2025-09-23 23:54

Flood from overflowing barrier lake kills 14, 152 missing Taiwan hit by outer bands of Super Typhoon Ragasa Rescuers rush to disaster zone in mountainous east Taiwan's semiconductor industry not affected HUALIEN, Taiwan, Sept 24 (Reuters) - Residents in an eastern Taiwan town where flooding from a strong typhoon killed 14 people took to shelters on Wednesday fearing further disaster, as Premier Cho Jung-tai called for an inquiry into what went wrong with evacuation orders. Sub-tropical Taiwan, frequently hit by typhoons, normally has a well-oiled disaster mechanism that averts mass casualties by moving people out of potential danger zones quickly. Sign up here. But many residents in Guangfu, an inundated town in the beauty spot of Hualien thronged by tourists, said there was insufficient warning when the lake overflowed during Tuesday's torrential rains brought by Super Typhoon Ragasa. Cho said the immediate priority was to find the 129 still missing - a number that climbed to 152 after he spoke - but questions remained. "For the 14 who have tragically passed away, we must investigate why evacuation orders were not carried out in the designated areas," he told reporters in Guangfu. "This is not about assigning blame, but about uncovering the truth." The barrier lake, formed by landslides triggered by earlier heavy rain in the island's sparsely populated east, burst its banks to send a wall of water into Guangfu. As heavy rain continued on and off in Hualien, police cars sounded sirens for a new flood warning in Guangfu on Wednesday, sending people scrambling for safer areas as residents and rescuers shouted, "The flood waters are coming, run fast." "We will not return until the overflow is finished or the risk of it bursting is reduced. It's too dangerous," said a woman who gave her family name as Tsai from a packed emergency shelter in an elementary school. Deputy disaster command centre chief Huang Chao-chin said with rainfall easing and much of the water from the lake already released, he did not expect a repeat of Tuesday's mass flooding. Lamen Panay, a Hualien councillor, said government evacuation requests before the flood had not been mandatory. Referring to guidance for people to head to higher floors, she said, "What we were facing wasn't something 'vertical evacuation' could resolve." Taiwan has been lashed since Monday by the outer rim of Typhoon Ragasa, which was downgraded from a super typhoon and is now hitting China's southern coast and the Asian financial hub of Hong Kong. LIKE A 'TSUNAMI' The water hit like a "tsunami", said Guangfu postman Hsieh Chien-tung, who was able to flee to the second floor of the post office just in time. Later, he got home to find his car had been swept into the living-room. Fire officials said all the dead and missing were in Guangfu, where the waters destroyed a major road bridge across a river. Regions across Taiwan have dispatched rescue teams to Hualien, with the military sending 340 troops to help. In Guangfu, soldiers operating from an armoured personnel carrier to keep clear of thick mud in the streets went door-to-door handing out water and instant noodles. Wrecked cars and scooters were littered around. About 5,200 people, or 60% of the population, sought shelter on the higher floors of their own homes while most of the rest left to stay with families, government data showed. The government said the overflow of the barrier lake released about 60 million tonnes of an estimated 91 million tonnes of water, enough to fill about 36,000 Olympic-sized swimming pools. China's Taiwan Affairs Office offered condolences, in a rare sign of goodwill from Beijing, which has a deep dislike of Taipei's government. China views Taiwan as its own territory, despite the strong objections of the island's democratically-elected government. Besides the wilderness beauty that makes it one of Taiwan's top tourist draws, Hualien is also home to many members of the island's indigenous groups, including the Amis. The typhoon brought about 70 cm (28 inches) of rain to Taiwan's east, though the populous west coast, home to the crucial semiconductor industry, was not affected. In 2009, Typhoon Morakot brought destruction to Taiwan's south, killing about 700 and causing damage of up to $3 billion. https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/14-dead-eastern-taiwan-after-typhoon-unleashes-flood-2025-09-23/

2025-09-23 23:48

17 people dead in Taiwan, 17 missing after lake overflows Roads, beaches, hotel flooded in Hong Kong Hundreds of south China flights cancelled, shelters open Ragasa to hit China's Guangdong Province HONG KONG/SHENZHEN, China, Sept 24 (Reuters) - Typhoon Ragasa, the world's most powerful tropical cyclone this year, struck the southern Chinese city of Yangjiang on Wednesday after killing 17 people in Taiwan and lashing Hong Kong with ferocious winds and heavy rains. The typhoon was tracking towards Maoming, one of China's biggest oil refining cities, in Guangdong province. Sign up here. In Taiwan, 17 people were missing in the eastern Hualien county after a barrier lake overflowed and sent a wall of water into a town, while Ragasa brought Hong Kong to a standstill. More powerful typhoons are likely to hit southern China due to climate change, said Benjamin Horton, dean of the School of Energy and Environment at the City University of Hong Kong, after a summer of record-breaking rainfall. "The weather experienced in Hong Kong this summer is only a taste of what is to come," Horton said. GUANGDONG GIVEN RED STORM SURGE WARNING Officials in Taiwan are used to moving people out of potential danger zones swiftly as the island is frequently hit by typhoons, but many residents in the tourist town of Guangfu said they were given insufficient warning when a lake overflowed during Tuesday's torrential rains brought by Ragasa. In Hong Kong, where huge waves crashed over areas of the Asian financial hub's eastern and southern shoreline, some roads and residential properties were submerged. At the Fullerton Hotel on the island's south, videos on social media showed seawater surging through glass doors. No injury has been reported, the hotel told Reuters. China's marine authority issued its highest red wave warning for the first time this year, forecasting storm surges of up to 2.8 metres (9 feet) in parts of Guangdong province, as Ragasa headed towards the densely populated Pearl River Delta. Ragasa formed over the Western Pacific last week. Fuelled by warm seas and favourable atmospheric conditions, the tropical cyclone rapidly intensified to become a Category 5 super typhoon on Monday with winds exceeding 260 kph (162 mph). It has since weakened, but was still powerful enough to bring down trees and power lines. "Authorities have taken lessons from Hato and Mangkhut, which both caused billions of dollars in damage in 2017 and 2018," said Chim Lee, a senior energy and climate change specialist at the Economist Intelligence Unit. "The Pearl River Delta is one of the best-prepared regions for typhoons, so we're not expecting major disruptions. One change this year is that the Hong Kong stock market has stayed open during typhoons - a sign of how resilient the infrastructure has become," he said. That said, Zijin Gold International (2259.HK) , opens new tab delayed its $3.2 billion IPO in Hong Kong on Wednesday. MILLIONS OF PEOPLE IN STORM'S PATH After passing around 100 km (60 miles) south of Hong Kong, Ragasa made landfall along the south Chinese coast. Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Foshan and Dongguan, the largest cities in the storm's path, are home to around 50 million people. More than 2 million people have been evacuated across Guangdong and the ministry for emergencies dispatched tens of thousands of tents, folding beds, lighting equipment and other rescue supplies, Chinese state media reported. Some shops and restaurants in the province parked large rented trucks in front of storefronts in a bid to shield them from the storm, local media reported. "We live on an upper floor and saw there wasn't too much danger, so I brought the kids out to experience this heavy rain and wind," a 40-year-old Shenzhen resident surnamed Liang said. "We walked along the open road to make sure to stay safe." A crowd chasing the storm under Shenzhen Bay Bridge was moved on by traffic police. "The typhoon was really intense, but I've not been out long," said an electric scooter delivery driver who goes by the name of Tim and was using his vehicle to assess the damage. China's marine authority warned of a high risk of flooding in Shenzhen, especially in low-lying areas, with a storm surge alert expected to remain in effect until Thursday. A woman and her five-year-old son were swept into the ocean on Tuesday after watching the typhoon from the Hong Kong waterfront, according to the South China Morning Post, which said they were now in intensive care. Hong Kong will lower its typhoon signal to 3 from 8 after 1220 GMT on Wednesday, the city's weather forecast agency said. The hospital authority said at least 90 people had been injured by the typhoon, while the government had opened 50 temporary shelters, within which 885 sought refuge. In the gambling hub of Macau, next to Hong Kong, casinos were forced to shutter their gambling areas. One user on China's Xiaohongshu app showed videos of doors being sealed at a casino resort for protection against gales and debris. https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/super-typhoon-lashes-hong-kong-with-hurricane-force-winds-heavy-rain-2025-09-23/

2025-09-23 23:06

LONDON, Sept 24 (Reuters) - Pay settlements granted by British employers held at 3% in the three months to August but many firms are now offering smaller rises in response to their higher labour costs, according to figures from data firm Brightmine. Wednesday's figures extended the run of 3% pay awards that start in early 2025, the longest period of no change since 2019, Brightmine said. Sign up here. BoE policymakers are watching for signs that inflation pressure in Britain's labour market is abating sufficiently for it to resume reducing borrowing costs. It held interest rates at 4% last week. "With inflation still elevated and recruitment slowing, employers remain cautious in their approach to pay, balancing workforce needs against ongoing economic uncertainty," said Sheila Attwood, HR insights and data lead at Brightmine. British finance minister Rachel Reeves, who ordered employers to pay higher social security contributions from April this year, is expected to raise taxes again in her annual fiscal statement on November 26 in order to remain on course to meet her budget targets. Britain's consumer price index held at 3.8% in August. The BoE expects it to peak at 4% in September and stay above its 2% target until the spring of 2027. The economy grew just 0.2% in the three months to July, and average weekly earnings, excluding bonuses, cooled slightly to 4.8% in the three months to July from 5% in the April-to-June period. Brightmine said nearly 11% of pay settlements in the three months to August resulted in a pay freeze, after none were reported in the three months July. The data firm analysed 34 pay settlements effective in the three months to August 31, covering more than 600,000 employees. https://www.reuters.com/business/world-at-work/uk-pay-deals-hold-3-with-employers-cautious-mood-brightmine-says-2025-09-23/

2025-09-23 23:04

LONDON, Sept 24 (Reuters) - Britain's energy regulator Ofgem will require all major suppliers to offer lower standing charge tariffs by the end of January 2026, it said on Wednesday, while adding that the move was unlikely to reduce overall bills. Standing charges are daily fixed fees added to unit prices customers pay for gas and electricity, designed to cover costs of connecting to the energy system. Sign up here. Consumer groups have criticised them as unfair because they are paid regardless of household energy consumption. Under the new rules, suppliers will likely shift costs currently recovered through standing charges to other areas of bills like higher unit energy prices, Ofgem said. However, the regulator and the government said the changes would give customers more choice over their energy bills. "This proposal will make more tariffs available on the market, giving people more options to pay lower standing charges if that suits their needs," Britian's Minister for Energy Consumers Martin McCluskey said in the Ofgem release. https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/boards-policy-regulation/uk-energy-regulator-ofgem-enforce-lower-standing-charges-2025-09-23/

2025-09-23 21:27

Trump cancels meeting with Democrats amid funding dispute House passed stopgap bill, failed in Senate with 53 Republican seats Federal shutdown could affect services, furlough workers Republicans, Democrats posture to pin blame on rivals WASHINGTON, Sept 23 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday scrapped a meeting with top congressional Democratic leaders to discuss government funding, raising the risk of a partial government shutdown beginning next week. Democrats and the Republican president postured to try to pin blame on each other for a potential shutdown, which would interfere with a range of federal services and likely furlough hundreds of thousands of federal workers. Sign up here. "I have decided that no meeting with their congressional leaders could possibly be productive," Trump wrote in a post on his Truth Social media site. Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer and House of Representatives Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries earlier on Tuesday said Trump had agreed to meet this week at the White House, before government funding expires on September 30. Lawmakers are at odds over so-called discretionary funding, which accounts for about one-quarter of the roughly $7 trillion federal budget. "Democrats are ready to work to avoid a shutdown," Schumer said in a statement responding to Trump's message. "Trump and Republicans are holding America hostage." At issue is how to win enough votes in the deeply divided Congress to pass a stopgap funding bill to keep the government operating into the new fiscal year starting October 1. Schumer said it is also urgent for Congress to extend an enhanced tax credit for federally backed health insurance premiums, which is due to expire on December 31. Healthcare policy nonprofit KFF estimates out-of-pocket premium payments rising over 75% for the Affordable Care Act plan year beginning on October 1. "It's the difference between a family trying to make the mortgage payment and having healthcare," Schumer told reporters at a press conference in New York's Brooklyn borough. Republican leaders say they have not slammed the door on extending the tax credit, but have argued that a stopgap funding bill was not the place to accomplish that. The Republican-led House passed a bill last week to extend government funding through November 21, but it failed in the Senate where Republicans hold 53 of the 100 seats. Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson has said he does not intend to call House members back to Washington before October 1 - by which point the government will have shut down absent Senate action. Johnson says his chamber completed its work when it passed its stopgap funding bill on Friday, a move that also presents the Senate - where bills require bipartisan support to pass - no chance to modify the House bill. Jeffries told House Democrats to return to Washington from a week-long break on Monday. UNUSUAL POSITION FOR DEMOCRATS In a long posting on Truth Social, Trump attacked Democrats, but said he would meet with the parties' Leaders "if they get serious about the future of our Nation." Without specifically laying out his conditions, Trump said, "All Congressional Democrats want to do is enact Radical Left Policies that nobody voted for — High Taxes, Open Borders, No Consequences for Violent Criminals, Men in Women’s Sports, Taxpayer funded 'TRANSGENDER' surgery, and much more." Democrats have largely embraced efforts to secure the U.S. border with Mexico, but have criticized Trump's unilateral tactics of targeting immigrants for deportation without due process. They also have criticized Trump's use of some states' National Guard troops in Democratic-controlled cities, ostensibly to reduce crime rates. Voting against bills to keep the government operating puts Democrats in an unusual position, as Schumer over the years has chastised Republicans for voting against the sort of funding extensions known as continuing resolutions that the House passed last week. The federal government has partially shut down 14 times since 1981, but it is unclear what operations would continue and what would close on October 1 if government funding runs out since the Office of Management and Budget has not made public agencies' contingency plans. Mandatory spending, such as on the Social Security and Medicare benefits would continue, as would interest payments on the federal government's $37.5 trillion in debt. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/trump-scraps-meeting-with-democrats-funding-us-shutdown-looms-2025-09-23/

2025-09-23 21:12

Macklem sees US dollar's safe haven status under threat Fed's Powell praised for handling political pressure Canada urged to adapt to changing U.S. trade dynamics OTTAWA, Sept 23 (Reuters) - Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem on Tuesday expressed concern about President Donald Trump's attempts to pressure the U.S. Federal Reserve, saying his actions had started to hit financial markets. In his first observations on Trump's efforts to influence Fed decision making, Macklem said the impact could be seen on the U.S. dollar. Sign up here. In the last few months, Trump has cranked up his demands for a rate cut, tried to remove one of the Fed's governors and repeatedly insisted that Chair Jerome Powell resign at a time when the U.S. president's trade actions have disrupted the global trade order. "Why I'm talking about it is that it's starting to have consequences in financial markets," Macklem said when asked by reporters about the timing of his comments. "I do think you are starting to see some impacts, and in that sense, it's time to talk about it." Earlier in the day, Macklem told the Saskatoon Chamber of Commerce that Trump's attempts to influence the Federal Reserve were raising questions about the continued independence of U.S. monetary policy. He also noted how the U.S. dollar was suffering due to Trump's actions and accompanying global uncertainty. "The question now is whether U.S. dominance in global financial flows will ebb as the United States pulls back from trade and runs large fiscal deficits. The recent performance of the U.S. dollar may be telling us something," Macklem said. The greenback, he noted, was losing its appeal, falling almost 10% since Trump unleashed a barrage of tariffs globally in April. This, Macklem said, had called the dollar's safe-haven role into question. "For now, the greenback remains dominant, and — without a clear alternative — I suspect it will remain the global reserve currency for the foreseeable future. But for many, its value as a hedge in times of stress has been dented," he said. He later commended Fed Chair Jerome Powell for "doing a very good job under very trying circumstances," but stressed the need for the Fed to remain free of political pressure. "Central banks that have operational independence for monetary policy do a better job at delivering price stability for their citizens," he said. CANADA RAMIFICATIONS Macklem said the shifting trade equation with the U.S. had immense ramifications for Canada. "We can't afford to wait this out," he said, adding that Canadian businesses as well as political and economic leaders would need to chart a new course. "We should have been making these changes 15 years ago. But the next best time is now," he said. Canada has long suffered from anemic productivity, which economists and businesses say is helping fuel inflation. Canada's economy will work less efficiently, costs will go up and incomes will shrink due to increased trade friction with the U.S., he said, but noted monetary policy would not be able to soften these impacts. "Monetary policy cannot undo the efficiency costs of U.S. tariffs... nor can counter-cyclical fiscal stimulus," he said. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/bank-canada-head-expresses-concern-about-trumps-fed-actions-2025-09-23/