AI tools help choose best embryos, increase success rate for IVF
Paris, France -- Artificial intelligence tools can now help choose the most promising embryos for in vitro fertilisation (IVF), although...
Science
Divided US Fed set for contentious interest rate meeting
When the Fed last met in October, Chair Jerome Powell asserted that another rate cut in December was "not a...
Economy
Business
Chinese firms extend EV range with petrol generators
The generator, known as a range extender, is connected to the cars' batteries and feeds them only when needed. Since...
- This technology grew faster in China last year than any other type of powertrain, the system that propels a vehicle forward.
- More than one million EREVs were sold, representing a total market share of six percent, according to the McKinsey consultancy.
Geostrategy
Saudi Arabia normalizing ties with Israel ‘will happen’: Trump
"Saudi Arabia will go into the Abraham accords," Trump said, referencing the historic agreement struck at the end of his...
- Trump is set to visit Saudi Arabia next month on a Middle East tour that was expected to be his first overseas trip since retaking the White House.
- Trump forged close relations with Riyadh in his first term and is expected to push Saudi Arabia towards normalizing ties with Israel as a major foreign policy objective.
Arts & Culture
Remains of 5,000-year-old noblewoman found in Peru dig
The woman's funerary trousseau, which was presented to reporters at the culture ministry, included a toucan's beak, a stone bowl...
- "What has been discovered corresponds to a woman who apparently had elevated status, an elite woman," archaeologist David Palomino told AFP
- The mummy was found in Aspero, a sacred site within the city of Caral that was a garbage dump for over 30 years until becoming an archaeological site in the 1990s
Economy
IMF, World Bank welcome efforts for Syria to reintegrate globally
Washington, United States - The International Monetary Fund and World Bank's leaders said in a joint statement Thursday that they...
- The statement, issued with Saudi Arabia's finance minister, came as Syria's central bank governor and finance minister attended the IMF and World Bank's spring meetings
- Significant amounts of Syria's infrastructure have been destroyed by 14 years of war, beginning with a crackdown by president Bashar al-Assad on a pro-democracy movement
Geostrategy
Trump confidant Steve Witkoff leads Iran talks amid nuclear tensions, Europe urged to rejoin diplomatic efforts
Witkoff, a businessman friend of Trump who has become his globe-trotting negotiator, last met Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Saturday...
- Witkoff, a businessman friend of Trump who has become his globe-trotting negotiator, last met Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Saturday in Rome
- The State Department announced that Witkoff would himself attend the technical talks to take place Saturday in Oman where he held his first meeting with Araghchi on April 12
Geostrategy
India and Pakistan urged to have ‘maximum restraint’ after Kashmir attack
The United Nations urged India and Pakistan to show "maximum restraint" as the nuclear-armed rivals imposed tit-for-tat diplomatic measures over...
- Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday vowed to hunt down the gunmen responsible for killing 26 civilians at the popular tourist site of Pahalgam
- Denying any involvement, Islamabad called attempts to link Pakistan to the Pahalgam attack "frivolous" and vowed to respond to any Indian action
Geostrategy
Israel military issues evacuation order two north Gaza areas
"To all of the civilians of the Gaza Strip staying in the areas of Beit Hanoun and Sheikh Zayed. This...
- Israel resumed its intense aerial and ground assault across Gaza from March 18, ending a two-month ceasefire with Hamas that had largely halted fighting in the territory.
- Meanwhile, initial probe released by Israeli army said Israeli tank fire killed a UN worker in Gaza last month, after initially denying operating in the area.
Business
European carmakers on China charm offensive as sales droop
Shanghai, China -- Once blithely dominant in China, European automakers are now launching full-fledged charm offensives at consumers in the...
- At this week's Auto Shanghai, the largest global industry show of its kind, foreign firms pitched dozens of electric, high-tech models made "in China for China".
- Volkswagen, the largest foreign automaker operating in the country, announced that by 2027 it would release more than 20 new cars for the local market.
Geostrategy
Lebanon parliament approves changes to banking secrecy law
Beirut, Lebanon -- Lebanon's parliament on Thursday approved amendments to banking secrecy legislation, a key reform demanded by the International...
- The international community has long demanded major fiscal reforms to unlock billions of dollars in aid to restart the Lebanese economy in the wake of a five-year economic collapse
- The crash since 2019 has seen the local currency lose most of its value against the US dollar and has pushed much of the population into poverty.
Business
Nissan forecasts $5.3bn annual net loss
Last year, it announced 9,000 job cuts worldwide.
- One of the top 10 automakers by unit sales, Nissan is heavily in debt, having trouble selling vehicles in the Chinese market.
- In February, the company had projected a much smaller annual net loss of 80 billion yen ($560 million).
AI tools help choose best embryos, increase success rate for IVF
Paris, France -- Artificial intelligence tools can now help choose the most promising embryos for in vitro fertilisation (IVF), although...
Science
Company News
From hotels to high fashion, Armani’s luxury empire
Arts & Culture
Latest News
Netanyahu to meet Trump as Israel faces isolation over Gaza war
The meeting comes days after Trump unveiled a 21-point plan aimed at ending the war in the Palestinian territory during...
Geostrategy
Former France manager Blanc sacked by Saudi side Al Ittihad
Paris, France -- Saudi side Al Ittihad sacked manager Laurent Blanc on Sunday in the wake of a 2-0 defeat...
Geostrategy
New Gaza-bound flotilla sets off from Sicily, EU officials on board
A statement from the Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) and the Thousand Madleens to Gaza (TMTG) said they intended to "break...
Geostrategy

Most Read
Geostrategy
World’s highest bridge opens to traffic in China
Beijing, China -- The world's highest bridge opened to traffic in China on Sunday, state media said, capping an engineering...
- The Huajiang Grand Canyon Bridge towers 625 metres (2,051 feet) above a river and vast gorge in the country's rugged southern province of Guizhou.
- Live drone footage broadcast by state media on Sunday showed vehicles traversing the immense structure, its blue support towers partially engulfed in clouds.
Geostrategy
Faced with Russian threat, NATO flexes military muscle in North Sea
NATO flexed its muscles in the North Sea this week in a display of military might, as Russia allegedly tested...
- F-18 fighter jets lined up on the world's largest aircraft carrier, flanked by 20 ships and with some 10,000 military personnel from 13 countries
- US destroyers and French and Danish frigates escorted the giant USS Gerald R. Ford on the high seas as part of NATO's Neptune Strike 25-3 exercise
Geostrategy
Sweeping UN sanctions loom for Iran after nuclear talks fail
Sweeping UN sanctions loomed for Iran late Saturday for the first time in a decade, after last ditch nuclear talks...
- President Masoud Pezeshkian said the United States had offered Iran only a short reprieve in return for handing over its whole stockpile of enriched uranium
- An 11th-hour effort by Iran allies Russia and China to postpone the sanctions until April failed to win enough votes on the Security Council on Friday

