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American Airlines to resume US flights from Venezuela by April 30
American Airlines announced on Thursday that it would resume flights to Venezuela by 'April 30th, after receiving approval last month from the U.S. Department of Transportation. The airline announced that it would resume its services to Venezuela. The airline said it plans to resume? U.S. Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy lifted an order from January 2019 that barred U.S. airlines from flying to Venezuela. President Donald Trump had directed him to do so. In March, American Airlines' request for flights was approved. Sources said that the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) was in Caracas a little over a month ago, reviewing airport security procedures. This is a step necessary to resume flights. American has announced that it will resume service just weeks after the U.S. Military seized Nicolas Maduro, the leader of Venezuela. After a meeting with Delcy Rodriquez, the acting president of the United States, Trump asked the Transportation Department in January to lift the restrictions currently preventing U.S. flights. American began operating in Venezuela in 1987 and was the largest U.S. carrier in the country until it ceased service in 2019. The airline said that the daily flights would allow for travel for business, pleasure and humanitarian purposes. In?March the State Department removed Venezuela from its list of "Do Not Travel" for Americans, instead issuing a "Reconsider Travel", which was less serious, due to crime, kidnappings, terrorism and a poor health infrastructure. (Reporting and editing by David Shepardson)
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Brazil's Vale signs charter agreement with China's Shandong Shipping for ethanol-powered vessels
Vale, the Brazilian miner, has signed a 25-year charter deal with the 'China's Shandong Shipping Corporation. The agreement will see the construction of the first two transoceanic vessels powered by ethanol. Both vessels, with a combined capacity of up to 325,000 metric tonnes of iron ore each, will be delivered in 2029. Rodrigo Bermelho said that the ships will be equipped with rotors sails for harnessing wind energy, and engines that are more energy efficient, among other improvements. He said that decarbonization was an irreversible trend. "It's at the core of Vale's strategic plan, not just in maritime transport, but also across all the products we develop for the steel industry." Vale is one of the world's biggest iron ore producers. (Reporting and writing by Marta Nogueira, Editing by Chizu Nomiyama).
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Airbus Delivers 60 Aircrafts in March
Airbus announced on Thursday that it delivered 60 aircrafts in March, bringing the first-quarter deliveries to 114, a '16% decrease from last year at this point. Monthly data revealed that Emirates, which is based in Dubai, received three jets despite the disruption caused by the Gulf Conflict. The French plane manufacturer also delivered a jet to Etihad Airways, Saudi Arabia's Fly a?Deal and one jet to the Saudi Arabian airline. Airbus executives said that deliveries have been hindered by problems with fuselage panels, and a shortage of engines. Airbus will deliver 136 aircraft in the first quarter of 2025. Airbus plans to deliver 870 aircraft this year. The 'company' said that it had sold 408 aircraft during the first quarter, or a total of 398 after cancellations. (Reporting from Mateusz Rabiega, Gdansk. Editing by Matt Scuffham.)
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Serbia's NIS Oil Company, owned by Russians, seeks another waiver of sanctions
RTS TV reported that Serbia's Russian owned NIS oil company has asked the United States for another waiver of sanctions to allow it to import crude oil until its sale to Hungary MOL is completed. The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), the United States' foreign asset control agency, has granted a previous waiver that expires April 17. NIS operates Serbia’s only?oil refining plant in the northern city of Pancevo and supplies 80% of fuel to the Balkan nation. OFAC imposed sanctions against?NIS on October, as part of broader measures targeting Russia's energy industry over Moscow's conflict in Ukraine. They demanded the divestment by Gazprom and Gazprom Neft of their majority stakes. The Serbian Government owns 29.9% of the company, while small shareholders and staff hold the rest. MOL announced in 'January that it signed a binding agreement with the Russian companies in order to purchase their stake in NIS.?OFAC gave MOL until 'May 22 for the sale to be negotiated. Serbia imports crude oil primarily from Kazakhstan, Nigeria, and Guyana, via the island of Krk in Croatia, where it is then transported via the JANAF pipeline. (Aleksandar Vaovic; Editing done by Kirsten Doovan)
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UN ship agency: A toll on the use of Hormuz is a "dangerous precedent"
The UN shipping agency warned that imposing a toll on ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz would "set a dangerous precedent" and countries should not hinder freedom of navigation. Iranian officials have suggested?charging for the use of the Strait? after a two-week truce was reached between the United States and Tehran this week. There is no international agreement that allows tolls for crossing international straits. A spokesperson for the UN's International Maritime Organization stated that any such toll would set a dangerous precedent. The IMO countries have adopted the UN Convention on the Law of the Seas (UNCLOS), which defines the 'rules' that govern the straits used to conduct international navigation. According to UNCLOS ships have the right of transit through international straits. The spokesperson for the IMO said that states bordering straits must not impede or suspend this 'right'. (Reporting and editing by Barbara Lewis; Jonathan Saul)
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Trading sources report that despite the attack on a pipeline, crude loadings have continued at Saudi Arabia's Yanbu Port.
Sources from two buyers at the port, and a third source in the trading world told us on Thursday that crude loadings have continued at the Red Sea port at Yanbu despite the?attack by Iran?on Wednesday?on the East-West Pipeline of the country. Saudi state oil company Aramco declined to comment. Iran attacked the 7-million-barrel-per-day pipeline hours after ?a ceasefire was agreed to pause the Iran war, ?an industry source told on Wednesday, targeting its only oil export route ?since hostilities began. Sources added that the damage assessment was underway and that it is expected that?flows? through?the?pipeline will be affected. Saudi Arabia is unable to export crude oil due to the de facto closing of the Strait of Hormuz. According to Kpler, the average?Yanbu crude oil loadings in March were 3.3 million barrels per day, up from just over 800,000 barrels per day in February. It can export up to?5million bpd. Aramco said it directed roughly 2 million barrels per day (bpd) of the pipeline flows towards its refineries in 'the west last month. (Reporting and editing by Siyi Liu; Ahmad Ghaddar, Arathy Sommesekhar, Elaine Hardcastle, Barbara Lewis)
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After a report about a warship being escorted near the UK, Kremlin said that Russia had a right to defend themselves from 'piracy.'
The Kremlin announced on Thursday that Russia has the right to defend itself against what it calls piracy, after a British paper reported?that an oil tanker sanctioned by Britain was escorted through the English Channel by a Russian Navy frigate. The ship tracking data analysed showed that the two vessels sanctioned in the Daily Telegraph article - the Russian-flagged Universal, and the Cameroon flagged Enigma – crossed UK waters between Thursday and Wednesday. Last month, British Prime Minister Keir starmer announced that he had authorized the military to board Russian ships in British waters and detain them to disrupt a system of vessels which his government claims allows Moscow to export oil regardless of Western sanctions over Ukraine. So far, no such action has taken place. Dmitry Peskov said, when asked about the report in the media, that Moscow had repeatedly seen what he called piracy on international waters, and that Russia will act to ensure?the safety of its own shipping. "We have seen repeated incidents of piratery?in international water over the last few months." Peskov said that these incidents of piracy, among other things have harmed Russian Federation's economic interests. The Russian Federation will take all necessary measures to protect their interests. According to LSEG, the two tankers were used for diesel deliveries. They each carried 40,000 tons of the fuel from the Baltic Port of Primorsk, in the Leningrad Region, at the end of march. Enigma will be heading to Mersin, Turkey. Universal's destination is unknown. Britain claimed to have used a tanker, a helicopter, and a patrol boat?to monitor the movements of the Russian landing ship, the Admiral Grigorovich. Britain stated that 'Belgian aircraft and Dutch ships were also involved with the monitoring operation. When asked about the passage at a press event to announce "a separate British operation to track Russian submarines in High North", British Defence Minister John Healey replied that work done by Britain and Western Allies had already made working for Putin's shadow fleet of oil tankers more difficult. He said that the government is ready to go further. We are ready to act. He said that he would not only support, but also take action in conjunction with allies to intercept shadow fleet vessels.
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The US Postal Service, which is in a financial crunch, has suspended contributions to its pension plan
The U.S.?Postal Service announced Thursday that it would temporarily?suspend payments from employers for a federal retirement program in order to conserve?cash during a severe financial?crisis. USPS informed the White House Office of Personnel Management on Friday that it would no longer be paying $200 million every two weeks for its employer contributions to the defined benefit component of the Federal Employees Retirement System. USPS warned on Thursday that it may run out of money as early as February if reforms are not implemented. USPS estimates it will save $2.5B with the?action through September 30, and says there won't be any immediate negative impact on current or future retirees. Since 2007, the service has suffered net losses of $118 billion as its most profitable product - first class mail - has fallen to its lowest volume since the late 1960s. USPS reported a loss of $1.25bn in the quarter ending February. USPS stated that the risk to USPS and the American public of not paying the current pension payments outweighs the longer-term risks to the pension funds. USPS received approval earlier this week from the Postal Regulatory Commission to implement a temporary 8% increase in price?for package and priority mail deliveries, starting April 26. This is to 'deal with increasing transportation?and fuel prices. USPS expects the surcharge will be in place until January 17, 2019. U.S. Postmaster General David Steiner said to Congress last month that increasing the price of 'first-class stamps' from 78 cents up to $1 or 95 cents would help it increase revenue and reduce losses. Steiner says that although stamp prices have increased by 46% from early 2019, when they cost 50 cents each, they are still lower than other countries.
After a brief closure of the airspace due to a technical issue, flights resumed in Sao Paulo
Separate statements were released by the Brazilian Air Force, the Congonhas airport operators and the Guarulhos airport operators.
The operator of the Congonhas Airport in the city and the Guarulhos International Airport had earlier announced that all landings and takesoffs were suspended?in the town due to an "electrical problem."
Brazil's Air Force is responsible for all national air traffic. The?suspension was just over 30 minutes long. It added that the incident was caused by a "technical?operational problem" without giving any further details.
The operator of Guarulhos airport said that the incident did not occur at the airport. It is the busiest in Latin America.
Brazil's civil aviation regulator, which oversees the country's airspace, said that it had implemented the initial measures in its "pre-crisis" protocol to monitor the?"consequences" of the incident.
Airline Azul has reported that six flights have been diverted to another destination and 12 flights have been cancelled.
Gol and Latam - which together with Azul form the main airline group in the country - did not respond to requests for comment. Reporting by Rodrigo Viga Gaier, Isabel Teles and Fernando Cardoso. Writing by Fernando Cardoso. Editing by Chizu Nomiyama & Keith Weir.
(source: Reuters)