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South Korea, Japan to hold summit next week to expand ties

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 14:16:16 GMT

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — The leaders of South Korea and Japan will meet next week for a summit expected to focus on expanding ties, both governments said Thursday. The announcement comes days after South Korea unveiled a major step toward resolving strained bilateral ties stemming from Tokyo’s colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula.President Yoon Suk Yeol is to visit Japan from March 16-17 at the invitation of the Japanese government. During this two-day trip, Yoon will hold a summit with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, according to the South Korean and Japanese governments. Yoon’s office said in a statement the summit would be “an important milestone” in the development of Korea-Japan relations. It said South Korea hopes the two countries will “overcome an unfortunate past” and expand cooperation on security, economy and other sectors as a result of the visit.Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said Tokyo’s invitation for the South Korean leade...

6 books compete for nonfiction ‘winner of winners’ prize

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 14:16:16 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Books that explore subjects from William Shakespeare and The Beatles to the lure of Mount Everest and life inside one of the world’s most secretive states are competing to be named the best-ever winner of Britain’s leading nonfiction book prize.The Baillie Gifford Prize is marking its 25th year with a Winner of Winners prize. Three American writers, two from Canada and one from Britain are on the shortlist announced Thursday for the 25,000 pound ($30,000) trophy.The prize was launched in 1999 to reward English-language books from any country in current affairs, history, politics, science, sport, travel, biography, autobiography and the arts.Judges have chosen six of the 24 past winners of the award — known until 2015 as the Samuel Johnson Prize — as finalists for the one-off accolade. The winner will be announced April 27 at a ceremony in Edinburgh, Scotland.The eclectic shortlist includes cultural kaleidoscope “One Two Three Four: The Beatles in Time” by Craig Brown, ...

Global stocks lower after Wall St steadies amid rate fears

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 14:16:16 GMT

BEIJING (AP) — Major global stock markets were mostly lower Thursday amid worries about more U.S. interest rate hikes.London, Shanghai and Frankfurt declined. Tokyo advanced. Oil prices were lower.Wall Street futures were lower following Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell’s warning that rate hikes might speed up because upward pressure on prices is stronger than expected.Investors worry the Fed and other central banks look increasingly likely to tip the global economy into at least a brief recession to extinguish stubborn inflation. U.S. inflation edged up in January to 5.4%, well above the Fed’s target of 2%.“The risks of a higher and faster hike trajectory have risen,” Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management said in a report. He said the Fed might be motivated by “mounting criticism” that it has “fallen behind the inflation curve.”In early trading, the FTSE 100 in London lost 0.6% to 7,884.12 and the DAX in Frankfurt retreated 0.2% to 15,601.90. The CAC 40 i...

In The News for March 9 : Just how much do Canadians owe in credit card debt?

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 14:16:16 GMT

In The News is a roundup of stories from The Canadian Press designed to kickstart your day. Here is what’s on the radar of our editors for the morning of March 9 …What we are watching in Canada …Canadian credit card debt soared in the last three months of 2022 amid rising interest rates and stubbornly high inflation with younger Canadians in particular relying on credit to make ends meet.Credit monitoring agency Equifax says Canadians’ credit card debt increased by more than 15 per cent from the same period a year earlier and totalled more than $100 billion for the first time. In its latest quarterly credit trends report, the agency says overall consumer debt rose in the fourth quarter of 2022, with total debt at $2.37 trillion, up more than six per cent from the same period in 2021.Equifax says the effects of higher interest rates are yet to be fully felt on homeowners as many have not yet renewed their mortgages, but younger Canadians are feeling the pinch of inf...

Shohei Ohtani and Japan: It’s much more than just baseball

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 14:16:16 GMT

TOKYO (AP) — He’d paid about $80 for his ticket. He wore a Japan cap above a blue Los Angeles Angels jersey. And as he enthused about the sensation that is Shohei Ohtani, baseball fan Hotaru Shiromizo was talking about far more than sports.Shiromizu, 23, was part of the quilt of thousands of colorfully dressed fans outside the Tokyo Dome on Thursday afternoon. They paced, they camped out, and they discussed their hopes of seeing Ohtani pitch — and hit — against China in Japan’s opening game in the World Baseball Classic.“He’s a legendary player, but he’s more than just a good player,” Shiromizu said, using his translator app to help clarify a few thoughts in English. “His aspirations — his achievements — have had a positive influence on all Japanese people.” He added: “All the kids want to be like Ohtani.”These days, Japanese culture and politics feel more tenuous than a few decades ago. The economy is stagnant. The birthrate is among the world’s ...

More mental health resilience during COVID-19 than previously thought, study suggests

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 14:16:16 GMT

A new study suggests the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic took a relatively limited toll on global mental health. Canadian researchers reviewed 137 studies from around the world that measured people’s overall mental health, as well as depression and anxiety levels, before the pandemic and then again during 2020. They were surprised to find that there was minimal overall change at a population level. Senior author Dr. Brett Thombs, a researcher at McGill University, says coverage of the pandemic has mostly focused on snapshots of people whose mental health has deteriorated and people have generalized that to the overall population.He says the study, published in the BMJ, formerly known as the British Medical Journal, shows that many people — including some with existing mental health disorders — have been resilient during a time of crisis.But it also shows groups of people who appear to have struggled more than others, including women. This report by The Canadian Press ...

Hong Kong security police arrest wife of prominent activist

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 14:16:16 GMT

HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong national security police on Thursday arrested the wife of a prominent activist who was among the leaders of a group that organized annual vigils commemorating China’s 1989 crackdown on pro-democracy protesters, two people close to her said. Officers arrested Elizabeth Tang, the wife of Lee Cheuk-yan, outside Stanley Prison but it was still unclear for what reason, said the people, who declined to be identified for fear of government retribution.The move was seen as part of a crackdown on the city’s pro-democracy camp following massive anti-government protests in 2019. Many activists have been jailed or silenced under a sweeping National Security Law imposed by Beijing.Tang was a labor activist with the now-defunct Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions, the city’s largest pro-democracy trade organization. Her husband Lee is a former leader of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, which voted to disband i...

Ontario cities, police forces ban TikTok on devices while others consider the move

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 14:16:16 GMT

TORONTO — Cities and police services across Ontario say they are following the federal government’s lead in banning TikTok from work and government-owned devices, while others consider such bans, as privacy watchdogs assess the video-sharing platform for threats.The City of Toronto says it has not decided whether to restrict the application on city-issued mobile devices but is actively monitoring for cybersecurity risks. A spokesperson for Hamilton said the city located on the western tip of Lake Ontario has kept its official TikTok account but removed the application from about 40 city-owned devices.“The official account is not active and that account cannot be accessed by any city device … pending the investigation by the federal privacy office along with provincial privacy officers,” said Matthew Grant, a spokesperson for Hamilton. “When the leader of the nation says they have concerns, well, we’re happy to listen,” he added.The federal g...

Housing groups call for state of emergency for Indigenous people in N.W.T.

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 14:16:16 GMT

YELLOWKNIFE — Two national housing groups are calling on the Northwest Territories to declare a state of emergency for housing Indigenous people, particularly women and girls. The National Indigenous Housing Network and Women’s National Housing and Homeless Network say Housing N.W.T., the territory’s housing agency, is failing northern Indigenous people. “We’re literally in a housing state of emergency,” housing advocate Lisa Thurber said on behalf of the groups.She said she can’t move clients into hotels in Yellowknife because there are no rooms available. “These tenants are literally in tears,” she said. “The biggest complaint is: ‘I’m cold.’ We live in the Northwest Territories for Pete’s sake and most of the winter is cold. So what are we doing about that?”Thurber, who recently formed a territorial tenants’ association, said housing issues in the N.W.T. have been well documented.Richard Edj...

CSIS warns ‘smart city’ technology can open door to attacks, foreign interference

Published Wed, 12 Feb 2025 14:16:16 GMT

OTTAWA — Canada’s intelligence service warns that technological innovations adopted by municipalities could be exploited by adversaries such as the Chinese government to harvest sensitive data, target diaspora communities and interfere in elections.A newly released report by the Canadian Security Intelligence Service urges policy-makers and the technology industry to consider steps that can be taken to address and ease the emerging security threat before “smart city” platforms are widely adopted.Such systems feature electronically linked devices that gather, analyze, store and transmit information through centralized platforms. In turn, municipalities can use artificial intelligence to efficiently control operations and services, allowing them to change traffic lights at the optimal time, manage energy use or track the location of publicly rented bicycles. “One of the primary security concerns relating to smart cities is the fact that they necessitate the sel...