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☆ A Strong U.S. Dollar Weighs on the World
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-29 | by ( Joe Rennison | Karl Russell | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Every major currency in the world has fallen against the U.S. dollar this year, an unusually broad shift with the potential for serious consequences across the global economy. Two-thirds of the roughly 150 currencies tracked by Bloomberg have weakened against the dollar, whose recent strength stems from a shift in expectations about when and by how much the Federal Reserve may cut its benchmark interest rate, which sits around a 20-year high. High Fed rates, a response to stubborn inflation, mean that American assets offer better returns than much of the world, and investors need dollars to buy them. In recent months, money has flowed into the United States with a force that’s being felt by policymakers, politicians and people from Brussels to Beijing, Toronto to Tokyo. The dollar index, a common way to gauge the general strength of the U.S. currency against a basket of its major trading partners, is hovering at levels last seen in the early 2000s (when U.S. interest rates were also similarly high).

Organizations: U.S, Bloomberg, Federal Locations: United States, Brussels, Beijing, Toronto, Tokyo

☆ Dollar a tad softer as markets wait for Fed
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-29 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Japan's yen was at 158.05 per dollar, up nearly 0.2% in quiet trading with Tokyo markets closed for the first of the country's Golden Week holidays. "The bar is pretty high for a sustained hawkish surprise, which would in turn lift yields," he said, referring to the Fed. "The BOJ disappointment might be transcribed onto the FOMC insofar that they may be more undecided than decidedly hawkish." The Fed is seen holding its benchmark interest rate steady at 5.25%-to-5.5% at the April 30-May 1 meeting. Markets are also on guard for any intervention by Japanese authorities to contain the yen's nearly 11% fall this year.

Persons: Jerome Powell, Vishnu Varathan, Sterling Organizations: U.S, Bank of, Mizuho Bank, Market Committee Locations: Japan, Tokyo, Bank of Japan, Asia, Singapore

☆ A Japan Airlines flight was canceled after the pilot got drunk at a Dallas hotel bar and police were called
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-29 | by ( Joshua Zitser | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A Japan Airlines flight from Dallas to Tokyo was canceled after the captain got drunk in a hotel. AdvertisementA Japan Airlines flight from Dallas to Tokyo was canceled after a captain got drunk at a hotel bar and received a warning from police, the airline said, according to Japanese media. The Mainichi, which cited a statement from Japan Airlines, reported that the captain dined in Dallas last week with other crew members. Japan Airlines did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment. In 2023, a United Airlines pilot who showed up to work under the influence was handed a six-month suspended prison sentence by a French court.

Persons: —, Le Parisien Organizations: Japan Airlines, Service, Mainichi, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, Federal Aviation, Federal Aviation Administration Locations: Dallas, Tokyo, Europe

☆ Mount Fuji: Japanese town putting up eight-foot barrier to block tourist photos
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-26 | by ( Lilit Marcus | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —A picturesque Japanese town is putting up a giant mesh barrier to block a popular selfie spot near Mount Fuji. Fujikawaguchiko, at the foot of the Yoshida Trail to Mount Fuji, has become overrun with foreign tourists trying to get the perfect photo of Japan’s most famous mountain. And now the town has had enough and is putting up the mesh barrier to block the view, a local official told CNN. The town of Fujikawaguchiko is in Yamanashi prefecture, to the north of Fuji and about 62 miles (100 kilometers) west of Tokyo. Many of them head straight to Mount Fuji, an icon of Japan and a UNESCO World Heritage site, leaving garbage and causing erosion along the way.

Persons: Philip Fong, “ Overtourism, Masatake Izumi, – Organizations: CNN, Mount, Getty, UNESCO, CNN Travel, Disney Locations: Mount Fuji, Fujikawaguchiko, AFP, Yamanashi prefecture, Fuji, Tokyo, Japan, Yamanashi, Austrian, Halstatt

☆ Bank of Japan keeps monetary policy unchanged, sees slightly higher inflation in fiscal 2024
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-26 | by ( Lim Hui Jie | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

A pedestrian walks past the Bank of Japan (BoJ) building in central Tokyo on July 28, 2023. The Bank of Japan kept its policy rate unchanged Friday after its monetary policy meeting, holding its benchmark policy rate at 0%-0.1%. While the move was expected, this comes after Tokyo's April inflation came in lower than expected, with the core inflation rate at 1.6% compared to expectations of 2.2% from Reuters. The bank previously said in March it bought about six trillion yen ($83.5 billion) worth of bonds per month in the past. No comment was made by the BOJ on the yen , which has steadily weakened since the BOJ ended its negative interest rate policy last month and abolished its yield curve control policy.

Organizations: Bank of Japan, The Bank of Japan, Reuters, U.S Locations: Tokyo

Asia-Pacific markets were mixed on Friday as investors in Asia look to the Bank of Japan's policy decision and inflation figures out of Tokyo. Thirteen economists polled by Reuters unanimously forecast that the BOJ will leave its monetary policy unchanged. Tokyo's headline inflation rate for April came in at 1.8%, slowing from the 2.6% in March. Core inflation in the capital — which strips out prices of fresh food — sharply fell to 1.6% from March's 2.4%, missing expectations of 2.2% from economists polled by Reuters. Tokyo inflation data is widely considered as a leading indicator of nationwide trends.

Persons: Cherry Organizations: Nippon Budokan, Bank of, Reuters Locations: Tokyo, Japan, Asia, Pacific

They call it an encirclement of their nation and say the United States is trying to constrain its main economic and military rival. The United States also has a new security agreement with Papua New Guinea. On Wednesday, Mr. Biden signed a $95-billion supplemental military aid and spending bill that Congress had just passed and that includes $8.1 billion to counter China in the region. In addition, the United States continues to send weapons and Green Beret trainers to Taiwan, a de facto independent island and the biggest flashpoint between the United States and China. A swarm of Chinese militia and Coast Guard vessels chased a Philippine Coast Guard ship in the South China Sea last year.

Persons: Xi Jinping, Biden, Antony J, Blinken, Yuri Gripas, ” Ely Ratner, Xi, ” Kurt Campbell, Joseph Wu, ”, “, Samuel J, Paparo Jr, Mr, Paparo, Carl Vinson, Richard A, Brooks, Trump, Lloyd J, Austin III, Chen Jining, Jes Aznar, David H, Berger, Obama, Tony Mcdonough, United States —, Admiral Paparo, China’s “ revanchist, we’re Organizations: Australian, U.S, Marines, United, Pentagon, Corps, Mr, White House, White, The New York Times, American, Marine, Green, China’s, Liberation Army, Seoul SOUTH, Pacific Command, People’s Liberation Army, Agence France, Nuclear Forces Treaty, Defense, Communist Party, Tokyo Okinawa, U.S . Navy, Coast Guard, Philippine Coast Guard, Marine Corps, Army, Philippines Luzon Partner, Australia Darwin Potential, NATO, Tomahawk Locations: Beijing, United States, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Japan, Okinawa, Taiwan, Asia, Pacific, U.S, China, Shanghai, South China, South Korea, Guam, Washington, Manila, Taipei, People’s Republic of China, Palau, West Papua, Seoul, Tokyo JAPAN CHINA Taipei TAIWAN Hong Kong, GUAM philippines MALAYSIA INDONESIA JAPAN CHINA TAIWAN, philippines GUAM, INDONESIA Seoul, GUAM philippines, MALAYSIA INDONESIA, Philippine, Moscow, Tokyo, Ryukyu Islands, South, Philippines Luzon, Luzon, Spratly, Australia, Canberra, Singapore, Darwin, Australia’s, . North Carolina, Virginia, Perth, United Kingdom, Navy’s, America

☆ WADA to launch independent review into its handling of doping case involving Chinese swimming
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-26 | by ( George Ramsay | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has commissioned an independent review into its handling of a doping case involving 23 Chinese swimmers after the organization said that it had been the subject of “damaging and baseless allegations.”The development comes after WADA was criticized by members of the anti-doping community, sparking a dispute which looks set to overshadow events in the pool at this year’s Olympics in Paris. “We have no evidence of any sort of skullduggery or planting of trimetazidine,” Wenzel told reporters on Monday. “In the past few days, WADA has been unfairly accused of bias in favor of China by not appealing the CHINADA [China Anti-Doping Agency] case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport,” added Bańka. Trimetazidine has the potential to boost endurance and has been banned by WADA since 2014. WADA said that Swiss prosecutor Eric Cottier, attorney general of Vaud in Switzerland for 17 years until his retirement in 2022, will lead the review into the handling of the case.

Persons: WADA, –, ”, Witold Bańka, “, Ross Wenzel, trimetazidine, ” Wenzel, Bańka, ” Bańka, Trimetazidine, CHINADA, Eric Cottier, USADA, WADA’s, ” WADA, Cottier Organizations: CNN, Doping Agency, New York Times, ARD, Tokyo Olympics, Sport, Xinhua Locations: Paris, China, trimetazidine, Swiss, Vaud, Switzerland

☆ Markets wary of intervention as yen struggles at 155 level
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-25 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Having traded in a tight range over the past few days, a buoyant dollar finally broke above the 155 yen level for the first time since 1990 in the previous session, and was last steady at 155.34 yen in early Asia trade. The breach of the 155 yen level comes as the BOJ meets to discuss monetary policy, though expectations are for the central bank to keep its short-term interest rate target unchanged following last month's landmark exit from negative rates. "We expect the BOJ meeting to deliver a marginally hawkish hold outcome," said Carl Ang, fixed income research analyst at MFS Investment Management. Continued expectations of gradual policy tightening and a low terminal policy rate make it difficult for the yen to appreciate significantly, even if at historically depressed levels." The dollar steadied at 105.79 against a basket of currencies, pulling away from a nearly two-week low hit in the previous session.

Persons: Carl Ang, Kazuo Ueda, Justin Smirk Organizations: Bank of Japan, MFS Investment Management, Reserve Bank of Australia, Westpac, New Zealand Locations: Tokyo, Asia, Australia

☆ Private rooms coming to some of Japan’s bullet trains
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-24 | by ( Lilit Marcus | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Japan’s beloved Shinkansen trains are getting another upgrade. This photo illustration shows what the private rooms will look like. Japan RailwaysThey will be located in the green cars, which are the first-class, more expensive cars on Shinkansen trains. Travelers who have purchased a JR Rail pass will still need to pay extra to use the private rooms. The Tokaido line was Japan’s first-ever high speed rail line, making its debut in 1964.

Persons: CNN —, CNN’s Junko Ogura Organizations: CNN, Japan Rail, Japan Railways, Travelers Locations: Tokyo, Nagoya, Osaka

☆ Japan Airlines first female CEO hopes more women make it to the top
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-24 | by ( Hanako Montgomery | Helen Regan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Tokyo/Hong Kong CNN —Mitsuko Tottori admits Japan has much more to do to get people like her into the chief executive seat. Tottori was named as the first female president and chief executive of Japan Airlines (JAL) in January, crowning a career that began nearly 40 years ago when she joined the airline as a flight attendant. Tottori, pictured in 1985 using an in-flight phone, began her career as a cabin attendant at Japan Airlines. Japan Airlines' A350 airplane is on fire at Haneda international airport in Tokyo, Japan January 2, 2024. They really followed the instructions of the flight crew calmly, which I think was a big factor.

Persons: Mitsuko Tottori, ”, “, Tottori, Issei Kato, Shukor Yusof, Seijiro Takeshita, ’, ” Takeshita, — CNN’s Junko Ogura, Mayumi Maruyama, Juliana Liu Organizations: Hong Kong CNN, Japan Airlines, JAL, “, CNN, University of Tokyo, Women’s Junior College, Boeing, Airbus, Haneda, Endau, ”, Japan Inc, University of Shizuoka, ANA, All Nippon Airways Locations: Tokyo, Hong Kong, Japan, Tottori, “ Japan, Nagasaki, Haneda, Osaka, Asia, Myanmar, Fiji

☆ Japan is sending a 'sugar baby' to prison for 9 years for defrauding men out of $1M and selling a manual on how to do it
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-23 | by ( Joshua Zitser | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A 25-year-old Japanese 'sugar baby' has been sentenced to nine years in prison. A court ruled that Mai Watanabe defrauded men she met on dating apps out of more than $1 million. AdvertisementA 25-year-old "sugar baby" was handed a nine-year prison sentence for defrauding men she met on dating apps out of more than $1 million, and selling a manual on how to carry out similar scams. Mai Watanabe, also known as "itadaki joshi Riri-chan," which translates as "sugar baby Riri," was sentenced by the Nagoya District Court on Monday, The Japan Times reported. Being a sugar baby can be financially rewarding.

Persons: Mai Watanabe, Watanabe, —, itadaki joshi, they're Organizations: Service, Japan Times, Nippon, Kyodo, Press, Federal Trade Commission, FTC Locations: Nagoya, Tokyo's Kabukichō, swindling

☆ SoftBank will reportedly invest nearly $1 billion in AI push, tapping Nvidia's chips
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-23 | by ( Dylan Butts | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Signage at a SoftBank Corp. store in the Ginza district of Tokyo, Japan, on Wednesday, Nov. 1, 2023. Japanese tech conglomerate SoftBank is looking to develop a "world-class" Japanese-language-specific generative artificial intelligence model, and plans to invest $960 million in the next two years to bolster its computing facilities, according to a Nikkei report. Training of large language models (LLM), such as OpenAI's Chat GPT, requires advanced graphics processing units, which SoftBank plans to purchase from U.S. chip giant Nvidia , the Nikkei reported Monday, citing anonymous sources. The investment of 150 billion yen ($960 million) will be spent in 2024 and 2025 and adds to 20 billion yen that SoftBank spent on computing infrastructure last year, the report said. According to another report from Nikkei Asia, Japan lacks private companies with the high-performance supercomputers that are needed to build LLM, despite increased interest in the tech.

Persons: SoftBank Organizations: SoftBank Corp, Nikkei, Nvidia Locations: Ginza, Tokyo, Japan, U.S, Nikkei Asia

☆ Spotify reports record quarterly profit after a year marked by deep layoffs and activist attention
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-23 | by ( Rohan Goswami | In Rohangoswamicnbc | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Spotify reported first-quarter earnings on Tuesday, notching record quarterly profit and beating estimates on the top and bottom lines, after a year of deep cost cutting and streamlining. The company expects net new MAUs of 16 million, for a total of 631 million monthly active users. Spotify attributed the slowed growth to "moderated marketing activity" — driven by cost cutting — resulting in "more normalized growth." ValueAct, which manages nearly $12 billion in assets, has a 0.5% Spotify stake valued at $280 million. When the activist investor first disclosed the position in 2023, it owned around 1.2% of Spotify.

Persons: Daniel Ek, Joe Rogan, MAUs, Mason Morfit's ValueAct Organizations: Spotify, LSEG, StreetAccount Spotify Locations: Tokyo, Swedish

☆ Chinese swimmers head to Paris Olympics under a cloud amid row over handling of drugs tests
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-23 | by ( George Ramsay | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —A dispute over the handling of a 2021 case in which 23 Chinese swimmers tested positive for a banned performance-enhancing substance ahead of the Tokyo Olympics now threatens to overshadow swimming events at the Paris Games this summer. Sun is now free to return to competitions next month, but revelations about the 2021 case have cast Chinese swimmers and WADA in a harsh spotlight. Trimetazidine has the potential to boost endurance and has been banned by WADA since 2014. China’s national swimming championships, which serve as selection trials for the upcoming Olympics, are currently underway in Shenzhen, concluding on April 27. At the Tokyo Olympics, China won six medals in swimming, including three golds.

Persons: –, “, ” Mack Horton, Horton, Sun Yang, Sun, WADA, Adam Peaty, ”, Sarah Hirshland, Witold Banka, …, Trimetazidine, CHINADA, Ross Wenzel, trimetazidine, ” Wenzel, Denis Cotterell, Cotterell wasn’t Organizations: CNN, Tokyo, Paris Games, New York Times, ARD, Doping Agency, Olympic, “, Sydney Morning Herald, WADA, Canadian Olympic Committee, Paralympic, ”, CHINADA, Xinhua, Paris Olympics, Chinese Swimming Association, China Locations: Tokyo, China, Australian, South Korea, ”, trimetazidine, Shenzhen

☆ Firm dollar drags yen down closer to intervention range
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-23 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

A firm U.S. dollar had the yen locked near a fresh 34-year low on Tuesday, keeping investors on heightened intervention watch as they looked ahead to key U.S. inflation report and the Bank of Japan's rate decision this week. A firm U.S. dollar had the yen locked near a fresh 34-year low on Tuesday, keeping investors on heightened intervention watch as they looked ahead to key U.S. inflation report and the Bank of Japan's rate decision this week. Traders have been keeping wary eye as yen slips towards 155.00, a level considered by many participants as the new trigger for intervention by Japanese authorities. The weak yen complicates the BOJ's policy path, with some market players betting the central bank could come under pressure to hike rates sooner than it wants to slow the currency's decline. Markets are currently pricing in a 46% chance of the Fed's first rate cut starting in September, with November not far behind at 42%, according to the CME FedWatch Tool.

Persons: Carol Kong, Shunichi Suzuki, BoE, Sterling, bitcoin Organizations: Bank of, Traders, Bank of Japan's, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Japan's Finance, Federal Reserve, Investors, Commonwealth Bank of Australia's, European Central Bank, Bank of England Locations: Japan, Iran, Israel, Tokyo, Japan's, U.S, Commonwealth Bank of Australia's Kong

☆ Japan and South Korea could coordinate currency intervention, but they may need U.S. support
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-22 | by ( Lim Hui Jie | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

SeongJoon Cho | Bloomberg via Getty ImagesInvestors have been monitoring for potential intervention in the Japanese yen, but recent comments have triggered discussion about "coordinated intervention" with South Korea. The currency has struggled, slipping past 150, since the Bank of Japan raised rates in March. Following that volatility, the U.S. last week acknowledged Japan and South Korea's "serious concerns" over the recent sharp depreciation in their currencies. The comments spurred chatter about possible coordinated currency intervention. Brady said South Korea and Japan could amplify their individual messages to the market by coordinating policy, which might also enhance the short-term impact compared to unilateral action.

Persons: SeongJoon Cho, James Brady, Brady Organizations: Korean, Woori, Bloomberg, Getty, U.S ., Bank of, South Korean, greenback, Authorities, Treasury, Bank of Japan Locations: Seoul, South Korea, Bank of Japan, U.S, Japan, South, Tokyo, Bank of Korea

☆ World Anti-Doping Agency defends handling of elite Chinese swimmers who tested positive for banned drug
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-21 | by ( Simone Mccarthy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Hong Kong CNN —Global sport’s anti-doping watchdog has slammed as “outrageous” and “completely false” allegations that it mishandled a 2021 case in which more than 20 elite Chinese swimmers tested positive for a banned performance-enhancing drug. The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) made the comments after US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) chief Travis Tygart accused the agency and Chinese officials of having “swept these positives under carpet” and failing to follow the rules around drugs in sport. The China Anti-Doping Agency (CHINADA) said recent media reports about the cases were “misleading,” according to Chinese state agency Xinhua, citing a statement Saturday. In its statement Saturday, WADA said it was notified in June 2021 of CHINADA’s ruling on the swimmers who had tested positive earlier that year. “These are egregious failures even if you buy their story that this was contamination and a potent drug ‘magically appeared’ in a kitchen and led to 23 positive tests of elite Chinese swimmers,” Tygart said, referencing details included in The New York Times’ article citing a report from Chinese investigators.

Persons: “, WADA, Travis Tygart, CHINADA, Kamila Valieva, “ WADA, ” Tygart Organizations: Hong Kong CNN — Global, Doping Agency, New York Times, Tokyo Olympics, ARD, Tokyo Games, CNN, Chinese Olympic, Testing Agency, Xinhua, trimetazidine, “, TMZ, The New York Times Locations: Hong Kong, China, USADA, Xinhua, Russian

☆ Los Angeles firefighters fought investments in safer streets. For decades, fire regulations have made roads deadlier.
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-21 | by ( Eliza Relman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Street safety advocates say fire officials' focus on speed is making roads more dangerous. Many of the city's residents want to take action to make their streets safer. In March, LA voted overwhelmingly for a street safety policy that will finally enforce a nearly decade-old mobility plan to make the city's streets safer for non-drivers. Fire departments across the country have for decades opposed safer street design. He said fire departments can be convinced to support safer street design if they're heavily engaged by planners.

Persons: —, we're, didn't, Michael Schneider, isn't, Schneider, Johns Hopkins, aren't, what's, Patrick Siegman, Kazuhiro Nogi, Siegman, Andy Boenau, Dan Burden, they're, Burden, Dan Organizations: Service, LA, Vehicles, Business, LA ., Code, Getty, San Francisco, Supervisors, National Fire Protection Locations: Angeles, Los Angeles, America, LA, Texas, Osaka, Japan, Paris, France, American, Tokyo, AFP, Baltimore, California

☆ US journalist Terry Anderson, held in Lebanon hostage crisis for nearly 7 years, dead at 76
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-21 | by ( Melissa Alonso | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Terry Anderson, the former Mideast correspondent for The Associated Press who was kidnapped in 1985 and held captive for nearly seven years in Lebanon, has died at 76, his daughter told CNN. The cause of death was unknown, though his daughter told the AP he had recently had heart surgery. “You’re sorry, sorry for your family, sorry you were dumb enough to get captured,” Anderson told CNN once about his capture. In a 2016 interview, Anderson told CNN that he didn’t think about his captivity often. And you do it, day after day after day,” he said.

Persons: CNN — Terry Anderson, Anderson, Sulome Anderson, “, ”, Terry Anderson, Madeleine Bassil, Mark Lennihan, “ You’re, ” Anderson, “ There’s, He’d, Anderson’s Organizations: CNN, Mideast, The Associated Press, AP, Lions, Vietnam Children’s Fund, Protect Journalists, Marines, Marine, Iowa State University, Associated Press Locations: Lebanon, Greenwood Lake , New York, Kentucky, Tokyo, South Africa, New York, Ohio, Japan, Vietnam, Iowa, Lebanese, Beirut, Iran, Damascus, “

☆ Warren Buffett's love for Japan may be far from over after $8 billion paper profit
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-21 | by ( Yun Li | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway has made billions of dollars from its big investments in Japan, and the Oracle of Omaha's love for the land of the rising sun is only growing deeper. The Omaha-based conglomerate priced 263.3 billion Japanese yen of bonds worth $1.7 billion, marking one of its biggest yen bond sales, according to a regulatory filing released Thursday. The cost of the positions was 1.6 trillion yen ($10.35 billion) and the 2023 yearend market value of the five stakes was 2.9 trillion yen ($18.76 billion), Berkshire revealed in its annual report. Meanwhile, the five Japanese trading companies are all dividend payers, yielding from 1% to more than 3%. Buffett even paid a visit to Japan with his designated successor Greg Abel and met with the heads of the Japanese firms last year.

Persons: Warren, Berkshire Hathaway, Buffett, Chamath Palihapitiya, Greg Abel Organizations: Berkshire, Mitsubishi, Mitsui, Sumitomo ., Tokyo Stock Exchange Locations: Japan, Omaha, Berkshire, Sumitomo . Berkshire

☆ Airlines That Offer 'Stopover' Programs, Some With Free Hotels
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-21 | by ( Taylor Rains | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

Airlines capitalize on this trend with "stopover" programs, some even offering free hotels and food. Airlines have jumped on this growing trend with built-in "stopover" programs, which can come with free or discounted hotels, excursions, transportation, and food at the layover destination. Essentially, you can't intentionally book a longer layover to quality for the free stopover hotel. Massimo Insabato/Archivio Massimo Insabato/Mondadori Portfolio via Getty ImagesSingapore Airlines' stopover program is available via the multi-city tool, similar to other carriers, where travelers can add hotels, transfers, and activities. Urbanandsport/NurPhoto via Getty ImagesTurkish Airlines' stopover program gives economy travelers a one-night free hotel stay and business flyers a two-night free stay if the period between their connecting flights in Istanbul exceeds 20 hours.

Persons: —, Robert Smith, Markus Mainka, Liang Xu, Nicolas Economou, Thomas Mukoya, Suparat, Finnair, Shutterstock Icelandair, Marcio Rodrigo Machado, Bauer, Griffin, Alexi Rosenfeld, CHARLY TRIBALLEAU, Massimo Insabato, It's, Matheus Organizations: Service, Airlines, Travelers, An Air Canada Boeing, Getty Images Air, Air France, KLM Air France, KLM, Air, China Southern Airlines, China Southern Airlines Airbus, Getty Images China Southern Airlines, Copa Airlines AP Copa Airlines, Copa, Emirates, Emirates Airbus, Getty Images Emirates, Dubai Connect, Ethiopian Airlines Ethiopian Airlines, Reuters Ethiopian Airlines, Etihad Airways, Etihad Airways Airbus, Shutterstock.com Etihad Airways, Fiji Airways Fiji Airways, Shutterstock Fiji Airways, Iberia Airbus, Japan, Japan Airlines Boeing, Japan Airlines, Latam Airlines Boeing, Latam Airlines, Hotels, An Oman Air, Getty Images Oman Air, Qantas, Getty, JAL, Oneworld, Qatar Airways, Qatar Airways Boeing, Getty Images Qatar Airways, Royal Jordanian Airlines Royal Jordanian Airlines Boeing, Getty Images Royal Jordanian Airlines, Air Lines, Swiss International Air Lines Airbus, Getty Images Swiss, Singapore Airlines, Airbus, Getty Images Singapore Airlines, Portugal, TAP Air Portugal Airbus, TAP Air Portugal, Turkish Airlines, Turkish Airlines Airbus, Getty Images Turkish Airlines Locations: Getty Images Air Canada, Canada, Air France, Xinhua, Panama, Panama City, Emirates, Dubai, UAE, Addis Ababa, Abu Dhabi, Fiji, Australia, New Zealand, Pacific, Helsinki, Iberia, Iberia Airbus Iberia, Madrid, Icelandair, Reykjavik, Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, São Paulo, Brasilia, Fortaleza, Recife, Manaus, Curitiba, Belem, Oman, Muscat, layover, Bangkok, San Francisco, AFP, Switzerland, Singapore, Lisbon, Porto, Portuguese, Azores, Madeira, Istanbul

The revelation that 23 Chinese swimmers tested positive for a banned drug seven months before the Tokyo Olympics but were secretly cleared and allowed to continue competing has exposed a bitter and at times deeply personal rift inside the sport, and brought new criticism of the global authority that oversees drug-testing. An American Olympian who took home a silver medal from Tokyo said she felt her team had been “cheated” in a race won by China. A British gold medalist called for a lifetime ban for the swimmers involved. The sports minister in Germany, where a documentary on the case was broadcast Sunday, demanded an investigation. And a simmering feud between officials at the World Anti-Doping Agency, the global regulator known as WADA, and their U.S. counterparts burst into the open in a flurry of caustic statements and legal threats.

Persons: “, ”, WADA Organizations: New York Times, Tokyo Games, China, Doping Agency Locations: Tokyo, China, American, British, Germany

Whenever a suspicion of doping arises in an Olympics, attention can shift quickly from the athletes who won gold, silver and bronze medals to the ones who missed out. On Saturday, The New York Times published an investigation into an unreported case in which 23 top Chinese swimmers tested positive for a powerful banned drug in 2021, only months before the Tokyo Olympics. The swimmers — who made up about half of the Chinese swimming team at those Games — were cleared by China’s antidoping authorities and the World Anti-Doping Agency and allowed to compete. The episode has not only alarmed experts in the antidoping community, but also raised other questions about athletes who tested positive, and what comes next: Which athletes? For now, the answer — both for the Chinese athletes and the dozens of swimmers who finished behind them, on and off the medals stand — is that nothing has changed.

Persons: —, China’s Organizations: The New York Times, Tokyo Olympics, Games, Doping Agency Locations: Tokyo

☆ Travel news: ‘World’s largest wildlife crossing’ being built in Los Angeles
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-20 | by ( Maureen O'Hare | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —In travel news this week: the world’s best and busiest airports, the European capital banning new hotels, the Hawaiian attraction being removed because of bad tourist behavior, plus the real-life animal crossing being built over a California freeway. Snakes will, however, be very welcome on “the world’s largest wildlife crossing,” under construction over the major 101 Freeway in Los Angeles. The Wallis Annenberg overpass will span 10 lanes and provide safe passage for mountain lions, coyotes, bobcats, toads and even ants. World’s best and busiest airportsThe world’s busiest airports were revealed in an annual ranking released Monday, with Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International holding strong in the No. US National Park Week starts April 20, kicking off with a free entry day on Saturday to all NPS sites.

Persons: Wallis, It’s, Alyssa Kopp, Mary Gomes Kopp, Doha’s, Florence’s, it’s, America’s Organizations: CNN, Aegean Airlines, Atlanta’s Hartsfield, Jackson International, UAE, Qatar, Doha’s Hamad international Airport Locations: California, Tokyo, Osaka, Los Angeles, Crete, Europe, Dubai, Amsterdam, Netherlands, Canary, Spanish, Africa, Italy, Ponte, Lake Mead, Hawaii

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