Town Hall News

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Monday said his government would consider visa restrictions against Ugandan officials and others for the abuse of human rights following the implementation of one of the world’s toughest anti-gay laws. Blinken said he has instructed the State Department to update travel guidance to U.S. citizens and businesses over travel to Uganda. The measures follow President Joe Biden’s condemnation of the […]

(Corrects headline and paragraph 1 to say co reaffirms 2024 capex outlook, not forecasts higher capex) (Reuters) – Qantas Airways on Tuesday reaffirmed its capital expenditure outlook for fiscal 2024 provided in February as the company aims to add to its fleet. Australia’s flagship carrier reaffirmed capital expenditure in 2024 to be between A$3 billion ($2.03 billion) and A$3.2 billion, compared with its fiscal 2023 outlook of A$2.6 billion to […]

By Nicoco Chan and Ellen Zhang SHANGHAI/BEIJING (Reuters) – Wang Chunxiang pushes a cart around busy areas of Shanghai, playing cat and mouse with the authorities as she tries to sell pastries. The jobs she could get do not pay enough for her to make ends meet. “Salaries are too low,” said the 43-year-old, after serving a customer steamed sweet rice cakes from a wok. “At my age, without much […]

BEIJING (Reuters) – China on Tuesday sent three astronauts to its now fully operational space station as part of crew rotation, according to state media, in the fifth manned mission to the Chinese space outpost since 2021. The spacecraft, Shenzhou-16, or “Divine Vessel”, and its three passengers lifted off atop a Long March-2F rocket from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in the Gobi Desert in northwest China at 9.31 a.m. […]

By Kirsty Needham SYDNEY (Reuters) – Papua New Guinea said a proposed security treaty with neighbour Australia would be delayed as it consults “domestic processes”, a week after signing a defence agreement with the United States that sparked student protests. Papua New Guinea (PNG), a few kilometres (miles) to Australia’s north, is being courted by China and the United States amid rising tensions between the two major powers. Washington and […]

By Steve Holland and Humeyra Pamuk WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. President Joe Biden said Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan in a call on Monday repeated Ankara’s desire to buy F-16 fighter jets from the United States, while Biden told him Washington wanted Ankara to drop its objection to Sweden’s joining NATO. The exchange took place when Biden called Erdogan to congratulate him on his victory in Turkey’s presidential election on Sunday. “I […]

By Kirsty Needham SYDNEY (Reuters) – Papua New Guinea said a proposed security treaty with neighbour Australia would be delayed as it consults “domestic processes”, a week after signing a defence agreement with the United States that sparked student protests. Papua New Guinea (PNG), a few kilometres (miles) to Australia’s north, is being courted by China and the United States amid rising tensions between the two major powers. Washington and […]

By Ankur Banerjee SINGAPORE (Reuters) – The U.S. dollar fell on Tuesday against a basket of major currencies but did not drift far from a two-month peak, after a deal over the U.S. debt ceiling lifted risk sentiment, although the agreement could face a rocky path through Congress. The dollar index, which measures the U.S. currency against six major peers, slipped 0.125% to 104.17, easing away from the two-month high […]

By Kirsty Needham SYDNEY (Reuters) – Papua New Guinea said a proposed security treaty with neighbour Australia would be delayed as it consults “domestic processes”, a week after signing a defence agreement with the United States that sparked student protests. Papua New Guinea (PNG), a few kilometres (miles) to Australia’s north, is being courted by China and the United States amid rising tensions between the two major powers. Washington and […]