PARIS (Reuters) – A decision on whether an aluminium tower for surfing judges will be built at next year’s Olympics in Teahupo’o in Tahiti will be made by the end of the month, Paris 2024 president Tony Estanguet said on Friday. Residents say the planned tower would damage the coral …

MADRID (Reuters) -Spain’s acting Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez looked assured of another term in office on Friday after securing the backing of two more regional parties, but it comes amid widespread anger over his pledge of amnesty for Catalan separatists. The confirmed support of the National Basque Party (PNV) and …

KOLKATA (Reuters) – Dawid Malan will not be surprised if Saturday’s match against Pakistan proves to be his last for England, who might opt for a 50-overs reset following their dismal World Cup title defence in India, the opening batter said on Friday. Jos Buttler’s England managed just two wins …

LONDON/SINGAPORE: U.S. stocks looked set for a mixed to lower start on Friday, while the dollar was steady as hawkish comments from U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell dashed expectations of a peak in interest rates. At 1210 GMT, S&P 500 futures were flat while Nasdaq futures dipped 0.2%. Globally, …

LISBON (Reuters) – Portugal goes to the polls in March following the abrupt resignation of the prime minister amid a corruption probe, but voters and analysts fear prolonged political instability as the economic outlook worsens. Antonio Costa stepped down on Tuesday over an investigation into alleged illegalities in his government’s …

GENEVA (Reuters) – Russia’s national anti-doping agency (RUSADA) said on Friday it hoped for a fair ruling in the doping case of figure skater Kamila Valieva, which is being heard at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Switzerland. Valieva tested positive for the banned substance trimetazidine, which prevents …

NEW DELHI (Reuters) -India and the United States announced progress on key defence deals and said they would expand their growing partnership in the face of geopolitical challenges as their top diplomats and senior ministers met on Friday. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin met …

KUALA LUMPUR: Sime Darby Bhd is exiting the healthcare business by selling its entire 50 per cent equity interest in Ramsay Sime Darby Health Care Sdn Bhd (RSDH) to Columbia Asia Healthcare Sdn Bhd (Columbia Asia) for RM2.84 billion. It said wholly-owned subsidiary Sime Darby Holdings Bhd (SDHB) and Ramsay …

KUALA LUMPUR: Bank Islam Malaysia Bhd expects Malaysia’s gross domestic product (GDP) to grow at 3.2 per cent in the third quarter of 2023 (3Q FY2023) amid resilient domestic demand despite external headwinds. The bank said private consumption acted as the main driver of economic growth following the small uptick …

PETALING JAYA: Professionals Goh Soon Huat-Shevon Lai Jemie pulled off one of their biggest wins this year to reach the semi-finals of the Korean Masters. Seeded fifth, Soon Huat-Shevon upstaged third seeds and one of the home favourites Kim Wan-ho-Jeong Na-eun 16-21, 22-20, 22-20 in a pulsating quarter-final match at …