AFP news

Equities widened losses in Asia and Europe on Friday, extending a global rout inflicted by Donald Trump's tariff blitz that has inflamed a trade war and ramped up recession and inflation fears.

Vast new Chinese barges spotted off the country's south coast could be used to land heavy equipment and thousands of personnel in a possible invasion of Taiwan, defence experts say.

Making incisions and carefully taking samples, the scientists at a laboratory in Russia's far east looked like pathologists carrying out a post-mortem.

South Korea's Constitutional Court on Friday unanimously upheld President Yoon Suk Yeol's impeachment over his disastrous martial law declaration, stripping him of office and triggering fresh elections after months of political turmoil.

Scientist Inna Birchenko began to cry as she described the smouldering protected forest in Thailand where she was collecting samples from local trees shrouded in wildfire smoke.

Protesters displayed a banner calling Myanmar's junta chief a "murderer" as he joined a regional summit in Bangkok on Friday, a week after a huge earthquake killed thousands, leaving desperate survivors pleading for food and shelter.

A new school in Ireland is training up a fresh generation of thatchers in a bid to save the country's disappearing thatched roofs, an iconic feature of the Irish landscape.

Artificial intelligence is set to bring sweeping change to modern life, but at an industrial fair in Germany many companies wonder how they fit into the tech revolution.

From European wines to industrial tools, global tariffs launched by US President Donald Trump this week promise to sweep through the world's biggest economy, impacting everyone from restaurant owners to industrial manufacturers.

The winner of the Grand National, the world's most famous steeplechase, has a habit of providing a fairytale storyline and Saturday's renewal has the potential to supply another one.

Wall Street led a global markets bloodbath Thursday as countries around the world reeled from President Donald Trump's trade war, while the White House insisted the US economy would emerge victorious.

Syria accused Israel on Thursday of mounting a deadly destabilisation campaign after a wave of strikes on military targets, including an airport, and a ground incursion killed 13 people.

At a garment factory in Ho Chi Minh City that exports T-shirts and underwear to the United States, staff were alarmed by "shocking" trade tariffs imposed on Vietnam that could severely impact their business.

Syrian state media said Israel struck near a defence research centre in Damascus and hit central Syria on Wednesday, as Israel said it struck "military" capabilities and a monitor reported four dead.

The European Union is "ready for a trade war" with the United States and plans to "attack online services" in response to Donald Trump's new tariffs, the French government spokeswoman said Thursday.

Nintendo fans excited over the upcoming Switch console said Thursday they were disappointed by the high price tag, as US tariffs bite.

Across Asia, factory workers, directors, trade associations and analysts voiced concern Thursday that US President Donald Trump's stinging tariffs could put jobs at risk and hammer key sectors of industry.

Australia has just sweltered through its hottest 12 months on record, a weather official said Thursday, a period of drenching floods, tropical cyclones and mass coral bleaching.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told nervous NATO members on Thursday that Washington remained committed to the alliance, but said they must agree to massively ramp up their spending targets for defence.

The head of Myanmar's junta arrived in Bangkok on Thursday for a regional summit as the death toll from his country's devastating earthquake passed 3,000.

Asia's manufacturing powerhouses were desperately seeking talks with Washington on Thursday after Donald Trump announced 10 percent "reciprocal" tariffs, and even more for some longtime US allies.

US President Donald Trump has slapped punishing new tariffs on imports of Chinese goods, deepening a trade war between the world's two largest economies.

US President Donald Trump intensified a global trade war Wednesday as he slapped sweeping tariffs on imports from allies and foes alike, sending markets into a tailspin and upending decades-long free trade norms.

Equity markets suffered a bloodbath Thursday after Donald Trump delivered a "haymaker" blow with sweeping tariffs against US partners and rivals, fanning a global trade war that many fear will spark recessions and ramp up inflation.

South Korea's Constitutional Court is set to rule Friday on whether to strip impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol of office over his abortive declaration of martial law which plunged the country into political chaos.

What is being billed as a "revolution" for the sport of athletics gets under way in Kingston on Friday with the opening meeting of US sprinting legend Michael Johnson's ambitious Grand Slam Track series.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived in Budapest early Thursday on his first trip to Europe since 2023 and in defiance of the International Criminal Court (ICC)'s arrest warrant against him.

Liverpool moved closer to the Premier League title with a 1-0 win in the Merseyside derby against Everton on Wednesday, while Manchester City beat Leicester 2-0 to bolster their bid to reach the Champions League.

French far-right leader Marine Le Pen said in an interview published Wednesday that she would use all possible legal avenues to stand in 2027 elections despite a ban on her running and hailed the promise of a speedy appeal of her criminal conviction.