The Donald Trump administration has proposed a dramatic increase in the cost of hiring highly skilled foreign workers through the H-1B visa programme, with a new fee of $103,265 for covered H-1B petitions. The proposed charge could significantly change the cost-benefit calculation for American companies that depend on international professionals to fill specialised positions. It...
New Zealand has moved ahead with legislation aimed at preventing children under the age of 16 from accessing major social media platforms, joining a growing international effort to impose stronger safeguards on young people in the digital environment. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s government has introduced a proposed law that would require social media companies to...
The United States has imposed sanctions on Singapore-based oil trading company Wellbred Capital and several affiliated businesses, citing their links to Iran and alleged connections to a wider network involved in international oil and petroleum trading. The latest measures form part of Washington’s broader effort to restrict Iran’s access to international financial channels and disrupt...
US Vice President JD Vance sparked attention during a political appearance in Maine after referring to Canada as a “state” while discussing increasingly tense trade relations between Washington and Ottawa. Vance made the remark on Monday, August 24, during an event in Brewer, Maine, as he defended the Trump administration’s increasingly aggressive position on Canadian...
A residential fire broke out in Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood, triggering a major emergency response after flames were reported at a building near Bellevue Avenue East and East Republican Street. The incident took place on Monday evening, August 24, as firefighters rushed to the residential area following reports of a serious blaze. The fire generated...
A magnitude 5.9 earthquake struck eastern Japan early Sunday, August 23, sending strong tremors through Tokyo and surrounding parts of the Kanto region and leaving dozens of people injured. The earthquake prompted emergency alerts on mobile phones, disrupted several train services and caused a water pipe to rupture in eastern Tokyo. Authorities, however, reported no...
TikTok and its parent company, ByteDance, have agreed to pay $400 million to settle a major US legal case concerning alleged violations of federal laws designed to protect children’s privacy online. The settlement, announced by the US Department of Justice, brings an end to litigation filed in 2024 that accused TikTok of failing to adequately...
More than 16,000 doses of the Ervebo Ebola vaccine have arrived in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), providing an important boost to efforts to contain an outbreak that has become the country’s deadliest Ebola epidemic on record. A shipment containing 16,250 doses was delivered by air to Kinshasa late Friday as health authorities and...
A US federal judge has struck down the Trump administration’s policy suspending immigrant visa processing for nationals of 75 countries, ruling that the measure exceeded the legal authority of Secretary of State Marco Rubio and conflicted with federal immigration law. US District Judge Jeannette Vargas, sitting in Manhattan, issued the ruling on Friday, August 21,...
The United States has imposed a new 50% tariff on approximately $20 billion worth of Canadian goods after last-minute negotiations between Washington and Ottawa failed to produce a trade agreement. The move has sharply escalated tensions between the two countries and prompted Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney to announce plans for dollar-for-dollar retaliation. The new...