South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on Saturday accused Israel of failing to “reflect” on allegations of rights abuses by its forces, after Israel decried him for amplifying social media “disinformation”. Lee irked Israel’s foreign ministry this week with his comments on a social media video with a caption purporting it showed Israeli soldiers torturing and pushing a “Palestinian kid” off a roof....
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung on Saturday accused Israel of failing to “reflect” on allegations of rights abuses by its forces, after Israel decried him for amplifying social media “disinformation”. Lee irked Israel’s foreign ministry this week with his comments on a social media video with a caption purporting it showed Israeli soldiers torturing and pushing a “Palestinian kid” off a roof. “I need to look into whether this is true, and if so, what measures have been taken,” Lee said in a...
Investigating claims made against Karim Khan, the ICC top prosecutor, has turned into a lengthy process fraught with geopolitics and rows over standards of proof Behind the closed doors of a large room at the international criminal court’s fortress-like headquarters in The Hague, senior diplomats who oversee the court have been gathering each week to try to resolve a crisis. On their agenda: the f...
Investigating claims made against Karim Khan, the ICC top prosecutor, has turned into a lengthy process fraught with geopolitics and rows over standards of proof Behind the closed doors of a large room at the international criminal court’s fortress-like headquarters in The Hague, senior diplomats who oversee the court have been gathering each week to try to resolve a crisis. On their agenda: the fate of the ICC’s chief prosecutor, Karim Khan, a British lawyer whose tenure at the court was thrown into disarray nearly two years ago by sexual abuse allegations that he denies. Continue reading...
All children born in the UK between September 2002 and January 2011 have a CTF – but £1bn has not been claimed At some point in the midst of 2009 I made a decision that would change my son’s life: I started paying £10 a month into his child trust fund account. It didn’t seem like much but, almost 18 years later, thanks to the performance of the stock market and the original government payment, he’...
All children born in the UK between September 2002 and January 2011 have a CTF – but £1bn has not been claimed At some point in the midst of 2009 I made a decision that would change my son’s life: I started paying £10 a month into his child trust fund account. It didn’t seem like much but, almost 18 years later, thanks to the performance of the stock market and the original government payment, he’s about to get about £10,000. At first he had no idea what to do next, financially, and he’s not alone. Continue reading...
Harriet Dart and Jodie Burrage win the decisive doubles match in straight-sets to send Great Britain through to September's Billie Jean King Cup finals with an impressive 3-0 win against Australia.
Harriet Dart and Jodie Burrage win the decisive doubles match in straight-sets to send Great Britain through to September's Billie Jean King Cup finals with an impressive 3-0 win against Australia.
Juliana Sahran/iStock via Getty Images Bond volatility remains Geopolitical developments in the Middle East continued to shape markets this week, though signs of a ceasefire provided some relief across both equity and fixed income markets. The U.S. 30-year Treasury yield declined roughly 10 basis points from levels approaching 5%. Beyond the headlines, underlying signals in fixed income markets po...
Juliana Sahran/iStock via Getty Images Bond volatility remains Geopolitical developments in the Middle East continued to shape markets this week, though signs of a ceasefire provided some relief across both equity and fixed income markets. The U.S. 30-year Treasury yield declined roughly 10 basis points from levels approaching 5%. Beyond the headlines, underlying signals in fixed income markets point to a more complex picture. The U.S. yield curve remains historically steep. The spread between 2-year and 30-year Treasury yields has flattened only modestly, from around 130 basis points at the end of January to roughly 110 basis points today. This limited move suggests that investor concerns around growth and recession risk remain in place. At the same time, bond market volatility has been elevated. The MOVE Index, a key measure of rate volatility, rose sharply in recent weeks before easing following ceasefire news. Even so, sustained volatility at higher levels can signal rising risk premia and continued uncertainty in fixed income markets. Credit markets prove resilient Despite heightened volatility in rates, credit markets have remained relatively stable. High-yield spreads widened modestly, from around 290 basis points in late February to roughly 330 basis points at their peak, but have since retraced back toward earlier levels. This resilience reflects a combination of still-strong corporate fundamentals, attractive all-in yields and relatively low default expectations. Interestingly, the relationship between energy prices and credit spreads has shifted. While high-yield spreads and oil prices typically move together, that correlation has recently turned negative, highlighting the more idiosyncratic nature of the current geopolitical shock. Another structural theme to watch is the impact of AI-related disruption. While concerns have emerged, particularly in private credit markets where software exposure is higher, there is limited evidence so far of spillover int...
VinFast Auto (NASDAQ: VFS) has been a polarizing stock from the get-go. It has been lauded for its state-of-the-art manufacturing based in Vietnam, where it dominates its home auto market and boasts the backing of an extremely wealthy founder and parent company. It even had ambitious plans to more lucrative Western markets. Unfortunately, the company has lost its luster with investors, and its ent...
VinFast Auto (NASDAQ: VFS) has been a polarizing stock from the get-go. It has been lauded for its state-of-the-art manufacturing based in Vietnam, where it dominates its home auto market and boasts the backing of an extremely wealthy founder and parent company. It even had ambitious plans to more lucrative Western markets. Unfortunately, the company has lost its luster with investors, and its entry into the U.S. was largely a failure. Now the company is retrenching in its regionak markets with some ambitious ideas. While VinFast isn't giving up on getting to Western markets, the electric vehicle ( EV ) maker is going back to its early days by zeroing in on India's massive two-wheeler market. VinFast has already begun selling and assembling a limited vehicle lineup in India this year but has now confirmed plans to bring three of its electric scooters, the Evo, Feliz, and Viper, to India. Continue reading
As the Premier League season approaches its finale, April could be the defining month for leaders Arsenal and closest challengers Manchester City. BBC Sport looks at the stats to explain why.
As the Premier League season approaches its finale, April could be the defining month for leaders Arsenal and closest challengers Manchester City. BBC Sport looks at the stats to explain why.
Fanning is a young single mother who makes adult content in this hilarious series. It is smart, sexy and bold – and Pfeiffer is unmissable as her ex-Hooters-waitress mother I promise, it’s the title that drew me in. Margo’s Got Money Troubles is a new Apple TV show (out Wednesday), starring Elle Fanning as a single mum who becomes an OnlyFans model. It joins a niche canon of similarly blunt titles...
Fanning is a young single mother who makes adult content in this hilarious series. It is smart, sexy and bold – and Pfeiffer is unmissable as her ex-Hooters-waitress mother I promise, it’s the title that drew me in. Margo’s Got Money Troubles is a new Apple TV show (out Wednesday), starring Elle Fanning as a single mum who becomes an OnlyFans model. It joins a niche canon of similarly blunt titles about generic obstacles. To wit: Fleishman Is in Trouble; Big Trouble in Little China. Margo’s Got Money Troubles is better, though. Check out the assonance, the rhythm. It has great mouthfeel, to borrow a word from food reviewing, one I instantly regret. Our hero, Margo Millet, is a first-year college student who falls pregnant by her professor. The married academic tells her to get an abortion; her friends agree with him. She has the baby. She drops out of college, falls into money troubles. She attempts to fall out of them by joining the notorious content creation platform. She does nude video shoots, in the character of a sexy alien. If none of this inflames you, can I interest you in Nick Offerman as Margo’s pro-wrestler, drug-addicted father? Or Michelle Pfeiffer as her blue collar, ex-Hooters-waitress mother? No? Are you dead? Continue reading...
In this week’s newsletter: From forgotten gems to cult curios, these shows quietly shaped our viewing habits, and some of TV’s most charming oddballs deserve your attention • Don’t get The Guide delivered to your inbox? Sign up here The quizshow will never die. Nuclear war could rid the earth of all living creatures bar the cockroaches and still, a shiny floored half-hourer hosted by Stephen Mulhe...
In this week’s newsletter: From forgotten gems to cult curios, these shows quietly shaped our viewing habits, and some of TV’s most charming oddballs deserve your attention • Don’t get The Guide delivered to your inbox? Sign up here The quizshow will never die. Nuclear war could rid the earth of all living creatures bar the cockroaches and still, a shiny floored half-hourer hosted by Stephen Mulhern will somehow be airing on the emergency broadcast system. Quizshows have been airing on British screens since 1938, when a televised spelling bee was broadcast on the BBC, and they have remained remarkably resilient. Today they seem a good accompaniment to an era where everyone seems to be tapping away at puzzles on their phone. Scroll down the channel guide of your TV and it won’t be long until you find a quizshow (and that one will almost certainly be The Chase ). The format remains completely irresistible to commissioners. Relatively cheap and endlessly replicable, it serves as perfect filler for teatime TV. If one fiendishly high-concept quiz doesn’t catch fire it can be quietly cancelled without too much bother, knowing another will be conjured up in short order. If it really catches fire, in the manner of Pointless, Tipping Point or The 1% Club, primetime and the hallowed celebrity special awaits. And if it really catches fire, then well, you have something that can trundle on for decades (The Chase is now almost old enough to vote) before being regurgitated endlessly in repeat form on Challenge. Continue reading...
From Kling Klang and the Queen of Mauretania to Elf, Peterbald and Sphynx, test your knowledge with the Saturday quiz 1 What was discovered on a dish containing Staphylococcus aureus ? 2 At which Jewish festival is it traditional to serve triangular food? 3 Whose daughter became Queen of Mauretania in 25BC? 4 Kling Klang in Düsseldorf was which band’s studio? 5 Which Briton was the first person to...
From Kling Klang and the Queen of Mauretania to Elf, Peterbald and Sphynx, test your knowledge with the Saturday quiz 1 What was discovered on a dish containing Staphylococcus aureus ? 2 At which Jewish festival is it traditional to serve triangular food? 3 Whose daughter became Queen of Mauretania in 25BC? 4 Kling Klang in Düsseldorf was which band’s studio? 5 Which Briton was the first person to deadlift 500kg? 6 What are studied by a dendrochronologist? 7 Which warrior class was abolished in the 1870s? 8 On the Calculation of Volume is a seven-novel series by which Dane? What links: 9 Gladstone only; eg Salisbury, Baldwin; eg Churchill, Wilson; eg Thatcher, Truss? 10 Alexander III; Austerlitz; Alma; Bir-Hakeim; Jena; Léopold Sédar Senghor? 11 Bambino; Donskoy; Elf; Peterbald; Sphynx? 12 Althea & Donna; Ken Boothe; Desmond Dekker; Boris Gardiner; Sean Paul? 13 Pacific Warriors; Invictus; Murderball; The Brighton Miracle; This Sporting Life? 14 Manchester and Sheffield, via Ladybower reservoir? 15 Earl of Essex; 16th US president; Australian bushranger; wartime German industrialist? Continue reading...
I was on the verge of failing Mandarin, when a last-second pivot caused me to utterly fall in love with Korean culture, and send me in a totally new direction The first time I discovered South Korea was during a Mandarin homework mishap in 2013. I was 16 and lacked all the characteristics required to be good at languages: confidence, a thick skin and any desire to talk out loud. Forced to choose a...
I was on the verge of failing Mandarin, when a last-second pivot caused me to utterly fall in love with Korean culture, and send me in a totally new direction The first time I discovered South Korea was during a Mandarin homework mishap in 2013. I was 16 and lacked all the characteristics required to be good at languages: confidence, a thick skin and any desire to talk out loud. Forced to choose a language, Mandarin seemed like the best option for me – with a self-proclaimed photographic memory, I spent hours cramming complex Chinese characters, convincing myself I could pass my exams without speaking a word. I could not. My vow of silence was shattered three months in, when I was introduced to my native-Chinese conversation teacher. As suspected, I was woeful. I cried, she cried. Stunned by my ineptitude, she quietly wiped a tear away with her knuckle as she helplessly suggested that I watch Chinese TV dramas to improve my pronunciation instead. Continue reading...