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This time, the giant schnauzer went the full Monty.After coming close in the last two years, Monty the giant schnauzer won the top prize at the Westminster Kennel Club dog show Tuesday night, leaving handler and co-owner Katie Bernardin almost too emotional to speak.“He always tries so hard, and we’re just proud of him,” she told the crowd at Madison Square Garden.The spirited schnauzer bested six other finalists to become the first of his breed tapped as Westminster’s best in show, the most prestigious prize in the U.S. dog show world. The dog won the huge American Kennel Club championship in December, and he’d been a Westminster twice before.A standout because of “everything from his attitude to his structure,” Monty is bold, cocky and fun, according to co-owner Sandy Nordstrom.“He’s just a really cool dog,” she said in an interview before his win, which will be his last. The 5-year-old is retiring from showing. Katie Bernardin and Monty [Photo: Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP Photo] The runner-up was, for the third time, a whippet known as Bourbon. Other finalists included a bichon frisé called Neal, a Skye terrier named Archer, and a shih tzu called Comet who’s been a finalist before.Also in the mix were a German shepherd named Mercedes, who came in second last year, and an English springer spaniel called Freddie.Each dog at Westminster is judged according to how closely it matches the ideal for its breed. Winners get a trophy, ribbons and bragging rights, but no cash prize.During a break between semifinal rounds, security personnel surrounded and ousted someone along the sidelines of the ring. The group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, which has protested the dog show for years, said on X that a supporter was removed after holding a sign.Westminster says it celebrates all dogs. The show champions that compete also are household pets, and some do therapy work, search-and-rescue or other canine jobs.“A good German shepherd is an all-purpose dog,” said Mercedes’ co-breeder and co-owner Sheree Moses Combs of Wardensville, West Virginia. Some of her pups have become service dogs for wounded veterans, she said.“Dog shows are fun, but that is what our breed is all about,” she said.While Monty got this year’s trophy, other hopefuls also scored points with spectators.During two nights of semifinals, spectators shouted out breeds and names of canine competitors as if they played for one of the pro teams that call the Garden home, the NBA’s New York Knicks and NHL’s New York Rangers.“Love you, Lumpy!” someone yelled to a Pekingese named Lumpy, who earned laughs for his ambling gait.The arena erupted with cheers for Penny the Doberman pinscher and for a golden retriever named Tuffy, a representative of a popular breed that has never won. She also got some recognition from the judge, as did another crowd favorite, Calaco the Xoloitzcuintli. His breed (pronounced shoh-loh-eets-KWEEN’-tlees) are hairless dogs with deep roots in Mexico.A trip to Westminster is a reminder of dogs’ variety, even just among purebreds. While big, “working” dogs had their day at Westminster on Tuesday, so did terriers.First-round competitor Brina, for instance, is a 158-pound (71.6 kilogram) Neapolitan mastiff. The jowly breed was developed to be an imposing guard dog, but Brina’s owner, Yves Belmont, Ph.D., said he also is impressed by its intelligence. He keeps several of the dogs at his Atlanta-area home.“I’ve been struck by this breed since I was 12. They’re so unique,” Belmont said as Brina napped in her crate, equipped with a two-gallon (7.5-liter) water bucket.Meanwhile, Tyra the miniature bull terrier also strutted her stuff in a first-round ring. Formally called GCH CH Rnr’s Top Model, she’s named after fashion model Tyra Banks.The hardy terrier breed is “a big dog in a small package, but they always keep you smiling,” said owner and co-breeder Jessica Harrison of Austin, Texas. Asked where the 2-year-old Tyra falls on the mischief meter, Harrison smiled, “like a nine, for sure.”“You can’t be upset with them because they’re just so cute,” she said as Tyra rolled on her back to get a belly rub from a passerby at the Javits Center, the convention venue that hosted the first-round judging of each breed.Westminster also featured agility and obedience championships, held Saturday. The agility prize went to a border collie named Vanish, and an Australian shepherd called Willie triumphed in obedience. Jennifer Peltz, Associated Press
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Apple renamed the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America on its maps Tuesday after an order by President Donald Trump was made official by the U.S. Geographic Names Information System.The move follows Google, which announced last month that it would make the change once the official listing was updated and wrote in a blog post Sunday that it had begun rolling out the change. In Google’s case, the company said people in the U.S. will see Gulf of America and people in Mexico will see Gulf of Mexico. Everyone else will see both names.After taking office, Trump ordered that the water bordered by the Southern United States, Mexico and Cuba be renamed.The U.S. Geographic Names Information System officially updated the name late Sunday. Microsoft has also made the name change on its Bing maps.The Associated Press, which provides news around the world to multiple audiences, will refer to the Gulf of Mexico by its original name, which it has carried for 400 years, while acknowledging the name Gulf of America.
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U.S. inflation accelerated last month as the cost of groceries, gas, and used cars rose, a trend that will likely underscore the Federal Reserve’s resolve to delay any further interest rate cuts.The consumer price index increased 3% in January from a year ago, Wednesday’s report from the Labor Department showed, up from 2.9% the previous month. It has increased from a 3 1/2 year low of 2.4% in September.The figures show that after inflation steadily declined in 2023 and for much of last year, it has remained stubbornly above the Fed’s 2% target for roughly the past six months. Elevated prices created a major political problem for former President Joe Biden. President Donald Trump pledged to reduce prices in last year’s campaign, though most economists worry that his many proposed tariffs could at least temporarily increase costs.Excluding the volatile food and energy categories, core consumer prices rose 3.3% in January compared with a year ago, up from 3.2% in December. Economists closely watch core prices because they can provide a better read of inflation’s future path.Inflation also worsened on a monthly basis, with prices jumping 0.5% in January from December, the largest increase since August 2023. Core prices climed 0.4% last month, the most since March 2024.Inflation often jumps in January as many companies raise their prices at the beginning of the year, though the government’s seasonal adjustment process is supposed to filter out those effects.Later Wednesday, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell will testify before the House Financial Services Committee, where he will likely be asked about inflation and the Fed’s response to it. The Fed raised its benchmark rate in 2022 and 2023 to a two-decade high of 5.3% to combat inflation. With inflation down significantly from its 9.1% peak in June 2022, it cut its rate to about 4.3% in its final three meetings last year.Early Wednesday, Trump said on social media that interest rates should be lowered, “something which would go hand in hand with upcoming Tariffs!!!” Yet the tick up in consumer prices makes it less likely the Fed will cut rates anytime soon.Fed officials are mostly confident that inflation over time will head lower, but they want to see further evidence that it is declining before cutting their key rate any further. The Fed’s rate typically influences other borrowing costs for things like mortgages, auto loans, and credit cards.Inflation’s recent uptick is a major reason the Federal Reserve has paused its interest rate cuts, after implementing three of them last year. On Tuesday, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said “we do not need to be in a hurry” to implement further reductions in testimony to the Senate Banking Committee.The Trump administration’s tariff policy could lift prices in the coming months. Trump on Monday imposed 25% taxes on steel and aluminum imports, and has pledged to impose more tariffs. Economists at Goldman Sachs forecast that yearly core inflation would fall almost a full percentage point, to 2.3%, by the end of this year, absent any import duties. But they expect tariffs will raise end-of-year inflation to 2.8%.On Tuesday, Fed Chair Powell acknowledged that higher tariffs could lift inflation and limit the central bank’s ability to cut rates, calling it “a possible outcome.”But he emphasized that it would depend on how many imports are hit with tariffs and for how long.“In some cases it doesn’t reach the consumer much, and in some cases it does,” Powell said. “And it really does depend on facts that we we haven’t seen yet.” Christopher Rugaber, AP Economics Writer
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