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FILE PHOTO: US President Donald Trump speaks during the signing ceremony for an executive order on mail ballots, in the Oval Office of the White House…
A live feed shows SpaceX CEO Elon Musk on the day of IPO at the Nasdaq MarketSite, in New York City. Reuters Shares in Elon Musk’s SpaceX jumped as much as 30% on their trading debut yesterday after the biggest IPO in history, making the polarising entrepreneur the world’s first trillionaire as he vowed to take humanity to Mars. The blockbuster initial public offering, which raised more than $75bn, is expected to kick off a series of major IPOs by AI companies in the coming months.The debut on the Nasdaq exchange in New York capped weeks of investor frenzy over the rocket company turned AI and satellite conglomerate.”SpaceX wants to be able to take you to the Moon, take you to Mars, and ultimately beyond,” Musk said at a launch event in Starbase, Texas, surrounded by staff, many of whom became multi-millionaires with the launch of trading.”I’m confident at this point that with the incredible team that we have here at SpaceX, that we will do that for you,” Musk added.About 100 people assembled outside the Nasdaq’s home in New York, where SpaceX also marked the occasion with a neon sign in Times Square. Musk “sets very futuristic goals that no one else is doing, and I think that has got a lot of people excited,” said Sarin Sio, of financial company Dovetail, who had come to the Nasdaq headquarters.The company priced more than 555mn shares at $135 each in a Thursday filing with the US markets regulator, valuing SpaceX at just under $1.8tn. In its first hours of trading on Wall Street, the price hit as much $175, up more than 30%.Friday’s gain lifted SpaceX’s market value to more than $2tn, placing it among the 10 most valuable American companies — ahead of Tesla, Facebook-owner Meta and Walmart. Options for nearly 83mn additional shares could push the total raised above $86bn.Co-founded by Musk in 2002, the rocket startup has since expanded into a major satellite operator and has also folded in Musk’s artificial intelligence company — xAI — which includes the social media platform X.Trading under the ticker symbol “SPCX,” the conglomerate is being closely watched for how Wall Street absorbs the offering and what it will mean for its AI rivals looking to trade on the public markets as early as this year. OpenAI and Anthropic both recently filed initial documents with regulators.The record IPO is nonetheless a testament to Musk’s continued support among investors, with Bloomberg reporting that the offering was more than four times oversubscribed. Demand among retail investors — for whom 20 percent of shares were reserved — was also reported to be high.The IPO is expected to mint thousands of new millionaires and several billionaires, with former and current employees — and a long list of investors — from the company’s near quarter-century history looking to cash in.While SpaceX is growing quickly — revenue hit $18.7bn in 2025 — it is also losing money, producing a net loss of $4.9bn, mainly on spending to build AI capacity.In an extraordinary prediction, SpaceX’s filing claims it can pull in more than $28.5tn in revenue from its various markets. The milestone makes Musk by far the world’s richest person — an achievement that earned criticism from some quarters.”The world will get its first trillionaire while Americans across the country are scraping together every dollar to save for retirement,” said Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren. Source link
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with service members of the Russian armed forces involved in the country’s military campaign in Ukraine, following an award…
Nigeria’s president Bola Tinubu. Nigeria has killed more than 13,000 “terrorists” in the past year, President Bola Tinubu said yesterday, adding that the death toll from the country’s religious militant insurgency is down 81% since he took power in 2023.Africa’s most populous country is fighting the long-running conflict across its northern regions, complicated by inroads made by militants from the Sahel, and non-ideological “bandit” gangs.Tinubu, up for re-election in January, declared a nationwide security emergency last November as his administration scrambled to respond to a wave of mass kidnappings and violence.Tinubu, speaking during a televised address to mark the country’s democracy day celebrations, said: “Over 13,000 terrorists have been neutralised in the past year.”He did not specify if he meant in 2025 or in the previous 12 months.The president also said that over “124,000 fighters and dependents have laid down their arms since 2023 through Operation Safe Corridor”.Tinubu’s first term in office has also overseen the deployment of US troops to the country as major bouts of violence attracted international scrutiny.The insurgency, which has spawned multiple armed groups, has killed tens of thousands and displaced millions since it began in 2009 with an uprising by the religious militant group Boko Haram.The crisis has also been compounded by violent farmer-herder clashes in parts of the northeast and central regions, while secessionist agitation rumbles on in the southeast, and rampant kidnappings for ransom plague the country’s northwest and central regions.The unrest is inching closer to the relatively safer southwest, where more than 40 students and teachers were seized from their schools in the state of Oyo in May.The International Monetary Fund warned on Tuesday that the widespread insecurity from armed groups – especially in the north, where the bulk of the country’s food is grown – is a “risk to people and economic activity”.In one of the latest attempts to tackle the security crisis, the government launched a recruitment drive for 50,000 police personnel and has this year allocated a 5.41tn naira ($4bn) budget to the military – which Tinubu said was the biggest for defence in the country’s history.Military collaborations with the United States, France, and “other European countries” he did not name, have progressed from training to “precision targeting” leading to the degradation of the command centre of the Islamic State (IS)-affiliated Boko Haram in northeastern Borno state.US and Nigerian forces last month killed Abu-Bilal al-Minuki, an Islamic State commander described as the “most active terrorist” in the world, at a remote village in the northeast of Africa’s most populous country.The US Africa Command this week said its joint operations with Nigeria had killed more than 200 IS-linked fighters. Source link
Sushila Devi sat sobbing on the floor of her house in Deoria, northern India after authorities told her that her husband was one of three sailors killed in a US attack on a ship off Oman.’If he had told us about the dangers, I would have called him back,’ she cried out as women from the family gathered round to console her. ‘The government should not allow people to go there.’India yesterday took the rare step of lodging a second protest with the US over the strike that took place more than three months into the Iran war. Sushila Devi's words echoed calls also building up among Indians for their own government to do more to protect its sailors stuck in the Gulf.CRITICS WANT MORE THAN 'ROUTINE PROTEST'Her husband Shivanand Chaurasia, the sole earner in the family with two young children, was among 24 Indian mariners aboard the Palau-flagged tanker Settebello when it was hit on Wednesday.The US military’s Central Command said an aircraft fired precision munitions into the vessel's engine room after the crew ‘repeatedly failed to comply with directions from American forces’.It said the strike was part of an ongoing blockade targeting oil shipments from Iran launched after Tehran sharply curtailed shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, which carried a fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas before the conflict.India's foreign ministry said it had summoned the US chargé d’affaires to convey ‘its deep concern over the use of lethal and deadly force against civilian shipping’.’Such actions are unacceptable and undermine the safety, security and stability of international maritime commerce in a sensitive region at a difficult time.’ The US embassy in Delhi did not respond to a request for comment.The deaths have prompted calls on India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi to go beyond registering protests.India — the world’s second-largest supplier of seafarers behind the Philippines according to government figures — has had to pay a huge cost for the conflict it played no part in starting, say opposition and other critics.On Thursday, another ship with 20 Indian crew was attacked, with no deaths or injuries reported.’India has responded… with a routine diplomatic protest and apparent efforts to downplay the significance of the attacks,’ said Brahma Chellaney, a strategic affairs analyst in New Delhi.OPPOSITION SAYS MODI SHOULD TALK TO TRUMP’Had the victims been Chinese sailors instead, Beijing would almost certainly have reacted very differently, treating the strikes as a direct and lethal provocation by the US and elevating the incident into a major international crisis.’The opposition Aam Aadmi Party urged Modi to take up the matter with US President Donald Trump. The two leaders are expected to meet on the sidelines of next week's Group of 7 summit.The main opposition Congress party said the government’s policies had ’emboldened external powers to act against Indian interests with impunity’.’India's strategic autonomy and abiding interests must be defended with clarity and resolve,’ it said.Such attacks could deter workers from taking up seafaring jobs, potentially worsening labour shortages in the industry, said Manoj Yadav, general secretary of the Forward Seamen's Union of India.’The repeated incidents demonstrate the alarming deterioration of safety and security in one of the world’s most important maritime corridors,’ he said. Source link
Pakistani Prime Minister, Shehbaz Sharif announced today that a final text of a memorandum of understanding between the United States and Iran has been agreed upon. In a post on the X platform, Sharif wrote, “we can confirm that a final, agreed upon text of the peace deal has been reached and Pakistan is now working closely with both sides to finalize the next steps. Peace has never been this close as it is now.” In the same context, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said, “The United States and Iran are closer than ever to reaching an agreement to end the war,” adding that “the media should refrain from speculating on the content of the Islamabad agreement until it is finalized and officially drafted.” The Pakistani Prime Minister announced four days ago that his country was very close to achieving the “ultimate goal” of its diplomatic mediation efforts between the United States and Iran to end the escalating tension in the region, stressing that the intensive diplomatic moves made by Pakistan with both sides throughout the past period have achieved tangible progress, in addition to a mutual desire to prioritize dialogue and avoid sliding towards a comprehensive confrontation. Source link
A prison vehicle that the police officers say is carrying Yusufu Mieraili and Bilal Mohammed, also known as Adem Karadag, arrives at the South Bangkok Criminal…
France’s President Emmanuel Macron chairs a videoconference meeting dubbed “Global Convergence for Growth Summit” with officials and heads of state from China and G7 member states,…
US President Donald Trump speaks before signing a proclamation in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, Thursday. (AFP) President Donald Trump Thursday said the United States and Iran could sign a peace deal as soon as this weekend that would reopen shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.The agreement, if finalised, would be the most significant diplomatic breakthrough yet to end the three-month-old war, which has killed thousands of people and sent global energy prices sharply higher.Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency reported that Tehran is likely to approve the agreement, though it has yet to give a formal response.”We just made a great settlement of the war with Iran,” Trump told reporters at the White House.”The strait will officially open as soon as we sign, which could be soon, very soon, maybe over the weekend in Europe,” he said. Vice President JD Vance could sign for the United States, Trump added.When asked if Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei has approved the deal, Trump said: “I understand the answer is yes.”Trump’s announcement came after he called off planned military strikes on Iran, citing progress in talks.Since mid-March, Trump has repeatedly claimed that a deal with Iran to end the war is close. The two sides have traded strikes throughout the week, straining a ceasefire announced in April.”It’s a very strong memorandum of understanding that is a little conceptual,” Trump told reporters.Trump has repeatedly said that any peace deal must ensure Iran cannot develop a nuclear weapon.Iran’s demands include the lifting of international sanctions, the release of billions of dollars in frozen assets and recognition of its control of the Strait of Hormuz.”We have a deal that Iran will never have a nuclear weapon, which was the whole purpose of what we had to go through to get this. So it was a very big thing,” he said Thursday.Iranian and Western sources said earlier Thursday that efforts to reach an interim deal to end hostilities had intensified.Three Iranian sources said a political understanding had been reached, but some issues remained to be discussed in detail.Critics within Trump’s Republican Party have said any agreement must close Tehran’s path to developing a nuclear weapon. Opposition from Iran hawks helped derail a previous effort to secure a deal to open the strait.Analysts have said Trump is concerned that any deal will be compared with a 2015 agreement that he criticised as overly lenient. Trump pulled the US out of that accord in 2018 during his first term in office.Trump said on social media the agreement had been approved by “the highest level” of Iranian leadership, as well as other countries in the region including Israel, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE.Trump and Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke Thursday.Israel is “not a party to the memorandum of understanding”, and Netanyahu expressed his appreciation for Trump’s commitment to securing a final deal that includes resolving the issue of enriched nuclear material, according to a readout from Netanyahu’s office.Trump also told reporters that he would soon talk to Turkiye’s President Tayyip Erdogan.US stocks rose and oil prices fell on the news. Related Story Source…
Seattle, Washington, USA downtown skyline at twilight with Mount Rainier. As many as 10mn visitors will head to 11 US cities this summer, helping turn the FIFA World Cup 2026 into the largest sporting event in history. While US host cities like Los Angeles, Miami, New York and San Francisco are world-famous, lesser-known US cities are primed to host soccer fans. In Kansas City, Missouri, for instance, Café Corazón owner Dulcinea Herrera says that people underestimate the Midwestern city of 500,000. Herrera and other local business owners are preparing for 650,000 visitors for FIFA World Cup 2026. White House World Cup Task Force executive director Andrew Giuliani calls it “a tremendous privilege” to host the FIFA World Cup 2026 during the year the United States celebrates its 250th anniversary, and says the federal government is working with host cities to ensure a safe and welcoming tournament. “Hosting the world during this historic year … gives us a chance to show the very best of America — our hospitality and our innovation — while also showcasing the America spirit of which we’re so proud of,” Giuliani said. Atlanta, famous for peaches, pecans and Southern hospitality, the Georgia state capital is a cultural and economic hub of the South. It boasts the country’s busiest airport and was home to famed Civil Rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. Atlanta is home to numerous industries, including aerospace and financial technologies, as well as soft drink giant Coca-Cola. The Midwestern city called Kansas City straddles parts of two US states — Kansas and Missouri — and is known as the “City of Fountains,” as it has more in use than any other US city. Its famed Power & Light District boasts eight blocks of restaurants where visitors can sample the famous barbecue. New York, famous for skyscrapers, Broadway theatre and the lights of Times Square will host the FIFA World Cup 2026 finals at a stadium in neighbouring New Jersey. New York offers museums, libraries, walks in Central Park and the iconic Statue of Liberty. Known for the Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco is a city of steep hills, scaled by streetcars and packed with colorful row houses. It’s the northern hub of California’s Silicon Valley, a centre of technological innovation. San Francisco will be ready to host six FIFA World Cup 2026 matches. Qatar will play their inaugural match at San Francisco Bay Area Stadium in Santa Clara, and their base training centre is located in Santa Barbara. Known for a drizzly climate, a pedestrian-friendly downtown and a thriving entrepreneurial spirit, Seattle will offer international visitors the chance to sample seafood at Pike’s Place Market and take in a view of the entire city from the Space Needle. Seattle’s pioneering companies include airplane manufacturer Boeing, software developer Microsoft, and Starbucks, which operates in 85 countries. The city, where the US National Team will make an early-round appearance, plans nine “fan zones” for the FIFA World Cup 2026, each offering big screens, food and live entertainment. Qatar will play their final group stage match at Lumen Field in Seattle. Related Story Source link