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US Navy won't alter sail-bys at sea despite China maneuver

The U.S. Navy won't alter its so-called "freedom of navigation" sail-bys in the disputed South China Sea and has pressed ahead with such operations despite a dangerous maneuver by a Chinese ship against an American destroyer.

Vice Adm. Phillip Sawyer, commander of the U.S. 7th Fleet, told reporters in Manila on Monday that Washington protested that "unprofessional behavior" by the Chinese ship, which maneuvered very close to the USS Decatur as the latter sailed closely by a Chinese-occupied island in the Spratlys in September.

Sawyer said the U.S. Navy will continue such sail-bys and patrols in the South China Sea and elsewhere "until there are no excessive maritime claims throughout the world."

Sawyer spoke onboard the USS Blue Ridge, which arrived in Manila after sailing through the South China Sea.

Source: Fox News World

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Indonesians vote in vast democratic exercise

Indonesia's elections pit Joko Widodo, the first Indonesian president from outside the Jakarta elite, against Prabowo Subianto, a former special forces general from the era of authoritarian rule under military dictator Suharto.

Some facts and figures about Wednesday's elections:

___

BY THE NUMBERS

Nearly 193 million Indonesians are eligible to vote in the archipelago stretching across thousands of islands and three time zones.

The 810,000 polling stations have more than 1.6 million bottles of halal-certified indelible ink ready. Voters will dip a finger in the ink after casting their votes as an anti-fraud measure.

The Election Commission estimates more than 17 million people are involved in ensuring the elections run smoothly, including volunteers, guards and registered witnesses for every polling station.

About 20,500 candidates are standing for the presidency, the Senate and legislatures at the national, provincial and district levels.

Staging the election will cost about $1.9 billion.

___

DEMOCRATIC OUTPOST

After three decades of military rule ended in 1998, Indonesia has become the most robust democracy in Southeast Asia, a region where authoritarian governments and stage-managed elections are the norm.

But despite being the world's most populous Muslim nation, the third-largest democracy and a member of the Group of 20 major economies, Indonesia has a low profile on the world stage. That is slowly changing, with the country recently becoming a non-permanent member of the U.N. Security Council, announcing a bid to host the 2032 Olympics and analysts forecasting its economy to be among the world's five largest by 2030.

Source: Fox News World

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Japan’s March household spending seen rising for fourth straight month: Reuters poll

FILE PHOTO: Shopper looks at food at a supermarket in Tokyo
FILE PHOTO: A shopper looks at food at a supermarket in Tokyo February 26, 2015. REUTERS/Yuya Shino

April 26, 2019

TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s household spending likely rose for a fourth straight month in March, a Reuters poll found on Friday, but weak factory output and exports could still push the economy into a mild contraction in the first quarter.

Household spending is expected to have risen 1.7 percent in March from a year earlier, the poll of 14 economists showed, the same rate of growth posted in February.

“The employment situation is favorable but wage recovery remains moderate, which is why private consumption lacks momentum,” said Takeshi Minami, chief economist at Norinchukin Research Institute.

“Still, domestic demand will likely be relatively solid till a planned sales tax hike in October. But after that, the economy is seen weakening unless external demand becomes strong enough to boost Japan’s economy.”

Japan is scheduled to raise its sales tax hike to 10 percent from 8 percent in October, after Prime Minister Shinzo Abe twice postponed it.

The last sales tax increases from 5 percent in 2014 dealt a blow to private consumption, which accounts for about 60 percent of the economy.

The government will announce household spending data at 8:30 a.m. Japan time on Friday, May 10 (2330 GMT, May 9).

Recent data showed Japan’s industrial output fell in January-March at the fastest pace in almost five years, while exports fell for a fourth straight month.[nL3N2272AR][nL3N21T1SQ]

(Reporting by Kaori Kaneko; Editing by Kim Coghill)

Source: OANN

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Cryptocurrency companies use ‘backdoor’ listings to ease into mainstream

Representations of the Ripple, Bitcoin, Etherum and Litecoin virtual currencies are seen on motherboard in this illustration picture
Representations of the Ripple, Bitcoin, Etherum and Litecoin virtual currencies are seen on a PC motherboard in this illustration picture, February 13, 2018. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration

February 22, 2019

By Alun John and Anna Irrera

HONG KONG (Reuters) – Several cryptocurrency exchanges have moved closer to mainstream markets by buying listed companies, looking to raise funds and present themselves as embedded in the traditional financial services world they once spurned.

In the most recent deal, U.S. crypto broker-dealer Voyager Digital on Feb. 11 achieved a “backdoor” listing on Toronto’s Venture Exchange after it bought control of mineral exploration firm UC Resources.

Such purchases, also known as reverse mergers, allow companies to offer shares to the public without the rigors and regulatory scrutiny of a full initial public offering (IPO).

“Many (cryptocurrency) exchanges have put a lot of strategic effort into trying to legitimize their operations and their reputations, and for some there’s an assumption that having some exposure to the traditional public market will help,” said Fei Ding’an, managing partner at Ledger Capital, a digital asset investment firm.

Japan’s Financial Services Agency (FSA) is the only major national regulator so far to have drawn up a definitive framework to govern digital assets and the platforms where they are traded.

In January, OKC Holdings, a company controlled by Star Xu, the founder of crypto-exchange OK Coin, bought 60.5 percent of LEAP Holdings, a Hong Kong-listed construction firm, for HK$484 million ($61.69 million).

Days later, the parent of Korean crypto exchange Bithumb announced plans for a U.S. listing via the purchase of Blockchain Industries.

Last year, investors that included the co-founders of crypto-exchange software producer ANX International bought a controlling stake in Hong Kong-listed marketing firm Branding China, while Huobi, a Singapore based exchange, bought a 72 percent stake in Hong Kong-listed power electrical company Pantronics Holdings.

Voyager said its listed shares could help fund growth.

“Being a public company enables Voyager to operate with the transparency that the crypto market deserves from its institutions,” Voyager CEO Steve Ehrlich said in an email.

Neither Huobi nor OKCoin has given details of their plans for the purchases.

ANX International remains separate from the renamed BC Group, but since the change in ownership the listed unit has launched new businesses that include a digital asset trading and exchange platform.

A spokesman for BC Group said being publicly traded gave clients “additional confidence in knowing we are a credible company and here for the long game.”

Spokespeople for OKCoin and Huobi declined to comment.

Neither Bithumb nor its parent Blockchain Exchange Alliance responded to requests for comment.

LEGITIMACY

Crypto experts said the deals could help the industry gain greater mainstream acceptance.

The reputation of cryptocurrencies, and particularly exchanges, has been hit hard by fears of price volatility and possible uses for laundering money alongside high-profile hacks and infrastructure failures.

Last year, the New York attorney general’s office warned that several cryptocurrency exchanges were plagued by poor market surveillance and pervasive conflicts of interest, saying some may be operating illegally.

This month, $137 million in cryptocurrencies was frozen in the user accounts of Canadian digital platform Quadriga after the founder, the only person with the password to gain access, died unexpectedly.

The crypto market peaked in late 2017, when trading volumes surged and bitcoin, the largest cryptocurrency, reached a high just above $20,000. Bitcoin’s price has fallen more 80 percent since then, and trading volumes have slumped.

Some exchanges may also feel pressure from investors seeking a means of realizing their profits.

“With the market turning south and regulators not being happy, this is an opportunity to satisfy investors and founders who are looking for an exit,” said Zennon Kapron, director at financial technology consultancy Kapronasia.

WRESTLING WITH REGULATORS

Public listings of cryptocurrency exchanges also pose a challenge for regulators, who are only beginning to grapple with the issues of overseeing the trading of digital currencies.

Japan’s FSA became the first major jurisdiction to regulate the exchanges in 2016, but has since refined its rules to allow the industry to largely self-regulate.

In the United States, New York state has, so far, issued a handful of so-called BitLicences for companies doing any sort of virtual currency business.

Both Hong Kong’s market watchdog, the Securities and Futures Commission, and the Hong Kong Exchange declined to comment.

But the commission is considering whether some cryptocurrency trading platforms are suitable for regulation, a process it hopes to finish this year, its chief executive, Ashley Alder, told legislators on Tuesday.

Hong Kong officials have already questioned the sustainability of crypto businesses when last year, the world’s largest makers of cryptocurrency mining rigs did not follow through on IPO plans in Hong Kong, in part because of the questions officials raised.

“It’s possible a crypto exchange could incubate a new crypto business inside a Hong Kong-listed company, maintain the listed company’s existing operations, and not be treated as a new IPO, but it is a very difficult tightrope to walk,” said a person familiar with the listing committee’s processes, speaking anonymously because he was not authorized to speak to the media on the subject.

The Hong Kong Stock Exchange’s Listing Committee must be satisfied that a company’s business is sustainable before it can list. The miners’ bids were stymied by fears that the falling price of bitcoin made their business models unworkable, sources said.

Although backdoor listings are permitted in most countries, some regulators, including those in Hong Kong, can review the deals and can in some circumstances require a full IPO instead.

“Crypto companies may struggle to demonstrate suitability for listing given the state of regulation of the industry and uncertain business models,” said Jason Sung, a Hong Kong-based partner at law firm Herbert Smith Freehills.

Exchanges like Bithumb that are looking to the United States could also similar roadblocks.

The SEC has authority both over U.S. companies selling digital securities and companies conducting a reverse merger in the United States.

“Depending on what the companies are planning to do they very well might have to seek regulatory approval from the SEC or the CFTC,” said Richard Levin, chairman of the financial technology and regulatory practice at the U.S. law firm Polsinelli.

(Reporting by Alun John in Hong Kong and Anna Irrera in New York; Editing by Jennifer Hughes and Gerry Doyle)

Source: OANN

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Catalan yellow ribbon protest intrudes into Spanish election

A dispute between Spanish authorities and Catalan separatists over a yellow ribbon symbol is building into a hot issue ahead of Spain's general election next month.

The independence-minded Catalan government has failed to obey an order from the country's electoral board to remove from the region's public buildings the large ribbons, which are a protest at the imprisonment and trial of separatist leaders for their role in a failed attempt to declare independence in 2017.

Quim Torra, Catalonia's regional president who always wears a small yellow ribbon in his lapel, has asked the board for more time to remove the symbols after a deadline passed.

Pablo Casado, the leader of Spain's main opposition Popular Party, on Wednesday called on Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez to take a tougher stance against Catalan separatists.

Source: Fox News World

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Why Pelosi is dissing impeachment despite her party's anti-Trump fervor

Nancy Pelosi is trying to shut down any talk of impeachment.

And since she happens to be speaker of the House, that means it won't happen for the foreseeable future, if ever.

There’s a reason that President Trump's only nickname for Pelosi is "Nancy." She's a shrewd politician, and she understands that an incendiary and ill-fated impeachment drive would mainly hurt the Democrats.

For the Dems to go down the impeachment road would utterly energize the Trump base and allow the president to accuse his partisan opponents of trying to overturn the election of 2016.

Impeachment proceedings would utterly dominate the next year, essentially wiping out the Democrats' attempt to define an agenda or to actually pass legislation that would help the country. They would be defined as the anti-Trump party, given power in the House only to launch a crusade against the incumbent.

OCASIO-CORTEZ AND FRESHMAN ALLIES AMASS POWER, CREATING PROBLEMS FOR PELOSI AND PARTY

In the end, it would be virtually impossible for the Republican-controlled Senate to reach the two-thirds vote needed to evict Trump from the White House. And that denouement would come just as the primaries were getting under way, giving Pelosi's party a chance to beat Trump through the usual electoral process.

The California congresswoman's words, in a Washington Post Magazine interview, immediately changed the nature of the debate:

"I'm not for impeachment," she said. "This is news. I'm going to give you some news right now because I haven't said this to any press person before. But since you asked, and I've been thinking about this: Impeachment is so divisive to the country that unless there's something so compelling and overwhelming and bipartisan, I don't think we should go down that path, because it divides the country. And he's just not worth it."

Pelosi is obviously right that impeachment is incredibly divisive. And she may be recalling that the Democrats picked up five seats after House Republicans impeached Bill Clinton in 1998 on a party-line vote. The only other modern impeachment effort — which drove Richard Nixon from office in 1974 — succeeded because several Republicans joined the Democrats when the Judiciary Committee voted on the Watergate-related articles. (Both efforts came during their second terms, when there was no other way to remove them.)

WASHINGTON POST OPINION WRITER: 'NANCY PELOSI JUST BLEW IT ON IMPEACHMENT'

Pelosi's dilemma is that some of her own caucus, especially the younger liberal members, as well as left-wing pundits are hot to trot on impeachment. Many Democratic voters also strongly favor the move. Even before Bob Mueller delivers his findings, she's trying to find a way to defuse the movement without alienating a significant chunk of the party.

So she subtly disses the president — "he's just not worth it" — while dismissing impeachment.

At another point in the Post Magazine interview, Pelosi calls Trump "ethically unfit. Intellectually unfit. Curiosity-wise unfit. No, I don't think he's fit to be president of the United States. And that’s up to us to make the contrast to show that this president — while he may be appealing to you on your insecurity and therefore your xenophobia, whether it's globalization or immigrants — is fighting clean air for your children to breathe, clean water for them to drink, food safety, every good thing that we should be doing that people can't do for themselves."

A nod to one side, a nod to the other side. He's unfit for office, but impeachment isn't worth it. He's bad on immigration and the environment, but we have to make that case outside of the Constitution's last-resort remedy.

The question for Trump's critics, who despise his policies, his persona and his associates, some of whom have been convicted, the question remains: What exactly has Trump done that would qualify as high crimes and misdemeanors?

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Adam Schiff, the House Intel chairman and cable-TV fixture, told reporters that Pelosi is "absolutely right." But House Budget Chairman John Yarmuth told CNN, "To me it's not a question of 'whether,' it's a question of 'when,' and probably right now is not the right time, but I think at some point it's going to be inevitable."

The calculation could change once Mueller delivers his findings. But without evidence of Russian collusion that still hasn't emerged, Pelosi knows that her party's best bet for defeating Trump is in November of 2020.

Source: Fox News Politics

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Looks like what? Helmet ad stirs controversy in Germany

Germany's conservative transport minister has some choice words for cyclists who are too vain to wear helmets.

Andreas Scheuer's office launched a campaign Friday calling on bike-lovers to keep their heads safe, using the English-language slogan: "Looks like s---. But saves my life."

The campaign, featuring a model and referencing the hashtag for an upcoming TV beauty contest, is intended to grab the attention of young people, more than half of whom Scheuer says shun helmets.

He acknowledged that "the slogan may not really correspond to the usual bureaucratic German language, but it conveys the message pretty well."

Some social media users in German appeared less offended by the language than by the skimpy clothing worn by the models in the ads and accused the government of sexism.

Source: Fox News World

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FILE PHOTO - A worker sits on a ship carrying containers at Mundra Port in the western Indian state of Gujarat
FILE PHOTO: A worker sits on a ship carrying containers at Mundra Port in the western Indian state of Gujarat April 1, 2014. REUTERS/Amit Dave/File Photo

April 26, 2019

(Reuters) – India has once again delayed the implementation of higher tariffs on some goods imported from the United States to May 15, a government official said on Friday.

The new tariff structure was to come into force from May 2, the spokeswoman said without citing reasons for the delay.

Angered by Washington’s refusal to exempt it from new steel and aluminum tariffs, New Delhi decided in June last year to raise the import tax from Aug. 4 on some U.S. products including almonds, walnuts and apples.

But since then, New Delhi has repeatedly delayed the implementation of the new tariff.

Trade friction between India and the U.S. has escalated after U.S. President Donald Trump announced plans earlier this year to end preferential trade treatment for India that allows duty-free entry for up to $5.6 billion worth of its exports to the United States.

In a further blow, U.S. on Monday demanded buyers of Iranian oil stop purchases by May or face sanctions, ending six months of waivers which allowed Iran’s eight biggest buyers including India to continue importing limited volumes.

(Reporting by Manoj Kumar in New Delhi and Kanishka Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D’Silva and Raissa Kasolowsky)

Source: OANN

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One of Joe Biden’s newly-hired senior advisers has seemingly had a very recent change of heart.

Symone Sanders, a prominent Democratic strategist and Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., staffer in 2016, was announced as one of the big-name members of Team Biden on Thursday.

But Sanders, who has also served as a CNN contributor, is seen in resurfaced footage from November 2016 expressing her opposition to a white person leading her party after Donald Trump’s election.

“In my opinion, we don’t need white people leading the Democratic party right now,” Sanders told host Brianna Keilar during a discussion on Howard Dean potentially becoming DNC chairman.

BIDEN HIRES FORMER BERNIE SANDERS’ SPOKESPERSON AS SENIOR ADVISER

“The Democratic party is diverse, and it should be reflected as so in leadership and throughout the staff, at the highest levels. From the vice chairs to the secretaries all the way down to the people working in the offices at the DNC,” she said.

Sanders wrapped up her remarks by saying: “I want to hear more from everybody. I want to hear from the millennials and the brown folks.”

Footage of the interview was resurfaced by RealClearPolitics.

After news of her hiring broke on Thursday, Sanders backed her new boss on Twitter.

TRUMP ASSESSES 2020 DEMS; TAKES SWIPES AT BIDEN, SANDERS; DISMISSES HARRIS, O’ROURKE; SAYS HE’S ROOTING FOR BUTTIGIEG

“@JoeBiden & @DrBiden are a class act. Over the course of this campaign, Vice President Biden is going to make his case to the American ppl. He won’t always be perfect, but I believe he will get it right,” she wrote.

The hiring of Sanders has been viewed as another indication of the expected tough fight that Biden and Sanders are in for as the two frontrunners battle a deep Democratic field.

While Sanders himself didn’t torch Biden as he jumped into the race, it’s clear that many of his progressive supporters view the former vice president as a threat.

Biden’s entry into the race – at least in the early going – sets up a battle between himself and Sanders, who thanks to his fierce fight with eventual nominee Hillary Clinton for the 2016 Democratic nomination, enjoys name ID on the level of the former vice president.

BIDEN VOWS THAT ‘AMERICA IS COMING BACK,’ SPARKING ‘MAGA’ COMPARISONS

Justice Democrats — who also called Biden “out-of-touch” – is an increasingly influential group among the left of the party. They’ve championed progressive Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York as well as Sanders. The group was founded by members of Sanders 2016 presidential campaign.

Biden has pushed back against the perception that he’s a moderate in a party that’s increasingly moving to the left. Earlier this month he described himself as an “Obama-Biden Democrat.”

And Biden said he’d stack his record against “anybody who has run or who is running now or who will run.”

Former Democratic National Committee chair Donna Brazile – a Fox News contributor – highlighted that “Joe Biden can occupy his own lane in large part because he’s earned it. He’s earned the right to call himself whatever.”

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

But she emphasized that “elections are not about the past, they’re about the future…I do believe he has the right ingredients. The question is can he find enough people to help him stir the pot.”

Fox News Andrew O’Reilly contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News Politics

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Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh, who is facing increased calls for her immediate resignation, remains in poor health and is not “lucid” enough to decide whether to step down, her attorney told reporters late Thursday.

Steve Silverman, speaking outside one of Pugh’s residences which was raided by the FBI and IRS earlier in the day, said the embattled city leader could make a decision as early as next week.

“She is leaning toward making the best decision in the best interest in the citizens of Baltimore City,” he said, adding that Pugh has “several options” to consider.

“She just needs to be physically and mentally sound and lucid enough to make appropriate decisions.”

BALTIMORE MAYOR CATHERINE PUGH, ON LEAVE AMID BOOK PROBE, HAS HOMES AND CITY HALL OFFICE RAIDED BY FEDS

Silverman said Pugh met with a doctor at home Thursday and plans to do so again Friday, the Baltimore Sun reported.

In the latest image-tarnishing scandal for struggling Baltimore, the first-term Democratic mayor faces accusations that she used children’s book deals to cover up kickbacks for favorable treatment as a state lawmaker and city leader that earned her roughly $800,000 over several years.

BALTIMORE’S ACTING MAYOR SAYS HE ‘WOULD HATE TO SEE’ EMBATTLED MAYOR RETURN AFTER BOOK SCANDALS

As a state senator, 69-year-old Pugh sold $500,000 worth of her self-published “Healthy Holly” illustrated paperbacks to the University of Maryland Medical System, a major state employer whose board she sat on for nearly 20 years.

Baltimore police officers stand outside the house of Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh in Baltimore, MD., Thursday, April 25, 2019. Agents with the FBI and IRS are gathering evidence inside the two homes of Pugh and also in City Hall. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

Baltimore police officers stand outside the house of Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh in Baltimore, MD., Thursday, April 25, 2019. Agents with the FBI and IRS are gathering evidence inside the two homes of Pugh and also in City Hall. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

UMMS reportedly paid Pugh for 100,000 copies of her books between 2011 and 2018 with the stated intention of distributing the books to schools and day care centers. But some 50,000 copies remain unaccounted for and officials are probing if they were even printed.

Pugh also made $300,000 in bulk sales to other customers including health carriers that did business with the city of Baltimore.

BALTIMORE CITY COUNCIL CALLS ON EMBATTLED MAYOR CATHERINE PUGH TO RESIGN IMMEDIATELY

The politically isolated Pugh slipped out of sight on April 1 after a hastily organized press conference where she called her no-contract book deals a “regrettable mistake.” That same day, Maryland’s governor called on the state prosecutor to investigate allegations of “self-dealing.”

Pugh took an indefinite leave of absence, citing her health deteriorating intensely after a bout with pneumonia.

Federal agents arrive at the Maryland Center for Adult Training in Baltimore. MD, Thursday, April 25, 2019. Agents with the FBI and IRS are gathering evidence inside the two homes of Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh and in City Hall, as well as the office of her lawyer and the home of a top aide.

Federal agents arrive at the Maryland Center for Adult Training in Baltimore. MD, Thursday, April 25, 2019. Agents with the FBI and IRS are gathering evidence inside the two homes of Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh and in City Hall, as well as the office of her lawyer and the home of a top aide. (Loyd Fox/Baltimore Sun via AP)

On Thursday morning, agents with the FBI and IRS searched her two Baltimore homes, her City Hall offices, and a nonprofit organization she once led. The home of at least one of Pugh’s aides was also scoured.

Silverman said federal agents also served a subpoena at his law firm, retrieving Pugh’s original financial records. They did not seek any attorney-client privileged communications, he said.

Pugh’s attorney said she was “emotionally extremely distraught” following the searches by FBI and IRS agents.

“There was nothing incriminating that came out of her home,” Silverman said.

UMMS spokesman Michael Schwartzberg told reporters that the medical system received a grand jury witness subpoena seeking documents and information related to Pugh.

Other probes against Pugh include a review by the city ethics board and the Maryland Insurance Administration.

BALTIMORE MAYOR’S $500G DEAL FOR ‘HEALTHY HOLLY’ CHILDREN’S BOOKS DRAWS SCRUTINY

In recent weeks, the calls for Pugh’s resignation have intensified with the strongest voice coming from Republican Gov. Larry Hogan, who did not mince words after Thursday’s early morning raids.

“Now more than ever, Baltimore City needs strong and responsible leadership. Mayor Pugh has lost the public trust,” he said. “She is clearly not fit to lead. For the good of the city, Mayor Pugh must resign.”

Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Internal Revenue Service agents search the home of Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh in Baltimore, MD., Thursday, April 25, 2019. Agents with the FBI and IRS are gathering evidence inside the two homes of Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh and in City Hall.

Federal Bureau of Investigation, and Internal Revenue Service agents search the home of Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh in Baltimore, MD., Thursday, April 25, 2019. Agents with the FBI and IRS are gathering evidence inside the two homes of Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh and in City Hall. (Jerry Jackson/Baltimore Sun via AP)

Many of her fellow Democrats, including those on Baltimore’s demoralized City Council and state lawmakers, are also insisting that Pugh put the citizens’ interests above any attempt to preserve her political career.

City Council member Brandon Scott called the Thursday raids “an embarrassment to the city.”

However, only a conviction can trigger a mayor’s removal from office, according to the city solicitor. Baltimore’s mayor-friendly City Charter currently provides no options for ousting its executive.

Six of Pugh’s staffers joined her on paid leave earlier this month; three of them were fired this week by the acting mayor.

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Pugh came to office in late 2016 after edging out ex-Mayor Sheila Dixon, who had spent much of her tenure fighting corruption charges before being forced to depart office in 2010 as part of a plea deal connected to the misappropriation of about $500 in gift cards meant for needy families.

She would certainly face a bruising 2020 Democratic primary if she were to return and run for reelection. Veteran City Council leader Bernard “Jack” Young, who is serving as acting mayor, said as she went on leave that he would merely be a placeholder. But this week, before the raids, he said “it could be devastating for her” if she tried to return.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News National

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FILE PHOTO: Cases of Pepsi are shown for sale at a store in Carlsbad
FILE PHOTO: Cases of Pepsi are shown for sale at a store in Carlsbad, California, U.S., April 22, 2017. REUTERS/Mike Blake/File Photo

April 26, 2019

By Amit Dave and Mayank Bhardwaj

AHMEDABAD/NEW DELHI (Reuters) – PepsiCo Inc has sued four Indian farmers for cultivating a potato variety that the snack food and drinks maker claims infringes its patent, the company and the growers said on Friday.

Pepsi has sued the farmers for cultivating the FC5 potato variety, exclusively grown for its popular Lay’s potato chips. The FC5 variety has a lower moisture content required to make snacks such as potato chips.

PepsiCo is seeking more than 10 million rupees ($142,840.82) each for alleged patent infringement.

The farmers grow potatoes in the western state of Gujarat, a leading producer of India’s most consumed vegetable.

“We have been growing potatoes for a long time and we didn’t face this problem ever, as we’ve mostly been using the seeds saved from one harvest to plant the next year’s crop,” said Bipin Patel, one of the four farmers sued by Pepsi.

Patel did not say how he came by the PepsiCo variety.

A court in Ahmedabad, the business hub of Gujarat, on Friday agreed to hear the case on June 12, said Anand Yagnik, the lawyer for the farmers.

“In this instance, we took judicial recourse against people who were illegally dealing in our registered variety,” A PepsiCo India spokesman said. “This was done to protect our rights and safeguard the larger interest of farmers that are engaged with us and who are using and benefiting from seeds of our registered variety.”

PepsiCo, which set up its first potato chips plant in India in 1989, supplies the FC5 potato variety to a group of farmers who in turn sell their produce to the company at a fixed price.

The All India Kisan Sabha, or All India Farmers’ Forum, has asked the Indian government to protect the farmers.

The farmers’ forum has also called for a boycott of PepsiCo’s Lay’s chips and the company’s other products.

The Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.

PepsiCo is the second major U.S. company in India to face issues over patent infringement.

Stung by a long-standing intellectual property dispute, seed maker Monsanto, which is now owned by German drugmaker Bayer AG, withdrew from some businesses in India over a cotton-seed dispute with farmers, Reuters reported in 2017. (reut.rs/2ncBknn)

(Reporting by Amit Dave in AHMEDABAD and Mayank Bhardwaj in NEW DELHI; Editing by Martin Howell and Louise Heavens)

Source: OANN

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FILE PHOTO: The Archer Daniels Midland Co (ADM) logo is displayed on a screen on the floor of the NYSE in New York
FILE PHOTO: The Archer Daniels Midland Co (ADM) logo is displayed on a screen on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, U.S., May 3, 2018. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/File Photo

April 26, 2019

By P.J. Huffstutter and Shradha Singh

CHICAGO/BENGALURU (Reuters) – Archer Daniels Midland Co said on Friday it was considering spinning off its ethanol business after slim biofuel margins and Midwestern floods slammed the U.S. grains merchant’s profit, which tumbled 41 percent in the first quarter.

ADM said it was creating an ethanol subsidiary, which will include dry mills in Columbus, Nebraska; Cedar Rapids, Iowa; and Peoria, Illinois.

The ethanol subsidiary will report as an independent segment, the company said, allowing options “which may include, but are not limited to, a potential spin-off of the business to existing ADM shareholders.”

Results were hit by the “bomb cyclone” blizzards that devastated the Midwest and Great Plains this year, causing massive flooding across Nebraska, Iowa and Missouri, washing out rail lines and wreaking havoc in the moving and processing of corn, soybeans and wheat. One-sixth of U.S. ethanol production was halted.

In March, ADM warned Wall Street that flooding and severe winter weather in the U.S. Midwest would reduce its first-quarter operating profit by $50 million to $60 million.

“The first quarter proved more challenging than initially expected,” said Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Juan Luciano, with earnings down in its starches, sweeteners and bioproducts unit. Luciano said impacts of the severe weather ultimately “were on the high side of our initial estimates”.

Ongoing problems in the ethanol industry added to the problems and “limited margins and opportunities” for ADM, Luciano said.

The ethanol industry has been in the midst of a historic downswing due to the U.S.-China trade war, excess domestic supply and weak margins.

ADM, which had been an ethanol pioneer, signaled to Wall Street in 2016 that it was hunting for options and considering sales of its U.S. dry ethanol mills. Luciano told Reuters this year that offers ADM had received for the mills were too low.

In addition, ADM said it planned to repurpose its corn wet mill in Marshall, Minnesota, to produce higher volumes of food and industrial-grade starches.

Other major traders are alsy trying to distance themselves from struggling ethanol businesses. Louis Dreyfus Company BV spun off its Brazilian sugar and ethanol business Biosev in 2013. Rival Bunge sold its sugar book and has sought a buyer for its Brazilian mills since 2013.

ADM, which makes money trading, processing and transporting crops, such as corn, soybeans and wheat, has been looking to strengthen its core business. Last month it said it would seek voluntary early retirements of some North American employees and cut jobs as part of a restructuring effort.

The company expects to lower 2019 capital spending by 10 percent to between $800 million and $900 million.

Net earnings attributable to the company fell to $233 million, or 41 cents per share, in the three months ended March 31, from $393 million, or 70 cents per share, a year earlier.

Revenue fell to $15.30 billion from $15.53 billion. On an adjusted basis, the company earned 46 cents per share, while analysts on average had estimated 60 cents, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.

(Reporting by Shradha Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta, Chizu Nomiyama and David Gregorio)

Source: OANN

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