Top World News

Apr 30, 2026 - World

This live blog is now closed.Sign up for the Breaking News US emailUS supreme court ‘demolishes’ key Voting Rights Act provision that prevented racial discriminationThe US Federal Reserve is widely expected to hold interest rates steady on Wednesday after a key policy meeting, likely the last chaired by central bank chief Jerome Powell, a frequent target of president Donald Trump’s ire.Policymakers will weigh the risks of surging energy prices and snarled supply chains due to the US-Israel war on Iran, with analysts widely expecting a third pause in a row as the effects of the conflict ripple through the world’s largest economy. Continue reading...

Apr 30, 2026 - World

Claudio Neves Valente, who killed himself after deadly attack, began planning for violence in 2022, authorities sayThe gunman behind a deadly shooting at Brown University in December appeared to have been aggrieved by personal failures and sought retribution against those he deemed responsible, federal authorities said on Wednesday.More than four months after Claudio Manuel Neves Valente opened fire on the Ivy League campus, killing two students and injuring nine others, officials with the FBI’s Boston division announced they had concluded a significant portion of their investigation into the shooter. Continue reading...

Apr 30, 2026 - World

Elon Musk faced fiery questioning Wednesday in his court showdown with OpenAI, as he insisted that the maker of ChatGPT had fooled him by turning what was an altruistic pursuit into a profit-making juggernaut.

Apr 30, 2026 - World

Treasurer tells Commonwealth Bank podcast that he aims to ‘recognise the decisions that people have taken in the past’Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastExisting property investors look set to avoid paying more tax under Labor’s mooted changes to CGT in next month’s budget, after Jim Chalmers said he wanted to “make sure that we recognise the decisions that people have taken in the past” and flagged any reforms would not generate “a huge amount of revenue”.The treasurer is widely expected to modify the flat 50% tax discount on profits from the sale of assets held for more than one year, potentially returning to the pre-1999 model where capital gains are adjusted for inflation. Continue reading...

Apr 30, 2026 - World

Painting by self-taught artist was chosen by Art Gallery of NSW staff who hang finalists for exhibition, ahead of main prize announcement on 8 MayArchibald prize 2026 finalists: Virginia Trioli, Jan Fran, Ahmed al-Ahmed and more – in picturesA portrait of actor Jacob Collins by Sean Layh has won the favour of Art Gallery of NSW staff, who awarded it the Packing Room prize on Thursday, ahead of the Archibald prize’s main announcement on 8 May.Layh, a self-taught painter who has exhibited in Australia and abroad, said winning the prize for his work – an oil painting titled The tragicall historie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke – was “one of the great honours of my professional life”. This is the first time he has been a finalist in the Archibald prize. Continue reading...