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Meta releases standalone AI app, competing with ChatGPT

Social media behemoth Meta unveiled its first standalone AI assistant app on Tuesday, challenging ChatGPT by giving users a direct path to its generative artificial intelligence models.

BRICS members blast rise of 'trade protectionism'

China, Brazil and other members of the BRICS grouping on Tuesday slammed the "resurgence of trade protectionism" at a meeting in Rio de Janeiro dominated by US President Donald Trump's tariffs blitz.

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Solar park boom threatens Spain's centuries-old olive trees

At his farm in southern Spain, Francisco Campos looked worriedly at a green sea of centuries-old olive trees that he fears will face the axe to make way for a proposed solar park.

Trump tariff rollercoaster complicates ECB rate call

US President Donald Trump's on-and-off tariffs have clouded the picture for European Central Bank policymakers meeting this week to decide whether to lower eurozone interest rates again.

Asian stocks rise on electronics tariffs exemption, gold hits new high

Asian stocks rose Monday as trade war fears were tempered by Donald Trump's announcement of tariff exemptions for electronics, though the dollar weakened and safe-haven gold hit a fresh record amid fears the relief would be short-lived.

Xi warns protectionism 'leads nowhere' as starts SE Asia tour

Chinese leader Xi Jinping warned Monday that protectionism "leads nowhere" and that a trade war would have "no winners", state media said, as he was due to kick off a tour of Southeast Asia with a visit to Vietnam.

Trump warns no country 'off the hook' on tariffs

US President Donald Trump warned Sunday that no country would be "getting off the hook" on tariffs, as his administration suggested exemptions seen as favoring China would be short-lived.

Trump downplays tariffs walk-back, says no country 'off the hook'

US President Donald Trump warned Sunday that no country would be getting "off the hook" on tariffs despite a 90-day reprieve on some levies, while also downplaying exemptions for Chinese technology.

Trump advisor Navarro looks to cool spat with Musk

Donald Trump's trade advisor Peter Navarro on Sunday insisted that "everything's fine with Elon" Musk, after the Tesla chief called him a "moron."

Moviegoers digging 'Minecraft Movie,' tops in N.America theaters

"A Minecraft Movie" easily held on to the top spot in North American theaters this weekend with estimated ticket sales of a solid $80.6 million, analysts said Sunday.

Paris Olympic torches, other memorabilia auctioned off

Torches used in the 2024 Paris Olympics, and numerous other official memorabilia were auctioned off on Sunday, with fans and a museum among the keen bidders.

US says tech tariff exemptions may be short-lived

Recent exemptions to sweeping US import tariffs may be short-lived, top officials warned Sunday, as China urged the Trump administration to simply abandon its aggressive trade tax policy altogether.

China calls on US to 'completely cancel' reciprocal tariffs

China on Sunday called on the United States to "completely cancel" its reciprocal tariffs after Washington announced exemptions for consumer electronics and key chipmaking equipment.

Bulgarian border city hails Schengen tourism boom

There always used to be a long line of traffic waiting to cross the steel truss Danube Bridge over the river between Giurgiu in Romania and the Bulgarian city of Rousse on the other side.

Harvey Weinstein sex crimes retrial to begin Tuesday in NY

The retrial of Harvey Weinstein, whose prosecution and conviction for rape and sex assault ignited the "MeToo" movement, kicks off in New York on Tuesday.

World Expo opens in Japan in rocky times

World Expo opened on Sunday with 160 countries and regions showcasing their technology, culture and food, with host Japan hoping to provide the world with some much-needed hope.

Ecuador's presidential hopefuls face toxic brew of crime, unemployment

Cartel violence is hollowing out Ecuador's largest city Guayaquil, scaring away tourists, pummelling the economy and leaving whoever wins Sunday's presidential election with a gargantuan problem.

Accord reached 'in principle' over tackling future pandemics: negotiating body

WHO members on Saturday reached agreement over how to tackle future pandemics after three years of discussions, the co-chair of the negotiating body told AFP.

Junta chief frontrunner as Gabon holds first election since 2023 coup

Gabonese voters began casting ballots on Saturday in a presidential election with eight candidates that is widely expected to make junta chief Brice Oligui Nguema the oil-rich central African country's first elected leader since his 2023 coup.

German refinery's plight prompts calls for return of Russian oil

No Russian oil has been delivered via the Druzhba pipeline to the PCK refinery in Germany in more than two years because of sanctions levied against Moscow following its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Chinese manufacturers in fighting spirits despite scrapped US orders

On a sweltering spring day, workers at a Christmas tree factory in eastern China rhythmically assembled piles of branches, wiping away sweat as they daubed white-paint snow onto plastic pine needles.

Man executed by firing squad in South Carolina

A man facing the death penalty for committing two murders was executed by firing squad on Friday, the second such execution in the US state of South Carolina this year.

Asset flight challenges US safe haven status

The US has long been considered a financial safe haven. The sell-off of the dollar, stocks and Treasury bonds in a spree sparked by panic at President Donald Trump's trade war is starting to raise questions about if that's still true.

Fed official says 'absolutely' ready to intervene in financial markets

The US Federal Reserve is "absolutely" prepared to intervene to help calm nervous financial markets, a senior central bank official said Friday, after President Donald Trump's tariff plans roiled Wall Street.

Abuse scandal returns to haunt the flying 'butterflies' of Italian gymnastics

For more than two years, Nina Corradini was left feeling her hard-hitting accounts of abuse within Italian rhythmic gymnastics had all been for nothing.

Canada, US to start trade talks in May: Carney

Canada and the United States will start talks on a new trade deal in early May, Prime Minister Mark Carney said Friday, warning President Donald Trump's trade war was already hitting Canada's labor market.

Pig kidney removed from US transplant patient, but she set record

Doctors have had to remove the pig kidney implanted in an American woman after her body rejected it, but her four months living with the animal's organ set a record, the hospital that performed the operation said Friday.

UN shipping body approves global carbon pricing system

Member states of the International Maritime Organization have voted in favour of a global pricing system to help curb maritime carbon emissions, the UN shipping body announced Friday.

Spain marine park defends facilities after France orca transfer blocked

A Spanish aquatic park which authorities prevented from taking in two orcas from a shuttered French attraction that was criticised by animal rights groups denied on Friday it was unfit to shelter them.

Dollar plunges, stocks wobble over trade war turmoil

Investors dumped US government bonds, the dollar tumbled and stocks seesawed Friday, capping a volatile week as President Donald Trump's unpredictable tariff policy rattled market confidence.

Trump says tariff policy 'doing really well' despite China retaliation

President Donald Trump pledged Friday that his tariff policy is working and will benefit the United States and the world, despite China hiking tariffs on US goods to 125 percent in a deepening trade war.

Jolted by Trump, EU woos new partners from Asia to Latin America

Shaken by Donald Trump's tariff blitz, the EU has embarked on a charm offensive to diversify its alliances in Asia and beyond, with summits lined up back-to-back and trade talks launched in all directions.

Dollar slides, stocks diverge as US-China trade war escalates

The dollar tumbled, gold hit a fresh record high and stock markets seesawed Friday as China again retaliated against US tariffs, deepening a trade war between the world's two biggest economies.

UK parliament to be recalled Saturday to discuss British Steel's future

UK lawmakers will be recalled from their Easter break to discuss the future of British Steel in parliament on Saturday, the House of Commons said, with reports the struggling company could be nationalised.

The Japan Times - Economy (English)