AFP news

When Bae Jin-soo quit his well-paying job at one of South Korea's biggest conglomerates to write stories, his parents were so upset they kicked him out of the house.

Asian equities rallied Tuesday, tracking another tech-driven record on Wall Street, while investors awaited fresh US economic data to get a better handle on the outlook for inflation.

The White House on Monday criticized Republicans for spreading videos purported to show President Joe Biden's mental and physical decline, saying the images had been deceptively cut and manipulated.

Thailand on Tuesday became the first country in Southeast Asia to legalise same-sex marriage, in a historic parliamentary vote hailed as a "victory" by campaigners.

The governor of the US state of Maryland issued a mass pardon of drug offenses on Monday, in a far-reaching move forgiving 175,000 low-level marijuana convictions across multiple decades.

Kylian Mbappe will not need surgery but will wear a mask when he returns to action after the France captain suffered a broken nose in his team's 1-0 Euro 2024 win over Austria on Monday, the French Football Federation said.

Eurovision winner Nemo received a hero's welcome on Monday as they took to the stage to give their Swiss hometown of Biel a celebratory rendition of the highly personal song "The Code".

Russian President Vladimir Putin hailed North Korea on Tuesday for "firmly supporting" Moscow's war in Ukraine ahead of a visit to Pyongyang set to boost defence ties between the two nuclear-armed countries.

China said Monday it had launched an anti-dumping investigation into pork imports from the European Union, the latest step in a mounting trade stand-off between the bloc and its largest economic partner.

Israel struck Gaza on Monday and witnesses reported blasts in the besieged territory's south, but fighting has largely subsided after a day of relative calm and as Muslims marked Eid al-Adha.

At least eight people were killed in India on Monday when a goods train driver missed a signal and slammed into an express passenger train from behind, police and railway officials said.

Coming-of-age musical "The Outsiders" and "Stereophonic," a play about a 1970s band putting together an album, earned top honors Sunday at the Tony Awards, the highest accolades in American theater.

US journalist Evan Gershkovich will go on trial on espionage charges in Russia's Urals city of Yekaterinburg behind closed doors on June 26, the court overseeing the process said on Monday.

Nuclear-armed countries hiked spending on atomic weapons arsenals by a third in the past five years as they modernised their stockpiles amid growing geopolitical tensions, two reports showed on Monday.

Superstar Portugal striker Cristiano Ronaldo is determined to make more European Championship history this summer.

Asian markets fell Monday to extend last week's losses, with traders trying to assess the Federal Reserve's plans for interest rates, while the euro was weighed by political uncertainty as France prepared for a snap parliamentary election.

Philippine and Chinese vessels collided near the Second Thomas Shoal in the South China Sea on Monday, the Chinese Coast Guard said, as Beijing steps up efforts to push its claims over the disputed area.

Executive salaries at major US corporations are soaring -- but shareholders happy with stock prices and greater transparency over remuneration are not pushing back.

When Prime Minister Narendra Modi went to Italy for the G7 summit, it was not diplomatic meetings that dominated headlines back in India -- but the relationship with his Italian counterpart.

South African former president Jacob Zuma said Sunday his new party would join an opposition alliance to coordinate resistance to the government, while maintaining its challenge to the general election results.

Pilgrims on Sunday performed the last major ritual of the hajj, the "stoning of the devil", in western Saudi Arabia as Muslims around the globe celebrated the Eid al-Adha holiday.

Taliban authorities will attend the third round of United Nations-hosted talks on Afghanistan in the Qatari capital, a government spokesman said on Sunday, after snubbing an invitation to the previous round.

China hailed mended ties with Australia on Monday, saying relations were "on the right track" as the trading partners moved on from a bitter economic dispute despite a duel for influence in the Pacific.

Grieving families kept a solemn vigil in the terminal of an Indian airport on Friday as the bodies of dozens of migrant workers killed in a Kuwait building fire returned home.

Pope Francis on Friday clowned around with over 100 top global comedians including Whoopi Goldberg, Chris Rock and Jimmy Fallon before leaving to address a summit of G7 leaders in Italy.

The Conservative party of British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has fallen behind the hard-right anti-immigration Reform UK party for the first time in a poll by YouGov, which called the development a "seismic shift".

Debt-laden tech group Atos said Friday the French state has made a 700-million-euro bid for its most sensitive businesses, including cybersecurity and supercomputers used for the country's nuclear deterrent.

China has organised seminars and training courses for officials in African and Latin American countries, aimed at promoting its single-party system and President Xi Jinping's worldview, a report said this week.

Italy kick off their European Championship title defence against Albania on Saturday as a new-look team tries to rebuild the reputation of one of the world's most important football nations.