Category:

International News

Intel chief warns chip shortage could continue for up to two years

The global chip shortage comes as demand for cars has spiked during the global economy’s recovery from the coronavirus crisis, driving up prices of new and used vehicles.

Some carmakers have adapted to the chip shortage by dropping features from their models, while others have built vehicles without the necessary chips and then parked them until their assembly can be finished later.

read more

As US wildfire threat grows, insurance capacity shrinks

Most wildfire losses that have hit the insurance market originated from California utility companies due to inverse condemnation, which states that private property owners are entitled to compensation if their property is damaged by the government or utilities.

While all U.S. states have such doctrines in place, California has been the only one to apply it for utility-related fires.

read more

J&J forecasts $2.5 bln in 2021 COVID-19 vaccine sales, sets lower production target

J&J estimated its vaccine price at $5 per dose in the first half of the year and said it would likely be as much as $8 by year end. The healthcare conglomerate, which promised it would not make a profit on the vaccine during the pandemic, said the fluctuating price reflected the net costs of the vaccine and production volumes. The $8 price is a bit lower than previous indications. South Africa has said it is paying $10 per dose for both the J&J and the two-shot Pfizer/BioNTech vaccines. AstraZeneca Plc is charging $3 per shot for its two-dose vaccine.

read more

Death rates soar in Southeast Asia as virus wave spreads

A variety of factors have contributed to the recent surge in the region, including people growing weary of the pandemic and letting precautions slip low vaccination rates, and the emergence of the delta variant of the virus, which was first detected in India, said Abhishek Rimal, the Asia-Pacific emergency health coordinator for the Red Cross, who is based in Malaysia.

read more

Shell to appeal landmark climate case in the Netherlands

The ruling came after Milieudefensie, the Dutch arm of Friends of the Earth, sued the company for violating human rights. The court agreed, saying Shell must reduce its total emissions by 45% by 2030 from 2019 levels. That compares with Shell’s own target of reducing the intensity of its greenhouse gas emissions by 20% from 2016 levels.

read more

Saudi Aramco facing USD 50M cyber extortion over leaked data

A page accessed by the AP on the darknet – a part of the internet hosted within an encrypted network and accessible only through specialized anonymity-providing tools – claimed the extortionist held 1 terabyte worth of Aramco data. A terabyte is 1,000 gigabytes.

The page offered Aramco a chance to have the data deleted for USD 50 million in cryptocurrency, while another timer counted down from USD 5 million, likely in an effort to pressure the company. It remains unclear who is behind the ransom plot.

read more

U.S. judge narrows focus of antitrust suit over $30 bln Aon-Willis merger

The DOJ had alleged that combining the two large insurance brokers would harm competition in reinsurance broking, retirement and pension planning and private retiree multicarrier healthcare exchanges. But the divestitures mean those no longer will be issues in the trial, according to the order

read more