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☆ Biggest Shipping Companies Signal Global Trade Slowdown
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( Costas Paris | Dominic Chopping | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Maersk says it is seeing falling demand for freight shipping from both the U.S. and Europe. A Danish shipping giant on Wednesday became the latest company to showcase how global trade has slowed through the Covid-19 pandemic. Moller-Maersk A/S, one of the world’s largest ocean freight companies, said it expects its earnings could plunge nearly 80% this year amid weakening demand to ship containers.

Some Republicans heckled him at times during a speech that lasted 73 minutes. But over the past two years, we proved the cynics and the naysayers wrong," said Biden, a Democrat. The White House has said Biden will not negotiate over that necessity; Republicans want spending cuts in exchange for their support. And he stuck to that theme, highlighting a massive infrastructure bill and gently ribbing Republican lawmakers who opposed it. Some House Republican lawmakers have questioned Biden's victory in the 2020 presidential race against Trump, vowing to investigate his Cabinet and family.

WASHINGTON, Feb 7 (Reuters) - President Joe Biden pledged to work with the opposition party on Tuesday in a State of the Union speech that served as an olive branch to skeptical Republicans and a blueprint for his 2024 re-election bid. The White House has said Biden will not negotiate over that necessity; Republicans want spending cuts in exchange for their support. McCarthy said earlier on Tuesday that he would not rip up Biden's speech, referencing the actions of former Speaker Nancy Pelosi after Trump's 2020 State of the Union address. He said he urged Biden not to use the phrase "extreme MAGA Republicans" in his speech, a reference to Trump's "Make America Great Again" slogan. Some House Republican lawmakers have questioned Biden's victory in the 2020 presidential race against Trump, vowing to investigate his Cabinet and family.

☆ China's finance minister, central-bank governor to attend debt roundtable in India, IMF says
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Feb 5 (Reuters) - China's finance minister and its central bank governor will attend a roundtable with other creditors and some borrowing countries in February in India, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said in a CBS' 60 Minutes interview on Sunday. "China has to change its policies because low income countries cannot pay," she said. Georgieva said last month the first such gathering will take place on the sidelines of a meeting of Group of 20 finance officials in India. "China is going to participate at the level of minister of finance and the governor of People's Bank of China," she told 60 Minutes. Reporting by Costas Pitas in Los Angeles and David Lawder in Washington; Editing by Christopher Cushing and Tom HogueOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Zelenskiy says he needs to show that Ukraine was a safe steward of billions of dollars of Western military and other aid. Ukrainian aircraft have launched nine strikes on areas of concentration of Russian forces and two anti-aircraft positions, it said. Arakhamia had said the 37-year-old head of military intelligence, Kyrylo Budanov, would replace Reznikov, who would become minister of strategic industries. One obstacle to replacing Reznikov with Budanov, a fast-rising officer decorated for operations that remain secret, is a rule requiring the defence minister to be a civilian. Ukraine said on Monday evening that Russian forces had trained tank, mortar and artillery fire there in the past 24 hours.

☆ U.S. working to recover suspected Chinese spy balloon
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Feb 5 (Reuters) - The United States is working to recover a suspected Chinese spy balloon that was shot down off the coast of South Carolina, according to a statement released by the Pentagon on Sunday. "Our U.S. Navy component is currently conducting recovery operations, with the U.S. Coast Guard assisting in securing the area and maintaining public safety," General Glen VanHerck, commander of the North American Aerospace Defense Command and U.S. Northern Command, said. China says the airship was used for meteorological and other scientific purposes. Reporting by Costas Pitas in Los Angeles; Editing by Lisa ShumakerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ U.S. to end COVID-19 emergency declarations on May 11
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, Jan 30 (Reuters) - President Joe Biden's administration on Monday said it will end COVID-19 emergency declarations on May 11, nearly three years after the United States imposed sweeping pandemic measures to curb the spread of the illness. The COVID-19 national emergency and public health emergency (PHE) were put in place in 2020 by then-President Donald Trump. Biden has repeatedly extended the measures, which allow millions of Americans to receive free tests, vaccines and treatments. The government has been paying for COVID-19 vaccines, some tests and certain treatments under the PHE declaration. COVID-19 cases are declining in the United States, though more than 500 people continue to die each day from the disease, government data showed.

Russia has managed to keep its oil moving to world markets, defying fears that sanctions imposed last month would lead to a plunge in exports. A small office in a suburb of Mumbai helps explain how Russian crude continues to flow. The address is home to an Indian shipping company that didn’t manage a single ship until 2022. It took control of two dozen tankers after the Russian military invasion of Ukraine and has put them to work shuttling Russian crude along newly established trade routes to the Mediterranean, Turkey and India, vessel-ownership and tracking data show.

☆ 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.

Moeller-Maersk and Mediterranean Shipping Co. created the so-called 2M alliance in 2015 to help them reduce costs by sharing cargo on major ocean routes. Rivals formed similar partnerships, creating the Ocean Alliance and THE Alliance. Global trade volumes fell 9.5% year over year in November 2022, according to London-based Container Trade Statistics, and global shipping rates have been sliding at a steep pace since early last year. He said the winding down of 2M raised questions over the future of the other two alliances, Ocean Alliance and THE Alliance. So the in-transit issues and all the penalties have pretty much faded away.”Target said in an email that it renegotiates its shipping rates regularly.

☆ Ketamine is being sold as a depression wonder drug. For some, it's making everything worse.
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( Anna Silman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +42 min

The infusions at the ketamine clinic in his West Texas hometown were a Christmas gift from his grandmother. About five years ago, more and more of my friends started using ketamine recreationally. IV ketamine treatment centers charging $400 to $2,000 an infusion popped up all over the country. "Ketamine used as directed in an appropriate clinical setting very rarely leads to any dependence," Mindbloom says on its website. Like Nadia, most of the people I interviewed said when they started using ketamine, they didn't think it was possible to become dependent on it.

☆ India commits to help Sri Lanka on debt in prospective IMF program
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] Laborers carry sacks of flour in the main market as Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe announced 2023 budget amid the country's economic crisis, in Colombo, Sri Lanka, November 14, 2022. REUTERS/ Dinuka Liyanawatte/File PhotoJan 23 (Reuters) - India has committed to help ease the debt burden of its crisis-stricken neighbor Sri Lanka as part of a possible International Monetary Fund-supported program, the IMF said on Monday. "Sri Lanka is engaged with other official bilateral creditors to obtain similar assurances," an IMF spokesperson said in a statement on Monday. "As soon as adequate assurances are obtained and remaining requirements are met, including by the Sri Lankan authorities, a Fund-supported program for Sri Lanka can be presented to the IMF's Executive Board for approval that would unlock much needed financing." Sri Lanka requires the backing of China and India - its biggest bilateral lenders - to reach a final agreement with the IMF that is essential to help the country emerge from its worst financial crisis in seven decades.

[1/5] Ukrainian servicemen are seen near the frontline, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, near Soledar in Donetsk region, Ukraine January 23, 2023. The corruption scandal could dampen Western enthusiasm for his government just as European countries bicker over sending German-made Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine. One of the most widely used Western tanks, Ukraine says it needs them to break through Russian lines and recapture territory this year. Germany is not blocking the re-export of Leopard tanks to Ukraine, the European Union's top diplomat said on Monday. Ukraine says Western tanks would give its ground troops the mobility, protection and firepower to break through Russian defensive lines and resume their advance.

The Covid-19 pandemic might not be gone, but the global supply-chain crisis it spawned has abated. Goods are moving around the world again and reaching companies and consumers, despite some production snarls and Covid outbreaks inside China. Gone are the weekslong backlogs of cargo ships at large ports. Ocean shipping rates have plunged below prepandemic levels.

☆ Shipping Industry Balks at Green Energy Transition
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-22 | by ( Costas Paris | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Ocean shipping is making its biggest energy transition since switching to oil from coal decades ago, but the shift to low- or no-carbon fuels so far has been messy. Shipowners are split on which fuel should be the new industry standard and how soon they can recoup investments to meet environmental targets established by governments and industry regulators. The price tag on investments needed in new ships, alternative fuel production and other infrastructure has been pegged at $3 trillion over the next few decades, according to shipping-services provider Clarksons.

☆ U.S. in touch with allies over Taliban suspension of women from universities
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Dec 20 (Reuters) - The United states is in touch with allies over the decision by Afghanistan's Taliban-run higher education ministry on Tuesday to suspend access to universities for female students until further notice, the White House said. "The United States condemns the Taliban's indefensible decision to prevent Afghan women from receiving a university-level education," National Security Council Spokesperson Adrienne Watson said in a statement. Reporting by Costas Pitas in Los Angeles; Editing by Sandra MalerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Zelenskiy may visit Washington to meet Biden, congressional leaders- sources
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Punchbowl News first reported the possible trip, which would be Zelenskiy's first known visit outside Ukraine since Russia launched its assault on the country on Feb. 24. Zelenskiy is expected to meet congressional leadership and national-security committee chiefs from the Republican and Democratic parties and could address a joint session of Congress, Punchbowl reported earlier. Zelenskiy made a surprise trip to troops in the battered eastern frontline city of Bakhmut, underlining Russia's stuttering but persistent attempts to capture it. Zelenskiy last left Ukraine for the Munich Security Conference on Feb. 19, according to his official schedule. Her office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the reported visit by Zelenskiy.

To Russian security agencies operating in Ukraine, he said late on Monday in comments translated by Reuters: "Yes, it is difficult for you now. The situation in the Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics, in the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions is extremely difficult." Both Putin and Lukashenko were also at pains to dismiss the idea of Russia annexing or absorbing Belarus. Russian troops that moved to Belarus in October will conduct battalion tactical exercises, Russia's Interfax news agency reported, citing the defence ministry. It also said Ukrainian air and artillery forces carried out more than a dozen strikes on Russian troops and hardware, including ammunition dumps, and shot down two helicopters.

☆ Twitter suspends accounts of several journalists
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Dec 15 (Reuters) - Twitter on Thursday suspended the accounts of several prominent journalists who recently wrote about its new owner Elon Musk, with the billionaire tweeting that rules banning the publishing of personal information applied to all, including journalists. On Wednesday, Twitter suspended @elonjet, an account tracking Musk's private jet in real time using data available in the public domain. Twitter on Thursday showed "account suspended" notices for a clutch of journalists' accounts. A spokesperson for The New York Times said: "Tonight's suspension of the Twitter accounts of a number of prominent journalists, including The New York Times's Ryan Mac, is questionable and unfortunate. We hope that all of the journalists' accounts are reinstated and that Twitter provides a satisfying explanation for this action."

☆ Blockchain Fails to Gain Traction in the Enterprise
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( Isabelle Bousquette | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +7 min

Newsletter Sign-up WSJ | CIO Journal The Morning Download delivers daily insights and news on business technology from the CIO Journal team. Some companies say they haven’t found a compelling enough reason to use it. Many didn’t have digital record-keeping systems and had to make large upfront investments before they could start using blockchain, Walmart said. Walmart is using blockchain to track leafy greens and green bell peppers. Earlier this year, the state of Jharkhand in eastern India began using blockchain to track seed distributions to farmers.

☆ U.S. inflation will be much lower by end of 2023, Yellen says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Dec 11 (Reuters) - There will be a substantial reduction in U.S. inflation in 2023, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen told CBS' '60 Minutes' in an interview released on Sunday. "I believe by the end of next year you will see much lower inflation if there's not-- an unanticipated shock," she said. Asked about the likelihood of recession, she said:"There's a risk of a recession. But-- it certainly isn't, in my view, something that is necessary to bring inflation down." Reporting by Costas Pitas and Andrea Shalal; Editing by Daniel WallisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ U.S. expresses concern about N.Korea missile launches to Chinese representative
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Dec 8 (Reuters) - The U.S. Special Representative on North Korea Sung Kim told his Chinese counterpart on Korean Peninsula affairs Liu Xiaoming the United States was concerned by an "unprecedented" number of ballistic missile launches from Pyongyang, the State Department said. "(Sung Kim) strongly condemned these missile launches," State Department spokesperson Ned Price said of the video conference that took place on Wednesday. "Kim emphasized that maintaining peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula is an important shared goal." Reporting by Ismail Shakil in Ottawa and Costas Pitas in Los AngelesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Georgia runoff: Democratic U.S. Senator Warnock beats Trump-backed rival
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( Nathan Layne | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

With 99% of the estimated vote counted, he led Walker by 50.8% to 49.2%, according to Edison Research. The result cements Georgia as a battleground state certain to play a prominent role in the 2024 presidential election. Senator Raphael Warnock (D-GA) speaks during an election night party after a projected win in the U.S. midterm runoff election between Warnock and his Republican challenger Herschel Walker in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S., December 6, 2022. It is his second runoff victory in two years, after he won the seat in January 2021. Venkayla Haynes, 28, said Warnock's win was especially meaningful after months of organizing get-out-the-vote efforts for both the general election and then the runoff.

☆ U.S. to boost Taiwan's stretched air force with $428 mln in spare parts
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Taiwan's air force is well-equipped but ageing, and is dwarfed by that of China's. The Pentagon, in two statements late Tuesday, said the parts would support Taiwan's F-16s, Indigenous Defence Fighter jets and all other aircraft and systems or subsystems of U.S. origin. Taiwan's Defence Ministry said on Wednesday the sale was expected to "take effect" within one month, and offered its thanks. Taiwan's presidential office, noting this was the seventh arms sale approved by the Biden administration, said the latest approval would enhance Taiwan's combat power. China has repeatedly demanded the United States stop selling weapons to Taiwan and has put sanctions on U.S. arms manufacturers.

☆ U.S. seeks more information on Reuters report over Nigerian military secret abortion program
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Dec 7 (Reuters) - A Reuters report that the Nigerian military ran a secret mass abortion program in its war on Boko Haram is "harrowing" and the United States is seeking more information, State Department spokesperson Ned Price said on Wednesday. "It was a harrowing report. It's a concerning report and for that reason we are seeking further information," he said. Reuters was unable to establish who created the abortion program or determine who in the military or government ran it. Nigerian military leaders denied the program has ever existed and said Reuters reporting was part of a foreign effort to undermine the country's fight against the insurgents.

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