Lithium price surge hits automakers as they ramp up EV production

Associated Press
After 12 days, South Africa ends rescue efforts at collapsed building with 33 dead, 19 still missing
An exhaustive rescue operation to find missing construction workers trapped in the rubble of a collapsed building in South Africa will end on Friday after nearly two weeks and with 19 people still unaccounted for, authorities said. At least 33 people have been confirmed dead after the collapse of the unfinished five-story apartment complex in the city of George on the country's south coast on May 6. The tragedy was one of South Africa's worst building collapses.
NBC News
First aid flows into Gaza over massive U.S. pier
Trucks carrying desperately needed humanitarian aid have begun moving ashore into Gaza using a temporary pier built by the United States, the U.S. military said Friday, as Israeli forces pressed on with sweeping operations in the north and south of the enclave.
Reuters
EU demands clarity from Microsoft on AI risks in Bing
BRUSSELS (Reuters) -The European Commission could fine Microsoft if it doesn't provide adequate information on risks stemming from generative AI features in search engine Bing by May 27. The Commission said on Friday that it is worried about the dissemination of deep fakes and automated manipulation of services that can mislead voters. It said it was stepping up enforcement actions on the matter, as it had not received a reply to a request for information sent on March 14.
CBS News
Discovery of long-lost river may solve ancient pyramid mystery
The 40-mile-long river branch, which ran by the Giza pyramid complex, was hidden under desert and farmland for millennia, scientists said.
Associated Press
Taiwan’s foreign minister says China and Russia are supporting each other's ‘expansionism’
Russia and China are helping each other expand their territorial reach, and democracies must push back against authoritarian states that threaten their rights and sovereignty, Taiwan’s outgoing foreign minister, Joseph Wu, said in an interview with The Associated Press. Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping reaffirmed their “no-limits” partnership as both countries face rising tensions with the West.
Reuters
Reddit stock jumps after OpenAI partnership
The partnership, announced on Thursday, allows Reddit to leverage OpenAI's technology to build tools and features, and OpenAI's ChatGPT platform to integrate Reddit's content in a "real-time, structured" manner. OpenAI will also become an advertising partner for Reddit.
TODAY
100 animal trivia questions that will make you think
Test your knowledge on all things zoology with these animal trivia questions about cats, dogs, fish, zoo animals and insects perfect for kids and adults.
AFP
'As long as it takes': Georgia's Gen Z leading street protests
In a hip coffee shop in Georgia's capital Tbilisi, 21-year-old Tekla Jailava is serving her last few cappuccinos before heading for a third night of protests against an anti-NGO law she fears will ruin the Black Sea country's ties with the West.Salome Zurabishvili, the country's pro-EU president, has said she will veto the law.
Reuters
Donald Trump wants to control the Justice Department and FBI. His allies have a plan
Some of Donald Trump's allies are assembling proposals to curtail the Justice Department's independence and turn the nation's top law enforcement body into an attack dog for conservative causes, nine people involved in the effort told Reuters. If successful, the overhaul could represent one of the most consequential actions of a second Trump presidency given the Justice Department's role in protecting democratic institutions and upholding the rule of law. Trump, who has been indicted on dozens of criminal charges by the Justice Department, has vowed on the campaign trail to overhaul the agency if he wins the presidential election on Nov. 5 and pledged to use it to pursue his own opponents, including Democratic President Joe Biden.
Reuters
Ghana parliament recalled for urgent business after LGBT row
Ghana's parliament, which has been adjourned since March following a row between the speaker and the president over an anti-LGBT bill, will reconvene on Friday to discuss approval of ministerial appointees and other "urgent matters". Majority leader Alexander Afenyo-Markin said in a statement that the urgent recall was "in good faith to enable government to discharge its constitutional and democratic obligations to the people." Lawmakers in February unanimously passed one of Africa's most restrictive anti-LGBT bills, but President Nana Akufo-Addo has not yet signed it into law.
CNN
Why confusion over key pregnancy facts makes for uninformed debate over abortion limits
Most Americans don’t know two key facts about pregnancy, including how they are dated and how long a trimester is – and this could matter, as a growing number of states place restrictions on abortion.
CNN
Floods could hit Gulf Coast after storms kill at least 4 in Houston, damage buildings and cut power for hundreds of thousands
Storms battered Texas and Louisiana late Thursday and early Friday with destructive winds and torrential rain, leaving at least four dead, roads flooded and more than 1 million homes and businesses without power — as more floods Friday could plague parts of the Gulf Coast.
AFP
Saudi crown prince seeks soft power in game hub Japan
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman visits Japan next week, where he will hold talks on energy while hunting more opportunities in gaming as he seeks to improve Saudi Arabia's image."The Saudi Crown Prince finds Japanese soft power, particularly in gaming and eSports, highly appealing," said Mohammed Soliman from the Middle East Institute in Washington.
Reuters
New York City said 'no injuries' at Columbia arrests; students' medical records say otherwise
After the arrests of pro-Palestine student protesters occupying a Columbia University building last month, New York Mayor Eric Adams and senior police officials repeatedly said there were "no injuries," no "violent clashes" and minimal force used. The documented injuries included a fractured eye socket, concussions, an ankle sprain, cuts, and injured wrists and hands from tight plastic flexicuffs.
USA TODAY
Why the U.S. is behind on sunscreen
The FDA has not yet approved the newer sunscreen ingredients common elsewhere in the world.
Yahoo Finance
A surging stock market may not need a catalyst — but it's getting one
As the stock market flirts with another round of all-time highs, the Nvidia earnings are just around the corner — and analyst expectations are high, once again. And almost no big stocks ever post that many triple-digit gains in a row.
Reuters
Explainer-Biden vs Trump: What to expect from presidential debates
U.S. President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump have agreed to two debates ahead of November's election, scheduling televised face-offs that could prove critical in their tight rematch to win the White House. Television news channel ABC said it will host the second presidential debate on Sept. 10, also from an audience-free studio. Anchors Jake Tapper and Dana Bash will moderate CNN's June debate.
Reuters
Americans divided as Supreme Court weighs abortion pill access, Reuters/Ipsos poll finds
Americans are divided on whether women should have to see a doctor in person before receiving abortion pills, a new Reuters/Ipsos poll found, as the U.S. Supreme Court weighs whether to reimpose that restriction on medication abortion. But broad bipartisan majorities opposed the idea of allowing states with abortion bans in place to block access to the procedure in certain emergency cases when it is needed to protect the mother's health, at issue in another case before the court. The findings come as the court is preparing to rule on its highest-profile abortion cases since 2022, when the justices overturned the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that established the national right to abortion.
Reuters
Despite consumer watchdog's US Supreme Court win, agency powers still on chopping block
Powered by its 6-3 conservative majority, the court has emerged in recent years as something of an ally in what has been called the "war on the administrative state," a longstanding conservative effort to weaken federal agencies that regulate key aspects of American business and life. The court on Thursday upheld the CFPB's funding mechanism - drawing money annually from the Federal Reserve rather than from budgets passed by Congress - in a challenge by the payday loan industry, handing a win to President Joe Biden's administration and a setback to the agency's conservative critics. Despite that ruling, pending decisions in cases that the justices heard during their current term, which began in October, could substantially curb federal agency powers in areas ranging from finance to fish conservation.
Reuters
Goldman Sachs looks to expand private equity credit lines as dealmaking picks up
U.S. investment bank Goldman Sachs is muscling into the lending market for private equity and asset managers, planning an overseas expansion as it helps fill a void left by turmoil at regional banks and the sale of Credit Suisse. The Wall Street bank and rivals JPMorgan Chase and PNC Financial Services are stepping up in this $800 billion to $1 trillion market as private equity deal activity is expected to pick up due to record-high fund-raising.

Latest Stories