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[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-29T16:52:05 | null | 2016-08-29T16:19:30 | 8) | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Ffracking-colorado-ballot-idUSL1N1BA0VN%3Ftype%3DcompanyNews%26feedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DcompanyNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FcompanyNews%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BCompany%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | UPDATE 1-Colorado's anti-fracking measures fail to qualify for ballot | null | null | www.reuters.com | (Adds details on initiatives, details on campaign, paragraphs 2-8)
HOUSTON Aug 29 Environmental groups have failed to gather enough signatures to put two measures on Colorado's ballot in November that aimed to curb fracking and oil and gas work, the state said on Monday.
The ballot initiatives would have transferred regulatory control of oil and gas development to local governments and created more stringent setback requirements to keep new oil and gas facilities further away from occupied structures.
Proponents gathered more than 98,492 signatures required to make the ballot, the state said, yet they failed to gather enough to make up for the amount that would be rejected during a random sample that examines the validity of the signatures.
Proponents of the measures have 30 days to appeal the decision.
Earlier this year, the state's Supreme Court struck down local fracking bans approved in the cities of Fort Collins and Longmont.
Oil companies in Colorado, one of the top U.S. oil and gas producing states, had spent several million dollars trying to derail the campaign.
Protect Colorado, the industry-backed issues committee fighting the measures, praised the outcome in a statement released Monday morning.
"Colorado voters recognized that these extreme measures would destroy the state's economy and take away private property rights," said Karen Crummy, communications director for Protecting Colorado's Economy, Environment, and Energy Independence, a group aligned with the oil and gas industry. (Reporting By Terry Wade and Liz Hampton; Editing by David Gregorio) | http://www.reuters.com/article/fracking-colorado-ballot-idUSL1N1BA0VN?type=companyNews&feedType=RSS&feedName=companyNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FcompanyNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Company+News%29 | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/69b1bf4c82d12c167a2621e8b1dc1a520240ef0090ef36526d524e1b5920f27a.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-31T02:52:22 | null | 2016-08-31T01:20:58 | Dynasty Metals & Mining Inc | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2FidUSASC094XO%3Ftype%3DcompanyNews%26feedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DcompanyNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FcompanyNews%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BCompany%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | BRIEF-Dynasty announces private placement financing update | null | null | www.reuters.com | GLOBAL MARKETS-Asian shares ease, taking cue from Wall Street, oil slips
TOKYO, Aug 31 Asian shares eased on Wednesday following modest losses on Wall Street, but were still on track for a monthly rise as investors waited to see if upcoming job data could prod the Federal Reserve into raising interest rates as soon as September. | http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSASC094XO?type=companyNews&feedType=RSS&feedName=companyNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FcompanyNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Company+News%29 | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/78235d061302f625dd360da9c470bd7b4528ab36861c8f266dbef088adaad275.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-26T14:50:54 | null | 2016-08-26T14:14:36 | Nobel Real Estate Investment Trust | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2FidUSFWN1B70GH%3Ftype%3DcompanyNews%26feedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DcompanyNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FcompanyNews%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BCompany%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | BRIEF-Nobel REIT Qtrly AFFO $954,823 versus $613,855 | null | null | www.reuters.com | LPC: Private equity firms put more capital, less debt into LBOs
NEW YORK, Aug 26 Higher company valuations and lenders wary of risky investments are pushing private equity firms to increase the size of equity contributions, or checks, for leveraged buyouts near historic highs in the face of fierce competition from cash-rich corporate buyers. | http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSFWN1B70GH?type=companyNews&feedType=RSS&feedName=companyNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FcompanyNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Company+News%29 | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/ddbfe0cd8be6d32f889dbd7fd501bcfe4aa336575bcf501978d98129c60d9c16.json |
[
"Ron Bousso"
] | 2016-08-30T16:51:29 | null | 2016-08-30T15:28:03 | Royal Dutch Shell's first oil field sale after its $54 billion BG Group acquisition bodes well for its disposal talks in the North Sea, Gabon and New Zealand, according to sources, signaling buyers will meet its expectations on value. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-shell-m-a-idUSKCN11520T%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DbusinessNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FbusinessNews%2B%2528Business%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160830&t=2&i=1151597780&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7T15T | en | null | Shell's U.S deal to unlock global oil asset disposals | null | null | www.reuters.com | Filled oil drums are seen at Royal Dutch Shell Plc's lubricants blending plant in the town of Torzhok, north-west of Tver, November 7, 2014. REUTERS/Sergei Karpukhin/File Photo
LONDON Royal Dutch Shell's first oil field sale after its $54 billion BG Group acquisition bodes well for its disposal talks in the North Sea, Gabon and New Zealand, according to sources, signaling buyers will meet its expectations on value.
The $425 million deal in the Gulf of Mexico is welcome news for the Anglo-Dutch oil and gas giant which has struggled to kick off its plan to dispose of $30 billion of assets by 2018 or so in order to pay for the February deal and maintain a generous dividend policy amid soaring debt.
The sale of the Brutus/Glider fields to U.S. independent oil and gas company EnVen Energy Corp has an implied oil price of around $60 a barrel, more than $10 above today's prices, according to analysts at UBS.
"With oil prices appearing to have bottomed at the start of 2016 and a pathway toward higher levels into 2017/18 we may now be entering a period where both buyer and seller can see acceptable relative value - unlocking the A&D (acquisition and divestiture) market," the UBS analysts added.
Shell's Chief Financial Officer Simon Henry told Reuters earlier this year Shell would not sell oil and gas fields at $48 a barrel in order to meet its target.
Further deals might prove harder to clinch however, as activity in the U.S. market picked up faster than other areas after more than two years of oil price declines and volatility led to a sharp slowdown in activity, industry sources said.
Shell is currently in advanced talks to sell a large portfolio of fields in the UK North Sea, an ageing basin with high production costs and strict regulatory requirements.
The company, which plans to exit operations in 5 to 10 countries, is also in talks to sell its portfolio in Gabon, New Zealand, Thailand and Tunisia, according to several sources.
The North Sea portfolio is a mix of mature fields and more attractive new developments such as BG's non-operating stake in Buzzard north of Aberdeen, a relatively new field that feeds into the global Brent oil benchmark.
Shell is also selling a share in its 55 percent holding in the BP-operated Schiehallion oilfield development some 110 miles (180 km) west of the Shetland Islands.
Other assets include the Nelson, Armada, Everest, Lomond and J Block fields, and Shell's stake in the Statoil-led Bressay development, sources close to the company said.
Potential buyers include Neptune, a venture headed by industry veteran Sam Laidlaw and backed by private equity funds Carlyle Group and CVC Partners, as well as Siccar Point Energy, backed by Blue Water Energy and Blackstone.
A Shell spokesman declined to comment.
The Anglo-Dutch company, like its peers, has struggled to dispose of upstream assets, focusing instead on refining and storage assets which are less exposed to oil price volatility.
So far this year, Shell has sold $2 billion of assets, leaving relatively little time to hit its $6-$8 billion target.
"I think the $6 billion target is highly realistic," said Oswald Clint, senior analyst at Bernstein, which has an 'outperform' rating on Shell.
"If you track the last 5 years of divestment's by oil majors, all of them met them. Shell have a $30 billion target and I believe they can do it."
(Reporting by Ron Bousso; Editing by Alexandra Hudson) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-shell-m-a-idUSKCN11520T?feedType=RSS&feedName=businessNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FbusinessNews+%28Business+News%29 | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/faa45ace55fda6e311f1c007cafce1d70e47ee7cd32862a3e50e87323a689ea2.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-26T23:01:38 | null | 2016-08-26T21:13:15 | A man convicted for a triple murder during a 2007 Connecticut home invasion has attempted suicide in prison, a state Corrections Department spokeswoman said on Friday. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-connecticut-murder-komisarjevsky-idUSKCN1112E1%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DdomesticNews.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | Man convicted in Connecticut home invasion murders tried suicide | null | null | www.reuters.com | A man convicted for a triple murder during a 2007 Connecticut home invasion has attempted suicide in prison, a state Corrections Department spokeswoman said on Friday.
The inmate, Joshua Komisarjevsky, 36, tried to hang himself on Aug. 18, shortly after he and accomplice Steven Hayes were transferred to Pennsylvania's Camp Hill prison, spokeswoman Karen Martucci said.
She said Komisarjevsky did not require medical attention outside the prison and was receiving mental health treatment.
He and Hayes were convicted of the 2007 murders of Jennifer Hawke-Petit and her two daughters, aged 17 and 11, in their Cheshire home.
Hawke-Petit was strangled and the girls died of smoke inhalation after the home was set on fire. Hawke-Petit was raped and the younger daughter was sexually assaulted.
Husband and father Dr. William Petit Jr., who had been tied up and beaten unconscious, escaped as the home went up in flames.
Hayes and Komisarjevsky had been sentenced to death but now are serving life sentences. Connecticut's Supreme Court upheld its ban on executions in May.
(Reporting by Ian Simpson in Washington; Editing by Andrew Hay) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-connecticut-murder-komisarjevsky-idUSKCN1112E1?feedType=RSS&feedName=domesticNews | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/205698157fde851177fb10729659c878120dac354b40c053d89775e692b3b8c8.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-28T12:50:21 | null | 2016-08-28T12:09:48 | Germany's Economy Minister Sigmar Gabriel said on Sunday that talks on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), a free trade deal being negotiated by the United States and the European Union, had essentially failed. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-eu-usa-ttip-germany-idUSKCN1130FB%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DbusinessNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FbusinessNews%2B%2528Business%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160828&t=2&i=1151344297&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7R07W | en | null | Germany's economy minister: U.S.-EU free trade talks have failed | null | null | www.reuters.com | German Economy Minister Sigmar Gabriel arrives for a television interview in front of the Reichstag building in Berlin, Germany, August 7, 2016. REUTERS/Hannibal Hanschke
Protesters wear masks of U.S. President Barack Obama and German Chancellor Angela Merkel as they demonstrate against Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) free trade agreement before the opening ceremony of the Hannover Messe in Hanover, Germany April 24, 2016. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach
Protesters depicting Statue of Liberty (L) and Europa on the bull take part in a demonstration against Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) free trade agreement ahead of U.S. President Barack Obama's visit in Hannover, Germany April 23, 2016. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach
BERLIN Germany's Economy Minister Sigmar Gabriel said on Sunday that talks on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), a free trade deal being negotiated by the United States and the European Union, had essentially failed.
"The negotiations with the USA have de facto failed because we Europeans did not want to subject ourselves to American demands," he said, according to a written transcript from German broadcaster ZDF of an interview due to be broadcast on Sunday.
"Things are not moving on that front," said Gabriel, who is also Germany's vice chancellor.
The U.S. and the EU have been negotiating the TTIP for three years and both sides had sought to conclude talks in 2016 but they have differences over various issues, including agriculture.
(Reporting by Michelle Martin; Editing by Louise Ireland) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-eu-usa-ttip-germany-idUSKCN1130FB?feedType=RSS&feedName=businessNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FbusinessNews+%28Business+News%29 | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/cf474be8d193e6b6e0c2901be71a52d64544c56fe0157656a70af2e9f2710450.json |
[
"Steve Gorman"
] | 2016-08-26T13:20:54 | null | 2016-08-26T09:05:18 | Attorneys for a group of doctors bringing the first legal challenge to California's new law allowing physician-assisted suicide were due in court on Friday to urge a judge to suspend the statute while their case is under review. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-california-assistedsuicide-idUSKCN1110VB%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DdomesticNews.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | California judge considers new physician-assisted suicide law | null | null | www.reuters.com | LOS ANGELES Attorneys for a group of doctors bringing the first legal challenge to California's new law allowing physician-assisted suicide were due in court on Friday to urge a judge to suspend the statute while their case is under review.
Superior Court Judge Daniel Ottolia may also rule on a request by the state and other supporters of the so-called End of Life Option Act to dismiss the lawsuit instead, arguing the doctors lack proper legal standing to bring their case.
The suit was filed in Riverside County, east of Los Angeles, where most of the named plaintiffs practice medicine. They were joined by the American Academy of Medical Ethics, also known as the Christian Medical and Dental Society.
The law in question, based on a similar measure in Oregon, allows terminally ill patients to obtain a prescription for medication to hasten their death so long as two physicians agree the person has no more than six months to live and is mentally competent.
The statute also requires a patient seeking life-ending medical aid to present two separate requests to an attending physician and for two witnesses to attest to the patient's wish to die.
California was the fifth U.S. state to legalize medical aid in dying for terminally ill patients, terminology that advocates prefer over the phrase "physician-assisted suicide." They note that a third of Oregon patients who obtain prescriptions for lethal medication never take it.
At least 30 individuals are known to have obtained a prescription under California's law since it took effect on June 9, according to Compassion & Choices, a group backing the law.
The measure aims to give terminally ill people a medically assisted option to avoid prolonged suffering that conventional palliative care might fail to alleviate.
The bill was strongly opposed by some religious groups, including the Roman Catholic Church, as well as advocates for the elderly and disabled. They argued that unscrupulous caregivers or relatives could pressure vulnerable patients to take their own lives, especially if insurers deny or delay coverage for costly life-sustaining medical treatment.
Supporters, however, say there has never been a documented case of such coercion in Oregon since voters approved that state's law in 1994.
Ottolia was expected to decide Friday on the plaintiffs' motion to set aside the California statute while the case proceeds through the courts.
To win an injunction, the plaintiffs must convince the judge they have a strong likelihood of prevailing on the merits of their challenge.
Their essential argument in the suit is that the law "fails to make rational distinctions" between terminally ill adults and "the vast majority of Californians not covered by the act," thus violating constitutional guarantees of equal protection and due process.
However, Compassion & Choices lawyer Kevin Diaz countered that the law "treats all Californians who are terminally ill the same, so there's no violation in it." He also said hundreds of patients a year would be forced to suffer painful and prolonged deaths if the law were suspended, a balance of harm that favors denial of an injunction.
(Reporting by Steve Gorman; Editing by Paul Tait) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-california-assistedsuicide-idUSKCN1110VB?feedType=RSS&feedName=domesticNews | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/2dfa5c8d6df17e1c85ec084438b39d65203ff12c6c7d4bbb34351ca4ae41295f.json |
[
"Harry Pearl"
] | 2016-08-28T09:04:36 | null | 2016-08-28T07:57:55 | Australia’s center-left Labour Party won a convincing vote in the Northern Territory election on Saturday, a result that will likely add to existing uncertainty over development of the region’s onshore gas industry and could ward off foreign investment. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-australia-energy-election-idUSKCN11305T%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DworldNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2BReuters%252FworldNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BWorld%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | Election result adds to Northern Territory gas uncertainty | null | null | www.reuters.com | SYDNEY Australia’s center-left Labour Party won a convincing vote in the Northern Territory election on Saturday, a result that will likely add to existing uncertainty over development of the region’s onshore gas industry and could ward off foreign investment.
Labour, which trounced the ruling Country Liberals Party, has promised to put in place a moratorium on fracking – a process which involves high-pressure injections of water, chemicals and sand into the ground to release oil and gas - until its impact on the environment is fully known.
Economic forecasters Deloitte last year estimated the region’s untapped shale and tight gas resources to be worth $22.4 billion to the local economy over the next two decades, but opinion about controversies over fracking has sparked intense debate in the territory.
Matthew Doman, Northern Territory director for the Australian Petroleum Production & Exploration Association (APPEA), said on Sunday there was no reason for a moratorium.
“Every reputable study confirms that, properly regulated, our industry is safe."
Global oil and gas players like South Africa’s Sasol , Japan’s Inpex , and Falcon Oil & Gas have been attracted to the region, as well as Australian companies Santos and Armour Energy .
Proximity to Asia and existing pipelines and LNG export facilities makes Northern Territory attractive.
Adam Giles, the outgoing leader of the Country Liberals Party, warned before the election that imposing a moratorium on fracking would halt investment and present a sovereign wealth risk for the territory.
In February, Sydney-based Pangea Resources suspended its drilling operation in the Northern Territory, citing uncertainty over fracking legislation.
Lauren Mellor, an organizer with the Territory Frack Free Alliance, said the election result was a win for the anti-fracking campaign.
Best estimates put the prospective resources of shale gas and tight gas in the Northern Territory at nearly 270 Tcf, according to the Northern Territory government.
The election defeat ends a controversial single term in power for the Country Liberals party, which was embroiled in a series of scandals and burned through two chief ministers and six deputies.
Last month prison CCTV footage showed guards teargassing six aboriginal teenage inmates and strapping a half-naked, hooded boy to a chair at a Darwin youth prison. [nL4N1AC5EC]
Federal Labor leader Bill Shorten said the Northern Territory election result was undoubtedly a verdict on the Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s Liberal-National Coalition in Canberra.
Federal parliament sits for the first time on Tuesday after a July 2 election left the ruling coalition with a razor-thin majority.
(Reporting by Harry Pearl; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-australia-energy-election-idUSKCN11305T?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Reuters%2FworldNews+%28Reuters+World+News%29 | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/d1b8971bf643de1746b8fa1f1d26295d59d4b96f0063109ff232c739d0c41f9f.json |
[
"George Obulutsa"
] | 2016-08-27T09:04:27 | null | 2016-08-27T08:49:22 | Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told African leaders on Saturday that his country will commit $30 billion in public and private support for infrastructure development on the continent. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-africa-japan-idUSKCN112077%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DworldNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2BReuters%252FworldNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BWorld%2BNews%2529.json | http://s1.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160827&t=2&i=1151257861&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7Q041 | en | null | Japan's Abe pledges $30 billion for Africa over next three years | null | null | www.reuters.com | Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (L) greets Chairperson of the African Union (AU) and Chad's President Idriss Deby as they attend Sixth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD VI), in Kenya's capital Nairobi, August 27, 2016. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya - RTX2N8M3
NAIROBI Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told African leaders on Saturday that his country will commit $30 billion in public and private support for infrastructure development on the continent.
Resource-poor Japan has long been interested in tapping Africa's vast natural resources, even more so since dependence on oil and natural gas imports jumped after the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster shut almost all of Japan's nuclear reactors.
Abe, in the Kenyan capital Nairobi to attend the sixth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD), said the package would be spread over three years from this year and include $10 billion for infrastructure projects on the continent, to be executed through cooperation with the African Development Bank.
"When combined with investment from the private sector, I expect that the total will amount to $30 billion. This is an investment that has faith in Africa's future, an investment for Japan and Africa to grow together," he told a gathering of at least 34 heads of state and government from across Africa.
The $30 billion announced on Saturday is in addition to $32 billion that Japan pledged to Africa over a five-year period at the last TICAD meeting in 2013. Abe said 67 percent of that had already been put to use in various projects.
"Today's new pledges will enhance and further expand upon those launched three years ago. The motive is quality and enhancement," he said.
Japan's overall direct investment in Africa totaled $1.24 billion in 2015, down from about $1.5 billion a year earlier, according to the Japan External Trade Organization, which does not provide a breakdown of sectors.
In comparison, rival China made a single investment of $2 billion in oil-rich Equatorial Guinea in the month of April, 2015, alone.
Abe said the new pledge will also go towards improving labor productivity and healthcare.
(Additional reporting by Kiyoshi Takenaka in Tokyo; Editing by Aaron Maasho and Susan Fenton) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-africa-japan-idUSKCN112077?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Reuters%2FworldNews+%28Reuters+World+News%29 | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/ab25117657bf5e41f2f06884d856c56adf32cb79e1086f38674db6bd5e1cf69f.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-31T02:51:25 | null | 2016-08-31T02:39:40 | South Korea's Hanjin Shipping Co Ltd (117930.KS) said it would file for court receivership after losing the support of its banks, and the country's financial regulator said a rival operator will look to buy Hanjin's "good" assets. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-hanjin-shipping-debt-idUSKCN11603N%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DbusinessNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FbusinessNews%2B%2528Business%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160831&t=2&i=1151659454&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7U01R | en | null | Hanjin Shipping to file for receivership; rival eyes assets | null | null | www.reuters.com | Hanjin Shipping's container terminal is seen at the Busan New Port in Busan, about 420 km (261 miles) southeast of Seoul August 8, 2013. REUTERS/Lee Jae-Won
SEOUL South Korea's Hanjin Shipping Co Ltd (117930.KS) said it would file for court receivership after losing the support of its banks, and the country's financial regulator said a rival operator will look to buy Hanjin's "good" assets.
Banks withdrew support for the world's seventh-largest container carrier on Tuesday, saying a funding plan by its parent group was inadequate to tackle the firm's 5.6 trillion won ($5 billion) in debt.
Hanjin Shipping also said one of its vessels, the Hanjin Rome, was seized in Singapore by a creditor on Tuesday, while another vessel, the Hanjin Sooho, was denied entry to a port in Shanghai.
South Korea's Financial Services Commission said Hyundai Merchant Marine Co Ltd (011200.KS), the country's second-largest shipping line, will look to acquire its rival's healthy assets, including profit-making vessels, overseas business networks and key personnel.
A Hyundai Merchant Marine spokesman told Reuters nothing had been decided on a potential acquisition of Hanjin assets and that the firm will hold talks with Hanjin's lead creditor, Korea Development Bank on future plans.
Hyundai Merchant Marine is also in the process of voluntary debt restructuring amid a global downturn for a shipping industry battered by sluggish trade and overcapacity.
The FSC also said Hanjin Shipping's receivership filing would have a limited impact on domestic financial markets.
(Reporting by Joyce Lee, Chang-ho Lee and Se Young Lee; Editing by Tony Munroe and Edwina Gibbs) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-hanjin-shipping-debt-idUSKCN11603N?feedType=RSS&feedName=businessNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FbusinessNews+%28Business+News%29 | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/c80c0b34f1d93ebe4f26cd0656ecfa901456507f543057aeaddeb84ba1d53ec9.json |
[
"Susan Guyett"
] | 2016-08-26T13:18:40 | null | 2016-08-25T16:44:13 | Several tornadoes plowed through central Indiana on Wednesday, demolishing numerous homes and a Starbucks cafe in the town of Kokomo and cutting off power to thousands of Indianapolis-area residents, but no serious injuries were reported. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-usa-weather-indiana-tornado-idUSKCN10Z2PW%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DenvironmentNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252Fenvironment%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BEnvironment%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | Tornadoes slam central Indiana, demolishing homes | null | null | www.reuters.com | INDIANAPOLIS Several tornadoes plowed through central Indiana on Wednesday, demolishing numerous homes and a Starbucks cafe in the town of Kokomo and cutting off power to thousands of Indianapolis-area residents, but no serious injuries were reported.
Governor and Republican vice presidential nominee Mike Pence, who cut short a campaign trip for running mate Donald Trump and returned to Indiana, said eight funnel clouds were confirmed and three touched down during a "very tough day of weather."
Tornado warnings were issued in 27 counties, but no one was known to have been killed or badly hurt, Pence said, adding that he would remain in Indiana for "as long as we need to be here."
Pence planned to visit storm-ravaged areas with Lieutenant Governor Eric Holcomb on Thursday.
Ten to 12 people were reported to have suffered minor injuries in Howard County, which apparently bore the brunt of the storms, according to John Erickson, spokesman for the state Homeland Security Department.
At least one "large and extremely dangerous" tornado struck near Indianapolis, the state's capital and largest city, as severe thunderstorms rolled through the region in the late afternoon, the National Weather Service said.
But Kokomo, a city of 45,000 people about 60 miles (100 km) north of Indianapolis, appeared to be the epicenter of storm damage, including a flattened Starbucks outlet and numerous houses left splintered or with roofs and walls torn away.
The entire front wall and facade of the Starbucks could be seen abruptly collapsing in the wind in cellphone video footage shot from a bar across the street and aired by Indianapolis-based NBC News affiliate WTHR-TV.
Starbucks customers and employees "piled into" the restroom to shield themselves as the storm closed in, according to a police account related to Reuters by City Councilman Bob Cameron.
"They all got in there. That was a smart move," he said, adding that shoppers at a nearby Krogers supermarket likewise waited out the storms in coolers at the back of the store.
An adjacent shopping mall was reported to have been heavily damaged, and Erickson said a nursing home in Howard County also sustained storm damage.
Aerial footage of Kokomo broadcast by WTHR showed a five-block residential area where at least 10 homes were largely obliterated and several others heavily damaged.
Photos posted online by Indianapolis Fox affiliate WXIN-TV showed a garden apartment complex heavily damaged in Kokomo.
The Salvation Army of Indiana reported assisting 200 people in need of food and shelter. Indianapolis public education officials delayed sending school children home on buses for nearly two hours, waiting until the weather cleared.
Power outages were reported across the state, with about 42,000 homes and businesses without electricity at the height of the storms, including 24,000 outages in Howard County alone, Erickson said.
Howard County issued a state of emergency to remain in effect until 9 p.m. EDT (0100 GMT Thursday).
(Additional reporting by Tom Polansek in Chicago, Eric Walsh in Washington, Eric M. Johnson in Seattle and Sharon Bernstein in Sacramento, Calif.; Writing by Steve Gorman; Editing by Matthew Lewis and Nick Macfie) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-weather-indiana-tornado-idUSKCN10Z2PW?feedType=RSS&feedName=environmentNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2Fenvironment+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Environment%29 | en | 2016-08-25T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/6b6cfc708fb3205ee2b6d61b2d5f22cf918b4961c52c3f216fe78ff4e94ba41a.json |
[
"Marius Zaharia"
] | 2016-08-27T18:52:22 | null | 2016-08-27T18:28:48 | Singapore has confirmed its first case of a locally-transmitted Zika virus, which has been linked to microcephaly, a rare birth defect, in Brazil, the health ministry said. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-health-zika-singapore-idUSKCN1120PL%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DhealthNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FhealthNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BHealth%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | Singapore confirms first case of locally transmitted Zika virus | null | null | www.reuters.com | SINGAPORE Singapore has confirmed its first case of a locally-transmitted Zika virus, which has been linked to microcephaly, a rare birth defect, in Brazil, the health ministry said.
A 47-year-old Malaysian woman working in the city-state was confirmed with the virus, but was "well and recovering." As she had not traveled to Zika-affected areas recently, she was likely to have been infected in Singapore, the ministry said in a statement.
Three other cases have tested positive in preliminary tests on their urine samples and are due further checks.
Zika was detected in Brazil last year and has since spread across the Americas. The virus poses a risk to pregnant women because it can cause severe birth defects. It has been linked to more than 1,600 cases of microcephaly in Brazil.
Singapore, one of the world's largest financial centers and busiest travel hubs, said it expected more cases of the mosquito-borne virus which has wreaked havoc in Latin America, the Caribbean and beyond.
"With the presence of Zika in our region and the volume of travel by Singaporeans as well as tourists, it is inevitable there will be imported cases of Zika into Singapore," the ministry said.
"There is also risk of subsequent local transmission ... we expect there may be further cases, as most infected persons may display mild or no symptoms."
The ministry said it was screening the patient's close contacts and carrying out tests on others living or working nearby. Clinics have been told to be on the lookout for more cases.
MISTING, FOGGING
The National Environment Agency (NEA) has carried out "vector control" operations to control the mosquito population and deployed 100 officers in the area, the statement said.
Such operations include "ultra-low volume misting of premises and thermal fogging of outdoor areas to kill adult mosquitoes," increasing frequency of drain flushing and oiling to prevent breeding, and public education outreach and distribution of insect repellent.
"NEA may need to gain entry into inaccessible premises by force after serving of requisite notices, to ensure any breeding habitats are destroyed quickly," the statement said.
U.S. health officials have concluded that Zika infections in pregnant women can cause microcephaly, a birth defect marked by small head size that can lead to severe developmental problems in babies.
The World Health Organization has said there is strong scientific consensus that Zika can also cause Guillain-Barre, a rare neurological syndrome that causes temporary paralysis in adults.
Zika is carried by mosquitoes, which transmit the virus to humans. A small number of cases of sexual transmission have been reported in the United States and elsewhere. A case of suspected transmission through a blood transfusion in Brazil has raised questions about other ways that Zika may spread.
There is no vaccine or treatment for Zika, which is a close cousin of dengue and chikungunya and causes mild fever, rash and red eyes. An estimated 80 percent of people infected have no symptoms, however.
(Reporting by Marius Zaharia; Editing by Ian Geoghegan) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-zika-singapore-idUSKCN1120PL?feedType=RSS&feedName=healthNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FhealthNews+%28Reuters+Health+News%29 | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/28329aac0e1e7c1f6ea658eae6b4e1cf5f10c14f500f1f758121076501bf2823.json |
[
"Irene Klotz"
] | 2016-08-30T20:57:39 | null | 2016-08-30T18:27:07 | A curious radio signal picked up by a Russian telescope is probably not a transmission from an extraterrestrial civilization, but astronomers in California are taking a second look anyway, the SETI Institute said on Tuesday. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-space-radiosignal-idUSKCN1152H3%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DoddlyEnoughNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FoddlyEnoughNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BOddly%2BEnough%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | Curious radio signal stirs talk of extraterrestrials | null | null | www.reuters.com | CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. A curious radio signal picked up by a Russian telescope is probably not a transmission from an extraterrestrial civilization, but astronomers in California are taking a second look anyway, the SETI Institute said on Tuesday.
A group of Russian astronomers last year detected what appeared to be a non-naturally occurring radio signal in the general location of a star system 94 light-years from Earth.
Their findings emerged after Italian researcher Claudio Maccone, who chairs the International Academy of Astronautics committee on the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence, or SETI, told colleagues of a presentation he heard about the signal, said Seth Shostak, a director at the SETI Institute.
"I don't think we're taking it terribly seriously," Shostak said. "The Russians looked in this direction 39 times, and as best we can tell they found it once."
Most likely, the radio signal was caused by terrestrial interference or a satellite, a common occurrence, Shostak told Reuters.
If the Russians thought they had a serious signal from ET, he said, they also likely would have disclosed it sooner.
"They didn't say anything about it for more than year. If we had found a signal, we'd check it out and call up other astronomers to check it out as well," Shostak said.
Nevertheless, SETI astronomers have spent the last two nights using an array of radio telescopes in California to study the suspect star, HD 164595, which has one known planet in orbit.
The planet is about the size of Neptune, but circles its star far closer than Mercury orbits the sun. HD 164595 could have other planets in orbit that are more suitably positioned for water, which is believed to be necessary for life.
So far, though, astronomers have not detected any unusual signals from the star, Shostak said.
"We have to be very careful not to get cynical about false alarms," he said. "It's easy to say 'Aw man, it's just another case of interference,' but that risks not paying attention when you should."
(Reporting by Irene Klotz; Editing by Daniel Wallis and Frances Kerry) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-space-radiosignal-idUSKCN1152H3?feedType=RSS&feedName=oddlyEnoughNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FoddlyEnoughNews+%28Reuters+Oddly+Enough%29 | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/7864ff3116bfb302033d79a5f1375bc4f1cd601e785b8467ad94f603a412284f.json |
[
"Richard Cowan"
] | 2016-08-31T03:02:10 | null | 2016-08-31T01:23:02 | Insurgent challengers fell flat in Florida on Tuesday as Republican U.S. Senator Marco Rubio won his party's nomination to seek re-election in November and U.S. Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz held a big lead in her Democratic nominating race. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-usa-election-republicans-idUSKCN1150BA%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DdomesticNews.json | http://s3.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160831&t=2&i=1151659122&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7U01Q | en | null | Rubio wins Republican nod for another Senate term | null | null | www.reuters.com | U.S. Senator John McCain arrives on a visit at a migrant center near the village of Adasevci, Serbia February 12, 2016. REUTERS/Marko Djurica/File Photo
U.S. Senator and Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio speaks at a campaign rally in The Villages, Florida, March 13, 2016. REUTERS/Carlo Allegri/File Photo
Republican nominee Donald Trump speaks at 'Joni's Roast and Ride' in Des Moines, Iowa, U.S., August 27, 2016. REUTERS/Carlo Allegri
U.S. Senator Marco Rubio attends a news conference after a private meeting at the presidential palace in Tegucigalpa, Honduras June 1, 2016. REUTERS/Jorge Cabrera/Files
WASHINGTON Insurgent challengers fell flat in Florida on Tuesday as Republican U.S. Senator Marco Rubio won his party's nomination to seek re-election in November and U.S. Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz held a big lead in her Democratic nominating race.
The non-traditional campaigns of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders, who exceeded expectations in his failed Democratic White House bid, gave rise to speculation other insurgent politicians could gain traction this year.
But that was not the case, at least in closely watched nominating races in Florida.
Rubio, who abandoned his presidential campaign in March, cleared the initial hurdle in his battle for a second six-year term in the U.S. Senate. He defeated novice politician Carlos Beruff, a millionaire homebuilder, who embraced Trump.
U.S. Representative Patrick Murphy, a Democrat, won his party's Senate nomination on Tuesday and is expected to give Rubio a spirited challenge in the autumn campaign.
But Rubio might still harbor presidential ambitions. There were media reports this week that he had refused to commit to serving all six years of a Senate term if he were re-elected in November.
In early results on Tuesday night, Wasserman Schultz was leading law professor Tim Canova, an outspoken Wall Street critic aligned with Sanders.
In July, Wasserman Schultz resigned as head of the Democratic National Committee after emails were leaked suggesting members of the DNC favored former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton over Sanders instead of maintaining a neutral role in the presidential nominating race.
The episode helped fuel Canova's campaign, which also got a boost from Sanders' former supporters.
MCCAIN FACES CHALLENGE
Another big-name politician, U.S. Senator John McCain, was being challenged by a Tea Party conservative in Arizona's Republican nominating vote.
Results were expected later on Tuesday in McCain's race against former Arizona state Senator Kelli Ward, who, like Beruff, has embraced Trump.
Trump, who faces Clinton in the Nov. 8 presidential election, has endorsed both McCain and Rubio in their re-election bids even though he has rocky relations with both.
Trump offended McCain and many other Republicans last year by suggesting the maverick senator and party's 2008 presidential nominee was anything but a war hero because he was captured during the Vietnam War after his airplane was shot down during a bombing mission.
In March, Trump ended Rubio's presidential run by trouncing him in the Florida primary to cap a race in which the New York businessman taunted the first-term senator as "little Marco."
Rubio fired back, insulting Trump on everything from his hair color and the size of his hands to misspelled words in tweets.
During their re-election efforts, both McCain and Rubio have offered support for Trump as the party's White House nominee. But they have tiptoed around him, mainly out of concern that his provocative comments on illegal immigration, Muslims and U.S. support for NATO could alienate moderate and independent voters in their states.
At the same time, they have steered clear of attacks on Trump that might antagonize his core supporters.
Adding to the intrigue is that the fates of the two senators will likely play a big role in whether Republicans can upset expectations and maintain majority control of the Senate after November's election.
McCain was leading Ward by 55 percent to 29 percent in a CNN opinion poll released last week. But in the run-up to Tuesday's voting, Ward ratcheted up her attacks, arguing: "It's time to defeat the establishment and retire McCain," who turned 80 on Monday.
In trying to neutralize Ward's appeal with conservatives, McCain has touted his support for gun rights, his vow to cut government waste and endorsements from anti-abortion leaders.
If McCain, who chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee, wins on Tuesday, he would face Democratic U.S. Representative Ann Kirkpatrick.
(Reporting by Richard Cowan; Editing by Peter Cooney) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-election-republicans-idUSKCN1150BA?feedType=RSS&feedName=domesticNews | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/3f822bcea55bcaf2a3446385550d338aabe8e1f6b40f45085636db7bc114bdd1.json |
[
"Steve Gorman"
] | 2016-08-28T14:57:42 | null | 2016-08-28T14:35:29 | Actor-director Nate Parker says he never gave another thought to his trial and acquittal on rape charges in 2001 until forced to confront the issue again as the promotion for his film "Birth of a Nation" was gaining steam this month. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-film-birthofanation-idUSKCN1130N9%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DpeopleNews.json | http://s3.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160828&t=2&i=1151352553&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7R0DJ | en | null | 'Birth of a Nation' filmmaker reflects on his 2001 rape trial, acquittal | null | null | www.reuters.com | Actor Nate Parker poses at the premiere of his new film ''Non-Stop'' in Los Angeles, California, U.S. February 24, 2014. REUTERS/Fred Prouser/File Photo
LOS ANGELES Actor-director Nate Parker says he never gave another thought to his trial and acquittal on rape charges in 2001 until forced to confront the issue again as the promotion for his film "Birth of a Nation" was gaining steam this month.
In an interview with Ebony magazine published on Saturday, his first since learning in recent weeks that the women who accused him of rape in 1999 had committed suicide, Parker also acknowledged his previous comments to the media about the case were "insensitive."
"When I was first met with the news that this part of my past had come up, my knee-jerk reaction was selfish," he told the magazine. "My only thought was I'm innocent and everyone needs to know."
Parker, 36, whose film about an 1831 Virginia slave revolt is set for commercial release in October, said he was only now coming to terms with issues of "toxic masculinity" and "male privilege" that influenced his "disrespectful" behavior toward women as a younger man.
Parker, who was little known before "Birth of a Nation" made a splash at the Sundance Film Festival in January, has been at the center of a controversy since the 17-year-old rape case involving him came to wide public attention earlier this month.
A debate over whether the artist can be separated from the art has gripped Hollywood, the black community and women's groups, while some civil rights leaders have suggested the media was dredging up the rape case to discredit a powerful story about slave resistance.
An 18-year-old fellow Penn State University student accused Parker, then 19, and his friend, Jean Celestin, of raping her while she was unconscious from heavy drinking.
A jury acquitted Parker in 2001. Celestin, now credited as a co-writer on "Birth of a Nation," was found guilty of sexual assault, but the verdict was overturned on appeal.
Initially addressing the case two weeks ago in interviews with Hollywood publications Variety and Deadline, Parker told Variety, that the case was litigated and, "I was cleared of it. That's that. Seventeen years later, I'm a filmmaker."
His remarks struck many as callous, especially when it surfaced days later that the woman had taken her own life in 2012 at age 30.
Parker wrote in a subsequent Facebook post that he was devastated by news of her death, while reasserting that their encounter had been "unambiguously consensual."
(Reporting by Steve Gorman; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-film-birthofanation-idUSKCN1130N9?feedType=RSS&feedName=peopleNews | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/9a54deb9681e1cda4a55ea0f5cc759216444b19897393688dbfdda3f385a9752.json |
[
"Doina Chiacu",
"Emily Stephenson"
] | 2016-08-26T13:19:32 | null | 2016-03-31T13:03:44 | Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump said on Wednesday that women who end pregnancies should face punishment if the United States bans abortion, triggering a torrent of criticism from both sides of the abortion debate, including from his White House rivals. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-usa-election-idUSKCN0WW1O9%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DwtMostRead%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FMostRead%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BMost%2BRead%2BArticles%2529.json | http://s3.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160331&t=2&i=1129044544&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC2U065 | en | null | Trump sounds off on abortion; criticism comes from all sides | null | null | www.reuters.com | WASHINGTON Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump said on Wednesday that women who end pregnancies should face punishment if the United States bans abortion, triggering a torrent of criticism from both sides of the abortion debate, including from his White House rivals.
After MSNBC broadcast a clip of an interview with Trump, the billionaire businessman rowed back his remarks, first saying that the abortion issue should be handled by states and later that doctors who performed abortions should be the ones held responsible.
"The doctor or any other person performing this illegal act upon a woman would be held legally responsible, not the woman," Trump said in his last statement. "The woman is a victim in this case as is the life in her womb."
Trump's earlier statements drew heavy fire from abortion rights supporters and opponents alike.
Abortion has long been a divisive issue in American politics, even though the procedure was legalized in a Supreme Court ruling more than 40 years ago. Opposition to abortion has become a central plank in the platform of most conservative politicians.
Trump has won support from Republican voters for selling himself as a Washington outsider. But the New York real estate tycoon, who once supported abortion access, has come under pressure from conservatives to prove he is truly one of them. At the same time, he has drawn criticism for comments that offended women and minority groups.
"Of course, women shouldn't be punished," rival Republican candidate John Kasich said on Wednesday, saying he opposed abortion except in specific cases such as rape.
U.S. Senator Ted Cruz of Texas, the third candidate for the Republican nomination for the Nov. 8 election, said Trump had not thought through the issue. "What's far too often neglected is that being pro-life is not simply about the unborn child, it's also about the mother," he said in a statement.
DISCORD AMONG THE REPUBLICANS
Abortion rights supporters were equally incensed.
"What Donald Trump said was outrageous and dangerous. I'm constantly taken aback at the kinds of things that he advocates for," Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton told MSNBC. "Once again, he has showed us who he is."
Dawn Laguens of the Planned Parenthood Action Fund, the political arm of the women's health group, called Trump "flat-out dangerous" in a statement.
Abortion was legalized in the United States in 1973, when the Supreme Court declared that a woman's constitutional right to privacy protected her decision to end a pregnancy.
In the decades since, there have not been enough votes on the Supreme Court to reverse the ruling, but numerous states have passed laws aimed at restricting abortion.
In the MSNBC interview, which is to air in full later on Wednesday, Trump said if the United States banned abortion, some women would seek to end pregnancies illegally.
"There has to be some form of punishment," he said. Asked what form he would advocate, Trump said: "That I don't know."
Anti-abortion groups said Trump's comments were at odds with their own stance. "In all the positions the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has taken around the issue of abortion, they have not called for punishment of women who've had abortions," said Don Clemmer, a spokesman for the group.
After the backlash started, Trump's campaign sought to moderate his view. "This issue is unclear and should be put back into the states for determination," Trump said in a statement provided to Reuters by email.
Later, Trump walked back his comments further to say doctors, not women, should be responsible.
The dust-up was evidence of further discord among Republicans over Trump's candidacy. On Tuesday, both Trump and Kasich, the Ohio governor, abandoned pledges to support the party's eventual nominee. Cruz did not explicitly abandon the pledge but said Trump would not be the nominee.
Trump had already outraged many women after he said Fox News' Megyn Kelly had "blood coming out of her eyes, blood coming out of her wherever" when she asked tough questions in a televised debate, which many saw as a reference to menstruation.
According to a Reuters/Ipsos poll in March, 66 percent of all likely women voters said they had an "unfavorable" view of Trump. But among the 460 Republican women who responded to the poll, 62 percent had a "favorable" view of him, while 38 percent did not.
In other remarks that have set off furious reactions, Trump has called illegal immigrants from Mexico criminals and rapists and has pushed for a temporary ban on Muslims entering the United States.
In Wednesday's MSNBC interview, Trump said he would not rule out the possibility of using nuclear weapons to combat Islamic State militants. "I would never take any of my cards off the table," he said.
(Writing by Emily Stephenson; Additional reporting by Megan Cassella in Washington, Letitia Stein in Tampa, Fla.; Luciana Lopez and Emily Flitter in New York and Sharon Bernstein in Sacramento, Calif.; Editing by Leslie Adler and Peter Cooney) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-election-idUSKCN0WW1O9?feedType=RSS&feedName=wtMostRead&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FMostRead+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Most+Read+Articles%29 | en | 2016-03-31T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/858f71bacef4feb643ddebc8f1cd5d2f78962e61f9b67e004d937660667b9c98.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-29T16:53:39 | null | 2016-08-29T16:22:56 | A freak lightning storm has killed 323 reindeer in a remote mountainous area of Norway, officials said on Monday. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-norway-lightning-reindeer-death-idUSKCN1141PR%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DlifestyleMolt.json | http://s2.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160829&t=2&i=1151466125&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7S0XH | en | null | Freak lightning storm kills 323 reindeer in Norway | null | null | www.reuters.com | OSLO A freak lightning storm has killed 323 reindeer in a remote mountainous area of Norway, officials said on Monday.
Dead animals were found lying on top of each other, many with their antlers entangled, after the thunderstorm on the Hardanger plateau in southern Norway on Friday.
"We've never had anything like this with lightning," Kjartan Knutsen of Norway's nature surveillance agency said, adding there were sometimes isolated cases of sheep or reindeer struck down.
Reindeer tend to group together when in danger. It was unclear whether the herd had been killed by a single lightning bolt or several.
Hardanger was extremely wet on Friday, helping conduct lightning.
"The high moisture in both the ground and the air was probably an explanation for why so many animals died," Olav Strand, a senior researcher at the Norwegian Institue for Nature Research, wrote in a statement.
Experts flew in by helicopter to take samples of the dead reindeer, amid a rising stench of decay, as part of a project to monitor elk and deer for diseases. Five of the 323 animals were found alive but badly injured and were shot by wildlife officials.
It was unclear what would happen to the bodies. One option is to leave them to decay.
"It's part of the natural ecology, this is far from where people live," Knutsen said. Hardanger has about 12,000 reindeer and hunters are allowed to shoot 2,000 a year for their meat.
(Reporting by Alister Doyle; editing by Andrew Roche) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-norway-lightning-reindeer-death-idUSKCN1141PR?feedType=RSS&feedName=lifestyleMolt | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/ee495608dc2897860e09717a09f9b83a39cec523023f938639c15c9a5064bf0b.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-30T14:52:23 | null | 2016-08-30T14:12:12 | (Updates with quotes and details)* Tax deal saw Apple pay 1 pct tax on profit or less* Final bill could be lower if other states demand more | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Feu-apple-taxavoidance-update-4-tv-pix-gr-idUSL8N1BB32W%3Ftype%3DcompanyNews%26feedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DcompanyNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FcompanyNews%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BCompany%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | UPDATE 4-EU hits Apple with 13 billion euro Irish tax demand | null | null | www.reuters.com | (Updates with quotes and details)
* Tax deal saw Apple pay 1 pct tax on profit or less
* Final bill could be lower if other states demand more tax
* Irish government, Apple plan to appeal
By Foo Yun Chee and Padraic Halpin
BRUSSELS/DUBLIN, Aug 30 The European Commission ordered Apple Inc. to pay Ireland unpaid taxes of up to 13 billion euros ($14.5 billion) on Tuesday as it ruled the firm had received illegal state aid.
Apple and Dublin said the U.S. company's tax treatment was in line with Irish and European Union law and they would appeal the ruling, which is part of a drive against what the EU says are sweetheart tax deals that usually smaller states in the bloc offer multinational companies to lure jobs and investment.
The U.S. feels its firms are being targeted by the EU and a U.S. Treasury spokesperson warned the move threatens to undermine U.S. investment in Europe and "the important spirit of economic partnership between the U.S. and the EU".
Starbucks Corp has been ordered to pay up to 30 million euros ($33 million) to the Dutch state, while Amazon.com Inc and McDonald's Corp are also under investigation by the Commission, the EU's executive arm.
EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager questioned how anyone might think an arrangement that allowed Apple to pay a tax rate of 0.005 percent, as Apple's main Irish unit did in 2014, was fair.
"Tax rulings granted by Ireland have artificially reduced Apple's tax burden for over two decades, in breach of the EU state aid rules. Apple now has to repay the benefits," Vestager told a news conference.
Analysts said the size of the claim underlined the Commission's aggressive stance, but since each case involves different circumstances and tax rules, lawyers said it was hard to see if further big claims were any more or less likely.
Apple, which had more than $200 billion in cash and readily marketable securities at the end of June, is likely to see the case drag out for years in EU and possibly Irish courts.
"ARTIFICIAL" ARRANGEMENT
The EU's ruling challenges the way that Ireland agreed to tax the profits of Irish registered Apple subsidiaries, through which most of its non-U.S. profits flowed.
Apple Inc licences the rights to technology designed in the United States to Irish subsidiaries. These then hire contract manufacturers to make devices which they sell to Apple retail subsidiaries around Europe and Asia.
Since the manufacturing cost is a small portion of device sales prices and retail subsidiaries are allocated a small operating margin, Apple Ireland is very profitable. In 2011, it earned $22 billion after paying $2 billion to its U.S. parent in relation to the rights to Apple intellectual property.
However, the Irish tax authority agreed only 50 million euros of this was taxable in Ireland, the European Commission said. Under the terms of Apple's tax deal, first agreed in 1991 and renewed in 2007, Apple could allocate most of the profits earned by its Irish operating units to a "head office" that did not have any employees or own any premises.
"This 'head office' had no operating capacity to handle and manage the distribution business, or any other substantive business for that matter," the Commission said.
The Commission said this agreement had no basis in tax law and was not available to others, and so represented state aid.
Irish Finance Minister Michael Noonan said he profoundly disagreed with the decision and in order to preserve Ireland's attractiveness for investment he would appeal.
"There is no economic basis for this decision. It's bizarre and it's an exercise in politics by the Competition Commission," Noonan said.
"They don't have responsibility for taxes and they are opening a back door through state aid to influence tax policy in European countries when the European treaties say tax policy is a matter for sovereign governments," he added.
Ireland's low corporate tax rate has been a cornerstone of the country's economic policy for decades, drawing investors from multinational companies whose staff account for almost one in 10 of the country's workers.
For many technology firms like Google and Facebook, a key attraction is that Ireland allows companies to adopt tax structures which see them pay much less than the 12.5 percent headline rate. The companies say they follow all tax rules.
Apple said it was confident of winning an appeal.
"The European Commission has launched an effort to rewrite Apple's history in Europe, ignore Ireland's tax laws and upend the international tax system in the process," CEO Tim Cook said in a letter to customers posted on Apple's website.
"A company's profits should be taxed in the country where the value is created," he added.
U.S. OPPOSITION
The U.S. Treasury Department published a white paper last week in which it said it was looking at possible responses to what it sees as unfair targeting of its firms, which could include extra taxes on the U.S. arms of European companies.
The paper noted that the EU executive's tax rulings could cost the U.S. exchequer money.
Under U.S. tax law, Apple's Irish profits are taxable if brought back to the United States - something the company would have to do if it wanted to use the money to pay dividends.
But any tax paid in Europe is reduced from the tax due in the United States. The Treasury has said the Commission's approach was at odds with EU tax law and international treaties.
The Commission, which has also ruled European companies including carmaker Fiat and Swedish engineer Atlas Copco AB must pay tax claims worth over $350 million, said its application of competition law to tax rulings followed EU law and treated all companies equally.
Nonetheless, the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg have already appealed EU rulings against their tax deals with multinationals.
Apple employs 5,500, or about a quarter of its Europe-based staff, in the Irish city of Cork, where it is the largest private sector employer. It has said it paid Ireland's 12.5 percent rate on all the income that it generates in the country.
The Commission has previously said Apple's tax treatment had been "motivated by employment considerations."
(Additional reporting by Conor Humphries in Dublin, Robin Emmott, Philip Blenkinsop, Robert-Jan Bartunek and Alastair Macdonald in Brussels, Tom Bergin in London and Eric Auchard in Frankfurt; Writing by Tom Bergin/Alastair Macdonald; Editing by Philip Blenkinsop and Alexander Smith) | http://www.reuters.com/article/eu-apple-taxavoidance-update-4-tv-pix-gr-idUSL8N1BB32W?type=companyNews&feedType=RSS&feedName=companyNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FcompanyNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Company+News%29 | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/e3c13cf8781adfa9a77396febe34dbbd28ce93496f04b3b880b91154a79c17a5.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-30T10:52:10 | null | 2016-08-30T10:19:06 | Bank Of Nova Scotia | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2FidUSASC094T0%3Ftype%3DcompanyNews%26feedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DcompanyNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FcompanyNews%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BCompany%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | BRIEF-Scotiabank reports Q3 EPS c$1.54 | null | null | www.reuters.com | Aug 30 Bank Of Nova Scotia
* Scotiabank reports third quarter results
* Q3 earnings per share c$1.54
* Q3 earnings per share view c$1.48 -- Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S
* Qtrly provision for credit losses was $571 million, up $91 million or 19% across all business lines
* Qtrly total revenue $6,640 million versus $6,124 million last year
* Qtrly common equity tier 1 capital ratio of 10.5% increased from 10.1% last quarter
* Qtrly net interest income $3,602 million versus $3,354 million
* Qtrly ROE of 14.8%, compared to 14.7% on a reported basis Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage: | http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSASC094T0?type=companyNews&feedType=RSS&feedName=companyNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FcompanyNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Company+News%29 | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/03e79e662c1898903d7100e5577c25c25fb50285ae22c6b387f4e4a394ceb53a.json |
[
"Dan Whitcomb"
] | 2016-08-30T20:58:06 | null | 2016-08-30T20:15:48 | Police surrounded the Los Angeles home of Chris Brown on Tuesday in response to a pre-dawn 911 call from a woman there who asked for help, and media reports said the woman claimed the pop star had pointed a gun at her. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-people-chrisbrown-idUSKCN1152JO%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DpeopleNews.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160830&t=2&i=1151627506&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7T1HZ | en | null | Singer Chris Brown, police in standoff after 911 call by woman | null | null | www.reuters.com | Recording artist Chris Brown poses at the 2016 iHeartRadio Music Awards in Inglewood, California, in this file photo dated April 3, 2016. REUTERS/Danny Moloshok
LOS ANGELES Police surrounded the Los Angeles home of Chris Brown on Tuesday in response to a pre-dawn 911 call from a woman there who asked for help, and media reports said the woman claimed the pop star had pointed a gun at her.
Brown, 27, denied any wrongdoing and said in posts on Instagram that he had woken up to find police outside and that they would need a warrant to enter the property in the Tarzana neighborhood in Los Angeles' San Fernando Valley.
"This morning, around three o'clock, officers responded to a radio call for a woman requiring assistance. The incident involved the residence of Mr. Chris Brown, where officers responded and met with that person," Lieutenant Chris Ramirez of the Los Angeles Police Department told reporters at a press conference.
Ramirez said the LAPD's robbery-homicide division would lead the investigation and interview any potential witnesses.
TMZ.com said the apparent stand-off outside Brown's home was triggered by an unnamed woman who had been a guest at the house on Monday night, and who told police the singer had pulled a gun on her. The woman has since left the house, TMZ said.
The Los Angeles Times reported that the woman said Brown had pointed a gun at her in a violent rage and that she had run outside to call police.
TMZ showed live-streamed images of police and fire vehicles stationed outside Brown's home and reported that his attorney, Mark Geragos, had also gone to the scene.
Geragos could not be reached by Reuters for comment.
In 2009, Brown assaulted his then girlfriend Rihanna, and in 2015 he finished a lengthy term of probation, community service and domestic violence classes. Brown has also been involved in several other incidents involving violence.
"I don't sleep half the damn night I just wake up to all these ... helicopters, choppers is around, police out there at the gate," Brown said on an Instagram video.
"What I do care about is you are defacing my name and my character and integrity," he added, saying he had done nothing wrong and criticizing police actions.
"I don't care y'all going to stay playing with me like I'm the villain out here, like I'm going crazy ... good luck when you get the warrant or whatever you need to do. You're going to walk right up in here and you're going to see nothing you idiots," he added.
(Reporting by Jill Serjeant and Dan Whitcomb; Editing by Leslie Adler) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-people-chrisbrown-idUSKCN1152JO?feedType=RSS&feedName=peopleNews | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/b3be70f8b1a55fac0eeb8cef23dadd82a6ab3ce923a551a9b819eeb60ab672ef.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-28T11:04:37 | null | 2016-08-28T10:49:39 | Rescuers believe they have located more bodies in the ruined town of Amatrice, five days after a devastating earthquake struck central Italy, killing at least 290 people. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-italy-quake-idUSKCN1130D2%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DworldNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2BReuters%252FworldNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BWorld%2BNews%2529.json | http://s2.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160828&t=2&i=1151339759&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7R06C | en | null | More bodies located beneath rubble in Italy quake zone | null | null | www.reuters.com | A rescue worker and a dog search among debris following an earthquake in Amatrice, central Italy, August 27, 2016. REUTERS/Ciro De Luca
AMATRICE, Italy Rescuers believe they have located more bodies in the ruined town of Amatrice, five days after a devastating earthquake struck central Italy, killing at least 290 people.
Residents of the hill town said up to 10 people were still missing and emergency services said they might have located three corpses in Amatrice's Hotel Roma, which, like much of the historic center, was wrecked by Wednesday's quake.
"I am certain there is one more person (in the hotel), because it is my uncle," said Deputy Mayor Gianluca Carloni.
"It is absolutely vital to finish as soon as possible this initial (search) phase to make sure that there are no more bodies under the rubble," he said.
The Civil Protection Department lowered the official death toll on Sunday to 290 from a previously given 291. A number of foreigners were among the dead, including 11 Romanians, the foreign ministry in Bucharest said.
Many Romanians work in Italy and Bucharest said 14 of its nationals were still unaccounted for.
Museums across Italy will donate proceeds from Sunday's ticket sales to help the rebuilding effort and soccer teams will hold a minute's silence before their weekend matches out of respect for the victims.
Pope Francis led prayers for the dead in his weekly address in Rome, saying he wanted to go to the earthquake zone to bring comfort to the survivors.
"Dear brothers and sisters, as soon as it is possible, I hope to come and visit you," he said.
Italy has promised to rebuild the shattered communities and has said it will learn from the mistakes of the reconstruction following a similar earthquake in the nearby city of L'Aquila in 2009, where much of the center is still out of bounds.
"The government isn't going to tell you what should be done. You will decide what needs doing," Prime Minister Matteo Renzi told relatives of the dead on Saturday at a state funeral for 35 of the victims.
(Reporting by Crispian Balmer; Editing by Robin Pomeroy) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-italy-quake-idUSKCN1130D2?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Reuters%2FworldNews+%28Reuters+World+News%29 | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/21a60dc7b846b36debd52158f3d232b5ea6760ecdbeac9fb5389425d269789ec.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-30T21:02:41 | null | 2016-08-30T20:42:56 | Cyber security firm Palo Alto Networks Inc forecast current-quarter revenue and profit below analysts' estimates, sending its shares down 3 percent in extended trading on Tuesday. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-palo-alto-results-idUSKCN1152N0%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DtechnologyNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FtechnologyNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BTechnology%2BNews%2529.json | http://s1.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160830&t=2&i=1151633590&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7T1JA | en | null | Palo Alto forecasts revenue below estimates, shares drop | null | null | www.reuters.com | Mark McLaughlin, president and chief executive officer of Palo Alto Networks speaks during an interview in New York, March 19, 2013. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid
Cyber security firm Palo Alto Networks Inc forecast current-quarter revenue and profit below analysts' estimates, sending its shares down 3 percent in extended trading on Tuesday.
However, the company reported a higher-than-expected revenue for the fourth quarter as spending by companies and governments on cyber security stayed strong after a spate of major attacks in the past few years.
Palo Alto also said it would buy back up to $500 million in shares.
The company forecast revenue of $396 million-$402 million and adjusted profit of 51-53 cents per share for the first quarter.
Analysts on average were expecting earnings of 56 cents per share and revenue of $402.2 million, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
Palo Alto's services revenue, which includes revenue from contract-based subscriptions, surged by nearly two-thirds in the fourth quarter. The company gets more than half of its total revenue from its services business.
Billings, defined as total revenue plus the change in deferred revenue, jumped 45.4 percent to $572.4 million.
Revenue surged 41 percent to $400.8 million, beating the average analyst estimate of $389.7 million.
However, its net loss widened to $54.5 million, or 61 cents per share, in the quarter ended July 31 from $46 million, or 55 cents per share, a year earlier.
Excluding items, Palo Alto earned 50 cents per share, beating the average estimate of 49 cents.
(Reporting by Aishwarya Venugopal and Supantha Mukherjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Kirti Pandey) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-palo-alto-results-idUSKCN1152N0?feedType=RSS&feedName=technologyNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FtechnologyNews+%28Reuters+Technology+News%29 | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/72f9deaa40406420e5aaa61377aaec0e51f43b50456d517f6b0184f7fee8c0e5.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-31T02:53:09 | null | 2016-08-31T02:14:29 | Blood-testing firm Theranos Inc withdrew its request for emergency clearance of a Zika-virus blood test after U.S. regulators found the company did not include proper patient safeguards in a study on the test, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-usa-healthcare-theranos-idUSKCN11605U%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DhealthNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FhealthNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BHealth%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | Theranos withdraws new Zika test after FDA inspection: WSJ | null | null | www.reuters.com | Blood-testing firm Theranos Inc withdrew its request for emergency clearance of a Zika-virus blood test after U.S. regulators found the company did not include proper patient safeguards in a study on the test, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
Theranos was not immediately available for comment.
The diagnostic test for Zika can detect additional strains of the mosquito-borne virus from blood drops finger-pricked from patients, Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes said earlier this month.
The company said that it collected finger-stick blood samples from patients, including in the Dominican Republic, and ran the tests.
However, during an inspection by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) earlier this month, regulators concluded that Theranos had collected some data supporting the accuracy of the Zika test without implementing a patient-safety protocol approved by an institutional review board, according to the people familiar with the matter, said the Journal. (on.wsj.com/2c33MFf)
“We hope that our decision to withdraw the Zika submission voluntarily is further evidence of our commitment to engage positively with the agency,” Theranos’s vice president of regulatory, quality and clinical affairs Dave Wurtz told the Wall Street Journal.
In an email to Theranos investors on Saturday, the company said it plans to collect additional data requested by the FDA under properly reviewed protocols and resubmit the Zika application, the Journal reported.
Theranos, who filed the request for emergency clearance to the FDA in the United States, did not contest the agency’s findings and withdrew it, the Journal said, citing the sources.
The FDA’s inspection in August was triggered by Theranos’ request for “emergency-use authorization” to sell its new Zika test, a person familiar with the matter said, the Journal reported.
(Reporting by Vishaka George in Bengaluru; Editing by Andrew Hay) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-healthcare-theranos-idUSKCN11605U?feedType=RSS&feedName=healthNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FhealthNews+%28Reuters+Health+News%29 | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/4613f4783d5bb96bbfed3a95ecd40170b3cd40fcc5f7cfb4c6b1c01e6873d400.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-31T14:51:39 | null | 2016-08-31T14:11:11 | Contracts to buy previously owned U.S. homes surged in July after two straight months of declines as demand rose almost across the board, suggesting the housing market remains on solid ground despite last month's drop in home resales. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-usa-economy-housing-idUSKCN1161VG%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DbusinessNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FbusinessNews%2B%2528Business%2BNews%2529.json | http://s3.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160831&t=2&i=1151732540&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7U14M | en | null | U.S. pending home sales jump in July | null | null | www.reuters.com | A ''For Sale'' sign is seen outside a home in Cardiff, California February 22, 2016. REUTERS/Mike Blake/File Photo
WASHINGTON Contracts to buy previously owned U.S. homes surged in July after two straight months of declines as demand rose almost across the board, suggesting the housing market remains on solid ground despite last month's drop in home resales.
The National Association of Realtors said on Wednesday its Pending Home Sales Index, based on contracts signed last month, increased 1.3 percent to 111.3, the second highest reading in over a decade.
Pending home contracts become sales after a month or two, and last month's implied a pickup in home resales after they declined 3.2 percent in July. Economists had forecast pending home sales rising 0.6 percent last month.
Demand for housing is being driven by the labor market, which is steadily generating steady increases in wages as it nears full employment. Data on house prices, residential construction, new home sales and home builders' confidence have been upbeat in recent months.
Pending home sales rose 1.4 percent from a year ago. Contracts increased 0.8 percent in the Northeast and jumped 7.3 percent in the West. They gained 0.8 percent in the South, but fell 2.9 percent in the Midwest.
(Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Andrea Ricci) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-economy-housing-idUSKCN1161VG?feedType=RSS&feedName=businessNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FbusinessNews+%28Business+News%29 | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/f31fbf61cce3e225b541589c9734250f92696d8f464ed1277af4898bd9232fe3.json |
[
"Steve Keating"
] | 2016-08-30T23:00:14 | null | 2016-08-30T22:00:02 | Eugenie Bouchard slumped to a first-round defeat at the U.S. Open on Tuesday but the Canadian might yet leave Flushing Meadows a big winner with her lawsuit against the grand slam and United States Tennis Association still to hit the courts. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-tennis-open-bouchard-lawsuit-idUSKCN1152SU%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DsportsNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FsportsNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BSports%2BNews%2529.json | http://s2.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160830&t=2&i=1151644684&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7T1LH | en | null | Bouchard falls at U.S. Open but legal battle continues | null | null | www.reuters.com | Eugenie Bouchard (CAN) returns a shot against Barbora Strycova (CZE) on day four during the Western and Southern tennis tournament at Linder Family Tennis Center. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports
NEW YORK Eugenie Bouchard slumped to a first-round defeat at the U.S. Open on Tuesday but the Canadian might yet leave Flushing Meadows a big winner with her lawsuit against the grand slam and United States Tennis Association still to hit the courts.
Last year Bouchard exited the tournament under equally unhappy circumstances when she slipped on a wet locker room floor after a mixed doubles match, sustaining a concussion that forced her to withdraw from her fourth-round singles contest.
The 22-year-old Canadian, once ranked fifth in the world, has since filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Open and the USTA.
According to a report in the New York Times, Bouchard's lawyer, Benedict Morelli, has indicated he is seeking "millions and millions" in damages. The winner of the U.S. Open this year will take home $3.5 million.
Bouchard, however, says she is completely focused on what is happening on the tennis court and has left legal matters to her lawyers.
"I am 100 percent focused on tennis and I have lawyers who are working on the case and I don't think about it often at all, maybe once a month when they call me," Bouchard told reporters after her loss.
"I'm disappointed with what I think happened so I have to fight for what I think is right."
This year, Bouchard had no one to blame but herself for her first-round stumble as she was tripped up 6-3 3-6 6-2 by 20-year-old Czech Katerina Siniakova, who registered a first ever win at the U.S. Open.
AWKWARD SITUATION
Despite the looming legal battle, Bouchard said she had been treated well by USTA officials but conceded that the situation was an awkward one.
"If I sit down and think about it, yeah, it is definitely a strange situation but something that is so far back in my mind I don't think about it on a daily basis at all," said Bouchard.
"Obviously being here it has crossed my mind but beside that, it has nothing to do with my day-to-day life."
In 2014, Bouchard arrived at the year's final grand slam on the cusp of tennis super stardom.
Having reached the final at Wimbledon and the last four at both the Australian and French Open, Bouchard rode a wave of grand slam momentum into the U.S. Open where she was seeded seventh and hyped as the next face of women's tennis.
But even before her concussion last year, Bouchard's star had already begun to fade behind a string of lacklustre results that she claims was exasperated by the accident that caused her to cut short last season.
"It was very difficult for me," Bouchard said. "I tried to come back and still had symptoms and probably tried to come back too soon because I love playing and I wanted to play.
"It (the accident) ended my year and I had a really rough couple of months."
(Editing by Mark Lamport-Stokes) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-tennis-open-bouchard-lawsuit-idUSKCN1152SU?feedType=RSS&feedName=sportsNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FsportsNews+%28Reuters+Sports+News%29 | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/8ae84d7bee469d3c2b668a63b67ca9989c63f9223cdbbd5189cafc71a697ecfe.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-26T13:16:23 | null | 2016-08-26T00:43:06 | It's empty now, but in four days New York's Madison Square Garden will be filled with some of the world's biggest music stars for the annual MTV Video Music Awards show. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-awards-mtvvma-idUSKCN1102JC%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DpeopleNews.json | http://s2.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160826&t=2&i=1151105257&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7O1LE | en | null | Rihanna, Ariana Grande set to perform at MTV Video Music awards | null | null | www.reuters.com | NEW YORK It's empty now, but in four days New York's Madison Square Garden will be filled with some of the world's biggest music stars for the annual MTV Video Music Awards show.
Beyonce leads the nominations with a career-high 11 nods, Adele has notched seven and Rihanna has multiple nods for her collaborations with DJ Calvin Harris on "This is What You Came For," and with Drake on "Work."
One of the most anticipated moments on Sunday will be Rihanna receiving the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award - the equivalent of a lifetime achievement award - and performing live on stage .
"I think everyone wants to tune in for Rihanna ... What she's doing with the Video Vanguard moment is like no one has ever done," executive producer Jesse Ignjatovic said on Thursday.
Other confirmed performers include Britney Spears, Ariana Grande, Nicki Minaj and Nick Jonas.
The always unpredictable rapper Kanye West will attend and be seated in the front row with his reality star wife, Kim Kardashian. Producers will not say whether he will perform.
"We were happy to have him coming and I'm excited to hear what he's going to do," Ignjatovic said.
Other celebrity presenters include U.S. Olympic champion swimmer Michael Phelps and the Rio gold medal-winning women's gymnastics team.
The show will air live on MTV on Aug. 28.
(Reporting by Reuters Television; Editing by Steve Orlofsky) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-awards-mtvvma-idUSKCN1102JC?feedType=RSS&feedName=peopleNews | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/20c271e4b0be10cdc8484d19708e53c5be2635a1641957dc43e954a5bb305ee9.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-26T22:59:31 | null | 2016-08-26T22:38:33 | Europe captain Darren Clarke has allayed fears over the fitness of British Open champion Henrik Stenson ahead of next month's Ryder Cup defense at Hazeltine, Minnesota. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-golf-ryder-stenson-idUSKCN1112FZ%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DsportsNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FsportsNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BSports%2BNews%2529.json | http://s3.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160826&t=2&i=1151230865&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7P1GP | en | null | Ryder Cup captain Clarke calms Stenson injury concerns | null | null | www.reuters.com | Jul 28, 2016; Springfield, NJ, USA; Darren Clarke on the fourth hole during the first round of the 2016 PGA Championship golf tournament at Baltusrol GC - Lower Course. Eric Sucar-USA TODAY Sports
LONDON Europe captain Darren Clarke has allayed fears over the fitness of British Open champion Henrik Stenson ahead of next month's Ryder Cup defense at Hazeltine, Minnesota.
The Swede, who had surgery on his right knee at the end of last year, suffered a recurrence this week and was forced to pull out of The Barclays FedExCup series event in New York after shooting a three-over 74 in the opening round.
Clarke, however, said on Friday that the world number four was simply being careful by withdrawing from the tournament.
"I've just had a message from Henrik and he said it was solely precautionary," the Northern Irishman told Sky Sports television.
"I messaged him back telling him that was the best news I'll hear all day. I think he's just being careful.
"The Ryder Cup means so much to him and I think he's just making sure he can play the rest of the FedEx and also make sure he's fit for the Ryder Cup."
Stenson won the first major of his career at Troon in July and followed up by taking the silver medal behind Ryder Cup team mate Justin Rose at this month's Rio Olympics.
The Ryder Cup matches against the United States will be held from Sept. 30-Oct. 2.
(Writing by Mark Greaves; Editing by Tony Jimenez) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-golf-ryder-stenson-idUSKCN1112FZ?feedType=RSS&feedName=sportsNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FsportsNews+%28Reuters+Sports+News%29 | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/15f4cf01eb0eaf12c88d5d3e8c0c663c18c5b1b15c247cc356fb0635254eb4b1.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-30T19:03:09 | null | 2016-08-30T18:22:11 | An American businesswoman held in China since March last year has been charged with spying, China's Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday, the latest development in a case that has added to U.S.-China tensions. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-china-rights-usa-idUSKCN115159%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DtopNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FtopNews%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BTop%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | China charges U.S. woman with espionage | null | null | www.reuters.com | BEIJING An American businesswoman held in China since March last year has been charged with spying, China's Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday, the latest development in a case that has added to U.S.-China tensions.
Sandy Phan-Gillis, from Houston, Texas, who is of Chinese ancestry and is a naturalized U.S. citizen, was arrested in March 2015 and had been held without charges since then.
"Based on our understanding, Phan-Gillis, because of her suspected crimes of espionage, has been charged according to law by the relevant Chinese department," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told reporters at a regular briefing.
"China is a country ruled by law. The relevant Chinese department will handle the case strictly according to law," she said, without elaborating.
It was unclear what violations the charge covers.
News of the charges against Phan-Gillis comes just ahead of a visit to China by U.S. President Barack Obama, who will arrive on Saturday for a G20 summit in the city of Hangzhou. Obama is scheduled to hold bilateral meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Saturday.
Obama's visit comes at a time of heightened U.S. tensions with China, particularly over Beijing's extensive territorial claims in the South China Sea, but also over issues such as cyber spying.
In July, a Chinese man, Su Bin, 51, was sent to prison for 46 months in the United States after pleading guilty to conspiring to hack into the computer networks of major U.S. defense contractors.
A U.S. State Department official said the United States was "deeply concerned" about Phan-Gillis' welfare and had repeatedly pressed China to provide further details of the case and to allow U.S. consular officers "full and unfettered" access to her.
"We urge Chinese authorities to explain the reasons for Ms. Phan-Gillis’ ongoing detention," the official said.
The official said the United States was also calling on China to "to review and consider seriously" the recommendation of the U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention that Phan-Gillis be released.
The Chinese government has chided the U.N. group for saying her detention violated international human rights norms.
The U.S. consulate in Guangzhou had been providing consular assistance to Phan-Gillis, including monthly consular visits, the State Department official said.
Her husband, Jeff Gillis, said the "charges are absolutely false," and called for her release.
He said the charges include an accusation that his wife went on a spy mission to China in 1996. Her passport at that time shows that she made no trip to China that year, he said in a statement.
Phan-Gillis had said in a letter transcribed by a U.S. consular official in China that her detention was because of politics and not for any crime.
She visited China on a trade delegation from Houston and was detained while attempting to cross from the southern city of Zhuhai to Macau.
China's state secret law is extremely broad, encompassing everything from industrial data to top leaders' birthdays. Information can also be declared a state secret retroactively.
There is no independent oversight of China's law enforcement authorities or courts, which answer to the ruling Communist Party.
(Reporting by Michael Martina; Additional reporting by Jon Herskovitz in Austin, Texas and David Brunnstrom in Washington; Editing by Robert Birsel, Jeffrey Benkoe and Frances Kerry) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-rights-usa-idUSKCN115159?feedType=RSS&feedName=topNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FtopNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Top+News%29 | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/dfc5092112d072ecb89583d5917f8d463a7fba7059d037af86016e2bc8052687.json |
[
"Steve Scherer",
"Gabriele Pileri"
] | 2016-08-26T13:18:41 | null | 2016-08-26T12:51:08 | Hopes of finding more survivors faded on Friday three days after a powerful earthquake hit central Italy, with the death toll rising to 267 and the rescue operation in some of the stricken areas called off. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-italy-quake-toll-idUSKCN1110FV%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DenvironmentNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252Fenvironment%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BEnvironment%2529.json | http://s2.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160826&t=2&i=1151153598&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7P0KC | en | null | Italy quake death toll hits 267, state funeral planned | null | null | www.reuters.com | A drone photo shows the damages following an earthquake in Pescara del Tronto, central Italy, August 25, 2016. REUTERS/Stefano De Nicolo
Members of a Chinese rescue team are seen following an earthquake in Amatrice, central Italy, August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Ciro De Luca
A collapsed house is seen following an earthquake at Pescara del Tronto, central Italy, August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Max Rossi
A coffee toy kit is seen on debris outside a damaged house, following an earthquake in Pescara del Tronto, central Italy August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Max Rossi
A woman stands next to a firefighter as he takes out belongings from her house following an earthquake in Pescara del Tronto, central Italy, August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Max Rossi
The interior of a damaged house is seen following an earthquake at Pescara del Tronto, central Italy, August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Max Rossi
A man sits on the rubble of a collapsed building following an earthquake in Amatrice, central Italy, August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Ciro De Luca
The interior of a damaged house is seen following an earthquake in Pescara del Tronto, central Italy, August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Max Rossi
Rescue workers take a rest following an earthquake in Amatrice, central Italy, August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Ciro De Luca
A car covered by debris is seen near a collapsed house following an earthquake in Pescara del Tronto, central Italy August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Max Rossi
A car covered by debris is seen following an earthquake at Pescara del Tronto, central Italy, August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Max Rossi
The partially collapsed school is seen following an earthquake in Amatrice, central Italy, August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Ciro De Luca
A road sign is seen in front of a collapsed house following an earthquake in Amatrice, central Italy, August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Ciro De Luca
Friars talk with a survivor in a tent camp set up as temporary shelter following an earthquake at Pescara del Tronto, central Italy, August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Max Rossi
Collapsed houses are seen following an earthquake in Pescara del Tronto, central Italy, August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Max Rossi
Two survivors hug at a tent camp set up as temporary shelter following an earthquake in Pescara del Tronto, central Italy, August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Max Rossi
The interior of a damaged house is seen following an earthquake at Pescara del Tronto, central Italy, August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Max Rossi
PESCARA DEL TRONTO, Italy Hopes of finding more survivors faded on Friday three days after a powerful earthquake hit central Italy, with the death toll rising to 267 and the rescue operation in some of the stricken areas called off.
Sniffer dogs and emergency crews continued to scour piles of rubble in Amatrice, a picturesque town popular with tourists which was leveled by Wednesday's quake and where 207 bodies have been retrieved so far.
But in nearby villages, such as Pescara del Tronto, rescuers pulled out after all the missing had been accounted for.
Italy plans to hold a state funeral for around 40 of the victims on Saturday, which will be held in the nearby city of Ascoli Piceno.
A day of national mourning was announced, with flags due to fly at half mast around the country for the dead, who include a number of foreigners.
The civil protection department in Rome said nearly 400 people were being treated for injuries in hospitals, 40 of them in critical condition. An estimated 2,500 people were left homeless by the most deadly quake in Italy since 2009.
Survivors with nowhere else to go are sleeping in neat rows of blue tents set up by emergency services close to their flattened communities.
"It was quite a tough night because you have a significant change in temperature here. During the day, it is very, very hot and at night it is very, very cold," said Anna Maria Ciuccarelli of Arquata del Tronto.
"There are still aftershocks preceded by booms and, for those of us who have just lived through an earthquake, it has a great effect, particularly psychologically," she said.
More than 920 aftershocks have hit the area since the original 6.2 magnitude quake struck early Wednesday.
"We have removed the last bodies that we knew about," said Paolo Cortelli, a member of the Alpine Rescue national service who helped to recover about 30 bodies from Pescara del Tronto.
"We don't know, and we might never know, if the number of missing that we knew about actually corresponds to the people who were actually under the rubble."
The foreigners who died in the disaster included six Romanians, a Spanish woman, a Canadian and an Albanian. The British embassy in Rome declined to comment on reports that three Britons, including a 14-year-old boy had died.
The area is popular with holidaymakers and local authorities were struggling to pin down how many visitors were present when the quake hit. The Romanian Foreign Ministry said 17 Romanians were still missing.
Italy has a large Romanian community, and some of the victims were resident in the country.
FUNERAL
The first funeral of a victim was held in Rome on Friday, for Marco Santarelli, the 28-year-old son of a senior state official, who died in the family's holiday home in Amatrice.
"I cannot find the words to describe the grief of a father who outlives his own children. Perhaps there are no words," Marco's father, Filippo Santarelli, told Corriere della Sera newspaper.
Hardly a single building was left unscathed in Amatrice, which was last year voted one of the most beautiful old towns in Italy and is famous for its local cuisine.
"Amatrice will have to be razed to the ground," said mayor Sergio Pirozzi.
Prime Minister Matteo Renzi has declared a state of emergency for the region, allowing the government to release an immediate 50 million euros ($56 million) for the relief work.
He has promised to rebuild the shattered homes and said he would also renew efforts to bolster Italy's flimsy defenses against earthquakes that regularly batter the country.
"We want those communities to have the chance of a future and not just memories," he told reporters in Rome on Thursday.
Italy has a poor record of rebuilding after quakes. About 8,300 people who were forced to leave their homes after a deadly earthquake in L'Aquila in 2009 are still living in temporary accommodation.
Renzi declined to predict when the homeless might be rehoused. "This is not about setting challenges and making promises. We need the pace of a marathon runner," he said.
Most of the buildings in the area were built hundreds of years ago, long before any anti-seismic building norms were introduced, helping to explain the widespread destruction.
Cultural Minister Dario Franceschini said all 293 culturally important sites, many of them churches, had either collapsed or been seriously damaged.
Italy sits on two fault lines, making it one of the most seismically active countries in Europe. Almost 30 people died in earthquakes in northern Italy in 2012 while more than 300 died in the L'Aquila disaster.
($1 = 0.8857 euros)
(This version of the story has been refiled to edit headline)
(Writing by Crispian Balmer and Philip Pullella, editing by David Stamp) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-italy-quake-toll-idUSKCN1110FV?feedType=RSS&feedName=environmentNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2Fenvironment+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Environment%29 | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/38f1868e60c8dace243acd86bef2048580452a57da104940bdcb031973c76df5.json |
[
"Eduardo Simões",
"Daniel Flynn"
] | 2016-08-26T22:51:24 | null | 2016-08-26T22:10:14 | Federal police in Brazil urged prosecutors on Friday to bring corruption charges against former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and his wife, Marisa, according to police documents seen by Reuters. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-brazil-corruption-idUSKCN1111Y0.json | http://s1.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160826&t=2&i=1151197325&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7P1A0 | en | null | Brazil police seek graft charges against ex-president Lula | null | null | www.reuters.com | Former Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva gestures as he attends a meeting with women activists in Santo Andre, Brazil, August 15, 2016. REUTERS/Paulo Whitaker/File Photo
Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva talks with his wife Marisa Leticia during a ceremony at Planalto Palace in Brasilia, June 26, 2007. REUTERS/Jamil Bittar/File Photo
SAO PAULO Federal police in Brazil urged prosecutors on Friday to bring corruption charges against former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and his wife, Marisa, according to police documents seen by Reuters.
The investigation into the popular predecessor and mentor of suspended President Dilma Rousseff forms part of a sweeping anti-corruption probe into political kickbacks from contracts at state-run oil company Petroleo Brasileiro SA.
The allegations against Lula and his wife relate to the acquisition and renovation of an apartment in the beach resort of Guaruja, about 37 miles (60 km) southeast of Sao Paulo.
Federal police in the southern city of Curitiba have accused Lula and his wife of receiving some 2.4 million reais ($747,896) in benefits from construction company OAS in relation to the apartment.
Police have alleged that the apartment in Guaruja, which was bought and refurbished by OAS, was for all intents and purposes a gift to Lula and his family.
Attorneys Cristiano Zanin Martins and Roberto Teixeira, representing Lula and his wife, said allegations by police were without basis and politically motivated. They said the apartment in Guaruja was registered in the name of OAS and that Lula only visited it once, when he and his wife were thinking of buying it.
Under Brazilian law, police can only recommend that a suspect be charged, but it is up to prosecutors to actually lodge charges.
Federal prosecutors would not comment on Friday on what, if any, action they may take against Lula and his wife or others involved in the case.
Police also recommended that corruption charges be brought against former OAS Chief Executive Jose Aldemario "Leo" Pinheiro; the president of the Lula Institute, Paulo Okamoto; and an architect who worked on the apartment, Paulo Gordilho.
OAS is among 31 builders that colluded to rig contracts at Petrobras. Pinheiro has already been convicted in the corruption probe and local newspapers have reported he is preparing to name Lula in a plea bargain deal with prosecutors.
A lawyer for Pinheiro declined to comment.
Friday's request by the police is the latest in a series of legal headaches for the former president and it comes as Rousseff faces an impeachment trial in the Senate on charges of breaking budgetary laws.
Rousseff, who has denied any wrongdoing, is expected to be dismissed from office next week.
Last week, a Federal Supreme Court justice authorized the opening of an investigation into Rousseff and Lula for allegedly working to obstruct the course of the corruption probe, Globo TV reported. The court's press office did not respond to requests for comment.
In late July, a federal court ruled that Lula will also stand trial for obstruction of justice for his alleged attempt to stop a jailed former Petrobras executive from collaborating with investigators.
(Reporting by Eduardo Simoes, Daniel Flynn, Tatiana Ramil and Maria Pia Sica Palermo; editing by Reese Ewing and Tom Brown) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-brazil-corruption-idUSKCN1111Y0 | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/1391a9874661ade43ab546f7716e18da1a73895d322dd6d95e652aa84668ddbf.json |
[
"Magdalena Mis"
] | 2016-08-30T18:52:58 | null | 2016-08-30T16:54:29 | By Magdalena MisLONDON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - More than 300 million people in Asia, Africa and Latin America are at risk of life-threatening | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-global-water-pollution-idUSKCN115291%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DhealthNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FhealthNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BHealth%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160830&t=2&i=1151610768&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7T1AR | en | null | More than 300 million at risk of life-threatening diseases from dirty water: U.N. | null | null | www.reuters.com | A boy searches for coins thrown by devotees as religious offerings in a polluted water channel near a temple in Kolkata June 5, 2014. Thursday marks this year's World Environment Day. REUTERS/Rupak De Chowdhuri
LONDON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - More than 300 million people in Asia, Africa and Latin America are at risk of life-threatening diseases like cholera and typhoid due to the increasing pollution of water in rivers and lakes, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) said.
Between 1990 and 2010, pollution caused by viruses, bacteria and other micro-organisms, and long-lasting toxic pollutants like fertilizer or petrol, increased in more than half of rivers across the three continents, while salinity levels rose in nearly a third, UNEP said in a report on Tuesday.
Population growth, expansion of agriculture and an increased amount of raw sewage released into rivers and lakes were among the main reasons behind the increase of surface water pollution, putting some 323 million people at risk of infection, UNEP said.
"The water quality problem at a global scale and the number of people affected by bad water quality are much more severe than we expected," Dietrich Borchardt, lead author of the report, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
However, a significant number of rivers remain in good condition and need to be protected, he said by phone from Germany.
About a quarter of rivers in Latin America, 10 percent to 25 percent in Africa and up to 50 percent in Asia were affected by severe pathogen pollution, largely caused by discharging untreated wastewater into rivers and lakes, the report said.
Some 3.4 million people die each year from diseases such as cholera, typhoid, polio or diarrhea, which are associated with pathogens in water, UNEP said.
It estimated that up to 164 million people in Africa, 134 million in Asia and 25 million in Latin America were at risk of infection from the diseases.
It said building more sewers was not enough to prevent infections and deaths, adding that the solution was to treat wastewater.
Organic pollution, which can cause water to be completely starved of oxygen, affects one kilometer (0.6 mile) out of seven kilometers (4.4 miles) of rivers in Latin America, Africa and Asia, threatening freshwater fisheries, UNEP said.
Severe and moderate salinity levels, caused by the disposal of salty water from mines, irrigation systems and homes, affect one in 10 rivers on the three continents, making it harder for poor farmers to irrigate their crops, it said.
The trend of worsening water pollution was "critical", Borchardt said.
"It is much more expensive to clean up surface water from severe pollution than to implement proper management which includes prevention of pollution," he said. "Tools are available but the challenge is to implement them."
(Reporting by Magdalena Mis; Editing by Katie Nguyen.; Please credit Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women’s rights, corruption and climate change. Visit news.trust.org) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-global-water-pollution-idUSKCN115291?feedType=RSS&feedName=healthNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FhealthNews+%28Reuters+Health+News%29 | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/049f8f08aef036e474dadfefaff5541cdc5f40d2512e7d6be44535a48271a59e.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-27T17:04:28 | null | 2016-08-27T16:51:05 | There are signs that Islamists are trying to join the German armed forces to get military training, and there is a risk they might use that training to carry out attacks in Germany or abroad, a German newspaper cited a draft document as saying. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-germany-security-idUSKCN1120NG%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DworldNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2BReuters%252FworldNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BWorld%2BNews%2529.json | http://s3.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160827&t=2&i=1151287973&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7Q0HM | en | null | German military wants security checks on recruits, newspaper says | null | null | www.reuters.com | German Bundeswehr army soldiers with the 3rd company of the Quick Reaction Force (QRF) patrol during a mission in Chahar Dara district on the outskirts of Kunduz, northern Afghanistan, May 12, 2010. REUTERS/Fabrizio Bensch
BERLIN There are signs that Islamists are trying to join the German armed forces to get military training, and there is a risk they might use that training to carry out attacks in Germany or abroad, a German newspaper cited a draft document as saying.
Consequently, the armed forces want applicants to undergo a security check by the military counter-intelligence agency, starting in July 2017, so they can swiftly spot extremists, terrorists and criminals, Welt am Sonntag newspaper said in an article due to be published on Sunday.
Such security screening would require changes in the laws governing the military. A draft document justifying such changes, seen by Welt am Sonntag, said there are indications that Islamists are trying to get "so-called short-term servicemen into the armed forces" for training.
Germany is on edge after a series of violent attacks in July, two of which were claimed by Islamic State, and the interior minister has already announced plans to step up security.
The cabinet is set to approve a change to the military act next week, the newspaper said, citing security sources. A spokesman for the Defence Ministry said the government was in the process of deciding on the law.
The military counter-intelligence agency is looking into 64 suspected Islamists, 268 suspected right-wing extremists and six suspected left-wing extremists in the armed forces, the newspaper said.
(Reporting by Michelle Martin and Thorsten Severin, editing by Larry King) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-germany-security-idUSKCN1120NG?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Reuters%2FworldNews+%28Reuters+World+News%29 | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/f80b0e0d200a73eee798560514e51fd21b02298e16af3f50715400197f278694.json |
[
"Letitia Stein"
] | 2016-08-29T16:52:35 | null | 2016-08-29T16:14:19 | Two brewing tropical systems menaced the southeastern United States on Monday, with forecasters warning that a tropical storm could make landfall later this week on Florida's Gulf Coast. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-storm-atlantic-idUSKCN1141SY%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DenvironmentNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252Fenvironment%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BEnvironment%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | Brewing tropical systems threaten U.S. Gulf and Atlantic coasts | null | null | www.reuters.com | TAMPA, Fla. Two brewing tropical systems menaced the southeastern United States on Monday, with forecasters warning that a tropical storm could make landfall later this week on Florida's Gulf Coast.
The system, still an unnamed tropical depression early on Monday, was dumping torrential rain on western Cuba as it churned the Gulf of Mexico with gusting winds of 35 miles per hour (55 km), according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami.
The system was likely to strength and become a tropical storm later on Monday or overnight, the forecasters said. It could make landfall on Thursday on northern Florida's Gulf Coast.
The hurricane center said the Florida Keys and coastal parts of the southern state could see as much as seven inches (18 cm) of rain, spurring localized flooding.
North Carolina's far eastern coast was also in the path of another tropical depression that is strengthening in the Atlantic Ocean and likely to be tropical storm by early Tuesday. The latest forecast, however, calls for it to quickly turn out to sea.
A tropical storm watch was in effect on Monday from Cape Lookout to Oregon Inlet along the North Carolina coastline.
The next two tropical storms of the 2016 Atlantic hurricane season will be named Hermine and Ian.
The developing systems come as the season's first major Atlantic hurricane, Gaston, was expected to remain a powerful storm for several days. On Monday, Gaston was blasting 110-mile-per-hour (175 km) winds, posing no threat to land and located about 560 miles (900 km) east of Bermuda.
(Reporting by Letitia Stein; Editing by Alan Crosby) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-storm-atlantic-idUSKCN1141SY?feedType=RSS&feedName=environmentNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2Fenvironment+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Environment%29 | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/53375b588c900327f3229e58a8d166939a128cee2a47b9267b42a989e51f0f59.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-26T13:15:00 | null | 2015-01-09T00:20:26 | Apple Inc won the dismissal onThursday of a lawsuit accusing it of defrauding consumers byselling MacBook laptop computers that contained "logic boards"it knew were defective, and which routinely failed within twoyears. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fapple-macbook-lawsuit-idUSL1N0UN2PU20150109%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DvcMedia.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | Apple wins dismissal of lawsuit over MacBook logic boards | null | null | www.reuters.com | Jan 8 Apple Inc won the dismissal on Thursday of a lawsuit accusing it of defrauding consumers by selling MacBook laptop computers that contained "logic boards" it knew were defective, and which routinely failed within two years.
U.S. District Judge William Alsup in San Francisco said the plaintiffs, Uriel Marcus and Benedict Verceles, failed to show that Apple made "affirmative misrepresentations," despite citing online complaints and Apple marketing statements calling the laptops "state of the art" or the "most advanced" on the market.
"Plaintiffs have failed to allege that Apple's logic boards were unfit for their ordinary purposes or lacked a minimal level of quality," Alsup wrote. "Both plaintiffs were able to adequately use their computers for approximately 18 months and two years, respectively."
Alsup gave the plaintiffs until Jan. 22 to amend their lawsuit, which sought class-action status, against the Cupertino, California-based company.
Omar Rosales, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Apple did not immediately respond to a similar request.
The plaintiffs claimed that Apple's sale of MacBooks since May 20, 2010, violated consumer protection laws in California and Texas, where the lawsuit began last May before being moved.
They also contended that Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook was told about the defective logic boards in 2011, but did nothing.
Logic boards contain computer circuitry and are sometimes known as motherboards.
A separate and still pending lawsuit in California accuses Apple of defrauding consumers by selling MacBook Pro laptops in 2011 that contained defective graphic cards, causing screen distortions and system failures.
MacBooks are part of Apple's Mac line of desktop and laptop computers. The company reported unit sales in that business of 18.91 million in its latest fiscal year.
The case is Marcus et al v. Apple Inc, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, No. 14-03824. (Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York. Editing by Andre Grenon) | http://www.reuters.com/article/apple-macbook-lawsuit-idUSL1N0UN2PU20150109?feedType=RSS&feedName=vcMedia | en | 2015-01-09T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/03cbf360ed9331560b1518cc926b32e9a1f0c7a9ad0d35d61d9e16c2b992891a.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-29T08:59:54 | null | 2016-08-29T06:47:47 | Ayako Uehara became the fourth golfer in LPGA history to record two hole-in-ones in the same tournament when the Japanese player aced the par-three eighth in her final round at the Canadian Women's Open on Sunday. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-golf-lpga-uehara-idUSKCN1140H8%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DsportsNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FsportsNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BSports%2BNews%2529.json | http://s2.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160829&t=2&i=1151411085&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7S08B | en | null | Uehara ties LPGA record after second ace in Canada Open | null | null | www.reuters.com | Ayako Uehara of Japan watches on the 9th hole during the women's British Open golf tournament at Royal Birkdale Golf Club in Southport, northern England, July 11, 2014. REUTERS/Nigel Roddis
Ayako Uehara became the fourth golfer in LPGA history to record two hole-in-ones in the same tournament when the Japanese player aced the par-three eighth in her final round at the Canadian Women's Open on Sunday.
The 36-year-old had aced the par-three 11th hole from 158 yards in her third round and repeated the feat a day later, this time holing a seven-iron from 164 yards.
Another highlight of Uehara's final round five-under 67 was a hole-out for an eagle from 150 yards on the par-four fourth.
"It turned out to be a really memorable tournament," said Uehara, who finished a season-high tied for 10th at 12-under 276, 11 adrift of runaway winner Ariya Jutanugarn of Thailand.
"I managed to shoot just as I pictured (on eight) and said 'go in', before the cheers from the gallery told me it had.
"I realised the second shot on the fourth also went in because of the cheers. I was ecstatic and played on with a desire to feel even more of that."
Jo Ann Washam (1979 Women's Kemper Open), Jenny Lidback (1997 Chrysler-Plymouth Tournament of Champions) and Laura Diaz (2014 Kia Classic) are the other three women to have achieved the feat.
Ariya's triumph was her fifth in four months after the Thai fired a final round 66 to double her overnight two-stroke advantage and ease to victory at the Priddis Greens course in Calgary.
(Reporting by Amlan Chakraborty in New Delhi; Editing by John O'Brien) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-golf-lpga-uehara-idUSKCN1140H8?feedType=RSS&feedName=sportsNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FsportsNews+%28Reuters+Sports+News%29 | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/9a7cbbc99b4c166dafdac551aa495996e2867dc0c595d803f5b6e521b8ccc2b5.json |
[
"Jeffrey Dastin"
] | 2016-08-26T20:51:08 | null | 2016-08-26T20:28:10 | Travelers have booked fewer hotel rooms in downtown Miami, and leisure airfares to the greater Miami area have inched down in the weeks since the Zika virus was detected there, data reviewed by Reuters shows. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-health-zika-travel-idUSKCN1112BX.json | http://s1.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160826&t=2&i=1151219048&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7P1F1 | en | null | Miami hotel bookings slow, airfares fall since Zika outbreak | null | null | www.reuters.com | A woman looks at a Center for Disease Control (CDC) health advisory sign about the dangers of the Zika virus as she lines up for a security screening at Miami International Airport in Miami, Florida, U.S., May 23, 2016. REUTERS/Carlo Allegri
Travelers have booked fewer hotel rooms in downtown Miami, and leisure airfares to the greater Miami area have inched down in the weeks since the Zika virus was detected there, data reviewed by Reuters shows.
Hotels sold 2.9 percent fewer rooms in Miami's central business district and northern neighborhoods during the first three weeks of August than they did a year earlier in the same period, according to hotel data and analytics firm STR.
That area includes the Wynwood arts district where on July 29 Florida officials said they confirmed cases of people who contracted the virus, marking the first transmissions by mosquitoes in the continental United States.
The decline in hotel bookings may be an early indication of the virus's effect on Miami's robust tourism industry, which had an economic impact of $24.4 billion in 2015, according to the Greater Miami Convention and Visitor Bureau.
The drop in the number of hotel room sales for the downtown and north Miami areas is a departure from largely uninterrupted growth in bookings there at least since 2010. From January 2016 through July, hotel stays by paying travelers were up 1.2 percent from a year ago, according to STR data.
But for the latest week ended Aug. 20, the number of hotel rooms sold was down 4.2 percent, compared to a year earlier.
Jan Freitag, senior vice president of lodging insights at STR, said the decline was not due to abnormally strong numbers the year before, and could reflect the impact of Zika virus concerns.
"We don't know enough yet," Freitag told Reuters, saying he would like to see up to two months of data, and monitor traffic to Miami from Europe and Brazil, both major sources of visitors to South Florida.
"Zika is not only a serious threat to public health. It has the potential to be an equally serious threat to a community’s economy," said travel industry analyst Henry Harteveldt, adding that worries about the virus likely contributed to the decline in Miami.
AIRFARES DOWN
The Zika virus was detected in Brazil last year and has since spread across the Americas. The virus poses a risk to pregnant women because it can cause a severe birth defect known as microcephaly. In Brazil, more than 1,800 cases of the condition have been linked to Zika.
Earlier this week, officials reported new Zika infections in Wynwood, and also one case hundreds of miles away in Pinellas County, on the Gulf Coast.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said that pregnant women who are worried about exposure to Zika might consider avoiding all of Miami-Dade County. On Friday, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration recommended universal testing of donated blood for the virus in the United States and its territories.
Miami tourism officials said hotel managers have not alerted them to bookings weakness related to the Zika virus.
It was too early to tell from the data that Zika had an impact on travel or bookings, tourism officials said.
"These numbers don't turn this quickly," said William Talbert, chief executive of the Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau.
In a sign that airlines are trying to stimulate demand to and from Miami, airfares have gotten cheaper from a year ago, according to an analysis of the top U.S. domestic routes by Harrell Associates that was reviewed by Reuters.
Leisure fares on Miami routes were down 9 percent in late July from the prior year, while those to Fort Lauderdale were down 14 percent, the Harrell Associates data shows. Fares were sampled July 18 and July 25.
Since the first Zika cases were announced, the decline in leisure fares to and from Miami had widened to 16 percent, while fares for nearby Fort Lauderdale had dropped an average of 18 percent from a year earlier, the analysis found. That data is based on samples of airfares taken Aug. 15 and 22.
Nationwide, the high-restriction leisure fares are down 3 percent in mid-August from the prior year, the analysis by Harrell Associates found.
American Airlines Group Inc (AAL.O), the largest carrier in Miami, declined to comment on individual markets or whether the virus would impact its business. Its rival in the area, JetBlue Airways Corp (JBLU.O), did not immediately comment.
Airlines have been struggling for months to curb the decline of ticket prices amid growing competition in popular markets.
While Miami Beach has continued to see hotel demand rise through August, that rate has appeared to slow: from 6.4 percent higher in the first seven months of the year compared to the same period in 2015, to only 2.6 percent higher this month, the STR data showed. The same trend holds true for Miami-Dade and Monroe counties, according to the data.
Miami Beach has about 2.5 times the number of hotels as downtown and north Miami, STR said.
(Reporting By Jeffrey Dastin in New York; Editing by Bernard Orr) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-zika-travel-idUSKCN1112BX | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/62b7ae5610b47c6ac4097f55f1b920edda23617d2de721f768c5172d1bd07108.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-29T10:52:06 | null | 2016-08-29T10:11:50 | Russia's TMK VicePresident for Strategy Vladimir Shmatovich told reporters: | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2FidUSR4N1A1013%3Ftype%3DcompanyNews%26feedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DcompanyNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FcompanyNews%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BCompany%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | BRIEF-Russia's TMK sees U.S. unit EBITDA at $150 mln by 2020-2021 | null | null | www.reuters.com | MOSCOW Aug 29 Russia's TMK Vice President for Strategy Vladimir Shmatovich told reporters:
* Sees recovery of North America unit's EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation) to $150 million by 2020-2021;
* EBITDA of the North America unit may turn positive towards the end of 2016;
* TMK plans to prepare development strategy of its North America unit in September, does not plan to leave the U.S. market;
* TMK's North America unit's loss before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation was $54 million in the first half of 2016;
* TMK, Russia's largest maker of steel pipes for the oil and gas industry, has been hit by weak pipe sales in the United States. (Reporting by Svetlana Burmistrova; writing by Polina Devitt; editing by Maria Kiselyova) | http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSR4N1A1013?type=companyNews&feedType=RSS&feedName=companyNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FcompanyNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Company+News%29 | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/77180147e9314c6734a4f7f0ab0b95179996e7227d973c100338fb8dd864b2fd.json |
[
"Sameh Elkhatib",
"Ahmed Aboulenein"
] | 2016-08-26T13:19:07 | null | 2016-08-25T12:39:39 | Egypt cannot afford to keep its museums open let alone search for ancient buried treasures because of the economic crisis, the antiquities minister says. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-egypt-antiquities-idUSKCN1101EG%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DlifestyleMolt.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160825&t=2&i=1151014269&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7O0RZ | en | null | Egypt's economic crisis weighs heavily on heritage: minister | null | null | www.reuters.com | Tourists walk around the golden statues and collectibles of pharaoh King Tutankhamun inside the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, Egypt June 23, 2016. Picture taken June 23, 2016. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh
Egyptian Minister of Antiquities Khaled al-Anani looks on inside the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, Egypt July 14, 2016. Picture taken July 14, 2016. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany
Egyptian Minister of Antiquities Khaled al-Anani speaks to the media inside the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, Egypt July 14, 2016. Picture taken July 14, 2016. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany
The national flag of Egypt is seen at the main entrance of the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, Egypt June 23, 2016. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh
Tourists look at pharaonic artefact inside the Egyptian Museum during the summer season in Cairo, Egypt, July 14, 2016. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany
CAIRO Egypt cannot afford to keep its museums open let alone search for ancient buried treasures because of the economic crisis, the antiquities minister says.
Tourism, a mainstay of the economy, has been hit hard since the 2011 revolution that overthrew veteran ruler Hosni Mubarak, with many of Egypt's renowned historical sites, from the pyramids at Giza to the Valley of the Kings in Luxor, suffering a decline in foreign visitors.
"We have over 20 museums that have been closed down since the January 25 Revolution and we do not have the resources to run them," Khaled al-Anani told Reuters in an interview.
His ministry is meant to be self-sufficient and not supposed to receive funds from the state budget. In 2010 the ministry made 1.3 billion Egyptian pounds ($146.40 million) a year; in 2015 income was down to 275 million pounds.
"That's a little over 20 million pounds a month. I have to pay 80 million a month in salaries alone."
Anani says that without a revival in tourism none of his new projects, such as the introduction of year-long museums and heritage site passes or extending opening hours will have the desired effect.
Neither will reopening Pyramid Complex of Unas, built for Pharaoh Unas, the ninth and final king of the Fifth Dynasty in the mid 24th century B.C., which has been closed since 1998 for fear of overcrowding and which Anani reopened in May.
Still, Egypt plans to partially open the Grand Egyptian Museum, an ambitious planned museum of Ancient Egyptian artifacts that will be the world's largest archaeological museum, in 2017, said Anani, bringing forward the scheduled opening date by a year.
This is only possible because the $248 million needed came from a Japanese loan years ago.
Financial woes also affect excavation attempts, which have seen a steep decline since 2011, he said. Other issues include a lack of international law experts at the ministry to help claim back Egyptian artifacts that were smuggled to other countries or claimed by the country's former colonial masters as well as the need to create a centralized database of antiquities to combat smuggling, efforts for which had stalled since the year 2000.
KING TUT
Before Anani was appointed in March, his predecessor supported British Egyptologist Nicholas Reeves's investigation of the hypothesis that a secret chamber, believed by some to be the lost burial site of Queen Nefertiti, may lie behind King Tutankhamun's tomb. Anani is cooler on the topic.
Nefertiti died in the 14th century B.C. and is thought to be Tutankhamun's stepmother. Confirmation of her final resting place would be the most remarkable Egyptian archaeological find this century.
An analysis of radar scans done on the site last November has revealed the presence of two empty spaces behind two walls in King Tut's chamber.
Former minister Mamdouh al-Damaty said in November there was a 90 percent likelihood of "something behind the walls" and Reeves believes the mausoleum was originally occupied by Nefertiti and that she had lain undisturbed behind a partition wall.
The most minor of incisions in the wall could wreak damage to an inner chamber that may have been hermetically sealed for so many years, however.
"I did intend to open up the tomb but only if a second radar scan showed 100 percent that there were empty spaces which it did not," Anani said.
(Writing by Ahmed Aboulenein; Editing by Angus MacSwan) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-egypt-antiquities-idUSKCN1101EG?feedType=RSS&feedName=lifestyleMolt | en | 2016-08-25T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/a9fdfaed4ea0f618a621a24706d50369a99e93d165676f296f5630194d785a29.json |
[
"Richard Cowan"
] | 2016-08-30T09:03:00 | null | 2016-08-30T08:36:21 | Republican voters in Arizona and Florida are expected to pick Senators John McCain and Marco Rubio as their respective U.S. Senate nominees when they go to the polls on Tuesday, but one name not on either ballot, Donald Trump, looms large. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-usa-election-republicans-idUSKCN1150BA%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DtopNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FtopNews%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BTop%2BNews%2529.json | http://s3.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160830&t=2&i=1151546728&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7T04P | en | null | Trump hovers over McCain, Rubio U.S. Senate re-election contests | null | null | www.reuters.com | U.S. Senator John McCain arrives on a visit at a migrant center near the village of Adasevci, Serbia February 12, 2016. REUTERS/Marko Djurica/File Photo
U.S. Senator and Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio speaks at a campaign rally in The Villages, Florida, March 13, 2016. REUTERS/Carlo Allegri/File Photo
WASHINGTON Republican voters in Arizona and Florida are expected to pick Senators John McCain and Marco Rubio as their respective U.S. Senate nominees when they go to the polls on Tuesday, but one name not on either ballot, Donald Trump, looms large.
The Republican presidential nominee has endorsed both McCain and Rubio in their re-election bids even though he has rocky relations with both senators.
Trump offended McCain and many other Republicans last year by suggesting that the maverick senator and party's 2008 presidential nominee was anything but a war hero because he was captured during the Vietnam War after his airplane was shot down during a bombing mission.
In March, Trump ended Rubio's presidential bid by trouncing him in the Florida primary to cap a race in which the New York businessman taunted the first-term senator as "little Marco," and Rubio insulted Trump on everything from his hair color and the size of his hands to misspelled words in tweets.
During their re-election efforts, both McCain and Rubio have offered support for Trump as the party's White House nominee. But they have tiptoed around him, mainly out of concern that his provocative comments on illegal immigration, Muslims and U.S. support for NATO could alienate moderate and independent voters in their states.
At the same time, they have steered clear of attacks on Trump that might antagonize his core supporters.
Adding to the intrigue is that the fates of the two senators will likely play a big role in whether Republicans can upset expectations and maintain majority control of the Senate after the Nov. 8 election.
But first, McCain will have to win Tuesday's Republican primary in Arizona and Rubio will have to prevail in Florida.
McCain, who is trying to extend a 30-year Senate career, faces a challenge from physician and former state Senator Kelli Ward, who is aligned with the conservative Tea Party movement.
McCain leads Ward by 55 percent to 29 percent, according to a CNN opinion poll released last week. But Ward is ratcheting up her attacks, arguing: "It's time to defeat the establishment and retire McCain."
In an interview last week with Politico, Ward called McCain, 80, "a pretty sour old guy." Citing her medical background, she questioned whether he would even live long enough to complete another six-year Senate term.
Ward has aligned herself with Trump, who will face Democrat Hillary Clinton in November's presidential election.
MIXING THE MORTAR
Echoing Trump's call for the building of a wall on the southern border with Mexico, Ward has boasted: "It's time to mix the mortar to fix the border."
Trying to neutralize Ward's appeal with conservatives, McCain has touted his support for gun rights, his vow to cut government waste and endorsements from anti-abortion leaders.
If McCain, who chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee, wins on Tuesday, he would face Democratic U.S. Representative Ann Kirkpatrick.
While McCain has said he is in the toughest re-election fight of his career, the CNN poll has him opening a 13-point lead over Kirkpatrick.
Rubio, who decided last year not to seek re-election to the Senate in order to pursue the Republican presidential nomination, jumped into the race in June after his failed White House bid.
His late decision to seek a second Senate term came at the urging of Republican Party leaders, who viewed him as their best hope for preventing Democrats from taking the seat.
That prompted the major Republican Senate candidates to quit, leaving Carlos Beruff, 58, a millionaire homebuilder and newcomer to politics, as Rubio's main primary challenger. Like Ward, Beruff has embraced Trump and has accused Rubio of "tap dancing" around the presidential nominee and only offering him lukewarm support.
Rubio is polling well ahead of Beruff. A win on Tuesday means Rubio would likely face U.S. Representative Patrick Murphy, who leads the Democratic field.
(Additional reporting by Dustin Volz; Editing by Caren Bohan and Peter Cooney) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-election-republicans-idUSKCN1150BA?feedType=RSS&feedName=topNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FtopNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Top+News%29 | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/3af9d55b0fed4c9b14ae2d78461a466b5be899a6b66799e40fd4432a2e60b731.json |
[
"Lisa Lambert"
] | 2016-08-26T13:19:31 | null | 2016-04-01T00:52:26 | Lender GE Capital asked the U.S. government on Thursday to stop designating it as "too big to fail," saying it had shrunk to the point where it would not pose a major threat to the nation's financial stability if it experiences distress. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-ge-capital-usa-idUSKCN0WX1EV%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DwtMostRead%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FMostRead%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BMost%2BRead%2BArticles%2529.json | http://s1.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160331&t=2&i=1129152206&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC2U0VA | en | null | GE Capital asks U.S. government to lift 'too big to fail' designation | null | null | www.reuters.com | WASHINGTON Lender GE Capital asked the U.S. government on Thursday to stop designating it as "too big to fail," saying it had shrunk to the point where it would not pose a major threat to the nation's financial stability if it experiences distress.
Chief Executive Officer Keith Sherin said in a statement that the General Electric Co (GE.N) unit no longer met the criteria for a "systemically important financial institution," a label that can trigger requirements for stricter oversight and more capital.
The application came the day after a federal judge struck down the designation of insurer MetLife Inc (MET.N), but GE Capital said the two events were unrelated. The company had said in October that it hoped to apply to the Financial Stability Oversight Council, which includes the Treasury secretary and Federal Reserve chair, for "de-designation" in the first quarter.
The 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street reform law authorized regulators to designate non-bank financial companies as systemically important, largely in response to the near-collapse of insurer American International Group Inc (AIG.N) and the $182 billion U.S. government bailout it received during the 2008 economic meltdown.
Only four non-banks have been deemed too big to fail, and the label has prompted most to consider reorganizing to pre-empt any increased regulation. GE Capital is the first to apply to have the designation removed.
Shares of General Electric were up 0.4 percent at $31.96 in afternoon trading. The industrial conglomerate has been working to reduce GE Capital's size and said last April that it would focus on technology and manufacturing.
GE Capital, which received the systemically important label in 2013, said it had more than halved its assets to $265 billion from $549 billion at the end of 2012.
The unit said it had ended all consumer lending in the United States, reduced real estate debt by more than 75 percent, eliminated its real estate equity and cut outstanding commercial paper by almost 90 percent.
"Our plan to change our business model, shrink the company and reduce our risk profile has been successful," Sherin said.
"SIGNIFICANTLY DE-RISKED"
The Financial Stability Oversight Council "welcomes the opportunity to evaluate developments at any designated non-bank financial company and their potential effect on financial stability," said Treasury spokesman Rob Friedlander. "There is a clear process for de-designation."
Each year the council reviews its previous designations and decides whether any changes at a company justify a rescission of the label, he said.
"Before the financial crisis, some of the largest, riskiest non-bank financial companies were not subject to adequate oversight," Friedlander added.
S&P Global Market Intelligence analyst Jim Corridore, who follows General Electric, said in a note on Thursday that he expected GE Capital's designation to be removed.
"GE Capital's transformation has significantly de-risked the company," Corridore said.
MetLife, the largest U.S. life insurer, sued after it was designated systemically important in 2014. Earlier this year, it said the "regulatory environment" and potentially large capital requirements were causing it to consider spinning off its retail business.
Meanwhile, billionaire investor Carl Icahn has pressured AIG to split into smaller companies to shed its designation.
AIG CEO Pete Hancock said on Thursday that the MetLife court decision created an opportunity for the company to seek de-designation, but it was "reserving judgment."
Prudential Financial Inc (PRU.N), which was designated systemically important in 2013, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-ge-capital-usa-idUSKCN0WX1EV?feedType=RSS&feedName=wtMostRead&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FMostRead+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Most+Read+Articles%29 | en | 2016-04-01T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/3ae522147f00dc3726e7c59c005c3d13d09c5ee3ea2664a21ce92115ddac6b54.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-30T13:04:54 | null | 2016-08-30T12:23:02 | The British government has no legal obligation to consult parliament on triggering the formal divorce procedure with the European Union, but lawmakers will have a say, a spokesman for Prime Minister Theresa May said on Tuesday. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-britain-eu-article-idUSKCN11519I%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DworldNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2BReuters%252FworldNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BWorld%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160830&t=2&i=1151573955&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7T0LT | en | null | UK PM has no legal obligation to consult parliament on EU divorce: spokesman | null | null | www.reuters.com | LONDON The British government has no legal obligation to consult parliament on triggering the formal divorce procedure with the European Union, but lawmakers will have a say, a spokesman for Prime Minister Theresa May said on Tuesday.
May has said she will not invoke Article 50 of the EU's Lisbon Treaty, beginning the formal two-year process for leaving the bloc, before the end of the year to allow the government time to prepare an exit strategy.
Some opponents of Brexit say that since the EU referendum result is not legally binding, elected lawmakers should review the vote before the process is started but the government has insisted the prime minister has the power to trigger an exit.
On Saturday the Daily Telegraph newspaper reported May would not hold a parliamentary vote before invoking Article 50.
"The will of the people must be respected and it must be implemented ... There is no legal obligation to consult parliament on triggering Article 50 - that position has been well set out," the spokesman told reporters, adding that parliament had overwhelmingly backed holding the EU referendum.
"Parliament will be involved, it will have a say, opinions will be aired."
London law firm Mishcon de Reya has begun legal action to demand the British government win legislative approval from parliament before triggering Article 50. A hearing is scheduled in mid-October.
The investment manager behind the legal challenge has said many British voters were fooled into backing Brexit without realizing there was no credible plan.
(Reporting by Kylie MacLellan; editing by Stephen Addison) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-britain-eu-article-idUSKCN11519I?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Reuters%2FworldNews+%28Reuters+World+News%29 | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/a26f61096947ab3b4c74ed68f9b410acea7722098d94e9e3937614a85b0015c7.json |
[
"Simon Cambers"
] | 2016-08-29T14:59:59 | null | 2016-08-29T14:09:38 | For all the talk of banned performance-enhancing drugs in sport, mundane over-the-counter anti-inflammatory pain medications may be more of an issue on the tennis tour, according to numerous players. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-tennis-open-pain-idUSKCN1141HZ%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DsportsNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FsportsNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BSports%2BNews%2529.json | http://s1.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160829&t=2&i=1151450883&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7S0SA | en | null | Players may be risking health by popping pain pills | null | null | www.reuters.com | NEW YORK For all the talk of banned performance-enhancing drugs in sport, mundane over-the-counter anti-inflammatory pain medications may be more of an issue on the tennis tour, according to numerous players.
Indeed, players competing at the U.S. Open which starts on Monday could be risking their long-term health by playing through pain to achieve their goals. In the final grand slam event of the year, when the likes of Novak Djokovic and Serena Williams are battling injuries, many are likely to popping pills to push their aching bodies one more time. "You would be surprised how many anti-inflammatories I take," said 15th-ranked Richard Gasquet, a Frenchman who has suffered numerous injuries during his career. "I do it a lot. Not during practice, but before matches. It’s not something I would choose to do, but sometimes I have no choice. "It's nothing crazy to take anti-inflammatories. I imagine all the players are doing it. I know a lot of football (soccer) players, they do it a lot." Taking pain medication, before and after matches, has become the norm as the boundaries of physical possibility continue to expand. But taking too much is believed to actually slow down the recovery process after injury and taking them too regularly can cause long-term harm, some experts say. "With respect to non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, persons should take as little as possible for the shortest duration possible,” Dr Eric Matteson, a consultant in the Division of Rheumatology at the Mayo Clinic, said by email. "The concerns with prolonged use are risks of developing kidney failure and hypertension, as well as stomach ulcers." Goran Ivanisevic said taking anti-inflammatories was a necessary evil. "When I won Wimbledon (in 2001), I was smashing them,” he told Reuters. "I took them like candies. After a while I didn’t even feel it, it didn’t do me any good. But when you have a chance, in my case, to win Wimbledon, you take whatever, you don’t care.
"I hated pain so if the doctor said 'take two' I’d take five. But in the end I had shoulder surgery. The pain was so big that pain killers didn’t work so I had to have surgery. "Pain-killers are actually the best thing you can take, it just prevents (pain) for that moment, for a week or two, but hopefully something worse doesn’t happen and then you are in more trouble." The women's tour, the WTA, distributes detailed information to its players warning them of the dangers of over-use, while the men's tour, the ATP, says its physicians only prescribe anti-inflammatories "when indicated for the treatment of an injury". Andy Murray, who will try to add the U.S. Open to his recent Wimbledon and Olympic titles, is one of the more careful ones. "I only take an anti-inflammatory now and then if I'm having problems with my back or my hips," he said. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, twice a semi-finalist at Wimbledon, agreed. "I just hate these kind of things," the Frenchman said. “I take them really if I will play a semis or a final (if) I have something and I don't want the pain at all. Otherwise, I would not take it at all. I prefer to feel the pain and see how (the injury) is. "In the past, I had so many problems in my body, I took them sometimes. But it doesn't mean you don't have anything. It's just a fake. Sometimes you do worse to your body when you take these kind of things." But Mark Philippoussis, the Australian who reached the Wimbledon final in 2003, said ambitious players have little choice. "You do whatever it takes to get on the court and give yourself the best chance," he told Reuters. "Advil (ibuprofen), anti-inflammatories, that’s like vitamin C for athletes. It’s part of life. It’s what you have to do."
(Editing by Andrew Both) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-tennis-open-pain-idUSKCN1141HZ?feedType=RSS&feedName=sportsNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FsportsNews+%28Reuters+Sports+News%29 | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/5fcfe0ecd208a0bd441e159ff40a1b0ab641d67d1d15f8bd2d049cfea6759d21.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-29T11:02:54 | null | 2016-08-29T10:23:57 | Iran has deployed the Russian-supplied S-300 surface-to-air missile defence system around its Fordow underground uranium enrichment facility, Iranian state media reported on Monday. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-iran-missiles-fordow-idUSKCN1140YD%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DtopNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FtopNews%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BTop%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160829&t=2&i=1151428725&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7S0FR | en | null | Iran deploys Russian-made S-300 missiles at its Fordow nuclear site: TV | null | null | www.reuters.com | File photo of the S-300 air defence system launching a missile during the International Army Games 2016 at the Ashuluk military polygon outside Astrakhan, Russia, August 7, 2016. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov
ANKARA Iran has deployed the Russian-supplied S-300 surface-to-air missile defence system around its Fordow underground uranium enrichment facility, Iranian state media reported on Monday.
Iranian state TV on Sunday aired footage of deployment of the recently delivered missile system to the nuclear site in the central Iran.
"Our main priority is to protect Iran's nuclear facilities under any circumstances," Brigadier General Farzad Esmaili, commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps' (IRGC) air defense force told state TV.
Iran and the six major powers reached a landmark nuclear deal in 2015 aimed at curbing Iran's nuclear programme in exchange for lifting nuclear-related sanctions imposed on Tehran over its disputed nuclear work.
Enrichment of uranium at the Fordow facility, around 100 km (60 miles) south of Tehran, has stopped since the implementation of the nuclear deal in January.
Russia, under pressure from the West, in 2010 canceled a contract to deliver S-300s to Iran. But Russian President Vladimir Putin lifted that self-imposed ban in April 2015, after an interim deal was reached between Iran and the six powers.
In August, Iran said that Russia had delivered main parts of the system to the country, adding that the missile system would be completely delivered by the end of 2016.
The IRGC's Esmaili did not say whether the system was operational, but added: "Today, Iran's sky is one of the most secure in the Middle East".
Iran's top authority Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Sunday that the country's military power was for defensive purposes.
"The S-300 system is a defence system not an assault one, but the Americans did their utmost to prevent Iran from getting it," Khamenei said in a speech broadcast live on state TV.
(Writing by Parisa Hafezi; Editing by Toby Chopra) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-iran-missiles-fordow-idUSKCN1140YD?feedType=RSS&feedName=topNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FtopNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Top+News%29 | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/e0c427a579eda98146df62f394ecd1ebf8bdf3bc0d96e43cac7f057699a765c2.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-30T12:52:18 | null | 2016-08-30T12:27:01 | Aurvista Gold Corp | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2FidUSASC094TY%3Ftype%3DcompanyNews%26feedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DcompanyNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FcompanyNews%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BCompany%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | BRIEF-Aurvista Gold appoints Chief Operating Officer | null | null | www.reuters.com | BRIEF-Poet expects revenue in second half of FY to exceed $2 million
* Poet Technologies reports second quarter financial results and provides outlook for second half 2016 | http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSASC094TY?type=companyNews&feedType=RSS&feedName=companyNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FcompanyNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Company+News%29 | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/2e8cbca6dd91aa60539e1dbd45b494c7024bc7ab6047a2c6ba118409cc427f6d.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-31T12:53:01 | null | 2016-08-31T12:04:04 | Fourteen passengers and two crew members were injured on Wednesday when a United Airlines flight ran into severe turbulence and had to divert to Ireland's Shannon Airport, the airport said. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-united-airlins-ireland-injury-idUSKCN1161BT.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | United Airlines flight diverts to Ireland after 16 hurt in turbulence | null | null | www.reuters.com | DUBLIN Fourteen passengers and two crew members were injured on Wednesday when a United Airlines flight ran into severe turbulence and had to divert to Ireland's Shannon Airport, the airport said.
Ambulances were at the scene when the Boeing aircraft that was en route from Houston to London Heathrow landed at 0455 GMT (12:55 a.m. EDT). Ten of the passengers and the two crew members were taken to a local hospital, a United Airlines spokesman said.
The casualties, three of whom were children, had soft tissue injuries, minor head injuries and lacerations, University Hospital Limerick said in a statement. All but one person had been discharged by 0930 GMT (04:30 a.m. EDT).
The 207 passengers on the flight would continue their journey to London later on Wednesday on an alternative aircraft, United Airlines said.
(Reporting by Padraic Halpin; Editing by Richard Balmforth) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-united-airlins-ireland-injury-idUSKCN1161BT | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/198cf5d75c0419c5a07ee63549e47506aa3a369b3e0048dfe371d4cb77d65c79.json |
[
"Mohammed Ghobari"
] | 2016-08-29T19:04:46 | null | 2016-08-29T18:30:52 | The head of a Houthi-backed ruling council pledged readiness on Monday to resume negotiations on ending Yemen's war but reserved the right to resist attacks by a Saudi-backed exiled government seeking to unseat it. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-yemen-security-sammad-exclusive-idUSKCN11420N%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DworldNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2BReuters%252FworldNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BWorld%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160829&t=2&i=1151478860&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7S16S | en | null | Exclusive: Yemen council head hails peace push, wants Saudis to 'feel pain' | null | null | www.reuters.com | Saleh al-Sammad, who heads the Houthi-led Supreme Political Council, speaks during an interview with Reuters in Sanaa August 29, 2016. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah
Saleh al-Sammad, who heads the Houthi-led Supreme Political Council, pauses during an interview with Reuters in Sanaa August 29, 2016. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah
Saleh al-Sammad, who heads the Houthi-led Supreme Political Council, speaks during an interview with Reuters in Sanaa August 29, 2016. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah
Saleh al-Sammad, who heads the Houthi-led Supreme Political Council, speaks during an interview with Reuters in Sanaa August 29, 2016. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah
Saleh al-Sammad, who heads the Houthi-led Supreme Political Council, speaks during an interview with Reuters in Sanaa August 29, 2016. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah
Saleh Saleh al-Sammad, who heads the Houthi-led Supreme Political Council, speaks during an interview with Reuters in Sanaa August 29, 2016. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah
SANAA The head of a Houthi-backed ruling council pledged readiness on Monday to resume negotiations on ending Yemen's war but reserved the right to resist attacks by a Saudi-backed exiled government seeking to unseat it.
"We have not closed the door for peace or the door to negotiations," Saleh al-Sammad, an official of the dominant Iranian-allied Houthi movement, told Reuters in an interview.
"I believe there are serious international intentions to reach peace and we will do our best to take any chance to stop the aggression and lift the suffering from our Yemeni people."
U.N.-sponsored talks to try to end 18 months of fighting collapsed in failure this month and the Houthi movement and allied forces loyal to former president Ali Abdullah Saleh resumed shelling attacks into Saudi Arabia, Yemen's large northern neighbor.
The talks foundered after the Houthis and Saleh's General People's Congress (GPC) announced the formation of the 10-member governing council on Aug 6., ignoring a warning by the U.N. Yemen envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed that such a move would violate U.N. Security Council resolutions on how to solve the conflict.
"SIEGE"
But U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said after talks in Saudi Arabia last week that the United States, Gulf Arab states and the United Nations had agreed on a proposal to restart peace talks with a goal of forming a unity government.
In a statement late on Sunday the Houthis welcomed the idea but said they had yet to receive written proposals.
Sammad confirmed that position, explaining: "We are willing to deal positively with any initiative that is likely to lead to ending the aggression and lift the siege."
But Sammad said Riyadh had reneged on understandings reached earlier this year to observe a truce on the border in exchange for Saudi Arabia's cessation of air raids and prevention of fighters of exiled President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi from attacking Yemen from its territory.
"We were surprised that nothing of the sort had happened," Sammad said.
"It is natural, when air strikes continue and when we have up to 100 raids a day ... and when we have no planes or the kind of deadly weapons they have, that Yemenis have the right to defend themselves.
"We just want the Saudis to feel the kind of pain and sufferings that the Yemenis feel from the aggression," he said, in explanation of Houthi forces' attacks on Saudi territories. Yemen had no designs on Saudi territory.
Saudi Arabia and its Arab allies accuse the Houthis of being pawns of Iran and have launched a military intervention to restore Hadi to power. The Houthis have held on, having made an alliance with Saleh, who enjoys the support of most of the military.
HUMANITARIAN CRISIS
Hadi's government has welcomed Kerry's ideas but said any plan must adhere to U.N. Security Council resolution 2216, which calls on the Houthis to withdraw from cities seized since 2014.
The Houthis and the GPC hold most of Yemen's northern half, while forces working for the exiled government share control of the rest of the country with local tribes.
More than 6,400 people have been killed in the fighting, half of them civilians, and it has created a humanitarian crisis in one of the poorest countries in the Middle East.
A suicide bomber killed at least 54 people in a militia compound in the port city of Aden on Monday, the health ministry said, in an attack claimed by Islamic State.
Sammad said the United Nations and a group of 18 nations which have backed U.N. talks to end the war had failed to persuade Saudi Arabia to let the Houthis sell oil stored in the Yemeni Red Sea port of Ras Isa to buy medicine and fuel supplies.Saudi-led coalition naval forces control entry and departure of ships into and from Yemen in what they say are an attempt to prevent weapons from reaching the Houthi group.
CENTRAL BANK
Sammad rejected accusations by Hadi that the central bank was being used by the Houthi group for its own purposes and said the bank was "undertaking mighty efforts to find solutions to maintain the minimum standard of stability".
"This is a sovereign institution supported internationally and is not subject to bargaining from Hadi or those with him," he said. Sammad praised the central bank for its "mighty efforts" to create some economic stability.
Despite meager means, the central bank has continued to provide lines of credit guaranteeing imports and to pay the salaries of state employees, including troops in units that have fought on both sides.
The bank is based in the capital Sanaa. With the Houthis in control of most population centers and state organs, and enjoying the support of most of the army, the bank's activities disproportionately benefit them.
Hadi's government this month asked international financial institutions to prevent central bank officials from accessing state funds held in overseas banks.
(Writing by Sami Aboudi; Editing by William Maclean and Andrew Roche) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-security-sammad-exclusive-idUSKCN11420N?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Reuters%2FworldNews+%28Reuters+World+News%29 | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/5cc653f1509e33efb450fc928c02c9d29ac3aed2b23755487ab48a748d1aa85f.json |
[
"Marius Zaharia"
] | 2016-08-28T03:04:28 | null | 2016-08-28T02:51:25 | The secretive communist government of Laos, a country with a population of less than 7 million, rarely causes a ripple on the diplomatic circuit. And yet its sleepy capital will spring to life next week when global leaders arrive for an Asian summit. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-laos-china-vietnam-idUSKCN11300Z%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DworldNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2BReuters%252FworldNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BWorld%2BNews%2529.json | http://s1.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160828&t=2&i=1151317865&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7R010 | en | null | As Obama heads to Laos, signs of a tilt away from China | null | null | www.reuters.com | U.S. President Barack Obama takes his jacket off as he walks on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, U.S. after visiting the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas
Laos' Foreign Minister Saleumxay Kommasith (L) and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi hold a news conference after a meeting at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, China, August 3, 2016. REUTERS/Rolex Dela Pena/Pool/File Photo
VIENTIANE The secretive communist government of Laos, a country with a population of less than 7 million, rarely causes a ripple on the diplomatic circuit. And yet its sleepy capital will spring to life next week when global leaders arrive for an Asian summit.
Barack Obama will be among them, making the last push of his presidency to 'rebalance' Washington's foreign policy toward Asia, a strategy widely seen as a response to China's economic and military muscle-flexing across the region.
The might of Laos' giant neighbor to the north is hard to miss in Vientiane: wealthy Chinese driving SUVs overtake tuk-tuks sputtering along the roads and Chinese-backed hotels sprout from noisy construction sites in one of Asia's most low-rise cities.
But diplomats say Obama could be pushing on an open door in Laos, thanks to a change of government there in April.
They say the country's new leaders appear ready to tilt away from Beijing and lean more closely toward another neighbor, Vietnam, whose dispute with China over the South China Sea has pushed it into a deepening alliance with the United States.
"The new government is more influenced by the Vietnamese than the Chinese," said a Western diplomat in Southeast Asia." "It's never too late for a U.S. president to visit."
Obama will become the first sitting U.S. president to visit landlocked Laos, where the United States waged a "secret war" while fighting in Vietnam, dropping an estimated two million tonnes of bombs on the country. About 30 percent of the ordnance failed to explode, leaving a dangerous and costly legacy.
Laos has strategic importance to both Vietnam and China. Vietnam has a long land border with Laos that gives it access to markets in Thailand and beyond. For China, Laos is a key gateway to Southeast Asia in its "new Silk Road" trade strategy.
Laos, which is developing a series of hydro power plants along one of the world's longest rivers, the Mekong, aims to become "the battery of Asia" by selling power to its neighbors.
SHIFTING POLICY
It is difficult to read policy in Laos because its leaders are so uncommunicative, but Western diplomats have detected some shifts.
First, deputy Prime Minister Somsavat Lengsavad - who ran the steering panel for a $7 billion Chinese rail project - retired. The project is now believed to be on hold because Laos is unhappy with the terms of the deal.
Officials of Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith's new government, many of them educated in Vietnam, have visited Hanoi en masse in recent weeks, their first foreign trip.
At two of the past meetings of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which is currently chaired by Laos, Vientiane has taken a more nuanced stance on Beijing than neighboring Cambodia, which is increasingly seen as a Chinese satellite.
"The U.S. strategic interest in Laos is to see the country be able to exert a certain degree of strategic autonomy because you don't want ... (to) have something akin to the relationship between China and Cambodia," said Phuong Nguyen of the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies think-tank.
A defense official in Washington did not comment on wider strategic issues but described Laos as "an important partner."
A China foreign ministry spokesman said "we welcome any country, including those inside and outside this region, developing constructive relations, as long as these ties are really beneficial to regional peace, stability and prosperity."
LONG-TERM BATTLE
Beijing has invested around $1 billion annually in Laos in 2014 and 2015, a step up from the $4.5 billion invested historically before 2014, according to figures from China's Ministry of Commerce and state-run media.
For the United States, impoverished Laos is not a strong investment draw.
"In Laos, we bring 7-8 companies to the table compared with 30-40 companies that Vietnam brings. But China- that's a totally different ball game," said Anthony Nelson, director of the U.S.-ASEAN business council.
"So there's no coincidence that the countries with the lowest levels of development, Laos and Cambodia, are the most willing to advocate for China's position in international discussions."
But the Lao are closer culturally to Vietnam than they are to China. Their businesses use Lao language signs and mixed Lao-Vietnamese families incorporate local customs, while Lao-Chinese families tend to be isolated.
"We are a bit frustrated with (China). They create their own eco-system," a Lao businessman said.
(Additional reporting by Arshad Mohammed, Idrees Ali, Michael Martina and Ben Blanchard.; Editing by John Chalmers and Bill Tarrant) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-laos-china-vietnam-idUSKCN11300Z?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Reuters%2FworldNews+%28Reuters+World+News%29 | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/e66adb089da2c41f3e99efdf41bea76b116d67b87e6d4835e5715957a80d364e.json |
[
"Andrew",
"M. Seaman"
] | 2016-08-26T22:52:10 | null | 2016-08-26T21:12:40 | By Andrew M. Seaman(Reuters Health) - When deaths from substance abuse are counted as self-inflicted, then deaths from self-injury in the U.S. are t | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-health-suicide-rates-idUSKCN1112DG%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DhealthNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FhealthNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BHealth%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | Self-injury is a 'major killer' in U.S | null | null | www.reuters.com | (Reuters Health) - When deaths from substance abuse are counted as self-inflicted, then deaths from self-injury in the U.S. are tied with deaths attributed to diabetes and outnumber those from flu and pneumonia or kidney disease, new research suggests.
"Self injury is a major killer and it encompasses more than suicide," said study leader Ian Rockett, of West Virginia University School of Public Health in Morgantown.
He and his colleagues write in JAMA Psychiatry that self-injury deaths in the U.S. are generally underestimated because suicides by poisoning and drug overdose are often misclassified as "accidents" on death certificates.
In 2004, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) listed diabetes as the country's seventh leading cause of death, influenza and pneumonia as the eighth leading cause and kidney disease as the ninth leading cause. Intentional self-injury - including suicide - was tenth.
For the new study, the researchers used data from the CDC on deaths occurring in the U.S. between 1999 and 2014. In addition to deaths already attributed to suicide or self-injury, the researchers also classified 80 percent of deaths labeled "accidental" drug intoxication deaths and 90 percent of undetermined drug intoxication deaths in people aged 15 and older as self-injury deaths.
While people who die of drug intoxication may not intentionally overdose, they are engaging in risky life-threatening behavior, Rockett told Reuters Health.
By combining those numbers, the researchers found 40,289 self-injury deaths in 1999. That rose to 76,227 self-injury deaths in 2014.
Overall, those numbers reflect a 65 percent increase over that period, from about 14 deaths per 100,000 people to about 24 deaths per 100,000 people.
The new self-injury death rate was higher than the rate from kidney disease at any point between 1999 and 2014. It surpassed deaths from influenza and pneumonia in 2006, and tied with the number of diabetes deaths by the end of the study period.
"If we had data for 2016, who knows, we may have seen the (self injury) rates surpass diabetes," Rockett said.
Rockett also said self-injury deaths appear to affect younger people in particular, being six times more common than diabetes-related deaths among people under age 55.
The researchers found roughly four self-injury deaths among men for every one self-injury death among women in 1999. By the end of the study, there were about three self-injury deaths among men for every self-injury death among women.
The evidence suggests that self-injury deaths are an escalating problem disproportionately affecting women, Rockett said.
At the end of the study, the researchers found men lost about 32 years of life from a self-injury death, compared to about 37 years of life for women.
The number of lost years was at least double the years lost after death from diabetes, kidney disease, or influenza and pneumonia.
One reason women may be bearing the weight of self-injury deaths is because they are more likely to use the healthcare system and be prescribed opioids, Rockett suggested.
He also cautioned that the new estimate of self-injury deaths may be conservative, because deaths from some car accidents and other situations might be caused by reckless behavior.
Rockett believes society and the government are diluting the clinical and public health importance of self-injury by separately viewing suicides and drug-intoxication deaths.
"The private and public sectors must coalesce to address self-injury deaths, which are both predictable and avoidable," he said. "Concerted action will be vital for reversing the ripple effects from these deaths that are so catastrophic for families, communities, and the nation."
SOURCE: bit.ly/2bW5QO7 JAMA Psychiatry, online August 24, 2016.
(This version of the story corrects spelling of Rockett in paragraph 6) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-suicide-rates-idUSKCN1112DG?feedType=RSS&feedName=healthNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FhealthNews+%28Reuters+Health+News%29 | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/cf72fb02c48d43feab2c99ec779359c62b7cf44cfb4429e0a015bec1f8969c25.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-30T00:52:05 | null | 2016-08-30T00:19:11 | Marquee Energy Ltd | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2FidUSFWN1BA0GC%3Ftype%3DcompanyNews%26feedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DcompanyNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FcompanyNews%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BCompany%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | BRIEF-Marquee Energy says qtrly loss per share $0.01 | null | null | www.reuters.com | Aug 29 Marquee Energy Ltd
* Marquee energy ltd. announces second quarter 2016 operating and financial results
* Reduced quarterly production and operating costs by 34% to $4.4 million
* Realized qtrly average production volumes of 3,806 boe/d, representing a decrease of 26% from q2 of 2015
* Qtrly loss per share $0.01
* Company currently expects to spend between $3.5 and $5.0 million on capital costs in 2016
Source text for Eikon:
Further company coverage: | http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSFWN1BA0GC?type=companyNews&feedType=RSS&feedName=companyNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FcompanyNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Company+News%29 | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/e5ecbafcc3128ed5046a21cfdc55b9582544019a10da05c17afeffe111ec78d3.json |
[
"Diane Bartz"
] | 2016-08-31T05:03:14 | null | 2016-08-31T04:39:11 | Democrat Elizabeth Warren and 19 other U.S. senators voiced concern to the chief executive of Mylan NV (MYL.O) about the high cost of its EpiPen on Tuesday, calling the device used in the case of life-threatening allergies "exorbitantly expensive." | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-mylan-nl-prices-lawmakers-idUSKCN1152VV%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DtopNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FtopNews%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BTop%2BNews%2529.json | http://s3.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160830&t=2&i=1151650413&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7T1MO | en | null | Senators press Mylan on 'exorbitantly expensive' EpiPen | null | null | www.reuters.com | EpiPen auto-injection epinephrine pens manufactured by Mylan NV pharmaceutical company for use by severe allergy sufferers are seen in Washington, U.S. August 24, 2016. REUTERS/Jim Bourg/File Photo
WASHINGTON Democrat Elizabeth Warren and 19 other U.S. senators voiced concern to the chief executive of Mylan NV (MYL.O) about the high cost of its EpiPen on Tuesday, calling the device used in the case of life-threatening allergies "exorbitantly expensive."
Mylan has been under fire for steadily raising the price of the device from about $100 in 2008 to about $600 currently.
In a letter to Mylan CEO Heather Bresch, the daughter of Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia, the lawmakers asked the company to spell out the company's programs to provide some people with lower cost EpiPens.
Such discount programs are often an "industry tactic to keep costs high through a complex shell game," the letter said.
"Insurance companies, the government and employers still bear the burden of these excessive prices. In turn, those costs are eventually passed on to consumers in the form of higher premiums," the senators wrote.
Mylan said this week it would launch the first generic version of its allergy auto-injector EpiPen for $300, half the price of the branded product, the drugmaker's second step in less than a week to counter the backlash over the product's steep price. It also reduced the out-of-pocket costs of EpiPen for some patients last week.
EpiPen has a 94 percent market share for auto-injector devices, which jab a dose of the drug epinephrine into the thigh to counter dangerous allergic reactions such as to peanuts, other foods and bee stings.
Asked about the letter, Mylan spokeswoman Lauren Kashtan said in an email statement: "We have acknowledged receipt of letters from congressional offices and intend to respond to them."
Mylan has defended EpiPen's high price, saying it spent hundreds of millions of dollars to improve the product since acquiring it in 2007. It has also said it recoups less than half the list price for EpiPens.
In their letter, the lawmakers asked Mylan how much insurers paid for the EpiPen in 2009 and how much they pay now. They also asked how many EpiPens Mylan provided to low income, uninsured consumers and how many schools purchased EpiPens versus how many received them for free.
In addition to Warren, other signatories included Senators Patrick Leahy of Vermont, the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee; Barbara Boxer, a California Democrat; Dick Durbin, an Illinois Democrat; Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse, both Democrats from Rhode Island and Sherrod Brown, an Ohio Democrat.
(Reporting by Diane Bartz; Editing by Tom Brown) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mylan-nl-prices-lawmakers-idUSKCN1152VV?feedType=RSS&feedName=topNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FtopNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Top+News%29 | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/1113ff4c368866d00027b39fbbec5e21d330c165412f8c56ec3dae4b33fd8e3c.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-30T11:05:08 | null | 2016-08-30T09:44:05 | Iraq doesn't expect to resume production from the northern Qayyara oil region before the capture of nearby Mosul from Islamic State, an oil ministry spokesman said on Tuesday. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-mideast-crisis-iraq-oil-idUSKCN1150UR%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DworldNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2BReuters%252FworldNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BWorld%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160830&t=2&i=1151552939&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7T0EU | en | null | Iraq's Qayyara oil fields won't return to production before Mosul retaken: spokesman | null | null | www.reuters.com | Fire rises from oil wells, set ablaze by Islamic State militants before fleeing the oil-producing region of Qayyara, Iraq, which has been recaptured by Iraqi forces, August 29, 2016. REUTERS/Azad Lashkari
Fire rises from oil wells, set ablaze by Islamic State militants before fleeing the oil-producing region of Qayyara, Iraq, which has been recaptured by Iraqi forces, August 29, 2016. REUTERS/Azad Lashkari
Fire rises from oil wells, set ablaze by Islamic State militants before fleeing the oil-producing region of Qayyara, Iraq, which has been recaptured by Iraqi forces, August 29, 2016. REUTERS/Azad Lashkari
A member of the Iraqi security forces stands with his weapon as fire and smoke rise from oil wells, set ablaze by Islamic State militants before fleeing the oil-producing region of Qayyara, Iraq, which has been recaptured by Iraqi forces, August 29, 2016. Picture taken August 29, 2016. REUTERS/Azad Lashkari
BAGHDAD Iraq doesn't expect to resume production from the northern Qayyara oil region before the capture of nearby Mosul from Islamic State, an oil ministry spokesman said on Tuesday.
The region's two main fields, Qayyara and Najma, used to produce up to 30,000 barrels per day of heavy crude before it fell under control of the ultra-hardline militants two years ago. It has also a small refinery to process some local oil.
"The rehabilitation process cannot resume unless the security situation improves with the conclusion of the battle for Mosul" some 60 kilometers (37 miles) north of Qayyara, oil ministry spokesman Asim Jihad told Reuters.
The Iraqi army took Qayyara back last week and oil ministry services started putting out fires at wells caused by insurgents as a tactic to escape air surveillance and hamper the progression of Iraqi forces.
The oil ministry also dug trenches to prevent oil spills from reaching the Tigris river, Jihad said. "They were contained," he added.
Angolan oil company Sonangol pulled out from an agreement to increase output at the Qayyara fields in 2014, citing the mounting security risk.
Iraq, OPEC's second-largest producer after Saudi Arabia, pumps most of its crude from the southern region. The nation has an average daily output of 4.6 million barrels per day.
Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi expects Mosul to be retaken this year, effectively defeating Islamic State in Iraq. The group's self-proclaimed "caliphate" extends over the border to include parts of eastern Syria.
(Reporting by Saif Hameed; Writing by Maher Chmaytelli; Editing by Mark Potter and Louise Heavens) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-iraq-oil-idUSKCN1150UR?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Reuters%2FworldNews+%28Reuters+World+News%29 | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/92f4ef74339e8d4ab590198cdc0852835c987e9019882ebda3d2c6063bf0ba45.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-27T09:04:28 | null | 2016-08-27T08:46:16 | A fire in a warehouse at a Moscow printing works killed at least 16 people on Saturday morning, an Emergencies Ministry official told Rossiya-24 TV station. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-russia-warehouse-fire-idUSKCN112079%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DworldNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2BReuters%252FworldNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BWorld%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | Fire kills at least 16 in Moscow printing works | null | null | www.reuters.com | MOSCOW A fire in a warehouse at a Moscow printing works killed at least 16 people on Saturday morning, an Emergencies Ministry official told Rossiya-24 TV station.
"Sixteen bodies were found in a room, four injured were brought to hospitals in Moscow. The fire was completely put out by 0953 (0253 ET)," he said.
The ministry said on its website that 12 people were rescued. The TV station said the people, who lived and worked at the depot, were mostly from former Soviet Union countries.
The reason for the fire has not immediately been disclosed. Lax fire safety standards have often been blamed for such incidents in Russia.
(Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin; editing by David Clarke) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-russia-warehouse-fire-idUSKCN112079?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Reuters%2FworldNews+%28Reuters+World+News%29 | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/6e433fa69da62df7816dbc143c6399cb5a8e72a2eb877738c266cb3fc7cb6363.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-30T21:03:12 | null | 2016-08-30T20:09:29 | U.S. President Barack Obama shortened the prison sentences of 111 convicts serving time for drug-related offenses in his second round of clemency grants this month, the White House said on Tuesday. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-usa-justice-obama-idUSKCN1152JW%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DtopNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FtopNews%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BTop%2BNews%2529.json | http://s1.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160830&t=2&i=1151632510&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7T1I0 | en | null | Obama shortens prison sentences of 111 convicts: White House | null | null | www.reuters.com | U.S. President Barack Obama walks from the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, U.S. before his departure to the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas
WASHINGTON U.S. President Barack Obama shortened the prison sentences of 111 convicts serving time for drug-related offenses in his second round of clemency grants this month, the White House said on Tuesday.
Obama has now granted a total of 673 commutations during his presidency, more than the number granted by the 10 previous presidents combined, as he seeks to reform the criminal justice system, it said.
For some of the convicts, the commutations mean they will serve only half of their original prison sentences. For instance, Sly Stallone Aikens of South Carolina, serving a sentence of 360 months for using and carrying a gun during a drug trafficking crime, will now serve only 180 months.
More than one-third of the 673 convicts had been serving life sentences.
Obama has made reducing the number of people serving long sentences for nonviolent drug offenses a priority. It is one of the rare issues where the president gets support from Republican lawmakers.
He launched the clemency program in 2014, inviting thousands of drug offenders and others to seek early release. It was the most ambitious such program in 40 years, but it has struggled under a flood of thousands of unprocessed cases.
The White House counsel, Neil Eggleston, said he expects Obama will continue to grant commutations through the end of his presidency, which ends on Jan. 20. But only legislation passed by Congress can "achieve the broader reforms needed to ensure our federal sentencing system operates more fairly and effectively," Eggleston said.
(Reporting by Timothy Gardner and Ayesha Rascoe; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe and Jonathan Oatis) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-justice-obama-idUSKCN1152JW?feedType=RSS&feedName=topNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FtopNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Top+News%29 | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/6506988de2196a9cdf6370cd024648762a8b22403335536e98847d3c11d59e0a.json |
[
"Tim Hepher"
] | 2016-08-30T20:51:23 | null | 2016-08-30T20:00:40 | Airbus delivered more aircraft in August than for the same period in any previous year, its top planemaking executive said on Tuesday, in a breakthrough that improves its chances of meeting 2016 targets after earlier delays in receiving parts. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-airbus-deliveries-idUSKCN1152JM%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DbusinessNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FbusinessNews%2B%2528Business%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160830&t=2&i=1151626959&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7T1HS | en | null | Airbus on course for record deliveries in August: executive | null | null | www.reuters.com | A flight test engineer holds an Airbus Group flag after the first flight of the Airbus A320neo (New Engine Option) in Colomiers near Toulouse, France, September 25, 2014. REUTERS/Regis Duvignau/File Photo
PARIS Airbus delivered more aircraft in August than for the same period in any previous year, its top planemaking executive said on Tuesday, in a breakthrough that improves its chances of meeting 2016 targets after earlier delays in receiving parts.
Speaking to Reuters on the sidelines of a meeting of French business leaders, Fabrice Bregier did not give numbers for total deliveries, which have not yet been completed, but said Airbus had hit a crucial target of six A350 deliveries this month.
"We tend to deliver a lot of planes in the last few days of the month, but what I can already tell you is that it will be the best month of August in Airbus's history, in terms of the number of planes delivered," said Bregier, who is president and chief executive of the planemaking unit of Airbus Group(AIR.PA).
Its previous busiest August was in 2013, when it passed 47 aircraft to customers. For 2016 as a whole, it targets at least 650 deliveries, up 2.4 percent from last year.
Until now, problems with supplies of cabin equipment have hampered deliveries of Europe's newest long-haul jet, the A350, leaving Airbus well short of its full-year target of 50 A350 deliveries with just 15 handed over to customers by the end of July.
Airbus has also experienced delays in bringing out a new version of its best-selling A320 due to engine problems and asked staff to work overtime during the traditionally quiet summer to help catch up on deliveries of both models.
"On the A350, we reached our objective which was to deliver six aircraft during the month," Bregier said.
"This morning I attended the delivery of the first A350 to Thai Airways. That doesn't mean the (annual target of) 50 are in the pocket, but we are now at 21 (for the year) at end-August and if we keep up that rhythm of six to seven aircraft a month over the next four months, then we shouldn't be too, too far off."
Bregier paid tribute to Airbus staff who had responded to calls to stagger vacations and work extra hours over the summer.
"That seems to be bearing fruit, at least for the A350. This was one of the important issues of the summer," he said.
For total deliveries, Airbus is expected to remain behind U.S. rival Boeing (BA.N), which targets 740 to 745 deliveries this year.
(Reporting by Tim Hepher; Editing by Bate Felix and Susan Thomas) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-airbus-deliveries-idUSKCN1152JM?feedType=RSS&feedName=businessNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FbusinessNews+%28Business+News%29 | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/2645f1056b704942e0d496dfabef5f1eefe397330df9ffb6b718a2b4bbf441c9.json |
[
"Idrees Ali"
] | 2016-08-26T13:21:22 | null | 2016-08-26T11:49:38 | A U.S. Navy ship fired warning shots toward an Iranian fast-attack craft that approached two U.S. ships, a Pentagon spokesman said on Thursday, in the most serious of a number of incidents in the Gulf area this week. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-usa-iran-navy-idUSKCN110285%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DworldNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2BReuters%252FworldNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BWorld%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160825&t=2&i=1151074607&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7O1I8 | en | null | U.S. Navy ship fires warning shots at Iranian vessel | null | null | www.reuters.com | WASHINGTON A U.S. Navy ship fired warning shots toward an Iranian fast-attack craft that approached two U.S. ships, a Pentagon spokesman said on Thursday, in the most serious of a number of incidents in the Gulf area this week.
"They did feel compelled ultimately to fire three warning shots and the reason for that is... they had taken steps already to try and de-escalate this situation," spokesman Peter Cook told reporters.
Tensions have increased in the Gulf in recent days despite an improvement in relations between Iran and the United States.
Years of mutual animosity eased when Washington lifted sanctions on Tehran in January after a deal to curb Iran's nuclear ambitions but serious differences still remain over Iran's ballistic missile program, Syria and Iraq.
A U.S. defense official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said the USS Squall patrol craft fired three warning shots from a .50 caliber gun in the northern Gulf on Wednesday after warning flares did not work.
The incident started with three Iranian vessels, but there was only one around by the time the warning shots were fired, the official said. He described the Iranian behavior as "unsafe, unprofessional, and not routine."
At one point, the Iranian vessel came within 200 yards (193 meters) of a U.S. ship, the official said.
Another interaction took place between an Iranian and U.S. ship on Wednesday, the defense official said but gave few more details.
The Pentagon earlier this week accused Iranian vessels of harassing a U.S. warship near the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday.
On Thursday, Iran's defense minister said those Iranian vessels were just doing their job.
“If an American ship enters Iran’s maritime region, it will definitely get a warning. We will monitor them and, if they violate our waters, we will confront them,” Defense Minister Hossein Dehghan said in a statement reported by the Iranian Students’ News Agency.
A State Department spokeswoman said it was not clear what the intentions of the Iranian ships were, but the behavior was unacceptable.
"We believe that these type of actions are of concern, they unnecessarily escalate tensions," State Department spokeswoman Elizabeth Trudeau told a briefing.
(Reporting by Idrees Ali; Additional reporting by Mohammad Zargham; Editing by Paul Simao and Alistair Bell) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-iran-navy-idUSKCN110285?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Reuters%2FworldNews+%28Reuters+World+News%29 | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/0b432551b4c9dec69788835a093dd1a4815713e72221ca9749edd67c87e858f2.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-30T06:52:15 | null | 2016-08-30T06:31:08 | Moody's/: | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2FidUSFWN1BB03Y%3Ftype%3DcompanyNews%26feedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DcompanyNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FcompanyNews%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BCompany%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | BRIEF-Moody's changes Canadian Solar's outlook to negative from stable | null | null | www.reuters.com | Digital mapping firm HERE wants new investor by year-end - Handelsblatt
FRANKFURT, Aug 30 Digital maps company HERE, controlled by German carmakers BMW, Daimler and Volkswagen, aims to find a new investor by the end of the year, HERE chief Edzard Overbeek told a German newspaper. | http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSFWN1BB03Y?type=companyNews&feedType=RSS&feedName=companyNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FcompanyNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Company+News%29 | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/f77e648b3e13b2abacd3eff1aad34b8cb4b6f3166a048055b20fc5fed0c52e85.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-31T00:52:34 | null | 2016-08-31T00:02:15 | Joe Sutter, known for leading Boeing Co's engineering team for the iconic 747 jumbo jet in the mid-1960s, died on Tuesday at the age of 95. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-people-joesutter-idUSKCN116001.json | http://s1.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160831&t=2&i=1151653667&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7U002 | en | null | Joe Sutter, father of the 747, passes away at 95 | null | null | www.reuters.com | Joe Sutter, Boeing's chief engineer on the original jumbo, and known as the ''father of the 747.'' walks in front of a newly unveiled 747-8 jumbo passenger jet at the company's Everett, Washington commercial airplane manufacturing facility, February 13, 2011. REUTERS/Anthony Bolante
Joe Sutter, known for leading Boeing Co's engineering team for the iconic 747 jumbo jet in the mid-1960s, died on Tuesday at the age of 95.
In addition to the 747, Sutter worked on projects including the 737 and 707 aircraft models, Boeing Commercial Airplanes chief executive officer Ray Conner said in a message to employees.
Sutter and his team became known as "the Incredibles," for producing the world's largest airplane within 29 months from the time of conception.
Sutter served the company as a consultant after his retirement from the company in 1986.
(Reporting by Shalini Nagarajan in Bengaluru, editing by G Crosse) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-people-joesutter-idUSKCN116001 | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/cfca9f9e97a1f14a1a43e4ce805716e22511e134000cd7ee19eeb4bb7d0baf72.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-30T13:00:15 | null | 2016-08-30T11:51:40 | Bastian Schweinsteiger wants to continue playing for Manchester United this season, even though manager Jose Mourinho said last week that the former Germany captain is unlikely to figure in his plans. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-soccer-germany-idUSKCN1151DI%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DsportsNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FsportsNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BSports%2BNews%2529.json | http://s2.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160830&t=2&i=1151569087&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7T0OG | en | null | Schweinsteiger still dreams of playing for Man United | null | null | www.reuters.com | BERLIN Bastian Schweinsteiger wants to continue playing for Manchester United this season, even though manager Jose Mourinho said last week that the former Germany captain is unlikely to figure in his plans.
"My dream is to play for Manchester United," the 32-year-old told reporters at a Germany news conference on Tuesday, reflecting on his bad luck with injuries last season.
"I believe in my ability. I have spoken to Mourinho and have no problem with him. I know what his goals are but I also know what I want. We will have to see what happens in September. But I will certainly not stop playing football, he added.
"Football has ups and downs. It is a tough business and, unfortunately, not just a sport."
The 2014 World Cup winner announced his retirement from international football in July and Wednesday's friendly against Finland will be his 121st and last game for his country.
"I'm glad that I got the chance to get a farewell game. Of course, it's emotional," he said. "I had wonderful years here and feel a gratitude to be able to make 120 appearances for Germany."
Schweinsteiger played at three World Cups and four European championship tournaments though his international career ended in disappointment with a 2-0 defeat to France in the Euro 2016 semi-finals.
(Writing by Brian Homewood in Berne, editing by Ed Osmond) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-soccer-germany-idUSKCN1151DI?feedType=RSS&feedName=sportsNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FsportsNews+%28Reuters+Sports+News%29 | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/95135320bebd2ef850b141ef149d473d1bed809e31340e16cf076147ca2527cd.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-28T13:04:37 | null | 2016-08-28T11:13:45 | Turkish forces killed at least 7 members of the outlawed Kurdish PKK militant group in clashes on Sunday in southeast Turkey near its border with Iraq, Turkish media reported. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-turkey-security-southeast-idUSKCN1130DX%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DworldNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2BReuters%252FworldNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BWorld%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | Turkish army kills seven Kurdish militants in southeast Turkey: media | null | null | www.reuters.com | ANKARA Turkish forces killed at least 7 members of the outlawed Kurdish PKK militant group in clashes on Sunday in southeast Turkey near its border with Iraq, Turkish media reported.
Two Turkish soldiers were also wounded in the clashes that started after PKK militants opened fire on Turkish soldiers, privately run Dogan news agency reported.
(Reporting by Ece Toksabay; Editing by Louise Ireland) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-turkey-security-southeast-idUSKCN1130DX?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Reuters%2FworldNews+%28Reuters+World+News%29 | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/42e1a37d4964cc68f51d17c6fdf2c91b09d5fcca6e1a0cc2172aea9ada66f68d.json |
[
"Canice Leung"
] | 2016-08-26T13:21:41 | null | 2016-08-16T04:15:07 | Libyan forces allied with the U.N.-backed government fire a shell at Islamic State fighters' positions in Sirte, Libya August 15, 2016. REUTERS/Ismail Zitouny | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Fnews%2Fpicture%2Feditors-choice%3FarticleId%3DUSRTX2KX70.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160816&t=2&i=1149826726&w=&fh=545&fw=810&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=2016-08-16T041507Z_23638_S1AETVRQHRAA_RTRMADP_0_LIBYA-SECURITY | en | null | Editor's Choice | null | null | www.reuters.com | Men carry a dog, wearing a costume and seated on a stool, as a form of respect as they believe that dogs found water for their ancestors, during a local festival for the Miao ethnic minority in Jianhe county, Guizhou Province, China, August 14, 2016. REUTERS/Stringer | http://www.reuters.com/news/picture/editors-choice?articleId=USRTX2KX70 | en | 2016-08-16T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/fc7aa38504b10f4ae5862c61c4974a386e8a0b62bc5ac74b26dd6b7c9baf51d6.json |
[
"Brian Ellsworth"
] | 2016-08-30T23:04:57 | null | 2016-08-30T22:23:01 | Venezuela has arrested several opposition activists accused of plotting violence during an anti-government rally scheduled for Thursday, President Nicolas Maduro said on Tuesday, and opposition leaders slammed the arrests as intimidation. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-venezuela-politics-idUSKCN1152TG%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DworldNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2BReuters%252FworldNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BWorld%2BNews%2529.json | http://s3.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160830&t=2&i=1151646135&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7T1LL | en | null | Venezuela arrests opposition activists ahead of anti-government rally | null | null | www.reuters.com | Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro wipes his face while he speaks during a pro-government rally in Caracas, Venezuela August 27, 2016. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins
CARACAS Venezuela has arrested several opposition activists accused of plotting violence during an anti-government rally scheduled for Thursday, President Nicolas Maduro said on Tuesday, and opposition leaders slammed the arrests as intimidation.
The opposition is calling on sympathizers from across the country to march in the capital of Caracas to push for a recall referendum against Maduro, who calls the rally a plot to stir up violence and set the stage for a coup.
The upcoming march follows months of tensions between Maduro and the opposition-controlled legislature, exacerbated by triple-digit inflation, Soviet-style product shortages and a severe economic recession.
"We must win the battle against the coup - before, during, and after the dates announced by these fascists," Maduro said in a televised broadcast. "We've captured a group of people carrying important equipment, C4 explosives. We're trying to capture a number of them in real time."
Maduro called opposition party Popular Will "the party of violence that is mixed up in the coup of Sept. 1." He accused opposition leaders of seeking to stage a putsch similar to one that briefly toppled late socialist leader Hugo Chavez in 2002.
Intelligence agents on Tuesday raided Popular Will's offices and arrested long-time street activist Carlos Melo, opposition parties said. Popular Will activist Yon Goicoechea was arrested on Monday on charges of carrying explosives.
Another Popular Will leader, jailed former mayor Daniel Ceballos, was transferred to prison from house arrest on Saturday. He was accused of trying to escape his home to plot violence during the march.
Opposition leaders have accused elections authorities of intentionally stalling the recall vote. Maduro's approval rating in July fell to a nine-month low of 21 percent, according to pollster Datanalisis.
"We denounce the pathetic way in which the government is seeking to demobilize and intimidate the democratic leadership," said Jesus Torrealba, leader of the Democratic Unity coalition.
Opposition sympathizers have been walking from far-flung corners of the country to join the Caracas march.Popular Will was founded by Leopoldo Lopez, a former mayor jailed for leading the 2014 anti-government protests. The opposition describes him as a political prisoner, and rights groups across the world have pressured Venezuela to release him.
The issue of jailed opposition leaders helped scuttle a brief 2015 rapprochement between Venezuela and the United States, its main ideological adversary.
Maduro insists his government does not hold political prisoners and described Lopez as a dangerous criminal.
(Reporting by Brian Ellsworth; Editing by David Gregorio) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-politics-idUSKCN1152TG?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Reuters%2FworldNews+%28Reuters+World+News%29 | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/ace717ca878c41057042d7e82a7bc8413e55d0df545395479ecef0fd47813379.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-31T05:02:11 | null | 2016-08-31T03:02:52 | Several people were injured, at least one of them seriously, when a ferry struck a group of kayakers off a Manhattan pier on Tuesday evening, officials said. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-new-york-crash-idUSKCN116086%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DdomesticNews.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | Several injured after ferry strikes New York kayakers | null | null | www.reuters.com | Several people were injured, at least one of them seriously, when a ferry struck a group of kayakers off a Manhattan pier on Tuesday evening, officials said.
The Coast Guard said in a statement it had received reports of the collision between the New York Waterways ferry and the group of about a dozen kayakers around 6:00 p.m. local time near Pier 79 in the Hudson River.
Five of the paddlers were taken to area hospitals for treatment, including two who were listed in critical condition, the Coast Guard said.
The New York Police Department had a slightly different tally, saying one man, a Manhattan Kayak Company employee, had suffered a serious injury.
"His bone was exposed, he had lost a lot of blood, and he was lapsing in and out of consciousness," NYPD Inspector David Driscoll told reporters about the man's arm injury, according to a recording published online by CBS New York.
The cause of the crash was under investigation, the Coast Guard said.
Further details were not immediately available.
(Reporting by Curtis Skinner in San Francisco; Editing by Paul Tait) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-new-york-crash-idUSKCN116086?feedType=RSS&feedName=domesticNews | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/1b40f833055eee521a590014433759a23fe102bf1a8958181117efda729dadaf.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-31T10:52:50 | null | 2016-08-31T10:39:09 | Israeli conglomerate DelekGroup is considering spinning off its holdings in thelarge Tamar natural gas field into a separate publicly tradedcompany. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fdelek-group-divestiture-tamar-idUSL8N1BC238%3Ftype%3DcompanyNews%26feedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DcompanyNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FcompanyNews%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BCompany%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | Israel's Delek considers spinning off Tamar stake into public company | null | null | www.reuters.com | JERUSALEM Aug 31 Israeli conglomerate Delek Group is considering spinning off its holdings in the large Tamar natural gas field into a separate publicly traded company.
Under a deal reached with the Israeli government to boost competition in the sector, Delek has about five years to sell its 31.25 percent stake in the offshore field, which holds 11 trillion cubic feet of gas.
However, finding a single buyer could prove difficult. Delek's share in Tamar is worth close to $4 billion, based on the price achieved in the recent sale of a 3 percent stake by operator Noble Energy.
Delek Chief Executive Asaf Bartfeld told analysts in a conference call late on Tuesday that the company might decide to set up a new entity that can be offered on capital markets.
Such a flotation would have to be done abroad, Bartfeld said, because the new company would be too big for the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange.
The public offering would not have to be for the entire stake in the Tamar field, an industry source said, and Delek is also exploring the possibility of selling some of its holding to a third-party buyer and spinning off the rest.
A final decision is at least a few months away, the source said.
Delek owns its stake in Tamar through subsidiaries Delek Drilling and Avner Oil.
(Reporting by Ari Rabinovitch; Editing by David Goodman) | http://www.reuters.com/article/delek-group-divestiture-tamar-idUSL8N1BC238?type=companyNews&feedType=RSS&feedName=companyNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FcompanyNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Company+News%29 | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/e22b0587219d8eccd4e7f851faf04c30e65e4c65648097a3dfe1d075f2f6a87b.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-30T08:51:12 | null | 2016-08-30T08:17:39 | Japanese carrier ANA Holdings Inc (9202.T) said on Tuesday it could take two to three years to replace engine parts for its Boeing (BA.N) 787 models with new ones. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-ana-rolls-royce-hldg-parts-idUSKCN1150OZ%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DbusinessNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FbusinessNews%2B%2528Business%2BNews%2529.json | http://s3.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160830&t=2&i=1151544870&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7T0BL | en | null | Japan's ANA says replacing 787 aircraft engine parts could take two to three years | null | null | www.reuters.com | A Boeing 787-9 jet ready for delivery to ANA Holdings Ltd is seen at Boeing's delivery center in Everett, Washington, U.S. August 17, 2016. REUTERS/Alwyn Scott
TOKYO Japanese carrier ANA Holdings Inc (9202.T) said on Tuesday it could take two to three years to replace engine parts for its Boeing (BA.N) 787 models with new ones.
ANA said last week it needed to replace damaged compressor blades in the Rolls-Royce (RR.L) engines powering its 787s, forcing it to cancel some Dreamliner flights over the coming weeks.
Rolls-Royce was not immediately available for comment.
(Reporting by Maki Shiraki; Editing by Clarence Fernandez) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-ana-rolls-royce-hldg-parts-idUSKCN1150OZ?feedType=RSS&feedName=businessNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FbusinessNews+%28Business+News%29 | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/7455021ccec312c72a836c348e4d4b5fb56e09ff29322c82863b16568a1ae9b0.json |
[
"Allison Lampert",
"Julia Fioretti"
] | 2016-08-26T13:18:47 | null | 2016-08-25T20:12:45 | A new global deal on curbing aviation emissions will likely give states the right to opt out of its initial voluntary phases, according to sources familiar with the matter, in a concession to developing countries like aviation powerhouses China and India. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-climatechange-aviation-idUSKCN1102GG%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DenvironmentNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252Fenvironment%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BEnvironment%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | U.N. aviation emissions pact to let states opt out in first phase: sources | null | null | www.reuters.com | MONTREAL/BRUSSELS A new global deal on curbing aviation emissions will likely give states the right to opt out of its initial voluntary phases, according to sources familiar with the matter, in a concession to developing countries like aviation powerhouses China and India.
Allowing countries to join but then later opt out risks further diluting a plan that had already been criticized for not being completely mandatory by some environmentalists and European legislators, who had pushed for a more ambitious agreement.
The draft resolution, which two of the sources said has broad support, will be adopted by the United Nations' civil aviation agency's governing council on Friday and then put before all 191 member states next month.
While countries that volunteer for the deal's first phase from 2021 to 2026 can not arbitrarily "come and go as they please," the draft language could give them leeway to join and then cease participating, one of the sources said. All three sources spoke on condition of anonymity because the negotiations are confidential.
One source, who is part of the council, said he supports countries being able to opt out because "it will help get the plan going" after years of talks.
The United Nations' International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) meets Sept. 27 to Oct. 7 to finalize the deal, which would aim to cap the carbon pollution of all international flights at 2020 levels.
Aviation was excluded from last December's climate accord in Paris when countries agreed to limit the rise in global temperatures to "well below" 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit) above pre-industrial levels.
Airlines support a global agreement because a patchwork of national and regional deals, such as Europe imposing its own emissions trading scheme on foreign carriers, would be more expensive.
The draft deal would require airlines in participating countries to limit their emissions or offset them by buying carbon credits from designated environmental projects around the world.
According to a paper submitted to ICAO by the United States, the proposed deal would be voluntary between 2021 and 2026 and then mandatory from 2027 for the world's largest emitters.
While the new draft addresses the difficult issue of dividing responsibility between developed and developing states, it does not yet specify how many countries will join.
“As far as we can tell, the current proposals fall well short of ensuring carbon neutral growth from 2020," said Dan Rutherford, marine and aviation program director for the non-profit International Council on Clean Transportation.
All three sources said the European Commission would likely accept a deal that is voluntary at first, a proposal reported by Reuters this month.
But the voluntary part of the deal has generated opposition from some members of the European Parliament, which has a say in whether to impose participation in Europe's emissions trading system (ETS) on international carriers in 2017.
"A voluntary approach is not what ICAO was assigned to deliver by 2016 so I cannot see how the EU will take this as a serious replacement of the EU´s ETS," said Bas Eickhout of the Greens party.
The European Commission declined to comment Thursday on the talks.
The United States and Canada, along with Mexico, Indonesia and Singapore, are volunteering for the first phases. It is not known whether fast-growing China, which wants developed countries to take the lead in reducing aviation emissions, will join.
China's absence in the first phases "would definitely be a big hole in the coverage," Rutherford said.
A representative for China in Montreal declined to comment.
(Additional reporting by Ethan Lou in Toronto; Editing by Frances Kerry) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-climatechange-aviation-idUSKCN1102GG?feedType=RSS&feedName=environmentNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2Fenvironment+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Environment%29 | en | 2016-08-25T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/b997409c3ebe2c1c5950d5f9a9ad9ce0e7a7d66b2ed48f6047447902b74dc732.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-29T19:02:54 | null | 2016-08-29T17:37:02 | Facebook Inc. will not become a media company, its founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg said on Monday, telling students the firm would remain a technology platform. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-facebook-zuckerberg-idUSKCN1141WN%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DtopNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FtopNews%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BTop%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160829&t=2&i=1151473992&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7S129 | en | null | Facebook CEO says group will not become a media company | null | null | www.reuters.com | Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is seen on stage during a town hall at Facebook's headquarters in Menlo Park, California September 27, 2015. Picture taken February 27, 2015. REUTERS/Stephen Lam/File Photo
ROME Facebook Inc. will not become a media company, its founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg said on Monday, telling students the firm would remain a technology platform.
An increasing number of users are turning to social media networks, such as Facebook (FB.O) and Twitter (TWTR.N), to find their news, but Zuckerberg said his firm had no ambitions to become a content provider.
"No, we are a tech company, not a media company," said Zuckerberg, after a young Italian asked him whether Facebook intended to become a news editor.
While acknowledging the role Facebook has in supplying users with news through their connections and stressing the advantages of obtaining information from different parts of the world, Zuckerberg said Facebook was "a technology company, we build the tools, we do not produce any content".
"The world needs news companies, but also technology platforms, like what we do, and we take our role in this very seriously," he said, speaking from Rome's Luiss university.
Earlier on Monday, Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan had a private audience with Pope Francis. It was the latest in a string of meetings the pontiff has held with Silicon Valley leaders, including Apple (AAPL.O) CEO Tim Cook and Alphabet's (GOOGL.O) boss Eric Schmidt.
Zuckerberg said he gave the Argentine pontiff a model of Aquila, Facebook's lightweight solar-powered drone aimed at beaming lasers to extend internet access to places that have yet to be connected.
"We ... discussed the importance of connecting people, especially in parts of the world without internet access," Zuckerberg posted on his personal Facebook profile after the meeting.
Zuckerberg also on Monday met Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, who is pushing to upgrade Italy's limited internet infrastructure.
(Reporting by Giulia Segreti; Editing by Ruth Pitchford) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-facebook-zuckerberg-idUSKCN1141WN?feedType=RSS&feedName=topNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FtopNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Top+News%29 | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/9f1ab71e9198a02eb9676934e1f1f5f2e79d336de78b134f8954f3c3e06c2d98.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-29T19:00:03 | null | 2016-08-29T18:02:57 | Twice major winner Martin Kaymer has urged European captain Darren Clarke to pick Belgian Thomas Pieters on Tuesday as one of his three wildcard choices for next month's Ryder Cup at Hazeltine, Minnesota. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-golf-ryder-europe-idUSKCN11421O%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DsportsNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FsportsNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BSports%2BNews%2529.json | http://s3.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160829&t=2&i=1151476424&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7S15O | en | null | Kaymer urges Europe captain to make Pieters a wildcard pick | null | null | www.reuters.com | Thomas Pieters of Belgium reacts during the Made in Denmark, European Tour golf tournament, final round in Farso, August 28, 2016. REUTERS/Henning Bagger/Scanpix Denmark
LONDON Twice major winner Martin Kaymer has urged European captain Darren Clarke to pick Belgian Thomas Pieters on Tuesday as one of his three wildcard choices for next month's Ryder Cup at Hazeltine, Minnesota.
Pieters is in red-hot form after winning the Made In Denmark event on Sunday, finishing second at the preceding Czech Masters and claiming fourth place at this month's Rio Olympics.
"If I would be the captain he would be my pick for sure because he brings something special to the team," Kaymer told Sky Sports television after playing alongside the 24-year-old in the final round in Denmark.
"Thomas hits the ball very far, is very good with the short game and obviously proved he can play under pressure very well."
Kaymer won the 2010 U.S. PGA Championship and 2014 U.S. Open and has featured in the last three Ryder Cups, all won by Europe.
The German has missed out on automatic selection this time but he and experienced Englishman Lee Westwood are expected to be two of Clarke's wildcard choices to play the United States starting on Sept. 30.
The third pick seems to be between Pieters, Scotland's Russell Knox and Graeme McDowell of Northern Ireland who has played in each of the last four editions.
Five of the nine automatic selections, Danny Willett, Chris Wood, Andy Sullivan, Rafa Cabrera-Bello and Matt Fitzpatrick, are Ryder Cup rookies so Clarke may decide to balance his 12-man team by going for experience with his wildcards.
"It would be another great experience of a golfing career to play four Ryder Cups in a row... it would be amazing," said Kaymer who holed the putt that kept the trophy in Europe's possession in the 'Miracle at Medinah' in Illinois in 2012.
(Writing by Tony Jimenez; Editing by Clare Fallon) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-golf-ryder-europe-idUSKCN11421O?feedType=RSS&feedName=sportsNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FsportsNews+%28Reuters+Sports+News%29 | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/7326a7b9fe035372f477aea1747d68230c2a89e729481ff83fcbafe76ffd2563.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-29T20:51:59 | null | 2016-08-29T20:30:13 | Regional Management Corp | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2FidUSASC094Q1%3Ftype%3DcompanyNews%26feedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DcompanyNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FcompanyNews%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BCompany%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | BRIEF-Regional Management increases availability under senior revolving credit facility to $585 mln | null | null | www.reuters.com | Aug 29 Regional Management Corp
* Increases availability under senior revolving credit facility to $585 million
* Credit facility has increased to $585 million from its previous amount of $538 million
* Upper limit of accordion feature of credit facility has also been increased to $650 million from $600 million Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage: | http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSASC094Q1?type=companyNews&feedType=RSS&feedName=companyNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FcompanyNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Company+News%29 | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/141e6836e46cb49922667df1a4e19982670ef9bf5f42d371b9832e9b7818405e.json |
[
"Allison Lampert"
] | 2016-08-29T16:52:11 | null | 2016-08-29T16:33:25 | Canada's National Energy Board canceled the first day of hearings on TransCanada Corp's proposed Energy East pipeline in Montreal on Monday after protesters disrupted the panel session, an agency spokeswoman said. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-transcanada-pipeline-idUSKCN1141O9.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | Protesters shut down TransCanada pipeline hearing in Montreal | null | null | www.reuters.com | MONTREAL Canada's National Energy Board canceled the first day of hearings on TransCanada Corp's proposed Energy East pipeline in Montreal on Monday after protesters disrupted the panel session, an agency spokeswoman said.
Montreal police said three protesters were arrested on obstruction charges, with two of the three also charged with assaulting a police officer.
Footage posted on Twitter by local media showed protesters at the venue standing, clapping and chanting at the panel. TV pictures also showed one man rushing shouting towards the table where the panel was sat before being grabbed by security guards.
Environmental groups opposed to Canadian oil sands development have fought the 1.1 million-barrel-per-day Energy East pipeline, which would carry crude oil from Alberta to Canada's Atlantic coast.
Opposition has been particularly strong in the French-speaking province of Quebec, which the pipeline would need to cross on its way to the coast. Opponents include Montreal Mayor Denis Coderre, who has cited concerns the route could endanger forest and agricultural land.
There is no word yet on a new date for the hearing, said NEB spokeswoman Sarah Kiley.
"Disruptions prevent intervenors from sharing their views and asking their questions," the regulator said in a statement. "Disruptions and disrespectful behavior are not acceptable."
Montreal police could not immediately provide details about whether the protesters came from a specific activist group.
TransCanada spokesman Tim Duboyce said the company was awaiting further instructions from the NEB on how the hearings will proceed.
"We are standing by and ready to respectfully and constructively begin the sessions in Montreal after five such productive sessions in New Brunswick – and we will be ready when the sessions resume," TransCanada said in a statement.
Calgary-based TransCanada also proposed building the controversial Keystone XL pipeline, which was denied a U.S. presidential permit by Barack Obama last year, and is a frequent target of environmental protesters.
Marc-Andre Gosselin, a spokesman for Coderre, said Montreal officials were also waiting to get more information about when the hearings will resume.
Energy East has had several setbacks in Quebec. In March, the provincial government filed an injunction against the pipeline to force an environmental review, which TransCanada later agreed to.
Last November TransCanada scrapped plans to build a marine crude oil export terminal in Quebec after environmentalists raised concerns about the impact of beluga whales in the St. Lawrence River.
(Writing by Nia Williams in Calgary; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn and Marguerita Choy) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-transcanada-pipeline-idUSKCN1141O9 | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/4c125e3c6fdccd8ee3382185b4bf71f7aea2501db3d73f37c164ebd3f2569fff.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-26T13:18:26 | null | 2016-08-26T12:20:53 | RioCan Real Estate Investment Trust | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2FidUSASC094D0%3Ftype%3DcompanyNews%26feedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DcompanyNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FcompanyNews%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BCompany%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | BRIEF-RioCan REIT announces completion of $250 mln public offering of Series X senior unsecured debentures | null | null | www.reuters.com | WRAPUP 1-Declining inventories curb U.S. second-quarter growth; consumption surges
WASHINGTON, Aug 26 U.S. economic growth was a bit more sluggish than initially thought in the second quarter as businesses aggressively ran down stocks of unsold goods, offsetting a spurt in consumer spending. | http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSASC094D0?type=companyNews&feedType=RSS&feedName=companyNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FcompanyNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Company+News%29 | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/57ea2db2e4d80b45721c5d42beabe8f6c1a1771154ad88aa41c692cfcc2c606e.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-29T08:51:51 | null | 2016-08-29T07:18:40 | Follow European and UK stock markets in real time onthe Reuters Live Markets blog on Eikon - see cpurl://apps.cp./cms/?pageId=livemarkets) | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Feurope-stocks-idUSL8N1BA0R8%3Ftype%3DcompanyNews%26feedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DcompanyNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FcompanyNews%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BCompany%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | European shares edge lower; Alstom rises on contract win | null | null | www.reuters.com | (ADVISORY- Follow European and UK stock markets in real time on the Reuters Live Markets blog on Eikon - see cpurl://apps.cp./cms/?pageId=livemarkets)
MILAN Aug 29 European shares were down slightly in opening deals on Monday with Stada among the leading losers after shares in the German drugmaker went ex-dividend, but Alstom soared after a contract win.
The pan-European STOXX 600 index was down 0.1 percent by 0715 GMT, pulling back from gains seen in the previous session. Activity was expected to be thin because UK markets will stay closed for a holiday.
Stada fell 1.2 percent, making it one of the biggest losers on the STOXX. Over the weekend, activist investor Active Ownership Capital succeeded in convincing shareholders of Stada to remove the company's supervisory board chairman in a voting marathon, but failed to install its own candidate.
But Alstom rose more 2 percent after the French transport group signed a 1.8 billion euro ($2 billion) deal to design and build 28 new high-speed trains for U.S. rail operator Amtrak. ($1 = 0.8937 euros) (Reporting by Danilo Masoni) | http://www.reuters.com/article/europe-stocks-idUSL8N1BA0R8?type=companyNews&feedType=RSS&feedName=companyNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FcompanyNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Company+News%29 | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/0035b3a3e99af5348fb3c15f2a43f1a9b21f46daa7536bbe2bbe26935fc73f29.json |
[
"Jill Serjeant"
] | 2016-08-26T17:02:23 | null | 2016-08-26T16:47:09 | Britney Spears is hitting up pop culture one more time, releasing a new album, singing retro karaoke hits and about to take the MTV Video Music Awards (VMA) stage for the first time since 2007. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-people-britneyspears-idUSKCN111210%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DtopNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FtopNews%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BTop%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160826&t=2&i=1151197934&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7P19X | en | null | Oops! Britney Spears does it again in latest pop culture comeback | null | null | www.reuters.com | Millennium Award recipient Britney Spears performs a medley of songs at the 2016 Billboard Awards in Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S., May 22, 2016. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni/File Photo
NEW YORK Britney Spears is hitting up pop culture one more time, releasing a new album, singing retro karaoke hits and about to take the MTV Video Music Awards (VMA) stage for the first time since 2007.
Spears, 34, who became a teen pop phenomenon with breathy, sexually-charged hits like "Toxic" and "Oops!.. I Did it Again," released new album "Glory" on Friday ahead of a much anticipated return to the VMA show on Sunday in New York.
She also became the latest superstar to ride, sing and chat with U.S. talk show host James Corden for his viral "Carpool Karaoke" segment, where both donned the schoolgirl uniforms that shot her to fame as a 16-year old in the 1998 music video for "... Baby One More Time."
Spears dominated pop music before undergoing a personal and career meltdown in 2006-2007 that included shaving her signature blonde locks, losing custody of her two children and being placed under a court-ordered conservatorship.
She made a comeback in late 2008 and for the past three years has been performing a nightly show in Las Vegas. But the new album and the anticipation surrounding her VMA performance have thrust her back in the national spotlight.
Rolling Stone's Rob Sheffield said "Glory" was "another fantastic comeback" for Spears, in which she "goes back to the fizzy electro-stomp mode she does best."
"Glory" was top of the iTunes charts in more than 40 nations on Friday, including Saudi Arabia, Chile and Russia.
Billboard's Jennifer Keishin Armstrong said that with the single and music video for "Make Me", Spear had "reclaimed her standout talent, a distinctive dance style that combines cheerleader precision with slinky bits of burlesque."
Spears will perform "Make Me," with rapper G-Eazy, at the live VMA show, her first appearance there since her halting performance of "Gimme More" in 2007 when her career hit a low.
"She has had such a huge impact on this show throughout her career, so for us to have her back is a no-brainer," said Garrett English, executive producer of the VMA show.
"She embodies what the VMAs is to a large extent and she has had some of the biggest moments on this stage, and I think Sunday night will be the same," English added.
Spears is also to be the subject of a 2017 TV biopic for the Lifetime cable channel that will chart her rise to fame along with her stumbles, and her romances with Justin Timberlake and ex-husbands Jason Alexander and Kevin Federline.
(Reporting by Jill Serjeant; Editing by Alistair Bell) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-people-britneyspears-idUSKCN111210?feedType=RSS&feedName=topNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FtopNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Top+News%29 | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/448579c8408ef7098d2d2e7a49ab03b8ce8acff07004d2b072c56cea24fbb411.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-30T20:59:48 | null | 2016-08-30T18:54:16 | Pastor Marks Burns, a prominent supporter of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, apologized on Tuesday for sending out a tweet that showed a cartoon image of Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton in blackface. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-usa-election-trump-burns-idUSKCN1152IO%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DpoliticsNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2BReuters%252FPoliticsNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BPolitics%2BNews%2529.json | http://s2.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160830&t=2&i=1151625530&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7T1HD | en | null | Trump booster apologizes for Clinton 'blackface' tweet | null | null | www.reuters.com | WASHINGTON Pastor Marks Burns, a prominent supporter of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, apologized on Tuesday for sending out a tweet that showed a cartoon image of Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton in blackface.
Burns, an African-American who is frequently one of the warmup speakers at Trump rallies, sent out the tweet on Monday to bolster the Trump campaign's contention that Clinton is pandering for the black vote but will ignore the community if elected on Nov. 8.
"I ain't no ways pandering to African Americans," the cartoon image says.
The tweet emerged at a time when Trump has been trying to broaden his appeal to African-American voters by saying he wants to create more jobs and make black neighborhoods safe so people can walk down the street without getting shot.
After Burns began taking fire for the tweet, he deleted it and apologized for the image but not his message.
"I'm so sorry for the offensive #Blackface image of @HillaryClinton but stand by the message that we Blacks ARE being Used by #Dems for VOTES," Burns said.
(Reporting by Steve Holland; Editing by Leslie Adler) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-election-trump-burns-idUSKCN1152IO?feedType=RSS&feedName=politicsNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Reuters%2FPoliticsNews+%28Reuters+Politics+News%29 | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/f5828258f99d9223a25752cfd227ff70ec52fdbf78582eae5daf1805327080c4.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-30T14:52:32 | null | 2016-08-30T14:46:13 | Buyout group Blackstone is in talks to acquire German real estate group Officefirst in a potential 3 billion euro ($3.6 billion) deal, three people familiar with the matter said. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-ivgimmobilien-sale-idUSKCN1151W2.json | http://s3.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160830&t=2&i=1151591475&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7T12L | en | null | Blackstone in talks to buy real estate group Officefirst: sources | null | null | www.reuters.com | The ticker and trading information for Blackstone Group is displayed at the post where it is traded on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) April 4, 2016. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid - RTSDKHE
FRANKFURT Buyout group Blackstone is in talks to acquire German real estate group Officefirst in a potential 3 billion euro ($3.6 billion) deal, three people familiar with the matter said.
Officefirst, which comprises a portfolio of about 100 German office buildings, including the landmark Squaire at Frankfurt airport, is being auctioned off by property group IVG.
The sale is being pursued alongside a possible listing of the unit.
IVG and its hedge fund owners hope to lock in high prices in the country's buoyant property market, and IVG will decide around mid-September whether to pursue with the listing or whether to sell the company outright, these people said.
A sale would allow IVG to divest the whole company at once, while an IPO would only allow IVG to sell an initial stake of about half of Officefirst's shares, with the remaining shares sold off in subsequent placements, these people said.
Since a revaluation of Officefirst's properties in late 2015, its current enterprise value stands at 3.25 billion euros, with equity accounting for about 1.25 billion euros and debt for the rest.
People familiar with the company have said that IVG is hoping to see Officefirst's equity valued at about 1.5 billion euros in a potential IPO, with shares worth 700-900 million euros placed with investors. Some of the proceeds would be used to pay down debt.
Private equity groups are generally more comfortable holding companies with higher debt levels, and Blackstone is expected to offer to buy Officefirst for up to 3 billion euros including debt, one of the people said.
IVG went through insolvency proceedings in 2013 after cost overruns at its Squaire premises made debt levels unsustainable.
It is rare for multi billion-euro portfolios to come onto the market, and a number of investors are vying for German property exposure, which promises comparatively high yields in the current low interest rate environment.
However, several initial suitors - such as property groups Alstria or Patrizia - are no longer pursuing the asset, the people said.
IVG and Blackstone declined to comment.
($1 = 0.8956 euros)
(Reporting by Kathrin Jones, Arno Schuetze and Alexander Huebner; Editing by Edward Taylor) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-ivgimmobilien-sale-idUSKCN1151W2 | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/2721db2df950e783cae1735dae42a40af01fc451196c6056b61294dd6f715f32.json |
[
"Steve Scherer",
"Gabriele Pileri"
] | 2016-08-26T13:21:15 | null | 2016-08-26T12:51:08 | Hopes of finding more survivors faded on Friday three days after a powerful earthquake hit central Italy, with the death toll rising to 267 and the rescue operation in some of the stricken areas called off. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-italy-quake-toll-idUSKCN1110FV%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DtopNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FtopNews%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BTop%2BNews%2529.json | http://s2.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160826&t=2&i=1151153598&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7P0KC | en | null | Italy quake death toll hits 267, state funeral planned | null | null | www.reuters.com | A drone photo shows the damages following an earthquake in Pescara del Tronto, central Italy, August 25, 2016. REUTERS/Stefano De Nicolo
Members of a Chinese rescue team are seen following an earthquake in Amatrice, central Italy, August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Ciro De Luca
A collapsed house is seen following an earthquake at Pescara del Tronto, central Italy, August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Max Rossi
A coffee toy kit is seen on debris outside a damaged house, following an earthquake in Pescara del Tronto, central Italy August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Max Rossi
A woman stands next to a firefighter as he takes out belongings from her house following an earthquake in Pescara del Tronto, central Italy, August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Max Rossi
The interior of a damaged house is seen following an earthquake at Pescara del Tronto, central Italy, August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Max Rossi
A man sits on the rubble of a collapsed building following an earthquake in Amatrice, central Italy, August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Ciro De Luca
The interior of a damaged house is seen following an earthquake in Pescara del Tronto, central Italy, August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Max Rossi
Rescue workers take a rest following an earthquake in Amatrice, central Italy, August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Ciro De Luca
A car covered by debris is seen near a collapsed house following an earthquake in Pescara del Tronto, central Italy August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Max Rossi
A car covered by debris is seen following an earthquake at Pescara del Tronto, central Italy, August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Max Rossi
The partially collapsed school is seen following an earthquake in Amatrice, central Italy, August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Ciro De Luca
A road sign is seen in front of a collapsed house following an earthquake in Amatrice, central Italy, August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Ciro De Luca
Friars talk with a survivor in a tent camp set up as temporary shelter following an earthquake at Pescara del Tronto, central Italy, August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Max Rossi
Collapsed houses are seen following an earthquake in Pescara del Tronto, central Italy, August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Max Rossi
Two survivors hug at a tent camp set up as temporary shelter following an earthquake in Pescara del Tronto, central Italy, August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Max Rossi
The interior of a damaged house is seen following an earthquake at Pescara del Tronto, central Italy, August 26, 2016. REUTERS/Max Rossi
PESCARA DEL TRONTO, Italy Hopes of finding more survivors faded on Friday three days after a powerful earthquake hit central Italy, with the death toll rising to 267 and the rescue operation in some of the stricken areas called off.
Sniffer dogs and emergency crews continued to scour piles of rubble in Amatrice, a picturesque town popular with tourists which was leveled by Wednesday's quake and where 207 bodies have been retrieved so far.
But in nearby villages, such as Pescara del Tronto, rescuers pulled out after all the missing had been accounted for.
Italy plans to hold a state funeral for around 40 of the victims on Saturday, which will be held in the nearby city of Ascoli Piceno.
A day of national mourning was announced, with flags due to fly at half mast around the country for the dead, who include a number of foreigners.
The civil protection department in Rome said nearly 400 people were being treated for injuries in hospitals, 40 of them in critical condition. An estimated 2,500 people were left homeless by the most deadly quake in Italy since 2009.
Survivors with nowhere else to go are sleeping in neat rows of blue tents set up by emergency services close to their flattened communities.
"It was quite a tough night because you have a significant change in temperature here. During the day, it is very, very hot and at night it is very, very cold," said Anna Maria Ciuccarelli of Arquata del Tronto.
"There are still aftershocks preceded by booms and, for those of us who have just lived through an earthquake, it has a great effect, particularly psychologically," she said.
More than 920 aftershocks have hit the area since the original 6.2 magnitude quake struck early Wednesday.
"We have removed the last bodies that we knew about," said Paolo Cortelli, a member of the Alpine Rescue national service who helped to recover about 30 bodies from Pescara del Tronto.
"We don't know, and we might never know, if the number of missing that we knew about actually corresponds to the people who were actually under the rubble."
The foreigners who died in the disaster included six Romanians, a Spanish woman, a Canadian and an Albanian. The British embassy in Rome declined to comment on reports that three Britons, including a 14-year-old boy had died.
The area is popular with holidaymakers and local authorities were struggling to pin down how many visitors were present when the quake hit. The Romanian Foreign Ministry said 17 Romanians were still missing.
Italy has a large Romanian community, and some of the victims were resident in the country.
FUNERAL
The first funeral of a victim was held in Rome on Friday, for Marco Santarelli, the 28-year-old son of a senior state official, who died in the family's holiday home in Amatrice.
"I cannot find the words to describe the grief of a father who outlives his own children. Perhaps there are no words," Marco's father, Filippo Santarelli, told Corriere della Sera newspaper.
Hardly a single building was left unscathed in Amatrice, which was last year voted one of the most beautiful old towns in Italy and is famous for its local cuisine.
"Amatrice will have to be razed to the ground," said mayor Sergio Pirozzi.
Prime Minister Matteo Renzi has declared a state of emergency for the region, allowing the government to release an immediate 50 million euros ($56 million) for the relief work.
He has promised to rebuild the shattered homes and said he would also renew efforts to bolster Italy's flimsy defenses against earthquakes that regularly batter the country.
"We want those communities to have the chance of a future and not just memories," he told reporters in Rome on Thursday.
Italy has a poor record of rebuilding after quakes. About 8,300 people who were forced to leave their homes after a deadly earthquake in L'Aquila in 2009 are still living in temporary accommodation.
Renzi declined to predict when the homeless might be rehoused. "This is not about setting challenges and making promises. We need the pace of a marathon runner," he said.
Most of the buildings in the area were built hundreds of years ago, long before any anti-seismic building norms were introduced, helping to explain the widespread destruction.
Cultural Minister Dario Franceschini said all 293 culturally important sites, many of them churches, had either collapsed or been seriously damaged.
Italy sits on two fault lines, making it one of the most seismically active countries in Europe. Almost 30 people died in earthquakes in northern Italy in 2012 while more than 300 died in the L'Aquila disaster.
($1 = 0.8857 euros)
(This version of the story has been refiled to edit headline)
(Writing by Crispian Balmer and Philip Pullella, editing by David Stamp) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-italy-quake-toll-idUSKCN1110FV?feedType=RSS&feedName=topNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FtopNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Top+News%29 | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/d30bcaa8bd2528ebec7c8ac6d7ff2905b245588a2f21bf41e9f24823bfad95cb.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-29T14:52:01 | null | 2016-08-29T14:38:59 | Nanjing Xinjiekou Department Store Co Ltd | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2FidUSL3N1BA411%3Ftype%3DcompanyNews%26feedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DcompanyNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FcompanyNews%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BCompany%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | BRIEF-Nanjing Xinjiekou Department Store scraps plan to acquire stakes in China Cord Blood Corp | null | null | www.reuters.com | UPDATE 1-Truck carrying Takata air bag inflators explodes in U.S., killing one
Aug 29 A truck that was transporting Takata Corp air bag inflators and propellants at the centre of a global recall exploded in Texas last week, killing one woman and injuring four other people, the auto parts supplier said on Monday. | http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSL3N1BA411?type=companyNews&feedType=RSS&feedName=companyNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FcompanyNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Company+News%29 | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/601413cacc3ed9c1adaf2ec1c5ec78484c9ff72d3e3acfe4a19981bbf59ef03a.json |
[
"Fatos Bytyci"
] | 2016-08-30T17:04:56 | null | 2016-08-30T16:42:13 | High in the Cursed Mountains that span Kosovo and Montenegro, lumberjack Rame Elezaj and his family have earned a living from their trees for decades. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-kosovo-politics-eu-idUSKCN11521X%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DworldNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2BReuters%252FworldNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BWorld%2BNews%2529.json | http://s3.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160830&t=2&i=1151608650&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7T19J | en | null | Border deal with Montenegro stirs tensions in Kosovo | null | null | www.reuters.com | A graffiti, which reads: 'Kosovo to Qakorr' (regarding demarcation of the border with Montenegro), is pictured at a crossroad in the village of Haxaj, Peja, in Kosovo, near the border with Montenegro, August 28, 2016. REUTERS/Hazir Reka
Ramiz Selimaj, 53, points in the directon of the border with Montenegro, in the village of Haxhaj, Kosovo, August 28, 2016. REUTERS/Hazir Reka
Ramiz Selimaj, 53, walks in the village of Haxhaj in Kosovo, near the border with Montenegro, August 28, 2016. REUTERS/Hazir Reka
A general view is seen from the village of Haxhaj in Kosovo, near the border with Montenegro, August 28, 2016. REUTERS/Hazir Reka
An old man is pictured in Liqenat/The Lakes in Kosovo, near the border with Montenegro, August 28, 2016. REUTERS/Hazir Reka
A general view is seen from the village of Haxhaj in Kosovo, near the border with Montenegro, August 28, 2016. REUTERS/Hazir Reka
Children play in a river in the village of Haxhaj in Kosovo, near the border with Montenegro, August 28, 2016. REUTERS/Hazir Reka
Ramiz Selimaj, 53, points towards the border with Montenegro from his village of Haxhaj, Kosovo, August 28, 2016. REUTERS/Hazir Reka
RUGOVA MOUNTAINS, Kosovo High in the Cursed Mountains that span Kosovo and Montenegro, lumberjack Rame Elezaj and his family have earned a living from their trees for decades.
But if Kosovo's parliament approves a border deal with Montenegro on Thursday, all 4.5 hectares of Elezaj's land will designated to be in another country, while his house will remain in Kosovo.
"We have always used this land and Montenegro never had any issues, and now our government wants to give it away for free," the 61-year-old told Reuters.
For decades after World War Two, villagers never viewed the administrative lines that criss-crossed Yugoslavia as anything but notional boundaries that had little impact on everyday life.
But years after that communist state was ripped apart by the Balkan wars in the 1990s, border disputes remain one of many difficulties in untangling the former Yugoslavia, along with ethnic hostility, violence and political gridlock.
With no border markers in the craggy 1,700-metre (5,600-feet) mountains, Elezaj believed all his land was in Kosovo, but has no documents to prove it.
Western allies have told Kosovo that clarifying borders with its ex-Yugoslav foes, including Montenegro, is a prerequisite to getting closer ties with the European Union, in particular securing visa-free travel.
But the deal between the two governments has sparked violent protests throughout Kosovo. Six people were arrested on Tuesday on suspicion of launching a rocket-propelled grenade at parliament and nationalist lawmakers have released tear gas inside the chamber several times in protest.
The opposition says the agreement hands over some 8,000 hectares (20,000 acres) of territory to Montenegro, a claim the government denies.
"Kosovo is losing 8,200 hectares ... it is losing water sources and lakes," said Donika Kadaj Bujupi, a lawmaker from the biggest opposition party, Vetevendosje, and someone who has herself released tear gas inside parliament.
"We will defend the land with our blood," Elezaj said.
Vetevendosje has said it will do everything it can, both inside and outside parliament, to stop the assembly approving the border deal. The government also faces objections from a number of its own lawmakers who have said they will not back the deal.
ATTENTION ELSEWHERE
Kosovo broke from Serbia in 1999 when NATO bombed for 11 weeks to halt the killing and expulsion of ethnic Albanian civilians by Serbian forces trying to crush a two-year insurgency.
After almost a decade as a ward of the United Nations, the majority-Albanian territory declared independence in 2008. It has been recognized by more than 100 countries, including the major Western powers, but not Serbia and its big-power ally Russia or several EU members such as Spain.
It still struggles with the legacy of war. Corruption and poverty are rife, and a gradual improvement in relations with Serbia, mandated by the EU, is fraught with setbacks.
EU officials have used a policy of 'carrots and sticks' to guide governments both in Pristina and in Belgrade toward closer integration with the EU, with the Montenegro border deal just the latest requirement.
But EU diplomats say Kosovo may have to wait longer to win visa-free travel, even if the agreement is ratified in time for a September debate in the European Parliament.
The bloc's attention is focused elsewhere, diplomats say, with some hoping to lift visas for Georgians ahead of an election there in October, while others want to focus on Turkey, crucial to stemming migrant flows to Europe.
"Nobody really talks about Kosovo all that much," one EU diplomat said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The huge numbers of Kosovars claiming asylum in the EU - from where they are invariably deported - does not help its case to get visa-free travel and it is the last of the former Yugoslav republics still to win that privilege.
In the first quarter of 2015, nearly 50,000 Kosovars claimed asylum in the EU, mostly in Germany, more in that period than Syrians fleeing their civil war. EU countries consider most of them economic migrants, ineligible for asylum.
Border issues between Yugoslav republics remain unresolved 17 years since nearly a decade of wars ended in 1999. Even two EU member states -- Slovenia and Croatia -- still dispute over one part of the border going through the Adriatic Sea.
(Additional reporting by Gabriela Baczyska in BRUSSELS and Aleksandar Vasovic in BELGRADE; Editing by Ivana Sekularac and Robin Pomeroy) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-kosovo-politics-eu-idUSKCN11521X?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Reuters%2FworldNews+%28Reuters+World+News%29 | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/84b58f2fae1c96d982b4a97cde895dd4d9edb5fb8b43624be576540f6a03cd05.json |
[
"Henning Gloystein"
] | 2016-08-29T02:50:25 | null | 2016-08-29T01:01:05 | Oil prices fell early on Monday as output from Iraq rose and as Iran said it would only cooperate in upcoming producer talks to freeze output if fellow exporters recognized its right to fully regain market share. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-global-oil-idUSKCN11402N%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DbusinessNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FbusinessNews%2B%2528Business%2BNews%2529.json | http://s2.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160829&t=2&i=1151387681&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7S013 | en | null | Oil prices fall on rising Iraq output, doubt over producer talk prospects | null | null | www.reuters.com | SINGAPORE Oil prices fell early on Monday as output from Iraq rose and as Iran said it would only cooperate in upcoming producer talks to freeze output if fellow exporters recognized its right to fully regain market share.
International Brent crude oil futures LCOc1 were trading at $49.54 per barrel at 0043 GMT (8.43 p.m. ET), down 38 cents from their previous close.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures were down 43 cents at $47.21 a barrel.
Traders said the price falls were a result of climbing output from the Middle East, where oil exports from Iraq's southern ports have averaged 3.205 million barrels per day (bpd) in August, exceeding the average level seen in July, according to two officials from state-run South Oil Company said. Exports in July averaged 3.202 million bpd.
Also, Iran said late last week that it would only cooperate in upcoming producer talks in September if other exporters recognized Tehran's right to regain market share lost during international sanctions that were only lifted in January.
Analysts said that disagreements within the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), and especially its key members Saudi Arabia and Iran, meant few expected a significant impact on global output from the upcoming talks.
"The market is increasingly likely to discount the outcome of the event, given, even in the instance of a freeze being agreed, compliance will be an issue," Barclays said.
Despite this, the British bank said that it saw "incoming oil market data (both demand and supply) as a source for price strength in Q4".
(Reporting by Henning Gloystein; Editing by Joseph Radford) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-global-oil-idUSKCN11402N?feedType=RSS&feedName=businessNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FbusinessNews+%28Business+News%29 | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/d3d17a2ae9405b11ec7080feb9631d3318df19f40f0ab1b1d8efaeca83cefa6d.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-26T21:01:29 | null | 2016-08-26T20:41:29 | Illinois faces an estimated $420 million increase in fiscal 2017 pension contributions after the state's biggest public retirement system on Friday lowered its assumed investment rate of return to 7 percent from 7.5 percent. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-illinois-pensions-idUSKCN1112AR%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DdomesticNews.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | Illinois pension fund lowers investment rate, hikes state payment | null | null | www.reuters.com | CHICAGO Illinois faces an estimated $420 million increase in fiscal 2017 pension contributions after the state's biggest public retirement system on Friday lowered its assumed investment rate of return to 7 percent from 7.5 percent.
The Teachers' Retirement System (TRS) board, acting on recommendations from its actuarial consultant, voted to lower the rate, a move that will trigger an increase in the state's nearly $3.9 billion payment to the fund for the fiscal year that began on July 1.
Top officials in Republican Governor Bruce Rauner's administration had tried to head off the vote, warning of a "devastating impact" on the cash-strapped state's ability to fund social services and education.
"While some seem to think otherwise, nothing we are considering today is precipitate or rushed. We are following well-established procedures that are consistent with good actuarial practice and conform with the recommendations of the state actuary," TRS Executive Director Dick Ingram told the board before the vote.
A March report by a bipartisan legislative commission had pegged Illinois' total fiscal 2017 pension payment to its five retirement systems at $7.9 billion, up from $7.617 billion in fiscal 2016 and $6.9 billion in fiscal 2015.
The unfunded pension liability of the fifth-biggest U.S. state stood at $111 billion at the end of fiscal 2015, with TRS accounting for more than 55 percent of that gap. The funded ratio was a weak 41.9 percent.
(Reporting by Karen Pierog and Dave McKinney; Editing by Meredith Mazzilli and Matthew Lewis) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-illinois-pensions-idUSKCN1112AR?feedType=RSS&feedName=domesticNews | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/d6dd50aa7d85149512100bb1f9dfb36b0cf44208872af605b23e28ab0f25df95.json |
[
"Ross Kerber"
] | 2016-08-29T18:54:38 | null | 2016-08-29T18:35:03 | BlackRock Inc withheld support from two high-profile directors at Exxon Mobil Corp, securities filings show, a rare spat apparently driven by a board communications policy at the world's largest energy company. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-exxon-directors-blackrock-idUSKCN11417F%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DPersonalFinance%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Bnews%252Fwealth%2B%2528Reuters%2BWealth%2BNews%2529.json | http://s2.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160829&t=2&i=1151479905&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7S0L3 | en | null | BlackRock withheld support from two key Exxon directors: filings | null | null | www.reuters.com | The BlackRock sign is pictured in the Manhattan borough of New York, in this October 11, 2015 file photo. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz/Files
BOSTON BlackRock Inc withheld support from two high-profile directors at Exxon Mobil Corp, securities filings show, a rare spat apparently driven by a board communications policy at the world's largest energy company.
Because top fund managers like BlackRock rarely discuss their votes in detail, filings in late August to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission provide a rare window into the influential ballots they cast at springtime shareholder meetings like the one held by Exxon on May 25, one of this year's more contentious.
BlackRock, which manages nearly $5 trillion, has been criticized for largely supporting company managers on matters like executive pay or electing directors. BlackRock funds have backed corporate directors around 97 percent of the time since 2013, according to research firm Proxy Insight, and mostly backed Exxon at this year's meeting such as opposing shareholder proposals addressing climate change.
BlackRock executives say they prefer to press companies behind the scenes, and vote against management only when such engagement fails. But in a rare break, filings on Friday showed funds including the $45 billion BlackRock Global Allocation Fund withheld support from Exxon directors Jay Fishman and Kenneth Frazier this year.
Fishman, who recently passed away, had been CEO of insurer Travelers. Frazier is CEO of drugmaker Merck & Co.
While spokesman for BlackRock and Exxon declined to comment, BlackRock's reasoning for the votes appears to be spelled out in a recent governance report on its website. The report describes how BlackRock executives tried to discuss strategy and capital allocation with independent directors of an unnamed "large oil and gas corporation," but were rebuffed because of a policy against such talks.
As a result, BlackRock said it withheld support from the company's lead independent director and the chair of the committee that set the policy. Fishman had been Exxon's "presiding director," meant to provide independent board leadership according to Exxon's proxy statement, while Frazier led its board affairs committee.
The two were re-elected with 88 and 90 percent of votes cast, respectively, down from 95 and 98 percent in 2015. BlackRock is Exxon's second-largest shareholder with about 6 percent of its stock, according to the proxy. Exxon's other directors got no less than 95 percent support this year.
How much contact independent directors should have with outsiders has become a loaded issue because of the rise of activist investors pushing disruptive agendas.
Asked about BlackRock's concern, Exxon spokesman Alan Jeffers cited a webpage outlining board communications procedures, which do not directly address the matter. But Tim Smith, who leads shareholder engagement efforts at Walden Asset Management, said Exxon executives have described at meetings the sort of policy criticized by BlackRock.
Filings also showed BlackRock funds did not back resolutions at 3M Co, Illinois Tool Works Inc or Xerox Corp calling on the companies to exclude the impact of share buybacks when calculating executive pay, even though the resolutions cited the concerns about buybacks raised by BlackRock CEO Larry Fink.
(Reporting by Ross Kerber in Boston; Editing by Andrea Ricci) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-exxon-directors-blackrock-idUSKCN11417F?feedType=RSS&feedName=PersonalFinance&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+news%2Fwealth+%28Reuters+Wealth+News%29 | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/95a98ba481d31ee86c62f29d178d043bff16ec33bd20173cf1436f468ffefbed.json |
[
"Fatos Bytyci"
] | 2016-08-30T11:04:58 | null | 2016-08-30T10:55:24 | Kosovo police arrested six people on Tuesday in connection with a grenade fired at the parliament building earlier this month that was claimed by a hardline nationalist group. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-kosovo-politics-arrests-idUSKCN11517G%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DworldNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2BReuters%252FworldNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BWorld%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | Kosovo police arrest six in connection with blast outside parliament | null | null | www.reuters.com | PRISTINA Kosovo police arrested six people on Tuesday in connection with a grenade fired at the parliament building earlier this month that was claimed by a hardline nationalist group.
The suspects are all members of the biggest opposition party, Vetevendosje, whose lawmakers have released teargas in parliament several times over the past year while its supporters clashed with police outside.
They oppose an EU-brokered accord with Serbia giving more autonomy to Serb-held areas of Kosovo and a border deal with Montenegro, both of which are essential for building closer ties with the European Union.
While making the arrests, police recovered three automatic rifles, two pistols and a rifle with a telescopic sight, police and prosecutors said in a joint statement.
The attack on parliament happened on Aug. 4, when two motorcyclists fired a rocket-propelled grenade as they drove past. The building was damaged but no one was hurt.
"We have identified the suspects who planned, organized and executed the attack and also have taken responsibility for carrying out this attack," police and prosecutors said in the statement.
The leader of Vetevendosje said the arrests were political.
"Today's arrests are a classic act of how political opponents are persecuted,” Visar Ymeri told a news conference.
He added that his party would do everything it could, both inside and outside parliament, to stop the assembly approving the border deal with Montenegro at a vote scheduled for Thursday.
The deal, endorsed by the government, is a pre-condition for Kosovo to eventually get visa-free travel with the European Union. Its opponents say it should be renegotiated because it would take 8,200 hectares of territory out of Kosovo.
On Sunday a hand grenade was thrown at the home of the head of Kosovo's state broadcaster and a week earlier an explosive device was thrown into the courtyard of the TV's headquarters.
Both attacks were claimed by a group opposed to the border deal, but it was unclear whether the six arrested on Tuesday were linked to that group.
Landlocked Kosovo, most of whose 1.8 million citizens are ethnic Albanian, declared independence from Serbia in 2008 but is not recognized by Belgrade.
(Editing by Ivana Sekularac and Robin Pomeroy) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-kosovo-politics-arrests-idUSKCN11517G?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Reuters%2FworldNews+%28Reuters+World+News%29 | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/1dc171cc6d9ad2a2a5b592f8e8b63813672383e14c47db372aa453fbd1e03f4f.json |
[
"Nate Raymond"
] | 2016-08-30T23:02:13 | null | 2016-08-30T22:28:59 | A Turkish gold trader accused of conspiring to violate U.S. sanctions against Iran on Tuesday asked a federal judge to recuse himself, citing remarks he made about a series of earlier Turkish prosecutions targeting him and others. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-usa-iran-zarrab-idUSKCN1152U0%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DdomesticNews.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | Turkish gold trader seeks U.S. judge's recusal in Iran sanctions case | null | null | www.reuters.com | NEW YORK A Turkish gold trader accused of conspiring to violate U.S. sanctions against Iran on Tuesday asked a federal judge to recuse himself, citing remarks he made about a series of earlier Turkish prosecutions targeting him and others.
Lawyers for Reza Zarrab, 33, filed the motion a week before the judge they want recused, U.S. District Judge Richard Berman in Manhattan, was set to hear arguments over whether to dismiss the indictment against Zarrab, a wealthy businessman.
Berman's chambers declined comment. Spokesmen for Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara, whose office is prosecuting the case, did not respond to requests for comment.
U.S. authorities arrested Zarrab in March and accused him and two others of engaging in hundreds of millions of dollars of transactions on behalf of Iran's government and Iranian entities from 2010 to 2015 in a scheme to evade U.S. sanctions.
Iranian-born Zarrab, who has pleaded not guilty, is being held without bail, after Berman in June rejected his request to be released on a $50 million bond and be detained at a Manhattan apartment.
Tuesday's motion focused on comments Berman made in 2014 at an Istanbul conference and in Turkish media following the collapse of a high-profile investigation in Turkey involving government officials and Zarrab.
In that case, Turkish prosecutors charged Zarrab in December 2013, along with several others, and accused him of paying cabinet-level governmental officials and bank officers bribes to facilitate transactions benefiting Iran.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, who was then prime minister and who U.S. prosecutors said has "close ties" to Zarrab, at the time cast the case as a coup attempt orchestrated by his political enemies.
Several prosecutors were removed from the case, police investigators reassigned, and the investigation was dropped.
In his 2014 remarks, Berman commented on the Turkish probe, calling it "inappropriate to change the rules of the game while the game is taking place," Zarrab's lawyers said. Berman also said "rule of law is under attack in Turkey," the lawyers added.
Zarrab's lawyers said "reasonable observers could conclude that the court already formulated opinions, prior to this case, bearing on Mr. Zarrab's purported criminality and his relationship with officials of the Turkish government."
Zarrab's lawyers added the conference was sponsored by a law firm where several lawyers were charged after July's coup attempt in Turkey, which has led to purges of the military, civil service, judiciary and academia.
(Reporting by Nate Raymond in New York; Editing by Alan Crosby) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-iran-zarrab-idUSKCN1152U0?feedType=RSS&feedName=domesticNews | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/65d3856031971298310784145ddb7694c96bb1f0abfd3aa66ec60a6ef28f8a19.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-27T00:51:07 | null | 2016-08-27T00:13:02 | Venezuela has signed over $5.5 billion in mining deals with companies including Canada's Barrick Gold Corp (ABX.TO) and China's Shandong Gold, President Nicolas Maduro said on Friday. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-venezuela-mining-idUSKCN1112BR.json | http://s1.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160827&t=2&i=1151236495&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7Q001 | en | null | Venezuela says signs $5.5 bln mining deals with companies | null | null | www.reuters.com | Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro smiles while speaking during a meeting with representatives of the mining sector in Caracas, Venezuela, August 26, 2016, in this handout provided by Miraflores Palace. Miraflores Palace/Handout via REUTERS
CARACAS Venezuela has signed over $5.5 billion in mining deals with companies including Canada's Barrick Gold Corp (ABX.TO) and China's Shandong Gold, President Nicolas Maduro said on Friday.
Barrick, the world's largest gold producer, said in a statement that "at the invitation of the government, we intend to review information pertaining to mining opportunities in the country."
A spokesman for the Toronto-based company did not respond to questions about spending or development plans in the country.
"Today we are signing investments and letters of commitment for projects for over $5.5 billion," said Maduro in a televised meeting with foreign mining executives.
The deals are part of a plan to ease the OPEC nation's grave economic crisis that has caused food shortages and supermarket riots.
Earlier this month, Maduro said Venezuela had struck $4.5 billion in mining deals with foreign and domestic companies. He also said that he expected $20 billion in mining investment contracts to be signed in coming days.
It was unclear if the $5.5 billion were part of the broader $20 billion investments.
(Reporting by Diego Ore and Susan Taylor in Toronto, writing by Alexandra Ulmer; editing by Meredith Mazzilli, Bernard Orr) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-mining-idUSKCN1112BR | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/5770a3cd5c04775ef04b4017eefdb54be2c015c2af41f0dfce40fbb20666dfa2.json |
[
"Alastair Macdonald"
] | 2016-08-28T07:02:37 | null | 2016-08-28T05:55:07 | The European Union grinds back into action this week after its August break, still dazed by Britain's midsummer vote to quit the EU and facing much the same "polycrisis" as a year ago: a mass of refugees, a fragile economy, hostile Russians and, yes, those Brits, now more awkward than ever. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-europe-eu-crises-analysis-idUSKCN113049%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DtopNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FtopNews%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BTop%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160828&t=2&i=1151326933&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7R01V | en | null | New tans, same old 'polycrisis' as Europe's summer ends | null | null | www.reuters.com | BRUSSELS The European Union grinds back into action this week after its August break, still dazed by Britain's midsummer vote to quit the EU and facing much the same "polycrisis" as a year ago: a mass of refugees, a fragile economy, hostile Russians and, yes, those Brits, now more awkward than ever.
When President Jean-Claude Juncker makes his annual State of the Union address to Parliament in Strasbourg on Sept. 14, he might easily repeat last year's warning: the EU had a "last chance" to save itself from a tide of centrifugal nationalisms.
Last week, the EU's remaining Big Three -- German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Francois Hollande and their host, Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi -- felt they needed to renew their vows at the wellspring of the union, the island of Ventotene, where in 1941 prisoners of Mussolini wrote a manifesto for a united Europe.
That they met on the deck of the aircraft carrier Garibaldi reinforced the sense of beleaguered leaders rallying to the EU's defense as they contemplated an obstacle-strewn political calendar for the year ahead.
The EU leaders are first preparing for a summit on Sept. 16 in Bratislava -- without Britain -- that aims to sketch out a post-Brexit future for the Union.
On Oct. 2, Hungary's right-wing prime minister, Viktor Orban, is set to deliver another slap to Brussels: a largely symbolic referendum to reject an EU quota system for relocating refugees among member states -- a scheme Juncker invested much capital in a year ago, but which has barely got off the ground.
TRUMP
On Nov. 8, Orban is hoping for victory for a man he calls the "valiant" Donald Trump in the U.S. presidential election. Few of Orban's EU peers are so enthusiastic. They see Trump as a disruptive maverick whose endorsement of and by Brexiteer-in-chief Nigel Farage marks him as no friend of the Union.
A Trump win could snap a transatlantic coalition on Russia that is already fraying in Europe, where governments from Paris to Bratislava are seeking a review of Ukraine-related sanctions when measures expire at year's end. Trump might also inject a new dose of post-Brexit uncertainty for world trade.
At home, all the Big Three leaders face their own electoral challenges from euroskeptics.
It starts with Renzi, today trying to persuade Italians he has the youthful energy for rebuilding after the latest earthquake in the Apennines, unlike the scandal-tainted Silvio Berlusconi at L'Aquila in 2009, when more than 300 people died.
Probably in November, Renzi will put to a referendum the constitutional reforms he says are needed to break a political deadlock that is choking the Italian economy. Polls are tight and the euroskeptic upstarts 5-Star are gunning for the socialist premier, who is expected to resign if he loses.
Hollande is threatened with a drubbing on April 23 at the hands of far-right National Front leader Marine Le Pen in the first round of France's presidential election.
Her appeal has been enhanced by Islamic State carnage in Paris and Nice and the summer row about burkinis on the beaches, although pollsters doubt she can win a May 7 runoff vote against Hollande or any other survivor from a mainstream party.
As for Merkel, she has yet to confirm she wants a fourth term at parliamentary elections due in just over a year. The biggest threat to her re-election remains her decision last year to welcome a million migrants to Germany as EU borders buckled. That has already weakened support for her conservative party.
HARDBALL
Such threats to domestic survival have often spurred leaders to take potshots at Brussels -- even if only the British have taken it to the length of turning most voters against the EU entirely. But even if little has changed in Brussels since last summer, optimists might see reason to hope for more unity now.
While rows go on about how, indeed whether, EU states should share out the burden of asylum-seekers stranded in Greece and Italy, what is new is how few are arriving, at least in Greece.
Rights groups were outraged this year by hard-nosed deals with non-EU Balkan states to bar the routes north from Greece and with Turkey to stop Syrian refugees reaching Greece in the first place. But those deals did slash the numbers arriving.
It's something EU officials find hard to boast of. Many admit privately to unease at policies that, along with efforts to pay African governments to stop people setting off for Italy, sit uncomfortably with the Union's lofty humanitarian ideals.
But look again at Merkel, Hollande and Renzi on the Garibaldi, flagship of an EU mission off Libya that is part rescue operation and military deterrent against people smugglers, and a slightly different image of today's EU emerges.
EU ARMY
All three spoke of Europe getting tougher and more cohesive on security. It is the kind of language that may resonate with skeptical voters dissatisfied with Europe's struggle to thrive in a globalizing world and with the likes of Orban and other eastern leaders alarmed by Merkel's earlier open-door policy.
Relieved of the need to keep Britons from bolting, Juncker wrung howls of outrage last week from London's europhobic press when he called national borders "the worst invention ever". He also renewed his call for a "European army", which was long just a pipe dream for the Luxemburger as long as Britain had a veto.
The past few days have seen Merkel and a succession of other leaders she has met, including Orban, echo such hopes of joint military structures, indicating one area where EU integration may now forge ahead in response to the British departure.
That still leaves a host of issues dividing European leaders in the coming year: whether to be nice or nasty to Britain once it decides to open negotiations; how to shore up weaknesses in the economic cooperation that underpins the euro; how far to ease sanctions in the hope of better ties with Moscow.
Consensus will be a tall order. Merkel, standing on the deck of the Garibaldi, cited security, investment and youth opportunities as three priorities for a post-Brexit new start for a Europe united and strong. But, she warned: "Danger exists, of fragmentation, of selfishness, of retreating into ourselves."
(Editing by Larry King) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-europe-eu-crises-analysis-idUSKCN113049?feedType=RSS&feedName=topNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FtopNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Top+News%29 | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/3fd40158ce729127f40cc4a624c6791b603d65e4ef207ea5047ef06505c44beb.json |
[
"Letitia Stein"
] | 2016-08-31T01:02:19 | null | 2016-08-30T22:57:51 | U.S forecasters warned residents of Hawaii's Big Island on Tuesday of an encroaching hurricane expected to bring strong winds and heavy rains, while Floridians were told to prepare for a tropical system later in the week. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-storm-atlantic-idUSKCN1151KH%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DdomesticNews.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160830&t=2&i=1151649066&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7T17S | en | null | Hurricane threatens Hawaii; storm churns off Florida | null | null | www.reuters.com | TAMPA, Fla. U.S forecasters warned residents of Hawaii's Big Island on Tuesday of an encroaching hurricane expected to bring strong winds and heavy rains, while Floridians were told to prepare for a tropical system later in the week.
The National Weather Service (NWS) tracked Hurricane Madeline swirling about 370 miles (600 km) east of the town of Hilo around 11 a.m. local time on Tuesday. The storm was forecast to "pass dangerously close" on Wednesday, prompting the NWS to issue a hurricane warning for the island.
Madeline was ranked as a Category 3 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 115 mph (185 kph), though some weakening was expected before Wednesday, the weather service said.
The County of Hawaii sent residents an alert about the hurricane's dangers, including heavy rains that could lead to mudslides, as well as possibly damaging ocean swells.
"Preparations to protect life and property should be completed by nightfall today," the alert said.
In Florida, some local governments have already begun passing out sandbags as a tropical depression heads toward the state's Gulf Coast. The National Hurricane Center in Miami expected the unnamed depression to strengthen into a tropical storm on Tuesday.
It issued a hurricane watch from Indian Pass on the panhandle along the Gulf of Mexico to north of Tampa, saying hurricane conditions were possible within the area. It also warned of the potential for catastrophic flooding.
"The combination of a dangerous storm surge and the tide will cause normally dry areas near the coast to be flooded by rising waters moving inland from the shoreline," it said.
Flooding, storm surge, fierce winds and tornadoes were all threats to the region, which could begin feeling the storm late on Wednesday, Florida Governor Rick Scott said in a statement.
On its current path, the system could make landfall on Florida's north-central Gulf Coast on Thursday, bringing storms into Georgia and the eastern Carolinas on its way to the Atlantic Ocean.
Florida raised the activation status of its State Emergency Operations Center on Tuesday to begin preparing.
An unnamed tropical depression, posing a relatively minor threat to North Carolina, was expected to pass near its Outer Banks region on Tuesday evening before turning out to sea.
It could strengthen into a tropical storm, but forecasts showed it tracking away from land by Wednesday morning, according to the hurricane center.
(Additional reporting by Jon Herskovitz and Curtis Skinner; Editing by Bernadette Baum, Chris Reese and Bernard Orr) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-storm-atlantic-idUSKCN1151KH?feedType=RSS&feedName=domesticNews | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/1a7aa774172b53b0afd93da24dd2c6caa9bceb5e4f842814b9e13da393d84586.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-26T20:51:04 | null | 2016-08-26T20:28:48 | Helix Energy Solutions Group Inc | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2FidUSFWN1B70L5%3Ftype%3DcompanyNews%26feedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DcompanyNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FcompanyNews%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BCompany%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | BRIEF-Helix Energy Solutions sees 2016 revenue $510 mln | null | null | www.reuters.com | Wall St Weekahead-Jobs data to be a big deal for record-high stocks
SAN FRANCISCO, Aug 26 Wall Street will fixate on a wave of U.S. economic data next week, crested by payrolls data on Friday that could sway expectations about the timing of future interest rate hikes and spark volatility in record-high stock prices. | http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSFWN1B70L5?type=companyNews&feedType=RSS&feedName=companyNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FcompanyNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Company+News%29 | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/012befbab665c886ef178c06aa0e452de4e3ae50bb7a22a7e3655a84dd4f0e24.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-28T21:02:15 | null | 2016-08-28T20:30:28 | Symantec Corp shares could gain 25 percent or more following steps to cut costs and a recent acquisition that could propel the company's business in the hot cybersecurity market, a Barron's report said on Sunday. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-symantec-stocks-barrons-idUSKCN1130UW%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DtechnologyNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FtechnologyNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BTechnology%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160828&t=2&i=1151372736&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7R0K9 | en | null | Cost-cutting, growth could lift Symantec shares 25 percent: Barron's | null | null | www.reuters.com | The Symantec booth is seen during the 2016 Black Hat cyber-security conference in Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. August 3, 2016. REUTERS/David Becker
Symantec Corp shares could gain 25 percent or more following steps to cut costs and a recent acquisition that could propel the company's business in the hot cybersecurity market, a Barron's report said on Sunday.
Barron's said Symantec, an early pioneer in antivirus software with its Norton brand, boosted its prospects of gaining a larger share of the cybersecurity market with its June agreement to buy Blue Coat Systems Inc [PRJCBB.UL].
The company will be able to sell Blue Coat's web and cloud protection services to its existing base of more than 370,000 business clients as demand to block hacking attempts grows, the newspaper said.
Plus, the newest Norton software is "industry-leading," the newspaper said, citing Andrew Nowinski, an analyst for investment bank Piper Jaffray. Nowinski predicts the company's earnings will grow 12 to 14 percent from fiscal 2019 to 2021 as Symantec's consumer business benefits from a shift to a subscription model.
More than $92 billion will be spent on tech security this year, up from $84 billion in 2015, according to data Barron's attributed to research firm Gartner Inc.
Plans to trim its workforce by 10 percent and cut $550 million in costs by the end of Symantec's 2018 fiscal year will also help boost the company's earnings under new CEO Greg Clark, according to the report.
Symantec shares have already risen 40 percent this year, closing at $23.72 on Friday, but the article quotes Franklin Templeton portfolio manager Christian Correa as saying he sees "no reason the stock can't be in the low $30s" within 12 to 18 months.
(Reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt; Editing by Andrea Ricci) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-symantec-stocks-barrons-idUSKCN1130UW?feedType=RSS&feedName=technologyNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FtechnologyNews+%28Reuters+Technology+News%29 | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/0970d66b77ad85ef26feee99ab5a32781240c82a62b9213dc1b7ca44db10e5c6.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-29T08:51:49 | null | 2016-08-29T07:14:22 | Russian coal and steel producerMechel said on Monday its first-half core earnings, orEBITDA, rose 9 percent year on year to 25.7 billion roubles($396 million). | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Frussia-mechel-results-idUSR4N1A100Y%3Ftype%3DcompanyNews%26feedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DcompanyNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FcompanyNews%2B%2528News%2B%252F%2BUS%2B%252F%2BCompany%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | Russia's Mechel says H1 core earnings up 9 pct y/y | null | null | www.reuters.com | MOSCOW Aug 29 Russian coal and steel producer Mechel said on Monday its first-half core earnings, or EBITDA, rose 9 percent year on year to 25.7 billion roubles ($396 million).
Mechel's net profit for the first half of the year totalled 8.3 billion roubles, compared to a loss of 16.7 billion roubles a year earlier, the company said in a statement. Its revenue was flat at 130.2 billion roubles.
($1 = 64.9055 roubles) (Reporting by Polina Devitt; editing by Alexander Winning) | http://www.reuters.com/article/russia-mechel-results-idUSR4N1A100Y?type=companyNews&feedType=RSS&feedName=companyNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FcompanyNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Company+News%29 | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/1204abc827d7f5493e7ebf177983262ad2253c14e6dd4540c51f86efd8fdaae0.json |
[
"Irene Klotz"
] | 2016-08-30T19:00:33 | null | 2016-08-30T18:27:07 | A curious radio signal picked up by a Russian telescope is probably not a transmission from an extraterrestrial civilization, but astronomers in California are taking a second look anyway, the SETI Institute said on Tuesday. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-space-radiosignal-idUSKCN1152H3%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DscienceNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FscienceNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BScience%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | Curious radio signal stirs talk of extraterrestrials | null | null | www.reuters.com | CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. A curious radio signal picked up by a Russian telescope is probably not a transmission from an extraterrestrial civilization, but astronomers in California are taking a second look anyway, the SETI Institute said on Tuesday.
A group of Russian astronomers last year detected what appeared to be a non-naturally occurring radio signal in the general location of a star system 94 light-years from Earth.
Their findings emerged after Italian researcher Claudio Maccone, who chairs the International Academy of Astronautics committee on the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence, or SETI, told colleagues of a presentation he heard about the signal, said Seth Shostak, a director at the SETI Institute.
"I don't think we're taking it terribly seriously," Shostak said. "The Russians looked in this direction 39 times, and as best we can tell they found it once."
Most likely, the radio signal was caused by terrestrial interference or a satellite, a common occurrence, Shostak told Reuters.
If the Russians thought they had a serious signal from ET, he said, they also likely would have disclosed it sooner.
"They didn't say anything about it for more than year. If we had found a signal, we'd check it out and call up other astronomers to check it out as well," Shostak said.
Nevertheless, SETI astronomers have spent the last two nights using an array of radio telescopes in California to study the suspect star, HD 164595, which has one known planet in orbit.
The planet is about the size of Neptune, but circles its star far closer than Mercury orbits the sun. HD 164595 could have other planets in orbit that are more suitably positioned for water, which is believed to be necessary for life.
So far, though, astronomers have not detected any unusual signals from the star, Shostak said.
"We have to be very careful not to get cynical about false alarms," he said. "It's easy to say 'Aw man, it's just another case of interference,' but that risks not paying attention when you should."
(Reporting by Irene Klotz; Editing by Daniel Wallis and Frances Kerry) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-space-radiosignal-idUSKCN1152H3?feedType=RSS&feedName=scienceNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FscienceNews+%28Reuters+Science+News%29 | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/13a5d4b194bba7e097eca04e0b1292eb97531d74280a20d4cf00321b9fb46ca5.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-30T21:00:11 | null | 2016-08-30T18:44:06 | The former head of the European Olympic Committee (EOC), Ireland's Patrick Hickey, left prison in Rio de Janeiro on Tuesday vowing to clear his name as an investigation continues into charges he took part in a ring to illegally sell tickets to the Games. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-olympics-rio-hickey-idUSKCN1152ID%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DsportsNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FsportsNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BSports%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160830&t=2&i=1151624670&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7T1GZ | en | null | Former IOC executive Hickey leaves prison, must stay in Brazil | null | null | www.reuters.com | Former top European member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Patrick Hickey, arrives at a residential building after leaving the Bangu Jails Complex in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, August 30, 2016. REUTERS/Ricardo Moraes
Former top European member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Patrick Hickey, arrives at a residential building after leaving the Bangu Jails Complex in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, August 30, 2016. REUTERS/Ricardo Moraes
Former top European member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Patrick Hickey (L), arrives at a residential building after leaving the Bangu Jails Complex in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, August 30, 2016. REUTERS/Ricardo Moraes
RIO DE JANEIRO The former head of the European Olympic Committee (EOC), Ireland's Patrick Hickey, left prison in Rio de Janeiro on Tuesday vowing to clear his name as an investigation continues into charges he took part in a ring to illegally sell tickets to the Games.
A Rio court on Monday ordered the release of the 71-year-old, who was also the head of the Olympic Council of Ireland (OCI), but said he must remain in Brazil and had his passport taken away.
Hickey had been held in Rio's Bangu 10 maximum security prison since his arrest on Aug. 10 in a luxury beachfront hotel during the Games.
"I will now stay in Rio and my lawyers will proceed to have the charges laid against me set aside as there is no substantive proof of any wrong doing on my part," Hickey said in a statement.
The ticketing scheme, according to Rio police, allegedly involved the funnelling of Olympic tickets intended for use by the Irish committee and not authorized for resale to THG Sports, an international sports hospitality company.
Hickey has stepped aside from his Olympic positions during the investigation.
On Saturday, a court authorized the release of Kevin James Mallon, another Irishman and THG director, who was arrested days before Hickey and was being held in the same prison. He left custody late on Saturday but is also not allowed to leave Brazil, his lawyer told Reuters.
Police have said they have ample evidence of crimes committed by both men and other suspects in the case, but a full investigation and further court proceedings to determine their guilt or innocence could take months.
(Reporting by Ricardo de Moraes in Rio and Padraic Halpin in Dublin; Writing by Daniel Flynn) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-olympics-rio-hickey-idUSKCN1152ID?feedType=RSS&feedName=sportsNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FsportsNews+%28Reuters+Sports+News%29 | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/09e7473d757dd16690f73168c20c965864896f5fb1b691eeb3a5aaed41fa6158.json |
[
"Neil Jerome Morales"
] | 2016-08-31T09:05:11 | null | 2016-08-31T08:41:56 | Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, heavily criticized for a brutal anti-narcotics drive in which hundreds have been killed, on Wednesday welcomed home more than 100 Filipinos abandoned in desert camps in Saudi Arabia with a warning - don't do drugs. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-saudi-labour-philippines-idUSKCN1160U0%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DworldNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2BReuters%252FworldNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BWorld%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160831&t=2&i=1151694527&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7U0FT | en | null | Philippines' Duterte to workers returning from Saudi: Don't do drugs | null | null | www.reuters.com | Overseas Filipino workers who were repatriated by the Philippine government from Saudi Arabia, pose with Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte after arriving at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Manila, Philippines August 31, 2016. REUTERS/Erik De Castro
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte speaks before Filipino workers who were repatriated by the Philippine government from Saudi Arabia, upon arrival at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Manila, Philippines August 31, 2016. REUTERS/Erik De Castro
MANILA Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, heavily criticized for a brutal anti-narcotics drive in which hundreds have been killed, on Wednesday welcomed home more than 100 Filipinos abandoned in desert camps in Saudi Arabia with a warning - don't do drugs.
The Southeast Asian nation's war on drugs has gained some popular support but the wave of killings has shocked rights groups and brought expressions of concern from the United States, a close ally of Manila.
Duterte railed against the United Nations this month after it called for an end to the killings.
"Avoid drugs at all cost because it could cost your life too," Duterte told the workers after an almost 10-hour flight from Dammam.
The number of drug-related killings in the Philippines has reached 2,000 since Duterte became president two months ago on a pledge to wipe out the drug trade.
Migrant oil and construction workers, abandoned in their thousands by Saudi employers during the kingdom's economic slump, are fighting to claim back wages and benefits.
"I lost my job so my children were forced to drop out of college and they were mad at me but what can I do?" Ronie Surilla, 47, a construction worker living for almost a decade in Saudi Arabia, told Reuters, adding that he had not been paid for eight months.
Filipinos living and working outside the country sent home a record $13.2 billion in remittances, a major driver of the Southeast Asian nation's household consumption, in the first half of 2016.
For the returning overseas workforce, the president committed to boost the economy and provide jobs.
The Philippines' economy grew at 7 percent in the second quarter from a year earlier, its highest level in three years. It made the Philippines the fastest growing among all countries that have reported so far for the second quarter.
(Editing by Nick Macfie) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-saudi-labour-philippines-idUSKCN1160U0?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Reuters%2FworldNews+%28Reuters+World+News%29 | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/713fdf9b7ead2cfd9623306b761577365babe404df2bcf8b88d42263ac9bbc75.json |
[
"Lawrence Hurley"
] | 2016-08-30T17:02:09 | null | 2016-08-30T16:18:17 | A U.S. appeals court on Tuesday rejected a challenge by the alleged mastermind in the bombing of a U.S. ship in Yemen in his upcoming trial before a military tribunal. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-usa-court-guantanamo-idUSKCN11525H%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DdomesticNews.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | Alleged al Qaeda bomber loses pretrial challenge | null | null | www.reuters.com | WASHINGTON A U.S. appeals court on Tuesday rejected a challenge by the alleged mastermind in the bombing of a U.S. ship in Yemen in his upcoming trial before a military tribunal.
A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled against Saudi defendant Abd al Rahim al Nashiri on a 2-1 vote.
Nashiri, a detainee at the U.S. naval facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, is accused of overseeing a plan by militant Islamic group al Qaeda to ram a boat full of explosives into the side of the U.S. guided-missile destroyer Cole off Yemen in 2000. Seventeen U.S. sailors were killed in the blast that tore a huge hole in the ship. He has also been linked with an attack on a French ship and an attempted attack on a second U.S. vessel.
His lawyers challenged whether the U.S. military commission had jurisdiction to hear his case. The lawyers argue that the United States was not engaged in "hostilities" with al Qaeda at the time of the attacks, meaning his acts were not crimes of war.
Writing for the court, Judge Thomas Griffith said Nashiri had to wait until after the trial to renew his claims because court precedent urges judges not to intervene in ongoing military legal proceedings.
Judge David Tatel wrote a dissenting opinion saying the court should have considered Nashiri's case now, citing the "extraordinary and unusual circumstances," including the allegation that he was subject to "years of brutal detention and interrogation tactics."
Nashiri was captured in October 2002 and has been in U.S. custody since then. He was at one point kept at so-called Central Intelligence Agency "black sites" where he was interrogated, according to his testimony. He has been detained at the Guantanamo facility since 2006.
(Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-court-guantanamo-idUSKCN11525H?feedType=RSS&feedName=domesticNews | en | 2016-08-30T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/a41f262e81111e2f7c7f134a1cc10f06f57bd679e77ed60ed06ad148325b5c69.json |
[
"Roberta Rampton"
] | 2016-08-29T16:59:36 | null | 2016-08-29T15:59:05 | When President Barack Obama sets out this week to meet world leaders in China and Laos during his final presidential trip to Asia, he will make an unusual stop along the way. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-china-obama-climatechange-idUSKCN1141Q3%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DpoliticsNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2BReuters%252FPoliticsNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BPolitics%2BNews%2529.json | http://s1.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160829&t=2&i=1151460954&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7S0Y2 | en | null | Climate change looms large in Obama's final trip to Asia | null | null | www.reuters.com | U.S. President Barack Obama speaks about the National Park Service at Yosemite National Park, California, U.S., June 18, 2016. REUTERS/Joshua Roberts/File Photo
WASHINGTON When President Barack Obama sets out this week to meet world leaders in China and Laos during his final presidential trip to Asia, he will make an unusual stop along the way.
With time running out for more action on climate change during his time in office, Obama will drop in to Midway Atoll, a far-flung and largely uninhabited coral reef that is a refuge for sharks, albatrosses and endangered turtles and seals.
The photo-rich stop is aimed at both raising awareness about the threat posed by climate change, and showcasing Obama's decision to protect a larger part of the ocean around Hawaii.
But the trip to the middle of the Pacific Ocean will also highlight the high stakes of climate change just before Obama meets world leaders in China.
"I think it's going to be an amazing sequence, and one that really matters," said Doug McCauley, a conservation biologist from University of California, Santa Barbara.
"Suddenly, you're sitting in a room with the leaders who will decide what the fate of that place is going to be," McCauley said.
The rare trip is both a signal of the importance Obama gives to climate change - and a sign of his focus in bliateral meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
The two leaders have clashed on economic and security issues, but forged common ground on climate, which helped secure a global deal to cut carbon emissions at a Paris conference last year.
"We have to recognize that climate change and clean energy cooperation has really helped to create better overall stability in the U.S.-China relationship, writ large," said Andrew Light, a former senior climate official in Obama's State Department.
Light, now with the World Resources Institute think tank, said he expects Xi and Obama will try to push other G20 leaders to agree to timelines for implementing the Paris agreement and work on cutting other greenhouse gases like methane and hydrofluorocarbons.
Any progress on climate issues could be a rare bright spot in a trip otherwise dominated by concerns about the international economy, anti-globalization sentiments and global security problems.
With less than five months left in the White House, Obama is racing to cement his record through actions he can take without help from the gridlocked U.S. Congress.
For example, at Obama's final meeting with his Canadian and Mexican counterparts, the leaders set new goals for clean energy production.
Republicans in Congress have thwarted Obama's legislative efforts on climate, and mocked him for his focus on an issue they see as less pressing than the economy and defense.
Obama also has faced criticism from environmental groups for not doing more to limit U.S. oil and gas production.
"If we're going address the climate crisis or meet our climate commitments, the vast, vast majority of fossil fuels need to remain in the ground," said Brendan Cummings, conservation director with the Center for Biological Diversity.
But former Environmental Protection Agency director Carol Browner said Obama has done what he could on climate both through leadership on the international stage, and by using existing laws to kick-start the clean energy sector and cut emissions from vehicles and power plants.
"Nobody should ever be disappointed with this president on climate change," said Browner, who led the White House climate push in Obama's first term.
(Editing by Alistair Bell) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-obama-climatechange-idUSKCN1141Q3?feedType=RSS&feedName=politicsNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Reuters%2FPoliticsNews+%28Reuters+Politics+News%29 | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/f060ea4ea569c7f89464c60f106c82af851ca4ae13965e00ed50bfc5c08bc6f8.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-27T11:04:25 | null | 2016-08-27T10:25:38 | British Prime Minister Theresa May will not hold a parliamentary vote on Brexit before formally triggering Britain's withdrawal from the European Union, The Daily Telegraph reported on Saturday, without specifying sources. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-britain-eu-may-idUSKCN1120AK%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DworldNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2BReuters%252FworldNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BWorld%2BNews%2529.json | http://s3.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160827&t=2&i=1151262386&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7Q065 | en | null | British PM to trigger Brexit without vote by lawmakers: Telegraph | null | null | www.reuters.com | EDINBURGH British Prime Minister Theresa May will not hold a parliamentary vote on Brexit before formally triggering Britain's withdrawal from the European Union, The Daily Telegraph reported on Saturday, without specifying sources.
May will not offer opponents the chance to stall the withdrawal and has consulted lawyers who say she has the power to invoke the exit without a parliamentary vote, the conservative newspaper said. A majority of the 650 lawmakers had declared themselves "Remainers".
Opponents maintain that since the EU referendum result is not legally binding, elected lawmakers should review the vote before the process is started.
The UK voted to leave the EU on June 23, but May has said she will not invoke Article 50, the formal two-year process for divorce from the bloc, before the end of the year to allow time to prepare the exit strategy.
No one at the prime minister's office was available to comment.
Senior members of the opposition Labour party have suggested that the issue could be subject to a vote by lawmakers or even a second public vote, and a law firm has initiated a legal challenge.
Two months ago 52 percent of Britons opted to leave the EU, but since then the process and what it could mean has been shrouded in uncertainty because the exit is unprecedented.
Gus O'Donnell, a former head of the civil service - the UK's professional administrative departments - said he hoped that by the time Britain leaves the EU it could be part of a "more loosely aligned" EU bloc because the process will take "years and years and years."
"While we can leave relatively quickly, what leaving means is a huge administrative and legislative change because of all of (the) rules and laws and directives that have been implemented over this last 40 years. My instinct is we will almost certainly stick with them and say, 'OK we'll keep them for now, so you can leave with everything in place,'" he told The Times newspaper.
The economic impact of Brexit is also unclear because, beyond a more than 10 percent fall in the value of sterling against other currencies, the signals are so far mixed.
(Reporting by Elisabeth O'Leary and Shalini Nagarajan in Bengaluru; Editing by Ruth Pitchford) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-britain-eu-may-idUSKCN1120AK?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Reuters%2FworldNews+%28Reuters+World+News%29 | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/c822f7bde770929105aac8b255f94c766a9f68846838391975d954cf8a02ac0b.json |
[
"Abhishek Takle"
] | 2016-08-27T22:59:42 | null | 2016-08-27T21:20:09 | FRANCORCHAMPS, Belgium (Reuters) - Renault are eying their second points-scoring finish of the campaign at the Belgian Formula One Grand Prix after the team claimed their best result of the year in qualifying on Saturday. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-motor-f1-belgium-renault-idUSKCN1120SJ%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DsportsNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FsportsNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BSports%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160827&t=2&i=1151302493&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7Q0LW | en | null | Best qualifying session of year gives Renault hope | null | null | www.reuters.com | SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS, Belgium Renault are eying their second points-scoring finish of the campaign at the Belgian Formula One Grand Prix after the team claimed their best result of the year in qualifying on Saturday.
Dane Kevin Magnussen was 12th fastest while team mate Jolyon Palmer of Britain will be 13th on the grid, the first time since the season-opening Australian Grand Prix that Renault have got both cars through to the second phase of the hour-long knockout session.
"There are a lot of unknowns for the race tomorrow as the temperatures are sky-high and tire degradation is worse than expected but we have some advantages," said Palmer after matching his best qualifying result of the year.
"Everyone in the top-10 is starting on used tires whereas we have a new set in hand.
"I'm now really looking forward to the race and trying to crack the top-10 if we can," the 25-year-old rookie told reporters.
Palmer qualified in 14th spot but moved up a place because Haas driver Esteban Gutierrez dropped five positions due to a penalty.
Renault have struggled for pace this season on their return to the sport as a fully-fledged manufacturer.
The team are running an outdated car, having bought out the Lotus outfit last year, and Magnussen's sixth place inMay's Russian Grand Prix is their only result in the points thus far.
Like Palmer, the 23-year-old is optimistic he can move up the field on Sunday.
"Today we found a lot more pace than expected and that's a nice surprise," said Magnussen. "My lap wasn't even perfect."
(Editing by Tony Jimenez) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-motor-f1-belgium-renault-idUSKCN1120SJ?feedType=RSS&feedName=sportsNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FsportsNews+%28Reuters+Sports+News%29 | en | 2016-08-27T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/4404014c1fd30e8fb1a112da43397ac6e825b369dcc2fccf885c1d29e4e596fc.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-26T13:16:33 | null | 2016-08-24T21:07:34 | Former "Friends" star Courteney Cox says she is now reconciled to looking older and regrets some procedures she had in the past to keep the wrinkles at bay. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-people-courteneycox-idUSKCN10Z2QO%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DpeopleNews.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160824&t=2&i=1150928915&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7N1L9 | en | null | Courteney Cox regrets 'horrible' bids to fight aging | null | null | www.reuters.com | Courteney Cox, director of the movie ''Just Before I Go'', poses at the premiere in Los Angeles, California, U.S. April 20, 2015. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni/File Photo
Former "Friends" star Courteney Cox says she is now reconciled to looking older and regrets some procedures she had in the past to keep the wrinkles at bay.
Cox, 52, spoke out during an expedition with outdoor adventurer Bear Grylls in the Irish highlands, in which the pair abseiled down sheer cliffs and shared maggots found in a rotting sheep.
"Getting older has not been... I don't think it's the easiest thing. But I have learned lessons," Cox said in the "Running Wild with Bear Grylls" episode that aired on NBC television on Monday.
Cox, who spoke some years ago about using Botox and laser treatments to prolong her youthful looks, said she was now more relaxed.
"Sometimes you find yourself trying and then you look at a picture of yourself and go, 'Oh, God.' Like, you look horrible. I have done things that I regret, and luckily they're things that dissolve and go away. So, um, that's good, because it's not always been my best look. So, now I just have a new motto: 'Just let it be,'" she said.
Cox, who played Monica Geller for 10 years in the comedy series "Friends," is the latest star to speak out about the pressure women feel in Hollywood to maintain their looks.
Her "Friends" co-star Jennifer Aniston, 47, last month wrote that she was sick of the "sport-like scrutiny and body shaming that occurs daily" in celebrity and other media, while "Bridget Jones" star Renee Zellweger, 47, slammed persistent speculation that she had undergone plastic surgery on her face or eyes.
"Too skinny, too fat, showing age, better as a brunette, cellulite thighs, facelift scandal, going bald, fat belly or bump? Ugly shoes, ugly feet, ugly smile, ugly hands, ugly dress, ugly laugh; headline material which emphasizes the implied variables meant to determine a person’s worth," Zellweger wrote in an August 5 blog for the Huffington Post.
(Reporting by Jill Serjeant; Editing by Andrew Hay) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-people-courteneycox-idUSKCN10Z2QO?feedType=RSS&feedName=peopleNews | en | 2016-08-24T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/a81f331644d050d765fef09c846448e97c7863ea5b6fe662f6ecd72e456709f6.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-29T19:00:07 | null | 2016-08-29T18:17:59 | A Rio de Janeiro court on Monday ordered the release of the jailed former top European member of the International Olympic Committee, Patrick Hickey, pending further investigation into charges that he took part in a ring to illegally sell tickets. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-olympics-rio-hickey-release-idUSKCN11422Q%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DsportsNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FsportsNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BSports%2BNews%2529.json | http://s3.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160829&t=2&i=1151478108&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7S16K | en | null | Brazil court orders temporary release of jailed former IOC executive | null | null | www.reuters.com | Washington, USA; Patrick Hickey, ANOC senior vice president and president of the European Olympic Committees, poses on the blue carpet prior to the 2015 ANOC Awards at DAR Constitution Hall. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports/File Photo
RIO DE JANEIRO A Rio de Janeiro court on Monday ordered the release of the jailed former top European member of the International Olympic Committee, Patrick Hickey, pending further investigation into charges that he took part in a ring to illegally sell tickets.
After a request by lawyers for Hickey, who was also the head of the Olympic Council of Ireland, the court said the 71-year-old Irishman could leave the maximum security prison where he has been detained since his arrest Aug. 10.
Hickey must surrender his passport, the court said, and remain in Brazil until the investigation into the alleged ticket scheme is completed.
(Reporting by Rodrigo Viga Gaier; Writing by Paulo Prada; Editing by Daniel Flynn) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-olympics-rio-hickey-release-idUSKCN11422Q?feedType=RSS&feedName=sportsNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FsportsNews+%28Reuters+Sports+News%29 | en | 2016-08-29T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/81659a3f26890990cd1446d51a5fb96e75ceb8666917a0e72381e48a00158fda.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-27T00:52:11 | null | 2016-08-26T23:54:41 | A federal judge on Friday refused to block a California law tightening vaccination requirements for schoolchildren in the state. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-usa-vaccine-california-idUSKCN1112I6%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DhealthNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FhealthNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BHealth%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | U.S. judge will not block California school vaccination law | null | null | www.reuters.com | A federal judge on Friday refused to block a California law tightening vaccination requirements for schoolchildren in the state.
The ruling came in response to a lawsuit by parents and health and education-related nonprofits, challenging the law at the beginning of the first school year in which it was to go into effect.
The measure eliminated the so-called personal beliefs and religious exemptions from California's school vaccination law, meaning that only children with a valid medical excuse could forego vaccinations for such childhood diseases as measles and polio.
The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in San Diego last month, asked for an injunction to stop the requirements from going into effect, but Judge Dana Sabraw ruled that state legislatures have a "long history of requiring children to be vaccinated as a condition to school enrollment," and not allowing personal or religious exemptions.
"In this case, plaintiffs have not made a showing that they are entitled to the extraordinary remedy of a preliminary injunction," Sabraw wrote in the 18-page ruling.
Carl Lewis, a San Diego-based attorney for the plaintiffs, could not be immediately reached on Friday.
The bill was signed into law in June 2015 by Democratic Governor Jerry Brown and requires pupils to be vaccinated against childhood diseases unless they have a medical reason to refuse. It was passed after a measles outbreak among unvaccinated people at Disneyland in 2014.
The law, which went into effect this year, made California the third state to eliminate religious and other personal exemptions to vaccinations. It sparked determined protests by parents who believe that vaccinations can be harmful to children and religious groups that did not wish to see their exemption eliminated.
(Reporting by Curtis Skinner in San Francisco, editing by G Crosse) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-vaccine-california-idUSKCN1112I6?feedType=RSS&feedName=healthNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FhealthNews+%28Reuters+Health+News%29 | en | 2016-08-26T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/6f312bfaebc8f1920d429e1c2b2a5797e56a0eaa28b834ab4de321ed3dc31511.json |
[
"Reuters Editorial"
] | 2016-08-28T16:59:54 | null | 2016-08-28T16:34:14 | Spaniard David de la Cruz won the ninth stage of the Tour of Spain and moved into the lead in the general classification ahead of Nairo Quintana. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-cycling-spain-idUSKCN1130QK%3FfeedType%3DRSS%26feedName%3DsportsNews%26utm_source%3Dfeedburner%26utm_medium%3Dfeed%26utm_campaign%3DFeed%253A%2Breuters%252FsportsNews%2B%2528Reuters%2BSports%2BNews%2529.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources_v2/images/rcom-default.png | en | null | Spaniard De La Cruz wins Vuelta stage nine, takes red jersey | null | null | www.reuters.com | BARCELONA Spaniard David de la Cruz won the ninth stage of the Tour of Spain and moved into the lead in the general classification ahead of Nairo Quintana.
Etixx Quick Step rider De la Cruz finished 27 seconds ahead of Belgian Dries Devenyns following a commanding late attack on the final climb of the 164.5km stage from Cistierna to Alto de Naranco and will wear the red jersey in Monday's stage from Lugones to Lagos de Covadonga.
Italian Moreno Moser came third, a further six seconds behind Devenyns.
De La Cruz entered the stage in 15th place but now leads Colombian Quintana by 22 seconds and is a further 19 seconds ahead of compatriot Alejandro Valverde, who moved eight seconds in front of Tour de France winner Chris Froome.
The Briton finished together with Quintana, Spaniard Alberto Contador and Colombian Johan Esteban Chaves, two minutes and 56 seconds behind De La Cruz.
"I wasn't thinking about the (overall) lead at the end. I was so close to winning the stage, that was my main objective," De La Cruz told Spanish television.
"It was very hard to ride with Devenyns because he was hard to beat, but I am the leader as well, I can't believe it.
"I felt good sometimes but at other times I didn't feel too good and I didn't think I would be good enough to finish it off, but with 15km left I started thinking about reaching the end," added the 27-year-old.
(Reporting by Richard Martin, editing by Ed Osmond) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-cycling-spain-idUSKCN1130QK?feedType=RSS&feedName=sportsNews&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FsportsNews+%28Reuters+Sports+News%29 | en | 2016-08-28T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/95f1587af912495c326d954311b48657af2ef463d3e955d99963506b1a74ce95.json |
[
"Farah Master"
] | 2016-08-31T08:53:01 | null | 2016-08-31T07:01:44 | Volkswagen AG (VOWG_p.DE) could reach a "final" settlement with U.S. authorities as early as October over its large-engine diesel cars found to have cheated emissions tests in a global scandal, the sales chief of its premium Audi brand said. | http%3A%2F%2Fwww.reuters.com%2Farticle%2Fus-audi-china-idUSKCN1160EK.json | http://s4.reutersmedia.net/resources/r/?m=02&d=20160831&t=2&i=1151679979&w=&fh=545px&fw=&ll=&pl=&sq=&r=LYNXNPEC7U099 | en | null | VW could agree U.S. large-car diesel emissions settlement by October - Audi exec | null | null | www.reuters.com | A Volkswagen logo is seen at a dealership in Seoul, South Korea, August 2, 2016. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji - RTSKMRE
Dietmar Voggenreiter, member of the Board of Management for Sales and Marketing at Audi AG, poses during an interview in Hong Kong, China August 31, 2016. REUTERS/Bobby Yip
An Audi logo is displayed on an engine during a promotional event in Hong Kong, China August 31, 2016. REUTERS/Bobby Yip
An Audi logo is displayed at a window during a promotional event in Hong Kong, China August 31, 2016. REUTERS/Bobby Yip
Dietmar Voggenreiter, member of the Board of Management for Sales and Marketing at Audi AG, poses during an interview in Hong Kong, China August 31, 2016. REUTERS/Bobby Yip
Dietmar Voggenreiter, member of the Board of Management for Sales and Marketing at Audi AG, poses during an interview in Hong Kong, China August 31, 2016. REUTERS/Bobby Yip
An Audi logo is displayed on a tyre during a promotional event in Hong Kong, China August 31, 2016. REUTERS/Bobby Yip
HONG KONG Volkswagen AG (VOWG_p.DE) could reach a "final" settlement with U.S. authorities as early as October over its large-engine diesel cars found to have cheated emissions tests in a global scandal, the sales chief of its premium Audi brand said.
Dietmar Voggenreiter, head of sales and marketing worldwide for Audi (NSUG.DE), told Reuters in an interview in Hong Kong on Wednesday that negotiations related to 3.0-litre engine VW and Audi cars were progressing well.
"(We're) in really good discussions with U.S. authorities," said Voggenreiter. "Hopefully in October, latest the beginning of November, we will have the final agreement with the U.S."
The worldwide scandal, dubbed "Dieselgate", has hurt VW's reputation and business, and already cost the German carmaker billions of dollars - not including any U.S. settlement on the large-engine diesel vehicles.
The diesel emissions scandal, affecting roughly 11 million vehicles worldwide, continues to drag on VW and Audi profits, with Audi set to miss profitability targets this year and the core VW brand recording a 12 percent year-on-year drop in profit in the second quarter.
VW last September admitted using sophisticated secret software in cars to cheat on exhaust emissions tests. The firm agreed with U.S authorities in June to pay up to $15.3 billion for car buybacks and fixes to 475,000 2.0-litre VW and Audi diesel vehicles fitted with the emissions-cheating software.
That accord did not include fixes for around 80,000 VW, Audi and Porsche 3.0-litre engine cars that could potentially cost billions more if the automaker needs to buy them back.
Voggenreiter said on Wednesday that the U.S. negotiations, which related to four-cylinder VW diesel cars and 3.0-litre V6 engine Audi vehicles, were still ongoing and unresolved.
"We are just in discussions so I cannot judge how the authorities will judge our technical solutions; but I feel we have good technical solutions," he said.
(Reporting by Farah Master in HONG KONG; Writing by Jake Spring in BEIJING and Adam Jourdan in SHANGHAI; Editing by Kenneth Maxwell) | http://www.reuters.com/article/us-audi-china-idUSKCN1160EK | en | 2016-08-31T00:00:00 | www.reuters.com/3eb8b62dff3b77f79f716c638068419db69ddb3149d6507aaa9200119d396016.json |
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