Author: BLMS MEDIA

Higher German infrastructure spending will boost Europe’s economic growth in the coming years — but not enough to outweigh the expected drag from U.S. tariffs, according to Alfred Kammer, director of the European department at the International Monetary Fund.The IMF last week cut its growth outlook for the euro area, also making downgrades for the U.S., U.K. and many Asian countries due to President Donald Trump’s volatile tariff policy.The institution cut its euro area growth forecasts for each of the next two years by 0.2 percentage points, to 0.8% in 2025 and 1.2% in 2026.”It’s the tariffs and the trade…

Both the Senate majority leader and the Philippines Public Relations Society have accused the embassy of hiring a local company to spread ‘fake news.’Beijing’s embassy in Manila had hired a company in the Philippines to “destroy the credibility not just of a person or a leader, but of the country,” according to Senate Majority Leader Francis Tolentino, who is also chairperson of the Special Committee on Philippine Maritime and Admiralty Zones.During a hearing of the Special Committee on Philippine Maritime and Admiralty Zones on alleged spying by Beijing, Tolentino said the embassy had hired a troll farm to spread disinformation.…

Max Verstappen has spoken on his admiration for new F1 world championship leader Oscar Piastri and praised his “very calm” approach.McLaren’s Piastri sits at the summit of the Drivers’ Championship standings for the first time heading into this weekend’s Miami Grand Prix after winning back-to-back races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. Verstappen finished second to Piastri at the last race in Jeddah after being penalised in their tussle at the race’s first corner and is 12 points behind the in-from Australian in the nascent 2025 standings, with Lando Norris between them in the other McLaren.”People forget a little bit -…

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday declared a unilateral 72-hour ceasefire next week in Ukraine to mark Victory Day in World War II as the U.S. presses for a deal to end the 3-year-old war. Kyiv insisted on a longer and immediate truce.The Kremlin said the truce, ordered on “humanitarian grounds,” will run from the start of May 8 (2100 GMT, 5 p.m. EDT May 7) and last through the end of May 10 (2100 GMT, 5 p.m. EDT May 10) to mark Moscow’s defeat of Nazi Germany in 1945 — Russia’s biggest secular holiday.Ukraine, which…

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Catholic cardinals on Monday set May 7 as the start date for the conclave to elect Pope Francis’ successor, delaying the secret voting for two days so they can get to know one another better and find consensus on a candidate before they are sequestered in the Sistine Chapel.The cardinals set the date after arriving for the first day of informal meetings following Pope Francis’ funeral Saturday. In a chaotic scene, journalists shouted questions about the mood inside and whether there was unity. A reporter for a satirical Italian television program asked whether an Italian cardinal…

Editor’s Note: Donald Trump came back into power making it clear he would use the public office of the presidency to extract personal revenge. The effort is underway, but so is a growing resistance. This is Part 5 of an in-depth and contemporaneous look at the first 100 days of Trump’s second term. CNN  —  Towering three stories high, the immense balloon of a bloated man scowls at the scene below. With tiny hands, a faux military uniform and a shock of yellow hair, the parody of President Donald Trump sways and buckles in the wind like it is losing…

The construction site of a plant for the production of hydrogen in Germany. Picture Alliance | Picture Alliance | Getty ImagesA growing number of sizable companies, from mining giants to energy majors, are embracing the hype for natural hydrogen.It comes as buzz continues to build over the potential for a resource that advocates say could radically reshape the global energy landscape.Natural hydrogen, sometimes known as white, gold or geologic hydrogen, refers to hydrogen gas that is found in its natural form beneath Earth’s surface. The long-overlooked resource, first discovered by accident in Mali nearly 40 years ago, contains no carbon and…

The CEO of logistics company Flexport has a grim forecast for what could happen if the US sticks to its tariffs on China.The US’s 145% duty on Chinese products could lead to “mass bankruptcies,” Flexport’s CEO, Ryan Petersen, said on an episode of ‘”The Prof G Pod,” which aired on Friday.”You’re talking like 80% of small business that buys from China will just die,” he said. “And millions of employees will be unemployed.”The logistics CEO added that a lot of what Americans buy from China is “discretionary spend” — optional items that can be replaced if they become expensive.”We have…

One person was killed and multiple people were injured when a boat struck the Clearwater Ferry in Clearwater, Florida, on Sunday evening.All of the injured individuals were people on the ferry, according to the Clearwater Police Department.There were 45 people aboard the ferry, including two crew members, when it was hit by a passing boat, police said.”It’s been declared a mass casualty incident by the fire department due to the number of injuries. All local hospitals have been notified,” Clearwater PD wrote in a post on X on Sunday night.”Multiple trauma alerts have been called with helicopters transporting two of…

European stocks close higher as investors digest company earningsEuropean stocks closed higher as investors digested major earnings and data releases.The Stoxx 600 index provisionally closed higher by 0.5%, with the travel and banking sectors leading the gains.Regionally, the FTSE 100 closed up 0.02%, its 11th consecutive day of gains and its best run since late 2019. France’s CAC 40 and Germany’s DAX were up 0.5% and 0.06%, respectively.Spain’s IBEX 35 closed higher by 0.75% after the stock exchange operator confirmed that trading operations were continuing smoothly despite widespread power cuts nationwide.— Ganesh RaoStocks open in the greenStocks traded up on Monday morning.The…