New York easily remains the world’s top financial center, cementing its position for the past six years after it overtook London, in second place ever since, with Singapore ranked third, the Global Financial Centres Index 35 published by Z/Yen Group showed. Hong Kong remains in fourth place, followed by San Francisco nipping at its heels, helped by its strong role in financing tech. New York overtook London in 2018, after the United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union two years ear

ROME (AP) — Rallying from a winter-long bout of respiratory problems, Pope Francis led some 30,000 people in Easter celebrations Sunday and made a strong appeal for a cease-fire in Gaza and a prisoner swap between Russia and Ukraine. Francis presided over Easter Sunday Mass in a flower-decked St. Peter’s Square and then delivered a heartfelt prayer for peace in his annual roundup of global crises. In between, he made several loops around the piazza in his popemobile, greeting well-

UK greenhouse gas emissions fell by 5.4 percent in 2023, largely due to a reduction in the amount of gas used in power stations, according to official data published on Thursday. Net emissions of all greenhouse gases were estimated to have been 384.2 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2023, compared to 406.2 million tonnes in 2022, the government's provisional figures showed. Carbon dioxide emissions decreased by 6.6 percent annually to 302.8 million tonnes, which represents a 5

The world wasted an estimated 19% of the food produced globally in 2022, or about 1.05 billion metric tons, according to a new United Nations report. The UN Environment Programme's Food Waste Index Report, published Wednesday, tracks the progress of countries to halve food waste by 2030. The UN said the number of countries reporting for the index nearly doubled from the first report in 2021. The 2021 report estimated that 17% of the food produced globally in 2019, or 931 million metric tons

The United States on Wednesday imposed new sanctions on six North Korean nationals and two third-country entities for their role to help finance Pyongyang's weapons of mass destruction programs, the Treasury Department said. In coordination with South Korea, the department announced sanctions targeting agents of designated North Korean banks as well as companies that employ North Korean IT workers abroad, as it accused them of helping generate revenue for the recalcitrant regime in Pyongyan

A total of 8,541 migrants perished on land and sea routes worldwide in 2023, the UN migration agency said, the highest figure since it began counting such deaths a decade ago. The International Organization for Migration said the biggest increase in deaths last year came amid the treacherous Mediterranean Sea crossing: reaching 3,129 from 2,411 in 2022. This figure was however below the record 5,136 number of people who died trying to cross the Mediterranean in 2016, when huge numbers of Syria

A major bridge in Baltimore, Maryland, collapsed early Tuesday after a Singapore-flagged container ship struck a pillar of the decades-old bridge, leaving six people presumed dead, according to state authorities. The 289-meter-long freighter, named Dali, struck the Francis Scott Key Bridge at around 1:30 a.m., resulting in its collapse into the Patapsco River. US officials reported no indication of a terrorist attack. At the time of the collapse, there were at least eight construction workers co

A poll found that a significant share of US adults doubt the mental capabilities of 81-year-old President Joe Biden and 77-year-old Donald Trump, the former president and current Republican front-runner in what is set to be a rematch of the 2020 election. More than 6 in 10 (63 percent) said they’re not very or not at all confident in Biden’s mental capabilities to serve effectively as president. A similar but slightly smaller share (57 percent) said that Trump lacks the memory and

Four men accused of involvement in a massacre at a Moscow concert hall that killed 137 people were remanded in custody Sunday, as Russia observed a national day of mourning following the attack claimed by the Islamic State. All four suspects have been charged with terrorism, according to Moscow's Basmanny district court, and face life imprisonment. Their detention is set until May 22 but may be extended depending on the date of their trial. The court said two of the defendants had pleaded g

International travel has continued to make a strong recovery in 2023 with 38 percent growth in terms of overseas trips, projected to reach 1.3 billion by the end of the year. Istanbul tops the list with 20.2 million international arrivals in 2023. The city saw a 26 percent year-over-year visitor growth from 2022 to 2023, according to Euromonitor International. London came in the second spot followed by Dubai, Antalya and Paris. Wealth of dazzling cultural sites and crossover of Asian and Europ

Senegalese lined up to vote Sunday in a tightly contested presidential race that followed months of uncertainty and unrest that has tested the West African nation’s reputation as a stable democracy in a region that has experienced a wave of coups in recent years. The election comes after President Macky Sall unsuccessfully tried to postpone the Feb. 25 vote until the end of the year, sparking violent protests. Sall is barred by the constitution from seeking a third term. As a result, the v

Pope Francis on Sunday sent prayers to the victims of the concert hall attack in Moscow, calling the violence "inhuman acts" that offended God. "I assure my prayers for the victims of the cowardly terrorist attack carried out the other evening in Moscow," said the 87-year-old pope, following a Palm Sunday mass in Saint Peter's Square. "May the Lord welcome them in his peace and comfort their families, and convert the hearts of those... who organise and carry out the

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump won Louisiana's primary on Saturday, collecting more delegates after they already clinched their party nominations. Biden also appeared in Missouri's Democratic primary, with results not expected to be reported until next week. None of the races were in suspense. Biden and Trump have already beaten their major competitors . But the primary races are still closely watched by insiders for turnout and signs of prot

The suburban Moscow music hall where gunmen opened fire on concertgoers was a blackened, smoldering ruin Saturday as the death toll in the attack surpassed 130 and Russian authorities arrested four suspects. President Vladimir Putin claimed they were captured while fleeing to Ukraine. Kyiv strongly denied any involvement in Friday's assault on the Crocus City Hall music venue in Krasnogorsk, and the Islamic State group's Afghanistan affiliate claimed responsibility. Putin did not mention IS in h

Two people suspected of carrying out a deadly attack near Moscow on Friday have been detained in Russia's Bryansk region following a car chase, lawmaker Alexander Khinshtein said on Telegram on Saturday. Other suspects fled into a nearby forest on foot, Khinshtein said. Camouflage-clad gunmen opened fire with automatic weapons at concertgoers near Moscow on Friday, killing at least 60 people and injuring 145 in an attack claimed by Islamic State militants.