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Darrell Issa: Democrats using investigations to stop Trump re-election

Former California Rep. Darrell Issa argued Monday that Democrats intend to use obstruction charges to derail the president's 2020 election campaign just days after the release of Special Counsel Robert Mueller's report.

"This is about searching for the thing that's going to stop the president from winning reelection. They couldn't undo the election," Issa said on "Your World with Neil Cavuto."

"They're now trying -- not to impeach I don't expect to see articles of impeachment but I do see they're clearly trying to get his tax records, his business records. They're trying to use the power of subpoena, not to do oversight over some known misconduct, but in fact to see if they can find something that they can use against him in the re-elect."

TRUMP RAILS AGAINST ASSOCIATES WHO SPOKE TO MUELLER, CALLS CLAIMS 'TOTAL BULL---T'

The release of a redacted version of Mueller's report did little to stop partisan attacks between the president and Democrats who've continued to investigate Trump.

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., subpoenaed former White House counsel Don McGahn Monday. Nadler said he wanted McGahn to testify publicly next month.

In addition, Trump’s lawyers on Monday sued to block a subpoena issued by members of Congress that sought his financial records.

The complaint named Rep. Elijah Cummings, the Democratic chairman of the House Oversight Committee, and Peter Kenny, the chief investigative counsel of the House committee, as its plaintiffs.

Issa, a former member of the House Judiciary Committee, said if obstruction charges fail, Democrats will use other angles to continue to attack the president.

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"They know they want to hang the president, they just don't yet know the charge. When collusion didn't work, they're going to try obstruction. When that doesn't work, they're going it try tax evasion," Issa said.

"They've got a long list of hypothetical charges for which they have no known crime."

Fox News' Samuel Chamberlain, Alex Pappas and John Roberts contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News Politics

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Million-dollar birdie: Belgian pigeon smashes price record

FILE PHOTO: Racing pigeons are displayed for sale at the Pigeon Olympiad 2017 in Brussels
FILE PHOTO: Racing pigeons are displayed for sale at the Pigeon Olympiad 2017 in Brussels, Belgium January 29, 2017. REUTERS/Francois Lenoir/File Photo

March 18, 2019

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – A Belgian racing pigeon called Armando has sold at auction for nearly $1.5 million, more than three times the world record, the online saleroom said on Monday after a bidding war between two Chinese fanciers.

“Nobody expected this. No one,” Jorge Ferrari from the Pigeon Paradise auction site told Reuters.

Chinese enthusiasm for the long-distance racing of homing pigeons has driven prices up sharply, with birds from the traditional heartland of the sport in Belgium being particularly prized. (https://reut.rs/2Ji22LF)

However, until the furious bidding that lasted throughout Sunday evening, the record price stood at 376,000 euros ($426,422). Armando, a record-breaking long-distance racing champion owned by Joel Verschoot, was eventually sold to an anonymous buyer in China for 1,252,000 euros ($1.42 million).

In an indication of how the buyer may hope to recoup the investment, not only can race prize money in China reach seven figures but seven of Armando’s offspring were also auctioned for an average price of 21,500 euros each; the five-year-old Flemish flier may have highly profitable breeding years ahead of him.

(Reporting by Clare Roth; Editing by Alastair Macdonald and Andrew Heavens)

Source: OANN

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Porzingis accuser asked Knicks to ‘mediate’ payment: report

NBA: Dallas Mavericks at Sacramento Kings
Mar 21, 2019; Sacramento, CA, USA; Dallas Mavericks forward Kristaps Porzingis (6) sits on the bench during the fourth quarter against the Sacramento Kings at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Sergio Estrada-USA TODAY Sports

April 2, 2019

The woman accusing former Knicks center Kristaps Porzingis of raping her in New York in February 2018 contacted the team’s legal department in October asking to “mediate in private” a $68,000 payment, ESPN reported Monday.

Citing emails between the woman and the team, ESPN reports the 29-year-old woman communicated with the Knicks from late October through early November seeking hush money she said Porzingis had promised her, with the team eventually referring her to Porzingis’ personal lawyer.

No criminal complaint against Porzingis was filed until last week, more than 13 months after the alleged incident, which came a few hours after Porzingis tore his ACL during a game at Madison Square Garden. New York Police Department sources told the New York Post that the accuser is “believable.”

ESPN’s report Monday said emails the woman sent to the team detailed her account of the alleged Feb. 7, 2018 incident: She said she went to Porzingis’ apartment — in the same building where she lived — for an autograph, was subjected to an “extremely aggressive encounter,” and the two agreed to co-sign a statement that promised a $68,000 payment from Porzingis.

Porzingis’ lawyer, Roland G Riopelle, told ESPN he believes the document is a forgery and denies that his client signed it. ESPN obtained a copy of the alleged agreement, a handwritten document that misspells Porzingis’ first name, reading:

“This agreement effective February 7, 2018, acknowledges the fact that an unexpected escalated sexual intercourse due to an inevitable physical attraction on the part of Kristap (sic) occurred subsequently, warrants compensation payable towards (the woman’s) siblings college tuition in the amount of $68,000. …

“Mr. Kristap (sic) willingly offered several compensations to (the woman) including business investments. (The woman) ultimately settled with Mr. Kristap’s (sic) offer of a $68,000 check.”

ESPN also reported Monday that text messages between the woman and Porzingis showed she continued to pursue a romantic relationship with the 23-year-old Latvian in the weeks after the incident, asking to spend intimate time together and sending explicit photos of herself. Those texts came before the woman reached out to the team.

Among other details in emails sent to the team, per ESPN, the woman included photos of text messages with Porzingis, including his invitation to his apartment the night of the alleged incident, when he said he was “drunk.” She also included a photo that she said showed hair loss and broken nose cartilage “from when (Porzingis) repeatedly hit me,” adding she had to pay “about $10,000” for corrective surgery.

Riopelle issued a statement Saturday that “unequivocally” denied the woman’s allegations, adding he and Porzingis had referred the matter to federal law enforcement in December “based on the accuser’s extortionate demands.” The statement added that the NBA was made aware of the situation “months ago.”

Porzingis was traded to the Dallas Mavericks on Jan. 31. Owner Mark Cuban said Saturday he was aware of the accusation. ESPN reported the Mavericks were informed about it on a conference call to finalize the trade.

The Mavericks have since declined further comment, and coach Rick Carlisle said the accusation won’t affect whether Porzingis practices with the team later this season.

NBA Players Association executive director Michele Roberts said in a statement on Sunday, “We been aware of these allegations for some time, have evaluated the accuser’s claims and, based on what is presently before us, stand with Kristaps.”

Porzingis has not played in a game since tearing his ACL in what proved to be his final game with the Knicks. He averaged 17.8 points and 7.1 rebounds in 186 games over three seasons with New York.

–Field Level Media

Source: OANN

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Di Maio says Italy president backs MOUs on Chinese investments

FILE PHOTO: Italian Deputy Prime Minister Luigi di Maio holds a news conference in Rome
FILE PHOTO: Italian Deputy Prime Minister Luigi di Maio holds a news conference in Rome, Italy, March 8, 2019. REUTERS/Remo Casilli/File Photo

March 14, 2019

ROME (Reuters) – Deputy Prime Minister Luigi Di Maio said on Thursday that President Sergio Mattarella supported commercial accords Italy is poised to sign with China as part of its “Belt and Road” initiative.

The Memorandums of Understanding Italy has prepared with Beijing have been criticized by the United States, which fears China’s growing international clout and penetration into strategic areas such as telecommunications.

“I am pleased to see the president’s office has shown its support to the MOUs,” Di Maio, from the ruling 5-Star Movement, told reporters in the southern Italian region of Basilicata.

He added that the MOUs would help Italy’s port infrastructure and its food exports, and would generally boost Italy’s exports to China, rather than Chinese exports to Italy.

(Reporting By Gavin Jones; editing by Agnieszka Flak)

Source: OANN

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Pakistan says India preparing another attack this month

Pakistan's new Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi listens during a news conference at the Foreign Ministry in Islamabad
FILE PHOTO: Pakistan's new Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi listens during a news conference at the Foreign Ministry in Islamabad, Pakistan August 20, 2018. REUTERS/Faisal Mahmood

April 7, 2019

By Syed Raza Hassan

KARACHI (Reuters) – Pakistan has “reliable intelligence” that India will attack again this month, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said on Sunday, as tension over a February standoff between the two nuclear-armed neighbors had appeared to ease.

The attack could take place between April 16 and 20, he said.

A suicide car bombing by Pakistan-based militants in Indian-controlled Kashmir killed at least 40 Indian paramilitary police on Feb. 14 and the risk of conflict rose dramatically on Feb. 27, when India launched an air strike on what it said was a militant training base.

The following day Pakistan shot down an Indian fighter jet and captured its pilot who was later released.

“We have reliable intelligence that India is planning a new attack on Pakistan. As per our information this could take place between April 16 and 20,” Qureshi told reporters in his hometown of Multan.

He did not elaborate on what evidence Pakistan had or how he could be so specific with the timing, but he said Prime Minister Imran Khan had agreed to share the information with the country.

India’s foreign office didn’t immediately respond to an email seeking comment.

Khan blamed India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for “whipping up war hysteria” over claims that India shot down a Pakistani F-16 during the February standoff.

India said it, too, had shot down a Pakistani aircraft and the air force displayed pieces of a missile that it said had been fired by a Pakistani F-16 before it went down.

The success of Indian air strikes on a camp of the Jaish-e-Mohammed militant group in northwestern Pakistan has also been thrown into doubt after satellite images showed little sign of damage.

Pakistan closed its airspace amid the standoff but most commercial air traffic has since resumed and major airports have opened.

(Writing by Nick Macfie; Additional reporting by Mayank Bhardwaj in New Delhi; Editing by Kim Coghill)

Source: OANN

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Cohen to accuse Trump of knowledge in Wikileaks leak plot, call him a 'racist,' 'conman'

In his testimony before the House Oversight and Reform Committe Wednesday, Michael Cohen will accuse his former client, President Trump, of knowing that his adviser Roger Stone was reaching out to Wikileaks concerning the publication of stolen Democratic National Committee emails.

According to his prepared remarks, first obtained by Politico, Cohen will tell Congress that Trump "was a presidential candidate who knew that Roger Stone was talking with Julian Assange about a WikiLeaks drop of Democratic National Committee emails."

Stone, who has denied any wrongdoing, has been indicted by a grand jury on charges of obstruction, making false statements and witness tampering as part of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s probe into possible Russian collusion by the Trump campaign.

Cohen will also call Trump a "racist," a "conman," and a "cheat," all based, he will claim, on "documents that are irrefutable."

"I’m giving the Committee today three years of President Trump’s financial statements, from 2011-2013, which he gave to Deutsche Bank to inquire about a loan to buy the Buffalo Bills and to Forbes," Cohen will say. " It was my experience that Mr. Trump inflated his total assets when it served his purposes, such as trying to be listed among the wealthiest people in Forbes, and deflated his assets to reduce his real estate taxes."

Later, Cohen adds: "Mr. Trump directed me to find a straw bidder to purchase a portrait of him that was being auctioned at an Art Hamptons Event. The objective was to ensure that his portrait, which was going to be auctioned last, would go for the highest price of any portrait that afternoon. The portrait was purchased by the fake bidder for $60,000. Mr. Trump directed the Trump Foundation, which is supposed to be a charitable organization, to repay the fake bidder, despite keeping the art for himself."

Cohen also claims he will provide "copies of letters I wrote at Mr. Trump’s direction that threatened his high school, colleges, and the College Board not to release his grades or SAT scores."

Meanwhile, in a remarkable social media post on the eve of the hearing, a top Republican suggested that lurid details of Cohen's private life may take center stage.

The blockbuster public testimony threatened to overshadow Trump's summit in Vietnam with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, prompting some observers to say the timing was more than coincidental. The testimony comes as Cohen is set to begin a three-year prison sentence in May -- he has pleaded guilty to lying to Congress in 2017 and committing campaign finance violations while working for Trump.

Tuesday was the first of three consecutive days of congressional appearances scheduled for Cohen. After the public hearing Wednesday, he will appear before the House intelligence panel Thursday, again speaking in private.

Cohen's public testimony is likely to be a spectacle, in part because of the accusations he plans to level against the president. He'll give lawmakers a behind-the-scenes account of what he will claim is Trump's lying, racism and cheating, and possibly even criminal conduct, according to a person with knowledge of the matter. He is expected to provide what he will claim is evidence, in the form of documents, said the person, who requested anonymity to discuss the confidential testimony.

Republicans are expected to aggressively attempt to discredit Cohen, given that he has acknowledged lying previously. White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said in a statement Tuesday it was "laughable that anyone would take a convicted liar like Cohen at his word, and pathetic to see him given yet another opportunity to spread his lies."

RNC TELLS MICHAEL COHEN TO 'HAVE FUN IN PRISON,' AS GOP PREPS WAR ROOM AHEAD OF TESTIMONY

It appeared unlikely Cohen would directly implicate Trump in instructing his subordinates to lie. Buzzfeed News last month published a bombshell, discredited report, citing two law enforcement officials, who said Cohen acknowledged to Mueller’s office that Trump told him to lie to Congress about a potential real estate deal in Moscow, and claim that the negotiations ended months before they did so as to conceal Trump’s involvement.

But Mueller issued his first public statement in more than a year to repudiate the BuzzFeed report just 24 hours after its publication, flatly asserting that the story was "not accurate." The Washington Post has since reported that Mueller intended his rare denial to mean that the story was "almost entirely incorrect," and that the Special Counsel's Office immediately "reviewed evidence to determine if there were any documents or witness interviews like those described, reaching out to those they thought might have a stake in the case. They found none."

One Republican House member, meanwhile, did more than just question Cohen's credibility in the run-up to the hearing on Wednesday. Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz tweeted Tuesday that the world is "about to learn a lot" about Cohen and suggested he knew of disparaging information that could come out during his testimony.

Gaetz, a Trump ally who talks to the president frequently, is not a member of the committee that will question Cohen. He did not offer any evidence. Still, the tweet was extraordinary because his remarks appeared to some Democrats to constitute threatening or intimidating a witness.

Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz defended a tweet he sent Tuesday about Michael Cohen, suggesting that President Trump’s former attorney had been unfaithful to his wife.

Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz defended a tweet he sent Tuesday about Michael Cohen, suggesting that President Trump’s former attorney had been unfaithful to his wife. (Getty/AP)

In a tweet, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi wrote, "I encourage all Members to be mindful that comments made on social media or in the press can adversely affect the ability of House Committees to obtain the truthful and complete information necessary to fulfill their duties."

Pelosi went on to suggest that Gaetz may have even opened himself to legal liability, warning that the Constitution's Speech or Debate Clause -- which provides virtually absolute legal immunity to statements made by senators and representatives during congressional debates -- might not protect Gaetz, who made his comments away from the House floor.

"We're witness testing, not witness tampering," Gaetz countered in an interview with reporters. "When witnesses come before Congress, their truthfulness and veracity are in question and we have the opportunity to test them."

Lanny Davis, one of Cohen's lawyers, said in a statement that he wouldn't respond to Gaetz's "despicable lies and personal smears, except to say we trust that his colleagues in the House, both Republicans and Democrats, will repudiate his words and his conduct."

Democrats have been alternately suspicious of Cohen and eager to hear what he has to say. Sen. Mark Warner, the intelligence panel's top Democrat, suggested in a brief statement to reporters outside Tuesday's interview that Cohen had provided important information.

"We're witness testing, not witness tampering."

— Florida Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz

JUDGE NAP: COHEN TESTIMONY IS DESIGNED TO DISTRACT FROM SECOND TRUMP-KIM SUMMIT

"Two years ago when this investigation started I said it may be the most important thing I am involved in in my public life in the Senate, and nothing I've heard today dissuades me from that view," Warner said.

Senators on the intelligence panel attended Tuesday's private meeting, a departure from the committee's usual practice, where witness interviews are conducted by staff only. The Senate intel panel's chairman, Richard Burr, suggested to The Associated Press before the meeting that his committee would take steps to ensure that Cohen was telling the truth.

"I'm sure there will be some questions we know the answers to, so we'll test him to see whether in fact he'll be truthful this time," Burr said.

At least one Republican member of the intelligence panel refused to go to the meeting. "I don't have any desire to go listen to a lying lawyer," said Texas Sen. John Cornyn.

In addition to lying to Congress, Cohen pleaded guilty last year to campaign finance violations for his involvement in payments to two women who allege they had affairs with Trump.

Federal prosecutors in New York have said Trump directed Cohen to arrange the payments to buy the silence of adult film star Stormy Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal in the run-up to the 2016 campaign. Cohen told a judge that he agreed to cover up Trump's "dirty deeds" out of "blind loyalty."

Trump denies the allegations and says Cohen lied to get a lighter sentence.

The person with knowledge of what Cohen intends to tell Congress said he will provide information about Trump's financial statements that he will claim shows Trump deflated assets to pay lower taxes on golf courses; will provide details of the Daniels payment and claim that Trump organized a cover-up by pretending Cohen would be repaid; and claim that Trump talked to him and asked him questions about the Trump Moscow project throughout 2016.

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He is also expected to discuss what he knows about a meeting between Trump campaign associates and a Russian lawyer in Trump Tower before the 2016 election, a matter that is of particular interest to Mueller and congressional investigators.

Cohen is not expected to discuss matters related to Russia in the public hearing, saving that information for the closed-door interviews with the intelligence committees. House Oversight and Reform Chairman Elijah Cummings has said he doesn't want to interfere with Mueller's investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election and links to Trump's campaign.

Members of the oversight panel are expected to ask questions about the campaign finance violations, Trump's business practices and compliance with tax laws and "the accuracy of the president's public statements," according to a memo laying out the scope of the hearing.

Fox News' Chad Pergram and Elizabeth Zwirz and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News Politics

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German businesses prepared for all Brexit scenarios: BDI

FILE PHOTO: BDI president Dieter Kempf addresses a news conference before the German Industry Day, hosted by the BDI industry association, in Berlin
FILE PHOTO: BDI president Dieter Kempf addresses a news conference before the German Industry Day, hosted by the BDI industry association, in Berlin, Germany, June 20, 2017. REUTERS/Hannibal Hanschke

March 15, 2019

BERLIN (Reuters) – German businesses have put great efforts in preparing for all possible scenarios for Britain’s departure from the European Union but still hope for an orderly Brexit, BDI industry association said on Friday.

“We still hope that the exit treaty will be adopted, we are all looking into the same abyss”, BDI President Dieter Kempf told broadcaster Deutschlandfunk.

British lawmakers voted on Thursday to seek a delay in Britain’s exit from the European Union, setting the stage for Prime Minister Theresa May to renew efforts to get her divorce deal approved by parliament next week.

(Reporting by Tassilo Hummel; Editing by Riham Alkousaa)

Source: OANN

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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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