Author: ALJAZEERA

That’s a wrap

United States President Donald Trump has seized on the government shutdown as an opportunity to reshape the federal workforce and punish detractors, posting on social media his intent to cut what he described as “Democrat agencies”.On Thursday, Trump used his post on Truth Social to announce he would meet with budget director Russ Vought to talk through “temporary or permanent” spending cuts that could set up a lose-lose dynamic for Democratic lawmakers.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of listHe wrote that he and Vought would determine “which of the many Democrat Agencies” would be cut — continuing their efforts to slash…

Vancouver-based Lithium Americas is developing one of world’s largest lithium mines in northern Nevada.Published On 1 Oct 20251 Oct 2025Click here to share on social mediashare2ShareThe United States government is taking a minority stake in Lithium Americas, a company that is developing one of the world’s largest lithium mines in northern Nevada.The Department of Energy will take a 5 percent equity stake in the miner, which is based in Vancouver. It will also take a 5 percent stake in the Thacker Pass lithium mining project, a joint venture with General Motors.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of listThacker Pass is considered…

China is rolling out a new visa aimed at attracting foreign talent in the fields of science and technology.The K visa comes into effect from Wednesday, following a proclamation last month by the State Council, China’s cabinet.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of listThe visa has attracted particular attention in light of United States President Donald Trump’s tightening of the eligibility rules for the H-1B, which Silicon Valley heavily relies on to recruit skilled labour from overseas.What is the goal of the K visa, and how does it work?The Chinese government has cast the visa as part of its efforts…

Video platform settles lawsuit filed in response to Trump’s suspension over the January 6, 2021, riot at the US Capitol.YouTube has agreed to pay $24.5m to settle a lawsuit brought by United States President Donald Trump after the platform suspended his account in response to the January 6, 2021, riot at the US Capitol.Under the settlement, YouTube, which is owned by Google parent company Alphabet, will contribute $22m on Trump’s behalf to the Trust for the National Mall, a nonprofit that is overseeing a $200m project to construct a ballroom at the White House, a court filing showed on Monday.Recommended Stories…

United States President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he will impose a 100 percent import tax on pharmaceutical drugs. He also announced new tariffs on other products.Here’s what we know, and what it all means.What pharma tariffs has Trump announced?In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump wrote that starting on October 1, the US will impose a 100 percent tariff on any branded or patented pharmaceutical product.The 100 percent tariff means prices of imported pharmaceutical products will double for US importers and consumers.However, Trump said an exception would be made for any company which “IS BUILDING their…

Former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, who lost the Democratic primary for mayor of New York City to Zohran Mamdani by significant margins and is now contesting as an independent, is second in the race to clinch the mayor’s title in the largest city in the United States.Mamdani won on a message of affordability, but Cuomo has slammed his plans as extreme and not feasible. Al Jazeera did an analysis of Cuomo’s economic policies to see what he has to offer for New Yorkers.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of listHousingCuomo – who only moved into New York City in…

Vancouver, Canada – After a major slowdown in Canada’s high-priced housing market, real estate sales in the country appear to be gradually inching up again.That is cause for optimism across the country’s sector — hopes buoyed even more after the central bank dropped its key interest rate to its lowest in three years.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of listThe Bank of Canada’s 0.25 percent rate cut on September 17 — mirroring its US counterpart’s move the same day — has experts hopeful it might help lift home sales and prices, which had left thousands of properties sitting unsold.Mortgage broker Mary…

The new deal comes after the White House delayed enforcement of the ban of the short-form video app four times.Published On 25 Sep 202525 Sep 2025Click here to share on social mediashare2ShareUnited States President Donald Trump has signed an executive order outlining ByteDance’s divestment plan for the short-form video app TikTok. The plan shifts control of its US assets to a group of new investors, including Oracle.The order was signed on Thursday in the Oval Office and sets a period of 120 days for divestiture to take place.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of listIt is expected to satisfy a…

China’s new target for cutting greenhouse-gas emissions has been branded “disappointing” and “underwhelming” by climate experts, who warn the pledge falls far short of the action needed to avert climate catastrophe.But the goal also stirred hopes that China, which until now has only promised to stop emissions from rising, may ultimately be able to deliver much more ambitious cuts amid a massive expansion in the country’s renewable energy capacity.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of listIn a video address to the United Nations on Wednesday, Chinese President Xi Jinping said China would lower its emissions by 7-10 percent from their…