Bitcoin takes the lead in Q2 2023 asset class performance

Associated Press
Why do civilians often die in Nigerian military strikes that target rebels?
The Nigerian military has mistakenly killed hundreds of civilians in airstrikes targeting armed groups in the nation's conflict-battered north over the years, many of them locals bombed in their villages. The latest misfire was on Saturday when the Nigerian air force bombarded rebels in the conflict-battered northwestern Zamfara State but ended up erroneously killing civilians working with a community security outfit, the state government said. Residents told the Associated Press that at least 20 civilians were killed.
Associated Press
Japan and Philippines plan to convey to Trump the need for US engagement in Asia
Japan and the Philippines will convey to President-elect Donald Trump the urgent need for the U.S. to remain committed to help uphold the rule of law in an Asian region where security concerns have become “increasingly severe,” Japan’s top diplomat said Wednesday. The U.S., Japan and the Philippines have been building an alliance under outgoing President Joe Biden since last year to deal with China’s increasingly aggressive actions in the disputed South China Sea and East China Sea.
AFP
Japan's tourism boom prices out business travellers
After travelling to Tokyo for meetings, Yoshiki Kojima's IT company employees crash out in a capsule hotel, as a tourism boom makes regular rooms too pricey for business trips.But that is also raising prices for Kojima's staff and other Japanese business travellers.
Associated Press
Germany's economy shrank for the second consecutive year in 2024
The Federal Statistical Office said that gross domestic product contracted by 0.2% last year following a decline in 2023. The German economy has been battered by external shocks and homegrown problems, including red tape and a shortage of skilled labor, and politicians have been at odds over how to fix it. Chancellor Olaf Scholz's three-party coalition government collapsed in November when Scholz fired his finance minister in a dispute over how to revitalize the economy.
AFP
Cocaine use nearly doubles in France: study
Cocaine use in France has nearly doubled, with 1.1 million people having taken the illicit drug at least once in 2023, according to a study published on Wednesday. Authorities have said drug crime is crippling daily life in France, with Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau vowing to intensify the fight against drug-related crime.
Yahoo Finance
A 2025 tax debate starts with a focus on a subject of bipartisan agreement: the child tax credit
A historic 2025 tax debate is formally underway. A lot of the early focus is on an issue well known to pretty much every taxpayer: the child tax credit.
AFP
Beijing 'firmly opposes' US ban on smart cars with Chinese tech
Beijing on Wednesday said it "firmly opposes" a US move to effectively bar Chinese technology from smart cars in the American market, saying alleged risks to national security were "without any factual basis"."What I want to say is that the US, citing so-called national security, has restricted the use of Chinese connected vehicle software, hardware, and entire vehicles in the United States without any factual basis," he told a regular press conference.
Reuters
Irish parties secure 'comfortable majority' for new government
DUBLIN (Reuters) -Talks between Ireland's two historically dominant centre-right parties and independent lawmakers have reached an agreement that will give a new coalition government a "comfortable majority," a negotiator for one of the parties said on Wednesday. Fianna Fail and Fine Gael, who were the largest parties in the outgoing coalition, have been in talks since they fell one seat short in a Nov. 29 election of the 87 needed to govern. "There's a group of nine independents now ... and that brings us up to 95, so we've a comfortable majority," Fianna Fail lawmaker James Lawless, one of the party's negotiators, told RTE radio.
CNN
A Chinese actor was abducted from Thailand. His swift return has sparked hopes – and fears – back home
Chinese tourists are expressing fears about traveling to Thailand – with some cancelling their trips – following the high-profile case of a Chinese actor’s abduction to a Myanmar scam call center.
Reuters
Parliament speaker to lead Taiwan delegation to Trump's inauguration
A delegation of Taiwanese lawmakers led by parliament's speaker will attend Donald Trump's inauguration as U.S. president, the presidential office said on Wednesday, adding the government will continue boosting ties with the new administration. Taiwan, which China views as its own territory, enjoyed strong support from the first Trump administration, including regularising arms sales which have continued under President Joe Biden, but Trump unnerved Taiwan on the campaign trail by calling for it to have to pay to be defended. Taiwan's presidential office said that parliament speaker Han Kuo-yu, a senior member of the opposition Kuomintang party and who unsuccessfully ran for president in 2020, would lead the group to the inauguration, accompanied by a cross-party delegation of seven other lawmakers.
Time
Controversy Over Pete Hegseth’s Viral ASEAN Moment
During his confirmation hearing, Trump’s Defense Secretary nominee couldn’t name a single member of the Southeast Asian bloc.
CNN
South Korean president arrested by anti-corruption investigators after weekslong showdown
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol has been arrested for questioning, according to the country’s anti corruption agency, in the latest chapter of a weekslong political saga that began with the embattled president’s shock martial law decree last month.
NBC News
Two lunar landers launch to the moon aboard a SpaceX rocket
A new year of lunar exploration kicked off early Wednesday, when two robotic landers and a small rover began their journeys to the moon.
AFP
Equities mixed as US inflation, China data loom
Stock markets were mixed Wednesday as traders assess the economic outlook ahead of Donald Trump returning to the White House next week, with focus now on the release of key US inflation data.Also in focus this week is the release of Chinese 2024 growth data, with expectations that it could come in below the previous year and be among the slowest in more than three decades.
AFP
UK inflation dips, easing some pressure on government
Britain's annual inflation rate unexpectedly fell to 2.5 percent last month, official data showed Wednesday, easing some pressure on the Labour government faced with economic unrest.- Bank of England - Despite falling, Britain's annual inflation rate remains above the Bank of England's 2.0-percent target rate, slowing the pace of its interest-rate cuts.
AFP
Spanish youth ditch dating apps for 'real life' love
Jilted on dating apps but undeterred in the quest for romance, 20 young singles gathered in Madrid to share activities and flirtatious smiles in a rediscovery of real-life love.Online dates are "consumed, but without an intention to really connect with the other person, more as entertainment", the specialist in couples told AFP. "For that reason lots of despair is showing up among the young who would like to meet someone to share their life with.
AFP
India's triple naval launch shows 'self-reliance': Modi
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Wednesday the launch of two Indian-made warships and a submarine was key to its "quest towards self-reliance" as New Delhi bolsters defence against regional rivals."The commissioning of three frontline naval combatants will strengthen our efforts towards being a global leader in defence, and augment our quest towards self-reliance," he added.
Associated Press
Question on ASEAN stumped Hegseth at Senate hearing. What is it and why is it important?
Sen. Tammy Duckworth, grilling President-elect Donald Trump’s choice for defense secretary over whether he had the “breadth and depth of knowledge” needed to lead international negotiations, asked Pete Hegseth if could name one member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, describe what type of agreement the U.S. had with the countries and how many nations were in the bloc. Hegseth responded at the heated Senate confirmation hearing that he couldn't tell Duckworth the exact number of ASEAN nations, but that “I know we have allies in South Korea and Japan in AUKUS (a pact between Australia, the United Kingdom and the U.S.) with Australia.”
CNN
Albanese vows ‘strongest action possible’ if Australian POW killed fighting for Ukraine against Russia
Australia has vowed it will take the “strongest action possible” if Russia has harmed one of its nationals captured fighting for Ukraine, after reports emerged the prisoner of war may have been killed.
AFP
German bourse banks on Trump-fuelled crypto boom
As Donald Trump's looming return to the White House promises to boost cryptocurrencies, a German stock exchange is on a mission to anchor them firmly in the staid world of traditional finance.- Trump support - The exchange says it has managed to win more than a million clients in crypto trading, both professionals and private individuals, mostly in the German-speaking world.

Bitcoin takes the lead in Q2 2023 asset class performance

Video Transcript

Latest Stories

Why do civilians often die in Nigerian military strikes that target rebels?

Japan and Philippines plan to convey to Trump the need for US engagement in Asia

Japan's tourism boom prices out business travellers

Germany's economy shrank for the second consecutive year in 2024

Cocaine use nearly doubles in France: study

A 2025 tax debate starts with a focus on a subject of bipartisan agreement: the child tax credit

Beijing 'firmly opposes' US ban on smart cars with Chinese tech

Irish parties secure 'comfortable majority' for new government

A Chinese actor was abducted from Thailand. His swift return has sparked hopes – and fears – back home

Parliament speaker to lead Taiwan delegation to Trump's inauguration

Controversy Over Pete Hegseth’s Viral ASEAN Moment

South Korean president arrested by anti-corruption investigators after weekslong showdown

Two lunar landers launch to the moon aboard a SpaceX rocket

Equities mixed as US inflation, China data loom

UK inflation dips, easing some pressure on government

Spanish youth ditch dating apps for 'real life' love

India's triple naval launch shows 'self-reliance': Modi

Question on ASEAN stumped Hegseth at Senate hearing. What is it and why is it important?

Albanese vows ‘strongest action possible’ if Australian POW killed fighting for Ukraine against Russia

German bourse banks on Trump-fuelled crypto boom