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The women's Olympic triathlon finally set off in the River Seine on Wednesday, providing huge relief for organisers after problems with water quality marred the run-up to the competition.

Women triathletes dived into the River Seine on Wednesday, marking the start of the race and providing huge relief for organisers after problems with water quality marred the run-up to the competition.

The Bank of Japan further unwound its massive monetary easing programme on Wednesday by hiking interest rates for only the second time in 17 years and indicating plans for more if the economy performs as officials expect.

Australian children with potentially deadly peanut allergies will be offered life-saving treatment in a nationwide programme touted as a world first.

Relentless downpours and howling winds hampered Wednesday's search for survivors of landslides that struck Indian tea plantations and killed 126 people, most believed to be labourers and their families.

Banking giant HSBC said Wednesday that pre-tax profits in the first half of 2024 came in at $21.6 billion, slightly lower than last year's record performance.

The yen rose against the dollar Wednesday after Bank of Japan hiked interest rates for the second time in 17 years, while equity markets in Asia rose on growing hopes for a cut in US borrowing costs.

The Bank of Japan lifted its main interest rate Wednesday for just the second time in 17 years in another step away from its long-standing ultra-loose monetary policies.

Images of Olympic table tennis players from North Korea and South Korea taking a selfie together on the medal podium in Paris went viral in South Korea Wednesday, hailed as a rare show of cross-border unity.

Djamel Sedjati has two aims coming into the Paris Olympics: to medal for Algeria after the country drew a blank in Tokyo three years ago and to break David Rudisha's 800m world record.

Hamas said Wednesday its political leader, Ismail Haniyeh, was killed in an Israeli strike in Iran, where he had been attending the inauguration of the country's new president.

It was supposed to be the jewel in the crown of the 10-year presidency of Joko Widodo, but Indonesia's capital-to-be, carved out of dense jungle in Borneo, is a vast building site just weeks before being due to open.

Samsung Electronics said Wednesday it registered its fastest growth since 2010, with operating profits soaring for the second quarter, as chip prices bounce back and demand for generative AI continues to grow.

When Konstantinos Tsanis got his doctorate in finance in 2011 at the height of Greece's debt crisis, his chances of a well-paid job at home were pretty thin.

The US Federal Reserve is highly unlikely to waver from its position of holding interest rates at a two-decade high on Wednesday, but could drop hints about a September start to rate cuts.

New Barcelona manager Hansi Flick made a triumphant start to his tenure on Tuesday after the Spanish giants beat Manchester City 3-2 after penalties in a pre-season friendly at Orlando.

French swimming sensation Leon Marchand bids for two more Olympic golds in the pool on Wednesday as organisers declared the River Seine was clean enough to stage both triathlons.

The yen extended its rally against the dollar Wednesday ahead of a much-anticipated Bank of Japan announcement, with debate centred on whether it will hike interest rates, while equities mostly rose on growing hopes for a cut in US borrowing costs.

Bot-like accounts on social media platform X that spread misinformation and hate ahead of Britain's election are now amplifying conspiracy theories around US politics, a watchdog investigation revealed Tuesday, as the race to the White House kicks into high gear.

French swimming sensation Leon Marchand bids for two more Olympic golds in the pool on Wednesday as organisers desperately hope the River Seine will be clean enough to stage both triathlons.

Marileidy Paulino, having dodged a soaking at the rain-sodden opening ceremony, accepts that she comes into the Paris Olympics as one of the hot favourites to add Olympic 400m gold to her world title.

Rory McIlroy is hoping to ease some of the heartbreak of his recent major troubles by winning "probably" his biggest title in 10 years this week at the Paris Olympics.

World champions South Africa will launch their 2024 Rugby Championship campaign on August 10 in Brisbane, a city where they have lost 11 of 12 professional era Tests against Australia.

Two-time Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka outlasted Hailey Baptiste 7-6 (8/6), 7-6 (7/3) on Tuesday to reach the second round of the WTA and ATP Washington Open.

US presidential hopeful Kamala Harris launched a searing attack on Donald Trump Tuesday, telling her biggest campaign rally yet that the momentum was shifting in the White House race and daring the Republican to debate her face to face.

Pollution may be forcing postponements for Olympic events in the Seine, but on the banks of the Anacostia River in Washington, Dennis Chestnut is also canceling his swimming plans, thwarted by similar contamination.

The Australian regional airline Rex cancelled flights as it entered voluntary administration Wednesday, leaving the fate of the country's third-largest carrier in serious doubt.

Sealed inside a habitat in Texas and cut off from the outside world for over a year, Kelly Haston was the commander of a first-of-its-kind simulation for NASA to prepare for a future mission to Mars.

Samsung Electronics said Wednesday that its operating profits soared fifteen-fold to $7.5 billion for the second quarter, as chip prices bounce back and demand for generative AI continues to grow.

Israel struck Hezbollah's stronghold in southern Beirut on Tuesday in retaliation for rocket fire from Lebanon that killed 12 children over the weekend, saying it had killed the commander responsible for the attack.

A young violinist accompanied thousands of opposition supporters belting out the Venezuelan national anthem Tuesday at a rally in Caracas, in a peaceful, but firm, rejection of an election victory claimed by strongman Nicolas Maduro.

Starbucks reported lower profits Tuesday behind broad-based sales declines, but shares rose as the company said a turnaround was on track.