KIGALI, Aug 11 (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Thursday he discussed with Rwandan President Paul Kagame "credible reports" that Rwanda continued to support the M23 rebel group in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Blinken said Kagame and Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi had agreed to engage in direct talks to address the fighting in eastern Congo.

The U.S. senior diplomat is on a visit to Kigali less than a week after it emerged United Nations experts had found "solid evidence" Rwanda has been interfering militarily in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. Rwanda's government has disputed the U.N. findings. read more

The numbers: The U.S. producer price index fell 0.5% in July, the Labor Department said Thursday. That’s down from a 1.0% jump in June.

Economists polled by The Wall Street Journal had forecast a 0.2% advance.

The core producer price index, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, rose 0.2% in July, down from a 0.3% gain in the prior...

It’s trendy for employers to offer unlimited paid time off, and for good reason: To workers, it seems like a dream. Roughly 1 in 10 companies has adopted such plans, and they’re motivated by four primary benefits, none of which directly relate to employee leave.

All these benefits can blind an organization to the problems of unlimited PTO. The policy doesn’t work with hourly employees (unlimited unpaid time off can), and it can breed inequity and inconsistency, because it depends on manager approval. And, critically, a simple unlimited PTO policy doesn’t fix the problem of burnout among employees who don’t take enough time away from the office. With unlimited PTO, the always-on mentality can slip in, manifesting in people answering emails even while attempting to take time away from work, because they’re worried that a colleague who’s in the office—not lounging on the beach—might get an edge on a promotion.

A new virus, Langya, is suspected to have caused infections in 35 people in China’s Shandong and Henan provinces.

It’s related to Hendra and Nipah viruses, which cause disease in humans.

However, there’s much we don’t know about the new virus – known as LayV for short – including whether it spreads from human to human.

Therefore, City A.M. caught up with one of the world’s leading experts in this field, Allen Cheng, Professor of Infectious Diseases at Monash University.

He has shared what we know so far, including how sick people are getting, where the virus came from and what we can learn from related viruses.

In the wake of China's military drills around Taiwan that followed House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's visit to the island, the Biden administration is rethinking its plans to modify tariffs on Chinese goods, according to a Reuters report that cites "sources familiar with the deliberations." 

Biden has been eyeing reduced tariffs as a means of countering U.S. price inflation that remains near 40-year highs. At the same time, the administration has been considering the imposition of new tariffs. Now, however, both kinds of adjustments are getting a new look as the White House is wary of signaling either weakness or escalation in the face of Chinese saber-rattling.  

"After Speaker Pelosi's visit to Taiwan, it's particularly complicated. So the president is weighing his options," Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo told Bloomberg TV. "He is very cautious. He wants to make sure that we don't do anything which would hurt American labor...

KIGALI, Aug 11 (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Wednesday he had raised with Rwanda's president U.S. concerns over the jailing of Paul Rusesabagina, portrayed in the film "Hotel Rwanda" sheltering hundreds of people during the 1994 genocide.

Rusesabagina, 67, a U.S. permanent resident, was sentenced last September to 25 years in prison over eight terrorism charges tied to an organization opposed to President Paul Kagame's rule.

Rwanda's foreign minister Vincent Biruta said he was convicted lawfully, but Rusesabagina has denied all the charges and refused to take part in a trial that he and his supporters have called a political sham. The United States in May determined he had been wrongfully detained.

LONDON, Aug 10 (Reuters) - Decomposing food waste is releasing thousands of tonnes of planet-warming methane gas at landfills in Buenos Aires, Delhi, Mumbai, and Lahore, new research finds.

With about 570 million tonnes of the greenhouse gas emitted every year from both industrial and natural processes, the concentration of methane in the atmosphere has been increasing at a record pace, according to the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

In some countries, the biggest source is agricultural fields and farm animals — particularly cows but also livestock and chickens. In the United States, the oil and gas industry is largely responsible.

Trade Alert is cutting-edge, order-flow analysis. We add real-time context and unique insight to market activity for a highly automated and fragmented market. Experience Trade Alert through our expert commentary, front-end platform, APIs and data services.

NEW YORK, Aug 10 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Walt Disney (DIS.N) has pulled a rabbit out of its hat when it comes to streaming. The Mouse House on Wednesday reported that it now has as many subscribers to its video services – Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+ – as Netflix (NFLX.O), totaling 221 million customers. Additionally, Disney rolled out its pricing strategy for its forthcoming ad model for Disney+. Starting Dec. 8, the $205 billion company run by Bob Chapek will offer a service with ads at $7.99 per month. It is hiking the ad-free price by $3 monthly.

Chapek also lowered the company’s forecast for the service, emphasizing a renewed focus on margins. Though Disney will charge less than Netflix, which costs about $15 a month in North America, it has more to lose with a price war. That may be one reason why it’s jumping the gun, releasing a strategy ahead of Netflix revealing its own ad-supported tier. Still, Netflix can probably lower its prices, too. And with widening...

U.S. stock-index futures rose to their highest in three months on Thursday after another batch of inflation data appeared to confirm that price pressures eased by a larger-than-expected degree in July.

International trade has progressed enormously since the founding of the WTO in 1995. The world trades a lot more – from just over 5 trillion dollars' worth of goods in 1995 to more than 22 trillion dollars in 2021. The world also trades in new ways - e-commerce accounts for more than 20 percent of total retail sales worldwide. Supply chains have also revolutionized trade, leading to the rise of products made "in the world".Despite this radical transformation, the WTO and the rules of trade remain largely unchanged. Ambassador Didier Chambovey of Switzerland, the General Council Chair, and the WTO's Joan Apecu talk about the efforts to keep the organization fit for purpose and ready to respond to the realities of 21st century commerce.

The figure was calculated by looking at the impact of inflation on workers’ living standards using the latest Bank forecasts. The TUC said that workers have not suffered such a severe and prolonged decline in wages relative to inflation since the 1920s.

Tens of thousands of workers have signalled that they are prepared to strike after a series of ballots for industrial action.

More than 115,000 UK postal workers are to stage a series of strikes later this month after they rejected a pay offer worth up to 5.5%. They could soon be joined by up to 480,000 nurses after the Royal College of Nursing urged its members to back strike action in support of a pay claim for 5% above June’s 11.8% retail prices index (RPI) measure of inflation.

Ministers offered nurses a 3% pay award with a top-up for senior nurses to 4%. But the RCN, which has increased its strike fund by £15m to £50m, said: “This leaves an experienced nurse over £1,000 worse off in real terms.”

The...

The US PPI came in lower than expected which is helping to keep the USD down. In the morning video, I take a look at the 3 major pairs vs the USD (EURUSD, USDJPY and GBPUSD) and outline the bias, the risk and the targets for each.

Good fortune with your trading.

European power prices rose to fresh records on Thursday as a blistering rally showed no signs of abating.

The gains reflect a tight market for natural gas -- used to fuel power plants -- as Russia cuts supplies just as Europe works to replenish stockpiles for winter. A drop in nuclear-reactor output, as well as low wind and hydro generation, has exacerbated the squeeze, raising the specter of intervention to reduce demand.