Author: WWC NEWSDESK

Philippines

Cebu Army Unit Takes the Fight Online—What Its New “Katipanan Digital” Strategy Means for Filipinos

CEBU CITY — The Philippine Army is taking its information campaign deeper into the digital space as a Cebu-based civil-military operations unit launches a new social media strategy aimed at reaching more Filipinos and countering misinformation, disinformation and malinformation. The 14th Civil-Military Operations (CMO) Katipanan Battalion has launched “Katipanan Digital,” a social media initiative covering Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and Threads. According to the Philippine Informatio

September 5, 2026

Japan

Japan’s Former Defense Chief Challenges Takaichi Over Trump’s ICC Sanctions—Now Tokyo Faces a Critical Choice

TOKYO — Japan is facing growing pressure to confront Washington over sanctions imposed on International Criminal Court (ICC) President Tomoko Akane, with former Defense Minister Gen Nakatani urging Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi to demand that the United States withdraw the measures. Nakatani, a senior lawmaker in Japan’s governing Liberal Democratic Party and head of a cross-party group focused on human rights and diplomacy, has described the U.S. sanctions as an attack on the international rul

September 5, 2026

Business

AI Startup Boom Faces a Reality Check as VCs Turn Picky on Sky-High Valuations

After years of investors racing to secure exposure to artificial intelligence, venture capital firms are showing signs of becoming more selective—raising the possibility that the next stage of the AI boom could produce a painful shakeout among startups unable to prove that their technology creates meaningful economic value. CNBC reported that investors are increasingly focusing on productivity, revenue and cash flow rather than simply rewarding companies for attaching artificial intelligence to

September 5, 2026

Uncategorized

Sandisk Soars, Tesla Sinks and Lululemon Crashes as Wall Street’s AI Boom Collides With a New Fed Fear

NEW YORK — Wall Street just delivered the kind of trading session that makes a quiet index decline look almost meaningless. While the major U.S. averages slipped modestly on Friday, September 4, individual stocks were moving violently in both directions: Sandisk surged roughly 12%, Tesla dropped nearly 6%, Lululemon plunged more than 17%, Quanex jumped more than 20%, and AMC rallied as a fight over tokenized stocks exploded into public view. The bigger story, however, was not any single compan

September 5, 2026

Business

South Korea’s AI Chip Boom Is Changing Dating, TV and College Choices — But the Biggest Shift May Be Happening to Jobs

SEOUL — South Korea’s artificial-intelligence boom is no longer confined to chip factories, corporate earnings calls or stock-market screens. It is beginning to show up in an unlikely set of places: dating preferences, reality shows, university majors and the career decisions of young Koreans. Employees of semiconductor giants Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix, once regarded mainly as well-paid engineers at blue-chip companies, are increasingly being treated as some of the country’s most desira

September 5, 2026

Business

Bitcoin’s 3-Week Rally Hits a Macro Wall After $82,000 Breakout — Now Inflation and the Fed Hold the Key

Bitcoin surged to its highest level in nearly four months and appeared headed for a third straight winning week, powered by a revived “debasement trade” and renewed institutional demand. Then one surprisingly strong U.S. jobs report reminded crypto traders how quickly the Federal Reserve can change the game. Bitcoin climbed as high as $82,272.31 early Friday, its strongest level since May, after breaking out of the roughly $60,000-to-$70,000 trading range that had dominated much of the summer.

September 5, 2026

Japan

272 Pets Vanished After Japan’s Powerful Kumamoto Quake—Less Than Half Have Made It Home

KUMAMOTO, Japan — Weeks after a powerful magnitude 7.1 earthquake struck southwestern Japan, hundreds of families are still waiting for the return of pets that disappeared in the chaos. Authorities in Kumamoto said 272 reports of missing dogs and cats had been filed by Aug. 25, following the July 28 earthquake. Of those cases, 129 animals had been found and returned to their owners, leaving 143 cases still unresolved at the time of the latest count. That means fewer than half of the reported mi

September 5, 2026

Business

White House Quietly Vets Candidates for 4 Empty CFTC Seats — Just as a Make-or-Break Crypto Vote Nears

WASHINGTON — The White House has reportedly vetted candidates for all four vacant seats at one of America’s most important financial regulators, potentially opening a new front in the political battle over who will police the rapidly expanding U.S. cryptocurrency market. CNBC reported Friday, September 4, citing three people familiar with the matter, that the Trump administration has reviewed potential candidates for the four open commissioner positions at the Commodity Futures Trading Commissi

September 5, 2026

Philippines

Baguio Bullying Case Ends in P800,000 Settlement—But the Bigger Question Is What Happens to the Students Next

BAGUIO CITY, Philippines — A highly publicized bullying incident involving minors in Baguio City has reached an amicable settlement, with the families of the student involved agreeing on financial penalties, public apologies and commitments aimed at preventing another incident. The agreement was reached on Friday, September 4, roughly a week after a video of the incident circulated widely on social media. Under the settlement, the families of the minors involved will collectively pay P800,000

September 5, 2026

Business

Proterial Is Building LIMA Estate’s First Ground-Mounted Solar Plant — But the Bigger Story Could Start After 2027

BATANGAS, Philippines — One of Southern Luzon’s biggest industrial hubs is taking another step toward cleaner manufacturing, and this time the solar panels are going on the ground. Advent Upgrade Solar Inc. (AUSI) and Proterial Philippines Inc. have signed a 20-year power purchase agreement for a 1,587.20-kilowatt-peak, or roughly 1.59-megawatt-peak, ground-mounted solar photovoltaic system at Proterial’s manufacturing facility inside LIMA Estate in Batangas. The project is targeted to begin c

September 5, 2026