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Two people are killed and several injured in Italy's Alps by avalanches
Rescuers reported that strong winds hindered the rescue efforts in the Italian Alps on Friday. Two people were killed and a number of others injured. Alpine Rescue (Soccorso Alpino), a Piedmont-based Italian rescue organization, said that a first avalanche "hit" the southwest Alpine Maira Valley near the French border, killing one and injuring another. One of the two is in a 'critical condition. The?organisation stated that rescue teams walked to the scene from lower altitudes because strong winds prevented helicopter crews reaching the site. The second avalanche happened near Pragelato - a popular destination for skiers located about 60 km (37 miles west) of Turin. A woman who was "caught in the snow avalanche" managed to escape but could not move due to injuries. Rescue teams worked to rescue her. However, helicopters were again restricted by bad weather. Authorities were monitoring reports about a third avalanche, but no details were immediately available. ANSA, the Italian news agency, reported that a 50 year old ski mountaineer was killed by an avalanche in Veneto in northeastern Italy. Rescue teams were able to reach him by helicopter, but he was not saved. In recent days, a 'combination of strong winds and heavy snowfall has increased avalanche risk across the Alps. This has prompted warnings to skiers and hikers. Officials in the area have warned against going off-piste as conditions are still unstable. (Reporting and writing by Matteo Negri; editing by Gareth Jones).
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Venezuela's Maduro is willing to have'serious talks' with the US
In a New Years interview, Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro stated that his country was willing to accept?U.S. Investment in Venezuela's oil sector is welcome, as are efforts to coordinate the fight against drugs and hold serious discussions with the United States. "We have to start speaking seriously with facts in hand," Maduro stated in his annual interview, which was originally published in the Mexican newspaper La Jornada, and broadcast by Venezuelan state TV on New Year's Day. Venezuela is prepared to accept U.S. investments, such as those made by Chevron, whenever, wherever and however they choose. The comments echo statements made by?Maduro regarding his willingness to engage in dialogue with Donald Trump. This is despite the fact that the U.S. President has increased pressure on Maduro, including expanding sanctions, a stepped-up U.S. Military?presence and more than a dozen strikes against vessels allegedly involved with drug trafficking in the Pacific Ocean or Caribbean Sea. Maduro claimed that the pressure is an attempt to gain control over Venezuela's vast resources. What is the purpose of the United States?" Maduro stated in the interview that "they've already said it." "To grab the gold and rare earths of Venezuela...all the oil." COMBATTING DRUG TRADING Trump said this week that U.S. troops hit a dock used to load drugs in Venezuela, but did not give any details about its location. Maduro didn't confirm the attack during the interview but said that he might discuss it in the next few days. Maduro stated that the national defensive system, which includes popular, military, and police forces has and will "guarantee the territorial integrity and peace of the nation." According to a blog linked to Venezuela's ruling political party, the attack took place on a thin strip of coastline in the La Guajira peninsula. Could not independently verify this report. Maduro always denies U.S. allegations that he runs a narcostate. He claimed that cocaine smuggled into the region comes from Colombia, and Venezuela had "the perfect model" for combating drug trafficking. U.S. sanctions, as well as recent oil tanker seizures, have reduced Venezuela's normal oil exports by?half. However, U.S. giant Chevron has continued to export Venezuelan crude oil under a special license granted by the United States. The reduction in oil exports will cause foreign currency flows into Venezuela's private sectors to drop, which will exacerbate inflation and the already difficult economic situation for Venezuelans. The bolivar depreciated by 83% between 2025 and now. Venezuela's defaulted bonds have been trading at low levels, but their price has more than doubled since Trump took office in January 2025. This is due to the hope of a new government. Reporting by Corina Poons, Additional reporting by Emma Pinedo, Karin Strohecker and Aislinn laing, Writing by Aislinn and Ros Russell.
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Berkshire Hathaway enters post-Buffett era as shares drift lower
The post-Buffett Berkshire Hathaway era began Friday quietly, with shares falling slightly after the "Oracle of Omaha", Greg Abel, was appointed to the top position following six decades as the head of the company. The world's largest conglomerate must now protect its record, without its chief architect who remade modern investing and transformed it from a struggling business to an investment giant valued at more than $1 trillion. Warren Buffett is a trusted capital steward because of his long-term approach and focus on purchasing high-quality companies at reasonable prices. Greg Abel, Buffett's trusted lieutenant, takes over the company at a?sensitive time. Berkshire shares will underperform the benchmark S&P 500 in 2025. Buffett has stated that it's difficult to find acquisitions that "move the needle" for a conglomerate. DEALS ARE FEWER AND RECORD - IF NOT RECORD - CASH Berkshire is reducing its stakes in Apple and Bank Of?America while building up a record cash pile that has some investors worried. As of September 30, the company had $381.7 billion cash and equivalents. Berkshire, which had a total equity portfolio of $283.2 billion as of the end September, has not announced who will be taking over. Abel, at 63 years old, still inherits the largest war chest in corporate America. Abel joined Berkshire in 2000, after the company acquired MidAmerican Energy (now Berkshire Hathaway Energy). Since 2018, he has been vice chairman of Berkshire non-insurance business. Berkshire’s?Class A shares, which are priced at a lower price, fell 0.3% in New York Friday. Class A shares were also down 0.4%. Wall Street's major indexes rose on Friday. Berkshire Hathaway is a vast collection of companies, including insurer GEICO, BNSF Railroad, dozens manufacturing and energy operations and consumer brands like Dairy Queen Fruit of the Loom and See's Candies. Buffett has confirmed that he will continue to be chairman of Berkshire and plans to come to the office in Omaha, which is about 2 miles (3 km) from his home to support Abel.
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After talks failed, Capstone Copper's Mantoverde Mine in Chile is closed by miners.
After talks broke down between the main union and Capstone Copper over new labour contracts, hundreds of miner began a strike at the Mantoverde copper-and-gold?mine located in northern Chile. In a Friday statement, the Union No. In a statement released on Friday, the Union No. After failing to reach a deal late on Thursday, the union's 645 members went on strike at 8 a.m. local (1100 GMT). Negotiations broke down after the company refused to agree to the union’s?final requests, estimated at $500,000 per year, or 0.03% of the $1.4 billion projected revenue of the company. Chile is the largest copper producer in the world and the strike occurs at a time of record-high copper prices. Capstone, a Canadian company, said in a statement that it was willing to engage in talks after the failed mediated talks late Thursday night. It added that the striking workers represented?about half of all workers at the mine, and 22% of its total workforce. Capstone also expects production to be at 30% during the strike. Capstone holds 70% of Mantoverde, while Mitsubishi Materials owns the remaining 30%. Copper production at the mine is expected to range between 29,000 and 32,000 tons in 2025. According to the state copper commission Cochilco, Chilean copper production is expected to reach 5.5 million tonnes in 2025. (Reporting and editing by Susan Fenton; Alexander Villegas)
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Weather service: UK to record hottest year and most sunny ever in 2025
The National Weather Service announced on Friday that Britain had its sunniest and hottest year ever in 2025. This was a record-breaking high, exceeding the previous one set in '2022. The?Met Office reported that the average annual temperature in 2018 was 10.09 degrees Celsius. This is higher than the previous average of 10.03 C. It's only the second time since 1884, when detailed records were first kept, that the annual average temperature has exceeded 10 C. Met Office first announced the possibility of setting a new record last month. The reading placed four of the five most recent years among the top five warmest since 1884. Mark McCarthy, the head of climate attribution for the Met Office, said: "Although not every year is going to be the warmest ever, it's?clear that global warming caused by humans is impacting on the UK's weather." Since the beginning of the 21st Century, the UK has set records for the annual mean temperature on six occasions - 2002, 2003, 2006. 2014, 2022, and 2025. The data is consistent with global trends. In 2025, the World Meteorological Organization will say that the last 10 year have been the 10 "warmest" since records began. As extreme weather hit many regions of the world last year, the European Union's Climate Change Service (C3S), predicted that 2025 would be the second or third warmest date in history. Europe, the fastest-warming continent on the planet, experienced the world's hottest year ever in 2024. (Reporting and editing by Paul Sandle, Sam Tabahriti and Muvija M)
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Gabon's Finance Minister is replaced as debt concerns mount
According to a decree issued by the President of Gabon, Brice Oligui Nguema, Henri-Claude Oyima was replaced as Finance Minister. The Central African oil-producing?country is grappling with a lack of liquidity and a rise in arrears. Fitch, the ratings agency, said that Gabon's long-term currency issuer default rating has been downgraded. Oyima was appointed finance minister after Nguema's victory in the first presidential elections since his coup in 2023. According to a presidential?decree issued late Thursday, technical adviser Thierry Minko will?take over as the "minister of finance, economy, debt, and shareholdings" responsible for fighting high living costs. According to the decree, Marc Abeghe will be a senior official in charge of budgets at the ministry. Fitch cited an increasing fiscal deficit and a lack of creditor funding as reasons for downgrading Gabon's foreign currency issuer default ratings. The agency stated that it expected the government debt to rise from 72.9% in 2024 to 80.4% by 2025, and then to 85.5% by 2026. By 2027, they expect the debt to reach 86.7%. The Gabon presidency announced in December that it planned to introduce a housing tax by 2026 in order to improve road maintenance, public lighting and city cleanliness. (Reporting and writing by Gerauds Wifried Obangome, Anait Miridzhanian, Editing by Robbie Corey Boulet and Gareth Jones).
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Nickel reaches 14-month high following Vale Indonesia's halt to mining
Nickel reached its highest level in over 14 months Friday, 'after Vale Indonesia suspended mining operations. Aluminium crossed the $3,000 barrier for the first time since 2022. The London Metal Exchange's three-month nickel rose as much as 1,8% to $16,945 per metric ton, its highest level since October 2024. By 1037 GMT, the metal used to make stainless steel and batteries had risen 1.4% to $16,875. PT Vale Indonesia Tbk said it was unable to?conduct mining operations due to a delay in the approval of its annual production plan. The company said that it believes this delay won't?disrupt the overall sustainability of operations and that they expect the approval to be given in the near term. Nickel, which had been in a rut due to an oversupply of nickel for?months, gained 12.3% after Indonesia announced that it would?cut its ore production by a third by 2026. Mining Minister Bahlil Lahadalia announced this week that government will reduce mining output quotas in order to support commodity price. Exchange data indicates that one entity owns between 30 and 40 percent of LME Nickel warrants (0#LMEWHL>), while the LME futures banding reports indicated a "significant long position" on the January nickel contract - equivalent to at least 40 percent of open interest. Aluminum climbed 0.3% to $3,000, surpassing $3,000 for the first time in over 3-1/2 years. This is due to the impending shutdown of the Mozal Smelter in Mozambique and the carbon tax on aluminium imported into Europe. Copper, which is expected to be the best performer in 2025 on 'the LME with a 42% gain per year, rose 0.6% to $12,497/ton after reaching a record high price of $12,960/ton on December 29. It was on track to finish the week with a 2.9% gain. Zinc rose by 0.4%, to $3,130 per ton. Lead fell 0.1%, to $2,009.50, and tin rose 1%, to $41,080. Shanghai Futures Exchange closed for the public holiday on Friday. (Reporting and editing by David Goodman. Additional reporting by Naveen Thkral in Singapore)
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Investors bet on earnings recovery to drive India's Nifty fifty to record high.
India's Nifty 50 index reached record highs in a broad rally on Friday, led by metals, financials and automobiles stocks, on the?prospects for a strong growth in earnings in the December quarter. The?Nifty50 reached a new record of 26,340, before closing at 26,328.55. This is a 0.7% increase. The BSE Sensex rose 0.67%, to 85,762.01. The indexes rose by 1.1% and respectively 0.9% for the week. India's stock exchange reached new heights in a day when European and U.K. shares also marked record levels, in a positive start to trading in the new year. The top 16 sectors all rose, with sub-indices of metals, automobiles, and banks also reaching record highs. The small-caps, mid-caps, and broader indexes rose by 0.8% and 1.7% respectively. We?saw benchmarks struggle in November and early December to maintain near record high levels. The quarterly earnings and Union Budget will determine if they can hold these levels. The heavyweight bank stocks gained 1.9% in the past week, on the back of optimism about strong loan growth and asset-quality. Metal stocks rose 5.7% in the past week. This was due to the government's safeguard duties on certain steel products, which is intended to limit cheap imports from China, and the rising prices of commodities. Stocks in the automobile industry rose?3.8% on strong December sales. Ashok Leyland, a maker of commercial vehicles, jumped by 8.1%. Two-wheeler manufacturers Hero MotoCorp, Bajaj Auto and TVS Motor also gained between 4.8%-5.9%. ITC dropped 3.8% for the day, and 13.4% over the week as investors were worried about the earnings pressure that higher taxes on cigarettes would cause. The stock pulled the fast-moving consumer good index down by 3.7% through Friday. Coal India gained 6.9% and was the highest gainer on the Nifty after it allowed foreign coal buyers to participate directly in its electronic auctions, despite a drop in the local demand for electricity generation.
Officials say that Islamic State-affiliated rebels killed 15 people in eastern Congo
Two officials said that Islamic State-linked militants have killed at least fifteen people in three villages of eastern Democratic Republic of Congo’s Lubero Territory, continuing a deadly pattern of attacks primarily targeting civilians.
The Allied Democratic Forces started as an insurgent 'force' in Uganda, but have been based in Congo forests since the late 90s. They are recognised as an affiliate by the Islamic State.
The ADF continues to conduct raids despite the efforts of the Congolese army and Ugandan troops.
The latest attacks took place on Thursday night in Lubero. This is part of North Kivu Province. According to Macaire Sivikunula of the Bapere Locality, where the villages are situated, nine civilians died in Kilonge; two civilians in Katanga; and two civilians, along with two soldiers, in Maendeleo.
He said that the ADF rebels exchanged fire with soldiers at Maendeleo but they killed the majority of victims with bladed weapons.
Alain Kiwewa, Lubero’s military administrator, confirmed 16 deaths on Friday afternoon.
A spokesperson for the army, Lieutenant Marc Elongo said that Congolese troops "pursued the enemy" without giving any details.
Kakule Kagheni Sam, the head of civil societies groups in Bapere said that the militants had also burned down homes.
MONUSCO (the U.N. mission for peacekeeping in Central Africa) reported in November that the ADF had killed 89 civilians over a period of a week in a series of attacks.
In September, the ADF took responsibility for an attack in which more than 60 civilians were killed at a funeral held in eastern Congo.
Sivikunula stated that local officials waited for soldiers to secure the area, before organising funerals to honor the victims of the overnight attacks. "The ADF is cunning and can ambush civilians who attempt to organise such a?activity."
The ADF violence was separate from the conflict between Congo and Rwandan-backed M23 Rebels, which killed thousands and displaced hundreds and thousands last year. This led to mediation by U.S. president Donald Trump's Administration and Qatar. (Reporting and writing by Congo Newsroom; editing by Mark Heinrich).
(source: Reuters)