Town Hall News

By Fabian Cambero SANTIAGO (Reuters) -While Chile’s plan to take control of its lithium industry has caused global shockwaves, state-led production of the metal used to make electric vehicle batteries is seen by analysts as likely years away given technical and political challenges. President Gabriel Boric last week said he would move to gradually nationalize the country’s lithium industry, which holds the world’s largest reserves of the metal, in a […]

(Reuters) – The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Pfizer Inc’s next-generation vaccine to prevent pneumococcal disease in children aged six weeks to 17 years, the company said late on Thursday. The vaccine, Prevnar 20, offers more protection against the disease versus the company’s widely-used Prevnar 13 vaccine, by targeting seven more serotypes of the streptococcus pneumoniae bacteria that causes those infections. The pneumococcal disease can lead to […]

By Alan Baldwin (Reuters) – Red Bull’s Formula One leader Max Verstappen put in the fastest time right at the chequered flag on Friday in a chaotic sole practice for the new format Azerbaijan Grand Prix sprint weekend. The double world champion, last year’s winner in Baku, lapped the fast street circuit with a best time of one minute 42.315 seconds with his final effort on the soft tyres. Ferrari’s […]

(Reuters) – Armenia and Azerbaijan will hold talks in the near future on a peace deal to try to settle their long-running differences, Russia’s TASS news agency quoted the secretary of Armenia’s Security Council as saying. The official, Armen Grigoryan, did not say when, where and at what level the talks would happen. TASS also reported that Armenia’s defence minister had discussed the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh, the focus of two […]

(Reuters) – The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Pfizer Inc’s next-generation vaccine to prevent pneumococcal disease in children aged six weeks to 17 years, the company said late on Thursday. The vaccine, Prevnar 20, offers more protection against the disease versus the company’s widely-used Prevnar 13 vaccine, by targeting seven more serotypes of the streptococcus pneumoniae bacteria that causes those infections. The pneumococcal disease can lead to […]

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Senator Michael Bennet introduced a bill on Thursday that would create a task force to look at U.S. policies on artificial intelligence, and identify how best to reduce threats to privacy, civil liberties and due process. The popular use of ChatGPT and other AI, which have been used for years to create text, imagery and other content, has sparked a rush around the globe to figure out […]

LONDON (Reuters) – Former world number one Simona Halep has called on tennis’s anti-doping organisation to give her the chance to clear her name after she was provisionally suspended by the International Tennis Integrity Agency (ITIA) in October. The former Wimbledon and French Open champion was tested during last year’s U.S. Open and both her A and B samples confirmed the presence of banned blood-booster roxadustat. Halep strenuously denies knowingly […]

By Sarah Young LONDON (Reuters) -BBC Chairman Richard Sharp resigned on Friday after an independent report found he had breached public appointment rules by not disclosing potential conflict of interest in his role in securing a $1 million loan for the then-prime minister, Boris Johnson. His exit comes at a time of heightened political scrutiny of the British public broadcaster. A high-profile row with highly paid presenter Gary Lineker over […]

By Jennifer Rigby and Maggie Fick LONDON (Reuters) – Pfizer Inc has pledged to deliver critical new medicines more quickly in low-income nations, but its first such vaccine effort faces hurdles likely to delay distribution in poorer countries by several years, global health officials told Reuters. Pfizer made a commitment on more equitable access last year, following criticism that it prioritized wealthy nations for doses of its COVID-19 shot early […]