SEOUL (REUTERS) – Officials with US President Joe Biden’s administration have begun emphasising the “denuclearisation of North Korea”, rather than the whole peninsula, in a subtle but noticeable shift from wording embraced in previous talks with Pyongyang. In speeches, policy documents, and other communications, senior leaders including Secretary of State Antony Blinken have regularly adopted […]
OSAKA (AFP) – Here we go! After months of pandemic delays, Nintendo’s first ever theme park, featuring a “Mario Kart” ride in a real-life Bowser’s Castle, opened in Japan on Thursday (March 18) to delighted fans. The attraction, whose bright, block-like surroundings are straight out of the classic “Super Mario” games, is part of the existing […]
SYDNEY (AFP) – Australia’s population has declined for the first time in more than a century as pandemic-induced border closures stemmed the flow of overseas migrants, according to figures released Thursday (March 18). The Australian Bureau of Statistics said the population grew by less than one per cent in the year to September 2020, and […]
What are the most common types of gastrointestinal cancers in Singapore? The three most common gastrointestinal cancers affecting both men and women are those of the colorectum, liver and pancreas. These accounted for 24 per cent of the 23,632 new cases diagnosed in 2020. What are the symptoms and risk factors for such cancers? It […]
WELLINGTON (REUTERS) – New Zealand is close to allowing Australians to visit without quarantining on arrival, New Zealand’s deputy prime minister said on Thursday (March 18), a reciprocal right that would create a long-touted “Trans-tasman travel bubble”. Both countries have been successful in largely containing the spread of the coronavirus domestically. Australia’s border has been […]
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Internal Revenue Service said on Wednesday it was extending the federal income tax filing and payment deadline by about a month until May 17 due to the coronavirus pandemic, bowing to pressure from congressional Democrats.A security camera hangs near a corner of the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) building in […]
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Senate on Wednesday voted unanimously to confirm veteran government trade lawyer Katherine Tai as the first woman of color to serve as U.S. Trade Representative, putting her to work enforcing trade deals, confronting China’s trade practices and patching up ties with U.S. allies.FILE PHOTO: Katherine C. Tai addresses the Senate […]
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Internal Revenue Service will extend the federal tax filing deadline until May 17 after members of Congress sought an extension, two senior House of Representatives Democrats said on Wednesday.FILE PHOTO: Internal Revenue Service Commissioner Charles Rettig testifies on his agency’s budget before a House Appropriations Subcommittee hearing on Capitol Hill […]
NEW DELHI (REUTERS) – India said on Wednesday (March 17) its coronavirus immunisation campaign would continue with “full rigour” despite some concerns in Europe about the safety of the AstraZeneca vaccine it relies heavily upon as infections hit a three-month high. The European Medicines Agency is investigating reports of 30 cases of unusual blood disorders […]
FILE PHOTO: A row of houses stand in a newly built subdivision in East Gwillimbury, Ontario, Canada, January 30, 2018. REUTERS/Mark BlinchOTTAWA (Reuters) – Canadian home prices accelerated in February, rising 0.5% from January with all 11 major markets rising on the year for the first time since 2018, data showed on Wednesday. The Teranet-National […]