PARIS – Sales of French wine and spirits are expected to slide at least 20% after U.S. President Donald Trump announced global tariffs, Gabriel Picard, chairman of French wine and spirits exporters industry group FEVS said on BFM TV on…

CAIRO  – Hamas decided not to respond or engage with Israel’s counter-proposal for a ceasefire in Gaza, an official told Reuters on Wednesday, affirming it is committed to the mediators’ plan instead. Israel said on March 29 it conveyed to…

UNITED NATIONS – The United Nations on Tuesday dismissed as “ridiculous” an assertion by Israel that there was enough food in the Gaza Strip to last for a long period of time, despite the closure of all 25 bakeries in…

BRUSSELS -Automakers are set to get three years, rather than one, to comply with the EU’s 2025 CO2 emissions targets for cars and vans under a proposal to soften the rules, published by the European Commission on Tuesday. European car…

JERUSALEM – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has withdrawn his nomination of former navy chief Eli Sharvit to lead the domestic intelligence agency Shin Bet only a day after making it, a statement from his office said on Tuesday. Netanyahu…

Relations between Iran and the United States – once strong allies – have often been mistrustful and sometimes openly hostile since Iran’s 1979 revolution. Here are some key dates: 1953 – The U.S. Central Intelligence Agency helps orchestrate the overthrow…

More than 50% of Ukrainians are critical of U.S. President Donald Trump’s peace efforts, fearing they are likely to lead to a partly unjust or completely unfair end to Russia’s war on their country, a Ukrainian pollster said on Tuesday….

CAIRO – A Gaza family’s open admission this week that they killed an officer from the Hamas-run police force after they said a relative was shot dead has added to signs of popular dissent against the militant group after 18…

MEXICO CITY – Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said on Wednesday that Mexico doesn’t plan to impose retaliatory tariffs on the United States, ahead of President Donald Trump’s announcement of plans to impose new tariffs. Sheinbaum added that Mexico will on…

WASHINGTON – The Trump administration is considering revoking tariff exemptions for low-value shipments from China as part of Wednesday’s tariff announcement, a source familiar with the plans said. The decision would reinstate U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision in February to…

TOKYO – Japan’s jobless rate in February fell to 2.4% from 2.5% in January, government data showed on Tuesday. Economists’ median forecast was for 2.5%. The jobs-to-applicants ratio also dipped to 1.24 in February from 1.26 in January. The median…

Russia and the United States have taken the first step toward normalizing relations, which inspire optimism, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told Russia’s RIA state news agency in remarks published on Tuesday. “Russia and the United States have taken the…

WASHINGTON – U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday that French far-right leader Marine Le Pen’s conviction and resulting prohibition from running in the 2027 presidential election was a “very big deal.” A French court on Monday barred Le Pen…

WASHINGTON -U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Monday the United States imposed additional visa restrictions on Chinese officials involved in policies on access for foreigners to Tibetan areas. “For far too long, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has…

BEIJING – China’s military on Tuesday announced it was conducting joint army, naval and rocket force exercises around Taiwan in a statement on the Eastern Theater Command’s official WeChat social media account. “These drills mainly focus on sea-air combat-readiness patrols…

MOSCOW – The Kremlin said on Monday, after U.S. President Donald Trump said he was “pissed off” with Vladimir Putin, that the United States and Russia were working on ideas around a possible peace settlement in Ukraine and on building…

NUUK, Greenland – Greenland will strengthen its ties with Denmark until it can become a sovereign nation, the Arctic island’s incoming prime minister told Reuters on Monday, noting that the semi-autonomous Danish territory ultimately wants to become independent. Jens-Frederik Nielsen,…

BUENOS AIRES – Argentina’s mining exports reached a historic high in January and February this year, outdoing the prior record from the same period a decade ago by 13%, the mining ministry reported on Monday. The first two months of…

BOGOTA – Colombia’s central bank held the benchmark interest rate at 9.5% on Monday, surprising the market, which expected policymakers to resume cuts to borrowing costs despite inflation pressures and a difficult fiscal situation. The decision was backed by a…

LONDON – British, French and Ukrainian military leaders will meet in the coming days to discuss the next steps to ensure Ukraine’s security for the long term, a spokesperson for British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Monday. “A meeting…

PARIS – French far-right leader Marine Le Pen said on Monday that a court’s decision to bar her from office for misuse of European funds ruled her out of the 2027 presidential election, adding she had no confidence in an…

MADRID – The Trump administration has warned local suppliers to U.S. embassies and consulates as well as recipients of U.S. grants worldwide that they must comply with its ban on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) programmes or risk losing payments….

MOSCOW – The Kremlin said on Monday that some Americans companies had shown interest in joint rare earth metals projects in Russia, but cautioned that such discussions were still at an early stage. Striking a potential agreement on minerals extraction…

PARIS -Apple was hit with a 150 million euro ($162.4 million) fine by French antitrust regulators on Monday for abusing its dominant position in mobile app advertising on its devices via a privacy control tool. The fine – the first…

COPENHAGEN – Finland’s President Alexander Stubb said on Monday that he had not yet heard from anyone serious in the United States administration that the U.S. would withdraw from NATO. His remarks came shortly after Stubb on Saturday had made…

ROME – High uncertainty, mainly due to U.S. trade policy announcements, means the European Central Bank needs to be cautious in reducing its interest rates, governing council member Fabio Panetta said on Monday. The ECB has cut interest rates six…

STOCKHOLM – Lithuania said on Monday rescuers have recovered the armoured vehicle of four missing U.S. soldiers that last week sunk in a peat bog in a military training area in the Baltic country, not mentioning the soldiers. The defence…

LONDON -Associated British Foods said the boss of its Primark clothing business, Paul Marchant, had resigned with immediate effect following an allegation made by an individual about his behaviour towards her in a social environment. Primark, the successful fast fashion…

European shares fell on Monday, as cautious investors fled risky bets after U.S. President Donald Trump said that tariffs would target all countries, fuelling fears of a global economic slowdown. The pan-European STOXX 600 index fell 1.2%, as of 0709…