LONDON (AP) — Chris Rea, the singer and songwriter best known for the hit “Driving Home for Christmas,” has died at 74, his family said Monday.
Rea died in the hospital following a short illness, according to a statement from his family to Britain's Press Association news agency.
Rea found fame in the 1980s in Britain with hits such as “Fool (If You Think It’s Over)” and “Let’s Dance.”
Two of his studio albums, “The Road to Hell” in 1989 and “Auberge” in 1991, went to number one in the country.
“Driving Home for Christmas,” did not become an overnight hit when it was first released in 1986, but the gentle track proved to be an enduring success over the decades and remains one of the U.K.'s most-loved festive songs. It featured in a TV advertisement for the retailer Marks and Spencer just this year.
The musician was born in 1951 in Middlesbrough, in northeast England, to an Italian father and Irish mother. He took various jobs after leaving school and helped out in his family's ice cream business.
He came late to the guitar, picking one up at 21, and played in bands before going solo.
He had suffered from health problems including pancreatic cancer, and in 2016 he suffered a stroke. In more recent years he turned away from pop and released several bluesy records.
Rea is survived by his wife and two daughters.
FILE - Chris Rea arrives at the Odeon Leicester Square for the opening of the London Film Festival, Nov. 7, 1996. (Michael Stephens/PA via AP, File)
FILE - British rock musician Chris Rea performs during his first German concert of "The Return of the Fabulous Bluenotes" tour in Munich, Germany, on Feb. 7, 2008. (AP Photo/Christof Stache, File)
NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks rose in morning trading on Wall Street Monday at the start of what’s expected to be a quiet holiday week.
The S&P 500 rose 0.5% and is just below the all-time high it set earlier this month. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 210 points, or 0.4%, as of 10:47 a.m. Eastern time. The Nasdaq composite climbed 0.4%.
The broader market eked out a slight gain last week in what has been a choppy month. Technology companies, especially those focused on artificial intelligence, have been the main force behind the market's oscillations. The direction of AI-related stocks will likely determine whether the market closes out December with gains or losses.
“If a Santa Claus rally does kick in this year, St. Nick’s gift bag will likely need to be full of positive tech sentiment,” wrote Chris Larkin, managing director of trading and investing at E-Trade from Morgan Stanley.
The gains on Monday were broad, with technology companies and banks leading the way. JPMorgan Chase rose 1% and Nvidia rose 1.3%.
Uber rose 2.8% and Lyft rose 4.2% after announcing plans to bring robotaxi services to London next year.
Gold and silver touched records and oil prices jumped after the U.S. Coast Guard said it was pursuing another sanctioned oil tanker in the Caribbean.
Gold prices rose 1.7% and are hovering around $4,460 per ounce, adding to their consistent gains throughout the year. Silver prices were up about 1.9%.
Crude oil prices in the U.S. rose 2.2% and prices for Brent crude oil, the international standard, rose 2.2%.
Treasury yields edged higher in the bond market. The yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 4.17% from 4.15% late Friday.
Markets in Asia gained ground while markets in Europe slipped.
Markets in the U.S. will close early on Wednesday for Christmas Eve and remain closed on Thursday for Christmas. The short week for trading includes several economic reports that could shed more light on the condition and direction of the U.S. economy.
On Tuesday, the government releases the first of three estimates on gross domestic product, a reflection of how the broader U.S. economy fared in the third quarter. On Wednesday, the Labor Department will release its weekly data on applications for jobless benefits, which stands as a proxy for U.S. layoffs.
The Conference Board offers up results from its December consumer confidence survey on Tuesday as well.
The upcoming reports follow a mix of updates last week that show inflation remains elevated and consumer confidence has diminished over the last year. Overall, the job market has been slowing and retail sales have weakened.
The ongoing and wide-ranging U.S. trade war has been hanging over consumers and businesses already squeezed and worried by higher prices. The mix of stubbornly high inflation and a weaker jobs market has also put the Federal Reserve in a more difficult policy position moving forward.
The Fed has cut its benchmark interest rate at its last three meetings, despite inflation that has remained stubbornly above its 2% target. Fed officials have grown increasingly concerned about the slowing job market, pushing them to trim rates. Cutting interest rates to bolster the economy because of a weak job market could fuel inflation, however.
Wall Street is mostly betting that the Fed will hold steady on interest rates at its meeting in January.
Elaine Kurtenbach and Matt Ott contributed to this story.
James Denaro works on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
Trader Jonathan Mueller works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Thursday, Dec. 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
Trader William Lawrence works on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Thursday, Dec. 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
A person looks at an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm Monday, Dec. 22, 2025, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
People stand in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm Monday, Dec. 22, 2025, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
A person stands in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm Monday, Dec. 22, 2025, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
A person walks in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei index at a securities firm Monday, Dec. 22, 2025, in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)
