
-
Kenya's economy faces climate change risks: World Bank
-
Countries eye trade talks as Trump tariff blitz roils markets
-
AI could impact 40 percent of jobs worldwide: UN
-
US trade partners eye talks after Trump tariff blitz
-
Dollar, stocks sink as gold hits high on Trump tariffs
-
Trump tariff blitz sparks retaliation threats, economic fears
-
Lessons and liquids: buried alive in Myanmar's earthquake
-
Nintendo Switch 2 sparks excitement despite high price
-
Sri Lanka's crackdown on dogs for India PM's visit sparks protest
-
China vows 'countermeasures' to sweeping new US tariffs
-
Trump jolts allies, foes and markets with tariff blitz
-
How Trump's 'liberation day' tariffs will impact China
-
Europe hits out at Trump tariffs, keeps door open for talks
-
Australia sweats through hottest 12 months on record: official data
-
South African artist champions hyenas in 'eco-queer' quest
-
Taiwan says US tariffs 'highly unreasonable'
-
Trump escalates trade war with sweeping global tariffs
-
China says opposes new US tariffs, vows 'countermeasures'
-
Quake-hit Myanmar's junta chief to head to Bangkok summit
-
New Spielberg, Nolan films teased at CinemaCon
-
Shiny and deadly, unexploded munitions a threat to Gaza children
-
Stocks tank, havens rally as Trump tariffs fan trade war
-
Financial markets tumble after Trump tariff announcement
-
Europe riled, but plans cool-headed response to Trump's tariffs
-
'Shenmue' voted most influential video game ever in UK poll
-
Revealed: Why monkeys are better at yodelling than humans
-
Key details on Trump's market-shaking tariffs
-
US business groups voice dismay at Trump's new tariffs
-
Trump sparks trade war with sweeping global tariffs
-
US stocks end up, but volatility ahead after latest Trump tariffs
-
Boeing chief reports progress to Senate panel after 'serious missteps'
-
Is Musk's political career descending to Earth?
-
On Mexico-US border, Trump's 'Liberation Day' brings fears for future
-
Tesla sales slump as pressure piles on Musk
-
Amazon makes last-minute bid for TikTok: report
-
Tesla first quarter sales sink amid anger over Musk politics
-
World's tiniest pacemaker is smaller than grain of rice
-
Nintendo says Switch 2 console to be launched on June 5
-
Certain foreign firms must 'self-certify' with Trump diversity rules: US embassies
-
Nigerian president sacks board of state oil company
-
Heathrow 'warned about power supply' days before shutdown
-
Epstein accuser Virginia Giuffre 'stable' after car crash
-
Swedish insurer drops $160 mn Tesla stake over labour rights
-
Stock markets mixed as uncertainty rules ahead of Trump tariffs
-
Warner showcases 'Superman' reboot, new DiCaprio film
-
Asian markets edge up but uncertainty rules ahead of Trump tariffs
-
UK imposes online entry permit on European visitors
-
How a Brazilian chief is staving off Amazon destruction
-
Brazil binman finds newborn baby on garbage route
-
Trump set to unleash 'Liberation Day' tariffs
BCC | -7.91% | 94.59 | $ | |
SCS | -6.6% | 10.75 | $ | |
CMSC | -1.49% | 22.17 | $ | |
GSK | 2.71% | 38.69 | $ | |
BCE | 1.49% | 22.149 | $ | |
RIO | -1.09% | 59.252 | $ | |
BTI | 3.2% | 41.58 | $ | |
NGG | 5.95% | 69.94 | $ | |
BP | -5.26% | 32.12 | $ | |
AZN | 3.62% | 74.93 | $ | |
JRI | -1.76% | 12.815 | $ | |
CMSD | -0.68% | 22.676 | $ | |
RBGPF | -0.41% | 67.72 | $ | |
RYCEF | -0.31% | 9.75 | $ | |
RELX | 1.11% | 51.55 | $ | |
VOD | 2.46% | 9.35 | $ |

A sea of red in Saudi shops -- but don't mention Valentine's
Red clothing and underwear are displayed in Saudi shopfronts, but the increasingly popular Valentine's Day promotions are missing one thing: the festival's name.
While sales surge and Valentine's gifts become more common among the youthful Saudi population, the word "Valentine's" is nowhere to be seen.
"Management has asked us to decorate the window display with red lingerie... but without mentioning anywhere Valentine's Day," said one salesperson at a Riyadh mall, who did not want to be named as she was not authorised to speak to media.
The displays represent change in Saudi Arabia, where stick-toting religious police once cracked down on sales of Valentine's Day paraphernalia and even on people wearing red during the February 14 festival.
Valentine's Day has vague origins dating back to Roman times, when several Christian martyrs were named Valentine. The celebration for lovers, marked widely around the world, was firmly off-limits in the ultraconservative kingdom which would only mark Muslim holidays and its September national day.
But Saudi Arabia has been undergoing social change as it attempts to present a more appealing image and diversify its oil-dependent economy.
It has curbed the feared religious police and given women more freedoms. Among these, they now have the right to drive, and can add colour to their dress beyond the traditional plain black abaya robe. These changes, however, have come alongside a crackdown on dissent which has seen clerics and women's rights activists detained.
- A jarring site -
"We can now put red clothes on view comfortably and even put them on the window display," said a saleswoman at Grenada Mall in east Riyadh, who also spoke anonymously.
"There are many customers requesting red lingerie during Valentine's Day," she added. "We have discounts during this time, but we don't call them Valentine's Day offers."
Not everyone is comfortable with the underwear being on show, finding it a jarring sight after decades when such items were kept strictly behind closed doors.
"I don't want to see these things," said one woman, fully veiled in black except for her eyes. She did not want to give her name.
"They bother me, but there are people who like it and this is their freedom of choice."
Times are changing, though, and many in Saudi Arabia -- where more than half the population is under the age of 35 -- are embracing Valentine's Day, whether they call it that or not.
"People did not celebrate Valentine's Day, but now many Saudis do," said Khuloud, 36, a Saudi saleswoman who did not want to give her last name.
"There is a huge demand on clothes during this time, and customers are often asking for the colour red and profits have also been huge."
The saleswomen said red lingerie is most in demand during the Valentine's Day period.
Shops also offered discounts on perfume and makeup, while gift stores put red hearts in their windows, also without mentioning Valentine's.
One shopper, Reem al-Qahtani, 22, said Saudi society is "gradually" starting to accept Valentine's Day, even if it remains nameless for now.
"Right now, we celebrate quietly in cafes and restaurants, but we hope that it gains traction in the coming years," she said.
Y.Jeong--CPN