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Sources: US deploys stealth fighters to Caribbean in drug war as tensions rise with Venezuela
Sources say that the United States has ordered 10 F-35 fighters to be deployed to an airfield in Puerto Rico to conduct operations against the drug cartels. This will add more firepower to the intensifying U.S. Military operations in the Caribbean, which are increasing tensions with Venezuela. As President Obama continues to increase U.S. military activity in the southern Caribbean, this new deployment will be added to an already burgeoning presence. Donald Trump He follows through on a pledge made during his campaign to crackdown on the groups he accuses of funneling drugs into America. Just hours after the announcement, the F-35s were revealed. Pentagon Venezuela was accused of a "highly provocation" flight by fighter jets on Thursday over a U.S. Navy ship. The U.S. Military strike On Tuesday, a ship from Venezuela that Trump claimed was carrying illegal drugs was sunk and 11 people were killed. The Trump administration has tried to link Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s government with narcotrafficking at every opportunity, an accusation Caracas strongly denies. Trump has also accused Maduro specifically of being the leader of the Tren de Aragua criminal gang. His administration had designated this gang as a terrorist group in February. The Venezuelan Communications Ministry has not responded to a question about F-35s, or allegations that Venezuelan fighter planes flew above a U.S. naval vessel. Sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity, stated that the 10 fighter jets were being sent to conduct missions against designated narco terrorist organizations operating in southern Caribbean. They said the planes would arrive by late next week. F-35s, highly advanced stealth aircraft, would be very effective against Venezuelan air forces that include F-16 aircraft. Two Venezuelan F-16s, according to a U.S. official who spoke on condition of anonymity on Thursday, flew above the USS Jason Dunham. Dunham is just one of seven U.S. Warships that are currently deployed in the Caribbean with more than 4,500 sailors, Marines and other personnel. Marines from the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit and U.S. Marines have been conducting amphibious and flight training in southern Puerto Rico. The buildup put pressure on Maduro who U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth called "effectively the kingpin a drug narco-state." Maduro said, in a rare press conference held on Monday in Caracas, that the United States was "seek[ing] a regime-change through military threat." Hegseth, in remarks to reporters on Thursday, defended the deadly strike of Tuesday and promised that such activities will continue. He cited the threat illegal narcotics present to the public health in the United States. Hegseth stated that "the poisoning of American people has ended." Ilhan Omar is a Democrat who represents Minnesota. She condemned Trump's actions, which she described as "lawless", in the southern Caribbean. Omar stated in a press release that "Congress did not declare war on Venezuela or Tren de Aragón, and the mere designation as a terrorist group does not give a President carte blanche for him to ignore Congress's clear constitutional authority on war and peace." U.S. officials did not explain what the legal basis was for the air strike Tuesday on this boat, or what drugs it contained. Trump claimed on Tuesday that the U.S. Military had identified the crew as members of Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua. He did not provide any evidence.
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Allegro CEO: E-commerce company not at odds with partners
Allegro, the CEO of Polish ecommerce company Allegro, denied on Friday that Allegro was at odds with any of its business partners despite its relationship deteriorating with delivery partner InPost. When asked by reporters about InPost, Allegro CEO Marcin Kusmierz said: "We don't believe that we are in any dispute or business with any entity." InPost's shares dropped around 13% after the company reported a slower volume growth in Poland. The shares of InPost have lost over a third in value this year, but they were up by 9% as of 1340 GMT. Allegro shares were up about 2%. InPost, who according to JPMorgan receives 30% of its Polish revenues from Allegro filed a claim for arbitration against Allegro in July, claiming that Allegro had violated their long-term agreement. InPost claimed Allegro was redirecting its customers to their own lockers. Rafal Brzoska, CEO of InPost, commented on the claim made on Tuesday. He said that the company must look out for the interests and shareholders. Allegro's Kusmierz stated that his company respects all business relationships or agreements, and is adding new logistic partners to serve its customers. InPost has declined to comment. InPost is the biggest provider of automated parcel lockers. Allegro, however, has deployed its own lockers as well as teamed up with other partners to integrate them into the service that it manages. Allegro's goal is to reduce its delivery costs. JPMorgan analysts stated in a report that they expected both companies to reach a mutually-beneficial arrangement, given their interdependence. However, it was noted that this could lead to InPost losing some of its margins. InPost's Polish business is expected to generate 48% of revenue in 2025, but will decline to 35% in 2030 as InPost expands overseas. They have affirmed their "overweight rating" on the stock.
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Berlin is considering the purchase of Eurofighters and modernisation of Taurus Cruise Missiles
According to a document viewed by, the German government intends to seek approval from the parliament for 80 defence projects before the end of this year. These include the purchase of Eurofighter Jets and the modernisation the Taurus Cruise Missile. The document lists 81 projects in the defence sector that exceed the threshold of 25 millions euros (29 million dollars), above which any purchases require approval from Parliament's Budget Committee. The former German Chancellor Olaf Scholz had previously stated that the Tranche 5 would consist of 20 Airbus-built Eurofighter jets. On the list are also plans to modernise Taurus, the cruise missile system. This includes the creation of a production facility for the next generation Taurus NEO. Boris Pistorius, the Minister of Defence, was reported to have been working on a new weapon system. Advanced version Buy 600 Taurus. The German military has 600 units of the current model with a maximum range of 500 km (311 mi) that can be launched by fighter jets like the Tornado F-15 and F/A-18. The weapon is built by MBDA, a European defence company. It's designed to destroy high value targets such as bunkers and ammunition dumps behind enemy lines, and airfields, bridges, and bridges. The list also includes the purchase of Patriot and IRIS T SLM missile systems as well as Puma infantry combat vehicles, Boxer armored personnel carriers and Heron TP Drones, all manufactured in Israel. Germany August halted Exports of weapons to Israel that could be used to expand Israel's operations in Gaza Strip. The list does NOT specify how many systems you need to buy, their price or the manufacturer.
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Zelenskiy claims that thousands of troops may be deployed in Ukraine as part of security guarantees
The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, said that thousands of troops may be sent to Ukraine as part the security guarantees offered by allies after Russia's war against his country is over. On Thursday, French President Emmanuel Macron announced that 26 countries have pledged to provide Ukraine with post-war security guarantees including an international force on the land, sea and air. Macron said initially that these countries would deploy to Ukraine but later stated that some would provide guarantees whilst remaining outside Ukraine. For example, by helping train and equip Kyiv’s forces. Zelenskiy told reporters after a meeting with Antonio Costa, President of the European Council in Uzhhorod, western Ukraine. In response to a question from a journalist, he said that it was still too early to make any specific comments. Vladimir Putin, the Russian president, said that on Friday any Western troops in Ukraine would be legitimate targets of Moscow's attack. Zelenskiy told Uzhhorod that he and Costa had "coordinated" their actions in Ukraine's EU accession negotiations. Kyiv considers that EU membership is crucial to its recovery and security after the war. Zelenskiy also had a meeting with Robert Fico, the Slovak prime minister, on Friday. In Copenhagen, Roman Andarak, the deputy energy minister said that Zelenskiy would be meeting Fico to discuss a gradual phase out of Russian oil supplies via Ukraine. Slovakia relies heavily on oil supplies from Russia via Druzhba, whose infrastructure Ukrainian drones attacked, causing frequent disruptions of supply which angered Bratislava. Fico met Putin in Beijing on Tuesday and stated that Bratislava is looking to normalize relations with Moscow. Ukraine has called on other countries not to buy Russian oil in order to deny Moscow the funds it needs to fund its war. According to a White House spokesperson, U.S. president Donald Trump told European leaders that they should stop buying Russian oil on Thursday.
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Asian spot prices remain stable on low demand
The Asian spot LNG prices remained stable this week, as regional demand was muted. Meanwhile, a gas supply agreement between Russia and China could curb future LNG shipments by the largest Asian importer. Average LNG price for delivery in October to Northeast Asia Industry sources estimate that the price per million British Thermal Units (mmBtu) was $11,30, a slight increase from $11,15/mmBtu in the previous week. Masanori Odaka of Rystad Energy said that east Asian importers showed a muted interest in purchasing cargoes, although some Japanese and Korean firms offered to deliver them by the fourth quarter. Current prices are still above what some end users consider acceptable. He added that Chinese importers also stayed away from the current spot price, and most utilities were only interested in buying at $10.50/mmBtu. Beijing and Moscow signed an agreement this week to increase the gas supply through the existing Power of Siberia pipe and to build the Power of Siberia 2 pipeline. However, they are yet to agree on the pricing. Klaas Dzeman, an analyst at Brainchild Commodity Intelligence, stated that China is sending out a geopolitical message that it wants to receive more Russian natural gas. This will reduce its LNG dependence from other sources by 2027, and influence the profitability of LNG producers. Analysts and industry players are also watching to see if more tankers sanctioned with Arctic LNG 2 supplies will deliver additional cargoes into China. In Europe, S&P Global Commodity Insights set its daily North West Europe Gas Marker benchmark price for cargoes to be delivered in October ex-ship at $10.475, a discount of $0.625/mmBtu from the October futures prices at the Dutch TTF Hub. Spark Commodities set the price at $10.442/mmBtu while Argus put it at $10.49/mmBtu. Aly Blakeway is the manager of Atlantic LNG for S&P Global Commodity Insights. This also comes as imports to Europe have experienced a slight decline, due to the cooling of heatwaves. Also, easing concerns over storage has added more bearish tailwinds in the market. Qasim Afghan, Spark Commodities analyst, stated that the U.S. arbitrage for Northeast Asia via Cape of Good Hope has shrunk significantly in recent weeks, and only marginally influenced U.S. cargo shipments to Europe. Arbitrage via Panama also increased and now opens to Asia. He said that the Atlantic LNG rates dropped to $28,500/day last Friday while Pacific LNG rates fell to $32,500/day.
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Energy chief: EU would welcome US support to stop using Russian oil
Energy Commissioner Dan Jorgensen said on Friday that the European Union would be happy to have President Donald Trump support its plans to stop purchasing Russian oil. These purchases are used to fund Moscow's war against Ukraine. The European Union has begun negotiating with Russia to end its decades-old energy relationship. A White House official confirmed that U.S. president Donald Trump called European leaders on Thursday and told them to stop buying Russian oil. Diplomatic efforts to end the conflict are still ongoing. Jorgensen is in charge of the EU's Energy Policy. He said that he was not under any pressure from the U.S. Administration to stop Russian oil purchases before the 2028 deadline. However, he would appreciate U.S. support for the EU Plan. "Putin has not only weaponised energy and blackmailed members states against us but we also indirectly finance Putin's War, which needs to stop. "If President Trump supports that, that's a very welcome support because that is our main goal," he stated in an interview. The White House official who quoted Trump's remarks has asked the Kremlin for comment. India accused the West for being hypocritical after the United States imposed punitive duties on India because of its continued purchase of Russian oil. HUNGARY AND SLOVAKIA OPPOSE PHASE OUT According to EU figures, the amount of gas Europe purchases from Russia is expected to drop to 13% this year. This compares to 45% in 2022 before Russia invaded Ukraine. Hungary and Slovakia continue importing Russian crude oil via the Druzhba pipe and oppose the EU's phase out plan, claiming it will increase energy prices. Jorgensen stated that he is in discussions with both governments to address their concerns, but if necessary, EU countries can approve phase-out plans even without them. He refused to confirm whether Brussels would provide funding or legal assurances to try to win support from the two countries. Jorgensen stated that if there are domestic reasons that prevent some countries from supporting it, this does not require unanimity. The EU proposals were designed to be approved by a consolidated majority of members countries. EU diplomats said they expect the energy ministers of member countries to approve these proposals at a meeting in a month. Next week, Jorgensen and U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright will meet in Brussels to discuss the EU's commitment to purchase $250 billion worth of U.S. supplies of energy per year as part of a U.S.-EU free trade agreement. Analysts say the EU's energy pledge is unrealistically large - partly because it has limited control over what energy its companies import. Jorgensen stated that they will discuss ways in which the EU and U.S. Administrations can ensure that the deal is implemented. The Commission, for example, has stated that it could pool the demand of European companies in order to purchase more U.S. Gas. It's obvious that our role is facilitation. "The EU is not a trader of gas," Jorgensen stated. (Reporting and editing by Jan Strupczewski, Barbara Lewis and Kate Abnett)
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Allegro CEO: E-commerce company not involved in any business disputes with partners
Allegro, the CEO of Polish ecommerce company Allegro, denied on Friday that Allegro was in dispute with its partners despite its relationship with InPost deteriorating in recent months. When asked by reporters about InPost, Allegro CEO Marcin Kusmierz said: "We don't believe that we are in any disputes or business with any entity." At 0945 GMT, InPost shares rose 4.8% after falling around 13% Tuesday, when it reported slower volume growth in Poland. Allegro shares were up 2.6%. Allegro has recently been sued by InPost for breaching their long-term agreement. According to JPMorgan, Allegro gets 30% of InPost's Polish revenues. Allegro, according to InPost, has been redirecting its customers to their own lockers. Rafal Brzoska, CEO of InPost, commented on the claim made on Tuesday. He said that the company must look out for the interests its shareholders.
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Transnet South Africa reports lower full-year losses
Transnet, the state-owned South African logistics group, reported on Friday a loss of 1.9 billion Rand ($108.18million) for the financial year ending March. This is down from the loss of 7.3 billion Rand in the prior year. Due to equipment shortages, and maintenance backlogs, the debt-ridden company has struggled for years to provide adequate rail freight and port services. Transnet's persistent underperformance has led to the stifling of exports for key commodities like coal and iron ore. Mineral exporters have lost billions in revenue. Kumba Iron Ore as well as thermal coal exporter Thungela Resources were forced to reduce production. Tariff increases and increased rail volume boosted the logistics company's revenue by 7.8% in 2024/25 to 82.7 billion Rand. Net operating expenses fell 4.9%, to 52.1 billion Rands. This was due to a decrease in third-party claims.
SpiceJet, India's largest airline, reports a quarterly loss due to the conflict between India and Pakistan.
SpiceJet, the Indian budget airline, posted its second consecutive quarterly loss as the demand for leisure travel on certain routes plummeted during the worst India/Pakistan conflict in decades.
The airline, which is in trouble, reported a loss between April and June of 2,35 billion rupees (about $26.6 million), compared with a profit of 1,5 billion rupees the year before.
After an attack on Kashmir in April, which New Delhi attributed to Islamabad and led to the closure of airports in north-west India, ties between India and Pakistan deteriorated. Pakistani airspace was closed for Indian carriers. Pakistan has denied involvement.
The quarterly revenue dropped by 35%, to 11,06 billion rupees.
SpiceJet said that a delay to return its aircraft to service also added to their woes.
In recent years, the carrier has signed numerous settlement agreements to resolve disputes with lessees and other parties but still struggles to increase capacity.
By the end of March, only 25 of its 61 jets were operational, less than half.
Akasa is one of India's newest airlines. Its limited size has allowed it to surpass SpiceJet and become the No.1 airline in India. SpiceJet is the No. 3 airline by market share. Akasa has a 5.5% market share compared to SpiceJet’s 2%.
SpiceJet said that its net worth increased to positive 4,46 billion rupees during the first quarter, from negative 23,98 billion rupees a year ago. $1 = 88.2591 Indian Rupees (Reporting and editing by Janane Vekatraman in Bengaluru, Nivedita Battacharjee).
(source: Reuters)