Author: News Desk

Tokyo : Japan’s consumer inflation rate hit a 41-year high of 4% in December, as prices for everything from burgers to gas surged. That rate is still relatively low, compared to some other nations, including the U.S. Japan, the world’s third-largest economy, has been fending off deflation, or chronically falling prices, for decades. The last time core consumer prices rose that much was December 1981, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications said. The Federal Reserve and many other central banks have raised interest rates to tame inflation but the Bank of Japan has kept its benchmark rate at a…

New York :  Google’s parent Alphabet Inc (GOOGL.O) is eliminating about 12,000 jobs, or 6% of its workforce, it said Friday, as Silicon Valley reels from recent layoffs and faces a troubled outlook. Alphabet, whose shares rose 3% in pre-market trading, is making the cuts just as the U.S. company confronts a threat to its long-held perch atop the technology sector. For years Alphabet has attracted top talent to build Google, YouTube and other products that reach billions of users, but it is now locked in competition with Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O) in a burgeoning area known as generative artificial intelligence.…

Seoul : South Korea’s foreign ministry called in a Japanese embassy official in Seoul on Friday to lodge a formal protest against Tokyo’s move to have a mine linked to the wartime forced labor of Koreans listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The previous day, the Japanese government submitted a recommendation letter again to UNESCO for the listing of the former gold mine on Sado Island, after the initial version, delivered last February, was called incomplete, Yonhap news agency reported. Second Vice Foreign Minister Lee Do-hoon called in Daisuke Namioka, minister of economic affairs at the Japanese embassy, with…

Beijing : More bodies were found Friday following an avalanche that buried vehicles outside a highway tunnel in Tibet, raising the death toll to 28. Images from the scene at the exit of the tunnel connecting the city of Nyingchi in Tibet’s southwest with an outlying county showed about half a dozen backhoes digging through deep snow. Reports said around 1,000 rescuers had joined the effort. Tons of snow and ice collapsed onto the mouth of the tunnel on Tuesday evening, trapping drivers in their vehicles. Many of the people were headed home for China’s Lunar New Year holiday, which…

Bahrain : The Showjumping Season, organised by Bahrain Royal Equestrian and Endurance Federation (BREEF), is off to a strong start, held at the Military Federation Arena in Al Rafah. The first round of the 2023 season got underway with two junior competitions, and Sultan Al Rumaihi of the Ministry of Interior team continued to shine, winning the first contest which featured 80/90cm hurdles. He clocked 44.95 seconds, almost one second away from second-place Enmar Ali. Bader Janahi came third in 46.13 seconds. Bader Janahi made up for his third-place finish in the first competition by winning the second contest for…

 Manama :Bahrain’s high-level delegation has sucessfully concluded its participation at the World Economic Forum (WEF) 2023 annual meeting titled “Cooperation in a Fragmented World,” held at Davos from the 16th until the 20th of January. During its participation, the delegation, led by H.E. Noor bint Ali Alkhulaif, Minister of Sustainable Development, promoted Bahrain’s unique investment opportunities, along with the Kingdom’s achievements under the Economic Recovery Plan. The high-level delegation included H.E. Abdulla bin Adel Fakhro, Minister of Industry and Commerce, H.E. Shaikh Abdulla bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, Chief Executive Officer of Osool and Chairman of Bahrain Telecommunications Company B.S.C (Batelco),…

India : An eight-year-old girl has renounced worldly comforts to become a Jain nun and live an austere life, forgoing even basics such as toothbrush and soap in pursuit of salvation. Devanshi Sanghvi, the eldest daughter of diamond baron Dhanesh Sanghvi and his wife Ami, took vows of renunciation on Wednesday in the presence of a Jain nun in Surat in western Gujarat. More than 35,000 devotees attended the event as the young girl vowed to live an austere life. A pavilion-like seating arrangement was made in a huge palace-like canopy so that thousands of people could enjoy the initiation ceremony. A religious…

Manama : His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa today returned to the kingdom following HM’s participation in the fraternal consultative meeting held in Abu Dhabi. The fraternal consultative meeting was hosted by UAE President, His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, with the participation of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tariq of Oman, the Amir of Qatar, His Highness Shaikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Jordanian monarch, His Majesty Abdulla II ibn Al-Hussein, and Egyptian President, His Excellency Abdel Fattah El-Sisi. During the meeting, the leaders discussed various aspects of…

Manama: Higher Education Council (HEC) Secretary-General and Vice Chairperson of its Board of Trustees Dr. Shaikha Rana bint Isa bin Daij Al Khalifa inaugurated the first of its kind D.Lab at the American University (AUBH), accompanied by AUBH President Dr. Bradley J. Cook. D-Lab is a professional laboratory that contains machines and devices with modern technologies that print and manufacture products in 3D. The laboratory was launched in partnership with Fab Lab Bahrain’s Go Fab 3D foundation. The secretary-general was briefed on the laboratory’s smart and modern technology used to print and manufacture products in 3D using artificial intelligence. She…

Manama: His Highness Shaikh Ali bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, Advisor to His Royal Highness Shaikh Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince and Prime Minister, received the Bahraini Ambassador to India Abdulrahman Mohammed Al Qaoud. The advisor praised the strong bilateral relations and thanked the ambassador for his efforts to strengthen Bahraini-Indian ties. HH  Shaikh Ali wished the two countries further progress and prosperity. The ambassador thanked the advisor for his continuous support and interest in strengthening cooperation.