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Fire retardant is dropped as the Palisades Fire grows near Encino Hills, California, on Saturday.
WORLD
Jan 12, 2025

Aerial assault aims to stem Los Angeles fire's eastward spread

Fire officials say that while 11% of the Palisades Fire was now contained, it has so far burned over 22,000 acres (8,900 hectares).
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba (left) shakes hands with Indonesia's President Prabowo Subianto after giving a press statement following their meeting at the Presidential Palace in Bogor, Indonesia on Saturday.
JAPAN / Politics
Jan 12, 2025

Ishiba hopes diplomacy will give boost to parliamentary management

As the Ishiba administration will have to go into the parliamentary session leading a minority government, he is hoping diplomacy will give his administration a boost.
U.S. Vice President-elect JD Vance following a meeting with Republican Senators in Washington on Jan. 8
WORLD / Politics
Jan 13, 2025

JD Vance predicts hostage deal before Trump’s return to White House

JD Vance says a hostage deal with Hamas is likely before Trump’s inauguration, crediting tough rhetoric for pushing negotiations forward.
A former cattle ranch is being reforested in Brazil's Amazon region on Dec. 11. Mombak, a young carbon credit company — with valuable contracts with the giants Google and Microsoft, and supported by the U.S. government — aims to repeat this move millions of times over.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Jan 13, 2025

In Brazil, an Amazon reforestation project seeks to redeem carbon markets

By planting native species, Brazilian company Mombak hopes to restore credibility to a scandal-ridden carbon market at a crucial time for the warming planet.
Elon Musk, left, with Vivek Ramaswamy on Capitol Hill in Washington on Dec. 5.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jan 15, 2025

SEC accuses Elon Musk of bilking Twitter investors out of millions

The agency’s complaint accuses Musk of failing to promptly report that he had amassed more than 5% of the social media platform’s stock in early 2022.
Because of the U.S. dollar peg, Hong Kong can no longer be Asia’s go-to fundraising platform, eroding a key selling point for the financial center.
COMMENTARY
Jan 15, 2025

Hong Kong-dollar peg makes less sense than ever

It’s increasingly clear that the currency regime, which inevitably ties the city’s lending rates to those of the U.S., is outdated and needs a revamp.
People wave Palestinian flags while celebrating the announcement of a ceasefire in Ramallah in the West Bank on Wednesday.
WORLD
Jan 16, 2025

Israel and Hamas reach ceasefire deal to end 15 months of war in Gaza

Israel and Hamas have reached a ceasefire agreement that includes a phased withdrawal of Israeli forces, the release of hostages and humanitarian aid to Gaza.
U.S. President Joe Biden delivers his farewell address to the nation from the Oval Office of the White House in Washington on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 16, 2025

Biden warns U.S. faces oligarchy as Trump looms over legacy

In a final Oval Office speech, Biden urged Americans to join together but quickly warned about a dangerous concentration of wealth in the U.S.
Hino Motors was charged with fraud in the U.S. District Court in Detroit for unlawfully selling 105,000 heavy-duty diesel engines in the United States from 2010 through 2022 that did not meet emissions standards.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 16, 2025

Hino Motors reaches $1.6 billion U.S. diesel emissions settlement

Hino said it booked an extraordinary loss of ¥230 billion in its second quarter results in October to cover the expected costs of resolving the litigation.
The TikTok ban results from an April law signed by President Joe Biden and is the first time the United States has attempted to shut down access to an app with such a large user base — roughly 170 million domestic users.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jan 17, 2025

How a TikTok ban would work — and why user workarounds won't

TikTok reportedly plans to shut down the service and will show users a message about the law and offer to let them download their personal data.
The prospect of a TikTok ban has already triggered some users to seek alternatives, with Chinese social media app RedNote gaining nearly 3 million U.S. users in one day earlier this week.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 17, 2025

TikTok's fight against going dark gains support from key U.S. lawmakers

A law passed in April mandates owner ByteDance to divest TikTok's U.S. assets by Sunday to a non-Chinese buyer, or be banned on national security concerns.
Many of the economists noted the interest rate hike is likely unless Donald Trump jolts global financial markets, after he returns to the White House four days before the Bank of Japan’s policy decision.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jan 17, 2025

More than 70% of BOJ watchers expect a rate hike next week

BOJ Gov. Kazuo Ueda reinforced his deputy’s message this week that his board will consider a rate hike at the meeting, boosting the yen and expectations for action.
The compromise of Janet Yellen’s computer makes the Treasury breach the latest hack attributed to the Chinese government that has reached the top ranks of a U.S. federal department.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jan 17, 2025

Chinese hackers accessed Yellen's computer in U.S. Treasury breach

The attackers appeared to focus on Treasury’s role in sanctions, intelligence and international affairs, but didn’t penetrate the department’s email or classified systems.
Private firefighters gather near their vehicles at a mall in Pacific Palisades, California, on Wednesday.
WORLD / Society
Jan 17, 2025

Private firefighters highlight wealth divide in ruined Los Angeles

Questions are being asked about how some of the city's superrich seem to have survived almost unscathed after enormous blazes spread through the metropolis.
Supporters of U.S. President Donald Trump in Tokyo march ahead of the inauguration of then President-elect Joe Biden on Jan 20, 2021.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 17, 2025

Japan has nothing to fear from Trump — except in maybe one area

Japan is far better positioned in the areas most important to Trump than many other countries. If Shinzo Abe were still alive, Japan would be in a great place.
German Ambassador to the U.S. Andreas Michaelis has described U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's agenda for his second White House term as one of "maximum disruption."
WORLD / Politics
Jan 19, 2025

German ambassador warns of Trump plan to redefine constitutional order, document shows

The briefing document describes Donald Trump's agenda for his second White House term as one of "maximum disruption."
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration's approval of novel breast cancer treatment by Daiichi Sankyo and AstraZeneca led Daiichi Sankyo's shares to post the largest intraday gain since August on Monday.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 20, 2025

Daiichi Sankyo rises most in five months on cancer drug approval

Datroway, developed with AstraZeneca, has been approved for patients with advanced breast tumors.
Former U.S. President Joe Biden and former first lady Jill Biden wave as they board Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, during a farewell ceremony on Monday following Donald Trump's inauguration.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 21, 2025

Biden issues preemptive pardons for family and targets of Trump ire

Trump has repeatedly called for the prosecution of his perceived enemies since winning the White House in November.
Then President-elect Donald Trump enters the stage of his inauguration as the 47th president of the United States inside the Capitol Rotunda of the U.S. Capitol building in Washington on Monday.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 21, 2025

Trump faces stiff challenges delivering on his promised 'Golden Age'

Many of Donald Trump's proposals are so norm-shattering, they are certain to result in extensive litigation that tests the boundaries of constitutional law.
U.S. President Donald Trump signs executive orders in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington on Monday.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Jan 21, 2025

Trump withdraws from Paris climate agreement — again

The newly minted president removed the world's biggest historic emitter from global efforts to fight climate change for the second time in a decade.
U.S. President Donald Trump and outgoing President Joe Biden, along with their respective first ladies, Melania Trump and Dr. Jill Biden, share words during the Bidens' departure ceremony on the East Front of the Capitol on Monday.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 21, 2025

Joe Biden’s abiding legacy will be Donald Trump

The question is how Democrats got to the point where more voters trust Trump — not just any Republican but Trump — to do a better job of running the country than Harris.
Emergency vehicles on the side of the road as flames race up a hill in Castaic, a northwestern neighborhood of Los Angeles, on Wednesday.
WORLD
Jan 23, 2025

Fast-growing wildfire breaks out north of Los Angeles, forcing evacuations

The Hughes Fire in the Castaic Lake area of Los Angeles County forced evacuations with warnings of "immediate threat to life."
An aide places the Presidential seal before President Donald Trump addresses guests and supporters in an overflow room in the Emancipation Hall of the U.S. Capitol for his Inauguration ceremony in Washington on Monday.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 23, 2025

What Trump has done since returning to the White House

The orders aim to meet campaign promises such as on illegal immigration, energy and the environment, as well as gender and diversity policies.
Marialyce Pedersen cleans burned leaves and debris that accumulated in the sink of her outdoor kitchen made of cob that survived the Eaton fire when her home burned in Altadena, California, on Jan. 20.
WORLD / Society
Jan 23, 2025

Los Angeles wildfires spark interest in adobe and natural building materials

Former homeowners determined to stay want houses that the next fire will not burn easily and that, if burnt, will not turn the soil, water and air into a toxic hazard.
Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with U.S. President Donald Trump at the G20 summit in Osaka in June 2019.
WORLD
Jan 24, 2025

Putin ready to talk to Trump and waiting for 'signals,' Kremlin says

The Ukraine conflict has plunged relations between the U.S. and Russia their lowest levels since the Cold War.
U.S. President Donald Trump is seen on a giant screen during his address by video conference at the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jan 25, 2025

Trump spurs surprise world rally in first week on trade respite

U.S. President Donald Trump's decision not to immediately slap tariffs on U.S. trade partners triggered the surprising market response.
Ben Wikler, the chairman of the Wisconsin Democratic Party, in Milwaukee, last March
WORLD / Politics
Jan 25, 2025

Contenders to lead the Democratic Party scramble to show momentum

As two Midwesterners battle for control of the Democratic National Committee, they are making loud yet unverifiable claims about their levels of support.
Then-South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem testifies during a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing on her nomination to be secretary of homeland security, on Capitol Hill in Washington on Jan. 17.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 26, 2025

Noem confirmed as DHS head to move Trump’s immigration plans forward

The vote clears the way for her to lead a 260,000-person department that will have a key role in Trump’s border security and immigration enforcement agenda.
Jeffrey Andrews (L), a social worker, and Uzma Naveed (R), an outreach coordinator, speak to "John" (C) at the Christian Action Center for Refugees in Hong Kong on Saturday.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jan 26, 2025

U.S.-bound refugees in Hong Kong despair as Trump halts arrivals

Many asylum seekers in Hong Kong — some waiting years — now fear being sent back to square one.
U.S. President Donald Trump looks on as reporters ask questions aboard Air Force One during a flight from Las Vegas to Miami on Saturday.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 27, 2025

Trump, at zenith of power, moves quickly to 'take over' Washington

Trump's agenda faces roadblocks going forward, and the opening weeks of his administration may represent the height of his power, some supporters acknowledge.

Longform

Once smoky, male-dominated spaces, today's net cafes, like Kaikatsu Club, are working to make their operations more attractive to women customers.
The second life of Japan's net cafes