September, 2019

• 14 September

  US’s Amtrak derailment victims to get $16.75m

  Bloomberg A jury has awarded three plaintiffs injured in a 2017 Amtrak derailment outside DuPont, Washington a total of $16.75 million in damages, Luvera Law Firm said in a statement. The plaintiffs, Dale Skyllingstad, Blaine Wilmotte and Madison Wilmotte, are the first group of victims to take the railway carrier to trial for the incident that killed three men and ...

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• 14 September

  Storm to scrape Florida coast as it strengthens, turns seaward

  

  Bloomberg The storm system that’s rained on the Bahamas for two days, slowing the recovery from Hurricane Dorian, is set to become Tropical Storm Humberto when it scrapes by Florida and veers sharply out to sea. Parts of Florida remain on a tropical storm watch and will probably get heavy rain in any case. The system has sustained winds of ...

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• 14 September

  France expects big budget gap amid tax cuts

  Bloomberg The French government boosted its budget-deficit forecast, amid global economic headwinds and a drag on finances from President Emmanuel Macron’s stimulus in response to the Yellow Vest protests. The finance ministry cut the 2020 growth forecast to 1.3 percent from 1.4 percent previously and raised its budget deficit target to 2.2 percent of economic output from the 2.1 percent ...

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• 14 September

  Employers ring alarm as Poland promises to double ‘wage’

  

  Bloomberg Polish employer groups are voicing alarm over government plans to nearly double the minimum wage and hike social security fees, saying that businesses and the wider economy will face major risks from fast-rising costs. Seeking to further boost its poll-leading standings ahead of next month’s general election, Poland’s ruling party has pledged to raise the minimum wage by 78 ...

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• 14 September

  Taiwan ‘ready to move swiftly’ to seal F-16 jet deal with US

  

  Bloomberg Taiwan has signalled to US officials that it will move swiftly to complete the purchase of 66 new F-16 fighters once congressional foreign relations committees complete their review this month, according to a State Department official. The department formally notified Congress on August 20 that it approved the sale, which includes munitions, defensive electronics and a top-of-the line fire-control ...

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• 14 September

  US asserts freedom of navigation in S China Sea

  

  Bloomberg The US Navy has asserted that the recent passage of its guided-missile destroyer USS Wayne E Meyer in waters near the Paracel Islands in the South China Sea is consistent with its stance on international law that allows freedom of navigation, according to a statement on Saturday. “China, Taiwan, and Vietnam each claim sovereignty over the Paracel Islands,“ the ...

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• 14 September

  Taliban seeks support to force US from Afghanistan

  Bloomberg The Taliban sent a team to Russia, and plans to visit China, Iran and Central Asian states to gauge support for the US to be forced to leave Afghanistan, Reuters reported, citing the group’s officials. The group wants to keep regional leaders informed about the breakdown of the talks and US President Donald Trump’s decision to suspend the process ...

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• 14 September

  Malaysia opposition pact a ‘credible threat’ to Mahathir

  

  Bloomberg A pact between Malaysia’s biggest opposition parties is set to pose a key challenge to Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad’s multiracial coalition that has sought to win support from the Malay Muslim majority. United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) the largest party in the alliance that ruled the country for six decades before being ousted last year, and Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party ...

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• 14 September

  Cameron gets Brexit revenge on UK PM

  

  Bloomberg Three-and-a-half years after he quit as British prime minister in the wake of the Brexit referendum, David Cameron has got his revenge on the man he blames for his defeat: Boris Johnson. In an interview with the Times newspaper ahead of the publication of his memoirs next week, Cameron accused Johnson of originally campaigning for Brexit not because he ...

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• 14 September

  Ruling worsens agony for migrants at US’s border

  

  Bloomberg US Supreme Court decision preventing thousands of migrants from claiming asylum at the border threatens families as safety and health deteriorate for a suddenly immobile population, say immigration lawyers and activists. The travellers, many with small children, are now rushing to find housing, food and medical care as they’re stuck in dangerous Mexican border cities for far longer than ...

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