AFP news

China's global dominance in electric cars helped it overtake Japan as the world's biggest vehicle exporter last year, official data confirmed Wednesday.

While Beijing has played down the formality of these growing links, it is steadily increasing investment and exposure -- a relationship that could benefit both parties, analysts and diplomats say.

Spanish banking giant Santander posted a record 11.1-billion-euro ($12 billion) net profit for 2023 on Wednesday as higher interest rates and a rise in global clients helped to cushion the impact of a windfall tax.

Convoys of tractors edged closer to Paris, Lyon and other strategic locations in France on Wednesday, as thousands of protesting farmers appeared to ignore warnings of police intervention if they cross red lines laid down by ministers.

H&M chief executive Helena Helmersson announced Wednesday she was stepping down, sending shares in the fashion retailer tumbling as the Swedish company reported lower-than-expected profits in the fourth quarter.

North Korea said Wednesday it successfully test-fired a strategic cruise missile, part of a selection of recently launched weapons that analysts warn could be destined for Russia's war in Ukraine.

The Israeli army said Tuesday it is channelling water into Gaza's tunnels in a bid to destroy the sprawling underground network used by Hamas militants to launch attacks on Israel.

The eurozone economy narrowly avoided a technical recession in the second half of 2023 but stagnated in the final three months of the year, official data showed Tuesday.

Joko Widodo has led Indonesia for a nearly a decade pledging to do things differently, but he stands accused of manoeuvring to build his own political dynasty in next month's presidential vote in a country long known for its nepotistic politics.

Japan's Toyota said Tuesday that it sold a record 11.2 million vehicles in 2023, cementing its position as the world's top-selling automaker for the fourth successive year thanks to a recovery in demand in all regions and easing semiconductor shortages.

Hong Kong will create its own national security law "as soon as possible", city leader John Lee said Tuesday, adding insurrection and other crimes not covered by existing legislation imposed by Beijing four years ago.

The UK will finally roll out post-Brexit border checks Wednesday on food, plant and animal products imported from the European Union, fanning fears of more price hikes, empty shelves and even Valentine's Day flower shortages.

Some searches including the terms "Taylor Swift" on X turned up no results on Monday after the company, formerly known as Twitter, apparently moved to prevent the spread of AI-generated porn videos using the star's likeness.

Britain's top climate change advisory body on Tuesday accused Prime Minister Rishi Sunak of creating "mixed signals and a perception of "slowing UK climate ambition", as it demanded renewed action.

Police in Brazil raided the home and offices of former president Jair Bolsonaro's son Carlos on Monday as an investigation into accusations of illegal spying closed in on the far-right leader's inner circle.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned Monday that Ukraine's gains over two years of fighting were all in doubt without new US funding, as NATO's chief visited to lobby Congress.

Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva received a four-year ban from the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on Monday for failing a doping test prior to the 2022 Winter Olympics.

Storied auction house Sotheby's reported on Monday that sales had dipped last year to $7.9 billion, down $100 million from the record-breaking 2022 which was lifted by pent-up demand following the pandemic.

Amazon on Monday said it was dropping its plans to buy the iRobot vacuum maker after the EU's antitrust authority objected to the plan over competition concerns.

Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili resigned on Monday saying he would become chairman of the ruling party going into parliamentary elections in October.

The killing of three US troops is dragging the United States further into a proxy war with Iran that President Joe Biden had hoped to avoid and that he still hopes can be contained.

South Africa's former President Jacob Zuma was suspended from the ruling African National Congress (ANC) on Monday, weeks after he backed another party ahead of this year's general elections.

A Hong Kong court on Monday ordered the liquidation of China's property giant Evergrande, but the firm said it would continue to operate in a case that has become a symbol of the nation's deepening economic woes.

Haiti's government said Sunday it remains hopeful for a "swift and positive outcome," after a Kenyan court ruled against Nairobi's plan to deploy police officers to support the troubled island nation's security forces.

Jannik Sinner stormed back from two sets down to beat Daniil Medvedev in an energy-sapping five-set Australian Open final on Sunday, claiming his first Grand Slam title.

A television drama in early January that told the story of the subpostmasters' ordeal and their ongoing battle to clear their names and secure compensation shocked the nation.

Iran said it had nothing to do with the attack and denied US and British accusations that it supported militant groups responsible for the strike on the remote frontier base in Jordan's northeast, near the borders with Iraq and Syria.

Millions of people will vote in polls in less than two weeks, in a campaign marred by allegations of pre-vote rigging with the opposition heavily suppressed.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has hailed the test launch of a new strategic cruise missile from a submarine as a key moment in building the nation's naval power, state media said Monday.