China says it will take appropriate countermeasures if the United States follows through with additional tariffs on Chinese goods. U.S. President Donald Trump announced Monday that he had asked the U.S. trade representative to identify a list of products to subject to 10 percent tariffs on $200 billion worth of …
your ad hereTrump’s Tariff War Threatens to Erode Support of Farmers
President Donald Trump’s tariff battle with key buyers of U.S. apples, soybeans and corn threatens the support of some of his biggest backers – U.S. farmers now seeing their livelihoods in jeopardy. Farmers overwhelmingly supported Trump in the 2016 election, welcoming how he championed rural economies and vowed to repeal …
your ad hereSouth American Trade Bloc Eyes New Deals as EU Talks Drag On
Leaders of South American trade bloc Mercosur pushed for trade deals with Asian and other Western Hemisphere countries during a summit on Monday, as roadblocks remained in talks with the European Union (EU) despite optimism earlier this year. European officials said earlier this month that talks for a long-delayed trade …
your ad hereLaos Announces Another Controversial Dam on the Mekong
The Laos government has announced plans for a fourth major dam on the Mekong mainstream just months after the feasibility of another of its hydroelectric projects was thrown into question by a delayed power deal. Laos notified the Mekong River Commission (MRC) last week of its intention to build a …
your ad hereUpping Ante, Trump Threatens New Tariffs on Chinese Imports
President Donald Trump directed the U.S. Trade Representative to prepare new tariffs on $200 billion in Chinese imports Monday as the two nations moved closer to a potential trade war. The tariffs, which Trump wants set at a 10 percent rate, would be the latest round of punitive measures …
your ad hereWHO Lists Compulsive Video Gaming As Mental Health Problem
Parents suspicious that their children may be addicted to video games now have support from health authorities. The World Health Organization has listed “gaming disorder” as a new mental health problem on its 11th edition of International Classification of Diseases, released on Monday. But as VOA’s Zlatica Hoke reports, not …
your ad hereWeather Insurance Boosts the Resilience of Malawian Farmers
In Malawi, the World Food Program is working on an innovative initiative that helps rural farmers manage hunger resulting from drought. Under the R4 Rural Resilience Initiative, farmers ensure their crops against the drought and receive compensation as a result. Lameck Masina reports from Blantyre. …
your ad hereIn ‘Jurassic World,’ a Dino-sized Animal-rights Parable
The dinosaurs of “Jurassic Park” are many things. They are special-effects wonders. They are unruly house guests. And they are some of the biggest, most foot-stomping metaphors around. Since Steven Spielberg’s 1993 original, the dinos of “Jurassic Park” — many of them not light on their feet to be begin …
your ad hereWarned 30 Years Ago, Global Warming ‘Is in Our Living Room’
We were warned. On June 23, 1988, a sultry day in Washington, James Hansen told Congress and the world that global warming wasn’t approaching — it had already arrived. The testimony of the top NASA scientist, said Rice University historian Douglas Brinkley, was “the opening salvo of the age of …
your ad hereAFI Highlights Clooney’s Life of Acting, Activism and Pranks
George Clooney’s Hollywood career spans more than three decades, with memorable roles including fighting vampires, playing Batman and drifting through space in “Gravity.” But Clooney’s other accomplishments, including directing, screenwriting and activism, led to him becoming the latest recipient of the American Film Institute’s Life Achievement Award. Clooney, 57, …
your ad hereNorway Tests Tiny Electric Plane, Sees Passenger Flights by 2025
Norway tested a two-seater electric plane on Monday and predicted a start to passenger flights by 2025 if new aviation technologies match a green shift that has made Norwegians the world’s top buyers of electric cars. Transport Minister Ketil Solvik-Olsen and Dag Falk-Petersen, head of state-run Avinor which runs most …
your ad hereAs Venezuela’s Health System Crumbles, Pregnant Women Flee to Colombia
Exhausted but relieved, Yariani Flores lay next to her healthy newborn son, along with four other Venezuelan women who just gave birth in a hospital in Colombia’s border city of Cucuta. Thousands of Venezuelan women have done the same over the past few years, as the health system in their …
your ad hereCan ‘Land Banks’ Help Rebuild Post-industrial US Cities?
When Jamil Bey wanted to move back to the Pittsburgh neighborhood where he had grown up, he found the perfect house to buy. There was just one problem — a fall in property values on that street had left the owners trapped in negative equity. Unable to agree on a …
your ad hereIntel Tops List of Tech Companies Fighting Forced Labor
Intel topped a list issued on Monday ranking how well technology companies combat the risk of forced labor in their supply chains, overtaking HP and Apple. Most of the top 40 global technology companies assessed in the study by KnowTheChain, an online resource for business, had made progress since the …
your ad hereClimate Change a ‘Man-made Problem with a Feminist Solution’ says Robinson
Women must be at the heart of climate action if the world is to limit the deadly impact of disasters such as floods, former Irish president and U.N. rights commissioner Mary Robinson said on Monday. Robinson, also a former U.N. climate envoy, said women were most adversely affected by disasters …
your ad hereExperts: US Auto Tariffs Would Raise Prices, Cost Jobs
Every workday, about 7,400 trucks mostly loaded with automotive parts rumble across the Ambassador Bridge connecting Detroit and Canada, at times snarling traffic along the busy corridor. But if President Donald Trump delivers on threats to slap 25 percent tariffs on imported vehicles and components, there will be far fewer …
your ad hereArtist Christo Floats Tomb of Barrels in London’s Hyde Park
A 20-meter (22-yard) high sculpture of an ancient Egyptian tomb, made from 7,506 red, white and mauve barrels, has taken temporary residence amid the aquatic wildlife on a lake in London’s Hyde Park. The floating installation — featuring two vertical sides, two slanted sides and a flat top — was …
your ad hereFrance’s Macron Sets Out Corporate Law Shake-up in Reform Bill
France’s finance minister promised to cut red tape on companies, open up more financing for them and create incentives for employee profit-sharing under a new bill presented on Monday. The proposed law is part of President Emmanuel Macron’s pro-business reform drive that has already eased labour laws and cut companies’ …
your ad hereGoogle to Invest $550M in China E-commerce Giant JD.com
Google will invest $550 million in Chinese e-commerce powerhouse JD.com, part of the U.S. internet giant’s efforts to expand its presence in fast-growing Asian markets and battle rivals including Amazon.com. The two companies described the investment announced on Monday as one piece of a broader partnership that will include the …
your ad herePompeo: China Engaging in ‘Predatory Economics 101’
China is engaging in “predatory economics 101” and an “unprecedented level of larceny” of intellectual property, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told a business audience Monday. Pompeo made the remarks at the Detroit Economic Club as global markets reacted to trade tensions between the U.S. and China. Both nations …
your ad hereTrump Announces Plans for Pentagon to Create ‘Space Force’
Vowing to reclaim U.S. leadership in space, President Donald Trump announced Monday he is directing the Pentagon to create a new “Space Force” as an independent service branch aimed at ensuring American supremacy in space. Trump envisioned a bright future for the U.S. space program, pledging to revive the …
your ad hereSalvation Army’s First Grocery Store Helps Baltimore’s Disadvantaged
A grocery store with a new concept to help low-income people recently opened in Baltimore, Maryland, in a diverse neighborhood that’s home to some of the poorest people in the city. The Salvation Army, a worldwide Protestant charity group, converted one of its warehouses into a full-service grocery store …
your ad hereCold and Tired, But Extremely Happy on Highest Point of Africa
Seven-year-old Montannah Kenney has become the youngest girl to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania. Climbing Kilimanjaro, the highest peak in Africa at 5,895 meters, was Montannah’s project during a school break last March. The adventure presented her with an opportunity to discover her potential strengths and learn about hiking and …
your ad hereClashes Over Sand Mining Kill 2 in Gambia
A long-standing dispute over sand mining spawned violent clashes Monday in Gambia, with two people killed and others — including police officers — critically injured. The Julakay engineering and construction company is at the center of the dispute amid allegations of environmental exploitation in Faraba Banta village, about 50 kilometers …
your ad hereApple Aims to Solve Problems Locating 911 Calls for Help
Apple is trying to drag the U.S.’s antiquated system for handling 911 calls into the 21st century. If it lives up to Apple’s promise, the next iPhone operating system coming out in September will automatically deliver quicker and more reliable information pinpointing the location of 911 calls to about …
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