WORLD

Washington, United States | AFP |  The World Health Organization on Wednesday reported the largest single-day increase in coronavirus cases, as US President Donald Trump proposed hosting world leaders for the annual G7 summit as a sign of “normalization.” Trump, who is seeking to revive the battered US economy and his …

London, United Kingdom | AFP | Stock markets picked up Wednesday on hopes for a strong US economic rebound even though retailers reported mixed results and US-China tensions continued to mount. Equities have enjoyed a broad advance for several weeks as virus infection and death rates slow, allowing governments to lift …

Washington, United States | AFP | US President Donald Trump again lashed out at China Wednesday over the coronavirus pandemic, blaming Beijing for “mass Worldwide killing.” The early morning tweet, which also referred to an unidentified “wacko in China,” was the latest heated rhetoric from the White House, where Trump is making attacks on Beijing …

Washington, United States | AFP | If the United States is the first to develop an effective vaccine against the novel coronavirus, it has to quickly share it with the world, the head of the National Institutes of Health, Francis Collins, told AFP in an interview. President Donald Trump’s administration has …

London, United Kingdom | AFP |  Leading British supermarket chains have warned Brazil they may be forced to boycott its goods if lawmakers in the South American country pass a bill that would “encourage further land grabbing” in the Amazon. In an open letter to Brazilian senators and deputies, the companies …

Paris, France | AFP |  The International Energy Agency on Wednesday called on governments to put clean energy at the heart of their coronavirus economic recovery plans, as it forecast the first slowdown in new renewable power installations worldwide in two decades. The IEA warned that lockdown measures — which at …

Paris, France | AFP |  France, which has long been sceptical of the growing power of US tech titans, is seeking to bypass Apple and Google for a smartphone app to help trace people infected with the novel coronavirus. The move, which leaves France relatively isolated in Europe alongside Britain and …

Stockholm, Sweden | AFP |  Sweden has taken a soft approach to virus restrictions and although its rules are likely to be in place longer than in other countries, officials are adamant their strategy is a winner in the long term. “This fight against COVID-19 is a marathon,” Prime Minister Stefan …

Paris, France | AFP |  President Emmanuel Macron and Chancellor Angela Merkel have jump-started the Franco-German “motor” at the heart of Europe by jointly pitching a hugely ambitious economic recovery plan, even if it faces a bumpy road ahead. Macron and Merkel, whose relationship has been shadowed by disagreements on several …

Paris, France | AFP |  Global CO2 emissions from fossil fuels are set to drop by up to seven percent in 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic, but even this dramatic decline — the sharpest since WWII — would barely dent longterm global warming, researchers reported Tuesday. In early April, coronavirus …