WASHINGTON: With the United States on the upswing from the COVID-19 pandemic, the Federal Reserve is expected to weigh in next week on whether the economy is healthy enough to begin withdrawing stimulus measures credited with aiding the revival. 

KINSHASA: Much has ground to a halt during the coronavirus pandemic, but not the march of Sino-Congolese friendship. Or so the Chinese embassy in Kinshasha is keen to show, amid growing scrutiny of Beijing’s activities in the mineral-rich nation. 

WASHINGTON: IMF chief Kristalina Georgieva disputed an independent investigation which found that in her previous job at the World Bank, she pressed staff to alter a report to avoid angering China. 

WASHINGTON: The global dominance of tech giants serves as a convenient online chokepoint for authoritarian governments to crack down on dissent or rig elections, critics of Apple and Google said Friday. 

DHAKA: Simran Snigdha was begging when a chance encounter helped get her off Bangladesh’s streets and realize her artistic dreams-one of a growing number of trans people securing formal employment as the government boosts support for the marginalized community. 

NEW DELHI: India’s tea-to-steel conglomerate Tata Group confirmed it has submitted a bid to buy debt-crippled national carrier Air India, which it owned decades ago before the airline was nationalized. 

YOKOHAMA: With an ageing population in need of transport, Japan is betting on autonomous cars, but an accident involving a self-driving showcase at the Paralympics illustrates the challenges ahead. 

WASHINGTON: More US workers made new claims for unemployment benefits last week, according to government data released yesterday, though the metric of labor market health is expected to resume falling. 

LONDON: British annual inflation spiked in August to a nine-year peak on the reopening economy, but last year’s figure had been skewed by a restaurant discount scheme, official data showed yesterday.