Reuters

By Hyunsu Yim

SEOUL (Reuters) - Pop star Ariana Grande is joining Weverse, a superfan platform owned by HYBE, an entertainment firm that manages K-Pop phenomenon BTS.

Here is what we know about Weverse and why more pop stars around the world are joining the app.

WHAT IS THE WEVERSE APP?

Weverse is an app that specializes in interaction between artists and fans. Artists on the app write posts, livestream and... (continue reading...)

By Tetsushi Kajimoto

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's nationwide core consumer inflation likely accelerated to 2.6% year-on-year in May from 2.2% in the previous month, a Reuters poll of 18 economists showed on Friday, keeping the central bank on track to raise interest rates further in coming months.

While the core consumer price index (CPI), which excludes fresh food, is set have received a boost from an increase in renewable energy levy, some... (continue reading...)

JAKARTA (Reuters) - China's ByteDance will lay off staff at its Indonesian unit following a deal where it bought a local e-commerce firm and combined it with its TikTok operation, a spokesperson said on Friday. ByteDance, the owner of TikTok, did not say how many employees would be affected. Bloomberg had earlier reported there would be 450 jobs cut.

In January ByteDance completed a deal to buy a majority stake in Tokopedia, an Indonesian e-commerce... (continue reading...)

By Dave Graham and Tom Balmforth

ZURICH/KYIV (Reuters) - World leaders will join Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy at a summit this weekend to explore ways of ending the deadliest conflict in Europe since World War Two, but Russia isn't invited and the event will fall short of Kyiv's aim of isolating Moscow.

U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, French President Emmanuel Macron and the leaders of Germany, Italy, Britain, Canada and... (continue reading...)

By William Schomberg

LONDON (Reuters) - Any lingering hopes Prime Minister Rishi Sunak might still have for a pre-election interest rate cut will probably be dashed next week, when the Bank of England looks set to signal that lower borrowing costs await Britain's next government instead.

The BoE has been inching towards a first reduction in rates since the start of the coronavirus pandemic more than four years ago, encouraging Sunak to... (continue reading...)