The National Times - News around the clock from Sydney, Australia and around the world

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres arrived in Russia on Wednesday to attend the BRICS summit, his first visit to the country for more than two years that has drawn scorn from Ukraine.

Asian equities diverged Wednesday after another unremarkable day on Wall Street, where rising bond yields and comments from Federal Reserve officials dampened expectations for US interest rate cuts.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Wednesday "now is the time" to end the conflict in Gaza, and urged Israel to avoid further escalation with Iran.

Kamala Harris faces voters' questions at a live forum Wednesday in must-win Pennsylvania as the vice president and her rival Donald Trump battle for undecided voters in the closing stretch of an extremely close White House race.

Mehidy Hasan Miraz and debutant Jaker Ali put on an unbroken 89 for the seventh wicket stand to steer Bangladesh to 201-6 at lunch on day three of the first Test against South Africa on Wednesday.

King Charles III landed in Samoa Wednesday to join his first Commonwealth summit as monarch, hoping to breathe new life into a bloc seen by critics as "a leftover of empire".

The ball hit by Japanese superstar Shohei Ohtani for his 50th home run of the season sold for a record-breaking $4.39 million, auction house Goldin said Wednesday.

Two-time major champion Collin Morikawa said Wednesday that "winning is tough" as he looks for his first victory of the year at the US PGA Tour's Zozo Championship in Japan this week.

New Zealand's Chad Bowes broke the world record for the fastest double century in List A cricket on Wednesday, reaching 200 off just 103 balls in a domestic one-day match.

Boeing will be under a spotlight Wednesday as the beleaguered aviation giant announces what is expected to be its biggest quarterly loss in four years, and striking employees vote on whether to end a costly weeks-long stoppage.

Acrid clouds engulfed India's capital on Wednesday as air pollution fuelled by fireworks and farm stubble burning was ranked "hazardous" by monitors for the first time this winter.

Philippine rescuers waded through chest-deep floodwaters Wednesday to reach residents trapped by Tropical Storm Trami, which has forced thousands to evacuate as it barrels towards the country's east coast.

Shares in Tokyo Metro, one of the world's busiest subways, soared almost 50 percent on its debut Wednesday after its government owners raised $2.3 billion in Japan's biggest initial public offering in six years.

Israel's army said it had killed the cleric tipped to succeed slain Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in an air strike on Beirut three weeks ago that targeted commanders of the Iran-backed militant group.

Human-caused climate change worsened floods that have killed hundreds of people and displaced millions in Cameroon, Chad, Niger, Nigeria and Sudan this year, according to a study published on Wednesday.

Former Los Angeles Dodgers star Fernando Valenzuela, one of the sport's most loved figures, died on Tuesday at the age of 63, the Major League Baseball club said in a statement.

Acrid clouds engulfed India's capital on Wednesday as air pollution fuelled by fireworks and farm stubble burning was ranked "hazardous" by monitors for the first time this winter.

King Charles arrives in Samoa on Wednesday ahead of a Commonwealth summit, hoping to breathe new life into a bloc seen by critics as "a leftover of empire".

On Najmeddine Tantoun's farm on the outskirts of the western Libyan city of Misrata, the usual whir of hundreds of dairy milking machines has given way to near silence.

Fernando Valenzuela took baseball by storm in 1981, igniting "Fernandomania" with his charisma and pitching prowess and forging a link between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Mexican fans that endures to this day.

Test opening great David Warner has told Australian selectors he is available to come out of retirement and play in the home series against India.

Brazil's Atletico Mineiro took a huge step towards the final of the Copa Libertadores with a 3-0 semi-final, first-leg, win over Argentina's River Plate on Tuesday.

A Chinese aircraft carrier group sailed through the Taiwan Strait on Wednesday, Taiwan's defence minister said, a day after Beijing held a live-fire exercise near the self-ruled island.

LeBron and Bronny James made NBA history on Tuesday, becoming the first father-and-son duo to play alongside each other in a regular season fixture as the Los Angeles Lakers opened their campaign against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Brazil's Atletico Mineiro took a huge step towards the final of the Copa Libertadores with a 3-0 win over Argentina's River Plate on Tuesday.

Every day six and a half million people ride Tokyo Metro's nine lines, part of a dizzyingly complex transport network serving the Japanese megacity and its sprawling suburbs.

As if Mikaela Shiffrin hadn't already etched her name in the annals of World Cup alpine skiing, the American kickstarts the new season eyeing yet another landmark, looking to become the first person to chalk up 100 victories on the circuit.

Asian equities diverged Wednesday after another unremarkable day on Wall Street, where rising bond yields and comments from Federal Reserve officials dampened expectations for US interest rate cuts.

Every day, local fishermen visit Ernesto Rojas to sell him small, colorful fish plucked from rivers in the Colombian jungle that end up in aquariums around the world.

Jayson Tatum scored 37 points as the Boston Celtics launched the defense of their NBA crown with an emphatic 132-109 defeat of the New York Knicks on Tuesday.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un inspected a strategic missile base, state media said Wednesday, releasing images of him viewing transport and launch vehicles for the country's largest and most powerful intercontinental ballistic weapons.

Kamala Harris said Tuesday that America is "absolutely" ready to elect its first woman president but downplayed her historic bid, saying she simply wants to turn the page for a nation "exhausted" by Donald Trump.