However, young Chinese say the measures do little to alleviate financial stress. Zhang, 32, and her husband Zhu Yunfei, both manicurists, decided to save before having a child. They were announced shortly after Zhang and Zhu learned they would be parents. - Incompatible with careers -Social demographer Yun Zhou warned that subsidies "often do not lead to any meaningful rebound in fertility". "For young Chinese women, especially young highly educated Chinese women, there is also this inherent concern about the pervasive gender-based discriminations in the labour market that is front and centre on their mind."

Young waitress found slain after missing from workA police investigator stands in front of the rented house where the body of an attractive young waitress was found in Hang Dong district, Chiang Mai, on Saturday. (Photo: Hang Dong rescue foundation)CHIANG MAI - Police are investigating the death of a 22-year-old waitress found partially unclothed at the rented house where she lived in Hang Dong district. Her body was found by her employer on Saturday, after she failed to turn up for work on Friday. The young woman's hat and shoulder bag were found among garbage on the road in front of the rented house. The woman's body was sent to Maharaj Nakorn Chiang Mai Hospital for autopsy.

Tehran fuel dumps burn as Iran warns it can fight for monthsIran's president says that Tehran will be forced to respond if its neighbours attackedTEHRAN - Huge fireballs and clouds of thick smoke erupted over Tehran on Sunday after US-Israeli air strikes hit fuel depots in the city, as Iran's Revolutionary Guards vowed to fight on for months to come. Tehran's governor told the IRNA news agency that fuel distribution had been "temporarily interrupted" in the capital while repairs were carried out. The Israeli military confirmed that its air force had struck "fuel storage facilities in Tehran" to prevent their use by the government's military. Inside Iran, damage to infrastructure and residential areas is mounting as its people report growing anxiety and a heavy security presence. Trump has suggested Iran's economy could be rebuilt if a leader "acceptable" to Washington replaces the late supreme leader, which Tehran has rejected.

Photo credit @skongki2000 on XThe family of a Thai businessman who remains unconscious several days after cosmetic facial surgery at a Bangkok clinic has sought assistance from a consumer advocacy Facebook page, with the hospital bill for his subsequent care now exceeding 2 million baht. The 37-year-old underwent nose and chin surgery at the clinic on March 4, paying about 480,000 baht for the procedures, according to relatives. More than a week after the surgery, he remained unconscious and at risk of entering a prolonged comatose state, the family said. Although he had undergone cosmetic procedures before, this was the first time he had been placed under a general anaesthetic. They want the clinic to show responsibility by assisting with the extra medical costs while the cause of the incident is investigated.

Russell wins Australian Grand Prix in Mercedes 1-2Mercedes' George Russell, right, competes with Ferrari's Charles Leclerc during the Australian Grand Prix. (Photo: afp)MELBOURNE - George Russell kept his cool to win a frantic season-opening Australian Grand Prix on Sunday from Mercedes teammate Kimi Antonelli after a thrilling battle with Ferrari's Charles Leclerc. With the virtual safety car repeatedly brought out, pre-season favourite Russell stayed calm to clock a sixth Grand Prix win and his first since Singapore last year. The virtual safety car came out on lap 12 when Hadjar's car stopped with Russell and Antonelli pitting and coming back on hards. Russell radioed that he thought a one-stop race was viable and he began pulling clear, with Antonelli second.

Thai Shia mourn Khamenei at Iran embassy, urge Thai neutralityThai Shia Muslims hold a peaceful gathering outside the Iranian embassy in Bangkok on Sunday to mourn the death of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and urge the Thai government to stay neutral amid heightened Middle East conflict. (Photos: Islamic Republic of Iran embassy, Bangkok)About 200 Thai Shia Muslims gathered outside the Iranian embassy in Bangkok on Sunday, mourning Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, condemning Israel and the United States, and calling on the Thai government to remain neutral in international conflicts. Ali Shah-Hosseini, 40, the group’s representative, said the gathering aimed to mourn a leader deeply revered by Shia communities worldwide. With an estimated 40,000–45,000 Shia Muslims in Thailand, he said, participants wanted to show that many here also held Khamenei in high regard and felt deep sorrow at his passing. Mr Ali said that if the conflict persists, Shia mosque leaders would confer and announce further steps via social media.

A senior transport official also warned of likely increases in sea freight charges and cargo container availability as ships avoid the war in the Mideast, taking the much longer route around the southern tip of Africa. In the United Arab Emirates, flights were limited to transporting stranded travellers. Turkey and Saudi Arabia remained open and ready for use by repatriation flights, he said. Riyadh-Bangkok flights remained operational and could be increased to serve Thai evacuees, as needed, Mr Panidone said. He also warned that sea freight between Thailand and Europe would take an additional 15 days because vessels were avoiding the war zone and rerouting around the Cape of Good Hope,This would affect freight charges and the availability of cargo containers.

A Nida poll released on Sunday shows mixed voter opinions on whether the formation of a new government should be put on hold until the court rules in the ballot barcodes case, with a slight majority agreeing the coalition's formation should wait. The survey, conducted by the National Institute of Development Administration (Nida) on March 2-4, questioned 1,310 respondents aged 18 and over across all regions. It reported on Sunday that 44.81% want the formation of the next government paused until the court delivers a ruling on the barcode and QR code issue. Asked whether the barcodes dispute would ignite a new round of political unrest, 36.56% said it would not lead to turmoil. However, 19.08% were quite worried, 18.55% very worried, and 14.27% not very worried.

Iran says can fight for months as Israel strikes Beirut hotelIran's president says that Tehran will be forced to respond if its neighbours attackedTEHRAN - Iran's Revolutionary Guards said Sunday that the country's forces could fight an intense war for six months against the United States and Israel, which said it struck Tehran's commanders at a seaside hotel in the heart of Beirut. Lebanon's health ministry said the strike killed at least four people at the hotel, where an AFP photographer saw shattered windows and charred walls. UAE forces were intercepting incoming missile and drones from Iran, the defence ministry said in a post on X. Trump struck a similarly defiant tone, repeating the claim that Iran had been close to developing a nuclear weapon. Neither the US nor Israel has claimed responsibility for the attack and AFP could not independently verify the circumstances.

LONDON - Japanese entertainment giant Sony face a £2 billion ($2.7 billion) class action lawsuit starting on Tuesday in London, accused of breaching competition law by overcharging millions of UK PlayStation users. The claimants' website accuses Sony of "exploiting its UK customers" for nearly a decade by charging them "too much for PlayStation digital games and in-game content". Sony's prices "are out of all proportion to the costs of Sony providing these services to its customers", they said. Last year, Apple lost a lawsuit in London for abusing its dominant position and charging excessive commissions on its in-house App Store. The US tech giant, which has said it intends to appeal the decision, could be liable to reimburse millions of users.

Cosmic edge for Men in Blue over Black Caps in Ahmedabad(Photo: AFP)Cricket, widely considered the world's second most popular sport after football, commands a global following of more than 2.5 billion people. With the final featuring India and New Zealand, an astrological perspective offers an intriguing lens through which to view the contest. The New Zealand perspectiveNew Zealand's head coach, Rob Walter (born Sept 16, 1975), possesses a horoscope that appears broadly balanced. Santner's horoscope contains several strong planetary alignments associated with strong planets such as Shiva, Vishnu and Saturn but weaker influences from Jupiter, Brahma and Laxmi. When combining traditional astrological indicators with current cricketing dynamics, India appears to hold a slight astrological and structural advantage heading into the final.

But for the dramatic pursuit that brings the Oscar-nominated "One Battle After Another" to its conclusion, director Paul Thomas Anderson wanted something a little bit different, his location manager Michael Glaser told AFP. The film's final sequence sees Bob desperately searching for his daughter as she tries to outrun Lockjaw in the desert. The crew also filmed on another stretch of road in Borrego Springs called "The Texas Dip," one of the around 200 locations Glaser offered for the movie. - Subconscious characters -Location managers are among the first to join a project and among the last to leave, says Glaser. They "create a mood, create a palette, create a feeling for characters, the places they inhabit."

First Thai evacuees from Iran reach TurkeyThai evacuees arrive in Turkey from Iran on Saturday. (Photo: Ministry of Foreign Affairs)The first 62 Thai evacuees from Iran crossed the border into Turkey on Saturday night and will board flights back to Thailand on Sunday and Monday. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Sunday the group, led by Thai embassy counseller Shayanid Prasertpol, safely departed Iran through the Razi border crossing and entered Turkey through the Kapikoy checkpoint. A delegation from the Department of Consular Affairs led by deputy director-general Bancha Yuenyongchongcharoen greeted the evacuees, who were taken to Van city, Turkey, and would board repatriation flights home on Sunday and Monday, the ministry announcement said. The consular delegation reached the Kapikoy checkpoint at 6.40pm on Saturday local time, which is four hours behind Thailand.

Philippines' 'Cockroach Lord' goes to bat for misunderstood bugsCristian Lucanas, an entomologist from the University of the Philippines Los Banos, shows preserved specimens of cockroaches in Los Banos town, (Photo: afp)LOS BANOS, Philippines - A thin band of light from Cristian Lucanas's headlamp pierces the blackness of a Philippine rainforest as he digs through the underbrush before gently scooping up a cockroach with his bare hands. The massively biodiverse Philippines has about 130 known species, three-fourths of which are found nowhere else on earth. While some cockroach species do carry disease-spreading microbes, a world without them would slow the process of decomposition crucial for sustaining ecosystems, he said. When his biology class adviser was unable to identify the species, Lucanas knew he had found his niche. He laments that most science funding in his country "goes to research that will directly affect humans", worrying that at best he will only be able to catalog and explain the Philippines' cockroaches.

US court voids mass layoffs at Voice of America parentKari Lake was hired by Trump to oversee layoffs at US Agency for Global MediaWASHINGTON (UNITED STATES) - A federal judge ruled Saturday that President Donald Trump's pick to oversee mass layoffs at Voice of America and other government-funded media was unlawfully appointed, rendering the job cuts invalid. Kari Lake, a former TV anchor, was hired by Trump to head the US Agency for Global Media, part of his administration's efforts to clamp down on what he considers unfriendly journalism. She soon announced funding and job cuts, including the dismissal of more than 500 employees of Voice of America, created in the wake of World War II as a key instrument of American soft power worldwide. The Agency for Global Media is an independent agency tasked with promoting democracy and countering propaganda overseas through entities that include VOA, Radio Free Europe, Radio Free Asia and the Office of Cuba Broadcasting. Trump frequently attacks media outlets and denounced the editorial firewall at VOA that prevents the government from intervening in its coverage.