Atomic ‘angst’ over? Germany closes last nuclear plants

By Riham Alkousaa BERLIN (Reuters) – Germany will pull the plug on its last three nuclear power stations by Saturday, ending a six-decade programme that spawned one of Europe’s strongest protest movements but saw a brief reprieve due to the Ukraine war. The smoking towers of Isar II, Emsland and Neckarwestheim II reactors were to…

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US bank giants ride rate rises, keep storm clouds at bay

By Nupur Anand, Tatiana Bautzer and Saeed Azhar NEW YORK (Reuters) -U.S. banking heavyweights reaped windfalls from higher interest payments in the first quarter, brushing off a crisis prompted by the collapse of two regional lenders and setting aside billions of dollars in case loans turn sour as the economic outlook dims. First-quarter 2023 earnings…

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IMF seeks more funding assurances before pact on Pakistan aid – Bloomberg News

(Reuters) – The International Monetary Fund is seeking “necessary” financing assurances from Pakistan as soon as possible to conclude a bailout pact with the South Asian nation, Bloomberg News reported on Saturday. Meetings between Pakistan and the IMF achieved agreement on the need to maintain strong policies and secure sufficient financing to support the country’s…

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Biden says he will announce run for re-election ‘soon’

By Steve Holland and Trevor Hunnicutt KNOCK, Ireland (Reuters) -U.S. President Joe Biden said on Friday he has decided to run for a second term and would formally announce his re-election campaign “relatively soon.” “We’ll announce it relatively soon. But the trip here just reinforced my sense of optimism about what can be done,” Biden…

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Eight dead in Sloviansk strike as Ukrainians said to pull back in Bakhmut

By Kai Pfaffenbach and Manuel Ausloos NEAR BAKHMUT, Ukraine (Reuters) -A Russian missile strike killed eight people in eastern Ukraine on Friday as a British assessment said Ukrainian troops had been forced to withdraw from parts of the city of Bakhmut, the focus of Moscow’s slow advance through the region. Ukrainian troops have been doggedly…

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