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Zelenskiy calls for urgent renewal of the supervisory board in the defence sector
The Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy announced on Wednesday that he has urged the Minister of Defence Denys Shmyhal, to renew supervisory boards within the defence sector urgently in order to restore investor confidence following a recent corruption scandal. Ukraine is currently engulfed in a scandal involving a $100 million kickback scheme, allegedly perpetrated by senior energy officials. A former business partner of Zelenskiy has also been suspected of being involved. This is the biggest scandal in Ukraine since Zelenskiy was elected president of Ukraine on a mission to eradicate corruption. Kyiv must eliminate corruption and strengthen the rule of law in order to be eligible to join the European Union. The Ukrainians view this as a crucial requirement for their future, as they fight off Russian invasion. Zelenskiy stated on Telegram that "management and oversight of the internal processes within companies is carried out by supervisory boards, and this has to be 100% guaranteed." After the termination of the majority of supervisory board powers today, he said that the formation of supervisory boards for state-run energy firms must take place by the end this month. Last month, the government announced that they planned to appoint by the end this year a new board of directors at Energoatom - the state nuclear firm at the center of a scandal involving corruption. Zelenskiy told Prime Minister Yulia Shvyrydenko that the pace of transformation was satisfactory. However, he said there must be full transparency within management. "New members must be appointed to the Supervisory Boards in December, following a fair and transparent procedure." The Ukrainian energy sector is dominated by state-owned companies, such as Naftogaz (oil and gas company), Ukrenergo (power grid operator), and Energoatom (nuclear energy company). (Reporting and writing by Yuliia Dyesa, editing by Andrew Heavens, Timothy Heritage, and Pavel Polityuk)
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Sources: Former Pornhub owner is interested in Lukoil's assets
Two sources with knowledge of the matter claim that Bernd Bergmair (former majority owner of adult entertainment group Pornhub) has approached the U.S. Treasury to buy international assets from sanctioned Russian oil giant Lukoil. As part of its efforts to press Moscow to end the war in Ukraine, the U.S. imposed Sanctions on Lukoil - Russia's largest private oil producer. Exxon Mobil, Chevron, and other oil giants have approached U.S. authorities to get permission to speak to Lukoil. Bergmair, through his lawyer, declined to say which assets he is interested in. He also refused to confirm whether he has already approached Lukoil or if he is part of a consortium. He said: "Clearly, Lukoil International GmbH is a good investment. Anyone would be lucky to own those assets." "I do not comment on potential investment as a matter. Due to the sensitive nature of the issue, the sources refused to identify themselves by name. Since the U.S. Treasury gave companies permission to start talks with Lukoil last month, interest in Lukoil’s foreign assets is growing. Treasury cleared talks until December 13 and any deal would require approval. Lukoil International GmbH is based in Vienna and owns refineries throughout Europe, oilfields across Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan Iraq, Mexico, as well as hundreds of retail fuel station locations around the globe. According to 2024 filings, the assets are estimated at $22 billion. When asked whether Bergmair spoke with the Department, a spokesperson for U.S. Treasury declined to comment. Bergmair was a Goldman Sachs investment banker who moved to private investments in the 1990s. He was the majority shareholder of MindGeek, a Luxembourg-based company with websites such as Pornhub and RedTube. It was sold to a Canadian firm in 2023, for an undisclosed amount. The Sunday Times Rich List, which ranks Britain's richest in 2021, estimated that his wealth was at least PS1.2billion.
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As markets wait for US data, gold and silver prices ease from record highs.
The gold price remained stable on Wednesday, as traders awaited U.S. Economic indicators to gauge Federal Reserve policy direction. Silver prices also declined from their record highs. After losing over 1% the previous session, spot gold dropped 0.1% at 1128 GMT to $4203.58 per ounce. U.S. Gold Futures for February Delivery were up 0.3% to $4,234.60. Ole Hansen is the head of commodity strategy for Saxo Bank. He said, "Pay attention to key U.S. statistics that could cement expectations about a rate cut in December which would be supportive of metals." Investors await the U.S. ADP November employment figures at 13:30 GMT, and Friday's delayed Personal Consumption Expenditures data for September. Brokerages are projecting a policy easing as a result of weaker U.S. data and dovish Fed signals. CME's FedWatch shows that there is now an 87% probability of a rate reduction next week. Gold that does not yield a return tends to do well when interest rates fall. Silver fell 0.5%, to $58.15 per ounce. It had previously reached a record-high of $58.94. Hansen said that silver is supported by tight supply, momentum buying, and short-covering following last Friday's breakout above $54.50. He added that overbought condition posed a risk to bulls in the near term. Silver, a precious metal and an industrial metal, has risen by 101% in the past year. Its inclusion on a U.S. critical mineral list is also a factor. This year, gold has gained 60%. Palladium fell 0.5%, while platinum rose 0.6%, to $1.647.75 per ounce. Reporting by Pablo Sinha, Bengaluru Editing Mark Potter and David Goodman
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Copper reaches record highs on concerns about supply and a weaker dollar
The copper price reached a new record on Wednesday, thanks to the weaker dollar and concerns about supply. Benchmark LME 3-month copper rose 1.7% to $11,333 per metric tonne by 1102 GMT, after reaching a record high at $11,434.50. Copper is looking bullish, after hitting new highs. Algorithmic models are flashing buy signals. Dan Smith, managing Director of Commodity Market Analytics, said that there's a good chance the price could rise to $12,000 per ton. Data showed that business activity in Europe expanded at the fastest rate in over two years in November, adding to the bullish mood. LME data on Tuesday showed that there were net cancellations of 50 725 tons of copper in Asian warehouses. This brought the LME's available or on-warrant copper stock to its lowest level since July, at 105 275 tons. Smith said that despite the Comex premium to the LME benchmark, there is still a strong interest to export copper to the U.S. Comex copper prices are rising due to the premium of Comex over LME. That is already a record. The LME cash premium over the 3-month contract reached $69 per ton on February 2, its highest level since mid-October. This indicates some tightness of supply in the near term. The expectation of a rate cut from the U.S. Federal Reserve in the coming week, as well as the weaker dollar, also helped to support the rise in base metals. Dollar-priced materials are more appealing to buyers who use other currencies due to the weaker dollar. Low interest rates improve the prospects of metals that are dependent on growth. Other LME metals include aluminium, which rose by 0.5% to 2,880 dollars a ton. Zinc was up by 0.2% at $3,066, while lead gained 0.5%, reaching $2,005. Tin climbed 1%, to $39 505, and nickel grew 0.7%, to $14 895. (Reporting and editing by David Goodman.)
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SNB to maintain negative rates despite inflation decline
Economists on Wednesday said that the Swiss National Bank would not opt for negative interest rates next week or until 2026, despite the fact that inflation was below expectations and at the lower end of its target range. Official data revealed that the annual inflation rate in Switzerland unexpectedly fell by a tenth of a percent point to zero in November, slightly below expectations. A poll of analysts found that the consensus was that last month's inflation rate would be unchanged, at 0.1%. The SNB has set a price stability target of 0% to 2% for inflation. This 0% figure is the lowest since May. DATA IS THE LAST READING OF INFLATION BEFORE RATES ARE DETERMINED The central bank refused to comment on these figures, the last inflation data before it announces the next interest rate decision at its December 11th meeting. Even with the economic downturn, economists believe the SNB will maintain its benchmark rate at 0% until 2026. Karsten Junius is an economist with J.Safra Sarasin and he also believes that there will be no policy change in 2026. Rudolf Minsch is the chief economist of economiesuisse and he also predicts that central bank will keep interest rates zero for the next week, as well as throughout 2026. Swiss inflation should increase to 0.4% in next year. He said that negative interest rates have unwanted effects and are used only when an urgent need is present, which we do not see. SNB HAS A HIGH THRESHOLD FOR CUTTING RATES Alessandro Bee, an economist at UBS, said that he expects the SNB to maintain rates at 0% until 2026. He also predicted a slight increase in Swiss inflation next year due to increased wages. The market expects that the bank's benchmark rate will remain unchanged next week. Officials of the SNB have previously stated that they expect inflation will rise in the future. They also said that they would tolerate an inflation rate below 0% for a temporary period. (Writing and editing by John Revill, Dave Graham, Aidan Lewis, Miranda Murray)
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Fortescue collaborates with Chinese steelmaker to develop green iron technology
Fortescue, an Australian company, announced on Wednesday it would work with China Baowu's subsidiary, the largest steelmaker in the world, to investigate new green technologies for accelerating the decarbonisation of the steel industry. Fortescue, which is the fourth largest iron ore supplier in the world, signed a contract with China's Taiyuan Iron and Steel Group in November for a pilot project on plasma-enhanced hydrogen-based iron and steel metallurgical technologies, according to a company statement posted on WeChat. The project will develop a technology to eliminate the pre-treatment of raw materials, such as iron ore pelletizing, coking and sintering. These processes are typically major contributors to carbon dioxide emissions during steelmaking. The collaboration involves the design, construction and operation of an industrial test line that can produce 5,000 tons of hot iron, a product from a blast-furnace. Agustin Pichot, Fortescue’s Chief Executive Officer for Growth and Energy, said: "We are exploring technology for green-smelting using Fortescue’s Pilbara Iron Ore." The decarbonisation of steel will increase the demand for high-grade iron ore. This is a challenge for Australian miner, who mainly supply low to medium grade iron ore. Fortescue said it would provide the capital for this project. Fortescue and another subsidiary of China Baowu partnered earlier this year to develop green iron technology. (Reporting and editing by Amy Lv, Lewis Jackson)
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India's JSW Steel will move Bhushan Power Steel's business to a JV with JFE Steel
India's JSW Steel is selling the steel business from its Bhushan Power and Steel unit to a joint venture of equal stakes with Japan's JFE Steel, for 244.83 Billion Rupees ($2.72 Billion), in order to fund its growth. After the announcement made on Wednesday, shares of JSW Steel, India's largest steelmaker in terms of market capitalization, fell. The shares closed 1.6% down, making them among the biggest percentage losers in the Nifty Metal Index. In September, India's top court approved JSW's acquisition of Bhushan Power and Steel. This decision capped months of legal battles that saw the court reverse its earlier decision to reject this deal. JSW Steel announced that JFE Steel would invest 157.50 billion rupies in the JV. JFE Steel stated in a separate press release that the JV aims to increase crude steel production to 10 million tonnes at integrated steelworks by 2030. The two steelmakers have pledged to invest in a separate joint venture to increase production of grain-oriented electric steel. Analysts claim that the increase in steel demand has been attributed to increased manufacturing and infrastructure spending in India. Reporting by Anuran Sahu, Manvi Pan and Hritam Mukerjee from Bengaluru. Editing by Mrigank Dahniwala
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Fuel and funds to aid flood-hit Indonesian areas are running low
The authorities battling the floods that hit Sumatra, an island in Indonesia, this week and killed around 800 people have asked for additional central government assistance to address shortages of food, fuel and funds. According to updated government figures, 463 people are missing in West Sumatra (North Sumatra), Aceh and West Sumatra. Local officials say that the lack of power and roads is preventing aid from reaching those who need it. Iskandar Al-Farlaky, the chief of East Aceh, stated that fuel had been limited in East Aceh for days and that aid was delivered by boat. Some people who lived in isolated districts faced the threat of starvation. He said that food stocks were dwindling in three districts and that hunger was imminent. He asked the central government to declare a national state of emergency. "The regional budget has a limited amount." DWINDLING FUEL AND RICE SUPPLIES According to national data, 135,000 people were affected in East Aceh by the disaster. Haili Yogi, the chief of Central Aceh where 21 people were killed by floods and 54,000 were affected, reported that fuel and rice supplies were running low. He is one of four regional leaders who are urging the government to declare an emergency in the face growing public anger. In Indonesia, 3.1 million people have been affected by the flooding, and 592,600 people were evacuated. Prasetyo hadi, the presidential spokesperson, said that Indonesia's disaster relief budget of 500 billion Rupiah (30 million dollars) was adequate. He added that this figure could be raised if needed. These comments follow remarks made by the President Prabowo Subianto to reporters last week, in response to a question about declaring an emergency national, that things were improving and existing arrangements were sufficient. People turn to muddies when they don't have access to fresh water Sibral Malasi, the chief of Aceh's Pidie Jaya Region, also said that fuel supplies in this region were limited. KompasTV reported that residents of Aceh Tamiang, due to a lack of freshwater, were drinking and cleaning muddy floodwater. Jonathan Victor Rembeth is an official with the disaster mitigation agency. He said that a national disaster could be declared if provincial governments declare their inability of responding to a catastrophe, which they haven't done yet. Indonesia, which is frequently hit by natural catastrophes, declared a state of emergency in response to the COVID-19 epidemic. The law allows the president to declare an emergency national, releasing additional funds for aid and rescue. Indonesians have criticised the central Government for not declaring a state of emergency. They also cited budget cuts for the agency that deals with disaster mitigation, which according to official data was down by 50% from last year. Tito Karnavian said that Indonesia's Minister of Home Affairs, Tito Karnavian had asked regional governments to donate funds not used by flood victims to those who were affected. Muhammad Baron, a spokesperson for Pertamina, said that the company faces fuel distribution problems in "nearly" all of the flood-affected regions. The company is looking for alternative routes but it will take some time to deliver. Green groups blame illegal logging and deforestation for the worsening of the disaster. $1 = 16,625,0000 rupiah (Reporting and editing by Clarence Fernandez, Alex Richardson, and Stanley Widianto)
Raw cat food is dangerous for cats and their owners
According to an analysis, commercial raw cat foods, especially those sold at room temperature on the shelves, can pose a significant health risk for cats and their families.
Researchers reported in Communications Biology that the analysis found disease-causing bacteria, including some resistant to antibiotics.
In a press release, Laura Goodman from Cornell University stated that "most of these products do not have warning labels that indicate that the meat ingredients in them are not fully boiled. This could mean that they harbor bacteria that is still alive and possibly viruses and parasites which would make a whole family sick."
Researchers found Salmonella and E. coli on raw or partially-cooked meat that was sold in frozen, chilled or freeze-dried form in supermarkets and online.
Goodman stated that "especially for freeze-dried foods sold on shelves, the consumers are likely unaware of this risk."
The researchers also discovered antibiotic-resistant pseudomonas bacteria, which can cause life-threatening infections of the lungs, blood, and urinary system. They also found Klebsiella bacteria, which can cause fatigue, fever, and chills. It can even cause pneumonia or urinary tract infection.
Researchers said that these pathogens could be transmitted from pets to people. They are especially dangerous for children and pregnant women, as well as older adults and those with compromised immune systems.
Researchers also point out that in previous studies, antibiotic-resistant bacteria strains were found in dog food.
Goodman stated that when the researchers uploaded their results from their cat food study into a federal database "there were in fact some human cases which were genetically similar ...,", revealing that potentially people were sickened by the same products that were studied.
Researchers said that although the U.S. Food and Drug Administration tests for a small number of bacteria, this paper shows a larger range of pathogens. This information could be used by the agency to develop future policies.
KILLING PAIN W/OUT AFFECTING HELPFUL IMMUNO RESPONSE
Researchers suggested that painkillers over the counter could be replaced with alternatives that would control pain while preventing inflammation. This paper may lead to a change in how pain medications are designed.
NSAIDs (non-steroidal antiinflammatory drugs) are the most common pain medication in the world. They include aspirin, ibuprofen and others. They block the enzymes that create prostaglandins. These work with the immune systems to promote inflammation.
Prostaglandins can also increase the sensitivity of nerve endings to pain signals.
Scientists generally believe that reducing or preventing inflammation is the best way to treat pain. Inflammation - the immune response to an injury or infection – can be beneficial and inhibiting this might delay healing and recovery.
Researchers have found, as reported in Nature Communications that a protein present on the surface prostaglandins called the EP2 receptor is responsible for pain, but not inflammation.
Researchers found that delivering drugs to silence the EP2 receptor alone reduced pain in mice, without affecting inflammation.
Inflammation is good for your health, as it restores and repairs normal function," Pierangelo Geppetti, study author at the Pain Research Center of New York University said in a press release.
"To our great surprise, blocking the EP2 receptor... abolished prostaglandin-mediated pain but the inflammation took its normal course. Geppetti stated that they had "effectively decoupled inflammation from pain".
Researchers are investigating whether drugs that target EP2 receptors could be used to reduce pain associated with conditions such as arthritis, which would normally be treated by NSAIDs.
TINY CAPSULES FIGHT INFLAMMATION OF THE BRAIN
Researchers are working on tiny bioengineered capsules to fight brain inflammation without triggering the immune system.
Inflammation can be beneficial in some cases, for example, to promote wound healing. However, inflammation of the brain has been linked with disabling conditions like Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease.
Bioengineers and Neuroscientists have developed a soft gel-like capsule about the size and shape of a grain sand. These capsules can be used to implant human brain cells, called astrocytes, into the brain.
According to a report published in Biomaterials, the capsules contain astrocytes that secrete a protein known as interleukin-1 antagonist to the outside environment. This anti-inflammatory substance reduces inflammation in test tubes and the brains in mice.
The capsules are designed to form a barrier between the astrocytes implanted and the brain tissue. This will allow the astrocytes to secrete anti-inflammatory protein while preventing immune rejection and unwanted brain migration, according a press release from Robert Krencik at Houston Methodist Research Institute.
In a press release, Rice University's Omid Veiseh said that "encapsulating cells" in a manner to shield them from immune rejection has been a major challenge.
The full newsletter is available for free by signing up here. (Reporting and editing by Bill Berkrot; Reporting by Nancy Lapid)
(source: Reuters)