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☆ Insider Today: Millennials living like retirees
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-27 | by ( Joi-Marie Mckenzie | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Rachel Askinasi; Alyssa Powell/BIA worthy power lunchKeens Steakhouse, a New York City institution, has been luring power lunchers for years. iStock; Rebecca Zisser/BIDeals we loveQuality seafood straight to your door: After testing dozens of options, we found the 13 best seafood delivery services for sustainable, fresh, and tasty fish. After testing dozens of options, we found the 13 best seafood delivery services for sustainable, fresh, and tasty fish. Dodge the power outages: With extreme weather conditions knocking out power nationwide, a portable generator is a must. More of this week's top reads:The Insider Today team: Joi-Marie McKenzie, editor in chief of life, in New York.

Persons: —, Taylor Bannks, Bernat, Pont Alexandre III, Samantha Grindell, Estée Lauder, Sunny Choi, Choi, Mykenna Maniece, Cristo Rei, Getty, Jose M, Tyler Le, Rachel Askinasi, Alyssa Powell, Gareth Cattermole, Anna Blazhuk, Lew Robertson, Ryan Reynolds, Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, Don Saladino, Saladino, Giulia Parmigiani, Natalie Ammari, Lou Pearlman, Knox, Michael Keaton, Rebecca Zisser, Joi, Marie McKenzie, Jordan Parker Erb, Dan DeFrancesco, Lisa Ryan, Amanda Yen Organizations: Service, Yorker, Business, Marathon, Olympics, Timor Leste Getty, Creativ, Heinemann, Netflix, Backstreet Boys, Backstreet Locations: Paris, City, Versailles, Cristo Rei Dili, Timor Leste, Kenya, Taiwan, Wales, New York City, Italy, New York

☆ I spent 3 nights in Asia's least visited country. It also turned out to be the most expensive.
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-24 | by ( Marielle Descalsota | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

AdvertisementIt's one of the world's least-visited countries, making airfare and hotel rates more expensive than many countries in Asia. Only two airlines — the Indonesian low-cost carrier Citilink and the local airline Aero Dili — fly between Bali and Dili. Marielle DescalsotaCost of hotel stay for three nights: $500Timor-Leste only has a handful of three-star hotels and no luxury accommodations. I booked an entry-level room for three nights at Timor Plaza Hotel & Apartments for around $500, including tax. For activities, I spent $30 on a massage at a traditional Chinese spa and $50 on a half-day scuba diving trip at the coast.

Persons: —, I've, It's, what's, Cristo Rei, Hilton, Burger King, Gloria Jean's, nasi goreng Organizations: Service, Business, Leste, Indonesia, United Nations, Development, Aero Dili, Timor Plaza, Apartments Locations: Europe, Asia, Maldives, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Timor, —, South, Connecticut, Development Asia, Indonesia, Australia, Bali, Dili, Darwin, stopovers, Singapore, Tokyo, guesthouses, Timor Leste

☆ Forget Spain. These under-the-radar countries actually want you to visit.
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-23 | by ( Joey Hadden | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Timor-Leste is one of the least-visited countries in the world. Timor-Leste gained independence from Indonesia in 2002 and became the first new country of the 2000s, according to the official Timor-Leste tourism and travel guide. The Sydney Morning Herald reported that the nation has been developing its tourism sector to boost its economy since then. BI's Marielle Descalsota recently traveled to Timor-Leste. Although she found limited tourism information online, Descalsota reported seeing some of Asia's most scenic views on the island's mountainous coastline with ocean waters clearer than those in the Maldives during the trip.

Persons: BI's Marielle Descalsota, Descalsota Organizations: Leste, Sydney Morning Herald Locations: Timor, Fatucama, South, Asia, Indonesia, Maldives

☆ I've traveled to 20 countries in 2 years. I found the most stunning coast in one of the least-visited countries.
▼ + stars: | 2024-07-05 | by ( Marielle Descalsota | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Last month, I traveled to Timor-Leste, a country located in the South Pacific. It's also the 14th least-visited country in the world and the least-visited in Asia, according to a January report from CEOWorld magazine. Some 81,000 tourists visited Timor-Leste in 2023 — putting it just ahead of Chad and Sierra Leone, per the report. Marielle DescalsotaOnly a handful of airlines fly to Dili, the capital, where the only international airport in Timor-Leste is located. As I grew up in Singapore and can speak some Indonesian, when locals didn't speak English, that was my fallback language.

Persons: —, I've, France —, It's, Fernando, Hilton, nasi goreng —, 9Milhas, Gloria, Jesus Christ —, Marielle Organizations: Service, Leste, South Pacific, Business, National Statistics Directorate Timor, YouTube, Google, Timor Plaza, Apartments, East Timor Centavo, US Department of State, Burger, Coffee, Cristo Locations: Maldives, France, Timor, South, Bahamas, Asia, Chad, Sierra Leone, Dili, Bali, Indonesia, Darwin, Australia, Dili's, sightsee, East Timor, Indonesian, Singapore, Marielle, Cristo Rei, It's, Angola

Singapore CNN —China’s support to Russia will extend the war in Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelensky said Sunday, as he called on countries across the Asia-Pacific to join an upcoming peace summit he accused Russia of trying to thwart. It comes ahead of the international peace conference on Ukraine slated to be held June 15-16 in Switzerland. “With China’s support to Russia the war will last longer. When asked later about China’s statement it would not attend the peace summit, the Ukrainian leader accused Russia of using Chinese diplomats to disrupt it. “Time is running out” including for Ukrainian children taken by Russia, Zelensky told a packed hall during an address on the closing day of the three-day security meeting.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelensky, Zelensky, China –, ” Zelensky, “, Putin, of National Defense Dong, ” Dong, Lloyd Austin, Dong, Russia ”, Vladimir Putin, ”, Austin, Prabowo Subianto, José Ramos, Pat Ryder, Joe Biden Organizations: Singapore CNN —, of National Defense, CNN, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Criminal, Ministry of Foreign, US Defense, Horta, Ukraine, Pentagon, Twitter Locations: Singapore, Russia, Ukraine, Asia, Pacific, China, Switzerland, Beijing, Kharkiv, The Hague, United States, Timor

Zelensky’s surprise attendance at the gathering is a stark illustration of Kyiv’s determination to keep the international community engaged in Ukraine’s defense – and its vision for peace – more than two years into Russia’s devastating invasion. A CNN team at the summit witnessed Zelensky and his delegation arriving. His attendance at the Shangri-la Dialogue in Singapore provides a rare opportunity for Zelensky to potentially meet with defense chiefs from across the Asia-Pacific, including China which has deepened its relations with Moscow since the war. US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and defense heads from US allies Australia, Japan, and South Korea, as well as China’s Defense Minster Dong Jun are expected to be in attendance for the three-day gathering. Announcing his arrival at the summit, Zelensky said in a statement on X that he would hold “a number of meetings,” in particular with Austin, Singapore’s president and prime minister, Timor-Leste’s president and Singaporean investors.

Persons: Volodymyr Zelenksy, Zelensky, Lloyd Austin, Dong Jun, ”, Austin, Rustem Umerov, “, Roman Pilipey, Zelenksy, Ukraine’s, Dong, Vyacheslav Madiyevskyy, –, It’s, Sergey Lavrov, Joe Biden, Biden, Donald Trump, CNN’s Ivan Watson, Xiaofei Xu, Alex Stambaugh, Natasha Bertrand, Sharon Braithwaite Organizations: Singapore CNN —, CNN, US, Austin, Ukrainian Defense, Getty, NATO, Russia, Northern, Firefighters, Reuters, Ministry, RIA Novosti, Russian, Key Locations: Singapore, Asia, Kharkiv, China, Moscow, Australia, Japan, South Korea, Timor, Ukraine, AFP, Switzerland, Sweden, Russia, Europe, North Korea, Beijing, Beijing’s, Russian, Reuters Beijing, Zelensky, Kyiv

A truck lines up to be loaded with soybeans in a farm in the city of Primavera do Leste in the central Brazilian state of Mato Grosso January 29, 2013. The crop-heavy northern section of Brazil’s top soy and corn state Mato Grosso experienced the driest October-November period in at least a quarter century. October-November precipitation in North Mato Grosso BrazilMato Grosso grows about 27% of Brazil’s soybeans and accounts for almost 30% of the country’s soybean export program, the world’s largest. The delay in the 2020-21 soybean crop reduced Mato Grosso’s second corn yields since it pushed the sensitive development period back into a historically drier time frame. Mato Grosso accounts for two-thirds of all Brazilian corn shipments.

Persons: Mato, Brazil Mato, Karen Braun Organizations: Mato Grosso, Brazil’s, European, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Primavera, Mato, NAPERVILLE , Illinois, Mato Grosso, Brazil

Unusually hot and dry weather in Mato Grosso has caught traders’ attention. October weather in North Mato Grosso BrazilIn Brazil’s southern state of Parana, October rainfall totaled around 350 mm (13.8 inches), the most for any month in at least 25 years. It is unhelpful in this analysis that there have not been many stronger El Ninos in recent years for comparison. Soy yield was 13% below trend that year, but otherwise, soy yields rarely miss in Mato Grosso, making it difficult to detect an impending disaster. In the south, Parana’s rainiest soy-growing seasons have most often coincided with El Ninos, but actual yield outcomes are mixed.

Persons: El Nino, Mato Grosso’s, Mato, La Nina, El, Karen Braun, Rod Nickel Organizations: Mato Grosso, Farmers, El Ninos, El Nino, Iowa, La, El, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Primavera, Mato, NAPERVILLE , Illinois, Brazil, Mato Grosso, North Mato, Brazil’s, Parana, U.S, Southern, Argentina

☆ Exclusive: Google to run internet cables to Pacific islands in Australia-US deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-25 | by ( Trevor Hunnicutt | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes Acquire Licensing RightsWASHINGTON, Oct 25 (Reuters) - Alphabet's Google (GOOGL.O) will run undersea cables powering internet access to at least eight far-flung Pacific Ocean nations under a joint U.S.-Australian deal set to be announced on Wednesday, according to a U.S. official. The deal will expand an existing commercial project by Google in the region to the nations of Micronesia, Kiribati, the Marshall Islands, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Timor-Leste, Tuvalu and Vanuatu. Set to be announced during an official White House visit by Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, the previously unreported deal involves contributions from both governments. Google is currently working on a fiber-optic cable that links Taiwan, the self-ruled island claimed by China, with the Philippines and the United States. As part of the Pacific islands project, the United States will work with the countries on cybersecurity resilience, helping them back up key information to global cloud networks, according to the official.

Persons: Gonzalo Fuentes, White, Anthony Albanese, Joe Biden, Trevor Hunnicutt, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: Google, Viva Technology, Porte de, REUTERS, Rights, U.S, Australian, Thomson Locations: Porte, Paris, France, U.S, Micronesia, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Timor, Leste, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, Canberra, Washington, China, United States, Taiwan, Philippines

☆ Exclusive: East Timor president says China military cooperation was 'never discussed'
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-29 | by ( Kirsty Needham | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

The agreement also provided scope for funding from China including government and commercial loans to East Timor, he said. "It was never discussed in terms of military cooperation, never discussed, and the Chinese side also never raised this issue," Ramos-Horta said. East Timor, also known as Timor Leste, aims to join the Southeast Asian regional bloc ASEAN by 2025 as it seeks to reduce high poverty rates. Australia has appointed an envoy to speed up negotiations between East Timor and Woodside; Gusmao's government wants gas to be piped to East Timor and not Australia. Australia's relationship with East Timor is "stronger than at any time in the last decade", Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.

Persons: Jose Ramos, Caitlin Ochs, Horta, Xanana Gusmao, Xi Jinping, heightening, Ramos, Kirsty Needham, Lincoln Organizations: Sustainable, United Nations, REUTERS, Rights, East, Reuters, Southeast, ASEAN, Canberra, Woodside Energy, Greater Sunrise, Greater, Australia, UN's, Fund for Agricultural Development, Global Citizen, Pacific, Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs, Thomson Locations: Horta, Timor, New York City , New York, U.S, East Timor, China, Australia, Indonesia, Canberra, Solomon Islands, 2,000km, Timor Leste, ASEAN, Singapore, Malaysia, East Timor's, Dili, Greater Sunrise, Southeast Asia, Woodside, New York

☆ Exclusive: Timor president says China military cooperation 'never discussed'
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-29 | by ( Kirsty Needham | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

The agreement also provided scope for funding from China including government and commercial loans to East Timor, he said. Some Australian politicians expressed concern after China's state media reported on Saturday that Beijing's agreement with East Timor, around 700km (450 miles) north-west of Australia, also covered military exchanges. "It was never discussed in terms of military cooperation, never discussed, and the Chinese side also never raised this issue," Ramos-Horta said. East Timor, also known as Timor Leste, aims to join the Southeast Asian regional bloc ASEAN by 2025 as it seeks to reduce high poverty rates. Australia has appointed an envoy to speed up negotiations between East Timor and Woodside; Gusmao's government wants gas to be piped to East Timor and not Australia.

Persons: Jose Ramos, Caitlin Ochs, Horta, Xanana Gusmao, Xi Jinping, heightening, Ramos, Kirsty Needham, Lincoln, 私 Organizations: Sustainable, United Nations, REUTERS, Rights, East, Reuters, Southeast, ASEAN, Canberra, Woodside Energy, Greater Sunrise, Greater, Australia, UN's, Fund for Agricultural Development, Global Citizen, Pacific Locations: Horta, Timor, New York City , New York, U.S, East Timor, China, Australia, Indonesia, Canberra, Solomon Islands, 2,000km, Timor Leste, ASEAN, Singapore, Malaysia, East Timor's, Dili, Greater Sunrise, Southeast Asia, Woodside, United States, New York

☆ Yellow-crested cockatoos find an unlikely urban refuge in Hong Kong
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-26 | by ( Rebecca Cairns | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +18 min

Hong Kong CNN —It’s dusk in Hong Kong Park. On a sweltering summer day in Hong Kong Park, nestled between skyscrapers in the urban center of the Asian metropolis, a yellow-crested cockatoo perches on a branch. Noemi Cassanelli/CNN Yellow-crested cockatoos nest in old trees, typically more than 100 years old, which form cavities in the trunk. Hong Kong, despite its urban sprawl and concrete veneer, is a stronghold for several endangered species, including Chinese pangolins, Hong Kong groupers, and the black-faced spoonbill. (According to the AFCD, it has “not received any report related to poaching of yellow-crested cockatoos in the past three years.”)Extremely picky about where they roost, the yellow-crested cockatoos use cavities that form in the trunks of trees that are typically older than 100 years.

Persons: Hong Kong CNN —, –, Astrid Andersson, it’s, ”, Andersson, Quadrupling, Noemi Cassanelli, Cassanelli, CNN Andersson, CNN There's, they’ve, “, Tom Booth, Fox, It’s, ’, Fiona Woodhouse, Woodhouse, Hong Kong’s, Jovy Chan, Chan, “ They’ve Organizations: CNN, Hong Kong CNN, Press, University of Hong, Timor Leste, International Trade, Fisheries, Conservation Department, CITES, Scottish wildcats, ADM Capital Foundation, Society for, Bird, Cultural Services Department, Facebook, Hong, SPCA HK, WWF Locations: Hong Kong, Swedish, Indonesia, Timor, Australia, University of Hong Kong, Hong, ”, Mainland China, HKD28,000, Indonesian

He warned that contaminated medicines could still be found for several years, because adulterated barrels of an essential ingredient may remain in warehouses. Cough syrups and the ingredient, propylene glycol, both have shelf-lives of around two years. Unscrupulous actors sometimes substitute propylene glycol with toxic alternatives, ethylene glycol and diethylene glycol, because they are cheaper, several pharmaceutical manufacturing experts told Reuters. The WHO said it has also offered help to Liberia and Cameroon – which recently signalled that it too may have contaminated cough syrups for sale. The contaminated syrups in Liberia were made by India's Synercare Mumbai, according to the Nigerian regulator.

Persons: Rutendo Kuwana, Kuwana, –, syrups, Naresh Kumar Goyal, QP Pharmachem, India's Synercare, Synercare, It's, Jennifer Rigby, Krishna N.Das, Edward McAllister, Stanley Widianto, Sumit Khanna, Sophie Yu, Sara Ledwith, Michele Gershberg Organizations: World Health Organization, WHO, Reuters, Pharmaceutical, Marshall, Indonesian, –, PT Universal Pharmaceutical Industries, AFI, Pharmaceuticals, Marion Biotech, Maiden Pharmaceuticals, Thomson Locations: LIBERIA, CAMEROON, Liberia, Nigeria, Gambia, Uzbekistan, Micronesia, Indonesian, – Timor Leste, Cambodia, Senegal, Philippines, Cameroon, syrups, Marshall Islands, India's Synercare Mumbai, Nigerian, Liberian, India, Panama, Delhi, Dakar, Jakarta, Ahmedabad, Beijing

HONG KONG, May 31 (Reuters) - An absence of women among China's top leadership is concerning, the United Nations said in a report, as it recommended China adopt statutory quotas and a gender parity system to quicken equal representation of women in government. The committee said that while China's representation of women in political and public life has increased, it was concerned that women only represent 26.54% of deputies to the 14th National People's Congress. It urged China to increase the number of women in all government bureaus including the judiciary and foreign service, particularly at decision making levels. The committee said it was concerned about the excessive restrictions on the registration of non-governmental organisations as well as reports of intimidation and harassment against women human rights defenders. Feminist voices have also been muzzled and in recent years, the government has increasingly emphasized the value of traditional roles for women as mothers and carers.

Persons: Xi, Martin Pollard, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: United Nations, quicken, UN, Leste, National People's, Communist, Thomson Locations: HONG KONG, China, Germany, Iceland, Sao Tome, Principe, Slovakia, Spain, Timor, Venezuela, Beijing

☆ East Timor heads to the polls in parliamentary election
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] East Timor's then-Prime Minister Mari Alkatiri stands during his swearing-in ceremony in Dili, East Timor, September 15, 2017. REUTERS/Lirio Da FonsecaJAKARTA, May 21 (Reuters) - East Timorese voters headed to the polls on Sunday in a parliamentary election that analysts said would likely see two resistance-era figures battle to be prime minister. Sunday's poll is the country's fifth parliamentary election since East Timor gained full independence in 2002 following decades-long occupation by Indonesia. East Timor has in recent years grappled with diversifying its oil- and gas-dependent economy. Leach said the victory of Jose Ramos Horta in last year's presidential election was seen as paving a way for CNRT's return to power.

☆ Hybrid solar eclipse draws thousands to remote Australian town
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SYDNEY, April 20 (Reuters) - A rare hybrid solar eclipse over a remote town on Australia's west coast drew thousands on Thursday to witness the event. Astronomy fans and enthusiasts from around the world travelled to Exmouth, a tiny beachside town roughly 1,200 kilometers from state capital Perth, to witness the total solar eclipse. Thursday's eclipse was a rare "hybrid" type, not seen worldwide since 2013. In a hybrid eclipse, depending on where viewers stand, the moon either blots out the sun, a total eclipse, or obscures the center while leaving a ring of light visible, an annular eclipse. While the total eclipse was only visible from a few parts of Australia, Indonesia and Timor Leste, a partial eclipse was visible across all three countries and parts of southeast Asia.

☆ Exclusive: India may issue alert on Marion cough syrup exports after toxins found
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-04 | by ( Krishna N. Das | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] Logo of Marion Biotech, a healthcare and pharmaceutical company is seen on a gate outside their office in Noida, India, December 29, 2022. REUTERS/Anushree FadnavisNEW DELHI, March 4 (Reuters) - India may issue an alert on cough syrup exported by Marion Biotech, whose products have been linked to deaths in Uzbekistan, after tests showed many of the company's drug samples contained toxins, a drug inspector said on Saturday. "The health ministry could issue an alert. Babbar has been part of a team that inspected Marion's plant four times after Uzbekistan said in December the children died after consuming the company's cough syrups. India in October suspended production at Maiden for violating manufacturing standards after the WHO said four of its cough syrups may have killed dozens of children in Gambia.

☆ WHO urges 'immediate action' after cough syrup deaths
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( Jennifer Rigby | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Anushree FadnavisLONDON, Jan 23 (Reuters) - The World Health Organization has called for "immediate and concerted action" to protect children from contaminated medicines after a spate of child deaths linked to cough syrups last year. The medicines, over-the-counter cough syrups, had high levels of diethylene glycol and ethylene glycol. It called for action across its 194 member states to prevent more deaths. It also issued a warning last year for cough syrups made by four Indonesian manufacturers, PT Yarindo Farmatama, PT Universal Pharmaceutical, PT Konimex and PT AFI Pharma, that were sold domestically. It also asked governments and regulators to assign resources to inspect manufacturers, increase market surveillance and take action where required.

☆ For East Timor president, ASEAN membership a lifelong dream
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-12 | by ( Kate Lamb | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

At the time, East Timor was ruled by Portugal, although it was clear that Lisbon would soon relinquish its colony. East Timor was later annexed by Indonesia and gained full independence only in 2002. At a summit in the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh this week, ASEAN said East Timor would be granted observer status at high-level meetings of the bloc as it formulates a "roadmap for full membership". He served as the country's first foreign minister, prime minister from 2006 to 2007, and president from 2007 to 2012, during which time he survived an assassination attempt by rebel soldiers. East Timor celebrated 20 years of independence this year, but the country of 1.3 million people is heavily dependent on dwindling reserves of oil and gas.

☆ As Russia raises nuclear specter in Ukraine, China looks the other way
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-22 | by ( Nectar Gan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

It was “the most prudent, or most low-key statement in years” issued by Xi on their strategic relationship, Shi said. Under Xi, China has forged ever closer ties with Russia. Six days later, in a desperate escalation of the devastating war, Putin announced a “partial mobilization” of Russian citizens in a televised speech, and even raised the specter of using nuclear weapons. Both leaders share a deep suspicion and hostility toward the United States, which they believe is bent on holding China and Russia down. The main factor driving the strategic alignment between Russia and China is the perception of threats from the United States, said Hart with CSIS.

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