BUSINESS

Frank McCourt, a US real estate billionaire, aims to buy TikTok to rescue the internet from the clutches of major platforms that he firmly believes are destroying society and endangering children.

Friends and family of missing hajj pilgrims searched hospitals and pleaded online for news on Wednesday, fearing the worst after hundreds died during the annual rites in Saudi Arabia.

The gold gilding of St Michael's Monastery reflected brightly off the mahogany coffin as the comrades-in-arms of fighter pilot Lieutenant Colonel Valentin Korenchuk, one of the fabled "Ghosts of Kyiv", carried him to his final resting place.

President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday faced accusations of transphobia after lashing out at the snap election manifesto of a new left-wing coalition, while the far-right party leader insisted he would not question France's international commitments including on NATO. With less than two weeks before the first round of polling in the snap elections called by Macron in response to his party's defeat by the far right in European polls, the president is struggling to make up ground.

The fines, issued by California Labor Commissioner Lilia Garcia-Brower's office in May, were announced Tuesday.

A deadly fire erupted at a huge military ammunition depot in Chad's capital N'Djamena, sending powerful explosions into the night sky and shaking buildings miles from the blast.

Heavily armed police officers wearing face masks entered a luxury home at daybreak last week in Spain's southern Costa del Sol to arrest a 40-year-old suspected drug trafficker.

As night falls in central Scotland, beavers appear in a pond under the fascinated gaze of a group of nature enthusiasts.

British inflation slowed in May to the central bank's two-percent target, official data showed Wednesday, boosting Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's struggling election campaign.

French police arrested eight people in Pacific territory New Caledonia Wednesday, prosecutors said, including one of the leaders of the pro-independence CCAT movement that organised weeks of sometimes deadly unrest last month.

NATO has already awarded the first tranche from its $1.1 billion funding to four companies.

Hollywood's alleged "wokeness" is a frequent target for right-wing commentators and politicians.

The US Justice Department on Tuesday accused Chinese "underground bankers" of helping Mexico's Sinaloa Cartel launder more than $50 million in drug trafficking proceeds.

Boeing's CEO acknowledged to a US congressional panel Tuesday that the company's culture was imperfect, but insisted the aviation giant was making progress and committed to improving safety.

A Kansas businessman shipped banned avionics equipment to Russia through Armenia, the UAE and other third countries.

Equities rose across most of Asia on Wednesday following yet another record day in New York fuelled by data that boosted US interest rate cut hopes, though expectations were tempered by cautious comments from Federal Reserve officials.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un will meet Wednesday in Pyongyang for a summit where they are widely expected to discuss ways to boost sanctions-busting military ties.

A US banking giant fired more than a dozen employees for "simulating keyboard activity," highlighting a battle within productivity-obsessed corporate America to tame a culture of faking work with gizmos such as mouse jigglers.

US athletics great Michael Johnson on Tuesday announced the launch of a new track league which will see the "best of the best" compete against each other at four elite meetings every year from 2025.

A new line of PCs specially made to run artificial intelligence programs hit stores on Tuesday as tech companies push toward wider adoption of ChatGPT-style AI. Microsoft in May announced the new AI-powered personal computers, which will use the company's software under the Copilot Plus brand.

ScottMadden's C&SS practice focuses on corporate support functions like HR, Finance, IT, and Supply Chain across a wide range of industries, including energy, healthcare, higher education, and retail.

NASA and Boeing are targeting a June 26 return to Earth of the Boeing Starliner from the International Space Station, officials said Tuesday.

US retail sales came in below expectations for a second straight month in May as gas station revenues fell sharply, the government said Tuesday, while the data for April was revised lower.

Apple discontinues Apple Pay Later in the U.S., preventing users from purchase Apple products on installment.

Two women are to be tried this week over false claims that France's first lady Brigitte Macron was transgender, which sparked online rumour-mongering by conspiracy theorists and the far-right.

The London Stock Exchange is once again Europe's biggest stock market by valuation after reclaiming the crown from Paris as France is rocked by political turmoil.

The fast-food giant announced it will deactivate this technology in the participating restaurants by July 26, 2024. However, it added that this move does not mark the end of its AI initiatives. The company plans to assess scalable, long-term solutions for voice-ordering technology by the end of 2024.

Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun will likely face tough questions Tuesday when a Senate panel grills the executive on safety problems, manufacturing missteps and alleged efforts to intimidate whistleblowers.

Hong Kong's stock exchange will continue trading through typhoons and heavy storms from September, the city's leader announced Tuesday.