Large swaths of England have officially descended into drought, authorities announced Friday, following several months of low rainfall and relentless waves of extreme heat.

Kenya's electoral officials on Friday blamed the delay in announcing the result of the country's presidential election on candidates' agents for slowing down the national tally of votes.

Britons are bracing themselves for more tough times ahead as the economy starts to shrink and a new forecast suggests average annual energy bills could exceed £5,000 ($6,000) next year.

Johnson & Johnson is abandoning talc-based baby powder next year and instead will make it with cornstarch.

Domino's has formally shut its stores in Italy after seven years in the country, according to a report by Milano Today.

More surveillance is needed of a new virus detected in dozens of people in eastern China that may not cause the next pandemic but suggests just how easily viruses can travel unnoticed from animals to humans, scientists say.

Hong Kong has recorded its sharpest annual drop in population, with experts blaming the decline on strict Covid control measures and a political crackdown that have taken the shine off a financial hub long advertised as "Asia's world city."

Rivian said Thursday that it lost $1.7 billion in the second quarter of 2022 as it works to ramp up its vehicle production amid the on-going supply chain crunch. The automaker's losses more than doubled from the same period last year, when it lost $580 million.

"I chose to come to Sanya because the Covid restrictions are more relaxed than (in) Shanghai," said Li Zefeng, an engineer who lives in China's biggest city.

Seoul has vowed to move some of the city's poorest families out of underground and semi-subterranean homes after 13 people were killed in flooding caused by record-breaking rainfall this week, sparking public horror and calls for government accountability.