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PARIS – Far-right leader Marine Le Pen believed respect for France’s cherished institutions would open her path to the presidency, betting it would endear her once-fringe party to mainstream French voters. She launched the tactic after a resounding 2017 election…
AMSTERDAM – A weekend hackathon in Amsterdam aimed at finding fast-and-cheap battlefield solutions for Ukraine drew more than 100 young programmers and engineers, with many saying Europe’s rearmament plans were prompting them to consider careers in defence. European countries are…
BEIJING – The China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) has discovered an oilfield in the South China Sea with proven reserves exceeding 100 million tonnes, Xinhua news agency reported on Monday. The newly found Huizhou 19-6 oilfield is not in…
TOKYO – Japan Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato said on Monday that he would communicate closely with U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on foreign exchange, pointing out that close dialogue is important for market stability. Kato made the comment to parliament…
SYDNEY – Australia’s mining and energy export earnings are expected to fall 6% in the financial year through June, with prices of its key iron ore shipments declining, the government said on Monday. Profits are forecast fall to A$387 billion…
CAIRO – The leader of Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, said on Sunday that his war against the army was not over and his forces would return to Khartoum despite being largely driven out of the…
An armed resistance movement against Myanmar’s military-run government criticised the junta on Sunday for conducting airstrikes on villages even as the country reels from an earthquake that has killed around 1,700 people. The Karen National Union, one of Myanmar’s oldest…
SEOUL – South Korea will soon submit a 10 trillion won ($6.8 billion) supplementary budget bill to parliament to respond to the fallout from the country’s worst-ever forest fires and counter slumping growth, the finance minister said on Sunday. Choi…
TOKYO – U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Sunday that Japan was indispensable in tackling Chinese aggression by helping Washington establish a “credible” deterrence in the region, including across the Taiwan Strait. “We share a warrior ethos that defines…
HELSINKI – Finland’s President Alexander Stubb said on Sunday he had told U.S. President Donald Trump that a deadline needs to be set for establishing a Ukraine ceasefire in order to make it happen. “April 20 would be a good…
TORONTO -Over 300,000 Canadians faced power outages in parts of Ontario on Sunday as an ice storm pummeled the region over the weekend, according to electricity provider Hydro One. Environment Canada issued winter storm warnings for freezing rain in Ottawa,…
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and U.S. President Donald Trump held productive talks between their respective teams on a UK-U.S. economic prosperity deal, agreeing that these will continue this week, a Downing Street spokesperson said on Sunday.
ANKARA – Swedish journalist Kaj Joakim Medin, who was in Turkey to cover protests against Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu’s arrest, was jailed pending trial on terrorism charges, Turkey’s Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office said on Friday. Medin was detained in…
WELLINGTON- New Zealand’s central bank said on Monday it would undertake an evidence-based review of its capital regime, assessing it against the settings in other countries in a bid to boost competition in the banking sector. “We have heard the…
Moscow and Washington have started talks on joint rare earth metals and other projects in Russia, Russia’s special envoy on international economic and investment cooperation told the Izvestia media outlet in remarks published on Monday. “Rare earth metals are an…
British business confidence held steady this month, matching February’s six-month high and adding to tentative signs of an uptick in the economy in early 2025, a survey showed on Monday. The Lloyds Bank Business Barometer stayed at 49% in March,…
LONDON – UK job vacancies saw the fastest month-on-month growth in three years in February, according to data published on Monday that contrasted with a largely gloomy outlook for the economy. Job search company Adzuna said the 3.7% increase from…
SEOUL – South Korea’s factory output rose in February, government data showed on Monday, beating market expectations. Industrial production rose 1.0% in February from a month earlier on a seasonally adjusted basis, compared with a dip of 2.8% in January…
Australia’s Domain Holdings said on Monday it has granted CoStar exclusive due diligence access for the U.S. property data group’s revised buyout proposal which values the real estate classifieds firm at A$2.80 billion ($1.76 billion). CoStar sweetened its offer to…
ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE – U.S. President Donald Trump said on Sunday Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy wants to back out of a critical minerals deal, warning the Ukrainian leader would face big problems if he did. “He’s trying to back…
MEXICO CITY – A growing number of Latin American women are choosing not to give birth in a radical departure from the traditional family roles that have long dominated in the region. Latin America and the Caribbean has experienced the…
NEW DELHI -India is considering a proposal to scrap import tax on U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) to boost purchases and help cut the trade surplus with Washington, a key irritant for President Donald Trump, four government and industry sources…
Russia’s leading tanker group Sovcomflot’s saw transportation volumes drop around 16% to 63 million metric tons last year compared to 2023, Russian news agency Interfax reported on Friday, citing the group’s CEO Igor Tonkovidov as saying. The United States and…
TOKYO -Alaska’s governor will brief U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration next week on progress in securing Asian backing for a $44 billion natural gas export project, he told Reuters, part of Washington’s broader push on trade and tariffs. Trump wants…
PARIS -France’s Constitutional Council ruled on Friday that local politicians can be barred from office immediately if convicted of a crime, leaving the door open for far-right leader Marine Le Pen to potentially be barred from the 2027 presidential race….
OTTAWA -Canada plans additional retaliation for U.S. President Donald Trump’s auto tariffs and reciprocal tariffs on U.S. trading partners scheduled for early April. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said on Thursday he had not yet determined what actions Canada might…
BERLIN – European carmakers are trying to work out how much their prices might have to rise in response to looming U.S. import tariffs, industry sources said, fearing any first-movers could risk a backlash from U.S. President Donald Trump. The…
GENEVA -The U.N. Human Rights Office accused Israel on Friday of violating international law by forcibly displacing Palestinians in Gaza under “mandatory evacuation orders”. The Israeli army has issued what the U.N. described as 10 mandatory evacuation orders, covering large…
BERLIN – Germany’s Finance Minister Joerg Kukies warned on Friday that U.S. tariffs would hit both the German and the U.S. economies and that Berlin was working to prevent an escalating trade war. Kukies made the statement to Reuters after…
SINGAPORE -A powerful earthquake of magnitude 7.7 centred in the Sagaing region near the Myanmar city of Mandalay caused extensive damage in that country and also shook neighbouring Thailand on Friday. HOW VULNERABLE IS MYANMAR TO EARTHQUAKES? Myanmar lies on…