Reuters: World

Tesla hikes prices in U.S., China, Japan and Canada Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) has raised prices for its Model Y and Model 3 variants by the equivalent of about $300 in the United States, China, Japan and Canada, after having slashed prices on its top selling vehicles since the start of the year. The U.S. automaker has raised the starting price point on the Model Y and Model 3 electric vehicles in the U.S. by $250, its website showed - the second time in less than two weeks, after multiple price increases in the past. In China, Elon Musk-led Tesla raised the price for variants by 2,000 yuan ($289.39), the website showed. The move comes after the company posted its lowest quarterly gross margin in two years and missed market estimates after aggressively cutting prices to spur demand and fend off rising competition. read more

French police clash with black-clad anarchists during May Day rallies French police clashed with hundreds of black-clad anarchists in Paris and other cities during union-led protests against President Emmanuel Macron's increase in the retirement age, as workers staged Labour Day rallies across Europe. Demonstrators pelted Paris police with Molotov cocktails and fireworks, torched building materials and smashed up bus stops. Protesters marching peacefully booed the police as they responded with tear gas and baton charges. Emergency services used water canon to put out a fire which blackened the windows of nearby flats. One officer was badly injured when he was struck by a fiery projectile. read more

Air defences shoot down 15 of 18 missiles launched at Ukraine in dead of night Ukrainian air defence crews destroyed 15 out of 18 missiles launched by Russian forces in the early hours of Monday morning, the military said, as Moscow intensified attacks on its neighbour in recent days. "Around 2:30 am (1130 GMT), the Russian invaders attacked Ukraine from strategic aviation planes," a post on the Telegram channel of Valeriy Zaluzhnyi, the commander-in chief of Ukraine's armed forces, read. It added that 15 out of the 18 missiles launched had been destroyed. Kyiv's city officials wrote on the Telegram messaging app that all missiles directed at the capital were destroyed in what they said was the second attack on the city in three days. read more

Chinese tourists flock to gambling hub Macau for Labour Day holiday Hundreds of thousands of mainland Chinese visitors have descended on the world's biggest gambling hub of Macau for the Labour Day holiday, packing tightly into its narrow cobblestone streets and placing bets in its glitzy casinos. The surge in visitors comes after China and its special administrative region Macau lifted strict COVID-19 restrictions in January, allowing visitors to stream into Macau for the first time in more than three years. More than 100,000 visitors arrived in the former Portuguese city each day on Saturday and Sunday, local media reported, citing government statistics, up from 60,000 a day recorded in previous days. read more

US says Chinese Coast Guard is harassing Philippine vessels The United States on Saturday called on China to stop harassing Philippine vessels in the South China Sea, pledging to stand with the Philippines at a time of simmering geopolitical tension. "We call upon Beijing to desist from its provocative and unsafe conduct," the U.S. State Department said in a statement. The Philippines on Friday accused China's coast guard of "aggressive tactics" following an incident during a Philippine coast guard patrol close to the Philippines-held Second Thomas Shoal, a flashpoint for previous altercations located 105 nautical miles (195 km) off its coast. read more

Even one American in Iraq is too many, Iran leader tells Iraqi president The United States is an unreliable friend, and Iraq should not allow any U.S. troops on its territory, Iran's Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei told visiting Iraqi President Abdul Latif Rashid on Saturday. Iran, which has strong ties with Iraq, opposes the U.S. military presence on its borders in Iraq and the Gulf, saying Western military intervention is the root of insecurity in the region. "Americans are not friends of Iraq. Americans are not friends with anyone and are not even loyal to their European friends," state media quoted Khamenei as saying. read more

US confiscates Iran oil cargo on tanker amid Tehran tensions The U.S. confiscated Iranian oil on a tanker at sea in recent days in a sanctions enforcement operation, three sources said, and days later Iran seized another oil-laden tanker in retaliation, according to a maritime security firm. As oil markets remain jittery, the cargo seizure is the latest escalation between Washington and Tehran after years of sanctions pressure by the U.S. over Iran's nuclear program. Iran does not recognise the sanctions, and its oil exports have been rising. Tehran says its nuclear program is for civilian purposes while Washington suspects Iran wants to develop a nuclear bomb. read more

Russia's Putin signs decree introducing life sentences for treason Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday signed a decree formally increasing the maximum sentence for treason to life in jail, part of a drive to suppress dissent since the start of the war in Ukraine. The decree was posted on the Kremlin website. Lawmakers had already voted to boost the longest sentences for treason to life, up from 20 years. Legislators also approved raising the maximum sentence for carrying out "a terrorist act" - defined as a deed which endangered lives and was aimed at destabilizing Russia - to 20 years, from 15 years at present. read more

Charles' coronation seized on by republicans as chance to ditch monarchy When King Charles III is crowned in a lavish ceremony next week, Britain's main anti-monarchist movement will gather along the procession route next to a statue of Charles I, who was beheaded in 1649, leading to a short-lived republic. Supporters of Republic, a group founded in 1983 that campaigns for an elected head of state, are planning their biggest ever protest. They believe Charles' accession to the throne presents their best chance of ending the monarchy, which traces its history back more than 1,000 years. Graham Smith, its head, sees the grand coronation at London's Westminster Abbey as the perfect opportunity to expose what he regards as an anachronistic institution with no place in a 21st century democracy, particularly at a time when people are facing the worst cost of living crisis in decades. read more

Iran seizes oil tanker in Gulf, U.S. Navy says Iran seized a Marshall Islands-flagged oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman in international waters on Thursday, the U.S. Navy said, the latest in a series of seizures or attacks on commercial vessels in sensitive Gulf waters since 2019. Iran's army said it had seized a Marshall Islands-flagged oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman after it collided with an Iranian boat, injuring several crewmen, Iranian state media reported. "Two members of the boat's crew are missing and several were injured due to the collision of the ship with the boat," an army statement said. The U.S. Navy identified the vessel as the Advantage Sweet. According to Refinitiv ship tracking data, it is a Suezmax crude tanker that had been chartered by oil major Chevron (CVX.N) and had last docked in Kuwait. read more

U.S. military leak suspect to appear in court; had arsenal, prosecutors say A U.S. Air National Guardsman accused of leaking military secrets and keeping an arsenal of weapons in his bedroom will appear in federal court on Thursday, where federal prosecutors are expected to argue he should remain in custody because he poses a national security risk. Jack Douglas Teixeira was arrested by the FBI on April 13 at his home in Massachusetts and charged with violating the Espionage Act. He is scheduled to appear in U.S. District Court in Worcester, Massachusetts, on Thursday afternoon for his detention hearing. Prosecutors say the 21-year-old leaked classified documents, including some relating to troop movements in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, to a group of gamers on the messaging app Discord. read more

Exclusive: Peter Thiel, Republican megadonor, won’t fund candidates in 2024, sources say Tech billionaire and Republican megadonor Peter Thiel, an early backer of former President Donald Trump who later broke with him, has told associates he is not planning to donate to any political candidates in 2024, according to two people close to the businessman. Thiel is unhappy with the Republican Party's focus on hot-button U.S. cultural issues, said one of the sources, a business associate, citing abortion and restrictions on which bathrooms transgender students can use in schools as two examples. Thiel came to this conclusion by late 2022, the sources said. He believes Republicans are making a mistake in focusing on cultural flashpoints and should be more concerned with spurring U.S. innovation - a major issue for him - and competing with China, the business associate said. read more