Monday 14 September: Sweden votes, ferry disaster in Java

World news

Indonesian rescuers are searching for about 130 people still missing after a passenger ferry overturned in the Java Sea on Sunday. The ship was sailing from Surabaya to Banjarmasin with more than 240 people and dozens of vehicles on board when it hit rough seas with waves up to three metres. At least 108 people have been rescued and six bodies recovered so far. NPR, ABC News

A Russian drone hit a passenger train just two kilometres from the Ukraine-Poland border on Sunday, minutes after a diplomatic train carrying Boris Johnson and other European officials had passed through the same station. Nobody was hurt, but Poland's foreign minister called the strike "an escalation" on NATO's doorstep. Al Jazeera, UPI

World politics

Sweden's centre-left opposition, backing former prime minister Magdalena Andersson, is narrowly ahead of Ulf Kristersson's right-wing coalition after Sunday's election. An exit poll from broadcaster SVT put the left bloc at 51.3 percent against 46.8 percent for the right, which would end the country's recent shift toward the far right if confirmed. Al Jazeera, CBS News

North Korea fired several short-range ballistic missiles toward the sea off its east coast on Saturday, a day after South Korea, Japan and the United States wrapped up joint military drills that Pyongyang views as a threat. The missiles flew about 250 kilometres; Washington says they pose no immediate danger to allies. Al Jazeera, NBC News

World economy

Oil prices climbed again on Monday and US stock futures slipped, as traders weighed fresh worries about the pace of AI development against hotter than expected inflation figures. The mood follows a volatile weekend for energy markets tied to tension in the Middle East. Bloomberg, ABC News Australia

US consumer prices rose 3.4 percent over the past year in data released Friday, with the core rate at 2.5 percent. Federal Reserve chair Kevin Warsh has signalled underlying inflation is not cooling fast enough, and markets now expect the Fed to raise rates at Wednesday's meeting. Bloomberg

Dutch news

Climate group Extinction Rebellion blocked the A12 motorway in The Hague again on Sunday afternoon, occupying the Utrechtsebaan ramp near the Malieveld. Police arrested 38 protesters before reopening the road by half past two. Drimble

A car slammed into a petrol station in Hoorn around two o'clock Saturday morning and caught fire. One passenger died and two others were injured; the driver, who had been drinking, was arrested. One of the station's nine pumps was destroyed. NOS

Dutch politics

The coalition has reached a deal on next year's budget ahead of tomorrow's Prinsjesdag, after tense internal talks. Prime Minister Jetten described the outcome as "not the end, but an offer to parliament," with concessions aimed at winning over opposition parties across the spectrum. NOS

Finance minister Eelco Heinen is appealing directly to the opposition for broad support, saying "we did not make a budget for three parties, but for ten." Opposition parties remain sceptical of the plans so far. NOS

AI news

Anthropic chief executive Dario Amodei published a lengthy essay over the weekend calling for an immediate slowdown in the pace of AI development, warning of risks including loss of control over AI systems, misuse for cyberattacks and bioterrorism, and major economic disruption. OpenAI's Sam Altman backed the call and confirmed OpenAI will not go public this year, citing safety concerns. Axios, CNBC

Elon Musk, owner of xAI, also publicly backed the call to slow the pace of frontier AI development, aligning his company with the warnings from Anthropic and OpenAI's leaders. Fortune

Tesla confirmed its long-delayed next-generation Roadster will be unveiled on October 1 in Waco, Texas, teasing the event with a "go for launch" image that hints at a SpaceX-derived thruster package. NASA and IBM, meanwhile, released a free, open-source AI model trained on decades of lunar mission data, which identifies craters, volcanic features and potential ice deposits up to 23 percent more accurately than existing tools. paultan.org, NASA

Also

Tennis wrapped up its US Open weekend: Elena Rybakina beat defending champion Aryna Sabalenka on Saturday for her first US Open title, and Alexander Zverev beat Ben Shelton in Sunday's men's final. ATP Tour

The autumn equinox arrives on September 23, just over a week away. As daylight shortens, birds and butterflies are already gathering to begin their journey south, following the same path as the sun's retreat. EarthSky

Weather in Groningen today: mostly cloudy with a high of 22 degrees and a low of 11 degrees. Rain chances are low, around 20 percent, so it should stay largely dry with a light southerly breeze.

On the agenda today

Tonight is Prinsjesnacht in The Hague, with music performances across the city ahead of tomorrow's Prinsjesdag. The Royal Cavalry also holds its traditional rehearsal on Scheveningen beach for tomorrow's procession, when King Willem-Alexander will deliver the Speech from the Throne and the government presents its 2027 budget.