Upcoming shows
Real News

NOW ON AIR
Now On Air

Real News with David Knight

9:00 am 12:00 pm



Maga First News

Upcoming Shows

Join The MAGA Network on Discord

0 0

3 Things That Trump Just Did That Are Absolutely Confounding The Pundits

With President Trump, you should always expect the unexpected. 

Just when you think that you have Trump all figured out, he will inevitably do something that completely surprises you, and this week there are three items in the news that are perfect examples of this.  Each of these three items is confusing the experts, because in each case Trump is moving in a new direction that seems counter to what he had done previously.

#1 President Trump has just launched a global campaign to legalize homosexuality in every nation on Earth.

Many are stunned that Trump has put the full power of the U.S. government behind an all-out effort to legalize homosexuality worldwide.  According to NBC News, this global campaign will be spearheaded by U.S. Ambassador Richard Grenell…

The Trump administration is launching a global campaign to end the criminalization of homosexuality in dozens of nations where it’s still illegal to be gay, U.S. officials tell NBC News, a bid aimed in part at denouncing Iran over its human rights record.

U.S. Ambassador to Germany Richard Grenell, the highest-profile openly gay person in the Trump administration, is leading the effort, which kicks off Tuesday evening in Berlin. The U.S. embassy is flying in LGBT activists from across Europe for a strategy dinner to plan to push for decriminalization in places that still outlaw homosexuality — mostly concentrated in the Middle East, Africa and the Caribbean.

And this could be just the beginning of big things for Grenell, because he is reportedly one of the top choices to become the next U.S. ambassador to the United Nations

Grenell, known for his hawkish views on national security, is also currently under consideration to be Trump’s ambassador to the U.N., three U.S. officials tell NBC News, after Trump’s previous pick for the job, Heather Nauert, withdrew from consideration over the weekend. Grenell once served as spokesman for the U.S. ambassador to the U.N. when that role was inhabited by John Bolton, who is now Trump’s national security adviser.

Prior to this, most conservative Christians in America had assumed that Trump was on their side on these issues because of previous actions that he had taken

The Trump administration has been criticized by LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer) activists in the U.S. for barring transgender volunteers from serving in the U.S. military, and rescinding a policy from the previous administration encouraging special accommodation for transgender students in public schools.


Former chief ethics lawyer to George W. Bush Richard Painter says President Trump is “not well” and should be removed from office.

But now Trump has made a major shift, and it will be very interesting to see how conservative Christians respond to this news.

#2 It is being reported that President Trump was rushing to transfer “highly sensitive U.S. nuclear technology to Saudi Arabia”.

Previously, it had been assumed that President Trump was against the spread of nuclear technology among the radical Islamic regimes of the Middle East.

But now we are finding out that there apparently has been a major push “to build nuclear power plants in Saudi Arabia”.  The following comes from Zero Hedge

The House Oversight committee now chaired by Democrat Elijah Cummings issued an interim staff report after several whistleblowers came forward “to warn about efforts inside the White House to rush the transfer of highly sensitive U.S. nuclear technology to Saudi Arabia in potential violation of the Atomic Energy Act,” spearheaded by Jared Kushner, according to a press release by the House Oversight Committee.

The press release is in conjunction with the announcement of an investigation into the allegations. 

The plan, which reportedly involved former White House National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, Kushner and Trump fundraiser Thomas Barrack, would see the development of “dozens of nuclear power plants” in a “Middle East Marshall Plan” through IP3 – a private US company which has “assembled a consortium of US companies to build nuclear plants in Saudi Arabia.

#3 President Trump is accusing Cuba of having troops in Venezuela as he continues to pave the way for a potential war.

In 2016, many in the anti-war community voted for Trump because he promised to bring our troops home and he pledged that the U.S. would not be the police of the world.

But now in 2019 he is moving us dangerously close to a war with Venezuela.  For much more on how we got to this point, please see my previous article entitled “‘All Options Are Open’: Trump Threatens To Use The U.S. Military To Invade Venezuela”.

However, Trump is not just threatening Venezuela at this point.  Now he is accusing Cuba of having troops in the country, and he had some very strong words for them on Tuesday.  The following comes from Reuters

Cuba denied on Tuesday it has security forces in Venezuela and charged the statements were part of an orchestrated campaign of lies paving the way for military intervention in the South American country.

U.S. President Donald Trump and members of the administration have charged that Cuba’s security forces and military control Venezuela’s and that troops are also on the ground there.

If the U.S. invades Venezuela, could it be possible that we will end up in a war with Cuba at the same time?

Such a notion seemed impossible just a few short years ago, but our relations with Cuba are the diplomatic equivalent of a dumpster fire in 2019.

And let us not forget that Russia also has troops in Venezuela.  An invasion of Venezuela could definitely spark a much wider war, and that is something that nobody should want to see.

We live in very troubled times, and I have a feeling that they are about to become much more troubled.  Our world is beginning to spiral out of control, and the decisions that Trump makes in the coming months will have monumental consequences for all of us.

Source: InfoWars

0 0

German mobile challenger Drillisch would sacrifice dividend for 5G bid

United Internet CEO Dommermuth attends a news conference to present a joint initiative for encrypted email with Deutsche Telekom in Berlin
FILE PHOTO: United Internet CEO Ralf Dommermuth attends a news conference to present a joint initiative for encrypted email with Deutsche Telekom in Berlin August 9, 2013. REUTERS/Thomas Peter

March 28, 2019

By Douglas Busvine

FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Internet billionaire Ralf Dommermuth said on Thursday he wanted to seize the chance to become Germany’s fourth mobile network operator, but was prepared to walk away if the cost turns out to be prohibitive.

The 55-year-old tycoon who owns 40 percent of United Internet is, through its 1&1 Drillisch unit, taking on the three existing operators in a 5G spectrum auction where bids so far have topped 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion).

The prospect that Drillisch could abandon its profitable existence as an asset-light virtual mobile operator has spooked some investors, sending shares in both companies down by more than a third over the past 12 months.

A revenue and profits outlook short of market expectations, as well as guidance that Drillisch would slash its dividend if it prevails in the 5G auction, sent its shares down by as much as 14.5 percent to their lowest since July 2016 on Thursday.

Dommermuth, in an interview, said he had his eye on the long-term returns from building and owning a network rather than renting – as Drillisch does now. Axing its dividend would ensure that it has the money to back that ambition, he said.

“There’s a difference between being a tenant and an owner,” he told Reuters.

“If I’m a tenant, then I pay rent every month. If I’m an owner, then I must invest. If I invest, I can borrow but I also need to put in my own money.”

Drillisch would propose a dividend of 5 euro cents should it buy 5G spectrum. If it fails to do so, it would pay out 1.80 euros, up 20 cents on last year. United Internet, which owns 73 percent of Drillisch, would make a similar binary proposal.

Axing the Drillisch dividend would save 310 million euros, analysts at Citi said in a note that described the move as a reset that may clear the deck but not the uncertainty.

Drillisch earlier forecast that revenues would rise by 4 percent this year, while earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortization would gain by 10 percent – short of market expectations.

AUCTION POKER

Drillisch is vying with Deutsche Telekom, Vodafone and Telefonica Deutschland in the 5G auction, proceeds of which analysts expect to reach 3 billion euros or more.

Deutsche Telekom CEO Tim Hoettges warned on Thursday that auction costs could spiral because, in his view, the network regulator had not made enough spectrum available.

“We don’t know how the frequency auction will end. That’s why we are saying we only want to pay a statutory minimum dividend, if we are able to acquire spectrum and build up an own network,” said Dommermuth.

Drillisch has lined up 2.8 billion euros in bank financing to support its 5G ambitions.

Dommermuth also has a fallback option in the form of guaranteed access to 30 percent of Telefonica’s network capacity – a remedy required by European Union regulators to approve the Spanish-owned operator’s 2014 takeover of E-Plus.

This could be extended for up to 10 years and would cover national roaming under 5G, said Dommermuth.

“We will only bid if it makes sense for us,” he said. “We aren’t under pressure to do anything.”

(Reporting by Douglas Busvine; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)

Source: OANN

0 0

Biden to take the plunge on Wednesday

**Want FOX News Halftime Report in your inbox every day? Sign up here.**

On the roster: Biden to take the plunge on Wednesday - Voter intensity through the roof - Mueller report spares Trump, but leaves a mark - Committed to life

BIDEN TO TAKE THE PLUNGE ON WEDNESDAY
AP: “Former Vice President Joe Biden is expected to announce he’s running for president next week. That's according to three people with knowledge of Biden's plans. Biden, a native of Scranton, will enter the race as a Democratic front-runner, although the 76-year-old faces questions about his age and whether his more moderate record fits with a party that has become more liberal. The announcement is expected as early as Wednesday and would cap months of deliberation over his political future.”

Biden supporters prep for his announcement - WHYY: “Some of Philadelphia’s most prominent Democrats, including former Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell, former Mayor Michael Nutter, and Comcast Senior Executive Vice President David L. Cohen are planning a fundraiser for former Vice President Joe Biden’s presidential bid ‘within a day or two of his formal announcement.’ Cohen sent an email to potential contributors Wednesday soliciting donations of $2,800, the maximum federal primary contribution for the event. … Cohen said a group wants to ‘make a big Philadelphia statement’ if Biden does announce, and says he’s pulled together a ‘Philadelphia finance leadership team’ including Rendell, Nutter, former U.S. Rep. and Philadelphia Democratic City Committee Chairman Bob Brady, former state Sen. Connie Williams, developer Ron Rubin, Independence Blue Cross CEO Dan Hilferty, and attorneys Steve Cozen, Charisse Lillie, and Ken Jarin, ‘with others to follow.’”

Cultivates his union roots - Politico: “Joe Biden said on Thursday that it was time to ‘take back’ the country and treat the middle class with respect, as the former vice president warms up for a likely 2020 presidential run. ‘I’m getting so sick and tired of the way everybody’s being treated,’ Biden told a crowd of striking union workers here. ‘We will take back this country. … I mean it. Don’t give up. Keep it going.’ Biden made the remarks at a union rally in Boston’s Dorchester neighborhood, where some of the 31,000 union workers for the New England-based Stop & Shop supermarket chain walked off the job last week after contract negotiations fell apart. He laid out a vision for ‘decent health care,’ a ‘fair wage’ and retirement during his 10-minute speech in the rain. The appearance was Biden’s latest trip to fire up pro-union Democrats.”

VOTER INTENSITY THROUGH THE ROOF
Fox News: “More than three-quarters of voters are already interested in the 2020 presidential election, including over half, 52 percent, who are ‘extremely’ interested, according to the latest Fox News Poll. That matches interest levels typically seen only in the last weeks before Election Day. The enthusiasm is on both sides. Fifty-seven percent of voters who supported Hillary Clinton in 2016 are ‘extremely’ interested in the upcoming election, as are 57 percent of Donald Trump voters, and two-thirds of self-identified ‘very conservatives’ (67 percent) and ‘very liberals’ (65 percent). Democratic primary voters are upbeat about many of their options. Nearly 8 in 10 would be satisfied with Joe Biden (78 percent) or Bernie Sanders (75 percent) winning the nomination, while 6 in 10 would be happy with Kamala Harris or Elizabeth Warren (each 61 percent). … Still, there is room for opinions to change for these candidates, as at least 3 in 10 primary voters don’t know enough about each to have an opinion.”

Reparations for descendants of slaves emerges as litmus test - Elle: “With the 2020 presidential election entering full swing, one topic is emerging as a new litmus test for candidates: whether they support reparations, or the concept of providing restitution to descendants of American slaves, partially as a way to account for the current wealth gaps that exist as a direct result of slavery and systemic discrimination. … While the subject has not been popular among candidates in the past (both Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton refrained from endorsing reparations), it's become a common question asked of the 2020 prospects. And many (including Kamala Harris, John Hickenlooper, Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, Kirsten Gillibrand, Tulsi Gabbard, and Beto O'Rourke) have voiced their support for a recent House bill from Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee that would form a commission to ‘study the impact of slavery and continuing discrimination against African-Americans, resulting directly and indirectly from slavery to segregation to the desegregation process and the present day…’”

Dems divided over ethics of fundraising - The Atlantic: “The 2020 race for the White House will undoubtedly be a battle both of ideology and personality. But it is also shaping up as a clash of two opposing forces: the ever-expanding, $1 billion industry that is a modern presidential campaign, and the Democratic Party’s move away from the top-down approach to fundraising that has fueled American politics for decades. So far, the progressive push toward campaign-finance purity is winning, and that’s worrying Democrats who believe the party literally can’t afford to leave money on the table if it wants to defeat President Donald Trump next year. The three most prolific fundraisers in the sprawling Democratic presidential primary field—Senators Bernie Sanders and Kamala Harris and former Representative Beto O’Rourke—hauled in just under $40 million total in the first quarter of 2019. That was enough to easily surpass the $30 million that the Trump campaign added to its coffers.”

Warren builds big staff - WGBH: “Elizabeth Warren has been on a hiring spree. In the three months since launching her presidential campaign fresh with the new year, the Massachusetts senator has put 160 people onto her payroll — nearly two a day through the end of March. That puts her well ahead of her rivals in staffing. It's an advantage that also brings challenges. Some personnel came over from her Senate and political operations, including campaign manager Roger Lau, chief of staff Dan Geldon, senior advisor for planning Kaaren Hinck, communications director Kristen Orthman, and digital director Lauren Miller. Warren has added plenty of new faces as wel[l]. … But that’s just the top levels. What separates her from other presidential candidates in the crowded 2020 Democratic field are the dozens of organizers, researchers, designers, media professionals, and operations aides she’s already put on staff.”

THE RULEBOOK: GOOD FRUITS
“I believe it may be laid down as a general rule that their confidence in and obedience to a government will commonly be proportioned to the goodness or badness of its administration.” –  Alexander Hamilton, Federalist No. 27

TIME OUT: SOME BEEF WITH FAKE BEEF
Eater: “It happened slowly, and then all at once. First came White Castle’s Impossible slider, which Eater NY’s Ryan Sutton hailed as ‘one of America’s best fast-food burgers’ in 2018. That slider just happened to be meatless, containing an Impossible Foods-branded patty made from soy protein, potato protein, coconut oil, sunflower oil, and heme, the ingredient that gives the burger the taste, aroma, and ‘bleed’ of a juicy beef patty. Then, the floodgates opened: In January, Carl’s Jr. became the largest American fast-food chain to offer plant-based patties made by Beyond Meat in 1,100 locations nationwide; just a few months later, Burger King, Del Taco, and the fast-casual chain Qdoba have followed suit with fake-meat offerings of their own, from Whoppers to tacos to burrito bowls. But conspicuously missing from the growing list of fast-food chains offering plant-based ‘meats’ produced by brands like Impossible Foods and Beyond Meat is McDonald’s, the biggest quick-service chain in the U.S.”

Flag on the play? - Email us at HALFTIMEREPORT@FOXNEWS.COM with your tips, comments or questions.

SCOREBOARD
Trump job performance 
Average approval: 42.8 percent
Average disapproval: 52 percent
Net Score: -9.2 points
Change from one week ago: down 0.4 points 
[Average includes: Fox News: 45% approve - 51% disapprove; Monmouth University: 40% approve - 54% disapprove; Gallup: 45% approve - 51% disapprove; GU Politics/Battleground: 43% approve - 52% disapprove; IBD: 41% approve - 52% disapprove.]

MUELLER REPORT SPARES TRUMP, BUT LEAVES A MARK
NYT: “Although the resulting two-year investigation ended without charges against Mr. Trump, [Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s] report painted a damning portrait of a White House dominated by a president desperate to thwart the inquiry only to be restrained by aides equally desperate to thwart his orders. The White House that emerges from more than 400 pages of Mr. Mueller’s report is a hotbed of conflict infused by a culture of dishonesty — defined by a president who lies to the public and his own staff, then tries to get his aides to lie for him. Mr. Trump repeatedly threatened to fire lieutenants who did not carry out his wishes while they repeatedly threatened to resign rather than cross lines of propriety or law.”

Sanders takes heat for White House ‘culture of lying’ - Fox News: "‘Good Morning America’ host George Stephanopoulos grilled press secretary Sarah Sanders Friday on the allegations that Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia report exposed a culture of lying at the White House. Stephanopoulos showed a clip from a press conference when Sanders told reporters that ‘countless members of the FBI’ had lost confidence in FBI Director James Comey, which led to his firing.”

Dems vow to ‘hold Trump accountable’ - ABC News: “Within minutes of the release of special counsel Robert Mueller's redacted report, House Judiciary Chairman Jerry Nadler announced he would subpoena the Justice Department for a full, unredacted version even as Republicans celebrated the findings of the special counsel and urged Democrats to ‘move on’ from the Russia investigation. ‘We clearly can't believe what Attorney General Barr tells us,’ Nadler, D-N.Y., told reporters at a news conference in New York City Thursday afternoon. ‘The special counsel made clear that he did not exonerate the president and the responsibility now falls to Congress to hold the president accountable for his actions.’ When asked if Congress holding President Donald Trump ‘accountable’ means impeachment, Nadler said ‘that is one possibility’ as he believes the report ‘was probably written with the intent of providing Congress a road map,’ but he added ‘it’s too early to reach those conclusions.’”

But Republicans say ‘game over’ - Politico: “Republicans have one message following the conclusion of Robert Mueller’s probe: Move on. With no criminal charges against the president, many GOP lawmakers on Thursday gleefully watched Attorney General William Barr repeat their oft-repeated lines of ‘no collusion’ to a national audience. Even before the formal release of Mueller’s 400-page report — which contained damaging information about President Donald Trump — congressional Republicans celebrated the end to a nearly two-year investigation that has hung like a dark cloud over Trump’s presidency. And they’re ready to turn it into the first day of their 2020 election. A picture tweeted out by Trump, set to a ‘Game of Thrones’ style backdrop, summed it up: ‘Game over.’”

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING
Chad Pergram: We’ve only just begun - Fox News

Kathryn Cramer Brownell: ‘The key to President Trump’s fate isn’t the Mueller report. It’s the hearings to come’ - WaPo

David French: ‘The Mueller report should shock our conscience’ - National Review

Jonathan Swan: ‘The other Don: McGahn is one of the Mueller report's biggest stars’ - Axios

Chicago Tribune: ‘What you thought of Trump before is likely your opinion now’ - ChiTrib

David Brooks: ‘What the Mueller report says about our world’ - NYT

AUDIBLE: REPLACE CARTRIDGE
“Today is a good day to sell toner for printers” – Dana Perino tweeted Thursday morning before the release of the redacted Mueller report.

ANY GIVEN SUNDAY
This weekend Mr. Sunday will sit down with Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) and President Trump’s attorney, Rudy Giuliani. Watch “Fox News Sunday with Chris Wallace.” Check local listings for broadcast times in your area.

#mediabuzz - Host Howard Kurtz has the latest take on the week’s media coverage. Watch #mediabuzz Sundays at 11 a.m. ET.

Share your color commentary: Email us at HALFTIMEREPORT@FOXNEWS.COM and please make sure to include your name and hometown.

COMMITTED TO LIFE
KATU: “A World War II veteran and former pastor celebrated his 98th birthday on Wednesday with a community of friends he found while working out regularly at a gym in Gladstone. Even at 98 years old, Fred Lawrence hits the gym three days a week. ‘It makes me feel good, like I’m strengthening what’s here,’ the retired Marine said. Fred is a WWII veteran, who survived three tours of duty and went on to be a pastor. ‘I’m so grateful to be alive, in this day, that I was committed to live. The good Lord is good, I just feel like he was with me. I’m so grateful,’ Fred tells KATU.”

AND NOW, A WORD FROM CHARLES…
“History is tragic, not redemptive. Our holiday from history ended in fire, giving birth to a post-9/11 decade of turbulence and disorientation as we were faced with the unexpected resurgence of radical eschatological evil.” – Charles Krauthammer (1950-2018) writing in the Washington Post on Dec. 18, 2009.

Chris Stirewalt is the politics editor for Fox News. Liz Friden contributed to this report. Want FOX News Halftime Report in your inbox every day? Sign up here.

Source: Fox News Politics

0 0

EU, Rome agree draft deal to soften bail-in rules on Italy banks: source

FILE PHOTO: Duomo's cathedral and Porta Nuova's financial district are seen in Milan
FILE PHOTO: Duomo's cathedral and Porta Nuova's financial district are seen in Milan, Italy, May 16, 2018. REUTERS/Stefano Rellandini/File Photo

April 5, 2019

By Francesco Guarascio

BUCHAREST (Reuters) – The Italian government and the European Commission have reached a provisional agreement to reimburse some investors who bought shares in failed banks, an Italian official said, in an unprecedented move that would soften EU rules on bank rescues.

The bail-in rules devised after the last decade’s financial crisis were designed to make any given bank and its creditors – instead of taxpayers – financially responsible if it went bust, with shareholders first in line to pay up.

Since the regulations came into force in 2016, shareholders have been all but wiped out in all bank collapses, including Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena and two smaller north-eastern banks that Italian authorities intervened to save in 2017.

Losses have also been inflicted on bondholders in some cases, while depositors have always been spared.

But under the new provisional deal between Brussels and Rome, bondholders and shareholders of failed Italian banks could claim their money back, the official from the Italian finance ministry said.

“The Commission is in constructive contact with Italy on the proposed measures,” the EU commissioner for financial services Valdis Dombrovskis said, declining to comment further.

Under the agreement, shareholders with annual incomes below 35,000 euros ($39,280) and property worth less than 100,000 euros would be automatically compensated for their losses in past bank rescues, the official said.

The deal would notably benefit Italian savers forced to buy bank shares in exchange for mortgages in what appears to have been fraudulent transactions, but its critics say it is unlikely that all those entitled to claim compensation under the wealth criterion were victims of swindling.

In a March ruling that has been interpreted as a softening of the bail-in rules, EU judges overturned a decision the European Commission took in 2014 to block the rescue of Tercas, a small Italian bank, with money from the country’s depositor fund.

While Brussels could appeal that ruling, the deal with Italy would further weaken the legal framework.

The agreement would need to be approved by the two parties in Italy’s euroskeptic government, which is campaigning for EU elections in May.

The anti-establishment 5-Star Movement wants even softer terms to compensate those who were allegedly missold bank shares and bonds, an Italian official said. It and the co-ruling far-right League pressed for generous compensation for bank creditors before last year’s national elections in Italy.

(Reporting by Francesco Guarascio; additional reporting by Valentina Za in Milan; editing by John Stonestreet)

Source: OANN

0 0

U.N. head wants democratic transition in Algeria

FILE PHOTO: Police officers attempt to disperse demonstrators trying to force their way to the presidential palace during a protest calling on President Abdelaziz Bouteflika to quit, in Algiers
FILE PHOTO: Police officers attempt to disperse demonstrators trying to force their way to the presidential palace during a protest calling on President Abdelaziz Bouteflika to quit, in Algiers, Algeria March 22, 2019. REUTERS/Zohra Bensemra

March 31, 2019

ALGIERS (Reuters) – U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Sunday that he welcomed efforts towards a peaceful and democratic transition in Algeria, where weeks of protests have pushed for President Abdelaziz Bouteflika to end his 20-year rule.

Addressing an Arab League summit in Tunis, Guterres said any steps should be made in a way “that addresses the concerns of the Algerian people in a timely way”.

On Saturday, the army chief of staff, Lieutenant General Ahmed Gaed Salah, renewed a call for the Constitutional Council to rule whether the ailing 82-year-old Bouteflika is fit to rule, a move provided for under article 102 of the charter.

But his attempt to break the political impasse has failed to placate demonstrators, who reject military intervention in civilian matters and want to dismantle the entire ruling elite, which includes veterans of the war of independence against France, army officers, the ruling party and business tycoons.

Several close allies, including some members of the ruling FLN and union leaders, have abandoned Bouteflika, who has rarely appeared in public since suffering a stroke in 2013.

Leading Algerian businessman Ali Haddad, who was part of President Abdelaziz Bouteflika’s inner circle, has been arrested at the Tunisian border, a close associate said on Sunday.

“Yes, Haddad has been arrested,” his associate told Reuters on condition of anonymity, without elaborating. Several Algerian television stations broadcast news on the detention of Haddad, a media magnate who helped to fund Bouteflika’s election campaigns over the years.

Bouteflika’s announcement that he would not seek a fifth term but that he would not quit immediately has fuelled anger in the North African country, an oil and gas producer.

(Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky)

Source: OANN

0 0

Dollar licks wounds after soft data fans bets on dovish Fed

Illustration photo of a U.S. Dollar note
A U.S. Dollar note is seen in this June 22, 2017 illustration photo. REUTERS/Thomas White/Illustration

March 18, 2019

By Hideyuki Sano

TOKYO (Reuters) – The dollar licked its wounds on Monday after soft U.S. data increased bets the Federal Reserve will cut rates later this year while the pound hovered near nine-months high on hopes for a delay in Britain’s exit from the European Union.

The dollar’s index against a basket of six major currencies stood at 96.564, having shed 0.81 percent last week, the biggest loss since late August.

Weaker-than-forecast U.S. economic data on Friday cemented expectations the Fed could strike a dovish stance this week, sending U.S. bond yields down to 10-week lows.

U.S. manufacturing output fell 0.4 percent in February, weakening for a second straight month, while factory activity in New York state was softer than expected this month with an index reading of 3.7.

The 10-year Treasuries yield fell to as low as 2.580 percent, its lowest since Jan. 4, while Fed funds futures priced in about 40 percent chance of a rate cut this year, compared to almost zero percent seen earlier this month.

“The 10-year yield closed below 2.6 percent, for the second time this year after closing below that level only on one day at the beginning of year,” said Chotarto Morita, chief strategist at SMBC Nikko Securities.

“If it stays below that level sustainably, it will be the first time since January 2018, when yields started rising on expectations of accelerating growth and inflation following tax cuts. Yields are slipping back as U.S. economic sentiment is cooling down,” he said.

Against this background, many investors expect the Fed to suggest rates will be on hold in the near future and to unveil a plan to end its balance sheet runoff later this year in its meeting ending on Wednesday.

“The focus is on how dovish the Fed will be. I got the impression that markets have gone a bit too far in expecting rate cuts. There’s a risk such views will be rolled back if the Fed’s dot plots show the board members still expect a rate hike this year,” said Ayako Sera, market economist at Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank.

As the dollar loses steam, other major currencies rose by default. The euro traded at $1.1328, flat in early Monday trade having gained 0.86 percent, the biggest weekly gain since late September.

The dollar fetched 111.50 yen, slipping from Friday’s nine-day high of 111.90.

The British pound stood not far from last week’s nine-month high of $1.3380, supported by relief that a no-deal Brexit will likely be averted. It last stood at $1.3292.

It is not clear if British Prime Minister Theresa May can secure a support for her Brexit deal in the parliament, which has twice rejected her offer by a wide margin.

May has only three days to win approval for her deal to leave the European Union if she wants to go to a summit with the bloc’s leaders on Thursday.

May is warning hard-line Brexiteers that unless they approved her Brexit divorce deal, Britain’s exit from the European Union could face a long delay and could involve taking part in European parliament elections.

(Editing by Sam Holmes)

Source: OANN

0 0

India’s SpiceJet to give hiring preference to employees of Jet Airways: Chairman

Ajay Singh, Chairman of Indian low-cost carrier SpiceJet, speaks with the media before the landing of an amphibious seaplane from Japan's Setouchi Holdings in the Arabian Sea as part of a demonstration by SpiceJet in Mumbai
FILE PHOTO: Ajay Singh, Chairman of Indian low-cost carrier SpiceJet, speaks with the media in Mumbai, India, December 9, 2017. REUTERS/Shailesh Andrade

April 19, 2019

(Reuters) – India’s SpiceJet Ltd said on Friday it will prioritize hiring employees of Jet Airways Ltd who are losing their jobs after the crisis-hit Indian airline halted all flight operations indefinitely this week.

“We have already provided jobs to more than 100 pilots, more than 200 cabin crew and more than 200 technical and airport staff,” said Ajay Singh, chairman and managing director of SpiceJet. “We will do more.”

Hundreds of Jet Airways employees protested in Delhi and Mumbai on Thursday to push its management for answers about their future after the airline shut down all flight operations on Wednesday having failed to secure new funding from its lenders.

Jet Airways has lost many employees as the crisis unfolded. About 400 pilots have moved to other airlines, leaving Jet with about 1,300 pilots, a senior Jet pilot told Reuters. About 40 engineers have also left, a senior engineer said.

Lenders, led by State Bank Of India, say they are hopeful of a successful bidding process for Jet. The carrier is saddled with about $1.2 billion in debt.

Low cost carrier SpiceJet, which pledged to add 27 planes over the next two weeks to help to fill in the slots left vacant by Jet’s grounding, said that it is making all possible efforts to minimize passenger inconvenience. The government plans to form a committee to temporarily allocate takeoff and landing slots left vacant by the grounding of Jet’s flights, a senior official said on Thursday. Local airlines including InterGlobe Aviation Ltd and state-run Air India are likely to benefit.

Air India on Thursday offered special fares to passengers stranded in international routes due to Jet’s grounding.

(Reporting By Arnab Paul in Bengaluru and Tanvi Mehta in Mumbai; Editing by Martin Howell)

Source: OANN

NOW ON AIR
Now On Air

Real News with David Knight

9:00 am 12:00 pm



A Chinese woman adjusts a Chinese national flag next to U.S. national flags before a Strategic Dialogue expanded meeting, part of the U.S.-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue (S&ED) in Beijing
A Chinese woman adjusts a Chinese national flag next to U.S. national flags before a Strategic Dialogue expanded meeting, part of the U.S.-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue (S&ED) held at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, July 10, 2014. REUTERS/Ng Han Guan/Pool (CHINA – Tags: POLITICS BUSINESS)

April 26, 2019

By April Joyner

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Even as the lift from optimism over prospects for U.S.-China trade detente shows signs of wearing off for the wider U.S. stock market, upbeat sentiment around China’s economy could bolster shares of materials companies.

Shares of S&P 500 industrial and technology companies, which were buffeted by last year’s tit-for-tat tariffs as well as slowing global demand, have been very responsive to progress in U.S.-China trade relations and a strengthening Chinese economy. This year, those sectors have outpaced the ascent in the S&P 500, which reached a record closing high on Tuesday.

Materials stocks have not been as sensitive, however, even though they also stand to benefit as a stronger Chinese economy lifts global consumption and industrial output. As China has taken measures to stimulate its economy, its economic data have turned more upbeat. That in turn could aid global growth, which has flagged as a result of China’s cooldown.

“What we’re seeing is China spending more on stimulus: fiscal stimulus and monetary stimulus,” said Kristina Hooper, chief global market strategist at Invesco in New York. “That’s likely to be a positive for materials.”

The People’s Bank of China has cut banks’ reserve requirement ratio five times over the past year and is widely expected to ease policy further to spur lending and reduce borrowing costs. The stimulus appears to have boosted Chinese economic data, with factory activity growing in March for the first time in four months.

Yet so far in 2019, the S&P 500 materials index has underperformed the S&P 500 at large, rising just 11.9% compared with 16.7% for the benchmark index. Moreover, it is among the biggest decliners in the period since the S&P’s previous record closing level on Sept. 20. The materials index has fallen 7% over those seven months, versus a 5.2% gain for technology and a 3% loss for industrials. Only the energy index has dropped more over that period.

A trade agreement could serve as a catalyst for a bump in materials shares as a drag on China’s economy is lifted, some market strategists say. Some commodity prices, including those for copper and oil, have ascended this year as the prospects for the global economy have somewhat brightened.

“It all goes back to the global growth outlook,” said Andrea DiCenso, portfolio manager for alpha strategies at Loomis Sayles in Boston. “With the front run in hard data, we’re beginning to see a pretty significant rally.”

Additionally, a trade agreement is expected to include commitments from China to purchase higher quantities of U.S. products such as soybeans, which could benefit companies that make agricultural chemicals, including DowDuPont Inc and CF Industries Holdings Inc.

CF Industries is scheduled to report quarterly results after the bell on Wednesday, and DowDuPont is scheduled to report before the market open on Thursday.

To be sure, even with a trade agreement, some materials companies could face price pressures. Shares of Freeport-McMoRan Inc fell 10.1% on Thursday after the copper mining company posted a lower-than-expected profit as its production slipped and its costs rose.

A rollback of tariffs on Chinese imports, particularly aluminum and steel, would likely prompt a fall in some commodity prices, which could hurt prospects for certain materials companies, said Gene Goldman, chief investment officer at Cetera Investment Management in El Segundo, California.

Even so, those drawbacks may be outweighed by the support for global demand fostered by a U.S.-China trade agreement.

“You could see a number of companies with lowered expectations bring them back up as they talk favorably about the impact that a trade deal would have on them,” said Tim Ghriskey, chief investment strategist at Inverness Counsel in New York.

(Reporting by April Joyner; additional reporting by Sinéad Carew; editing by Jonathan Oatis)

Source: OANN

Listen to https://magaoneradio.net and Listen Daily! Don't Forget to Share Click a Link Below!

Cyprus police on Friday widened their search for more victims of a suspected serial killer after the 35-year-old national guard captain told investigators he killed four more people that he previously admitted to on the small Mediterranean nation.

The count now has climbed to seven.

CYPRUS FEARS POSSIBLE SERIAL KILLER AFTER BODIES OF TWO WOMEN ARE DISCOVERED IN MINESHAFT

Authorities said they are focusing on a military firing range, a man-made lake and an abandoned mine about 20 miles west of the capital Nicosia.

Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades expressed “deep sorrow and concern” at the slayings and said he shared the public’s revulsion at “murders that appear to have selectively targeted foreign women who are in our country to work.”

“Such instincts are contrary to our culture’s traditions and values,” he said in a statement from China, where he was on an official visit. He urged calm so police can complete their investigation.

The scale of the alleged crimes by a Cypriot National Guard captain has horrified the small nation of over a million people, where multiple killings are rare. Five British law enforcement officials — including a coroner, a psychiatrist and investigators who specialize in multiple homicides — have been dispatched to help with the investigation.

On Thursday, the 35-year-old suspect, who can’t yet be named because he hasn’t been formally charged, told investigators that he had killed four more people than he had previously admitted to. Police said the suspect will appear in court Saturday for another custody hearing.

Cypriot investigators and police officers search a flooded mineshaft where two female bodies were found, outside of Mitsero village, near the capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Monday, April 22, 2019. Police on the east Mediterranean island nation, along with the help of the fire service, are conducting the search Monday in the wake of last week's discovery of the bodies in the abandoned mineshaft and the disappearance of the six-year-old daughter of one of the victims. 

Cypriot investigators and police officers search a flooded mineshaft where two female bodies were found, outside of Mitsero village, near the capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Monday, April 22, 2019. Police on the east Mediterranean island nation, along with the help of the fire service, are conducting the search Monday in the wake of last week’s discovery of the bodies in the abandoned mineshaft and the disappearance of the six-year-old daughter of one of the victims.  (AP)

The victims — all foreigners— include Marry Rose Tiburcio, 38, from the Philippines, whose bound body was found April 14 in a flooded mineshaft. She and her six-year-old daughter had been missing since May of last year.

The girl remains missing and authorities believe she was also slain by the suspect. Divers have entered the reservoir to search for her but have not found her body yet.

CYPRUS: GROUND NOT YET READY FOR PEACE TALKS RESUMPTION 

Authorities tracked down the officer last week by scouring Tiburcio’s online messages.

Six days later, police discovered another body April 20 in the same mineshaft, identified by Cypriot media as 28-year-old Arian Palanas Lozano, also from the Philippines.

A third alleged victim, also of Filipino descent, is 31-year-old Maricar Valtez Arquiola, who had been missing since December 2017. The suspect initially denied killing Arquiola but reversed himself after a court hearing Thursday, a police official said.

The suspect on Thursday also pointed investigators to a military firing range, where they discovered another unidentified body, which according to the suspect belongs to a woman of either Nepalese or Indian descent.

SERIAL KILLER WHO MAY HAVE COMMITTED 90 MURDERS IS LINKED TO YET ANOTHER KILLING 

Cypriot police are also looking for a Romanian mother and daughter. Cypriot media identified them as Livia Florentina Bunea, 36, and eight-year-old Elena Natalia Bunea, who are believed to have been missing since September 2016.

The man-made lake remains off-limits to a manned search because of high levels of toxic heavy metals from the copper pyrite mine, Fire Service Chief Marcos Trangolas said, adding that authorities will use other means to scour the lake.

Chief of Cypriot police Zacharias Chrysostomou, center, walks with Cypriot investigators and police officers at a flooded mineshaft where two female bodies were found, outside of Mitsero village, near the capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Monday, April 22, 2019.

Chief of Cypriot police Zacharias Chrysostomou, center, walks with Cypriot investigators and police officers at a flooded mineshaft where two female bodies were found, outside of Mitsero village, near the capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Monday, April 22, 2019. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)

Cyprus police have faced criticism from immigrant activists who said they didn’t act fast enough to investigate the whereabouts of some of the victims, many of them domestic workers. The island nation has 80 unsolved missing persons cases, going back to 1990.

CLICK HERE FOR THE FOX NEWS APP

Police chief Zacharias Chrysostomou said a three-member panel has been assigned to probe whether police followed all the correct protocol in recent missing persons cases.

According to the state-run Cyprus News Agency, an investigator had told the court at an earlier hearing that the suspect admitted to killing one woman he met online after having sex with her.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

Source: Fox News World

Listen to https://magaoneradio.net and Listen Daily! Don't Forget to Share Click a Link Below!
Venezuelan opposition lawmaker Gilber Caro is seen delivering a speech at a forum on human rights in Caracas
Venezuelan opposition lawmaker Gilber Caro is seen delivering a speech at a forum on human rights in Caracas, Venezuela June 12, 2018 in this still image taken from a video. REUTERS TV/ via REUTERS

April 26, 2019

CARACAS (Reuters) – Venezuela’s opposition-run National Assembly said on Friday that opposition lawmaker Gilber Caro was detained, which it described in a Twitter post as a violation of diplomatic immunity.

Caro had previously spend a year and a half in jail, before being freed in June 2018. The arrest comes as Juan Guaido, the National Assembly’s leader, mounts a challenge to President Nicolas Maduro, arguing his 2018 re-election was illegitimate. Guaido in January invoked the country’s constitution to assume an interim presidency.

(Reporting by Caracas newsroom; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)

Source: OANN

Listen to https://magaoneradio.net and Listen Daily! Don't Forget to Share Click a Link Below!
FILE PHOTO: Customers shop in a Sainsbury's store in Redhill
FILE PHOTO: Customers shop in a Sainsbury’s store in Redhill, Britain, March 27, 2018. REUTERS/Peter Nicholls/File Photo

April 26, 2019

By James Davey

LONDON (Reuters) – With Sainsbury’s dream of creating Britain’s biggest supermarket group in tatters, its chastened CEO Mike Coupe needs to reassure investors he has the plan to arrest a sales decline when he presents annual results next week.

Britain’s competition regulator blocked Sainsbury’s 7.3 billion pound ($9.4 billion) takeover of Walmart’s Asda on Thursday, saying the deal would increase prices. Sainsbury’s shares fell 5 percent and are down 22 percent over the last three months.

For Sainsbury’s fourth quarter to March 9 analysts are on average forecasting a 1.6 percent fall in like-for-like sales, which would follow 1.1 percent decline over the Christmas period.

Monthly industry data from researcher Kantar has also shown Sainsbury’s as the weakest performer of the big four grocers this year and this month it lost its status as Britain’s No. 2 supermarket group by market share to Asda.

While Sainsbury’s has struggled, market leader Tesco has gained momentum, this month reporting a 34 percent jump in full year profit.

Prohibition of the deal was a major blow to Coupe, its architect and Sainsbury’s boss since 2014.

Martin Scicluna became Sainsbury’s chairman last month and when bedded-in may decide that if the group needs a major shake-up it is best carried out by a new leader.

Much will depend on the attitude of 22 percent shareholder the Qatar Investment Authority, which has so far declined to comment, as well as Coupe’s own appetite to continue after 15 years at the group.

THE RIGHT STRATEGY?

Coupe said on Thursday he was confident Sainsbury’s was pursuing the right strategy.

That was a clear indication that Wednesday’s results statement will not include radical changes to the group’s plans, such as a big margin reset — sacrificing profit to drive sales.

However, sources connected to Sainsbury’s said Coupe would likely acknowledge that more needs to be done on prices, so the supermarket business can better compete with its big four rivals – Tesco, Asda and No. 4 Morrisons – as well as German-owned discounters Aldi and Lidl.

Coupe’s strategy is based on differentiating Sainsbury’s food offer, growing its general merchandise, clothing business and bank, while investing in convenience and online channels.

Some analysts believe major change is needed.

HSBC analyst David McCarthy reckons Sainsbury’s needs a margin reset, should allocate more space for core lines and needs to drive better store standards. He said Sainsbury’s might consider closing down space in some of its larger stores and reducing its non-food offer.

For the full 2018-19 year analysts are on average forecasting a pretax profit of 626 million pounds, up from 589 million pounds in 2017-18 – a second straight year of profit growth. A full year dividend of 10.5 pence per share is forecast versus 10.2 pence last time.

Bank and lawyer fees related to the proposed combination with Asda were 17 million pounds in the first half and have reportedly jumped to around 50 million pounds.

(Reporting by James Davey; Editing by Keith Weir)

Source: OANN

Listen to https://magaoneradio.net and Listen Daily! Don't Forget to Share Click a Link Below!

Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey rejected demands from a secular group to remove posts on social media where he sent Easter greetings and cited a Bible verse, offering to provide copies of the Constitution to his critics.

Ducey, who’s a practicing Catholic, has been bombarded with calls from Secular Communities for Arizona to remove the post, which included a cross, a Bible verse, and the phrase, “He is risen.”

ARIZONA’S GOP GOVERNOR WAGING WAR AGAINST OCCUPATIONAL LICENSING LAWS

The group argued the posts crossed a line into government sponsorship of religious messages and was unconstitutional.

The governor fired back at the group, saying in a tweet that he will never remove the posts or other religious ones.

“We won’t be removing this post. Ever. Nor will we be removing our posts for Christmas, Hanukkah, Rosh Hashanah, Palm Sunday, Passover or any other religious holiday,” he tweeted. “We support the First Amendment, and are happy to provide copies of the Constitution to anyone who hasn’t read it.”

Dianne Post, an attorney for the secular group, told the Arizona Republic “elected officials should not use their government position and government property to promote their religious views.”

LICENSE REQUIRED TO REPAIR DOORS? REGS SPARK HEATED DEBATE IN ARIZONA

She added the courts have repeatedly “struck down symbolism that unites government with religion,” adding that Ducey’s office must “represent and protect the rights of all residents of Arizona, including those who do not believe in a monotheistic God or any gods at all.”

Many congratulated Ducey for not backing down amid the pressure, though some Facebook users sided with the secular group and criticized the governor on his original post.

“Why do you use a government platform to bring up your personal religion?” asked one person. “Are there no citizens in your jurisdiction that believe differently from you?”

Another stipulated that the post was somewhat discriminatory. “Great sensitivity, Doug. That’s the last time this Jew votes for you,” one person wrote.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Ducey wished in a statement Arizonans last week a “blessed and joyful Easter and Passover weekend.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News Politics

Listen to https://magaoneradio.net and Listen Daily! Don't Forget to Share Click a Link Below!

Listen to https://magaoneradio.net and Listen Daily! Don't Forget to Share Click a Link Below!
Current track

Title

Artist