WASHINGTON -- The U.S. economy grew at an annual rate of 6.9 percent in the fourth quarter of 2021, with dim outlook for the first quarter as effects of the Omicron variant start to show up, the U.S. Commerce Department reported Thursday.

"In the fourth quarter, COVID-19 cases resulted in continued restrictions and disruptions in the operations of establishments in some parts of the country," the department's Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) said in an advance estimate. (US-GDP-Q4)

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OTTAWA -- The four people found dead near the Canada-U.S. border last week have been identified as Indian nationals, according to a release from the High Commission of India in Ottawa on Thursday.

The Royal Canadian Mounted Police found the bodies of the four people, who froze to death while trying to cross the Canada-U.S. border in Emerson, Canada, on Jan. 19. (Canada-India)

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NEW YORK -- The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) has conducted a test-fire for updating long-range cruise missile system and a test-fire for confirming the power of conventional warhead for surface-to-surface tactical guided missile, the official Korean Central News Agency reported early Friday local time.

The tests were conducted by the Academy of Defence Science, said the report. (DPRK-Weapon-Test)

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ROME -- Italy's lawmakers and regional representatives, also known as the Grand Electors, held and failed a fourth attempt on Thursday to elect the country's 13th president.

The members of Parliament's both houses plus 58 representatives of the regional governments have been voting for four days now to elect the successor to 80-year-old Sergio Mattarella, whose seven-year term ends on Feb. 3. (Italy-Election)