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BRUSSELS, Jan 9, 2024 (AFP) – The European Union’s competition regulator said Tuesday it was looking into Microsoft’s investment into ChatGPT developer OpenAI to see if it merits further investigation under the bloc’s merger rules. The European Commission said in a statement it was “checking whether Microsoft’s investment in OpenAI might be reviewable under the EU Merger Regulation”. The move is part of efforts by Brussels to make sure its oversight can catch up with […]
By John BIERS NEW YORK, Jan 9, 2024 (AFP) – United and Alaska Airlines both reported on Monday that loose hardware had been discovered on some of their Boeing 737 MAX 9 planes during preliminary inspections after a dramatic mid-flight incident last week. The disclosures come as US federal transportation inspectors probe what caused a so-called door plug component to blow out last Friday on an Alaska Airlines passenger plane, forcing it to make an […]
By Bhuvan BAGGA NEW DELHI, Jan 5, 2024 (AFP) – India’s navy said Friday it had rescued 21 crew members from a vessel in the Arabian Sea after a hijacking distress call, the latest attack on commercial shipping in the region. Last month the force deployed several warships into the sea to “maintain a deterrent presence” after a string of recent shipping attacks, including a drone strike near India’s coast which the United States has […]
By Antoine GUY, with Emeline Burckel in London PARIS, Jan 5, 2024 (AFP) – International maritime trade has hit stormy waters as attacks by Yemen’s Huthi rebels on ships in the Red Sea has reduced the availability of ships, causing freight rates to surge. Most large international shipping companies have decided to reroute trading to avoid the Red Sea and Suez Canal through which 12 percent of world trade usually passes. The Huthis say the […]
KATHMANDU, Jan 4, 2024 (AFP) – Nepal signed a deal with India on Thursday for the Himalayan republic to export 10,000 megawatts of hydroelectricity over the next decade to its energy-hungry neighbour. More than four in five Nepalis did not have access to electricity in 2000, according to the International Energy Agency, but a dam building spree in the years since has helped connect nearly all of its 30 million people to the grid. It […]
BEIJING, Jan 5, 2024 (AFP) – Tesla is recalling more than 1.6 million electric vehicles in China, the country’s market regulator said Friday, owing to software issues that could pose safety risks while driving. The recall — sparked by the discovery of problems with assisted driving functions and door-locking systems — will be conducted through remote ‘over-the-air’ (OTA) updates to the cars’ software. China is a vital component in US-based Tesla’s global layout, both as […]
BUENOS AIRES, Jan 4, 2024 (AFP) – Argentine judges on Wednesday suspended labor law changes that form part of a mega-decree of sweeping economic reforms and deregulation announced by the country’s libertarian new president, Javier Milei. The CGT trade union body had challenged the changes, which technically took effect last Friday, on grounds that they erode basic worker protections such as the right to strike and parental leave. The three judges of Argentina’s labor appeals […]
TOKYO, Jan 4, 2024 (AFP) – Tokyo stocks opened sharply lower Thursday, the first trading day of 2024, playing catch-up with falls of US shares. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index dropped 1.93 percent, or 646.30 points, to 33,817.87 in early trade, while the broader Topix index fell 1.24 percent, or 29.25 points, to 2,337.14. After closing 2023 on Friday, the Tokyo market reopened after its New Year break, during which the US market marked two […]
COPENHAGEN, Jan 2, 2024 (AFP) – Shipping giant Maersk said on Tuesday it would not resume passage through a key Red Sea strait “until further notice,” after Yemeni rebels attacked one of its merchant ships. “We have decided to pause all transits through the Red Sea/Gulf of Aden until further notice,” Maersk said in a statement. “In cases where it makes most sense for our customers, vessels will be rerouted and continue their journey around […]
LONDON, Jan 3, 2024 (AFP) – Hospital doctors in England on Wednesday began their longest consecutive strike in the seven-decade history of Britain’s National Service (NHS). Junior doctors — those below consultant level — started a six-day walkout at 0700 GMT, in a major escalation of their long-running pay dispute with the UK government. The industrial action, which ends next Tuesday, comes at one of the busiest times of the year for the state-funded NHS, […]
By Matthew WALSH, Oliver HOTHAM BEIJING, Dec 31, 2023 (AFP)– President Xi Jinping said Sunday the Chinese economy had grown “more resilient and dynamic” in 2023, despite financial figures continuing to disappoint as the post-Covid recovery stalls. He also promised in a bullish New Year’s address to the nation that China would “surely be reunified” — a reference to the self-ruled island of Taiwan, which Beijing claims as its own and has pledged to seize. […]
By Grégory PLESSE SYDNEY, Dec 30, 2023 (AFP) – Three years after steep Chinese tariffs halted imports of Australian barley as tensions between the two countries ratcheted higher, the grain is once again flowing freely. Barley is not only used to brew beer but to feed pigs, and China was Australia’s leading market, taking 50 percent of its barley exports. China has imported 314,000 tonnes of Australian barley worth 139 million Australian dollars (around $94 […]
