Trump threat of 100% tariffs against Brics nations raises trade war fears

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President-elect threatens retaliation if emerging economies create new currency to rival US dollar

Fears of a global trade war have risen after Donald Trump threatened to impose 100% tariffs on countries in the Brics group if they create a new currency to rival the US dollar.

Writing on his social media platform, Truth Social, on Saturday, Trump declared that he would also act if they supported another currency to replace the dollar.

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Russia’s plunging currency spells trouble for its war effort – The Economist

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  1. Russia’s plunging currency spells trouble for its war effort  The Economist
  2. Russia’s ruble is still worth less than a penny, and the Kremlin’s piggy bank for propping it up is running low  Yahoo Finance
  3. What Collapsing Russian Ruble Means for Ukraine War  Newsweek
  4. The ruble’s in a slump. For the Kremlin, that’s a two-edged sword  The Associated Press
  5. Breakingviews - Currency drop worsens Moscow’s stagflation fears  Reuters
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Revealed: A space-tech behind Russia’s deadly Oreshnik missile – Bulgarian Military

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  1. Revealed: A space-tech behind Russia's deadly Oreshnik missile  Bulgarian Military
  2. What Putin’s nuclear-capable Oreshnik missile means for NATO security  The Washington Post
  3. Ukraine’s allies are scrambling to respond to Putin’s escalating war  Semafor
  4. Putin says Russia could hit 'decision-making centres' in Kyiv with new missile  Reuters
  5. Putin Gives More Details on Russia's 'Oreshnik' Hypersonic Missile  Business Insider
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Predatory rent-to-buy operators barred from Centrepay debit system in sweeping Albanese government reforms

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Exclusive: ‘High-risk services’ will be removed, including companies providing consumer leases and household goods

The federal government will boot predatory rent-to-buy operators off its Centrepay debit system as part of sweeping reforms designed to stop the financial abuse of vulnerable Australians.

The reforms, set to be announced Monday, follow a Guardian Australian investigation that revealed shocking failures in the Centrepay system and helped trigger an urgent government review.

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Cruise ships urged to ‘clean up their act’ amid concerns toxic effluent being dumped on Great Barrier Reef

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Environmentalists say marine park waste regulations need updating to limit grey water and exhaust chemicals as passenger cruise numbers rise

Environmentalists and tourism operators on the Great Barrier Reef say authorities must enforce stricter pollution standards on cruise liners visiting the world heritage area amid growth in passenger cruise numbers and concern that ships are dumping toxins into the water.

The Whitsunday Conservation Council says the definition of “waste” used to prevent marine discharge on the reef – which dates back to the 1970s – does not restrict discharge from sulphur “scrubbers” that have become commonplace in the shipping industry.

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Mom of UK lawyer opens up about daughter’s nightmarish final moments after mass poisoning in Laos – New York Post

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  1. Mom of UK lawyer opens up about daughter's nightmarish final moments after mass poisoning in Laos  New York Post
  2. ‘I knew my daughter was going to die’, says mother of lawyer killed by methanol poisoning in Laos  Yahoo! Voices
  3. Simone White: Be careful drinking abroad, warns mum of woman who died in Laos  BBC.com
  4. One call from Laos and I knew my daughter was going to die  The Times
  5. In wake of Laos backpacker deaths, questions linger in Vang Vieng  The Guardian
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Simone White: Be careful drinking abroad, warns mum of woman who died in Laos – BBC.com

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  1. Simone White: Be careful drinking abroad, warns mum of woman who died in Laos  BBC.com
  2. ‘I knew she was going to die’, says mother of lawyer killed by methanol poisoning in Laos  Yahoo! Voices
  3. Mom of UK lawyer opens up about daughter's nightmarish final moments after mass poisoning in Laos  New York Post
  4. One call from Laos and I knew my daughter was going to die  The Times
  5. Bombshell breakthrough in Laos methanol poisoning as source of deadly drink is revealed after two Aussie women  Daily Mail
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Belgium’s sex workers win maternity pay and pension rights in world first

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Move by lawmakers hailed as ‘huge step forward’, ending legal discrimination against sex workers

Belgian sex workers have gained the right to sick days, maternity pay and pension rights under the first law of its kind in the world.

Lawmakers voted in May to give sex workers the same employment protections as any other employee, in an attempt to clamp down on abuse and exploitation.

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Environmental groups demand EPA to start monitoring microplastics in water

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Legal petition filed by 170 groups pushes environmental agency to tackle pressing health threat of pollution

A new legal petition filed by more than 170 top environmental groups demands that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) begin monitoring for microplastics in drinking water, an essential first step to reining in pollution viewed as one of the nation’s most pressing public health threats.

The scale of microplastic water pollution, the extent to which the substance is lodged throughout human bodies, and the many health implications have come into sharp focus in recent years, but the EPA still has not taken meaningful action, public health advocates say.

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