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Ford has added 1,200 workers to the Lightning assembly system and plans to run it on a three-shift work rotation. As one of several new moves to boost demand, Ford said individual retail customers can now order the least expensive F-150 Lightning Pro, a $49,995 version of the truck originally designed for commercial customers only. To support increased Lightning production, Ford will focus sales efforts on "attracting more traditional customers, or the early majority," Gjaja said. “Challenges still remain around customer awareness and acceptance” of electric vehicles among mainstream buyers, he said. Ford said last week its electric vehicle operations are on track to lose $4.5 billion this year, a 50% wider loss than previously projected.

Persons: Rebecca Cook, Ford, Tesla, Marin Gjaja, Gjaja, Jim Farley, Joe White, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: Rouge Electric Vehicle, Reuters Connect DETROIT, Ford, EV, Detroit's, Motors, Silverado, Lightning, Ford's, Thomson Locations: Dearborn , Michigan, U.S

☆ BlackRock, MSCI draw scrutiny from US House Committee on China
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Carlo Allegri/File Photo License this content on Reuters ConnectAug 1 (Reuters) - A U.S. congressional committee on China said asset management giant BlackRock (BLK.N) and index provider MSCI (MSCI.N) were facilitating investments into blacklisted Chinese companies. The firms have facilitated American capital flow into the companies the U.S. government had found guilty of fueling China's military advancement or human rights abuses, the House of Representatives' Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) said on Monday. "With all investments in China and markets around the world, BlackRock complies with all applicable U.S. government laws. We will continue engaging with the Select Committee directly on the issues raised," BlackRock said. Republicans formed the Select Committee when they took control of the House in January, as part of an effort to convince Americans why they should care about competing with China.

Persons: Carlo Allegri, BlackRock, MSCI, Mike Gallagher, Niket Nishant, Jaiveer Singh Shekhawat, Michael Martina, Don Durfee, Krishna Chandra Eluri, Shinjini Ganguli, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: REUTERS, Reuters, U.S, Chinese Communist Party, CCP, BlackRock, Republicans, China, Congress, Republican, Wall Street, Thomson Locations: BlackRock, Manhattan, New York City , New York, U.S, China, Taiwan, Ukraine

☆ TSMC leads in advanced chip packaging wars, LexisNexis patent data says
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-01 | by ( Max A. Cherney | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Advanced chip packaging is a crucial technology that squeezes the most horsepower from the latest chip designs, and is crucial to chip contract manufacturers vying for business. The data from LexisNexis, released last month, indicates that TSMC and Samsung have steadily invested in advanced packaging technology for years, as Intel did not keep pace with its own filings. Packaging technology enabled the industry to stitch together several chips called "chiplets" - either stacked or adjacent to one another - within the same container. Samsung has been investing in advanced packaging for years but the South Korean chip giant established a dedicated team to pursue advanced packaging in December 2022, Moonsoo Kang, the unit's chief, said in a statement. Intel disputed the idea that the size of TSMC's patent portfolio indicated that it had developed more advanced technology.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, TSMC, ”, Marco Richter, Moonsoo Kang, Benjamin Ostapuk, Max A, Matthew Lewis Organizations: Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing, REUTERS, Reuters, Samsung Electronics, Intel, LexisNexis, Samsung, Devices, Thomson Locations: San Francisco

☆ Exclusive: Thai, Vietnamese exporters renegotiate 500,000 T of rice deals
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-01 | by ( Naveen Thukral | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

A farmer harvests rice by a paddy field outside Hanoi, Vietnam June 10, 2019. Exporters are rushing to cover rice supplies from farmers who have raised prices following a surge in the world market, putting millions of dollars worth of deals at risk. 2 and 3 exporters respectively, are estimated to ship more than one million metric tons of rice in August. While large exporting houses are likely to fulfil contracts, smaller trading companies are expected to default on shipments, traders said. Importers, including the Philippines, are likely to seek direct deals with governments of exporting countries to ensure critical food supplies.

Persons: Rice, Naveen Thukral, Khanh Vu, David Evans Organizations: REUTERS, Reuters, Rice, Thomson Locations: Hanoi, Vietnam, Thailand, SINGAPORE, India, Asia, Africa, Singapore, Ho Chi Minh City, Philippines

☆ Woods joins PGA Tour's policy board as player director
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

"Tiger's voice and leadership throughout his career have contributed immeasurably to the success of the PGA Tour, and to apply both to our governance and go-forward plan at this crucial time is even more welcomed and impactful," said PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan. "I am honoured to represent the players of the PGA Tour," Woods, who is recovering from ankle surgery in April, said in a news release. The announcement comes nearly two months after the golf world was left stunned by the announcement of a framework agreement between the PGA Tour and Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, which controls LIV Golf. According to the PGA Tour, the players and Monahan will work together to amend the Policy Board's governing documents to make it clear that no major decision can be made without the involvement and approval of the player directors. Reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto Editing by Christian RadnedgeOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Woods, Mike Blake, Patrick Cantlay, Charley Hoffman, Peter Malnati, Rory McIlroy, Webb Simpson, Jay Monahan, LIV, Monahan, Colin Neville, Scottie Scheffler, Jon Rahm, Japan's Hideki Matsuyama, Jason Day, Adam Scott, Frank Pingue, Christian Radnedge Organizations: Golf, Reuters, PGA, Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, PGA Tour, PIF, Thomson Locations: Augusta , Georgia, U.S, Toronto

[1/3] A person walks by a church in the center of Lisbon, Portugal, December 2, 2021. Unimpressed, Almeida and two other victims launched the Coracao Silenciado (Silenced Heart) association, which gives a voice and support to those who have suffered abuse. "The only thing that helps us is to make other victims feel like they are not alone," Almeida said. Francis, who is visiting Portugal to attend a global gathering of young Catholics known as World Youth Day, is expected to meet privately with abuse victims. "There will be young people from all over the world and the reality (of abuse) is present in all continents," she said.

Persons: Pedro Nunes, Filipa Almeida, Pope Francis, Manuel Clemente, Almeida, Francis, Catarina Demony, Andrei Khalip, Conor Humphries Organizations: Reuters Connect, Portuguese Bishops, Conference, Thomson Locations: Lisbon, Portugal, Reuters Connect LISBON, Portuguese

☆ US manufacturing shows signs of stabilizing at lower levels in July, ISM says
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

It was the ninth straight month that the PMI stayed below the 50 threshold, which indicates contraction in manufacturing, the longest such stretch since the 2007-2009 Great Recession. The ISM survey's forward-looking new orders sub-index increased to 47.3 in July. According to the ISM, the delivery performance of suppliers to manufacturing firms has been faster for 10 straight months. It has, however, not been a reliable predictor of manufacturing employment in the government's nonfarm payrolls count. Manufacturing employment likely rose by 5,000 jobs last month, according to a Reuters survey of economists.

Persons: Charles Mostoller, Lucia Mutikani, Paul Simao Organizations: BMW, REUTERS, Reuters Connect WASHINGTON, Institute for Supply Management, PMI, Reuters, ISM, Federal Reserve, Manufacturing, Fed, U.S . Labor Department, Thomson Locations: Greer , South Carolina, U.S

☆ England smash China for six to ease into last 16 as group winners
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Alessia Russo gave the European champions the perfect start with a goal in the fourth minute and Lauren Hemp and James added two more to give England a comfortable lead at the break at Hindmarsh Stadium. Without the injured Keira Walsh as the holding midfielder, England shifted to a 3-5-2 formation and caused havoc for China with balls into the box from the flanks. "The team showed that they're really adaptable ... that we can change shape very easily, that's what we showed tonight." It was a record World Cup defeat for Asian champions and 1995 semi-finalists China, who exit in the group stage for the first time in eight appearances at the global showpiece. "It's very unfortunate that we had this terrible loss," said China coach Shui Qingxia.

Persons: Lauren James, Alex Greenwood, Lauren Hemp, Alessia Russo, Hannah Mckay, James, Chloe Kelly, Rachel Daly, Keira Walsh, Sarina Wiegman, Shui, Russo, Millie Bright, Wang, Lucy Bronze, Jess Carter's, Kelly, Zhu Yu, wingback Daly, Nick Mulvenney, Christian Radnedge Organizations: Soccer Football, FIFA, England, Hindmarsh, Alessia Russo REUTERS, Reuters Connect, Nigeria, China, Denmark, Haiti, Manchester City, Thomson Locations: New Zealand, China, Adelaide, Australia, Brisbane, England

Most of the buying was in contracts linked to crude oil (+169 million barrels) with a particular emphasis on NYMEX and ICE WTI (+132 million). Short-covering has helped lift front-month WTI futures prices to over $81 per barrel on Aug. 1 from less than $68 on June 27. European gas oil futures and options have experienced an especially rapid increase in positions over the last four weeks (+29 million barrels). As a result, the net position rose to 41 million barrels (44th percentile) on July 25 from just 12 million barrels (18th percentile) on June 27. Related columns:- Depleted U.S. diesel stocks attract hedge funds (July 20, 2023)- Saudi output cut entices funds back into oil market (July 17, 2023)- Extreme pessimism gripped hedge funds on oil (July 3, 2023)- Is oil market’s glass half-full or half-empty?

Persons: Nick Oxford, ⁺, John Kemp Organizations: REUTERS, Reuters Connect, U.S . Commodity Futures Trading Commission, ICE Futures, ICE, Fund, U.S, Thomson, Reuters Locations: Midland , Texas, U.S, Saudi Arabia, Saudi, United States, WTI, Brent, North America, Europe, China

☆ Thomson Reuters to buy digital content management company Imagen
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] The Thomson Reuters logo is seen on the company building in Times Square, New York, U.S., January 30, 2018. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File PhotoJune 28 (Reuters) - Thomson Reuters (TRI.TO) will buy Imagen, a digital content asset management company, for an undisclosed price, to expand its agency business to new customers, the news and information company said on Wednesday. Britain-based Imagen, which owns the Screenocean video distribution platform, operates digital content libraries for sports, media and business companies including Premier League soccer and Major League Baseball. "Our belief is that our agency business needs to evolve to be a tech-enabled content delivery (business)," Reuters President Paul Bascobert said in an interview. On Monday, Thomson Reuters said it agreed to buy Casetext, a California-based AI company that helps legal professionals conduct research, analysis and prepare documents using generative AI, for $650 million.

Persons: Andrew Kelly, Imagen, Paul Bascobert, Bascobert, Thomson, Kenneth Li, Lisa Shumaker Organizations: Thomson Reuters, REUTERS, Premier League soccer, Major League Baseball, Reuters News, Reuters, Reuters Connect, BBC, USA, Thomson Locations: Square , New York, U.S, Britain, California, New York

☆ LoveShackFancy built a pretty, skinny, rich-girl dreamworld. The fantasy was impossible to live up to.
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-24 | by ( Anna Silman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +34 min

Suddenly, in the midst of discussing what Cohen should wear to the next LoveShackFancy store opening, there was the sound of glass clanging. (Another person confirmed hearing this exchange, though the person close to the company said multiple Zoom attendees did not recall it.) The person close to the company said, "It is not uncommon for trips to have dual purposes — they always generate content." Another time, during a visit to the Palm Beach store, Cohen freaked out after seeing staffers in sweatshirts and sneakers. "As with most contemporary fashion brands, we currently do not operate in the plus-size business," the person close to LoveShackFancy said.

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