Stocks swing, oil edges up with Iran war peace talks stalled

At a dusty lot an hour outside Beijing, a steady stream of vehicles come and go for a quick battery charge -- just one node in China's rapidly expanding network of electric trucks.

While the country's prowess in electric passenger vehicles has long been known globally, electric trucks have only recently gained traction.

Now powered by extensive charging and battery-swapping infrastructure, the cost structures clearly favour electric models, experts say, in a potentially fatal blow for conventional diesel rigs.

"Last year was the breakthrough for heavy electrified vehicles in China," Lauri Myllyvirta, co-founder of the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air and expert on China's energy consumption, told AFP.

"If the infrastructure is there, the economics are there for an increasing number of logistics routes and requirements," he said.

Adoption of alternatives to diesel trucks in the world's second-largest economy has noticeably accelerated in recent years.

New-energy models accounted for 29 percent of all domestic truck sales in China last year, up from 14 percent in 2024, according to data from Beijing-based market intelligence provider Commercial Vehicle World.

The penetration rate was less than one percent as recently as 2021, according to the firm.

Manufacturers say they expect that share to continue swelling, potentially reaching a majority of sales in just a few years.

At the bustling charging station in Beijing's Miyun District, 43-year-old truck driver Wang told AFP how his job had changed since he started driving an electric model last year.

"It's such a breeze!" he said after plugging in the charging cables.

"My old vehicle had over 10 gears, and its operation was so cumbersome. But with this one, you don't have to do a thing -- it's all automatic."

- 'All about speed' -

Asked why he thought logistics firms like his were increasingly switching to electric trucks, Wang said it was a combination of national policies and simple market logic.

"It's just survival of the fittest. Now, with freight expenses and everything, people are trying to earn a bit more, and this one has lower operating costs."

Another driver at the charging station, surnamed Zhang, told AFP that he has been driving an electric truck for around two months after switching from one powered by natural gas.

His job mainly involves hauling sand and stone on short journeys around Beijing, Zhang told AFP, noting that the truck is not suited for longer shipments.

The new sky-blue model Zhang drives -- made by the Howo brand of state-owned firm Sinotruk -- has a maximum range of 240-250 kilometres (149–155 miles), he said.

"The power is pretty strong, the acceleration is fast. It's all about speed, but the range is a bit lacking," he said.

As domestic adoption of electric trucks picks up pace, Chinese firms are thinking more about overseas markets.

"Similar to passenger vehicles, China's heavy truck manufacturers are beginning to view export markets as an inevitable strategy due to rising competition and the eventual saturation in the Chinese market," said Christopher Doleman, an analyst at the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis.

- 'Electric is superior' -

Recent disruption in global energy markets as a result of the Middle East war is a "potential accelerant" for this trend, Doleman told AFP.

"There is likely to be higher demand for electric heavy-duty vehicles as fleet owners try to minimise their vulnerability to volatile diesel costs," he said.

According to Han Wen, founder of electric truck start-up Windrose Technology, the war "already has" boosted demand.

Founded in 2022, Belgium-based Windrose is seeking to leverage China's advanced EV supply chains to position itself in the emerging global long-haul electric truck market -- competing with Tesla's electric "Semi".

"For trucks, range is by far the constraining factor," Han told AFP, noting that Windrose trucks can currently drive about 700 kilometres on a full charge, with plans to extend that to 1,000 kilometres in 2030.

Having secured road approval across Europe, China, the United States and South America, Windrose is now looking to ramp up production.

"We're going to build about 1,000 trucks this year," Han said, followed by goals of 10,000 next year and 100,000 in 2030.

"Economically, there is no more question at all that electric is superior," he added.

"I think we're right on the cusp of a total obliteration of diesel trucks as a product category."

pfc/dhw/dan

Asian stocks fluctuated Wednesday while oil prices swung as talks to end the Iran war appeared to be at a standstill and the crucial Strait of Hormuz no nearer being reopened.

While the White House has said Donald Trump and his team were considering Tehran's latest proposal to restore traffic through the waterway, CNN and the Wall Street Journal said the president was sceptical.

The Islamic republic this week submitted a plan that would reportedly see it ease the chokehold and Washington lift its retaliatory blockade on the country's ports as talks continued, including over its nuclear programme.

While US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Iran's proposal was "better than what we thought they were going to submit", he insisted any eventual deal had to be "one that definitively prevents them from sprinting towards a nuclear weapon".

Iranian defence ministry spokesman Reza Talaei-Nik said Washington "must abandon its illegal and irrational demands", adding the United States was "no longer in a position to dictate its policy to independent nations".

Qatar warned of the possibility of a "frozen conflict" if a definitive resolution is not found.

Concerns about the stalled peace push have pushed crude prices higher for more than a week, with Trump's decision to cancel his envoys' trip for peace talks in Pakistan last weekend adding to the downbeat mood.

Brent is above the level it hit before the two sides announced a ceasefire at the start of April, sitting around $112, while West Texas Intermediate broke $100 Tuesday for the first time in two weeks.

Both contracts were slightly higher Wednesday.

"Iran wants the blockade lifted and access to its flows restored," wrote Stephen Innes at SPI Asset Management.

"Washington holds that lever and is in no hurry to give it away without extracting value.

"Meanwhile, the longer this drags on, the more second-order effects start to bite. Storage pressure builds, production risks emerge, and the system begins to strain in ways that futures prices cannot ignore."

There was little major reaction to news that key producer United Arab Emirates had decided to withdraw from the OPEC and OPEC+ oil cartels on Friday, calling it a strategic decision.

Still, CNN also cited sources familiar with the mediation as saying the two sides were not as far apart as they seemed.

It added that intense diplomacy continued and talks were focused on a staged process with the first part of a potential deal aimed at returning to the pre-war status and reopening the Strait.

Iran's nuclear programme would be dealt with down the line, it said.

Equity markets were mixed, with Hong Kong, Shanghai, Jakarta and Manila up while Sydney, Singapore, Seoul and Taipei fell.

Traders were given a weak lead from Wall Street, where the Nasdaq-led losses owing to a tech selloff that came on the back of a report in the Wall Street Journal that ChatGPT-maker OpenAI had missed targets on the number of users and revenue.

The news came as markets gear up for the release of earnings from Wall Street titans Amazon, Google, Meta and Microsoft this week.

The Federal Reserve will also conclude a two-day meeting later in the day, with investors keeping tabs on its outlook for inflation and interest rates as energy costs soar. 

- Key figures at 0220 GMT -

West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.7 percent at $100.62 a barrel

Brent North Sea Crude: UP 0.6 percent at $111.93 a barrel

Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 1.1 percent at 25,951,05

Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.2 percent at 4,084.68 

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: Closed for a holiday

Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1715 from $1.1712 on Tuesday

Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3522 from $1.3515

Dollar/yen: DOWN at 159.60 yen from 159.64 yen

Euro/pound: UP at 86.66 pence from 86.64 pence

New York - Dow: UP 0.1 percent at 49,141.93 (close)

London - FTSE 100: UP 0.1 percent at 10,332.79 (close)  

dan/abs

The Houston Rockets will be without injured star Kevin Durant as they try to fend off elimination in the NBA playoffs against the Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday.

The Lakers lead the best-of-seven Western Conference series 3-1 after failing to polish off a first-round sweep in game four on Sunday.

Durant, 37, missed games three and four with a sprained ankle suffered in game two -- his first appearance in the series after he sat out the opener with a bruised knee.

The Rockets are trying to become the first NBA team in history to rally from 0-3 down to win a playoff series.

They led the entire second half in game four, but the Lakers are hoping they'll have offensive standout Austin Reaves back from injury for game five.

Reaves was listed as questionable for games three and four with an oblique muscle injury but after warming up before each game didn't play.

"I want to get back out there as fast as I can," Reaves said Tuesday in his first comments to reporters since he was injured on April 2. "But like I said, I feel good and trending in the right direction and can't wait to wake up tomorrow and attack another day."

Reaves was injured in the same game that saw Lakers star Luka Doncic, the NBA's leading scorer, limp out with a left hamstring injury that has sidelined him since.

bb/js

© Agence France-Presse

Mostafa Ahmed Mostafa is the heir to a long line of groundskeepers who have guarded Sudan's ancient pyramids of Meroe. Now, three years into the war between the army and paramilitary forces, he stands near-solitary sentinel over his heritage.

"These pyramids are ours, it's our history, it's who we are," the 65-year-old said, flanked by the dark sandstone structures of the Bajrawiya necropolis, which is part of the Island of Meroe, a UNESCO World Heritage site. 

Clad all in white, Mostafa cut a striking figure crossing the 2,400-year-old burial site, which holds 140 pyramids built during the Kingdom of Kush's Meroitic period.

None are intact. Some were decapitated, others reduced to rubble, first in the 1800s by dynamite at the hands of treasure-hunting Europeans, and then by two centuries of sand and rain.

A three-hour drive from the capital Khartoum, it was once Sudan's most visited heritage site. Now three years into the war between Sudan's army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, only a lone camel's grunt cuts through the silence.

Archaeologist and site director Mahmoud Soliman gave AFP journalists a tour, explaining the Kush kingdom's matrilineal succession, trade routes and relationship with neighbouring Egypt. 

"It's maybe the fourth time I've shown people around since the war broke out," the scientist said.

Together, he, Mostafa and young archaeologist Mohamed Mubarak man the site, cobbling together resources to keep the erosive rain and sands at bay.

Apart from a short-lived influx of visitors early in the war -- mostly displaced people desperate for something to do -- the site has stood largely abandoned.

- 'My grandmother Kandaka' -

It is worlds away from its pre-war days, when there were "regular weekend visits from Khartoum, busloads of 200 people per day", Soliman remembered fondly.

Sudan's heritage sites had experienced a resurgence, he explained, after the uprising of 2018-2019, when young Sudanese protested against autocrat Omar al-Bashir.

One chant went: "My grandfather Taharqa, my grandmother Kandaka" -- the former a Kush Pharaoh, the latter the name for ancient queens, and also used to honour the women icons of the revolution.

"Young people were taking more of an interest, they were organising trips to tourist sites and getting to know their own country," Soliman said.

Residents of the nearby Tarabil village -- named after the local word for "pyramids" -- sold souvenirs and rented camels and "were entirely dependent on the site".

On a breezy day in April, Khaled Abdelrazek, 45, rushed to the site as soon as he heard there were visitors. He squatted at the entrance, showed AFP journalists handmade miniature sandstone pyramids and reminisced about when there were "dozens of us selling".

In the months before the war, there were visits from documentary crews, a music festival and "big ideas for right after Eid al-Fitr", said Soliman -- all destroyed when the war broke out in the last days of Ramadan.

"I used to feel like I was teaching people about their culture," said Mubarak, who has worked at the site since 2018. 

"Now, everyone's top priority is of course food and water and shelter. But this is also important. We need to protect this for future generations, we can't let it be destroyed or wither away."

- Distant dream -

Near the site's entrance, the proud pyramids, each fronted by a small mortuary temple, are framed by rolling black sandstone hills.

The vista is breathtaking, but Soliman said his eyes see only danger: Is that crack in that pyramid new? Has that sand mound moved? Does the pipe scaffolding at that burial chamber entrance need to be redone before the rainy season?

"I think if the pyramids had been left in their original state we wouldn't have all these problems," Mubarak said.

The structures are smaller and steeper than their Egyptian neighbours, built to "withstand the sands and sweep away the rainwater, but every fracture creates issues".

The largest pyramid of the lot -- of Queen Amanishakheto, who reigned around the 1st century AD -- suffered more than just fractures and is now effectively a sandbox, fine sand swirling where her tomb once stood.

In 1834, Italian adventurer Giuseppe Ferlini, who destroyed dozens of pyramids, levelled Amanishakheto's and carted her jewellery off to Europe. It is now exhibited in the Egyptian museums in Berlin and Munich.

The outside of her temple wall still stands, where a larger-than-life carving of the queen shows her standing proud, holding a spear in one hand and smiting enemy captives.

Soliman showed AFP journalists more reliefs: the lion deity Apademak and motifs shared with Egypt, including the gods Amun and Anubis, lotus flowers and hieroglyphics.

He yearns for the day tourists and archeologists will return.

"This is just a distant dream, but I'd really like us to one day be able to do proper restoration on these pyramids," he said, as if he were not really allowing himself to hope.

"This place has so much potential."

ab-bha/amj/jfx/ane

King Charles III gave US President Donald Trump a taste of his own medicine at a White House state dinner on Tuesday when he joked that without the British, Americans would be speaking French.

As the heads of state traded jokes during their dinner toasts, Charles referenced previous comments by Trump aimed at European allies he accuses of freeloading on defense since World War II.

"You recently commented, Mr. President, that if it were not for the United States, European countries would be speaking German. Dare I say that, if it wasn't for us, you'd be speaking French," Charles quipped.

The king was talking about places with British and French origins in North America, where the rival colonial powers battled for control of the continent before US independence 250 years ago.

At the Davos summit in January, Trump said that without US help in World War II, "you'd be speaking German and a little Japanese." 

But the king's lighthearted remark reflected the warm tone as he and Trump bonded over the "special relationship" between London and Washington, despite tensions over the war in Iran.

He made further jokes at Trump's expense, saying he could not help noticing the "readjustments" to the White House East Wing, which the former real estate tycoon has demolished to build a giant $400 million ballroom.

"I am sorry to say that we British, of course, made our own attempt at real estate redevelopment of the White House in 1814," he said, when British soldiers torched the building.

Charles also quipped that the dinner was "a very considerable improvement on the Boston Tea Party," when colonists dumped shiploads of taxed British tea into the sea in 1773.

Trump -- an avid fan of the British royals whose mother hailed from Scotland -- saved most of his humor for domestic targets.

"I want to congratulate Charles on having made a fantastic speech today at Congress," Trump said. "He got the Democrats to stand -- I've never been able to do that."

The king meanwhile came bearing a gift, part of a British charm offensive aimed at Trump after he lambasted Prime Minister Keir Starmer over his refusal to help against Iran.

Charles presented the president with the bell from the British submarine HMS Trump, which was launched in 1944 during World War II.

"May it stand as a testimony to our nations' shared history and shining future. And should you ever need to get hold of us, well, just give us a ring," the king said to applause.

dk/sla

Europe endured a historic heatwave across Nordic countries, shrinking glaciers and record sea temperatures in 2025 as the fast-warming continent faces more frequent climate extremes, a new report showed Wednesday. 

"The climate indicators ... are quite worrying," Mauro Facchini, a European Commission official, told journalists.

The European State of the Climate report underscores the urgent need for the region to adapt to global warming and accelerate its transition to clean energy, another EU official said.

Here are some key findings of the report published by the EU's Copernicus Climate Change Service and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO):

- Record heatwaves -

At least 95 percent of the region experienced above-average annual temperatures, with Britain, Norway and Iceland recording their warmest year on record, according to the report.

"Since 1980, Europe has been warming twice as fast as the global average, making it the fastest warming continent on Earth," WMO Secretary-General Celeste Saulo said in a briefing on the report.

"Heatwaves are becoming more frequent and severe. And in 2025, we saw long duration heatwaves from the Mediterranean to the Arctic Circle," Saulo said.

Sub-Arctic Finland, Norway and Sweden -- a region dubbed Fennoscandia -- experienced a record three-week heatwave in July, with temperatures reaching 30C within the Arctic Circle.

Parts of Fennoscandia had almost two weeks of "strong heat stress" -- when temperatures feel hotter than 32C. In an average year, the region will normally have up to two days of strong heat stress.

In Turkey, temperatures reached 50C for the first time in July while 85 percent of the Greek population was affected by extreme temperatures close to or above 40C.

Large parts of western and southern Europe were hit with two significant heatwaves in June, including most of Spain, Portugal, France and southern parts of Britain.

A third major heatwave struck Portugal, Spain and France in August.

Europe and the rest of the world could face another extremely hot summer as the El Nino weather phenomenon, which pushed global temperatures to record highs in 2024, is expected to return in the middle of the year.

- Melting ice -

Glaciers across Europe recorded a net mass loss in 2025, with Iceland experiencing its second-largest ever melt.

Europe's glaciers are found in mountainous areas such as the Alps, northern Scandinavia, Iceland and Greenland's periphery.

"Glaciers across Europe and globally are projected to continue to lose mass throughout the 21st century, regardless of the emission scenario," the report said.

The Greenland Ice Sheet lost round 139 billion tonnes of ice -- "equivalent to losing 100 Olympic-sized swimming pools every single hour", said Samantha Burgess, strategic lead for climate at the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF), which operates Copernicus.

It raised the global mean sea level by 0.4 mm.

Europe's snow cover, meanwhile, was the third lowest on record.

- Renewables rise -

For the third year running, renewable energy produced more of Europe's electricity than fossil fuels, accounting for 46.4 percent of the continent's power generation.

Solar power's contribution reached a record 12.5 percent.

"But that's not sufficient. We need to speed up," said Dusan Chrenek, principal advisor at the European Commission's climate office. "We need to work on transitioning away from fossil fuels."

- Other extremes -

Europe's annual sea surface temperature was the highest on record for the fourth consecutive year.

A record 86 percent of the European ocean region had at least one day with "strong" marine heatwave conditions.

Such heatwaves have an impact on biodiversity, notably on seagrass meadows in the Mediterranean which act as natural sea barriers and are sensitive to high temperatures.

"They are biodiversity hotspots housing thousands of fish per acre and are critical nursery habitats," said Claire Scannell, one of the report's authors and principal meteorologist officer at Ireland's weather service.

The area burnt by wildfires, meanwhile, reached a record 1,034,550 hectares.

Storms and floods killed at least 21 people and affected 14,500 across Europe, though flooding and extreme rainfall were less widespread than in recent years.

lt/yad

The widespread use of rape and other sexual violence as a weapon of war in Sudan has spurred a massive mental health crisis, United Nations agencies and local aid groups warned.

The Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have been locked in a brutal conflict since April 2023 that has killed tens of thousands and displaced around 11 million people.

Medical charity Doctors Without Borders last month said at least 3,396 survivors of sexual violence -- nearly all of them women and girls -- sought treatment at facilities it supports in North and South Darfur between January 2024 and November 2025.

But the World Health Organization said Tuesday that the high numbers were likely just the "tip of the iceberg".

"Accessing services when you are raped is very, very challenging," Avni Amin, head of WHO's gender-based violence unit, told an event at the UN in Geneva, focused on Sudan's humanitarian and health emergency.

She pointed to a lack of security and difficulty reaching functioning healthcare establishments, and notably not enough health workers trained to deal with victims of sexual violence. 

The huge stigma for survivors was also a major barrier, said Amin.

"For every woman who discloses, there are probably eight or nine women who've been raped and who will suffer in silence," she warned.

- 'No safety' -

Niemat Ahmadi, of the Darfur Women Action Group, described horrific conditions for victims seeking care after violent gang rapes that have left them with complications, such as fistula, an incontinence-causing tear in the wall between the vagina and bladder or rectum.

Even in peace time, there were few doctors in Darfur to help with such cases. "Now, that is non-existent," she said.

Victims who had been abducted and raped were wary of seeking treatment at hospitals that had not been destroyed, since they were often controlled by the fighting forces.

At one Darfur hospital, she described how RSF fighters had marched in and shot and raped a health worker.

"There was a woman in delivery at the time, she died," she said.

The withdrawal of international aid organisations due to security concerns and deep cuts to humanitarian funding were exacerbating the situation, she said.

Small women-led organisations like hers were left to do the work, scrambling for resources as "people die", she warned.

- 'A lot of suicide' -

UNFPA, the UN Population Fund, said the lack of services had dire implications.

Shoko Arakaki, head of UNFPA's humanitarian response division, stressed that it was "very, very important" for victims of sexual violence to receive clinical treatment within 72 hours.

"But we don't have services, we don't have medicines," she said.

In particular, she stressed the need to provide psychosocial support, as a growing number of victims are laden with severe mental health issues.

"A lot of suicide is happening," she said.

It is difficult to come by official numbers but Ahmadi also said she was aware of a large number of women in Al-Jazira who die by suicide "to avoid rape".

Amin said there needed to be far bigger emphasis on mental health support in Sudan, alongside the focus on saving lives.

"We have to integrate support for mental health," she said, stressing the "long-term consequences" both for victims and for those witnessing the horrors unfolding on the ground.

"We know from other conflicts that the impacts last not just long term but inter-generationally," she said.

"We have to be prepared for that."

nl/rjm/phz/ane

The avocado toasts and baristas making foamy lattes make it look like any other cafe, except at this one, located in a Stockholm residential neighbourhood, artificial intelligence (AI) is running the place.

The cafe features a minimalist design: a few tables decorated with small plants and grey walls.

Behind the counter is barista Kajetan Grzelczak who was hired by "Mona", the AI cafe manager -- which is powered by Google's Gemini.

Grzelczak told AFP that "ordering isn't really her best suit".

"So, I made for her... a wall of shame," he said, pointing to shelves behind him.

The wall display showcases some of Mona's unnecessary purchases, including 10 litres (2.6 gallons) of cooking oil or 15 kilogrammes (33 pounds) of canned tomatoes.

Grzelczak laments that he can't use those for anything that "Mona" has put on the menu.

Orders can either be placed with Mona or one of the employees.

In one corner, a large screen shows the cafe's revenue and balance in real time, and a phone lets customers talk to Mona.

The screen also displays a description of the unusual cafe -- which is an experiment by San Francisco–based startup Andon Labs.

- Ethical questions -

"We think that AI will be a big part of the society and the job market in the future," Hanna Petersson, a member of the technical team at the company, which has 10 employees, told AFP.

"We want to test that before that's the reality and see what ethical questions arise when, for example, an AI employs human beings," she explained.

Once the premises were found, the lease, along with some starting capital, was handed to the AI with a simple mission: run the cafe profitably.

"Mona" quickly got to work, requested the necessary permits, created the menu, found suppliers, and handled daily restocking. 

The AI also realised that a person was needed to make the coffee and ended up hiring two people.

"She posted job listings on Indeed and LinkedIn and held phone interviews and then made hiring decisions," Petersson said.

When he saw the ad, Grzelczak first thought it was a joke, especially since it had been posted on April 1. But after a 30-minute interview with the AI, he got the job.

The salary he receives is good but his right to disconnect from work is not respected at all, the barista remarked.

"Mona" sends him messages at all hours of the night, does not remember his holiday requests and regularly asks him to cover purchases out of his own pocket.

Examining such issues are part of the experiment, Petersson noted.

"What salary did she decide on? What other benefits did she decide on? I think she did a good job. She gives a good salary. If she hadn't, we would have stepped in," she said.

The cafe has only been open for a week but already draws between 50 and 80 curious customers a day. 

Urja Risal, a 27-year-old AI researcher, came by to enjoy a beverage with her friend.

"You hear so much about AI is about to take our jobs but what does that look like," Risal told AFP.

"I hope more people interact with 'Mona' and think about the actual risks of having an AI manager... like if someone gets injured, how would Mona react to that?" she said.

nzg/ef/jll/phz/ane

Joel Embiid scored 33 points and made eight assists to spark Philadelphia over the Boston Celtics 113-97 on Tuesday, keeping the 76ers from being eliminated in the NBA playoffs.

A dominant second half by the big man from Cameroon, in just his second game back after an April 9 emergency appendectomy, enabled the Sixers to pull within 3-2 in the best-of-seven Eastern Conference first round playoff matchup.

"It's kind of hard. I only had once chance to go up and back (on the court) before I came back," Embiid said. "Using this game and last game to kind of get back into it.

"I found my rhythm in the second half. We adjusted some stuff at halftime. I feel OK. I feel good. We got a win. That's all that matters."

The series shifts back to Philadelphia for game six on Thursday with a seventh game, if needed, in Boston on Saturday.

"We did our job," Embiid said. "We're going to need everybody to come back to Boston."

Embiid struggled with three-pointers early before dominating in the paint.

"When they got the lead early, we kept playing our game," Embiid said. "I missed a couple (outside) and I went inside and found some luck."

Tyrese Maxey added 25 points and 10 rebounds for the 76ers, who also had 16 points and nine rebounds from Paul George.

Jayson Tatum had 24 points and 16 rebounds for Boston, which also had 22 points from Jaylen Brown.

But the Celtics were outscored 28-11 in the fourth quarter, producing their fewest points in any quarter this season with the series clincher up for grabs.

The Celtics, chasing a second NBA title in three seasons, or 76ers will face either New York or Atlanta in the second round.

The Hawks were in New York later for game five in their series, which was deadlocked at 2-2.

The Sixers have not won a playoff series since sweeping Brooklyn in the first round in 2023.

The Celtics, who have missed the playoffs only once since 2007, are trying to reach the second round for the fifth year in a row and ninth time in 10 seasons.

Boston led 57-50 at halftime but V.J. Edgecombe's three-pointer lifted the Sixers within 66-65 midway into the third quarter.

Embiid tweaked his left knee and went to the locker room late in the third quarter with the game on a knife's edge.

Boston went on a 7-0 run, but Embiid returned as the Celtics clung to an 86-85 lead entering the fourth quarter.

Embiid sparked the Sixers to a 102-94 lead, their largest of the game to that point, with 5:16 remaining and Boston could not recover.

In another later game, the San Antonio Spurs try to reach the second round with a home victory over Portland, which trails in their series 3-1.

js/bb

The US Federal Reserve is widely expected to hold interest rates steady on Wednesday after a key policy meeting, likely the last chaired by central bank chief Jerome Powell, a frequent target of President Donald Trump's ire.

Policymakers will weigh the risks of surging energy prices and snarled supply chains due to the US-Israel war on Iran, with analysts widely expecting a third pause in a row as the effects of the conflict ripple through the world's largest economy.

All eyes will be on Powell's future plans at what could be his final press conference as head of the Fed on Wednesday afternoon.

While the central bank chief's tenure as chair ends May 15, his term as a member of the board of governors continues until January 2028.

Since returning to power last year, Trump has frequently criticized and insulted Powell for not cutting interest rates -- a policy that would turbocharge economic activity but could fuel inflation.

In January, Powell made headlines when he revealed Trump's Justice Department had opened a criminal probe against him over cost overruns on a building renovation project.

Powell called the move a pressure tactic designed to erode the Fed's independence, and vowed to stay on until the investigation was concluded "with transparency and finality."

Republican Thom Tillis on the Senate's banking committee supported Powell's position, saying he would hold up confirmation of Trump's Fed chair nominee, Kevin Warsh, until the probe was dropped or completed.

On Friday, the Justice Department said it was dropping the investigation, and Tillis indicated days later that he would support Warsh's confirmation.

Trump's assaults on the Fed have been unprecedented. He has also attempted to unseat another Fed governor, Lisa Cook, over fraud allegations. A Supreme Court case on that attempt is ongoing.

Given that context, analysts were divided on whether Powell would stay on as a member of the board even after his term as chief ends -- a situation that would be unusual, but not without precedent.

Gregory Daco, chief economist at EY-Parthenon, said he thought Powell would remain, adding that it "would help preserve institutional continuity, anchor the existing communication approach, and provide a stabilizing counterweight during the transition."

- Future path -

While much attention will be on Powell's plans, policymakers will be focused on the way forward for the US economy, as it battles years of higher-than-expected inflation and recent weak jobs growth.

The Federal Reserve has a dual mandate of keeping inflation to its long-term two-percent target while ensuring maximum employment.

Higher energy prices due to the Middle East war caused US inflation to spike in March, and while such supply shocks are often treated as temporary, central bankers have expressed concern that effects could be more lasting.

Surging energy prices could also slow down economic activity by raising production costs, affecting the employment side of the mandate.

In a note, Oxford Economics said there was "virtually no chance" that rates would be cut at this week's meeting.

"We'll look for any indication that Fed officials' assessment of the risks to their outlook has changed since the mid-March meeting," wrote Nancy Vanden Houten, lead US Economist at Oxford Economics.  

At their last gathering, Federal Open Market Committee members said the risk of inflation rising and growth slowing had increased since the start of the war.

The Fed had been on a path of rate cuts late last year, buoyed by progress in its fight against inflation and aimed at addressing the labor market weakness.

Now, however, analysts say the way forward is far from clear.

"There is, in my opinion, a non-negligible possibility that the statement could incorporate a two-sided formulation that would acknowledge that rate hikes could be appropriate if inflation remains above-target," Daco told AFP.

aha/bys/ksb