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Venezuela moves to strip opposition leader Juan Guaido of immunity

Venezuela opposition leader Juan Guaido should be prosecuted for violating a ban on leaving the country and inciting violence linked to street protests, the country’s chief justice said Monday as he asked lawmakers to strip Guaido of his immunity from prosecution.

Supreme Court Justice Maikel Moreno claimed the 35-year-old lawmaker, who is the head of the opposition-held National Assembly, also received illicit funds from abroad and should face charges.

It was unclear when the pro-Maduro National Constituent Assembly will consider whether to remove Guaido's immunity, which comes because he's head of the opposition-led National Assembly.

VP MIKE PENCE TO MEET IN DC WITH FAMILIES OF 6 CITGO EXECS DETAINED IN VENEZUELA

The move comes less than a week after the state comptroller, Elvis Amoroso, a close ally to embattled President Nicolas Maduro, proposed banning Guaido from holding public office for 15 years because of inconsistencies in his financial records.

Amoroso said last week that Guaido, who declared himself interim president earlier this year, triggering a power struggle with Maduro, has taken 90 international trips without accounting for the origin of the estimated $94,000 in expenses.

Guaido defied a travel ban imposed by the government when he toured South American nations in February to drum up diplomatic support for pushing Maduro out of power.

Amoroso also accused Guaido of harming the country through his interactions with foreign governments – dozens of which support the assembly leader’s claim to be head of state.

Guaido dismissed both actions by the government because, in his view, Maduro’s government is illegitimate.

"We must unite now more than ever," said Guaido at a Caracas university earlier Monday. "We must mount the biggest demonstration so far to reject what's happening."

JOHN STOSSEL: DEMOCRATIC SOCIALISM IS NOT THE ROUTE TO PARADISE – JUST LOOK AT VENEZUELA

Venezuelan security forces have detained Guaido’s chief of staff, but have yet to move directly against Guaido, who has the support of about 50 countries in his claim to the head of state.

Since a massive power failure struck March 7, the nation has experienced near-daily blackouts and a breakdown in critical services such as running water and public transportation. All classes have been suspended for nearly a week.

At the same time, frustrated residents are increasingly unable to find water, make phone calls or access the internet. Millions of Venezuelans struggled to understand an announcement by Maduro that the nation's electricity is being rationed to combat daily blackouts.

Maduro said late Sunday that he was instituting a 30-day plan that would balance generation and transmission with consumption. He also called on Venezuelans to stay calm, but provided few details.

Maduro blames the blackouts on U.S.-directed sabotage, an allegation that Guaido routinely dismisses as the desperate talk of a government that has presided over the collapse of infrastructure in a country which was once among the wealthiest in Latin America.

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On Sunday, a mass of protesters took to the streets only to be threatened by contingents of alleged government supporters known as "colectivos" who appeared on motorbikes and quickly dispersed them. Videos posted on social media showed armed men opening fire to drive residents inside.

Many Venezuelans have apparently resigned themselves to a bleak reality.

"I haven't had water at home for 15 days," said Maria Rojas, a 57-year-old homemaker looking for a source to fill her jugs. "You try to find water in the street that is more or less safe to drink."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News World

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BOJ keeps eye on risks even as Japan posts positive output gap

A security guard walks past in front of the Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo
A security guard walks past in front of the Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo, Japan January 23, 2019. REUTERS/Issei Kato

April 3, 2019

By Leika Kihara

TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s economic output exceeded its full capacity in October-December by the most in more than 26 years, offering the central bank some hope a sustained recovery will help inflation accelerate toward its elusive 2 percent target.

But the Bank of Japan will likely maintain a dovish tone as heightening overseas risks threaten to derail the country’s export-reliant recovery, say sources familiar with its thinking.

The data, along with a BOJ survey on Monday showing a sharp deterioration in business sentiment, will be among factors the central bank will scrutinise in deciding whether to maintain its view that growth will rebound in the latter half of this year.

“The headwinds from China’s slowdown haven’t hurt capital expenditure yet,” one of the sources said on condition of anonymity. “But overseas developments, particularly on how China performs, will be key to whether the BOJ’s scenario holds.”

Japan’s output gap, which measures the difference between an economy’s actual and potential output, stood at plus 2.2 percent in October-December, a BOJ estimate showed on Wednesday, staying positive for nine straight quarters.

It was wider than a 1.26 percent gap in the previous quarter and the biggest positive gap since 1992, when Japan was still experiencing an asset-inflation “bubble” period.

A positive output gap occurs when actual output exceeds the economy’s full capacity, as factories and workers operate above their most efficient level to meet strong demand.

In theory, a growing positive output gap should lead to a build-up of inflationary pressure, though the BOJ has conceded that structural factors could keep price growth subdued for longer than expected.

Business confidence hit a two-year low in the March quarter, the BOJ’s “tankan” survey showed on Monday, underscoring concerns that Sino-U.S. trade tensions and softening global demand were taking a toll on the economy. [nL3N21J03E]

But many in the central bank feel Japan’s economy has not lost its momentum to accelerate inflation to its 2 percent target, citing tankan figures pointing to resilience in capital expenditure plans, the sources say.

In March, the BOJ stuck to its view Japan’s economy was expanding moderately, clinging to hope that growth will pick up in the latter half of this year as global demand emerges from the doldrums.

Whether the second-half rebound scenario holds will be among key topics of debate at the April rate review, the sources said.

While some policymakers have signalled the need to ramp up stimulus to pre-empt risks, most in the nine-member board prefer to hold off on acting immediately given the rising cost of prolonged easing and a dearth of policy ammunition, they say.

Aside from reviewing policy, the BOJ will issue fresh quarterly economic growth and inflation projections at its rate review on April 24-25.

The BOJ faces a dilemma. Years of heavy money printing have dried up market liquidity and hurt commercial banks’ profits, highlighting the rising risks of prolonged easing.

And yet, subdued inflation has left the BOJ well behind its U.S. and European counterparts in dialling back crisis-mode policies, and with a dearth of ammunition to battle any abrupt yen spike that could derail an export-driven economic recovery.

(Reporting by Leika Kihara; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore)

Source: OANN

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Politico Poll: Trump Approval Dips 5 Points Post-Mueller Report

President Donald Trump's approval rating has dropped 5 points since the release last Thursday of special counsel Robert Mueller's report on Russian interference in the 2016 election, a new poll showed.

The Politico/Morning Consult survey showed Trump's 39 percent approval rating matches his presidency's low-water mark in the wake of Charlottesville, Virginia, violence in August 2017.

There is little support, however, for impeachment, the poll showed.

Here are the highlights:

  • 39% of voters approve of the job Trump is doing as president, down from 44% last week.
  • 57% disapprove of the job Trump is doing.
  • 34% believe Congress should begin impeachment proceedings, down from 39% in January; 48% say Congress should not begin impeachment proceedings.
  • 43% say Congress should continue to investigate, while 41% say it should not. 
  • 46% think the investigation into Russia's influence on the 2016 presidential election was handled fairly, 29% think it was handled unfairly. Further, 48% of Democratic voters, 46% of Republicans, and 43% of independents say they think the investigation was handled fairly.
  • 30% approve of the way Attorney General William Barr has handled the case.

The poll's margin of error is plus or minus 2 percentage points.

Source: NewsMax America

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Tokyo prosecutors readying new case against Ghosn over Oman payments: report

FILE PHOTO: Former Nissan Motor Chairman Carlos Ghosn sits inside a car as he leaves his lawyer's office after being released on bail from Tokyo Detention House, in Tokyo
FILE PHOTO: Former Nissan Motor Chairman Carlos Ghosn sits inside a car as he leaves his lawyer's office after being released on bail from Tokyo Detention House, in Tokyo, Japan, March 6, 2019. REUTERS/Issei Kato/File Photo

April 3, 2019

TOKYO (Reuters) – Tokyo prosecutors are preparing to build a fresh case against ousted Nissan Motor Co Ltd chairman Carlos Ghosn over suspect payments the automaker made to a business partner in Oman, Japan’s Yomiuri newspaper reported on Wednesday.

Tokyo prosecutors are in discussions with the Supreme Public Prosecutors Office and others and plan to make a decision soon on whether to prosecute Ghosn on further charges of aggravated breach of trust, the newspaper said, citing sources involved in the case.

A spokesman at the Tokyo prosecutors’ office was not immediately able to comment when contacted by Reuters.

Ghosn’s spokesman has previously said payments of $32 million made over nine years were rewards for the Oman firm being a top Nissan dealer. Such dealer incentives were not directed by Ghosn and the funds were not used to pay any personal debt, the spokesman said.

Ghosn was arrested in Tokyo in November and faces charges of financial misconduct and aggravated breach of trust over allegedly failing to report around $82 million in salary and for temporarily transferring personal financial losses onto Nissan’s books during the financial crisis.

Ghosn, who previously headed the Renault-Nissan alliance, denies the charges. He was released on bail last month as he awaits trial.

Sources told Reuters earlier this week that Renault SA had alerted French prosecutors after uncovering suspect payments to a Renault-Nissan business partner in Oman while Ghosn was chief executive of the French automaker.

Nissan had previously established that its own regional subsidiary had made questionable payments of more than $30 million to the Oman distributor, Suhail Bahwan Automobiles (SBA).

Evidence sent to French prosecutors late last week showed that much of the cash was subsequently channeled to a Lebanese company controlled by Ghosn associates, the sources said.

Reuters has not been able to reach SBA for comment on the matter.

(Reporting by Chang-Ran Kim, Kaori Kaneko and Tim Kelly; Editing by Christopher Cushing)

Source: OANN

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Thai exec guilty in poaching case, cleared of panther charge

A billionaire construction tycoon has been convicted by a Thai court on charges related to a high-profile poaching case last year but was found not guilty of possessing the carcass of an endangered black panther seen in photos that had sparked the public outcry.

The Thong Pha Phum Provincial Court sentenced Premchai Karnasuta to 16 months in prison Tuesday for possessing the carcass of an endangered Kajij pheasant and possessing firearms in public areas. He has been released on bail.

Premchai was arrested last February after park rangers found that he and three of his company's employees had set up camp at the Thung Yai Naresuan Wildlife Sanctuary, where they were found with guns and animals carcasses.

The three others were also sentenced Tuesday.

Source: Fox News World

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Melting missiles: just one problem with F-35s stopping North Korea rockets

FILE PHOTO: A Lockheed Martin F-35 aircraft is seen at the ILA Air Show in Berlin
FILE PHOTO: A Lockheed Martin F-35 aircraft is seen at the ILA Air Show in Berlin, Germany, April 25, 2018. REUTERS/Axel Schmidt -/File Photo

February 27, 2019

By Mike Stone

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Looking for a quick way to stop North Korean missiles immediately after lift-off, the Pentagon is studying as a near-term option whether a group of F-35 fighter jets hovering around North Korean airspace could pick off freshly-launched rockets.

In its current form, the idea defies physics, missile defense experts say. It calls for interceptor missiles that fly so fast they could melt one expert said, and the only surefire way for U.S. military aircraft to defeat a missile with current technology would be to fly in hostile airspace, according to three experts interviewed by Reuters.

The idea, part of a six-month study launched last month, shows how the Pentagon is seeking ways to neutralize the threat posed by Pyongyang even as President Trump meets North Korean leader Kim Jong Un this week in Vietnam in his effort to stop Kim’s nuclear program.

Concern over U.S. missile defenses has grown with the escalating threat from North Korea. Two years ago North Korea conducted about a dozen missile tests, some with multiple rockets, including the launch of a suspected inter-continental ballistic missile that could hit the U.S. mainland. They also tested a purported hydrogen bomb.

The F-35 plan under study would likely involve continuously flying a group of the stealthy jets within range of known North Korean missile sites. Once a missile is launched towards U.S. territory, the F-35’s advanced sensors would detect and then fire a special air-to-air missile before the Pyongyang projectile exits the atmosphere, the latest missile defense strategy and Pentagon leadership have said.

Military officials say the F-35 option is the one they want to test first because it could use existing military hardware and potentially be operational sooner than other strategies, and at a relatively low cost. At the same time Pentagon leadership says the tests may reveal a new interceptor is needed, or that the F-35 may only have a role in detecting the just-launched missile and not necessarily also shoot it down.

Speaking about that option after last month’s release of the defense strategy review, Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering Michael Griffin said: “we do think it could be both cost effective and … within the bounds of math and physics.”

Among other proposals included in the review was one involving lasers mounted on drones – proposed to stop missiles just after take-off in what is called the boost phase.

During this portion of the flight the missile is most vulnerable, flying at its slowest speed, easily detected by the heat from its engines, and incapable of evading interceptors as it accelerates to break out of the earth’s atmosphere.

MELTING MISSILES

Geography complicates the F-35 plan. Tom Karako, a missile defense expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington noted that jets lying in wait for a North Korean missile would in theory need to respect North Korean airspace. But remaining at such a distance could leave the jets too far from the missile launch to be effective.

Theodore Postol, a missile defense expert at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology said even a modified air-to-air missile would be too slow to take out an intercontinental ballistic missile before it exited the atmosphere.

Air-to-air missiles like those made by Raytheon Co would only have an estimated 200 seconds to hit a ballistic missile before reaching an altitude where the air is too thin to maneuver. Given that it would take an F-35 approximately 50-60 seconds to detect, lock onto and launch an air-to-air missile, Postol said, the jet would need to be very close to the ballistic missile to take it out.

“If you are on top of it you can shoot it down,” the retired rocket scientist said. “But the odds are going to be very low that you can be on top of it.”

Even if a much faster and lighter version air-to-air missile was mounted in an F-35 jet, depending on the distance the weapon would have to fly so fast it would begin to melt, Postol added.

Despite the obstacles, the very fact that Pentagon was weighing such an option was significant, Karako said. “This shows a broader cultural shift.” Rather than some giant program, Karako said, the Pentagon is considering “a mission that is integrated into a broader mesh of tactical programs the Department of Defense can call on.”

Making it work will be a challenge, though.

“You would need to be very close to the launch site, within North Korea itself, said physicist Laura Grego, who studies missile defense at the Union of Concerned Scientists.

Grego said that even if the air-to-air missile traveled at five times the speed of sound, the F-35 would need to be within about 50 miles of the missile, “probably closer, to be realistic.”

That gives a huge advantage to the stealthy F-35 which could get much closer to a possible launch area than a non-stealth aircraft.

“This is one of the advantages of the F-35,” said retired U.S. general David Deptula. He added that the radar-evading jets “can get in much closer to an adversary launch area than … a non-stealthy aircraft.”

That suggests that by using the F-35 made by Lockheed Martin, the U.S. could secretly monitor for ballistic missile launches with jets flying inside North Korean airspace.

(Reporting by Mike Stone; Editing by Chris Sanders and Tomasz Janowski)

Source: OANN

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U.S., Central America launch plan to crack down on people smugglers

U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Nielsen takes part in a news conference in San Salvador
U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen takes part in a news conference after the IV meeting of security ministers of the Northern Triangle of Central America in San Salvador, El Salvador February 20, 2019. REUTERS/Jose Cabezas

February 20, 2019

By Nelson Renteria

SAN SALVADOR (Reuters) – The United States and three Central American nations on Wednesday announced an effort to combat trafficking of people to the U.S.-Mexico border, days after U.S. President Donald Trump declared a national emergency, citing large-scale unlawful immigration.

U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen Nielsen called immigration from the region a “humanitarian crisis” and said the regional security plan with El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras would secure the border and improve conditions in the countries.

The total number of people apprehended crossing illegally into the United States from the southwestern border is sharply down from a decade ago, but more families from Central America, citing poverty and violence, are making the journey, many seeking asylum.

Trump last week declared the situation at the border a “national emergency” to free up billions of dollars to fund a border wall, a decision that has been challenged in a lawsuit by 16 U.S. states and another by the American Civil Liberties Union.

In a statement, El Salvador’s government said the new initiative was aimed at attacking the finances, logistics and communication platforms of people-trafficking networks.

The three Central American countries will seek to harmonize their legislation for tackling such groups and other criminal gangs, the statement said. Along with the United States, the three countries will increase the use of intelligence-sharing technology.

It was not immediately clear if the United States would provide additional funding for the new effort.

Not all migrants heading north from Central America pay people smugglers to help them cross perilous, drug cartel-controlled territory in Mexico or to ensure their passage across the heavily patrolled U.S.-Mexican border.

Thousands of Central Americans have banded together in so-called caravans this year as a form of protection against the perils that typically stalk migrants headed to the U.S. border.

“Today I ask everyone to show leadership to stop the formation of the caravans that have brought crime, violence and instability to the region,” Nielsen said.

While some caravans have been encouraged by activists, others emerged spontaneously, as news spread through neighborhoods about groups forming to head to Mexico and onward to the United States.

Fueled by attention from Trump, the caravans have attracted widespread media coverage. The number of people traveling in them, however, is a fraction of the total number of migrants who head for the U.S. border.

(Reporting by Nelson Renteria; Writing by Delphine Schrank; Editing by Frank Jack Daniel and Peter Cooney)

Source: OANN

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A worker walks on the roof of a new home under construction in Carlsbad
FILE PHOTO: A worker walks on the roof of a new home under construction in Carlsbad, California September 22, 2014. REUTERS/Mike Blake

April 26, 2019

NEW YORK (Reuters) – The U.S. economy is growing at a 2.08% annualized pace in the second quarter based on upbeat data on durable goods orders and new home sales in March, the New York Federal Reserve’s Nowcast model showed on Friday.

This was faster than the 1.92% growth rate calculated by the N.Y. Fed model the week before.

(Reporting by Richard Leong; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)

Source: OANN

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Extraordinary European Union leaders summit in Brussels
FILE PHOTO: Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte arrives at an extraordinary European Union leaders summit to discuss Brexit, in Brussels, Belgium April 10, 2019. REUTERS/Yves Herman

April 26, 2019

(Reuters) – Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte said on Friday he had assured China’s Huawei Technologies that it would not face discrimination in the rollout of Italy’s 5G telecoms network.

Conte was speaking on a visit to China where he said he met Huawei’s chief executive, Ren Zhengfei. The prime minister’s comments were carried in Italy by TV broadcaster Sky Italia.

“I told him that we have adopted some precautions, some measures to protect our interests that demand very high levels of security … not only from Huawei but any company entering into the 5G arena,” he said.

Huawei, the world’s biggest producer of telecoms equipment, is under intense scrutiny after the United States told allies not to use its technology because of fears it could be a vehicle for Chinese spying. Huawei has categorically denied this.

(Writing by by Mark Bendeich; Editing by Angelo Amante)

Source: OANN

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U.S. President Trump departs for travel to Indianapolis from the White House in Washington
U.S. President Donald Trump talks to reporters as he departs for travel to Indianapolis, Indiana from the White House in Washington, U.S., April 26, 2019. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

April 26, 2019

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – President Donald Trump on Friday was expected to announce his intention to revoke the United States’ status as a signatory of the Arms Trade Treaty, which was signed in 2013 by then-President Barack Obama but never ratified by Congress, two U.S. officials said.

Trump was expected to announce the decision in a speech in Indianapolis, to the National Rifle Association, the officials said. The NRA, a powerful gun lobby group, has long been opposed to the treaty, which was negotiated at the United Nations.

(Reporting By Steve Holland; Editing by Bill Trott)

Source: OANN

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A remote controlled robot for the 'Isotopium: Chernobyl' game is seen at the game's location in Brovary
A remote controlled robot for the ‘Isotopium: Chernobyl’ game is seen at the game’s location in Brovary, Ukraine April 25, 2019. REUTERS/Valentyn Ogirenko

April 26, 2019

By Margaryta Chornokondratenko

KIEV (Reuters) – A Ukrainian computer game that brings to life a town abandoned after the Chernobyl nuclear disaster may not sound like everyone’s idea of fun but has attracted 60,000 people globally since its launch in October.

Players of “Isotopium: Chernobyl” drive tanks around the ghost town of Prypyat near Chernobyl, knocking out competitors as they search for an energy source called isotopium and collecting points every time they find some.

While the game takes its theme from the nuclear disaster at Chernobyl in northern Ukraine, which marked its 33rd anniversary on Friday, it was also inspired by the 2009 science fiction film “Avatar”.

Newcomers to the game think they have entered a virtual world when in fact they are controlling a real robot, equipped with a camera and computer, which makes its way around a model of the town rendered down to the tiniest detail.

“When playing our game, for the first 5-10 minutes many players don’t understand that it is not fictional,” said the game’s co-founder Sergey Beskrestnov. “They message us saying: ‘You have cool texture, you have good graphics, your designer is good, well done. You have a cool operating system.’

“People then reply: ‘It is not an operating system, it is real,’ and the player can’t believe it is real,” said Beskrestnov, speaking mid-game from Prypyat city square as he towers over surrounding five-storey buildings.

Kiev-born Beskrestnov was just 12 years old when on April 26, 1986 a botched test at the nuclear plant in the then Soviet Union sent clouds of smoldering nuclear material across large swathes of Europe, forced over 50,000 people, including Beskrestnov’s family, to evacuate and poisoned unknown numbers of workers involved in its clean-up.

Beskrestnov and his partner Alexey Fateyev used Google maps and hundreds of pictures from the Chernobyl area to recreate Prypyat landmarks, including residential buildings, a hotel, concert hall, amusement park and a stadium.

The game’s real-scale model occupies a 180 square meter (1,938 sq. ft) basement of a residential building in the Ukraine city of Brovary, just 150 km (93 miles) from the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone and 30 km east of Kiev.

Miniature radioactivity warning signs, graffiti on the walls of abandoned buildings and tables and chairs left scattered inside a small cafe all add to the creepy atmosphere of a once lively town.

“It’s a really neat concept …,” Shaun Prescott wrote in a review of the game published by PC Gamer magazine in January. “Controlling the tanks is kinda cumbersome, but they are tanks, after all.”

An attentive player will notice at least one inaccuracy – the real Chernobyl nuclear power plant is not located in town as it is in the game.

It costs $9 to immerse in the atmosphere of a post-apocalyptic town for an hour but only 20 people at a time can play simultaneously. Beskrestnov’s company, Remote Games, said 62,615 people around the world have registered to play the game, including around 15,000 in France and 10,000 in the United States.

A camera fixed on top of a moving tank broadcasts high quality signal in real time, allowing players from as far apart as Australia and Canada enjoy the game without facing any time delay in delivering video signals.

Its creators next ambition is to devise a game featuring the colonization of Mars in which 1,000 people will be able to simultaneously control robots on different missions involved in the operation.

“Many people advise us to contact Elon Musk directly because it resonates his dreams and ideas,” Beskrestnov jokes.    

(Editing by Susan Fenton)

Source: OANN

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FILE PHOTO: A Starbucks sign is show on one of the companies stores in Los Angeles, California
FILE PHOTO: A Starbucks sign is show on one of the companies stores in Los Angeles, California, U.S. October 19,2018. REUTERS/Mike Blake/File Photo

April 26, 2019

(Reuters) – Initial optimism over first-quarter results from Starbucks Corp was waning fast on Wall Street on Friday, as analysts questioned the longer-term prospects of its new sales push given subdued overall customer traffic numbers especially in China.

The company on Thursday beat brokerage estimates for quarterly same-store sales on the back of demand for its new Cloud Macchiato, Matcha tea and cold brews in the United States.

However, BTIG’s Peter Saleh was one of a number of sector analysts who said while customers forking out for higher-priced new drinks had helped drive growth in same-store sales, “anemic” traffic at cafes remained a concern.

He and others pointed to a 1 percent decline in footfall at cafes in the Chinese market, viewed as crucial to the chain’s growth for the foreseeable future.

More broadly, transaction numbers, the substitute analysts use for customer traffic, were unchanged in all three of the company’s global regions.

Shares in the company, which hit a record high after the results on Thursday, fell 1 percent in morning trade.

“We remain cautious given near-term headwinds surrounding China, including cannibalization, increasing competition (and) a slowing economy,” Wedbush analyst Nick Setyan said.

Starbucks has also poured money into beefing up its delivery network in China as it battles with local startup Luckin Coffee, whose speedy growth led it to file for an IPO in the United States earlier this week.

New menu items and partnerships with delivery services, the heart of the company’s strategy to win back customers lost to artisanal coffee shops and cheaper fast-food rivals, did help Starbucks’ sales in its home market.

However, analysts said growth in China may continue to be subdued.

Wells Fargo analyst Bonnie Herzog said she expects store expansion in China to take priority over comparable sales growth.

She downgraded her rating on Starbucks’ to “market perform” from “outperform”, arguing that the company facing tough sales comparisons later on in 2019 from last year and the current rich valuation of shares meant the stock had limited room to rise.

“Investors will be hesitant to invest new money in a stock with a topline that, while still strong, is unlikely to meaningfully accelerate,” Herzog said.

Still, the company’s solid same-store growth in the United States, improving profit margins and a lower tax rate for the rest of the year led at least 6 Wall Street brokerages to raise their price targets on the stock to as high as $81.

11 of 29 brokerages rate Starbucks “buy” or higher, 17 “hold” and 1 “sell” or lower. Their median price target is $75.

(Reporting by Uday Sampath in Bengaluru)

Source: OANN

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