Latest News
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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.)
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Norway Gas Fields to undergo Winter Maintenance
Gassco, the infrastructure operator, said that Norway's natural-gas export capacity would be reduced by 20% in a period up to the end of September. This is due to the final planned maintenance for the system to be ready for the high demand winter season across Europe. Gassco, the infrastructure operator, said that Norway's natural gas export capacity would be reduced by around 20% in a period until the end of September due to a final round of planned maintenance. This is in preparation for the high-demand winter season in Europe. Gassco data on transparency shows that the aggregated reduction in capacity at Norway's processing and gas fields will reach 71 million cubic meters (mcm), or one fifth of daily deliveries. These typically total around 340mcm/day. According to Alfred Skaar Hansen of Gassco who manages Norway's export terminals and gas pipelines, maintenance has progressed "largely" according to plan. Hansen said on the sidelines a conference in Stavanger which is Norway's largest oil and gas hub. A longer outage on the Ormen Lange Field will reduce supply by 7.9mcm/day up until February 1. This is lower than an initial estimate of Shell, which was 8.9mcm/day. Gassco will deliver 114.9 billion cubic meters (bcm), or a little over?114.9 billion, in 2025 through its 8,800 km (5,468 miles) pipeline network. Deliveries so far this year are 76.1 bcm and have increased by?1.3 bcm from last year. Hansen stated that "the storage situation in Europe is a top priority, so there's a willingness to transport as much as gas as possible." He said that Gassco has a?certain amount of spare capacity, which allows those who book flows (known as shippers) to be flexible in the timing?of their gas deliveries. Hansen stated that "right now, it's about production capacity." He said that the maintenance schedule for next year is expected to be more busy than 2026. Gassco will also finalise its maintenance plan for 2027 in November or December. (Reporting and editing by Terje Sollsvik, Tomasz Janovowski)
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CPC Blend oil set to export 1.5 million barrels a day in September on Karachaganak Maintenance
Three traders reported that Caspian CPC blend oil exports were 'planned at 1.5m barrels per day for September. This is a steady decrease from the 1.6m bpd of?August due to maintenance?at?the Karachaganak Oilfield. Weather-related disruptions, and drone strikes in Black Sea could affect actual CPC Blend oil loads next month. About 2% of global oil is supplied by the CPC pipeline, which transports Kazakhstani crude to a terminal near the Black Sea port in Russia, Novorossiysk. Shipowners prefer the CPC terminal to the Novorossiysk Sheskharis Terminal, according to traders, following Ukraine's pledge to stop?strikes against non-Russian ships leaving Black Sea ports. The Black Sea has seen record-breaking freight rates, and most shipowners refuse to load oil at Russian Black Sea ports. According to traders, the maintenance on Karachaganak Oilfield operated by Karachaganak Petroleum Operating scheduled for September will reduce Kazakh?production? of oil next month by about 450,000 metric tonnes or 120,000 bpd. Erlan Akkenzhenov, the Energy Minister, said that Kazakhstan had 'cut back its oil production target for 2026 to 96m metric tons, from 98m metric tons, due to Ukrainian drone attacks on the Caspian Pipeline Consortium. However, current oil shipments via the CPC continue to be carried out as normal. Louise Heavens (Reporting)
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What caused the devastating flood along the Nepal-Tibet Border?
Nine people were killed by massive floods which struck the Himalayan border regions of Nepal and China’s Tibet on Wednesday. What caused the disaster and where are we now? What happened? In the border regions of Nepal, torrential?floods destroyed roads, bridges and houses, as well as power projects. A mudslide also hit Gyirong Port, an important land crossing into Tibet. This cut off communications and power to the area, along with roads. Also, dozens of people were injured. What caused the calamity? Floods in Nepal are believed to have been caused by an earthquake that triggered a rock-ice avalanche along the Lhende Khola River. Both Nepal and Tibet are connected by the river. Are there any foreigners missing? Three U.S. Citizens, 12 British citizens, and 105 Indians have been reported as missing. Also, eight South Koreans who worked?on a Hydropower Plant were not found. Other missing persons included 17 'Malaysian citizens, four South Africans and one person each from Australia, the Netherlands and Australia. HAS THE DANGER PAST? Authorities have warned of a possible second flood, as a blockage still exists upstream on the Lhende Khola River. In India, the states of Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Nepal have issued flood alerts, as several rivers flow from the Himalayas down into the plains. What is the current situation? Rescue efforts were undertaken by police and military personnel, but officials have stated that rescue helicopters will not be able land in?affected regions until the waters recede. Residents of low-lying areas were moved to safer locations, and people living along the river were?advised' to stay alert. WHAT IS THE PROGRESS OF THE RESCUE EFFORTS? China has deployed at least 574 rescuers on the land crossing, but flood sediment poses a challenge. Other countries have also offered assistance. India, the giant neighbour to Nepal, said that it coordinated 'closely' with Kathmandu in terms of rescue and relief efforts. South Korea will send a rapid response team consisting of government officials, fire and police personnel. (Compiled by Sakshi dayal and Kanjyik ghosh, edited by YPrajesh and Alex Richardson).
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As many as 70 ships are parked on the Danube due to bottlenecks that slow Ukraine grain exports
Traders and analysts said that up to 70 vessels were waiting for access to Ukrainian ports in order to load grain for export. This is due to the lack of pilots, and other cargoes being given priority. After Russian attacks blocked Ukraine's Black Sea port, which handled 90% of its grain exports before, some shipments have been rerouted to Danube riverports which have a much smaller capacity. Exports are slowed by the fact that grain cargoes compete for access to ports with other shipments of a higher priority, such as fuel. Air raid alerts that force all port operations to be suspended have caused further disruption. Ukraine is the largest grain exporter in the world. Any disruptions can cause global prices to rise. The situation could worsen According to ASAP Agri, "On August 25, over 50 vessels were waiting for passage through the Sulina Channel while only 5 to 7 vessels per day moved towards Ukraine's Danube ports." The consultancy said on Telegram that every day of delay could cost up to $8,000. This is in addition to the already high freight rate. The report added that "the situation could worsen in the next few days if weather conditions worsen." Katerina Kononenko of Avalon Shipping, the operations manager, stated that due to bad weather, it was expected that the Sulina Canal would be closed for two days. "For the present situation, it is a real setback. Around 70 vessels wait at Sulina Road today. In the present, the actual traffic capacity of Sulina Channel is two to three vessels going to Ukrainian ports per day. This is a very low number," she added. Ukraine relied heavily upon the Danube ports during the earlier war, when Russia had blocked the ports in the Greater Odesa area. The maximum grain export capacity via the Danube was 2.5 million metric tonnes per month in 2022-2023. Exports via the Danube are still well below their previous levels, despite traders' gradual increases in shipments. Ukrzaliznytsia, the state railway operator, said in August that grain transport volumes were 11 times greater than in July. According to data from the Agriculture Ministry, Ukraine exported 539,000 tonnes of grain between August 1 and August 21 compared to 1.73 millions in the same time period last year. (Reporting from Pavel Polityuk. Mark Potter (Editing)
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.)
(source: Reuters)