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SoftBank has been on a tear in Latin America. The Japanese investment conglomerate just announced it has launched its second Latin America-focused fund with a $3 billion capital commitment from the company that may grow as the fund explores “options to raise additional capital,” according to SoftBank. The vehicle follows hot on the heels of […]

September 18, 2021 (Reuters) – Some Afghan girls returned to primary schools with gender-segregated classes on Saturday, but older girls faced an anxious wait with no clarity over if and when they would be able to resume their studies at the secondary school level. Most schools in the capital Kabul have stayed shut since the […]

Hello and welcome back to TechCrunch’s China roundup, a digest of recent events shaping the Chinese tech landscape and what they mean to people in the rest of the world. This week, China gets serious about breaking down the walled gardens that its internet giants have formed for decades. Two major funding rounds were announced, […]

September 18, 2021 TOKYO (Reuters) – Leaders of the United States, Japan, India and Australia will agree to take steps to build secure semiconductor supply chains when they meet in Washington next week, the Nikkei business daily said on Saturday, citing a draft of the joint statement. U.S. President Joe Biden will host a first […]

September 18, 2021 CONAKRY (Reuters) – The leader of Guinea’s recent coup told a delegation of West African leaders he was not concerned about new sanctions imposed by the regional bloc to pressure a swift transition to constitutional rule, the junta’s spokesman said on Saturday. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) agreed on […]

September 18, 2021 By Peter Blaza MANILA (Reuters) – Divers in the Philippines pulled plastic bags, drinks bottles and fishing nets from a coral reef on Saturday, joining an annual cleanup that aims to highlight the impact of garbage on the world’s oceans. About a dozen divers cleared rubbish from the reef and nearby beaches […]

September 18, 2021 MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Bolivian President Luis Arce called on Saturday for a global agreement to lower debts for poor countries at a diplomatic summit in Mexico, as he and other heads of state seek to boost a new Latin American and Caribbean diplomatic block. The socialist South American leader is one […]

September 18, 2021 By Anna Mehler Paperny HAMILTON, Ontario (Reuters) – Canada’s election is in a dead heat two days before the Sept. 20 vote, according to a new poll on Saturday, as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his Conservative rival both campaigned in the same seat-rich region to scour up votes. The latest Sondage […]

Claire Diaz-Ortiz Contributor Share on Twitter Claire Diaz-Ortiz is a venture capitalist and author of nine books that have been translated into 11 languages. Her next book is on women founders and funders. An early employee at Twitter, Wired once called her “The Woman Who Got the Pope on Twitter.” More posts by this contributor […]

September 18, 2021 (Reuters) -New Zealand snatched South Africa’s world number one ranking and placed one hand on the Rugby Championship trophy after subjecting Argentina to a second successive thrashing within a week in Brisbane on Saturday. The All Blacks’ 36-13 bonus-point victory in front of 38,000 at Lang Park extended their lead to 10 […]

September 18, 2021 WARSAW (Reuters) – The European Union’s insistence on the primacy of EU law over national legislation undermines Poland’s sovereignty, ruling party leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski said in a letter quoted by state news agency PAP. The European Commission, the guardian of EU treaties, asked Warsaw in June to withdraw a motion filed with […]

September 18, 2021 FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Armin Laschet, the conservative candidate bidding to succeed German Chancellor Angela Merkel in this month’s election, said he was confident the European Central Bank (ECB) would achieve price stability, as accelerating inflation hits savers. “For me, it’s alarming when small savings, pensions, life insurances and building loan contracts lose […]

September 18, 2021 KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) – Malaysia on Saturday expressed concerns that Australia’s plan to build nuclear-powered submarines under a new pact with Britain and the United States could catalyze a nuclear arms race in the Indo-Pacific region. Australia will build eight nuclear-powered submarines under an Indo-Pacific security partnership that has riled China. “It […]

September 18, 2021 By Tarek Amara TUNIS (Reuters) – Several hundred demonstrators gathered in Tunis on Saturday to protest against Tunisian President Kais Saied’s seizure of governing powers in July, which triggered a constitutional crisis and prompted accusations of a coup. The protesters gathered in the centre of the capital chanting “shut down the coup” […]

September 18, 2021 DUBAI (Reuters) – More than four months after the COVID-19 outbreak halted the world’s richest Twenty20 tournament, the Indian Premier League resumes in Dubai on Sunday with a mouth-watering clash between the IPL’s two most successful franchises — Mumbai and Chennai. With India grappling with a surge of COVID-19 cases, the eight-team […]

September 18, 2021 By Kate Holton LONDON (Reuters) – Britain’s food industry called on the government to subsidise carbon dioxide (CO2) production during a spike in gas prices or risk the collapse of the country’s meat industries. A surge in gas prices has forced two British fertiliser plants to shut, stripping food producers of the […]

September 18, 2021 BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s exports to North Korea rose for the third straight month in August, but were still a fraction of their pre-COVID levels, Chinese customs data showed on Saturday. Chinese shipments to North Korea climbed to $22.5 million in August from $16.8 million in July. That compares with $219 million […]

September 18, 2021 PARIS (Reuters) – Work to shore up the Notre-Dame de Paris has been finished, allowing restoration to start at the cathedral two years after a fire destroyed the attic and sent its spire crashing through the vaults below, officials said on Saturday. Soon after the April 2019 blaze, President Emmanuel Macron said […]

September 18, 2021 By Steve Gorman (Reuters) – The quartet of newly minted citizen astronauts comprising the SpaceX Inspiration4 mission were due to splash down in the Atlantic off Florida on Saturday, completing a three-day flight of the first all-civilian crew ever launched into Earth orbit. To prepare for atmospheric re-entry and return to Earth, […]

September 18, 2021 DUBAI (Reuters) – Abu Dhabi will cancel COVID-19 testing requirements to enter the emirate for travellers from the UAE starting on Sunday, the United Arab Emirates’ state news agency WAM said on Saturday. The UAE’s capital had restricted entry into the emirate to those with a negative PCR test. Earlier this month, […]