Briefly

EUROPEAN UNION

Merger of two leading shipbuilders rejected

The European Union on Thursday rejected the merger between the Republic of Korea's shipbuilders Hyundai and Daewoo, saying a union between two of the world's biggest players in the industry would have given the combined company a global stranglehold on the production of liquified natural gas carriers. EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said the merger "would have led to less choice, higher prices and ultimately less innovation for European customers". European companies account for almost half the orders in the $45 billion market. "We prohibited the merger," Vestager said, arguing the new company would have eliminated a major player and grabbed a global market share exceeding 60 percent. Hyundai called the decision disappointing.

INDIA

9 dead after train derails in West Bengal

Rescuers found four bodies overnight as they cleared the 12 mangled coaches of a train that derailed in India's West Bengal state, raising the death toll to nine, a railroad official said on Friday. At least 45 people were injured in the accident on Thursday as the coaches went off the rails and three capsized, said Rajiv Jain, a railroad ministry spokesman. The rescue work was completed and the track was being cleared to restore train services in the region, Jain said. Images from the scene after the accident showed passengers stuck in twisted metal and debris as rescuers tried to pull them out.

UNITED KINGDOM

Prince Andrew stripped of royal, military links

The Royal Family removed Prince Andrew's military links and royal patronages on Thursday and said he will no longer be known as "His Royal Highness", as the son of Queen Elizabeth fights a US lawsuit in which he is accused of sex abuse. Andrew, 61, the Duke of York, was forced to step down from public duties in 2019 because of his connections to convicted US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, and after a disastrous BBC TV interview which the prince had hoped would clear his name. Thursday's move by the royal family means he will now lose all his royal connections.

Agencies - Xinhua