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US deploys aircraft carrier to Latin America, escalating military tensions

Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth announced Friday that the US military is deploying an aircraft carrier to the waters off South America, in the latest escalation and buildup of military forces in the region. The US military has conducted its 10th strike on a suspected drug-running boat, Hegseth said earlier Friday, blaming the Tren de Aragua gang for operating the vessel and leaving six people dead in the Caribbean Sea. In a social media post, Hegseth said the strike occurred overnight, and it marks the second time the Trump administration has tied one of its operations to the gang that originated in a Venezuelan prison. The pace of the strikes has quickened in recent days from one every few weeks when they first began to three this week, killing a total of at least 43 people since September. Two of the most recent strikes were carried out in the eastern Pacific Ocean, expanding the area where the military has launched attacks and shifting to where much of the cocaine from the world'

Trump plan seeks to open nearly all US coasts to offshore drilling

Environmentalists blasted the reported plan, saying it would put too many coastal communities and marine habitats at risk

US inflation stays elevated but prices rose less than feared last month

US inflation remained elevated last month as the costs of some imported goods rose while rental prices cooled. Consumer prices increased 3 per cent in September from a year earlier, the Labour Department said Friday, up from 2.9 per cent in August. Excluding the volatile food and energy categories, core prices also rose 3 per cent, a decline from 3.1 per cent in the previous month. Both figures are above the Federal Reserve's 2 per cent target. The report on the consumer price index is being issued more than a week late because of the government shutdown, now in its fourth week. The Trump administration recalled some Labour Department employees to produce the figures because they are used to set the annual cost-of-living adjustment for roughly 70 million Social Security recipients. The figures reflect a smaller increase than many economists had forecast, and will likely encourage the Federal Reserve to cut its key interest rate when it meets next week for the second time this ...

Marco Rubio visits US-led coordination centre in Israel amid Gaza ceasefire

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio toured a US-led coordination centre in southern Israel Friday, as the Trump administration pushed forward with plans to set up an international security force in Gaza and shore up a tenuous ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. Rubio was the latest in a series of high-level US officials to visit the civilian military coordination centre and the country. US Vice President JD Vance was there earlier this week, where he announced its opening, and US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, the president's son-in-law, were also in Israel. Around 200 US troops are working alongside the Israeli military and delegations from other countries at the centre, planning the stabilisation and reconstruction of Gaza. On Friday, an AP reporter saw international personnel there with flags from Cyprus, Greece, France, Germany, Australia and Canada. Rubio had been expected to name a civilian coordinator who would work alongside a commander from the US Central Command, bu

Binance co-founder Changpeng Zhao granted pardon by Trump administration

The move marks the latest act of clemency the White House has granted to a crypto entrepreneur, underscoring how the Trump administration has positioned itself as a friend of the industry

US warns flight delays may worsen as government shutdown enters 23rd day

Air traffic control has become a flashpoint in the debate over the shutdown with both parties blaming the other. Unions and airlines have urged a quick end to the standoff

Israel is not a US protectorate, Netanyahu says ahead of meeting with Vance

Israel's prime minister toughened his stance Wednesday by declaring that his country is in charge of its own security and isn't an American protectorate as he prepared to discuss progress on Gaza's fragile ceasefire agreement with US Vice President JD Vance. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's remarks ahead of his meeting with Vance appeared aimed easing public concerns that the presence of an envisioned international security force in Gaza could limit Israel's ability to strike in the devastated territory to thwart future threats. We are not a protectorate of the United States. Israel is the one that will decide on its security, Netanyahu said in a statement issued by his office as he headed into the meeting. Speaking to reporters before the meeting's start, Vance acknowledged that the road to peace is strewn with huge hurdles but at the same time tried to maintain the buoyant tone he sounded Tuesday on his arrival to Israel. "We have a very, very tough task ahead of us, which is

Vance on Israel visit, says Gaza ceasefire holding better than expected

US Vice President JD Vance on Tuesday visited a newly opened centre in Israel for civilian and military cooperation that he called central to keeping the US-backed ceasefire plan for Gaza on track. Vance, who visited with top US envoys, said the fragile ceasefire is going better than I expected. Envoy Steve Witkoff added that we are exceeding where we thought we would be at this time. Vance, Witkoff and others are in Israel to shore up the ceasefire following a burst of deadly violence and questions over the plan for long-term peace. Vance was meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other officials and is expected to stay in the region until Thursday. Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump's son-in-law and one of the architects of the ceasefire agreement, is also in Israel. Also on Tuesday, Hamas said it has recovered the remains of two more hostages and planned to hand them over Tuesday evening. Vance urged a little bit of patience' amid growing Israeli frustrat

Stocks rise, gold slips as easing trade tensions boost investor confidence

In Asia, the near-certainty of Sanae Takaichi becoming Japan's next prime minister briefly sent Tokyo's Nikkei to a record high and dented the yen

AUKUS pact will fuel arms race, raise nuclear proliferation risks: China

China on Tuesday criticised the renewal of the major nuclear-powered submarine pact, known as AUKUS (Australia, UK, US), saying it opposes bloc confrontation and anything that increases the risk of nuclear proliferation and exacerbates the arms race. Seen as an effort to counter China in the Asia Pacific, the three countries announced a historic security pact in 2021 under which Australia will be helped to build nuclear-powered submarines for the first time, using US technology. The pact will also cover artificial intelligence, cyber and quantum technologies. China has been vocal in its criticism, saying the AUKUS, together with the QUAD alliance between the US, India, Japan and Australia, was aimed at countering its rise. "China has made clear more than once its position on the so-called trilateral security partnership between the US, the UK and Australia designed to advance cooperation on nuclear submarines and other cutting-edge military technologies," Chinese Foreign Ministry .

India-US trade talks cordial; farmers, MSME interests protected: Goyal

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Saturday said talks between India and the US on the proposed bilateral trade agreement are progressing in a cordial atmosphere and New Delhi will protect the interests of farmers, fishermen and MSME sectors. "Bharat ke kisano ka, machhuvaaron ka, Bharat ke MSME sector ka, jub tak desh hiton ko puri tarah se hum sambhalen nai, tab tak koi agreement kiya nai jata (No agreement can be made until we take care of the interests of India's farmers, fishermen and MSME sector)," he told reporters here. He was replying to a question about the progress of talks between the two countries on the proposed pact and by when it will be concluded. "Talks are going on in a cordial atmosphere," he said. The remarks are important as the US is seeking concessions in India's agriculture sector. The Indian official team, headed by Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal, was in Washington this week to hold trade talks with their US counterparts. In February this

Global bank stocks fall on credit worries as US lenders rebound slightly

The banking sector's exposure to two recent US auto bankruptcies has rekindled concerns about lending standards more than two years after Silicon Valley Bank's failure triggered broader turmoil

Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin speak before Zelenskiy's White House visit

Zelenskiy will meet Trump on Friday to push for more military support, including potential long-range offensive missiles

Stellantis $13 bn US investment plan gains support from investors

The plan, announced late on Tuesday, would help buffer the group from US tariffs, an impact the French-Italian-American group had estimated in July at about $1.7 billion this year

Tesla urges Delaware Supreme Court to restore Musk's $56 billion payday

One of the biggest corporate legal battles entered its final stage after a lower court judge rescinded the Tesla CEO's record compensation in January 2024

US tech startup Anthropic unveils cheaper model to widen AI's appeal

Anthropic's annual revenue run rate - a calculation of annual revenue extrapolated from the current sales pace- is almost $7 billion, the spokesperson said

New Nato members Finland and Sweden to buy more US arms for Ukraine

NATO's two newest members, Finland and Sweden, said Wednesday that they would buy more weapons from the United States to give to Ukraine, a day after data showed that foreign military aid to the war-torn country had declined sharply in recent months. Over the summer, NATO started to coordinate regular deliveries of large weapons packages to Ukraine to help fend off Russia's war. The aim was to send at least one load a month of targeted and predictable military support, each worth around USD 500 million. Spare weapons stocks in European arsenals have all but dried up, and NATO diplomats have said that the United States has around USD 10-USD 12 billion worth of arms, air defence systems and ammunition that Ukraine could use. Under the financial arrangement known as the Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List, or PURL European allies and Canada are buying American weapons to help Kyiv keep Russian forces at bay. About USD 2 billion worth has already been allocated. Finland's defence .

India Post resumes mail services to US from Oct 15 with 50% duty

India Post will restart sending mail and packages to the US but all shipments will pay extra after the US imposed a flat 50% duty

Kremlin warns the West over 'dramatic' escalation moment in Ukraine war

Tomahawk missiles have a range of 2,500 km (1,550 miles), meaning Ukraine would be able to use them for long-range strikes deep inside Russia, including Moscow

China warns US to stop trade threats, signals retaliation over tariffs

President Donald Trump on Friday announced an additional 100% tariff on China as well as export controls on "any and all critical software" beginning Nov. 1