Author: staff
Published on 27/05/2026 – 10:32 GMT+2•Updated 11:15 French luxury department store Galeries Lafayette closed its first flagship store in China on Wednesday, 27 May, thirteen years after it opened. The retailer cited falling sales in recent years as the reason for the closure. While the luxury market experienced strong growth in the mid-2010s, notably thanks to the rise of the middle class, the Covid-19 pandemic and China’s property crisis proved to be a turning point, abruptly curbing China’s domestic consumption and forcing the sector to adapt to new economic realities. “We have seen a decade of growth in the luxury…
Published on 27/05/2026 – 13:18 GMT+2 “Damn the jellyfish! Damn all the jellyfish!!” Remember that Friends episode in which a jellyfish stings Monica and Joey steps out of his sandy hole to offer some medical advice? “There’s really only one thing you can do,” says Joey. “You’re going to have to pee on it.” When questioned about his emergency cure, he affirms that he saw it on the Discovery Channel – something which Chandler confirms. “You know what, he’s right. There’s something like ammonia in that which kills the pain.” Well, if you’re heading to the ocean on your upcoming…
Published on 27/05/2026 – 13:26 GMT+2 Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said on Wednesday there was “no reason” to withdraw support for his predecessor Jose Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, who is under investigation for corruption, following the publication of new details about the case. “I think there is no sufficient reason, there is no reason to change that position,” Sánchez told a Rome news conference after a meeting with Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican. The Socialist premier, in office since 2018, reiterated his “full cooperation with the judiciary” and respect for the presumption of innocence. Zapatero, who governed from 2004-2011,…
Published on 27/05/2026 – 12:56 GMT+2 Five villagers stuck in a flooded cave in central Laos for more than a week were found alive, rescuers said on Wednesday, but two others remain missing. The villagers entered the cave in Xaisomboun province on 19 May, but heavy rain triggered flash flooding that blocked the exit and trapped seven people, according to Lao and Thai rescue teams involved in the operation. Bounkham Luanglath of the Lao organisation Rescue Volunteer for People, which has been working closely with local authorities in the rescue efforts, told the Associated Press news agency that five people…
By Theo Farrant & AP Published on 27/05/2026 – 13:20 GMT+2 Less than two months after the record-breaking Artemis II mission, NASA has revealed new details about its plan to build a long-term human presence on the Moon. The agency says it is already ordering landers, rovers and drones for the first phase of what it calls “Moon Base” – a programme designed to support astronauts living and working on the lunar surface for extended periods. Here’s everything you need to know about NASA’s announcements. What is NASA’s Moon Base plan? NASA wants to build a permanent lunar base near the Moon’s south…
With the FIFA World Cup just days away, all eyes are turned towards North America as a surge of tourists is expected to descend on the United States, Canada and Mexico. Increase in travel demand across the host countries has been rather uneven (for obvious reasons…) but Mexico is certainly set to be one of the big winners. If you’re headed to the tournament and looking for somewhere to relax after the excitement is all over in mid-July, you might just want to look at Aman’s latest luxury resort – and its first in Mexico – Amanvari. Set to open…
The decision risks angering Washington as it will limit the frequencies available to U.S. companies, including Elon Musk’s SpaceX and Amazon Leo, and curtail their fast expansion. In practice, it would mean moving from a frequency range today entirely controlled by American companies to one in which they would get, at the very best, a third. The proposal will be made public on Wednesday. It will split the available frequencies into three blocks of 10MHz. One will be reserved for secure government communications, including through the EU’s flagship constellation IRIS², one earmarked for European startups, and a third that could…
Published on 27/05/2026 – 12:56 GMT+2 A map shared widely online has been used to falsely claim that the Andes strain of the hantavirus is spreading rapidly across Europe and North America. The pictures are screenshots of a map from HantavirusMap.com, which have spread on X and TikTok in the aftermath of a hantavirus outbreak on the cruise ship MV Hondius. Social media users are claiming that the red and orange markers on the map show confirmed hantavirus cases across the world, particularly in Europe and North America. This is, however, misleading. The screenshots from the website do not show…
The action was organised by Greenpeace International alongside Greenpeace Germany and Greenpeace Nordic as part of a wider campaign aimed at stopping commercial mining on the seabed. Images released by the organisation showed the robot unfolding the message at a depth of around 2,315 metres, in an area where mining companies hope to extract metals used in batteries and new technologies. The environmental group said the protest was designed to pressure governments and delegates involved in discussions at the International Seabed Authority, which is considering future rules for deep-sea mining projects. Marine scientists have repeatedly warned that industrial activity on…
Canada is set to deepen energy ties with Germany as Europe grapples with a prolonged energy crisis linked to the war in Ukraine — and now escalating conflict in the Middle East. Canada will sign an agreement with Germany’s SEFE group — Securing Energy for Europe — for supplies from the proposed Ksi Lisims export facility on the coast of British Columbia, AP reported, citing sources familiar with the matter. The sources spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak ahead of Wednesday’s announcement. Up to 1 million metric tonnes of liquefied natural gas per year…