DISCOVERING and harnessing fire unlocked more nutrition from food, feeding the bigger brains and bodies that are the hallmarks of modern humans. Google’s chief executive, Sundar Pichai, thinks his company’s development of artificial intelligence trumps that. “AI is one of the most important things that humanity is working on,” he told an event in California […]
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AIRBNB, an American platform for booking stays in other people’s houses, can barely conceal its frustration. A law passed last year for the first time legalised minpaku, or home-sharing, in Japan, but also sharply restricted it. From June 15th hosts can rent out their property for a maximum of 180 days each year, provided they […]
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The euro fell sharply after the European Central Bank (ECB) outlined its exit from quantitative easing (QE), but also claimed interest rates won’t likely budge for more than a year. Sitting at around 1.1818 versus the dollar before the announcement, the euro fell to 1.1681 during Draghi’s subsequent press conference, shipping around 0.9 percent in […]
Read moreU.S. retail sales increased more than expected in May as consumers bought motor vehicles and a range of other goods even as they paid more for gasoline, the latest indication of an acceleration in economic growth in the second quarter. The Commerce Department said on Thursday retail sales jumped 0.8 percent last month, the biggest […]
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The European Central Bank (ECB) outlined plans to end its massive stimulus program by the end of this year, but keep interest rates steady until next summer. The bank said Thursday that if incoming data followed its forecasts, then its monthly bond purchase program would be extended through to the final quarter of the year, […]
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Commercial Aircraft Corp of China (COMAC) aims to obtain type certification from China for its narrowbody C919 jet by the end of 2020, putting the state planemaker on track to meet its 2021 goal of delivering the first jet to its launch customer, a senior company executive said on Thursday. China’s domestically developed C919 jet […]
Read moreRussia’s government has proposed raising value-added tax (VAT) to 20 percent from 18 percent, starting from 2019, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said Thursday. Medvedev said the so-called “tax maneuver,” which envisages a gradual increase in the mineral extraction tax (MET) and a cut in export duties on oil and refined products, was on track to […]
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Italy’s agriculture minister suggested the country will not ratify a free trade agreement between the EU and Canada, saying that it doesn’t do enough to protect the nation’s specialty products. “We will not ratify the free-trade treaty with Canada because it protects only a small part of our PDO (Protected Designation of Origin) and PGI […]
Read moreBritain’s Rolls-Royce said it would cut 4,600 jobs primarily in the UK as part of a plan to simplify its business and save 400 million pounds ($536 million) a year by the end of 2020. The engineering company said the job cuts and overhaul of its business would cost it 500 million pounds and be […]
Read moreEuropean stocks are seen lower Thursday morning as traders watch developments from central banks across the world. The FTSE 100 is seen off by 33 points at 7,672; the DAX is seen down by 45 points at 12,852 and the CAC 40 in Paris is expected to start lower by 20 points at 5,439; according […]
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