Taipei / AP Apple’s new iPhone 7 series gave Taiwan microchip giant Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) a boost Thursday as the firm announced profits were up by almost a third compared with last year. The company was also set to benefit from the demise of Samsung’s Galaxy Note 7, analysts said, after the South Korean smartphone giant had …

Bangkok / AFP Thailand’s King Bhumibol Adulyadej, the world’s longest-serving monarch, has died at the age of 88, the palace announced on Thursday, leaving a divided nation bereft of a rare figure of unity. “Although the team of doctors treated him to the best of their ability, his condition deteriorated,” the Royal Household Bureau said in a statement. “At 15:52 …

  Washington / AFP The Washington Post on Thursday became the latest US newspaper to emphatically endorse Hillary Clinton for the White House, saying it was swayed as much by her competence as by the alarming specter of a Donald Trump presidency. “Hillary Clinton has the potential to be an excellent president of the United States, and we endorse her …