2024-10-24 21:45

WASHINGTON, Oct 24 (Reuters) - The owner and operator of the cargo ship that struck Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge in March, killing six people, have agreed to pay $102 million to the federal government, the U.S. Justice Department said on Thursday. The department in September filed a civil claim seeking $103 million from two Singaporean companies, Grace Ocean Private Limited and Synergy Marine Private Limited. The claim was intended to recoup the money the U.S. government spent responding to the disaster and clearing the wreck of the Dali ship and bridge debris from the Port of Baltimore so the waterway could reopen in June. Principal Deputy Associate Attorney General Benjamin Mizer said the settlement "ensures that the costs of the federal government’s cleanup efforts in the Fort McHenry Channel are borne by Grace Ocean and Synergy and not the American taxpayer." The National Transportation Safety Board said in May the Dali lost electrical power several times before it crashed into the bridge in the Patapsco River early March 26. The FBI in April opened a criminal investigation into the disaster. The Justice Department's lawsuit was brought as part of a legal action initiated by Grace Ocean and Synergy to limit their liability for the crash to $44 million, a sum department officials called "woefully inadequate." The ship slammed into a support pylon, sending the bridge plunging into the river. The reopening required the removal of 50,000 tons of debris. More than 1,500 individual responders, along with 500 specialists from around the world, operated a fleet of boats during the operation, which involved 56 federal, state, and local agencies. The state of Maryland, which estimates that it will cost $1.7 billion to $1.9 billion to rebuild the bridge and anticipates completion by fall 2028, separately filed claims against the companies for the cost of the bridge, cleanup efforts, environmental claims and other costs. Funds recovered by Maryland for reconstruction of the bridge will be used to reduce the project costs paid by the U.S. government, DOJ said. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/legal/cargo-ship-owner-pay-100-million-over-baltimore-bridge-collapse-doj-says-2024-10-24/

2024-10-24 21:44

Current policies could lead to 3.1 C warming by 2100 Nations to discuss updated emissions strategies at COP29 in Azerbaijan 1.5 C target likely out of reach without climate overshoot TORONTO, Oct 24 (Reuters) - Current climate policies will result in global warming of more than 3 degrees Celsius (5.4 degrees Fahrenheit) by the end of the century, according to a United Nations report on Thursday, more than twice the rise agreed to nearly a decade ago. The annual Emissions Gap report, which takes stock of countries' promises to tackle climate change compared with what is needed, finds the world faces as much as 3.1 C (5.6 F) of warming above pre-industrial levels by 2100 if governments do not take greater action on slashing planet-warming emissions. Governments in 2015 signed up to the Paris Agreement and a cap of 1.5 C (2.7 F) warming to prevent a cascade of dangerous impacts. "We're teetering on a planetary tight rope," U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres said in a speech on Thursday. "Either leaders bridge the emissions gap, or we plunge headlong into climate disaster". Global greenhouse gas emissions rose by 1.3% between 2022 and 2023, to a new high of 57.1 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent, the report said. Under current pledges to take future action, temperatures would still rise between 2.6 C (4.7 F) and 2.8 C (5 F) by 2100, the report found. That is in line with findings from the past three years. "If we look at the progress towards 2030 targets, especially of the G20 member states ... they have not made a lot of progress towards their current climate targets for 2030," said Anne Olhoff, chief scientific editor of the report. The world has currently warmed by about 1.3 C (2.3 F). Nations will gather next month at the annual United Nations climate summit (COP29) in Azerbaijan, where they will work to build on an agreement made last year to transition away from fossil fuels. Negotiations in Baku will help to inform each country's updated emissions-cutting strategy, known as a Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC), which are due in February 2025. The report suggests that nations must collectively commit to and implement a cut of 42% on yearly greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, and reach 57% by 2035 for any hope of preventing warming beyond 1.5 C — a target now seen as likely out of reach. Inger Andersen, executive director of the United Nations Environment Programme, urged countries to use the Baku talks to increase action in their NDCs. "Every fraction of a degree avoided counts," she said. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/climate-set-warm-by-31-c-without-greater-action-un-report-warns-2024-10-24/

2024-10-24 21:32

Mali claims Barrick Gold violated mine deal, warns of legal consequences Barrick denies allegations, claims active engagement with Mali since Sept. 30 Mali junta has been pushing for higher state revenue share Oct 24 (Reuters) - Mali has accused Barrick Gold (ABX.TO) , opens new tab of failing to abide by commitments made in a recent agreement, charges the Canadian miner denied on Thursday, saying it did not accept any claims of wrongdoing. Barrick, the world's second-largest gold miner, announced on Sept. 30 it had agreed with the government to resolve disputes over the Loulo and Gounkoto gold mines, days after Malian authorities briefly detained four Malian staff working for the company. But in a joint statement dated Oct. 23, Mali's economy and mines ministries said Barrick had "not honoured the commitments to which it subscribed in the agreement." Without sharing further details, the ministries said the breaches included those relating to environmental and corporate social responsibility and foreign exchange rules. They said there were "serious risks to the group's continued operations in Mali, one of whose operating licenses expires at the beginning of 2026." "The Malian government has decided to draw all legal consequences arising from the actions taken by Barrick Gold," they said. In response, Barrick denied the allegations and said since Sept. 30 it had been actively engaged with the government to reach a settlement that would include an increase in the state's share of economic benefits from the Loulo-Gounkoto complex. "While Barrick does not accept any claims of wrongdoing, it has chosen to act in good faith as a long-standing partner of Mali," it said in a statement, adding that the company had paid the government $85 million in early October in the context of ongoing negotiations. Earlier this month, three sources told Reuters that Mali's military government was seeking at least 300 billion CFA francs ($512 million) in outstanding taxes and dividends from Barrick. Asked to comment at the time, a Barrick spokesperson said the company was still in the process of negotiation. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/mali-accuses-barrick-gold-breaching-agreement-miner-denies-claims-2024-10-24/

2024-10-24 21:13

RIO DE JANEIRO, Oct 24 (Reuters) - Brazil state-run firm Petrobras (PETR4.SA) , opens new tab plans to bring oil production at its Tupi oil field back to 1 million barrels per day by 2027 as it plans new investments in the asset, its director for exploration and production said on Thursday. Located in deep waters offshore, Tupi is Brazil's largest oil field in terms of production with 832,600 bpd, although it has been declining over the past few years, according to August data from oil regulator ANP. In an interview with Reuters, director Sylvia dos Anjos said Petrobras now wants to bring Tupi's production back to 1 million bpd. "Tupi was declining, but it will come back up again," she said, adding Petrobras aims to up production by drilling new wells at the field. Still, even if the plans go as expected, dos Anjos expects Tupi to lose its crown as Brazil's largest field to Buzios, another deep-water giant. Buzios currently produces 605,600 bpd, ANP data showed. Dos Anjos said Buzios should outpace a production of 1 million barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd) in the second half of 2025. According to dos Anjos, Petrobras plans to drill 25 fresh wells in its Campos basin next year aiming to find new oil and gas discoveries, while it also intends to carry out a new complementary drilling campaign in Santos basin. In gas, Petrobras expects to raise its production by about 3 million cubic meters per day with the reopening of two wells in the Roncador field, she said. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/petrobras-aims-increase-output-tupi-oil-field-1-mln-bpd-2027-says-director-2024-10-24/

2024-10-24 20:41

McDonald's pulls Quarter Pounder from one-fifth of its US restaurants Burger King and other chains remove onions from menu items Outbreak has sickened nearly 50, killed one Onions, beef patties under scrutiny by regulators LONGMONT, Colorado, Oct 24 (Reuters) - U.S. fast-food chains were pulling fresh onions out of their menu items on Thursday after the vegetable was named as the likely source of an E. coli outbreak at McDonald's (MCD.N) , opens new tab restaurants that has sickened 49 people and killed one. Restaurant Brands International (QSR.TO) , opens new tab, parent of McDonald's rival Burger King, and Yum Brands (YUM.N) , opens new tab said they were removing fresh onions from menu items. Roughly 5% of Burger King locations have removed onions from the menu, a Burger King spokesperson said in a statement. McDonald's said on Thursday that Taylor Farms was the supplier of the sliced onions that have been removed. Taylor Farms did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The company has recalled several batches of yellow onions produced in a Colorado facility, according to a recall memo on Wednesday by US Foods (USFD.N) , opens new tab, one of the largest U.S. suppliers of food service operations. About 5% of Burger King stores also get supplies from Taylor Farms, but a company spokesperson said Burger King has not been contacted yet from health authorities or had any illnesses. Yum, which operates KFC, Pizza Hut and the Taco Bell chains, said it was removing onions "out of an abundance of caution." The U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Thursday also confirmed that Taylor Farms was the supplier for the affected McDonald's locations and that the company has initiated a voluntary recall. "Yellow onions were sold to additional food service customers. Customers who received recalled onions have been directly notified of the recall," an FDA spokesperson told Reuters. Food distributors including US Foods and Sysco Corp (SYY.N) , opens new tab have been notifying customers of the recall. "Sysco has communicated to customers and a limited number of our sites instructions regarding the supplier-initiated recall of yellow onions," a company spokesperson said. The U.S. health regulator added that it was working with federal and state partners and the companies involved to investigate if onions are the source of this outbreak. The U.S. Department of Agriculture said late on Wednesday that fresh onions were the likely source of the outbreak. Past E. coli outbreaks have hampered sales at big fast-food restaurants as customers avoid the affected chains for fear of illness. Regulators are still investigating whether McDonald's beef patties could be affected, but E. coli is killed in beef when cooked properly, whereas the McDonald's Quarter Pounder is served with raw, slivered onions. McDonald's has pulled the Quarter Pounder from about one-fifth of its U.S. restaurants, including in Colorado, Kansas, Utah and Wyoming, and in parts of Idaho, Iowa, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico and Oklahoma. "We've been told by corporate to not use any onions going forward for the foreseeable future," Maria Gonzales, the on-duty manager inside a Burger King in Longmont, Colorado, said on Wednesday. "They're off our menu." McDonald's did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Thursday. McDonald's has moved quickly to try to contain the damage while also trying to reassure customers of its efforts. That may be critical - previous outbreaks in 2015 at Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG.N) , opens new tab and in 1993 at Jack in the Box (JACK.O) , opens new tab caused sales at those companies to drop sharply for several quarters. David Tarantino, an analyst at Baird Equity Research, downgraded McDonald's shares to "neutral" late on Wednesday. "We are concerned that reports of an E. coli outbreak linked to McDonald's restaurants in multiple U.S. states could pose a major threat to consumer sentiment" and thus hurt U.S. comparable-store sales, he said. PLENTY OF CUSTOMERS In the immediate aftermath of the McDonald's outbreak, plenty of people in Colorado were still eating at the U.S. giant, according to checks by Reuters. Some were avoiding the hamburgers. Charity Atkinson was munching on a 20-piece box of Chicken McNuggets in a McDonald's parking lot in Longmont on Wednesday afternoon, about 30 miles (48 km) north of Denver. Atkinson said she was not worried about the outbreak, but she did note that for now she was avoiding the burgers. "I'm hoping everything gets taken care of really soon, because my mom loves the Quarter Pounders with cheese," Atkinson said. "Hopefully they'll have better sanitary protections soon." At Burger King, Monica and Jesus Martinez were digging in to a bag of burgers and fries while sitting inside their car, and said they had decided to frequent Burger King in large part because of the outbreak at McDonald's. "I'm worried! I like the Quarter Pounder but I'm really worried," Monica Martinez said. "It will definitely influence my choices of where we eat going forward." The outbreak of E. coli was first reported to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in late September. The USDA on Wednesday said that one of its state partners was also testing samples of beef for E. coli. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/mcdonalds-onions-under-scrutiny-after-us-e-coli-outbreak-2024-10-24/

2024-10-24 20:37

Tesla jumps after strong sales forecast UPS advances following quarterly profit beat Boeing down after workers reject latest contract Weekly jobless claims lower than forecasts Oct 24 (Reuters) - The Nasdaq and the S&P 500 gained on Thursday, driven by Tesla's positive earnings forecast and a decline in Treasury yields from a three-month high, which buoyed market sentiment despite declines from some corporate results. Shares of Tesla soared 21.9%, with the EV-maker set to add more than $140 billion to its market capitalization, after it reported robust third-quarter profits and surprised investors with a prediction of 20% to 30% sales growth next year. This helped take the Consumer Discretionary (.SPLRCD) , opens new tab sector 3.24% higher. "It was a blowout from the perspective of Tesla," said Charlie Ripley, senior investment strategist for Allianz Investment Management. The benchmark S&P posted its first daily gain this week. However, sentiment was somewhat shaky. Most of the S&P sectors were in the red, as other earnings reports and pressure from lower, but still high Treasury yields weighed. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note eased on the day, at 4.20%, after reaching a three-month high the day before. It went as high as 4.26% in Wednesday's session, which saw all three major equity indexes lose ground. "In the near term, the greatest influence we've seen in stocks in October has been the move higher in rates. From a 10-year Treasury below 4% to where we stand now has been relatively quickly," said Bill Northey, senior investment director at U.S. Bank Wealth Management. Earnings announced before the bell include IBM (IBM.N) , opens new tab, which lost 6.17% after missing third-quarter revenue estimates, while Honeywell (HON.O) , opens new tab declined 5.10% after it forecast annual sales below estimates, with both weighing on the blue-chip Dow. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) , opens new tab fell 140.59 points, or 0.33%, to 42,374.36, the S&P 500 (.SPX) , opens new tab gained 12.44 points, or 0.21%, to 5,809.86 and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) , opens new tab gained 138.83 points, or 0.76%, to 18,415.49. Materials (.SPLRCM) , opens new tab dropped 1.42%, dragged down by Newmont (NEM.N) , opens new tab as higher costs and weaker Nevada output saw it miss profit estimates. Boeing (BA.N) , opens new tab also lost 1.18% after factory workers voted on Wednesday to reject a contract offer and continue a more than five-week-long strike. Stocks have eased from record levels over the past few sessions due to a reassessment of bets on the Federal Reserve's rate cuts, rising Treasury yields, corporate earnings and uncertainty surrounding the upcoming U.S. election. The pullback, however, was to be expected, Dennis Dick, trader at Triple D Trading said. "The story is still in tech, and that story is not going away, I would still say dips in tech need to be bought." Southwest Airlines (LUV.N) , opens new tab lost 5.56% after earnings and after the company reached an agreement with activist investor Elliott Investment Management. On a brighter note, UPS (UPS.N) , opens new tab added 5.28% after the parcel service provider reported a rise in third-quarter profit, on rebounding volumes and cost cuts. Of the 159 companies in the S&P 500 that have reported results this earnings season, 78.6% have beaten analyst expectations, according to data compiled by LSEG. On the economic front, S&P Global's flash PMI data showed U.S. business activity increased in October, amid strong demand. Weekly jobless claims also fell unexpectedly for the week ended Oct. 19. Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.25-to-1 ratio on the NYSE. There were 137 new highs and 49 new lows on the NYSE. The S&P 500 posted 41 new 52-week highs and 3 new lows while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 76 new highs and 89 new lows. Volume on U.S. exchanges was 11.06 billion shares, compared with the 11.59 billion average for the full session over the last 20 trading days. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/futures-bounce-after-selloff-tesla-jumps-11-2024-10-24/