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Death penalty prosecution planned for former police officer

Federal prosecutors are seeking the death penalty against a former suburban New York police officer charged in the kidnapping and killing of four men in 2016.

The decision, announced in court this week, marks the second capital prosecution announced by the Southern District of New York in the past six months and comes as federal prosecutors around the country are seeking the death penalty more frequently.

The former Briarcliff Manor police officer, Nicholas Tartaglione, is charged in what authorities described as the "gangland-style" killings of four men from Middletown, New York, who disappeared during a cocaine-related dispute at a bar in nearby Chester.

Prosecutors say their bodies were found buried on an Otisville property linked to Tartaglione. Authorities have said that one of the men appeared to be involved in a drug conspiracy but that some of the victims "were just in the wrong place at the wrong time."

Prosecutors are expected to outline their reasons for seeking capital punishment against Tartaglione in a court filing in the coming days. A spokesman for the U.S. attorney's office confirmed the decision, which had been several months in the making.

Tartaglione's defense attorney, Bruce Barket, said he was "extraordinarily disappointed" in the government's decision. The capital case, he said, could cost taxpayers "millions and millions of dollars" and is not appropriate, given the uncertainty of the evidence.

"In the best light for the government, it's unclear who did what to whom," Barket told The Associated Press, adding his client maintains his innocence. "You run the real possibility of executing somebody here for crimes that other people committed."

New York state no longer has the death penalty, but Tartaglione is eligible for the punishment because he was charged with the killings in federal court.

The U.S. Justice Department has sought the death penalty in more and more cases under President Donald Trump, an avid supporter of capital punishment, after a near moratorium on such prosecutions in President Barack Obama's last term.

In September, federal prosecutors in New York announced they would seek the death penalty against a man charged with using a truck to kill eight people on a New York City bike path.

Source: Fox News National

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In New Zealand, Prince William says extremism must be fought

Britain's Prince William has told survivors of the mosque attacks in New Zealand that people must unite to fight extremism in all its forms.

The Duke of Cambridge on Friday visited one of the two Christchurch mosques where 50 people were killed and 50 others wounded in a March 15 attack by a white supremacist.

Prince William spoke to about 100 people including Muslim leaders and Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern at the Al Noor mosque. He said the message after the attacks was clear: That hate would fail to divide people.

William is on a two-day trip to New Zealand. Earlier on Friday, he met with some of those recovering from gunshot wounds at Christchurch Hospital.

On Thursday, he met with police officers and medics who responded to the attacks.

Source: Fox News World

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Deja vu: No. 2 Michigan KOs Montana in first round

NCAA Basketball: NCAA Tournament-First Round-Montana vs Michigan
Mar 21, 2019; Des Moines, IA, United States; Michigan Wolverines guard Charles Matthews (1) reacts during the first half against the Montana Grizzlies in the first round of the 2019 NCAA Tournament at Wells Fargo Arena. Mandatory Credit: Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports

March 22, 2019

Senior guard Charles Matthews recorded 22 points and 10 rebounds to lead Michigan to a 74-55 victory over Montana on Thursday in West Region play of the NCAA Tournament at Des Moines, Iowa.

Freshman forward Ignas Brazdeikis added 14 points, and junior center Jon Teske had 11 points and nine rebounds for the second-seeded Wolverines (29-6). Sophomore guard Jordan Poole scored 10 points, and junior guard Zavier Simpson registered 10 assists and seven rebounds.

Michigan will meet 10th-seeded Florida on Saturday in the second round.

“We will need to play even better than we did today,” Wolverines coach John Beilein told TNT in a postgame interview of his team’s prospects against the Gators.

Junior guard Sayeed Pridgett scored 17 points for the 15th-seeded Grizzlies (26-9). Senior guard Ahmaad Rorie and sophomore guard Timmy Falls added 10 points apiece for Montana, which shot just 33.3 percent from the field and was 6 of 24 from behind the arc.

The Wolverines shot 49 percent from the field, including 5 of 17 from 3-point range.

The game was a rematch of last season’s first-round matchup when the Wolverines beat the Grizzlies 61-47.

Montana scored the first 10 points of last year’s meeting but was never in the contest this time around and trailed by as many as 17 points in the first half.

However, the Grizzlies kept fighting, and they scored the first five points of the second half to move within 34-26.

Michigan answered with 10 consecutive points — five from Matthews — to increase its lead to 18 with 16:11 remaining.

The Wolverines’ advantage reached 20 for the first time when Poole converted a three-point play to make it 57-37 with 8:29 left.

The lead reached 66-39 when sophomore forward Isaiah Livers drained a 3-pointer with 6:01 left, and Michigan cruised to the finish.

Matthews had 11 points and seven rebounds as the Wolverines led 34-21 at the break.

Michigan ran out to a quick 15-4 lead and increased it to 21-6 on Matthews’ basket with 8:26 remaining. A jumper by Matthews two-plus minutes later pushed the margin to 25-8.

Montana missed its first nine 3-point attempts until senior guard Donaven Dorsey buried one with 2:52 remaining in the half. The Grizzlies were 1 of 11 from long distance before intermission.

–Field Level Media

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Politico: Trump Inner Circle Not Safe From Other Probes

Even if members of President Donald Trump’s inner circle end up escaping charges stemming from special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation, they still won’t be in the clear, Politico is reporting.

As Mueller’s probe reportedly winds down, federal prosecutors in New York are looking into Trump’s 2016 campaign, businesses and inauguration. And dozens of hearing transcripts that could contain lies told under oath have been turned over to the Justice Department by Congress. In addition, sealed indictments sit in a federal courthouse in Washington -- raising the possibility some Trump associates may already have been charged and haven’t been informed yet, Politico noted.

“If anyone in Trump world is breathing easy right now, I’d say they are very foolish,” said Shanlon Wu, a defense lawyer who previously represented Trump’s former deputy campaign chairman, Rick Gates. “Even if Mueller’s report were to appear and didn’t implicate the president, all these other criminal investigations will continue.”

Politico noted Trump remains at high risk from the multiple investigations.

“Any one of us who had so many people investigating everything you’ve ever done, you know, is in jeopardy,” said Jon Sale, a former prosecutor from the Southern District of New York 

Politico noted 17 cases filed this year in the same federal court district where others in the Mueller probe were charged remain under seal. It is unknown whether any relate to the Mueller probe.

Multiple news sources have reported that Mueller is expected to submit his report to Attorney General William Barr very soon, although it is not anticipated this week.

Source: NewsMax Politics

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Cain’s possible nomination for Fed in peril as Republican opposition mounts

FILE PHOTO: Former presidential candidate Herman Cain arrives at a rally for U.S. Republican presidential candidate and former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich in Tampa, Florida
FILE PHOTO: Former presidential candidate Herman Cain arrives at a rally for U.S. Republican presidential candidate and former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich in Tampa, Florida January 30, 2012. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton/File Photo

April 11, 2019

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The expected nomination of businessman Herman Cain to the Federal Reserve appeared in jeopardy on Thursday as another Republican voiced opposition, possibly denying Cain the support needed in the Senate to be confirmed in the post.

“If I had to vote today, I would vote no,” Senator Kevin Cramer said in a statement.

Cramer becomes the fourth Republican senator reported to be opposed to Cain’s expected nomination by President Donald Trump. If all of the Senate’s Democrats and the two independents aligned with them were to vote against Cain, he would fall short of the majority support he would need.

(Reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt; Writing by Tim Ahmann; Editing by Eric Beech)

Source: OANN

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UN expert says Kim Jong Un demand shows sanctions work

The head of the U.N. panel monitoring sanctions against North Korea says the fact that the only thing Kim Jong Un asked for at the Hanoi summit was to have sanctions lifted shows they are biting — despite his increasingly sophisticated efforts to evade the tough measures.

Hugh Griffiths said in an interview Tuesday that the eight experts' message to Kim would be: "The Security Council is serious" and its resolutions "are very explicit."

The last sanctions resolution adopted unanimously by the council in December 2017 included sharply lower limits on North Korea's import of refined oil products and crude oil.

Griffiths noted that the resolution commits the Security Council to further restrict petroleum exports to North Korea if it conducts another nuclear test or launches an intercontinental ballistic missile.

Source: Fox News World

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Paris Easter Mass honors firefighters who saved Notre Dame

The archbishop of Paris and Catholics from around France and the world honored the firefighters who saved Notre Dame Cathedral, praying Sunday at a special Easter Mass for a swift reconstruction of the beloved monument.

The fire that engulfed Notre Dame during Holy Week forced worshippers to find other places to attend Easter services, and the Paris diocese invited them to join Sunday's Mass at the grandiose Saint-Eustache Church on the Right Bank of the Seine River.

Paris Archbishop Michel Aupetit handed over a bible that had been rescued from Notre Dame to the firefighters, who held a place of honor at Sunday's service.

Faithfuls attend a Sunday Mass at the grandiose Saint-Eustache church on the Right Bank of the Seine river in Paris, Sunday, April 21, 2019.

Faithfuls attend a Sunday Mass at the grandiose Saint-Eustache church on the Right Bank of the Seine river in Paris, Sunday, April 21, 2019. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Aupetit thanked city officials for their support amid "the drama" of last Monday's fire, and "especially you, those for whom this Mass is dedicated" — the firefighters who struggled for nine hours to contain flames that consumed Notre Dame's roof and collapsed its spire.

FAMILY FROM VIRAL NOTRE DAME CATHEDRAL PHOTO FOUND, DAD CHOOSES TO STAY ANONYMOUS

He notably thanked fire service chaplain Jean-Marc Fournier, who saved the most precious thing for Catholics from the fire, the chalice containing consecrated hosts that for Catholics are the body of Christ.

Police and a soldier guarded the entry to Sunday's Mass, creating a long line to check bags before visitors could enter the 13th-century Saint-Eustache Church. It was unclear if the extra security was linked to an Easter Sunday attack on churches and hotels in Sri Lanka that killed at least 190 people and wounded nearly 500 others.

Notre Dame's parishioners were joined by Catholics and others from around France and beyond. An Associated Press reporter heard at least six languages being spoken in the crowd.

NOTRE DAME CATHEDRAL KEPT STANDING AMID FIRE WITH GIANT ROBOT ‘COLOSSUS’

"Everyone is affected by what happened to Notre Dame," said Parisian Michel Ripoche. "Easter is a holiday we celebrate every year, all our lives. Clearly what happened at Notre Dame added to the importance" of today's service.

The archbishop of Paris and Catholics from around France and the world honored the firefighters who saved Notre Dame Cathedral, praying Sunday at a special Easter Mass for a swift reconstruction of the beloved monument.

The archbishop of Paris and Catholics from around France and the world honored the firefighters who saved Notre Dame Cathedral, praying Sunday at a special Easter Mass for a swift reconstruction of the beloved monument. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Peggy Godley, visiting from Chicago with her husband and two daughters, "wanted to see what it was like to celebrate a Mass in Paris."

"We didn't get to see Notre Dame. We were hoping to be there, but it's too late," she said.

Faithfuls attend a Sunday Mass at the grandiose Saint-Eustache church on the Right Bank of the Seine river in Paris, Sunday, April 21, 2019.

Faithfuls attend a Sunday Mass at the grandiose Saint-Eustache church on the Right Bank of the Seine river in Paris, Sunday, April 21, 2019. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)

Notre Dame isn't expected to reopen to the public for five or six years, according to its rector, although the French president is pushing for a quick reconstruction. Investigators believe the fire was an accident, possibly linked to renovation work.

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Notre Dame Rector Patrick Chauvet told The Associated Press on Good Friday that he has "plenty of hope, because I believe that from this suffering there will be a renaissance."

He said he would fight for speedy rebuilding work.

Culture Minister Franck Riester said Sunday that most of the sensitive spots in the cathedral have been stabilized, including support structures above its prized rose windows.

"There remain some sensitive points in the vaulted ceiling, and so teams from the Culture Ministry, construction companies are working to remove the rubble that remains on the ceiling and progressively cover it up. And after that, we can say that the Notre Dame of Paris is saved," he said on France-2 television.

Source: Fox News World

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Members of The Cranberries, bassist Mike Hogan, drummer Fergal Lawler and guitarist Noel Hogan speak to Reuters during an interview in London
Members of The Cranberries, bassist Mike Hogan, drummer Fergal Lawler and guitarist Noel Hogan speak to Reuters during an interview in London, Britain, April 24, 2019. REUTERS/Gerhard Mey

April 26, 2019

By Hanna Rantala

LONDON (Reuters) – Irish rockers The Cranberries are saying goodbye with their final album released on Friday, a poignant tribute to lead singer Dolores O’Riordan who died last year.

“In the End” is the eighth studio album from the band that rose to fame in the early 1990s with hits likes “Zombie” and “Linger”, and includes the final recordings by O’Riordan, who drowned in a London hotel bath in January 2018 due to alcohol intoxication.

Work on the album began during a 2017 tour and by that winter, O’Riordan and guitarist Neil Hogan had penned and demoed 11 tracks.

With O’Riordan’s vocals recorded, Hogan, bassist Mike Hogan and drummer Fergal Lawler completed the album in tribute to her.

“When we realized how strong the songs were, that was the deciding factor really… There was no point… trying to ruin the legacy of the band,” Noel Hogan said in an interview.

“It was obvious that Dolores wanted this album done because when you hear the album, you hear the songs and how strong they are, and she was very, very excited to get in and record this.”

The Cranberries formed in Limerick in 1989 with another singer. O’Riordan replaced him a year later and the group went on to become Ireland’s best-selling rock band after U2, selling more than 40 million records.

O’Riordan, known for her strong distinctive voice singing about relationships or political violence, was 46 when she died.

“She was actually in quite a good place mentally. She was feeling quite content and strong and looking forward to a new phase of her life,” Lawler said.

“A lot of the lyrics in this album are about things ending… people might read into it differently but it was a phase of her personal life that she was talking about.”

The group previously announced their intention to split after the release of “In The End”.

“We are absolutely gutted we can’t play (the songs) live because that’s something that’s been a massive part of this band from day one,” Noel Hogan said.

“A few people have said to us about maybe even doing a one off where you have different vocalists… as kind of guests of ours. A year ago that’s definitely something we weren’t going to entertain but I don’t know, I think it’s something we need to go away and take time off for the summer and have a think about.”

Critics have generally given positive reviews of the album; NME described it as “(seeing) the band’s career go full-circle” while the Irish Times called it “an unexpected late career high and a remarkable swan song for O’Riordan”.

Their early songs still play on the radio. This week, “Dreams” was performed at the funeral of journalist Lyra McKee, who was shot dead in Londonderry last week as she watched Irish nationalist youths attack police following a raid.

“We wrote them as kids, as a hobby and 30 years later they are on radio and on TV, like all the time… That’s far more than any of us ever thought we would have,” Noel Hogan said.

“That would make Dolores really happy because she was very precious about those songs. Her babies, she called them and to have that hopefully long after we’re gone… that’s all any band can wish for.”

(Reporting by Hanna Rantala; additoinal reporting by Marie-Louise Gumuchian; Writing by Marie-Louise Gumuchian; Editing by Susan Fenton)

Source: OANN

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2020 Democratic presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren participates in the She the People Presidential Forum in Houston
2020 Democratic presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren participates in the She the People Presidential Forum in Houston, Texas, U.S. April 24, 2019. REUTERS/Loren Elliott

April 26, 2019

By Joshua Schneyer and M.B. Pell

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Senator Elizabeth Warren will introduce a bill Friday that offers new protections for U.S. military families facing unsafe housing, following a series of Reuters reports revealing squalid conditions in privately managed base homes.

The Reuters reports and later Congressional hearings detailed widespread hazards including lead paint exposure, vermin infestations, collapsing ceilings, mold and maintenance lapses in privatized base housing communities that serve some 700,000 U.S. military family members.

(View Warren’s military housing bill here. https://tmsnrt.rs/2Dy5aht)

(Read Reuters’ Ambushed at Home series on military housing here. https://www.reuters.com/investigates/section/usa-military)

The Massachusetts Democrat’s bill would mandate both regular and unannounced spot inspections of base homes by certified, independent inspectors, holding landlords accountable for quickly fixing hazards. The military’s privatization program for years allowed real estate firms to operate base housing with scant oversight, Reuters found, leaving some tenants in unsafe homes with little recourse against landlords.

The bill would also require the Department of Defense and its private housing operators to publish reports annually detailing housing conditions, tenant complaints, maintenance response times and the financial incentives companies receive at each base. The provisions aim to enhance transparency of housing deals whose finances and operations the military had allowed to remain largely confidential under a privatization program since the late 1990s.

The measure would also require private landlords to cover moving costs for at-risk families, and healthcare costs for people with medical conditions resulting from unsafe base housing, ensuring they receive continuing coverage even after they leave the homes or the military.

“This bill will eliminate the kind of corner-cutting and neglect the Defense Department should never have let these private housing partners get away with in the first place,” Warren said in a statement Friday.

The proposed legislation comes after February Senate hearings where Warren, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee who is seeking the Democratic nomination for the 2020 U.S. presidential election, slammed private real estate firms for endangering service families, and sought answers about why military branches weren’t providing more oversight.

Her legislation would direct the Defense Department to allow local housing code enforcers onto federal bases, following concerns they were sometimes denied access. Warren’s office said a companion bill in the House of Representatives would be introduced by Rep. Deb Haaland, Democrat of New Mexico.

In response to the housing crisis, military branches are developing a tenant bill of rights and hiring hundreds of new housing staff. The branches recently dispatched commanders to survey base housing worldwide for safety hazards, resulting in thousands of work orders and hundreds of tenants being moved. The Defense Department has pledged to renegotiate its 50-year contracts with private real estate firms.

Congress has been quick to take its own measures. Earlier legislation proposed by senators Dianne Feinstein and Kamala Harris of California, along with Mark Warner and Tim Kaine of Virginia, would compel base commanders to withhold rent payments and incentive fees from the private ventures if they allow home hazards to persist.

(Editing by Ronnie Greene)

Source: OANN

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FILE PHOTO: Offices of Deloitte are seen in London
FILE PHOTO: Offices of Deloitte are seen in London, Britain, September 25, 2017. REUTERS/Hannah McKay/File Photo

April 26, 2019

By Noor Zainab Hussain and Tanishaa Nadkar

(Reuters) – Deloitte quit as Ferrexpo’s auditor on Friday, knocking its shares by more than 20 percent, days after saying it was unable to conclude whether the iron ore miner’s CEO controlled a charity being investigated over its use of company donations.

Blooming Land, which coordinates Ferrexpo’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) program, came under scrutiny after auditors found holes in the charity’s statements.

Ferrexpo on Tuesday said findings of an ongoing independent investigation launched in February indicated some Blooming Land funds could have been “misappropriated”. It did not provide any details or publish its findings.

Shares in Ferrexpo, the third largest exporter of pellets to the global steel industry, were 23.4 percent lower at 206.1 pence at 1022 GMT following news of Deloitte’s resignation.

“Ferrexpo’s shares are deeply discounted vs peers … following the resignation of Deloitte, we expect downside risks to dominate Ferrexpo’s shares near term.” JP Morgan analyst Dominic O’Kane said in a note on Friday.

Swiss-headquartered Ferrexpo did not provide a reason for the resignation of Deloitte, which declined to comment, while Blooming Land did not respond to a request for comment.

Funding for Blooming Land’s CSR activities is provided by one of Ferrexpo’s units in Ukraine and Khimreaktiv LLC, an entity ultimately controlled by Ferrexpo’s CEO and majority owner Kostyantin Zhevago, Ferrexpo said on Tuesday.

Ferrexpo’s board has found that Zhevago did not have significant influence or control over the charity, but Deloitte said it was unable reach a conclusion on this.

Reuters was not immediately able to contact Zhevago.

In a qualified opinion, a statement addressing an incomplete audit, Deloitte said it had been unable to conclude whether $33.5 million of CSR donations to Blooming Land between 2017 and 2018 was used for “legitimate business payments for charitable purposes”.

Deloitte said on Tuesday that total CSR payments made to Blooming Land by Ferrexpo since 2013 total about $110 million.

Ferrexpo, whose major mines are in Ukraine, has said that the investigation was ongoing and new evidence pointed to potential discrepancies.

Zhevago, 45, who ranked 1,511 on Forbes magazine’s list of billionaires for 2019 with a net worth of $1.4 billion, owns the FC Vorskla soccer club and has been a member of Ukraine’s parliament since 1998.

(Reporting by Noor Zainab Hussain and Tanishaa Nadkar in Bengaluru and additional reporting by Pavel Polityuk in Kiev; editing by Gopakumar Warrier, Bernard Orr)

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Children walk past a damaged building in the aftermath of the Cyclone Kenneth in Pemba
Children walk past a damaged building in the aftermath of the Cyclone Kenneth in Pemba, Mozambique April 26, 2019 in this still image obtained from social media. SolidarMed via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS – THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. MANDATORY CREDIT. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES

April 26, 2019

By Emma Rumney and Stephen Eisenhammer

JOHANNESBURG/LUANDA (Reuters) – Cyclone Kenneth killed at least one person and left a trail of destruction in northern Mozambique, destroying houses, ripping up trees and knocking out power, authorities said on Friday.

The cyclone brought storm surges and wind gusts of up to 280 km per hour (174 mph) when it made landfall on Thursday evening, after killing three people in the island nation of Comoros.

It was the most powerful storm on record to hit Mozambique’s northern coast and came just six weeks after Cyclone Idai battered the impoverished nation, causing devastating floods and killing more than 1,000 people across a swathe of southern Africa.

The World Food Programme warned that Kenneth could dump as much as 600 millimeters of rain on the region over the next 10 days – twice that brought by Cyclone Idai.

One woman in the port town of Pemba died after being hit by a falling tree, the Emergency Operations Committee for Cabo Delgado (COE) said in a statement, while another person was injured.

In rural areas outside Pemba, many homes are made of mud. In the main town on the island of Ibo, 90 percent of the houses were destroyed, officials said. Around 15,000 people were out in the open or in “overcrowded” shelters and there was a need for tents, food and water, they said.

There were also reports of a large number of homes and some infrastructure destroyed in Macomia district, a mainland district adjacent to Ibo.

A local group, the Friends of Pemba Association, had earlier reported that they could not reach people in Muidumbe, a district further inland.

Mark Lowcock, United Nations under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs, warned the storm could require another major humanitarian operation in Mozambique.

“Cyclone Kenneth marks the first time two cyclones have made landfall in Mozambique during the same season, further stressing the government’s limited resources,” he said in a statement.

FLOOD WARNINGS

Shaquila Alberto, owner of the beach-front Messano Flower Lodge in Macomia, said there were many fallen trees there, and in rural areas people’s homes had been damaged. Some areas of nearby Pemba had no power.

“Even my workers, they said the roof and all the things fell down,” she said by phone.

Further south, in Pemba, Elton Ernesto, a receptionist at Raphael’s Hotel, said there were fallen trees but not too much damage. The hotel had power and water, he said, while phones rang in the background. “The rain has stopped,” he added.

However Michael Charles, an official for the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), said heavy rains over the next few days were likely to bring a “second wave of destruction” in the form of flooding.

“The houses are not all solid, and the topography is very sandy,” Charles said.

In the days after Cyclone Idai, heavy inland rains prompted rivers to burst their banks, submerging entire villages, cutting areas off from aid and ruining crops. There were concerns the same could happen again in northern Mozambique.

Before Kenneth hit, the government and aid workers moved around 30,000 people to safer buildings such as schools, however authorities said that around 680,000 people were in the path of the storm.

(Reporting by Emma Rumney and Stephen Eisenhammer; Writing by Emma Rumney; Editing by Janet Lawrence and Alexandra Zavis)

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A worker holds a nozzle to pump petrol into a vehicle at a fuel station in Mumbai
FILE PHOTO: A worker holds a nozzle to pump petrol into a vehicle at a fuel station in Mumbai, India, May 21, 2018. REUTERS/Francis Mascarenhas

April 26, 2019

By Manoj Kumar and Nidhi Verma

NEW DELHI (Reuters) – Surging global oil prices will pose a first big challenge to India’s new government, whoever wins an election now under way, especially as domestic prices have been allowed to lag, meaning consumers are in for a painful surge as they catch up.

For oil-import dependent India, higher global prices could lead to a weaker rupee, higher inflation, the ruling out of interest rate cuts and could further weigh on twin current account and budget deficits, economists warned.

But compounding the future pain, state-run fuel suppliers and retailers have held off passing on to consumers the higher prices during a staggered general election, which began on April 11 and ends on May 23, according to sources familiar with the situation.

That delay is expected to be unwound once the election is over. And there could be additional price increases to make up for losses or profits missed during the period of delayed increases, the sources said.

In some major Asian countries, such as Japan and South Korea, pump prices are adjusted periodically so they move largely in tandem with international crude prices.

That was what was supposed to happen in India but the election means there have been many days when pump prices have been unchanged.

In New Delhi, for example, while crude oil prices have gone up by nearly $9 a barrel, or about 12 percent, in the past six weeks, gasoline prices have only risen by 0.47 rupees a liter, or 0.6 percent.

State-controlled fuel suppliers and retailers declined to say why they had delayed price increases, or discuss whether there has been any pressure from the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

A government spokesman declined to comment.

The opposition Congress party said Modi’s government was violating its own policy of daily price revision by advising the state oil companies to hold prices steady.

“The government should cut fuel taxes otherwise consumers will have to pay much higher oil prices once the elections are over,” said Akhilesh Pratap Singh, a senior leader of the Congress party.

(GRAPHIC: India Polls: Fuel price hike lags crude surge – https://tmsnrt.rs/2XLlxik)

Nitin Goyal, treasurer at the All India Petroleum Dealers Association, representing fuel stations in 25 states, said prices were similarly held down for 19 days in the southern state of Karnataka last year, when it held state assembly elections.

Only for them to surge after the vote.

“Consumers should be ready for a rude shock of a massive jump in retail prices, similar to the level we have seen in the Karnataka state election,” Goyal said.

‘CREDIT NEGATIVE’

Sri Paravaikkarasu, director for Asia oil at Singapore-based consultancy FGE, said retail prices of gasoline and gasoil prices would have been up to 6 percent, or about 4 rupee, higher if they had been allowed to rise in line with global prices.

“Indian pump prices have failed to keep up with the recent uptrend in crude prices,” Paravaikkarasu said.

“With the country’s general elections underway, the incumbent government has been keeping pump prices relatively unchanged.”

India had switched to a daily price revision in June 2017 from a revision every two weeks, as the government allowed retailers to set prices.

But the government faced protests last October when retailers raised prices by up to 10 rupees a liter after the crude oil price went above $80 a barrel, forcing it to cut fuel taxes.

Global prices rose to their highest level in 2019 on Thursday, days after the United States announced all Iran sanction waivers would end by May, pressuring importers including India to stop buying Tehran’s oil. [O/R]

Higher oil prices will mean Asia’s third largest economy is likely to see growth of less than 7 percent rate this fiscal year, economists said. Growth slowed to 6.6 percent in the October-December quarter, the slowest in five quarters.

Rating agency CARE has warned that a 10 percent rise in global oil prices could increase demand for dollars, putting pressure on the rupee and widening the current account deficit.

India’s oil import bill rose by nearly one-third in the fiscal year ending March 31 to $140.5 billion, against $108 billion the previous year.

“The increase in international oil prices is a credit negative for the Indian economy,” ICRA, the Indian arm of the Fitch rating agency, said in a note.

“Every $10/ bbl increase in crude oil prices increases the fiscal deficit by about 0.1 percent of GDP.”

Any big price rise would also build a case for the central bank to keep rates steady, or even raise them.

The Reserve Bank of India’s Monetary Policy Committee, which cut the benchmark policy repo rate by 25 basis points this month, warned that rising oil and food prices could push up inflation.

Policymakers are worried that a sustained increase in the oil price in the range of $70-75/barrel or higher can move the rupee down by 3-4 percent on an annual basis.

The rupee has depreciated by 1.24 percent against the dollar since a year high in mid-March.

($1 = 70.1800 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Manoj Kumar and Nidhi Verma; Editing by Martin Howell and Rob Birsel)

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