Brazil intends to sell yuan bonds in China every year rather than once, a senior Brazilian treasury official said on Wednesday, in a plan that would make the Chinese currency a permanent fixture of its external debt. The debut is expected before the end of the year and is small enough that the government is not relying on the proceeds, with external debt at four per cent of the federal stock. Francisco Segundo, deputy secretary for public debt at the National Treasury, told a webinar hosted by...

Even as Congress remains divided over the latest US defence bill, lawmakers in both parties remain united on one issue: China. The National Defence Authorisation Act (NDAA), which sets US defence policy and authorises military spending each year, reflects a broad bipartisan consensus on expanding Washington’s military, technological and economic rivalry with Beijing. While the House and Senate versions differ on a number of provisions, both include new measures on Taiwan, artificial...

Iran and Oman have agreed a route for ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz and are putting the final touches on arrangements for jointly managing the passage, Tehran’s foreign ministry said on Wednesday. Iran has seized de facto control of the strait, a strategic waterway for the global energy trade, since the United States and Israel launched their war against the country on February 28. US President Donald Trump has repeatedly insisted Tehran is keen to do a deal to reopen the route to...

Scientists have captured images of the sun’s surface in the finest detail yet, revealing a strange and dynamic facade. It is dangerous to look directly at the sun without proper eye protection. But researchers were able to peek at its scorching surface with the help of the National Science Foundation’s Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope, located on the island of Maui in Hawaii. Scientists originally took the images for a different reason: to fine-tune and test the limits of the telescope. But when...

A woman has been arrested after four men were stabbed in Covent Garden in central London on Wednesday afternoon. The Metropolitan Police said the four men, aged 34, 39, 42 and 52, were found with stab wounds. No further update has been given on the extent of their injuries. The 47-year-old woman was arrested on suspicion of possession of an offensive weapon and assault, the force added. She was taken into custody, where she remains. The stabbing is believed to have been a mental health-related...

A Singaporean court has jailed a Hong Kong mother and her adult son for up to six months following a chaotic clash at Changi Airport, during which the pair attacked a police officer and a bystander. Chan Sui-kwan, 65, was reportedly sentenced to six months’ imprisonment on Monday for voluntarily causing hurt to deter a public servant from the discharge of his duty, while her son, Chan Wing-kwan, 42, was handed a 10-day jail term for voluntarily causing hurt. The incident occurred on the...

Meta Platforms’ ⁠CEO Mark ⁠Zuckerberg has apologised to the ⁠Indian government over child sexual abuse material on the company’s platforms and for operational errors, local television channels reported on Wednesday. Zuckerberg apologised for the presence of the material, as well as deepfake content and operational ‌lapses on Meta’s platforms, financial news publication Moneycontrol reported, citing sources. The publication added the apology was conveyed during a meeting between Meta executives...