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Explosions hit two Sri Lankan churches, two hotels at Easter: police

Sri Lankan military officials stand guard in front of the St. Anthony's Shrine, Kochchikade church after an explosion in Colombo
Sri Lankan military officials stand guard in front of the St. Anthony's Shrine, Kochchikade church after an explosion in Colombo, Sri Lanka April 21, 2019. REUTERS/Dinuka Liyanawatte

April 21, 2019

COLOMBO (Reuters) – Two Sri Lankan churches and two hotels were hit by explosions on Easter Sunday, wounding several people, police sources said.

The hotels and one of the churches are in the nation’s capital Colombo. The other church is in Negombo, north of Colombo.

A source in the police bomb squad said that one of the explosions was at St Anthony’s Church in Kochcikade, Colombo. “Our people are engaged in evacuating the casualties,” the source said.

Sources from two leading tourist hotels in Colombo also confirmed the explosions but did not give any details.

Colombo National hospital said several wounded had been brought in for treatment.

St. Sebastian’s church at Katuwapitiya in Negombo posted pictures of destruction inside the church on its Facebook page, showing blood on pews and the floor, and requested help from the public.

There were no immediate claims of responsibility.

(Reporting by Ranga Sirilal and Shihar Aneez; Edited by Martin Howell)

Source: OANN

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Family suing over Grateful Dead mega-fan and pot grower who was crushed to death by police driving a bulldozer

The family of Gregory Longenecker says the 51-year-old's civil rights were violated by authorities who crushed him to death with a bulldozer last year while trying to arrest him for growing fewer than a dozen marijuana plants, according to a federal lawsuit.

Longenecker, a short-order cook from Reading, Pa., had allegedly been secretly growing 10 pot plants deep in the woods of a game preserve in Berks County when a game commission employee discovered his car and called the police, the Washington Post reported. When they arrived, a friend who was accompanying Longenecker that day was arrested, but the life-long Grateful Dead fan fled into the heavy underbrush of the preserve.

An hours-long search ensued, with a helicopter tracking Longenecker's movements from above and two police departments combing the land, which was so thick with vegetation that a tracking dog could not even get through, according to the Post. The game commissioner who discovered Longenecker's plants had been driving a bulldozer, and one police officer, identified as Mark Weiss, reportedly got on the heavy machinery in an attempt to get through the landscape.

What happened next is hotly debated -- Pennsylvania State Trooper David Boehm first said Longenecker could not have died in a pursuit because there was no pursuit. Then, authorities concluded it was possible Longenecker had a heart attack while running from police. Next, Cops said they needed to use a bulldozer because "there's no way that you could walk through that stuff," the Washington Post reported.

One thing is certain: an autopsy revealed that Longenecker died of traumatic injuries, as "virtually all" of the bones and organs in his body from his pelvis to collar bone were "crushed, broken, and /or lacerated." An investigation by the Berks County District Attorney ruled his death as accidental.

In this Saturday, Feb. 23, 2019 photo, a decal calling for justice for Greg Longenecker is seen on the back window of his uncle Mike Carpenter's car, in Reading, Pa. A federal lawsuit filed Monday, March 18 accuses Pennsylvania State Police of gross recklessness for using a bulldozer to chase and inadvertently run over and kill Longenecker, who had fled after being caught growing marijuana on public land

In this Saturday, Feb. 23, 2019 photo, a decal calling for justice for Greg Longenecker is seen on the back window of his uncle Mike Carpenter's car, in Reading, Pa. A federal lawsuit filed Monday, March 18 accuses Pennsylvania State Police of gross recklessness for using a bulldozer to chase and inadvertently run over and kill Longenecker, who had fled after being caught growing marijuana on public land (AP Photo/Jacqueline Larma)

NYPD DELETES 'COP KILLER' TWEET AFTER OFFICER IS REVEALED TO BE ALIVE

Longenecker's family argues in the lawsuit that police knew the approximate area where he was, because troopers allegedly shouted over a PA system in the helicopter, "I see you lying there! Get up!"

The bulldozer, "with similar force and characteristics of a military tank," allegedly continued to move towards Longenecker "knowing that he was lying in that area and also knowing they could not see in front of them," the lawsuit says.

Longenecker was known by family and friends as an avid vegetable gardener and loving father figure to the children of his girlfriend and "soulmate" of 25 years, according to the Post. They say they want police to be held accountable for their "reckless" decision to use a bulldozer while trying to find Longenecker.

In this Saturday, Feb. 23, 2019 photo, Mike Carpenter, uncle of Greg Longenecker, walks the field where Longenecker was killed by a bulldozer in 2018

In this Saturday, Feb. 23, 2019 photo, Mike Carpenter, uncle of Greg Longenecker, walks the field where Longenecker was killed by a bulldozer in 2018 (AP Photo/Jacqueline Larma)

WRONGFUL CONVICTION IN MURDER CASE TO COST SAN FRANCISCO $13.1M

"They killed a beautiful human being, a caring, loving man," said Longenecker's uncle, Mike Carpenter, who's named as a plaintiff in the federal suit. "He'll never be able to share his life with us, or us with him, again. For no reason. He wasn't hurting anyone."

Medical use of marijuana was legalized in Pennsylvania 2016, and possession of small amounts of the drug is decriminalized in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. However, recreational use and growing the plant is still illegal in most of the state.

The local chapter of the National Organization for Reforming Marijuana Laws slammed the police department and called their actions that day excessive force in an extreme manner. They said they believe if Longenecker had been arrested, charged and convicted, his sentence would most likely have been probation.

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"No matter your opinion on marijuana legalization, the penalty for growing cannabis should never be an extrajudicial death sentence," NORML Executive Director Erik Altieri said in a statement.

Berks County District Attorney John T. Adams has spoken out in defense of the officers involved and said that Longenecker's family would have still been angry if he had only been injured and not killed, according to the Post. He added that the efforts of police were "reasonable and conducted in a safe manner."

Source: Fox News National

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Why some U.S. fund managers like China regardless of trade deal

U.S and China trade talks in Beijing
FILE PHOTO: Chinese staffers adjust U.S. and Chinese flags before the opening session of trade negotiations between U.S. and Chinese trade representatives at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, Thursday, Feb. 14, 2019. Mark Schiefelbein/Pool via REUTERS

February 26, 2019

By David Randall

NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump’s decision to delay raising tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods has helped push global stock markets broadly higher as investors hope for a resolution in the trade war between the world’s two largest economies.

Yet some U.S.-based fund managers from firms including Wells Fargo Asset Management, Causeway Capital Management and Janus Henderson Investors say they are becoming more bullish on China regardless of whether a trade agreement is reached over the next few months.

That is because China has responded to the threat of escalating trade tariffs by increasing its monetary and fiscal stimulus, softening the potential blow as its economic growth rate falls to the slowest pace in 28 years.

China’s central bank has cut the reserve requirement ratios for commercial banks, making lending easier, while tax cuts and increased infrastructure spending are expected to bolster the economy. China’s banks made a record $477 billion in new loans in January.

“The stimulus Chinese officials have started to drip-feed to the economy will likely result in a confluence of positive sentiment and positive growth surprises,” said Brian Jacobsen, senior investment strategist at Wells Fargo Asset Management.

At the same time, Chinese stocks – which fell into a bear market last year in part because of the trade tariffs – offer more compelling value than other emerging markets countries, said Arjun Jayaraman, a portfolio manager of the $4.5 billion Causeway Emerging Markets fund, which has gained 14.2 percent a year over the last three years, according to Morningstar.

“A lot of negative views are still in the market, but some of the more draconian fears about a continued lack of credit in the economy have been somewhat assuaged,” he said. “We’re seeing more lending to the private sector and higher quality growth.”

As a result, Jayaraman’s fund has been increasing its stake in consumer-focused internet plays such as Tencent Holdings Ltd and Alibaba Group Holdings Ltd, along with banks and property companies.

Not all investors are excited about the return of stimulus.

Singapore-based Yoojeong Oh, investment director at Aberdeen Standard Investments, which manages over $700 billion in assets, said the move away from deleveraging the Chinese economy “is a worry for us.” Yet she remains bullish on Chinese equities because her portfolio is focused chiefly on spending by Chinese consumers.

“What we’ve really looked at in China are those companies focused on the domestic growth story, which I think is a much more exciting story than trying to find the export companies selling into lower-growth developed markets,” she said. As a result, intra-Asia trade is a good equities bet over the next few years, she said.

CAUGHT IN THE TREND

The move by U.S. fund managers into Chinese equities comes as investors have been moving steadily back into emerging markets after many abandoned the category amid the global stock market turmoil in the last quarter of 2018.

Emerging market stocks are now the most popular trade among global fund managers, according to BAML data, though much of those bets are going into Latin American countries such as Brazil rather than China, according to the firm’s research.

Overall, China’s CSI 300 index of large-cap companies is up 22.3 percent for the year to date, or about 11 percentage points more than the U.S. benchmark S&P 500 index. That suggests global investors expect a positive trade resolution between the United States and China that, along with China’s stimulus, will continue to bring Chinese equities out of a bear market, said Ashwin Alankar, global head of asset allocation at Janus Henderson Investors.

“China has been a dog over the last two years relative to the rest of the world, so we’re starting to see some reversion to the mean,” he said.

(Additional reporting by Rodrigo Campos; editing by Jennifer Ablan and Leslie Adler)

Source: OANN

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Soccer: 2020 Copa America to be held in Argentina and Colombia

FILE PHOTO: 2019 Copa America Draw
FILE PHOTO: 2019 Copa America Draw - Rio de Janeiro, Brazil - January 24, 2019 General view of the trophy during the draw REUTERS/Sergio Moraes/File Photo

March 14, 2019

ASUNCION (Reuters) – The South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL) has rejected a proposal from the United States and awarded the 2020 Copa America tournament to Argentina and Colombia.

CONMEBOL officials meeting in Miami on Wednesday said the joint bid was accepted as a way of “bringing South American football to the fans” and would be subject to a more detailed presentation by both countries.

The next edition of the tournament, usually played by all 10 South American nations and at least two invited guests, is due to be held in Brazil in June.

CONMEBOL want to hold another Copa America the following year and thereafter host it every four years, to bring it into line with its equivalent in Europe, the European Championship.

The tournament organization has been haphazard in recent times and a 2020 tournament would be the fourth Copa America in six years after Chile (2015), a special centenary edition in the United States in 2016, and Brazil (2019).

The United States had offered to host the tournament again in 2020 as part of an Americas-wide competition featuring not just teams from South America but also North America and the Caribbean.

CONMEBOL, however, rejected the idea, opting to preserve the historic integrity of the tournament, the oldest in international football.

It “rejected expressions of interest and proposals received by the United States, Australia, and commercial agencies Dentsu and IMG,” it said in a statement.

A source told Reuters that CONMEBOL would still extend invitations for the 2020 tournament to Mexico and the United States.

The tournament is likely to have 16 participants, with two groups of four in both Colombia and Argentina. Each nation would host one semi-final and the final would be played in Argentina.

Argentina last held the tournament in 2011, while Colombia were hosts most recently in 2001.

(Reporting by Daniela Desantis, writing by Andrew Downie, editing by Nick Mulvenney)

Source: OANN

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House passes resolution calling for public release of Mueller report

The House of Representatives voted Thursday in favor of a resolution to encourage Attorney General William Barr to release Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s full report to both Congress and the country amid Democratic fears information about the investigation would not be made public.

The resolution enjoyed overwhelming bipartisan support and passed in a floor vote 420-0. Four Republican lawmakers voted present.

“Congress will not accept any effort to bury this report,” Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., the chairman of House Intelligence Committee, said on the House floor Thursday. “Anything less than full transparency would be unacceptable.”

Since the measure is a non-binding resolution, Mueller, Barr and President Trump cannot be forced to release more information to Congress and the public than the Justice Department and federal law require. Republicans were quick to point out that – despite their support for the resolution – because the resolution was non-binding, it had little sway over whether or not the report is released to the public.

ROSENSTEIN, FMR FBI DIRECTOR MCCABE NEED TO TESTIFY ABOUT APPARENT PLOT TO REMOVE TRUMP, GOP SAYS

Barr testified during his confirmation hearings in February that, as he understands the regulations governing the special counsel, the report will be confidential – and any report that goes to Congress or the public will be authored by the attorney general.

Some Democrats sounded the alarm after Barr's testimony, with Connecticut Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal charging that Barr indicated he'd exploit legal "loopholes" to hide Mueller's final report from the public and to resist subpoenas against the White House.

"I will commit to providing as much information as I can, consistent with the regulations," Barr had told Blumenthal when asked if he would ensure that Mueller's full report was publicly released.

Mueller's team is still leading several prosecutions, including against longtime Trump adviser Roger Stone on charges of witness tampering and lying to Congress, and against former national security adviser Michael Flynn, who awaits sentencing on charges he lied to FBI agents during the Russia probe. Flynn is cooperating as part of a separate Foreign Agents Registration Act case regarding lobbying work in Turkey as part of his plea deal.

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Thursday’s resolution vote came on the same day it was announced that one of Mueller’s top prosecutors in the Russia investigation will soon leave his post – prompting more speculation that the probe is wrapping up.

Andrew Weissmann, who will leave the investigation reportedly to teach at New York University, helped build the case against President Donald Trump’s former campaign manager Paul Manafort, who was recently sentenced to more than seven years in prison following two cases related to the Mueller probe.

Weissmann has been a frequent target of conservative legal interest groups and supporters of the president. Author Michael Wolff said former Trump advisor Steve Bannon told him that Weissmann was like "the LeBron James of money laundering investigations."

Fox News’ Gregg Re and Luis Casiano contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News Politics

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School official sorry for calling Hitler a 'good leader'

A New Jersey sports official is apologizing for telling student athletes that Adolf Hitler was a "good leader" with "bad moral character and intentions."

Nutley High School athletic director Joe Piro made the remark while addressing Madison High School students Saturday during an assembly aimed at promoting positive leadership.

Piro tells NJ.com he was trying to make a point that "a leader could have strong leadership skills that influence people in a negative way." He says he understands "Hitler was an evil man who used his skills in a horrific manner."

The district's superintendent said in a letter sent to parents that the speaker's presentation was "unnecessarily provocative and insensitive."

Piro showed a photo of Hitler as part of a side-by-side comparison with Martin Luther King Jr.

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Information from: NJ.com, http://www.nj.com

Source: Fox News National

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Howard Schultz’s sole purpose is to get Trump re-elected: Juan Williams

The Five” co-host Juan Williams called possible presidential candidate and former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz “irrelevant” Tuesday, saying that the “only purpose” he serves” is to get President Trump re-elected.

“Howard Schultz, goodness gracious, he is so irrelevant to this whole conversation except when it serves your purpose, because guess what? He's not even running as a Democrat,” Williams said.

“Independent,” co-host Jesse Watters interjected.

HOWARD SCHULTZ CONCERNED BY BIDEN ACCUSATIONS AND TIMING

“Howard Schultz, the only purpose he serves right now is to get Trump re-elected, you know,  to try to divide up support for Democrats,” Williams added. He called Schultz “Kryptonite for Democrats.”

Williams and “The Five” discussed the Democratic presidential candidates and a party shift toward the left, reacting to Schultz criticizing the Democratic field for “crying” about capitalism.

“All these politicians who are crying about capitalism. Have they ever made a payroll? Have they ever worked in a business? What have they done other than criticize the system?” Schultz said on "Fox Business Monday."

SCHULTZ: FEDERAL DEBT OUT OF CONTROL

Source: Fox News Politics

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Cambodian authorities have ordered a one-hour reduction in the length of school days because of concerns that students and teachers may fall ill from a prolonged heat wave.

Education Minister Hang Chuon Naron said in an announcement seen Friday that the shortened hours will remain in effect until the rainy season starts, which usually occurs in May. The current heat wave, in which temperatures are regularly reaching as high as 41 Celsius (106 Fahrenheit), is one of the longest in memory.

Most schools in Cambodia lack air conditioning, prompting concern that temperatures inside classrooms could rise to unhealthy levels.

School authorities were instructed to watch for symptoms of heat stroke and urge pupils to drink more water.

The new hours cut 30 minutes off the beginning of the school day and 30 minutes off the end.

School authorities instituted a similar measure in 2016.

Source: Fox News World

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Explosions have rocked Britain’s largest steel plant, injuring two people and shaking nearby homes.

South Wales Police say the incident at the Tata Steel plant in Port Talbot was reported at about 3:35 a.m. Friday (22:35 EDT Thursday). The explosions touched off small fires, which are under control. Two workers suffered minor injuries and all staff members have been accounted for.

Police say early indications are that the explosions were caused by a train used to carry molten metal into the plant. Tata Steel says its personnel are working with emergency services at the scene.

Local lawmaker Stephen Kinnock says the incident raises concerns about safety.

He tweeted: “It could have been a lot worse … @TataSteelEurope must conduct a full review, to improve safety.”

Source: Fox News World

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The Wider Image: China's start-ups go small in age of 'shoebox' satellites
LinkSpace’s reusable rocket RLV-T5, also known as NewLine Baby, is carried to a vacant plot of land for a test launch in Longkou, Shandong province, China, April 19, 2019. REUTERS/Jason Lee

April 26, 2019

By Ryan Woo

LONGKOU, China (Reuters) – During initial tests of their 8.1-metre (27-foot) tall reusable rocket, Chinese engineers from LinkSpace, a start-up led by China’s youngest space entrepreneur, used a Kevlar tether to ensure its safe return. Just in case.

But when the Beijing-based company’s prototype, called NewLine Baby, successfully took off and landed last week for the second time in two months, no tether was needed.

The 1.5-tonne rocket hovered 40 meters above the ground before descending back to its concrete launch pad after 30 seconds, to the relief of 26-year-old chief executive Hu Zhenyu and his engineers – one of whom cartwheeled his way to the launch pad in delight.

LinkSpace, one of China’s 15-plus private rocket manufacturers, sees these short hops as the first steps towards a new business model: sending tiny, inexpensive satellites into orbit at affordable prices.

Demand for these so-called nanosatellites – which weigh less than 10 kilograms (22 pounds) and are in some cases as small as a shoebox – is expected to explode in the next few years. And China’s rocket entrepreneurs reckon there is no better place to develop inexpensive launch vehicles than their home country.

“For suborbital clients, their focus will be on scientific research and some commercial uses. After entering orbit, the near-term focus (of clients) will certainly be on satellites,” Hu said.

In the near term, China envisions massive constellations of commercial satellites that can offer services ranging from high-speed internet for aircraft to tracking coal shipments. Universities conducting experiments and companies looking to offer remote-sensing and communication services are among the potential domestic customers for nanosatellites.

A handful of U.S. small-rocket companies are also developing launchers ahead of the expected boom. One of the biggest, Rocket Lab, has already put 25 satellites in orbit.

No private company in China has done that yet. Since October, two – LandSpace and OneSpace – have tried but failed, illustrating the difficulties facing space start-ups everywhere.

The Chinese companies are approaching inexpensive launches in different ways. Some, like OneSpace, are designing cheap, disposable boosters. LinkSpace’s Hu aspires to build reusable rockets that return to Earth after delivering their payload, much like the Falcon 9 rockets of Elon Musk’s SpaceX.

“If you’re a small company and you can only build a very, very small rocket because that’s all you have money for, then your profit margins are going to be narrower,” said Macro Caceres, analyst at U.S. aerospace consultancy Teal Group.

“But if you can take that small rocket and make it reusable, and you can launch it once a week, four times a month, 50 times a year, then with more volume, your profit increases,” Caceres added.

Eventually LinkSpace hopes to charge no more than 30 million yuan ($4.48 million) per launch, Hu told Reuters.

That is a fraction of the $25 million to $30 million needed for a launch on a Northrop Grumman Innovation Systems Pegasus, a commonly used small rocket. The Pegasus is launched from a high-flying aircraft and is not reusable.

(Click https://reut.rs/2UVBjKs to see a picture package of China’s rocket start-ups. Click https://tmsnrt.rs/2GIy9Bc for an interactive look at the nascent industry.)

NEED FOR CASH

LinkSpace plans to conduct suborbital launch tests using a bigger recoverable rocket in the first half of 2020, reaching altitudes of at least 100 kilometers, then an orbital launch in 2021, Hu told Reuters.

The company is in its third round of fundraising and wants to raise up to 100 million yuan, Hu said. It had secured tens of millions of yuan in previous rounds.

After a surge in fresh funding in 2018, firms like LinkSpace are pushing out prototypes, planning more tests and even proposing operational launches this year.

Last year, equity investment in China’s space start-ups reached 3.57 billion yuan ($533 million), a report by Beijing-based investor FutureAerospace shows, with a burst of financing in late 2018.

That accounted for about 18 percent of global space start-up investments in 2018, a historic high, according to Reuters calculations based on a global estimate by Space Angels. The New York-based venture capital firm said global space start-up investments totaled $2.97 billion last year.

“Costs for rocket companies are relatively high, but as to how much funding they need, be it in the hundreds of millions, or tens of millions, or even just a few million yuan, depends on the company’s stage of development,” said Niu Min, founder of FutureAerospace.

FutureAerospace has invested tens of millions of yuan in LandSpace, based in Beijing.

Like space-launch startups elsewhere in the world, the immediate challenge for Chinese entrepreneurs is developing a safe and reliable rocket.

Proven talent to develop such hardware can be found in China’s state research institutes or the military; the government directly supports private firms by allowing them to launch from military-controlled facilities.

But it’s still a high-risk business, and one unsuccessful launch might kill a company.

“The biggest problem facing all commercial space companies, especially early-stage entrepreneurs, is failure” of an attempted flight, Liang Jianjun, chief executive of rocket company Space Trek, told Reuters. That can affect financing, research, manufacturing and the team’s morale, he added.

Space Trek is planning its first suborbital launch by the end of June and an orbital launch next year, said Liang, who founded the company in late 2017 with three other former military technical officers.

Despite LandSpace’s failed Zhuque-1 orbital launch in October, the Beijing-based firm secured 300 million yuan in additional funding for the development of its Zhuque-2 rocket a month later.

In December, the company started operating China’s first private rocket production facility in Zhejiang province, in anticipation of large-scale manufacturing of its Zhuque-2, which it expects to unveil next year.

STATE COMPETITION

China’s state defense contractors are also trying to get into the low-cost market.

In December, the China Aerospace Science and Industry Corp (CASIC) successfully launched a low-orbit communication satellite, the first of 156 that CASIC aims to deploy by 2022 to provide more stable broadband connectivity to rural China and eventually developing countries.

The satellite, Hongyun-1, was launched on a rocket supplied by the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp (CASC), the nation’s main space contractor.

In early April, the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology (CALVT), a subsidiary of CASC, completed engine tests for its Dragon, China’s first rocket meant solely for commercial use, clearing the path for a maiden flight before July.

The Dragon, much bigger than the rockets being developed by private firms, is designed to carry multiple commercial satellites.

At least 35 private Chinese companies are working to produce more satellites.

Spacety, a satellite maker based in southern Hunan province, plans to put 20 satellites in orbit this year, including its first for a foreign client, chief executive Yang Feng told Reuters.

The company has only launched 12 on state-produced rockets since the company started operating in early 2016.

“When it comes to rocket launches, what we care about would be cost, reliability and time,” Yang said.

(Reporting by Ryan Woo; Additional reporting by Beijing newsroom; Editing by Gerry Doyle)

Source: OANN

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At least one person is reported dead and homes have been destroyed by a powerful cyclone that struck northern Mozambique and continues to dump rain on the region, with the United Nations warning of “massive flooding.”

Cyclone Kenneth arrived just six weeks after Cyclone Idai tore into central Mozambique, killing more than 600 people and displacing scores of thousands. The U.N. says this is the first time in known history that the southern African nation has been hit by two cyclones in one season.

Forecasters say the new cyclone made landfall Thursday night in a part of Mozambique that has not seen such a storm in at least 60 years.

Mozambique’s local emergency operations center says a woman in the city of Pemba was killed by a falling tree.

Source: Fox News World

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German drug and crop chemical maker Bayer holds annual general meeting
Werner Baumann, CEO of German pharmaceutical and chemical maker Bayer AG, attends the annual general shareholders meeting in Bonn, Germany, April 26, 2019. REUTERS/Wolfgang Rattay

April 26, 2019

By Patricia Weiss and Ludwig Burger

BONN (Reuters) – Bayer shareholders vented their anger over its stock price slump on Friday as litigation risks mount from the German drugmaker’s $63 billion takeover of seed maker Monsanto.

Several large investors said they will not support aspirin investor Bayer’s management in a key vote scheduled for the end of its annual general meeting.

Bayer’s management, led by chief executive Werner Baumann, could see an embarrassing plunge in approval ratings, down from 97 percent at last year’s AGM, which was held shortly before the Monsanto takeover closed in June.

A vote to ratify the board’s actions features prominently at every German AGM. Although it has no bearing on management’s liability, it is seen as a key gauge of shareholder sentiment.

“Due to the continued negative development at Bayer, high legal risks and a massive share price slump, we refuse to ratify the management board and supervisory board’s actions during the business year,” Janne Werning, representing Germany’s Union Investment, a top-20 shareholder, said in prepared remarks.

About 30 billion euros ($34 billion) have been wiped off Bayer’s market value since August, when a U.S. jury found the pesticide and drugs group liable because Monsanto had not warned of alleged cancer risks linked to its weedkiller Roundup.

Bayer suffered a similar defeat last month and more than 13,000 plaintiffs are claiming damages.

Bayer is appealing or plans to appeal the verdicts.

Deutsche Bank’s asset managing arm DWS said shareholders should have been consulted before the takeover, which was agreed in 2016 and closed in June last year.

“You are pointing out that the lawsuits have not been lost yet. We and our customers, however, have already lost something – money and trust,” Nicolas Huber, head of corporate governance at DWS, said in prepared remarks for the AGM.

He said DWS would abstain from the shareholder vote of confidence in the executive and non-executive boards.

Two people familiar with the situation told Reuters this week that Bayer’s largest shareholder, BlackRock, plans to either abstain from or vote against ratifying the management board’s actions.

Asset management firm Deka, among Bayer’s largest German investors, has also said it would cast a no vote.

Baumann said Bayer’s true value was not reflected in the current share price.

“There’s no way to make this look good. The lawsuits and the first verdicts weigh heavily on our company and it’s a concern for many people,” he said, adding it was the right decision to buy Monsanto and that Bayer was vigorously defending itself.

This month, shareholder advisory firms Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) and Glass Lewis recommended investors not to give the executive board their seal of approval.

(Reporting by Patricia Weiss and Ludwig Burger; Editing by Alexander Smith)

Source: OANN

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