India’s Urban Company revolutionised gig work for women. Then it bled them | Business and Economy

India’s Urban Company revolutionised gig work for women. Then it bled them | Business and Economy

Bengaluru, India — After years of working at a salon in Bengaluru, Shakeela Banu made a major life change in 2018 and joined Urban Company (UC), an app-based home services platform that has more than 52,000 workers across Indian cities, one-third of whom are women. At first, Banu was happy…

US Senate approves spending stopgap to avert government shutdown | Politics News

US Senate approves spending stopgap to avert government shutdown | Politics News

Short-term spending bill averts shutdown of agencies that would have kicked in on Saturday. The United States Congress has approved a short-term spending package to avoid a government shutdown, the fourth such stopgap measure in several months. The bill, which passed the Senate in a bipartisan 77-13 vote, provides funding…

US burger chain Wendy’s plans to test ‘surge pricing’ next year | Business and Economy News

US burger chain Wendy’s plans to test ‘surge pricing’ next year | Business and Economy News

Company to try raising and lowering prices throughout the day based on demand, prompting backlash. Wendy’s, a United States fast food chain, is looking to test having the prices of its menu items fluctuate throughout the day based on demand, a strategy that has already taken hold with ride-sharing companies…

Brazil’s Fordlandia: Tracing the roots of Amazon deforestation | Environment News

Brazil’s Fordlandia: Tracing the roots of Amazon deforestation | Environment News

Aveiro, Brazil – The flames roared higher than a hundred feet, sending smoke billowing across the jungle. Boars scattered from the underbrush. Toucans shot from the trees. And thousands of acres of Amazon rainforest soon crumbled into ash. It was 1928, and a vast stretch of land in north-central Brazil…

Germany confirms probe into former Lebanon central bank chief Salameh | Money Laundering News

Germany confirms probe into former Lebanon central bank chief Salameh | Money Laundering News

Prosecutors say Riad Salameh, the bank’s governor from 1993 to 2023, is being investigated for money laundering and other crimes. Prosecutors in Germany have confirmed they are investigating Lebanon’s former central bank chief for money laundering and other crimes and have issued an arrest warrant for him. Riad Salameh, the…

Nigerians suffer along border with Niger as economic sanctions bite | In Pictures

Nigerians suffer along border with Niger as economic sanctions bite | In Pictures

Under the midday sun in northern Nigeria, three sisters trek across the border on their way to a wedding in Niger, carrying their babies on their backs. The 1,600km (1,000-mile) frontier has officially been closed since August last year, when West African leaders imposed sanctions on Niger following a military…

Qatar announces new gas output boost with mega field expansion | Oil and Gas News

Qatar announces new gas output boost with mega field expansion | Oil and Gas News

The overall expansion of North Field from 77mtpa currently to 142mtpa by 2030 represents an 85 percent increase in production. Qatar has announced new plans to expand output from the world’s biggest natural gas field, saying it will boost capacity to 142 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) before 2030. The…

‘Disillusioned about China’, more Chinese aim for US via risky Darien Gap | Migration

‘Disillusioned about China’, more Chinese aim for US via risky Darien Gap | Migration

Necocli, Colombia – Shortly after 8am, about a dozen Chinese migrants rush out the doors of Mansion del Darien, a rundown hotel a few blocks from Colombia’s Caribbean coast, and pile into three tuk-tuks waiting on the street. “We’re full of Chinese people every day,” said the receptionist, Gabriela Fernandez,…