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Hong Kong prepares for Super Typhoon Ragasa, schools and businesses close
Hong Kong closed schools and businesses on Tuesday as Super Typhoon Ragasa, one of the most powerful storms to hit the city in recent years, approached. Most passenger flights at the airport will be suspended from late in the day onwards until early Thursday morning. The Hong Kong Observatory reported that Ragasa is moving closer to the coast in southern Guangdong Province, China. Ragasa can pack winds up to 220km/hr (137mph), which are equivalent to hurricane force. On Tuesday afternoon, authorities in the financial center will raise the typhoon warning to 8, the third highest level, which is expected to cause most businesses to close and all transport services to be suspended. Around 700 flights were disrupted. The observatory will determine if a stronger warning is needed later Tuesday or early on Wednesday. Ragasa, a tropical storm that swept across the Philippines' northern region on Monday, prompted President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to order all government agencies to be mobilised and the disaster response agency of the country to go into full alert. Hong Kong Observatory reported that hurricane force winds were expected offshore and high ground in Hong Kong, and heavy rain was predicted to cause a storm and sea wave in the densely populated city. It warned that sea levels would rise, and said they would be similar to those seen during Typhoon Hato (in 2017) and Typhoon Mangkhut (in 2018), both of which caused damage worth billions of dollars. The observatory warned that water levels would rise by about 2 meters (yards) in Hong Kong's coastal area and could even reach 4-5 metres at times. Residents were urged to take precautions. On Monday, local authorities distributed sandbags to residents in low-lying regions so they could strengthen their homes. Many people also stocked up on daily necessities. Witnesses on Monday reported that supermarkets were crowded, milk was sold out, and the prices of vegetables at markets selling fresh produce had tripled. Hong Kong Stock Exchange will be open. The stock exchange changed its policy in late 2013 to allow trading regardless of weather. Chinese authorities have activated flooding control measures in several provinces of the south, warning heavy rain will begin on Tuesday. Macau, the world's biggest gambling hub, is also preparing for a significant impact. School closures and evacuations are already underway. Reporting by Farah Masters; Editing and retouching by Anne Marie Roantree, Neil Fullick
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Trump announces that Uzbekistan Airways will buy 22 Boeing 787 Dreamliners worth up to $8 billion
Uzbekistan Airways and Boeing signed a deal worth over $8 billion on Monday, according to Uzbekistan Airways. The airline plans to purchase up to 22 Boeing 787 Dreamliners. Trump claimed on Truth Social that he had spoken to Uzbekistan's President Shavkat Miziyoyev in the beginning of this month. Boeing released a separate statement about the order on Monday. The U.S. Commerce Department announced that the agreement was signed on Monday in New York City on the sidelines of the 80th United Nations General Assembly. Trump and Boeing claimed that the deal would support 35,000 U.S. workers. The Commerce Department valued the deal at $8.5 billion, and called it "the biggest commercial aircraft agreement in Central Asia." According to the agreement, Uzbekistan will purchase 14 Dreamliners and has options on another eight.
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Police say that drone sightings have halted traffic at Copenhagen Airport in Denmark.
Police said that all traffic at Denmark's largest airport, Copenhagen, has been shut down following drone sightings. The airport is closed to take-offs and landings as two or three large drones were seen in the vicinity. In a social media X statement, police stated that the time horizon was unknown. FlightRadar posted on X that all take-offs, landings and arrivals at Copenhagen Airport had been suspended since 20:26 local (18:26 GMT), due to drone reports. The post stated that at least 15 flights were diverted to another airport. A spokesperson from the airport confirmed all traffic was halted, but declined to provide any further comment. Reporting by Stine Jakobsen and Louise Rasmussen; additional reporting in Bengaluru by Harshita Menaktshi, Editing by Essi Lenti and Franklin Paul
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Spirit Airlines prepares to lay off one-third its flight attendants
Spirit Airlines announced on Monday that it will be preparing to lay off one-third its flight attendants following its second bankruptcy filing in a single year. The carrier is struggling with mounting losses and dwindling funds. From December 1, the low-budget airline will lay off approximately 1,800 of its 5,200 flight attendants. Spirit filed for bankruptcy last month, after its previous reorganization had failed to improve the company's financial standing. In a memo to its employees sent on Wednesday, the company warned of job cuts and said it planned to reduce flight capacity by 25% over the past year. The airline sent an email on Monday to its employees, stating that it would be adjusting the flight attendants' group based on volume. In a separate memorandum, seen by also, the Association of Flight Attendants said: "The significant reduction of aircrafts and flight hours require a higher reduction in force, and the company is clearly that a furlough will be necessary." The airline has relied on voluntary furloughs to date, rather than forcing them. The company will continue to offer voluntary furloughs even as it continues with further staffing cuts. According to the union voluntary furloughs will be offered from November 1 for a period of six months to a year. In its memo, the union said that it was coordinating with other airlines to set up preferential interviews for their members. Spirit's financial problems, coupled with the competition among U.S. airlines for premium travelers has raised fears that ultra-low-fare fares are coming to an end for budget-conscious travellers. United Airlines announced last week that it would not pursue Spirit Airlines' assets, if those assets became available in the restructuring of the airline. Reporting by Doyinsola Oladipo in New York; Aishwarya JAIN and Aatreyee DASGUPTA in Bengaluru, Editing by Shailesh KUBER amd Maju SAMu
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Officials say that Iraq and KRG have agreed to restart the oil pipeline to Turkey
Two oil officials said that the federal government of Iraq and the Kurdish region reached an agreement with oil companies on Monday to resume crude oil exports through Turkey. The breakthrough will enable the resume of 230,000 barrels of oil per day (bpd), which had been suspended from March 2023. An oil official familiar with the agreement said that oil flow should resume within 48 hours. Tuesday, the Iraqi Cabinet must approve this deal. According to Iraqi officials who are familiar with the agreement, the preliminary plan requires the Kurdistan Regional Government to commit to deliver at least 230,000 barrels per day (bpd) to the Iraqi state oil marketing company SOMO while keeping an extra 50,000 for local use. Unknown traders will sell from the Turkish port Ceyhan at official SOMO prices. 16 dollars per barrel will be transferred into an escrow and then distributed to the producers proportionally. Officials said that the remainder of revenue would go to SOMO. The draft plan doesn't specify when or how producers will be paid the arrears of about $1 billion, which accumulated from September 2022 to March 2023. A delegation from the Iraqi oil ministry and the semi-autonomous Kurdish Regional Government reached a deal with oil companies as OPEC+ nations continue to add barrels to market in order to gain market shares. The pipeline was closed in March 2023, after the International Chamber of Commerce ordered Turkey to pay Iraq damages of $1.5 billion for KRG exports that were not authorised. The Turkish government has appealed this ruling, but stated that it is prepared to restart the pipeline. This has not happened because of the disputes between the Iraqi Federal Government, KRG, and foreign oil companies over contract terms, arrears, and other points. Washington has also put pressure on the parties in order to achieve a deal. Last week, it was reported that Iraq, OPEC’s second largest producer, had approved a preliminary plan to restart exports.
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After a job deal, the largest US rail union supports Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern merger
SMART, the largest railroad union in the United States, announced on Monday that it would support Union Pacific's $85 billion proposed merger with Norfolk Southern, after securing guarantees of job protection for its members. White House support has been given to the largest ever buyout in the sector, which aims to create the first transcontinental railway in the U.S. Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern are preparing to submit a formal merger request with the Surface Transportation Board. SMART, International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers, has previously stated that it plans to oppose a transcontinental merger, citing concerns over how it would affect U.S. infrastructure and workers. The union stated that "SMART-TD employees working in the train and yardmaster services will have their jobs protected for the duration of their career following the transaction." Union Pacific has promised that the employees involved in this merger will not be subjected to any forced furloughs. Norfolk Southern and Union Pacific have previously stated that they plan to maintain union jobs, and strive to be the nation's safest railroad. SMART is a network of 230,000 professionals from various sectors, including construction, transportation, and manufacturing.
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Cyber experts: Airport chaos shows rise in ransomware attacks with high-profile victims
Cybercriminals take greater risks when they target high-profile targets in order to reap larger rewards and increase their online reputational power, according to cybersecurity experts, following a weekend hack that crippled check-in systems at airports across Europe, leaving thousands of passengers stranded. ENISA, the European Union's cybersecurity agency, confirmed Monday that the attack on Collins Aerospace (owned by RTX) was a ransomware. However, it did not specify where the attack came from. The outage has affected dozens flights since Friday. Rafe Pilling is the Director of Threat Intelligence for Sophos. He added that "the subset of deliberate attacks engineered to maximize disruption, often by Western based groups, is the outlier. But they are becoming more visibly and more ambitious." The hacker's identity was unclear. On dark-web "leak sites," ransomware gangs regularly publicise their attacks and leak stolen information. However, websites that monitor these portals have not detected any group claiming Collins Aerospace or RTX as a targeted company as of Monday. Cybercriminals use ransomware, a malicious program that encrypts data of a company and demands payment to unlock it. Most of them operate in shadows and avoid targets that might attract unwanted attention from law-enforcement agencies. Cyber experts say that other groups are more daring in their choice of targets. Scattered Spider, a group dubbed by many as hackers, was reported to have been behind the attack on British retailer Marks & Spencer in April. This attack crippled one of Britain's most recognizable names, preventing it from accepting online orders for several weeks. Two teenagers were charged by the National Crime Agency of Britain last Thursday for a cyberattack in 2024 on London's Transport for London. The agency said that this attack caused "significant disruptions and millions of losses". Investigators at the NCA believed that Scattered Spider members were responsible for the TfL attack. Scattered Spider has been linked to approximately 120 network intrusions and received around $115,000,000 in ransom payments, according to the FBI. The number of cyberattacks is increasing, and the impact of these attacks will continue to grow until both software developers and IT staff become better at evaluating software that their companies choose to buy or use remotely. This problem could even accelerate if neither party improves their skills. Thomas stated that "we have been fortunate so far as cyber criminals' motivation has been disruption and financial gain." If they decide to cause serious injuries or deaths, the same strategy could be used against critical systems such as healthcare or major infrastructure. Ransomware that is more dangerous and high-profile can be attributed to cybercriminals' desire for reputation in criminal circles. The larger the target, they have more influence with other hackers. Pilling, a Sophos analyst, said that "a small but determined group of mostly Western cybercriminals is honing its skills and becoming more confident by their previous success and other's success." Their motivation is not only financial, and committing a high impact breach will also give them social standing and credibility in their peer network.
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Lutnick: US and Kazakhstan sign $4 billion locomotive agreement
Howard Lutnick, the Commerce Secretary announced Monday that the United States and Kazakhstan had reached an agreement on locomotives worth $4 billion. Lutnick, in a blog post on X, said that the deal was reached after a phone call between President Donald Trump of the United States and Kazakh president Kassym Jomart Tokayev. Lutnick stated that "these locomotives will provide connectivity in Europe and Asia, connecting The Middle Corridor with American technology as its core." He didn't mention the U.S. firms involved or their role in manufacturing the locomotives. Trump imposed a 25% tariff on the central Asian nation, which borders Russia, China and Mongolia. Tokayev said in a July letter that he would be open to a constructive dialogue with Trump on trade issues. (Reporting from Bhargav Acharya in Toronto, editing by Rami Adyub.)
Poland signs a $1.6 billion deal for 46 radars with PGZ Narew
The Polish Minister of Defence announced on Tuesday that Poland had signed a contract with the PGZ/Narew consortium worth 5,8 billion zlotys (about $1,6 billion) for 46 passive location radars used in short-range antiaircraft and antimissile systems.
Poland is spending a lot on defense due to the threat that it perceives from Russia. It plans to spend 4,8% of its gross domestic product on defence by 2026.
The radar contract is an important investment not only in the security of Poland, but in our economy as well. These radars will increase the security of our aerospace. "This is a top priority for us", said Polish Defence Minister Wladyslaw KOSINIAK-KAMYSZ.
According to the Ministry of Defence, radars will allow for continuous space surveillance and effective anti-aircraft missile defense.
PGZ-Narew, a consortium of Polish defense companies led by state-controlled Polish Armaments Group(PGZ), is implementing a joint programme to build the Polish air and missile defence system Narew.
The contract was signed during the International Defence Industry Exhibition held in Kielce, a city located in central Poland.
(source: Reuters)