Town Hall News

PARIS (Reuters) – The European Central Bank has travelled most of the way in its campaign to raise interest rates, French ECB policymaker Francois Villeroy de Galhau said on Wednesday, adding that further rate hikes would be “more marginal”. “What remains to be done is more marginal,” Villeroy told newspaper group EBRA. “It is the future impact of these past rate hikes that should for the most part allow us […]

By Jeffrey Dastin and Greg Bensinger MOUNTAIN VIEW, California (Reuters) – Alphabet Inc’s Google is rolling out more artificial intelligence for its core search product, hoping to create some of the same consumer excitement generated by Microsoft Corp’s update to rival search engine Bing in recent months. At its annual I/O conference in Mountain View, California, on Wednesday, Google offered a new version of its namesake engine. Called the Search […]

By Gibran Naiyyar Peshimam, Asif Shahzad and Ariba Shahid ISLAMABAD (Reuters) -Pakistan’s government called in the army on Wednesday to help end deadly unrest in the wake of the arrest of former prime minister Imran Khan, warning protesters against any further attacks on state installations. At least five people have died in violence that has aggravated instability in the South Asian country of 220 million people as it grapples with […]

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland has authorized the first transfer of forfeited Russian assets for use in Ukraine, he said on Wednesday. The Justice Department last year charged Russian oligarch Konstantin Malofeyev with violating sanctions imposed on Russia after its invasion of Ukraine, saying he provided financing for Russians promoting separatism in Crimea. At that time, Garland said, he also announced “the seizure of millions of dollars […]

By Karen Freifeld and Sarah N. Lynch CENTRAL ISLIP, N.Y. (Reuters) -U.S. Representative George Santos pleaded not guilty on Wednesday to charges of fraud, money laundering and theft of public funds in the latest hit to the newly elected Republican, who has resisted calls to resign for lying about his resume. Santos appeared in court wearing a sweater over a white collared shirt, a blazer and light slacks, and he […]

(Reuters) – Tiger Woods was not on the full field list for next week’s PGA Championship, the golf major’s organisers said on Wednesday, as the 15-times major champion continues to recover from an ankle surgery. Woods, who withdrew from the Masters midway through last month’s tournament due to injury, underwent fusion surgery on a bone in his ankle to address his post-traumatic arthritis from a previous talus bone fracture. The […]

By Mike Blake and Ted Hesson SAN DIEGO/WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Thousands of migrants are crossing into the United States this week before a new regulation takes effect that could bar most who cross illegally from seeking asylum, while others gathered on the Mexico side amid confusion about U.S. policy. The U.S. rolled out a regulation on Wednesday that presumes most migrants are ineligible for asylum if they passed through other nations without […]

By Shariq Khan BENGALURU (Reuters) -Oil prices fell by more than a dollar a barrel on Wednesday, ending a three-day rally, as economic data suggested that the U.S. Federal Reserve might hike interest rates further. Brent crude dropped $1.03, or 1.3%, to settle at $76.41 a barrel while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude (WTI) fell $1.15, or 1.6%, to $72.56 a barrel. U.S. consumer prices rose in April, potentially raising […]

By Foo Yun Chee BRUSSELS (Reuters) – EU antitrust regulators are set to approve Microsoft Corp’s $69 billion acquisition of Activision next week, with May 15 as the likeliest date, people familiar with the matter said. The European Commission’s imminent clearance comes nearly three weeks after the UK competition authority blocked the deal, the biggest-ever deal in gaming, over concerns it would hinder competition in cloud gaming. The EU antitrust […]