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Dear Mexico Stop Risking Your Child’s Well-being For An American Illusion

Immigration is a tough topic that takes, compassion, precision, and honesty. With that being said it is time to shift the perception that liberals are trying to save immigrant children from “evil republicans” who want to throw them in cages and holocaust 2.0 the world. (Sarcasm) The reality is,  U.S Border control is reporting that […]

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Cyclone lashing northwest Australia weakens

A slow-moving cyclone that lashed northwest Australia was weakening on Monday.

The Bureau of Meteorology said Cyclone Veronica had weakened from a Category 3 storm, on a scale in which 5 is the strongest, to a Category 2, with sustained winds near its center of 100 kilometers (62 miles) per hour and wind gusts of up to 140 kph (87 mph).

The storm was expected to continue to track west away from the coast of the sparsely populated Pilbara region of Western Australia state and weaken below cyclone strength late Monday, the bureau said.

There have been no reports of injuries or major structural damage from two major cyclones that hit the Australian coast over the weekend. But damage assessment had only just begun on Monday.

About 60,000 people live in the area most affected by Veronica, which crossed the Pilbara coast on Sunday. The iron ore mining region is said to be generally well prepared for cyclones that lash its coast frequently.

On Saturday, Category 4 Cyclone Trevor hit a remote part of the Northern Territory coast, about 1,600 kilometers (1,000 miles) to the east of the Pilbara region.

Trevor was downgraded on Sunday to a tropical low pressure system as it moved inland. The more than 2,000 people evacuated from Northern Territory coastal areas in its path have begun moving back home.

A red alert that warns residents to find shelter and brace for destructive winds remained in place in parts of the Pilbara. But that warning is expected to be lifted on Monday.

Roof and tree damage has been reported at towns in the Pilbara region.

Cyclones are frequent in Australia's tropical north but rarely claim lives. Still, two large storms such as Trevor and Veronica hitting on successive days is rare.

Source: Fox News World

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Liberals Target Trump Fed Nominee Stephen Moore

An economist whose policies have helped revive the U.S. economy, drive unemployment to record lows among minorities, and contributed to a long-awaited jump in wages might expect a pat on the back if not a ticker-tape parade.

But it seems economist Stephen Moore has been rewarded with a target on his back, supporters say.

The dust had barely settled Friday after a tweet from President Trump announcing his intention to nominate Moore to serve on the Federal Reserve's Board of Governors when the incoming fire began.

Beltway opposition researchers went to work, and news of a $75,000 tax debt from 2014 soon surfaced. But according to Moore, 59, the tax debt is actually a tax dispute, and he has been trying to negotiate a settlement.

Another objection: Despite a lifelong career in economics and a stint on the joint economic committee of Congress, Moore is not a card-carrying Ph.D.

That fact apparently prompted Harvard University economics professor Greg Mankiw to complain to The Guardian that Moore "does not have the intellectual gravitas" to serve on the Fed Board.

No one seems to care, however, current Fed Chairman Jerome Powell does not have a Ph.D. either.

Along with supply side guru Art Laffer and longtime CNBC host and director of the National Economic Council Larry Kudlow, Moore was one of the architects who designed the Trump tax cuts. Some conservative economists and members of Congress credit those reforms with finally nudging the economy out its post-Great Recession doldrums.

A few of Moore's career highlights:

  • He was a co-founder of the Club for Growth, and for many years served as its president.
  • 'He is a former Wall Street Journal editorial board member.
  • Moore served as a senior economist on the Congressional Joint Economic Committee.
  • He is the former chief economist of the Heritage Foundation.
  • He also has served as a senior economic contributor for FreedomWorks.
  • "Moore co-authored "Trumponomics" with Laffer, as well as several other books.
  • Fair disclosure: He also has been a frequent contributor to Newsmax Magazine and Newsmax TV.

But Moore's accomplishments do not seem to count, supporters say, because he is not a "card-carrying member of the Beltway establishment," as Sen. Ben Sasse, R-Neb., recently put it.

John Fund of the National Review, author of a recent column defending the Moore nomination, tells Newsmax the real objection to the conservative economist has nothing to do with his credentials.

"Remember," Fund says, "Trump appointed him. Therefore he is by definition illegitimate and highly political."

Fund notes, as a member of the Fed's Board, Moore would be one of 12 members of the Federal Open Market Committee, the group that establishes U.S. monetary policy and the interest rate paid by the banks.

Fund finds it risible the D.C. establishment would fear a lone supply-side voice would somehow compromise the Committee's vaunted independence.

"They can't have heretics in the temple," he quips. "Heretics will cause people to lose faith in the magical powers of the Fed."

To Fed watchers and academics who worry Moore is too close to Trump and would wield an undue influence, Fund remarks: "It's astonishing that they're so insecure."

For months, President Trump has complained the Fed's rate hikes were throttling the recovery. The Committee recently dropped its plans for two interest rate hikes this year, suggesting it might have overestimated the strength of the U.S. economy.

Like Trump, Moore has made no secret he also believes the Fed's monetary policy has been way too tight. He told The New York Times on Tuesday he would like to see interest rates cut by half a point. Critics jumped in to say his "radical" proposal would rattle the markets.

Conservatives are already rallying to defend Moore's pro-growth record in a bid to push his confirmation through the Senate. According to Fund, Moore's roster of big-name advocates include former presidential contender Steve Forbes, Bush economic adviser Larry Lindsey, former Fed governor Manley Johnson, former two-time runner-up to serve as Fed Chairman John Taylor, economist Judy Shelton, and former chief of the National Association of Manufacturers Jay Timmons.

Fund predicts the battle over Moore's Senate confirmation is just getting started.

"It's going to get vicious," he says. "They're going to accuse him of being fired from The Wall Street Journal, they're going to accuse him of tax crimes, they're going to accuse him of divorce-proceeding issues. I mean, it's not going to be pretty, and I've already gotten calls on that today.

"So, the level of attack has just begun, what you're seeing are just the opening skirmishes."

The affable Moore, however, seems undaunted by the no-holds-barred opposition.

"It is an honor to have the opportunity to serve my country with distinction by being nominated for the Federal Reserve Board," he said in a Wednesday statement, adding, "and I am ready to move forward with confirmation."

Source: NewsMax Politics

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Gas tanker explosion near Los Angeles injures 2; smoke could be seen for miles

A leaky gas tanker burst into flames south of Los Angeles on Sunday, injuring two people and sending a cloud of smoke into the air that could be seen for miles.

The explosion unfolded Sunday morning in Florence. Photos showed one nearby home blackened from the flames and smoke just a few hours later. The fire department tweeted out updates throughout Sunday morning.

A view of the tanker and charred home during the aftermath of the gas explosion near Los Angeles.

A view of the tanker and charred home during the aftermath of the gas explosion near Los Angeles. (LAFD - Erik Scott)

Two people were rushed to the hospital with unknown injuries, but there were no deaths. The blast sent a manhole cover flying into the air and flames shooting out of the storm drain, police said in a statement.

GAS LINE EXPLODES, SPARKS FIRE IN SAN FRANCISCO; 8 WORKERS FOUND SAFE, OFFICIALS SAY

Firefighters got a call in the morning about the smell of gas in the air, and when they arrived at the scene they found a 9,000-gallon tanker leaking. The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) said the gas connected with an ignition source and exploded into flames, forcing the firefighters back and leaving the nearby houses open to the flames.

The fire can be seen from over a mile away.

The fire can be seen from over a mile away. (LAFD - Erik Scott)

"Companies put water on the fire, trying to protect two buildings that were exposed to the flames," firefighter Nicolas Prange told Reuters.

At least one family was forced to leave. Some 72 firefighters tried to put out the blaze, and it was finally extinguished after almost two hours. The Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD) said the fuel type originally was thought to be natural gas, but investigators later determined it was gasoline.

GAS LEAK IN PARIS CAUSES EXPLOSION LEAVING SEVERAL INJURED

Photos showed the tanker was transformed into a heap of scrap metal after nearly two hours of being on fire.

Firefighters put out the last bit of flames in the aftermath of the tanker explosion.

Firefighters put out the last bit of flames in the aftermath of the tanker explosion. (LAFD - Erik Scott)

LAFD Hazardous Materials specialists were on the scene to determine the environmental impact of the blaze and to make sure crews still working near the incident were safe. The LAPD said arson investigators also were dispatched to investigate any possible foul play.

Southern California Gas Co. crews were evaluating whether any of their equipment was damaged in the explosion, according to spokeswoman Melissa Bailey.

Source: Fox News National

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Fierce winter storm that hit West reaches California

A winter storm driven that slammed the western U.S. was barreling through California on Tuesday, bringing threats of flooding, avalanches and blinding, blowing snow on roads in the Sierra Nevada.

Heavy rain began falling Monday and the National Weather Service issued flood warnings and flash flood watches for the San Francisco Bay Area and many parts of the Sacramento area into Thursday morning.

The latest storm will be a "marathon rather than a sprint," the weather service predicted.

Some small creeks and streams had flooded and the weather service warned that the Napa and Russian rivers were likely to overflow their banks by Wednesday morning.

However, while some areas could see 6 inches (15 centimeters) of rain or more over the next two days — and as much as 12 inches (30.5 centimeters) in some local mountains — the intensity won't be fierce enough to cause devastating mudslides in areas denuded by a string of devastating wildfires, such as Shasta and Lake counties, the weather service said.

Even so, some areas remained on alert. Sonoma County, where some areas were scarred by 2017 wildfires, activated its Emergency Operations Center.

"This is the time to locate your emergency kits and review your evacuation plans with your family," said David Rabbitt, chair of the county Board of Supervisors.

In the Sierra Nevada along the California-Nevada line, forecasters warned of possible whiteout conditions from blowing snow in the high passes. The mountains could see up to 8 feet (2.44 meters) of snow at higher elevations and winds gusting to 140 mph (225 kph) over ridgetops.

"Heavy snow and gale force winds will create dangerous avalanche conditions" into Thursday morning for the Lake Tahoe area, the National Weather Service warned.

Several mountain highways, including Interstate 80 at Donner Summit, were repeatedly closed for short periods Monday because of spinouts or avalanche concerns.

The storm already has barreled through other parts of the West, toppling trucks and trees, triggering power outages and closing roads and schools from Oregon to Montana.

Snow forced flight cancellations at the Portland airport, and prompted a blizzard warning for parts of Montana, where Butte public schools canceled classes Tuesday for the first time in at least 20 years.

Buses were getting stuck, and a superintendent told The Montana Standard that the district's snowplows haven't been able to keep up.

A power outage struck several thousand people in the Reno-Sparks area of Nevada.

The storm is the latest in a string that has dumped record levels of snow and rain this winter.

The culprit is an atmospheric river of moisture coming from north of Hawaii. The phenomenon has become frequent enough that scientists in California are introducing a 1-through-5 scale of intensity for atmospheric rivers, similar to those used to gauge hurricanes.

Source: Fox News National

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Erdogan’s party suffer surprise defeats in Turkish mayoral elections in three biggest cities

Despite ruling Turkey with an iron fist and a crackdown on opposition figures and free press in recent years, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s Justice or Development Party – known as AKP – was delivered a surprise blow in local elections this week.

While the country still awaits official results, unofficial data – as reported by the state-run Anadolu Agency on Monday – indicate that Erdogan’s partners have likely lost mayoral elections in the three major cities of Istanbul, Izmir and the capital Ankara.

However, the AKP’s secretary-general announced on Twitter Monday that they will be contesting the results of Istanbul and Ankara, citing voting irregularities.

PENTAGON STOPS DELIVERIES OF F-35 PARTS, MANUALS TO TURKEY OVER PURCHASE OF RUSSIAN AIR DEFENSE SYSTEM

Initial, albeit unconfirmed results on Monday, showed that Republican People’s Party (CHP) candidate Ekrem Imamoglu took a nailbiter in the economic center and most populous city of Istanbul, edging out the AKP opponent Binali Yildrin by just .3 percent.

Meanwhile, CHP’s secular Mansur Yavas is so far documented to have defeated AKP’s Mehet Ozhaseki 50.9 percent to 47.2 percent in Ankara; and in Izmir, the results so far point to CHP’s nominee Mustafa Tunc Soyer at 58 percent as AKP’s contender Nihat Zeybekci lingers at 38.5 percent.

All votes have reportedly been counted in those cities. And voter turnout was high, with more than 85 percent of the 57 million registered leaving their mark at the ballot box.

“Essentially, the outcome of the election has been a long time in the making,” Kamran Bokhari, Director at the Center for Global Policy in Washington and a Non-Resident Scholar at the Arabia Foundation, told Fox News, noting that a number of factors may be contributing to Erdogan’s popularity dip. “Being in power for too long; declining economic conditions, autocratic nature of his rule, and sidelining of many allies.”

He pointed out that while the Turkish President “remains powerful because his AK Party controls all three branches of the Turkish state,” it is “in the process of losing the dominant position it has held for sixteen years.”

AHEAD OF VOTE, TURKEY'S ERDOGAN SAYS US ATTACKING ECONOMY

Aykan Erdemir, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and former Turkish parliament member, concurred that “Erdogan still has a solid group of loyalists who have so far stood with him despite the economic crisis.”

“But at the same time, he has just lost Turkey’s leading municipalities, which will severely limit his ability to offer spoils to his clients,” he explained. “This will have a corroding effect on his patronage networks and party. As the economic crisis deepens, he will have a hard time preventing his followers from defecting to other parties. This could be the beginning of the end of Islamist politics in Turkey, but it will be a long and painful process.”

Supporters of the Republican People's Party, CHP, wave Turkish flags, and one with a portrait of Kemal Ataturk, right, as they celebrate after preliminary results of the local elections were announced in Ankara, Turkey, early Monday, April 1, 2019. 

Supporters of the Republican People's Party, CHP, wave Turkish flags, and one with a portrait of Kemal Ataturk, right, as they celebrate after preliminary results of the local elections were announced in Ankara, Turkey, early Monday, April 1, 2019.  (AP)

Sunday’s vote was the first time municipal elections were held in Turkey since Erdogan cemented his 16-year rule with even more executive powers in a presidential election last year. To many, he and AKP – which has been victorious in every election since 2002 – seemed unconquerable.

Much of the grievances among the Turkish people have centered on the country’s ailing economy, which has steadily diminished under Erdogan’s policies. The Turkish lira tumbled more than 28 percent in value last year alone, with little sign of improvement, as inflation stands at 20 percent and unemployment over 10 percent. Last month, it reached the point of a recession.

At least four deaths were recorded ahead of the vote, and scores of fights were reported by local news outlets.

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While unofficially losing the major cities, the AKP-led alliance still came out on top overall taking 51 percent of the vote, according to the BBC.

“If there are any shortcomings, it is our duty to correct them,” Erdogan told crowds on Sunday night.

Source: Fox News World

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UK police arrest 4 Sri Lankans for suspected extremist links

British police say four men from Sri Lanka have been arrested on suspicion of belonging to a banned extremist organization.

Police said Friday night they are suspected of violating the Terrorism Act.

The four men are being questioned at a police station in Bedfordshire northeast of London.

Police say the men arrived on an international flight at Luton Airport Wednesday night.

The men have not been identified and have not been charged. Police say the investigation is continuing.

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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