Louvre workers vote to extend a strike as the museum partially reopens

PARIS (AP) — Employees at the Louvre Museum voted to extend a strike that has disrupted operations at the world’s most visited museum, though the venue partially opened Wednesday to allow visitors to enjoy its highlights.

The museum said visitors had access to a limited “masterpiece route” which includes Leonardo da Vinci’s "Mona Lisa” and the Venus de Milo.

“Due to a strike, some rooms in the Louvre Museum are ... closed," it said on social media. “We apologize for any inconvenience.”

Union workers are protesting chronic under-staffing, building deterioration and recent management decisions — pressures intensified by a brazen crown jewels heist in October that exposed serious security lapses.

The strike decision came during a morning general assembly, after workers adopted the walkout unanimously earlier this week. The museum was closed Tuesday for its weekly day off.

Culture Ministry officials held crisis talks with unions Monday and proposed to cancel a planned $6.7 million cut in 2026 funding, open new recruitment for gallery guards and visitor services and increase staff compensation. Union officials said the measures fell short.

Louvre President Laurence des Cars was scheduled to appear before the Senate’s culture committee Wednesday as lawmakers probe security failures at the museum.

Des Cars has acknowledged an “institutional failure” following the heist but has come under renewed scrutiny after admitting she only learned of a critical 2019 security audit after the robbery. France’s Court of Auditors and a separate administrative inquiry have since criticized delays in implementing a long-promised security overhaul.

The Culture Ministry announced emergency anti-intrusion measures last month and assigned Philippe Jost, who oversaw the Notre Dame restoration, to help reorganize the museum. The move was widely seen as a sign of mounting pressure on Louvre leadership.

Unionists display a banner and union flags outside the Louvre museum after employees have voted to extend a strike that has disrupted operations at the world's most visited museum, Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2025 in Paris. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)

Unionists display a banner and union flags outside the Louvre museum after employees have voted to extend a strike that has disrupted operations at the world's most visited museum, Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2025 in Paris. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)

Unionists display a banner and union flags outside the Louvre museum after employees have voted to extend a strike that has disrupted operations at the world's most visited museum, Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2025 in Paris. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)

Unionists demonstrate at the entrance of the Louvre museum after employees have voted to extend a strike that has disrupted operations at the world's most visited museum, Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2025 in Paris. (AP Photo/Christophe Ena)

Workers display union flags and banners outside the Louvre museum after they voted to strike for the day over working conditions and other complaints, Monday, Dec. 15, 2025 in Paris. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

Workers display banners at an entrance of the Louvre museum after they voted to strike for the day over working conditions and other complaints, Monday, Dec. 15, 2025 in Paris. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

Workers display an union flag outside the Louvre museum after they voted to strike for the day over working conditions and other complaints, Monday, Dec. 15, 2025 in Paris. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

Workers display a banner reading "Louvre on strike" outside the Louvre museum after they voted to strike for the day over working conditions and other complaints, Monday, Dec. 15, 2025 in Paris. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

Workers display banners outside the Louvre museum after they voted to strike for the day over working conditions and other complaints, Monday, Dec. 15, 2025 in Paris. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks are holding relatively steady on Wednesday, while the price of oil claws back some of this year’s sharp slide.

The S&P 500 added 0.1% in early trading, coming off its third straight drop, though it remains near its all-time high. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 162 points, or 0.3%, as of 9:35 a.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was nearly unchanged.

Companies in the oil business helped lead the way after President Donald Trump ordered a blockade of all “sanctioned oil tankers” into Venezuela. It’s Trump’s latest acceleration in pressure on the leaders of Venezuela, which may be sitting on more oil than any other country.

It sent the price of a barrel of benchmark U.S. crude higher by 1.4% to $55.92, just a day after it had sunk to its lowest level since 2021. Brent crude, the international standard, climbed 1.4% to $59.76 per barrel.

ConocoPhillips rose 1.6% to cut into its loss for the year so far, which came into the day at 8.5%. Other gainers included Devon Energy, which rose 2.8%, and Halliburton, which added 1.1%. Oil prices fell through much of this year on expectations that companies are pumping more than enough crude to meet the world’s demand.

Netflix was another winner and rose 2.4% after Warner Bros. Discovery’s board said it still recommends shareholders approve a buyout offer for its Warner Bros. business from the streaming giant, rather than a competing hostile bid from Paramount Skydance for the entire company.

Warner Bros. Discovery slipped 1.1%, while Paramount Skydance fell 4.4%.

Also on the losing end of Wall Street was Lennar, which sank 3.2% following a mixed profit report. The homebuilder delivered a weaker profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected, though its revenue topped expectations.

Executive Chairman Stuart Miller also said that conditions remain challenging for the industry, with customers feeling less confident while looking for discounts and more affordable options. As a result, the company gave limited forecasts for its upcoming financial performance.

Several steel makers were also under pressure after giving profit forecasts for the end of 2025 that fell below analysts’ expectations.

Nucor slipped 1.6% after the Charlotte, North Carolina-based company said it expects earnings to fall across all three of its operating units from summertime levels. Steel Dynamics of Fort Wayne, Indiana, fell 0.9% after saying it’s selling steel at lower prices than during the summer, among other factors.

In the bond market, Treasury yields ticked higher ahead of a report coming on Thursday that will show how bad inflation has been for U.S. consumers.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury edged up to 4.16% from 4.15% late Tuesday.

In stock markets abroad, indexes were mixed in Europe following a stronger finish in Asia.

South Korea’s Kospi leaped 1.4% for one of the world’s bigger gains to shave its loss for the week so far down to 2.7%.

AP Business Writer Elaine Kurtenbach contributed.

Dilip Patel, right, and Bobby Charmak, left, work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Currency traders work near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), left, at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters, in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

A currency trader watches monitors near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters, in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

A currency trader stands near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), top left, and the foreign exchange rate between U.S. dollar and South Korean won at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters, in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)