Tech News

Indonesia entrepreneurs cash in on TikTok live selling spree

Indonesian livestreamer Christine Febriyanti stood in a room crammed with clothes in Jakarta, hawking colourful garments to hundreds of viewers on a TikTok livestream for a local fashion brand.. As TikTok Shop grows in popularity, with Indonesians buying more than a third of goods sold in Southeast Asia over the past year, entrepreneurs are flocking to the platform to promote a range of tech, fashion and homemade products.

Asian markets fall again as traders eye more rate hikes

Equity markets sank Friday and oil extended a sharp selloff after a string of interest rate hikes by central banks revived worries about the global economy.. While the central bank has cut borrowing costs there has been very little by way of policy detail from officials.

The ship sank. Or did it? Titanic misinformation swirls

The Titanic inspired a tear-jerking blockbuster and expeditions to its watery gravesite -- including a fatal one this week -- but viral TikTok videos peddle a stunning conspiracy theory: the ship never sank.. He alluded to an oft-repeated conspiracy theory that the company that built the Titanic purposely sank the Olympic, another one of its ships, as part of an elaborate insurance fraud.

Surge in anti-LGBTQ disinformation targets Pride in Europe

As Pride events got underway in Europe in June, disinformation and hate speech targeting the LGBTQ community spread across social media, triggering extreme online responses, including incitements to violence.. The surge in online disinformation and vitriol is all the more worrying after a spate of violence during Pride events last summer in Europe.   

Climate finance summit wraps up eyeing bigger progress

A global summit seeking to overhaul the international financial system wraps up Friday after taking small steps towards easing the debt burden of developing nations weighed down by climate and economic crises.. The V20 group of countries on the climate front lines -- which now includes 58 member nations -- has said restructuring the global financial system to align with climate targets must be completed by 2030.

Japan inflation slows to 3.2 percent in May

Japan's consumer prices rose 3.2 percent year on year in May, with the pace of inflation slowing from the 3.4 percent recorded in April, government data showed Friday.. Excluding energy, the data released by the ministry showed prices rose 4.3 percent in May, up from 4.1 percent in April.

Disney use of AI for Marvel TV series spooks Hollywood

The use of artificial intelligence in the new Marvel superhero series "Secret Invasion" has sparked anxiety and anger in Hollywood, at a time when television and film writers are already striking over their uncertain futures.. Method Studios, the company credited with creating the main titles for "Secret Invasion," said AI was "just one tool among the array of tool sets our artists used."

US county sues oil companies for $51 bn over 'Heat Dome' disaster

A county in the northwestern state of Oregon on Thursday filed a lawsuit against major fossil fuel corporations seeking more than $51 billion over the 2021 "Heat Dome," one of the United States' deadliest ever weather disasters.. With the lawsuit, Multnomah County joins dozens of cities, counties, and states across the US suing fossil fuel interests over climate change impacts as well as campaigns of disinformation spanning decades.

Dutch court says Angola's dos Santos diverted millions

A Dutch court has ruled that Isabel dos Santos, the daughter of Angola's late former president, illegally diverted 52 million euros from the southwestern African nation's state oil company.. - 'Deliberately backdated' - The latest case against Angola's embattled ex-first daughter springs from an investigation ordered by the Dutch court in 2020 into the dealings of the Netherlands-based offshore company Esperaza Holdings BV. In 2006, Exem allegedly illegally obtained a 40 percent share in Esperaza, while Sonangol, Angola's oil company, retained a 60 percent majority stake. 

Five things to know about Zambia

Copper-rich Zambia, the first African country to default on its debt during the Covid pandemic, on Thursday secured a deal from creditors to restructure its debt at a global finance summit in Paris.. - Crippled by debt - In 2020, Zambia became the first country in Africa to default on its foreign debt since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.