(AP Photo)
NEW YORK (AP) — Oil prices soared and investors shifted more money into ultra-safe U.S. government bonds as Russia stepped up its war on Ukraine. The price of oil surged back above $100 a barrel after Russia, a major energy producer, faced further isolation and economic damage because of its invasion of Ukraine. The rush into bonds pushed the yield on the 10-year Treasury back down to 1.77%, where it was in early February. Stock prices were mixed in the early going on Wall Street. The S&P 500 was bobbing between small gains and losses in the first few minutes of trading. European markets were lower.

(AP Photo)
By ZEKE MILLER and COLLEEN LONG Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden will deliver his first State of the Union address at a precipitous moment for the nation. Biden is aiming to navigate the country out of a pandemic, reboot his stalled domestic agenda and confront Russia’s aggression. The speech Tuesday night had initially been conceived by the White House as an opportunity to highlight the improving coronavirus outlook and rebrand Biden’s domestic policy priorities as a way to lower costs for families grappling with soaring inflation. But the speech has taken on new significance with last week’s Russian invasion of Ukraine and nuclear saber-rattling by Vladimir Putin.

(File Photo)
(Pittsburgh, Pa.) Gas prices are three cents lower in Western Pennsylvania this week at $3.705 per gallon, according to AAA East Central’s Gas Price Report.

This week’s average prices: Western Pennsylvania Average                $3.705
Average price during the week of February 22, 2022                              $3.739
Average price during the week of March 1, 2021                                     $2.967

The average price of unleaded self-serve gasoline in various areas:      

$3.754      Altoona
$3.681      Beaver
$3.755      Bradford
$3.739      Brookville
$3.708      Butler
$3.754      Clarion
$3.742      DuBois
$3.735      Erie
$3.597      Greensburg
$3.698      Indiana
$3.654      Jeannette
$3.614      Kittanning
$3.652      Latrobe
$3.755      Meadville
$3.768      Mercer
$3.660      New Castle
$3.694      New Kensington
$3.759      Oil City
$3.686      Pittsburgh
$3.677      Sharon
$3.707      Uniontown
$3.759      Warren
$3.660      Washington

Trend Analysis:

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has caused uneasiness in the oil market, with crude spiking briefly to over $100 per barrel before settling back into the mid-$90s. The increase in the global price of oil has led to higher pump prices in the U.S. The national average for a gallon of gas has risen to $3.61, eight cents more than a week ago, 26 cents more than a month ago and 90 cents more than a year ago.

According to new data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), total domestic gasoline stocks decreased by 600,000 barrels to 246.5 million barrels last week. Meanwhile, gasoline demand rose slightly from 8.57 million barrels per day to 8.66 million barrels per day. The increase in gas demand and a reduction in total supply are contributing to rising pump prices, but increasing oil prices are playing the lead role in pushing gas prices higher. Pump prices will likely continue to rise as crude prices continue to climb.

At the close of Friday’s formal trading session, West Texas Intermediate decreased by $1.22 to settle at $91.59. As the Russia-Ukraine conflict continues, the oil markets may respond by continuing to increase the price of crude oil to reflect more risk of disruption to tight global oil supplies this week. Additionally, EIA reported that total domestic crude stocks increased by 4.5 million barrels to 416 million barrels. The current stock level is approximately 10 percent lower than mid-February 2021, contributing to pressure on domestic crude prices.

Motorists can find current gas prices nationwide, statewide, and countywide at GasPrices.AAA.com.

AAA East Central is a not-for-profit association with 72 local offices in Kentucky, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia serving 2.7 million members.  News releases are available at news.eastcentral.aaa.com.  Follow us on Twitter and Facebook.

(AP Photo)

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — People are out to party as New Orleans’ first full-dress Mardi Gras since 2020 dawns Tuesday, with a day of back-to-back parades through the city. Masks against COVID-19 are required only in indoor public spaces. Parades were canceled last year because officials realized that tightly packed crowds in 2020 had created a superspreader event. As it has for years, the Zulu Social Aid and Pleasure Club will open the day with a parade that started as a mockery of white festivities, with Black riders wearing blackface and grass skirts. Next come the elaborate floats of Rex, the self-styled king of Carnival, followed by lots of homemade floats on long flatbed trailers.

(AP Photo)
By YURAS KARMANAU, JIM HEINTZ, VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV and DASHA LITVINOVA Associated Press
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russian shelling pounded the central square in Ukraine’s second-largest city and other civilian targets and a 40-mile convoy of tanks and other vehicles threatened the capital. Ukraine’s embattled president accused Moscow on Tuesday of resorting to terror tactics to press Europe’s largest ground war in generations. With the Kremlin increasingly isolated by tough economic sanctions that have tanked the ruble currency, Russian troops attempted to advance on Ukraine’s two biggest cities. In strategic Kharkiv, videos posted online showed explosions next to the towering Soviet-era administrative building and in residential areas. The casualty toll mounted as Ukraine faced Day 6 of a Russian invasion that has shaken the 21st century world order.

(File Photo of Benninghoff Official Photo)

HARRISBURG – Pennsylvania House Majority Leader Kerry Benninghoff (R-Centre/Mifflin) Monday said he plans to introduce legislation to divest Pennsylvania of any Russian financial assets in which the Commonwealth may be invested.

“Clearly the people of Pennsylvania stand with the people of Ukraine and against this unprovoked Russian aggression. Over the weekend, the Liquor Control Board pulled Russian-made vodka from its shelves, something I commend, and the Capitol was lit with the colors of the Ukrainian flag. But I think it is time we start moving beyond symbolism and get to concrete action with what Pennsylvania can do to hold Russia accountable and apply pressure to stop this attack on the innocent people of Ukraine as well as the viability of Eastern Europe,” Benninghoff said.

“The Commonwealth’s public funds represent a substantial amount of investment power. We have a moral obligation to ensure that our public fund investments are not inadvertently supporting those who are engaging in an unprovoked invasion of their democratically elected neighbors.”

According to a co-sponsorship memo released Monday, Benninghoff’s legislation would divest the Commonwealth’s holdings in the State Treasury and pension funds from investments that are connected to the Russian government and its critical supporters.

The effort would expand upon Act 44 of 2010’s divesture of the State Treasury and pension funds from investments related to Iran and Sudan.

(Shaler, Twp., Pa.) 40 year-old Vikash Mishra from Ross Township is now in U.S. custody after going to an area park to meet what he thought was a 12-year-old girl, for sex.
It’s being reported that and undercover FBI Agent set up a social media profile posing as a 12-year-old girl late last year and within a short time Mishra sent a private message to what he thought was the 12-year-old girl.
The messaging went on for months with Mishra sending the account sexually explicit conversation and suggestive photos.
The agent then set up a meeting with Mishra at a Shaler park where he thought he was meeting the 12-year-old for sex in late February.
Agents took Mishra into custody near a park in the area.
According to the FBI, Mishra admitted to traveling to the park in order to engage in sexual activity, but not sexual intercourse, with who he thought was the child.

Beaver County Radio is getting ready to “Tattoo” Midland with excitement!  Join WBVP, WMBA, 99.3 F.M. and 95.7 F.M. for a live appearance at #1 Ink Tattoo in Midland on Tuesday, March 1st.  Tune in for special reports on the air during the event! Come celebrate the grand opening of #1 Ink Tattoo in Midland with your friends from Beaver County Radio on site from 12:30 to 2:30 P.M.  Look for the world famous Beaver County Radio “Prize Caddy.” Spin the Personality Prize Wheel while you are at #1 Ink Tattoo tomorrow, March 1st for the grand opening! The new shop is located at 752 Midland Avenue in Midland.

Register to win an authentic Jake Guentzel autographed Pittsburgh Penguins Jersey with a certificate of authenticity. No purchase necessary.

A ribbon cutting ceremony will trake place at 1 P.M.!

While there, enjoy complimentaryt slicesof Vocelli Pizza courtesy of: