Author: LoveWorld UK

TRUMP SEES ‘BIG PROGRESS’ AFTER JUMPING INTO JAPAN TARIFF TALKS – Japan is one of the first countries to formally kick off negotiations  U.S. President Donald Trump said there was “big progress” when he made the surprise move to negotiate directly with a Japanese trade delegation in Washington about the tariffs he has imposed on global imports. After meeting with Japan’s representatives led by economic revitalization minister Ry-osei Aka-zawa, Trump posted a photo of him with Akazawa on his social media site. Accompanying text with the photo read, “A Great Honor to have just met with the Japanese Delegation on…

FRENCH PRISON ATTACKS ASSAILANTS ‘WILL BE FOUND, TRIED, PUNISHED’ – French President Emmanuel Macron denounced the unacceptable violence French President Emmanuel Macron denounced the “unacceptable violence” of a recent string of attacks on prisons and prison workers around France. “They (assailants) will be found, tried, and punished,” Macron said in a post on X social media. French jails were hit by a new wave of attacks overnight, including several cars set alight at Tarascon prison in southern France, the National Anti-Terrorism Prosecutor’s Office said on Wednesday, as authorities sought to identify those responsible. A car was also set on fire…

FISCAL DRAG WILL TAKE 17.9m MORE PEOPLE INTO THE TAX SYSTEM – The scale of the stealth raid is breathtaking and won’t end till 2028 The seven-year freeze on tax thresholds is set to drag nearly 18million people into the system, according to grim figures today. HM Revenue & Customs estimates, revealed under freedom of information rules, have laid bare the scale of the stealth raid. It has been the biggest driver of government revenues since Covid, with inflation and pay rising sharply but the level at which tax starts being collected staying the same. Some 17.9million more will be…

UK SUPREME COURT SAYS ‘WOMAN’ REFERS TO BIOLOGICAL SEX –  Women are legally women under equality legislation The United Kingdom’s top court upheld an appeal by a campaign group on whether transgender women are legally women under equality legislation, ruling that the law referred to a “biological woman and biological sex.” The Supreme Court’s judgment related to whether a trans woman with a gender recognition certificate (GRC), a formal document which gives legal recognition of someone’s new gender, is protected from discrimination as a woman under Britain’s Equality Act. Campaign group For Women Scotland (FWS) had argued that those rights…

SENATOR SCHMITT PROPOSES MAKING EASTER MONDAY A FEDERAL HOLIDAY – Schmitt said the legislation would formally recognize a long-standing tradition central to Western civilization Missouri Republican Senator Eric Schmitt has introduced a bill to make Easter Monday a national holiday in the United States. Announcing the proposal on social media, Schmitt said the legislation would formally recognize a long-standing tradition central to Western civilization. He pointed out that many Western nations, including Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and most of Western Europe, already observe Easter Monday as a public holiday. “This isn’t a radical idea,” Schmitt posted on X. “It’s about…

TSMC’S QUARTERLY PROFIT SURGES – Its outlook has been complicated by U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade policies Taiwan’s TSMC, the world’s largest contract chipmaker, logged a forecast-beating 60% leap in quarterly profit, though its outlook has been complicated by U.S. President Donald Trump’s unpredictable trade policies. Benefiting from surging demand for advanced chips used in artificial intelligence applications, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co said net profit for January-March climbed to T$361.6 billion ($11.1 billion), its fourth straight quarter of double-digit growth. Trump’s trade policies and threats to put tariffs on semiconductors have created much uncertainty for the global chip industry and…

TRUMP SAYS US PHARMA TARIFFS COMING IN NOT-TOO-DISTANT FUTURE – Companies such as Merck, J&J, Eli Lilly, and Novartis have stepped up their efforts  President Donald Trump reiterated his plans to impose levies in the “not too distant future” against pharmaceutical goods, a product category that has long been immune from tariff threats due to its public health impact. “We don’t make our own drugs anymore,” Trump said during an interaction with media at the White House, adding, “The drug companies are in Ireland, and they’re in lots of other places, like China.” Responding to a question on a timeline…

ZUCKERBERG DISPUTES US ANTITRUST CASE IN TRIAL TESTIMONY – The trial could stretch into July and see Meta selling Instagram or WhatsApp  Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg took the stand at a high-stakes trial in Washington over U.S. antitrust enforcers’ claims that the company spent billions of dollars to acquire Instagram and WhatsApp to fend off Facebook competitors. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is seeking to force Meta to restructure or sell Instagram and WhatsApp, testing President Donald Trump’s promises to take on Big Tech while posing an existential threat to a company that, by some estimates, earns about half…

SINGAPORE DISSOLVES PARLIAMENT AHEAD OF IMMINENT ELECTION – The PAP Party is almost certain to dominate and win most seats Singapore’s parliament was dissolved ahead of a general election to be held within three months, a government gazette said. The vote will be the first electoral test for Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, who took over from long-time premier Lee Hsien Loong as leader of the People’s Action Party (PAP) in May 2024. The PAP is almost certain to dominate and win most seats, as it has in every vote since independence in 1965. However, its share of the popular vote…

IRAN DEMANDS END TO US SANCTIONS – Ahead of New Round of Indirect Talks The United States must correct its contradictory behavior of pressuring Iran on one hand while seeking negotiations with it on the other hand, said Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman.   Regarding the indirect nuclear talks between Iran and the United States, Baghaei noted that in the first round of negotiations, both sides expressed their respective expectations for the negotiation framework. The reason Iran is engaging in indirect talks is because the United States, while negotiating, continues to pursue a policy of pressure and threats, a stance that Iran…