The wildfires burning through Northern California are sending visitors packing, threatening the $2 billion-plus spent annually by tourists on wine tours, fine food, limousine rides and much more, business leaders said. At the Inn on First bed and breakfast in the famous wine town of Napa, co-owner Jamie Cherry was …
The government of Peru’s President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski said Thursday that it will request special powers to legislate economic policies from the opposition-ruled Congress, after growth slowed sharply during his first year in office. During a presentation in Congress, Prime Minister Mercedes Araoz said her cabinet wants to legislate policies …
British billionaire Richard Branson on Thursday placed another bet on the future with an investment in Hyperloop One, which is developing super high-speed transportation systems. Hyperloop One said Branson’s Virgin Group would take the company global and rebrand itself as Virgin Hyperloop One in the near future. Branson has joined …
Facebook Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg said Thursday she “absolutely” supports the public release of all advertisements produced by a Russia-linked organization during the 2016 presidential election. Sandberg said the company is “working on transparency” following the revelation last month that a group with alleged ties to the Russian government …
The European Union’s Brexit negotiator said Thursday that that little progress was made with the U.K. in a fifth round of talks on the country’s departure from the EU in 2019, and that he cannot yet recommend broadening negotiations to include trade. Michel Barnier said that despite the “constructive …
Alphabet Inc.’s Waymo sought at least $1 billion in damages and a public apology from Uber Technologies Inc as conditions for settling its high-profile trade secret lawsuit against the ride-services company, sources familiar with the proposal told Reuters. The Waymo self-driving car unit also asked that an independent monitor be …
A Dutch team won a solar-powered car race across Australia for a seventh time on Thursday, with a University of Michigan car likely to take second place in the biennial event. The Nuon team’s Nuna 9 car averaged more than 80 kph (50 mph) to reach the World Solar Challenge …
China has a new richest man, according to the annual Hurun rich list of the country’s top movers and shakers. Xu Jiayin, the chairman of developer China Evergrande Group, has seized top spot – beating out more familiar faces such as Alibaba Group Holding Ltd’s Jack Ma and rival property …
The Trump administration says coal is back and nuclear energy is cool. Not at the expense of natural gas, wind and solar, insists an unusual coalition of business and environmental groups. Dow Chemical, Koch Industries and U.S. Steel Corp. are standing with environmentalists in opposing an Energy Department plan that …
Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has signed a string of energy, military and other deals with Morocco during a North Africa tour. Medvedev met Wednesday with Moroccan Prime Minister Saadeddine El Othmani and presided at a signing ceremony for 11 bilateral agreements. The agreements cover cooperation in areas …
To better incorporate all of the brands it now owns, the storied Coach company of New York is changing its name to Tapestry. The luxury goods company that came to prominence in the “Mad Men” era now owns brands like Stuart Weitzman and Kate Spade & Co. as well. …
South Sudan’s president was a no-show for the nation’s first international oil conference, a gathering that also failed to attract prospective investors from the biggest global energy companies. The turnout showed only smaller companies are risking bets on the oil sector of the world’s youngest country. South Sudan has 3.5 …
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg seems to be realizing a sobering reality about virtual reality: His company’s Oculus headsets that send people into artificial worlds are too expensive and confining to appeal to the masses. Zuckerberg on Wednesday revealed how Facebook intends to address that problem, unveiling a stand-alone headset that …
California regulators took an important step Wednesday to clear the road for everyday people to get self-driving cars. The state’s Department of Motor Vehicles published proposed rules that would govern the technology within California, where for several years manufacturers have been testing hundreds of prototypes on roads. That testing requires …
About half of teenagers in the United States and Japan say they are addicted to their smartphones. University of Southern California (USC) researchers asked 1,200 Japanese about their use of electronic devices. The researchers are with the Walter Annenberg School for Communications and Journalism. Their findings were compared with an …
While mountains of waste and trash keep growing in industrialized and developing countries, materials scientists are busy as ever experimenting with new methods for turning those scraps into something useful, from biofuel to food. VOA’s George Putic looks at some of the latest discoveries. …
Restaurant Veselka has made New Yorkers fall in love with Ukrainian cuisine. Featured in movies and frequented by celebrities, the diner is also a staple for locals. In a city that’s tough on restaurants, Veselka’s longevity is legendary. VOA’s Iuliia larmolenko has the story. …
Worried California vintners surveyed the damage to their vineyards and wineries Tuesday as wildfires sweep through counties whose famous names have become synonymous with fine food and drink. At the Gundlach Bundschu in Sonoma County, workers were not sure the grapes above the winery survived a second night of fires …
Mexico’s richest man, telecom magnate Carlos Slim, said Tuesday that reconstruction from two destructive earthquakes last month will create jobs and spur growth and announced that more than $100 million has been raised for relief efforts. Tens of thousands of homes and apartments were destroyed and will have to be …
U.S. Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein on Tuesday sharply criticized technology companies that have built strongly encrypted products, suggesting Silicon Valley is more willing to comply with foreign government demands for data than those made by their home country. While echoing many arguments made by previous senior U.S. law enforcement …
As the Indian capital, New Delhi, battles deadly air pollution, it might be missing the customary fireworks during the Hindu festival of lights, following a temporary ban imposed by the Supreme Court on the sale of firecrackers The order has raised a firestorm in the city of about 18 …
Global unemployment this year stands at more than 201 million, an increase of 3.4 million compared to 2016, says the International Labor Organization. The ILO says the private sector, especially small and medium-sized enterprises, plays a crucial role in creating decent jobs around the world. The ILO study (World Employment …
Nearly a year after Facebook and Google launched offensives against fake news, they’re still inadvertently promoting it — often at the worst possible times. Online services designed to engross users aren’t so easily retooled to promote greater accuracy, it turns out. Especially with online trolls, pranksters and more malicious …
Nearly a year after Facebook and Google launched offensives against fake news, they’re still inadvertently promoting it — often at the worst possible times. Online services designed to engross users aren’t so easily retooled to promote greater accuracy, it turns out. Especially with online trolls, pranksters and more malicious …
American Richard H. Thaler was awarded the 2017 Nobel Prize for Economics — officially the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel. The award committee said Thaler was chosen “for his contributions to behavioral economics.” “By exploring the consequences of limited rationality, social preferences, and lack …
Nuclear proliferation watchdog CTBTO is using its worldwide array of monitoring stations to authenticate possible nuclear explosions, including the one claimed last month by North Korea. Kevin Enochs reports. …