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Russian management claims that the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Plant will have external power restored by Saturday.
The Russian-installed management has said that the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Station in southeast Ukraine will be able to receive external power by Saturday. Since September 2022, the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant in Europe - Europe's biggest with six reactors -- has been using external power to cool down nuclear material and prevent an accident. The plant was taken over by Russia in the first weeks of the conflict with Ukraine. Both sides have accused each other of shelling the facility at different times. The plant has relied on diesel emergency generators since almost a full month, after the external power supply was cut off due to fighting. Evgenia Yashina, a spokeswoman of the Russian-installed administration, said that the repair work on the Dneprovskaya electricity line which was severed began October 18 and is continuing "intensively" until Saturday. She said that inspectors of the International Atomic Energy Agency were monitoring the work progress and the situation was under control at the plant. Rafael Grossi, Director general of the IAEA, said that restoring off-site electricity is essential for nuclear safety and security. Grossi stated that the work started after local zones of ceasefire were established in order to allow for repairs to be carried out. Interfax reported that the ceasefire is still in effect. The plant has frequently been disconnected from the grid since 2022, but this is the longest outage. Reporting by Lucy Papachristou, Writing by Mark Trevelyan; Editing and proofreading by Mark Trevelyan
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Azerbaijan removes restrictions on cargo transit from Armenia as a sign of peace
Azerbaijan has lifted all restrictions on cargo transit into Armenia, President Ilham Alyev announced on Tuesday. This is a sign that relations between the two countries are warming after nearly four decades of conflict. Aliyev informed Kazakh President Kassym Jomart Tokayev during a meeting held in Astana, that the shipment of grain from Kazakhstan via Azerbaijan was the first of its kind since the transit was stopped in the last years of the Soviet Union when the war broke out between both neighbours. Azerbaijani media quoted Aliyev as saying, "I believe this is also a sign that peace between Azerbaijan & Armenia is not only on paper but is now in practice." Hikmet Hajiyev is Aliyev’s foreign policy adviser. He said that cargo shipments will travel via Georgia to Armenia, calling this transit "an economic advantage of peace". A spokeswoman of Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan welcomed Aliyev’s move, calling it "a step of great importance" for opening up regional communications, strengthening trust between Armenians and Azerbaijanis, and institutionalising peace. Armenia and Azerbaijan have been locked in a bitter conflict since the late 1980s, over Nagorno Karabakh. This mountainous region in Azerbaijan enjoyed de facto autonomy for 30 years until Baku regained full control in 2023. Azerbaijan demanded that Armenia amend its constitution. The South Caucasus is an oil and gas rich region, and it's a vital transit route between Asia and Europe. It has become more prominent since the Ukraine war largely closed down trade routes through Russia to European markets. The United States will be the only ones to develop a strategic transit corridor. This is expected to increase energy exports as well as bilateral economic ties.
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Falling freight rates have an impact on European logistics companies
Analysts have trimmed their profit forecasts for the third quarter to reflect lower freight rates and weaker consumer demand. Ocean container rates are at their lowest level since January 2024 due to an oversupply in the industry and weaker demand after new U.S. Tariffs. This is threatening carrier profit. Analysts say that Maersk, the Danish shipping company, is relatively protected from the challenges of today's market, in part due to its long-term contracts, which are fixed at higher rates, with customers. Bernstein analysts stated in a research report that although container volumes increased 4% between January and August, this was mainly due to front-loading, which occurred during the U.S. tariff pause. This only provides temporary rate support. Bernstein reported that demand remained subdued in the third quarter. This is usually the carrier's peak season, but it was subdued. The broker said that rates will remain low as supply increases. Bank of America's analysts expect logistic companies to "present a cautious outlook". BEARISH WIND BLOWS THROUGH SECTOR Analysts predict that companies will either lower their third-quarter forecasts or announce weaker results due to the softening of sea and air freight rates. BofA Securities predicts that Denmark's DSV will shave 1 billion Danish crowns (156 million dollars) off the top of their guidance range for its operating profit before special items, bringing it down to between 19,5 billion and 20,5 billion crowns. HSBC, on the other hand, expects Swiss Kuehne + Nagel to see a drop in quarterly operating profits by a third. Jefferies attributes DSV's higher profitability to its fellow freight forwarder K+N's loss of lower margin business after the merger with Schenker. HSBC predicts that DHL, the German logistics giant, will report a 4% drop in its operating profit for the quarter due to weakness in the express and forwarding segment. MAERSK KEEPS ANALYSTS BULLIENT Analysts expect Maersk will report strong results for the third quarter and increase its full-year forecast, citing an upward trend in freight rates up to mid-August, which likely increased both revenue and volume. Rico Luman is a senior economist at ING Research, specializing in transport, logistics & automobile. He said that for Maersk, the majority of container rates are fixed by term contracts. He added that these contracts usually last up to one year, which allows Maersk the opportunity to benefit from rates previously high. Luman stated that Maersk Ocean's segment would eventually be under pressure due to contract renewals, but the decline would be slower than other container lines.
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GE Aerospace boosts 2025 earnings forecast on strong engine demand
GE Aerospace increased its full-year earning forecast on Tuesday for the second time in just four months, boosted by strong demand for its commercial aircraft engines and services. The aerospace giant announced a surge in engine deliveries, and raised its forecast for LEAP engines this year. The Ohio-based firm now expects an adjusted profit per share of between $6.00 and $6.20 in 2025. This is compared to its previous expectation of $5.60 - $5.80. GE Aerospace shares rose 2.4% in the premarket. The company has a dominant position on the narrowbody jet engine market and a strong presence in widebody aircraft. Parts and services account for more than 70% of the company's revenue from commercial engines. The lack of engine supply has delayed the production of new planes. Airlines are forced to fly older jets that use less fuel and have to spend billions in maintenance. This has benefited GE Aerospace. The company earns the majority of its profits from long-term, high-margin contracts for parts and service. Larry Culp, CEO of Culp & Company, told analysts during an earnings call that "we continue to see significant demand for our products and services." GE reported a 33 percent increase in revenue for the third quarter from engine servicing. Spare part sales increased by more than 25% compared to a year earlier. The company sent its engineers directly to its most important suppliers in order to fix the supply chain bottlenecks. The company has been working on improving the reliability and durability its engines in order to reduce downtime. These measures have led to an increase in jet engine sales, which increased by 41% from a year earlier. The delivery of LEAP engines that power narrowbody aircraft of Airbus or Boeing increased by 40% compared to a year earlier. In 2025, the company expects LEAP sales to increase by more than 20%. This is a significant increase compared to its previous estimate of a 15%-20% increase. LSEG data shows that GE Aerospace’s adjusted profit per shares for the quarter ended September jumped by 44% to $1.66. This was a big improvement over expectations of $1.45. Its revenue adjusted rose by 26%, to $11.31 Billion. Reporting by Rajesh Singh in Chicago and Shivansh Twary in Bengalur. Arun Koyyur, Mark Potter and Arun Koyyur edited the article.
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RTX increases its forecast for 2025 as strong demand offsets concerns about tariffs
RTX has raised its revenue and profit forecast for the full year on Tuesday. The aerospace and defense company is confident in its ability, in light of the rising demand for missiles and its aftermarket services, to weather the effects of tariffs. The company's shares rose 6.3% in the morning, beating Wall Street's expectations for the third quarter. The Trump administration’s trade war pushed RTX in July to cut its profit forecast and anticipate $500 million in tariffs costs for this year. A shortage of new commercial aircraft has driven sales for maintenance and repair services providers like RTX. They are betting on airlines that have older fleets with high costs. RTX, a company that makes GTF engines, and competes against CFM International, also benefited from the booming demand by planemakers, as they ramped up production. Collins Aerospace, the company's aerospace division and avionics unit, posted revenue of $7.62billion in the third quarter. This is an 8% increase from a year ago. Sales at Airbus' Pratt and Whitney, which manufactures engines for the A320neo aircraft, rose by 16% to $8.42billion. Defense segment of the company has also continued to grow due to strong demand in an era of rapidly increasing geopolitical tensions. Raytheon's defense division, RTX, reported a 10% increase in sales. This was primarily due to higher sales of its Patriot air defence systems, which are used in the Ukraine on the battlefield. RTX expects to achieve full-year adjusted revenues between $86.5 billion ($87 billion) and $84,75 billion ($85,5 billion), up from its previous estimate of $84,75 billion or $85,5 billion. It also increased its adjusted profit forecast for 2025 to between $6.10 to $6.20 per common share, up from $5.80 - $5.95. Total revenue for the Arlington, Virginia-based firm increased 12% in the third quarter to $22,48 billion. LSEG data shows that analysts had on average expected $21.31 Billion. Its adjusted profit per share was $1.70. This is also higher than the $1.41 expected. (Reporting and editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri; Utkarsh shetti in Bengaluru, Mike Stone in Washington)
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RTX increases its forecast for 2025 as strong demand offsets concerns about tariffs
RTX has raised its revenue and profit forecast for the full year on Tuesday. The aerospace and defense company is confident in its ability, in light of the rising demand for missiles and its aftermarket services, to weather the effects of tariffs. The Trump administration’s trade war pushed RTX in July to cut its profit forecast and anticipate $500 million in tariffs costs for this year. A shortage of new commercial aircraft has driven sales for maintenance and repair services providers like RTX. They are betting on airlines that have older fleets with high costs. RTX, a company that makes GTF engines, and competes against CFM International, also benefited from the booming demand by planemakers, as they ramped up production. Collins Aerospace, the company's division for aerospace and avionics, posted revenue of $7.62billion in the third quarter. This is an 8% increase from a year ago. Sales at Airbus' Pratt and Whitney, which manufactures engines for the A320neo aircraft, increased 16% to $8.42billion. Defense segment of the company has also continued to grow due to a strong demand in a time of rapidly increasing geopolitical tensions. Raytheon's defense division, RTX, reported a 10% increase in sales. This was primarily due to higher sales of its Patriot air defence systems, which are used in the Ukraine on the battlefield. RTX expects to achieve full-year adjusted revenues between $86.5 billion ($87 billion) and $84.75 billion ($85.55 billion), up from its previous estimate of $84.75 billion or $85.5 billion. It also increased its adjusted profit forecast for 2025 to between $6.10 to $6.20 per common share, up from $5.80 to 5.95. Arlington, Virginia's company saw its total revenue increase by 12% in the third quarter to $22,48 billion. Its adjusted profit per share was $1.70 compared to $1.45 the previous year. (Reporting from Utkarsh Setti in Bengaluru, and Mike Stone in Washington. Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri.)
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Brazil's Ambipar files bankruptcy protection
Ambipar, a Brazilian waste management firm, filed for bankruptcy in Rio de Janeiro late Monday night. The company was facing a cash crunch and the threat of debt repayments that could amount to billions of dollars. According to a document published early Tuesday, a subsidiary of XYZ Company has also filed for Chapter 11 protection in the United States. Ambipar stated that the bankruptcy was filed after "discovering evidence of irregularities" in the Finance Department's contracting of swap transactions and the sudden resignation of the previous Chief Financial Officer. The company claims that this has led to a significant drop in market confidence and early repayment requests from creditors. This poses a serious cross-default risk on other financial obligations of the Group. Ampipar said in a separate statement that the court protection was urgently needed after Deutsche Bank asked for additional loan guarantees. This prompted several other institutions, including banks, to ask for early repayment of debt. The firm that manages waste had obtained an injunction to prevent creditors from demanding early payment. Ambipar says that the measure did not prevent a bigger crisis of trust and liquidity issues. As one creditor demanding immediate payment could cause a domino-effect, the company said that such demands could create a "financial gap of more than 10 Billion Reais". UBS analysts in a report published late September said that Ambipar had struggled with integrating newly acquired assets, and managing its increasing financial complexity, despite a management change. UBS said that recent events had exposed the weaknesses in governance and strength of balance sheet after years of expansion and more than 70 M&A deals. UBS warned Ambipar's Response division which is specialized in emergency and environmental services depends heavily on operational reliability. They added that any perception of financial instabilities or internal disorganization can undermine client trust and threaten contract. According to Ambipar, in 2023 57% of Ambipar’s net revenues will come from Brazil, 25% North America, 15% Latin America (excluding Brazil), and 3% Europe. (Reporting and editing by Hugh Lawson; Luciana Magnhaes)
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Russia delivers first oil to new Georgia refinery
According to LSEG data and industry sources, the Russian company Russneft delivered a first oil shipment to the newly constructed Kulevi oil refining plant in Georgia. Since 2008, Russia and Georgia did not have formal diplomatic relations. They fought over the breakaway regions South Ossetia (backed by Moscow) and Abkhazia. Tbilisi's economic ties to Russia have grown under the Georgian Dream Party, but its relations with Western nations have deteriorated dramatically. According to LSEG, and a trader the tanker Kayseri transported 105,340 metric tonnes of Siberian Light Oil grade from the Russian Black Sea Port of Novorossiisk, to the Kulevi Oil Terminal, on October 6, 2006. Russneft has not responded to a comment request. Russia seeks to diversify exports in order to combat the sanctions imposed by the West over Ukraine. Georgia's first oil refinery aims to reduce dependence on fuel imports from Russia, Turkey Azerbaijan Romania and Kazakhstan. The facility began operations in this month with a processing capacity of approximately 1.2 million tonnes of oil per year or 24,000 barrels a day. The company will gradually increase the annual production capacity of its fuel to 4 million tonnes in 2028. It will supply both domestic and export markets. Clarence Fernandez, Clarence Fernandez (Reporting)
Uber found not responsible in the first US court trial regarding driver sexual assault allegations
A California jury ruled on Tuesday that Uber was not responsible for the sexual assault claimed by a woman who claimed her Uber driver attacked her during a ride. According to the attorney representing the plaintiff, Uber has no responsibility for the assault.
According to Celine Cutter one of her attorneys, at the conclusion of a three week civil trial, the jury found Uber negligent for the safety measures it took to protect an anonymous woman. However, they found that this negligence did not play a significant role in the woman's injury.
This was the first trial of over 500 lawsuits that were consolidated at a California state court. More than 2,500 similar lawsuits have also been consolidated in a California federal court.
In 2021, the woman who was known as Jessica C. in court, filed a lawsuit claiming that she had been assaulted in 2016 by an Uber driver. According to her lawyers, during the ride her Uber driver stopped on a side road and restraining her, groping her and kissing her.
William Levin, and Laurel Simes were the two lawyers who represented her in court. They did not respond immediately to a comment request.
Uber has been working for years to improve safety and will continue doing so in the future, according to a spokesperson.
In the case of the state court, the woman's suit was selected as the "bellwether". Bellwether trials can be used in litigation where there are many plaintiffs with similar claims to test and determine the value of those claims. The outcome of the bellwether trial can be used by judges to manage other cases or lawyers to inform settlement discussions.
The attorneys for the woman had requested that the jury award her between $175,000 to $1.2 million as compensatory damages per year, with higher figures being suggested for the years immediately following the assault. The attorneys did not give a figure for punitive damage.
Safety Practices in the Spotlight
Uber is accused of knowing that it had a problem when drivers attacked riders but withheld data about how many assaults occurred from the public. It also allegedly did nothing to resolve the problem.
Plaintiffs claim that Uber was aware that assigning female passengers to female drivers, or requiring dash cameras to record passenger and driver interactions would reduce violence but did not implement these programs.
Uber maintains that it is not liable for the criminal acts of drivers who connect with passengers and that background checks and disclosures regarding assaults are sufficient.
The lawsuits could reopen old wounds that Uber experienced in its early years. Uber was plagued by safety concerns, accusations of lax driver screening, and a company culture that critics claimed prioritized growth above protecting passengers.
Safety has become a major focus for the company in recent years. It has published U.S. Safety Reports detailing reported sexual assaults. Features such as ride verification in the app, audio and video recording of rides, and anomaly detection have been introduced.
Uber also announced the formation of a Safety Advisory Board, which is chaired by a former U.S. Uber has also announced the formation of a Safety Advisory Board, which is chaired by former U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Jeh.
Uber's reputation for safety has not improved despite these measures. Uber's latest safety report, which covered the period 2021-2022, stated that reports of serious sexual abuse on its platform had decreased by 44% compared to its first report from 2017-2018. Critics say that systemic risks still exist, despite the fact that thousands of cases are documented.
A U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee, following an August New York Times article on the subject, sent a letter to Uber CEO Dara Khorowshahi last week seeking information about the company's protocol for responding to sexual assaults and preventing them on its rides. (Reporting from Diana Novak Jones, in Chicago and Akash Shriram, in Bangalore; editing by Alexia Garamfalvi and Bill Berkrot)
(source: Reuters)