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Qantas full-year profits fall 14% due to fuel costs; A380s will be retired in 2028
Qantas Airways, Australia's largest airline, reported on Thursday a 13.8% decline in its pre-tax profit for the full year, due to the Middle East conflict and a surge in jet fuel prices. The flag carrier of the country also announced that it is in discussions with major aircraft manufacturers Airbus and Boeing to convert 20 options into firm orders starting from?2030. Qantas stated that "Project Sunrise and additional 787-9 deliveries have been confirmed for calendar year 2027. The A380 fleet is expected to be retired in calendar year 2020, in order to maximize capital efficiency while maintaining network reach with the new wide-body aircraft fleet." The carrier reported an underlying profit before tax of A$2,06 billion ($1.48billion) for the year ended June 30 compared to A$2.39billion reported a previous year, which was slightly higher than the Visible Alpha consensus estimation of A$2.00billion. The Middle East conflict caused jet fuel prices to more than double and remain highly volatile during the second half. Qantas hedged almost 90% of its crude oil exposure in the second half, but it was still vulnerable to changes in jet refinery margins. The rising costs of fuel are partially offset by higher fares, reduced domestic capacity and the re-deployment of aircraft to better international routes. The carrier declared a final dividend per share of 19,8 Australian cents, a higher amount than the 16,5 Australian cents declared last year. The company also decided to scrap its A$150 million share buyback announced in February that never started after the Iran War.
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The US has failed to enforce privacy laws for airline passengers, according to lawmakers.
Two Democratic 'U.S. On Wednesday, lawmakers asked a congressional agency to investigate the failure of the Transportation Department to ensure privacy for airline passengers. Senator Ron Wyden and Representative Shontel 'Brown asked the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to investigate USDOT. They said that USDOT has not brought any enforcement actions related to passenger data in over 40 years, "despite many widely publicized privacy disasters affecting hundreds of millions travelers." GAO confirmed that it received the request. The letter stated that "USDOT’s abdication of its privacy regulatory role has left the'sensitive personal information of thousands of millions of Americans vulnerable to corporate exploitation and warrantless government surveillance and 'warrantless seizures of money and property." It also added "Travel data stored by airlines and travel agents may be of interest to foreign enemies. Sean Duffy's spokesperson did not immediately comment. In March 2024, the then-Transportation secretary Pete Buttigieg opened an investigation into how 10 of the largest U.S. Airlines collect and use passengers' information. In the letter, it was stated that two years after "it is still unclear whether or not a meaningful review took place." USDOT didn't make the airlines' responses public, nor did it announce any public findings or take any enforcement action. Airlines for America declined to comment. The letter stated that the Airline Reporting Corporation, which is owned by the major U.S. carriers, has sold access to an enormous database of?roughly 722 millions passenger travel records? to federal agencies such as the Homeland Security Department, Internal Revenue Service and the Internal Revenue Service without warrants or judicial oversight. The letter?noted by ARC in November 2025 ARC ceased the effort, but this year 'DHS issued a request for a replacement system to be installed on airlines. The letter cited also a 2016 Justice Department Audit that showed the Drug Enforcement Administration paid airline employees millions of dollars in order to obtain private passenger information about Americans. Airlines could be subject to civil penalties if they mishandle consumers' personal information. (Reporting and editing by David Shepardson)
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Sources say that Ivory Coast’s delayed cocoa harvest could lead to congestion in ports before EU rules.
Industry sources say the Ivory Coast Coffee and Cocoa Council fears a 'delayed start' to the main 2026/27 cocoa crop will 'lead port congestion, as exporters rush before stricter EU deforestation regulations?take place at year-end. The industry regulator for the world's largest cocoa producing country, the Coffee and Cocoa Council, announced last week that the country is ready to comply with the new regulations. Nevertheless, two sources from the Council and five exporters said that they expect congestion in the ports of Abidjan, and San?Pedro, during November and December. They also added that storage capacity might be stretched. The main cocoa crop was delayed due to a combination between difficult weather conditions, inadequate farm maintenance, and the strength of the mid-crop which delayed the development of the main?crop. One source stated that the main cocoa crop would be delayed by eight to ten weeks. Sources spoke under condition of anonymity because the issue was so sensitive. A representative of a European export firm in Abidjan stated, "With this impending delay, we'll find ourselves having export enormous quantities within a short time period in December." One of two officials from the Cocoa Council said that the organization would do all it could to minimize the impact. Sources said that even though the main season will start on September 1, they expect weekly arrivals to be below 15,000 tons in September, and below 25,000 tons in Oct. They said that the main-crop volumes would begin to arrive in late October or early November, and then increase through December. The cocoa council estimates that the total arrivals of the main crop from September to February 28th, 2027 will not exceed 1.4 million tons. Exporters predict 1.4 to 1.45 million tons. Between October and December 2026, about 900,000 metric tons of cocoa is expected to reach Ivorian port, compared to an updated 1.1 million tons during the same period in 2015. Ports typically receive between 800,000 and 1 million tons of cocoa during this three-month period. (Reporting and editing by Ange Abooa, Amindeh Blaise Atabong, Ayen Deng Bior and Barbara Lewis).
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Democratic-led states renew their challenge to Trump's plans to restrict voting by mail
On Wednesday, a coalition of Democratic-led States renewed their efforts to stop the U.S. Postal Service from implementing President Donald Trump’s executive order that restricts?mail-in?voting. The Democratic Attorneys General of 23 States and the District of Columbia, along with Pennsylvania Governor filed the lawsuit at Boston Federal Court two days after the U.S. Supreme Court lifted the earlier injunction that they won blocking Trump’s order on grounds that they sueded too early. The earlier lawsuit was filed before USPS had 'finalized' the rule to implement the March order signed by the Republican President targeting mail-in votes. USPS published a final rule Friday, despite an existing court order designed to prevent it from implementing Trump's plan. USPS was prevented from implementing this new rule until Wednesday as a result another injunction issued by U.S. district judge Indira Talwani of Boston in a similar case brought forth by voting rights organizations. Talwani, at the request of the Trump administration, rescinded her order after the states filed suit, stating that it could not stand in light of the Supreme Court ruling, despite the "chaos" that may be unleashed while litigation is still pending. In their latest case, the?states have asked Talwani - an Obama appointee - to block implementation of USPS’s new rule. This new rule requires states to provide USPS with lists of voters who want to vote by mail, and it imposes federal requirements on ballot envelopes that must have unique barcodes. The new rule requires USPS to check mailed-in ballots and to refuse delivery if the ballots do not meet its standards or the voter is not listed on the state's list. Democratic-led states claim that if the new requirements are implemented, they could be burdened in the weeks leading up to an election. They would have to buy new envelopes, equipment and systems, and train their staff. Letitia J. James, New York Attorney General, said that the new policy would create confusion for voters, as well as unnecessary costs and unacceptable risks. Her office will go to court to stop this. She and other state attorney?generals argue that USPS does not have the authority to set federal eligibility requirements for voting by mail, and that its rule violates federal laws protecting voter's rights and states' authority to administer elections under the U.S. Constitution. California and Massachusetts are also included in the states that argue against this rule. They claim it?risks alienating voters. USPS processed nearly 100 millions ballots during the 2024 elections. The states claim that about 30% of voters in the United States voted by mail. USPS has not responded to any requests for comment. In separate filings, voting rights groups and Democratic Party arms said that they are also moving to block USPS rule. They say it is now ready for adjudication. (Reporting from Nate Raymond in Boston, Editing by Aurora Ellis.)
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Italy extends Diesel Tax Cuts to Ease Price Pressure
The government announced that the Italian cabinet extended until September 1 a 'cut in excise duties on diesel fuel introduced to offset the higher prices at the pumps. Since the U.S. - Iran conflict began, Prime Minister Giorgia meloni has repeatedly increased fuel tax cuts to help businesses and families cope with rising prices. The government has said that the tax relief is currently only applicable to diesel and the current reduction of EUR17 cents per litre will continue until September 5. According to a source "close" to the issue, the extension of the measure would cost about EUR130 million in lost revenue. Meloni's Office said this week that the government could?introduce targeted measures to ease fuel costs only for low-income households when?the?excise duty reductions expire. (Reporting and editing by Gavin Jones, Angelo Amante)
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Trump announces he will review beef processing regulations as farmers oppose tariff plan
On Wednesday, U.S. president?Donald Trump said that he would look into the issue of whether there are too many regulations in beef processing plants. Beck had suggested that less regulation could allow farmers and ranchers do their own killing. The Trump administration is reducing regulation in all areas of government. Beck asked Trump to "look at this cartel, the meat-processing cartel", and suggested that reducing Department of Agriculture regulations would make it easier for small-scale ranchers to process their beef themselves. Trump said, "This could be an excellent decision for ranchers." "I have heard only bad things about it - there are four locations, and it is a monopoly." Cargill, Tyson Foods, JBS USA and National Beef Packing Co. control about 85%?of U.S. meat-processing. Last year, the Justice Department announced that it was looking into whether meatpacking firms were driving consumer beef prices up illegally. Last week, Trump?said that he planned to temporarily lower tariffs on certain beef imports to try to bring down record-high 'beef prices. Farm groups, including the American Farm Bureau Federation, were critical of this move. AFBF President Zippy Duvall urged Trump to reconsider in a?letter on Tuesday, arguing that it would "undermine 'America's ranchers whose work is tireless to grow food for American Families." Brooke Rollins, the Agriculture secretary at the White House, told reporters on Tuesday that she didn't know which countries Trump had covered.
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Sources say that Russia's NORSI oil refinery has halted oil processing following a drone attack
Three industry sources said that the?Ukrainian drone 'attack' on Russia's Nizhny Novgorod region caused a halt to?crude oil?processing at NORSI, Russia’s second largest?gasoline producer and fourth-largest refinery. A drone attack by Ukraine on the Russian region of Nizhny Novgorod on August 26 damaged an unspecified industrial building, according to local governor Gleb Nikitin. Lukoil - the owner of 'the refinery' - did not respond immediately to a'request for comment. Sources said that the drone attack had damaged a number of?processing units and inter-unit infrastructure, as well as general?plant equipment. The sources were unable to estimate how long it would be before the damage was repaired and the refinery could resume its processing operations. Lukoil’s major Russian refineries are now all offline. The Perm refinery stopped operations following a drone attack on August 21. Meanwhile, the Volgograd refinery suspended processing on July 31. NORSI is able to process 15 million metric tons of crude oil a year and produce 5 million tonnes of gasoline, 5 million tons or more of diesel, 2 million tons of fuel oils, and around 500,000 tonnes of bitumen. (Reporting and Editing by Kirsten Doovan)
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Democratic-led states renew their challenge to Trump's plans to restrict voting by mail
On Wednesday, a coalition of Democratic-led States renewed their efforts against the?U.S. Postal Service to implement President Donald Trump's executive orders restricting mail-in votes, in order to?prevent? it from imposing any new requirements for November congressional elections. The Democratic Attorneys General of 23 States and the District of Columbia, along with Pennsylvania Governor filed the lawsuit at Boston Federal Court two days after the U.S. Supreme Court lifted the earlier injunction that they won blocking Trump’s order on grounds that they sueded too early. The earlier lawsuit was filed before the?USPS finalized the rule to implement the March order signed by the Republican President targeting mail-in votes. USPS published a "final rule" on Friday despite an ongoing court order in a separate case that was designed to prevent the USPS from implementing Trump's plan. USPS is still unable to implement the new rule due to another injunction issued by U.S. district judge Indira Talwani of Boston in a similar case. The 'Trump administration asked her to revoke her order stating that it could not stand on the basis of the Supreme Court ruling. The lawsuit by the'states' is a direct attack on a new rule that requires states to provide lists of voters who want to vote by mail. It also imposes federal requirements regarding ballot envelopes which now must have barcodes. The new rule requires USPS to check mailed-in ballots and to refuse delivery if they don't meet its standards, or if the voters on the state lists aren't listed. The Democratic-led States say that if the new requirements are implemented, they could be burdensome in the weeks leading up to an election. They would have to purchase new envelopes, equipment and systems, and train their staff. Letitia James, New York Attorney-General, said that the new policy would create confusion and unnecessary costs for voters on Election Day. Her office will take this to court to stop. She and other state attorney generals argue that USPS does not have the authority to set federal eligibility requirements for voting by mail, and that their rule violates federal laws protecting voter's?rights as well as states' authority to administer elections under the U.S. Constitution. California and Massachusetts are also included in the states that claim this rule could disenfranchise voters. USPS processed almost 100 million ballots during the election of 2024. The states claim that 'about 30% of voters in the United States cast their ballots via mail. USPS has not responded to a comment request. In separate filings, voting rights groups and Democratic Party arms said that they are also moving to block USPS rule. They say it is now ready for adjudication. (Reporting from Nate Raymond in Boston, Editing by Aurora Ellis.)
Nepalese rescuers search for survivors after devastating flood that killed 162 people
Rescuers in Nepal searched for hundreds of missing people on Thursday using helicopters. A wall of mud and rocks collapsed into a Himalayan river near the border with China, causing catastrophic floods that swept through valleys and towns, killing 162. Nepal tourism officials reported that more than 400 foreigners are among the?579 tourists who have not been found. The disaster has swept through a region frequented by pilgrims and trekkers. Police said they expect the death toll to rise beyond 162. Abi Narayan Kaffle, a police spokesperson said that the death toll would rise as more bodies were expected to be found. Sunil Sharma, a representative for Nepal's Tourism Board, said that 47 of the missing tourists were Americans, 34 Australians, 33 Britons and 24 Canadians.
Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported on Thursday that 558 people were missing, including 260 non-Chinese nationals. It was not immediately known if these figures matched. Verified videos show a mudslide sweeping away hundreds of people in Gyirong at a border crossing. Homes, roads, and power projects were washed downstream in Nepal.
Keshav Baral, who is being treated at a hospital, described the mud gush as "a huge gush coming straight towards us."
As it approached, the height of the object increased. I grabbed my wife's arm and tried to take her up to the terrace when I saw it enter our house. She was swept off by the mud.
Four hours later, a helicopter brought him to safety. He added, "My wife may still be buried under the mud." "She's gone." Another survivor told how he was saved by holding on to a tree while he watched his house disappear.
Raja Ram Basnet is a spokesperson of Nepal's army. He said that helicopters have begun delivering tents, food, and other emergency supplies from India to the worst-hit districts. According to early reports by Nepali officials, an earthquake could have caused a glacier's lower portion to collapse. This would then trigger the flooding.
The U.S. Geological Survey reported that an earthquake initially?reported at 4.4 was actually seismic energy generated by?collapsed glacial rock and debris flow, followed by debris flows.
Many of the victims had been on a pilgrimage in Tibet to Kailash Mansarovar. This high-altitude site is revered by Hindus, Buddhists and others.
Mount Kailash is the Hindus' belief of the Lord Shiva's abode. It lies on the shores of Lake Mansarovar which is also sacred to other religions. The U.S. State Department announced that it would send a disaster response advisor and provide assistance of $500,000.
Mark Carney, the Prime Minister of Canada, said that Canada is also closely monitoring the situation. He described the flooding as "absolutely devastating".
Secretary-General Antonio Guterres announced that U.N. teams, partners and staff were supplying supplies and personnel in support of the affected Nepali community.
China's State Broadcaster reported three deaths and 265 people missing in Gyirong but said the exact toll is still being verified during the rescue efforts.
According to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, 34 Australians are missing.
He said that "Nepal is a developing nation." "It does not have the resources of an event such as that in Australia. Information is therefore difficult."
Eight South Korean nationals who were working at a hydroelectric plant are missing. Malaysia and Japan have also reported missing people.
VIDEOS SHOWS PEOPLE FLEEING WHILE BEING DRIVEN AWAY
On the Chinese side of the border, security footage showed people fleeing as a torrential rain of mud, rock and water destroyed many buildings and vehicles.
Images showed people gathered in front of a Nepali Army training centre, which was used as a base for helicopter rescues.
The police at the gate took the names of those missing by using the flashlights that were left on the mobile phones as the only light source after the damage caused to the hydropower plants cut the power.
Mud covered homes, vehicles, and trees in the affected areas. Helicopters carrying survivors hovered above all day.
Nepal disaster management officials reported on X that an initial analysis of Planet Labs satellite images showed a landslide involving ice and rock, which caused a flood to carry debris into the Lhende River. This was about 20 km (12 mi) northeast of Nepal-China Rasuwagadhi Border Crossing.
Television images showed a floating metal bridge, a collapsed home, and cars that were washed out. Witnesses said the water engulfed whole villages.
Tula Bahadur BB, a health worker in Rasuwa said: "There's devastation everywhere you look."
The settlements along the river were completely washed away. Five of my relatives are missing.
China's official Xinhua News Agency said that the mudslide struck the Gyirong Port, cutting off roads, communications, and power in the border area of Shigatse.
Rescuers told the state broadcaster CCTV that they had made no progress in contacting the border port at Gyirong, adding, "There have been no results so far."
In an interview, the rescuer said that a drone inspection revealed all roads leading to the border crossing had been "completely destroyed".
(source: Reuters)