Tag: briefly

Anti-government protesters briefly break into Serbia TV building

March 16, 2019

BELGRADE (Reuters) – Protesters briefly broke into Serbia’s state television building in the capital Belgrade on Saturday demanding media freedom and unbiased coverage of more than three months of anti-government demonstrations.

The protesters had been taking part in a demonstration by several thousand people against the rule of President Aleksandar Vucic and his Serbian Progressive Party (SNS), calling for media freedom as a condition for free and fair elections.

State television news has given scant coverage to similar protests that have taken place every Saturday since early December.

“For the past months we have been asking only for one thing – to allow protest organizers to speak on the state television,” said Bosko Obradovic, leader of the Dveri political party.

It was not immediately clear how many protesters had entered the building, but it was the first such incursion at state TV by activists opposed to the authorities for almost 20 years.

Several thousand protesters remained in front of the building as activists chanted “Vucic thief” in the corridors of the building.

Anti-riot police later entered the facility and began to take out the demonstrators one by one.

“Everyone who is in the Radio Television Serbia building this evening will be held responsible,” Interior Minister Nebojsa Stefanovic told a press conference shortly before the police took action.

Anti-government demonstrators last stormed the state TV building, known as the government mouthpiece, on October 5, 2000, bringing down the regime of strongman Slobodan Milosevic.

The protesters on Saturday were brought together by the Alliance for Serbia, a loose grouping of 30 opposition parties and organizations.

Vucic has previously said he would not bow to opposition demands for electoral reform and increased media freedom “even if there were five million people in the street”, but said he was willing to test his party’s popularity in a snap vote.

The protests have spread to other cities in Serbia and on Friday were held in Novi Sad, the second-largest city, the southern city of Nis and several other towns, though numbers outside the capital remain small.

(Reporting by Ivana Sekularac, Editing by William Maclean)

U.S. oil retreats from 2019 high on soaring production

March 15, 2019

By Noah Browning

LONDON (Reuters) – U.S. crude futures briefly hit a 2019 high on Friday but later retreated along with benchmark Brent oil as worries about the global economy and robust U.S. production put a brake on prices.

West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil futures were down 3 cents at $58.58 per barrel at 1100 GMT, having hit their highest so far this year at $58.95.

Brent crude futures were at $66.92 per barrel, down 31 cents from their last settlement, and more than $1 off their 2019 peak of $68.14 reached on Thursday.

“The market is still torn between economic concerns and high U.S. oil production on one hand and remarkable OPEC+ compliance on the other. The latter is greatly aided by unplanned cuts in production,” PVM oil broker Stephen Brennock said.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies including Russia, an alliance known as OPEC+, agreed last year to cut production, partly in response to increased U.S. shale production.

OPEC+ ministers will meet on April 17-18 to decide output policy.

“If OPEC+ decide to extend (cuts) … we expect that inventories will continue to draw through at least Q3,” U.S. investment bank Jefferies said on Friday.

The International Energy Agency said on Friday that the market could show a modest surplus in the first quarter of 2019 before flipping into a deficit in the second quarter by about 0.5 million barrels per day (bpd).

It said a comfortable supply cushion by OPEC could prevent any price rally in case of possible disruptions and that non-OPEC oil output growth led by the United States should ensure demand is met.

Preventing oil from rising further have been concerns that an economic slowdown that has gripped large parts of Asia and Europe will dent growth in fuel demand.

But oil demand has held up well so far.

Crude oil use in China, the world’s biggest importer, in the first two months of 2019 rose 6.1 percent from a year earlier to a record 12.68 million bpd, official data showed this week.

Goldman Sachs said growth in global demand for crude in January was “nearly 2.0 million barrels per day, with strength visible in both emerging markets and developed economies”.

(GRAPHIC: Global oil supply & demand – https://tmsnrt.rs/2O4NEW5)

(Reporting by Noah Browning in London; Additional reporting by Henning Gloystein; Editing by Dale Hudson)

EA’s new game ‘Apex Legends’ is taking a shot at ‘Fortnite’

February 13, 2019

By Jane Lanhee Lee

(Reuters) – “Apex Legends,” the latest hit title by gaming company Electronic Arts Inc, is shaking up the online battle arena, but questions are lurking about how much fire power it has in the long-run and whether it can dislodge popular “Fortnite.”

After thrilling investors with its meteoric launch, “Apex Legends” fell briefly to the second spot Wednesday on streaming game site Twitch before retaking the crown.

Though the game was outdrawn by “Counter-Strike Global Offensive,” an older military shooter game with a solid e-sports fan base, it has made a strong showing on Twitch, hitting 688,000 peak live viewers – meaning that many people were watching others play the game on the streaming platform.

“Apex Legends had a massive first week on Twitch. It generated more hours watched than any other game during its launch week in our history,” Michael Aragon, Twitch’s senior vice president of content, said in an email.

Investors are closely watching signs of engagement with “Apex Legends” after driving EA shares up 27 percent on reports that the game, released 10 days ago, had drawn 25 million users in its first week.

That was more than twice the number the hugely popular game “Fortnite” signed up in the two weeks after its initial 2017 release. Like “Fortnite,” “Apex Legends” is a free-to-play so-called battle royale format, where dozens of players are dropped on an island to battle to the death.

The initial sign-up numbers for “Apex Legends” had cheered EA investors after its latest earnings report showed weak sales from “Battlefield,” a more traditional EA offering.

EA shares were flat Wednesday.

Fortnite’s popularity – it has taken middle schools by storm and has an estimated 200 million players worldwide – had shaken an industry built on selling individual game titles for $50 or more a pop. While the game is free to download and play, users pay for upgrades, like the “skins” displayed on characters. Joost van Dreunen, co-founder of SuperData, a Nielsen Company, estimates that in 2018 “Fortnite” raked in $2.4 billion in revenue, more than any other single title.

Spencer Guy, an 18-year-old high school student in Montgomery, Alabama, said he has spent about $200 on upgrades while playing “Fortnite.” He said he loves the fast pace of “Apex Legends” and that it is not plagued by bugs the way “Fortnite” was. But so far, he said, he has spent “not a penny” on “Apex Legends.”

Analysts question whether “Apex Legends” can dislodge “Fortnite,” which is developed by Epic Games.

“‘Fortnite’ skews much younger and much more female because it’s cartoony and the violence isn’t violent. When you kill a character it says you’re out, it doesn’t say you’re dead,” said Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter.

Pachter also wonders if users will pay as much for upgrades like skins in a first-person shooter game where only the character’s hands and gun is in view.

(Reporting by Jane Lanhee Lee; editing by Greg Mitchell and Lisa Shumaker)

Regime Change in Africa. Rival Rumblings In West and Central Africa

Riotous protesters briefly stormed the Cameroonian Embassies in Paris and Berlin over the weekend in an attempt to raise global awareness about the rolling regime change campaign back in their homeland following the reelection of President Biya to his seventh …

The post Regime Change in Africa. Rival Rumblings In West and Central Africa appeared first on Global Research.

BREAKING: Cumming man threatened to attack White House, authorities say

A member of the Secret Service stands guard outside the White House, Jan. 13, 2019, in Washington.

 

Federal authorities on Wednesday announced a terrorist case against a metro Atlanta resident accused of plotting to destroy the White House and other Washington D.C. government buildings.

Hasher Jallal Taheb, of Cumming, was arrested in Gwinnett County and appeared briefly in court in downtown Atlanta in the case brought the FBI.

Authorities said all threats have been neutralized and the suspect was believed to have been acting alone.

The criminal complaint, which accuses him of plotting to destroy a government building, said a community member contacted law enforcement in March 2018 to say that Taheb had become radicalized.

On Aug. 25, 2018, Taheb allegedly put his vehicle up for sale. An FBI informant reached out to show interest and met with the suspect days later.

Taheb allegedly said he planned to travel to “hijra,” a term said to refer to Islamic State territory and he was selling the car to fund the trip. But he didn’t have a passport.

He allegedly told the informant he wanted to attack the White House and Statue of Liberty in jihadist attacks.

Return to AJC.com for more on this developing story.

Georgia Man Arrested In Terror Plot To Attack White House With Anti-Tank Rocket

Federal authorities on Wednesday announced the arrest of a Georgia man in a terror plot involving using an anti-tank rocket in an attack against federal buildings, including the White House, according to the Springfield News-Sun. 

21-year-old Hasher Jallal Taheb of Cumming, Georgia was arrested in Gwinnett County, after which he appeared briefly in a downtown Atlanta courtroom in a case brought by the FBI. 

“Taheb broadened his prospective targets in the Washington, D.C. area and indicated he wished to attack the Washington Monument, the White House, the Lincoln Memorial, and a specific synagogue,” the complaint reads. 

According to prosecutors, Taheb – who is believed to have been acting alone, reportedly spoke of traveling to territory controlled by the Islamic State.

Accoring to AJC.com Taheb allegedly put his vehicle up for sale, at which point an FBI informant reached out to show interest – meeting with him days later. 

The criminal complaint, which accuses him of plotting to destroy a government building, said a community member contacted law enforcement in March 2018 to say that Taheb had become radicalized. –AJC

U.S. Attorney Byung Jin Pak said that Taheb is charged with “intent to destroy by fire or explosive a building owned, possessed or leased by the United States or any department or agency thereof, or any institution or organization receiving federal financial assistance,” among other charges. 

“His alleged intent was to attack the white house and other targets of opportunity in the Washington DC area by using explosive devices including an improvised explosive device, and an anti-tank rocket,” said Pak.

The case was initiated “after receiving a tip from the community.” 

A New But Disastrous Normal For America: Surging Debt, Booming Economy

There’s a new normal in the United States.  It’s the perception of a booming economy while at the same time, seeing a surge in deficits. But this new normal is should be anything but.

Regardless of whether or not the economy is “booming” or “busting” right now (arguments can be made for both) the rate of debt being acquired by consumers and the ever increasing government deficits are poised to explode. For all intents and purposes, the mainstream media is declaring the economy “booming” so why is there so much of a deficit?

According to Fortune, in almost every other period in recent history, U.S. deficits have been counter-cyclical. When growth weakens, unemployment rises, so that fewer people are paying taxes. Falling profits shrink revenues from corporate levies, and the government frequently enacts emergency spending measures to recharge the economy. The shrinking tax receipts and temporary outlays swell the deficit. When the economy revives, in contrast, an expanding workforce and a surge in earnings will lift revenues and narrows the budget gap.

Today, that trend is reversing. Growth and deficits are moving upward in tandem, something that’s happened only briefly in the past. In 2018, GDP expanded at a robust 3.1%, and the Congressional Budget Office forecasts a decent 2.4% reading for 2019. Yet the agency predicts that the deficit will jump by 46% to $970 billion in 2020, rising to 4.6% of GDP and that the shortfall will grow to 7.1% of GDP by 2028 if Congress extends tax reductions that are scheduled to sunset, a likely outcome.

A December 13 report from the non-partisan Committee for a Responsible Budget (“The Deficit Has Never Been This High When the Economy Was This Strong“) points out that past periods of big deficits were usually accompanied by high unemployment and a large “output gap,” meaning that the economy was operating far below its potential because a big share of the workforce, and swaths of manufacturing capacity, stood idle. -Fortune

Marc Goldwein, CFRB’s senior policy director acknowledges that the U.S. could keep piling on seemingly unsustainable debt and deficits for years, without triggering a financial crisis. But that limit could be reached anytime too. “You don’t know if a crisis will come next year, or far in the future,” he says. “What you do know is that even now, the deficits are curbing growth.”

Pelosi regains gavel as speaker of most diverse U.S. House ever

January 3, 2019

By Ginger Gibson

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Nancy Pelosi again became the most powerful woman in American politics on Thursday, gathering dozens of children around her as she took the oath of office as the next speaker of a diverse and deeply divided U.S. House of Representatives.

Blowing a kiss to senior Republican Representative Don Young after he read out the oath to her, the California Democrat assumed the leadership of the 435-seat chamber at a moment of unique instability and uncertainty.

As the Democratic speaker, Pelosi will oversee a sweeping series of investigations of Republican Donald Trump, his business interests and the first two years of his presidency, while pursuing a distinctly Democratic legislative agenda.

Her first order of business will be to pass legislation on Thursday evening that would reopen the federal government, which is in the midst of a 13-day partial shutdown. The bill was expected to die, however, in the Senate, still controlled by Republicans.

“Building an economy that gives all Americans the tools they need to succeed in the 21st Century: public education, workforce development, good-paying jobs and secure pensions,” Pelosi said of her aims.

Regaining the speaker’s gavel eight years after losing it, Pelosi remains the only woman ever to occupy the post. She will preside over the most diverse House membership in history, including a record number of women and Latinos, with her party having wrested majority control from Trump’s Republicans in the November elections in a landslide victory.

The diversity of her party’s caucus was on full display during the hour-long vote to elect her as speaker.

“Standing on the shoulders of the women who marched 100 years ago to give me the right to vote, I cast my vote for Nancy Pelosi,” Representative Brenda Lawrence declared on the floor.

In the middle of the floor, Representative Eric Swalwell rocked his infant daughter, Cricket, when Representative Ilhan Omar, one of the first two Muslim women elected to Congress, stopped by to take a turn holding the baby.

Pelosi also had celebrities on hand, including fashion consultant and TV personality Tim Gunn, singer Tony Bennett and Grateful Dead drummer Mickey Hart.

For a moment, the focus on the House floor shifted when Pelosi was called on to vote for herself and granddaughter Bella Pelosi Kaufman grabbed her arm and jumped up and down.

The election of Pelosi, 78, was only briefly in doubt late last year amid a rebellion by some in the Democratic ranks who said the time had come for new leadership.

But she quelled the insurrection and won 220 votes. Only 15 Democrats opposed her – a smaller factional breakaway than Republicans saw for their two prior speakers.

Representative Hakeem Jeffries, whom she brought into the House leadership as the new House Democratic Caucus chairman, drummed up the most enthusiasm for her before the voting.

“Nancy Pelosi is a woman of faith, a loving wife, a mother of five, a grandmother of nine, a sophisticated strategist, a legendary legislator, a voice for the voiceless,” said Jeffries.

In a reference to a 1991 rap song by Naughty by Nature, Jeffries added: “Let me be clear, House Democrats are down with NDP – Nancy D’Alesandro Pelosi, the once and future speaker of the House of Representatives.”

(Reporting by Ginger Gibson; Editing by Kevin Drawbaugh and Peter Cooney)

Why Pimco Is Long The Bond Paying The World’s Highest Interest

Even after an expedited IMF bailout finally helped stabilize the Argentinian peso after a historic plunge, Argentina’s bonds have continued to languish as investors continue to brace for an inflationary tidal wave, while political instability has remained a factor as embattled former socialist leader Cristina Fernández de Kirchner (i.e. CFK) could return to power after next year’s election, dealing a major blow to international investors who predicated their bullish case on the business-friendly rule of President Mauricio Macri.

Argentina

Mauricio Macri

But all of this instability hasn’t stopped some of the world’s largest bond funds from hanging on to the country’s debt, which is paying the highest interest in the world (assuming the buyer hedged out that currency risk).

Case in point, Bloomberg reports that PIMCO and its parent company, Allianz, are holding an Argentinian note that pays a floating coupon equal to the country’s benchmark interest rate, which remains just below 60% after briefly climbing above 70% during the turmoil seen in Q3 and Q4.

ARS

While that payout is huge, in nominal terms, after shedding some 50% of its value earlier this year (it has since rebounded 7%), and adjusting for inflation, the peso’s decline would have eroded most of the return. Furthermore, consumer prices are on track to climb 50% in 2018, more than triple the Argentine Central Bank’s forecast for a 15% rise. The future remains just as bleak, with Argentina’s economy, which entered a recession this year, likely won’t pull out of it until the second half of 2019 according to analysts.

Fortunately for PIMCO, it’s EM desk had the good sense to hedge out at least some of that currency exposure.

Pimco hedged some of its currency exposure to the Argentine notes, according to a person with direct knowledge of the matter, who asked not to be identified because the information is private.

Because of this volatility, betting on Argentina takes “discipline”, and that buying these bonds should be a “long term play,” said PIMCO’s head of EM, which of course is what any PM says who is currently underwater on their investment.

“Emerging markets remain subject to both internal and external sources of volatility,” Mike Gomez, Pimco’s head of emerging market portfolio management, said in an email. “A disciplined and highly differentiating approach to the asset class provides opportunities for patient investors to benefit from dislocations that create compelling value.”

PIMCO owns roughly half of the notes in circulation. But it’s not the only major US-based investor with a significant stake. AllianceBernstein is the second-largest holder of the bonds, with 6.5% outstanding, and Goldman Sachs is No. 3 with 4.4%.

Slightly lower on the list is Franklin Templeton, with a 2.1% stake. Michael Hasenstab, who has been repeatedly bailed out by central banks on his hail mary bond investments in Europe during the financial crisis, and  whose $35 billion Templeton Global Bond Fund eked out a market-beating 2.1% gain this year, said he’s bullish on Argentina. “The peso already had its big selloff in late summer and early fall,” he said.

“We increased our exposure to capture the depreciated currency and significant increase in interest rates. The necessary adjustment measures were underway to stabilize the economy. The worst is behind us.”

Whether these bets pan out over the next year will ultimately depend – as all global markets do – on what happens in the US. If stocks continue to sell off and Treasury yields continue their move off the highs from October, the world could see the “carry is king” theme  reemerge.

If that happens, lagging Argentine bonds could finally get their moment in the sun, and PIMCO may be looking at the world’s highest (inflation-adjusted) return too.

Stocks Close Flat; Dow Briefly Tops 13,000

By: JeeYeon Park, CNBC.com

Stocks finished narrowly mixed in choppy trading Tuesday, pressured by steep oil prices and as investors were quick to book profits following a deal announcement in Greece.

The Dow briefly broke through the key 13,000 level for the first time since May 2008, but failed to close above the milestone.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average eked out a small gain of 15.82 points, or 0.12 percent, to end at 12,965.69, after rallying to the psychologically-important 13,000 level for the first time in almost four years earlier in the session.

Wal-Mart [WMT 59.39 -0.68 (-1.13%) ] was the biggest laggard on the blue-chip index, while Chevron [CVX 107.81 -0.60 (-0.55%) ] and Alcoa [AA 10.35 -0.06 (-0.58%) ] gained.

The S&P 500 added 0.98 points, or 0.07 percent, to finish at 1,362.21. The Nasdaq slipped 3.21 points, or 0.11 percent, to close at 2,948.57. The CBOE Volatility Index, widely considered the best gauge of fear in the market, closed above 18.

Among the key S&P sectors, energy ended higher, while health care slipped.

To read more, visit:  http://www.cnbc.com/id/46464541

RE Tea Party » Finance

Apple briefly surpasses Exxon as most valuable US company

From: WashingtonPost.com

NEW YORK — Apple briefly surpassed Exxon as the most valuable U.S. company after an excellent quarter, though the oil company has regained the lead at the market’s close.

Apple’s stock rose as much as 8 percent, while Exxon’s fell as much as 2 percent during trading Wednesday.

Exxon Mobil Corp.’s stock closed up 4 cents at $ 87.22 for a market capitalization of $ 418 billion. Apple’s increased 6 percent to $ 446.66 for a market cap of about $ 415 billion.

Apple said Tuesday that net income in its latest quarter more than doubled, while revenue grew 73 percent.

Cupertino, Calif.-based Apple first topped Exxon in August, then fell back to second place. Irving, Texas-based Exxon had held the top spot since 2005.

Apple overtook Microsoft Corp., now in the No. 3 slot, in 2010.

To read more, visit:  http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/industries/apple-again-surpasses-exxon-as-most-valuable-us-company-after-huge-1st-quarter/2012/01/25/gIQA9SmUQQ_story.html

RE Tea Party » Technology

Monsanto Has Released the Greatest Environmental Plague Ever says Robert Rowen, M.D.

Uploaded by aircraporg on Sep 19, 2011

Robert Rowen, M.D., co-author of “They Own It All (Including You!)”, briefly discusses Monsanto. Monsanto, according to Rowen, is the company that is responsible for putting toxic poisons on your food, depleting the soil, and have released the greatest environmental plague ever known to the planet: genetically altered organisms.

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