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

Autos lead rally in European shares on trade hopes, China data

FILE PHOTO: The German share price index DAX graph at the stock exchange in Frankfurt
FILE PHOTO: The German share price index DAX graph is pictured at the stock exchange in Frankfurt, Germany, March 28, 2019. REUTERS/Staff/File Photo

April 1, 2019

By Medha Singh and Agamoni Ghosh

(Reuters) – European shares were on course for their biggest daily gain in eight weeks on Monday, as a surprise recovery in China’s factory data and signs of progress in Sino-U.S. trade talks boosted investor sentiment on the first trading day of second quarter.

Following the best quarterly performance in four years, the pan-European index climbed 0.9 percent at 0922 GMT, with all major sectors higher.

While gains spread across all regional bourses, Germany’s trade-sensitive DAX outperformed with its 1.3 percent rise, helped by 3 percent jump in auto stocks which were set for their best daily surge since Jan. 4.

Peugeot SA rose about 3 percent while Fiat Chrysler Automobiles gained 1.6 percent on a report that the two companies are exploring a partnership to share investments to build cars in Europe.

European chip stocks were another bright spot after better-than-expected results from Apple-supplier Foxconn Industrial.

Shares in Dialog Semiconductor Plc, Infineon Technologies, Ams AG and Siltronic AG and STMicroelectronics N.V. rose between 3 percent and 5 percent.

The upbeat mood spilled over from Asian markets, after both official and private surveys showed factory activity in China unexpectedly grew for the first time in four months in March.

China’s economic data comes on the heels of fresh concerns over a slowing world economy that resurfaced last month after the U.S. Federal Reserve abruptly ended its plans for policy tightening this year and signals from the bond market of an imminent recession.

“The economic growth in China will strengthen from here and that is the strongest signal which is driving the markets today,” said Naeem Aslam, chief market analyst at TF Global Markets (UK) Ltd in London.

In contrast, markets seemed to shrug off a survey that found factories in the euro zone had their worst month in March for almost six years. Another survey showed Germany’s Markit’s Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) for manufacturing fell to an 80-month low reading of 44.1.

“The German number is nothing short of a disaster. We are talking of recession territory over here and this is a huge concern for the European Central Bank. But for the markets today, the focus is on China and the optimism around it,” Aslam said.

Adding to the buoyant mood, China said over the weekend that it would continue to suspend additional tariffs on U.S. vehicles and auto parts after April 1, the latest sign of optimism as the world’s two largest economies work out a deal to end their trade dispute.

Swiss logistics group Panalpina jumped 14 percent on bowing to an increased 4.6 billion Swiss francs ($4.6 billion) bid from Danish rival DSV, ending a more than two-month takeover battle designed to build scale in the consolidating transport sector.

EasyJet slipped 7 percent, among the biggest decliners on the STOXX, after the British low-cost airline warned that demand and pricing were suffering from Brexit jitters and a weaker economic outlook.

Ryanair Holdings also shed over 3 percent.

London’s FTSE 100 and the Dublin bourse, often seen as a barometer for Brexit sentiment, rose 0.7 percent each.

Britain’s exit from the European Union was in disarray after a third defeat of Prime Minister Theresa May’s divorce deal left her under pressure from rival factions to leave without a deal, go for an election or forge a much softer divorce.

Parliament will vote on different Brexit options on Monday and then May could try to bring her deal back to a vote in parliament one more time, possibly as early as Tuesday.

Goldman Sachs says the balance of risks around Brexit outcomes is tilted toward a softer, longer departure from the European Union, after a May’s withdrawal agreement was rejected for a third time.

(Reporting by Medha Singh and Agamoni Ghosh in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Graff and Jon Boyle)

Source: OANN

0 0

Browns RB Hunt suspended eight games

NFL: Kansas City Chiefs at Houston Texans
FILE PHOTO: Oct 8, 2017; Houston, TX, USA; Kansas City Chiefs running back Kareem Hunt (27) runs with the ball as Houston Texans inside linebacker Zach Cunningham (41) defends during the second quarter at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

March 15, 2019

Cleveland Browns running back Kareem Hunt was suspended for the first eight games of the 2018 season.

Hunt was on the commissioner’s exempt list since Nov. 30 during the NFL’s investigation into a physical altercation captured by an Ohio hotel surveillance system in which Hunt shoved to the ground and kicked a woman.

Hunt’s agent, Dan Saffron, said there will be no appeal in a released statement in response to the announcement of the discipline.

“PFS Agency stands behind our client, Kareem Hunt, in his decision to accept the suspension handed down by the NFL today,” Saffron said.

The NFL said in a statement Hunt’s ban is the result of two separate incidents.

“Kareem Hunt of the Cleveland Browns was notified today that he has been suspended without pay for the Browns’ first eight regular season games for violations of the NFL Personal Conduct Policy in connection with physical altercations at his residence in Cleveland last February and at a resort in Ohio last June. Hunt was placed on the Commissioner Exempt list on November 30 and was released by his former club, the Kansas City Chiefs, that same day. The findings followed a detailed investigation by the NFL, which included reviewing available law enforcement records, video and electronic communications, interviews with numerous witnesses, and multiple interviews with Hunt.

“Hunt has advised the league office that he accepts responsibility for his conduct and the discipline that has been imposed. He has committed to take advantage of available resources to help him grow personally and as a member of the Cleveland community, and to live up to his obligations as an NFL player. The eight-game suspension will take effect as of the final roster reduction on August 31. Hunt will be eligible to play in the Browns’ ninth regular season game.”

When the video surfaced, Hunt was released by the Chiefs. The Browns signed Hunt to a one-year contract in February after general manager John Dorsey — who drafted Hunt as GM of the Chiefs — and owner Jimmy Haslam reviewed the situation and discussed appropriate steps toward contrition with Hunt.

“We had done our research,” Dorsey said at the NFL Scouting Combine. “We thought at the appropriate time with all the information we did have, how truly remorseful he was and … knowing when he comes here there are no guarantees, he’s going to earn your respect with his actions. Right now, I feel very comfortable with the signing.

“Deep down, if you really sit down and engage with him, he has a really good heart. The act he did last year — it was egregious. We all know that. … He’s showing through his actions, not his words, how remorseful he is.”

Hunt is not permitted to be with the Browns during the suspension, but can participate in training camp and preseason games.

ESPN reported Hunt will forfeit $303,529 of his $645,000 base salary. He is scheduled to be a restricted free agent in March 2019.

“He’s got a lot of work to do,” Browns coach Freddie Kitchens said in Indianapolis, “between now and when that second chance comes. Right now, our job is to support Kareem and help him grow as a person.”

–Field Level Media

Source: OANN

0 0

IRS Analyst Charged With Leaking Cohen Docs to Avenatti

An IRS analyst has been charged with leaking Michael Cohen's banking information to attorney Michael Avenatti.

According to CNN, John C. Fry — an investigative analyst within the law enforcement unit at the IRS — passed along suspicious activity reports regarding Cohen's banking habits. Cohen, who previously worked as President Donald Trump's personal lawyer, has since pleaded guilty to bank and tax fraud.

Fry is charged with leaking the confidential documents to Avenatti, who has chased Trump and Cohen over hush payments made to his client and porn star Stormy Daniels. Prosecutors said Fry also confirmed the existence of the activity reports to a New Yorker reporter, likely Ronan Farrow.

Fry was released on $50,000 bail Thursday.

Prosecutors said Fry, who works in the San Francisco IRS office, downloaded five suspicious activity reports in May 2018 that flagged unusual activity on an account belonging to Cohen. He is reported to have called a number associated with Avenatti minutes after he accused the documents. He is alleged to have called Avenatti and Farrow days later as well.

Fry's case has been under seal for months and he has yet to enter a plea. CNN reported he could be indicted Feb. 28, with more charges being added.

Avenatti posted one of the documents on his Twitter account May 8, 2018. The following day, the Treasury Department opened an internal investigation as to how the information got out.

Source: NewsMax America

0 0

BOJ may ease further, say small but growing number of economists: Reuters poll

A security guard walks out from the Bank of Japan headquarters building as petals of cherry blossoms are seen on the ground in Tokyo
FILE PHOTO: A security guard walks out from the Bank of Japan headquarters building as petals of cherry blossoms are seen on the ground in Tokyo April 8, 2015. REUTERS/Yuya Shino

February 21, 2019

By Kaori Kaneko

TOKYO (Reuters) – The Bank of Japan’s next move will be to loosen its already super-easy monetary policy, a small but growing contingent of economists say, amid risks of a slowdown and skepticism inflation will hit the central bank’s target.

Most economists polled by Reuters — 29 of 38 — still expect the BOJ’s next step would be to scale back its massive stimulus program.

But nine analysts — up from five in last month’s poll — said the central bank would instead boost stimulus with steps such as buying even more assets to flood the financial system with cash and tweaking the wording in forward guidance.

U.S.-China trade friction and an upcoming sales tax hike in October are casting a pall over the economy.

“If the risk of a recession rises, the BOJ will likely ease further,” said Hiroshi Ugai, chief economist at JPMorgan Securities Japan, one of the nine.

Nearly all economists polled — 33 of 36 — said they disagreed with the BOJ’s insistence that inflation was maintaining momentum toward reaching 2 percent. The latest Reuters poll was taken Feb 7-20.

Last month, the central bank cut its inflation forecasts but maintained the status quo in its massive stimulus program as Governor Haruhiko Kuroda warned of growing economic risks from trade protectionism and faltering global demand.

Many economists who forecast the central bank will scale back stimulus said that will happen sometime in 2020 or later.

Shigeto Nagai, head of Japan economics at Oxford Economics, said the BOJ has already missed a chance to normalize policy, before the sales tax hike, due to rising global uncertainty.

“The BOJ will stick to the current yield curve target at least until they confirm the impact of consumption tax hike is limited as expected,” he said.

Among possible steps for normalization, the BOJ could expand its 10-year Japanese government bond yield fluctuation from a 0.2 percentage point band and raise its yield target from around zero percent, economists said.

The median in the poll projected the nationwide core consumer price index, which includes oil products but not fresh food costs, would rise 0.8 percent in both fiscal 2019, which starts in April, and fiscal 2020.

That’s lower than the BOJ, which sees core CPI rising to 1.1 percent in the coming fiscal year and 1.5 percent in fiscal 2020.

The BOJ will place emphasis on core CPI projections to include the effects from the planned sales tax hike when the bank releases its next outlook report in April, the Nikkei business daily reported earlier this month.

Previously the central bank focused on core CPI excluding the tax hike effects but policymakers think those will be offset by government measures such as free education, the report said.

Economists projected Japan’s economy will contract 2.5 percent in the October-December quarter due to the sales tax hike but eke out 0.7 percent growth in all of fiscal 2019.

For the following fiscal year, growth is expected to slow to 0.5 percent, the poll showed.

(Reporting by Kaori Kaneko, Polling by Khushboo Mittal; Editing by Malcolm Foster and Jonathan Cable)

Source: OANN

0 0

NBA notebook: Antetokounmpo misses second straight game

NBA: Milwaukee Bucks at Cleveland Cavaliers
Mar 20, 2019; Cleveland, OH, USA; Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) reacts on the bench in the fourth quarter against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

March 21, 2019

The Milwaukee Bucks played without All-Star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo for a second consecutive game Wednesday night as he continues to nurse a sprained right ankle.

Antetokounmpo, a candidate for MVP, did not play in the Bucks’ road game against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Wednesday. He also missed Tuesday’s victory over the Los Angeles Lakers, who were without their own superstar, LeBron James (sore left groin).

Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer said of Antetokounmpo before Wednesday’s game, “He’s making progress, he just can’t go tonight. It’s us hopefully being smart and being somewhat cautious, but it’s more than that. He can’t play. We’ll see how the next 24-48 hours go, and I’m hopeful he’ll be in a good place as we move forward.”

The NBA-best Bucks (53-19) fell 107-102 to the Cavaliers, who own the third-worst record in the league at 19-53. Milwaukee returns home Friday for a game against the Miami Heat.

–Bucks power forward Nikola Mirotic will miss two-to-four weeks with a “slight fracture” of his left thumb, Shams Charania of The Athletic reported.

The Bucks acquired Mirotic from the New Orleans Pelicans at the trade deadline to provide depth off the bench. The team confirmed the injury but did not update his status.

Since the trade, Mirotic has played in 14 games (three starts), averaging 11.6 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 22.9 minutes per game. Mirotic sustained the injury in the Bucks’ 115-101 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday. The injury likely will keep him out the rest of the regular season.

–The NBA Summer League will have an international flavor in 2019, as the Chinese and Croatian national teams will join all 30 NBA teams in participating in the league, which will be held July 5-15 in Las Vegas, the NBA announced.

Team China played in Las Vegas at the 2007 NBA Summer League, but Team Croatia is making its debut at the event, marking the first time the league will have two international teams.

Each of the 32 teams will play four preliminary games, with the top eight teams seeded into a tournament to determine the champion. Those that don’t make the championship bracket will play a consolation game.

–Field Level Media

Source: OANN

0 0

Macron's former security aide released from custody

A French court of appeal has ordered the release of French president Emmanuel Macron's former security aide Alexandre Benalla from custody.

Benalla and his associate Vincent Crase were jailed for a week after they contacted each other in violation of the conditions of their judicial supervision.

Benalla was fired last summer. Both men were handed preliminary charges after a video surfaced of Benalla beating a protester at a May Day demonstration. Crase was by Benallas's side at the protest.

Separately, online investigative media Mediapart revealed this month that Benalla and Crase were involved in sealing security deals worth 2.2 million euros to provide services to two Russian oligarchs close to the Kremlin. According to Mediapart, Benalla began negotiating one of the deals when he was still employed by the Elysee.

Source: Fox News World

0 0

GM says no cut in Chevy Bolt sticker price as U.S. tax credit for EVs drops

FILE PHOTO: The GM logo in Warren Michigan
FILE PHOTO: The GM logo is seen in Warren, Michigan, U.S. on October 26, 2015. REUTERS/Rebecca Cook/File Photo

March 28, 2019

By David Shepardson

(Reuters) – General Motors Co on Thursday said it has no plan to cut the sticker price on its electric Chevrolet Bolt sedan after a federal tax credit drops by half to $3,750 on Monday.

Last year, GM became the second automaker in the United States to hit the 200,000 cumulative electric vehicles sales figure, which triggers a phaseout of the $7,500 federal tax credit over 15 months.

GM has laid out an aggressive electric vehicle strategy, vowing to bring at least 20 EV models to market by 2023.

In January, Tesla Inc cut the prices of its EVs by $2,000 after its EV tax credit fell from $7,500 to $3,750 after it hit the 200,000 EV sales milestone.

Asked why GM is not cutting the price to account for the lower tax credit, spokesman Jim Cain said “it is easier to react to the market by working with dealers and your marketing team than it is to change sticker prices.”

Tesla aggressively urged buyers to take advantage of the full credit shortly before it expired. “Reminder to US buyers that the $7500 tax credit cuts in half in 5 days!” Chief Executive Elon Musk tweeted in December.

Last week, GM Chief Executive Mary Barra announced the company would invest $300 million in a suburban Detroit assembly plant, adding 400 jobs to build a new Chevrolet EV based on the Bolt platform. Barra said GM planned to boost EV marketing soon, but made no mention of the tax credit phaseout.

Michelle Krebs, an analyst at AutoTrader, calls government incentives a big factor in consumer purchase decisions. “Tax credits make a difference,” she said.

GM will offer new incentives next week for EVs as the current monthly incentives expire, the company said.

GM is currently offering an incentive on Bolt EVs of 14 percent of the suggested retail price, Cain said.

Cain said GM is “sensitive to affordability” of EVs for customers but declined to specify what future incentives GM will offer.

Both GM and Tesla have been lobbying Congress for more than a year to extend or expand the EV tax credit.

GM’s credit drops to $1,875 in October and will completely disappear by April 2020, while Tesla’s credit falls to $1,875 in July and expires at the end of the year.

GM has been exporting Bolt EVs to both South Korea and Canada, which has impacted U.S. sales

GM sold 18,000 Bolts in the United States last year, down nearly 23 percent over 2017. The No. 1 U.S. automaker ended production of its plug-in electric Chevrolet Volt in February.

(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Tom Brown)

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