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Live from NPR News, I'm Giles Snyder. The ceasefire between Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah has been in effect for a couple of hours now, and there have been no reported violations. The deal was brokered by the U.S. and France. NPR's Eleanor Beardsley reports that French President Emmanuel Macron is hailing the deal.
He posted a video on social media. Macron said Israeli and Lebanese citizens would finally have a measure of peace, but the ceasefire is fragile. And he said people should not forget that war is still punishing Gaza and the hostages are still captive.
Macron, like President Biden, said the only way for a just and durable peace in the Middle East is a two-state solution. French analysts say the ceasefire with Hezbollah is a win for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu because he was able to separate the conflicts in Gaza and Lebanon
and continue his war in Gaza. Eleanor Beardsley in PR News, Paris. The ceasefire calls for an initial two-month halt to fighting and requires Hezbollah to end its armed presence in southern Lebanon while Israeli troops are to return to their side of the border.
President-elect Trump has named two more members of his economic team. NPR's Scott Horsley reports both are veterans of Trump's first term in the White House. Trump has chosen Kevin Hassett to lead the National Economic Council, a kind of clearinghouse for economic policy throughout the administration. Hassett led the president's Council of Economic Advisors during Trump's first two years in the White House, and he helped make the case for the 2017 tax cuts. He briefly returned to the administration as a senior advisor during the pandemic.
Trump also announced plans to nominate Jameson Greer to serve as U.S. trade representative. He was chief of staff in that office during Trump's first White House term. If confirmed by the Senate, Greer will be charged with implementing Trump's bare-knuckle trade policies. News of his nomination came one day after the president-elect called for steep new tariffs on Mexico, Canada and China.
Scott Horsley, NPR News, Washington. Trump has also chosen Dr. Jay Bhattacharya to be director of the National Institutes of Health. Bhattacharya was an outspoken critic of the government's COVID policies during the pandemic.
Sales of new homes dropped sharply last month. NPR's Laurel Wamsley reports that both hurricanes and mortgage rates likely drove the slump. Sales of new single-family homes were more than 9% lower than they were a year ago, according to October data from the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Sales dropped more than 17% from a month earlier. Analysts said sales figures were much lower than expected and showed Hurricanes Helene and Milton taking a large toll in the south.
High mortgage rates have hurt affordability, though many large home builders offer buyer incentives to bring down the cost. The median sales price of new houses sold last month was about $437,000. Economists are predicting a small decline in mortgage rates over the next year. Laurel Wamsley, NPR News. This is NPR.
The move in Australia to ban children younger than 16 years from social media is now in the Senate's hands. A bill introduced last week has passed Australia's House of Representatives. The center-left government of the Prime Minister is pushing for passage of the bill by the end of the parliamentary year on Thursday. If it becomes law this week, social media companies would have one year to work out how to implement age restrictions before penalties are enforced.
Demure is Dictionary.com's word of the year. NPR's Elizabeth Blair says it all started with a TikToker's lifestyle and beauty tips. Demure means reserved, quiet, or modest. But the reaction to influencer Jules LeBron's use of it was anything but. LeBron is a Chicago grocery store clerk turned influencer who shares fashion and makeup advice on TikTok. You see how I do my makeup for work?
Very demure, very mindful. Dictionary.com's lexicographers study data, including headlines, social media trends, and search engine results. According to the site, demure had a nearly 1,200% increase in usage on digital media, with the biggest surge coming in August, after LeBron started using it in her catchphrase, very demure, very mindful.
Dictionary.com calls its word of the year a linguistic time capsule. Elizabeth Blair, NPR News. Major financial markets in Asia are mixed in Tuesday trading after Wall Street rose to record highs. The S&P 500 rose six-tenths of a percent to top the record it set a couple of weeks ago. The Dow added 123 points to the record it set on Monday.
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