Town Hall News

By Michael Erman (Reuters) -Swiss drugmaker Roche Holding AG plans to sell its 800-employee drug manufacturing plant in Vacaville, California, or it will shut the factory by 2029, according to e-mailed letters to workers seen by Reuters on Wednesday. Roche confirmed the divestiture plan in a statement, but did not address the potential closing of the plant or its timeline. The company said it does not expect to need the […]

By Julien Pretot PARIS (Reuters) -Novak Djokovic briefly struggled before bulldozing past Hungarian journeyman Marton Fucsovics 7-6(2) 6-0 6-3 on Wednesday to reach the French Open third round. The world number three, who sparked controversy by writing “Kosovo is the heart of Serbia” on a camera lens earlier this week, survived a high-octane end to the first set to advance to a clash with Spanish 29th seed Alejandro Davidovich Fokina. […]

By Hyonhee Shin, Minwoo Park and Heekyong Yang SEOUL (Reuters) – Jeong Se-ah feels happy to see Tanaka, a Japanese bar host character from the early 2000s created by a South Korean comedian, because he revives her teenage memories of watching animations from the neighbouring nation. The 24-year-old office worker is one of a growing number of young South Koreans drawn to the products and culture of Japan, coming to […]

By Matt McKnight SEATTLE (Reuters) – Some Amazon.com Inc employees staged a walkout on Wednesday in protest of the e-commerce giant’s changes to its climate policy, layoffs and a return-to-office mandate. More than 100 people gathered in the afternoon by the Spheres, the glass-dome monument at the heart of Amazon’s Seattle headquarters, according to a Reuters witness. “Emissions climbing. Time to act!” the group chanted. “Stand together; don’t turn back!” […]

By Eric Martyn HALIFAX, Nova Scotia (Reuters) -Wildfires that have already forced thousands in the eastern Canadian province of Nova Scotia to evacuate continued to rage on Wednesday, causing poor air quality hundreds of miles away as smoke drifted south across the U.S. border. Dozens of firefighters and several water bombers battled two out-of-control blazes – dubbed the Tantallon Fire and the Bedford Fire – northwest of downtown Halifax, the […]

By Pavel Polityuk KYIV (Reuters) – The U.N. has proposed that Kyiv, Moscow and Ankara start preparatory work for the transit of Russian ammonia through Ukraine as it tries to salvage a deal allowing safe Black Sea grain exports, a source close to the talks said on Wednesday. As the preparatory work starts, the U.N. wants parallel talks to be held on widening the Black Sea deal that was agreed […]

By Pavel Polityuk KYIV (Reuters) – The U.N. has proposed that Kyiv, Moscow and Ankara start preparatory work for the transit of Russian ammonia through Ukraine as it tries to salvage a deal allowing safe Black Sea grain exports, a source close to the talks said on Wednesday. As the preparatory work starts, the U.N. wants parallel talks to be held on widening the Black Sea deal that was agreed […]

(Reuters) – U.S. stocks fell on Wednesday as a deal to raise the federal debt ceiling headed toward a crucial vote in Congress, while unexpectedly strong labor market data rattled investors who fear the Federal Reserve might hike interest rates again in June. The House of Representatives is expected to vote in the evening on a bill to lift the $31.4 trillion debt limit, a critical step to avoid a […]

(Reuters) – A regional force set up to tackle militia violence in east Democratic Republic of Congo has been extended to September, a minister and a spokesperson for the force said on Wednesday. The seven countries of the East African Community (EAC) set up the EACRF military force in April last year to try to end bloodshed linked to decades of militant activity in Congo’s east. The force’s future had […]