2025-07-06 17:46
MILAN, July 6 (Reuters) - One person was killed by a falling tree near Milan, local firefighters said on Sunday, as a powerful storm battered the northern Italian city after days of high temperatures. The 63-year-old woman died in the town of Robecchetto con Induno, west of Milan, as she was returning from a walk with two other people who were injured in the incident and have been hospitalised, the firefighters said. Sign up here. Firefighters have dealt with about 50 incidents so far, with another 37 still pending. Most involve dangerous trees, flooded basements and taverns, and advertising billboards torn down by strong winds. According to Italian news agency Ansa, heavy rains also hit the eastern Veneto region, where bad weather swept areas around the cities of Belluno and Vicenza, as well as parts of Tuscany, where falling trees were also reported. While rain and gales pounded the north, temperatures remained close to 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit) in much of southern and central Italy, including in Rome. Much of Europe has sweltered in an early summer heatwave which officials have linked to at least eight deaths on the continent. https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/one-dies-violent-storm-pounding-milan-2025-07-06/
2025-07-06 17:38
Simons set to helm country on cusp of predicted oil boom She leads party founded by former president, fugitive Bouterse Election agreed in coalition deal after May vote Simons' and VP-elect Rusland's inauguration set for July 16 PARAMARIBO, July 6 (Reuters) - Suriname's parliament backed Jennifer Simons as the South American country's first woman president on Sunday, setting the doctor and former parliamentary speaker on course to helm a nation on the cusp of a predicted oil boom. Surinamese lawmakers backed Simons as president six weeks after the ruling party and its top opposition nearly tied in the race for legislative seats, leading to a coalition deal to install Simons as president. Sign up here. Simons' opposition National Democratic Party won 18 seats and current President Chan Santokhi's Progressive Reform Party won 17 seats in the May 25 parliamentary election. Smaller parties won the remaining 16 seats. Suriname's president is elected indirectly. Following the general election, members of the National Assembly vote for the president, and a candidate must secure a two-thirds majority to win the office. "I come into this office to serve, and I will use all my knowledge, strength and insight to make our wealth available to all of our people," Simons, 71, said in a brief speech after lawmakers approved her appointment with a round of applause. Simons vowed to pay special attention to young people and those who have not yet had the best opportunities. "I am very aware of the responsibility now placed on our shoulders, a responsibility compounded for me by the fact that I am the first woman to hold this office," she added. "I do not need many words. My thanks and we will get to work." Incumbent President Chan Santokhi, a 66-year-old former police commissioner who stood for re-election, had faced criticism over a lack of protections for the poorer and more vulnerable sectors of society. Santokhi congratulated Simons on her election and told lawmakers he took responsibility for his shortcomings and hoped he would be remembered for his commitment. He said he would continue to serve the country after the transition as a member of parliament. A COMING BOOM Suriname, a former Dutch colony independent since 1975, is expected to see a surge in revenues from the nation's first big offshore energy development, an oil and gas project led by TotalEnergies (TTEF.PA) , opens new tab. The Gran Morgu project is set to begin production in 2028. Discovered reserves may allow Suriname to compete with neighboring Guyana, whose economy grew 43.6% last year, as a prominent producer. However, campaigning featured little debate about what the next government, which will hold power until 2030, should do with the income. Simons' election was agreed in a six-party deal two days after the parliamentary contest, but was not made official until Sunday's vote. Her inauguration is scheduled for July 16. Suriname's parliament backed Simons for the post by acclamation, alongside National Party of Suriname (NPS) leader Gregory Rusland as her vice president. Simons served as parliamentary speaker for a decade until 2020. She was second in vote tallies behind Santokhi, winning more than 41,700 votes. She is the head of the NDP, founded by former President Desi Bouterse, who dominated Surinamese politics for decades but died a fugitive last year. NDP founder Bouterse left office in 2020, the year after he was convicted in the 1982 murders of 15 government critics. When the conviction was upheld in 2023, Bouterse went into hiding, dying at the age of 79 at an unknown location on Christmas Eve. https://www.reuters.com/world/suriname-parliament-elects-simons-first-female-president-2025-07-06/
2025-07-06 16:42
BERLIN, July 6 (Reuters) - German Economy Minister Katherina Reiche wants to make planned measures aimed at lowering companies' electricity costs more widely available than previously suggested, the Financial Times reported on Sunday, citing people with knowledge of the plan. Earlier this year, Germany's ruling coalition of conservatives and Social Democrats agreed to cut electricity tax to the European minimum for all consumers. Sign up here. But the Finance Ministry's framework budget for 2026 introduced last month limited the planned relief to industry, agriculture and forestry, excluding many companies and consumers, citing financial difficulties. Reiche said last month Germany would present a concrete concept for an industrial electricity price before the summer break and aimed to implement it by the end of the year. The FT said Reiche wants to expand the number of companies eligible for what it called electricity price subsidies to 2,200 from 350. The paper added that the people it cited estimated the cost at 4 billion euros ($4.7 billion) and the measure would fund up to half of firms' electricity costs over three years. Asked for comment by Reuters, the Economy Ministry said in a statement that under newly announced European Union rules up to around 2,200 "energy- and trade-intensive" companies could receive aid to cover up to half their power costs. "The (German) concept is currently being worked on," it added, declining to elaborate. The FT quoted the ministry as saying its scheme would aim to deliver "swift and reliable" aid to the chemical, glass and plastics industries, which have "a far-reaching impact on other sectors through the value chains". ($1 = 0.8490 euros) https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/boards-policy-regulation/german-minister-wants-more-firms-eligible-electricity-relief-ft-says-2025-07-06/
2025-07-06 16:17
BERLIN, July 6 (Reuters) - A dog was rescued from a locker for valuables at Neuschwanstein Castle in southern Germany after its owner shut her pet inside over the objections of other tourists so that she could visit the famous attraction, police said on Sunday. Neuschwanstein, a picture-postcard castle with surging turrets nestled in the Alps near the border with Austria, is one of Germany's top tourist attractions. Sign up here. Despite it being a hot summer's day and half the locker already having been filled by a pram, the woman locked the dog inside the small space and left to tour the castle, police in the nearby town of Fuessen said in a statement. Security staff were alerted and freed the dog, they added. "The dog was fortunately unharmed but visibly glad when it was rescued from the already hot locker," the police statement said, adding that officers deployed to the scene took him back to the police station. The police did not specify what breed the dog was but said it was of "medium" size and about 60 cm (two feet) tall at the shoulder. An officer on duty at Fuessen police station contacted by telephone said the dog was a mongrel. Police said they had initiated criminal proceedings against the owner on suspicion of breaking Germany's animal welfare law. https://www.reuters.com/world/hot-dog-survives-locker-ordeal-germanys-neuschwanstein-castle-2025-07-06/
2025-07-06 15:55
ATHENS, July 6 (Reuters) - An external explosive device most likely caused the blast that damaged Greek oil tanker Vilamoura as it was sailing off the Libyan coast last week, the vessel's Greece-based operator TMS Tankers said on Sunday, citing an initial investigation. The Marshall Islands-flagged tanker Vilamoura had left the Libyan port of Zuetina on June 27 to head to Gibraltar with some 1 million barrels of oil when there was an explosion in the engine room. Sign up here. "Preliminary investigation findings clearly indicate that the explosion, the resulting fracture of the side shell plating, and the flooding of the engine room were caused by an external source —an unidentified explosive device," TMS Tankers said. Maritime security sources told Reuters last week that a limpet mine may have caused the blast on Vilamoura, the fifth such incident to hit commercial shipping in the region in recent months. Following the explosion and the flooding of its engine room the vessel lost manoeuvrability, although it was able to be towed towards Greece. The vessel has now arrived safely at Laconikos Bay in Greece and its crew are in good health, the operator added in a statement. https://www.reuters.com/world/explosive-device-likely-damaged-greek-tanker-off-libya-last-week-operator-says-2025-07-06/
2025-07-06 15:40
MOSCOW, July 6 (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin told BRICS leaders on Sunday that the era of liberal globalisation was obsolete and that the future belonged to swiftly growing emerging markets which should enhance the use of their national currencies for trade. Putin spoke via video link to the summit in Rio de Janeiro due to an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court which alleges he is responsible for war crimes in Ukraine. Moscow says the warrant is unfounded and pointless. Sign up here. BRICS - an idea thought up inside Goldman Sachs two decades ago to describe the growing economic clout of China and other major emerging markets - is now a group that accounts for 45% of the world's population. "Everything indicates that the model of liberal globalisation is becoming obsolete," Putin said in televised remarks. "The centre of business activity is shifting towards the emerging markets." Putin also called on the BRICS countries to step up cooperation in a range of spheres including natural resources, logistics, trade and finance. The five core BRICS members - Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa - account for more than $28 trillion in nominal Gross Domestic Product in dollar terms while the Group of Seven accounts for more than $51 trillion, according the International Monetary Fund. Much of the economic clout of BRICS, which also includes Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates, though, comes from China, which accounts for more than 60% of the combined clout the BRICS members. https://www.reuters.com/world/china/putin-says-that-globalisation-is-obsolete-future-belongs-emerging-markets-2025-07-06/
