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August 14, 2020 BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s real estate investment rose 3.4% in January-July from a year earlier, official data showed on Friday, quickening from a 1.9% uptick in the first six months. Property sales by floor area fell 5.8%, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics, narrowing from an on-year decline of … Continue reading China Jan-July property investment rises 3.4% year-on-year, picks up speed from first-half

August 14, 2020 By Swati Pandey SYDNEY (Reuters) – Australia’s central bank on Friday called on all levels of government to “put all shoulders to the wheel” to fund the spending desperately needed to generate jobs and drag the economy out of its deepest recession in about a century. Having slashed its cash rate to … Continue reading Australia central bank chief says fiscal stimulus needed to revive coronavirus-stricken economy

August 14, 2020 By Tom Westbrook SINGAPORE (Reuters) – The dollar drifted higher on Friday, helped by strong U.S. jobs data as well as firmer global demand for safe-havens amid concerns about the coronavirus recovery, setting the currency up to potentially snap a seven-week losing streak. Early moves in the Asia session were modest as … Continue reading Dollar drifts higher as caution returns to currency markets

Michael Cohen offered a taste of what to expect in his anti-Trump tell-all book “Disloyal, A Memoir: The True Story of the Former Personal Attorney to President Donald J. Trump.” The book, which is set to be released in September, makes several provocative and salacious claims about his time as Trump’s go-to fixer and lawyer before … Continue reading Michael Cohen offers preview of tell-all Trump book: ‘I know where the skeletons are buried’

August 14, 2020 SHANGHAI (Reuters) – China’s central bank said it would conduct medium-term lending facility (MLF) operations on Monday, as a batch of 400 billion yuan ($57.6 billion) worth of such loans expired on the day The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) said in an online statement on Friday that this would be a … Continue reading China central bank to conduct MLF operations on Monday as 400 billion yuan of such loans expire

Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden’s call for all governors to mandate public mask-wearing to prevent the spread of the coronavirus is a rip-off of President Trump’s own statements on the issue, White House counselor Kellyanne Conway claimed on “The Story” Thursday. “For somebody who’s been in Washington for the last 47 years and in this … Continue reading Conway mocks Biden call for enforced masking: ‘The best he can come up with is a national mask mandate?’

Former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced Thursday that he will speak at the Democratic National Convention that kicks off Monday in Wisconsin, which is irritating some of the party’s more progressive voters. Bloomberg, who dropped out of the presidential race in March, was not on the original list released by the DNC Tuesday, but in … Continue reading Some liberals not happy that Mike Bloomberg will speak at Dem convention

August 14, 2020 BRASILIA (Reuters) – One day after declaring he was committed to fiscal responsibility, Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro raised the prospect on Thursday of breaking with a constitutionally-mandated ceiling on government spending. “The idea of breaking the ceiling exists. What’s the problem?” the right-wing leader said on a weekly Facebook live webcast to … Continue reading Brazil’s Bolsonaro says breaking spending cap possible, ‘What’s the problem?’

President Trump on Thursday confirmed to the The Post he intends to give his Republican National Convention speech from the White House lawn, defying critics who said the location was inappropriate. During an exclusive Oval Office interview, the president said he would visit the battlefield at Gettysburg at a “later date” and described his vision of … Continue reading Trump on RNC convention: ‘I’ll probably be giving my speech at the White House’

White House senior adviser Jared Kushner addressed his recent meeting with rapper Kanye West on Thursday, telling Fox News that “unlike others, I’m able to keep friendships across the aisle.” “Kanye has been a friend for ten years,” Kushner told “Special Report” host Bret Baier. “He’s a very very special person, he’s a very successful music artist, he’s a very successful designer, he’s … Continue reading Kushner on private meeting with Kanye West: ‘Unlike others, I’m able to keep friendships across the aisle’

Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson waves as he walks to his car following a visit to Hereford County Hospital, in Hereford, England, Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2020. (Matthew Horwood/Pool Photo via AP) OAN NewsroomUPDATED 5:05 PM PT – Thursday, August 13, 2020 British Prime Minister Boris Johnson recently announced he is confident the U.K. and EU … Continue reading U.K. Prime Minister Johnson: Post-Brexit free trade accord within reach

Ben Rhodes, a former deputy national security adviser to President Barack Obama, received a wave of criticism on Thursday after he attempted to downplay a peace accord between Israel and the United Arab Emirates. “This agreement enshrines what has been the emerging status quo in the region for a long time (including the total exclusion of Palestinians),” … Continue reading Ex-Obama adviser Ben Rhodes slammed on Twitter for downplaying Israel-UAE peace agreement

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under Administrator Andrew Wheeler on Thursday announced new rules to reduce Obama-era methane pollution regulation. Ahead of a Thursday event in Pittsburgh, Pa. — the nation’s No. 2 gas state — senior EPA officials told Fox News that the changes were “the result of thoughtful cost-benefit calculations, [a] comprehensive assessment of the latest data, and appropriate … Continue reading EPA announces new rules to reduce methane regulation, assures science will back changes

White House officials and top Democrats are no closer to breaking the impasse over another coronavirus relief package, almost one week after the high-stakes talks collapsed. The stalemate over the next rescue bill appears likely to drag on for weeks, possibly into September, putting at risk potentially trillions of dollars in aid amid a pandemic that’s infected more than … Continue reading Stimulus talks could drag into September as negotiations hit wall over aid deal

Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden and his running mate Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., arrive to speak at a news conference at Alexis Dupont High School in Wilmington, Del., Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2020. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster) OAN NewsroomUPDATED 4:50 PM PT – Thursday, August 13, 2020 Joe Biden and Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) … Continue reading Biden, Harris push nat’l face mask mandate

A woman wearing a face mask at a bus stop in Stockholm, Sweden, June 26, 2020. ( Stina Stjernkvist/TT News Agency/via Reuters) CNN yesterday: UK economic output shrank by 20.4% in the second quarter of 2020, the worst quarterly slump on record, pushing the country into the deepest recession of any major global economy. Writing in The Daily … Continue reading UK Fails, Sweden Not So Much

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Thursday that coronavirus relief talks would be back on the table only when Republicans agreed to a $2 trillion relief package. When asked in her weekly news conference when she would would begin again on relief negotiations, Pelosi replied: “I don’t know, when they come with $2 trillion. When they’re ready … Continue reading Pelosi says no coronavirus relief talks until Republicans agree to $2 trillion price tag

Georgia Republican Gov. Brian Kemp dropped his lawsuit against Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms and the City Council on Thursday after suing the mayor over mask mandates and other coronavirus protections re-instated in July. “In light of Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms’ concession regarding the city’s Phase One roll-back plan and following her refusal in mediation to further … Continue reading Georgia governor drops lawsuit against Atlanta mayor over mask mandate

August 13, 2020 LONDON (Reuters) – Consumer group Which? has called on Britain’s Financial Conduct Authority to extend loan repayment holidays and interest-free overdrafts until Jan. 31 to shield millions of households from severe financial distress when the reliefs end in October. The non-profit organisation said the temporary measures had provided critical aid to families … Continue reading Extend loan repayment freezes until 2021, UK consumer group Which? says

August 13, 2020 TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan must avoid any increase in property tax for commercial land as the coronavirus pandemic is hurting many companies, Akira Amari, head of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party’s tax panel, was quoted as saying by the Nikkei newspaper. In an interview that ran on Friday, Amari dismissed the idea … Continue reading Japan’s ruling party tax panel head says must avoid rise in commercial property tax

Hillary Clinton‘s days as a public servant may not be behind her. Speaking at The 19th Represents Summit on Thursday, Clinton was asked if she would accept a job in the Biden administration. “I’m ready to help in any way I can,” Clinton responded, “because I think this will be a moment where every American — I … Continue reading Hillary Clinton suggests she’s willing to serve in Biden administration: ‘I’m ready to help any way I can’