Latest News
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Russia says it thwarted Ukrainian plot to eliminate officer and a blog writer
Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) said on Saturday it had foiled a plot by Ukraine to kill a highranking Russian officer and a proRussian war blogger with a bomb hidden in a portable music speaker. The FSB, the main successor to the Soviet-era KGB, stated that a Russian resident had actually established contact with an officer from Ukraine's GUR military intelligence agency through the Telegram messaging application. On the instructions of the Ukrainian intelligence officer, the Russian citizen had actually then retrieved a bomb from a. hiding location in Moscow, the FSB said. The bomb, equivalent to 1. 1/2 kg of TNT and packed with ball bearings, was concealed in a. portable music speaker, the FSB said. The FSB did not name the officer or the blogger who was. the target of the plot. Ukraine's GUR military intelligence. company might not be right away grabbed comment. Ukraine says Russia's war versus it postures an. existential risk to the Ukrainian state and has actually made clear it. relates to targeted killings - planned to weaken morale and punish. those Kyiv relates to guilty of war criminal offenses - as genuine. Russia has actually said they amount to unlawful acts of. terrorism and accuses Ukraine of assassinating civilians such. as Darya Dugina, the daughter of a nationalist ideologue, in. 2022. On Dec. 17, Ukraine's SBU intelligence service killed. Lieutenant General Kirillov, chief of Russia's Nuclear,. Biological and Chemical Protection Troops, in Moscow outside his. apartment building by detonating a bomb connected to an electric. scooter. Kyiv had accused him of promoting making use of prohibited. checmial weapons, something Moscow rejects. Donald Trump's designated Ukraine envoy, retired. Lieutenant-General Keith Kellogg, informed Fox News on Dec. 18 that such killings were not actually wise and. going a little bit too far. Russia stated that it would take revenge for the Kirillov. eliminating.
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EDF, Maple Power to Develop 250MW Floating Wind Farm in France
French Ministry of Industry and Energy has selected EDF Renouvelables and Maple Power to design, build and operate a 250 MW floating offshore wind farm in the Mediterranean.The project was selected following the sixth offshore wind tender by the French government.The future offshore wind farm will be located 25 km off the Mediterranean coast. With a capacity of approximately 250 MW, it is expected to supply electricity equivalent to the annual consumption of about 450,000 residents.“We are delighted with this decision, which confirms the quality of the work carried out by the teams at EDF Renewables and Maple Power. We are pleased to continue our collaboration with the region in support of the energy transition,” said Béatrice Buffon, Chief Executive Officer of EDF Renouvelables.“We welcome the government’s decision to award us the 250 MW Golfe de Fos zone and to begin the next stages of project development alongside our long-standing partner, EDF Renouvelables.“The proximity of this zone to our Provence Grand Large floating pilot project, combined with favorable seabed conditions, strong winds, and robust local port infrastructure, allows us to leverage our extensive experience and achieve efficiency gains,” added George Walley, Chief Executive Officer of Maple Power.France Picks Ocean Winds for 250MW Floating Wind Farm in Mediterranean
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China to cut import tariffs on some recycled copper and aluminium basic materials
China will lower import tariffs on ethane and specific recycled copper and aluminium raw products from next year, the government stated on Saturday. The Ministry of Finance announced adjustments to numerous import tariff categories, efficient Jan. 1, targeted at increasing imports of premium items, expanding domestic demand and promoting top-level opening-up, it said in a declaration. Provisional import tariffs listed below the most-favoured-nation rates will be applied to 935 products, the ministry said. Import tariffs will be reduced on ethane and particular recycled copper and aluminium raw materials to advance green and low-carbon development. Tariffs will rise on products including molasses and sugar-containing pre-mixed powders will increase but be reduced on products such as cyclic olefin polymers, ethylene-vinyl alcohol copolymers and automatic transmissions for special-purpose vehicles such as fire engine and repair work cars. Import tariffs will also be lowered on products such as salt zirconium cyclosilicate, viral vectors for CAR-T tumour therapy, and nickel-titanium alloy wires for surgical implants. The China-Maldives Free Trade Arrangement will enter into effect on Jan. 1, with tariff decrease executions, the ministry stated.
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Putin's ally Sechin to remain as Rosneft's head for five more years
Igor Sechin, a longstanding ally of President Vladimir Putin, will be remaining as head of Russia's largest oil producer Rosneft, for five more years, according to a company board choice disclosed on Friday. Sechin, understood for his criticism of the Company of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, has been the CEO of Rosneft since 2012. Sechin has actually been a close Putin ally since they fulfilled in the early 1990s on a journey to Brazil. Both men collaborated in the St Petersburg mayor's workplace and Sechin followed Putin to Moscow in 1996 where they increased through the Kremlin administration to the pinnacle of Russian power. While Putin was Kremlin chief from 2000 to 2008, Sechin worked as his deputy chief of personnel, and was branded as the. grey cardinal of Russian politics by regional media. After Putin left the Kremlin in 2008 to become prime. minister, Sechin was named among 7 deputy prime ministers,. taking on a more public role. In May 2012 he was appointed as Rosneft's president. After. Rosneft purchased the Anglo-Russian TNK-BP oil company in 2013 for $55. billion, Rosneft became the world's leading noted oil producer of. the time. It produces around 4 million barrels each day, or some. 4% of total global oil output.
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Mozambicans run away to neighbouring Malawi amidst post-election discontent
More than 2,000 Mozambican households have actually sought refuge in Malawi today, Malawian authorities stated, as lots of individuals were reported eliminated in spreading unrest over a disputed election in October. Some services including banks were closed in Mozambique's. capital Maputo on Friday and patrols were established in some locations. following a fatal prison riot and breakout on Wednesday. Mozambique has actually been gripped by violent protests for about. two months because the electoral commission stated the judgment. Frelimo celebration had actually maintained power and its prospect won the. presidency in the election. Frelimo denies opposition. accusations of electoral fraud. A decision by Mozambique's Constitutional Council to. validate the election results on Monday activated more. presentations. Keeping track of group Plataforma Choose put the death toll at 125. since the court's choice and at 252 given that late October. A senior Malawian authorities stated that since Wednesday, 2,182. Mozambican households running away the violence had crossed into. Malawi's Nsanje district, which surrounds Mozambique. The scenario stays dire as these people urgently. require humanitarian support, Nsanje district commissioner. Dominic Mwandira stated in a letter to the country's commissioner. for refugees seen . Mozambique's primary opposition leader Venancio Mondlane, who. the Constitutional Council stated had actually come second in the. governmental election and who turns down the results, has actually called. for more protests from his fans however urged them not to loot. and damage infrastructure. The unrest has affected foreign companies operating in. Mozambique, including mining business Gemfields Group. and South32 and petrochemical company Sasol. Operations at Gemfields' greatest ruby mine in Mozambique. were briefly stopped on Tuesday after violent occurrences near. the mine, it said in a declaration on Friday. More than 200 people had tried to get to a. property site for mine staff members and set fire to structures,. it said. Mozambican security forces shot and killed 2 individuals,. Gemfields said. The prison riot in Maputo on Christmas Day left a minimum of 33. individuals dead and saw more than 1,500 detainees get away before some. were recaptured. Frelimo has actually ruled Mozambique considering that the end of the war. against Portuguese colonial rule in 1975. Western observers have. stated this year's election was not complimentary and reasonable.
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Shell closes down oil processing system to investigate leakage, Singapore's port authority states
Shell has closed down an oil processing unit at its Pulau Bukom facility to investigate a. presumed leak, Singapore's Maritime and Port Authority (MPA). and National Environment Company (NEA) said on Friday. The oil business approximates that a few tonnes of refined oil. items, along with cooling water discharge used in the. refining procedure, have dripped. Pulau Bukom, site of Singapore's first refinery, now. houses Shell's only energy and chemicals park in Asia, according. to the business's site. Shell confirmed in an emailed statement to Reuters that. oil sheens were spotted along with a wharf on Dec. 26, 2024 at. Shell Energy and Chemicals Park Singapore. The company mentioned it has taken steps to include the. leak and avoid it from spreading out into the sea and has deployed. boats along with the MPA to clean up light oil shines observed. near the leak site. The MPA said investigations are continuous, and navigation. traffic in the location stays untouched.
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Copper consistent as tight supply counters strong dollar
Copper costs were bit changed on Friday, with tightness in concentrate supply balancing out pressure from a firm U.S. dollar, while many other base metals wandered lower. Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange ( LME) steadied at $8,954.00 a metric ton by 1000 GMT after touching its highest since Dec. 18 at $9,018.50. Rates are up 4.6% this year. The dollar index was on track for a fourth straight weekly gain, showing strength that makes dollar-priced metals more pricey for buyers holding other currencies. China's top copper smelters accepted decreasing of cost guidance on processing charges for the very first quarter of 2025, showing a remaining scarcity of copper focuses. In 2025 the rate cuts must lift economic activity and increase demand for copper. China will likely go back to the market while mine supply is another factor to keep an eye out for, stated Ajay Kedia, director at Kedia Products in Mumbai. The first quarter of next year is likely to see the current consolidation continue, however rates must move higher in the second quarter. China, the leading consumer of base metals, revealed different stimulus procedures this year to preserve steady financial growth as it prepares for increased trade tensions with the United States after Donald Trump's return to the White House. Somewhere else, copper stocks in storage facilities kept track of by the Shanghai Futures Exchange rose 4.7% from last Friday, the exchange said. In other metals, LME aluminium fell 0.9% to $ 2,541.50 a load, nickel lost 1.4% to $15,250, zinc was down 1.3% at $3,009.50 while tin got 0.3%. to $28,860 and lead dropped 1.4% to $1,956. For the top stories in metals and other news, click. or.
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Gold set for weekly gains in the middle of geopolitical unpredictability
Gold prices relieved on Friday however were set for a weekly gain as investors gravitated towards safehaven assets in the middle of political uncertainty in the Middle East, eclipsing pressure from a firmer dollar. Area gold fell 0.2% to $2,629.49 per ounce, since 0822 GMT. Bullion gained 0.3% up until now today. U.S. gold futures were down 0.4% to $2,644.50. There stay geopolitical hotspots around the world, which is keeping gold in play from a safe haven point of view, stated Tim Waterer, chief market expert at KCM Trade. In between Russia-Ukraine and events in Gaza, financiers stay keen on gold in case either situation flares up further. In the Middle East, Israel struck multiple targets linked to the Iran-aligned Houthi movement in Yemen on Thursday. While, Russian drones struck a multi-storey house building on Thursday in the front line town of Chasiv Yar in Donetsk region of Ukraine. Restricting further gains in gold, the dollar index headed for a fourth straight week of gains. A more powerful dollar makes bullion more costly for other currency holders. Gold has gotten 28% up until now this year, reaching a record high of $2,790.15 on Oct. 31 on the back of the Fed's rate easing and intensified stress around the world. Following rate cuts in September and November, the Fed continued with its relieving policy in December. However, it likewise meant the possibility of less decreases in 2025. As Donald Trump is set to return to the White House in January 2025, markets are bracing for substantial policy shifts, incorporating tariffs, deregulation, and tax amendments. Gold usually performs well during times of financial and geopolitical unpredictability and flourishes in a lower rates of interest environment. Area silver fell 0.2% to $29.75 per ounce, platinum was down 0.1% to $934.77, both metals were on track of weekly gains. Palladium shed 0.2% to $923.04.
Gold under pressure from high US bond yields in vacation trading week
Gold prices slipped on Friday as elevated U.S. Treasury yields dimmed nonyielding bullion's. allure in a holidaythinned week, with markets concentrated on. Presidentelect Donald Trump's return to workplace and the. possible impact of his inflationary policies on the Fed's 2025. outlook.
Spot gold fell 0.8% to $2,614.64 per ounce, since. 10:29 a.m. ET (1529 GMT) and U.S. gold futures were down. 0.9% to $2,630.10.
Treasury yields are a bit higher here, and gold will. stay under pressure through the end of today ... we are here. in a thin vacation market, stated Bob Haberkorn, senior market. strategist at RJO Futures.
The dollar index headed for a fourth-straight week of. gains, reducing gold's appeal for holders of other currencies,. while the benchmark U.S. 10-year yields were trading. near their highest level because May 2, which they hit on. Thursday.
Up until now this year, gold has risen 27%, hitting a record high. of $2,790.15 on Oct. 31. The rally was sustained by the Federal. Reserve rate-easing cycle and increased global stress.
A lot of experts stay bullish for 2025, regardless of the Fed now. projecting less rate cuts.
They believe pockets of geopolitical stress around the. world will remain elevated, reserve banks will continue their. robust gold-buying spree, and political unpredictability will stick around. as Trump returns to the White Home in January.
His proposed tariffs and protectionist trade policies are. likewise anticipated to trigger prospective trade wars, contributing to gold's. allure as a safe-haven property.
Next year with central-bank purchasing, I can see gold topping. $ 3,000 eventually, probably by the summertime, if gold continues. on the rate that it's been on, Haberkorn said.
Gold traditionally shines during durations of financial and. geopolitical turmoil and thrives in a lower interest-rate. environment.
Spot silver fell 1.4% to $29.39 per ounce, platinum. was down 2.1% at $916.59, palladium shed 1.6% to. $ 910.27.
(source: Reuters)