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Nike on Sunday launched a star-studded short film titled "Equality" that coincides with Black History Month.

Verizon has decided to bring back unlimited data plans. But while that's great for its subscribers, it's awful news for investors. It's another sign of how brutally competitive the telecom business is. And it's hurting Verizon's stock.

The market is at all-time highs and many say Trump is the reason. But stocks were rallying when investors thought Hillary Clinton would win. Janet Yellen and the Fed may deserve more of the credit for the market's move.

The days of plugging in an iPhone to charge won't last forever.

Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden denied an allegation by former staffer Tara Reade that he sexually assaulted her 27 years ago. In an interview on MSNBC, Biden said “unequivocally, it never happened.” Photo: MSNBC's Morning Joe via AP

Wyoming passed a suffrage bill 50 years before the 19th Amendment, but the Equality State is struggling to live up to its nickname. WSJ’s Shelby Holliday meets the women working to boost female representation. Photo illustration: Laura Kammermann

Votes polled in all five states will be counted on May 19

These states account for 116 seats in the Lok Sabha

Assam, West Bengal, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry are getting ready for Assembly polls. Who is doing deals with whom and what do they all mean? Business Standard decodes the politics

Nazeem, first elected to the assembly from Karaikal as a 29-year old DMK worker in 1991, retained the seat in all subsequent elections

Early trends showed the AINRC and Congress in a neck-and-neck race

While it lost elections in the ruling Assam and Kerala, Indian National Congress has received some form of relief as it has emerged as single largest party with 15 seats at Puducherry and could form government in the Union Territory.Together, the ...

Main Street: Ordinary Americans protesting to reopen the economy face only contempt from elites. Images: AFP/Getty Composite: Mark Kelly

Potomac Watch: Congress has found its own neat and plausible answer to the Covid-19 pandemic: spend, spend some more. Thankfully, a few elected leaders are starting to realize it’s wrong. Image: Win McNamee/Getty Images

Watch the 1975 trailer for "Jaws," in which a deadly threat forces reluctant politicians to order a shutdown of the economy. Image: Universal Pictures via Everett Collection

Main Street: Decades after Hong Kong gave refuge to Martin Lee's father, a former Kuomintang general, his son, the founder of Hong Kong's pro-democracy movement, has just been arrested. Images: KeystoneSTF//AFP/Getty Composite: Mark Kelly

Main Street: Democrats learn the #MeToo standard is impossible to sustain without hypocrisy. Images: Bloomberg/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock/Zuma Press Composite: Mark Kelly

A US-based immigration agency has allowed non-immigrants to "unexpectedly remain" beyond their authorised period of stay due to COVID-19 outbreak.The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), an agency of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which administers the country's naturalisation and immigration system, said that amid such conditions, most non-immigrants can timely file an application for the extension of their stay or change in status.The agency stated that application forms and petitions are available on its online website."Where applicable, employment authorisation with the same employer, subject to the same terms and conditions of the prior approval, is automatically extended for up to 240 days after I-94 expiration when an extension of stay request is filed on time," the agency said.The USCIS has granted the flexibility to non-immigrant workers for filing late applications as the spread of the virus continues to keep daily lives at a standstill.The

North Korea on Tuesday morning fired a salvo of suspected cruise missiles towards the Sea of Japan, also known as the East Sea, according to South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JSC).The "multiple projectiles" fired from Munchon in eastern Kangwon province were believed to be "surface-to-ship cruise missiles," the JCS said in a statement cited by Al Jazeera.The missiles flew for approximately 150 kilometres (93 miles) before splashing into the waters off the east coast.The launches come on the eve of the birthday of North Korea's founder Kim Il Sung and South Korea's general elections.The JCS said South Korea's military is monitoring possible additional launches by North Korea.In recent weeks, North Korea has carried out a series of short-range missile and other weapons tests amid stalled nuclear talks with the United States.Last month, it fired nine ballistic missiles in four rounds of tests, according to analysts.On Sunday, North Korean state media reported leader Kim Jong Un had ...

Leaders of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on Tuesday morning met via videoconference to deliberate on a strategy to combat and overcome the COVID-19 crisis, ensuring peaceful life of people and sustainable development of countries in the region.In his capacity as ASEAN Chair 2020, Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc chaired the virtual summit, attended by the heads of state or government of the 10 ASEAN members- Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, and the ASEAN secretary-general, Xinhua news agency reported.The leaders are expected to focus their discussions on containing and preventing the spread of COVID-19, supporting people in the countries hit by the disease, including providing consular assistance to ASEAN citizens living, working and studying in other ASEAN nations or a third country, and minimizing socioeconomic impacts of the pandemic.They are also expected to adopt a ...

A US-based research company has found that China limited the flow of the Mekong River following the construction of a number of its sprawling dams in its territory in the backdrop of a severe drought in the region last year.The report comes at a time when the entire world is grappling with the coronavirus pandemic since late last year, when the virus first made its appearance in Wuhan, the capital of central China's Hubei province."The satellite data does not lie and there was plenty of water in the Tibetan Plateau, even as countries like Cambodia and Thailand were under extreme duress," said Alan Basist, who co-wrote the report, which was released on Monday, for Eyes on Earth, a water resources monitor."There was just a huge volume of water that was being held back in China," Basist was quoted by New York Times as saying.Farmers and fishermen across the Mekong region were devastated as the water level in portions of the river dwindled due to dams commissioned by China which has been .

Spain's number of total deaths due to the coronavirus crossed 18,000 with 547 new deaths on Tuesday, which is a slight increase in the number of daily deaths reported as per the Spanish Health Ministry.On Monday, Spain had reported 517 deaths, which was one of the lowest daily increase reported in the last three weeks. As per the data from Johns Hopkins University, the current toll in Spain stands at 18,056.The Spanish authorities have also recorded a fall in the number of active cases for the first time since the outbreak. The authorities on Tuesday observed that the active cases had come down by 299 in the last 24 hours. Spain has now 86,981 active cases.Spain's overall tally of cases including the dead and recovered stands at 172,541. It has reported the third-highest fatalities in the world just behind the United States (23,649) and Italy (20,465)With 172,541 total cases, Spain is only behind the United States in the number of overall cases. The United States as of Tuesday has ...

The Indian Consulate General in Dubai has issued an advisory on partially resuming the passport services for Indian applicants through BLS Sharjah Centre from April 15 onwards.The advisory from the consulate general says that the applications for renewal of passports that have expired or would expire on or before April 30, 2020 will be processed initially.The Consulate General in Dubai also listed the ways people can apply for the renewal of passports.Those people who want to apply for renewal can send an email to the consulate at the email address- passport.dubai@mea.gov.in with an explanation of the emergency for the renewal.The Consulate would then give an appointment at the BLS International Exclusive Centre for Indian Passport and Visa Services at Sharjah.As per the advisory, the applicant will have to prepare the application online and attach all required documents before visiting the centre at the appointed time.The passport services were suspended in the wake of the COVID-19 ..

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) in its Global Financial Stability Overview released on Tuesday has noted that early in 2020, global financial markets remained afloat as there was a sense of optimism on the back of supportive monetary policy, reduced trade tension and tentative signs of stabilisation in the global economy. However, the spread of COVID-19 has posed a risk that has seen the prices of risk assets and commodities fall at unprecedented speed.The document released by the IMF says that the equity markets experienced the fastest drop in history with the S and P 500 falling 20 per cent from its peak in just 16 trading sessions.The asset price declines reached about half the magnitude seen in 2008-09 at the worst point of the sell-off, and implied volatility spiked across asset classes, in some cases to levels last seen during the global financial crisis.Financial Counsellor and Director of the Monetary and Capital Markets Department, IMF, Tobias Adrian while releasing the

Airline passenger revenue is set to plunge by USD 314 billion in 2020, which is a decline of 55 per cent from 2019 due to coronavirus as per the updated analysis released by the International Air Transport Association (IATA).On March 24, the IATA had predicted an estimated loss of USD 252 billion in revenues, which is 44 per cent decline in passenger for airline industry due to severe travel restrictions lasting more than three months as governments across the world try to contain the disease.As per a release by IATA, the world is heading for a recession. The economic shock of the COVID-19 crisis is expected to be at its most severe in Q2 when the GDP is expected to shrink by 6 per cent (by comparison, GDP shrank by 2 per cent at the height of the global financial crisis). Passenger demand closely follows GDP progression. The impact of reduced economic activity in Q2 alone would result in an 8 per cent fall in passenger demand in the third quarter."The release added: "Travel ...

The Indian Rapid Response Team imparted training and shared its experience with the Kuwaiti personnel at Jaber Al Ahmed Hospital as part of capacity building in the fight against COVID-19.The team had reached Kuwait on Monday.A release issued by External Affairs Ministry on Monday said that the rapid response team is expected to stay in Kuwait for the next two weeks to help the Kuwait government with medical assistance in testing and treatment of the people infected by the novel coronavirus.The team went to Kuwait following a phone call between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Prime Minister of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Saba. Both the leaders had agreed for a coordinated approach towards the deadly disease.

The coronavirus outbreak has killed more than 24,000 people in the United States, the highest number of fatalities in any country, data from the Johns Hopkins University showed on Tuesday.As of 1.20 pm EDT (5.20 pm GMT), fatalities in the US reached 24,485, according to the university's Coronavirus Resource Center.At least 584,073 coronavirus cases have been confirmed in the US, the largest number of infections among all countries.

The US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) on Tuesday (local time) welcomed the decision of India's Supreme Court to relax conditions for the release of individuals detained as "foreigners" in Assam's detention centres due to concerns with the spread of COVID-19."We welcome this decision as a first step," a statement by USCIRF quoted its Chair Tony Perkins as saying."We urge the Indian Supreme Court to continue on this promising path and order the release of all those detained in the detention centres on humanitarian grounds. Even two years as a minimum time for release is unreasonable given the threat of detention centres becoming a breeding ground for the spread of COVID-19," he added.In response to an application submitted by the Justice for Liberty Initiative, the Supreme Court on Monday ordered the release of detainees held for at least two years and lowered the personal bond amount necessary to secure release from Rs 100,000 to 5,000.Coronavirus has impacted ..

As coronavirus pandemic deepens, over 117 million children in 37 countries are expected to miss out on receiving live-saving measles vaccine, the United Nations said on Tuesday.Measles immunisation campaigns in 24 countries have already been delayed and more will be postponed, the World Health Organization and the UN children's fund UNICEF said."Together, more than 117 million children in 37 countries, many of whom live in regions with ongoing measles outbreaks, could be impacted by the suspension of scheduled immunisation activities," Measles and Rubella Initiative (M & RI) said in a statement.New WHO guidelines endorsed by the Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunisation aim to help countries to sustain immunisation activities during the COVID-19 pandemic."The @MeaslesRubella Initiative supports recommendations to: temporarily pause preventive immunisation campaigns where there's no active outbreak of a vaccine-preventable disease continue routine immunisation services, ..

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday said he has instructed his administration to halt World Health Organisation's funding while a review is being conducted in the WHO's "role in severely mismanaging and covering up" the spread of coronavirus after it emerged in China."Today I'm instructing my administration to halt funding of the World Health Organization. We will redirect global health and directly work with others. All of the aid that we send will be discussed at very, very powerful letters," Trump said during a press conference.The US President has been critical of the world health body stating that the organisation was aware of the dangers of the coronavirus months before it took action.The United States has been the worst-hit country from the coronavirus. The virus has killed over 25,000 people in the country since the outbreak. There are at least 594,207 cases of coronavirus in the US.The US President also said the funding would be suspended while officials conduct a review "to

The number of people infected with the new coronavirus worldwide has surpassed 1.8 million with 71,779 cases verified over the past 24 hours, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday.According to the update, the global count of confirmed COVID-19 cases has reached 1,844,863, with the majority of them concentrated in Europe (943,272) and the Americas (644,986).The death toll has grown by 5,369 cases over the past day to a total of 117,021 fatalities, the report read.

Egyptian security forces have killed seven terrorists who were planning an attack on the country's Coptic Orthodox Christian population during their upcoming Easter celebrations, the country's Ministry of Internal Affairs said.According to the ministry, security forces raided an apartment in a densely-populated region of the capital. Mohammed Fawzy Al Hofi, a lieutenant officer, was killed during the attack, and one other police officer suffered injuries, the statement read.Security forces found six machine guns and ammunition in the apartment after the raid, according to the statement.On Tuesday evening, the national media reported on the security operation, which took place in a multistorey building in the Al Amireya region of the Egyptian capital.The country's Coptic Orthodox Christians are set to celebrate Easter Sunday on April 19.In April 2017, Egypt's Coptic Christians were targeted by bomb blasts during services to celebrate Palm Sunday. Two blasts in the cities of Tanta and ..

Wilson Witzel, the governor of the Brazilian state of Rio de Janeiro, has been tested positive for coronavirus."On Friday, I began feeling ill and asked for a coronavirus test. Today the result came and it turned out to be positive," Witzel said in a video message posted on his Twitter page on Tuesday evening.The governor said that he had several symptoms of the disease, including fever, sore throat, and fatigue, Sputnik reported."Right now, I feel better and I will continue to work while in self-isolation, following the recommendations of doctors," Witzel further said.Brazil has reported 24,000 cases of coronavirus since the outbreak of the disease.Several political figures, including presidential communications secretary Fabio Wajngarten, have tested positive for the disease during the ongoing outbreak.

The number of coronavirus cases in the United States has topped 600,000, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. The death toll has surpassed 25,000.While the number of cases stands at 602,989, a total of 25,575 people have died from the deadly virus in the country, reported Sputnik citing Johns Hopkins University.A total of 46,515 people have recovered as per the university's data.

Wearing masks and gloves, South Korean voters cast their ballots on Wednesday to elect 300 parliamentary lawmakers amid the coronavirus outbreak.Voting kicked off at 6 am (local time) and was to run until 6 pm (local time) at 14,330 polling stations across the country, according to the National Election Commission (NEC). The number of eligible voters is 44 million, according to Yonhap news agency.The once-in-four-years legislative election is widely seen as a referendum on President Moon Jae-in, whose five-year term will end in mid-2022, as well as a test of the country's fight against COVID-19 under the leadership of Moon, The Strait Times reported.South Korea has received international praise for its massive testing capability and other innovative measures, such as drive-through testing and high-tech contact tracing.Experts, therefore, expect the ruling Democratic Party (DP) to extend its lead in Parliament, given that the government's handling of the virus outbreak is viewed ...

Defying all orders from the state to refrain from religious congregations to curb the spread of COVID-19, prominent ulemas and religious scholars from across Pakistan on Tuesday stated that the five daily prayers and the Friday prayers would be held in mosques. They, however, mentioned that all precautionary measures advised by the government will be implemented.The statement from the ulemas, cited by Dawn, comes as the government announced it would continue the lockdown imposed in light of the coronavirus outbreak, easing restrictions for some industries which it said were 'low-risk'.Authorities in all provinces had officially restricted congregations in mosques, including for Friday prayers, to five people or less for the past two weeks. However, several instances of violation of government orders, and confrontation with police trying to enforce these orders, have been reported since then.Speaking at a press conference after the meeting between representatives from the ...

The assertion came in response to a question by five MPs of the European Parliament, namely Petras Austrevicius, Ausra Maldeikiene, Hannes Heide, Francisco Guerreiro and Petra De Sutter who had submitted a question to EU Foreign Affairs chief, Josep Borrell, asking about the position of EU on the succession of Dalai Lama and what measures the Union intends to take.The EU parliamentarians said that they expect Beijing to respect the spiritual leader's succession according to the traditional standards of Tibetan Buddhism, according to an independent analyst.In January this year, the US House of Representatives had unanimously passed the Tibetan Policy and Support Act (TPSA) to strengthen policy in support of Tibet, a move that was hailed as "encouraging and empowering" by the representatives of Tibet.The Act intended to, among other things, sanction Chinese officials for interfering in the Dalai Lama's succession.The Dalai Lama institution has existed for more than 600 years, during ...

Prolonged or intermittent social distancing may be necessary even until 2022 to prevent future Covid-19 seasonal outbreaks, a new study has said.Researchers from Harvard University, led by Stephen Kissler, used estimates of seasonality, immunity, and cross-immunity for two betacoronaviruses from time series data from the United States, to inform a model of Covid-19 transmission, Xinhua news agency reported.Recurrent wintertime outbreaks of Covid-19 "will probably occur after the initial, most severe pandemic wave," researchers wrote on in the study 'Projecting the transmission dynamics of SARS-CoV-2 through the postpandemic period', published in the online journal Science.The researchers added that without a vaccine or other interventions, "prolonged or intermittent social distancing may be necessary into 2022."Noting that "a key metric for the success of social distancing is whether critical care capacities are exceeded," the study said that "additional interventions, including ...

Risk sentiment deteriorated after a news report, citing inadvertently released results, said the closely watched antiviral drug remdesivir had had no effect on patients in its first randomised clinical test.

Risk sentiment deteriorated after a news report, citing inadvertently released results, said the closely watched antiviral drug remdesivir had had no effect on patients in its first randomised clinical test.

Total 32 issues of 33 industry category of Topix index were in positive territory, with Marine Transportation, Iron & Steel, Nonferrous Metals, Air Transportation, Electric Appliances, Real Estate, and Glass & Ceramics Products issues being notable gainers.

A partial reopening of the economy in Alaska, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and others boosted investor sentiments. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said the state will likely begin to reopen the economy in certain areas with certain precautions after May 15. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said he expected the U.S. economy to bounce back in the months after June, once the lockdowns are dismantled.

Total 17 issues of 33 industry category of Topix index were in positive territory, with Rubber Products, Air Transportation, Services, Electric Appliances, Precision Instruments, Securities & Commodities Futures, and Information & Communication issues being notable gainers, while Iron & Steel, Mining, Chemicals, Nonferrous Metals, and Land Transportation issues were notable losers.

Investors continue to struggle against positive news of lifting restrictions and re-opening the economy against what is expected to be the sharpest and most severe downturn since the great depression.

Among blue chips, index heavyweight Tencent (700 HK) rose 1% to HK$417.20, while Alibaba (9988 HK) slid 0.8% to HK$199. China Overseas Land & Investment (688 HK) jumped 3.5% to HK$27.90; Citic Pacific (267 HK) rose 2.7% to HK$7.98; and Mengniu Dairy (2319 HK), went up 2.5% to HK$28.70.

Investor confidence has been lifted as major countries and several US states reopen for business and central banks seem poised to inject more stimulus to offset the economic hit from the pandemic.

The gains were driven by banking shares after China's big four lenders reported higher profits for the first quarter despite the impact of the pandemic.