Town Hall News

By Alexandra Alper and David Shepardson (Reuters) -The Biden administration on Thursday added 37 companies to a trade blacklist, including units of Chinese genetics company BGI and Chinese cloud computing firm Inspur, in a move that promises to further ratchet up tensions with Beijing. The Commerce Department, which oversees export controls, added BGI Research and BGI Tech Solutions (Hongkong), over allegations that the units pose a “significant risk” to contributing […]

By Joyce Zhou and Jessie Pang HONG KONG (Reuters) -About 170 people were evacuated from a Hong Kong shopping area after a fire broke out in a skyscraper late on Thursday night, the government said. Firefighters battled the blaze at a redevelopment project in the Tsim Sha Tsui district throughout the early hours of Friday, the flames visible from the other side of Victoria Harbour. Several upper floors of the […]

By Joyce Zhou and Jessie Pang HONG KONG (Reuters) -About 170 people were evacuated from a Hong Kong shopping area after a fire broke out in a skyscraper late on Thursday night, the government said. Firefighters battled the blaze at a redevelopment project in the Tsim Sha Tsui district throughout the early hours of Friday, the flames visible from the other side of Victoria Harbour. Several upper floors of the […]

By Julie Zhu HONG KONG (Reuters) – Asian shares rose on Friday after Wall Street reversed losses on signals of a measured policy tightening approach from the U.S. Federal Reserve as well as on prospects of a solid economic recovery in China. Global markets have been buffeted by a raft of strong U.S. data over recent weeks, including U.S. jobless claims overnight, that suggested the Fed will need to raise […]

By Josh Smith SEOUL (Reuters) – The United States and South Korea will conduct more than ten days of large-scale military drills in March, including amphibious landings, officials from the two countries said on Friday. The exercises, dubbed “Freedom Shield”, will be held from March 13-23 to strengthen the allies’ combined defensive posture, the two militaries said in a statement released at a briefing in Seoul. “Freedom Shield is designed […]

By Alexandra Alper and David Shepardson (Reuters) -The Biden administration on Thursday added 37 companies to a trade blacklist, including units of Chinese genetics company BGI and Chinese cloud computing firm Inspur, in a move that promises to further ratchet up tensions with Beijing. The Commerce Department, which oversees export controls, added BGI Research and BGI Tech Solutions (Hongkong), over allegations that the units pose a “significant risk” to contributing […]

(Reuters) – Veteran Czech cyclist Katerina Nash has avoided a four-year ban after a U.S. Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) investigation determined the five-time Olympian’s positive test had been a result of administering medicine to her pet dog. Nash, 45, tested positive for the appetite stimulant capromorelin after providing an out-of-competition urine sample on Oct. 24 2022, USADA said. Capromorelin is not specifically listed on WADA’s “Prohibited List” but is considered by […]

By Leonardo Bennasatto and Lisi Niesner CHASIV YAR, Ukraine (Reuters) -Ukrainian forces clinging to the eastern city of Bakhmut dug new trenches in an attempt to hold back Russian attackers, as the United States said new military aid for Ukraine would be discussed at a meeting with Germany’s leader on Friday. Russian forces have been attacking Bakhmut in Donetsk province for months, sometimes in waves and the site has become […]

(Reuters) – The United States is adding 37 entities to its trade blacklist for activities including contributing to Russia’s army, supporting China’s military and facilitating or engaging in human rights abuses in Myanmar and China, the Commerce Department said on Thursday. “When we identify entities that pose a national security or foreign policy concern for the United States, we add them to the Entity List to ensure we can scrutinize […]