USA - President Donald Trump on Thursday responded to a Black Lives Matter leader threatening to “burn down this system” unless the United States “give[s] us what we want,” accusing him of “treason, sedition,” and “insurrection.” In a Wednesday interview with Fox News Channel, Greater New York Black Lives Matter president Hawk Newsome warned that if the country “doesn’t give us what we want, then we will burn down this system and replace it.”

USA - The International Monetary Fund on Wednesday painted a bleak portrait of the global economy, saying the coronavirus pandemic has caused more widespread damage than expected and will be followed by a sluggish recovery. The global economy will shrink this year by 4.9%, worse than the 3% decline predicted in April, the IMF said.

USA - A new report shows the US has stumbled into the new decade, losing a competitive economic edge that it had firmly retained in the post–World War II economic expansion. For the second consecutive year, the US has been dethroned as the world's most competitive economy, thanks partially to President Trump's trade war. The US now ranks 10th (3rd in 2019), according to the Institute for Management Development's (IMD) new report on the ranking of most competitive world economies. "Trade wars have damaged both China and the US economies, reversing their positive growth trajectories. China this year dropped to 20th position from 14th last year," IMD said. The annual rankings, now in their 32nd year, show Singapore, Denmark, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and Hong Kong as the top five most competitive economies.

USA - The Republican National Committee (RNC) released a damning new video highlighting the damage that far-left rioters have inflicted across the country in recent weeks and showing how some Democrats have vocally supported calls from the far-left to defund law enforcement. “Left-wing anarchists are sowing chaos across the country as they attempt to destroy the fundamental foundation of America,” RNC spokesman Steve Guest said. “Meanwhile, Joe Biden and his radical allies continue to dodge scrutiny, viewing this as an opportunity to transform the country. But under President Trump’s leadership, law and order will always prevail.” The video features one of the Black Lives Matter co-founders stating that their ideological frame is Marxism, an ideology that has led to the deaths of 100 million people.

USA - Two openly gay Black candidates are on track to win seats in the US Congress, a first for the nation that illustrates a "generation shift" in US politics, experts and advocates said on Wednesday. Following New York state's Democratic primary contest on Tuesday, attorney Mondaire Jones had 45% of the vote in one suburban race and City Councilman Ritchie Torres was well ahead of rivals for a New York City seat as of late Wednesday. If elected, they would be the first openly gay Black men in Congress, part of a record number of LGBT+ candidates this year, according to the Victory Fund, a political advocacy group which endorsed and funded both of them. More than 850 gay and trans people are on ballots across the country this year, it said. "In (the midterms in) 2018, we talked about the rainbow wave. Now we're going to talk about the rainbow tsunami," said former Houston Mayor Annise Parker, head of the Victory Fund.

USA - The story is that George Floyd died from asphyxiation - “I can’t breathe” - from a police officer’s knee on his neck. This story is not supported by the autopsy and toxicology reports. The autopsy report says Floyd died of a heart attack and that no life-threatening injuries were inflicted by police restraint. The medical examiner found no physical evidence to “support a diagnosis of traumatic asphyxia or strangulation.”

USA - Tests by Consumer Reports find toxic metal in Starkey Spring Water, which was previously recalled for exceeding federal limits, and is sold on Amazon. The results of the testing come as the Guardian and Consumer Reports launch a major project this week on the challenges of getting access to safe, clean, affordable water in the US. That includes how what the bottled water consumers sometimes resort to as an alternative is not only expensive, but may also not always be safer.

USA - It’s a good time to be in the water business: as the coronavirus outbreak spread in the US throughout March, bottled water sales increased 57% over the same period last year. But among the products, like toilet paper or hand sanitizer, that Americans are panic-buying, bottled water is unusual: there is no shortage of safe drinking water, and health officials have tried to assure people that public water supplies are not contaminated by the coronavirus. Hoarding bottled water simply isn’t necessary for most people.

USA - Stephen Roach, a Yale University senior fellow and former Morgan Stanley Asia chairman, tells MarketWatch that his forecast for a sharp deterioration of the US dollar could be a very near-term phenomenon, not an event that looms off in the distance. “I do think it’s something that happens sooner rather than later,” the economist told MarketWatch during a Monday-afternoon interview.

USA - President Trump on Monday said the next stimulus package will be “very generous” and will be announced in “a couple of weeks.” The House has already passed a bill that calls for a stimulus check similar to the one available in the Cares Act — a $1,200 check for adults and as many as three child dependents. That means a family of two adults and three children would qualify for a $6,000 stimulus check. But the price tag is hefty: $3 trillion. The bill is unlikely to pass the Republican-controlled Senate, where Leader Mitch McConnell is looking for a lower price tag, around $1 trillion. Both sides are expected to renew negotiations soon.

ISRAEL - Palestinians told an undercover Israeli journalist that they prefer life under Israeli sovereignty to life under the corrupt Palestinian Authority, as Israel debates whether to extend Israeli law to a significant portion of Judea and Samaria. Yechezkeli spoke to Palestinians living in “Area C,” the portion of Judea and Samaria (the “West Bank”) currently under full Israeli control. Over 100,000 Palestinians living there could become Israeli citizens under the sovereignty plan now being considered by both the Israeli government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Donald Trump.

Trump’s Middle East peace plan, unveiled earlier this year, would allow Israel to extend sovereignty to 30% of Area C, which includes all of the Israeli communities of Judea and Samaria, plus the strategically important Jordan River Valley. The Palestinians could establish a demilitarized state on the remaining land of the West Bank, with a capital east of Jerusalem, and $50 billion in foreign aid — provided that they recognize Israel and stop inciting and supporting terror.

USA - Global coronavirus infections topped nine million on Monday as the World Health Organization warned that the pandemic was accelerating and Saudi Arabia said it would allow a “very limited” number of pilgrims to the hajj next month. France took its biggest step yet back to normality by allowing millions of children to return to school. But despite Europe further easing lockdowns, cases are still rising around the world, especially in Latin America with Brazil now registering more than 50,000 deaths. And there are fears of new clusters in Melbourne and Lisbon as well as renewed outbreaks in Beijing and other parts of Asia. “The pandemic is still accelerating,” said WHO’s director general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.

USA - A team of political experts released its latest prediction on the Black Lives Matter movement today, saying the group’s current surge will likely only last until early November. The experts say after votes are cast in the 2020 election, politicians will no longer have a need for the black community, and everything will go back to normal. The team of experts out of UCLA has been following Black Lives Matter since it emerged back in 2014 when an unarmed black man was killed by police in St Louis. The popular civil rights group also made headlines in 2016 and 2018. "We have to pander to them to see if they will matter," said Nancy Pelosi. "We stand committed to elevating black voices when we need their votes and not a moment after." Experts believe the Black Lives Matter movement will re-emerge sometime in 2022.

MEXICO - A magnitude-7.5 earthquake has struck in the Mexican state of Oaxaca, rattling buildings in the country’s capital more than 200km (124 miles) away. The tremor struck on Tuesday morning, with Mexico's National Seismological Service rating its strength at 7.1 before upgrading the intensity to 7.5. The United States Geological Survey (USGS), meanwhile, recorded it as a 7.7 magnitude earthquake. Such a huge quake is classified as 'major', and can cause serious damage. The USGS placed the quake's epicenter along the southern coastline of Oaxaca, yet its effects were felt as far inland as Mexico City. Videos taken in the capital show buildings and power lines swaying, as what sounds like dull explosions ring out in the background.

USA - A massive plume of dust from the Sahara desert in northern Africa has been traversing the atmosphere, thousands of feet above the tropical Atlantic Ocean, and is now cloaking the Caribbean and closing in on the southeastern United States. The dust was so thick that the Barbados Meteorological Services issued a "Severe Dust Haze Warning" urging residents to take action due to significantly reduced visibility and potential respiratory problems for people who experience difficulty breathing.