2024-08-18 13:06

SANDAKAN, Malaysia, Aug 18 (Reuters) - Companies that import palm oil from Malaysia will be able to adopt orangutans but they will not be able to leave the country, the commodities minister said on Sunday, in a revised version of a conservation scheme announced earlier this year. Plantations and Commodities Minister Johari Abdul Ghani also pledged to halt deforestation in Malaysia, saying 54% of the country was forested and that the level would not fall below 50%. In May, the minister put forward a plan to send orangutans abroad as trading gifts in an effort to allay concerns about the impact on the animals' habitat of palm oil production, which tends to involve clearing forest land. The plan raised objections from conservation groups fearful for the welfare of the orangutans that are critically endangered. "The animals cannot leave their natural habitats. We have to keep them here. And then we will meet the countries or the buyers of our palm oil if they want to work together to ensure that these forests can be looked after and preserved forever," Johari told a news conference in Sabah, northern Borneo. Conservation group WWF says the population of the orangutan, whose name means "man of the forest" in Malay, is less than 105,000 on the island of Borneo. The "orangutan diplomacy" scheme was first made public in May after the European Union last year approved an import ban on commodities linked to deforestation. Malaysia, the world's second-largest producer of palm oil which is used in anything from lipstick to pizza, described the law as discriminatory. Johari said funds raised from companies who adopt orangutans would be distributed to non-governmental organisations and the Sabah government to monitor the forested areas where the primates live, and seek to monitor the animals' safety and condition. He did not give details on how much adoption would cost. Marc Ancrenaz, scientific director of non-government organisation Hutan, said he hoped the plan could fund habitat conservation work, such as building corridors between fragmented forests that are too small to sustain viable wildlife populations. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/malaysia-announces-adopt-an-orangutan-plan-palm-oil-importers-2024-08-18/

2024-08-18 12:59

NEW YORK, Aug 16 (Reuters) - Hopes for an economic soft landing are once again powering U.S. stocks higher, as encouraging data relieve recession worries following a brutal sell-off earlier this month. The S&P 500 (.SPX) , opens new tab has rebounded more than 6% since Aug. 5, when a steep drop pushed the benchmark U.S. index to its biggest three-day slide in over two years. A rapid return to calm was also evident in the Cboe Volatility Index (.VIX) , opens new tab, or Wall Street's "fear gauge," which has retreated from last week’s four-year highs at a record pace. Driving the turnaround are this week's reports on retail sales, inflation and producer prices, which helped allay worries over an economic slowdown sparked by weaker-than-expected employment data at the start of the month. The favorable data has bolstered the case for investors looking to hop back aboard many of the trades that have worked this year, from buying Big Tech stocks to a more recent bet on small and mid-cap names that accelerated in July. "There was a real growth scare that had emerged," said Mona Mahajan, senior investment strategist at Edward Jones. "Since then, what we've seen is the economic data has actually come out in a much more positive light." Some of 2024's biggest winners have staged strong rebounds since Aug. 5. Chipmaker Nvidia (NVDA.O) , opens new tab has bounced more than 20%, while the Philadelphia SE Semiconductor index (.SOX) , opens new tab has gained more than 14%. Small-cap shares, which had been strong performers in July, have also recovered from recent lows, with the Russell 2000 (.RUT) , opens new tab up nearly 5%. Meanwhile, traders are unwinding bets that the Federal Reserve will need to deliver jumbo-sized rate cuts in September to stave off a recession. As of late Thursday, futures tied to the Fed funds rate showed traders pricing a 25% chance that the central bank will lower rates by 50 basis points in September, down from around 85% on Aug. 5, CME FedWatch data showed. The probability of a 25 basis point cut stood at 75%, in line with expectations that the Fed will kick off an easing cycle in September. "You can't necessarily rule out the hard landing scenario outright, but there's a lot of reason to believe that at this point that economic momentum is being sufficiently sustained," said Jim Baird, chief investment officer with Plante Moran Financial Advisors. The Fed's plans could become clearer next week when Chair Jerome Powell speaks at the central bank's annual economic policy symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. "We think a key highlight of Powell's speech will be the acknowledgement that progress on inflation has been sufficient to allow the start of rate cuts," economists at BNP Paribas said in a note on Thursday. For the year, the S&P 500 is up more than 16% and is within about 2% from its July all-time closing high. Mahajan, of Edward Jones, expects the soft-landing scenario, combined with lower interest rates, to help pave the way for more stocks to participate in the market's rally, instead of the small number of megacaps that have led indexes higher for much of this year. Analysts at Capital Economics believe that a U.S. economic soft landing will support the artificial intelligence fervor that helped drive markets higher. "Our end-2024 forecast for the S&P 500 remains at 6,000, driven by a view that the AI narrative which dominated in the first half of the year will reassert itself," they wrote. That target would be some 8% from the S&P 500's closing level on Thursday. The recent economic data, while reassuring, is far from an all-clear for markets heading into September, which has historically been one of the year's more volatile periods. Investors will be closely watching Nvidia's earnings at the end of the month, and another employment report on Sept. 6. "There's been a sigh of relief in the market, clearly," said Quincy Krosby, chief global strategist at LPL Financial. "The question now is, will the next payroll report underpin what the market expects at this point in terms of the soft landing." Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/wall-st-week-ahead-soft-landing-hopes-are-back-lift-us-stocks-after-recession-2024-08-16/

2024-08-18 12:52

ANKARA, Aug 18 (Reuters) - Firefighters in Turkey have brought under control two large forest fires that had been burning for three days, with several other wildfires across the country expected to be put out soon, the Forestry Minister said on Sunday. The blazes in Turkey's western coastal province of Izmir and northern province of Bolu started late on Thursday and firefighters have been working to contain them since then. Speaking in Izmir's Karsiyaka district, Forestry Minister Ibrahim Yumakli said cooling efforts were under way to fully extinguish the fires. A small fire that started in Izmir's Urla district on Saturday was also under control, he said. More forest fires in Izmir's Menderes district and in the western provinces of Aydin, Manisa and Usak as well as the northern province of Karabuk were still burning. Planes, helicopters and other vehicles had been brought in to douse the flames and all were "close to being contained". Turkish authorities warned of a high risk of further wildfires in northern and western Turkey for the next couple of days due to high temperatures, low humidity and strong winds. Several parts of Turkey, especially its coastal regions, have been ravaged by wildfires in recent years as summers have become hotter and drier, which scientists attribute to climate change. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/turkish-firefighters-bring-wildfires-west-north-under-control-minister-says-2024-08-18/

2024-08-18 12:48

MOSCOW, Aug 18 (Reuters) - Russia on Sunday denied a report that Ukraine's attack on the Kursk region had derailed indirect talks with Kyiv on halting strikes on energy and power targets, saying there had been no talks with Kyiv about civilian infrastructure facilities. The Washington Post reported on Saturday , opens new tab that Ukraine and Russia were set to send delegations to Qatar this month to negotiate a landmark agreement halting strikes on energy and power infrastructure on both warring sides. The Post said the agreement would have amounted to a partial ceasefire but that the talks were derailed due to Ukraine's attack on Russian sovereign territory. "No one broke anything off because there was nothing to break off," Maria Zakharova, spokeswoman for Russia's foreign ministry, said of the Post report. "There have been no direct or indirect negotiations between Russia and the Kyiv regime on the safety of civilian critical infrastructure facilities." Ukraine's government did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. The Post reported that Ukraine's presidential office said the summit in Doha had been postponed due to the situation in the Middle East and that it would take place in video conference format on Aug. 22. Russia and Ukraine have both accused each other of striking civilian infrastructure in the war. Both deny they do so. Zakharova then quoted President Vladimir Putin who on Aug. 12 questioned what talks there could be with Ukraine after its ground attack on Russia, and what he said were attacks on Russian civilian infrastructure. "There is nothing to talk about with people who unleash such things," Zakharova said. Russia sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine in February 2022 in what it calls a "special military operation" and now holds about 18 percent of the country. Ukraine's cross-border strike into the Kursk region on Aug. 6 was the first military incursion into Russian territory since World War Two. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russia-denies-media-report-about-indirect-talks-with-ukraine-2024-08-18/

2024-08-18 11:13

Aug 18 (Reuters) - Heavy rains lashed Alpine regions of Austria and left parts of Vienna under water at the weekend, causing severe damage in parts of the country and disrupting road and rail transport, authorities and local media said. Fast-moving torrents of muddy water swept cars through the ski resort of St. Anton, in western Austria, on Friday, footage posted on social media showed. Meanwhile record rainfall hit parts of Vienna in the east of the country on Saturday, state broadcaster ORF said. A woman was dragged under a bus by the force of flooding in the Doebling area in the north of the city on Saturday, ORF said. She was taken to hospital in a critical condition, it added. Fire services in the capital were called out more than 450 times on Saturday as the downpours caused traffic chaos and disrupted rail transport, according to ORF. "Heavy storms have done great damage in many parts of Austria," Chancellor Karl Nehammer said on X, thanking officials who were working to clear up the damage. In Vienna's Doebling district, officials registered 110 litres of rain per square metre, which ORF Vienna meteorologist Kevin Hebenstreit said was a record for August rainfall in the city. A large proportion of Vienna's average summer rainfall hit on Saturday in just one hour, according to weather data firm UBIMET. On average in August it rains a total of 68 litres per square metre, with the all-time record being 139 litres on May 15, 1885, according to ORF. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/austria-battles-major-flooding-after-record-downpours-2024-08-18/

2024-08-18 08:33

HYDERABAD, Aug 18 (Reuters) - Nearly 12% of tested spice samples failed to meet quality and safety standards, according to data obtained by Reuters of tests by Indian authorities after several countries took steps over contamination risks in two popular brands. The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India conducted inspections, sampling and testing of mixed spice blends after Hong Kong suspended sales of some blends of the MDH and Everest brands in April over high levels of a pesticide. Britain then tightened controls on all spice imports from India, while New Zealand, the United States and Australia have said they were looking into issues related to the brands. MDH and Everest have said their products are safe for consumption. Their spices are among the most popular in India - the world's biggest exporter, producer and consumer of spices. They are sold in Europe, Asia and North America. The data, obtained by Reuters under India's Right to Information Act, shows 474 of 4,054 samples tested between May and early July did not meet quality and safety parameters. The safety agency told Reuters in a statement it did not have breakdowns by brands of the spices it tested but was taking necessary action against companies involved. "Action on non-conforming samples has been taken as stipulated," it said, referring to penalty provisions under Indian law, without elaborating. Reuters open records request sought reports on all the samples that failed the tests, but the agency said such reports were unavailable. India's domestic spice market was valued at $10.44 billion in 2022, according to Zion Market Research. Its exports of spices and spice products were a record $4.46 billion in the fiscal year that ended in March. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/india/near-12-indias-tested-spice-samples-fail-quality-safety-standards-2024-08-18/