Deadly Iran protests continue as Trump renews intervention threat

By JON GAMBRELL AP The death toll in violence surrounding protests in Iran has risen to at least 35 people, activists said Tuesday, as the demonstrations showed no signs of stopping. The figure came from the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, which said more than 1,200 people have been detained in the protests, which have been ongoing for more than a week. It said 29 protesters, four children and two members of Iran’s security forces have been killed. Demonstrations have reached over 250 locations in 27 of Iran’s 31 provinces, The group, which relies on an activist network inside of Iran for its reporting, has been accurate in past unrest. A wave of protests sparked by Iran’s failing economy has continued for a ninth day, as President Donald Trump renewed his threat of US intervention. Trump warned on Sunday night that Iranian authorities would be “hit very hard” if more protesters died. “We’re watching it very closely. If they start killing people like they ...

Where are incomes keeping up with inflation in Missouri and Illinois?

ST. LOUIS - Inflation has made it tougher to stretch dollars further compared to years past. However, in some cases, depending on where you live in Missouri or Illinois, income growth has outpaced the rampant rise in prices.

According to the World Bank Group, a global financial institution, the U.S. inflation rate for 2022 was 8%, the highest yearly mark in nearly four decades.

SmartAsset, a financial technology company, recently analyzed U.S. Census Bureau data in a study involving nearly 350 of the nation's largest cities and ranked them based on income growth. The study was called "Where Income Increased Most Over One Year" and was published last October.

The findings revealed that only around half of major U.S. cities measured kept up with the 2022 inflation rate, and dozens reported income losses from 2021 to 2022.

Income trends in Missouri

Based on the 8% inflation clip from 2022, only one Missouri city featured in the study outpaced that rate in average wages. That was Springfield, Missouri with a 8.59% change in average income from 2021 to 2022. It was ranked the 159th best U.S. city in terms of income gain.

St. Louis noticed a nearly 6% growth in wages in that same timeframe, but that clip falls just short of the 8% U.S. mark, meaning that wages were still undercut by inflation.

Kansas City, the state's largest city, showed a rather alarming trend, with average wages decreasing roughly 2% from 2021 to 2022.

SmartAsset offered the following data on Missouri:

CITY 2022 INCOME 2021 INCOME PERCENT CHANGE OVERALL U.S. RANK (#/349)
Springfield $45,400 $41,808 8.49% 159
St. Louis $52,847 $49,965 5.77% 216
Independence $53,082 $53,082 0.31% 305
Kansas City $62,175 $63,396 -1.93% 319
Columbia $56,067 $58,067 -4.28% 337
Lee's Summit $89,140 $100,246 -11.08% 348
Data provided by SmartAsset

Income trends in Illinois

Based on the 8% inflation clip from 2022, four Illinois cities featured in the study outpaced that rate in average wages. Rockford, Illinois, led the way with a 21.27% average increase in wages from 2021 to 2022 and ranked as the 19th best city in terms of income gain. Peoria, Joliet and Naperville all also outpaced their wage growth compared to the national inflation rate.

Chicago, like St. Louis, was able to produce around a 6% growth in average wages from 2021 to 2022, but falls just short of the national inflation rate. Elgin and Aurora also saw income gains, but not above the 8% threshold.

Only one Illinois city reported an income loss in the same timeframe. In Springfield, Illinois, average wages dipped nearly 4%.

SmartAsset offered the following data on Illinois:

CITY 2022 INCOME 2021 INCOME PERCENT CHANGE OVERALL U.S. RANK (#/349)
Rockford $53,994 $44,525 21.27% 19
Peoria $55,955 $47,287 18.33% 30
Joliet $86,928 $76,495 13.64 69
Naperville $140,831 $129,664 8.61% 157
Elgin $85,167 $79,120 7.64% 174
Chicago $70,386 $66,576 5.72% 217
Aurora $84,578 $83,996 0.69% 302
Springfield $60,082 $62,505 -3.88% 333
Data provided by SmartAsset

Elsewhere in the U.S.

Which U.S. cities are generally seeing the largest rates of income growth? Several cities in Arizona, Florida and California rounded out the Top 20 in income rises.

At the top spot was the high-earning Houston-area community of The Woodlands, Texas, with more than 31% growth in median income, up to $137,335 last year.



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