Author: Amanda Martinez

TikTok returned to the US’s Apple and Google app stores after Trump extended the TikTok ban deadline to April 5. The app briefly disappeared last month as officials prepared to enforce a law requiring its sale or ban. Trump signed an executive order giving TikTok 75 more days to comply, preventing an immediate shutdown. Apple and Google reinstated TikTok after receiving assurances from the administration that enforcement would not begin yet.  The app used by 170 million Americans has remained at the centre of a political battle over data privacy and national security. The US Congress passed the ban with…

Japanese carmakers Honda and Nissan’s merger talks collapsed after they failed to agree on a leadership structure for their planned $60 billion tie-up. Honda, Nisan, and junior partner Mitsubishi aimed to merge and compete with global rivals, especially in China. The deal would have formed the world’s fourth-largest fourth-largest automaker, trailing Toyota, Volkswagen, and Hyundai. However, disagreements over Nissan’s role in the merger halted progress, with Honda insisting on its leadership. Nissan has faced turmoil since former chief Carlos Ghosn’s arrest in 2018 over allegations of financial misconduct, which he denies. His controversial escape to Lebanon in 2019 deepened the…

Elon Musk defended his role in reducing government jobs as President Donald Trump granted him more power to streamline federal spending. Speaking from the White House, Musk dismissed claims of a hostile takeover, calling job reductions necessary to control the government’s budget. Trump signed an order expanding Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and requiring federal agencies to follow its cost-cutting directives. Critics say DOGE lacks transparency, and legal challenges have slowed its efforts. Despite pushback over Elon Musk’s federal workforce cuts, he called it common sense.  “That’s what democracy is all about,” stated Musk. He argued that federal employees…

Coca-Cola might shift towards using more plastic bottles in the US as President Donald Trump’s tariffs on aluminum increased can costs. The beverage giant’s CEO, James Quincey, addressed investors, explaining the company would adjust packaging strategies based on affordability concerns. Trump imposed a 25% import tax on all aluminum and steel entering the US, making cans more expensive for the beverage industry. The United States Geological Survey reports that the US imports nearly half of its aluminum, so tariffs could significantly raise production costs. In 2018, some can makers received exemptions from Trump’s earlier tariffs on steel, but this time,…

Google Maps has updated its app to display the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America for users in the United States. This change follows President Donald Trump’s executive order to rename the body of water in US government documents. According to Google, the change is part of their longstanding practice of following name changes updated by official government sources. However, the name change will not apply to users in Mexico, who will continue to see the traditional name, Gulf of Mexico. Users elsewhere in the world will see a dual designation: “Gulf of Mexico (Gulf of America)”. This…

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau pledged a strong response to Trump’s Canada steel tariffs, calling them an unjustified attack on trade. President Donald Trump announced a 25% import tax on all steel and aluminum products entering the US from March 12. Both countries now have a month to negotiate before the tariffs take effect. Canada remains the largest steel and aluminum exporter to the US, sending six million tonnes of steel and three million tonnes of aluminum annually. Industry leaders and politicians across Canada condemned the move, warning of economic damage on both sides of the border. François-Philippe Champagne, Canada’s…

Authorities in South Korea are investigating the Daejeon elementary school stabbing, where a teacher fatally attacked an eight-year-old girl on Monday evening. The female teacher in her 40s confessed to the crime, prompting national outrage and demands for stricter safety measures.  Police found the young student with stab wounds on the second floor of the school. Emergency responders rushed her to a hospital, but doctors pronounced her dead upon arrival. Officers also discovered the teacher nearby, including a wound on her neck that required stitches. Acting president Choi Sang-mok revealed that the teacher had requested a six-month leave in December…

Researchers have discovered Earth’s inner core deformation. The core has changed shape over the past 20 years, altering previous scientific assumptions about its structure. Often imagined as a perfect sphere, the inner core appears to have deformed by more than 100 meters in some areas. Professor John Vidale from the University of Southern California led the study published in Nature Geoscience. Earth’s core is the planet’s engine, generating a magnetic field shielding life from harmful solar radiation. The inner core rotates independently of the outer core, and the rest of Earth keeps the planet habitable. Without this movement, Earth would…

US President Donald Trump reaffirmed his Gaza resettlement plan, stating that the two million Palestinians relocated to neighboring countries would lose their right to return. Trump emphasized that displaced Palestinians would receive much better housing under his proposed initiative to rebuild Gaza. Trump’s comments followed his controversial declaration that he was committed to buying and owning Gaza, which has drawn strong international criticism. Palestinian leaders from both the Palestinian Authority and Hamas rejected the proposal, stating that Palestinian land is not for sale. The United Nations issued a warning declaring that forcibly displaced civilians from occupied territories violates international law…

A federal judge stopped Musk’s doge financial records case from moving forward. The judge blocked Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (Doge) from accessing personal financial data. Judge Paul A. Engelmayer issued a preliminary injunction on Saturday, ordering Musk and his team to destroy any records they had obtained.  Nineteen state attorneys general sued the Trump administration after officials granted Doge access to Treasury Department records. They contended that Doge was an unauthorized organization and Musk, a “special government employee,” lacked the legal capacity to handle private information. The complaint named the Treasury Department, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, and President…

A federal judge temporarily halted Trump’s USAID worker suspension just hours before the move would have placed 2,200 employees on administrative leave. Judge Carl Nichols issued a restraining order responding to a lawsuit from two unions that sought to prevent the cuts. The order reinstates 500 employees already placed on leave and blocks additional suspensions until February 14 at midnight. Trump aims to dismantle USAID, arguing that the foreign aid agency wastes taxpayer money. Trump’s administration planned to lay off nearly all of the agency’s 10,000 employees, retaining only 611 staff members. Officials had already suspended 500 workers, and another…

In a significant turn of events, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has emerged victorious in the Delhi Assembly elections, with over 60% of eligible voters casting their ballots. The election saw a high voter turnout, with the BJP’s campaign focusing on criticizing the alleged mismanagement by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). The BJP’s victory is seen as a major win for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership, with party officials attributing the results to the trust Delhi voters have placed in his vision for development and good governance. The party’s campaign was marked by intense rivalry with the AAP, with the…