Athletics meetings to feature 'pioneering' artificial crowd noise - Reuters

FILE PHOTO: Athletics - Diamond League - Monaco - Stade Louis II, Monaco - July 12, 2019 Justin Gatlin of the U.S. wins the Men's 100m REUTERS/Eric Gaillard

(Reuters) - Several Diamond League athletics meetings this season will use a pioneering system that will faithfully reproduce crowd noise to make up for the lack of spectators caused by COVID-19 safety precautions, the sport’s governing body said on Friday.

World Athletics said in a statement


Habs' Julien heads home after heart procedure - Reuters

FILE PHOTO: Aug 12, 2020; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Montreal Canadiens head coach Claude Julien looks on from behind the bench against the Philadelphia Flyers in the third period in game one of the first round of the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Scotiabank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports

Canadiens coach Claude Julien is heading home to Montreal to rest Friday after doctors inserted a stent into his coronary artery.

The 60-year-old is expected to make


U.S. business inventories decline further in June - Reuters

FILE PHOTO: Warehouse workers deal with inventory stacked up to the ceiling at an ABT Electronics Facility in Glenview, Illinois, U.S. December 4, 2018. REUTERS/Richa Naidu

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. business inventories declined again in June as sales continued to accelerate amid pent-up demand as establishments reopened after being shuttered to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus.

Business inventories fell 1.1% in June after decreasing 2.3% in May, the U.


Top U.S. homeland security appointments improper, government watchdog says - Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The appointments of two top homeland security officials in the Trump administration were improper, a U.S. government watchdog said on Friday in a decision that could complicate the administration’s efforts to defend immigration policies in court.

The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that the appointments of Chad Wolf, acting secretary of homeland security, and Ken Cuccinelli, acting deputy secretary of homeland security, did not follow processes outlined in federal law. The GAO, which provides nonpartisan information


Germany declares most of Spain a virus risk region - Reuters

BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany declared nearly all of Spain, including the tourist island of Mallorca, a coronavirus risk region following a spike in cases there.

The move deals a blow to hopes for a swift revival of mass tourism after months of lockdown all but wiped out this year’s high season in Europe.

The Bild daily had reported earlier that Mallorca had been added to the list of high-risk regions published by the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), Germany’s public health agency.

The latest version


Greece rolls out more restrictions to fight rising COVID infections - Reuters

ATHENS (Reuters) - Greece set a temporary 50-person limit on public gatherings on Friday and said restaurants and bars in Athens and other areas must close by midnight, as the country seeks to contain a recent spike in COVID-19 infections.

Staff members of a bar wear protective face masks, amid the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Athens, Greece, August 1, 2020. Picture taken August 1, 2020. REUTERS/Costas

Travel restrictions to be extended at U.S. land borders, DHS says - Reuters

WASHINGTON/OTTAWA (Reuters) - The United States will extend to a ban on non-essential travel at land borders with Canada and Mexico for another 30 days as several states struggle to contain a coronavirus outbreak, a top U.S. official confirmed Friday.

FILE PHOTO: A Canadian maple leaf is seen on The Peace Bridge, which runs between Canada and the United States, over the Niagara River in Buffalo, New York, U.S. July 15, 2020. REUTERS/

U.S. judge rejects GM bid to reopen racketeering case against Fiat Chrysler - Reuters

(Reuters) - A federal judge in Detroit on Friday rejected a bid by General Motors Co to reinstate a racketeering lawsuit against its smaller rival Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV (FCA).

FILE PHOTO: The GM logo is seen at the General Motors Assembly Plant in Ramos Arizpe, state of Coahuila, Mexico October 7, 2019. REUTERS/Daniel Becerril

GM claimed it had new information on foreign accounts used in an alleged bribery scheme involving FCA and leaders of the United Auto Workers (UAW) union. But


Trump says ready to push out coronavirus aid, blames Democrats for holdup - Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump said on Friday that he is ready to move stimulus money into a U.S. economy hard hit by the coronavirus crisis, but blamed Democrats for holding up a deal in talks that broke down a week ago.

The Republican-led Senate and Democratic-controlled House of Representatives went into an informal recess after last week’s negotiations ended with the parties $2 trillion apart. However, the leaders of both parties said they could recall their members with 24 hours notice


Trump says ready to move on coronavirus aid, blames Democrats for holdup - Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump said on Friday that he is ready to move stimulus money into a U.S. economy hard hit by the coronavirus crisis, but blamed Democrats for holding up a deal in talks that broke down a week ago.

The Republican-led Senate and Democratic-controlled House of Representatives went into an informal recess after last week’s negotiations ended with the parties $2 trillion apart. However, the leaders of both parties said they could recall their members with 24 hours notice