We are at a pivotal moment for women’s rights. The historical and structural inequalities that have allowed oppression and discrimination to flourish are being exposed like never before. From Latin America to Europe to Asia, on social media, on film sets, on the factory floor and in the streets, women are calling for lasting change and zero tolerance for sexual assault, harassment, and discrimination of all kinds.
Brazilian police arrested the former chief executive of major food processor BRF SA on charges that he and other executives knew the company, the world’s largest poultry exporter, engaged in fraud to evade food safety checks. Shares in BRF plunged 19% on the Sao Paulo stock exchange as the arrest compounded concerns about BRF’s leadership following a 1.1 billion Reais loss last year.
United States-based oil giant ExxonMobil says the latest oil discovery in Guyana will help bring production to more than 500,000 barrels per day. In a statement, the oil company said that it was satisfied with the discovery in the Pacora Well that was safely drilled to a depth of 18,363 feet in 6,781 feet of water. It said drilling began on January 29 this year.
Venezuela’s oil production is running 1.5 million barrels per day (bpd) short of its historic output but it is something that the country must address itself, Ecuador oil minister Carlos Perez said. Caracas should address the shortfall on its own, added Perez on the sidelines of the CERAWeek energy conference in Houston.
United States shale oil output is set to surge over the next five years as drillers recover rapidly from a three-year slump, the International Energy Agency said, sharply upgrading its previous growth forecasts. A landmark deal in 2017 between OPEC and other oil producers including Russia to curb output in order to battle a global glut materially improved the outlook for other producers as oil prices rose sharply throughout the year, the IEA said.
Argentina’s state-owned oil company YPF SA expects shale oil and gas production to grow 35% in 2018, as costs in the Vaca Muerta shale play continue to fall, Chief Financial Officer Daniel Gonzalez said. Still, declining production in mature fields means overall hydrocarbon output will fall 2 to 3% in 2018 after a 5.3% reduction in 2017, Chairman Miguel Gutierrez said.
Motorbikes, whiskey and T-shirts are among the US goods that could be hit by EU taxes if the US imposes import tariffs on steel and aluminum. The EU has drawn up a target list of 100 US goods worth €2.8bn (US$3.5bn), the BBC understands.
A thriving “hotspot” of 1.5 million Adelie penguins, a species fast declining in parts of the world, has been discovered on remote islands off the Antarctic Peninsula, surprised scientists. The first bird census of the Danger Islands unearthed over 750,000 Adelie breeding pairs, more than the rest of the area combined, the team reported in the journal Scientific Reports.
Top economic adviser Gary Cohn is leaving the White House after breaking with President Donald Trump on trade policy, the latest in a string of high-level departures from the West Wing.
Britain has threatened a robust response if it is proven that Russia is behind the apparent attempted killing of a former double agent. Sergei Skripal and his daughter were found collapsed in their home town in southern England on Sunday, showing symptoms of poisoning.