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IAG to expand Lisbon hub and invest in Portugal TAP
British Airways' owner IAG announced on Wednesday that it would expand its main Lisbon hub and invest in the Portuguese flag carrier TAP if IAG were to win the race for a partial privatisation stake in TAP. Portugal has relaunched its long-delayed TAP privatisation last week. It aims to sell a stake of 44.9% to an airline with global scale and competition, plus an additional 5% for TAP staff. IAG, one of the three largest European airline groups, has met with the government in the last year to discuss privatisation. Lufthansa, and Air France-KLM are the other two. IAG welcomes the... privatisation process. TAP will flourish under IAG's proven and distinctive model, which focuses on expanding strategic hubs and investing in airlines," said a spokesperson for the company. TAP's main assets are its connections with Brazil, Portuguese-speaking African nations, and the United States, from its Lisbon hub. The government wants to maintain and expand this. Some analysts criticize the potential IAG acquisition because the Lisbon hub is so close to IAG's Madrid base, which is owned by Spanish airline Iberia. IAG, on the other hand, could move routes from Lisbon to Madrid in the future, decreasing the importance of Portugal's hub. The spokesperson stated that Dublin's Aer Lingus has doubled their long-haul flight capacity, despite being close to British Airways London hub. This is "a compelling example" of what TAP can achieve. Reporting by Sergio Goncalves. (Editing by Andrei Khalip, Mark Potter and Mark Potter.)
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The Trump administration requires an additional $19 billion for air traffic control.
Sean Duffy, the U.S. Transportation secretary, called on Congress on Wednesday to provide another $19 billion for overhauling the aging U.S. Air Traffic Control System after lawmakers approved an original $12.5 billion in funding over five years. Duffy told a U.S. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee that "we are going to require more money from Congress" and called for a funding program backed by aviation groups and airlines. "We are talking about $31.5 billion for the entire project." "We're talking $31.5 billion to do the full project." USDOT has plans to upgrade radar, telecommunications and air traffic control systems. The USDOT also plans to hire more air traffic controllers, and it has introduced new incentives for them to stay. The $12.5 billion approved by Donald Trump for air traffic control in the past month included $2 billion to build the first new en route air traffic center since 1960. The administration is looking to name a firm to oversee this massive project. Trump stated in April that Raytheon and IBM could be the company to receive the contract. The FAA is looking to replace 618 radars, purchase new radios, and install anti-collision technology on tarmac at 200 airports. Duffy wants to increase funding for airport equipment that will prevent near-misses and provide incentives to encourage the hiring and retention air traffic controllers. This occupation is 3,500 people short of its targeted staffing. A National Academies of Sciences study released last month revealed that the FAA has seen its overtime costs for controllers increase by over 300% since 2013. The report revealed that in 2024, the FAA air traffic workforce will have logged 2.2 millions hours of overtime at a cost of $200 million. (Reporting and editing by Matthew Lewis in Washington, David Shepardson from Washington)
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Armenpress reports that the US has informed Armenia that it is prepared to manage a transport corridor with Azerbaijan.
The Armenpress reported that Nikol Pashinyan, Armenia's Prime Minister, said on Wednesday that the U.S. offered to manage an upcoming transport corridor connecting the majority of Azerbaijan with an Azerbaijani enclave through Armenian territory. Baku wants to secure the potential corridor that would run approximately 32 km (20 miles), through Armenia's southern Syunik Province, connecting Azerbaijan's majority to Nakhchivan (an Azerbaijani enclave bordering Baku's Turkish ally). Azerbaijan is concerned that Yerevan may revoke the access to the corridor too easily. When asked at a press conference if Armenia received a specific offer from Washington in relation to the corridor proposal, Pashinyan replied: "Yes, the United States has made proposals," Armenpress reported. The transit link is just one of many obstacles to a deal for peace between Azerbaijan, a neighbour in the South Caucasus who has fought wars with Armenia since the 1980s. In March, the countries announced that they had finalised their a draft peace deal The timetable for signing the agreement is still uncertain. Pashinyan made his comments just days after Tom Barrack, the U.S. Ambassador to Turkey, stated that Washington had proposed taking over the planned Transit Corridor. It's not a joke that they are arguing about 32 kilometers of road. Barrack, according to the State Department's readout, told reporters last Friday in New York that this dispute has been ongoing for over a decade. What happens then is that America says, "Okay, let's take it over." You can share the road if you give us 32 km of road for a 100-year lease. (Reporting and Writing by Lucy Papachristou, Editing by Andrew Osborn.)
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HPE signs agreement with Elliott to add KLA chairman to its board
Hewlett Packard Enterprise agreed to work with activist investor Elliott Investment Management, and appointed a veteran tech executive as a member of its board in an effort to increase shareholder value after its Juniper Networks purchase. Robert Calderoni is the chairman of KLA's chip tools division. He has joined HPE’s board. Calderoni will also lead a newly formed strategy committee under an agreement signed with Elliott, which includes information sharing. Elliott, which owns a stake in HPE of over $1.5 billion, has also the right to nominate an employee to the board. The agreement lasts for at least one year and prevents Elliott from holding proxy contests. Elliott has a history of promoting change at many companies, including Southwest Airlines and Phillips 66. Elliott has continued to push forward with global campaigns this year, despite the market volatility which led many of its peers to settle. In a high-profile proxy battle in May, it won two seats in the oil refiner Phillips 66. In morning trading, HPE shares, which make servers used in data centres for AI workloads were not much changed. The stock is down 5% this year, falling behind AI server competitors such as Dell Technologies. It also trails the benchmark S&P 500 Index. The demand for AI servers has exploded as startups and big tech companies race to launch generative AI services like ChatGPT, which require massive amounts of computing power. The high cost of advanced chips from companies like Nvidia or Advanced Micro Devices has weighed on the business. HPE announced that its strategy committee would also include independent directors Gary Reiner Raymond Lane and Charles Noski. Calderoni, as well as any Elliott employee directors, would also be nominated for election to the HPE 2026 annual shareholders meeting. Reporting by Jaspreet in Bengaluru, editing by Pooja desai
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Prologis raises its annual FFO forecast due to warehouse leasing rebound
Prologis, a warehouse-focused real estate trust focused on investment in 2025 operations, raised its bottom forecasted range of adjusted core funds after customers resumed leasing following a U.S. Tariff-induced slowdown in April. In premarket trading, shares of the company increased by 2.6% to $111.5. Despite the uncertainty surrounding President Donald Trump's tariffs, businesses are again increasing their leasing programs as they prepare for early holiday sales and back-to school business. Daniel Letter, the company's president, said that "our leasing pipeline has reached a historically high level." The company expects to achieve adjusted core FFO of between $5.80-$5.85 per share. It had previously forecasted a range from $5.70-$5.86. According to data compiled and analyzed by LSEG, the new forecast is higher than analysts' expectations of $5.63 a share. The company reported core FFO at $1.46 per share, compared to the analysts' average estimate of just $1.41. Analysts at BTIG wrote a note before Prologis released its quarterly results: "We expect (Prologis) to continue expanding their leasing pipeline. This could indicate a recovery in the demand if economic expansion accelerates." Total revenue for the San Francisco-based company was $2.18 Billion. Analysts had predicted a revenue of $2.08billion on average. According to Prologis' latest annual report, Amazon, Home Depot and FedEx are among the biggest customers. (Reporting and editing by Sahal Muhammad in Bengaluru, with Abhinav Paramar reporting from Bengaluru)
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Soccer-US fund Apollo in talks to invest in Atletico Madrid, sources say
Two people with knowledge of the matter said that the U.S.-based Apollo Global Management was in discussions with Atletico Madrid's lead shareholder about a potential deal to invest in their Spanish top-flight team. The news was first reported by the Spanish newspaper Expansion on Wednesday. The club is embarking on a sport and leisure project worth 929 million euros (800 million Euros) around the Metropolitano Stadium, Madrid. According to Expansion, 200 million euro will be provided by the club and the remainder is expected to come from investors. One source, who spoke on condition of anonymity as the talks were private, said that while the initial focus of the talks was to finance the building project of Atletico Madrid, the U.S. Fund is now interested in buying a stake in Atletico Holdco which owns a majority of the club. This person stated that there is no offer concrete on the table, but other funds would be interested in buying a stake in Atletico Holdco. A deal could bring the club's value up to three billion euros. According to Expansion, Apollo would receive its stake through a capital increase at Atletico Holdco. Apollo declined to comment. Atletico Holdco is owned by Miguel Angel Gil Marin, the club's CEO. His stake in Atletico Holdco is more than 50%. Enrique Cerezo and Ares Management, an investment fund, are also shareholders in the company which owns over 70% of the club. $1 = 0.8606 Euros (Reporting and editing by Peter Rutherford and Anousha Sakoui; Keith Weir, Anousha Saoui, and Pietro Lombardi)
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Italy asks Poste and state mint to restart talks about PagoPA
Two sources with knowledge of the situation said that Italy wants the state-backed Poste Italiane to resume talks about buying PagoPA, Treasury's platform for digital payments to public administration. According to a plan drawn up last year, Poste, which has expanded its business beyond mail and parcels into financial, broadband, and energy supply, would take a minor stake in PagoPA, thereby bolstering its payments business. Reports from April indicated that negotiations had hit a snag regarding the valuation of PagoPA. Poste and Mint questioned a price tag determined by an adviser to the Treasury of 500 million euro ($581 millions). One source, who refused to be identified due to the sensitive nature of the issue, said that the parties were now trying to finalise an agreement in September. However, no formal deadline had been set. PagoPA will play a key role in the Italian Government's efforts to create a digital wallet via the IO app. This year, PagoPA handled payments worth 57 billion euro to Italy's government administration. It allows users to store documents such as proof of digital identity, which they can use to access online services and make payments. Poste's stake in PagoPA is alarming to Italy's banking sector. It faces stiff competition from Apple, Alphabet, and PayPal in the digital payments arena. Sources close to the issue said that Poste was concerned about the impact of PagoPA's plans to develop a digital platform to allow public administrations and courts to send and receive legal notifications.
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Maguire: China will cut electricity emissions to record-low levels by 2025
China's utilities have been able to achieve record-low emissions in the first half of 2025 by focusing on clean energy supplies. According to the energy portal, electricitymaps.com, carbon dioxide emissions per Kilowatt Hour (kWh) of Electricity averaged 492 Grams during the first half of 2025. This was the first time a reading under 500 grams per kWh had been recorded. It is also down from 514g/kWh in the same period of 2024, and 539g/kWh between January and June 2023. CLEANING UP The main reason for the reduction of emissions intensity was the nearly 23% increase in clean power production from January to June 2020. This allowed the power companies to reduce the output of coal and gas power stations. LSEG data shows that the total power generated by thermal power plants – mainly coal – has dropped 4% compared to a year earlier, and is now just below 7,000 terawatt-hours (TWh). The total output of clean energy from January to the end of June was 2,400 TWh. This shows that fossil fuels still make up 75% of China's electricity generation mix. The growth of clean energy continues to outpace the growth in fossil fuels, suggesting that China’s power mix is set to continue getting cleaner. According to LSEG, the total Chinese clean energy output in the first half 2025 will be 200% higher than the first half 2019. The total thermal power produced in China from January to June of 2025 is 20% higher than the same period last year. Emissions Toll China's emissions from the fossil fuel sector have decreased in line with a cleaner mix. According to data from the energy think tank Ember, total emissions from fossil fuels in electricity production between January and May were 2,24 billion metric tonnes of CO2. This is 60.5 millions tons less than in the same months of 2020, and shows that Beijing is making progress towards its goal of reducing pollution from the energy sector. The lingering economic drag from a property slump and the uncertainty over tariffs imposed by the United States against Chinese goods also impacts China's energy needs and emission totals. Construction in China has been slowing down sharply in the past decade due to a debt crisis among developers. This has in turn slowed demand for energy-intensive products such as glass, construction steel, cement and piping. The latest tariffs imposed by U.S. president Donald Trump on Chinese products have impacted the demand for China-made goods and caused production lines to slow down across a variety of manufactured items. The overall energy needs of these industries have been reduced by the slower pace on construction sites and production lines in factories. This has allowed power generation companies to reduce their production. China's power requirements will rise if the manufacturing and construction sectors recover. This will lead to a return of fossil fuels that emit pollution. If China's economy is still slowed by the construction debt and the tariff concerns, then the use of fossil fuels could be further reduced, which would lead to further emissions reductions from the power sector. These are the opinions of a columnist who writes for. You like this article? Check it out Open Interest The new global financial commentary source (ROI) is your go-to for all the latest news and information. ROI provides data-driven, thought-provoking analysis on everything from soybeans to swap rates. The markets are changing faster than ever. ROI can help you keep up. Follow ROI on You can find us on LinkedIn.
Syria's Aviation Comeback Struggles amid Regional Unrest
Industry officials say that poor infrastructure, regional conflict, and Israeli airstrikes have prevented more airlines from returning. This is hampering efforts to rebuild Syria's economy, which has been ravaged by 14 years of civil warfare.
At least 11 foreign airlines will fly to Syria this month. This is up from only three a year earlier, as sanctions have been rolled back since the overthrow in December 2024 of Bashar al Assad, Syria's longtime leader.
The world's largest airline, Emirates of Dubai, as well as the first two European Union airlines to fly into Syria in 2011 are Romania's Dan Air, and Greece's Air Mediterranean.
Last month, airlines like Royal Jordanian Airlines, FlyDubai Airlines, Turkish Airlines, and Qatar Airways were forced to cancel a large number of flights that they had just launched because the Middle East's airspace was closed off to civil aviation due to the air and missile attacks by Israel, the U.S., and Iran.
Also, there are dangers close to home. Israel launched strikes on Syrian government forces for the second day in southwestern Syria, Tuesday. It promised to demilitarize the area and protect the Druze minorities there.
Airlines are concerned about the management and infrastructure of Syria's aviation industry.
The International Air Transport Association, a trade association, said that progress was needed in the regulatory oversight, infrastructure investments, and compliance with international standards of safety and operation.
Officials at Damascus Airport and Syria's Aviation regulator said that major carriers like Lufthansa, Air France KLM and others, who used to fly into Syria before the war, visited Damascus to assess infrastructure and former offices.
Both airlines said they were not interested in restarting flights at this time.
Last month, the small Romanian airline Dan Air opened its Bucharest-Damascus route.
Matt Ian David, CEO of Dan Air, said that the logistics and regulatory complexity was what had held back operators up until now. He added that now sanctions have been eased to make Syria more accessible.
Emirates resumed its flights over Syria at the end May for the first since the civil conflict, shaving an hour from a Dubai-Beirut flight.
Several countries, such as the United States and Britain, advise their airlines not to fly over Syria. The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) warns that "there are risks of both deliberate targeting and misidentification civil aircraft".
Syria's civil aviation authority announced that it had reopened the airspace to all users on June 24.
The two runways of Damascus Airport were damaged by bombs during the civil conflict, but they have now been repaired. The airport was looted as well during the chaos that followed Assad's downfall.
Alaa Sallal is the director of public relations for Syria's Civil Aviation Authority. He said that a number airlines have inspected security and infrastructure.
Sallal stated that the airport construction was in a dilapidated state, and equipment was worn-out or missing.
He said that the country lacks radar equipment, and is dependent on Lebanese radar or Turkish radar for monitoring air traffic.
In a statement made earlier this month, the head of Syria's General Authority for Civil Aviation said that it wished to build new airports at Damascus and Aleppo as well as in central Syria. This will require time and money, which the war-ravaged nation may not have.
NEW AIRLINES
Most of the Iranian and Iraqi carriers who served Syria during its long conflict are no longer flying there. This reflects a change in political landscape following the overthrow of Assad by Iran and Russia.
First to resume flights under Ahmed al-Sharaa, the new president, were the flag carriers of Qatar, and Turkey. Both countries supported the Syrian rebels during the war.
The Turkish transport ministry said that Turkey, as a close ally to the new government, had been improving Syria's airports.
Emirates said that the return of its Dubai-Damascus flight on Wednesday was the first since 2012. The flights will help to strengthen ties between the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Syria, as well as attract investment.
Flyadeal, a Saudi budget airline, has announced that it will soon begin flying to Syria.
Others may have less reason to return, as Syria wasn't a big market even before the war. Those who flew there - Russia’s Aeroflot and Air France, Lufthansa’s Austrian Airways, LOT Polish, IAG’s Iberia, Italy’s ITA, Czech Airlines and China Southern – have not returned.
Despite recent increases, the number international flights to Syria is still well below the pre-war level. Cirium data show that scheduled flights were 58% lower in July than they were in 2010.
IATA stated that the lifting of sanctions has opened up new pathways for improved access to aircraft maintenance services, parts and certain commercial transactions. Visa restrictions for Syrian nationals have limited the mobility of passengers and the growth of the market.
(source: Reuters)