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US flight cancellations drop as absences of air traffic controllers shrink
U.S. flights cancellations dropped sharply in the past day, as the absence of air traffic controllers decreased just hours before Wednesday's vote by the House of Representatives to end the record-breaking government shutdown. The United States' airlines canceled almost 900 flights Wednesday, the lowest number in six days. This was in accordance with a Federal Aviation Administration directive that they cancel 6% flights at the busiest 40 airports in order to address safety concerns. According to some airlines, the FAA may reduce its planned 8% cut in flights on Thursday from 8% to 6%. The FAA reported that air traffic control absences were responsible for only 1% of Tuesday's delays, as opposed to 5% in average before the shutdown. Only 6% of Thursday's flights have been canceled by several airlines. DEADLINES RAISED SHORTLY On Friday, the mandatory flight reductions will increase to 10%. Flight operations have improved dramatically with only 750 delays in Wednesday's flights compared to 4,000 on Tuesday, and almost 10,000 on Monday. Sean Duffy, Transportation Secretary, said that air traffic controllers would receive a lump-sum payment of 70% of their past pay within 48 hours after the shutdown ends. Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian said to CNBC that he believes the aviation system will return to normalcy this weekend. However, he added that the airlines will incur a large amount of money due the recent cancellations. Bastian stated that "by the weekend I think everything should be in great shape." Since October 1, when the shutdown started, air traffic controller absences led to thousands of cancellations and delays. Over the weekend, air traffic controllers' absences caused 1.2 million flights to be delayed or cancelled. The longest shutdown in U.S. History has forced 13,000 air-traffic controllers and 50,000 Transportation Security Administration (TSA) agents to work for free. The FAA has about 3,500 fewer air traffic controllers than the targeted number. Before the shutdown, many had already been working six-day work weeks and mandatory overtime.
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Italy to levy low-value parcels in order to protect the fashion industry
Politicians said that Italy was working on a tax to be imposed on low value postal packages coming from non-European nations. This is part of a plan to protect the fashion industry against low cost foreign imports, mainly from China. The move is aimed at avoiding unjustified competition on the market of one of Italy's most important industries. It targets online platforms like Shein and Temu, among others. The politicians in Italy said that the ruling parties intend to apply a tax on consignments less than $150. This is similar to a proposal currently being discussed at European Union levels. In the next few weeks, it is expected that this measure will be formalised in the form of an amendment to budget for next year. The Italian Fashion Federation welcomed the proposal of the government, describing it as a step towards curbing ultra-fast style. In a press release, Federazione Moda Italia - Confcommercio stated that they were pleased with the government's decision to include in the budget law the impacts of ultra-fast fashion on the economy and the environment. This also drains resources from the state and our economy. The federation has also proposed a set of measures designed to protect fashion retailers, as well as the "Made in Italy", supply chain. This includes the elimination of EU duty exemptions for non-EU shipments that are less than 150 euro. In 2024, the EU customs authorities will have handled about 4.6 billion low value packages purchased online. 91% of these packages are from China. This is double what they did in 2023.
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Waymo launches robotaxi freeway service in San Francisco, LA, Phoenix
Alphabet Waymo announced on Wednesday that it would begin offering robotaxi rides using freeways in San Francisco, Los Angeles and Phoenix as it expands amid competition within the self-driving sector. Waymo is expanding its operations in San Jose to include the Mineta San Jose International Airport. This airport will be the second in the service area, after Phoenix Sky Harbor. Zoox, backed by Amazon, offers free robotaxi rides around and on the Las Vegas Strip. Tesla is expanding its robotaxi service to include safety monitors and driver. Waymo, the company behind the robotaxi service that is offered in the U.S. for a fee, does not use safety drivers or monitors in vehicles. It has a fleet of robotaxis with over 1,500 vehicles. Waymo's growth has been slow but steady over the years. Like its competitors, the company has also faced federal investigations for unexpected driving behaviors. Even though operating autonomous vehicles in cities with many pedestrians, intersections, and unpredictable situations is more difficult, mistakes or malfunctions on freeways at high speeds could have serious consequences. Waymo said that its architecture allowed for vehicles to remain in control if a system failed. It added that it had developed new protocols for freeways with local highway patrols. Waymo announced that freeway rides would be initially available to users who had early access. It said that when a route is faster than a standard freeway, it can be matched to a trip on a freeway, resulting in a smoother ride, quicker and more efficient. (Reporting from Akash Sriram, Bengaluru; Abhirup Roy, San Francisco; editing by Chris Reese).
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Caspian Pipeline Consortium oil exports decreased by 13% in October, according to sources
Two industry sources reported on Wednesday that the Caspian Pipeline Consortium exported oil from Kazakhstan to a Russian Black Sea Terminal in September, but last month, exports fell 13%, from 5.947 millions metric tons or 1.5 million barrels a day. Exports dropped due to maintenance work at Kazakhstan's biggest oilfield Tengiz operated by a Chevron affiliate. According to sources, the exports via CPC from January to October increased by 16% compared to the same period in the previous year to 61.453 millions tons. The CPC reduced its plan to pump oil this year from 76 millions tons to 74million tons last month. CPC exports oil via a pipeline that carries over 80% of all Kazakh crude oil exports. It then goes on to Russia's Yuzhnaya Ozereevka Terminal in the Black Sea. CPC is owned by Chevron, Exxon Mobil and other U.S. companies. (Reporting and editing by Alison Williams).
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TUI Tours reports earnings above its own expectations
TUI, Europe's largest tour operator, announced on Wednesday that its earnings for its fiscal year 2025 exceeded its expectations due to strong hotel and cruise demand. In constant currency, the underlying earnings for the fiscal year that ended September 30 came to 1.46 billion euro ($1.70 billion). This was an increase of 12.6% over the previous year, exceeding the company's goal for a growth between 9% to 11%. In a press release, CEO Sebastian Ebel stated that "this success is primarily fueled by our integrated business models and record results within the Hotels & Resorts and Cruises segment." At 1443 GMT, shares were up by 3.4% at 7.52 euros. The company reported that preliminary revenue for the year increased by 4.4%, to 24.19 milliards of euros in constant currency. TUI will release its final results for the full year and a new strategy of shareholder returns on December 10.
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Alstom receives $1.9 billion order from PKP intercity in Poland
Alstom, a French train manufacturer, announced on Wednesday that it had signed a contract worth 6.9 billion zlotys ($1.9 billion), to supply and maintain trains for Poland’s national long distance rail operator PKP. Alstom shares rose by more than 3% early in the afternoon following publication. The agreement includes the delivery and maintenance of 42 Coradia Max electric double-deck multiple units. This train is capable of reaching speeds of up to 200 km/h. It also includes 30 years of full service maintenance, as well as an option to purchase 30 more trains. In a press release, PKP Intercity CEO Janusz malinowski stated that "we want to see the first passengers boarding the new trains within three and a quarter years."
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IDS, Royal Mail's operator, warns that margin pressures will persist into 2026 due to rising costs
International Distribution Services, a Royal Mail subsidiary, said on Wednesday that rising costs and macroeconomic uncertainties would continue to affect margins in 2026. This comes after the company reported a slower growth of revenue for the first half fiscal year 2025-2026. The group's revenue for the six-month period ended September 28 grew by 1.6%, to 6.45 billion pounds (8.66 billion dollars), slower than its 8.2% increase in the previous year. That growth was boosted by the UK general elections of 2024. IDS, the company that includes Royal Mail and GLS (international parcel network), said it faces cost pressures including increased National Insurance contributions in the amount of 120 million pounds, and higher wages costs for its UK operations. Royal Mail's parcel volume grew 5% in the first half to 661 millions, but addressed letter volumes fell 10%, excluding those sent for last year's election. GLS parcel volume rose 3% to reach 460 million. Royal Mail's volumes are typically boosted during election periods by the influx of political mailings, official voting cards, and postal ballots. Martin Seidenberg, CEO of the company, said that despite the slower growth the company still aims to expand the network to include 45,000 Royal Mail parcels points by 2030, and to increase GLS parcels points beyond their current 125,000 base. The EP Group, owned by Daniel Kretinsky, a Czech billionaire and philanthropist, closed the acquisition of IDS last June. They had committed to protecting Royal Mail's more than 500 year old history and its employees and customers. Raechel Thankam Job, Bengaluru (reporting) and Vijay Kishore, editing.
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E.ON expresses concern about German grid reforms
E.ON, Europe’s largest energy grid operator, expressed concern on Wednesday that the new rules on how much German power network operators can earn from investments would not reward their funding adequately. Nadia Jakobi of E.ON Finance, who spoke to investors following the presentation of nine-month results said that the uncertainty surrounding the regulation which determines power grid returns over the next five years starting in 2029 was "greater" than what we expected. The German grid regulator is in the final stages of finalising its reform proposal, which includes a cap on the earnings of grid companies to balance the need for lower consumer bills with incentives to investors. Jakobi stated that the current framework draft does not accurately reflect the grid operators' costs of financing. He added that E.ON could consider legal options in the event the final proposal did not meet the company's expectations. REGULATOR SETS RELEASES E.ON shares dropped to their lowest level in over two months, and were down by 4.5% as of 1226 GMT. Grid operators including E.ON say that they need to increase their earnings caps in order to pay for expansion of power grids, which is required to provide infrastructure for AI driven data centres. The regulator's current recommendations regarding grid financing reform are not public. Jakobi stated that the regulator indicated that the current version was "close to the final" and that "proposals in general must be attractive enough to encourage investments." Analysts at Bernstein said that it was not clear whether E.ON will have enough clarity by February 2026 for a decision on upgrading investments in German networks. E.ON had earlier announced that its investments had increased by 8% over the first nine-months of the year. It also confirmed its outlook through 2025. (1 dollar = 0.8575 euro) (Reporting and editing by Miranda Murray, Jane Merriman and Christoph Steitz)
After Moscow talks, Russia and Kazakhstan have agreed to enhance their oil sector relations
Following talks between their respective Presidents at the Kremlin, Russia and Kazakhstan agreed to increase their partnership in oil following the talks on Wednesday.
Kazakhstan, a landlocked country, is heavily dependent on Russia for its energy exports. More than 80% its oil is exported via a pipeline run by the Caspian Pipeline Consortium that runs to a terminal in Russia's Black Sea.
The Russian President Vladimir Putin met with the Kazakh President Kassym Jomart Tokayev on Wednesday, where they discussed gas projects and U.S. sanctions against Russian oil companies.
Tokayev, in a televised statement following the meeting with Putin, said: "We agreed to reinforce our partnership in areas such as oil, oil products and coal production, electricity supply, transportation and distribution."
He said: "We discussed in depth the prospects of gas cooperation, namely gas supply to Kazakhstan’s bordering regions with Russia as well as transit into third countries."
CPC is a pipeline consortium that pumps oil from Kazakhstan produced by international oil companies including Chevron, Exxon Mobil and other U.S. oil giants.
Interfax reported that Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the presidents had discussed uninterrupted CPC operation, but did not elaborate.
In February, the CPC operator reported that drones had struck the Kropotkinskaya Pumping Station in southern Russia's Krasnodar Region and affected the pipeline operations.
Russia is also looking to increase its oil exports via Kazakhstan to China. The transit will total 10.2 million tonnes, or approximately 204,000 barrels a day, in 2024. (Reporting and writing by Lucy Papachristou, with editing by Sharon Singleton, Jane Merrill)
(source: Reuters)