Monaco Journal - News from Monaco, Monte-Carlo and the world

Switzerland's central bank left interest rates unchanged at zero percent on Thursday, a move widely expected by analysts, but said it was watching out for signs of upward pressure on the Swiss franc currency.

A South African court has convicted and fined a rhino horn trafficking "mastermind", ending a trial spanning 15 years, police said Thursday, describing it as the world's largest such case.

The Bank of England held its benchmark interest rate at 3.75 percent Thursday, opting against an increase despite elevated inflation after the US-Iran war pushed up energy prices.

In the darkness of a market in the central Gaza Strip, where power outages are a part of daily life, a brightly lit screen showing a World Cup match holds everyone's gaze.

US President Donald Trump lashed out at critics of his agreement with Iran on Thursday, calling those who accused him of offering concessions to end the war "fools", ahead of negotiations in Switzerland on implementing the deal.

A new heatwave swept across much of France on Thursday, with temperatures forecast to approach 40C later in the week, dozens of trains cancelled and classes suspended.

German chemical company Evonik said Thursday that it would cut 3,200 jobs, or around 10 percent of its workforce, by 2029 as a crisis battering the energy-intensive industry accelerates.

UK voters went to the polls on Thursday in a historic local election which could determine the future of beleaguered Labour Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

Oil prices tumbled further Thursday after US President Donald Trump and his Iranian counterpart signed off on a deal to end their war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz to tanker and cargo traffic.

Mexico and South Korea will aim to punch their ticket to the World Cup knockout rounds on Thursday when they meet in Guadalajara knowing a win would guarantee a last 32 berth.

Range raises $8.3M Series A to build the platform for companies operating across stablecoins and fiat rails, with traditional fintech funds TX Ventures and SixThirty among the backers.

The International Atomic Energy Agency said Thursday that it was ready to begin defining the "concrete steps" needed to implement a US-Iran deal to end the Middle East war.

Real Madrid confirmed the arrival of defender Ibrahima Konate from Liverpool on Thursday on a four-year deal at the end of his contract at Anfield.

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told NATO Thursday the Pentagon will review its force presence in Europe within the next six months, as Washington pressures allies to step up their defences amid anger over their response to the Iran war.

Around 15,000 startups from around Europe and beyond are showing off their wares at the Vivatech trade show in Paris until Saturday.

Ukraine on Thursday launched its largest drone attack on Moscow in years, sparking fires in and around the capital, hitting a major oil refinery and forcing evacuations at the country's largest airport, officials said.

A pathogenic strain of bird flu killed more than 13,000 elephant seal pups after infecting a breeding colony on a sub-Antarctic volcanic island, Australian scientists said Thursday.

Oil prices tumbled again Thursday after US President Donald Trump and his Iranian counterpart signed off on a deal to end their war and reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

South Korea's parliament on Thursday gave the green light for an investigation into ballot paper shortages that disrupted municipal elections this month and fuelled political tensions.

Britain was holding a key local election on Thursday that could trigger the endgame for Labour leader Keir Starmer's beleaguered premiership, or win him a reprieve.

Taiwan's president said Thursday he hoped the United States would approve a $14 billion arms sale "as soon as possible", reiterating that the democratic island "rejects unification" with China.

Almost 50 fires have ripped through Kenyan schools this year, 16 schoolgirls have died, and more than 100 schools have temporarily closed. Everyone knows there is a crisis, but few have solutions.

A string of west African countries have outlawed same-sex relations in recent months, further eroding LGBTQ rights on a continent where they were already under attack.

Quick to build and able to power a small city, the Oriv wind farm in western Ukraine is exactly the kind of project Kyiv hopes will backstop its power grid against routine Russian strikes.

France's move Tuesday to drop Palantir from its intelligence services is the latest sign of European unease with the American data-mining firm -- a company that has grown from a CIA-backed startup into one of the most powerful technology players of the Trump era.

Millions of New Yorkers are expected to turn out for a heavily guarded victory parade Thursday for the city's Knicks basketball team after it won the NBA Finals at the weekend.

From Lionel Messi rolling back the years to full stadiums and a Cape Verde team that shocked Spain, here is what we learned after the first round of games at the World Cup:

Racing 92's New Zealander centre Joey Manu has no fear of dominant Toulouse before meeting the record 24-time champions in the French Top 14 semi-finals on Friday in Marseille.

Drastic restrictions on cross-country travel took effect Thursday in cash-strapped Cuba, with spaces on ever scarcer trains and buses now reserved for the sick, people traveling for funerals and other emergencies.

In excruciating pain from a debilitating neurological condition, South Korean Lee Myung-shik had reluctantly given up on assisted death in Switzerland when he learned his daughter risked prison time if she helped him.

The Cuban Communist Party on Wednesday approved a package of reforms aimed at opening up more sectors to private investment as the island, under pressure from Washington, undergoes a major economic crisis.

On India's hot plains, scorching summers have become increasingly harder to endure, requiring adaptations and forcing life into the hours of dark before the sun turns punishing.

Recently retired Australia prop forward James Slipper is set for a shock international comeback, with the 37-year-old eyeing a fifth Rugby World Cup on home soil next year.

EU leaders will grapple on Thursday over whether the bloc needs new beefed-up trade defences to curb the surge of Chinese exports deemed an existential threat to European industry and jobs by Brussels.

From drinking the bars dry to lustily serenading an iconic baseball stadium with a rendition of "Flower of Scotland", the bagpipe-playing, kilt-wearing hordes of the Tartan Army have captivated Boston since arriving at the World Cup.

Skewering the oddities of president Donald Trump's administration and his devoted American supporters has made comedian Jordan Klepper a household name in the United States, as a host of late-night satire "The Daily Show."

They can mix cocktails, run marathons and fold laundry. But humanoid robots are still a long way from doing lots of different jobs on command, whatever the marketing says.

President Donald Trump's bid to end birthright citizenship has gone all the way to the US Supreme Court but the issue's impact is already being felt on a giant stage: the World Cup.

Ghana scored a dramatic 1-0 victory over Panama in their opening World Cup Group L clash in Toronto on Wednesday.