
US President Donald Trump has announced that the White House flag will be returned to half-staff, after critics attacked his response to the death of Republican senator John McCain.

Tributes from former US presidents and across the political spectrum have poured in for Republican Senator John McCain, who has died aged 81. Barack Obama, who beat him to the White House in 2008, said they had shared a “fidelity to something higher”. George W Bush described him as “a patriot of the highest order”.

A U.S. federal judge on Saturday rejected key elements of President Donald Trump’s May executive orders that would make it easier to fire federal employees and reduce their ability to bargain collectively.

Latin America's economic growth is set to come in lower than expected this year, as US protectionism and widespread wariness of emerging markets put a drag on the region, a UN panel said Thursday. The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) slashed its growth forecast for the region by 0.7 point to 1.5%, saying the complex global scenario had dimmed the outlook since its last report in April.

US President Donald Trump has warned that any attempt to impeach him would result in the crash of the economy. The President made the claim as the White House struggled to manage the fallout from a plea deal Mr Trump's longtime personal lawyer Michael Cohen made with prosecutors, and the conviction of his former campaign chairman Paul Manafort on financial charges.

United States Federal Reserve officials discussed raising interest rates soon to counter excessive economic strength but also examined how global trade disputes could batter businesses and households, minutes of the U.S. central bank’s last policy meeting showed.

United States and China are expected to impose fresh tariffs on US$ 16bn of each other's goods on Thursday as their tit-for-tat trade war rages on. The second round of tariffs will see a total of US$ 50bn worth of goods from each side that will now be taxed. Since the opening salvo in July, tensions between the world's two largest economies have escalated, hurting their companies and economies.

Most emerging market currencies worldwide rallied on Tuesday after U.S. President Donald Trump criticized the head of the Federal Reserve for raising interest rates, while Brazil's Real fell to its lowest in more than two years on political concerns.

Donald Trump has called for US companies to issue financial reports just twice a year rather than four times. The US President said he has asked the Securities and Exchange Commission to consider altering rules requiring firms to report every quarter.

The Republican-led Senate passed a resolution affirming its commitment to protecting freedom of speech and condemned recent attacks on journalists and members of the media. In a resolution brought forth by Hawaii Sen. Brian Schatz, a Democrat, and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, lawmakers affirmed that the press is not the enemy of the people, which passed by unanimous consent.