DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ India kicks off second phase of its 2024 election
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-26 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailIndia kicks off second phase of its 2024 electionThirteen states will be heading to the polls on Thursday. CNBC's Sri Jegarajah speaks to voters in one of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's heartlands. Some of them, particularly younger, first-time voters, raised concerns about unemployment, corruption and the environment.

Persons: CNBC's Sri Jegarajah, Narendra Modi's heartlands Organizations: India

☆ Haiti Gang Wars Now 'Cataclysmic' in Key Farmlands -UN Report
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( Nov. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

(Reuters) - Haiti's brutal gang wars have spread from the capital to key farming heartlands, displacing tens of thousands of people and having a devastating impact on access to food staples, the United Nations said in a report on Tuesday. The violence has severely limited humanitarian access to the area, leaving support for victims of sexual violence to cash-strapped rural associations. Victims rarely come forward, the report said, due to fear of reprisals and mistrust of police. "We are continuing to receive reports of killings, sexual violence, displacement and other violence – including in hospitals," he said. "The much-needed multinational security support mission needs to be deployed to Haiti as soon as possible."

Persons: U.N, Human Rights Volker Turk, Turk, Sarah Morland, Harold Isaac, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: Reuters, United Nations, Human Rights Locations: Artibonite, Bas, United States, Haiti

☆ Mexico captures 'El Nini,' Sinaloa Cartel's alleged security boss
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MEXICO CITY, Nov 22 (Reuters) - The Mexican National Guard on Wednesday captured Nestor Isidro Perez Salas, or "El Nini," who is accused of heading security for the faction of the Sinaloa Cartel headed by the sons of founder Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman. Seen by U.S. anti-narcotics agents as one of the most ruthless Mexican drug figures, Perez Salas was detained in Culiacan, the Sinaloa Cartel's heartlands, and was taken to Mexico City, according to government detention records. "We're working side-by-side to combat arms trafficking, to tackle organized crime and to address the opioid epidemic, including fentanyl," Biden said. The U.S. and Mexico also agreed with China last week to stem the flow of fentanyl precursor chemicals from the Asian country. In January, Mexican authorities captured Ovidio Guzman in Sinaloa and extradited him to the United States in September.

Persons: Nestor Isidro Perez Salas, Joaquin, El, Guzman, Perez Salas, Ivan Archivaldo Guzman, Joe Biden, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, Biden, Ovidio Guzman, Ivan, Manuel Carrillo, Kylie Madry, Sarah Morland, Brendan O'Boyle Organizations: MEXICO CITY, Mexican National Guard, heartlands, U.S . State Department, The State Department, U.S . Drug, Administration, Thomson Locations: MEXICO, Sinaloa, Culiacan, Mexico City, U.S, Mexico, China, United States, Lincoln

Surging olive oil prices, driven in part by two years of drought in Spain, has meant opportunity for criminals across the Mediterranean. Warehouse break-ins, dilution of premium oil with inferior product, and falsification of shipping data are on the rise in olive-growing heartlands of Greece, Spain and Italy. Bekas, who owns 5,000 olive trees, suffered repeated raids by thieves before deciding to take an early harvest. After decades of growth, the global olive oil market has been disrupted by a nearly two-year drought in Spain, which typically accounts for about 40% of world supply. The regional agricultural association issued a plea for police assistance following reports that 100 olive trees were destroyed or seriously damaged in a single incident last month.

Persons: Konstantinos Markou, –, ” Markou, Neilos Papachristou, Christos Bekas, we’ve, ”, That's, Gennaro Sicolo, Ciaran Giles, Colleen Barry, Raf Casert Organizations: Farmers Locations: SPATA, Greece, Athens, Spain, Italy, Puglia, Papachristou's, Bari, Madrid, Milan, Brussels

“If we put our hands up, we will have a food crisis in Israel.”The Israel-Hamas war has plunged Israel’s agricultural heartlands, located around the Gaza Strip and in the north near the Lebanese and Syrian borders, into crisis. Meanwhile, farms in the north produce 40% of the country's sub-tropical fruit and 70% of its eggs, the Agriculture Ministry said. It also plans to build greenhouses to make up for potential shortages, construct hundreds of bomb shelters near farms and support volunteer efforts to fill labor gaps. Before the war, roughly half of Israel's agricultural workforce was composed of foreign and Palestinian labor. As Israel calls 360,000 reservists up for military service, posts from pickers to truck drivers have been left abandoned, the Agriculture Ministry says.

Persons: Avi, —, ”, Chivivian, Uri Dorman, Dorman, Yated, “, I’m, Ben Assayag, it’s, Liad Vaknin, ” Vaknin, Marcelo, Wasser, “ I’m, ” ___ Frankel Organizations: Agriculture Ministry, Israel Farmers, West Bank, Israel’s Dairy, ” Volunteers Locations: ASHKELON, Israel, Gaza, Yated, Lebanese, Turkey, Haifa, Jerusalem, overdraft, Thailand, Rwanda, Ashkelon, Nirim, Argentina

☆ Far-Right German Legislator Arrested After 'Sieg Heil' Salutes Heard
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-30 | by ( Oct. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

BERLIN (Reuters) - A legislator with the far-right Alternative for Germany party was arrested on Monday on charges including displaying forbidden totalitarian symbols, with neighbours of his fraternity complaining of often hearing the Nazi "Sieg Heil" victory salute. Newly elected Daniel Halemba, 22, is due to take up his seat in the Bavarian regional parliament on Thursday. He is a member of the Teutonia Prague student fraternity, whose premises were raided by police in September. The party, second in polls in several eastern states, achieved record results in the western states of Bavaria and Hesse on Oct. 8. Halemba, who joined the fraternity as a law student in Wuerzburg, has named Bjoern Hoecke, leader of the AfD's far-right wing, as his political role model.

Persons: Daniel Halemba, Halemba, Maximilian Krah, Hoecke, Thomas Escritt, Rachel More, Nick Macfie Organizations: BERLIN, Bavarian Locations: Germany, Prague, Bavaria, Hesse, Wuerzburg

☆ Another Local Vote, and Another Setback, for Rishi Sunak
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-19 | by ( Stephen Castle | More About Stephen Castle | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Britain’s governing Conservative Party on Friday lost two of its safest parliamentary seats in a significant and ominous setback for the prime minister, Rishi Sunak, who must call a general election that will decide his fate within the next 15 months. Voting in the Conservative strongholds of Mid Bedfordshire and Tamworth took place on Thursday to replace two of the party’s lawmakers — one of whom quit after an allegation of sexual assault — and came as Britain’s health care system faces acute strain and its economy stagnates amid high inflation. While that was always likely to put the Conservatives under pressure, the double defeat in the party’s heartlands was a stunning blow to Mr. Sunak and a striking success for the opposition Labour Party and its leader, Keir Starmer. In Tamworth, northeast of Birmingham, Labour overturned a majority of almost 20,000 in the last general election to win narrowly, while in Mid Bedfordshire, around 50 miles north of London, the main opposition party overcame an even bigger deficit to seize the seat.

Persons: Rishi Sunak, —, Sunak, Keir Starmer . Organizations: Conservative Party, Conservative, Tamworth, Labour Party, Labour Locations: Mid Bedfordshire, Tamworth, Birmingham, London

☆ London's financial heart is sizing up a win for center-left Labour party at next year's UK election
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-10 | by ( Elliot Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesLIVERPOOL, England — The U.K.'s main opposition Labour party is seeking to woo London's powerful financial center as it sets its sights on winning power at next year's General Election. At the party's conference this week, lawmakers were unanimous in emphasizing Labour's renewed focus under leader Keir Starmer on spurring economic growth as its number one priority. Speaking at a fringe event on Sunday, Shadow Financial Secretary to the Treasury James Murray reiterated the party's mission of achieving the highest growth in the G7 and engaging the private sector. It really is crucial to underpin the encouragement of businesses to invest, to underpin everyone working together for economic growth," Murray added. Shadow Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced a host of new economic pledges aimed at stimulating growth, vowing to "rebuild Britain" if Labour wins the 2024 General Election.

Persons: Keir Starmer, James Murray, Murray, Rishi, Liz Truss's, Kwasi Kwarteng, Rachel Reeves, Reeves, Jeremy Corbyn, Starmer, Emma Reynolds Organizations: Bloomberg, Getty, Labour, Shadow, Conservative Party, Treasury Locations: Canary, London, LIVERPOOL, England, Britain, Liverpool

☆ Analysis-Poland's PiS Faces Far-Right Challenge Over Ukraine Support
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-19 | by ( Sept. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +5 min

While Poles' overall attitudes to Ukrainian refugees remain positive and support for Kyiv's war effort is almost unanimous, research shows that critical views are becoming more widespread. SHIFTING VIEWSA survey last month showed that the number of Poles who support allowing refugees from Ukraine in has fallen to 69% from 91% just after the war started. Other research has shown a higher level of aversion to Ukrainian refugees among young women than in other demographics. POLISH PUSHBACKIt is against this political backdrop that PiS decided to extend a ban on Ukrainian grain imports in response to rising anger in the party's rural heartlands. "When it was necessary, we opened our hearts, we opened our homes for refugees from Ukraine," Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said.

Persons: Alan Charlish, Marek Strzelecki WARSAW, Slawomir Mentzen, Piotr Muller, CBOS, Anna Brylka, PiS, Mateusz Morawiecki, Poland, Marek Strzelecki, Agnieszka Pikulicka, Justyna, Gareth Jones Organizations: Russia, Justice, Confederation, Reuters, EU, Ukraine Locations: Ukraine, Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, Warsaw, heartlands, Kyiv, Western

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 12 (Reuters) - Malaysians in six states headed to the polls on Saturday in regional elections seen as a major test of support for Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim's nine-month old administration. Perikatan, led by former prime minister Muhyiddin Yassin, made significant inroads in the Malay heartlands in the last national election in November 2022. [1/3]A woman casts her ballot paper during a state election at Selayang, Malaysia August 12, 2023. Critics, however, have raised concerns over increasing government scrutiny on online content and growing intolerance against the country's LGBTQ community. Anwar has said LGBTQ rights will not be recognised by his administration.

Persons: Anwar Ibrahim's, Pakatan Harapan, Muhyiddin Yassin, Anwar, Hasnoor Hussain, Zainal, Anwar's, Rozanna Latiff, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: Perikatan, United Malays National Organisation, REUTERS, Merdeka Centre, Ilham, Reuters, Thomson Locations: KUALA LUMPUR, Selangor, Penang, Negeri Sembilan, Kelantan, Terengganu, Kedah, Perikatan Nasional, Malay, Selayang, Malaysia

☆ Opinion | Why Are Groceries So Expensive?
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-08 | by ( Paul Krugman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

For example, a White House blog post on grocery prices cited, among other things, “pandemic-induced shifts in food demand from restaurants to groceries.” This is a version of the toilet-paper problem. Part of the issue was that the toilet paper sold in stores is different from the toilet paper sold to businesses and restaurants, and when millions of people suddenly began staying home, the industry temporarily found itself producing the wrong kind of stuff. Also, getting food into your shopping cart involves a number of costs over and above the price of food commodities. If it were, we wouldn’t have seen egg prices come down as fast as they went up. But what caused that global food spike?

Organizations: Kazakhstan Locations: Ukraine, Soviet Union, Russia

The BPLA's growth owes much to Maung Saungkha's skills in building bridges with other armed groups, according to a key ally and two analysts. It says armed groups that oppose it are "terrorists" who sow chaos and kill civilians. It has charged Maung Saungkha with sedition as it has done with most opponents of its rule. Some armed ethnic groups have long relied on drug trafficking for funds, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. Some soldiers have run away, homesick, bored and tired after two years of war, said Maung Saungkha, who declined to disclose how many members are in his group.

Persons: Maung Saungkha, Bamar, Maung, Aunt Min, Richard Horsey, Nicola Williams, General Nyo Tun Aung, Tun Aung, We've, Shoon Naing, Poppy McPherson, Edwina Gibbs Organizations: Liberation Army, REUTERS, Poet, People's Defense Forces, National Unity Government, Strategy, AK, Karen National Union, Arakan Army, Myanmar Resistance, Myanmar Research, United Nations Office, Drugs, Reuters, UN, Thomson Locations: Myanmar, country's, Thailand, Myanmar's, Bamar, China, Russia

☆ United States chase more glory at expanded Women's World Cup
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-18 | by ( Ian Ransom | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

MELBOURNE, July 18 (Reuters) - Bigger, bolder and breaking new ground, the Women's World Cup kicks off in Australia and New Zealand on Thursday with the United States bidding to extend their golden era by winning an unprecedented third straight title. Four years on from dominating in France, the top-ranked Americans remain favourites to secure a record-extending fifth World Cup triumph with a new generation of players. However, the landscape has changed irrevocably through the World Cup cycle, with money, talent and professionalism shifting to the sport's traditional European heartlands. Olympic champions Canada, who upset the U.S. in the Tokyo Games semi-finals, also cannot be discounted as they look to give 40-year-old Christine Sinclair a first title at her sixth World Cup. Other players say the money is not nearly enough, given the $440 million prize pool for the men's World Cup.

Persons: Sam Kerr, Christine Sinclair, Prizemoney, mums, Megan Rapinoe, Alexia Putellas, Ghizlane Chebbak, Ian Ransom, Peter Rutherford Organizations: MELBOURNE, United, U.S, New Zealand, Norway, Sydney's, Ireland, Sydney, England, Olympic, Canada, Tokyo Games, FIFPRO, FIFA, France, Thomson Locations: Australia, New Zealand, United States, China, New, Eden, France, Germany, Sweden, Rich, Morocco, Melbourne

☆ Floods ruin crops and drown livestock in one of Italy’s gastronomic heartlands
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-21 | by ( Barbie Latza Nadeau | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

“The water then slides away, destroying everything.”What also slid away were orchards, vineyards and crops ready to harvest. A tractor goes off road after flooding outside Ravenna in the Emilia Romagna region of Italy on May 20. Emilia Romagna is one of the richest regions in Italy. Firefighters come to rescue people and recover their belongings after flooding hit the Fornace Zarattini district of Ravenna in the Emilia Romagna region of Italy on May 20. Extreme weather such as what has happened this month in Emilia Romagna is perplexing even to experts.

☆ Trounced, Conservatives Feel Voters’ Wrath in English Heartlands
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( Stephen Castle | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

LITTLEWICK GREEN, England — Aged 22 and not long out of college, George Blundell never expected to win when he ran in municipal elections against a Conservative Party bigwig in a region long loyal to the Tories. But for a young, enthusiastic, former politics student it still seemed worth a shot. It’s not something you get to do every day, is it?” recalled Mr. Blundell, a member of the centrist Liberal Democrats, as he sipped a beer outside the village pub where he once washed dishes as a summer job. To his surprise, Mr. Blundell is now a councilor representing the area around Littlewick Green, having defeated the powerful incumbent in perhaps the biggest upset from local elections that have sent shock waves through Britain’s governing Conservative Party. Unhappy about Brexit and aghast at the economic chaos unleashed during Liz Truss’s brief leadership last year, traditional Conservative voters are deserting the party in key English heartlands, contributing to the loss of more than 1,000 municipality seats in voting this month.

Farmers in Poland and other eastern European countries who held out for higher prices have been hit by a perfect storm. A jump in exports from Brazil and Russia helped to drive global grain prices lower while the EU opened its borders to tariff-free Ukrainian grain imports in a show of solidarity after Russia blocked the country's Black Sea ports. After opening its borders to Ukrainian grain, Poland imported 2.08 million tonnes of maize and 579,315 tonnes of wheat last year, up from just 6,269 tonnes of maize and 3,033 tonnes of wheat in 2021. If the grain corridor due to expire this month were to collapse, Ukrainian farmers would have little option but to send all their grain exports through eastern Europe. European wheat prices hit post-harvest highs in October 2022 of more than 350 euros a tonne but since then prices have dropped to pre-invasion levels of about 235 euros.

Efe is one of more than 6 million first-time voters expected to cast ballots in the May 14 election. 'ANGRY AND HOPELESS'Erdogan's share of the vote among young and first-time voters is forecast to be lower than among other age groups, said Erman Bakirci from pollster Konda Arastirma. Describing young voters as a "very angry and hopeless" segment of Turkey's 85 million people, Bakirci said they would be crucial to the result because they are such a large block. "They see via internet and social media what their peers in Europe are doing and what opportunities they have," Bakirci said. Erdogan, who oversaw an economic boom in his first several years in power, has traditionally drawn support from Turkey's conservative voters in Turkey's Anatolian Islamic heartlands.

Catalonia, Spain CNN —Standing in his field of stunted, withered maize, Santi Caudevilla is very worried. It’s becoming increasingly hard to make ends meet as crops shrivel through lack of water – or cannot be planted at all. “This is the worst period that we have had for the last 100 years,” Samuel Reyes, director of the Catalan Water Agency, told CNN. Allison Nussbaum/NASA Allison Nussbaum/NASA These two images show shrinking water reservoirs in the Catalonia region of Spain. In April, Spain requested emergency funding from the European Union to help farmers cope with the impacts of the drought.

"This result consolidates the centre-right and strengthens the work of the government," Meloni wrote on Twitter. However, fears inside the coalition that support might crumble for Meloni's two main partners proved unfounded. The result offered no comfort to the centre-left camp, comprising the Democratic Party (PD), the 5-Star Movement and so-called Third Pole, which is riven by mutual loathing. Italy's electoral laws at both a national and regional level favour parties that combine forces meaning Meloni's opponents face years in the wilderness unless they learn to work together. Reporting by Crispian Balmer and Angelo Amante; Editing by Gavin Jones and Hugh LawsonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Analysis: Italy's Meloni belies radical image in cautious first 100 days
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Crispian Balmer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

But almost 100 days since Meloni took office at the head of the most right-wing government Italy has seen since World War Two, these concerns have largely melted away. "We have seen something of a metamorphosis," said Sofia Ventura, a political science professor at Bologna University. Friend and foe alike say a significant reason for the softly-softly approach is money -- or rather a lack of it. "What happened in the UK shows ... how cautious we have to be with our fiscal and monetary policy mix," EU Commissioner Paolo Gentiloni, a former Italian prime minister, said at the time. VITAL FUNDSAdding to the pressure on Meloni is Italy's dependence on the European Union's recovery and resilience fund.

Both Ukraine and the Russia-installed authorities agree that some grain has been exported from occupied Zaporizhzhia via Crimea. Ukraine says at least a part of the grain that passed through Sevastopol was taken from Ukrainian territories after Russia invaded. Prior to the current war, Syria had imported grain from Crimea on previous occasions since Russia took control of the peninsula, Reuters reported. According to the Refinitiv data, Syria imported about 501,800 tonnes of wheat from Sevastopol this year until the end of November, up from about 28,200 tonnes in the whole of 2021. During a visit to Crimea in January, Syria's economy minister said his country needed 1.5 million tonnes of wheat imports, with Russia providing the majority.

☆ The next World Cup will jump to 48 teams. Is bigger better?
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Team USA celebrates after winning its match against Iran at Al Thumama Stadium in Group B play of the FIFA World Cup 2022 on Nov. 29, 2022. Morocco topped a group containing 2018 World Cup runner-up Croatia and semifinalist Belgium, and advanced to the quarterfinals by beating Spain on penalties on Tuesday. "Just look at how the World Cup is unfolding," said Senegal coach Aliou Cisse. However, the expansion may not have much of an impact on the final outcome of the World Cup. No teams from another continent have made a final in nearly 100 years of World Cup history.

☆ Italy police arrest woman mafia boss, 48 others in raid outside Milan
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MILAN, Nov 22 (Reuters) - Police arrested 49 suspected mobsters in a raid on the outskirts of Milan on Tuesday, including five women, one of whom is accused of leading a local unit of the fearsome 'Ndrangheta mafia. It's rare for women to have leadership roles in the male-dominated world of the mafia. The woman, accused of ruling a 'Ndrangheta unit in Rho, a town on the outskirts of Milan, was "even more ruthless than the men", Milan prosecutor Alessandra Cerretti said in a news conference, according to local media. In a separate operation, police arrested another 37 people linked to the Camorra mafia in a raid outside the city of Naples, following a three-year investigation into extortion and drug trafficking. Reporting by Agnieszka Flak, editing by Alvise Armellini and Jon BoyleOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Wisconsin GOP Sen. Ron Johnson is running for reelection against Democratic Lt. Gov. Senate Chevron icon It indicates an expandable section or menu, or sometimes previous / next navigation options. (1 District) Chevron icon It indicates an expandable section or menu, or sometimes previous / next navigation options. WI-03 House Governor Chevron icon It indicates an expandable section or menu, or sometimes previous / next navigation options. Barnes has raised nearly $34.6 million, spent $32 million, and has almost $2.6 million in the bank, as of October 19.

☆ Republican Sen. Ron Johnson faces Democratic Lt. Gov. Mandela Barnes in the Wisconsin Senate race
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-21 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Wisconsin GOP Sen. Ron Johnson is running for reelection against Democratic Lt. Gov. Johnson has maintained a conservative voting record during his two terms in the Senate. In the Senate, Johnson serves on the Foreign Relations Committee, the Budget Committee, the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, and the Commerce Committee. Barnes, who in 2018 was elected as lieutenant governor on a ticket with Democratic Gov. Barnes has raised nearly $26.1 million, spent $22.7 million, and has $3.5 million in the bank, as of September 30.

Search resuls for: "heartlands"

25 mentions found