Author: Anadolu Agency

Australian superannuation funds have been targeted by cyberattacks, disrupting access for members of some of the nation’s largest retirement funds. Many members have experienced difficulty accessing their accounts, with some accounts incorrectly displaying a zero balance. AustralianSuper, the country’s largest superannuation fund with at least 3.5 million members and billions of dollars in investments, has been the target of 600 cyberattacks in the last month, ABC News reported on Friday. “This week, we identified that cybercriminals may have used up to 600 members’ stolen passwords to log into their accounts in attempts to commit fraud,” the fund said in a…

After Washington initiated additional tariffs against both allies and rivals, China on Friday imposed a 34% additional tariff on all imports from the US, a move seen as a tit-for-tat against President Donald Trump’s 34% reciprocal tariffs on products from the world’s second-largest economy. The tariffs, set to go into effect next Thursday, will affect all US products imported to China, according to a Customs Tariff Commission of the State Council statement. The statement called the US’ reciprocal tariffs one-sided “bullying,” adding that they violate international trade rules and harm China’s rights and interests. China was subjected to 34% reciprocal…

Global trade could shrink by 1% in 2025 due to reciprocal tariffs of 10%-50% imposed by the US on products imported from many of its trading partners, the World Trade Organization (WTO) has projected. In a statement released Thursday, WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala expressed concerns that these tariffs, along with other trade restrictions introduced earlier this year, could lead to a significant slowdown in global merchandise trade. “While the situation is rapidly evolving, our initial estimates suggest that these measures, coupled with those introduced since the beginning of the year, could lead to an overall contraction of around 1% in…

A US judge on Thursday said there is a “fair likelihood” that the Trump administration could be held in contempt for violating his March order to turn around two planes carrying alleged Venezuelan gang members to El Salvador, said local media. On March 15, District of Columbia Federal Chief District Judge James Boasberg blocked the deportation flights of more than 200 alleged Tren de Aragua gang members who were detained under the Trump administration’s use of the 1798 Alien Enemies Act, a rarely used law. The deported men had no chance to challenge allegations that they were gang members. Since…

Türkiye’s Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek said the tariff increases are expected to have a negative impact on global growth by raising market risk perceptions and driving down commodity prices. “Tariff increases, which are expected to negatively affect global growth, are heightening risk perceptions in markets and exerting downward pressure on commodity prices,” he said. Stating that weak global growth poses a risk to Türkiye’s exports, Şimşek said that Türkiye’s relatively low tariff rate might result in a comparative advantage in some sectors. “On the other hand, the decline in commodity prices and tightening domestic financial conditions are expected to weaken…

The new tariffs introduced by US President Donald Trump’s administration will not affect Ukraine’s economy or its military aid supply, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Friday. Talking to the media in Kyiv, Zelenskyy emphasized that the volume of weapon deliveries will not be affected. “The volume of arms supply is not influenced by this; that’s the first thing,” he said. He added that Ukraine’s trade turnover with the US remains “very small,” currently standing at $3.5-3.8 billion. “We understand what tariffs existed before on our metallurgy; there was a 25% tariff even earlier. Then, after the full-scale war began,…

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will engage in discussions with international leaders this weekend to address the growing concerns surrounding the US President Donald Trump’s tariffs, Downing Street said on Friday. The talks are set to focus on how nations should collectively respond to the trade measures introduced by Trump. During a morning lobby briefing, a spokesperson revealed that while specific details regarding the identities of the leaders Starmer would be consulting with were not disclosed, the need for these conversations had been driven by the necessity of working “even more closely” with global allies in light of the economic…

Russian President Vladimir Putin supports a ceasefire in Ukraine, but numerous factors must be addressed before taking this step, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Friday. In a press briefing in Moscow, Peskov talked about media reports, claiming that advisers to US President Donald Trump advised him not to call Putin until Moscow agreed to a complete ceasefire. Peskov dismissed the reports, saying: “A lot of different fakes, rumors, conjectures, and outright lies are being published in the media.” “President Putin supported the idea of a ceasefire. At the same time, he noted that many nuances must be understood before…

Arms support to Ukraine will bring more destruction, Bulgarian President Rumen Radev said on Friday. Arguing that many European leaders are wrong to think that pouring more weapons to Ukraine would force peace through strength, he said: “It is clear that this will not happen, and that it will lead to more destruction, more casualties, more distancing from peace and the loss of even more territory by Ukraine,” during in his address at the meeting of Aqaba Process for the Balkans Forum in Sofia, according to state-run BTA news agency. Radev warned that regional conflicts can swiftly escalate to global…

Myanmar’s junta leader Min Aung Hlaing attended the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) summit in Bangkok on Friday, marking his first visit to the Thai capital since seizing power in a 2021 coup. Min Aung Hlaing arrived in Thailand on Thursday to join leaders from across South and Southeast Asia, including Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Nepalese Prime Minister K. P. Sharma Oli, for the regional gathering aimed at boosting cooperation in economic and technical sectors. The visit came despite speculation that Myanmar’s top general might cancel his appearance due to the recent…