Latest News
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Russia launches first-ever investigation into searches online for "extremist" material
The first Russian to be investigated for violating a law that prohibits online searches of material Moscow deems extremist is a man whose lawyer claims he accidentally came across information about pro Ukrainian combat units when browsing the Internet on a bus. Sergei Barsukov is a Russian lawyer who practices in Sverdlovsk, a region located near the Urals. He was quoted by Russian media as saying that he represented Sergei Glukhikh (20), whose internet service provider had reported him to the FSB for viewing information on units Russia considers terrorists. Barsukov was quoted by the news outlet Ostorozhno Novosti as saying that his client did not have malicious intent and complained about investigators exerting psychological pressure on him. Since its invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Russia has introduced censorship legislation that makes people liable for fines or lengthy prison sentences if "discrediting" the Russian military or spreading "knowingly false information" regarding the war. A new law, passed in July, imposes fines up to 5,000 rubles ($61.50) on people who search online for extremist material. The fine may seem small, but critics claim that it could be used to investigate people and lead to more serious charges or penalties. Barsukov said that a verdict had not yet been made in the case of his client, but many people would be unfairly affected by the law. Imagine I am a researcher preparing a piece about banned organizations. "I'm left defenseless because an internet operator has reported me to the law enforcement," said he. It's time to end this farce, and stop draging decent citizens through courts.
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US official: Iranian plot to kill Israel’s ambassador in Mexico foiled
A U.S. official stated on Friday that Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps planned to assassinate Israel’s ambassador to Mexico beginning late last year. However, the plot was thwarted and there is currently no threat. According to the official who spoke on condition of anonymity about the plot against Einat Kranz-Neiger, the plot was active throughout the first half of the year. The official said that the plot had been contained and did not pose any current threat. The official said that the plot was contained and does not pose a current threat. Officials declined to provide any further details or information about how the plot foiled. The United States, its allies and others have repeatedly claimed that Iran and its agents have attempted to launch violent attacks on Tehran's enemies. Last year, security services in Britain and Sweden warned that Tehran used criminal proxies in these countries to carry out violent attacks. London said it had foiled 20 Iran-linked plots in the last 20 years. Dozens of other countries condemned the alleged increase in Iranian intelligence services' plots to assassinate, kidnap, and harass. The British spy chief MI5 Director-General Ken McCallum said that Iran is "frantically" attempting to silence its critics in the world. He cited Australian authorities who had exposed Iranian involvement with antisemitic plans and Dutch authorities who had revealed an unsuccessful assassination. Israel has been an Iranian target for a long time, but this is especially true after Israel engaged in a war with Iran in which U.S. aircraft bombed Iranian nuclear sites in the month of June. Reporting by Steve Holland. Editing by Michelle Nichols, Lincoln Feast.
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Gold prices rise as the dollar weakens and US shutdown fears persist
Gold prices rose Friday, as the dollar softened. The uncertainty surrounding the U.S. shutdown also added to the demand for safe-haven assets. Wall Street indexes are set for sharp weekly drops. As of 9:37 am, spot gold rose 0.2% to $3,986.83 an ounce. ET (1437 GMT). The contract has dropped 0.4% this week. U.S. Gold Futures for December Delivery gained 0.1%, to $3.993.60 an ounce. Investors worried about the sustainability of an artificial intelligence rally on Friday kept tech-heavy markets poised for their largest weekly drop in seven months. Other currency holders can now buy greenback bullion at a lower price. Jim Wyckoff is a senior analyst with Kitco Metals. He said, "The recent price movement suggests that we are putting a floor under the gold and silver prices." As a non-yielding investment, gold tends to do well in environments with low interest rates. The U.S. shutdown delayed the release of the non-farm payrolls data for October. Traders turned to the private sector data which showed that there were job losses in the month of October to gauge the probability of another Federal Reserve rate cut this year. According to CME Group’s FedWatch tool, the markets now expect a rate cut of 25 basis points in December. Industry insiders say that China has begun designing a new licensing regime for rare earths, which could accelerate shipments. However, it is unlikely to lift all restrictions, as Washington had hoped. The conflicts have not been resolved, even though trade policy has calmed a bit. Commerzbank wrote in a report that gold is likely to continue being sought after as a "safe haven". Silver spot rose 0.6% per ounce to $48,26. Platinum dropped 0.5% to 1,533.10, while palladium remained at $1,374.75. All three metals are on a downward trend. (Reporting and editing by Sahal Muhammad, Noel John in Bengaluru, Kavya Baliaraman and Pablo Sinha in Bengaluru)
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India extends anti-dumping duty for five years on Malaysian glass
India's Trade Watchdog has recommended that anti-dumping duty on glass imports to India from Malaysia be extended for another five years. They warned that removing tariffs would trigger new dumping, and harm domestic producers who are already harmed by cheap imports. Analysts said that while the Finance Ministry must decide whether or not to extend the duty, the recommendation shows India's larger push to protect its local industries against cheap imports coming from Southeast Asia. In 2020, the government will impose duties on clear float-glass from Malaysia. India's construction industry and auto manufacturing sector are experiencing rapid growth, resulting in a surge in demand for this material. The Directorate General of Trade Remedies launched a new investigation at the request of Indian glass producers Asahi India Glass. Saint-Gobain India and Gold Plus Glass Industry. The DGTR released its final findings late Thursday and stated that even with duties in place, India's imports from Malaysia would rise sharply, reaching 361,000 metric tonnes in 2024. This represents about 18% the market. The authority stated that prices of Malaysian glass are up to 40% cheaper than those of Indian manufacturers. It added that domestic producers have suffered losses and increased inventories as a result of the sustained price undercutting. The current deadline for the expiration of duties on imports of Malaysian glass is February 2026. The DGTR, however, warned that their removal would lead to a flood of cheap imports and hurt local production and investments. It recommended that definitive anti-dumping duty be imposed for a period of five years. The DGTR estimated dumping rates of up to 30 percent for certain Malaysian exporters, while injury margins could reach up to 70 percent for other exporters. In September, the trade remedies body released 15 final findings from similar dumping investigations that covered sectors such as glass fibers and steel, solar cells and chemical goods. (Reporting and editing by Joe Bavier; Manoj Kumar)
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Newmont restructures its workforce by 16% after Newcrest acquisition- memo
According to a memo sent to Newmont's staff, the company has reduced its workforce by 16% as part of restructuring after acquiring Australian miner Newcrest. In the memo, it was stated that the reductions included job eliminations, vacancies unfilled, and changes in role levels. This reflected efforts to streamline operations, and integrate both companies. Newmont purchased Newcrest for $17 billion in 2023. Following the acquisition, Canada's largest gold producer, sold over $2 billion worth of Canadian assets. It also cut jobs, and reduced debt to reduce non-core operations. Newmont, as part of its integration process, launched a revamp project known internally by the name 'Project Catalyst.' According to the memo, Newmont has reduced the number of roles at the "Level of Work 2" (supervisors, leaders, specialists) by approximately 12% and at the "Level of Work 1" (advisors, officers and operators), by about 10%. Newmont informed its employees that the restructuring had been completed one month earlier than expected, in order to alleviate concerns over prolonged uncertainty. Newmont will employ approximately 22,200 employees by the end of 2024 and have an additional 20,400 contractors. A spokesperson for the company said, "Moves towards reshaping our structure are one of many steps we will be taking in 2025 to improve our productivity and reduce our cost base." Newmont has also reviewed its portfolio in order to focus on assets and partnerships that will generate high returns, such as the Nevada Gold Mines joint venture with Barrick Gold. Tom Palmer, the CEO of the company who will retire at the end of December, said last month that the company is committed to strengthening its ties with Barrick in order to maximize the output from Nevada operations. Barrick owns 61.5% of the joint venture in northern Nevada, while Newmont holds the remaining 38.5%. (Reporting from Abhinav Paramar in Bengaluru, and Maxwell Adombila at Senegal. Editing by Arun K. Koyyur.)
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Constellation Energy misses quarterly profit estimates, narrows 2025 forecast
Constellation Energy, a U.S. utility company, narrowed its forecast for the full year after it missed third-quarter expectations due to higher operating costs. Following the results, shares of the Baltimore-based company dropped 4% during premarket trading. Constellation Energy's margins are squeezed by higher operating costs, which are driven by maintenance and infrastructure investments. U.S. utilities argue that higher electricity prices are necessary due to the rapid increase in power consumption caused by the expansion of AI data centres, the rise of domestic production, and the electrification industries. Utilities are raising customer bills to pay for infrastructure upgrades as the electrical grids in the United States face extreme weather and a growing demand from industry electrification, data centers and industrial electrification. Constellation expects adjusted operating earnings for the full year in a range between $9.05 and $9.45, up from an earlier view of $8.90 - $9.60. Economic uncertainties fueled by U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff policies could prompt companies to rethink how they spend the billions of dollars earmarked for developing artificial-intelligence infrastructure. Investors are becoming more skeptical of tech companies that spend billions on AI infrastructure because the returns are lower than expected. Constellation's operating expenses increased 7.8% in the quarter July-September to $5.48 Billion. It reported total operating revenue for the quarter of $6.57 Billion, an increase from $6.55 Billion a year ago. LSEG data shows that the utility reported an adjusted profit per share of $3.04 for the three-month period ended September 30. This compares to analysts' average estimates of $3.12, which were based on LSEG data. Varun Sahay, Katha Kalia and Shreya Biwas contributed to the reporting; Shreya biswas edited.
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The Russian rouble gains after the central bank downplays inflation risk
The Russian rouble gained against the U.S. Dollar on Friday, after the central banks stated that the exchange rate dynamics do not carry inflationary risks. In addition, the rally of the rouble this year is already reflected in the prices. At 1215 GMT, the rouble had gained 0.36% against the dollar and lost 0.1% against the yuan at the Moscow Stock Exchange. Minutes of the central bank's October 24 meeting were released on Thursday. The minutes stated that its tight monetary policies are responsible for the rally of 2025 in the rouble. According to the bank, the strengthening of the rouble has mainly been reflected in the prices since the start of the year. It added that, "Therefore in the absence external shocks of any significance, the exchange rate dynamic should not present substantial inflation risk in the coming month." Central bank forex sales to finance budget deficits from the budget reserve funds and restrictions on imports have helped to support the rouble, according to traders. The total daily net forex sales of the state, which include forex operations conducted by both the central bank and ministry, has decreased by 5%, to 9.04 billion rubles ($111.19 millions) per day.
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Bloomberg reports that UAE's oil trading arms plans to rapidly expand globally
Bloomberg News, citing the CEO of ADNOC, reported that the trading division at the Abu Dhabi state oil company plans to double its volume in the next few year as part its international expansion. ADNOC has increased its global expansion over the last few years in order to find new revenue sources for the Gulf State, including by building trading operations. Ahmed Bin Thalith is the chief executive officer of ADNOC Global Trading. He told Bloomberg that the state-owned Abu Dhabi National Oil Company views trading as a means to maximize the value of fuels sold in the emirate or elsewhere. Thalith, speaking to Bloomberg, said: "In just five years we have established offices in Singapore and Geneva, as well as soon in the U.S. Last year, it was reported that ADNOC planned to open a trading desk on the U.S. market as part of its global expansion plans. The United Arab Emirates is the company's largest shareholder. Thalith told Bloomberg the next phase in ADNOC Global Trading expansion will be a Houston office in 2027. ADNOC has two divisions that make up its trading business: ADNOC Trading which focuses on crude oil and ADNOC Global Trading a joint venture between Italy's Eni, Austria's OMV and ADNOC Trading. This joint venture focuses on refined products. Reporting by Hyunsu Yaim in Barcelona. Mark Potter edited the article.
NOPA US soybean crush in January drops to 200.383 millions bushels
According to data released by the National Oilseed Processors Association on Tuesday, U.S. soybean processors crushed their second largest volume of soy beans ever in January. This is down from a record-high set in December.
NOPA members, who account for 95% or more of U.S. processed soybeans, crushed a total of 200.383 millions bushels last month. This is down 3.0% compared to December's record crushing of 206.604million bushels, but 7.9% higher than the January 2024 crushing of 185.780million bushels.
Nine analysts polled estimated that the January 2025 crush would be below 204,536 million bushels. Estimates ranged between 200.000 million and 208.700 millions bushels with a median estimate of 205.000million bushels.
As several new plants came online, soybean crushing rates increased. Other crushers also expanded their capacity to meet the rising demand for biofuels.
Analysts say that a period of extreme cold last month likely affected the efficiency of plants, while snowfalls and icy roads on several southern states hampered some processors.
They said that the slow pace of crushing at some plants was also due to soymeal supplies.
As of the 31st of January, the stock of soyoil among NOPA's members reached a new six-month record of 1.274 bn pounds. This is up 3.1% compared to the 1.236 bn pounds of stocks at the end December. However, this is down 15.4% compared to the 1.507 bn pounds of stocks one year ago.
Six analysts estimated that, on average the analyst's expected stock to increase to 1.289 billion pound.
Estimates of soyoil stock ranged between 1.135 billion and 1.478 billion pounds, with a median of 1.275 billion pounds. (Reporting from Karl Plume).
(source: Reuters)