NuseReal
Headlines for internationalists
Major news
Bitcoin drops to $81,000, lowest since November; DOJ forfeits $400M in crypto tied to the Helix Bitcoin mixer, which processed 354,468 Bitcoin for illegal activities — 31 January 2026 (LINK)
30 January is World Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTD) Day: NTDs affect around one billion people. They include Chagas disease, leprosy, leishmaniasis, trachoma, and schistosomiasis. As of early 2026, 58 countries have successfully eliminated at least one NTD — 30 January 2026 (LINK)
UK-China latest: Trump blasts Starmer's Xi meeting. UK Trade Minister says 'bonkers' not to deal with Beijing after that — 30 January 2026 (LINK)
Trump names veteran economist to lead Bureau of Labor Statistics after firing agency's chief — 30 January 2026 (LINK)
— Trump fired former BLS Commissioner Erika McEntarfer in August hours after a dismal government report showed that hiring had slowed significantly in previous months. At the time, Trump claimed without evidence that the data was "rigged" and implied that McEntarfer had manipulated the numbers "for political purposes".
WEF: 4 takeaways from Davos 2026: New deals, a reckoning, dialogue and more questions than answers — 29 January 2026 (LINK)
— More than 60 heads of state and a record 400+ political leaders and 830 CEOs and Chairs came. As Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney put it in Davos this week: "We actively take on the world as it is, not wait around for the world we wish to be." It's clear there's a rupture between the US and Europe and it was a recurrent topic of conversation throughout the week. And the view from China? "Tariffs and trade wars have no winners," said Vice-Premier He Lifeng.
— Extreme weather events dropped from second down to fourth place in the Global Risks ranking this year — not because they are any less urgent a risk, but because geoeconomic fragmentation and societal polarization have become more pressing. Some developing countries are spending more on debt repayments than on healthcare and education.
— 40% of jobs globally are going to be impacted by AI over the next couple of years, Kristalina Georgieva, Managing Director of the IMF, said, either by being transformed or eliminated. In advanced economies the figure is 60%. The IMF itself is not immune to this trend, she said — it's gone from 200 translators to just 50.
— Away from the public programme, dialogue continued. High-stakes geopolitical negotiations, and bilateral discussions signalled significant shifts in global economic and security architecture.
WEF Annual Meeting Roundup — 23 January 2026 (LINK)
Germany unites with France, Belgium, Netherlands, UK, South Africa, and more in debate over potential boycott of 2026 FIFA World Cup in US raising fears of a major setback for tourism — 28 January 2026 (LINK)
Breaking news
Gold and silver prices plunge following Trump's Fed pick announcement, following months of gains driven in no small part by fears over the central bank's independence — 30 January 2026 (LINK)
Paul Krugman on Warsh: a bad heir day at the Fed. No, Kevin Warsh isn’t qualified: The silver lining to his appointment is that he shouldn’t be able to do much damage, although with one big caveat: there’s no coherent argument behind the verbiage — (LINK)
UN: Choose peace over chaos, Guterres urges as he sets out final-year priorities — 29 January 2026 (LINK)
Trump, Schumer reach government funding deal, sacrifice DHS spending bill in the process — 29 January 2026 (LINK)
Trump threatens tariffs on countries selling oil to Cuba, declaring national emergency: Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum had said her country is still sending oil to Cuba — 29 January 2026 (LINK)
Trump and co sue IRS and Treasury for $10 billion over leaked tax information between 2018 and 2020 — 29 January 2026 (LINK)
China executes 11 members of Myanmar scam mafia: State media — (LINK) ground.news: 40 media reports — 29 January 2026 (LINK)
— Among the executed were members of the 'Ming family criminal group', whose activities had contributed to the deaths of 14 Chinese citizens and injuries to 'many others', reported Xinhua.
Pakistan becomes latest Asian country to introduce checks for deadly Nipah virus — (LINK) ground.news: 13 media reports — 28 January 2026 (LINK)
Border agents involved in fatal shooting of Alex Pretti placed on leave — 29 January 2026 (LINK)
Internal review contradicts White House narrative of Pretti's death — (LINK)
Major news
Bitcoin drops to $81,000, lowest since November; DOJ forfeits $400M in crypto tied to the Helix Bitcoin mixer, which processed 354,468 Bitcoin for illegal activities — 31 January 2026 (LINK)
30 January is World Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTD) Day: NTDs affect around one billion people. They include Chagas disease, leprosy, leishmaniasis, trachoma, and schistosomiasis. As of early 2026, 58 countries have successfully eliminated at least one NTD — 30 January 2026 (LINK)
UK-China latest: Trump blasts Starmer's Xi meeting. UK Trade Minister says 'bonkers' not to deal with Beijing after that — 30 January 2026 (LINK)
Trump names veteran economist to lead Bureau of Labor Statistics after firing agency's chief — 30 January 2026 (LINK)
— Trump fired former BLS Commissioner Erika McEntarfer in August hours after a dismal government report showed that hiring had slowed significantly in previous months. At the time, Trump claimed without evidence that the data was "rigged" and implied that McEntarfer had manipulated the numbers "for political purposes".
WEF: 4 takeaways from Davos 2026: New deals, a reckoning, dialogue and more questions than answers — 29 January 2026 (LINK)
— More than 60 heads of state and a record 400+ political leaders and 830 CEOs and Chairs came. As Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney put it in Davos this week: "We actively take on the world as it is, not wait around for the world we wish to be." It's clear there's a rupture between the US and Europe and it was a recurrent topic of conversation throughout the week. And the view from China? "Tariffs and trade wars have no winners," said Vice-Premier He Lifeng.
— Extreme weather events dropped from second down to fourth place in the Global Risks ranking this year — not because they are any less urgent a risk, but because geoeconomic fragmentation and societal polarization have become more pressing. Some developing countries are spending more on debt repayments than on healthcare and education.
— 40% of jobs globally are going to be impacted by AI over the next couple of years, Kristalina Georgieva, Managing Director of the IMF, said, either by being transformed or eliminated. In advanced economies the figure is 60%. The IMF itself is not immune to this trend, she said — it's gone from 200 translators to just 50.
— Away from the public programme, dialogue continued. High-stakes geopolitical negotiations, and bilateral discussions signalled significant shifts in global economic and security architecture.
WEF Annual Meeting Roundup — 23 January 2026 (LINK)
Germany unites with France, Belgium, Netherlands, UK, South Africa, and more in debate over potential boycott of 2026 FIFA World Cup in US raising fears of a major setback for tourism — 28 January 2026 (LINK)
Miscellaneous
DOJ concludes Epstein files review with release of 3.5 million records: Members of Congress can request to review un-redacted portions of the files — 30 January 2026 (LINK)
Gold and silver plunge, suffering their worst losses since the 1980s — 30 January 2026 (LINK)
Gold price tumbles as Trump's Fed chair pick eases central bank independence fear — 30 January 2026 (LINK)
Bitcoin pulls back to as low as $81,000 as horrendous day continues: sheds nearly $10,000 over 24 hours, now threatening to take out its recent November low of just under $81,000 — 30 January 2026 (LINK)
Brutal selloff! Gold, silver prices crash in exceptionally volatile session: traders lock in profits following Thursday's record-breaking rally — 30 January 2026 (LINK)
— On the MCX, silver futures fell by 3.04% while gold dropped 1.28%, influenced by bearish global markets and a stronger US dollar.
More than 200 killed in coltan mine collapse in eastern DRC this week, official says: Rubaya mine produces about 15% of the world's coltan, which is processed into tantalum, used in mobile phones — 30 January 2026 (LINK)
Indonesian couple caned 140 times for sex outside marriage and drinking alcohol under Aceh province's sharia law — 29 January 2026 (LINK)
Microsoft loses $357b in market cap (10%) after stock drop — 29 January 2026 (LINK)
US dollar falls again as debasement fears outweigh Bessent's boost — 29 January 2026 (LINK)
Fed holds interest rates steady for first time since July — (LINK)
Swissport pioneers Switzerland’s first fully electric aircraft turnaround at Geneva Airport: decarbonizing its ground operations on its pathway to net-zero emissions by 2050, including the objective to electrify 55% of its worldwide ground support equipment fleet by 2032 — 29 January 2026 (LINK)
Amazon blocks mainstream press from watching 'Melania' documentary at Kennedy Center — 29 January 2026 (LINK)
Zelensky condemns Russian drone strike that killed five on passenger train — 28 January 2026 (LINK)
Trump-appointed Kennedy Center programming head resigns just days into job — 28 January 2026 (LINK limited)
Filmogaz — (LINK)
US: National Symphony Orchestra's music director says it will not leave Trump Admin-run Kennedy Center — 28 January 2026 (LINK)
Around 300 people evacuated after fire at Courcheval hotels in French Alps, officials say — 27 January 2026 (LINK)
Gladys Mae West, the pioneering black mathematician who helped lay the foundation for GPS, die in January 2026 at 95 — 28 January 2026 (LINK)
The 'Doomsday Clock' is now 85 seconds to midnight — the closest it's ever been: 4 seconds closer to midnight than it was in 2025 — 27 January 2026 (LINK)
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