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

China's economy grew a forecast-busting 4.5 percent in the first quarter as the country reopened after the end of zero-Covid measures late last year, official data showed Tuesday.

Head coach Brad Thorn will leave the Queensland Reds at the end of the season, the club said Tuesday, after a poor start to the Super Rugby campaign.

Coachella brings adrenaline-fueled sets to hundreds of thousands of festival-goers who gather in the California desert -- and it also leaves behind a lot of trash.

BTS star J-Hope was set to start his mandatory South Korean military service on Tuesday, local media reported, the second member to report for duty since the K-pop juggernaut went on hiatus last year.

G7 foreign ministers warned Tuesday that those helping Russia wage war in Ukraine would face "severe costs", as they offered a united front on another key policy challenge: China.

After midnight during Ramadan, makeshift floodlights transform a central Karachi basketball court into an urban cricket arena, where dozens of young Pakistani men chase taped-up tennis balls zipping through the night air.

Elon Musk is out to counter Microsoft and Google artificial intelligence efforts with "truth-seeking AI" that shuns political correctness, he said during an interview aired late Monday.

Asian markets fell Tuesday but pared early losses after data showed China's economy grew far more than expected in the first quarter as activity resumed after three years of painful zero-Covid measures.

China's economy grew 4.5 percent year-on-year in the first quarter, rebounding after the end of zero-Covid measures late last year, official data showed Tuesday.

BTS star J-Hope was set to start his mandatory South Korean military service on Tuesday, local media reported, becoming the K-pop juggernaut's second member to enlist, prompting an outpouring of well-wishes from fans.

Gurkha veteran Hari Budha Magar grew up in the shadow of the Himalayas, but only after losing his legs did he resolve to make his childhood dream of scaling Everest a reality.

Neon signs once transformed Hong Kong's oldest neighbourhoods into a kaleidoscope of luminous colour after dark, but most have been removed with a few lucky ones now piled up in a ramshackle yard.

Soaring inflation in Morocco is driving up living costs and stirring public anger, and as food prices increase the country's export-led agricultural model is coming under fire.

Blood had already been spilled during the armed standoff between US agents and the Branch Davidian cult in Waco, Texas, when lawyer Dick DeGuerin got a phone call.

Evan Gershkovich was determined to keep reporting from Moscow since the Kremlin's seismic Ukraine offensive, seeing it as his duty to keep telling Russia's stories, despite the risks, in a country he loved.

Russia's foreign minister met in Brazil on Monday with President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, as Washington criticized the South American leader's recent remarks on US defense support for Ukraine.

US journalist Evan Gershkovich's court appearance in Moscow on Tuesday will be a rare break from his isolation in Lefortovo prison -- a symbol of repression since Soviet times.

When Erling Haaland takes the field for Manchester City on Wednesday in Munich, the Norwegian will face the club who tried to sell the farm to buy him but failed.

Inter Milan stand on the verge of making the Champions League semi-finals for the first time since last being crowed European champions 13 years ago, but all is not well with a goal-shy team ahead of the visit of Benfica.

Rached Ghannouchi, one of the main opponents of Tunisian President Kais Saied, has been arrested, his Ennahdha party said Monday, the latest in a string of opposition figures held.

SpaceX has rescheduled for Thursday the first test flight of Starship, the most powerful rocket ever built, designed to send astronauts to the Moon, Mars and beyond, after a technical glitch forced a halt to the countdown.

A very wet winter has left California's reservoirs looking healthier than they have for years, as near-record rainfall put a big dent in a lengthy drought.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on Monday launched his own television show on a public channel, a year before the next presidential elections are due.

Patrick Mahomes, who guided the Kansas City Chiefs to a Super Bowl victory in February, says his high right ankle sprain isn't fully healed but vows to be ready when needed.

US authorities arrested two men Monday for allegedly setting up a Chinese "police station" in New York and charged dozens of Chinese security officials over a campaign to monitor and harass US-based dissidents.

President Emmanuel Macron on Monday staunchly defended his widely unpopular pension reform but said he understood the "anger" felt by the French after three months of protests.

Liverpool crushed Leeds 6-1 as Cody Gakpo's controversial opener provided the spark for the Reds' first win in five Premier League games on Monday.

Canada's public broadcaster CBC and its French-language version Radio-Canada said Monday they were effectively quitting Twitter over a new "government-funded" label it says questions its editorial independence.

A tale of forbidden love with an infectious hook, Ali Sethi's song "Pasoori" has become an international phenomenon, fusing poetic tradition with global beats to fuel the rise of the Pakistani singer's star.

Milwaukee's Giannis Antetokounmpo and Ja Morant of Memphis were working to get back to full fitness on Monday ahead of crucial second games in their respective NBA playoff series.

All-rounder James Neesham held his nerve in the final over to give New Zealand a dramatic four-run win over Pakistan in the third T20 international in Lahore on Monday despite Iftikhar Ahmed's brilliant innings.

Rached Ghannouchi, one of the main opponents of Tunisian President Kais Saied, has been arrested, his Ennahdha party said on Monday, the latest in a string of opposition figures held.