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In State of the Union speech, Biden challenges Republicans on debt and economy

By Jeff Mason, Nandita Bose and Gram Slattery WASHINGTON (Reuters) -President Joe Biden challenged Republicans to lift the U.S. debt ceiling and support tax policies that were friendlier to middle class Americans on Tuesday in a State of the Union speech that served as a blueprint for his 2024 re-election campaign. Assailing oil companies for …

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Republicans meet Biden’s calls for unity with partisan broadside

By David Morgan WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Republicans rejected Democratic U.S. President Joe Biden’s call for bipartisanship in his State of the Union address on Tuesday, and instead accused him of stoking culture wars in a nation they described as deeply divided. A day after Republican U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy called on Biden to work together …

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Hospital chain Narayana Hrudayalaya’s profit surges on higher margins

BENGALURU (Reuters) – Indian hospital chain operator Narayana Hrudayalaya Ltd on Wednesday reported a 58% surge in third-quarter profit, helped by higher margins and an increase in per-patient revenue. The Bengaluru-based company’s net profit rose to 1.54 billion Indian rupees ($18.67 million) in the quarter from 974.9 million rupees a year earlier. Average revenue per …

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Romney tells embattled Republican George Santos he ‘shouldn’t be in Congress’

(This Feb. 7 story has been refiled to restore dropped word “he” to the first sentence) WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. Senator Mitt Romney told embattled fellow Republican Representative George Santos on Tuesday that he should not be in Congress and shouldn’t have taken a central seat at President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address. …

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South African rand weakens ahead of president Ramaphosa’s speech

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) -South Africa’s rand weakened against the dollar on Wednesday as investors awaited potential news from President Cyril Ramaphosa’s State of the Nation address on Thursday. At 1532 GMT, the rand traded at 17.7900 against the dollar, about 1.3% weaker than its previous close. The dollar recovered slightly against a basket of six major …

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Dollar flat to slightly higher, but weak outlook intact as Fed’s Powell weighs

By Harry Robertson and Gertrude Chavez-Dreyfuss LONDON/NEW YORK (Reuters) – The dollar was flat to slightly higher in choppy trading on Wednesday, as investors paused selling the greenback, a day after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell did not significantly change his U.S. interest rate outlook despite a strong U.S. jobs report last week. The greenback’s …

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North Korea stages nighttime military parade to mark army anniversary -Yonhap

By Josh Smith and Soo-hyang Choi SEOUL (Reuters) -North Korea held a widely anticipated nighttime military parade on Wednesday, South Korea’s Yonhap news agency reported, an event expected to showcase the country’s latest weapons to mark the founding anniversary of its army. Commercial satellite imagery has for months shown North Korean troops practicing for a …

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Texas sues Biden administration for asking pharmacies to fill reproductive health prescriptions

By Kanishka Singh WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Texas sued the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden on Tuesday to prevent it from asking pharmacies to fill reproductive health prescriptions. The Biden administration said in July 2022 that refusing to fill prescriptions for drugs that could be used to terminate a pregnancy could violate federal law, regardless …

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