Author: AFP

Eurozone inflation falls to nearly two-year low

BRUSSELS: Eurozone inflation fell to an almost two-year low in September, official data showed Friday, raising hopes that the European Central Bank will end its rate-hiking cycle. The ECB has increased rates repeatedly to tame red-hot inflation, but the pain is being felt across the eurozone economy. Consumer prices in

Grief, intimidation a year after Indonesian stadium crush

MALANG (Indonesia): Holding buckets of water, Cholifatul Nur sprinkles flowers planted at her young son’s grave and wipes clean the stone slab where a scarf of his favourite team is draped a year after his death at an Indonesian football stadium. Fifteen-year-old Jovan Farellino was one of 135 people killed

VinFast boss insists share volatility normal

HANOI: The dramatic fluctuation in shares of Vietnamese electric vehicle maker VinFast is “normal”, its chief executive told AFP on Friday, insisting the company was on sound footing despite racking up huge losses. Shares in the communist state’s first home-grown car manufacturer have veered wildly since it listed on the

Heavy rains flood New York, subway partly paralysed

NEW YORK: Heavy rains overnight in the northeastern United States left parts of New York under water on Friday, partially paralysing subways and airports in America’s financial capital. LaGuardia airport closed down one of its terminals, with social media images showing passengers walking through water well above the tops of

Philippine security guards adopt stray cats

MANILA: A cat wearing a black-and-yellow security vest strolls nonchalantly past security guards lined outside a Philippine office building waiting to receive instructions for their shift. Conan, a six-month-old stray, joined the security team of the Worldwide Corporate Centre in the capital Manila several months ago. He is one of

Indonesians resist eviction for China-backed project

REMPANG, Indonesia: Sitting on a creaky bridge linking stilt houses, Indonesian fisherman Sadam Husen fears for his people and their traditions, knowing they may be uprooted from their ancestral land to make way for a China-funded megaproject worth billions. The Indonesian government recently told Rempang island’s 7,500 residents to pack

Indonesia bans sales on social media platforms

JAKARTA: Indonesia has banned goods transactions on social media platforms in a new regulation, its trade minister said yesterday, as Jakarta aims to rein in direct sales on major platforms it says are harming millions of small businesses. Calls had grown in recent months for a regulation governing social media

Apple tells US court Google is best in search

WASHINGTON: A top executive at Apple said Tuesday he believed that Google’s search engine was the best product for its customers as he took the stand at a landmark antitrust trial. Google is facing prosecution by the US Justice Department on grounds that it illegally used its dominant position in

Filipino fisherman chased by China coast guard in disputed waters

SOUTH CHINA SEA, (Philippines): Filipino fisherman Arnel Satam guns the motor of his tiny wooden boat as he makes a dash for the shallow waters of Scarborough Shoal in the disputed South China Sea, with Chinese coast guard speedboats in hot pursuit. In a high-seas chase lasting several minutes, Satam

Thousands rally against police violence in France

PARIS: Tens of thousands of people marched in France Saturday to protest police violence in demonstrations organised by the left, with clashes breaking out on the margins of the Paris rally. The nationwide protest came just under three months after the point-blank-range killing by a policeman of a youth at