A federal judge on Thursday dismissed Exxon Mobil Corp’s lawsuit seeking to stop New York and Massachusetts from probing whether the company misled investors and the public about climate change and the potential effects on its business. U.S. District Judge Valerie Caproni in Manhattan said Exxon Mobil’s allegations that New York’s and Massachusetts’ attorneys general, Eric Schneiderman and Maura Healey, were pursuing bad faith probes in order to violate its constitutional rights were “implausible.” Caproni dismissed the lawsuit with prejudice, meaning Exxon Mobil cannot bring it again. …
Soybean Acres to Exceed Corn for the First Time in 35 Years
Corn has been dethroned as the king of crops as farmers report they intend to plant more soybeans than corn for the first time in 35 years. The U.S. Department of Agriculture says in its annual prospective planting report released Thursday that farmers intend to plant 89 million acres (36 million hectares) in soybeans and 88 million acres (35.6 million hectares) in corn. The primary reason is profitability. Corn costs much more to plant because of required demands for pest and disease control and fertilizer. When the profitability of both crops is close, farmers bet on soybeans for a better return. The only year that soybean acres beat corn in recent memory was 1983, when the government pushed farmers to plant fewer acres to boost prices in the midst of the nation’s worst farm crisis. Iowa is the top corn-producing state, followed by Illinois, Nebraska and Minnesota. Top soybean states are Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota and North Dakota. …
Долар уперше з початку березня посилився понад 26,5 гривні – НБУ
Національний банк України вперше з 5 березня встановив курс гривні до долара США на рівні понад 26 гривень 50 копійок за одиницю американської валюти. Офіційний курс на 30 березня становить 26 гривень 54 копійки за долар. Регулятор оприлюднив курс на підставі торгів, що відбулися на міжбанківському валютному ринку. 29 березня вперше за багато тижнів НБУ вийшов на ринок із пропозицією долара, щоб не допустити надмірного послаблення гривні. Як інформує сайт «Мінфін», Нацбанк у форматі «запиту найкращого курсу» продав щонайменше 30 мільйонів доларів. …
Researchers Study Old Wooden Ship Remains on Florida Beach
A 48-foot section of an old sailing ship has washed ashore on a Florida beach, thrilling researchers who are rushing to study it before it’s reclaimed by the sea. The Florida Times-Union reports the well-preserved section of a wooden ship’s hull washed ashore overnight Tuesday on Florida’s northeastern coast. Researchers with the St. Augustine Lighthouse and Maritime Museum have been documenting the artifact and say it could date back as far as the 1700s. Museum historian Brendan Burke told the newspaper that evidence suggests the vessel was once sheeted in copper, and that crews found Roman numerals carved on its wooden ribs. Researchers rushed to photograph and measure the wreckage. The photos will be used to create a 3-D model. …
Chinese Pill Factories Fuel Opioid Crisis in America’s Heartland
On a freezing January night, Bailey Henke, 18, of Grand Forks, N.D. died in yet another tragic case of opioid overdose in America. Authorities later traced the pill he swallowed to a fentanyl factory in China – one the world’s top sources of the illegal drug. VOA traveled to America’s Heartland to see how Henke’s family, friends and the community are grappling with the deadly fallout from the Chinese drug supply chain. …
Distant Galaxy Baffles Astronomers With Its Lack of Dark Matter
It’s a double cosmic conundrum: Lots of stuff that was already invisible has gone missing. Astronomers have found a distant galaxy where there is no dark matter. Dark matter is called “dark” because it can’t be seen. It is the mysterious and invisible skeleton of the universe that scientists figure makes up about 27 percent of the cosmos. Scientists only know dark matter exists because they can observe how it pushes and pulls things they can see, like stars. It’s supposed to be everywhere. What you see is what you get But Yale University astronomer Pieter van Dokkum and colleagues spied a vast, old galaxy with relatively few stars where what you see truly is what you get. The galaxy’s stars are speeding around with no apparent influence from dark matter, according to a study published in Wednesday’s journal Nature. Instead of shaking the very foundations of physics, scientists say this absence of dark matter may help prove the existence of, wait for it, dark matter. “Not sure what to make of it, but it is definitely intriguing,” wrote Case Western Reserve astronomer Stacy McGaugh, who was not part of the study, in an email. “This is a weird galaxy.” Van Dokkum studies diffuse galaxies, ones that cover enormous areas but have relatively few stars. To look for them he and colleagues built their own makeshift telescope out of 48 telephoto lenses that he first tested by using a toy flashlight to shine a light on a paper clip. The …
US, Canada Differ on Quick NAFTA Resolution
The Trump administration is hopeful it can reach a deal on a new North American Free Trade Agreement before the July 1 presidential election in Mexico and U.S. midterm congressional elections in November. “I’d say I’m hopeful — I think we are making progress. I think that all three parties want to move forward. We have a short window, because of elections and things beyond our control,” U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer told CNBC television Wednesday. But Canada’s chief negotiator was far less optimistic. “We have yet to see exactly what the U.S. means by an agreement in principle,” Steve Verheul told reporters Wednesday in Ottawa. There are still “significant gaps,” Verheul said. “We can accomplish quite a bit between now and then, and we’ve made it clear to the U.S. that we will be prepared to negotiate at any time, any place, for as long as they are prepared to negotiate, but so far we haven’t really seen that process get going,” he said. Officials from the U.S., Canada and Mexico are supposed to meet in the United States next month for the eighth round of talks, although Washington has not announced dates yet. …
Psychology Course on Happiness Strikes Chord With Yale Students
The search for life’s sweetest but most elusive treasure — happiness — brings nearly 1,200 Yale University undergraduates twice a week into an enormous hall on the Connecticut school’s campus for its most popular class ever. “Psychology and the Good Life” is such a hit that one in four undergraduate students at the Ivy League university is enrolled in the spring semester course, said Laurie Santos, the psychology professor who teaches the class. It is the largest class enrollment size in the history of Yale, founded in 1701. What is the draw? Santos says it is the hope that science can help students find blissful relief from the misery that has reached at all-time high at colleges. “Students report being more depressed than they have ever been in history at college, more anxious,” she said. Social science has generated many new insights into what makes people happy and how they can achieve that, Santos said. “They really want to learn those insights in an empirical, science-driven way,” she said, referring to students enrolled in the course. The third-oldest university in the United States, Yale boasts many famous alumni, including presidents George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush, Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito and actors Paul Newman and Meryl Streep. Socialization, exercise, sleep Santos said feelings of happiness are fostered through socialization, exercise, meditation and plenty of sleep. Money and possessions are often seen as goals in the game of life, but the route to happiness heads in a different direction, she said. “Very happy people spend time with others, they prioritize time with their friends, time with their family, they even …
Entrepreneur: ‘Anyone Can Play a Role’ in African Innovation
Anyone can play a role in African innovation, according to Afua Osei. The Ghana-born entrepreneur who grew up in Washington, D.C., co-founded a Nigerian digital media company that helps young women advance professionally. VOA reporter Tigist Geme has more on the woman behind She Leads Africa. …
US Economic Growth Better Than First Thought
The U.S. economy grew a bit faster than first thought in the last few months of 2017, expanding at an annual rate of 2.9 percent, beating the earlier estimate by several tenths of a percent. Wednesday’s report from the Commerce Department showed the improvement came in part from stronger consumer spending. The new figures are a routine revision made as more complete data becomes available. The fourth-quarter figures added to several quarters of solid growth which saw the world’s largest economy expand 2.3 percent in 2017, which is significantly stronger than the prior year. Some economists have been revising their forecasts for growth in 2018 following a major tax cut and plans to increase government spending over the next two years. The stimulus from lower taxes and higher spending at a time of full employment is raising some concerns about inflation, and that is expected to prompt the U.S. central bank to continue raising interest rates. The Federal Reserve tries to keep inflation from rising so high or so fast that it damages the economy by using higher interest rates to cool economic activity. …
Aging Japan: Robots May Have Role in Future of Elder Care
Paro the furry seal cries softly while an elderly woman pets it. Pepper, a humanoid, waves while leading a group of senior citizens in exercises. The upright Tree guides a disabled man taking shaky steps, saying in a gentle feminine voice, “right, left, well done!” Robots have the run of Tokyo’s Shin-tomi nursing home, which uses 20 different models to care for its residents. The Japanese government hopes it will be a model for harnessing the country’s robotics expertise to help cope with a swelling elderly population and dwindling workforce. Allowing robots to help care for the elderly — a job typically seen as requiring a human touch — may be a jarring idea in the West. But many Japanese see them positively, largely because they are depicted in popular media as friendly and helpful. “These robots are wonderful,” said 84-year-old Kazuko Yamada after the exercise session with SoftBank Robotics Corp.’s Pepper, which can carry on scripted dialogues. “More people live alone these days, and a robot can be a conversation partner for them. It will make life more fun.” Plenty of obstacles may hinder a rapid proliferation of elder care robots: high costs, safety issues and doubts about how useful — and user-friendly — they will be. The Japanese government has been funding development of elder care robots to help fill a projected shortfall of 380,000 specialised workers by 2025. Despite steps by Japan to allow foreign workers in for elder care, obstacles to employment in the sector, including exams in Japanese, remain. …
Robots Pose Big Threat to Jobs in Africa, Researchers Warn
It could soon be cheaper to operate a factory of robots in the United States than employing manual labor in Africa. That’s the stark conclusion of a report from a London-based research institute, which warns that automation could have a devastating effect on developing economies unless governments invest urgently in digitalization and skills training. The rhythmic sounds of the factory floor. At this textile plant in Rwanda, hundreds of workers sit side-by-side at sewing machines, churning out clothes that will be sold in stores across the world. Outsourcing production by using cheap labor in the developing world has been a hallmark of the global economy for decades. But technology could be about to turn that on its head. Research from the Overseas Development Institute focused on the example of furniture manufacturing in Africa. Karishma Banga co-authored the report. “In the next 15 to 20 years, robots in the U.S. are actually going to become much cheaper than Kenyan labor. Particularly in the furniture manufacturing industry. So this means that around 2033, American companies will find it much more profitable to reshore production back. Which means essentially get all the jobs and production back from the developing countries to the U.S. And that obviously can have very significantly negative effects for jobs in Africa.” As robots are getting cheaper, she says, people are getting more expensive. “So the cost of a robot or the cost of a 3D printer, they’re declining at similar levels, around 6 percent annually. So that’s a …
WTO Chief Sees No Sign of US Departure
There is no sign that the United States is distancing itself from the World Trade Organization, and negotiations are underway to avert a global trade war, WTO Director-General Roberto Azevedo said in a BBC interview broadcast Wednesday. U.S. President Donald Trump has launched a series of tariff-raising moves, upsetting allies and rivals alike. Trump is also vetoing the appointment of WTO judges, causing a backlog in disputes and threatening to paralyze what is effectively the supreme court of trade. Some trade experts have begun asking whether Trump wants to kill the WTO, whose 164 members force each other to play by the rules. “I have absolutely no indication that the United Sates is walking away from the WTO. Zero indication,” Azevedo said in an interview on the BBC Hardtalk program, according to excerpts released early by the BBC. Last month, Trump called the WTO a “catastrophe” and complained the United States had only a minority of its judges. Correction The next day, Azevedo gently set him straight, noting that the United States had an unusually good deal, since it had always had one of the seven judges. Asked whether the WTO should be thinking about a Plan B without the United States, Azevedo told the BBC that he had not heard anything to suggest that such a situation was in the cards. “Every contact that I have in the U.S. administration assures me that they are engaging,” he said. The question of whether U.S. tariffs were legal could be settled …
Decade-long Makeover of King Tut’s Tomb Nearly Completed
A nearly decade-long makeover of King Tut’s tomb aimed at preserving one of Egypt’s most important archaeological sites and also one of its most popular tourist attractions is close to complete, the Getty Conservation Institute of Los Angeles said Tuesday. The project has added a filtration system to keep out dust, humidity and carbon dioxide and a barrier to keep visitors from continuing to damage the tomb’s elaborate wall paintings. Other amenities include walkways and a viewing platform. New lights are also scheduled to be installed in the fall in the tomb of Tutankhamun, the legendary boy king who ruled Egypt more than 3,000 years ago. His mummified body remains on display in an oxygen-free case. The project was launched in 2009 by the Los Angeles institute, known worldwide for its conservation work, in collaboration with Egypt’s Ministry of Antiquities. “This project greatly expanded our understanding of one of the best known and significant sites from antiquity, and the methodology used can serve as a model for similar sites,” Tim Whalen, the John E. and Louise Bryson director of the institute, said in a statement. Tutankhamun, just a child when he assumed the throne, was about 19 when he died. His tomb, discovered in 1922 by British archaeologist Howard Carter, was hidden for millennia by flood debris that preserved it intact and protected it from tomb raiders. Over the years humidity and dust carried in by visitors have caused damage, as have some visitors who scratched the wall paintings. “Humidity …
Trump Gets First Trade Deal as US, Korea Revise Agreement
U.S. President Donald Trump, who campaigned against economic agreements he considered unfair to America has his first trade deal. The United States and South Korea have agreed to revise their sweeping six-year-old trade pact which was completed during the administration of Trump’s predecessor, Barack Obama. The agreement “will significantly strengthen the economic and national security relationships between the United States and South Korea,” according to a senior administration official in Washington. Trump had threatened to scrap the Korea-US Free Trade Agreement (KORUS FTA), calling it “horrible.” But officials of his administration on Tuesday confirmed key aspects of the agreement which officials in Seoul had announced the previous day. “When this is finalized it will be the first successful renegotiation of a trade agreement in U.S. history,” according to a senior U.S. official. The tentative agreement between the United States and its sixth largest trading partner and a critical security ally in Asia comes at a time of fast-moving developments on the Korean peninsula. In exchange for terms more favorable to American automakers, South Korea — the third largest steel exporter to the United States — is being exempted for recently announced heavy tariffs on steel rolled out by Trump. South Korea will also limit to about 2.7 million tons per year shipments of steel to the United States. “This is a huge win,” a senior U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told reporters on a conference call Tuesday evening. Trump last week also temporarily excluded other trade partners, including …
In Niger’s Desert, Europe’s Migration Crackdown Pinches Wallets
For this ancient town on the southern edge of the Sahara, the flow of desperate migrants trying to reach Europe used to be a boon, not a burden. Abdoul Ahmed, a 31-year-old mechanic in Agadez, measured the good years in customers. When arrivals in Europe peaked in 2015, dozens of cars came to his workshop each day to get their tires changed before setting off across the desert. But since the European Union cracked down on migration a year later, his daily clientele has dropped to one or two. That earns him about $4, to be shared with five skinny teenage apprentices. “Times are bad. There’s no activity,” he said, sitting along one of the few paved roads in Agadez, a mud-brick town where beat-up motorcycles outnumber cars. For years, the old trading post in Niger has been a key stop for West Africans traveling north — mostly young men fleeing poverty in search of better opportunities abroad. It is the place where migrants find smugglers to arrange their trip across the desert. Those ferrying the travelers earn hundreds of dollars for each person they cram into the back of a Toyota Hilux. But smugglers have not been the only ones to benefit from the migrant boom, said Sadou Soloke, the governor of Agadez. Cash from feeding, housing and transporting migrants fed thousands of people in the area and helped develop the impoverished region, he told Reuters. That activity began to slow when Niger, under EU pressure, started arresting smugglers …
Greece Approved for 6.7 Billion-Euro Bailout Installment
Europe’s bailout fund on Tuesday approved a 6.7 billion-euro ($8.32 billion) loan installment to Greece as part of its third international rescue program, with payment of the first 5.7 billion euros expected this week. The European Stability Mechanism said the approval came after the Greek government completed a series of required reforms. The funds will be used to service public debt and clear domestic arrears. “Today’s decision … acknowledges the hard work by the Greek government and Greek people in completing an extensive set of reforms,” said ESM head Klaus Regling. The reforms were in tax policy, privatizations and the resolution of nonperforming loans, among others. The ESM said the initial 5.7 billion euros were to be disbursed Wednesday. The remaining 1 billion euros, to be used for clearing arrears, may be disbursed after May 1 if the country “makes progress in reducing its stock of arrears.” Greece has depended on billions of euros from international rescue loans since 2010, and its third bailout is due to end this summer. In exchange for the money, successive governments have had to implement often painful economic and structural reforms, including tax increases and severe cuts to pensions and public spending. Regling said he was “confident that Greece is on track to successfully exit the ESM program in August 2018, provided that the remaining reforms are implemented by the Greek government.” Greece’s financial crisis has wiped out a quarter of the economy and led to persistently high unemployment, which continues to hover above …
Yucky Ducky? Study Reveals Bath-Time Toy’s Dirty Secret
Scientists now have the dirt on the rubber ducky: Those cute yellow bath-time toys are — as some parents have long suspected — a haven for nasty bugs. Swiss and American researchers counted the microbes swimming inside the toys and say the murky liquid released when ducks were squeezed contained “potentially pathogenic bacteria” in four out of the five toys studied. The bacteria found included Legionella and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a bacterium that is “often implicated in hospital-acquired infections,” the authors said in a statement. The study by the Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, ETH Zurich and the University of Illinois was published Tuesday in the journal Biofilms and Microbiomes. It’s billed as one of the first in-depth scientific examinations of its kind. They turned up a strikingly high volume — up to 75 million cells per square centimeter (0.15 square inch) — and variety of bacteria and fungus in the ducks. Tap water doesn’t usually foster the growth of bacteria, the scientists said, but low-quality polymers in the plastic materials give them the nutrients they need. Bodily fluids — like urine and sweat — as well as contaminants and even soap in bathwater add microbes and nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus and create balmy brine for bacteria. “We’ve found very big differences between different bath animals,” said microbiologist and lead study author Lisa Neu, alluding to other types of bath toys — like rubber crocodiles — that also were examined. “One of the reasons was the material, …
China at a Quandary With US Tech Firms Amid Trade Dispute
While China and the United States seem to be negotiating in an effort to avert a trade war, Washington is unlikely to relent in its determination to stop advanced technology from leaving America for China. “I think there is a growing consensus in the United States that Chinese firms should be blocked from certain types of acquisitions of U.S. firms, of getting certain types of U.S. technology,” said AlexCapri, an international trade scholar at the National University of Singapore. China has come up with a list of U.S. products it will target as part of a retaliatory action against Washington’s plan to raise tariffs on Chinese products. But it has been silent about restricting technology companies. International action The European Union already is considering a law that would scrutinize and block Chinese purchases of local firms for the purpose of acquiring new technology. China is worried any U.S. action would embolden European politicians and hasten the process of prohibiting Chinese acquisitions. “I don’t know that is unique just in the United States. I think there are other European countries, Australia … so, I expect to see a lot more interference, a lot more blockage of acquisitions by either Chinese-owned funds or Chinese-owned tech firms that are looking to grow through acquisitions,” said Capri. That has been evident in recent months as the U.S. put limits on China’s Huawei technology company and clamped down on Singapore-based Broadcom because it is connected with Chinese companies and can work as a conduit to …
Trump’s Approval Ratings Are on the Upswing
With a robust U.S. economy, polls show that President Donald Trump’s approval ratings are on the upswing, even as a majority of Americans still disapprove of his 14-month White House tenure. A pair of polls this week — by CNN and the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research — both say that 42 percent of Americans approve of his performance as president, the highest figures the news organizations have recorded in months. CNN says 54 percent of voters disapprove of Trump’s handling of the presidency, while AP says 58 percent feel that way. Real Clear Politics’ national average of several polls shows a similar result, a 53-42 negative rating for Trump. Trump’s approval ratings, through the first months of his four-year term, have been the lowest among modern U.S. presidents recorded during seven decades of polling. But CNN noted that Trump’s current standing is only marginally lower than that recorded for President Ronald Reagan in the early 1980s and President Barack Obama in 2010 in the earliest stages of their two-term presidencies. Trump’s White House tenure has been buffeted by a marked turnover of key officials, with Trump firing both Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and national security adviser H.R. McMaster in recent days, and allegations of extramarital affairs in 2006 — relationships the U.S. leader has denied took place a decade before the 2016 election. Both CNN and AP said that Trump’s brightening approval numbers are linked to the performance of the U.S. economy, the world’s largest, where …
Saudi Crown Prince: OPEC, Russia Consider Long-Term Oil Pact
OPEC and Russia are working on a long-term deal to cooperate on oil supply curbs that could extend controls over world oil supplies by major exporters for many years to come. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman told Reuters that Riyadh and Moscow were considering extending an alliance on oil curbs that began in January 2017 after oil prices crashed. “We are working to shift from a year-to-year agreement to a 10-20 year agreement,” the crown prince told Reuters in an interview in New York. ”We have agreement on the big picture, but not yet on the detail.” Saudi Arabia recruited Russia and other producers to collaborate on oil supply curbs in 2017 after oil prices crashed and the Saudi oil minister said last week Riyadh hoped to extend that deal into 2019. The crown prince said a flotation of 5 pct of state Saudi oil company Aramco could take place at the end of 2018 or early 2019, depending on market conditions. …
Мінекономрозвитку: Україна застосовує 12 захисних торговельних заходів щодо товарів з Росії
Віце-прем’єр, міністр економічного розвитку і торгівлі Степан Кубів заявляє, що Україна застосовує 12 захисних торговельних заходів щодо товарів з Росії. «Станом на сьогодні, що стосується імпорту товарів походженням з Російської Федерації, діє 12 захисних торгових заходів», – сказав він. Кубів уточнив, що 10 заходів є антидемпінговими, один – компенсаційний і ще один – спеціальний. Кабінет міністрів України 14 березня схвалив тимчасову заборону на ввезення російських мінеральних добрив. 21 березня уряд зупинив дію програми економічного співробітництва з Росією на 2011-2020 роки …
НБУ відмовив «Паритет Банку» в купівлі української «дочки» «Сбербанку»
Національний банк України відмовив білоруському «Паритет Банку» в купівлі української «дочки» «Сбербанку». Як повідомляє прес-служба НБУ, це рішення схвалене 19 березня у зв’язку з невідповідністю заявника вимогам законодавства України. У Нацбанку додають, що про це рішення вже повідомили заявнику, а також обговорили з новим керівництвом українського ПАТ «Сбербанк» питання подальшої стратегії банку в Україні. Національний банк України за рішенням Ради національної безпеки і оборони застосував від 23 березня 2017 року санкції стосовно дочірніх компаній російських державних банків, які працюють в Україні, зокрема і щодо «Сбербанку». Дію цих санкцій продовжили. У березні 2017 року найбільший у Росії комерційний банк «Сбербанк», підконтрольний державі, розглядає варіанти якнайшвидшого виходу з українського ринку. «Сбербанк» повідомив про продаж своїх філій в Україні. Перед застосуванням санкцій і повідомлення про вихід з українського банку представники «Національного корпусу» вимагали припинення діяльності російських підприємств в Україні, зокрема і «Сбербанку». …
Uber Sells Southeast Asia Business to Grab After Costly Battle
Uber Technologies has agreed to sell its Southeast Asian business to bigger regional rival Grab, the ride-hailing firms said on Monday, marking the U.S. company’s second retreat from an Asian market. The industry’s first big consolidation in Southeast Asia, home to about 640 million people, puts pressure on Indonesia’s Go-Jek, which is backed by Alphabet’s Google and China’s Tencent Holdings Ltd. A shake-up in Asia’s fiercely competitive ride-hailing industry became likely earlier this year when Japan-based SoftBank Group Corp’s Vision Fund made a multibillion-dollar investment in Uber. SoftBank owns stakes in most major global ride services companies, and executives have indicated they favored consolidation. SoftBank already had investments in Grab and India’s Ola, and Vision Fund Chief Executive Rajeev Misra had urged Uber to focus less on Asia and more on profitable markets such as Latin America, a person familiar with the matter said. Grab President Ming Maa told Reuters that SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son was “highly supportive” of the deal, which he called “a very independent decision by both” Grab and Uber. Uber will take a 27.5 percent stake in Singapore-based Grab and Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi will join Grab’s board. Grab was last valued at $6 billion after a financing round in July. “It will help us double down on our plans for growth as we invest heavily in our products and technology,” Khosrowshahi said in a statement. The Competition Commission of Singapore (CCS) said it has the mandate to review whether any mergers will result in a …