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EV maker VinFast to build 2nd production plant in Vietnam
Vietnamese electric lorry ( EV) manufacturer VinFast on Sunday revealed a plan to develop its second domestic production plant that will double its output capability, saying it is needed to meet increased need for its little and midsized designs. VinFast stated the brand-new facility is anticipated to produce 300,000 systems yearly in its preliminary phase, the very same capability as its existing plant in Haiphong. The business provided less than 45,000 automobiles worldwide in the first nine months of 2024. The new factory in the main Ha Tinh province will mostly produce VF 3 and VF 5 designs for both domestic sales and export, with operations set to start in July next year, the business stated in a declaration. Need in global markets is growing rapidly, so the building of an additional electric automobile factory ... will develop a strong foundation for an important and explosive advancement phase ahead for VinFast, said Nguyen Viet Quang, Vice Chairman and CEO of VinFast's parent business Vingroup. VinFast, a subsidiary of significant Vietnamese corporation Vingroup, said last month its third-quarter bottom line had narrowed to $550 million, which it stated reflected lower product expenses and increased production. The automaker provided 44,773 cars throughout the first 9 months of this year, simply over 55% of its target of 80,000 units for the year. Company officials have actually stated they stay confident of reaching the objective. The new plant will be located in the same complex as VinFast's battery plant and will utilize parts from the business's. existing factory in Haiphong. VinFast has likewise announced plans for assembly plants in both. Indonesia and India, and has postponed the launch of a planned. North Carolina center till 2028.
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UniCredit states ready to take a seat with Credit Agricole over Banco BPM
UniCredit is all set to take a seat with Credit Agricole, a representative for the Italian bank stated in a LinkedIn post after the French loan provider increased its possible stake in Unicredit's takeover target Banco BPM. UniCredit's quote for its smaller peer prompted Credit Agricole to state on Friday it had entered derivatives that would raise its stake in BPM to 15% from 9.9% once the European Reserve bank offers its thumbs-up. The other day's news about Credit Agricole's increased stake in BPM changes nothing for UniCredit, the representative for UniCredit stated on social media network LinkedIn. We were always prepared to negotiate with CA, as this would have been needed whatever the scale of their shareholding. Sources with understanding of the French bank's method have told Reuters Credit Agricole's focus is to safeguard the business collaborations that enable it to sell its products in Italy. Credit Agricole has actually ruled out a complete buyout of BPM, in which it is the single most significant shareholder. UniCredit's early move made Credit Agricole's financial investment more expensive and more complicated. BPM shareholders need to not welcome this development, the UniCredit spokesperson stated. UniCredit last month declared a seat at Italy's bank debt consolidation table by introducing a 10 billion euro ($ 11 billion). all-share unsolicited bid for Banco BPM. The relocation ambushed plans by the Rome government to broker a. merger in between BPM and state-backed Monte dei Paschi di Siena . Both banks partner with fund supervisor Anima Holding. , which Banco BPM remains in the process of taking over. On Saturday, sources informed Reuters th at Credit Agricole had got informal support from the Rome. federal government prior to announcing its increased stake in Banco BPM. The UniCredit spokesperson warned BPM shareholders they. need to watch out for a possible combination of BPM with the. Italian company of Credit Agricole, or of any effort to merge. BPM with Monte dei Paschi. A quote for Monte dei Paschi is a possible defence technique. for BPM, which has spurned UniCredit's deal as too low-cost. Credit Agricole's most likely options would be to merge BPM. with Credit Agricole Italia
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Israeli strikes on southern Lebanese towns kill 6, Lebanese health ministry states
Israeli strikes on 2 southern Lebanese towns eliminated 6 people and wounded 5, the Lebanese health ministry said on Saturday, in the most recent potential challenge to a fragile ceasefire that has remained in place for less than 2 weeks. 5 people were eliminated in an attack on Beit Lif town while one person was killed in a drone strike on Deir Seryan, the health ministry said in a statement. The Israeli armed force has yet to discuss the incidents. Tensions have actually continued despite the ceasefire, with Israel and the Lebanese armed faction Hezbollah trading accusations of offenses. Earlier today, Israel threatened to return to war if its truce with Hezbollah collapsed. The U.S. said last Monday that the ceasefire was holding, although it anticipated that there may be violations.
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Reaction to Syrian rebels' expanding advance against Assad
Syrian rebels went into residential areas of the city of Homs on Saturday, sources stated, pushing a lightning week-long advance as front lines collapse across the nation and government forces battle to save President Bashar al-Assad's 24-year guideline. Following are responses. U.S. PRESIDENT-ELECT DONALD TRUMP Syria is a mess, however is not our pal, & & THE UNITED STATES NEED TO HAVE ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO WITH IT THIS IS NOT OUR FIGHT. LET IT. PLAY OUT. DO NOT GET INVOLVED!, Trump stated in a post on his social networks platform Truth Social. RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTER SERGEI LAVROV It's inadmissible to allow the terrorist group to take control of the lands in violation of arrangements. TURKISH PRESIDENT TAYYIP ERDOGAN There is now a new reality in Syria, politically and diplomatically. And Syria comes from Syrians with all its ethnic, sectarian and religious elements. Individuals of Syria are the ones who will choose the future of their own country. As Turkey, our wish is for our neighbour Syria to rapidly gain back the peace, stability and serenity it has been yearning for 13 years. SYRIAN PRIME MINISTER MOHAMMAD GHAZI AL-JALALI The real battle our nation is fighting is the battle for ... national identity. The geographical fight is a secondary one, which our brave army and armed forces have actually been combating because 2011 and continues to this day. TOBIAS LINDNER, A MINISTER OF STATE AT THE GERMAN FOREIGN MINISTRY We prompt all celebrations to de-escalate and to remind them of their commitment to safeguard civilians. There need to be no foreign escalation. Russian airstrikes on civilian targets are especially fretting. What we require now is a political procedure, a solution in the U.N. structure of resolution 2254. HAMISH FALCONER, BRITAIN'S MINISTER FOR THE MIDDLE EAST AND NORTH AFRICA I stay very concerned by the capacity for big full-blown attacks by the regime or by Russia. Any suggestion of making use of chemical weapons would be intolerable. NORWEGIAN FOREIGN MINISTER ESPEN BARTH EIDE I think there is time for really to call for discussion, for a political settlement and to try to stop this before it really goes absolutely down the drain.
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Trump says United States needs to 'NOT GET INVOLVED' in conflict in Syria
Presidentelect Donald Trump said on Saturday the U.S. need to not be involved in the conflict in Syria, where rebel forces are threatening the federal government of President Bashar alAssad. Syria is a mess, however is not our buddy, & & THE UNITED STATES NEED TO HAVE ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO WITH IT THIS IS NOT OUR BATTLE. LET IT. PLAY OUT. DO NOT GET INVOLVED!, Trump stated in a post on his social media platform Reality Social. Trump stated because Russia, an Assad ally, is bound battling a war with Ukraine it seems incapable of stopping this literal march through Syria, a country they have secured for years. If Russia were forced out of Syria, it might in fact be the best thing that can take place to them due to the fact that there was never much of an advantage in Syria for Russia, Trump stated. Trump's comments appeared to show his opposition to the presence of some 900 U.S. troops in Syria, mostly of them in the northeast, where they have actually backed a Syrian Kurd-led alliance in preventing a revival of Islamic State militants. Trump revealed in 2018 during his very first term that he wished to withdraw the U.S. troops due to the fact that he said Islamic State was near defeat. But he held off as advisers warned that a pullout would leave a space that would be filled by Iran and Russia.
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Iran's nuclear leap \extremely serious\, injures diplomacy, Western source states
Iran's velocity in its enrichment of uranium to near to bomb grade is extremely. serious, has no civilian validation and contradicts Tehran's. assertions on desiring serious nuclear settlements, a Western. diplomatic source stated on Saturday. Iran has long denied looking for nuclear weapons. U.N. nuclear guard dog chief Rafael Grossi told Reuters on. Friday that Iran was drastically accelerating its enrichment of. uranium to as much as 60% purity, near to the about 90% level that. is weapons grade. The International Atomic Energy Company later verified in a. personal report to member states that Iran was accelerating. uranium enrichment, a process that fine-tunes the raw product so. that it can be utilized as fuel in civil nuclear power generation. or, possibly, nuclear weapons. The information reported by the Director General of the. Agency, showing a substantial increase in Iran's capacity to. produce highly enriched uranium at 60%, is very major,. the Western diplomatic source told Reuters. These measures have no reliable civilian validation and. could, on the contrary, directly sustain a military nuclear. programme if Iran were to take the decision ... They remain in. contradiction with Iran's statements on its willingness to. return to trustworthy negotiations..
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Denmark to Engage with Industry to Seek Clarity Over Failed Offshore Wind Tender
Denmark's latest offshore wind farm tender in the North Sea has failed to attract any bids, authorities said on Thursday, in a further setback for the industry.After a year of challenges, the global offshore wind industry no longer has much prospect of hitting the lofty targets set by governments in the U.S., Europe and elsewhere, hindering efforts to fight climate change."This is a very disappointing result," energy and climate minister Lars Aagard said in a written statement."The circumstances for offshore wind in Europe have changed significantly in a relatively short time, including large price and interest rate increases," Aagard added.The Danish Energy Agency said it would start a dialogue with market participants to identify reasons for the lack of bids, adding that a number of companies had expressed interest during the initial market dialogue.Danish offshore wind farm developer Orsted said it had opted not to bid due to an unfavourable risk-reward balance and acknowledged the changing industry factors such as higher inflation, rising interest rates and supply chain bottlenecks."To mitigate the impact of this and support the ongoing expansion of offshore wind energy, industry and policymakers should work together to create the necessary conditions for a sustainable future for offshore wind," Orsted's Chief Commercial Officer Rasmus Errboe said in a written comment.Denmark had in April launched its biggest offshore wind tender to date, offering no subsidies to companies competing for the right to erect turbines on six sites with a combined capacity of up to 10 gigawatts.The deadline for bids for three sites in the North Sea was on Thursday, while the deadline for an additional three sites in the Baltic Sea and Kattegat is on April 1, 2025.No subsidies were offered in the tender.Shell, one of the major energy companies which have touted offshore wind as a key market they can invest in as part of the world's energy transition, on Wednesday said it was stepping back from new offshore wind investments in a move mirrored by others.Denmark, also home to turbine maker Vestas, has been a pioneer in both onshore and offshore wind, thanks also to its favourable wind speeds.(Reuters - Reporting by Stine Jacobsen; Editing by Andrew Heavens and Keith Weir)
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China's central bank resumes gold purchases after six-month hiatus in Nov.
China's central bank resumed purchasing gold for its reserves in November after a sixmonth pause, official information by the People's Bank of China (PBOC) revealed on Saturday. The PBOC was the world's largest authorities sector purchaser of gold in 2023. Resumption of its purchases may support Chinese investor demand which was silenced since the PBOC paused its 18-month purchasing streak in May. China's gold holdings rose to 72.96 million fine troy ounces at the end of November, up from 72.80 million troy ounces a. month previously. The value of China's gold reserves fell to $193.43 billion. at the end of last month from $199.06 billion at the end of. October. November was gold's very first month-to-month price drop given that June due. to a post-U.S. election sell-off driven by Donald Trump's win. Spot rates for the precious metal are down 5% since. striking a record high of $2,790.15 an ounce on Oct. 31, but are. still up 28% so far this year. The resumption will send out a signal that the PBOC has actually grown. accustomed to these record high price levels and is prepared to. construct reserves regardless, said Ole Hansen, head of commodity. method at Saxo Bank.
Trump's cabinet: who's been picked, who's in the running?
Presidentelect Donald Trump has actually made a flurry of picks for his cabinet and other highranking administration positions following his election success.
Here are the announced choices and top contenders for some of the crucial posts overseeing defense, intelligence, health, diplomacy, trade, migration and economic policymaking.
MARCO RUBIO, secretary of state Trump tapped U.S. Senator Marco Rubio to be his secretary of state, putting the Florida-born political leader on track to be the initially Latino to function as the United States' top diplomat.
Rubio, 53, was perhaps the most hawkish option on Trump's. list for secretary of state. The senator has in past years. advocated for a muscular diplomacy with regard to U.S. geopolitical foes, including China, Iran and Cuba.
Over the last several years he has actually softened a few of his. positions to align more closely with Trump's views. The. president-elect accuses past U.S. presidents of leading the U.S. into expensive and futile wars and has actually promoted a less. interventionist foreign policy.
MATT GAETZ, chief law officer. Trump selected Matt Gaetz as his candidate for attorney general. Gaetz, a congressman from Florida, resigned from the U.S. Home. of Agents after his nomination.
Trump's inner circle has explained the chief law officer as. the most important member of the administration after Trump. himself, key to his plans to perform mass deportations, pardon. Jan. 6 rioters, and look for retribution versus those who. prosecuted him over the past four years.
At the time of his choice, Gaetz, 42, was dealing with an. internal House of Representatives query over possible sex. criminal offenses, which he rejects.
PETE HEGSETH, defense secretary. Trump selected Fox News analyst Pete Hegseth as his secretary. of defense. Hegseth, 44, is a veteran who has expressed contempt. for the so-called woke policies of Pentagon leaders, consisting of. its top military officer.
If validated by the Senate, Hegseth could make good on. Trump's campaign promises to rid the U.S. armed force of generals. whom he implicates of pursuing progressive policies on diversity in. the ranks that conservatives have rallied against.
It might likewise establish a collision course in between Hegseth and. the chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Air Force General C.Q. Brown, whom Hegseth implicated of pursuing the radical positions. of left-wing political leaders.
TULSI GABBARD, director of nationwide intelligence. Trump called Tulsi Gabbard, a previous Democratic representative. and critic of the Biden administration, as his director of. national intelligence.
Gabbard, 43, left the Democratic Celebration in 2022 to become an. independent, then signed up with the Republican politician Celebration, and has little bit. direct experience with intelligence work. If validated, she. would end up being the leading authorities in the U.S. intelligence neighborhood. after Trump begins his 2nd term in January.
ROBERT F. KENNEDY, JR., health and human services secretary. Trump picked Robert F. Kennedy Jr., an environmental activist who. has spread out false information about the threats of vaccines, to lead. the United States' top health firm.
Kennedy, 70, has suggested he would gut the 18,000-employee. Fda, which makes sure the security of food,. drugs and medical devices, and replace hundreds of employees at. the National Institutes of Health. Kennedy ran for president in this year's election, first as a. Democrat and then as an independent, before leaving in. August in exchange for a function in Trump's administration.
The Department of Health and Human being Services manages the. Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control. and Prevention, the National Institutes of Health and the. huge Medicare and Medicaid Providers programs, which provide. health coverage for the poor, those aged 65 and older, and the. handicapped.
KRISTI NOEM, homeland security secretary. South Dakota Guv Kristi Noem has been picked to serve as. the next homeland security secretary, Trump stated.
Noem, 52, as soon as viewed as a possible running mate for Trump, is. currently serving her 2nd four-year term as South Dakota's. governor. She rose to nationwide prominence after declining to. impose a statewide mask required during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Department of Homeland Security is responsible for. everything from border protection and migration to disaster. reaction and the U.S. Trick Service.
TOM HOMAN, 'border czar'. Trump stated Tom Homan, the acting director of Migration and. Customs Enforcement throughout Trump's very first administration, will be. in charge of the nation's borders.
Trump made cracking down on people in the country illegally. a central aspect of his campaign, promising mass deportations.
Homan, 62, stated he would focus on deporting immigrants. unlawfully in the U.S. who posed safety and security risks as. well as those operating at job websites.
HOWARD LUTNICK, commerce secretary
The co-chair of Trump's transition effort and the longtime. chief executive of financial services firm Cantor Fitzgerald,. Howard Lutnick has been chosen to head the Commerce Department,. the agency that has actually ended up being the U.S. weapon of choice versus. China's tech sector.
A bombastic New Yorker like Trump, Lutnick, 63, has. consistently praised the president-elect's financial policies,. including his use of tariffs.
He has at times offered fancy, unvarnished opinions about. what policies will be enacted in Trump's 2nd term. Some Trump. allies grumbled privately that he frequently presented himself. as speaking on behalf of the project.
ELON MUSK AND VIVEK RAMASWAMY, heads of Department of. Government Performance. Trump named tech billionaire Elon Musk and former Republican. presidential prospect Vivek Ramaswamy to lead a recently created. Department of Government Efficiency, gratifying two of his. well-known fans from the private sector.
Trump said Musk, 53, and Ramaswamy, 39, will lower. government bureaucracy, slash excess policies, cut waste and. restructure federal firms. Trump said the new department. would generate external knowledge and deal with the White House. and the Office of Management and Spending plan.
LEE ZELDIN, EPA administrator. Trump revealed he had selected Lee Zeldin, a previous. congressman from New York state, as administrator of the. Environmental Protection Agency.
Zeldin, 44, a staunch Trump ally, served in Congress from. 2015 to 2023. In 2022, he lost the New York governor's race to. Democratic incumbent Kathy Hochul. Trump has actually assured to revamp U.S. energy policy, with the objective. of making the most of the nation's already record-high oil and gas. production by rolling back guidelines and speeding up. allowing.
MIKE WALTZ, nationwide security consultant. Trump stated he had actually picked Mike Waltz, a Republican U.S. agent, to be nationwide security advisor. Waltz, 50, is a. retired Army Green Beret who has actually been a leading critic of China.
Waltz, a Trump patriot who likewise served in the National. Guard as a colonel, has actually slammed Chinese activity in the. Asia-Pacific and has voiced the need for the U.S. to be all set. for a prospective conflict in the area.
The nationwide security consultant is a powerful role that does. not need Senate confirmation. Waltz will be responsible for. rundown Trump on essential national security issues and coordinating. with different agencies.
While slamming the Biden administration for a devastating. withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021, Waltz has openly praised. Trump's diplomacy views.
SUSIE WILES, chief of personnel. Trump revealed that Susie Wiles, one of his 2 campaign. supervisors, will be his White Home chief of staff. While the specifics of her political views are somewhat uncertain,. Wiles, 67, is credited with running a successful and effective. project. Advocates hope she will instill a sense of order and. discipline that was frequently doing not have during Trump's very first four-year. term, when he cycled through a variety of chiefs of personnel.
ELISE STEFANIK, UN ambassador. Trump revealed that Elise Stefanik, a Republican congresswoman. and staunch Trump advocate, would be his ambassador to the. United Nations.
Stefanik, 40, a U.S. representative from New york city state and. Home Republican conference chair, took a management position in. your house of Representatives in 2021 when she was chosen to. replace then-Representative Liz Cheney, who was ousted for. slamming Trump's incorrect claims of election fraud. Stefanik will come to the U.N. after bold promises by Trump to. end the Russia-Ukraine war and Israel's war in Gaza.
DOUG BURGUM, interior secretary and 'energy czar'. Trump has actually chosen North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum to be. interior secretary.
Burgum, 68, a rich former software application company executive,. has actually portrayed himself as a traditional, business-minded. conservative. He ran against Trump for the Republican politician. governmental election before quitting and becoming a faithful. Trump supporter.
The Interior Department manages public lands and minerals,. national parks and wildlife refuges. The department likewise carries. out the U.S. federal government's trust responsibility to Native. Americans. In the energy czar role, he is expected to coordinate. with a number of agencies to boost oil and gas output.
JOHN RATCLIFFE, CIA director. Trump said he had chosen John Ratcliffe, who was director of. nationwide intelligence at the end of Trump's very first term, to serve. as director of the Central Intelligence Company in his second. administration. A former congressman and prosecutor, Ratcliffe, 59, is viewed as a. hardcore Trump follower who could likely win Senate. confirmation.
Still, during his time as director of national intelligence,. Ratcliffe frequently contradicted the assessments of profession civil. servants, drawing criticism from Democrats who stated he. politicized the role.
LINDA McMAHON, education secretary. Trump tapped Linda McMahon, a co-chair of his shift effort. and the co-founder of the professional battling franchise WWE,. to be his education secretary.
In this function, McMahon, 76, who acted as the chief of the. Small Company Administration throughout Trump's first term, will. supervise a department that Trump has promised to remove.
A former member of the Connecticut State Board of Education,. McMahon has been crucial of DEI programs, which are indicated to. increase variety in work environments, universities and other. institutions.
KEVIN WARSH, potential treasury secretary
Trump is thinking about Kevin Warsh, 54, a former financial investment. lender who served on the Federal Reserve Board, for treasury. secretary, according to news reports. He is viewed as a fiscal. hawk and proponent of greater savings rates.
MARC ROWAN, potential treasury secretary
Trump is thinking about Marc Rowan, 62, who co-founded Apollo. Global Management and ended up being the company's CEO in 2021, for. treasury secretary, according to report.
COSTS HAGERTY, possible treasury secretary
Republican U.S. Senator Expense Hagerty of Tennessee is likewise in. the running for treasury secretary, according to the Wall Street. Journal. Trump met the 65-year-old at Mar-a-Lago last week.
SCOTT BESSENT, possible treasury secretary. Scott Bessent, a crucial financial consultant to Trump, is seen as a. prospect for treasury secretary. A longtime hedge fund financier. who taught at Yale University for several years, Bessent has actually a. warm relationship with the president-elect.
While Bessent has actually long favored the laissez-faire policies. that were popular in the pre-Trump Republican Celebration, he has also. spoken highly of Trump's usage of tariffs as a working out tool. He has applauded the president-elect's economic viewpoint, which. rests on an apprehension of both policies and international. trade.
ROBERT LIGHTHIZER, possible trade czar or treasury. secretary
A patriot who functioned as Trump's U.S. trade agent. for basically the then-president's whole term, Lighthizer. will likely be invited back.
Though Bessent likely has actually a better contended ending up being treasury. secretary, Lighthizer has an outside opportunity, and he may be. able to repeat his old role if he's interested.
The Wall Street Journal has reported Trump wanted Lighthizer. as his trade czar. Like Trump, Lighthizer, 77, is a trade doubter and a firm. follower in tariffs. He was one of the leading figures in. Trump's trade war with China and the renegotiation of the North. American Free Trade Agreement, or NAFTA, with Mexico and Canada. during Trump's very first term.
KASH PATEL, potential candidate for nationwide security posts. or FBI director
A previous Republican politician Home staffer who served in various. high-ranking personnel roles in the defense and intelligence. neighborhoods throughout Trump's first term, Kash Patel regularly. appeared on the project path to rally support for Trump in his. newest governmental bid.
Any position requiring Senate verification might be a. challenge, nevertheless.
Patel, 44, has actually leaned into debate throughout his. profession. In an interview with Trump ally Steve Bannon in 2015,. he guaranteed to follow politicians and reporters. perceived to be enemies of Trump.
Throughout Trump's very first term, Patel, viewed as the supreme Trump. patriot, drew bitterness from some more experienced nationwide. security authorities, who saw him as unstable and too excited to. please the then-president.
(source: Reuters)