Uber Hit With $8.5M Fine; Japan Conservatives Win Big

Uber was ordered to pay $8.5 million to a woman who claimed she was raped by a driver, while Japan's ruling conservative party was projected to win a landslide victory in the lower house elections, according to exit polls. Meanwhile, leaders from India and Malaysia pledged to bolster trade and defense collaborations, and voluntary student loan repayments in England are on the rise.

A US court found Uber responsible for the driver's behavior in the rape case, which occurred in Arizona. The company said it intended to appeal the verdict. The jury rejected additional claims made in the lawsuit, including that Uber had been negligent and that its safety systems were defective. The plaintiff, Jaylynn Dean, said she was sexually assaulted in the car while taking an Uber.

In Japan, the Liberal Democratic party (LDP) was projected to win between 274 and 328 seats out of a total of 465, according to an exit poll by the public broadcaster NHK. The election took place on Sunday.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim met in Putrajaya, Malaysia, on Sunday. They affirmed their commitment to strengthening trade ties and exploring new cooperation in semiconductors, defense, and other sectors.

In England, graduates are increasingly making voluntary student loan repayments. Luke England, who recently became a father, is trying to clear his student debt by repaying an extra 75 pounds on top of the 250 pounds that already comes out of his pay cheque every month. "There's a hundred other things that I could put that money to," Luke said. "If I wasn't to make any voluntary payments, I would still be paying my loan off in about 12 years' time. By deciding to add voluntary payments, I can look to clear the debt within six years."

Additionally, a deal to reunite the Coalition in Australia may have damaged the leader's credibility, according to some Liberal MPs. One MP who now considers a spill inevitable says accepting shorter suspensions for rogue Nationals senators was a significant backdown.