How to build an emergency fund, pay off debt and make a plan for your money in 2026

NEW YORK (AP) — The start of a new year usually brings new motivation to achieve goals. Sometimes it involves eating healthier or finally cleaning your basement. But, for many, it can also include goals to pay off credit card debt, save for a new house, or simply get more educated about money. As many start writing their New Year’s resolutions, financial goals are also making the list. When building your goals for 2026, experts recommend focusing less on the past and more on an optimistic yet realistic vision for the future.

World shares are mixed in the final stretch of 2025

BANGKOK (AP) — Shares have opened mixed in Europe after slipping in Asia as some regional markets wrapped up trading for the year. Crude oil prices edged higher and gold and silver resumed their ascent. U.S. futures were flat. In Tokyo, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi rang out the final session for 2025, vowing to win the trust of global investors. On Monday, the S&P 500 fell 0.3%, though the benchmark has gained more than 17% in 2025. The Dow industrials fell 0.5% and the Nasdaq composite also fell 0.5%. Most markets around the world will be closed Thursday for the New Year holiday.

Trump overturned decades of US trade policy in 2025. See the impact of his tariffs, in four charts

Since returning to the White House in January, President Donald Trump has overturned decades of U.S. trade policy — building a wall of tariffs around what used to be a wide open economy. His double-digit taxes on imports from almost every country on earth have disrupted global commerce and strained the budgets of consumers and businesses worldwide. They have also raised tens of billions of dollars for the U.S. Treasury. Still, the erratic way the president rolled out his tariffs  made 2025 one of the most turbulent economic years in recent memory.

Trump launched global tariff wars in 2025. Here's a recap of his trade actions this year

It’s been a rollercoaster of a year for U.S. trade policy. President Donald Trump launched a barrage of new tariffs in 2025, plunging the U.S. into trade wars with nearly every country in the world. Volley after volley of threats and steeper import taxes often arrived erratically — with Trump claiming that such levies needed to be immediately imposed to take back wealth that was “stolen” from the U.S. But the president also turned to tariffs amid personal grudges, or in response to political critics. The whiplash of on-again, off-again duties — and responding retaliation — fueled widespread uncertainty for businesses and consumers alike, all while households continue to face rising prices.

As a property slump drags on, China's economy looks more resilient than it feels

HONG KONG (AP) — By some measures, China's economy is looking resilient, with strong exports and breakthroughs in artificial intelligence. But that's not how it feels for many Chinese feeling the strain from weak property prices and uncertainty over their jobs and incomes. While some industries are thriving thanks to government support for advanced technology, owners of small businesses report tough times as their customers cut back on spending. Economists are forecasting that the world's second largest economy will likely hit the government's annual growth target of about 5% this year. Beijing has averted a full blown trade war with Washington after President Donald Trump struck a truce with leader Xi Jinping, but longer-term challenges remain.

More thrifting and fewer returns, the early trends that defined shopping this holiday

NEW YORK (AP) — The shopping rush leading up to Christmas is over and in its place, like every year, another has begun as millions of people hunt for post-holiday deals and get in line to return gifts that didn’t fit, or didn’t hit quite right. Holiday spending topped last year’s haul, but growing unease over the U.S. economy and higher prices have altered the behavior of some Americans. More are hitting thrift stores and they’re sticking more closely to shopping lists. Here are three trends that defined the holiday shopping season so far.

A look at how Trump-era work requirements could impact people who receive public benefits

The Trump administration made work requirements for low-income people receiving government assistance a priority in 2025. The departments of Health and Human Services, Agriculture and Housing and Urban Development have worked to usher in stricter employment conditions to receive health care, food aid and rental assistance benefits funded by the federal government. The idea is that public assistance discourages optimal participation in the labor market and that imposing work requirements not only leads to self-sufficiency, but also benefits the broader economy. Yet many economists say there is no clear evidence such mandates have that effect.

New York subway ends its MetroCard era and switches fully to tap-and-go fares

NEW YORK (AP) — The New York City transit system is retiring the MetroCard after more than 30 years. The gold-and-blue swipeable card was introduced in 1994 to replace the subway token, which had been used for half a century. The last sales and refills on MetroCards will be Dec. 31, though existing cards will still work for some time into 2026. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority is fully transitioning to OMNY, a contactless payment system rolled out in 2019. The system allows riders to tap their credit card, phone or other smart device to pay their fare, much in the same way they do for other purchases.

Sure, the newspaper informed. But as it fades, those who used it for other things must adjust, too

The lurch in the media business has changed America over the last two decades. Experts agree democracy is different. The disappearance of the printed paper has altered daily life, too. Once they caught up on the world, people used to save the paper for keeping precious memories, protecting floors and furniture, wraping gifts, lining pet cages and lighting fires. Today they live different lives without the print newspaper around. It's joining the pay phone, the cassette tape, the answering machine, bank checks, the sound of the internal combustion engine and white gloves for women as objects that mark the passage of time when they vanish.

Key dates in Taiwan’s history: A contested island's evolution

BEIJING (AP) — China has been staging live-fire military drills around Taiwan featuring aircraft, warships and rocket launches. China's foreign minister has reiterated Beijing’s aim to achieve “complete reunification” with Taiwan. China claims the island as its own. Taipei pushes back against those sovereignty claims by arguing that Taiwan never belonged to China in its current constitutional and political form and has never been ruled by the Chinese Communist Party. Taiwan’s forms of government and international affiliations have changed often over the years. The island has gone from the control of various foreign powers to an authoritarian and one-party state. It finally became a democracy at odds with its larger neighbor.