South Korea lowers travel advisory for Catalonia

South Korea lowered its travel alert for Catalonia, in northeastern Spain, on Monday as the unrest stemming from a pro-independence movement has eased, the foreign ministry said. A "navy" travel warning, which calls for caution, now applies to the region, including Barcelona, adjusted from the "yellow" alert, meaning travel restraint, that had been in effect since mid-October, the ministry said.  South Korea raised the travel alert last month as riots led by separat

World NewsNov. 18, 2019

'Kawaii!' Olympic robot mascots thrill Tokyo students

TOKYO (AFP) -- Robot versions of Japan's Olympic and Paralympic mascots thrilled hundreds of school children in Tokyo on Monday, striking sporting poses and displaying hearts in their electronic eyes.The event at a local elementary school was billed as a chance to showcase some of the technology Japan hopes will wow visitors at the Tokyo 2020 Games.Some 600 pupils clapped and shouted "kawaii (cute)!" as the toddler-sized versions of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic mascots were un

World NewsNov. 18, 2019

Hong Kong anti-mask law 'unconstitutional': High court

HONG KONG (AFP) -- A government ban on demonstrators wearing face masks, aimed at helping to quell months of pro-democracy unrest in Hong Kong, is unconstitutional, the territory's high court ruled Monday."The restrictions it imposes on fundamental rights... go further than is reasonably necessary... and therefore fail to meet the proportionality test," the court said, according to a press summary. The ban on face-covering came into force in October, when the city's unelected pro-Beiji

World NewsNov. 18, 2019

[Newsmaker] Hong Kong police storm university held by protesters

HONG KONG (AP) -- Police breached a Hong Kong university campus held by protesters early Monday after an all-night siege that included firing repeated barrages of tear gas and water cannons.Anti-government protesters have barricaded themselves inside Hong Kong Polytechnic University for days. Police surrounded the area Sunday night and began moving in after issuing an ultimatum for people to leave the area. The crowd wore raincoats and carried umbrellas to shield themselves.Riot officers broke i

World NewsNov. 18, 2019

Hong Kong police fire blue-dyed water cannons in new protest

HONG KONG (AP) -- Hong Kong police water cannon trucks drove over bricks and nails strewn by protesters and sprayed them at close range Sunday, as opposition lawmakers criticized the Chinese military for joining a cleanup to remove debris from streets.Other officers fired tear gas in a bid to drive out a determined group of protesters on the streets outside Hong Kong Polytechnic University. The push came in an hourslong standoff that followed intense clashes the previous night. A large group of

WorldNov. 17, 2019

China's Xi warns Hong Kong protesters jeopardise 'one country, two systems'

HONG KONG (AFP) -- China's President Xi Jinping warned Thursday that protests in Hong Kong threaten the "one country, two systems"  principle governing the semi-autonomous city that has tipped into worsening violence with two dead in a week.Hong Kong has been ruled by a unique system guaranteeing greater freedoms than on the mainland since its handover from British rule to China in 1997.But protests, which began against a now-shelved extradition bill to China, have spiralled into

World NewsNov. 15, 2019

Two killed in California school shooting, teen in custody

SANTA CLARITA (AFP) -- A teenage boy gunned down fellow students at a California high school on his 16th birthday Thursday, killing two and wounding another three before turning the pistol on himself.The gunman was taken into custody in "grave" condition, police said, as officers stormed Saugus High School in Santa Clarita -- the latest in a relentless cycle of classroom shootings in the United States that have left around 300 youngsters dead over two decades. The chilling scene played

World NewsNov. 15, 2019

Trump asks Supreme Court to protect his tax returns

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- Donald Trump on Thursday asked the Supreme Court to bar a prosecutor from obtaining his tax returns, arguing that as president he has blanket immunity.Trump, a former New York businessman, is the first American president since Richard Nixon not to make his tax returns public, arguing they're under audit by the Internal Revenue Service.Opposition Democrats have turned to the courts to force their release in a case that's considered a crucial test of the separation of powers. A

World NewsNov. 15, 2019

Pressure builds as Trump impeachment probe hears new claims

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- Two top US diplomats delivered gripping testimony Wednesday about Donald Trump's efforts to get Ukraine to investigate his potential 2020 rival Joe Biden, as the impeachment inquiry into the president shifted into a new phase of high-stakes televised hearings.Trump dismissed the probe in the Democratic-led House of Representatives as a "witch hunt" and said he was "too busy" to watch the first public hearings, during which he received staunch backing from

World NewsNov. 14, 2019

[Graphic News] Shenzhen, Beijing lose out to Chengdu as China’s best performing city

　Chengdu, the capital of China’s southwestern province Sichuan, overtook technology hub Shenzhen to top the Milken Institute’s 2019 index of the nation’s best-performing cities.　This is the third time that Chengdu, best known internationally for its pandas, has been ranked first since the list began in 2015. 　The index incorporated nine indicators for the period up to 2017, including employment and wage growth, the growth in gross regional product per-capita, and foreign direct

World NewsNov. 13, 2019

Hong Kong clashes rage on university campus and business district

HONG KONG (AFP) -- Hong Kong pro-democracy protesters fought intense battles with riot police on a university campus and paralysed the city's upmarket business district Tuesday, extending one of the most violent stretches of unrest seen in more than five months of political chaos.The confrontations followed a particularly brutal day on Monday, when police shot a protester and a man was set on fire, prompting calls from western powers for compromise but further fury in China against any challenge

World NewsNov. 13, 2019

Saudi Aramco's IPO Is Vulnerable to the Russians

In finance, as in comedy, timing is everything. Get it right and you have investors (or the audience) in the palm of your hand. Get it wrong and the ensuing silence is painful.Saudi Arabia has stepped on stage finally to launch the initial public offering of its oil monopoly Saudi Aramco. By a strange quirk of the calendar, the price of the shares will be set on the same day OPEC meets to decide the next step in its strategy of propping up the price of crude.It’s hard to see this coinciden

World BusinessNov. 12, 2019

Democrats, GOP to vie for impeachment narrative: on TV

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Impeachable or not?Both Democrats and Republicans see the televised impeachment hearings starting this week as their first and best opportunity to shape public opinion about President Donald Trump’s dealings with Ukraine.Democrats believe the testimony will paint a vivid picture of presidential misconduct. Republicans say it will demonstrate just how lacking the evidence is for impeachment.They agree on one thing: The stakes are very high.Democrats plan a narrow foc

World NewsNov. 12, 2019

[Graphic News] No. of China’s ‘unicorn’ startups exceed US for first time

　China now has more privately held startups valued by investors at over $1 billion than the US, a report said.　There were 206 Chinese firms out of a global total of 494 ultravaluable startups - known as unicorns - in June 2019, according to the research firm Hurun Report.　This makes China the country with the largest number of unicorns in the world, with the US coming in second with 203 such companies.　According to Hurun, China is home to the world’s three most valuable unicorns - Alibaba

World BusinessNov. 11, 2019

What slowdown? Chinese spend big in 'Singles' Day' shopping spree

SHANGHAI (AFP) -- Chinese consumers closed in on a new spending record Monday during the annual "Singles' Day" frenzy, the world's biggest 24-hour shopping event, which kicked off this year with a glitzy show by US megastar Taylor Swift.E-commerce leader Alibaba said that within the first 12 hours, nearly 192 billion yuan ($27.4 billion) had been spent -- apparently on pace to shatter last year's full 24-hour record of $30.7 billion.China's economy is in the midst of an extended slowdo

World NewsNov. 11, 2019

Berlin celebrates 30 years since fall of the Wall

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier urged the United States to be a “mutually respectful partner” and reject nationalism, in a clear salvo aimed at US leader Donald Trump as Germany on Saturday marked 30 years since the fall of the Berlin Wall.Recalling the United States’ key role in helping to bring down the hated Wall separating communist East Germany from the capitalist West, Steinmeier said he still hears the late US President Ronald Reagan’s cry of “tear d

World NewsNov. 11, 2019

[Newsmaker] Hong Kong police shoot protester as flashmob rallies target rush hour

HONG KONG (AFP) -- A Hong Kong police officer shot at masked protesters on Monday morning, hitting at least one in the torso, as anger sparked by the recent death of a student spilled into the rush hour commute.The shooting, which was broadcast live on Facebook, is the latest escalation in more than five months of seething pro-democracy protests that have engulfed the international financial hub and battered its reputation.Footage showed a police officer drawing his sidearm in the district of Sa

World NewsNov. 11, 2019

Bolivia's Morales resigns after losing backing of security forces

LA PAZ (AFP) -- Bolivian President Evo Morales resigned Sunday, caving in following three weeks of sometimes-violent protests over his disputed re-election after the army and police withdrew their backing."I resign my post as president," the leftist Morales said in a televised address, capping a day of fast-moving events in which many ministers and senior officials quit as support for Latin America's longest-serving president crumbled.The streets of La Paz immediately exploded in celeb

World NewsNov. 11, 2019

Japan emperor to greet public in parade marking enthronement

TOKYO (AP) -- Well-wishers are gathering along a central Tokyo street hours before Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako are expected to greet them from a royal motorcade under tight security.  Police have set up 40 security checkpoints. Selfie sticks, bottles and banners -- and even shouting -- are not allowed inside the restricted zone. Naruhito succeeded his father Akihito on May 1 following his abdication, and formally ascended the Chrysanthemum Throne in a palace ceremony last

World NewsNov. 10, 2019

Huge Hong Kong rally after student dies and lawmakers arrested

HONG KONG (AFP) -- Tens of thousands of Hong Kongers packed into a park Saturday night to mourn a student who died during recent clashes as police arrested a group of pro-democracy lawmakers, deepening the city's political crisis.The international finance hub has been upended by five months of huge and increasingly violent pro-democracy protests, but Beijing has refused to give in to most of the movement's demands.Tensions have soared since the death on Friday of Alex Chow, 22, who succumbed to

World NewsNov. 10, 2019