Turkey inflation dips to 39.6% on relief from free gas

ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Turkish annual inflation fell to 39.59% in May, official data showed on Monday, broadly in line with expectations, largely due to the government offsetting price rises in other goods by providing natural gas free of charge. The Turkish Statistical Institute (TUIK) said last week that it would apply a “zero price” method…

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California probing whether Florida sent migrant flight to Sacramento

(Reuters) – California’s attorney general is investigating whether the government of the state of Florida played any role in sending more than a dozen migrants to the California capital of Sacramento without advance notice. Representatives of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis did not immediately respond on Sunday to a request for comment. DeSantis last year arranged…

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Biden signs debt limit bill, avoiding U.S. default

By Trevor Hunnicutt WASHINGTON (Reuters) -President Joe Biden on Saturday signed a bill that suspends the U.S. government’s $31.4 trillion debt ceiling, averting what would have been a first-ever default with just two days to spare. The House of Representatives and the Senate passed the legislation this week after Biden and House of Representatives Speaker…

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Federal judge rejects Tennessee drag show ban as unconstitutional

By Timothy Gardner WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A federal judge has ruled that Tennessee’s law restricting drag performances in public or where children were present was unconstitutional, striking a blow to efforts in U.S. states to regulate LGBTQ conduct. Tennessee Governor Bill Lee in February had signed the bill passed by the state’s assembly that aimed…

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Texas becomes largest state to ban transgender care for minors

By Daniel Trotta (Reuters) – Texas Governor Greg Abbott on Friday signed a bill that bans transgender healthcare including puberty blockers and hormone therapy for minors, making Texas the largest of the 20 states to have outlawed gender-affirming care. Republican lawmakers across the country have promoted similar bills, saying they mistrust the consensus among major…

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Thai PM frontrunner attends Pride parade, promising same-sex marriage, gender identity rights

(This June 4 story has been refiled to fix Move Forward leader’s name to ‘Pita’ on second reference in paragraph 5) By Jiraporn Kuhakan BANGKOK (Reuters) – The frontrunner to be Thailand’s next prime minister joined a Pride parade in Bangkok on Sunday, promising to pass a law that would allow same-sex marriage and gender…

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PwC Australia names dozens of staff involved in government tax plan leak

By Lewis Jackson SYDNEY (Reuters) – PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) Australia on Monday named at least 67 current and former staff involved in the leak of confidential government tax plans in an unpublished letter to lawmakers ahead of parliamentary hearings later this week. PwC, one of the world’s “big four” audit and advisory firms, is battling to…

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Police detain 23 people in Hong Kong on Tiananmen anniversary

By Jessie Pang and Ben Blanchard HONG KONG/TAIPEI (Reuters) – Hong Kong police said they detained 23 people on Sunday for “breaching public peace” and arrested a 53-year-old woman for “obstructing police officers” as authorities ramped up security for the 34th anniversary of the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown. Restrictions in Hong Kong have stifled what…

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