By Ange Aboa ABOISSO, Ivory Coast (Reuters) – Ivory Coast has stopped selling contracts for cocoa exports for the 2023-2024 season after heavy rains battered and flooded farms in the world’s top cocoa-producing nation in recent weeks, the head of the country’s cocoa sector regulator told Reuters. With cocoa prices currently at record levels due…
(Reuters) -Demand for power in Texas hit a record high on Wednesday as homes and business cranked up air conditioners during a lingering heatwave, according to data from the state’s power grid operator. ERCOT said power use reached a preliminary 81,351 megawatts (MW) at 6 p.m. CST (2300 GMT), topping the grid’s previous record of…
By Clark Mindock (Reuters) – A U.S. appeals court on Wednesday temporarily blocked a Biden administration plan to improve cybersecurity for public water systems, after Republican-led states complained it would thrust burdensome costs on small and rural water suppliers. The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis issued a stay temporarily suspending the…
By Kanishka Singh WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Wednesday proposed stricter regulations for lead exposure in residential buildings and childcare facilities. Any amount of lead found in a building will be regarded as hazardous, according to the proposed rule from the EPA that would lower its lead dust hazard level…
By Stephanie Kelly NEW YORK (Reuters) – A bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers introduced legislation this week directing the Biden administration to allow oil refiners to purchase compliance credits for U.S. biofuel blending laws at a lower, fixed cost compared to the open market. The proposal would reduce rising compliance costs associated with the U.S….
By Leah Douglas (Reuters) – About 735 million people worldwide faced chronic hunger in 2022, a figure much higher than before the COVID-19 pandemic and which threatens progress towards a global goal to end hunger by 2030, said the United Nations on Wednesday. A multi-year upward trend in hunger rates leveled off last year as…
(Reuters) – Nearly 100 million Americans are facing a prolonged spell of sweltering weather this week, with the National Weather Forecast issuing heat advisories for many cities and towns across the country. In many places in the Southwest, where hot summers are the norm, extreme temperatures are in the forecast. Here are some of the…
BERLIN (Reuters) -Germany’s finance ministry plans to offer companies a tax relief package of around 6 billion euros ($6.61 billion) per year against the backdrop of a difficult economic environment, ministry sources said. German business morale has been deteriorating, suggesting that Europe’s largest economy will struggle to shake off recession. “The economy needs stimulus –…
By Oliver Griffin BOGOTA (Reuters) – Deforestation in Colombia fell 29.1% in 2022 versus the previous year spurred by sharp decreases in the country’s Amazon region, the government said on Wednesday, marking the lowest level since 2013. The government of leftist President Gustavo Petro says it is prioritizing protecting Colombia’s environment and has called on…
By Jorgelina do Rosario LONDON (Reuters) -Global public debt surged to a record $92 trillion in 2022 as governments borrowed to counter crises, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, with the burden being felt acutely by developing countries, a United Nations report said. Domestic and external debt worldwide has increased more than five times in the…
