Category: US

LONDON — Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg on Tuesday was detained by police after joining hundreds of protesters to disrupt a major energy conference in London.

Thunberg was arrested outside the InterContinental London Park Lane hotel during the “Oily Money Out” protest organized by Fossil Free London and Greenpeace.

The demonstration was held on the first day of the Energy Intelligence Forum, a three-day gathering of major oil and gas executives, politicians, and civil society groups.

“We need direct action to take back the power from the oil elite that has gathered here today behind closed doors. Their only plan is to profit at our expense,” Nuri Syed Corser, an organizer with Fossil Free London, said in a statement.

“Arrests like these will not deter us. Our right to protest is our own, it is not given to us by the Government,” Corser added.

Among those scheduled to speak at the Energy Intelligence Forum, formerly known as the Oil and Money conference, include Occidental Petroleum CEO Vicki Hollub, Saudi Aramco CEO Amin Nasser and Shell CEO Wael Sawan.

Addressing a news conference outside the hotel earlier in the day, Thunberg said, “We have no other option but to put our bodies outside this conference and to physically disrupt and, we have to do that every time. We have to continue showing them that they are not going to get away with this.”

“This is only the beginning of this fight and we are going to stay and we are going to come back time and time again until we see real action,” she added. “We have to reclaim the power and that is what we are doing today. We have to kick oily money out.”

The 20-year-old was catapulted to fame for skipping school every Friday to hold a weekly vigil outside the Swedish Parliament in 2018.

Thunberg took part in her final so-called school strike in June as she graduated from school, signing off after 251 consecutive weeks of demonstrations with a warning that “the fight has only just begun.”

Fossil Free London said 27 people have been arrested so far and protests would continue outside the conference through to Thursday.

The Met Police said in a statement via X, formerly known as Twitter, that it had imposed conditions on the protestors under Section 14 of the Public Order Act “to prevent serious disruption to the community, hotel and guests.”

It said a number of protestors failed to comply, with six people arrested for obstruction of the highway, 14 arrests for Section 14 of the Public Order Act, and one for criminal damage.

Section 14 of the Public Order Act allows the police to impose conditions on a public group to prevent a range of issues, including “significant impact on persons or serious disruption to the activities of an organisation by noise; serious disorder [and] serious damage to property.”

Big Oil has been accused of dialing back its climate pledges in recent months following record annual profits that were described by human rights group Amnesty International as “patently unjustifiable” and “an unmitigated disaster.”

Speaking at the ADIPEC oil and gas conference in Abu Dhabi earlier this month, chief executives of some of the world’s largest energy majors sought to defend themselves from climate criticism.

“We’ve got to step up and prepare for the decarbonized systems of the future,” Tengku Muhammad Taufik, president and group CEO of Malaysia’s state energy firm, Petronas, said during a CNBC-moderated panel on Oct. 2.

“So, the debate has always been posed here, I’m reminded of an old saying: ‘If you want to keep everyone happy, sell ice cream.’ We are not in the business of ice cream — and I’m reminded, there are people who are lactose intolerant,” Taufik said.

The burning of fossil fuels, such as oil, gas and coal, is the chief driver of the climate crisis.

As had been widely expected, a major U.N. report published last month confirmed that the world is currently not on track to meet the long-term goals of the 2015 Paris Agreement, a landmark accord that aims to pursue efforts to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels.

The world has warmed by around 1.1 degrees Celsius after more than a century of burning fossil fuels as well as unequal and unsustainable energy and land use. Indeed, it is this temperature increase that is fueling a series of extreme weather events around the world.

Prices keep creeping higher for shoppers in the market for a new or used vehicle.

Car prices and interest rates are higher, pushing up costs for drivers. Yet, pent-up demand has kept cars moving off lots, experts say, meaning dealers don’t have much reason to offer discounts.

“What really is driving these prices is less inventory than before,” said Jessica Caldwell, Edmunds’ head of insights. “Consumers are not getting necessarily the massive discounts they once were.”

The annual percentage rate on car loans jumped in the third quarter, according to Edmunds. The APR on loans for new vehicles rose to 7.4% and used-vehicles, to 11.2%, both levels last seen during the Great Recession.

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Rising rates contributed to higher costs. The third-quarter average monthly payment on a new vehicle was a record $736, up from $733 in the second quarter, according to Edmunds. For used cars, the average monthly payment slightly lowered to $567 from $569.

The auto market is still seeing pent-up demand from drivers who had delayed buying new vehicles in 2020 but are now shopping around despite high current costs.

“We’re getting to a point where people just can’t delay [purchases] any longer; they’re getting back into the market,” said Caldwell.

It’s still too soon to tell whether the ongoing United Auto Workers strike is impacting car prices, said Caldwell. Moreover, the strike might only affect a relatively small number of vehicles when compared to the auto market as a whole.

Car shoppers are instead seeing the effects of a low-inventory, high-demand market, leaving little to no room for discounts, experts say.

Historically, new model year vehicles would come into a dealer’s lot by the end of the summer to replace older inventory. At that point, dealers had motivation to offer discounts on leftover older models.

However, this year “there are no leftovers,” said Tom McParland, regarding vehicles that serve the average consumer. McParland is a contributing writer for automotive website Jalopnik and operator of vehicle-buying service Automatch Consulting.

“There’s really no such thing as a leftover 2023 Sienna Hybrid because these cars are selling six to nine months before they even arrive at the dealership,” he added.

Car shoppers hardly saw similar end-of-summer sales last year either because of a chip shortage that reduced production levels, added Caldwell. The shortage of semiconductors during the pandemic led to a significant drop in produced vehicles, costing the auto industry billions in revenue.

For cars targeted to the average consumer, such as sedans, crossovers and hybrids, deals are hard to come by because of high demand and slow production, said McParland. On the other hand, there are leftover deals for luxury electric vehicles because those cars have been sitting around, he added. 

However, there are some exceptions; shoppers may see more inventory for different vehicles. EV availability was well above the industry average at the start of October as product availability and EV production rapidly increases, according to auto industry service provider Kelley Blue Book.

This leaves room for deals in a high-inventory market, said McParland.

“It is absolutely a great time to look into the EV market, both for new and pre-owned,” he said.

Additionally, recurring price cuts from Tesla this year might also soften prices in the EV market as a whole, added Caldwell.

The average price paid for an EV was $50,683 in September, down from $52,212 in August and down from more than $65,000 one year ago, according to Kelley Blue Book.

Pre-owned electric vehicles are more likely to go for a price under $25,000, which would qualify the car shopper for an additional federal tax credit of $4,000.

However, drivers shopping for a preowned vehicle should keep in mind that while EVs don’t have as many parts as gas-powered cars, it remains difficult to predict how long their rechargeable batteries will last.

EVs from five years ago or 2018 “weren’t as good,” said Caldwell, especially when looking at ranges and charging efficiency.

Overall, prices for cars at large are unlikely to drop significantly in the future. The technology that is being built into vehicles will further drive prices up “as we go towards electrification and autonomous technology,” added Caldwell.

“Those technologies are pricey.”

If you are currently in the market for a new or used car, do your research before heading to the dealership to make the best decision. Here are three tips:

Get preapproval for an auto loan. Dealerships don’t always offer the most competitive financing. Shop for financing at your personal bank and other local financial institutions and credit unions online to see what type of loans and interest rates you can get, said Caldwell.Shop for both new and used. Expand your research to increase the probability of finding good deals that work for your budget. If you weren’t a used car shopper before, looking into certified pre-owned vehicles can help bring you peace of mind, said Caldwell.Research trade-in values. If you’re trading in a vehicle, get quotes from different source and dealers and try various appraisal features. “Definitely shop around and make sure you’re not leaving that money on the table,” she said.

Tupperware on Tuesday appointed Laurie Ann Goldman as its new CEO and shook up its board as the iconic brand tries to overcome its recent struggles.

Shares of Tupperware surged 12% on Tuesday following the announcement. However, the stock is down more than 40% so far this year, and its market cap is just about $107 million. Shares are trading at about $2.30.

The company warned investors earlier this year about its ability to survive as a going concern. It has delayed its financial reporting a number of times this year amid ongoing financial struggles. In an August securities filing, the company said it identified “multiple prior period misstatements and material weaknesses in internal control over financial reporting.”

Goldman’s predecessor, Miguel Fernandez, worked just three years as the company’s CEO. The container maker also appointed three new members to its board, with Fernandez also departing the board, the company said in a statement.

Goldman had previously served as CEO of Avon North America and Spanx.

“Now is the right time to bring in new leadership, and Laurie Ann is exceptionally well-suited to advance our long-term strategy and accelerate growth,” said Susan Cameron, Tupperware’s chair.

Former President Donald Trump returned to court in Manhattan on Tuesday to attend the ongoing civil fraud trial against him and his company.

Outside of the courtroom at Manhattan Supreme Court, Trump slammed the judge who will decide the case.

“He’s a Democrat judge, he’s very liberal, and I believe he’s under a lot of pressure,” Trump said in a hallway outside the courtroom.

Trump also repeated attacks against New York Attorney General Letitia James, who brought the case accusing Trump, two of his adult sons, the Trump Organization and others of a yearslong pattern of business fraud.

James seeks around $250 million in damages, and a court order permanently barring Trump and other defendants from running a business in New York.

Both James and Trump were present in court Tuesday morning.

Judge Arthur Engoron has already ruled that Trump and others in the case are liable for fraud. The judge’s decision revoked the defendants’ New York business certificates and ordered an independent receiver to oversee their dissolution. A New York appeals court has temporarily paused the cancellation of those certificates.

The trial centers on James’ six remaining claims in the case, which is being conducted without a jury. Engoron will deliver verdicts in the case himself.

Trump’s remarks outside court came after he slammed Engoron as a “Radical Left Democrat” in a social media post Tuesday morning.

“America cannot let this happen. Our legal system is corrupt and broken!” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

Trump had initially planned to be present at the trial this week for the testimony of Michael Cohen, his former personal lawyer and fixer.

Cohen’s testimony before Congress in 2019, in which he alleged that the Trump Organization misleadingly changed the values of key real estate assets for financial benefits, prompted James to launch a probe into Trump and his business.

But Cohen’s expected appearance in the trial was delayed because of what he called a “pre-existing medical condition that impedes my ability to testify.”

“Rest assured, I will testify at the earliest opportunity,” Cohen said Saturday in a statement to NBC News.

Trump has denied wrongdoing in the case. He repeatedly criticized James, the judge and the proceedings generally when he was in court for part of the first week of the trial in early October.

During that stretch, Engoron imposed a partial gag order on Trump after the former president sent a social media post attacking the judge’s law clerk.

Engoron ordered Trump and others in the case not to speak publicly about any member of his staff.

Trump has since been hit with another partial gag order in a federal criminal case in Washington, D.C., where he faces charges related to his efforts to overturn his 2020 election loss to President Joe Biden.

Trump, who is running for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination, left the New York civil trial after two-and-a-half days, after complaining that he was “stuck here” instead of campaigning.

He is not required to attend the trial, which is expected to last until late December.

Trump in the Truth Social post Tuesday morning repeated his claim that he has been unfairly denied a jury in the case.

“I can’t have a JURY and am being viciously tried under a Statute that has never been used before. The Radical Left Democrat Judge, WHO IS HIGHLY POLITICAL, serves as Judge, Jury, and everything else,” he said.

This is developing news. Please check back for updates.

Unidentified flying objects, or UFOs, have captured the imagination of Americans for decades. But much of the conversation has been confined to science fiction movies and novels.

In the absence of government commentary on the topic, conspiracy theories have run rampant. A big one suggests the U.S. has been concealing alien life and technology in secret compounds like Area 51 in Nevada. A 2019 poll found 68% of respondents believed the U.S. government knows “more about UFOs than it is telling us.”

The government is trying to change the narrative. In an attempt to be more transparent and address potential national security questions, Washington, D.C. has taken up the charge to publicize and legitimize the study of unidentified anomalous phenomena, or UAPs, as the military has rebranded UFOs.

“I think they have started to recognize that we should actually have the ability to report these objects, not because we’re out there doing some type of UFO hunt, but because it’s a matter of national security and domain awareness that the tactical air crew in this country understand what’s in front of their aircraft,” said Ryan Graves, executive director of the UAP-focused nonprofit Americans for Safe Aerospace.

A former U.S. Navy pilot, Graves also testified before Congress in July, alongside two other former military officials, about his experience with UAPs.

That Congressional hearing followed a flurry of government activity aimed at demystifying UAPs. In June 2021, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence released a preliminary report on UAPs, followed in November by the Pentagon establishing a group to identify and track objects in restricted airspace.

Then, in June 2022, NASA convened an independent expert panel to help study UAP incidents and advise the Department of Defense on how to gather and interpret data on UAPs. The next month, the DoD established the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office, or AARO, to synchronize efforts across DoD and other federal agencies in detecting and investigating UAP sightings.

Watch the video to find out more.