United States

Oil prices fell on Monday, as investors hoped for a recovery of shipments from Saudi Arabia. This was despite the ongoing attacks by the?Yemeni Houthis which have escalated the tensions in the Middle East. Brent crude futures fell 81 cents or 0.78% to $103.06 per barrel at 0031 GMT, after falling 0.91% Friday. US West Texas Intermediate crude traded at $99.41 per barrel, down by 89 cents or 0.89% after a 1.58% drop in the previous session. Yemen's Iran supported Houthis claimed they attacked "sensitive sites" in Saudi Arabia's capital, Riyadh, on Saturday using?missiles or drones. They also said that...

Iran warned against a new major attack by the United States or its allies on Sunday, saying it had received information that such an action was in preparation. This added to the tensions already present in a region on edge following drone and missile attacks on Saudi Arabia. Iran's central military command announced on state-run media that any further attack would result in a sustained retaliation, including against US interests and bases. Washington's regional partners would also be considered as parties to the conflict. It did not provide any further details on the information that it claimed to have about...

Two people familiar with the plan say that Russian President Vladimir Putin's top economic representative and Germany's AfD far-right leadership are preparing to meet in order to discuss restarting gas supply to Europe's largest economy. The talks for a March meeting highlight the close ties between Moscow and AfD. Although blocked from power by its rivals' coalition, AfD is Germany's most popular party among voters. One of the sources said that Kirill Dmitriev would attend, who is close to Putin and heads Russia's sovereign fund. He will also be joined by Alice Weidel, Tino Chrupalla and Alice Weidel, co-leaders of...

York Holdings, a supermarket and retail group, is expanding their'slate' of lower-cost items to appeal to consumers whose finances have been affected by inflation. Seiichiro Itabashi, chief executive of Ito-Yokado, and York-Benimaru, said that after being sold to Bain Capital by Seven & i last year, they are looking to adjust their prices and expand their product line to match the industry. Itabashi stated that the firm is aiming for an initial public offering in 2028. He said that many customer groups were extremely sensitive to prices. If you don't do price increases under inflation correctly, you risk losing customers....

Mihail Kogalniceanu Airport in Romania was designed to make Americans feel comfortable. The streets of the base are named Alabama (the state), Ohio (the state), Alaska (the territory) and George Washington. Since 1999, the base has been home to U.S. soldiers who have supported America's wars against Iraq and Afghanistan. About half of the roughly 2,000 American soldiers in Romania last year, the majority of whom lived at the base, left as the Trump administration began to realign the U.S. Military presence in Europe. The departures in Romania, a North Atlantic Treaty Organization bordering Ukraine country, caused alarm. MK, as...

India announced on Thursday that it was committed to ensuring the 'energy security of its people, and would continue to purchase supplies from a variety of sellers depending on market dynamics. This came hours after the United States. A new measure was taken to punish these buyers. New Delhi said it also warned Washington about any new actions that could affect the ties between both countries. The statement was made after the U.S. House of Representatives approved sweeping tariffs and sanctions to increase economic pressure against Russia for its invasion of Ukraine. The legislation allows President Donald Trump of the...

US President Donald Trump stated on Wednesday that he hopes a "final end" to the war against Iran is near. Separately, a media report said he was expected to meet Gulf Leaders on the sidelines the UN General Assembly to discuss the conflict on Tuesday. He made his comments as the Iran War is in its seventh month, with no end in sight. Axios reported on late Wednesday that Trump's meeting next week with Gulf leaders in New York is expected to be centered around US plans for postwar strategy. Unnamed sources were cited in the report. The report said...

Saudi Arabia's air defences intercepted and destroyed a Houthi 'drone' south of Mecca on Monday before it entered forbidden airspace over the holy city. This was confirmed by a spokesperson for a Saudi-led military coalition that is fighting Yemen's Iran aligned Houthis. Turki al-Malki, spokesperson for the coalition's early Wednesday announcement, said that security at Islam's two holiest places and pilgrims were a "redline". He added that coalition would take deterrent actions against?the Houthis. Mecca is the holiest city in Islam and the focus of the annual Hajj pilgrimage. Malki said that the incident was the second "Houthi" attempt to...

According to calculations based upon data provided by fuel market participants, half of Russia's top six diesel-producing refineries had to significantly halt or reduce production in September as a result of damage caused by drone attacks. The U.S. president Donald Trump highlighted the Russian fuel shortage on Sunday when he asked Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to stop attacking Russian diesel infrastructure. He said the attacks are causing a fuel shortage that "hurts the world". Ukraine, which regularly faces Russian attacks on their own energy infrastructure, claims that refineries are legitimate military targets. According to GasBuddy's price tracker, the U.S. average...

Vitali Klitschko, the mayor of Kyiv, Ukraine, said that a drone struck a petrol station early Tuesday morning. He also added that a drone had also struck warehouses in another part of the city. Witnesses heard an explosion in Kyiv The attack follows a?U.S. Donald Trump stated on Monday that Ukraine had agreed with Russia not to?hit each other's targets. Recently, Russia began targeting petrol stations in Kyiv and expanded the scope of facilities that were targeted. In the last few months, Russia has targeted around 300 petrol stations, mostly in or near Ukraine's frontline areas. In a social media...

Treasury Department: The United States imposed Iran-related Sanctions on Monday against?Russia's VTB Bank Public Joint Stock Company accusing it of involvement in Iranian sanctions evasion. Washington is seeking to increase economic pressure on Tehran. This action is a continuation of the sanctions that were imposed in 2022 against VTB, Russia’s second largest?lender. The bank was targeted following Moscow's full-scale invasion into Ukraine. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated that "Under Operation Economic Outcast Treasury will continue to target those who provide material or financial support to the Iranian regime to enable it to maintain its terrorist enterprise." Treasury will not tolerate...

The Kremlin welcomed U.S. President Donald Trump's call for Ukraine to halt strikes against Russia's diesel-producing facilities. Trump called on Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Sunday to stop attacking Russian diesel infrastructure. He said?the attacks are causing a fuel shortage?that "hurts the world". In recent months, long-distance Ukrainian drone strikes on oil refineries have reduced Russia's fuel supply. This has led to fuel shortages in the entire country. Ukraine claims that it is attacking Russian refineries to increase the costs for Moscow to continue its invasion of Ukraine. Dmitry Peskov, Kremlin's spokesman, said in a daily press conference that any...

Residents and environmental groups in Silicon Valley's largest city are organizing against the wave of proposed data center projects that officials have courted to try and?position? the city as a hub of AI infrastructure. The clash highlights the challenge facing policymakers across the country: how to support a sector deemed by business and government leaders to be critical to the economy's competitiveness, while also responding to public concerns over the impact of infrastructure on electricity, water and air pollution. This debate is especially fraught in California because it is home to many companies that are driving the AI boom including...

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission proposed on Wednesday to 'end its oversight of corporate shareholders votes?on topics such as climate change or executive compensation, a move that critics see as a blow to corporate reforms. The move is part of the SEC's broader power shift away from investors and towards corporate managers. It was expected since last month. Wall Street's top regulator has also proposed changes, including the end of a rule that requires companies to produce glossy annual reports. In a recent statement, SEC chairman Paul Atkins stated that the SEC lacked the statutory authority to supervise shareholder...

U.N. Secretary General Antonio?Guterres warned on Wednesday world leaders?that rapidly evolving artificial intelligence poses risks that?cannot?be ignored. This puts him at odds with Donald Trump, who has argued that existing safeguards are enough. Guterres, speaking ahead of the U.N. General Assembly meeting in New York next week, told reporters that the need for stronger supervision would be the major focus of his discussions with the global leaders who will be visiting the city. Guterres said, "We cannot ignore the concerns raised by those who are at the forefront of AI development." "The first duty of any government is to protect...

U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres warned leaders of the world on Wednesday that the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence poses serious risks that can't be ignored. This puts him at odds against President Donald Trump, who argues that "existing safeguards" are adequate. Guterres, speaking?ahead? of the U.N. General?Assembly meeting in New York next week, told reporters that the need for stronger supervision would be the major focus of his discussions with global leaders who are coming to the city. Guterres said: "We cannot ignore the concerns raised by those who are on the frontlines of AI development, in particular." "It...

Google's biggest carbon-removal agreement yet involves backing a Brazilian project run by developer Terradot. The project aims to?cut methane emission from rice farming?and.capture carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Executives told. It is the largest rock-weathering project in history, covering more than 200,000 acres of land in the southern state Rio Grande do Sul. The goal is to speed up a natural process by which certain rocks absorb CO2 out of the air. Google's head for carbon removal Randy Spock said that the initiative is the first of its kind to combine methane removal and carbon removal. Methane is a "super-pollutant"...

Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, called on EU member states to create a new partnership in order to tackle climate change and other major challenges that face us all. Von der Leyen addressed a wide range of issues in her 73-minute "state of union" speech to the European Parliament at Strasbourg. She began with the opening lines of Charles Dickens Tales of Two Cities which, she claimed, also described the world of today. "It was a good time, but it was also a bad one". CANADA Von der Leyen stated that the EU is opening the...

The Trump administration announced on Monday that it was close to approving permits to'mine' the deep sea as part of an broader effort to increase U.S. access to the vital minerals needed across the U.S. economy. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum told a G20 gathering in Houston of energy ministers that the permits could be issued within months, as the administration pursues its strategy of "energy add" to expand the supply chains of the country and its allies. Donald Trump, since returning to office in 2017, has taken steps to bolster the deep-sea mine industry. However, he still hasn't issued operational...

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will announce on Monday its final 'rule' that will repeal the Biden administration’s carbon emission limits for coal and gas fired?power plants. This is a major part of their broader efforts to undo U.S. Climate Policy that they claim has hindered American energy production. The announcement will take place on the sidelines a meeting of G20 energy Ministers in Houston, where global officials will discuss "regulatory efficiencies," expanding baseload power, and energy security. In June 2017, the Trump administration proposed to repeal rules that were written by former President Joe Biden in order to reduce...

The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced on Friday that U.S. farmers will harvest less corn this fall than they had previously anticipated, following hot weather during the summer. Prices recently reached a 'three-year high' due to uncertainty over the size of the crop. Farm diesel fuel is used to run harvesting equipment by farmers. Diesel prices are also at record highs, above $6 per gallon, as they prepare for the harvest of crops in Midwestern fields. Jim McCormick is the chief operating officer of AgMarket.net. He said that "the cost to get this crop out has gotten really expensive." In...

On Wednesday, two U.S. state filed lawsuits accusing President Donald Trump's administration?of illegally weakening federal Endangered Species Act. This landmark law has protected the bald?eagle from the dangers posed by the development. In a?one? lawsuit, states challenged a law that narrowed a definition of harm. This had included habitats where animals were endangered. Oil drilling, mining, and other activities are allowed in these habitats as long as they do not directly harm or kill the animals. Two rules are at issue in the other lawsuit. The first rule "eliminates protections for new threatened species, unless the U.S. Fish and Wildlife...

Nike announced on Tuesday that its shareholders rejected a proposal calling for more transparency in regards to the sportswear company's climate goals. This included revealing details about how it intends?to reach its?emissions reduction targets. The resolution of the'shareholders' raised questions about Nike's environmental goals, given that it is facing financial pressure, U.S. government pressure, and international regulatory scrutiny for misleading environmental claims. Nike, based in Oregon, said it would reduce its carbon emission by 65% within its own operations by 2019 and by 30% across its supply chains by 2030. In a fiscal update for 2024 it reported that its...

TerraPower, a?U.S. The?Bill Gates-backed nuclear developer TerraPower expects that its Natrium reactors will begin to generate electricity in Britain by the year 2034. The UK has supported the development of small-modular reactors to increase energy security and achieve climate targets. An Advanced Nuclear Framework was launched this year to support privately-funded projects. Chris Levesque said that progress made on TerraPower's first Natrium nuclear reactor, which is due to be finished in 2031, shows that "2034 nuclear power in the UK from Natrium is very feasible". The technology is being evaluated under Britain's Generic Design Assessment process (GDA). Each Natrium sodium-cooled...