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World shares have advanced after U.S. stocks rose to a record and the Bank of Japan raised its key lending rate. U.S. futures edged lower and oil prices also fell. Markets showed little obvious reaction to U.S. President Donald Trump's most recent comments about imposing higher tariffs on products from China and other countries. The S&P 500 climbed 0.5% to surpass its record set early last month. It was the seventh gain in eight days for the main measure of Wall Street’s health. The Dow Jones Industrial Average piled on 0.9%, while the Nasdaq composite added 0.2%.

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FILE - The Ford company logo is seen, Oct. 24, 2021, on a sign at a Ford dealership in southeast Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)

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FILE - A person stands in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm in Tokyo, on May 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, File)

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Despite Syrian President Bashar Assad's ouster last month in a lightning insurgency, the country’s dire economic conditions haven't changed. With no sign of a full-scale withdrawal of international sanctions and continuing caution among potential overseas investors, the honeymoon period for the country’s new rulers could be short-lived. The economy was battered by corruption and 13 years of civil war. Coupled with international sanctions and mismanagement, inflation skyrocketed, pulling some 90% of the country into poverty. The U.N. says over half the population -- some 12 million people -- don’t know where their next meal will come from.

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Shoppers fill the old city market in Damascus, Syria, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025.(AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki)

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Shoppers walk through the old city market in Damascus, Syria, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki)

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A shop owner sits inside his store in the old city market in Damascus, Syria, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki)

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Shoppers walk through the old city market in Damascus, Syria, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2025.(AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki)