ONLINE-NEWS-EN - WORLD NEWS XPRESS

After Fed, European central banks hike rates

Mar 23, 2023 Editor Desk

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Spread the love Switzerland and Norway hiked interest rates Thursday to tackle inflation despite banking-sector turmoil, with the Bank of England next in line after the US Federal Reserve also lifted borrowing costs. The Swiss National Bank, which helped oversee the UBS buyout of troubled Credit Suisse last weekend, lifted its key rate as expected by a hefty 50 basis points to 1.5 percent as it declared that authorities had brought the crisis under control. Norway’s central bank followed suit, hiking its rate by a more modest 25 basis points…

Uganda faces calls to reject ‘appalling’ anti-LGBTQ bill

Mar 22, 2023 Editor Desk

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Spread the love The United Nations and the United States led calls Wednesday for Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni to reject what has been labelled an “appalling” anti-gay bill. Ugandan lawmakers approved the Anti-Homosexuality Act late on Tuesday after a chaotic near seven-hour session, ordering harsh penalties for anyone who engages in same-sex activity. Homosexuality was already illegal in the conservative East African nation and it was not immediately clear what new penalties had been agreed, with reports some offenders could face life in prison or even the death penalty. UN…

Trump jury reconvenes, New York on edge over likely indictment

Mar 22, 2023 Editor Desk

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Spread the love A grand jury was set to reconvene in New York on Wednesday as it weighs whether to charge ex-president Donald Trump over hush money paid to a porn star. With barricades outside Trump Tower and police on high alert, the city has been holding its breath over the expected indictment for days but the timing is uncertain. The 76-year-old Republican would become the first former or sitting president to ever be charged with a crime if the panel votes to indict. The unprecedented move would send shockwaves…

Xi departs Russia after ‘new era’ summit with Putin

Mar 22, 2023 Editor Desk

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Spread the love Chinese leader Xi Jinping left Russia on Wednesday after a summit with President Vladimir Putin that was a display of unity against the West, with no apparent signal of a breakthrough to end the fighting in Ukraine. The nations, eager to curb Western power, expressed concerns about NATO expansion in Asia and agreed to deepen a partnership which has grown closer since Putin launched an offensive in Ukraine. Xi’s plane left Moscow’s Vnukovo airport after being seen off by an honour guard, Russian news agencies reported, capping…

Malawi says cholera crisis risks worsening after Cyclone Freddy

Mar 20, 2023 Editor Desk

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Spread the love Malawi faces increased risk of a surge in cholera cases following the devastation caused by Cyclone Freddy that has destroyed water systems and toilets, the health ministry warned Monday. The country was already battling its deadliest cholera outbreak on record when the storm landed last week, causing mudslides and flooding, killing 476 and displacing nearly half a million. The cholera outbreak, which began last year, infected more than 30,600 people and claimed more than 1,700 deaths. “With the floods, people’s toilets have been washed away and most…

Tear gas, arrests as Kenya opposition stages protests

Mar 20, 2023Mar 20, 2023 Editor Desk

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Spread the love Kenyan riot police fired tear gas Monday to disperse demonstrators gathered in Nairobi for a day of action called by the opposition to protest the country’s punishing cost of living crisis, AFP correspondents said. The government of President William Ruto has vowed to take a tough stance over the demonstrations, which opposition leader Raila Odinga vowed would go ahead despite not receiving police authorisation. Demonstrators also hurled rocks at anti-riot police outside government offices in the capital, while about two dozen people were arrested, including two opposition MPs,…

New pension protests in France ahead of crucial votes

Mar 19, 2023 Editor Desk

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Spread the love France faced another day of protests Sunday against a bitterly contested pension reform rammed through by President Emmanuel Macron’s government, a day before crucial no-confidence votes in parliament. After weeks of peaceful strikes and marches against raising the official retirement age from 62 to 64, police on Saturday closed the Place de la Concorde opposite parliament for demonstrations following two successive nights of clashes. Some individual lawmakers were targeted, with Eric Ciotti — chief of the conservative Republicans party expected not to back the no-confidence motions —…

Cut off by cyclone, Malawian villagers face hunger, perilous journeys

Mar 18, 2023 Editor Desk

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Spread the love A husband holds his heavily pregnant wife’s hand as the two wade across roaring floodwaters in southern Malawi. She is due any moment but their village has been cut off by Cyclone Freddy, leaving them no other option than to make a perilous 15-kilometre trip to the nearest clinic on foot. “We will find a way to get her to the hospital today,” Pilirani Aironi says as his wife Mercy, in a traditional yellow and red dress, stands barefoot by his side. Freddy hit the southern African…

Crunch weekend for crisis-hit Credit Suisse

Mar 18, 2023 Editor Desk

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Spread the love Troubled Credit Suisse has two days to reassure before the markets open Monday with the spectre of a new turbulent week in global finance looming. The Zurich-based lender was holding crisis talks this weekend and urgent meetings with Swiss banking and regulatory authorities. On Friday, the Financial Times reported that Switzerland’s largest bank, UBS, is in talks to buy all or part of Credit Suisse, with the blessing of the Swiss regulatory authorities. The Swiss National Bank (SNB) “wants the lenders to agree on a simple and…

‘I’M BACK’: Trump returns to Facebook, YouTube after two-year ban

Mar 18, 2023Mar 18, 2023 Editor Desk

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Spread the love Former president Donald Trump wrote his first posts on his reinstated Facebook and YouTube accounts Friday, more than two years after he was banned over the US Capitol insurrection. “I’M BACK,” Trump exclaimed, alongside a 12-second video clip that appeared to show him giving his victory speech after winning the 2016 election saying: “Sorry to keep you waiting — complicated business.” The 76-year-old Republican leader — who is running for president again — has been unable to post any content for his 34 million Facebook followers and…