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Rep. Dina Titus defeated Republican Mark Robertson in Nevada's 1st Congressional District. RenoNorth Las Vegas MayorLongtime Democratic Rep. Dina Titus won another bid for reelection against Republican Mark Robertson in Nevada's 1st Congressional District. 2022 General EmbedsNevada's 1st Congressional District candidatesTitus is serving her 6th term in the US House of Representatives. In 2013, Titus returned to Congress after winning in the 1st Congressional District. Voting history for Nevada's 1st Congressional DistrictOnce in the heart of Las Vegas, Nevada's 1st Congressional District now encompasses more of Clark County.

Mandatory credit Kyodo/via REUTERSSummarySummary Companies Oil prices rise to highest levels since late AugustWSJ: China weighs gradual Zero-COVID exit without timelineChina's crude oil imports rebound amid refinery rolloutsNEW YORK, Nov 7 (Reuters) - Oil prices fell on Monday, paring gains after rising to more than two-month highs, on mixed signals over China, the world's top crude importer, potentially relaxing its strict COVID-19 restrictions. Brent crude futures fell 65 cents to settle at $97.92 a barrel. Earlier in the session, they rose to a session high of $99.56 a barrel, the highest since Aug. 31. However, weighing on futures, Chinese health officials at the weekend reiterated their commitment to strict COVID containment measures. Meanwhile, China's imports and exports contracted unexpectedly in October, but its crude oil imports rebounded to the highest level since May.

☆ Oil prices slide as hopes for China demand rebound fade
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( Florence Tan | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Mandatory credit Kyodo/via REUTERSCompanies Sumitomo Chemical Co Ltd FollowSINGAPORE, Nov 7 (Reuters) - Oil prices fell more than $1 a barrel on Monday after Chinese officials on the weekend reiterated their commitment to a strict COVID containment approach, dashing hopes of an oil demand rebound at the world's top crude importer. Brent crude futures dropped $1.20, or 1.2%, to $97.37 a barrel by 0227 GMT, after hitting as low as $96.50 earlier. "Oil prices dropped sharply as the Chinese officials vowed to stick to the COVID-zero policy while infected cases climbed in China, which may cause more restrictions measures, darkening the demand outlook," CMC Markets analyst Tina Teng said. A jump in the U.S. dollar is also weighing on oil prices, she added. Oil prices are underpinned by expectations of tighter supplies as the European Union's embargo on Russia's seaborne crude exports will start on Dec. 5 while refineries worldwide are ramping up output to meet strong diesel demand.

☆ From Russia with cash: Georgia booms as Russians flee Putin's war
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-05 | by ( Jake Cordell | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), for example, predicted in March the Ukraine conflict would deal a major blow to the Georgian economy. "On the contrary, we see the Georgian economy growing quite well this year, double digits." Business leaders also worry that the country could face a hard landing should the war end and Russians return home. TO GEORGIA WITH $1 BILLIONGeorgia itself fought a short war with Russia in 2008 over South Ossetia and Abkhazia, territories controlled by Russian-backed separatists. 'THE CRISIS COULD HIT'TBC's Butskhrikidze said he saw potential in the new arrivals to fill skills gaps in the Georgian economy.

☆ Christian monastery possibly pre-dating Islam found in UAE
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-03 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

An ancient Christian monastery possibly dating as far back as the years before Islam spread across the Arabian Peninsula has been discovered on an island off the coast of the United Arab Emirates, officials announced Thursday. The monastery on Siniyah Island, part of the sand-dune sheikhdom of Umm al-Quwain, sheds new light on the history of early Christianity along the shores of the Persian Gulf. On one, to the island’s northeast, archaeologists discovered the monastery. Viewed from above, the monastery on Siniyah Island’s floor plan suggests early Christian worshippers prayed within a single-aisle church at the monastery. Power said that development spurred the archaeological work that discovered the monastery.

☆ Most Gulf central banks raise interest rates after Fed's move
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Hamad I MohammedDUBAI, Nov 2 (Reuters) - Most Gulf states said on Wednesday they would increase their key interest rates after the Federal Reserve raised its key policy rate by three-quarters of a percentage point for the fourth straight time. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, the region's two largest economies, both increased rates by 75 basis points. The Saudi central bank, also known as SAMA, lifted its repo and reverse repo rates to 4.5% and 4%, respectively. Bahrain also raised its main rate by 75 basis points while Qatar increased rates by between 50 and 75 basis points. The impact of higher interest rates among Gulf oil exporters in 2022 has so far been limited.

☆ 5 weapons that have allowed Ukrainian troops to turn the tables on Russia's military
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( Peter Suciu | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Since Moscow attacked in February, Ukrainian troops have halted and pushed back Russian forces. FGM-148 JavelinA soldier with a Javelin anti-tank missile in a Ukrainian Independence Day parade in Kyiv in 2018. T-72 main battle tankUkrainians load a Russian T-72 onto a truck outside the town of Izyum on September 24. However, it has been Moscow that has inadvertently provided scores of the T-72 to Ukraine — as Russian tank crews have abandoned their tanks. REUTERS/Gleb GaranichAnother weapon that has been seen as critical in the Ukrainian war effort is the lightweight M777 155mm howitzer.

☆ Jazeera Airways plans to get around $2 bln from banks for Airbus deal
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

KUWAIT, Oct 31 (Reuters) - Jazeera Airways is planning to get around $2 billion from commercial banks to fund 70% of a deal it has with Airbus (AIR.PA) for 28 A320neo airliners, the Kuwaiti carrier's chairman told Reuters on Monday. Reporting by Ahmed Hagagy; writing by Lina Najem; editing by Jason NeelyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ OPEC expected to stick to view of long-term oil demand rise
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Alex Lawler | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries is scheduled to update its long-term oil demand forecasts in its 2022 World Oil Outlook on Oct. 31. The 2021 version sees oil demand plateauing after 2035. The latest update is likely to keep OPEC among the more optimistic forecasters of oil demand. OPEC World Oil Outlook 2021"It is similar to last year in terms of the demand outlook," one of the OPEC sources said. LOWER PROJECTIONSLast year, OPEC saw oil demand reaching 108.2 million barrels per day in 2045, up from 90.6 million bpd in 2020.

NBC News, in collaboration with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, The Washington Post, and Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism, interviewed more than 40 current and former employees of contractors at military bases. According to an NBC News analysis, at least 10 companies with substantiated trafficking violations since 2007 have received billions in new government contracts. ‘Mad scramble’Foreign workers are crucial for the more than 700 military bases with U.S. service members around the world. One company that continues to get work at Middle East bases despite past violations documented in an Army compliance agreement is Tamimi, Abdulla’s employer. Lusambu Karim, a 50-year-old Ugandan, told NBC News about trafficking violations he said he encountered working for Aegis in Afghanistan from 2018 to 2020.

Barrack, 75, is charged with acting as an unregistered foreign agent and lying to the FBI. Prosecutors said UAE officials also pressed Barrack for details on who Trump would pick for various high-level jobs, including CIA director and at the State and Defense departments. Barrack's lawyers have said their client is his own man and was doing what he thought was right — not acting as an Emirati agent. Even viewed in the light most favorable to the government, the evidence shows only that the 'UAE' sometimes asked Mr. Barrack to do something, or to consider doing something, and Mr. Barrack then decided for himself whether he would do it or not." He said that Barrack had pushed him to convince then-President Trump to support Qatar in a blockade over the UAE.

They say Emirati sovereign wealth funds invested $374 million in Barrack's private equity firm Colony Capital, now known as DigitalBridge Group Inc (DBRG.N), in 2017 and 2018. Barrack's defense has argued his close relationship with Qatar shows he was not an Emirati agent. To prove Barrack was a UAE agent, prosecutors must prove he agreed to act under the Middle Eastern country's direction or control. In a post on his Truth Social platform on Sunday night, Trump said he did not believe Barrack was a UAE agent, and that Barrack never spoke to him about speeches or "what to say on this subject." "Tom Barrack is a highly respected businessman whose DREAM was to see PEACE IN THE MIDDLE EAST, a very good and noble thing," Trump wrote.

☆ Rep. Dina Titus, six-term Democratic congresswoman, faces off against Republican Mark Robertson in Nevada's 1st Congressional District election
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-21 | by ( Hanna Kang | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Rep. Dina Titus is running against Republican Mark Robertson in Nevada's 1st Congressional District. The 1st District is located in Clark County, covering many Las Vegas suburbs. Nevada's 1st Congressional District candidatesTitus is serving her 6th term in the US House of Representatives. In 2013, Titus returned to Congress after winning in the 1st Congressional District. Voting history for Nevada's 1st Congressional DistrictOnce in the heart of Las Vegas, Nevada's 1st Congressional District now encompasses more of Clark County.

☆ Weak oil demand to lower GCC economic growth in 2023
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( Anant Chandak | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

BENGALURU, Oct 20 (Reuters) - Economic growth in the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council will remain strong but slow significantly next year as high oil prices hurt demand for the commodity, a Reuters poll showed. China, the world's largest crude oil importer, has been fighting COVID-19 flare-ups and stuck to a zero-COVID-19 policy that is weighing heavily on economic activity and global oil demand. "GCC countries have benefitted from sharply higher oil prices, turning budget deficits into surpluses, and increased oil production which has bumped up GDP growth. Among other GCC economies, growth was expected to drop next year in the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Oman, while in Bahrain growth was forecast to slow to 3.0% compared with 3.4% this year. As other economies reduce their reliance on oil Gulf countries are diversifying their revenue streams.

☆ Kuwait crown prince says 'petty' political squabbling must end
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( Ahmed Hagagy | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

There has been enough waste of painstaking efforts, precious time and squandered money," Sheikh Meshal said in the address, visibly crying at the end. Kuwait, an OPEC oil producer, bans political parties but has given its legislature more influence than similar bodies in other Gulf monarchies. Opposition figures made big gains in legislative polls in September after Sheikh Meshal dissolved parliament in a bid to end the stalemate. Before that he appointed Sheikh Ahmad Nawaf al-Sabah as prime minister at a time opposition lawmakers stepped up pressure for a new premier and parliament speaker. Sheikh Meshal pledged on Tuesday that the government would not interfere in the selection of the parliament speaker or parliamentary committees.

☆ First on CNN: Next spring the economy will sink into a 1990-style mild recession, Fitch says
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( Matt Egan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

New York CNN Business —Stubborn inflation and the Federal Reserve’s jumbo-sized interest rate hikes will drive the American economy into a 1990-style mild recession starting in the spring, Fitch Ratings warned on Tuesday. “The US recession we expect is quite mild,” economists at Fitch Ratings said. “US household finances are much stronger now than in 2008, the banking system is healthier and there is little evidence of overbuilding in the housing market,” Fitch Ratings economists wrote. By contrast, Fitch Ratings sees the unemployment rate rising from just 3.5% today to 5.2% in 2024. “Fitch Ratings expects a very strong consumer balance sheet and the strongest labor market in decades to cushion the impact of a likely recession,” the report said.

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com Register"For the moment, Putin is hanging in there," said Anthony Brenton, a former British ambassador to Russia. In power since 1999, Putin has weathered numerous domestic crises and wars, and more than once faced down large street protests before effectively outlawing any real opposition. The Kremlin says Putin is backed by an overwhelming majority of Russians and won a landslide re-election victory in 2018. said Weiss, who has had various policy roles on the U.S. National Security Council and has written a book about Putin. A senior European official said Putin would have to demonstratively lose the war to be unseated.

☆ Kuwait says OPEC+ decision was unanimous, based on economic studies -state news agency
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

DUBAI, Oct 18 (Reuters) - Kuwait said that the recent OPEC+ decision to cut oil output was taken collectively and based on economic studies of international oil markets, state news agency KUNA reported on Tuesday citing the foreign ministry. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Alaa Swilam; Writing by Lina NajemOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Russia's attack on Ukraine shows that the US and Europe have to relearn how to fight an industrial war
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( Alexander Clarkson | World Politics Review | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

The military effort to support Ukraine shows how US and European defense priorities have been distorted. The war is a reminder that the US and Europe must fundamentally reassess how they prepare for war. The military responses Western states formulated toward these perceived threats were shaped by wider neoliberal policy approaches shaped by the impact of globalization. This greater reliance on private-sector actors to develop and administer key military functions also reflected a period of tightening defense budgets. An airman secures a GBU-38 Joint Direct Attack Munition on an aircraft at Barksdale Air Force Base in August 2014.

☆ OAPEC Sec Gen says OPEC+ decision to cut oil production 'correct'
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Companies Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries FollowCAIRO Oct 15 (Reuters) - The secretary general of the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC) said on Saturday that the OPEC+ decision to cut its oil production target is correct, and was taken at the right time. OAPEC comprises Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia and the United Arab Emirates. The 13-member Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies, which include Russia, lowered their production target by 2 million barrels per day when they met on Oct. 5. The move came even though fuel markets remain tight, with inventories in major economies at lower levels than when OPEC has cut output in the past. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Moataz Mohamed; Editing by William MacleanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ After a general's clash with Fox News' Tucker Carlson, soldiers worry the US Army 'has gone full MAGA'
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-10 | by ( Steve Beynon | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

"Intentionally or not, this whole thing showed women that we are not worth defending," one noncommissioned officer told Military.com. To some, scrutinizing Donahoe's defense of women online is being seen as the service bending the knee to right-wing media. … The Army has gone full MAGA," the general said, referencing former President Donald Trump's campaign slogan, Make America Great Again. Other Army leaders backed the sentiment, including Grinston, who said on Twitter, "Women lead our most lethal units with character. Department of DefenseDonahoe was an avid user of social media at a time when most military leaders were wary of some of the risks of being active in the military community online.

☆ Saudi Aramco to maintain full oil supplies to Asia in Nov despite OPEC+ cuts
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-10 | by ( Florence Tan | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Companies Saudi Arabian Oil Co FollowSINGAPORE, Oct 10 (Reuters) - Saudi Aramco has told at least seven customers in Asia they will receive full contract volumes of crude oil in November ahead of the peak winter season, several sources with knowledge of the matter said on Monday. The producer is keeping supplies to Asia steady despite likely production cuts by tapping on inventories, the sources said. Saudi Energy Minister Abdulaziz bin Salman had said the real supply cut would be about 1 million to 1.1 million bpd. Analysts expect Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait to shoulder much of the production cuts because other OPEC+ members are falling behind output targets. Consultancy FGE expects the Saudi oil production target to fall by around 550,000 bpd in November from the previous month.

☆ Opinion | Chelsea Manning: ‘I’m Still Bound to Secrecy’
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-08 | by ( Chelsea Manning | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

He’d faced charges that carried a 35-year prison sentence, but shortly before trial he’d cut a deal that left him with only probation and community service. I never really reckoned with the notion of a life spent in prison, or worse. I was sentenced to 35 years in a maximum-security prison, where I spent seven years, much of it in solitary confinement. It also included fixes to the Freedom of Information Act and would give stronger federal protections to journalists. Even in prison, with restrictions on hair length and clothing, people had begun to accept me as a woman.

Energy analysts believe the deep production cuts could yet backfire for OPEC kingpin and U.S. ally Saudi Arabia. Energy analysts believe the deep production cuts could yet backfire for OPEC kingpin and U.S. ally Saudi Arabia, particularly as Biden hinted Congress would soon seek to rein in the Middle East-dominated group's influence over energy prices. OPEC and non-OPEC allies, a group often referred to as OPEC+, agreed on Wednesday to reduce oil production by 2 million barrels per day from November. "In light of today's action, the Biden Administration will also consult with Congress on additional tools and authorities to reduce OPEC's control over energy prices," the White House said. While the group likes to say they keep politics out of their decisions, there's no denying that there are potential ramifications to this beyond the oil price.

☆ Saudi Arabia just won a bid for the 2029 Asian Winter Games. The $500 billion city they're set to be hosted in doesn't exist yet.
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-05 | by ( Marielle Descalsota | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Saudi Arabia is set to become the first country in West Asia to host the Winter Asian Games. But, like the rest of Neom, Trojena doesn't exist yet; it's slated to be completed in 2026, per the AFP. Neom, Saudi Arabia, on January 12, 2021. The Asian Winter Games are held every four years. Saudi Arabia stands to be the first West Asian country to host the event, which was most recently held in Sapporo, Japan, in 2017.

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