Nov. 30 (UPI) -- The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 652 points Tuesday as Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said the central bank may accelerate tapering of its bond purchases and amid concerns over the Omicron variant.

Nov. 30 (UPI) -- Animal rescuers in Iowa helped a raccoon spotted atop a fence with a peanut butter jar stuck over its head.

Nov. 30 (UPI) -- A Louisiana store is pleading for the return of an oversized gummy bear statue that vanished from in front of the business.

Nov. 30 (UPI) -- Self-described "QAnon shaman" Jacob Chansley, who was a fixture at the Jan. 6 Capitol riots, filed an appeal of his conviction and sentence on Tuesday.

Nov. 30 (UPI) -- A federal judge in Washington, D.C., sentenced the wife of Mexican drug kingpin Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, Emma Coronel Aispuro, to three years in prison Tuesday.

WASHINGTON, Nov. 30 (UPI) -- Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Tuesday he expects policymakers to discuss ramping up the tapering of bond purchases, enacted as an emergency response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The 2021 Atlantic hurricane season was the second hectic season in a row following the record-breaking 2020 season, with new storms spinning up in rapid fashion and very few breaks between each new system.

Nov. 30 (UPI) -- The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit upheld California's ban on large-capacity magazines on guns Tuesday.

Nov. 30 (UPI) -- An animal control officer in Utah climbed into a storm drain to rescue three newborn kittens spotted stranded in the drain during a rainstorm.

Nov. 30 (UPI) -- A man who fraudulently acquired more than $1.6 million through the U.S. government's coronavirus pandemic Paycheck Protection Program was sentenced to 9 years and 2 months in prison.