2024-12-22 05:47
Dec 22 (Reuters) - Qatar will stop shipping gas to the EU if member states strictly enforce a new law cracking down on forced labour and environmental damage, Energy Minister Saad al-Kaabi told the Financial Times in an interview published on Sunday. The Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive, approved this year, requires larger companies operating in the European Union to check whether their supply chains use forced labour or cause environmental damage and to take action if they do. Penalties include fines of up to 5% of global turnover. "If the case is that I lose 5% of my generated revenue by going to Europe, I will not go to Europe. I’m not bluffing, Kaabi told the newspaper, adding that "5% of generated revenue of QatarEnergy means 5% of generated revenue of the Qatar state. This is the people's money, so I cannot lose that kind of money - and nobody would accept losing that kind of money." Kaabi, the chief executive of state-owned QatarEnergy, has said the EU should thoroughly review the due diligence law. He has also said that his Gulf country has no concerns about U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's promise to lift a cap on liquefied natural gas exports. Qatar, among the world's top LNG exporters, is seeking to play a larger role in Asia and Europe as competition from top supplier the United Sates increases. It plans to expand its liquefaction capacity to 142 million tons per year by 2027 from 77 million. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/minister-says-qatar-will-stop-eu-gas-sales-if-fined-under-due-diligence-law-ft-2024-12-22/
2024-12-21 21:01
ADDIS ABABA, Dec 21 (Reuters) - French President Emmanuel Macron expressed full support on Saturday for Ethiopia's debt restructuring efforts, emphasising the need for a swift resolution "in the coming weeks". The backing from Macron, who is visiting Ethiopia after a stop in Djibouti, comes after Ethiopia and International Monetary Fund reached an agreement last month on the second review of a $3.4 billion financing programme. "Thanks to your commitment to the reform programme you are leading, we aim to complete the restructuring of this 3 billion-euro debt in the next few weeks," Macron said during a joint press conference with Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed. He added that France fully supports the discussions underway with the IMF, highlighting a key meeting scheduled for mid-January. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/frances-macron-backs-ethiopias-debt-restructuring-efforts-2024-12-21/
2024-12-21 20:36
MEXICO CITY, Dec 21 (Reuters) - Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum expects Congress to approve a ban early next year on planting genetically modified corn in the country, she said on Saturday. Sheinbaum's announcement comes a day after a trade-dispute panel ruled Mexico's restrictions on U.S. exports of GM corn violate the USMCA trade agreement. "With the help of Mexico's Congress, we are going to reverse this resolution because very soon, in February, they are going to legislate, I am sure, that you can't plant genetically modified corn," Sheinbaum said at a public event. Mexico's Congress is dominated by the ruling party. "We must protect Mexico's biodiversity in our country ... without corn there is no country." Such a ban may increase Mexican supplies of non-GM corn but not prevent imports of GM varieties, however. A GM crop contains genetic material that is not naturally found in the plant, for example to better protect against disease. Farmers have widely adopted such crops in some countries such as the United States, but critics say their safety for human health and the environment is unproven. The impasse escalated when the U.S. government called on a dispute resolution panel to overturn Mexico's February 2023 presidential decree that banned the use of GM corn to make tortillas and dough. The decree also advocated for replacements in industrial production for human consumption and animal feed. Mexico's economy and agriculture ministries said in a joint statement that they disagreed with the ruling, but would respect the decision. The agencies later said the panel's report referred exclusively to trade between Mexico and the United States. Mexico, the birthplace of modern corn, bans GM corn for fear it could contaminate native varieties of the grain. Yet the country is the largest foreign buyer of U.S.-grown yellow corn, almost all of which is genetically modified. The Mexican government expects local buyers to import a record 22.3 million metric tons during the 2023/24 crop season. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/mexican-president-confident-congress-will-ban-planting-gm-corn-2025-2024-12-21/
2024-12-21 18:50
Dec 21 (Reuters) - U.S. President-elect Donald Trump said on Saturday he has selected David Fink to serve as administrator of the Federal Railroad Administration. "David will bring his 45+ years of transportation leadership and success, which will deliver the FRA into a new era of safety and technological innovation," Trump said in a post on Truth Social. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-picks-david-fink-administrator-federal-railroad-administration-2024-12-21/
2024-12-21 17:55
Dec 21 (Reuters) - A packed bus collided with a truck and burst into flames early on Saturday in Brazil, killing more than 30 people, the fire department said. After removing all of the victims from a major highway near the town of Teofilo Otoni in Minas Gerais, the state's fire department reported that of the 45 people on the bus, 38, including the bus driver, had been confirmed dead. The other passengers remained in critical condition after being transported to a local hospital. The truck driver fled the scene, and three occupants of a car that collided with the truck and became trapped underneath survived the accident, said the fire department. President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva stated on social media that the government was ready to provide whatever assistance was needed, and that the Federal Highway Policy was at the site. "I deeply mourn and extend my prayers to the families of the more than 30 victims of the accident in Teofilo Otoni, Minas Gerais. I pray for the recovery of the survivors of this terrible tragedy," he wrote on X. A forensic investigation will be required to determine the accident's cause, as differing accounts were gathered from witness testimonies, said the local fire department. Initially, firefighters reported the bus had a tire blowout, causing the driver to lose control before colliding at around 4 a.m. local time, with an oncoming truck on the BR-116 federal highway, a major route connecting Brazil's densely populated southeast to the poorer northeast. However, witnesses also reported that a granite block the truck was transporting came loose, fell on the road and caused the collision with the bus, said the fire department. "Only the forensic investigation will confirm the true version," said the fire department in a statement. The bus departed from Sao Paulo and was headed to the state of Bahia. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/more-than-20-dead-bus-truck-collision-brazil-2024-12-21/
2024-12-21 15:25
NEW DELHI, Dec 21 (Reuters) - An Indian government panel has rejected an airline industry proposal for aviation fuel to be brought under the unified Goods and Services Tax (GST), the finance minister said after a meeting of the panel on Saturday. Currently, state governments choose how to tax aviation turbine fuel (ATF). Airlines have been lobbying to include it in the GST regime so the levy is the same nationwide, but state authorities have opposed that, fearing they could lose revenue. "States do not want ATF to be brought under GST just like petrol and diesel," federal Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said after Saturday's meeting of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council. The council is chaired by Sitharaman and includes state government representatives. The tax panel also decided to impose 18% GST when all used or old vehicles, including electric vehicles, are sold by registered sellers. Such vehicles sold directly between two individuals will not attract tax. It deferred plans to slash taxes on some life and health insurance premiums, a move that was seen as key to getting more Indians to sign up for coverage. Sitharaman said the proposals required further discussion. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/india/indias-tax-panel-rejects-airlines-call-add-aviation-fuel-gst-regime-2024-12-21/
