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☆ Kenya's President Ruto asks opposition to give talks a chance
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Monicah MwangiNAIROBI, April 16 (Reuters) - Kenya's President William Ruto asked the opposition on Sunday to give talks with the government a chance while his main opponent urged his followers to protest again over electoral reforms and the high cost of living. The protests partly stem from accusations of fraud in August's presidential election in which Ruto narrowly beat Raila Odinga. Odinga's Azimio La Umoja (Declaration of Unity) Alliance and Ruto's Kenya Kwanza (Kenya First) alliance disagree about the content of the talks and who should steer them. Kenya Kwanza wants the talks to involve only lawmakers and discuss only the selection of electoral officials. "If we don't hear from Ruto next week, when Ramadan ends, we are going back to the streets," he said.

☆ Kenya launches first operational satellite into space
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/4] A model of a prototype of a 3U Earth observation satellite, the Taifa-1, is displayed ahead of the launch of Kenya's first operational satellite, at the University of Nairobi's Taifa Hall in Nairobi, Kenya April 14, 2023. REUTERS/Monicah MwangiNAIROBI, April 14 (Reuters) - Kenya launched its first operational earth observation satellite on Saturday onboard a SpaceX rocket from the United States, a live feed from Elon Musk's rocket company showed. The Falcon 9 rocket carrying the Taifa-1 satellite, took off at about 0648 GMT without incident from Vandenberg Base in California, after three postponements due to bad weather. Alloyce Were, an aeronautical engineer and deputy director of Navigation and Positioning at the government-run Kenya Space Agency, told Reuters on Friday before the satellite's launch. The satellite was put together with the help of Bulgarian aerospace company Endurosat at a cost of 50 million Kenyan shillings ($372,000) over two years, the space agency said.

☆ With abortion in the balance, Wisconsin voters to choose new high court judge
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( Joseph Ax | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/9] Supporters of Wisconsin Supreme Court candidate Daniel Kelly cheer during a campaign event the night before Wisconsin's Supreme Court election, in Waukesha, Wisconsin, U.S., April 3, 2023. Abortion has dominated the campaign, with the court expected in the coming months to decide whether to uphold the state's 1849 abortion ban. The state's Democratic attorney general, Josh Kaul, has challenged the statute's validity in a lawsuit backed by Democratic Governor Tony Evers. "Judges are supposed to wear a black robe, but she's made clear she'll be wearing a blue robe," said Mark Jefferson, the state Republican chair. "What we are seeing in this race is an indication that this is a new era for state Supreme Court elections," he said.

☆ Mountain Valley Pipeline's West Virginia water permit tossed by court
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( Clark Mindock | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Circuit Court of Appeals found several defects in the review the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection conducted before issuing the permit. They told the court the agency ignored Equitrans' history of violating state water regulations when it issued the permit under the Clean Water Act. A spokesperson for the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection said they're reviewing the decision. The permit is one of the last remaining hurdles for the multi-billion dollar project, which would carry natural gas between West Virginia and Virginia. For West Virginia: Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, Michael Williams and Lindsay See of the state attorney general’s office and Jason Wandling of the West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection.

☆ Softer dollar buoys gold, but banking optimism limits safe-haven appeal
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Kavya Guduru | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SummarySummary Companies Gold might retest support at $1,945/oz - technicalsU.S. dollar down 0.2%Global stocks rise on TuesdayMarch 28 (Reuters) - Gold prices rose on Tuesday as the dollar slipped, although an improvement in risk appetite after efforts by regulators to allay fears over the global banking system limited the safe-haven metal's appeal. "The U.S. dollar seems to be stabilising, this should entice fresh buying back into the (gold) market," said Clifford Bennett, chief economist at ACY Securities. However, gold remains the "resolute safe-haven" in a "rolling risk environment" for the banking sector as risks of contagion are far more persistent than the market would like to believe, Bennett added. Gold might retest a support at $1,945 per ounce, a break below could open the way towards $1,927, Reuters technical analyst Wang Tao said. Spot silver eased 0.1% to $23.06 per ounce, while platinum rose 0.5% to $976.87 and palladium added 0.7% at $1,418.44.

☆ Burger King is closing 26 locations in Michigan. See the full list.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Danni Santana | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

26 Burger King locations are closing in Michigan by April 15, predominantly in the Detroit area. Burger King franchisee EYM King of Michigan said it failed to reach a deal with the fast-food giant. EYM began shuttering Burger King locations on March 17 and expects to shutter all locations by the middle of April. Leslie AllenThe news of over two dozen Burger King locations closing in Michigan comes as the chain, owned by Restaurant Brands International, undergoes a brand reset in the US. The parent company also named a new CEO of Burger King in Joshua Kobza, formerly the chain's COO.

☆ Stocks gain, US treasury yields rise as banking fear eases
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Xie Yu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan (.MIAPJ0000PUS) edged up 0.3% by early morning Hong Kong time. U.S. Treasury yields rose on optimism that stress in the banking sector could be contained and as the Treasury Department saw soft demand for a sale of two-year notes. Benchmark 10-year yields rose to 3.5317%, up from its U.S. close of 3.528% on Monday. Two-year yields rose to 3.957%, up from a six-month low of 3.555% on Friday but below the almost 16-year high of 5.084% hit on March 8. By Tuesday morning Hong Kong time, Brent crude futures and West Texas Intermediate U.S. crude were both hovering around Monday’s closing levels.

☆ Asia wary, US stock futures up on SVB reports
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( Wayne Cole | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Helping nerves were reports First Citizens BancShares Inc (FCNCA.O) was in advanced talks to acquire Silicon Valley Bank (SIVB.O) from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.S&P 500 futures firmed 0.5% in early trade while Nasdaq futures added 0.4%. "The current level of credit default swaps for European banks is just a little lower than it was during the height of the European financial crisis in 2013," noted Naeem Aslam Chief Investment Officer at Zaye Capital Markets. "If these CDS do not normalise, it is highly likely stock market may continue to suffer for many days." Over in the United States, depositors have been fleeing smaller banks for their larger cousins or to money market funds. Flows to money market funds have risen by more than $300 billion in the past month to a record atop $5.1 trillion.

☆ Fed's Jefferson: Trouble among small, regional banks could hit small businesses
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

LEXINGTON, Virginia, March 27 (Reuters) - The shuffling of deposits from small to large banks could have a disproportionate impact on U.S. small businesses who depend heavily on community and regional financial institutions for credit, Federal Reserve Governor Philip Jefferson said on Monday. "We are focused on the macroeconomy but we are aware that there are potential distributional aspects," if depositors move cash away from smaller banks, Jefferson said. Recent banking sector stress has led to declining deposits at smaller institutions and "we are going to have to see how that plays out," Jefferson said. Reporting by Howard Schneider Editing by Chris ReeseOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Morning Bid: Banks are leaking money
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

There is some relief that First Citizens BancShares Inc (FCNCA.O) is in advanced talks to acquire Silicon Valley Bank (SIVB.O). There was also some talk the Federal Reserve could expand its new lending programme for banks as another step to reassuring depositors. Money is clearly flowing out of smaller banks toward their bigger siblings and to money market funds, which have seen an inflow of more than $300 billion in the past month to a record $5.1 trillion. Capital Economics points out that deposits across all the banks have fallen by $663 billion in the past year as customers search for higher yield. Deutsche Bank's five-year CDS hit 222 bps on Friday, the highest since late 2018, while UBS CDS shot up to 139 bps.

☆ Morning Bid: Brittle banks find a berth
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

With few fresh weekend developments on the European bank stock rigor late last week, European bourses and bank stocks found a level too. Deutsche Bank, whose stock lurched lower on Friday amid fears about rising bank funding costs, regained about 3% on Monday. Deposits at small banks fell by $120 billion in the week to March 15, while borrowing jumped $253 billion. Economists polled by Reuters expect the headline year-on-year inflation rate to have cooled to 7.2% from 8.5% in February. * U.S. Treasury auctions 2-year notes* U.S. corporate earnings: CarnivalReuters GraphicsReuters Graphics Reuters GraphicsReuters GraphicsReuters GraphicsBy Mike Dolan, editing by Ed Osmond, <a href="mailto:mike.dolan@thomsonreuters.com" target="_blank">mike.dolan@thomsonreuters.com</a>.

☆ Factbox: Major school shootings in the United States
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 27 (Reuters) - A 28-year-old woman shot dead three children and three adults at a private Christian school in Nashville, Tennessee, on Monday, before police killed her. SANDY HOOK: Dec. 14, 2012 - A man shoots dead his mother, then kills 20 children and six adults before killing himself at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. UVALDE: May 24, 2022 - A man fatally shoots 19 students and two teachers at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas before he was shot dead by Border Patrol agents. PARKLAND: Feb. 14, 2018 - A former student at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, opens fire with an assault-style rifle, killing 17 students and educators. He is fatally shot by police.

☆ Treasury yields rise as investors weigh banking sector developments
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( Sophie Kiderlin | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Yields and prices move in opposite directions and one basis point equals 0.01%. ET, the yield on the 10-year Treasury was up by close to five basis points to 3.4265%. The 2-year Treasury was trading at around 3.8875% after rising by over 11 basis points. U.S. Treasury yields climbed on Monday as investors assessed the latest changes in the banking sector and concerns about its future eased slightly. Investors considered fresh developments in the banking sector.

☆ First came bank failures. Now comes the House hearing
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-26 | by ( Krystal Hur | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

New York CNN —Federal regulators are being called to testify before the House Financial Services Committee on Tuesday about the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank. What lawmakers are saying: Elected officials want a review of what happened at Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank earlier this month, as well as stricter regulations to prevent it from happening again. Regulators on March 12, just days after SVB collapsed, announced a guarantee of all deposits at the bank and Signature Bank. What to expect: It’s unclear what will come of the hearings on SVB and Signature Bank. Wednesday: The House Financial Services Committee’s hearing on the banking crisis continues for a second day.

☆ Stock futures are up as Wall Street looks to build on winning week: Live updates
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-26 | by ( Alex Harring | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Stock futures edged higher Sunday evening as Wall Street came off a winning week and investors continued to follow the troubling bank sector. The moves come after Wall Street capped off a winning week despite volatility related to the Federal Reserve's latest interest rate hike and the ongoing bank crisis. The news reignited concerns over the health of the European banking system that started with UBS ' acquisition of Credit Suisse earlier this month. "Although markets were okay with the Fed, it was the second thing — the ongoing turmoil in the banking system — that mattered even more." In the week ahead, investors will likely continue watching the banking sector for indicators of potential weakness.

☆ Bank fears will likely lead to even more market volatility in the week ahead
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-24 | by ( Patti Domm | In | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Market turbulence could reign supreme once again in the week ahead, as investors worry about the potential for more trouble rippling through the banking system. The broader market was initially under pressure Friday as investors became jittery about Deutsche Bank . "The market is saying: 'You, the Fed, do not appreciate the slowdown that is going to hit us,'" Chandler said. "The market is going to do a lot better and it held onto its gains despite all the things that rocked the market. He added that market concern about banks has risen, and there is concern credit tightening will hurt the economy.

☆ Women's NCAA roundup: No. 12 Florida Gulf Coast upsets No. 5 Washington State
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

5 seed in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, this time handing Pac-12 champs Washington State a 74-63 defeat in Villanova, Pa., on Saturday. Tishara Morehouse chipped in 16 points for the Eagles. The Cougars (23-11) were the Eagles' victims this time, as 16 points and 12 rebounds from Tara Wallack wasn't enough to propel Washington State to its fifth straight win. Here are more results from the first half of Saturday's action in the women's NCAA Tournament. It was the first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance for Saint Louis, which won the Atlantic 10 Tournament.

☆ Top U.S. Senate Republican Mitch McConnell hospitalized after fall
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, March 9 (Reuters) - U.S. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell has been hospitalized after tripping and falling at a hotel in Washington on Wednesday, his spokesperson said in a statement. "This evening, Leader McConnell tripped at a local hotel during a private dinner. Currently serving his seventh term, which runs through 2026, McConnell is the third U.S. senator to be hospitalized in recent weeks. He served as the Senate majority leader from 2015 to 2021, and has been the Senate minority leader since then. Senate Republicans, by contrast, easily reelected McConnell.

☆ U.S. Senate Republican leader McConnell hospitalized after fall
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

March 8 (Reuters) - U.S. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell has been hospitalized after tripping at a hotel in Washington on Wednesday, his spokesperson said in a statement. "This evening, Leader McConnell tripped at a local hotel during a private dinner. McConnell, 81, was first elected to the U.S. Senate in 1984. He served as the Senate majority leader from 2015 to 2021, and the Senate minority leader since then. Before his election to the Senate, he served as judge-executive of Jefferson County, Kentucky from 1978.

Companies Us Justice Department FollowWASHINGTON, March 8 (Reuters) - The Louisville, Kentucky police department whose officers fatally shot Breonna Taylor in 2020 routinely discriminates against Black residents, uses excessive force and conducts illegal searches, the U.S. Justice Department said on Wednesday. At a news conference, Garland said the department had reached a "consent decree" with the Louisville police, which will require the use of an independent monitor to oversee policing reforms. Garland said some Louisville police officers had demonstrated disrespect to the people they are sworn to protect, with some insulting people with disabilities and describing Black people as "monkeys." Taylor, a 26-year-old emergency medical technician, was asleep in bed with her boyfriend on March 13, 2020, when Louisville police executing a no-knock warrant burst into her apartment. In 2022, former Louisville detective Kelly Goodlett pleaded guilty to federal criminal charges that she helped falsify the search warrant that led to Taylor's death.

☆ Biting dogs and violence: Five takeaways from the Louisville police probe
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( Sarah N. Lynch | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Here are five takeaways from the report:BITING DOGSLouisville police deploy dogs against people who don't pose a threat, and allow the dogs to continue biting after the suspect surrenders, the report found. It cited an instance where an officer ordered his dog to bite a 14-year-old Black teen who was not resisting. NECK RESTRAINTSThe investigation found that Louisville police use dangerous neck restraints against people who pose no threat. It cited a case in which police responded to the scene of an elderly Black man "dancing in the street." In one such case, police responding to a domestic violence disturbance call regarding a Black man.

Companies Us Justice Department FollowWASHINGTON, March 8 (Reuters) - The Louisville, Kentucky, police force routinely discriminates against Black residents, uses excessive force and conducts illegal searches, the U.S. Justice Department said on Wednesday, following a probe prompted by Breonna Taylor's death in 2020. Some Louisville police officers even filmed themselves insulting people with disabilities and describing Black people as "monkeys," the Justice Department said. Louisville Mayor Craig Greenburg told reporters the Justice Department's report brought back "painful memories" and vowed to implement reforms. Under Garland's leadership, the Justice Department has sought to reinvigorate its civil rights enforcement program, an area civil rights advocates say was left in tatters by the former administration of former U.S. President Donald Trump. The Justice department has since restored their use, and launched multiple civil rights investigations into police departments, local jails and prisons across the country.

☆ Premarket stocks: What to watch as Fed Chair Powell testifies before Congress
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Nicole Goodkind | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

New York CNN —Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is on the hot seat this week as he testifies before Congress. Powell will have some good news to report — when he last testified before Congress in June, the inflation rate was at 40-year-highs, nearing 9%. Investors will also be on edge — hawkish language or even an aggressive tone from Powell could lead to market volatility. Some Fed officials agree. Economists, business leaders, investors and even Fed officials aren’t really sure about what’s happening.

☆ College Should Be More Like Prison
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-06 | by ( Brooke Allen | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

Enrollment in these subjects is plummeting, and students who take literature and history classes often come in with rudimentary ideas about the disciplines. Interviewed in a recent New Yorker article, Prof. James Shapiro of Columbia said teaching “Middlemarch” to today’s college students is like landing a 747 on a rural airstrip. Never have I been more grateful to teach where I do: at a men’s maximum-security prison. My students there, enrolled in a for-credit college program, provide a sharp contrast with contemporary undergraduates. The classes are often the most interesting part of these men’s prison lives.

☆ Oil rises on China growth hopes
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( Ahmad Ghaddar | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Brent crude futures for April , due to expire on Tuesday, were up by 87 cents, or 1.1%, to $83.32 per barrel by 1059 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures gained $1.18, or 1.6%, to $76.89 a barrel. JPMorgan's oil analysts maintained their 2023 average price forecast on Brent crude futures at $90 per barrel. The market will be looking to the latest U.S. oil stocks data due from the American Petroleum Institute industry group on Tuesday and the government's Energy Information Administration on Wednesday for further demand indicators. Distillate inventories, which include diesel and heating oil, were expected to have decreased by about 500,000 barrels last week.

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