DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Wrexham secures promotion in front of jubilant owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-22 | by ( Aimee Lewis | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Racecourse Ground, Wrexham CNN —Wrexham fans are still singing, they will likely be singing into the night, serenading their famous owners in the process, because the wait for promotion is finally over. On a raucous evening at the Racecourse, and with Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney – the actors who have transformed the club since their 2021 takeover – in the stadium, Wrexham secured promotion to the Football League after a 15-year absence. Wrexham will next season compete in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league. New Wrexham fans, from Ohio, Los Angeles, Washington and Arizona, had come to Wales this week; some had tickets, some just wanted to be in the city to see for themselves what they had watched on TV. When Reynolds and McElhenney took ownership of the club in February 2021 few could have imagined the impact the pair would make.

☆ US bank run victims were bailed out in 3 days. In China, many have been waiting a year
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Selina Wang | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

CNN is not revealing the identities of the bank victims in order to protect their safety. Bank victims protest in Henan in July 2022. Experts say small banks in other parts of China could face the same crisis, as the world’s second largest economy faces a longer term structural slowdown. Some Chinese bank victims even say they’re living in fear of violent reprisals. CNN interviews bank victims in China.

CAIRO, April 21 (Reuters) - There are some aspirational prizes being doled out to winners of Ramadan tournaments in Egypt this week, with a team decked out in Liverpool's kit being awarded England's Premier League trophy for their success -- while another is set to receive UEFA Champions League silverware. The losers were presented with a replica of the African Champions League trophy for their efforts. "I bought the two cups from a friend who owns a sportswear store for two thousand Egyptian pounds ($65)," Ibrahim Abdel Salam, one of the organising committee, told Reuters. "There are two artificial turf courts, but we prefer the dirt court," Abdel Salam said. Meanwhile in El-Beheira governorate the European Champions League trophy appeared up for grabs.

☆ Naples Starts to Believe
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Rory Smith | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Goals scored hundreds of miles away have a notable effect, too. “If tens of thousands of people jump up to celebrate at the same time, we see it,” Bianco said. Her colleagues know to disregard these bits of data, of course, and she has not noticed anything particularly unusual over the last few months. Napoli has scored more goals. It is emblazoned with the words “Napoli Campioni.” He barks out the price and stretches out his hand, impatiently, to take the bank note.

☆ Angry crowd heckles France's Macron over pensions legislation
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Elizabeth Pineau | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/4] French President Emmanuel Macron talks to a person opposed to the pension reform, in Selestat, eastern France, April 19, 2023. and one man told him: "We don't want this pension (reform), what don't you get?" Another man told him he was leading a corrupt government and added: "You'll fall soon, just wait and see." There were also some cheers - one man told Macron to "hang in there," a woman thanked him for his work and others asked for selfies. In Paris, a free climber known as the "French Spiderman" scaled a 38-storey skyscraper to demonstrate his opposition to the pension law.

Lawyers for Kroger said in a filing in California federal court that the grocery store shoppers who sued over the deal have failed to define the relevant market necessary to evaluate grocery store competition and to identify how the acquisition would hurt consumers. The attorneys said the lawsuit was lacking "real-world facts." U.S. competition law "does not turn every grocery store consumer in the country into a roving antitrust enforcer," lawyers for Kroger told U.S. District Judge Vince Chhabria. State antitrust enforcers also are looking at the deal. The case is Whalen v The Kroger Co, Albertsons Companies Inc et al, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, No.

The Black Sea and its Ukrainian coast have been crucial theatres of war since Russia's invasion of Ukraine last year. "The Black Sea is instrumental for making the whole of Europe peaceful and future-oriented," Kuleba, speaking via video link, told a Black Sea security conference in the Romanian capital Bucharest. It's time to turn the Black Sea into what the Baltic Sea has become, a sea of NATO." The remarks were brushed aside in Moscow, where Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told a briefing: "The Black Sea can never be a NATO sea." Romanian Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu said a strong NATO foothold in the Black Sea going forward was a "must."

☆ India's Modi raises embassy security with UK's Sunak after vandalism
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

April 13 (Reuters) - Britain should take action after a violent incident during protests outside India's embassy in London last month, India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi told British counterpart Rishi Sunak on Thursday. New Delhi has been upset about protests and vandalism by Sikh separatists - who seek an independent Sikh homeland called Khalistan - outside the Indian High Commission in London and elsewhere in the U.S. and Canada. In a telephone conversation with Sunak, Modi called for "strong action against anti-India elements" by the British government following the incident, Modi's office said in a statement. "He stressed that extremism had no place in the UK and updated on the steps being taken to ensure the security of Indian High Commission staff," Sunak's office added. The demonstration outside the Indian High Commission was staged to denounce recent police action in the Sikh-majority Indian state of Punjab against a pro-Khalistan Sikh preacher.

☆ Fact Check-Series of holiday Google Doodle screenshots is not authentic
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

A tweet claims to show screenshots of the Google page customized with Doodles during Hanukkah, Ramadan and Transgender Day of Visibility, but not for Easter (here). However, Reuters found no evidence that the images juxtaposed on Google logos are authentic Google Doodles. GOOGLE DOODLESDoodles are not made for religious holidays per current guidelines, and the company has never created a Google Doodle for Transgender Day of Visibility, the Google spokesperson said. The Google Doodles archive includes all previous doodles used to mark special days around the world, including independence days, birthdays of notable figures and sports events (www.google.com/doodles#archive). Fact checking organizations including Snopes and Check Your Fact cite a now-deleted Facebook group campaigning for a Google Doodle related to Ramadan as the source of the Ramadan Google logo shared in recent posts (here), (here).

☆ India stalls trade talks with Britain over Sikh extremist group -The Times
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

NEW DELHI, April 10 (Reuters) - India has "disengaged" from trade talks with Britain after accusing it of failing to condemn the Sikh extremist group that attacked the Indian High Commission in London last month, The Times reported on Monday, citing British government sources. The incident occurred on March 19, when protesters with 'Khalistan' banners staged a demonstration at the High Commission and took down an Indian flag from the building's first floor balcony to denounce recent police action in Punjab. "Indians don't want to talk about trade until they get a very public demonstration of condemnation of Khalistan extremism in the UK," a Whitehall source told The Times. Reporting by Sakshi Dayal; Editing by Christopher CushingOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ India has not suspended trade talks with UK, officials say
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

NEW DELHI, April 10 (Reuters) - Trade talks between India and Britain have not been suspended and will continue this year, three officials said on Monday, responding to a British newspaper report that said India had "disengaged" from the talks after London failed to condemn Sikh separatists. An official in India's foreign ministry said progress in the trade talks and New Delhi's concerns around Sikh separatist activities in Britain should not be interlinked. A diplomatic official in the British High Commission in New Delhi said trade talks will continue in a scheduled manner and security officials in London were addressing India's concerns about Sikh separatist activities in Britain. "Both the UK and India are committed to delivering an ambitious and mutually beneficial FTA and concluded the latest round of trade talks last month," a spokesperson for Britain's Department for Business and Trade said. A second Indian foreign ministry source said that trade talks with Britain had not been suspended, and described the media report to be "baseless".

☆ Romanian farmers block borders in protest over Ukrainian grain imports
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BUCHAREST, April 7 (Reuters) - Thousands of farmers protested across Romania on Friday over the impact of Ukrainian grain imports on prices, blocking traffic and border checkpoints with tractors and trucks and urging the European Commission to intervene. Anger is rising among farmers in Central and Eastern Europe over a flood of cheap Ukrainian grain imports, exempt from customs fees until June 2024, which have hurt prices and sales of local producers. Across the country, thousands of farmers used tractors, trucks and other machinery to block roads and borders. It decided to hand out compensation worth 56.3 million euros to Polish, Bulgarian and Romanian farmers, with more to come. On Wednesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said he expected decisions to be announced in coming days and weeks to alleviate anger among Polish farmers.

☆ How You Can Use Social Media to Support Evan Gershkovich
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Wsj Staff | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The Wall Street Journal is offering resources for people who want to show their support across social media for Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who was detained in Russia on March 29 during a reporting trip. The Journal and the U.S. government vehemently deny the allegations and have called for his immediate release. Readers can download this collection of media assets to surface and share across their personal social-media accounts—from Twitter and Facebook to LinkedIn, Instagram and beyond. They can be added as user profile photos, banners or posts. Go to these links to save the image to your device and upload to your social accounts.

☆ Italy's ski industry fires cannon against climate change
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( Stefano Bernabei | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

[1/7] Skiers pass on an artificial snow slope as end of the ski season nears, in Monte Cimone, Italy, March 31, 2023. "The ski-lifts were closed, the ski instructors and seasonal workers had nothing to do and we lost 40% of our revenue for the whole season," said Luciano Magnani, head of the local consortium of ski tourism operators. Some 90% of Italy's pistes rely on artificial snow, compared with 70% in Austria, 50% in Switzerland and 39% in France, according to data from Italian Green lobby Legambiente. Italy's ski sector directly or indirectly employs 400,000 people and generates turnover of 11 billion euros ($11.92 billion), according to Anef data, equal to about 0.5% of national output. Some economists and climatologists argue that trying to keep low-altitude ski resorts in business is destined to fail, and snow-making merely delays the inevitable.

☆ HSBC brushes aside Hong Kong investor's Asia spin-off proposal
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-02 | by ( Selena Li | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

HONG KONG, April 3 (Reuters) - HSBC Holdings PLC (HSBA.L) on Monday pushed aside a proposal by an activist shareholder in Hong Kong to spin off its mainstay Asia business, reiterating the adverse impact on the Asia-focussed bank's cost and clients. The comment came as Ken Lui, an individual HSBC shareholder and leader of a Hong Kong-based investor group, called for the break up of the bank. The Hong Kong meeting is being held ahead of HSBC's main annual general meeting in the British city of Birmingham on May 5, to discuss its 2022 results and "other matters of interest", an earlier notice shows. On Lui's demand for higher dividends, Quinn told the Hong Kong shareholders that the London-headquartered bank intended to get the payouts back to pre-COVID level as soon as possible. ($1 = 7.8499 Hong Kong dollars)Reporting by Selena Li; Editing by Sumeet Chatterjee and Christopher CushingOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Elderly Swiss women bring European court's first climate case
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Emma Farge | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

STRASBOURG, March 29 (Reuters) - Thousands of elderly Swiss women have joined forces in a groundbreaking case heard on Wednesday at the European Court of Human Rights, arguing that their government's "woefully inadequate" efforts to fight global warming violate their human rights. More than 100 supporters and climate activists from Greenpeace gathered outside the courtroom, holding banners and flowers. Stefanie Brander, a member of the association Senior Women for Climate Protection, said that she felt the government had underestimated the group until now. [1/8] A group from the Senior Women for Climate Protection association hold banners outside the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg, France March 29, 2023. The Swiss government, which twice won in domestic courts in a six-year legal battle, has argued that the case is inadmissible.

☆ Analysis: French pension standoff causing cracks in Macron's camp, insiders say
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Elizabeth Pineau | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

With no sign of the protests abating, insiders question whether Borne's government has lost control of the political messaging necessary to appease the street. The situation has deteriorated considerably since Macron decided on March 16 to adopt the reform using special constitutional powers to bypass parliament. When asked about the divisions, the president's office said the majority of Macron's camp remained strong and united. "There are still ministers who are saying 'we should have done this or that', No!," the source lamented. An official in Borne's office said the prime minister had made efforts to preserve unity among ministers and lawmakers.

[1/5] Former Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou speaks to the media at the airport before departing on a visit to China, as for the first time a former or current Taiwanese leader will be visiting since the defeated Republic of China government fled to the island in 1949, in Taoyuan, Taiwan March 27, 2023. REUTERS/Ann WangTAOYUAN, Taiwan, March 27 (Reuters) - Former Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou left for China on Monday on a landmark trip, saying he hoped to bring about peace and improve relations through the interactions of young people. Ma, in office from 2008-2016, will be the first former or current Taiwanese president to visit China since the defeated Republic of China government fled to Taiwan in 1949 at the end of a civil war with the Communists, where it remains to this day. Ma met Chinese President Xi Jinping in Singapore in late 2015 shortly before the current Taiwan president, Tsai Ing-wen, won an election. The KMT says outreach to China is needed now more than ever given the tensions across the Taiwan Strait.

☆ Hong Kong police keep tight tabs on first authorised protest in years
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-26 | by ( Jessie Pang | Thomson Reuters | Jessie Pang Joined Reuters In After An Internship. She Covers Hong Kong With A Focus On Politics | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Tyrone SiuHONG KONG, March 26 (Reuters) - Hong Kong police on Sunday permitted a small protest march under tight restrictions in one of the first demonstrations to be approved since the enactment of a sweeping national security law in 2020. Participants chanted slogans against the reclamation project as they marched in the rain with banners in the eastern district of Tseung Kwan O, where the project is slated to be built. Police granted the organisers a "no objection" letter for the protest on the condition they ensure it would not violate national security laws, including seditious displays or speech. Organisers said up to 50 people took part in the first protest to be authorised by the city's police for several years. Since the China-imposed national security law, enacted in June 2020 in response to protracted pro-democracy protests in 2019, authorities have clamped down on freedoms and arrested scores of opposition politicians and activists.

☆ India summons Canada High Commissioner, concerned over Sikh protesters
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MUMBAI, March 26 (Reuters) - India summoned Canada's High Commissioner on Sunday to "convey strong concern" over Sikh protesters in Canada and how they were allowed to breach the security of India's diplomatic mission and consulates. According to Canadian media reports, hundreds of protesters gathered in front of the Indian consulate in Vancouver on Saturday over demands for an independent Sikh state, a simmering issue for decades recently triggered again. Canada has the highest population of Sikhs outside their home state of Punjab in India. Khalistan is the name of an independent Sikh homeland that some members of that community aspire to, both at home in India and in countries where Sikhs have settled. Reporting by M. Sriram, editing by YP Rajesh and Michael PerryOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Hong Kong police keep tight tabs on first authorized protest in years
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-26 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Hong Kong police on Sunday permitted a small protest march under tight restrictions in one of the first demonstrations to be approved since the enactment of a sweeping national security law in 2020. "We need to have a more free-spirited protest culture," said James Ockenden, 49, who was marching with his three children. Police granted the organizers a "no objection" letter for the protest on the condition they ensure it would not violate national security laws, including seditious displays or speech. Organizers said up to 50 people took part in the first protest to be authorized by the city's police for several years. The last of Hong Kong's Covid restrictions was scrapped this year, following China's decision to end its "zero-Covid" policies.

☆ Indian police open investigation into London embassy protest - media
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEW DELHI, March 24 (Reuters) - Indian police have opened an investigation into a protest this week outside its High Commission in London, Reuters partner ANI reported on Friday, pursuing action on an incident that has raised tension in relations with Britain. Protesters with "Khalistan" banners took an Indian flag down from a first-floor balcony of the High Commission in the British capital on Sunday to denounce recent police action in India's Punjab state, British and Indian media reported. Khalistan is the name of an independent Sikh homeland that some members of that community aspire to, both at home in India and in countries where Sikhs have settled. British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said acts of violence towards staff at the High Commission in London were unacceptable and British police were investigating. Police officials and the British embassy in New Delhi did not immediately respond to calls and messages seeking comment.

☆ Police arrested senior citizens who blockaded banks in a 'Rocking Chair Rebellion' to end fossil fuel use
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-24 | by ( Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

They say Wells Fargo, Chase, Citibank, and Bank of America should stop lending to fossil-fuel companies. Grey-haired San Francisco protestors donned hats and rain jackets, set up a tent, passed around colorful banners and signs, and sang songs about protecting future generations. Organizers reported that 10 activists who occupied a Chase Bank were arrested on March 22, 2023. There were no arrests in San Francisco, where three young people and three older people chained themselves to the Wells Fargo doors. Morgan McFall-Johnsen"We're hoping to damage the reputation enough that people say: 'Oh no, Wells Fargo is not a good guy.

☆ UK to review security at Indian High Commission in London after protests
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 22 (Reuters) - British foreign minister James Cleverly on Wednesday said the country will review security at the Indian High Commission in London following "unacceptable acts of violence" towards the mission's staff. According to the BBC, crowds had gathered outside the high commission's building on Sunday and windows were broken, after which India demanded an explanation for the "complete absence of the British security" around the premises. On Wednesday, Indian daily The Hindu reported that at least a hundred police officers were standing guard on both sides of the road outside the High Commission in London on Wednesday. Cleverly said that police investigation was ongoing after the acts of violence and that the country will make the necessary changes to ensure the safety of the Indian mission's staff as it did for demonstrations on Wednesday. Reporting by Anirudh Saligrama and Shubham Kalia in Bengaluru; Editing by Sandra MalerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ South Africa's EFF marches to demand president's resignation
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/5] Members of the political party, Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), gather at Church Square after calling for a "National Shutdown" and demanding resignation of President Cyril Ramaphosa in Pretoria, South Africa March 20, 2023. REUTERS/Alet PretoriusJOHANNESBURG, March 20 (Reuters) - Thousands marched through the streets of South Africa's cities on Monday to demand that President Cyril Ramaphosa resign, as security forces guarded malls and roads to prevent violence and looting. The Marxist Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) party, whose supporters are mainly poor and working class Black South Africans who feel marginalised since the governing African National Congress (ANC) ended white minority rule in 1994, had called for a national shutdown. South African security forces said on Monday that 87 people had been arrested in the last 12 hours over public violence ahead of planned protests. Parliament said in a statement on Sunday that the South African military would deploy 3,474 troops for a month until April 17 to prevent and combat crime in cooperation with the police.

Search resuls for: "Banners"

25 mentions found