564,395 Operating lease right of use asset 3,263 688 Intangible assets, net 3,040 4,603 Deposits on miners and mining equipment 359,862 75,959 Other long-term asset 13,331 5,718 Goodwill 8,043 8,043 Total assets $ 1,962,662 $ 761,578 LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY Current liabilities Accounts payable $ 82,992 $ 39,900 Accrued liabilities 43,874 25,677 Other current liabilities 2,240 311 Current portion of loans payable 58,781 6,992 Current liabilities held for sale — 1,175 Total current liabilities $ 187,887 $ 74,055 Long-term liabilities Operating lease liability, net of current portion 997 519 Finance lease liability, net of current portion — 9 Loans payable, net of current portion 7,176 8,911 Deferred income taxes 5,761 2,416 Total liabilities $ 201,821 $ 85,910 Commitments and contingencies - Note 18 CLEANSPARK, INC. CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (continued) (in thousands, except par value and share amounts) September 30, 2024 September 30, 2023 Stockholders' equity Preferred stock; $0.001 par value; 10,000,000 shares authorized; Series A shares; 2,000,000 authorized; 1,750,000 issued and outstanding (liquidation preference $0.02 per share) Series X shares; 1,000,000 and 0 authorized, issued and outstanding, respectively 3 2 Common stock; $0.001 par value; 300,000,000 shares authorized; 270,897,784 and 160,184,921 shares issued and outstanding, respectively 271 160 Additional paid-in capital 2,239,367 1,009,482 Accumulated other comprehensive income 418 226 Accumulated deficit (479,218) (334,202) Total stockholders' equity 1,760,841 675,668 Total liabilities and stockholders' equity $ 1,962,662 $ 761,578 The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements. CLEANSPARK, INC. CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE LOSS (in thousands, except per share and share amounts) For the year ended September 30, 2024 September 30, 2023 September 30, 2022 Revenues, net Bitcoin mining revenue, net $ 378,968 $ 168,121 $ 131,000 Other services revenue — 287 525 Total revenues, net $ 378,968 $ 168,408 $ 131,525 Costs and expenses Cost of revenues (exclusive of depreciation and amortization shown below) 165,516 93,580 41,234 Professional fees 13,806 10,869 6,469 Payroll expenses 74,095 45,714 40,920 General and administrative expenses 30,185 20,823 10,423 Loss on disposal of assets 5,466 1,931 (643) Gain on fair value of bitcoin, net (see Note 2 and Note 6) (113,423) — — Other impairment expense (related to bitcoin) — 7,163 12,210 Impairment expense - fixed assets 197,041 — — Impairment expense - other 716 — 250 Impairment expense - goodwill — — 12,048 Realized gain on sale of bitcoin — (1,357) (2,567) Depreciation and amortization 154,609 120,728 49,045 Total costs and expenses $ 528,011 $ 299,451 $ 169,389 Loss from operations $ (149,043) $ (131,043) $ (37,864) Other income (expense) Other income — 11 308 Change in fair value of contingent consideration — 2,484 306 Recognized gain on bitcoin collateral returned 91 — — Change in fair value of bitcoin collateral 1,384 — — Realized gain on sale of equity security — — 1 Unrealized loss on equity security — — (2) Unrealized loss on derivative security (965) (259) (1,950) Interest income 8,555 481 190 Interest expense (2,455) (2,977) (1,078) Total other income (expense) $ 6,610 $ (260) $ (2,225) Loss before income tax expense (142,433) (131,303) (40,089) Income tax expense 3,344 2,416 — Loss from continuing operations $ (145,777) $ (133,719) $ (40,089) Discontinued operations Loss from discontinued operations $ — $ (4,429) $ (17,237) Income tax expense — — — Loss on discontinued operations $ — $ (4,429) $ (17,237) Net loss $ (145,777) $ (138,148) $ (57,326) Preferred stock dividends 3,422 — 336 Net loss attributable to common shareholders $ (149,199) $ (138,148) $ (57,662) Other comprehensive income, net of tax 192 116 115 Total comprehensive loss attributable to common shareholders $ (149,007) $ (138,032) $ (57,547) CLEANSPARK, INC. CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS AND COMPREHENSIVE LOSS (continued) (in thousands, except per share and share amounts) For the year ended September 30, 2024 September 30, 2023 September 30, 2022 Loss from continuing operations per common share - basic $ (0.69) $ (1.30) $ (0.95) Weighted average common shares outstanding - basic 216,860,819 102,707,509 42,614,197 Loss from continuing operations per common share - diluted $ (0.69) $ (1.30) $ (0.95) Weighted average common shares outstanding - diluted 216,860,819 102,707,509 42,614,197 Loss on discontinued operations per common share - basic $ - $ (0.04) $ (0.40) Weighted average common shares outstanding - basic 216,860,819 102,707,509 42,614,197 Loss on discontinued operations per common share - diluted $ - $ (0.04) $ (0.40) Weighted average common shares outstanding - diluted 216,860,819 102,707,509 42,614,197 CLEANSPARK, INC. RECONCILIATION OF ADJUSTED EBITDA (Unaudited, in thousands) For the Year Ended September 30, 2024 2023 Net income (loss) $ (145,777) $ (138,148) Adjustments: Loss on discontinued operations — 4,429 Impairment expense – fixed assets 197,041 — Impairment expense – other 716 — Depreciation and amortization 154,609 120,728 Share-based compensation expense 29,555 24,142 Other income — (11) Change in fair value of contingent consideration — (2,484) Unrealized loss (gain) of derivative security 965 259 Interest income (8,555) (481) Interest expense 2,455 2,977 Loss on disposal of assets 5,466 1,931 Income tax expense 3,344 2,416 Fees related to financing & business development transactions 4,059 697 Litigation & settlement related expenses 1,970 7,872 Severance and other expenses — 701 Total Adjusted EBITDA $ 245,848 $ 25,028 Investor Relations Contact Brittany Moore 702-989-7693 ir@cleanspark.com Media Contact Eleni Stylianou 702-989-7694 pr@cleanspark.com View original content to download multimedia: https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/cleanspark-reports-record-breaking-fy-2024-results-outpacing-halving-and-difficulty-302320036.html SOURCE CleanSpark, Inc. © 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.10 notable books of 2024, from Sarah J. Maas to Melania TrumpOak Valley Bancorp Stock Hits All-Time High at $30.81Ex-DePaul guard leads N. Illinois against Chris Holtmann's Blue Demons

Biden will decide on US Steel acquisition after influential panel fails to reach consensus WASHINGTON (AP) — A powerful government panel has failed to reach consensus on the possible national security risks of a nearly $15 billion proposed deal for Nippon Steel of Japan to purchase U.S. Steel. The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States on Monday sent its long-awaited report to President Joe Biden, a longtime opponent of the deal. Some federal agencies represented on the panel were skeptical that allowing a Japanese company to buy an American-owned steelmaker would create national security risks. That's according to a U.S. official familiar with the matter. Both Biden and President-elect Donald Trump opposed the merger and vowed to block it. Nippon Steel says it is confident the deal will go ahead. Nissan and Honda to attempt a merger that would create the world's No. 3 automaker TOKYO (AP) — Japanese automakers Nissan and Honda have announced plans to work toward a merger that would catapult them to a top position in an industry in the midst of tectonic shifts as it transitions away from its reliance on fossil fuels. The two companies said they signed an agreement on integrating their businesses on Monday. Smaller Nissan alliance member Mitsubishi Motors agreed to join the talks. News of a possible merger surfaced earlier this month. Japanese automakers face a strong challenge from their Chinese rivals and Tesla as they make inroads into markets at home and abroad. What a merger between Nissan and Honda means for the automakers and the industry BANGKOK (AP) — Japanese automakers Honda and Nissan will attempt to merge and create the world’s third-largest automaker by sales as the industry undergoes dramatic changes in its transition away from fossil fuels. The two companies said they had signed a memorandum of understanding on Monday and that smaller Nissan alliance member Mitsubishi Motors also had agreed to join the talks on integrating their businesses. Honda will initially lead the new management, retaining the principles and brands of each company. Following is a quick look at what a combined Honda and Nissan would mean for the companies, and for the auto industry. Survey: Small businesses are feeling more optimistic about the economy after the election A survey shows small business owners are feeling more optimistic about the economy following the election. The National Federation of Independent Businesses’ Small Business Optimism Index rose by eight points in November to 101.7, its highest reading since June 2021. The Uncertainty Index declined 12 points in November to 98, following October’s pre-election record high of 110. NFIB Chief Economist Bill Dunkelberg said small business owners became more certain about future business conditions following the presidential election, breaking a nearly three-year streak of record high uncertainty. The survey also showed that more owners are also hoping 2025 will be a good time to grow. Heavy travel day starts with brief grounding of all American Airlines flights WASHINGTON (AP) — American Airlines briefly grounded flights nationwide due to a technical problem just as the Christmas travel season kicked into overdrive and winter weather threatened more potential problems for those planning to fly or drive. Government regulators cleared American flights to get airborne Tuesday about one hour after the Federal Aviation Administration ordered a national ground stop, which prevented planes from taking off. American said in an email that the problem was caused by an issue with a vendor technology that maintains its flight operating system. Aviation analytics company Cirium said flights were delayed across American’s major hubs, with only 37% leaving on time. Nineteen flights were cancelled. Nordstrom to be acquired by Nordstrom family and a Mexican retail group in $6.25 billion deal Century-old department store Nordstrom has agreed to be acquired and taken private by Nordstrom family members and a Mexican retail group in a $6.25 billion deal. Nordstrom shareholders will receive $24.25 in cash for each share of Nordstrom common stock, representing a 42% premium on the company’s stock as of March 18. Nordstrom’s board of directors unanimously approved the the proposed transaction, while Erik and Pete Nordstrom — part of the Nordstrom family taking over the company — recused themselves from voting. Following the close of the transaction, the Nordstrom Family will have a majority ownership stake in the company. Stock market today: Wall Street rallies ahead of Christmas Stocks closed higher on Wall Street ahead of the Christmas holiday, led by gains in Big Tech stocks. The S&P 500 added 1.1% Tuesday. Trading closed early ahead of the holiday. Tech companies including Apple, Amazon and chip company Broadcom helped pull the market higher. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.9%, and the Nasdaq composite climbed 1.3%. American Airlines shook off an early loss and ended mostly higher after the airline briefly grounded flights nationwide due to a technical issue. Treasury yields held steady in the bond market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury was little changed at 4.59% An analyst looks ahead to how the US economy might fare under Trump WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump won a return to the White House in part by promising big changes in economic policy — more tax cuts, huge tariffs on imports, mass deportations of immigrants working in the United States illegally. In some ways, his victory marked a repudiation of President Joe Biden’s economic stewardship and a protest against inflation. It came despite low unemployment and steady growth under the Biden administration. What lies ahead for the economy under Trump? Paul Ashworth of Capital Economics spoke recently to The Associated Press. The interview has been edited for length and clarity. American consumers feeling less confident in December, Conference Board says American consumers are feeling less confident in December, a business research group says. The Conference Board said Monday that its consumer confidence index fell back in December to 104.7 from 112.8 in November. Consumers had been feeling increasingly confident in recent months. The consumer confidence index measures both Americans’ assessment of current economic conditions and their outlook for the next six months. The measure of Americans’ short-term expectations for income, business and the job market tumbled more than a dozen points to 81.1. The Conference Board says a reading under 80 can signal a potential recession in the near future. Stock market today: Wall Street rises at the start of a holiday-shortened week Stocks closed higher on Wall Street at the start of a holiday-shortened week. The S&P 500 rose 0.7% Monday. Several big technology companies helped support the gains, including chip companies Nvidia and Broadcom. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.2%, and the Nasdaq composite rose 1%. Honda's U.S.-listed shares rose sharply after the company said it was in talks about a combination with Nissan in a deal that could also include Mitsubishi Motors. Eli Lilly rose after announcing that regulators approved Zepbound as the first prescription medicine for adults with sleep apnea. Treasury yields rose in the bond market.Healey: Proscription status of Syria’s new rulers is not a matter for now