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☆ Google to train 20,000 Nigerians in digital skills
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-15 | by ( Felix Onuah | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

The logo of Google LLC is seen at the Google Store Chelsea in Manhattan, New York City, U.S., November 17, 2021. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsCompanies Google Inc FollowAlphabet Inc FollowABUJA, Aug 15 (Reuters) - Google plans to train 20,000 Nigerian women and youth in digital skills and provide a grant of 1.2 billion naira ($1.6 million) to help the government's create one million digital jobs in the country, its Africa executives said on Tuesday. Nigeria plans to create digital jobs for its teeming youth population, Vice President Kashim Shettima told Google Africa executives during a meeting in Abuja. Google Africa executives said a grant from its philanthropic arm in partnership with Data Science Nigeria and the Creative Industry Initiative for Africa will facilitate the programme. Google director for West Africa Olumide Balogun said the company would commit funds and provide digital skills to women and young people in Nigeria and also enable startups to grow, which will create jobs.

Persons: Andrew Kelly, Kashim Shettima, Shettima, West Africa Olumide Balogun, Charles Murito, Felix Onuah, Chijioke Ohuocha, Josie Kao Organizations: Google, Chelsea, REUTERS, Google Africa, Data Science, Creative Industry Initiative, West Africa, Thomson Locations: Manhattan , New York City, U.S, ABUJA, Africa, Nigeria, Abuja, Data Science Nigeria

WASHINGTON, Aug 15 (Reuters) - US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Tuesday he could not confirm a report that Iran slowed its pace of amassing near-weapons-grade enriched uranium but would welcome any Iranian steps to de-escalate its "growing nuclear threat." On Thursday, sources said Iran may free five detained U.S. citizens as part of a deal to unfreeze $6 billion in Iranian funds in South Korea. Iran allowed four detained U.S. citizens to move into house arrest from prison. "Of course, we would welcome any steps that Iran takes to actually deescalate the growing nuclear threat that it has posed since the United States got out of the Iran nuclear deal," Blinken told a news conference, alluding to former U.S. President Donald Trump's 2018 abandonment of that agreement. Blinken emphasized that the agreement included U.S. citizens who have all been designated as wrongfully detained and said Washington would continue to examine other cases.

Persons: Antony Blinken, Blinken, Donald Trump's, Roya Hakakian, Sherry Hakimi, Nazanin Boniadi, Leah Millis, Iran's, I'm, Shahab Dalili, Biden, Dalili, we're, Humeyra Pamuk, Simon Lewis, Arshad Mohammed, Daphne Psaledakis, Josie Kao Organizations: U.S, Union and United Nations, Iranian, U.S . State Department, REUTERS, State Department, Thomson Locations: Iran, U.S, South Korea, United States, American, Iranian, Washington , U.S, Washington

Aug 16 (Reuters) - A look at the day ahead in Asian markets from Jamie McGeever, financial markets columnist. The word 'crisis' should always be used responsibly and judiciously when covering financial markets, business and economics, but are we at that point now with China? The People's Bank of China may have finally pulled the interest rate lever, but it had the expected impact of slamming the exchange rate. Compare and contrast China with Japan, as per Tuesday's bumper Q2 GDP data, and the U.S., where figures on Tuesday showed a surge in retail sales. Here are key developments that could provide more direction to markets on Wednesday:- New Zealand interest rate decision- China house prices (July)- Japan tankan surveys (August)By Jamie McGeever; Editing by Josie KaoOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Jamie McGeever, Zhang Dandan, JP Morgan, Josie Kao Organizations: Peking University, People's Bank of, Atlanta, Thomson, Reuters Locations: China, New Zealand, Japan, Asia, People's Bank of China, U.S, Hong, Zealand

☆ Esmark CEO says has money in bank account for $7.8 billion US Steel bid
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-15 | by ( David Carnevali | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

NEW YORK, Aug 15 (Reuters) - Esmark Inc majority owner and chief executive James Bouchard said in an interview on Tuesday that his steel maker, which does not publicly report its earnings, has cash for its $7.8 billion bid for U.S. Steel Corp (X.N) sitting in his bank account. Esmark unveiled its offer on Monday after Cleveland-Cliffs Inc (CLF.N), another steel maker, said on Sunday it had made a $7.3 billion offer for U.S. Steel, which the latter rejected. "I got $10 billion in cash in my bank account," Bouchard said. Bouchard, a former U.S. Steel executive, said Esmark was "the third largest steelmaker in the country", without elaborating with any figures. He subsequently bought back the Esmark name, trademark and intellectual property to create his latest steel maker, which he says generates over $500 million in annual revenue.

Persons: James Bouchard, Esmark, Bouchard, " Bouchard, David Carnevali, Josie Kao Organizations: Esmark, U.S . Steel Corp, Cliffs Inc, U.S . Steel, Thomson Locations: Cleveland, U.S, Russian, New York

☆ Taiwan pitches deeper Europe engagement after TSMC Germany investment
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-09 | by ( Ben Blanchard | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

TAIPEI, Aug 9 (Reuters) - Taiwan chipmaker TSMC's (2330.TW) 3.5 billion euros ($3.83 billion) investment in Germany will drive deeper engagement between the island and Europe, Taiwan's economy minister said on Wednesday, pitching the political benefits of the deal. "TSMC's investment in Europe will help bring even closer cooperation between Taiwan and the EU," Taiwan Economy Minister Wang Mei-hua told reporters in Taipei, when asked if signing the BIA would get more Taiwanese chipmakers to the bloc. Taiwan has repeatedly called for progress on a BIA with the European Union. The EU included Taiwan on its list of trade partners for a potential bilateral investment agreement in 2015, but it has not held talks with Taiwan on the issue since. The TSMC investment in Germany will need approval by Taiwan's economy ministry, and Wang said they will also consider the company's "vigorous" investments at home when weighing the German plans.

Persons: Wang Mei, Wang, TSMC, Ben Blanchard, Jeanny Kao, Stephen Coates Organizations: European Union, BIA, Washington, EU, Trade Organisation, Reuters, Thomson Locations: TAIPEI, Taiwan, Germany, Europe, Beijing, Taipei, United States, Japan

☆ ASEAN chief says the 5-point consensus remains the 'main political document' to assist Myanmar
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-04 | 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 EmailASEAN chief says the 5-point consensus remains the 'main political document' to assist MyanmarKao Kim Hourn, secretary-general of ASEAN, discusses Myanmar's military rule and says ASEAN can only assist "as much as possible."

Persons: Myanmar Kao Kim Hourn Organizations: ASEAN Locations: Myanmar

☆ 'More than just idols': Behind the scenes with K-pop boyband Treasure
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-24 | by ( Kimberley Kao | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Treasure — the latest boyband out of YG Entertainment — may be quite new to the K-pop scene, but its members already have big dreams. I want each and every member of the group to be an artist of their own," said co-leader Choi Hyun Suk, sharing his vision with The CNBC Conversation. His dream has always been to perform at the U.S. Superbowl halftime show, said the 24-year-old artist, the oldest member of the band. Treasure made its debut in 2020 while Covid-19 was spreading wildly around the world. It started out as a 12-member band but two of them left in November last year, leaving the boy band with just 10 members.

Persons: Choi Hyun Suk, — Choi, Park Jihoon, Yoshinori Kanemoto, Yoshi — Organizations: YG Entertainment, CNBC Locations: Covid

NEW YORK, July 23 (Reuters) - It is Barbie’s world, and U.S. small businesses hope their social-media marketing can help them cash in on it. But as Mattel-licensed Barbie marketing and products flood big companies' stores, hotel suites and social media posts, small firms also seek to capitalize on the hype. “Small businesses may look at the Barbie promotions and dream of that kind of budget and mass brand awareness,” said Brianne Fleming, an adjunct marketing instructor at University of Florida. MoonFire, an arts boutique based in Dallas, Texas, hosted a Barbie-themed collaboration in person with ten small businesses selling hot-pink, Barbie-inspired products. So, for small businesses, the strategy is to be a quick follower,” he said.

Persons: Barbie, “ Barbie, Inditex’s Zara, ”, Brianne Fleming, there's, Iris, Wilglory Tanjong, Kimberly Wagner, Ken, Mica Garbarino, “ Barbie ”, Walker Smith, Smith, “, gatekeepers, Josie Kao, Nick Zieminski Organizations: YORK, Google, Mattel, University of Florida, Monday, Kailyn, Thomson Locations: Malibu, Friday’s, Airbnb, Instagram, New York City, New York, Blue Curacao, grenadine, Dallas , Texas, Soho, Kailyn Rhone

[1/2] A man types into a keyboard during the Def Con hacker convention in Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. on July 29, 2017. In an interview this week, Canadian Centre for Cyber Security Head Sami Khoury said that his agency had seen AI being used "in phishing emails, or crafting emails in a more focused way, in malicious code (and) in misinformation and disinformation." The same month, Britain's National Cyber Security Centre said in a blog post that there was a risk that criminals "might use LLMs to help with cyber attacks beyond their current capabilities." The LLM responded with a three paragraph email asking its target for help with an urgent invoice. Reporting by Raphael Satter in Washington; editing by Chris Sanders and Josie KaoOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Steve Marcus WASHINGTON, Sami Khoury, Khoury, cybercriminals, Europol, ChatGPT, Raphael Satter, Chris Sanders, Josie Kao Organizations: Def Con, REUTERS, Reuters, cybercriminals, Centre for Cyber Security, European, Cyber Security, Thomson Locations: Las Vegas , Nevada, U.S, Washington

The tanker Flex Artemis was in the South Atlantic and heading northeast on Thursday, according to Refinitiv vessel tracking. It had carried LNG from Yamal in Russia, according to a trader familiar with the matter, and had arrived in Argentine waters about July 14. The Flex Artemis is carrying around 160,000 cubic meters of LNG, according to Olumide Ajayi, senior LNG analyst at Refinitiv. Leo Kabouche, LNG market analyst at consultancy Energy Aspects, said warm weather in Argentina and the start of the Nestor Kirchner pipeline is likely reducing the call on LNG. Argentina turns away Gunvor-chartered LNG tanker, citing sanctions Argentina turns away Gunvor-chartered LNG tankerReporting by Marwa Rashad in London and Julia Payne in Brussels; additional reporting by Ron Bousso in London and Nicolas Misculin in Buenos Aires; Editing by Josie Kao and Jonathan OatisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Sergio Massa, Gunvor, counterparty, Olumide Ajayi, Leo Kabouche, Nestor Kirchner, Marwa Rashad, Julia Payne, Ron Bousso, Nicolas Misculin, Josie Kao, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: Energy, Argentina, Thomson Locations: Russia, France, Argentine, Yamal, Ukraine, Geneva, Argentina, Gunvor, London, Brussels, Buenos Aires

[1/2] A view shows a cooked piece of cultivated chicken breast created at the Upside Foods plant, where lab-grown meat is cultivated, in Emeryville, California, U.S. January 11, 2023. Difficulty competing with conventional meat on price has plagued the plant-based meat sector, which has failed to meet market share expectations. To be price competitive, cultivated meat must reach a production cost of $2.92 per pound, Goncalves said. Last year, governments spent about $635 million on alternative proteins, about $167 million of which was for cultivated meat, according to the group. China Chilcano's chefs said the product behaved very similarly to conventional chicken and offered some improvements, like rapid absorption of marinades.

Persons: Peter DaSilva, Matthew Walker, Leticia Goncalves, Goncalves, Andrew Noyes, Jose Andres's, Gustavo Burger, Believer, Steve Cahillane, Alan Grublauskas, Noyes, chefs, Leah Douglas, Tom Polansek, Josie Kao Organizations: REUTERS, WASHINGTON, U.S . Department of Agriculture, Food and Drug Administration, S2G Ventures, Daniels, Midland, Washington , D.C, Food Institute, Kellogg, Reuters, Food Forum, Thomson Locations: Emeryville , California, U.S, Jose Andres's China, Washington ,, Chicago, China, San Francisco, Washington

☆ US investigating why Delta passengers remained on plane in extreme heat
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-20 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, July 20 (Reuters) - U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said the department was investigating why Delta Air Lines (DAL.N) passengers remained on board a plane at the Las Vegas airport that sat on the tarmac in extreme heat on Monday, citing reports that the plane sat there for four hours. "I want to know how it was possible for passengers to be left in triple-digit heat onboard an aircraft for that long," Buttigieg told Reuters on Thursday, calling the issue "infuriating" and "shocking." During tarmac delays, airlines must provide comfortable cabin temperatures and begin moving the plane within three hours of a delayed domestic flight to a location where passengers can exit. Fox News reported passengers were waiting in 111 degree Fahrenheit (43.8 Celsius) heat with no air conditioning when the pilot announced the plane was returning to the gate citing multiple emergencies. Delta said it apologized directly to passengers on the flight, adding they had received compensatory gestures and were accommodated on other flights.

Persons: Pete Buttigieg, Buttigieg, Delta, David Shepardson, Leslie Adler, Josie Kao Organizations: . Transportation, Delta Air Lines, Las, Reuters, Fox News, Thomson Locations: Las Vegas, Atlanta

July 21 (Reuters) - A look at the day ahead in Asian markets from Jamie McGeever, financial markets columnist. The regional data focus on Friday will be the latest consumer inflation figures from Japan. Core consumer inflation likely re-accelerated in June to a 3.3% annual rate from 3.2% the previous month, staying above the central bank's 2% target for the 15th straight month. In its mid-year review, the government expects overall consumer inflation to hit 2.6% for the fiscal year that began in April, up sharply from 1.7% projected in January. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

Persons: Jamie McGeever, Thursday's, Dow Jones Industrials, Johnson, Kazuo Ueda, Janet Yellen, Josie Kao Organizations: Nasdaq, Netflix, Johnson, U.S, Treasury, Bank of Japan's, . Treasury, Thomson, Reuters Locations: Asia, Japan, South Korea, Vietnam

A strike could be one of the costliest in at least a century, with the impact of a 10-day strike topping $7 billion, according to one think tank. UPS pilots, who belong to a different union, would also stop flying in solidarity with the striking workers. The Teamsters have been holding "practice pickets" in major cities around the country to keep pressure on UPS. On the other hand, UPS is the largest employer of Teamsters at a time when unions are fighting to grow. "We believe an August 1 strike at UPS remains possible but not yet probable," Susquehanna analyst Bascome Majors said in a client note.

Persons: Mike Blake, Sean O'Brien, Joe Biden, Bascome Majors, Lisa Baertlein, Priyamvada, David Shepardson, Chris Reese, Josie Kao Organizations: teamsters, UPS, REUTERS, United Parcel Service, Teamsters, International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Twitter, Reuters, Thomson Locations: L.A, Los Angeles , California, U.S, United States, Susquehanna, Los Angeles, Bengaluru, Washington

WASHINGTON, July 19 (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O) is expanding its suite of free security tools for customers, the software company said on Wednesday, following criticism that it was charging clients to protect themselves against Microsoft's mistakes. Microsoft's previous practice of charging for advanced versions of those tools has come under widespread criticism, especially following the recently disclosed hack at the U.S. State and Commerce Departments. That hack - which Microsoft later acknowledged was down to a breach and coding flaws - was only discovered because one of the victims spotted an anomaly while reviewing their digital logs. In a statement released alongside Microsoft's blog post, Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency official Eric Goldstein said that "everyone wins" when security tools are provided free of charge. Charging for those tools "is a recipe for inadequate visibility into investigating cybersecurity incidents," Goldstein said.

Persons: Eric Goldstein, Goldstein, Raphael Satter, Josie Kao Organizations: Microsoft Corp, U.S, Microsoft, U.S . State, Commerce, Infrastructure Security Agency, Thomson

☆ Discover Financial shares sink after profit miss, buyback pause
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-19 | by ( Sinéad Carew | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Discover, a U.S. provider of digital banking and payment services, last traded at $105.63 after closing the regular session up 15 cents at $121.85. It said that from around mid-2007 it incorrectly classified certain credit card accounts into the highest merchant and merchant acquirer pricing tiers. It said however that the revenue impact of incorrect card product classification was not material to consolidated financial statements. For the second quarter the company reported adjusted earnings per share of $3.54 compared with Wall Street expectations for $3.67, according to data gathered by Refinitiv. It reported revenue, net of interest expense, of $3.88 billion compared with $3.2 billion in the year-ago quarter.

Persons: acquirers, Sinéad Carew, Josie Kao Organizations: Financial Services, Refinitiv, Discover, Thomson Locations: U.S

July 20 (Reuters) - A look at the day ahead in Asian markets from Jamie McGeever, financial markets columnist. China's central bank is expected to leave key interest rates on hold on Thursday, but the pressure to ease is growing almost by the day. The Dow Jones Industrials is now up eight days in a row for the first time since September 2019. The main argument against cutting rates - and it's a valid one - is the currency. Given all that, it's little wonder China's assets continue to trade poorly, even though the degree of underperformance is startling.

Persons: Jamie McGeever, Dow Jones Industrials, Josie Kao Organizations: U.S, IBM, Tesla, Netflix, People's Bank of China, ., Thomson, Reuters Locations: Hong Kong, Asia, China, Japan, Australia

They are a key source of financing for some fintech lenders, which have fewer funding options than banks. As the end of pandemic stimulus and rising inflation led delinquency rates to normalize, investors shunned the fintech ABS market late last year. Fintechs like Upstart (UPST.O), Affirm (AFRM.O) and OneMain Financial (OMF.N) say they are boosting credit quality, in another example of how lenders have been pulling back amid uncertainty over the economic outlook. Still, analysts say it is a sign the fintech ABS market is recovering. For fintech loans to borrowers with weighted average credit scores between 660 and 710, annualized net losses rose by 1.88% month-over-month to 16.61%.

Persons: Sanjay Datta, Datta, Max Levchin, Doug Schulman, OneMain, Finsight, Robert Wildhack, Kroll, Hannah Lang, Matt Tracy, Josie Kao Organizations: Wall Street, OneMain, AAA, Autonomous Research, Kroll Bond Rating Agency, Thomson Locations: Washington

☆ Peru protesters take to streets in new round of anti-government marches
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-19 | by ( Marco Aquino | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

LIMA, July 19 (Reuters) - Thousands of anti-government protesters took to the streets in Peru on Wednesday, part of a new round of marches organized by groups opposed to President Dina Boluarte's eight-month-old administration, as police deployed to guard government offices. Many Peruvians accuse Boluarte and her allies of illegitimately removing and jailing her leftist predecessor Pedro Castillo, which led to angry and sometimes violent protests through last March that claimed 67 lives. Some 24,000 police officers were deployed throughout the country, according to officials, as authorities braced for a so-called "third takeover of Lima." Ground transport officials said protesters blocked six highways by early afternoon on Wednesday, mostly in southern Arequipa and Cusco regions. Peru, the world's second-largest copper producer, could also face disruptions along its key mining corridor, where according to environmental groups, communities will support the protests.

Persons: Dina Boluarte's, Boluarte, Pedro Castillo, Roger Perez, Jorge Pizarro, Marco Aquino, Sarah Morland, Alexander Villegas, Will Dunham, Josie Kao Organizations: Local, Police, Congress, Thomson Locations: LIMA, Peru, Lima, Arequipa, Cusco, Huancavelica, Puno

☆ Dutch urge stricter digital coins, videogame loot boxes EU rules
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-19 | by ( Foo Yun Chee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BRUSSELS, July 19 (Reuters) - The European Commission should better protect children with stricter consumer rules for digital coins and videogame loot boxes, the Dutch government said, according to a discussion paper seen by Reuters on Wednesday. The EU executive late last year sought feedback on whether to overhaul the existing EU consumer law for the digital world. The Dutch said an area of concern was increasing digital coins usage for paying in an app or in videogames, with children as the most vulnerable to this practice. "This is exacerbated by the fact that software developers can change the value of digital coins and can offer different digital items in one app." "Loot boxes have a high potential to distort the economic behaviour of consumers.

Persons: they're, Foo Yun Chee, Josie Kao Organizations: European Commission, Reuters, EU, Thomson Locations: BRUSSELS

☆ Biden creates new competition role on National Economic Council
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-18 | by ( Andrea Shalal | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Summary White House readying actions in new corporate sectorsCompetition Council to have fifth meeting on WednesdayIndustry chafes at 'regulatory overreach'WASHINGTON, July 18 (Reuters) - President Joe Biden has created a new role on the National Economic Council (NEC) to tackle anticompetitive business practices, naming NEC member Hannah Garden-Monheit as Director of Competition Council Policy, the White House said on Tuesday. One may be the retail sector, which National Economic Council Director Lael Brainard singled out last October before leaving her job as Federal Reserve vice chair, arguing it had "ample room" to "recompress margins" after COVID-19 price hikes. "Institutionalizing competition policy within the National Economic Council and the White House is another critical step ... to make sure we right the wrongs of failed antitrust enforcement and competition policy enforcement for the last several decades." Columbia University Professor Timothy Wu, who led the White House antitrust push until December, said Biden's decision to create a specific role centered on the competition council reflected its importance. "Creating a White House director of competition policy is a big deal — it cements the White House role in antitrust policy and ensures a lasting impact," he said.

Persons: Joe Biden, Hannah Garden, Biden, Monheit, Lael Brainard, Morgan Harper, Timothy Wu, Andrea Shalal, Josie Kao, Matthew Lewis Organizations: Competition Council, Industry, National Economic Council, NEC, Competition, Reuters, Economic, Reserve, U.S . Chamber, Commerce, Council, Consumer Financial, Bureau, American Economic Liberties, Columbia, White, Thomson Locations: WASHINGTON, U.S, Wednesday's, Washington

☆ US new business applications hit two-year high in June
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-18 | by ( Safiyah Riddle | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

July 18 (Reuters) - Applications to start new U.S. businesses surged to the highest level in two years in June, despite high interest rates and uncertain economic outlook, according to a Commerce Department report released on Monday. Business applications increased 6.2% in June compared with May with a seasonally adjusted 465,906 new applications. The data is collected from business applications for tax identification numbers. They slowed somewhat last year as the Federal Reserve kicked off aggressive interest rate hikes to lower inflation, but have been climbing again this year. The Census Bureau estimated that 32,148 new business startups with payroll tax liabilities will actually form within four quarters of application, a 4% increase compared to estimates from May.

Persons: Safiyah Riddle, Josie Kao Organizations: Commerce Department, Federal Reserve, Census Bureau, Thomson Locations: U.S

☆ Biden creates new anti-competition role on National Economic Council
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-18 | by ( Andrea Shalal | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Biden created the council as part of an executive order two years ago to crack down on anti-competitive practices in sectors from agriculture to drugs and labor, and find ways to lower prices for consumers. She said would work with Congress to curb anti-competitive practices in agriculture, while seeking new focal areas. One may be the retail sector, which National Economic Council Director Lael Brainard singled out last October before leaving her job as Federal Reserve vice chair, arguing it had "ample room" to "recompress margins" after COVID-19 price hikes. Columbia University Professor Timothy Wu, who led the White House antitrust push until December, sans the new title, said Biden's decision to create a specific role centered on the competition council reflected its importance. "Creating a White House director of competition policy is a big deal — it cements the White House role in antitrust policy and ensures a lasting impact," he said.

Persons: Joe Biden, Hannah Garden, Biden, Monheit, Lael Brainard, Timothy Wu, Andrea Shalal, Josie Kao Organizations: Competition Council, Industry, National Economic Council, NEC, Competition, Reuters, Economic, Reserve, U.S . Chamber, Commerce, Council, Columbia University, White, FDR, Thomson Locations: WASHINGTON, U.S, Wednesday's, Washington

SAO PAULO, July 18 (Reuters) - An alternative investment vehicle controlled by French insurer AXA (AXAF.PA) said on Tuesday it will inject $49 million into reforestation projects in Brazil led by local startup Mombak. Mombak, which is also backed by Bain Capital, will lead projects to reforest over 10,000 hectares of degraded pastureland, generating up to 6 million carbon credits. "We are building the largest carbon removal projects in the world," Mombak co-founder Peter Fernandez said in an interview. "The single largest opportunity that humanity has to do reforestation is in Brazil." "We would like to significantly scale up our deployment in Brazil and other Amazon basin countries."

Persons: Mombak, Peter Fernandez, Fernandez, Adam Gibbon, Gabriel Araujo, Brad Haynes, Josie Kao Organizations: SAO PAULO, AXA, AXA IM Alts, Bain Capital, Greenpeace, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Brazil

July 19 (Reuters) - A look at the day ahead in Asian markets from Jamie McGeever, financial markets columnist. The disconnect between Asia and the rest of the world has widened recently, and correlations between the MSCI Asia ex-Japan index and leading U.S. and global indexes are the weakest in about a month. Bulls in Asia will be hoping some of that momentum drives local trading on Wednesday. The MSCI Asia equity index ex-Japan is up 4.6% this year, significantly underperforming the MSCI World index, S&P 500 and Nasdaq which are up 17%, 19% and 38%, respectively. Disappointing second quarter growth figures this week pushed the Chinese economic surprises index to its lowest in more than three years.

Persons: Jamie McGeever, John Kerry, Li Shangfu, Henry Kissinger, Pita Limjaroenrat, Josie Kao Organizations: Bulls, Nasdaq, Bank of America, Bank of New York Mellon, Biden, Thomson, Reuters Locations: Asia, Japan, U.S, China, Beijing, Thailand, Zealand

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