Author: chicagoinquirer

by Emma Farge GENEVA – WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala will seek another four-year term as head of the World Trade Organization following a broad Africa-led push to start the process early, aiming to complete “unfinished business” from her first mandate. Okonjo-Iweala, 70, a former Nigerian finance minister, made history by becoming the first female and African chief of the 30-year-old trade body in 2021. “I would like to be part of this chapter of the WTO story and I stand ready to compete for the position,” Okonjo-Iweala told Reuters on Monday in comments later confirmed by a WTO statement. “For…

by David Shepardson and Nandita Bose WASHINGTON -The 1.3 million-member Teamsters union could decide who to endorse in the 2024 U.S. presidential election as early as Wednesday after members met Democratic candidate Kamala Harris on Monday, Teamsters President Sean O’Brien said. Union representatives met her Republican rival Donald Trump in January. “We can’t kick this can down the road,” O’Brien told reporters after meeting with Harris for nearly an hour. Most major unions have endorsed Harris, including the United Auto Workers union. The AFL-CIO, which represents 60 unions and 12.5 million workers, endorsed Harris in July. The Teamsters are one…

by Brian P.D. Hannon Tito Jackson, one of the brothers who made up the beloved pop group the Jackson 5, has died at age 70. Tito was the third of nine Jackson children, which include global superstars Michael and sister Janet, part of a music-making family whose songs are still beloved today. “It’s with heavy hearts that we announce that our beloved father, Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Tito Jackson is no longer with us. We are shocked, saddened and heartbroken. Our father was an incredible man who cared about everyone and their well-being,” his sons TJ, Taj and…

LONDON – When the Federal Reserve delivers a widely-anticipated interest rate cut on Wednesday, its first in four years, the move will resonate well beyond the United States. The size of a first move and the scale of overall easing remains open to debate, while a looming U.S. election is another complicating factor for global investors and ratesetters looking for a steer from the Fed and pinning hopes on an economic soft landing. “We don’t know yet what kind of cycle this is going to be – will it be like 1995 when there was just 75 bps of cuts…

by Brad Brooks and Alexandra Ulmer PALM BEACH – A gunman attempted to assassinate Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump on Sunday at Trump’s golf course in Palm Beach, Florida, authorities said. CNN, Fox News and The New York Times identified the suspect as Ryan Wesley Routh, 58, of Hawaii, citing unidentified law enforcement officials. The FBI declined to comment and Reuters could not independently verify his identity. Here is what we know so far about the suspected gunman: GUN BARREL IN BUSHES The Secret Service said its agents were accompanying Trump on the golf course, when one who was securing…

HOUSTON- Ka’imi Fairbairn booted four field goals — including three that went for 50-plus yards — and the host Houston Texans rode a stifling defensive performance to a 19-13 victory over the Chicago Bears on Sunday night. Bears rookie quarterback Caleb Williams threw two interceptions and absorbed seven sacks, with Texans defensive ends Danielle Hunter and Will Anderson Jr. combining for three of those to pace the suffocating attack. Williams passed for 174 yards as the Bears (1-1) totaled just 205 yards of offense. Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud passed for 260 yards and a touchdown to Nico Collins, who finished…

by Camillus Eboh ABUJA – Nigerian state oil firm NNPC Ltd on Monday increased the price of petrol by 11%, the second increase in two weeks and a day after it started purchasing the fuel from the giant Dangote oil refinery on the outskirts of Lagos. Nigeria expects the 650,000 barrels per day refinery to end years of imports of gasoline, which had been subsidised for decades until President Bola Tinubu began removing support when he took office in May last year. The price of gasoline is a sensitive issue in Nigeria because many households and small businesses use it…

BAMAKO – Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger will introduce new biometric passports as part of their withdrawal from a West African bloc in favour of a new Sahel alliance after military leaders seized power in all three countries, Mali’s leader said on Sunday. The three junta-led Sahel neighbours jointly announced in January they would leave the 15-member Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), which has sought to persuade them to reconsider their decision. Burkina Faso announced earlier this month that it was rolling out new passports without the ECOWAS logo. “In the coming days, a new biometric passport of…

by Gram Slattery and David Ljunggren PALM BEACH, FLORIDA -Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump was safe on Sunday after what the FBI said appeared to be a second assassination attempt while he was golfing on his course in West Palm Beach, Florida. Law enforcement officials said U.S. Secret Service agents spotted and fired on a gunman in some bushes near the property line who dropped an AK-47-style assault rifle and was arrested after fleeing the scene. The New York Times and Fox News identified the suspect as Ryan Wesley Routh, 58, of Hawaii, citing unnamed law enforcement officials. The FBI…

KYIV – President Joe Biden is looking forward to discussing Ukraine’s war strategy with President Volodymyr Zelenskiy this month and Washington is working on a “substantial” new aid package, White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said on Saturday. Zelenskiy has said he wants to present a “victory plan” that could push Russia to end its war in Ukraine diplomatically to Biden and his two potential successors. “I do think we need a comprehensive strategy for success in this war and that is what President Zelenskiy says he is bringing, so we are very much looking forward to sitting down…