2024-02-26 20:27

LIMA, Feb 26 (Reuters) - Peru declared a health emergency across most of the country on Monday as a heat wave and heavy rains have led to a spike in dengue fever cases. The South American nation's death toll due to the virus has risen to 32 so far this year, Health Minister Cesar Vasquez said on Monday. Total cases also climbed to 31,300 in the first eight weeks of the year, Vasquez said, up from 24,981 in the first seven weeks. The Peruvian government's cabinet approved the motion to declare a health emergency on Monday, Vasquez told journalists, hours after he said a dengue outbreak was "imminent." "There are 20 regions (out of 25) that will be declared in a health emergency due to dengue," Vasquez said in an earlier interview on local radio station RPP. The declaration boosts resources to health responders in the affected areas. Dengue, largely transmitted through the bites of infected mosquitoes, causes symptoms such as fever, nausea, vomiting, fatigue and body aches. Most of the cases seen so far in Peru have been in the country's north, where hospitals are already overwhelmed. The nation's typical dengue response has been "overtaken" by factors such as climate, Vasquez said. "The weather has created a perfect breeding ground for mosquitoes to reproduce more quickly and become a more frequent vector of the disease," he said. Last year, 428 people in Peru died from dengue, with 269,216 infected, according to official data. Since 2023, the Andean nation has faced high temperatures and heavy rains due to the El Nino weather phenomenon, which has warmed the seas off Peru's coastline. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/peru-declare-emergency-parts-country-amid-rise-dengue-fever-cases-2024-02-26/

2024-02-26 19:37

Feb 26 (Reuters) - Rio Tinto (RIO.L) , opens new tab said on Monday that the Canadian government had awarded it C$18 million ($13 million) to decarbonize iron ore processing in Labrador West. The funding from the government's Low-Carbon Economy Fund will enable Rio Tinto's Iron Ore Company of Canada (IOC) to reduce the amount of heavy fuel oil that is used in the production of iron ore pellets and concentrate. The government funding represents about 25% of the total cost of the project, with IOC funding the rest of the investment, Rio Tinto said. Installation of new equipment will begin in the second half of the year and is expected to be completed in the first half of 2025. One of the world's largest iron ore producers, Rio expects to reduce about 2.2 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions over the lifetime of the project. ($1 = 1.3518 Canadian dollars) https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/rio-tinto-gets-c18-mln-canada-decarbonize-iron-ore-processing-2024-02-26/

2024-02-26 19:15

WASHINGTON, Feb 26 (Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Trade Commission and eight states said on Monday they are suing to block supermarket chain Kroger's (KR.N) , opens new tab $24.6 billion deal to buy smaller rival Albertsons (ACI.N) , opens new tab, saying it would boost grocery prices for millions of Americans. The deal, which would create a grocery empire with more than 4,000 stores, has drawn tough scrutiny from lawmakers and consumer groups worried about higher grocery prices, job losses, store closures and diminishing choice for consumers. U.S. food prices have risen by 25% over the last four years, and while food inflation is showing signs of cooling off in 2024, grocery bills have become a growing concern for shoppers. The deal would strengthen Kroger's position as the second largest player in the US grocery market behind Walmart. The FTC's lawsuit comes at a time when the Biden administration has pressed for lower grocery prices and pushed back against big-ticket mergers that risk price hikes, affecting consumers in areas ranging from medicines to airline tickets. The White House, after the FTC suit was announced, said President Joe Biden believes large corporations must be checked by healthy competition. Shares of Kroger fell 2%. Albertsons stock rose 0.6%. The deal spread, a measure of investor confidence in the merger, implies less than 40% chance of the deal being completed. While the FTC charged the deal will eliminate "fierce competition between Kroger and Albertsons," Kroger defended their business model, saying it has reduced prices every year since 2003 and would be applied to the merged company. The FTC's legal efforts "only strengthens larger, non-unionized retailers like Walmart WMT.N>, Costco COST.O> and Amazon.com (AMZN.O) , opens new tab by allowing them to further increase their overwhelming and growing dominance of the grocery industry," Kroger said in a statement. An Albertsons spokesperson added, "We are disappointed that the FTC continues to use the same outdated view of the U.S. grocery industry it used 20 years ago, and we look forward to presenting our arguments in Court." But the FTC sees the situation differently, noting the "supermarket mega merger comes as American consumers have seen the cost of groceries rise steadily over the past few years," and warning the deal would further exacerbate "the financial strain consumers across the country face today," said Henry Liu, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Competition. California Attorney General Rob Bonta has also raised concerns over access to pharmacies and fresh groceries in rural areas and small towns. read more Arizona, California, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Maryland, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon and Wyoming are joining the commission’s federal lawsuit. The FTC warned the merger would hurt the grocery store unions because the combined company "would have more leverage to impose subpar terms on union grocery workers that slow improvements to wages, worsen benefits, and potentially degrade working conditions." The decision comes after two U.S. states - Colorado and Washington - sued to block the merger, citing similar concerns. The FTC asked a U.S. District Court in Oregon to halt the merger pending a full examination of the proposed transaction in an administrative proceeding it filed Monday before an in-house administrative judge. The two complaint process is similar to other major FTC antitrust challenges including Microsoft Activision. In practice, if an injunction is issued and upheld, the parties often agree to abandon their deal. The case was filed in federal court in Oregon and assigned to Judge Adrienne Nelson, a former Oregon Supreme Court justice appointed by President Biden and confirmed by the Senate in 2023. SELLING 413 STORES Kroger, the biggest grocer in the U.S. by revenue, has proposed to divest 413 stores and eight distribution centers to C&S Wholesale Grocers, and said it may need to shed an additional 237 stores to gain regulatory approval. The FTC called that proposal inadequate. Antitrust legal scholar Christine Bartholomew said a key question in the FTC’s case will focus on whether the proposed deal poses a potential risk to competition. Kroger and Albertsons were likely to spotlight the “potential gains of the merger and the curative value of the divestiture,” she said. “But such claims will need actual backing,” said Bartholomew, who teaches at University of Buffalo’s law school. Any assertion from the two companies that the merger will create greater efficiency, she added, “doesn't save a merger. The gains must offset any potential anticompetitive harm.” The deal was also opposed by at least six U.S. lawmakers, including Senators Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders, who have written to the FTC highlighting the impact on consumers and suppliers from such a consolidation in the grocery industry. The merger, first announced in October 2022, also faced resistance from the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union, which represents more than 1 million workers in the grocery and other essential industries in North America, and voted to oppose the deal in May last year. https://www.reuters.com/markets/deals/us-ftc-announce-it-is-suing-block-kroger-albertsons-merger-monday-semafor-2024-02-26/

2024-02-26 19:07

NEW YORK, Feb 26 (Reuters) - Investors' fervor for all things AI-related is leaving its mark on the U.S. options market, as traders pile in to derivatives bets to gain exposure to the red-hot investing theme. Options on artificial-intelligence darling Nvidia (NVDA.O) , opens new tab accounted for 25 cents of every dollar of premium - the price of contracts - traded in U.S. single-stock options over the past month, nearly $3 billion in options premium traded in the chipmaker's options every day on average, a Reuters analysis of Trade Alert data showed. During several recent sessions, Nvidia surpassed Tesla (TSLA.O) , opens new tab as the option market’s most heavily traded name for the day. Nvidia briefly hit $2 trillion in market value for the first time on Friday - two days after it released quarterly earnings - riding on insatiable demand for its chips which feature prominently in the generative AI craze. Nvidia recently became the third-largest U.S.-listed company as measured in market capitalization. Its shares command a weighting of 4.5% in the S&P 500 (.SPX) , opens new tab, giving them an outsized influence on the broader index's moves. Nvidia's options should remain popular with traders, "both from a hype and mechanical index perspective," said Garrett DeSimone, head of quantitative research at OptionMetrics. "It represents such a large portion of S&P 500 weighting." The stock's options have drawn a range of bets, including ones guarding against a drop in the stock toward $350 by March and others that would bear fruit if the stock extended its meteoric rise toward $900 and higher in coming months. Nvidia shares were up 1.4% at $798.90 on Monday afternoon. A host of other AI names has also drawn heavy options volume, including Super Micro Computer (SMCI.O) , opens new tab and Arm Holdings . Nvidia’s shares are up about 60% year-to-date, while those of Super Micro Computer have risen 200% and Arm’s have gained 77%. Nvidia is not the first company to captivate options players. Derivatives bets on electric-vehicle manufacturer Tesla accounted for around half of all equity, index and ETF options premium in October 2021, as the company’s shares soared. Tesla’s options remain a crowd-puller that still often feature on the list of any given day's most actively traded options. Though the frantic pace of trading in Nvidia’s options could ease now that its earnings report is in the rearview mirror, market participants said the AI theme was likely to remain popular among investors. Some of the future demand for Nvidia's options is likely to come from investors who may have missed the wild rally in the stock. "There are undoubtedly institutions that may not want to chase an already highly appreciated stock but don’t want to miss out on the rally," said Steve Sosnick, chief strategist at Interactive Brokers. Buying options would "allow them to get leveraged exposure to Nvidia's upside but with a defined cash outlay," he said. https://www.reuters.com/technology/nvidia-bets-dominate-us-options-market-ai-fervor-grows-2024-02-26/

2024-02-26 19:02

Feb 26 (Reuters) - The U.S. government has threatened to sue the PacifiCorp unit of Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway (BRKa.N) , opens new tab over its alleged failure to cover $356 million in costs associated with the 2020 Slater wildfire in southern Oregon and northern California. In its annual report filed on Monday, PacifiCorp's parent Berkshire Hathaway Energy said the Department of Justice notified the utility last month of its intent to litigate over fire suppression costs, natural resource damages and burned area emergency response costs incurred by the U.S. Forest Service. Berkshire Hathaway Energy said PacifiCorp is cooperating to resolve the alleged claims, possibly through mediation or arbitration. It said the $356 million could grow to reflect interest, penalties and additional environmental damages. The Justice Department has also corresponded with PacifiCorp about recovering the estimated $625 million costs and damages to federal lands from the 2020 Archie Creek and Susan Creek wildfires in southern Oregon, the annual report said. Neither the Justice Department nor Berkshire Hathaway Energy immediately responded to requests for comment. The Slater fire started on Sept. 8, 2020 in southern Oregon and spread to approximately 157,000 acres (63,536 hectares). PacifiCorp separately faces private lawsuits from thousands of homeowners and businesses concerning Oregon and California wildfires in 2020 and 2022, including over its alleged negligent failure to shut down power lines. Multiple juries have issued verdicts against PacifiCorp, and more trials are scheduled for 2024. PacifiCorp has taken $2.4 billion of charges through Dec. 31, 2023 for estimated wildfire losses, before recoveries from insurers. In his annual letter , opens new tab to Berkshire shareholders on Saturday, Buffett said his Omaha, Nebraska-based conglomerate could face more wildfire losses if the frequency and intensity of severe thunderstorms keeps growing. "It will be many years until we know the final tally from BHE’s forest-fire losses and can intelligently make decisions about the desirability of future investments in vulnerable western states," Buffett wrote. Berkshire bought PacifiCorp for $5.1 billion in 2006. https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-may-sue-berkshire-hathaway-unit-over-wildfire-costs-2024-02-26/

2024-02-26 19:00

Feb 26 (Reuters) - Walt Disney (DIS.N) , opens new tab shareholder Blackwells Capital is calling for it to come up with an artificial intelligence (AI) strategy, saying that this could lift the U.S. media and entertainment conglomerate's stock price by as much as 129%. Blackwells is one of two activist investors pushing for board seats at Disney. While it has largely backed CEO Bob Iger's leadership of one of the world's largest entertainment companies, it has recently laid out potential changes, including a possible breakup and spinning off its park and hotel assets into a real estate investment trust. Blackwells said in a presentation published on Monday "Disney must produce an artificial intelligence strategy, and share elements of that strategy with its shareholders." Since 2023, the largest technology companies have added more than $5.2 trillion to their cumulative market values after announcing major AI initiatives, Blackwells said, adding that Disney could do more if it adopted and preached the "technology native stack and mindset." The critique does not acknowledge Disney's long-term investment in new technologies that span half a century, according to patent filings and current and interviews with 15 former executives, business partners and industry observers to discuss the company's technology strategy. Disney also formed an AI Task Force last year to study artificial intelligence and how it could be applied across the conglomerate, Reuters first reported. In a letter Monday to shareholders titled "Promises Made: Promises Kept," Disney said the board was committed to what it called an "ambitious plan" to restore value to shareholders. It argued that replacing Disney board members with the nominees of two activist investors would disrupt the company's progress. Disney also took issue with Blackwells' proposal that it spin off its land and hotels into a real estate investment trust, and break up the rest of the company into separate entities. That strategy, it argued, demonstrated "a complete misunderstanding of Disney's strengths derived from the synergies across our businesses." Blackwells, which is pushing to win three board seats at Disney, said its share price could potentially rise $246.96 from its current level of $107.74, the presentation forecast. "Artificial intelligences' impact on Disney – is at minimum – comparable to its impact at large tech companies," Blackwells said. "Disney’s potential in the AI and spatial computing spaces cannot be understated," it added. Blackwells also suggested that Disney hire a corporate chief technology officer to focus on technology transformation. Nelson Peltz's Trian Fund Management is also campaigning for board representation at Disney, asking investors to elect its two director candidates. VIRTUAL WORLDS Among the 4,172 patents Disney has registered with the U.S. Patent and Trade Office since 1973, are 260 that refer to augmented reality, including one filing dating from 1997 that describes a virtual easel that would digitize an artist's illustration. Patents reviewed by Reuters describe technologies for generating three-dimensional virtual environments and for incorporating augmented and virtual reality into moving theme park rides. One of these technologies is on display with the Avatar Fight of Passage attraction in Disney's Animal Kingdom, where guests ride a winged mountain banshee for a virtual 3D flight over Pandora's landscape. Disney’s theme parks have historically provided a showcase for the company’s technology since the first audio-animatronic robots arrived at Disneyland in 1963, in the form of tropical birds chirping and wise-cracking in the Tiki Room. Efforts to blend the physical and digital worlds have been happening in other areas. Disney’s consumer products group partnered with Lenovo (0992.HK) , opens new tab in 2017 on a Star Wars-inspired game that used augmented reality and a smartphone to bring lightsaber battles into the home. The Walt Disney Studio, meanwhile, has explored ways to use augmented reality to lift its most popular characters off the movie screen and place them into the physical world, where they would interact with fans. Disney has also committed to create content for the Apple Vision Pro mixed reality headset. Its journey into the virtual future has not been without missteps. The company created content for a half-dozen virtual worlds inspired by such popular film franchises such as Pirates of the Caribbean and Cars in the 2000s, only to shutter them less than a decade later. It has also sold off its Avalanche Software game studio to rival Warner Bros Interactive in 2017, after failing to meet internal sales projections, according to one former Disney executive with direct knowledge of the situation. Disney now licenses its characters and stories for games produced by other companies, a strategy which it says has produced nine games that grossed more than $1 billion in sales. The company recently invested $1.5 billion for an equity stake in Fortnite-maker Epic Games. https://www.reuters.com/business/media-telecom/disneys-shares-could-more-than-double-with-help-ai-investor-says-2024-02-26/