After fraught Games run-up, Beijing turns to opening ceremony
The Beijing Olympics, wrapped in a bubble against COVID-19 shadowed by a diplomatic boycott over human rights and devoid of most spectators, began on Friday with a return to the ...
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Rotterdam joins Amsterdam in freezing new “dark stores”
The city of Rotterdam is to put a one-year freeze on the introduction of any more “dark stores” – small distribution centres in the city used as hubs for on-demand grocery ...
Britain scrambles $12 billion to soften 54 per cent household energy price blow
Energy prices for millions of Britons will soar from April after a 54 per cent hike to the regulatory price cap, forcing the government to stump up 9 billion pounds ($12 billion) of ...
Meta’s miss creates Big Tech divide: who’s got the data
Uh oh. Big Tech was cut in two on Wednesday, divided between companies that have great data and those that don’t, after Facebook owner Meta Platforms Inc (FB.O) ...
U.S. intelligence: Russia may stage video to create pretext for Ukraine war
Russia has formulated several options as an excuse to invade Ukraine, including the potential use of a propaganda video showing a staged attack, the United States said on Thursday, as ...
Four aides quit amid tumult in UK PM Johnson’s premiership
Four of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s closest aides resigned on Thursday and his finance minister criticised him over a barb he made about the main opposition leader, in ...
Merck sees 2022 sales up nearly 20%, mostly on new Covid pill
Merck & Co said on Thursday it expects its 2022 sales to increase as much as 18 percent over last year, mostly on sales of its new COVID-19 pill, molnupiravir.
The drugmaker ...
Canada will not use troops to deal with truckers’ protest, Trudeau says
The Canadian government has no plans to send in troops to deal with a vaccine mandate protest by truckers that has brought traffic in central Ottawa to a halt, Prime ...
Beijing will deliver ‘safe and splendid’ Olympics, says Xi
The Beijing Olympics, which officially opens on Friday, will be streamlined, safe and splendid, Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Thursday, as the head of the IOC decried boycott ghosts “...
Serbia president praises Djokovic’s ‘great fight’ in Australia
Serbia’s president on Thursday praised tennis star Novak Djokovic’s “great fight” over his bid to play at the Australia Open despite not being vaccinated against COVID-19.
An Australian ...
Historic Dutch bridge to make way for superyacht built for Bezos
The city of Rotterdam has agreed to remove a section of historic bridge in the Netherlands to make way for a superyacht, reportedly built for Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos.
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Turkey’s Erdogan slams Greece after migrants freeze to death near border
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan on Thursday slammed Greece’s stance on migrants after more than a dozen people were found frozen to death this week just inside Turkey’s border.
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US forces kill Islamic State leader in Syria, Biden says
US special forces have killed the leader of the jihadist group Islamic State in a raid in northwest Syria, President Joe Biden said on Thursday.
A senior U.S. administration ...
Bank of England hikes rates in clamour to contain spiralling inflation
The Bank of England raised interest rates to 0.5 per cent on Thursday and nearly half of its policymakers wanted a bigger increase to contain rampant price pressures, as the central ...
Turkish central bank begins distributing 2021 profits to shareholders
Turkey’s central bank said on Thursday it had decided to pay advance dividends from its 2021 accounting period and distribute its reserve fund from 2020 profits to shareholders, including the Treasury.
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NATO: Russia to have 30,000 troops on drills in Belarus, north of Ukraine
NATO said Russia had stepped up deployments to Ukraine’s northern neighbour Belarus in recent days and was expected to have 30,000 troops there for joint military exercises this month.
The ...
Taiwan battery maker ProLogium signs investment deal with Mercedes-Benz
Taiwanese battery maker ProLogium Technology Co on Thursday said it has signed a cooperation agreement with Daimler AG’s (DAIGn.DE) Mercedes-Benz to build test vehicles equipped with co-developed solid-state ...
Lebanon’s savers to bear burden under new rescue plan
Two years into an economic meltdown the World Bank says is one of the worst recorded, Lebanon’s rulers have proposed a way to plug a huge hole in the ...
US Army begins discharging soldiers who refuse Covid vaccine
US soldiers who refuse to get a COVID-19 vaccine will be immediately discharged, the US Army said on Wednesday, saying the move was critical to maintain combat readiness
The Army’...
Former heavyweight champion Klitschko enlists in Ukraine’s reserve army
Former heavyweight boxing champion Wladimir Klitschko enlisted in Ukraine’s reserve army in Kyiv on Wednesday, saying that love for his country compelled him to defend it.
Ukraine has been ...
N.Ireland first minister may quit as EU warns Britain over Brexit checks
Northern Ireland’s first minister intends to resign later on Thursday in protest at post-Brexit trade rules, the BBC reported as the European Union warned Britain that it would breach ...
Sweden to lift pandemic restrictions next week
Sweden will lift pandemic restrictions next week despite record levels of infections as it banks on booster shots and high rates of past COVID-19 infections to keep hospitalisation rates manageable.
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EU’s border-free Schengen Area needs overhaul, political leadership – Macron
The European Union’s border-free Schengen Area should be managed by regular ministerial meetings just like the eurozone, French President Emmanuel Macron said in comments backed by Germany and the ...
Nadal says 21 Grand Slams not enough in all-time record race
Australian Open champion Rafa Nadal said he would love to finish his career with more Grand Slam titles than rivals Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic but thinks he will have ...