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A lawmaker calls for an explanation of the Trump administration's decision to remove intelligence analysts
The top Democrat of the U.S. House Intelligence Committee on Wednesday asked Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabriel to provide proof of her alleged political bias, which led to her ousting the heads of intelligence community's most analytical body. Gabbard removed the two after the National Intelligence Council issued an assessment that contradicted the legal argument used to deport members of the Venezuelan criminal gang Tren de Aragua by U.S. president Donald Trump. The Trump administration used the claim that Tren de Aragua coordinates its U.S. actions with the Venezuelan Government of President Nicolas Maduro in order to invoke the 1789 Alien Enemies Act to justify deportations to a maximum security prison in El Salvador of alleged gangs members. A spokesperson for the ODNI confirmed that Michael Collins was fired as acting NIC Chairman and Maria Langan-Riekhof as his vice chairman. She added that Gabbard had "dismissed them because they could not provide unbiased information." The spokesperson did not provide any examples of alleged biased intelligence that led to the dismissal of Michael Collins and Maria Langan-Riekhof. Fox News was the first to report their dismissal. Two sources, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said that Gabbard had sent the operatives back to their respective intelligence agencies. A source told us that she has not yet made a decision about whether to fire them or bring them back to NIC. Jim Himes is the top Democrat of the House Intelligence Committee. He wrote to Gabbard to say that she failed to inform congressional intelligence panels about her decision to oust Collins, Langan-Riekhof, and others. Himes wrote: "According anonymous sources quoted in the Fox News article, you terminated two individuals because of their supposed "political bias"." This is a serious accusation against career intelligence officers, and as such requires evidence. He asked Gabbard to provide the committee with proof of this by May 21, 2019. The NIC assessment, released through a Freedom of Information Act Request last week, contradicted claims made by the administration about the gang’s connections with Venezuela’s government. The assessment concluded that "while Venezuela's permissive climate allows TDA to function, the Maduro government probably doesn't have a cooperation policy with TDA or isn’t directing TDA operations and movement in the United States," Mark Warner, top Democrat of the Senate Intelligence Committee, accused Gabbard, in a press release, of "purging intelligence officials because the Trump administration finds the report politically inconvenient." One source stated that, in a similar matter, the CIA "pushed back hard" on an attempt by Gabbard, to take over the drafting the top-secret Presidential Daily Brief. This is the daily compilation of the most classified U.S. Intelligence prepared for the President. A third source who is familiar with the matter cited an internal CIA memorandum that stated that a team of agency officials are working with Gabbard on moving the office responsible for preparing the brief, and that a timeline was still being worked out. The ODNI spokesperson denied that Gabbard tried to take over the Presidential Daily Brief and instead moved it physically from the CIA into the ODNI, "in a streamlined effort and a continuation of workforce." (Reporting and editing by Jonathan Landay, Erin Banco, Caitlin, Michael Perry, and Deepa Babington;
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ADNOC seeks EU okay under foreign subsidies rules for Covestro deal
ADNOC, the state-owned oil company of Abu Dhabi, requested approval from the EU on Thursday under the rules on foreign subsidies for its $16.4 billion acquisition of German chemicals firm Covestro. The request was made on the website of the European Commission. ADNOC's largest acquisition ever, for which it received the green light last week under EU merger regulations, demonstrates the Middle East countries diversification of investments in order to reduce their dependence upon oil. The EU's Foreign Subsidies Regulations (FSR) target unfair foreign aid to companies in order to reduce the competition from non EU companies that are subsidised by their government. The European Commission (which is the antitrust regulator of the 27-country block) set a deadline of June 24 for its decision. If it has grave concerns, the company can launch a full investigation within 25 days. A so-called "in-depth" investigation would take 90 days. This can be extended to 3 weeks if the company offers remedies. The UAE's e& telecoms group was able to acquire assets of Czech company PPF only after it agreed to remove a state guarantee that could not be removed and to refrain from providing foreign subsidies to the merged entity. This was the first case to be investigated in full under the FSR.
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Black Sea CPC blend daily oil exports will rise in June, according to sources
Five trading sources who are familiar with the loadings for June have estimated that Black Sea CPC blend crude oil exports will be between 1.6 and 1.7 million barrels a day (bpd). The exports in May will be approximately 1.5 million bpd higher at that level. According to sources in the trade, around 90% of CPC Blend is exported from Kazakhstan. The remainder comes from Russian production. Kazakhstan's oil production has been a major point of contention within the OPEC+ Group, since it has consistently exceeded its production quotas over the past year. Kazakhstan's Energy Ministry said this month, despite the fact that it was committed to OPEC+. CPC Blend loadings are scheduled to be slightly lower than the previous month of May due to planned pipeline maintenance for three days towards the end the month. The Caspian Pipeline Consortium does not comment on the monthly exports that are made through its system. The CPC pipeline connects Tengiz in western Kazakhstan, as well as a few other fields, with the CPC terminal at Yuzhnaya Ozereyevka, near Novorossiisk. CPC shareholders include Russia (31%), Kazakhstan (20.75%) Chevron (15%) ExxonMobil subsidiary Mobil Caspian Pipeline Company (7.5%) and other companies.
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Hearing on Barrick’s Loulo Gounkoto Mines in Mali has been postponed until May 22
The president of the Malian court announced on Thursday that a hearing on the Loulo-Gounkoto mine complex owned by Barrick Mining, scheduled for Thursday, has been moved to May 22. Barrick Mining (formerly Barrick Gold) and Mali’s government are at odds over the implementation of the new mining code, which raises taxes while giving Mali’s government a larger share of the gold mines. Mali's army government, along with others in West Africa says that it wants to increase revenue from the mining industry as it feels the current arrangements are unfair. Foreign multinationals will have to comply with the demands of the military government if they wish to continue operating in this gold-rich nation. Barrick claims it has made significant investments in the Malian economic over the past 20 years. It accuses government officials of shifting the goalposts and demanding more money. They also claim that some of their executives have been unfairly detained in an effort to blackmail Barrick. The majority of multinational mining companies operating in Mali are now on board with the new code. Resolute Mining, a mining company from Australia, reached an agreement with Mali after its chief executive had been detained there for more than a week. The Tribunal de Commerce in Bamako was to hear a request from the Malian government, which owns a 20% stake of the Loulo-Gounkoto mine complex, on Thursday to place the mines under temporary administration. According to a source familiar with the situation, the aim of the request was to resume operations at the complex which had been suspended for several months. If the request is granted, it would be a significant escalation in the dispute between West Africa and the Canadian miner. The mines ceased operations in mid-January, after the government confiscated around 3 metric tonnes of gold valued at $317 million at the price of last week. They accused the company of failing to meet its tax obligations. Barrick's gold was blocked by the government since early November. Barrick denies all wrongdoing. Barrick reported in its earnings update of May 7, that it received on April 17, a warning from the government, threatening to implement provisional management until the mines reopened by April 20, if they did not. Barrick says it will only restart operations once the Malian government lifts its restrictions on gold exports. The two sides are currently negotiating a memorandum to resolve their dispute. Mark Bristow, CEO of Barrick, said this month that both sides were close to an agreement at least three times before. Reporting by Fadimata Kotao, Writing by Portia Crowe; Editing and Revision by Elaine Hardcastle & David Evans
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After Russia-Ukraine meeting, defence stocks rise in the STOXX 600 index of Europe
European shares recovered from an early drop to close higher Thursday. Industrial stocks got the biggest boost while corporate earnings were in the spotlight. The STOXX 600 index for the continent was up by 0.6%. The majority of major regional indexes rose, with Germany up 0.7%. Russian President Vladimir Putin snubbed challenge To meet face-toface with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy in Turkey is to deal a serious blow to the prospects of a breakthrough for peace. Hensoldt, Rheinmetall and Leonardo all saw gains of 4% or more. The European aerospace and defence index rose 2.3%. Chris Beauchamp is the chief market analyst for IG. In the meantime, data from the U.S. revealed a surprise fall A slowdown in the growth of producer prices and in Retail sales growth. Beauchamp stated that there was a reasonable amount of anxiety to monitor the economy and check for signs of inflation. "The data were benign... that's the most important thing" (in this uncertain climate). After their quarterly reports, France's Engie and London's National Grid and United Utilities rose, and lifted utilities by 1.9%. The biggest gains were in the telecommunications sector, boosted by a 2.8% rise in Deutsche Telekom following its first-quarter results. Profit from the newest technology A little bit above expectations The benchmark STOXX600 index was higher in most sectors, but a drop in commodity prices hurt companies with a resource focus. Oil prices fell more than 3% in anticipation of a possible nuclear agreement between the United States and Iran that could increase supply. The major oil companies were the worst hit, with BP shares and Shell's Amsterdam-listed shares dropping by 3.3% and 1.55% respectively. Energy shares fell 0.9%, underperforming peers. The prices of industrial metals have also fallen, resulting in heavy losses for basic resources. The mood was positive in the markets this week as they welcomed the U.S. China trade truce, and U.S. president Donald Trump's Middle East investment deals. Trump is yet to announce any deals with the European Union. A flash estimate shows that the gross domestic product grew slightly less than expected on an annual basis. However, Britain's economy did better than expected in March compared to February. Among the single stocks, thyssenkrupp fell 12.5%, to the bottom of STOXX 600 after the group that makes everything from submarines to car parts posted a drop in its operating profit for the second quarter. Analysts attribute the 1% drop in Siemens shares to a weaker than expected free cash flow despite Siemens' beating expectations for its second-quarter results. Reporting by Nikhil Sharma, Purvi Agarwal and Varun H K; Editing by Sherry J. Phillips, Varun HK and Ed Osmond
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NOPA's April US soy crushing at 190.226 million bushels tops all trade estimates
According to the National Oilseed Processors Association's (NOPA) latest data, the U.S. soya bean crush decreased in April but was still higher than most estimates. It also marked the highest total ever for the fourth quarter of the year. NOPA members, who account for 95% or more of U.S. processed soybeans, crushed 190.226 millions bushels last month. This is down 2.2% compared to the March crush, 194.551 millions bushels, but up 12.3% compared to the April crush, 169.436million bushels. In recent years, the rate of soy crushing has increased as more processing plants came online and facilities have expanded their capacity to meet the rising demand for biofuels. Nine analysts surveyed estimated that the April crush would be above 184.642 millions bushels. Estimates ranged between 180.0 million and 191.0 million bushels with a median estimate of 184.3 millions bushels. As of April 30, soyoil stock levels among NOPA member companies rose to 1,527 billion pounds. This is up 1.9% compared to 1.498 billion at the end March, but down 16.6% compared to the 1.832 million pounds of stocks one year ago. Six analysts estimated that stocks would fall on average to 1.412 trillion pounds. The estimates ranged between 1.275 billion and 1.500 billion pounds with a median estimate of 1.425 million pounds.
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Gains in the South African rand on hopes for a change to inflation targets
Analysts said that the rand of South Africa firmed up on Thursday after a deputy minister of finance indicated that a lower target for inflation could be introduced in the near future. At 1525 GMT the rand was trading at 18.0775 per dollar, a 1.1% increase over the closing price of Wednesday. Shaun Murison is a senior analyst at IG. He said, "The rand has reacted positively to the news that Treasury supports the central bank's long-standing idea of changing the framework for inflation targets and lowering them." Analysts cited comments made by Deputy Finance Minister David Masondo at an investor's conference, stating that an announcement regarding South Africa's regime of inflation targeting would be made very soon. Lesetja Kganyago, the governor of the South African Reserve Bank (SARB), has been urging a lower inflation target for many years. He believes that the current range is too large. Murison stated that the central bank may reveal more details on May 29 when it is expected announce its latest interest rates decision. The market will also focus on the revised budget speech that Finance Minister Enoch Goongwana is scheduled to deliver next week. This coincides with a meeting between South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa, and his U.S. equivalent Donald Trump. The South African presidency said late on Wednesday that the Meeting on May 21, The agreement would be a chance to reset the strategic relationship of the two countries. They have been at odds ever since Trump took over the White House. Data from the Statistics Agency earlier that day showed that South Africa's mine production fell by 2.8% in March, compared to a 9.7% decrease in February. The Top-40 Index closed the day on the stock exchange about 0.1% lower. The yield on South Africa's benchmark government bond for 2030 was lower by 8 basis points, to 8.87%. Reporting by Sfundo parakozov and Bhargav acharya, Editing by Louise Heavens, Ed Osmond
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Draft shows EU plans to give new subsidies to farmers who save water
A draft proposal seen by revealed that the European Commission had drafted plans for new subsidies to be offered to farmers who invest to waste less water when the huge farm subsidy program is renewed. Around 387 billion euro is the value of EU's Common Agricultural Policy's (CAP) farming subsidies. This represents about a third in the overall budget of 2021-2027. The EU is preparing to have tough negotiations on its next budget, for the period after 2027, in later this year. According to a draft EU policy proposal aimed at addressing the pressures on Europe's water supply from climate change and industry, the next CAP will include "transition packages" that provide advice and financial support to farmers in order to improve water management. The draft stated that "The Commission will include in the future CAP Transition Packages to support and reward the farmers who engage in transformational and structure changes to improve their environmental and climate performances of their holdings. This includes a better management of water." Subventions could be used to help farmers buy more drought-resistant plants or irrigation systems that use less water. Climate change is affecting agriculture the most. Europe's farmers have already suffered from increasing droughts and flooding that have ruined recent cereal and fruit crops. In response to the intense political pressure of farmers protesting against EU rules that they claim are too burdensome, the EU has also loosened up other environmental measures for farming. As part of its plans to reduce bureaucracy, the European Commission proposed Wednesday that environmental conditions for existing EU farm subsidies be weakened. In the draft water strategy of the Commission, it was stated that European Investment Bank would also increase their spending on investments in water sector. This includes restoring ecosystems such as wetlands which can act as a buffer against flooding. The EU has not yet decided on the exact amount of EIB financing. The European Commission spokesperson didn't immediately respond to an inquiry for comments on the draft. It is scheduled to be published by June. (Reporting and editing by Kirsten Doovan; Kate Abnett)
EU is "moving slowly" to combat the rapid rise in censorship of LGBTQ+
Anti-LGBTQ+ legislation spreading throughout Europe
Hungary's Pride ban latest rollback of rights
The European Commission is moving too slowly, say activists
Lucy Middleton
Hungary is leading the charge on LGBTQ+ censorship under Premier Victor Organ. In 2021, a law was passed restricting LGBTQ+ content in schools and media.
Since then, similar laws to Hungary's were proposed or passed in five other EU member states - Italy. Bulgaria, Poland. Romania.
In mid-2022, the European Commission sent Hungary to the EU Court of Justice over its antilog+ laws. This was the first time that the CJEU had taken an EU member state to court over LGBTQ+ rights.
Early June is when a decision is expected on whether or not the law violates EU regulations. However, activists claim that it is far too late.
It means that many things could go wrong before we act.
Hungary, which refused to revoke the 2021 law it passed, went one step further and banned Pride events in March on grounds that they were harmful to children.
The European Commission stated that it "closely monitors" the developments and added that equality, non-discrimination and solidarity are core values for the EU.
A spokesperson for the Commission said that a new LGBTQ+ equal rights strategy is expected to be presented by the end the year.
The spokesperson stated in an email that "the Commission will... not hesitate to utilize all of the instruments available to it to protect the EU values and take the necessary action, as it has in the past."
Ester Polaris is a human-rights lawyer at the Hatter Society in Hungary, an LGBTQ+ group. She said that the Commission has delayed taking action on Hungary's new censorship laws and refused to ask for interim measures. This, she says, has led to a "chilling effect".
Polaris said that the law of 2021 is the basis for the Pride march ban, but there has been little response or willingness to seek measures.
RUSSIAN INFLUE
Activists claim that antilog+ laws are often modeled on Russia's "LGBTQ+ propaganda" law, which was first passed in 2013, and then expanded by Vladimir Putin in 2022.
The Russian law prohibits any LGBTQ+ content from being spread online, through films, books, advertising or educational settings.
In August 2024 Bulgaria banned "propaganda or incitement of LGBTQ+ issues in schools", while Georgia implemented a ban on "LGBTQ+ propagandists" in October.
Many of these bills were passed in a short time and without warning. Bulgaria's bill was passed in two readings and became law one week later. Organ also submitted and signed Hungary’s 2021 law expeditedly.
Stan Iliev is the campaign manager for global rights group All Out. He said that once these censorship legislations are in place, (the country) can implement further bans and strip away queer rights.
They're all copy-pasted, and they're one attack. Why is there no unified harmony answer?
All Out wants to see the European Commission launch infringement proceedings against countries that have LGBTQ+ censorship legislation, and make EU membership conditional on "full compliance" with EU standards regarding LGBT+ rights.
A WEAKER APPROACH
Some experts believe that political considerations could influence the Commission's attitude towards antilog+ legislation.
Alessandro Marcia is a lecturer in EU law at Maastricht University. He said, "The current Commission's majority is more fragmented, it has a smaller majority and includes parties who support antilog+ legislation. Therefore, the Commission seems to be more quiet."
Rights groups criticised the Commission last year for expanding the duties and responsibilities of the Commissioner for Equality to include crisis planning and management. They said that this diluted the focus of the role.
Ursula von derv Leyden, the President of the European Commission, also faced criticism in the European Parliament for appointing one of six vice presidents of the Commission from the far-right Italian ruling party.
Giorgio Melon, the Italian Prime Minister, has promised to fight what she calls the "LGBT Lobby".
Marcia says that even if the infringement proceedings do not result in a change of law, they can still help to boost support for affected countries.
(source: Reuters)