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Czech power utility CEZ net profit down in Q1, proposes record dividend

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:59:40 GMT

PRAGUE (AP) — The Czech dominant power utility CEZ said on Thursday its net profit in the first quarter of the year was 10.8 billion Czech crowns ($505 million), 60% less than a year ago.At the same time, the board of directors has approved a proposal for a record dividend of 117 Czech crowns per share for the company’s annual shareholder meeting on June 26.That came after CEZ reported in March net profit of 80.7 billion Czech crowns in 2022, eight times as much as the previous year.The country’s main electricity producer attributed the massive increase to an “enormous rise in prices” caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and to higher profit from commodity trading on foreign markets and also high operational reliability in its power plants.The Czech state, which has an almost 70% stake in the company, will receive in 2023 more than 100 billion Czech crowns from CEZ in dividends, income taxes and levies on production sales, including a windfall tax on profits introduced as pric...

Yellen says defaulting on the US national debt is “unthinkable” and would rank as a catastrophe for the global economy

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:59:40 GMT

NIIGATA, Japan (AP) — Yellen says defaulting on the US national debt is “unthinkable” and would rank as a catastrophe for the global economy.Source

Zelenskyy: Ukraine counteroffensive needs more time, launching now would cost too many lives

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:59:40 GMT

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says his country’s military needs more time to prepare an anticipated counteroffensive aimed at pushing back Russian occupying forces.Zelenskyy said in an interview broadcast Thursday by the BBC that it would be “unacceptable” to launch the assault now because too many lives would be lost.“With (what we have) we can go forward and be successful,” Zelenskyy said in the interview, according to the BBC.“But we’d lose a lot of people. I think that’s unacceptable,” he was quoted as saying. The interview was reportedly carried out in Kyiv with public service broadcasters who are members of Eurovision News, including the BBC.“So we need to wait. We still need a bit more time,” Zelenskyy was quoted as saying.A Ukrainian fightback against Russia’s invasion more than 14 months ago has been expected for weeks. Ukraine is receiving advanced Western weapons, including tanks and other armored vehicles, and Western training for its...

Jacklyn Zeman, veteran ‘General Hospital’ cast member who played Bobbie Spencer, has died

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:59:40 GMT

Jacklyn Zeman, who played Bobbie Spencer for 45 years on ABC’s “General Hospital” has died at 70.Zeman died after a short battle with cancer, her family confirmed Wednesday. News of her death was first announced by the show’s executive producer, Frank Valentini.“I am heartbroken to announce the passing of our beloved Jackie Zeman,” he wrote on Twitter. “Just like her character, the legendary Bobbie Spencer, she was a bright light and a true professional that brought so much positive energy with her work.”ABC Entertainment and “General Hospital” also released a statement stating, “Jacklyn Zeman has been a beloved member of the General Hospital and ABC family since she originated the iconic role of Bobbie Spencer over 45 years ago. She leaves behind a lasting legacy for her Emmy-nominated portrayal of the bad girl turned heroine and will always be remembered for her kind heart and radiant spirit. We are devastated by the news of her passing, and send our deepest condolences to Jackie’...

Domestic issues give Turkey’s Erdogan a tough election race

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:59:40 GMT

ANKARA, Turkey (AP) — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has parlayed his country’s NATO membership and location straddling Europe and the Middle East into international influence during two decades in power. Like other world leaders with global ambitions, he finds his tenure imperiled by matters closer to home. Turkey’s presidential and parliamentary elections on Sunday are taking place amid rampant inflation and months after a catastrophic earthquake killed over 50,000 people in the country’s south. The government has come under criticism for mismanaging the economy and failing to prepare the quake-prone nation for February’s natural disaster.Polls show Erdogan facing the toughest reelection race of his career. A six-party opposition alliance united behind the candidacy of Kemal Kilicdaroglu, leader of the social democratic Republican People’s Party, promising to undo democratic backsliding, repatriate Syrian refugees and to promote the rights of Turkis...

Western weapons, growing experience harden Ukrainian air defenses against renewed Russian onslaught

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:59:40 GMT

NEAR KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — By the time Kyiv residents hear the air-raid sirens signaling an imminent Russian attack, Ukraine’s air-defense units are already on the move. From camouflaged positions, they dart out by truck to farm fields around the capital, ready to take down enemy drones or missiles.The scramble has become an almost nightly event since Russia resumed regular air attacks on Kyiv on April 28 after a nearly two-month lull. The units have intercepted every drone and missile fired at the capital since then.It’s a vast improvement since the opening days of the war, when waves of Russian missiles and aircraft eluded many Ukrainian defenses and inflicted heavy losses on Kyiv’s air force.With the help of Western weapons and growing experience, Ukraine’s air defenses have made great strides in the past 14 months, saving infrastructure and lives and preventing Russia from achieving air superiority — a critical step as Ukrainians prepare for a counteroffensive.T...

Breakaway Moldovan region suggests Russia deploy more peacekeepers

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:59:40 GMT

Transdniestria, the unrecognized breakaway region in Moldova, said it wants Moscow to increase its small contingent peacekeepers due to what it calls growing security threats, reported Russia's RIA News Agency.Though Moldova doesn't allow Russia to send new troops into Transdniestria after the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991, Russia has hundreds of peacekeepers stationed in the area since the bloody conflict between pro-Russian rebels and Moldovan forces.RIA cited Leonid Manakov, the region's envoy in Moscow, as saying that "Moldova is restricted" from making any military preparations or plans against Trandsniestria as long as Russia continues its peacekeeping mission.He was quoted saying: "Transnistria repeatedly requested an increase in Russian peacekeepers. This is a reasonable option given the increasing security risks ...,".Moldova's relations with Russia are strained at the moment and have rapidly deteriorated over the course of Moscow’s full-scale invasion in Ukraine, whi...

Sale closed in San Ramon: $1.9 million for a four-bedroom home

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:59:40 GMT

2471 Palmira Place – Google Street ViewA spacious house located in the 2400 block of Palmira Place in San Ramon has new owners. The 2,202-square-foot property, built in 1975, was sold on April 14, 2023. The $1,850,000 purchase price works out to $840 per square foot. The property features four bedrooms, three baths, an attached garage, and two parking spaces. It sits on a 0.3-acre lot.These nearby houses have also recently changed hands:A 2,518-square-foot home on the 2800 block of Via Cordoba in San Ramon sold in December 2022, for $1,600,000, a price per square foot of $635. The home has 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms.On Barranca Court, San Ramon, in August 2022, a 2,306-square-foot home was sold for $1,715,000, a price per square foot of $744. The home has 3 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms.In June 2022, a 2,008-square-foot home on Bagado Court in San Ramon sold for $1,908,000, a price per square foot of $950. The home has 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms. 

Yellen advierte de que el impago de EE.UU. amenazaría la economía mundial y socavaría el liderazgo mundial de EE.UU.

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:59:40 GMT

(CNN) — La Secretaria del Tesoro de Estados Unidos, Janet Yellen, instó este jueves al Congreso a elevar el techo de su deuda, advirtiendo de que un impago estadounidense produciría una “catástrofe económica y financiera” que desencadenaría una recesión económica mundial y podría socavar su liderazgo global.“Un impago amenazaría los logros que tanto nos ha costado conseguir en los últimos años en nuestra recuperación de la pandemia. Y desencadenaría una recesión mundial que nos haría retroceder mucho más”, dijo Yellen este jueves en Niigata, Japón, donde habló antes de una reunión de ministros de Finanzas y gobernadores de bancos centrales del G7.“También podría socavar el liderazgo económico mundial de EE.UU. y plantear dudas sobre nuestra capacidad para defender nuestros intereses de seguridad nacional”, añadió.ANÁLISIS | Millones de estadounidenses podrían sufrir si la crisis de la deuda no se resuelve en los próximos 30 díasYellen record...

Hong Kong newspaper Ming Pao to stop publishing cartoonist Zunzi after government complaints

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 14:59:40 GMT

HONG KONG (AP) — A Hong Kong newspaper will stop publishing works by the city’s most prominent political cartoonist after his drawings drew government complaints, in another example of hushed speech and media voices after a Beijing-led crackdown.Chinese-language newspaper Ming Pao did not elaborate on why it would end its 40-year partnership with Wong Kei-kwan on Sunday in its announcement. Wong, better known by his pen name Zunzi, told The Associated Press the decision was made through mutual consultation.“Everyone knows why publication has to be halted, but no one will ‘confirm’ the reason,” he said in a text message Thursday to the AP with two emojis showing a laughing face.His comic drawings caricatured Hong Kong society’s frustrations since before the then-British colony was returned to Chinese rule in 1997.The newspaper and the government departments that complained about Wong’s drawings have not responded to requests for comment.Wong said he feels the city’s freedoms of speec...