Things To Do In SW Florida

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks posted solid gains as Wall Street put the finishing touches on one of its best months of the year.

The S&P 500 rose 0.6% while the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.4%. Both indexes closed out November with their best monthly performances of the year. The Nasdaq added 0.8%. Friday was an abbreviated trading day, with stocks closing at 1 p.m. ET and the bond market an hour later.

Investors were looking to see how much shoppers are willing to spend on gifts for the holidays. Black Friday unofficially kicked off the holiday shopping season, although retailers had been offering early deals for weeks. Macy’s and Best Buy each gained around 2%.

Apple rose 1.1%. The technology giant is hoping recently added artificial intelligence features are enough to entice consumers to treat themselves or their relatives to a new iPhone for the holidays.

The Dow rose 7.5% in November, easily its best month of 2024. The Walt Disney Co. has the biggest percentage gain for the month at 22.1%, but the price-weighted index also got a boost from Goldman Sachs, up 17.5% to $608.57 and Salesforce, up more than 13% to $329.99. read more

By KENYA HUNTER and DEVI SHASTRI, Associated Press Health Writers

Cucumbers shipped to 13 U.S. states and five Canadian provinces and organic eggs sold in 25 Costco stores in five southern U.S. states were recalled this week for potential salmonella contamination.

SunFed Produce, based in Arizona, recalled the cucumbers sold between Oct. 12 and Nov. 26, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration said Thursday. No illnesses were immediately reported.

People who bought cucumbers during the window should check with the store where they purchased them to see if the produce is part of the recall.

The egg recall involved nearly 11,000 cartons of 24-count organic eggs sold under Costco’s Kirkland Signature brand that landed on shelves in Alabama, North Carolina, Georgia, South Carolina and Tennessee starting Nov. 22, according to the company’s announcement posted Wednesday on the FDA website.

No illnesses were immediately reported. Handsome Brook Farms said the cartons included eggs that were “not intended for retail distribution.” Shoppers should check to see whether their egg cartons have Julian code 327 printed on the side and have a use-by date of Jan. 5, 2025. If the eggs are included in the recall, throw them out or take them back to the store for a refund. read more

By ROB GILLIES, Associated Press

TORONTO (AP) — Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Friday that if President-elect Donald Trump follows through on this threat to impose sweeping tariffs on Canadian products, he would be raising prices for Americans and hurting American business.

Trump has threatened to impose tariffs on products from Canada and Mexico if the countries don’t stop what he called the flow of drugs and migrants across southern and northern borders. He said he would impose a 25% tax on all products entering the U.S. from Canada and Mexico as one of his first executive orders.

“It is important to understand that Donald Trump, when he makes statements like that, he plans on carrying them out. There’s no question about it,” Trudeau said to reporters in Prince Edward Island in Atlantic Canada.

“Our responsibility is to point out that he would not just be harming Canadians, who work so well with the United States, but he would actually be raising prices for Americans citizens as well and hurting American industry and business.” read more

By MATTHEW DALY, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump is set to create a National Energy Council that he says will establish American “energy dominance” around the world as he seeks to boost U.S. oil and gas drilling and move away from President Joe Biden’s focus on climate change.

The energy council — to be led by North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, Trump’s choice to head the Interior Department — will be key in Trump’s pledge to “drill, drill, drill” and sell more oil and other energy sources to allies in Europe and around the globe.

The new council will be granted sweeping authority over federal agencies involved in energy permitting, production, generation, distribution, regulation and transportation, with a mandate to cut bureaucratic red tape, enhance private sector investments and focus on innovation instead of “totally unnecessary regulation,” Trump said.

But Trump’s energy wishes are likely to run into real-world limits. For one, U.S. oil production under Biden is already at record levels. The federal government cannot force companies to drill for more oil, and production increases could lower prices and reduce profits. read more

By Sally French, NerdWallet

It’s getting easier to find top-notch dining experiences on cruises.

Cruise lines are increasingly catering to high-end tastes, offering specialty dining experiences often led by high-profile chefs. For example, British royal chef Darren McGrady, who once served Queen Elizabeth II and Princess Diana, helped create an afternoon tea experience for Princess Cruises.

Even notoriously budget-oriented cruise lines market to foodies with celebrity endorsements. Carnival Cruise Lines features Food Network personality Guy Fieri through his onboard restaurants including Guy’s Burger Joint and Guy’s Pig & Anchor Bar-B-Que Smokehouse.

No matter your cruise budget, here are some chef-approved tricks to eating better on a cruise.

1. Try a specialty dining experience

Afternoon tea served on the Sun Princess. (Photo by Sally French)

British royal chef Darren McGrady helped create an afternoon tea experience for the Sun Princess ship from Princess Cruises, which debuted in the spring of 2024. For $30, guests can take part in an hour-long experience filled with stories from McGrady’s time with the royal family, etiquette tips and history lessons — all presented via a series of video clips. (While on a press trip on the Sun Princess, I was able to join one of these afternoon teas.) read more