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[1/5] A view shows an apartment building damaged during a massive Russian drone strike, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine May 30, 2023. KYIV, May 30 (Reuters) - At least one person died and four were injured as a result of Russia's third attack on Kyiv in 24 hours, official said early on Tuesday, with Ukraine's air defence forces destroying more than 20 drones. Photos from Kyiv's officials and Reuters' witnesses showed flames bursting out from the top floors of the building and smoke rising from the roof. According to preliminary information, Tuesday's attacks were carried out only with Iranian-made Shahed drones, Kyiv's military administration said. "The enemy continues to attack the capital," Klitschko said in a post on the Telegram message.

☆ Dollar steady on mounting Fed hike bets, debt ceiling deal optimism
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( Rae Wee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

SINGAPORE, May 29 (Reuters) - The dollar held firm on Monday supported by growing expectations of further rate hikes by the U.S. Federal Reserve, though news that a debt ceiling deal had been finalised drew some of the safe haven bids away from the greenback. DEBT DEAL DONE? "We've got a risk-positive response so far to the debt deal news," said NAB's Attrill. "Obviously there's still the need to get this debt deal over the line, but I think markets are happy to travel on the presumption that it will get done before the new X-date." U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen had on Friday said the government would default if Congress did not increase the $31.4 trillion debt ceiling by June 5, having previously said a default could happen as early as June 1.

☆ Dollar elevated as sticky inflation cements Fed hike bets, debt ceiling deal lifts optimism
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( Rae Wee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The yen's renewed decline has come on the back of rising U.S. Treasury yields, as bets grow that interest rates in the United States would stay higher for longer. Cash U.S. Treasuries were untraded in Asia on Monday, owing to the Memorial Day holiday in the United States, while futures were broadly steady. DEBT DEAL DONE? "We've got a risk-positive response so far to the debt deal news," said NAB's Attrill. "Obviously there's still the need to get this debt deal over the line, but I think markets are happy to travel on the presumption that it will get done before the new X-date."

☆ Russia's war on Ukraine latest: Moscow unleashes strings of large air raids on Kyiv
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

AIR ATTACKS* Russia launched air attacks on Kyiv in the early hours of Monday using drones and cruise missiles. Ukrainian officials said defence forces shot down more than 40 targets. * Russia unleashed what Ukrainian officials said was the largest drone attack on Kyiv since the start of the war on Sunday, killing one and injuring several people. Ukrainian forces have repelled 19 enemy attacks in those regions in the previous 24 hours. * President Vladimir Putin on Sunday ordered stronger border security to ensure "fast" Russian military and civilian movement into Ukrainian regions now under Moscow control.

☆ South Korea hosts its first summit with Pacific island leaders
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SEOUL, May 29 (Reuters) - South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol begins the country's first summit with leaders of Pacific islands on Monday, as Seoul seeks to increase its influence in a region that has become the focus of intense geopolitical rivalry. The South Korean president held bilateral talks with some of the visiting Pacific leaders over the weekend including Kiribati President Taneti Maamau and Papua New Guinean Prime Minister James Marape. Australian Defence Minister Richard Marles will also attend the Korea-Pacific Islands Summit, his office said on Saturday, adding it would show cooperation between the 18 members of the Pacific Island Forum and South Korea for a secure region. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi pledged more trade and development assistance in a summit with a dozen Pacific island leaders in Papua New Guinea (PNG) last week. The United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken also signed a defence agreement with PNG after a Pacific summit.

☆ Explainer: How could a US debt ceiling default hit regular Americans?
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-23 | by ( Jason Lange | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Americans could quickly notice painful blows to their retirement accounts as stock markets swooned, and within days the lack of federal payments could weigh heavily on doctors' offices, retirees and workplaces throughout the country. At that point, Washington would be under severe pressure to keep making payments on U.S. bonds, which underpin the global financial system. Within days, the financial mayhem would be a principal force putting the economy on the path to recession, Zandi said. More Medicare bills would come due in subsequent days, and because Medicare funds about a fifth of U.S. healthcare, some doctors might not have money to pay staff and other bills. Payments could also stop going out to government contractors, including $1 billion due to defense contractors on June 5.

☆ Fresh round of debt ceiling talks kick off as US default worries grow
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

A failure to lift the debt ceiling would trigger a default that would shake financial markets and drive interest rates higher on everything from car payments to credit cards. Any deal to raise the $31.4 trillion debt limit must pass both chambers of Congress before Biden could sign it into law. A plan passed by the House last month would cut a wide swath of government spending by 8% next year. Biden has said he would consider spending cuts alongside tax adjustments but that Republicans' latest offer was "unacceptable." McCarthy told reporters debt ceiling talks have not included discussions about tax cuts passed under former President Donald Trump, a Republican.

☆ Pacific meetings, defence pact, to go ahead in Papua without Biden
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( Kirsty Needham | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Biden had been expected to meet with 18 leaders from the region's main bloc, the Pacific Islands Forum, and sign a defence cooperation agreement with PNG on Monday. PNG Prime Minister James Marape is expected to announce details of the defence pact with the United States on Thursday, his office told Reuters. Fiji said Pacific leaders would hold discussions with Modi on regional cooperation. The chairman of the Pacific Islands Forum, Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown, said the regional meeting had originally been organised between the Pacific countries and India, and his plans to travel to PNG were unchanged. Biden will arrange another summit of Pacific island leaders this year after the disappointment caused by his cancellation of the PNG visit, his national security adviser Jake Sullivan said on Wednesday.

The euro, meanwhile, dropped to a six-week low versus the dollar at $1.0811 . Wednesday's data showed that U.S. single-family homebuilding increased in April, but data for the prior month was revised sharply lower. Single-family housing starts, which account for the bulk of homebuilding, rose 1.6% to a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 846,000 units last month. In late morning trading, the dollar rose 0.7% versus the yen to 137.37 yen, after earlier climbing to a two-week peak of 137.445 . In the offshore market, the dollar rose 0.2% to 7.00911 .

SINGAPORE, May 17 (Reuters) - The dollar rose on Wednesday, benefiting from its status as a safe-haven amid the risk of a U.S. debt default and as traders trimmed bets on imminent Federal Reserve rate cuts following solid consumer spending data in the United States. Against a basket of peers, including the euro, yen and sterling, the dollar index rose 0.3% to 102.96, to its highest since early April. Expectations for U.S. interest rate cuts any time soon were dampened by the solid increase in April consumer spending, and by comments from Fed officials. "A rate hike is possible this year, though the hurdle is high." The New Zealand dollar was broadly steady at $0.6232, with investors looking ahead to a 25 bp interest rate hike next week and perhaps one more after that.

☆ U.S. debt drama and data hoist dollar
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( Tom Westbrook | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The dollar hit a two-week peak of 136.69 yen overnight and hovered just below that at 136.54 in the Asia day. Expectations for U.S. interest rate cuts any time soon were dampened by the solid increase in April consumer spending, and by hawkish comments from Federal Reserve officials. "We expect some modest further increases in the dollar as markets continue to take out pricing for rate cuts," said Commonwealth Bank of Australia strategist Joe Capurso. "A rate hike is possible this year, though the hurdle is high." The New Zealand dollar was broadly steady at $0.6244, with investors looking ahead to a 25 bp interest rate hike next week and perhaps one more after that.

☆ Data and debt ceiling hoist dollar
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( Tom Westbrook | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Data showed U.S. consumer spending appeared to have increased solidly in April, which together with hawkish remarks from Federal Reserve officials weighed on bonds and against expectations that interest rate cuts are coming soon. Interest rate futures pricing implies no chance of a rate cut in June, down from about a 17% chance seen a month ago. "Market participants continue to lower pricing for near term rate cuts by the FOMC," said Commonwealth Bank of Australia strategist Joe Capurso. "We expect some modest further increases in the dollar as markets continue to take out pricing for rate cuts. The New Zealand dollar was broadly steady at $0.6239, with investors looking ahead to a 25 bp interest rate next week and perhaps one more after that.

☆ Ex-Wagner commander who sought asylum in Norway wants to return to Russia
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( Nerijus Adomaitis | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] Former Wagner commander Andrei Medvedev is pictured in court with his lawyer Brynjulf Risnes (not pictured), in Oslo, Norway April 25, 2023. REUTERS/Gwladys FoucheOSLO, May 17 (Reuters) - A former commander of Russia's Wagner group who sought asylum in Norway after crossing the Russian-Norwegian border in January said on Wednesday he wanted to return to Russia even though he believed this could pose a risk to his life. I've contacted the Russian embassy in Oslo for help, to facilitate my return," Medvedev said in one of five short videos, adding that he made this decision on his own. He escaped Russia via its Arctic border with Norway in January. He told Reuters at the time he was looking to the future, studying Norwegian and hoping to get asylum.

Companies Woodside Energy Group Ltd FollowADELAIDE, May 17 (Reuters) - Australia's vast liquefied natural gas (LNG) industry is trying to pull off something that seems almost impossible. They want to lead the transition to clean and renewable energy, while at the same time continuing to invest in, and produce fossil fuels. For example, Woodside is spending some $12 billion to develop its Scarborough natural gas field off Western Australia's coast, and has another advanced LNG project with its Browse field. But the hydrogen projects are largely still at the early stages and even if all the permitting approvals are received, they will still take several years to get up and running. It's an industry-wide problem that projects take several years, and sometimes more than a decade to go from initial proposal to actual production.

WASHINGTON, May 16 (Reuters) - Rural electric cooperatives, utilities, and other energy providers will soon be able to apply for nearly $11 billion in grants and loans for clean energy projects, funded by the $430 billion Inflation Reduction Act signed into law last August, the Biden administration said on Tuesday. Expanding clean energy to rural communities is critical to meeting the administration's goal of net-zero emissions by 2050, officials told reporters on a Monday press call. Rural electric cooperatives will be eligible to apply beginning July 31 for $9.7 billion in grants for deploying renewable energy, zero-emission, and carbon capture systems, the Department of Agriculture (USDA) said. Rural electric cooperatives serve 42 million people and draw about 22% of their energy from renewable sources, according to the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA). The new funds will help rural electric cooperatives reach parity with private utility companies who have already begun significant investment in clean energy, Vilsack told reporters.

SAO PAULO, May 16 (Reuters) - France's Thales SA (TCFP.PA) will provide maintenance services for Brazilian airline Gol (GOLL4.SA) in Brazil instead of abroad, the companies outlined on Tuesday in a deal that aims to cut turnaround time and lower costs. Under the deal, Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes SA, as the airline is formally known, will no longer need to ship its Thales equipment to the United States or France for maintenance, as they will now be repaired at a Thales plant near Sao Paulo. Thales supplies avionics to Gol, which has a fleet of roughly 120 Boeing (BA.N) aircraft, and to local rival Azul , which mainly operates Airbus (AIR.PA) and Embraer (EMBR3.SA) aircraft. Gol and Thales did not disclose financial details of their deal, but the carrier's director of maintenance, Fernando Miwa, said Thales' investments in Brazil would provide local operators with an opportunity to cut costs. "The market for this type of service in Brazil is still very limited," Miwa said.

WASHINGTON, May 16 (Reuters) - Rural electric cooperatives, utilities, and other energy providers will soon be able to apply for nearly $11 billion in grants and loans for clean energy projects, funded by the $430 billion Inflation Reduction Act signed into law last August, the Biden administration said on Tuesday. Expanding clean energy to rural communities is critical to meeting the administration's goal of net-zero emissions by 2050, officials told reporters on a Monday press call. Rural electric cooperatives will be eligible to apply beginning July 31 for $9.7 billion in grants for deploying renewable energy, zero-emission, and carbon capture systems, the Department of Agriculture (USDA) said. The new funds will help rural electric cooperatives reach parity with private utility companies who have already begun significant investment in clean energy, Vilsack told reporters. Rural electric cooperatives serve 42 million people and draw about 22% of their energy from renewable sources, according to the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association.

☆ Foreign buying of US Treasuries in March hits largest since June 2021 -data
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Gertrude Chavez-Dreyfuss | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

There were lots of buying by China, lots of buying by Japan. Japan, however, had been selling Treasuries for most of 2022 to help boost a weak yen. China had been selling Treasuries as well, like Japan for most of last year. U.S. residents, meanwhile, increased their holdings of long-term foreign securities, with net purchases of $22.8 billion, compared with net selling of $8.3 billion in February. Overall, net foreign purchases of long-term securities are estimated to have been $133.3 billion in March, up sharply from February's inflows of $56.6 billion, data showed.

☆ Arrowstreet, Coatue Management among big hedge funds buying Meta in first quarter
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( David Randall | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

NEW YORK, May 15 (Reuters) - Prominent hedge funds including Arrowstreet Capital LLC, D1 Capital Partners and Coatue Management LLC were among the investors that bought shares of Meta Platforms Inc in the first quarter of the year, amid an eye-popping rebound in the Facebook-parent’s stock. Arrowstreet Capital added about 5 million shares during the quarter, brining its total position to slightly more than 7 million shares, while Coatue more than doubled its position in the company by buying 4.2 million shares. Winslow Capital Management, meanwhile, initiated a new position in the firm by buying about 927,000 shares, and D1 Capital Partners bought slightly more than 1 million shares. Norges Bank, the central bank of Norway, was the largest seller among all firms, unloading more than 35 million shares during the quarter. Two Sigma Investments sold its entire stake of about 569,000 shares, while Glenview Capital Management, run by billionaire Larry Robbins, sold its entire stake of about 526,000 shares, according to filings.

☆ US lawmakers seek probe of how Elon Musk's brain chip venture oversees animal experiments
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-12 | by ( Rachael Levy | Thomson Reuters | Award-Winning Journalist Covering Corporate Governance. Her Reporting Has Prompted Federal Investigations | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File PhotoWASHINGTON, May 12 (Reuters) - U.S. lawmakers will ask regulators to investigate whether the make-up of a panel overseeing animal testing at Elon Musk's brain-chip startup Neuralink contributed to botched and rushed experiments. The lawmakers have shared the draft with peers to gather more signatures and plan to send it to the USDA on Monday. A spokesperson for Blumenauer said the USDA did not respond to an earlier request from lawmakers for a probe into Neuralink in the wake of that story. Musk and Neuralink representatives, and spokespeople for the USDA and the agency’s inspector general, did not respond to requests for comment. The Inspector General and the USDA did not respond to a request for comment on the progress of that investigation.

☆ Asian stocks rise as US inflation cools
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-11 | by ( Julie Zhu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

HONG KONG, May 11 (Reuters) - Asian shares rose on Thursday as investors cheered signs of easing inflationary pressure in the U.S. after data showed consumer prices in April rose at a slower-than-expected pace. read moreEarly in the Asian day, MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan (.MIAPJ0000PUS) was up 0.4%. A gauge of global stock markets rose and bond yields slid on Wednesday after data showed U.S. consumer prices in April rose at a slightly slower-than-expected pace, suggesting the Federal Reserve is succeeding in taming high inflation. The two-year Treasury yield, which typically moves in step with rate expectations, touched 3.9222% compared with a U.S. close of 3.901%. Oil prices rose in early Asian trade after strong demand for fuels in the U.S. outweighed concerns about the possibility of the world's biggest oil producer and consumer defaulting on its debt.

☆ Biden warns of recession unless Republicans back his debt ceiling plan
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-11 | by ( Nandita Bose | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

We're going to win this fight," Biden said at a flag-bedecked event at Westchester Community College in Valhalla, New York. Republicans are vowing to support raising the debt ceiling only if Biden agrees to retroactive reductions in government spending. Biden wants the debt ceiling lifted without spending cuts attached, but said he wants to negotiate the next budget. White House aides are meeting with congressional leaders' staff in Washington daily before Biden and the leaders meet again on Friday. Democrats view Republican House members who narrowly won election as possibly vulnerable to being pressured into breaking with their party's leadership and voting for a bill to raise the debt ceiling without conditions.

☆ CNN staffers were horrified watching their network conduct the Trump town hall
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-11 | by ( Claire Atkinson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

CNN staffers were horrified watching their network conduct a town hall with former President Donald Trump. CNN staffers were horrified watching their network conduct a town hall with former President Donald Trump. They were mocking her," said one former CNN executive, also granted anonymity to speak openly, who wondered why they hadn't conducted a Trump interview separately from the town hall. The Trump interview also put the #boycottCNN hashtag back into circulation. Ahead of the town hall, anchor Wolf Blitzer asked one panelist what he was most looking forward to from the town hall and he responded: "The exits."

☆ Biden hits Republican debt ceiling plan in swing New York district
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Nandita Bose | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

We're going to win this fight," Biden said at a flag-bedecked event at Westchester Community College in Valhalla, New York. Republicans are vowing to support raising the debt ceiling only if Biden agrees to retroactive reductions in government spending. Biden wants the debt ceiling lifted without spending cuts attached, but said he wants to negotiate the next budget. Biden spoke a day after he met with top Republican and Democratic lawmakers for the first time in three months to try to move forward on the debt ceiling and avoid a historic default. Democrats view Republican House members who narrowly won election as possibly vulnerable to being pressured into breaking with their party's leadership and voting for a bill to raise the debt ceiling without conditions.

☆ Biden heads to New York to talk debt ceiling, raise funds for re-election
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Nandita Bose | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

In an appearance at Westchester Community College north of New York City, Biden plans to discuss the need to move quickly to head off default. Democrats view Republican House members who narrowly won election as possibly vulnerable to being pressured into breaking with their party's leadership and voting for a bill to raise the debt ceiling without conditions. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has said Republicans will not vote to raise the borrowing limit without an agreement to cut spending. While Biden has largely focused on his presidential duties since announcing his bid for re-election, his campaign operation is coming to life. The events being planned for Biden are expected to generate some $2.5 million for his reelection campaign, according to sources.

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