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

Japanese shares rallied Thursday as the yen extended losses after the country's new prime minister dampened interest rate hike expectations, while Hong Kong fell for the first time in more than a week after a blistering China-fuelled surge.

Dutch airline KLM on Thursday announced a sweeping package of "firm" cost-cutting measures it hopes will lead to a boost in operating profits of around 450 million euros ($496 million) "in the short term."

Sri Lankan spin bowler Praveen Jayawickrama has been banned from cricket for a year by the sport's world governing body after he pleaded guilty to a corruption charge.

Designated members of the EU's new top executive team are to be grilled by lawmakers next month in a showdown every five years between parliament and the powerful European Commission that has Brussels abuzz with speculation.

Carlos Alcaraz said Thursday he had no time to celebrate becoming the China Open champion thanks to the gruelling tennis schedule, rushing straight from the stadium to catch a flight to the ongoing Shanghai Masters.

In the semi-abandoned village of Ulken on a giant steppe, Anna Kapustina, a mother of five, hopes controversial plans to build Kazakhstan's first nuclear power plant will breathe life into her ailing hometown.

In northern Ivory Coast, thousands of refugees from neighbouring Burkina Faso have fled two threats -- jihadist attacks, and massacres committed by army-backed militiamen who target the Fulani community.

On a beach in Costa Rica, as fishermen land the day's catch, two women are hard at work on a slimy sea bass skin, rubbing, scraping, washing and tanning the hide to turn it into leather.

The Senegalese town of Kayar sits on the doorstep of the vast Atlantic Ocean, but it is a farm located further inland that provides part of its fish production.

Typhoon Krathon made landfall in Taiwan's south on Thursday, the island's weather agency said, after forcing schools and offices to shut for a second day amid winds and rain that have left two dead and more than 100 injured.

Israel carried out a deadly air raid Thursday in central Beirut after eight ground troops were killed near the Lebanese border, as it traded threats with its arch foe Iran over possible future attacks.

Artificial intelligence is already disrupting industries from banking and finance to film and journalism, and scientists are investigating how AI might revolutionise their field -- or even win a Nobel Prize.

Antonio Conte has taken Napoli back to the top of Serie A for the first time since they won the title in 2023 but he says while the fans can dream of regaining the crown "I have to keep my feet on the ground."

A new peace prize backed by Russian President Vladimir Putin bearing Leo Tolstoy's name has divided the writer's descendants, bringing to mind the unhappy families of his novel "Anna Karenina".

China's meteoric rise as the world's powerhouse of electric vehicle production makes Western efforts to curb their exports a tough sell -- and means they could even stifle the fight against climate change, analysts warn.

Andy Ibanez smashed a three-run double in the eighth inning and the Detroit Tigers defeated Houston 5-2 on Wednesday to advance in the Major League Baseball playoffs.

Argentine President Javier Milei has made good on threats to veto proposed increases to university funding, with the measure made official early Thursday after a day of major student-led protests.

A Singaporean former minister was sentenced Thursday to 12 months in prison for obstruction of justice and accepting illegal gifts, local media reported, in the city-state's first political graft trial for nearly half a century.

Japan's Shohei Ohtani is the record-breaking baseball "superhuman" following in the footsteps of the legendary Babe Ruth who has also earned comparisons to American sporting greats Michael Jordan and Tom Brady.

French energy giant TotalEnergies has announced plans to increase its oil and gas production until 2030, as it seeks to reassure investors about its fundamentals.

Next week's Nobel Prize announcements will crown achievements that made the world a better place, a glimmer of optimism amid a spiralling Middle East conflict, war in Ukraine, famine in Sudan and a collapsing climate.

Japanese shares rallied Thursday as the yen extended losses after the new prime minister dampened interest rate hike expectations, while Hong Kong sank for the first time in more than a week after a blistering China-fuelled surge.

Australian major winner Hannah Green has called for women to play in the Presidents Cup to make it more competitive, saying the concept has been spoken about in the locker room.

Mexico's new President Claudia Sheinbaum on Wednesday expressed concern about supplies of drinking water in the country's west after Hurricane John hit the Pacific coast, killing at least 16 people.

Tunisians head to the polls Sunday for a presidential election in which analysts say incumbent Kais Saied is poised for victory with his most prominent critics behind bars.

Lionel Messi scored twice as Inter Miami beat the defending Major League Soccer champions the Columbus Crew 3-2 to clinch the Supporters' Shield awarded for the best regular season record.

Kamala Harris and Donald Trump are entering the final one-month sprint to the most dramatic US presidential election in modern history, with both candidates warning the fate of a divided nation hangs on a result that is still too close to call.

In the small fishing village of Beddouza in western Morocco, locals have turned to the Atlantic to quench their thirst, using mobile desalination stations to combat the kingdom's persistent drought.

Courts, bullets and verbal stumbles have made their mark on this year's US election campaign -- one of the most extraordinary in the nation's history.

Rising childcare costs in the United States are forcing many parents, often mothers, to work fewer hours or none at all -- fueling concern among voters who feel the pinch in today's economy.

For Maggie Ficco, a working mother from the US state of Pennsylvania, the issue of childcare is more than just an electoral talking point: it's a constant source of stress, as costs rise and day care capacities shrink.

Taiwan shut down schools and offices for a second day Thursday as Typhoon Krathon pounded the island before its expected landfall, leaving two dead and more than 100 injured.