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OPEC+ members agree to significant voluntary oil production cuts

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:14:08 GMT

London (CNN) — Several OPEC+ countries agreed to voluntarily cut oil production by a total of 2.2 million barrels per day in the first quarter of 2024, the oil producing group announced Thursday.Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest exporter of crude oil, will lead the effort by extending a voluntary production cut of 1 million barrels per day of oil — previously intended to run till the end of December — by another three months, according to a statement from OPEC+, which comprises the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies.The kingdom’s production will stay at around 9 million barrels a day until the end of March 2024, the state-run Saudi Press Agency said, citing “an official source from the Ministry of Energy,” after Saudi officials met with other major oil-producing nations in Vienna Thursday.In addition to Saudi Arabia, the following voluntary barrel-per-day production cuts were announced: Russia by 500,000; Iraq by 223,000; the United Emira...

‘Lost’ Botticelli masterpiece worth $109 million found in home in southern Italy

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:14:08 GMT

Rome (CNN) — A painting by the 15th-century master Sandro Botticelli, recorded as missing since the 1980s, has been found at a home in southern Italy.The depiction of the Virgin Mary and infant Christ was discovered in a home in the town of Gragnano, near Naples, according to the Carabinieri Cultural Heritage Protection Unit of Naples.The painting by the artist most famous for “The Birth of Venus” and “Primavera” is estimated by Italian authorities to be worth at least €100 million ($109 million). It was commissioned for the Roman Catholic Church in 1470.The 58- x 80-centimeter (23- x 31-inch) work, painted in tempera on wood, had hung in a church in the Neapolitan suburb of Santa Maria la Carità since the early 1900s, after the church it was originally given to burned down.When an earthquake damaged the church in 1982, the painting was given by the parish to a local family named Somma for safekeeping, according to a spokesman for the Italian minis...

Ghostly new figures appear in the waters of the Caribbean

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:14:08 GMT

(CNN) — The world’s first underwater sculpture park has just gotten a lot bigger.Created by British sculptor and ecologist Jason deCaires Taylor in 2006, the Molinere Bay Underwater Sculpture Park in Grenada is now one of the Caribbean country’s most popular underwater attractions.The captivating installation recently expanded significantly, with 31 new sculptures added to the site, situated in a marine protected area off the west coast of the island.Among the new additions is “Coral Carnival,” a sculpture series based on Spicemas, Grenada’s hugely popular carnival that showcases iconic masqueraders such as the “Jab Jab,” a character with chains who is a symbol of freedom for Grenadians.Underwater attractionCommissioned by the Grenadian Ministry of Implementation and Tourism, the project aims to showcase Grenada’s culture and history.“The carnival is obviously a very, very strong part of Grenada’s culture and history, so they wanted to tell that story,” deCaires Taylo...

Mild December Start

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:14:08 GMT

Nice to feel the thaw yesterday as temps jumped up into the mid to upper 40s yesterday afternoon. If that wasn’t mild enough for you, we have another step up in the temp department today as highs jump up into the low to mid 50s. While we start with quite a bit of sunshine today, by midday, clouds advance in, fading out the sun. By the evening commute, spotty light showers break out, becoming a bit more widespread by the end on the evening commute and through midnight tonight. The rain is generally light, totaling .10″ or less for most. However, it’ll be enough to want to keep the umbrella handy and to dampen the ground. Rain tapers off overnight tonight, allowing for a dry start to the weekend. Tomorrow is pretty mild from start to finish as temps run near 40 in the morning and in the mid 50s in the afternoon. We’ll have more clouds than sun. Sunday, showers advance back in, becoming more widespread in the afternoon, especially late in the day. Rain is steady...

Paul Duchane Basketball Jamboree schedule

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:14:08 GMT

The 30th annual Paul Duchane varsity girls basketball preseason Jamboree is scheduled for Saturday, December 9, 2023 at Lynn Classical High School. The event is in honor of longtime educator Paul Duchane and the schedule is as follows:2:30 PM Malden vs. Swampscott3:10 PM Somerville vs. Danvers3:50 PM Hamilton Wenham vs. Peabody4:30 PM Marblehead vs. North Reading5:10 PM Billerica vs. Bishop Fenwick5:50 PM Saugus vs. St. Mary’s6:30 PM Georgetown vs. Lynn English7:10 PM Lynn Classical vs. Melrose

Residents asked to shelter as police investigate ‘active weapons incident’ in Ohsweken: OPP

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:14:08 GMT

Residents are being asked to shelter in place as police investigate an “active weapons incident” near Ohsweken, Ont.Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) say officers responded to a weapons call in the area of 6th Line and Chiefswood Road on Six Nations of the Grand River around 10:30 p.m. Thursday.OPP are assisting Six Nations Police with the incident.Residents are being asked to shelter in place. Police are also asking motorists to avoid the area.6th Line is closed between Chiefswood Road and Tuscarora Road for the investigation.

Russia’s Lavrov insists goals in Ukraine are unchanged as he faces criticism at security talks

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:14:08 GMT

SKOPJE, North Macedonia (AP) — Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Friday his government was not prepared to “review its goals” in Ukraine — delivering a blunt and confrontational message to Western leaders on a rare trip to a NATO member state.“We aren’t seeing any signals from Kyiv or its masters about their readiness to seek any kind of political settlement,” Lavrov told reporters while attending a security conference in North Macedonia.“We see no reason to review our goals,” he said.North Macedonia, which joined NATO in 2020, waived a flight ban on Russian officials so that Lavrov could attend the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, prompting the foreign ministers of Ukraine, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania to skip the meeting in protest.U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken made a brief stop in North Macedonia’s capital of Skopje before Lavrov arrived.Participants at the two-day conference accused Moscow of undermining the OSCE. The Vienna, Austria-based...

National Bank reports Q4 profit up from year ago, raises quarterly dividend

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:14:08 GMT

MONTREAL — National Bank of Canada reported its fourth-quarter profit rose compared with a year ago and raised its dividend.The bank says it will now make a quarterly payment to shareholders of $1.06 per share, up from $1.02.National Bank says it earned $768 million or $2.14 per diluted share for the quarter ended Oct. 31, up from $738 million or $2.08 per diluted share a year earlier.Revenue totalled $2.59 billion for the quarter, up from $2.33 billion in the same quarter last year.National Bank’s provision for credit losses amounted to $115 million, up from $87 million in the fourth quarter of 2022. On an adjusted basis, National Bank says it earned $2.44 per diluted share, up from an adjusted profit of $2.08 per diluted share in the same quarter last year.This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 1, 2023.Companies in this story: (TSX: NA)The Canadian Press

Cyprus and Chevron reach a deal to develop an offshore natural gas field, ending years of delays

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:14:08 GMT

NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — The Cyprus government and U.S. energy company Chevron have reached a deal on how to develop the Aphrodite gas field, the first to be discovered under the seafloor off Cyprus, an official said Friday. The field is estimated to hold 4.2 trillion cubic feet of gas.The agreement is “mutually beneficial” for both Cyprus and the company, the Cypriot official told The Associated Press but did not disclose further details. It was not immediately clear when the deal was reached. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the agreement publicly.Chevron wanted to send the gas to Egypt through a pipeline, but Cyprus preferred to process it on a floating production facility because it would be more economically beneficial for the Cypriot government and would lend more flexibility to supplying other markets.The agreement ends protracted negotiations that stalled development of the field for years and now paves the way for ext...

The Taliban’s new ambassador to China arrives in Beijing as they court foreign investment

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 09:14:08 GMT

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — The Taliban’s new ambassador to China arrived in Beijing on Friday — the first time Afghanistan’s rulers have officially sent an ambassador to another country since returning to power more than two years ago.No country recognizes the Taliban as the legitimate government of Afghanistan but some, including China, have embassies in the capital. Many other diplomatic missions were shuttered and their staff evacuated as the Taliban bore down on Kabul. China is of particular importance to the Taliban, who are courting foreign investment and regional alliances amid their continued isolation on the international stage because of their restrictions on Afghan women and girls.The new ambassador, Bilal Karimi, who has no diplomatic experience and is in his late 20s or early 30s, was welcomed in Beijing by China’s special envoy for Afghan affairs at the Foreign Ministry, Yue Xiaoyong, according to a Taliban statement. Karimi presented his credentials to the ...