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Iraqi markets a haven for pedlars escaping Iran's economic woes
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Chinese manufacturers in fighting spirits despite scrapped US orders
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Argentina receives $42 bn from international financial institutions
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Menendez brothers' resentencing can go ahead: LA judge rules
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'Hard on the body': Canadian troops train for Arctic defense
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Trump, 78, says feels in 'very good shape' after annual checkup
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McKellar 'very, very proud' after 'Tahs tame rampant Chiefs
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Man executed by firing squad in South Carolina
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Defending champ Scheffler three back after tough day at Augusta
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Ballester apologizes to Augusta National for relief in Rae's Creek
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Scorching Coachella kicks off as Lady Gaga set to helm main stage
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McIlroy, DeChambeau charge but Rose clings to Masters lead
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Langer misses cut to bring 41st and final Masters appearance to a close
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Ecuador presidential hopefuls make last pitch to voters
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Rose knocking on the door of a major again at the Masters
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DeChambeau finding right balance at Augusta National
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Spurs leaker not a player says Postecoglou
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All Black Barrett helps Leinster into Champions Cup semis
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Round-two rebound: Resilient McIlroy right back in the Masters hunt
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Asset flight challenges US safe haven status
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Menendez brothers appear in LA court for resentencing hearing
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McIlroy, DeChambeau charge as Rose clings to Masters lead
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UN seeks $275 million in aid for Myanmar quake survivors
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Frustrated families await news days after 221 killed in Dominican club disaster
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Trump wants to halt climate research by key agency: reports
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Fed official says 'absolutely' ready to intervene in financial markets
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Slumping Homa happy to be headed into weekend at the Masters
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Morbidelli fastest ahead of cagey MotoGP title rivals in Qatar practise
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Musetti stuns Monte Carlo Masters champion Tsitsipas to reach semis
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Abuse scandal returns to haunt the flying 'butterflies' of Italian gymnastics
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Trump defends policy after China hits US with 125% tariffs
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Frustrated families await news days after Dominican club disaster
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McLarens dominate Bahrain practice, Verstappen rues 'too slow' Red Bull
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Eight birdies rescue Masters rookie McCarty after horror start
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RFK Jr's autism 'epidemic' study raises anti-vaxx fears
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Trump -- oldest elected US president -- undergoes physical
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Rose clings to Masters lead as McIlroy, DeChambeau charge
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Brazil's Bolsonaro hospitalized with abdominal pain, 'stable'
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Canada, US to start trade talks in May: Carney
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Six arrested for murder of notorious Inter Milan ultra
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Pig kidney removed from US transplant patient, but she set record
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Musetti stuns defending champion Tsitsipas at Monte Carlo Masters
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UN shipping body approves global carbon pricing system
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Spain marine park defends facilities after France orca transfer blocked
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McLaren dominate Bahrain practice as Verstappen struggles
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Dollar plunges, stocks wobble over trade war turmoil
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Trump says tariff policy 'doing really well' despite China retaliation
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African Development Bank chief warns of tariff 'shock wave'
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Jolted by Trump, EU woos new partners from Asia to Latin America
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Brazil's Bolsonaro hospitalized with 'unbearable' abdominal pain

Dior designer Kim Jones: 'We live in a bubble'
Kim Jones may be borrowing from Dior's most iconic female looks for his latest menswear collection but that doesn't mean he believes gender boundaries are ready to disappear yet.
"We live in cities and they are incredibly open, but go outside and it's not the same," Jones told AFP at his studio in Paris.
"There are 40 countries in the world where if you dressed like that, you'd be killed," he said, referring to the increasing number of traditionally female clothes in menswear collections.
His own new collection, presented at Paris Fashion Week on Friday, includes a male reworking of Dior's iconic female Bar Jacket and plenty of feminine touches, from earrings and handbags to a sweatshirt covered in handwoven silk flowers.
None of this raises an eyebrow at fashion shows these days, where genderless clothes and a mix of male, female and trans models have become the norm.
But the 42-year-old Jones, who travelled the globe as a child with his geologist father, has a pragmatic view of life beyond the catwalk.
"I'm lucky, I grew up all over the world so I've seen it all and I understand we live in a bubble," he told AFP.
"If you go to other places, you have to be respectful of the culture."
- 'People want easiness' -
Jones himself works on both sides of the divide since he has also been the womenswear and haute couture designer for Fendi since September 2020.
"One thing I find now I'm doing womenswear is how constrained menswear is," he said.
"Men's clothing hasn't changed much since the 1940s."
He sees his current priority -- with the world still mired in the pandemic -- as making Dior's classic styles into something more comfortable.
"Easiness is what people want now -- I see it through sales, through talking to customers, everything."
It fits neatly with Jones's pioneering work at Louis Vuitton where, as artistic director from 2011 to 2018, he helped pioneer streetwear styles on the catwalk.
Now wearing three hats, he dismisses the idea that he has too much on.
"I like working and I'm in a really good stride," he said.
"The only problem for me now is Covid, because when I go home I have to isolate and keep away from everybody because I can't lose 10 days."
He has made sure to build holidays into his hectic calendar every two months to avoid burnout.
"I'm not going to kill myself for these people. I'm not stupid!" he said with a laugh.
- On Virgil -
He struck a more sombre note as he recalled his friend and successor at Louis Vuitton, Virgil Abloh, who died from cancer in November and had his final collection presented in Paris this week.
"I can't really talk about it still because I can't believe it's happened," Jones said.
"(Virgil and I) messaged pretty much every week. We travelled the world together. We would sit on the floor of hotel rooms, designing together with Kanye (West), Pharrell (Williams)... I feel very lucky to have known him.
"It's such a waste, to imagine what he could have done."
F.Pavlenko--BTB