Europe

Bye George! Tis for thee

Jim Stein July 14, 2020

London: Never in the modern history of mankind has there been so vocal a movement denouncing racism and prejudice against ethnic minority groups. The limp body of a 46-year-old Afro-American that lay on the pavement near the intersection of 38th Street and Chicago Avenue in Minneapolis, USA, on

Europe

Irish parties reach deal on new government but it needs ratification

Jim Stein June 15, 2020

DUBLIN (Europe) – Ireland’s Fianna Fail, Fine Gael and Green parties struck a deal to form a new coalition government on Monday that if ratified by members will end a months-long stalemate and is expected to make Fianna Fail leader Micheál Martin prime minister. Fine Gael leader Leo Varadkar is expected to return as prime […]

World

U.N. rights body to examine ‘systemic’ U.S. racism and police brutality

Jim Stein June 15, 2020

GENEVA (World) – The top U.N. human rights body will hold an urgent debate on allegations of “systemic racism, police brutality and violence against peaceful protests” in the United States on Wednesday, a statement said. The decision by the U.N. Human Rights Council followed a request last week by Burkina Faso on behalf of African […]

Entertainment

Cheering to empty stands: South Korea livestreams famed campus contest

Jim Stein June 15, 2020

SEOUL (Entertainment) – Cheerleading squads in South Korea kick off a rousing pep rally each year as two rival universities go head-to-head at a famous campus festival, but this year they performed in a vast empty ampitheatre because of coronavirus restrictions. The cheerleaders, dressed in white lace-up go-go boots and colourful costumes embellished with ruffles

Finance

Metro Bank in talks to buy peer-to-peer lender RateSetter

Jim Stein June 15, 2020

LONDON (UK) – British challenger bank Metro revealed on Monday it is in exclusive early stage talks to buy peer-to-peer lender RateSetter. Metro Bank, one of the banks set up after the global financial crisis to challenge established players such as Barclays and RBS, was hit last year by an accounting scandal that cost it […]

Tech

Crunch time for China’s robot startups as pandemic brings pain and opportunities

Jim Stein June 15, 2020

SHENZHEN, China (Technology) – With glowing blue eyes and trusting feline features, a new robot cat by Chinese startup Elephant Robotics seems happily oblivious to the worries of CEO Joey Song as he shows it off at the company’s lab in Shenzhen. Elephant Robotics’ main business is the automation of factory assembly lines but revenue […]

Europe

Germany to take stake in unlisted CureVac – sources

Jim Stein June 15, 2020

FRANKFURT/BERLIN (Europe) – Germany will take a stake in unlisted biotech firm CureVac, which is working on a COVID-19 vaccine, four people familiar with the plan told Reuters on Monday. Two of the sources described the size of the stake as substantial, without providing details. Curevac, the German economy ministry and dievini Hopp BioTech holding, […]

Tech

Public charging points go up in anticipation of electric car boom

Jim Stein June 15, 2020

FRANKFURT (Technology) – The number of publicly accessible charging points for electric vehicles (EV) jumped 60% in 2019, the biggest increase in three years and outpacing sales of battery-powered cars, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). In its annual Global EV Outlook, the IEA said the number of public slow and fast charging spots […]

Europe

Summer tourism in Greece back to full swing with foreign visitors coming in

Jim Stein June 15, 2020

ATHENS (Europe) – Greece reopened its main airports to more international flights on Monday, hoping to kick-start its vital tourism sector after three months in lockdown. Tourism employs about 700,000 people and accounts for some 20% of Greece’s economic output, so how the sector fares is significant for the country’s recovery. Greece emerged from a […]

Europe

France’s Veran: Worst of epidemic behind us, but virus not dead

Jim Stein June 15, 2020

PARIS (Europe) – The worst part of the coronavirus epidemic is behind France, but people must remain vigilant as the virus continues to circulate, Health Minister Olivier Veran said on Monday. “The largest part of the epidemic is behind us but the virus is not dead. We did not completely defeat it and we are […]