Breaking News, Latest Philippines Headlines, World, Entertainment, Politics, Weather & Video News
by Nina LARSON Agence France Presse GENEVA, Switzerland (AFP) — The World Trade Organization chief announced Thursday he will step down on August 31, a year before his term ends, despite the COVID-19 pandemic ravaging the global economy. Roberto Azevedo said it had been a “personal decision” reached with his family, and stressed that he was not leaving to pursue “political opportunities”. “This is a decision that I do not take lightly,” Azevedo told […]
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AFP) — Energy giant Saudi Aramco on Tuesday reported a 25 percent slump in first-quarter net profits due to low oil prices, saying the coronavirus crisis will dampen demand and full-year earnings. The world’s largest listed firm posted a net profit of 62.5 billion riyals ($16.66 billion) in the three months to March, compared to $22.2 billion a year earlier. The company said the drop in earnings mostly reflected a decline in […]
by Heather SCOTT Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — With shops and factories closed nationwide due to the coronavirus pandemic, nearly all of the jobs created in the US economy in the last decade were wiped out in a single month. An unprecedented 20.5 million jobs were destroyed in April in the world’s largest economy, the biggest amount ever recorded, the Labor Department said in a report released Friday, the first to capture […]
FRANKFUTR AM MAIN, Germany (AFP) — German airline giant Lufthansa said Friday it will fly twice as many aircraft in June as in recent weeks and return to some European destinations, but the flight plan remains a shadow of pre-coronavirus operations. Spots beloved of holidaymakers like Spanish island Mallorca, Crete and German North Sea retreat Sylt will return to the timetable, with 160 aircraft aloft bearing Lufthansa’s crane or the logos of subsidiaries Swiss […]
by Leila MACOR Agence France Presse The cruise industry has taken a beating during the coronavirus crisis — on-board outbreaks, refusal of port access and now no clear idea of when ships can sail once again. While the passengers have headed home, the journey drags on for tens of thousands of crew members who are stranded at sea aboard their vessels, with no end in sight. Many are no longer being paid because […]
HONG KONG, China (AFP) — Asian markets dropped Thursday as the economic reality of the coronavirus crisis became even starker, and China-US relations soured, overshadowing recent optimism over the easing of lockdown measures. With countries from Asia-Pacific to Europe and US states reopening their shattered economies, global equities have enjoyed a strong revival after crashing in March, with oil also getting much-needed support from hopes for a pick-up in demand. But a slew of […]
(Eagle News) – The Philippine government has maintained its BBB+ credit rating despite the COVID-19 crisis. President Rodrigo Duterte himself announced the good news in his latest address to the nation, as he noted how the country maintained its good economic image amid the crisis and despite the recession of other economies. The 75-year old Philippine leader credited this to the early lockdown that the Philippine government had imposed. “I am happy to report […]
WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US businesses hit by the coronavirus are reporting declines in sales and investment for the first time since the 2008 global financial crisis, according to a survey released Monday. And it is uncertain when conditions will improve, with about 30 percent of respondents saying it will take as long as three to six months, while others expected improvement in five to eight weeks, the National Association for Business Economics […]
TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — The Bank of Japan on Monday ramped up its emergency monetary easing, lifting the cap on its buying of government bonds and increasing purchases of other assets while cutting its growth forecasts. After a meeting shortened from two days to one, the central bank said it would shift to unlimited government bond-buying and more than double its capacity to purchase corporate bonds and commercial papers — a move to support Japan […]
SYDNEY, Australia (AFP) — Australia said Wednesday it will take advantage of record low oil prices to develop a long-needed strategic oil reserve, which will be located in the United States. With global demand for oil slowing to a trickle owing to worldwide virus lockdowns, crude prices turning negative and storage facilities bursting at the seams, Energy Minister Angus Taylor said it was time to act. Australia has long had one of the lowest levels […]
by Michael Mathes Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — The US Senate approved a bipartisan, nearly half-trillion-dollar coronavirus relief package Tuesday, with funding earmarked for devastated small businesses, overwhelmed hospitals, and a ramp-up of testing nationwide during the pandemic. The essential job-saving measure, which passed by unanimous consent after more than a week of negotiations between Democrats, Republicans and the White House, now heads to the House of Representatives where a vote […]
by Glenn CHAPMAN Agence France Presse SAN FRANCISCO, United States (AFP) — Netflix on Tuesday reported soaring profits as subscriptions surged by almost 16 million at the streaming television service during lockdowns to slow the spread of the coronavirus pandemic. “After record subscriber additions, Netflix is and will continue to be the media company least impacted by COVID-19,” said eMarketer forecasting analyst Eric Haggstrom. “Their business is a near-perfect fit to a population that is […]
