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NFL notebook: Cardinals reportedly fielding offers for top pick

FILE PHOTO: Former NFL quarterback Manning arrives for funeral of former U.S. President George H.W. Bush at Washington National Cathedral
FILE PHOTO: Former NFL quarterback Peyton Manning arrives prior to the state funeral for former U.S. President George H.W. Bush at the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, U.S., December 5, 2018. REUTERS/Jim Young

April 23, 2019

The Arizona Cardinals still haven’t tipped their hand as to how they’ll use the No. 1 pick in the NFL draft on Thursday, and teams continue to inquire about a trade, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported Monday.

He also said general manager Steve Keim, coach Kliff Kingsbury and owner Michael Bidwill have a final meeting scheduled to make a decision.

The assumption is Cardinals will draft Kyler Murray, who won the Heisman Trophy and led Oklahoma to the College Football Playoff in 2018. Reports over the weekend surfaced that the Cardinals plan to keep Josh Rosen at quarterback and draft a difference-maker on defense.

CBS Sports columnist Pete Prisco reported that Bidwill wanted the team to take Murray, but that has changed. “Now all of a sudden they’re pulling back and, from what I have been told, they’re going to go in a different direction,” Prisco said. “They’re not going to draft Kyler Murray.”

–Washington Redskins senior vice president of player personnel Doug Williams made it clear that the team is still seeking an upgrade at quarterback after trading for Case Keenum last month.

The Redskins, who hold the 15th pick in Thursday’s first round, have been connected to some of the draft’s top quarterback prospects and also to Rosen, whom the Cardinals could trade if they draft Murray.

“Case has done a good job over the last couple of years where he’s been, and you know, we needed a quarterback and was able to trade for Case,” Williams told reporters. “But that does not put us out of the realm of picking a quarterback if there’s one there that we like at 15. We don’t know who’s going to be there at 15. We’ve got some guys we do like, and if those guys are there, that’s the discussion that has to be had.”

–Peyton Manning will not join ESPN’s “Monday Night Football” broadcast team this season, Sporting News reported.

The future Hall of Fame quarterback met with network executives last month in Denver about replacing Jason Witten, who has returned to the Dallas Cowboys after one season in the booth.

But Manning is reluctant to comment on games while his younger brother, Eli, is still playing, according to NBC Sports’ Pro Football Talk. Eli’s New York Giants have two Monday night games scheduled in 2019.

–Former Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb clarified his recent comments about current Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz.

“For those of you who misread, didn’t understand, were confused or just didn’t like my comments let me clarify it for you,” McNabb wrote on Twitter. “Let me start by saying there’s no beef, riff or ill-will toward (Wentz) or the @Eagles. My comments were strictly based off of experience and understanding of how the business of football works.”

McNabb said on Saturday the team should consider drafting another quarterback if Wentz doesn’t take the Eagles beyond the second round of the playoffs within “two years or so.”

–A week after Russell Wilson agreed to his four-year, $140 million deal with the Seahawks, he reportedly decided to share the wealth with the Seattle offensive linemen, gifting them each $12,000 in Amazon stock.

Each of Wilson’s 13 linemen reportedly received a letter with the gift, expressing his gratitude and hopes that the gift would help them “prepare for life after football.”

“You sacrifice your physical and mental well-being to protect me, which in turn allows me to provide and care for my family. This does not go unnoticed and it is never forgotten,” he wrote in a letter first published by TMZ.

–Atlanta Falcons defensive tackle Grady Jarrett signed his franchise tender on Monday, locking in a one-year, $15,209,000 salary for 2019.

The team has been vocal about its intentions to sign Jarrett to a long-term deal, which the sides have until July 15 to negotiate. If no extension is agreed upon, he will play out 2019 on the tag.

The Falcons also announced the signing of free agent safety J.J. Wilcox, who spent 2018 with the New York Jets and Indianapolis Colts.

–The Green Bay Packers intend to exercise their fifth-year option, expected to be worth about $8 million, on defensive tackle Kenny Clark for the 2020 season.

General manager Brian Gutekunst confirmed that plan to reporters, although the team has until a May 3 deadline to make the move official.

–Buffalo signed free agent running back T.J. Yeldon to a two-year contract. Terms were not disclosed.

Yeldon, 25, had 414 rushing yards and one touchdown with the Jacksonville Jaguars last season.

–The Denver Broncos signed defensive linemen Billy Winn and Mike Purcell, along with offensive lineman Jake Rodgers.

Winn was out of the league last year after missing all of 2017 with a knee injury. He had 19 tackles for Denver in 2016.

–Field Level Media

Source: OANN

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Golf: Holder Casey and American Cook share Valspar lead

PGA: Valspar Championship - Second Round
Mar 22, 2019; Palm Harbor, FL, USA; Paul Casey plays his shot from the 15th tee during the second round of the Valspar Championship golf tournament at Innisbrook Resort - Copperhead Course. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports

March 22, 2019

(Reuters) – Early starters Paul Casey and Austin Cook survived after a costly finish by one-time leader Luke Donald to earn a one-stroke advantage in Florida’s Valspar Championship on Friday.

Englishman Casey, the defending champion, shot 66 and American Cook 67 to hold onto the joint lead on six-under 136 after the second round at Palm Harbor, Florida.

Donald, who played behind compatriot Casey and Cook, had taken a one-shot lead with four holes to play but two bogeys coming home left him in a three-way tie for third after a scrambling one-under 70.

Level with the former world number one at 137 were American Scott Stallings (68) and South Korea’s Im Sung-jae (67).

Lurking another shot back was top-ranked Dustin Johnson, whose second consecutive 69 left the American in a three-way tie for sixth with Australian Curtis Luck (68) and first-round co-leader Joel Dahmen (72).

Casey put together an eagle, four birdies and a bogey at his last hole, the ninth, before the Florida breezes kicked up and the greens became more tricky.

“I’ve never (successfully) defended a professional event,” he told Golf Channel.

“I think mentally last year I was sort of hoping, obviously hoping, I would win, wanting to win. This year, knowing that I have won around here, I have just a slightly different approach to it.”

Cook turned to a new putter and liked the results as he recorded five birdies and a bogey.

“Something as simple as changing a putter can make a big difference sometimes,” he told PGA Tour Radio.

Scot Russell Knox, tied for third after the first round, barely made the cut after soaring from a 67 on Thursday to a 76 in windy conditions on Friday.

Australian Jason Day did fall over the cut line of plus one as the world number 12’s 71 was not enough to overcome an opening 74 as he ended play at three-over par.

(Reporting by Gene Cherry in Raleigh, North Carolina; Editing by Ken Ferris)

Source: OANN

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The Latest: Pittsburgh council members divided on gun bills

The Latest on gun control legislation moving through Pittsburgh City Council in response to the synagogue attack (all times local):

12:35 p.m.

Some Pittsburgh City Council members are speaking out against gun-control legislation that cleared a key hurdle Wednesday.

The council voted 6-3 to approve a package of bills that would, among other things, place restrictions on military-style assault weapons like the one used in the synagogue attack last year. A final vote will take place next week.

Councilwoman Theresa Kail-Smith voted against the measures, predicting they'd never be enforced in the face of a promised legal challenge by gun-rights advocates. Under Pennsylvania law, municipalities don't have the right to regulate the possession or ownership of guns.

Councilman Anthony Coghill calls the legislation a distraction and says he'll have a tough time facing his constituents if the city spends a fortune on lawyers.

But Councilman Corey O'Connor, a co-sponsor, says "it is the right time to have this fight."

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11:30 a.m.

The Pittsburgh City Council has given tentative approval to gun-control legislation introduced in the wake of the 2018 synagogue massacre.

The legislation would, among other things, place restrictions on military-style assault weapons like the AR-15 rifle that authorities say was used in the attack that killed 11 and wounded seven. Council members voted 6-3 on Wednesday to pass it. A final vote will take place next week.

State law prohibits municipalities from regulating guns, and gun-rights supporters say they'll file suit against the city if the legislation goes through.

The three-bill package was watered down last week in an attempt to make it more likely to survive a court challenge.

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11 a.m.

Pittsburgh City Council is meeting to consider gun-control legislation introduced in the wake of the synagogue massacre.

The council began hearing public comment on the bills Wednesday morning, with a vote to take place afterward. The legislation would place restrictions on military-style assault weapons like the AR-15 rifle that authorities say was used in the attack that killed 11 and wounded seven.

Tim Stevens is with the Black Political Empowerment Project and Greater Pittsburgh Coalition Against Violence. He's speaking out in support of the legislation, telling the council that he's "never understood why anyone needs an assault weapon unless they are on the field of war."

Gun-rights supporters are promising to file suit if Council passes the legislation. They say state law prohibits municipalities from regulating guns.

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1:05 a.m.

The Pittsburgh City Council is planning to vote on gun-control legislation introduced in wake of the synagogue massacre, but Second Amendment advocates are promising a swift legal challenge if the bills are approved.

The legislation would place restrictions on military-style assault weapons like the AR-15 rifle that authorities say was used in the attack that killed 11 and wounded seven. It would also ban most uses of armor-piercing ammunition and high-capacity magazines, and would allow the temporary seizure of guns from people who are determined to be a danger to themselves or others.

An initial committee vote is planned for Wednesday.

The legislation was watered down last week in an effort to make it more likely to survive a court challenge. State law prohibits municipalities from regulating the ownership or possession of guns or ammunition.

Source: Fox News National

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U.S. judge approves bankruptcy loan for California power producer PG&E

FILE PHOTO: Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) trucks are seen parked on a road between homes destroyed by the Tubbs Fire in Santa Rosa, California
FILE PHOTO: Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) trucks are seen parked on a road between homes destroyed by the Tubbs Fire in Santa Rosa, California, U.S., October 11, 2017. Picture taken October 11, 2017. REUTERS/Stephen Lam

March 27, 2019

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Bankrupt California power provider PG&E Corp won court approval on Wednesday for a $5.5 billion loan to help maintain electricity and natural gas delivery and for investments to reduce the risk of wildfires as it reorganizes.

San Francisco-based PG&E filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in January in the aftermath of devastating wildfires that struck California in recent years, some linked or suspected to be linked to the company’s equipment.

Judge Dennis Montali of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in San Francisco approved the debtor-in-possession loan over objections of a committee representing victims of wildfires that wanted PG&E to fund a program for housing, food and other necessities for the victims before getting the financing approved.

PG&E filed for bankruptcy protection on Jan. 29 in anticipation of liabilities from the wildfires, including a catastrophic 2018 blaze, the Camp Fire. It killed 86 people in the deadliest and most destructive wildfire in California history.

The San Francisco-based owner of the biggest U.S. power utility warned in November it could face significant liability in excess of its insurance coverage if its equipment was found to have caused the Camp Fire that destroyed Paradise, California, last year.

PG&E has said it expects its equipment will be determined to have been an ignition source for the Camp Fire.

The financing will comprise a $3.5 billion revolving credit facility, a $1.5 billion term loan and a $500 million delayed-draw term loan.

Investment banks JPMorgan Chase & Co, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Barclays Plc and Citigroup Inc will provide financing, the company said in a filing.

(Reporting by Jim Christie in San Francisco; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)

Source: OANN

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Germany’s RWE sees bleak 2019 as fossil-fuel plants struggle

FILE PHOTO: Brown coal fired power plants of RWE, one of Europe's biggest utilities in Neurath near Cologne
FILE PHOTO: Steam rises from the five brown coal-fired power units of RWE, one of Europe's biggest electricity companies in Neurath, north-west of Cologne, Germany March 12, 2019. REUTERS/Wolfgang Rattay/File Photo

March 14, 2019

By Christoph Steitz

FRANKFURT (Reuters) – RWE forecast core earnings could fall by a fifth this year, as Germany’s largest electricity producer struggles to halt a decline in profitability at its conventional power plants and grapples with Germany’s plan to phase out coal.

RWE is in the process of taking over the renewable activities of rival E.ON and subsidiary Innogy, turning it into Europe’s No.3 green energy group behind Spain’s Iberdrola and Italy’s Enel.

It is also facing margin erosion at its large fleet of coal- and gas-fired power plants, which have also come under pressure following proposals by a government-appointed commission to exit coal as an energy source by 2038.

“The Commission clearly spoke out against forced layoffs and leaving people in the lurch,” Chief Executive Rolf Martin Schmitz said. “But we need some more details, as there are still a lot of questions that require answers.”

Finance chief Markus Krebber said it would not be easy to keep profitability at the group’s conventional power plants stable.

Shares in the company were down 2.5 percent in early trade.

RWE expects adjusted core earnings of 1.2-1.5 billion euros ($1.4-$1.7 billion) this year after a decline of 29 percent to 1.5 billion euros in 2018. Adjusted net income is seen at 300-600 million euros, compared with 591 million in 2018.

Jefferies analysts said the guidance was 8 percent below consensus, adding it could be partly explained by higher costs for IT and the pending integration of the renewable units of E.ON and Innogy.

“But the driver for the remaining difference is unclear to us, and so it is difficult to say if the 8 percent miss is on an underlying basis or a more conservative stance from the management,” they wrote.

(Editing by Thomas Seythal and Subhranshu Sahu; Editing by Mark Potter)

Source: OANN

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Italy’s 5-Star defends ally Salvini in online vote

FILE PHOTO: Italian Deputy Prime Minister and right-wing League party leader Matteo Salvini attends a news conference at the Foreign Press Club in Rome
FILE PHOTO: Italian Deputy Prime Minister and right-wing League party leader Matteo Salvini attends a news conference at the Foreign Press Club in Rome, Italy December 10, 2018. REUTERS/Tony Gentile/File Photo

February 18, 2019

By Crispian Balmer

ROME (Reuters) – Members of Italy’s ruling governing party the 5-Star Movement voted on Monday to block a possible kidnapping trial against Matteo Salvini, its coalition ally and leader of the hard-right League party.

The online ballot is meant to dictate how 5-Star senators should vote on Tuesday in a parliamentary committee reviewing whether magistrates can continue a probe into Salvini, who is also interior minister and deputy prime minister.

5-Star said on its website that 59 percent of its members had voted to protect Salvini – a result that will help defuse tensions within the government.

The contested case has sown division within 5-Star, which has built its support on pledges to bring transparency to Italian politics and has traditionally denounced parliamentary maneuvering to halt judicial proceedings against lawmakers.

Prosecutors in Catania, Sicily, need permission to continue an investigation for alleged abuse of power and kidnapping that began when Salvini ordered some 150 migrants be held onboard an Italian coast guard ship for five days in August.

Salvini has asked for parliamentary immunity, saying the case focuses on decisions taken by the entire government for the good of the country.

Some of his supporters have questioned how he could stay in an alliance with 5-Star if it did not rally to his side.

Looking to deflect any blame over the awkward decision, 5-Star leader Luigi Di Maio decided to turn the question over to the party’s membership. Some 52,000 party supporters cast a ballot despite technical issues on the website.

After the Senate’s Elections and Immunity Commission rules on the matter, the issue must go before the full Senate for ratification. While some 5-Star lawmakers have indicated they want to see the legal probe continue, the online vote is likely to tie their hands.

Tensions within the coalition are running high, with the allies at odds over a long list of issues, including whether to forge ahead with a new Alpine rail tunnel between France and Italy and whether to grant Italy’s regions more autonomy.

The 5-Star blog post announcing the online vote said the decision to block the migrants on board the Diciotti coast guard vessel was not Salvini’s alone, but was shared by Di Maio and Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte.

Since forging a coalition with the League last June, support for 5-Star has fallen sharply, while backing for Salvini has soared, complicating relations between the two parties.

The League has doubled its support to around 34 percent in just a year, lifted by Salvini’s anti-immigration stance. By contrast, 5-Star has dropped to some 24 percent – down about 8 percentage points since national elections last March.

(Reporting by Crispian Balmer; Editing by Peter Cooney)

Source: OANN

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25 years after genocide, Rwanda’s president praises healing

Rwanda's President Paul Kagame said Monday that the perpetrators of the 1994 genocide feel repentant for killing some 800,000 people and that is helping the country to find reconciliation.

Rwanda has begun commemorating the genocide which began 25 years ago and in which Hutu extremists slaughtered Tutsis and Hutus who tried to protect them during a 100-day period.

Kagame said Rwanda is rebuilding as a new nation of hope.

"Reconciliation is also one choice that has taken root," said Kagame in a press conference in the capital, Kigali. "It has happened because even perpetrators have come out to say 'We are sorry.'

"They (the genocide's perpetrators) have come out to show remorse," he said. "Survivors have also made a choice to forgive which completes a circle of reconciliation."

The mass killing of Rwanda's Tutsi minority was ignited on April 6, 1994, when a plane carrying President Juvénal Habyarimana was shot down and crashed in Kigali, killing the leader who, like the majority of Rwandans, was an ethnic Hutu.

The Tutsi minority was blamed for downing the plane and the bands of Hutu militants began slaughtering the Tutsi, with support from the army, police, and militias.

Kagame said Rwandans will never turn against each other again.

He said Rwandans coming together over problems "we have had to address is key. It is one of the choices that have enabled us to make this progress."

Kagame said Rwanda is building a new relationship with France, which previously his government has accused of having had a role in the genocide.

"There's a conversation going on how to improve the relationship with Rwanda," said Kagame. "France is also making good steps on matters on Africa generally."

On Friday, French President Emmanuel Macron ordered a French commission of researchers and historians to investigate the "role and involvement of France" in Rwanda from 1990-1994. It is to make conclusions within two years.

Kagame has won praise for ending that violence and making advances in economic development and health care. Ethnic reconciliation is a cornerstone of the rule of Kagame, Rwanda's de facto leader since the genocide ended in 1994 and the country's president since 2000. He is credited with bringing Rwanda stability, economic growth, and improved health and education.

However, Kagame's critics charge that he is intolerant of criticism and his government is repressive, jailing opposition leaders.

On Sunday, to mark the start of the genocide, Kagame and several world leaders gathered with some 30,000 people at the National Stadium in the capital for a candlelight ceremony.

"We Rwandans have granted ourselves a new beginning. We exist in a state of permanent commemoration, every day, in all that we do," said Kagame on Sunday. "Today, light radiates from this place."

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Follow Africa news at https://twitter.com/AP_Africa

Source: Fox News World

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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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