Malaysia
Malaysia
New Caledonia's fiercely divided political parties on Thursday reached a deal on the sale of a key nickel mine which sparked a collapse of the French territory's government and threatened to cloud a third independence vote set for next year.
Amazon has opened a cashier-free supermarket in London, its first bricks and mortar expansion outside the U.S. as the company bets on strong demand for its contactless shops. The online retailing giant opened the doors to its Amazon Fresh shop in West London's Ealing neighborhood on Thursday, in what it said will be the first in a wave of shops in the British capital using its automated checkout technology. Purchases are charged to an Amazon account after leaving and a receipt sent by email.
Prince Harry's wife Meghan has accused Buckingham Palace of "perpetuating falsehoods" about her and her husband, saying the royal couple would not be silent in telling their story.Her comments were released as part of the latest teaser ahead of the couple's much anticipated interview with American talk show host Oprah Winfrey, due to be broadcast on U.S. television this Sunday.The clip dropped just hours after Buckingham Palace said it was "very concerned" about reports in Britain’s Times newspaper alleging that Meghan had bullied assistants working for her two years ago.Harry and Meghan issued a statement denying that she had bullied anyone.This latest Oprah interview clip shows Meghan being asked "How do you feel about the Palace hearing you speak your truth today?"Referring to the Royal family as ‘The Firm’ she replies by saying "I don't know how they could expect that after all of this time we would still just be silent, if there is an active role that The Firm is playing in perpetuating falsehoods about us."Michelle Tauber is the senior royals editor for People magazine.''I think that after this interview airs, many people are going to wonder why the royal family couldn't make this work. (...) 'The monarchy failed in terms of there was a golden opportunity to modernize with this couple and it didn't happen. They lost. They lost what could have been.''Oprah's interview was recorded before The Times newspaper ran a report citing unnamed sources saying an aide to Harry and Meghan had raised a complaint in October 2018, alleging that Meghan had reduced some assistants to tears and treated others so badly that they had quit.The paper said Harry had urged the aide, who has now left their staff, to drop the complaint, and it never progressed.Reuters could not independently verify the report.
Yet preparations for NEOM, the $500 billion signature project in Prince Mohammed bin Salman's drive to diversify Saudi Arabia's economy, are well underway. The organisation behind the development, expected to be close to the size of Belgium when it is completed, will hire 700 people this year, according to Simon Ainslie, the venture's chief operating officer. While NEOM is being sold as a vision of a brighter future, international investors have yet to bite.
Stock markets retreated Thursday, with the heaviest losses in Asia, as rising inflation fears offset optimism about the re-opening of virus-hit economies, traders said.
A New Zealand man is facing criminal charges after allegedly posting online threats against two Christchurch mosques that were the sites of a terrorist attack that left 51 people dead. Police on Thursday arrested the 27-year-old man and charged him with threatening to kill. Police Superintendent John Price told reporters the threats were made earlier this week on the website 4chan, which has been used as a forum in the past by white supremacists.
Heading into Israel's fourth election in two years, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is hoping the success of his government's COVID-19 vaccination programme will also serve as a political lifeline. But with opinion polls predicting no clear winner in the March 23 ballot and challengers on Netanyahu's right poised to siphon some of his traditional supporters, it is not clear if his strategy will pay off. "We are the only ones who can succeed (in emerging from the pandemic) because I brought millions of vaccine doses," Netanyahu said in an interview with Israel's Channel 13 TV last week.
Mount Etna continued to erupt on March 4, sending a large plume of smoke and ash into the sky, as this timelapse video shows.Local resident Meagan Huddleston captured this footage on Thursday morning. “I never thought I would be so at peace watching a volcano erupt,” she said on Instagram.The volcano, Europe’s most active, has been intermittently erupting since February 16. INGV, Italy’s national volcanology institute, reported Strombolian activity and a lava overflow at Etna from the early hours of March 4. Credit: Meagan Huddleston via Storyful
Coronavirus pushed this week's Berlin film festival entirely online, as the industry grapples with new realities and directors harness the drama of the the pandemic.
The OPEC group of oil producers and its allies meet Thursday with all eyes on whether powerhouses Russia and Saudi Arabia can agree on output levels following a rebound in demand and prices.
Brazil's second biggest city of Rio de Janeiro will be the latest to adopt new COVID-related restrictions on Friday, including a night curfew, in a bid to slow a deadly second wave that is ravaging the South American country. While COVID-19 deaths and infections are falling globally, that is not the case in Brazil, where a record 1,910 people died from the virus on Wednesday. In response, various states and cities have adopted new restrictions on commerce in recent days, including the Federal District, home of capital Brasilia, and Sao Paulo state, Brazil's most populous.
Hungary announced new COVID-19 lockdown measures on Thursday to try to curb a "very strong" third wave of the pandemic, closing most shops and shifting to remote learning in primary schools. With new cases hitting a three-month daily high of 6,278 on Thursday, mainly because of the spreading coronavirus variant first found in Britain, Prime Minister Viktor Orban faces a growing political challenge. Orban, who faces an election battle early next year, had kept shops and industries open to try to limit the economic effects of the pandemic, which caused a 5% recession last year.
The United Nations human rights chief called on Myanmar's security forces on Thursday to halt their "vicious crackdown on peaceful protesters" and urged the military to release people unlawfully detained since the Feb. 1 coup. Michelle Bachelet said that more than 1,700 people have been arbitrarily detained and that arrests were escalating. At least 54 people have been killed by Myanmar police and soldiers since the coup, but the actual death toll could be much higher, she said in a statement, citing figures her office has been able to verify.
The European Union is planning to extend its export authorisation scheme for COVID-19 vaccines to the end of June, two EU sources told Reuters on Thursday, in a move that could reignite tensions with countries who rely on shots made in the EU. The mechanism was set up at the end of January as a reaction to vaccine makers' announcements of delays in the deliveries of COVID-19 vaccines to the EU. It is due to expire at the end of March, but the European Commission wants to extend it through June, the two officials said.
Chelsea's Timo Werner said his recent goal drought was unlike any he had experienced in his career but the Germany striker is hoping to soon start firing on all cylinders in his maiden Premier League season. Werner has scored five league goals in 25 matches since signing from Bundesliga club RB Leipzig for around 50 million euros ($60.23 million) in the close season. The 24-year-old failed to score for 14 consecutive league games between November and February before finding the net in the 2-0 victory against Newcastle United this month.
A woman in Queensland, Australia, got the shock of her life after discovering a deadly snake in her bathroom on March 1.Footage posted on the Sunshine Coast Snake Catchers 24/7 Facebook page shows how “bathroom scales” took on a whole new meaning, with catcher Stuart McKenzie removing a baby brown snake from the device.“This is certainly not the surprise you need when you walk into your en suite bathroom,” Stuart McKenzie wrote on Facebook.“It’s lucky the lady at the home in Mt Coolum saw this baby brown snake going under the bathroom scales. The lady was a real character and very funny but as you could tell she was a little nervous.” Credit: Sunshine Coast Snake Catchers 24/7 via Storyful
Leading Korean entertainment conglomerate CJ ENM is to break the theatrical window in the world’s fourth largest movie market with a simultaneous cinema and streaming release for “Seobok,” one of the year’s hottest Korean movies. The group said that it will distribute the sci-fi actioner in theaters on April 15 and also make it available […]
Hardy scored a fine solo try with a quick ‘tap-and-go’ from a penalty that caught the English side unawares, but he limped out shortly afterwards to be replaced by Gareth Davies. Wales are hoping to have Tomos Williams fit to face Italy after he suffered a hamstring injury against Ireland in the opening game of the competition. Coach Wayne Pivac has also released loose-forward Aaron Wainwright (Dragons) and centre Owen Watkin (Ospreys) for club action this weekend, but they will link back up with the squad on Monday, the Welsh Rugby Union said.
Have we been using the jagged edge on the foil box wrong this entire time?
Worries about lofty U.S. bond yields hit global shares on Thursday (March 4).The MSCI world equity index, which tracks shares in 49 countries, lost 0.5%.That was its third straight day of losses.Japan's Nikkei fell over 2% - hitting its lowest level in nearly a month.Investors are awaiting news from U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome PowellAnd hoping he will address concerns about a rapid rise in long-term borrowing costs.10-year U.S. Treasury yields - seen as the benchmark for such costs - have reached one year highs of late.That's on bets a strong economic recovery aided by government stimulus could fuel inflation.Meanwhile, one European Central Bank policymaker said the recent rise in euro zone borrowing costs may reflect rising growth and inflation prospects there.A three-day rally in European stocks was clipped in morning trade.The renewed jump in U.S. bond yields hit risk appetite there too.The pan-European STOXX 600 index fell over half a percent by mid morning.With miners particularly hard hit.UK-listed shares of Rio Tinto and BHP shed 5.9% and 5% respectively, after their Australia-listed stocks were hit by ex-dividend trading.Technology stocks, the driver of the market's rebound also fell.