Alarm as Japan steps up military spending

Japan's military spending will rise 1.3 percent to a record 5.2 trillion yen ($46 billion), under a defense budget approved by the Cabinet on Friday.

Many foreigners hurt in Melbourne car attack

MELBOURNE - Nearly half the 19 people injured when a driver with no known extremist links plowed into pedestrians in the southern city of Melbourne were foreign nationals, Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said on Friday.

Blaze evokes Grenfell Tower fire, experts say

SEOUL - Flammable materials on the outside of a building fueled a major blaze that killed 29 people, experts said on Friday, evoking comparisons with the Grenfell Tower disaster in London.

IN BRIEF (Page 8)

40 million hungry due to conflicts

Some countries spend up to 60 percent of GDP to cope with wars

Time flies along with 81-year-old flight attendant

WASHINGTON - American Airlines flight 2160 from Boston has just arrived in Washington, and Bette Nash, 81, helps the passengers disembark.

English rugby to air on Chinese TV

Chinese viewers will be able to watch English club rugby, complete with commentary in Mandarin, for the first time on Christmas Eve when the Leicester Tigers host the London-based Saracens on CCTV5+.

US Soybean farmers get warning from China

US soybean exporters have received some warning signals on product quality from the world's largest importer, a month after US President Donald Trump's visit to Beijing secured them a juicy deal selling an extra 12 million tons of their produce to China.

Apple admits it deliberately slows down older iPhones

WASHINGTON - Apple has confirmed the long-held suspicion of some users that it is deliberately limiting the iPhones' processing speed as they age.

Middle class raises glass to US wines

China's growing middle class and its taste for wine have prompted a group of importers to pursue fine wines from California.

WWI Australia submarine wreck found off PNG

SYDNEY - Australia's most enduring military mystery has been solved after the wreckage of the country's first submarine was found more than a century after vanishing off Papua New Guinea's coast, officials said on Thursday.

Watch out for 'wearables' as smart money is on doubling of market

SAN FRANCISCO - Sales of "wearable" computing items - from internet-linked watches to step-counting shoes - will nearly double in the next few years, a market forecaster said on Wednesday.