[Graphic News] Internet use common worldwide but not everyone is online

While internet use is nearly ubiquitous in many countries, not everyone is online. Divides still exist in technology usage between people in some advanced economies and those in some emerging economies, according to Pew Research Center data from 27 countries in 2022 and 2023. Smartphone ownership and social media use also vary around the world. While most adults in the countries surveyed own smartphones and use social media, there are still pockets where many do not. In addition, there are div

World NewsMarch 14, 2024

EU parliament adopts 'historic' rules on AI

STRASBOURG, France -- The European Parliament gave final approval on Wednesday to wide-ranging EU rules to govern artificial intelligence, including powerful systems like OpenAI's ChatGPT. Senior European Union officials say the rules, first proposed in 2021, will protect citizens from the possible risks of a technology developing at breakneck speed, while also fostering innovation on the continent. Brussels has sprinted to pass the new law since OpenAI's Microsoft-backed ChatGPT arriv

World NewsMarch 13, 2024

Denmark wants to conscript more people for military service - including women, for the first time

COPENHAGEN, Denmark — Denmark wants to increase the number of young people doing military service by extending conscription to women and increasing the time of service from 4 months to 11 months for both genders, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said Wednesday. “We do not rearm because we want war. We are rearming because we want to avoid it,” Frederiksen told a press conference. She said the government wants ”full equality between the sexes.” Denmark curre

World NewsMarch 13, 2024

US House to vote on TikTok ban

WASHINGTON -- The US House of Representatives will vote Wednesday on a bill that would force TikTok to cut ties with its Chinese owner or get banned in the United States. The legislation is the biggest threat yet to the video-sharing app, which has surged to huge popularity across the world all while causing intense nervousness amongst governments and security officials about its Chinese ownership and its potential subservience to the Communist Party in Beijing. The vote is likely to occur at 10

World NewsMarch 13, 2024

Chinese stocks slide as investors maintain caution after US inflation report

HONG KONG — China stocks were lower Wednesday after the overnight United States inflation report that signaled a diminished possibility of the Fed's rate cut made investors cautious. Hong Kong stocks edged less than 0.1 percent lower at 17,082.11, ending its three consecutive days of gain. Hang Seng Tech Index advanced 0.4 percent, with JD.com gaining 0.3 percent after the company announced a share buyback of as much as $3 billion over the next three years. The Shanghai Composite Inde

World BusinessMarch 13, 2024

[Graphic News] NATO expands to 32 countries

NATO marked Sweden’s entry into the alliance Monday with a flag-raising ceremony in Brussels as the 32nd member two years after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine persuaded its reluctant public to seek safety under the alliance’s security umbrella. Hungary’s president signed in early March the law on Sweden’s bid to join NATO, a final technical step before the Nordic country becomes the alliance’s 32nd member. Hungary’s parliament ratified Sweden&

World NewsMarch 13, 2024

[Graphic News] 5,750 Russian nationals seek asylum in Korea

More than 5,000 Russian nationals submitted asylum applications in Korea in 2023, according to a government report. The Ministry of Justice said a total of 18,838 refugee applications were reported last year, a 63 percent increase from the previous year. Russians accounted for over 30 percent, followed by Kazakhstan nationals, Chinese, Malaysian and Indian nationals. The annual record for Russian nationals marks a fivefold surge from a year earlier, 1,038, and is tantamount to the aggregate nu

World NewsMarch 11, 2024

France inscribes the right to abortion in its constitution as world marks International Women's Day

France inscribed the guaranteed right to abortion in its constitution Friday, a powerful message of support for women’s rights on International Women’s Day. Justice Minister Eric Dupond-Moretti used a 19th-century printing press to seal the amendment in France’s constitution at a special public ceremony. Applause filled the cobblestoned Place Vendome as France became the first country to explicitly guarantee abortion rights in its national charter. The measure was overwhelmingl

World NewsMarch 8, 2024

Biden rebukes Trump over NATO remarks, other issues in State of the Union address

US President Joe Biden launched a diatribe against former President Donald Trump over his stance on the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, abortion rights, immigrants and other hot-button issues during the State of the Union address Thursday. Referring to Trump as "my predecessor," not by name, Biden used the bully pulpit to criticize Trump and highlight his economic and other achievements, as he is gearing up for an all-but-certain rematch with Trump, now the only key Republican pres

World NewsMarch 8, 2024

[Graphic News] What is Ramadan?

The world’s Muslims observe Ramadan, a month of spiritual discipline, by fasting and prayer during daylight hours. This year, it begins in the evening on March 10 and ends on April 9.

World NewsMarch 8, 2024

Haley drops out of race, doesn't endorse Trump

CHARLESTON, South Carolina -- Nikki Haley ended her long-shot challenge to Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump on Wednesday, ensuring the former president will be the party's candidate in a rematch with Democratic President Joe Biden in November's election. Haley, the former South Carolina governor and Trump's ambassador to the United Nations, bowed out a day after Super Tuesday, when Trump beat her in 14 of 15 Republican nominating contests. "The time has now co

World NewsMarch 7, 2024

Trump, Biden sweep Super Tuesday races, moving closer to rematch

WASHINGTON -- President Joe Biden and his predecessor, Donald Trump, were romping to coast-to-coast victories on Super Tuesday, all but cementing a November rematch and increasing pressure on the former president’s last major rival, Nikki Haley, to leave the Republican race. Biden and Trump had each won Texas, Alabama, Colorado, Maine, Oklahoma, Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Arkansas, Minnesota and Massachusetts. Biden also won the Democratic primaries in California, Utah, Vermont a

World NewsMarch 6, 2024

[Graphic News] Biden ranks 14th-best US president, while Trump ranks last

In a survey of Americans as to how to evaluate the former US presidents’ achievements, Joe Biden placed 14th, and Donald Trump was 45th - rock bottom. The survey “Presidential Greatness Project” was conducted by the University of Houston and Coastal Carolina University, and asked around 200 experts working on presidential politics for their preferences. In a scale of zero to 100, Biden received 62.66 points, while Trump scored 10.92 and placed lowest, below 44th-ranked single

World NewsMarch 6, 2024

[Graphic News] Global military spending hits $2.2tr

Global defense spending rose 9 percent to reach a record $2.2 trillion amid multiple wars and ensuing uncertainties in 2023, a British military think tank said. The International Institute of Strategic Studies forecast that such budgets would increase further, considering the continued Russia-Ukraine war into a third year and international uncertainties surrounding the Middle East after the Gaza offensives. More than half of defense spending was made by NATO members, with US expenditure at

World NewsMarch 5, 2024

[Graphic News] S. Korea has fourth-most Starbucks stores in 2023

South Korea held the fourth-largest number of Starbucks stores around the globe as of last year, data showed, driven by solid demand from local consumers. South Korea held 1,893 Starbucks stores as of 2023, up 116 from a year earlier, according to the data compiled by the US coffee giant. The figure falls just behind Japan’s count at 1,901, despite the Asian neighbor having a population twice the size of South Korea’s. The Seattle-based coffee giant introduced its first store in Se

World NewsMarch 4, 2024

Trump wins party vote in 3 US states, edging toward nomination

Donald Trump on Saturday inched ahead in his quest to become the Republican Party's presidential nominee, winning internal party elections in the states of Missouri, Michigan and Idaho, US media reported. The former president has now won every state nominating contest heading into next week's "Super Tuesday," when voters in 15 US states choose their preferred candidate for each party. Trump has gained huge momentum in the race to capture the Republican nomination at the party

World NewsMarch 3, 2024

Sweden set to join NATO after Hungary approves bid

STOCKHOLM - Sweden on Monday cleared its final obstacle to joining NATO after Hungary's parliament ratified the bid in what Sweden's prime minister called a "historic day," while other alliance members expressed relief at the move spurred by Russia's invasion of Ukraine. NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said Sweden would make the alliance "stronger and safer" while the United States, the main alliance power, as well as Britain and Germany welcomed Sweden's now

World NewsFeb. 27, 2024

US Commerce secretary highlights 'tough' talks under way with chipmakers over grants

US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo reiterated Monday that "tough" talks have been under way with advanced semiconductor companies over grants to be awarded under a program to reinvigorate chip manufacturing in the United States. Speaking at a forum, Raimondo said that the US government has thus far received over 600 statements of interest from relevant companies, and that "leading-edge" companies alone have requested more than $70 billion in grants for their manufacturing pr

World BusinessFeb. 27, 2024

[Graphic News] New cancer cases to soar 77% by 2050: WHO

The number of new cancer cases will rise to more than 35 million in 2050 - 77 percent higher than the figure in 2022, the World Health Organization’s cancer agency has warned. The WHO’s International Agency for Research on Cancer cited the rapidly growing global cancer burden reflects both population aging and growth, as well as changes to people’s exposure to risk factors, several of which are associated with socioeconomic development. Tobacco, alcohol and obesity are key fact

World NewsFeb. 27, 2024

Palestinian Prime Minister Shtayyeh resigns

Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh said on Monday he was resigning to allow for the formation of a broad consensus among Palestinians about political arrangements following Israel's war against the Islamist group Hamas in Gaza. The move comes amid growing US pressure on President Mahmoud Abbas to shake up the Palestinian Authority as international efforts have intensified to stop the fighting in Gaza and begin work on a political structure to govern the enclave after the war. His

World NewsFeb. 26, 2024