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☆ Singapore braces for 'partisan' vote for president, guardian of its vast reserves
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( Clement Tan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Presidential candidate Tan Kin Lian (left) waves as he arrives at the nomination center for the presidential election in Singapore on August 22, 2023. Song is standing in the city-state's 2023 presidential election. Presidential candidate Tharman Shanmugaratnam waves to his supporters at the nomination center for the upcoming presidential election in Singapore on Aug. 22, 2023. Xinhua News Agency | Xinhua News Agency | Getty ImagesThe full scale of Singapore's reserves is not publicly available, though public information of some institutions charged with investing its reserves offer a glimpse into the size of the reserves. Local independent news outlet Jom estimated that only 0.044% of Singaporean adults qualify to run as Singapore president.

Persons: —, incorruptibility, Eugene Tan, Tan Kin Lian, Roslan Rahman, Tan, Ng Kok, Lee Kuan Yew, Tharman, Ng, Shanmugaratnam, Tan Meng, Singapore's, Lee Kuan, Kevin Tan, Cherian, Halimah Yacob —, Cherian George, who's Organizations: Getty, SINGAPORE, Observers, Singapore Management University, NTUC, Afp, Monetary Fund, Party, CNBC, Bloomberg, Presidential Advisors, Xinhua News Agency, Temasek, Singapore, Monetary Authority of, Cherian George National University of Singapore, Hong Kong Baptist University, Malay, National University of Singapore, Hong, Hong Kong Baptist University's School of Communication Locations: Singapore's Marina Bay, Singapore, State, Monetary Authority of Singapore, Hong, Hong Kong

☆ Side-by-side images of a whirlpool galaxy show details NASA's James Webb telescope captured but Hubble missed
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( Ellie Zolfagharifard | Marianne Guenot | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The James Webb telescope captured an image of M51, a galaxy 27 million light-years away. An image of M51 – also known as NGC 5194 or the Whirlpool Galaxy – taken by the James Webb Telescope. NASA/ESA/JWSTAstronomers hope the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) will shed new light on how stars form in galaxies other than Milky Way. Before Webb came along, the Hubble telescope provided a glimpse of star formation in galaxies such as M51. Dark red regions show the cosmic dust that permeates the M51 galaxy in this zoomed in image from the James Webb telescope.

Persons: James Webb, Webb, JWST, Hubble Organizations: Service, Hubble, NASA, Whirlpool, Webb's, James, James Webb Telescope, ESA, James Webb Space, JWST, European Space Agency Locations: Wall, Silicon

☆ A Grand Slam Rite of Passage: Be Young, Burn Bright, But Not for Long
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( Matthew Futterman | More About Matthew Futterman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

It happens every year in tennis. A young, bright-eyed player with fistfuls of skill and promise wins a match or two at a Grand Slam, and all of a sudden, the next big thing has arrived. And here we are once more, just a few days into the year’s final Grand Slam, with no shortage of chatter about Arthur Fils, the gallant, 19-year-old Frenchman, who a year ago was battling to get within sniffing distance of the top 300. Now he is ranked 48th in the world and won his first match at a Grand Slam — on his third try — on Tuesday. On a field court in front of bleachers teeming with in-the-know spectators desperate for a glimpse of the future, Fils outlasted Tallon Griekspoor, the 24th seed, in five sets.

Persons: Billie Jean King, Donald Young, Ryan Harrison, Arthur Fils, Frenchman, Fils, Tallon Griekspoor Organizations: Billie Jean King National Tennis Center

☆ After Credit Suisse takeover, UBS gives first glimpse of new group
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-29 | by ( Noele Illien | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Credit Suisse has already flagged that it expects to post a hefty loss for 2023. Rich clients often kept accounts at both UBS and Credit Suisse, so as not to place all their eggs in one basket. In previous quarters, UBS had reported significant inflows, as it benefited from Credit Suisse clients looking for safer alternatives. SWISS BANK'S FUTUREMany bank watchers are waiting to see what UBS does with Credit Suisse's "crown jewel" - its Swiss arm. The huge figure largely reflects a one-off boost to the bottom line from UBS buying Credit Suisse for a fraction of its value.

Persons: Ralph Hamers, Sergio Ermotti, Colm Kelleher, Stefan Wermuth, Rich, Benjamin Goy, Ermotti, Keefe, Thomas Hallett, Noele, John O'Donnell, Tomasz Janowski Organizations: UBS Group AG, UBS, REUTERS, Rights, Credit Suisse, SUISSE, Suisse's, Swiss, Deutsche Bank, UBS's, CORE UNIT UBS, Suisse, Thomson Locations: Zurich, Switzerland, SWISS, Swiss, Woods

☆ Lion escapes into heavy traffic in Pakistani city of Karachi
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] A lion that escaped from a private vehicle amidst heavy traffic is captured in this video screengrab, in Karachi, Pakistan, August 29, 2023. REUTERS TV via REUTERS Acquire Licensing RightsKARACHI, Aug 29 (Reuters) - An adult lion escaped from a private vehicle amidst heavy traffic in the southern Pakistani city of Karachi on Tuesday, causing panic for two hours before it was recaptured, police said. The lion was being transported by its owner when it escaped on the main road of the bustling port city during peak traffic hours, the police statement said. The escaped lion had made its way into the basement of a nearby building after roaming on the road for some time. In 2017, police in Pakistan arrested a man who took his pet lion for a night-time drive through the streets of Karachi.

Persons: Mukhtyar Soomro, Shiraz Nazir, Gibran Peshimam, Alex Richardson Organizations: REUTERS, REUTERS Acquire, Rights, Reuters, The Wildlife Department, Thomson Locations: Karachi, Pakistan, Rights KARACHI, Pakistani

☆ BRICS expansion is a big win for China. But can it really work as a counterweight to the West?
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-28 | by ( Nectar Gan | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

The summit was the largest the BRICS have ever held, with more than 60 countries attending alongside member nations Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. “This makes China the clear winner,” said Steve Tsang, director of the SOAS China Institute at the University of London. Helena Legarda, lead analyst at the Mercator Institute for China Studies, a think tank in Berlin, said it is unclear to what extent the BRICS expansion will increase the value and influence of the group. The BRICS expansion is also likely to fuel competition – and potential friction – between China and India, whose ties have already been strained by a simmering border conflict. “Sino-Indian competition for the leadership of the Global South is now bound to sharpen with China having a clear advantage,” said Jacob in New Delhi.

Persons: Xi Jinping, United Arab Emirates –, Xi, ”, Steve Tsang, “, ” Happymon Jacob, Yun Sun, Helena Legarda, Cyril Ramaphosa, Narendra Modi, Jacob Organizations: CNN, United, United Arab Emirates, SOAS China Institute, University of London, Moscow, US, United Nations, Security Council, International Monetary Fund, World Bank, Xi, New, Jawaharlal Nehru University, Stimson, Mercator Institute for China Studies, Indian, Anadolu Agency, Getty Locations: Johannesburg, Beijing, Africa, Asia, Latin America, Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Argentina, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, United Arab, Moscow, United States, Ukraine, Washington, Tigray, UAE, America, Berlin, New Delhi, “

☆ A massive Iranian missile attack on a US base offered a glimpse of the long-lasting injuries US troops will face in a war with Russia or China
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-28 | by ( Paul Iddon | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

In January 2020, Iran fired nearly a dozen ballistic missiles at an Iraqi base housing US troops. The hundreds of US troops at the base experienced what has been described as "the largest ballistic attack against Americans in history." The troops only received a few hours of warning, and the base had no air defenses capable of intercepting the missiles. US soldiers inspect damage from Iranian missiles at Al Asad air base on January 13, 2020. The Al Asad attack was a relatively small-scale demonstration of the lethal dangers that US troops will face on the battlefields of the future.

Persons: Qassem, Al Asad, Saddam Hussein, John Davison, Robert Hales, TBIs, Sarah Mattison, Kenneth McKenzie, McKenzie, Paul Iddon Organizations: Service, Reuters, US, American College of Surgeons, Iranian, Anadolu Agency, Getty, US Air National Guard / Tech, Marine Corps, Senate Armed Services Committee, US Central Command Locations: Iran, Wall, Silicon, Iranian, Iraq, Baghdad, Erbil, Al, Handout, Ukraine, Vermont

AQUIFERS AQUIFERS AQUIFERS WASH. MAINE MONT. MONITORING WELLS MONITORING WELLS MONITORING WELLS WASH. MAINE MONT. FLA. DECLINING WELLS DECLINING WELLS DECLINING WELLS WASH. MAINE MONT. FLA. UNCHARTED WATERS America Is Using Up Its Groundwater Like There’s No Tomorrow Overuse is draining and damaging aquifers nationwide, a New York Times data investigation revealed. Groundwater level trends Rising Declining Groundwater level trends Rising Declining Groundwater level trends Rising Declining Groundwater level trends Rising Declining Note: Colors depict the median trend for each site over the previous 20 years.

An electronic board shows Shanghai and Shenzhen stock indexes, at the Lujiazui financial district in Shanghai, China October 25, 2022. REUTERS/Aly Song/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsAug 28 (Reuters) - A look at the day ahead in Asian markets from Jamie McGeever, financial markets columnist. As the week gets underway, asset markets across Asia yet again will be dominated by key economic indicators, market- and growth-supportive policy steps and diplomatic signals from China. The Asian market headwinds are strong and clear - financial conditions are tightening sharply, in large part due to the steady rise in U.S. Treasury yields. According to Goldman Sachs's financial conditions indexes, global, emerging market and Chinese financial conditions last week hit their tightest levels this year.

Persons: Aly, Jamie McGeever, Jackson, Jerome Powell, Christine Lagarde, Kazuo Ueda, Gina Raimondo, Goldman, Fed's MIchael Barr, Diane Craft Organizations: REUTERS, China Securities Regulatory Commission, . Commerce, Treasury, Higher, Thomson, Reuters Locations: Shanghai, Shenzhen, China, Asia, India, Indonesia, Vietnam, Beijing, Japan, U.S, Australia

☆ Biden spent August trying to escape Washington. But fall realities await him
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-27 | by ( Kevin Liptak | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

Heading home from Lake Tahoe on Saturday, President Joe Biden exchanged a week of waterfront seclusion for the more workaday realities of running the country from Washington. Like many presidents, Biden spent a good portion of August away from the White House, trading the capital’s stifling heat for the beach or the mountains. Of the first 26 days in August, Biden spent only one day entirely at the White House. He also held events at the White House marking his legislative accomplishments. The White House did detail some of the presidential tasks Biden undertook.

Persons: Sunshine, Joe Biden, Biden, ” Biden, Jill Biden, Hunter, Ashley, Jake Sullivan, Volodymyr Zelensky, Tom Steyer, Donald Trump, Barack Obama, Biden couldn’t, Jim Watson, Vladimir Putin, Yevgeny Prigozhin, “, Putin, ”, “ I’ve, Evan Vucci, Trump, Hunter –, wasn’t, Obama Organizations: White House, White, Camp David, Democratic, Secret Service, Wagner Group, Ukraine Locations: Lake Tahoe, Washington, Maui, West Coast, Russian, Ukraine, Jacksonville , Florida, Hawaii, Camp, Delaware, Wilmington, Rehoboth Beach, Tahoe, Glenbrook, New Jersey, Rehoboth Beach , Delaware, AFP, United States, Russia, South Lake Tahoe , California, Fulton County

☆ New York has tried poison, traps, and birth control to fix its pest problem. Rat researchers say the city should focus on its people instead.
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-27 | by ( Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

New York City has a pest problem so prolific, the mayor hired a dedicated rat czar earlier this year. Previous efforts to reduce the rat problem include brutal traps, poison, and birth control bait. The city has historically focused on population control methods, including brutal spring traps and hazardous poisons to keep the pests at bay. AdvertisementAdvertisementParsons previously told Insider the "real city rats" are "the men and women of bureaucracy and their two-and-a-half centuries of bad practice." To really have fewer rats, New York norms of takeout and eating outside would have to change."

Persons: Eric Adams, that's, Kathleen Corradi —, Department of Education —, Corradi, Jason Munshi, Michael Parsons, Parsons, Munshi Organizations: Service, New York City, Big Apple, Waste, Department of Education, New, New York Mayor's, Department of Sanitation, The New York Times, Fordham University, NYT Locations: York City, Wall, Silicon, New York

☆ Maddison opens Tottenham account in win at Bournemouth
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

BOURNEMOUTH, England, Aug 26 (Reuters) - James Maddison opened his account for Tottenham Hotspur with the first goal in his side's impressive 2-0 victory at Bournemouth in the Premier League as the visitors maintained their unbeaten start to the season on Saturday. Bournemouth threatened to get back in the game in the second half, but Dejan Kulusevski doubled Tottenham's lead just past the hour with a neat finish following a slick build-up. Against Bournemouth his range of passing and quick thinking gave Postecoglou's side an attacking impetus that the hosts found hard to contain. "I'll keep doing what I do and bringing the quality I can, repaying the club and why they bought me," Maddison said. Bournemouth started the second half on the front foot and Antoine Semenyo curled a shot agonisingly wide.

Persons: James Maddison, Dejan Kulusevski, Ange Postecoglou's, Harry Kane, Maddison, Tottenham, Pape Matar Sarr, Maddison's, scuffed, Neto, Sarr, Yves Bissouma, Richarlison, Antoine Semenyo, Postecoglou, Ivan Perisic, Udogie, Son Heung, Kane, You've, Martyn Herman, Hugh Lawson Organizations: BOURNEMOUTH, Tottenham Hotspur, Bournemouth, Premier League, Leicester City, Tottenham, Bayern Munich, Brentford, Manchester United, Spurs, BBC, Thomson Locations: England, Tottenham's

P01135809, according to Fulton County Jail records - was captured glaring at the camera in the mug shot. His campaign website featured the mug shot along with a message from Trump defending his actions and asking for donations. TRIAL DATE WRANGLINGWillis originally proposed a trial date of March 4 but moved it up for Chesebro after he asked that his trial start by October. In the Georgia case, Willis has requested that arraignments begin the week of Sept. 5, though defendants in Georgia are permitted to waive those appearances and plead not guilty via court filing. Trump agreed to post $200,000 bond and accepted bail conditions that would bar him from threatening witnesses or his co-defendants in the Georgia case.

Persons: Meadows, Donald Trump's, president's, unsmiling Trump, Trump, Elon Musk, Joe Biden, Marjorie Taylor Greene, Lyle Rayworth, Rayworth, MONA LISA, Mona Lisa, Laura Loomer, Donald Trump, mugshot, Scott McAfee, Kenneth Chesebro, Fani Willis, Rudolph Giuliani, Jenna Ellis, Mark Meadows, Willis, Steven Sadow, arraignments, Attorney Alvin Bragg, Jack Smith, Bragg, Trump's, Tucker Carlson, I've, Carlson, Rich McKay, Jack Queen, Eric Beech, Costas Pitas, David Ljunggren, Jacqueline Thomsen, Kanishka Singh, Rami Ayyub, Andy Sullivan, Joseph Ax, Will Dunham, Scott Malone, Daniel Wallis, Howard Goller Organizations: Trump, White House, U.S, Capitol, Hartsfield, White, Republican Party, Republican, Democratic, Georgia U.S, Former U.S, Sheriff's, Fulton County Sheriff's, New, U.S . Justice Department, Chesebro, Manhattan, Attorney, . House, Thomson Locations: ATLANTA, Atlanta, U.S, Georgia, Fulton County, New Jersey, Jackson, Fulton, Atlanta , Georgia, New York, Washington, Miami, Milwaukee

☆ A Speck of Old Iceland in Ice-Cold Lake Michigan
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-24 | by ( Carson Vaughan | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A refuge from the modern worldIn the fall of 1870, four young bachelors from the Icelandic fishing village of Eyrarbakki landed on Washington Island. By the end of the century, the island had become a center of Icelandic culture. Washington Island is the second-oldest Icelandic settlement in America, and if you know where to look, I assured Mel, hints of that history still abound. Established in 1904 by Ben Johnson, another Eyrarbakkian, the colonial-style Hotel Washington now offers eight small guest rooms and two shared bathrooms above a farm-to-fork restaurant awash in natural light. Once the island’s social hub, the hotel retains an old-world feel, despite the updates.

Persons: ”, “, Mel, Ben Johnson Locations: Eyrarbakki, Washington, Iceland, America

☆ At First Debate, a Glimpse of Trumpism Without Trump
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-24 | by ( Lisa Lerer | More About Lisa Lerer | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Yet the former president’s absence created an opening, if an illusory one, for a broader array of conservative positions. Republicans have long discussed the far-off notion of what Trumpism without Mr. Trump would look like. Since his rise eight years ago, Mr. Trump has sucked the oxygen out of Republican gatherings, from the halls of Congress to the fairgrounds of Iowa. The manufactured environment of the debate seemed to remind Republicans what it was like to breathe, politically speaking, in Trumpless rooms. Former Vice President Mike Pence supported a federal ban.

Persons: Trump, Brett Baier, ”, Chris Christie, Asa Hutchinson, Mike Pence, Ron DeSantis, Nikki Haley, “, demonizing Organizations: Republicans, Fox News, Trump, Gov Locations: Milwaukee, New Jersey, Arkansas, Iowa, Trumpless, Florida, South Carolina

Independence Day in Ukraine commemorates the country’s 1991 break from the Soviet Union, but also increasingly serves as a rallying point for Ukrainians to assert their identity and aspirations. Ukraine declared independence on Aug. 24, 1991, a few days after communist hard-liners tried to depose the Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev and reverse his efforts to liberalize the Soviet Union. Celebrations of Independence Day have often featured military parades and festive crowds wearing vyshyvankas, the traditional Ukrainian embroidered shirts. But Mr. Szporluk, the historian, said that Ukrainians see Independence Day not so much as a day of remembrance as one to reassert their commitment to democracy and sovereignty. On Wednesday, Mr. Zelensky took part in a ceremony on the occasion of the Day of the National Flag, which precedes Independence Day.

Persons: —, “, ” Vitali Klitschko, ”, Roman Szporluk, Volodymyr Zelensky, Mikhail Gorbachev, Lenin, Szporluk, Mr, Zelensky Organizations: Harvard Locations: Ukraine, Kyiv, Russia, Soviet Union, Europe, Moscow, ”, Independence, Russian, Ukrainian

☆ Opinion | In a Report From a Distant Border, I Glimpsed Our Brutal Future
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-24 | by ( Lydia Polgreen | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Once in a while, some single thing manages to encapsulate all that feels terrible about our world today. For me, this week, it was a bone-chilling report from Human Rights Watch documenting how Saudi border guards had killed hundreds — perhaps thousands — of Ethiopians seeking to cross from Yemen into Saudi Arabia. I realized what I thought were people sleeping around me were actually dead bodies.” There were bloodied corpses all around her. Another survivor, a 17-year-old boy, described being forced by Saudi guards to rape two girls after another man who had been asked to do the same was executed for refusing. In these reports from a remote corner of a distant desert, I saw a glimpse of the unrelenting cruelty that is our future.

Persons: Hamdiya, Prince Mohammed bin Salman Organizations: Human Rights Watch, Saudi, Washington Post Locations: Saudi, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Istanbul

☆ Column: US power system gets gasier, but not much cleaner, in 2023
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-23 | 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 power generation across the lower 48 states through Aug. 20, 2023 declined by 2.1% from the same period in 2022, data compiled by Refinitiv shows. All major U.S. power markets increased electricity generation from natural gas in Jan-Aug 2023 from the same period in 2022, and cut generation from coal. Output from clean power sources, including renewables and hydro, increased by 12%, despite drops in output from biomass and wind power sources, and a decline in imports from neighbouring states. Clean power sources accounted for a 57.4% share of the CAISO generation mix, up from 50.7% in January through Aug. 20 in 2022. THE NORTHWEST & THE RESTThe Pacific Northwest of the United States had the steepest decline in clean power generation of all the major power markets in the country.

Persons: Carlos Barria, Gavin Maguire, Sonali Paul Organizations: REUTERS, Electric, of Texas, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Mountain View , California, U.S, LITTLETON , Colorado, Jan, National, TEXAS, Texas, CALIFORNIA, California, United States

☆ Asian shares sit tight ahead of Nvidia results, yields near highs
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-23 | by ( Stella Qiu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

S&P 500 futures climbed 0.3% while Nasdaq futures rose 0.4%. Its blockbuster report last quarter fueled a rally in tech stocks and artificial intelligence hopes, propelling the S&P 500 this year. Shares of Nvidia hit an all-time high of $481.87 overnight, with options data showing traders are expecting a larger-than-usual swing in shares after the quarterly results. The Dow Jones (.DJI) fell 0.5%, the S&P 500 (.SPX) lost 0.3% and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) added 0.1%. Financial shares underperformed, with the S&P 500 banks (.SPXBK) sliding 2.4%, after S&P joined Moody's to downgrade multiple regional U.S. lenders.

Persons: Issei Kato, Powell's Jackson, Nvidia NVDA.O, Stuart Humphrey, Humphrey, Dow Jones, Moody's, Treasuries, Thomas Barkin, Jerome Powell, Sam Holmes Organizations: REUTERS, Markets, Nvidia, SYDNEY, Nasdaq, Japan's Nikkei, JPMorgan, Financial, Richmond Fed, U.S ., Brent, . West Texas, Thomson Locations: Tokyo, Japan, Asia, Pacific, United States, U.S, China, Jackson Hole , Wyoming

☆ In Lahaina, one resident's daily trip to her burnt-out home to feed her cats
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-23 | by ( Liliana Salgado | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LAHAINA, Hawaii, Aug 23 (Reuters) - There's nothing left of what used to be her home. But Susie Richter still travels every morning to the burnt-out shell of her house in Lahaina, Hawaii, to feed her three cats, who survived the blaze that devastated Maui earlier this month. The main fire-damaged areas of Lahaina remain closed to residents, but some of the structures in Richter's neighborhood are still standing, so she is permitted to enter through a checkpoint. [1/3]Susie Richter feeds one of her three cats that survived the Lahaina fire, Hawaii, U.S., August 22, 2023. "But the little, little bits of joy - I'll take any good news I can get."

Persons: Susie Richter, Liliana Salgado, Richter, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: REUTERS, Thomson Locations: LAHAINA, Hawaii, Lahaina , Hawaii, Maui, Lahaina, Richter's, U.S

In climate negotiations, "loss and damage" refers to existing costs incurred from climate-fueled weather impacts, such last year's devastating Pakistan flooding. The U.S. is part of a 24-country committee deciding how the fund will work before the COP28 climate summit in Dubai can officially adopt it this year. Both voted to approve new funding arrangements under the condition that the fund not be about liability for rich countries and compensation. Instead, both Washington and Brussels say the fund should be filled from myriad sources including industry taxes, philanthropic donations or other schemes. The world’s least developed nations want the fund to be limited to the neediest nations.

Persons: Akhtar Soomro, that's, ”, Sue Biniaz, Biniaz, Christina Chan, “, “ That’s, Avinash Persaud, Mia Mottley, Persaud, Dileimy Orzoco, Valerie Volcovici, Katy Daigle, Josie Kao Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, . State Department, Reuters, The, State Department, EU, Nonprofit, Thomson Locations: Sehwan, Pakistan, U.S, Washington, The U.S, Dubai, Dominican Republic, Paris, Brussels, China, Barbados, Philippines

China cut its one-year benchmark lending rate on Monday, which is set to further weigh on banks' NIM. Chinese commercial banks' NIM shrank sharply to 1.74% last quarter from 1.91% at the end of 2022, official data showed. Shares of China's biggest five banks have been sliding since early May amid concerns over the weakening economy. Debt-laden municipalities represent a major risk to China's economy and financial stability, after years of over-investment in infrastructure and plummeting returns from land sales. Still, there's really no getting around the fact that banks will need to sacrifice profitability to support the economy this year," Beddor added.

Persons: Florence, headwinds, Gary Ng, NIM, Christopher Beddor, there's, Beddor, Ziyi Tang, Ryan Woo, Sumeet Chatterjee, Himani Organizations: Bank of Communications, Fair for Trade, Services, REUTERS, China Construction Bank, Corporate, Investment Banking, Industrial, Commercial Bank of China, Bank of Communications Co, Agricultural Bank of China, JPMorgan, Thomson Locations: Beijing, China, BEIJING

☆ Where Her Father Became a Hero, Caroline Kennedy Redefines Diplomacy
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-21 | by ( Damien Cave | More About Damien Cave | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

On a drizzly August morning, Caroline Kennedy waded into the turquoise waters between two deserted islands in the South Pacific, trying not to scratch her feet on sprouts of coral. “Your father did this swim,” said her son, Jack Schlossberg. Together they stood in the Western Province of the Solomon Islands, facing a mile-long jaunt to an islet called Olasana — a place John F. Kennedy, Caroline’s father, landed almost exactly 80 years earlier as a junior Navy officer. Ms. Kennedy knew her swim offered just a glimpse of that ordeal. She was there on a short official visit as the U.S. ambassador to Australia.

Persons: Caroline Kennedy waded, ”, “, Jack Schlossberg, John F, Kennedy, Caroline’s, Solomon Organizations: Navy, J.F.K, Solomon Islanders Locations: South, Western Province, Solomon Islands, U.S, Australia

☆ Opinion | Why Were Nearly 100 Bears Shot by the State of Alaska?
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-20 | by ( Jon Waterman | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

Had I been a hunter instead of a photographer, I wouldn’t have had time to fire off a shot. But nearly 100 brown bears (a bigger, coastal version of the grizzly bear) several hundred miles away were not so lucky. They were slaughtered by state game workers, shot from the air in and around Wood-Tikchik State Park in southwestern Alaska. At a board meeting where the decision was made, state wildlife biologists presented data that showed that the state’s predator control program involving wolves had been ineffective in bolstering the herd. But the board nonetheless voted to extend the wolf control program and add bears to the effort.

Organizations: Alaska’s, and, Alaska Board of, Alaska Department of Fish Locations: Wood, Tikchik, Alaska

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