Latest News
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No injuries reported after a LOT passenger plane veers from the Vilnius taxiway
The airport operator reported that a passenger plane from Polish carrier LOT veered from a taxiway on the Lithuanian Vilnius airport's Vilnius after arriving from Warsaw, halting traffic. The airport announced on Facebook that all passengers of flight number LO771 had disembarked. There were no injuries reported. A LOT spokesperson posted on the social media platform X that the Embraer 170 was carrying 63 people and four crew. The spokesperson said that "after landing, all passengers safely debarked via mobile stairs. They were then transported to the terminal." Airport officials have announced that the runway will be closed until 5pm local time (1500 GMT). Reporting by Louise Breusch Rasmussen, Editing by Terje Solsvik and David Goodman
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MOL, the MOL of Hungary, will increase crude oil and fuel supplies to Serbia
The Hungarian Oil and Gas Company MOL will increase its crude oil and fuel supplies to Serbia, after the crude oil shipments out of Croatia stopped. Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto announced this at a press conference in Belgrade. Szijjarto stated in a Facebook video that MOL doubled its deliveries to Serbia in the month of November, and will deliver 2.5 times as much crude oil and fuel in December than normal. Szijjarto stated that "Hungary would use all means available to ensure Serbia's crude supply remains secure." Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said that Serbia needs to secure an operating licence from the U.S. Treasury Department before the end of the day on Wednesday in order to keep the NIS refinery running and avoid major problems for the nation. At the briefing, Energy Minister Dubravka Handanovic stated: "We will see - I hope today or tomorrow - what kind of response we will get." The state will do everything it can to ensure uninterrupted supply. Serbia wants to continue operating the refinery while it negotiates a sale for NIS from its Russian owners. Ana Brnabic said, in the meantime, that the ruling party is preparing an amendement to budget law which would allow Serbia to take over NIS from Russian owners. Last month, the U.S. imposed a ban on the refinery. This prompted Croatia to reduce its crude supply. Szijjarto said that Hungary, Serbia and other countries were also ready to speed up the construction of an oil pipeline planned between them. In April, the minister said that by 2028, the pipeline would be able to supply all of Serbia's needs for crude oil. Reporting by Anita Komuves and Aleksandar Vaovic in Budapest, and editing by Jan Harvey and David Goodwin
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UK reforms its'motability scheme' to curb 'generous taxpayer subsidies
Rachel Reeves, British Finance Minister, said that she intends to reform the "motability" scheme, which allows disabled people to lease cars with state funding. She described this as a "generous subsidy". This scheme allows those who qualify for a public-funded allowance to improve their mobility, to use that funding in order lease a vehicle. Tax breaks are available on both the leasing and insurance cost. According to the company that manages Motability, the number of customers is more than 850,000. The scheme was criticised because in some cases it was used to lease luxury cars, but the list of vehicles eligible for the scheme was narrowed earlier this week. Reeves stated in her budget that the'motability scheme' was created to protect those who are most vulnerable and not to subvention the lease of a Mercedes Benz. I will therefore be making reforms to reduce the generous taxpayer subsidies," she said. (Reporting and Editing by Catarina demony; William James)
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Brookfield and GIC offer record $2.6 Billion for Australia's National Storage
National Storage REIT in Australia said that it received a buyout offer of A$4.02 Billion ($2.61 Billion) from a Brookfield-GIC consortium. This would be Australia's largest real estate privatisation. The consortium offered National Storage investors A$2.86 per share in cash, which is a premium of 26.5% over Tuesday's closing value. The deal would surpass Brookfield's A$1.27 Billion acquisition of Aveo Group by Brookfield in 2019. David Tuckwell said, Chief Investment Officer at ETF Shares: "This bid represents a huge vote of confidence for the Australian sector. It is also a very clever move by Brookfield." The demand for NSR is not cyclical. It is driven by life changes such as moving, downsizing or changing relationships. National Storage, founded in 1995, provides self-storage services to more than 94,500 residential customers and businesses at over 270 locations throughout Australia and New Zealand. In 2020, Warburg Pincus, a private equity firm, and Public Storage, a U.S. company, also expressed interest in Australia's biggest self-storage provider. A consortium led by Nathan Kirsh, a South African billionaire, and Public Storage made a bid of A$2,17 billion to buy Abacus Storage King, a local competitor, earlier this year. National Storage owns around 10% of Abacus, and Tuckwell considers this a "crucial piece" to the puzzle. It gives Brookfield an advantage that prevents other global players from sweeping in. "It's like purchasing a seat at any future consolidation activity." LSEG data revealed that trading in National Storage shares was halted pending an announcement. The stock then jumped 19,5% to A$2.70 at the final settlements following the market close. The company has agreed to give exclusive access to due diligence to the consortium up until December 7.
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Trafigura lawyers claim Gupta has a history of fraud prior to the alleged $600 Million nickel scam
Lawyers for Trafigura accused Prateek gupta, an Indian businessman who gave his first testimony on Wednesday, of a long history of fraud. Gupta admitted that he was under investigation for fraud in India but denied these allegations when he appeared in the High Court of London. Trafigura, a Swiss company, sued Gupta two years ago. It claimed that he was behind a scam where he and his firms agreed to deliver pure nickel but instead delivered scrap steel or other metals. Nathan Pillow, a Trafigura lawyer, cited two more fraud cases in which low-value metals were substituted with nickel. Gupta claimed he wasn't aware of the substitution. Pillow said to Gupta who was testifying from Dubai, where he lives. Gupta, a member of Gupta’s UD Group in India, is being investigated for bank fraud, he confirmed. The investigation is in relation to Ushdev International Ltd. Trafigura made its first metals deals with Gupta, in 2014, with Ushdev. Ushdev later experienced financial problems, declared bankruptcy in 2018, and is now under the control of insolvency professionals. Gupta countered the claim that Trafigura staff devised a secret plan, stating he was told in 2019 to dramatically increase nickel trading by Sokratis oikonomou, then Trafigura's head nickel trader. Gupta stated in a court filing that "Oikonomou's trading approach and outlook was aggressive and he wanted to expand Trafigura nickel trading operations to a dominant position in the market." Oikonomou denies he is involved in the fraud. He also says that the increased trading volume with Gupta was modest when compared to Trafigura nickel operations. Trafigura terminated Oikonomou’s employment in January of 2023. Harshdeep Bhattia, a Trafigura trader based in India, told Gupta that Trafigura was looking to increase trade volume to 50,000 tons of nickel per year, which is about three times the previous amount. Bhatia did not reply to a request for comments sent via email by Trafigura. Gupta stated that the large amount of pure nickel at the time worth $625 million would be difficult for Gupta to obtain and could also pose a problem in terms of credit limits. Gupta reported that Oikonomou, in order to circumvent these issues, proposed extending the trading scope to include other metals during a meeting held in Dubai in June 2019. Gupta stated that the real identity of these metals, such as nickel alloys and scrap, must be kept secret, because Trafigura’s financing bank Citi will only provide funds for pure Nickel. Citi declined to comment on this fraud case. (Reporting and editing by Eric Onstad, Jan Harvey).
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Thailand rushes to airlift patients and supplies after floods in the south kill 33
Thailand airlifted oxygen tanks and other critical supplies to a submerged city in the south on Wednesday as the death toll grew to 33. For the second consecutive year, floods inundated nine Thai provinces as well as eight states of Malaysia's neighbouring country. Both countries evacuated nearly 50,000 residents. In Indonesia, between 8 and 13 people have died this week due to floods and landslides. One person has also died in Malaysia. Hat Yai's southern hub of commerce, Thailand, was flooded and thousands were stranded on roofs after three days of torrential rainfall that began last week. The city recorded its highest rainfall in 300 years on Friday with 335 mm. The Thai military has deployed boats, helicopters, and even its single aircraft carrier for the delivery of supplies and evacuation of sick people. As a result, extreme weather events are more common. Tropical storms can be accelerated by higher sea surface temperature. Siripong Angkasakulkiat, spokesman for the Thai government in Bangkok, said that 33 people had died across seven provinces. The causes of death are drowning, being swept by currents, electrocution and landslides. Public Call for Equipment The Thai military sent 200 boats and twenty helicopters to the area in an attempt to reach the stranded residents. Siripong reports that authorities have received requests for assistance from 77,000 people via social media. Residents gathered on roofs waving for assistance were dropped by military choppers with supplies. Social media posts from the air force, navy and other military forces showed that generators, oxygen tanks, and water were also delivered to the area. The navy reported that Thailand's sole aircraft carrier, Chakri Naruebet (which left its home port Tuesday) had provided air support to the relief efforts. The government issued a public request for equipment including jet skis and boats. According to the Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency, three consecutive days of heavy rains around Hat Yai since last Wednesday have dumped 630mm (24.8") of rain. This is higher than the previous record of 428mm in 2010. The Thai Meteorological Department reported that the weather system had moved towards the Strait of Malacca, and has intensified to become a tropical storm which will move toward Indonesia. HOSPITAL EVACUATIONS in Thailand and Malaysia The interior ministry reported that floods in Thailand have affected over 980,000 homes, and more than 2.7 million residents. Somrerk Chungsaman, a public health ministry official, said that flood waters had flooded the first floor of Hat Yai’s main government hospital, which treats 600 patients. Around 50 of those were in intensive care. He said that "today, all intensive-care patients will be transferred out of Hat Yai Hospital." A video on handouts shows that an army helicopter rescued a woman who was critically ill from another hospital. She was surrounded by staff aboard the aircraft and then wheeled off the rooftop helipad. A journalist reported that workers in Kangar, capital of Malaysia’s Perlis State, bordering Thailand, moved patients on gurneys out of the Tuanku Fauziah Hospital through knee-high waters, while much of the parking lot and its entrances were submerged. "At LEAST, send them supplies" Residents of Hat Yai, and the surrounding areas, who are still waiting for rescue, posted pleas to social media. Auntita Taechinchotikan (33), who lives in Bangkok had only been able to contact her brother and his family on Wednesday morning. She said: "I tried contacting all rescue teams, and they responded, but nobody has been able reach the house." Auntita said that ten family members, including her parents, and her young children were trapped in two Hat Yai buildings. She said: "I don’t know how many people are left in the area." Reporting by Mandy Leong, Panarat thepgumpanat, and Chayut setboonsarng, in Kangar; Additional reporting by Danial Azhar, Rozanna Latiff, in Kuala Lumpur; Orathai Shriring, in Bangkok; Writing and editing by Clarence Fernandez, Ros Russell.
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The man who drove into the crowd at Liverpool's soccer parade has pleaded guilty to 31 charges
The British man who caused more than 130 injuries by driving into a crowd during the Premier League's victory parade in May, pleaded guilty to 31 charges on Wednesday. This included nine counts of grievous bodily injury with intent. Paul Doyle, 53 years old, wept in the dock of Liverpool Crown Court when he changed his guilty plea on the first day he was to face his trial. He had initially pleaded guilty to the charges in September. Doyle cried repeatedly as he was read the 31 charges, and he responded by saying: "Guilty." The sentence will be handed down next month. He was also charged with 17 counts of trying to cause serious bodily injury and dangerous driving. Sarah Hammond said, in a press release, that driving a car into a crowd was an act of calculated violent. It was not an accident that Paul Doyle made. He chose to do so on this day, and turned a celebration into a mayhem. The incident occurred on May 26, in Liverpool's crowded city centre, as about a half-million people came to celebrate Liverpool winning the Premier League title and watched an open top bus parade with the team and staff holding the Premier League trophy. Crown Prosecution Service dashcam footage showed Doyle was agitated and irritable by the crowds, before he drove into people. He injured 134 people, including eight children. (Reporting and editing by Sarah Young, Peter Graff and Sam Tobin)
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Vienna Airport: Third runway would have not paid for itself, but growth ambitions remain intact
The co-CEO of the Austrian ORF radio station said on Wednesday that a project to build a new runway at Vienna Airport, which was cancelled on Tuesday following decades of planning, would not have been profitable and that existing capacity allowed for growth. Will we get a return on our 2 billion euro investment ($2.3 billion)? In a radio interview, Julian Jaeger said that the answer was "no, it's not feasible". The company announced late Tuesday that the expansion project was abandoned due to cost inflation, and assets related to planning worth 55.9 millions euros will be written off. At 1023 GMT, the shares rose 4.5% to their highest level in five months. Jaeger stated that key airlines such as Lufthansa Austrian and Ryanair had pulled their support. The trend towards larger, more full aircraft also translated to a better use of both runways.
Trafigura accuses Gupta weaving an incoherent web for $600 million nickel scam
Lawyers at Trafigura said that Prateek Gupta’s claims that the group devised a secret plan to exchange expensive nickel for low value metals are full of contradictions. The Indian businessman was giving evidence in an ongoing fraud case.
Trafigura, a Swiss commodity trader, sued Gupta two years ago. It claimed that he was behind a scam where he and his firms agreed to deliver pure nickel but instead delivered scrap steel or other metals.
Gupta countered by claiming that Trafigura staff themselves designed the scheme at the heart of the case. Trafigura, however, has denied this claim repeatedly.
Gupta, who was testifying for the very first time in court, said that he thought the Trafigura executives had approved the scheme of substitution.
Nathan Pillow, Trafigura's lawyer at the London High Court said: "You lie." Why would it be necessary to keep it secret if the decision was made at the highest level?
Gupta said that a small group would be discussing the operation of the scheme. He was testifying remotely, from Dubai, where he resides.
Pillow asked Gupta why he said that the material to replace nickel should be stainless steel. He also suggested including stainless, which is not similar to nickel.
Pillow told Pillow, "The story that you have given is nonsensical and incoherent."
Gupta stated, "I just followed the instructions (from Trafigura)."
Pillow replied, "You can't tell the truth and say that none of this happened."
TRAFIGURA ALLEGES HISTORY FRAUDULENT ACTIVITY
Trafigura's lawyers had earlier accused Gupta that he had been involved in fraudulent deals before the alleged Trafigura fraud.
Gupta admitted that he was under investigation in India for fraud, but denied all allegations.
Pillow cited other fraud cases in which low-value metals were substituted with nickel, but Gupta claimed he wasn't aware of the practice.
Other fraud cases included commodity broker Sucden Financial Ltd, and U.S. Trading House Kataman Metals LLC.
Pillow said to Gupta, "It's a fact that you are an expert in dealing with fraudulent bills of Lading."
Gupta, a member of Gupta’s UD Group in India, is being investigated for bank fraud, he confirmed. The investigation is in relation to Ushdev International Ltd.
Trafigura made its first metals deals with Gupta, in 2014, with Ushdev. Ushdev later experienced financial problems, declared bankruptcy in 2018, and is now under the control of insolvency professionals.
Trading with an aggressive approach
Gupta countered the claim that Trafigura staff devised a secret plan, stating he was told in 2019 to dramatically increase nickel trading by Sokratis oikonomou, then Trafigura's head nickel trader.
Gupta stated in a court filing that "Oikonomou's trading approach and outlook was aggressive and he wanted to expand Trafigura nickel trading operations to a dominant position in the market."
Oikonomou denies he is involved in the fraud. He also says that the increased trading volume with Gupta was modest when compared to Trafigura nickel's overall operations. Trafigura terminated Oikonomou’s employment in January of 2023.
Harshdeep Bhattia, a Trafigura trader based in India, told Gupta that Trafigura was looking to increase trade volume to 50,000 tons of nickel per year, which is about three times the previous amount.
Bhatia did not reply to an email request for comments. He no longer works at Trafigura.
Gupta stated that the large amount of pure nickel at the time was worth $625 million and would prove difficult to obtain. It could also be problematic for credit insurance limits. (Reporting and editing by Jan Harvey; Eric Onstad)
(source: Reuters)