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Muse hosts the 105-Mile Trade Zone and has the greatest volume of trade with China. It is the fourth border crossing seized by the alliance forces in a month of intense fighting. Social media sites associated with the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army displayed photos and video of what they said were its forces at the border gate. Fighting has been raging in the region since the Arakan Army, the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army and the Ta’ang National Liberation Army, calling themselves the Three Brotherhood Alliance, launched a coordinated offensive on Oct. 27. The Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army has made common cause with Beijing by declaring elimination of the cyberscam operations to be one of its goals.

Persons: Le Kyar, “, ” Le Kyar Win, couldn't, hasn't, Zaw Min Tun, Aung, Suu Kyi, Myanmar's, beseiging Laukkaing Organizations: Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, Associated Press, Muse, Trade, Social, Arakan Army, National Liberation Army, Brotherhood Alliance Locations: BANGKOK, China, Muse, Myanmar, Shan, Maj, Zaw, Arakan, Suu, Laukkaing, Beijing

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Attackers seized a tanker linked to Israel off the coast of Yemen on Sunday, authorities said. The attackers seized the Liberian-flagged Central Park, managed by Zodiac Maritime, in the Gulf of Aden, the company and private intelligence firm Ambrey said. London-based Zodiac Maritime is part of Israeli billionaire Eyal Ofer’s Zodiac Group. Both the Symi and the Central Park had been behaving as if they faced a threat in recent days. The Houthis did not immediately acknowledge the seizure of the Central Park.

Persons: Ambrey, Zodiac, ” Zodiac, Eyal Ofer’s, Ofer, Daniel Guy Ofer, ”, — Organizations: United Arab Emirates, — Attackers, Liberian, Zodiac Maritime, Associated Press, Turkish, Clumvez Shipping Inc, Eyal Ofer’s Zodiac Group, Clumvez Shipping, U.S, United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, CMA, Central, AP, Ships, AIS, Israel Locations: DUBAI, United Arab, Israel, Yemen, Gulf, Aden, London, Saudi, Houthi, U.S, Iran, Oman, British, Yemen's, Djibouti, Somalia, Suez, Palestinian, Red

☆ A Ukrainian artillery commander said there's a 'competition' between brigades to see who can kill the most Russians
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-25 | by ( Alia Shoaib | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

A Ukrainian artillery commander said that brigades compete to see who can kill the most Russians. Fighting continues to rage around the eastern Ukrainian city as Russian forces attempt to capture it. AdvertisementA Ukrainian artillery commander said that brigades compete to see who can kill the most Russian soldiers as they attempt to cross a heavy artillery zone in Avdiivka in eastern Ukraine. "I'll even reveal a secret," Ukrainian artillery commander Arty Green told Ukrainian media in an interview published on Monday, per a Forbes translation . However, conflicting reports cite other Ukrainian officials saying that Russia was increasing the number of assault operations near the city.

Persons: —, Arty Green, Forbes, Green Organizations: Service, Russian, Mechanized Brigade, AFP Locations: Ukrainian, Avdiivka, Ukraine, Donetsk, Russian, Russia, Avdiivka ., Oleksandr

☆ Spanish PM floats peace conference idea in meeting with Israel's Netanyahu
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and Belgian Prime Minister Alexander de Croo pose during a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem, November 23, 2023. "Today, more than ever, we need to bring back a serious and credible prospect for peace," Sanchez said after talks with Netanyahu. Sanchez said he and unspecified colleagues had proposed holding an international peace conference with the parties as soon as possible. "It is in Israel's interest to work for peace, and today, peace means the establishment of a viable Palestinian state that includes the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem, according to the U.N. resolutions," he said. U.S. officials have said the time is not right to try to resume peace talks given the protracted intransigence of both sides.

Persons: Pedro Sanchez, Alexander de Croo, Benjamin Netanyahu, Borja Puig de la, Sanchez, Isaac Herzog, Mahmoud Abbas, Netanyahu, Alexander De Croo, De Croo, David Latona, Marine Strauss, Aislinn Laing, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: Spanish, Belgian, Israeli, Reuters Acquire, Rights, Hamas, West Bank, European Union, Arab League, Organisation for Islamic Cooperation, West, of, Union, Palestinian Authority, Jerusalem, Thomson Locations: Jerusalem, Moncloa, Handout, Rights MADRID, U.S, Israel, Palestinian, Ramallah, Egypt, West Bank, Gaza, East Jerusalem, Barcelona, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Madrid, Oslo, Brussels

Early this summer, while many Americans were gathering for Fourth of July barbecues, the Tallac Hotshots were in triple-digit heat in Arizona, fighting a wildfire for 14 straight days and sleeping on the ground next to their trucks. The federal firefighting crew had only three days off before darting to a fire raging in a thickly wooded evergreen forest in Oregon. They then decamped to the Klamath National Forest across the border in California, working overnight in dense and steep terrain filled with poison oak. After a few days of rest, they were dropped by helicopter in early September into some of the most remote wilderness in Northern California to battle a fire blazing despite near-freezing temperatures.

Organizations: Klamath National Forest Locations: Arizona, Oregon, Klamath, California, Northern California

☆ OpenAI's employees were given two explanations for why Sam Altman was fired. They're unconvinced and furious.
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Kali Hays | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

OpenAI 's current independent board has offered two examples of the alleged lack of candor that led them to fire co-founder and CEO Sam Altman, sending the company into chaos. Staff had spent the day expecting to be told of the reinstatement of Altman as CEO. Sustkever is said to have offered two explanations he purportedly received from the board, according to one of the people familiar. One explanation was that Altman was said to have given two people at OpenAI the same project. These explanations didn't make sense to employees and were not received well, one of the people familiar said.

Persons: OpenAI, Sam Altman, Ilya Sutskever, Emmett Shear, Mira Murati, Altman, Shear, Sutskever, Sustkever, it's, Satya Nadella, Adam D'Angelo, Tasha McCauley, Helen Toner, Setskever, Greg Brockman, Murati, she's, Kali Hays Organizations: Twitch, Business, Staff, Google, OpenAI, Murati, Microsoft, Georgetown Center for Security, Emerging Technology, Twitter Locations: OpenAI's San Francisco, khays@insider.com, @hayskali

☆ OpenAI employees wanted Bret Taylor to join a new board. He's no longer expected to do so, insiders say.
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Kali Hays | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman was ousted on Friday, igniting chaos inside the company. Amid discussions that the OpenAI board would be remade, Bret Taylor was asked to join. The former Salesforce executive and Twitter board chair is no longer poised to do so. Yet, in another affront to employees, it seems some expected changes to the board are no longer in the works. Now he is no longer set to join the OpenAI board.

Persons: Sam Altman, Bret Taylor, —, Altman, — Emmet Shear, Twitch, Mira Murati —, Elon Musk, Taylor, Greg Brockman, Adam D'Angelo, Tasha McCauley, Helen Toner, Ilya Setskever, Setskever, Brockman, Kali Hays Organizations: Service, Twitter, Elon, Microsoft, Georgetown Center for Security, Emerging Technology Locations: khays@insider.com, @hayskali

☆ 'The silent pandemic': A hotter world makes it harder to stop the spread of deadly superbugs
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Sam Meredith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR), which the World Health Organization has referred to as the "silent pandemic," is an often overlooked and growing global health crisis. Sakis Mitrolidis | Afp | Getty ImagesMaking matters worse, research has shown that climate change is exacerbating the AMR crisis in several ways. "AMR bacteria is known as a silent pandemic. Extreme heat is fueled by the climate crisis, which makes extreme weather more frequent and more intense. "We hear people talking about this 'silent pandemic,' but it shouldn't be silent.

Persons: Sakis Mitrolidis, Tina Joshi, Joshi, University of Plymouth Robb Butler, Butler, Plymouth's Joshi Organizations: Planck, Biology, Getty, World Health, United, AMR, WHO, Afp, University of Plymouth, CNBC, UN, United Arab Emirates, Polygiene, Aircraft, Bloomberg, Plymouth's Locations: United Nations, Sikorahi, Alexandroupoli, Greece, WHO Europe, United Arab, UAE, Hamburg, Germany

☆ ‘Never going back.’ Israelis evacuated from border town with Lebanon fear war with Hezbollah
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-20 | by ( Tara John | Adi Koplewitz | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

There are fears of a full-blown confrontation with Hezbollah in southern Lebanon – that would open up a dangerous new front in the war. Israelis who were evacuated from the north of the country and seen in a hotel lobby in Tiberias, Israel, on November 16. They have lived through the Six-Day War, the Yom Kippur War, Israel’s invasion of Lebanon in 1982 and fight with Hezbollah in 2006. View of the Sea of Galilee from a hotel in Tiberias, Israel, on November 16. Tara John/CNNA group of cousins, who were evacuated from the town of Dovev, knit quietly in a hotel lobby in Tiberias, Israel on November 16.

Persons: Jesus, Boaz Yosef, Tara John, Hassan Nasrallah, Elana Pilveny, ”, ’, Shoshana, “, ” Pilveny, Yosef, Israel “, Yoav Gallant, David Shenfer, ” Shenfer, Israel’s, Kibbutz Bar’am, “ We’ve, ” Lea Raivitz, Raivitz Organizations: CNN, Hamas, Reuters, Defense Ministry, Israeli, Nations, CNN Hezbollah, Kibbutz, Residents Locations: Tiberias, Galilee, Israel, Lebanon, Dovev, Israel’s, Iran, Iraq, Syria, Gaza, Beirut, Kiryat Shmona, Lebanese, View, overflights

The stockpile continues to grow, the reports say, even though Iran has consistently denied wanting nuclear arms. "The political debate is really not going to be about negotiating with Iran, it's going to be about confronting Iran," he said. This week's IAEA reports showed Iran was making steady nuclear progress and indicated that Tehran continued to stonewall the agency in monitoring its work. Two diplomats said all that could be done in coming months was to support IAEA chief Rafael Grossi's efforts to strengthen oversight of Iran's nuclear programme. "It's way too early to say whether Iran will become a nuclear state or whether it will stay a threshold state like now," one diplomat said.

Persons: Leonhard Foeger, Biden, Trump, Donald Trump, Joe Biden, Israel, Robert Einhorn, Rafael Grossi's, John Irish, Francois Murphy, Arshad Mohammed, Edmund Blair Organizations: International Atomic Energy Agency, IAEA, REUTERS, Trump PARIS, Reuters, U.S, Hamas, Pentagon, U.S . State Department, IAEA Washington, Governors, Thomson Locations: Vienna, Austria, stoke, WASHINGTON, VIENNA, United States, Tehran, Gaza, Iran, European, Washington, Iraq, Syria, U.S, IRAN, IAEA, stonewall, Paris

☆ Opinion: The unwelcome topic at this year’s Thanksgiving table
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( Opinion Joan Steinau Lester | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —My wife and I were recently invited to Thanksgiving dinner at the home of a friend. Nearly everyone is confronted by intensely emotional conflicts, with the upheaval roiling workplaces, college campuses, schools and other places. Arguments over Israel are nothing new, but the rifts are deeper and more lacerating than I can ever remember. In one particularly painful and personal case, a dear friend and I have disagreed for decades about antisemitism and Israel. Love may find a way, if not to move mountains, at least to allow space for durable resolutions.

Persons: Joan Steinau Lester, CNN —, ” Joan Steinau Lester, Irene Young, ”, “, they’d, stiffly, “ I’m, recedes, Nelson Mandela, —, Martin Luther King, Jr, it’s Organizations: PEN, CNN Locations: Israel, Gaza, Israeli, South Africa

☆ Putin’s brutal war on Ukraine vanishes from news coverage amid raging conflict in Gaza
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

In the days before the Israel-Hamas war, the battle in Ukraine amounted to about eight percent of CNN’s television coverage. After the attacks, CNN —the cable news network that provided the most Ukraine coverage — fell to under one percent. The noted drop in Ukraine war coverage from the press, given the fresh violence in the Middle East, is not completely surprising. As Kolbe told me, “Putin’s media campaign to paint Ukraine as divided, corrupt, and a puppet of the U.S. and NATO, is a central part” of his strategy. The lack of press attention makes that all the more easier.

Persons: It’s, Vladimir Putin’s, —, ensnared Washington, Donald Trump’s, Putin, Paul Kolbe, “, ”, Russia “, ” Kolbe, Kolbe Organizations: CNN, Ukraine, Internet Television, GDELT, Belfer Center for Science, International Affairs, Harvard Kennedy School, Central Intelligence Agency, Hamas, U.S, NATO Locations: Ukraine, Eastern Europe, Israel, Maine, Russian, ”, Russia, Ukraine wanes, NATO

Rather, asset managers increasingly position these as now a feature of global investing choices rather than all-consuming shocks per se. Likely for the same reason, geopolitical risk monitors are at their highest in over 18 months too. Ebbing demand from a Chinese economy hobbled by property busts and a foreign investment withdrawal due to U.S. investment curbs also hurts. The VIX (.VIX) index of U.S. stock volatility is currently five points below its historic average 19 - and even July VIX futures hover on that mean. The opinions expressed here are those of the author, a columnist for ReutersReporting by Mike Dolan Editing by Mark PotterOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: there's, Washington's, Joe Biden, Donald Trump, What's, Melissa Brown, Axioma, Andrew McCaffery, Mike Dolan, Mark Potter Organizations: Bank of, Treasury, UBS Global Wealth Management, Barclays, Global CIO, Fidelity, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Israel, United States, India, Taiwan, Mexico, Britain, Gaza, Russia, China, Wall

The Ukrainian military retook the city and the area around it on the western bank of the Dnipro in November 2022. Kovalyov said Ukrainian troops were conducting sabotage and reconnaissance actions to discover and disrupt logistics for Russian ammunition and food supplies. He said the Russian military were mounting heavy resistance and had brought in reinforcements. The Ukrainian military said in its daily update that fighting was raging along the entire frontline from the south to the east, reporting 72 combat clashes in the last 24 hours. Vitalyi Barabash, head of Avdiivka's military administration, said on television that Russian forces were making a big push towards the town's industrial zone near a vast coke plant, and bringing in reinforcements.

Persons: Andriy Kovalyov, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Kovalyov, Natalia Humeniuk, Vitalyi Barabash, Yuliia Dysa, Olena Harmash, Tom Balmforth, Gareth Jones, Andrew Heavens, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: Ukrainian Marines, Russia, Ukrainian Armed Forces, YouTube, Ukrainian, ., Thomson Locations: KYIV, Kherson, Dnipro, Crimea, Russia, Ukraine, speedboats, Ukrainian, . Russian, Kyiv, Avdiivka, Moscow, Bakhmut, Donetsk

☆ Opinion | The War in Gaza Is Splintering the Democratic Party
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( Michelle Goldberg | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +15 min

Should a few members of the Squad lose their primaries, the blow to Democratic unity could be severe. “And they’ll either stay at home or they’ll go to a third party.”Already, there are signs that the party is fracturing over Israel. Advocates for the freedom and safety of Palestinians, horror-struck by more than 10,000 civilian deaths in Gaza, believe that the Democratic Party is giving its approval to atrocities. These big-footed donors, who are overwhelmingly targeting representatives of color, are going to exacerbate the fissures in the Democratic Party. Diana Lovett, a Democratic Party district leader who held a fund-raiser for Bowman last year, said polarization over the congressman was tearing apart local Democrats.

Persons: Ryan Grim, Alexandria Ocasio, Cortez, Bernie Sanders, she’d, ”, Ilhan Omar, who’ve, Tlaib, “, Omar, Mark Mellman, Israel, ” Mellman, Bowman, Eliot Engel, Grim, he’d, George Floyd, Giddins, —, Don Samuels, Cori Bush, Wesley Bell, Summer Lee, Bhavini Patel, Bowman doesn’t, George Latimer, imploring, Latimer, hadn’t, Waleed Shahid, Ocasio, imploring Biden, they’ve, He’s, ” Bowman, I’m, haven’t, hasn’t, Shahid, Ta, Nehisi Coates, Coates, Isaac Herzog, Weinberger, Sam Bankman, Nina Turner, Andy Levin, Republican megadonors, Bernie Marcus, “ I’ve, Mark Pocan, Mellman, Diana Lovett, Lovett, who’d, dreading, “ He’s, we’re Organizations: Israel, ”, Democratic, American Israel Public Affairs Committee, Times, New, New York Democratic, The New York Times, Minneapolis City, Missouri Democrat, Pittsburgh Democrat, Squad, Justice Democrats, Democratic Party, Democratic Socialists of America, West Bank, Democratic Socialists, U.S, Westchester Jewish Council, New York Democratic Socialists of America, Jewish, Politico, United Democracy, AIPAC, Jewish Democrat, Republican, Home Depot, Wisconsin Democrat, Congressional Progressive Caucus Locations: Israel, Palestine, Gaza, New York, Minneapolis, Missouri, Louis County, Hebron, “, Manhattan, Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said at the weekend that the PA in its current form should not take charge of Gaza. In the wake of Netanyahu's comments, Israeli officials have insisted that Israel does not intend to occupy the Gaza Strip. Dahlan has the backing of the influential United Arab Emirates to lead a post-war administration in Gaza, according to diplomats and Arab officials. So far, the U.S. and its allies have not seen any clear roadmap from Israel for its exit strategy from Gaza beyond the declared aim of eradicating Hamas, diplomats say. Not since the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003 has there been such widespread concern about military action raging across the Middle East, according to Arab officials and diplomats.

Persons: Israel tightens, Gaza's, Mahmoud Abbas, Fatah, Benjamin Netanyahu, Mohammed Dahlan, Israel, Dahlan, Joe Biden, Netanyahu, Gaza –, –, Abu Mohammad, We're, Biden, Jonathan Panikoff, government's, Biden's, Antony Blinken, Blinken, Abbas –, Abbas, Mohammad Shtayyeh, Abu Dhabi, Marwan Barghouti, Washington, Joost R, John Kirby, Nidal al, Humeyra Pamuk, Matt Spetalnick, Andrew Mills, James Mackenzie, Crispian Balmer, John Irish, Aidan Lewis, Alexander Cornwell, Samia Nakhoul, Daniel Flynn Organizations: Palestinian, Hamas, Israel Defense Forces, REUTERS, Authority, Palestinian Authority, West Bank, United, Israel, U.S, policymaking, Reuters, Atlantic Council, Gaza, Western, Israel ., UAE, North Africa, Crisis, House, Thomson Locations: Gaza, Israel, Gaza Israel, Iraq, Afghanistan, Palestinian, U.S, United States, Washington, Hamas, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, America, Egypt, Jordan, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Tokyo, Oslo, European, technocrats, United Nations, Middle East, Iran, GAZA, Doha, Jerusalem, Paris, Cairo, Dubai

☆ Cramer says the Fed's efforts to squash inflation are now hurting stocks like Walmart
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-16 | by ( Kevin Stankiewicz | In Kevinstankiewicz | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

"That's the sorrow of Walmart or Chevron or Palo Alto Networks and so many other companies that are victims of their own success." Additionally, Cramer said Walmart is grappling with more cautious consumers, who've seen their budgets squeezed by inflation for well over a year. Meanwhile, shares of Palo Alto Networks slid 5.4% Thursday as its earnings report from the prior evening disappointed investors. Cramer's Charitable Trust, the portfolio used by the CNBC Investing Club, owns Palo Alto shares. While Chevron and its energy peers benefited from higher oil prices last year, Cramer said the falling oil prices are a direct consequence of a slowing economy.

Persons: CNBC's Jim Cramer, Cramer, who've Organizations: Federal, Walmart, Palo Alto Networks, Chevron, Palo Alto, Palo, Charitable Trust, CNBC, Club Locations: U.S, Palo

☆ Argentina election: Will Milei’s plan to ditch peso for the dollar be a vote-winner against Massa?
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-16 | by ( Analysis Stefano Pozzebon | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

To fix the problem, Argentina should abandon the peso and adopt the dollar, whose value is set by the US Federal Reserve and cannot be printed at will. Massa has criticized the plan for dollarization as a surrender of national sovereignty and attempted to show that the government’s current actions are already paying dividends. Other mainstream politicians, including former the President Mauricio Macri and another former election candidate, Patricia Bullrich, have endorsed Milei despite sharing some reservations on dollarization. ET) and the vote count is expected to be quick – barring any unforeseen problems or objections, that is. Milei appeared to question the results of the first round of voting in October, although his party did not formally appeal.

Persons: Argentina’s, Sergio Massa, Javier Milei, Milei, Massa, dollarization, Pope Francis, “, Satan ”, Francis, Tucker Carlson, Milton Friedman, Argentinians, Mauricio Macri, Patricia Bullrich, Brazil’s Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Colombia’s Gustavo Petro, Spain’s José Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, Jair Bolsonaro, Mario Vargas Llosa, Mariano Rajoy, Donald Trump Organizations: CNN, Massa, Union por la Patria, Union, La Libertad, US Federal Reserve, Cato Institute Locations: Buenos Aires, Argentina, South America, Latin America, Ecuador, El Salvador, US, Argentina’s, Peruvian, Spanish

From left, President Xi Jinping and President Joe Biden. Getty ImagesPresident Joe Biden hopes to walk away from his closely watched summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday having put the US-China relationship on steadier footing after months of tension between the two superpowers. With conflicts raging in the Middle East and Europe as he prepares to fight for reelection, Biden hopes to prevent another crisis from exploding on his watch. He is not only looking to demonstrate to Americans – but also to Xi directly – why an improved relationship with Beijing is in everyone’s interests. “Intense competition requires and demands intense diplomacy to manage tensions and to prevent competition from verging into conflict or confrontation.”Read more about Biden’s meeting with Xi.

Persons: Xi Jinping, Joe Biden, Biden, Xi, week’s Biden, Jake Sullivan, Wang Yi, Antony Blinken, Janet Yellen, Gina Raimondo, John Kerry, —, ” Organizations: Getty, Foreign, China’s, American, “ Locations: China, East, Europe, Beijing, California, Washington

☆ Live updates: Biden and Xi hold meeting in San Francisco Bay area
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-15 | by ( Kyle Feldscher | Maureen Chowdhury | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

During his news conference following the summit, Biden summed up his approach to the Chinese leader. Xi at one point called on the United States to “not scheme to suppress or contain China,” Chinese state media reported. In the talks, Biden made clear to Xi that he viewed Hamas as separate from the Palestinians. As host of the meeting, Biden walked out of the building first to welcome Xi. Speaking after Biden, Xi offered starker view of US-China ties.

Persons: Joe Biden, Xi Jinping, Biden, Xi, “, ”, “ That’s, ” Biden, Antony Blinken, Jake Sullivan, Defense Lloyd Austin, we’ve, – Biden, Xi’s, readouts, ” Xi, I’ve, I’m, That’s, Wang Yi, they’d, Sullivan, Wang, Janet Yellen, Gina Raimondo, John Kerry, –, Nikki Haley Organizations: California CNN, Biden, Defense, US, Xinhua, Hamas, Marine, China’s, American, South, Republicans Locations: Woodside, California, China, Washington, Beijing, United States, “, Taiwan, San Francisco, Israel, Iran, East, Europe, Blinken, South Carolina

☆ Estonian PM Kallas Signals Interest in Top NATO Job -Politico
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-15 | by ( Nov. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +1 min

OSLO (Reuters) - Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas said late on Tuesday she would like to be considered for the job of NATO secretary general once Jens Stoltenberg steps down, Politico reported. Speaking at a Politico conference in Washington, Kallas responded "yes" when she was pressed on whether she'd like to be considered for the role, according to the report. NATO diplomats have said, however, Kallas may be regarded as too hawkish by some members of the Western defence alliance. Stoltenberg has been in post since 2014 and is due to step down in October 2024. Outgoing Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte has also said he would be interested in the job of leading NATO.

Persons: Kaja Kallas, Jens Stoltenberg, Kallas, Stoltenberg, Mark Rutte, Terje Solsvik, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: Estonian, Politico, European Union, NATO, Dutch Locations: OSLO, Washington, Russia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, NATO, Ukraine

Retail sales fell 0.1% last month after jumping a strong 0.9% in September, according to a report released Wednesday by the Commerce Department. Excluding sales of gas and autos, retail sales ticked up 0.1%. “The October retail sales report was stronger than expectations, but confirmed a slowdown in consumption,” Ellen Zentner, chief U.S. economist at Morgan Stanley, wrote in a note to clients. Restaurants and bars reported a 0.3% sales increase, though that was much lower than September's 1.6% gain. The government’s monthly retail sales report offers only a partial look at consumer spending; it doesn’t include many services, including health care, travel and hotel lodging.

Persons: “, ” Ellen Zentner, Morgan Stanley Organizations: Commerce Department, Consumer, Walmart, Target, Federal Reserve, National Retail Federation Locations: U.S, Europe, United States

☆ ‘Erase Gaza’: War Unleashes Incendiary Rhetoric in Israel
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-15 | by ( Mark Landler | More About Mark Landler | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +9 min

Shock, grief and pain have cascaded across Israel since Hamas gunmen poured out of Gaza to kill an estimated 1,200 Israeli civilians and soldiers on Oct. 7. Mr. Netanyahu suspended Mr. Eliyahu, saying that his comments were “disconnected from reality.”Mr. Netanyahu says that the Israeli military is trying to prevent harm to civilians. Such reassurances are also belied by the language Mr. Netanyahu uses with audiences in Israel. “Gaza nakba 2023.”The rise in incendiary statements comes against a backdrop of rising violence in the West Bank. It will also make Israelis more inured to the civilian death toll in Gaza, which has isolated Israel around the world, he added.

Persons: ”, Yoav Gallant, We’re, Naftali Bennett, “, Benjamin Netanyahu, FakeReporter, Ghazi Hamad, Israel, Itamar Ben, Netanyahu’s, Amichay Eliyahu, Netanyahu, Eliyahu, Mr, Amalek, Michael Sfard, Sfard, ” Yehuda Shaul, Eyal Golan, Sara Netanyahu, Yinon, Don’t, ” Mr, Golan, Ms, Magal, —, Avi Dichter, Eran Halperin, Halperin, erodes, ’ ” Adam Sella Organizations: Twitter, Mr, Human Rights, West Bank, United Nations, Hebrew University, “, ” Locations: Israel, Gaza, United States, Palestine, Jerusalem, Israeli

☆ Welcome to the (almost) red-hot bond market
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-15 | by ( Nicole Goodkind | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

When Treasury yields go up, so do mortgage rates; when they go down, mortgage rates tend to follow. Surging mortgage rates over the past few years have sent home loan applications and home sales down sharply. The 30-year fixed rate mortgage was also advancing towards 8% — a level not seen since the dot-com bubble popped in 2000. Those raging Treasury yields brought pain to investors and also increased how much American companies had to pay to service their debts. In fact, Wall Street is struggling to figure out what it means for the timing and scale of future rate cuts.

Persons: ”, Michael Hartnett, Gina Bolvin, “ We’re, Phillip Wool, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Ellen Zentner Organizations: New, New York CNN, New York Federal, Treasury, Dow, Bank of America, Bolvin Wealth Management, Mortgage News, Mortgage, Association, Financial, Consumer, Federal Reserve, Goldman, Fed, UBS, Airlines for America, AAA Locations: New York

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