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Brazil drought lights a fire under global coffee prices
Brazil drought lights a fire under global coffee prices
by  AFP

Brazilian coffee producer Moacir Donizetti first smelled the smoke, and then watched in desperation as a blaze consumed his family coffee plantation last year. "It was desperate: seeing the flames advance, destroying our plantation, coming within twenty meters of my house," said Donizetti.

Trump's climate retreat shines light on other green leaders
Trump's climate retreat shines light on other green leaders
by  AFP

The United States withdrawing from the Paris Agreement is a blow to global cooperation on climate change, but other countries are marching ahead and stepping up leadership on the issue. During the last Trump presidency, the EU and China launched a climate dialogue with Canada to ensure unwavering high-level support for the Paris Agreement while the United States was outside the process.

The global forces sending coffee prices skyward
The global forces sending coffee prices skyward
by  AFP

Climate change, political headwinds and diverging market dynamics around the world have pushed coffee prices to fresh records, jacking up the cost of your everyday brew or a barista's signature macchiato.

Trump vows trade policy of 'tariff and tax' on other countries
Trump vows trade policy of 'tariff and tax' on other countries
by  AFP

US President Donald Trump promised tariffs and taxes on other countries Monday, in a nationalistic inaugural address after being sworn in as the 47th president. "Instead of taxing our citizens to enrich other countries, we will tariff and tax foreign countries to enrich our citizens," Trump added.

Tech billionaires take center stage at Trump inauguration
Tech billionaires take center stage at Trump inauguration
by  AFP

US tech multibillionaires -- including Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, and Jeff Bezos -- were given prime positions at Donald Trump's inauguration on Monday, in an unprecedented demonstration of their power and influence in the White House.

Global tourism recovered to pre-pandemic levels in 2024: UN
Global tourism recovered to pre-pandemic levels in 2024: UN
by  AFP

Global tourism fully recovered from the Covid-19 pandemic in 2024 with 1.4 billion international tourist arrivals recorded worldwide due to "robust" demand from key markets, UN Tourism said Monday. The number of international tourist arrivals last year was 11 percent higher than the 1.3 billion recorded in 2023, reaching the level seen in 2019, the year before the pandemic paralysed travel.

Job cuts report worries employees at Germany's Commerzbank
Job cuts report worries employees at Germany's Commerzbank
by  AFP

Suggestions that German lender Commerzbank was considering cutting thousands of jobs as it fights off an unwanted advance from Italy's UniCredit had unsettled employees, a senior trade union official said Monday. Frederik Werning, Verdi trade union official and a member of the supervisory board at Germany's second-largest lender, said rumoured redundancies had caused "uncertainty among employees".

X and Facebook toughen EU pledge to combat hate speech
X and Facebook toughen EU pledge to combat hate speech
by  AFP

Social media giants including X and Facebook have agreed to step up efforts to tackle hate speech in the EU, the bloc said Monday as its digital rules face scrutiny with Donald Trump's return to the White House. The EU's announcement, coming on the day of Trump's inauguration, said the 12 platforms had agreed beef up a code first signed in 2016 detailing efforts to curb hate speech online.