Brazil’s coffee farmers turn to costly irrigation to quench global demand for the brew
LUIS EDUARDO MAGALHAES/GUAXUPE, Brazil – Drought hit coffee farmers in Brazil hard last year, drying up trees and driving global prices to record highs. But Rodrigo Brondani is expecting a bumper harvest. Brondani’s giant plantation on the savanna of Brazil’s northeastern…
US deports more alleged gang members to El Salvador amid court fight
WASHINGTON – The Trump administration deported more alleged Venezuelan and MS-13 gang members to El Salvador over the weekend, the U.S. State Department said on Monday, even as questions arose in a legal challenge over the process to determine gang…
Estee Lauder faces US legal challenge over China sales practices
NEW YORK – Estee Lauder must face a lawsuit accusing the cosmetic giant of defrauding shareholders by concealing its overdependence on improper gray-market sales in China, a federal judge in Manhattan ruled on Monday. U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian said…
Make Europe Great Again trades are gaining traction
LONDON – A more independent, less U.S.-reliant Europe is taking shape and investors sense opportunities in a long-shunned region that go beyond just snapping up defence shares. Yes, there is reason for caution since massive German spending on defence and…
Aston Martin to raise over $162 million from chairman investment, F1 team stake sale
Aston Martin said on Monday it would raise more than 125 million pounds ($161.9 million) through funding from Chairman Lawrence Stroll’s investment vehicle and the sale of its minority stake in the Formula One team he owns. The carmaker in…
Analysis-For China and US Inc, Trump’s trade war feels much worse this time
SHANGHAI – Orders have evaporated for Richard Chen, who manufactures Christmas decorations in southern China for U.S. retailers, including Walmart and Costco, facing crippling U.S. tariffs. “The orders are half of what they were last year,” said Chen, who is…
Japan estimates feared megaquake could cause $1.8 trln in damage, kill 300,000 people
TOKYO -Japan’s economy could lose as much as $1.81 trillion in the event of a long-anticipated megaquake off its Pacific coast, which could trigger devastating tsunamis, the collapse of hundreds of buildings and potentially killing about 300,000 people, a government…
Iran supreme leader Khamenei rebuffs Trump threat over nuclear deal
DUBAI – Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Monday the U.S. would receive a strong blow if it acts on President Donald Trump’s threat to bomb if Tehran does not reach a new nuclear deal with Washington. Trump…
Trump’s tariffs mean Europe must take control of its future, says ECB’s Lagarde
PARIS -The likely implementation of tariffs imposed by the United States on April 2 means Europe will have to take better control of its future, European Central Bank (ECB) head Christine Lagarde said on Monday. “I’ve tried to describe this…
Ukraine’s bonds, GDP warrant slide as ceasefire proposals falter
LONDON – Ukraine’s dollar bonds and GDP warrant slid more than 1 cent on Monday as hopes for ceasefire proposals with Russia from U.S. President Donald Trump appeared to falter. The GDP warrant shed 1.29 cents to be bid at…
US military completes ‘counter-terrorism mission’ with El Salvador
WASHINGTON – The U.S. military has completed a “successful counter-terrorism mission” in partnership with El Salvador, a senior Pentagon official said on Monday, though the term appeared to refer to the deportation of alleged criminals. Earlier on Monday, the State…
Zelenskiy says Russia has committed over 183,000 war crimes in Ukraine
KYIV – President Volodymyr Zelenskiy called on Monday for Russia to be punished for more than 183,000 alleged war crimes documented by Ukraine since Moscow’s 2022 invasion, saying justice was needed to prevent “evil from proliferating.” He made his comments…
US sanctions six Chinese and Hong Kong officials for rights abuses
WASHINGTON – The United States on Monday sanctioned six senior Chinese and Hong Kong officials for “transnational repression” and actions it said eroded the autonomy of Hong Kong, one of the first major moves by the new Trump administration to…
Exclusive-White House weighs executive order to fast-track deep-sea mining, sources say
The White House is weighing an executive order that would fast-track permitting for deep-sea mining in international waters and let mining companies bypass a United Nations-backed review process, according to two sources with direct knowledge of the deliberations. If signed,…
Poverty-hit Argentines rummage for food even as economic outlook improves
BUENOS AIRES – Some Argentines, hit by tough austerity under libertarian President Javier Milei, are rummaging for food and taking on more informal low-salary jobs, even as hope rises that the most painful period may be over as inflation cools….
Repsol in talks with Washington seeking ways to keep working in Venezuela
MADRID -Spain’s Repsol is in an “open and fluid dialogue” with U.S. authorities as it explores ways to keep operating in Venezuela after Washington moved to revoke its license to export oil from the country, CEO Josu Jon Imaz said…
Thai household debt-to-GDP ratio drops to 88.4 at end-Q4
BANGKOK – The ratio of household debt to gross domestic product in Thailand dropped slightly to 88.4% at the end of the final quarter of 2024 from a revised 88.9% at the end of the third quarter, central bank data…
Stocks drop, gold hits record as tariffs stoke recession worries
NEW YORK/LONDON -Global equity markets were lower and safe-haven gold hit a fresh record high on Monday after U.S. President Donald Trump said tariffs would essentially cover all countries, stoking worries a global trade war could lead to a recession….
Volvo goes back to car industry basics with surprise CEO switch
STOCKHOLM/LONDON – Volvo Car’s abrupt decision to tap Hakan Samuelsson as its CEO puts the car industry veteran back in charge of steering the automaker through U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariff turbulence and a wobbly transition to electric cars, analysts…
FTC concerned about privacy protections in 23andMe bankruptcy
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission is concerned about the potential sale or transfer of Americans’ personal information by 23andMe ancestry testing company that recently filed for bankruptcy, the agency’s chairman said on Monday. FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson said in a…
Union sues to block Trump from ending collective bargaining for many federal workers
A union that represents 150,000 U.S. government employees filed a lawsuit on Monday seeking to block President Donald Trump from stripping hundreds of thousands of federal workers of the ability to collectively bargain with government agencies through their unions. The…
In a change of course, US Justice Dept drops challenge to Georgia voting law
WASHINGTON -U.S. President Donald Trump’s Justice Department said on Monday it was pulling out of a lawsuit that challenges a Republican-backed Georgia election law as discriminatory, abandoning a position it took under Democratic President Joe Biden. U.S. Attorney General Pam…
France’s Le Pen convicted of graft, barred from running for president in 2027
PARIS -French far-right leader Marine Le Pen was banned from running for public office for five years after being convicted on Monday of embezzlement, a political watershed that ruled her out of the 2027 presidential race unless she can win…
US NTSB to investigate close call between Delta plane, military jets
WASHINGTON -The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board said on Monday it will investigate a close call between a Delta Air Lines plane and a group of Air Force jets near Reagan Washington National Airport last week. The Delta Airbus A319…
Yen gains as traders await clarity on US tariffs
NEW YORK -The safe-haven Japanese yen rose on Monday, but was slightly softer against the dollar as uncertainty around U.S. tariffs kept traders mostly on the sidelines waiting for clarity on President Donald Trump’s trade policies. The yen has been…
Trump commutes Ozy Media founder Watson’s nearly 10-year sentence
U.S. President Donald Trump has commuted Ozy Media founder Carlos Watson’s nearly 10-year prison sentence for defrauding investors in his now-defunct startup, the White House said on Friday. Watson, a former cable news anchor and investment banker, was found guilty…
Bodies of Palestinian medics recovered from grave in Gaza, UN officials say
The bodies of eight Red Crescent medics and other Palestinian rescue workers who came under fire more than a week ago have been recovered from a grave in the sand in the south of the Gaza Strip, U.N. officials said….
Exclusive-Brazil’s Bolsonaro calls ruling against Le Pen ‘judicial activism’
RIO DE JANEIRO -Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro told Reuters on Monday that a court ruling that banned French far-right leader Marine Le Pen from seeking public office for five years was “left-wing judicial activism.” Le Pen on Monday was…
Tariff-hit firms may need business turnaround financing, Japan’s bank lobby chair says
TOKYO – Japanese banks may need to offer business turnaround support to companies hit by tariffs imposed by the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump, the head of the country’s banking lobby said. Many large Japanese firms, including major exporters…
Exclusive-Brookfield nears $9 billion-plus deal for Colonial Pipeline, sources say
Brookfield Asset Management is putting the final touches on a deal to acquire Colonial Pipeline, the largest U.S. fuel transportation system, for more than $9 billion including debt, people familiar with the matter said on Monday. The New York-based asset…