2024-08-17 12:43

HARARE, Aug 17 (Reuters) - About 68 million people in Southern Africa are suffering the effects of an El Nino-induced drought which has wiped out crops across the region, the regional bloc SADC said on Saturday. The drought, which started in early 2024, has hit crop and livestock production, causing food shortages and damaging the wider economies. Heads of state from the 16-nation Southern African Development Community (SADC) were meeting in Zimbabwe's capital Harare to discuss regional issues including food security. Some 68 million people, or 17% of the region's population, are in need of aid, said Elias Magosi, SADC executive secretary. "The 2024 rainy season has been a challenging one with most parts of the region experiencing negative effects of the El Nino phenomenon characterised by the late onset of rains," he said. It is Southern Africa's worst drought in years, owing to a combination of naturally occurring El Nino - when an abnormal warming of the waters in the eastern Pacific changes world weather patterns - and higher average temperatures produced by greenhouse gas emissions. Countries including Zimbabwe, Zambia, and Malawi have already declared the hunger crisis a state of disaster, while Lesotho and Namibia have called for humanitarian support. The region launched an appeal in May for $5.5 billion in humanitarian assistance to support the drought response, but donations have not been forthcoming, said outgoing SADC chair Joao Lourenco, President of Angola. "The amount mobilised so far is unfortunately below the estimated amounts and I would like to reiterate this appeal to regional and international partners to redouble their efforts... to help our people who have been affected by El Nino," he told the summit. The drought is a major talking point at this year's summit, alongside issues such as the ongoing conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, which Lourenco said was a source of great concern. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/nearly-68-million-suffering-drought-southern-africa-says-regional-bloc-2024-08-17/

2024-08-17 11:24

Aug 17 (Reuters) - Russia accused Ukraine on Saturday of planning to attack a nuclear plant in the Kursk region that President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's troops have entered and blame such a "provocation" on Moscow, Interfax news agency said. Kyiv denied that as "insane" propaganda. Ukraine launched an incursion into Russia's western Kursk region on Aug. 6 to try and swing the dynamics of the two-and-a-half year war in its favour after Moscow's 2022 invasion. Russia's defence ministry said there would be a harsh response to any attack on the Kursk power plant, which remains under its control, Interfax reported. It gave no evidence for its accusation against Ukraine, but said a large surrounding area could be contaminated by an attack. "We are seeing another surge in insane Russian propaganda about alleged Ukrainian plans to use 'dirty bombs' or attack nuclear plants. We officially refute these false claims," said Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Heorhii Tykhyi on X. "Ukraine has no intention or ability to take any such actions." Russian state nuclear firm Rosatom, which also runs the Zaporizhzhia plant in Ukraine controlled by Russia, also accused Kyiv of threatening both plants' security, RIA news agency said, without offering any evidence. Rosatom head Alexei Likhachev discussed the situation with International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) head Rafael Grossi by phone and invited him to visit the Kursk plant, RIA added. Russia and Ukraine have repeatedly accused each other of trying to sabotage the operation of the Zaporizhzhia plant, Europe’s biggest, in southeastern Ukraine. It is shut down but needs external power to keep its nuclear material cool and prevent a meltdown. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russia-says-ukraine-plans-kursk-nuclear-power-plant-provocation-2024-08-17/

2024-08-17 10:05

Aug 17 (Reuters) - Safety at Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant is deteriorating following a drone strike that hit a perimeter access road on Saturday, according to International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) director general Rafael Mariano Grossi. The Russian management of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant said a Ukraine drone dropped an explosive charge on a road used by staff, the TASS news agency reported earlier. Russia has been in control of the Zaporizhzhia site, the largest nuclear power plant in Europe, since soon after it launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The plant is dormant as Moscow and Kyiv have repeatedly accused each other of trying to sabotage its operations and endangering safety around the plant. "Yet again we see an escalation of the nuclear safety and security dangers facing the ... power plant," Grossi said. "I remain extremely concerned and reiterate my call for maximum restraint from all sides and for strict observance of the five concrete principles established for the protection of the plant." The impact site was close to the essential cooling water sprinkler ponds and about 100 metres from the Dniprovska power line, the only remaining 750 kilovolt line providing a power supply to the plant, the IAEA said. An IAEA team visited the area on Saturday and reported that the damage seemed to have been caused by a drone equipped with an explosive payload. The report said there were no casualties and no impact on any nuclear power plant equipment. However, there was impact to the road between the two main gates of the plant. The attack comes as Ukraine continues an incursion into Russia, claiming to have taken control of 82 settlements over an area of 1,150 square kilometres (444 square miles) in the Kursk region since Aug. 6. Moscow wants to discuss the attack on the Zaporizhzhia plant with the IAEA, Russia's RIA news agency reported, citing Roman Ustinov, the acting Russian representative in Vienna. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/russia-accuses-ukraine-bombing-road-near-zaporizhzhia-nuclear-power-plant-2024-08-17/

2024-08-17 04:04

BERMUDA, Aug 17 (Reuters) - Hurricane Ernesto knocked out power, downed trees and flooded parts of Bermuda on Saturday but the British island territory appeared to have escaped major injuries or property damage, officials said after an initial assessment. The Category 1 storm unleashed powerful winds and whipped up 35-foot (10-meter) seas, leading to power loss for 71% of the territory's 36,000 customers, officials said. "I'm happy to report that there have been no calls for service for any major incidents or damage to any property, and those calls that we've received over the last six hours or so are primarily flooding," risk management official Lyndon Raynor said on a government video update. Some 5.9 inches (150 mm) of rain had fallen and more was expected from the back end of the storm, Michelle Pitcher, director of the Bermuda Weather Service, said on the video. The U.S. National Weather Service said the hurricane was tracking north-northeast. As of 5 p.m. EDT (2100 GMT), it had moved about 85 miles (135 km) past Bermuda, which lies some 600 miles (1,000 km) off the Carolina coast, and was expected to continue moving away on Saturday. The center of the storm is forecast to approach southeastern Newfoundland in Canada late on Monday, the U.S. weather service said. Maximum sustained winds blew at 75 mph (120 kph) and were predicted to hold at that speed for another 48 hours, after which they should weaken, the U.S. weather service said. Bermuda, an archipelago with a population of around 64,000, received a roughly three-hour respite when Ernesto's eye passed over the island early Saturday, but battering rain and wind resumed. The winds were expected to weaken by late Saturday, Pitcher said. "I think that brings some comfort that we are nearing the end of Hurricane Ernesto but we are not there yet," added Michael Weeks, Bermuda's national security minister. Electric utility BELCO said the storm caused near island-wide outages, with about 25,800 customers without power as of Saturday afternoon. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/hurricane-ernesto-weakens-still-dangerous-it-closes-bermuda-2024-08-17/

2024-08-16 22:39

US single-family housing starts tumble in July Jackson Hole symposium looms Indexes notch biggest weekly pct gain since late Oct Indexes up: Dow 0.24%, S&P 500 0.20%, Nasdaq 0.21% NEW YORK, Aug 16 (Reuters) - U.S. stocks ended higher on Friday, extending their biggest weekly percentage gains of the year as worries of an economic downturn eased and investors focused on the Jackson Hole Economic Symposium next week. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq notched their seventh straight session of gains, as stocks recouped losses from a tailspin two weeks ago. The sell-off, sparked by weak economic data and heightened recession fears, confirmed the Nasdaq had entered correction territory. All three indexes recorded their biggest weekly percentage gains since late October, with the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq posting their first weekly gain in five. "What were seeing in today's markets is an extension of the comeback and the calming of earlier recession fears," said Greg Bassuk, CEO of AXS Investments in New York. "The positive economic data is really what's fueling this rally, giving greater confidence to investors that are recession is likely to be avoided, and that the Fed will begin cutting rates in September." A barrage of high profile economic data this week, including the Labor Department's consumer price index and a retail sales report from the Commerce Department, provided assurances that inflation continues meandering down toward the Federal Reserve's 2% target, and that consumer spending is healthy. Data on Friday showed U.S. single-family housing starts dropped to a near 1-1/2-year low in July, while the University of Michigan's preliminary take on August consumer sentiment showed stronger-than-expected improvement. Global central bank officials will speak at the symposium in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, next week, with Fed Chair Jerome Powell's keynote speech on Friday potentially setting expectations for a U.S. rate cut trajectory. "All eyes are going to be laser-focused on Powell's comments next week," Bassuk said. "Market activity this year has consistently been based on the likelihood and extent of Fed rate cuts." Chicago Fed chief Austan Goolsbee said in an interview with National Public Radio that central bank officials should be wary of maintaining restrictive policy longer than necessary. Financial markets are betting on a 74.5% likelihood that the Fed will cut its key policy rate by 25 basis points as it ends its September policy meeting, with a diminishing 25.5% chance of a super-sized 50-basis-point cut, CME's FedWatch tool showed. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) , opens new tab rose 96.7 points, or 0.24%, to 40,659.76. The S&P 500 (.SPX) , opens new tab gained 11.03 points, or 0.20%, at 5,554.25 and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) , opens new tab added 37.22 points, or 0.21%, at 17,631.72. Among the 11 major sectors of the S&P 500, financials (.SPSY) , opens new tab enjoyed the biggest percentage gain, while industrials (.SPLRCI) , opens new tab suffered the largest drop. Applied Materials (AMAT.O) , opens new tab slid 1.9%, reversing its surge after the chip-making equipment firm forecast stronger-than-expected fourth-quarter revenue. Amcor posted a bigger-than-anticipated decline in fourth-quarter sales. The packaging company's U.S.-listed shares dropped 3.7% in the wake of the report. Advancing issues outnumbered decliners on the NYSE by a 2.22-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.53-to-1 ratio favored advancers. The S&P 500 posted 13 new 52-week highs and no new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 66 new highs and 85 new lows. Volume on U.S. exchanges was 10.11 billion shares, compared with the 12.27 billion average for the full session over the last 20 trading days. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/futures-tick-higher-after-sp-500-nasdaq-log-six-day-win-streak-2024-08-16/

2024-08-16 20:24

Aug 16 (Reuters) - Bitcoin, the world's biggest and best-known cryptocurrency, rose 5.17% to $59,609 at 2013 GMT on Friday. Bitcoin, the world's biggest and best-known cryptocurrency, is up 54.8% from the year's low of $38,505 on January 23. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/technology/bitcoin-rises-517-59609-2024-08-16/