The U.S. Navy plans to conduct another passage near disputed islands in the South ChinaSea in early April, a source familiar with the plan said on Friday, the third in series of challenges that have drawn sharps rebukes from China. The exact timing of the exercise and which ship would travel inside a 12-nautical mile limit around a disputed island …

The UK’s current account deficit widened to a record high in the final quarter of last year. The deficit in the three months to December was £32.7bn, the equivalent of 7% of GDP, said the Office for National Statistics (ONS). For all of 2015, it came to £96.2bn or 5.2% of GDP. Both figures were the highest since records began …

David Cameron says the government is “doing everything it can” to save thousands of steel jobs – but warned there were “no guarantees of success”. Speaking after chairing crisis talks on Tata Steel’s decision to sell its UK business, the PM said nationalisation was not the answer but the government was “not ruling anything out”. Ministers are under pressure to …

Entertainer Ronnie Corbett, best known for BBC comedy sketch show The Two Ronnies, has died aged 85. His publicist said: “Ronnie Corbett CBE, one of the nation’s best-loved entertainers, passed away this morning, surrounded by his loving family. “They have asked that their privacy is respected at this very sad time.” Corbett was one of the UK’s best-loved comedians and …

Arrivals of refugees and migrants to Greece from Turkey rose sharply on Wednesday, just over a week since the European Union and Turkey struck a deal intended to cut off the flow. Greek authorities recorded 766 new arrivals between Tuesday morning and Wednesday morning, up from 192 the previous day. Most arrived on the northeastern Aegean island of Lesbos. The …

Britain’s top share index rose on Wednesday, boosted by its heavily weighted mining sector after Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen urged caution in raising rates, lifting riskier assets. Miners .FTNMX1770 were up 5.5 percent, rising off a 1 month low hit in the previous session. The sector had fallen 15.8 percent since hitting 4-1/2 month highs earlier in March, pressured …

A huge stockpile of illegal weapons has been confiscated in the Indian Ocean from a boat believed to be travelling to Somalia. The boat was first spotted by a French Navy helicopter on a routine surveillance mission around 20 March. The crew alerted the FS Provence frigate and the boat was eventually boarded by French marines. Hundreds of AK-47 assault rifles …

Ebola is no longer an “extraordinary” health event, the World Health Organisation has said. The disease that killed more than 11,000 people in West Africa during its most recent outbreak doesn’t pose as much of a threat as it once did, and the risk of it spreading around the world is low, a committee formed by the health group concluded. …

An Egyptian man accused of hijacking a passenger jet and forcing it to land in Cyprus while strapped with fake bombs may be prosecuted in his own country. Egypt’s public prosecutor has asked Cypriot authorities to extradite Seif Eldin Mustafa, according to Egyptian state television reports. Briton Ben Innes asked a crew member to take a photo of him with …

India’s Tata Steel is seeking to sell Britain’s biggest steelmaking business, putting thousands of jobs at risk in an industry that once dominated Britain but has been brought low by falling prices, high costs and Chinese competition. After a marathon board meeting in Mumbai, Tata said it would draw a line under its almost decade-long foray into Britain’s steel industry, …