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Stolen $28M Picasso painting found by 'Indiana Jones of the art world' after 20 years

A painting by Pablo Picasso worth millions that was stolen from a yacht in France 20 years ago has been tracked down thanks to a renowned Dutch art detective.

Arthur Brand said Tuesday he recovered the 1938 painting "Buste de Femme" 2 weeks ago after trailing it for years in Amsterdam. The artwork had been stolen from a wealthy Saudi sheikh's yacht in 1999.

Brand estimates the portrait to be worth $28 million and said he knew it was the real deal as soon as he saw it, according to Sky News.

"You know it's a Picasso because there is some magic coming off it," he said Tuesday.

CRIMINAL GANGS USING STUFFED, DEAD RODENTS TO SMUGGLE DRUGS INTO PRISON

Dutch newspaper De Volkskrant reported the painting was confirmed by a former art investigator from Scotland Yard, who is now acting on behalf of the insurance company, and an expert from the US who flew over to the Netherlands to verify the portrait's authenticity.

This image released on Tuesday March 26, 2019 by Arthur Brand, shows Dutch art detective Arthur Brand with "Buste de Femme", a recovered Picasso painting.

This image released on Tuesday March 26, 2019 by Arthur Brand, shows Dutch art detective Arthur Brand with "Buste de Femme", a recovered Picasso painting. (Arthur Brand via AP)

"This is the stolen Picasso," Dick Ellis told the news outlet. "It is still in good condition, with slight damage."

MEXICO ASKS VATICAN, SPAIN TO APOLOGIZE FOR CENTURIES-OLD CONQUEST, SAYS IT WAS CARRIED OUT WITH 'SWORD AND CROSS'

Brand, a renowned sleuth whose previous finds include a pair of bronze horses sculpted for Adolf Hitler, had teased the find last week on Twitter, saying he was working on "one of the biggest cases of my career."

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He made headlines last year after tracking down a Byzantine mosaic of Saint Mark that was stolen from Cyprus, the BBC previously reported.

Tracking down stolen artwork has earned him the moniker "the Indiana Jones of the art world." Brand has previously told the AFP News agency that recovering the mosaic was "one of the greatest moments of my life."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source: Fox News World

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UK leader Theresa May makes final push on EU divorce deal

British Prime Minister Theresa May is making a final effort to save her European Union withdrawal deal after her promise to quit failed to win over lawmakers from Northern Ireland.

May pledged Wednesday night that she would stand down if the deal were approved, in hopes of blunting opposition from lawmakers who have criticized her leadership. While some opponents, including former Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, quickly said they would back May's deal, Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party said it remained opposed because of concerns it treats the province differently from other parts of the U.K.

Parliament later rejected eight alternatives in a series of "indicative votes."

Brexit secretary Stephen Barclay said the outcome showed May's deal was "the best option" as he appealed for lawmakers to support the agreement.

Source: Fox News World

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Soccer: Equal pay still a stretch for French women

FILE PHOTO: France Team Photo
FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - France Team Photo - Clairefontaine, France - April 1, 2019 France's Amandine Henry REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes

April 2, 2019

By Julien Pretot

CLAIREFONTAINE, France (Reuters) – Women’s soccer has been developing rapidly in France but Frenchwomen do not believe they are in a position to ask for the same financial treatment as the men even though their American counterparts have filed an equal pay lawsuit.

France, fourth in the FIFA women’s world rankings, are among the favorites for this year’s World Cup on home soil, but they are still trailing the U.S., the three-times world champions.

“The guys have a huge exposure, they have results and a lot of people following them,” 21-year-old midfielder Grace Geyoro told Reuters on Tuesday ahead of a friendly game against Japan.

While the U.S. men’s team failed to qualify for last year’s World Cup, Didier Deschamps’s French side emerged triumphant in Russia.

“The bonuses will depend on our performances, on how things are going to pan out, on what kind of exposure we will get,” added Geyoro.

“We would like to get a little bit more. Maybe not as much as the men but a bit more would be great,” striker Valerie Gauvin, who plays at Montpellier, told Reuters.

The 22-year-old is hoping that the World Cup will boost the sport’s visibility and consequently, its financial attractiveness.

“I hope it won’t take too long even if it has been going in the right direction and maybe after this summer things will evolve faster and the World Cup will draw more media and more sponsors.”

Deschamps’s men earned 300,000 euros ($336,000) each after beating Croatia in the 2018 World Cup final and French media reported that the women will receive a 15,000-euro bonus each if they lift the trophy in Lyon on July 7.

Paris St Germain player Geyoro explained that women’s soccer has a higher profile in the U.S. due to the team’s success at multiple World Cups.

“In the U.S., women’s soccer is growing faster,” she said. “Now it is up to us to increase our exposure.”

One of the ways to increase exposure to the media and the fans would be for women to play in the same stadiums as the men.

Last week, 39,000 supporters turned up for a women’s game between Juventus and Fiorentina at Turin’s Allianz Stadium.

“We have played some games at the Parc des Princes for big events and obviously playing in bigger stadiums would attract more people,” said Geyoro.

Women playing in one of France’s top clubs (Lyon, PSG, Marseille, Montpellier) earn an average 4,000 euros a month, according to French federation figures – a far cry from the reported 3 million euros a month earned by PSG’s Neymar.

However, it is not all doom and gloom for the women.

“There are less barriers with the fans, a lot of people can come and see us. There are more and more young girls coming to the stadium to see the training sessions for the games,” said Gauvin, who managed to complete a marketing and communications course while playing football.

($1 = 0.8925 euros)

(Reporting by Julien Pretot; Editing by Pritha Sarkar)

Source: OANN

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The Latest: Family disputes official account of girl’s death

The Latest on the death of a 5th grader who died after a fight at her South Carolina school (all times local):

12:30 p.m.

The family of a 10-year-old South Carolina girl is disputing authorities' account that the 5th grader died from natural causes after a brief "slap fight."

Margie Pizarro is an attorney for the family of Raniya Wright, who died two days after the classroom fight March 25. Pizarro told reporters Friday a private investigator hired by the family interviewed one student who said Raniya was attacked from behind, punched several times in the head, and pushed into a file cabinet and a bookshelf.

She spoke after the sheriff and lead prosecutor for Colleton County told a news conference the girl died from rupturing blood vessels caused by a birth defect. They said an autopsy found no external or internal injuries from a fight.

Pizarro said the family is conducting its own investigation.

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11 a.m.

A South Carolina prosecutor says the investigation into the death of a 5th grader last month was due to natural causes and not a fight with another student.

Solicitor Duffie Stone said at a press conference Friday that 10-year-old Raniya Wright died of a congenital condition called an arteriovenous malformation, a tangle of abnormal blood vessels in the brain. The child had repeatedly complained of headaches in the days and weeks before her death.

Stone said that pathology and other scientific reports showed no evidence of trauma to the body that would have indicated the child died of injuries sustained in a fight on March 25.

The child's family had maintained that another fifth grader at Forest Hills Elementary School in Walterboro had hit or pushed the girl.

Source: Fox News National

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Economist Moore: I Was Right to Criticize Fed's Rate Hikes

Club for Growth founder and ex-Trump campaign adviser Stephen Moore says his harsh criticism of the Fed for raising interest rates was spot-on.

In an in interview Monday with The Wall Street Journal, Moore, President Donald Trump's pick for a Federal Reserve Board seat, said the central banks' recent policy pivot proves he was right.

Moore had called Fed Chairman Jerome Powell "totally incompetent" — and called for his resignation — after the December hike, the Journal reported.

But he walked the remarks back Monday.

"They made a mistake," he told the Journal. "Nobody's perfect. They've admitted they made a mistake. Was I harsh? Yes, and I wish I hadn't been."

Most officials have now projected there will be no rate increases this year if the economy performs as expected, the Journal reported. And the policy pivot, Moore told the Journal, is "an example of where I was right, and where my critics were wrong."

But he disputed criticism he would be a puppet for the president at the Fed.

"I'm a big fan of the president, and I'm a big fan of what he's done for the economy," he said, noting, however, his opposition to Trump's steel tariffs.

"I'm not a sycophant for Trump," he told the Journal.

Source: NewsMax America

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Mexico government slams U.S. border slowdown as ‘very bad idea’

Trucks wait in queue for border customs control to cross into the U.S. at the Cordova-Americas border crossing bridge in Ciudad Juarez
Trucks wait in queue for border customs control to cross into the U.S. at the Cordova-Americas border crossing bridge in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico April 8, 2019. REUTERS/Jose Luis Gonzalez

April 10, 2019

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard criticized on Wednesday a slower flow of goods and people at the U.S-Mexico border as a “very bad idea,” and said he planned to discuss the matter with U.S. Department of Homeland Security officials later in the day.

The slower flow at the border is creating increased costs for supply chains in both countries, Ebrard said in a post on Twitter.

(Reporting by Sharay Angulo)

Source: OANN

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Tesla’s Elon Musk to square off with SEC in court at contempt hearing

FILE PHOTO: Tesla and SpaceX CEO Musk participates in a
FILE PHOTO: Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk participates in a "fireside chat" at the National League of Cities (NLC) 2018 City Summit in Los Angeles, California, U.S. November 8, 2018. REUTERS/Kyle Grillot/File Photo

April 4, 2019

By Brendan Pierson and Jonathan Stempel

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Lawyers for Tesla Inc Chief Executive Elon Musk will argue on Thursday that he did not violate a fraud settlement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and should not be held in contempt, the latest twist in a high-profile battle between the billionaire and the government.

Musk’s fight with the SEC, to play out in a Manhattan federal court hearing, has raised investor worries that it could lead to restrictions on his activities or even his removal from Tesla, while distracting him at a pivotal point in the electric car maker’s expansion.

Tesla, which built its reputation on luxury cars, has faced several production challenges with its Model 3 sedan, which it is counting on to reach the mass market, recently offering a version starting at $35,000.

The SEC on Feb. 25 accused Musk of violating his Oct. 2018 settlement by posting material information about Tesla on Twitter six days earlier, without first seeking approval from company lawyers.

Musk has countered that the information was not material, and did not need to be vetted.

The battle concerns a tweet that Musk sent to his more than 24 million Twitter followers: “Tesla made 0 cars in 2011, but will make around 500k in 2019,” meaning 500,000 vehicles.

Four hours later, Musk corrected himself, saying annualized production would probably be around 500,000 by year end, with full-year deliveries totaling 400,000.

The SEC said the earlier tweet contrasted with Tesla’s Jan. 30 forecast that it would deliver about 400,000 vehicles this year.

Musk’s lawyers countered that the earlier tweet merely restated a forecast he had given on Jan. 30, when he said Model 3 production could total 350,000 to 500,000 vehicles.

They have also said the SEC had conceded during settlement talks that Musk did not need pre-approval for all tweets about his Palo Alto, California-based company.

It is rare for the SEC to seek a contempt finding, though some legal experts said the regulator has a strong case over Musk’s earlier tweet.

“It seems pretty clear that this particular tweet was not run through the scrubbing system that Tesla was supposed to have in place,” said Stephen Diamond, who teaches securities law at Santa Clara University School of Law.

MUSK SAYS SEC ‘BROKEN’

A contempt finding by U.S. District Judge Alison Nathan could subject Musk to new sanctions such as a higher fine or removal from Tesla’s board or as chief executive, legal experts said.

James Cox, a Duke University law professor, said Nathan was unlikely to impose a severe penalty such as giving up control over Tesla.

“We have to understand that Tesla is at a very important point in its history, and I don’t think any judge would want to be viewed in hindsight as the cause of the demise of Tesla,” he said.

“She could give him a good tongue-lashing, and tell him this is it, and next time she’s not going to be so nice,” Cox added.

The settlement resolved an SEC lawsuit that accused Musk of violating securities laws by tweeting last Aug. 7 that he had “funding secured” to take Tesla private at $420 per share.

That tweet sent Tesla’s share price up as much as 13.3 percent. Musk’s privatization plan was at best in an early stage, however, and financing was not in place.

In settling, Musk agreed to step down as Tesla’s chairman, and the company said it would adopt procedures to oversee all of Musk’s communications, regardless of format, and pre-approve written communications that could be material to the company.

Tesla and Musk also agreed to each pay $20 million civil fines.

The legal battle, which began in September, has not stopped Musk from being an outspoken critic of the SEC.

He has since labeled the SEC the “Shortseller Enrichment Commission,” recalling his attacks against hedge funds and other investors who sell Tesla stock short, hoping it will fall.

In a December interview with CBS’s “60 Minutes,” Musk said he did not have respect for the SEC. He also said his tweets had not been reviewed in advance since the settlement.

And in the early morning of Feb. 26, after the SEC filed its contempt motion, Musk tweeted: “Something is broken with SEC oversight.”

(Reporting by Brendan Pierson and Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Noeleen Walder and Lisa Shumaker)

Source: OANN

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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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