AFP news

The OECD raised its 2024 world economic growth forecast Monday but warned that the Middle East conflict posed a risk, with disruptions in Red Sea shipping threatening to increase consumer prices.

Turkey's annual inflation rate stayed stable in January at nearly 65 percent, but month-on-month consumer price increases jumped sharply following a huge minimum wage hike, official data showed Monday.

A South Korean court acquitted Samsung Electronics chief Lee Jae-yong on Monday of a raft of crimes linked to a controversial 2015 merger, Lee's lawyers said.

Her name is ubiquitous, her output prolific, her tour a golden goose, her every move a headline.

US senators on Sunday released the text of a much-anticipated deal that would unlock billions in new aid for Ukraine and Israel while tightening US border laws, but the top House Republican quickly vowed to shoot it down.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken headed to the Middle East for another crisis tour on Monday in a bid to secure a new truce in the Israel-Hamas war, as southern Gaza saw no let-up in fighting.

The 2024 White House race faces the prospect of a firehose of AI-enabled disinformation, with a robocall impersonating US President Joe Biden already stoking particular alarm about audio deepfakes.

The 2026 World Cup final will be held at MetLife Stadium in New York/New Jersey, organisers FIFA announced on Sunday.

The death toll from central Chile's blazing wildfires climbed to at least 112 people on Sunday, after President Gabriel Boric warned the number would rise "significantly" as teams search gutted neighborhoods.

Arsenal rekindled their bid for a first Premier League title in 20 years by beating leaders Liverpool 3-1 at the Emirates as Chelsea succumbed to another embarrassing defeat, 4-2 at home to Wolves, on Sunday.

Yemen's Houthis said Sunday US and British air strikes "will not deter us" and vowed a response after dozens of targets were hit in retaliation for the Iran-backed rebels' repeated Red Sea attacks.

On Thursday, it was announced that after chasing an elusive eighth title with Mercedes this coming season, Hamilton would be leaving the team to join Ferrari in 2025.

The US Federal Reserve, the European Central Bank (ECB) and others have held interest rates elevated in recent months in an attempt to bring inflation back down toward target, following a post-pandemic surge in prices.

Chuck Schumer, the Democratic leader of the upper chamber of Congress, said an initial vote on the bipartisan bill would take place on Wednesday at the latest -- although its prospects for being signed into law look vanishingly small.

The move comes as President Joe Biden pushes to rein in health care costs ahead of November's election. The negotiation program came on the back of Biden's landmark Inflation Reduction Act, a major package of energy transition policy and social reforms.

Meta and Amazon on Thursday blew through expectations in their latest quarterly results as Big Tech continued to impress Wall Street.

The iPhone maker reported revenue was up slightly from the same quarter a year earlier, as money brought in from services and digital content set a new record. But worries surrounding the China market cast a pall on the news.

Vision Pro's release by the world's most iconic device maker is a major milestone for the lovers of virtual or augmented reality, who see the technology as the next chapter in online life after the smartphone.

In recent weeks, Kim has declared South Korea his country's "principal enemy", jettisoned agencies dedicated to reunification and outreach, and threatened war over "even 0.001 mm" of territorial infringement.

Ukraine dragged Russia before the International Court of Justice only a few days after the invasion, seeking to battle its belligerent neighbor on all fronts, legal as well as diplomatic and military.

Opposition legislators stormed out of the building at one point to observe and denounce the police action, but later went back inside to take their seats and the debate resumed until past midnight.

The humanitarian crisis and the mounting civilian death toll have triggered growing international calls for a ceasefire. Qatar's foreign ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari said there were hopes of "good news" about a fresh pause to the fighting "in the next couple of weeks".

Firefighters managed to bring the blaze under control by around 9:00 am (0600 GMT), more than nine hours after it erupted, according to an AFP journalist at the scene.

But if Labor defeats the governing Conservatives by a majority at this year's nationwide vote, its leader Keir Starmer will replace Rishi Sunak inside 10 Downing Street within hours.

The world's second-largest economy last year saw some of its slowest growth in decades, as a debt crisis in the property sector added to geopolitical tensions and weakening global demand.

A proposal to free the hostages in exchange for a pause in Israel's offensive in the Palestinian territory is being studied by Hamas leaders after it was thrashed out by Israel, Qatar, Egypt and the United States.

The Verdi services trade union called on more than 90,000 workers at over 130 local companies operating buses, trams and underground services to join the walkout in an escalating dispute over pay and working conditions.

At Sunday's gala, seven of eight of nominees in the Album and Record of the Year categories are women or gender fluid, among them Taylor Swift, SZA and Olivia Rodrigo -- a sea change many industry watchers see as long overdue.

Facebook became a venue for connecting with just about anyone, anywhere and by 2023 reported being used by more than 3 billion people monthly -- a three percent growth over the previous year.