Author: Web Desk

Pyongyang: Kim Jong Un has been reappointed as general secretary of North Korea’s ruling Workers’ Party during the latest party congress in Pyongyang. The Kim Jong Un reappointment has come as little surprise, given the Kim family’s decades-long control of the country since the late 1940s. State media has reported that under Kim Jong Un’s leadership, North Korea has strengthened its military capabilities and enhanced its war deterrence, with nuclear forces positioned at the centre of national defence strategy. The country has continued to develop its nuclear programme despite international sanctions and has regularly tested intercontinental ballistic missiles banned under…

Milan: The United States won the men’s Olympic ice hockey gold medal for the first time in 46 years after defeating Canada 2-1 in overtime at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan-Cortina. The ice hockey final delivered the last gold medal of the Games and marked the first American men’s Olympic title since the famous 1980 triumph at Lake Placid. It also became the first time the USA secured the men’s title outside home territory. The winning goal came early in overtime when Jack Hughes finished decisively after sustained pressure from both teams. The United States relied heavily on goalkeeper…

San Francisco: OpenAI has been working on a family of artificial intelligence devices that could include a smart speaker, smart glasses and a connected lamp, according to a report citing people familiar with the plans. The OpenAI hardware effort has involved more than 200 staff as the company moves deeper into consumer electronics. The first product in the lineup has been expected to be a smart speaker, with a potential price between $200 (£158) and $300 (£237). The device has been designed to include a built-in camera capable of gathering contextual information about users and surroundings. However, the speaker has…

Washington: Tariff measures introduced by President Donald Trump have faced a major legal setback after the Supreme Court ruled that the administration exceeded its authority in imposing sweeping global import taxes. In response, Trump has unveiled a new 10 percent global tariff to replace the duties that were invalidated. The Supreme Court, in a 6-3 decision, has held that the president overstepped powers granted under the 1977 International Emergency Economic Powers Act. The White House had relied on that statute to justify tariffs first aimed at Mexico, Canada and China before expanding to dozens of countries during what the administration…

Singapore: Gold has gained modestly in late-week trading but has been set for a weekly loss as the US dollar climbed to a near one-month high. Spot Gold has risen 0.4 percent to $5,020.95 per ounce, yet has been down about 0.5 percent for the week so far. US Gold futures for April delivery have increased 0.8 percent to $5,037.60. Market participants have continued to monitor the US Personal Consumption Expenditures data, the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge, for signals on monetary policy. Minutes from the Federal Reserve’s January meeting have shown that several policymakers were open to further rate…

Tokyo: Sanae Takaichi has delivered a post-election address to parliament outlining plans to strengthen Japan’s defence posture and economic security. The Sanae Takaichi administration has warned of increasing pressure from China and has pledged to revise national security policies and reinforce supply chains. The prime minister has described the current environment as Japan’s most complex security situation since the Second World War, citing expanding Chinese military activity, closer cooperation between China and Russia and North Korea’s advancing missile capabilities. The government has committed to updating three key national security documents this year to shape a new defence strategy. Takaichi has…

New Delhi: Bill Gates has cancelled a scheduled keynote address at the AI Impact Summit in India, despite earlier plans to speak at the event alongside global leaders and technology executives. The Bill Gates visit to India had included engagements linked to the foundation’s work on using artificial intelligence for social initiatives in partnership with government agencies. The foundation has stated that the decision was taken after consideration to ensure the summit’s priorities remained the focus. The change came hours before the planned speech and less than two days after confirmation that Bill Gates would attend and deliver the keynote.…

Washington: Wildfire conditions have nearly tripled globally over the past 45 years, according to new research examining hot, dry and windy weather patterns. The Wildfire study has found that more than half of the increase in dangerous fire weather days has been caused by human-induced climate change. Researchers have focused on ‘synchronous fire weather’, when multiple regions experience the right conditions for fires at the same time. This pattern has increased the likelihood that several areas could face severe Wildfire outbreaks simultaneously, placing strain on emergency resources and reducing the ability of neighbouring regions to provide assistance. Between 1979 and…

Manila: Sara Duterte has announced a presidential bid for the 2028 elections, setting the stage for an early campaign in the Philippines’ personality-driven political landscape. The Sara Duterte move has come as political rivalry with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr has intensified, following the breakdown of an earlier alliance that secured a landslide victory in the 2022 elections. Lawmakers and political parties have begun positioning for the next national vote, even though the election remains two years away. Marcos cannot seek re-election under constitutional limits, and no challenger from allied factions has been confirmed. Sara Duterte, aged 47 and leader within…

San Francisco: YouTube has returned to normal functioning after a brief outage disrupted access to videos and recommendations for users across several countries. The YouTube platform has stated that a problem within the recommendation system had prevented videos from appearing properly across different services. The disruption affected YouTube.com, the mobile application, YouTube Music, Kids and TV platforms. According to an update from the company, the issue linked to recommendations has been fixed and all services have resumed normal operations across affected regions. During the peak of the disruption, outage tracking service Downdetector recorded more than 320,000 user reports of issues…