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The Naughton coal power plant in Kemmerer, Wyoming. Ministers from the Group of Seven countries have agreed on a schedule for phasing out coal-fired power plants, setting as a goal the mid-2030s.
ENVIRONMENT / Energy
May 1, 2024

G7 to phase out coal-fired power plants by mid-2030s

The move was hailed as significant by some environmentalists but slammed as "too late" by others.
A rickshaw driver drinks water as he rests during ongoing heat-wave in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on Tuesday.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
May 1, 2024

Islamic charitable giving may offer Bangladesh a route to climate adaptation

Global faith-based finance could support poor countries whose needs for funds are 10 to 18 times greater than the financing they currently receive.
Laxman Narasimhan has been CEO of Starbucks for just over a year.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 2, 2024

Sales slump and shares dive at Starbucks as inflation cuts thirst for treats

The global chain expressed confidence in its forecast as recently as November, saying that demand for iced shaken espressos was resilient.
A drone view of three berths able to load vessels with oil is seen after their construction at Westridge Marine Terminal, the terminus of the Canadian government-owned Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada, on April 26.
WORLD / Politics
May 2, 2024

Constraints on Canada's Trans Mountain pipeline may crimp oil exports

After 12 years, a project to nearly triple the crude-oil flow from Alberta to Canada's Pacific Coast began commercial operations, but with setbacks.
A World Anti-Doping Agency logo is seen at the WADA Symposium in Lausanne, Switzerland, on March 12, 2024.
MORE SPORTS
May 2, 2024

USADA slams WADA for making 'half-truths' in China doping case

WADA has been under fire since last month, when the New York Times reported 23 Chinese swimmers tested positive for trimetazidine before the Tokyo Games.
A guide stands next to a CV9040 infantry fighting vehicle and other military hardware at an exhibition displaying equipment captured by the Russian army from Ukrainian forces in the course of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, at the Victory Park open-air museum on Poklonnaya Gora in Moscow on Wednesday
WORLD / Politics
May 2, 2024

Russians who fled war return, in boost for Putin’s war economy

Many Russians are returning to their homeland after finding countries abroad have become less accommodating for them — a gain for the domestic economy.
China's President Xi Jinping speaks at the Senior Chinese Leader Event held on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in San Francisco on Nov. 15, 2023.
WORLD / Politics
May 3, 2024

Xi's trip to Europe may lay bare West's divisions over China strategy

Chinese President Xi Jinping will visit France and pro-Russia nations Serbia and Hungary, which are also large recipients of Chinese investment.
New Zealand foreign minister Winston Peters
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 3, 2024

New Zealand 'seriously concerned' about China's actions in Pacific

New Zealand's foreign minister acknowledged China as a "vital economic partner" but said Wellington will continue to share its concerns with Beijing.
Nomura Holdings and Mizuho Bank are hit by more than $100 million of potential losses related to All Blue Capital, raising questions about their monitoring of high-risk investment funds.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 3, 2024

Nomura and Mizuho face losses after fund’s failed trades

The size of the potential losses raises questions about the risk-management practices at two of Japan’s largest banks.
Superintendent Mandeep Mooker, officer-in-charge of the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team (IHIT), speaks at a news conference providing an update into the Hardeep Singh Nijjar homicide investigation in Surrey, British Columbia, on Friday.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 4, 2024

Indian nationals charged in murder of Canadian Sikh activist

The murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Surrey, British Columbia, last year sparked a major diplomatic clash between India and Canada.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida holds a news conference in Sao Paulo on Saturday.
JAPAN / Politics / ANALYSIS
May 5, 2024

Kishida talks up bolstered Latin American ties as China cements position

While the visit may improve ties, observers doubt countries like Brazil will jeopardize relations with Beijing, their most important trading partner.
U.K. Prime Minister Sunak is hearing calls to consider policies including an immigration cap and a withdrawal from the European Court of Human Rights.
WORLD / Politics
May 6, 2024

Tories press Sunak to move to right after local election rout

Sunak's team said they will respond with upcoming media appearances and policy announcements on the economy, migration and healthcare.
Recent losses faced by the Conservative Party in local British elections indicate there are greater challenges ahead for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's government in the upcoming national poll.
COMMENTARY
May 6, 2024

Can the Tories rebuild their train wreck of a party?

If you’re a centrist British voter, today’s Conservatives aren’t for you.
Displaced Palestinians who fled Rafah ride atop a car in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip on Monday.
WORLD / Politics
May 7, 2024

Saying cease-fire plan falls short, Israel continues attacks on Rafah

Israel’s war Cabinet unanimously rejected the truce as "far from Israel’s necessary demands,” dashing hopes for an immediate pause in the fighting.
A U.S. Naval Special Warfare Operator fires a Switchblade 300 loitering munition during training exercises in Fallon, Nevada, last July. The U.S. Defense Department plans to use small drones — known in the Pentagon as “all-domain attritable autonomous systems” — to help counter Chinese military systems and tactics.
WORLD
May 7, 2024

Pentagon reveals drone types for Replicator program to counter China

The first tranche will include uncrewed surface vehicles, uncrewed aerial systems and counter-uncrewed aerial systems of various sizes and payloads.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (right) gives an address to the Leaders’ Plenary during the 2024 ASEAN-Australia Special Summit at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Center in Melbourne, on March 6.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 7, 2024

Australian PM Albanese calls Chinese military air incident 'unacceptable'

A Chinese fighter jet dropped flares above and ahead of an Australian helicopter above the Yellow Sea during an operation to enforce North Korea sanctions.
The Maritime Self-Defense Force’s Kaga destroyer has undergone the first stage of modifications to turn it into a de facto aircraft carrier for F-35B stealth fighter jets.
JAPAN / Politics / Regional Voices: Hiroshima
May 13, 2024

MSDF’s Kure base expanding mission as it marks 70th anniversary

The unit has increased its activities not only in national defense, but also in disaster relief operations and overseas missions.
Tourists pose in front of a convenience store with Mount Fuji on Friday in the town of Fujikawaguchiko, Yamanashi Prefecture. Local residents are upset over littering, overcrowding and the inconvenience caused by the visitors.
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 7, 2024

Thanks, tourists. Views of Mount Fuji are now blocked.

Japan needs better long-term strategies to manage tourism sustainably.
Cleaning worker Hu Dexi, 67, at a shopping mall in Beijing on April 10
BUSINESS / Economy
May 8, 2024

In rapidly aging China, millions can't afford to retire

With a low retirement age, meager pension benefits and no family to support them, many in China feel they simply can't ever stop working.
Russian officers march during the main military parade rehearsals in Moscow's Red Square on May 5.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 8, 2024

Russia’s war economy starves crucial oil industry of manpower

Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, its oil and gas sector has faced increasingly strict international sanctions aimed at limiting petrodollar revenue.
If Donald Trump were to win a second term, his aggressive stance toward China and inclination for protectionist measures could complicate the situation for Southeast Asian nations.
COMMENTARY / World
May 8, 2024

What a second Trump term could mean for Southeast Asia

Donald Trump has made bold promises about U.S.-China policy that, if enacted, would transform the world.
The growing divide between U.S.-led and China-aligned blocs is taking a toll on the global economy as trade and investment flows are redirected along geopolitical lines in ways not seen since the Cold War.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 9, 2024

Cold War-type divide puts trade and investment at risk, top IMF official warns

After years of shocks, countries are reevaluating their trading partners, an IMF official has said.
SoftBank Group is in talks to acquire Graphcore, a struggling British semiconductor startup.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 9, 2024

SoftBank said to be in talks to buy troubled AI chip firm Graphcore

Graphcore reported just $2.7 million in revenue for 2022, a 46% drop from the prior year, according to its latest financial report.
Archaeologists say a 1,600-year-old wooden coffin at the Tomio Maruyama tumulus in the city of Nara was kept in good condition probably because it was protected by a layer of clay and copper ions that had seeped out of the mirrors that were buried together.
JAPAN / History / FOCUS
May 9, 2024

How the discovery of a giant sword in Nara offers clues into ancient Japan

Experts say a series of surprise finds at the burial mound could help untangle the many mysteries surrounding the rulers of fourth-century Japan.
Japanese people are exposed to less online disinformation compared to other countries, partly due to language barriers and inherent skepticism.
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 9, 2024

Japan’s accidental resilience in the disinformation age

The Japanese are exposed to less online disinformation compared to other countries, partly due to language barriers and inherent skepticism.
Pete Reynolds (front row, right) has trained for 38 years with the Bujinkan, an organization that teaches skills used by ninja. The American moved to Japan in 2000 and is now a senior instructor at the organization’s dojo in the Nezu neighborhood in Tokyo.
LIFE / Lifestyle
May 10, 2024

The unexpected acolytes helping to keep ninja heritage alive

What may have started as youthful fantasy has led to a deeper passion in an area of Japanese history by non-Japanese martial arts practitioners.
SoftBank Group CEO Masayoshi Son in 2019. Son is said to be selling off assets from the Vision Fund’s portfolio as he prepares for possible forays into AI and related hardware.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 10, 2024

SoftBank's Vision Fund lightens asset load as Son pivots to AI and chips

Son has moved on to new obsessions, inspired in part by the success of Arm — which has soared in value to around $106 billion since its market debut.
Things may look perfect to the outside world, but today's mom is fine with some imperfection at home.
JAPAN / Society / Longform
May 11, 2024

How 'Reiwa moms' are reshaping motherhood in Japan

Five years into the Reiwa Era and the challenges Japan's moms face are unique, though the qualities that help them persevere haven't changed a bit.
French President Emmanuel Macron and Chinese leader Xi Jinping review troops at the Tarbes Airport in southern France on Tuesday. Some experts believe Xi wants to drive a wedge between Europe and the United States with his European tour.
EDITORIALS
May 10, 2024

It’s ‘divide and conquer’ as Xi courts Europe

Xi wants to drive a wedge between Europe and the United States, or at least inhibit their convergence on a policy that identifies China as a threat.
Japan’s custody system may soon change with the introduction of joint custody, though issues like a lack of protection against domestic violence and abuse must also be tackled.
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 10, 2024

Joint custody alone won’t fix Japan’s flawed system

Japan could be on the verge of adopting joint custody. While to some this is a step in the right direction, it may not be enough to protect families.

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji