By MATT OTT, Associated Press Business Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) — Fewer Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week with layoffs remaining low despite a weakening labor market.

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U.S. applications for jobless claims for the week ending Dec. 27 fell by 16,000 to 199,000 from the previous week’s 215,000, the Labor Department reported Wednesday. Analysts surveyed by the data firm FactSet forecast 208,000 new applications.

Unemployment benefit filings are often distorted during holiday-shortened weeks. The shorter week can cause some who have lost jobs to delay filing claims.

The weekly report was released a day early due to the New Year’s Day holiday.

Applications for unemployment aid are viewed as a proxy for layoffs and are close to a real-time indicator of the health of the job market.

Earlier this month, the government reported that the U.S. gained a decent 64,000 jobs in November but lost 105,000 in October as federal workers departed after cutbacks by the Trump administration. That helped to push the unemployment rate up to 4.6% last month, the highest since 2021.

The October job losses were caused by a 162,000 drop in federal workers, many of whom resigned at the end of fiscal year 2025 on Sept. 30 under pressure from billionaire Elon Musk’s purge of U.S. government payrolls.

Labor Department revisions also knocked 33,000 jobs off August and September payrolls.

Recent government data has revealed a labor market in which hiring has clearly lost momentum, hobbled by uncertainty over President Donald Trump’s tariffs and the lingering effects of the high interest rates the Fed engineered in 2022 and 2023 to rein in an outburst of pandemic-induced inflation. Since March, job creation has fallen to an average 35,000 a month, compared to 71,000 in the year ended in March.

Earlier this month, the Federal Reserve trimmed its benchmark lending rate by a quarter-point, its third straight cut.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell said the committee reduced borrowing costs out of concern that the job market is even weaker than it appears. Powell said that recent job figures could be revised lower by as much as 60,000, which would mean employers have actually been shedding an average of about 25,000 jobs a month since the spring.

Companies that have recently announced job cuts include UPS, General Motors, Amazon and Verizon.

The Labor Department’s report Wednesday also showed that the four-week average of claims, which evens out some of the week-to-week volatility, rose by 1,750 to 218,7500.

The total number of Americans filing for jobless benefits for the previous week ending Dec. 20 fell by 47,000 to 1.87 million, the government said.

By ANTHONY IZAGUIRRE, Associated Press

Zohran Mamdani will become mayor of New York City as the clock ticks over into 2026 — but the celebrations are set to last through New Year’s Day.

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The Democrat’s team is planning two separate swearing-in ceremonies Thursday — a small, private one with his family in an old subway station around midnight, followed by a large event in the afternoon that will include a public block party outside City Hall.

As a new mayor’s term begins immediately with the new year, it has been customary for the city’s incoming leaders to hold two events. Outgoing mayor Eric Adams held his initial swearing-in at Times Square shortly after the famous ball drop, while Adams’ predecessor, Bill de Blasio, took his first oath at home in Brooklyn.

For his part, Mamdani will take his initial oath at the former City Hall subway station in Manhattan — one of the city’s original stops on its subterranean transit system, known for its tiled arches and vaulted ceilings.

New York Attorney General Letitia James, a political ally and notable foe of President Donald Trump, will administer the oath of office.

The old City Hall stop was designed as the flagship station of the city’s first subway line, but was decommissioned in 1945. These days, outside of occasional guided historical tours, locals can usually only catch a glimpse of it by staying on the 6 train after its last stop downtown when it turns around to head north.

In a statement, Mamdani’s office said the choice to be sworn in at the station reflected his “commitment to the working people who keep our city running every day.”

“When Old City Hall Station first opened in 1904 — one of New York’s 28 original subway stations — it was a physical monument to a city that dared to be both beautiful and build great things that would transform working peoples’ lives,” Mamdani said.

“That ambition need not be a memory confined only to our past, nor must it be isolated only to the tunnels beneath City Hall: it will be the purpose of the administration fortunate enough to serve New Yorkers from the building above,” he said.

On Thursday afternoon, Mamdani will be sworn in again, this time by U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, one of his political heroes, on the steps of City Hall in a ceremony scheduled to kick off at 1 p.m. U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, another political ally, will deliver opening remarks.

Mamdani’s transition formed an inaugural committee that includes actor John Turturro, playwright Cole Escola and writer Colson Whitehead, as well as advocates, small business owners and campaign workers who the incoming mayor’s office says have “provided perspective, guidance, and cultural sensibility” for the ceremony.

The public swearing-in will be accompanied by a block party along a stretch of Broadway leading up to City Hall. Mamdani’s office expects thousands of people to attend and says there will be performances, music and interfaith elements.

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Auckland rang in 2026 with a downtown fireworks display launched from New Zealand’s tallest structure, Sky Tower, making it the first major city to greet the new year at a celebration dampened by rain.

South Pacific countries are the first to bid farewell to 2025. Clocks strike midnight in Auckland, a population of 1.7 million, 18 hours before the famous ball drops in New York’s Times Square.

The five-minute display involved 3,500 fireworks launched from various floors of the 787-foot Sky Tower. Smaller community events were canceled across New Zealand’s North Island on Wednesday due to forecasts of rain and possible thunderstorms.

Australia plans defiant celebration after country’s worst mass shooting

Australia’s east coast welcomes 2026 two hours after New Zealand, but in Sydney, the country’s largest city, celebrations will be held under the pall of Australia’s worst mass shooting in almost 30 years. Two gunmen targeted a Hannukah celebration at Bondi Beach on Dec. 14, killing 15 and wounding 40.

A heavy police presence monitored the thousands who thronged to the downtown waterfront on Wednesday to watch a fireworks show centered on the Sydney Harbor Bridge. Many officers openly carried rapid-fire rifles, in a first for the annual event.

An hour before midnight, the massacre victims will be commemorated with one minute of silence while images of a menorah are projected on the bridge pylons. The crowd has been invited to show their solidarity with Australia’s Jewish community by shining their phone torches across the harbor.

New South Wales Premier Chris Minns urged Sydney residents not to stay away through fear, saying extremists would interpret smaller crowds at New Year’s Eve festivities as a victory.

“We can’t be in a situation where this horrible, criminal, terrorist event changes the way we live in our beautiful city,” Minns told reporters on Wednesday.

“We have to show defiance in the face of this terrible crime and say that we’re not going to be cowered by this kind of terrorism,” he added.

Indonesia and Hong Kong hold subdued events

In Indonesia, one of Australia’s nearest neighbors, cities scaled back New Year’s Eve festivities as a gesture of solidarity with communities devastated by catastrophic floods and landslides that struck parts of Sumatra island a month ago, claiming more than 1,100 lives.

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The capital, Jakarta, will not ring in 2026 with its usual fanfare, choosing instead subdued celebrations with a calm and reflective program centered on prayers for victims, city Gov. Pramono Anung said last week.

Makassar Mayor Munafri Arifuddin urged residents of one of Indonesia’s largest cities to forgo parties altogether, calling for prayer and reflection instead. “Empathy and restraint are more meaningful than fireworks and crowds,” he said.

Concerts and fireworks on Indonesia’s tourist island of Bali have been canceled and replaced with a cultural arts event featuring 65 groups performing traditional dances.

Hong Kong, too, will ring in 2026 without the usual spectacular and colorful explosions in the sky over its iconic Victoria Harbor, after a massive fire in November killed at least 161 people.

The city’s tourism board will instead host a music show featuring soft rock duo Air Supply and other singers in Central, a business district. The facades of eight landmarks will turn into giant countdown clocks presenting a three-minute light show at midnight.

Many parts of Asia welcome the new year by observing age-old traditions.

In Japan, crowds will gather at a Buddhist temple in Tokyo for a bell striking at midnight. In the South Korean capital Seoul, a bell tolling and countdown ceremony will be held at the Bosingak Pavilion.

China’s Xi renews threats against Taiwan

Chinese President Xi Jinping in a New Year’s Eve address broadcast by state media hailed his country’s technological progress in areas such as artificial intelligence and semiconductors while renewing threats against Taiwan, which it claims as part of its sovereign territory.

“We Chinese on both sides of the Taiwan Strait share a bond of blood and kinship,” he said. “The reunification of our motherland, a trend of the times, is unstoppable.” China this week launched large-scale military drills around the island.

Berliners celebrate in snow

Tourists and Berliners alike marked the end of 2025 by enjoying snowfall, taking selfies and making snowmen in front of the German capital’s cathedral and the iconic Brandenburg Gate. The famous Berlin TV Tower was nearly invisible thanks to the falling flakes and fog.

Associated Press writers around the world contributed to this report.

The 2025 season began with a four-game losing streak, a sign of things to come for the Twins, who lost more than 90 games for the first time since 2016.

Eclipsing that, however, was a series of decisions that signaled a major shift in direction for a franchise that has been competitive for the past several seasons without making much of an impact in the postseason. With a different executive chair, team president and manager, the Twins have switched gears.

Over the past 12 months, the Twins moved from Joe Pohlad to Tom Pohlad as executive chair, from Dave St. Peter to Derek Falvey as team president, and from Rocco Baldelli to Derek Shelton as manager, seismic changes for a team that finished fourth in the American League Central and sparked ire among the fan base after sending 10 regulars away at the July trade deadline.

Here is a look back at the storylines:

Sale process takes a turn

Chicago-based billionaire Justin Ishbia emerged as a candidate to buy the Twins late in 2024; months later, he dropped his bid to buy the Twins and increased his stakes in the rival Chicago White Sox. The Pohlad family — which has owned the Twins since 1984 — continued to field offers, but Ishbia’s withdrawal seemed to be a turning point and the team ultimately remained in their hands. More on that down below.

Twins president Dave St. Peter

Dave St. Peter steps aside

In early March, after 22 years in the role and 35 years with the organization, St. Peter, the club’s longtime president, stepped aside and moved into an advisory role with the organization. St. Peter began as an intern in the organization in 1990 and worked his way to the top, calling his time with the Twins a “storybook run.”

In his place, the Twins promoted Falvey to a dual role of president of baseball operations, his job since 2016, and business operations. “Nobody not named Pohlad cares about the Minnesota Twins more than Dave St. Peter,” Falvey said at the time of the announcement. “Nobody ever has.”

13-game winning streak

The Twins began their season with four straight losses. They finished March/April 13-18.

But the beginning of May provided a glimmer of hope when the Twins rattled off a 13-game winning streak to pull themselves back above .500. A Kody Clemens three-run home run at Fenway Park, in front of his father — former Red Sox ace Roger Clemens — helped kickstart the streak.

The team weathered the losses of stars Carlos Correa and Byron Buxton, who collided during a game in Baltimore and suffered concussions, but was led by the starting pitching during the streak. They went two weeks without losing, remarkably similar to the way the team started slow in 2024 before winning 12 in a row.

Minnesota Twins’ Byron Buxton (25) acknowledges the crowd during a curtain call after hitting a solo home run for the cycle during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Pittsburgh Pirates, Saturday, July 12, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

Buxton hits for the cycle

Buxton was a consistent bright spot all year. He made the All-Star Game for the second time in his career and just finished outside of the top-10 in MVP voting. He hit a career high 35 home runs and did that while playing in 126 games, the most for him in a single season since 2017.

He made some personal history on July 12, hitting for the cycle for the first time in his career on the same day the Twins passed out a “Buck Truck,” bobblehead. Buxton collected his single in the first inning, tripled in the second and doubled in the third. After another single in the fifth, he completed the cycle with a home run in the seventh.

Playoff hopes die

The Twins reached the All-Star Game break a couple of games under .500, well behind the Detroit Tigers in the division race but still in the mix for a Wild Card playoff spot. Had they played well out of the break, perhaps they could have convinced the front office to go in a different direction.

Instead, against the worst team in baseball, the Colorado Rockies, Chris Paddack gave up two doubles, a triple and a home run to the first four batters he faced and the Twins lost 2 of 3 in Denver to start the unofficial second half. They never recovered. Two more losses to the Dodgers in Los Angeles made for a dreadful, season-altering road trip.

A wild trade deadline

The selloff began on the Monday before the July 31 deadline when Paddack was shipped to Detroit.

On Wednesday, the Twins were blown out 13-1 the day before the deadline. During that game, utilityman Willi Castro was removed, prompting confusion and speculation that he had been traded. And in the ninth inning, after he was pulled from the game, reliever Griffin Jax yelled at manager Baldelli in the dugout in a fit of frustration.

Hours later, closer Jhoan Duran was sent to Philadelphia, and the very next day the front office executed seven more trades, shipping away most of the bullpen, some impending free agents and star shortstop Carlos Correa in a salary dump move. After that, the results on the field were predictably bad.

Pohlad family calls off sale

Just weeks after their trade deadline sell off, the Pohlad family announced that instead of selling the franchise, it would instead maintain control of the Twins and add limited partners, a move aimed at taming the team’s considerable debt. The decision drew disappointment from a fanbase that had largely been hoping for change.

It took months for the identities of the new minority owners to publicly emerge, but following approval by Major League Baseball, the Twins finally announced that Glick Family Investments, George G. Hicks — with a group of other local business leaders — and Wild owner Craig Leipold had joined the ownership group.

Rocco Baldelli fired

A day after finishing the season in fourth place for the second consecutive year, the Twins fired Baldelli. He had managed the Twins for seven seasons, leading them to the playoffs three times, but a late-season collapse in 2024 followed by 2025’s season spelled the end of his time in Minnesota.

In concert with ownership, Falvey said it was determined that this was “the right moment for a change in voice and direction.” The decision came after Baldelli’s contract option for the 2026 season had been picked up.

Derek Shelton hired

A little over a month after firing Baldelli, the Twins announced Derek Shelton as his replacement.

Shelton was a finalist for the managerial position in 2018 which went to Baldelli, his good friend. Instead, Shelton, who had served as the Twins’ bench coach that year under Paul Molitor, stayed in that position under Baldelli. He then departed to take over as manager of the Pittsburgh Pirates, where he recorded a 306-440 (.410) record in five-plus seasons before being fired partway through the 2025 season.

Tom Pohlad takes over

The day the Twins finally released the names of their limited partners, they announced that Tom Pohlad would take over as the team’s executive chair, a role his younger brother Joe had held since November 2022. In addition, Tom Pohlad is expected to be approved as the organization’s Control Person, taking over that role from his uncle, Jim.

Tom Pohlad, who had been serving as the Executive Chairman of Pohlad Companies, was leading the sale transaction on behalf of the family. He takes over the Twins at a time when fan morale is low and anger at ownership is high. At his introductory press conference, he acknowledged the need to earn the trust of the fanbase back.

“We think that, with the conclusion of the transaction, now is the time to put new leadership in place and have a renewed sense of energy, a renewed sense of focus, a different level of accountability and, ultimately, a clear direction on where we’re taking this organization,” he said.

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