After Shanghai recently reported a new daily record for asymptomatic coronavirus infections, the city is locking down in two stages. It's the biggest step taken in the Chinese metropolis since the Covid-19 pandemic began more than two years ago. But some residents are complaining that the cost of China's strict aggressive zero-Covid strategy has become too great. We take a closer look.

Sri Lanka's government said restrictions on access to social media platforms came a day after protesters defied a nationwide curfew to demand government accountability.

The US President and his wife reported having paid $150,439 in taxes for 2021. This is equivalent to a tax rate of 24.6%. Vice President Kamala Harris and her husband earned over $1.6 million during the same period.

Beating expectations, Chinese economy grows 4.8% in first quarter of 2022. Over the first three months of the year, China's economy expanded at an annual rate of nearly 5 percent when compared to the same stretch last year. But as Covid-19 lockdowns roll on, the country's annual growth target looks hard to reach.

With Poland and Bulgaria cut off from Russian gas, major European energy firms are reportedly considering compliance with Moscow's demand to be paid in roubles. Over in the US, Archegos Capital's Bill Hwang pleads not guilty to fraud. Finally, amid a shortage of sunflower oil due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the French government has authorised food companies to change their recipes without altering their packaging.

In places such as Cameroon, Guinea Bissau, Rwanda or post-coup Mali, the media's vigilance extends well beyond issues that matter to the public. Journalists are forced to watch their own backs — and data, too.

Australia's Prime Minister Scott Morrison said that a Chinese intelligence ship was not in Australia's territorial waters but its presence off the northwestern coast was "concerning."

The Chinese economy is slowing down markedly as strict lockdowns send big cities into hibernation. Repercussions will be felt in Germany, too.

Egyptian influencers, especially women, have become the target of a crackdown by authorities. At least a dozen women have been prosecuted since 2020 for ''attacking family values''. Two of them, Haneen Hossam and Mawada al-Adham, were sentenced to three and six years in jail on charges of "attacking society's values" and "inciting human trafficking". Like many TikTokers, they made videos of themselves dancing and lip-synching to music. For more on the crackdown, we speak to Souleimene Benghazi, an Egypt and Tunisia campaigner at Amnesty International.

A new bill, if approved, is expected to bring further restrictions on online freedom of expression and media freedom in Turkey.

China’s embargo on Australian wine means winemakers are facing a massive oversupply.

Hundreds of students in Beijing have called for freedom of movement amid concerns over tightening COVID restrictions on campuses. Videos circulated online showing students tearing down a metal wall.