WORLD

Rome, Italy | AFP |  A sleek new bridge in Genoa built in record time is being acclaimed in Italy as a model for rebuilding the economy by investing in major infrastructure projects. Such stimulus is sorely needed as the country slides towards its worst recession since World War II because …

Geneva, Switzerland | AFP | The Red Cross on Tuesday launched what it said was the first global network of social media influencers to battle misinformation about the new coronavirus and spread lifesaving content about the pandemic. Experts have been warning for months that the pandemic has been cloaked in a …

Washington, United States | AFP | US exports plunged 9.6 percent in March — the biggest monthly decline on record — increasing the trade deficit to $44.4 billion as the coronavirus pandemic disrupted global commerce, according to government data released Tuesday. While widespread business shutdowns in the United States did not …

Moscow, Russia | AFP | Russia cemented its place as the European country reporting the highest number of new coronavirus infections Tuesday as its total cases soared passed 155,000. Yevgeny Mikrin, chief designer at Energia, Russia’s top producer of spacecraft, has died from the coronavirus, becoming one of the infection’s highest-profile victims in the country, …

Paris, France | AFP | An antibody that can stop the new coronavirus infecting cells in laboratory tests has been identified by researchers in the Netherlands, in what scientists say could help the development of therapies for COVID-19. The antibody neutralised the new coronavirus, according to the research published in Nature Communications, and the authors …

Paris, France | AFP | Total said Tuesday its quarterly profit fell by 99 percent because of dropping oil prices and announced it would slash investments in response to ongoing turmoil in crude markets. The French oil major reported a net profit of $34 million for the first quarter, against $3.1 billion a year earlier. …

Frankfurt am Main, Germany | AFP |  Germany’s top court will rule Tuesday on mass bond-buying by the European Central Bank, a tool the Frankfurt institution has deployed like never before to cushion the impact of the coronavirus. “Will Germany’s supreme court constrain the European Central Bank’s response to the worst …

London, United Kingdom | AFP |  A year after landing in jail without charge, her mercy plea unanswered by Saudi rulers and in fear of a coronavirus outbreak behind bars, a prominent princess did the unthinkable — and went public. Princess Basmah bint Saud, a 56-year-old royal family member long seen …

Geneva, Switzerland | AFP |  The World Health Organization said Monday that Washington had provided no evidence to support “speculative” claims by the US president that the new coronavirus originated in a Chinese lab. “We have not received any data or specific evidence from the United States government relating to the …

Warsaw, Poland | AFP |  Voters are still in the dark as to whether Poland’s presidential election will go ahead as scheduled on Sunday, amid mounting pressure for a delay due to the coronavirus pandemic. The right-wing Law and Justice (PiS) government is still seeking parliamentary approval to conduct the election …