AFP news

Swiss food giant Nestle reported better-than-expected annual sales on Thursday, boosting its shares after the maker of Nescafe coffee, KitKat chocolate and Purina dog food hiked prices to offset inflation.

Donald Trump's defence chief denied Thursday the US president was betraying Ukraine by opening talks with Russia's Vladimir Putin, as blindsided European powers insisted they and Kyiv must have a seat at the table.

Hamas said Thursday it was committed to honouring a truce with Israel that is facing its worst crisis since it took effect, and added that mediators were pushing for hostages to be released this weekend as planned.

Britain's economy surprisingly picked up at the end of last year, official data showed Thursday, relieving some pressure on the Labour government as the country faces up to US tariffs.

Western tour agencies entered North Korea for the first time on Thursday since the end of the pandemic, the companies said, voicing hopes the isolated country may soon reopen a border city to foreign visitors.

The Republican-controlled US Senate was expected Thursday to approve vaccine conspiracy theorist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. as health secretary, despite major concerns from both political parties and many in the medical and scientific communities.

Japanese entertainment and electronics giant Sony upgraded its annual net profit forecast to $7.0 billion on Thursday thanks to its strong gaming business.

Young engineers deployed across the US government as part of Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency have triggered alarm throughout Washington's security establishment.

A Houston poultry supply company is selling chickens like there is no tomorrow, as sky-high prices for eggs prompt some Americans to produce their own at home.

South Korea's suspended President Yoon Suk Yeol will get another hearing next week before judges decide on whether to formally remove him from office over his martial law decree, the country's Constitutional Court said Thursday.

An AP reporter Wednesday was barred from attending White House events for the second straight day, as Donald Trump's administration sought to justify its actions against media that refuse to call the Gulf of Mexico the "Gulf of America."

China last year began construction on projects with the greatest combined coal power capacity since 2015, jeopardising the country's goal to peak carbon emissions by 2030, according to a report published Thursday.

Harry Kane was on target as Bayern Munich beat Celtic 2-1 in Glasgow in the first leg of their Champions League play-off on Wednesday, while there were also wins for Benfica, Feyenoord and Club Brugge.

Chevron will cut 15 to 20 percent of its workforce as part of a reorganization to save money and to position the oil giant for the long-term, the company said Wednesday.

US President Donald Trump committed Wednesday to announcing "reciprocal tariffs" on other countries, saying he could sign an order for them within a day, a move that could open new fronts in a trade war.

Shares in Dutch brewer Heineken fizzed at the market open on Wednesday, as traders cheered better-than-expected beer sales despite a slight dip in overall turnover.

Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto and Turkey's Recep Tayyip Erdogan held talks Wednesday, signing a series of agreements to boost trade and defence ties between the Muslim-majority nations, including a joint venture to build drones.

Bangladesh's former government was behind systematic attacks and killings of protesters as it tried to hold onto power last year, the UN said Wednesday, warning the abuses could amount to "crimes against humanity".

Expat "mumfluencers" are taking to TikTok to sing the praises of life in Saudi Arabia and to extol the virtues of its new NEOM megacity, filming their idyllic lives spent picnicking by turquoise waters and shopping in gleaming malls.

With its flattering rhetoric, leniency in responding to US trade threats and alignment with Washington this week at a summit on artificial intelligence, the United Kingdom has signalled a willingness to take President Donald Trump's side over Europe.

The unfathomable scale of the world's largest religious festival in India overshadows many nations in size -- and for the economy, its impact is just as dramatic.

New US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth arrived for his first meetings at NATO headquarters Wednesday looking to push European nations over support for Ukraine and ramping up military spending.

US President Donald Trump has threatened to open new fronts in his tariffs war by announcing reciprocal levies on other countries as soon as Tuesday, branding this "the only fair way" to trade.

Animated Chinese blockbuster "Ne Zha 2", based on traditional mythology, has smashed multiple box office records on its way to becoming the country's most successful movie ever.

When President Donald Trump froze nearly all US foreign aid, Cambodia was forced to suspend workers removing dangerous mines from the country -- until China stepped in with the necessary funding.

The Associated Press said Tuesday that its White House reporter was barred from an event with President Donald Trump over the top US news agency's refusal to follow his order renaming the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America.

The feud between Elon Musk and Sam Altman has become one of the bitterest rivalries in business history, with the Tesla tycoon bidding to buy Altman's OpenAI in an apparent attempt to derail the ChatGPT maker's ascent to becoming one of the world's most important companies.

The World Health Organization on Tuesday wrapped up its executive board meeting, held against the backdrop of the United States -- by far its largest donor -- heading for the exit.

The US Federal Reserve is in a strong position to weather the "highly uncertain" economic outlook, but its inflation fight will take time to win, a senior US central bank official said Tuesday.