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☆ San Francisco mayor says the city is 'prioritizing public safety' after Cash App creator's fatal stabbing during visit
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( Britney Nguyen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

San Francisco's mayor called the death of Cash App creator Bob Lee "a horrible tragedy." London Breed said police are investigating, and San Francisco is "prioritizing public safety." Breed pointed to a recent budget supplemental that will put more police in SF neighborhoods. He tagged San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins to ask if "the city taking stronger action to incarcerate repeat violent offenders." San Francisco's violent crime rates are relatively favorable compared to other large cities, like Chicago and Los Angeles.

☆ Cash App creator Bob Lee moved out of San Francisco because he thought the city was 'deteriorating' shortly before he was stabbed there, friend says
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( Sophia Ankel | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Cash App creator Bob Lee was fatally stabbed in San Francisco earlier this week. His friend, Jake Shields, told NewsNation that Lee had recently relocated to Miami. Lee moved out of San Francisco because he thought it was unsafe, Shields added. "[Lee] did comment on San Francisco deteriorating, which is why he actually had just relocated to Miami," Shields told the outlet. Shields told NewsNation the attack was a "senseless act of violence in San Francisco," adding that the city has had "problems" for a while.

☆ These US port cities are fighting to restrict cruise ships. It's easier said than done.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Hannah Towey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The pandemic offered coastal communities across the US a taste of life without cruise ships. Now, port cities in Florida, Maine, Alaska, and California are fighting to limit or ban the vessels. A few weeks prior, Juneau, Alaska's city assembly voted to cap the number of cruise ships visiting the capital's downtown port at five per day. According to one study commissioned by Stand.earth, an environmental organization, found that cruise passengers visiting Victoria, a major Canadian cruise port, were responsible for less than 2% of tourism spending. Do you live or work near a US cruise port?

☆ Need more cash? Maybe it's time to launch a side hustle—here's how to get started
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Cindy Perman | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

That has left nearly two-thirds of all Americans living paycheck to paycheck, according to a new report from LendingClub. Think about your friends, neighbors and others in your social network: What do they need and what would they pay money for? Consider the tax and legal implicationsIf you do launch a side hustle, make sure you understand any tax and legal implications. RBC Wealth Management suggests you ask yourself these additional questions: Will you need a license, insurance or to establish a corporation? What are the tax implications of the extra income?

Summary Fossil fuel-fired power output rises fastest in nearly 3 decadesEmissions from power gen rose nearly a sixth to 1.15 bln tonnesCoal-fired power output up 12.4%, gas-fired output down 29%Share of coal in overall power output rose to 73.1%Renewables output rose 21.7%, share up to 11.8%SINGAPORE, April 5 (Reuters) - India's power generation grew at the fastest pace in over three decades in the just-ended fiscal year, a Reuters analysis of government data showed, fuelling a sharp surge in emissions as output from both coal-fired and renewable plants hit records. In the new fiscal year that began April 1, Indian power plants are expected to burn about 8% more coal. That is 3.4% of the International Energy Agency's estimate of annual global emissions of 33.8 billion tonnes in 2022. The government has defended India's high coal use citing lower per capita emissions compared with richer nations and rising renewable energy output. The green energy output helped prevent as much as 32.5 million tonnes of CO2 emissions from power that would otherwise likely have been produced with coal, calculations show.

☆ Japan aims to boost hydrogen supply to 12 million T by 2040
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

TOKYO, April 4 (Reuters) - Japan is to revise its hydrogen strategy by the end of May with an ambitious target to boost annual supply to 12 million tonnes by 2040, the industry ministry said on Tuesday, as competition increases in the global market for the fuel. Citing massive hydrogen investment by the United States and Europe, Kishida said Japan will speed up the roll out of supply chains in cooperation with Australia, the Middle East, and Asia. Japan's existing goal is to increase annual hydrogen supply to about 3 million tonnes in 2030 from 2 million tonnes now, which is mainly used by oil refiners, and to expand the figure to 20 million tonnes in 2050, according to the ministry. The fuel, together with ammonia, has a major role in helping Japan to meet its target of becoming carbon neutral by 2050. ($1 = 132.6500 yen)Reporting by Yuka Obayashi, Miho Uranaka and Yoshifumi Takemoto; editing by Barbara LewisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

CompaniesCompanies Law Firms Conocophillips FollowApril 3 (Reuters) - A federal judge on Monday rejected a bid by environmentalists to temporarily suspend the U.S. government’s approval of ConocoPhillips' (COP.N) multibillion-dollar oil drilling project in Alaska’s Arctic. Gleason said an injunction was inappropriate because the groups wouldn't be irreparably harmed by the construction that ConocoPhillips has scheduled for this month, which includes building roads and a gravel mine. Bridget Psarianos, an attorney challenging the approval, called the planned construction schedule "aggressive" and said the judge's decision is "heartbreaking." The approvals for the project in northern Alaska give ConocoPhillips permission to construct three drill pads, 25.8 miles of gravel roads, an air strip and hundreds of miles of ice roads. The 30-year project would produce up to 180,000 barrels of oil per day at its peak, according to the company.

☆ Walmart set to reopen the Virginia store where six employees were shot and killed five months ago. It will include a memorial in their honor.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( Ben Tobin | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Walmart plans to reopen a store on April 19 after a mass shooting took place there in November 2022. The store will feature a memorial to honor the six workers who lost their lives in the shooting. "We are deeply touched by the community's compassion and support as we continue to heal from last year's tragedy," Alycia Mixon, the Walmart Chesapeake store manager, said in a press release. The reopened Walmart store in Chesapeake, Virginia, will feature a memorial to honor the six victims of the shooting. Are you a Walmart employee who works at the store in Chesapeake, Virginia?

☆ Biden trumpets his economic plans in Minnesota after Cummins announces $1 billion investment
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( Emma Kinery | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

President Joe Biden touted efforts to boost U.S. manufacturing after touring a Cummins facility in Minnesota on Monday, as the company announced it will invest $1 billion in making cleaner engines. Cummins intends to invest the money in Indiana, North Carolina and New York, focusing on creating low-to-zero-carbon engines. More than half of medium and heavy-duty trucks in the U.S. use Cummins engines, and the upgraded facilities aim to decarbonize shipping vehicles across the country. Electrolyzers are needed to create clean hydrogen, used to power certain vehicles and in steel production. "All these investments mean that now if you grow up in Minnesota, if you go to school in Minnesota, you can stay in Minnesota," Biden said.

☆ US approves California plan requiring half of heavy duty trucks be EV by 2035
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

California Governor Gavin Newsom said as a result of the plan, "half of all heavy duty trucks sold in CA will be electric by 2035." The California Air Resources Board (CARB) had sought waivers from the Clean Air Act to set heavy-duty vehicle and engine emission standards. CARB has noted heavy-duty vehicles greater than 14,000 pounds comprised 3% of vehicles on California roads, but account for more than 50% of nitrogen oxides and fine particle diesel pollution. In December, the EPA finalized new emissions standards to drastically cut smog- and soot-forming emissions from heavy-duty trucks. Transportation is the largest source of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, making up 29% of emissions, and heavy-duty vehicles are the second-largest contributor, at 23%.

☆ EU agrees to double renewables by 2030 and UK unveils its long-awaited climate plan
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Reuters Emily Blumenthal | Emily Blumenthal | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Two big announcements in European climate policy came Thursday. In 2021, the bloc got 22% of its energy from renewable sources, though the level varied significantly between countries. Sweden leads with a 63% renewable energy share, while in Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands and Ireland, renewable sources make up less than 13% of total energy use. UK climate strategyThe United Kingdom also announced its own climate strategy Thursday. It includes support for offshore wind energy, electric vehicles, green hydrogen, nuclear technology, home insulation and home heat pumps.

☆ Drax shares tumble after Britain rejects carbon-capture project
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 30 (Reuters) - Shares of British power generator Drax (DRX.L) fell 10% on Thursday after the government turned down its carbon-capture project for the country's Track-1 programme. The project was not selected for Track-1, but the government will engage further with the project following an assessment outcome, the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero said. Britain laid out plans on Thursday to boost its energy security and independence through investment in efforts to move towards cleaner, more affordable energy sources. Last week, Drax said it was pausing its planned UK investment of 2 billion pounds ($2.45 billion) in bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) as it awaited clarity on UK funding. Reporting by Nora Buli in Oslo and Radhika Anilkumar in Bengaluru; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu and Clarence FernandezOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Origin, Australia's top energy retailer, on Monday agreed to the long-running takeover offer from the consortium, nearing the conclusion of one of the country's biggest private equity-backed buyouts. Once the deal is completed, EIG's MidOcean Energy will take control of Origin's integrated gas business. Thomas said government policy swings world over are a by-product of the volatility associated with the tension between energy security and the transition to cleaner energy. Origin, Australia's No. Brookfield said it plans to invest a further A$20 billion of capital to fully replace Origin's power generation and its power purchases with green power over a decade.

☆ Amazon sellers are using ChatGPT to help write product listings in sprawling marketplace
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Annie Palmer | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Michael Nagle | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesChad Rubin was looking for a way to spice up his Amazon listing for a vacuum hose. For assistance, Rubin turned to ChatGPT, the artificial intelligence chatbot that's gone viral since its launch late last year. Rubin asked ChatGPT to "generate 5 insanely clever and catchy headlines" for an infographic promoting his vacuum cleaner hose. A stream of YouTube videos, articles and LinkedIn posts have appeared in recent months touting the benefits of ChatGPT for Amazon sellers. Rubin said he plans to incorporate ChatGPT into a new tool that will help sellers quickly fine-tune their product listings.

☆ Column: China's Q1 coal imports jump to new highs as factories throttle up
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Gavin Maguire | Thomson Reuters | Gavin Maguire Is The Global Energy Transition Columnist. He Was Previously Asia Commodities | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Total thermal coal imports through March soared 81% from the same period a year ago to 65.7 million tonnes, according to ship-tracking data from Kpler. SOUTHERN SURGEPorts feeding China's south coast saw the largest year-over-year increase in thermal coal imports. China's coal imports hit new highs in Q1 2023While China as a whole uses domestic coal production for over 90% of its coal needs, most of Southern China's coal-fired power plants rely overwhelmingly on imports. The region imported over 106 million tonnes in 2021, indicating a quarterly pace in excess of 25 million tonnes can be maintained if power needs dictate. In combination, all of China's main economic hubs are on track to steer the country's thermal coal imports to new heights in 2023, reversing the slump seen in China's coal use in 2022.

☆ California governor signs bill giving energy commission oversight power on oil companies
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Taylor Romine | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Gavin Newsom signed a bill into law Tuesday that gives the state’s energy commission oversight power on oil companies to determine potential price gouging and impose corresponding penalties. If their office determines price gouging occurred, they will be able to impose a penalty on oil companies. The law will give needed transparency into the state’s petroleum market and how the oil companies are coming up with pricing, according to state legislators who worked on the bill. “California has sent a clear message to the oil industry – open your books and prove that you’re not price gouging. Last November, Newsom called a special session on a potential “price gouging penalty” after previously calling on the legislature to enact a windfall tax on oil companies.

☆ Musk’s Twitter markdown falls short of the mark
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( Lauren Silva Laughlin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The billionaire owner of Twitter has offered stock grants to the social media app’s shrunken staff at a valuation of about $20 billion, less than half the price he paid in October. In fact, based on Twitter’s operating performance, the effects of leverage and public market comparisons, the equity is probably worthless. Net out $13 billion of debt, as of January, and equity holders are left with just over $20 billion, or about the figure reported over the weekend by The Information. First, Twitter wasn’t generating consistent earnings before Musk bought it, and so it’s hard to believe it’s doing so now. Back out the debt and the equity is less than zero, assuming their cash position hasn’t meaningfully changed.

☆ A woman left her AirPods on a plane and tracked them down to an airport worker's home, report says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-25 | by ( Ryan Hogg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

A passenger left her Apple AirPods on a plane after landing in San Francisco from Tokyo. Alisabeth Hayden told CNN a police officer helped her trace the AirPods to an airport worker's home. Shortly after getting off the plane on a layover at San Francisco International Airport, she realized she'd left her jacket behind. Hayden told CNN she enlisted the help of a detective at San Mateo police force who was working at SFO. She told CNN United gave her $271 and 5,000 air miles after complaining about the condition of the headphones.

☆ South Korea’s LG Energy to Build $5.6 Billion Battery Plant in Arizona
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-24 | by ( Jiyoung Sohn | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

LG Energy is the world’s second-largest producer of EV batteries. SEOUL—South Korea’s LG Energy Solution Ltd. said it would invest about $5.6 billion in a battery-manufacturing complex in Arizona, the latest in a string of new plants by foreign companies as the U.S. transitions toward cleaner fuels. LG Energy said Friday that the new battery complex in Queen Creek, Ariz., will mainly serve electric-vehicle makers in North America.

☆ Column: India's coal + renewables mix makes for messy energy transition
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-24 | by ( Gavin Maguire | Thomson Reuters | Gavin Maguire Is The Global Energy Transition Columnist. He Was Previously Asia Commodities | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

While China also added record solar and wind capacity in 2022 to widen its overall renewables lead, India's record build out of solar capacity last year has been widely celebrated by energy transition advocates. But even with such rip-roaring green energy momentum, India's utilities still struggled to keep up with the country's voracious energy demand growth, and had to crank coal use to record highs alongside the breakneck growth in renewables. Only 2.2% of total India's electricity was produced from gas in 2022, according to Ember - the lowest in over 20 years. COAL CONUNDRUMSuch low utilisation of natural gas for power generation forced utilities to burn through coal at a record pace, straining the country's domestic coal supply system and pushing coal imports to historic highs. On paper, such conflicting government stances on power sector priorities may appear to be counterproductive, and may potentially undermine India's energy transition efforts.

☆ Does bottled water go bad? When it's safe to drink expired water and what to do with a contaminated bottle
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( Emily Swaim | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Bottled water can have an expiration date, though it's legal in the US to sell expired water. Drinking expired water probably won't harm you, especially if the water was stored properly. So while an expired water bottle from the fridge may be safe to drink, the bottle you forgot in your hot car trunk or on a sunny shelf probably isn't. What to do with an expired water bottleIf you suspect your water is bad, boil it to kill off any potential pathogens. Oliver Rossi / Getty ImagesIf you're a frugal or environmentally-conscious person, you may wonder how to salvage your expired bottled water.

☆ America needs immigration reform, or it risks of losing an entire generation of tech workers to countries like Canada, the UK, and Japan
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( Emilia David | Paayal Zaveri | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

While the US still attracts talent, workers increasingly go to places like the UK or Canada. With other countries easing immigration for tech workers, the US may find itself lagging. Without change, and fast, experts say this could mean an entire lost generation of tech talent for American tech. "Foreign countries have figured out ways to more aggressively attack top-tier tech talent," Hiba Anver, an immigration attorney with Erickson Immigration Group, told Insider. America's loss is other countries' gainMeanwhile, other countries are making it easier for tech workers like Negandhi and students to immigrate.

Courts blocked a prior bid by the Trump administration to ban the app in part on the grounds that such a move violated free speech protections. Courts struck down former President Donald Trump's bid to block TikTok in 2020 with an executive order that granted the Commerce Department similar authorities as the RESTRICT act. But the bill will likely provide no immediate solutions for those calling for a ban on the app. Some experts said using the new legal tools to ban TikTok could still invite First Amendment challenges. "And there will most likely be a legal challenge if its used to ban TikTok."

☆ The battle over Airbnb has hit a breaking point
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( James Rodriguez | Dan Latu | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +16 min

"We started panicking and started connecting with other folks who we know have short-term rentals," Sullivan told Insider. Rather than a collapse of the industry, the increasingly bifurcated state of the market — a bust for some, a boom for others — is a clear sign that we have hit a turning point in the long-running battle over short-term rentals. Given the sharp rise of short-term rentals there, some local lawmakers have recently called for amending the law. Investors jumped in to capitalize on the boom, and the market soon became saturated with short-term rentals. There's one thing pretty much everyone can agree on: Short-term rentals are here to stay.

☆ The 'Airbnbust' proves the Wild West days of online vacation rentals are over
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( James Rodriguez | Dan Latu | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +16 min

"We started panicking and started connecting with other folks who we know have short-term rentals," Sullivan told Insider. Given the sharp rise of short-term rentals there, some local lawmakers have recently called for amending the law. But short-term rentals are often essential to a healthy tourism economy, particularly in vacation destinations. Investors jumped in to capitalize on the boom, and the market soon became saturated with short-term rentals. There's one thing pretty much everyone can agree on: Short-term rentals are here to stay.

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