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Natural Gas Boosted By Near-Term Cold Weather Forecasts

.Natural gas futures climbed early Wednesday as traders hoped that forecasted cold weather would increase demand for gas-powered heating and help reduce natural gas stockpiles. Natural gas for December delivery rose 9.3 cents, or 2.62%, to $3.648 a million British thermal units on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Prices have wavered this week as market participants have weighed colder forecasts, which could increase use of natural gas to heat homes and offices, against high production and supplies. A “series of cold polar air masses” are expected to hit the East Coast this week and next, and the central U.S. could see snow, according to private forecaster WSI Energycast. However, forecasts in the […]

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IEA and Emerging Countries to Collaborate More Closely

The International Energy Agency and six emerging economies including China and India agreed to pursue stronger cooperation, the IEA said on Wednesday in a bid to strengthen ties with non-members whose share in global oil demand has grown rapidly. The initiative to form an “association” between the West’s energy watchdog, combining 28 developed economies, and non-members is aimed at boosting ties on energy security, data sharing and energy market analysis, the Paris-based group said. China, the world’s top energy consumer, India, Russia, South Africa, Brazil and Indonesia have signed the joint declaration, a non-legally binding agreement. As oil demand growth has shifted from developed to emerging countries over the past decade, the IEA has looked to non-members to preserve its importance as an international agency. “Energy governance is an increasingly important element of the global energy economy,” Maria van der Hoeven, the […]

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Car bomb in Iraq kills 25: mayor, medics

A car bomb exploded in a busy market in northeastern Iraq on Thursday, killing at least 25 people and wounding more than 30, the town’s mayor and medical sources said. Iraq is suffering its worst wave of violence in at least five years, with insurgents targeting mainly Shi’ite Muslim civilians in attacks on public places such as shopping areas and cafes. Thursday’s attack took place in Sadiya, 65 km (40 miles) northeast of Baghdad. "I was sitting in my store when I heard a huge explosion. I could not recognize anything because dust engulfed the place. Shattered glass was everywhere," grocery store owner Suhair Gadhban told Reuters by telephone, adding that he had been wounded in the leg. Suhair said he had seen dozens of people lying near the scene of the explosion as he was being taken for medical aid. "Some of them had […]

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World powers, Iran make new attempt to clinch nuclear deal

World powers aim to clinch a preliminary deal to curb Iran’s nuclear program in politically charged talks resuming in Geneva on Wednesday to end a long standoff and head off the risk of a wider Middle East war. The United States, Russia, China, France, Britain and Germany came tantalizingly close to winning concessions from Iran on the scope of its nuclear work in return for some sanctions relief at negotiations in the Swiss city on November 7-9. Top policymakers from the sextet have since said that an interim accord on confidence-building steps to start defusing a decade of suspicion and hostility between the West and Iran could finally be within reach. But diplomats caution that differences remain and could still prevent an agreement during the talks Wednesday through Friday. "There is a good chance. There is a hope the Iranians realize it’s a good deal and […]

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France, Iran trade barbs, tempering hopes of nuclear deal

France and Iran traded tough words on Thursday before major powers began to negotiate the details of a preliminary accord to curb Tehran’s nuclear program with Paris warning the West had to remain firm and Tehran deploring a loss of trust. Each side appeared to be tempering anticipation of an imminent agreement after the United States, Russia, China, France, Britain and Germany came close to winning concessions from Tehran in the last round of negotiations two weeks ago. Policymakers from the six governments have said an interim accord on confidence-building steps could be within reach to defuse a decade-old stand-off and dispel the specter of a wider Middle East war over the Islamic Republic’s nuclear ambitions. But before negotiations began in earnest on Thursday, France and Iran stepped up the rhetoric. French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, who spoke out against a draft deal floated at the […]

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Iran Talks Enter Critical Phase as France Signals Unity

Diplomats seeking to reach an interim accord to ease a decade-long standoff over Iran’s nuclear program began a critical phase of talks today, an Iranian negotiator said. Iran ’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif met with European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton in Geneva, according to an EU statement. U.S. and Iranian negotiators were also set to have direct talks this morning, according to the U.S. delegation. “All will depend on the Ashton talks with Zarif,” Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told reporters in the Swiss city. The six world powers Iran is negotiating with need a common stance at this “critical juncture,” he said. Envoys are trying to strike a first-step accord that would give negotiators a six-month window in which to win a broader agreement over Iran’s nuclear work. Israel and the U.S. have said they’re prepared to strike Iran, which controls the world’s No. […]

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Iran's Comments on Israel Deemed 'Unacceptable' as Talks Open

Iran’s leader launched an anti-Western broadside as global powers resumed negotiations on curbing Tehran’s nuclear program, injecting fresh uncertainty into a diplomatic process viewed as crucial to Middle East stability. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s verbal attacks on Israel, the U.S. and its allies during a speech in Tehran Wednesday—he referred to the Jewish state as a “dirty rabid dog”—also tested the unity of the six international powers holding talks with Iran in Geneva this week. The French government quickly challenged Mr. Khamenei, calling his speech “unacceptable,” while the Obama administration offered a much milder response. This divergence mirrored the differing tactics Paris and Washington displayed two weeks ago during negotiations in the Swiss lakeside city. Then, French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius publicly broke from the U.S. and other international powers and called the terms of the agreement being pursued with Tehran a “fool’s game.” French officials said Wednesday […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Iran’s Comments on Israel Deemed ‘Unacceptable’ as Talks Open

Iran’s leader launched an anti-Western broadside as global powers resumed negotiations on curbing Tehran’s nuclear program, injecting fresh uncertainty into a diplomatic process viewed as crucial to Middle East stability. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s verbal attacks on Israel, the U.S. and its allies during a speech in Tehran Wednesday—he referred to the Jewish state as a “dirty rabid dog”—also tested the unity of the six international powers holding talks with Iran in Geneva this week. The French government quickly challenged Mr. Khamenei, calling his speech “unacceptable,” while the Obama administration offered a much milder response. This divergence mirrored the differing tactics Paris and Washington displayed two weeks ago during negotiations in the Swiss lakeside city. Then, French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius publicly broke from the U.S. and other international powers and called the terms of the agreement being pursued with Tehran a “fool’s game.” French officials said Wednesday […]

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Gulf Arabs Face Mixed Blessing From an Iran Accord: Arab Credit

A nuclear deal between Iran and countries including the U.S. and Russia could prompt sovereign upgrades of Persian Gulf Arab nations even as it may cut their revenue by causing oil prices to fall, according to IHS Inc. “The reduction in geopolitical risk would serve as a key trigger for a sovereign ratings review for the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council, and potentially an upgrade,” Bryan Plamondon, an economist specializing in the Middle East at energy consultant IHS, said yesterday by e-mail from Lexington, Massachusetts . “Countries would then likely see benefits in the form of lower borrowing costs and greater foreign investment.” Talks between Iran and the so-called P5+1 group of world powers resumed yesterday in Geneva. “Differences that remain between the parties are narrow, and I believe they can be bridged with political will and commitment,” U.K. Foreign Secretary William Hague said in the city. Concern […]

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Young Palestinian Refugees Join Jihadists Fighting in Syria

;Inside Lebanon’s largest Palestinian refugee camp, disaffected and unemployed youth are increasingly joining radical Islamist groups fighting in Syria, saying it gives their lives a sense of purpose. The growing hold of the jihadists is evident on the street at the camp’s entrance, lined with flags of al Qaeda-linked groups that operate in Lebanon or Syria. Homes on Tawareq Street are pockmarked by bullets and rocket-propelled grenades—scars of recent fighting between Islamist militants and the Lebanese army. The camp’s ties to jihadist groups fighting in Syria came into sharp relief on Tuesday. The head of the group that claimed responsibility for the bombing that killed 25 people outside Iran’s Embassy in Beirut lived in the camp for a time and the brigade operated openly there. The group linked the bombing to the conflict in Syria. The youth of Ain el-Hilweh, Lebanon’s most radicalized camp, have largely […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple