Chinese man jailed for mortgaging 23 rental cars
Beijing, Feb 26 (IANS) A Chinese man was sentenced to 12 years in prison for using 23 rental cars as collateral for loans worth 6.22 million yuan ($952,527), a court said on Friday. Shi, 35,…
International
Japan’s population drops first time in century
Tokyo, Feb 26 (IANS) Japan’s population declined for the first time in almost a century in 2015, compounding the government’s concerns about the nation’s mounting demographic woes in the face of a rapidly aging and…
China plans to launch first micro-gravity satellite
Beijing, Feb 26 (IANS) China is set to launch its first micro-gravity experimental satellite in April, a media report said on Friday. The Shijian-10 satellite arrived at Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in northwest Gansu province…
Egypt jails four schoolboys for ‘insulting Islam’
Cairo, Feb 26 (IANS/AKI) A court in Egypt sentenced four young Coptic Christian schoolboys to five years in jail for contempt of religion. Three of them were handed prison terms while one was sentenced to…
IMF chief stresses structural reforms
Beijing, Feb 26 (IANS) China is not the only economy in need of structural reforms as they are fundamental for the success of every G20 economy, IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde said on Friday. This…
Afghan ex-governor kidnapped in Pakistan recovered
Islamabad, Feb 26 (IANS) A former Afghan governor who was kidnapped in Islamabad earlier this month was recovered from Mardan on Friday, Afghan Consul General Abdullah Waheed Pohan said. Wahidi, who served as governor of…
Rat grounds Chinese plane
Beijing, Feb 26 (IANS) A Chinese plane was forced to return to its port of origin after a rat was found to have hitched a ride and was scuttling about the cabin, Loong Air said…
Major troop deployment in Libya unthinkable: Italy
Rome, Feb 26 (IANS/AKI) A largescale deployment of Western troops in Libya is “unthinkable” and “absurd”, Italy’s Defence Minister Roberta Pinotti has said. He spoke amid reports that special forces were already on the ground…
Tibet to build 250 bilingual kindergartens
Lhasa, Feb 26 (IANS) Tibetan authorities are set to build 250 bilingual kindergartens in rural areas by 2020, a media report said on Friday. The regional government will increase the gross enrolment ratio in pre-school…
Hopes rise for thaw in ties between Vatican, Beijing
Beijing, Feb 26 (IANS) The hopes have risen for a thaw in ties between China and the Vatican under the leadership of President Xi Jinping and Pope Francis, Chinese media reported. The Vatican seems incompatible…
Beijing to build new ring road to ease traffic
Beijing, Feb 26 (IANS) China’s capital Beijing will build a new ring road to ease traffic pressure, one of the city’s new moves to improve public transportation and increase eco-travel, a municipal planning report released…
Deaths in Switzerland highest in nearly 100 years
Geneva, Feb 26 (IANS) At least 67,300 people passed away in Switzerland last year, up from 63,900 in 2014, the Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO) reported. Representing the highest number of deaths since 1918 when…
French court greenlights eviction of migrant camp
Paris, Feb 26 (IANS) A court in Lille, north France upheld the decision to evacuate thousands of migrants camping in Calais, rejecting NGOs request to halt the eviction’s order, Pas-de Calais prefecture authorities has said….
Prince Harry to arrive in Nepal on March 20
Kathmandu, Feb 26 (IANS) Britain’s Prince Harry will be visiting Nepal from March 20 to March 23, the Kensington Palace, the official residence of Prince Harry, said. “His Royal Highness will carry out four days…
Pakistan approaches Taliban factions for Afghan peace talks
Islamabad, Feb 26 (IANS) Pakistan said it was approaching all factions of Taliban and other groups to bring them to negotiating table for the direct peace talks with the Afghan government. The comments came days…
Chinese shares open higher
Beijing, Feb 26 (IANS) Chinese stocks opened higher on Friday, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index up 0.69 percent, at 2,760.06 points. The smaller Shenzhen index opened 0.78 percent higher at 9,625.37 points, Xinhua news…
Norway allocates more funds to help refugees
Oslo, Feb 26 (IANS) Norway said that it has stepped up its efforts to help refugees in Greece by allocating more funds to strengthen Athens’ capacity to deal with the flow of refugees. The authorities…
Tokyo stocks rise in early trade
Tokyo, Feb 26 (IANS) Tokyo stocks rose on Friday as a halt in the slump of oil prices sent US shares higher overnight and lifted the market mood here. As of 9.15 a.m. (local time),…
Eurozone inflation revised down
Brussels, Feb 26 (IANS) Inflation in the 19-country eurozone nudged down to 0.3 percent in January, lower than its previous estimate of 0.4 percent, an official data showed. In the wider 28-member European Union (EU),…
Spanish stock market rises
Madrid, Feb 26 (IANS) The Spanish stock market index Ibex-35 rose 2.52 percent to close at 8,125.60 points, up from the 8,013.70 points of the previous session. On Thursday’s session, Mediaset shares led rises climbing…