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☆ Chevron annual profit doubles to record $36.5 bln, but misses estimates
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( Sabrina Valle | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The second largest U.S. oil producer's adjusted net profit for 2022 beat by about $10 billion its previous record set in 2011. But $1.1 billion in writedowns in its international oil and gas operations in the fourth quarter left earnings short of forecasts for adjusted net profit of $37.2 billion. High prices from strong demand and shortages since Russia's invasion of Ukraine position Western energy firms to show a combined $200 billion profit for the year, according to analysts. In the final quarter, Chevron posted adjusted earnings of $7.9 billion, or $4.09 per share, up 61% from a year ago. U.S. production rose to a record last year led by a 16% increase in Permian, the country's main shale basin.

☆ Japan, Netherlands to join US in restricting chip equipment exports to China-Bloomberg
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

TOKYO, Jan 27 (Reuters) - Japan and the Netherlands will soon agree to join the United States in restricting exports of semiconductor manufacturing equipment to China, Bloomberg News reported. Japan would impose similar restrictions on Nikon Corp (7731.T), the report said. "We have been in discussion with the United States and other countries regarding the export-control regime," Yasutoshi Nishimura, Japan's Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, told reporters on Friday. "A balance needs to be struck so no one among Japan, the United States and Europe will be disproportionately disadvantaged. Japan expects sales at affected chip-related companies to rebound quickly because the market for their equipment is expanding, a trade and industry official involved in overseeing semiconductor firms told Reuters.

☆ U.S. secures deal with Netherlands, Japan on China chip export limit- Bloomberg
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan addresses the daily press briefing at the White House in Washington, U.S. September 30, 2022. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/File PhotoWASHINGTON, Jan 27 (Reuters) - The United States has secured a deal with the Netherlands and Japan to restrict exports of some advanced chip-making machinery to China in talks that concluded on Friday, Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Officials from the Netherlands and Japan were in Washington discussing a wide range of issues in talks led by White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan. John Kirby, the White House national security spokesperson, earlier said the officials were talking about issues that are "important to all three of us." When asked about the Bloomberg report, the White House declined to comment beyond Kirby's earlier remarks.

WASHINGTON, Jan 27 (Reuters) - The White House on Friday launched a fresh attack against U.S. oil companies, accusing them of using profits to pay shareholders instead of boosting supply, after Chevron Corp (CVX.N) said its annual profit doubled for 2022. Other oil companies are expected to follow suit. "Companies clearly have everything they need – record profits and thousands of approved permits – to increase production," White House spokesperson Abdullah Hasan said in a statement. "The only thing getting in the way is their own decision to keep plowing windfall profits into the pockets of executives and shareholders instead of using them to boost supply." Hasan's comments mark the latest set of attacks from the White House lambasting oil companies for funneling a windfall of profits to investors.

☆ Chevron annual profit doubles to record $36.5 billion, but misses estimates
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Chevron on Friday posted a record $36.5 billion profit for 2022 that was more than double year-earlier earnings but fell shy of Wall Street estimates, undercut by asset writedowns and a retreat in oil and gas prices. The second largest U.S. oil producer's adjusted net profit for 2022 beat by about $10 billion its previous record set in 2011. But $1.1 billion in writedowns in its international oil and gas operations in the fourth quarter left earnings short of forecasts for an adjusted net profit of $37.2 billion. High prices from strong demand and shortages since Russia's invasion of Ukraine position Western energy firms to show a combined $200 billion profit for the year, according to analysts. In the final quarter, Chevron posted adjusted earnings of $7.9 billion, or $4.09 per share, up 61% from a year ago.

☆ Japan, Netherlands to join U.S. in restricting chip equipment exports to China, Bloomberg reports
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

TOKYO, Jan 27 (Reuters) - Japan and the Netherlands will soon agree to join the United States in restricting exports of semiconductor manufacturing equipment to China, Bloomberg News reported. Japan would impose similar restrictions on Nikon Corp (7731.T), the report said. Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Seiji Kihara, a government spokesperson, said Japan would make "appropriate steps" based on the United States' and other nations' regulatory moves. "We have been in discussion with the United States and other countries regarding the export-control regime," Yasutoshi Nishimura, Japan's Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, told reporters on Friday. "A balance needs to be struck so no one among Japan, the United States and Europe will be disproportionately disadvantaged.

After finding Sayfullo Saipov guilty of committing murder with the goal of joining the militant group Islamic State, also known as ISIS, the Manhattan jury will return on Feb. 6 to consider whether the death penalty is appropriate punishment. The only point of contention between prosecutors and Saipov's lawyers was whether the defendant carried out the attack in order to join Islamic State, which the United States brands a terrorist organization. These included murder and attempted murder to gain entrance to Islamic State, providing material support to a terrorist organization, and damage or destruction of a motor vehicle. The U.S. Department of Justice said in September that it intends to seek the death penalty for Saipov, despite a moratorium on federal executions since July 2021 as the department reviews the practice. Reporting by Luc Cohen in New York; Editing by Leslie Adler, Bill Berkrot and David GregorioOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Congressional Budget Office to issue debt limit, budget forecasts on Feb. 15
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( David Lawder | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, Jan 25 (Reuters) - The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) said on Wednesday that it plans to release its 2023 baseline budget and economic forecast on Feb. 15, along with a special report on the federal debt limit situation. The non-partisan CBO said the debt limit report, part of a recurring series during debt limit standoffs in Congress, will describe "the current debt situation and CBO's expectation about when the Treasury will no longer be able to pay its obligations fully if the debt limit is not raised." The agency annually provides the baseline fiscal forecast based on current tax and spending laws and its assessment of current economic conditions to kick off Congress' budgeting and appropriations processes. The U.S. budget deficit for December quadrupled from a year earlier to $85 billion as revenues eased and outlays for debt interest costs, health care and Social Security grew. RReporting by David Lawder; Editing by Christopher CushingOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

WASHINGTON — Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., is angling to be Donald Trump's running mate in 2024, according to two people who have spoken to the firebrand second-term congresswoman about her ambitions. "She sees herself on the short list for Trump's VP. A second source who has advised Greene said her "whole vision is to be vice president." The source, who has ties to Trump but spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe private conversations, said he also believes Greene would be on Trump's short list. McCarthy stood by Greene at the time, facilitating the development of a political alliance.

The decisions by Washington and Berlin come as the Western allies help Ukraine prepare for a possible spring counter-offensive to try to drive Russia out of territory it has seized. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said any Abrams shipments would be a waste of money as they "burn" like other tanks in Ukraine. The total cost of a single Abrams tanks can vary, and can be over $10 million per tanks when including training and sustainment. "I am certain that many experts understand the absurdity of this idea," the Kremlin's Peskov said about the Abrams tanks. "The United States was willing to make a significant commitment to assist them in making theirs," the source said.

☆ Kevin McCarthy reportedly agrees to leave cuts to Social Security and Medicare off the table in debt ceiling negotiations
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( Ayelet Sheffey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Kevin McCarthy agreed not to cut Social Security and Medicare in debt ceiling negotiations, Sen. Joe Manchin told reporters. "Under no circumstances should Republicans vote to cut a single penny from Medicare or Social Security," Trump said in the video. Save Social Security, don't destroy it." It's still unclear what other types of cuts Republicans are considering in these negotiations. … Does that mean cuts to Social Security or Medicare or child care or Pell Grants?"

☆ Ukraine's allies are finally sending the advanced tanks it asked for. Now they want it to embrace a rapid, aggressive style of warfare.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( Sinéad Baker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Ukraine's allies have agreed to send it advanced tanks after months of indecision. The group said Ukraine should move towards a style of mechanized maneuver warfare that "uses rapid, unanticipated movements against Russia," sources told CNN. The new tanks and armored vehicles committed by Ukraine's allies are supposed to help Ukraine make the switch, CNN reported. Tanks for UkraineUkraine had been requesting advanced tanks for months, but the US and Germany in particular had been reluctant to send the weapons. Even so, Ukraine's plans, and Western hopes for a new, more aggressive strategy, will be aided by other advanced weaponry that its allies have recently committed and sent.

PDVSA has found reserves of 4.2 trillion cubic feet (TCF) in the Dragon field, on the Venezuelan side of its maritime border with Trinidad. Even with Washington's granting of Trinidad's request, it could take years of investment and development to bring Venezuelan gas to Trinidad and boost LNG to Europe, experts say. In addition, with no payments authorized to Venezuela, it could be difficult for Trinidad to craft a deal with Caracas. "At the request of the Government of Trinidad and Tobago, the United States Department of the Treasury issued a specific license to enable Trinidad and Tobago to develop the Dragon gas field," the senior administration official said. The Chevron license is meant to reopen some oil flows that were shut by U.S. sanctions nearly four years ago.

☆ Biden nominates North Korea human rights envoy, first since 2017
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( Josh Smith | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

She speaks Korean and has previously worked on North Korean human rights as a special assistant in the envoy's office, the statement said. The special envoy position - and a similar one in South Korea - had become controversial as preceding administrations tried to bring North Korea to the negotiating table. South Korea's ambassador on North Korean human rights expressed disappointment last year that Biden's administration had yet to appoint an envoy for the issue at the time. North Korea has repeatedly rejected accusations of human rights abuses and blames sanctions for a dire humanitarian situation. A landmark 2014 U.N. report on North Korean human rights concluded that North Korean security chiefs - and possibly leader Kim Jong Un himself - should face justice for overseeing a state-controlled system of Nazi-style atrocities.

☆ Biden's Cabinet is sticking around, bucking the turnover trend of his predecessors
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( Peter Nicholas | Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Carol-Lee-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +7 min

By early 2019, Trump had cycled through seven of 15 Cabinet secretaries and was on his third chief of staff. A White House official said Mayorkas would fight any such attempt and has no wish to step down. The durability of Biden’s Cabinet is something of a surprise. Going back decades, presidents have steadily concentrated power in the White House, at the Cabinet’s expense, historians say. Some Cabinet secretaries have felt marginalized as presidents stocked the West Wing with trusted advisers and usurped the prerogatives of Cabinet members who had thought they were brought in to run things.

Jan 23 - The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday asked President Joe Biden's administration to weigh in on whether it should review Republican-backed laws in Texas and Florida that would undercut efforts by major social media companies to curb content deemed objectionable on their platforms, actions the states call impermissible censorship. Supporters of the laws have argued that social media platforms have silenced conservative voices while advocates for the judicious use of curbing content have argued for the need to stop misinformation and advocacy for extremist causes. Florida is seeking to revive its law after a lower court ruled largely against it, while the industry groups are appealing a separate lower court decision upholding the Texas law, which the Supreme Court had blocked at an earlier stage of the case. The Texas law forbids social media companies with at least 50 million monthly active users from acting to "censor" users based on "viewpoint." Circuit Court of Appeals in 2022 upheld the Texas law, concluding that it "chills no speech whatsoever.

☆ Explainer: Who is Jeff Zients, incoming White House chief of staff?
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON, Jan 27 (Reuters) - President Joe Biden named businessman and former COVID-19 response coordinator Jeff Zients to become his second White House chief of staff on Friday, replacing Ron Klain, who is departing the administration after two years on the job. WHO IS JEFF ZIENTS? In the Biden administration, Zients served as the first COVID-19 response coordinator, charged with rolling out a massive vaccine program nationwide in early 2021. He stepped down from that role in 2022 before being tapped to prepare for potential staff turnover at the White House after the midterm elections. The White House chief of staff is like the chief operating officer for the government, someone who runs daily operations, oversees implementation of the president's policies and serves as a liaison for cabinet members.

☆ Arizona throws out one of the first lawsuits seeking to block Biden's student-loan forgiveness
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( Ayelet Sheffey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Arizona's new Democratic attorney general dismissed a lawsuit seeking to block student-debt relief. It was the third lawsuit filed that attempted to block the relief, and on Friday, Arizona's new Democratic attorney general Kris Mayes dismissed the case. Mayes took office earlier this month, and she indicated that she would be reviewing whether to continue her predecessor's legal challenge to Biden's broad debt relief. Two other lawsuits succeeded in pausing the implementation of Biden's debt relief, and those cases are now headed to the Supreme Court, which will hear the oral arguments on February 28. One of the lawsuits was filed by six Republican-led states who sued because they argued the debt relief would hurt their states' tax revenues, along with that of student-loan company MOHELA.

☆ Germany will coordinate with allies on Ukraine weapons decisions
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

PARIS, Jan 22 (Reuters) - German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, under pressure to allow the shipment of German-made tanks to Ukraine, said on Sunday all decisions on weapons deliveries would be made in coordination with allies including the United States. Last week Germany and Western allies reached no decision on whether Germany would agree to send Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine, or permit other countries that have them to do so, despite Ukraine's pleas for modern tanks to boost its defence efforts. Scholz, asked at a news conference in Paris about providing tanks to Ukraine, said all weapons deliveries to Ukraine so far had taken place in close coordination with Western partners. Speaking at the same news conference, French President Emmanuel Macron said he did not rule out the possibility of sending Leclerc tanks to Ukraine. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier/File PhotoMacron said that sending tanks must not escalate the situation, must take into account the time to train Ukrainians to be effective, and must not endanger France's own security.

☆ U.S. Treasury's Yellen says IRS needs to be 'completely redone'
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-22 | by ( Andrea Shalal | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

She said she decided to stay on as Treasury secretary in large part to oversee implementation of legislation like the Inflation Reduction Act, which included the IRS funding and passed on party lines last year. "That agency needs to be completely redone, and it’s a big task." Republicans sought unsuccessfully to slash tens of billions in IRS funding from the law. Yellen, 76, conceded that the split Congress reduced the chances of passing legislation to advance Biden's agenda, but said she still enjoyed the job. Asked about the debate with Congress over raising the debt ceiling, Yellen simply puts her hand to her forehead and sighs.

☆ Biden White House chief of staff Ron Klain set to step down in coming weeks: report
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-21 | by ( John L. Dorman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

White House chief of staff Ron Klain is expected to depart his role in the coming weeks, per The New York Times. Klain worked as President Barack Obama's White House Ebola response coordinator and also previously served as chief of staff to former vice president Al Gore. He also was chief of staff to then-Vice President Joe Biden during the first two years of the Obama administration. Anita Dunn — who rejoined the White House last year after having previously served in the White House as a senior advisor from January 2021 to August 2021 — has been a name long rumored to be a contender upon a Klain departure. Other individuals thought to be under consideration include former Delaware governor Jack Markell, White House counselor Steve Ricchetti, and White House domestic policy director Susan Rice.

☆ U.S. approves design for NuScale small modular nuclear reactor
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( Timothy Gardner | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Companies Nuscale Power Corp FollowWASHINGTON, Jan 20 (Reuters) - The U.S. nuclear power regulator has certified the design for the NuScale Power Corp's (SMR.N) small modular reactor, the first such approval in the country for the next generation technology. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission's approval, published in the Federal Register late on Thursday, clears a hurdle for NuScale. The company plans to build a demonstration small modular reactor (SMR) power plant at the Idaho National Laboratory. The U.S. Department of Energy has provided more than $600 million since 2014 to support the design, licensing and siting of NuScale's power plant and other small modular reactors. "SMRs are no longer an abstract concept," said Kathryn Huff, assistant secretary for nuclear energy at the Energy Department.

☆ March for Life returns to DC with new post-Roe v. Wade focus
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Anti-abortion activists hold a banner as they walk in front of the U.S. Supreme Court building during the annual "March for Life", in Washington, January 21, 2022. One year ago, the annual March for Life protest against legal abortion took place in Washington amid a mood of undisguised triumph. With a fresh conservative majority on the Supreme Court, thousands of marchers braved bitterly cold weather to celebrate the seemingly inevitable fall of Roe v. Wade. Now, with the constitutional right to abortion no longer the rule of the land, the March for Life returns Friday with a new focus. Instead of concentrating their attention on the Supreme Court, the marchers plan to target the building directly across the street: the U.S. Capitol.

☆ U.S., German defense ministers meet as differences emerge over tanks for Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Idrees Ali | Thomson Reuters | National Security Correspondent Focusing On The Pentagon In Washington D.C. Reports On U.S. Military Activity | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Germany will allow German-made tanks to be sent to Ukraine to help its defense against Russia if the United States agrees to send its own tanks, a German government source told Reuters. "The secretary (of defense) will be pressing the Germans on this," one senior U.S. defense official said. The United States has committed roughly $24 billion to help Ukraine to defend itself against Russian forces. Some Eastern European officials have publicly called on Germany to allow the transfer of Leopard tanks to Ukraine. Some U.S. officials remain hopeful that they can convince Germany to allow the transfer of third party tanks to Ukraine.

☆ Berlin will allow exports of German tanks to Ukraine if U.S. sends its tanks -source
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BERLIN, Jan 18 (Reuters) - Germany will allow German-made tanks to be sent to Ukraine to help its defense against Russia if the United States agrees to send its own tanks, a German government source told Reuters. Western allies will meet at a U.S. air base in Germany on Friday to offer more weapons for Ukraine. Poland and Finland have already said they will send Leopard tanks if Germany approves them. The United States has committed roughly $24 billion to help Ukraine defend itself against Russian forces. The Wall Street Journal, citing senior German officials, first reported Berlin's condition on tanks earlier on Wednesday.

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