Town Hall News

By Erwin Seba HOUSTON (Reuters) – A fire burned for a third day on Sunday at Shell Plc’s chemical plant in the Houston suburb of Deer Park, Texas, a company spokesperson said. The fire initially ignited on Friday afternoon in an explosion in an olefins unit, used to make plastics and rubber. The fire was extinguished for a few hours on Saturday morning before it reignited around 3 p.m. CDT […]

(Reuters) – Australia’s Westpac Banking Corp on Monday posted a 22% jump in first-half net profits as margins improved on the back of rising interest rates but warned tough mortgage competition will negatively impact margins going into the second half. Over the past year, aggressive monetary tightening boosted banks’ earnings and margins. However, that could come to an end as inflation, softening home prices, and a cooling economy pose risks […]

KHARTOUM (Reuters) -Fighting could be heard in south Khartoum on Sunday as envoys from Sudan’s warring parties met in Saudi Arabia for talks that international mediators hope will bring an end to a three-week-old conflict that has killed hundreds and triggered an exodus. The U.S.-Saudi initiative is the first serious attempt to end fighting between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) that has turned parts of the […]

By Fernando Kallas MADRID (Reuters) – Carlos Alcaraz is raring to get to Italy next week to compete in the Rome Masters for the first time in his career and reclaim the world number one spot from Novak Djokovic. After retaining his title in Madrid on Sunday by beating lucky loser Jan-Lennard Struff 6-4 3-6 6-3, Alcaraz only has to show up and play in Rome to leapfrog Djokovic. Rankings […]

(Reuters) – An explosion was heard following a missile attack that hit the Black Sea city of Odesa overnight, a local Ukrainian official said, while air raid alerts rang out in other regions of the country including the capital, Kyiv. “There has been an enemy missile attack,” Serhiy Bratchuk, spokesperson for the Odesa military administration, said on his Telegram channel. “Air defense is working on the outskirts of Kyiv!” Kyiv’s […]

(Reuters) – An explosion was heard following a missile attack that hit the Black Sea city of Odesa overnight, a local Ukrainian official said, while air raid alerts rang out in other regions of the country including the capital, Kyiv. “There has been an enemy missile attack,” Serhiy Bratchuk, spokesperson for the Odesa military administration, said on his Telegram channel. “Air defense is working on the outskirts of Kyiv!” Kyiv’s […]

(Reuters) – An explosion was heard following a missile attack that hit the Black Sea city of Odesa overnight, a local Ukrainian official said, while air raid alerts rang out in other regions of the country including the capital, Kyiv. “There has been an enemy missile attack,” Serhiy Bratchuk, spokesperson for the Odesa military administration, said on his Telegram channel. “Air defense is working on the outskirts of Kyiv!” Kyiv’s […]

(Reuters) – Russia has intensified shelling of Bakhmut hoping to take it by Tuesday, Ukraine’s top general in charge of the defence of the besieged city said late on Sunday, vowing to do everything to prevent it. Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskyi, the Ukrainian commander of ground forces, said that Russian forces increased the intensity of shelling with heavy weapons of the city, began to use more advanced equipment and are […]

(Reuters) – Russia has intensified shelling of Bakhmut hoping to take it by Tuesday, Ukraine’s top general in charge of the defence of the besieged city said late on Sunday, vowing to do everything to prevent it. Colonel General Oleksandr Syrskyi, the Ukrainian commander of ground forces, said that Russian forces increased the intensity of shelling with heavy weapons of the city, began to use more advanced equipment and are […]