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MSF reports that at least 652 Nigerian children have died of malnutrition during the last six months.
Medecins Sans Frontieres reported on Friday that at least 652 children in Nigeria's state of Katsina died of malnutrition during the first half of 2025. The organization attributed this to the funding cuts made by international donors. Insecurity is a problem in Katsina in the north. MSF (also known as Doctors Without Borders) said that the massive budget cuts in the United States, United Kingdom and European Union are having a real impact on malnourished children. The United Nations Food Agency announced on Wednesday that it would be forced to stop food and nutrition assistance for 1.3 millions people in the northeast of Nigeria, which is ravaged by insurgency. Stocks have run low. The United States withdrew funding from the health sector, and Nigeria budgeted 200 billion Naira ($130million) to cover the shortfall. MSF reported that the number of Katsina children with severe malnutrition increased by 208% in comparison to the same period in the previous year. "Unfortunately, 652 children have died in our facilities as of the start of 2025." Insecurity in Katsina has forced many to abandon their farms due to banditry. In an effort to curb the activities of criminals, both the government and local vigilante groups have worked together.
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It's time to get rid of capital gains tax on your house.
The original version of this article was published in On The Money, a newsletter that shares personal finance insights and tips from the United States every two weeks. Subscribe here to get it free. It's time to get rid of capital gains tax on your house. My humble opinion: The most important personal finance story! This week, President Donald Trump has announced that he is considering eliminating capital gains taxes from home sales. Trump told reporters at the Oval Office that if the Fed lowered the rates, then we wouldn't have to do anything. "But we're thinking of no tax on capital gain on houses." According to current law, homeowners may exclude up $250,000 (single filers), or $500,000 for joint filers (increased gains) from the sale of their primary residence. These thresholds are unchanged since 1997. According to a study by the National Association of Realtors, 34% of homeowners (30 million) have equity in their home that exceeds the $250,000 threshold. More than 10% (8 millions) have equity enough to go beyond the $500,000 limit. Recently, Congress passed legislation to make permanent the tax cuts that were passed during Trump's first term in office. The bill also fulfills Trump's election promises by including new tax breaks for seniors, auto loans, tips, overtime pay and seniors. Who could benefit from the end of capital gains tax on home sales? Would you be more likely to sell your home if capital gains tax were eliminated? Would you be more inclined to sell your house? Let me know what you think by writing to me. It's a Gas Recently, have you noticed lower gas prices? U.S. gas prices may fall below $3 per gallon for the first summer in four years, as bad weather has dampened fuel demand. Imports have also risen to fill up inventories. Gasoline is at a low price, which is great news for Americans who are traveling this summer. After Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, consumers faced record-high prices at the pump. The summer is usually the U.S.'s peak gasoline season, but this year the demand has been lower. The U.S. gasoline demand is expected to drop permanently from its 2018 peak due to the increased use of fuel-efficient cars and changes in driving habits following the pandemic. What will be the impact of lower gas prices on your driving habits and how? READ, WATCH and LISTEN Coke's switch to cane sugar will be costly and hurt US farmers Goldman and BNY launch tokens linked to money market funds Trump Executive Order to Open Up 401(ks) to Private Markets Delta's plans to use AI for ticket pricing is criticized by US lawmakers Luxury heavyweights battle to overcome shopper fatigue What's behind the recent rally in meme stock? How Americans deal with late career layoffs Portfolio manager: Don't risk everything, but preserve capital Big Alcohol is ready to fight back against buzzy cannabis drinks that steal sales Are you holding too much technology? Are you bursting at the seams with technology stocks in your portfolio? Due to the recent strong performance of technology stocks, equity investors may be overweighting them. The Magnificent 7 stocks have risen by almost 25% over the last year, compared to 17% growth for the Nasdaq Composite Index. The performance of the Magnificent 7 (which includes Google, Tesla and others) has been mixed in recent years. They have all recovered since April after a fallout following Donald Trump’s "Liberation Day", which announced sweeping tariffs around the world. According to LSEG Datastream, the group accounted for one-third the weight of S&P 500 on Friday due to its massive market cap. This is their biggest combined presence since the beginning of the year. My retirement portfolio is made up of target-date funds that are rebalanced regularly. The tech sector is at 24% which is slightly lower than the average. Have you rebalanced your portfolio recently? Tell me what you think about the Magnificent 7 or the tech sector in general! (by Lauren Young)
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Arpege, a Parisian restaurant with three Michelin stars, switches to plant-based meals
Alain Passard is a French chef who has mastered the art of roasting. He decided to remove almost all animal products in his Arpege restaurant. Arpege had already eliminated red meat in its dishes back in the early 2000s. Passard's new menu will exclude meat, dairy and fish. However, honey from the restaurant's beehives is an exception. Passard said that his passion for the natural world motivated him. He added that seasonal vegetables could also help reduce the environmental impact of a restaurant. Passard's 68-year-old fame was largely due to his roast dishes such as "poulet à foin", or chicken cooked with hay. But he has become a leading figure in the growing vegetable dining scene in Paris. Passard said, "Everything I did with the animal is a memory that will last a lifetime." Today, I'm more inclined to a cuisine of emotions, a culinary style that I would describe as artistic. It's more like painting and sewing... today I'm a new chef. Arpege, the first three-star restaurant in France, has made the switch to plant-based foods. It joins Eleven Madison Park, a New York restaurant that did the same under the chef Daniel Humm. The menu includes a "mosaic", a tomato dish, aubergine flambée with melon confit and a carrot, onion and shallot dish. The most expensive set menu is 420 euros (about $493) and the lunch cost 260 euros. In recent years, meat consumption has declined in some countries. Organisers of the Paris Olympics in 2012 set out to reduce the amount meat served to spectators and athletes. ($1 = 0.8526 euro) (Reporting and writing by Noemie Olivier and Lauren Bacquie; Editing and proofreading by Gabriel Stargardter, Louise Heavens and Lauren Bacquie)
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Holtec's request for restarting Michigan nuclear plant is approved by the NRC
Holtec International has received approval from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission to submit a number of requests that will lay the foundation for the restart of the Palisades Nuclear Power Plant in Michigan. The agency and the company announced this on Thursday. Holtec will be able to load fuel with the approvals, but it will still need additional approvals for the plant that ceased operation under a new owner in May 2022. Holtec plans to restart the Palisades plant, a decommissioned 800 megawatt facility. It will also install two small modular units (SMRs) based on the existing technology of light water reactors (LWRs), at the same site. Holtec, in partnership with Hyundai Construction, plans to build ten gigawatts worth of SMRs across North America by 2030, starting first at Palisades. Holtec purchased the plant in order to decommission, but hopes to now reopen it. It is the first U.S. Commercial reactor to restart operations after ceasing to operate. Holtec stated that "Once Palisades is returned to service it will generate over 800 megawatts (safe, reliable and carbon-free) of baseload power, enough to power 800,000 homes... increase grid reliability and meet growing energy demands in Michigan and beyond." The company did not specify a date for the start-up. Holtec announced in March that it hoped to reopen its plant by the fourth quarter 2025. The NRC stated that "while these NRC approvals allow Holtec fuel to be loaded, there are several licensing actions still under NRC review, and additional requirements need to meet before the plant can begin operating under its original operating license which expires March 24, 2031," The NRC transferred the operating authority of PNP from Holtec Decommissioning International LLC to Palisades and restored key documents including emergency plans, security plans, and maintenance and inspection programmes. (Reporting by Sarah Qureshi in Bengaluru Editing by Marguerita Choy)
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Three trapped workers are rescued from Newmont's Red Chris Mine in Canada
Newmont said that three contract workers were rescued from the Red Chris copper-and-gold mine in British Columbia after 60 hours of being underground. Bernard Wessels said that some operations have been resumed at the mine, but the underground mine is still suspended. He made this statement at a Newmont news conference. Wessels stated that Newmont would reopen its underground mine following a thorough investigation of the incident. Kevin Coumbs (Hy-Tech Drilling), Darien Maduke and Jesse Chubaty, were trapped in the mine after two "falls of ground" at the accessway. The walls and floors collapsing in a mine is a serious safety concern for the mining industry. The miners were sheltered in the designated refuge bay of the mine for two days. Wessels stated that the men were "in good spirits" and had walked themselves to their vehicle. They were also relieved to have escaped. He added that the three miners stayed where they were told to stay and followed all safety protocols. Newmont owns 70% of the mine and Imperial Metals Corp. holds the remaining 30%. Wessels stated that Newmont conducted a thorough psychological check on the miners. Newmont says it conducts monthly investigations into its operations and that this incident was a surprise to the company. Newmont acquired the Red Chris mine in 2023 as part of its larger purchase of Australian miner Newcrest. Red Chris has two mines, an open-pit mine and an underground mine.
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Copper demand falls ahead of critical week
The dollar rose on Friday, and copper prices dropped. Physical buyers took a break ahead of the week which could be pivotal in bringing clarity to the U.S. tariffs on imports of copper and the U.S. agreements with other nations. The price of three-month copper at the London Metal Exchange fell by 1.0%, to $9,772 per ton, as of 1600 GMT. This was below the 21-day average, which is $9,802. The COMEX copper contracts, which reached a record-high of $5.959 per lb last Thursday, fell 0.9% to $5.752 and were trading at a premium of 30% over the LME benchmark. The premium is still below the proposed 50% tariff by President Donald Trump, as the market awaits confirmation of the deadline of August 1, and the list of copper products that will be affected. Will the announcement of the tariff be delayed because there is so much uncertainty? Will there be any exemptions?" Alastair Munro is a senior base metals analyst at Marex. Chile, Canada, and Mexico are the U.S.'s main copper suppliers. The current copper prices have slowed down physical buying. This was a very active activity when the price of copper was $9,600 around mid-July. However, the availability of relatively little stock in LME registered warehouses has also been reduced. Munro said that the support is being provided ahead of September which is a time of seasonal growth in demand. The Shanghai Futures Exchange monitors copper inventories in storage warehouses The exchange reported that the number of metric tons fell by 13% to 73 423 this week. This is the lowest level since last December. The U.S. already has trade agreements with Japan Indonesia and the Philippines. Trump will be in Scotland this Friday to inaugurate a new golf course and to meet British Prime Minister Keir starmer. Trade talks between the United States and China are scheduled to begin next week in Sweden. LME aluminium dropped 0.5% to $2.632 per ton. Zinc fell 0.7% to $2.823; lead slipped 0.4% to $1,015; tin declined 1.3% to $34,050, and nickel fell 1.8% to $15,170. (Reporting and editing by Kirsten Doovan, Vijay Kishore, and Paul Simao; Reporting by Polina Devitt)
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Sources say that Citigroup's head for energy transition has moved to Moelis.
Citigroup's global director of clean energy investment banking will leave the U.S. bank to advise on mergers and acquistions at boutique Moelis. This was confirmed by people familiar with this matter on Friday. Serge Tismen will officially join Moelis at the end of September after a gardening leave. One source said that he will advise clients of the bank on all aspects of dealmaking and will be reporting to Anton Sahazizian who is the head of Moelis mergers and acquistions. I was unable contact Tismen to get a comment. Citi and Moelis spokespeople declined to comment. LinkedIn shows that Tismen worked at Citi's Investment Bank for over two decades. He took over the leadership of a new division in 2021 to attract more business from companies that are working to reduce carbon emissions by developing hydrogen fuel, vehicle charger infrastructure, carbon sequestration, and biofuels. Donald Trump has been putting pressure on the U.S. government to promote clean energy. His administration has attempted to rollback environmental regulations, and measures that were put in place by the former president Joe Biden to encourage renewable energies. Trump has canceled tax credits that support renewable energy generation and ordered the Department of the Interior review any regulations that favor wind and solar power over other sources of energy. The rest of 2025 is expected to be a year of significant deal-making, and the forecast includes a number of mega-mergers. (Reporting and editing by David French, David Gregorio, and Isla Binne in New York)
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Gold drops as dollar firms, trade deal hopes sap safe-haven demand
Gold prices fell on Friday due to a stronger dollar and progress in U.S. - EU trade negotiations, which weakened demand for safe havens. By 11:23 am, spot gold had fallen 1% to $3333.12 an ounce. ET (1523 GMT). U.S. Gold Futures fell 1.2% to $3333.70. The U.S. Dollar Index rebounded after a two-week low. This made bullion prices more expensive for foreign buyers. Meanwhile, the yields on benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury bonds remained unchanged. The Japan deal was important, and there is hope that a U.S./EU agreement will be reached before the deadline of August 1. This is reducing demand for safe haven assets as capital flows to risky assets due to an elevated risk appetite, said Peter Grant. The European Commission, following this week's U.S. Japan trade agreement, said that a deal with the U.S. was within reach. EU members also approved counter-tariffs for U.S. products in case negotiations fail. The data shows that U.S. unemployment claims have fallen to a 3-month low. This indicates a stable job market, despite slow hiring. The Federal Reserve is expected to use stable labor market data to justify holding rates at 4.25% to 4.50% during its next meeting, despite signs that inflation may be increasing due to President Donald Trump's tariffs on imports. Trump's surprise trip to the central banks marked a new attempt to put pressure on Chair Jerome Powell. The President was again calling for a rate cut. Grant added that gold may be able to attract "buying interests probably at the $3,300 level but not break out to new highs until the Fed decision." The meeting could indicate rate cuts in the second half of the year. Gold is usually more profitable during times of uncertainty or low interest rates. Spot silver dropped 2.1% to 38.25 dollars per ounce. Palladium fell 1.6% to $1,208.20, while platinum was down 1.6% to $1,385.94. This week, all three metals suffered losses.
West Africa mine operators use drones to detect illegal miners as gold prices rise
Three men launch a drone in the clear skies above Gold Fields' Tarkwa mine, a sprawling 210 square kilometer gold mine located in southwest Ghana. The drone's cameras scan the area for any intruders as the sun beats down. A drone detected something strange, and a 15-person police team arrived within 20 minutes. The team found abandoned clothing, newly dug trenches and rudimentary gear in pools of mercury- and cyanide contaminated water. Wildcat miners who work on the fringes of official mines in Africa left the equipment behind. They put their health, the environment, and the profits of official mine operators at risk.
The team seized seven diesel-powered pumps, as well as a "chanfan", a processing unit that is used to extract gold out of riverbeds. According to mining executives and experts, the high-tech game of cat-and mouse is becoming more common as gold prices rise above $3,300 an ounce. This has led to increased unofficial activity, which can lead in some cases, to deadly confrontations, between corporate concessions, and artisanal miner's in West Africa.
Edwin Asare is the head of Gold Fields Tarkwa Mine’s protection services. "Because the vegetation covers the area, you will not know if something is going on," says Asare. It's as if you get eyes in the air to help you place boots on the ground.
No reports have been made of any injuries to official mine personnel. Conflicts in corporate mines have caused production to be halted for up to one month. Companies then pressed governments to provide more military protection.
Boots on the Ground
According to a United Nations report from May, the unofficial mining operations in Sub-Saharan Africa provide a critical source of income for almost 10 million people.
Other industry data indicate that in West Africa, between three and five million people are dependent on unregulated gold mining. This accounts for about 30% of the region's gold production. These people provide economic support to a region where there are few formal job opportunities.
Many residents, like Famanson Keita, 52 years old in Senegal’s gold-rich Kedougou Region, grew up in their localities mining gold. They supplemented their farming incomes with simple and traditional methods until corporate mining companies arrived and relocated them to other communities, promising jobs and rapid growth.
Keita said, "Those promises were not fulfilled." Many of our youth are working in low-level jobs that do not have contracts, with little pay and without stability. "Small-scale farming cannot support our families."
Local residents have tried to make a living in the shadows of mining companies for many years. However, the majority of illicit activities, especially those that occur around large bodies of water and forests, are now carried out with sophisticated equipment, such as dredging and digging tools, and funded by local cartels or foreigners.
Economic pressures With central banks buying more gold and geopolitical tensions increasing, gold could reach $5,000 per ounce. Ulf Laessing, a mining and security analyst focusing on the Sahel region, warned that violent clashes near mining operations are likely to increase in the months ahead.
Laessing is the head of Germany's Konrad Adenauer Foundation's Sahel Program. She said: "The higher the gold price, the more conflict we will see between the industrial and informal miner."
A source from the company, who declined to identify themselves, said that nine wildcat miners had been shot dead at AGA’s Obuasi Mine in Ghana in January when they opened the 110-square-kilometer concession fence to search for gold.
According to a source with knowledge of the mine operations, in February hundreds of wildcats invaded AGA's Siguiri Mine concession, located northeast of Guinea. This prompted military intervention.
Police said that in January at least three wildcat miner were shot and injured by guards on Newmont's Ahafo Gold Mining Site in northwestern Ghana.
An excavator driver at a Kenieba illegal mining site told a reporter that Chinese bosses have been deploying new equipment on new sites in Mali's gold rich Kayes region as gold prices rise. We were unable to determine who these Chinese operators are, or if they have any connections with companies or official organisations.
Ghanaian authorities are destroying dozens of unregulated gold mining operations, including in protected areas, and arresting foreigners and locals. Marc Ummel is a researcher with Swissaid. He says that because of weak regulations and porous borders, most of their products are smuggled, denying the countries the full benefits. Swissaid analysed data from the exports of Ghana between 2019 and 2023. It found that Ghana lost 229 metric tonnes of gold, mainly artisanal, to smuggling.
Adama Soro is the president of West African Federation of Chambers of Mines. He said that artisanal miner's compete with large-scale mining companies for ore and shorten mines lives. He said that artisanal mines were digging as deep as 100 meters, which was affecting the ore bodies of large-scale miners.
ARMED MILITARY PROTECTION
The head of an mining company heavily affected by wildcat miner in Ghana said that miners have resorted to unconventional methods, and they are increasing their spending at the expense community projects and investment.
Source: The mine spends about half a million dollars annually to combat wildcat-mining, which includes drone surveillance. However, it still suffers frequent attacks.
Recent incursions have been reported at Nordgold, Galiano Gold B2Gold, and Barrick Gold.
Ghana's corporate mining giants have increased their efforts to secure military protection for their mine sites in the past year. According to three mining executives, and an industry analyst who requested anonymity, similar requests were made in Burkina Faso, and Mali.
Ahmed Dasana Nantogmah is the chief operating officer of Ghana’s Chamber of Mines. He said, "Ideally, we would like to have a military presence in all mining operations. However, we do understand that we need to prioritize those sites which are consistently attacked while maintaining regular patrols on others."
Nantogmah said that industry leaders met with government officials to discuss their concerns in mid-April. Discussions yielded "positive" outcomes.
Ghana's government has not responded to any requests for comment.
Two mining executives involved in the negotiations said that Ghanaian authorities wanted miners to pay for deployment costs. These are estimated at 250,000 Ghana Cedis (18,116 dollars) per daily contingent of less than 50 personnel.
The Minerals Commission in Ghana, which regulates the mining industry, has taken a major technological step forward by establishing a control room powered by AI to analyze data collected from 28 drones that are deployed at illegal mining hotspots. The system includes tracking devices on excavators, and a remote control system to disable excavators that are operating outside of authorized boundaries.
Sylvester Akpah is the consultant for Ghana's mining regulator's drone and AI-powered surveillance project. (Reporting and editing by Veronica Brown, Claudia Parsons, and Emmanuel Bruce Additional reporting by Maxwell Akalaare Adombila)
(source: Reuters)