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Iraqis begin voting as violence grips a divided country

Iraqis headed to the polls on Wednesday in their first national election since U.S. forces withdrew from Iraq in 2011, with Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki seeking a third term amid rising violence. Iraq’s western province of Anbar is torn by fighting as Sunni Muslim militants battle the Iraqi military. Its economy is struggling and Maliki faces criticism that he is aggravating sectarian splits and trying to consolidate power. Polls opened at 7 a.m. (12.00 a.m. EDT), with a vehicle curfew imposed on the streets of Baghdad. Voters will choose from among 9,012 candidates and the parliamentary election will effectively serve as a referendum on Maliki, a Shi’ite Muslim who has governed for eight years. Maliki was among the first to cast a vote at a hotel next to the heavily fortified Green Zone enclave where the government is based. He urged people to follow suit despite […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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With Security Tight, Iraqis Cast Votes in Unaccustomed Peace

Millions of Iraqis voted for a new Parliament on Wednesday, defying threats from Islamist extremists, in an election that was carried out, by Iraq’s brutal standards, in remarkable peace. After a surge in violence leading up to the vote, and threats by a Sunni extremist group, the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, or ISIS, to strike polling sites, no attacks were reported in Baghdad, and none with any large numbers of casualties were reported elsewhere in the country. The election, the first nationwide vote since the departure of American troops more than two years ago, was seen as a referendum on Nuri Kamal al-Maliki ’s eight years as prime minister as he seeks a third term amid a growing Sunni insurgency that has brought the country to the edge of a new civil war. But with results pending, the story on Wednesday was simply that the […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Analysis: Oil industry awaits election aftermath

Following Iraq’s elections, leaders are gearing up for the process of coalition-building that will reshape the political landscape, including key energy posts and oil policy. Iraqis braved sectarian polarization and insurgent violence to vote on Wednesday, and as the counting of ballots begins, much is at stake for both average citizens and the oil sector.The vote itself will not decide the next leader of the country, because nobody is likely to win an absolute majority. But the results of the election will help determine the relative strength of various political blocs and set the stage for a complicated process of backroom negotiating and political horse-tradi… This content is for registered users. Please login to continue.If you are not a registered user, you may purchase a subscription or sign up for a free trial .

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Iraq: Violence in Anbar Displacing Thousands

Violence in Iraq’s Anbar Province has forced hundreds of thousands of people from their homes, many of whom are suffering from severe wounds or burns and psychological distress and are now living in dire conditions and facing a lack of access to necessary medical care, the international medical humanitarian organization Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) said today. At least 380,000 people have fled their homes in Anbar. In the last month, more than 18,000 have sought refuge in Tikrit, the capital of neighboring Salah al-Din Province, where MSF is assisting them. “People are arriving with very few belongings,” said Fabio Forgione, MSF head of mission in Iraq. “Most are staying in abandoned schools and mosques. The fact that they will probably be displaced for some time is likely to worsen their already harsh living conditions.” Amid a very volatile security environment in Tikrit, MSF is […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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BG Group's Egypt Woes Continue

BG Group PLC on Thursday reported an 8% fall in first-quarter net profit because of ongoing issues in Egypt, where the company’s output fell and gas that would have been exported has been diverted to the domestic market. BG said volumes from Egyptian LNG were severely restricted with no cargoes lifted by the company in the first quarter. The U.K.’s third-largest natural gas producer posted a net profit of $1.11 billion for the three months ended March 31, compared with a profit of $1.21 billion for the first quarter of 2014. "As a result of the challenges in Egypt, the group’s 2014 production is now expected to be at the lower end of the guidance range," said interim Chief Executive Andrew Gould. Mr. Gould took the […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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BG Group’s Egypt Woes Continue

BG Group PLC on Thursday reported an 8% fall in first-quarter net profit because of ongoing issues in Egypt, where the company’s output fell and gas that would have been exported has been diverted to the domestic market. BG said volumes from Egyptian LNG were severely restricted with no cargoes lifted by the company in the first quarter. The U.K.’s third-largest natural gas producer posted a net profit of $1.11 billion for the three months ended March 31, compared with a profit of $1.21 billion for the first quarter of 2014. "As a result of the challenges in Egypt, the group’s 2014 production is now expected to be at the lower end of the guidance range," said interim Chief Executive Andrew Gould. Mr. Gould took the […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Mexico Outlines New Oil Sector Policies for Private Firms — 2nd Update

Mexico’s government on Wednesday outlined a raft of proposed laws to implement its historic drive to open up its oil and gas industry to competition, including rules that foreign companies will have to include a certain amount of Mexican parts and labor in their work by 2025. The rules set out by the government of President Enrique Peña Nieto were closely watched by the oil industry as a sign of how far the country might be willing to go to attract private investment. Analysts said the rules appeared to be aimed at drawing a large amount of investment quickly and would be positively viewed by most oil companies. The proposals–which were the fine print to sweeping changes to Mexico’s Constitution last December that ended the state monopoly on oil and gas and electricity–will now go to Mexico’s Congress, where they are widely […]

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BYD’s “5-4-2” performance standard for New Energy Vehicles; 3 models over 3 years

Using the recent Beijing Auto Show as its stage, BYD introduced its new “5-4-2” New Energy Vehicle performance standard and a series of cars designed to meet it. “5” represents the maximum time in seconds to accelerate from zero to 100 km/h (0-60 mph in less than 5 seconds) in future car models. “4” stands for the number of wheels under power; BYD’s future new energy cars will be integrated with all-wheel drive. “2” stands for the maximum liters of gasoline maximum that will be consumed for 100 km traveled in a BYD car—i.e., 2.0 l/100 km, or 118 mpg US. BYD introduced its first 5-4-2 vehicle at the show, the Tang plug-in hybrid SUV. Tang accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in only 4.9 seconds, has a 2.0-liter turbocharged engine paired with two electric motors and consumes less than 2L of fuel in 100 km traveled. “This is […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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China PMI steadies, but doesn't dispel growth worries

Activity in China’s factories increased marginally in April but export orders fell sharply, a government survey showed on Thursday, adding to questions about whether the world’s second-largest economy is stabilizing after its first-quarter slowdown. The data came a day after Premier Li Keqiang pledged to step up support for the trade sector, adding to measures taken over the past month on concerns that the economy may be losing momentum more quickly than expected. The Purchasing Managers’ Index rose to 50.4 in April from March’s 50.3, the National Bureau of Statistics said, one of the first indicators of how the economy started the second quarter. At just above the 50 level that separates growth from contraction, it indicated a slight pick-up in activity for the month, although it was a notch below economists’ expectations. Zhang Liqun, an economist at the Development Research Centre, which helps compile the […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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China PMI steadies, but doesn’t dispel growth worries

Activity in China’s factories increased marginally in April but export orders fell sharply, a government survey showed on Thursday, adding to questions about whether the world’s second-largest economy is stabilizing after its first-quarter slowdown. The data came a day after Premier Li Keqiang pledged to step up support for the trade sector, adding to measures taken over the past month on concerns that the economy may be losing momentum more quickly than expected. The Purchasing Managers’ Index rose to 50.4 in April from March’s 50.3, the National Bureau of Statistics said, one of the first indicators of how the economy started the second quarter. At just above the 50 level that separates growth from contraction, it indicated a slight pick-up in activity for the month, although it was a notch below economists’ expectations. Zhang Liqun, an economist at the Development Research Centre, which helps compile the […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple